Office Hours: Coach Juli Benson On Two Decades Of Working With Runners Of All Levels + U.S. Greats Like Jenny Simpson And Nikki Hiltz

Office Hours: Coach Juli Benson On Two Decades Of Working With Runners Of All Levels + U.S. Greats Like Jenny Simpson And Nikki Hiltz

“I also learned that I just love working with athletes who truly have that passion about seeing how good they can be. The outcome isn't as important to me as I thought. It's just, ‘Let's go see how good we can be and see where that lands us...’ Stepping away from college and taking this really windy journey to where I am now, I've been able to work with all different levels of athletes and it's been equally rewarding to those who run their first mile without stopping all the way to the world stage. It's been a non-conventional path, but I've been loving it.”

My guest for today’s episode is someone who’s seen—and shaped—American middle-distance running from just about every angle. Juli Benson was a 1996 Olympian in the 1500 meters, a world-class competitor in her own right, and now she’s one of the most respected coaches in the sport.

Over the past two decades, Juli’s coaching journey has taken her from college programs like Georgetown, Air Force, and Penn to working with World Champions, Olympians, and emerging pros. She coached Jenny Simpson to her gold medal at the 2011 World Championships. She guided Kevin Sullivan back to the global stage. And today, she’s the coach behind Nikki Hiltz, helping them chase a 2028 Olympic dream of their own.

In this episode, we get into it all:

– What makes Nikki tick and how their partnership is evolving

– The differences between coaching NCAA athletes vs. pros

– How Juli learned to balance intensity with recovery—the hard way

– Her reflections on being a woman in the coaching world before there were many to look up to

– And what it’s like now to see coaches like Shalane Flanagan, Diljeet Taylor, and Laurie Henes rise to national prominence

We also talk about Juli’s time at Air Force, the unique challenges of coaching across every level of the sport, and what it’s meant to mentor everyone from Olympic finalists to first-time runners.

This is a conversation about resilience, evolution, and quiet excellence—and it’s one of my favorite coaching deep-dives we’ve done yet.

Hosts: Chris Chavez | ⁠@chris_j_chavez on Instagram

Guest: Juli Benson | julibensontraining.com

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Episoder(964)

NCAA 1500m Champion Maia Ramsden's Global Journey To Success; Signing An NIL Deal With On + How A Miler Makes Cross Country Fun

NCAA 1500m Champion Maia Ramsden's Global Journey To Success; Signing An NIL Deal With On + How A Miler Makes Cross Country Fun

"There have been seasons and periods of my NCAA journey where it hasn't felt fun. To me then it's like, Why are you doing it? Otherwise, it's just painful… The fun part is warming up with my teammates and chatting on the cool down about whatever drama happened with their friends that day. This year at camp when we sat down as a women's team to think through what we want out of this season, that was a big part of our conversation. We want to be successful, absolutely. That’s a top priority here. But how we go about doing that is up to us." 2023 NCAA 1500m champion Maia Ramsden, a junior at Harvard, just signed an NIL deal with On. In this episode, you’ll get to hear a bit more of her story as she’s lived in so many awesome places including New York. New Zealand (which she represents internationally), Fiji, the Solomon Islands, Ethiopia and now Cambridge. She had an amazing season that included a personal best of 4:08 to win the NCAA title in Austin. She’s also having a really great cross country season that included a sixth-place finish at the Nuttycombe Invitational in Wisconsin, which is considered one of the deepest races of the year. She’ll be one to watch at the upcoming Ivy League Championships, NCAA Regional Championships and the NCAA Championships in Charlottesville next month. This was a super fun episode and I’m sure you’ll be rooting for Maia and the Harvard ladies in the coming weeks. Host: Chris Chavez | ⁠⁠@chris_j_chavez on Instagram⁠⁠ Guest: Maia Ramsden | @maia.ramsden on Instagram ⁠ SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS 🍊 OLIPOP is a prebiotic soda with only 2-5g of sugar that is actually good for your gut health. – and it's delicious. Use code CITIUS25 for 25% off non-subscription orders. ⁠⁠Learn more at https://DrinkOlipop.com (click the link or use our promotional code for the discount)⁠⁠ 👟 BANDIT RUNNING is a performance and lifestyle running apparel brand founded by members of the NYC Running Community in 2020. What started as socks and accessories has grown into a full-fledged apparel assortment. Check them out here: ⁠⁠https://banditrunning.com/⁠⁠ GET 15% OFF YOUR ORDERS AT BANDITRUNNING.COM THROUGH OCT. 31 📊 VDOT is offering 20% off their coaching subscription using the code citiusmag. Download V.O2 in the app stores or visit ⁠⁠⁠vdoto2.com⁠⁠⁠ to start your 30-day free trial. Athletes without a coach can use the same code and try out their fully automated VDOT Adaptive Trainer and sync to an Apple Watch, COROS or Garmin. Leverage the world-famous VDOT formulas and take your running to the next level with V.O2 HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST 💻 ⁠⁠Visit CITIUSMAG.com | Our brand-new website hosts tons more podcasts, articles, videos and more. Track and field storytelling all in one place⁠⁠. 🎙️ ⁠⁠Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts⁠⁠. 💵 ⁠⁠Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG⁠⁠ or ⁠⁠Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG⁠⁠ 🎥 ⁠⁠Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube channel

