Meg Hogan enters the homestretch during the 2009 NCAA Cross Country Championships.

Who is the best collegiate distance runner you’ve never heard of? The George Washington University’s Meg Hogan would be a strong contender for that distinction. Hogan is certainly one of the fastest distance runners who didn’t run at the NCAA Championships this past spring. Her absence from the NCAA meet had nothing to do with a lack of a qualifying performance and everything to do with the fact that GW does not officially sponsor track & field.*

Hogan, however, had a fabulous track season. In February of 2010, she won the Virginia Tech Challenge 5,000 by more than a minute in a PR of 16:09.54. She went on to with the ECAC Indoor 5,000m title in 16:18.10 in early March, followed that up with a huge personal best of 32:34.95 10,000 at the Stanford Invitational, finishing fifth in a race won by Lisa Koll, who set the collegiate record of 31:18.07. Hogan’s only loss of the season to collegians other than Lisa Koll came at the Penn Relays, where she ran 16:12.10 to finish a close third behind Stony Brook’s Holly Van Dalen and Villanova’s Amanda Marino.

Hogan’s best race of the season, however, came in June at the USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Des Moines, Iowa. Lap after lap, the lead pack consisted of four professional runners, one collegian on the verge of signing a professional contract (Koll) and Hogan. This prompted comments on Twitter, even among those who follow the sport closely, along the lines of, “Who?!” Those who weren’t familiar with Hogan’s accomplishments wondered who she was, how she was hanging in there, and how long she would last. Hogan dropped off when the race really heated up, but she made herself known at the top level, finished sixth in 32:52.84, and showed agents and shoe company representatives that they better be paying attention next November when she competes in her final collegiate race. Hogan finished 27th at the 2009 NCAA Cross Country Championships after taking a hard fall early in the race, and will look to finish significantly higher in 2010.

The most interesting part of Hogan’s story, and the biggest indicator of her future potential, perhaps, is the fact that she did not do any competitive running until her sophomore year of college — the fall of 2007. Growing up, Hogan focused the majority of her athletic attention on basketball. The Ballston Spa, New York native attended Saratoga Central Catholic School, just up the road from Saratoga Springs High School, which is known for producing star distance runners.

Hogan’s first season of running, at Mount Ida College in Massachusetts, was solid, but if you didn’t know she was new to running, you probably wouldn’t have known that there was a future star in your midst. This reporter, for one, was at several of Hogan’s meets that season and, frankly, did not notice her 69th place finish at the New England Division III Regional (23:19 for 6k) or her 35th place finish at the ECAC Division III Cross Country Championships (24:17 for 6k). One year and one school later, however, she finished 96th at the NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships, and that was just the beginning of Hogan’s rapid rise.

We caught up with Hogan via email in July.

*Hogan’s coach, Brian Beil, has since learned that it may be possible for an athlete in this position to petition in to the NCAA meet, noting that Oregon State had a high jumper compete at the NCAA Championships, and Oregon State does not officially sponsor men’s track & field. Under NCAA rules, athletes at a Division I school that sponsors cross country but not track and field can compete in track meets, paid for by the school, on a limited basis.

Tell us about your basketball background, and did you do other sports, too?

I have been playing basketball since I was 10 years old. I was also a soccer player, and I was an Irish dancer. I was very serious about basketball; I played fall ball at the same time as soccer, summer league, AAU basketball in the spring and, of course, regular season in the winter. I practiced all the time! I was a point guard, mostly because I was short and quick and was a good three-point shooter. I moved up to varsity as a freshman in high school and I was recruited to play at the Division III level at Mount Ida College. I went to basketball camps — including Siena Basketball Camp — five years in a row. I was obsessed.

Did you run at all in high school? When did you first realize that you had talent for running?

I did not run in high school. I actually never ran; the only associations I had with running were suicides at basketball practice and Indian runs at soccer practice. My high school actually had neither a cross country team or a track team. I went to a small Catholic school in Saratoga Springs, New York. When I started running my sophomore year of college, I realized I had a talent for running and I also fell in love with the sport.

Are there other runners or great athletes in your family?

My dad ran cross country when he was in high school and he is now getting back into it. He plans on running a marathon next year. Other than that, my brother is a good soccer player.

What made you initially decide to attend Mount Ida College?

Since I was 12, I wanted to go into Interior Design, not interior decorating [laughs]. I always like to point out that distinction. They had one of the best Interior Design schools in the country and I also went because I could play basketball there.

What made you decide to transfer to George Washington, and did running play any role in that?

One of my best friends went to GW, she was a year ahead of me. My freshman year, I went out to visit her and I fell in love with GW. I think GW is the perfect balance between being a campus and being a part of the city. I loved Washington, DC, too. It was my first time being there.

Towards the end of my freshman year, I started to realize how much Mount Ida was the wrong school for me. It was just the wrong fit and I went there for all the wrong reasons. That’s when I decided to get into running. The cross country team at Mount Ida needed people and I thought it would be a great way to stay in shape for basketball. That summer I ran road races, trail races, I had no idea how to train, no idea. I was just running, and I loved it. Then I entered my first cross country season feeling excited and competitive. I won my first three races and continued to have a great season after that.

Unfortunately, I was still really unhappy at Mount Ida and the only thing that was still keeping me there was the great Interior Design program. I talked to my parents about it and they were really supportive of my decision to transfer to another school. I thought, ‘If I had to go any school in the country right now, which would it be?’ I absolutely loved GW and they had an accredited Interior Design program. I knew I really wanted to keep running, though, so I thought I would just shoot the coach an email and see if he was interested…and he was! Now the rest is history.

What made you choose a school that officially sponsors cross country but not track?

I chose GW mostly for the school, my life wasn’t centered around running back then like it is now. Also, I was still such a rookie to the sport. At Mount Ida, we only had cross country and I didn’t know the difference…I guess I thought it was normal.

Do you think that not having a track program at GW has held you back at all?

I actually don’t think it held me back too much. I was still able to compete at some major races. I think the only down side would be the inability to compete at NCAAs, which I hear isn’t true anymore.*

What, if any, do you think are the advantages to a “cross country only” college program?

I think some advantages to a cross country only college, for me, is that you can still run track but not have the added pressure of being in season. There is a lot more freedom in that if I’m not feeling ready for a race, it’s not a big deal, I’ll just run in the next meet. Also, you are running for yourself, really, for your pride and your goals. You are mostly on your own. It can be difficult at times because you have to be strong mentally, but coming from someone who can easily get psyched out, I think it has made me a stronger person and a stronger runner.

How has your mileage progressed over the years, and how have you been able to increase it relatively quickly and remain healthy?

My first year of running I had no idea what I was doing, I was just running. When I transferred to GW, I jumped into high mileage and got injured. I think that’s when I learned how to take care of myself and ease into high mileage.

What’s a typical training week like for you? Do you do much supplemental work (conditioning/weights, crosstraining)?

Typical weeks are Mondays and Wednesdays 8-10 miles followed by weight training. Tuesdays and Fridays are workout days with a morning workout and an evening 30-minute run. Thursdays and Saturdays are 8-10 miles and Sundays are long runs. My coach will have us do pool workouts, which I dread! I am really not a fan of crosstraining, I get really bored. I am a terrible swimmer and I think that’s why I don’t like pool workouts.

Do you train with the other women on your team, and do you ever hop in with the men?

I don’t really train with the women on my team, I will sometimes jump in workouts with the guys, but for the most part, I do my workouts by myself. Sometimes my coach will do a workout with me.

What are your goals for the cross country season?

This coming cross country season I would like to lead my team to top three at our conference meet, help Jessica Stern (one of my teammates) qualify for nationals, and I also hope to be top three at nationals. Last year I fell at nationals, which was a little disappointing because even though I was All-American, I know I could have placed better.

What are you up to this summer?

I am training for cross country, of course, but besides that, I spend all my time working. I am a host at a restaurant in DC and I also have an internship at an architecture firm once a week, because I’m taking an internship course right now. It’s a very busy summer!

Do you plan to focus on the 10k in the future, or having you considered going longer and branching out to racing on the roads?

I do plan to continue racing the 10k but I am also interested in moving to marathons in the future. I really love the marathon, I think it’s a great race.

Do you ever race on the roads during the spring semester or in the summer?

I normally don’t unless I am pacing for someone or using it as a tempo workout. I think I might run a road race or two in August and use them as a workout. I love road races; they are always fun.

In what area are you getting a graduate degree, and have you started the program yet? Do you plan to finish it?

I am getting my graduate degree in Interior Design, I start the program in September. I do plan on finishing it, but who knows! It’s a two-year program but if a pro team with a great deal wants to sign me when my eligibility is over, I have no idea what I will decide! I guess I will just cross that bridge when I get to it.

Is a professional running career something you hope to pursue full time after you finish your education?

That is something I hope to pursue, I don’t know what my options are, I am still a rookie to running so I guess I’ll see what happens when my eligibility is up! All I am sure about is that I definitely want to continue running after college at the elite level.

Do you plan to remain in DC after graduation, or have you considered going elsewhere?

I am staying in DC for now. The graduate program is two years and I have eligibility this coming year. I would prefer to finish out my graduate degree and stay in DC for the next two years, but I am up for anything! After two years, I would love to go to the West coast, like Oregon or the San Francisco area, or even back to the Northeast where I am from, but I would even consider leaving the country, so I really am up for anything!

What are your ultimate goals in your career both in and out of running?

My ultimate goals are to continue running to the best of my ability, that’s all I can ask. To also continue having a career on the side is something that I would love to do. I want to be happy and healthy, and also eventually get married and have children.

I’ve seen a couple of things suggesting that you are a huge ice cream fan. Is this indeed true? And if so, who makes the best ice cream, and what is their best flavor?

It is! I have had every Ben and Jerry’s flavor! Ben and Jerry’s definitely makes the best ice cream. I like all their ice creams but I tend to choose flavors that have chunks of cookie dough or something like that. I have a two favorites, first is Cinnamon Buns, which is amazing for obvious reasons, the cinnamon bun cookie dough is ridiculously good. Then, if I want a fruit flavor, I pick Magic Brownies, the Dave Matthews flavor, which is a black raspberry ice cream with fudge brownies. I think a part of me loves that flavor due to my love for Dave Matthews. Ice cream is one of my obsessions; I have a pint of ice cream after every race.

Interview posted July 31, 2010.

In addition to her life as a professional runner, Donaghue coaches high school cross-country and track and and field in State College, PA. Unlike many professional runners who train full-time, she balances the demands of working and training.  When she is not running or coaching, she pursues her passion for art and photo-realism.  Two of her paintings are posted in the interview below. You can read more about Donaghue, her coaching and her training on her blog, Running Rebecca.

EliteRunning: First of all congrats on a great start to your 2010 racing season.  You finished 5^th among a tough field of women in the U.S. 15K Championships, you ran the 3000 at the Brutus Hamilton Invite on April 23^rd and you ran a PR in the 10K on May 5^th, 32:50.32.  So how are you feeling right now?

Rebecca Donaghue: The 15 K I was proud of because I felt strong throughout it and I really maintained my form and my composure and I finished strong. I ran a couple of seconds slower than last year, but I felt a lot better this year so I did feel like that was huge. I was really excited with that and my place was a little higher. It was a deeper field this time around, and I knew the course a little bit better.  The one difference was that last year I had several races building up to this race, and not having that experience this year was definitely a different thing for me.  So I wasn’t upset, but I wasn’t super excited – I thought I would be a little bit faster, but considering everything, I was happy.

At the 3K, Brutus Hamilton, that was not as fast as I had hoped. I was hoping to be right around nine minutes or to even break nine minutes. The conditions were hot and super windy, but I think I was just rusty with the speed work. I felt like I competed, but I may not have run the best tactical race.

I am actually pretty disappointed with the Cardinal Invite and how that went even though I PR’d. I saw myself running loads faster and being up there with the other women and that just didn’t happen. I lost focus early, and once that happened, it was really hard to get back on track –  it was too late. A lot of people congratulate me on that, but, inside, I am thinking, “oh no, that is not what I wanted at all.”

ER: What kind of time were you aiming for?

RD: I was aiming for a really big PR. My finish has been improving drastically and my training has been off the charts. I thought low 32, even in the 31s is what I had envisioned.  It just didn’t happen. I still think I ran a little bit stronger with my form than I did last year. Last year there wasn’t as much competition and I ended up out front at more of a tempo effort. So I was 18 seconds faster than that this year. It’s still early and I really don’t want to be in top form yet.

ER: Do you have any more 10Ks planned for the summer?

RD: No, not on the track. I think I will most likely do the 5,000m at the USATF Championships.  You just don’t know how hot it is going to be out there in Iowa.  But nothing is definite. It looks like the 5,000m, but we might switch it.  We will have to see how things progress in the next month.  But I’m getting ready for a road mile. New Balance is holding a road mile near Chicago May 31. I’ve only done one road mile and it was an uphill road mile in State College about five years ago.  I don’t even know if I broke five minutes because it was uphill.  I am excited for this race because New Balance is hosting it and I get to help out and hand out awards. It should be fun!

A week after that, I am doing the Freihofer’s 5K.  I am really excited for that!  I have always wanted to run it, and I remember seeing pictures of Lynn Johnson dominating that race, and Benita (Johnson) Willis. The race is just pretty awesome and stellar.  The woman that won Boston and Freihofer’s last year, Teyba Erkesso, is back, and Magdalena Lewy Boulet is in it. I am hoping for a fast 5K and that I can go into USAs really strong.

ER: With such a fast field of women, tt sounds like you might be able to crack 15:30 (Donaghue’s PR).

RD: I hope so!  At CVS last year I ran 15:30 and I feel like I am stronger than I was last year.  I think it is going to take cracking 15:30 to win it. If I can just hang on, I know I always have this burst at the end that I am really confident with.

ER: In the March 2010 issue of Running Times, you are noted as a runner who has “quietly established” herself as one of the top runners in the country.  You’ve been running for a long time, but in 2008, you had a turning point and you really started to make a splash and that continued in 2009 – you ran extremely well on the European circuit and you came back to the states to finish no worse than 4^th overall and second American in the five major road races that you ran. It has been awesome to watch you the past few years! What accounts for your success over the past 2-3 years?

RD: Basically, I had been injured for many years.  From the end of my college career and right after that, I was injured with all kinds of biomechanical problems. I ran with pain for years, but I still always trained and I jumped into races. I was with Reebok Boston, coached by Bob Sevene, and just when I started to feel like I was getting a hold of these injuries, I would do a race or a hard workout and it would knock me back down and it was this vicious cycle over and over again for 10 years.  I never ran to my potential in college, which was just so frustrating.  I made nationals twice for cross country and just missed them in the 1500. It was frustrating because I knew I had a lot in me, but I couldn’t do it while injured.

I graduated from college and kept running. I PR’d in the 1500 and 800 while injured, but I was still hobbling around and I was never able to cool down or run the next day.  I would start a run and have to turn around because I was always in pain. It was not ideal to train that way, but I just kept pushing, knowing that someday it had to change. I wanted it so badly and I had to stay positive. Then I moved out to State College and I found someone who was able to fix me, and that is how it all started.

ER: Was that in 2003 that you moved to State College?

RD: Yes. I was a full-time art teacher in Dedham, MA, and I was coaching and running as well. Budget cuts hit the school really hard with the state deficit and they laid me off and cut my position. I figured then was the perfect time to start my graduate degree, and my boyfriend, Artie Gilkes, suggested that we move out here to State College.  He went to Penn State and said it was the perfect place to train, and Penn State could help me out with using the facilities, and I could possibly go to graduate school there. Once we moved, Artie had me see one of the athletic trainers – the trainers really studied my biomechanical imbalances and they had me start from scratch. I was told, “you’re not going to train for three months.”

I always water ran – I water ran at Walden Pond sometimes twice a day and I even got a wet suit so that I could water run into October. I hated the pool and Walden Pond was so beautiful.  I was a die-hard cross-trainer because I knew what I wanted to do running-wise and I knew that I needed to keep up my fitness. But for a doctor to see what was going on, I had to stop training so that the inflammation could go down. When he told me that I couldn’t do anything for three months, I actually had a good time!  I was fine with it.  I don’t run for an outlet. I wanted to do whatever it was going to take to heal and get better. I really enjoyed my break and just knew that good things were going to happen if I took a break. I got to do some art work, and I just knew that it was going to be great.  Sure enough, the trainer figured it out and I was running pain free for the first time in about 10 years.  It was pretty emotional.

ER: Do you know now what the biomechanical culprits were that led to your injuries?

RD: It was my hips. I have told quite a people that it’s confusing and complicated to explain it.  It took the doctor studying my full body x-rays to see it all.  There is a twist in my hips that needs to be there, but it causes a leg-length discrepancy that is not all that uncommon. But the weird thing is that I wear a lift in the shoe of my longer leg.

ER: Seriously?

RD: Yeah (laughs).  It’s weird.  I put in the lift and the doctor watched me walk and he analyzed everything. He gave me some very specific exercises to strengthen my hips and work on my weaknesses. He gave me every little detail. I did everything that he told me to do for a summer, and it really paid off.  He had me running on the treadmill for 1 minute and he watched my gait and then he had me do the strengthening exercises and he would put me back on the treadmill.  The build-up took forever – every day.  But I was so excited when I ran for 2 minutes without any pain – it was the weirdest feeling!

I also had these weird bumps on my heels called “Haglund’s Deformity.”  Mine were so inflamed and swollen that I couldn’t walk – they put me on crutches in college because it was so painful.  I almost had surgery, but I decided against it. It seemed too risky to shave the bone down in my heel.  So I wore a night brace and cut the back of my shoes out to alleviate the rubbing . . . I also had a lot of calf trouble.  You name it.  I was limping when I was walking and limping when I was running.  People would say, “why are you still running?  It looks so painful.”  And it was – every step.  I was sweating more than I had to because I was in so much pain.  Maybe I am stubborn, but I just knew that I had to keep persevering.

ER: I remember reading something about you being unable to cool down after races because you were in so much pain. What made you persevere?

RD: It was awful – there were so many runs where I just stopped in the middle and broke down. But something in me would force me to pick myself back up and try it again. I just kept persevering through it.  All I wanted, at some point, was to finish a race and enjoy a cool down – that is part of the fun!  You get to talk with your friends and your competitors and catch up.  You get to think about what you did in your race, but I could never do that.  It was miserable, absolutely miserable.  But there was something in me that kept me thinking that I had to keep going, that something positive was going to happen.

