Never Run Alone

It is Never Run Alone.

We’re off the back of the 2026 Sydney Marathon and coming to you with a slightly lesser team than usual. Sissi Bergman is out post her enormous effort pacing on Sunday. Kris is out being a Dad / logistics.

Hosting is Rien lower on energy than usual, but thankfully with the wonderful Grace Liebelt joining Cam to unpack the marathon that was and discussing how to best fuel in preparation and recovery for a race of any kind, really.

We also answer some cracking warm up questions from the au...

It is Never Run Alone.

It is Sydney Marathon Race Week!

The vibes are high already and how could they not be with an in person podcast, a marathon to run on Sunday and 40,000 runners converging on one of the worlds greatest cities.

There’s plenty happening and we do our best to cover some of it whilst sharing our journey. Thanks for coming along with us and if you see us out there over the coming days, give us a shout!

All that and more with Cam Merrick, Kris Farrenkothen, Si...

It is Never Run Alone.

Some say it’s the eve of the Sydney Marathon - most know it’s over a week away. Good thing we’re a podcast and can edit things out… Whether we do or not is an entirely different proposition.

This week, the full squad goes back to back and are joined by the Rice & Repeat king, Hugo Fry who is in town for next weeks Sydney Marathon.

We chat his running journey and the balance of creating content with running as a sub-elite, plus pitch him a few CPG...

It is Never Run Alone.

A full house this week for the pod as we recap an epic City2Surf and discuss the Sydney Marathon now just over 2 weeks out. Crazy how it always sneaks up - or is that just us?

As ever we answer some listener submitted warm-up questions and a great trio this week will have you thinking too.

We’re also interested in hearing from YOU - the listeners - on your supporter stories as Sydney Marathon looms. We want to get as many people down along the course th...

It is Never Run Alone.

The full squad are almost back this week, and we’re joined serendipitously with someone we’re all a big fan of, the creatively omnipresent Josh Lynott.

Josh joins the fun as we chat our weeks in running, City2Surf this coming weekend in Sydney, Sydney Marathon being just 3 weeks out and a little on the recent Aussie dominance at the Comm Games.

On top of that, some great questions from listeners and of course, buy/sell to round it out and one very much worth listening all the...

It is Never Run Alone.

This week on the pod Rien returns for the final Cam 1 on 1 as the boys chat Australian dominance at the Comm Games. The Harbour 10k brought about an Instagram story post from an elite runner prompting Rien to question his running performance and Cam delivers some real talk / therapy that long time listeners of the pod will know is part and parcel of Never Run Alone.

All that and more with Rien MacDonald and Cam Merrick. Enjoy!

Thanks for listening and watching. If you haven’t already, please su...

It is Never Run Alone.

Another combo this week, with a Swedish nature to it as Sissi joins came from her mother land and Cam dons his Swedish hoodie as the pair discuss your weekly dose of running news. They also unpack a slew (that sounds Swedish, right?) of listener questions as well as the big performances from the recent London Diamond League.

All that and more with Sissi Bergman and Cam Merrick . Enjoy!

Thanks for listening and watching. If you haven’t already, please subscribe wherever you’re consuming the content, and leav...

It is Never Run Alone.

A deadly duo this week of Cam and Kris as the boys discuss a number of topics across the field of marathon, track and even a bit of trail can you believe?

They discuss the comparison culture in running, a deep dive on the Diamond League and how some of the elites are faring there, as well as a potential Kipchoge kick come Melbourne…

Enjoy listening to the boys Cam Merrick & Kris Farrenkothen!

Thanks for listening and watching. If you haven’t already, please subscribe wherever you’re...

It is Never Run Alone.

An enormous weekend on the Gold Coast as several records drop including Izzi Batt ripping the half and the Australian male marathon record being eclipsed by 2 seconds! We discuss that, as well as the iconic Prefontaine Classic in Oregon where Cam Myers became the first Aussie to win the 1,500m plus plenty more of the favourites.

We’re also joined for the full episode by special guest, Cougar Lutze. Cougar left a career in architecture in Australia to move to Africa to build Yara Academy, a youth academy for running an...

It is Never Run Alone.

Cam Merrick leads the pod from the finish line of the 2026 Gold Coast Marathon as he’s joined by Sissi Bergman and a dozen other runners in reflecting on the day. Thanks to all who listened, shouted and supported over the weekend, and congratulations to all runners on massive PBs and some huge records dropping on both Saturday and Sunday.

Thanks for listening and watching. If you haven’t already, please subscribe wherever you’re consuming the content, and leave a 5 star review - it all helps!

Questions? DM us...

It is Never Run Alone.

