• Home
  • About Me
  • Contact Me
Home
About Me
Contact Me
Lessons In Badassery - Badass women in sport, fitness and adventure
  • Home
  • About Me
  • Contact Me
  • Rebecca Rusch
    Interview with the Queen of Pain
    READ MORE
    © garminoutdoor
  • Tahnée Seagrave
    I like hard sections. I thrive off difficulty
    READ MORE
    © Dave Mackison
  • Victoria Kreuzer
    Skimo Athlete + Vertical Runner
    READ MORE
    © Damiano Levati/Red Bull
  • Nicky Spinks
    Fell Running Legend
    READ MORE
    © INOV-8.COM/Lee Proctor
  • Amanda Coker
    Cycling 100,000 miles in 423 days
    READ MORE
    © Imani Lee
  • Tracey Hannah
    Downhill Mountain Bike Badass
    READ MORE
    © Callum Wood
  • Kerri-anne Payne
    Open water swimming, Training and Triscape
    READ MORE
    © The Great Swim
  • Jordan Mercer
    Ocean Athlete + Surf IronWoman
    READ MORE
    © Stephen Baccon/Red Bull Content Pool
  • A DAY IN THE LIFE OF
    Surfer Belinda Baggs
    READ MORE
    © Patagonia
  • INTERVIEW
    EMMA PALLANT
    Track to triathlon podium
    READ MORE
    © www.thatcameraman.com
  • INTERVIEW
    KIMBERLEY MURRAY
    GB Skeleton Athlete
    READ MORE
    © Neil Shearer Photography
  • INTERVIEW
    NESS KNIGHT
    Extreme adventurer
    READ MORE
  • INTERVIEW
    A Day In The Life Of...
    ROCHELLE GILMORE
    READ MORE
  • INTERVIEW
    FLORA DUFFY
    Triple Triathlon World Champion
    READ MORE
  • INTERVIEW
    CHRISSIE WELLINGTON
    Triathlon LEGEND
    READ MORE
    Photo Credit: Larry Maurer
  • Lessons in badassery - 20 QUESTIONS FOR… Ayesha McGowan: Bike badass and diversity advocate INTERVIEW
    20 Questions For…
    Ayesha McGowan: Bike Badass
    READ MORE
    Photo Credit: Josh Cohen
  • INTERVIEW
    JANE HANSOM
    Journey to Ironman Champion
    READ MORE
  • EVENT
    What It Feels Like To
    Ride The Fireflies Tour
    READ MORE
  • INTERVIEW
    SARAH RIXHAM
    Highlining in the Clouds
    READ MORE
  • INTERVIEW
    GEORGIE TIMSON
    Surfing The Waves
    READ MORE
  • INTERVIEW
    JODIE STIMPSON
    Chasing Triathlon Gold
    READ MORE
  • Exercise Ice Maiden: Skiing Antarctica Coast-to-Coast INTERVIEW
    EXERCISE ICE MAIDEN
    Skiing Antarctica Coast-to-Coast
    READ MORE
  • Tia-Clair Toomey: CrossFit and the Olympics triumph INTERVIEW
    TIA-CLAIR TOOMEY
    CrossFit and the Olympics
    READ MORE
    © Copyright 2017 CrossFit, Inc
  • INTERVIEW
    ERIN BASTIAN
    Kayaking Patagonia
    READ MORE
  • INTERVIEW
    5 Minutes With...
    Jolian D'hoore
    READ MORE
    © Jack Chevell
  • INTERVIEW
    LAURA JONES
    Marathon Challenge
    READ MORE
  • EVENT
    A Beginner’s Guide to Swimrun
    READ MORE
    © Camilla Rutherford photography
  • EVENT
    Behind the scenes
    Wiggle High5 Pro Cycling Women’s Team
    READ MORE
    © Jack Chevell
  • INTERVIEW
    RHIANNAN IFFLAND
    Cliff Diving Champion
    READ MORE
  • INTERVIEW
    TRACY MOSELEY
    Mountain bike legend
    READ MORE
  • INTERVIEW
    KELLY HALPIN
    Endurance Athlete
    READ MORE
    © Camille Fiducia
  • INTERVIEW
    ALEX DANSON
    Olympic Gold
    READ MORE
  • INTERVIEW
    LINDSAY WEBSTER
    OCR WORLD CHAMP
    READ MORE
fitness

