Justin Britt: The hardest thing for me trying to get through my
Justin Britt: mental struggles was finding community. I didn't start running to
Justin Britt: find community, but what I found is the running community
Justin Britt: is just massive. If you're struggling, go for a run
Justin Britt: and sign up for a 5K.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Hey, everybody, and welcome to Set the Pace, the official
Rob Simmelkjaer: podcast of New York Road Runners presented by Peloton. I'm
Rob Simmelkjaer: your host, Rob Simmelkjaer, the CEO of New York Road
Rob Simmelkjaer: Runners, and with me, my cohost, Peloton instructor, Becs Gentry. Becs
Rob Simmelkjaer: coming off of a great stint in the broadcast booth
Rob Simmelkjaer: for United Airlines NYC Half. And it was a great broadcast, Becs.
Becs Gentry: Thank you.
Rob Simmelkjaer: It was a great, great day for 30, 229 runners.
Becs Gentry: Wow, official number there. Ring that bell. That is huge.
Becs Gentry: Oh my goodness. It was a beautiful day. So much
Becs Gentry: to talk about. We were reeling in the broadcast booth.
Becs Gentry: There was just so many different vibes going on through
Becs Gentry: all four of the professional races and then into the
Becs Gentry: everyday runners. It was beautiful. It was one of those
Becs Gentry: true runners races. Seeing Agnes Ngetich, who everybody was like, "
Becs Gentry: Oh, is she going to come and dominate at this race? She's feeling really
Becs Gentry: good. She started so strong." And then seeing or hearing
Becs Gentry: Carrie the Olympian and so much experience of running herself,
Becs Gentry: but also watching through commentating of how people are performing.
Becs Gentry: She's like, " She's cold. She's cold. She's not used to
Becs Gentry: this. She's cold." And the powerhouse or the caged animal,
Becs Gentry: as Carrie described her, or Hellen Obiri's coach actually described
Becs Gentry: her as this energy that I'm sure Hellen just felt
Becs Gentry: in that moment, Agnes just dropped maybe a couple of
Becs Gentry: seconds off the pace and Hellen went for it. And I
Becs Gentry: think something similar happened in the men's race. For both
Becs Gentry: wheelchair races, there was quite a distinctive lead for the
Becs Gentry: winners there, but it was still so magnificent. And each
Becs Gentry: of those runners came over the finish line, taking their
Becs Gentry: claim on the race this year with the biggest smiles
Becs Gentry: on their faces. It really felt like it meant so
Becs Gentry: much to each of them in a very different way. And we got
Becs Gentry: event record, which is huge.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Yes, it was absolutely huge. The event record in this
Rob Simmelkjaer: event, because the course has changed a lot, gets set
Rob Simmelkjaer: more often than one might think, but Hellen Obiri-
Becs Gentry: Yeah, should we clarify that? Because I think that was
Becs Gentry: a big question that we actually had. And I've been
Becs Gentry: asked such a few times what it means.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Yeah, event record covers all the courses.
Becs Gentry: Exactly, not a course record.
Rob Simmelkjaer: So, it's not a course record, it's an event record. So, all the
Rob Simmelkjaer: different times this race has been run, Hellen Obiri now
Rob Simmelkjaer: holds the event record with a time of 106: 33,
Rob Simmelkjaer: so that counts for all of the history of this
Rob Simmelkjaer: event. Obviously, the course changes year to year. This year
Rob Simmelkjaer: we had... Second year we had it over the Brooklyn
Rob Simmelkjaer: Bridge, a little less elevation, but nonetheless, it's a record
Rob Simmelkjaer: setting performance for Hellen Obiri, who, let's face it, is now
Rob Simmelkjaer: truly the queen of New York City distance running.
Becs Gentry: The queen. (inaudible) .
Rob Simmelkjaer: She just has a vibe here. She comes here. She has
Rob Simmelkjaer: the confidence. She really handles a variety of conditions so well.
Becs Gentry: She does.
Rob Simmelkjaer: She has run races and won in cold conditions, in
Rob Simmelkjaer: warm conditions, in variable conditions. She just has a way
Rob Simmelkjaer: of adjusting to whatever the weather is. And it was
Rob Simmelkjaer: cold. For the pro runners, they never got above 40
Rob Simmelkjaer: degrees in their run. They were running in the 30s. She handled
Rob Simmelkjaer: it well. And you're right, whether it was Agnes, whether
Rob Simmelkjaer: it was Sharon Lokedi, who when she got to the
Rob Simmelkjaer: finish line on Sunday, I was there to greet her
Rob Simmelkjaer: and she was cold. Even at the 13.1 mile mark, they
Rob Simmelkjaer: were cold, so that definitely was a factor for some
Rob Simmelkjaer: of them. But tremendous day for Hellen. Five American women,
Rob Simmelkjaer: by the way, finishing in the top 10 on Sunday,
Rob Simmelkjaer: so a great day.
Becs Gentry: All kind of together too, which was really lovely to
Becs Gentry: see from Emily Sisson coming in sixth, and then we
Becs Gentry: had sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, tenth. It was really cool.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Yes. It was awesome to see. So, a good day for them as
Rob Simmelkjaer: well. And just a great day on the women's side.
Rob Simmelkjaer: On the men's side, it was exciting to see a
Rob Simmelkjaer: new face who really none of us really knew. Our
Rob Simmelkjaer: professional team knows, Sam Grotewold and Dorian know the pro
Rob Simmelkjaer: runners, but for someone like me who kind of dips
Rob Simmelkjaer: in and out of following, to see Adrian Wildschutt, I
Rob Simmelkjaer: think I'm pronouncing it right-
Becs Gentry: (inaudible) .
Rob Simmelkjaer: ... from South Africa, come across in 59:30, the first
Rob Simmelkjaer: ever South African champion of this event. And it was just fun
Rob Simmelkjaer: to see a new face do well. And he was
Rob Simmelkjaer: so excited and felt really good about his finish in
Rob Simmelkjaer: what must have been, Becs, a very exciting men's race to broadcast because there
Rob Simmelkjaer: were so many of them together for so long.
Becs Gentry: The pack was gigantic. They stayed together so long. Patrick
Becs Gentry: Kiprop led the way for the vast majority of the
Becs Gentry: race. And it was very, very... It almost felt planned
Becs Gentry: when Adrian just took off because yes, okay, we had
Becs Gentry: Peter Lynch, Irish guy who we were joking like... Of
Becs Gentry: course he took the lead for a little while, we're like, "
Becs Gentry: He's used to the cold. Come on, no matter where
Becs Gentry: he trains, he's Irish in his blood. He knows the
Becs Gentry: cold weather well." And then he kind of stepped back
Becs Gentry: and then Patrick Dever, Patrick Kiprop together at the front.
Becs Gentry: And yeah, there was a lot of changing of the
Becs Gentry: guards, coming and going, but nobody took a big dive
Becs Gentry: forward. We had Zouhair Talbi, he also took the chance to
Becs Gentry: step forward, but it really wasn't until just over the
Becs Gentry: 10 mile marker that Adrian changed gear. He fully changed
Becs Gentry: gear, and he said that was his plan. He stuck
Becs Gentry: with his coach's plan, was to run 10 miles strong
Becs Gentry: and then start really racing at 10 miles. And he
Becs Gentry: said he felt good. And he's been training in South
Becs Gentry: Africa recently, so he's just coming off of summer, which
Becs Gentry: a lot of the professional athletes have actually gone, even
Becs Gentry: if they are based in the likes of Flagstaff, Boulder,
Becs Gentry: et cetera, and in the US to train, they may have
Becs Gentry: gone home after the end of the fall season here,
Becs Gentry: as we call it, to warmer climates, to be with
Becs Gentry: family, to spend time in different training environments like Iten.
