A New Start: Jeff Talks The Power of Run Walk Run and Olympic Resilience

Imagine facing a setback on the world stage, only to rise stronger than before. That's the Olympic spirit we dive into today with Jeff Galloway and co-host Mark Lane Holbert. In this episode of the You Can Do It podcast, we reflect on the resilience of athletes and the excitement of the ongoing Olympic trials. You'll hear Jeff recount a poignant story about his Munich Olympics roommate Rick Woolhutter, and how these personal tales mirror the struggles and potential comeback of runner Mo after her unfortunate fall.

Get ready to be inspired by the story of Coach Jean Holbert and her profound influence on her son, Mark Lane Holbert. Growing up in a household brimming with the passion for cross-country and track events, Mark's journey from a competitive youth runner to a marathon enthusiast is a testament to the transformative power of running. We'll explore his coaching experiences at USF and the Tampa Bay Galloway program, shedding light on how the Galloway method has helped sustain long-distance running and foster a sense of community and camaraderie among runners.

Discover how a small, innovative idea turned into a nationwide phenomenon with the Run Walk Run method. Starting from its humble beginnings at Phidippides, the first running specialty store in the U.S., to its integration into runDisney events, Jeff Galloway's approach has revolutionized running culture. We discuss the importance of research-based practices for long-term fitness, the role of the Magic Mile, and how running at a comfortable pace builds lasting friendships. Tune in for heartwarming stories of personal transformation and the ongoing influence of the Run Walk Run program in creating an inclusive and supportive running community.

Let Registered Dietitian Carissa Galloway lead you through a science-backed plan to transform the way you think about your diet. Each week Carissa will motivate you to improve your nutrition and reach your weight loss goal.

Visit www.GallowayCourse.com and use the code JEFF at checkout for $175 off!

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

This is a Jeff Galloway podcast.

Speaker 2: 0:04

In my head in that moment. I was like building it up to this movie about my finish.

Speaker 1: 0:08

Today I'm going to be the best Dean that Dean can be.

Speaker 2: 0:12

You can lead from where you sit or stand.

Speaker 1: 0:17

You can do it.

Speaker 2: 0:20

Hello everyone and welcome to the you Can Do it podcast with Jeff Galloway, and I'm your co-host, mark Lane Holbert, aka the Running Anthropologist and the program director of Tampa Galloway. Thanks so much for being with us. Let's get started. Welcome everyone. I'll get us started today just by noting that it is the middle of the Olympic trials and love to hear your thoughts about that, jeff.

Speaker 1: 0:47

Oh my gosh. Every night, barb and I are locked on to the TV and of course tonight we won't be able to do that because they're taking a little break. As a matter of fact, in years past, the announcers in the stadium where it's taking place, hayward Field, would say something like we're not going to be around tomorrow night because of FF, and then he would usually say something like that can be interpreted as either fan fatigue or fanny fatigue from sitting in the stands for so many hours and so forth. But the fact is it will resume on Thursday and I can't wait.

Speaker 2: 1:35

Wow, that's great, and you know every competition has been, I mean, just so hard fought and there's so many good competitors out there. I'm sure things like this happen at every trial. But there was, of course, last night, a fall, and you know, perhaps this person should have been on the team, and you know how do they deal with stuff like that. Or does that happen all the time, and who was it? Do you know a little bit more about their story? Or does that happen all the time, and who was it?

Speaker 1: 2:05

Do you know a little bit more about their story? Yes, mo, I think had an incident and in past years the media has locked onto this and has all these videos of how it happened and so forth, and they didn't do that, and I'm very pleased that they did not do that. The fact is that tripping happens in competitive events. It happens quite frequently in 800 meters, during the first 200 to 300 meters of the race itself, because they're jockeying for position after the first curve and things happen. These folks are really high-strung. Everything's on the line when it's the final, like it was, and it even happens in the Olympics.

Speaker 1: 2:57

You're going to see something like that happen there. It's a tragedy that Mo is not going to be able to move on as a result of that, because, first of all, I love to watch her run. She is so smooth, she is so amazing and we're not going to be able to do that. But the fact is that there are things that can come out in a positive way and I'll give you an example.

