Helllooooo cheeky friends! Hope you had a lovely weekend! This week we chat through the lessons we have learnt from our worst races (there are many-just ask us) and how they have helped us in the long run.
During this weeks rundown segment we give you a little update about what is happening with the selection of the Australian Women's marathon team for Paris 2024.
If you want to support the show, please follow us wherever you listen to your podcasts or on social media: Instagram, Tiktok, Cheeky Run Club Strava community, plus Phoebe's Strava and Anna's Strava.
Music produced by Hugh Raper
Logo design by Michael Cotellessa
Thank you for listening!
Helllooooo cheeky friends! Hope you had a lovely weekend! This week we chat through the lessons we have learnt from our worst races (there are many-just ask us) and how they have helped us in the long run.
During this weeks rundown segment we give you a little update about what is happening with the selection of the Australian Women's marathon team for Paris 2024.
If you want to support the show, please follow us wherever you listen to your podcasts or on social media: Instagram, Tiktok, Cheeky Run Club Strava community, plus Phoebe's Strava and Anna's Strava.
Music produced by Hugh Raper
Logo design by Michael Cotellessa
Thank you for listening!
Cheeky Run Club recognises that every day we live, work and run on Aboriginal land. Welcome to episode 18 of Cheeky Run Club, the social running podcast and community for your everyday amateur runner. Hello, Anna. Hello,
Track2-Mic 2:Phoebe.
Track3-Mic 3:hello, listeners.
Track2-Mic 2:Today, we are chatting about races we've done that went really, really wrong, and why that was, and the lessons that we learnt as a result. In this week's rundown segment, we're going to circle back to the women's marathon selection from a couple of weeks ago, because there's a lot to unpack since then.
Track3-Mic 3:There sure is.
Track2-Mic 2:is. but first let's kick it off with our notable runs. Give me your, um, give me a West.
Track3-Mic 3:Okay, I'll give you my worst run. So, um, my worst run is very specific. It was this morning, but specifically the strides that I tried to do. Um, so for those who don't regularly do strides, strides is something that often will get put in your easy runs in your running program, where you do some like efforts towards the end of the run and usually you do it and you're pretty warmed up. Um, but as you may remember from this morning, I don't know, I ran together this morning, it was freezing and. Despite la dee da talking so much last week about how I didn't like long
Track2-Mic 2:warm up. It
Track3-Mic 3:my legs just did, it really has come back to bite me, my legs did not warm up. They felt like, really cold the whole time. And when I went to do the strides, I felt so tight. It felt awful. I think I told you afterwards, my hip, I got like a really tight pain in my hip. And this is, that's a hip that I've had issues with before. And so I literally just like stopped and walked. And then when I got back running again, it felt so tight for the first, like, just few hundred meters. And then it settled down and it hasn't bothered me
Track2-Mic 2:I'm
Track3-Mic 3:I'm fine. Yeah, fine. I, I honestly think I just wasn't at all warmed up and I tried to like take off and you know, I'm 30 now. I can't be doing that.
Track2-Mic 2:now, I can't believe
Track3-Mic 3:probably Yeah, I could have. But alas, no more. Uh, what was your worst run?
Track2-Mic 2:worst run was Wednesday morning. I am doing a race this weekend, a 10K road race around Albert Park Lake in Melbourne, which will be fun. I think it's round three of the cross country series. So go pussycats. Um, but, Um, yeah, my worst run was Wednesday morning. I did, I had a small session to do, just like in the lead up. It's like a little taper session and I feel like I always do this, but when. there's a taper session. I kind of in my head, I'm like, eh, not a session. It's
Track3-Mic 3:fine. Yeah, that's
Track2-Mic 2:that's true. Yeah,
Track3-Mic 3:It wasn't like a big
Track2-Mic 2:big, but yeah. Anyways. So I was doing it by myself and I think I was really cold. So it didn't really warm up. As you just mentioned strides, often you do them like pre session. So after you warm up, before you start doing the harder stuff and it means even though they don't feel great, it means that when you do start, The, session part, it just feels a little bit better. Um, I did not do them. So, the, yeah, I, I just,
Track3-Mic 3:didn't you?
Track2-Mic 2:um, I think I just wanted to get a
Track3-Mic 3:Yeah,
Track2-Mic 2:Yeah.
Track3-Mic 3:yep,
Track2-Mic 2:Yeah. So yes, that was my worst run for no particular reason apart from I just wasn't really feeling it. Nah. Had a large coffee at the end. I'm sure everyone is also, actually. Let's circle back to last week. I spoke about maybe we can do the little rewind when we're like,
Track3-Mic 3:And also,
Track2-Mic 2:give what we said, but also we probably don't have the technical abilities to do that. So
Track3-Mic 3:do that, so. Yeah, it's
Track2-Mic 2:and also you.