23 Okt 202346min

Marathons Are Getting Shorter + Bonus Interview With New NAZ Elite Head Coach Jack Mullaney | The Lap Count

Marathons Are Getting Shorter + Bonus Interview With New NAZ Elite Head Coach Jack Mullaney | The Lap Count

This is The Lap Count newsletter by Kyle Merber, as read by Chris Chavez. Join more than 15,000 people who stay up-to-date with all the thrilling action and biggest stories in the world of track & field – delivered right to your inbox every Wednesday morning. Subscribe at ⁠http://thelapcount.com/⁠ In this week's newsletter: - The New Age of Marathoning: Short Loop 🔁 - The College XC Roundup: Wisco + Pre Nats 🌲 - The Grand Marathon Championships🇯🇵 - USATF Marathon Trials Athlete Meeting Update 🗣 - LA2028: The Summer of Sports! 🏟 - Meet HOKA NAZ Elite’s Coach Jack Mullaney 🏔 You can read this week's newsletter here ➡️ https://www.thelapcount.com/p/marathons-getting-shorter SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS 👟 NEW BALANCE: Let me tell you something about the New Balance Fresh Foam x 1080… I like them. I use them for running seven-minute pace from my house, and for walking to my car to drive somewhere else to go run seven-minute pace. They’re workhorses and about as reliable of a shoe as you can ever ask for. When someone new to running asks me, “What shoes should I get?” then the New Balance 1080s are my go-to recommendation because everyone likes them, and that theoretical person probably will too. HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST 💻 ⁠Visit CITIUSMAG.com | Our brand-new website hosts tons more podcasts, articles, videos and more. Track and field storytelling all in one place⁠. 🎙️ ⁠Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts⁠. 💵 ⁠Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG⁠ or ⁠Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG⁠ 🎥 ⁠Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube channel

18 Okt 202327min

Jared Ward On His 2:11:44 At The Berlin Marathon While Battling Women's WR Holder Tigist Assefa + Why The Olympic Trials Should Start Earlier

Jared Ward On His 2:11:44 At The Berlin Marathon While Battling Women's WR Holder Tigist Assefa + Why The Olympic Trials Should Start Earlier

