Extraordinary Strides

Running through the Decades Series 3 of 4: Technology Running Boom of the '90s and 2000s

• Coach Shelby & Coach Christine • Season 1 • Episode 124

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Ever wished you could time travel back to the '90s and 2000s, when running was being revolutionized and pop culture was at its peak? Strap in, we are about to take you on a nostalgic sprint down memory lane! We will be exploring the evolution of running, from the game-changing technology that made tracking miles affordable to the birth of the couch to 5K program by Josh Clark. We'll be reliving the influence of the 1992 Barcelona Olympics and discussing the controversial topic of inclusivity in running programs.

Our journey doesn't stop at running. Allow yourself to be transported back to the iconic era of pop culture, as we debate Jared Leto versus Heath Ledger, East Coast versus West Coast hip-hop, and discuss timeless music icons like Biggie Smalls, Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Madonna, and Salt n' Pepa. We also cover the rise of inline skating and the beginnings of home computing. And yes, we will be taking a moment to reminisce about catchphrases that defined the era like 'talk to the hand' and 'whatever loser'.

And let’s not forget the books, songs, and movies that have walked hand in hand with the running community. We discuss the impact of reads like Christopher McDougal's Born to Run, Hal Higdon's Marathon: The Ultimate Training Guide, and Haruki Murakami's What I Talk About When I Talk About Running. We also explore the rhythm that keeps us pounding the pavement, from Britney Spears to The Killers and Green Day. Plus, we leave no stone unturned as we ponder the big questions - like is it still ok to say 'chillax' and 'biatch', and what are the best snacks for a 'Mean Girls' movie night? Buckle up, this is a ride you don’t want to miss!

Have questions or want to chat? Send me a text!

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Speaker 1:

Hey friends, coach Shelby and Coach Christine, welcoming you in and letting you know it's time for brunch, quick Fights Edition, where you can grab your movement and your miles, with a side of smiles, and take them on the run, midday in the afternoon or even a late night snack attack. We love running. Clearly you've seen us, you've seen the show, you know that it is our sport of choice and we're seeing a whole boom of folks joining in, records being broken nearly every day at this point, from faster times to registration for events filling up pretty darn quickly. We wondered as well as you might have how did we get here? How did running kind of come to be the sport that we know today?

Speaker 1:

So we are continuing on with our four part series as we deep dive into the history of running. Don't worry, it's always going to have our brunch sparkle with some fun facts, some knowledge drops. And, don't worry, you don't need a hall pass. You can raise your hand at any time with extra questions. But today we're tackling the 90s and the 2000s, information age and globalization. Very official, and may I say I think the 2000s and the 90s are pretty darn important.

Speaker 2:

Well, I know they're pretty darn important for the world because we now have Coach Shelby joining in, but it's also a really exciting time where we really do get to see. This is where I feel like, wow. We may have had a bit of a slow roll through some of the previous decades, or maybe even previous hundreds of years leading up to it. The 90s and the 2000s really just was a huge change in everything into today all the way through. So we'll be talking a lot about that in our next episode, but we're super excited to talk about 90s as well.

Speaker 2:

So one of the things that I think is super cool is that we were able to kind of advance from a technology standpoint where it became a bit more affordable for folks to kind of be able to track all of their beautiful miles. Now, I think it was a little bit. There weren't quite as many sweaty selfies happening in the social media world yet, but it was starting. It was at that point. It was just getting going because of the internet. So I know you and I are both big fans of the internet. I know you're actually a huge fan of online running communities.

Speaker 1:

I am and girl. Could I get your MySpace?

Speaker 2:

Yeah, Do you still have a MySpace Like?

Speaker 1:

can you run somewhere out there? Oh, I'm pretty sure there's a MySpace somewhere.

Speaker 2:

Now Googling Shelby.

Speaker 1:

But yeah, I do love online running communities and as we're getting into the 90s and the 2000s, we do see exactly that technology start taking over Again. I remember in the 90s the cell phones. Yes, they were bricks, but I remember my parents having one in the car for emergencies and it probably weighed the same as my water bottle as it does now. But again there was a whole new realm of metrics coming into focus that, like you said, the average runner could now take advantage of. But we started seeing more people sharing their journeys online and the internet became more of a thing and I mean really before at this generation, it wasn't even in the realm of the same possibilities Computers and the internet were used for. I mean bare bones.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, absolutely. I mean, like we're still on dial up time for sure in the 90s until we get into the 2000s, so you have to like show extra dedication to get online to be able to find the resources and information that you need. We're still kind of fumbling our way through it, but there is access to more things than we would have had prior to, like training plans and people actually talking about hey, this, and we see this to this day how did this training plan work for you? How did that training plan, how do you adjust this? Or I have a weird pain in my foot. What does it mean? So I think we started to see a little bit of that. I think that they was still we have to go back to like the ASL, and by that I mean like age, sex location that you saw on rampant and all of those chat rooms. So it totally cracks me up.

