My guest today is statistics professor and humble Olympian Jared Ward.
He’s one of the best pacers in the world, and on today’s podcast we’re going to find out how we can start training to pace our races as perfectly as he does.
Jared wrote his Master’s thesis on pacing, and he’s sharing some of his insider information, tips, and tricks for how we can start managing our perfect pace.
One of his biggest pieces of advice is how he uses each running season to improve and learn new techniques.
As runners, we know that with every race we are testing our limits and learning something new about ourselves, and Jared’s got this learning down to a science.
So get excited!
3:15 What excites you about marathons?
4:10 Tell us about your success and your background as a runner
5:14 What’s your experience with running marathons?
8:23 What made you to decide to keep teaching instead of running full-time?
9:46 Can you handle the idea of just being a runner?
11:52 How has life changed for you as a running celebrity?
15:20 What inspired you to write your Master’s thesis on pacing?
18:08 What did you find out about successful pacing?
23:40 Do you have any pacing tips for runners?
27:35 Do you use a watch when running?
29:22 Do you ever have moments of doubt while running?
33:20 What do you tell yourself when you’re hurting while running?
36:35 How epic it did feel to cross the finish line at the Olympic qualifiers?
37:31 What was the Rio Marathon like?
40:09 Does your Olympic experience influence how you feel about your race abilities?
41:00 How did you train for your Olympic qualifier?
43:10 How can you run so well in the heat?
46:06 What’s your advice for high temperature runners?
48:30 What shoes do you train and race in?
51:00 Are you more or less sore after your races?
52:05 How do you manage to keep your family a priority?
55:05 What it’s like having a massage therapist for a wife?
55:42 What do you have planned for the future?
58:27 The Final Kick Round!
“I’ve mostly been blessed to never have a season in running that hasn’t been better than the season before.”
“I fell in love with the marathon before I raced it. I loved the training.”
“Trying to harness the trick of getting into the zone and racing so something magical can happen.”
“A marathon is more a race of me vs. me more than me vs. the people around me.”
“It’s more about maintaining a consistent metabolic rate than it is about maintaining a consistent pace.”
“Your body is always going to be your best gauge.”
“It’s just so critical to get in as much hydration as possible.”
“Never cash out long-term success for short-term success.”
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Runners Connect Temperature and Pace Calculator
Saucony Type A (Jared's racing shoe) women's version (Use coupon code TINA for 10% off at Saucony.com)
Saucony Kinvara (Jared's training shoe) women's version
Saucony Zealot (Jared's training shoe) women's version
Saucony Triumph (Jared's shoe for tired/sore days) women's version
Saucony Life on the Run Men's clothing and Women's clothing
Running with the Buffaloes by Chris Lear
We really hope you’ve enjoyed this episode of Run to the Top.
The best way you can show your support of the show is to share this podcast with your family and friends and share it on your Facebook, Twitter, or any other social media channel you use.
If more people who know about the podcast and download the episodes, it means I can reach out to and get through to the top running influencers, to bring them on and share their advice, which hopefully makes the show even more enjoyable for you!
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Today’s episode is a special treat.
I’ve brought on my good friend and fellow marathoner Sarah Crouch to play hostess with the mostess and ask me the hard questions on today’s special podcast.
I just finished the California International Marathon with a brand new personal record, and Sarah asks me all about how it feels to be both proud and disappointed in my finishing time.
I’ve been lucky enough to have run each of my marathons faster than the one before, but my perfectionist lifestyle always expects more.
I know a lot of you can relate to the fact that we runners hold ourselves to such high standards.
I’m guilty of not giving myself enough credit where it’s due, but that doesn’t mean I’m always beating myself up either.
I’m going to share how I stay motivated, how I train, and what I do to keep myself positive and healthy when my perfectionist attitude tries to come out.
1:35 Can you recap your California International Marathon?
4:05 Will you be able to settle for small successes?
4:50 Was this marathon your personal best so far?
6:00 Who is your motivation?
6:50 What was the hardest thing at CIM?
9:07 How did your pace feel at CIM?
10:30 How do you keep your confidence up?
12:00 How do you feel a week and/or a day before a big race?
14:37 How do you shape your identity outside of your race times?
16:06 What thing sticks out for you most about race time?
19:55 Who are you outside of running?
22:50 What’s Tina’s Backstreet Boys story?
24:28 How has celebrity affected your running and your life?
26:20 How do you maintain your positivity?
29:20 Would your running performance be different if you didn’t have this podcast?
30:50 What has been your favorite interview on the podcast?
31:41 Have you made it yet in your running career?
35:20 What were your teenage running exploits?
36:26 What moment changed your mind about running?
36:50 Why are British youths pushed so hard to run so young?
37:50 What was your partying lifestyle like?
