• Jim Toledo - "People are watching"
    Nov 11 2026

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    Jim Toledo has been an athlete his whole life - soccer, basketball, football, and baseball as a kid. Sprints and jumps on his high school track team, and played softball, basketball, and indoor soccer leagues all through his 20s and 30s.

    When the people he played with got busy with lives and kids, he went looking for an individual sport.

    Running had never stuck - shin splints, and "wow, running sucks" - until a friend talked him into a 5K he was having trouble filling.

    That 5K turned into a 10K, then a half marathon, then a bike, learning to swim, and a triathlon. Fifteen years later, he has four full Ironman finishes and more than ten 70.3s.

    He came up lifting weights in the heyday of pre-workouts, but nothing on the market fit an endurance workout - a target heart rate, zone two, no tingly face - so he mixed his own from five, six, seven different tubs.

    With a friend from the supplement industry, he put it all in one: Starting Block, by Zone 2 Endurance, now celebrating its first year.

    He talks about six months of manufacturers and taste tests, research-backed doses, about 120 milligrams of instant caffeine and 67 of time-release, the name that came from his track days, and what it has done for his summer runs in the heat and humidity.

    Then the races: Ironman Florida in 2021 - five friends in an Airbnb, an epic swim where 400 people were pulled from the water, and his Ironman PR - and Ironman Wisconsin in 2022, the race that broke him: 50 degrees and rain all day, a pulled hip flexor at mile 16, and a second lap through the University of Wisconsin football stadium with nobody else in it.

    Plus a bagel with peanut butter and a package of ramen noodles on race morning, the double cheeseburger, fries and Sprite he craves after an Ironman, his watch and his data, the ASICS Megablast and Novablast in his rotation, Honey Stinger waffles and gels, a training run that ended with a sprint home to the backyard hose, his running buddy Rob and his 14-year run streak, cupping his own IT band, and lifting heavy at 48.

    His advice to new runners: find your people - every city has a running group for every pace - and just don't quit.

    For the first time in a long time, he's signed up for nothing, and running with no goal is wonderful.

    His mantra, for his girls and his wife, who were out there in the cold rain too: "People are watching." Show your kids you can do hard things - and that you don't have to stop playing.

    And his last word: have fun with it. Take the workout seriously, but don't take it too seriously.


    Jim Toledo - https://www.instagram.com/jamestoledo78/
    Zone 2 Endurance - Starting Block Endurance Preworkout - https://www.zone2endurance.com

    Races Mentioned
    Ironman Florida
    Ironman Wisconsin
    Ironman Coeur d'Alene
    Ironman 70.3 Dallas-Little Elm
    Ironman 70.3 Rockford
    Marine Corps Marathon

    Shout Outs
    Kristen Rather
    Rob
    Nick Barre

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    Meredith Nations
    Allyson Lamey
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    Stefan Clayton
    Rachael McRae
    Scott Thornhill
    Skye Guy
    Andrew Williams
    Kellie Landrum