Speaker 1:

I can hear the dial up tone in my ear right now, even though it's so not playing, but it's one of those core memories that you never, ever forget. And really, too, we can't talk about the late 90s without saying about how that's when the couch to 5K program was developed by Josh Clark, and people still use it, use that to stay at it. It was the adaptation of it and it was made available to the masses and it's a catch name. I do have to hand it to him.

Speaker 2:

I mean, he trademarked it it's you know, he was definitely smart. Nobody can actually create a couch to 5K plan at this point. They have to be a bit more creative with their naming of it. I do feel like it was the advent of it feeling a bit more accessible for folks, even though there's a little bit of controversy as to whether or not it really truly is a couch to 5K program that's accessible for everyone or inclusive of everyone. With the timing that it has. That's a whole nother topic we could definitely get into.

Speaker 2:

If you guys want to get into that kind of a debate with us, then join us on our online running community at Time for Brunch on our Facebook group or follow us on Instagram.

Speaker 2:

With that said, I am also excited, which I think this is more of your jam, but you had just gotten hatched.

Speaker 2:

I don't know if it really played a huge part of like your love, but there was quite a bit again, as we saw in previous decades, the 92 Barcelona Olympics really influencing people, getting them intrigued. I mean, there's not one time that I sit down to watch the Olympics that I don't get a little teared up and a little inspired, and though I know I will never grace the podium at the Olympics, I still feel like it shows dedication and it does put a little extra pep in my step. So clearly that seems to be the case and that always helps the masses to aspire to a bit more in their lives. Now, coach, it was also when we saw the birth of the run Disney world that we currently know at this point, and that literally was January 1994, featuring just 5,500 runners for their first marathon, which was called the Disney Endurance Series. I think they had that probably just at the Expo at one given time in the big like pickup line.

Speaker 1:

That'd be awesome to be able to go back again. I wasn't even probably walking when that happened, but I was alive. So, yes, I was hatched for that portion the Olympics not so much as well as some of the other records. And again, I've been very transparent. If you would have talked to me about running in the 90s or even in the early 2000s, I would have given two flying birds about what you were talking about.

Speaker 2:

Well, I mean, you were still a kid in the 90s. Like, give yourself a little bit of grace there.

Speaker 1:

I wanted to go to InSync. Ok, I wanted some boy bands, I would run to that, but that was about the extent of it.

Speaker 2:

We'll be talking about boy bands as well, because we definitely can't talk about the 90s without a little bit of that as well, but we did have some notable figures. Now, for me, this is probably where I start to like, maybe pay a bit more attention and a bit more intrigued For me, I was really inspired by Paula Radcliffe, and I'll never forget my first time doing an audio coached workout where they had her like come on to like and they recorded her saying, like you can do it or something silly like that. I'm like, oh my God, Paula is talking to me. It was so exciting. But yeah, it's again. We saw some really great world records going down at this time. Now I don't know that we saw the kind of world records that we're currently seeing, but we'll talk about that more as well.

Speaker 1:

And again, you're going to notice that most of the notable figures were not US distance runners. We're really going to be talking about that more in our next episode, but there were a few notable figures other than Paula Radcliffe Again, you were talking about Derek Redman from the Barcelona Olympics in 92 and the Ethiopian distance runner Haley Gepriss Lassie. I'm probably butchering that. I'm trying people.

Speaker 2:

I'm going to be honest, coach, you're the best at it, you're the best I don't know how you do it, but like you always seem to use, it sounds right in my ears so I'm going for it.

Speaker 1:

But again, various records and going into just the history it's hard to to not talk about all the amazing runners that were there, but again we're also starting to see about hydration and fueling coming into play, which did aid a different performance. Sport strings, energy gels All of that starts to become a more mainstream and again you're seeing Nike in the running world more. You're seeing Gatorade, even though Gatorade was invented a couple of decades before that. You're really seeing that intense popularity and you're starting to see a lot of the easy grab and go items that we experienced today, yeah, which I mean again.