Becs Gentry: And coming off South African winter, Adrian was saying it
Becs Gentry: was warm. He's used to training in 80, 90 degrees...
Becs Gentry: Celsius? Fahrenheit, Fahrenheit. And to come here, as you say,
Becs Gentry: you're racing in the 30s, but I said on the broadcast,
Becs Gentry: one minute he had this gigantic hat on that was
Becs Gentry: almost covering his eyes and it looked so warm and
Becs Gentry: wonderful, and then all of a sudden it came off
Becs Gentry: and I said to Carrie and Ryan, " Oh, the hat's
Becs Gentry: off. He means business now." And then within, he was
Becs Gentry: gone. He was off on his way. So, I do
Becs Gentry: think a lot of these races were very well executed
Becs Gentry: from a coaching and a runner perspective over the weekend,
Becs Gentry: and proof's in the pudding in those times. He was
Becs Gentry: incredibly close to the event record for the men's side too.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Super impressive. Congratulations to him. In the wheelchair races, it
Rob Simmelkjaer: was your country woman, Eden Rainbow Cooper, winning the women's
Rob Simmelkjaer: wheelchair race in a time of 54: 27 from the UK.
Becs Gentry: Fantastic.
Rob Simmelkjaer: And another really positive story on the men's side, Daniel
Rob Simmelkjaer: Romanchuk, coming back from the injury he suffered in the
Rob Simmelkjaer: crash that he was involved in in the Sydney Marathon, comes
Rob Simmelkjaer: back and wins his third United Airlines NYC Half title
Rob Simmelkjaer: as well.
Becs Gentry: So good to see.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Was great to see that win as well. You could
Rob Simmelkjaer: tell it meant a lot to him.
Becs Gentry: It really did. And it was such an unfortunate incident
Becs Gentry: at Sydney when a spectator just came onto the course
Becs Gentry: and it tipped Daniel over and he took an injury
Becs Gentry: to his, I believe, shoulder and collarbone area quite badly.
Becs Gentry: So, he spent the last six months or so recovering,
Becs Gentry: rebuilding. He also has just come from Florida, so he was
Becs Gentry: also in the warmth and training on the roads down there in
Becs Gentry: Florida before this race. So, it was so great to
Becs Gentry: see him. He also mentioned his... I think it was
Becs Gentry: his sister and brother- in- law also ran the race
Becs Gentry: today, so really, truly a family affair of celebration for the
Becs Gentry: Romanchuk crew this weekend.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Yeah, it was really great to see. On the other side, the
Rob Simmelkjaer: nonprofessional side, we had our fourth Commissioner's Cup. This, of
Rob Simmelkjaer: course, is a competition among the various agencies of the City
Rob Simmelkjaer: of New York, all the folks that we work with
Rob Simmelkjaer: year in and year out to help put on this
Rob Simmelkjaer: race and the marathon and many others. And the NYPD,
Rob Simmelkjaer: the police continued their dominance in the Commissioner's Cup.
Becs Gentry: They've won so many of them.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Yep. They won their fourth straight, defeating the six other
Rob Simmelkjaer: agencies, including the Mayor's Office, so congrats again to the
Rob Simmelkjaer: NYPD on retaining that Commissioner's Cup. These other agencies are
Rob Simmelkjaer: going to have to start recruiting for speed because-
Becs Gentry: They are.
Rob Simmelkjaer: ... yeah, the NYPD, they are on it. They are
Rob Simmelkjaer: really a great group of athletes.
Becs Gentry: They truly... There was a lot of MYPD runners coming over that line early on,
Becs Gentry: I will say. And I know they get the VIP
Becs Gentry: start as well, so they do start earlier, but still,
Becs Gentry: there's nothing to take away from the time and the
Becs Gentry: effort and the energy that they put in to run
Becs Gentry: those fast splits on Sunday, so congratulations to them.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Absolutely.
Becs Gentry: And then the kids race. We had the beautiful Brittany
Becs Gentry: Bell covering that on the broadcast team with over 1500
Becs Gentry: little... Well, not so little. It's two through...
Rob Simmelkjaer: Two to 18, yes.
Becs Gentry: 18, yeah.
Rob Simmelkjaer: So, we got a nice broad spectrum of youth. The older
Rob Simmelkjaer: kids from 12 to 18, they run a mile-
Becs Gentry: A full mile, yeah.
Rob Simmelkjaer: ... out and back on 7th Avenue right in the
Rob Simmelkjaer: middle of Times Square. And then the little ones run,
Rob Simmelkjaer: could be as little as like a 50- yard dash,
Rob Simmelkjaer: but it's adorable. It's a great event. And it's just
Rob Simmelkjaer: tremendous to shut down Times Square for both the adult
Rob Simmelkjaer: runners coming through, the kids doing their thing. And then that moment
Rob Simmelkjaer: where you've got the leaders and the adults in the first
Rob Simmelkjaer: wave running right alongside the kids in Times Square, one
Rob Simmelkjaer: of the things that really makes this event special. So,
Rob Simmelkjaer: congratulations to all finishers, adults and childs. It was a
Rob Simmelkjaer: great, great day at the United Airlines NYC Half. Well,
Rob Simmelkjaer: Becs, as we just mentioned, five American women finished in the
Rob Simmelkjaer: top 10 on Sunday, including today's guest, 10th place finisher,
Rob Simmelkjaer: Emily Venters. But Emily had another role on race day
Rob Simmelkjaer: as well. She was coaching former NFL player Justin Britt
Rob Simmelkjaer: through this very same race. That's right. They became a
Rob Simmelkjaer: coach student pair a little while ago. In just a
Rob Simmelkjaer: minute, we're going to talk with both of them about
Rob Simmelkjaer: their partnership, how it came about, and what happens when
Rob Simmelkjaer: a football player learns endurance running from a professional distance runner.
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Rob Simmelkjaer: Former NFL center Justin Britt spent most of his career
Rob Simmelkjaer: with the Seattle Seahawks where he started on the offensive
Rob Simmelkjaer: line. These days, his competition looks a little bit different.
Rob Simmelkjaer: This past weekend, Justin ran the United Airlines NYC Half
Rob Simmelkjaer: in 131:11. And he was coached by a professional distance runner, Emily
Rob Simmelkjaer: Venters, who finished the race herself in 109: 46, placing 10th
Rob Simmelkjaer: in the women's field. This is an unusual partnership, a
Rob Simmelkjaer: former NFL player learning endurance running from a younger professional
Rob Simmelkjaer: athlete who is very much in her prime. For Justin,
Rob Simmelkjaer: running became an antidote after football. For Emily, the relationship
Rob Simmelkjaer: with running is more complicated because it's not just something
Rob Simmelkjaer: she loves, it's also how she makes her living. Today,
Rob Simmelkjaer: we're talking with both of them about that dynamic and
Rob Simmelkjaer: what running can mean at very different stages of an
Rob Simmelkjaer: athlete's life. Justin and Emily, congratulations to both of you
Rob Simmelkjaer: for outstanding efforts on Sunday.
Justin Britt: I appreciate it. Thank you.
Emily Venters: Thank you.
Becs Gentry: You were both amazing to watch. It was so exciting.
Becs Gentry: The whole race was an incredibly exciting race from the
Becs Gentry: sidelines from where Rob and I were sitting. And I can't
Becs Gentry: wait to dive into how it was for both of
Becs Gentry: you as runners on the day and experiencing the magnetic
Becs Gentry: vibe that is road racing in New York City with
Becs Gentry: New York Road Runners. So, let's jump in. Emily, I
Becs Gentry: want to know about your incredible finish; 109, top 10.
