Latest / The People Run Podcast / #41 What Happens When Keira D’Amato Has to Stop Running

Transcript

#41 What Happens When Keira D’Amato Has to Stop Running · The People Run Podcast

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_02: My hobby was taken away, my passion was taken away, my community was taken away, and then just what I do to like just cope with life and my job.
• 0:09
  SPEAKER_02: So all of these like running plays such a large role in my life right now that ha not being able to do it on a constant basis, like I kind of went through.
• 0:23
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome.
• 0:23
  SPEAKER_00: Uh today we have a special guest.
• 0:25
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome back to the People Run podcast.
• 0:28
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you, Kiara, for being on.
• 0:29
  SPEAKER_00: How are you doing today?
• 0:31
  SPEAKER_02: I am having a great day.
• 0:33
  SPEAKER_02: I'm here talking with you.
• 0:34
  SPEAKER_02: So yeah, I'm doing good.
• 0:36
  SPEAKER_02: I'm doing really good.
• 0:37
  SPEAKER_02: How's your day going?
• 0:38
  SPEAKER_00: I'm good.
• 0:38
  SPEAKER_00: Well, if you start that way, I'm I'm I just went to attend midday with you to chat here.
• 0:44
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, it's a privilege.
• 0:45
  SPEAKER_00: I feel honored.
• 0:46
  SPEAKER_00: So you you lighten up my day now.
• 0:49
  SPEAKER_02: Well, works both ways.
• 0:51
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, pleasure.
• 0:52
  SPEAKER_00: Appreciate it.
• 0:53
  SPEAKER_00: Um, well, let's jump right into it.
• 0:54
  SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, everyone that follows you, you know you have a very amazing career, obviously.
• 0:58
  SPEAKER_00: You've had some big races, big wins, but recently you've been forced to stop due to an injury.
• 1:04
  SPEAKER_00: What has that journey been like so far these past few uh weeks and months?
• 1:09
  SPEAKER_02: You know, uh it sounds cliche, but a little bit of a roller coaster.
• 1:13
  SPEAKER_02: There's been a lot of emotions.
• 1:16
  SPEAKER_02: I think right now I'm in like, I am so excited to see what I can do healthy.
• 1:22
  SPEAKER_02: And I'm really grateful that I have the support um from my family and from my sponsors and from my team and from my coach to be able to prioritize my health and get this all you know taken care of so I can build back in a really strong, healthy way.
• 1:38
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, but it's been hard too.
• 1:40
  SPEAKER_02: It's been really hard.
• 1:41
  SPEAKER_02: I think what I didn't quite like grasp until like I've had injuries before and I've been out for months, which stinks.
• 1:49
  SPEAKER_02: But I feel like with the surgery, like like my hobby was taken away, my passion was taken away, my community was taken away, and then just what I do to like just cope with life and my job.
• 2:03
  SPEAKER_02: So all of these like running plays such a large role in my life right now that ha not being able to do it on a constant basis, like I kind of went through a withdrawal there, which was which was weird to experience, but right now I'm doing much better and I'm feeling very optimistic.
• 2:19
  SPEAKER_02: And I feel like I'm through um the like the biggest part of like rehab, and I'm starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel, so that I'm yeah, excited to see see what will happen after this.
• 2:31
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I get it.
• 2:32
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, I most runners, all runners can relate, but you put in a lot of hours to running to have such a big chunk of hours go away, like, where do I go?
• 2:40
  SPEAKER_00: It's gotta be often.
• 2:42
  SPEAKER_02: It is, and like I it's like I feel like I put all the pieces together at the end of 2025, beginning of 2026, but I didn't realize how big of a role this injury was playing.
• 2:54
  SPEAKER_02: And like I was first diagnosed with this in 2021.
• 2:57
  SPEAKER_02: I was diagnosed with hip dysplasia, so I have a very shallow hip, and then I also had a little bit of a tear in my labrum, but I think the fact that it wasn't at the labrum was kind of holding it all together, and then over the last like five years, the labrum has really, really torn.
• 3:14
  SPEAKER_02: And I first like in the first race that I really noticed it was in 2023 in Budapest.
• 3:19
  SPEAKER_02: I was running the Marathon World Championship, and all of a sudden, like around 14 miles, like I was like, I'm gonna win this.
• 3:25
  SPEAKER_02: I feel great, this is going really well.
• 3:28
  SPEAKER_02: And then all of a sudden, like I just couldn't lift my right leg.
• 3:32
  SPEAKER_02: And I struggled for the next 12 miles.
• 3:34
  SPEAKER_02: I was really proud to finish that race, but I kind of went back to the drawing board thinking, like, I guess I'm just not fit enough yet.
• 3:42
  SPEAKER_02: Let's go get more fit, let's go get more strong and more tough.
• 3:45
  SPEAKER_02: But I realized now, and that kind of became an ongoing thing in my marathon since, but I realized now that was the start of what I was fixing.
• 3:55
  SPEAKER_02: And it wasn't until I saw those surgeons that they were describing like other symptoms and other things, and I would describe what was happening in races, and they're like, oh, this is all related to your hip.
• 4:05
  SPEAKER_02: Um, so that that I didn't really quite connect all the dots until this year, but I think that's even more why I feel so relieved to have found a solution to get me back and running healthy.
• 4:19
  SPEAKER_00: What would you say held it for you know the years, even after you kind of knew, was it like just strength training or just a lot of mileage the body got used to compensating in other areas?
• 4:28
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I mean, I definitely think I was compensated, but I think my the thing that held it all together was PT.
• 4:33
  SPEAKER_02: And starting in 2021 when I was first diagnosed, they're like, you can push this down the road if you are really aggressive with PT.
• 4:41
  SPEAKER_02: So I was.
• 4:42
  SPEAKER_02: So I did a lot of a lot of like hip stuff, but mainly like glutes, a lot of core, a lot of like um yeah, pelvic floor stuff, like everything in that area, hamstrings and quads.
• 4:54
  SPEAKER_02: So I strengthened everything so much to be carrying the weight and to hold it all tight.
• 4:59
  SPEAKER_02: But eventually when that labrum finally like gave out, there was nothing but my muscles holding it in.
• 5:05
  SPEAKER_02: So my muscles then during a run and it started happening in shorter races, and then it started happening in workouts, and then it started happening on easy runs.
• 5:12
  SPEAKER_02: And that's when I realized, I mean, my body's like, what other sign do you need?
• 5:17
  SPEAKER_02: You are in a lot of pain right now.
• 5:20
  SPEAKER_02: Um, but yeah, and when I talked to the doctors, they they told me that I'd gotten my glute so strong that they were overcompensating and holding it in place when that's not their job.
• 5:29
  SPEAKER_02: So that's why during a marathon, I would just say, all of a sudden my glute locked up.
• 5:34
  SPEAKER_02: And because it was doing the job for my hip and my my labrum.
• 5:38
  SPEAKER_02: So yeah, I'm thrilled to have a solution now.
• 5:41
  SPEAKER_02: And I think my biggest surprise after surgery, even like one or two days after surgery, I was in less pain than I was before surgery, which I didn't realize how much pain I was living in on a constant basis until that pain went away.
• 5:54
  SPEAKER_02: And then it was that was really eye-opening too, that it didn't hurt to drive or to sleep or to sit.
• 5:59
  SPEAKER_02: Like all of a sudden I was like virtually pain-free, which was very eye-opening too.
• 6:06
  SPEAKER_00: So before surgery, you were like in pain almost all the time.
• 6:09
  SPEAKER_00: Like, how did you manage that?
• 6:11
  SPEAKER_02: I like it was my normal, so I didn't even really feel it.
• 6:14
  SPEAKER_02: But um, but like I mean, I was really great with recovery, like really great with PT and exercise, like really great on sleep, like our number one recovery tool, and then you know, getting massages and doing everything that all the little things I thought I was keeping it at bay.
• 6:30
  SPEAKER_02: Um, but also I think it just became my normal, and I didn't even really notice it anymore.
• 6:36
  SPEAKER_02: But yeah.
• 6:38
  SPEAKER_00: Curious, and I'm sure many listening are as a pro, you know, you got all these races coming up.
• 6:43
  SPEAKER_00: You mentioned Budapest, you had more after after that, and this pain is just keep lingering.
• 6:48
  SPEAKER_00: Like, what do you tell yourself in your mind?
• 6:49
  SPEAKER_00: Like, oh, I'll just run through it, I'll keep pushing.
• 6:51
  SPEAKER_00: Like, what do you tell yourself?
• 6:53
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, it's it's such a weird injury because I would have incredible builds and then it would give out during the marathon.
• 7:01
  SPEAKER_02: So, but I'm not doing like I would do at most like a 12-mile tempo, and I would do a lot of long runs, but at a different type of obviously like just pace and overall like effort.
• 7:13
  SPEAKER_02: And so I don't think I was getting to the points where my hip was breaking down in races or workouts or runs other than the marathon.
