In our main interview, we talk to 43-year old Rachel Cosgrove of Santa Clarita, California. Rachel owns and operate Results Fitness, named one of the top ten gyms in the US by Men’s Health Magazine. She’s the best-selling author of The Female Body Breakthrough and Drop Two Sizes. In 2012, Rachel earned the title of IDEA Personal Trainer of the Year. She has competed as a triathlete, a powerlifter, and in the last year, she made a name for herself as a competitive obstacle course racer. Some of Rachel’s recent OCR stats include earning a 3rd place Masters finish at EPIC Series in 2017, a 3rd place age group finish at the 2017 Big Bear Spartan Beast, 2nd in the 40-49 age group at the 2018 SoCal Spartan, and 3rd place in the 40-49 age group at the 2018 Big Bear Spartan Beast, which also punched her ticket to the 2018 Spartan World Championships as an age group competitor.
Read moreProving age is irrelevant with bodybuilding pro Helen Fritsch (037)
This week, we meet 61-year old Helen Fritsch - a flight attendant, published fitness model, IFBB Bodybuilding Pro and Certified Wine Specialist who believes that age is irrelevant to pursue goals, dreams and desires. To that end, she started competing in bodybuilding shows when she turned 55 and consistently placed in the top 5. When Helen turned 60 last year, she won a national championship and earned her pro card. Four years ago, Helen was diagnosed with Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia, but that didn’t stop her from pursuing her athletic goals. Helen have been featured in Oxygen Magazine, D’Fyne Magazine, Center Stage Magazine and she writes a column in Max Sports and Fitness Magazine called Forever Young.
Read moreAdventures in sobriety with ultra-runner Charlie Engle (036)
This week, we talk to 55-year old Charlie Engle of Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Charlie is a husband, a father, a writer, a runner and a recovering addict. He’s run across deserts, summited ice-covered volcanoes, swam with crocodiles and even served a stint in federal prison. But Charlie’s greatest challenge is the daily challenge of sobriety. Instead of trying to kill his addictive nature, Charlie instead channels it into positive, purpose-filled pursuits, and those pursuits have literally had him running all over the globe. He’s been clean and sober since 1992, his running pursuits have been the subject of multiple documentaries, and in 2016, Charlie released his first book aptly titled Running Man. Charlie is, as he describes yourself, an addict who runs and a runner who writes.
Read moreOvercoming injury and breaking records with Masters Runner Tom Bernhard (035)
his week we talk to 66-year old Masters Runner Tom Bernhard of Castro Valley, CA. He currently holds four men’s 65-69 American age group records - 1 Mile, 5000m, and 10,000m on the track along with the 5K record on the road. Tom is a four-time Road Runner of the year in your age group: once in 55-59, once in 60-64, and twice in 65-69. And he's won the Masters LDR Grand Prix two times: once in 2015 in the 60-64 age group and once in 2017 in the 65-69 age group.
In this episode, we discuss how Tom has managed to work through various injuries and how he continues to be able to race at a high level.
Read moreLiving life as a rabble rouser with Ultra Runner & Cancer Advocate Alene Nitzky
This week we talk to Alene Nitzky of Fort Collins, Colorado. She’s an oncology nurse turned health coach that specializes in helping cancer survivors and their families. She’s a writer, blogger and author and she recently published your first book Navigating the C: A Nurse Charts the Course for Cancer Survivorship Care. On the Seasoned Athlete side, She’s an ultra runner, and one of her great accomplishments came when you turned 50 and ran 112+ miles in 24 hours with an overall win at the Cornbelt 24 Hour run in Iowa. She recently took some time off running to concentrate on her business and writing, and now she’s getting ready to return to racing with a goal of running the Across the Years 48 hour race in December.
In the episode, we discuss her early experience with road running, the advantages of training and competing in such grueling races as an older athlete, and what advice she would give to people who feel like they could never become an ultra runner as well as her advocacy work.
Read moreExpanding your horizons through sport with triathlete Erica McClurg (033)
This week we talk to Erica McClurg of Scottsdale, Arizona. She is a high school science and swim teacher and triathlete. She has been doing triathlons for about 26 years and has completed 15 Ironman distance races - 5 of which were at the World Championships in Hawaii. Over the course of her career, she estimates that she’s completed approximately 300 triathlons of various distances. More recently, she’s been focusing more heavily on the Ironman distance, and she came in the top 3 in the three half Ironmans and one full Ironman she finished in the last season.
In the episode, we discuss her time college at the the forefront of the triathlon movement, her best and worst racing experiences, and her advice for people interested in getting into the sport.