Amanda Coker: First woman to cycle 500+ miles in 24-hours

December 8, 2021 by badassery No Comments

I last caught up with ultra-endurance cyclist Amanda Coker in 2018, hot on the heels of her record-breaking HAM’R (Highest Annual Mileage Record). You can read the interview here, but to summarise, Amanda rode an average of 237 miles every day for 365 days in order to smash the highest annual mileage record (male and female), clocking up an incredible 86,573.2 miles. Then, instead of taking a well-earned day off to celebrate, Amanda continued riding for an additional 58 days to break the 100,000-mile record, ticking off this immense milestone in a total of 423 days.

Fast-forward to the 23rd of October this year, and Amanda rode herself into the record books once again, this time by breaking the women’s 24-hour distance record. Riding a 28-mile out-and-back route on open roads in Florida, USA, Amanda cycled 512.5 miles, obliterating the previous women’s record by 73.5 miles, and in the process making history as the first woman to break 500 miles in 24-hours. Not only that, but despite the shorter records not being her main focus, the 29-year-old American broke the following ten records* on the way: fastest 100km, 100 miles, 200km, 200 miles, 300km, 300 miles, 500km, and 500 miles, as well as new distance records for 6 hours and 12 hours. Phew!

I caught up with Amanda to get the lowdown of how it all happened.

Continue reading
Share:
fitness

Ultracyclist Lael Wilcox: “I dream in long-distance”

November 24, 2021 by badassery No Comments

© Tristan Bogaard

For most of us, 100 miles on a bike is a very long way. For Lael Wilcox, ultra-endurance cyclist and Komoot ambassador, that’s barely a day’s racing. Long is Lael’s forte. The 35-year-old adventure cyclist’s endurance endeavours include winning – outright – the 4,400-mile 2016 Trans-Am race, which she finished in 18 days in 2016, and holding the women’s self-supported FKT for the 2745-mile Tour Divide, an off-road route following the Rocky Mountains from Banff in Canada to the Mexico border.

Whilst most people like to arrive rested for a record attempt, Lael chose to cycle 2100 miles from Anchorage in Alaska, her home state, to reach the Tour Divide start line in 2015. After developing bronchitis during her Tour Divide attempt, she rode herself to an emergency room mid-ride with the clock ticking and still broke the FKT record. Not satisfied with her new record time, however, Lael returned two weeks later to ride the 2745-mile route again, breaking her own record by a day and a half. Oh, and this time her warm-up was an 850-mile ride to the start line. 

You might imagine someone with Lael’s talent having grown up riding, but the American only took up cycling in her early 20s, first to commute, then to explore the world. And by explore the world, I mean ride 150,000+ miles across 40 countries before she entered her first race. 

More recently, in August this year, Lael led an all-women group on the self-supported Komoot Torino-Nice Rally, a 700K route through Italy and France, accumulating 15,000m of climbing over the week of riding. I got the chance to quiz Lael about this, and many other things, in the Q&A below. 

Continue reading
Share:
fitness

Santia Deck: History-making American Footballer

November 10, 2021 by badassery No Comments

Officially the highest-paid female American footballer of all time, 29-year-old Santia Deck negotiated plenty of bumps in the road to find herself where she is today. Injuries devastated her early dream of becoming a professional track athlete and later ended her hope of trying out for the Tokyo Olympic US Rugby sevens squad. However, her sporting career finally fell into place when she was headhunted in 2019 by Los Angeles Fames owner, Lupe Rose, to play American football in the new Women’s Football League Association (the women’s equivalent of the NFL) in a history-making, multimillion-dollar deal.

