Catherine Mayer was born in the US and has spent much of her life in London. She is a former Europe Editor and Editor at Large of TIME magazine and the author of Amortality: The Pleasures and Perils of Living Agelessly and the Sunday Times bestselling biography of Prince Charles Charles: The Heart of a King. In 2015 she co-founded the Women’s Equality Party with Sandi Toksvig.
On the 8th March - International Women’s Day she releases her third book - Attack of the fifty foot women: How gender Equality can save the world!
Show notes
- Her career and how it has been done accidentally!
- Falling into journalism, via a cash in hand job in the marketing department at The Economist before moving over to the editorial side.
- Spending 11 years at TIME Magazine before starting the Women’s Equality Party
- Being born in America before moving over to the UK
- Being a foreign correspondent while based from home in London
- Her start in journalism and the challenges she faced in the early eighties
- How she survived and managed to make a career from it
- Getting by, by becoming “one of the boys”
- Why she came more politicised
- Working in a culture of conformity in order to get ahead and why we need to change the whole culture
- How the Women’s Equality Party came about
- WOW - The Women of the World Festival
- How a small party can make fundamental change and how UKIP proved that
- What it was like taking this idea for WE to the next stage
- How ignorance was bliss and also very helpful when setting up WE!
- How the initial interest on social media led to more than 250 people turning up to the first meeting
- What Catherine has learned from going through this whole experience
- Where the idea for her third book came from - Attack of the fifty foot women: How gender Equality can save the world!
- Being an internationalist in outlook and how what happens in one country does impact on what happens in another
- Going through the process of writing the book and why she loves the research
- Being a tough girl when it comes to writing, no rest, no days off, starting at five in the morning, a short break in the afternoon and then more writing
- Iceland & how women stopping work changed the direction of gender equality for the whole country
- Why the WE party are organising a women’s day off in 2018
- Why 2018 is going to be a special year for women
- Starting my Masters in Women & Gender at Lancaster University in 2017 and graduating in 2018 (everything happens for a reason!)
- The stand out interviews from the book
- Her plans for the year ahead, including her UK Book tour!
- BREATHE!
- EAT!
- SLEEP!
- How Donald Trump has helped women in one way…
- Final words of advice, why this is a time for ACTION and why you should join the Women’s Equality Party.
Social Media
Catherine is on twitter @catherine_mayer
Instagram @MayerofLondon
You can visit her website --> here!
WIN a copy of Catherine Book - Become a Patron and your name will be entered into a draw at the end of March! We have 3 books to give away - you can become a patron from $2 per month! Support the Tough Girl Podcast and help increase the amount of female role models in the media.
Margaret Schlachter found obstacle racing in 2010 with the very first Spartan Race outside of Burlington, Vermont. From that day on she was hooked. This former collegiate athlete found a new spark for fitness in obstacle course racing.
She founded Dirt in Your Skirt in early 2011 as a personal blog tracking her progress to the first World’s Toughest Mudder. Quickly the blog turned into a full website with race reviews, gear reviews, industry insight and more.
In 2012, she became the first professional female obstacle racer and was ranked 5th in the world at the time. She has taken on some of the sport’s toughest events competing in the Death Race, 5x World’s Toughest Mudder, and Survival Run in Nicaragua.
Today she spends her time as a full-time author, writer, industry expert, and coach. When not writing or taking on the next obstacle race or mud run she can be found working on her Urban Farm in Salt Lake City.
Show notes
- Her childhood growing up, attending boarding school and having a passion for the outdoors.
- Training like a professional athlete at 13 years old
- Transitioning from school to college
- Graduating from college and going on to do her Masters part time
- Her journey to obstacle racing
- The Original Obstacle Course Race which was started in the UK - Original Tough Guy
- Hating running but how having obstacles makes it fun!
- The very first Spartan Race
- Why you should not wear cotton!
- The spear throw and how its evolved over time
- The rivalry between Sparta & Tough Mudder!
- Going from 5k to 10 miles
- Qualifying for Worlds Toughest Mudder - a 24 hours obstacle course race, which had never been done before!
- Why accountability is so important
- Starting her blog - “Dirt in Your Skirt” and how it has evolved over time
- Getting her first podium in 2011 and how it led to her getting sponsorship
- 2012 & getting her first paid full time sponsorship
- Training for Worlds Toughest Mudder and making use of the mountains on her doorstep and the free running resources on line.
- Using rock climbing as a tool for general fitness - “Climb Fit”
- Dealing with the cold and why wetsuits are a must for any event like this
- Running her first ultra marathon in training
- Having to break ice to get through the obstacles
- Dealing with hallucinations and the stresses on her mind and body
- Not finishing the race, getting to 7 am, which was 3 hours short of competition
- How OCR has evolved for women
- The 3 races that stand out for her
- Stopping, quitting and not wanting to race
- Learning from failure
- Why we both collaborate & support other women
Get in contact with Margaret - via her Blog or on twitter @DirtinYourSkirt
You can listen to my episode with Margaret - HERE!
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- If you’re loving the podcast, please leave a 5-star review on iTunes! I read every single comment!
- Share the podcast with your friends, especially if you think it could help them, and spread the #ToughGirlPodcast love.
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Ashley was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis, when she was 26, she has endured chronic pain which has affected both her professional and personal life. She went from being super fit and healthy to not being able to cut her own food up, or get dressed.