ER: It sounds like adopting a positive attitude and staying optimistic in the midst of that kept you going.

RD: My mother has always encouraged me to think positively.  As negative as she can be as a New Englander (laughs), she always encouraged positive thinking, and that really struck. She always told me to keep at it.  I think my parents knew that I had more to give – they watched me run in high school and college, and they knew that I needed to keep at it. It’s so nice now, every single run. I could never do morning runs before, and now I can do morning runs. I always reminisce about when I couldn’t run in the morning.

ER: That’s why it was so heart-breaking to read about your freak accident while you were out walking your dog, Paavo, and you ended up breaking your wrist.  You only had 13 weeks to get ready for the 2008 Trials.  You had just overcome all of these injury humps and now this. What was that experience like?

RD: I know. It was such a good year and I was so ready to be at an Olympic Trials – finally – because the past two times I had missed qualifying because of injuries. This time, I was not going to be injured, no matter what, and then that happened. Artie, who is also my coach, was asking the surgeon what the alternatives were to allow me to train through it rather than having a cast all the way past my elbow. A cast like that would have made it really difficult to train.  The surgeon, who was a football player at Penn State, knew how important it was for me to train; he knew the needs of an athlete and the urgency of getting the training in.  He was the perfect person.  He came up with an alternative – an external fixator surgery.  Instead of a cast, I had a titanium rod on the outside of my arm that served as the stabilizer.  My nickname was “Robo Rebecca.”  I was embarrassed sometimes to be running around with a titanium rod and screws coming out of me.  If it was raining, I had to put a bag over my arm . . . so I was running around with a bag on my arm, but I was running around and I was happy.  It was a different kind of pain than the biomechanical imbalances and the running injuries.

ER: And you ran well at the Trials that year.

RD: I was able to add a lot of elliptical training before I was able to run after the surgery.  The elliptical was huge; it is such a great training device. Leading up to the trials, I knew I had just one shot to qualify. I had gone to Hillsdale, MI to try to get a 10,000m qualifier, but I ended up dropping out.  It was the worst heat that you could imagine, and I want to say that 80% of the people in the whole meet dropped out because it was so hot. I still couldn’t believe that I dropped out, but I was off pace right away.  After that, I knew I had one last shot to qualify in the 5,000m.  We found the 5,000 USATF New England Championships at Bentley College.  It was my only chance so I was dead set on doing it, and I knew that I could run a PR.  I had a rabbit for two laps, which was so nice, even for two laps.  After two laps, I was alone and I ran a PR and I snuck into the Trials. That was really a big turning point, to make it to the Trials, and then to PR in the prelims and again in the finals.  I had three PRs in two weeks.

ER: And you PR’d by a lot in the semi-final and the final – going from your qualifier of 15:55 to 15:38 to 15:35. It had to be nice to finally have some company to run with.

RD: It was so nice.  It felt comfortable for almost the entire race except for maybe the final two laps. There’s a difference when you have people to pull you along.

ER: Now that you are healthy again, do you still do a lot of the “little things” to keep your old injuries from cropping back up?

RD: I go in and out of spurts of cross-training just for the heck of it. I do the elliptical and pool running, just to increase my mileage.  I am not a super high mileage person to begin with so to make up for that, I will do something in the pool or I will elliptical.  It’s nice to do it knowing that I am doing it just as part of my training and not because I am injured. I do a little bit of lifting, but not as much as I did in college. I felt like I was a little bulked up from that and we cut back on that. I lost a ton of the muscle mass, which is good for a distance runner because you don’t want to be too bulky.  I do light lifting with very little weight and high reps.  I do a lot of core work and I continue to do the strengthening and agility work that the trainer gave me. I do a lot of plyometrics before workouts and sometimes after; I do a lot of the “little” things now that I couldn’t do while I was injured or working full time as a teacher.

ER: Has doing the “little things” been another key factor in your turn around?

RD: Yes. It’s still difficult because I am coaching. I love coaching and I think it is really important to have that something else going on.  At the same time, it has its challenges and it can be tricky to try to take naps. I don’t often get to do that in between runs.  I’m at a lot of track meets for the entire day when I should ideally be off my feet or doing another training run.  We have to adjust my schedule to make everything fit.  I can’t see myself not coaching.  I need to do it financially or I wouldn’t be able to survive. I am torn a little bit as to coaching and professional running.

It’s frustrating because I am at the point where I know what my competition is doing. I know that many of my competitors train full time.  It’s just the way that the system is.  You really have to get the job done in college to be set up really well after that.  Otherwise, it’s a constant struggle.  But it’s my life and I am happy.  I can’t see it any other way.  That doesn’t mean that I don’t wonder what it could be like to train full time, but I don’t have that choice.  I have to work, and I do love it.

ER: Is balancing work and professional running, then, one of the reasons that you do not do high mileage?

RD: Yeah – I am increasing my volume little by little each year.  But you have to have the time for recovery. It’s difficult to get the recovery in so I think it’s wise to keep my mileage a little lower right now.

ER: What is your training volume like right now?

RD: Little by little, I’ve worked my way up to 80 miles/week. It has taken a long time, which is the right way to do it.  You don’t want to jump to 80 when you’ve been doing 60.  My coach feels really strongly that this is the right way to do it – very, very gradually and year-by-year, and eventually I will be at 100 miles a week, but we don’t know when that will be.

ER: Do you run twice a day? How many workouts are you doing a week?

RD: I run twice a day almost every day.  There are days that I can’t.  Yesterday we had the district meet for the high school so I was only able to run once. If I have a meet, I don’t always have a chance to get a second run in, but sometimes I run at the meet if there is a long break in between my girls’ events. I’ll sneak a run in.

For workouts, I mostly do them twice a week.  It all depends on how I am recovering.  I am not the standard Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday workout runner.  I am on a 10-day cycle and it rotates. If I feel like I am really worn out from a workout or a high school meet, Artie will give me another easy day. That has really helped me a lot, rather than forcing something just because it is a Tuesday.

I followed the standard Tuesday/Thursday/Saturday schedule throughout college and after, but I needed more recovery. You have to do what is right for you.  No one is the same so you have to discover what works for you.  I try to do that in coaching – I try to individualize the workout plan for different groups, and it is hard on a coach, especially if you have a lot of kids. But I do what I can.

ER: I wanted to ask you about your coaching, and the philosophy you bring to your work as a coach. You coach high school athletes at State College High School and help with the Nittany Valley Youth Track Club.  Is your coaching similar to your own training?

RD: I do feel like it is very similar to what I do. I just tone it down a little bit and I also believe in what my high school coach had me do.  He always had me do really low mileage, and I think that is important, especially if you want your athletes to run in college and after college, even if it is just recreational running.  You have to be good to them in the early years or they are going to be burnt out mentally or physically.  My philosophy is to keep the sport alive and to keep kids excited about it and fresh in both their minds and their bodies. My high school coach always said that he wanted me to have fresh legs in college. I don’t even know if I ran 30 miles/week in high school, and I didn’t do high mileage in college.  For me, I had a lot of biomechanical issues that were going to happen no matter what I did.

I don’t have my girls do high mileage. They do a lot of similar workouts to what I do, but I tone it down quite a bit. I don’t have them do the same workouts at the same time – they don’t know what every Wednesday workout is going to be.  We mix it up.

ER: It sounds like a few of your girls have run some pretty fast times this year!

RD: They have. I am so proud to have the group that I have.  These girls are the best – they are so coachable and so mature and well-mannered and friendly and fun.  And they are super talented.  One of them is heavily recruited.  She has run a 2:10 800m.  I actually did a workout with her last week. She didn’t do the entire workout with me, but I incorporated her into it. We did 300s together at the end and she just buried me.  She was doing 44 second 300s.  She is pretty special. Last night she ran a 56 split in the 4×4, a 2:12 800m, and then I had her do the mile as a workout. The first three laps were a controlled tempo at 80 seconds/laps and then the last lap I wanted to her to switch gears, and she finished in a 73.  She is the real deal.  She is a junior and she is trying to figure out what she wants to do in college.  It’s really exciting.

ER: To switch gears – I’ve been excited to ask you about this.  There was mention in 2009 that you were thinking about a marathon, and you recently mentioned that you are planning to make your marathon debut in 2010. Are you still thinking in that direction?

RD: Yeah, we are definitely thinking about it. My coach goes back and forth. I want to do it just to see. I know that there are benefits to doing the marathon and coming back to the shorter distances; you are so much stronger. I do a lot of my long runs pretty quickly so I wonder, and Artie wonders, if I could be good at it.  At the same time, I ran the 20K Championships and I couldn’t fathom doing it again and then more!  But I think if we really planned for it, then it might work.  Last year, we just said, “let’s see how the 20K goes” and then maybe we’ll do the Twin Cities Marathon, and that was only two weeks later.  There was no build-up. The 20K didn’t go as well as I thought it might so we scrapped the marathon. This year, we will really decide mid-summer and stick to the plan.

ER: Have you made any tweaks to your training with that goal in the future?

RD: My mileage has gone up a little bit to eventually hit in the 90s, and then the 100s. We can make that next mileage step this summer.  Some of the workouts that I do are a little longer.  My plan is going to be similar to last summer, and then when the summer races are over, we can start gearing up for a fall marathon.

I’ve always had a dream to run Boston.  My first memories of running are watching the Boston Marathon growing up. That has always stuck even though I have not been not physically and mentally ready to do a marathon. But I’ve always wanted to do it.  I want to do it sooner rather than later, and they say that the training is harder to recover from than the actual race.  It will be interesting for me.

ER: This makes me think ahead to 2012.  You are someone who has made a name for herself running well at any distance from 800m to 15K.  It’s worth mentioning that you were a fast 200m runner in high school.  When you are that talented across so many distances, where do you think you will be most competitive in 2012?

RD: It’s so hard. I need to get the 10,000 down and the track down.  I am still learning how to run the 10,000 and the 5,000 on the track.  I have it down on the roads, for some reason, but I am still learning the track. I’m not willing to give up on the track because I know that I really need to master that.  I have been doing a lot of thinking after my most recent track 10,000 and I keep wondering what’s going on.  I have a lot of evaluating to do to figure it out.  If I can put it together, the 10,000 might be my event. I am super confident on the road, so who knows – it could be the marathon.  But I go back and forth.  I still like the 5,000 and I can crank it out really well.

I think it’s important to have that range. If you look at the top runners, they all have that range that is really impressive.  I don’t quite see myself with the stellar range that they have, but I have a good range.  It goes a long way, and it’s important to your overall athleticism.

ER: How would you describe your overall training philosophy?

RD: That’s hard.  Touching on speed, long distance, agility and recovery is important.  Recovery for me is really important.  I think it’s important for everyone to be a well-rounded athlete and to be smart about what’s best for YOU.

I apply this to my athletes. All of my athletes, if they have a problem, I genuinely want to listen to what it is so that we can figure it out. I put myself in their shoes and I want to listen to them.  I want to do what is best for them.  In cross-country, I had 65 athletes, and it was hard to do that, but it was important to talk to them one-on-one to understand their individual needs.  I know that I want that for myself. I think my athletes really appreciate that, and I am proud that I am able to do that.

ER: You have worked with your coach and boyfriend Artie Gilkes for several years now. How would you describe your relationship with him? How much of a factor has he been in your running career?

RD: Artie has been a huge factor in my success – huge.  I don’t even know where to begin. He knows the sport better than anyone I know and he has a passion for it more than anyone I know. He has this desire to do well himself, and he is an inspiration on many levels.  He has type I diabetes and he was diagnosed while he was running for Penn State during his sophomore year and he still made the varsity team and went to nationals in cross country. He has a few other autoimmune disorders, and he is shooting for another marathon – hopefully the Olympic Trials time for men.  He is doing all of this in the midst of his health issues, and this makes him a total inspiration to me. His knowledge and passion are above and beyond.  He is also coaching Ryan Sheehan – he just won the Pittsburgh half marathon.  He has only been coaching him for six months, but he has already made huge improvements.  Artie is doing a great job with him and I see him coaching other people to a high level.

So Artie has been huge when it comes to my success.  He understands what I need and he has come up with everything. He knows when I need to have more recovery time and when I have to pull back on workouts.  He has taught me to always be ready to adjust. He would be an interesting interview!  I feel like what I have done is nothing compared to what Artie has done with his life.

Artie helps me in workouts too.  He’ll pace me a lot.

ER: Is Artie your only training partner?

RD: Yeah – I do a lot alone, but it is so nice to have Artie at workouts.  It is a great team that we have.

ER: Is it hard separating Artie as your coach and boyfriend?

RD: Somehow I completely separate it and it doesn’t affect our relationship at all.  And he’s a pretty tough coach; he’ll do a lot of yelling, but yelling in a good way!  He is loud. It’s good. Sometimes he will try to kick my heels a little bit so that I am on top of things. He wants to prepare me to race. He prepares me to be ready for anything, and he is a genius when it comes to coaching and understanding all of the details.  He has so much character and enthusiasm.  Artie compares my career to the boxer, Marvin Hagler, all the time.  We both have to work.  We’re both blue collar.  It’s funny – he knows all of these stories from history and he brings them up during our runs.  They’re always motivational.  I didn’t come out of college with a big contract, and I’ve had to fight for it.  But I’m not the only one out there who has had to do it this way, and Artie reminds me of that.

ER: Looking back now over the past few years, are you surprised by your success, or did you always feel that you had that kind of potential brewing inside of you?

RD: I always knew, but I didn’t know when. I’ve envisioned even bigger things. It’s just about being patient and putting the work in and never giving up. You have to know that it’s going to hurt most of the time and you have to get used to that hurt.  Artie, my parents and so many people in my life have taught me that. I’m never happy. I always feel like I have to continue and keep going.

ER: It sounds like you plan to stay in the sport until you are 45.

RD: That’s exactly right.  I don’t have all of the high mileage or races in my legs that other runners have. I feel like I am just getting started. People like Colleen De Reuck are huge inspirations to me and they have me so excited. I have told Colleen a few times that she is an inspiration to me. I want to be doing what she is doing at her age. She is just rockin’. She is unbelievable.

ER: What has been the highlight of your running career so far?

RD: Being the second American at Falmouth was a highlight. I don’t want that to be my number one highlight at all, but that was such an amazing race. I have always loved the Falmouth Road race even though that was just my second time running it. Growing up in MA., it was always a race I wanted to run. Coming in as the first American and second overall was such a cool feeling, and I felt super strong.  CVS was another highlight.  I was second and I really pushed myself in that race.  I had my old kick back and I think I surprised a lot of people. I didn’t necessarily surprise myself because I know that I have those performances in me. It is just a matter of putting it all together on race day.

Being in Jordan and representing the USA for World Cross was definitely a great experience.

ER: How has it been to work with your sponsor, New Balance?

RD: New Balance has played a big role in my journey.Their support and loyalty has been key in my career. I’m so thankful for that. I also wouldn’t be where I am without my agent, Tom Ratcliffe of KIMbia Athletics. He’s both a friend and an agent, which I think is super important. If it weren’t for him, the New Balance support would not have happened.

ER: Aside from running, you paint as well. How would you describe your art?

RD: I’ve done portrait work for a lot of people. I’ve done portrait work for weddings and of dogs. I really enjoy the work.  For one of my old teammates, I did a portrait of her and her husband with their dog.  That was one of my favorite paintings.

I’ve been obsessed with photo realistic artwork. It’s called photo-realism or hyperrealism.  It’s a style that I really enjoy, and the paintings are so realistic that you think they are photos. I strive for that realism in my work. I’ve done loose styles before and that is hard for me to do.  That is how I am as a runner, too.  It’s hard to loosen up and just relax.

I take a lot of time with my art work.  The end result is the reward.  After I am done with running, I plan to go back into teaching art.  I started the graduate program at Penn State, but it was difficult with training and I couldn’t financially afford it.  I do plan to go back eventually, though.

ER: Real quickly, I have to ask you to describe your dog, Paavo (see Paavo on left).  I own two Vizslas myself and I am pretty obsessed with the breed.

RD: I cannot imagine my life without him!  Artie just brought him home without telling me, and I was torn at first.  I didn’t know if we could do this, with me trying to go to school and we had just moved, but now I cannot imagine life without him.

Paavo’s our little kid.  Vizsla’s look like people – there’s something about their faces that makes them look human and different from other dogs.  They are so much like people. I could go on and on about Paavo.  He runs with me, too.  The furthest that he has run is 12 or 14 miles.  He even licked some gels and he ran even better after licking them!  He likes the winter better than the heat.  He is slowing down a bit now – he is going to be six.   But I can’t imagine Paavo not being active – he would go crazy.

Now for the quick-fire questions:

My favorite book is: The Big House by George Howe Colt
My favorite song is: Hero of the Day-Metallica
My favorite meal is: Maine lobster
I indulge in: coffee, cookies, potato chips, and scary movies
The word that best describes me is: determined
My favorite workout is: anything on the mountain roads of Rothrock State Park in PA or the carriage trails on Mount Desert Island up in Maine
My pre-race ritual is: sipping on coffee
The one thing that people would be surprised to find out about me is: I haven’t thrown up since I was 4 years old
My life philosophy is: “The Will to win means nothing without the will to prepare.” -Juma Ikangaa
When I was a kid, I wanted to be: an illustrator
The most miles I have ever run in a week is: 86
My worst injury was: running related-bursitis in my heels, non-running related-slipping on ice and shattering my right wrist
My worst running moment was: sliding down Franklin Park’s Bear cage hill on my stomach in the 1997 ECAC Championships, and then watching my last chance to qualify for NCAA cross slip away
My greatest running moment was: finally making it to the Olympic Trials after just missing in 2000 and again in 2004 
My number one running goal is: making an Olympic Team

Interview conducted on May 21, 2010, and posted on May 27, 2010.

With her focus turned toward the marathon, Smith kicked off her 2010 campaign racing on the heels of Berhane Adere in the New Orleans Half Marathon.  Smith’s 1:07:55 was the third fastest time by a woman on U.S. soil.  She followed up this performance less than a month later by winning the New Bedford Half  in 1:10:53 – she used New Bedford as a tune-up for the London Marathon on April 25.