Track3-Mic 3:It's also you.
Track2-Mic 2:anyway, we spoke about how cool girls wear headbands. Have to be honest, I bought two headbands last Saturday thinking, gosh, I am going to love these. Tried them both on and I resembled a balding eight year old child.
Track3-Mic 3:Anyway, I've actually given them
Track2-Mic 2:so I've actually given them to our friend Izzy because she's got long luscious brown hair. Yeah, anyway, and then the next time I saw her she was wearing them and I was like, are you serious? That is exactly what I thought I would look like. Anyway, I reckon we'll get some photo evidence. So here we go. Try it on. It? How can you do
Track3-Mic 3:you meant? How do you do it? I
Track2-Mic 2:see what I'm doing. I actually think you
Track3-Mic 3:think you rock this.
Track2-Mic 2:Oh!
Track3-Mic 3:I
Track2-Mic 2:I you look kind of cute. I don't know
Track3-Mic 3:Anyway, we are officially
Track2-Mic 2:Anyway, we are officially all hip and now.
Track3-Mic 3:it again. Um,
Track2-Mic 2:And I'm never wearing it again. sorry, we got a little bit derailed there. What's your best run? Give me your best.
Track3-Mic 3:best run? Give me a hint. My best run was my session on Tuesday had a, check in with my coach on Monday and it was really good. We made a bit of a plan for the next six weeks. And it kind of got me excited because
Track2-Mic 2:you know,
Track3-Mic 3:It's so exciting to get a new training plan. It's never that exciting. Like, I always love it when he's like, Oh, you can check it's uploaded now and you can see what your next like six, eight weeks going to look like anyway. So, he set me a, like a slightly different kind of session for the next morning, which was two by one K, uh, a bit of an easier pace, 10 by 400. With only 30 second recoveries and then another two
Track2-Mic 2:You told me that session on Tuesday morning and I was like, that's a good
Track3-Mic 3:Yeah. And it just, it was a good session. Um, hard like the, um, four hundreds with 30 second recovery, you just can't catch your breath and so you just sort of, it was kind of good cause it, you hold back a little bit and you kind of just roll between them. and I was doing them with. our friend Kat, and you know when you're just really in sync with someone when you're running and it's just like, there's something really satisfying about training like that.
Track2-Mic 2:Especially when you're both like feeling pretty good. Yeah.
Track3-Mic 3:Yeah, yeah, yeah, exactly. So I think it was just a so fun to mix it up and felt good. about you?
Track2-Mic 2:best run of the week was our Sunday long run.
Track3-Mic 3:Thought it might be.
Track2-Mic 2:We, ran with Sean, Phoebe's partner and our friend Ollie. and Ollie's sister is a very good runner. Um, she might get a mention later in the episode.
Track3-Mic 3:the episode. Oh, I
Track2-Mic 2:Oh, I don't know. Oh, nah. I would, um, her name is Jen Craigson.
Track3-Mic 3:around.
Track2-Mic 2:Anyway. So we were going for a run with them and we thought it would be like probably a little bit faster than normal, but
Track3-Mic 3:fine. We knew it would be
Track2-Mic 2:We knew it would be fast. No, no, no. We thought it would be faster than normal, but we probably didn't quite
Track3-Mic 3:Yes, sure. Yeah. Yeah.
Track2-Mic 2:think it would be
Track3-Mic 3:Cause they, so they were kind of tapering for a race the next weekend.
Track2-Mic 2:exactly. Yeah. Um, anyway, so it was really nice. We actually did this loop out at Ivanhoe. Um, eaglemont, Eaglemont, sorry.
Track3-Mic 3:And Yarraflat.
Track2-Mic 2:And Yarra Flats. Yeah. Um, which I've never done before. It was this lollipop thing. Lollipop loop and it was beautiful, such a nice day and it was really clear, and yeah, it was cool running with them. But alas, this little gal got a little too excited and tried to keep up with the big gals. Um, and probably not the best idea, 10k race, but I would do it again if I had the opportunity.
Track3-Mic 3:like a long run, cross little tempo, basically
Track2-Mic 2:like a little rice paste.
Track3-Mic 3:race pace long run.
Track2-Mic 2:Just like a cheeky little thing. but anyway, we survived.
Track3-Mic 3:be
Track2-Mic 2:And I reckon in 10 years time, I'll be like, Oh, I'm glad I did that.
Track3-Mic 3:did that. I'm glad I did that. I'm glad I did that. I'm glad I did
Track2-Mic 2:you're like, yo, you don't have to
Track3-Mic 3:I'm glad I did
Track2-Mic 2:like, I know. Anyway, yeah, got a little excited.
