The D.N.S. Runners

We are back (at last) with part 2 of our Chicago marathon race recap!‘Twas the night before race day, is where we pick up, and chat about the dinner that we had the night before the race. Post dinner we each had our own approach to get ready for the race the following morning – with one of us checking their vision and they tried to review their race plan for the following day. On race morning the DNS runners met up in the hotel lobby, and found drones of runners that were making their way to the start line. The gang made their way to the start area, and as they waited for the race start, Mike was treated to a few show!Kelly shares something that really grinds her gears on race morning, and after stressing themselves out, everyone made it to their start corrals. We did our best not to stress too much as the clock ticked closer to race time.You’ll have to tune in to hear how the next 26.2 miles went!As always, you can find us on Instagram @thednsrunners

We’re back! And officially Chicago marathon finishers! Kelly, Katie and Mike are excited to get together again to talk about their experiences in Chicago during marathon weekend. In this episode they go through the days leading up to the race, travel to Chicago, and the race expo experience.

Ok, everything we said about definitely not being stressed may have been a lie - as the stress is getting to us as we are less than a week away from the 2024 Chicago Marathon!We’re stressed about the weather, staying healthy, and traveling to Chicago - and don’t even get us started about PACKING for the main event! Will we panic buy new sneakers? Or perhaps switch our flights last minute? Maybe both??Join Kelly (@gokellyeli), Katie (@katie_bell31) and Mike (@mike_papas_fritas) as they wrap up their training cycle for the Chicago marathon, and make their last preparations as race day rapidly approaches!

The longest long runs are done, and we’re counting down the days until race day! The D.N.S. Runners are definitely not stressed as they enter taper town, even though they keep managing to get sick - it’s just the taper crazies, right!? Kelly, Katie and Mike recap their latest long runs, discussing how they made it through the miles and their plans for race days, as they try to decide which shoes to wear for the big day. With only three weeks to go until race day, and with the longest long run done, how will the three of them avoid stressing about race day?

Have we finally gotten our recording schedule back on track - because we’re here with another week of the DNS runners training for the 2024 Chicago marathon, who are definitely stressed as there are only FOUR weeks until race day!We chat about how our runs have been going, and Kelly shares a recap of Brooks Hype Fest, a weekend event in Chicago that was hosted by Brooks running for the members of the Brooks Running Collective. We finally get to a subject that you would have through three runners would get to sooner - the terror of needing to deal with number 2 when you’re just trying to finish your run. As always, you can find us on instagram @theDNSrunners

Well, remember when we said we were back to a regular schedule in the last episode? Apparently that was a lie. But, the DNS (definitely not stressed) runners are back with episode 12, and there are somehow only 5 weeks left before the Chicago marathon! Since we last recorded we have logged a lot of miles, and even tried some new shoes - some of us loved them, and others wound up with feet covered in blisters…. So, varying results. While kelly managed three long runs since our last recording, she talks about struggling with getting in her “junk miles” during the week, and the weird vibes that one of them brought along. Katie, on the other hand, has found the long run elusive in the last few weeks, due to a series of unfortunate events. Mike has also had some mishaps, including a gear malfunction that left him feeling a breeze. We talk about shifting our goals for Chicago to align with how our training is going, and our general exhaustion…. Which really is something we should all expect after training for this many marathons!

The big question of the week - when the heck is Katie flying into Chicago for the marathon?!We start the episode with a realization that we are only two months out from race day, and then talk logistics for Chicago, and the NYC marathon this fall. We get into our weekly training over the last few weeks, and Mike talks about his consistency with speed training this summer. We get a guest appearance from Katie's husband, Darren, who also does not know when Katie leaves for Chicago. We all lament not being allowed to carry hydration packs during the Chicago marathon, as we have grown accustomed to using them to hold all our stuff during long runs. As for training, we are STILL complaining about how hot it is on our long runs, but on the up side, the numbers show our fitness is improving!By the end of the episode we have chatted about our plans surrounding the chicago marathon, and how we are feeling about the NYC marathon. As always, you can find us on instagram as @theDNSrunners

Somehow, we have already made it to week 10 of marathon training – which means we are half way through training! We are going through it as we exist in an armpit of humidity that is NY in July, as the miles stack up. On the day of recording we got that rare morning that felt like spring, and while Katie struck gold with her morning run, while Kelly and Mike lamented missing out this morning. We discuss our weekend run plans, and where our favorite local spots to get in a long run are – also, our least favorites, which usually include hills. Kelly has needed to cut back on her runs as a result of a recurring injury, and talks about her plans going forward with this training cycle. We eventually make our way into talking about the last week of training, and the long runs that we each got in. Mike headed to Hershey park, which added a layer of complication to getting a run in!We chat about learning through marathon training, and the mistakes that we made as newbie runners, and the gambles we make with our eating habits before long runs to this day. We also complain about chafing, in a way that does not translate well to audio, so just know that we hate chafing. We close out the episode talking about fueling again, now that we are deeper into training and the miles are getting longer.

Welcome to another week of the DNS Runners - we’re definitely not stressed as we inch another week closer to running the 2024 Chicago marathon. After an unintentional hiatus as a result of Spotify updating their podcast app and removing editing features, we are back up and running! 
You can see the sleep in our eyes as the episode begins - literally in Kelly’s case, who took a nap and then set an alarm to wake up at 8:45 pm to record. 
We recap our hot weather long runs, and mike once again sings the praises of his treadmill. Summer marathon training is not for the faint of heart! Katie shares her love of running in the rain, and the joy it brought her long run!
Kellys brain continues to lag throughout the episode, and she talks about how she’s been incorporating more mobility work into her training. 
Mike shares his washing machine saga, and welcomes us to his smart house. 
We talk about mom guilt on runs, and trying to make training happen in tandem with life commitments.

The biggest topic this week - What is the correct utensil to eat mac and cheese with? Because kelly is totally eating as we record, and is remorsefully using a spoon to eat hers. The DNS runners actually got to run together this week, meeting up on the 4th of july for a group run hosted by Katie's run coach, Ken (find him on instagram at @Givin_it_a_Tri), and Kelly and Katie brought the kids along for the fun! Kelly slacked on weekend running as a result of family travel, so her week of training wound up being a little light, but Katie and Mike chime in with their successful weekend long runs, and Mike even survived a solo track session when Kelly bailed on an early morning. Katie participated in a special event with Team Fox, an organization that raises money for parkinson's research. We discuss the magical properties of the potato as we cover this week's medical issues - should we start selling pet potatoes? Let us know. We close out the episode with playing "roses and thorns," and each picking a running song of the week. As always, you can find us on instagram under the handles: @theDNSrunners @gokellyeli @katie_bell31 @mike_pappas_fritas