How to Start Running with Fleet Feet Raleigh Ep 12

especially if you're competitive and you're good at other things and you feel like, well, maybe I'm not going to be good at— as a runner. And the other nice thing is there's no such thing as a good or a bad runner. You know, you're just out there moving. And that's what Fleet Feet has tried to communicate over the years is we just want to encourage people to move.

Welcome to the Find Your Edge podcast. Get ready to dive into all things training, nutrition, recovery, and more. Whether you're a new or experienced endurance athlete, a weekend warrior, or someone who just wants to improve your health and fitness, this podcast is for you. I'm Chris Newport, founder, head coach, registered dietitian, exercise physiologist, and certified personal trainer with the Endurance Edge and the Fueling Edge. With more than 20 years experience in the fitness industry, 18 years in multi-sport, and over 10 years as a sports nutritionist, I'm speaking with athletes and experts about key actionable steps you can take to reach and sustain peak performance and health. Let's do it. Welcome back to the Find Your Edge podcast. This is Chris Newport, and I am excited to be here today with Gina James and Sharon Kiner of Fleet Feet Raleigh and Morrisville. Welcome to the show, ladies.

Thank you. Thanks for having me.

So I, over the years as the Endurance Edge, we have really had a great connection. With the folks at Fleet Feet. And it's been a, it's been an excellent partnership encouraging people to get into running more, building the community. So tell me, ladies, how you guys got into running and, and how you got connected with Fleet Feet Raleigh.

Gina, you want me to go first?

Yeah, you go ahead and go first, Sharon.

I usually explain it because I get asked this question a lot at the store by customers because everybody has, you know, a unique story and they feel it's unique. But I was pretty much a gym rat, but I have asthma. So running was always kind of the scariest thing in the world to do to me. But I was at the Y, which I always promote the Y when I'm anywhere and got to have a chance, doing their little track just a couple of times to get the feeling of what running is like. And someone saw me running And when I finished, they asked me what I was training for. And that was a foreign question to me. I, I thought only professionals trained, or, you know, at least high school and college athletes do training, not me. So I was unsure what this person meant. So as we got into more of a conversation, he pretty much debunked all my excuses. For running. And I decided at 47 to, what the heck? Maybe it was a midlife crisis, but started giving it a shot running from where I lived at the time was off Ridge Road and gradually made my way to Fleet Feet, having not even known it was up there at Ridgewood Shopping Center. And a year later, I ran my first race. And assumed I needed to tell everybody about it and applied at Fleet Feet and they hired me. And that was 10 years ago this year.

Wow.

That's awesome. I love that story. Gina, what about you?

Um, so mine's a little different. Uh, I started about 20 years ago. My sister-in-law told me she wanted to run the Chicago Marathon and I was young and naive and said, okay, that sounds like fun. So we trained and the love for the run began, but I learned many life lessons from that training and from race day. So I wanted to share all the wrongs I did with other people. And so I think it was like 2014, I saw where Fleet Feet had a mentoring program. And, um, I got into that and started mentoring and I started coaching with Girls on the Run and then went from there to the No Boundaries program and started coaching the 5K program. And I just enjoy being with the people. Um, and it's gone from coaching to coordinating. So that's pretty much my Fleet Feet story.

So Sharon, you started running at 47. What was your first distance?

As a race?

Uh-huh.

Yeah, uh, it was the Richmond 10K.

Okay.

And I'm sorry, they call it the Monument Avenue 10K.

Oh, do they? Okay. And, and how was it?

I felt great. It was a weird race for me in the sense I didn't really know what racing was like either. There were 40,000 people doing that race that year, so when I started the winner had already won. And when I finished, people who were walking were just getting started. So it wasn't that community that a lot of people talk about because so many people were doing a relatively short race, but I felt stellar afterwards. I felt, felt like I could conquer the world, even though my time was extremely and stays extremely mediocre. But I, I thought it was positive. So I kept, kept doing it. I actually wasn't working at Fleet Feet at that time yet. So I was able to, to walk in with a little under my belt. But yeah.

And Gina, you started with a marathon. You started with the Chicago Marathon.

No, I didn't start with the Chicago Marathon. I did work up to that. We started— my first one was the Stonewood Half Marathon. I think it was Stonewood or something. It was a restaurant here about 20 years ago. We started at, what was it, the RBC Center maybe? And you ran into Umstead. That was back when races would feed you afterwards with a meal. And it was, it was a smaller race. I just remember Umstead kicking my butt, but it was a good platform to know what was up ahead to do that Chicago Marathon was next.

So looking back on those experiences and knowing what kinds of training programs you guys offer, how do you think your experience would have potentially changed being with a group like you guys run?

You want me to answer Gina?

Go ahead. Yeah.

