Walking This Way

It is blowing a gale and pouring with rain, and Lise is unashamedly dodging a wet weather Out and About. Instead, she is tucked up in her study with her favourite canine friends scattered around her feet, mulling over what to do when the online trolls come knocking, and why being at peace is the best way to go.

Join Lise and discover...

• What happened when a tongue-in-cheek bikini post went viral
• How Lise handles trolls and why a community love bomb could be the best answer
• Why shame around food and bodies gets in the way for women of every age
• How to hold two things at once: appreciating your body and still wanting to change it

Quote of the episode

“Just be at peace that it’s about them and not you.”

Here's how to get in touch...

• Follow the show and get all the links you need on LinkTree - https://linktr.ee/walking_this_way
• Email us: [email protected]
• Use the get in touch form HERE - https://tr.ee/r-ePylKE8H
• Send us a voice message HERE- https://www.speakpipe.com/WalkingThisWay

Produced by The Good Studio - thegoodstudio.co.uk

Welcome to a special Ramble Worldwide takeover episode of Walking This Way.

As a Ramble Worldwide ambassador Lise is joined this week by Donna Noble, a yoga educator and author of Demystifying Yoga: Making Yoga Inclusive for Everybody, and Jacqueline Hooton, the personal trainer behind Her Garden Gym on Instagram and author of Strong: The Definitive Guide to Active Aging. The three of them met on a Ramble Worldwide solo women's walking weekend in the Lake District, arriving as strangers and leaving as friends. 

Ramble Worldwide has just launched their brand new brochure and excitingly there are 40 new tours included. They have been running walking holidays for 80 years so they really do know what they are doing. There really is something for most people, from gentle walks to big mountain days and everything in between. You can go on a cruise combined and do walks on shore days. Go to Barbados or Morocco. You can go solo, as a couple, with friends or as a private group, to incredible places all over the world. It also runs women-only tours, and every walk is led by a trained volunteer expert leader, which takes a lot of the worry out of it.
 
Plenty of women still assume a walking holiday is not for them, so this is a chat about who these trips are actually for, what travelling solo with a group is really like, and why it can be worth simply putting one foot in front of the other.

In this episode, join Lise and discover:

• How Donna, who had never done a proper walk before, got on during the weekend
• What was going through Jacqueline's head before the walk, from pace and steep descents to bathroom breaks, and how the tour leader paced the group so nobody felt left behind
• Why walking side-by-side leads to honest conversations between strangers, and how the weekend suited both the introverts and the extrovers
• What Donna and Jacqueline would say to a woman who wants to try something but feels she is not fit enough, young enough or brave enough

Quote of the episode
“Walking is probably the most accessible form of exercise there is. You don’t need to be particularly fit, you don’t need to be young and you don’t need much equipment. And yet lots of women still don’t necessarily think walking holidays, walking groups or outdoor adventure are for them. Why?” - Lise Thorne

Useful links

• Ramble Worldwide: https://www.rambleworldwide.co.uk/
• Ramble Worldwide brochure: https://www.rambleworldwide.co.uk/brochures/2026-2027-walking-holidays-brochure
• Donna's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/donnanobleyoga
• Jacqueline's Instagram, Her Garden Gym: https://www.instagram.com/hergardengym

Be a part of the show: Here's how to get in touch...

• Follow the show and get all the links you need on LinkTree - https://linktr.ee/walking_this_way
• Email us: [email protected]
• Use the get in touch form HERE - https://tr.ee/r-ePylKE8H
• Send us a voice message HERE- https://www.speakpipe.com/WalkingThisWay

Produced by The Good Studio - thegoodstudio.co.uk

It's a warm late September afternoon in Harrogate, and Lise is strolling across The Stray with her friend Jo Moseley. There are no dogs on this Out & About, just two friends, a bit of autumn creeping into the air, and a lot to catch up on before they head back to the hotel to get changed for a special event in the evening.

Join Lise and discover...

• How a dip in Buttermere and a very early start turned two strangers into firm friends
• Why Jo's first paddleboarding lesson at 51 changed everything, and what came after
• A walk around The Stray in Jo's home town
• How Instagram can open the door to new friendships, adventures and walking opportunities
• Why midlife, and life after menopause, can feel like a gift

Quote of the episode

"If you want to do something, you just need to sort of crack on really." – Jo Moseley

Useful links

Follow Jo on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jomoseley

Here's how to get in touch...

