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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: December, 2020
Dec 31, 2020
“Road To 50 Miles” chronicles the journey of two women as they train for and run a 50-mile race, an ultramarathon.  Their journey leads them on a discovery to find their true heroes and inspires an entire community to help them get across the finish line. 
 
Trailer here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUMZYK0Y_vU
 
Kara Wilson in her own words:
 
As a child I was always one of the fastest in the class. I was tall and skinny and though awkward I was light and could fly confidently quicker than most on the field or the track. Running wasn’t a chore back then.
If I would get a pair of fresh sneakers I would want to see how fast and far they could take me the minute I fastened them to my feet. It wasn’t until I hit puberty that I started to slow down a bit and running soon became a bore. I didn’t need to run to lose weight and I didn’t quite understand why anyone would want to run  longer than once around a track. As time passed by I just grew completely disinterested in it. It wasn’t until I moved to England at 38 that it became a thing. I currently find myself running. Running here and there and everywhere for everyone but most importantly running for myself.
 
Jen McMahon in her own words: 
 
I remember distinctly when I was on the cheer squad in high school, we had to run 1 mile as a warm up everyday before practice.  I would basically do whatever I could to avoid the mile or cut it short or just complain through the whole thing.  It never occurred to me that I could actually do this for fun. 
I’m not really sure where the motivation came from, but when I was about 26 and about to get married, I decided I wanted to run a marathon.  I had NO race experience and I just decided to start training (just barely).  A couple friends of mine and my husband (fiancee at the time) start running all around Huntington Beach to prepare. We ran our first marathon, the Rock ‘n Roll San Diego that June and I have been running in some way or another ever since.  After having kids I stopped doing marathons and half marathons decided to focus more on 5ks, 10ks and sprint triathlons. Then one day, Kara said, “Hey, you wanna run an ultramarathon with me?” It had never occurred to me to run a distance like this before and I didn’t want to let the opportunity pass me by, so here I am!
 
 
New episodes of the Tough Girl Podcast go live every Tuesday and Thursday at 7am UK time - Make sure you hit the subscribe button so you don’t miss out. 
 
The tough girl podcast is sponsorship and ad free thanks to the monthly financial support of patrons. To find out more about supporting your favourite podcast and becoming a patron please check out www.patreon.com/toughgirlpodcast.
 
Show notes
  • Meeting Kara and Jen
  • The idea to run 50 miles
  • Having the conversation about running 50 miles
  • Panic…
  • Running a lot but not running longer distances
  • Buying the book - 
  • Following a training plan
  • Starting from being able to run a half marathon
  • Not training together 
  • Holding each other accountable
  • Getting the long runs in
  • Getting the idea to film and document the 50 mile journey
  • Dealing with pressure
  • Challenges during training
  • American River 50 Endurance Race 
  • Running together and the race strategy
  • The strengths that each other bring to the team
  • The feelings on the start line
  • The best mile and the worst mile
  • The finish line
  • Would they consider doing a 100 mile race!!
  • What they would improve on
  • Using Kickstarter to fund the movie/documentary
  • Top tips for running an ultra
  • Final words of advice 
 
Social Media
 
Website - https://roadto50miles.wordpress.com
 
Instagram @ultratrainingwheels
 
Dec 29, 2020
Alison Walker is a U.K. based Malaysian ultra runner who started running ultras in 2019. 
 
Alison holds several fastest Malaysian ultra times and has most recently the first person to complete the Smog Graham Round. 
 
Over lockdown, she had also completed 4 other FKTs from 18 miles to 120km.
 
New episodes of the Tough Girl Podcast go live every Tuesday and Thursday at 7am UK time - Make sure you hit the subscribe button so you don’t miss out. 
 
The tough girl podcast is sponsorship and ad free thanks to the monthly financial support of patrons. To find out more about supporting your favourite podcast and becoming a patron please check out www.patreon.com/toughgirlpodcast.
 
