THE RUNNING EFFECT PODCAST

Dominic Schlueter

The Running Effect tells the best stories in running—and turns them into insight, inspiration, and tools to help competitive runners become greater.
Every week, host Dominic Schlueter sits down with the fastest, smartest, and most inspiring people in the sport—from Olympic medalists to breakthrough athletes—to unpack the stories, lessons, and mindset behind elite performance. Whether you’re chasing a personal best or looking to understand how greatness is built, The Running Effect will make you a deeper fan of the sport—and a better runner.

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743 episodes
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May 15 · 1 hr 10 min
The Effect: Luke Hopkins on His Unrelenting Pursuit of Greatness, How an Accident at 12 Reshaped His Life, His Ambitions in Ironman, and Inspiring a Whole Generation in the Process
Luke Hopkins doesn't separate who he is from what he does—and that almost broke him. When a stress fracture pulled him off the training schedule he'd built his identity around, Hopkins had to face a question most high achievers never stop long enough to ask: what's left when the sport is gone? In this episode, the guys dive into the psychology of performance: the difference between being intentional and being consumed; why the hardest workers are often the most emotionally repressed; and what therapy, faith, and a neuroscience degree have taught him about the person underneath the athlete. Hopkins traces his relentless work ethic back to a single moment at age 12, when a family accident forced him to decide what kind of person he was going to be. That decision made him exceptional. It also cost him things he's still learning to name. He talks honestly about tying worth to output, the fragility of building an identity on strangers' approval, and why his brands not dropping him during the injury was one of the most clarifying moments of his career. The conversation covers hybrid training, what four-plus hours of daily training actually feels like, and the neuroscience behind why your brain is the limiting factor in any race—not your legs. But the episode's real weight is in the quieter moments: pride, fear, and what Hopkins would tell his 12-year-old self if he had the chance. Tap into the Luke Hopkins Special. If you enjoy the podcast, please consider following us on Spotify and Apple Podcasts and giving us a five-star review! I would also appreciate it if you share it with your friend who you think will benefit from it. If this episode blesses you, please share it with a friend! If this episode blesses you, please share it with a friend! S H O W N O T E S -The Run Down By The Running Effect (our new newsletter!): https://tinyurl.com/mr36s9rs -Our Website: https://therunningeffect.run -THE PODCAST ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClLcLIDAqmJBTHeyWJx_wFQ -My Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/therunningeffect/?hl=en⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ -Take our podcast survey: https://tinyurl.com/3ua62ffz INSTAGRAM: @lukehoplife Youtube: @lukehoplife Tiktok: @lukehoplife
May 13 · 56 min
3:53.43. 25 Years Later. Still Unbroken. Alan Webb on the Pre Classic Mile That Outlasted a Generation and Why It's Still the Hardest Record in High School Sports
Alan Webb still has the record. Twenty-four years later, nobody's touched it. The American high school mile record (3:53.43, set at the 2001 Prefontaine Classic) has outlasted every shoe revolution, every bicarb protocol, and every perfectly concocted running shoe PR storm. In this conversation, Webb sits down with Dominic to talk about why that mark still stands, what it actually felt like to run it, and what the sport's fastest generation of teenagers is still missing. Webb is disarmingly honest about his own race. Going into Pre that day, he wasn't chasing Ryun's record—he was chasing a decimal-second PR over 3:59. He was, in his words, playing with house money. The result was a 55-flat last lap with gas still in the tank, a closing kick he nearly stumbled into because he didn't realize how far ahead of his goal he was. That psychological accident, he argues, is exactly what most high school milers can't replicate on command. The conversation moves from race mechanics to coaching philosophy to the weight room sins of his own career—including a period where Webb, by his own admission, went full Arnold Schwarzenegger while training for the mile. He's candid about what he got wrong, what Coach Raczko got right, and how much of that South Lakes framework he's carried directly into his program at Ave Maria University. And somewhere in the middle of all of it, Webb lands on the thing that seems to have kept him in the sport long after the records and the contracts and the Nike deals: running, he says, teaches virtue. That's not nothing. Tap into the Alan Webb Special. If you enjoy the podcast, please consider following us on Spotify and Apple Podcasts and giving us a five-star review! S H O W N O T E S -The Run Down By The Running Effect (our new newsletter!): https://tinyurl.com/mr36s9rs -Our Website: https://therunningeffect.run -THE PODCAST ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClLcLIDAqmJBTHeyWJx_wFQ -My Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/therunningeffect/?hl=en⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ -Take our podcast survey: https://tinyurl.com/3ua62ffz Instagram: @alanwebb1
May 11 · 54 min
From Depressed to Strava Killer: Zach Pogrob on Share Aura, Taking Strava's Crown, and Building the Greatest App the Running World Has Ever Seen
