Annie Brooks: From Epilepsy Diagnosis to Ironman World Championships Triumph and Inspiring Joy in Racing

What if discovering joy in your passion could transform your greatest challenges into your most remarkable triumphs? Join us for a heartwarming and truly inspirational chat with Annie Brooks, a phenomenal athlete who turned her epilepsy diagnosis into a driving force for competing in triathlons, eventually conquering the Ironman World Championships in Kona. We explore the power of resilience, the importance of mental fortitude, and the sheer joy of racing that can turn daunting obstacles into stepping stones for personal growth and achievement.

Ever faced the hilarious dilemma of hosting a barbecue without the essentials like outdoor seating or a grill? As we recount our own adventures in shifting a neighborhood party to a neighbor's better-equipped backyard, we navigate the humorous complexities of meal planning influenced by my wife’s dietary preferences and the social intricacies of contributing healthy options. The conversation shifts to the simple but profound joy of birthday celebrations, reflecting on personal milestones, the significance of birthday wishes, and the quirky fears of jinxing good fortune.

Training for a triathlon is tough; managing epilepsy alongside it is a whole new level of challenge. Annie Brooks shares her journey of balancing rigorous training schedules with health management, highlighting the importance of mindfulness, recovery, and the supportive role of her husband-coach. From overcoming mechanical issues during races to the camaraderie found in endurance events, this episode is a testament to the human spirit's resilience. We also provide practical tips for running in hot weather and emphasize the importance of staying hydrated and safe. Tune in for a motivational episode brimming with heartwarming stories, practical advice, and the small moments that make endurance sports so special.

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

This is a Jeff Galloway podcast. Welcome to 321. Go the Podcast. I'm John Pelkey.

Speaker 2: 0:07

And I'm Carissa Galloway and we're bringing you stories from start to finish to keep the everyday athlete motivated to keep moving towards the next finish.

Speaker 1: 0:16

All right, carissa. One of our goals with starting this podcast was to highlight athletes doing amazing things, overcoming the odds and continuing to find the finish line, and we've seen a lot of that. Today's guest, annie Brooks, is doing just that and, frankly, more. I think you would agree. Annie was diagnosed with epilepsy and it was after the diagnosis. Let me say that again everybody. After the diagnosis, she found a passion for triathlons of all things. Last year she finished one of the hardest triathlons of all things. Last year she finished one of the hardest triathlons in the world the Ironman World Championships in Kona. We will discuss that and all the dogs, dogs. We're going to do a lot of discussion, though never enough about dogs.

Speaker 2: 0:58

Well, maybe we have a sub podcast, 3-2-1-woof or something like that.

Speaker 1: 1:02

I love it.

Speaker 2: 1:03

Annie is amazing. She puts into perspective as we talk to her, and especially near the end of the podcast, coming to a race with the mindset of joy, and I think that's something that we can all be reminded of. In Healthier you, we're going to talk about what you should change when you're running in the heat and we share a listener email from Angie. And thank you, listeners, thank you for listening, for sharing, thank you to our amazing sponsors. Support the podcast. If you love it, keep us going, find out how to be a supporter. It's like a VIP over here. Look at the show notes and let's do this. 3, 2, 1, go. Ladies and gentlemen, this is a special chat. Like a special chat, but also like a sad chat. Not sad, but oh, there's sadness.

Speaker 2: 1:59

I've been through all the emotions, oh of course it is John's 60th birthday right now, so that's the joy, and the sadness is that I made him get on the computer and tape a chat, and by I I mean Weston he's such a devoted podcaster. It is 2.37 on his birthday. He may have had some libations and he is here to chat.

Speaker 1: 2:21

I am. I should say that I think I was born at 10.30 at night, so we're still eight hours away from my actual, you know, appearance. Yes, on July 2nd 1964. Wow, sorry, sorry the day they signed the Civil Rights Act, though, so I'm always very, very happy about that sort of thing. But yes, and as far as libations go, I have had one. I had a Bloody Mary with my lunchy brunch. It wasn't quite brunch, sort of a lunch thing. And I shout out to the folks over at Rustique in Ocoee it's a great restaurant and the owners are big, big proponents of Jodi's Pet Rescue and they have helped us out countless times. So great place to have something to eat. If you're in Thornton Park, they have one here in Ocoee. They also run for folks, fans of the brunch, the Stubborn Mule here in Orlando as well.

Speaker 2: 3:15

I've never heard of the Stubborn Mule, but that's not the point. You're the Stubborn Mule today. How like you woke up today it was the 60th birthday. Like how did you like not physically feel, but like how did it feel the 60s?

Speaker 1: 3:27

You know, when I say I've been through all the emotions about it, there have been a couple of times where I did, you know, kind of touch on the fact that I'm now in my 60s. It is, I didn't have that when I hit my 50s. But I think when you get to your 60s and I hate to be morbid about this, but the average life expectancy is just shy of 79, and when staring in the face of you know, on average you got a couple of decades left, and then I go, gee what 2004 was 20 years ago and honestly I could have taken a nap for those 20 years. It went so quickly. So you know it's a little different. I don't feel any different. Oh yeah, that's kind of.

Speaker 1: 4:08

But I have to. You know, I have to put that six in front of my age if I have to write it again, which is just bizarre. It is, it's just bizarre. They do not tell you when you're young Well, they do, but you just don't simply believe them because you're young and stupid how quickly it all goes.

Speaker 2: 4:23

Yeah, it's weird for me too, Cause, like in my head I'm 25 and you're like 40. So, like then you say you're six, you know, it's that whole thing Like, oh, look at that, Wait, no, I'm, I'm 30. Like, I just like what? So it's kind of this weird thing. Um, but when you look at the last year, what you accomplished physically in the last year was something you probably never dreamed of when you're 40. So does that make you feel good about you? Know, you're staring in the face of another decade, but hopefully with sort of some renewed vigor.

Speaker 1: 4:53

Yeah, well, maybe, just yeah, revisited vigor from my early, because you know, vigor went away from me late 20s, maybe, when I stopped playing pickup basketball with my buddies. But yeah, no, I mean it's been a terrific year. Obviously, we've had a lot of fun doing the podcast and we're going to revisit our year, which we're talking about Again. How quickly things go now.

Speaker 2: 5:15

Are we going to break out into some songs from Rent 525,600.

Speaker 1: 5:21

I am in favor. I'm the only one on this podcast who has actually sung a Broadway song, so guess who's up and you will retain that title for the next 600 years. I don't know, I don't know. A little Broadway karaoke. We're going to put together a 3-2-1-go podcast Broadway karaoke night for fans and friends to join.

Speaker 2: 5:38

Oh, we could rent our clubhouse. If people want to donate to rent the clubhouse in my neighborhood to come to sing Broadway karaoke, John and I will do that.

Speaker 1: 5:46

My only concern there would be do you got a bunch of Karen-y HOA people? Because I can't put up with that.

Speaker 2: 5:51

No, we just rent it out. You rent it out and it's all yours.

Speaker 1: 5:53

We can do whatever we want. Yeah, but you know, I've seen the TikTok videos with somebody showing up. Are you supposed to be here Once?

Speaker 2: 6:00

you rent it. We had Claire's birthday party last year. Once you rent it, it's yours. You just got to clean it at the end of the night.

Speaker 1: 6:06

But someone will do that for us. You still have the bounce house, by the way, because bounce house would have been nice for Johnny's birthday.

Speaker 2: 6:10

The bounce house was borrowed. But if you want it, we can make that happen. But you're very busy. You're about to go Birthday plans. Though you had the brunchy, you told me earlier you were going to go to Publix. That's always a highlight.

Speaker 1: 6:22

I did that. I went because, as has been mentioned on this podcast, my wife's birthday is in two days Paperwork day, as I like to call it, not real Independence Day, which today is and we will be working the St Pete Pier Run on the morning of the 4th, so we'll be out there nice and early. For those hardy folks who are going to run for maybe eight miles that morning and then have a pie eating contest should be a great time, and then we're going to come back, so we'll be back in the early afternoon. And for her birthday she wanted to do like the traditional cookout thing. So turkey burgers, we've got coleslaw, potato salad, all you know, all the good stuff, the beans and, um, we didn't have any propane in the propane tank, so it was my job on my birthday that I had to go get propane for the propane tank, you always, you know it's all good, it's all done.

Speaker 1: 7:09

I have no responsibilities outside of this for the rest of the day.

Speaker 2: 7:12

And we're going to be done very soon. Quick side story about the 4th of July. So we are going to be here. I used to love to go to Atlanta to run. Jeff and Barb aren't there.

Speaker 2: 7:22

So got a text from like the group of neighborhood families that were going to have a party not a party but a barbecue and they said so-and-so can't host anymore. She's pregnant, the doctor wants her to slow down, who else can host? So I foolishly said yes, it was going to be like 10 kids, 25 adults, half of which I didn't even actually know. I'd never met them. So then I did a very adult thing. I said you know what? That's not the best choice for me and my stress level. And I apologized and said if anybody else wants to host, I'm more than happy to help. But like I just started to like panic about the thought of like having 10 children that I've never met inside my house when I rent the clubhouse for my child's birthday, because I don't want people to know. So anyway, I felt bad about backing out. But I also feel good about making a choice that has greatly supported my mental health, because now I'm just in charge of drinks and dips and that's a much better place for me to be.

Speaker 1: 8:12

It's an important position to have. My question is what was the not the private response, where everyone is clearly cursing your name? And you moved to the bottom of the list of favorite neighbors, but how did they respond? And to the bottom of the list of favorite neighbors, but how did they?

Speaker 2: 8:24

respond and did somebody jump in to host right away? So I had already, so we were going to kind of co-host it. So what had happened was it was a barbecue. We don't have a grill. We've talked about this no grill here. Well, our next door neighbors are part of the group and they were like we have a grill, we can grill there and then have it at Carissa's at them. And I said you know what? I just our house doesn't have enough seating for all those people. Like there's a bunch of reasons why this isn't a great idea. So we've just shifted it over to them. So they had already pre-designed this. I think they're excited. It's Ezra and his mom's. They've never hosted anything, so I think they're going to be great. They have a big outdoor seating table and we just don't. And it's so hot in Orlando it's like you can't be outside.

Speaker 1: 9:02

You know you really can't have kids, and so I will let them no, and the sure sign is, when we went to the restaurant today, they did not ask if do you want to sit inside or outside? There's not even any. Even with fans, it's not even something you can discuss at this point.

Speaker 2: 9:14

No, so that's where I am. I backed out. I feel good about my adult choice of like. You know what I have just owned almost up to my milestone birthday. I'm not going to be. What's her name? Hannah Homemaker. Holly Homemaker I'm not the like. Look at these decorations I've created and this food. It's like do you want pizza and a veggie tray? Please come over. We'll have a lot of fun. There's always lots of drinks, there's singing, there's Cheetos.