“After Berlin, I came home thinking I have a chance to make this team. I’m a stats guy, I’m a realist, it’s not this astronomically high chance — but I have a chance again… I have some of the best training partners in the nation and I have the pieces I think that I need now. So it's a fun opportunity.” My guest for today’s episode is 2016 U.S. Olympian Jared Ward, who just ran 2:11:44 at the Berlin Marathon. It’s been a while since Jared joined us on the show but he’s back to recap that race and how he somehow ended up in a tight battle with Ethiopia’s Tigist Assefa, who ended up breaking the women’s world record in 2:11:53. He also shares some of his thoughts on training partners Conner Mantz and Clayton Young’s big performances in Chicago. Plus, Ward gives us an update regarding some discussion about the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials.  Last week, several of the top U.S. marathoners met with USATF CEO Max Siegel and other members of USATF’s team to discuss the noon start time for the 2024 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials in Orlando. A letter was sent to the national office on Sept. 15 and was signed by 84 athletes. Jared was among the athletes spearheading the conversation to voice concern over the midday heat in Orlando. You can read the full letter here: https://citiusmag.com/articles/us-olympic-trials-marathoners-max-siegel-trials-start-time Host: Chris Chavez | ⁠@chris_j_chavez on Instagram⁠ Guest: Jared Ward |  @jwardy21 on Instagram SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS 🍊 OLIPOP is a prebiotic soda with only 2-5g of sugar that is actually good for your gut health. – and it's delicious. Use code CITIUS25 for 25% off non-subscription orders. ⁠Learn more at https://DrinkOlipop.com (click the link or use our promotional code for the discount)⁠ 👟 BANDIT RUNNING is a performance and lifestyle running apparel brand founded by members of the NYC Running Community in 2020. What started as socks and accessories has grown into a full-fledged apparel assortment. Check them out here: ⁠https://banditrunning.com/⁠ GET 15% OFF YOUR ORDERS AT BANDITRUNNING.COM THROUGH OCT. 31 📊 VDOT is offering 20% off their coaching subscription using the code citiusmag. Download V.O2 in the app stores or visit ⁠⁠vdoto2.com⁠⁠ to start your 30-day free trial. Athletes without a coach can use the same code and try out their fully automated VDOT Adaptive Trainer and sync to an Apple Watch, COROS or Garmin. Leverage the world-famous VDOT formulas and take your running to the next level with V.O2 HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST 💻 ⁠Visit CITIUSMAG.com | Our brand-new website hosts tons more podcasts, articles, videos and more. Track and field storytelling all in one place⁠. 🎙️ ⁠Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts⁠. 💵 ⁠Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG⁠ or ⁠Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG⁠ 🎥 ⁠Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube channel

18 Okt 202336min

Biggest Winners And Underperformers From The Nuttycombe Invitational and Pre-Nats

Biggest Winners And Underperformers From The Nuttycombe Invitational and Pre-Nats

"I think at this point, it’s the NAU show up front for both the men and the women.” The biggest NCAA regular season weekend took place in Madison and Charlottesville this weekend with the Nuttycombe Invitational hosted by the University of Wisconsin and the 2023 Pre Nationals hosted by the University of Virginia.  We discussed the biggest winners and underperformers from the weekend with CITIUS MAG's cross country guru Isaac Wood. Hosts: Chris Chavez | ⁠@chris_j_chavez on Instagram⁠ Guest: Isaac Wood | ⁠@isaacew on Instagram⁠ SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS 🍊 OLIPOP is a prebiotic soda with only 2-5g of sugar that is actually good for your gut health. – and it's delicious. Use code CITIUS25 for 25% off non-subscription orders. ⁠Learn more at https://DrinkOlipop.com (click the link or use our promotional code for the discount)⁠ 👟 BANDIT RUNNING is a performance and lifestyle running apparel brand founded by members of the NYC Running Community in 2020. What started as socks and accessories has grown into a full-fledged apparel assortment. Check them out here: ⁠https://banditrunning.com/⁠ GET 15% OFF YOUR ORDERS AT BANDITRUNNING.COM THROUGH OCT. 31 📊 VDOT is offering 20% off their coaching subscription using the code citiusmag. Download V.O2 in the app stores or visit ⁠vdoto2.com⁠ to start your 30-day free trial. Athletes without a coach can use the same code and try out their fully automated VDOT Adaptive Trainer and sync to an Apple Watch, COROS or Garmin. Leverage the world-famous VDOT formulas and take your running to the next level with V.O2 HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST 💻 ⁠Visit CITIUSMAG.com | Our brand-new website hosts tons more podcasts, articles, videos and more. Track and field storytelling all in one place⁠. 🎙️ ⁠Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts⁠. 💵 ⁠Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG⁠ or ⁠Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG⁠ 🎥 ⁠Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube channel

17 Okt 202342min

Emily Sisson After Finishing Top American At The 2023 Chicago Marathon In 2:22:09

Emily Sisson After Finishing Top American At The 2023 Chicago Marathon In 2:22:09

