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    THE RUNNING EFFECT PODCAST

    THE RUNNING EFFECT PODCAST

    About

    The Running Effect tells the best stories in running—and turns them into insight, inspiration, and tools to help competitive runners become greater. Every week, host Dominic Schlueter sits down with the fastest, smartest, and most inspiring people in the sport—from Olympic medalists to breakthrough athletes—to unpack the stories, lessons, and mindset behind elite performance. Whether you’re chasing a personal best or looking to understand how greatness is built, The Running Effect will make you a deeper fan of the sport—and a better runner.

    Hosted By

    Dominic Schlueter

    No Watch, No Mileage Log, No Fear: How Marcelo Mantecon Trains and Thinks as America's No. 1 High School Runner

    No Watch, No Mileage Log, No Fear: How Marcelo Mantecon Trains and Thinks as America's No. 1 High School Runner

    September 29, 2026
    41m

    Marcelo Mantecon has spent his whole career as the young guy. Not anymore.


    The Belen Jesuit senior joins Dominic for the next episode of our Fleet Feet series leading into the Brooks Cross Country National Championships, and he arrives carrying something he didn't have last December: a target. He talks about welcoming the pressure that comes with being the top returner, about what he absorbed watching Jackson Spencer stay calm on start lines while his own nerves churned, and about learning to convert that nervousness into excitement instead of dread.


    The training picture is stranger and simpler than you'd expect from the nation's most-watched high schooler. He doesn't wear a watch most days. He can't tell you his exact mileage, and he runs Miami's brutal humidity. He credits sleep above everything else for keeping himself intact, and he credits Frankie Ruiz, the coach he has known since birth, for a program built on consistency rather than heroics. 


    Marcelo also revisits Balboa Park in detail: the gap that opened at the bottom of the hill, getting caught, and praying for one more surge with 300 meters left. His plan for the rematch is almost defiant: Have fun. Stay aggressive. Race like he still has nothing to lose.


    Along the way, the two discuss Flagstaff team trips and flooded shoes in the Everglades, his sister's rise, UNC and a future in finance, why the class of 2027 might be one of the deepest ever, and a post-race celebration involving roughly a hundred donuts.


    Tap into the Marcelo Mantecon Special. 


    If you enjoy the podcast, please consider following us on Spotify and Apple Podcasts and giving us a five-star review! I would also appreciate it if you share it with your friend who you think will benefit from it.


    S H O W  N O T E S   


    -The Run Down By The Running Effect (our new newsletter!): https://tinyurl.com/mr36s9rs


    -Our Website: https://therunningeffect.run


    -THE PODCAST ON YOUTUBE: 

    https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClLcLIDAqmJBTHeyWJx_wFQ


    -My Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/therunningeffect/?hl=en⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠


    -Take our podcast survey: https://tinyurl.com/3ua62ffz


    Behind the scenes of The Running Effect: https://youtube.com/@dominicschlueter?si=PM9FjPc92eFUFEZ


    LuminaryThreads: luminarythreads.shop


    $20 off your next Attuned scan: https://attuned.health/discount/TRE20?ref=TRE20


    Instagram: @marcelo.mantecon

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