We are just hours out from the 2026 Gold Coast Marathon with both Cam and Sissi aiming to rip the half on Saturday along with a huge contingent of you listeners also running the half. The Sunday, the full marathon and a select group of savages do the double, aiming to complete the 63.3km challenge.

All that and more with Rien MacDonald and Sissi Bergman plus host Cam Merrick.

Watch the 2025 Gold Coast Half Marathon here.

Thanks for listening and watching. If you haven’t already, please su...

It is Never Run Alone.

The full squad returns this week as Rien’s 4 week hiatus at the World Cup ends. We answer some cracking warm-up questions at the top before discussing a big 2nd half of 2026. Gold Coast Marathon weekend in just over a week. Sydney Marathon 9 weeks away. London doubling down, Parramatta half debut and Tokyo announcing 40,000 runners in it’s 20th year.

All that and plenty of our own personal running, general banter and a few tasty edits due to some technical glitches.

All that and more with special guest Kris...

It is Never Run Alone.

This week Cam and Sissi are joined by British Heptathlete turned Marathon runner (via Zone 2) and now aspiring Ironman triathlete, Holly Mills. The three chat multi-sport preferences, personal reflections as well as unpacking Holly’s athletic career which has seen her represent her country at multiple age brackets, as well as at the 2022 Commonwealth Games.

As ever, we discuss what we’re running towards in The Long Run and a buy sell to round out the pod.

All that and more with special guest Holly Mills, Sissi Bergman and...

It is Never Run Alone.

Don’t be fooled by the line up this week, these 3 know the score. Kris hosts the content queens on all things iron deficiency, fuelling and navigating marathon injures. They discuss upcoming races (a few big trips on the cards) and as ever your favourites top and bottom.

All that and more with Ash Wiseman and Sissi Bergman. Hosted by Kris Farrenkothen.

Thanks for listening and watching. If you haven’t already, please subscribe wherever you’re consuming the content, and leave a 5 star review - it all helps...

It is Never Run Alone.

This week we’re joined by four time Olympian, Commonwealth Games Medallist, mother, wife and all round legend Lisa Weightman. We chat through her biggest running learnings and failures, the journey of longevity in running - she ran her first marathon at 29 and completed Boston back in April aged 47 - becoming the first person ever to run all 7 Majors plus compete at the Olympics, Commonwealth Games and the World Championships. As usual we unpack our own running in the past week and a fun buy/sell as ever.

All that an...

It is Never Run Alone.

This week we’re sharing our running hot takes and horror stories as well as reading yours. Everything from barefoot running, the Enhanced Games and the influence of social media on running culture.

All that and more with Kris Farrenkothen and Sissi Bergman. Hosted by Cam Merrick

Thanks for listening and watching. If you haven’t already, please subscribe wherever you’re consuming the content, and leave a 5 star review - it all helps!

Questions? DM us on Instagram, and follow us whilst you’re there.

Com...

It is Never Run Alone and this week we’re chatting marathons outside of the seven majors. Our favourites, what you should look for and plenty more. We surveyed via our Instagram during the week and there’s a load of you running across Gold Coast half and full, Sydney and Melbourne half and full. An exciting 4-5 months in Australian running. But is anyone running Brisbane marathon? Tune in to find out…

We also discuss a big fortnight in Australian running, answer your questions at the off and ask Kris if he has remembered a buy or sel...

This week on the pod we unpack a brilliant article titled The Ethiopian Running Secret.

In a world where running is becoming increasingly competitive with data and tracking enabling greater and greater performance through things like the Norwegian Method and companies like WHOOP, it is perhaps the Ethiopians and East Africans who have nailed it all along.

We share our thoughts about intuitive running, over optimising and the ultimate question of group running and why you should never run alone!

All that and the usual warm up questions, buy/sell and general shenanigans...

This week on the pod the gang discuss the art of spectating as the weekends activities of supporting the latest half marathon in Sydney bring out some fun stories.

We unpack a few audience questions during our warm-up as ever to kick things off, along with the pressure to bounce back quickly post race. And finally we finish of Australian athletics, Back Yard Ultra’s with some impressive performances in Melbourne this past week and the enormous Cocodona 250.

A guest list this week including Cam Merrick, Kris Farrenkothen and Sissi Bergman. Hosted by Rien MacDonald.

Well then, what a week of running.

Incase you’ve somehow missed it; two incredible men ran under 2 hours in the London Marathon whilst the female record was also broken on an incredible day in this years 3rd Major marathon.

All of that plus a few final words on our Boston Build thanks to Oakley Meta, eyes on what’s next and a discussion around super shoes and fuelling.