He ran 63 miles on a broken stomach, launched a product the same week, and called it a good weekend. Zach Pogrob is back—and this time, the conversation goes deeper than any race result. A month before the BPN G1M Ultra, he posted a photo at 220 pounds and admitted he had no business toeing the line. He showed up anyway, ran until his GI system shut down at mile 50, kept going on fumes, and walked away with a finish that looked like a DNF: but felt, to him, like proof. That's the through-line of this entire episode: what it means to show up when the conditions aren't right, whether you'reentering a backyard ultra or building a startup with three people and no marketing budget. Zach breaks down the obsession economy behind ShareAura, a running app already hitting all-time weekly users with zero paid acquisition, and he demos the new Aura Run Cam live: a camera-first tracker designed to make sharing your run as easy as taking a photo. He also gets into what running 10 miles before sunrise every morning can do to a life that's lost its direction, what it actually takes to compete with Strava, why the running industry suffers from fixed-mindset thinking, and why the best companies (like the best athletes) are almost always built by outsiders. Zach Pogrob is here and he’s not holding back. Tap into the Zach Pogrob Special. If you enjoy the podcast, please consider following us on Spotify and Apple Podcasts and giving us a five-star review! I would also appreciate it if you share it with your friend who you think will benefit from it. If this episode blesses you, please share it with a friend! If this episode blesses you, please share it with a friend! S H O W N O T E S -The Run Down By The Running Effect (our new newsletter!): https://tinyurl.com/mr36s9rs -Our Website: https://therunningeffect.run -THE PODCAST ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClLcLIDAqmJBTHeyWJx_wFQ -My Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/therunningeffect/?hl=en⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ -Take our podcast survey: https://tinyurl.com/3ua62ffz INSTAGRAM: @zachpogrob X: @zachpogrob Website: zach.blog Youtube: @zach_pogrob
May 9 · 37 min
Inside the Training and Mindset of a 4:30 High School Miler: Ellery Lincoln on Beating Pre-Race Nerves, Joining Jane Hedengren on the All-Time List, and Her Plan to Break the HS Record
She threw up before every race. Now she's the fourth-fastest high school miler in American history. Ellery Lincoln is a Nike Elite junior from Lincoln High School in Portland, and her 4:30.00 at the 2026 Nike/Jesuit Twilight Relays didn't arrive as a surprise so much as an inevitability—the product of two years’ worth of illness, setback, and a mantra she and her mom built together: consistency over perfection. In this episode, she and Dominic go deep on the story behind the fast times: the whooping cough that derailed her cross country season; the pneumonia that hit the day she landed in New York for Nike Indoor Nationals; and what it actually looks like to rebuild not just fitness but trust in a body that keeps letting you down. She also talks about committing to the University of Oregon (where Shalane Flannagan coaches and where her connection to Jerry Schumacher runs deeper than almost anyone's) and why she chose Eugene even though staying in-state wasn'talways the plan. She breaks down the pre-race anxiety that once had her vomiting before every race and how she worked through it; what it means to sit #4 all-time as a junior; and why her sightline is already past the high school record book and onto a professional career. The HOKA Festival of Miles is June 4th in St. Louis. She'll be there. So will Braelyn Combe, her best friend and the closest thing the high school mile has to a genuine rival right now. She's predicting sub-4:30 for the winner. For herself, she said 4:27.4. Tap into the Ellery Lincoln Special. If you enjoy the podcast, please consider following us on Spotify and Apple Podcasts and giving us a five-star review! S H O W N O T E S -The Run Down By The Running Effect (our new newsletter!): https://tinyurl.com/mr36s9rs -Our Website: https://therunningeffect.run -THE PODCAST ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClLcLIDAqmJBTHeyWJx_wFQ -My Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/therunningeffect/?hl=en⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ -Take our podcast survey: https://tinyurl.com/3ua62ffz Instagram: @ellerylincoln
May 7 · 59 min
Exclusive: How Trevor Painter Is Coaching Keely Hodgkinson to Break a 40-Year-Old World Record — Inside M11 Track Club, the Chase for 1:52, and Coaching the Fastest Women in the World
Trevor Painter doesn't coach world record holders by accident—he builds them, one hard session at a time. Painter is the architect behind Keely Hodgkinson's indoor world record and Georgia Hunter Bell's World Indoor 1500m gold, and in this conversation, he pulls back the curtain on exactly how M11 Track Club operates. He opens with what makes Keely truly special: not just her talent, but her composure, her work rate, and the almost unsettling ease with which she handles pressure. From there, the conversation moves into the unlikely origin story of one of the sport’s most successful coaching partnerships: how a semi-pro rugby league player turned 400m runner ended up building the most decorated middle-distance group in the world alongside his wife, Jenny Meadows. Painter gets specific on the training philosophy that separates M11 from the rest: high intensity, low mileage, and lactate numbers that have left their own physiologist scratching her head. He explains why cross-training is baked into the system for nearly every athlete in the group; why Sunday is a sacred rest day even for the best in the world; and why he believes practice should always be harder than the race. He also addresses the outdoor world record directly—what he thinks it will take, when he thinks it can happen, and why he called 1:53.28 untouchable when he first signed with Nike. This one is for every athlete who thinks shortcuts are an option. They aren't. Tap into the Trevor Painter Special. If you enjoy the podcast, please consider following us on Spotify and Apple Podcasts and giving us a five-star review! I would also appreciate it if you share it with your friend who you think will benefit from it. S H O W N O T E S -The Run Down By The Running Effect (our new newsletter!): https://tinyurl.com/mr36s9rs -Our Website: https://therunningeffect.run -THE PODCAST ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClLcLIDAqmJBTHeyWJx_wFQ -My Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/therunningeffect/?hl=en⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ -Take our podcast survey: https://tinyurl.com/3ua62ffz Instagram: @faster_feet X.com: @Faster_feet
May 5 · 1 hr 6 min
119 Miles. 28 Hours. One 4AM Breakdown. Jonny Davies on the Caffeine Reset, the Voice That Got Him Up, and the Work That Wins Before the Start Line.
