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Tough Girl Podcast

The Tough Girl Podcast is all about inspiring and motivating YOU! I will be interviewing inspirational women from around the world, who’ve faced and overcome difficult challenges and situations, they will share their story, their knowledge and provide advice and essential tips for you to overcome your own personal challenges. Please check out the Tough Girl Challenges website - www.toughgirlchallenges.com and follow on twitter @_TOUGH_GIRL
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Now displaying: July, 2020
Jul 30, 2020
Nikki in her own words;
 
I’m here to do my best, be my best, have a blast and meet as many people as I can along the way. I’m Chasing Extraordinary! Since … well ever since I can remember, I’ve been into moving my body, pushing, training, looking after and loving my body.  I started ballet at the tender age of 4 and it’s been all sorts of incarnations of fitness since then.
 
My love, my passion, my sanity is now adventure running.  It’s the wonderment of where can my feet take me, who I’ll meet, and how I can help along the way.
 
My goal is to share my knowledge, experience, adventures and love along the way through my writing, speaking, and social media’ing.
 
I choose to live through these 3 filters … LOVE.  FUN.  ADVENTURE.
 
Past Adventures
 
2018 – Run Around Ireland – 750 miles in 32 days
2018 – DesertUltra
2018 – Runcation around Malta and Gozo
2017 – 63 marathons in 63 days throughout the UK
2016 – JungleUltra – Peru
2010 – 7 marathons in 7 days
2002, 2007, 2010 – London Marathon
 
Listen to Nikki on the Tough Girl Podcast! New episodes every Tuesday at 7am UK time. Enjoy!
 
Show notes
  • Being an Adventure Runner
  • Doing lots of different sports when she was little
  • Getting into running
  • Growing up in Australia before moving to the UK
  • Why it all changed at 30
  • Dealing with a marathon DNF at 19 miles
  • Running the London Marathon in 2002
  • Having a new baby and how it impacted on running
  • Running 7 marathons in 7 days
  • Listening to the wrong people
  • Maybe that was the limit?
  • The motivation of having a big birthday
  • Not being supported 
  • Having a gap of 6 years with no adventure
  • Figuring out priorities 
  • Becoming a sports massage therapist
  • Working as a running coach
  • Turning 49 years young…
  • Taking on the Judge Ultra in Peru
  • Coming up with the ideas for 63 marathons in 63 days
  • Breaking her leg…
  • Taking 12 months to recover 
  • Developing strategies to develop mental strength and resilience
  • What if you do - What if you don’t
  • The reason Why - What it came down to…
  • Wanting to strive for the next level
  • Perspective on failure
  • Running 63 marathons in 63 days - the logistics and how it worked
  • Focusing on the distance and not the speed
  • Learning more about her body
  • Being peri-menopausal
  • The dream to run across Australia
  • The logistics and funding of the challenge
  • Deciding on a new physical challenge
  • Treadmill Oz - 2,500 miles in 63 days
  • Treadmill strategy for running
  • Having a support team around 
  • Figuring out how to make it work while on the treadmill
  • Chasing Extraordinary 
 
Social Media
 
Website - https://nikkilove.co.uk 
 
Instagram @nikkiloveruns 
 
Twitter @nikkiloveruns
Jul 28, 2020
Jana was born in Russia, and her parents moved to the U.S. when she was 12. Her first experiences with hiking was heading out with her parents to New Hampshire. After college she moving to New York City and started to make some big changes to her lifestyle, and wanted to see what her body could do. 
 
She started by getting back into running, and was hiking every weekend, sometimes twice a weekend, and that's when she decided to become a guide with Discover Outdoors as a personal "passion project." 
 
In 2019, Discover Outdoors asked her if she would be interested in working for them on the business side. So Jana left her paralegal job at a big-law NYC firm and started as the Northeast Regional Manager. During that year she kept pushing herself in the outdoors and on August 9th, 2019 she submitted the Matterhorn!
 
Jana has recently started Adventure Untamed, an adventure travel company, she shares more about her motivations and why she has made this decision during Covid -19.
 
You can listen to Jana on the Tough Girl Podcast - new episodes are every Tuesday at 7am UK time, make sure you hit that subscribe button so you don’t miss out. 
 