Show notes
  • Who is Alison
  • Growing up in Malaysia and going to school in Singapore 
  • Not being into sports or exercise when she was younger
  • moving over to the UK to attend university
  • Getting into running for the first time 
  • How her running increased 
  • 2015 moving to East London
  • Running with a group called - Run Fast 
  • Starting with a running coach in late 2018
  • Being coached by Peter McHugh 
  • Recovering from an ankle injury 
  • Book - Running Up That Hill: The highs and lows of going that bit further - By Vassos Alexander
  • Wanting to qualify for the 153-mile Spartathlon Race 
  • Wanting to run 100 miles in under 22 hrs
  • The importance of finding the right coach for you
  • Running 100 miles and the importance of breaking down the challenge
  • Being a fan of loop courses and repetition
  • Starting to think more about kit and starting to invest in better quality gear
  • The mental side of running ultras
  • Not running with music
  • What a typical week looks like in training
  • Not having a rest day…
  • Listening to her body
  • Needing a McDonalds after a race!
  • Sleeping, massage and stretching
  • What the Smog Graham Round in London is
  • Starting at her flat in London
  • The challenges of navigation
  • The wildlife in London - cows & horses!
  • Starting off at 5am
  • The biggest challenge on the Smog Graham Round
  • Doing Fastest Known Times (FKTs)
  • The challenges of arranging the logistics of FKTs
  • The plan for running the Spartathlon Race
  • Final words of advice for women who want to get into ultra running
 
Social Media
 
Blog - runandcake.wordpress.com 
 
Instagram - @_alisonwalker_ 
 
 
Dec 24, 2020
Gillian Larson and her equine partners have accomplished numerous long distance solo rides on remote wilderness trails in the U.S. Together they have traveled from Mexico to Canada three times: twice on the Pacific Crest Trail (2014 and 2016) and most recently on the Continental Divide Trail (2018). 
 
Gillian has also completed the Arizona Trail and the Colorado Trail in 2017 and rode from the Grand Canyon across Utah to Wyoming in 2019. 
 
Since embarking on her first thru-ride at age 22, Gillian’s main goal has been to learn how to mitigate the many challenges of wilderness riding through proper planning and preparation, and to share this information to help others safely explore backcountry trails on horseback.
 
New episodes of the Tough Girl Podcast go live every Tuesday and Thursday at 7am UK time - Make sure you hit the subscribe button so you don’t miss out. 
 
The tough girl podcast is sponsorship and ad free thanks to the monthly financial support of patrons. To find out more about supporting your favourite podcast and becoming a patron please check out www.patreon.com/toughgirlpodcast
 
 
Show notes
  • Growing up in a horsey family
  • Leaning to ride on a shetland pony
  • Her passion for reptiles
  • Going on her first overnight with the horses
  • Going on the Pacific Crest Trail as her first challenge
  • Why the PCT?
  • Studying biology and going to grad school fro ecology and evolution with a focus on reptiles
  • How to thru-ride with horses
  • The logistics of the challenge
  • Why its so hard to thru-ride the PCT
  • The costs involved 
  • 2 trucks and 2 trailers
  • Having to wait for the snow to melt
  • Figuring out the resupply and keeping your horse well fed
  • Why horses need quantity of food and not just quality
  • To have a dedicated support person who drives the truck and meet you on the trail
  • Why June is such an important month on the thru-ride
  • Dealing with the wildlife on the trail
  • Her horses - Shyla and Dakota 
  • Learning her craft
  • The difference between hiking and riding 
  • Making sure you get the right saddle
  • Relaxing ? 
  • Averaging about 25 miles per day with 2 days off per week for the horses
  • Magical moments on the trail
  • Loving camp life
  • Snuggling with the horses?
  • How horses sleep
  • Earning a living
  • Being an egg donor to fund her lifestyle 
  • Turning 29 and going back to grad school
  • The dream list of thru-riding
  • Final words of advice
 
Social Media
 
Websites 
 
www.gillianlarson.net 
www.pacificcrestquest.org
 
Instagram @thru_rider
Dec 22, 2020
Megan is a runner, writer and adventurer from Manchester, UK. 
 