Speaker 1: 9:42

It's just yeah, so you're providing the crudités, so somebody doesn't show up as the Debbie Downer to the party with the crudités.

Speaker 2: 9:48

We're providing condiments, crudités, dips and drinks.

Speaker 1: 9:51

Okay. That's me All right because I will say my wife is, you know, much more healthy than I am and years ago was even much more healthy, and that's not saying that she's gotten less healthy, it's just that I've gotten a little bit healthier, despite my good news.

Speaker 1: 10:06

No, she used to be just a pescatarian and she didn't even eat fowl. No, red meat, still doesn't eat red meat. But I kind of made her add chicken and turkey back in, because I do most of the cooking and I'm like you got to help the menu a little bit here.

Speaker 2: 10:18

It is true, it is hard.

Speaker 1: 10:19

if you Doing all the cooking. So she, we would go. When we first started dating, when we were going to a party, she would suggest the crudite, and I had to gently talk to her about that. You don't want to be the one to show up with the crudite. Why not? That should be. If you're hosting and you want something healthy, you should provide that. Don't don't, because it's just, it's just not done.

Speaker 2: 10:43

I'm the crudite person.

Speaker 1: 10:44

I enjoy a crudite, but you know, when you show up with it it's sort of you know you're the designated driver.

Speaker 2: 10:49

But what if I show up with like three bottles of wine and crudite?

Speaker 1: 10:54

You've tilted the scale in your favor.

Speaker 2: 10:56

That's my personality, okay, all right. Well, fair enough. That's it Fair enough. And Johnny loves a good crudité, so shout that out there.

Speaker 1: 11:07

If people have planned a For the Broadway party, someone will be the crudité, and if anybody's planned a 60th birthday party for me, because I'm still holding out hope that there's a surprise party in my future.

Speaker 2: 11:14

I invited you over on Friday, but you said, and I quote, you would be knee-deep in packing.

Speaker 1: 11:20

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, I invited you. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, I invited you.

Speaker 2: 11:22

Wait, we have a babysitter, we're there's, there's if your knees get out of talking.

Speaker 1: 11:28

I know we can't, because we're going, we're leaving for Italy in a few days as well.

Speaker 2: 11:32

So it's Friday. That's part of the whole birthday thing.

Speaker 1: 11:34

Sunday yeah, I know, folks, you see what we?

Speaker 2: 11:38

have to deal with here. He wants a party, but he's been invited. No, no, no.

Speaker 1: 11:43

I am perfectly fine. I'm going to do a little swimming, I'm going to have a beer, maybe take a nap, and I bought a big enough lunch that I have leftovers, so I have no obligation to do anything tonight. For dinner I'm just going to eat the second half of my prime rib French dip that I got, because I do eat poorly on my birthday.

Speaker 2: 12:01

Did you have like a candle situation, song situation.

Speaker 1: 12:04

There was no candle situation. I had some song situations. People have left me songs.

Speaker 2: 12:09

Okay, because you got the wish. The wish is important, the candle, the wish, you know no, none of that.

Speaker 1: 12:14

Just got the and if you check out my social media you can see I got the really really nice chocolate brownie a la mode.

Speaker 2: 12:23

I did see that For the free birthday thing.

Speaker 1: 12:26

So that was it. No candles, no wish. Who am I to wish for anything? Nobody's been luckier than me. Why would I push my luck with things? I'm getting a little upset at our director, mark Ferreira, because he keeps saying you know, my God, look, you're peaking, you have a run club now and people are planning things with you and all of this stuff. And I just keep saying, stop, you're going to jinx it all, because I am very much a believer in that Something horrific is going to happen.

Speaker 2: 12:55

So please, mark, please stop. Okay, well, that's not going to happen. But speaking of the run club Project, sam Eagle was revealed today and you fully thought this was for the 4th of July.

Speaker 1: 13:08

I did, I did that was my surprise actually this morning. Grant and Natalie from the Pelkey Running Club and they do such a great job and there's some really cool merchandise. Whether you like my name or not, and Carissa now putting on the visor, a little salute to Steve Spurrier, visor. All right, the blue.

Speaker 1: 13:25

All right, oh, tough for a Seminole. Yeah, I see, but they had put something up on the website about the Project Sam Eagle and to message them to find out what it was. And I did that. I'd forgotten about it. And I did it about a week and a half ago when I was up in Pennsylvania. And he's like oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, we're just getting everybody to make like a 4th of July video. You know, talking about what 4th of July means to you. Maybe shout out to the military, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. And I'm like, oh, yeah, it's usual stuff, tried to be funny, sent the video. He's like, oh, it's perfect, man, I look forward to it, loved it.

Speaker 1: 14:11

So then I get up this morning. Actually, the full story is I woke up this morning at like 6.15 and went it's my birthday, I'm not getting out of bed. But I listened to like a book on tape when I was going to sleep. So I went to turn it off and I saw that I had you know messages already, and one of them was from the Pelkey Running Club, and I thought, oh, I should watch this now. But then I thought, you know, no, it's your birthday, john, go back to sleep and get up and do with your coffee.

Speaker 1: 14:36

So later when I got up and I started to watch it and Jodi was like kind of looking at me around the corner, it was a little weird. She knew, yeah, because she knew and I filmed a 4th of July thing with her a couple of days ago. But then I saw that it was for my birthday and it's very, very sweet and it did it. You know, I teared up a little as you know, it's my thing and it was really nice to have people shout out to me and it is really fun. Hat all over the world.

Speaker 2: 15:01

I know it's going everywhere. I'm so excited that Grit sent me my own because Weston took mine. Did you like my location for?

Speaker 1: 15:08

filming. John, Of course I loved your location.

Speaker 2: 15:11

How lucky was I.

Speaker 1: 15:12

Which is now JFK and all that stuff. You know I'm obsessed with the Kennedy assassination kind of all things, kennedy presidency and everything, and then Idlewild Airport the history of New York I love. So yeah, it was really really perfect up until the point where you challenged me to do a run on my birthday. I knew you would and I thought about it. I really thought about doing a mile, and then I walked outside and I went. If you were born in March, this might have happened but not going to happen.

Speaker 2: 15:42

in July I ran four outside, starting at 1210.

Speaker 1: 15:46

It's bad, right it's bad.

Speaker 2: 15:47

So Weston and I combined I think we got over six miles. I know we did because I did four. So there you go, we did it for you. I will free you from this chat, but you are beloved. You are inspiring, even though, for lots of reasons, we don't understand why.

Speaker 1: 16:02

I don't think we understand why at all.

Speaker 1: 16:04

And I should say to you though but before, because this doesn't all be about me you did Ironman up in State College, pennsylvania and you hadn't been there before, and I just want to shout out because a lot of relatives who went to school there used to fly in there myself when I would go to see my mom. Beautiful area of the country. I'm glad you got to experience it. Can you imagine what a football game is like a whiteout in that stadium at night? It is one of the great atmospheres in college.

Speaker 2: 16:27

The race finished at the 50 yard line.

Speaker 2: 16:29

I saw that it's so cool, but it was a little sad because like there weren't that many people but like there was like a couple hundred people but like they'd look like nothing in there. So yeah, it was a really cool moment. They had the screen going so as you looked up you could see the screen and a real quick story. Apparently I made a poor joke. Uh, this they ironman has time limits. Um, kind of like disney, if you start in a and you run over 16 minute per mile pace but you finish before the balloon lady, you still get to finish no big deal. So these people had not got swept and they were coming in and the time limit's 8, 30 and we were like at the nine hour mark. But we don't leave, we celebrate all of them. And this guy had a really nice long beard and you and I love long beards and we make long beard jokes and my joke was, well, his beard wasn't that long when he started and apparently I just meant that I think it got longer, but I didn't intend to be cruel oh god, that is so good though we would use

Speaker 1: 17:24

that. You know we would use that in conjunction with the race sometimes. Oh, it must have been pretty tough out there. Your beard wasn't that long when you started for like the 10K or something. But, boy, when you're talking about an Ironman, when they are out there for nine hours.

Speaker 2: 17:37

I don't think he was really like, I think he was pretty tired and maybe he didn't remember it, but then somebody put it on Instagram, so I was like I didn't mean it to be rude, I just I was out of things to say.

Speaker 1: 17:47

And if you say things enough on a microphone, you're going to see something that you go.

Speaker 2: 17:52

It wasn't that long when you started, buddy. We've been waiting.

Speaker 2: 17:57

I was a little bit saucy, and not because of the athletes, because no one could tell us where the last athletes were, and that's always frustrating. And the other thing that was happening, um, we're going to go, but like this little controversial, so at Ironman if you don't make the bike cut off, they'll take you to transition, to pick up your stuff and leave. Well, like I'm going to say, like 17 to 20 people pulled off their timing chips and went and ran anyway and then finished without a timing chip and we know cause. We have a list of who's been cut. So there, this had happened like a lot. We're like then I can't say your name, Then I look like a jerk because I'm not saying your name, but you're the jerk cause you took off your tie Not not the jerk, but you know what I mean.

Speaker 2: 18:35

So then it like I think it frustrates me cause, then I look can't tell how many people are still out there, because if you're still out there and you don't have a chip, we don't know you're still out there. So if you're listening to this and you get tagged, please don't run. It's a safety issue.

Speaker 1: 18:55

It is a safety. I was going to say for no other reason, folks, it's a safety thing.

Speaker 2: 18:59

Because if something had happened, we are not waiting for you. We had happened, we are not waiting for you. We're not going to go look for you because we were DNF'd. Anyway, I'm sorry to the gentleman with the beard. I hope it was a memorable finish and he did have a chip, so he's not one of the.

Speaker 1: 19:11

Was he Longbeard Division or Civil War?

Speaker 2: 19:14

It was very Civil War-ish.

Speaker 1: 19:15

All right nice.

Speaker 2: 19:17

Yeah, Civil War Long. I'm talking like an 8-inch.

Speaker 1: 19:20

Oh, one more thing. I don't know if you saw it, but Tracy Wu signed up to run out of Disneyland.

Speaker 2: 19:26

She texted me, so I'm super excited for her. I'm very proud of her too. Like I think that these are big things, like getting out there and having to do the miles. As you know, when you have a race coming up, you can't just say, oh, I'm not going to go run.

Speaker 1: 19:36

It makes you run and that's a good thing lot of people have, you know, asked about because she, in the beginning she started her run disney adventure as an athlete and did a bunch of races and I can't remember how many, because I'm 60 now and I barely remember that we, when we started this uh discussion, you don't even know why you're here right now I don't. Why are all you? What's happening here? Uh, where's my pudding?

Speaker 2: 19:58

jody's gonna come in and take you out, much like joe biden down the stairs of the debate. I'm just just kidding. I'm just kidding. That's another discussion.