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    33 mins
  • Families of the Fallen (Jailbreak 5k) - "Every Mile Every Step"
    Nov 4 2026
    Like the episode? Let us know with a quick text!It started with a hug on a cold Mardi Gras night in 2018.Tina Zanca was riding the parade route with the Mobile Police Department's barricade team when she stopped to see Valerie Green and her son Trey - the family of Officer Steven Green, who was killed in the line of duty on the first day of Mardi Gras in 2012 - and told them they ought to jump in the truck and stay warm.That night Valerie messaged her: Trey had not stopped asking why they didn't get to ride.Major Rose walked Tina down the hallway to Chief Battiste, who didn't hesitate.Two vehicles were loaded with throws, the mayor met the family at the start of the route, and Valerie and Trey rode the parade as VIPs with the chief.Watching Valerie watch Trey, Tina asked, "Why aren't we doing this for all the families?" Family of the Fallen grew out of that question.Tina, Micah and Nate talk about the Mardi Gras float that now carries families of officers killed or seriously injured in the line of duty - from all over Alabama and three hours east and west - in the Joe Cain parade: an eleven-by-fourteen photo of each officer placed right in front of the family, a breakfast the morning of the parade that everyone calls their favorite part, the Mystics, who built their first float - three stories tall - and lent them a battleship float the next year, and families who met on the float and ended up living next door to each other.Then there's the Jailbreak 5K, now in its second year - born from a member's picture of hundreds of runners in orange shirts running right past the jail.Corrections officers in orange jumpsuits handed out water last year (some runners weren't sure they should take it), there's a mugshot photo booth, a finisher medal or a challenge coin with the float - and Trey Green - on the back, a one-mile fun run, and two stretches of silence along the course where officers were lost: one right after mile one, one near the finish.Where the money goes: hotel rooms and breakfast for families who travel to ride, the float and its throws, flowers, cards and a presence at services - and, they hope starting in 2027, scholarships for officers' children. There's no deadline on that support: the wall at the Mobile Police Academy goes back to the 1800s, Tina tells of a widow who had heard from no one in forty years, and of a family member from north Alabama who wouldn't leave her house, finally came the third year, and left the float asking to be invited back.Nate on what the job carries home - "once it gets quiet, it's loud" - and why it's the families who pick up the pieces.Their message to anyone thinking about the race: you don't have to run. You just have to be willing to show up - run, walk, volunteer on race day, cheer for the families on the float, or join the organization. And Tina's closing words: "Every mile, every step, it's an opportunity to remember that life, to honor their sacrifice."Tina Zanca, Micah Slack, and Nate Slack - Family of the Fallen - https://www.facebook.com/familyofthefallenJailbreak 5K - Saturday, November 14, 2026, 8 AM, Mardi Gras Park, Mobile - https://runsignup.com/Race/AL/Mobile/FOTFJailbreak5KRaces MentionedJailbreak 5KMPD Crime Prevention 5K Run/WalkSalute Red, White, and BlueMiles for Heroes 5KShout OutsValerie and Trey GreenOfficer Steven GreenChief BattisteMajor RoseMarkThe MysticsMobile Police DepartmentMobile County Sheriff's OfficeSupport the showFor more details on Run Your Story happenings, visit https://runyourstory.com/For web development, app development, or tech services, visit https://gaillardts.com/Go Run Your Story and take a piece of this story with you! Follow us on Facebook and Instagram for the latest news on upcoming episodes. Support us on Patreon!Can't wait to hear Your Run Story!! Thank you to all of our Patreon supporters!Kristen RatherMary TrufantSuzanne CristSuzanne ClarkDave McDonaldKarla McInnisJames ContrattoJordan DuBoseKeith & Cristy EvansSharonda ShulaMeredith NationsAllyson LameyChris StrayhornKaren SaldivarStefan ClaytonRachael McRaeScott ThornhillSkye GuyAndrew WilliamsKellie LandrumDownload our new app on Apple or Android!!!
