About

Coach Chris Knighton is the head coach at Knighton Runs and the author of the book, Run Faster Marathons: The Proven Path to PR. He is a trusted running coach and passionate distance runner living in Providence, Rhode Island. Born in Boston, Massachusetts, Chris did not start running until his late twenties but quickly grew into a consistent top-10 finisher in road and trail races throughout New England. He has been a vegan athlete for his entire adult life and credits much of his success in sports to making healthy diet and lifestyle choices.

In 2014, Chris left a soul-crushing job to pursue his dreams. He thru-hiked the 2180-mile Appalachian Trail that summer and realized if he had the courage and capacity to accomplish this journey, he should easily be able to take on any life challenge.

Chris brings this mentally to his own running and coaching. He believes that the skills and confidence we develop to run faster marathons directly correlate to what’s needed to overcome any personal or professional challenge. Chris empowers his athletes to do what is necessary to go confidently in the direction of their dreams.

Chris received his USATF Level 1 Coaching Certification in 2019 and also serves as Track & Field and Cross Country Coach at St. Mary Academy – Bay View in Riverside, Rhode Island.

Chris’s first book, Run Faster Marathons: The Proven Path to PR is available now on Amazon.

Personal Bests

• 1500m: 4:19 (2024)
• 1-Mile: 4:42 (2024)
• 5K: 16:40 (2024)
• 10K: 34:41 (2021)
• Half Marathon: 1:14 (2019)
• Marathon: 2:46 (2023)

Coach Erica Knighton is the Assistant Coach at Knighton Runs. She has been running for as long as she can remember and ran her first 1-mile race at age seven. As a competitive runner in high school, she competed in both the State Championship and New England Championship for the Barrington High School team in Rhode Island. After attending Syracuse University, she took on the marathon, qualifying and competing in two Boston Marathons and one Chicago Marathon. Erica has over 15 years of experience training and racing at a high level.

Erica is committed to helping passionate high-school athletes reach their full potential. As the Head Cross Country and Track & Field coach at St. Mary Academy – Bay View in Riverside, Rhode Island, Erica led the Indoor Team to its first Division Championship in over 20 years in her first season coaching the team. 

Additionally, she helps high-school athletes train their best during the summer and winter off-seasons and supports athletes privately in track and cross country season with the permission of their school’s coach. 

She is a certified NFHS coach and CPR/AED certified.

Personal Bests

• 1-Mile: 5:31 (2024)
• 5K: 18:52 (2024)
• Half Marathon: 1:29 (2024)
• Marathon: 3:26 (2015)

Take your running to the next level and go confidently in the direction of your dreams.

Here are two ways to improve as a runner today:

1. Learn About Our High-Touch 1:1 Online Run Coaching

2. Check out The Complete Marathon Training Program by Knighton Runs

Get My Free Marathon Training Guide!

Run Faster Marathons: The Proven Path to PR shares the essential concepts marathon runners need to incorporate into their training to achieve year-over-year progress, enjoyment, and success.

Go beyond just following a cookie-cutter plan and finally learn how to train like an athlete. 

Run Faster Marathons will teach you to run with confidence.