We sat down gingerly on bruised glutes before this awesome episode! The main topic was on fueling data coming out of the Tour de France. High carb is ubiquitous in the cycling peloton. We use some of that information as a jumping-off-point to think about fueling for all athletes!

This one also came with stories from our first (and possibly last) gravel bike race. These aren’t your normal racing stories. You really have to listen to understand.

And the episode was full of great topics! Other topics: the blood panels we recommend for athletes (and how to get them), an incredible deal on our favorite gels, game theory in cycling, a new study on mixing protein and carbs for recovery, history is made at the Hardrock 100, what 49-year old Ludovic Pommeret’s win tells us about aging curves, the Kickr Run treadmill, plus a Q+A on speed endurance workouts, the importance of burping for athletes, timing strides in training, threshold training, easy paces for slower athletes, and competitive outlets outside of sports.

This one ends with the best burn in podcast history. Get your fire extinguishers ready.

We love you all! Huzzah!

-David and Megan

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We buzzed over our favorite study tables of all time before this great episode! The main science topic was a review of "speed endurance" studies showing rapid progress across all populations and protocols.

That replicability is almost unheard of in sports science, and it's something that every athlete should harness in their training. Spoiler alert: do your strides!

And this one was full of amazing topics! Other topics: how to use bloodwork (and why everyone should know what's going on under the hood), our initial review of On's trail supershoe, the expanding use of computational models in shoe development, a wild study on how birth ratio changes for endurance athletes, plus a Q+A on what we're looking for in the Tour de France, hypotheticals about cyclists becoming runners, heart rate and stress, strength training for aging athletes, pregnancy warnings on gels and other nutritional supplements, car saunas, and how to think about long-term building.

May the study tables, bloodwork, and book club choices be ever in your favor. We love you all!

-David and Megan

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Western States 100 ended in a DNF at mile 62. It’s partially the normal story of a race that didn’t go to plan due to simple errors with hydration leading to a cascade of physical issues. But it’s also a lot more complex than that, like life is always more complex than the simple narratives. This episode tries to share the complex story while it’s still raw.

We talk about anxiety, fear, shame, and embarrassment. We also talk about love, perseverance, and moving through the crap.

It’s just running. But it’s also so much more.

Thank you for being here for all of it! We experienced so much love in a tough week.

We also talked about the magic of the race, breakthrough performances by Abby Hall and Caleb Olson, and even getting to share miles with Kilian Jornet!

Your story matters. Your goals matter. You don’t need to be a champion.

You just need to be you.

-David and Megan

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We're here! It's race week for the Western States 100. This episode talks through how we're feeling before the moonshot. Hopefully there are helpful similarities to all of the big, scary things in your lives!

We also break down a new study that feels like the Manhattan Project of sports science, testing "replicability" in the field. You know it's serious when there are 99 authors! It found low replicability rates, particularly related to effect size, with massive implications for how we think about interpreting research.

Finally, we answer a question about building belief in life.

Thank you so much for being here along the journey! A year ago, this would have seemed unthinkable. But with the love and support of so many people lifting us up, here’s what we’ve learned in that time:

All big scary goals are unthinkable before they happen.

Training is the test, and racing is the celebration. Time to celebrate!

“Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life.” -Mary Oliver (Ollie’s namesake)

BELIEVE.

WILDLY.

PRECIOUSLY.

-David and Megan

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Our favorite episodes involve answering listener questions in a "no secrets" style. That means we might be right, we might be wrong, but we'll always be honest (and hairy!).

We started with a game theory analysis on how we think this year's Western States 100 will play out. This is the type of conversation that athletes have before every race, but they usually wouldn't play it out in public. We can check our work in 2 weeks!

And then we broke down tons of great questions! Topics: what drives us, messages from our younger selves, The Feed's new high carb mix that is resetting the cost curves, responders and non-responders to passive heat, going for it at the back of the pack, diagnosing and improving offsets between climbing and flats, adding passive heat v. adding more training, whether you need heat training in the summer, a couple hypotheticals on road and track athletes coming to trails, a spicy hypothetical on Kilian Jornet, adding weight vest training, balancing competition with self-acceptance, sub-ultra v. ultra for making the sport more accessible, getting into coaching, and the popularity of Park Run in the UK v. the US.