Ashley talks about the power of meditation and how her daily practice has been essential to her recovery. She’s passionate about promoting meditation to reduce stress, lower the risk of anxiety and depression. During this podcast you will get to hear top tips and advice on how you can make small changes to your daily routine which will make a massive difference!
Show notes
- Who is Ashley Hunt?
- Being lazy growing up
- Eventually finding fitness through pole dancing
- Developing Rheumatoid Arthritis
- Finding empowerment through exercise and building strength
- Becoming a pole dancing instructor
- Taking control of your body and building self confidence and body confidence
- Why your confidence builds by doing pole dancing
- The development of her Rheumatoid Arthritis and how it spread throughout her body
- Going from being a strong, fit, healthy women in January and by April not being able to dress or feed herself
- How she coped with the challenge and how it impacted on her mental health
- Suffering through the dark times and using meditation to get through it.
- Why being in pain is exhausting
- Why the struggles you go through make you stronger
- How she started with meditation & why you need to practice it
- Her top tips for meditation and why you need to start with breathing
- Her self care routine & why the best thing you can do is to take care of yourself
- Taking control of your addiction to technology
- Her sleep routine before bed and why there is no technology allowed
- Advice for dealing with negative thoughts
- Why being selfish is the most selfless thing you can do
- Her fitness & training routine now
- Why nothing is more important than her health
- What she’s learnt from all the struggles
- Her final words of advice - Put yourself first, stop, take a breath and make sure it’s in your best interest - put yourself first!!!
Get in contact with Ashley - Via her website and say hi to her on twitter @ashleyhuntwelln
Feeling inspired week after week?
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Hannah knows what it takes to follow her dreams, and has always lived by her Uncle’s motto “never give up”.
At 13 years old, she became the youngest ever winner of the BT Young Sailor of the Year award for her achievements at the Mirror World Championships.
Aged 15 she received a phone call that changed the direction of her life. Andy Cassell, the Atlanta Gold medalist in the Sonar class opened her eyes to disability sailing, which she had previously thought of as the weaker option.
After winning the bronze medal at the World Championships, her team was selected above her childhood hero and mentor, Andy Cassell which sent her to her first Paralympic Games - Athens 2004!
During this podcast we learn more about the setbacks she’s had to face, how she has dealt with failure and crushing disappointments. Throughout it all she has kept moving forward with pure grit and determination.
After listening to Hannah you will be inspired to take on your own personal challenge.
Show notes
- Going back to her childhood and understanding what it was like for her growing up
- What she loved about sailing & how sailing changed her perception of herself.
- Going off to military school at young age & what she’s learned from that experience
- Growing up with her disability and dealing with bullies
- Making the Youth Squad in sailing
- Winning the Young Sailor of the Year Award when she was 13 years old!
- Knowing that sailing was going to be in her future
- Dealing with the pressure of coming from a sailing family
- Thinking that Paralympian sailing was the weaker option and how her mind got changed.
- Deciding to leave university after 2 years and focus on the Athens campaign
- Beating her childhood hero & mentor at the 2003 World Championships
- The mental preparation while competing at an elite level
- The Chimp Paradox and exercising the chimp!
- Racing & competing in China
- Race tactics & why it’s a balancing act
- Losing a medal at the London Olympics 2012
- 16 years of sailing and the reason she sails
- Her preparation for Rio
- What she does to get ready before a race
- 2 bad days on the water at Rio and having to fight back to Bronze position, before losing out to a disqualification
- Dealing with the loss
- What’s the extra one percent and why you have to fight to the end - no matter what
- The closing party in Rio!
- What sailing has taught her
- Sailing has been dropped from the Paralympics in Tokyo 2020
- The Vendee Globe 2020 Challenge!
- Final words of advice to motivate & inspire you!
Learn more about Hannah by visiting her website - & say hi to her on twitter @SailingHannah. I’m also on twitter @_TOUGH_GIRL
Feeling inspired week after week?
You can do 3 easy things to help me continue to grow the podcast!
- Subscribe to the podcast in iTunes, so you won’t miss a single episode
- If you’re loving the podcast, please leave a 5-star review on iTunes! I read every single comment!
- Share the podcast with your friends, especially if you think it could help them, and spread the #ToughGirlPodcast love.
Your support helps me continue to grow the podcast and do inspiring things in this space! Already done all 3? You’re a rockstar! Thank you!
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Justine lives in Wales, is 35 years old and started kayaking 12 years ago with a local canoe club. When she was at university Justine loved team sports and represented England in hockey, only discovering walking, mountain biking and kayaking when she left university. She started a career in television at about the same time she discovered kayaking, and she soon gave up her job to pursue sea kayaking adventures and film them to make a living.
Following her passion, was challenging and difficult for the first four years - people refused to believe that sea kayaking could be exciting! Justine soon changed their minds once they saw her movies. Justine is an avid and accomplished sea kayaker and has explored many of the world’s best paddling spots - New Zealand, Newfoundland, Norway, Tasmania, the Queen Charlotte Islands, Alaska, California...the list goes on!
