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Michigan Runner Girl

The Michigan Runner Girl podcast is where you'll find a passion for running, hiking, paddling, and cycling crosses paths with a love of nature and outdoor exploration in the beautiful state of Michigan — and beyond. A mother, writer, gigantic Great Lakes fan, and book lover Heather Durocher, creator of the running and travel site MichiganRunnerGirl.com, hosts the show. Expect to hear informative, engaging, and inspiring conversations with others also on their own health and wellness journey. The Michigan Runner Girl podcast is about finding our way, through movement. Season One of 2022 now underway, with a theme of Reconnection.
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Now displaying: January, 2016
Jan 28, 2016
You set your goals for 2016. You mapped out your race plan for the year. You started out with a bang. It's now nearly February, we're in the thick of winter, and you might be rocking it out with your running ... or you might be feeling a little, well, unmotivated. Fear not, we're here to help. Heather talks with Cara Zerbel, assistant store manager and community outreach director for Gazelle Sports in Grand Rapids, about ways to stay motivated throughout the winter months. Cara, 31, started running in high school (she lost 45 pounds through running on a treadmill in her basement!) and went on to run a 5K in honor of her mother, who was diagnosed with cancer in 2007. She has since run numerous races, including two marathons and several Fifth Third River Bank Runs. She's been involved with Gazelle Sports' training groups and talks about the importance of having running friends who can help keep you accountable. Other tips include signing up for a spring race, finding creative ways to cross train, considering a gym membership and treating yourself to new running clothing. Cara is also co-race director of the Gazelle Girl Half Marathon & 5K, slated for April 17, 2016.
 
Links: 
Gazelle Sports: www.gazellesports.com 
Gazelle Girl Half Marathon & 5K: http://gazellegirlhalfmarathon.com
Fifth Third River Bank Run: https://www.53riverbankrun.com
Jan 20, 2016
When you're a runner, injuries can happen. You might be injured now (we feel your pain, physically and mentally!) or you may have been injured in the past and know all too well what it's like to be sidelined for awhile. In this episode, Heather talks with Suttons Bay runner Krista Scott, a physical therapist, and Dena Johnson, a certified athletic trainer, about common runner injuries -- why they happen and what we can do to treat them. Dena, who is training for her first Boston Marathon this year, has 20 years experience in the outpatient physical therapy setting. She is the clinic director at ATI Physical Therapy Traverse City West and the Running Institute. Krista, a former competitive swimmer and three-time Boston Marathon finisher, is the clinic director for ATI Physical Therapy in Suttons Bay. All three women talk about different aches and pains they've dealt with throughout their running journeys, and also what has helped them get back out on the roads and trails. ATI Physical Therapy is a nationwide physical therapy business with locations throughout Michigan.

 

Jan 14, 2016

 

Another way to embrace the outdoors this winter: snowshoe running. Join Heather and co-host Cassy Stone as they talk about their love of running in the snow -- on snowshoes. They welcome guests Jeff Gaft, race director of the Bigfoot Snowshoe 10K & 5K race held later this month on the east side of Traverse City, and Jeb Stone, a northern Michigan runner who who is a 3-time winner of the Bigfoot race (and has the Sasquatch statues that are race prizes to prove it). These four runners (Jeb is Cassy's "better half," as he jokes on the show) talk about why they enjoy running on snowshoes, tips for getting started and finding the right pair of snowshoes. Jeb also shares a few racing tips for anyone looking to get out there and challenge themselves in a snowshoe race. Jeff, who is a manager at Running Fit in Traverse City,  gives inside information about this year's event -- the Bigfoot takes place Saturday, Jan. 23 at Timber Ridge Resort -- as well as interesting details about how this race got started nearly 20 years ago. Be sure to listen through the end, when Heather offers up a special race discount code for a snowshoe race held in the U.P. In February. The Tahquamenon Snowshoe 10K & 5K, organized by Great Lakes Endurance, is among her favorite races and she hopes to head north to take part in it again this year. Finally, a listener informed Heather of another snowshoe running event this winter: a 3.5-mile or 7-mile snowshoe race part of the Meijer State Games festivities on Feb. 20 in Muskegon. The race takes place on some of the most challenging snowshoe terrain in the state, offering views of Lake Michigan and dunes.


Links: 
 
Bigfoot Snowshoe 10K & 5K Race on Jan. 23 - www.runsnow.com 
 
Running Fit: www.runningfit.com 
 
Great Lakes Endurance - Tahquamenon 10K & 5K Snowshoe Race on Feb. 20: http://www.greatlakesendurance.com/michigan-races/tahquamenon-snowshoe.html
 
Snowshoe race at the Muskegon Winter Sports Complex: www.msports.org/events
 
 

 

Jan 6, 2016
If you're thinking about starting to run in 2016, or you've decided to return to the sport after some time off, this episode is for you. (And really for any of us who want to find our running groove in the year ahead.) Coach Lisa Taylor and Heather Durocher talk about common mistakes newer runners make and how to avoid them. They also share hard-won runner wisdom from their own running journeys (the importance of cross-training, realizing and accepting that not every run is going to feel all that good, the pitfalls of comparing ourselves to others...) This episode also features insight from MRG readers, who shared their own been-there-done-that advice on the Michigan Runner Girl Facebook page. Along with coaching high school girls cross country for 20+ years, Coach Lisa has helped more than 400 runners over the past 13 years get started running through a northern Michigan running program -- her advice on this episode is sure to motivate you to discover your best running self in 2016, whether you're just getting back into it or you're lacing up running shoes for the very first time.
 
Link: Michigan Runner Girl Facebook page - www.facebook.com/Michigan-runner-girl
 
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