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    A Women's Running Podcast by Run Panthera

    Join Emily Jones for A Women’s Running Podcast by Run Panthera – a space to celebrate and inspire women who run. She speaks with inspirational female runners who share their experiences, to motivate more women to get out and run.Run Panthera is a women’s running community, inspiring women everywhere to push harder, run longer, aim higher and support each other. Visit www.runpanthera.com to find out more.
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    Episodes (22)

    2021 Christmas Special: Lillie Bleasdale

    2021 Christmas Special: Lillie Bleasdale

    Running a marathon can be hard, even more so when you're injured. Back in October 2021, Emily ran her first marathon where she encountered a number of obstacles related to an ongoing injury. It left her feeling mentally (and physically) defeated and is something she's spent the last few months trying to process. In this episode, Emily is joined by coach and friend of the podcast, Lillie Bleasdale, to discuss her experience of the marathon, the mental and physical side of recovery, and why you shouldn't compare yourself to other runners.

    Host: Emily Jones
    Guest: Lillie Bleasdale
    Music: Cali by Wataboi

    Find out more about Run Panthera by visiting the website or become a Patron.

    2021 Christmas Special: Ailsa Paterson

    2021 Christmas Special: Ailsa Paterson

    Emily is back for the first of two Christmas specials of the podcast! In this episode Emily speaks with Ailsa, runner, marathoner and owner of Medal Monday Designs, selling unique gifts for runners. She talks about her running journey, including her first race, her struggle with her mental health and what it's like being the face of the of London Marathon!

    For 20% off all orders in the Medal Monday Designs store, use code RUNPANTHERA20 (valid until the end of January 2022).

    Host: Emily Jones
    Guest: Ailsa Paterson
    Music: Cali by Wataboi

    Find out more about Run Panthera by visiting the website.

    S2 EP12: Esther Goldsmith, running and the menstrual cycle

    S2 EP12: Esther Goldsmith, running and the menstrual cycle

    Esther Goldsmith is a Sports Physiologist and part of the science team at FitrWoman - a menstrual cycle tracking app for athletes. However, Esther started out as a dancer, completing an Undergraduate Degree in Contemporary Dance. It wasn’t until she began to fall out of love with dancing that she found running, and eventually, after a few years out, went on to complete a Masters in Applied Sports and Exercise Physiology.

    She wrote her dissertation on running economy and the menstrual cycle, which has since been published, and now works for Orreco who own FitrWoman where she gets to work with elite female athletes on a daily basis.

    In the final episode of the series, Esther talks in detail about what the menstrual cycle is and how it can impact our running economy. She also answers your questions about running and your cycle.

    Host: Emily Jones
    Guest: Esther Goldsmith
    Music: Cali by Wataboi

    Find out more about Run Panthera by visiting the website and enter the virtual women's half marathon

    S2 EP11: Ruby Raut, waking up and kicking ass

    S2 EP11: Ruby Raut, waking up and kicking ass

    Ruby Raut is the founder and CEO of WUKA, a period pants brand that does good. Ruby grew up in Nepal and was given old sari rags to use as in place of period products, a sustainable but unhygienic alternative to tampons and pads. It was this concept, using reusable materials in place of disposables, that gave Ruby the inspiration to found WUKA.

    In 2019, Ruby took part in the Vitality 10K with Bryony Gordon's Mental Health Mates and Celebrate You body confidence campaign. The only requirement was that she (along with the rest of the group) had to run the race in WUKA underwear and relatively nothing else!

    In this episode, Ruby explains how WUKA's Perform range provides a sustainable and leakproof choice for women who run, as well as discussing what it was like to run a 10K in just her underwear! Plus, Emily and Ruby open up the conversation about periods to break taboos and raise awareness of the period pants tax. Sign the petition here.

    Host: Emily Jones
    Guest: Ruby Raut (WUKA)
    Music: Cali by Wataboi

    Find out more about Run Panthera by visiting the website and enter the virtual women's half marathon

    S2 EP10: Leanne Shrive, the importance of social running groups

    S2 EP10: Leanne Shrive, the importance of social running groups

    Leanne Shrive's running journey began with the humble 5K, however, it quickly snowballed into something much more. After completing her first 5K, Leanne set herself a challenge of running 100K within 3 months and when she'd managed to achieve that, her hunger to find a bigger challenge drove her to complete 12 events within 12 months, building up to a half marathon. It's this drive that pushed Leanne to sign up for her first ultramarathon and marathon (in that order), which she completed all within two years of running.