Show notes
- How she discovered the outdoors and fell in love with the mountain
- The challenges she faced of wanting to follow her passion
- Why it did come down to luck and her determination
- How she came to make her first sea kayaking video
- Remembering the important first steps and why she learnt to ask for what she wanted
- Why its important to share your goals and why you need to give 100% to your goals
- The expeditions that have stood out for Justine and why she kept upping the challenge after every adventure.
- Taking on the Aleutian Islands, “the birth place of the winds” with Sarah Outen
- Why she decided to say yes the adventure and why for her attitude is more important than skill
- Being told the crossings they wanted to do were impossible! (It wasn’t!)
- Being prepared to give it a go and being prepared to work hard and to wait for the weather
- 5 months for the planning and training
- Dealing with the long crossings and how she keeps on going
- The addictive feeling from from being on an adventure
- Dealing with the fear and worry in your head
- Mental tricks she uses while out Kayaking
- What she’s learnt from making mistakes
- Dealing with fear and how she turns it into action
- Future challenges!
- Focusing more on - Fun, Family & Friends!
- Why she named her company - Cackle TV!
- Advice for women who want to get into Sea Kayaking
Connect with Justine - Visit her website & Say hi to Justine on Twitter @cackletv
Sponsor the Tough Girl Podcast!! Become a Patron!
Part 2
7 Women - 7 Challenges 2017
We catch up with; Rae Red, Gemma Smith, Georgie Akin-Smith, Jo Jo Rogers, Jen Dykxhoorn, Laura Try, & Rachel Wise as they continue their 2017 journey to go after their goals and dreams.
Learn more about the 7 women! Click HERE!
Order & Timings
- Jo Jo Rogers - 5 mins
- Georgie Akin-Smith - 45 mins
- Rae Red - 1 hr 06
- Gemma Smith - 1 hr 53
- Rachel Wise - 2 hr 34
- Laura Try - 3 hr 21
- Jen Dykxhoorn - 3 hr 57
You can listen to Part 1 HERE!
Schedule of future episodes
Part 3 - 2nd April
Part 4 - 28th May
Part 5 - 1st October
Part 6 - 19th November
Feeling inspired ?
You can do 3 easy things to help me continue to grow the podcast!
- Subscribe to the podcast in iTunes, so you won’t miss a single episode
- If you’re loving the podcast, please leave a 5-star review on iTunes! I read every single comment!
- Share the podcast with your friends, especially if you think it could help them, and spread the #ToughGirlPodcast love.
Your support helps me continue to grow the podcast and do inspiring things in this space! Already done all 3? You’re a rockstar! Thank you!
Want to do more?
Please become a Patron and donate a small fixed amount every month to help fund the runnings costs.
We first had Sophie on the Tough Girl Podcast in August 2015 and it is awesome to catch up with her at the start of 2017 to see what she’s been up to!
Sophie has cycled from London to Paris in 24 hours nine times, she’s a two-times Ironman Wales finisher, completed the 3 Peaks Cycle Challenge, run ultra marathons, climbed Mont Blanc and achieved a world-first expedition with the Alpine Coast to Coast by climbing the highest mountains in the eight alpine countries and cycling between them in 32 days. To achieve this she cycled 150kms a day, climbed eight mountains and covered 45,500 metres of ascent - nine times the height of Mount Everest!
To listen to her first episode of the Tough Girl Podcast - Click Here
Show notes
- What has been most challenging for Sophie in 2016
- Dealing with her most challenging year yet.
- Why she wants to be “strong” not just in the physical sense.
- Turning the corner in 2017 and she feels so happy
- How she copes with being in the public eye
- Why she now knows who she really is
- ‘Who is Sophie’
- Heading over to South America with LAN
- Taking a job with Epic TV and feeling as though she was taking a step backwards
- Mountain biking through Bolivia, heading down to Patagonia in Chile to do the W trek!
- Trying to create something which is marketable
- Why you have to create a name for yourself in the industry and no one else is going to do it for you
- Why e-mail are the biggest waste of her time
- Why the smaller challenges are some of her favourite ones!
- Reconnecting with nature
- Only have 2.5 weeks to train for the 24 hour Tough Mudder Challenge!
- Wanting to be fit for life
- Doing 6 sessions of HIT in 1 day!
- Dealing with the 35ft cliff jump
- Why it never got easier..
- London to Paris Cycle in 24 hours and dealing with the emotions
- Building self belief and self confidence by doing challenges
- Struggling to balance, training, work and life
- How she funds her lifestyle
- Working with sponsors
- Getting to participate in ‘Race the World’ and being the captain of the team and how she dealt with the added pressure
- Being able to lean on her teammates for support
- Her plan for 2017 & why she’s taking herself off to Scotland
- Get in contact with Sophie!
Thank you for the amazing questions from Sophie Thomas, Emily Pitts, Adelaide Goodeve, Ruth Blanco, Evie Akiens, Rae Red, Hannah Marie Attenburrow, and Mandy Dicksee all awesome members of the Tough Girl Tribe!
Feeling inspired week after week?
You can do 3 easy things to help me continue to grow the podcast!
- Subscribe to the podcast in iTunes, so you won’t miss a single episode
- If you’re loving the podcast, please leave a 5-star review on iTunes! I read every single comment!
- Share the podcast with your friends, especially if you think it could help them, and spread the #ToughGirlPodcast love.
Your support helps me continue to grow the podcast and do inspiring things in this space! Already done all 3? You’re a rockstar! Thank you!
