For John Clark’s (JC) full bio revisit season 3 episode 4: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2437656/episodes/16363345

We sit down with JC to unpack his first winter ultramarathon finish at the Iditarod Trail Invitational 350, where dragging a gear sled through Alaska’s deep cold turns basic tasks like eating and navigation into real risk. We also talk through the behind-the-scenes prep, the gear, and the small decisions that add up over ten relentless days.

• what makes the Iditarod Trail Invitational so dangerous and so compelling
• hauling a 50 to 55 pound sled across lakes, rivers, and mountain passes
• gear failures leading to frostbite
• how the ITI qualifier camp teaches wet-gear survival and vapor barriers
• gear iteration under extreme cold including sleeping systems and face coverage
• early navigation mistakes and why staying on the packed route matters
• Rainy Pass rescues and the winter ultra culture of helping others
• the mental grind after the pass with long gaps between aid and sleep
• the final push with shiver bivies and trail naps
• what JC would change before trying the race again

If you want to check out some frostbite, go to our Instagram.

Look for another episode on this epic event dropping next week.

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 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.