Becs Gentry: You are so incredibly well- versed in this sport. What
Becs Gentry: did it feel like for you on that morning, lining
Becs Gentry: up on the start line in Brooklyn with your training
Becs Gentry: behind you and that day ahead?
Emily Venters: I was just super excited. Like I said, I really
Emily Venters: enjoy racing in New York. NYRR always puts on amazing
Emily Venters: events for us and hosts us so well, and so
Emily Venters: I feel like every time I come... Or I haven't
Emily Venters: come that many times yet. I'm still young in my
Emily Venters: career, but when I've come, it's always fun and I
Emily Venters: feel excited. And I had never been in a race
Emily Venters: here where we started in Brooklyn, so it's always been
Emily Venters: started in New York City. And yeah, it was just
Emily Venters: awesome. The sun was starting to rise as we were
Emily Venters: on the start line, and kind of I just felt
Emily Venters: like no fear and no anxiety going into it. And
Emily Venters: I was... I just knew it was going to be a
Emily Venters: good day because I felt so calm within myself and
Emily Venters: just excited to see what I was going to do
Emily Venters: on the day.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Emily, did you have a goal coming in? You've had
Rob Simmelkjaer: good finishes in New York before. You finished second in
Rob Simmelkjaer: the Abbott Dash to the Finish a couple years ago.
Rob Simmelkjaer: What were your goals walking to the starting line on Sunday?
Emily Venters: Like I said, I didn't really have a specific goal
Emily Venters: in mind. I just wanted to run within myself and
Emily Venters: I wanted to run feeling strong the whole way. I
Emily Venters: didn't want to go out too fast and I wanted
Emily Venters: to, like I said, stay within myself and just kind
Emily Venters: of slowly chase people and feel good and finish feeling
Emily Venters: strong, and I did that. And I said, I think
Emily Venters: that's probably the best race I've had in over a
Emily Venters: year. Just the way that I felt finishing, it was
Emily Venters: a feeling of like I could have kept going if
Emily Venters: I wanted to.
Rob Simmelkjaer: That's great.
Emily Venters: And I think that that's exciting for me.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Yeah, that's really great. Now, Justin, you and I first
Rob Simmelkjaer: met, I was saying before the podcast started, in Chicago
Rob Simmelkjaer: in the pre- start tent where you were running the
Rob Simmelkjaer: Chicago Marathon, and you had a good day there. Came
Rob Simmelkjaer: to New York. I believe this was your first time
Rob Simmelkjaer: running the United Airlines NYC Half, is that right?
Justin Britt: Correct, correct.
Rob Simmelkjaer: All right. So, help us understand how a former NFL
Rob Simmelkjaer: lineman... You weren't like a wide receiver or a defensive
Rob Simmelkjaer: back where running a lot is part of the job.
Rob Simmelkjaer: You were an offensive lineman where you basically are moving
Rob Simmelkjaer: in like a 10 yard area most of the time
Rob Simmelkjaer: and your job is basically just to hit guys, right,
Rob Simmelkjaer: hit guys, push guys around, just basically be like a
Rob Simmelkjaer: brick wall. How does that transition work from that to
Rob Simmelkjaer: running long distance races?
Justin Britt: Well, half my job, I was moving backwards also. It
Justin Britt: took me... My brain was like, " Wait, we got to
Justin Britt: go forward." No, but I would always say, " Look, if
Justin Britt: I'm running 40 yards, then that's a really good football play,
Justin Britt: so why are we doing a hundred yard sprints, guys?"
Justin Britt: But I never saw myself entering this world of running.
Justin Britt: I think whenever I went on my first run, it
Justin Britt: was just kind of to challenge myself and to experience
Justin Britt: something different because at that time I was so into
Justin Britt: cycling on my Peloton that I was like, " I need
Justin Britt: something new, something that's going to help me keep growing
Justin Britt: mentally," because I was kind of trying to come past
Justin Britt: this mental health struggle that kind of led me to
Justin Britt: retire from the NFL. And running just continues to check
Justin Britt: the box for me. And I'm taking this week off,
Justin Britt: and I know I'm going to have to keep myself
Justin Britt: busy because if I sit at home and don't get
Justin Britt: my run in, it's just going to sit in my
Justin Britt: head and it's going to drive me crazy, but I
Justin Britt: know I need to let the body rest, Emily, Coach
Justin Britt: Venters. But it's been a blessing. It's been amazing. I
Justin Britt: say that standing in the corral of the races is
Justin Britt: as close mentally as I can get to standing in
Justin Britt: the tunnel of a football game. And so I told
Justin Britt: the road runners after the race, I said, " Standing in
Justin Britt: this corral gave me a bigger energetic boost than standing
Justin Britt: in the tunnel at MetLife."
Becs Gentry: Wow. That is huge, and also really amazing to hear, having...
Becs Gentry: You had a wonderful career on the field, and now
Becs Gentry: having this personal elevation of you continuing in sport is
Becs Gentry: really, really cool to see. And I'm sure a lot
Becs Gentry: of that is coming from incredible coaching too. I know
Becs Gentry: it takes a great coach to bring out a really
Becs Gentry: good sports person as well. So, let's talk about your
Becs Gentry: training for it, Justin. You just finished in 131: 11.
Becs Gentry: Thank you for the drop- in of Peloton on your
Becs Gentry: bike, but I am also now really happy that you're a
Becs Gentry: Peloton... Hello, baby. And now you're a Peloton Tread runner as
Becs Gentry: well. We've had one or two interactions, and I'm honored
Becs Gentry: that you've taken a few of my classes. But what
Becs Gentry: was it like being in New York? You ran with
Becs Gentry: a pretty big New York running legend, Rob Dalto, here.
Becs Gentry: As the two of you traversed your way from Brooklyn
Becs Gentry: to Manhattan, what was the journey like for you?
Justin Britt: Well, getting to spend the morning with Rob was pretty special. And you
Justin Britt: see his Instagram and all his interviews and you're like, " Wow,
Justin Britt: he's such a good person and his energy's what you want."
Justin Britt: And so he was clearly the celebrity of the race
Justin Britt: between us two. And any corner we turned, I would
Justin Britt: just say in my head, " My name's Rob." And so there you're like, "
Justin Britt: Let's go, Rob." I was Rob that day. So, it
Justin Britt: was cool getting to know him, but we have our
Justin Britt: connection through WOLACO, the running tights, so I've known him
Justin Britt: for a while. And actually the first time I met
Justin Britt: Rob, it was like mile 22 in Chicago. I'm over
Justin Britt: there dying, trying not to cramp, and here comes Rob
Justin Britt: with his fiance. He's like, " Hey, Justin." And I'm like, "What are you doing?" And I was like, " What
Justin Britt: pace am I at?" And he tells me right on the
Justin Britt: dot. And I was like, " Okay, I got this." So, he's just
Justin Britt: the type of person... I never had to grab a
Justin Britt: water on Sunday. He would speed up, grab two and
Justin Britt: bring him to me. I was like, " The best pacer forever."
Becs Gentry: He got them all for you? That's just the kind of guy he is.
Justin Britt: Like Emily was saying though, she had no fear in
Justin Britt: the corral. I showed up highly confident, and it's like I knew it was going to be a beautiful day.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Yeah. That's awesome. Emily, how did this coaching relationship between
Rob Simmelkjaer: you and Justin first start?
Emily Venters: So, we were at a race, Bloomsday in Washington, Spokane. And
Emily Venters: my agent, Josh Cox, is also his agent now. And
Emily Venters: so Josh had texted me like, " Hey, look out for
Emily Venters: this big tall dude, all tatted up. We work with him."