Want to do more?
Please become a Patron and donate a small fixed amount every month to help fund the runnings costs.
Jenny has travelled to six continents, solo. Cycled around Europe, paddled through the South American jungle, ran marathons on four continents, hiked throughout Asia, trekked in Patagonia, dived with sharks, surfed in the North Sea, competed in numerous adventure races, and lived in five countries. She believes everyone has the spirit of an explorer within them, and that adventures are constantly at our fingertips.
On September 18, 2016, Jenny ran through the city gates of Osh, in the southwest of Kyrgyzstan, having run just over 900 kilometres in 25 days from the northeast city of Karakol via the Tien Shan mountains, solo and self-supported. The expedition took her through both stunning and challenging landscapes, where she used ancient nomad trails to access mountain passes up to 4000m, while carrying all of her own supplies on her back!
“Only those who risk going too far can possibly find out how far they can go.”
— T.S Eliot
Show notes
- Growing up in Calgary, which is close to the Rocky Mountains in Canada. Where she would spend time out in the mountains connecting with nature.
- Moving down to the Caribbean when she was 10 years old and spending a year a half living on a boat with her family!
- Taking a gap year when she was 18 and spending time trekking and exploring in South America
- After university she decided she was going to cycle to the Yukon. A ride of 3,000 km to the North of Canada!
- Having respect for planning, but also wanting to let the adventure un fold naturally!
- Having the time and making the money to go away cycle touring and why her first adventure didn’t cost her a lot of money.
- Dealing with the fears of her friends and having to deal with her un-supportive friends and how their fears wore her down mentally
- Cycling 100km on the first day of the adventure and how it motivated her to keep moving north.
- The challenges she faced being on the open road and what she did to keep herself motivated and entertained
- Finding endurance sports, meditative and getting into the zone.
- After finishing her first cycle journey and deciding to try and live a normal life. It lasted a year before she decided to pack it all in and get back on her bike and go on another adventure
- Deciding to move to Scotland and why she loves it!
- Getting into running, how running made her feel and how her relationship with running changed over the years.
- Running solo across Kyrgyzstan - 900k self supported! Why she wanted to do this challenge and how it came about
- Getting herself mentally and physically prepared for the challenge
- What it was like being in the country - meeting new people and dealing with their doubts about what she was doing.
- What Jenny has learned most from her Kyrgyzstan experience
- Why your friends really do matter and why you need to be careful of who you surround yourself with
- Her first book - “Keeping the sea to the right” - when she decided to cycle around the Baltic Sea
- Tips and tricks to help you get over challenges and why breaking it down can make a massive difference
- Dealing with a family death while being away from her family and how she dealt with her grief
- Future challenges & final words of advice!
Check out Jenny’s website - www.jennytough.com Jenny is on Twitter @JennyTough
Support the tough girl podcast by becoming a Patron and donating $2 or $5 a month!!
Jen is a 41 year old Running and Triathlon Coach based in Australia who loves trail running and being outdoors. About 12 years ago, she was an over-stressed, over-weight and over-worked Lawyer and then she went for a run - and life hasn’t been the same since!
Since then she’s done 2 x 50km races and a 100km team event. She hiked and climbed mountains on 4 continents (including mountaineering in Nepal, Argentina, climbing Kilimanjaro & Meru in Tanzania, as well as completing the Everest Base Camp trek, and the Inca Trail in Peru!).
Since Jen found her new passion, she left her old job of being a lawyer and set up her own business called Sparta Chicks for women who enjoy triathlons, trail running and outdoor adventures. As well as this she has recently written a book called, "She Believed She Could So She Did: How to Train, Race and Live with Confidence" (which went to #1 in 3 categories in Amazon Australia).
For Jen the focus of her work these days is on mindset; overcoming the fears, self-doubt and the stories we tell ourselves about what we can and can’t do. Jen is a passionate supporter of women and loves watching women thrive when they discover endurance sports and outdoor adventures.
Thank you to the patrons of the Tough Girl Podcast - This episode could not have been produced without your continued support.
Get involved and support the Tough Girl Podcast - Learn more!
Show notes
- The joy of not setting my alarm any more!
- Packing in her corporate job and having a total career change in her early thirties and becoming a triathlon and running coach
- Not being the sporty kid at school and preferring books over sports
- Why trail running changed everything about running for Jen and how trail running gave her the headspace she needed, where she didn’t have to think about any think else
- Why it took a long time for her to leave her job and make the change
- Going to Everest Base Camp and coming back and knowing that things had to change
- Saving up, resigning and going travelling
- Taking over two years to get her plan B in place - Working full time while also training as a Personal Trainer
- It can take time to make a big change - and that’s ok!
- Making a decision over what she wanted to do!
- Finding her passion and what interested her and why not all passions should be turned into a business
- Think about your passion - but also take a step back and think if this is something you could do 24/7 and if you did would it lose its gloss?
- Deciding what to do with her time off!
- 6 months of climbing and eating her way around the world!
- Not summiting Aconcagua and how it feels like unfinished business
- Mindset and why it’s so important - dealing with questions such as; What if I fail? What will people think?
- The Six Foot Track - 45K Trail Race
- Learning more about Sparta Chicks & its Mission - Ten Thousand Strong Women!
