We talk with Andrea Feucht about long COVID in endurance athletes and why you can look fine, keep racing, and still be nowhere near healthy. We compare relapse stories, data signals, and the hard lesson that rest and a slow return may be the only choice available to athletes.

• why long COVID can look like “just getting slower” in runners
• the emotional cost of being told you look fine
• how athletes notice subtle post-viral changes first
• using Strava exports and heart rate trends to validate decline
• why HRV and heart rate zones can mislead during illness
• Andrea’s symptom set including chest tightness, GI issues, and circulation changes
• radical rest, vagus nerve breathing, journaling, and cautious hiking as recovery tools
• relapse after a later virus and the fear of pushing too hard
• why traditional medicine often offers reassurance without clear treatment
• Jon’s overlapping sinus infection and the value of ruling out fixable problems
• Andrea's advice: making room for awe as a stabilising life practice

Thanks for listening to Running With Problems. Follow us on Instagram @runningwithproblems. DM us there with questions in text or audio messages! Or email us at podcast@runningwithproblems.run.

Hosted by Jon Eisen (@mildly_athletic) and Miranda Williamson (@peaksandjustice). Edited by Jon Eisen. Theme music by Matt Beer.

Michael Morrison from Red Hammer Rehab is back on the pod to discuss all things tendinopathy.

• tendinopathy explained as a continuum from reactive to degenerative
• common sites in runners including Achilles, patellar, and gluteal tendons
• pain scale rules to guide training and rehab load
• isometrics for fast pain relief and deshielding of lazy fibers
• slow heavy strength with tempo reps and reps in reserve
• soleus versus gastroc loading and why knee angle matters
• plyometrics for energy storage and release capacity
• MEDS ecosystem: stress, sleep, diet, and programming load
• collagen plus vitamin C timing, hydration, and protein targets
• neural mapping, external cues, and variable drills for durable form
• reminder to use PT for maintenance, not only emergencies

Thank y'all for your patience in waiting for this episode, and we will get back on the horse recording more episodes for y'all.

Thanks for listening to Running With Problems. Follow us on Instagram @runningwithproblems. DM us there with questions in text or audio messages! Or email us at podcast@runningwithproblems.run.

Hosted by Jon Eisen (@mildly_athletic) and Miranda Williamson (@peaksandjustice). Edited by Jon Eisen. Theme music by Matt Beer.

We open with life updates and stress, then welcome Katie Grossman to share a raw, relentless story about postpartum complications, medical gaslighting, a rare tumor, and the long road to a labral tear diagnosis and surgery. The goal shifts from podiums to presence, from finish lines to finding flow and community again.

• why Katie’s story matters to the ultra community
• we met Katie crewing at Utah 115
• Katie's early ultras, Havelina chaos and learning the hard way
• the magic of hundreds and the mid-race flow
• Hardrock dreams, Kroger’s Canteen and belonging
• pregnancy hip snap and years of dismissal
• emergency C-section and abandoned postpartum care
• rare sarcoma, multiple surgeries and core reconstruction
• “you’re not worth fixing” and finding the right surgeon
• labral tear surgery, patient advocacy and recovery truth
• redefining success with a coach and consistency
• voluntary pain versus chronic injury pain
• birth shame, a healing second delivery and perspective
• running for her daughters, skiing and learning new skills

Thanks for listening to Running With Problems. Follow us on Instagram @runningwithproblems. DM us there with questions in text or audio messages! Or email us at podcast@runningwithproblems.run.

Hosted by Jon Eisen (@mildly_athletic) and Miranda Williamson (@peaksandjustice). Edited by Jon Eisen. Theme music by Matt Beer.