• 7:21
  SPEAKER_02: So every time I'd have this incredible build and go into a race, and then at mile between 14 and 16, I couldn't lift my right leg or my glutes would give out.
• 7:30
  SPEAKER_02: So it was kind of a confusing thing.
• 7:31
  SPEAKER_02: And I maybe it's just me being optimistic, but I kept thinking like nothing's wrong with me, just gotta get fitter.
• 7:38
  SPEAKER_02: Like, I just need more time, like I'm not there yet.
• 7:40
  SPEAKER_02: Like, so I just kept thinking, like, you know, more time and more hard work would get me through it when I think I was battling something that I wasn't gonna win about.
• 7:50
  SPEAKER_00: When was the turning point you decided, okay, I I gotta go see a doctor, I gotta get this taken care of.
• 7:54
  SPEAKER_00: I can't put it wrong in any longer.
• 7:57
  SPEAKER_02: So during the summer and fall last year, it started popping up in workouts.
• 8:03
  SPEAKER_02: So it popped up.
• 8:04
  SPEAKER_02: I ran the 10K USAs on the track in last July, and right around between four and a half, five miles, I couldn't lift my right leg.
• 8:15
  SPEAKER_02: And so that was, I was like, this is weird, like this is a feeling from a marathon, but it was like the shortest race that that's happened to me in.
• 8:22
  SPEAKER_02: And then after that race, it started happening in workouts, and I figured out a way to like unlock it.
• 8:28
  SPEAKER_02: Um, I have like a couple stretches that I could do that would unlock my hip.
• 8:31
  SPEAKER_02: And during workouts, even just taking that little break and resetting and stretching it out, I could get through workouts really well.
• 8:37
  SPEAKER_02: Um, but I ran a half marathon, a couple half marathons last fall, and it happened during both of those races.
• 8:44
  SPEAKER_02: But I was like too stubborn to like wrap my head around really what was happening.
• 8:48
  SPEAKER_02: But it would when it became more frequent in workouts, and then when it came to easy runs, and I would get two miles into a run and it started to be irritated.
• 8:56
  SPEAKER_02: That's when I I knew.
• 8:58
  SPEAKER_02: So I started seeing all this all the surgeons and all the doctors, and um the first one I saw, I was like, How do you know when you need to get like a surgery done like this?
• 9:06
  SPEAKER_02: And he's like, You will know, like it will be your only option.
• 9:09
  SPEAKER_02: And I went on a run one day and I made it like a mile, and I was like, This is this is time.
• 9:14
  SPEAKER_02: I can't do this.
• 9:14
  SPEAKER_02: This isn't the level that I want to be training at or competing at.
• 9:18
  SPEAKER_02: Like, I need to, I need to really figure something out here.
• 9:22
  SPEAKER_00: How hard was the decision?
• 9:23
  SPEAKER_00: You know, after everything you're achieving, you're doing these races, you're chasing the time.
• 9:27
  SPEAKER_00: I just need to get fitter to, you know what, let me take a step back here, get the surgery, recover, and come back.
• 9:33
  SPEAKER_02: You know, that decision actually wasn't very hard.
• 9:36
  SPEAKER_02: Like figuring out I needed to do something about it, that was fine.
• 9:39
  SPEAKER_02: And being able to like prioritize and step back from racing and know that like I really need to focus on my health to be able to build up, that wasn't hard.
• 9:48
  SPEAKER_02: It was hard figuring out what to do.
• 9:50
  SPEAKER_02: So I think that's what took me long is to really like identify the problem, figure out the why, and then how am I gonna solve this?
• 9:58
  SPEAKER_02: And I went and saw, I saw you know, I saw or spoke to six different surgeons, and I got I got different answers.
• 10:05
  SPEAKER_02: And it really that almost made it tougher too, hearing different opinions, but it also allowed me to hear different solutions to the problem, figure out which one felt the best for me with my goals.
• 10:18
  SPEAKER_02: And um, and I told all of them my goal is to be on the 2028 Olympic trial starting line, ready to kick butt.
• 10:25
  SPEAKER_02: So who's like how how do I do that?
• 10:27
  SPEAKER_02: How do I go in, you know, with my you know, the buzzsaw, Kira?
• 10:31
  SPEAKER_02: Like, how do I go in ready to kick butt in March of 2028?
• 10:35
  SPEAKER_02: And so that's the the path that I went down.
• 10:38
  SPEAKER_00: That's exciting.
• 10:39
  SPEAKER_00: As you say 2028, uh I'm lit up for you.
• 10:42
  SPEAKER_00: I was like, oh yes, we want to see her there.
• 10:45
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, we got time, we got time.
• 10:46
  SPEAKER_02: So that also was very the timing was intentional that I could spend this year on getting the surgery, recovering, and building up and hopefully be racing by the end of the year, um, and then have 2027 to like really continue to build up and get the fitness back and you know, put myself in it again and be ready to go by 2028.
• 11:05
  SPEAKER_00: Feel now, you know, we're in the midst of Boston coming up, London, all these races.
• 11:10
  SPEAKER_00: How does it feel as a pro?
• 11:11
  SPEAKER_00: You know, do you get FOMO?
• 11:13
  SPEAKER_00: Uh these races coming up, like, ah, I want to be out there.
• 11:17
  SPEAKER_02: So badly.
• 11:18
  SPEAKER_02: But I can also accept like this isn't my time right now.
• 11:23
  SPEAKER_02: Like, right now, this race is not for me.
• 11:25
  SPEAKER_02: But I think when I get FOMO the most is just seeing somebody go for a run around my neighborhood or down my favorite path, or if I'm driving and I see someone running where I like to run, that's when I get FOMO the most.
• 11:38
  SPEAKER_02: But I think I'm pretty good at accepting, like, okay, my path is not a spring marathon this year, and I've accepted that and I've coped with that.
• 11:45
  SPEAKER_02: And um, and to be, I think also like I'm genuinely excited for other people and their journeys.
• 11:51
  SPEAKER_02: So I've been really, really appreciative that Nike has been bringing me to I went to LA and I went to Boston and helped get people cheer like all pumped up for the LA marathon and then for the Boston marathon.
• 12:02
  SPEAKER_02: So being part of other people's journeys and just feeling, I don't know, included and part of that and being able to cheer other people on fills my cup too.
• 12:12
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I've seen that a couple of events you're at, you're out there cheering, you got horns.
• 12:18
  SPEAKER_02: Give me anything that makes noise.
• 12:21
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, for sure.
• 12:22
  SPEAKER_00: Does that make you feel connected to the sport still?
• 12:25
  SPEAKER_00: Like, you know, just seeing out there, everyone's uh, you know, achieving their own PRs, that kind of stuff.
• 12:29
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, absolutely.
• 12:30
  SPEAKER_02: And I think coming back into running, it turned from what like what me, what I can do, to what we can do.
• 12:37
  SPEAKER_02: So I think I still can participate in the we and be part of other people's journeys and be rooting for and encouraging and hopefully, I don't know, just helping in any way I can other people reach their goals.
• 12:48
  SPEAKER_02: So that is extremely meaningful to me also.
• 12:52
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, it's cool.
• 12:53
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, I I know I'd be pumped if I saw you at a race and I'm about to do a marathon.
• 12:58
  SPEAKER_02: I'd be like, you don't fit.
• 13:01
  SPEAKER_02: What do you like to hear before a race?
• 13:02
  SPEAKER_02: Like what pumps you up?
• 13:03
  SPEAKER_02: Like, what should I be doing?
• 13:04
  SPEAKER_02: Like, I'm going to Boston this weekend.
• 13:06
  SPEAKER_02: What should I be doing?
• 13:08
  SPEAKER_00: Oof.
• 13:08
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so I haven't run Boston yet.
• 13:10
  SPEAKER_00: Um, it is one of my long-term goals.
• 13:13
  SPEAKER_00: So I I can't answer the Boston, but pre-race, I'm gonna give you my friends' answer.
• 13:18
  SPEAKER_00: They think I'm weird because like during a build, I'll always, every single time, I'll have two or three theme songs that are just the theme song of my uh like build.
• 13:29
  SPEAKER_00: And I don't run outside with headphones, but when I'm in the gym, sometimes I do my workouts in the gym on the treadmill.
• 13:34
  SPEAKER_00: There's always a theme song.
• 13:35
  SPEAKER_00: It's never selected, it's random.
• 13:37
  SPEAKER_00: It could be Metallica one day, it could be a pop song the next day, hell, it could be bad bunny the next week.
• 13:43
  SPEAKER_00: But there's always a song that sticks out, and then the day of the race comes, nothing.
• 13:48
  SPEAKER_00: This is the weird part.
• 13:50
  SPEAKER_00: Like, I am just locked in, eyes closed, I'm like super quiet.
• 13:53
  SPEAKER_00: Everyone's like, How you feel for the race?
• 13:55
  SPEAKER_00: I'm good.
• 13:56
  SPEAKER_00: I just I'm like visualizing mentally, and I get super quiet and I don't get present until the start line.
