Super Shoes & Form: How New Shoe Tech Alters Running Form with Chris Napier, PhD
Release Date: 10/09/2025
Self-Treat Injuries & Manage Pain with Dr. Tom Walters
The Strength Running Podcast
Tom Walters is a board-certified orthopedic physical therapist, former college professor, and author of (a bestseller on Amazon). Besides running his , Tom served as a full-time undergraduate kinesiology professor for eight years, teaching human biomechanics, therapeutic exercise, and pain science. Today, we discuss the science of pain and the injury treatment process: Is all pain bad? Why does some pain feel good? The value of cross-training during injury Why blood flow is so important for healing The timeline it takes to heal from common injuries If you're injury prone, sign up for...
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IT Band Syndrome Prevention & Treatment with Physical Therapist & Coach Duane Scotti
The Strength Running Podcast
Duane Scotti is a physical therapist, certified running coach, and host of the Healthy Runner Podcast. Today, we're focusing on IT Band Syndrome. I've personally had ITBS twice - and once so severe that it nearly ended my running career. After seeing 4 PT's, I developed the to build hip and glute strength. You can also get an to the routine. Duane and I discuss: How to know if you have ITBS Common training errors and injury causes What can make this injury worse Can you run through pain? Treatment steps for IT Band Syndrome Thanks Duane for this masterclass on how to approach IT Band...
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Running Economy Masterclass: How to Improve Your Efficiency with Bill Evans, PhD
The Strength Running Podcast
Bill Evans has a PhD in Exercise Physiology, coaching experience at the D1 level, and is the founder of . He has more than 20 scientific papers published in his field and was formerly a senior scientist at Johns Hopkins University in their Applied Physics Laboratory. Today, he's helping you improve your running economy. We discuss: The impact of easy running and different types of workouts on economy How to order workouts during a season How drills, plyometrics, and strength training improve efficiency Long-term and short-term perspectives on economy To improve your form, don't miss our...
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Running and Lifting: How Elizabeth Does Both As a Sub-3 Marathoner (Repost)
The Strength Running Podcast
Listeners know I'm a relentless advocate of , whether you're doing bodyweight exercises at home or lifting heavy in the gym. But some runners take strength training to a level above and beyond the rest of us - and find great success along the way. Elizabeth Corkum is a fellow running coach and one of my former private coaching clients. Elizabeth - who goes by the nickname Corky - is a 2:58 marathoner and 5-day per week weightlifter. Coach Corky has multiple coaching certifications, including USA Track and Field, Road Runners Club of America, and the Lydiard...
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How to Return to Running After an Injury with Vikash Sharma, DPT, OCS
The Strength Running Podcast
Vikash Sharma, DPT is going to help you return to running after your next injury - faster and with less fitness loss possible. He's the owner of , a certified running coach, the creator of , and a Board-Certified Orthopedic Clinical Specialist. Our conversation today is about how to come back after your next injury. The "return to run" plan post-injury can be as confusing as planning advanced workouts. Managing load, recovery, strength training, mobility, and more during a period of uncertainty is daunting. Vikash is here to help. We discuss: Specific injuries and their...
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How the Elites Stay Healthy: All-American Steepler Jonathan Pierce on Injury Prevention
The Strength Running Podcast
is an ART certified massage therapist, a Stanford All-American in the 3,000m steeplechase, and a former pro runner for Reebok, ASICS, and the Mammoth Track Club. Not only has he competed at the Olympic Trials, he's worked there as a therapist. He's also the founder of in San Diego, a physical therapy and performance center for athletes. Jonathan joins us to discuss his experience working with elite athletes and how they approach the process of staying healthy. We also talk about: The training and mechanical causes of running injuries The role of movement in...
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When Should You Quit Running? An Honest, Difficult Conversation with Author Dimity McDowell
The Strength Running Podcast
What if you have to make the hard decision to stop running altogether? That's the heartbreaking choice Dimity McDowell, a long-time runner and sports journalist, had to make a few years ago. In this conversation and in her new book, , we explore what it means to hang up your running shoes for good: The loss of identity, community, and purpose How to fill the hole that running once filled What the experts recommend How to find closure after a running career ends Follow Dimity on and be sure to check out ! Thank you 2Before! We are supported by , a powerful sports...