London marks Smith’s second marathon appearance. Her debut in New York, following her 8th place 2008 Olympic performance in the 10,000m, did not go as planned.  With just eight weeks to build-up, she fell sick before the race and was forced to drop out after mile 20. This time around, however, she enjoyed a positive and uninterrupted training cycle where she consistently logged 100-110-mile weeks.  Smith faces a tough field on Sunday – a field that boasts six athletes who have eclipsed 2:22 in the marathon. Some of the big names in the race include Irina Mikitenko, Deena Kastor, Constantita Dita, Svetlana Zakharova, Bezunesh Bekele and Mara Yamauchi.

Smith sounds ready to make a run for it, and with her 5K, 10K and half marathon speed, she cannot be counted out of a top finish.

Eliterunning.com: First of all, congratulations on kicking off the 2010 season with a 1:07:55 half-marathon PR in New Orleans (also a New Zealand National Record and the third fastest time ever run by a woman on American soil), and a strong performance in the New Bedford Half.  It looks like you had two different strategies entering these races: run all-out in New Orleans and use New Bedford as a pre-London tune up/workout.  How did feel in these races? Did you accomplish your goals?

Kim Smith: Yes, those were my two strategies. I had run one half marathon prior to New Orleans at the World Half Marathon Champs last September and I felt I didn’t race very hard as I was kind of scared of dying as I had never run a half marathon. I went to New Orleans wanting to run hard and fast and see what I could do for the distance. I went out hard and was a little worried, but it seemed to work out in the end. I was very happy with the time. I wasn’t planning to run in New Bedford but I often struggle doing long tempo runs on my own so I jumped into the race so I would have a group of guys to run with. I felt really comfortable and it was a good workout. [Editor’s Note: Kim finished New Bedford in 1:10:53]

ER: In New Orleans, you ran neck-and-neck with Berhane Adere as you both entered the homestretch. Considering that Adere has run as fast as 2:20 and 2:22 in the marathon, did your final time and your close race with her boost your confidence heading into London?

KS: It was definitely a confidence booster. It’s always going to be tough to out-kick someone like Adere so I tried hard to shake her for 13 miles but she stuck with me the whole way. I think she ran a PR so we both had great races. [Editor’s Note: Adere's 1:07:52 was a new PR for her]

ER: With several fast spring marathons on the racing calendar, what attracted you to the London Marathon?

KS: I’ve run a few road races in London recently and really enjoyed them. Time wise, it fit in well and it is a pretty flat course, which I was looking for.

ER: In a recent article, you mentioned 2:25 as a target time goal.  Is that still your goal?

KS: It’s hard to set a time goal because the marathon is such an unknown distance. But I would love to run 2:25. It’s definitely a scary race!

ER: Coming off of your 9^th place finish in the 10,000 in the Beijing Olympics, you turned your sights to your marathon debut in NYC. You got sick a few days before the race, and ended up dropping out between 30K and 35K. Did you reassess after NYC and decide to wait to make another run at the marathon?  Did you gain any experience from that race that you are taking with you to London?

KS: I was put off of the marathon for a while but after running some road races in London I got excited to run another one. I don’t think New York showed me a whole lot. I felt terrible from mile 1 so it’s hard to know. I would love to go back to New York if London goes well to race it again. It’s such an awesome race and I’d love a more positive experience there.

ER: Prior to NYC, you had never raced longer than 10K.  With several fast half marathons in your legs, do you have a fresher feel for the distance and for your ability to race it?

KS: I definitely feel better prepared and more confident this time around. I had a bigger and better build up this time. I was pretty tired after the Olympics in 2008 and I got sick three times in the 8-week build up to New York. I haven’t had any disruptions this time and I got in the long races so I definitely feel like I have a better feel for the distance.

ER: You have posted some extremely fast times in the 5,000 and the 10,000.  You are the fastest non-Ethiopian runner in the indoor 5,000, having run 14:39 in 2009. You’ve also run 14:45 outdoors and 30:35 in the 10,000. After London, do you still plan to race on the track and the roads in the 5 and the 10? Do you plan to switch your focus more to the marathon?

KS: It will depend on how the race goes, I guess. I would still love to run faster on the track but it’s getting harder to knock the seconds off my times. Breaking 14:30 would be great but that’s pretty tough to do.

ER: At what distance do you ultimately think you will be most competitive? Is the marathon your primary goal for the 2012 Olympics?

KS: It will again depend on how the race goes. I want to be a marathon runner badly, but you don’t really know until you run one how it will go.

ER: You have run in the 80-90 mile range for several years, and you have recently been in the 100-110 range. What has your mileage and long runs been like leading up to London, and can you give us a sample week of training?

KS: My mileage has been in the 100-110 range. I think I would get really tired doing more. It amazes me that people run 150-mile weeks – I would be too tired to race if I did that. I also space out my workouts more than other people as that has always worked for me. I have a two week schedule where I do a tempo, a workout of long reps, a workout of short reps, and a long run of 20 -24 miles.

ER: Is there a particular workout that you like doing before a race – one that tells you what kind of shape you are in and what you can expect on race day?

KS: I have those workouts before a 10k or a 5k race but the marathon is kind of unknown. If I’m getting ready for a 10k I know I’m in shape if I can do 3 by 3km in 9 minutes to 10 minutes. That’s probably my favorite indicator workout.

ER: How would you describe your overall training philosophy?

KS: I’m pretty good at reading my body. I often will go to the track and warm up for a workout and if I feel bad I’ll just run and do the workout the next day. I often change things around in my schedule and I think that’s why I don’t get injured very often. I don’t think there is any point in pushing things if you’re really tired. I like doing good, hard workouts and would rather wait a day than beat myself up about a bad workout.

ER: Do you do any kind of cross-training to supplement your running?

KS: No, I haven’t had many injury problems so I don’t cross-train.

ER: How important is nutrition and recovery to you?

KS: I’ve been better about those things training for the marathon. I would eat a lot of take-out before, but now I’m trying to eat better. I got sick so much the last time so I’m trying to eat more vegetables and good foods rather than junk food.

ER: You have worked with Coach Ray Treacy since you ran under him at Providence. How would you describe your relationship with him? How much of a factor has he been in your running career?

KS: Coming to Providence College and working with Ray has been a huge factor in my running career. I just wasn’t that good before I came here. I improved so much and loved running in the NCAA system. I think it is a great stepping-stone to running on the world stage. I appreciate so much what Ray and Providence College have done for my career. I know I wouldn’t be doing what I’m doing now if it wasn’t for Ray.

ER: You are from New Zealand and you hold National Records in four distances.  So how do you like training and living in Providence?  Do you train there full-time?

KS: I train in Providence most of the time. Molly huddle, Roisin McGettigan (my training partners) and I went to Phoenix to train for part of the winter and I usually go home over Christmas for a month or so. I like training in Providence because it’s where I feel comfortable. I like doing the same loops I did in college.

ER: How did you get into running?  Were you always a good athlete growing up?  Did anyone inspire you to give running a shot?

KS: I got into running, I guess, because it was something I was good at. I wasn’t winning anything nationally growing up but I was up there. I think I matured as a runner a lot later than most people. I just kind of stuck with it and improved. I guess you see that a lot with young girls. A lot of time the best girls in high school don’t do too much later on.

ER: Looking back over the past few years, have you been surprised by your success, or did you always feel that kind of potential brewing inside of you?

KS: I’ve been completely surprised. When I was a teenager I never dreamed of going to the Olympics or anything; it wasn’t something I thought about at all. It still shocks me sometimes that running is my job now. It’s crazy.

Now for the quick-fire questions . . .

My favorite book is: any cheesy chick lit
My favorite song is: don’t have one
My favorite meal is: burgers
I indulge in: a lot of coffee
My favorite workout is: workouts are hard so I don’t think I like any, but I know the 3 by 3 km workout is good for me
My pre-race ritual is: a lot of coffee drinking
The one thing that people would be surprised to find out about me is: sometimes I’m so lazy I do my morning runs at midday…like today
My life philosophy is: don’t be too serious; you have to have fun and enjoy what you do
When I was a kid, I wanted to be: a teacher
The most miles I have ever run in a week: 120
My worst injury was: a torn achilles that caused blood clots that moved to my lungs
My worst running moment was: tearing my achilles in a race
My greatest running moment was: winning an NCAA championship the first time
My number one running goal is: to win a big city marathon

In order to complete this documentary, we sincerely hope that the running community and its many sponsors rally together to help make it happen. To learn more about this documentary, and how you can support its completion via donations, check http://www.wincatherine.com and http://www.wincatherine.blogspot.com The fundraising trailer, and our in depth interview with Stefani Weiss below, offers deeper insight into the passion, artistry and inspiration that has gone into the making of this documentary:

EliteRunning: How did you first learn about Catherine Ndereba?

Stefani Weiss: I learned about Catherine because my sister, Lisa Buster, is her manager. A big part of Catherine’s life and Catherine’s career is Lisa and in the film, you get to see everything that Lisa does.  She  [Lisa] is in the height of her season now, and she is extremely busy. She and Catherine work extremely well together – it’s more than just a manager/client relationship. They are genuinely good friends.

ER: Did Lisa bring Catherine’s story to you, and is that what inspired you to do the documentary?

SW: It’s the other way around, actually. I have known Catherine through Lisa for many years, since she came here.  I was busy raising my own kids so I did not follow Lisa’s career that closely, but we always heard about who was doing what and who was winning.  As my kids got older, I had more time to pay attention to what was going on. Because I was not a runner, I had not followed the sport closely but just knowing Catherine, I really became interested in her.

I left my job at the end of 2007, and I was going to start my own business, and I was thinking about what I was going to do.  I had gone to film school many years ago, and I had not worked in the industry in a long time, but I started thinking about Catherine and all of the things that I know about her and the one thing that always intrigued me was how faithful she is and how humble she is.  Even after all of her success, she still credits her success to God, and she is still so unassuming and humble. I had never met anybody quite like that, and I found it almost unreal.  I wondered, “is this really how she is,” and the more I got to know her, the more I realized that not only is that how she is, she is like that no matter if she is alone, with people or with a camera on or off.  That is genuinely who she is.

I came to Lisa and asked if anyone had ever done a feature on her.  She has been highlighted in many clips for ESPN and the Olympics, and many people have done stories on her, but it turns out that nobody had ever done a story on her and where she comes from. No one had documented how she got to where she is now, what were the things that guided and influenced her and what were the things she had to overcome. When I learned about where she had come from, I was even more inspired because her story is really inspirational.

ER: I wanted to ask you about that.  There is a plethora of great female runners out there, but what is it about Catherine’s story, specifically, that makes her so different from other elite women runners, and so inspirational?

SW: I am not a runner so my research has brought me across the career of a lot of other runners.  As far as a runner, what makes her so different is the length of her career and how consistent she has been.  At one point when I was doing my research, she had run 22 marathons and she was on the podium 18 times; that was over a 10-year period since her marathon debut in Boston in 1999.  That does not include all of her road races and the multiple years that she was named “road runner of the year,” or any of the different titles that she held.  That, to me, is what seems to stand out as far as her running.

As far as her life and the way she lives her life, she still does laundry in a bucket (you can see this in the trailer) and that was totally unexpected. I had scheduled to be at the house to interview Catherine and some of the other athletes, and I showed up with the crew and there was Catherine sitting outside on a beautiful day, singing to herself and washing her clothes out of a bucket. This is a woman has been extremely successful – financially successful – and when I asked her about it, she still does her clothes like that back in Kenya.  This is what she knows.  And I just found her so unassuming, so humble and so approachable.

When you learn where she comes from, and you see where she lived – she was one of 10 siblings in this small house – and she thinks nothing of it. The misconception is that all Kenyans run.  Some parts of Kenya are more known for running.  Where Catherine comes from, and the tribe she comes from, the Kikuyu, for women, running was unheard of.  Not all girls went to school, and if a family could not afford to educate all their children, the girls would be left out and the boys would go to school first.  It wasn’t considered a big deal because girls were expected to raise families and not earn an income outside of the home. As Catherine says, girls did not run. After school, Catherine actually considered going back and repeating some of her school years so that she could continue to run.  She loved it and she did not know that there was such a thing as international professional running.  She knew about local running for the schools and about the provincial competitions.

Beyond that, she was running because she loved it, and that is where she got her nickname, “Crazy Catherine.” The women in her village would ask, “Why is she doing this?”  They did not understand. She was called “Crazy Catherine” because people said, “she has gone mad.”  When I learned about that and I learned that she was teased about many things as a child, I could relate because I was teased as a child. Catherine did not let the teasing define her – she did not let it affect her self esteem and she rose above it.

I am sure many, many runners have difficult childhoods and difficult backgrounds, and I am sure that other women out there are as equally inspiring, but Catherine touched me because of those things.  I am Jewish and I am not from a highly religious background, but seeing somebody live by their faith and have that much faith – and it is not a blind faith – is not something that I had been around.  I found it extremely – and I still find it extremely – endearing and amazing that she has remained so down to earth and so humble in light of what she has done.  She believes that God has given her this gift and it is her responsibility to use it and to give back to others and I find that really honorable.

ER: What was Catherine’s initial response when you approached her about making the documentary?

SW: I first contacted Lisa before I approached Catherine. Lisa is Catherine’s manager and I had to treat this as a business.  Even though Lisa is my sister, her first responsibility is to Catherine.  So I brought it to Lisa and Lisa brought it to Catherine.  I cannot tell you what her first reaction was, but I can tell you that it came back to me fairly quickly that she was open to it. I would assume that a lot of that has to do with the level of trust that she has with me being Lisa’s sister.  She knew that I would treat this project with the utmost respect and professionalism, and because of the comfort level that she has with me, it has allowed her to open up in a way that people have never seen in public.  People have never seen the side of Catherine that the film is going to show.

I was actually just reviewing my footage because somebody was looking for a quote and I wanted to see what I had, and not having gone through some of this footage in some time, I went back to my most extensive interview with Catherine in Kenya, and just listening to it, I was getting chills.  This is a woman who is so passionate about running and about what she does, and also just so practical about it.  She doesn’t get injured much because she is so practical about it. She has patience and experience.

ER: When you say “practical” are you referring to her overall approach to training?  She seems to be someone who knows when to pull it back, when to push and when to take time off.

SW: Exactly.  She is very open about that – she advises other people to listen to their bodies, and she doesn’t stress over if she has to change her schedule for whatever reason it is.  She will adjust it.  If her body says she should not be doing a long run today, she will listen to her body. She has never pulled out of a race.  She has run with an injury. But she doesn’t publicize that.  She got injured during London last year; she got a very big blister during the race (somewhere between 15K and 25K) and she just pulled it back and still ran. There were other runners gauging their pace around her pace, and they probably would have had a better time if they had just gone on their own because they didn’t know she had a huge blister on her toe.  But they were waiting for her to make her big move, and she didn’t, she couldn’t.  But she still finished the race, and she still came in 7^th!

ER: When you listen to her post-race interviews and people ask her if she was disappointed in her race, she is always gracious and optimistic.  You never hear her making excuses, and she always congratulates the winners.  That seems to go back to your point about her incredible humility.

SW: You never hear her say she is disappointed. She doesn’t get disappointed because she truly, truly believes that whatever happens, that was God’s plan for the day. She is genuinely happy for whoever wins.  Catherine generally does not get nervous.  Now that is not to say that other people around her do not;  this is why I film them – Lisa, her coah, Mostafa and her husband Anthony – they embody all of the nerves.  They carry the nerves; they carry that for her.  From the runners that I have interviewed, many of them say that the number one thing for them is their support system.  If they have the proper support, it leaves their mind free to focus on their running and that is what helps to make them successful.  Catherine’s husband is a huge, huge part of her success.

ER: I remember reading articles about Catherine – back in the late 1990s – and there were a lot of reporters who talked about how supportive her husband Anthony was of her running career.  But at the time, their relationship was viewed as somewhat unconventional in that regard. Has their relationship been influential to other women to leave the house and run on the professional circuit, and has it had an impact on the broader culture?

SW: Absolutely.  Catherine has influenced Kenyans in many ways.  She is an influence to young girls to get out there and to run, to follow their dreams, to have careers.  Catherine and Anthony were definitely seen as role models for a modern couple, and there are many women who now have the ability, and are no longer frowned upon, to let their husbands know that this is what they want to do, and hopefully their spouse supports that. Women have the choice now and it is not frowned upon as much.  There are still going to be traditionalists any place you go who take change a lot harder.  But Catherine and Anthony have been tremendous role models, and there are now women with families who go out and train in other countries and their husbands are fully supportive of them.  Still, it is very hard for the women to leave their families.

ER: Female distance runners, in general, seem to be having a profound impact on Kenya’s culture and on transforming its conventional gender roles.  The fundraising trailer touches upon some of these gender issues. Along with Catherine, Lornah Kiplagat and Tegla Loroupe have been instrumental in creating opportunities for other women. Has this creation of opportunities for women expanded beyond the athletics arena into other facets of the culture?

SW: The girls – the children – they look up to these athletes.  There are still many areas in Kenya that are remote and that do not have power.  The school where Catherine grew up still does not have electricity; the kids in these schools are not learning about these athletes from television. They are learning via word of mouth, and when Catherine comes back, all of the children know about her and about what she has done, and they feel inspired by her; they look up to her.  When she came back to her primary school, the school organized this whole thing that we were not even aware that they were going to do, and parents showed up – on a Saturday!  They wanted to see Catherine. The women would come up to her and you could see the admiration.  So much has changed for these women, and Tegla and Lornah have done so much. We visited Lornah’s High Altitude Training Center.  Even the men now, it seems, accept that this is the way it is now and this is the way it is going to be. It really takes a lot in a country that does not have the communication and infrastructure that we have to change certain things; it takes a long time for these things to change because it is more at a grassroots level and word of mouth.

We went into the slums with the crew.  I wanted to see if the children there knew about Catherine because I thought everybody knew about Catherine.  But they didn’t know the runners.  They do not have that contact.  From the few people that have televisions, the kids there know about soccer.  So as widely known as she is in Kenya, there are still areas where people do not know who she is.

ER: In one of your early blog posts, you mention a specific moment when the importance of Catherine’s story really struck you – it was during a conference where many prominent women had gathered together to celebrate the opportunities that title IX has given to female athletes in the U.S. Does Catherine see herself as a pioneer for women’s running in Kenya? Does she understand how inspirational she has been to the next generation of runners?

