Running Tales

This is a repeat of an episode which ran in December 2024; more details below.

As a sickly and frail child, Natalie Crawford avoided exercise at all costs. Poor attendance at school and a constant cough that wore her out led Natalie to be diagnosed with asthma.

She spent time in and out of hospital with chest infections, would cough huge amounts of mucus up, and suffered from frequent bouts of pneumonia.

For years, Natalie just thought that was the way her life was and that there was no particular rhyme or reasons to her bouts of illness.

It was only at the age of 28 that she was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis (CF), a chronic condition that causes malnutrition, breathing problems, frequent respiratory infections, and lung disease.

Worse, at the time of her diagnosis, it came with a frightening life-expectancy of 37. And now Natalie was not just fighting for her own health. Her diagnosis had followed swiftly on from that of her son, who was diagnosed with CF while in the womb.

A determined Natalie decided she had to act. Running was to become her weapon of choice.

At first, she joined the gym, walking on the treadmill, and despite the agony in her lungs and constantly being sick afterwards, her fitness started to improve. With the help of her running coach, Aaron, she started to make real progress, learning how to eat, rest and recover like an athlete.

Best of all, she found the exercise loosened the mucus in her lungs, helping her to breathe more easily. With a new diet that saw her take in 5,000 calories a day to help stabilise her weight, she felt healthier than ever before and her infections became fewer and further apart.

A first 5k followed and then a series of half-marathons. The girl who had spent 28 years not exercising was setting new boundaries.

Medical advice around CF said she should be resting, hiding away from the chance of catching bugs, but Natalie was convinced there was another way.

Then, one day, she decided to take on the toughest challenge of her life - running the Birmingham Marathon. Doctors told her not to run a race they said would be "impossible" for her, but Natalie's mantra was to never take no for an answer.

She duly completed the race, becoming one of the first women in the world with cystic fibrosis to run a marathon and inspiring multitudes of others with CF to take up running.

Natalie has gone on to complete more marathons since then, constantly taking on medical orthodoxy and pushing herself to new limits. Throughout her journey, running has become something that will always define her, not cystic fibrosis.

* This podcast first ran in December 2024, when Running Tales was part of the Everyday Athlete Podcast Network. Most of the episodes recorded there were done so live and we do not have access to the original audio, but this episode with Natalie was pre-recorded. We wanted to take this opportunity to share it again and add it to our feed. Of course, all of other episodes on the EAPN still sit on that platform and we'd always recommend people checking them out along with the other pods that sit there.

Stephanie Reents' new novel, 'We Loved To Run', tells the captivating story of a female US college cross-country team, delving into what makes them tick and the external challenges that threaten to pull them apart.

It's a fantastic read that explores everything from why women run and the pressures it brings, to the relationships teammates build and the coaches whose sometimes dubious methods involve weighing them and punishing under-performing runners by making them lead the toughest sessions.

Further, it dives into college life, addressing issues such as sexual consent, disordered eating, and alcoholism. It's a riveting, and ultimately, uplifting read that propels you into a world of sacrifice, pain, confused identity, and female friendships.

Stephanie was a collegiate runner herself, who went on to run the New York Marathon in a little over three hours. 'We Loved To Run' is her latest publication following 'The Kissing List' - a collection of stories that was a New York Times Book Review Editor's Choice - and 'I Meant to Kill Ye', a bibliomemoir chronicling her journey into the strange void at the heart of Cormac McCarthy's 'Blood Meridian'.

Running Tales spoke to Stephanie about the power and pain of running, why she wrote 'We Loved To Run', and setting new targets as she comes to terms with not being able to run as quickly as she used to.

Visit Running Tales on:

Substack: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://runningtales.substack.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://youtube.com/runningtalespod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Buy 'We Loved To Run' on Amazon

Nikki Lilley was a talented runner in her youth, but the pressures of competition sapped some of her love for the sport and it fell by the wayside.

Life and raising a family - with five children - meant she was kept pretty busy over the next few years, but she eventually found her way back to running (and swimming and cycling) in the form of the triathlon.

Age group success followed, but Nikki suffered a serious setback when she was diagnosed with colon cancer. Surgery and chemotherapy, along with a temporary stoma, followed but she was determined to continue exercising.

That included parkrun and becoming a part of 5k Your Way, the empowering community which encourages those with cancer to run, walk or volunteer at their local parkrun once a month.

Nikki eventually had her stoma reversed and is now back to chasing her goals, completing her first marathon less than a year later - and in a smidge over three-and-a-half hours!

Running Tales spoke to Nikki about the support 5k Your Way provides to those with cancer, her own running journey, and the power of community...

Visit Running Tales on:

Substack: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://runningtales.substack.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://youtube.com/runningtalespod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Further reading:

How the 5k Your Way revolution is 'kindly, quietly, powerfully' getting cancer patients moving

In some ways, Tony Letts is your average club runner. He trains round his local parks, enjoys parkrun and is a member of his town club, Northampton Road Runners.

Like so many other people, Tony starting running later in life, looking to improve his fitness. Along the way, he found a love of trail running and a desire to run increasingly long distances.

And it's taken him on a journey which is far from average or ordinary. Earlier this year, Tony completed his long-held aim to run the Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc (UTMB), one of the world's toughest races.

UTMB covers 170km (106 miles) around Mont Blanc, starting in Chamonix, France, and traveling through France, Italy, and Switzerland. It has been immortalised by the performances of the likes of Kilian Jornet, Courtney Dauwalter, Jim Walmsley, and Katie Schide.

But UTMB is not the only ultra marathon Tony has conquered, with the Ultra-Trail Snowdonia just one of the other famous races he's completed.

