122: The River Runners: Twelve Inspiring Runners’ Stories

Listen to a recorded Periscope broadcast with Kari and Jeff Paladina, who also comes on the show to share his running journey and why he created the running meet up in Mechanicsburg (a suburb of Harrisburg, PA) with the River Runners group. Several runners from the Fleet Feet store in Mechanicsburg are also featured, and they talk about the gift of running and some of their most memorable races and running advice. Dr. Marjorie Dejoie, MD, returns to the podcast to discuss how this winter has affected her running and her sickle cell disease. Serena Marie, RD, talks about when to time your carbs and protein based on your fat-burning or speed goals.

Featured Guests and Runners of the Week: River Runners

Kari meets up with Jeff Paladina at a local Wegmans in Mechanicsburg, PA, to share some inspiring River Runners runners’ stories.

• Mike: He has lost quite a bit of weight through Weight Watchers and running. His quality of life has greatly improved. “Everything’s possible that wasn’t possible before,” he says. He used to have a bowl of pretzels before dinner after work, but now he is much more active (swimming, biking, triathlons), and his self confidence has soared. He never wants to forget what it was like to be heavy, so he never wants to go back to that again. His first marathon was 10/10/10 at the Steamtown Marathon.
• Holly: Her favorite race distance is the marathon, because running 5Ks are hardcore; she did a 50-miler in December, and liked running slower and being able to chat with other runners. She has had to keep her weight in check and to properly hydrate in order to be able to run longer distances. For anyone thinking about running, she recommends working on your mental strength. She admits, “I never toe a starting line now without thinking I’ll get a PR [personal record].”
• Katie: Her husband started running because of her running. He ran cross country in high school, and this time around is a total new experience. She was always after him to work out with her, but through running, they’ve been able to spend more time together and have met some great people. It gives them something to do together after work and to feel more excited about the area that they live in. Katie was never a runner, but last year they signed up for a 5K and haven’t stopped since.
• Kathy: Her favorite/most memorable race is a half marathon in China, which was her second half marathon! She had to bring her own water to the race. Her first marathon was the Harrisburg Marathon, which was great, because there were so many people associated with the River Runners along the course. She ended up qualifying for the Boston Marathon at that marathon.
• Jeff: His top tip is for being aware of lyme ticks is making sure to use socks and long sleeves or a repellent (like oregano oil) to protect yourself and remembering to check yourself once you get home for ticks. Jeff and Kari walked together during the Harrisburg meet up, and they talked a lot about Lyme disease.
• Michelle: She co-founded the Facebook group once they found a need on their long runs for company and safety. For example, they do the Pennsylvania Farm Show Milkshake Run and then head over for milkshakes. Having an extended running family really keeps you motivated.
• Shelly: She has been running for eight years, and the strangest thing she’s seen while out running is a man aiming at her and her dogs with a gun. One of her best memories is the Entenmann's Town of Islip Great South Bay Run half marathon in Long Island, NY, where her goal was to finish in under three hours despite the brutal wind, and she did it! She won a Side Stitch by Ginny headband at the TRLS meet up.
• Brad: His new favorite marathon is the Sketchers Performance Los Angeles Marathon, but he has run the Walt Disney World Dopey Challenge since 2009 every year, the Bank of America Chicago Marathon, the TCS New York City Marathon, and so on. The crowds were so generous, and the amount of food was amazing. He was in awe of the Students Run L.A. His advice would be to have fun and enjoy the Disney races—just run for the experience! He has completed twenty-five marathons!
• Marni: She just ran the Marine Corps Marathon, and she thought it was tough. She got injured during her training, but she did her best under her circumstances. The Blue Mile is so inspiring. She highly recommends this race as a destination race. She used to run every now and stuck to the treadmill too much and didn’t know anything about proper training. Finally, she did Couch to 5K with her husband, and her training felt much easier. The program is only nine or ten weeks, so she suggests sticking with it for that long to give it a chance. She questions, “What have you lost if you don’t like it?”
• Michelle: She runs with several groups, and she’s been doing the Fleet Feet Boston training program. She used to train at the Fleet Feet Columbus, OH group before she came to PA. She thrives on running schedules and being told what to do. This will be her third Boston Marathon. She encourages any runner to watch the Boston Marathon.

Jeff Paladina

Jeff decided to have a group run with Kari because the running community is incredible in Harrisburg, and he wanted an excuse to throw a party!

• Originally, Jeff took a picture of a Pittsburgh Starbucks mug and asked Kari to come run in Pittsburgh. Kari messaged back and forth with Jeff on Facebook, because she knew she would be in Jeff’s neck of the woods for the Big Kahuna’s swim meet.
• He got involved with his running community because he had children in travel sports, which took up a lot of his time. It made training very difficult. One of his friends started a purely Facebook-driven group called the River Runners, and he can post on the group his pace and distance to meet up with fellow runners.
• Eventually, he started running with more and more people, and they became a second family to him.
• They support each other in their victories or throughout injuries, and it’s an amazing fraternity.
• At first, the running was primary for him and the social aspect was secondary, but now they’re at least equal.
• He’s excited when the group gets new runners, because he loves connecting with them and learning about them.
• Every single person shows up on race day with a story, and we’re all there together for a common purpose.
• Not while on the run, some of his favorite moments, including one friend was unemployed for awhile, and the group raised $1,700 for him and threw him a surprise party.
• He PRed by thirteen seconds at the Via Marathon (in Allentown, PA), and he didn’t realize his running friends would be there. They brought megaphones and spread out along the course. His friend Marni jumped in the race around Mile 20, which was amazing.
• Some of his favorite PA races include the Pittsburgh Marathon, the Richard S. Caliguiri City of Pittsburgh Great Race, and the Capital 10-Miler, the Harrisburg half marathon, and the Harrisburg Marathon (the last two are like “runner holidays”).
• He shares how listening to Vinnie Tortorich talk about no sugar and no grains has helped his running. He had heard Vinnie on the Marathon Training Academy podcast and cut out all artificial sweeteners and dropped about fifteen pounds. In 2014, he had run the Pittsburgh Marathon in about 4:45, and he ran the Sugarloaf Marathon in 4:10 last year.
• He started with diet changes, and now he trains harder because he’s excited about his performance.
• He’s part of the Fleet Feet training program for speed work and long runs.
• For someone who’s looking for words of encouragement, don’t worry about your pace or that you’re not “fast enough.” Running groups have people at all different paces. Joining a group will change your health and your life forever.

