Jessica Hepburn - Unlikely Everest Summiteer. Inspiring people to #livebigandbrave when life doesn’t go to plan. Author of Save me from the Waves.

AN ADVENTURE STORY – WITH A DIFFERENCE

Jessica Hepburn is an unlikely athlete. She hates exercise and believes the only reason to do it is for food, booze and box-sets on the sofa.

However, in her forties, following a succession of hard life experiences, she started to try and exercise her way out of heartbreak. She has now become one of the world’s most extraordinary endurance athletes.

The first and only woman on the planet to have completed the “Sea, Street, Summit Challenge” – which is to swim the English Channel, run the London Marathon and climb Mount Everest. And possibly the only woman to have listened to eighty years and over 3,000 episodes of her favourite radio programme – Desert Island Discs.

Jessica joins us for the 3rd time on the Tough Girl Podcast, to share more about her new book. “Save me from the Waves”. Which shares more about her inspirational story of physical and mental endurance which starts on the streets of London and culminates in a life-threatening event on top of the world. During the podcast, Jessica share more about the challenges on the mountain, the lesson learns and provides advice and tips to encourage you to live big and bravely especially when life doesn’t go to plan.

Previous TGP episodes with Jessica.

2nd October 2018 - Author of 21 Miles and The Pursuit of Motherhood. Swimming the English Channel.

8th February 2022 - Adventure Activist - Her journey to climbing Mt. Everest.

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Show notes

Who is Jessica
Being an author
Working in the arts
Going through multiple rounds of IVF
Experiencing multiple miscarriages
Describing herself as an adventure activist
Swimming the English Channel
Her journey climbing Mount Everest
Completing final training for Mount Everest
Climbing Kilimanjaro immediately after the channel swim
Realising the importance of mental and physical strength
Realising she's not fit and fast enough
Climbing massive mountains in her 50s is a significant challenge
Discussing pushback when climbing Everest and feeling defensive
Recounting a conversation with a stranger
Limited window for climbing Mount Everest due to weather conditions
Climbing to the top of the world while listening to her favorite radio program
The reason why she writes her books
Why she wouldn't change anything even after everything that has happened to her
Feeling stronger and more confident on her second attempt to climb Everest
Finding the Khumbu Icefall challenging
Finding the summiting experience to be terrifying
Not feeling the expected emotions on the summit
Feeling exhausted and sick during the summit
Having endurance and mental strength on the mountain
Getting hit by a free-falling oxygen bottle, breaking her leg
Sharing the details of what happened to her in her book
Sharing her experiences with IVF and climbing Everest, hoping to provide solidarity and a survival guide for others
What helped her process her thoughts and emotions during her fertility journey
Creating playlists for various occasions and people in her life
Composing a playlist for the child she never had
Final words of advice

Social Media
Website:www.jessicahepburn.com
Instagram: @jessica_hepburn_
Twitter: @JessicaPursuit
Facebook:www.facebook.com/jessicahepburnauthor

The episode Jessica Hepburn - Unlikely Everest Summiteer. Inspiring people to #livebigandbrave when life doesn’t go to plan. Author of Save me from the Waves. from the podcast Tough Girl Podcast has a duration of 45:20. It was first published 07 Mar 07:00. The cover art and the content belong to their respective owners.

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Thank you for your invaluable support!

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Show notes

Who is Fatima
Studying in Italy and working as a tour guide
Her early years in Afghanistan
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Not having school and not being able to study
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Social Media

Instagram: @fatima.haidari786

Youtube: youtube.com/@fatimahaidari?si=6Tep5bklgaTWCUr4

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Show notes

Who is Kaz
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Doing a MSc in Sport and Exercise Psychology
Working full time while studying and running
Her trail running journey
Learning about trail races
Wanting to run the UTMB
Running the Marathon de Mont Blanc
Struggling with the UTMB in 2014
Realising her mental game had let her down
Wanting to learn/understand more about the mental side of physical challenges
Losing focus and not being present while training and what you can do about it
Ending up in a dark place and questioning what you are doing
Why you need a strong WHY
Signing up to do Tahoe 200
The sacrifices and hard work which goes into training
Suffering with audio and visual hallucinations
Bears and Pizza!
Running throughout the year
Recovery after big races
Being a plant based athlete
Food and nutrition
Using Training Peaks
Where the name Mettle came from
Coaching athletes and runners
“We are stronger, braver and more capable than we realise”
Being a fan of David Goggins
Learning how to endure
How to connect with Kaz
Tips for self belief
Our lives are the sum of our choices. The future depends on what we do in the present.
Think about what you want to be doing and what you can do now to achieve that.