    Today, Balega Ambassador Leanne co-runs a social running group which she started back in late 2019. With over 250 members of all abilities and fitness levels, and a new Couch to 5K course, Leanne and her friends organise regular social running events, often incorporating a run with a meet-up at the pub, to make running more sociable. 

    In this episode, Leanne talks about her running journey, as well as her drive to find bigger and more challenging goals and we discuss the importance of a social running group.

    Host: Emily Jones
    Guest: Leanne Shrive
    Music: Cali by Wataboi

    Find out more about Run Panthera by visiting the website and enter the virtual women's half marathon



    S2 EP9: Ellie Ripley, running through the pandemic

    S2 EP9: Ellie Ripley, running through the pandemic

    Ellie Ripley’s running journey began when she was a child, running cross country in all weather conditions. As a young runner, she was very competitive and enjoyed racing against her friends, however, when her studies became too much Ellie had to put her running on hold.

    Now, as a Respiratory Physiotherapist, Ellie has a different relationship with running - one where her biggest competition is herself. Prior to the pandemic, her plan was to run her first marathon before the age of 25, but when the Manchester Marathon was cancelled and her workload shifted to long 10 hour shifts treating Covid patients, running became something to help her deal with the changing world around her.

    Today, Ellie is back training for the Manchester Marathon (hopefully taking place in October this year) and has even managed to encourage her colleagues to lace up!

    In this episode, Ellie talks about how her relationship with running has changed during the pandemic as well as what more could be done to encourage young girls to get into sport.

    Guest: Ellie Ripley
    Host: Emily Jones
    Music: Cali by Wataboi

    Find out more about Run Panthera by visiting www.runpanthera.com

    S2 EP8: Glynis Buchan, running every day for more than 1170 days

    S2 EP8: Glynis Buchan, running every day for more than 1170 days

    Balega Ambassador Glynis Buchan has been on a running streak since New Year's Eve 2017. At the time of our recording, she'd been running for 1177 days and she'd recently overtaken Forrest Gump's run streak. Glynis's running journey began in her living room on the Nintendo Wii Fit, after having her son. Running was always just a way to stay fit and healthy - it was only after she completed her first 5K race that she really started to fall in love with running. 

    Her run streak happened quite by chance after she signed up for RED January back in 2018. After completing the month, Glynis decided to carry on to see how long she could keep up her streak and since then, she's managed to lace up every single day - whether that's for an easy recovery run or a longer Sunday run.

    In this podcast, Glynis talks about her running journey, how she accidentally ended up on a run streak and what it was like running the UltraX 12 Hour ultra race. 

    Host: Emily Jones
    Guest: Glynis Buchan (@gbotruns)
    Music: Cali by Wataboi

    Find out more about Her Run and the virtual women's half marathon race: www.runpanthera.com/her-run 

    S2 EP7: Jo Wright, overcoming adversity and learning to run

    S2 EP7: Jo Wright, overcoming adversity and learning to run

    Jo Wright is probably one of the most inspirational women you'll ever meet. Diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis at a young age, Jo was unable to even wash herself let alone go for a run. After trying a range of different treatments, including chemotherapy, and battling through various side effects, in 2019, Jo finally found something that worked for her.

    What followed was an incredible journey driven by Jo's determination to, in her words, get on with her life and embrace the things she could now do that she once was unable to. One of those things was running and, after realising by chance that she could run, Jo completed Couch to 5K and eventually entered a half marathon. Today, Jo's awaiting the 2022 London Marathon whilst living her life to the fullest.

    In this episode, Jo talks about how her condition has motivated her to not take life for granted, as well as her incredible running journey and how she's feeling about running her first marathon. Prepare to be well and truly inspired by Jo and her amazing attitude when faced with adversity.

    Host: Emily Jones
    Guests: Jo Wright (@Jojo1wright1
    Music: Cali by Wataboi

    Join the women's running community at runpanthera.com

    S2 EP6: Caroline Eaton & Sasha Cowley, RunFitMum

    S2 EP6: Caroline Eaton & Sasha Cowley, RunFitMum

    Sasha Cowley and Caroline Eaton founded RunFitMum in 2015 after encouraging mum’s from their children’s school year to run the Race For Life together. From there, through RunTogether, they developed RunFitMum and with encouragement from the rest of the group, forged a friendly and supportive community of mum's who run. 