Speaker 1: 20:06

Yeah, another discussion for another time. But yeah, shout out to Trace, and I love that. I think it was just sort of on a whim that she did it. But you know that means at least two of us will be in.

Speaker 2: 20:18

Well, that's next year, so we don't have contracts for that season yet.

Speaker 3: 20:25

So I know I'll be there in September. We don't fully have executed items for Well, you'll be there.

Speaker 1: 20:27

Who are we?

Speaker 2: 20:27

kidding. Who are we kidding?

Speaker 1: 20:29

I'm the one who got shut out of Armed Forces Warrior Games there by unnamed directors who turned on me.

Speaker 2: 20:38

I did 79 award ceremonies in one day and 35 in another. But they were actually like are you okay? And I was like, yeah, I'm fine, like we stand on stage for three hours, like I'm fine. Like I just have to read the same thing over and over. They're like you've said more.

Speaker 1: 20:50

It's not heavy lifting, it's just.

Speaker 2: 20:53

It's great it's actually I don't want to tell people how, not how easy it. This is great.

Speaker 1: 21:00

No, and those are. You know, you can get cynical about a lot of things, but those are pretty amazing events.

Speaker 2: 21:04

It's so cool. You see what these folks do. It's a big deal. We were down.

Speaker 1: 21:06

We would go down during breaks, Mark Ferreira and I, and watch the basketball, and it was just, it was great. It just it's a great event. It is, it's an amazing event.

Speaker 2: 21:17

Congratulations to everybody over there and the athletes who you know are on the blades or who have had, you know, loss of limb. But then the other athletes that on the outside they look fine but obviously they're not, and so it's nice to recognize, just like we're talking about with Annie, that there are invisible disabilities and those deserve just as much respect and just as much appreciation as the ones we can see. So, on this 4th of July, thank you to all of our military members, Project Sam Eagle, with John still coming up at the Pelkey Running Club. All right, let's thank our sponsors and then we'll chat with Annie, but once again, happy birthday, Pelkey.

Speaker 1: 21:53

All right, thank you very much, carissa. Yeah, we want to thank Sarah Akers with Runs on Magic, a lover of Run Disney herself. Sarah always loves helping plan those magical weekends and shout out to anybody who registered today for the Disneyland races, because we forgot to mention that's going on today and things seem to be going pretty well. But Sarah can help plan for anything. She's here, she's at your service. She offers complimentary travel planning services, personalized itineraries specializing in Run Disney, universal and cruise vacation, but really anywhere you want to go, sarah can help you.

Speaker 2: 22:27

That's right. And when you contact Sarah, tell her the promo code 321GO. So when you request your vacation quote, give her that code and you could get up to a Disney gift card booking credit, depending on where you're going. Find her on Instagram, at RunsOnMagic, or email her at RunsOnMagicTravel at gmailcom. And this weekend, as this is going out July 2024, marathon training officially kicks off for those of you following the Galloway training plan. So jump on this new offering from Galloway training called Customize Plus. Six months of customized training with Chris Twiggs will be on our podcast this month. Six months of monthly chats with my Healthier you course and the 30-Day Nutrition Summer Shake Up Challenge. To get things kicked off, it's just $299. That is a $500 savings. Check out the show notes for more details.

Speaker 4: 23:21

Okay, civilians, it's time for the goods. Let's get on to the interview.

Speaker 1: 23:26

All right, annie Brooks, welcome to 321. Go the Podcast. We'll start this the way we start all of our interviews. First of all, how are you? And tell everyone where are you.

Speaker 4: 23:36

I am actually doing really well. I'm actually based in the UK and actually it's a really nice day. You know, the weather's not been the best I have to be British and talk about the weather but it's actually a really nice day today, so I'm feeling pretty good because of that.

Speaker 2: 23:50

I have a sidebar already, so we are taping this right at the tail end of Taylor Swift's first set of shows in London. I just want to know the reaction over there, because about all of it, but also the picture with Prince William and like him dancing like, what are the Brits saying about it? Jazz John's rolling his eyes at me.

Speaker 4: 24:12

Some of my friends actually went to see the concert. I mean, I do love Taylor Swift, but I'm not quite as as as a big, big fan as as lots of these people are, which you know. But yeah, I mean, it's been varied reactions. Really, I'm not really in the loop, to be quite honest. So, yeah, I think it's gone down well. I think it's gone down well. Brits love like the royal family. Everyone loves the royal family. So, yeah, I think it's going down quite well.

Speaker 2: 24:42

I mean she's essentially American royalty, so it's going down quite well. I mean she's essentially American royalty.

Speaker 4: 24:45

So it's fascinating. It's fascinating for me to watch Okay. I mean, the show looked amazing. Though I've seen so many pictures, I have actually been quite jealous. I would have liked to have seen it Well she'll be back in August.

Speaker 2: 24:56

So you know, there's always that. All right, annie, how many times.

Speaker 1: 25:00

We should probably cover this, though. Chris. How many times have you seen the show and when's your next show?

Speaker 2: 25:04

Zero, I haven't seen it.

Speaker 1: 25:06

I thought you, I thought you would see it in Miami. No, I'm going in.

Speaker 2: 25:08

England. I'm going to London. The end her last show in London in. August and then Miami. So I have two, but I've gone zero Misunderstood.

Speaker 2: 25:18

Sorry I am. I've always liked her and I think with the tour I just felt like I needed to see it in person, like I want to be able to be there in person. I like her music. I'm not like posters on the wall, but I love the friendship bracelets, I love the vibe, I love the energy and I love the relationship with Travis Kelsey, because he came on stage last night as we're taping this and I just love that. She is having fun in a relationship and that's bringing me joy.

Speaker 4: 25:44

Maybe she's not but I'm enjoying it. Yes, do you know what? I would tend to agree as well. I love the energy and the positivity that it brings with it.

Speaker 2: 25:53

So, yeah, yeah, all good stuff, and that's what we love about you. What a good segue you, annie, because you bring a lot of positivity and energy. You are an amazing athlete. You are an Ironman World Championship finisher, and your journey to endurance sports started after you were diagnosed with epilepsy, which is remarkable on its own, and I think it's so inspiring about you that triathlon is something you said. Hey, I've had this life-changing diagnosis, let me keep moving forward. So I want our listeners to hear a little bit about your journey, maybe the before, annie, and then how you discovered your epilepsy.

Speaker 4: 26:29

Wow, it's always quite interesting because every time I speak about this I kind of forget how long I've had an official diagnosis with epilepsy. It's actually been years. It's like I want to say, hang on, yeah, over 11 years now, um, since I got diagnosed. Um, if we circle back to then, I didn't know I had epilepsy. Just in case anyone doesn't know that I and a lot of people sort of ask how can you not know that you've you've got epilepsy? Because everyone associates epilepsy with something very visual happening, and obviously mine aren't quite like that. There are some visuals that you can pick up on, but I had no idea. Um, I basically essentially zone out I have focal impaired awareness seizures, um, and they're very, very scary. But having no knowledge of there was anything other than grand mal's tonic clonic seizures that most people know about, how would I know it was epilepsy? So it just took so long to.

Speaker 4: 27:28

I kind of laugh it off now in a weird way, because I'm like well, you know, I can't get upset anymore about it. I used to get really upset that it took so much of my life away because this was going on for five years maybe, not knowing, getting increasingly worse, no idea what was going on and yeah, it was. It was really hard having to go through that. But you know, I eventually obviously got my diagnosis and after that I became I sort of almost flipped what was what was a really negative patch into something positive and I thought I'm not gonna let this hold me back. It was almost like I'd actually gone from.

Speaker 4: 28:09

I wasn't really active before sorry, I wasn't really very active before then got diagnosed and it was almost like the shock of getting diagnosed is really hard and that took a while to get through. But then I kind of flipped it and was like right, no, we, no, we're going to do everything, we're going to, we're going to embrace life. This was a big reality. Slap lost my driving license which is a huge thing, you know, getting around and then I decided to get into triathlon. My husband suggested why don't you try open water swimming? You might enjoy it, entered a race and the rest is history. Water swimming, you might enjoy it, entered a race and the rest is history. But I was definitely not very active or very like. I didn't really kind of embrace life or feel like I appreciated the opportunities that were in front of me and it was almost like after diagnosis, I got a name for what I've been, what I've been experiencing, and then decided, right, ok, let's, let's do, let's do as much as possible, let's enjoy life and that's, that's it really.

Speaker 1: 29:14

Well, I have to ask you because you say you know you weren't very active. But let's just jump back to your childhood. Were you one of those people who tried athletics, certain sports, football, whatever it was over there and then was like this is just not for me.

Speaker 4: 29:29

I didn't. I'm not very good at any ball sports, any team sports I am awful. I used to dread it in PE class getting called up to do. I hated cricket, I was just terrible. I couldn't deal with anything with like balls flying where it would normally hit me, because I'm one of those people that just is so accident prone. You know what I mean. So I used to hate it.

Speaker 4: 29:52

And actually doing the solo sports was something I really really enjoyed. So I did enjoy. I mean I am quite small. When I was, when I was at school, I was really tiny, small, and when I was, when I was at school, I was really tiny and, um, yeah, I wasn't very fast at athletics but I did really enjoy like, uh, like relays and doing like what we call in the UK like town sports type thing, like sports day, and really really enjoyed that. I did dancing, so I did a lot of dancing and gymnastics and then kind of stopped it, but no, not not overly sporty, um, but I did enjoy riding my bike, so maybe it was a bit of a clue there.

Speaker 2: 30:33

yeah, not the kind. Had you done any like 5ks or anything before you started this journey um?

Speaker 4: 30:40

when I was in my 20s I I did like a random 5K and I used to do aerobics classes like all those fun stuff, but not more. My attitude towards being healthy wasn't what it is now. Back then I'm going to be honest I was very much in this diet mindset of like, oh I can't, I have to exercise to lose weight or calorie controlled, and it was very unhealthy. I was. I was a little bit overweight as well and I had a very like warped mindset of what is a healthy lifestyle and so I kind of just did exercise to tick a box. Really it wasn't for the enjoyment factor, but I did do a 5k maybe took me about 40 minutes maybe back in the day, but didn't really do much else now. So it's been a complete flip and it's quite nice to know that it doesn't matter what age you are. You can always take on something new if you want to. It doesn't matter.

Speaker 2: 31:42

So yeah, Well, I love that and we're going to talk about the amazing things that you have done, because Ironman is just a crazy beast. But for people listening, I'd love to give them a little bit more insight into how your epilepsy and your disability, like how it, impacts your life, because, again, people think of epilepsy and they think of a certain type of seizure and that's not what you have. You mentioned it a little bit. What is it like for you on a day-to-day basis and you know when you might have an episode?