Just-in-Time Jabra
Last chance this month! Jabra, a TRLS sponsor, is giving away a pair of Pulse or Coach earbuds in March! Sprint over to Jabra.com/TRL and sign up for the TRLS e­mail list at therunninglifestyle.com/join to enter to win. This month’s winner will also get a thirty-­­minute Skype chat with Kari. She loves the Pulse model because of the five different ear bud sizes/fits, the in-ear heart rate monitoring, and the ability to sync the earbuds to other running apps or use the Jabra app. 

Marjorie Dejoie, MD

Marjorie Dejoie, MD, joins Kari to update listeners on her running and how her sickle cell disease affects her running journey. She was featured on “Using Exercise, Nutrition, and Mindfulness to Attack Sickle-Cell Disease” (Episode 102).

• Marjorie is training for a 5K run with a fifty-member group on April 8 and for the Blue Cross Broad Street Run on May 1.
• This winter has been quite challenging on Marjorie’s health, especially because of the fluctuating weather temperatures. Spikes in temperature, precipitation, and humidity are also triggers.
• The quality of the air changes drastically with up-and-down temperatures.
• She’s done a lot of indoor runs when she’s had to taper, and she tries to always keep moving. What you put into your body (an anti-inflammatory meal plan) and what your mindset is (positive) will strengthen your immune system.
• She surrounds herself with people like Kari who won’t let her stop or slow down.
• Marjorie is taking a class right now with Deepak Chopra and Dr. Wild Divine on biogenetics. Even though we’re genetically coded, it doesn’t be we are fated to be that way. To attend this type of Deepak Chopra online course, go here.
  • Use the power of continual positive thinking.
  • You’re not going to just change someone’s mind right away, but what you can do is engage them in a different conversation (how you speak and the examples that you use).
• Reminder: The April Book Club book is 168 Hours: You Have More Time Than You Think by Laura Vanderkam.
• Announcement: On Sunday, April 17, Kari and Marjorie will be at Philadelphia Runner for an all-women’s event at 9 a.m. EST in the Center City location to focus on how to construct a vision board (specifically the components that you should be aware of when constructing a vision board). Attendees will make their own vision boards.
• org is Marjorie’s web site, which stands for Marjorie’s initials and the following:
  • Make A Difference FITness
  • Measured Ability During Functional Integral Training
  • Medicine Actively Delivered For Individualized Treatment

Serena Marie, RD
Serena Marie, RD, chats with Kari about a frequent request Periscope question (@SerenaMarieRD) about fueling for your fat/weight-loss goals versus athletic performance goals.

• Have your eye on one prize—either fat loss or performance.
• If you are increasing metabolism and insulin sensitivity to burn fat through sprints, hill repeats, and so on, do your workouts on a lower-carb day.
• Concentrate on depleting glycogen stores that way you’re utilizing the stored sugar in your muscles, and once your body uses the glycogen, it will pull energy from fat stores next.
• Post-workout, your muscles are asking for sugar, but you didn’t replenish it with sugar if you’re looking to decrease fat, so your body will use body fat to fuel your recovery.
• Someone who is performance oriented and wants to recover ASAP might want to have a small carb snack before a workout. After a workout, consume 20–30 grams of lean protein and pair it with at least 25 grams of carbs. They key is to pair the two together.
• Food journaling could come in handy to figure out how many carbs you need post-workout to feel your best.
• Level 2 of the Shake Yo’ Sugar Habit challenge focuses on people who want to train hard and receive a personalized macronutrient distribution breakdown. Serena can tell you how many grams of carbs to consume per day and at what time of the day.

Gratitude Jar (Woot! Woot!)

This week, Serena is grateful for her running club (the South Brooklyn Running Club). She’s happy that she took the plunge and finally went! Kari is grateful that the Fleet Feet store in Mechanicsburg, PA, gave her the opportunity to come chat about the 11 Strategies to Live the Running Lifestyle. She’s also grateful for all of her fellow runners.

Tweet Kari (@KariGormley) to share what you’re grateful for, join the TRLS mailing list and hit Reply, or e-mail [e-mail].

Next week, Dr. John Ratey talks about sugar and depression. Serena Marie, RD, talks about the nutrition aspect from what Dr. Ratey shares.

 

Contact:

Dr. Marjorie Dejoie:

Website: MadFit.org

 

Serena Marie, RD:

Website: www.SerenaMarieRD.com
Facebook: /SerenaMarieRD
Twitter: @SerenaMarieRD
Instagram: SerenaMarieRD

 

Kari Gormley:

Facebook: The Running Lifestyle Show
Twitter: @KariGormley
Instagram: @KariGormley