Sikeston marathon runner has worldwide online audience

SIKESTON -- The odds are favorable Sikeston residents have seen Angie Spencer running through town or on a treadmill at the local YMCA.

They just may not have known who she was.

"I do run every morning and I feel like I've explored most of Sikeston's streets on foot, and I also run on the treadmill and take yoga classes at the YMCA," said Spencer, an avid marathon runner.

Spencer is also the voice of the Marathon Training Academy podcast, which garners 20,000 downloads per episode. The 38-year-old has given training tips through her podcast and blog for the last five years and has managed to amass a large and loyal audience.

"Our show reaches over 20,000 downloads per episode," said Trevor Spencer, Spencer's husband and podcast co-host. "And we've been featured by the Huffington Post as one of the '19 Best Health and Fitness Podcasts of All Time.' It really has been a fun journey for us."

The podcast, which was started in 2010, is the main way Spencer gets her message out into the world. She also coaches runners virtually through an online community called The Academy. Members of the Academy hail from all over the world.

"We have a lot of members from the U.S., but there are also members from Canada, Australia, the U.K., New Zealand, Germany, Singapore, China, Norway and Sweden," Spencer said.

For the complete story, see the Standard Democrat's Weekender edition.