Paul sits down with Kate Hyland, a Nottinghamshire-based runner, run leader, and self-confessed extrovert, for a conversation that swings from cereal-mixing psychology to one of the most quietly powerful stories the podcast has covered. Kate started running in January 2023 not for fitness or fun, but to prepare her body for major surgery: donating a kidney to her husband Lee, who lives with end-stage kidney disease. Testing later revealed a rare condition that ruled her out as a donor — but weeks after that news, she was offered a charity place in the London Marathon for Kidney Care UK, and the running habit she'd built for an entirely different reason became the thing that carried her through.

Paul and Kate talk honestly about what marathon training actually looks like around a full-time job, two teenagers, and a husband managing dialysis at home — and how Kate's back-of-the-pack, coffee-after-a-long-run approach to running club life is just as valid as chasing PBs. They compare notes on London Marathon (crowded, overhyped, a hard pass for both of them) versus the low-key charm of a local 10K with a burger van at the finish, and Kate breaks down the 30-minute improvement between her London debut (6:15) and her Brighton follow-up (5:43).

The conversation also covers Kate's leap into triathlon with zero swimming or cycling experience, the run-leader trick that gets her out the door in torrential rain, training through perimenopause and anxiety, and a shared love of trifle-sized post-run treats — including the time Kate ate an entire family trifle solo after a brutal 30K training run.

Honest, funny, and quietly moving — this episode is about running for reasons bigger than a finish line, saying yes before you feel ready, and why community keeps you showing up when motivation won't.

Paul sits down for the first time with Simon, better known online as Egbert — a nickname born from a running joke about newborns being basically eggs, not (as suspected) a Narnia reference. What follows is a wide-ranging, genuinely funny conversation that somehow moves from Herodotus and the Roman legions to crème brûlée for six people to running seven miles home at 2am after missing a train stop.

Simon opens up about being "five stone heavier" as a teenager and the decades-long process of losing weight through weights, trial-and-error dieting, and eventually running — which he only picked up during COVID, running his first 5K past age 30. He and Paul dig into what actually makes weight loss sustainable (spoiler: rigid restriction isn't it), why consistency matters more than perfection, and how both of them frame training and eating around being present for their families rather than chasing extremes.

The conversation turns to the mechanics of the sport too: Simon's goal of a sub-3 marathon, the dangers of jumping into a marathon too soon, zone 2 training fads, the Maffetone method, and an honest debate about club running versus solo miles. Paul shares a story he's never told publicly — seven marathon-distance training runs in a single year, chasing a since-abandoned goal — and the two trade shoe opinions (Altra, New Balance, Nike) before agreeing to team up for a half marathon PB attempt.

Funny, candid, and unexpectedly reflective — this one covers running, food, family, and the occasional Roman Empire tangent.

From Devastated to Ironman: Danny's Story of Running for His Dad

Danny's had a six-pack since he was a "tubby toddler," ran a sub-3-hour marathon on his second attempt, but this episode isn't really about any of that.

In December 2023, Danny's dad Steve was diagnosed with motor neurone disease. Two and a half years later, in May this year, he passed away. In the middle of that, Danny signed up for Ironman Wales — a 2.4 mile sea swim (jellyfish and all), 112 miles on the bike, then a full marathon, all inside 17 hours - to raise money for the Motor Neurone Disease Association and show his dad exactly how much he loved him.

We talk about hitting the wall at mile 23 of his first marathon (nutrition lesson learned the hard way), training for an Ironman around a 9-day fortnight and family life, the doom-scrolling that eats more time than you'd think, and the work colleagues who are matching every pound raised and taking a Friday off to run or walk a full marathon along the Southeast Coast Path with him.

This one's honest, funny in places, and properly moving in others. Danny's monthly Instagram videos with his dad have had us in tears more than once — go and watch them, and if you can, throw a few quid at the JustGiving page linked below.

Support Danny's fundraiser for the Motor Neurone Disease Association

Follow his Ironman training and his dad's story on Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/dannysknight/

If you've got a running story worth telling, get in touch — I'm always looking for more people to put through the podcast wringer.

#running #podcast #ironman #motorneuronedisease #marathon #interview