Jonny Davies ran 119 miles on a Texas ranch, vomited up half a bottle of water, and still had to be talked out of going back for one more lap. Fresh off his second BPN Go One More Last Man Standing Ultra (and 17 more miles than the year before), Jonny sits down with Dominic to unpack what really happens when the race strips everything away. He gets into the brutal physics of surviving Texas heat at 105°F as a 6'4", 220 pound guy from the UK, the moment his crew drew the red line and pulled him from the race, and the stat that stopped him cold before his first G1M: 80% of people who quit a backyard ultra quit in the chair, not on the course. He wasn't going to be one of them. But this conversation moves well beyond race day. Jonny traces the philosophy that carried him through a devastating breakup right after Run the Capitals—his 596 mile, 11-day run through every UK and Ireland capital—and explains how the same stubbornness that kept him moving on broken feet is the thing he now leans on in ordinary life. His dad's voice from the rugby pitch cuts through every dark moment: you can't play rugby on the floor. His work with CALM, the UK suicide prevention charity, gives everything else its weight. And when Dominic asks who he's trying to become, Jonny's answer is disarmingly simple: just better than yesterday, every day, no destination required. Tap into the Jonny Davies Special. If you enjoy the podcast, please consider following us on Spotify and Apple Podcasts and giving us a five-star review! I would also appreciate it if you share it with your friend who you think will benefit from it. S H O W N O T E S -The Run Down By The Running Effect (our new newsletter!): https://tinyurl.com/mr36s9rs -Our Website: https://therunningeffect.run -THE PODCAST ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClLcLIDAqmJBTHeyWJx_wFQ -My Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/therunningeffect/?hl=en⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ -Take our podcast survey: https://tinyurl.com/3ua62ffz INSTAGRAM: @jonnyrdavies TikTok: @jdrunsfar
May 3 · 29 min
3:58 Mile. 8:31 3200m National Record. Two Cross Country National Titles. Jackson Spencer on the Senior Year That Made Him the Fastest Distance Runner In Recent History & The Training Behind It
He ran 3:58 off early-season training, and he's not done yet. Jackson Spencer sat down with Dominic just days after becoming one of roughly 32 high schoolers in American history to break four minutes in the mile, and the conversation is exactly what you'd hope from a kid with this kind of season: honest, grounded, and full of detail that never shows up in a results column. He walks through Arcadia blow by blow—targeting sub-8:30, counting splits through the mile, then letting the race take over—only to flash back to Brooks XC in the final 100 meters when Marcelo Mantecon nearly caught him again. He talks about what running a national-record 8:31 off early-season fitness means for the eight weeks still ahead, and why Coach Soles has to hype him up before races because Jackson keeps trying to stay humble. The upcoming HOKA Festival of Miles gets its own chapter: Jackson and Quentin Nauman are both confirmed, and Jackson has one request going in: a 1:57 first 800m. He thinks sub-3:54 and a shot at Alan Webb's high school record are possible if the pacing is honest, and he's willing to commit to that on record. He also gets into the daily doubles, the beet root powder ritual on race day, averaging 60 miles per week through track season, and what staying consistent has done for him beyond the times—including what he actually wants to be remembered for when this is all over. Tap into the Jackson Spencer Special. If you enjoy the podcast, please consider following us on Spotify and Apple Podcasts and giving us a five-star review! S H O W N O T E S -The Run Down By The Running Effect (our new newsletter!): https://tinyurl.com/mr36s9rs -Our Website: https://therunningeffect.run -THE PODCAST ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClLcLIDAqmJBTHeyWJx_wFQ -My Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/therunningeffect/?hl=en⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ -Take our podcast survey: https://tinyurl.com/3ua62ffz Instagram: @jackson.spencer207
May 2 · 59 min
No Coach. No Training Partners. No Contract. Vinny Mauri on the Unconventional Path to 2:05:54—the Fastest American Marathon Debut Ever
Vinny Mauri was working the floor at a running shoe store in Ohio. Then he ran 2:05:54 and became the fastest American marathon debutant in history. Nobody was watching. That's not hyperbole. While the running world was fixated on Sabastian Sawe's sub-two-hour performance in London, a 25-year-old from Warren, Ohio quietly dismantled the record books at the Glass City Marathon in Toledo—running solo, without a sponsor, without a pacer, and without anyone outside his circle knowing what was coming. Vinny Mauri's 2:05:54 didn't just break Ryan Hall's American debut record of 2:08:24. It shattered it by nearly three minutes. Dominic sat down with Vinny just two days after the race; before the contracts, before the headlines fully caught up, before the moment had time to calcify into legend. What you get is the raw version: how Vinny built this alone in Ohio, grinding 5:40 and 5:50 pace every day, ripping 20- and 22-mile long runs at five-minute pace with no team, no coach, and no fanfare. A former Arizona State and Notre Dame runner with a 13:34 5K under his belt and a moderately successful collegiate