Speaker 2:

I think that they probably go hand in hand. Of course, technology is making advances, nutritional sciences is making advances all at the same time, but also the fact that we're able to get on, we can dial up, wait 25 minutes while we do like our post, run cool down and get into that ASL or that AOL chat room. I should say and ask people like hey, I like, like I bonked at you know, mile five of my 10 K and people being able to disseminate that information. So I think we're starting to see where crowd sourcing information is coming into play. You know, I don't know if, like, I would have thought of Googling quite yet at that point, but maybe because I think that they were giving away I think that was when Google was running a really big campaign, so, like you could, they were doing like a daily raffle giveaway for you to use their search engines.

Speaker 1:

Fun fact, they just celebrated their 25th anniversary. Did they really? They did, as we're recording this right now, we are. They are celebrating their 25th anniversary.

Speaker 2:

Nothing makes you feel quite so old as knowing that you're older than Google. But thanks, coach, I appreciate that. Oh my gosh, I'm older than Google. I feel sorry.

Speaker 1:

I feel vintage anywhere.

Speaker 1:

But we're also seeing about the running apparel changing again more in the moisture wicking at the cushioning and shoes. That again talking about technology advancements and sciences, all of that starts becoming into play, which I can't help but think. That's where we also saw the changes in times, because in this we have the elite male of marathoners going into about two hours and 10 minutes, two hours and 20 minutes on the higher end. That's a good jump from what we were seeing just a decade ago. The amateur, competitive males were at 230 to three hours and again we're seeing the same trend of it holding steady for the recreational runners for hours, both male and female recreational runners. That's where we're seeing that happy spot for the marathon. But even the elite female marathoners saw an increase in time for two and a half to two of 40 for theirs, competitive amateurs going down all the way to three, 15 on the upwards end of three, 45. And well, yes, accessibility definitely made a difference. I would put money on the fact that the scientific and the technological advancements played a bigger role, absolutely.

Speaker 2:

Absolutely. There's no doubt on that. I think it goes. I think, for the elites getting faster, zero down, that is definitely the case. I still wonder if that would play as much of a role for the recreational runner, because I think it was still not quite. I mean, there was probably some recreational runners that had a lot of access to that, to more technology, being able to spend more money on it. But I'm curious. We'll have to see. I do think that as we continue to go through these decades, we're going to see these costs go down. It becomes a little bit easier to access these things that may have at one time been totally out of our reach and was kind of just for the elites. But at this point I'm super stoked right, because we're in the 90s, I'm living my best life. I think at that point I'm actually living my Viva Luka, I'll Ricky Martin.

Speaker 2:

But before we get into a little bit of the pop culture, I do want to talk about the fact that this is a super cool time, in my opinion, because we actually start to see a little bit of a crossover of actually movies that are dedicated to running. Now there were some movies prior to this, of course, like Chariots of Fire in the early 80s, but this is the time that we start to see maybe some like biographical sports films. It's still. It's still kind of. It's not 100 percent, it's not quite as big of a range as you could find today If you were to Google some kind of running documentaries or running movies. But we're seeing Without Limits, where it's 1998, the biographical sports film about, of course, steve Prefontaine on the heels of Prefontaine, which was 1997. It was an actual film. Then it was acted out by Jared Leto Super big crush on him back in the day and during doesn't do it for me.

Speaker 1:

I'm not a Jared Leto fan, sorry.

Speaker 2:

He was. You had to have grown up in that time. You were too young.

Speaker 1:

But in that and this is a poll of this episode. Apparently, Jared Leto yes or Jared Leto no.

Speaker 2:

Jared Leto now know. But Jared Leto now know, sorry, you hit your peak, but in my so-called life, when he was this moody and I think he maybe spoke three words in the entire season yeah, jared Leto is all. I think I gravitate to some of that moody kind of stuff back in the day A bad boy energy, I don't know. But yes, jared Leto in my so-called life, which is probably what got him that Prefontaine role. And then, of course, endurance in 1999, the documentary film Chronically in the Life and Running Career of Haley. And Please Pronounce it for Me, coach, is it Gabra?

Speaker 1:

Lasse Gabra, lasse, gabra, lasse, they're so good. I mean, I, I, I try to pronounce his name. Sometimes I get it, sometimes I don't, but I'm I'm going to give myself an A for effort, I think.

Speaker 2:

I think I A plus for effort coach because I did. I didn't even try, I was just like Coach, shake it please. But I think we're also could we, would you say it's fair to say that we're starting to really see and as you mentioned already like there's a dominance coming out of Ethiopia, specifically the long distance, or Kenya at this point is where we start to see more of that trend starting to happen.

