The Natural Running Network Live

As athletes, we are no strangers to post workout aches and pains. When these signals begin to impede our ability to perform and result in missed training days, it’s time to pay attention. We’ve invited Dr. Steve Capobianco, Medical Director for Rock Tape back on to discuss what’s new in the way of self-treatment, prevention and “how to” that Rock Tape has become famous for. Are you familiar with myofascial release? Do you know what you can expect from these practices that are known to improve functional range of motion? If you are a Spartan or Obstacle Racer, you don’t want to miss this show.

Because I see so much of this malady among the athletes I meed I decided to revisit this interview done with Dr Brian Abelson, author or a great book on understanding and the treatment of Plantar issues. In order to resolve this pesky injury you first need to understand the culprit that is responsible. If you are an Obstacle Racing athlete, planning to participate in a Spartan Race or BattleFrog and have been plagued with Plantar Fasciitis, you really need to hear this!

We all want to win the races we enter; some have a reasonable chance and others feel winning is out of reach. Why not improve your chances and your Obstacle Racing finish times by following some solid advice that you can put to work immediately.  Some of this advice you may have heard before but I promise, there are a few tips you had never heard before that will get you those precious seconds you need to beat your competition.  We’ve brought on Amber Headrick, a seasoned elite OCR athlete on to help us share these pearls of wisdom with you. We’ll discuss the importance of energy management, running mechanics, finding an online coach and a few tips that will really help you in your next Spartan race.  You’ll need to listen to the entire episode to reap all of the benefits! More of this atwww.naturalrunningnetwork.com

This episode is a rerun. It was posted late in 2015 but I felt the information was important enough to bring it back to our listeners. The discussion revolves around making the best out of the training metrics we gather from our Heart Rate Monitors.  There is a wealth of great information that is made available with the advent of GPS, heart rate, cadence etc., but it can become overwhelming at times.  In this episode we take a real world scenario of data collected by an OCR athlete and help him to make sense of the data so he can take charge of his training.  This is a great episode for any runners, triathletes and Obstacle Racing Athletes who want to better understand the data from their heart rate monitors.

Obstacle Racing has grown to be the most popular recreational sport around the world by leaps and bounds over running, cycling and triathlon. There are now “Pro” athletes, who earn a living racing and through sponsorships. These “Pros” are clearly vested in the legitimacy of the sport.  Brakken Kraker is one of those athletes.  Listen as Brakken and Richard Diaz discuss the potential for an OCR/ Spartan Olympic event, the need for drug testing, clarification of the distinction of Pro status vs. Elite and the importance of speed and running form to win races.  We will also visit some podium predictions for the upcoming Spartan Monterey Race and NBC Spartan Series; who we like and why. www.naturalrunningnetwork.com  

Fatigue is a common sensation for Endurance and OCR athletes, knowing when to back off and how to identify when this sensation is out of control is important because Over Training Syndrome is not just too much work, it’s a much deeper problem that no athlete wants to fall prey to, Join our host Richard Diaz and his guest Elite OCR athleteBeni Gifford as the discuss over training and off season pole dancing!  This is a show you just don’t want to miss!  www.naturalrunningnetwork.com

When training for a marathon or your next Spartan or Battle Frog event, you are facing a running related injury, what do you do? The most common diagnosis is Overuse and Tendonitis as a result. In this short episode, Richard Diaz, Elite Running Coach and host of The Natural Running Network, sheds light on the true culprits behind running related injuries. If you finding yourself battling with reoccurring injuries and its getting in the way of your training and racing, you would be wise to listen to this episode. You may find that your remedies and diagnosis are inappropriate.  What’s really wrong may surprise you! 

The United States Army Rangers are an elite military formation of the United States Army. Each year they hold a competition to determine who the best of the best are. Captain Robert Killian and teammate SSG Erich Friedlein are the current champions of this prestigious title of “Best Rangers”.  Think one percent of the top one percent of the best of the best soldiers, this is quite an honorable distinction. Add to this the title of Spartan World Champion and you now have a snap shot of the man to beat in this year’s OCR World Championship season. It was an honor to speak with Cpt. Killian as he shared his plans for this year’s OCR season and his overview of what it takes to earn the title; “Best of the Best”. 