• Follow the show and get all the links you need on LinkTree - https://linktr.ee/walking_this_way
• Email us: [email protected]
• Use the get in touch form HERE - https://tr.ee/r-ePylKE8H
• Send us a voice message HERE- https://www.speakpipe.com/WalkingThisWay

Produced by The Good Studio - thegoodstudio.co.uk

This week, Lise is joined by Penny Menato of RosaBlue, who she met on a Ramble Worldwide walking weekend in the Lake District and immediately clicked with. Penny hand-makes every single piece she sells, cuts it all out herself, pins it together in front of the telly, and has never been on a podcast before. So this is a bit of a world exclusive, and a lovely one.

Lise has been reading up on fast fashion and the facts are grim, the sheer mountains of clothes that get sent abroad or end up in landfill, but this isn't a guilt trip. Penny's message is simple: just do something. Buy your next thing in a natural fabric, sew the button back on, chop the sleeves off that baggy shirt and suddenly it's a summer top. This is one for anyone who love clothes and wants to shop with a bit more thought, and for anyone who wishes they knew how to darn!

In this episode, join Lise and discover:

• How Penny went from knitting jumpers to pay her way through university in South Africa to running RosaBlue
• The textile waste figures that stopped Lise in her tracks, including one wash of polyester clothing releasing as many as 700,000 microplastic fibres, and around 711,000 tonnes of textiles a year going into general rubbish in the UK
• What happens to online returns and unsold stock
• Simple things to try now, from buying your next item in a natural fabric to sewing on that button, shortening a baggy t-shirt and turning an old duvet cover into a dress
• How Penny built a loyal Instagram community from her phone by posting every day, and why she says to enjoy the little things right in front of you.

Quote of the episode

"Just do something. Don't throw away your entire wardrobe if it's full of polyester. But next time you buy something, just buy it in a natural fabric."
– Penny Menato

Useful links

• Penny's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rosablue/
• RosaBlue: https://www.rosablue.com/
• Penny's Etsy shop: https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/RosablueOriginals

Be a part of the show: Here's how to get in touch...

• Follow the show and get all the links you need on LinkTree - https://linktr.ee/walking_this_way
• Email us: [email protected]
• Use the get in touch form HERE - https://tr.ee/r-ePylKE8H
• Send us a voice message HERE- https://www.speakpipe.com/WalkingThisWay

Produced by The Good Studio - thegoodstudio.co.uk

This week's Out & About doesn't open on a muddy path or a pub garden. Lise is propped up in bed, tissue box within reach, Berocca on the side, having just turned 50 and promptly gone down with flu.

In the fortnight before her birthday she crammed in more than most people manage in a year: a long, heart-wrenching drive to drop her daughter at university in Scotland, a slightly mad Instagram follower goal, an accidental burpee challenge, a night swim lit up with fireworks, and a guest slot on a radio station. Then, on her actual birthday, a long walk and a Sunday lunch, the last hurrah before flu flattened her completely.

From her sickbed, Lise reflects on what turning 50 has stirred up: gratitude for simply waking up, the loss of a close friend a year ago, and why midlife friendships, old and new, matter more than ever. There's also the small matter of a possible netball team.

Join Lise and discover...

• What actually happened in the whirlwind fortnight before her 50th birthday
• Why a Sunday lunch was the calm before the storm
• The reflection that losing a close friend has prompted about gratitude and impermanence
• Why cultivating new, intergenerational friendships matters as much as keeping the old ones
• The (possibly ill-advised) plan to start a netball team

Quote of the episode
"If we get to wake up and take a breath, we should be grateful."

Here's how to get in touch...