• 14:02
  SPEAKER_02: And we're like, I feel that you're like holding in your energy though.
• 14:06
  SPEAKER_02: I like that a lot.
• 14:07
  SPEAKER_02: I think that's cool.
• 14:09
  SPEAKER_00: I try not to hide myself up too much, I guess.
• 14:11
  SPEAKER_00: And I think also, yes, it's holding the energy like for a pre a lot of myself is marathon or half.
• 14:17
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I've taken a year off this year to do some speed work, but uh it's usually a half or a marathon, and I just I just go quiet, like super quiet, blank.
• 14:24
  SPEAKER_00: I'll close my eyes, I'll get in the car for 10 five minutes if I have a car access, just tune off the noise, and then I just go.
• 14:31
  SPEAKER_02: I love that.
• 14:32
  SPEAKER_02: But during the middle, there's a soon.
• 14:34
  SPEAKER_02: I also love that you know what you need to, and I think just knowing that that is how you function best, I think is like such a gift because I think a lot of people are searching for that, right?
• 14:44
  SPEAKER_02: And it takes a lot of races to figure that out too.
• 14:47
  SPEAKER_02: So I think that's really cool.
• 14:49
  SPEAKER_02: But it's funny, I do the same thing with the songs, but then I play the songs the morning of to remind myself of like all the miles that I've done.
• 14:57
  SPEAKER_02: So I have like an ongoing like theme songs for like that build that I listen to.
• 15:03
  SPEAKER_02: Like I make a new playlist for every build, but then I listen to that playlist that morning because then I'm like, I've done this, you know, I don't listen to music while I'm doing tempos or long runs usually, but like easy runs and the gym and everything, it's like it reminds me of all the work that I've put in.
• 15:17
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, for sure.
• 15:18
  SPEAKER_00: I definitely uh like to relive some of those, and you know, maybe I'll go deep and emotional just for like mid-race I can remember.
• 15:25
  SPEAKER_00: So we're in unison there.
• 15:27
  SPEAKER_00: There's definitely a playlist involved.
• 15:30
  SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, something I've been wanting to ask you even before this came about, you know, since we're talking about getting hype, how in the hell do you come up with your Strava jokes?
• 15:42
  SPEAKER_00: I've been reading those for years now, and I'm like, okay, this one's funny, like that one's funny, like every day.
• 15:48
  SPEAKER_02: First off, thank you.
• 15:50
  SPEAKER_02: Actually, you know what?
• 15:50
  SPEAKER_02: I don't think I've posted mine from today yet, because right after my workout, I rushed to go somewhere.
• 15:55
  SPEAKER_02: But um, okay, well, it started as the popsicle sticks that like you know the popsicle sticks that have jokes that have the joke on the end, and then you gotta eat the popsicle to see what the punchline is.
• 16:06
  SPEAKER_02: So my kids and I were crushing those.
• 16:09
  SPEAKER_02: Like we were, I mean, if each of us just have one a night, we're going through three jokes a night.
• 16:13
  SPEAKER_02: And so I was saving the jokes and using them for the Strava.
• 16:16
  SPEAKER_02: This was probably back in like 2017, and and then like one day I stopped and people were like, Where are the jokes?
• 16:22
  SPEAKER_02: And I'm like, you know what?
• 16:23
  SPEAKER_02: I'll keep them going, I'll give the people what they want.
• 16:25
  SPEAKER_02: Strava world.
• 16:27
  SPEAKER_02: But two things.
• 16:28
  SPEAKER_02: One, I appreciate so much people's comments on my jokes, they are way more funny than the joke itself.
• 16:36
  SPEAKER_02: So if you ever have extra time, go and look to the comments because I read all of them and I think they I need to like like all of them so people know I'm reading it.
• 16:46
  SPEAKER_02: That is something I need to work on.
• 16:47
  SPEAKER_02: But I think they are so funny.
• 16:49
  SPEAKER_02: People on Strava are so funny.
• 16:52
  SPEAKER_02: But um, yeah, so it kind of, but also I have this really weird ability to remember jokes.
• 16:58
  SPEAKER_02: Like I can't remember what I had for breakfast for today.
• 17:02
  SPEAKER_02: Like, I can't remember the stuff that would probably allow me to be a better functioning human being, but like jokes like just implant themselves on my brain and live there forever.
• 17:12
  SPEAKER_02: So that's what that's what I think about a lot of the time.
• 17:17
  SPEAKER_00: But well, I've always been curious, okay.
• 17:19
  SPEAKER_00: Popsicles and you remember jokes.
• 17:21
  SPEAKER_00: Got it.
• 17:21
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, well, it's funny, like someone will bring up like like Mariah Carey or someone like Billy Joel, and then I'll have a joke in my head that I have to consciously be like, don't tell the joke, don't tell the joke, don't tell the joke.
• 17:33
  SPEAKER_02: But people are like talking about crabs, and I'm like, Oh, I got a crab joke.
• 17:36
  SPEAKER_02: I got a crab, like my brain is just like constantly thinking in jokes.
• 17:40
  SPEAKER_02: I don't know what's wrong with it.
• 17:41
  SPEAKER_00: Somewhere at home where you just store them later on, you're like, I have a hundred jokes.
• 17:45
  SPEAKER_02: I should.
• 17:46
  SPEAKER_02: I have like a notepad on my phone that when I think of one that I remember one or hear one, I'll just put in my notepad and then I can pull from there.
• 17:53
  SPEAKER_02: But um, yeah, and actually now it's like a self-running machine, like people will send me jokes.
• 18:00
  SPEAKER_02: So, like it really is like I've created a beautiful, funny monster because now people will hear a joke and send it to me.
• 18:06
  SPEAKER_02: My stepdad being probably my number one supplier.
• 18:09
  SPEAKER_02: He like he probably sends me a joke every day.
• 18:11
  SPEAKER_02: He's like, heard this, thought of you, and like that's awesome.
• 18:13
  SPEAKER_02: You hear a joke and think of me, like I'm doing something right.
• 18:16
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, get a smile.
• 18:17
  SPEAKER_00: He's he's laughing.
• 18:18
  SPEAKER_00: That that's awesome for sure.
• 18:20
  SPEAKER_00: I've always pictured you post-run, like, okay, wait, guys, I gotta stop.
• 18:23
  SPEAKER_00: Hold on, hold on, and then just on the phone.
• 18:27
  SPEAKER_00: That really is.
• 18:28
  SPEAKER_02: I'm like, give me five minutes, people.
• 18:30
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, but I'm like, who has a joke?
• 18:32
  SPEAKER_02: Who has a joke?
• 18:33
  SPEAKER_02: I like poll the audience too when I'm with people.
• 18:36
  SPEAKER_00: No, that's awesome.
• 18:37
  SPEAKER_00: Talking about laughter and you know, enjoying some some peaceful time and a break.
• 18:41
  SPEAKER_00: You've had all these hours that usually train in.
• 18:43
  SPEAKER_00: How have you filled the hours now that you're recovering, you're back on the elliptical and swimming?
• 18:47
  SPEAKER_00: I saw that's part of it, I'm sure.
• 18:49
  SPEAKER_00: But how are you spending that time?
• 18:50
  SPEAKER_02: Okay, it's so funny.
• 18:52
  SPEAKER_02: My mom was and I were talking about this that I was thinking I was gonna have all this free time and be able to like start a new hobby and like do all this stuff.
• 19:02
  SPEAKER_02: I've had zero free time.
• 19:05
  SPEAKER_02: Like actually being injured and going to like rehab and doing PT and cross-training takes up more time than just training.
• 19:13
  SPEAKER_02: So I had all I'm like, maybe I'll like learn a new language, maybe I'll like do a guitar, maybe I'll learn.
• 19:19
  SPEAKER_02: Actually, someone offered to like teach me how to like crochet, and I haven't done anything.
• 19:24
  SPEAKER_02: So I don't know, I've watched a lot of like TV shows on like the elliptical and the bike and everything, but um, but also like I'm really excited to get this big reset to get back to the basics with PT.
• 19:37
  SPEAKER_02: So I feel like we talked about this earlier.
• 19:39
  SPEAKER_02: I've been compensating for so long.
• 19:41
  SPEAKER_02: I am so excited to build up in a really like healthy way and hopefully just get strong.
• 19:47
  SPEAKER_00: But what does that uh look like and feel like for you?
• 19:52
  SPEAKER_00: You know, obviously it's a long game, but you know, recovered now and you know, being able to train maybe even more.
• 19:58
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I I am so excited and so optimistic that I'm gonna be able to build up in a really different way than I have in the future because my body has broken down before.
• 20:11
  SPEAKER_02: So I'm very optimistic that this is gonna like I still know I have a long road to recovery.
• 20:16
  SPEAKER_02: I've I had the surgery, I'm actually exactly eight weeks out right now.
