We’ve heard it already a few times this year -- one way to help you follow through on your New Year’s Resolutions is accountability! You have to set your goals, check off the steps, and measure progress along the way. Working out with a buddy also reminds you that you’d better not skip a day! Well, local public radio station WFAE is helping you with your resolution to get active by giving you a goal, and some accountability. The “Charlotte Walks” fundraiser wants you to check off some goals to s...
Feb 16, 2021•19 min
We love running, but we also know our sport comes with occasional aches and pains. Our next guest on Running Around Charlotte helps both people and animals recover from the inevitable soreness that come with training. Stephanie Pope can help. She started her business of Red Light Therapy because of her lifelong love of horses. After studying Animal Sciences, with a specialty in Equines, at the University of Florida, she furthered her education with studies of accupressure and other alternate the...
Feb 09, 2021•28 min
Two things can really make a runner want to smile – finishing a race, and a good dentist! (Get it?) Our next guest on the Running Around Charlotte podcast can relate to both of these things – she is a marathon and ultra-marathon runner, and also voted one of Charlotte’s Top Dentists from Charlotte Magazine for several years in a row! That makes us smile, too. Dr. Heather Dowlin is part of the Flying Biscuit Running Club and the Flying Biscuit Marathon, and she joins us now. Welcome!
Feb 02, 2021•19 min
We know a lot of our listeners are hard-core runners. You love the marathons, training on long runs, and you wear out a lot of shoes. Our next guest on Running Around Charlotte has a slightly different point of view, as she calls it, because she fully admits to running at the back of the pack. Mandy Carter calls herself an “average runner” who started running later in life – she has 2 kids, a law degree, and several jobs; knows a thing or two about time management, and really just wants to be th...
Jan 26, 2021•22 min
If you’re a runner – or even if you’re not – chances are you’ve been around one of our next guest’s projects. There are 230 of them, encompassing more than 21,000 acres across the county. From greenways to playgrounds to pavilions to pickleball – Mecklenburg County Park and Rec has your recreation needs covered! Bert Lynn joins us today – he’s the Capital Planning Division Director – and will fill us in on what’s new and what’s coming up!
Jan 19, 2021•22 min
Happy New Year everyone, and why not kick it off with some new goals for 2021? Everyone has them.. and number one on the list of most popular is always, “Eat better and exercise more.” And of course we all want to lose that extra 10 or 20 pounds that made itself even better known this year, right? So how do we do that? We have just the guy to answer that question. Matt Dengler is a registered dietitian and owner of RxRD Nutrition, and what’s even better is…. he lays it all out in a way that’s ea...
Jan 12, 2021•23 min
We don’t have to explain a runner’s relationship with food – we all have one. Marc Jacksina’s relationship with food goes several steps further, though, as an award-winning chef of some of the Charlotte area’s top restaurants. It can be a stressful business, but he’s overcome that, too – and some other major obstacles in life – by running. We’re excited to welcome Marc to today’s Running Around Charlotte podcast.
Jan 05, 2021•28 min
Now that there's a chill in the air and winter is at hand, we get to see a popular feature come back to Charlotte's Whitewater Center for the whole family to enjoy. The installation "Lights" takes you on a tour full of unusual and artistic lights on one of the Whitewater Center's wooded trails. The trails are popular with runners year-round, and the lights were an even more popular touch -- with 80,000 visitors last year. We have the artist, Meredith Connelly, and Jesse Hyde from the Whitewater ...
Dec 29, 2020•20 min
We were delighted to see how many runners got excited about the Novant Health virtual Charlotte Marathon and turned in some good runs in November. Usually joining us on that day is Dr. Keith Anderson, our marathon Medical Director, but he’s been busy nonetheless organizing some Ironman races. Dr. Anderson is a physician specializing in Family Sports Medicine at the Novant Health Cotswold Medical Clinic. Welcome back to Running Around Charlotte, Keith!
Dec 15, 2020•27 min
Running sometimes has us nursing our sore legs, but our next guest has the workouts and the after-care down pat. Meet Novant Health Charlotte Marathon Ambassador Deanna Nichole -- a Nurse, Marine, Mom of two Marines, Cross Fitter, and of course, runner. And she is bringing us that energy on today's Running Around Charlotte!
