Running Lean
Episodes
229. How to Have More Confidence Now
17 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
One of the big keys to achieving anything significant in your life - losing weight and keeping it off, running a marathon - is confidence. So how do y...
228. Lessons Learned Flying Pig Weekend
10 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This past weekend was the biggest running event of the year here in Cincinnati - Flying Pig Weekend! I did a lot of racing this weekend and let’s ju...
227. The Power of Practicing Mindfulness
03 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
About 80% of Americans say they feel some degree of stress in their daily lives. We are a stressed-out society. Having a daily stress management pract...
226. What’s the Best Pacing Strategy?
26 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
We’re in the middle of the Spring racing season here in the US and a lot of runners ask me questions about pacing for their upcoming race. Believe i...
225. Pushing Past Your Comfort Zone
19 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
One of the most powerful things you can do to improve your health and fitness is to regularly push past your comfort zone. The idea of getting uncomfo...
224. How I Experienced Freedom from Alcohol
12 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
17 years ago I finally made the decision to give up drinking alcohol. This was not a decision that came quickly or easily, I had been drinking daily f...
223. The Problem with Eating Whatever You Want
05 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
There’s a lot of interesting food advice being given out these days by health and fitness “experts.” One in particular that has stood out to me ...
222. How to Stop the Mindless Eating
29 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Have you ever found yourself at the end of a sleeve of Oreos or at the bottom of a bag of potato chips and thought…did I really just eat all that? I...
221. What Are You Willing to Sacrifice to Lose Weight?
22 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
If you’ve ever trained for a marathon then you know that sacrifices have to be made in order to achieve that goal. You have to put in a lot of hours...
220. Should You Lose Weight While Training for a Race?
15 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
A lot of runners are told not to lose weight while training for a race. There are many reasons why they are given this advice (which I cover in today’...
219. Being Boring Can Actually Be Good for You
08 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
If you've ever changed your eating habits or started exercising on the weekends instead of partying, and your friends have told you that you're boring...
218. You Have to Change How You Think
01 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
If you want to lose weight and keep it off, you probably already know that you have to change your diet. But if you think you can change your diet but...
217. 5 Ways to Improve Your Endurance
23 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Whether you are just getting into running or have been at it a while, you should be actively working on improving your endurance. While there are many...
216. An Alternative Way To Fuel Long-Distance Running
16 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
As runners, we’ve been told over the last 40 years or so that the only way to fuel for running is with carbohydrates. Loads and loads of carbs. The ...
215. Lessons Learned from Vacation Eating
09 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Recently I spent a week on vacation and decided to change my diet a bit. I made the decision to eat more freely, to enjoy some of the amazing local fo...
214. Replay: Why Running Doesn’t Work for Weight Loss
02 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Being overweight is not something that’s not talked about very much (or at all) in the running community. There seems to be some stigma around being...
213. Supplements Every Runner Should be Taking
26 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
If you’re a runner and interested in getting the most out of your training, then you’ve probably tried a multitude of supplements. There are liter...
212. 3 Things You Should Stop Doing if You Want To Lose Weight
19 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
When it comes to eating right and losing weight, there is so much information out there that it can feel incredibly overwhelming. While I can’t addr...
211. Should You Be Tracking Your Food?
12 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
There are a lot of dieticians and weight loss coaches out there who preach the benefits of tracking your food. They suggest tracking every bite you ea...
210. Common Weight Loss Myths Debunked
05 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
It’s a new year and a time when a lot of people become ultra-focused on health, fitness, and losing weight. It’s also a time when a lot of people ...
209. Replay: Stop Arguing for Your Limitations
29 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
There are basically two ways to approach any challenge. One way is to focus on all the reasons why you can’t do it. The other way is to focus on all...
208. Remembering Your Future
22 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Most people spend a great deal of time thinking about the past. They ruminate over things they did that they regret doing. They focus all of their ene...
207. How To Get Back on Track
15 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
If you want to accomplish a big goal, the key to getting there is consistency. The problem is, that most people don’t stick with something long enou...
206. Random Thoughts about Weight Loss for Runners
08 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sometimes, I have a bunch of thoughts that I want to share with you here on the podcast and I’ll create an episode for each one of those random thou...
205. The Problem is You
01 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Most people come up with all sorts of excuses, reasons, and stories for why they can’t accomplish something hard. You set out to lose weight so you ...
