Episode 156 | Steve Magness

“Most of my life was spent chasing times, mainly because I ran really fast in high school—a 4:01 as you mentioned—and when you un 4:01, you know, it’s always in your head that, ‘Oh man, there’s a second and change that I can get out of my body to get in that elusive, venerated sub-4 club,’ so you think and you obsess over times and I certainly did to an unhealthy degree in my college and a little bit in my post-college life as well. So I think coming to terms with, and realizing and recognizing that that doesn’t really matter anymore, was something that was incredibly freeing for myself.”Steve Magness wears many hats in the worlds of running and performance. He’s been the head cross-country coach and assistant track coach at the University of Houston since 2012 and he’s also worked with numerous professional athletes at the Olympic and world championship level. He’s the coauthor of Peak Performance and The Passion Paradox, both of which he wrote with former podcast guest Brad Stulberg, and he’s also the author of The Science of Running. Steve also co-hosts two podcasts, On Coaching, which dives deep into the art and science of training and coaching for runners, and The Growth Equation, a weekly no-bullshit discussion on well-being and performance. As an athlete in the early 2000s, Steve was one of the top scholastic runners in the country, running 4:01 in the mile—which, at the time, was the 6th fastest high school mile in U.S. history. This was an awesome conversation and I hope you enjoy listening to it as much as I did taking part in it. Steve told me about how he spends and splits his time amongst his various interests and pursuits, what his relationship with running looks like these days, and how he’s channeled his competitive instincts throughout his life. We discussed how the past year has challenged him as a coach, the lack of checks and balances in the sport of track and field, and why he believes the sport has a long way to go before it can be considered truly “professional.” We also talked about what spurred his interest in coaching, how his time at The Oregon Project affected his outlook and trajectory as a coach, and a lot more.This episode is brought to you by:— Tracksmith: Tracksmith is a Boston-based running apparel brand, born from a desire to celebrate both the history and the evolving culture of the sport. They recently released their Spring Collection full of stylish gear perfected for the pursuit of personal excellence. Designed for running hard and logging miles as the season shifts, this collection is designed with endurance in mind. Right now, Tracksmith is offering new customers $15 off your first purchase of $75 bucks or more. Just use code MARIO15 when you check out at tracksmith.com.— Goodr: Goodr sunglasses are don’t bounce, they don’t slip, they’re polarized to protect your eyes, and they come in a nice range of styles and fun colors. They’re the most affordable performance shades on the planet with most pairs costing only $25 to $35 bucks a piece. If you want to support the podcast and treat yourself to a pair of goodrs, head over to goodr.com/MARIO or enter the code MARIO at checkout for 15% off your order. Complete show notes: https://themorningshakeout.com/podcast-episode-156-with-steve-magness/Sign up here to get the morning shakeout email newsletter delivered to your inbox every Tuesday morning: www.themorningshakeout.com/subscribe/Support the morning shakeout on Patreon: www.patreon.com/themorningshakeout

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