SW: Yes. She embraces it, and she mentors others.  Another girl that trains with Catherine in Pennsylvania had heard about Catherine when she was still in school, and she had an opportunity to meet with Catherine. Catherine inspired her, and I cannot remember the exact words, but Catherine told her to train hard and work hard – she would help her.  And this girl, Jane, she did. She came to Catherine later and Catherine got her hooked up with Lisa. Lisa brought her to the US and Catherine took her under her wing and mentored her.  I have seen the transformation in Jane (she is in the trailer) over the past year.  She was directly influenced by Catherine and really, really mentored. I have interviewed Jane several times now and there is a difference between the shy little girl who is featured on the trailer and the later footage I have of her in Kenya; it is amazing.  She is more poised, more refined.  She is less shy than she was when she first got here.  I could see the transformation in Jane just from being around Catherine.  She emulates Catherine in her training and off the track.  So Catherine does embrace it.

ER: In May 2009, you interviewed some up and coming female runners in Kenya to hear how things have changed for female runners.  You also interviewed some prominent male athletes to get their opinions.  Can you recall what some of their insights were in terms of how Catherine – and Lornah and Tegla – have impacted them and maybe even changed their path?

SW: You are referring to when we were up in Eldoret at a track meet, and Athletics Kenya was there.   A lot of recruiters turn up to recruit runners for the prisons and the police force. What came across is that girls now feel that running is a stepping stone to other things – to earn money, make a better life for themselves and their families. Some of the girls that we spoke to were running so that they could get scholarships to come to the US and get an education and go to college.  They are realizing that running now has a purpose beyond fitness in school.  It can be a way to a better life and they do not have to be dependent upon men – and I am not saying that in derogatory way at all.  The girls realize now that they can be independent, and that they can make independent choices in their lives.  Seeing female role models like Catherine, Tegla and Lornah has allowed them to believe that they can do that. A lot of the girls are not running to become professional runners, but to get an education and do other things.  That they have that ability – that they can use their talent to get an education – is just incredible.

Lornah mentors girls and she sends them overseas to schools.  She sent one girl to Columbia who I met in NYC at the 2008 marathon.  It’s really awesome and incredible to see these girls get an education because of a talent that they can cultivate.  It’s great that they are allowed to do it now – and that the option is there for them.

ER: Catherine has a daughter, Jane, and it seems like many professional runners balance motherhood and professional running.  How does Catherine, especially with dividing her time between Kenya and the US, achieve this balance as a mother and a professional, and has she been a role model to other runners in this regard?

SW: That’s a very, very difficult subject for Catherine because she definitely knows that to achieve something great comes great sacrifice. She was away a lot when Jane was younger.  She had to sacrifice a lot of time, and it was very difficult.  When I was going through some of the footage, it was heartbreaking when Catherine would talk about how she could not be there for Jane and how she would talk to her on the phone. She always had a picture of Jane with her and she would look at it all the time, In the film you’ll see Catherine recount a very poignant story that really drives home how difficult it was for both her and Jane.

There are many women who do it.  I have interviewed a lot of elite athletes who have children and they don’t have to leave their children as long or as far, and for the women that do it, it is a great sacrifice.  Catherine has not had another baby because that was such a hard thing to do. And she loves children, and children are just drawn to her.  When you see children around her, it is just amazing.  I know that being away from Jane is the biggest sacrifice that she has had to make.

ER: You even mention that in one of your interactions with Jane, it is pretty clear that she dislikes running.  You wondered if it has something to do with the fact that running has taken her mother away from her.

SW: It is tremendous sacrifice. I asked Catherine about this on camera and it is very difficult.  As a parent and as a mother.  I guess we all second-guess ourselves, but Catherine realizes that sacrifice is needed for greatness. She is a wonderful mother, and she loves Jane. There is no animosity there, but you can definitely sense when you talk to Jane about running that it is a topic that she could care less about discussing.  She runs when she has to in school. But there is also a big burden on her because people expect her to be really fast.  I am sure it is difficult for her, too, because she doesn’t love it and she is forced to do it because it is part of the curriculum and she feels like she has something to live up to.

ER: How does Catherine split her time between Kenya and the USA?

It depends on the year. She just arrived last week to prepare for Boston.  She would have arrived earlier if she had scheduled a warm up race in the US.  It depends on what her work commitments are. Sometimes she has to go back to Kenya in May for the prison championships because she is still an employee of the prisons, and there are other commitments that she has as part of their team. It depends. I would say she is here 3-5 months depending on what her race schedule is.  When she goes back depends on her fall marathon.  Last year, she ran Yokohama in November so she was here kind of late.  It depends on the weather, too.  I posted a picture for Catherine’s husband Anthony of a snowstorm that we had (30 inches of snow) and Lisa said not to let Catherine see that – she might never come back!  She is usually here for her birthday in July and Anthony’s birthday, but they work it out.

They are very busy as a couple.  Anthony works and he goes to school at night – he cannot make it this year for Boston because he has final exams and it is heartbreaking because it is the first marathon that he is going to miss. But they make it work.

ER: Catherine, Edith Masai and Margaret Okayo are all professional runners employed by the prison system (as well as Catherine’s sister, Anastasia).  How does that relationship work?  What kinds of commitments does Catherine have a result of her employment?

SW: It’s a very, very big commitment.  When we were there filming last year, we met with Catherine’s sister, Anastasia, who also runs (she is one of Lisa’s runners).  She had been off for a couple of years because she had a baby and then she was hired by the prison system.  When you are hired by the prison, you have to go to training college and that can last anywhere from six to nine months. During that time, you do not see your family or your children.  When Catherine was training overseas when Jane was young, her sister Anastasia took care of Jane a lot of the time.

One time when Catherine came back,  Jane was really young, and did not recognize her.  You can just imagine the pain that that causes. I saw that first hand because during the prison championships last year when Anastasia was competing.  Anastasia’s daughter had been living at Catherine’s house, and Catherine arranged to surprise Anastasia. When I was interviewing Anastasia, Catherine came up and planted her daughter Ruth at Anastasia’s side and when Anastasia saw her she was so overcome with emotion, but she was not allowed to cry; it is one of the things they teach in training.  Ruth didn’t know her, and it was so heartbreaking to watch this interaction – Ruth didn’t know who her mom was, and it was so reminiscent of what Catherine told me about Jane, but it was reversed this time because Ruth has been living at Catherine’s house.

So the prison training is a huge training system – it is like boot camp or military training.  Employees are committed to their post after they graduate, and right now Anastasia is posted about two hours away.  Ruth still stays with Catherine during the week so that she can go to nursery school and then she sees her mom on the weekends. Athletes are committed to their post and to a certain location, and they are also permitted to do their training.  Their training is a very big deal because there is quite a competitive nature among the prison, the police and the armed forces.  They cultivate this talent and then the athletes who are good enough to become international elite athletes are allowed to pursue their careers, but they still have a responsibility to their posts and they still have commitments that they have to make. Some of them are appearances or ambassadorships. In the off-season, they work at their posts.

ER: Catherine organizes a successful half-marathon in Kenya to help up and coming runners get noticed, she and Anthony now sponsor a soccer tournament to help young children use their talents in sports instead of ending up on the streets or in street gangs, she frequently provides help to people in her community who need it. Is a lot of this part of what you were talking about – how Catherine feels she has a responsibility to her community and to her faith?

SW: She is in a position to be able to give back; therefore, she feels the responsibility.  She does not feel that anyone puts that responsibility on her, but because of her commitment to God and her role in the community, she is in a position to help people and she wants to help people. Part of it is also the culture – you just don’t show up empty handed if you can help others.  She is extremely generous in that way.  She shows up with bags of groceries and flour for her family members.  She helps financially. I don’t think she would even think twice about doing it.  She is committed to God and God has given her this gift and it is her responsibility to use it.  She wants to make a better life for her family because she was blessed with this talent.  It is her way of giving back. When she says she feels that she was given this talent – she doesn’t preach to people.  I mean, I’m Jewish and she has never preached to me.  Not once.  Her way of spreading God’s word is by giving back and helping people, not by preaching to people about what they should believe in.

ER: It sounds like her faith ultimately means everything to her, and that there was an attraction on your end to her faith.

SW: It’s not my attraction to her faith, it’s her commitment to her faith that grabbed me.  She is so committed to believing something so strongly and to living her life by something that she believes in so strongly.  That is the essence of Catherine.  That level of commitment to belief that you let it guide your life in such a positive way is beyond words. When you witness her faith in the film, it’s real. This is a woman who lives her life in a way that what you see is what you get. She doesn’t quote scripture to sound pious; she quotes it because those are the words that she lives by – words that go through her head when she is running.  I find it really admirable.  I am not saying that Catherine is a saint or that she is perfect.  Catherine is human – she gets angry and she has emotion, but she does not deviate from her faith and living the way that she believes.

ER: What will people be most surprised to learn about Catherine that you have been able to capture in the film?

SW: That Catherine is human.  When you see her on camera, she looks regal. I filmed her after she ran the NYC Marathon and she still looked like she was ready to go to a ball because her hair is always braided beautifully and her features are so beautiful.  She is always well composed.  But what I think people will be most surprised about is that she is so human and she can laugh like a little girl, and when she gets together with her girlfriends and you see her talking about her nails and her hair, she is human.  She is a girl. She is fun. She is funny.  When she relaxes and is comfortable and lets her guard down, I think that is what will surprise people.

When people see Catherine, they see the professional side, but nobody has captured her behind the scenes.  No journalist has ever filmed Catherine in the way we have.  We have filmed live, real-time training.  That is a level of comfort that makes this film so different.  I think people are really going to be intrigued to see the real Catherine. When we filmed her, she didn’t always know if the camera was still rolling or not.  We captured something so genuine, and I really believe it will inspire runners.  To learn that Catherine is human and that she can laugh and cry will touch people – just to see how real she is.

When we took her back to her birth home, there was a lot of emotion.  She was teased growing up and she overcame it, but that doesn’t mean that it didn’t hurt her.  It hurt her that her dad was poor and she was teased about that.  When we went back to her school with her, you can still see a lot of the hurt from the feelings that she had being teased growing up.  She is incredible and amazing, but she is human.  She doesn’t have any airs about her and she is happy to talk to anybody. She is so approachable and down to earth.

ER: It has been great to get your perspective because you are so behind the scenes. In 2008, the L.A. Times named Catherine the number one female marathon runner of all time.  While people in the running community will always debate who is the number one female runner of all time, what, in your view, makes Catherine number one?

SW: I honestly am not qualified to say that, but the person that I feel can make the most compelling argument has witnesses a lot of Catherine’s career and has written a lot about sports.  Phil Hersh, who I interviewed in Chicago, is the one who wrote that 2008 article.  During our interview, he lays it out point by point. His argument is very compelling for why she is number one and should be number one.  It comes down to the consistency.  It is not only coming in first place and running the races that you think you can finish on top.  It is the consistency over the course of her career.  She is the only woman to win Boston four times.  It comes down to the consistency and the shape that she has kept herself in.  Not getting injured is not an accident.  She listens to her body. She trains accordingly and she is the most determined person I have ever met.  So Hersh really lays it out and he is more qualified than me.

I am not a runner and because I am not a runner, I have not followed it for years and years. There are professionals out there and other writers who have followed this sport for many years and they are more qualified than me to say.  When I say she is the greatest the distance runner, I am quoting others.  There are so many amazing women out there. And I love seeing the camaraderie between Catherine and all the runners.  All of the runners respect her and I have done a lot of research and I have never heard a bad word about her anywhere.  That’s another thing – you’ve never seen a bad thing written about her. Even when we were in NY and we were shopping in Niketown, Benita Johnson came up to her and gave her a big hug and they were actually excited to see each other and talk.  They genuinely all like each other and that is really cool to see in a competitive sport, especially in an individual sport.  It really says something about someone’s character when you cannot find one derogatory thing about her.

ER: Catherine will be 38 this July, and 40 by the time the 2012 Olympics come around.  Has she publicly committed to chasing one more Olympic medal?  Has there been any talk of retirement?

SW: There is no talk of retirement.  There have been articles all over about 2012.  There have been articles written that Catherine “covets” gold, but, first of all, that is not a word that exists in her vocabulary.  She doesn’t covet anything.  Catherine will run 2012 as long as her body allows her. She has no plans to retire as long as her body allows her.  I am sure she is thinking about 2012 and she plans to run 2012, but only as long as her body allows her.  She can only do what she can do.  There are certain things that you cannot control, and she will not be disappointed in her career if she does not have a gold medal.  I know it’s frustrating to read some of the articles printed, but maybe it’s not frustrating for Catherine because she does not read the Internet or the articles written about her, but you read a lot of stuff about how she “covets” gold and she has to go for the gold, but that is not Catherine.

ER: You shot your first day on July 21, 2008.  It has been almost two years since you started this project.  It is clear that there have been many, many highlights to this project, but have there been any disappointments?

SW: The only disappointment so far is that it is taking longer to raise the money than I ever thought it would.  That has been very difficult.  I know times are tough and that things are hard.  I thought that there would be a greater response from certain areas that I have targeted.  It is a great advertising opportunity to be listed on the site, to be listed on the credits and to be associated with the film. Catherine’s athletic accomplishments have been well documented, but the film really goes deeper into women’s empowerment, education, and sports.  It goes beyond what the sport is and it shows what it does for girls and their self-esteem.  The film looks at faith – faith is so important to Catherine.  It’s not just a film for runners about running.  There is plenty of running in it, but it really should appeal to a wide audience, and that is what I am hoping for.  I hope the film can be used for educational purposes.  It is nice for children to be able to see that other people have been teased and they can put it aside.  It is inspiring for children to see that others overcome difficult situations and become successful.  That has been my only disappointment – the money has taken longer to raise.

ER: How much money do you need to raise?

SW: The total budget of the film is $560,000. We have shot a lot of film so far so some of that has already been spent.  But that number also includes getting out to festivals and advertising.  Just to get the film completed and to get it out there right now is around $300,000.  A lot of that is because archival footage of Catherine running in years past is very expensive.  This is not a backyard production.  I have put together a really good team of people; everything is top notch from the cinematographer to the editor. It will be taken seriously and it will do justice by Catherine and her husband.

ER: The running community can you support you in your efforts to complete this documentary with tax-deductible donations.  Where can people go to make a donation?

You can go right to the website and click on “donate.”  You can become an individual sponsor and make a tax-deductible donation by check or credit card, or, if you do not need the tax-write-off, you can donate directly via paypal.  We have corporate sponsorships available and people can get in touch with us about that level of sponsorship. Depending on the amount, a company can get listed on our website and in the film credits.  Depending on the level of sponsorship – and this is why I am looking for some major sponsors – a company can be listed as presenting the film in the opening credits, and have their brand on all of our marketing materials and screenings.  We have a whole list with tiers of support where people or companies can donate.  It is a really cost-effective way to advertise.

There are so many different ways that people can help.  What we really need is for people to donate in any way that they can.  If you figure the number of people we can reach from the Internet, even a small donation can become a huge deal when it reaches thousands of people.  We do offer incentives that are listed on our website – you can be invited to screenings, after parties.  There are various incentives there.  Hopefully people will feel compelled to help out and give whatever they can.  And I say that completely understanding that times are tough right now.

ER: When the funds come through, when do you plan to showcase the documentary?

SW: Everything depends on the funding.  I would like to have it completed by next Spring and the plan is to enter it into festivals and then, hopefully, get it into theaters and then we want to go overseas.   We will also eventually go to DVD.

Moody finished 2009 with another PR in the Chicago Marathon, 2:32:59 (9th overall and 3rd American woman). She entered 2010 blazing through the USA Half-Marathon Championships to finish 6th in 1:12:52 (PR).  This past Sunday – in spite of a nagging injury – she returned to her hometown turf and won the Bank of America Shamrock Shuffle 8K.

Moody has accomplished all of this while enduring many sleepless nights.  Struggling with insomnia since the sixth grade, she has had to learn how to churn out 100-mile weeks and recover without the 10+ hours of sleep that most professional runners enjoy. Now working with coach Brad Hudson, she has her sights set on a fall marathon and on breaking 2:30.

Moody was a two time state champion in the mile and a top finisher in the Illinois cross-country championships all four years of high school (placing 6th, 4th, 2nd and 12th). She graduated from the University of Colorado where she was a scoring member of the 2000 Colorado NCAA cross-country team. Moody currently resides in Colorado where she trains and works in Real Estate.

Eliterunning: First of all, congratulations on winning the Bank of American Shamrock Shuffle 8K, and on setting a PR at the USA Half Marathon Championships in Houston (1:12:52).  You’ve started the 2010 season running really well.  What are your goals for this year?  Do you plan on running a fall marathon?

Tera Moody: I was happy to PR at Houston. I thought I was ready for a bigger improvement but a PR is a PR.  I definitely plan on a fall marathon.

ER: You mentioned after Shamrock that you actually went into the race battling an injury. What kind of injury are you dealing with and how soon do you expect to be back to full training?

TM: My plantar on my right foot has been bothering me since November. I thought I had it under control and was training through it while getting treatment. It flared up when I tried to run cross-country in February. But I made some changes in my shoes and it seemed to take care of it. I was able to train quite a bit and started feeling really good a few weeks ago. Then I got some pain on my left side near my Achilles. My tendon is fine but there is fluid around it and it’s painful to run on. I cross-trained for a week and wore a boot when I wasn’t working out. I had to pull out of the 15k in Jacksonville and I opted out of a spring marathon. So I really hoped to be able to pull off the shamrock shuffle. I love racing in Chicago and this race really means a lot to me. It was painful but I’m thrilled with the result and I just tried to appreciate every moment since I know I won’t get to race for a while. I’m taking time off and not even cross-training right now. I think my body is telling me it needs a break and I’m going to listen. My IT band is even sore from wearing the boot so I’m just trying to completely rest. It’s hard but I know I’ll be back. The plan is to start running when I have no pain and I’m currently looking into some other treatment options.

ER: When you are injury-free what does a typical week of marathon training under coach Hudson look like? How many miles and what kinds of workouts do you run?

TM: I don’t do a lot of really intense interval workouts. Those tend to tire me out so we try and be careful with that. I do a long run almost every week and usually longer intervals or marathon pace work.  Brad lets me have a say in my training, which I really like. I feel like I know my body really well and have a good grasp on what works and what doesn’t work. Also, with my sleep issues I have to be able to change things up if necessary. But he also isn’t afraid to say if a workout is non-negotiable and I think that’s important. There was a workout leading up to Berlin I never thought I could run. I told him that and asked if we could modify it and he said no we really needed it. I ended up nailing the workout and it really helped my confidence. I don’t usually have a set mileage but he might give me a number not to go over. For the marathon I like to hit at least a few weeks in a row of at least 100 miles.