204. Replay: 5 Tips to Avoid Gaining Weight This Holiday Season
24 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
It’s officially the Holiday Season and that means it’s time to gain a bunch of weight over the next 30 days and start the new year feeling like cr...
203. Making Sense of All the Conflicting Information
17 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
When it comes to diets and dietary advice, there is a lot of conflicting information out there. For every study that shows that one particular food is...
202. Unraveling Unhealthy Thought Patterns
10 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
One of the toughest things about losing weight and keeping it off for good is developing a healthy relationship with food. I work with runners every d...
201. Reversing Disease Through Nutrition and Exercise with Dr. Marvin Merrit
03 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In the world of health and fitness, there is a lot of information out there - it can really feel pretty overwhelming. A lot of that information can be...
200. Mindset Principles Runners Need to Know
27 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today is a very special episode - number 200 - and I wanted to do something a little different to celebrate this milestone. I’ve had a look over the...
199. Strength, Power, and Hypertrophy for Runners
20 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
There’s a lot of confusing information out there about how runners should approach strength training. In this episode, I will explain the difference...
198. Increasing Your Emotional Tolerance
13 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
When it comes to running tough races, you eventually get to a point where it’s all mind over matter. This emotional toughness or emotional tolerance...
197. Why You Keep Going Back for More
06 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Have you ever caught yourself eating something that you know is bad for you, but you do it anyway? Why do we do this and what can we do to stop it fro...
196. What Not to Do When Life Gets Chaotic
29 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
No matter how hard we try to control all the circumstances of our lives, eventually, things get a little out of control. How you handle yourself durin...
195. Taking Control of Your Food Choices
22 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
There have been some eye-opening discoveries recently around dietary advice doled out by influencers on social media. It turns out that the food and b...
194. VO2 Max, Lactate Threshold, and Running Economy
15 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
There are a lot of metrics available to runners these days - pace, distance, time, V02 max, recovery advisor, performance condition, and on and on… ...
193. 5 Dieting Disasters Runners Need to Avoid
08 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
When it comes to losing weight, there are many, many approaches you can take - some of them will work while others definitely will not. Runners especi...
192. How Do I Break My Addiction to Sugar?
01 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
A LOT of people are addicted to, or have a troublesome relationship with, sugar. The problem is that most people don’t know how to break their sugar...
191. Fit but Unhealthy?
25 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Lots of runners look pretty healthy on the outside. They exercise a lot, maintain a decent weight, have low body fat percentage, low BMI, and generall...
190. Carbs Are Not the Enemy
18 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
There’s a lot of confusion out there these days around carbs, especially in the endurance athlete community. Are carbs good? Are they bad? Do they h...
189. Shifting Your Locus of Control
11 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
If you are having a hard time sticking with a health and fitness routine, then you might want to have a look at your locus of control. Locus of contro...
188. The Cycle of Unstoppable Motivation
04 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Most people tend to be pretty motivated when they start something. But then, over time, that motivation begins to fade. This is the reason why gyms ar...
187. Why Moderating Sugar is so Difficult
28 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
I think we all know that eating too much sugar is not good for you. Excess sugar consumption has been linked to all sorts of metabolic dysfunction lik...
186. Demystifying Metabolism
21 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
I’ve been doing a lot of research lately on human metabolism and I’ve noticed a lot of inconsistencies in the data available. There seem to be a l...
185. Why It’s So Hard to Stick to Your Food Plan
14 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
I work with a lot of runners who are awesome at sticking with their running plans. But when it comes to sticking to their diet so they can lose weight...
184. The Incredible Power of Focus
07 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
A lot of people set out to lose weight and then quit. While there are a lot of reasons why someone might give up on themselves, one of the most likely...
183. Are You Addicted to Dopamine?
30 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Over the last 100 years or so, we have become a society of pleasure-seekers and pain-avoiders. In this episode, I’m going to help you decide if you ...
182. A Better Approach to the Off-Season
23 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
If you’re anything like most runners, especially if you live in the US, this is most likely the off-season for you. Most runners approach this off-s...
181. Ultramarathon Redemption with Pete Caigan
16 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today I have a special treat for you, I’m sharing a candid conversation I recently had with Pete Caigan. Pete is one of my clients who has had a pre...