All OCR athletes agree, it eventually comes down to the ability to run. Miguel Medina took second at The Spartan Ultra Beast World Championships in 2015 and was a team member of “The Wolf Pack” winners of the 2014 World’s Toughest Mudder. Suffice to say he knows how important having keen running skills are to success in Spartan Racing. Join us as Miguel Medina and I (Richard Diaz) field some questions from OCR athletes from around the country regarding running skills. We also close with a contest for those who register early for the upcoming OCR Run Clinic to be held in Ft Collins Colorado in June this year.  For details be sure to visit: www.naturalrunningcoach.net

When I first heard that a 9 year old girl had completed a 24 hour BattleFrog obstacle race it was revealed to me in a blog post written by Ekaterina Solovieva, aka., “Solo”, herself a seasoned adventure/obstacle racer/psychologist.  Her catchy title: “A 9-year old completed a 24-hour obstacle race and why I am not impressed”.  I had to better understand why someone would “go there” and needed to dig into this topic simply because, well… it’s just really interesting. Anyone one who is or has raised children must be curious.  Is this a good or bad idea, should race promoters allow this to take place? Lots to think about and we tried to cover it from all angles.  If you care to read the blog for yourself here is the link to “Solo’s” Blog page: www.solovieva.com/not-impressed/

Anyone who knows Elite Spartan Pro Rose Wetzel, aka., Wonder Woman knows she is intense. Trust me; I have had the great fortune of training her. Rose, loves to push and loves competition. Whether it be American Ninja Warrior, Obstacle racing or Track & Field she can’t get enough. We thought it would be fun to do a post-work out recap to discuss the application of Over-Speed in what many fondly refer to as “The Secret Lab”. We also discuss her recent Track & Field competition at The Stanford Invitational where she bested her previous scholastic records at 800 meters with a blistering 2:10, plans for upcoming Spartan Racing and more.  www.naturalrunningnetwork.com If you had not seen the videos of Rose Running intervals at 20 mph be sure to visit https://www.facebook.com/naturalrunningnetwork/to find this and others.

During our last episode in where Richard Diaz covered the finer points of proper running skills, the show was met with a lot of favor. Many people wrote and asked for more of this type of Q&A format. Hoping to satisfy this request, we reached out to the social media and prompted our audience to send in questions for Richard to address. Topics include: How to effectively employ heart rate, what to do with muscle tears vs strains or sprains, running shoe selection, when and how to include rest in training, questions on cadence, muscle mass and more. OCR athletes are hungry for information and most found is anecdotal. The sport is too young for foundational advice which leaves a wide path for misinformation. The goal is to cut through much of the misconceptions and provide logical advice without chasing intangible conclusions. If you enjoy this episode let us know. Our aim is to serve. Find more like this by visiting www.naturalrunningnetwork.com 

If you can’t run well you just won’t win in Obstacle Racing. It does not matter if you are part monkey and fly through the obstacles, the time lost running opposed to the time gained over an obstacle puts you at a serious disadvantage in OCR. Here is another tip: If you set your mind on pushing harder into your running program, you stand a better chance injuring yourself than improving your running splits. This episode is a down and dirty explanation of the things you need to focus on in training and why. If you had never attended one of Richard Diaz’s running clinics, listen to this episode, its short and to the point and these training tips will go a long way in helping you to improve your finish times and may even get you on the podium like many of Richards’s clients. To learn more or to schedule a private session with the coach visit www.diazhumanperformance.com

Many of us aspire to train “Naturally”. We have evolved from the traditional gym rat mentality, we’ve gotten outside to get our dose of exercise, we’ve adopted what believe to be functional style training but are we really getting the most of our efforts? Enter Erwan LeCorre, founder of MovNat and the MovNat Method. Erwan has devoted his life to training himself and others in a way that revisits our primal instincts. I asked him to come on the show to share his insights, how his training methods differ from what is typical and how this training might server the Obstacle Racing community. If you are looking to take your physical abilities to the height of your innate capacities, you should make a point to listen to this episode. Erwan’s training methods are offered around the world, his retreats are designed to serve all ages and fitness levels. The Natural Running Network

The Death Race for years served as the pinnacle of theSpartan Obstacle Racing challenge, it has recently been shelved and replaced with a different type of extreme challengeThe Agoge an event that provides up to 60 continuous hours of adventure. Yet, is it as extreme as its predecessor? We speak with Dylan Davis who over the past year participated in the winter and summer Death Races and the first two installments of Agoge to get his take on what one can expect when they face this challenge. What you learn may surprise you. Does Joe De Sena, mastermind of these challenges have a plan that has yet to be revealed? Listen and draw your own conclusions. The Spartan Agoge claims to bring together physical and mental strengths while developing innovative thinkers, prudent risk-takers, and expert decision-makers.  Are you truly Spartan enough to meet this ancient rite of passage?