• 20:20
  SPEAKER_02: I think in four weeks I'll be able to start doing some running, but I am now able to start doing some walking and some hiking, so that feels good, and putting some resistance on the bike and doing the elliptical, so I feel like I can sweat during a workout for for a while.
• 20:33
  SPEAKER_02: I could just spin on a bike without putting in resistance.
• 20:37
  SPEAKER_02: But I'm really excited to build up in a really healthy way, knowing that my body can support what I'm gonna throw at it.
• 20:45
  SPEAKER_02: But it's funny because I feel like I don't know, kind of uh normal people will be like, Oh, what happened to your hip?
• 20:51
  SPEAKER_02: And I'm like, I ran too many marathons, so I had to get surgery.
• 20:53
  SPEAKER_02: They're like, Oh, well, don't do that again.
• 20:54
  SPEAKER_02: I'm like, no, I got the surgery, so I can go run more marathons.
• 20:57
  SPEAKER_02: So I'm a little backwards, but yeah.
• 21:01
  SPEAKER_00: That is the the usual, oh, the uh marathon that you win, or yeah, how long?
• 21:08
  SPEAKER_02: How many miles was that marathon?
• 21:10
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah.
• 21:11
  SPEAKER_00: I I love telling my mom about the races, and it's always like she has to turn it into kilometers, and it's always a super long conversation more than I wanted to.
• 21:18
  SPEAKER_02: Okay, are you guys from Europe or your mom is just like super cool that she tracks in kilometers, also?
• 21:24
  SPEAKER_00: Um, Dominican Republic, so like Spanish and in my country, they always use kilometers.
• 21:29
  SPEAKER_02: Um okay, that makes sense.
• 21:31
  SPEAKER_00: So, like, yeah.
• 21:33
  SPEAKER_02: Oh, okay, so that makes a lot of sense.
• 21:36
  SPEAKER_00: I'll tell her mom if she has no idea.
• 21:38
  SPEAKER_02: Why are we still holding on to the miles?
• 21:40
  SPEAKER_02: Like, I feel like we could let that go and maybe just join the rest of the world on kilometers, but I don't know.
• 21:46
  SPEAKER_00: You tell me you have more experience at these like bigger races, and you see them.
• 21:50
  SPEAKER_00: I something that weirds me out.
• 21:52
  SPEAKER_00: I'll share this.
• 21:53
  SPEAKER_00: You go to races, like the bigger the race, and I do love this.
• 21:55
  SPEAKER_00: Like, I've I've even started using kilometers more, and I feel like I run better when I see a Okay, it's 5k, 10k, 15k versus where's the three mile marker?
• 22:04
  SPEAKER_00: Where's yeah, I have no idea.
• 22:06
  SPEAKER_00: I'm thinking about it versus the like the bigger majors where the kilometers are there.
• 22:10
  SPEAKER_02: Um it is kind of it is kind of nice, but it also is really daunting to think you have to do 42 of them.
• 22:16
  SPEAKER_02: Like that, when I see every kilometer marker, I'm like, oh boy, but they are coming up real fast.
• 22:21
  SPEAKER_02: So you do feel like you're going in sport mode the whole time.
• 22:23
  SPEAKER_02: But um, yeah, I don't know.
• 22:25
  SPEAKER_02: The first race I ever did in Europe, I wasn't even tracking that.
• 22:29
  SPEAKER_02: And I knew my mile splits, and I did not even think about the kilometers.
• 22:33
  SPEAKER_02: So I got there and I was very confused.
• 22:35
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, it may like I figured it out during the race, like, but that was yeah, we should all just move over.
• 22:41
  SPEAKER_02: But move over, yeah.
• 22:43
  SPEAKER_02: I don't know.
• 22:43
  SPEAKER_02: Maybe I'll start like a petition for that, you know.
• 22:46
  SPEAKER_00: I don't know.
• 22:47
  SPEAKER_00: It'd be pretty weird.
• 22:48
  SPEAKER_00: I will say I've experimented this year with trying kilometers, and I'm okay with the distance, but when you tell me to do pacing, I am so lost.
• 22:56
  SPEAKER_02: I'm pretty lost with kilometers, too.
• 22:58
  SPEAKER_02: I'm pretty I'm very lost with kilometers, but actually both of my pacers when I broke the American record in the marathon are not of, I guess, official US.
• 23:08
  SPEAKER_02: Well, one just got his US citizenship, but one his citizenship is from France or sorry, Germany, and then one is from Canada.
• 23:16
  SPEAKER_02: So both of them like think in kilometers way better than me, which was a huge asset because they were getting a lot more feedback during the race.
• 23:23
  SPEAKER_02: So they could see, I think we were exactly at like 320 was our kilometer pace, and so they could get feedback every three minutes and 20 seconds rather than waiting, you know, five minutes and I don't know, 19 seconds or whatever it was.
• 23:36
  SPEAKER_00: But what's your favorite race?
• 23:39
  SPEAKER_00: I'm curious now.
• 23:40
  SPEAKER_00: You know, if you run a lot of international, I think a favorite of mine I saw you run was uh I think it was a half Copenhagen.
• 23:45
  SPEAKER_00: I was like, ooh, I want to do that.
• 23:46
  SPEAKER_02: Copenhagen was an incredible event.
• 23:50
  SPEAKER_02: It was incredible.
• 23:52
  SPEAKER_02: It the just the city itself was awesome, and I feel like it's like kind of a cool hack when you can double dip like just seeing the world with these races.
• 24:01
  SPEAKER_02: So it's like you go to a cool place that you've never been before, and then you can stay a couple extra days afterwards and see the city.
• 24:07
  SPEAKER_02: But yeah, the city itself was awesome, but the race was super flat, the vibes were incredible, the everybody was running so fast.
• 24:16
  SPEAKER_02: It was, I mean, it was also raining that day, which wasn't as much fun.
• 24:20
  SPEAKER_02: But um, and it was a Nike sponsored race, so there was like the Nike banners all over, which were like, oh my gosh.
• 24:26
  SPEAKER_02: So right at like six miles, you're about to make this turn, and there was this huge banner that said like you could quit now, or you or something like something along the lines of you could quit now.
• 24:36
  SPEAKER_02: And when you turn the corner, you saw the second part, and it just said good choice.
• 24:40
  SPEAKER_02: I love that, and that was really cool.
• 24:42
  SPEAKER_02: So I love races that like I don't know, but yeah, those, yeah, I really yeah, I really like going somewhere I've never been before.
• 24:48
  SPEAKER_02: But I mean the US has so many like iconic races.
• 24:52
  SPEAKER_02: Like this weekend I was in DC for the credit union uh cherry blossom 10 mile run, and that race is like a bucketless race for everybody.
• 25:01
  SPEAKER_02: Like that should it's incredible.
• 25:03
  SPEAKER_02: It's 10 miles, it's super flat, it's around the nation's capital.
• 25:06
  SPEAKER_02: The cherry blossom trees are gorgeous.
• 25:09
  SPEAKER_02: That's definitely a favorite, but yeah, probably Houston too, where I broke the American record.
• 25:13
  SPEAKER_02: That's like gotta be a favorite.
• 25:15
  SPEAKER_02: Oh, and then where I broke the American record in the half, and in Australia running the Gold Coast, that was an incredible event, too.
• 25:22
  SPEAKER_02: Really, really like that.
• 25:23
  SPEAKER_00: How do you manage the logistics?
• 25:25
  SPEAKER_00: All these different countries, different time zones, you know, you do it at a high scale.
• 25:28
  SPEAKER_00: So, like, how does how does that work for you training wise?
• 25:31
  SPEAKER_00: Do you fly in early, you change food around, sleep different?
• 25:35
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, so the secret is to try to change nothing.
• 25:38
  SPEAKER_02: So, like if I'm gonna be on a flight, I try to plan out my meals like I normally would at the same times.
• 25:43
  SPEAKER_02: I try to get sleep at the same times, and like sometimes like I'll I don't know, like I'll spend a little bit extra on a flight that's during the day, so I'm not up real late or up real early.
• 25:54
  SPEAKER_02: So I try to be really intentional with that.
• 25:56
  SPEAKER_02: But if I'm traveling to another time zone, I try to give myself a couple days um to recover.
• 26:03
  SPEAKER_02: So if I'm traveling like East Coast to West Coast or West Coast to East Coast, I usually like to give myself at least two days.
• 26:08
  SPEAKER_02: If it's a marathon, probably three days before.
• 26:10
  SPEAKER_02: If I'm going to Europe, I probably want three or four days before.
• 26:14
  SPEAKER_02: Um, so I think just giving it time, but also like I know it's a position of luxury that I have the time to go out early and to be able to like dedicate that.
• 26:23
  SPEAKER_02: But um, but I think if you like, if you can't, you try to get on that sleep schedule before you get there.
• 26:29
  SPEAKER_02: So if you're going somewhere that is an earlier time, try to be waking up early, going to bed earlier.
• 26:35
  SPEAKER_02: So slowly shift yourself onto that new time zone, like even at your own house would help.