Running Tales spoke to Tony about how he trained and raced UTMB, what made him first start running, and why he loves the sport...

Visit Running Tales on:

Substack: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://runningtales.substack.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://youtube.com/runningtalespod⁠⁠⁠⁠

Further reading:

How Northampton Road Runners is hoping to supercharge its over-50s

Trina Dawkins is a trail and ultra runner - and perhaps more importantly a champion of women in sport.

She is passionate about women's safety in the running world, and recently ran at the Kielder Marathon - despite being injured - on behalf of the She Runs Free initiative.

Operating in partnership with Altra and BOLDI, She Free Runs aims to promote confidence and security for women runners, especially in remote or less trafficked areas.

Trina also writes her own Substack newsletter, 'Voices from the Trail', where she aims to "amplify voices, break barriers, and celebrate every finish line - visible or not".

Running Tales spoke to Trina about her own running goals - which include taking on a first 100-miler next year, and how we can all work to promote women's safety in the running world...

Visit Running Tales on:

Substack: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://runningtales.substack.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://youtube.com/runningtalespod⁠⁠⁠⁠

Daniel Garner was a sporty child, but his life was turned upside down when his mum sadly died from cancer when he was just eight years old.

His parents had already been in the process of a divorce, and Daniels' father left not long afterwards. Although he was able to grow up in a loving family, with his sister and her partner bringing him up, Daniel's loss changed him.

He felt he was missing part of his identity and that he was different to other children. It was something he took into adulthood, and as he reached his early-40s Daniel had become slightly lost.

Having fallen into something of a rut, he was overweight, drinking too much and spent his time finding any excuse to sit around doing nothing.

That all changed when he found running. Happier and healthier, Daniel has become a parkrun regular, joined a running club and last weekend he took on his second ultra marathon in as many weeks.

Running Tales spoke to Daniel about how the sport has changed his life, why it can be hard to take those first vital steps towards trying something new, and how he hopes his mum is proud of what he has done...

Visit Running Tales on:

Substack: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://runningtales.substack.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://youtube.com/runningtalespod⁠⁠⁠⁠

It's one of the leading athletic clubs in the Midlands, but the success of Rugby & Northampton Athletic Club goes far beyond the gongs it and its athletes win.

Competing across track and field, cross country and road running, the club has more than 1,000 members ranging from eight years old to those over 80.

It has recreational sport written into its very being - or at least, its constitution - and celebrates runners at all levels.

That's not to say their members aren't competitive though, whatever their age - a fact best demonstrated by a recent first place finish in the Youth Development League Lower Age Group National Final.

Running Tales was recently invited to the club's Moulton College training centre - one of two tracks it uses alongside Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Sports Centre in Rugby to talk about that achievement.

We met with young athletics, coaches and Masters runners, as well as clubs chairman Adrian White...

Visit Running Tales on:

Substack: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://runningtales.substack.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://youtube.com/runningtalespod⁠⁠⁠⁠

Other links:

Find out more about Rugby & Northampton AC, including how to join the club via this link.

Lottie Banks was a keen runner at school, finishing 81st in the Mini London Marathon and winning a bucketload of medals.

But when life and work came calling, running took a back seat.

It was only in her late-40s that Lottie returned to the sport, taking part in races including the London Marathon, Great Eastern Run, and the Big Half.

That last event in London, which was held as recently as September this year, was actually Lottie's 'Retirement Run'.

A chronic back condition had become increasingly worse, and she has recently taken the decision to start a new stage of her athletic journey - as a wheelchair racer.

In this episode of Running Tales, we spoke to Lottie about her early love of running, the joy of movement in whatever form in takes, and the cost of disability...

Visit Running Tales on:

Substack: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://runningtales.substack.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://youtube.com/runningtalespod⁠⁠⁠⁠

Other links:

Lottie is currently fundraising for a racing chair. You can donate here: https://gofund.me/4148aaf7d

Andre Cardin's big running goal is fast approaching.

Next week (November 2, 2025), he will take on theNew York City Marathon, one of the most famous road races in the world.

But if Andre's New York adventure is inspiring, it is nothing compared to how he get here.

Unfit, overweight and unhappy, Andre took a decision to dedicate his life to becoming a healthier, fitter and happier version of himself.

His tool of choice was running, and it has helped him achieve that goal and more.

Andre has tracked his journey through his increasingly popular Instagram account, @andrerunz, a platform which proved integral to his entry into New York.

In this episode of Running Tales, we spoke to Andre about his running journey, how the sport has changed his life and the big races he now has on the agenda...

Visit Running Tales on:

Substack: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://runningtales.substack.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://youtube.com/runningtalespod⁠⁠⁠⁠

Other links:

Follow Andre on Instagram

From crossing paths with farm dogs to shimmying over logs, ultra runner Kim Levinsky faced a plethora of physical, mental and altogether unexpected challenges as she set a new Fastest Known Time (FKT) across New York State’s 358-mile Long Path.

Now, a brilliant new feature film, 'The Long Path: A journey of becoming' has been released. It tracks the physical and mental struggle's Kim encountered during her epic run, as well as taking a deeper look at how society treats mental health issues.

During the documentary, Kim reveals her journey from reluctantly starting therapy to becoming a mental health advocate in her community.

In this episode of Running Tales, we spoke to Kim and filmmaker Shai Ben-Dor about the idea behind the film and how they were able to capture her experiences of the trails...

Visit Running Tales on:

Substack: ⁠⁠⁠https://runningtales.substack.com⁠⁠⁠

YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠https://youtube.com/runningtalespod⁠⁠⁠

Other links:

Watch 'The Long Path: A journey of becoming'