Megan in her own words:
 
“I’m a relentless optimist who always tries to say yes to living life to the fullest. I was born hearing impaired, I am completely deaf in my left ear and partially hearing impaired in my right ear.
 
In 2018, during one of the hottest heatwaves Britain has ever had, I ran from John O’Groats to Land’s End completely unsupported, becoming the youngest woman to do so. I covered around 1000 miles in 40 days and I’m now writing a book about it. 
 
I believe in being good and kind, I believe in saying yes and I believe in the power of positivity.”
 
New episodes of the Tough Girl Podcast go live every Tuesday and Thursday at 7am UK time - Make sure you hit the subscribe button so you don’t miss out. 
 
The tough girl podcast is sponsorship and ad free thanks to the monthly financial support of patrons. To find out more about supporting your favourite podcast and becoming a patron please check out www.patreon.com/toughgirlpodcast.
 
*Please note during this episode we do talk about mental health, trauma, & PTSD. 
 
Show notes
  • Moving to the Peak District, UK
  • Growing up in Manchester
  • Not really being that into sports at school
  • Going to University in Wales
  • Falling in love with the outdoors
  • Stepping outside her comfort zone
  • Getting to know new people
  • Getting into running
  • Signing up for the Manchester 10 Km
  • Suffering a bad ankle injury 
  • Going through a difficult break-up
  • Getting back into running after university
  • Signing up to the Chester half marathon and the Manchester Marathon
  • Loving running and deciding to run across the country
  • Enjoying the process of running
  • Deciding to run from John O’Groats to Lands End - the length of the UK
  • The strategy for the run and wanting to camp at the start
  • Figuring out the accommodation for the route
  • Wanting to follow trails and try to avoid the roads as much as possible
  • Feeling excited during the planning stage 
  • When reality for the challenge hit and starting to feel overwhelmed
  • Reaction from friends and family
  • Being hearing impaired and not being able to hear out of her left ear 
  • Fears and concerns before the run
  • Being focused and dedicated to the challenge
  • The start line! The top of the UK at John O’Groats
  • Running with a hearing impairment 
  • The physical, mental and emotional challenges of the run
  • Dealing with her period on the run
  • The challenges of doing it solo and being alone
  • A challenging day down in Cornwall
  • Keeping the motivation going during dark times
  • Letting things go and staying in the present
  • Managing her period during the challenge
  • The financial costs involved 
  • How the run has changed things afterwards
  • Dealing with trauma and an iron deficiency
  • Writing about the challenge and the struggles involved
  • Final words of advice 
 
Dec 17, 2020
Charlotte Fowles - also known as The Executive Adventurer - helps corporate leaders who are frustrated, lost or bored to rediscover their purpose, passion and fun without sacrificing their current success. She is an author and public speaker.
 
Always one to practice what she preaches, she has spent a lot of her life pushing herself way outside her comfort zone in pursuits such as free-diving and scuba diving; marathon running; solo-hiking whilst on chemotherapy; and crossing the Australian outback for months in an ancient 4x4 truck. After enduring over a decade of significant personal trauma, she is an expert in resilience and creating triumph from tragedy and living life in spite of this, and she brings this epic resilience to her coaching. She is passionate about mental wellness and the outdoors and is fascinated by the combinations of these elements that can bring about incredible change.
 
It is this unapologetic energy and relentless pursuit of her clients' complete success that gets results. She knows that as long as you're willing to step outside that comfort zone where you've been feeling so restless, the world that you want to create is all yours.
 
New episodes of the Tough Girl Podcast go live every Tuesday and Thursday at 7am UK time - Make sure you hit the subscribe button so you don’t miss out. 
 
