Running as a Form of Socialization

Chacho Valadez 0:08
Hello, hello, everyone. Welcome to Running in Public. This is the weekly podcast that empowers you to build your running routine while also making strides in your career. I’m your host, Chacho Valadez, and this is my first ever podcast. I’m so so happy about it. In each episode, I sit down with a startup founder, operator, or leader to talk about their experience of running while they also build and run their companies. You’ll walk away feeling empowered to run your next mile while also making strides in your career. And honestly, we support any form of movement on the podcast that suits your lifestyle. So whether you like to run, walk, bike, or swim or whatever it might be, we’re all in this together.

Running in Public is sponsored by Arlan Hamilton’s new recruiting and retention startup Runner, a really cool name, if I say so myself, and totally coincidental on both our parts. Are you an entrepreneur who wishes there was more time in the day? Have you ever said, “I wish I could clone myself?” Then Runner is for you. If you find yourself spending more time scheduling, researching, and fielding emails than talking to your customers, strategizing, and resting, Runner could be a game-changer for you. Get matched with fractional and temp to hire operations talent who want to work at your inclusive startup. Fast-growing, larger companies are using Runner to hire dozens of operations talent at a time. Runner is a head of recruiting’s best friend. Interested in learning more or becoming a runner yourself? Apply at hirerunner.co. That’s hire runner.co.

Hello, welcome back to Running in Public. I’m super excited to have Halle Kaplan-Allen here today. She works on growth at Sydecar, which helps you start and run your funder SPV so you can focus on making deals, not spreadsheets.

I’m really excited about this because Halle was one of the few people that I noticed started to post a lot on Twitter about her runs and it kind of helped me to realize, oh, there’s a lot of people who are in the industry who are also runners. There are a few people that I think about that helped me think of the origins of this podcast and Halle’s one of them, so really appreciate you joining the podcast, Halle.

Halle Kaplan-Allen 2:33
Thank you very much. I’m excited to be here.

Chacho Valadez 2:37
It’d be great to hear a little bit more about yourself and a little bit about your life story. Yeah, so we can start there.

Halle Kaplan-Allen 2:44
For sure. So from Washington, DC, originally born and raised inside the city, and went to school, went to college at Tulane, which is how I ended up down in New Orleans, and just fell in love with the city and never wanted to leave. So I’ve stayed here and now been here for over 10 years. And now we’re just chatting about how kind of living outside of a major tech hub can be really refreshing in a lot of ways. And actually, there are some parallels there with running because New Orleans is not a city that you really think about when you think about running. There’s a lot of things going on here. But health and wellness are not really one of them. But in a lot of ways that makes me love living here and love running here so much more. Because it’s kind of unique, not a lot of people are doing it so when someone sees you running down the street here, they give you a weird look or ask you a question. I think that’s actually really fun. That’s kind of an overview of me.

Chacho Valadez 3:51
Cool. What’s one of your favorite things about living in New Orleans?

Halle Kaplan-Allen 3:55
I love—this kind of sounds funny—but I love how easy it is to live here. That’s not something New Orleans is really known for in a lot of ways it isn’t easy to live here. The infrastructure is really bad. Our roads are terrible. My sister’s visiting me right now. Every time we drive anywhere, she’s like, this is a nightmare. There are potholes everywhere. And it’s just a mess. And obviously, we know the weather, the hurricanes can make things challenging, but it’s a really small city. It’s a city with a really strong kind of community-oriented vibe. And everyone’s looking out for each other and people are really fun and spontaneous. On the weekend, I never really like making big plans. I kind of like stumbling into fun things all the time. There’s obviously tons of music and festivals or a friend texts me and says want to wake up at 6 am and go run 20 miles and I’m like, sure, and then we stop along the way and drink beers at like 10 o’clock in the morning because that’s the thing that people do here. So I really like that easygoing, spontaneity that the city has.

Chacho Valadez 5:07
That’s cool. When did you get started running? Or how did you get started?

