The Endurance Episode: Zach Bitter on How to Push the Boundaries of Endurance

Cross-training is supplemental exercise that can be helpful to your running, like cycling. But just like form drills, strides, or dynamic flexibility exercises, I consider strength training to be an integral part of how to train distance runners. If you’re not strength training, then you’re not training. Running by itself only gets you so far. It’s a fairly one-dimensional form of exercise, after all. If you look at how pro runners train (hell, even high school runners), you’ll see a lot of “other things” in their training: Form drills Plyometrics Bodyweight strength workouts Mobility Barefoot work Skill-based strength exercises (like Olympic lifts) Dynamic flexibility routines Whoever said runners just ran?! All of this extra training makes you stronger, more efficient, and flexible with higher levels of coordination. In other words, you become a better athlete. Because you’re not a runner – you’re an athlete that specializes in running. I wanted to dive into the topic of strength training in more detail so you know what to do – and how to do it – to become a faster and less injury-prone runner.

19 Dec 201717min

I’m doing something a little different today in that I’d like to share with you what I think are the best gift ideas for runners this year. Now as a running coach, my focus is on improvement so I’m only going to recommend things that are going to help you improve. That’s why I won’t be suggesting sweatshirts, socks, shoes, or anything like that. Those are “nice to haves” but what’s in this episode are gifts that will help you get to the next level. I also want to be completely transparent on three things: #1 - If you follow any of the links that I mention or use the discount codes, then Strength Running is going to get a small kickback. It won’t cost you anything extra but it does help support the podcast so I can keep churning out episodes. Ok #2. I’m only promoting products where I can give you a discount. The holidays can be a financially challenging time so I’m trying to hook you up with discounted and helpful running products. FInally #3,  I own, trust completely, or use myself all of these products and services. I will never promote something that I don’t believe in because life is too short not to be able to sleep at night. Enjoy this episode and have a great holiday season!

7 Dec 201717min

I invited Nick to share as much detail as possible about his marathon training, race strategy, and post-race recovery so you can understand how an elite marathoner tackles the race. Just recent he posted on Instagram: To run your best, you have to put in the work, know your body, and keep reminding yourself that you can do it. Train both your mind and body.  And today, you'll hear what "the work" means to a professional marathoner. You'll learn: How many weeks Nick prepares for the marathon Why his marathon training includes no cross-training How he structures his taper and recovery after the race His preferred marathon fuel The types of long runs necessary to race 26.2 miles This episode goes deep into marathon training - the nuts and bolts and nitty gritty details of how an elite marathoner trains and races 26.2 miles. Note that our conversation is just an excerpt from the full interview available to Team Strength Running members. I encourage you to learn more about the team here (we're opening soon!).

4 Dec 201745min

Depending on whether you started running today or last year, today's podcast will clarify the most high-impact training available to you. Because certain training strategies and workouts are either too easy for some runners - or too difficult. Like Goldilocks, it's important to plan training that's "just right." And new runners are at an interesting time in their running careers. There's so much potential and improvements will come quickly as long as runners stay healthy and focused. So first, don't get injured! Next, run consistently! If you're healthy and running consistently, now you can take "the next step" and start focusing on bigger goals. Jenny Hadfield has been helping runners accomplish their wildest goals for over two decades with a regular column in Runner's World and her promotion of adventure travel around the world. She's a best-selling author with titles like Running for Mortals and Marathoning for Mortals and has been called "THE coach of this generation." Even though started running later in life, she's become quite the endurance athlete with race finishes around the world: The Boston Marathon Mark Burnett's Eco-Challenge The Antarctica Marathon The Grand Canyon Rim-to-Rim Challenge With her coaching and running experience, we teamed up to help new runners with 0 - 18 months of running experience get their training started on the right foot. Is that you? Don't miss this new episode of the Strength Running podcast.

27 Nov 201755min

If you can replicate the principles (not necessarily the exact workouts, mileage, etc.) that lead to personal bests then you can keep improving and setting personal bests. The alternative is hitting a performance plateau. Stagnating. Running the same times over and over again... And nobody wants that! After working with a lot of runners for the better part of a decade, I've come to understand that there are three areas that most contribute to declining performances. In this episode, we go over all three of those issues, simple fixes, and more strategies to help your speed keep increasing!

