Dear Running Niche Friends,
The past 3 months have been a bit of a blur to us and we just realized we haven’t published a newsletter since July! So, there’s a few things to catch up on.
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Shop Expansion
As you may have noticed on our social, we have leased an additional 1,000 sq. ft. next door (1605 Tower Grove) and opened up the wall to create a larger shop. While Jen and Sarah are still tinkering with the right layout and flow, we’re in it and enjoying it! Initially what you are going to see are additional winter/cold weather apparel options including base layers. When we attend The Running Event in Austin, TX in early December we’ll be looking for new product adds that enhance the shop. Here’s a couple pics of the new space!
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Focus On: Team Running Niche — Lauren Sandberg
Lauren started Lydiard Training in December 2022 after running her first marathon in April 2021 in 3:53 then a 3:28 in October 2022. Here is her story: “3:28 was tough for me to reach, and I felt that I had gotten as far as I could on my own. I just followed 12-week online plans and found it hard to stay consistent due to fatigue or skipping runs. In races, I went out too fast, struggling towards the end and positive splitted. That all changed when I started being coached by Bob using the Lydiard Method.
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I spoke with him at a RN group run about getting my marathon time down, and he had me sign up for the Go! St. Louis half marathon in April and an October marathon. He set me up with a 16-week plan. My past plans had a few easy runs each week, but none of them focused on easy aerobic running to the extent Lydiard does. My prior highest mileage week was 50 and being too tired to do more. During the aerobic phase of my first Lydiard cycle, I worked up to 70 miles, slowed down from my former “easy pace” and ran so much more than ever before. While my spring 13.1 race didn’t go exactly to plan, I still PR’d in 1:36:11and felt that I had built strong base for my next race.
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My next cycle is when everything came together. I was on a 24-week plan, targeting the Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon. Training through the summer was rough, as the aerobic improvements weren’t as immediately visible as they had been when I was training in cooler weather. I didn’t realize just how well my training had gone until I started doing time trials and racing. In the lead up, I PR’d my 5k by 50 seconds and beat that half marathon I had run in the spring by about 7:30. I felt much more confident heading into this race, as I had better figured out my fueling and completed almost every run in my plan. My marathon was on October 1st, and I really noticed the benefits of my training during the second half of the race. Due to the course’s hills and the Midwest heat wave, I decided the best way to run the race would be with an even split. I ran the first half of the race in 1:34:20 and finished in 3:08:12. Despite not picking up the pace much, I passed 31 people in the last 10k of the race. This was a tough course in less-than-ideal conditions, but I really felt that my progressive out and back workouts through the summer had prepared me well. After how difficult my October 2022 marathon felt, I couldn’t have imagined that I’d run a marathon almost 20 minutes faster in a year. I’m not sure if I could’ve gotten myself down to this time on my own, but even if I could I know it wouldn’t have happened this quickly. I’ve never felt more confident in my running and more certain that my training is headed in the right direction, and that’s all thanks to Running Niche”.
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Mo' Cowbell Races
A highlight of the fall racing season are the races at Mo’ Cowbell. This year we had 37 Team Running Niche athletes participate in the 5K, 10K, Half Marathon and Full Marathon. For some it was goal race, for others it was a race along the path to goal race. Congrats to Emilee Hargis on taking the win in the 5K in 19:23 and Marie O’Leary on winning the Half Marathon in 1:19:58. Despite the warm temperatures a good time was had by all. Special congrats to Ryan Harrison on completing his first marathon in 3:34:41!
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Spring 2024 Lydiard Training Cycle/Team Running Niche
As we are coming to the close of the Fall cycle already with many goal races ranging from the end of October to early December, its time to start thinking about Spring 2024. Lydiard Training Half and Full Marathon cycles are 18-24 weeks long and 5K/10K cycles can be as short as 12 weeks. If you are interested in learning more about how Lydiard Training works contact Bob directly at bdyer@runningniche.com. While we provide coaching at no charge there are some out of pocket costs and requirements. Training plans cost $60-$100 which goes to the non-profit Lydiard Training & Academy. We require folks in the program to compete in 2 local STL races which entails paying the entry fees. Our 2 key team races for Spring are the Chain of Rocks 6K (last Sunday in March) and The Greater St. Louis Marathon/Half Marathon/10K races (you pick) on April 27. Goal races of course can be out of town. Our racing singlet is provided at no charge but we expect it to be worn in all your spring races and allow us to use the pictures on our social media.
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New Product Arrivals
Recently we received 3 new training shoes. The Brooks Ghost Max is a max cushioned neutral training shoe which accommodates custom orthotics nicely. The Asics GT 2000 12 is a excellent upgrade to version 11, with a unique blend of cushioning yet medial stability and last but not least is the Newton Isaac neutral training shoe. It’s Running Niche Bob’s pick as he has been using it daily. It’s midsole is soft and bouncy with modified Newton forefoot lugs which provide a feeling of propelling forward.
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Group Social Run 
Join us every Wednesday at 6:30 for a 3-mile group social run/walk. Every 2nd Wednesday of the month will be our “Beer Run”, with our cooler ready to go after the run for some social time, compliments of Urban Chestnut. All paces are welcome, runners and walkers. No one is out there alone. Generally, 35-60 folks come and there is a wide variety of paces. We put folks into groups such as 7:00 pace, 8:00, 9:00, 10:00, 11:00, 12:00, 13:00 and walkers. Click here to register: https://runningnicherunclub.eventbrite.com
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Happy Running!
-Jennifer and Bob
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Running Niche — (314) 405-8006
1601 Tower Grove Avenue, St. Louis, MO 63110
Monday 10am – 5pm, Tuesday – Thursday 10am – 7pm, Friday 10am – 6pm
Saturday 10am – 5pm, Sunday 12pm – 4pm
www.runningniche.com | runningniche.com/shop
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