Set the Pace

When The New York Times featured Mary Cain’s Opinion piece, "I Was the Fastest Girl in America, Until I Joined Nike," in 2019, the running world, including elite athletes, was shocked. Behind her record-breaking success was a story of pressure, abuse, and survival. In Part 1 of this special two-part series for Set the Pace, Rob sits down with Mary to discuss her powerful memoir, “This Is Not About Running,” and her experiences as a young professional athlete with the Nike Oregon Project and Coach Alberto Salazar. Mary shares how harmful coaching practices, body shaming, and a culture that prioritized performance over well-being affected her physical and mental health, ultimately leading her to speak out and advocate for change. The conversation explores the lasting impact of those experiences, the importance of recognizing RED-S (Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport), and why creating healthier environments for athletes matters most.
Content note: This episode includes discussions of eating disorders, self-harm, and suicidal thoughts that some listeners may find difficult.

You can find Episode 1 of HSS's 4 part series on RED-S HERE
And hear our interview with Josh Kerr HERE!

Tickets are now on sale for the 2026 Toyota USATF Outdoor & Para National Championships! NYRR members Get a 10% off discount code. Find your discount code on your Haku dashboard.

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This week, Rob and Becs lead a roundtable discussion on how heat and humidity can become a runner’s secret weapon. Whether you're training for a fall marathon or just trying to stay fit in the summer, running in the heat can help make you a stronger and faster in the fall. Joining the conversation is Dr. Eamon Duffy, a sports cardiologist at Columbia University and New York-Presbyterian and a new member of the New York Road Runners Medical Advisory Council. They’re also joined by Dr. Eric Roy, a water scientist who founded the water-filtration company Hydroviv out of his Washington, D.C. apartment in response to the Flint, Michigan water crisis. Hydroviv was later acquired by Culligan®, the official water partner of NYRR. Rounding out the discussion is Coach Ben, NYRR’s Head of Training Programs, who shares practical tips for training in the heat, including why runners should focus on effort over pace.

Tickets are now on sale for the 2026 Toyota USATF Outdoor & Para National Championships! NYRR members Get a 10% off discount code. Find your discount code on your Haku dashboard.

FOLLOW NYRR: Instagram | Facebook | X | TikTok | YouTube
SUPPORT: Support the Set the Pace podcast! If you enjoy the show, please subscribe and leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

DISCLAIMER
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New York Road Runners’ Gordon Bakoulis joins Set the Pace this week to talk with Rob about her legendary career as both an elite athlete and NYRR’s editorial director. Gordon qualified for the Olympic marathon trials in 1988, 1992, 1996, 2000, and 2004 and was a finalist in the 1992 U.S. Olympic 10,000m trials. As she looks ahead to retirement after nearly 24 years at New York Road Runners, she reflects on the organization’s continued commitment to innovation and inclusion and why she believes those values will continue to shape its future. Gordon also shares her remarkable running journey—from discovering the sport as a teenager during the running boom of the late 1970s to joining the Atalanta NYC run club and competing at the highest level. She discusses her experience as a running coach and explains how helping others pursue their goals continues to inspire her.
Tickets are now on sale for the 2026 Toyota USATF Outdoor & Para National Championships! NYRR members Get a 10% off discount code. Find your discount code on your Haku dashboard.

FOLLOW NYRR: Instagram | Facebook | X | TikTok | YouTube
SUPPORT: Support the Set the Pace podcast! If you enjoy the show, please subscribe and leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

DISCLAIMER
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Join Ali Feller from Ali on the Run and Aisha Praught Leer from Citius Mag as Set the Pace, Presented by Peloton Reruns the MastercardNew York Mini 10k. Whether you ran the race or have FOMO for not being there, this episode is for you! Tune in for post-race interviews with the Mastercard New York City Mini 10K champions, to hear what it took to break the tape at this iconic race. Following in their footsteps, thousands of runners also crossed the finish line with goals of their own. Three of those runners share their stories of strength, grit, and resilience.

FOLLOW NYRR: Instagram | Facebook | X | TikTok | YouTube
SUPPORT: Support the Set the Pace podcast! If you enjoy the show, please subscribe and leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

DISCLAIMER
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and throughout the month we’ve been sharing stories about running and mental well-being. We also celebrated Mother’s Day, and for many members of our community, running, mental health, and motherhood are deeply intertwined. In this week’s episode, Rob and Becs speak with Peloton instructor Selena Samuela, who opens up about raising identical twin girls, Stella and Frankie, and the mental and physical challenges of returning to movement postpartum. Selena reflects on body image, motherhood, rebuilding fitness slowly, and her powerful mantra: acceptance is not the same as complacency. Now, 24 weeks after giving birth, she’s back teaching live at Peloton and rebuilding her running day by day.
NOTE: This episode explores one runner’s journey with fertility, pregnancy, and childbirth

WATCH THIS EPISODE ON YOUTUBE

FOLLOW NYRR: Instagram | Facebook | X | TikTok | YouTube
SUPPORT: Support the Set the Pace podcast! If you enjoy the show, please subscribe and leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

DISCLAIMER
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.