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    1 hr and 11 mins
  • Cherinna Coulter - "Slow and steady holds the pace"
    Oct 28 2026
    Like the episode? Let us know with a quick text!Cherinna Coulter was the girl who hid in the locker room during P.E. to get out of running the mile.Nobody in her family ran, and running was nowhere in her history.Walking her baby son down the dirt road past her parents' house in the mountains of Washington, she told her mom that one day she'd run to the end of that road without stopping, and when a doctor suggested she get outside for thirty minutes a day, she took it as her chance to start running.She talks about mapping routes by car and hanging them on the fridge, a first half marathon run under wildfire smoke with her daughter Brooke running her into the finish, the hydration vest she was sure was made for a kid, and the library copy of Dean Karnazes' Ultramarathon Man that sent her into the ultra world.A comment on a Facebook post grew into a friendship with Ryan and his daughter Kala - Team Steiner - and Ryan became her friend and trainer: through her first 25K on the Hiawatha Trail and its long, dark, freezing tunnel, a 22-mile loop along the Columbia River that told her she could run a 50K, her first 50K at the Cascade Super Ultra, and 400 miles in ten and a half weeks in Ornery Mule Racing's winter challenge.Then came 2022, the year that almost broke her - including her best friend's breast cancer diagnosis and her dad's prostate cancer diagnosis - and she stopped running.A move across the country to Alabama helped her find her smile again, and with Coach Loretta she went from basically couch to the Hennepin 50-miler in under ten months, with Brenda beside her the entire race.On the way home, she finally met Ryan and Kala in person; two days later Kala passed away, and now Kala runs with her, laminated and pinned to her bib, at every Ainsley's Angels race.She shares how Ainsley's Angels and Bras Across the CAUSEway became her community on the Gulf Coast ("I'm a show-upper and a doer"), why she deferred a 100K to run the Publix Battleship 12K with her Ainsley's Angels team, the nutrition shakes, mashed potatoes and homemade gels that fuel her long runs, the fifteen-hour playlist a friend made for her 50-miler, and the Diadoras she has run in since 2021 without a single foot issue.Her advice to new runners: start slow, give your body time to adjust, get a coach if you can, and it's okay to walk. Her mantra: "Slow and steady holds the pace." And her last word: find a cause and get involved.Cherinna Coulter - https://www.facebook.com/cherinna.coulterRaces MentionedHiawatha Trail RunCascade Super UltraFreeze Your Ass Off (Ornery Mule Racing)Hennepin 50-milerBras Across the CAUSEway 5KPublix Battleship 12KBallin' on BellroseShout OutsCoach FoxRyan and Kala (Team Steiner)Coach Loretta Tobolske-HornOrnery Mule RacingDanaMichele HartwigBrendaDawnShirleyAinsley's AngelsBras Across the CAUSEwayKathy SmithCourtneyJodyManci's Run ClubJanine and Jessica (Pinnacle Cardiovascular)JenReneeDean KarnazesScott JurekPam ReedAsher's Medical ClosetThe Dirt PodcastFleet FeetBethany MadsonSkye GuySupport the showFor more details on Run Your Story happenings, visit https://runyourstory.com/For web development, app development, or tech services, visit https://gaillardts.com/Go Run Your Story and take a piece of this story with you! Follow us on Facebook and Instagram for the latest news on upcoming episodes. Support us on Patreon!Can't wait to hear Your Run Story!! Thank you to all of our Patreon supporters!Kristen RatherMary TrufantSuzanne CristSuzanne ClarkDave McDonaldKarla McInnisJames ContrattoJordan DuBoseKeith & Cristy EvansSharonda ShulaMeredith NationsAllyson LameyChris StrayhornKaren SaldivarStefan ClaytonRachael McRaeScott ThornhillSkye GuyAndrew WilliamsKellie LandrumDownload our new app on Apple or Android!!!
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    1 hr and 44 mins
  • David Whitehead - "It's me versus me"
    Oct 21 2026