Halle Kaplan-Allen 5:13
I started running when I was about one year old in a Baby Jogger with my dad. There are really good photos of that. But if we don’t count back, running, right, yeah, I mean, it’s definitely a large part of the reason why, why I started running was because my dad has always been a runner and has run a ton of marathons. And it’s just been something, you know, that I’ve done alongside him. Since I was super young. And seeing him do, I started running myself a very small amount I think in middle school. Then, in high school, I played soccer and I was really, really bad (like, so bad), but I was good at running. And so I played, I played left mid, because I was left-footed and left-footed. And I could run up and down the field a lot. I would get the ball at the top of the field and then not know what to do with it. Especially as a fragile high school girl, that was very demoralizing, but I was like, oh, I’m good at the running part of this. So maybe I can do that more and less of kicking the soccer ball apart. And so I remember that’s when I really started going for jogs after school by myself, and really actually enjoying it so much more than I did enjoy playing soccer. And then continued through college and my first half marathon freshman year of college, and it’s just been a part of my life ever since.

Chacho Valadez 6:52
I love that. Have you run a marathon or half marathon? Or I guess any race with your dad before?

Halle Kaplan-Allen 6:58
That’s a great question. I’ve run some races with him. We did a half marathon together. We didn’t actually run it together. We were supposed to run. So he’s run the Marine Corps Marathon, which is in DC, where I’m from, he had run it nine times. And he wanted to do it for the 10th time he’s gonna you know, he’s getting older, he’s probably not gonna run time where marathons. But the 10th time he was going to run it, the race actually fell on his 60th birthday. And so he was like, I’m going to do this one, it’s going to be my turn my last marathon. So me and my two siblings both said, okay, cool, we’ll do it with you. And none of us had ever run a marathon before. So the four of us all planned to run together, and then I got injured. Try it and do it. I siblings around it with him, which is very special for them. So I might have to convince them to have one more marathon so we can do one together.

Chacho Valadez 7:57
You can try to make up something sort of special and be like, hey, the 62nd birthday is really working on your cohort. Yeah, but that’s cool though that you even tried to attempt to do something together as a family like that.

Halle Kaplan-Allen 8:13
I feel it feels rare that many people in a single-family are crazy enough to want to run 26 miles. Even my mom doesn’t run as much but she’s dabbled in it and so we are totally the family that goes and does a turkey trot on Thanksgiving morning, every year. It’s definitely a fun thing that we can all do together.

Chacho Valadez 8:38
That’s cool. Why do you run?

Halle Kaplan-Allen 8:41
I feel like my reason for changing or my reason for, running has changed so much over time. Definitely when I started, as I said, it was because it felt good as opposed to playing soccer being awful, running actually felt really good and I think now it’s for me a lot more about honestly, running to see my friends. It’s really a social thing for me now. And that never used to be the case. I had this realization, especially as an interpreter I had this realization right after college and you know, things are really weird and confusing and you don’t know who your friends are, or how to make new friends. I had this realization after going to run with a running group. One time I was like, oh, running is the best way to make friends because obviously, you have this thing in common, but also you have dopamine and adrenaline so you’re all in a great mood and you’re doing this shared activity and, unless you’re sprinting, you can jog and have a conversation alongside it and see the city and connect over that. Running has really become a motivational thing and I feel like now a huge part of my life. Have a sim for continuing to do it so I can have an excuse to see my friends. And even like, so I can stay in shape enough to keep up with my friends who are all like crazy runners.

Chacho Valadez 10:13
That’s cool. You were mentioning before we started that you were running with Justin Gordon, who is a former guest on the podcast, which is cool.

Halle Kaplan-Allen 10:23
Now that social element is something that I take with me everywhere. So I went and spent the summer in LA. And you know, I know a couple of people. My sister was there. I stayed with a friend. But I didn’t really have a like crew there. And so I think I just like posted on Twitter being like, I’m in LA and like for the summer who wants to run? And yeah, that turned into me and Justin running like once a week for the whole summer, which was a really cool experience.

Chacho Valadez 10:51
Yeah, that’s fun. I remember seeing some of your posts together on Twitter. What does your running routine look like today?

