724. Krissy Gear, 2023 U.S. 3000m Steeplechase National Champion

"I’m used to having to claw my way to prove myself to the people I need to prove myself to. But now, it’s more of a mentality I have: Keep your head down. There’s nothing glamorous about this sport. For me, it’s all hard work, show up, showcase your fitness, and then go celebrate with the people who really care about you." Amanda Vestri was the talk of the running scene last weekend, after her breakout road race at the New York Mini 10K. She finished fourth overall (Senbere Teferi won the race for the third year in a row), was the top American finisher, and ran 31:17 in a deep, star-studded field. In this conversation, the Syracuse University graduate and ZAP Endurance athlete talks about getting a huge confidence boost heading into the U.S. Olympic Track & Field Trials later this month where she'll race the 10,000m. Plus, why the 24-year-old likes racing with a chip on her shoulder, and her long-term plans and goals in this sport. FOLLOW AMANDA @a_vestri SPONSORS:  UCAN: Click here to get a FREE UCAN training essentials pack (you’ll just pay the cost of shipping), and use code ALI for 20% off your next UCAN order. New Balance: Click here to shop New Balance's latest releases for the season. What you’ll get on this episode: How Amanda is feeling after racing the Mini 10K in New York City (2:20) All about race morning (7:30) Amanda breaks down her race at the Mini 10K (10:20) On racing with a chip on her shoulder, and who Amanda looks up to in this sport (21:40) What it will take to make Team USA this year (28:45) On growing up with Olympic dreams (30:30) What Amanda was like as a kid, and how she became a runner (50:50) What training will look like between now and the Trials (53:50) Follow Ali: Instagram @aliontherun1 Join the Facebook group Twitter @aliontherun1 Support on Patreon Subscribe to the newsletter SUPPORT the Ali on the Run Show! If you’re enjoying the show, please subscribe and leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. Spread the run love. And if you liked this episode, share it with your friends!

"I’m trying to appreciate the peaks and the valleys — but there’s a lot of beauty in the hillside, too." Last year, Krissy Gear stormed on the steeplechase scene by taking the win at the 2023 USATF National Championships, earning her first national title and a spot on Team USA for the World Championships in Budapest. Now, Krissy is gearing up for this summer's U.S. Olympic Track and Field Team Trials, and is officially one to watch in the 3000m steeplechase. In this conversation, Krissy talks about how she's feeling a few weeks out, about the pressure to perform when you're "one to watch," and about her passions off the track. Krissy lives in Flagstaff, AZ, and is a member of HOKA NAZ Elite.  SPONSOR:  UCAN: Click here to get a FREE UCAN energy bar sample pack (you’ll just pay the cost of shipping), and use code ALI for 20% off your next UCAN order. What you’ll get on this episode: Krissy’s “work hard, play hard” mentality (5:00) Why Krissy became a runner (10:35) How Krissy ended up with HOKA NAZ Elite (17:40) Krissy reflects on her 2023 national title in the 3000m steeplechase (26:00) How Krissy is feeling with the U.S. Olympic Track & Field Trials looming (32:00) Eugene behind-the-scenes (42:50) On being one to watch at the Trials (48:40) What Krissy’s relationship is like with the NAZ Elite women’s marathoners (53:45) All about Krissy’s many tattoos (58:05) Follow Ali: Instagram @aliontherun1 Join the Facebook group Twitter @aliontherun1 Support on Patreon Subscribe to the newsletter SUPPORT the Ali on the Run Show! If you’re enjoying the show, please subscribe and leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. Spread the run love. And if you liked this episode, share it with your friends!

"I feel the most confident I’ve ever been." Emily Mackay is having a heck of a year on the run! The Team New Balance Boston athlete earned a bronze medal at World Indoor Championships in the 1500m earlier this year, and has kicked off her outdoor season with strong performances including a personal best at the Prefontaine Classic, where she ran 3:59.76. In this conversation, Emily reflects back on her early running days, and shares why she dreamed of going pro with the NB Boston team (including teammates Elle Purrier St. Pierre and Heather MacLean) and coach Mark Coogan. She talks about the confidence it took to make that major move with 400m to go at World Indoor Championships, and about why that race was both a confidence-booster and a big learning experience. And, with the U.S. Olympic Track & Field Team Trials looming, Emily — who is absolutely one to watch in the 1500 — talks about the pressure to perform in an Olympic year. FOLLOW EMILY @emily_mac7 SPONSORS:  Vuori: Click here for 20% off your first Vuori purchase. UCAN: Click here to get a FREE UCAN energy bar sample pack (you’ll just pay the cost of shipping), and use code ALI for 20% off your next UCAN order. What you’ll get on this episode: What Emily’s watching right now (3:00) What a day in the life of a professional middle-distance runner is like (6:10) All about Emily’s 1500m personal best at the Prefontaine Classic (10:30) The confidence it took to make a major move at World Indoor Championships with 400m to go (15:00) Was that a breakthrough race for Emily? (18:40) The pressure to perform in an Olympic year (27:30) What it’s like when your teammates are your competitors on race day, and how Emily ended up on Team NB Boston (31:10) How — and why — Emily became a runner (39:35) What training looks like right now, with the Trials on the horizon (42:05) What will it take to make the U.S. women’s 1500m Olympic team? (46:25) Follow Ali: Instagram @aliontherun1 Join the Facebook group Twitter @aliontherun1 Support on Patreon Subscribe to the newsletter SUPPORT the Ali on the Run Show! If you’re enjoying the show, please subscribe and leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. Spread the run love. And if you liked this episode, share it with your friends!