Show notes
  • Who is Jana, what she does and what she loves
  • Getting into fitness, running and spending time outdoors
  • Making a change in her career
  • Starting a travel company during the pandemic
  • The importance of the culture and the people 
  • Dealing with change
  • Growing up in Russia and moving to the USA at 12 years old
  • Being excited about new adventures and new experiences
  • The learning curve of hiking
  • How her passion/hobby for guiding evolved
  • Getting into running
  • Having a terrible fear of heights
  • Dealing with the fear of failure 
  • Making the transition from a 9-5 job to guiding 
  • Deciding to climb the Matterhorn 
  • The challenges of climbing the mountain and overcoming obstacles 
  • Dealing with feelings of doubt
  • Leaving at 4.08am to start the climb
  • Taking it one step at a time
  • Starting Adventure Untamed during a pandemic!
  • Dreams and plans for the future
  • Final words of advice to get more adventure in your life
 
Social Media
 
Adventure Untamed - Explore the wild. Escape your comfort zone.
Northeast day and multi-day outdoor trips departing from NYC.
 
Website - https://www.adventureuntamed.com 
 
Instagram @adventure_untamed
 
Facebook @adventureuntamed
Jul 23, 2020
Anoushé works as a civil servant, and also writes, speaks and campaigns to encourage people that sport can be done by everyone, regardless of physical capabilities. Anoushé was born missing her right arm below the elbow, has survived cancer, and lives with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome.
 
Anoushé continues to be a role model and is an ambassador for ‘LimbPower’, the leading amputee and limb different charity, and for ‘Ehlers Danlos Support UK’. Anoushé has helped to encourage more women and girls to get into climbing by sharing her story through, ‘This Girl Can Climb’ campaign. Last year Anoushé decided she wanted to do more and helped to co-found ‘Paraclimbing London’, an initiative to make climbing more accessible for people of all abilities and backgrounds, they currently have over 160 members of all abilities. 
 
Anoushé continues to works with ‘Grit&Rock’, a foundation which aims to get girls from socially deprived backgrounds empowered through climbing. During this podcast, we catch up with Anoushé and find out what she’s been up to since we last spoke with her in October 2017.
 
You can listen to Anoushé on the Tough Girl Podcast and Tough Girl Podcast Extra. New episodes are every Tuesday at 7am UK time. 
 
Make sure you hit that subscribe button so you don’t miss out.
 
Show notes
  • Finding out more about Anoushé Husain
  • Dealing with multiple health conditions 
  • How Covid has impacted on her life
  • Focusing on what she can control
  • Making sure that she is ok
  • Having to social distance to the extreme
  • Looking for the positives in the situation
  • Dealing with a knee dislocation and having mobility problems
  • The importance of climbing on a regular basis
  • Training for a secret special project!
  • Maintaining a positive focus and overcoming obstacles
  • Getting outside for a short walk 
  • Meeting her fiancé and getting married
  • Reflecting back on 2018 and outdoor climbing!
  • Making a short film - If I Can
  • The difference and challenges of climbing outside
  • Ranking 3rd in the UK for her category
  • Reflecting back on the past 3 years and changes to climbing
  • Para Climbing London
  • Blok Fest
  • Feeling the pressure to perform when climbing
  • Dreams and ambitions for the future
  • Wanting to cater for more people with mental health conditions
  • Why it's ok to climb in a three
  • Plans for 2020
  • Quick Fire Questions
 
Social Media
 
 
Instagram @anoushehusain
 

 

Jul 21, 2020
Michelle Griffith-Robinson OLY is a former Olympic athlete who represented Great Britain in the Triple jump.  Michelle was the first woman in the UK to have jumped over 14 metres. Michelle is married to Matthew Robinson, an ex professional Welsh rugby player and she has three children.
 
In 1999 after leaving professional sport, Michelle became qualified as a personal trainer and stated to follow her passions of helping others through coaching and mentoring her own clients. Michelle is also one of the lead mentors for the Dame Kelly Holmes Trust – which helps young people get their lives back on track.   
 
During this podcast, Michelle shares more about her early years, her passion for sports, the importance of having role models and what life was like as a professional athlete before making the transition out of elite competition. Michelle provides top tips and advice to help you achieve your dreams and goals. 
 
New episodes of the Tough Girl Podcast go Live every Tuesday at 7am UK time! 
Make sure you subscribe so you don’t miss out! 
 