Well, again, at that point in my life, I had no idea these groups existed either, but looking at my experience and how we deal with it, there would have been a lot more mental preparation for me, which I think is, I don't know, Gina may disagree with me on this, but I feel like that's the biggest battle. You know, most people can do these physically. They just don't believe they can. So I feel like I would have been prepared for, you're going to see a lot of people and the beginning is going to be super crowded and you're going to have to learn to weave your way through people and be okay with that. You know, the mental pacing. All of that. Considering I had none of that, I felt fine. But certainly that preparation for expectations to me would have, would have really benefited me.

And Gina, what about you?

Yeah, same thing. I mean, with that half marathon, it was way smaller than the Chicago Marathon. I wish I would have had that group to maybe have learned not only the mental part But also like fueling our clothes, like what we wore. These are things that we go over in our training programs that, I mean, if you would see pictures of us from our first race, like I'm wearing a cami from Express with my sports bra. Like I'm in cotton sweatshirt because it was going to be cold and windy. Like there are certain things that I just wish I knew. And also the other thing is, is like, we didn't have the technology that we do today. My sister-in-law and I would drive around Cary Parkway to make our route.

Oh, I remember those days.

Yeah.

So like, these are certain things that, uh, with me, with the coordinating, like I make their route, you know, they just show up and, and do the route. So these are some things that I do, I, I guess I would say take for granted. And when I look back, I, I'm like, oh my gosh, running in general. And my running life has come a very long way.

That brings me back to Gina. When you were mentioning your clothing, the very first half marathon I did, it was the first Rock 'n' Roll race. And I ran it in a t-shirt and Umbros. Do you guys remember Umbros? And I remember my finish line picture coming across there. Like the, the opening to the shirt was like all stretched out. It was sopping wet. I had, you know, like chafing everywhere. It was. It was terrible, but you know, we're suckers. We keep coming back, don't we?

Yes.

So tell us about your training programs. What distances, what kind of ability levels do you guys all have? I'm so curious. Tell us.

Okay.

So we have, we have many, we have something for the beginner, like a Make It a Mile where we do a walk-run intervals that over 4 weeks they can make, make it a mile. And then we have our beginner program that's really big. It's our 5K No Boundaries. That's a 10-week program. And then I usually try to do a really fun race like the Jingle Bell Run for that. And then we have 10K, we have half and full, and then over the last year or so we've tried to specialize in our PR Squad. We have a trail running program during the summer. And then Core Run, that's a little bit of running, a little bit of strength training. And then we do have Walking Warriors. That's just walking.

So that's really catering. It sounds to me like you're catering to a ton of levels.

We are. We, we want everyone to be involved.

So what would you say to the person who's like, oh, oh, I'm not a runner. Do you guys get that a lot? I know I get that a lot. Like, oh, I could, I could never do that. I'm not a runner. So what do you say to them?

That's fine. That's why we have Walking Warriors. And I get it. It's a mental battle. We— people think that they can't do it, and once they think they can't, they don't want to. So it's what we do. I mean, I don't know, Sharon, you want to help me out here?

Well, we do hear that in the store every day, and I'm not exaggerating, every day. And the one thing, because I come from, you know, going from doing nothing but knowing how to really use the machines at the Y to, I haven't run a marathon and I'm probably mentally handicapped on that part, but never realizing that I would be able to even do a half marathon. So I come from that point of almost feeling intimidated and apologetic you know, remembering what that was like. So we've tried really hard to basically say, that's fine, that's okay, we don't care. We just want you where you are. And understanding that there's a starting point for everyone, that nobody that you see— I always say there is no one running down the sidewalk that you see that just got up this morning and decided to run 5 or 6 miles. If they did, they'll be paying for it. But no one is doing that successfully. Everyone has a starting point. And sometimes when you give them the permission to just be at the beginning, folks kind of relax. But I totally understand that battle of, especially if you're competitive and You're good at other things and you feel like, well, maybe I'm not going to be good at, as a runner. And the other nice thing is there's no such thing as a good or a bad runner. You know, you're just out there moving. And that's what Fleet Feet has tried to communicate over the years is we just want to encourage people to move if you can. And some people can't, you know, that's the other reality. That's why we have walking groups. As well is it's not meant for everybody to take off running. Everybody has their limitations and that's okay too.

I love that. That's great. Permission to be at the beginning.

Yeah. I mean, I totally agree. That's why I love Fleet Feet so much. And that's why I wanted to be a part about, of it is because it doesn't matter how fast or how slow you go. We just really want you to move. Just go. Um, A lot of people get intimidated when I say we have summer speed. They're like, oh, I'm not fast. Well, actually the summer speed is to make you faster from your level. So that's it in a nutshell is we just want you moving.

That's great. I love that, that you're really meeting people where they're at. So what are— having said that, what are some of your favorite success stories of people who may have come into the shop and said, oh, I'm not a runner. And then all of a sudden now they're this I don't know, running 10Ks consistently, or what, what comes to mind when I say that?

