Train Smarter: Periodization & Always Running with God

What are you feeding your mind during your runs? In this episode of the Running His Race Podcast, Christian Run coach Elizabeth sits down with Spencer Gurley, the founder of Run With Scripture, based in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Together they explore how faith and fitness come together when God’s Word becomes part of every run. Spencer shares how filming a friend’s marathon training sparked the idea for an app that reads Scripture to you while you run, walk, ride, or lift. Think Strava, but with God’s Word in your ear. He talks about building the app, how hearing Scripture during your workout can turn your thoughts back to God when your mind starts to wander, and why it works alongside your music, your podcasts, or silence. **Plus, Spencer shares a brand-new feature that Running His Race listeners get to hear about first!** This episode is a reminder that our runs can be a form of worship and a way to grow closer to Christ, one step at a time. In This Episode, You’ll Learn: The story behind the creation of Run With Scripture How Christian runners can bring Scripture into their workouts for spiritual growth App features that keep God at the center of your running, walking, cycling, and strength workouts A brand-new Run With Scripture feature, shared first on this podcast

How do you find joy when life doesn't go as planned? In this episode of the Running His Race Podcast, Christian run coach Elizabeth talks with Heather Carpenter about faith and running, health struggles, identity in Christ, and choosing gratitude in difficult seasons. After years of feeling unheard by doctors, Heather found running, and it became a lifeline. When her health eventually led her to leave her career and step away from running, she began intentionally looking for joy each day. That practice grew into the Joy Journal, a 52-week faith-based gratitude journal that helps readers recognize God's goodness and faithfulness. This conversation is a reminder for Christian runners that joy doesn't depend on our circumstances, and our identity isn't found in running, careers, or accomplishments. It's rooted in Christ. In This Episode, You'll Learn: How to find joy and gratitude in hard seasons How health challenges changed Heather's relationship with running How God brings new purpose out of pain The story behind the Joy Journal How to surrender your plans and trust God's direction

Is running drawing you closer to Jesus or slowly pulling your heart in another direction? In this episode of the Running His Race Podcast, Christian Run Coach Elizabeth invites you to take an honest look at the role running plays in your life and your faith. Running can be a gift, a place to pray, worship, process, find joy, and care for the body God has given you. But even good things can take up too much space in our hearts. Our training, goals, race times, mileage, or accomplishments can become more important to us than they were ever meant to be. Drawing from Hebrews 12:1–2, Elizabeth encourages Christian runners to fix their eyes on Jesus and examine what is shaping their hearts. Is running helping you grow in your relationship with Christ, or has it become something you're looking to for identity, worth, fulfillment, or validation? This episode isn't about giving up running or caring about your goals. It's about making sure Jesus remains at the center. In This Episode, You'll Learn: How to recognize whether running is drawing you closer to Jesus or pulling you away from Him.

What if something that is good in your life slowly becomes something that takes God’s place? In this episode of the Running His Race Podcast, Christian Run Coach Elizabeth gets real about a quote that challenged her own heart. During a Bible study, Elizabeth encountered a powerful quote, "When you worship anuthing other than God, Satan will accept that as worship to himself," by Jonathan Pokluda. That revelation caused her to look back at her own relationship with running when it was an idol in her life. Running wasn't bad. Wanting to improve wasn't bad. Wanting to qualify for Boston wasn't bad. Having goals wasn't bad. But a good thing had started competing for the throne of her heart. Elizabeth shares what she learned about recognizing idols, how our passions and goals can quietly become objects of worship, and why our identity can never be found in a race time, pace, achievement, or performance. This conversation isn't just for runners. It's for anyone who loves Jesus and wants to examine what may be competing for God's place in their heart. In This Episode You'll Learn: What an idol is and how something good can become an idol How running, racing, performance, and achievement can compete for our worship Signs that something may be taking God's place in your life Who Is This Episode For? Christian runners navigating performance, goals, and faith Runners who struggle with tying their identity to pace, mileage, or race results Anyone who wants to identify and confront idols in their life Anyone who loves Jesus

In this episode of the Running His Race Podcast, Christian run coach Elizabeth sits down with Brandy, a wife, mother of four, and runner, for a raw and honest conversation about what it really means to suffer well as a Christian. Brandy shares her powerful testimony of a decade-long health journey filled with uncertainty, hospitalizations, and eventually a life-changing diagnosis. She shares her story about how she became a runner after her diagnosis and how a half marathon has now led to training for her first marathon, even with chronic illness. If you've ever wondered how to trust God through suffering, find hope in chronic illness (or cancer), or use running as a form of worship and prayer, this episode will speak straight to your heart. In This Episode You'll Learn: How to navigate suffering with faith and purpose The importance of trusting God with the process rather than the outcome What it means to suffer well