résumé, Vinny never announced himself as a marathon talent. He just trained, showed up in Toledo, won by fifteen minutes, and then talked about what comes next. This is the conversation that happens before everything changes. Share it with one person who needs to believe in what's still possible. Tap into the Vinny Mauri Special. If you enjoy the podcast, please consider following us on Spotify and Apple Podcasts and giving us a five-star review! S H O W N O T E S -The Run Down By The Running Effect (our new newsletter!): https://tinyurl.com/mr36s9rs -Our Website: https://therunningeffect.run -THE PODCAST ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClLcLIDAqmJBTHeyWJx_wFQ -My Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/therunningeffect/?hl=en⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ -Take our podcast survey: https://tinyurl.com/3ua62ffz
May 1 · 1 hr 6 min
From 2:09 in New York to 2:04 in Boston: Charles Hicks and Coach Alex Ostberg on the 16-Week Build, 1,000 Extra Training Miles, and Why A Sub-2 Marathon For Him Is Now a Conversation
Charles Hicks ran 2:04:35 at Boston in his second marathon. His coach was watching from Eugene, trying not to lose his mind. Alex Ostberg and Charles Hicks were Stanford teammates for exactly one year: Ostberg a fifth-year senior, Hicks a freshman who wasn't even first on the depth chart in his incoming class. Five years later, they're coach and athlete inside Nike's Swoosh Track Club, and they just executed one of the most stunning American marathon performances in history. In this conversation, they pull back the curtain on the full arc: the Cherry Blossom 10-Miler that first convinced Jerry Schumacher the marathon was Charles's calling; the abbreviated eight-week build into New York that exceeded everyone's expectations; and the 16-week Boston block where Charles never dipped below 105 miles in a single week. They talk about what it actually means to train under Schumacher—workouts revealed 10 minutes before, plans built in two-week cycles, and a phone call every night at 9:30 PM—and why Ostberg's role is less about designing sessions and more about being a steady hand when the experiencing self and the remembering self stop agreeing. Charles also explains the text he sent Ostberg after a disappointing half marathon in Atlanta that became the quiet thesis of the entire Boston build: I will navigate my failure points more effectively than my competition. Affirm the past. Appreciate the present. Inject ambition into the future. Tap into the Charles Hicks and Alex Ostberg Special. If you enjoy the podcast, please consider following us on Spotify and Apple Podcasts and giving us a five-star review! S H O W N O T E S -The Run Down By The Running Effect (our new newsletter!): https://tinyurl.com/mr36s9rs -Our Website: https://therunningeffect.run -THE PODCAST ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClLcLIDAqmJBTHeyWJx_wFQ -My Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/therunningeffect/?hl=en⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ -Take our podcast survey: https://tinyurl.com/3ua62ffz Instagram: _charleshicks
April 29 · 1 hr 12 min
How Matthew Centrowitz Became the First American in 108 Years to Win Olympic 1500m Gold: Outrunning His Father's Shadow, the Selfishness It Demanded, and Why He Couldn't Do It Today
He won Olympic gold in 2016, more with his brain, not his legs—and the running world never forgot it. Matthew Centrowitz Jr., the only American man to win Olympic 1,500m gold since Mel Sheppard in 1908, sits down with The Running Effect for a wide-open conversation about what it took to become the most decorated American miler of his generation. From his 2011 NCAA title at Oregon to three World Championship medals, five national outdoor crowns, and that unforgettable Rio final—Centro built a decade-long résumé that no American middle-distance runner has touched. His 3:30.40 PR at Monaco still stands as the benchmark. His tactical IQ was something no training plan could manufacture. This is a conversation about how you build a career like that—the coaching systems, the rivals, the near-misses, and the one race that made it all permanent. From Alberto Salazar's Oregon Project to the Bowerman Track Club under Jerry Schumacher, Centro navigated the highest-pressure environments in American distance running and came out the other side with gold. We want to know what it actually felt like to sit in a field of the world's best 1,500m runners and know—before the bell—that you had already won. And how a decade of that kind of focus shapes a man long after the spikes come off. The legend of Centro, here at The Running Effect. If you enjoy the podcast, please consider following us on Spotify and Apple Podcasts and giving us a five-star review! I would also appreciate it if you share it with your friend who you think will benefit from it. If this episode blesses you, please share it with a friend! S H O W N O T E S -The Run Down By The Running Effect (our new newsletter!): https://tinyurl.com/mr36s9rs -Our Website: https://therunningeffect.run -THE PODCAST ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClLcLIDAqmJBTHeyWJx_wFQ -My Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/therunningeffect/?hl=en⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ -Take our podcast survey: https://tinyurl.com/3ua62ffz
April 27 · 1 hr
How Joey Miuccio Ran 111 Miles at the BPN G1M Ultra on 8 Weeks of Training — Pacing Strategy, Mindset, Why His Body Broke at Mile 100 and the Dilemma of the High Achiever