Track3-Mic 3:So our main topic this week is lessons from our worst races of all time. So with Anna racing this weekend, then it's only about a month till we both race the Gold Coast half marathon. And then we'll start our build to Berlin marathon. We thought it was a really good time to kind of step back and see what we can learn from our previous races that haven't gone so well.
Track2-Mic 2:well. That's right. And there are a few.
Track3-Mic 3:a few. definition was, um, I feel like, my definition
Track2-Mic 2:my definition of like the worst race is something that I've just like executed so poorly. like, we've discussed before, there are a lot of variables that you can't control. Um, but I think that what makes it most disappointing is when it's all the ones you can control, you haven't done
Track3-Mic 3:lacked as
Track2-Mic 2:like as well as you think you could have. Um, and cause really you only have yourself to blame. And I think, yeah, that's what I define as, my worst race or worst race. Yeah. Or bad race. Yeah.
Track3-Mic 3:like slightly different from the way I was thinking about it. I really like that. I was thinking about it in terms of like, I felt like my performance was, um, worst relative to how I, how I expected to go. Um, and then another thing I was thinking about is just where I felt the worst. It's like some races.
Track2-Mic 2:you
Track3-Mic 3:You feel really bad. In some cases you feel really good. And so I was sort of using that as a bit of a barometer as well.
Track2-Mic 2:Yeah. Nice. Um, what can I ask What, what is the worst race Well,
Track3-Mic 3:Ever. I am actually kind of cheating. I'm combining two races into one, but it's because it's the same race over two different years. I twice have done the two times you event in Melbourne in December. Once I've done the half and once I've done the
Track2-Mic 2:Yeah. I watched you in the one at the end of
Track3-Mic 3:10k. Yeah, well, they are two of my, through no, no fault of the event, amazing event, lots of fun, but two of my like worst.
Track2-Mic 2:worst
Track3-Mic 3:races. And I think both of them, I feel like I really underperformed. I felt, sorry, I felt in the moment, like I'd really underperformed like the half marathon. I think I did eight minutes slower than the time I'd run a few months earlier. and then the 10 K wasn't as bad, but I still didn't run as well as expected. And I felt terrible. And. I, off the back of it, I got a niggles, cross little injury that lasted for like two months that I think was in part, was in a large part to do with the race and how I prepared for it. So
Track2-Mic 2:race
Track3-Mic 3:combining those two into my one package of worst race. What about you?
Track2-Mic 2:My worst race is hard to think of. I like to think of the bad races as a bit of character building because yeah, you can always take something from it and. one of my least enjoyable runs I've done. When I was like trying to get back into running and everything. I think it was my first half marathon that I did, which was Gold Coast in 2019. and once again, this little gal got a bit excited cause I'd never been in a race where there was That was my first like big race, like fun run that I've done. So there are thousands and thousands of people and you just get swept up in it. Anyway. So the first eight to ten case, I was just going way too fast for where I was at, but I was like enjoying it and it's an out and back race, and I distinctly remember turning around and then pretty much instantly. Being like, oh my gosh, I have to go all the way back. and I wasn't, yeah, I like hadn't really prepared, I didn't have a gel or anything. and, I was just going backwards, to the point where I remember I was, must've been breathing so heavily because people that were coming past me were running up behind me and then asking if I was okay. So my breathing must've been so bad. and I remember like one of my friend was like tracking me and I'd obviously been going okay. And then all of a sudden has had just absolutely bummed. Anyway. It's like funny to look back on, but I remember getting to 18 K's and being so angry and being like, I'm never doing this again. I'm never racing a half marathon again. Like this sucks. And then 20 minutes later, it would have been like, woohoo. When's the next one? Yeah.
Track3-Mic 3:that's always the case. Oh, those races are absolutely brutal though, where you just,
Track2-Mic 2:So
Track3-Mic 3:have so much fun in the first few K's and then it gets hard and then it gets like really hard.
