Very often we hear that we need to look after ourselves. Self Care!
That I should be careful not to lose myself – in between children, work, school, husband, and life. And that we should create moments that are just for us.

I am very aware that it is difficult to find these moments, and especially to have them on our agendas. Because instead of sitting down with a cup of tea we sort through the mail, check homework or need to find a costume for a school assembly. You know what I am talking about.

My personal self-care program is running. I picked it up a few years ago because I realised that I wanted (needed) to move more and that I wanted needed my body to move more. I looked at a couple of options (swimming for example) and came to the conclusion that running works best for me. Especially in terms of flexibility.

Back then I started with a running app and a beginner’s plan. Slowly! Long story short: Running keeps me balanced.
It is ‘me time’, it feels great afterward, and definitely shows on your body. I even signed up for a 10k to push me a bit further and did it. Plus, I booked another one coming up in November (4 weeks I was reminded yesterday!!!).
And I will tell you – I am not loving it, but it is a great feeling to know that you can run 10k. (for example)

However, the thing I love most whilst running – is listening to podcasts!

When I started I went for music, like most people, but found that a bit boring after a while. The running app I use (adidas) includes a few podcasts and I gave it a try. Unfortunately, they were not really what I was hoping for and way too dull for my taste.
So I started to look around. Research, asking friends, searching on the podcast app, etc… there was a lot of trial and error involved.

What I wanted: Inspiring podcasts with fire (I am running after all, not walking or trying to fall asleep)
I love to listen to other people’s stories, I want start up and entrepreneur knowledge, and I want facts.
For example, I started to listen to a few ‘strong women’, ‘women in leadership’ kind of podcasts and man was I disappointed. There was way too much ‘bla’, a lot of ‘me me me’, and just too much dragging out a story for very little input. No thank you. Not interested, and again: I need ‘action’ when I am running. The story, or talk, needs to keep me going.

By now, I have a few shows in my library and I want to share my 3 favourites. I am sure that you would love to listen to them as well, be it during a run, on your commute, waiting for a plane or…

The 3 favourite podcasts I listen to while running:

1. Marie Forleo was my AHA moment. The moment I found her I was super intrigued by the topics that cover a lot about entrepreneurship and creative passions. It is very American in a way that you will hear lots of ‘awesome’, ‘you are the best’, ‘we love you’ and so on, but it is very engaging and fun. Marie is very outspoken, a true storyteller and the kind of woman that I believe can help the whole ‘the future is female’ movement. Some podcasts are call-in shows where people can share their challenges and Marie will come up with different ways on how to tackle the problem. And especially how to look at it from different angles. Many times I came back from my run and had to scribble something down I did not want to forget. This woman is full of passion, drive, and power.

Marie Forleo

2. How I built this is satisfying my curiosity to hear other people’s stories. I love life stories and to understand people a bit better once you know a bit about their past. Guy Raz gets you the intel behind some of the world’s biggest and most interesting brands. Innovators, entrepreneurs, and idealists. It is super interesting to hear how they started out, the hurdles, the first success and what kept them going. I especially like it because you can discover people and stories that have not been covered a dozen (or even more) times before. Some of the podcasts are live shows which are quite fun too. The last one was with Christina Tosi from Milk Bar and she was so quirky, eclectic, and fun. So good!

How I built this

3. The Tony Robbins Podcasts come with this mission: “Why live an ordinary life when you can live an extraordinary one?”
These podcasts want to help you take your business to the next level. And Tony is sharing a lot of his knowledge, experience, and strategies. Inviting very powerful business people to his podcast to have very deep conversations about tactics, achievements, and why failure is a good thing!

Tony Robbins Podcast

Listening to a captivating podcasts really helps me to forget a bit about the kms still ahead of me!

By the way, I always listen to the podcasts on a 1 1/2 playback speed. This means that they will play a bit faster and are more in flow with my run.

Other Genuine Friday topics we covered:

Raising a big family

Partnership after having children

Daily family life incl struggles with four children

And I also shared my top 5 Netflix series!

Photo: Photo by Malte Wingen on Unsplash