Rob Simmelkjaer: He's not hard to spot. Not hard to spot in
Rob Simmelkjaer: the corrals of a long distance race. Wearing his Seahawks
Rob Simmelkjaer: jersey most of the time too, so pretty easy to spot.
Emily Venters: Yeah, pretty conspicuous. Yeah. And I was like, " Okay, I'll try and look out for him." And I
Emily Venters: ended up seeing him at the dinner the night before
Emily Venters: the race and we chatted. A bunch of my teammates
Emily Venters: were there too, and we kind of just hit it
Emily Venters: off. And then he told me that he lived in
Emily Venters: Kansas and I was like, " Wait, that's crazy. I'm from
Emily Venters: Kansas. My family still lives there." And you don't expect
Emily Venters: many people to say that they're from Kansas, so that
Emily Venters: was an instant connection for me too. And he said
Emily Venters: he didn't have a coach, and I was like, " What? Let me
Emily Venters: coach you. I coach people and that'd be awesome." I
Emily Venters: love bringing on or starting to coach people who I
Emily Venters: can tell have a really big passion for it. And
Emily Venters: I'm like, " It's awesome that you have that background already
Emily Venters: in this sport you know... or in a different sport, but
Emily Venters: also have that competitive drive and know how to work
Emily Venters: hard, and just let me teach you kind of how
Emily Venters: to train." Because I don't think he really understood training.
Emily Venters: And I'm still trying to teach him a little bit,
Emily Venters: but I think that's fun for me to watch him
Emily Venters: grow and continue to learn running and the training behind
Emily Venters: it and why we do things. And his progress has
Emily Venters: just been amazing. In the last year, it's crazy. I
Emily Venters: don't think he could have run 131 or sub- 131
Emily Venters: or, yeah, sub- 130 like he did in Houston six,
Emily Venters: seven months ago even. So, he just continues to make
Emily Venters: progress and it's really awesome to watch.
Becs Gentry: That's so cool. Okay, can we dive into that just
Becs Gentry: a little bit? Because, A, to humor me, I still
Becs Gentry: after nearly nine years compare NFL to rugby in England.
Becs Gentry: So, to me, I'm like you are center prop sort of vibe
Becs Gentry: in rugby. And as you were saying, the change from
Becs Gentry: running 40 yards to a marathon is absolutely huge. So,
Becs Gentry: talk us through, Justin, you first, why? Why for you
Becs Gentry: did you think, " I'm going to take this on," as
Becs Gentry: this... not just a one- time thing? You have done
Becs Gentry: multiple races. And then for Emily, how did you put
Becs Gentry: it to, let's say paper, the training for somebody who
Becs Gentry: has spent so many years training in one way for
Becs Gentry: one sport, to flip it and run a really long
Becs Gentry: way, potentially a lot faster? I know you're probably accelerating
Becs Gentry: really quickly on the field, Justin, but sustained energy is
Becs Gentry: so different. So, let's just talk about that.
Justin Britt: I think for me, I went out for my first
Justin Britt: run and the football in me was like, " Go for it,
Justin Britt: go, go, go," and so I couldn't even complete a
Justin Britt: mile, I ran out and I had to walk home.
Justin Britt: And so that kind of infuriated me, and it challenged
Justin Britt: me internally, and I was like, " I'm going to make
Justin Britt: this easy." And what I meant by that was just
Justin Britt: making that first mile easy. And then whenever I did
Justin Britt: that and I was running a mile every day, and then I
Justin Britt: was like, " Okay, let's add another. Let's add another." And
Justin Britt: then my mistake was I signed up for a 5K and
Justin Britt: I had the most fun ever. And so I went
Justin Britt: home from that and I was like, " What race can
Justin Britt: I do next?" And at the time I was living
Justin Britt: in Houston, and I was like, "I'm going to sign up for the half marathon in
Justin Britt: January." And that kind of became the goal, but I
Justin Britt: think it was like summertime, so we had a long
Justin Britt: stretch to just run a bunch of 5Ks. And before
Justin Britt: I met Emily, my training was just go out and
Justin Britt: we're going to run a 5K and our body will tell
Justin Britt: us what speed we're going to go. And that was
Justin Britt: just kind of the amateur in me, but why do
Justin Britt: I do it? I think I genuinely have the most
Justin Britt: fun just out there running with the other crowd of
Justin Britt: people. And it's like in football, you show up on
Justin Britt: game day and everyone's mentally locked in. You're like, " I
Justin Britt: know they did the work." And so you step in
Justin Britt: the corral, you're surrounded by a lot of people who
Justin Britt: now are trying to run a sub- 90 with me
Justin Britt: and it's like they're locked in, you know they put
Justin Britt: in the work, they've done the speed work, and they
Justin Britt: avoided the big injuries and we're here together to have
Justin Britt: a really good day, and you just feel the energy
Justin Britt: and it's just real contagious. And it's hard to explain
Justin Britt: what it's like crossing the finish line in Central Park
Justin Britt: at the United NYC Half after you just ran through
Justin Britt: the streets. You know what I mean?
Rob Simmelkjaer: Yeah.
Justin Britt: It's hard to put it into words, but you can
Justin Britt: feel the emotion. And so it's like that's what I
Justin Britt: feel like I'm addicted to. And I'm only going to get
Justin Britt: older, and I started late, so I'm like, " Let's see
Justin Britt: how far we can take it before we need to
Justin Britt: slow down." So, that's where I'm at.
Emily Venters: Wonderful.
Rob Simmelkjaer: It's great. It's so great. Emily, I don't recall speaking before
Rob Simmelkjaer: to an active professional runner who's also actively coaching other
Rob Simmelkjaer: people. Maybe it's more common than I know, but I
Rob Simmelkjaer: think it's fantastic. And I'm just wondering, what do you
Rob Simmelkjaer: find that you get out of it? You're obviously really
Rob Simmelkjaer: focused on your own running, you're competing, this is what
Rob Simmelkjaer: you do for a living. What do you gain from
Rob Simmelkjaer: coaching other people while you're in the midst of your
Rob Simmelkjaer: own professional running career?
Emily Venters: Well, running is a very selfish job, and I tell
Emily Venters: that to everybody. My job is... Yeah, it's all about
Emily Venters: me and the focus is on me. And so when
Emily Venters: I have started to coach other people now, I have
Emily Venters: probably 15 people that I coach, it feels rewarding to
Emily Venters: be able to give back to running in a way
Emily Venters: and share my knowledge with other people who are just
Emily Venters: so passionate about it as well. And lining up on
Emily Venters: the start line with Justin there too, knowing that I've
Emily Venters: coached him, he's going through the same thing that I'm
Emily Venters: about to go through. And it's cool. And watching other
Emily Venters: people's success and them start to flourish and develop. And
Emily Venters: like I said, Justin has shown so much progress in the
Emily Venters: past year. And for me, it's just really cool to
Emily Venters: see that and see his passion for it. And he
Emily Venters: is so driven. I think he might be more obsessed
Emily Venters: with running than me. He just wants to do race
Emily Venters: after race after race, and that's so awesome. And to
Emily Venters: coach those people who are just so into it is
Emily Venters: so fun for me, and it helps me find a
Emily Venters: greater love for this sport as well. So, it's just...
Emily Venters: Yeah, it's a circle and it helps me and it
Emily Venters: helps them, so it's great. And the running community is something
Emily Venters: that I just love about running as well. I think
Emily Venters: everybody that I've met over my 12 or so years has
Emily Venters: made a huge impact on my life, and they're the
Emily Venters: best people I've ever met as well.
Becs Gentry: That's awesome.
Rob Simmelkjaer: That's great.
Becs Gentry: Without talking about your other clients, maintaining their privacy, is
Becs Gentry: Justin your most unusual client coming from-
Emily Venters: For sure.