ER: Do you do any kind of cross-training to supplement your running?

TM: I try and do yoga but during marathon training I don’t always get it in. I also do core work. I don’t do any cardio cross-training, but I did during the couple of weeks before the Shamrock Shuffle. And then it was only because I couldn’t run.

ER: In the September 2009 issue of Runner’s World Magazine, Robert Powell wrote a great in-depth feature on you appropriately titled “Tera Moody Can’t Sleep.”  You’ve struggled with insomnia since 6th grade, and you have worked with several doctors to help you cope with it.  How have you been sleeping lately?

TM: During the couple of weeks I was injured and not knowing if I was going to be able to run or not I wasn’t sleeping great but it really wasn’t bad. Leading up to Houston I was really surprised with how well my workouts were going because it was a really bad patch of insomnia. I had a lot going on with work and that was a big factor. Since then it’s been pretty much under control.

ER: How much does your inability to sleep impact your training and recovery?  Most elites sleep 10-12 or more hours just to recover every day.  Have you and coach Hudson changed anything in your training in order to compensate for your lack of sleep?

TM: I think that’s a big reason why taking my easy days really easy works well for me. Also, If I am going to double I like to get it done by 2:00 in the afternoon so it doesn’t affect my sleep. If I run too late it messes with my body clock. I also have to have some flexibility with my schedule. If I have a couple bad nights in a row I may change workout days around. Or if I have a night where I get 9 hours of sleep or something I might even move a workout up because I will feel so good. Brad will ask me a lot how I’ve been sleeping so he knows and then he can factor that into the workouts.

ER: In spite of your insomnia, you have really excelled since 2008. After you qualified for the Olympic Trials (in Chicago’s record-hot 2007 Marathon), you started working with Art Siemers and you bumped your mileage from 85/week to 100/week. At the trials, you finished 74 seconds out of an Olympic spot and you PR’d by almost 13 minutes. At any point during the race, did you feel anxious or concerned that you were in over your head, or did you know you had that kind of a breakthrough race was in your legs?

TM: My goal going into the race was to place in the top 15 and break 2:35. We thought after I ran 1:13 in the half that would be a reasonable goal. I had been training to run that pace so I didn’t really feel in over my head. I didn’t go with the leaders and I just sort of picked people off as I went along. I was really in the zone and everything felt smooth until the last mile. I couldn’t believe how much easier that felt than running in the Chicago heat wave.

ER: Then in the 2009 Chicago Marathon, you set another PR – dipping under 2:33 to run 2:32:59. Coach Hudson has said that he believes you can run 2:25-2:26.  Is your initial goal to get under 2:30 and then take it from there? In other words, have you even scratched the surface of your full potential?

TM: It’s so hard to say with the marathon. Right now my goal is to break 2:30 and I’ll just try and go from there. I think I could have run a little faster in Chicago if I hadn’t run in Berlin seven weeks earlier. Chicago started to hurt a lot earlier than marathons usually do. But I am really glad I decided to go with my gut and run it. A lot of people said I was crazy to try and come back but it ended up being a great experience.

ER: Some people were surprised when you switched coaches from Art Siemers to Brad Hudson.  What prompted this change, and how has it impacted your training?

TM: It bothered me that people were saying I thought I was some hot shot after my trials race and needed a better coach. That was not the case at all. Art did a great job coaching me but we agreed the week before the trials that I would get a new coach after the race. It was a mutual decision. I think people are quick to criticize when they don’t know the situation.

ER: It was recently announced that the 2012 U.S. Olympic Men’s and Women’s Marathon Trials will both take place in Houston.  What do you think about this?  Do you like the idea of having the Trials in the same place and on the same day?

TM: I am really excited about running in Houston. I have done the half marathon there twice and it has been a great experience both times. I’m not sure how I feel about having them both on the same day.

ER: Switching topics quite a bit.  You have been open about your struggle with an eating disorder your freshman year at Colorado, and it’s no secret that many runners – male and female – struggle with eating disorders.  What advice would you give to other runners currently struggling with an eating disorder, and how serious of a problem do you think it is?

TM: I think there is way too much emphasis put on weight in our sport. I really believe there is such a thing as being too lean. I feel and run a lot better when I’m fueling my body properly. I haven’t weighed myself in 9 years and I definitely recommend that to other women who struggle with body image or eating disorders. My definition of fit is working hard, running great workouts and eating right. It has nothing to do with a number on the scale or the way I look.

ER: Given your tough experience in college, what inspired you to continue running and to eventually turn pro?

TM: College was pretty rough but my passion for running never left. I have always run and raced even when I was clocking 19 min for the 5k.  But I knew I needed a major change. I thought I would do an Ironman eventually and figured I should start with a marathon. It was really fun to change gears and train for something so different. My goal was to break 3 hours and I ran 2:50.  Someone told me about the Olympic trials standard and I thought if I actually trained a little bit better I could get it.  But I came back the next year and had a really bad day. I ran 2:52. After that I decided I would go after my weakest PR, which was my road 10k at 37:30. I was running a lot with Amy Manson and she gave me advice and helped me structure my workouts. I ran the shamrock shuffle 8k that year and was really surprised to win.  It’s not a crazy competitive race but my time was decent (27:07 and an almost 3 minute PR). It was a breakthrough moment for me when I thought…hey I can do this. I also think I was able to really appreciate the better races I was having because I had struggled for so long.

ER: Speaking of inspirational moments, in the RW article, the author describes you running 7:30 pace on the treadmill while reading.  He indicates that this raises several eyebrows at the gym.  How on earth do you do that, and what kind of reading do you get done? (Note to readers: when you run a marathon at 5:50 pace, 7:30 pace is that easy!)

TM: It’s funny because some people actually can’t believe I run that “slow.” I love the treadmill.  I feel like I can run forever on one and a lot of times I’ll actually have to talk myself into stopping.  I think it’s great for recovery because it’s a little softer surface and I love that I can run super early in the morning and not worry about the weather. I also really enjoy reading while I run. I get a lot of weird looks. Usually I read magazines or books that I hold open with office clips. I’ll even read the paper. It took me awhile to get the page flip down but now I don’t even think about it.

ER: The debate about the treadmill vs. road will always exist, but I wanted to know if you feel there is a strong difference between the two?  Do you do anything different on the treadmill to simulate road running?

TM: I think there is a big difference in running on a treadmill vs. running on the road. I find it a lot easier and that’s one of the reasons I like it for recovery. I guess you are supposed to put it on a 2% incline to make it similar to running outside. But when I did that my knee felt funny so I leave it flat. I’m already at altitude so I figure I don’t need to make it any harder.

When I use the treadmill for workouts it’s a huge confidence boost because I can go faster than I can outside. At altitude I give myself 5-10 seconds per mile adjustment in pace during outdoor workouts but inside I’ll try and hit my sea level paces.

ER: Overall, how would you describe your training philosophy?  Who or what has helped you shape that philosophy?

TM: My training philosophy is to take easy days easy. I don’t double a lot so most days are fairly long but the effort is very controlled. I try to listen to my body instead of the watch, and I leave something in the bank in my workouts so I’m not super tired when I get to the race.

ER: How did you get into running?  Were you always a good athlete growing up?  Did anyone inspire you to give it a shot?

TM: I have always looked up to my older brother Ryan. He ran XC and track in junior high and I wanted to be like him. My mom didn’t know if I would be able to handle it and I wanted to show her that I could.

ER: Who has inspired you the most in life?

TM: I have a really amazing family and they are a constant source of inspiration. Nick Sterner also inspires me. He started the AIR foundation to help those struggling with addiction by training them for endurance events. I hope I can help this organization come to Colorado Springs someday. They currently have locations in Denver and Ft Collins.  [Editor's Note: Learn more about Tera's inspiring involvement with the Air Foundation here]

ER: Looking back over the past few years, have you been surprised by your success, or did you always feel that kind of potential brewing inside of you?

TM: If you would have told me five years ago that I would be running 2:32 I would have laughed.
I lost a ton of confidence in college and it has taken a long time to come back. I was looking through some old papers a few weeks ago and found my old resume when my biggest running goal was to qualify for the Olympic trials. It was a good reminder that I’ve come a long way.

Quickfire questions with Tera Moody
My favorite book is: Great Expectations
My favorite song is: don’t have a favorite song but I love Tom Petty, Wilco and the Counting Crows
My favorite meal is: roast beef sandwich from Potbelly’s in Chicago
I indulge in: candy and red wine
The word that best describes me is: determined
My favorite workout is: treadmill long run
My pre-race ritual is: normal stuff…warm up, strides
The one thing that people would be surprised to find out about me is: I collect antique aprons
My life philosophy is: don’t set limits
When I was a kid, I wanted to be: a Zoologist
My worst injury was: right now.  I’ve never had a stress fracture or anything
My worst running moment was: not running a fast enough time to make the team to go to conference my senior year of college. Yes, it was that bad
My greatest running moment was: finishing 5th at the Olympic Trials
My number one running goal is: to make the Olympic team in the marathon

Julia Lucas, 25, is on a mission to put her injuries behind her and race to the top. Lucas made a name for herself at North Carolina State where she excelled as both a cross-country runner and 5000m speed demon; she was an Atlantic Coast Conference XC champion and she placed 5th in the 2006 NCAA XC Champs. She won two conference titles in the 5000m and placed 4th in the 2007 NCAA 5000m. Lucas left NC State with a 15:50 5K PR and a degree in linguistics.

Lucas quickly made a splash as a professional runner, demolishing her 5K PR, running 15:33.05, and qualifying for the 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials.  She joined Team Running USA (now Mammoth Track Club), worked with famed coach Terrence Mahon and met her eventual husband, 5000m Olympian Ian Dobson.

But things didn’t shake out quite as well as Lucas had hoped.  Her Olympic dreams ended with an injury and she needed a break from running.  In 2009, she and Dobson left Team Running USA, took an extended vacation from running, and moved to Oregon. While Adidas decided not to renew Dobson’s contract, and Reebok dropped Lucas, both enter 2010 with a renewed energy and passion for running.  They recently moved from Portland to Eugene and joined the Oregon Track Club.

Lucas is ready to spin her legs toward a sub 15:00 5K and chase her Olympic goals. Lucas and Dobson blog about their lives as professional runners at http://ianandjulia.com/. If you haven’t bookmarked this page then you’re missing out on some great training advice.  Lucas is tremendously witty, funny, serious and insightful.  In this in-depth interview, Lucas talks about training, injuries, married life, body image, barefoot running and much more. We can’t wait to catch up with her later this season!

EliteRunning: Eight months after leaving Team USA (Mammoth Track Club), you and your husband, Ian Dobson, recently announced that you are joining the Oregon Track Club.  You and Ian have both written about self-coaching.  While Ian seemed to trust “Coach Ian,” you had a harder time trusting yourself as coach.  Did this factor into your decision to join the OTC?

Julia Lucas: Enormously. I’m an over-thinker. It doesn’t matter how well I plan workouts, I will always second- and third- and fourth-guess myself. I’ll finish a good workout and think, “maybe I did that too fast, no, too slow.  Maybe I should do more. Maybe I should take tomorrow off.” It’s very irritating. Really, though, it makes sense; why would I trust myself as a coach? I’m not a coach. I have no credentials.

So, in coming to Eugene there were three factors:  Being a part of a team, being a part of a community, and having a great coach.

The first two were easy.  In a team I need a group of fast people with a good vibe. I knew in two minutes they were a good group of people. And the community, well, this is Track Town, USA. The coach was the toughest.

We drove down from Portland, where we were living, to Eugene in January to meet the OTC coach, Mark Rowland, and basically express our real interest.  On our way down we talked about what we wanted in a coach. Ian wanted someone with a good resume, someone who knew how to coach us technically. We knew he fit the bill there. He was the steeplechase bronze medalist in the 1988 Olympics and he has coached lots of world class athletes. He knows what he’s doing.

My requirements weere a little less explicit. I wanted someone with grit. Someone who would yell at me when I needed it. Someone who wouldn’t coach me like a girl.  I wanted someone who was a straight-shooter. Someone who doesn’t play mind games. I wanted someone authoritative, someone I wanted to impress, someone I was maybe just the tiniest bit afraid of. And, someone who would give me a loose rein.

So, we met in the Bowerman building on the University of Oregon campus. He was a tall, hard faced brit in a sweatsuit. He had a good handshake. He sat us down in the stairwell, spoke gruff and fast, simply and without pretension. Half an hour later we were sold. In the end, it was all about feel.

ER:  Will your current training plan shift much with this change?

JL: Well, yes, in that I haven’t had much of a plan lately. I took 6 months off beginning in April last year. It was my first break longer than two weeks in the past seven years, and it was sorely needed. Everything hurt. I was just pathetic, a mess. And, while it took me way too long to realize what I needed to do, I eventually took the time off. And, during those 6 months a lot of things healed that needed to heal, but I also got really, really, sadly, pathetically out of shape. Like, I became skinny-fat. You know the look, someone who’s thin but completely devoid of definition.

It’s really different, I learned, coming back from that kind of break than it is coming back from my typical 2-week break. It happened very slowly. So, until not long ago I was just waiting for my body and fitness to come along at their own rate. Now that I’ve caught up to myself, and I have a coach, it’s time to change gears.

ER: In addition to the OTC, you and Ian recently experienced a shake-up: you both lost your running contracts (Ian with Adidas and Julia with Reebok). Did this come as a surprise to you?

JL: No, it wasn’t a surprise. For Ian, we wouldn’t have been surprised either way, him having a bad year last year, and the economic climate being what it is. For me, it wasn’t a surprise at all. I would have dumped me too if I were I shoe company. I didn’t do a thing last year. I haven’t run well since May of 2008. This is a performance sport. That is why I’m so grateful to get a second shot here with the Oregon Track Club. Coach Rowland and the OTC are taking a chance on me, and I intend to make it up to them.

ER: Back to training. What does a typical week of training look like?  Are you back up to a full training load?

JL: Yes, I’m back to a full load. I run maybe 80 miles a week, typically in 2 runs a day and one day off. I’ve been at about that mileage for the past 5 years, so I anticipate taking a step up. I typically do 2 or 3 workouts and a long run a week. I do 3 days a week of lifting, with some light calisthenic or dynamic flexibility stuff on the other days. I’m just stepping into Mark’s program now, though, so I’m about to change around my specifics, but he has made it very clear that he wants our program to be in our hands, and for the transition to be gradual.

ER: You opened your season with a “rust buster” in the NYRR Emerald Nuts Midnight Run.  In your post-race recap, you felt that you had given away 2nd place. Looking back–and after not racing for almost a year–do you feel better about your performance?

JL: Oh, I didn’t run very well, but I really wasn’t too disappointed either. I knew I wasn’t in shape. When you’re training by yourself without any goals in the near future, it’s easy to get lazy, thinking you have all the time in the world. Having that race on the horizon during the holiday season helped us keep our noses to the grindstone. So, I knew I wasn’t going to run great. I wished I would have been a little tougher at the end, but, it was one of those races where I spent the day kicking myself, and then came back to training with a new resolve.

ER: A lot of people are really excited to see you healthy again.  When can we expect to see you racing this season?

JL: I’d love to tell you but I really don’t know yet!  Obviously a big goal is Track Nationals, and I’m sure I’ll do some road championships. Really, I’m excited to hand some of the responsibility over to Coach Rowland. Also, I’m looking more at the next 18 months than just the next 6. Because I took all that time off,  because we’re coming to a new coach and program and because I need to get faster to be a contender, I’ll be keeping next season in mind at least as much as this one.

ER: You’ve run 15:33 in the 5K. Is your primary goal to run sub 15:00 and look ahead toward making the US Olympic team in 2012?

JL: Running sub-15 is one of my goals, but it’s also very likely that I’ll have to run faster than that to make the Olympic team.  Really, I’ve got to get to a fitness level where I can not only run 15:00, but race 15:00, get on the track and really be able to fight the studs.

ER:  Where do you see your future in distance running?  Do you see yourself moving up in distance?

JL: I want to do what I’m best at. I get really excited watching the 1500 and I get really excited watching the marathon. I really don’t know.

ER: You have struggled with several injuries in the past 11 years and you candidly wrote that professional running is “not all sunshine and great legs.”  In your words, your biggest roadblock has been inconsistency and injuries. In September, you outlined 10 significant changes that you plan to make going forward, from thinking of yourself as an athlete to running on softer surfaces to ditching your watch every now and then.  How have those goals shaped your 2010 training season, and have you been successful following them?

JL: I’ve talking about being patient and taking things slow, but the truth is that that is not the sort of runner I am. I figure out what I want, and then I chase it down and beat it into submission. Now, I like that about myself, that I’m a go-getter, but I’ve got to learn to manage it better, and that’s mostly what my goals were about. Ian has taught me a lot in that regard, about allowing workouts and fitness and goals to come, instead of bullying them into being. So, the goals mostly stemmed from being a little more laid-back about running. And, yeah, I’m mostly sticking to them. It’s hard.  It doesn’t come naturally, cause I want to be good and I want it now. But, it just doesn’t work that way. I’m being like water, taking the middle path, embracing my inner hippy. Eugene’s a good place for all that.

ER:  Have you discovered the root of your injury problems?  Have they been biomechanical?  Training?  A combination of many factors

JL: Oh, there is never really a root. I’m not biomechanically perfect, but no one is. It’s not a problem if you’re smart about listening to your body. I wasn’t. I’m learning this time around to not always push through everything.

ER: The fact that Ian had put in 15 serious years of running, you had tallied 11, and you were both struggling with injuries eventually prompted you to take a real break this past Summer. You mentioned that you both needed a break where you “ceased to be runners.”  What did you mean by that, and how did you spend your down time?

JL: Well, that was a real transition period.  At that point I wasn’t sure if I was going to come back to competitive running. I was broken. I didn’t want to run. It didn’t make sense to me anymore. It wasn’t worth it. Ian wasn’t in such a bad place, but he wasn’t in a good place either. He hadn’t improved since college. He’d been with the Mammoth group four years and not PRed. We needed to make some changes but we didn’t know what to do. Normally, a break is a part of training. It’s written into the calender along with all the races and workouts. Breaks are an important part of training, and we viewed them as such. This was not a break that was written in on the calender. I did not X though the days until my first run back. I threw out the calender and took a step back and had no idea what I would be doing a month or a year from then. Again, Ian was not wavering in his running career but we both needed a change, and we didn’t know what to do.