Joey Miuccio came to Texas undertrained, ran 111 miles, and cried in a chair. He'd do it all again. This one goes deeper than the G1M Ultra. Joey breaks down what actually separates a backyard ultra from Leadville. It'snot the distance, it's that you can never slow to a crawl. Every lap has a clock, and the clock doesn't care about your knee. He hit mile 85 feeling invincible, convinced he'd be out there forever. By mile 91 he was bargaining with himself again. The roller coaster never stops, and this conversation captures every drop of it. There's a moment mid-race where Kendall Picado Fallas—still competing for the win—quietly falls in beside Joey and drags him through his 100-mile lap without being asked. That moment says everything about the culture inside the G1M Ultra that the highlight reels don't show. But the conversation that lingers comes after the race recap. Joey gets honest about the trap of always chasing the next thing, why satisfaction has to live in the journey rather than the finish line, and what it felt like to hit 111 miles with minimal training and still wonder if he left something out there. Tap into the Joey Miuccio Special. If you enjoy the podcast, please consider following us on Spotify and Apple Podcasts and giving us a five-star review! S H O W N O T E S -The Run Down By The Running Effect (our new newsletter!): https://tinyurl.com/mr36s9rs -Our Website: https://therunningeffect.run -THE PODCAST ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClLcLIDAqmJBTHeyWJx_wFQ -My Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/therunningeffect/?hl=en⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ -Take our podcast survey: https://tinyurl.com/3ua62ffz Instagram: @joeymiuccio YouTube: @Joeymiuccio TikTok: @joeymiuccio
April 25 · 56 min
Iron. Stress. Ice Baths. Biology. NIKE Pro Running Coach Alex Osberg on the Four Training Science Truths Every Competitive Runner Needs to Hear
JOIN MY TEAM & SUPPORT A GREAT CAUSE: https://www.wingsforlifeworldrun.com/en/teams/5Nrld5?join=1 Every runner has a mental checklist of what's holding them back. Iron deficiency, life stress, ice bath mythology, and the gap between ambition and biology probably aren't on it—but after this episode, they will be. Alex Ostberg is back for the Rundown Recap, and he starts where most coaches start when an athlete is underperforming: iron. They discuss why iron is so central to the oxygen transport system, what symptoms to watch for before things get serious, and how to get tested without a physician's order. The conversation then shifts to something harder to quantify: stress. Alex makes the case that mental load isn't separate from training—it modifies how the body adapts to it. He and Dominic dig into how elite runners like Grant Fisher and Jess McLean actually use added life structure to their advantage, and what high schoolers stacking SATs on top of race days can learn from Coach Milt's approach to finals week. From there, the ice bath episode. Alex isn't anti-ice:he's anti-misunderstanding. The recovery oil study alone will make you rethink one of the most entrenched rituals in the sport. The final piece ties it all together: biology moves slower than your ambitions. Alex breaks down why backwards-facing training plans are built on false certainty, and why the athlete who stops fighting physiology is always the one still standing at the end of a long season. Tap into the Alex Ostberg Rundown Recap Special. If you enjoy the podcast, please consider following us on Spotify and Apple Podcasts and giving us a five-star review! I would also appreciate it if you share it with your friend who you think will benefit from it. If this episode blesses you, please share it with a friend! If this episode blesses you, please share it with a friend! S H O W N O T E S -The Run Down By The Running Effect (our new newsletter!): https://tinyurl.com/mr36s9rs -Our Website: https://therunningeffect.run -THE PODCAST ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClLcLIDAqmJBTHeyWJx_wFQ -My Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/therunningeffect/?hl=en⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ -Take our podcast survey: https://tinyurl.com/3ua62ffz
April 23 · 41 min
58 Hours. 241 Miles. First Loss. Kim Gottwald on the End of His 14-Month Winning Streak & Why He'll Be Back to Win the BPN G1M Ultra
He came out of nowhere, tied a backyard ultra, and accidentally built one of running's most compelling brands—all before turning 22. Now Kim Goldwald is back on the show, and this time, he left Texas without the crown. Kim returns to The Running Effect fresh off his second Go One More Ultra, where he finished 58 loops (241.5 miles) in brutal, rain-soaked conditions before his right glute gave out for good. It's the first backyard loss of his career, and he couldn't care less. In this conversation, Kim breaks down what actually changed—not the outcome, but the person who walked off those trails. He talks about the version of himself that "died" at this race: the one who was always sprinting to the next drop, the next event, the next milestone without ever stopping to feel any of it. He opens up about Rappid Run’s explosive growth (from $70k in total revenue before June 2024 to $900k by year's end, and $400k in sales over a single race weekend) and why the numbers aren't the point anymore. The brand's real mission, he says, is simple: inspire people, change lives, mean something. He's 22. He's already different. And he's coming for everybody next time. Tap into the Kim Gottwald Special. If you enjoy the podcast, please consider following us on Spotify and Apple Podcasts and giving us a five-star review! I would also appreciate it if you share it with your friend who you think will benefit from it. S H O W N O T E S -The Run Down By The Running Effect (our new newsletter!): https://tinyurl.com/mr36s9rs -Our Website: https://therunningeffect.run -THE PODCAST ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClLcLIDAqmJBTHeyWJx_wFQ -My Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/therunningeffect/?hl=en⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ -Take our podcast survey: https://tinyurl.com/3ua62ffz SOCIALS: Instagram: @kim.gottwald TikTok: @kimgottwald YouTube: @Kim.gottwald
