The RunRX Podcast

Can you split your long run into two shorter runs and still prepare for a marathon? In this episode of the RunRx Podcast, Coach Caroline and Coach Valerie discuss how breaking up long runs can change the way you train, recover, and prepare for race day. Instead of following the traditional approach of building mileage until you reach a 20-mile long run, Valerie explains why RunRx focuses on cumulative mileage, time on your feet, running consistency, and developing efficient running form. Whether you're training for your first marathon, preparing for a 30K, or trying to improve your performance at longer distances, this conversation challenges the idea that you must complete every long run in one session to become a stronger runner.
Coach Valerie shares how her approach to marathon training evolved through her work with Dr. Nicholas Romanov and the Pose Method of Running. Rather than asking recreational runners to complete increasingly long, exhausting runs, she encourages them to build a strong running foundation and distribute their training throughout the week. That might mean running for an hour in the morning and another hour in the evening, completing a longer run one day and another run the following day, or accumulating quality running sessions over several days. The goal is to help runners train consistently without unnecessarily exhausting their bodies or increasing their risk of overuse injuries. Valerie also explains why recreational runners should be cautious about copying elite athletes' training plans without understanding the context behind their mileage, recovery periods, and running pace.
The conversation explores why running by time instead of focusing exclusively on distance can be especially helpful for recreational and age-group runners. RunRx uses a training approach that combines running sessions, intervals, skill drills, strength training, and recovery to help runners improve their movement and build endurance. Breaking up training does not mean avoiding longer runs altogether. Instead, it allows runners to accumulate quality work while paying attention to how their bodies respond. Caroline and Valerie discuss the importance of mental fatigue, recovery between sessions, and learning to recognize whether you need fuel, fluids, a short reset, or a change in your running form. They also explain why the goal is to reach race day feeling prepared, confident, and capable of continuing to run rather than feeling worn down by training.
If you're tired of feeling pressured to complete a traditional 20-mile long run, struggling to recover between workouts, or worried that missing a scheduled distance will ruin your marathon preparation, this episode offers a different way to think about endurance training. Learn why consistency matters, how to make your training fit your schedule, and how the RunRx method helps runners develop better movement while preparing for longer distances. Your marathon training doesn't have to leave you exhausted or injured to be effective. The goal is to build a foundation that helps you run more consistently, feel stronger, and enjoy the journey to race day.
Discover the RunRx approach to running form, injury prevention, strength training, and personalized coaching through the RunRx Academy app or at RunRx.fit.

Coach Caroline and Coach Valerie break down one of the most common running problems: shin splints. Valerie explains why she calls them a “slap injury,” how reaching the foot out in front of the body acts like hitting the brakes, and why that repeated impact can travel through the foot, shin, knee, and hip. She also explains how thick, cushioned shoes can hide the impact and make runners more likely to actively reach for the ground instead of pulling the foot up and moving correctly. 10.16.2026 Shin Splints
The episode also covers what shin splints can turn into if they are ignored, why they can develop into a stress fracture, and why ice, rest, and stretching alone are not enough if the movement pattern is still wrong. Valerie shares her own history with shin splints, how she realized she should not have to ice her shins every night, and why learning the Pose Method changed her running by helping her reduce impact and move more efficiently. 10.16.2026 Shin Splints
Most importantly, this episode makes it clear that you do not have to wait until you are pain-free to get help. Valerie encourages runners to come in while they are injured so they can work on the movements they can do while they recover. The goal is not just to calm the pain for today, but to change the way you move so the injury does not keep coming back.

▶️ Free 30-Day RunRX Reboot — Skill, Strength & Self-Care https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0N-GZ0AosI&list=PLDPcF8ZrDdILC8bYyn2zR-4xvqKRzp2re
▶️ Join the RunRX Membership https://runrx.fit/join-runrxstrong
Website: https://runrx.fit App: RunRx Academy — search “RunRx Academy” on Apple App Store or Google Play Support email: support@runrx.fit