Speaker 4: 32:12

So it's been. It has been a very strange journey. So, as I say, focal impaired awareness seizures. So just to quickly explain exactly what that is like, I'll get what they call an aura or a warning sign that one is about to happen, and essentially it will. I'll get like this wave comes over me and I'm like, oh no, here we go and I have like seconds before I can say anything, before um, for before it happens, and I can maybe get one or two words out and then I can't communicate at all, my motor skills go, my handle twitch, I might lip smack and swallow. It depends on how intense it is. And that is essentially what I experienced during a seizure Very disorientated, very scared. When they happen and they've happened in patches, so I'd have like a cluster of them, then I'd have nothing, then they'd head to being at night and then now I'm just having them maybe twice, once or twice every every few weeks. So it has changed a lot over over the time in what what I've experienced with my seizures.

Speaker 4: 33:24

And the thing is it isn't a case of you take your medication and you're fine. You have to really be careful with you, have to manage it in a whole host of ways. So, for example, you know, tiredness is a huge thing. If I get overtired, I get run down, I get poorly. That is going to increase my threshold of having a seizure. It could happen at any time. But not looking after myself basically puts me at risk. And so like, for example, when I was training for some of my races, for my triathlons me and my coach who is my husband, thank goodness, so he's very flexible with me he's like we need to put in plenty of recovery here. This is a really intense session. Let's add some, add more recovery here. Okay, you've had a seizure, let's switch the cycling outside for indoors so you're safer. And you're constantly having to manage it. I have have to constantly think oh, you know, is this going to impact me? Or if I'm doing an event or a race and I've had a seizure the day before, do I do that race? And you're constantly having to think about what you do? Is it going to impact? So it's not just a case of epilepsy. Is when you have a seizure, epilepsy is a constant 24 7 condition that you have to manage.

Speaker 4: 34:51

Um, but yeah, I try, I try my best to to not let it impact too much. Um, you know, you can easily stop doing stuff and associate situations when you have had a seizure and taking it back again. Before I was diagnosed, I was doing actually a 5k run I think it may be maybe five or 10k run and I actually had a seizure mid run. I didn't know at the time I was having it and I kind of then then, well, I associated with whatever was happening with this bad thing that I'd experienced. I didn't want to run again and I didn't like it and started putting it off. Um, it is, it's.

Speaker 4: 35:35

There were certain situations where I would not go back to things or try them again because I was so scared about having a seizure or, at the time then, whatever, this episode was it really? Yeah, it's. But now I just I have to kind of take a deep breath and sort of go, this is gonna stop you from enjoying your life if you don't try and push past that fear. And essentially that's what that's what I've been doing is ignoring it, being safe, but ignoring it and doing it anyway, because otherwise you just I can't let it. I can't let it dictate my life.

Speaker 1: 36:16

Essentially, not only that I mean you haven't let it not dictate your life. I mean you, you've actually ramped up what you're doing. I mean this has driven you to do something. And I do want to ask this question, because when someone is training for a triathlon, I mean they generally have a very. You know there's a rigid schedule. You have something scheduled out, but with your epilepsy that timetable can be upset. Clearly. Do you build that in? How long did I mean so many questions about this? How long did it take to figure that out, that balance between okay, here's what I want to do to train, but I know I may have these little speed bumps in there. How do I either make up for the lost time or just build it into my training regimen, if that makes any sense?

Speaker 4: 36:57

Yeah, I'm going to be honest, I am terrible at that and that's why I've got my husband to coach me, because I am just, I am terrible, because I'd be like, no, let's, let's just keep going out, let's just keep doing it. And he'd be like, no, no, no, no, we need to look after you, you need to put your health first. To be honest with you, I can't give you a solid answer on that because, like I said, my epilepsy's changed so much over the time when I was actually training for Kona, I wasn't actually having loads of seizures until they just kind of just suddenly popped up along the way, but when I was in my biggest part of my training, I wasn't having them and then it sort of changed from being nocturnal to more in the daytime and I've got no idea why it changes. It just does and we just had to adapt. Um, it's kind of thinking on your feet like this is an ideal scenario of training but we might have to sidestep a little bit just to sort it out.

Speaker 4: 37:56

But yeah, um, I definitely I'd say I definitely can understand a little bit more the signs of potentially having a seizure or potentially feeling a little bit more run down than I should be and kind of flag that perhaps we need to do something else. Perhaps I need to train a bit differently here. Do I need to do? We did actually sorry, just to say we did a lot of like mindfulness and a lot of yoga as well, because I find that if I'm more calm, if I'm calmer, it means that the seizure isn't as intense. That sounds really weird, but it is. It's almost like if I'm more chilled, I can handle it a little bit better. When I'm stressed or I'm feeling totally out of sorts, it almost makes my seizures so much worse and they're really hard to handle before and afterwards as well.

Speaker 1: 38:51

I think it's fascinating too, because I mean, one of the things if you're going to be, from what I'm told clearly not a triathlete, once ran, once ran a 10K really rethinking why I actually did that, but I do is when you're taking part in one of those, you have to be adaptive to the situation, given the day and because of what you your epilepsy you have to be adaptive day in and day out. So if you want to look at a glass is half full thing. Probably your mindset is much more geared towards something like that than someone who, you know I'm rigidtype personality. It's going to be this, this day, this and anything would throw them off, and so many things to talk about. But I do want to move on to some other interesting things, because you mentioned bicycle safety and that was something that we thought about coming into this interview. Obviously, an accident on a bike can be a it's a very dangerous thing and can be incredibly serious. What, what do you do to to address that, the bicycle safety aspect?

Speaker 4: 39:51

OK, a few things. I won't go out for a bike ride if I don't get any suspicion that I might have a seizure. If I, maybe, if I've had a really intense one the day before, I won't I will switch to indoor training on the turbo. I normally don't enjoy cycling on my own anyway, so I normally go with my husband. We're like two peas in a pod Basically. We just basically train and do everything together, so he normally would come out with me, or I'd cycle in a group or. Um, that's normally what I do, and I tend to do that with swimming as well. I enjoy training with other people and I, you know, from an enjoyment factor, but also from a safety perspective as well. Um, that's normally what I would do. I would always train with somebody else, and that tends to make me feel better as well.

Speaker 2: 40:47

I love that. I love that you have your husband, because that kind of seems like you got your diagnosis and it was a big scary thing and him being a coach is that kind of what not pushed you, but like he was like hey, maybe this is something that would be good for you. You've never done any of these things, but you should probably do all three together in an extremely high stress environment where something will go wrong every single race. Annie, this is brilliant. You've married a genius.

Speaker 4: 41:13

I know I kind of simultaneously love and hate him for getting me involved with it. Really, yeah, do you know what? The first race I entered was to raise money for an epilepsy charity. That was why and it was to he looked at it was a way to kind of refocus my mind, which is what triathlon does, because, you know, I can.

Speaker 4: 41:37

There's a weird thing like sometimes, if you start feeling sensations of what feels like a seizure is coming on, you can almost like stress yourself into encouraging it. That sounds really bizarre, but you can almost like egg it on a little bit if you're not careful. If you kind of get certain sensations, I well this is my personal experience that I feel that if I get so stressed and I'm like, oh, I've got that taste in my mouth, oh, I feel I can maybe egg it on. So sometimes it's actually really nice for me to have a mental distraction and, as you know, triathlon is a huge mental distraction because I mean especially the swim, for example. I mine's more like I'm so absorbed in the swim and what's my body position, how's my hand entry you constantly just so you can't let anything else in, and I think that that's why that's worked out really well, so the triathlon is definitely something that's kept me going and kept me feeling focused. It is stressful.

Speaker 1: 42:45

Okay, well, let's take you. Let's take you through a race day then, because obviously you know, for everybody has a different way that they approach everything. Take us through a normal race day for you for a triathlon.

Speaker 4: 42:56

I mean, I do get quite nervous at the start. I'm going to be honest. I do get quite nervous and I have to. I have to go through like a proper routine of everything of like when I'm eating, what I'm eating, um, making sure I have to pet a dog. Before every single race I have to find a dog, and it's normally every time I go to a race. I'm like Nick, we need to find a dog. Can you see one?

Speaker 4: 43:20

oh my gosh so that normally calms me. Um, for reference, my dog. Um, she isn't a trained epilepsy dog, but, if I can get the word assist out before I'm having a seizure, normally I've got a few seconds. She'll come and she'll sit on me and just sit with me while I'm having a seizure. So dogs calm me down. So that is why I also do it before a race and that tends to help me as well. Um, I normally dance around, I listen to some music and then I'm like right, let's race to the finish line. Um, yeah, that that. Just try and chat to people. Uh, you probably can tell I'm a bit of a talker. So I normally start making friends in the swim queue and be like oh, have you done this before? And then finding out people's life stories and that tends to take a little bit of the edge off, and yeah. And then you're like this is going to be amazing and you're just excited for the day out.

Speaker 2: 44:18

I love that no-transcript, Because the dog you know the dog petting triathlon club, it's a thing I mean, how have I not heard of this? I know, and she's done a hundred. Her and her husband did six Ironmans on six continents in six weeks last summer. I know it's incredible, I mean amazing. Lots of dog pets. They got married on the bike during Ironman Cozumel, but anyway, they're in it.

Speaker 1: 45:09

But you guys have a love of dogs and I'd like to say for the record, they're clearly nuts, all right. I'm just going to throw it out there, because that is up, except for the dog thing. And I should say and who listens knows this my wife ran a pet rescue for a decade and, uh, I agree with ricky gervais, the best dog I ever met was the last dog I met, so I'm completely there for you yeah, so dogs are the best.

Speaker 4: 45:31

Dogs are the best and that is a I. I do get a little stressed to start with before the race because I'm like I need to find a dog well, now the word is out there.

Speaker 2: 45:41

Let us know your future races. We will make sure people in the area bring their pets.

Speaker 1: 45:46

Speaking of which, can I just say this for everybody listening In a minute you're going to hear my dogs going crazy because the screen repair guy is here, and you will hear my two dogs losing their minds, so as if on cue, dogs will bark momentarily.

Speaker 2: 46:00

It's accepted, john, it's accepted, it's understood. All right, let's jump forward from your diagnosis, your starting tries. You have been invited to the Ironman World Championships in Kona. What was that like? How did you find out you were going? Did you think about it for a minute? Were you like I don't know? Tell me about that.

Speaker 4: 46:22

So I was invited by Ironman directly, so obviously I didn't qualify. I was invited as an ambassador athlete, which is a very important role and does not diminish at all.

Speaker 2: 46:32

I just want people to realize that's a huge deal. So yes, first of all, I appreciate that.

Speaker 4: 46:38

Thank you very much. I appreciate that that. Yeah, it wasn't a decision I took lightly because, um, this was actually going to be on my first fall, um, I'd done 70.3s but I hadn't done a full distance before and obviously this is like this is the world championship, so it isn't in like, it's just like this oh no, ironman's easy, but it's especially not easy because it's the world championships and there's a lot of things that go with that and um, so I spoke, I spoke with my husband about it and I was like do I want to do this? I don't just want to take this place? But we spoke back and forth and I wanted to have a bit of a platform to be able to talk more about epilepsy anyway, and I thought I wanted to show that people with these kind of conditions and these disabilities can still achieve great things. And we chatted back and forth and then I was like, right, well, let's, let's do this, let's do this, so and yeah, that's what.