"I am scared of outer space, submarines, and remote research laboratories." We're live with Emma Coburn for the fourth time, making this her eighth appearance on the Ali on the Run Show! In this conversation, recorded in front of a live audience at Smack Mellon in Brooklyn, NY, the day before the RBC Brooklyn Half, we cover Emma's ick factors, her season-ending injury and her outlook about being sidelined during an Olympic year, and her "Team Boss Superlatives." SPONSOR:  New Balance: Click here to shop New Balance's latest releases for the season. Follow Ali: Instagram @aliontherun1 Join the Facebook group Twitter @aliontherun1 Support on Patreon Subscribe to the newsletter SUPPORT the Ali on the Run Show! If you’re enjoying the show, please subscribe and leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. Spread the run love. And if you liked this episode, share it with your friends!

"I feel like life should be back to normal. And it’s not!" Welcome to the 2024 RBC Brooklyn Half finish line! I was delighted to be one of the guests for a live recording of the Set the Pace podcast with host Becs Gentry. In this episode, I reflect a bit on my history with the Brooklyn Half, including why I wasn't able to run this year's race (more on that here), and then share the recording from the show with Becs and Release Recovery Foundation's Zac Clark.  SPONSORS:  UCAN: Click here to get a FREE UCAN energy bar sample pack (you’ll just pay the cost of shipping), and use code ALI for 20% off your next UCAN order. goodr: Click here and use code ALI for free shipping. What you’ll get on this episode: Reflecting on the weekend in NYC, and my history with the Brooklyn Half (2:25) Set the Pace LIVE with Becs Gentry and Zac Clark (24:20) Follow Ali: Instagram @aliontherun1 Join the Facebook group Twitter @aliontherun1 Support on Patreon Subscribe to the newsletter SUPPORT the Ali on the Run Show! If you’re enjoying the show, please subscribe and leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. Spread the run love. And if you liked this episode, share it with your friends!

"I remember being acutely aware that it was the worst day of my life up to that point, and the world was still going. People were out for runs in Central Park. People were going to the office. People were picking their kids up from school. It felt like everyone else’s world kept turning and I was in purgatory." It's been one year since I was diagnosed with stage 1 invasive ductal carcinoma with DCIS. Breast cancer. A diagnosis that rocked my world and changed my life. In this solo episode, I'm reflecting on the past year, including revisiting some of my notes and thoughts from one year ago, and sharing what happens next. SPONSORS:  UCAN: Click here to get a FREE UCAN energy bar sample pack (you’ll just pay the cost of shipping), and use code ALI for 20% off your next UCAN order. New Balance: Click here to shop New Balance's latest releases for the season. What you’ll get on this episode: A look back at some of my thoughts from one year ago (1:45) Listener Q&A (28:55) Follow Ali: Instagram @aliontherun1 Join the Facebook group Twitter @aliontherun1 Support on Patreon Subscribe to the newsletter SUPPORT the Ali on the Run Show! If you’re enjoying the show, please subscribe and leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. Spread the run love. And if you liked this episode, share it with your friends!

"It’s processing all of these emotions that you have with things that you’re anticipating you are not going to be able to see. Like my daughter is a year and a half at this point. Am I going to see her go to elementary school? And then of course you’re Googling the results. It is awful." One year after giving birth to her daughter, Anne Keane decided it was time to get back into a workout routine. On her quest to get active again, she felt a tightness in her sternum. What she hoped was nothing serious was stage 4 metastatic breast cancer. In this conversation, Anne talks about receiving and living with a scary diagnosis for which there is treatment, but no cure. She talks about finding running, and about becoming a three-time Boston Marathoner as part of the Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge team. Anne is the SVP of client services at an agency where she "does really cool events with really cool people," she's a jewelry designer, and she's an absolute force. FOLLOW ANNE @adjewelry SPONSOR:  UCAN: Click here to get a FREE UCAN energy bar sample pack (you’ll just pay the cost of shipping), and use code ALI for 20% off your next UCAN order. What you’ll get on this episode: How Anne’s Boston Marathon recovery has been going (2:40) How Anne introduces herself to people, and how she feels about being labeled a survivor, fighter, or warrior (10:15) How and why Anne became a jewelry designer (14:25) When Anne fits running and working out into her life (17:25) On receiving a life-altering diagnosis (19:00) On living in fear (34:05) How Anne became a runner — and marathoner (48:30) Follow Ali: Instagram @aliontherun1 Join the Facebook group Twitter @aliontherun1 Support on Patreon Subscribe to the newsletter SUPPORT the Ali on the Run Show! If you’re enjoying the show, please subscribe and leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. Spread the run love. And if you liked this episode, share it with your friends!  

