"You Are Stronger Than You Think" — How An Olympian Runner Went Up Against One of the World's Biggest Brands | Kara Goucher

Michael Gervais (0:00)

It is people like you that are changing, the way that the next generation is understanding what they are capable of.

Kara Goucher (0:06)

I'm not that special. Sure, I was a fast runner. That's great. I hate conflict, I hate fighting, but the one thing I have is what I experienced in the truth. You have that too. I didn't plan to fight Nike or fight Alberto.

I just wanted on the record what happened to make sure that it didn't happen to anyone else. You are stronger than you think. You can withstand more than you think. You can bear more than you think.

Don't let fear hold you back from being the most true self that you can be.

Michael Gervais (0:42)

Okay, welcome back or welcome to the Finding Mastery podcast. I'm your host, Dr. Michael Gervais, by trade and training a high-performance psychologist.

Power, courage and integrity. People throw those words around a lot when talking about athletes. Many times, it's justified. Today on the podcast is an athlete that embodies those three words fully. Her name is Kara Goucher. You might recognize her as an Olympic runner, the third-place finisher in the Boston and New York marathons, and ranked as one of the fastest female distance runners in American history. There's some power in there.

And there's something else to recognize her for. It's where courage and integrity really come through. 2019 and 2023, Kara was instrumental in exposing doping and sexual abuse at the Nike Organ Project. Full stop, that's courage. She spoke truth to power. Kara put it in writing in her newest book, The Longest Race. Today, we celebrate her career in endurance running, and we dive into the pain and controversy she experienced, the aftermath, and why she is an emblem for power, courage, and integrity.

I've been looking forward to talking to Kara for a very long time, and I'm really excited to share her brilliance with you. So with that, let's dive right into this illuminating conversation with Kara Goucher.

Kara, I am so excited. I've been waiting for four years to have this conversation. I originally pinged you in 2020, and I'm so excited to sit down with you. And so thank you for spending time with us today. So let me just start where we ought to start. How are you doing?

Kara Goucher (2:29)

I'm doing good, and I'm glad that we're doing this. I feel bad that it took four years, but I'm glad that we're actually going to have this conversation.

Michael Gervais (2:36)

Now, I know it seems ridiculous, but we're going to capture the opportunity.

And so thank you again. So when you say I'm good, what does that mean to you?

Kara Goucher (2:48)

Life's good. My family's healthy.

I'm relatively healthy myself, you know, running wise, which is always like a struggle, a little bit of a struggle for me these days. It's a sunny day out here. I got to run outside today in the sunshine. So yeah, I'm doing good.

Michael Gervais (3:04)

Does that mean little knickknack injuries that you're managing or is it? Because you have had one, let's just start. You're an elite world class.

You know, over multiple decades, one of the best in the world runners. And so does that mean that you're nursing old injuries, that you've got new ones that you're working through, or the small little knickknack stuff that is kind of the aggravating part of Ultra and just running in general?

Kara Goucher (3:34)

I mean, right now it's kind of knickknack because I just went on vacation with my husband and son and didn't work out and then came back and just jumped right back into it. But I do have some things that kind of are just I have to constantly manage. I need a knee replacement. I found out in 2016, so I've been sort of managing that for about eight years.

And then also a couple of years ago, I was diagnosed with repetitive movement dystonia in my left leg. And so I have good days and bad days with that. But lately I've been like maintaining things and things are in a good spot. So I know that I know there'll be more bumps ahead, but right now things are good. And yeah, I'm able to run a bit, which I'm happy about.

Michael Gervais (4:13)

I want to start at the top before we get into like the way that you've managed your career, both from a physical and a psychological perspective. But flat out, you are a dragon fighter. And you're an inspiration to so many of us. And you've changed sport for the better. And it's going to continue to get better because of your voice. And you use the most powerful weapon, the most powerful weapon of all, which is I think the hardest to yield, which is honesty. And so we're going to dig in to the story behind your newest book, The Longest Race, which I read when it came out and I couldn't put it down.