What if you have to make the hard decision to stop running altogether? That's the heartbreaking choice Dimity McDowell, a long-time runner and sports journalist, had to make a few years ago. In this conversation and in her new book, The 27th Mile , we explore what it means to hang up your running shoes for good: The loss of identity, community, and purpose How to fill the hole that running once filled What the experts recommend How to find closure after a running career ends Follow Dimity on Ins...
Mar 19, 2026•56 min
Ken Rideout is one of the fastest 50+ runners in the world, clocking 2:28 at age 50. A former addict, he turned his focus to running and became unstoppable, winning the 155-mile Gobi Desert March and the 2021 NYC Marathon Master's Division. His new book, Everything You Want is on the Other Side of Hard: A Memoir , is now available. Ken's on the podcast today to discuss: His extraordinary mindset skills and how he stays driven What draws him to extreme events (and how that can help you) His exper...
Mar 12, 2026•1 hr 3 min
Brent Edwards is a professor of Kinesiology at the University of Calgary. He's an expert on how mechanical load affects the body and influences musculoskeletal health and injury risk. Learn how to build injury resiliency here with my best advice! In addition to running experiments in the lab, he's also working with the smart shoe company Avelo to help them figure out how to keep runners healthy. His expertise ensures Avelo's impact metrics reflect what is really happening with your stride so you...
Mar 05, 2026•59 min
Dr. Jordan Metzl is a Harvard-trained medical doctor, bestselling author, and a highly sought after international speaker. His new book, Push: Unlock the Science of Fitness Motivation to Embrace Health and Longevity , is now available! Jordan is the creator of the immensely popular Iron Strength workout, a medical columnist for Triathlete Magazine, and a 37-time marathon finisher (not to mention an Ironman Triathlete!). In this conversation, we focus on running longevity: The training habits tha...
Feb 26, 2026•42 min
Brad Stulberg is the New York Times best-selling author of The Way of Excellence . He cohosts the Growth Equation podcast, coaches executives and entrepreneurs, and is on the faculty at the University of Michigan's Graduate School of Public Health. He also deadlifts 530 pounds! He's also the author of The Practice of Groundedness and coauthor of Peak Performance . In this conversation, we explore what it means to run sustainably: The truth about motivation Why "balance" is often an illusion The ...
Feb 19, 2026•58 min
Jason sits down with fellow podcaster and friend Jonathan Levitt to chat about their training, upcoming goals, updates with the Avelo smart running shoe, and their new business The Huddle. The Huddle is a private peer network of entrepreneurs, creators, and executives. We meet regularly to solve problems, examine opportunities, and get support with goals. Growth happens together and we're excited to welcome new business owners and ambitious entrepeneurs! If you're interested in learning more abo...
Feb 12, 2026•1 hr 7 min
John Goldman is a former bodybuilder and currently the CEO of Rebel Health Alliance . After running a 5:13 marathon last December, he's not attempting the unreasonable: to qualify for Boston in a year. He enlisted the coaching of physiologist and ultra-endurance coach Alan Couzens to guide his training. This episode is a case study on how to accomplish unreasonable goals. How do you progress your fitness so you can run almost two hours faster in the marathon in only a year? What do you focus on?...
Feb 05, 2026•1 hr 17 min
Should women think differently about training and weightlifting when they're pregnant and post-partum? In this episode, Olympian Shannon Rowbury and her physical therapist Jessica Dorrington explain the specific training needs of pregnant and post-partum women, including: Exercise that's advised vs. not recommended How to modify training as pregnancy evolves The role of strength training during pregnancy Post-partum recovery strategies How to prepare for perimenopause through training Their new ...
Jan 29, 2026•1 hr 3 min
Dr. Andrew Best is a professor at the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts where he focuses on evolutionary questions about human physiology. You can email him at andrew.best@mcla.edu . His latest study was titled " Ultra Endurance Athletes and the Metabolic Ceiling ." They looked at the maximum, sustainable amount of energy expenditure that can be done over a long time period. It answers the question, "what is the limit of human energy expenditure?" It's a metric that literally dictates how ha...
Jan 22, 2026•1 hr 5 min
Sam Alexander is the head coach of the men's cross country and track & field teams at Connecticut College (Jason's alma mater!). Sam recently coached the track team to a historically high finish at the New England championships and helped the cross country team qualify for the National Championships for only the second time in program history. This episode focuses on development - or, how to progress through beginner to advanced stages of running. We discuss: Athletic development for college...
