Tough Girl Podcast

Rosie Stancer has dedicated the last 20 years of her life to expeditions of increasing severity. Her endeavours have earned her a high public profile in the UK amongst living explorers.   On each of the expeditions, Rosie undertakes research – meteorological, environmental and physiological. Data from the latter is processed into published scientific papers with a view to helping both athletes and other expeditioners content with the challenges of their undertakings.    Since her first expedition, Rosie has always championed the need for any endeavour to forge a wealthy legacy of learning, sharing and inspiring others.   Rosie’s expeditions include:   1997 THE ALL WOMEN NORTH POLE RELAY  - First all women team to reach The North Pole, A world 1st.   2000 MILLENNIUM WOMEN’S SOUTH POLE EXPEDITION  - Rosie was a member of the 5 women team to reach The South Pole. They were the 1st all-women team to do so. World 1st.   2003 SNICKERS SOUTH POLE SOLO - Rosie embarked alone on a solo expedition of 1,000k  with no r

Dora is a Running Coach for Nike UK and has launched Ultra Black Running - a community of Black Women and Non-Binary people to explore and experience the world of trail running.    “I’ll do everything I can, to make sure trail running becomes more diverse and work towards overcoming any barriers we may face”   Dora is a youth mentor and works on self-development programmes to encourage young people to engage in sport based initiatives.   Listen to Dora on the Tough Girl Podcast! New episodes go live every Tuesday and Thursday at 7am UK time - Subscribe 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 Why running is a really useful life tool Starting running in 2013 Getting into running via boxing  Getting into boxing via a friend Starting to take training seriously Finding her tribe The str

Charlotte graduated from University with a BA in Drama and Classical Archaeology and a MA in Social Anthropology (Specialising in Visual Anthropology).    During her MA she lived and filmed with a community of Maya deep in the Central American rainforest for her research and discovered, what the archaeological remains of Belize, hold for the Maya people of today.   In 2019, she was named the Scientific Exploration Societies River Foundation Explorer for Health and Humanities 2019.   With this award she returned to live with the Maya of Central America to produce educational resources in their native language, explore the surrounding jungle for ancient Maya archaeology and deliver dental hygiene workshops.   She is a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society and a member of The Explorers Club.    In addition she is an author and educator, currently working remotely from a small volcanic island in the South Atlantic Ocean.   When she is not exploring, she enjoys boxing and weightlifting.     New episodes of the

Preet in her own words:   “I’ve always been ambitious and enjoyed pushing my boundaries. I had limited knowledge of polar travel when I decided I wanted to do a solo Antarctic expedition.    I wanted to inspire people to believe in themselves. Nobody starts as an expert, everybody starts somewhere, you learn as you go and the more you learn, the closer it brings you to your goal. I started on google reading about polar expeditions and now I’ve completed training and expedition in Norway and Greenland, ready for my next step to Antarctica.   I’m an Army Physiotherapist and I love adventure and finding new ways to push my limits.    After playing tennis full time as a teenager training in the Czech Republic, I moved back to England at 19 to pursue a different path and to gain my degree in Physiotherapy. This will remain one of my biggest achievements as I came back to the UK with minimal GCSEs and no A-levels.    I completed my first half marathon at the age of 20, this progressed to ultra marathons and I’m now

Maria Coffey is the author of twelve internationally published, award winning books, the co-owner of an adventure travel company and an adventurer in her own right.   Growing up in England, Maria always dreamt of having a freewheeling life, with no real idea of how she could make that happen. In her twenties she fell in love with an elite Himalayan mountaineer, Joe Tasker, and her adventures became vicarious ones, as she waited at home during his long expeditions. When Joe disappeared on the NE Ridge of Everest, in 1982, Maria was devastated. “His death blew my life apart,” she says, “but ultimately it jolted me alive.” A few years later she moved to Canada. She met a man who shared her dream of travelling the world, and together they began to make it a reality.   Shortly after marrying Dag, Maria wrote her first book, Fragile Edge: Loss on Everest, an account of her relationship with Joe Tasker and her own journey to Everest in the wake of his death. The writing was pure catharsis, an untangling of emotional