Halle Kaplan-Allen 10:59
Today, like literally today, I’m definitely in a slump but I won’t call it that because it’s almost purposely one of the things that I’ve learned in my many years of running is it goes in phases. There are times when I like to want to run every single day. And I genuinely want to, and I lean into that. And then like, you know, especially after coming off of like training for a big race or something, there’s, you know, there’ll be times when I just won’t run at all for like weeks. And I think I’ve learned to like, kind of embrace that. Because, like, Sure, it can feel kind of shitty to like, get out of shape. If you were in really good shape. Don’t run for a couple of weeks, I’ve always said like running is the like, most disloyal sport, where if you don’t run for like two weeks, it’s hard to get back into it. But running is like something I’m going to do for the rest of my life. And so if I’m not in my best shape for like, a couple of weeks, or months, or even yours, like, as long as I, I’m still excited to do it when I do it. I feel like that’s so much more important. So yeah, I ran my first official marathon in October. I’ve been taking it pretty chill since then, and only really running when I really want to.

Chacho Valadez 12:27
I feel that. I was training to try to run an ultra marathon last year and was gonna try to run it in November. And I was going to try to do 31 miles from my 31st birthday. And I ended up getting injured and had to stop training. And then when I like some sporadic runs here or there, and then now it’s the winter in Michigan. So it’s kind of unsafe to run outside because you can slip and fall. And so I’m like chomping at the bit to get out to run, just have to be patient in terms of being able to get out there. And so I’ve been focusing more on like strength training and like yoga, and even just like mindset stuff more to help me for like the rest of the year and to help prevent injury as like, you know, gear up to run. I’m trying to run 1,000 miles this year. And yeah, last year around like 740, or something like that. So it’s quite a big jump from that if I’m honest. Yeah, I think about it. But yeah, I know, like Rubin Harris is doing that, like Strava group. And so I’m like, Well, this, this will be fun. So yeah, but all that to say like, it does ebb and flows when it comes to running and training and all that stuff.

Halle Kaplan-Allen 13:43
Yeah. And like, I feel like getting injured is kind of like really important. Because it makes you appreciate being able to run so much more like, you know, it’s easy to take it for granted. And you know, you have those days when you feel like, if you are training for something, you really don’t want to go on your run, you have to like really drag yourself out the door. But then if you go through an injury period where you can’t run for like, months or weeks, it just makes you appreciate any opportunity to run. I don’t know, I just I feel like there have been times when I’ve been like, oh, like, I only ran three miles like that’s super like, that’s nothing. That’s super lame. And then if you think about it, it’s just like, I should just be grateful that I could run, my body lets me run after how much abuse I put it through.

Chacho Valadez 14:31
Yeah, that’s so true. I tell my wife like I want to go out for a run but I want to run at least four miles because I want that to be my base for all my runs and she’s like, “Who cares? Go out and run one or two miles. That’s all you really need to do. At least you’re out there.” I think that’s really helpful framing but it’s hard to say a little bit to a runner who wants to run as long as they can.

Halle Kaplan-Allen 15:01
Yeah, no, totally. It’s definitely like anything is better than nothing.

Chacho Valadez 15:06
Yeah. What’s one lesson you’ve learned from your dad who’s run like 10 marathons, you said, maybe more, and that you really have internalized over the years?

Halle Kaplan-Allen 15:19
Honestly, I think a lot of what I just said is stuff that I learned from him, like, he has never really been. He’s never been about running for like speed, or like, you know, any, like, specific super kind of athletic goal like, and he’s been able to run until, you know, he’s succeeded for and he actually just, unfortunately, got the answer from a doctor that he probably needs knee replacements. But honestly like, to get the almost Yeah, like 50 years, it’s like solid distance running. And this I mean, we’re talking about a guy for like, most of his adult life has run a pretty good distance. To get that many years of like, good distance running, like only get that if you really think about being in it for the long haul. He’ll go out and run at a super, super easy pace when he feels like it. And like I said, like, he’s gotten to his mid-60s and only just now having his first real potential injury. I definitely hope that I can follow that path.

Chacho Valadez 16:34
Yes, same here, that’d be incredible. And that’s such a feat for sure. What do people tend to miss about running that you find important, so like something that people gloss over, but it stands out to you as important?