Read moreBecoming an ageless warrior with Competitive bodybuilder and martial artist Julio Anta (032)
This week we talk to Julio Anta of Miami, Florida. He is a grandfather, martial arts and fitness school owner and instructor and competitive bodybuilder. In 2017, after 32 years since his last bodybuilding competition, he became the NPC South Florida Bodybuilding Championships Over 60 overall and light weight winner, and placed second in the over 50 physique category. He is also the author of “Anta’s Ageless Warrior Fitness” and believes that age is just a number and that the martial arts and bodybuilding lifestyle is the fountain of youth.
Read moreAchieving your dream at any age with National Senior Games athlete Liz Sharp (031)
This week we talk to Liz Sharp of Monroe, Louisiana. Growing up, she dreamed of competing in the Olympics in Track and Field, and at one point even qualified for the Olympic Trials. But a freak accident derailed that dream. Now, over forty years later, she's been able to rekindle she athletic spirit via the Senior Games, earning three medals in the 2017 National Senior Games, proving that with a little faith and determination, it's never too late to achieve your dreams.
Read moreExpert insights from the Celebrity Sweat Wellness Day, featuring Billy Blanks, Chris Shelton and Eric The Trainer (030)
This episode is a little different than what we normally do here at Seasoned Athlete. I recently had the opportunity to bring the Seasoned Athlete Podcast to the Celebrity Sweat Wellness Day in Downtown Los Angeles. Celebrity Sweat is a television show on Discovery Life Channel that features interviews with celebrities and athletes and is all about motivating and inspiring people to live their best lives. Kind of like what we do around here.
Episode 030 will feature interviews with three people who are all over 40 and represent different specialties in the fitness and wellness arena. The first interview is with Tae Bo creator, fitness legend and Celebrity Sweat co-host 62-year old Billy Blanks. The second is with martial arts athlete and qigong expert 47-year old Chris Shelton. And the last interview of the episode is with Hollywood physique expert and Celebrity Sweat co-host 49 (aka forty-fine) year old Eric The Trainer. In these three interviews, you’ll hear three distinctly different stories but some common threads, as well, such as taking care of yourself from the inside out and the importance of getting rest. All three are over 40 and have some fantastic advice for the over 40 athlete.
Read moreHitting your stride later in life with masters runner Brian Pilcher (029)
This week we talk to masters distance runner Brian Pilcher of Kentfield, California. He has been named male masters runner of the year in 2012 and 2013, he was the overall masters athlete of the year in 2013. He currently holds the 60-64 age group world record in the half marathon, 25K and 30K distances, all of which were earned on the same day during the 2016 Chicago Marathon, where he also tied the full marathon record set by Clive Davies in 1979. Just one week earlier, he broke the 5K world record for his age group at the Syracuse Festival of Races with a time of 16:38, a record he still holds to this day.
In the episode, we discuss how he got back into running in his fifties after a long break and what advantages can come from having a late start as a runner, and he gives advice to others who may be considering getting into running at a more advanced age.
Read morePerforming at your peak in an evolving sport with original Spartan Pro Team athlete Kevin Donoghue (028)
This week, we talk to Kevin Donoghue from Monroe, New York. Kevin has been a Spartan Race Pro Team member since 2015 and holds multiple Spartan Race records. These records include 102 combined masters and overall Spartan Race podiums, 50 1st place finishes, and 71 1st place age group finishes. He's the host of Daily Burn Spartan, the first ever workout video series for obstacle racing and he's been a two-time team captain on NBC’s Spartan Ultimate Team Challenge. In addition, Kevin is Spartan Master Trainer, Obstacle Specialist Coach and one of the founding Spartan Course Officials.
Read moreBreaking records at any age with Masters Runner Libby James (027)
This week, we talk to Libby James of Fort Collins, Colorado. She's a mother of four and a grandmother of 12 ranging in age from 8-24 years old. Libby is a writer, a teacher, and long distance runner. And that is an understatement, because she may just be the fastest woman her age in the world. Libby holds the current USA Track and Field world records for her age group in the 5K and 15K distances. In 2012, she was inducted into the Colorado Running Hall of Fame and in 2016 she was inducted into the USATF Masters Hall of Fame. And this is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to her running accomplishments, which all came after age 40.
Read moreSeasoned Athlete's Best Moments of 2017 (026)
This week we take a look back and celebrate our first year by sharing some of our best moments on the show so far. You'll hear clips about meaningful competitive moments, advice for fellow Seasoned Athletes and words of wisdom from Seasoned Athlete alums like triathlete Cherie Gruenfeld, rower Allison Hunt, speed skater Melissa Koenig, obstacle racer Heather Gollnick, roller derby athlete Halee Daily, Crossfit Games masters athlete Diane Stuart and women's running pioneer Kathrine Switzer, among others.