Show notes
  • Who is Michelle
  • Having 3 older brothers
  • Coming from a sporty family
  • Why doing just sport, wasn’t something you just did
  • The importance of education
  • Dreaming of a career in sports…
  • Attending the Youth Olympics
  • The importance of female role models
  • The importance of working hard and doing your best
  • Being encouraged and supported by her mum
  • Joining a local running club
  • Being the first woman in the Commonwealth to jump over 14m
  • What it was like going to the Commonwealth Games
  • The pressure of performance in the sporting world
  • Needing a support team
  • What it was like being a professional athlete
  • The power of being supported 
  • Deciding to leave university
  • Dealing with financial stress
  • Pensions, houses and sponsorship money
  • Being dropped by the National Lottery
  • Deciding to become a Personal Trainer
  • Building a new career 
  • Developing new skills
  • What exercise looks like now
  • A new Youtube channel - The Fit Family Robinsons!
  • Being an Ambassador for Diabetes UK
  • Needing to make changes to her diet
  • Wanting to raise awareness and make a difference
  • Diet and nutrition (one size does not fit all)
  • Starting as a mentor at the Youth Sport Trust 2009
  • Working for the Dame Kelly Holmes Trust in 2012
  • Words of positivity and encouragement
  • The importance of having a plan 
  • Measure your plan 
  • SMART - Specific - Measurable - Achievable - Realistic - Time Bound
  • Meeting her husband
  • Quick Fire Questions
 
Social Media
 
Instagram @michellegriffithrobinson 
 
Twitter @RobinsonOly
Jul 14, 2020
Selene Yeager is a top-selling professional health and fitness writer who lives what she writes as a NASM certified personal trainer, USA Cycling certified coach, Pn1 certified nutrition coach, pro licensed off road racer, and All-American Ironman triathlete.
 
Selene has written, co-written, and contributed to more than two dozen books such as ROAR, Bike Your Butt Off!, and Get Fast! She is a frequent contributor to Runner’s World, Women’s Health, and Shape magazines, and has a regular advice column for Bicycling magazine called “Fit Chick.” 
 
During this podcast we learn more about Selene’s early life, how she got into cycling and writing. We discuss the challenges of training for an Ironman and her top tips for mental resilience and balancing everything you have going on in your life. Selene also answers some quick fire questions and provides top tips and advice to motivate and inspire you. 
 
You can listen to the Tough Girl Podcast on iTunes, Spotify & Soundcloud! New episodes every Tuesday 7am UK time! 
 
Show notes
  • About Selene
  • Early family life
  • Loving to ride her bike everywhere
  • Not having female role models growing up
  • Leaving high school and going to college and not playing sport
  • Studying and partying
  • Getting into publishing and writing
  • Being surrounded by incredible people
  • Transition into an Ironman
  • 16 weeks to Ironman….
  • Hiring a swim coach & an ironman coach…
  • “The year I did everything right”
  • Not loving competition
  • Being goal orientated and liking challenges
  • Dealing with set backs
  • Being single minded
  • Balancing family, marriage, and training
  • 2015 - starting to race independently 
  • Moving into gravel racing 
  • Mental resilience and focus
  • Being a co-author on the book ROAR
  • Meeting Dr. Stacey Sims
  • Tracking periods
  • What a typical week looks like now
  • Doing weights and yoga
  • Diet and nutrition 
  • Life as an author and writing books about cycling and bikes
  • Racing with Rebecca Rush in Brazil
  • Dealing with frustrations via communication 
  • Quick Fire Questions
 
Social Media
 
Website - https://www.seleneyeager.com 
 
Instagram @FitChick3
 
Facebook @FitChickSeleneYeager
 
Twitter @FitChick3
Jul 9, 2020
Paula is an adventurer, speaker and author, but, most of all, she’s a trier. For thirty years Paula suffered crippling anxiety, panic attacks and depression that would eventually rob her of even the most basic freedoms. After decades of medication and intervention, adventure became Paula’s personal therapy in 2012, when she became Paula Must Try Harder, trying the 17 Commonwealth sports, facing her fears head on and fighting her way back into the world. 
 
Ever since, Paula has terrified herself daily in the name of recovery, and now spends all that nervous energy writing and speaking about the importance of allowing a little fear into each day. From flying a plane and wing-walking to becoming a triathlete when she couldn’t actually swim, Paula’s adventures demonstrate that even the most ordinary person can do extraordinary things when they give that little bit extra.
 
Paula is currently trying something new every day in 2020. 
 
Take a listen to Paula on the Tough Girl Podcast Extra!
 
