Kathy Elkind - 57, walking the 1,400 mile/2,286km Grande Randonnée Cinq (GR5) with her husband of 27 years

09/23/21 • 38 min

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In the spring of 2018, at the age of 57, Kathy Elkind walked the Grande Randonnée Cinq (GR5) with her husband of 27 years. The 2,286K (1,400-mile) journey starts at the North Sea in The Netherlands and goes through Belgium, Luxembourg, and the whole length of France through the Alps to end at the warm Mediterranean in Nice. Kathy always longed for an epic adventure, but the time was never right. Finally, her children had flown the nest, and she had shifted from a fertile body to a not fertile body – What could this new body do? It was the perfect time for a quest: to pause, reflect and explore. Could her marriage sustain and thrive on a long walk? After two months on the GR5, they entered the mighty Alps—five weeks of alpine views, mountain refuges, and exertion. Her walking became more than meditative; she fell into an ethereal pace where she became the air and the landscape. In her own words: “Life was not about me. It was about the beauty of the world. This truth was what I had longed for but did not know.” At home, she stepped into the last third of her Life, more in love with her husband, accepting the unknown, knowing her power, and brave enough to write a book one step at a time (she has dyslexia and did not learn to read until I was in 7th grade). Kathy has come to believe it’s necessary for women entering the last third of their life to experience a quest or challenge. It can be anything they love – going to 25 art museums, swimming or dancing 50 days in a row. There is a unique challenge for every woman. Kathy is an Eating Psychology Coach, a Teacher of Mindful Self-Compassion, and owner of Elkind Nourishment. Kathy helps women feel their emotions instead of eating their emotions and feel comfortable in their bodies. She is writing a memoir about her adventure. New episodes of the Tough Girl Podcast go live every Tuesday and Thursday at 7am UK time - Make sure you hit the subscribe button so you don’t miss out. The Tough Girl Podcast is sponsorship and ad free thanks to the monthly financial support of patrons. To find out more about supporting your favourite podcast and becoming a patron please check out www.patreon.com/toughgirlpodcast. Show notes

Who is Kathy and what she does
Wanting to go on a big adventure
Finding the right time to go travelling
Wanting to take a pause in life
Being married for 27 years
Stepping into the next phase of her life
Being exposed to the outdoors from an early age
Never having the guts or the time to do a big thru hike
Struggling with overeating
Having trouble with reading and struggling in school
Using food to numb emotions and to calm her nerves
Struggling with shame and food
Becoming a teacher and raising her kids
Becoming an eating psychology coach
Paying attention to the emotions underneath and learning to be with them
Studying self compassion
Being mindful
Placing your hand on your heart and chaining your voice
The power of speaking to yourself and being gentle to yourself
Learning how to be compassionate to yourself
The GR5 Trail
Making the decision to go on the hike
Going through menopause
Moving from running to walking
Planning and preparation before the trip
Making the adventure your own
Deciding to bike the 1st week in the Netherland
Starting the GR5 at the end of April, beginning of May
Doing a preamble in Italy for a few weeks before
Wanting to slow down
Listening to her body and using her intuition
Learning how to sleep in a different bed every night
Being concerned about hiking in the Alps and dealing with the elevation
Staying mindful and being in the present
Connecting the rhythm of your breath to your walking pace
The magical moment and the beauty of the walks
The lessons learned from walking the GR5
Ready to do some backpacking and camping
Feeling strong and powerful
Writing a book about her experience
The impact of the walk on her marriage
Knowing each others strengths and weaknesses
Daily Routine on the walk
Top tips for taking on the GR5
Adjusting back to normal life in America
Final words of advice for other women who want to go on an adventure
Why it’s never too late
The power of brainstorming

Social Media Website: www.elkindnourishment.com Instagram:

Who is Kathy and what she does
Wanting to go on a big adventure
Finding the right time to go travelling
Wanting to take a pause in life
Being married for 27 years
Stepping into the next phase of her life
Being exposed to the outdoors from an early age
Never having the guts or the time to do a big thru hike
Struggling with overeating
Having trouble with reading and struggling in school
Using food to numb emotions and to calm her nerves
Struggling with shame and food
Becoming a teacher and raising her kids
Becoming an eating psychology coach
Paying attention to the emotions underneath and learning to be with them
Studying self compassion
Being mindful
Placing your hand on your heart and chaining your voice
The power of speaking to yourself and being gentle to yourself
Learning how to be compassionate to yourself
The GR5 Trail
Making the decision to go on the hike
Going through menopause
Moving from running to walking
Planning and preparation before the trip
Making the adventure your own
Deciding to bike the 1st week in the Netherland
Starting the GR5 at the end of April, beginning of May
Doing a preamble in Italy for a few weeks before
Wanting to slow down
Listening to her body and using her intuition
Learning how to sleep in a different bed every night
Being concerned about hiking in the Alps and dealing with the elevation
Staying mindful and being in the present
Connecting the rhythm of your breath to your walking pace
The magical moment and the beauty of the walks
The lessons learned from walking the GR5
Ready to do some backpacking and camping
Feeling strong and powerful
Writing a book about her experience
The impact of the walk on her marriage
Knowing each others strengths and weaknesses
Daily Routine on the walk
Top tips for taking on the GR5
Adjusting back to normal life in America
Final words of advice for other women who want to go on an adventure
Why it’s never too late
The power of brainstorming

Social Media Website: www.elkindnourishment.com Instagram:

Previous Episode

Houda Loukili - Former Dutch National Kickboxing Champion, and Youth Coach for Personal Growth

Houda grew up in the Netherlands and she first came into contact with kickboxing at the age of 11. She soon found out that kickboxing was her passion, Houda trained hard and spend all her time in the gym, training 6 days a week. Due to her passion and perseverance, in 2005, Houda became the Dutch Youth Champion. At university Houda choose to study Sports Management and Movement. Houda was inspired as a young girl by her coach – and she wanted to be the inspiration for other young children. With her knowledge and experience in top-class sports and her social-pedagogical background, Houda knows how to reach girls and get them moving – literally. By sharing her story, Houda makes young people feel relevant and that they are capable of more than they think. Her mission is to give coaches the tools to make sports more accessible for girls. She believes it is important that every individual can play sports according to their own needs. Houda is passionate about equality and diversity in sports and has worked with Nike on their “made to play campaign”. Nike's words are clear: children should play. Not just some kids, but all kids. Not just some girls, but all girls, including girls who wear hijab. New episodes of the Tough Girl Podcast go live every Tuesday and Thursday at 7am UK time - Make sure you hit the subscribe button so you don’t miss out. The Tough Girl Podcast is sponsorship and ad free thanks to the monthly financial support of patrons. To find out more about supporting your favourite podcast and becoming a patron please check out www.patreon.com/toughgirlpodcast. Show notes

Who is Houda
Why sport is her life
Coming from a sporty family
Being inspired by Bruce Lee at 8 years old
Getting into kickboxing at 11
Falling in love with kickboxing
Her journey in kickboxing
Training for her first match
Becoming the Dutch Youth Champion
Becoming more confident
Wanting to prove a girl could fight
Starting to wear the hijab at 14
Going to study sports at college
Being the only girls wearing the hijab
“It was not easy, but I had the power to do it”
Wanting to keep going with the kickboxing
Being in a car accident at 21
Spending a lot of time in recovery
Dealing with the first big disappointment in her life
Having nothing else apart from sports
Trying to figure out what to do next
Working with young girls but wanting to inspire the whole family
Wanting to make a big impact in the world
Having her own personal development program
Working towards lots of goals
Wanting to change the representation of girls and women in the media
Being a teacher of resilience
Giving the children tools to help build resilience
The power of being positive
Wanting children to believe in themselves
Teaching children how to say no
Why you attitude is very important
The power of having a growth mindset
How to deal with negative thoughts
Planting seeds in young minds
Having people believe in you
The pressure on girls to look/act a certain way
Needing the help and support from others
Wanting to educate other coaches
Being inspired by her mum
Being 1 of 6 children
How her parents support her dream
Working with Nike - Made to Play Campaign
Creating a play book for coaches to use to help them work with girls who wear a hijab
Starting a Youtube Channel
The importance of smiling and having fun
“Your start says nothing about your finish”
"If you have a dream and you want to achieve your dream, then you need to work for it and believe in it”