Speaker 1:

Ethiopian and Kenyan runners definitely have ruled the running scene for a very long time and I think again, as we start to get more of a global awareness in the American running scene and keeping more track of the international competitors, I think that's where a big part of our total running history became more complete, because they were always there. Yeah, it's just the fact of it. Again, it's profitable, it's mainstream. Now we're going to be talking about it. So I do love how Steve pre-Fontane go not one, but two films. I was just watching 10 things I hate about you at this point.

Speaker 2:

But that was a lot of fun, all right.

Speaker 1:

Second poll Heath Ledger or Jared Leto.

Speaker 2:

Well, that's not fair. It is fair. No, we have to go. We have to go like at their. I mean Heath Ledger, from what movie? Like let's?

Speaker 1:

let's me hate about you.

Speaker 2:

Oh no, totally Jared Leto.

Speaker 1:

I mean we're talking about nineties.

Speaker 2:

On both of them, I feel I'm feeling overly confident maybe and that's scaring me, but I feel very confident that people are going to align with with my side of it, Jared Leto, OK well.

Speaker 1:

Listen, I feel like we lost each other. We lost each other on that. I feel like talking about popular songs and popular bands in the 90s. We're just going to open up that divide even more.

Speaker 2:

Oh goodness, ok, so this is what I was listening to in the 90s. I was listening to a lot of Biggie Smalls. East Coast Rap is the best ever. I will definitely battle you guys on this. I mean, there is West Coast, east Coast. I am ready for you. I've been practicing my entire life on this, but I was listening to a whole lot of the East Coast hip-hop that was coming out around that time. That also loved me the grunge scene. So a lot of Nirvana, pearl Jam, tlc, madonna. What were you listening to, coach?

Speaker 1:

I was listening to Christina Aguilera, britney Spears, backstreet Boys, insync, which I'm still. I will probably sell everything I own to be able to go see the Basterd— Basterd— or, I'm sorry, insync and Concert, but you know, I still— I got down with some salt and pepper, so I still— Okay, a little S&P action, yeah, and then Eminem.

Speaker 1:

I would say towards the later 90s. I was definitely jamming out, but I mean again, I grew up in such an eclectic household music-wise, that well, that was my maybe first choice in the 90s. I was listening to a little bit of everything.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, I feel you on that. I really— and I know this will be debated I personally— and I have a theory that any music decade that comes from your teens, or maybe your college size, is usually going to be the favorite decade For me. Of course, I have a lot of affinity. I mean the Fuji's— we could talk about this forever, so let's not— let's move on.

Speaker 2:

Let's move on over so popular hobbies beyond running, because I guess people have to do cross-training. So we're seeing skateboarding still kind of dominating. We're seeing now, where in the 80s there was more of roller skating, we're starting to see inline skating becoming more popular. I loved when we did this research that the actual term was called hobbies home computing.

Speaker 1:

What is that? We had a family computer growing up and I don't know where my dad found it, but it was badges Badges. We don't need no stinking badges and it's a quote from a movie, but that was like the only memory I have of computers at home growing up.

Speaker 2:

I'm fascinated. You're going to have to look that up for all of us, because I've never heard that phrase? Really, I don't think so. But you know, what I did hear of during the 90s quite a bit was as if, and talk to the hand.

Speaker 1:

Oh, yep, talk to the hand, because the face ain't listening and I'm doing the whole head bob, yes, word, yes. Whatever loser was a big thing, I'm doing again the whole—.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, the L on the forehead you have to. Yeah, right, it's back. Yeah.

Speaker 1:

I even did like what's the 411? When you actually had to call 411?.

Speaker 2:

Oh my gosh, you are taking it back. My friend, I do remember that now that you say, and I think that for our younger listeners there was a whole phone line dedicated to actually calling to check on the weather and the time, and I know that sounds crazy to you guys, but there was. But you know what? The 411 is that I want to hear about is like what were we snacking on back in the 90s?

Speaker 1:

Oh man, the snacks in the 90s were lit. Do you remember the minute-made juice bars?

Speaker 2:

Yes, Literally You're so good, they still have them. I mean, it's literally just concentrated sugar, I'm sure you could find it.

Speaker 1:

Fruit snacks were super popular, which I know again. Talk about fuel of choice, race crispy treats. Dunkaroos, which you can still get, dunkaroos, my kid loves them.

Speaker 2:

OK, I could see where those would still be popular. Why are we not talking about Lunchables?