Track2-Mic 2:just not a nice way to run. Um, in saying all this, it's very easy, like intellectually to say like, oh, it's just a race. We're not out there saving the world. It doesn't really matter. but I don't think being disappointed with a race is a bad thing. It just shows that you actually care. And of course, like anything, like putting a lot of time and effort into something, you want it to go well. and like also money, like paying for races or like sometimes you might travel. So I feel like it's completely fine to be disappointed, really disappointed with the race, but I feel like let yourself be really sad or, like a little bit miserable or whatever for an hour or even if it's a day or something, but then make the conscious effort after that to like get back on the horse and kind of reflect and have that perspective to be like, okay, my life is still just
Track3-Mic 3:of the
Track2-Mic 2:because at the end of the day, we are doing it for
Track3-Mic 3:Yeah, and I completely agree with all of that and I feel like remembering that like, no one else
Track2-Mic 2:much as
Track3-Mic 3:cares as much as you do and like everyone else still loves you and thinks you're great. And I just feel like when people put a lot of effort into training for something and that kind of becomes part of their sort of identity, then a failure to perform as high as they wanted, they can then feel like is a reflection on them. And they're like, quality as a person, which is when you've got to like be able to step back and be like, okay, this is just this fun running thing that we all do. Exactly. Like you said, it is absolutely fine to be disappointed with your performance for sure. Like it's something you care about, but you know, then we can remember, remember why you run and how many reasons there are
Track2-Mic 2:Yeah. I, my, husband Dave quite often says, which is, I mean, it's like very true. And sometimes it's maybe not what you want to hear if you're like super ecstatic about how you raced, but he's like, Yeah. Yeah. no matter how you race, it doesn't actually change your life at
Track3-Mic 3:your life
Track2-Mic 2:So really, but it sounds a bit logical, but I feel like it actually works. Cause he's like, honestly, If you run like 30 seconds quicker or like a minute slower, it actually just doesn't
Track3-Mic 3:car or,
Track2-Mic 2:which is, yeah, always, always a good,
Track3-Mic 3:it actually
Track2-Mic 2:Good perspective. Yeah. Yeah. Nobody
Track3-Mic 3:cares. Um, alright, can you talk us
Track2-Mic 2:all right. Can you talk us through some of the lessons you've learned from these like races that haven't gone so well?
Track3-Mic 3:like, lessons actually what I did when I was reflecting on this, I don't know what your process was, I logged onto Strava on my computer and when you do that, you can look at like all your data from years and years and
Track2-Mic 2:years. Oh,
Track3-Mic 3:and yeah, on the computer, you can see more data than you can your phone, whether you have premium or not, and so I went back to these races, And I did a bit of a review of like, what was my training like in the lead up to it? And, an interesting, like, kind of meta lesson is that neither of the bad races, can be blamed on like race day mishaps or woes. You know, we put so much pressure on like the day, everything going perfect. Like it never does on the day. There's always little things. Yeah. Like one of them, the 10 K last year, the bathroom lines were disastrous. I was in the, I'd finally gotten into the cubicle when they started like the one minute count, like the countdown. And I sprinted from the cubicle, like jump the fence into the race line and just started running, which is like. Obviously not ideal, but like that didn't change anything. In fact, it probably just gave me like more adrenaline. And, but basically when I went back and looked at the Strava, it was like the poor performances were much more reflection of like my training leading up to it and my taper than things I'd actually done on the race day, which was quite reassuring in a way to be like, Yeah, those little factors, those little 1 percent things on the day, they're not really going to be what determines a good or a bad race. It's going to be more about, all the bigger blocks that you're putting in and the bigger, like, efforts in the lead up to it. and so with both of them, I'd been injured kind of like two to three months beforehand and I'd gotten back and I'd tried to do like a mini sort of intense. training block and
Track2-Mic 2:fit for the
Track3-Mic 3:not necessarily for, I think, just trying to like get back to get fit. And then we'd put in a race. Cause it's like, Oh, actually I think both of them, I decided I wanted to do it. Cause it's a fun race and it's in Melbourne in summer. And, and so in retrospect, they probably weren't races that I should have been racing. I should have sort of just been like, Oh, a bit of a kid out, have a bit of fun, go for a run, not like even having that expectation that it was going to be a
Track2-Mic 2:for the P for a PB or something. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Track3-Mic 3:but it's, it's crazy how quickly after getting injured, you forget that you've just been injured and had time off and you go straight back into like, Oh, I'm racing. Therefore it's got to be a PB,
Track2-Mic 2:I like that. Yeah. Just having that sort of like maybe.
Track3-Mic 3:It's like an expectations management thing. I think like we'll, we'll do another episode where we talk about our best races and lessons from them, but. I had really high expectations of myself going into both these races, just to like be competitive with times I'd done previously. And they, those expectations weren't grounded in what my training was like. Like your expectations, it's fair for your expectations to reflect the training that you've done, but they weren't. And so of course I was disappointed with my performance because my expectations were, weren't aligned with my abilities. Yeah.
