Tina Muir is a 2:36 marathoner and Great Britain runner who recently shocked the running world by taking a hiatus to focus on starting a family and overcoming amenorrhea. Tina created the Running for Real Community to foster a healthy mindset around running. This is a space where runners can explore, embrace, and get better from setbacks through inspiring podcasts, videos, and blog posts, and most importantly, sharing thoughts and experiences. Behind every personal best, there are plenty of personal not-so-bests, from beating ourselves up about just-missed PRs to the injury blues to embarrassing falls. Running can really hurt, but we don’t have to go through it alone.    Show notes Moving over to America at 18 in 2007 Meeting her husband in the States Running when she was younger Doing cross country at school and hiding in the toilets Making the school team and coming 4th in a competition  Deciding she wanted to win Joining a running club Being coached by Brad Plummer in the UK Deciding to leave her family and friends to go to America, but knowing it was the right thing to do How training in America is very different to training in the UK Loving the routine and living the running lifestyle  Running 7 days a week  quantity verses quality in running Training for different race distances from 800m to 10K on the track Learning how to run on tired training Loving the 5k race distance Being emotionally drained while running Where she gets her drive and determination from Wanting to wear the GB Vest How to qualify for the GB Team and the stress behind trying to qualify Achieving her lifetime goals of representing Great Britain  Running 2.36 mins  Running by feel and not looking at her watch  Trying to break the 2.40 barrier  Her favourite part of London Marathon - crossing Tower Bridge Time to Say Goodbye: When You Have Grown Apart From What You Love the Most Falling out of love with running Not having a period for 9 years Her identity and how it was/is tied into being a runner Talking to her husband about her decision and having to make her own decision  Speaking to doctors and experts about her period and not being able to get an answer  Book - No Period Now What Telling the world and being honest with the world Her plan for the future Freedom to decide what she wants to do and looking for joy Deciding to start a podcast and the reasons behind it - Live from April 14th The Running for Real Community It’s not about comparison - it’s about you! Being real about running!   Social Media Facebook Running for Real Twitter @tinamuir Instagram @tinamuir88 Blog TinaMuir.com   Book - No period - Now what    Feeling inspired week after week?  You can do 3 easy things to help me continue to grow the podcast! Subscribe to the podcast in iTunes, so you won’t miss a single episode If you’re loving the podcast, please leave a 5-star review on iTunes! I read every single comment! Share the podcast with your friends, especially if you think it could help them, and spread the #ToughGirlPodcast love.    Your support helps me continue to grow the podcast and do inspiring things in this space! Already done all 3? You’re a rockstar! Thank you! Want to do more? Please become a Patron and donate a small fixed amount every month to help fund the runnings costs.