Speaker 1:

Oh God, lunchables the one thing that is horrendous. It was like meal prep for the 90s and it was like the most disgusting rubber ham. But I love the pizzas.

Speaker 2:

They still have Lunchables.

Speaker 1:

Oh, I know they do. I'm not saying that they're not available. I've consumed them.

Speaker 2:

I know, are they so similar in the consistency?

Speaker 1:

I don't know, hercine, the last time I bought a Lunchable I did not have my own debit card, so I have no idea. But even like toaster strudels, ring pops, I always wore it on my left hand, so it looked like I was engaged, so I could just a little raspberry love.

Speaker 2:

I was all about that Laffy Taffy life and I think I probably, I'm sure you were about the Laffy Taffy life, both the music and the actual little team sweet kind of treat there. Well, with that said, you guys can clearly hear that we we loved ourselves in the 90s as we continue to go through this. But I think it's really important that while there was a Y2K panic with that turning over of the calendar, the digital calendar, it came to fruition to be that it was not that big of a deal. But the 2000s were a big deal when it came to running. So, coach, hit me with some of the biggest best things that came out of the early 2000s. Basically.

Speaker 1:

I mean the fact that I started growing up, but, no, the emergence of global marathons and major city races in 2000s. And marked the expansion of the marathons and the major city races worldwide Tokyo, berlin, chicago they all started gaining more prominence, attracting more elite athletes, international participants again talking about bringing that whole running community into focus. And then, of course, the records. Notable records include Haley Gebrelastie's world record in the men's marathon and 2008 Paula Radcliffe, again a world marathon record in 2003. So we're talking about again getting bigger, getting better, getting faster and more eyes on the sport.

Speaker 2:

And I think let's talk about both those times where, yes, we have, we've seen advances in both the men's and women's marathon finishing times since then. These are still stellar. Times Like this would still make you a competitive athlete, and today's day and age, like it's I mean you'd have to be working hard, but still incredible times. I think again, as we talk about our online running community and bringing the world together, basically that has a common interest that the impact of social media on the running community cannot be left behind.

Speaker 2:

I think at this time too, is where we start to see a little foray of this specific where we're at right now. This platform that we're at with podcasts. It's not what we know it to be today. It was just people kind of maybe like radio people getting involved with it. That's actually how I came to. Running was a C2 5K style podcast that somebody made, setting it completely to hip hop, and it was the only thing that would have probably really, really really kept me in the game was because I looked forward every single time to get out there and listen to some of my favorite 90s hip hop that they set this podcast to, that's what you say, cool, I didn't know that about you.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, it was. I freaking loved it and I have to say it is not suitable for work. So this is the first time I'm going to have to put a little explicit tag of my friend. So if you've got little ears, I'm going to say that the name of the website where I found it and was able to download it was called Kiss my Ass. Fault, but take the fault off.

Speaker 1:

So I'm sitting there. I'm like she could just spell it, it's OK.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, no, yeah. See, I don't have a little one, so I don't know. I just knew that there was some way that I had to say it.

Speaker 1:

I've never spelt so good until after I had a child. But no, that makes a lot of sense Because, again, we talked about my space in the 90s but it actually wasn't even founded till 2003. And then we had Facebook. We have the evolution of Twitter, instagram coming way later than that, and apps like Strava running communities coming into fruition. Blogs started getting really big.

Speaker 2:

And online chat rooms.

Speaker 1:

I mean all of that just it went literally from zero to 26.2 in no time.

Speaker 2:

You're absolutely right. So it became like I hate to say it this way, but it became where it was something that if you were lacking in inspiration or knowledge, there was no reason to at this point, because as long as you did have access to a computer, if you and there's plenty of people who would go to their libraries and you had an interest in this, you could find something. You're not kidding. On the blogs, I think I read every possible blogger at that time because I wanted to know more. I had fallen so madly in love with the sport and I didn't know exactly, I didn't have access to a lot of runners in my day to day life at that time. So, yeah, it was absolutely so fascinating and being able to connect with somebody from across time zones, but that, still just as obsessed as you are about all of this.

Speaker 1:

And again I'm at this point. I'm still not a runner. I don't become a runner until our next quick bites. So this is still. I'm not even in this. And this is where our age difference does come in.

