7 | Runner and Coach Julie Sapper: Earning a Personal Best in Recovery

Running coach Julie Sapper, half of the duo behind Maryland-based Run Farther and Faster, has finished the Boston Marathon 10 times. Three and a half weeks before this April’s race, she felt a strange pop in her knee during an easy run. Though the pain wasn’t severe, she knew it was something serious.

The next morning, she called the orthopedic specialist. A few days later, she had an MRI. The results confirmed her suspicions: She’d torn her meniscus. Instead of toeing the starting line in Hopkinton, she scheduled surgery for May 1. “I've made the tough decision to look at my body as a lot more important than a marathon,” she said.

Julie joined us today to discuss:

• How she took time to feel her sadness and disappointment—then jumped into action
• Why crying on her podcast (also called Run Farther and Faster) was a critical part of processing her emotions
• Why she feels embarrassed, as a coach, when she gets injured—but how she works through that, and allows the role to ultimately uplift her
• The thinking behind her decision to go to Boston anyway, and what spectating meant to her
• What happened when a doctor told her she should stop running marathons
• The advice she gives other runners about navigating the medical process: “I think we all need to take control of our own destiny”
• What a previous serious injury—an Achilles tear—taught her about managing this one
• The introspection and reflection she went through in the wake of the news
• How she’s aiming for a PR in recovery, and what she’s doing to use the time she’s not spending training wisely
• What she hopes to teach her children by persevering through injury and other challenges

 

Resources/links we mention:

• Julie’s coaching business, Run Farther and Faster, which she co-owns with Lisa Reichmann
• Their podcast, which led up to the Boston Marathon
• Her Instagram and Run Farther and Faster’s

Thanks for listening, and please reach out anytime at [email protected] with questions, guest suggestions, or other feedback.

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