THE RUNNING EFFECT PODCAST

-The Run Down By The Running Effect (our new newsletter!): https://tinyurl.com/mr36s9rs

Fitness is rented, never owned. But the rent is far cheaper than most runners think.

Alex Ostberg returns for the monthly breakdown of The Rundown, and this month's four editions split neatly into two halves: what actually happens when you stop training, and how to think clearly about training in the first place.

Alex opens with the principle of reversibility and the psychology that distorts it—losses loom roughly twice as large as equivalent gains, which is why a two-week break triggers panic wildly out of proportion to the physiology. He walks through the Dallas Bedrest Study, then the Coyle detraining data showing a two-phase drop: an early fall driven almost entirely by plasma volume contraction, followed by a slower mitochondrial enzyme decline. The reassuring part is what survives: capillaries, ventricular volume, and mitochondria themselves are structural and stubborn. You don't fall from the top floor to the basement —you fall to the mezzanine.

Then the case for doing it on purpose. Alex mandates enforced breaks for his athletes, argues that reduced training cuts losses roughly in half versus doing nothing, and shares Jerry Schumacher's balloon metaphor for why regaining fitness is easier the second time.

The back half turns to coaching itself: confirmation bias; autobiographical coaching, the observe-hypothesize-measure-update loop; and why writing your hypothesis down before you test anything is the whole ballgame. Alex closes with the mistakes he's made, including his own biased-reporter problem with athlete pain.

Read The Rundown: free, every Thursday. Link in the show notes.

Tap into the Rundown Recap Special. 

If you enjoy the podcast, please consider following us on Spotify and Apple Podcasts and giving us a five-star review! I would also appreciate it if you share it with your friend who you think will benefit from it.

S H O W  N O T E S   

-The Run Down By The Running Effect (our new newsletter!): https://tinyurl.com/mr36s9rs

-Our Website: https://therunningeffect.run  

-THE PODCAST ON YOUTUBE: 
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClLcLIDAqmJBTHeyWJx_wFQ

-My Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/therunningeffect/?hl=en⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

-Take our podcast survey: https://tinyurl.com/3ua62ffz

Behind the scenes of The Running Effect: https://youtube.com/@dominicschlueter?si=PM9FjPc92eFUFEZ

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$20 off your next Attuned scan: https://attuned.health/discount/TRE20?ref=TRE20

There are no names on the back of an Air Force jersey, and that's exactly the point. 

While the rest of college running chases NIL money, transfer portals, and eighth-year seniors, Ryan Cole is quietly building a national contender out of American kids who signed up for something bigger than themselves.
In today's conversation, Dominic sits down with the Director of Track & Field and Cross Country at the U.S. Air Force Academy, where every one of 4,000 cadets is on full scholarship, the campus sits at 7,000 feet, and your first day of college involves getting yelled at off a bus at basic training. 

Coach Cole explains his core philosophy and how the Academy's structure turns overlooked recruits into stars—like Ryan Johnson, who arrived with a 9:20 two-mile PR and left drawing comparisons to Grant Fisher and Sam Gilman, the latter of whom he now shares workouts with.

The two dig into the recruiting cues that separate a great athlete from a great cadet-athlete, the historic 2016 women's team that became the first service academy squad to qualify for a D1 NCAA Championship, and the emotional story of taking over the program after the sudden passing of his mentor, the legendary Ralph Lindeman. 

Plus, the beloved alumni tradition at Nuttycombe, why runners make great officers, and Cole's case that the service academies may be the last true development programs left in the NCAA.

This one's about culture, commitment, and the name on the front.

Tap into the Coach Ryan Cole Special. 

If you enjoy the podcast, please consider following us on Spotify and Apple Podcasts and giving us a five-star review! I would also appreciate it if you share it with your friend who you think will benefit from it.

S H O W  N O T E S   

-The Run Down By The Running Effect (our new newsletter!): https://tinyurl.com/mr36s9rs

-Our Website: https://therunningeffect.run  

-THE PODCAST ON YOUTUBE: 
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClLcLIDAqmJBTHeyWJx_wFQ

-My Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/therunningeffect/?hl=en⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

-Take our podcast survey: https://tinyurl.com/3ua62ffz

Behind the scenes of The Running Effect: https://youtube.com/@dominicschlueter?si=PM9FjPc92eFUFEZ

LuminaryThreads: luminarythreads.shop

$20 off your next Attuned scan: https://attuned.health/discount/TRE20?ref=TRE20

Note from Dominic: for the first time in 800 episodes, had a weird issue where Ann's recording didn't save the last 5ish minutes of the podcast. So if it ends semi-abruptly that's why. Thank you for your understanding (: Enjoy!