Behind the scenes, Santia was already several years into building her business empire, first as a fitness trainer and social media expert, and more recently as the CEO of her sneaker brand, TRONUS (in the process becoming the first female athlete to own their own sneaker brand.) 

While Covid has put the launch of the WFLA on the backburner for now, Santia’s training hasn’t stopped, and in this Q&A, we discuss how she went from star track athlete to history-making American footballer and company CEO.

Continue reading
Share:
fitness

Ultrarunner Sophie Power: Motherhood and mountain ultras

October 27, 2021 by badassery No Comments

Ultrarunner Sophie Power made headlines in 2018 when a photo of her breastfeeding her then 3-month-old son during the 106-mile Ultra-Trail Du Mont-Blanc (UTMB) went viral. Undoubtedly, you’ll have seen the iconic image (below), but you may not know that Sophie had previously lost a place at the 2014 UTMB when pregnant with her first child due to UTMB’s policy on race referral. 

Not wanting to lose another opportunity to run UTMB, Sophie (whose race finishes include the Marathon des Sables and the 153-mile Spartathlon) toed the line at the 2018 race – three months after giving birth to baby Cormac and whilst breastfeeding. Since then, she has campaigned for races to allow women to defer their places until they have recovered from pregnancy and childbirth.

Now a mum of three, Sophie continues to share honest accounts of her own experiences of postnatal life, including the challenges that women often face when returning to running after childbirth. Many of these are included in the short film Pregnancy to Performance, made with HOKA, which documents her postpartum return to running following the birth of her daughter, Saoirse, last November.

In this Q&A, we chat about the story behind that UTMB photo, how Sophie fits training into a busy life alongside work, campaigning and three kids, and her mental strategies for approaching tough times in races. 

Continue reading
Share:
fitness

Shirin Gerami: Boundary-breaking triathlete

October 13, 2021 by badassery No Comments

© IRONMAN

When Shirin Gerami lined up at the start line of the 2013 ITU World Championships to represent her home country of Iran, it was the culmination of six months of intense work behind the scenes to persuade the Iran Triathlon Federation to grant her permission to represent them. Six months of meetings, red tape, custom kit designs (as the strict Islamic dress code was the major factor in their decision), factory visits and trips to Iran, to enable Shirin to become the first female triathlete to represent Iran.

Although she made history that day once she had received the go-ahead to represent Iran, the work didn’t end there. Shirin, whose journey in triathlon began whilst at university in Durham, has continued to blaze a trail and demonstrate that a modest dress code is not a barrier to sports participation. In 2016, Shirin toed the line at the IRONMAN World Championships in Kona, completing the 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike and 26.2-mile run wearing a hijab and head-to-toe kit. 

In this Q&A we chat about her experiences in triathlon and the behind-the-scenes work that led to her becoming the first woman to represent Iran in triathlon.

Continue reading
Share:
fitness

Danielle Brown: Archery’s double Paralympic gold medallist

September 29, 2021 by badassery No Comments

After being diagnosed with Complex Regional Pain Syndrome as a child, Danielle Brown MBE discovered archery and went on to enjoy a hugely successful professional career in elite sport. Not only is she a double Paralympic gold medallist, but a five-time world champion. She also became the first disabled athlete to represent England at an able-bodied event when she won gold in the team Archery event at the 2010 Commonwealth Games.

However, Danielle’s sporting career was devastatingly cut short in 2013 when World Archery declassified her disability, abruptly ending her eligibility to compete in disability sport. 

Eight years on, Danielle has a different career path with a very successful motivational speaking business and two books to her name. Still passionate about women’s sport, her latest book, Run Like A Girl: 50 Extraordinary and Inspiring Sportswomen includes mini biographies of 50 incredible women in sport and adventure, shining a light on their achievements whilst reclaiming the ‘Like a girl’ phrase as a positive one.