Soraya believes in taking a holistic approach to making the world a better place, and writes about sustainability, nature and adventure travel. Soraya is Lonely Planet Sustainable Storyteller 2021 and founder of the All The Elements – a community working to increase diversity in the UK outdoors.   Soraya in her own words:   In 2014, I left my ‘dream job’ to make a difference. I kickstarted my new career by studying sustainability for business. As a reward to myself for handing in my dissertation, I went wild camping and canoeing on the Mississippi river. This trip was far more than an adventure holiday – it was a re-connection to nature. I want to help you to be more mindful in what you do and to understand that individual decisions can make a positive impact on our planet. When I'm not travelling, writing or creating net-positive artwork, you'll find me tackling diversity in the UK outdoors, organising all-women sailing trips exploring plastics and toxics in our ocean and walking my labradoodle Rory.   Liste

Mina was born in the UK and moved to Nigeria when she was five years old. Mina had a carefree childhood growing up in Northern Nigeria with siblings, before deciding to move back to the UK at sixteen to continue her education.    Mina shares more about this challenging time in her life, from losing her mother at eighteen years old and having to work three part time jobs to support herself as she continued her education to become a Doctor.   Mina talks about her reasons for deciding to join the army and how she incorporated fitness into her already busy schedule. Mina talks about her passion for running and why its such a big part of life, she talks about training, jegging and taking on her first marathon and what she has learned along the way, and why she has kept on running even after being diagnosed with Lupus (autoimmune disease) a long-term condition that causes joint pain, skin rashes and tiredness.    If you are passionate about running then this is the episode for you to listen to, Mina will inspire yo

Kat spent her early years in France and England, and has lived and studied in the Middle East (Syria, Egypt) prior to studying medicine, Kat gained a BA in Arabic and Law.     During this episode Kat shares more about why she decided to change careers to become a Doctor and the challenges she overcame to make her dream become a reality, from going back to night school to get science A’levels to dealing with imposter syndrome.   Kat shares more about her recent challenge of spending 18 months living and working in the remote and isolated Bird Island, in South Gerogia, which is only accessible via a 4 day boat journey and what it was like coming back to a different world to the one she left behind in October 2019.    Kat shares more about being part of a small team and community, how the expectations compared to reality and the lessons she has learned from that experience. We learn about the wifi and living situation, food, money and what she did in her down time. This is an insightful and open conversation abo

Kat is a keen endurance runner and has undertaken many of the Toughest Endurance Races - from running across the Sahara Desert in Morocco while competing in the Marathon des Sables. Or challenging her body to take on 4, 100 miler races in the UK - which is known as the Centurion “Grand Slam” which she did in 2014 and placed as first female.    Every year since Kat has looked to take on a new running challenge which would test her from the Dragons Back race in 2015 - where she got her first DNF, to taking on the Grand Union Canal Race race in 2016 -where she placed 2nd female.   Not to be deterred by her DNF in 2015, Kat took onboard the key lessons she needed to work on, trained hard and heading back to face the race in 2017, where she finished with a smile on her face.    With her 100 mile race times, Kat qualified for the Spartathlon ballot in 2017.  When her name was pulled out the hat she was in shock, she didn’t think she’d be taking on the 250km timed race from Athens to Sparta quite so soon!    The rac

Alvina was brought up in a traditional Navajo running family and she has always loved to get outside in nature and run, she dreamed about being a competitive runner when she was younger and pursued this dream by heading off to Arizona State University to compete for them.   Alvina has made it to the Olympic trials three times in the marathon and the 10K distance. She runs a 2hr 22 min marathon time.    Alvina is a Registered Dietitian, and has a Masters Degree in Health Administration. In November 2020 Alvina gave birth to a healthy baby girl.    During this episode Alvina shares more about her passion for running; how she trains, what she eats and how motherhood has impacted on her running. Plus the women who inspire her. Listen now!   New episodes every Tuesday and Thursday at 7am UK time - Subscribe 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 pl