Coach Caroline and Coach Valerie talk about why RunRx has stayed consistent since 2018 while so many other running voices keep changing their message. Valerie explains that physiology has not changed, gravity has not changed, and the basics of human movement are still the same even as shoes, gadgets, AI, and new trends keep evolving. The episode looks at why runners are often pulled toward quick fixes, why so much online running advice focuses on shoes, stretches, or isolated “weaknesses,” and why that approach can leave people with more confusion than real answers. 10.9.2026 We do not change 10.9.2026 We do not change
The conversation also explains why RunRx teaches a standard of running while many others still avoid defining what proper running movement actually is. Valerie talks about her background in personal training, aerobics, and kinesiology, and why those fields all require movement standards, certifications, and correct form before progress. She contrasts that with the common advice runners receive to “just run,” and explains why that mindset leads many people into injury rather than progress. The episode shows how Pose Method, gravity, and correct movement patterns give runners a repeatable way to improve instead of chasing the newest trend. 10.9.2026 We do not change 10.9.2026 We do not change
Caroline and Valerie also discuss how AI and other modern tools can provide a lot of data but still fail to tell runners what to actually do with it. The episode points out that speed and endurance are byproducts of good movement, not the starting point, and that runners improve most when they learn how to move correctly first. Valerie closes by reminding listeners that the work is not easy, but it is effective, and that the RunRx method has produced consistent results because it is built on the same principles that have been working for decades.
▶️ Free 30-Day RunRX Reboot — Skill, Strength & Self-Care https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0N-GZ0AosI&list=PLDPcF8ZrDdILC8bYyn2zR-4xvqKRzp2re
▶️ Join the RunRX Membership https://runrx.fit/join-runrxstrong
Website: https://runrx.fit App: RunRx Academy — search “RunRx Academy” on Apple App Store or Google Play Support email: support@runrx.fit

Coach Caroline and Coach Valerie dig into one of the most common questions runners ask: why do my legs get tired before my cardio does? Valerie explains that leg fatigue often comes down to two big things: whether you are using muscle elasticity or relying on active muscle contraction, and whether your head and upper body are lined up correctly while you run. She breaks down why muscles fatigue more quickly when they are trying to control movement the whole time, and why running efficiently means allowing the body to work with gravity and elasticity instead of fighting against it.
The episode also focuses on posture, balance, and why the head matters more than most runners realize. Valerie explains that your body is always trying to keep your head in balance, and if your head is forward or back, the rest of your body has to work harder just to hold you upright. That extra effort can show up as tired legs, lower-body fatigue, and a run that feels harder than it should. Through gait analysis, daily practice, and weekly check-ins, RunRx helps runners learn how to hold their line, improve alignment, and build a better running pattern over time.
If you have ever felt like your legs burn out too fast, this episode explains why that happens and what to work on first. Instead of just trying to run more, Valerie shows why the answer is usually better alignment, stronger posture, and more efficient movement. With the RunRx immersion, gait analysis, and daily practice, runners learn how to reduce fatigue, improve their form, and run in a way that feels more natural, more controlled, and less tiring.
This episode is grounded in the transcript’s focus on leg fatigue, muscle elasticity versus active contraction, head alignment, gait analysis, and the 30-day immersion.
▶️ Free 30-Day RunRX Reboot — Skill, Strength & Self-Care https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0N-GZ0AosI&list=PLDPcF8ZrDdILC8bYyn2zR-4xvqKRzp2re
▶️ Join the RunRX Membership https://runrx.fit/join-runrxstrong
Website: https://runrx.fit App: RunRx Academy — search “RunRx Academy” on Apple App Store or Google Play Support email: support@runrx.fit

Coach Caroline and Coach Valerie dig into one of the biggest mindset shifts in running: stop judging success only by distance and start learning what running actually feels like. In this episode, Valerie explains why a run coach is not the same as a running partner, why she needs to watch your movement instead of running beside you, and why the real goal is to build confidence in your own form before chasing bigger mileage. The conversation focuses on running for time, starting and stopping when needed, and using the run itself as a skill-building practice rather than a pass/fail test.
The episode also breaks down why so many runners pressure themselves too early by signing up for a race or assigning a distance before they truly know what their body can do. Valerie explains that when runners learn to run for 10 minutes, reset when needed, and then build gradually, they often progress much faster and with less frustration. That same approach helped one runner move from never having run before to completing a 10K, 20K, and eventually training for a 30K, all while learning how to stop, restart, and trust the process.
At the heart of the episode is a powerful message about removing mental pressure from running. Valerie emphasizes that running should still be challenging, but it does not have to feel like gasping, wheezing, or “trudging through it.” When runners learn to hold their line, find a fall point, pull their feet, and reset when needed, they often discover that running becomes more fun, more efficient, and much less intimidating. This is the kind of coaching that helps runners move from surviving their runs to actually enjoying them.
▶️ Free 30-Day RunRX Reboot — Skill, Strength & Self-Care https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0N-GZ0AosI&list=PLDPcF8ZrDdILC8bYyn2zR-4xvqKRzp2re
▶️ Join the RunRX Membership https://runrx.fit/join-runrxstrong
Website: https://runrx.fit App: RunRx Academy — search “RunRx Academy” on Apple App Store or Google Play Support email: support@runrx.fit