    Today, with more than 450 Facebook members, RunFitMum remains a friendly and welcoming community of women who run, hosting regular weekly running meetups as well as virtual challenges and races for everyone to take part in.  Ultimately, RunFitMum is less about speed and more about encouraging mum's to get outside and enjoy a moment for themselves. 

    In this episode, Sasha and Caroline talk more about how and why they founded RunFitMum, what it's like coming back to running postpartum, and the difference between a running club and a running group.

    Host: Emily Jones
    Guests: Caroline Eaton & Sasha Cowley (www.runfitmum.com) 
    Music: Cali by Wataboi

    Join the women's running community at runpanthera.com

    S2 EP5: Fiona Quinn, Couch To Ultramarathon

    S2 EP5: Fiona Quinn, Couch To Ultramarathon

    Fiona Quinn is incredible. She is the first woman to complete a length of Britain triathlon when she stand up paddleboarded from Lands End to John O'Groats in 2018 (despite being afraid of the sea), having previously walked and cycled the route. Now she’s taking on a couch to ultramarathon challenge, having never really run before in her life. 

    Later this year, she’ll be running what is considered to be the toughest ultramarathon in Britain - The Pennine Way. Running the equivalent of 10 back-to-back marathons, Fiona, who before training hadn't run more than 5 miles in one go, will run through the Northumberland National Park and Yorkshire Dales National Park to finish at Edale in the Peak District. When she's finished, she'll have run a total of 260 miles and tackled c. 40,000 ft of elevation. 

    In this episode, Fiona talks all about how she managed to complete the length of Britain triathlon whilst also facing her fear of the sea, plus how she's getting on with training for her biggest challenge yet. 

    Host: Emily Jones
    Guest: Fiona Quinn (https://fionalquinn.com/) 
    Music: Cali by Wataboi 

    Find out more about Couch To Ultramarathon: https://www.couchtoultramarathon.com/

    Join the women's running community at www.runpanthera.com

    S2 EP4: Sam Morris, run coach, parkrun tourist and lover of the marathon

    S2 EP4: Sam Morris, run coach, parkrun tourist and lover of the marathon

    Sam Morris has been running for 10 years this year. In those 10 years, she's taken part in a wide range of running events and races, including 24-hour events and ultra races, and she's got a stack of medals to show for it. However, despite this, it's the marathon that she loves running the most providing her with a mental and physical challenge that she craves. She's also run a parkrun in 25 different locations and is hoping to complete all of the parkrun's in the West Midlands, once restrictions have lifted. Now, Sam channels her passion and enthusiasm for running into coaching women, to support and encourage them with their running journeys. 

    In this episode, Sam talks about her own running journey and the struggles of being a new runner, as well as why she enjoys coaching women and her experiences of running ultra races.

    Host: Emily Jones
    Guest: Sam Morris
    Music: Cali by Wataboi 

    Join the women's running community at www.runpanthera.com

    S2 EP3: Mari Thomas, founder of revolutionary sports bra brand MAAREE

    S2 EP3: Mari Thomas, founder of revolutionary sports bra brand MAAREE

    Mari Thomas is a runner and founder of MAAREE, a revolutionary sports bra brand and three-time winner of Women's Running Magazine's Best In Test Sports Bra for Bigger Boobs. After completing a degree in Sports Engineering, Mari secured a spot doing sports bra testing. Whilst she was in this role, she saw first-hand the lack of research and development that many of the bigger sports brands undertook when creating a sports bra. A few years later, after creating her own prototype sports bra, Mari decided to launch MAAREE and hasn't looked back since. 

    She's also a runner (or self-confessed "plodder"), having run the London Marathon amongst a few other races. 

    In this episode, Mari talks all about how she founded MAAREE, the importance of finding the right sports bra, boob taboos, and the rise of the virtual bra fitting, as well as Mari’s experience of running the London Marathon. 

    Host: Emily Jones
    Guest: Mari Thomas (www.maaree.com) 
    Music: Cali by Wataboi 

    Join the women's running community at www.runpanthera.com

    S2 EP2: Angela Smith, running and mental health.

    S2 EP2: Angela Smith, running and mental health.

    Angela Smith is a self-confessed shuffler and (in her words) a big fan of the "party at the back". When Angela took part in her first charity running race, she had no idea how much running would impact her life. After realising that her mental health and Generalised Anxiety Disorder improved with the more running she did, she soon began to embrace her runs and started applying for more races. Since then she's gone on to complete several races (including the London Marathon) and raised money for a range of different charities.

