In this episode of Your Story, Your Why, host Letty Lundquist sits down with Massimo Ian, Head of Marketing & Communications at Tracksmith. Massimo shares how his multicultural upbringing in New York City shaped his deep appreciation for community, food, and human connection. He opens up about his early years in running—from using the sport as a coping mechanism while navigating his identity as a closeted youth to healing his relationship with running and body image.

Massimo details his career transition from international non-profit work with UNICEF and youth rehabilitation programs in Brazil into the running industry. He discusses the importance of representation, creating welcoming spaces for underrepresented communities in running, and his favorite weekly mindfulness habit: running "unplugged" without a watch, phone, or headphones to stay connected with nature and body feel.

Ever heard a coach tell you to "just be mentally tough" and wondered what on earth that actually means in the middle of a grueling marathon? In this episode of the podcast, we’re breaking down the lazy branding of sports psychologist buzzwords with Dr. Megan Cannon, PhD. Fresh from her keynote session at Dirt Camp in the Berkshires, Dr. Cannon joins us to reframe sports psychology as true strength and conditioning for your brain, giving endurance runners an actual, mechanical toolkit to handle race-day anxiety and mid-race panic.

We dive deep into her formula for mental toughness—the intersection of emotion and attention regulation—and unpack the "MVP" mindset (Mentally Versatile Performance). Plus, Dr. Cannon shares practical, battle-tested strategies from her own wild adventures, ranging from tackling Half Dome at 5-foot-2 to surviving a brutal seven-day summit of Mount Kilimanjaro, proving why having your head where your feet are is the ultimate game-changer for your next starting line.

In this episode, veteran sports nutrition coach Erin Sperald dives deep into the clinical reality of Low Energy Availability (LEA) and Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (REDs), exposing how chronic underfueling sabotages athletic performance, immune function, and bone health. Sperald shares actionable strategies for calculating baseline nutritional needs, using carbohydrates as a flexible fuel dial to match training output, and shifting focus away from aesthetics toward long-term health and longevity. Whether you are balancing heavy marathon mileage or struggling with recovery plateau, this conversation provides essential insights to optimize daily fueling and protect your metabolic foundation.