Halle Kaplan-Allen 16:47
I think like going back to that social component, kind of like I think, like understandably so, in part because this is like what media tells us like running is a form of exercise, it’s like working out. And I think a lot of people like, especially if you’re just starting out running feel like, they kind of want to do it by themselves as like a kind of solitary activity because maybe they’re embarrassed to keep up with people or they just kind of even like think about it more like as a punishment or something they have to do. And, you know, I was definitely more in that camp early on. When I started running, I would always run by myself always had bins in. And like, sometimes I still do that for sure. But I’ve just found so much benefit in running with a community. And I think, especially for people who are starting off finding a community of people to run with, even like a virtual community can be so helpful. And also like to just have people to share tips and tricks with like, you know, it’s so easy when you’re starting out too, like, you have the wrong type of shoes, and so your knees hurt, and then you’re like, oh, running out for me, I’m never gonna do it again. But if you have a community of people that also are into running, it’s kind of easier to avoid this thing.

Chacho Valadez 18:04
Yeah, totally, and that’s something I’m thinking about even long term for this podcast, and it with like, trying to develop a community of people who work in the tech industry, but also love to run. So TBD on that, that loves that. Thanks. What’s your favorite thing about running?

Halle Kaplan-Allen 18:21
Honestly, right now at least, it’s that it gets me off my phone. Yeah, it’s like, kind of sad to think that I have to be like, my phone. But it really is true. Like, if I were to just like, go to the gym and go on like a bike or something like that, I’d probably still be looking at my phone. But with running like, especially in New Orleans, where our streets are so bad, like, you really have to be paying attention. And, I mean, there’s a lot of interesting stuff to see here going on a run like, you know, going to run through the French Quarter at seven o’clock in the morning, and they’ll still be people out from the night before, which is like, great entertainment group watching. So, you know, as I said, it’s kind of sad that I have to be forced off my phone these days. But I definitely like that running does that.

Chacho Valadez 19:12
I think you’re definitely not alone when it comes to having to be forced off your phone. I struggle with the same thing. And before we get into the next question, we’ll take a quick break to hear from our sponsor hirerunner.co.

Hey, thanks for listening to this episode. Don’t forget to check out our sponsor, hirerunner.co for all your fractional and temp-to-hire operations talent needs. Now let’s get back into the show.

Welcome back, everyone. So switching gears a little bit into like the work side of things. How does running affect your work?

Halle Kaplan-Allen 19:48
It’s such an interesting question. I don’t think I’ve ever thought about this before. But I mean, if anything, it definitely makes me more effective. Kind of even just like jumping off of the last point about how running gets off my phone, like, it’s definitely one of the few times in my day or my week when I’m like, really kind of like, able to do deeper thinking. And my brain goes like, in crazy places and comes up with like, I feel like I’m like, constantly, like telling myself jokes that only I would think are funny, or, you know, whatever. But I definitely think that like, having that space from the rest of the world from, you know, online and texts, and all that, like, gives me space to think about problems and get creative. And so I think, you know, especially the times when I’m able to like, take a little bit of time in the middle of the day and go for a run, like, I’ll come back with so many ideas, or even sometimes I’ll like, all the time, I’ll like be running and then like, have an idea. And I’ll have to like, Stop, like pause my watch, like have to write it down. Because I’m like, I don’t want to forget that like, that was like a really good like, you know, marketing tactic or whatever the case may be. So I think I hope it makes me better at my work.

Chacho Valadez 21:06
Yeah, I’ve certainly done that before where it’s like, I think it’s something like, Oh, let me take the Notes app out quick. And write that down. Otherwise, I’m gonna forget it. But it’s a really, yeah. And yeah, I think I, I usually run in the mornings before I work start workday starts, but there are times where it’s like, the middle of the day. And, you know, if I don’t have as many calls, I might be like, well, I might be able to squeeze in a run here and think about a particular problem. But I haven’t done it yet. Because I feel like well, I don’t want to leave out in the middle of the day, especially with like, Slack, and all this stuff, email and all that. Yeah, I’m gonna try it for sure sometime this year/

Halle Kaplan-Allen 21:47
I definitely need to be better about it, too. I feel like also it can just be really easy to get sucked into the workday and all the like stuff that you have to do and get frustrated if something isn’t going your way. And yeah, because we’re so like, connected with Slack and email, and whatever else. It’s easy to feel like, oh, I’m gonna miss something, but definitely worthwhile.