Becs Gentry: What was your first vibe when you were like, " Okay,
Becs Gentry: dude, we got to chill on doing the 5Ks every
Becs Gentry: weekend at whatever pace you fancy."? How did you talk
Becs Gentry: him into more of a structured running... traditional running program?
Emily Venters: Just based off of the conversation we had, I could
Emily Venters: tell he didn't know how to train really, but that he
Emily Venters: was so into it-
Becs Gentry: Train running.
Emily Venters: Yeah. Yeah, but he was so into it. And I
Emily Venters: was like, " I got to. This is a fun challenge for me
Emily Venters: too. I want to see how fast I can get
Emily Venters: him to go," because I know that he will love
Emily Venters: that too. But I'm like, " We're going to be going
Emily Venters: to see how fast we can get in. We're not done." So, yeah, I
Emily Venters: take it on as a challenge as well. It's like how
Emily Venters: he does is I want him to do just as
Emily Venters: well as he wants to do.
Becs Gentry: Of course.
Emily Venters: It's cool.
Rob Simmelkjaer: So, Justin, how fast do you think you can go?
Rob Simmelkjaer: Now that you've been working with Emily for a little
Rob Simmelkjaer: while, do you think you have a sense of your
Rob Simmelkjaer: kind of ceiling yet or you still got a lot
Rob Simmelkjaer: of upside, do you think?
Justin Britt: Yeah, no, I think we're still tapping into the speed
Justin Britt: run. I think we're just entering that. We showed up
Justin Britt: the Bloomsday, and we're sitting there eating dinner, and she
Justin Britt: was asking me about my running journey, and she was like, " How many
Justin Britt: miles are you putting in a week?" I was like, " About
Justin Britt: 30." She's like, " That's not enough." And I was like, "
Justin Britt: That's the first time anyone ever told me that." But
Justin Britt: now right at this minute, I'm like, " I understand it."
Justin Britt: And it's like leading up to the New York Half,
Justin Britt: the United NYC Half, we were putting in 50 miles
Justin Britt: a week and it felt strong and it felt good. And
Justin Britt: so I think I want I want to go to my next
Justin Britt: race and beat my Chicago time. I'd love to run
Justin Britt: Chicago again and go down there and chase three. I
Justin Britt: think there's plenty of time to grow to that, and that
Justin Britt: seems like a fun challenge. I've ran basically two hour
Justin Britt: and a half half- marathons back to back, so my
Justin Britt: confidence is pretty high right now. And I think there's
Justin Britt: a lot more that I can do.
Becs Gentry: Absolutely. We think that too. What are your favorite kind of
Becs Gentry: workouts to do?
Justin Britt: The easy runs.
Becs Gentry: Really? Wow. I was really thinking you were going to say the speed workout,
Becs Gentry: going back to that hardcore-
Justin Britt: I love... Go ahead, Rob.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Did you see Emily's reaction, by the way? Emily's like, " Yeah, yeah.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Of course it's the easy runs." I think Emily wants to push your speed
Rob Simmelkjaer: a little more. Emily, is that right?
Emily Venters: Yeah. I'm like, " Dude, the workouts are key. We can't
Emily Venters: skip the workouts. I know that they're not fun always,
Emily Venters: but that's how we get better."
Justin Britt: It's weird. Something always pops up.
Emily Venters: (inaudible) threshold, the more you run up...
Becs Gentry: You find something to get you out of doing the speed workout?
Justin Britt: No. It's just how it works. Sometimes though, I do
Justin Britt: have to be like, " Emily, I'm 34. I'll do half
Justin Britt: of this."
Emily Venters: No excuses.
Becs Gentry: No.
Emily Venters: No excuses. That is young.
Becs Gentry: No.
Emily Venters: That is so young.
Justin Britt: But no, in all honesty, there's not a run that I-
Emily Venters: It'll be worth it when you run the sub-three.
Justin Britt: Yeah. Well, it was worth it whenever we went down
Justin Britt: to Houston and I got done running a sub- 90,
Justin Britt: and I was like, " I could easily run five more
Justin Britt: miles." And so it pays off. And the hard thing
Justin Britt: about training for a January, for a February, March race
Justin Britt: is you've got to train through the winters in the
Justin Britt: Midwest, so trying to balance that. Sometimes the speed days
Justin Britt: fall on the ice day and you just kind of
Justin Britt: have to work with your coach a little bit, but
Justin Britt: she's done a fantastic job. And it's been good. There
Justin Britt: hasn't been a run that I've hated. Some of the
Justin Britt: runs seem daunting, but then you get at it and
Justin Britt: you get in the flow of it, and by the
Justin Britt: end of it, you're like, " I'm glad I did that."
Becs Gentry: You have a giant machine right behind you that I'm
Becs Gentry: pretty sure Emily could pop the speed workouts on to
Becs Gentry: that to avoid you going ice skating outside.
Justin Britt: It gets used.
Rob Simmelkjaer: That's a treadmill for those listening, yes, a pretty good
Rob Simmelkjaer: size treadmill right behind Justin as we speak on video.
Becs Gentry: A Peloton treadmill. Thank you, Rob.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Thank you. I couldn't tell. Thank you very much. Perfect.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Justin, you said... When we first started talking about your
Rob Simmelkjaer: love of running and how you got into this, you
Rob Simmelkjaer: talked a lot about the mental health challenge post- football.
Rob Simmelkjaer: And we know how common it is for professional athletes
Rob Simmelkjaer: to have that struggle after they've finished competing in their
Rob Simmelkjaer: sport. We also know for those of us who follow
Rob Simmelkjaer: football that there are some specific challenges a lot of
Rob Simmelkjaer: the time for former NFL players, especially folks who play
Rob Simmelkjaer: positions like the ones that you play, offensive line, centers.
Rob Simmelkjaer: There's a prevalence of CTE for a lot of those
Rob Simmelkjaer: runners, a lot of those athletes, I should say. Can
Rob Simmelkjaer: you talk about on the mental side how you feel
Rob Simmelkjaer: running has really helped you post football? And do you
Rob Simmelkjaer: have a message to other... there's so many guys every
Rob Simmelkjaer: year who are coming out of the NFL and trying
Rob Simmelkjaer: to figure out what to do next, in terms of what running
Rob Simmelkjaer: could potentially do to some of those athletes who are
Rob Simmelkjaer: trying to make that transition?
Justin Britt: Sure, sure. For me, whenever I stepped away, it was
Justin Britt: suddenly after week one, something felt off. I didn't feel
Justin Britt: right. Things just kind of spiraled real quickly. And stepping
Justin Britt: away, trying to find what was the issue and solve
Justin Britt: myself through therapy, ultimately it led to me making the
Justin Britt: decision to step away, kind of remove myself to better
Justin Britt: myself or save myself. But when I did that, I
Justin Britt: have a wife, I have four kids, but it's like
Justin Britt: things got so quiet because, for me, I wake up
Justin Britt: whenever I was playing at 5:00 or 6: 00 AM and I'm one
Justin Britt: of the first ones in the building, one of the
Justin Britt: last ones to leave. And so you're just around hundreds
Justin Britt: of people all day that become family, brothers, and then
Justin Britt: the second that's not your profession, you don't see them.