Track2-Mic 2:I was disappointed by the performance because my expectations weren't aligned Um, a couple of things at the start of the race, you're obviously feeling good, so it's easy to get a little bit carried away. but I think also a lot of the time when you're going faster, it's because you want to, it's obviously like you want to be
Track3-Mic 3:obviously like
Track2-Mic 2:Um, but I think
Track3-Mic 3:but
Track2-Mic 2:Keeping yourself in check and managing your expectations to sort of say, yeah, I want to be that fast. And maybe one day it will be that fast, but it's actually not now. So by going out too fast in the, like, no pun intended, Tell it intended, but like in the long run, as in like, by the time you get to the finish line, it's actually gonna be worse for you. Then if you were to just maybe start off a little bit slower and then build into things, I feel like you're going to get to the finish line faster and also in a better frame of mind and enjoy the run more. If you do go out a little bit like on the more conservative
Track3-Mic 3:this is, yeah, this is a problem with a lot of the training you see people doing at like at marathon pace or at half marathon pace is I think it sets an expectation of what pace you should be running in those races that often like none of us run enough to actually really know what, like, unless you're a professional runner and you know so well what exact your goal pace is, like, Most people, it's not, we don't really know what pace we're going to be able to go out and run and it's, it's way more down to like how we feel and how we've trained in the lead up to it and everything. But I feel like when it, what it means when you go out, even with like a really strict pace in mind is like, you're not going to be listening to your body. Yeah. You just be running to that, to try and hit that pace and, and yeah, at the end of the day, often with my race plans that my coach gives me, it's never about paces. It's always about feel. And it's always like, this is how the first seven K's should feel or 10 K's should feel. And then I just focus on like listening to my body and how does it feel? I'm like, I can't help it. I still check my splits, but I'm not like, Oh, no, I'm behind. I've got to catch up. It's like, Oh, well, that's where I'm at right
Track2-Mic 2:like, oh, well, that's where I'm at right now.
Track3-Mic 3:Because it doesn't matter, as
Track2-Mic 2:because it doesn't matter. As you said, like you still look at your watch and even, I think like in the, I was saying that in the half marathon, a few weeks ago, I try not to look at my watch, but then you still end up looking at it at five Ks and then you still get in your head well, I did. Cause I'm like, Oh my gosh, I'm going too fast. So either way, unless you're kind of like. bang on what you were thinking and expecting, which is probably not going to happen. Like either way, you're kind of going to psych yourself out. Cause yeah, as like, we were sort of chatting about your 5k last week and then it's like, Oh, knew what, um, time, like laps you're going to do. And then it's like, Oh, but if you're a bit slower, then you can kind of panic
Track3-Mic 3:Yeah. Oh no, I've got to surge quickly
Track2-Mic 2:then, yeah. And you're like, Oh, I'll try and catch up those two seconds in a hundred meters.
Track3-Mic 3:Whereas in reality, like, it's just a great outcome if you can finish a race strong over the final two, three, four k's.
Track2-Mic 2:I was actually chatting to another friend, Carly, which is like her fourth mention in like four episodes. So good on you, Carl's. Um, but she was saying how she thinks it's really important to have a plan B in place. Because obviously, which I've never even thought of before, but she said You, everyone was makes these plans, which is great, but a lot of the time the run or the race, doesn't actually go exactly what you were thinking of. And she was saying that going with a plan B, so then you don't have to make these. Um, like hard decisions whilst you're already tired and racing. And then it's also something to fall back on if the, like, A plan isn't If it isn't, if it's, sorry, if it's not going to plan, rather than, I feel like it's so easy, which like I'm definitely, um, guilty of, is that if it's not going to plan, not that you give up, but you're like, oh, well, I'm done, like that plan's done kind of thing, so you don't have anything to fall back on, and I feel like as well, it will probably help with your confidence.
Track3-Mic 3:what's an example of like a plan B?
Track2-Mic 2:I feel like a plan B would be, just say you're like going out to run a race and you have this time in mind. Um, like this pace that you want to meet. And then, If you're running at the pace and then you're, I think as well, you've got to sort of be like honest with yourself. If you're thinking like, you know what, this is actually not feeling like I would expect it to feel. I think like taking a step back and saying you know what, for the next two kilometers I'm going to run a little bit slower and then see how I go.
Track3-Mic 3:plan for the next 2 kilometers. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And I think as well, a big factor, especially when you're
Track2-Mic 2:like a bit of a contingency plan. Cause I think as well, a big factor, especially when you're putting yourself on the line and like trying really hard is that they're like positive versus negative self talk. And I feel like if things aren't going to plan that, negative voice in your head, Um, but yeah, I thought that was a really
Track3-Mic 3:That is really interesting. I would love for us to get a sports psychologist on so we could talk about the voice in your head while you're running and racing. If anyone knows a good sports psychologist, please send us a DM, let us know, or make an intro because I mean, there's so many topics that we could talk through with them, but specifically like this self talk, this concept of what is your self talk throughout a race.
