Why Running Slower And Doing Less Will Make You Faster: Mario Fraioli On 22 Years Of Coaching Lessons, The B+ Workout Rule, And The Insecure Overachiever Trap
THE RUNNING EFFECT PODCAST
Dominic Schlueter
4.9 • 821 Ratings
🗓️ 27 May 2026
⏱️ 73 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Mario Fraioli has coached hundreds of athletes and written over half a million words about running—and his most important lesson is to do less.
He is the founder of The Morning Shakeout, a weekly newsletter read by tens of thousands of runners since 2015, a longtime running coach, and a Masters competitor still toeing the line himself with a 4:09 mile to his name.
Two days after the 2026 Boston Marathon, Mario sat down with Dominic to break down what he witnessed, what the sport is getting wrong, and what keeps him coming back every single year.
In this conversation, Mario makes the case for his "Go One Less" philosophy and why the athletes most motivated to push are the ones most likely to break—a lesson he learned the hard way through stress fractures and disordered eating.
He shares what it was like training alongside some of the best runners in the country and being stunned by how slow their easy days were. And he talks about what curiosity (not ambition) has driven everything he's built, from his first newsletter issue sent to 200 people to the coaching business he never planned to have.
Take the pursuit seriously. Don't take yourself too seriously. And just get started.
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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
Instagram: @mariofraioli
The Morning Shakeout Newsletter: https://themorningshakeout.substack.com/
Website: https://mariofraioli.com/
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | To perform at your best, you need to be adequately fueled before and after training. |
| 0:04.1 | One of my favorite ways to stay fueled and ready to go is with this company, Clean Energy, who is |
| 0:08.4 | sponsoring today's podcast episode. |
| 0:10.5 | Clean Energy is a clean label certified organic smoothie in a single serve packet that changes |
| 0:14.9 | the paradigm for on-the-go sports nutrition. |
| 0:17.4 | It's the perfect product for the busy athlete, whether you're heading to a track |
| 0:21.1 | mean on a bus or on a flight, or you just have a busy day and you need a quick snack that is |
| 0:25.9 | nutritious and fueling before track practice or before a big test. Clean energy is my go-to, |
| 0:31.3 | before podcasts, before runs, after runs between meetings because it's healthy, it's nutritious, |
| 0:36.8 | and it fuels me. And let's be real. |
| 0:38.5 | Many energy bars, drinks, and gels contain added sugars and lab-created ingredients, and clean |
| 0:42.9 | energy contains only organic fruits and vegetables, making it a no-brainer for me to continue |
| 0:47.5 | working with them and promoting the product. Clean energy is healthy energy for the long run of |
| 0:52.7 | life, and you guys can find Clean Energy's incredible product at clean smoothie.com and on Amazon by searching for Clean Energy smoothie. |
| 1:00.7 | And if you do end up buying the product and buying it on Amazon, take five seconds to give them a five-star review and help support a small business like Clean Energy. |
| 1:08.1 | Okay, without further ado, enjoy today's episode of the podcast. |
| 1:12.7 | Ladies and gentlemen, today I have the privilege of speaking with the ever so legendary writer, |
| 1:17.7 | coach, athlete himself, podcaster Mario Frioli, a man who I grew up listening to in my two |
| 1:24.1 | earbuds back in the day. And now I have the privilege of sitting down with him and going through the biggest |
| 1:29.2 | lessons and learnings in the marketing running world, what he would do if he was |
| 1:32.9 | head of marketing at a top running shoe company of his journey as an athlete and a coach. |
| 1:38.4 | Specifically, we dive into burnout over training and why he has the go one less mentality. |
... |
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