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    David Whitehead grew up a sprinter in South Georgia - the 400, the 200 and the 100 - and thought he'd been a runner all his life until he started running 5Ks, 10Ks and half marathons.

    Out running in Huntsville, he kept seeing people running by themselves or in small groups, so he started a run club to bring them together: Rocket City Runners, a free, all-inclusive club that just turned two, where people who come out as walkers keep coming back and turn into runners.

    He talks about why long distance is a sport of its own ("it's really you versus you"), why consistency, rehab and the small muscles in your ankles and feet matter, the six-mile block party that is the Peachtree 10K, a first half marathon run in circles in a parking garage during a severe weather watch, the prayer he says before every race, his Jazz Bounce playlist, beet juice and gel gummies, his goal of catching his coach Doc in medals, and his favorite running memory - a popsicle, a Jell-O shot, a tequila shot and a banana in his hands at the Peachtree, a photographer, and a mid-race hamburger he wisely passed on.

    His advice to new runners: the hardest part is showing up, so keep showing up. His mantra, for the days he doesn't feel like it: "Me versus me."

    And his last word: show up for yourself first.

    David Whitehead - https://www.facebook.com/david.whitehead.674419


    Races Mentioned
    Rocket City Marathon
    Peachtree Road Race 10K
    The 10-miler in Atlanta
    Publix Georgia 5K
    Bridge Street Half Marathon
    Race to Space - Huntsville
    Hot Chocolate 10K


    Shout Outs
    Rocket City Runners
    Doc

    Support the show

    For more details on Run Your Story happenings, visit https://runyourstory.com/

    For web development, app development, or tech services, visit https://gaillardts.com/

    Go Run Your Story and take a piece of this story with you! Follow us on Facebook and Instagram for the latest news on upcoming episodes. Support us on Patreon!
    Can't wait to hear Your Run Story!!

    Thank you to all of our Patreon supporters!
    Kristen Rather
    Mary Trufant
    Suzanne Crist
    Suzanne Clark
    Dave McDonald
    Karla McInnis
    James Contratto
    Jordan DuBose
    Keith & Cristy Evans
    Sharonda Shula
    Meredith Nations
    Allyson Lamey
    Chris Strayhorn
    Karen Saldivar
    Stefan Clayton
    Rachael McRae
    Scott Thornhill
    Skye Guy
    Andrew Williams
    Kellie Landrum

    Download our new app on Apple or Android!!!

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    27 mins
  • Silvia Garcia - "Choose the harder option"
    Oct 14 2026

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    Silvia Garcia had nine half marathons, a stretch of obstacle racing and CrossFit five days a week behind her when she decided 2020 would be the year she ran a full marathon.

    Disney ended in a heat advisory and a DNF at mile 22, and that spring, at 31, just as COVID was shutting everything down, she was diagnosed with triple-negative breast cancer.

    Sixteen rounds of chemo with no visitors allowed, a mastectomy with complications, three months on a walker, and a full hysterectomy after learning she carries the BRCA1 gene - and through all of it one thought kept her going: "You can't die. You have a marathon to finish."

    She talks about relearning to move one lap of the kitchen and one driveway at a time, gaining 70 pounds and jumping into an untrained half with her sister, finally finishing the inaugural Every Woman's Marathon in Savannah in 7:45, Project Athena's 26.2-mile hike in San Diego, why grief and gratitude can coexist, her mom's "Why not me?", and her work helping people without insurance get screened.

    She's about to be six years cancer-free. Her reminders: thank your legs, choose the harder option, and movement looks different for everybody.


    Silvia Garcia - https://www.instagram.com/s_ilviums/


    Races Mentioned
    Disney Marathon
    Publix Half Marathon
    Every Woman's Marathon
    Project Athena San Diego Marathon Hike
    Bras Across the Causeway 5K
    San Diego Marathon
    World Majors Marathon

    Shout Outs
    Project Athena
    East Georgia Cancer Coalition

    Support the show

    For more details on Run Your Story happenings, visit https://runyourstory.com/

    For web development, app development, or tech services, visit https://gaillardts.com/

    Go Run Your Story and take a piece of this story with you! Follow us on Facebook and Instagram for the latest news on upcoming episodes. Support us on Patreon!
    Can't wait to hear Your Run Story!!

    Thank you to all of our Patreon supporters!
    Kristen Rather
    Mary Trufant
    Suzanne Crist
    Suzanne Clark
    Dave McDonald
    Karla McInnis
    James Contratto
    Jordan DuBose
    Keith & Cristy Evans
    Sharonda Shula
    Meredith Nations
    Allyson Lamey
    Chris Strayhorn
    Karen Saldivar
    Stefan Clayton
    Rachael McRae
    Scott Thornhill
    Skye Guy
    Andrew Williams
    Kellie Landrum

    Download our new app on Apple or Android!!!

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    53 mins
  • Kaitlyn Collier - "Anything is better than nothing"
    Oct 7 2026

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    Kaitlyn Collier only started running two years ago because of true crime podcasts.

    Mid-episode of one, she realized that if she ever actually had to run for her life, she couldn't, so she set a goal of one mile on the gym treadmill and is now deep in Run the Date: running the date in miles every single day of the year (October 5th = 10.05 miles), no misses, ranked around fifth globally among everyone doing it.