- Fears and how they can show up differently for different women
- Her first Triathlon in 2007 and having a panic attack during the swim
- 3 top tips for triathlon
- The power of the word “yet”
- Picturing your perfect race
- Writing - She Believed She Could - How to Train and Race with confidence
- Why you don’t need more confidence, courage or more bravery
- Plans for the future
- One thing for you to think about going forward
The Sparta Chicks Podcast will be launching on Thursday 2nd February!
Social Media Links
Visit the Sparta Chicks Website
Say hi to Jen on Twitter @SpartaJen say hi to me!! @_TOUGH_GIRL
Feeling inspired week after week?
You can do 3 easy things to help me continue to grow the podcast!
- Subscribe to the podcast in iTunes, so you won’t miss a single episode
- If you’re loving the podcast, please leave a 5-star review on iTunes! I read every single comment!
- Share the podcast with your friends, especially if you think it could help them, and spread the #ToughGirlPodcast love.
Your support helps me continue to grow the podcast and do inspiring things in this space! Already done all 3? You’re a rockstar! Thank you!
Want to do more?
Please become a Patron and donate a small fixed amount every month to help fund the runnings costs.
Audrey is a freelance Business Consultant and Project Manager specialising in IT delivery and business change, an ultra-marathon runner and extreme adventure racer, motivational speaker, mother and wife.
Having done all that she could to avoid participating in sport at school she came to running late at the age of 34 when she ran her first 10k race to raise funds for her local hospital. She then moved up to half-marathon and marathon at the age of 40 and first ultra-marathon at the age of 47.
In 2013 as she turned 50 and took on the Antarctic Ice Marathon and Antarctic 100k and was the first Scot to complete both races together finishing first woman in the 100k. Since then she has run the North Pole Marathon, The Volcano Marathon finishing 3rd woman, and numerous ultra-marathons including the West Highland Way race.
Her next BIG challenge, is the Global Odyssey, which comes later in 2017 when she hopes, at the age of 54, to become the first woman to run 7 x 50k ultra-marathons on 7 continents in 7 days. She is using a crowd-funding campaign to raise the funds required to undertake this challenge.
Show notes
- Being totally disinterested in sports at school and why she enjoyed the ‘punishment’ exercises such as the long runs on the beach
- Getting into fitness and how after her first 10K she was still saying she wasn’t going to run any further!
- Choosing to run the Loch Ness Marathon in the Highlands of Scotland!
- Working full time while training, and why being a project manager helps her to fit in her training while balancing family life.
- Being relaxed about her training and why she decided to run her first ultra marathon at 47
- How her mental and physical preparation changed when she moved from a marathon distance to an ultra marathon distance
- Being stubborn and pig headed and why she doesn’t like to fail!
- Coming from a background of strong women and how it has made her more determined.
- What she thinks about while she runs
- Getting into flow while running!
- Deciding to take on a big challenge to help celebrate her 50th Birthday
- Being rejected from the West Highland Way race and how it inspired her to not give up
- The fears she had to deal with before the race and why she knows she will always have a wobble before the race.
- Tips for other women who are feeling a little bit of fear about a new challenge
- Why fear is a good thing
- Standing on the start line of the Antarctic Ice Marathon
- Why she enjoyed being in the vast wildness and holding her own and how it helped with her confidence
- Why food and fluids were so important for her recovery
- Having low points during the 100K on the 4th and 7th lap
- Why it’s so important to have a dream and a goal, which isn’t related to your work.
- Going back to run the West Highland Way race in 2015 - taking 29hrs to completed the 95 miles!
- Finding out about her 2017 challenges!
Social Media & Links!
Learn more about Audrey by visiting her Website you can read more on her blog here
Support Audrey with her next challenge - Global Odyssey!
Audrey’s crowdfunding page is here
Twitter @audreymcintosh Instagram @aa_mcintosh
Feeling inspired week after week?
You can do 3 easy things to help me continue to grow the podcast!
- Subscribe to the podcast in iTunes, so you won’t miss a single episode
- If you’re loving the podcast, please leave a 5-star review on iTunes! I read every single comment!
- Share the podcast with your friends, especially if you think it could help them, and spread the #ToughGirlPodcast love.
Your support helps me continue to grow the podcast and do inspiring things in this space! Already done all 3? You’re a rockstar! Thank you!
Want to do more?
Please become a Patron and donate a small fixed amount every month to help fund the runnings costs.
Thank you to all the Patrons who support the Tough Girl Podcast each month!
Become a Patron - click here!
Philippa never thought that at the age of 44 she would be cycling 5,000 miles from the top of Norway to the south of Spain. Let alone on her own. She wasn’t an endurance cyclist and had never wild camped on her own.
Yet in June 2016 she found herself at Nordkapp, the most Northern point in Europe with a tent and two wheels. After a small freak out and a lot of questions to herself she pointed her bicycle South and started cycling. Three and a half months and a lot of ice cream later she reached Tarifa in Spain, the Southernmost point in Europe, a lot fitter and with the knowledge that she had been able to overcome those fears, rise to the challenge and complete her dream. She raised money for 2 charities – Re-cycle (who send bicycles to Africa) and the Youth Adventure Trust who support vulnerable children to build self esteem, gain confidence and learn important life skills through a programme of adventure.
