As a coach, it is my belief that if you take the responsibility to lead athletes you should have a firm grasp on how to care for them, at the best and worst of times. RockTape has served as an incredible asset in my work for over a decade and this man is principally responsible for this education.The Natural Running Network Live

NIke had invested a fortune to bring one of their Elite runners to the finish line of a marathon in under 2 hours. Eliud Kipchoge did just that. Of course, Nike monopolized on the event by creating a "special" racing shoe for him to wear which will pay them back a 1000 times over. The question is... IF Eliud Kipchoge was paid to attempt the Maratho…

Tired of getting injured doing OCR Races? A few things you can depend on, the sky is blue, grass is green and OCR athletes get injured. Out of love for participation in Spartan races and other OCR events, many enthusiastic OCR participants will find themselves suffering from injuries that could have been avoided. It’s a function of eduction and app…

Running Road VS. Trail So many athletes tell us they don't like running on road because its hard on their bodies. Is it the surface we choose to run on or something more? Coach Diaz sheds light and his opinion on the choice between Trail Running and Road Running. We will also offer some insights on shoe selection relative to task. What's your flavo…

Regardless if you are a runner, Obstacle course athlete, Hyrox or even Crossfit, The FLow Method of training will boost your tolerance to fatigue and build your capacity to deal with lactate production, who many see as performance killer. This conversation revolves around Richard Diaz's recent book, Training the Dark Side. Our goal is to shed some …

It is surprising how many athletes i know who are using CBD's for a variety of reasons. The more I investigated the more I came to realize that CBD's are nature's anti-inflammatory solution and that is only the tip of the iceberg! This episode is a very in depth interview with Jay O'Hare founder of Venga Endurance an extremely high quality manufact…

Spartan Races are now global and yet, they have been expanding theyre reach by including Trail Running events in tandum with many races around the country. This year marks the first year Spartan will host a Trail Running Championship with none other than Charlie Engle at the helm. This is an incredible opportunity for trail runners in that the priz…

It starts out seeming like "The Odd Couple" but ends up becoming a training program that has the potential to change the way CrossFit athletes approach their training. Richard Diaz is recognized in the Obstacle Racing community as world renowned Running mechanic and diagnostican. Ryan Fischer is arguably one of the best CrossFit athletes in the wor…

Before you freak out, no, I am not turning tail on OCR or endurance training programs. If you follow my work, you know that recently I developed a program in collaboration with Ryan Fischer an extremely talented CrossFit Athlete. This program has been out for a mere 5 weeks and meeting with rave responses. An OCR athlete would do well to consider t…

What happens when you mix one badass CrossFit athlete with Coach Diaz in The Secret Lab? Answer: You get a hybrid training program that is sure to set the CrossFit community on fire! I know what you’re thinking… Coach Diaz and CrossFit? Had you asked me a year ago if this were ever likely to happen, I would have serious doubts. It took an introduct…

This episode sheds light on a training tool and training concepts that can make a tremendous difference in your ability to perform in a Spartan Race, as a runner and an athlete in common. I speak a lot about the role that stability and mobility plays in athleticism because in the absence thereof, there is only injuries. Full disclosure I am not spo…

They moved the venue to Georgia, nobody expected the event to be harder than it has been… but it was. Much harder. It was cold, very, very cold however still 100 miles were logged among two fierce competitors yet Kris Mendoza prevailed. This is an interview with Kris just after he’s had a chance to recover and collect his thoughts regarding the rac…

Once again we invited folks to come on the show, pose questions on topics related to Obstacle Course Racing, Running or anything of that nature. Our guest is Jay Bode of the Overcome and Run Podcast. Someone you may have seen out on the race courses with his wife Heather. Jay is planning to run his first official Ultra marathon and had some questio…

Recently I posted an offer for someone to be my guest and to pose some interesting questions regarding training and Obstacle Course Racing. An old friend/client Beni Gifford reached out with what I felt was some solid questions and here is what he wanted to know: I hear a lot of differing views regarding the concept of taking an off season and what…

What seemed like completely out of nowhere, Rebecca Hammond came on to the Spartan OCR Elite field and made people take notice. Its almost unheard of for anyone to walk into the Spartan North American Championship course with only 2 prior events under her belt and cause a stir. Yet, cause a stir she did. Taking 2nd place among the most competitive …

There never seems to be an end to the questions that hard working OCR athletes have regarding their training and racing, with the help of one of our friends Jennifer Herring, Coach Richard Diaz tries to offer his opinion and advice on these topics: Heart rate seems to need a longer pre-race warm up, why?How do I transition to a zero drop shoe?Why d…

By now, everyone is aware that OCR is here to stay. Some thought it to be a fad, if that's true, I know of over 13,000 dedicated athletes in one single group who might argue the point. What I believe to be true is that the everyday athletes and fitness enthusiasts who have been drinking the Kool Aid and making it out to races around the world are w…