Justin Britt: And you know they're busy, so you stop talking so
Justin Britt: much because you would talk in- person, not through text
Justin Britt: and all that. You know what I mean? So, the hardest thing for me
Justin Britt: trying to get through my mental struggles was finding community
Justin Britt: and brotherhood and the relationships outside of the house. And
Justin Britt: so whenever I got myself to start going to a
Justin Britt: public gym, I actually ran into a former NFL player
Justin Britt: in Houston, and we became friends and then I made
Justin Britt: a couple other friends. And so I was excited to go to
Justin Britt: the gym. Spent way too much time there on a
Justin Britt: daily, but I was excited to go there. And so
Justin Britt: I didn't start running to find community, but what I
Justin Britt: found is the running community is just massive. And I
Justin Britt: went and met up with Rob Dalto after the race and
Justin Britt: I got to meet some of his friends. And they
Justin Britt: weren't... It wasn't awkward. We all just ran the United
Justin Britt: NYC Half and we were just like, " What's your time?
Justin Britt: Wow, that's awesome. Congratulations." And it's just like, " Sit down.
Justin Britt: Let's get to know each other." And so that's just
Justin Britt: what I've seen in the running community throughout. In Kansas
Justin Britt: City, no matter where I go, Seattle, it's just always
Justin Britt: been that way. So, for those who are stepping away
Justin Britt: from any career path, and if you've been there long
Justin Britt: enough, it becomes your identity and then you don't have
Justin Britt: it, then you're kind of stuck in the mud, and you're like, "
Justin Britt: What do I do next?" And if you don't find
Justin Britt: an outlet or something to do, then I think that's
Justin Britt: whenever people start to really spiral. So, for the athletes
Justin Britt: who might see this or throw it out there in
Justin Britt: the air, if you're struggling, go for a run and
Justin Britt: sign up for a 5K, and you'll see that you'll have
Justin Britt: a lot of fun, and you'll just see the amount
Justin Britt: of people that could be there for you.
Becs Gentry: Yeah, beautifully said. That's one of the biggest strengths I
Becs Gentry: think of the running community, in the kindest way, it
Becs Gentry: strips all other accolades from people and you are whoever
Becs Gentry: you are that day as you are running. There is
Becs Gentry: no presumption, assumption about a person. And it is one of
Becs Gentry: the most uniting, positively uniting sports I think I've ever
Becs Gentry: had the pleasure of being involved in because you can
Becs Gentry: show up, you can be on having your worst day
Becs Gentry: ever or you could be the CEO of one of
Becs Gentry: the biggest companies in the world, you show up to
Becs Gentry: run, you're a runner, doesn't matter. It doesn't matter at
Becs Gentry: all, and it just brings so much joy to people.
Becs Gentry: So, it's really wonderful to hear you talk in such
Becs Gentry: a warming light about this sport and the people involved
Becs Gentry: in it because you have come from such a different
Becs Gentry: career. We've had Tiki Barber on the show, and he
Becs Gentry: also has fallen madly in love with running, and has
Becs Gentry: brought him an insane amount of joy since his football
Becs Gentry: career ended. And I think you've obviously got a professional
Becs Gentry: runner right by your side and your coach, Emily here.
Becs Gentry: What, Emily, do you tell Justin when it comes to
Becs Gentry: paving these horrible workouts for him to do for these
Becs Gentry: upcoming races? How do you coach him through these, like, "
Becs Gentry: Okay, this might be a harder workout or a harder
Becs Gentry: day per se."? What's your mental approach to running for him?
Emily Venters: I think if I can teach him and he starts to understand
Emily Venters: why we're doing the workouts, he'll have a greater appreciation
Emily Venters: for them, and then he'll want to do them more.
Emily Venters: So, I actually... I've been thinking about that of like, "
Emily Venters: Maybe I should end the notes explain more of the
Emily Venters: reasoning behind why we do this workout." Because for me,
Emily Venters: when I started to learn about training and really learn
Emily Venters: about it in college, that helped me a lot was
Emily Venters: when my coach started to actually explain why we were
Emily Venters: doing this workout. What was the benefit of it? And
Emily Venters: so I think if I can start kind of telling
Emily Venters: him week by week what the purpose of it is,
Emily Venters: he'll see that and then he'll be like, " Okay, I'll
Emily Venters: do that because it's going to help me here or
Emily Venters: with this part of the race." And so I enjoy
Emily Venters: that aspect of coaching because, yeah, it's something that he
Emily Venters: doesn't know and something that I can share with him
Emily Venters: and that will help his running. But also I'm like, " You
Emily Venters: got to do these because it will help the race."
Emily Venters: If you want to run sub- three, it'll be worth
Emily Venters: it. Trust me, I do hard workouts and running isn't
Emily Venters: easy. It is a sport that is hard. And if
Emily Venters: you want to be good at it is painful, unfortunately
Emily Venters: at times, but it's always worth it. And the runner's
Emily Venters: high that you get after any workout or race is
Emily Venters: unlike any other sport, I think, and I think he can
Emily Venters: agree with that as well. But at the same time,
Emily Venters: I also just tell him that consistency over time is
Emily Venters: the key to success and just staying healthy and staying with
Emily Venters: it. And he is super consistent. Even when he has
Emily Venters: a small injury come up, he's on top of it,
Emily Venters: trying to heal it as quickly as possible to get
Emily Venters: back. And it's great to have someone like that to
Emily Venters: work with.
Becs Gentry: And I was going to say, I saw that the
Becs Gentry: week leading up or maybe was it two weeks leading
Becs Gentry: up to the race, you, Justin, had something, some sort
Becs Gentry: of mild injury, and you put it on social, but
Becs Gentry: you were like, " It's not going to get in the
Becs Gentry: way. We're going to do everything we can to show
Becs Gentry: up as strong as we can." And you kind of
Becs Gentry: showed the leg up sort of situation, and then a
Becs Gentry: nice easy run the next day. And I think... Do
Becs Gentry: you ever think about the different people now that you're
Becs Gentry: inspiring as a runner, as a celebrity runner, as opposed
Becs Gentry: to a celebrity football player in those moments?
Justin Britt: Yeah. Well, my fans on social media aspired but never see themselves being
Justin Britt: an NFL player, but it's a lot easier to see
Justin Britt: yourself getting out there and running. So, I was kind
Justin Britt: of bored and was recording my workouts, and then when
Justin Britt: I got into running, I was like, " Well, we're out
Justin Britt: here. We might as well record it, and make some
Justin Britt: content because we're having fun." And then it started to
Justin Britt: build a community. And Run the Race became a thing
Justin Britt: and yada, yada, yada, but now it's like people will
Justin Britt: send me their runs and they're like, " I just did
Justin Britt: this. I just PR'd in distance. I just did this
Justin Britt: because of you and you inspired me. You make it
Justin Britt: look so fun, this and that." And they're like, " I
Justin Britt: can't wait to see you in the corral." And I
Justin Britt: try to respond to most of them because if I
Justin Britt: do see them in the corral, then we're all... like you
Justin Britt: said, we're all runners, and we're all there for one
Justin Britt: common goal and that's the finish. And so I've learned
Justin Britt: that running is kind of selfish, but it's like the
Justin Britt: community allows you to get your selflessness out and help
Justin Britt: others and just be there. And so it's been inspiring,
Justin Britt: and I feel like I'm able to reach a whole
Justin Britt: different dynamic or demographic, I should say, than maybe Emily,
Justin Britt: just because of my kind of background to get to
Justin Britt: this point. And so it's like Kipchoge said, " Get the
Justin Britt: world running," so I'm just trying to do my part
Justin Britt: and play my role.
Rob Simmelkjaer: It's great. It's great. All right, Emily, let's talk about
Rob Simmelkjaer: where you are in your career a little bit. You
Rob Simmelkjaer: are a five- time NCAA All- American, you are a Pac-
Rob Simmelkjaer: 12 champion, ran at Utah. And I'm looking at your
Rob Simmelkjaer: running resume and you have been successful at a lot
Rob Simmelkjaer: of different distances, 5, 000 meters, 10,000 meters, cross country at 6,
Rob Simmelkjaer: 000 and all over the place, all the way up
Rob Simmelkjaer: to the half- marathon distance. Where do you think your
Rob Simmelkjaer: sweet spot is right now, Emily, in terms of a
Rob Simmelkjaer: distance and what are you aspiring to? You're still quite
Rob Simmelkjaer: young, you got a lot of runway ahead of you
Rob Simmelkjaer: as a runner. Where do you want to see yourself
Rob Simmelkjaer: in five years?