• 26:40
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, and then just pack the foods that you know you can't get.
• 26:43
  SPEAKER_02: So if you have peanut butter every morning and you're going to Europe, there's not as much peanut butter lying around or in stores.
• 26:48
  SPEAKER_02: I guess you wouldn't want peanut butter just lying around.
• 26:51
  SPEAKER_02: But you bring bring your own peanut butter, you know, bring your nutrition, bring your stuff that you know you can't find over there, you can't live without.
• 26:58
  SPEAKER_02: So as much as you can stay in your routine, the better.
• 27:02
  SPEAKER_00: Great tip there from Kiara herself.
• 27:04
  unknown: Yeah.
• 27:06
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 27:07
  SPEAKER_00: Uh traveling uh can be fun.
• 27:09
  SPEAKER_00: Like you, I do like to make an event out of it um and stay as long as I can after.
• 27:13
  SPEAKER_00: First day or two, you know, you hobbling around, not so much fun, but then after you're okay.
• 27:17
  SPEAKER_02: Right.
• 27:18
  SPEAKER_02: Then you give it a couple days.
• 27:19
  SPEAKER_02: Hold on, where is your favorite races?
• 27:21
  SPEAKER_02: Like, what are your favorite events to do?
• 27:22
  SPEAKER_02: What's your favorite location?
• 27:25
  SPEAKER_00: Favorite race so far.
• 27:27
  SPEAKER_00: I gotta go with New York, and it feels like I'm cheating.
• 27:30
  SPEAKER_00: I've said this before because I'm from New York, but the vibes of New York, like I say this all the time to anyone who's ever doing New York, like you could be a pro, not a pro.
• 27:38
  SPEAKER_00: Like, you're gonna feel I felt like an Olympian in New York when I was over there.
• 27:42
  SPEAKER_00: Someone just remembered, like, every time I was walking a mile, my name tag was on a bib, or they like pick something on your shirt, and like everyone's rallying you, like the energy is unmatched.
• 27:52
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so far, I still have a few other majors to do, but like I've had people run all six, and uh usually it's a toss-up, and New York seems to be the one.
• 28:00
  SPEAKER_00: It is not the easiest, flattest, but I would say New York for sure.
• 28:05
  SPEAKER_00: Um, internationally, I still got some something to do, but I did fly to Tokyo right around last year's Tokyo Marathon, and uh, that's my FOMO race, just so I can eat everything later.
• 28:16
  SPEAKER_00: But I would say it's between those two.
• 28:21
  SPEAKER_00: I definitely want to do something more Europe that's not major, like Copenhagen's been on my mind for quite a while just because I just want to visit there and travel as well.
• 28:29
  SPEAKER_00: Um let's see.
• 28:31
  SPEAKER_00: Uh I feel like I'm missing something in Europe.
• 28:33
  SPEAKER_00: Um I'll say those three since those are the three top of my head, but those are the three that I for sure.
• 28:40
  SPEAKER_02: That's awesome.
• 28:41
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, it's and going somewhere new is real fun.
• 28:43
  SPEAKER_02: I haven't done Tokyo either.
• 28:45
  SPEAKER_02: That's on my that's on my short list of races to do.
• 28:47
  SPEAKER_02: Also, that would be an incredible experience.
• 28:50
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, Tokyo is uh apart from the race, it was just such a I spent two and a half weeks there.
• 28:56
  SPEAKER_00: I I still talk about it to this day.
• 28:58
  SPEAKER_00: Like all the memes reels are so real, like you never forget Japan.
• 29:02
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, and I I went to other like Osaka Kyoto, like you just never forget.
• 29:05
  SPEAKER_00: I I still talk about it to this day.
• 29:07
  SPEAKER_00: Like, I I need to go back.
• 29:08
  SPEAKER_00: I know I will go back.
• 29:10
  SPEAKER_00: Um, it's just an amazing experience for sure.
• 29:15
  SPEAKER_02: Maybe I do that next year.
• 29:17
  SPEAKER_02: Who knows?
• 29:18
  SPEAKER_00: Hey, we gotta see about your comeback.
• 29:21
  SPEAKER_02: Don't call it a comeback.
• 29:22
  SPEAKER_00: Uh don't call it a comeback.
• 29:25
  SPEAKER_00: Um curious, are you ever gonna write another book?
• 29:29
  SPEAKER_02: You know, maybe.
• 29:31
  SPEAKER_02: I don't know.
• 29:32
  SPEAKER_02: I haven't totally written it out.
• 29:33
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, I especially going through all of this with the hip surgery now and coming back into it, we'll see how this all goes.
• 29:41
  SPEAKER_02: But if there are things that I learned along the way that I think would help people, then I would absolutely write another book.
• 29:48
  SPEAKER_02: I have, I loved the journey of writing a book.
• 29:51
  SPEAKER_02: I've loved the reception of the book, and I've loved connecting with people, like in particular, like especially mothers that have read my book and have reached out just saying they read something and it like really hit home and made them not feel alone, which in turn made me not feel alone going through that experience too.
• 30:08
  SPEAKER_02: So it's been a really, really beautiful process just connecting with people after reading my story.
• 30:14
  SPEAKER_02: And yeah, also I probably overshare it a lot in that book, so so some weird stuff too, but it like it, yeah.
• 30:21
  SPEAKER_02: I I I wanted to put it out there to see if it could help anyone, and it seems like it has helped at least one person, so that's good.
• 30:30
  SPEAKER_00: What was the biggest learning lesson in through going through publishing, writing a book, putting it together?
• 30:34
  SPEAKER_00: Am I sharing too much?
• 30:36
  SPEAKER_02: Uh that's a great question.
• 30:39
  SPEAKER_02: I I think like I learned about the process.
• 30:42
  SPEAKER_02: I had no idea, but I also learned that I had no idea what to expect.
• 30:47
  SPEAKER_02: And I think like I'm so grateful I use St.
• 30:50
  SPEAKER_02: Martin's publishing.
• 30:52
  SPEAKER_02: And they like um, you know, they there were so many times that I was like, hey, I think like I don't want my picture on the front of the book.
• 31:01
  SPEAKER_02: Like I don't like I want this person that they're reading about to be look whoever that like look whoever look like whatever they want me to look like.
• 31:09
  SPEAKER_02: Like I don't want to put that image and then people think, oh, I can't relate to her for whatever reason.
• 31:15
  SPEAKER_02: But they're like, no, it's a memoir, literally memoirs.
• 31:19
  SPEAKER_02: You put your picture, and they were right, like the cover was great, and I'm really like happy about that.
• 31:25
  SPEAKER_02: And then they were like, We should you should record the audio.
• 31:28
  SPEAKER_02: And I was like, No, no, I'm not a professional voice actor.
• 31:32
  SPEAKER_02: You probably should hire somebody else.
• 31:33
  SPEAKER_02: And they're like, No, like it's your words and your voice, like that's really special.
• 31:37
  SPEAKER_02: And I'm so glad they encouraged me to do that because that was one of the most fun things that I've done recording an audiobook.
• 31:42
  SPEAKER_02: I don't know, I heard a lot of people don't like it.
• 31:45
  SPEAKER_02: I had so much fun recording it, so I don't know.
• 31:48
  SPEAKER_02: So I learned, yeah, a lot about the process, but it also, I think the biggest takeaway for me is in life, I am just like a move forward kind of person.
• 31:57
  SPEAKER_02: Like I go through something and then I'm what's next?
• 32:00
  SPEAKER_02: Like, let's go on.
• 32:01
  SPEAKER_02: And so having this beautiful opportunity to reflect on some of the biggest moments of my life, some of the hardest moments of my life, some of the scariest moments of my life, like just having a chance to reflect upon all that time was such a beautiful exercise.
• 32:18
  SPEAKER_02: And just to think back to like the lessons learned.
• 32:21
  SPEAKER_02: And like thinking about writing a book felt very um self-indulgent.
• 32:27
  SPEAKER_02: But thinking about that, if I could share my story through lessons learned that maybe could help someone, that's how I was able to like get on bird board and wrap my head around that.
• 32:37
  SPEAKER_02: And so, like, I shared a lot of the things I learned along the way and a lot of things that we've been taught our whole life and maybe just need a refresher, and maybe some things were new, but uh it was yeah, it was an incredible journey.
• 32:48
  SPEAKER_02: So, yeah, 10 out of 10 stars, I would totally do it again if asked.
• 32:53
  SPEAKER_00: Totally on board.
• 32:54
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, sounds like yeah, coming in, yeah.
• 32:57
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, well, that'll be fun.
• 32:59
  SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, maybe you got some lessons now um through this journey.
• 33:04
  SPEAKER_00: Um, we all get injured at some point in the running.
• 33:06
  SPEAKER_00: I I've heard this saying where it's like it's not if it's when kind of thing.
• 33:10
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 33:11
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, absolutely, yeah, yeah.
• 33:13
  SPEAKER_02: And I think also like when you're training for anything in running or really anything, I mean, you're trying to, I mean, there's a lot of different reasons why.