April 22 · 1 hr 1 min
Dr. Lyndsay Centrowitz On The Locker Room "Badge Of Honor" Quietly Ending Female Running Careers, The Body That Keeps Score, And Why Your Chronic Injury Probably Might Not Be About Your Body At All
The woman treating Olympic athletes says the sport has been coaching women wrong for decades, and she's built the clinic, the science, and the summit to prove it. Dr. Lyndsay Centrowitz is a Doctor of Physical Therapy, pelvic health specialist, and USATF medical provider on a mission to rebuild how running treats the female body. She owns StrongHER, a women's-only PT practice in Park City, Utah, and trains clinicians nationwide through The Pace Academy. But her work goes far beyond the treatment table. The 2025 Canadian Postpartum Guidelines just rewrote the rulebook for female runners returning after childbirth, ditching the old "wait six weeks" standard in favor of movement that starts immediately and builds toward 120 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous activity per week. RED-S is still silently destroying careers at the high school level, and many coaches have received zero training on it. This August, Lyndsay is hosting the Female Runner Summit in Park City specifically to intercept that problem before it reaches campus. She is also a new mother and someone with a front-row seat to what happens when elite athletes face the hardest transitions of their careers. We are sitting down with one of the most important voices in women's running medicine for a conversation that is long overdue. Tap into the Dr. Lyndsay Centrowitz Special. If you enjoy the podcast, please consider following us on Spotify and Apple Podcasts and giving us a five-star review! I would also appreciate it if you share it with your friend who you think will benefit from it. Comment the word "PODCAST" below and I'll DM you a link to listen. If this episode blesses you, please share it with a friend! Comment the word "PODCAST" below and I'll DM you a link to listen. If this episode blesses you, please share it with a friend! S H O W N O T E S -The Run Down By The Running Effect (our new newsletter!): https://tinyurl.com/mr36s9rs -Our Website: https://therunningeffect.run -THE PODCAST ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClLcLIDAqmJBTHeyWJx_wFQ -My Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/therunningeffect/?hl=en⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ -Take our podcast survey: https://tinyurl.com/3ua62ffz
April 21 · 39 min
From 4:36 as a Freshman to 4:00 as a Senior: Caden Leonard on Chasing Sub-4 In The Mile, Being Coached By His Dad, and Why He Refuses to Visualize Losing
He's 0.08 seconds from the four-minute mile, and Festival of Miles is the race he's had circled all year. Caden Leonard arrives in St. Louis as the top-ranked high school miler in the country—coming off a 4:00.07 indoor and a 4:01.02 outdoor, the fastest mile ever run by a prep athlete on Texas soil. Last year he ran this same race through a stress reaction nobody knew about. This year he's healthy, hungry, and done waiting. In this conversation, Caden breaks down exactly how he plans to race the most loaded high school mile field of the year– with Jackson Spencer, Quentin Nauman, Alan Webb's record hovering in the background—and why his strategy isn't to chase a time, it's to win. He talks about extending the kick to make the hurt last longer, staying on the pace instead of reacting to it, and what it cost him last year to give guys like Quentin a head start he couldn't make up. He also gets into what sub-4 at Festival of Miles would actually mean; not just for him, but for his dad, who has now coached two Carroll milers to the doorstep of the barrier. Caden watched Reed Brown do it online as a kid and decided that was the standard. Festival of Miles is where he finds out if he's right. Tap into the Caden Leonard Special. If you enjoy the podcast, please consider following us on Spotify and Apple Podcasts and giving us a five-star review! I would also appreciate it if you share it with your friend who you think will benefit from it. S H O W N O T E S -The Run Down By The Running Effect (our new newsletter!): https://tinyurl.com/mr36s9rs -Our Website: https://therunningeffect.run -THE PODCAST ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClLcLIDAqmJBTHeyWJx_wFQ -My Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/therunningeffect/?hl=en⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ -Take our podcast survey: https://tinyurl.com/3ua62ffz Instagram: @_cadenleonard
April 20 · 52 min
Martin Dugard — NYT Bestselling Author Behind 12 Million Books Sold on the 50-Year Revolution That Built the Sport You Run and Why Running Is the Fastest-Growing Sport Nobody's Talking About