Coach Diaz, who also happens to be the host of this podcast has asked VeeJay Jones Elite Spartan Pro to return to share some insights on training. Learn a few valuable tips on cutting precious time from your racingGet a sneak peak into the infamous Tuesday Morning Training Sessions Learn how to get a ton of quality training done in less than an hou…

My good friend Matt Fitzgerald is back with a new book The 80/20 Triathlon. This training principal is a winning formula for most any endurance sport and I highly recommend that all of my listeners pay attention to this episode. It works for OCR too! Once you understand how important it is to partition your training with a high percentage of aerobi…

Not everyone has a chance to visit Coach Diaz at his “Infamous Secret Lab” those who do generally end up performing beyond expectation. I thought it might be fun to have one of my clients share his experience and allow you to not only hear his thoughts on the visit but see what went down with the associated video clip that accompanies this episode.…

It’s a pretty well known fact in most running circles that heel striking and over striding leads to injury. Many runners have made the shift to forefoot running and in doing so have migrated to zero drop shoes. Unfortunately for many, this transition has not come easy and has lead to a variety of new problems such as debilitating calf and achilles …

We decided to take more questions on training was we often do, our favorite this time relates to our children in sports. Are we doing the right things to encourage their enjoyment, desire to compete? Are we trying to live through our kids and causing more harm then good? Coach Diaz has had years of experience in this arena and shares his insights. …

The Bone Frog Challenge Race series aere obstacle course races designed and directed by Navy Seals. These obstacle course races are gaining widespread popularity on the eastern seaboard due to their quality and unique challenges many drawn from Navy Seal Training. Richard Diaz has invited Brian Carney, former Navy Seal and founder of the Bone Frog …

Back to back OCR events 100 miles apart and I hit them both to show support for a few of my athletes in Veejay Jones and Hunter McIntyre. I invited a few talented athletes in Mike Ferguson and Race course expert Steve Hammond on the show to share their views on the weekends competition. The Rock Stars this weekend were Rea Kobal, Ryan Woods and Hun…

Veejay Jones is the youngest athlete to win a Spartan Race overall and is currently a member of The Spartan Pro Team. He is also an athlete coached by Richard Diaz. In this episode, we discuss the prospects winning against the competition at the NBC Spartan Series season opener in San Jose California on March 24th, 2018. This season, Veejay has pos…

Have you been talked into making a change in your diet? Decided to go Vegan, Paleo or Keto? Did someone sell you on the promise of weight loss and greater performance as a benefit of making this radical change in your diet? Are you hoping to become “fat adapted”? Richard Diaz asked Matt Fitzgerald, author of The Endurance Diet, Diet Cults and Racin…

Ever wonder about the use or potential benefits of wearing compression wear in a Spartan Race or Tough Mudder? Does it help circulation while running, does it help with recovery? Whats your take on the subject? Zoe Szczepanek asks these questions of Coach Richard Diaz. Be warned these are opinions and they may not be shared or validated by any of t…

The most common questions presented to me (Coach Richard Diaz) is “what Running Shoes Should I Buy”? One would expect that my answer might be to name off a particular brand. In this episode, we try to address the How to and what to look for when looking to purchase your next pair of running shoes so that you the inquisitive OCR athlete or Runner ca…

Have you ever asked yourself… "Am I doing too much, training too hard too often?” In this episode, Richard Diaz interviews Lennard Zinn and Chris Case the authors of - The Haywire Heart a book that reveals… How too much exercise can kill you, and what you can do to protect your heart. We all take pride in our athletic accomplishments, participating…

Kirk DeWindt is the real deal. He may have done his stint on reality TV on various episodes of The Bachelor but when it comes to athletic prowess, Kirk is ready to bring it. He has had some success early in Spartan Race events but this is the year he intends to show the world what he’s capable of. Of course, I had to dig to satisfy my curiosity reg…

Meet Zoe Szczepanek, the new co-host to the Natural Running Network Podcast. Anyone who has attended a Spartan Race or Tough Mudder has most likely seen her. What you may not know is that she has an on going battle with a debilitating hip injury associated with her lust for competition. Zoe comes clean and shares her story, how she was injured, The…

One of most favorite things to do and most popular for our audience is to answer questions! At the end of the day, most obstacle course racing athletes who tune into our show do so to pck up training tips and pearls of wisdom. What could be better than to come ont our show and pose your questions live? If you're too shy, simply write your questions…

Faye Stenning is arguably the fiercest competitor on the Spartan Race circuit. Aside from her racing career, she runs a successful OCR coaching business. To her credit, her openness to step outside her experience to learn from her colleagues provided some powerful insight for her leading into the 2018 OCR Race Season. Faye recently attended Richard…

Its been weeks since our last podcast, forgive me. I had a big birthday and left the country to celebrate followed by a few weeks on the road putting on running clinics but... We're Back! In this episode (to be continued in the next episode) we discuss: What it feels like to hit the wall in a Marathon and how to avoid it.First steps in prepping for…