Chacho Valadez 22:12
Yeah, it goes back to your point about disconnecting for a bit. And like how that’s actually really healthy? Would you consider running as part of your job description or like your role? It’s a really interesting question.

Halle Kaplan-Allen 22:26
Yeah, I think it’s a super interesting question because it certainly makes me better at who I am, what I do, and it’s a big part of who I am. And, you know, I think some of my most interesting ideas come when I run and that, that I think should totally be part of my job description.

Chacho Valadez 22:45
Love that. What’s the most difficult part about balancing a running routine in your role, especially when considering thing when you were like training for the marathon? Because you have to be out there for a while you do go on long runs during the week?

Halle Kaplan-Allen 22:58
We were just talking about how great it can be to run in the middle of the day. Realistically, most of the time, if I don’t get a run in the morning, it’s not going to happen unless I have plans to meet up with someone after work to run or like my running group runs together every Tuesday evening. And so I usually make it to that. But I find that if I don’t have something scheduled, then like, it becomes really easy to kind of just, you know, I mean, I work I’m in central time at work with a lot of people, we’re on the Pacific coast. And so it’s really easy to just kind of like, work until six or seven and then be like, well, now I want to eat dinner. And so I yeah, I definitely like try to get my runs in the morning, especially if I’m training for something. And I mean, on the weekends when I’m doing long runs like after you know, 1520 mile or like, toast for the rest of the day. Like I am ready, I am laying down and so definitely like I try not to work on the weekends in general, but definitely not getting worked on those days. Just because it’s it’s exhausting.

Chacho Valadez 24:12
Yeah, definitely. It could definitely put you out for the rest of the day when it comes to hurt. So what do people misunderstand the most about running in your opinion?

Halle Kaplan-Allen 24:23
I think there’s this like conception of like, people who are runners or are not runners, like you hear all the time, like, oh, I’m not a runner. And I mean, for one, like, if you don’t like running, you don’t need to do it. Like, I’m definitely not the kind of person who’s like, try to try to like evangelize running. Like I have so many friends who are like, not for me, it hurts my body like cool, awesome, happy for you. But if you want to run if you’ve run half a mile a quarter-mile like you’re a runner, like truly anyone who wants to be as a runner, and I think like that idea of a runner having to like look a certain way, or spend money on shoes and gear and sign up for all these races and get medals, like, none of that matters, I actually think, like, a lot of that is stuff that I learned through COVID, obviously, like, been a runner for many years before that, but there was a lot, there was a lot less to do during COVID. And so I spent a lot more time running. There were no races and for several weeks, even months I wasn’t running with anyone else. And it was really just like, a way to get outside and do something different than sitting in my house. But I think a lot of other people realize that too, like a ton of people started running for the first time during the pandemic and have continued to and so I just always, like, you know, like to remind people like, once again, you don’t have to do it if you don’t want to. But if you want it like you’re a runner.

Chacho Valadez 25:56
I love that. That’s so true, and I know there are even people who have interviewed who started off walking and then after walking for a year or so they’re like, I want to try this running thing out. But like, they themselves even felt like well, I’m not really a runner, and I’ll have that runner’s body or whatever it might be. But like it’s just about like getting started even like little by little. And it’s interesting because my first sort of “race” was actually a virtual race. But it wasn’t even a race. It was like, running 34 miles before like August 17. There was like for someone’s birthday, who was raising money for cancer. And so it was like not even necessarily like a, like, half marathon or a biker tanky or whatever it might be. But even that, in and of itself was a lot of fun to like be part of something.

Halle Kaplan-Allen 26:53
Yeah, totally. Once again, I think COVID really showed that to people, that it’s not really about like, metals or finish lines. Like, I mean, I will say I mentioned I ran the Chicago Marathon in October. And obviously, that was after years of not having races and having people hacked on the sidelines, sharing the hallway was just like, the most unbelievable experience. But I mean, you can get that same energy from just like going on a run with your friends or planning some like Virtual Tape Challenge. Like, it leaves you with such a sense of accomplishment. It’s like, so much bigger than actually just like, the movement of running.

Chacho Valadez 27:37
Yeah, well, first of all, I’m really jealous. You’ve run the Chicago Marathon because that’s definitely on my bucket list.