As our world grows ever smaller and more connected, it’s easier to travel, but harder to find true adventure but at twenty-eight years old, Lucy is at the forefront of modern exploration.    From high mountains, rainforests, to the Arctic, she has plotted a thrilling, inimitable path. Made a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society at age twenty three and on the council for the Scientific Exploration Society as a result of her expedition achievements.    Lucy's expeditions have taken her all over the globe and she now shares her love for this world with others by both guiding expeditions to the Arctic and sharing her own adventures on film.   Lucy in her own words:   “I am a strong believer that when we put ourselves in challenging situations, whatever that may be, that our character grows and we become better people as a result. Given the current climate of how those in power are acting and how mental health and obesity problems are on the rise, we could all do with stepping outside our comfort zone and doin

Lavina Mehta is a 43-year-old award-winning Personal Trainer and mum of three who has been awarded an MBE for services to health and fitness during Covid-19 in October’s Queen Honour’s List.    Over lockdown, she provided free twice-daily virtual workouts with her family, aimed at keeping people of all ages healthy and mentally positive from home. Her slogan was to “Exercise for Sanity not Vanity” and she also provided a free Feel Good 21 Day Workout Plan.   Lavina’s free specially designed virtual chair workouts for Seniors, in English and Gujarati, with her 73-year-old mother in law featured on national TV and radio and inspired thousands of elderly members of the community to get involved. She continues these to give back to the disproportionately affected British Asian communities and help the elderly and vulnerable stay fit, physically and mentally.    Lavina continues providing free home workouts & videos over the pandemic. She also uses her concept of Exercise Snacking for her daily Feel Good Fitne

A lover of all things outdoors, Cathy is an explorer, mother, wife and USA Operations Lead at global drone-based inspection company, CyberHawk - and that doesn’t even begin to scratch the surface.   Back in 2014, Cathy led a climbing expedition to a remote part of East Greenland, establishing four new, never-before-explored routes.    Cathy passionately believes that these kinds of life-changing experiences don’t just fall into your lap - you have to work hard for them.    Expeditions are born from a book full of notes and ideas, endless nights of planning, and more spreadsheets than any outdoor-lover cares to imagine.   Australian-born and adopted-Scot, Cathy currently splits her time between Colorado and California, where she’s learning to both snowboard and surf, while spending time with friends and family.    It’s safe to say that she’s really taking advantage of every opportunity life throws at her.   Listen to Cathy on the Tough Girl Podcast! New episodes every Tuesday and Thursday at 7am UK time - Subs

Before summiting Everest, Tima had climbed 18 high mountains around the world including 6 out of the 7 summits (highest mountain on every continent) and became the 1st Arab woman to climb Ojos del Salado, the highest active volcano in the world. With her passion for exploring and redefining limits, mountaineering came as a second nature to her. Staying true to her wanderer spirit, she aims to continue leading an adventurous lifestyle and never stop climbing.   Tima grew up traveling the world collecting bungee jumps and memories of nature and extreme sports. She pursued her licenses in both skydiving and advanced scuba-diving as she made both the skies and the oceans her playgrounds. But, for her, nothing compares to being on the mountains. When on Elbrus, her first summit, Tima knew that this was not yet another hobby; but a natural and essential aspect of her life- just like breathing. It’s where her soul sparkles and her light shines. It’s where she feels she is the best version of herself. And so, it was

Angela started running at the age of 53 as part of a series of ‘small steps’ she took to improve her health and quality of life.  A friend then introduced her to the world of ultra running and she become fascinated with what the human body can achieve when asked.   Since then she has completed events of varying distances including 50 miles, a 100 mile race and the 190 mile Northern Traverse and a number of 24 hour races as well as taking up cycling and swimming.   A former surgeon, Angela has a passion to inspire others to take their own ‘small steps’ to adopt healthy lifestyle choices throughout life and has set up a social enterprise to encourage and motivate people to improve their future health.   Prior to medicine Angela had a first career in the computer industry but in her early thirties she went to medical school and retrained as a doctor. Thereafter she undertook surgical training and specialised in trauma and orthopaedics. She developed a special interest in older people and hip fracture. She combin

