In the Zone

Susan is currently exploring her relationship with running. From running podium in the Dutch Championships, through years of injury, to hiking the PCT last year. These experiences are teaching her different things about herself as a human being as much as it allows to her to explore the purpose of running in her life. This is a conversation for those who want to live more openly and want to cultivate the courage to do the things that are important to them. Social links, Instagram: @susanvanweperen

Ivo Steyaert has been dominating the Belgian 100 mile scene since before I started running. Today we talk about the mindset behind his success.

Dirtbag runner, surfer, and skater. Or to quote @satisfyrunning: "A recklessly fun and outgoing individual, who does not shy away from any challenge." We talk about what it's like to be a pro athlete at Satisfy, his 880+ day running streak, and his overall obsession with running. Get inspired by Max's non-nonsense approach to the sport and his raw honesty about his journey. Social link: @woah_max on instagram and tiktok

Earlier this year, Chris set out to be competitive in the Spine. But the race did not remotely go the way he expected. Instead of getting the result he was after, he quit the race. Unknowingly the race had triggered a cocktail of unresolved stories & emotions and ended up leading into a panic attack. 2 months later, the dust has settled and integrated into a transformative experience. It's an honor to have guests on the show with the courage to share as vulnerably as Chris. The way he grew through and his perspective on the experience is inspiring. I wish you an inspiring and insightful episode.

Self-judgement is one of the quickest ways to suffocate your race-day performance. So, Steve and I set out to unpack the nature of self-judgement, how to grow free of it, and how it can take you beyond yourself into an amazing racing experience. This episode is part of a series of episodes where we explore the key principles to elevate your performance while finding the spiritual dimension in running. Enjoy the episode. And drop your questions below.

Today Nick shares about how he's coming back from injury while I talk about how I'm progressing in my strength work. In the 2nd part of the episode we talk about how we both quit our engineering jobs. What made us do so, the challenges, and how we ended up doing it. Let us know what other topics or questions you'd like us to cover. Enjoy the episode!

There's an art to DNF'ing. It doesn't have to have a bad aftertaste. When done right it can be a transformative experience. In this episode Patrick elaborates how he processed multiple DNF's in 2023. Instead of feeling sorry for himself, he speaks from a place of accountability and growth. It's a conversation that helps you put "failure" into perspective and feel more open towards taking on challenges. I wish you a fun and insightful conversation.

I grew silent hearing everything Ari went through in his life. But the fact he went through all that and still sat there smiling was incredibly humbling and inspiring. I initially invited him on the podcast because he was a monk at one point in his life. And I was curious how that experience translated to ultra running. Turns out this was only a small part of our conversation. The man just had a lot of wisdom to offer. Not just on running, but also on how to live life. Living/running with an open heart, the nonsense of putting pressure on yourself, the importance of compassion and empathy, and why we should stop judging people. These are just a couple of the themes we touched on. It's another episode for anyone who wants to live and run more freely, compassionately, and openly. For anyone who wants to connect to the depth of our running experience and leverage running as a process of self-discovery. Enjoy the episode. InTheZone instagram

Do goals help or hinder your spiritual growth through running? In today's episode, we invite you into a specific relationship to goals and process. Goals as tools, not outcomes and process as a state of being. We also expand on my current "goalless" situation, why I love it so much, and how I navigate my training process without goals. In both cases we invite you turn within and notice how your relationship to goals and process make you feel and how it can bring you closer to yourself and life. Enjoy the episode. And drop your questions in the comments. Instagram Steve Instagram In The Zone

Today Nick & I share about our first training house experience in Girona. It was so much more beautiful than we had expected. Nick also shares about his inner journey in recovering from injury. And I talk about my struggle to accept I don't have any race goals the way I'm used to. We're looking forward to sharing more of these conversations where we give insight into our own journey before we tackle a specific topic* that helped us get to where we are today. Both as runners and human beings, living the life we do today. We both wish you a warm and insightful episode. Let us know if there's any questions you'd like to hear us answer or any topic you'd like to have us expand on. *For example how we quit our engineering jobs, how we discover who we are and what we want, how we learn to tune out other people's opinions, how we learn how to be ourselves, how we train, how we set goals, what we still struggle with today…anything goes.