"One of my favorite things to do when it gets hard is I ask myself the question, 'Is this the story you want to tell today?' I like that question because you can’t hide from that question. You can finish a run and tell your friends, 'Oh my stomach was upset,' or, 'The weather or whatever.' But you can’t lie to yourself. You know who you’re choosing to be in those moments. And I like asking myself, 'Who do you want to be in those moments?' And I find that usually I want to be someone who pushes through hard stuff." Emily Halnon is no stranger to the Ali on the Run Show. She was the show's very first guest, and she returned for her seventh appearance on the show with a very special conversation recorded in front of a live audience at the 2024 Eugene Marathon race expo, one week before her debut memoir, To the Gorge, is released to the world. (Get your copy here!) We talked about the book, about exploring grief through running, about pushing back on the praised notion of fearlessness, about how to make the most of our lives and the people in it, and so much more. FOLLOW EMILY @emilysweats SPONSOR:  Vuori: Click here for 20% off your first Vuori purchase. Follow Ali: Instagram @aliontherun1 Join the Facebook group Twitter @aliontherun1 Support on Patreon Subscribe to the newsletter SUPPORT the Ali on the Run Show! If you’re enjoying the show, please subscribe and leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. Spread the run love. And if you liked this episode, share it with your friends!

"To have Long Live playing while I was standing on this stage feeling really proud of a show I had just done, and hugging so many of you, and feeling like we’re in this together… Those moments are really magical to me, and they are the memories that I hope I have forever." There’s nowhere I’d rather be on the third Monday in April than at the Boston Marathon finish line! This year, I was honored to be asked back to perform a variety of roles in Boston. I was one of the start and finish line announcers at the Boston 5K and invitational miles, I hosted three live shows, I was one of the race announcers at the finish on Marathon Monday, and I was the finish line reporter for the world feed broadcast. It was a fun, rewarding weekend that included quality time with my favorite people, one of my all-time favorite live events, a million finish line hugs, an interview with Rob Gronkowski, and so much more. SPONSORS:  UCAN: Click here to get a FREE UCAN energy bar sample pack (you’ll just pay the cost of shipping), and use code ALI for 20% off your next UCAN order. goodr: Click here and use code ALI for free shipping. What you’ll get on this episode: Friday: the press conference, the Emma & Jenny live show, and the “manifestation walk” with Keira D’Amato (1:30) Saturday: the 5K, the miles, and the Oofos live show (20:25) Sunday: the New Balance live show, some quality time with Kara Goucher, and an afternoon of broadcast meetings (30:05) Marathon Monday: all the stories from the finish line, including friends’ finishes, pro finishes, and GRONK (45:30) Tuesday: TURKEY STRIKE (1:07:00) Listener Q&A (1:14:15) Follow Ali: Instagram @aliontherun1 Join the Facebook group Twitter @aliontherun1 Support on Patreon Subscribe to the newsletter SUPPORT the Ali on the Run Show! If you’re enjoying the show, please subscribe and leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. Spread the run love. And if you liked this episode, share it with your friends!

"Whatever you need, I hope you got at least a little of it here today." What an honor and a treat it was to get to host a live show the day before the 2024 Boston Marathon with 2014 champion Meb Keflezighi. In this conversation — recorded live at the New Balance headquarters — Meb talked about how he was feeling the day before running the race again, 10 years after his historic win the year after the bombings. He talked about officially becoming a New Balance athlete (!!!), about his hopes to run sub-3:00 (he finished in 3:08), and the impact his 2014 win had on him, his family, the city of Boston, and the running community. SPONSOR: New Balance. Click here to shop New Balance’s latest releases for the season. (The SuperComp Trainer is my favorite daily shoe. Meb ran the Boston Marathon in the SC Elite v4!) Follow Ali: Instagram @aliontherun1 Join the Facebook group Twitter @aliontherun1 Support on Patreon Subscribe to the newsletter SUPPORT the Ali on the Run Show! If you’re enjoying the show, please subscribe and leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. Spread the run love. And if you liked this episode, share it with your friends!