For years, I’ve had a front-row seat to the incredible power of storytelling in the running world. Whether it was through my own show, For The Long Run, or the countless hours spent listening to fellow athletes and hosts share their journeys, one thing has remained crystal clear: this sport is built on community, authenticity, and great storytelling.
That’s why I created the Long Run Labs Podcast Collective: a curated ecosystem of running podcasts, athletes, and voices, designed to help brands grow within the community we all love while supporting those telling stories of athletes from the front to the back of the pack.
🏃♂️ Why a Podcast Collective?
Running isn't just a sport. It’s a lifestyle. And as runners, we don’t just buy gear; we buy into stories, values, and connection.
Brands that understand this are looking for more than just ad placements; they want partnerships that scale, communities that care, and voices that convert. I’ve seen my fair share of boring sponsorship deals that are not authentic (but pay well) or brands taking advantage of creators who don’t quite know how to structure a deal appropriately.
The Long Run Labs Collective is our answer to that. With 500K monthly downloads (6M annually) and 650K+ combined social reach across 20 podcasts, we offer brands a single point of contact to access a diverse portfolio of shows that speak directly to runners. Podcasts are special due to the trust the host is able to build through long form and sometimes quite personal content, especially in this attention economy.
What’s in it for the brand? Ease and efficiency when it comes to growth.
What’s in it for the podcast? More and better brand partnership deals.
I’ve been doing this for a while now and have quite a lot of experience on both the creator side and the brand side, and I’ve seen my fair share of pitches and pricing. I know what’s reasonable, I know how to ask the questions to understand what brands are looking for, and I’m confident in my ability to determine what a successful partnership looks like (again, it starts with asking questions).
So why not see if I can build on the successes I’ve had with For The Long Run Podcast, and see if I can do this for others?
🎧 Who’s in the Collective?
We’ve brought together some of the most trusted and beloved voices in the running space, spanning roads, trails, nutrition, motherhood, and more:
For The Long Run: My podcast! Exploring the "why" behind what keeps runners running long, strong, and motivated, sharing conversations about how running shapes lives and creates community.
Everyday Ultra Podcast: This podcast will help you achieve your goals when it comes to racing, training, and recovery. The show is hosted by Ultra-Endurance athlete, Joe Corcione
Human Performance Outliers Podcast: Elite athlete Zach Bitter who holds American/World Records in the 100 mile and 12 hour events covers topics around health, fitness, endurance, running, hybrid athlete training, ultramarathon, and nutrition. Join in for interviews with folks exploring their outer limits and research in a wide variety of sports, fitness, and nutrition.
The Running Explained Podcast: Hosted by multi-certified run coach Elisabeth Scott, this podcast offers science-backed running advice and practical strategies for runners of all levels.
Road to the Trials 2028: A podcast aiming to speak with every OTQ athlete in the
marathon ahead of 2028, hosted by Lindsey Hein, Matt Chittim, Peter Bromka. 400 episodes, >2M total impressions, 70K/month.
I'll Have Another: Join 16x marathoner and RRCA Coach Lindsey Hein for refreshing conversations with Olympians, everyday runners, and various personalities, discussing both their running journeys and everyday life.
Boulder Boys Show: This podcast features casual conversations with professional trail runners from Boulder, CO, who enjoy running up and down things and talking about their experiences, showcasing the joy and community of the sport.
The Midpacker Podcast: Freetrail presents The Midpacker Podcast, which follows middle and back of the pack trail runners and ultra runners at the heart of the trail running community. Join host Troy Meadows weekly as he talks through what it takes to balance life and running with everyday runners doing extra ordinary things on and off the trails.
Tread Lightly: The Tread Lightly Podcast provides data-driven, evidence-based running advice in a practical, accessible, and inclusive manner, covering topics like running faster, marathon training, fueling science, and injury prevention.
Relay: This running podcast is dedicated to conversation, commentary, and fun, featuring a diverse team of contributors ranging from pros to amateurs, track enthusiasts to ultra-athletes, shoe experts, and coaches.
The Trail Network: This podcast brings to life the untold stories and magical moments of trail runners, both on and off the trail, capturing the spirit of trail running and the power of friendship and connection. Hosted by pro/elite trail runners.
Rambling Runner Podcast: This podcast focuses on dedicated and motivated amateur runners who are working hard to improve and achieve inspirational results.
The Steep Stuff Podcast: Your source for all things sub-ultra mountain running. Hosted by pro runner James Lauriello.