Amira in her own words:    “My name is Amira I’m 28 years old and I’m from Bolton. I’m a Muslim British Indian. I currently work at a Spa retreat, and when I’m not working you’ll find me somewhere in the mountains or on an adventure. I’m the founder of The Wanderlust Women Group which is a hiking and adventure group for Muslim women. My aim is to break down the barriers and stereotypes of the niqab and to break down misconceptions of Muslim women. The niqab to me is liberating and dignifying. It gives me strength and freedom. I wear the niqab as a personal act of worship and I deeply believe it brings me closer to god.”   Amira shares more about her passion for the outdoors, why she spends time outside and how she is encouraging other Muslim women to get outdoors and try hiking.    “Success isn’t just about what you accomplish in your life; it’s about what you inspire others to do.”    “It’s only after you’ve stepped outside your comfort zone that you begin to change, grow, and transform.”   Listen to Amira o

Nalini in her own words:   “I’m a grants manager at a nonprofit that focuses on youth development by day and an outdoor enthusiast by weekend. Whether I’m tending to my balcony garden, walking in parks in my hometown of the Washington, D.C. area, hiking iconic trails in National Parks, or carrying everything I need for a week or six-month long backpacking trip, I love spending time in the outdoors (and sharing stories of everything that goes wrong during my adventures).   Backpacking. It’s nothing short of a gift to have time to be in your head, carry no other worry than the miles ahead for the day and feel the freedom that comes with with carrying everything you need in a pack. Hiking. The remarkable view from the summit of a mountain feels different when your body’s efforts get you to the top. Walking. Nothing makes me feel more connected to all the beauty and possibility of nature than a walk in a park close to home.”   New episodes of the Tough Girl Podcast go live every Tuesday and Thursday at 7am UK t

Earlier this year, On January 22, Brooke Thomas an ultra runner and nurse, finished running the 3,000km Te Araroa Trail. Which starts at Cape Regina in the North Island and runs through to Buff, which is the bottom of the South Island.    Brooke started her journey (supported) on November 26, 2020 and ran for 57 days, 12 hours, breaking the Te Araroa women’s route record by almost nine days!    During this episode, Brooke shares more about her love of running and why she wanted to take on this challenge, she shares the high points; running 100km in one day and finishing the challenge. To reflecting back on when she ending up in hospital and not knowing if she would be able to carry on. We talk about the logistics and the physical and mental preparation. Brooke also shares more about her heart condition and how having a pacemaker/defibrillator installed has impacted on her life and running.    Brooke was raising money for Heart Kids, a nonprofit organisation in New Zealand that supports children living with he

Jessie’s lifelong outdoor odyssey began with Duke of Edinburgh walks in the Peak District.    This segued into long hill hikes in the Yorkshire Dales, multi-day treks in the Lake District, scrambles in North Wales and adventures scaling alpine pinnacles.    When not walking, she can be found rock climbing, wild swimming, cycling, photographing, filmmaking, writing and modelling.    Jessie in her own words:   “It’s so so important to be championing a greater diversity of voices and lenses that show a different narrative on the world.”   “For me, trad climbing helps me slow everything down. When I have deadlines on, worrying about where my next job comes through or trying to give my head a bit of space, I find nothing helps concentrate me more than heading to my local crag and putting all the mind chatter in a box. Being on the sharp end and taking a deep breath, committing to the move above my gear - that is what gives me energy”     New episodes of the Tough Girl Podcast go live every Tuesday and Thursday at

Jessi (Jessilynn) was born in a small town in Southern Alberta Canada. She grew up on a ranch and has always loved being in the mountains. She moved around quite a bit as a child and is now living in Sandy, UT, USA.    Jessi started competing in cross country in high school but stopped due to illness, which later was diagnosed as Lyme Disease. After going through treatments in the United States, Jessi spent three consecutive summers in Kerala, India where she learned the value of meditation and building a relationship with herself.    After having her daughter, who is now seven, Jessi decided to run her first marathon. She went on to compete in many ultra-marathon distances and recently won the female division at Moab 240 in October 2020.    Jessi recently wrote a book called, Defying the Odds, which talks about her journey and how she used mental fortitude to become the person she is today.  CONTENT WARNING - Rape is mentioned and miscarriages are discussed in detail.   New episodes of the Tough Girl Podcast