JOIN MY TEAM & SUPPORT A GREAT CAUSE: https://www.wingsforlifeworldrun.com/en/teams/5Nrld5?join=1 Martin Dugard has spent his whole life at the intersection of running and history, and The Long Run is where they finally collide. Dugard is a #1 New York Times bestselling author with over 12 million copies sold, a three-time Raid Gauloises adventure racer, a co-holder of the global circumnavigation speed record, and a cross country coach who has built California state championship programs from scratch over two decades. And he's earned every word of this book. In the 1970s, running was a fringe sport. What happened in between is one of the greatest untold stories in sports history, and Dugard just wrote the book on it. The Long Run drops April 14, and he joins the show to break down exactly how Frank Shorter's 1972 Olympic gold, Steve Prefontaine's counterculture fire, Joan Benoit Samuelson's 1984 Olympic breakthrough, and Grete Waitz's nine New York City Marathon victories turned a niche obsession into a global movement. But this isn't just a history lesson. He gets into the coaching philosophy behind the 1970s greats, what today's running boom has in common with the first one, and why the athletes who built this sport still don't get the credit they deserve. Tap into the Martin Dugard Special. If you enjoy the podcast, please consider following us on Spotify and Apple Podcasts and giving us a five-star review! I would also appreciate it if you share it with your friend who you think will benefit from it. Comment the word“PODCAST” below and I’ll DM you a link to listen. If this episode blesses you, please share it with a friend! Comment the word “PODCAST” below and I’ll DM you a link to listen. If this episode blesses you, please share it with a friend! S H O W N O T E S -The Run Down By The Running Effect (our new newsletter!): https://tinyurl.com/mr36s9rs -Our Website: https://therunningeffect.run -THE PODCAST ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClLcLIDAqmJBTHeyWJx_wFQ -My Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/therunningeffect/?hl=en⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ -Take our podcast survey: https://tinyurl.com/3ua62ffz
April 18 · 1 hr 17 min
How To Kill Doubt, Generate Evidence, And Leave Every Race An Honest Man — Alexander Lingaur On Overcoming His Demons And Running For 37 Hours Straight / 154 Miles At BPN G1M Ultra
Forty-five days ago, he told TRE he didn't know if he liked running anymore. Then he ran 37 loops. Aleksander Piotr Lingauer showed up to the 2026 BPN Go One More Ultra carrying more than a race bib. He carried a childhood spent in foster care across England and Germany, a nervous system that had been shutting down in the weeks before the start line, and a verse from Joel written on his shirt. What he left with was something harder to name—and that's what this conversation is about. This is the post-race debrief Dominic promised to deliver in person. From the moment Aleksander flew to New York on a swollen ankle just to run 8K with a guy he admired on the internet, to crewing for Kim Gottwald through storm-halted loops in Texas, to finally hearing his own name called as a competitor—every decision in this story was made on instinct, and every one of them changed his life. On the course: barefoot through the mud, keeping strangers in the race when they were about to quit, hallucinating a dragon somewhere in the second night, and fighting his way through doubt that even Mark Dowdle admitted he'd felt. Aleksander's answer to all of it was simple: if you fail to try, doubt wins. He left the loop an honest man. Tap into the Aleksander Lingauer Special. If you enjoy the podcast, please consider following us on Spotify and Apple Podcasts and giving us a five-star review! I would also appreciate it if you share it with your friend who you think will benefit from it. If this episode blesses you, please share it with a friend! If this episode blesses you, please share it with a friend! S H O W N O T E S -The Run Down By The Running Effect (our new newsletter!): https://tinyurl.com/mr36s9rs -Our Website: https://therunningeffect.run -THE PODCAST ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClLcLIDAqmJBTHeyWJx_wFQ -My Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/therunningeffect/?hl=en⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ -Take our podcast survey: https://tinyurl.com/3ua62ffz
April 16 · 58 min
Inside Jane Hedengren's Historic Freshman Year: 2 NCAA Titles, NCAA 5K Record (14:44), NCAA 10K Record (30:46) — And BYU's "Productive, Not Harder" Training Philosophy That Creates Champions
Most people spend years chasing a record. Jane Hedengren did it on her first try. On April 3rd at the Stanford Invitational, BYU freshman Jane Hedengren stepped onto the track for her first-ever collegiate outdoor race and ran 30:46.80, the fastest collegiate 10,000m in NCAA history. She broke Parker Valby's record by nearly four seconds. That's who TRE is sitting down with this week. But this episode isn't really about the record. It's about what it takes to perform at that level before you've had time to be afraid of it. Jane is 19 years old, the daughter of an All-American runner, competing for BYU under head coach Diljeet Taylor—and she is doing things in her freshman year that most distance runners never do in a career. Two NCAA indoor titles. The indoor 5,000m record. And now this. The numbers are already legendary. What this conversation goes after is everything behind them: the race tactics, the mindset between