To speak with Lindsay, you get a sense that she is meek, affable and home spun. If you follow her career as an Elite OCR Athlete you gain entirely different picture. Lindsay competed in around 20 OCR events in 2015 and won most all (13 races) in which she toed the line including the OCR World Championship, 2nd in the Spartan World Championship while placing no less than 3rd in 6 of the 20 and a 4th place to round of the bunch. Suffice to say; Lindsay has had an epic year and it looks like this year will be no less impressive. Lindsay is fiancée to Ryan Atkins whom is also recognized as the most dominant competitor in the men’s pro field. He being The Worlds Toughest Mudder World Champion, both residing in Ontario Canada, they seem to swoop down to take the crowns and head back home to recover and prepare for the next challenges. Richard Diaz, our host asked Ryan if he could arrange an interview with Lindsay and here it is for your listening enjoyment.www.naturalrunningnetwork.com

In previous episodes I had interviewed various coaching experts; guys like Jim Vance and Hunter Allen, both world renowned in endurance sport. We spoke on the evolution of training metrics, such as heart rate, power and the apps in which to gather this information.  All the while behind the scenes, techo-geeks were hard at work developing ways to finally create a reliable gadget that can allow runners to gain the benefits that cyclist have come to appreciate and depend on for several years. We all have come to believe that this is the next BIG Deal in running performance. Listen as our host Richard Diaz interviews Johnny Ross, founder and CEO of Medhab Inc. A company that is at the forefront of this evolution in sports performance the first precision power meter for runners; RPM2 (pronounced RPM Squared). Find out what these unique training insoles can do for you and why a serious athlete, someone who works hard to improve and or has struggled with injuries would want to own a pair.

A proper diet can mean the difference between winning and losing races. If you have poor feeding habits, you risk sacrificing your health; you will struggle with your training and may not race at an optimal weight. Matt Fitzgerald is arguably one of the most studied authors on the topic of endurance related nutrition. He has traveled the world studying the eating habits of the top endurance athletes and what he shares on the subject of winning feeding strategies may surprise you. Have you turned into a Vegan? Are you on a carb restricted diet and hope to perform well in endurances events? Those who hope to perform their best in a marathon, Spartan Race, Battle Frog or World’s Toughest Mudder would do well to heed the advice offered in this episode. Racing weight matters… are you sacrificing your strength to make weight or are you of the mind that muscle trumps slight of build?  Tune in for some interesting views.

Obstacle Course Racing is hot. Anyone that does an OCR event knows what I am talking about. Some say that they suffer from PRTSS (post-race traumatic stress syndrome), once the race is over, the buzz starts to ware off and the competitors begin to miss the race community they have come to love and respect. Enter Obstacle Maniac, the brain child of Gary Borad and Craig Covington founders of the social site geared to promote post-race banter among the people who collectively understand this experience and want to talk about it beyond the race weekend. Sure, there are other sites that cover the goings on of the race favorites, the elites and pros of the sport but they get plenty enough coverage. Certainly, the familiar names and faces appear but they share the lime light with the mid packers who are proud of their efforts and are hungry for more chatter about all things OCR. If you are one of these folks and have been looking for a place to share your happiness post event, it would serve you well to visit http:

Getting back into racing and training as quickly as possible is the hope of every athlete who has been afflicted with nagging injuries. Dr. Steven Capobianco is the director of education for ROCK TAPE and is recognized as a leader around the world in the application of kinesiology taping strategies. I (Richard Diaz) have personally been using these taping strategies on my clients to contend with; IT band, Knee, Shin, Hamstring, Calve, Achilles and plantar fasciitis injuries for several years. Perfect for OCR, CrossFit, Trail and Road Running athletes.  If you have ever wondered how, when or why to apply this tape, this a show you don’t want to miss. www.naturalrunningnetwork.com