Episode 57: Running Resilient with Michelle Merlis

Josh Fernandez joins us on today's episode of The Running Kind Podcast. Josh is the Executive Director of Queer Run and they are passionate about queer advocacy and equality in the running space. Queer Run is dedicated to creating safe spaces for Philadelphia-area LGBTQIA+ athletes and allies of all running paces. They welcome people from all backgrounds to join them for their free weekly group runs. Follow Queer Run or Josh on Instagram at @queerrun or @joshadelphia. You can find more information about The Running Kind here. https://therunningkind.net/ https://www.facebook.com/groups/therunningkind/ @therunningkind_ Aimee Kohler  Founder of The Running Kind @aimskoh Produced by Aimee Kohler Music Dim Red Light by Don Dilego  

Aimee is joined by professional trail runner, Michelle Merlis on today's episode of The Running Kind Podcast. Michelle has been hitting the trails since 2014 and has run as a professional SkyRunner and for Team USA at the Mountain Running World Championship in 2022. This year Michelle has expanded her coaching business with MNTN Goat Running while also battling with her body fighting a tick-borne illness. With a shared passion for environmentalism, we shared many thoughts on today's episode about the intersection of climate activism in sport. Follow Michelle at @mntngoatrunning or @mountain.runner.michelle You can find more information about The Running Kind here. https://therunningkind.net/ https://www.facebook.com/groups/therunningkind/ @therunningkind_ Aimee Kohler  Founder of The Running Kind @aimskoh Produced by Aimee Kohler Music Dim Red Light by Don Dilego  

On today's episode Aimee chats with Yolanda Lopez Haugabook, also known as Yo! Yo joins us today as the co-founder of a new trail running group in Nashville, TN, Sin Miedo. Sin Miedo translates to without fear, or fearless, and has taken off with force. She and her partner are bringing inclusivity to the trails, making it a safer space for BIPOC runners to enjoy!  Check out Sin Miedo at @sinmiedotrailrunners on Instagram! You can find more information about The Running Kind here. https://therunningkind.net/ https://www.facebook.com/groups/therunningkind/ @therunningkind_ Aimee Kohler  Founder of The Running Kind @aimskoh Produced by Aimee Kohler Music Dim Red Light by Don Dilego  

Today Aimee is joined by David Sinclair, a Craft mountain athlete that has been tearing up the scene for years now. He had a stellar race, most recently placing second at CCC at UTMB in France a few weeks ago. Though this is his most recent accomplishment, he holds the course record at JFK 50, won the USATF 50K championships, and was named #3 Ultrarunner of the Year last year… among a long list of impressive race finishes. You can find more information about The Running Kind here. https://therunningkind.net/ https://www.facebook.com/groups/therunningkind/ @therunningkind_ Aimee Kohler  Founder of The Running Kind @aimskoh Produced by Aimee Kohler Music Dim Red Light by Don Dilego  

Aimee is joined by Samantha Dong and Steven Leung on today's episode featuring Asian Trail Mix! Asian Trail Mix is a trail running community based in New York City that promotes diversity and inclusion for people of color, especially AAPI individuals, at all levels of fitness. Samantha and Steven founded the group and recently brought members to Climb It For Climate, where we all connected in person for the first time! Follow Asian Trail Mix on Instagram @asiantrailmix! You can find more information about The Running Kind here. https://therunningkind.net/ https://www.facebook.com/groups/therunningkind/ @therunningkind_ Aimee Kohler  Founder of The Running Kind @aimskoh Produced by Aimee Kohler Music Dim Red Light by Don Dilego  

On this episode of The Running Kind Podcast, Aimee is joined by Terry Chiplin, founder of the US Trail Running Conference. The mission of the US Trail Running Conference is to lead, educate, connect and empower an inclusive family of race directors, trail runners, brands and industry leaders working to share best practices with the trail running community. Terry has been hosting the conference since 2013 and continues to lead the industry in fostering connection and innovation in the trail running space.  For more information on the US Trail Running Conference: https://ustrailrunningconference.com/ For more information on ActivAcuity: https://www.activacuity.com/subscribe/ You can find more information about The Running Kind here. https://therunningkind.net/ https://www.facebook.com/groups/therunningkind/ @therunningkind_ Aimee Kohler  Founder of The Running Kind @aimskoh Produced by Aimee Kohler Music Dim Red Light by Don Dilego  

On today's episode Aimee is joined by rising star in the trail running world, Anna Gibson. Anna recently received the The Future award at Trail Con this year in addition to coming off some epic performances at Broken Arrow and USATF Mountain Running Championships. She is the only runner to be representing the United States at the Mountain Running World Championships in both the Classic Up/Down and Vertical Discipline. Anna is a versatile athlete, competing at the top of the sport in trail running while also coming off very strong performances on the track, such as the Olympic Trials 1500m. You can find more information about The Running Kind here. https://therunningkind.net/ https://www.facebook.com/groups/therunningkind/ @therunningkind_ Aimee Kohler  Founder of The Running Kind @aimskoh Produced by Aimee Kohler Music Dim Red Light by Don Dilego  

This week's episode is a little different... For the first time ever, The Running Kind took the podcast on the road! Tune in to hear Aimee's conversation with Haley Heinrich and Greg Ahlswede prior to taking on Climb It For Climate 25K. Climb It For Climate is a grueling 25K traversing over 5000ft of elevation in the technical Catskill Mountains. For more information on Climb It For Climate, visit https://therunningkind.net/climb-it-for-climate. You can find more information about The Running Kind here. https://therunningkind.net/ https://www.facebook.com/groups/therunningkind/ @therunningkind_ Aimee Kohler  Founder of The Running Kind @aimskoh Produced by Aimee Kohler Music Dim Red Light by Don Dilego  

On this episode of The Running Kind Podcast, Aimee is joined by Deputy Executive Director at the Catskill Center, Kali Bird. The Catskill Center protects the Catskills through advocacy, education, land protection and community engagement. Over the last three years, The Running Kind has developed a close relationship with The Catskill Center as a partner for our event Climb It For Climate where registration and raffle proceeds are donated on our behalf. You can find more information about The Running Kind here. https://therunningkind.net/ https://www.facebook.com/groups/therunningkind/ @therunningkind_ If you are looking for additional ways to support The Running Kind, check out our Patreon page! patreon.com/TheRunningKind Aimee Kohler  Founder of The Running Kind @aimskoh Produced by Aimee Kohler Music Dim Red Light by Don Dilego  

On today's episode, Aimee sits down with her coach Holly Benner and they have a coaching conversation. Holly is the co-founder of Metta Performance, a performance based coaching business for athletic and business development.  Unlike our previous episode on coaching with Holly where we collected hot topics from the community, this episode dives a little deeper into some weaknesses addressed by Aimee. They start by addressing a physical weak point and the conversation takes several turns to land on a discussion surrounding how our mentality is everything! To learn more or connect with Holly through Metta Performance you can follow along at @metta.performance or connect through metta.performance.com.  You can find more information about The Running Kind here. https://therunningkind.net/ https://www.facebook.com/groups/therunningkind/ @therunningkind_ Aimee Kohler  Founder of The Running Kind @aimskoh Produced by Aimee Kohler Music Dim Red Light by Don Dilego