We had a fun time recording our first interview this week!  Sure, we had a technical issue (Alex's mic was off) but we made the most of it.  Isn't that what you do when you have a run or race that doesn't go your way?  You get over it, you keep pushing on, and finish, no matter what it takes (excepting injury - but thankfully I wasn't injured 🤣). Our new interview format is "On The Run With..." where we sit back and take some time with each person we talk to, as if we were just out for a fun run with them.  These episodes are a little longer depending on how much time our guest is willing to share with us.  Some podcasts only feature what the rest of the world calls "experts".  Our podcast, will at times feature those same individuals, but we want to feature an "expert" in a different light.  Each runner we encounter is an expert in their own light.  For example, Cassie shares with us some incredible motivational tips for all of us through her experiences and struggles she has had through her years of running. We start off with me thanking Audrey for her encouragement this week.  I (Alex) am usually bound up in my home and stuck on my treadmill throughout the winter as my fear of slipping and injuring myself outweighed my love of being outside.  If that describes you, then no worries as I know the struggle is real!  But for a few different reasons, I wanted to change it up this year and set the goal to run outside no matter the temperature - as long as the roads were dry.  Feel free to leave a comment on our site telling me I'm a wimp; I'm ok with that. 😁  But this week with two snowstorms, Audrey encouraged me to come along and enjoy the snow - and I did.  It was such a blast to get out and the conditions were perfect!  She really helped motivate me to step a bit outside of my comfort zone.  I did and I loved it! Next, we are so excited for our new website - motivatemetorun.com!  This site will allow us to post additional information that we want to share (like our Run With Us page where we share our future races hoping we can meet you there) and give us a bit better place to reach out to you.  We would love to have you come over and click on Don't Miss an Episode (or just click here) where you can start being notified each time we drop and episode and additionally get that extra information from us (like race coupon codes and more!) to give you that extra bit of motivation. I won't break down the whole interview with Cassie here, but we really encourage you to listen in on the discussion!  She shares so much about how she struggles with her hypothyroidism (low thyroid) as it makes everything she does physically so much more difficult - not to mention how much more difficult losing weight is for her.  She digs into how other health issues prevents her from training like she wants We work through the differing personalities of runners and showing how runners who don't always "check each and every box in their training plan" (she asks, "What checkboxes?!" 😉) can have just as much fun as their Type A friends. Although she may struggle with her training she shares how she still makes racing (the 10K is one of her favorite distances) a part of her life She shares a tip on what keeps her going.  For just a hint, she mentions that it's something I've shared on this podcast before. Cassie shares that she has a complicated relationship with running.  But that conflicted motivation keeps her going and she doesn't give up. Ever. We break down Cassie's approach in races, especially when her training has been less than what she expects would be sufficient for a race.  Huge note here, for these races although she doesn't feel like she should be on the starting line, she is, still has a blast, and enjoys the experience! Cassie really gets into the idea on the differing types of people you'll find at your nex