Halle Kaplan-Allen 27:42
You got to do it. You just don’t see anything like that. The crowds are incredible.

Chacho Valadez 27:50
I grew up near Chicago and so it’s like the first city I fell in love with, and still one of my favorite cities. And so I’ll definitely do it. And I have a lot of family there. So I’m sure it’ll be a good turnout. And Chris Lustrino, who I interviewed on the podcast, he actually ran the same marathon. You did? He ran the Chicago Marathon last year, which is cool.

Halle Kaplan-Allen 28:09
Yeah, it’s a good one. I hope to do it again. I hope to do in New York too.

Chacho Valadez 28:15
Yeah, same. Something silly that I’ve done in the past like is like you’re mentioning like it’s can still be fun and whatnot is like if I’m on I’ve been on like 1820 22 mile runs and like towards the end. I’m like listening to EDM music and like, I will just start like pumping my hands in the air like Yeah, even though I look super dorky or weird, but it like helps you keep going and it just get kind of gets me in my own zone and like not have to worry about like the cars passing by. And some people do honk, which is fine.

Halle Kaplan-Allen 28:47
I feel like people would think I was a psycho if they heard the music I listened to when I wrote like, I listen to hardcore EDM, like rad dance music. It gets me so pumped. Like it makes my serotonin through the roof. And it’s especially when you have that runner’s high along with like a really good beat. There’s just nothing like it.

Chacho Valadez 29:12
Oh, that’s a lot of fun. Cool. So we’ll get into the quickfire round now. And so we’ll have questions should be able to answer them in 60 seconds or less. But feel free to take your time if you’d like. And yeah, we’ll get right into it. So first question here is, if you had to recommend one book to your younger self, what would it be?

Halle Kaplan-Allen 29:32
10% Happier by Dan Harris. It’s a book about meditation and mindfulness, but it’s specifically geared towards the skeptic, which I am very much a skeptic. I read it in college and it truly changed my life. I think mindfulness is something that can really benefit everyone.

Chacho Valadez 29:54
I totally agree, and there’s actually a 10% happier app, too, that helps with practicing mindfulness.

Halle Kaplan-Allen 30:00
He has a podcast. Yeah, I’m obsessed with Dan Harris. He’s awesome.

Chacho Valadez 30:04
That’s awesome. Very cool. What was your dream job as a kid?

Halle Kaplan-Allen 30:08
I wanted to be a paleontologist.

Chacho Valadez 30:11
Oh, really? That’s awesome. You want to be like Ross from Friends? Was there anything particularly like interesting about like dinosaurs and stuff to us like it? Were you the kid who had all the dinosaur toys and stuff?

Halle Kaplan-Allen 30:26
This is gonna take us past 60 seconds, but my mom worked at the site grew up in DC, my mom worked in the Smithsonian museums when I was growing up. And wow, they have a preschool for employees, children. So my, like classrooms from the ages of like, one to five were literally the like Smithsonian museums in DC, which are incredible. And so I like spent all of my time like, in the Natural History Museum, like learning about dinosaurs and seeing the like, huge dinosaurs like skeleton thing that they have there. And so I think that’s where it came from. Definitely a very quirky kid.

Chacho Valadez 31:07
That’s really cool. And you’re probably gonna make a few people jealous with that.

Halle Kaplan-Allen 31:12
I obviously didn’t appreciate it all the time. I like hated museums for my whole childhood, but yeah, looking back on it, that was a very cool childhood experience.

Chacho Valadez 31:22
Do you have a favorite dinosaur?

Halle Kaplan-Allen 31:26
I don’t know. I don’t even think I remember any of them outside of Triceratops.

Chacho Valadez 31:33
That sounds great. What was your first job?

Halle Kaplan-Allen 31:38
Definitely babysitting, but real first job was being a waitress. I think everyone should after work in the service industry in their lives. It teaches you so much.

Chacho Valadez 31:48
Yeah. I haven’t worked in the service industry, but I’ve worked in retail and it’s brutal.

Halle Kaplan-Allen 31:55
Same thing, service or retail. You learn so much about the world and it definitely puts you in your place if you’re overly confident.

Chacho Valadez 32:04
Right. So fill in the blank here: running is blank.

