Lizzie Jones was arrested in 2018 while running down the street in the middle of the night high on drugs. Her Dad came to her rescue and helped get her admitted into rehab. After spending the first few months of her sobriety completely lost, trying various activities, it wasn’t until she found running that she found the confidence and strength that she never knew she had. She ran her first 100 miler six months into her running journey, completed two 100 milers and logged 3,000 miles last year. Lizzie has found peace within herself and a drive to explore her potential in the sport that has transformed her life.
Lizzie is living her best life; she has found the thing that fulfills her. Running ultras has helped her transform her life and bring her joy. This is an amazing story of strength. Lizzie talks about what led her to trail running and how the community has enriched her life. She also talks about her first 100 miler (it was her first ultra). Lizzie shares some skydiving and base-jumping adventures as well. We are so grateful Lizzie shared her story with us, you will be inspired.
IG - @lizzielizardjones
Darin has put the work in over the last 6 months and is ready to go and celebrate his training in his home state. We can't wait to see him finish what he started. On the call today coach Annie helps get him ready for the big day. Enjoy the show!
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Listen to this last interview before runners take to running the 50 mile and 50k Wy'east Wonder around the spectacular Mt. Hood. Todd and Renee break down some details about the course and the area and add some race strategy for runners to consider for their big effort. We also talk about where access is for friends and family. We hope you enjoy!
You can support the Becoming Ultra project here!
Loretta Tobolske-Horn is an ultra-marathon addict and Ornery Mule Racing Endurance Coach. Loretta has some impressive finishes under her belt, first in the 2021 Alexander County 24-hour race; third female in the Six Days in the Dome 24-hour race in 2021; third place female in the Desert Solstice Elite 24-hour track event just to name a few.
We had a great conversation with Loretta. She didn’t start running ultras until later in life but that hasn’t stopped her from some amazing accomplishments. Loretta shares her journey to ultras and why she loves the 24 hour and track races. As a former special education teacher, we discuss inclusion and how that factors into her coaching style. Loretta will inspire you to keep training and challenging yourself.
Evangelyn Willdrot was a Becoming Ultra season 11 participant. Evangelyn wrestled with addiction and mental health issues in adolescence and young adulthood. Her search to heal her own trauma led her to specialize in treating trauma, eventually becoming a therapist. Evangelyn is also the mother to three young children.
Evangelyn is a true warrior. This conversation will resonate with so many of us who struggle. Evangelyn talks openly about trauma in her life and how she numbed the pain with alcohol and unhealthy habits. She made a choice to change her entire life and has not looked back. She also shares the ongoing struggles and how she manages them. We talk about hunting and how that has helped her find peace and confidence. Evangelyn also shares her ultra running journey and what spending time in nature has given back to her. We loved this conversation!
IG- @arrowsandultras
Emily Hawgood is a professional athlete for Adidas Terrex. She grew up in Zimbabwe, from the age of 5 she attended boarding school 2 and half hours from home and attended college in Idaho. She is currently living and training in California. She has had some impressive ultra-running finishes. 1st women at Ultra Trail Cape Town 100k in 2018 and 2nd place in 2019; 1st women at Idaho Mountain Trail Ultra in 2020; 7th place women at Western States in 2021; 6th woman at UTMB in 2022, just to name a few.
Emily is one of the sweetest guests we have had on our podcast. Her openness and smile pull you in. Emily tells us about growing up in Zimbabwe and how her experiences there have shaped her. We talk about attending college in Idaho, meeting her running coach, Paul Lind, and her love of the mountains. Emily also talks about her journey to Western States. Emily embraces the phrase be kind and give people time. This one will leave you feeling happy.
IG- @emilyhawgood
Coach Amanda Basham and Scott hang with Kristi and Kelsey a month out from their race. With only one more call before race day the excitement is gaining. Kristi asks about trail etiquette and Kelsey gets out on the course to check it out a bit. Basham was killing a couple feet of bread and some gouda so yeah, it was an awesome call. Hope you enjoy it!
Coach Hillary Allen and Scott sit down with Stacey and Isabel with exactly one month left until they run their race. They both have some slight pain but it doesnt seem serious for either. Isabel's poor dog got skunked but she had a great plan to take care of it! We hope you enjoy the show!
Coach Annie Hughes and Scott hang out with Jasmine and Darin as they are officially less than a month away from the race. Jasmine has to miss her first workout of the training which is wild. She also starts a great conversation on what her why is with running. Darin prints out the course info and goes over some of his notes. The "hug my wife" note had us laughing pretty good. Enjoy the show.
Wanna hang out? Come to one of our live retreats!
Delorean is still staying disciplined through all of the tough stuff life is throwing at him and his family. He is getting the long runs in which is huge but it's heating up in Georgia so that part is getting tougher. He shares the logistics around chemo and how it affects their schedule. He also shares the cold capping they do to keep her hair. It's a pretty involved process and they decided it was worth it to keep their little girls' world as normal as possible. He also shares the newest recipe for the charity cooking. You should definitely donate this go round.
https://fundraise.givesmart.com/vf/2023NYC/DeloreanOstrom
Hey, it only took 8 years but we finally decided to bring on our second coach. On this podcast we talk to Lindsay LaForce, PT, DPT about her career as an endurance athlete and PT in the endurance world. We get to know her personally and professionally. We took so long to bring on our second coach and it was well worth the wait. The goal was to find someone who had tons of experience with in person coaching, has a passion for running, and had a little different background than Scott. Enjoy the show and if you are looking to be coached, her rates are as low as they will ever be until June 11th! Learn more about our coaching here.
