Born in the coastal town of Marblehead north of Boston, Massachusetts, Shalane showed an early aptitude for distance running.

A three-time All-State cross country athlete, she also finished first in the state in the mile and her 4:46 performance won the National Scholastic Indoor championships. Her two-mile performance still stands as a Massachusetts record.

Flash forward to to 2004 when Shalane turned professional and her achievements kept piling up. A two-time national champion in the 5,000m, she won the short course cross country championships in 2004 and 2005.

Today, Shalane is one of the most dominant female distance runners on the planet, boasting achievements like:

2008 Bronze Medalist in the Olympic 10,000m
Multiple American Record holder
2nd fastest American female marathoner of all time with a 2:21:14 personal best
2012 Olympic Trials marathon winner and 10th overall at the 2012 London Olympics
6th overall at the 2016 Rio Olympics in the marathon

But Shalane isn't just a runner. She's now a New York Times best-selling author with her coauthor Elyse Kopecky of Run Fast, Eat Slow: Nourishing Recipes for Athletes.

This was one of the easier interviews I've ever done because Shalane is so easy-going and relaxed. I had a blast talking to her about a wide range of subjects:

Does Shalane have a Boston accent after a few glasses of wine?
Her favorite type of wine
Go-to runs in the Boston area
What does running 120 miles a week feel like?
A snapshot of her strength training program
Why she now loves fat - after avoiding it for years
Her favorite race
What's next for Shalane (this might be surprising)

Episode 3: Shalane Flanagan on Morning Routines, Unfinished Business and Writing a NYT Best-Seller

The Strength Running Podcast