Everything Endurance

Jenny Tough is not an athlete who takes no for an answer. Many people told her that flying alone to Kyrgystan and running through the Tian Shan Mountain Range was a bad idea. Not least because she'd be running unsupported in a country where there are next to no guidebooks or maps to help you plan your adventure.

Nevertheless, Jenny completed that run and it led her to a new goal of running a mountain range on every continent on the planet.

This week's episode takes us from Kyrgystan, to Morrocco, on to Bolivia and then to New Zealand as we talk about Jenny's approach to expeditions and her motivation for taking on these epic challenges.

Read more amazing stories and watch her excellent short films at https://jennytough.com/

On November 10th 2019 Nick Butter became the first and only person to run a full marathon distance in every country in the world, and did so in just 23 months. He travelled alone for 674 days, running 2 or 3 marathons in 2 or 3 countries, every week, for 96 consecutive weeks.

In this episode we attempt to condense more than 2 years of adventure into 40 minutes of chat covering such topics as car-park marathons, wild dog avoidance techniques and running with food poisoning.

Nick's awesome adventure is on it's way to being a book called Run the World, which you can pre-order now, and a speaking tour. You can find details at https://www.nickbutter.com/

Sophie Power is an ultra-runner with an impressive CV including the MDS, running for Great Britain at Spartathlon, and completing the UTMB.

It was during this particular race that a photo, taken of Sophie whilst she breastfed her 3-month-old at the checkpoint in Courmayeur, went viral and sparked debates around the world.

In this episode, we chat to Sophie about her journey into ultra-running, her sudden appearance in the international spotlight, and about the work she has done since becoming an advocate for https://www.womeninsport.org/

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Jamie Ramsay is as an award-winning British Endurance Adventurer. After 12 years of successfully living and working at a stressful job in London, Jamie realised he was unhappy with the direction of his life and that if he didn't make some drastic changes then things would continue to spiral downwards.

His rather audacious solution was to quit his job (where he was a newly promoted Partner), fly to Vancouver, and run 17,000km to Buenos Aires completely unsupported.

Since his leap into the unknown, Jamie has travelled the world running, climbing and trekking his way across some of the worlds most iconic places, from running across the Atacama Desert, Cycling across a flooded Salar de Uyuni, reaching the summit of Aconcagua, and coming 3rd in the Cape Wrath Ultra despite nursing a sprained ankle.

In this episode, he chats to Will about some of the highlights from his travels, about his approach to planning adventures, and about changing your life for the sake of your mental wellbeing.

In the episode, we discuss Jamie's support for the Campaign Against Living Miserably. C.A.L.M work to help people feel empowered to share their experiences and get the help they need before they reach the point of crisis. Suicide is the single biggest killer of men under 45 in the UK.

Head to https://www.thecalmzone.net/ to learn more.

Mark Beaumont is a British long-distance cyclist, broadcaster, author, and documentary maker. He has completed some truly inspiring and record-breaking adventure challenges during his career but is best know for setting a stunning record for cycling around the world, completing his 18,000-mile (29,000 km) route on 18 September 2017, having taken 78 days 14hrs to do so.

In the latest episode of Everything Endurance, Will chats to Mark about his epic lap of the planet, from Mark's childhood in rural Scotland, through his many earlier cycling and sailing adventures, right up to the finish line of his race around the world.

If you're a cyclist looking for a challenge head to https://worldinaday.com/ where you can help Mark in supporting the amazing work of those on the frontline of the struggle against Coronavirus by joining the 'virtual peloton' and cycling a round-the-world distance together in a single day.

Enda Brady is a journalist who's had the chance, over the years, to talk to some truly great sportspeople.

A Sky News Correspondent since 2005, he has spent time interviewing the likes of Eliud Kipchoge, Chris Froome and even Zlatan Ibrahimovich, and in this episode, he shares some of the insights he's picked up and some of the great stories they've told him.

Between interviewing incredible sportspeople, Enda is also an experienced runner having completed over 30 road marathons and, more recently, a number of ultra-marathons too, including the For Rangers Ultra in Kenya.

Aside from a thirst for adventure, there is another thing that our previous guests have in common. Whether it be due to the early mornings and long hours spent in training, or the deep dark deprivation which comes in the midst of a long race or endurance challenge, they've all found their sleep patterns disrupted and suffered as a consequence.

In this episode, we discuss all things slumber related with James Wilson, a Sleep Behaviour and Environment Expert who has, with a supporting team of other experts, developed an approach that helps people understand their sleep better, and assists them in making the changes to their mindset, behaviours and environment that can lead to better sleep.

Why do we need to sleep? Why is it sometimes so hard to get to? What is happening to you when you're sleep-deprived and what can you do about it during a race? We'll chat through these questions and more as we fight off the sleep monsters and learn how best to harness rest.

Learn more about The Sleep Geek and his work with professional athletes at https://www.thesleepgeek.co.uk/

Before his 21st, at an age when most people are worried about little more than partying, Alex Staniforth had already planned 2 attempts at Everest and sadly seen both end in tragedy.

These early setbacks obviously took a toll, but over the last few years, Alex has found new challenges and channeled his own experiences of overcoming mental health problems into creating Mind over Mountains, a charity offering support to those who find themselves tackling the same issues.

We chatted with Alex about facing an avalanche on the world's highest peak, visiting every high point in every county of the UK and about managing mental health.

Head over to Mind over Mountains to learn more about how Alex is helping to create life-changing outdoor experiences to help restore mental health.

Co-host Kris King is a successful Race Director who has lead runners through tough environments all around the world. But he is also an experienced ultra-runner, and formerly a full-time strength and fitness coach.

Recorded back in the mists of time, in those halcyon, pre-Lockdown days, this episode includes our attempt at getting grime supremo Stormzy to produce a new theme tune as well as King Krizzy's insights into the seemingly daunting task of setting yourself a training plan for taking on a major endurance challenge.

Drawing on his wealth of experience, in this episode we talk through how to plan your training for an ultra-marathon. Whether you're brand new to this and feeling overwhelmed by the information out there, or just looking to improve your performances, this is the podcast for you.

Mimi Anderson is a legend in the ultra-running scene. The last time we spoke to her she was preparing to head to the US to add to her growing list of international accolades with a record-breaking run across North America.

However, 40 days in disaster struck when a knee injury put paid to not just the record attempt, but her continued career as an exceptional ultra-runner.

The marvelous Mimi Anderson fought through the emotional fall-out and found a new way of adventuring. Here she talks to Kris and Will about learning to swim, learning to cycle and learning to thrive in her life after running.