Since her return she has combined her professional background in events and fundraising with her personal love of adventure and just started working for the Youth Adventure Trust as their Corporate Partnership Manager. She is also training to be a Pilates teacher
Show notes
- Why Philippa decided to do this journey & how having a mentor helped
- Why the journey was named the “Cycle Odyssey”
- Why you don’t need to be a super athlete to do challenges
- Growing up and how she ended up going on her first cycle adventure
- Cycling from London to Lands End on a second hand bicycle in 1999
- How she decided to take control of her commute in London and become a cyclist
- Deciding to cycle from London to Paris and she ended up meeting more people who loved to cycle
- How her cycle adventure progressed from organised tours to wild camping and solo trips
- Looking back at the start of her cycling journey and talking about the progression that has been made, and why you discover more about yourself as you continue to push yourself
- Being inspired by Emily Chappell - (You can listen to Emily on the tough girl podcast - here)
- Why eating food is always the right thing to do!
- Cycling in London and why she loved the freedom!
- Hills….
- Deciding on what challenge to do next and how she made the decision
- Taking it day by day and changing her mind about her route on day 3!
- Talking about money and how she afforded to pay for her trip
- Remembering her dad
- The fears that were going through her head before the start of the trip and tips for how she handled those fears.
- Why you have a choice about your attitude and why you should be positive
- Her physical preparation for the trip and why testing her equipment was more important
- Balance!!
- The highlights from her trip and why the challenges stood out for her as well as the people
- Getting to the end… and not comprehending she’d completed the journey - 101 days, 5,000 miles rode!
- Why you can do it!!!!
- What she’s learnt most from the adventure and her final words of advice for you and why you won’t regret it!
Read more about Philippa and her journey on her blog! Philippa is on twitter @cycleodyssey16
Charities
RE-CYCLE take donated bikes and reduce landfill and by refurbishing them and sending them to Africa they can change lives by helping children get to school, reduce travel time to work, carry heavy loads of water and food and give families extra time to earn, learn and enjoy life.
The Youth Adventure Trust is a registered youth development charity working with vulnerable young people aged 11 to 14 years old from across Wiltshire and Swindon. Many young people, for a variety of reasons, often do not have the opportunity to start the ‘believe – achieve’ process and make the most of their lives.
Feeling inspired week after week?
You can do 3 easy things to help me continue to grow the podcast!
- Subscribe to the podcast in iTunes, so you won’t miss a single episode
- If you’re loving the podcast, please leave a 5-star review on iTunes! I read every single comment!
- Share the podcast with your friends, especially if you think it could help them, and spread the #ToughGirlPodcast love.
Your support helps me continue to grow the podcast and do inspiring things in this space! Already done all 3?
You’re a rockstar! Thank you!
Want to do more?
Please become a Patron and donate a small fixed amount every month to help fund the runnings costs.
AnnMaria began practicing judo at the age 12 and it changed the direction of her life. She found her passion and her calling, and by age 19 she was winning National Competitions. Not only was she training and competing in Judo, at the highest level, she also raised four daughters and managed to achieve her Bachelors, her Master, her PHD, and an MBA!
During this podcast, we learn more about AnnMaria, her drive, her ambition, and why she continues to push the boundaries, and to go after what she wants. AnnMaria talks about what it takes to be a champion and why not everyone will have that drive and determination. She shares more of her life growing up, spending time in Japan, and her passion behind education and why she wants to encourage more children to reach higher.
Show notes
- About AnnMaria; BA, MA, PHD, MBA, mother of 4 and founder of numerous tech companies!
- Growing up and how judo and maths have made a huge difference in her life
- Being dropped off at the YMCA and told to join something!
- How Judo was the only choice for her and what it was like being a female doing judo
- How she learned to ignore the haters and the negative comments
- Spending time over in Japan whilst being a poor college student
- Her first big tournament, and going on to win National Championships, US Nationals, and why she had to fight close to home
- Entering her early twenties and being able to afford to travel and fight internationally
- Having a baby instead of going to the World Championships
- The thoughts that go through her head before stepping onto the mat to fight
- Mental strategies she would use before fights and why she would visualise winning
- Why you have to combine visualisation with training!
- The final of the World Championships and why it was the toughest fight of her career
- Dealing with knee issues throughout her whole career
- Her philosophy for Judo
- Her mumisms - “No one has the right to beat you”
- There’s a difference between, being tough and being a bitch.
- Why champions always do more
- “You have to be good enough to win the World Championships on your worst day”
- Getting over the death of her husband, while having 3 young children
- How she balanced; children, education, sports and a job and why it does come down to setting your own priorities
- Advice and tips for young people who want to get to the top of their game and why its ok to not want to go to the top
- Why she tries to talk children out of Judo and why she wants them to focus on education
- Having 4 daughters and why they had to play a sport and get good grades at school
- How she’s seen sexism change over the years and why she thinks the bar is still set high for women
- Her plans for the future and some final words of advice!
Blog
Feeling inspired week after week?
You can do 3 easy things to help me continue to grow the podcast!
- Subscribe to the podcast in iTunes, so you won’t miss a single episode
- If you’re loving the podcast, please leave a 5-star review on iTunes! I read every single comment!
- Share the podcast with your friends, especially if you think it could help them, and spread the #ToughGirlPodcast love.
Your support helps me continue to grow the podcast and do inspiring things in this space! Already done all 3? You’re a rockstar!