Speaker 4: 47:35

That's exactly what happened, and it was a really hard decision, but also an easy one. It was a really hard decision, but also an easy one, and the idea of not doing it made me far. I was so upset by the idea of not doing it that I knew I had to do it. Do you know what I mean when I kind of gave them? So if I don't do it, how am I going to feel? And if I do do it, how am I going to feel?

Speaker 2: 48:04

And I thought right, let's train, let's do it. And so my 2023 became training for Ironman Kona. We are always aiming to get you to that next finish line and we've created an exciting opportunity for you guys, coming up with Galloway customized training. It's called Customize Plus and what you get is an exclusive opportunity to get six months of customized training led by Galloway's chief training officer, chris Twiggs, and six months of healthier you the live chats led with me, along with joining our nutrition summer shakeup for 30 days of challenges. Check the show notes for more information on how to sign up. And here's Chris with a little more about customized.

Speaker 3: 48:42

Hi, I'm Chris Twiggs, chief Training Officer at Galloway Training Programs and Coach of Galloway Customized Training. When Jeff Galloway and I put together Customized Training, our goal was to offer the best value in professional coaching for runners and walkers. Starting from a questionnaire to determine your current fitness goals and commitments to family and work, I build a schedule that's perfect for you, but it doesn't end there. Each week, with your feedback, I adjust your plan to help you reach your goals and I introduce you to a worldwide family of customized runners and walkers who are cheering you on. I look forward to working with you and to being your coach and your biggest fan as we run, walk, run with Galloway Customized Training.

Speaker 1: 49:19

Iron Man's 140.6 grueling, grueling miles.

Speaker 2: 49:23

Good job, knowing that John.

Speaker 1: 49:24

Thank you very much. Thank you for writing it out for me. I was assured there'd be no math. I was an English major. There's a reason why Now the course at Kona is harder, more difficult, one of the most difficult. Talk us through the race that day. I know you had some mechanical issues, not you specifically your bike.

Speaker 4: 49:44

I just want to point out there although afterwards perhaps a bit more mechanical issues the next day, definitely tackling stairs the day after was not my friend, um, I had to go down backwards, but on the day, on the day, yeah, um. So starting out fine, you know, very, very nervous. And I love the swim, I love swimming. I'm one of those triathletes that is rare, apparently who loves the swim most. I'd do swimming all day long if I could. But yes, swim was great.

Speaker 2: 50:18

Did you see any creatures? Did you see any creatures in the water? Any fish, any turtles, any?

Speaker 4: 50:23

fish? No, I didn't. A lot of hands and feet there's also a thousand people, you know.

Speaker 2: 50:27

Plus, in the water. I just you know I'm not gonna swim out that far, even anytime I watch an iron man swim. I'm just like that is so far, because I walk down to eat where the turnaround is and I'm like it took me 15 minutes to walk here. It's just amazing.

Speaker 4: 50:43

Okay, but there are creatures in there, but you just, yes, my husband did spot a turtle and got a nice video of it which he showed me after he was like look what I spotted. I hadn't spotted any turtles at that point while I had been there, so I was very jealous of him. But he saw one and, yeah, after obviously getting out of the swim, was, you know, straight onto bike. I don't know where it was, it might have been like, I want to say, in between 10 to 15 miles in. I just heard this and I was like what was that? Looked down and my front tire had gone. I was like, oh my gosh, I've never had a flat before in my life. Luckily, part of my coaching. I said to my husband. I was like, oh my gosh, I've never had a flat before in my life. Luckily, part of my coaching. I said to my husband I was like I am so panicked about having to change my inner tube. We need to do some practice. Luckily we had done some practice. I've got this, keep focus. I've got this. Pull my bike over. Was he's taking it out? All these lady, all these wonderful women were flying past me going. You've got this, you go, girl, you can do this. I was like, yes, I can, I can do this, I can change this, so changed it, obviously bearing in mind I hadn't loads of practice in. It was taking me a little bit longer, but I wanted to make sure I'd done it right, so got it in, started to go off again, same one went down. I was like, oh my gosh, I've obviously not checked. I've obviously not checked hard enough that whatever it was has come out. I've obviously not pulled out what the problem was. Oh my gosh, that's taken me so long. I'm going to have to do it again.

Speaker 4: 52:18

At this point I was panicking because it was like okay, I'm not the quickest. I call myself. Look pro, go slow, just for reference. Um, I have a fantastic bike, my kit always matches and I am. But I was just thinking, oh my gosh times, oh my gosh, am I gonna be cut off if I, if I can't get this done started to try and redo it again. Luckily, it was like. It was like someone had sent an angel.

Speaker 4: 52:43

The bike mechanic team came past and they're like you okay there, do you need some help? I was like, yes, yes, yes, I do help me. But by which point we'd noticed it wasn't even just my uh time I needed doing, my right brake had gone completely floppy and I was thinking well, I don't know how to fix that. I've got a a track speed concept and you need to take the front off and tighten up the cables. Luckily, the bike team came and helped me and I was like, right, well, I'm going to utilize the time while you're helping me to eat and drink. So I just started eating and drinking.

Speaker 4: 53:19

I was like, don't mind me, um, at this point I was asking their life story while they were doing it. So I thought if I can just distract myself, then it'll take the anxiety away of the fact that I'm gonna have to absolutely go as quick as possible to catch this time back up. It was taking it. All in all, I'd lost about 45-50 wow, from being there. Um, just point out, I did. Actually, I went to the bike shop afterwards, um, the next day and took them some athletic brewing with me to say thank you, because it was like I couldn't have done this without you.

Speaker 4: 53:52

Um, got going, absolutely went as quick as I possibly could, and I just was playing chase with cut off the rest of the race. That's how it was. It was I need to make this. I have spent all this money, I've flown all this way, I have to get to the finish line. And at that point, you know, in the back of my mind, I was thinking I need certain times, you know, like little mini goals by myself and I thought, no, no, push that out the window. We'll do another Ironman another time, maybe another time. Let's just get to the finish line. If you, if you scrape in just before 17 hours which was who cares, you've still done it. So that's basically the mindset and I I didn't want to stress myself out on the course, I wanted to look up and take in where I was and, and I made sure I still did that, like I was still going, but I was like on my bars, like, oh, look, look where we are.

Speaker 2: 54:48

I mean and I kind of want to pause you for a second and set the scene for our listeners is that you've, you've already swam 2.4 miles. You've, at this point, you're fighting to reach a cutoff because there are an intermediate cutoff, there's an end cutoff of the bike and if you're not there, you're not there, they don't care that you're like no, I could, I'm going to catch up. They, they do not care, but you're doing this with a form of epilepsy that could be triggered by stress, and you still have a marathon to run. Um, and it's just remarkable that that, this, that this is what you're doing. How did you and you've talked about trying to lower your anxiety how could you not just be like, but I, you know, just completely overwhelmed by by all of these circumstances?

Speaker 4: 55:29

And I think, like I said before, I find that with triathlon and doing a triathlon, because there's so many moving parts, my mind can't wander, like it's almost like it's got a massive gate up to my epilepsy. This is how I find it it's almost like it's got a big gate up to my epilepsy and it's like I'm not gonna let you in because you're too busy thinking about am I running? Am I running the right pace? Am I, am I fueling, am I? There's always something to think about on a race like this, like any race. But to be honest with you, a lot of the time my epilepsy seizures won't happen until after the fact. So if I'm stressed at the time, it's almost like when I've just started to chill out. It might be a day or two afterwards I'll have a seizure. I mean, I did have a little mini seizure, like two days after the race, but I kind of expected it because there'd been a lot going on. Um, there's lots of events.

Speaker 2: 56:26

There were a lot, we'll talk about that later. But Kona is just, it's different than any other triathlon because of the pomp and circumstance and you were part of that. Uh, yeah, you know which we'll talk about. But okay, so you get off the bike, you've made the cut off and now you just have 26.2 miles at least. Then I'll say maybe it was cooling down a little bit Because it is so hot and humid there.

Speaker 4: 56:46

Yeah, I was, so I had actually done I can't. We were talking about this the other day. I had done so much heat training, I had done so much heat training. I can't even begin because I am so British and we can't deal with any extremes of weather. I can say that I am British, so we can't deal with any extremes of weather.

Speaker 4: 57:07

And I got, I did a 70.3 at Indian Wells and it was I don't know what it is in Fahrenheit. I really apologize, it was 31 degrees and it was meant to be, I want to say 18. And both me and my husband were like I'm melting, I can't cope with this heat. And it was on the run. And so I got that in my memory bank to think I need to make sure if it's going to be hot, obviously it's going to be hot and cold. I am going to be acclimatized to the heat, I'm going to be ready for it, so I'd prepared as much as possible. And then it didn't quite get me because it started to cool down, which I kind of think if I had been in that main bit of heat on the at the energy lab, which is one of the hottest part, would I have still made it.

Speaker 2: 57:54

Yeah, you would have still made it. Yes, we know that. You know what I mean.

Speaker 4: 57:59

Or would the heat have got me, who knows? But like I did did I definitely went in um being as prepared as possible for that um, but then I just switched off, really on the run, I think again playing chase on cut off, because I couldn't remember halfway around the rounds, couldn't remember if it was 16 hours or 17 hours that I got to do it in. So the fact that I kind of half thought it was 16 made me move a little bit quicker. Um, obviously it was 17.

Speaker 2: 58:30

So you know I scraped in around I mean, obviously I have to be honest. Sometimes I'm like, okay, wait, do the math. 18, you know. Like, divide it by two, 8, 30 is a 70. Okay, you're right, because I 17 is weird, it's not an even number, it's weird. And then it's like 17. From when I got in the water. Well, it's this time now, and I got in the water at this time, so I subtract that time. Yeah, no, I work there and I get it, girl.

Speaker 4: 58:52

That is exactly what occupied my mind throughout the entire run because I was, so I wasn't.

Speaker 4: 59:03

I'm not very good at holding numbers in my head. I'm not very good at it. I normally have to write everything down, you know, and I just, and so I forgot what I, what it was. I'm like, hang on, wait, let me calculate that again. So I literally spent the entire time doing mental arithmetic. It was just like trying to make sure I was. If I stop here, okay, I've taken a bit of a pause I need to go to the, the toilet, right? Okay, if I pause here, am I going to be able am I need to go to the toilet, right? Ok, if I pause here, am I going to be able to get there in time? Calculate again, and it would just, it just occupied me then. And do you know what?