Ann Dunn wasn't looking for one of the biggest jobs in collegiate distance running. 

Then she came home from a run to a text from Chris Miltenberg, and two months later, she's the new head coach of UNC women's cross country.

Dominic sits down with Ann just two weeks after Carolina made it official, and she shares the full behind-the-scenes story: the phone call with Milt, why he decided to split the men's and women's distance coaching so each group gets a dedicated touch point, and what made her say yes. Ann explains how a decade away from the NCAA (earning a master's in exercise physiology, building Formula Complete Fitness from the ground up in Charlottesville, and coaching The Covenant School to state titles) turned out to be an advantage, not a gap on the résumé.

She opens up about holding humility and confidence at the same time, the conversation with her husband Jason that made the move possible, and the FaceTime call from Maddie and Reese (her former Covenant stars, now Tar Heels) after Milt dropped the news. Ann also revisits her own Wisconsin story, where her team climbed from last in the Big Ten to fourth at NCAAs in two years; lays out her goals for Carolina (top 5–10 nationally, competing for ACC titles); offers advice for high schoolers making the jump to college running; and pushes back on Dominic's claim that American teams can't win NCAA titles in the international-talent era.

New chapter, new coach, same standard: Carolina blue with big goals.

Tap into the Ann Dunn Special. 

If you enjoy the podcast, please consider following us on Spotify and Apple Podcasts and giving us a five-star review! I would also appreciate it if you share it with your friend who you think will benefit from it.

S H O W  N O T E S   

-The Run Down By The Running Effect (our new newsletter!): https://tinyurl.com/mr36s9rs

-Our Website: https://therunningeffect.run  

-THE PODCAST ON YOUTUBE: 
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClLcLIDAqmJBTHeyWJx_wFQ

-My Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/therunningeffect/?hl=en⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

-Take our podcast survey: https://tinyurl.com/3ua62ffz

Behind the scenes of The Running Effect: https://youtube.com/@dominicschlueter?si=PM9FjPc92eFUFEZ

LuminaryThreads: luminarythreads.shop

$20 off your next Attuned scan: https://attuned.health/discount/TRE20?ref=TRE20 

Instagram: @coachanndunn

Website: https://www.formulacompletefitness.com/

You can register for the program directly through the official Shannon Thompson MPC Focus Session Series Page 
 
Instagram: @shannonleighthompson

Your ego isn't the enemy — it's just a bodyguard using outdated tactics.

Shannon Thompson, MAPP, NCCP, is back for another edition of one of the podcast's longest-running traditions. The mental performance coach behind NAU's championship program (and the second-ever guest in show history) returns to break down the 16-page thesis she recently delivered at a coaching clinic, condensed into one conversation packed with tools you can use this cross-country season.

Shannon unpacks what it means to "connect with the heart of the race,” and the three requirements to get there: a sense of belonging, a sense of irreplaceability, and an orientation toward giving rather than getting. From there, the conversation goes deep on the two stories every athlete lives through sport: the egoic story (work hard, achieve goals, repeat with higher goals) and the hero's journey—the narrative that begins when hard work stops guaranteeing results and you enter what Shannon calls "the wilderness."

Along the way, they discuss why ego is never bad, just unhelpful; how parts theory (IFS) gets to the root of race-day anxiety, checking out mid-race, and mysterious pre-race nausea; the fear underneath it all;; a Scottie Scheffler-inspired debate on caring about outcomes without being owned by them; and a five-minute exercise you can use before your next race.

Tap into the Shannon Thompson Special. 

If you enjoy the podcast, please consider following us on Spotify and Apple Podcasts and giving us a five-star review! I would also appreciate it if you share it with your friend who you think will benefit from it.