• 33:23
  SPEAKER_02: But one of the reasons why you can run is to see like how fast you can go or to see how far you can go or to find a new limit.
• 33:30
  SPEAKER_02: And I think when we're trying to find our own limits, you're training on this razor's edge where it could, you could find a new limit and surprise yourself and do something really cool, but you could also go overboard, right?
• 33:41
  SPEAKER_02: And find a limit that you probably shouldn't have crossed.
• 33:43
  SPEAKER_02: And so I think like injuries, as terrible as they are and as much as they suck, are part of, I don't know, just the right of passage, I think, of doing something, yeah, testing your limits, I guess.
• 33:57
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, for sure.
• 33:58
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, that's the whole game.
• 33:58
  SPEAKER_00: The reason why we do speed and test ourselves to keep pushing, pushing, pushing, maybe sometimes too much, but hey.
• 34:05
  SPEAKER_02: I know we can't hold back.
• 34:06
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, it's hard.
• 34:07
  SPEAKER_02: It's hard to take it out of sport mode.
• 34:09
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 34:10
  SPEAKER_00: Talking about pushing along, like, how do you feel about the sport right now?
• 34:14
  SPEAKER_00: Um, in my opinion, women are kicking ass right now.
• 34:17
  SPEAKER_00: Sorry, excuse my French.
• 34:21
  SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, and I'd be curious to ask you, you know, because you're one of them as well.
• 34:24
  SPEAKER_00: Now you you're able to see it from a different lens right now because we're on a break to recover.
• 34:29
  SPEAKER_00: How do you feel about the sport right now and all these races coming up and and and fall coming, all that fun stuff, 2028 around the corner, if you will?
• 34:36
  SPEAKER_02: I am so excited about our sport.
• 34:40
  SPEAKER_02: And I still think we have room to grow and evolve and to learn and to do better.
• 34:46
  SPEAKER_02: But I think as a whole, looking at where we are now from where we were 10 years ago, we have progressed so much.
• 34:53
  SPEAKER_02: And I think like the biggest thing that I've noticed because I was competing in the early 2000s and now competing in now, there has been a culture shift.
• 35:02
  SPEAKER_02: And I think the best way to say it is we're seeing women supporting women.
• 35:06
  SPEAKER_02: It felt like in the early 2000s, it felt a lot more cutthroat.
• 35:10
  SPEAKER_02: It didn't feel as supportive, it felt like everyone was fighting for one seat at the table.
• 35:14
  SPEAKER_02: And I think now we're seeing this space where everyone belongs and everyone deserves to be here.
• 35:22
  SPEAKER_02: And it is so cool to see people show up for each other.
• 35:27
  SPEAKER_02: And we're seeing this with men too.
• 35:28
  SPEAKER_02: I sorry, I focused on women, but we're seeing like just this really beautiful space where we can be competitive and we can be everyone is on the starting line trying to win or do their best ever, or just have an incredible experience.
• 35:43
  SPEAKER_02: But meanwhile, you can be a good person, you can root for others, you can find joy in it, you can be grateful.
• 35:49
  SPEAKER_02: So it's this like beautiful combination I think we're seeing in the sport right now, which has been so fun.
• 35:55
  SPEAKER_02: I am all about the shakeout runs right now.
• 35:58
  SPEAKER_02: I think going to race weekend and seeing hundreds of people show up to shakeout runs.
• 36:04
  SPEAKER_02: To me, that is shows how much beauty there is in the sport because people want to be part of something, right?
• 36:10
  SPEAKER_02: So not only just race day, but they want to be part of race weekend.
• 36:14
  SPEAKER_02: They want to have experience, they want to be part of the community.
• 36:17
  SPEAKER_02: And I think just the community that we built and running is just so special.
• 36:22
  SPEAKER_02: And obviously, we have a lot of work to do, you know.
• 36:25
  SPEAKER_02: But I think, yeah, we're seeing for the most more perversity in running, which I think is really cool.
• 36:30
  SPEAKER_02: We're seeing a lot more like females in all different walks of their lives, from like girls to grandmas coming out and running races.
• 36:41
  SPEAKER_02: Like, and I think in the past there is like some cutoff points where women would get out of sports, like you know, in their teens or motherhood.
• 36:49
  SPEAKER_02: And now we're seeing so much more support with just like emotional support, but then also with equipment and like coaches and education for people to continue running throughout their lives, and I think that is just such a beautiful thing.
• 37:05
  SPEAKER_02: So I am all for where we are right now, and I'm not saying we're perfect, but I am just so proud to be part of this community.
• 37:13
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, no, I love it to your point.
• 37:15
  SPEAKER_00: I feel like everything's just growing.
• 37:17
  SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, there's shakeouts on every corner in Boston.
• 37:21
  SPEAKER_02: I love it.
• 37:21
  SPEAKER_02: I'm here for it, man.
• 37:23
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 37:25
  SPEAKER_00: Uh right before this, I I was just seeing a joke someone posted online about all the the shakeouts that are gonna happen.
• 37:31
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm like, hey, I'd rather this than have one only, you know?
• 37:35
  SPEAKER_02: Right, or not, no shakeout.
• 37:37
  SPEAKER_02: Wouldn't that be boring if everyone slept in and went running by themselves?
• 37:41
  SPEAKER_02: But instead for having these brands like pump energy and like yeah, you know, and connecting us with pros or with equipment or letting us try, like, I don't know.
• 37:50
  SPEAKER_02: I I think it's so cool.
• 37:52
  SPEAKER_02: I think it is so cool, and I get so jazzed when I see pictures of like shakeout runs that are like hundreds of people deep.
• 37:58
  SPEAKER_02: Like, that's awesome.
• 38:01
  SPEAKER_00: Curious from like an inside perspective, you know, from like a profile, like um what do you think what the change was like from it being more secluded, private, at least in the profile, to now like you see runners finish, you know, the the women, there's they're all hugging at the end of the race.
• 38:15
  SPEAKER_00: You you have even friends just finishing races together, like let's go sign up and do fly out, who knows where and do marathons.
• 38:22
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, I think it it took some people leading the way in in doing that.
• 38:28
  SPEAKER_02: And like for me, like I don't know, people like Molly Seidel, like having this, like she was ha she's having the time of her life.
• 38:36
  SPEAKER_02: She works hard, she's a beast of a competitor, but she is having so much fun and she's so supportive of other women.
• 38:43
  SPEAKER_02: And I think you have like people like that, and hopefully I could be one of those people that can uplift women and maybe hopefully seeing like for me, it took seeing someone else that was also a mother that was a runner that gave me permission to get back into it.
• 38:57
  SPEAKER_02: And that person was really supportive of me.
• 38:59
  SPEAKER_02: And so I'm like, yeah, I'm gonna pay that forward.
• 39:01
  SPEAKER_02: Like, someone else gave me permission.
• 39:04
  SPEAKER_02: I hope I can inspire and encourage and support other women that maybe quit running for a decade and want to come back into it, maybe are starting for their first time in their 50s and want to get into it.
• 39:14
  SPEAKER_02: Um, so I think just seeing like it takes like some really special people going before, like, yeah, like a Connor and a Clayton, right?
• 39:21
  SPEAKER_02: Like two dudes that are like fierce competitors.
• 39:25
  SPEAKER_02: They both have like a beast inside them in the most beautiful way, but are so humble and so grateful and so kind and so supportive of each other.
• 39:34
  SPEAKER_02: And I think seeing how it's done, I think is like almost just gives us the playbook on like, yeah, we can be fierce competitors and we can support others too.
• 39:43
  SPEAKER_02: And so I think it just took like kind of a culture shame of people getting out there and and doing that.
• 39:48
  SPEAKER_02: But yeah, and I think, yeah, just more people coming and doing it and every bring everyone bringing their own vibe and their own thing to the sport, I think is what's made it so special.
• 39:59
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, for sure.
• 40:00
  SPEAKER_02: What do you think?
• 40:01
  SPEAKER_02: That's a big question.
• 40:03
  SPEAKER_00: I feel like so I'm a late runner, which is why I relate to you so much.
• 40:06
  SPEAKER_00: Like I started three, four years ago, COVID, 2020.
• 40:11
  SPEAKER_00: What year was it?
• 40:12
  SPEAKER_00: Five years ago, technically, because we're still early 2026.
• 40:17
  SPEAKER_00: I I was a big heavy set dude, got into lifting, lost weight, and somehow in my head in 2020, I was like, I'm gonna start running and and then look back.
• 40:27
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I say that to say, like, when you because I'm a big fan of the sport looking at the past and present.
• 40:32
  SPEAKER_00: I feel like it's one of those things where we either know right now or in the future we're gonna go, wow, this is a golden era of running right now.
• 40:40
  SPEAKER_00: There's so much involvement, brands, people, pros sharing what's going on, coaches.
• 40:44
  SPEAKER_00: You mentioned that you know, information out there.