Speaker 1: 3:25

In my Olympics, one of my roommates in our dormitory was a fellow named Rick Woolhutter. Rick was really ranked about fourth or fifth in the world coming into the Olympics, fourth or fifth in the world coming into the Olympics. And he gets out there for his first heat in the Olympics itself and everybody's again high strung and trying to make sure that they move on to the next level. And coming around the first curve he was tripped up by another athlete and he fell down and in an 800-meter, like what happened to Mo, if you hit the deck you get so far behind very quick because the pace is so fast, and this is what happened. But Rick was really smart. He got up immediately. He didn't try to sprint, he gradually caught up and, coming around the final curve he caught up with the next to last person and passed one person after another. He had to finish in the top three. He got up to that third position with about four yards left in the race and at the very last second, at the finish line, another runner passed him and he was not able to be able to move on as a result of that. But there were two positive things as a result of that, but there were two positive things that happened out of that.

Speaker 1: 5:10

Rick did not give up at all. As a matter of fact, right after that race, he was already talking about the next Olympics, that he was going to be there and what he was going to do to avoid that happening. Do to avoid that happening. And then, after the Munich games, he and I traveled around Europe and competed in a number of races and the highlights of him getting tripped up and then making a comeback and almost moving on made it around Europe in a very, very big way. And everywhere we went he was a hero because he did not give up. And, sure enough, he came back four years later and won the bronze medal in Montreal. And there were a number of athletes, the two athletes. At least one of the athletes ahead of him was almost certainly on steroids and he was not, and so but the bottom line is, you don't give up when things like this happen, and I'm sure that Mo will find a way to make this a positive moment and make a comeback in some way as a result of this.

Speaker 2: 6:30

Well, that's really optimistic and I think that engenders the entire Olympic spirit. As you know, Jeff being an Olympian, that is just so filled with hope and this camaraderie and this camaraderie. And of course, she was disappointed.

Speaker 1: 6:44

But I've read in many places that they're also very happy for those that they compete against, having made the team and if I'm not mistaken, Mo was the gold medalist in that event that is correct and also a gold medalist in a number of international competitions, and she really was the leading contender for winning the gold. But the fact is, these things do happen and you just have to move on after this, and I'm sure that she will. I'm sure she will find a positive way. But in regards to things about people trying to find a positive way and getting so many positive benefits from running, I wanted to ask you a question, mark. Now, what inspired you to get into coaching and particularly to get into becoming a program director for Galloway Training?

Speaker 2: 7:44

Yeah, well, you know, I couldn't be happier to be a part of this movement, jeff, as you know, we've talked many times and I'm super happy to be a part of the podcast too. My career in running, my start in running, was given to me in childhood because my mother Coach Jean Holbert, was one of the most successful coaches in Michigan State history and she coached cross country and track and, later in life, golf as well. But she was a competitive athlete herself in triathlons and marathons and I know for a fact that she met you a few times.

Speaker 2: 8:24

I't recall um now exactly where you guys met. But she was around the running scene and ran in a lot of places and she was really my inspiration and I almost didn't have a choice because she, uh she, she was a single mom, so she carted me to every event and I was um, every cross-country, every track meet, you know the states, and I was really taken by the spirit and the camaraderie, especially of the team events, and also all the work and transformation that her girls would do throughout their high school career and I really enjoyed it. You know, every place I went, I I love to take notes and take mental notes and learn about the sport and learn about the places that we traveled to. And so, of course, when I came in to first have the opportunity I think it was in middle school track and beyond, beyond I just started running myself and I was never a star studded athlete, but I was pretty competitive and I found the longer that I ran the more competitive I got, because other people just weren't willing to stick it out as long as I was.