Track2-Mic 2:I'd be
Track3-Mic 3:I'd be
Track2-Mic 2:I'd be so, yeah, because I think we've spoken about it before. Like, I have the worst self talk and I actually don't know how to really change that around. Whereas I remember you sort of saying, you come back to just like being grateful when you run. Yeah. Which is such an amazing thing to be able to do. But I honestly don't. I actually don't know how you do it.
Track3-Mic 3:Yeah, well I don't, I don't really, I like, it's not like I'm. I'm constantly grateful while I'm running. It's more like when I, I do slip into negative self talk for sure, and then the way that I try and reframe and get out of it is through gratitude and trying to feel like, grateful for the, you know, the fact that I'm running and feeling good or whatever it
Track2-Mic 2:am so grateful that my heart is beating
Track3-Mic 3:Yeah, yeah. 95 beats per
Track2-Mic 2:beats per minute.
Track3-Mic 3:Or no, to be more like, um, Oh, how beautiful is this morning? Like, how fun that I'm here running with so many people. Like, how good is running? Impacts how do my, like, more stuff like
Track2-Mic 2:A little bit more meaningful. Yeah.
Track3-Mic 3:yeah. Otherwise I'm like, okay.
Track2-Mic 2:Okay.
Track3-Mic 3:Um, but yeah. I think I'd be, anyway. We'll table that one. did you have any other lessons? Um,
Track2-Mic 2:The other lesson that I had would be just like to prioritize the fueling and hydration. Um, because as I said before, in probably my worst race, I didn't take into consideration. Cause I just was, I was new on the like long distance running scene. So I didn't even know that. Taking a gel would be a good idea. I think that can really make or break whether or not you run well, especially when you're getting into the longer distances and when you're like running for an hour plus. and I think the, um, key component of that is to make sure you're like hydrating and taking on nutrition earlier rather than later. So not waiting until you feel like you're bonking, but getting it in earlier, even if you may think at the time, Oh, I probably don't need this right now. Or I don't need this like cup of water. Cause I still feel okay. That's the time, because you don't want to get into like a deficit, you want to sort of like keep your stores high. Yeah, yeah, it's such an easy win, but it makes such a difference.
Track3-Mic 3:to our like Nutrition 101 episode though, I would say yes, and like train with it because my, inverse experience of that is one of my first marathons I did a long time ago, which was, um,
Track2-Mic 2:was
Track3-Mic 3:no, this is on the Gold Coast when I was in uni, I did a few when I was at uni that were, Pretty disastrous, which, I've actually now I think I could have easily been my worst runs. but Um
Track2-Mic 2:how your mind just kind of forgets all the bad runs. Even when I was thinking about it, I was like, Oh, I've never really like not enjoyed a
Track3-Mic 3:right
Track2-Mic 2:So like, I've never really had a bad run. And then I'm like, hang on a second.
Track3-Mic 3:Yeah, yeah Well, the first one I Didn't know about gels and didn't have any The second
Track2-Mic 2:whole marathon. Yeah. Yeah, yeah.
Track3-Mic 3:I, I had, I think I had a, um,
Track2-Mic 2:know how before
Track3-Mic 3:You know how before you said people running up and asking you if you're okay? Someone came up and gave me like some, I forget, it was Panadol
Track2-Mic 2:one. So
Track3-Mic 3:have looked like I was in
Track2-Mic 2:on Eurofins. Yeah,
Track3-Mic 3:Yeah, and I think I was having like, um, the, uh, Powerades and Gatorades and stuff. But whatever. The second, I then did the Gold Coast Marathon again the next year, and was like, this time I'll have gels, but I didn't train with it. I just bought like eight gels for the marathon and just started having them like every half an hour. I think I was trying to do four hours. And after I'd had like four, I vomited them up. And then I was like trying to like take little
Track2-Mic 2:experience. So like,
Track3-Mic 3:it was just the most awful experience. So like, I don't know what's worse. Not having any or having them in your gut has no idea. And then having to vomit, stop and vomit because it's not fun.
Track2-Mic 2:not good. So, yes, practice.