• 40:47
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I mean, just seeing five, six hundred people in the middle of a street randomly at some you know run club is unprecedented.
• 40:55
  SPEAKER_00: So I think we're in a golden era.
• 40:56
  SPEAKER_00: If you ask me, like, yeah, everyone knows there's a running boom, but I think we're in a golden era of running where like you just have so much support and stuff that there's no reason if you want to do this, it's okay if not, but you have everything you can to do so, and there's no like stop gaps, if you will.
• 41:11
  SPEAKER_00: Um that's my take.
• 41:13
  SPEAKER_02: I think we're well, and that whole thing of making it accessible, like the fact that like people like Clayton Young has his YouTube series where people can learn directly from Clayton what he's doing, and I think that is so incredible that he shares his journey in such a vulnerable and genuine way, and people are learning from that.
• 41:30
  SPEAKER_02: But you make a really good point too that people are now sharing, and then you can find someone like you that's also going on a running path and just building up that community and feeling support is just really cool.
• 41:41
  SPEAKER_02: I yeah, I think you hit it spot on.
• 41:43
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, for sure.
• 41:44
  SPEAKER_00: Like stories you mentioned earlier, like there's just so many stories of people out there being shared now, which back then it was good luck finding out.
• 41:51
  unknown: I know.
• 41:53
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, you gotta find yeah, the runner's world magazine and see what people are doing from there.
• 41:57
  SPEAKER_00: But yeah, what would you say to someone, you know, starting you took a break and then you came back flying and running?
• 42:05
  SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, someone late starter like me, you're obviously you have a lot of people that listen, you know, there's mothers as well.
• 42:10
  SPEAKER_00: I've heard them share, like, oh man, I'm I'm I can run now, right?
• 42:13
  SPEAKER_00: This I can still do this.
• 42:15
  SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, a lot of people out there want to run later in life and and thinking, I don't know if I can push the envelope and get faster, you know, or run most.
• 42:22
  SPEAKER_00: What would you say to those people?
• 42:26
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, go for it.
• 42:27
  SPEAKER_02: I think that is so cool.
• 42:29
  SPEAKER_02: I think that first and foremost, you need to start where you are.
• 42:33
  SPEAKER_02: And so if you're starting running for the first time, that's awesome.
• 42:37
  SPEAKER_02: But if you've run before and then took a break, I think you need to like kind of erase the expectations from before, take all the lessons learned and all the things like experience that you have from before.
• 42:47
  SPEAKER_02: But I think we need to accept where we're starting.
• 42:49
  SPEAKER_02: And you gotta start, start where you are.
• 42:52
  SPEAKER_02: I know that's like a really that sounds very simple, but like when I went out for my first run coming back, I made it 90 seconds was as far as I could go.
• 43:01
  SPEAKER_02: And I cried, I walked home and I couldn't believe I was so far from the runner I once was.
• 43:07
  SPEAKER_02: But I also then decided, okay, well, today I'm a 90-second runner, but I don't have to be all the time.
• 43:12
  SPEAKER_02: Maybe tomorrow I can be a three-minute runner.
• 43:14
  SPEAKER_02: Who knows?
• 43:15
  SPEAKER_02: So, but I think being patient and accepting where you are, and I also think tracking progress is probably a better metric than saying, I want to reach this time when you're starting anything new.
• 43:26
  SPEAKER_02: So just saying, like, I'm gonna try to run three days this week.
• 43:30
  SPEAKER_02: And it like a run still counts as for a run if you put a walk in there too.
• 43:34
  SPEAKER_02: So if you're starting, like add some runs, add some walks, kind of mix it, and then just try to slowly, slowly build.
• 43:40
  SPEAKER_02: And I think we see people go out too hard, and that is really hard.
• 43:45
  SPEAKER_02: But I think when you can start patient and slowly build and be your own cheerleader along the way.
• 43:50
  SPEAKER_02: Um, and then I also think like finding like a support system, like whether that's a coach or a running buddy or someone that can hold you accountable a little bit, but I've People this my whole life that running is just sucks when you're getting into it.
• 44:05
  SPEAKER_02: Whether you're injured and you're coming back into it or you're starting for the first time, the first like three weeks of running is miserable.
• 44:13
  SPEAKER_02: And it's like running before you run, you like think is terrible, and then you start running, and then you're like, wait, this is even more terrible than I thought it was gonna be.
• 44:21
  SPEAKER_02: Why do people do this?
• 44:22
  SPEAKER_02: But if you can make it through thinking that for two or three weeks, you're gonna have a run where you're gonna go out and you're gonna think, wow, that wasn't terrible.
• 44:32
  SPEAKER_02: And that's when you've like kind of hit that hump that running becomes more enjoyable.
• 44:36
  SPEAKER_02: And when you start seeing those little like progresses like that, it becomes like so fun just to see what else you can do.
• 44:44
  SPEAKER_02: But I don't know, anyone that's thinking about it, I say do it, and you got it, and you can do it.
• 44:49
  SPEAKER_02: I don't know.
• 44:50
  SPEAKER_02: I think it's like it's hard, but it's also so rewarding because it's hard.
• 44:54
  SPEAKER_00: No, I love that about progress for sure.
• 44:57
  SPEAKER_00: Like tracking progress.
• 44:58
  SPEAKER_00: I I've made that mistake.
• 44:59
  SPEAKER_00: I think we all do.
• 45:00
  SPEAKER_00: What does small wins look like for you right now?
• 45:02
  SPEAKER_00: You know, you're on the way up uh recovery, right?
• 45:05
  SPEAKER_00: Um, what does small wins look like for you?
• 45:07
  SPEAKER_00: And and what are you most excited about once you start getting the green light to go?
• 45:12
  SPEAKER_02: I love how you ask that question with small wins.
• 45:15
  SPEAKER_02: I think that is so important of any journey you're on, but especially with running.
• 45:21
  SPEAKER_02: I think like a small win to me is what can I do today that's gonna prep me to be like the best version of myself?
• 45:28
  SPEAKER_02: And so every day for me right now, I have my PT and I have my card, like my little like cardio to loosen up.
• 45:35
  SPEAKER_02: And if I can do that and nothing more than that, then I'm winning.
• 45:39
  SPEAKER_02: Because if I start going like overboard and try to do things early or do things too much, then I could really set myself back.
• 45:45
  SPEAKER_02: So for me, winning is doing exactly what I'm supposed to do.
• 45:49
  SPEAKER_02: Um and you stack like small wins seem small, but when you stack like months and months and months of small wins up on each other, you're climbing mountains.
• 45:58
  SPEAKER_02: So yeah, so that's what that's what it kind of looks like to me right now.
• 46:01
  SPEAKER_02: But I just want to get myself to a point where I've respected this recovery.
• 46:06
  SPEAKER_02: I've done all the rehab, I've done all the PT to make sure that my body is healing in a really functional way to do what I want it to do.
• 46:13
  SPEAKER_02: And then yeah, I'm just trying my best to be patient for when I can yeah, start getting after it again.
• 46:19
  SPEAKER_00: That's gotta be tough.
• 46:22
  SPEAKER_02: It's so tough.
• 46:23
  SPEAKER_02: I'm not a patient person in general, but that really like when people ask me what the secret to running is, it's patience.
• 46:29
  SPEAKER_02: It's patience and consistency, and that I have figured out.
• 46:32
  SPEAKER_02: So I've learned how powerful patience and consistency can be.
• 46:37
  SPEAKER_02: But oh man, that's a hard, those are hard lessons to learn, and I need to learn those over and over again.
• 46:43
  SPEAKER_00: A hard lesson.
• 46:44
  SPEAKER_00: How did you learn that hard lesson?
• 46:46
  SPEAKER_02: You know, through like getting injured and doing stupid stuff.
• 46:50
  SPEAKER_02: I would sign up for a race right after a race, and then that second race wouldn't go very well, and then I'd be like, well, lesson learned, but then it would take me doing that probably three or four more times.
• 46:59
  SPEAKER_02: But I think also every injury that I've had, I've learned and I've leveled up from it.
• 47:05
  SPEAKER_02: And most of my injuries were like, that could have been avoided if I would have just taken three days off.
• 47:11
  SPEAKER_02: Like when I felt something that felt wrong, like it's okay to feel a little sore, it's okay to feel tired.
• 47:16
  SPEAKER_02: But when you feel something that feels wrong, if you can nip it in the bud, is it nip it in the bud?
• 47:21
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, nip it in the bud.
• 47:22
  SPEAKER_00: At least how I understand it.
• 47:23
  SPEAKER_00: Yes.
• 47:24
  SPEAKER_00: Nip it in the bud?
• 47:24
  SPEAKER_02: So hold on, what does that even mean?
• 47:26
  SPEAKER_02: Is that like a flower thing or what do we nip in the thing?
• 47:31
  SPEAKER_00: Well, now I know it's a flower reference.
• 47:33
  SPEAKER_00: That's as far as I go, as far as what it actually is.
• 47:36
  SPEAKER_02: Okay, I think I've been saying nip it in the butt my whole life.