Speaker 2: 9:37

So I eventually found my home in marathoning and thanks to the Galloway method in large part, I've been able to continue marathoning into my 40s and still, you know, enjoy long runs and still keep up on the competition. So that's the. You know that's the short version and you know the longer version might be something for another time, but I'm just super happy to be here and, as you mentioned, I have done some high school coaching throughout my teaching career and even a little bit at the college level through our club teams here in Florida, worked at USF for the past several years and been involved with our club team there.

Speaker 1: 10:34

Just really really enjoying both both that and and the Galloway program here in Tampa Bay and then continuing through the Disney events and other events where we've been together. I've noticed that you have an inherent interest in helping other people improve the quality of their lives, and that's really what we do. We know very clearly from the research that running not only gives you a feeling of well-being that you don't get in other activities, but it changes the brain in some very powerful and positive ways. You turn on the good attitude circuit, the energy circuit, the empowerment circuit, so that after a run you think you can do almost anything, and a lot of people end up doing amazing things as a result of their continuation and running. We are so happy to have you involved with us.

Speaker 2: 11:34

Thank you so much, jeff, and I'm just one of many of these local program directors, but you know, I've found, in just the few short years I've been doing this, how amazing it is to meet people you never would have met otherwise and how, like you said, really transformative this can be when they find their crew, they find people that support them and they're able to achieve some things they didn't know they had in them, which is, you know, I couldn't think of a greater gift things they didn't know they had in them, which is, you know, I couldn't think of a greater gift. And so I look forward to hearing all those stories with you throughout the podcast series and interviewing some of my fellow program directors to get their inspiration and to get their stories from all those programs across the country and the world in some cases.

Speaker 1: 12:23

Well, there are tons of stories and I look forward to telling them All right?

Speaker 2: 12:30

Well, jeff, you know we're going to interview some program directors, you and I together, but today I just wanted to get your take on the origin stories of you. Know what was the first Run Walk Run program, or the first local program, if you called it that, and you know how was that? Run Walk Run movement born for the local clubs. And you know how was that Run.

Speaker 1: 12:54

Walk Run movement, born for the local clubs. Well, it started in 1973 when I opened my store Fidipides, the very first running specialty store in the United States and probably in the universe. And the reason why there weren't any other running specialty stores is it wasn't financially feasible to have one, because there weren't enough runners and there wasn't a market out there. So what I was looking for were ways to bring people into the store and possibly to have other ways of getting income, and so I was looking into training people and putting on training groups. And lo and behold, just a couple of months after I opened the store, a fellow came in who was the leader of a local college program that offered non-credit courses for people to improve their lives. They had things like basic car mechanics and nutrition for those that are diabetics, and all types of practical type courses. Well, as I fitted him for a pair of shoes, he said you know, you ought to teach one of my classes on beginning fitness or beginning running. And so I really had this spark in my brain. Maybe if I teach a class, I have built in customers. And so I said yes, I signed on the dotted line. We had 22 people that signed up the very first time and I interviewed every single one of them and none of them had been doing any running on a regular basis for at least five years and I'd say two thirds of them had never run before in their lives. So it was novice time and I'd never worked with novices before. So I just dealt with how I was going to do that and what I came up with was staging the very first run on a city park that had a loop that was about a quarter of a mile around the park was about a quarter of a mile around the park, and so what I did is I said okay, I want you to make one loop around here and I want you to come around and not be huffing and puffing when I see you, the next, when you come by me, the next one when you come by me, and as soon as you are huffing and puffing, I want you to walk until the huffing and puffing goes away. So they did that and the main thing that allowed me to do is group people Because, naturally, after they went around one loop and then I told them to go one more loop, by the end of the second loop they had grouped into three distinct subgroups, and so I got the names of each one in each group and had them meet at my store on a separate day of the week and I went out with them and did the workout with them.

Speaker 1: 16:19

Now again I was trying to figure out how I could keep these people from getting injured, because I knew quite well from experience of some of my relatives that tried to get out there and run. When they ran nonstop they hurt and they were sore and they didn't want to do it again. And so what I figured is the huffing and puffing seemed to work that first day. So when I went with them in that group situation, whenever anyone in the group started to huff and puff, all the group walked. And so we went through each session every single week, and then at the end of the program we had a 5K and a 10K choice that the members of the group could do.