“It's not that I don't want to run faster because I do, but it's just not what motivates me to get out of bed in the morning. I want to be on a podium again at a world major, I want to finish in the top three, I want to fight for a medal someday, or at least give myself a shot. And I want to be on another Olympic team. Those are the things that get me out of bed.” U.S. marathon record holder Emily Sisson is back for her fourth time on the show. She just finished in as the top American and seventh overall at the Chicago Marathon in 2:22:09 despite battling a side stitch for the final eight miles. Unfortunately, the broadcast did not show much of Sisson’s race for the second consecutive year. Last year, she broke the American record in 2:18:29 on the course and we had her on the podcast to unpack that race. We’re keeping the tradition alive here and breaking down how it all played out for her. Sisson will now enjoy a break and then prepare for the 2024 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials on February 3rd in Orlando, where she will try to make her second Olympic team and her first as a marathoner. She’s part of a group of athletes meeting with USA Track and Field to try and adjust the start time so it’s not at noon in the potential heat and humidity of Orlando so we discuss that a bit and who she may be watching heading into the race. Host: Chris Chavez | @chris_j_chavez on Instagram Guest: Emily Sisson | @em_sisson_ on Instagram SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS 🍊 OLIPOP is a prebiotic soda with only 2-5g of sugar that is actually good for your gut health. – and it's delicious. Use code CITIUS25 for 25% off non-subscription orders. Learn more at https://DrinkOlipop.com (click the link or use our promotional code for the discount) 👟 BANDIT RUNNING is a performance and lifestyle running apparel brand founded by members of the NYC Running Community in 2020. What started as socks and accessories has grown into a full-fledged apparel assortment. Check them out here: https://banditrunning.com/ GET 15% OFF YOUR ORDERS AT BANDITRUNNING.COM THROUGH OCT. 31 📊 VDOT is offering 20% off their coaching subscription using the code citiusmag. Download V.O2 in the app stores or visit ⁠vdoto2.com⁠ to start your 30-day free trial. Athletes without a coach can use the same code and try out their fully automated VDOT Adaptive Trainer and sync to an Apple Watch, COROS or Garmin. Leverage the world-famous VDOT formulas and take your running to the next level with V.O2 HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST 💻 Visit CITIUSMAG.com | Our brand-new website hosts tons more podcasts, articles, videos and more. Track and field storytelling all in one place. 🎙️ Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts. 💵 Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG or Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG 🎥 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube channel

12 Okt 202341min

Nuttycombe Invitational and Pre-Nats Preview: NCAA XC’s Biggest Regular Season Weekend

Nuttycombe Invitational and Pre-Nats Preview: NCAA XC’s Biggest Regular Season Weekend

We are set for one of the biggest NCAA cross-country weekends before championship season approaches. The top teams in the country are split between Charlottesville, Virginia for the XC23 Pre-Nationals and Madison, Wisconsin for the Nuttycombe Invitational.  CITIUS MAG’s cross country guru Isaac Wood joined the podcast on Thursday to preview all of this weekend’s action. How to watch: The Nuttycomb Invitational will be held at the Thomas Zimmer Championship Cross Country Course on Friday, Oct. 13, 2023. The women’s championship 6K race will be at noon ET. The men’s championship 8K race will be at 12:40 p.m. ET. You can follow the live results here. You can watch the race with a Runnerspace+ subscription ($12.99 monthly or $119.88 annually.) The 2023 Pre-Nationals will be held at Panorama Farms on Saturday, Oct. 14, 2023. The men’s championship 8K race will be at 9:40 a.m. ET. The women’s championship 6K race will be at 11 a.m. ET.  You can follow the live results here. You can watch the race on ACCNX which is available through the ESPN app and at WatchESPN.com. Hosts: Chris Chavez | @chris_j_chavez on Instagram Guest: Isaac Wood | @isaacew on Instagram SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS 🍊 OLIPOP is a prebiotic soda with only 2-5g of sugar that is actually good for your gut health. – and it's delicious. Use code CITIUS25 for 25% off non-subscription orders. Learn more at https://DrinkOlipop.com (click the link or use our promotional code for the discount) 👟 BANDIT RUNNING is a performance and lifestyle running apparel brand founded by members of the NYC Running Community in 2020. What started as socks and accessories has grown into a full-fledged apparel assortment. Check them out here: https://banditrunning.com/ GET 15% OFF YOUR ORDERS AT BANDITRUNNING.COM THROUGH OCT. 31 📊 VDOT is offering 20% off their coaching subscription using the code citiusmag. Download V.O2 in the app stores or visit vdoto2.com to start your 30-day free trial. Athletes without a coach can use the same code and try out their fully automated VDOT Adaptive Trainer and sync to an Apple Watch, COROS or Garmin. Leverage the world-famous VDOT formulas and take your running to the next level with V.O2 HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST 💻 Visit CITIUSMAG.com | Our brand-new website hosts tons more podcasts, articles, videos and more. Track and field storytelling all in one place. 🎙️ Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts. 💵 Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG or Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG 🎥 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube channel