Emily Venters: Well, I hope in five years that, yeah, I'm still
Emily Venters: running and I hope that I'm in kind of the peak
Emily Venters: of my marathon career at that point, actually. I think
Emily Venters: I've been struggling in the past year, even right now
Emily Venters: still, to figure out where my sweet spot is. I
Emily Venters: feel like I'm at the hard age where I still
Emily Venters: want to cling to the shorter distances because I love
Emily Venters: them and they're really fun for me and I feel
Emily Venters: like I'm not done with them, but at the same
Emily Venters: time, I know within me that I am a true
Emily Venters: long distance road runner and that is my strength, but
Emily Venters: maybe not right now. I'm still trying to build the
Emily Venters: foundation for it. And so I've talked with my coach
Emily Venters: and just other people around me and just that, " Let's
Emily Venters: focus this year on really just building the foundation for
Emily Venters: the years to come, and don't stress about the times
Emily Venters: right now. Just let's have good races, consistent races, and
Emily Venters: put in more miles and longer workouts just to have
Emily Venters: that really solid foundation under me so that the next
Emily Venters: two, three, four years after can set me up for
Emily Venters: more success in those longer distances." I obviously tried the
Emily Venters: marathon this past fall in Chicago and it did not
Emily Venters: go well. That was also due to some fueling problems
Emily Venters: that I have now worked through. I was a little bit
Emily Venters: naive, I think, going into that and that it was just going
Emily Venters: to be... I was going to do great at it
Emily Venters: right away. And I think so much more goes into
Emily Venters: it than I realized, and it's kind of just changed
Emily Venters: my mindset of like I can't be naive. I'm like, "
Emily Venters: Let's really be strategic here." If I want to be
Emily Venters: successful at this, it's going to be in a couple of
Emily Venters: years, I think, is when I'll be getting closer to
Emily Venters: my peak at that. And so, yeah, just continuing to
Emily Venters: build and train as a half- marathon runner right now,
Emily Venters: run some 5Ks here and there and some 10Ks. And
Emily Venters: I am going to probably do a marathon again this
Emily Venters: summer. I'm not going to say which one right now,
Emily Venters: but I have a chip on my shoulder for it.
Emily Venters: And I'm excited for what I truly believe that I
Emily Venters: can do at that distance. It's just a matter of
Emily Venters: time. So, yeah, that's where my trajectory is going, I think. I do still feel
Emily Venters: really young in the sport.
Rob Simmelkjaer: You are. You're super young, 26 years old, I believe.
Rob Simmelkjaer: And Becs, you and I have had these conversations with other runners who that pull
Rob Simmelkjaer: and that draw toward the marathon is hard to resist.
Rob Simmelkjaer: They are the biggest events in terms of how many
Rob Simmelkjaer: people are there, the eyeballs that are on them, the
Rob Simmelkjaer: sponsorships, and all the things from both the commercial side,
Rob Simmelkjaer: as well as just the excitement of being a part
Rob Simmelkjaer: of these big races. And so it seems like so
Rob Simmelkjaer: many people in Emily's shoes who are outstanding 5,000, 10, 000
Rob Simmelkjaer: meter runners, when they get into their late 20s, the
Rob Simmelkjaer: draw is there, and it just starts pulling them that way. And
Rob Simmelkjaer: some of them don't necessarily want to go right out
Rob Simmelkjaer: of the gate.
Emily Venters: Yeah, it's true.
Becs Gentry: Yeah, it's really interesting.
Emily Venters: And I find that the road races are fun because
Emily Venters: there are so many people and it is just so
Emily Venters: exciting and so electric, lining up with 30,000 people. You
Emily Venters: don't get to do that in a track race. And
Emily Venters: then the amount of people on the streets, especially in
Emily Venters: cities like New York, it's just so cool. I love
Emily Venters: that. And I love thinking about when I'm hurting in
Emily Venters: a race, there's so many other people behind me that
Emily Venters: are going through this too, and we're all doing it
Emily Venters: together, like real runners. Yeah, it's really special.
Becs Gentry: Yeah. Your people you're coaching.
Emily Venters: Yeah.
Becs Gentry: Emily, has there been a standout race for you so far in
Becs Gentry: your career, either a positive or a negative, that has
Becs Gentry: kind of helped you shift your mentality in running?
Emily Venters: I'd say there've been a handful of them, yeah. A couple
Emily Venters: in college as well, and then I would say probably
Emily Venters: Houston half last year, it was my first half, kind
Emily Venters: of just opened my eyes to that I could be
Emily Venters: a really good long distance road runner. I fell at
Emily Venters: that race at the start, and I contemplated not even
Emily Venters: getting up and going because I was like, " What the
Emily Venters: heck?" I got knocked down super hard. Like, " What am
Emily Venters: I doing?" Everybody was gone. I couldn't see anybody in the
Emily Venters: distance, and then I got up and I was like, " No, just fucking go,
Emily Venters: Emily, go and chase them." And I just didn't look
Emily Venters: back after that. And I finished and I was like, "
Emily Venters: Oh my gosh, I love the half. I got to
Emily Venters: do it again." And that's kind of where I got
Emily Venters: the itch to keep doing road races and pursuing that.
Emily Venters: And I haven't had a perfect career so far at
Emily Venters: all, but I think that's also just running in general.
Emily Venters: It's very, very up and down, and you have to
Emily Venters: stick with it through the downs to have those highs.
Emily Venters: And, yeah, I know that for myself, it has not
Emily Venters: been perfect at all, but I think that that's what
Emily Venters: also makes it special. And just trying to focus on
Emily Venters: loving the process as you go as well. And if
Emily Venters: you love the training and you love the people that
Emily Venters: you're around, it's going to be worth it always.
Becs Gentry: Yeah. I'm curious, Emily, to ask you if you see
Becs Gentry: at 20... You're 26, did you say?
Emily Venters: Mm- hmm.
Becs Gentry: So, you're talking about your peak in the future, and
Becs Gentry: for the vast majority of female runners, we peak into
Becs Gentry: our 30s, for sure. I hadn't even started running at
Becs Gentry: 26, like semi- professionally. So, for me, I'm with you, my
Becs Gentry: peak was definitely... Still going in it, but, no, jokes.
Becs Gentry: But when you look at Justin of he had this
Becs Gentry: huge peak in football. And at 34, Justin, right?
Justin Britt: Yeah.
Becs Gentry: He's now entering into a really fantastic age and peak
Becs Gentry: for his career. How does that make you feel as
Becs Gentry: you're coaching somebody and watching this, the duality of one
Becs Gentry: peak done and then another one coming up ahead? How
Becs Gentry: does that make you feel?