Well, with our success stories, I would say I don't go by just like individual. I go by if they keep repeating our training programs. I know I'm doing a good job. I know that they're having fun and they're enjoying what they're doing and they're enjoying being with us. My other one is I, I love when we have a Make It a Miler and they're like, I want to go to that next step, and they go to the 5K or the 10K, or most people get to that half marathon and they stay there, but some people go to that next and do a full marathon. But I think one of our biggest things is with our training programs is that we bring people together. Friendships are made there, and I think that's really important for adults. I think that's hard for people to go and do, and this brings them together.

So that kind of makes me think of where we're at now in the midst of a pandemic and having to be forced apart. What kind of adjustments have you guys made to keep that sense of camaraderie and keep that sense of success and community?

So in the beginning, we did a lot of like challenges and raffle prizes. And after weeks of learning that this COVID thing is not going away, I basically came up with what's called Fleet Feet Academy. It's a virtual training program that uses Google Classroom and we do challenges and the runner or the walker or whatever the activity may be, they actually turn in their run, their activity with either Strava or Runkeeper, or even taking pictures of their watches. But it's a 10-week program. And that's been my way of keeping in touch with them through social media. We're just trying to reach out to them and try and keep them moving. Like I said earlier, that's the most important thing. A lot of them will say, I couldn't get my run in. Try to get a walk. Try to do some kind of strength training, foam rolling, anything that will benefit you. Let's get over the thought of I need to go out for a run and let's just maybe stretch today. So that's how we've been trying to stay into the community.

And Sharon, what about the changes in the shop? How have things been different than your typical— I know before we started recording, we were talking about the typical Saturday when everybody piles in the store and some people get angry. And so how— what things are you guys doing differently now, and what things do you think you're going to keep going into the future?

Yeah, it's, it's really funny because you mentioned that. I was just looking at some pictures of the past years that we were going to post regarding something else, but kind of getting freaked out seeing us like hugging people and the store where people are just packed, all sweaty and packed next to each other. And, you know, and also a little sad, like, will that ever be back? That we will feel comfortable standing next to a good friend when we're dripping in sweat. So looking at those pictures, we were thinking how the store has changed and actually we're already becoming a little accustomed to it. Whether good or bad, of course we've had the benches all spread out to where we actually aren't tying people's shoes for them anymore, to the disappointment of a lot of customers. So not touching people obviously at all, everybody wearing masks, but one thing that I was telling you before we started is we have incorporated what was called Wait While. It's pretty much just an appointment system that allows people to set up an appointment prior and have a spot waiting for them when they come into the store. And we take those from 10:30 to 5:30 every day. We're only open till 6 right now, but probably in the next month we'll be open, or month and a half, back to our regular hours of 10 till 7. We hope to do that. So managing those numbers is what we're doing, but I was letting you guys know that that's, that's probably going to stay just because we feel like it's a more efficient and polite way to take customers, especially on a really busy day. And I think people are happy to do it. Everybody's kind of in the mode of, you know, making an appointment or calling in and ordering their food. Kind of just having a more organized life, so to speak. And I think it's going to be okay with that, and I think we'll like it. We won't get people, you know, can't wait that long, or I've waited 30 minutes, I can't wait that long for a pair of shoes. And we get it. So we're hoping that'll solve that problem as well as continue to pay attention to COVID protocols.

And that to me seems like It's just a more personalized experience, a more, you know, you get—

you—

this is my time. I set my appointment, I get to ask all the questions, and it's kind of all about the customer, and that's kind of cool.

Yeah, and people actually do come a little more prepared in that way too, you know, when they just kind of randomly walk in and maybe don't know completely what to expect. At least now they know what time they're coming in and they're ready mentally when they walk in. So sometimes it's a just more fruitful way as well to, to work with the customer because they've had time to prepare, you know, some information that they think we might need.

So having said that about like, you know, having your appointment, what would you say is the importance now, especially considering the pandemic, of shopping local? And why should somebody perhaps not buy their shoes shoes online or gear or whatever?

Yeah. I mean, I kind of think it's the same thing as it was before. Buying shoes online to me is horrible. I realize a lot of people do it. If it's the same shoe, then you're probably set. But if you're just getting a pair of shoes or you have questions or you have aches and pains, having to return everything is a pain for me. I've never enjoyed that. So You know, we're still letting you try on shoes and you're able to go outside and run in the shoes as well. If you've never had an experience at Fleet Feet, we do give you the opportunity to do that. So you, you actually have the opportunity to compare shoes as well. Whereas unless you're going to order 3 or 4 pairs of shoes with anticipating having to return more than half of them, it's, it's a great way to have a more efficient experience as well. And obviously that immediate and tactile scenario where you get to feel all of them together. So I really think the hazards of shopping online, even though they're very convenient, and don't get me wrong, I've done it, but I don't buy shoes online.