Speaker 4: 59:29

One thing I will say is, as I was sort of at the back of the pack, I got chatting to so many people, it was so lovely, I made so many friends on that run, and that was a distraction as well, and it was just so nice. And, yeah, I kind of just switched off, and that's all I can tell you. Really, that's how I got round. Um, and then every time I heard the, the, the music going. I was just like I could hear me. When I when I went anywhere near it, I was like singing along as I was running up the hill to Robbie Williams was playing and I was singing along and I was like just enjoy this, just that's a great lesson, though that's because we, you know, we were and we'll talk a little bit about you know the Disney because you were at Disney in January.

Speaker 1: 1:00:12

But we say to people sometimes, you know, it's not always going to be your day and that doesn't necessarily mean you've done anything wrong or anything. Things you've done anything wrong or anything, things are going to happen. Obviously, you didn't break your bike and unless, of course, you did and you're not telling us twice, but, you know.

Speaker 1: 1:00:27

So that's just one of those things that happened, and I think, again, it's a tribute to you as an athlete that you just said OK, all right. Well, this is not going to be my personal best, I'm not going to win this thing, but I'm going to finish because I came here for a reason, and that's you know, something that we try to say to a lot of our novice runners at Disney it's like you may not be, you're going for a number. Okay, that's a really great thing. Might not go your way, that doesn't mean you still can't have a positive experience. And speaking of positive experiences, what kind of dog did you pet at Kona?

Speaker 4: 1:01:03

I've pet a lot of dogs. I'm trying to think what I want that I've pet.

Speaker 1: 1:01:06

What was that starting?

Speaker 2: 1:01:07

line dog. Did you find a start line dog?

Speaker 1: 1:01:10

While you're getting there, I will say that 31 degrees Celsius is just shy of 88 degrees Fahrenheit, or as we call it in central Florida wintertime.

Speaker 2: 1:01:19

But that's warm, yes, that's warm for me?

Speaker 4: 1:01:22

No, that's warm for me? No, that's warm for anyone exercising, so for me definitely. I don't know what time it was. I did see another one halfway around as well. Now, maybe, maybe it was. What dog was it? I want to say it was some sort of poodle-y cross, because I remember thinking it was very similar to my dog, so it might have been a my one there. I should have, I should have taken a picture with it, really, shouldn't I?

Speaker 1: 1:01:44

and had like poodles are deceptively good athletes. Poodles are deceptively good athletes, so I'm thinking poodle would be out on an iron man, so that that makes sense to me. So shout out to all those athletic poodles out there all right before.

Speaker 2: 1:01:56

We can't. We can't move on until we we finish your, your race. So you're doing the run, you're having fun, you're going to make that turn onto Ali'i. You're going to hit the magic carpet. Like, what was that finish line like? And for people that don't know, we're talking about the 2023 race, which was the women's only race, the first time I've ever had it, only women on the course, and it was such an amazing energy and experience and I felt, as an announcer, so positive, something I'd never seen before. Just what was that like for you when you because there's always that moment in a race where you go I'm actually going to finish, because that fear I don't know for me never goes away. It's always like something could happen. When was that moment where you were like I'm actually going to do this? And what was it like when you got to that finish line?

Speaker 4: 1:02:42

When it was that Robbie Williams bit Robbie Williams, I think it was, let me entertain you came and I was like I can hear the music. Oh my gosh. You know, I was running up the near the Hoka Hills, yeah, and I was heading back and I was like, oh my gosh, I'm actually going to finish this. Oh my gosh, I can't believe this. And as I started running, running along, and I turned, I didn't have to go left, turn right, and then, and there was, I was a little, I'm gonna be honest. The first bit there was so many women with their bikes walking. They'd already collected and I was like, oh my gosh, I really am, like I am really scraping this. Am I gonna make it? They were so positive, coming by me, going you've got this, you can keep going. I was like this is just amazing.

Speaker 4: 1:03:20

And as I entered onto that, oh my gosh, it still now gives me this really weird warm, fuzzy feeling in my stomach because I'm like I did that. That. I wish I could have walked that, just to soak in the atmosphere almost. But I was so excited, I was like running, shaking my hands, going, oh my gosh, I've done this. Oh my gosh, I'm nearly there and I could hear you guys and I was just like, oh, wow, gosh, I've done this. Oh my gosh, I'm nearly there. And I could hear you guys and I was just like oh, wow.

Speaker 4: 1:03:45

And when I got over the line, you can see, I mean, if you ever seen my pictures I'm like squealing with excitement because I couldn't believe I'd actually managed to still do it despite all the setbacks and actually someone with my condition as well I had a lot of crying afterwards. I it got me after I passed the finish line, but there is nothing quite like that. I was so thankful for all those people still standing around at that finish to make it feel so amazing to stand there and wait for people like me to finish and still give me as much excitement as they do, like the first people. That finish was just so, so wonderful and yeah it and yeah it makes me feel. It makes me feel so happy. Just even talking about it, it's just like the best feeling ever. I would say it's probably like life changing moments in my life. If I had like a, if I picked five, this would definitely be in my top five moments. There's nothing quite like it.

Speaker 2: 1:04:43

Well, I mean, you deserved all that praise. You deserve that moment because it's impossibly hard. And leading into my next question and I'm going to phrase it a little differently than I wrote it because of kind of something that you said you and I talked on the athlete ambassador panel and you mentioned sort of life living with an invisible disability. Had you finished and you have one leg, people are screaming and they see what you've been through. You're finishing.

Speaker 2: 1:05:04

People don't see what you've been through, whether it's at the finish line of the race they're still cheering for you or in a normal day, how you know what is that like to have to fight, not for just you know, fight through that a little bit. People, not that you need to be like, I've been through this and my life's hard, that's not who you are, but just you know what is it like living with an invisible disability, because I know that's something that a lot of people not a lot of people, but people that have it you said that struggles with and it took you a while almost to come to grips with.

Speaker 2: 1:05:33

Yeah, I, that's a really good question, Actually I don't even know if it was a question, but I think you know what I mean.

Speaker 4: 1:05:40

I I don't even know if it was a question, but I think you know what I mean. I get what you're saying. Like it's almost like because I don't want to kind of keep going. Oh, by the way, I'm doing this, but like I mean, I learned to snowboard recently. I learned to snowboard. I've been learning to surf as well and I kind of want, like I don't want, to turn around and go. I'm doing this but, by the way, got epilepsy.

Speaker 4: 1:06:05

So this has been a lot harder for me, but it's never really kind of, because it's ever really so I know that's the best way I can say. I know what I've achieved and I don't need to justify that. I think I, you know everyone has obstacles. I do think that you know it isn't. It might not be as easy for me as it might be for somebody else, but I don't want to. I don't really want to kind of point that out because it's not important to me. I'm just, I'm personally just happy with what I've achieved. I do think that, like, people need to be a bit more open minded to different you know conditions and disabilities, that not everything is visual and you know, and I think maybe learning a bit more about more conditions like mine and to be a bit more, you know, understanding of it. And it is life. It does change your life. I'm probably not answering this the best way.

Speaker 2: 1:07:04

Life, um, I'm probably not answering this the best way I can. I just it's a hard topic and I just know that there's people where maybe like you've had a bad day or you've had an episode, and then somebody encounters you and they have no idea what you've gone through or no idea, and a lot of people live with that every single day and they feel like they have to. It's just I. I feel for people like you and them, because I think the world can be a cruel place and I don't have a question and we don't have an answer, but just like, how can we support people with invisible disabilities? What can we do?

Speaker 4: 1:07:29

Well, thank you for the kind words, but, like also I would probably say I think I'm doing more to try and raise awareness. So I think, maybe, maybe listening more to people who are trying to raise awareness. So that's why I'm really like. You know, I've speak about this all the time and I didn't used to do this. So, um, I wrote a blog and, um, I had a YouTube channel and I think it was so obviously after I got diagnosed I didn't tell anybody I got epilepsy at all. I was doing back in the day, I was doing fashion blogging, don't ask.

Speaker 2: 1:08:08

My neighbor does, so it's cool. No, I got you.

Speaker 4: 1:08:14

I was doing fashion blogging and I just didn't want people to judge me. I felt like if I told people I got epilepsy I'd be judged or treated differently, in a negative sense. And I didn't talk about it and I don't know what it was. I think it was potentially doing my first triathlon and obviously kind of almost sort of saying I'm supporting this charity because I have epilepsy. And as soon as I felt confident to talk about it, I shouldn't be embarrassed and neither should anybody else having this, this, this condition, you know and I think that's quite a big thing. So the fact that I'm trying to sort of break down that barrier for other people to come forward and say, look, I've got this as it and that's what I'm doing, so at least I'm trying to open up the communications, that's basically it.

Speaker 1: 1:09:08

I'm trying, I think it makes a great deal of sense. I mean, it's one of the things that we've tried to do at Run Disney and we're going to jump to that almost immediately, but we've tried to do it at Run Disney and again, I always give kudos to my friend, riley Claremont, who said the stories about what people have overcome, the people who want to talk about that, are the things that are really inspiring to people and I do think that you know, as people listen, we can have dialogues about these and realize that, no matter what you're struggling through, you can. You can achieve, you can do things if you take that next step. Ok, I want to jump to run Disney because we mentioned it, the insanity that is a run Disney weekend you took part in your first and listen, I would be lying if I didn't admit it it is insanity for those weekends in the best possible way.

Speaker 2: 1:09:52

No, ironman.

Speaker 1: 1:09:53

What did you run? Which race did you run and what was your? What was that experience? Because most people who run a marathon in just some town they don't have to get up at 2 o'clock in the morning to get there and deal with all the logistics that you deal with at a run. Disney race.

Speaker 4: 1:10:09

Yeah. So it was the princess weekend and I did the 10K and a half marathons. Of course I'd had to do a challenge. Of course I'd had to do both of them. One event's never enough.

Speaker 1: 1:10:20

You're probably going. Where's the third event? I don't know. One event's never enough for it.

Speaker 2: 1:10:22

You're probably going. Where's the third event? I don't know.

Speaker 1: 1:10:23

Well, you could have done the 5K Get me in the water.

Speaker 4: 1:10:25

Where's my bike? I mean, I probably should have done it and I realized I'm like I'm not the best runner either, so I don't know why, but I really wanted to do it. And do you know what? It was the most fun I have had in a race. Obviously, man, and that is very, very different and a different kind of thing. This was just so much fun and you know, previous runs I've done where I'm like I'm tracking my pace. I need to do this and you know I'm gonna get my half marathon time at this. There is obviously space for that.

Speaker 4: 1:10:55

But as soon as I started like getting my outfit together, I was like I get to dress up, this is gonna be fun. Who am I gonna be? And it's princess. And like should I be one of the evil queens? And maybe I can go? As you know and I was, I was actually really excited by how like chilled out it was and there was no pressure. That's that's best way, no pressure whatsoever. And that was that's really rare in a race. There's just no one. Everyone's just out to have a nice time, stop along the way, take pictures with the new, different Disney princesses at the time, and it was amazing I had such it was so good, and then you've got the rest of the day because it's all early in the morning. So it's like I've done my run for the day. Now I can go and enjoy my um corn dog exactly.