    In this episode, Angela shares her running journey and talks openly about how running has positively impacted her own mental health. 

    Host: Emily Jones
    Guest: Angela Smith 
    Music: Cali by Wataboi 

    Join the women's running community at www.runpanthera.com 

    S2 EP1: Ally Head, running her first ultra-marathon virtually.

    S2 EP1: Ally Head, running her first ultra-marathon virtually.

    By day, Ally Head is the Health & Sustainability Editor at Marie Claire. By night (and also in the day) she's a runner and queen of the post-run snack. Earlier this year, Ally completed her first ultra-marathon, running a total of 60KM virtually around central London. Despite the extreme weather conditions and lockdown restrictions, after 6 hours, Ally crossed the virtual finish line having raised over £2,300 for Mind, the mental health charity.

    In the first episode of series 2, Ally shares her experience of training for and completing an ultra-marathon. Emily and Ally also discuss running and harassment, the power of a running club, and what the best post-run snack truly is. 

    Host: Emily Jones
    Guest: Ally Head (IG: @allyyhead)
    Music: Cali by Wataboi 

    Join the women's running community at www.runpanthera.com

    Episode 5: Running and harassment.

    Episode 5: Running and harassment.

    Last year, Emily surveyed the Run Panthera community to better understand women's running. What she actually discovered was that two thirds of all women surveyed sometimes feel unsafe when running alone and a high proportion of those women were afraid of what might happen to them at the hands of other men, whilst out running. 

    In the final episode of series 1, Emily shares data and research around running and harassment including responses from a recent Run Panthera social media survey.

    Please note, this episode goes into quite a bit of detail around the topic of harassment including some personal experiences that you might find hard to listen to. Please switch off if you find this upsetting or triggering. 

    References: 

    Host: Emily Jones
    Music: Cali by Wataboi 

    Join the women's running community at www.runpanthera.com



     

    Episode 4: Becca Burns, runner, cyclist, swimmer, duathlete and triathlete.

    Episode 4: Becca Burns, runner, cyclist, swimmer, duathlete and triathlete.

    Becca's running journey began when she was at university, after being told by her doctor that she was overweight. Looking for a way to get fitter and help improve her own body confidence, she started running and hasn't looked back since. Now, after completing an impressive number of races and events, including marathons, duathlons and triathlons, she's got her sights set on completing her first full ironman.  

    In this episode, Becca and Emily discuss everything from body confidence and being a female cyclist, to training for a triathlon and open water swimming. 

    Read Becca's blog: https://thisbunnyruns.com/ 
    Instagram: @thisbunnyruns

    Host: Emily Jones
    Music: Cali by Wataboi 

    Join the women's running community at www.runpanthera.com

    Episode 3: Annie Scott, running her first marathon virtually.

    Episode 3: Annie Scott, running her first marathon virtually.

    Last year Annie Scott ran her first marathon virtually as part of the virtual version of the 2020 London Marathon. It was an experience like no other and something she will remember for the rest of her life. In this episode, Annie discusses everything from how she got into running (over a bottle of prosecco with her fellow running buddy Lauren) to completing a year of incredible running challenges, culminating in her first marathon.

    Instagram: @the_running_girls

    Host: Emily Jones
    Music: Cali by Wataboi 

    Join the women's running community at www.runpanthera.com

    Episode 2: Lillie Bleasdale, runner and Head Coach of PASSA.

    Episode 2: Lillie Bleasdale, runner and Head Coach of PASSA.

    Lillie Bleasdale isn't new to Run Panthera, nor is she new to running. Her running journey began with a fundraising challenge, however, since then, Lillie has gone on to complete a number of races including the London Marathon. After her training for both the Boston and Chicago Marathons was cut short last year (thanks to Covid-19), Lillie went on to launch her own fitness/run coaching business called PASSA. 

    Don't forget, it's important to look after your mental health especially during lockdown. Remember to check in with the people you love too. 

    There are lots of resources available online to help you manage your own mental health. Here are some useful links:

    NHS: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/stress-anxiety-depression/mental-health-helplines/
    Mind: https://www.mind.org.uk/
    Time To Change: https://www.time-to-change.org.uk/
    Young Minds: https://youngminds.org.uk/
    Rethink: https://www.rethink.org/
    Heads Together: https://www.headstogether.org.uk/

    Host: Emily Jones
    Music: Cali by Wataboi 

    Join the women's running community at www.runpanthera.com