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alex@alexstaniforth.com

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Alex Staniforth

Alex Staniforth

Adversity Adventurer, Inspirational Resilience Speaker, Author of Icefall and Mental Health Activist

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Mental Health

February 15, 2021

This Too Shall Pass – How to keep going when you can’t see the top

It feels like lockdown has gone on forever. One false summit another. Are we there yet? Even with the vaccine rapidly underway, there’s only so many

Category icon3 Peaks Run,  Inspiration,  Mental Health Tag iconanxiety,  injured runner,  injury,  lockdown,  mental health,  mental resilience,  motivation,  overcoming challenges,  permanence,  recovery,  this too shall pass,  uncertainty

November 1, 2020

Peaks and Troughs: dealing with the post-challenge blues

‘Flattening the curve’ has been of national interest this year. Peaks and troughs is one way to describe the emotional rollercoaster that we never

Category icon3 Peaks Run,  Marathons,  Mental Health Tag icon3 peaks run,  emotional rollercoaster,  endurance training,  mental health,  mindset,  peaks and troughs,  post marathon blues

October 9, 2020

The Power of Human Connection

World Mental Health Day seemed the perfect opportunity to talk about isolation. The outdoors can be a lonely place. Maybe that’s part of the magic.

Category icon3 Peaks Run,  Mental Health Tag icon3 peaks run,  alex staniforth,  getoutside,  mental health,  mental health day,  mind over mountains,  world mental health day

December 28, 2019

Finding Your Reason to Change in 2020

Most of us are trying to change something. Get better at that. Move there. Earn more. Drive less. Give up that habit (…again). And so on. Then, at

Category iconInspiration,  Mental Health,  Running Tag icon2020,  athlete eating disorders,  dream big,  eating disorder,  eating disorder recovery,  goal setting,  marathons,  mental health,  new year resolutions,  new years resolutions,  running

August 19, 2019

The endless pursuit of more – why are millennials burning out?

Being busy seems to be a badge of honour nowadays. It’s the automatic excuse for our daily routine of spinning so many plates, rushing around and

Category iconInspiration,  Inspiring,  Mental Health Tag iconachieving goals,  alex staniforth,  burnout,  everest,  goal setting,  mental health,  mental health speaker,  mental wellbeing,  millennial burnout,  millennials,  mind over mountains,  stress,  workplace

April 21, 2019

Re-homed, Relapsed, and Running in the Right Direction

In seven days 40,000 people will hit the streets for London Marathon 2019; from the elites and record-breakers, to novices, first-timers and the

Category iconMarathons,  Mental Health,  Running Tag iconanorexia,  BEAT,  bulimia nervosa,  eating disorder,  guinness world records,  lake district,  logo costume,  london marathon,  marathon training,  marathons,  mental health,  mental wellbeing,  motivation,  trainbrave,  training,  yha

January 20, 2019

Why hitting the wall might be a wake-up call

Firstly, a happy new year to my followers, old and new. I hope 2019 is as good as you choose it to be. Whether you’ve ran a marathon or not, you’ve

Category iconMental Health,  Running Tag iconbulimia nervosa,  chester marathon,  eating disorder,  hitting the wall,  injuries,  london marathon,  male mental health,  marathon setbacks,  marathon training,  mental health,  mental health in men,  running injuries,  running inspiration,  sub 3 marathon

April 18, 2018

How I Took on Mental Illness in a Marathon – and Won

Whether it's London, Boston, Manchester or another, they say you can’t run a marathon without telling everyone. Each April brings a sudden spike in

Category iconAdventure,  Marathons,  Mental Health,  Running Tag iconboston marathon,  bulimia,  depression,  eating disorders,  fitness,  goals,  Health,  london marathon,  manchester marathon,  mental health,  running,  sub 3,  sub three marathon,  training,  training for a sub 3 marathon

March 18, 2018

5 Tips to Overcome Setbacks

Besides the usual bank statements and junk mail, don’t you just love getting something in the post? This week my race number for Manchester

Category iconAdventure,  Challenges,  Mental Health Tag iconachilles tendonitis,  athlete,  how to overcome setbacks,  injuries,  IT band syndrome,  manchester marathon,  marathon,  marathon setbacks,  marathon training,  mental health,  overcoming injuries,  overcoming setbacks,  runner,  running injuries,  setbacks,  wilmslow half marathon

January 4, 2018

Why Your New Year Resolutions Should Scare You

It's that time of year when Facebook is plastered with New Year resolutions, motivational quotes and renewed promises of change ahead. The gym will

Category iconAdventure,  Inspiration,  Mental Health Tag icon2017,  2018,  achieving goals,  alex staniforth,  ambitions,  climb the uk,  fitness,  goal setting,  goals,  gym,  mental health,  new year,  new years resolutions,  resolutions,  tips

November 2, 2017

Pride of Britain Awards 2017 – Flying the Flag for Mental Health

There’s some moments in life you can never really plan for. The Pride of Britain Awards was one of those! I was honoured to win the ‘Regional

Category iconMental Health Tag iconAwards,  inspiration,  london,  mental health,  pride of britain,  wellbeing,  young minds

October 10, 2017

Eating Disorders: A Recipe that Needs to be Heard

World Mental Health Day. We seem to have a day for everything – Star Wars Day, National Doughnut Day, or even International Sheep Day.  But this is

Category iconInspiring,  Mental Health Tag iconadversity,  awareness,  challenges,  charity,  eating disorders,  Health,  mental health,  wellbeing,  wmhday17,  world mental health day,  young minds,  young people

New Book – Another Peak

Published in July 2019, ‘Another Peak’ explores mental health challenges through outdoor adventure. It shares an insight into depression and eating disorders whilst rediscovering purpose following two Everest attempts and an expedition to climb Cho Oyu, before embarking on Climb The UK in 2017. Another Peak goes deeper into the peaks and troughs of mental health than ever before, giving hope and inspiration to help others find their own Everest.