Speaker 2: 1:11:41

Instead of a 45 minute mechanical you can have like a 10 minute character line. You can wait in line for a drink, for a roller coaster. You know the options they continue to open up there. So did you have a favorite moment that you got to experience? Because princess goes through the castle. So I guess, are you a Disney person at heart, like had you been to the Magic Kingdom before?

Speaker 4: 1:12:02

yes, I am, yes, I am. I am a Disney person. I'm not quite as like super super Disney.

Speaker 2: 1:12:09

Is Disney higher than Taylor Swift, though? Yes, oh yeah, good, all right, just I'm just trying to see where we are on the chart.

Speaker 4: 1:12:15

Okay, higher than Taylor Swift. I do like Disney is up there. Um, I actually wanted to be a as a kid. I wanted to be a Disney cartoonist. That was my dream. As a child I loved drawing, so, yeah, disney was big for me. But, yeah, going through the castle and like just being able to run around the parks and no one, it's just you guys it's like that is ridiculous. I couldn't. I was going through and I was like, wow, oh, I need to come visit this place later. I was going through and was like, wow, oh, I need to come visit this place later. That's the right, that's where that is. And I'm like, right, checking it off to go around later on. And it's yeah, going through the castle bit and having your photo outside Wow, that was, that was super special.

Speaker 2: 1:12:57

That was super special. That's what a lot of people say. You know, it's just, if you like Disney, when you get the special view of it and then it's such a did you find that the community was really?

Speaker 4: 1:13:11

you know, I think the big part of it is the community, the people, the other costumes, like it's just addicting a little bit. Yeah, yeah, definitely. I mean again, probably goes without saying I am a talker and I do chat to people. So when I'm running and I'm like you, kind of seek out if someone's wanting to talk to you, if they're in the running zone, don't want to bother them if they're in the running zone. But then I got chatting to so many people who'd traveled from various places as well couldn't believe that I come from the UK to do it and we're like chatting about races, we'd done, and then the time goes even quicker. But then every time I was able to I was stopping, looking around, stopping state pictures with the characters as well. There's nothing quite like it. There's nothing quite like it. I would recommend it to anybody. It's just the best. It's so much fun.

Speaker 2: 1:13:53

And you're going to do another one Maybe. In September. So you're going to Disneyland? Yes, I am. Have you been to Disneyland before?

Speaker 4: 1:14:04

I have, okay, you been to Disneyland before. I have, okay, good, I have been to Disneyland, I like Disneyland, I like it.

Speaker 2: 1:14:08

John doesn't like when we talk about Disneyland because he doesn't get to go.

Speaker 1: 1:14:12

They don't hire me and I've never been there and I refuse to go until they pay me. That's it. I'll only go if they pay me to go there. Sorry.

Speaker 2: 1:14:26

Follow the money. People Follow the money. I'm a professional, but I'll be there and have you ever done the drawing where you can do, they do the cartoon lesson. No, I don't know the physical name of it, I'm going to get chastised by this, but at Disney California Adventure there's a place where you go and you wait and then, like there's the, it's like a class and you get the paper and there's the how to draw. I do you have to go.

Speaker 2: 1:14:42

I cannot believe I cannot remember the name of this, but it's. It's right there California Venture Azure Walk-in. So yes, put this on your list and you, it will make you feel like I'm a terrible, like I'm the work. I'm a really bad artist, like terrible, and mine was like better than I, much better than I anticipated I did Scrooge McDuck so you know, this.

Speaker 4: 1:15:03

I will need to grab those details If you're actually heading over there and I'm turning 40, not on the actual race, but I'm gonna celebrate as well, so I'll be. I'll make sure that's part of my celebration stuff that I want to do.

Speaker 2: 1:15:17

I've got all. I guess I'll make sure you get all hooked up with all the things that you need to do there, because I personally adore Disneyland, because everything is so close that I'm going to not stop talking about it, john. But I just love how close it is and we can walk to everything. And you, if you went to the parks during princess, you probably saw a few. John has turned off his camera because he is so upset by the conversation about Disneyland. I just have one more thing to say, though. Um, in Florida, you'll see people with medals. You know, afterwards at the parks, it's the concentration feels so much higher in Disneyland. So, like you are going to chat to so many more people, you're probably not going to write anything, because you're just going to be like oh, you did the race, I did the race, oh my God.

Speaker 2: 1:15:49

Oh my God, so fun, it's so fun. All right, john, we're moving on.

Speaker 1: 1:15:59

John? I guess I don't. We had to talk about Disneyland Great great. I'm still not sure it exists because I've never been there and you got to prove it to me. Okay, but we're going to now jump to our closing questions are Annie.

Speaker 1: 1:16:12

We ask these of all of our folks. So let's start here, and this is really, really a good one from everybody. When you get to a hard place in a workout, anyway, in anything, how do you self-motivate, what do you do to motivate yourself? You mentioned a little bit at Kona that you was like okay, well, this, this, let's set the small goal maybe. How do you motivate yourself when you're you're at that point where you're like I would just prefer to quit?

Speaker 4: 1:16:40

during a race. That has obviously happened, you know, when you're just so fatigued, etc. There's two things that I, I, I do. I kind of think, I kind of automatically process how I'm going to feel if I don't continue and I think I just automatically think I'm going to feel so much better when I've done this because I have pushed through this, and I'm going to feel so much better when I've done this because I have pushed through this, and I'm going to feel so much better because I'll have gone through something so hard and I'll have achieved it. So it's going to feel even, it's going to feel amazing.

Speaker 4: 1:17:13

The other thing I do now this I don't know if this is going to sound really weird, but I say, for example, in a swim and the swims getting hard, I, I kind of, I channel my granddad. My granddad was a um, a really good swimmer and I always think granddad's with me, we've got this, we're going to swim together and I always think that there's it's. I know that sounds really, I've never shared that before and I always think that, or like my other granddad was really good on the bike and like I've got this. And then, or if it's like running, my sister's still with us, but I think I've got this. And then, or if it's like running, my sister's still with us, but I think I've got my sister's legs. My sister's a great runner, this is gonna push me and she's gonna be really proud of me and I always think that, like I kind of channel, channel that kind of energy that sounds beautiful.

Speaker 2: 1:17:56

That's like a visual. It is a visualization and it's bringing your mind. You know they all, with Jeff Galloway, who's our training consultant, he always says it's taking your mind someplace else. Out of that, I can't, I can't. And that's a beautiful way to do it, because then it kind of brings a good, positive energy to you people that love you, people that support you, whether they're still here or not. So I love that and we love this question, because I learn things from people and I think a lot of people that listen to the podcast. This is what they take with them. They're little nuggets that help them get through hard workouts or hard times in life. So that's good. All right, you got one down, you got two more. One is easy, one's a little harder, most inspiring thing you have seen at an endurance event, like is there a moment that sticks?

Speaker 4: 1:18:40

with you a finish a person, wow, okay, that's a really hard question because I've seen so many, so many obviously me being in kind of connected to a little bit of that bubble, and obviously I've I've seen quite a lot.

Speaker 2: 1:18:54

I can't think that's a really difficult question did anything kind of like anything come to your mind first, like a visualization? Did you see anybody? Any finish?

Speaker 4: 1:19:02

to be honest with you, I I automatically, as soon as you said that, I automatically thought of Kona and you know, the ladies that I was sat with talking to you. Yeah, um, all of them finishing and obviously I was well behind them so I didn't actually see them finish. But looking back and seeing all their stories and hearing them afterwards all of their different, different reasons and why they were there, and telling their incredible journey, like seeing afterwards that they'd all managed to like get over the finish line with all what they had to deal with, that was definitely very inspiring.

Speaker 2: 1:19:35

But, like, no matter what we came from, all the obstacles we had, we all found a way to get through it Right. And it's like and then at that point, the time doesn't matter. No one says, Annie, you did Kona, what was your time? Like it doesn't we focus so much on time Sometimes. I think we have to focus more on the journey and what it took to get there and what it took to get to that finish.

Speaker 4: 1:19:52

So yeah, and that's why I love that. Yeah, that's why I kind of own that. Look pro, go slow, like I am just here having a very nice time, so I'm just gonna enjoy it, and you know, and that doesn't matter, I'm not out to be a pro, I'm definitely not gonna be a pro, but that's, that's what you got to do. You got to, you got to enjoy it, otherwise it's not worth it.

Speaker 2: 1:20:18

I love that I'm having a nice time. Leave me alone, I'm fine, we say. I always say this I get course, I get value for money because I'm on a nice time Leave me alone, I'm fine, I'm having a great time.

Speaker 4: 1:20:24

I get course value, we say. I always say this I get course. I get value for money because I'm on the course the long, like one of the longest. So you know.

Speaker 1: 1:20:32

We always tell the run Disney people that.

Speaker 1: 1:20:33

Look, you paid a lot to be here. You might as well stretch the day out. Why wrap it up at? You took in the moment to go, wow, let me look around me, because I'm one of those people and again, I'm not an athlete. I've run a couple of 5Ks, 10K, but I'm kind of like head down, not pay attention to where I'm going, and I did find that when I gave that up and when. So those of you with your head down looking for your personal record, good for you. But every now and then, look around. You might see something that's inspiring to you. You're inspiring to us. Annie, Tell everybody if they want to follow you your journey, support you, find out more about epilepsy and dealing with that, whatever. Where do they follow you?

Speaker 4: 1:21:22

I'm most active on Instagram. I like posting lots of content, stories, et cetera, combination of epilepsy stuff and various activities or things I'm throwing myself into. You can follow me at it's Annie Bean. I also have a website called Tales of Annie Bean as well, so talesofanniebeancom, and they can read stuff on there as well.

Speaker 2: 1:21:42

Awesome. Well, thank you, Annie, so much for taking time on your beautiful June England day to be with us. We look forward to seeing you in September and you guys follow her on IG and then you can say hi in real life in September at Disneyland for those of you who are lucky enough to be there. So thank you, Annie, we will chat soon.

Speaker 4: 1:21:59

Thank you so much for having me. It's been lovely to speak to you both.

Speaker 2: 1:22:03

All. Thank you so much for having me. It's been lovely to speak to you both. All right, athletes. Here's the drill Time to shape up your diet, carissa, give them the goods. All right, thank you, sarge.