So, in July we packed everything we owned in the back of our ‘87 4Runner. We spent the next 2 months counseling high school cross country camp, camping, running sometimes, sometime not. Then, at the end of August we drove the truck, and all our stuff, from Chula Vista, CA, 6 miles north of Mexico, all the way up the Pacific coast highway. We were sleeping on the beach, exploring Big Sur, winding all the way up to Oregon, our new home. It was a transformative sort of time. We spent a lot of time reshaping our plans, our ideals for the future, figuring out what we wanted. All those days in the car, those nights in the tent, we had a lot of time to think and to talk. For the first time in a long time we let ourselves take a step back, look at how we were doing things.  And, when we got to Portland we knew what we wanted.

We wanted to be all in. We would only be happy if we were all in. Not going though the motions, not giving it a good shot, but totally, absolutely all in.

ER:  Is there a particular moment over the past 8 months where you remember falling in love with running all over again?

JL: It didn’t work exactly like that.  It came back little by little, and not at all the way I expected it to. When I first discovered running, when I was 14, I was mostly in love with being good at it. I liked winning. Over time I learned to love running and training, but I primarily ran to race. I was very aggressively competitive. So, then, I went through this bad patch, when everything was wrong. My body, my life direction, my head, my heart, I was just wrong, and nothing was working. So, I took this step away from running and I hoped, but I did not know, that I’d come back to it. I did, but I was drawn back in a different way than when I discovered it in the first place. When I was counseling camp, when I was jogging along mountain trails with a bunch of wild kids,when I was running in dense winding trails in Oregon, and in dark night runs around the city, I just started to love running for running.  And then, after a few months of allowing running to come back to me that way, every once in a while I’d find myself thinking of some old race, and my adrenaline would start pumping. I’m still very competitive, and don’t mean to paint myself as some hippy running barefoot in the forest talking to the animals. I’ve just toned down the anger. It’s not a healthy or sustainable way to be.

ER:  It seems like you and Ian have been extremely supportive of each other through the ups and downs the past two years, but does it ever get hard being married to another professional runner?

JL: Before Ian, I had no interest in dating other runners.  I liked my training life and social life to have at least some degree of separation. But, well, I fell in love with him, and principles like that went out the window. I still believe in the segmentation of my day, though. When we’re not in training mode we typically don’t talk about running.

ER: Ian has mentioned the occasional tedium of living life as a professional runner.  How would describe your life as a professional runner to others?

JL: I can only tell you what it’s like for this professional runner. I spend about 30 hours a week running and supplementary things like stretching, lifting and massage. I work about 30 hours a week at various freelance writing and design projects. I sleep 8-10 hours a night. In short, I work very, very hard for maybe 30 minutes a day and rest very, very hard for about 20 hours.

ER:  Coming back from your break, you wrote about liking a softer, less toned version of yourself.  A lot of runners might be surprised to read that, especially given the concerns many have about weight and staying in shape (even while injured). Do you ever worry about your weight or about getting back into fighting shape?

JL: No, I don’t. It’s just not that important.  If we work hard, and treat our bodies well, and fuel them right, they will be strong and fit and shaped exactly as they should be. And, they’ll run their fastest.  Bodies, like everything, go in cycles and it’s not productive to look and weigh the same all the time, just as it’s not productive to try and be in the same kind of shape all the time.
Before college I had never considered that someone my size would want to be any smaller. But, it is a problem with every high level women’s college team in the country. Anyone who says it’s not is lying or just wrong.  So, in college it was a big source of stress with some of the people around me, and that stress would sort of rub off on me. I’d find myself eating more, or eating junkier food, just to kind of prove to them it was OK. I’d eat for them. After a few years of seeing girls I cared about being pulled into eating disorders I started to vilify the disease. I’d see it as my mission to beat girls on other teams who were losing too  much weight. It was a huge source of motivation. I saw it as a good versus evil battle. I could not let the anorexic girls win. And, when they did beat me, oh, it just tore me apart. Anyway, it’s less of an issue now. Those girls just aren’t running in a sustainable way, so they don’t last long. I don’t know any high-level post-collegiate runners who don’t eat like horses.

ER: You’ve had some experience with barefoot running. Do you consider yourself a minimalist, or do you still believe in running shoes?

JL: I still believe in running shoes. I like running barefoot, and I think it’s a really good foot strengthening and injury prevention tool. However, demanding so much from our feet and then providing them no support is just dumb. I don’t claim to understand the science behind it all, but I do have my own experiences to draw from. I have strong feet and I run about 20 miles a week barefoot. If I tried to run 80 miles, with workouts, barefoot, I would hurt myself.

Besides that, say I could run 80 miles a week barefoot. I still wouldn’t. One of my favorite things about running is the freedom it endows. I can go anywhere, as far as I can see, as far as I can think, on the strength of my legs and my lungs. The thing is, though our feet are just like our barefoot ancestors’ where, our world isn’t. I’d hate for the power of my legs to be limited to undeveloped land. I want to run through cities as well and mountains and fields. I want to run from here, not take a half hour drive to a dirt trail outside town.

Quickfire Questions with Julia and Ian (J=Julia and I=Ian)

My favorite winter Olympic sport to watch is:
J: I like them all in 10 minute doses.
I:Curling.  Just kidding, the XC ski sprint.

My favorite book is:
J: The Rabbit books by John Updike, or Wonderland by Joyce Carol Oats, or The Master and Margarita by Vladamir Bulgakov, or, err, a lot.
I: The Road-Cormack McCarthy.

My favorite song is:
J: Also really tough.  Lots of things by Paul Simon, Queen, Iron and Wine, Okkervil river, Nina Simone and um, other people.
I: Hallelujah, the Leonard Cohen version sung by Jeff Buckley.

My favorite meal is:
J: Dangit.  Am I cheating here?  Maybe my dad’s lasagna, or tiramisu, or root vegetables, or espresso afogato.
I: Something that’s easy to clean up after.

I indulge in:
J: Cheap red wine from the bottle.
I: Nutella and Marmalade sandwiches.

The word that best describes me is:
J: Tenacious or obstinate, depending on your perspective
I: Not sure; I would say probably brilliant or charming.

My favorite workout is:
J: 150 flys when I’m in good shape—Fast 200s with lots of rest.

The one thing that people would be surprised to find out about me is:
J:I have a very real fear of carbon monoxide poisoning and travel with a carbon monoxide detector.
I: Until two years ago I couldn’t burp.  That’s a much bigger problem than you might think.

My life philosophy is:
J: I have no idea.  Do you know yours?
I: Get a smaller glass.

When I was a kid, I wanted to be:
J: Princess Lolly, from Candyland
I: The Crow, you know like Brandon Lee

The most miles I have ever run in a week is:
J: 89
I: 115

My worst injury was:
J: A sports hernia that required surgery in 2007.
I: A broken calcaneus (heel bone) from steeple chasing in 2003.

My worst running moment was:
J: Waking up every morning dreading practice from October 2008-April-2009.
I: Pretty much all of 2006 and most of 2007 when I just couldn’t put together any good running.

My greatest running moment was:
J: Winning my first conference championship my sophomore year of college in a big kick past girls I’d never beat before.
I: Making the World Champs team in 2005; it wasn’t really expected and I was just having fun running.

My number one professional running goal is:
J: To beat everyone and then be smug as hell.
I: To beat everyone and be gracious.

Keep up with Ian and Julia at their blog: http://ianandjulia.com

In the October 2008 issue of Running Times magazine, Eric Willis simply headlined his article, “Koll on a Roll.” At the time, Iowa State standout Lisa Koll had just broken Alicia Shay’s (formerly Craig) American collegiate record in the 10,000-meter run.  Koll slashed more than three minutes off of her personal best to run 32:11.13 (previous record was 32:19:97) at the Stanford Invitational, stunning the track and field world.  En route to her victory, she lapped all but five runners in the field, including three All-Americans. Whispers of “who is Lisa Koll?” rippled through the running community.

Koll capped her 2008 season by finishing 8th in the Olympic Trials 10K.  She redshirted her 2008 cross-country season and struggled with injuries during her 2009 track season, but “Koll is on a roll” again in 2010. She kicked off her indoor season by becoming the second fastest American collegiate indoors in the 5,000-meter, clocking 15:29.65 (Jenny Barringer holds the American collegiate record, 15:01.70 set in 2009). Just as impressive, Koll came back from winning the Big 12 5,000-meter to run the third fastest collegiate time indoors in the 3,000-meter: 8:56:09.

With her 2008 NCAA 10K title, Koll became the first Iowa State Cyclone female athlete since 1991 to win an NCAA title. Her list of accolades runs long: three straight individual titles in the Big 12 10,000-meter run, eight total individual Big 12 titles, seven All-American honors, American collegiate record holder in the 10K, and Iowa State record holder in the 3,000, 5,000 and 10,000. Off the track, Koll remains just as impressive. She graduated Summa Cum Laude with a major in Biology in just three years. She was named First Team Academic Big 12 honoree for three straight years, and she is currently enrolled in  Iowa State’s veterinary medicine program.

Photos Courtesy of Iowa State’s Athletic Department

Eliterunning: You’ve collected more Big 12 titles this season, and you had two major breakthroughs. You recently ran 15:29 indoors in the 5000 and 8:56 in the 3000.  After struggling with injuries in 2009, what do you attribute these breakthroughs to?

Lisa Koll: I think these performances have been in the works for some time. I really feel that if I hadn’t gotten hurt last year, some great things would have happened in 2009, but it didn’t work out the way I planned (like most things in life). I guess I attribute most of the recent successes to a combination of consistently intensified training, race experience, and confidence that I have built over the past four or five years, but also some luck in staying healthy since late this summer.

Coach Ihmels and I were pretty conservative during cross country season, which allowed me to rebuild my mileage, regain some strength, and get back some aerobic fitness. I wasn’t very excited about how cross country went for me individually, so once it was over we met and sort of reopened the gates and took some chances with mileage and workouts. With that said, I think the strength and consistency I gained during cross country is one of the main reasons indoors is going so well; once January rolled around, I really just needed some fine tuning.

ER: You’ve qualified for both the 3000 and the 5000 at the NCAA Indoor Champs March 12.  Do you plan to double, and how competitive do you think the fields will be?

LK: I am planning on running the 5000 for sure. No definite plans have been made for the 3000, but as long as I still feel ready to go on Saturday, I think Coach will have a hard time keeping me out of it.

NCAAs is always extremely competitive. Everyone starts on the same line and you never know who could show up and have a great day or a bad one. I’m planning on going into it the same as any other race, focused on competing with the front pack and performing to my best ability.

ER: In 2008, after struggling with injuries your freshman year, you slashed over 3 minutes off of your 10K PR and ran 32:11.13 in only your second race at that distance, breaking Alicia Shay’s collegiate record and making quite a splash in the track and field world. You credited that leap to a turning point in your running, consistent high mileage and a renewed commitment to the sport. How would you describe that commitment?  What were some of the things that you did to transition from being a strong college runner to an elite runner?

LK: I think, most importantly, I began actively making my decisions based on what would be best for my running.  I made sure I was taking care of the little things like ice baths, getting enough sleep, etc., but I also took some time to educate myself about the sport. I started paying attention to who great runners were, how they became successful, and began visualizing myself in their shoes.

I also took some chances with training and, like you mentioned, increased mileage. It could have gone two ways: I could have ended up hurt or improved. By being methodical and patient with the training plan, and having a little bit of luck, I ended up with the latter. Once I started reaping the benefits, it became easy: run, study, eat, sleep. I think it was then that I really fell in love with distance running, the simplicity of the lifestyle, and I finalized my commitment to the sport.

ER: You’ve always been a pretty high mileage runner, hitting consistent 90-mile weeks in the summer.  What is your mileage like now, and can you give us a sample week or two of training?

My mileage right now is consistently between 90-95 miles a week. In my log I start my weeks on Mondays so a typical week would be something like:

Monday, Thursday: 45 min easy AM run; 75 min easy PM run followed by 8 100 meter strides
Tuesday, Friday: Workout with total time about 80 min: one faster workout (i.e. 20×200 with 55 sec recovery or 300 meter hill repeats) and one longer workout (tempo run, fartlek, etc.)
Wednesday: 45 min easy AM run; 75 min easy PM run
Saturday: 120 min long run easy
Sunday: 45-60 min easy

ER: Do you do any kind of cross-training to supplement your running?

LK: No. I can’t stand cross-training. I guess I just find it boring. When I was hurt last year I would have rather had my teeth pulled than get on the elliptical or bike. Swimming was the least agonizing.

ER: With the outdoor season approaching, and with the gains you have made in increasing your speed (see recent 5000 and 3000 m times!), do you plan to focus primarily on the 10,000?  Do you and coach Ihmels have a specific time goal in mind (31:45?)?

LK: Yes. I am so excited to run the 10K this outdoor season. As successful as the 3K and 5K have been indoors, I think my greatest potential lies in the longer distances. I have always had good aerobic capacity, and I think combining that talent with the recent developments I have had in speed and turnover will make for some great outdoor 10Ks.

31:45 is definitely a bench mark I would love to hit before I’m done with my collegiate career, but I am still trying to think in small steps and will be happy with a PR and progression throughout the season.

ER: How would you describe your relationship with Coach Ihmels? How much of a factor has he been in your explosive running career?

Coach and I have built a strong relationship over the past few years. He is very knowledgeable and I have a huge amount of respect for his training ideas and philosophy. He is also great about letting me have a lot of influence in my training. He listens to what I have to say about what works for me and what doesn’t and has helped me overcome some of the mental aspects of running. Especially after going through last year injury-plagued, he has seen me at my best and worst.

He has been a huge factor in guiding me to reach my potential as a runner. The fact that he listens to what I have to say and is willing to make adjustments as needed allows us to work as a team and results in the best outcome for both of us.

ER: In 2008, you finished 8th in the Olympic Trials in the 10,000m.  You were running your fifth race ever at the distance and when Shalane Flanagan made a move in the 10th lap, you went with her.  What was going through your mind at that moment?

LK: Honestly, I was thinking, “What do I have to lose?” It didn’t matter to me if I was 4th or last, either position resulted in the same outcome in my eyes. I went into the race with the goal of making the Olympic team. Even though it was a long shot, I went for it, and I have no regrets. If you never test the limit, you’ll never know how far you can go, right?

ER: You earned your bachelor degree in three years and are currently enrolled in Iowa State’s School of Veterinary Medicine.  Being a student-athlete is difficult, but you have excelled at it. What has it been like to juggle the demands of your training and of your academics?

A lot of the qualities it takes to be great at distance running apply to being a great student as well: dedication, hard work, time management, etc. As I mentioned before, I love the lifestyle: running and learning. I am enjoying being in college and that makes it much easier to manage the situation. I have also been fortunate in that since I entered veterinary school, the faculty has been very willing to work with me and my schedule to make school and running coincide.

ER: Do you plan to move immediately into a veterinary career when you graduate from the program or do you see yourself giving professional running a shot for a few years?

LK: I am definitely interested in pursuing professional running after this year. I feel like I haven’t reached my potential and I’m not ready to be done competing. However, it’s complicated because I’m currently right in the middle of getting my veterinary degree. If running post-collegiately means delaying school for awhile, I am prepared for that.  I have worked just as hard to get to where I am in running as I have to get to where I am in school, and the running window of opportunity is much narrower.

ER: The 2012 Olympics are just two years away.  In 2008, the “A” standard in the 5000 was 15:28, and you obviously met the “A” standard in the 10000 (32:45).  Do you see yourself attempting to double in the 5 and the 10 in 2012?

I think my main focus will still be the 10K in 2012. If training is going well enough to the point that I feel I could be a presence in both events, I might consider the double, but I’m sure a lot will depend on the situation at the time.

ER:  With Kara Goucher running the marathon and Shalane Flanagan making her debut soon, do you see yourself moving in that direction – perhaps in 2016?

LK: Yes. The marathon is where I eventually see myself. I strongly feel that internationally, it would be the event where I would be most competitive. However, I don’t want to make that move until I am ready to do so and have completed what I want to on the track.

ER: While a lot of runners value sleep as a vital component to recovery, some runners overlook nutrition. Do you pay a lot of attention to your own nutrition?

LK: Not really. I’m all about eating what my body’s craving and getting a good variety of foods. My diet is pretty simple. My main staples are cereal and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. I’m a big snacker throughout the day between breakfast, lunch, and a big dinner. I’m also a big sucker for desserts, the sweeter and more rich the better. I guess the only thing I really try to pay attention to with nutrition is making sure I have red meat 2-3 times a week for a good source of iron.

ER: How would you describe your training philosophy?  Who or what has helped you shape that philosophy?

LK: I think the best way to sum up my training philosophy is the way to get better at running is to run. I seem to thrive off high mileage and consistency, with a few workouts sprinkled here and there. Coach Ihmels has probably been the biggest influence in the way I think about training, but it has also come from a lot of trial and error over the years.

ER: How did you get into running?  Were you always a good athlete growing up?  Did anyone inspire you to give it a shot?

LK: I don’t really remember this, but my dad says I used to race my older brother around the block all the time when I was little. Apparently, I would always get beat but I kept racing him every day until finally, one day, I won. But I don’t think it was the running I was interested in, it was being able to beat my big brother in something.

In middle school my dad did a lot of road races and really started getting into running, so I ran here and there with him but wasn’t real excited about the whole thing. I was more into other sports like softball, basketball, soccer, pretty much anything besides running, even though I wasn’t very good at any of them; I just had a competitive nature.

The cross country coach at the middle school kept trying to get me to come out, but I wasn’t very interested. My friends finally convinced me to try it out and I agreed, mostly to get them off my back. I was terrible at first, but by the end of the year I was in the top 5 on our team and the better I got, the more driven I was to keep with it. Long story short, I quit all the other sports I was in and decided to focus on running.

ER: Looking back over the past few years, have you been surprised by your success, or did you always feel that kind of potential brewing inside of you?

LK: There have been some instances where I did completely blow my expectations out of the water. The best example is Stanford two years ago when I ran 32:11. With that race, I went in feeling fit enough to run under 32:45, but the fact that it felt so comfortable to run that fast surprised me. It was a great experience though, teaching me never to underestimate myself.