The tough girl podcast is sponsorship and ad free thanks to the monthly financial support of patrons. To find out more about supporting your favourite podcast and becoming a patron please check out www.patreon.com/toughgirlpodcast
 
Show notes
  • Who is Charlotte
  • What life was like growing up
  • Getting into the outdoors in her mid to late 20s
  • Moving to Australia
  • Getting into scuba diving and loving it
  • Getting into coaching 
  • Why she’s called the Executive Adventurer 
  • But..
  • What next?
  • Book - Playing Big
  • Wanting to live and work in a different country
  • Exploring the outback in Australia in a 4x4
  • Leaning new skills
  • Magical moments in the outback
  • Falling in love with the outdoors 
  • Getting away from people
  • Wanting to challenge herself 
  • Being inspired by Bex Band - Love Her Wild 
  • Leaning how to camp in the cold
  • Doing her first winter bivvy in the UK
  • Getting into cold water swimming and loving it!!
  • Building resilience for when things are good
  • FREE 'Strategies for Building, Increasing, and Staying Resilient' guide 
  • Dealing with a lot of personal challenges, all at the same time.
  • Wanting to celebrate what our bodies can do
  • Breaking her leg in two places and having to learn how to walk again
  • Going into therapy for depression
  • Diagnosed with Stage 3B skin cancer in 2019
  • Focusing on the CAN
  • Deciding to go on a solo hiking adventure
  • Confidence is a result not a requirement
  • Blistered and bleeding feet
  • Hiking the Trans Catalonia Trail 
  • The Biggest Book of Yes 
  • To keep moving forward 
  • Being a positive person and working on it
  • #RealAdventureSelfies
  • Having to get on with it
  • Not having a choice
  • Dealing with false summits
  • Advice and top tips about taking the first step
 
 
Social Media
 
Website www.charlottefowles.com 
 
Instagram @FOWLES.CHARLOTTE
 
 
Dec 15, 2020
Marinel de Jesus was a former human rights lawyer from Washington, DC.  In 2016, she founded her social enterprise, Peak Explorations, and media site, Brown Gal Trekker. Both entities aim to create equity and inclusion in the outdoor and travel spaces. 
 
In 2019, she launched the nonprofit organization, The Porter Voice Collective, which utilizes media to advocate for the rights of porters in the trekking industries of Peru, Nepal and Tanzania. 
 
Marinel is also a writer who focuses on stories that elevate the voices of women, people of colour and immigrants. 
 
She has recently discovered filmmaking as a means of advocacy for social changes and completed her first film project, We Are Nomads, in Mongolia where she currently stays as a result of the pandemic. 
 
Marinel is an avid trekker and a full-time global mountain nomad.
 
 
New episodes of the Tough Girl Podcast go live every Tuesday and Thursday at 7am UK time - Make sure you hit the subscribe button so you don’t miss out. 
 
The tough girl podcast is sponsorship and ad free thanks to the monthly financial support of patrons. To find out more about supporting your favourite podcast and becoming a patron please check out www.patreon.com/toughgirlpodcast.
 
 
Show notes
  • What Marinel does
  • Being born and raised in the Philippines
  • Getting into hiking due to having a stressful job
  • Joining a meet up group to go hiking
  • Giving hiking a second time
  • Starting to lead treks around the world
  • Speaking to us from Mongolia due to Covid
  • Thinking about making the transition from a lawyer to a hiker
  • How can you make a career out of hiking?
  • Taking a year long sabbatical from work
  • Making the decision to sell her house
  • Becoming a minimalist 
  • Not having the confidence to start her own company 
  • How the website and blog evolved 
  • Losing her mum in 2017 and leaving law 
  • What Peak Exploration is and does
  • Educating people through the blog - Brown Girl Trekker 
  • Becoming a global mountain nomad
  • Being inspired by being in the mountains 
  • Working and running her business from Mongolia
  • Focusing on writing 
  • From a lawyer to a mountain nomad podcast
  • Advice for making the transition from a full time career to digital nomad
  • Having thinking time outdoors
  • Advice for women who want to travel solo
  • The power of taking small steps
  • The preparation and planning for a trip
  • Film project - ‘Don’t date a girl who treks’ and ‘We are Nomads’
  • Final words of advice 
 
Social Media
 
Websites:
www.browngaltrekker.com 
www.peakexplorations.com 
www.theportervoicecollective.org
 
Facebook: @bgtpeakexplorations 
Instagram: @browngaltrekker
 
Dec 10, 2020
As a 4x Winter Olympian, a career high ranking of 8th in the World, 7x British National Overall Champion and the only British female skier to ever win a run in a World Cup, Chemmy Alcott is widely regarded as one of Britain’s greatest ever skiers.
 