    Along the way: the lessons running taught her about discipline and a healthier relationship with food, the chicken-alfredo "carb loading" disaster at her first field race, the storm-soaked first marathon she wants vengeance on, and the Louisiana Half Marathon weekend where she PR'd and crossed the finish line into an engagement.

    She talks Q50 trail races, run clubs as the cheat code for starting out, negotiating with herself through hard miles — "what's the lowest standard that I'll accept for today that's not quitting?" — and why nobody ages out of running.

    Her words to live by: anything is better than nothing.


    Kaitlyn Collier - https://www.facebook.com/kaitlyn.collier


    Races Mentioned
    Q50 Races Sand on the Trails 5K
    Q50 Races Extravaganza
    The Nun Run
    Zydeco Marathon
    Louisiana Marathon

    Shout Outs
    Hunter
    Le Shin Run Club
    Scott Thornhill
    Andy Glaze

    Support the show

    For more details on Run Your Story happenings, visit https://runyourstory.com/

    For web development, app development, or tech services, visit https://gaillardts.com/

    Go Run Your Story and take a piece of this story with you! Follow us on Facebook and Instagram for the latest news on upcoming episodes. Support us on Patreon!
    Can't wait to hear Your Run Story!!

    Thank you to all of our Patreon supporters!
    Kristen Rather
    Mary Trufant
    Suzanne Crist
    Suzanne Clark
    Dave McDonald
    Karla McInnis
    James Contratto
    Jordan DuBose
    Keith & Cristy Evans
    Sharonda Shula
    Meredith Nations
    Allyson Lamey
    Chris Strayhorn
    Karen Saldivar
    Stefan Clayton
    Rachael McRae
    Scott Thornhill
    Skye Guy
    Andrew Williams
    Kellie Landrum

    Download our new app on Apple or Android!!!

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    50 mins
  • Miles for Heroes Recap (Ainsley's Angels) - "We get to do this"
    Sep 30 2026
    Like the episode? Let us know with a quick text!Something different this time: no guest chair, nineteen voices.On September 26th, Ainsley's Angels of South Alabama rolled across its first start line at the Miles for Heroes 5K in Daphne, hosted by I Got Your 6 Gulf Coast — and this episode hands the microphone to the people who made it happen.You'll hear from the runners who pushed, the parents whose kids rode, and the riders themselves — including a four-year-old coach named Ryann.Allison tells the whole story of a podcast interview that planted the idea, a mentor chapter in New Orleans, a January launch, a community that bought eight chariots and then showed up early on race morning asking to be put to work.It's about inclusion without limits, being somebody's legs, and four little words that echo through the whole hour: we get to do this.Find a chapter near you (or start one): ainsleysangels.orgLearn about I Got Your Six Gulf Coast and Miles for Heroes — mental health support for veterans and first responders.SpeakersCara Lewis — rider's mom, on what inclusion really meansJessica Godfrey — runner and volunteer, "this is what inclusion is supposed to look like"Emily Rogers — runner, on a race that isn't about your PRAllie Eslava — runner, "what if one day that's me"Skye Guy — runner, carrying on her grandmother DeDe's villageSarah Beth Hollingsworth — the runner who brought Ainsley's to her run clubVeronica Steele — pushed four-year-old Ryann with her mom Sidney; "we get to do this"Ryann Dougherty — angel rider, age four, "like you're flying"JC — runnerStuart Bolen — runner, on setting your own PRs asideJanet Bolen — pushed Team Julian, "for those minutes we're a team"Leah Long — the other half of Team Julian's legsJulian's mom (Team Julian) — a parent's gratitudeBethany Madson — runner, "your legs can carry more than just you"Ruby & Poppy Madson — young runners who helped other kids feel the finish lineCherinna Coulter — Team Asher, "inclusion without limits"Peyton Gaillard — Team Asher, Disney music on the uphillsGrey Gaillard — chariot crew, on watching a dream materializeAllison Gaillard — host; founder of the Ainsley's Angels South Alabama chapterRaces MentionedMiles for Heroes 5KJoe Cain 5KBras Across the CausewayShout OutsI Got Your Six Gulf Coast — Mark, Jackie, and the whole board, for hosting the debut and saying "come back every year"Bubbles (aka Jackson) — the Ainsley's rider whose "anybody can do this" started it allAinsley's Angels of New Orleans — the mentor chapterThe chariot donors: Candy at Magnolia Soap Company (the first Freedom Chair), the Joe Cain 5K runners, Bras Across the Causeway, Rhonda from Mississippi, Mr. John at Manci's, the bingo-night crew at the waterfront, and Allison's in-lawsManci's Run Club, Fairhope Run Club, and Fleet Feet Pensacola — the running family that showed upJessica (who ran the tent), Janet, Stuart, Grey, and Peyton (chariot crew)Team Julian, Asher, Ryann, Hilary, Dustin, Liam — and Tiffany with the girl squadScott, Stephen, and Dave — the big dreamers behind the podcastThe Patreon family, and every runner, rider, volunteer, and cheerer at Miles for HeroesSupport the showFor more details on Run Your Story happenings, visit https://runyourstory.com/For web development, app development, or tech services, visit https://gaillardts.com/Go Run Your Story and take a piece of this story with you! Follow us on Facebook and Instagram for the latest news on upcoming episodes. Support us on Patreon!Can't wait to hear Your Run Story!! Thank you to all of our Patreon supporters!Kristen RatherMary TrufantSuzanne CristSuzanne ClarkDave McDonaldKarla McInnisJames ContrattoJordan DuBoseKeith & Cristy EvansSharonda ShulaMeredith NationsAllyson LameyChris StrayhornKaren SaldivarStefan ClaytonRachael McRaeScott ThornhillSkye GuyAndrew WilliamsKellie LandrumDownload our new app on Apple or Android!!!
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    50 mins
  • Miles for Heroes (IGY6) - "We got your six."
    Sep 23 2026