Continue reading
Share:
fitness

The unstoppable Leah Goldstein: Race Across America (RAAM) Winner

September 15, 2021 by badassery No Comments

Where to start with the incredible Leah Goldstein? The 52-year-old Canadian has lived a remarkable life. A world champion kickboxer at 17, she was the first female elite commando instructor in the Israeli Defence Force, a Krav Maga specialist, and an undercover Special Forces terrorism and violent crime officer… and that’s before all of her endurance sports accolades!

After leaving the army, Leah enjoyed an impressive professional cycling career for more than a decade until a near-death crash in 2005 saw her hospitalised for several months. Doctors told her she would never race again, but, incredibly, she proved them wrong. 

Earlier this year, Leah became the first woman in history to take the outright solo win at Race Across America (RAAM), a 3000-mile, single-stage cycle race from America’s west to east coast, dubbed the toughest bike race in the world. She completed it in 11 days, 3 hours and 3 minutes, enduring searing temperatures of up to 50°C and accumulating 175,000ft of elevation. The second-place rider crossed the line almost 16 hours later.

I had the pleasure of chatting with Leah, who is also a motivational speaker and the author of No Limits (which documents her incredible life and career) at the start of August. Our phone conversation focused on her historic RAAM win, her preparation, her sleep schedule, and everything it took to cross the line as 2021’s outright winner. Enjoy!

Continue reading
Share:
fitness

Sian Rainsley: Training and racing with Crohn’s Disease

September 1, 2021 by badassery No Comments

© Chris Samsom

She may be a youthful 24-year-old, but GB triathlete Sian Rainsley already has an impressive 17 years of solid race experience to her name, having competed in triathlon since the age of seven. A successful junior triathlete, Sian earned silver at the 2014 Youth Olympic Games, before recently stepping up to compete for the senior GB team. However, it’s not all been plain sailing for the GB triathlete; after falling ill at her first GB training camp at the age of 18, Sian was diagnosed with the autoimmune condition, Crohn’s Disease.

Despite doctors advising her against pursuing a career in elite sport, Sian has been able to manage her Crohn’s whilst competing as a professional athlete, even earning a gold medal in the mixed relay for Team GB’s senior team at this year’s 2021 Kitzbühel European Sprint & Relay Championships. Although, if that suggests it’s been an easy ride for Sian, far from it. In this week’s Q&A, Sian kindly shares the challenges she faces in managing and living with her Crohn’s Disease whilst chasing her dream of a successful triathlon career.

Continue reading
Share:
fitness

Hillary Allen: “The real battle for survival was in my head”

August 18, 2021 by badassery No Comments

American ultrarunner and skyrunner Hillary Allen was ranked number one in the 2017 Skyrunning World Series when she fell 150ft from an exposed ridge-line during the Tromsø Skyrace in Norway. During the fall, her body took the full force of several impacts and by the time fellow racer Manu Par had scrambled down to her, she had broken 14 bones, including both wrists, five ribs, both feet and vertebrae L4 and L5 in her back. 

Incredibly, Hillary survived. But being ‘alive’ and enduring multiple surgeries was just the beginning of her battle for survival, as she recounts in her new book, Out And Back: A Runner’s Story of Survival Against All Odds.

Doctors told Hillary she would never run again, but after two years of rehab and recovery, she returned to ultrarunning, even setting several new course records. The 32-year-old also discovered cycling as part of her recovery and her gravel riding resume now includes none other than the notorious Unbound Gravel – considered the gravel race to end all gravel races. 

I chatted to Hillary over the phone back in July about the long road to recovery, the setbacks and further surgeries she endured, and the freedom she now feels when she lines up on the start line.

Continue reading
Share:
fitness

Christal Clashing Part 2: Becoming an Olympian and living with PMDD

August 4, 2021 by badassery No Comments

© Paul Calver

Last week I brought you the first part of my Q&A with Christal Clashing, covering Christal’s historic Atlantic row and her freediving. In part two, we rewind a bit and chat about how Christal came to represent Antigua in swimming at the Athens Olympics when she was just 14.