In a time where competing at a Winter Olympics was unusual for a British athlete, Chemmy defied the odds and pioneered a skiing movement that has inspired a generation. Resulting in not just skiers, but British Winter Sport athletes as a whole seeing the Winter Olympics as a realistic and achievable goal.
 
Since retiring from competing on the world stage after The Sochi Olympics in 2014, Chemmy has immersed herself in the world of TV & media, where she now presents for the BBC on Ski Sunday and commentates on the World Cup Ski Series for Eurosport amongst being a guest on many other show.
 
Chemmy continues to constantly push her body to the limit, competing in multiple physical challenges including the World’s Toughest Ski Race in Greenland, the 100-mile road race in London and climbing Mt Kilimanjaro, raising over £800,000 for charity in the process.
 
Chemmy is committed to inspiring the next generation and educating people from all over the world through sport. Most notably, she created the ‘X-Elle’ scheme, which aims to develop girl’s confidence through sports she helps give them the confidence to create big dreams and do everything humanly possible to achieve them.
 
New episodes of the Tough Girl Podcast go live every Tuesday and Thursday at 7am UK time - Make sure you hit the subscribe button so you don’t miss out. 
 
The tough girl podcast is sponsorship and ad free thanks to the monthly financial support of patrons. To find out more about supporting your favourite podcast and becoming a patron please check out www.patreon.com/toughgirlpodcast
 
 
Show notes
  • Who is Chemmy
  • Growing up in a ski mad family
  • Being inspired by her older brother
  • Starting to ski at 18 months old and doing her first race at 3 yrs
  • The fear of falling over
  • Loving tennis and skiing
  • Going to her first big event at 11 years old and winning
  • Education and skiing
  • Spending the summer months in New Zealand
  • Female role models in skiing
  • Wanting to be a speed skier
  • Meeting and racing against her idol
  • Breaking her neck in a ski accident…
  • Having a fused neck and having to travel with an x-ray
  • Fear of failure and the fear of letting people down
  • Learning to control her mind and finding a way to help herself
  • Only being able to ski at 80%
  • Winning her run in the world cup
  • What’s going through her head at the start of the race
  • Trying to replicate training runs more
  • Learning to stay in the present moment
  • Funding your life as an Olympian
  • Not getting any support from the government
  • Having to back yourself and be confident
  • Recovering from injury 
  • Having tiny daily goals
  • Doing the Words Toughest Ski Race in Greenland
  • Getting into endurance sports
  • Making the brutal decision to retire from professional sport
  • Dreaming of becoming a presenter on ski Sunday
  • Wanting to become a mum
  • How life has changed having 2 children
  • Taking the children out skiing
  • Skiing in a chilled way….
  • Using sport to help improve confidence
  • Keeping fit and active now
  • Quick Fire Questions
 
 
Social Media
 
Website www.chemmyalcott.com 
 
Facebook  @Chemmy-Alcott
 
Instagram @chemmyski 
 
Twitter @chemmyski
 
 
 
Dec 8, 2020
Namira Salim, a Space Diplomat, Future Astronaut, Pioneering Polar Explorer and Artist, is a prominent Pakistani based in the Principality of Monaco since 1997. She is well renowned as the First South Asian and First person from Monaco to go to space aboard Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic –the first private space-line of the world.
 
In March 2006, Sir Richard Branson, Chairman Virgin Group, personally introduced Namira to the world press as one of the earliest Founders and Future Astronauts of Virgin Galactic. As an example of early consumer confidence, Namira’s membership landed Virgin its biggest investor from Abu Dhabi, worth US$380 million. In August 2006, the Government of Pakistan, officially launched Namira to the nation as the “First Pakistani Astronaut” making her an instant source of inspiration for women and youth. In October 2007, she successfully qualified to go to space after completing her spaceflight training at the worlds largest centrifuge in the United States.
 