2023 has been a grand cru year for Laura. Podium in Marathon the Montblanc 91km & winning the 100 miler by UTMB in Nice. Hard work has been a key aspect to these stellar results. But she openly questions: what (amount of training) is enough? When is pushing more helpful? Or when am I just being hard on myself? We also talk about: The impact of talent vs hard work The importance of prioritizing your time And how to make more time for training Laura also has a big heart for the world, so she doesn't shy away from asking herself, despite her inspiring results, if running is really what the world needs from her right now? social links: - instagram

Christine went from having a desk job to being an outdoor adventurer. It took courage to quit her job and she had to let go of layers of stories before she dared to call herself an "athlete" or "adventurer". Today, her courageous journey continues as she's letting go of her need to have "the perfect body" while breaking through the stigma of bleeding on trail. In this episode, she shares how she navigated & navigates each of these challenges. Social links: Instagram

You likely know your training plan helps you grow physically stronger. But a training plan is secretly an opportunity for personal and spiritual growth just as much. It's inviting you to into new perspectives about the meaning of "failing" or missing workouts. Or to reconsider the importance of achieving goals and why you're running in the first place. When you accept these invitations, exploring where they take you, you get the opportunity to get to know yourself in a whole new way and even find out you're not even who you thought you were. In this episode we explain where you can find this spiritual dimension in your training plan and how to start working with it. We'd love to make the Inner dialogue series a conversation with you, the listener. So, if these conversations trigger questions about your own inner journey, please share them. You can do so in the comments below or in the DM's. I wish you an insightful episode. Social links: - ⁠Instagram⁠ - ⁠Substack⁠ - ⁠Website

Jessica is "only" the 2nd woman to ever set a record on the PCT. But she didn't get it handed on a silver platter. After spending weeks alone on trail, her PTSD unexpectedly surfaced. She was forced to deal with it while setting the record. Fortunately, Jessica has a gift for always finding the positive in the negative. It's just one of the things that helped her not just deal with, but even grow through the experience. In this episode we also unpack: Her perspective on why she's only the 2nd woman How she dealt with overwhelming foot pain on day 6 (of 63…) The role of her supportive network in being able to leave the family for 2 months How the trail made her more self-reliant She even shares a trick to manifest bear encounters. And apparently her pain cave has a pool… Jessica is an inspiration for anyone afraid to go on a big adventure. InstagramWebsiteBook

How did Karel become the runner he is today? And how does he experience & navigate the challenges that are inevitable when running across countries, through deserts, and over mountain ranges for weeks on end? Those are the 2 main questions we explored in our conversation together. It's for anyone curious to learn more about the mindset behind some of world's toughest races & FKTs. I couldn't have thought of a better guest for our 100th episode. What a beautiful journey it has been already. Enjoy this one. Social links: InstagramCoaching platformWebsite

From LA to Las Vegas on foot, as fast as possible. No rules. That's The Speed Project. Unique concepts are not seldomly birthed by unique human beings. So, I invited Nils Arend on the podcast. We talk about: How Nils' bizarre first marathon experience lead to the TSP How it's bringing people together And how to run 120km in 24h while partying non-stop in @sisyphosberlin I wanne do more of these. Social links: @nils_hh@thespeedproject

Florian Descamps, 7th place at Marathon du Mont Blanc this year, is one of our strongest Belgian trail runners. But he's not out there to prove himself. It's just so happens that he can't not live a life outside. The mountains and forests is where he's at home. And that's why he decided to craft his life to spend as much time in nature as possible. This episode is as much about living intentionally (accepting and honoring who you are) as it is about how to perform at the highest level. I wish you an insightful episode. Social links: InstagramStravaFacebook

Nick & I both have had are most adventurous running year to date. In this episode we reflect on: Everything we experienced this year How our relationship to racing is changing How we decide what races and adventures to go for How we got better at balancing going hard vs backing off in training We also share our plans and ideas for 2024. A podcast, exactly like I love them. And let us know in the comments if you want us to record that lifestyle episode. Social links: - Instagram - Substack - Website

It requires elite athlete skills to do what Roeland did. It's just not as easily spotted. Most people at 200kg would probably not even allow the thought of ever running a half marathon. Yet, Roeland somehow believed it was possible. Patiently he dedicated himself to the journey of weight loss and eventually to training for his first half marathon. This is a podcast where we cover: ○ How to lose weight and train sustainably ○ The power of a humble, curious, and patient mindset ○ What's even much more important than weight loss to Roeland It's inspiring. And I hope to have many more of these elite athletes in disguise on the podcast. Let me know if you know one of these superheroes. Instagram

Ever heard of imposter syndrome? You'd think that once you set a new record on the PCT* you'd feel like you earned your stripes as a trail runner. Yet, after doing exactly that, Heather still struggled with self-doubt. She continued to feel as though she was "just lucky". So, in 2015, Heather set out to overcome this internal story by going after the AT** record. She was ready to prove to herself she wasn't a fraud at all. This podcast is her story of overcoming imposter syndrome. Links: www.wordsfromthewild.net https://www.instagram.com/_wordsfromthewild_/ https://www.facebook.com/AnishHikes *a 4300km trail from Mexico to Canada **a 3500km trail on USA's east coast