       
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Alex’s Charity

Mind Over Mountains is a charity delivering life-changing outdoor experiences to restore mental health and generate the resilience to stay mentally well.

Read more and join us at:

www.mindovermountains.org.uk

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alexstaniforth_

25. Ultra Runner, Adventurer, Motivational Speaker, Author & co-founder @mind_o_mountains mental health charity. Lake District, UK

Alex Staniforth
The simple freedoms. A week before lockdown #1 and The simple freedoms. A week before lockdown #1 and life as we knew it changed forever, all the bad news and anxiety started to get totally overwhelming. I dropped a message to my mate @cal_james95 who luckily had the same idea.
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With a decent forecast we grabbed the tent, headed up Holme Fell with no WiFi connection, and had an awesome sunrise across Coniston Water with our morning coffee and biscuits (Fox’s too - top shout). For a short while in nature the world seemed OK again and it was hard to believe so much was going wrong. Almost wish I’d stayed up there to wait for this whole thing to blow over, though I'd have probably ran out of biscuits by now...
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Those simple freedoms will be better than ever. Whatever happens on the news tonight, keep looking forward. What are you most looking forward to?
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#lockdown #wildcamping #coniston #holmefell #sunrise #lakedistrict #lakes #wildcamp #simplethings #exploremore #getoutside #ukadventure #throwback #freedom #sunrisepics
Self-care Sunday. First trail marathon of 2021 was Self-care Sunday. First trail marathon of 2021 was just what I needed.
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This month our friend @fredwnewton set the epic challenge to run 28 marathons in 28 days to raise money for our mental health charity, @mind_o_mountains. Sadly after 9 marathons (235 miles!) he had to make the tough, but right, call to stop having picked up an injury. Many people would have left it there and felt sorry for themselves. But Fred called out for other people to step in and complete the challenge for him.
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At least 60 people pledged to run half and full marathons, and to date he's raised over £4,800! As the charity founder it seemed only fair for me to join in too. Encouraging people to ask for help when they’re struggling and get outdoors is exactly why our charity exists. Taking people on the journey with you is an even bigger achievement. So, thank you Fred and the team for flying the flag. It was beautifully still around Grizedale Forest today (almost sweaty) and exactly what I needed. As was the @fellsidecoffee Cinnamon Roll afterwards.
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#BeMoreFred #TeamFred #marathons #sundaylongrun #mindovermountains #mountains #lakedistrict #coniston #lakedistrictuk #longrun #marathonrunning #conistonwater #grizedaleforest #grizedale #sunday
Virtual lap around the UK = ☑️ Lap around the Virtual lap around the UK = ☑️
Lap around the world = ☑️
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We did it! 248 of you walked/ran/cycled an incredible 35,973 miles in just 43 days! But… the original challenge was planned to finish March 1st. What’s another week? We’re pretty used to things dragging on nowadays. Things are going to feel brighter once we hit March, Spring will be nearer and the nights will be a tad longer.
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And there’s a few prizes up for grabs, with two vouchers and a @rab.equipment Kinetic Plus Jacket (worth £179.99) kindly donated by @ellisbrigham.

To shake things up a bit - these prizes will be given for:
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1) The most distance travelled during the challenge
2) The best photo of your favourite local routes and ‘why’ – it can be one you’ve already posted, just make sure it has #lockdownlap tagged!
3) The longest consecutive streak of activities, regardless of how far/long (picked at random)
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Come on team, final push! I promise…
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#lockdownlap #arewethereyet #IsItMarchYet #walk #cycle #virtual #virtualchallenge #lockdown #lockdownchallenges #ukcoastline #fitnessmotivation #ellisbrigham #ukadventures #community #getoutside #wintermotivation #fitness #health #mentalhealth
Almost 1 in 10 people started running to look afte Almost 1 in 10 people started running to look after their mental health in the pandemic, according to a Guardian article. 7 million people. How awesome is that?!
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Don't know where I'd be without running these last 9 years. The best anti-depressant I've tried. The simplicity of putting one foot in front of the other gives that small thread of control when everything else seems to be going wrong. Sometimes it might be the only thing you achieve all day, but something to take full credit for. No matter how bad I'm feeling, the endorphins always lift me up enough to feel some hope when everything feels flat. If only by noticing the simple things like the sunrise, the trees or nature around us. It's harder to drown in negative thoughts when you're focused on the ground or tree roots (something I clearly need to work on!) and other times it's about kicking the stress away instead. It doesn't matter if you're a runner, jogger or plodder - running sub-3 marathons or your first Parkrun - the important thing is to get moving. Hopefully they keep running for a lifetime.
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Have you started running during lockdown? How has it helped you?
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📸 @danieljtoal
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#running #jogging #lockdown #mentalhealth #mentalwellbeing #runners #mentalhealthawarwness #exercise #getoutside #trailrunning #lakedistrict #lakes #mentalhealthmatters #mindovermountains #runningmotivation #athlete
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