Speaker 2: 1:22:12

So today, johnny, in my real life, I went on a 12 mile run. It's June here and it's hot, and I think a lot of people are dealing with heat, but we're still having to get out there and run. When you have these races on the calendar, you know you can only start so early. The temperature variance, I don't know, isn't that much. So I I was out there doing my long run today. I actually got quote unquote lucky because it the cloud cover stayed this morning and it wasn't really that bad. But I had an email in my not an email an Instagram message that asked about you know what do I do in the heat? How do we deal with these hotter temperatures? That's a little bit nutrition and also a little bit of management of pace. So I got to be honest, the thing that I've learned most about running in hot weather is that you have to really, really, really, really slow down, and you have to. This isn't food related, but you have to have your brain be okay with slowing down and not spend the whole time feeling like, well, I'm not good enough because I'm going this slow. If you can actually slow down and keep your heart rate low, then that's going to help with the overheating, with the high heart rate. It's going to help your body be a little bit safer. So what I do on my long run, my hot runs, I do not look at my Garmin pace or my mileage at all. I'll put it on just time of day. I'll put it on, it'll give me an alert every mile so I'll know where I am. But really shift off that brain that's judging how fast or how slow you're going. That will help with sort of the energy expenditure.

Speaker 2: 1:23:38

And when it comes to your food and nutrition, you're going to want to make sure that you have something for a longer run every 30 minutes. So today I had two goos and the sport beans I know on my route where water is and I also stopped at home to have a colder electrolyte drink. But this might be the time of year that you need to run loops. So instead of going on this beautifully long course where you're out in the woods and it's great for the safety, for being able to control having water, having electrolytes. You know, do loops. You can also put in a cooler sponges with ice, have ice, have popsicles.

Speaker 2: 1:24:11

But your planning is going to be a little bit different than when you can go out in the winter and you can just run all day and if I have water, if I don't, you know I'm going to be okay here. You're not necessarily going to be okay if you don't have that hydration. So really focus on electrolytes when you are exercising, because of the sweat ratio, focus them on before and if you're a newer runner, carry a salt packet with you as you go If you feel like you're getting peckish. Why are you making that face?

Speaker 1: 1:24:38

Because you read my mind, because I was about to ask about that. You don't have sport drinks and stuff when you get to your hydration to the end. The salt packet thing because you know, you know me, I am a sweater and you know my cooling system works very, very well. But I've had a lot of personal trainers and people talk to me about salt content. So sorry, I was just. I was excited that you read my mind.

Speaker 1: 1:25:05

I didn't read your mind. But I'm glad. I'm glad you're excited and John engaged and healthy. No, I am. It's interesting to me and you bring this up at a good time because you know I am trying to keep myself in better shape and one of the things I do is I do almost all of my training on my treadmill here at home. But I wanted to add in one day a week to get out and run in the elements. I'm going to try to do it early enough or later in the evening here, because you know, in the middle of the day in central Florida it can be dangerous, it's horrible.

Speaker 2: 1:25:25

Yeah, it is dangerous, yeah it can be really, really bad.

Speaker 1: 1:25:28

But I've thought about that and the whole loop idea, because I do have a thing where I know a certain distance but it doesn't bring me by my house a couple of times where I could actually grab a sports drink if I needed to. So this is, you know, you know, for me, healthier you is usually, you know I'm going to step a step yeah.

Speaker 2: 1:25:46

I'm kidding because we know John does.

Speaker 1: 1:25:48

This is so timely.

Speaker 2: 1:25:50

Thank you, you're welcome, but I will say the you know sponge on the head when you cool your body it really does help. So if you're doing loops, do that, women. You can put ice in your sports bra. John, maybe consider wearing a sports bra that you can then put ice in. I was trying to think where to tell you to put ice on, because I don't want to tell you to wear a hat, but the looping it's boring, but in the heat.

Speaker 1: 1:26:11

So many jokes.

Speaker 2: 1:26:12

I know Are there. Are there that many?

Speaker 1: 1:26:15

This is a continuation to the Tracy Woolworth episode. It's so horribly inappropriate. Tracy's wearing off on us with her horrible inappropriateness.

Speaker 2: 1:26:24

You know it's fun. We're having fun, that's our mantra.

Speaker 1: 1:26:27

Whatever, no, but it really does no-transcript, as I'm trying to keep myself in better shape. But I do worry because I dehydrate and you know this. I dehydrate very quickly and I'm about to turn 60. And it's just going to be a snowball rolling downhill. My veritable lack of fitness and ability to bounce back.

Speaker 2: 1:27:03

That's what Matt Pablo is counting on, as we talked about in the Tracy Woo episode no.

Speaker 1: 1:27:06

I'm just kidding. Okay, can we jump in? Matt Pablo, he was like all those pictures of him out visiting family in Hawaii for weeks on end. He was in like-.

Speaker 2: 1:27:14

And he did the press event for Tiana's Bayou Adventure man, that guy.

Speaker 1: 1:27:20

Tracy's doing the Warrior Games.

Speaker 2: 1:27:22

I'm doing the warrior games my star has really has.

Speaker 1: 1:27:26

I think we get it okay.

Speaker 2: 1:27:28

But my last thing I did want to say this about we're talking running in the heat, I think is important. So I do the galley method. I do 230, 30. My long runs in the summer I do 90, 30, so I take it down significantly my pace, my average pace today was probably 1230. And I'm hoping to race at like nine something, so my pace is three minutes slower. So all of that and again that took me years to mentally work through Because it's like, well, how am I going to run a marathon at this pace? I'm running this, but I said to us and today I feel fine when I'm done, it's because I so 16 minutes, I know that's like a scary time.

Speaker 2: 1:28:04

If your long summer runs are 18, 19, it is okay. Don't bring that anxiety anywhere near it. Just get to where you're conversational. Your heart rate's not that high for the long runs, even for the shorter ones. But for you, john, just take your time, just be out there. Oh, I'm just out here doing one mile because I'm helping with my balance. I'm out. You know what I mean. Like don't stress, we don't stress on summer runs. We hydrate and we have fun.

Speaker 1: 1:28:30

Well, and pacing too. I just got to jump in and say this, talking to Jeff when we were up in Atlanta together and just talking about how you know it takes, it really takes a while for you to figure out what pacing for you what works, and that you do have to listen to your body and it's like you don't want to push yourself. You know particularly what we're dealing with the heat we're talking about, but at any time you won't want to push yourself to the point where you're not feeling well. You should be able to maintain your tie. There's difference between being tired, even exhausted, and not feeling well, have something bad going on, so I'm dehydrating, just talking about it, quite frankly.

Speaker 2: 1:29:01

It is Well. Thank you, samantha, for that question from Instagram and I will say on Healthier you, you guys know it's the full 12-week course designed to help you take control of your nutrition, weight loss recipes, but we have our monthly chats and a lot of what we do in monthly chats is basically a conversation like John and I had. Someone will say how do I deal with this on my runs, how do I deal with this on my runs? And we troubleshoot it. That's where you get your personal questions answered. Someone might say I can't use Goose, what can I use? So the benefit of Healthier you is the education, but it's also that whole year where you get your questions answered. So go to gallowaycoursecom and use code podcast to save Athletes. Listen up. It's mail call time. Announcer free present. All right.

Speaker 1: 1:29:40

Announcer free present all right, sarge, thank you very much. Today we're sharing a listener email from Angie. Angie, sorry, still got stones on my mind.

Speaker 2: 1:29:50

Angie, we almost went a whole episode without talking about the stones, so that would be bad well, he's not a stone. Paul McCartney was at, taylor Swift not but also Peter Gabriel.

Speaker 1: 1:30:00

There was a huge crowd in your eyes, see we've lost it Absolutely. It's classic rock. Today we have a foster cat and we named him Ronnie Wood because you know, they're always musicians and stones around my mind.

Speaker 2: 1:30:15

Anyway, Angie sent that to our 321 Go podcast. She did not ask us about classic rock.

Speaker 1: 1:30:20

But Angie's email is as follows. It is at our 321 Go podcast at gmailcom account. Angie says I'm happy I finally got to meet carissa at the indianapolis mini marathon. I'm from the indie area, always excited to hear your voice announcing in my city. I'm glad to have the opportunity to hear you speak and get my book signed, to get my picture with you, man. Hell yeah, just big fan. Uh, you receive. Uh you receive my first attempt at making a beaded friendship bracelet with an indie twist.

Speaker 2: 1:30:46

Well done, angie. Now can I pause and say that I'm missing friendship bracelets. I don't know if people want to come throw them at my door, but I'm missing getting them right I know, I know I'm a really, really substantial.

Speaker 1: 1:30:56

I showed you my collection the other day and then I found another 20.

Speaker 2: 1:31:04

This is getting to be a thing. I hope it doesn't go away. Taylor's tour goes through December y'all, so I command friendship bracelets, at least through December.

Speaker 1: 1:31:08

All right, fair enough.

Speaker 2: 1:31:09

Okay, she goes on, though Angie goes on.

Speaker 1: 1:31:12

Yes, continuing with Angie's email, I was able to catch John at the finish line in springtime, congratulate him on his 10K, but didn't get to meet Carissa. Who knows where she was? That's the question we often ask.

Speaker 2: 1:31:23

We have breaks. Folks, there's a schedule. We have breaks. We're supposed to follow the schedule.

Speaker 1: 1:31:29

Not like she went down the chute, folks, she's on her scheduled break. Thank you for both what you do at Run Disney. I'm the back of the packer and get a large dose of your inspiration, thank you. Thank you for putting it that way. I put the air quotes on inspiration, but I appreciate that and with the podcast, you're both entertaining, fun and inspiring. Keep, uh, yeah, fun and inspiring. Thank you very much. I almost read your next line. But, angie, thank you so much for that. Uh, it, it, it really is amazing how many people uh, you know, I just for me. I think anybody who would want to meet me at run Disney has already done that. But then when you hear about somebody oh you know, I never had a chance to talk to you I think it's almost, it's virtually impossible, but that happens. But there's a lot going on in one of those weekends.

Speaker 2: 1:32:13

It is, and it's nice when we get to see people like I got to connect with Andrew. Sometimes you don't. Sometimes we talk about this in a podcast coming up where sometimes you just see a certain person finish all the time and then sometimes you never see someone. So we're happy for the moments that we get to connect, because sometimes we miss them. But when we get one right, we're like, yes, we nailed it. So thank you, angie. Again, still love that friendship bracelet, so thank you for that. Thank you, guys for emailing. Keep emailing us. Ask us weird things, tell us nice things, tell us negative things, tell us negative things. We love it. I make John read it. He never proofreads it ahead of time, so try to mess him up. See what happens. I'm an actor, I can cold read. Yeah, I know he's an actor. So, guys, thank you. Thank you to Annie for sharing her story with us, her journey at Ironman World Championships. We'll see her in September and maybe again next year. And thank you, john. Thank you to our producer, weston Galloway.

Speaker 1: 1:33:04

Yeah, I think I may have been the only one to ever say nice things about him on this podcast.

Speaker 2: 1:33:07

I love you babe, Love you listeners. We love you, Weston, See you real soon. Bye-bye 3, 2, 1, go.