Annie came back to talk to Scott one on one to share her story from the Canyons 100. Hypernatremia is a serious condition and she succumbed to some serious symptoms on the course. We talk about the experience in hopes to educate other athletes about how to know when you may be at risk. Annie is such a tough human and we were pumped to have her share the story. Thanks for listening.
We are very excited to have Harvey Lewis joining us on the podcast. He is an ultra-running legend! Harvey spends his days as a teacher in Ohio and appears to be one of the nicest people in ultra-running. Harvey is a 5-time member of the USA National 24-hour team. Harvey has competed in well-known events all over the world such as Badwater, Barkley Marathons, Marathon des Sables, Bid Dog Backyard Ultra and many more.
Harvey is living his best life; he is full of enthusiasm and joy. We talk about living and training in Cincinnati and running to and from work. Harvey talks about being competitive for more than 25 years and self-care. We also talk about some of Harvey’s biggest races including the Barkley Marathons and Badwater. Harvey is a wonderful role model and is a true example of when you put good out there good comes back to you.
IG- @harveylewisultrarunner
http://www.runquesttravel.com/home/
ON today's show Jasmine and Darin share their weeklky volume and long efforts over the apast couple weeks with their coach, Annie Hughes. Becoming Ultra follows runners doing their longest and biggest efforts. We hope you enjoy!
Today Scott hangs out with Marcus Smith of InnerFight from across the globe in Dubai. Marcus owns a training facility as well as online coaching and podcasts that reach athletes all over. On the show they talk about endurance adventures, training concepts, and the business of it all. Marcus talks about his upcoming SteelMan effort in Italy. We talk about age and ability not being a limiting factor anymore. It was a great conversation. We hope you enjoy.
Check out Inner Fight and all they do!
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Katie Zornes is on an ultra-journey to become healthier, both mentally and physically. She has struggled with depression her entire life and struggled with weight most of her life. After a mental crumble in 2021 she has slowly crawled out of that dark space by having the courage to do one hard thing at a time and document her journey on her website and Instagram.
This one is sure to inspire you! Katie takes us through her mental and physical struggles and how she is taking hold of those hard moments and moving forward. Katie discusses how she believed the key to happiness was weight loss and how that impacted her mental health. We talk about doing 22 hard things in 2022 and what is on the list for 2023. Katie is a beautiful person who is using her voice and actions to inspire others.
Instagram @tri_ing_to_live
Website: katiezornes.com
We had the chance to talk to Luke Tuttle of Ultra Running Destinations. He uses the site to review trails and events all over the world. On this episode we got to talk about some of the amazing locales and adventures Luke has been on and we get to learn more about his story. If you like running and travel, you'll love this episode.. Thanks for listening!
Devon Yanko is an accomplished ultra-runner with some impressive wins including most recently, Javelina 100. She is also ranked #6 female ultrarunner of the year by Ultrarunning magazine. There is much more to know about Devon.
We had a lot of fun talking to Devon. We talked about the challenges she faces since being diagnosed with Lupas. She shares how self-care has changed and how she finds balance. We discuss her recent Javelina win and what is next. We also talk about her labor of love, Women of Distance Podcast. We loved everything about this conversation!
IG - @fastfoodie
Today Scott and Delorean got to catch up a bit. It is obvious how much this family is going through so reminding Delorean that perfection is NOT the goal seemed to be a big part of today's call. That, and youth sports! We know so many of you are going through tough stuff and Delorean and his family are just more proof of what is possible and why it's so important to keep pushing to get stronger for yourself and your loved ones. We hope you enjoy the show!
Hillary is back to coach up Stacey and Isabel. Isabel ditched the socks on a long run recently. Stacey is enjoying the Oregon trails. Both women look to events to get some longer efforts in and prep for the upcoming race! Enjoy the show!
Lindsey McElroy Ulrich lives for adventures, trails, and mountains. She is not only a fierce trail runner but also a 10-year stroke survivor and busy mom. She went from barely being able to walk to crushing down barriers and living her best life. She lives her life full of gratitude for every day.
Most people can’t imagine running the distances Lindsey has. The fact that she became an ultra-runner after having a stroke and losing her ability to walk is even more remarkable. On this podcast Lindsey shares her remarkable story from a place of gratitude. She has had some amazing adventures from the Marathon Des Sables to nine days on the PCT. She knows no limits and her motto is never give up on yourself. You will rethink what is possible for you after listening to her story.
IG - @lindsruns
With only 2 months before the Wy'east Wonder race in Oregon, Coach Amanda Basham catches up with her athletes. We follow the journey of ultra runners and shares their coaching calls with the world!
Annie catches up with Jasmine and Darin and the fact that there is no big news is great news! Both runners are seeing huge improvement with their fitness which is amazing. We talk about a recent Instagram post Annie shared about running being the olnly sport she ever excelled at and loved. Pretty cool. Enjoy the show.
Fresh off her Boston Marathon finish our own Carly shares her experience. She has dreamed of qualifying for and running Boston since her early marathon days. This is a fun episode you don’t want to miss!
If running is good for anything, helping us deal with real life stuff that isn't fun or easy might be the the most important thing we gain from it all. Delorean and Mandy head to Texas to look for better treatment options. T/he running took a back seat but it had to. Delorean will just get back at it the next week. The optimism and love in this family is awesome to see. We also share a fundraiser for the rare cancer where Delorean will teach us all how to cook his signature dish. You can learn more here. Hope you enjoy!