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Ken Rideout on Extreme Running, Mindset Hacks, Beer Miles, and Confidence
The Strength Running Podcast
Ken Rideout is one of the fastest 50+ runners in the world, clocking 2:28 at age 50. A former addict, he turned his focus to running and became unstoppable, winning the 155-mile Gobi Desert March and the 2021 NYC Marathon Master's Division. His new book, , is now available. Ken's on the podcast today to discuss: His extraordinary and how he stays driven What draws him to extreme events (and how that can help you) His experience at a "Celebrity Beer Mile" How he's built confidence as a runner and his tips for you Follow for even more inspiration. Thank you Lever! Lever is back...
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Impact, Force, and Load: Exploring the Real Drivers of Injuries with Professor Brent Edwards
The Strength Running Podcast
Brent Edwards is a professor of Kinesiology at the University of Calgary. He's an expert on how mechanical load affects the body and influences musculoskeletal health and injury risk. Learn with my best advice! In addition to running experiments in the lab, he’s also working with the smart shoe company Avelo to help them figure out how to keep runners healthy. His expertise ensures Avelo’s impact metrics reflect what is really happening with your stride so you can learn from it and train smarter. You can preorder a pair of smart running shoes . In this conversation, we discuss: How Brent...
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Running Longevity Masterclass with Dr. Jordan Metzl: Strength, Aging, & More
The Strength Running Podcast
Dr. Jordan Metzl is a Harvard-trained medical doctor, bestselling author, and a highly sought after international speaker. His new book, , is now available! Jordan is the creator of the immensely popular Iron Strength workout, a medical columnist for Triathlete Magazine, and a 37-time marathon finisher (not to mention an Ironman Triathlete!). In this conversation, we focus on running longevity: The training habits that need to change in your 40's and 50's Potential tension between performance and longevity The role of as we age a lot more... . Thanks for a great conversation, Jordan! Thank...
info_outlineChris Napier is the author of Science of Running, a professor of physical therapy, practicing physiotherapist, 2:33 marathoner, and medal winner at the Canadian Track & Field Championships in 1996 and 1997.
He is also a scientific advisor to Avelo, the world’s smartest running shoe (I'm also an advisor!).
Today's focus is on super shoes and how they affect your running form:
- The specific form changes that happen due to high-stack foam and carbon plates
- Specific injury risks from super shoes
- How often Chris recommends wearing super shoes
- Training changes that reduce injury risk while wearing super shoes
Extra Resources:
- Geoff Burns, PhD on the science of super shoes (podcast)
- The main reason runners get injured (video)
- Chris Napier's first podcast appearance (podcast)
Please support our sponsors who help make the podcast possible!
Thank You Lever!
I'm excited to partner with Lever - a bodyweight support system that helps you run further or faster with less effort and injury risk.
You’ve probably seen pro runners using Lever - it attaches to any treadmill and you hook into it like a harness. It effectively makes you lighter, enabling you to run more volume than you normally could with reduced injury risk, run faster with less effort, or return to running after an injury more effectively.
Lever allows you to do more running with less risk. From building mileage, introducing faster workouts, aiding your return to running after a break, Lever has a place in every phase of training. The pro’s have been using Lever for years, giving them the advantage of more training with fewer injuries.
They’re also common in physical therapy offices. Because you can run with less body weight, you can gain fitness and practice good technique without risking your recovery.
Go to levermovement.com and use code Strength20 for 20% off any system (and that’s with a capital S). If you’re injury-prone or are looking to take a big swing at your goals this year, now is the time for Lever. That’s levermovement.com with code Strength20 for 20% off any system.
Thank you to 2Before!
We are supported by 2Before, a powerful sports supplement made from New Zealand Blackcurrants designed to increase endurance, manage inflammation, support immunity, and promote adaptation. 2Before main mechanism for boosting performance is acting as a vasodilator - it increases blood flow, making it more efficient for the body to pump oxygenated nutrient-rich blood into the muscles.
Just like beetroot but more effective, blackcurrant berries are vasodilators, helping you get more blood flow where it's needed, quickly and efficiently.
My personal favorite option includes 100mg of caffeine, so you get the proven performance (and psychological) benefits of caffeine combined with the vasodilation effects of blackcurrant berries.
Boost your performance and immune system with 2before: use code JASON for 30% off 20 packs and multi-serve packs at 2Before.com.
Thank you to 2Before for supporting Strength Running!