20 Nov 201722min

The best runners know when to get help and work together. If you're a Lone Wolf, some things are inevitable: Have a question? Prepare to spend hours going down the Google rabbit hole... Feeling unmotivated? Sorry, you're on your own. Not sure how to break through your plateau? Time to "try everything!" But the runners who get the support, guidance, and camaraderie they need always seem to reach their goals. Which one are you?  Today, my friend Mario Fraioli is joining me on the podcast to help me answer your toughest questions and give you the support needed to reach new levels of performance. Mario and I competed against each other in college (he always beat me) while he was at Stonehill and I was at Connecticut College. After graduation, he dove headfirst into the running industry. Some of his notable achievements: Author of The Official Rock 'n Roll Guide to Marathon & Half Marathon Training Senior Editor, Competitor Magazine Founding Coach of Ekiden Coaching Owner of personal bests ranging from 4:09 in the mile to 2:28 in the marathon Coach to the 2012 Costa Rican Men's Olympic Marathon Team Today, his main project is The Morning Shakeout, a weekly newsletter of commentary and thoughts on running, culture, writing, and media. Despite his coaching, writing, and training duties, Mario made time to help members of the Strength Running community with their running questions.

23 Okt 201753min

For a lot of runners, what started as a way to get in shape or lose a few pounds turns into a lifelong passion. Soon, you're going on running retreats and flying across the country to run a marathon. What did we do with all of our free time before running?! Alas, not every runner gets to experience a lifetime of running bliss. Some of us over train, burn out, or get so injured that we simply give up. But I will not let that happen to you! Instead, let's learn from lifelong competitors who are still running after decades of workouts, long runs, and races. These are athletes that have discovered the secret to unlocking a lifetime of racing, trail runs, and workouts (in other words... a lifetime of FUN!). And Jonathan Beverly interviewed 50 of them to help you run for decades. In his new book Run Strong, Stay Hungry: 9 Keys to Staying in the Race, Jonathan Beverly discusses the universal principles that promote lifelong running. He spoke with 50 "lifetime competitors" like: Deena Kastor (American Record holder in the marathon and half-marathon) Bill Rodgers (4x winner of the Boston Marathon) Joan Benoit Samuelson (former marathon World Record holder) But more importantly, he interviewed a lot of normal runners! Not just Olympians or previous Boston Marathon winners - but average runners who don't have elite genetics. That's why this podcast episode is so important: it's what works for all runners - not just the best runners.

17 Okt 201748min

Last August, we witnessed the most electrifying track race in history at the World Championships: the women's 3,000m Steeplechase. Before this race, no American woman had ever won a medal in the steeple at the World Championships. Emma Coburn and Courtney Frerichs changed that with an historic 1-2 finish, decimating a field that included the current World Record holder and Olympic Champion. This was also the first time any Americans had taken home both gold and silver at the World Champions or the Olympics in a race longer than 400m since the 1912 Olympics. Both Emma and Courtney also ran faster than the existing American Record. NBC Sports called the race "shocking." Sports Illustrated described Courtney's effort "certainly one of the biggest surprises of the world championships." And ESPN boldly proclaimed that this was one of the best races in the history of running. I'll paraphrase ESPN: Before this race, Courtney' fastest steeplechase time was 9:19. She beat that time by an enormous 15 seconds to win silver in 9:03.77. That's like scoring a hat trick in a World Cup soccer game after totaling only three goals all season. No American had won a world title in steeplechase since 1952. No U.S. women had ever finished 1-2 in any world championship distance race. Track nerds -- why isn't there such a thing as a football nerd? -- are calling this the most thrilling race of the 2017 World Championships, and one of the greatest moments in American distance running history. You sports fans can just call it amazing. Like a football game where -- nah, forget that. After a race like this, nobody cares about football. A 15-second improvement? Over a race that's less than two miles long? INSANITY! That kind of PR puts Courtney in the record books. She's now the 8th fastest woman to ever run the steeplechase. Today you're going to hear directly from Courtney about this historic race.

2 Okt 201736min