Social Media Website: https://houdaloukili.com/linkpage-instagram-houda-loukili/ Instagram: @loukilihouda

Next Episode

Verna Volker - From the Navajo Nation, Non-runner to Ultra Runner in 12 years. Founder of Native Women Running and Hoka Global Ambassador.

Verna is the founder of Native Women Running, a Hoka Global Ambassador, she serves on the Running Diversity Board, and represents several organizations: Red Earth Running Co, UltraRunning Magazine, and Native Women's Wilderness. Verna in her own words: “My name is Verna Volker and I am from the Navajo Nation. My clans are Tódích'íi'nii (Bitterwater) nishlíi, Hashtl'ishnii (Mud People) bashishchiin, Ta'neeszahnii (Tangle) dashicheii, and Tó' áheedlíinii (Water Flows Together) dashinalí. I grew up in the Dzilnaoodilii area of New Mexico, but currently live in Minneapolis, Minnesota with my husband and four children. I work as a second grade teacher. In 2009, I started my running journey to lose weight, but it has turned into a quest to find out who I am internally. This journey has taken me from a newbie runner to a marathoner and recently to an ultra-marathoner when I finished my first Ultra 50-mile race. My desire is to use my running to inspire others.” New episodes of the Tough Girl Podcast go live every Tuesday and Thursday at 7am UK time - Subscribe so you don’t miss out. The Tough Girl Podcast is sponsorship and ad free thanks to the monthly financial support of patrons. To find out more about supporting your favourite podcast and becoming a patron please check out www.patreon.com/toughgirlpodcast. Show notes

Introducing herself in Navajo
Who is Verna
How the outdoors played apart of her life growing up
Loving sports but not being into running
Why Verna got into running
Signing up for her first Half Marathon in August 2009
Struggling with her weight
Falling in love with running
How her running journey progressed
Putting herself first and not feeling guilty
Having a 4th child
Becoming an early morning runner
Waking up at 4.15am.... to go running
Having female role models at the start of her running journey
Native Women Running - Founded on Jan 23rd 2018
The lack of visibility for Native women runners
Not seeing women who looked like her
Using the power of instagram to create change
How Native Women Running has evolved over the past 3 years
Inter-generational trauma and the power of running to heal
Creating a call to action - MMIW (Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women)
May 5th - National Day of Awareness for MMIW
Using running to heal trauma
The murder of native children and finding the reminds of native children in residential schools
Connecting with a running community
Coping with the trauma
Being resilient and being in a leadership position
Why it’s ok to detach yourself from social media
Magical moments while running
Deciding to run her first ultra marathon 50k in 2018
Running a 50 miler in October 2019
Why the ultra journey has been mental
Seeing her little girl at the finish line
Training and planning for ultra runs
Meeting her coach via Instagram
What a typical training week looks like
Keeping motivated to go running when not in the right frame of mind
Training for her next 100K (62 miles) race
Mental tips and tricks for running an ultra
Dedicating miles to lost love ones
Teaching 2nd grade and how working for Hoka is becoming a full time job
Advice for women who want to get into running
The power of being patient with yourself
Taking the next step to running an ultra
What hozho means
Final words of advice from Verna

Social Media Instagram: @hozhorunner4 Native Women Running - Visibility, inspiration and community of native women runners on and off the reservation/reserve. Community. Inspiration. Motivation. Visibility. #nativewomenrunning Website: www.nativewomenrunning.com Instagram: @native_women_running Facebook: @nativewomenrunning