Jan 15, 2026•1 hr
Why did American Record holder Zach Bitter fail at his goal of besting his own 100-mile record? Was it his new embrace of high carb fueling instead of his tradition low-carb approach? In this episode, former WR holder and current AR holder Zach Bitter joins us to discuss how he navigates failure, what led to his DNF at his recent 100-mile record attempt, his experiments with fueling and carbs, and a lot more. Don't miss Zach's amazing podcast, Human Performance Outliers or his website ZachBitter...
Jan 08, 2026•1 hr 13 min
Do you want to improve and race faster in 2026? I want to help you do exactly that! In this episode, coach Jason Fitzgerald is sharing his most impactful training interventions for dramatic running improvement. We're discussing: Hill Sprints ( see here ) Monthly mileage Aerobic cross-training Heat training Heavy weightlifting ( start here ) If you haven't yet, follow or subscribe to the podcast! Thank you Previnex! After resisting most supplements for the better part of my life, I'm cautiously c...
Jan 01, 2026•28 min
Dan Cleather is a strength and conditioning coach, professor at St. Mary's University, and author of The Practice of Change: The Art & Science of Training . So, what exactly is "training?" Is it different than "exercise?" In this episode, we discuss what training specifically is, what it's not, and what it's attempting to do. Once you understand that we're after change in our bodies, we can better structure training to reach our goals. Visit Dan's website or follow him on Instagram here. Ple...
Dec 25, 2025•54 min
Jonah Rosner is an applied sport scientist who spent 10 years working with athletes and teams from all major American professional team sports, particularly the National Football League. He's a certified running coach and strength and conditioning specialist and he previously partnered with Nike to run the Nike Running Performance Lab in New York City. You can sign up for his Marathon Science newsletter here . Jonah was also the sport scientist on hand during a fitness retreat I attended last ye...
Dec 18, 2025•48 min
Elisabeth Scott is a USATF, RRCA, and UESCA certified running coach and the host of the enormously popular Running Explained Podcast . She and Jason are answering questions from Jason's Instagram about: Optimal ratio of hard to easy mileage Physiological benefits of moderate paced running Helpful cues to ensure you're truly running easy How you figure out your training paces Elisabeth is an authentic and powerful force in the running community and I hope you use her startegic advice in your trai...
Dec 11, 2025•1 hr 9 min
Floris Gierman is a 2:44 marathoner, cofounder of Path Projects , 100-mile ultramarathon finisher, and author of the new book Running Breakthroughs . He's done something rare: interview the world's best runners (like Eliud Kipchoge, Courtney Dauwalter, and Killian Jornet) and put all the best lessons, insights, and wisdom into his new book. You'll learn what keeps the most competitive runners going, how they train, and their best advice to excel. Pick up your copy here . I wanted to know: What h...
Dec 04, 2025•1 hr 5 min
How did we transition from a society with no "sports" or competition, to one where they're ubiquitous? Learn the history of the fitness industry: how weightlifting and running emerged, early versions of equipment, how people trained 200+ years ago, and more. Dr. Conor Heffernan explores the main themes from his book, When Fitness Went Global . If you like history and training, you're going to love this episode! Thank you 2Before! We are supported by 2Before , a powerful sports supplement made fr...
Nov 27, 2025•1 hr 1 min
Listen in on a Team Strength Running coaching call, where Jason takes questions from the community about training, long runs, workout strategy, and more. To join one of these calls, join the team here . We discuss: Long run strategy ( related podcast with David Roche!) The value of lifting heavy weights ( start here ) How to balance speed and mileage Thank you for listening and supporting the podcast! Thank You Lever! I'm excited to partner with Lever - a bodyweight support system that helps you...
Nov 20, 2025•41 min
Brodie Sharpe is a physiotherapist, the host of the Run Smarter Podcast , and author of Run Smarter . As a Physical therapist who specializes in endurance runners, Brodie Sharpe takes a holistic approach to injury prevention . He helps runners learn how to correct mistakes and work with their bodies to get healthy. Brodie emphasizes the importance of looking at training as well as your lifestyle around it, since every aspect of what you do impacts how you feel and perform. This episode focuses o...
Nov 13, 2025•1 hr 10 min
Dr. Matthew Silver is a physical therapist, author, and owner of Alpha Project Phyzio and Performance in Maryland. His book Built to Run is now available. While he set his college's 8k record and made the all-conference team, injuries prematurely ended Matt's career, sparking his interest in physical therapy. In today's conversation, we're talking about the different types of strength training that exist, their benefits and drawbacks, and how to integrate them into your training. It's important ...