Namira became the first Pakistani and first woman from Monaco and Dubai (where her parents moved in 1981), at the North Pole in April 2007 and the South Pole in January 2008, as well as the first Asian to skydive (tandem) over Mount Everest (third pole) in October 2008. At all three poles, she hoisted the Pakistani and a universal peace flag.
 
In November 2015, Namira launched her non-profit organization, Space Trust to promote Space as the New Frontier for Peace. Since then she has engaged ten governments and five former and sitting Heads of State to advocate Space as a sustainable tool for peacemaking on Earth on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York.
 
New episodes of the Tough Girl Podcast go live every Tuesday and Thursday at 7am UK time - Make sure you hit the subscribe button so you don’t miss out. 
 
The tough girl podcast is sponsorship and ad free thanks to the monthly financial support of patrons. To find out more about supporting your favourite podcast and becoming a patron please check out www.patreon.com/toughgirlpodcast
 
 
Show notes
  • Growing up in Pakistan 
  • Her dream of going into space
  • Being inspired by NASA
  • Keeping her motivation of going to space
  • Not being the person to pursue science education
  • Falling in love with the stars
  • Moving to the South of France and wanting to live in solitude
  • Writing poetry and spending time being creative
  • Calling Virgin Galactic
  • Paying $200,000 for a seat as a founder Astronaut  
  • Being part of the global press launch
  • Being launched as the first Pakistan Astronaut
  • The importance of dreams
  • Doing astronaut training in 2007
  • Taking sub orbital flights 
  • Why it’s not as challenging on the body
  • Taking on the poles and sky diving over Mt. Everest 
  • The challenges of sky diving over Mt. Everest - October 2008
  • Waiting for the prefect weather window
  • The power of believing in herself
  • The highest drop zone in the world 
  • Free falling during sky diving at 153mph
  • Managing risk
  • Believing in fate, destiny and God.
  • Being a Space Diplomat
  • Space as a new frontier for peace
  • Visiting the North Pole and dealing with the cold
  • Spending 3 weeks in the South Pole
  • Peace Expeditions and inspiring women and youth around the world
  • Space Trust 
  • Space Diplomacy 
  • O G Summit 2030
  • Current project
  • Funding projects and expeditions
  • Why Space can help with climate change
  • Final words of advice 
 
Social Media
 
Websites 
 
Personal - www.namirasalim.com 
Space Trust - www.spacetrust.com
 
Twitter @namirasalim 
 
Instagram @namirasalimofficial 
 
Facebook @namirasalimofficial
 
Dec 3, 2020
Jean Muenchrath's passion for hiking, skiing and exploring wild places began as a child in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. In 1982 she skied 223 miles along California’s John Muir Trail using skinny Nordic skis without metal edges. Her strength, courage and determination helped her survive a near fatal mountaineering accident on Mount Whitney, the highest peak in the continental United States, and a five-day epic to self-evacuate.
 
Her love for nature and travel has take her to South America and Asia. Jean has worked as a trekking guide in Nepal and Thailand and as a consultant in Bhutan with the World Wildlife Fund. She was a park ranger with the U.S. National Park Service for over thirty years. 
 
Today she gives inspirational talks about pursuing one's dreams, outdoor adventures and what she’s learned from her tragedy. Through sharing her story, she hopes to give others the strength and courage to transform their own life’s challenges and the moxie to follow their dreams.
 
Her book, If I Live Until Morning, A True Story of Adventure, Tragedy and Transformation, was a finalist in the 2018 Best Book Awards in the Travel: Guides & Essays Category sponsored by the American Book Fest. 
 
New episodes of the Tough Girl Podcast go live every Tuesday and Thursday at 7am UK time - Make sure you hit the subscribe button so you don’t miss out. 
 