Speaker 1: 17:13

That was 10 weeks later, and every single one of the people in the class finished either a 5K or a 10K. And some of these people were really grossly out of shape at the beginning and you'd think that they won the Olympic gold medal when they finished their race. But at the end of all that, the thing that surprised me most there were no injuries. There were no injuries during training, there were no injuries during the race. And I followed up six months later and all but one of those 22 were still running and still enjoying it and still taking walk breaks. So that's how it started and from that point, with beginners, I used Run Walk Run and then, just a couple of years after that, a number of the beginners started entering local races and beating veteran runners using Run Walk Run.

Speaker 2: 18:17

Is that right?

Speaker 1: 18:17

Okay, started using the Run Walk Run for people who wanted to improve their times.

Speaker 2: 18:24

Well, that is remarkable. I actually, in all the years I guess I hadn't heard the full story. That's really neat. So I'm sure that took hold pretty quickly where you were. That. That was in the Atlanta area and of course people caught wind of it and said you know what this is, this is really working. And you were able to spread it to other. When did other programs start popping up and how did you? You know, how did you train people, or did you go to all the programs at first? And how did that start going into other locations?

Speaker 1: 18:59

At first we did the programs out of our store and as we expanded Fidipides there were more store locations where the programs were held and very quickly, up until we started our program, as I said, it ended up being 74 when the very first program was held and then by 76, we had started to expand Fidipides into other locations and by 1980, there were more than 30 locations around the country that were using it. So at first it was really part of Fidipides stores where these programs originated and as a result of the fact that the store owners had to go through training with us in Atlanta, we put in a component of the training that was our training programs and how to set those up.

Speaker 2: 21:20

Oh, that's really interesting. So with the spread of the running boom and running stores, naturally they needed, you know, a program to start with and yours was the most successful. It made sense, you know, over the past. I guess one of the things that one of the connections that a lot of people don't immediately make is that there are probably a lot of coaches out there and a lot of people during the running boom that could have been, you know, selected, for example, for the Disney training consultant or the Disney coach for developing their training programs. But yours was chosen and potentially, you know, through that and maybe a few other big races, became a big part of giving people access to running that hadn't thought of themselves as runners or gave them that that boost of confidence to be able to finish a half marathon or a goal race, race. How did that start? And was it also something kind of haphazard? Or did they know that you were the run, walk, run man and that you were going to be the one to train everybody at Disney?

Speaker 1: 22:30

Well, it's not anything that we predicted. It's certainly nothing that I thought would happen when I started doing it. I just naturally wanted to help people get better in fitness and in running. And so when I would attend any event during those early years and the very first Disney event was 1994. And so when I attended that event and successive Disney events, there would be clinics and I would tell people how to get started, how to avoid injuries, and it would always involve run walk run in some way. Well, because of the outreach of Disney, we were reaching people that we had never reached before, folks that were really out of shape like my first people were, and because of the success that started from my very first Run Walk Run session, I knew that Run Walk Run could get these people into a good fitness level without aches and pains if they followed the program. And so I was just really preaching to individuals at first, but the Disney folks realized two things. First of all, they realized that this message could grow their events.

Speaker 1: 24:10

And at the time that we started in 94, the culture of running was still predominantly competitive.

Speaker 1: 24:18

I mean, there were a lot of fitness runners, but when you went to races, what you really felt were the emphasis on trying to run faster and trying to win your age group or win the race or whatever, and that's what the announcers were all talking about.

Speaker 1: 24:37

And this is how people seem to be talking how fast are you and how are you going to get faster, and all these things. Well, I was talking something different and at first that was sort of a shock to the experts around the Disney culture and then they realized that this was a huge opportunity to bring people to their events and then those folks would bring their friends and relatives with them and the race weekends would grow. And it's been just a wonderful win-win situation for me to provide this way that almost anybody can join their events. And, of course, as more and more people do it and talk it up among their friends, there's this tremendous crush to try to get into the events. The hardest thing for most people is to be able to get into the events. The hardest thing for most people is to be able to register for the events.

