In this episode, we dig into an inspiring athlete’s evolution, exploring the high-stakes world of elite road marathoning and the tough transition to trail and ultra running. Olympic marathon bronze medalist Molly Seidel and her coach, Cliff Pittman, join us to walk us through her running journey —overcoming chronic injuries, recalibrating her goals after an Olympic medal, and battling the mental and physical challenges that come with shifting from polished pavement to rugged singletrack.
You’ll hear firsthand how Molly faced setbacks, from broken bones to burnout, and how her passion led her to the trails. Cliff shares how he’s helping Molly adapt her world-class engine for the unique demands of ultras, blending thorough communication, athlete autonomy, and strategic training techniques. From dialing in race nutrition to conquering technical descents, this episode delivers real lessons — plus a behind-the-scenes look at one of the newest and most intriguing athlete-coach duos in endurance sports.
Whether you’re a long-time road runner, aspiring ultramarathoner, or endurance coach, you’ll find wisdom, humility, and plenty of practical takeaways on embracing change, trusting the process, and honoring the journey.
- 00:00 Intro with Molly Seidel & Cliff Pittman
- 09:29 Unexpected Marathon Success
- 13:25 Previous Struggles and Breakdown
- 16:32 Trail Running vs. Road Running
- 23:17 Value of Skilled Coaching
- 29:52 Strategic Planning for B Race
- 33:06 Building Fatigue Resistance for Durability
- 40:09 Training to Master Technical Trails
- 43:02 Strategic Start for Technical Race
- 52:12 Balanced Approach to Training Data
- 57:15 Trail Dreams, Road Reflections
- 01:00:21 Black Canyon 100K Training and Course Preview
Standout Quotes
Cliff’s Approach to the Art and Science of Coaching: “We can be the most knowledgeable coaches in the room with all the science and evidence-based training principles, and none of that matters if we can’t apply it to each individual in a way that’s efficacious for their unique circumstances.”
“It was my brother and sister the night before the race, and I told them, like, I’m I’m gonna try to get a medal tomorrow. Like, I believe that I can do it.”
Molly’s Mindset the night before The Tokyo 2020 Marathon
Cliff’s Plan for Ultra-Running Success: “But what we have done is we’ve manipulated the density of her training. And so we’ve had these, like, two-to-three-day microblocks where she’s accumulating stress on top of stress on top of stress and really building that fatigue resistance because, you know, one thing Molly does not need to improve is her lactate threshold at this point. She doesn’t need to improve her VO two max. Like, she’s going to start this race with that as a huge advantage for her relative to her competition.”
Molly Reflecting on Elite Marathon Training: “I was chronically under-fueling. I was chronically overtraining, and the intensity that is required to remain at the top of marathoning is so difficult.
My body just completely shut down. Like, I broke my kneecap, which is not a usual thing to break, just in training, just from running. It wasn’t a knee impact injury. And I had severe hormonal disruption that when I was basically, when I broke the kneecap, and I kept continuing to try and train for the (2024) trials, the week before the trials, I was like, this just isn’t gonna happen and made the decision to pull out.”
“The challenge is you get a world class athlete who’s been at the pinnacle of her sport, and then the task is to improve upon that. And so that’s always a a challenging proposition.”
Cliff Reflecting on Becoming Molly’s Coach
Molly on Balancing Subjective and Objective Training: “So much of my experience with training is kind of that, like, subjective experience and, like, my lived experience of training. Like, that’s it’s, like, how I’m feeling, my rate of perceived exertion, and how I’m able to, like, physically run it. Whereas, like, Cliff is then able to, like, look at the objective data coming out of it and then build from there too.”
Molly Seidel Online
Instagram
NY Marathon Training Data