May your legs be carbed-up and may your hairs not be given names on a podcast. We love you all! Huzzah!

-David and Megan

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This episode was such a fun mix of science, emotions, and hot tubs that could cook a turkey! We started with some thoughts on Western States, less than 3 weeks out from the race. Does embracing the stage also mean embracing social media posts telling you that you aren’t being picked to perform well? Our argument channeling Tyrese Halliburton of the Indiana Pacers: the “noise” can be performance enhancing if you have fun with it!

The main science topic was a WILD study on the hot tub improving hemoglobin levels, resting heart rate, and altitude performance. It’s “wild” because the hot tub was set astonishingly high, with participants staying in for an astonishingly long time. I like my participants like I like my eggs: hard-boiled. We talk about what it means and why passive heat training might be the easiest advanced training intervention that goes beyond the basics.

And this one was full of our favorite topics! Other topics: a training trip out to the Western States course, Kilian Jornet searching for a pacer, Cam Jones consuming 185 grams of carbs per hour on his way to winning Unbound Gravel, Jessie Diggins’ amazing poem on fueling her body to take a hit, a study on ketones and altitude that found no benefits, using downhills to improve strength for flat running, and a genetic link between muscle stiffness and strains, plus a Q+A on the new OTQ standards getting faster for men (we don’t like it), whether to GO FOR IT if going for it might not lead to your big goals, a hypothetical about gold medalist Kristian Blummenfelt at a mountain race, and heat and family planning.

The episode finishes up with questions about alcohol and celebrity-flavored bathwater. It’ll make sense soon. Maybe.

We love you all! A unit for a unit,

-David and Megan

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We gulped down some pungent juice before recording this amazing episode! The main topics were the two big pieces of news: Jim Walsmley won't be racing Western States, and Kilian Jornet is making training videos now. Jim is the GOAT and we gave him an 85% chance of winning just last week. He's the supermassive black hole at the center of the Western States galaxy. Without Jim at the start line, how does it change the race?

Kilian is the GOAT too (yes, we have a GOAT herd), and he just released a training video! He abides by the "no secrets" approach, and we analyzed every frame of that video to try to find clues about whether he might be beatable. Answer: no. Bonus answer: Kilian is the best and it's fascinating that he started his own video series by talking about his heat training.

And this one was full of great topics! Other topics: our magical coaching day at the US Mountain Championships, thoughts on training for mountain races, Unbreakable 2 cancellation, the wild triumph of Simon Yates, a new bicarb gel that could upend the bicarb market, the wild science of broccoli sprouts and a new juice supplement from Nomio, anti-histamines and athletic performance, why we're eating dark chocolate (it tastes good), lung training via breathing devices, the relationship between speed work and form in ultras, a hypothetical about Conner Mantz racing Leadville or Western States, an article in the New York Times on unethical mountaineering, training with a newborn, dealing with life transitions, fitting the Naked Belt, the cost of running, cheaper suphershoes, and an incredible poem on failing and flying.

Everyone forgets that Icarus also flew. Also, if Icarus had broccoli sprouts and Kilian's training video, maybe he would have flown a bit longer.

We love you all! HUZZAH!

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This episode was a total joy with toe warmers in all the right places (and some of the wrong ones)! The main scientific topic was a new study on how high carb fueling may improve heat adaptation. We broaden that out to a question from a listener on the old "calories-in, calories-out" framework, and why that doesn't apply to athletes from evolutionary or exercise science perspectives.

The big takeaway from 2 decades of research: avoiding excessive within-day deficits from training may improve health, performance, and body composition. Eat during hard training, or the body may have to take unhealthy steps to avoid shutting down.

And this one was full of great topics! Other topics: a hopeful update on David's knee heading into Western States, the decision to get a cortisone injection, Megan having enough watts to be confused for an e-bike, a new study on weight-vest warm-ups improving running economy, how we think training theory might evolve based on that study, last week's controversial news in trail running, why we think that love and grace for humans needs to lead the way, and a Q+A on fear of vulnerability, workout intensity, and athlete sponsorship.

Stick around to the very end for the hardest we have ever laughed on an episode!

May your knees stay healthy and may your tooth bags stay hidden. We love you all! HUZZAH!

-David and Megan

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