Read moreConquering life threatening illness and crushing 24-hour obstacle races with endurance athlete Deanna Blegg (025)
This week, we talk to 48-year old Deanna Blegg from Melbourne, Australia. Deanna is the definition of tough. She is a mother, HIV and AIDS survivor, breast cancer survivor and an adventure racer, obstacle racer, Crossfitter, and by all accounts, all around awesome athlete. Deanna won the overall women’s title in the 2013 World’s Toughest Mudder, a 24-hour obstacle racing event where competitors run continuous 5-mile loops in an attempt to complete as many miles as possible. Just last month, she took 4th place overall in the women’s division of that same race after taking the previous year off to fight breast cancer. As we mentioned...definition of tough. Deanna is also the creator of the BleggMit, a lightweight neoprene glove designed for cold weather races. And she help others prep for endurance events with her BleggFit training programs.
Read moreAdopting a new sport in your forties - and becoming a World Champion with triathlete Adrienne Leblanc (024)
In this episode, we talk to Adrienne Leblanc, a mother of three, physical therapist and triathlete based out of Scottsdale, Arizona. She's a five time age group national champion for short course racing triathlon. She earned the World Champion Sprint distance triathlon title in 2015 and are the 2017 World Champion in the Olympic distance triathlon. She also earned Arizona State Champion titles in 2016 and 2017 in the 40K women’s road cycling Time Trial Race. In 2018, Adrienne plans on competing at the ITU Age Group World Championships for Triathlon in Australia, where she hopes to defend her winning title from this year.
We talk about the ups and downs of being a part of a family of athletes, how she found her way into competing in and winning triathlons in her forties, and some of the key things she does to stay at the top of her game as she gets older.
Read moreBuild your best body, build your best life with figure competitor Darla Andrews
In this episode, we talk to Darla Andrews, a veteran fitness professional, successful entrepreneur and mother of five daughters. By the time her youngest daughter was 3 years old, she found herself out of shape, and struggling with self-esteem and low energy. In her early 40’s, she made her health and fitness a priority again, and Since then Darla has completed several marathons, mud runs, and triathlons. At the age of 49, Darla completed and won her first Figure Competition and two years later she earned her Pro Card! Darla recently released her first book, Build Your Best Body, Build Your Best Life, where she shares her story and gives tips, tools and solutions on how to transform both body and mind regardless of age or circumstances.
Read moreBecoming more seasoned - a birthday Q&A with Seasoned Athlete Creator and Host Robin Legat (022)
This week's episode is a little different than usual. Seasoned Athlete Podcast Creator and Host Robin Legat turned 43 on November 14th. To celebrate becoming one year more Seasoned, Robin asked for listener questions and answered them live on Facebook and Instagram while recording this week's episode. In this episode, Robin goes in-depth on topics such as achieving personal bests as we get older, why some people are drawn to competition while others aren't, the role of nutrition in performance, what keeps her motivated to train regularly and more.
Read moreFifty years of running FEARLESS with women's running pioneer Kathrine Switzer (021)
This week features an interview with Kathrine Switzer, iconic athlete, sports and social advocate, author, and Emmy award-winning television commentator. She's perhaps best known as the first woman to officially enter and run the Boston Marathon fifty years ago this year. She has been honored widely for her achievements, most recently being inducted into the USA National Women’s Hall of Fame for creating positive social change. Her work has forever changed the face of sports, health, and opportunities for women around the world and fearlessly empowering millions beyond the finish line, especially through her non-profit “261® Fearless”.
Read moreAccepting no limits with adaptive athlete Karen Porter (020)
This week, we talk to 42-year old Karen Porter, a Registered Dietitian and Adaptive Obstacle Racing Athlete and U.S. Army Veteran living in Atlanta, Georgia. This year, she qualified for the pro round of the U.S. OCR Championships, the Spartan Race World Championships as well as the OCR World Championships. She is the only known adaptive athlete to qualify pro for each of these events. She regularly competes against the best of the best in the elite or pro divisions of obstacle course races, and most of her fellow racers have no idea the challenges she faces to compete side by side with them. In this episode, we talk about how an adaptive athlete is defined and what that means for her as an obstacle racer, the role nutrition plays for endurance athletes, and how to live a life with limitations but no limits.
Read moreThe key to longevity and happiness in a full contact sport with roller derby athlete Halee Daily (019)
This week's episode is all about roller derby!
Meet Halee Daily, aka #44 The 4closer, a Roseville, California-based roller derby athlete. She has (knock on wood) played injury-free roller derby since 2009, primarily as a dedicated starting jammer on the Sacred City Derby Girls Sacrificer All-Star Team out of Sacramento. From 2011-2016, she was also Sacred's strategy and jammer coach. She set a team record by playing 56 consecutive Women’s Flat Track Roller Derby Association or WFTDA bouts from 2009-2015. This year, she joined the 10th ranked Bay Area Derby All Stars, and competed with them in the WFTDA International Playoffs in Seattle last month.
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