Speaker 2:

I am curious, though. So you're not quite yet a runner, but by the way, you did come to running, I think a decade earlier than I did in terms of your life. So we may, okay. So you're not still a runner, but you've always been a fan of the Olympics. I feel like right.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, I always loved watching the Olympics as a kid. It was something, I think. As funny as it is to go down into the psychiatric part to analyze my brain, I think I really did love sports. I just was never in that fitting mold of what sports and athletes looked like, talking about a whole change. In the early 2000s we still were seeing like the Kate Mosses of the world. We were seeing the teeny, tiny, itty bitty runners. There wasn't the movement that it is today. So if you didn't get started and been born and bred for running, then you really weren't exploring it the same.

Speaker 2:

There is no kidding on that. But there is some silver linings to the 2000s in terms of that. We're gonna talk about it in just a second. We're gonna talk about the running gear and hydration feeling first, which again not like a huge difference from the 90s, because we're still seeing more electrolytes drinks. We're seeing more energy gels. We're seeing them during long people using them more during their runs and at races because they become big sponsorship opportunities, of course. So it continues to be just more accessible. More choices, I think, is what we would be looking at during the 2000s.

Speaker 2:

But we're still seeing advancements in our technology. They're continuing to evolve. They are really realizing that there is not one size fits all on the shoe stability, the cushioning, on materials. They are in those labs hatching away their potions to make our shoes magical, even though we already think they're magical. We are seeing GPS watches become more affordable. I'm never gonna forget the first GPS watch that I had. It was actually given to me from my employer. I cried, I literally cried. I was just so because I would have never been able to afford it at the time because, although it was more affordable, it was out of my specific pay grade at that point and to have my employer do that for me because they knew that I had fallen so madly in love with this sport. It literally just was so incredible for me.

Speaker 1:

Again early 2000s we're talking about. Cell phones are just becoming more of a mainstream thing, that everybody more or less had one home computers. So again the GPS. Like you have your GPS fixed in your car, so to have it in the watch in the 90s and in the early 2000s we're saying it's more affordable. It still wasn't even what it was. Today, by saying more affordable, we're still looking at the bare bones of what would be considered today. We're still running pun intended $6,000, $8,000.

Speaker 2:

I do have a question. I do wanna know, because every single time I did turn on my GPS watch, at that time I would put my arm up towards the sky, hoping that the satellite would ping it quicker so it would find the that used to be in the directions with your GPS for your car. Okay, I was wondering did I just make that up in my head, or is that actually?

Speaker 1:

No, that was a thing they said. You had to be outside without any barriers and yeah, you would look like the Statue of Liberty holding that thing up, trying to gain signal, so see.

Speaker 2:

I was always doing warmups, I was just focusing on upper body a little bit there. So, yeah, I think that there's a lot of that. I also had the iPod shuffle because, again, that was a little bit more affordable than the full-on iPod, so it had limited amount of music, but sufficient enough.

Speaker 2:

And you could bring it on the run. Literally, that was perfect. And I'll never forget when my first iPod shuffle died and I thought that I would never be able to run another step because I could clearly at that point not go out without music or something in my ear. But anyway, it's still fun to talk about that, of course, but also this is where I get really excited about the Marathon finishing times and I'm gonna let you lead with some of the elite stuff and then I wanna bring it in for the recreational people.

Speaker 1:

So we see a pretty substantial jump because, again, to non-runners five minutes doesn't seem all that impressive. But five minutes is a heck of impressive, especially at the elite level. So elite male marathoners were going about two hours, five minutes. Two hours, 10 minutes to where? Again, we're going to talk about it, but even today that's not as favorable. The pro amateurs two thirty to three hours, male runners on the recreational side, again that four hours, it's, it's that home spot, this is where they live, to put a little bit of an early 2000s movie hitch. And then the elite women crushing it at two hours, 20 minutes. Two hours and 25 minutes. The pro am women, women, three, three and a half, yeah, and now we're seeing, though, in the woman's side, how learn something different.

Speaker 2:

I know, and this is what I'm so excited about. I know you're going to be excited about it as well. So this is where we start to see the times averaging for female runners recreationally, popping up to about four to five hours Now. Prior to this, we were seeing the finishing times around four hours for the most part. Now, let's be honest, there's always going to be outliers on all of these steps that we've put out and they're just kind of like an average accumulation.

Speaker 2:

But what I love about the fact that we're seeing the five hours is, while we started in the entry of this series, about we're seeing records being broken on some of the fastest times ever seen before or definitely on record what we're also seeing is now, because of this advent of the social technology and the accessibility of all of the different just inclusion of the sport, you're seeing women say, hey, wait, I can tackle this, like I don't know how I'm going to fit it in between you know moming and careering and all of the other things that I do, but this is important to me and I'm going to tackle this marathon distance. So we start to see where there's the tide starts to turn, where we're seeing more women actually tackling the marathon distance which, yes, it does bring the average time a little bit closer to that five hour side, and that is awesome.