40:00 What’s it like to train with Sarah?
44:26 When is your next marathon?
46:11 How do you approach personal goal setting?
48:15 How do you keep your confidence up during a race?
49:18 How did you feel when you saw your new personal record time?
53:10 What do you eat the day before a marathon?
54:54 What is your first craving after a marathon?
57:20 Rapid-fire round!
59:57 The Final Kick Round!
“I’m learning…that a PR is still a PR.”
“Why can’t I be a normal person who just sits and watches Netflix?”
“I like to think I’m a good person who puts others first.”
“I try and share my true feelings even it makes me look a bit stupid.”
“I’ll stop drinking, but instead I’m gonna drink Red Bull.”
“That is my next big goal - to run for England in the Commonwealth Games.”
“I was angry at myself for not giving my very best.”
Want more awesome interviews and advice? Subscribe to our iTunes channel
Tina's favorite running shoe: Saucony Ride (use coupon code TINA for 10% off)
We really hope you’ve enjoyed this episode of Run to the Top.
The best way you can show your support of the show is to share this podcast with your family and friends and share it on your Facebook, Twitter, or any other social media channel you use.
If more people who know about the podcast and download the episodes, it means I can reach out to and get through to the top running influencers, to bring them on and share their advice, which hopefully makes the show even more enjoyable for you!
If you love the science behind running, this is the episode for you!
I’ve brought Jordan Santos-Concejero on the podcast today to discuss a little bit of his research on the physiology and the biomechanics behind the art of running.
Dr. Santos started out as a professional runner, but trying to keep up with competitive running and work on his PhD at the same time became a bit much.
Besides, he was much more interested in the research behind what makes a good runner truly great. He’s spent a majority of his research career studying Kenyan runners and their successes.
He breaks down genetics and human evolution and then combines them with modern training in order to uncover what makes professional runners so successful.
If you’ve ever had any questions about your stride, your strike, or even your genetic disposition for physical fitness, tune in now!
Here are some of the topics we’ll discuss today:
Finding the balance between diet, rest, and training hard
Why strength training is so important for runners
Dr. Santos’ research on ground contact time, cadence, and striking
All of the different factors that influence running economy
The touchy subject of genetic doping
Questions Jordan is asked:
3:45 What was your international running career like?
5:05 How did your dad inspire you to run?
5:26 Do you have any advice for new runners?
6:20 What was the highlight of your running career?
7:06 How long did it take you to balance training hard with resting right?
7:52 Why did you decide to retire from running?
8:48 Do you still run for fun?
9:55 Did you always know you wanted to study running academically?
12:20 When did running economy come into your research?
13:18 Are you an economical runner?
14:07 Why should runners focus on strength training?
15:15 What kind of strength training should runners do?
16:06 How often should we go to the gym?
18:03 Why did you focus your research on Kenyan runners?
19:40 Can you share some of your findings with us?
21:30 What is the ground contact time you study?
23:16 What are your theories on efficient ground contact times?
25:07 Do you see people moving to Kenya for training?
26:43 How can European runners imitate Kenyan training?
27:31 Do you see people messing with genetics in the future to be better runners?
29:55 How is your research working against genetic doping?
32:11 What is your research on running cadence and stride?
35:40 Did you find any differences in running cadence with different types of runners?
36:50 Should we just stick with the stride that is comfortable for us?
37:53 What is your research on striking?
39:45 Can we change heel striking to forefoot striking?
40:40 The pros and cons of barefoot running
42:30 How does it feel to be a researcher?
43:50 Where do you see your research going in the future?
47:12 The Final Kick Round!
Quotes by Jordan:
“Training hard is important, but actually it’s more important to get enough rest.”
“I can’t run for fun, I can only run for performance.”
“Strength training is a key training to improve your performance…and reduce risk of injury.”
“Short ground contact time will improve running performance. You can improve your ground contact time by improving your stiffness with strength training.”
“If you don’t do physical activity when you are a kid, some of the physical adaption that [Kenyans] have, you will never get.”
“If you try to change your running cadence consciously, your running economy will be worse.”
“The most economical runners strike on their forefoot.”
Katy Sherratt is the CEO of Back On My Feet, a non-profit organization that helps homeless and those down on their luck get – you guessed it! – back on their feet.
But they do it with running!
Members of Back On My Feet meet three times a week for morning runs on top of interview training, health and wellness education, and other services that help them find jobs and get their lives running again.
As CEO, Katy brings her philanthropic eye and economics experience to an already thriving business.
We discuss the ways she’s increased donations, increased programmatic impact, and improved the ways the company measures the success of its members.
There are waiting lists of people waiting to participate in Back On My feet, and Katy shares the way we can all help out.
3:34 When did Katy move over to the United States?
4:30 Why is running so special?