Line up this week of Matilda Donkin and Sissi Bergman with host Cam Merrick.

Thanks for listening and watching. If you haven’t alre...

It’s finally here - our post race reaction from Boston.

Coming to you a little later than usual given the logistics of all of us running and then travelling a day later, but nonetheless a great summation of an incredible day here in Boston, and really, an incredible few months of work.

Thanks for all the love and support since the start of this block and we hope you enjoy this audio only episode.

A guest list this week including Ash Wiseman, Cam Merrick, Kris Farrenkothen, Matilda Donkin, Sissi Bergman. Hosted Rien Ma...

WE’RE IN BOSTON!

It’s the 130th Boston Marathon and our first as race week is here and it’s a stacked line up on the couch here on Boylston street just 1km (0.6 miles) from the finish line as we unpack the journey to get here.

Excuse the interesting audio at the beginning but we hope you enjoy the ep and thank you to all for the brilliant questions via our IG.

All that and more with Ash Wiseman, Cam Merrick, Kris Farrenkothen, Matilda Donkin, Sissi Bergman and host Rien MacDonald.

Than...

A 5 star line up this week as Ash returns a mere 12 days (at the time of recording) out from the 130th Boston Marathon. It’s taper time and the team chat their highs and lows of the block along with how they’re dealing with the taper.

Our next episode will be from Boston so if you have any questions before then, please hit us up via any of the links below!

Enjoy the episode!

All that and more with Ash Wiseman, Cam Merrick, Kris Farrenkothen, Sissi Bergman and host Rien MacDonald.

Th...

On the pod this week we welcome two-time Olympian and five-time Commonwealth Games runner, mother of 3 and charity co-founder, Eloise Wellings!

In the conversation with Elzy we unpack her incredible journey to representing Australia in the 2006 Commonwealth Games after years of heartbreak through injury that would’ve turned most away from the sport. We learn about her perseverance, her mindset when it comes to racing in front of huge crowds, as well as the incredible Love Mercy Foundation that she co-founded over 15 years ago.

We also briefly discuss the Ballarat Marathon, along with this past we...

This week on the pod, we break down the marathon mindset, answering a slew of questions in an old fashioned mailbag style. Thank you all so much for the incredible questions! We got through most but the others we didn’t, we’ll do our best to answer over the coming weeks as Boston Marathon looms.

Less than 4 weeks now and the gang share their weeks of training, as well as giving their time predictions for themselves, and as always, warm-up questions (similarly brilliantly submitted in abundance) buy/sell and another edition of Sissi’s Speed Round!

A...

This week on the pod, we’re joined by Australian elite runner, Pat Tiernan. Pat is a 3 time Australian Olympian amongst a host of other impressive feats in the running world, and we were stoked to spend some time with him on the podcast unpacking a bit of his running career, plus previewing Boston Marathon where he’s due to run once again this coming April for the 130th edition of one of the world’s most famous marathons.

All that and more with Cam Merrick, Kris Farrenkothen and host Rien MacDonald.

Thanks for listening and wa...

This week on the pod, we’re joined by Mary McCarthy who has graced the shores of Australia for the past few months, and our screens sharing her running journey for the last few years.

But as it turns out, she’s been running for a tad longer than a few years. We unpack that as well as her recent stress fracture, how her running journey began and the content which has seen her race into the public eye copping some negative attention with her recent injury.

All that and more with Cam Merrick, Sissi Berg...

A full cast this week on the podcast as we discuss our favourite running content and creators in the space, an area we’ve all dabbled in more so in the past few months.

We also unpack the incredible Harry Styles x Haruki Murakami interview on Runners World Magazine and the implications it has for running, music, the podcast. All of it.

All that and more with Cam Merrick, Kris Farrenkothen, Sissi Bergman and host Rien MacDonald.

Thanks for listening and watching. If you haven’t already, please subscribe wherever you’re consuming the co...

Join us as we delve into the Tokyo Marathon, our Boston Blocks and another week of Sissi's Speed Round.In this episode, the crew discuss their marathon training progress, the challenges of weather conditions, mental discipline, and the importance of consistency. Thanks for listening and watching. If you haven’t already, please subscribe wherever you’re consuming the content, and leave a 5 star review - it all helps!Questions? DM [us on Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/neverrunalone/), and follow us whilst you’re there.Come one, come all, come running.Please subscribe, rate and review wherever you are listen...

PLEASE NOTE: In this episode of Never Run Alone, it includes discussion about body image, eating habits, calorie counting, and other topics that might be triggering for some listeners. Please take care while listening, and if you need support, we’ve included some helpful resources in the show notes.