Speaker 1:

We're anything but average anyway, so what does it even matter? But, yeah, we and again we saw a really big power shift in the early 2000s to where in the 90s. I feel diet culture is always a thing. This podcast is not about diet culture, but we can't really have that conversation to where in the 90s it was all about that slim fast, the special K diet, all these, all these specialty diets.

Speaker 2:

And you remember these because you literally just said I'll never forget this toxic diet.

Speaker 1:

culture went deep, my friends.

Speaker 2:

I'll never forget the slim fast shakes. Now that you mentioned it I had forgotten it, but now that you brought it back you have totally reminded me of always feeling hungry and having to use the bathroom. So slim fast shakes will never be a sponsor of ours. But yeah, I'm so glad we've got it past those times.

Speaker 1:

And I think Weight Watchers specifically was gaining a lot more popularity, and I think they were founded in the 60s.

Speaker 2:

I'll never, ever. But I feel like in the 20s.

Speaker 1:

I think they were founded in the 60s 2000s. They really started taking off more and while they had their downfalls.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, they have a sponsor at that point.

Speaker 1:

I don't know if she was a sponsor yet, but I definitely do believe. While there are some not as savory things about Weight Watchers, overall it was a healthier option than what had previously been there. So women were actually eating and having that little pride and taking care of themselves, and it wasn't all about being frail.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, I would agree. I actually think that it's definitely of all of the different. It sure beats slim fast, that's for sure. Okay, so we know that. Now that we mentioned Oprah and her tackling her own marathon distance, so again we're seeing that it's more accessible all the way around and we see more women bringing themselves to the sport and saying, yeah, I can do this, I can talk to that start line. What's kind of inspiring women to do that?

Speaker 2:

I think I have to say that it's the fact that while we saw a little bit in the 90s, or we're seeing more movies, whether they're easier to access online, or maybe we are going to the movie theater or maybe they're playing on I don't know, is this Netflix at that point, is probably the DVD, but we see more movies. And we've talked about Run, fat Boy Run, which again talks a little bit about the entire culture, where he, of course, started his whole running to gain the love of his ex-fiance and get in shape. But what I think is better than that is that we start to see more of like running the Sahara, where it's about ultra running, ultra marathon. Man, on the heels of the success of his book, comes out with a documentary spirit of the marathon, the very same reason where I became obsessed with having to run Chicago.

Speaker 2:

Prior to that, I had no idea what a marathon was, why anybody would want to run that far, that it was possible or that it would be something that I could make happen. But the fact that they followed regular runners, along with elites, of course. But regular runners, I thought, why not me? So I have to say that these are definitely things that I think really played into the rampant popularity of running.

Speaker 1:

And then you're seeing literature yeah, I'd say books. So many of these titles are still relevant today. First and foremost, born to Run by Christopher McDougal. I mean again, classic. If you go through any group right now on the face space, you're going to see that completely be full on Always recommended Marathon.

Speaker 1:

The Ultimate Training Guide by Hal Higdon, again a staple name in the running world, in the running community. I again was not reading these books, but I've heard about what I talk about when I talk about running, by Haruki Murakami, I think you'd love that book. I probably would. I mean, it's a running book. I'm probably going to love all of these, but again kind of that reflective running journey, now that we've had some decades behind it it really starts to kind of go into the history.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, I mean, and again we're starting to see even distance beyond the marathon, bringing at the forefront. So we hear more about cross country, with running with the buffaloes all the way up to those ultra marathons with Dean Karnaz's Karnaz how do I pronounce his name? Coach? I mean Karnaz's.

Speaker 1:

OK, well, I've loved how you ask me. It's like I love him.

Speaker 2:

I love all of his books have to this day still do not know how to pronounce his name, and I just call him ultra marathon man, and I think that's OK, except when you're happily married, your significant other may not really love the fact that you're talking about obsessively about a man that you've called ultra marathon man Just not good for the ego. So don't do that. But let's talk about your favorite. What would have been on your iPod shuffle?

Speaker 1:

Oh my God, all of these songs were on my. So Britney Spears again a toxic was huge. The Killers, mr Brightside, I officially had like a British accent singing that song. Beyonce, black Eyed Peas, shakira, you know I love about my hipstone lie and I mean I'm like these songs are still on my Spotify list.