Emily Venters: Oh, I think he's got so much potential still. That's the
Emily Venters: exciting thing about starting into a new sport and also
Emily Venters: running just at a later age is that you haven't
Emily Venters: pounded your body in the same way as running. Obviously
Emily Venters: he's pounded it in different ways and he's hurt himself
Emily Venters: a lot, but in a new way, I think it's
Emily Venters: just cool because in those first few years that you
Emily Venters: start, you see so much progress. And then as you've
Emily Venters: been doing it for longer and longer, the progress is
Emily Venters: slower and minimal, but, yeah, I think for the next
Emily Venters: couple years, he's going to continue to see a lot
Emily Venters: more progress. And he's already getting close to being able
Emily Venters: to run probably sub- three in the marathon, and that's
Emily Venters: just crazy to me. You go from being in an NFL
Emily Venters: center to now almost running sub- three hours in the
Emily Venters: marathon. And sub- three is obviously a big milestone that
Emily Venters: a lot of people know in a marathon, and that's
Emily Venters: my goal for him is I cannot wait for him
Emily Venters: to go sub- three. And I know that's coming for
Emily Venters: him, and I think after that, it'll be even faster
Emily Venters: and faster. And, yeah, I don't know what his limit
Emily Venters: is, and it's cool to see that.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Yeah, that's really cool. Okay, so Justin, I want you
Rob Simmelkjaer: to picture the moment, envision the moment when you cross
Rob Simmelkjaer: a finish line, maybe it's Chicago, maybe it's another race
Rob Simmelkjaer: down the road like New York, and you see that
Rob Simmelkjaer: time, sub- three. What would that mean to you versus
Rob Simmelkjaer: some of the other things you've accomplished in your athletic
Rob Simmelkjaer: career, playing in the Super Bowl with the Seahawks or
Rob Simmelkjaer: being drafted or kind of some of those moments? How
Rob Simmelkjaer: would you rank a moment like that in terms of
Rob Simmelkjaer: what you've achieved as an athlete?
Justin Britt: Well, all that stuff is kind of already in the
Justin Britt: past. It's like I expected to get drafted, I expected
Justin Britt: to play football as a career. That's kind of what
Justin Britt: I grew up wanting to do, kind of like how
Justin Britt: Emily grew up wanting to become a professional runner. And
Justin Britt: what I didn't ever think I would do is what
Justin Britt: I'm doing. So, I was overwhelmed with emotions in New
Justin Britt: York Sunday. It was just... In my video that I
Justin Britt: posted, I'm just kind of like (inaudible) as soon
Justin Britt: as I cross, because it's like I was overwhelmed with
Justin Britt: gratitude. Because you think about all the early mornings, and
Justin Britt: trying to get your run in in between school drop offs
Justin Britt: and the whole day, and you're also trying to go
Justin Britt: to the gym, thank the Lord that I'm a retired
Justin Britt: person and I have all this time in the day to
Justin Britt: do it. I don't know how people do it and
Justin Britt: have a job, so I commend them. But you just
Justin Britt: think about I ran almost 2, 000 miles last year.
Justin Britt: That's crazy to me. And it took every one of
Justin Britt: those miles for me to run a sub- 90 in Houston.
Justin Britt: And then to come up to New York and chase
Justin Britt: that same time, it's just a huge pat on your
Justin Britt: back. You're like, " Good job, me." And then you think
Justin Britt: about the actual ups and downs in a race, like
Justin Britt: whether it's a hill mentally or physically. There was maybe
Justin Britt: a part on FDR where I wanted to be like, "
Justin Britt: Rob, let's just enjoy the second half. Let's just stop.
Justin Britt: I'm not feeling great right now," but then you made
Justin Britt: that left turn, you hear the band start playing, and
Justin Britt: then you see Times Square in the distance, and then you're
Justin Britt: hearing the buzz of the crowd, and you're like, " No,
Justin Britt: this is why I'm here." I came here, for me,
Justin Britt: to heal. For me, I feel like each race kind
Justin Britt: of does something to me, like puts a piece of
Justin Britt: the puzzle back together. And if I do cross the
Justin Britt: line and see a sub- three, I'll for sure cry.
Justin Britt: I know I will because I'll be... Either I'll be
Justin Britt: real happy or I'll be like, " Awesome, I don't want
Justin Britt: to do that again." So, we'll find out-
Becs Gentry: (inaudible) .
Justin Britt: ... but I'm hungry for it, and it's an awesome goal
Justin Britt: to chase. And why would I want to chase a 3:
Justin Britt: 15? That'll be fun to get on the way to
Justin Britt: chasing a three. Like I said, let's see how far
Justin Britt: we can take it because, God willing, I'll be able
Justin Britt: to do this until I die, but I know at 70
Justin Britt: I won't be able to run as fast as I
Justin Britt: am now. So, right now I'm just setting the standard for
Justin Britt: myself, and it always kind of resets, and I want that
Justin Britt: reset to be faster, so...
Rob Simmelkjaer: Yeah, yeah. Well, this has been a great conversation. I
Rob Simmelkjaer: love this partnership between the two of you. I'm going
Rob Simmelkjaer: to keep following both of you. Justin, see how close
Rob Simmelkjaer: you can get to your three hours. Emily, wishing you
Rob Simmelkjaer: all the best as you continue to grow as a
Rob Simmelkjaer: road runner and move up in those distances because I
Rob Simmelkjaer: have a really good feeling we're going to be seeing
Rob Simmelkjaer: a lot of you in top 10 finishing positions at
Rob Simmelkjaer: some big, big races down the road, especially just because
Rob Simmelkjaer: of the mentality that I hear you have about not
Rob Simmelkjaer: being all about you, but giving back and the fuel
Rob Simmelkjaer: that that adds for you. So, best of luck to
Rob Simmelkjaer: both of you. Thank you for joining us.
Becs Gentry: Thank you, guys.
Rob Simmelkjaer: And congrats to both of you on awesome, awesome days
Rob Simmelkjaer: in the United Airlines NYC Half on Sunday.
Emily Venters: Thank you. Hopefully both of us will be at New
Emily Venters: York Marathon someday in a couple years and, yeah, that'll
Emily Venters: be fun.
Rob Simmelkjaer: I like it.
Becs Gentry: We can't wait.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Let's make it happen. Manifest, baby. Let's manifest that. New
Rob Simmelkjaer: York Road Runners is a nonprofit organization with a vision
Rob Simmelkjaer: to build healthier lives and stronger communities through the transformative
Rob Simmelkjaer: power of running. The support of members and donors like
Rob Simmelkjaer: you helps us achieve our mission to transform the health
Rob Simmelkjaer: and wellbeing of our communities through inclusive and accessible running
Rob Simmelkjaer: experiences, empowering all to achieve their potential. Learn more and
Rob Simmelkjaer: contribute at nyrr. org/ donate. All right, that does it
Rob Simmelkjaer: for another episode of Set the Pace. We want to
Rob Simmelkjaer: thank our guests today, Justin Britt and Emily Venters. And
Rob Simmelkjaer: by the way, during that conversation with Justin and Emily,
Rob Simmelkjaer: we talked a lot about Rob Dalto, our friend, one
Rob Simmelkjaer: of the co- founders of the Bronx Burners Run Club.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Rob had a heart procedure done today, the day that
Rob Simmelkjaer: we are hosting this podcast, Tuesday, the 17th. He's been
Rob Simmelkjaer: very open about his heart condition and the obstacle it's
Rob Simmelkjaer: created for him as a runner and just as a
Rob Simmelkjaer: person in life, so we just want to wish Rob
Rob Simmelkjaer: all the very best on his procedure, on his recovery.
Rob Simmelkjaer: And we hope, Rob, to see you back out there
Rob Simmelkjaer: in a raise competing very, very soon because you mean
Rob Simmelkjaer: so much to so many people in the New York running community.
Becs Gentry: You do.
Rob Simmelkjaer: So, all the best to Rob.
Becs Gentry: (inaudible) . Yeah. Recover well, Rob.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Absolutely. If you liked this episode today, make sure you
Rob Simmelkjaer: leave us a rating, a comment, so we can hear
Rob Simmelkjaer: from you. This helps other people find the show as
Rob Simmelkjaer: well. Thanks for listening. We'll see you next week. Enjoy
Rob Simmelkjaer: the miles.