Tough Girl Podcast Alison Walker - UK-based Malaysian ultra-runner completing the Smog Graham Round running over 300-kilometres in 54 hours and 33 minutes
Dec 29, 2020
40:59
Alison Walker is a U.K. based Malaysian ultra runner who started running ultras in 2019. Alison holds several fastest Malaysian ultra times and has most recently the first person to complete the Smog Graham Round. Over lockdown, she had also completed 4 other FKTs from 18 miles to 120km. New episodes of the Tough Girl Podcast go live every Tuesday and Thursday at 7am UK time - Make sure you hit the subscribe button 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
- Who is Alison
- Growing up in Malaysia and going to school in Singapore
- Not being into sports or exercise when she was younger
- moving over to the UK to attend university
- Getting into running for the first time
- How her running increased
- 2015 moving to East London
- Running with a group called - Run Fast
- Starting with a running coach in late 2018
- Being coached by Peter McHugh
- Recovering from an ankle injury
- Book - Running Up That Hill: The highs and lows of going that bit further - By Vassos Alexander
- Wanting to qualify for the 153-mile Spartathlon Race
- Wanting to run 100 miles in under 22 hrs
- The importance of finding the right coach for you
- Running 100 miles and the importance of breaking down the challenge
- Being a fan of loop courses and repetition
- Starting to think more about kit and starting to invest in better quality gear
- The mental side of running ultras
- Not running with music
- What a typical week looks like in training
- Not having a rest day…
- Listening to her body
- Needing a McDonalds after a race!
- Sleeping, massage and stretching
- What the Smog Graham Round in London is
- Starting at her flat in London
- The challenges of navigation
- The wildlife in London - cows & horses!
- Starting off at 5am
- The biggest challenge on the Smog Graham Round
- Doing Fastest Known Times (FKTs)
- The challenges of arranging the logistics of FKTs
- The plan for running the Spartathlon Race
- Final words of advice for women who want to get into ultra running