Nov 06, 2025•1 hr 3 min
Nick Thompson has been running and racing for 35 years. He's the 40-44 age group American record holder in the 50k with a 3:04 finish time (that's 5:56 per mile for 31 miles), and was previously the world's top ranked runner in his age group in the 50-mile. He's now the CEO of the Atlantic Magazine and his new book is now available: The Running Ground: A Father, a Son, and the Simplest of Sports. You'll hear: How Nick's relationship with his father helped him get into running What drives him to ...
Oct 30, 2025•53 min
Dr. John Rusin is a physical therapist and trainer who's worked with nearly every professional sports league as well as Olympic athletes. His new book, Pain-Free Performance , is now available. Our conversation focuses on movement, coordination, and building efficiency. We discuss: common mistakes in the weight room how to structure better strength workouts mindfulness and breathing a nervous-system oriented warm-down when to know if you're putting in too much effort in the gym We should not con...
Oct 23, 2025•1 hr 3 min
John Davis holds a PhD in Biomechanics, coaches elite marathoners, and is the author of Modern Training and Physiology for Middle and Long Distance Runners . His newest book is a masterclass on marathon preparation: Marathon Excellence for Everyone . It includes new research on training theory, elite-level training plans, and guidance for every type of aspiring marathoner. Today, we discuss physiological resilience: How physiological resilience is like the 4th metric of performance How to build ...
Oct 16, 2025•1 hr 9 min
Chris Napier is the author of Science of Running , a professor of physical therapy, practicing physiotherapist, 2:33 marathoner, and medal winner at the Canadian Track & Field Championships in 1996 and 1997. He is also a scientific advisor to Avelo , the world's smartest running shoe (I'm also an advisor!). Today's focus is on super shoes and how they affect your running form: The specific form changes that happen due to high-stack foam and carbon plates Specific injury risks from super shoe...
Oct 09, 2025•59 min
Megan Flanagan is a former collegiate athlete and writer for Outside Magazine, a certified running coach and personal trainer, and a Spartan Elite podium athlete. She has a bachelor's in Psychology & Nutrition, a master's in Public Health, and has finished four 100-mile races. Megan is a multi-faceted athlete and works with a variety of runners in her coaching practice . In this conversation, we're bringing our combined experiences with cross-training to you: how to add cross-training why yo...
Oct 02, 2025•1 hr
Scott Johnston is one of the top coaches in the world, especially in mountain and high alpine sports. He's worked with Killian Jornet and recently coached both winners of the most prestigious trail race on Earth, UTMB (Tom Evans & Ruth Croft). He's also author of one of my favorite training books, Training for the Uphill Athlete and founder of the Evoke Endurance coaching group. This conversation focuses on fatigue resistance: What is fatigue resistance? Local vs. global fatigue Top workouts...
Sep 25, 2025•1 hr 9 min
Sara Hall has been competing at the highest level for nearly 30 years. She was the 2000 high school national cross country champion before earning 7-time All-America honors at Stanford University. Not only has she won 10 US National Championship titles, but she's the only American to win national titles in both the mile and the marathon. Her incredible range is also demonstrated by her gold medal at the 2011 Pan American Games in the steeplechase, while also being the second fastest American fem...
Sep 18, 2025•50 min
Coach Sean Brosnan turned around a struggling Newbury Park high school cross country team that hadn't qualified for a State Championship in 25 years. Soon, they had won three consecutive National Championships. How did he do it? Sean shares the psychological and physical strategies he used to instill belief, develop fitness, and build the bond between teammates. His all-in, often unorthodox approach, raised eyebrows but undeniably got incredible results. Himself a distinguished endurance runner,...
Sep 11, 2025•54 min
What are the most effective recovery strategies for runners? In this episode, Jason distills his 15+ years of coaching and 27 years of running experience into the most important lessons about the recovery process. Hindsight is 20/20! For more on recovery, download our free Little Black Book of Recovery & Prevention and you'll hear advice from 9 elite athletes including Dathan Ritzenhein, Amelia Boone, and more. Thank you for listening and subscribing to the Strength Running Podcast! Thank yo...
Sep 04, 2025•29 min
Phil Batterson is a competitive runner, former running coach, and the founder of Critical Oxygen. Phil has a PhD in human bioenergetics and a love for all sorts of endurance sports, from rowing to track and field and ultras. His goal with Critical Oxygen is to teach athletes and coaches how to optimize their physiology to maximize endurance performance. This episode is important and is a repost of episode 330 from 2023. Phil breaks down some of the complex physiology behind the three different t...
Aug 28, 2025•1 hr 19 min
