Women in Running- Camille Herron
I just received my copy of Next Level- Your Guide to Kicking Ass, Feeling Great, and Crushing Goals Through Menopause and Beyond by Stacy Sims, and am eagerly flipping through it. So much good advice! I’ll write more about it when I’ve read the whole book, but a couple things that immediately caught my eye were in the nutrition section- namely, that intermittent fasting and keto aren’t good for women. According to Sims, studies show intermittent fasting is beneficial for MEN, but actually detrimental for women, especially women who exercise. The book also explains that the keto diet doesn’t work the same way for women as it does for men. Both keto and intermittent fasting can raise cortisol levels and depress thyroid function in women (among other undesirable effects.) So it’s true- women are not just “little men.” Unless you’re Camille Herron. Not that she’s a man, of course, but that hasn’t stopped her from beating all the men in some of her recent races. Like the Jackpot 100 this past February, where she won the race outright and set a new world record for 100 miles, 12:41:11. Yep- at the age of 40, Camille ran an average pace of 7:37 for 100 miles (her final mile was 7:08), beating all the women and men in that race. I listened to her on this episode of the Rich Roll podcast and it was SO GOOD! I loved this episode so, so much. They talk about her training, how she used Inside Tracker to identify and fix a major problem with her biomarkers, what kind of strength work she does, a story about how her family’s house was completely demolished by a tornado when she was in high school, and much more. All these topics were fascinating, but more than that it’s her happiness and positivity, her infectious enthusiasm for running that made the episode addictive. I listened to it, and then went back and watched it on Youtube. Some of my favorite quotes: “If I could, I would run all day.” (Good thing she runs 100 mile races!) “I’m propelled by joy.” (Something to think about on my next run.) “I’m doing this for the world. I’m doing this to elevate the sport, to raise the bar in what women think is possible.” (Thank you, Camille!) It’s easy to fall into a rut, or fall into the trap of thinking our best days are behind us. Listening to podcasts like this and reading books like Next Level make me feel excited and empowered to reach my full potential. If you also need a jolt of inspiration, please listen to Camille and tell me what you think! I’m linking up with My First 5K and More, Running With Attitude, Run Laugh Eat Pie, Runs with Pugs, and Zenaida for Fit Five Friday! Check them out for more fun and inspiration.