The tough girl podcast is sponsorship and ad free thanks to the monthly financial support of patrons. To find out more about supporting your favourite podcast and becoming a patron please check out www.patreon.com/toughgirlpodcast
 
Show notes
  • Who is Jean
  • Becoming an author later on in life
  • Working as a Park ranger for the US National Park Service
  • Spending her 21st birthday in a tree!
  • Growing up in Colorado 
  • Being in love with the mountains from a young age
  • Her dreams as a young girl
  • Going to college and making some changes in her life
  • Spending time alone and living in remote places
  • Starting to take on her own personal challenges
  • The 1982 expedition 
  • The John Muir Trail - 240km/211miles
  • Concerns regards the adventure 
  • Having to delay the trip by 1 month due to avalanches 
  • Background to the ski trip
  • Getting ahead of schedule by 1 week
  • Deciding to climb Mt. Whitney (14,505ft)
  • Reliving the trauma and being able to health 
  • Dealing with an lightening strike
  • Changing plans due to the storm and needing to get down the mountain fast
  • Falling 45/50m down the mountain and having very sever injuries
  • Going unconscious… Breaking a lot of bones…
  • Not having mobile phones or GPS
  • “I’m going to live”
  • Hope and despair
  • Pain and not being able to pee
  • The recovery process
  • Making it to the Himalayas 
  • Lessons learned from the challenges faced
  • The journey of writing the book
  • Wanting to go back to Mt. Whitney 
  • Getting back into the mountains
  • Learning how to process your traumas
  • Wanting to inspire people
 
Social Media
 
Website www.jeanmuenchrath.com
 
Dec 1, 2020
Tazneem is a UKA Run Leader, and works with ASICS Frontrunner. Her aim to inspire more women from the Black and Minority Ethnic communities to run. Tazneem works as full time Pharmacist and is mum to 3 boys.
 
Tazneem in her own words
 
“My name is Tazneem, but most people call me Taz. I live in Buckinghamshire and I'm a pharmacist working in the pharmaceutical industry. I started running in 2017 as a complete beginner and ran my 1st half marathon within 6 months of starting. 
 
I'm a runner who wears hijab and that in itself does mean I dress a bit differently when running, but my hijab has never been a barrier for me at all. 
 
I'm not a super fast runner, but I train hard to achieve the running goals I set myself”
 
New episodes of the Tough Girl Podcast go live every Tuesday and Thursday at 7am UK time - Make sure you hit the subscribe button so you don’t miss out. 
 
The tough girl podcast is sponsorship and ad free thanks to the monthly financial support of patrons. To find out more about supporting your favourite podcast and becoming a patron please check out www.patreon.com/toughgirlpodcast
 
 
Show notes
  • Who is Taz
  • What her childhood was like
  • Not being that sporty growing up
  • Getting into running at 36
  • Having 3 children
  • Giving running ago while on holiday
  • Wanting to stay active and healthy 
  • Running with a Hijab 
  • Running as a muslim woman
  • Cultural barriers to running
  • Doing her first park run and going along by herself
  • Focusing on running her first 5k
  • Setting a running goal of doing a half marathon
  • Having 6 months to train for the Birmingham Half marathon in October 2017
  • Finding a running plan on line
  • Running early on in the morning
  • Making changes in her life to fit running in
  • The balancing act of being a wife, mother and an employee
  • Feelings of mum guilt
  • Concerns before the Birmingham Half Marathon 
  • Being supported by her new friends from Park Run
  • Feeling emotional at the end of the half marathon
  • Booking her next half marathon
  • Running in Marrakesh, Morocco
  • Deciding to join a running club
  • Becoming a run leader
  • Deciding to run a marathon
  • Turning 40 and wanting to mark the occasion 
  • Deciding on the Loch Ness Marathon in Scotland!
  • The challenges faced during the marathon
  • Starting to struggle at mile 18
  • The mental side of running
  • Running the Virtual 40th London Marathon in October
  • Doing a lap course 
  • Advice for runners who want to run a marathon 
  • Deciding to do Race to the Stones 2021 
 
Social Media
 
Blog - thishijabiruns.wordpress.com 
 
Instagram @thishijabiruns 
 
Twitter @thishijabiruns 
 
To learn more about Muslim Women in Sport  visit - www.mwsf.org.uk
 
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