However, if you would have asked me my freshman year of college where I thought I would be by the time I was done with collegiate running, I would have had no idea. Looking back I realize how completely oblivious I was to what being a great runner really meant and what it took to get there. However, I think that worked to my advantage. I just focused on the day in, day out training and took pride and enjoyment in seeing myself improve. I think taking those small steps and finding little victories throughout the process kept me honest, focused, and open-minded to what I could eventually accomplish.

Quick-fire Questions with Koll:

My favorite book is: Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
My favorite song is: “Everything” by Michael Buble
My favorite meal is: Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches
I indulge in: chocolate chip cookie dough, brownies, frosting… pretty much anything sweet
The word that best describes me is: determined
My favorite workout is: 14 x400 with 75 seconds recovery and numbers 8 and 12 all out
The one thing that people would be surprised to find out about me is: that I hold the limbo record at my hometown roller skating rink: under 8 inches at the tender age of 6
My life philosophy is: give nothing less than your best
When I was a kid, I wanted to be: an Olympic figure skater
The most miles I have ever run in a week is: 103
My worst injury was: a tie between IT band syndrome and piriformis syndrome
My worst running moment was: missing All-American by one spot in 2007 indoors
My greatest running moment was: running 32:11 at Stanford in 2008
My number one running goal is: continued improvement

If Danette Doetzel had grown up in the U.S., she would have received a great deal of media attention as a high school phenom. Before she ever competed in the NCAA, Doetzel had already recorded a PR of 9:35 in the 3,000m and competed at the World Cross Country Championships twice. Because she was a native of Macklin, Saskatchewan, she was able to step onto the campus of Michigan State in the fall of 2004 a little bit under the radar. This did not last, however, as she immediately won a Big Ten Cross Country title, finished 12th at the NCAA Cross Country Championships as a freshman, placed 14th in the junior race at the World Cross Country Championships the following spring, and set a new Canadian Junior 5,000m record of 15:52.

After completing her freshman year at Michigan State, Doetzel opted to transfer to Providence College. Because Michigan State did not release her, Doetzel was forced to sit out one year, while she adjusted to life and running at Providence College. For a couple years, Doetzel appeared to struggle, only occasionally showing flashes of the brilliance she had displayed as a first-year runner at Michigan State. Doetzel stuck it out, however, and steadily improved. In 2008, in only her second attempt at the event, she finished second to a dominant Lisa Koll in the 10,000 meters at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships. One year later, Doetzel improved her finish by one spot, kicking away from the field with one kilometer to go and winning her first NCAA title in her final collegiate race. Her winning time of 33:25.71 in a tactical race was just two seconds shy of her personal best. Doetzel also set a 5,000 meter personal best earlier in the season, running 15:46.76 at the Mt. SAC Relays. Doetzel finished out her collegiate career with five All-America honors, three Big East titles, and two Northeast Regional cross country titles.

We caught up with Doetzel 11 days after her NCAA victory, as she prepared to head off to Toronto to compete at the Canadian Track & Field Championships.

EliteRunning.com: Congratulations on your NCAA 10,000 meter title. That seems like the perfect ending to your collegiate career.
Danette Doetzel: I couldn't have asked for a better way to finish my collegiate career, especially given the way the race played out. I felt good, I was able to run one of my best last [kilometers]. I couldn't have really asked for anything better; I'm very happy with it.

ER.com: We were impressed with your speed at the end of that race. Is that something you'd been training to be able to do?
DD: I totally changed my training from what I used to do my freshman year and in high school. That took a long time for me to get used to because I started to use a totally different system. I've injected a lot more miles, a lot more strength workouts rather than just speed... and I have started to do a lot more tempo runs. I think that a culmination of all of those components has greatly improved my strength and given me the ability to finish as I did.

My first year at Providence College, just getting used to the new system, I kept dealing with little injuries here and there. But then, going into my junior year of running things really started to click and I finally got some continuity in my training. So I've just been building for the last two years, just trying to get in something good every day. I guess it has been that strength that allowed me to finish in a 3:00 last [kilometer] at NCAAs. With what I was doing in high school, we never really would have thought I'd have that kind of kick, so it has purely been my coach's [Ray Treacy] training program that has brought on that turnover and allowed me to become a lot stronger.

The first time we saw that speed happened during the indoor season [at the 2009 Big East Championships]. To get the 5k time for nationals, we figured we'd take it out easy and just try to work the last mile. I ended up running the last mile in 4:51 and we were like, 'That's pretty good; I guess I can move at the end.' And then the next day, I ran the 3k and we took somewhere around 9:30 pace, but I ended up running a 2:57 last 1k and I ended up with a 9:13. After that we knew [the speed] was there, we just had to keep training the way we were and racing smart so at the end, I could [produce] that kick.

ER.com: During that 10,000 at nationals, when you went, were you pretty confident that no one was going to be able to stay with you?
DD: At 5k, I thought, 'Okay, I have a chance to win this. I don't know if I'm going to, but I know I can give it a good run.' And then with about 2-1/2k left, I thought, 'Okay, I'm ready for this. Anybody who wants to go and make a move I know I can go with you and try to stick with you.' I just tried to stay relaxed and then with 1k to go, I passed [Coach Ray Treacy] and he said, 'Okay, open it up.' I decided no one was really going to take it so I started to kick and give it a go, I guess it worked out pretty well.

ER.com: You mentioned your high school training as being different from your college training. How would you describe your high school training?
DD: It was definitely low mileage and I did a lot more quality workouts. We worked out pretty much every day—we did something on the track or something on dirt loop, k repeats, those kinds of things, mostly every day. But I didn't do really long runs until I got to college; very seldom would I just go and do a long run, it was just more quality and speed.

ER.com: How would you say that worked for you?
DD: It was good; it was very intense. I had kind of carried on with that same kind of training through my freshman year, so when I came to Providence, Ray looked over what I was doing instead of just slapping me with a new program. He wanted to see what I had been doing before we made any big changes. My old schedule was very intense and it was hard to always keep that going—most of what I did was fast all of the time, so it felt like a lot of stress on the body even though the mileage was very low. It didn't really break you down, but mentally, you just felt like you were really expending yourself every day. Now my training is a lot more gradual and relaxed. You don't really attack everyday, you just do what's on the schedule in a controlled manner and then over the long run, it just builds up and makes you stronger. I think there's a little more room for forward progression because it's hard, but it doesn't kill you. Ray's a very patient coach so he'd rather see a gradual progression instead of getting in shape very quickly and having to try to hold on to it. He's definitely reshaped the way I do things and has taught me a lot about taking things a little bit easier.

ER.com: I can imagine that because your running wasn't going that well when you first arrived at Providence that you might have questioned the training. Did you always have confidence that things were going to work out.?
DD: I definitely had a few rough years—and even this year in cross country. Having to sit out the year after I left Michigan State definitely threw me through a loop. I lost that consistency that I had in racing, finishing every race average or a little better than expected. After sitting out, I felt like I was starting from zero all over again. I probably should have bounced back a lot quicker, but I guess everybody's their own worst critic, so when I came back I thought that the only thing that would be good enough would be if I was running as fast or faster than what I had been running before. I had placed all of these barriers in front of myself. Overcoming those was very tough and I probably should have set my standards a little lower when I was coming back that first year, just so I could gradually progress and get back into shape. Because I needed time that I obviously wasn't giving myself, so not being able to reach those standards right from the beginning did hurt me pretty badly. After I kept failing (based on my standards) I figured that maybe I just wasn't good enough, or I was just lucky my freshman year. That played with my head a lot and made it hard going into races, and obviously, if you ever enter a race where you think you're not equal with everyone around you, you may as well not be entered because you're not ready to compete.

ER.com: You have a really interesting career path in that you were able to come back stronger in the past couple of years. A lot of young female distance runners do well when they are young, and when they experience a hiatus like yours, the more typical story line is that they don't come back as fast as they once were, whether it's due to burnout or other circumstances. What do you think helped you and how do you think you were able to come back so well?
DD: I pay a lot of tribute to Coach Ray Treacy; he's a very smart coach. He knows what you need to do to be a good runner and what he needs to see from you. He has instilled that in all of the girls who have graduated from here and have gone on to do really well. Having him and Kim Smith, Mary Cullen, Roisin McGettigan and Molly Huddle all telling you what they've learned based on their past experience and what you need to do to get back on top. Having that really helped me a lot and gave me a new perspective on running, something totally different than what I had my freshman year. Always keeping in the back of my mind what I needed to do to, and seeing it every day really helped. But with that said, there was definitely that haunting [voice] in the back of my head asking, 'Am I going to be another one who never really gets back?' For a long time, that really ate at me and I maybe started thinking very negatively. Even through all of this though, I always worked really hard no matter what. Looking back, if I had just been able to race with the same competitive edge that I was showing in my workouts... I think the outcome would have been a lot better..

Like you said, a lot of people might have thought I would have taken the same path that some girls do. However, I think the fact that I can only really function when I know I am putting something in has helped me gradually build over the years and get back into top form. I guess I also just really wanted to prove that statistic wrong and end on a good note. I think the hardest part is falling off times that you could run easily before, and worrying if you will ever get back to that again. When that starts to happen you question everything including yourself and most times, this results in many people giving up or throwing in the towel. For me, when that happened, it was really hard to deal with. However, I am not the type of person who can just exist and pretend like everything is fine even when it isn't. Something I didn't do was give up, I was here [in the U.S.] and using up a scholarship so I was going to put in the work required of me. I had moved away from my family in Canada; I'm a long way from home, like a lot of athletes are and wasn't going to waste the opportunity I was given. It's a big sacrifice for everybody, so no matter what happened and no matter what I was feeling, I just couldn't give up and never stopped working.

ER.com: Did you always know that you were going to go to college in the U.S.? How did that come about?
DD: That was my goal. I did cross country in grades 5-8, but I had no idea it was a national sport, a collegiate sport, let alone anything other than an intramural activity. I was shocked and amazed when I found out that it was actually a big-time sport and you could get a scholarship out of it if you were good enough. I was opened to this reality my freshman year in high school, when I was introduced to my high school coach. I'm from a very small town of about 1,400 people, which is probably pushing it [laughs]. So when I met my coach Steve [Gersten], he knew that training probably wasn't going to be the best in Macklin, so when I was 15, the year after I met him, I actually moved to Regina, about five hours from my home. I lived with a family in the city for grades 10-12 and trained with the club there in hopes that I could improve and progress at a rate that would open up some doors for coming to the U.S. and running in the NCAA.

ER.com: Did you live with your coach?
DD: No, I lived with a family who had a couple of kids who were going to the same high school. I moved in with the family, paid rent and stayed with them throughout the school year. While they oversaw a lot of my daily activities, I had a lot of responsibilities that I was in charge of that most kids growing up don't really have to deal with until college. It was definitely a big move.

ER.com: Are you close with your family? How often have you been able to see them over the years?
DD: In high school, I was able to go home about 4-5 times a year. In college, I'd get home about twice a year. But now it's getting harder since I have graduated. In college, you're not really doing much over the summer, so you can just kind of go home for two months no problem. But now I'll be racing a little bit more so it is hard to get a solid block where I can go home and really make the trip worth it. I am currently trying to figure out when I'll be able to get home. It doesn't look like it'll be until possibly August or later so my parents aren't too happy to hear that.

It's also a bit of a bummer when planning the trip home for Christmas because of the weather. Its so hard at Christmas because it's about minus 35 degrees [laughs] so I usually try to go home for a little bit and then head somewhere warm so I can keep running. It makes it really tough, just being far away and in a location that's not the best suited for running. But because I am so close with my family they have always been very understanding and a huge support system, better than I could ask for. My parents and siblings have always had my back when I was making decisions that weren't always in their favor and for that I am very thankful. Since I started running, they never said 'no' or took away an opportunity I might have had. This is why I was able to move away when I was so young. They didn't want to have to look back and say that they had held me back from maybe accomplishing something I wanted to try, leaving me to ask the age old question, "What if?" The sacrifice was, and still is, hard and sometimes you question whether it's worth it. But after a finish like this, and looking back on my experiences both good and bad, and having my mom and sister, two people who have seen me struggle through both, witness me finish my last race the way I did, I mean that's when you know it was worth it.

ER.com: So they were able to make it to NCAAs?
DD: Yes, my mom and my sister were able to come. That was actually the first race my sister got to see me run in college.

ER.com: Is your sister older or younger?
DD: She's older.

ER.com: Do you have any other siblings?
DD: Yes, I have a younger sister too, so I'm the middle child.

ER.com: Are you the only runner in the family?
DD: Well, my mom started running just to stay in shape—same with my sisters, but I was the only one who ever pursued it seriously and was involved in track. I have always been a crazy off-the-wall kind of kid, basically like the Energizer Bunny, so my parents were always looking to keep me occupied. I think what made running something that seemed natural to do was watching my dad run when both my sister and I were very young. Saskatchewan is not really like the running Mecca of the country or continent [laughs], so it wasn't really a commonplace pastime, but I always enjoyed chasing after my dad on my little bike when he would head out for a run. I'd try to catch him before he got to the end of his loop and turned to head back home. I think my legs had to go about a million turns a minute, but even then I loved the challenge and the competition I would make with my sister to see who could catch him first. I don't think it was a mutual competition; [laughs] I just wanted to beat her, so I created one in my head. I guess the desire to test myself and push through the pain was with me even when I was young, probably one of the reasons I love to run.

My younger sister runs as well, but not with the same perspective. She's very good at softball, so she kind of stuck with that, and my older sister is very talented musically, so we each kind of had our own little thing, I guess.

ER.com: You mentioned that you're going to compete at Canadian Nationals. What's the plan for that?
DD: I head to Canadian Nationals on Wednesday and I race the 5k on Thursday. I'll be sticking around Canada for about a week, and then I come back to Providence and I fly out for Belgium. I'm going there for three weeks to try to run a few fast 5ks, hopefully.

ER.com: Are you aiming to qualify for the World Championship team? How does the process work?
DD: The standard is pretty quick. The way that the Canadian system works, I think I would have had to get one of the standards back in April and another one now. I don't think I'm quite ready for 15:24 yet, but hopefully in the upcoming years I'll be closer to getting those standards.

ER.com: So in order to make the team, you'd probably have to run at least 15:24 twice?
DD: Yes, that's the 'B' standard. It's hard to peak to be able to hit those standards like that while still in the college system—to be able to run your fastest in April and then be able to hold on and run it again at the end of the season is tough. So we didn't really think about it. I'll have plenty of time to focus on that aspect of competing. Right now we just wanted to focus on the college season and putting all of the eggs in a basket that would help me run well when it counts; nationals and conference.

ER.com: So what is your goal for the rest of the season?
DD: I would like to be able to run PRs in the 5k. My first meet of the outdoor season, I ran 15:46 out at Mt. SAC. We were happy with it, but sometimes I need a race, like a lot of people do, to get going, so hopefully I'll be able to improve on that in Europe and run low 15:40s, maybe break into the 15:30s-high if I can...that would be great.

ER.com: Have you been in touch with any potential sponsors or had any offers yet? How's that going?
DD: It's a tough time because of the economy, so things are a lot tighter this year than they have been in previous years. My perspective on things has kind of changed. I always felt like there was this pressure—which [dictated that] you could only keep running if you got some big contract. But over the years, just growing up, I've realized that you have to run because you love it. So whether something comes or not, you can't really worry about that. Hopefully you can make it work, but seeing a lot of older women throughout the U.S. win longer races after a bit of a break from college has really been an inspiration. They run because they love it and they are succeeding. I think that is a huge part of the formula for doing well...you have to be doing it for the right reasons, regardless of whether you're getting support or not. It really inspired me to just do it for the same reason I started in the first place—because I love it. As of now, I haven't really heard anything, but I'm just going to hope something comes up, keep working, and try to progress so I have more to bring to the table.

ER.com: Yes, it really is a rough year for sponsorships, but hopefully things will turn around soon.
DD: Yeah, hopefully, but I think it's good, because after you finish college, and after winning, it would be easy to think, 'Ah, I made it through, and it ended well.' I won the NCAA title, life is good.' But I still have so many things I want to work to achieve, so this just gives me more to keep fighting and working for. It keeps that fire going and you can't really sit back, be complacent, and say, 'I've already got everything.' It gives me something more to work for so that if I can achieve and attain it, I will feel more accomplished.

ER.com: So are you going to be training in Providence next year?
DD: Yes, I'm going to be based in Providence. I'm going to be living with another girl who I ran with in college and is my best friend, she still has a couple seasons left, and another guy who also will be running for Providence College next year. I'll be living in Providence and training with Ray and the girls.

ER.com: You have quite a group of women to train with in Providence, correct?
DD: The level of female athletes we have to train with here is pretty phenomenal. There's Molly Huddle, Kim Smith, Roisin McGettigan, Mary Cullen—there are so many extremely talented girls it is crazy. However, while I'm not ready to work out with some of them, there are ways I can work with each one of them on different things that will lead to a well-rounded training regime. With workouts though, I'll probably tone them back a bit because I'm not quite ready to run with them. But we will all be at the track and working together, so it's really good. Just to be within reach of girls who have run as fast as they have is something really remarkable to see day in and day out.

ER.com: You wouldn't necessarily guess that Providence, Rhode Island would become a hotbed for women's distance runners because of the weather, but I guess that's a testament to what Ray Treacy has been able to accomplish at Providence College.
DD: Yeah, Ray's the anchor behind that. We stick around because we know he's a great coach and he's gotten us all to where we are now. There's always the option that you can stick around for a little while and then head somewhere else when the weather gets cold. Speaking of weather, right now, I'm looking out the window and it looks like we're about to get a hurricane [laughs] but we kind of just throw that behind us when we're running. I guess it makes you stronger to have a few elements to face every day.

ER.com: Which events do you think you'll focus on in your post-collegiate career? Has anyone mentioned marathoning to you, or do you want to stick with something shorter?
DD: Yeah, that's where I'm sort of looking. My favorite part of the week is my long run. I love my 13-mile run; I can't wait until it gets longer. Ray is the one who said he thinks I'll be good at the longer distance, so with that said, we'll see how that looks in the coming years. The marathon is such a different animal, you can't really predict one way or another how it's going to go until you actually run one. We'll probably try a half marathon in the next year and just sort of work up towards that. But that's probably what I'll be focused on.

ER.com: Will you get a job, or will you focus on running full-time?
DD: I will have a job over the next to help pay for everything, but will focus mostly on running and training very well.