back-to-back NCAA gold medals, the training system that built her, and the question that’s been nagging many in the industry: does she let herself think about the 2028 Olympics? TRE does. And you will too by the end of this one. conversation that is long overdue. Tap into the Jane Hedengren Special. If you enjoy the podcast, please consider following us on Spotify and Apple Podcasts and giving us a five-star review! I would also appreciate it if you share it with your friend who you think will benefit from it. If this episode blesses you, please share it with a friend! S H O W N O T E S -The Run Down By The Running Effect (our new newsletter!): https://tinyurl.com/mr36s9rs -Our Website: https://therunningeffect.run -THE PODCAST ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClLcLIDAqmJBTHeyWJx_wFQ -My Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/therunningeffect/?hl=en⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ -Take our podcast survey: https://tinyurl.com/3ua62ffz
April 14 · 42 min
Quentin Nauman: 3:58 Miler, 10x State Champion, Legendary Kick— How Iowa's Most Dangerous Senior Is Coming for Alan Webb's HS Mile Record Of 3:53
Quentin Nauman is already a legend in Iowa. This spring season is the encore The greatest prep distance runner in Iowa history enters his final outdoor season with 10 state titles, two national championships, and one goal left unfinished. Two weeks ago at Nike Indoor Nationals, Nauman anchored Iowa's DMR team to a national title in 9:46.23, edging Texas by under a second in a dramatic final 200 meters. For an athlete defined by solo dominance, it was a glimpse of something new. Now he's back for his last run at the Drake Relays triple sweep (800m, 1600m, 3200m), and a legitimate shot at the national high school mile record before heading to Oregon in the fall. This is a return visit for Quentin, and the story has gotten bigger. This episode is part of The Running Effect's ongoing Festival of Miles series. One more outdoor season. One more shot at the record. One last chance to cement a legacy that's already unlike anything Iowa has ever seen. In this episode, Quentin opens up on the NIN team win, the Oregon decision, coach Elaina Biechler, and what it actually feels like to be chasing something when you've already won everything. Tap into the Quentin Nauman Special. If you enjoy the podcast, please consider following us on Spotify and Apple Podcasts and giving us a five-star review! I would also appreciate it if you share it with your friend who you think will benefit from it. Comment the word“PODCAST” below and I’ll DM you a link to listen. If this episode blesses you, please share it with a friend! Comment the word “PODCAST” below and I’ll DM you a link to listen. If this episode blesses you, please share it with a friend! S H O W N O T E S -The Run Down By The Running Effect (our new newsletter!): https://tinyurl.com/mr36s9rs -Our Website: https://therunningeffect.run -THE PODCAST ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClLcLIDAqmJBTHeyWJx_wFQ -My Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/therunningeffect/?hl=en⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ -Take our podcast survey: https://tinyurl.com/3ua62ffz
April 12 · 48 min
What It Took for David Perry — 28:42 Collegiate 10K Runner, Former Portland Pilot — to Build the Jewelry Brand Designing Diamond Track Spikes for Nike and Olympians
Colorado-born elite runner turned entrepreneur David Perry is here—a guy who went from captain of Adidas Runners NYC to founder of one of the most talked-about jewelry brands in the athletic world. David gained notoriety in the NYC running community before founding his own luxury jewelry brand, David Perry Jewelry. He was an All-America runner at the University of Portland, where he competed in Cross Country and Track & Field. As a middle-to-long-distance specialist, he has times like 3:45.61 in the 1500m and 23:18 in the 8,000m under his belt. Post-collegiately, he became a captain for Adidas Runners NYC, while staying heavily involved in the city's running culture. Although he set out in 2018 to make the U.S. Olympic Marathon trials and failed to do so in 2020, his ambition is nothing to frown at; he also signed Olympic gold medalist Grant Holloway as the brand's first-ever ambassador in 2024. From the trails of Colorado, to the roads of New York City, to the Olympic stage in Paris, David Perry's journey is proof that your biggest ambitions don't always look the way you planned them. He set out to make the Olympic Marathon Trials. Instead, he built a brand that made it to the Olympics anyway. Tap into the David Perry Special. If you enjoy the podcast, please consider following us on Spotify and Apple Podcasts and giving us a five-star review! I would also appreciate it if you share it with your friend who you think will benefit from it. Comment the word“PODCAST” below and I’ll DM you a link to listen. If this episode blesses you, please share it with a friend! Comment the word “PODCAST” below and I’ll DM you a link to listen. If this episode blesses you, please share it with a friend! S H O W N O T E S -The Run Down By The Running Effect (our new newsletter!): https://tinyurl.com/mr36s9rs -Our Website: https://therunningeffect.run -THE PODCAST ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClLcLIDAqmJBTHeyWJx_wFQ -My Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/therunningeffect/?hl=en⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ -Take our podcast survey: https://tinyurl.com/3ua62ffz