Show notes
  • Who is Paula
  • What she had done
  • Dream Jobs Challenge
  • Becoming an everyday adventurer 
  • Being terrified of failure 
  • Walking away from the Big Mad Swim around Great Britain 
  • Dealing with post adventure blues
  • The Year of Fear
  • Becoming a different person
  • The process of dealing with loss
  • TedX Talks
  • Writing a list of all her fears
  • Having a support team 
  • Adventure as a full time job
  • Writing her second book
  • Trying something new everyday 
  • The start of 2020
  • Starting with a beach clean
  • Trying to fit in the adventures/challenges around everyday life
  • Feeling exhausted in the first two weeks
  • Having a purpose
  • Dealing with Covid 
  • Knowing her trigger points and keeping herself well
  • Therapist?
  • Getting use to the new ‘normal’
  • Quick Fire Questions
 
Social Media
 
Website http://www.paulamusttryharder.co.uk 
 
Facebook @pmusttryharder 
 
Instagram @pmusttryharder
 
Twitter @pmusttryharder
 
Youtube  @paulamusttryharder
 
Jul 7, 2020
Sabrina a 42 year young mum of 4 and grandmother of 2, comes on the Tough Girl Podcast to share more about her early life, dealing with racism from a young age, suffering from anxiety and post natal depression after her first child at 18.
 
Sabrina, shares more about her reasons for wanting to take on the Marathon des Sables, a challenging 250km, multi-day ultra race across the Sahara desert. 
 
Sabrina goes into detail about planning and preparation, making the commitment to the race, dealing with anxiety during training and takes us back to the emotional moment of crossing the finish line and achieving her goal. 
 
Sabrina also shares more on the challenges of being a mixed race woman, racialized as Black, living in a rural community and why diversifying the outdoors, and specifically the ultra running community, is so important.
 
Show notes
  • Who is Sabrina
  • Growing up in Stroud
  • Not growing up sporty
  • Putting on 4 stone while pregnant
  • Getting into the gym after her first child
  • Suffering with post natal depression 
  • How exercise helped
  • Depression and anxiety 
  • Her goal to help 1 Million people to use their anxiety to accomplish
  • Discovering the Marathon des Sables
  • Creating a 10 step program for herself to help achieve a life changing goal 
  • Celebrating her 40th birthday!!
  • Becoming very focused on her goal
  • Developing personal strategies to help manage her anxiety
  • The power of research 
  • Being coached by Elisabet Barnes (Winner of MDS 2015 & 2017)
  • Getting focused and immersed in what you want to do
  • Committing to the challenge & paying money
  • Having a good support network in place
  • Choosing who is part of the inner circle
  • Anxiety and mental resilience 
  • Feeling uncomfortable in her own skin
  • Training to run in sand
  • What finishing the race was like
  • Adventure blues
  • The importance of having focus
  • Rural racism and Black lives matter
  • Diversifying the outdoors
 
Social Media
 
Instagram @sabrunsmiles
Jul 2, 2020
We have been following Jessica (Trail name - Dixie) since 2016 when we first spoke with her about her thru hike of the Appalachian Trial, we then caught up with Jessica in Feb 2019, when she shared more about hiking the Pacific Crest Trail and the Continental Divide Trail. 
 
During this episode, Jessica shares more about her most recent challenge - walking 500 miles on the Camino de Santiago, which is also known as the French Way. The journey begins at Saint Jean Pied de Port, in France, and goes through four of Spain's 15 regions, ending at the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela.
 
Jessica shares more about her experiences of this walk, what she wanted to learn and what made it such a special journey. She also shares more about future challenges, and provides top tips and advice for your next hike!
 
You can listen to Jessica/Dixie on the Tough Girl Podcast and watch her vlogs on the Homemade Wanderlust Channel.
 
Show notes
  • Who is Jessica
  • How she got into hiking
  • Her passion for hiking 
  • Wanting to travel abroad to hike
  • Thinking about the Camino
  • Hiking with her sister - Montana
  • Getting her first passport at 30
  • Planning to head over to Europe
  • Preparation for the trip
  • Not wanting to over research
  • Not booking a return flight
  • The Wine Fountain!
  • Taking the time to think
  • The culture shock of Paris
  • Getting homesick
  • Ketchup!!
  • Comparing thru hikes in America to the Camino
  • Hiking Vs a pilgrimage
  • Appreciating home more
  • Stepping outside her comfort zone
  • Heading over to New Zealand in October…
  • Homemade Wanderlust Youtube Channel
  • Reaching Santiago!
  • Heading to “the end of the world!”
  • Heading off to Italy after the walk
  • Quick Fire Questions
  • Final words of advice 
 
Social Media
 
Website - https://homemadewanderlust.com 
 
Facebook @homemadewanderlust
 
Instagram @homemadewanderlust
 
Youtube - Homemade Wanderlust
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