After an increase in injuries across the running community both online and in person, we’re joined this week by Nutritionist and Dietician and repeat guest on the pod, Grace Liebelt. Grace joined us back in October 2025, as she was just coming back from an injury herself. In this...

Mac is back this week hosting a trio of legends to unpack a host of listener questions as well as how speed work for the crew has developed over the years. We also discuss training with Boston Marathon less than 10 weeks out, our Winter Olympic sport and ultimate running tunes along with the buy/sell of the week.

All that and more with Cam Merrick, Kris Farrenkothen, Sissi Bergman and host Rien MacDonald.

Suss The Long Run Playlist here.

Thanks for listening and watching. If you haven’t already, please subscribe wherever you’re c...

The crew dive into all things Boston Marathon prep, Australian Athletics and a deep-dive on the rise of instagram doctors diagnosing every man and their dog.

Things are heating up ahead of Boston as we get run coach Matty Abel on to discuss all things running preparation, fuelling and how to approach training for a race. Matty is generous with his time and in answering your questions - we hope you enjoy and find them useful in future!

All that and more with special guest and run coach Matty Abel along with Cam Merrick, Kris Farrenkothen, Sissi Bergman and host Rien MacDonald.

Visit Matty’s website here.

Thanks for listening and watching. If you haven’t already, please subscribe wher...

The boys are back with a big Boston breakdown this week, along with sharing personal running goals for this calendar year. In it, they share some key mistakes and learnings they’ve made at the start of training blocks as well as buy/sell and some interesting would you rather’s to kick things off.

All that and more with Cam Merrick, Kris Farrenkothen and host Rien MacDonald.

Thanks for listening and watching. If you haven’t already, please subscribe wherever you’re consuming the content, and leave a 5 star review - it all helps!

Que...

Just the boys on this weeks ep as we unpack a a fast week of running with 3 major talking points. The World Cross Country Championships in Florida, the Valencia 10k and Houston’s Marathon. As always, a few warm up questions to get us going and a buy/sell that’ll get you talking.

All that and more with Cam Merrick, Kris Farrenkothen and host Rien MacDonald.

Thanks for listening and watching. If you haven’t already, please subscribe wherever you’re consuming the content, and leave a 5 star review - it all helps!

Questi...

Our first outing for 2026 as we discuss plenty already happening in the world of running with the Hakone Ekiden last week showcasing the best of university running in Japan and a truly elite level across the nation, we discuss how it’s come to be at a high level. The team also preview the World Cross Country Championships and Sissi also debuts her Speed Round with a flurry of running ‘Would You Rathers’.

All that and more with Ash Wiseman, Cam Merrick, Sissi Bergman and host Rien MacDonald.

Thanks for listening and watching. If you haven’...

We round out 2025 with a full house to preview and predict plenty that is awaiting us in the new year. We discuss building the ultimate runner from other sports, what Aussie records could fall and running trends closer to home.

Thanks for listening along with us this year and we hope you all have a safe and fun start to 2026.

All that and more with Ash Wiseman, Cam Merrick, Kris Farrenkothen, Sissi Bergman and host Rien MacDonald.

Thanks for listening and watching. If you haven’t already, please subscribe wherever you’re consuming the...

A special edition of the pod this week, as we hosted inaugural Never Run Alone Christmas Quiz, or as Sissi Bergman delightfully dubbed, "Quizmas". Joined by a few dedicated listeners with plenty of others missing through having dinner plans or sleeping (odd) we ran through a series of questions that you may or may not know based on listening/watching the pod this year.

We hope you enjoy and if so, we’ll bring it back again next year.

All that and more with Quiz master Cam Merrick, Kris Farrenkothen, Sissi Bergman and host Rien Ma...

This week on the podcast the boys reminisce over a big 2025 and recap the best moments in running. We also answer a few Christmas related questions, along with one from YouTube on what to do in a 18-20 week block leading in to a marathon. Amongst all of that, Zatopek over the weekend threw up an incredible performance from Seth O’Donnell, with many across multiple posts online dubbing him the Aussie Prefontaine. All that and more on this weeks ep of Never Run Alone.

All that and more with Cam Merrick, Kris Farrenkothen and host Rien Ma...

5 on the pod this week in an expansive show with 3 guests in Sydney, 1 in Dubbo and another on the Sunny Coast coming together to discuss the Valencia Marathon with Jess Stenson taking the Aus Record as well as a debut pop quiz from the Sweet Prince. We also preview our builds with the girls starting their Boston block in short order, as well as the warm-up questions and buy/sell as always.

All that and more with Ash Wiseman, Cam Merrick, Kris Farrenkothen, Sissi Bergman and host Rien MacDonald.

Thanks for listening and watching. If...