Dec 08, 2020•17 min
It is always an honor and a pleasure to have an elite marathoner with us on Running Around Charlotte, and today is that day - as we welcome Charlotte's ONLY female Olympic Trials Marathon Qualifier to our podcast. Paula Pridgen picked up running at a late age, by most standards... AFTER college. She has now run in not only Olympic Trials, but Boston and New York, and the upcoming elites-only Project Marathon in December in Arizona. Welcome Paula!
Dec 01, 2020•20 min
We know a marathon is a long run. We know training for a marathon involves a LOT of long runs. But in this era of canceled races, one man came up with a solution that went beyond virtual... to REALLY go the distance. Joshua Miller turned his annual St. Jude Rock 'n' Roll Marathon -- which was canceled -- into a 410-mile trek through the North Carolina mountains on his way from Charlotte to Nashville. He ran, he cycled, and most importantly, he raised money for St. Jude while his wife and kids fo...
Nov 24, 2020•25 min
IThe Turkey Trot is one of Charlotte runners' oldest Thanksgiving Traditions. For the past 31 years, up to 10-thousand runners have gathered behind SouthPark Mall on Thanksgiving Morning to run a 5k or Fun Run with the whole family. Well, we know we can't do that this year -- but the 32nd Annual Turkey Trot is still alive and well... in your neighborhood, or along your favorite route. And there's one other change this year -- a new tradition -- in that your registration will support a charity in...
Nov 17, 2020•21 min
If you're a triathlete who didn't spend a good amount of time on a swim team as a kid -- summer league or year-round -- you probably dread the swimming part of the triathlon. Well you don't have to! There are programs around Charlotte that will help you gear up for that short but important part of your Tri.... or just give you a great activity to work out your running cramps and work your overall muscle tone, flexibility, and aerobic conditioning. Doug Miller runs Miller Swimming just for folks ...
Nov 10, 2020•24 min
Our Novant Health Charlotte Marathon Ambassadors LOVE running. They to run, and love to talk about running. And sometimes, running tells a story about THEM. That's the case for our next guest on Running Around Charlotte, marathon Ambassador Judy Caswell.
Nov 03, 2020•22 min
Do you love winter? The feel of a brisk wind in your face? The sound of snow and ice crunching under your boots? Yes? Well, our next guest can multiply that by the thousands. Pete Ripmaster ran the Iditarod Trail foot race, a thousand-mile trek across the great wilderness of Alaska in February of 2018. No, he didn't ride a sled pulled by dogs -- that's a different Iditarod race. This one was all Pete vs. the wilderness. And he not only survived, he won! And he lived to tell about it -- right now...
Oct 27, 2020•26 min
Let's check in with another one of our Novant Health Charlotte Marathon ambassadors -- and this one, can give some valuable advice and motivation to those of you who've ever had an injury and needed to take some time off. Lissa Nypaver is used to running a LOT of races -- at least one a month... or 2... or 3... but like we all know, a lot of races this year were cancelled or run virtually. And then on top of it all.. ow, knee surgery. She joins us now on Running Around Charlotte to give us an up...
Oct 20, 2020•23 min
Our partnership with Novant Health is a great one. Novant keeps the marathon rolling with health and wellness, and all money raised by the marathon is used to support programs at Hemby Children's Hospital. In fact, in the last few years, the Novant Health Charlotte Marathon has donated more than $200,000 dollars to Hemby because of our runners' enthusiastic support. So it's with great joy that we welcome Amy McKinney and Jessica Osborn from Novant Health Foundation to the Running Around Charlott...
Oct 13, 2020•24 min
Here's a virtual race you want to be a part of -- one in which a donation gets you a free pizza! And not just any pizza, but a Brixx Wood Fired Pizza. Yum. We're talking about the Hit the Brixx 10k/5k Run/Walk. Coming in October, it's part of the RunCharlotte 6-pack series and this year, it’s virtual – so this year’s race is actually called, Hit *Your* Bricks. It benefits a very important nonprofit in our community -- the Kids Path Pediatric Hospice Program. We're honored to Have Pete Brunnick, ...