Halle Kaplan-Allen 32:09
Life-changing would be mine. Like it sounds very bold, but it really has been for me, mostly through, you know, that kind of transition of it being a solo thing to being like a way to connect with people. I’ve met the best people in my life through running.

Chacho Valadez 32:29
Absolutely love that, and I completely agree. If you had to listen to one song and repeat for an hour-long run, what would it be?

Halle Kaplan-Allen 32:38
Okay, I have such a crazy answer to this, but “Misery Business” by Paramour. I got really into last year, the year before I got really into running cadence. So like, basically like how many steps you take per minute, there’s like a lot of connection between, like cadence it, like, focusing on cadence helps to improve your form, which helps prevent injuries. But they have all of these, like, Spotify playlists, if you just search like certain BPM cadence on Spotify, it’ll give you these playlists that will kind of like match your like, steps to the beat. And outside of this being good for like your form and injury prevention. I feel like it puts you in this state of like, kind of slow with running where it feels like, you know, you’re super coordinated, kind of like in a spinning class where you’re like riding to the beat of the music. And I think it makes runs go by so much faster, too. And it really, really, really does help with preventing injuries.

Chacho Valadez 33:40
That’s really cool. I hadn’t heard that so I’ll definitely check out one of those playlists because that’s really cool and fascinating.

Halle Kaplan-Allen 33:47
Yeah, and so “Misery Business” I say specifically because it’s like, the, for me at least everyone has like kind of a different perfect cadence, but it’s the perfect cadence for me. And so I really will run to it for like, multiple times in a row.

Chacho Valadez 34:01
Amazing. What’s your go-to running app?

Halle Kaplan-Allen 34:05
Strava.

Chacho Valadez 34:06
Strava, yeah. When’s the last time you were proud of yourself? It could be professional or personal.

Halle Kaplan-Allen 34:13
This isn’t the last time I was proud of myself because it was a long time ago, but I’m gonna relate it back to running, which was talking again about running in the pandemic. I was supposed to do this relay race at the like, march 2020. Where we ran from LA to Las Vegas in a team through like the craziest course in the world, whatever. It was supposed to be the first week of like when COVID hit got canceled. We were all really excited for it had trained for it. And you know, everyone is basically in full lockdown. Like, no one was even seeing each other outside. And so we all decided to run like the equivalent number of miles in New Orleans by ourselves on like, at the same time, so I ended up running 35 Miles Over like, it was like just under two days, like just under 48 hours, totally by myself, like, no one likes waiting for me to finish no, like, you know, no finish line no metal like, no one even really making sure that I’d done the miles but I did it anyway. And I think especially going into like COVID, which was so hard for, for so many people like having that just be an accomplishment that I could say I did for myself was really important.

Chacho Valadez 35:29
Yeah, that’s incredible, and a lot of self-motivation there for sure. Last one here is, what’s your favorite thing about yourself and why?

Halle Kaplan-Allen 35:37
Actually kind of relevant to that story I just told. I am very much internally motivated. And so whether it’s running or stuff for work, or, you know, hobby, like, I will do it because I want to, on the flip side, it can be hard because like, if I don’t want to do it, there’s no getting me to do it. I talked about with running like, I do it when I want to. And I only do it you know when I’m in the mood. And I think that ends up giving me kind of more longevity with it because I don’t feel like I’m just trying to check a box or do it to impress someone else. And like I said, I kind of like to bring that same mentality into things like work and it keeps me from procrastinating, which is super beneficial. So yeah, I think that’s it.

Chacho Valadez 36:25
Awesome. Well, I really appreciate this conversation. It was a lot of fun. I definitely learned a lot and we’ll be using some of your tips and tricks for my own running. So I appreciate it.

Halle Kaplan-Allen 36:35
Yeah, thank you so much out there. This is awesome.

Chacho Valadez 36:38
Thanks so much for listening to this episode. I really hope you enjoyed it. If you have a chance, please leave us a review and let us know what you liked about the show, and if you want to follow along with future episodes, go to your favorite podcast platform and hit the subscribe button, or you can also go to runninginpublic.co where we’ll be updating the website regularly. I’ll catch you on the flippety-flip.