Speaker 1:

I'm not even going to play right now. All of these, I think, are on my playlist. And Green Day oh yes, I would hear some moody Green Day in my goth days. And the Boulevard of Broken Dreams. And in my young youth I was so broken and disheveled on that broken dreams Boulevard. Oh you, poor thing, my pencil dropped.

Speaker 2:

Oh, what we're also seeing, too, is because the advent of technology is that people are also getting in touch with more like indie bands, so there's a lot of that hitting people's playlist and maybe like finding music for every mood to help you get laced up. So, coach, I know that you're pretty infamous for your playlist spanning the different wide ranges of your moods, from your Zen shower list all the way to, like your angry run kind of playlist, so we see that actually being more of a possibility. I'm not going to get into legalities of people downloading things at that point, so let's move on from that.

Speaker 1:

I never for the record truth bomb. I never downloaded anything. I bought all my songs because as a kid I was terrified.

Speaker 2:

You actually watched the little wording labels before movies as well. Yes, I did. Ok, so piracy is definitely a thing. I can't honestly say, though, that I didn't. I couldn't figure out how to do it, or I probably would have, so there's that's where, like my inadequacies with technology at that point in time was probably very beneficial. So what are we saying, like at that point, when you are checking out my playlist or I'm checking out your playlist, is there some popular things from that time that we probably still use today? Chillax.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, you need to chillax. Is that a bad like? Why can't we talk about chillaxing still? I mean, I still say it sketchy, I still say um biatch.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, I've been saying dogs since the probably the 90s. But oh yeah, I've definitely been saying homesclet for some time, but we see it still kind of in the lexicon Peeps how can you not talk about peeps? I mean a little sugary kind. What about fetch? I mean, did you try to make fetch happen? I'm still working on Shufi happening. So one one thing at a time for me. Once we get past Shufi, maybe I'll bring back fetch. We'll see.

Speaker 1:

There are some good ones, though I feel like sick, like that's sick.

Speaker 2:

I love that. This is the time where we start to see more of what we use in our everyday slang, like L a, l, m e b r, no B R B. We can't even go out of slang. I'm really typing in my head, um, so I think that that's one of the really cool things as well is like we actually see our lexicon 100% changing from a need to have a bit more brevity when we are texting people or communicating on social media.

Speaker 1:

So this is definitely.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, so we're starting to see a bit more shorthand. Of course, as always, movies are going to play a big, big um influence as to the things that we speak, like you said, making fetch happen. But let's say that I'm going to go ahead and have a movie night with mean girls. What kind of snacks are we bringing to this slumber party?

Speaker 1:

When I looked it up. Do you remember the Hershey kisses that were like hard coated, candied. It was basically like a Hershey kiss button, M and M type of thing. Oh, they were so good. And grips I didn't like grips but I loved the cheese balls I saw them the other day and I had to resist, yeah, getting them.

Speaker 1:

And then Lunchables started coming out with the dessert varieties. They had the brownie, like that really artificially cake together brownie. You're looking at me like you did not have any of those. I did not have any of this.

Speaker 2:

So I'm starting to wonder if there is a correlation to me not knowing about these things, because at this point is when I am starting to get much more focused on my running and wanting to fuel a bit better. And again, no judgment around any of these things, it's just a matter of that time period. Yeah, just honestly, I had dipped out of it, except for Jello pudding pops, because, while they definitely came into play beforehand, I know that they had a resurgence of popularity during that time, and you cannot really resist a Jello pudding pop, or can?

Speaker 1:

you, what about? What about baby bottle pop? Baby bottle pop, baby bottle pop? No, you never, okay.

Speaker 2:

I love that you actually have little jingles in your head.

Speaker 1:

I'm literally singing all of that and that was the jingle that they that they had.

Speaker 2:

I don't know any of these jingles I must have. Clearly I was reading ultramarathon and born to run and listening to my iPod shuffle and go into the clubs.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, exactly, so there was going to home room. There was a limited amount of time that I could, I guess, get down with some of these snacks, and then I started to lose touch of those snacks and I'm curious, as we continue to talk about snacks and, of course, all of the running world in our final episode coming on up next Wednesday, if maybe I'll know some more of those snacks. But, friends, for here and now, we want to thank you so much for joining us on this adventure. We cannot wait to really talk about all of the amazing things that are going out right here and now. So we're going to ask you to join us again for quick bites at drops next week, of course Wednesday, and come again to join us for time for brunch, our long run edition that drops on Friday. Because regardless of when, even what decade or where, we're going to be serving more miles with a side of fetching smiles.

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Christine Hetzel

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