39. How to Start Marathon Training with Running Coach Caitlin Kowalke (Comfort) - a podcast by Mike Quintans, PT, DPT, OCS, TPI

Caitlin Kowalke (Comfort) won the Illinois state title in cross-country her junior year of high school. She went on to run cross country at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Where she became a two-time second-team All-American and a two-time Big Ten Champion in the 5,000 and 10,000-meter events. Upon graduating Caitlin began a professional running career and took on a volunteer coaching position for the UW women's cross country and track team. Caitlin then went on to a professional runner, then transitioned to the half and full marathon distances. She attributes many of her successes as an athlete to the support of my family, my collegiate coach Jim Stintzi, and former coach but forever friend, Stephanie Rothstein Bruce (a sub 2:30 marathoner).

Today, Caitlin continues to run. Caitlin lives just outside of Madison, Wisconsin with her husband Tom, and her two daughters, Rose and Joanna, and her step-daughter, Stella. At the 2018 Madison Marathon, she qualified for her second Olympic Trials Marathon. On February 29th, 2020 in Atlanta, Georgia she toed the line with two of her Wisconsin-based athletes who she also coached to Olympic Trials qualifying performances.

In this episode we cover:

Where did your passion for running come from and how did you start?

6:00 At what point did Caitlin realize you were good at running?

10:00 What’s it like being a mother and training for the Olympic trials? What it was like to train for Olympic trials just six months after giving birth?

14:30 How Caitlin started coaching runners after being a runner in college.

What services Caitlin offers to runners with to runners of different experiences.

21:20 How Caitlin helps runners who want to run as a lifestyle change rather than for a race?

24:00 Caitlin’s training philosophies and personalized approaches.

27:00 Caitlin’s Rules of thumb for early marathon runners

I believe in creating programs that challenge the athlete while building confidence and keeping the risk of injury low.

30:00 What Caitlin’s Marathon training cycles typically look like for 16 to 20 weeks.

34:00 How to change your running plan to increase speed and lower marathon time

38:00 How the app VDOT 02 helps Caitlin’s coaching

41:00 Running Rewired

46:00 What kind of cross-training should long-distance runners be participating in?

53:00 How Caitlin manages injuries during a client’s training.

54:00 Don’t push through the pain

57:00 Quick 5

1. What is your 5k pr? Marathon PR?


2. In programming, what is one thing you do differently now vs 5 years ago?


3. Name one attribute every successful runner has?


4. The most significant lesson learned from coaching?


5. One book you recommend on running?

Running Rewired and Science of Running

caitlin@fearlessfeetrunning.com

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