The Natural Running Network has consistently delivered cutting edge information for endurance athletes for a bit over 5 years with over 300 episodes doled out weekly. As a show of gratittude we decided to host a Black Friday "Best of Episodes" contest. The winners will recieve gifts ranging from free entry into diaz human performance's OCR Run Clin…

What do you get when you mix an American flag with a Canadian? You get an US “Ay” instead of a USA! Team US-Ay members Miguel Medina and Austin Azar join us to share thoughts on their 2nd place finish at Worlds Toughest Mudder and the conversation goes way of point. For example, whats the dating scene look like for the studdly Canadian? Will he mov…

It may seem like a heavy statement to say “The Fittest Runner I’ve Ever met” but in all the years of assessing the fitness of athletes (over two decades) this runner, Blue Benadum has consistently tested off the charts in a VO2max test, I’m talking over 85 mls/kg/min! To put this in perspective, a score that high would rank in the top 1% of the fit…

I’ve often spoke of the importance of dedicating time to MSD sessions in each training week. They will not only keep you sharp, fine tune your running skills but if you’re not already doing them, it may be the reason you can’t seem to break through your performance plateau’s. If you are currently dong what you’ve been told are speed workouts at the…

The beginning of this episode starts out with some high opinionated commentary about the state of OCR, bad decisions made by Tough Mudder, followed with curiosities regarding the direction taken by Spartan Race. Once thats done, Shan Kahn and I discuss the importance of getting the numbers right with training; how much volume to take on, the intens…

It may seem like a play on words but Allison Tai is one Tough Mudder in every sense of the phrase. Just recently coming off of the win at The Spartan Ultra Beast World Championships this year (2017), she is setting her sites on the win at The Toughest Mudder World Championship in a matter of weeks. Her story is one of fables, having been taken out …

Did you barely survive or thrive when crossing the finish line this weekend at Spartan Race World Championships Tahoe? Richard Diaz and Shan Khan dive into what was seen from those finishing the race, how ankle stability and foot strength is crucial to these distances, when and how you should start training for an endeavor like this, how grip inten…

The Obstacle Course Racing Season has a few big events over the next few weeks with Spartan World Championships this weekend, followed by OCR World Championships and Toughest Mudder but once these events wind down, what then? Are you planning an Off Season? What will that look like, will you take a few weeks, months off to recover and prepare? What…

Before Natural Running was Vogue, before Born to Run, there was Pose Running. Almost cult like, Dr. Nicholas Romanov had spent a lifetime studying the way we should be running. Much of what he created is difficult to refute. It was fun to have a chance to discuss his theories and compare them to my own. This interview was conducted over 2 years ago…

Aside from hosting this podcast, Richard Diaz is one of the most saught after running mechanics in the world of Obstacle Racing. Many of the elite professional athltetes from the sport count on him for advice and training support, too many to mention. Durning this episode, he and his co host Shan Khan plan to accept live callers and field questions…

He seems to come out of nowhere, when people start to wonder where he’s been, then like a wrecking ball, he destroys the competition. Tough Mudder recently released its CBS debut of the new format in OCR competition, Tough Mudder X coined as the toughest mile on earth and offered $25,000 in a winner take all event. Hunter made short work of the pre…

Stefanie Bishop is the real deal. Last year she literally ran away with the WORLDS TOUGHEST MUDDER CHAMPIONSHIP, this year as a tune up she participated in THE WORLD ADVENTURE RACING CHAMPIONSHIP. Never heard of it? Feature yourself and a team of companions with a map and compass braving 450+ miles through some of the most tortuous terrain and weat…

We often speak of “proper running” and when we invoke this term, its often met with controversy. Its time to put the quibbling to bed. Our guest, Dr Irene Davis is one the most respected authorities on the subject of running biomechanics. She does not pull her punches when it comes to running and what she refers to as “Running Evolution”. For many,…

Nothing is more disheartening to an Obstacle Racer than an ankle inversion sprain weeks before that next big “A” race. Join Richard Diaz and his guest Dr Steve Capobianco Medical Director for Rock Tape as they discuss an easy ”do it yourself” treatment that can save you from serious down time away from training and racing. We’ll also discuss joint …

I did this interview about a year ago but I wanted to bring it out of the archive because Doc Kaufman has some great advice for grip strength, dealing with blisters and basically everything you need to know about getting a good climb on! For those who are not paying attention; Doc Kaufman is part of "The Wolf Pack" a team of professional climbers w…

For years I’ve spent countless hours trying to unravel the truth behind what is considered to be proper running mechanics. Over the past 5 years I’ve been fortunate to have one the most innovative podiatrists in the world to use as a sound board. Dr Emily Splichal the founder of Evidence Based Fitness is back on with us again to share her knowledge…