In this week's episode, we're recapping an exciting NYC Marathon weekend and tackling some great listener questions! Elena shares her experience spectating in New York, and we dive into Jess McClain's incredible finish and what we can learn from her training and coaches, including the concept of zone compression, pace-shifting workouts, and why more mileage isn't always better. We also talk about the art of timing your biggest training sessions before a race, why it's often better to show up a little undercooked than overcooked, and how to trust your fitness when race day arrives. Then, we shift gears to answer listener questions on training through perimenopause and menopause (including the importance of heavy lifting, power, recovery, and mindset), how to bounce back from big races faster, and how to balance racing goals with family planning. Check it out!
Elena:
NYC Marathon reflections!
The best energy day ever– people show up
A hard course! At least 10 notable hills, lots of rolling, several turns, etc. and it can warm up on the streets of the city
For me the big excitement of the day was watching Jess McClain’s finish for 2nd place, which is the first time an American has been on the podium since 2018 (Flanagan)
Can discuss her coach David & Megan Roche’s coaching philosophy around “zone compression”, which to be honest seems to be more of the science behind a lot of what we already support
However it’s particularly interesting to me that the benefits of this approach are only possible with high carb fueling, so makes sense that we’re seeing these performances now
The underlying principle is to make LT2 much closer to Vo2 Max, such that you can sustain higher speed aerobically and clear the lactate for longer amounts of time
The focus here is on making your lactate shuttle mechanism as efficient as it can be
Also the idea of “Don’t aim, just shoot” for race execution
Andreas Almgren from Sweden winning for the men in his first ever marathon. His training approach had a lot more volume and controlled threshold work.
Separate thought on where the hardest quality session should live in a training plan– I’ve been leaning more to 3-4 weeks out (closer for shorter events, longer for longer events) where I used to be 2-3 weeks out. That’s from both personal experience and seeing how athletes feel in races. It seems that big stress can linger in the system for longer, and what I see primarily in longer events is that that compromises the body (and brain’s) ability to perform later in a race.
Katie:
Athlete question on training focus for peri/menopause!
On training:
Heavy lifting, ideally 3x per week
Plyos and power focus (hill sprints, intervals, etc.) 2-3x per week -- don’t need a lot for it to be really effective!
Don’t need as much of the long slow endurance!
On recovery:
Keep up really good fueling/hydration focus with lots of protein!
Often more recovery time needed post big efforts, particularly with sleep interruptions
Mindset shifts → validate the symptoms, but potentially reframe the life stage:
Decline → Growth: Menopause as not necessarily the beginning of physical decline, but a new stage of development with opportunities for growth
Loss → Gain: Rather than focusing exclusively on what is lost (fertility, youth, hormonal stability), recognizing what may be gained (freedom, wisdom, experience, autonomy)
Particularly interesting for many athletes who are becoming empty nesters/ finally have more time
Ending → Transition: Menopause is not the end of vitality or athletic identity, but a transition into a different phase of life
Inevitable suffering → Variable experience: Menopause does not have to be universally debilitating; experiences vary substantially across women
Something to fear → Something to understand: Menopause as a natural biological transition that women can approach with curiosity rather than dread
Also noteworthy: for many people, HRT is an option worth chatting with your medical team about
Athlete question on how to recover faster from races or really hard workouts, avoid DOMs, etc.
Movement is medicine! Gentle, active recovery the day of the race and the few days after: 15-20 minutes Z0-1 light spinning, some light walking, an easy swim/float, hot shower or bath followed by some foam rolling
A+ fueling and hydration with a lot of electrolytes and protein
Resist urges to (1) do too much (think of this as flushing out the muscles and restoring blood flow rather than getting workout in) or (2) do too little (sit on couch all day, which will often make you feel worse)
Athlete question on family planning: how to think about signing up for races/events when you are also thinking about trying to start a family?
Margie Davenport = a great resource here! Give her a follow
Fertility is a very hard and complicated topic, and the uncontrollable nature of timing makes it tricky to be prescriptive about what anyone “should” do
Some myth busting / what the research says:
Exercise is only associated with reduced chances of conception through the pathway of low energy availability/REDs
i.e. If you are fueling enough, movement does not have to be at odds with trying to conceive
Action item: track your cycle,
Advice as a friend/coach: still sign up for races/events if they bring you joy and serve as a stress reliever + fuel the work really well. You can always defer a race or change plans
Going all in on the goal of getting pregnant can be hard given that it is less controllable than signing up for a race, so it can be helpful to have other things to focus on (again provided that exercise is not contributing to LEA/REDs concerns)
That said, could consider not lining up family planning unpredictability with A races that you definitely want to toe the line for/ plan to start trying to get pregnant after certain races/events
Challenge/Resource of the Week
Katie: Plan to volunteer at a race in 2027!
Elena: recommit to strides if you haven’t already! Also make a leaf pile and lie in it.
Gear Pick of the Week
Katie: Ben and Jerry’s!
Elena: Rumpl blanket