Speaker 1: 25:46

And I'm very proud to be part of that whole process. But I'm most proud about the stories that these folks are doing, what they're doing in their own lives, how they're transforming their family members, how their work co-workers are getting influenced by this. You know, Run Disney has really changed the culture of fitness in our country in a very positive way. I'm proud to be a part of it.

Speaker 2: 26:16

I would agree with that and at the same time, it's hard to believe that there was a day not too long ago when they were pulling people's arms to try to convince them to try a Disney race and now that's definitely not the case. In fact, when you go to an expo if you haven't been to one where Jeff and the Galloway Pacers are you will most likely see a line quite long at least a few minutes long waiting to talk to Jeff, and Jeff is on his feet all day sharing the gospel of Run, walk, run sharing, you know, touting it and letting people know if they haven't heard about it. One of the questions that I'm interested in because I don't get to stand next to you all the time but only get a few minutes with you at those expos is what are the things that you hear from people the most? What are the things that you're talking about with the most people at Disney and at all the other race expos that you get to go to?

Speaker 1: 27:16

Most folks have had a real good dose of the good experiences of running, these mental benefits, the way they've been able to get their family members, their kids involved and they've seen benefits there and they want to know how to continue. Or they're concerned about some things that they hear from other people who say, well, if you run, you're going to destroy your knees or you know a number of other things. And I work off the research, I work off the data. I very carefully look at all the studies that come in and orthopedics and long-term health and there's a lot of bad information out there.

Speaker 1: 28:07

So the first thing that I do is dispel this negative information that some people are getting, and secondly, then I give them just a few practical hints based on what they are interested in doing. So the generic thing they're asking for is how do I keep doing this until I'm 100 or so? And then the secondary thing is how can I get others to do this? How can I get others to do this?

Speaker 2: 28:48

no-transcript.

Speaker 2: 28:50

It sure is, and it seems like there's a space in the running world for just about anyone in their lives and in their desire.

Speaker 2: 28:59

You know, maybe not everyone wants to run a marathon, but someone wants to get faster in their mile time or their 5K time, or they want to just get out several times a week so they can feel good about movement through their neighborhood or on their local trails, and I see that in all my members here locally.

Speaker 2: 29:19

But the thing that they enjoy most, I would say, is having friends, a community that they connect with week after week and they share some of the most challenging stuff, some of the most fun stuff in their conversations weekly and they're running at a conversational pace.

Speaker 2: 29:38

So they have time, you know, really one-on-one or you know one-on-three or one-on-four time where they get to share about their lives, and that's something that you know, unfortunately not all of us have the opportunity to do all the time. So it's a really nice thing about the Galloway training program in particular, where they're not running all out all the time, where they get to have those conversations and where they know that, like you said, they know they're able to pass those on to the newcomers that join because they're not. You know, their egos aren't hurt, they're just enjoying doing 30-30s or 60-30s and really welcoming new people. So that's the thing that I love about our local program. Yeah, if you, I was going to ask you what is something you love about or loved or you know about your local, your first training groups or your current training group your first training groups or your current training group.

Speaker 1: 30:41

Well, a lot of people ask me just the subject that you just brought up how is it that the Galloway programs have a different feel than you have when you go to other running groups? And it's all about having pace groups that are at the pace that a person is capable of doing, Because when you are able to do that, then people talk and get to know one another and support one another and become friends, and there are a lot of lifelong friendships every week that are established in our Galloway training groups. Now, the way we did this years ago, I looked for ways of grouping people so that we could pick out what pace would be realistic for each person. And that's where the Magic Mile came up, because by going with the Magic Mile, we can tell people what pace they should be running on these runs that would be comfortable, and then what amount of running, what amount of walking, will work for them. And then, of course, if it doesn't work for one reason or another, we can adjust it to make it work.

