Tough Girl Podcast Mariam Kilpatrick - Ultra-runner and Women's Health Physiotherapist running the West Highland Way (96 miles) in 24hrs!
Mar 8, 2022
01:04:27
Mariam Kilpatrick is a Women's Health Physiotherapist and ultra-runner based in Glasgow, Scotland. She is an outdoor enthusiast and can usually be found up a hill in the Highlands of Scotland or travelling and exploring new places with her young family in their camper van. It may come as a surprise to a lot of people, but Mariam only took up trail running after the birth of her daughter in 2017 when her husband decided to surprise her by entering her into an "ultra" six months after giving birth. As it happened, it turned out it was as part of a team relay with 3 other people and she was assigned to run 10 miles out of the total 50-mile race. Nevertheless, Mariam stepped up to the challenge and worked hard to achieve her postpartum goal of running 10 hilly miles in the Ochils - her first experience running on the trails in Scotland. Since then, she has been bitten by the bug and to date has run several trail marathons, mountain and sky-running races and ultramarathons with her most recent achievement in 2021, running the full West Highland Way, Scotland's most famous long distance trail which is 96 miles (155km) long. Her goal was to run it in under-24 hours. As a women's health physiotherapist and a mother herself, Mariam's biggest passion is helping new mums through their postpartum journey. She hopes that her own personal experience will inspire and empower other women to achieve their goals - whether it's returning to their sport such as running, or simply just feeling back to themselves again after giving birth. New episodes of the Tough Girl Podcast go live every Tuesday & Thursday at 7am UK time - Hit the subscribe button so you don't miss out. The Tough Girl Podcast is being sponsored throughout March by Inov-8 supporting the #MarchDailyMile Challenge. Get your exclusive 15% discount code for inov-8.com by signing up HERE Show notes
- Who is Mariam
- Being based in Scotland
- Her love of the outdoors and exploring Scotland
- Wanting to help other women return to running and sport after having a baby
- Her early years and where her accent comes from
- Growing up in New Zealand and moving to Australia
- Taking up trail running after having her daughter in 2017
- Being entered into a 50 mile trail ultra marathon 6 months after giving birth…
- Meeting her husband and moving to Scotland
- Her pregnancy and birth story
- Working what a PT and doing gym classes
- Getting back to fitness after giving birth
- Putting on 3 stone during pregnancy
- Getting into running after pregnancy
- Using the walk run strategy and trying to build up time on feet
- Training for the final 10 miles of an ultra
- Not feeling ready for the race
- Being coached by Jonny @jonnykilpatrick
- Starting to identify as a runner
- Juggling training and childcare
- How the running goals evolved over time
- Thinking about running the West Highland Way (95 miles) in a day
- Wanting to see what else she could do
- Entering the WHW ballot
- Following a training plan
- Figuring out how to fit in running around her life and work
- Not being able to race the WHW due to covid and restrictions
- Going ahead with the challenge
- Making the challenge work for her and her family
- Doing the technical section in the pitch black
- Coming off caffeine before the WHW
- Having stomach issues
- 80s power ballads
- Counting and keeping the legs moving
- Getting the nutrition in
- Feeling emotional and crying it all out
- The final push - wanting to run the distance in 24 hrs
- Wanting to get it done
- The final 14 miles
- 4 miles downhill and giving everything she had left
- The finish of the run
- 23 hrs and 57 mins
- The picture from the finish line - https://www.instagram.com/p/CQWWl92rHXO/
- Connect with Mariam
- Final words of advice for runner and new mothers