And you guys, how many, how many people work for your, your shops? You guys are probably kind of a small crew.

Do you mean all three combined?

Yeah.

I think right now we have— oh gosh, it's going to sound terrible that I don't know. Pre-COVID, it was about 43. I think maybe we're down to 37. I don't think we're off that much. I mean, we've been very, very fortunate that business has stayed good for us, you know, with the, with the weather being fantastic. Even, even today, I mean, outside it's cold, but it's gorgeous. You know, people have wanted to be outside more, and they grab that first pair of shoes that they— that's in their closet, and it may have been there for 2 to 3 years, and they realize suddenly, maybe this isn't so great. And so they've come into the store for the first time. So we've seen a lot of new folks, and we're extremely grateful for that.

That's great. And what, and what about you, Gina? How do you think, how do you think things have changed in the training programs and how do you think different things are going to stay? And are you really looking forward to hugging sweaty people? I kind of am.

I mean, man, I, I do miss talking with people. That's my thing. Um, this whole, like, I do little comments and newsletters and, you know, it, depends on how much people will comment back. And if I get on a call with someone, I'm usually like, my husband's like, oh man, you miss your, you miss your people. Um, so yeah, that's, that's my biggest thing is I just miss everyone. But I think from here on out, we're just, I got to get creative. We're going to probably meet up in smaller groups. And just spread out the coaches a little bit more than what we used to and, and go from there. But I don't know when that will be.

We're just trying to take baby steps right now and see how everything goes with COVID So if somebody were interested in getting into one of your programs, how would they learn more or how would they sign up?

So our website fleetfeetraleigh.com. Sharon, you could correct me if I'm right or wrong. We usually update that as much as possible for our training programs. Right now, it doesn't have anything. I'm 3 weeks into the Fleet Feet Academy and we don't have anything just because we're taking it, you know, day by day, week by week on what will be next. I would love a little summer program, but we'll have to see. And usually our summer programs are our trail or our speed programs that are a lot smaller than our 5K, half marathon, or full marathon. So, but yeah, check out our website and we keep that updated, or our social media pages on Facebook or Instagram.

I love y'all's social media. It's so, you know, I think sometimes we get a little at least I personally get a little burnt out on looking at all these like professional runners. I love to see different bodies and shapes and sizes. And basically what you guys are promoting is that inclusive feeling, that inclusive nature of anybody and everybody can be a runner or walker. And I think you guys do a really good job with your social media as it relates to that.

That's Jacob and Lily. So that'll be good for them to hear. And we appreciate you saying that because We do all work hard at that because so many images that, that we get that we can use are also not really who we are. So it takes some effort on our part to do what we want to do, and that is be inclusive.

So how do people follow you on social media? What's, what's, what's y'all's handles?

So it is Fleet Feet Rawl. That is our Instagram account. And then of course Facebook is just Fleet Feet Raleigh and Fleet Feet— I think we still have Fleet Feet Morrisville, but Fleet Feet Raleigh.

And I'll be sure to link to all these in the description. Alright, so the way that we like to tie things up is getting one or two inspirational things like how What would you say to somebody who wants to get into running? What are those, what are those kind of inspiring stories or inspiring motivational quips or things that you want to leave people with?

Okay.

Be deep, Sharon. Be profound. No pressure.

That's what I'm known for. I think what you pulled out of my little speech earlier unintentionally would be what I would say is just permission to be at the beginning.

I love that.

What about you, Gina?

I would just say, just come try, just come try a Program. Come meet me and I will be right by your side. So, we will do it together. I don't know.

Yeah, yeah.

Well, having met Gina, she is very gentle. You know how some Coaches can be like very loud and in your face and you are like, It's, it's almost a little intimidating. You have a very gentle nature about you. And I think that encourages people to approach you and, and not be intimidated, like, oh, I'm not a runner and all the things we've, we've talked about already.

So agreed.

Thank you. You guys are awesome. I'm very excited to talk to you. And what are the 3 stores? Sharon, reiterate the 3 stores so that everybody knows where to shop.

So we have Fleet Feet Raleigh that is on Wade Avenue in Ridgewood Shopping Center, Fleet Feet North Raleigh, which is on Six Forks Road close to Strickland intersection where Whole Foods is. And then we have our Fleet Feet Morrisville, which is in Park West Village at the corner of Cary Parkway and Chapel Hill Road.

Love it. Fantastic. So go visit them. Sharon and Gina from Fleet Feet Raleigh and Morrisville, thank you so much for joining us. And I'm excited to see all the new runners that are going to come join your programs and come visit your stores out of this.

Thank you, Chris, for talking to us. Awesome.