As I said in last week’s feature, Christal suffers from a debilitating pre-menstrual condition, Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD), which started in her teens and went undiagnosed until her twenties. The condition affects 2-10% of women and is something Christal continues to manage. In this Q&A, she kindly shares her experience and the deep impact it has had on her life.

Continue reading
Share:
Page 3 of 40« First...«2345»102030...Last »

About My Blog

Mountain View

I'm a sports/adventure journalist and copywriter, and I LOVE reading about badass women in sport, fitness and adventure. So I’m on a mission to find them, share their stories, and quiz them about their training, their motivation, and insider tips (totally hoping some badass magic will rub off on me along the way!). Plus I’ll bring you how-tos, must-have kit and tales of epic from some of the coolest and toughest events on the planet.

Email Me: katie@lessonsinbadassery.com

Categories

  • events
  • fitness
  • Interview
  • video

Recent Posts

Posting update and festive wishes

Posting update and festive wishes

December 14, 2022
‘Riding to prove that we can’ – meet the mountain bikers challenging MS stereotypes

‘Riding to prove that we can’ – meet the mountain bikers challenging MS stereotypes

November 16, 2022
Adelaide Goodeve: Performance psychologist and Ironman athlete

Adelaide Goodeve: Performance psychologist and Ironman athlete

November 2, 2022
Amy Robitaille: Outright winner of Ultraman Canada

Amy Robitaille: Outright winner of Ultraman Canada

October 19, 2022
Dr Dina Altayeb: Trailblazing Ironman triathlete

Dr Dina Altayeb: Trailblazing Ironman triathlete

October 5, 2022

Tag Cloud

adventure alex danson claire steels climbing crossfit cycling Downhill Mountain Biking duathlon endurance fell running Hockey ironman Karin Karlsson kiko matthews lessons in badassery lindsay webster Marathon mountaineering mountain running MTB nicky spinks OCR Olympics Paddleboarding red bull 400 rowing running skyrunning Surfing swimming swimrun team GB tracy moseley trail running Triathlete triathlon ultra-marathon ultra-trail running Ultrarunner ultra runner ultra running Weightlifting women's rugby womens adventure expo world champion

Search

Categories

  • events
  • fitness
  • Interview
  • video

Areas

  • About Me
  • Contact Me
  • Events

Recent Posts

  • Posting update and festive wishes
  • ‘Riding to prove that we can’ – meet the mountain bikers challenging MS stereotypes
  • Adelaide Goodeve: Performance psychologist and Ironman athlete
  • Amy Robitaille: Outright winner of Ultraman Canada
  • Dr Dina Altayeb: Trailblazing Ironman triathlete

lessonsinbadassery

Hello! Christmas is almost upon us, so I thought I Hello! Christmas is almost upon us, so I thought I’d combine my usual Crimbo message with a posting update. Regular readers might have spotted that a new interview is overdue (sorry, peeps!). Unfortunately, five of my athlete interviews agreed before summer haven’t materialised, so I’ve been left with a gap in posting.

I usually like to work around 6 weeks in advance, so I know I’m nice and organised with my interviews (as they often involve going back and forth for weeks and require images etc.), which I do around my day job and family. However, the reality of running a non-monetised blog is that sometimes interviews are agreed upon and questions sent, only to fall through up to a year later.

Thankfully, I have two new athlete interviews in the pipeline now with two incredible women, so I hope to be back up and running in February if you can bear with me that long 😉.

In the meantime, a big thank you for your support in 2022 and a huge thanks to the brilliant athletes who have taken time out of their busy schedules to let me pester them with questions this year. You rock!

Muchos love and festive happiness to you ❤️

Katiex

#lessonsinbadassery #womeninsport #womeninadventure #endurancetraining
Can you ride an epic MTB race after a multiple scl Can you ride an epic MTB race after a multiple sclerosis diagnosis? @paddle_kat and @sargar83 (who both have MS) teamed up to ride the 4-day Cape to Cape race in a bid to raise money for MS charity and create a positive narrative around racing in multi-sports after a multiple sclerosis diagnosis💥 They both tell me all about it on Lessons in Badassery today.