• 47:39
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe I'll quit that.
• 47:42
  SPEAKER_02: Bud is probably the right way.
• 47:43
  SPEAKER_02: That sounds right, but okay.
• 47:45
  SPEAKER_02: But if you can just listen to your body in that moment, take the recovery, you're out for two or three days rather than three months.
• 47:53
  SPEAKER_02: And I think I've fallen into that trap a few times that I've realized like this is where I need to respect the recovery, I need to be patient, and I don't want to make this a bigger deal than it has to be.
• 48:05
  SPEAKER_00: Hold that thought.
• 48:06
  SPEAKER_00: I thought this would be funny, so I Googled it.
• 48:08
  SPEAKER_02: Oh my gosh, what is it?
• 48:10
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, let's see here.
• 48:12
  SPEAKER_00: Nip in the bud, B U D.
• 48:14
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, so it's not but stop with potential problem, bad habit, unwanted situation.
• 48:18
  SPEAKER_00: Where does it come from?
• 48:19
  SPEAKER_00: Is what I want to know.
• 48:20
  SPEAKER_02: That's what I want to know too.
• 48:21
  SPEAKER_02: Is it a gardener?
• 48:22
  SPEAKER_00: Uh and funny enough, the second thing on here is nip it in the butt.
• 48:30
  SPEAKER_02: I don't think I'm gonna change.
• 48:31
  SPEAKER_02: I think I want to say nip it in the butt from that one.
• 48:35
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, there we go.
• 48:36
  SPEAKER_00: Um, it originates from gardening where cutting or pinching off a new small flower leaf bud prevents the plant from growing further.
• 48:43
  SPEAKER_02: Oh, oh, okay.
• 48:44
  SPEAKER_02: So I guess you wouldn't really want to do that with like flower flowers, but maybe but don't if you nip it off, doesn't it like bloom into even more?
• 48:54
  SPEAKER_02: I don't know.
• 48:55
  SPEAKER_02: I'm not a gardener.
• 48:58
  SPEAKER_02: Okay, but we're gonna nip it off.
• 48:59
  SPEAKER_00: Like, I wish I didn't Google this.
• 49:00
  SPEAKER_00: I like just not knowing uh ignorance is bliss on this one.
• 49:04
  SPEAKER_02: Well, it's not you know what now I know and it's not gonna change.
• 49:06
  SPEAKER_02: I'm probably probably gonna still say nip it in the butt, but there's plenty of comments below and posts of nip in the butt instead versus I'm gonna make nip it in the butt its own Wikipedia page, and I'm gonna really try to see if we can really take over.
• 49:18
  SPEAKER_02: If we can be the number one like SEO, nip it in the butt.
• 49:21
  SPEAKER_00: We might have changed it all up.
• 49:24
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, we're gonna flip it.
• 49:25
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, that's hilarious.
• 49:29
  SPEAKER_00: Well, Kira, I want to thank you for coming on and sharing.
• 49:33
  SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, the recovery, the journey.
• 49:36
  SPEAKER_00: I am highly looking forward to your come.
• 49:38
  SPEAKER_00: Well, hold on, we're not calling it that word.
• 49:39
  SPEAKER_02: No, we'll call it a comeback.
• 49:41
  SPEAKER_02: Hold on, before you leave me, two questions.
• 49:44
  SPEAKER_02: What's your next thing?
• 49:45
  SPEAKER_02: You said you took a little break.
• 49:46
  SPEAKER_02: What's next?
• 49:47
  SPEAKER_02: Do you have something coming up?
• 49:48
  SPEAKER_00: I just did a 5k this past weekend.
• 49:52
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 49:52
  SPEAKER_00: Where it was my first one in altitude.
• 49:54
  SPEAKER_00: I felt like I was dying after, but as you should.
• 49:57
  SPEAKER_02: 5K's are even at non-altitude, they're hard.
• 50:01
  SPEAKER_00: To make a long story short, early I did in the November, and I didn't feel right.
• 50:06
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and you know, taking the advice you shared on here, I was like, you know what?
• 50:10
  SPEAKER_00: I'm finally gonna go see a doctor because I can be stubborn with doctor, probably cliche guy thing or whatever.
• 50:15
  SPEAKER_00: But I went and got blood work done and all that stuff.
• 50:18
  SPEAKER_00: Everything came back good.
• 50:19
  SPEAKER_00: So, number one recovery tool.
• 50:21
  SPEAKER_00: You mentioned I just started working on my sleep, and that's been kind of fixing all the problems.
• 50:25
  SPEAKER_00: So I'm like, okay, I'm gonna take this year off and work on speed because it is my weakness.
• 50:30
  SPEAKER_00: Like I can run long all day, but I have goals of getting faster and a lot faster, and I gotta work on the weakness.
• 50:39
  SPEAKER_00: So I say that to say I signed up for a few 5Ks this year per advice of some very fast people.
• 50:44
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I just did one just kind of as a test of coming back from recovery.
• 50:48
  SPEAKER_00: It was okay.
• 50:50
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, so it gives me a good benchmarker.
• 50:52
  SPEAKER_00: I have another 5k in May uh in New York City, but I'm also doing my first high rocks uh soon after.
• 50:59
  SPEAKER_02: Oh my gosh, you'll have to tell me how that goes.
• 51:02
  SPEAKER_02: That sounds awesome.
• 51:03
  SPEAKER_00: And then I'm gonna do indie half in the fall as uh okay, let's go all in, let's test where the speed is at.
• 51:10
  SPEAKER_00: Let's do a whole new build after a few 5K's.
• 51:13
  SPEAKER_00: You know, summer is super hot, it's gruesome here.
• 51:15
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, you're in Utah, you can relate.
• 51:16
  SPEAKER_00: Like we get great cold winter, great altitude.
• 51:19
  SPEAKER_00: Summer comes, it's just like atrocious.
• 51:22
  SPEAKER_02: Okay, this speed side quest is everything.
• 51:26
  SPEAKER_02: I think you are gonna see so many gains from focusing on speed for a little bit and then you can get back into it.
• 51:33
  SPEAKER_02: Like when I, yeah, for a while, my like half marathon was the same as my marathon pace.
• 51:38
  SPEAKER_02: And by working on that 5k, it brought everything down.
• 51:42
  SPEAKER_02: So I think you are onto something, and I'm glad that you listened to your your friends about that because that is awesome.
• 51:46
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, and high rocks is gonna be awesome.
• 51:48
  SPEAKER_02: Good luck with that.
• 51:49
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, that one was just a fun one.
• 51:51
  SPEAKER_00: I've always wanted to do it.
• 51:52
  SPEAKER_00: I'm from New York, I could visit the family, stay with moms.
• 51:55
  SPEAKER_00: Um, they'll come out and see it, it'll be fun, and then we get back to speed again.
• 52:00
  SPEAKER_00: So a whole year of speed.
• 52:03
  SPEAKER_02: You improve this year too, starting with the 5k and then giving yourself a couple reps to like bring the time down.
• 52:09
  SPEAKER_02: I think it's gonna be awesome.
• 52:11
  SPEAKER_00: That's the plan.
• 52:12
  SPEAKER_00: And uh I I want to do a spring next year.
• 52:15
  SPEAKER_00: I'm deciding maybe where you broke your record, maybe we'll see.
• 52:18
  SPEAKER_00: Um, because it's flat, it'll be a whole year of speed.
• 52:21
  SPEAKER_00: I can finally test.
• 52:22
  SPEAKER_00: So that's kind of the plan for now.
• 52:23
  SPEAKER_00: We'll see how the rest of the year goes, you know.
• 52:25
  SPEAKER_00: Uh small wins, right?
• 52:27
  SPEAKER_02: Small wins, but you got this.
• 52:28
  SPEAKER_02: I love that.
• 52:29
  SPEAKER_02: You're you're on the right track, pun intended.
• 52:32
  SPEAKER_00: Well, I love hearing it.
• 52:33
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, I just got some free advice from a probe and Kiara, who I love as a favorite.
• 52:38
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so that's amazing.
• 52:39
  SPEAKER_00: So I'm gonna stay on that track and I'll keep you posted for sure.
• 52:43
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but again, I appreciate you sharing um and coming on, sharing the recovery journey.
• 52:49
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, I'm sure everyone listening, we're all looking forward to you recovering and you know, running next year and and getting from elliptical to swim to back on the road.
• 52:57
  SPEAKER_00: I'm looking to some for fun forward times.
• 53:00
  SPEAKER_02: Thank you.
• 53:00
  SPEAKER_02: Thank you for having me.
• 53:01
  SPEAKER_02: This has been so fun, and yeah, I appreciate you uh yeah, you have me on your show.
• 53:05
  SPEAKER_02: This was this was awesome.
• 53:06
  SPEAKER_00: Of course.
• 53:07
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 53:08
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you, everyone, people run podcasts.
• 53:10
  SPEAKER_00: Until next time.
• 53:11
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you guys.