ER.com: What will you do beyond the one year. Will you be able to stay in the U.S.?
DD: Yeah, I'm probably going to try to go to grad school, which will be another two years. Then I'll be able to take another OPT [optional practical training, which extends her visa] after I finish my graduate degree, so that buys me at least three more years.

ER.com: What did you study at Providence?
DD: I studied Marketing and Finance.

ER.com: Would you want to go to grad school for something similar?
DD: I'd probably stick with the business area. There aren't a lot of options for grad school at Providence College, so I might go for an MBA.

ER.com: But one with a very good running tradition.
DD: Exactly. It's kind of funny, Providence kind of caught my eye when I was in high school, but it was pretty far from home and people were saying, 'No, do this. Do that.' When you're a young and impressionable high schooler, you go with what people tell you. Either way, I guess it was meant to be since I found my way despite going elsewhere first.

ER.com: You mentioned how different your training was when you went to Providence College. Can you describe what your training is like now in terms of mileage and what a week might look like at various points in the season?
DD: I mostly stick to a pretty similar schedule. I'll do approximately 70-75 miles a week. A big week now would be like 82 miles, which is really high for me and I probably only hit that once. So while I guess it's high mileage, it's not overly high. We'll work out every fourth day. So starting on Sunday would probably be 10 miles, or 7 and 3, and then I'd have a long run (Monday), another 10 or 7 and 3 (Tuesday), and then my workout (Wednesday). Ray will never tell you your workout [laughs]. We'd try to get it out of him and beg him, but he won't tell you until you're on the track, which is probably good, otherwise I'd sit and mull over it all day and work myself up over it. And the next workout would fall four days after that. In between there, it's a mix of 7 and 3, or 8 and 3, or 10.

ER.com: Are you doing your distance runs at a fast pace?
DD: People like to make fun of me here because I run too fast. I'm really trying to slow down so that I can work out better, but I get carried away. They're moderate runs, around 6:30 miles for all of those runs, sometimes a bit quicker [laughs]...I better keep that quiet. While it's simple and doable, there is a very effective method behind it.

ER.com: What would your workout days look like?
DD: It depends. We kind of alternate every workout between intervals and a tempo, but it really depends on where we are in the racing season. But say we didn't have a race for a while, I'd probably do a five-mile tempo on Wednesday at 5:30 mile pace. So there would be the warm-up, the tempo, the cool down, and then three miles later on in the day. Then the next workout, we'd probably head to the track. That could be a ladder like 1200-800-600-400 x 2, or straight ks, miles, 800s etc...Recently we've been adding 400s to the end of workouts, just to get our legs going after they have already put in the work, which is great for stimulating the end of the race, or so I like to think they do [laughs]. Ray might have another reason we do them that I just haven't figured out yet.

Ray's really good at looking at each person individually and finding out what makes them tick. If you're training with a group and you need something the other people don't, he would never sacrifice one person's needs for the sake of the group, even if working out all together would be easier. He works with you on a very individual basis.

ER.com: What would you say is your favorite type of workout?
DD: I like tempos a lot, but I guess I'd probably have to say 400s [laughs]. I'm not too speedy, but 400s are nice. I try not to build up a complex around too many workouts, because I did that for a while with 800s, and I started to really hate 800s. But this season, I found myself doing so many workouts that had 800s, I was able to work through them and feel stronger both physically and mentally. I overcame the dread of an 800 workout and when I was given the go-ahead at nationals to kick with a kilometer to go, the distance no longer felt daunting.

ER.com: How fast can you run a 400?
DD: If I'm doing like 12 of them, I'll probably average around 70, with a few under that. I ran a 59 once in high school, but that was way back when [laughs]. I don't know if my legs would go that fast anymore.

[Photo by Randy Miyazaki/TrackAndFieldPhoto.com. Interview conducted June 22, 2009.]

Though she was a very competitive runner within the Big Ten and the NCAA, few followers of the sport had heard of Indiana University 800 meter runner Molly Beckwith at the beginning of the 2009 outdoor track season. In just one race, Beckwith dropped her 800 PR from 2:04.38 to 2:02.51, simultaneously making a name for herself and raising expectations. Though her collegiate season ended with a disappointing semifinal race at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships, she will race again at the USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Eugene, Oregon, beginning June 25. Beckwith's breakthrough 2:02.51 800 came at the Billy Hayes Invitational on her home track on May 8. Beckwith won the race by more than two seconds.

The Worthington, Ohio native was a standout soccer player for the Ohio Premier Girls Soccer Club in high school, as well as a 200 meter state runner-up in her one full season of running track. She was recruited by Indiana University to play soccer, but after undergoing the fourth surgery of her soccer career in her first year at IU, Beckwith traded in her soccer cleats for a pair of spikes, and walked on the IU track and field team. We caught up with her shortly after the NCAA Championships, before she headed out to Eugene for the USA Championships.

EliteRunning.com: Are you at home now, or are you still at school?
Molly Beckwith: I'm still at school. We leave for the USA Championships on Tuesday, so I'm still in training.

ER.com: This was a breakthrough season for you, but I imagine you weren't quite satisfied with your NCAA performance. Can you tell us what you were looking to do at NCAAs and what you think might have gone wrong?
MB: I think what happened was that my expectations were that I was going to run just as well as I had when I ran 2:02, which was my fastest time. I didn't really put into my head that I ran 2:04 consistently before that. I was expecting to do something that I had only done once before at the national meet. So when I went to the national meet and I was running 2:04s, I was surprised, but I really shouldn't have been. I was kind of disappointed with how my last race went at NCAAs. It was a little bit clustered and I wasted a lot of energy throughout the race.

ER.com: So you think it was not necessarily a fitness issue, but more of a problem with strategy?
MB: Definitely. When you get to that level, there's no room for error. I was running in lane three for the majority of the race and I lost in the last 100 meters. I'm not sure fitness has much to do with it, but it was definitely strategy.

ER.com: Do you wish you had run another 800 before NCAAs, or did that not really matter?
MB: Yeah, I think that would have been helpful. I ran the 800 at Regionals, I ran 2:04 twice. I knew I could run faster than 2:04, it just would have had to be the perfect race for me to calm down, sit behind people, and then kick at the end. But at nationals, you can't really sit behind because you're going to lose, and I think that was the thing that set me back a little bit.

ER.com: What was the logic behind running the 400 instead of the 800 at the Big Ten Championships?
MB: My coach and I talked about it. We had a few girls who he thought would make the finals in the 800, and we didn't have anyone to run the 400, so it was a 'what's best for the team' kind of thing. He thought I could be top three in the 400 as well as the 800, and he told me I'd be running seven more 800s after Big Tens, so he didn't see any reason why I should push it and run two more 800s that weekend.

ER.com: What is your fastest 400 time?
MB: My fastest is 54.13, which I ran in the prelims at Big Tens.

ER.com: This will be your first time at the USA Championships. What is your goal for the meet?
MB: Honestly, I think my biggest goal is to PR at USAs. I know that the level of competition there is going to be better than it was at [NCAA] nationals, but my coach reminded me that the majority of people I'm going to be running against are the same people I ran against at nationals, just because we have world-class athletes in there. I'm just excited to run the race strategy that [Coach Ron Helmer] picked for me and hopefully stick with the top dogs in America and run a PR—that would be my biggest goal there.

ER.com: Do you go into an event like that thinking you're going to run as hard as you can in the first round, or do you save something?
MB: Definitely. Going into USAs, because I've never been there, I'm going to treat every race like it's my last race. At nationals, in the prelims, I knew I just needed to get top three and it was definitely a very relaxed quarterfinal. I ran the semis at nationals the same way I would have run the final, so I guess I didn't hold anything back there.

ER.com: When you ran 2:02.51 earlier this season, how far did the rabbit take you?
MB: The rabbit took me through at 58 and she went about 550 meters. We were supposed to be at 58 and then 1:29 or 1:30 [for the 600]. I could tell at 500 meters that she was slowing down a little bit, so I passed her at 550 and came through the six at 1:30 flat. There wasn't really anyone close to me—I think a girl ran 2:04 behind me, but it was the weirdest race. I really didn't feel like I was going that fast. I was shocked when I crossed the finish line.

ER.com: Can you tell us a little about your soccer background?
MB: My main sport in high school was soccer, and I was recruited to play at IU and some other good schools—Ohio State, Kentucky, and Georgia. I came to IU and I played soccer just for the fall season and I realized that my left knee was really, really injured and that I couldn't run on the grass—the cutting, the planting, and all that stuff that comes along with soccer was just too much for me. I decided at the end of my freshman year to get my last surgery and I just quit. I talked to the track coach and walked on to the track team.

ER.com: So did you run at all during your first year, or were you still recovering from the surgery?
MB: I was recovering from surgery, because I had it in the spring of my first year. I recovered all summer, did all of my physical therapy and stuff, and walked on to the team in the fall of my sophomore year.

ER.com: When you first started, did you struggle, or would you say that you were a natural in the beginning?
MB: When I was in high school, I ran track for one year and I could tell you that I was a natural; people told me not to quit. But after getting really out of shape, gaining 20-30 pounds as a soccer player—I was built like a soccer player then—sophomore year was a really hard transition year for me. I'd never dealt with being not even close to the top of the team; I was taken aback by it. I guess I didn't have my priorities in line my sophomore year. At the end of the Big Ten Championships, I told myself that I was never going to let myself feel that failure that I felt that day. That was kind of the turning point, so it took my whole sophomore year of track to realize that this was something I really wanted to be good at.

ER.com: When you had that turning point, what did you start doing differently?
MB: I think the main thing I did was that I took the summer and I used it for training—I didn't use it as a big vacation. I started running mileage—that was something I had never done before. I probably only got up to 35-40 miles [per week] and then, last summer, got up to 50. I ate healthier, and I probably lost 20 pounds between my sophomore and junior year. I just did exactly what my coach told me, got back into shape finally, and started working like a runner instead of a soccer player.

ER.com: Did you ever consider trying a different sport, or was the backup always going to be track, in your mind?
MB: I never thought about anything up until that. Once I started having success with track, I realized that it was just the beginning for me and there were so many more things I wanted to do with the sport. My coach always tells me I'm a two-year-old runner. I've really only been training at a high level for a few years now, so he's excited about the future that I have, because he gets to coach me and figure out what I can do.

ER.com: You mentioned that you ran for one year in high school. Which year was that and how did you do?
MB: I ran my freshman year. I ran 55 in the 400 and 24 in the 200. I got second in state in the 200 and I false started in the 400 [laughs]. I actually ran a little bit my senior year, but I had already committed to IU to play soccer, so in the spring, soccer was my first priority. I was half at the track meets, but just played soccer for most of it. It was kind of a side thing to stay in shape.

ER.com: When you were a soccer player, were you noticeably one of the faster runners on the field?
MB: Yeah. I played forward, which is the main position where you score goals and run past people. It was definitely something that coaches noticed and a lot of people told me I should still run track. I pushed it out of my mind, though, because I never had the passion for track that I had for soccer. But then I realized that emotionally, I did care about it, but I needed to control how I dealt with pre-race nerves and stuff like that; that was my biggest problem.

ER.com: And do you feel like pre-race nerves are not as much of an issue now?
MB: It's definitely 100% better. There are still some things, not really with nervousness, but with my confidence that I still need to work on, but that's just coming from me being such a new runner and going to these really big meets...USAs is really going to help me be able to deal with the biggest races in the country. Having to deal with that over and over again is going to help me out.

ER.com: Were either of your parents athletes?
MB: Yeah, my dad played football his first year of college, but then he transferred...both of my parents ended up at Bowling Green. My mom was a really good swimmer and gymnast in high school. They were both really good athletes in high school.

ER.com: And do you have siblings who play sports?
MB: Yeah, my sister played soccer as well; she played at the University of South Alabama.

ER.com: Have you had any injuries since you started focusing on running?
MB: Nope. I had my last surgery my freshman year, on my knee. I decided then that I would never have another surgery and I would stay injury-free. I've stayed almost completely injury-free, minus plantar fasciitis and stupid things like that, but I'm very happy with how I've been feeling.

ER.com: Do you feel like track has now filled the void that quitting soccer created, or do you feel like you'll always miss soccer?
MB: A lot of people ask me if I miss soccer. I think just because I've gotten out of the habit of going to practice and games. I don't really miss the sport of soccer until I go to games and watch it. If I watch a college game, I'll miss it a little bit. I'll notice the difference between in high school, when I played club soccer, I didn't even play for my high school team—I missed that much more than I missed college soccer. I didn't really love college soccer, but I love college track. I like competing at that level, I like how the practices are run, I like the people that I run with a lot more than the people I played soccer with in college. In terms of missing it, definitely not as much as I thought I was going to.

ER.com: Are there people on the IU team who can challenge you in workouts?
MB: There's a 400 runner who has graduated, she's just training for the USA meet now, and she and I do a lot of our workouts together. In terms of half miler workouts, I'm kind of on my own. If I do a little bit more distance work, I go with the distance girls, who kick my butt because they're distance girls and I'm not the best at distance. But next year, we're getting a girl who's run 2:07, so I think she'll be my new training partner and I'm really excited about it.

ER.com: And you're going to run cross country next fall?
MB: Yup.

ER.com: Are you going to do the whole season all-out?
MB: Yes. The first two weeks of cross country season is when my knees hurt running on grass. That's the reason I couldn't play soccer anymore, because of the cutting and the uneven surface of the grass, but it goes away, I noticed that last season. I had about five or six practices and after that, they become used to it and my knees stop swelling and stop hurting. [Coach Helmer] told me he's going to go a little bit easy on me, but he's going to throw me in the big races like Big Tens, Regionals, and hopefully Nationals. I probably won't run in every meet, but I'll definitely be in there in some big meets.

ER.com: How will you change your training this summer? Will you run a lot more than you have in the past, or is 50 miles per week right about where you want to be?
MB: I haven't really talked to my coach about that yet, but I think right around 50 is pretty good for me in the summer. I actually only hit that a few weeks last summer and I was dead, which is sad because some of the girls are running like 80 and I'm sitting here running 50. But yeah, I think I'll do a little bit more. I'm in a lot better shape than I was last summer, so I can probably go a little faster, but I really don't think I want my mileage to go any higher than that, until [Coach Helmer] tells me that it needs to.

ER.com: Do you think you'll take a break before gearing up for cross country?
MB: Yeah, I think after this next meet, I think you take two or three weeks and I usually run four miles every other day and take the off days completely off.

ER.com: Did you have a different coach your first year at IU, or was Ron Helmer already there?
MB: No. When I first started running, I had Judy Wilson, the previous cross country coach, coaching me. My sophomore year is when the coaching change came and the staff was completely cleared out, minus our pole vault coach, Jake Wiseman. The transition from coaches has been probably the best thing that the program could have asked for. Finally our team is combined. Instead of having a men's coach and a women's coach, we have a head coach who coaches everyone, so that's the biggest thing that helps the program. The team gets along better, [their performance] has gotten better, with kids stepping up. The scholarship situation wasn't that good before I came here—they kind of gave full rides out very quickly to people that they didn't really know were going to be successful in their college careers. So getting that straightened out and everything...everything's great with the new coaching staff, it was a really smooth transition.

ER.com: What do you hope to do with your Exercise Science degree? Are you spreading it out over five years, or are you doing any graduate work now?
MB: I'm going to go to Physical Therapy school. They do not have one at IU, but they have one at IUPUI. I'm going to apply to schools this summer, and then I'll find out if I get in next fall/winter, but I'm spreading out my undergrad over five years, so next year is a really light load for me.

ER.com: Do you ever think about running professionally someday? Is that something that would appeal to you?
MB: I had thought about it a little bit during the year, and it wasn't until I ran the 2:02.51 that I actually started thinking about it seriously, because my coach had started mentioning it to me. I think if the opportunity came for me to do that, I definitely would take it. I'm almost positive that I'm going to continue training after college. [I'd like to] train with my coach for USAs next year, and maybe the 2012 Olympics. It's definitely a possibility. I haven't put much thought into it because this has all happened pretty fast, but I'm planning on it and I can defer my admission to my physical therapy schools for a few years if I want to.

ER.com: Have you gotten a lot more attention since you ran 2:02.51? Have there been a lot more people noticing you or calling you?
MB: Yes, definitely. It was so weird when it happened; I felt like I was in a dream, because I felt like my life had completely changed because I had gone from being a good runner to an excellent runner. I had plenty of attention on me and it was kind of weird timing for it because I was still in the middle of my season and I was shocked that I had done that. I was like, 'Uhhh...I don't even know what to say right now.' It kind of humbled me, actually, because I went to nationals and I got DQed in the semis, so it was a little bit overwhelming.

ER.com: What was the DQ for? We saw a rule number listed in the results, but didn't know what it meant. Obviously you weren't shoving anyone off the track...
MB: It was that I stepped on the line before we cut in.

ER.com: Some say that once you have a breakthrough performance, your first goal should be to try to match that performance before you focus on improving upon it.
MB: I'm always trying to figure out what I did that day, and I think I figured it out—there was no one around me, I had a rabbit, I was so relaxed—it was like a workout for me, because the girl who rabbited for me is my training partner.

ER.com: What are your plans for the summer, once USAs are over? Are you working or doing anything fun?
MB: I'm actually taking a class; I'm taking physiology. It starts this Friday, so I'm going to have to miss the whole first week of class for USAs. It's a pretty hard class—it's a five-credit course—so it's going to be gruesome. I'm going to focus on that, stay here, and hopefully start lifting a lot. I haven't been lifting that much because the races and training kind of wear you out. I feel like I'm weaker during the season, because my races have worn me out, but definitely I get on top of the lifting during the summer, because I don't care how it makes me feel. So that's my plan for the summer. I think I might pick up a part-time job. It sounds weird but I'll actually have more time to work in the fall because my classes are so late, so I'm thinking about working at a physical therapy practice. They have openings for water therapy, so I think I might apply for one of those jobs.

ER.com: Would you say your interest in physical therapy comes from having to deal with so many injuries early on in your athletic career?
MB: Definitely. I think because I've had so much personal experience dealing with coming back from surgery or dealing with injuries in general, I think that I'd be able to help people. I know mentally what's going on and I know physically what's going on.

[Above photo by Randy Miyazaki/TrackAndFieldPhoto.com. Interview conducted June 17, 2009.]]]> http://www.eliterunning.com/2009/06/interview-with-molly-beckwith/feed/ 0