S H O W  N O T E S   

-The Run Down By The Running Effect (our new newsletter!): https://tinyurl.com/mr36s9rs

-Our Website: https://therunningeffect.run  

-THE PODCAST ON YOUTUBE: 
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClLcLIDAqmJBTHeyWJx_wFQ

-My Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/therunningeffect/?hl=en⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

-Take our podcast survey: https://tinyurl.com/3ua62ffz

Behind the scenes of The Running Effect: https://youtube.com/@dominicschlueter?si=PM9FjPc92eFUFEZ

LuminaryThreads: luminarythreads.shop

$20 off your next Attuned scan: https://attuned.health/discount/TRE20?ref=TRE20

Trevor Giampa doesn't call himself the best hybrid athlete — he says there's no such competition. He just refuses to accept the idea that chasing a goal in the gym has to cost him a goal on the course.

In this episode of The Running Effect Podcast, Dominic sits down with Trevor to unpack six years of all-out hybrid training and the results that have people convinced he must be cheating: a 2:28 Boston Marathon and a 315-pound bench in the same week, treadmill marathons followed by 15+ reps at 225, and 100-mile weeks paired with powerlifter-style strength work.

Trevor makes the case that "hybrid athlete = mediocre at both" is a myth, that antagonistic goals aren't really antagonistic if you build for them, and that your genetics improve the harder and longer you work. He's done it all as a natural athlete who has never had a sip of coffee, a drink of alcohol, or a single PED — and he explains why the constant doping accusations only fuel his mission to show people what a natural body is capable of.

They also get into his diet (max protein, max carbs, ground beef and rice, venison, kiwis for vitamin C), his recovery philosophy (build a bigger capacity, skip the gadgets), his gym split, the caffeine debate, his move into ultras, and how his Catholic faith became the center of his content and his goals.

00:00 — Welcome & the late-night recording sacrifice
00:36 — How Trevor defines a "hybrid athlete"
01:05 — Real hybrid athlete vs. chasing social media clout
02:11 — Nick Bear, the BPN community, and breaking the "mediocre at both" stereotype
04:28 — His most impressive feat: 2:28 Boston Marathon + 315 bench in the same week
05:13 — What's harder, running or lifting? Genetics and training load
07:44 — Same-day treadmill feats (45-mile run → bench; 2:26 treadmill marathon → bench)
08:18 — Why you lose reps benching right after a run (blood flow)
08:56 — Height, weight, and race weight (5'9", ~185 lbs)
09:44 — Why shorter is better for running ("short kings")
10:10 — Handling constant doping allegations as a natural athlete
11:01 — Peptides, caffeine, creatine, and the "natty or not" spectrum
13:32 — Why PEDs make no sense if you value the work
14:42 — The supplement stack: creatine, magnesium, and kiwis for vitamin C
15:50 — Diet philosophy: max protein, max carbs, eat around your training
18:00 — Daily calories and protein (~3,500 cal / ~200g)
18:51 — Meal prep, Costco, and almost never eating out
19:12 — Hypothetical: would he promote caffeine for a BPN sponsorship?
21:00 — The caffeine debate and the "alpha flies" analogy
22:55 — Caffeine timing, G1M Sport, and the downside of race-day coffee
23:30 — Bicarb and legal performance aids
24:07 — Which BPN athlete would he race — and at what distance?
24:40 — The gym split: stacking leg day on your hardest run days
26:30 — Push/pull/legs, weekly frequency, and injury-prevention work
27:10 — Shout-out to Dr. Bill Evans
28:02 — Parents, his brother, and whether the genetics are really "crazy"
29:21 — "Your genetics get better the harder you work"
30:53 — Goal announcement: 2:25 marathon + 225×25 bench, same day, before 25
31:37 — Recovery: build a bigger capacity, not a bigger gadget collection
33:36 — Progressive overload vs. just maintaining muscle
34:47 — Does he recommend this lifestyle? Why hybrid is the future of fitness
36:23 — Dream sponsorships and faith-aligned brands (Barbell Apparel, Mark Dowdle)
39:46 — Trevor's faith journey and weaving it into his content
41:37 — Sacrificing training time for faith — and being blessed in return
42:27 — Killing the excuses: a full-time job and 84-hour work weeks
43:25 — How he trained around 12-hour refinery shifts in the dark
45:20 — The David Goggins comparison and his (slightly) saner schedule now
47:41 — The messages that keep him posting
48:16 — His "what if": deciding to start posting content
50:31 — Closing thoughts