12 Okt 202338min

Conner Mantz (2:07:47) and Clayton Young (2:08:00) Recap Their 2023 Chicago Marathon, Hitting The Olympic Standard

Conner Mantz (2:07:47) and Clayton Young (2:08:00) Recap Their 2023 Chicago Marathon, Hitting The Olympic Standard

"We want to compete with the best and we want to have a run at the American record soon. It’s not going to happen next year with the Olympic Trials and the Olympics, but we want to compete with the best. American distance running will eventually get to that level. It would be better to do it with us now than in three to five years with someone else. We’d rather be the ones to get that rather than reacting to someone else hitting it.” Conner Mantz and Clayton Young just became the first two American men to hit the Olympic marathon qualifying standard for the 2024 Summer Games in Paris. At the Chicago Marathon, Mantz finished 2:07:47 for sixth place. Young took seventh in 2:08:00. Going into last weekend, no American man had dipped under the 2:08:10 standard so there was a bit of stress about whether any American marathoners would have the mark before the U.S. Olympic Trials in February. Athletes can qualify for the Olympics by hitting the time, placing top five at a Platinum Label Marathon or getting within the world ranking quota. Mantz and Young assured that we will have at least two U.S. men’s marathoners at the Paris Olympics. Now, they’ll have to just finish in the top 3 of the U.S. Olympic Trials to get on the team officially. We’ll discuss that a bit more within the episode. While the performances were strong, we actually didn’t get to watch any of it on the TV broadcast since Kenya’s Kelvin Kiptum was much further ahead while on his way to a 2:00:35 world record. In this episode, we’ll unpack how the races played out for them, their key takeaways, what their early thoughts are for the trials and much more. Host: Chris Chavez | @chris_j_chavez on Instagram Guest: Conner Mantz | @connermantz on Instagram Guest: Clayton Young |  @_clayton_young_ on Instagram SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS 🍊 OLIPOP is a prebiotic soda with only 2-5g of sugar that is actually good for your gut health. – and it's delicious. Use code CITIUS25 for 25% off non-subscription orders. Learn more at https://DrinkOlipop.com (click the link or use our promotional code for the discount) 👟 BANDIT RUNNING is a performance and lifestyle running apparel brand founded by members of the NYC Running Community in 2020. What started as socks and accessories has grown into a full-fledged apparel assortment. Check them out here: https://banditrunning.com/ GET 15% OFF YOUR ORDERS AT BANDITRUNNING.COM THROUGH OCT. 31 HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST 💻 Visit CITIUSMAG.com | Our brand-new website hosts tons more podcasts, articles, videos and more. Track and field storytelling all in one place. 🎙️ Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts. 💵 Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG or Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG 🎥 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube channel

11 Okt 20231h 8min

Who is the GOAT now? – 2023 Chicago Marathon Recap | The Lap Count

Who is the GOAT now? – 2023 Chicago Marathon Recap | The Lap Count

This is The Lap Count newsletter by Kyle Merber, as read by Chris Chavez. Join more than 15,000 people who stay up-to-date with all the thrilling action and biggest stories in the world of track & field – delivered right to your inbox every Wednesday morning. Subscribe at http://thelapcount.com/ In this week's newsletter: • Word Record Holder: Kelvin Kiptum • Is there anything Sifan Hassan cannot do? • Two down, one to go for Team USA • Japan’s Grand Championship Marathon + more Rapid Fire Highlights You can read this week's newsletter here ➡️  https://www.thelapcount.com/p/goat-now SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS👟 BANDIT RUNNING is a performance and lifestyle running apparel brand founded by members of the NYC Running Community in 2020. What started as socks and accessories has grown into a full-fledged apparel assortment. Check them out here: https://banditrunning.com/ GET 15% OFF YOUR ORDERS AT BANDITRUNNING.COM THROUGH OCT. 31 HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST 💻 Visit CITIUSMAG.com | Our brand-new website hosts tons more podcasts, articles, videos and more. Track and field storytelling all in one place. 🎙️ Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts. 💵 Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG or Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG 🎥 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube channel

11 Okt 202316min

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