Ailsa, 39, is an ultra endurance athlete who has a passion for long distances races and triathlons! Ailsa holds six course records and two overall wins at the ultra-running distance. In 2017 she won the 50K and 100 mile Canadian National Champion title. In 2018 she won Ironman Canada. As well as training for her races, Ailsa also balances a full time job in an oil field in Northern Alberta.    During this podcast Ailsa shares more about her passion for running, how she got into cycling and swimming, how she coaches and trains herself, as well as sharing more about mental resilience and how she has developed her mindset over the years.   Listen to Ailsa as she shares her story on the Tough Girl Podcast. New episodes every Tuesday and Thursday at 7am UK time - Make sure you hit that 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 Ailsa in her own words Spending her summers in Scotland Living in Canada Getting into running and cycling Training for her first marathon  Building up her swim fitness Finding a talent for endurance events Her love for running and keeping fit Being her own coach Working in the oil fields 10 days on - 10 days off The mental side of races Strategy for 100 miles races Hitting mental lows and going into a downward spiral Hitting a low point around the 80K mark Doing her first 100 mile race Using neurofeedback  to help with race preparation Dealing with solitude while running Thinking while running Tips to maintaining positivity while running Western States 100 miler and the mistakes she made Dealing with the pressure of performance Not wanting to let people down Learning from her mistakes Suffering Ironman Canada 2018 Being a competitive person Final words of advice.   Social Media   Instagram @ailsamacdonaldrunner