Distance to Empty: This podcast takes listeners deep into the world of ultra-endurance running, particularly focusing on races exceeding 200 miles, through in-depth interviews with athletes, race organizers, and sports scientists.
The Mother Runners: Created by moms who run for moms who run, this podcast aims to ensure mother runners never feel alone in their running journeys or mom life struggles, encouraging them to chase big goals.
Finish Lines & Milestones: This podcast celebrates the everyday runner, sharing the stories of various runners, from seasoned marathoners to those just starting out.
D3 Glory Days: Hosted by former pro marathoner Noah Droddy and Stu Newstat, this podcast takes deep dives into important names, events, and institutions that have shaped Division III running history and represented the division within the broader sport.
Pro Tri News: the only podcast covering up-to-the-minute professional triathlon news, along with pre-race predictions and race recaps.
B2B/Business Oriented
Long Run Labs: A weekly series from the team behind the "For The Long Run Podcast," Long Run Labs explores the intersection of endurance and entrepreneurship, spotlighting runners who are driving change in the outdoor and endurance space by building brands, tools, and movements.
Second Nature Podcast: The business of outdoor hosted by Aaron Lutze & Dylan Bowman
Thoughts On Selling: Lee Levitt (my dad!) explores strategic issues in sales productivity, sales operations, sales enablement, sales strategy.
...and more to come.
Collectively, we’re talking about 500,000 downloads every month; with loyal, engaged listeners who trust these hosts deeply.
📣 Social Reach (across all hosts & shows): 620K+
👩🦰👨🦱 Overall gender mix: 60% female / 40% male
📊 Age distribution: Core audience is 25–44 years old. Most shows report 55–75% of listeners in this range.
🎯 Especially strong in the 30–40 year old sweet spot: Career-focused, active, health-conscious consumers.
📣 What We Offer to Brands
We're not just plugging ads. We're building campaigns that convert based on an authentic and real relationship with the product/brand. And making things as easy as possible for marketers who are looking to scale without tons of back and forth with dozens of partners, while also being able to understand impact beyond just sales dollars (though we certainly do care about ROAS)!
Here's how we help partners grow:
🎧 Host-Read Ads: Authentic endorsements that feel like personal recommendations
🎙 Multi-Show Bundles: One message, multiple trusted voices
📱 Social & Email Integration: Extend your reach with additional channels
🏃 Event & Athlete Activations: From local races to pro team shoutouts, we create real-world impact
💡 Beyond the Mic
Long Run Labs Collective is more than a group of podcasts — it’s an ecosystem.
🏅 Meridia: A pro women’s team, led by Olympians and rooted in Boulder, brings an elite but approachable edge to storytelling.
🎪 Partner Events: We’re plugged into some of the most popular, innovative, or iconic races in the U.S., including Boulderthon, Portland/Mesa/Las Vegas/Phoenix Marathons, Wild Woman Trail Marathon.
📸 Creator/Athlete Collective: From 2:09 marathoners, and world/American record holders to 200-mile ultrarunners, our athletes and creators bring stories to life in ways that resonate far beyond the run.
🚀 Let’s Build Something Together
This all started with a few test partnerships and a hypothesis that it would help both podcasts and brands, and it’s grown into something I’m really proud of:
🔹 A curated podcast collective
🔹 A targeted audience of engaged, niche listeners
🔹 And over $86,000 in deals closed (with more in the works)
I built this network to be ready for when big brands want to invest in running, and in the meantime, we've been putting together deals for between 2-7 podcasts at a time depending on their specific goals/audience target/budget.
I love helping brands find the right fit and scaling what works.
If you’re a brand looking to scale in the running space, or simply just communicate with those that make up the audiences of these podcasts (most skew millennial, with an even gender mix, though some skew younger or older, or further towards male/female), we’re here to help.
Our network isn’t just big; it’s intentional, trusted, and built for impact. I’ve worked with many of these hosts while sitting on the brand side, and have seen them have an impact.
Let’s connect and explore how we can grow together. And let’s build the sport together, by continuing to enable and empower those telling the stories.
One episode, one runner, one story at a time.
Jonathan Levitt
Founder, Long Run Labs
📧 jon@forthelong.run
🌐 forthelong.run
📸 @jwlevitt
Love this Jon
Like this ideas! By the way, are you going to create a channel on Apple podcast or Spotify? So that ppl can subscribe by one click