• Follow the show and get all the links you need on LinkTree - https://linktr.ee/walking_this_way
• Email us: [email protected]
• Use the get in touch form HERE - https://tr.ee/r-ePylKE8H
• Send us a voice message HERE- https://www.speakpipe.com/WalkingThisWay

Produced by The Good Studio - thegoodstudio.co.uk

This week, Lise is joined by Sally Wilkinson, an accidental entrepreneur, Ironman finisher, author and founder of Shit to Shiny, who has spent nearly a decade sharing her story of depression, heavy drinking, bankruptcy and diet culture burnout with hundreds of thousands of women online. It's a properly raw, unfiltered conversation about shame, motherhood, addiction to alcohol and food, and what it actually takes to climb out of a hole rather than just fall into one, which feels especially timely for any woman in midlife still carrying decades of dieting baggage and quiet exhaustion.

In this episode, join Lise and discover:

• Why Sally's "accidental" business began with a bottle and a half of wine most nights, and how a soggy dishcloth in the kitchen became her rock bottom moment
• The story behind booking an Ironman with zero triathlon experience, four days after being declared bankrupt in Blackpool, and crossing the finish line at 17 hours 12 minutes
• Why Sally believes "life gets in the way" is one of the most damaging excuses women make, and what she says instead
• The real difference between "ownership" and "awareness" that reshaped the whole approach behind her book, Shit to Shiny
• Why 800 women doing a simple 20-minute daily walking challenge, including one who'd never seen a sunrise at 55, taught Sally more about lasting change than any diet ever did

Quote of the episode

"Anybody can fall into a hole, anybody. Even the most perfect person can fall, but nobody can fall out of the hole. You've got to climb out yourself." - Sally Wilkinson

Useful links

• Sally's website: https://thesallywilkinson.com/
• Sally on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thesallywilkinson/
• Sally's book, Shit to Shiny: https://ebury.lnk.to/thesh-ttoshinymethod

Be a part of the show: Here's how to get in touch...

• Follow the show and get all the links you need on LinkTree - https://linktr.ee/walking_this_way
• Email us: [email protected]
• Use the get in touch form HERE - https://tr.ee/r-ePylKE8H
• Send us a voice message HERE- https://www.speakpipe.com/WalkingThisWay

Produced by The Good Studio - thegoodstudio.co.uk

Dogs at her heels and planes crossing overhead, Lise sets off on the first Out and About of the new season and, with her 50th birthday just days away, she uses the walk to properly introduce, or reintroduce, herself: the car crash at seven, boarding school at eight, and the years that followed when a stubborn refusal to say no led her onto a Muay Thai retreat in Thailand and, unexpectedly, into a whole new relationship with movement.

This is Lise at her most open, tracing the line from that first triathlon at Hever Castle through open water swimming lessons, a gruelling 100k Trailwalker with her best friend Robin, and the slow, imperfect work of learning to prioritise herself. It's a conversation about midlife travel, walking adventure and the everyday power of choosing movement, told with all the honesty you've come to expect from Walking This Way.

Join Lise and discover...

• Why turning 50 felt like the right moment to share her full backstory
• How a chance invitation to a Thailand retreat changed the course of her life
• The truth behind her first triathlon, old ladies' breaststroke and all
• What training for a 100k walk with her best friend Robin really taught her
• Why she believes movement should always be about joy, never punishment

Quote of the episode
"Finding fitness changed my life."

Here's how to get in touch...

• Follow the show and get all the links you need on LinkTree - https://linktr.ee/walking_this_way
• Email us: [email protected]
• Use the get in touch form HERE - https://tr.ee/r-ePylKE8H
• Send us a voice message HERE- https://www.speakpipe.com/WalkingThisWay

Produced by The Good Studio - thegoodstudio.co.uk

This week, Lise is joined by Nell McAndrew, model, TV presenter and 90s household name turned marathon runner, fitness DVD star and tireless charity fundraiser. But this isn't a conversation about being brilliant at running. It's about what happens when we stop thinking of exercise as punishment or weight loss and start thinking about what movement actually gives us: confidence, headspace, friendship and sanity.
 
In this episode, join Lise and discover:

• How Nell ran her marathon personal best of 2 hours 54 minutes after having her first child, and what changed in her mindset to get her there
• Why Nell has swapped pounding pavements for slower, more intentional movement, including a programme built around moving well rather than moving fast
• The visualisation trick Nell has used before every race, including dreaming she'd already run the marathon in her sleep
• The launch of What's Your Move, the new movement Nell and Lise are starting together to get more women moving in whatever way suits them
• Why turning up to volunteer at Parkrun, rather than run it, can be the easiest way to ease yourself in and lose the fear
• The message Paula Radcliffe sent about Nell, and why it left her lost for words

Quote of the episode

"I always just used to visualise myself getting to the finish line, crossing the finish line and putting my arms in the air." — Nell McAndrew

Useful links

• Follow Nell on Instagram: @nelliemcfitness

Be a part of the show: Here's how to get in touch...