Thank you!
Want to do more?
Please become a Patron and donate a small fixed amount every month to help fund the runnings costs.
Stephanie is a 34 year old Canadian human rights lawyer who discovered ultra running eight years ago.
After completing a year in Afghanistan with the UN in 2013, she took a job in South Sudan in 2014 assisting people who were displaced by violence, which required her to live in a tent in very basic conditions. That same year, she started a charity called Free to Run, which provides opportunities for women and girls to get involved in sports in conflict-affected communities. They have now been operating for two years in Afghanistan across three different provinces and have a refugee program in Hong Kong. Recently, she finished two years in Gaza working for the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and is now based in Geneva, where she’s enjoying being able to access the mountains again.
Over the last eight years, she’s competed in eight 250 km self-supported footraces. The Tor des Geants, a 338km mountain race in Italy, remains her passion. In 2015 she completed the shorted course and went back in 2016 to finish what she started!
During this podcast we learn more about Stephanie, her journey into fitness and how she came to love running ultra’s.
Show notes
- About Stephanie
- Growing up in Canada and not being sporty at all!
- Going to university and trying out for the rowing team
- Being let down by her first marathon and not having that life changing experience
- Getting the confidence to try a new sport
- Her first Marathon in Alaska!
- Climbing Kilimanjaro and loving the feeling of being outside
- Her first ultra race in Vietnam and coming 2nd!
- Dealing with the challenges which come up during an ultra race and why she goes for the unstructured approach to training.
- The Tor des Geants, a 338km mountain race in Italy - the race that really pushed her to her limits
- 150 hr to finish the race - deciding to forgo sleep and only sleeping for 2.5hrs throughout the 4 days
- Drinking straight olive oil in order to keep the body going
- The terrible, soul crushing low points she had to deal with during the race
- Training for the Tor des Geants while living in Palestine
- Free to Run - What it is and how it came about
- Developing mix gender sports in Afghanistan
- The power of the ripple effect and why you can make a difference
- Plans for the future both for, Free to Run and her own personal challenges
Website
Blog - https://ultrarunnergirl.com/about/
twitter - @runningcase
free to run - http://www.freetorun.org
twitter - @FreeToRunNGO
Feeling inspired week after week?
You can do 3 easy things to help me continue to grow the podcast!
- Subscribe to the podcast in iTunes, so you won’t miss a single episode
- If you’re loving the podcast, please leave a 5-star review on iTunes! I read every single comment!
- Share the podcast with your friends, especially if you think it could help them, and spread the #ToughGirlPodcast love.
Your support helps me continue to grow the podcast and do inspiring things in this space! Already done all 3? You’re a rockstar! Thank you!
Want to do more?
Please become a Patron and donate a small fixed amount every month to help fund the runnings costs.
You can listen to the Tough Girl Podcast on the go via iTunes, Soundcloud & Stitcher!
Ali went along to the Women’s Adventure Expo in October 2015 where she picked up a leaflet about the Tough Girl Podcast, and by May 2016, she was pedaling her old Alpinestars mountain bike on a 767-mile, 13-day adventure from South Wales to Chamonix. At the age of 41 she had found something exciting to give her a new focus, after forcibly retiring from sport due to old knee injuries. The ride to Chamonix took Ali to mental and physical places that she had never been before, and she climbed almost the height of Everest on her way. This journey was significantly longer than her first bike packing adventure, which took her on the Whitehaven to Sunderland Coast2Coast route back in 1995 on the same bike.
Ali is a Sport Psychology Coach and works with individuals and groups to teach them how to implement sport psychology strategies into their training, event and competition programmes. Since her bike ride to Chamonix, she has itchy feet and is making plans for a new bike packing adventure.
Show notes
- When Ali & I first connected at the Women In Adventure Sports EXPO in Bristol
- Finding out more about Ali and how she came to become a sports psychologist coach
- Growing up sports and wanting to try anything and everything
- Getting into hockey and starting to break into the National League squad
- Trying to prove it to her body that she could do things, even after two knee injuries and who she tried overcoming the mental barriers she’d created
- Dealing with further set backs & losing her identity as a sports woman and as an athlete
- Deciding to get a bike and do the coast to coast challenge
- Going from being part of a team to being an individual doing a challenge
- How life can get in the way!
- Taking part in the game show - ‘Total Wipeout’ in Argentina - Google Season 1 - Episode 2 to see Ali wipeout!!!
- Rebellion and why its played apart of her life
- How she made the decision to cycle from South Wales to Chamonix
- Starting to secretly plan and having to tell her partner what she wanted to do
- When the challenge all started to become real!
- Training for the challenge at age 41 and starting from a low fitness level and doing what she could when she could
- Getting to the start line and what normally stops people from getting to this point
- Tips to help you to overcome your own negative thoughts and why you can find your own evidence of what you’ve done before
- Break your challenge down into smaller and more manageable chunks
- Day 1 of the adventure!
