Podcast: Episode 153 with Shalane Flanagan

Mario Fraioli | March 22, 2021

“I’m hoping that my position with Bowerman and what I’m doing is just the beginning of a whole bunch of other women getting into coaching—and especially at this level. I think there’s some great coaches at the collegiate level and high school level and they’ve been doing an amazing job, but I think to take it to this level as well, at the professional level, I feel like there’s very minimal women out there and I’d love to just hopefully be a resource and a mentor to some future women that want to get into coaching. That being said, I don’t have personal coaching goals, I just hope that it’s something even bigger than that—it’s actually a catalyst for a whole bunch of women to be in positions of power and mentoring and leadership and guiding.”

Shalane Flanagan hardly needs an introduction, so I’ll keep this short: she is one of the greatest American distance runners of all-time—a 4-time Olympian, an Olympic silver medalist in the 10,000m, world cross country bronze medalist, and the 2017 New York City Marathon champion. Over the course of her professional running career, Shalane won 16 national titles and held or still holds several American records.

These days, she’s a mom to her son Jack, a coach with the Bowerman Track Club, and The New York Times best-selling author of Run Fast. Eat Slow.

This was Shalane’s second time joining me on the podcast—be sure to check her first appearance back in Episode 7 if you haven’t already—and we had a great time catching up about coaching, parenting, book writing, and what her own running looks like these days. We also talked about her relationship to anxiety, how she channels her competitiveness now that she’s no longer a professional athlete, and a lot more.

Shalane Flanagan: Instagram | Twitter | Website

the morning shakeout: Instagram | Twitter

Mario Fraioli: Website | Strava

This episode is brought to you by:

— Girls on the Run has been inspiring girls to know and activate their limitless potential and boldly pursue their dreams. On Thursday, March 25 at 7 PM EST you are invited to join an exciting 25th Birthday virtual event celebrating the inherent power and courage of girls. Join me and RSVP today at gotr.gives/TMS. The event is free to attend, but donations can be made and special add-on packages are available for purchase such as a copy of Hoda’s newest book and a pair of GOODR sunglasses customized for Girls on the Run.

Music and editing for this episode of the morning shakeout podcast by John Summerford.