• Follow the show and get all the links you need on LinkTree - https://linktr.ee/walking_this_way
• Email us: [email protected]
• Use the get in touch form HERE - https://tr.ee/r-ePylKE8H
• Send us a voice message HERE- https://www.speakpipe.com/WalkingThisWay

Produced by The Good Studio - thegoodstudio.co.uk

It's 32 degrees in southwest London and Lise's trying to keep cool for the Season One finale of Walking This Way: Out and about.

Reflecting on a recent trip to Royal Ascot, a very early start for a summer solstice swim, and a season of incredible conversations, Lise gets set for a summer break and looks ahead to what's coming up in Season Two from September.

Join Lise and discover...

• What happened at Royal Ascot, on the train home, and during a 2.45am dawn dip in Hove for the summer solstice
• A look back at some of the guests and conversations from this season
• What's coming up when the podcast returns in September
• Why hitting the follow button now means you won't miss the new season

With thanks to

As Seasone One of Walking This Way draws to a close, I'd like to thank my incredible guests over the course of the season, including the WomenKind Collective, Vicki Anstey, Helen Hopkins, Julia and the Ramble Worldwide team, Lorraine Candy, Dr Helen Wall, Sinead Laffan, Claire Hattrick, Lyndsey Gymer, Clare Capper, Adrienne, Tallulah Bamford, Katrina Hassan, Robyn Phillips and Vanessa McDaid. What an incredible collection of women and what amazing conversations. Go back and listen again!

Got an idea for Season Two? Here's how to get in touch...

• Follow the show and get all the links you need on LinkTree - https://linktr.ee/walking_this_way
• Email us: [email protected]
• Use the get in touch form HERE - https://tr.ee/r-ePylKE8H
• Send us a voice message HERE- https://www.speakpipe.com/WalkingThisWay

Produced by The Good Studio - thegoodstudio.co.uk

This week, Lise is joined by Jinty Sheerin and Lou Hockings-Thompson, founders of The Womenkind Collective, podcast hosts, menopause campaigners and co-authors of a forthcoming book on gender bias in healthcare. What began as two lifelong friends chatting over FaceTime during lockdown has grown into a thriving community helping thousands of women navigate midlife, menopause, health, identity and everything in between.

This conversation goes far beyond hot flushes and HRT. Together, they explore the hidden ways women are taught to minimise their pain, the shocking reality of gender bias in healthcare and why speaking openly about our experiences matters more than ever.

In this episode, join Lise and discover:

•  How two hairdresser friends turned lockdown conversations into the hugely successful Womenkind Collective 
•  Why women can wait years longer for diagnosis and treatment, including the average eight-year wait for endometriosis diagnosis 
•  Why so many women mistake perimenopause symptoms for serious illness, including dementia, anxiety disorders and chronic health conditions 
•  The concept of internalised misogyny and how it can influence healthcare experiences, even among women themselves 
•  Honest reflections on anxiety, exhaustion, body changes, vaginal health and the shame many women carry silently through midlife 

Quote of the episode

"I've felt shame at the time, but now I think I celebrate it as a post-menopausal woman."
– Jinty Sheerin

Useful links

•  The Womenkind Collective Spill The Tea Podcast 
•  Instagram: The Womankind Collective 
• Tackling Gender Bias in the Healthcare System: What Patient Stories Teach Us About Implementing Systemic Change by Jinty Sheerin and Lou Hockings-Thompson: Pre-order now

Be a part of the show: Here's how to get in touch...

• Follow the show and get all the links you need on LinkTree - https://linktr.ee/walking_this_way
• Email us: [email protected]
• Use the get in touch form HERE - https://tr.ee/r-ePylKE8H
• Send us a voice message HERE- https://www.speakpipe.com/WalkingThisWay

Produced by The Good Studio - thegoodstudio.co.uk