Runbelievable

EP 44 | What Happens When Your Body Forces You to Run Slow?

Runbelievable

Show Notes

What do you do when your body makes a decision your mind isn't ready to accept? For Emma Hansford, running was never about chasing podiums. But after becoming a mum and later navigating perimenopause, she found herself confronting something many runners quietly experience: the need to reset expectations. In this honest conversation, Emma shares her journey through postpartum recovery, perfectionism, identity and learning that success isn't always measured by pace. It's a conversation ab...

More from Runbelievable

Oct 20, 2026

Phil Gore has spent years redefining what's possible in backyard ultra (BYU) running. But Project 168 was different. His goal was to run for seven consecutive days, pushing beyond anything he'd attempted before. So what happens when your mind is willing to keep running, but your body has finally had enough? After 152 hours, his body forced him to stop. What followed was surgery, months without running and a confronting opportunity to reflect on the limits he'd been so determined to discover....

Oct 13, 2026

What happens when running becomes more than something you do, and starts becoming part of who you are? Oli Jones has spent much of his life around running. He's founded a run group, coached runners, worked with young athletes and spent five years telling other people's stories through the Local Legends in Running podcast. But after years of consistent running, the last three have brought injuries, a marathon DNF and the possibility that his fastest days may already be behind him. Along the wa...

Oct 6, 2026

What if the person most intimidated by a run club is exactly the person it should be built for? Cam Smit wasn't always a runner. He started in his late twenties, hated his first 2.7km and was too intimidated to join a run club himself. Years later, he created Cam's Run Club... the kind of running community he wishes had existed when he started. The first session, literally nobody showed up. Today, 20–40 runners regularly join a community built around one simple idea: nobody runs alone. ...

Sep 29, 2026

Can running make a new city feel like home? When Alex Narang moved from Manchester to Sydney, she knew very few people. Less than 12 hours after landing, she joined Coogee Run Club; and within weeks, running had given her friends, community and the beginnings of a new life. Six months later, Alex badly broke her jaw in three places on the way to run club. Suddenly, the people she'd only recently met were taking her to hospital, organising her care and making sure she never had to recover alon...

Sep 22, 2026

What does Australia's largest parkrun know about building community that the rest of us don't? When Joanne Watkins first arrived at Albert Melbourne parkrun in January-2012, around 30 to 50 people would turn up each Saturday. The first time attendance reached 100, they celebrated because they genuinely thought the event had peaked. Nearly 15 years later, Albert Melbourne parkrun can attract more than 1,000 runners, walkers and volunteers. But the remarkable part isn't simply its size... it's ...

See all episodes →