Speaker 2: 31:54

It's a great tool. And don't forget about the heat compensation. Jeff's got a really simple calculator. When you get those, you know. When you type in your magic mile time, you look at your paces, just remember where you are in the country and how warm it is, because you want to still be having those good, you know, those good feelings and easy, long run, even when it's hot. So you have to adjust that pace, which I learned very quickly as well, and with that in, mind Mark, I will put out something that we use alternately in hot weather areas.

Speaker 1: 32:29

when we have a magic mile schedule, you can actually do a magic half mile if it's really, really hot because your magic mile time will be affected by heat. A lot more than a half mile would. So our PACE group leaders generally know it, but the program directors know what the computation would be, and if you ever have any questions about this, just email me directly. Jfg at jeffgallowaycom.

Speaker 2: 33:02

Wow, Thanks, Jeff. Yeah, that's a great tip. We'll be sure to work on that as we do our summer magic miles. I was a miler in the day, so I really enjoy miles as kind of a test to see how I'm doing and also, at the same time, I know it intimidates a lot of people so I try to tell them. You know it's not a test, Don't think of it as a test. Think of it more as a friendly gauge to help you in your pacing. And yeah, you know you run hard for a little bit, but it's more the experience of seeing where you're at and then getting better over time.

Speaker 1: 33:41

Absolutely Great analysis.

Speaker 2: 33:46

Well, my last question, jeff, for you is going to be recently how has RunWalkRun evolved and kind of, where do you, what are you looking forward forward to, or how do you see it changing in the future, based upon, you know, what you've seen over the last decade or two?

Speaker 1: 34:02

Well, first of all, the like.

Speaker 1: 34:04

Any concept that starts getting spread out to millions of people which Run, walk Run has done, we end up losing control over it. I mean, there are people that I hear from every week from various parts of the world that hear a little bit about Run, walk, run and they start taking off on their own and they run for five minutes and walk for 20 seconds and they should have been doing more, like 30-30 or something like that. But the bottom line is we want to be focused on getting the information that we know works out there. The information that we know works out there. And we know it works because we've got a large database of over half a million people that we base all of our concepts on and we can tell very accurately, based on the pace per mile, that a person can accurately run, based on the magic mile, that there's a cognitive way to compute what would be the right pace and then the right run, walk, run.

Speaker 1: 35:19

So with the expansion of run, walk run, we're going to have more different types of configurations, of strategies. So the trend for beginners is going down to very short segments of running only five seconds or seven seconds and walking for 30 to 60 seconds at first, and then as people progress. What I see happening at the other end is some more programs to help people who want to get faster, get faster. We do not want to push everybody into running faster, but those that do want to run faster. There are ways of doing it using RunWalkRun, and so we're looking to put some of those to work that's outstanding.

Speaker 2: 36:18

Yeah, one of the recent publications that I have right here folks won't be able to see it because we're on a podcast but the Boston Marathon Qualifying, as well as several other of your books that are with the Galloway Method, but helping people, as you said, to get faster if they want to or to achieve a goal, that's kind of just beyond their reach, which for me has been phenomenal, you know, just having that opportunity to grow and to challenge myself and whatever age group I am as a master's runner and I think most everyone in my club is in the same vein.

Speaker 2: 36:55

They love their community, they love running, training, runs, but they also have some goals for the year. So I really appreciate that you mentioned that and that you all are always working on it. The teaser for our first program director interview, who will be a mystery program director, a new program director from the Glass City those of you who know where that might be. Let's be transparent. It is a city that is new to the Galloway Group and we'll be interviewing her and hearing some of her stories, as well as other RunWalk Run program director stories in the next several months. Really excited to join Jeff and interview those program directors and hear some of the amazing things that are going around in our RunWalk Run world. So thank you everyone, Jeff. Any closing notes?

Speaker 1: 37:53

Well, mark, you're doing a great job here. We have a wonderful community and you're bringing people together. I look forward to furthering this as we move, with each one of these episodes telling a few stories, but above all, I want everybody to get out there and move regularly so that not only will you improve your running, you will improve your life until you're 100, and then you're on your own. You can do it.

Speaker 2: 38:28

All right, thanks, jeff, have a great one.