Track3-Mic 3:practice. Well, then my only other lesson, is to do with one thing I realized looking back on my races is I do this thing. I'll be so interested to know if you did this as well. Okay. So in the taper, tapering, for these bigger races, maybe starts like, um, 10 days, even two weeks out, I'll start easing off my load. And then I always have a final session, like two days before the race. That's quite a small one. And I always flog myself in it because I'm well actually sometimes, but normally I'm trying to see if I feel good from my taper. I'm like, am I really fast now? How fast can I go? And I'll always Pull up a little bit. So,
Track2-Mic 2:slower, because I've
Track3-Mic 3:cause I've just tried to hit, like, I tried to be like, I want to go so fast. Cause then I'll feel good. I don't feel ready for the
Track2-Mic 2:good and
Track3-Mic 3:wow, how fast? Yeah. Cause I still remember the very first time I tape it, which was for camera marathon, which meant I learned when I had a coach and knew about a taper. I had this session before I was like, what the heck I'm going so much faster. And I don't even. No, I, you know, and it was just cause the taper, but as I've learned, you do not always feel good in your tapers. You often feel worse. And so like trying to
Track2-Mic 2:hit
Track3-Mic 3:PBS or hit really fast times two days for your race, probably not that smart. so yeah, I think I'm for my next race, I'm going to try and reframe that as like, well, just trust the process, trust that you'll feel better from the taper and yeah. Treat that as just a little like run through and not try and
Track2-Mic 2:And when you're, as you're saying that, I'm like, mmm, I definitely do that a little bit. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And also, no matter what, it still feels so hard. A couple days
Track3-Mic 3:often feels worse. Yeah.
Track2-Mic 2:I agree.
Track3-Mic 3:take the taper seriously.
Track2-Mic 2:Alright.
Track3-Mic 3:Okay, so as Anna said at the start, our rundown topic today is the Women's Marathon Selection. And we really just wanted to keep you all in the loop and have a little bit of a discussion about everything that's unfolding here. Yeah,
Track2-Mic 2:Yeah. So you might remember in episode 14, we did a little pick your fighter segment within the rundown where we put each of the athletes cases forward that had qualified. So they all did enough to qualify under the Paris entry standard of two hours, 26 minutes and 50 seconds. But unfortunately only three can be chosen. So our opinion after doing the pick your fighter segment, we realized that we're going to have a very strong team that we send to Paris, no matter who's picked. Um, and we're like so excited to get around them all and can't wait to watch. Our other main learning was that whoever wasn't picked is super unlucky and we were really going to feel for them.
Track3-Mic 3:them. That is exactly right. And, um, As predicted, there has been a little bit of drama around this. So it actually, they, at the time of recording podcast, they haven't officially announced the team. Um, however, an article was shared on nine's Worldwide of Sports, and, um, part of the article said, um, Devastated Australian marathon runner, Lisa Waitman, has accepted her chances of being selected for the Paris Olympics are dead, according to her manager appointed this week, amid a saga that sparked an ugly appeals fight. W. W. O. S. revealed exclusively on Tuesday that Sinead Diver, Genevieve Gregson and Jessica Stenson had been selected to run in Paris.
Track2-Mic 2:Yeah. So since then, a couple of other articles have come out and we sort of collated a bit of info from online, in short, we'll try and do a little explainer for you. So Athletics Australia picked a team, the team that was just mentioned above, um, however didn't announce it to give the unsuccessful runners an opportunity to appeal their decision, which is like standard practice. Um, so Lisa Waitman, who was unfortunately left off the team, appealed this decision to the national sports tribunal which she has every right to do the appeal was heard and deemed successful and the National Sports Tribunal recommended Athletics Australia to reconsider using an independent body. Athletics Australia then declined this recommendation. And from then Lisa had 48 hours to escalate the appeal to a body called the Court of Arbitration of Sport. In the articles written online, this is said to be like a huge financial toll if you were to appeal to the Court of Arbitration of Sport. At the time of recording, we don't know, whether that's gonna happen, so watch this space. Unfortunately though things got a little bit personal on Tuesday this week when, Lisa Whiteman's husband, Lachlan MacArthur, tweeted. At Jess saying, at Jess Stringgrove, which is her maiden name, could you please take down your background photo of my family BTW. This was after one of the seven to one all time head to head wins by Lisa Waitman.
Track3-Mic 3:Just pausing quickly. Do you know what BTW means? By the way, it's called
Track2-Mic 2:the way, for all you fellow boomers,
Track3-Mic 3:She's been practicing her acronyms.
Track2-Mic 2:The
Track3-Mic 3:And the final piece that kind of, um, unfolded here, is that the same day Lisa created an Instagram story folder and Oli 2024. And as at least as of today, she's uploaded one story, which is a picture of a kind of billboard that says, surround yourself with people who fight for you in rooms you aren't in. And Whether this is in defense of her husband and his tweet that had just happened or some other part of the appeal process, it remains to be seen.
Track2-Mic 2:Yeah.
Track3-Mic 3:So, what's to unpack here?