180. What I Learned Running Solo for 12 Hours
09 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Recently, I completed a self-supported, solo 12-hour run. I’ve always wanted to do a 12-hour event, but I could never really find a race that spoke ...
179. Weight Loss Principles Every Runner Needs to Know Part 3: Mindset
02 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Your mindset is one of the most powerful tools you have at your disposal. But most people do not spend any time at all working on improving their mind...
178. Weight Loss Principles Every Runner Needs to Know Part 2: Exercise
26 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Most people will agree that exercise should be included in any weight loss plan. Unfortunately, most people think that exercise should be the ONLY com...
177. Weight Loss Principles Every Runner Needs to Know Part 1: Nutrition
19 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
If you’re a runner and you want to lose weight, you have to get your nutrition game on point. The thinking that just running more is going to solve ...
176. Handling Setbacks Like a Badass
12 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
At some point in your weight loss journey, you will experience a setback. This is normal and nothing to be ashamed of. But most people just do not han...
175. The Comfort Crisis
05 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
There’s a real crisis happening in our world today, one that’s been decades in the making. And I find it somewhat disturbing that no one is really...
174. The Desire Scale
28 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
One of the most important concepts you need to learn if you want to take back control of eating is the desire scale. This is a tool we have recently s...
173. Replay: Why Diets Don’t Work
21 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
There are more diets out there in the world right now (and more conflicting information about those diets) than I even care to think about. And there ...
172. Can Losing Weight Be Fun?
14 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Most people think that losing weight equals suffering. If you want to lose weight you have to stop eating all “delicious” foods forever and you wi...
171. Getting Unstuck
07 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
One of the biggest problems people talk about when they can’t seem to take action toward a goal is feeling like they are stuck. That’s what I’m ...
170. Getting Started With Habit Change
31 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
If you want different results you have to do things differently, right? But doing things differently requires some work, it’s an uncomfortable proce...
169. What Should I Eat?
24 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
One of the most confusing topics in the health and fitness world today is…what should I eat? So today I’ll explain why what’s out there in the m...
168. Dealing With Criticism
17 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
One of the biggest fears you face when you set out to better yourself is the fear of being criticized. Today, I’m taking a comprehensive look at the...
167. Reframing Failure
10 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Failure, or rather the fear of failure, is perhaps the biggest reason why you do not achieve the important things you want for yourself. People are so...
166. Overcoming Your Fear of Success
03 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
If you ask people why they can’t seem to reach a particular goal, they will come up with all kinds of reasons, excuses, and stories, and they’ll a...
165. The Ultimate Guide to Hydration for Runners
24 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
When it comes to proper hydration, most runners are all over the place. I get it, it’s a little confusing…how much should you drink, how often, sh...
164. How to Achieve Weight Loss Success
17 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
If you’ve ever struggled to lose weight and keep it off, then this episode is for you. Despite all of the different weight loss methods and their re...
163. 3 Proven Ways to Get Your Body Burning Fat
10 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
There’s a lot of conflicting information out there in the world today about proper nutrition, the best ways to lose weight, what types of exercise a...
162. Understanding The Different Types of Hunger
03 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Have you ever felt hungry? I know stupid question, of course, you have. But did you know that not all hunger is “real” hunger? Today I’m going t...
161. The Other Side of Endurance
27 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
When you think about “endurance”, what comes to mind? Since you’re most likely a runner, your mind probably conjures up images of slogging out m...
160. Should Runners Lift Heavy Weights?
20 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
There’s a bit of a debate going on out there in the running community around whether or not runners should be lifting heavy weights. So in this epis...
159. Always Becoming More with Natasha Sorensen
13 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
6 months ago, Natasha Sorensen was a little frustrated with where she was physically, mentally, and even emotionally. In this episode of the podcast, ...
158. Building Your Aerobic Engine
06 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
I get a lot of questions about how to improve running performance and one concept I keep coming back to is building your aerobic engine. Before you ca...
157. Lessons Learned This Year and What’s Next
30 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
It’s the end of the year and time to look back at everything that’s happened this past year…good and bad. I’ve had my share of setbacks and di...
156. There Is No Finish Line
23 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
There’s a powerful principle that you absolutely must embrace if you want to continue growing, evolving, and becoming more. That principle is this: ...
155. 3 Things All Successful People Do
16 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
What separates successful people from those who fail? What do successful people do that unsuccessful people don’t? Whether you want to lose weight o...
