Amelia Boone is a world-class obstacle racer and full time corporate attorney. In March of this year she competed in the infamous Barkley Marathons -the race that eats its young. Since the race was started in 1986 only 15 people have successfully completed all 5 loops of the course.

Interview with Amelia Boone

Amelia Boone is a prolific obstacle course racer with 30 first place finishes to her name. This includes winning the Spartan Race World Championships, The Spartan Death Race, and the World’s Toughest Mudder (3 times)! She lives in San Francisco and is an attorney at Apple.

The Barkley Marathons 2018

Just three weeks ago Amelia ran the Barkley Marathons in Tennessee -which many consider to be the hardest ultramarathon around. So tough, that only 15 people have successfully completed the course before the 60 hour cut off. The race is limited to 40 runners a year and even getting in is a closely guarded secret. This year (2018) some super tough runners were there like Gary Robbins, Mike Wardian, and Amelia Boone but the course won and there were exactly zero finishers.

Also Mentioned in This Episode

Amelia Boone website and social media: www.ameliabooneracing.com | Twitter @ameliaboone | Instagram @arboone11

Barkley Marathon documentary: The Race That Eats Its Young. You can get it on Amazon Prime.

Spartan Race – With over 60 races all around the country, Spartan is an obstacle course racing company with races for every athletic ability and skill level. Visit www.spartan.com/marathon for an exclusive offer, to find a race near you and view training and nutrition tips.

Healthiq.com -Marathon Training Academy is sponsored by *Health IQ*, an insurance company that helps health conscious people get special rates on life insurance. Go to healthiq.com/mta to support the show and learn more.

Fully -standing desks and collection of active chairs that give you the freedom to sit, stand, perch, or lean yourself into healthy, comfortable positions that work for your body’s unique and changing needs. I have the Jarvis standing desk and the Back App chair by Fully and absolutely love love love them!

Listener Question: What About Foot Numbness While Running?

I am so frustrated with my running right now. The toes on the outside of my left foot have been going numb. This started happening a couple weeks ago, and it happens on every run now at about 1.5-2 miles in. It goes away as soon as I stop running. At first I thought it was my shoes as they have about 400 miles on them. So I got new shoes yesterday, a different brand/model and now the numbness is slightly more medial and on the bottom of my foot, but just as bad. I tried tying my laces looser, still numb. So I made them as loose as I could stand, still numb! It’s not painful, but it’s affecting my form, and it makes running exhausting and kinda miserable. Has anyone dealt with this or have any ideas or suggestions? I’m thinking of bringing my old shoes back and getting another pair just like them… maybe I just need a fresh pair of the same shoe. -Logan

I feel your pain! I had a similar problem with a pair of trainers a few years ago and realized that for some reason that particular model just didn’t work with my foot. Actually when I look back on my early running days I dealt with uncomfortable shoes a lot because I wasn’t buying the correct size and I thought that foot pain and numbness was part of the process. How wrong I was!

I was also running with a friend a few months ago and she told me that one of her feet was getting numb. Thankfully I knew to tell her to stop wearing that pair and get back to the running store for a better fit.

Many times you need to size up a half or whole size in running shoes for a comfortable fit. Usually numbness is due to a shoe being too small, either in length or width (sometimes both) or due to tight lacing. Feet size and shape change based on the time of day, menstrual cycle for women, weight loss/gain, aging and other factors and having shoes with enough room is key for comfortable running.

I have a wider foot so brands like Altra tend to work better for me. And I’ve found that for some shoe brands I can absolutely love them for shorter run and hate them for long runs. It can be a frustrating process to find the right shoe but don’t be discouraged if it takes trying a few duds beforehand.

Shoe companies often make changes between different versions of the same model that just might not work for you. Make sure the place you buy your shoes has a generous return policy so that you can get a pair that works well for you. -Angie

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