Social Media

Website www.mettlerunning.com

Instagram @mettlerunning

Personal Instagram @mountainkaz

Facebookwww.facebook.com/mettlerunning

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Show notes

Emma Hull the confidence coach
Gaining her confidence in her 40s
Having a tough time accepting who she was
Wanting to make a change in her life
Not liking the feeling associated with being anxious
Not wanting to take anxiety and depression medication for the rest of her life
Her journey of making changes in her life
Why the changes happened gradually over time
Starting her transformation with yoga
The power of being in a safe environment
Being allowed to be herself and to be vulnerable
Starting her healing journey
Working with a life coach
Why it’s within your power to make changes
Being on the treadmill of life
The HOW of making a change in your life
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Why living on her own really suits her
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Doing a morning gratitude practice
Beach Body App
Her dog Jonny Cash
Being inspired to take a road trip
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Taking a month to travel and working while on the road.
Advice for working while travelling
Planning to buy an RV for an adventure in October 2025
The importance of setting a date
Advice for planning
Advice for women who need help figuring out what their goals are
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How can I make this happen?
Seeing problems as opportunities
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Reward charts
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Social Media

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Instagram: @TheLifeUntethered

Facebook: @TheLifeUntethered

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Show notes

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Receiving support from the male participants
Wanting to take her cycling further
The importance of working towards goals
Taking part in stage events
2012 getting involved in Super Randonneur
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Wanting to move away from organised events and create her own challenges
Deciding on challenges/events and the planning and preparation involved.
Using her research skills from her PhD to plan her routes
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Meeting Laura from SteLa Tandem - Around the word - mixed pair GWR holder.
You can listen to Laura Massey-Pugh on the TGP - Her Inspiring Journey Around the World - 180 days on the back of a tandem.
Book: The Next Everest by Jim Davidson
Taking on 3 different routes/challenges with different partners, self supported.
Riding Kanyakumari to Kashmir Route (K2K) 3,800km in 18 days, self supported.
RidingThe Golden Qualdilateral(network of national highways connecting Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata, Mumbai in four directions) 6,000+ km in 41 days
Riding East to West - known as the "the other k2k" in cycling circuits.
Having a supportive husband
Social issues of riding a tandem bike with a male partner who is not her husband.
The challenges of tandem cycling
Riding Umling La Pass on a tandem bicycle, which is the highest motorable pass (19,024ft) in the world.
The many names of the tandem bike
Having support from the Indian Army and Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP)
Communication and needing to rely on local people and their local knowledge
Fitting in cycling around her life and family
Focusing on high altitude cycling and the lessons she’s learned
How to connect with Meera
Final words of advice to encourage you to spend more time in the outdoors and to follow your dreams
Take the first steps to pursue your dreams

Social Media

Website:www.pedalmummy.com/meera/index.html

Instagram: @meeravelankar

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Thank you for your invaluable support!

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Show notes

Who is Arlette?
Being born in Holland
Living in Boston, USA
Getting the trail name ‘Apple Pie’
Growing up in Holland and having a typical childhood
Moving over to California after college
Visiting Switzerland and getting into backpacking
The hiking culture in the Netherlands
Starting with the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) in America in 2003
Learning more about the long distance trails
What she loves about long distance hiking
Being empowered after reaching her goals
How hiking has changed over the years
The social aspect of hiking
Not being an ultra light fast packer
What a typical day hiking looks like
Having dinner at 5pm and then carrying on hiking
Finishing up the 11 National Scenic Trails
Not giving her body the rest she needed
Pushing harder while hiking
Dealing with the heat and humidity and struggling to hit the 25 miles per day needed
Advice for recovery and why taking time off is a good thing
Eating well while hiking
Cooking v cold soaking
Food chat!
Wearing dresses while hiking
Hiking through all seasons
Tips for winter hiking
Feet and shoes for hiking
Road walking with a pack
Hiking with poles
Fitting hiking into her life and working as a hiking guide
Hiking all of the 11 National Scenic Trails in the States
Putting a plan in place in 2018
Speaking with ‘Buck 30’ (Brian Tanzman)
Planning and preparation for the final few hikes
Dealing with aggressive barking dogs
North Country Trail (4,600 miles)
Advice for when it gets tough on a hike
Making her goals smaller
Keeping track of expenses while on trail
Paying for breakfast as it’s a better deal than dinner
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Skipping the road walks in New Zealand
Hiking in Nepal
Hiking in Europe
Preferring to hike in the wilderness
Going back to hike the Arizona trail
Wanting to thru-hikes the trails that she section hiked
Wanting to ‘redlining’ the White Mountains guide book (1,440.4 miles )
How to connect with Arlette on social media #ApplePieHikes
Selling sock dolls (only sold/shipped to the US)
Redline Guiding
Final words of advice

Social Media

Website: www.arlettelaan.com

Instagram: @arlette_laan

Every Podcast » Tough Girl Podcast » Jessica Hepburn - Unlikely Everest Summiteer. Inspiring people to #livebigandbrave when life doesn’t go to plan. Author of Save me from the Waves.