Sep 29, 2020•17 min
We all know training for a marathon involves a lot of running, but what else should you be doing in your workouts to get the best performance? We're asking that question to Will Hayes, a sports performance manager at Novant Health Sports Performance in Huntersville.
Sep 22, 2020•21 min
Charlotte Running Club is a powerful force behind running and encouragement in Charlotte.. and for the first time in 2-1/2 years, it has a new President. Eric Smith is a committed runner who is eager to encourage others, and has also been described as a "rock star" pace runner for our Novant Health Charlotte Marathon. With the Charlotte Marathon (and others) transitioned to virtual runs this year, he is literally "Running Around Charlotte" for his races. Eric joins us now to talk about his upcom...
Sep 15, 2020•20 min
The Novant Health Charlotte Marathon has gone virtual - here's what you need to know!
Sep 08, 2020•19 min
Here's a question we all need to hear: "How will you get moving today?" It's a favorite question of our next guest on Running Around Charlotte. Christine Turner is a former college soccer player and now mother of 2, who trained as a mental health counselor, and is currently as a personal trainer at a company she started about 2 years ago. And as if she's not busy enough -- she also runs. Wow! We're glad she's here talking to us today... maybe she can share some of her energy!
Sep 01, 2020•19 min
We like anything that gets folks out running -- and we know the transformative effect running can have on people's lives. One place that's absolutely apparent is with RunningWorks, a non-profit that gives Charlotte's homeless population an avenue to take control of their lives through health and wellness. They also help their runners along that course with mental health counseling, group therapy, career development, and housing assistance. Matthew Sharp is their Chief Operating Officer, and join...
Aug 25, 2020•23 min
How is your relationship with food and exercise? How are you feeling after stay at home orders that kept you out of the office or your usual social circles? Do you want to talk about it? Well Juliet Kuehnle is someone you can talk to. She's a therapist who takes a holistic approach to helping you sort out your feelings and fears, and move forward in a positive way. She's here today on Running Around Charlotte, to share some insights about how to deal with stress right about now.
Aug 18, 2020•21 min
Wanna have a good time? Then be around fun people! Or at least, watch them on Tik Tok and Instagram. Our guest today on Running Around Charlotte is THAT guy -- the one everyone loves to watch dancing on Tik Tok or running the mic at Charlotte Checkers Games. And guess what? He also runs marathons and has served as one of our Novant Health Charlotte Marathon Ambassadors! Welcome, Aaron Dodge!
Aug 11, 2020•24 min
School is just around the corner.. and let's face it, this won't start as a normal school year, just like the last one didn't finish that way. On top of classroom learning, schools are weighing a return to sports -- when many athletes have been out of practice since March. Dr. Christian Turner is a pediatrician with Novant Health - with a specialty of pediatric sports medicine - to give us some great back-to-school reminders.
Aug 04, 2020•19 min
We have become especially aware this summer of the differences in opportunities across our city. We know going to museums or camps are good for kids, but not all kids get that kind of exposure to what's called cultural capital. It affects education and upward mobility, something Charlotte struggles with, according to a now-well-known report putting us last among Top 50 metros when it comes to moving up in socio-economic status. The non-profit Raise a Child of the Carolinas sets its goal of expos...
Jul 28, 2020•24 min
If you've been in Charlotte for even a few months, listening to the radio or watching local TV, you've likely heard an ad for one of the Keffer Auto Group's 8 car dealerships like Hyundai, Volkswagen, or Kia. What you may not know is their namesake owner, Jim Keffer, is pretty good at getting around on foot, too -- we mean, of course, running. Jim likes training and competing in endurance sports, and in fact, is the name sponsor of our Keffer Cares Rocktoberfest Half Marathon and 5-miler, part o...
Jul 21, 2020•28 min
We can all use a little encouragement in our running lives, and our next guest on Running Around Charlotte has some for you. Aaron Beaver is an ultra runner who created the Suffer Club on three points: encouragement, accountability, and consistency. He's here to encourage us now with his story.
Jul 07, 2020•28 min