154. The Truth About Food Restrictions
09 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
A lot of people feel the need to share their thoughts with me about food restrictions. They say things like, “I don’t ever want to restrict any fo...
153. 5 Tips to Avoid Gaining Weight This Holiday Season
02 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
It’s officially the Holiday Season and that means it’s time to gain a bunch of weight over the next 30 days and start the new year feeling like cr...
152. Struggling, Suffering, and Giving In
25 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
When it comes to eating healthy and losing weight, people think you have 3 choices: Struggle, suffer, or give in. Today on the podcast, I explain how ...
151. The Importance of Play
18 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
I think we can all agree that children need to play. Play is crucial for their brain development and their mental and emotional growth. But what about...
150. Do You Have an Addictive Personality?
11 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
A lot of people find it very hard to change their diet. Why do they do it? Why can’t they change? They will say it’s because they have an “addic...
149. Keto vs. Fat-Adapted – Which is Better?
04 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
There seems to be a bit of confusion out there in the endurance world when it comes to the terms “keto” and “fat-adapted.” So today on the pod...
148. Determining Your Carbohydrate Tolerance
28 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
There’s a time and place for carbs in your diet, but you need to understand how carbs affect you before you start piling all those sweet potatoes on...
147. Bucking Conventional Wisdom
21 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Most of the people in this country eat a pretty terrible diet. So if you want to be different, meaning you want to be the healthiest human possible, y...
146. Slow Down and Stay in the Flow
14 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Many runners who set out to achieve big goals will get it into their heads that things should just be happening faster. They should be losing weight f...
145. All or Nothing is Not Always Best
07 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
I’ve been hearing a lot of stories lately from people in the low-carb athlete community who tend to adhere to an all-or-nothing mentality when it co...
144. Handling Stress Like a Badass
30 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
One of the most prevalent health issues facing us today is stress. The good news is that stress can be managed quite well. The bad news is that most p...
143. Upgrading Your Model Of the World
23 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
One nice thing about human beings is that no two of us are alike. We each have our own unique Model Of the World (MOW) based on our past experiences, ...
142. Overcoming Emotional Eating
16 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
If you’re like most people and you hear the words, “emotional eating” you probably picture a woman crying in bed eating a half-gallon of ice cre...
141. How to Fix Your Metabolism
09 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
If you are overweight, chances are it’s a problem of metabolism. Your metabolism is not working properly. By nature, animals (including humans) do n...
140. You Have to Do More to Become More
02 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
I know you’ve heard the definition of insanity is to keep doing the same things over and over again and expecting different results. Today, I get in...
139. Eating Healthy Is So Boring!
26 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
I’ll bet you’ve thought about eating healthy at one point or another in your life and then thought, nah…that’s going to be way too boring. Tod...
138. Is Alcohol Really Working for You?
19 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Have you ever considered how alcohol might be negatively affecting you? Today I want to pose this question: “Is alcohol really working for you, or d...
137. The Most Common Weight Loss Mistakes Runners Make
12 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Most runners who set out to lose weight will probably make some mistakes along the way. So a big part of what I do now is to help runners NOT make tho...
136. How to Avoid Weight Loss Discomfort
05 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Lots of runners come to me for help losing weight, getting stronger, and running faster. One common question that keeps coming up is, “How do I lose...
135. The Benefits of Becoming Metabolically Flexible
29 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
As a runner, you’ve probably been told that if you want to avoid hitting the wall, you need to consume a whole lot of one main fuel source - sugar. ...
134. The Art of Living in Integrity
22 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
I coach a lot of runners who honestly want to change. But oftentimes there’s a big disconnect between what they WANT for themselves and what they ac...
133. Being an Example to Those Around You
15 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
I believe that each and every one of us has the ability to make a positive impact on this world. My hope is that you listen to this episode and then t...
132. Ancestral Eating to Improve Health & Fitness
08 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
If you want to take control of your health and become the healthiest and most badass version of yourself, you might want to consider following in the ...
131. Busting the Biggest Nutrition Myths
01 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
There are a lot of myths floating around out there in regards to proper human nutrition. Some of these concepts have been around for a very long time ...
130. Taking Your Health Into Your Own Hands
24 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
There is a health crisis going on right now in the US. Metabolic diseases like obesity, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease are at an all-time high. In...