    Like the episode? Let us know with a quick text!

    Our first panel episode, recorded race week for the Miles for Heroes 5K in Daphne, Alabama (Saturday, September 26, 2026).

    The race benefits IGY6 Gulf Coast - "I Got Your Six," from the old aviation call for the spot right behind you - a group of veterans and first responders who step in for anyone in a mental health crisis.

    Around the table: founder Bill Menefee, 21 years in the infantry and a Bradley Master Gunner who later served as a school resource officer and on the Baldwin County Drug Task Force, and who started the race after losing a fellow soldier to suicide; IGY6 president Ross Sykes, a veteran; Daphne Police Chief Brian Gulsby, whose department used last year's proceeds to send three officers to a 40-hour crisis negotiator course; race director Mark Kirstein; and Sarah Beth, a physical therapist assistant who will push an Ainsley's Angels chariot this year in the local chapter's debut.

    Finishers get a challenge coin instead of a medal; the goal is 200 to 250 runners and $20,000, and the message is the one on the back of the coin: ask, listen, and stand by.


    Speakers: Sarah Beth, Ross Sykes, Brian Gulsby, Bill Menefee, and Mark Kirstein
    https://www.igy6-gulfcoast.org/home


    Races Mentioned
    Ruck the Bay
    Miles for Heroes 5K

    Shout Outs
    Steve
    JD
    Ainsley's Angels
    Mr. John

    Support the show

    For more details on Run Your Story happenings, visit https://runyourstory.com/

    For web development, app development, or tech services, visit https://gaillardts.com/

    Go Run Your Story and take a piece of this story with you! Follow us on Facebook and Instagram for the latest news on upcoming episodes. Support us on Patreon!
    Can't wait to hear Your Run Story!!

    Thank you to all of our Patreon supporters!
    Kristen Rather
    Mary Trufant
    Suzanne Crist
    Suzanne Clark
    Dave McDonald
    Karla McInnis
    James Contratto
    Jordan DuBose
    Keith & Cristy Evans
    Sharonda Shula
    Meredith Nations
    Allyson Lamey
    Chris Strayhorn
    Karen Saldivar
    Stefan Clayton
    Rachael McRae
    Scott Thornhill
    Skye Guy
    Andrew Williams
    Kellie Landrum

    Download our new app on Apple or Android!!!

    Show More Show Less
    42 mins