⚡️Read via the link in my bio or visit Lessonsinbadassery.com ⚡️ 

📸 @capetocapemtb
___________________________________
#msdiagnosis #multiplesclerosis #MSathlete #mssociety #livingwithms #cape2cape #mtbracing #womenscycling #multisportracing #womenssport #mtblife #singletrack #multistagerace #endurancewomen #endurancetraining #lessonsinbadassery #msinspiration
We deep dive into the mental side of training and We deep dive into the mental side of training and racing in today’s interview with performance psychologist and Ironman athlete @adelaidegoodeve 💥 

Get the lowdown on how your language affects your performance (and how to use it as a performance enhancer), what NOT to say in your self-talk, why time-based race race goals can derail your performance, and why running on a treadmill opposite a wall isn’t a smart way to build mental resilience. 🤩 Thanks, Adelaide!

⚡️ Read via the link in my bio or visit Lessonsinbadassery.com ⚡️

___________________________________
#ironman #ironmanathlete #ironmatraining #triathlontraining #swimbikerun #braintraining #mentalstrength #positivemindset #sportspsychology #athlete #adventure #womenscycling #womensrunning #mentalstrengthtraining #goalsetting #trainsmart #womenssport #lessonsinbadassery #endurancetraining #brainendurancetraining #resilience
Instagram didn’t save the web link to my intervi Instagram didn’t save the web link to my interview with the brilliant @honesttriathlete (overall winner of Ultraman Canada this year), but it’s up now! If you haven’t read Amy’s Q&A, head over to it now (link finally in my bio 🙄) or visit Lessonsinbadassery.com 💥 

___________________________________
#ultraman #ultraathlete #ultrarunner #ultratriathlon #ironman #ironathlete #ultracycling #womenscycling #triathlontraining #swimbikerun #womensrunning #womenstriathlon #ironmantraining #lessonsinbadassery #bricksession #intervals #endurancetraining #endurancesport #endurancewomen #ultramancanada #ultramanworldchampionship
I’m thrilled to have outright winner of Ultraman I’m thrilled to have outright winner of Ultraman Canada, Amy Robitaille (@honesttriathlete), answer my questions on Lessons in Badassery today. We cover Amy’s training, and how it all went down during the three-day event, which included a 10K swim and 145K bike on day one, a further 275K bike on day two, and an 84.4K run on the final day. 😳
Amy is also an Ironman finisher, holds an FKT (fastest known time) and has completed a virtual Everest on Alpe du Zwift. 🙌🙌🙌

Read via the link in my bio of visit Lessonsinbadassery.com 💥 

___________________________________
#ultraman #ultraathlete #ultrarunner #ultratriathlon #ironman #ironathlete #ultracycling #womenscycling #triathlontraining #swimbikerun #womensrunning #womenstriathlon #ironmantraining #lessonsinbadassery #bricksession #intervals #endurancetraining #endurancesport #endurancewomen #ultramancanada #ultramanworldchampionship
*New Q&A!* Dr @dina.altayeb was the first Saudi to *New Q&A!* Dr @dina.altayeb was the first Saudi to complete a full Ironman triathlon and the first Arab woman to compete at the Ironman World Championships in Kona - where she is right now, about to race for the third time 🎉👊

Read Dina’s Q&A via the link in my bio or visit Lessonsinbadassery.com 🔥

___________________________________
#ironmanworldchamps #trilife #ironman #ironman2022 #ironathlete #ironmantri #triathletelife #triathlontraining #swimbikerun #roadtokona #womensrunning #womenscycling #womenstriathlon #ironmantraining #lessonsinbadassery #bricksession #intervals #ironmanworldchamps22 #ironmankona22 #kona2022
Follow on Instagram
© 2022 copyright Lessons In Badassery // All rights reserved
Website by Test Creative