5:33 Do you run in the mornings?
7:02 What has Katy accomplished with Back On My Feet?
9:00 What is Back On My Feet and how does it work?
11:28 Everyone with Back On My Feet gets a free pair of running shoes
12:08 What’s it like being a Back On My Feet alumni?
13:13 How did you convince your sponsors to get involved?
15:05 How many members join marathons?
16:10 Which cities participate in Back On My Feet?
17:06 How can we get in touch with Back On My Feet?
18:10 How big can Back On My Feet get?
19:24 How do the sponsors help members find jobs and get back on their feet?
21:20 Does Back On My Feet offer interview training for members?
22:32 How do donations work with Back On My Feet?
24:45 What attracted Katy to Back On My Feet?
25:53 What attracts Katy to social wellness?
26:40 What social differences do you see between the UK and the USA?
28:22 Are things moving in the right direction?
29:35 How many different ways can corporations work with Back On My Feet?
31:11 Why is running so empowering?
33:43 What moment brought it home for Katy?
36:29 How Katy’s mom inspires her
38:07 How is the running community like a family?
39:20 How does recruitment work?
41:15 Why do you start running so early in the morning?
43:27 The story that impacted Katy the most
46:28 What happens at the beginning and the end of each run?
49:18 The Final Kick Round!
“I run a mile a minute in how I act in daily life, and for me when I go running it’s a moment of clarity.”
“Back On My Feet starts with running.”
“Companies and corporations want to work with non-profits in a unique way. They want a variety of ways.”
“The reason we use running is because anyone can do it. We are born to run.”
To get involved: info@backonmyfeet.org
How to get your business involved: partners@backonmyfeet.org
Born to Run Chris McDougall
We really hope you’ve enjoyed this episode of Run to the Top.
The best way you can show your support of the show is to share this podcast with your family and friends and share it on your Facebook, Twitter, or any other social media channel you use.
If more people who know about the podcast and download the episodes, it means I can reach out to and get through to the top running influencers, to bring them on and share their advice, which hopefully makes the show even more enjoyable for you!
Katy Sherratt is the CEO of Back On My Feet, a non-profit organization that helps homeless and those down on their luck get – you guessed it! – back on their feet.
But they do it with running!
Members of Back On My Feet meet three times a week for morning runs on top of interview training, health and wellness education, and other services that help them find jobs and get their lives running again.
As CEO, Katy brings her philanthropic eye and economics experience to an already thriving business.
We discuss the ways she’s increased donations, increased programmatic impact, and improved the ways the company measures the success of its members.
There are waiting lists of people waiting to participate in Back On My feet, and Katy shares the way we can all help out.
3:34 When did Katy move over to the United States?
4:30 Why is running so special?
5:33 Do you run in the mornings?
7:02 What has Katy accomplished with Back On My Feet?
9:00 What is Back On My Feet and how does it work?
11:28 Everyone with Back On My Feet gets a free pair of running shoes
12:08 What’s it like being a Back On My Feet alumni?
13:13 How did you convince your sponsors to get involved?
15:05 How many members join marathons?
16:10 Which cities participate in Back On My Feet?
17:06 How can we get in touch with Back On My Feet?
18:10 How big can Back On My Feet get?
19:24 How do the sponsors help members find jobs and get back on their feet?
21:20 Does Back On My Feet offer interview training for members?
22:32 How do donations work with Back On My Feet?
24:45 What attracted Katy to Back On My Feet?
25:53 What attracts Katy to social wellness?
26:40 What social differences do you see between the UK and the USA?
28:22 Are things moving in the right direction?
29:35 How many different ways can corporations work with Back On My Feet?
31:11 Why is running so empowering?
33:43 What moment brought it home for Katy?
36:29 How Katy’s mom inspires her
38:07 How is the running community like a family?
39:20 How does recruitment work?
41:15 Why do you start running so early in the morning?
43:27 The story that impacted Katy the most
46:28 What happens at the beginning and the end of each run?
49:18 The Final Kick Round!
“I run a mile a minute in how I act in daily life, and for me when I go running it’s a moment of clarity.”
“Back On My Feet starts with running.”
“Companies and corporations want to work with non-profits in a unique way. They want a variety of ways.”
“The reason we use running is because anyone can do it. We are born to run.”
To get involved: info@backonmyfeet.org
How to get your business involved: partners@backonmyfeet.org
Born to Run Chris McDougall
We really hope you’ve enjoyed this episode of Run to the Top.
The best way you can show your support of the show is to share this podcast with your family and friends and share it on your Facebook, Twitter, or any other social media channel you use.
If more people who know about the podcast and download the episodes, it means I can reach out to and get through to the top running influencers, to bring them on and share their advice, which hopefully makes the show even more enjoyable for you!