Track2-Mic 2:to unpack. So I really feel for Lisa, as well as I really feel for Izzy and Eloise, who both also ran the Olympic qualifier. And I know people are upset and angry, but I still don't think you have the right to take it out on people. On, someone who has actually run the Olympic qualifier. Um, I just think it sort of leaves a bit of a bitter taste. In my mouth, my mouth, your mouth. Um, yeah, in saying that though, I kind of wonder if Athletics Australia had tried to control the narrative. Even if it like, obviously they can't announce it cause they have to wait for the appeals, but just make some sort of statement saying.
Track3-Mic 3:watch
Track2-Mic 2:this space or I don't know where like working on it rather than kind of They still have not sent anything. So there's they haven't
Track3-Mic 3:a lot of room for conjecture
Track2-Mic 2:Exactly so they haven't said anything about the appeal, but they also haven't said anything about The decision as well, and I think it's not as though this is just happened overnight Like we've known I mean we spoke about it
Track3-Mic 3:what, four weeks ago?
Track2-Mic 2:ago, but even prior to that four weeks, five women had a qualifying time since I think December last year. They've had the time, like they knew whatever team, because it was discretionary, they knew whatever team they picked, there would be like probably a little bit of controversy. Like they had time to get their ducks in a row to navigate this in a way more professional way. And also like at the end of the day, I just feel, this is just so sad. Like, it's so amazing that there's, Six women that have qualified, uh, that have got the qualifying time. Um, and yet now it's kind of almost like pinning up these women against each other where it shouldn't be like that.
Track3-Mic 3:The thing that I am struggling with is, actually, the quote, Lisa, all of that aside, her manager and the way that he is communicating about this, so one of the quotes that, so his manager's called Josk and he's quoted saying, um, he's speaking about the selection process and he says, as much as it sticks in everyone's craw that the principles of the selection process are totally devoid of any ethics, Lisa is just going to have to wear it. And then he says, AA's integrity has to be questioned and their actions have to be considered unethical. And I just think to moralize this is a completely bizarre, it's totally disconnected from this, which is like, at worst, he disagrees with how they've made the decision. There's nothing moral or ethical about this. I just think to bring that lens into it. We're kind of forgetting that, like, it's sport and there are plenty of people who don't get selected for sport teams. Like, it's actually, I know everyone's saying, and I agree, it's sad for Lisa, it's sad for these girls, it's also just, everyone, people don't get selected for the Olympics all the time.
Track2-Mic 2:I think because in running we're not really exposed to it that much because generally speaking it's just the faster person is in.
Track3-Mic 3:Whenever there's a discretionary element though, you have to say like, okay, well, I can't, it's not a moral or an ethical decision. It's them saying, Based on what we value in the data, we think this is going to be the best team. You can say, I disagree. I think it should have been,
Track2-Mic 2:Yeah, and you have the right to
Track3-Mic 3:sure, sure. But to bring ethics into it is like, I find just bizarre. I remember when Joe, my little brother got selected to play, he played, yeah, he played rugby sevens for Australia in the Tokyo Olympics. If he hadn't got selected, it would have been like, well,
Track2-Mic 2:Yeah.
Track3-Mic 3:don't get to, and I, I agree it's, we're not used to it in running. So people don't really know how to react to it. And again, you're completely within your rights to contest it, obviously, but to call it like
Track2-Mic 2:ethical, an
Track3-Mic 3:an unethical decision. Seems disconnected from the reality of how these sports selection things have always been made. Yeah. Yeah.
Track2-Mic 2:Maybe the appeal should be to just allow all six of them to go
Track3-Mic 3:citizens to go about their business. So
Track2-Mic 2:Run Club is making an appeal. Let all six run.
Track3-Mic 3:Let them run! Let them
Track2-Mic 2:them run. Um, interesting chat. So hopefully when this episode drops, there'll actually be a little bit more information on that. Um, but
Track3-Mic 3:but, either
Track2-Mic 2:either way, we'll see. They're all legends, they're all really fast, and they all deserve a spot. But they can't all get
Track3-Mic 3:also fine. That's
Track2-Mic 2:fine.
Track3-Mic 3:fine. So I think
Track2-Mic 2:all right, I think we're done here.
Track3-Mic 3:are.
Track2-Mic 2:That is all for episode 18. We have officially clocked it. And thank you all for listening. We'd love to hear your thoughts about what we've discussed today. So send us a message on Instagram. Have a blessed week. Bye.
Track3-Mic 3:Bye. Bye.
Track2-Mic 2:Um, anything more to add? Have a great
Track3-Mic 3:Have a great night. Have a great night.
Track2-Mic 2:night. Have a great night. It's Monday morning, girl.
Track3-Mic 3:Have a great Monday.
Track2-Mic 2:a great Monday. Have a great week.