How Runners Can Save Lives

🎧 Listen Instead: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/everything-you-need-to-know-to-prepare-for-the-2026/id1703616687

Counting down to the 2026 TCS New York City Marathon, Set the Pace is shining a spotlight on the runners who put purpose behind every mile by raising funds for the race’s more than 670 Official Charity Partners. This week, Rob is joined by Christopher Sheridan of the American Heart Association (AHA), NYRR Hall of Famer and Olympic medalist Jenny Simpson, and NYRR Medical Director Dr. Matt Friedman for an important discussion about cardiac arrest, CPR, and the power of being prepared. Christopher shares how the AHA’s Team Heart & Stroke is building a community of survivors and lifesavers, while Jenny recounts her sudden cardiac arrest at a running event in June and the people whose courage and quick action saved her life. Dr. Friedman explains how bystanders, hands-only CPR, and automated external defibrillators (AEDs) can dramatically improve survival and what New York Road Runners is doing to prepare for medical emergencies during its races.

0:00 Intro
3:44 Meet the American Heart Association Team
7:22 Stories from Team Heart & Stroke
9:24 Jenny Simpson on Her Cardiac Arrest
13:05 The People Who Helped Save Jenny’s Life
17:49 Dr. Matt Friedman on Cardiac Emergencies at Races
21:03 How AEDs Work
22:23 What to Know About Hands-Only CPR
25:14 Jenny Simpson: Don’t Be Afraid to Step In
26:43 How the American Heart Association Trains Lifesavers
30:23 Jenny Simpson’s Hospitalization and Recovery
36:05 How NYRR Prepares for Medical Emergencies
40:40 What Marathon Runners Should Know
41:14 Christopher Sheridan’s Message to Runners
43:02 Dr. Friedman’s Advice for Race Day
44:00 Jenny Simpson on Becoming a Lifesaver
50:25 Supporting Team Heart & Stroke

Learn more about Team Heart and Stroke here! www2.heart.org/site/TR

Listen to past episodes:
Spotify: bit.ly/474e5Wa
Apple Music: apple.co/3IKaKSb
iHeart: ihr.fm/44L0zp3

DISCLAIMER: The views expressed by guests on the podcast are their own and their appearance on the podcast does not imply an endorsement by NYRR of them or their views.

Learn more about New York Road Runners: nyrr.org
Become an NYRR Member: nyrr.org/membership