Zoë Rom

In a world where we constantly strive to make things easier, automated, and painless, Zoë Rom ponders her love of ultrarunning, a sport of maximum inconvenience.

Signing up for your first ultramarathon is a big step. Here are the finer points that no one tells you about in advance.

It's tempting to look at your calendar early in 2026 and, in the gaping expanse of the future, only see the things you have yet to do. But here's what I've been thinking about: What if January isn't a reset? What if it's just... a continuation?

Here are six hot takes from TRE 2025, the running industry’s biggest trade show event, and the future of running

Holiday gift guides are inescapable, insufferable, and mostly useless. So instead of hawking stuff you don't need, here are eight immaterial gifts every runner should put on their wish list this season.

Building a race season is like pacing an ultra: if you go out too hard, you’ll blow up before the finish. Start conservatively. Trust the process. Give your body the recovery it needs to adapt.

After crossing the finish line of my big 100-mile race this summer, I expected pure joy. Instead, I found myself in that quiet, disorienting space that comes after a big goal—the moment when purpose fades and rest feels strange.

Discover why fear never truly goes away in running (or life) and how learning to “do it scared” can help you grow. From ultramarathons to everyday challenges, this issue of Aid Station explores the power of running with fear in the passenger seat.

So if you’re stuck, plateauing, or overwhelmed, pause and ask: What was your mile one? Your mile ten? What did it take to get there? And what would it feel like to carry that same raw belief, or disbelief, into the next big thing?

I came into the lab a skeptic, and walked out a very sweaty convert. You don’t need to be fast to benefit from this kind of testing. In fact, the slower or more unsure you feel, the more helpful it can be.