- Dealing with the challenges along the way and being outside her comfort zone
- When Ali started to think she wasn’t able to finish the challenge - what kept her going and why pausing helped her
- The good moments - the unexpected times
- Advice and top tips for you to go after your own personal challenge
Learn more about Ali - by visiting her blog and her website
Ali is on twitter @alimahoney74 @ithinksport
Support the tough girl podcast and become a Patron!!! More information about the other tough girls I have interviewed is available on www.toughgirlchallenges.com
7 Women - 7 Challenges came about back in October 2016 after discussions and feedback from the Tough Girl Tribe. It was decided as well as having inspirational interviews with the women who were the elite and the best of the best. I also wanted to connect and share the stores of; everyday women, real women, ordinary women, who are out their living full lives and saying yes to challenges and adventures. This would be a way to learn more about members of the Tribe and how they go about achieving their goals.
I asked the tribe to put themselves forward with their challenges and goals for 2017 and we then took a public vote to shortlist potential women who we would be interviewing for the podcast.
There were so many amazing entires it was a really difficult process to narrow it down and only select only 7! I’ve tried to be as fair as possible and have gone for a mixture of challenges and ages.
On a side note, expect more interviews with member of the tribe on the Tough Girl Podcast EXTRA which comes out on an adhoc basis every Thursday at 7am UK time.
Lets meet the 7 women!
Georgie Akin Smith is doing 12 CHALLENGES IN 12 MONTHS!
Georgie is 26 years old, living and working as a marketing manager in London. She loves being fit, active and getting outside as much as she can. Georgie has set herself 12 challenges which scare and excite her in equal measure and are all new things she hasn't tried before. She is booked in to to the Windsor Duathlon, the Engadin Cross Country Ski Marathon in Switzerland, as well as the London Marathon and the Mallorca 312! This is just an example of some of the challenges she will be completing in 2017!
Rae Red is a new runner going after her first Ultra!
In the late summer of 2016 after a fairly sustained period of life being crappy Rae was looking for something to help her with her own mental health. She started to consider running, but there were a whole host of reason to not start; she lives in a bad area, it’s not safe, she commutes for 4 hours a day so doesn't have time, she's not a runner, she has tight leg muscles, it’s too cold, it’s raining, it’s too hot....
Rae saw an article on ultra running and that was it, she signed up for the Dig Deep Ultra (30 miles). We will be following Rae on this journey to complete her first ultra!
Gemma Smith is off to climb Kilimanjaro and also plans to climb both the Matterhorn and the Eiger!
Almost two years ago she had a moment where she decided it's not worth being that person that says, 'that sounds fun but I could never do that'. Because of this change in attitude she started to believe she could do it.
This resulted in a life changing trip to Everest Base Camp in 2015 which was booked on a complete whim! Even since then, subsequent trips have been booked which have included summiting Mont Blanc in June 2016 and Mt Toukbal in the High Atlas Mountains in late 2016.
Rachel Wise is taking a gap year with her husband and 3 daughters and heading off to travel the world!
The plan is to leave in August 2017 flying from Geneva to LA. Where they will do a road trip across the States from the West coast to the East coast. From there they will head down to the Caribbean and be based in St Lucia. In November they will fly to Sri Lanka for a couple of months. Then it's onto South East Asia where they plan to spend a chunk of time in Indonesia. They are also planning to head to New Zealand for a few weeks to see the family before going onto Fiji for two months. After that its time to head back to Switzerland via LA in the Summer of 2018.
Laura Try - Rowing 1,800 miles around the coast of Great Britain, followed by rowing crossing the Atlantic in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge!
Laura is 34 years old and lives in Brentwood, Essex. She works as a Personal Trainer and Event Organiser. In June and July 2017 Laura will taking part in the Rannoch GB Challenge, which invovles rowing 1,800 miles around the coast of Great Britain with a team of 5. The challenge will take place over 8 weeks and they will be raising money for the RNLI. On competing that, she plans to take part in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge in December. She will be raising money for Centrepoint, the UK's largest charity for homeless 16-25 year olds.
Jen Dykxhorn will be biking the iconic LEJOG - Lands End to John O'Groats, across the UK!
Jen is a coffee-drinking, bicycle-loving, nature-loving, ukulele playing, adventure-seeking wanderer! She is a 30-year-old Canadian living (mostly) in London, UK while working on her PhD in psychiatric epidemiology.
In the summer of 2017, Jen will be biking the iconic LEJOG - with her sister. They will be leaving (approx) August 21st and be arriving in the north of Scotland around the 5th of September. Along the way, they will be wild camping (in home-sewn bivy sacks!). To finish off the adventure, they will be completing the Coast to Coast adventure race, and have signed up to do the "expert" course (all 105 miles of biking, trail running, and kayaking in one day).
Jo Jo Rogers at 52 will be training and racing in an effort to be selected for the US 50km National Team!
Jo Jo is a passionate runner and she loves to train. She is out running every day, sometimes twice a day! For Jo Jo this is an opportunity to share her story but more so to encourage other women to get out there and go after their dreams, no matter their age.
Feeling inspired week after week?
You can do 3 easy things to help me continue to grow the podcast!
- Subscribe to the podcast in iTunes, so you won’t miss a single episode
- If you’re loving the podcast, please leave a 5-star review on iTunes! I read every single comment!
- Share the podcast with your friends, especially if you think it could help them, and spread the #ToughGirlPodcast love.
Your support helps me continue to grow the podcast and do inspiring things in this space! Already done all 3? You’re a rockstar! Thank you!
Want to do more?
Please become a Patron and donate a small fixed amount every month to help fund the runnings costs.