We spoke with Dr Rachel Ann Cullen about her latest book Running For Our Lives which looks at running and its positive effect on mental health. Rachel’s first book, Running for My Life, described her own marathon journey through depression, and her discovery that running could transform her physical and mental wellbeing. Now she wants to tell the stories of other runners from around the world – ordinary people going through difficult times who have relied on running to get them through their worst days and find hope.
In your book, Running for My Life, you talk about the many ways in which running has helped you. Can you tell us a little about that?
Running initially helped me to build some self-esteem and confidence in my physical and mental strength (I was overweight and unfit in my younger years) and from there, it helped me to make some big decisions about the direction of my life that otherwise I might not have done. Running has enabled me to manage my own mental health and it has given me the ability to see myself in a different light – to appreciate what my body can do and to value how that impacts positively on my mental wellbeing. Running gives me freedom. When I am out running on the trails in a beautiful place, it reminds me how lucky I am to be alive.
Can you pinpoint the moment for you when running went from being a chore to a pleasure?
Running felt like a chore for a long time! But during the training for my first ever marathon just after my daughter was born, it began to dawn on me that running was something I needed in my life. Running was a thing I looked forward to every day; it became a release from the pressures and worries of newfound motherhood and a place I could go to stop my mind from whirring with endless questions. I began to associate running with being in a better place mentally, and from there, my real love of running began.
How was running the London Marathon?!
I’m very lucky – I’ve run the London Marathon six times now, and every single year has been unique and special in its own way. My first ever London Marathon was a glimpse into the amazing experience of running London, with the hordes of people and bright colours everywhere. It felt like all my senses came alive on that day! And a few years later, I was a more confident runner and so I was able to use my experience and knowledge of the course to improve on my times and to challenge myself to see what my body could do!
What made you decide to write Running for My Life?
I was sitting in the bath in a hotel the day before the London Marathon 2015 and my head was spinning with the running journey I’d been on over the years – most of which nobody knew about. At the time some people also began to make presumptions about me – for example, that running marathons was somehow ‘easy’ for me, or that I ‘looked like a runner’ and other things which made no sense to me because I’d come from such a different place to the one they imagined. I knew that I couldn’t be the only person who had been through that kind of transformation and writing the book was a way for me to tell the real story behind my running journey, and to connect with others who had perhaps shared similar experiences to me.
Your new book, Running for our Lives, has just been published. In it you talk to other people who’ve been helped by running. How did the concept of this book come about?
Following the publication of my first book, people began to contact me and share their own stories about how running had helped them in all kinds of different ways. I heard from people whose experiences had been similar to my own, and to those who felt like parts of their story resonated with mine. Over time, I began to realise how impactful these stories were and I knew that I wanted to share them in a book. I became interested in finding out how and why running brings us together and how it helps us to heal in so many ways. That was how the new book started – from hearing the incredible stories of people who have also been saved by running.
How did you find the experience of interviewing runners for the book?
It was a complete joy! Meeting the people whose stories I have told in the book was honestly one of the best parts of this journey. I have met some incredible people and I discovered that even though our life experiences may be different, we have many things in common. I’m not quite sure how the stars aligned to make the people in the book happen across my path, but there is such a huge variety of life experience and so many ways in which running has played a major part in overcoming adversity. I have bonded with each of them in unfathomable ways, and I have taken inspiration from them all. Meeting the people in this book has definitely changed me and my relationship with running.
What would you like readers to take away from your books?
Whatever they need to take from them! I’m not here to give any answers to life’s problems, only to share my experience – and that of others – and to show how we have been healed in some way by running. I think people take what they need from sharing stories. Some aspects of their lives will resonate with the stories in the book – or my own – and in that way, we can all take comfort in knowing that we’re never alone with our struggles, however they might manifest. That is a big part of sharing stories. To realise that you’re never on your own.
To touch briefly on sustainability, have you made any climate-friendly changes to your own running habits?
Since the Covid lockdown I have been far more conscious about where I run, how and why. I don’t know if it’s directly linked to sustainability, but by choosing to run on the trails rather than just on the roads, I feel more connected to nature. I notice the environment around me now rather than seeing running as a ‘training session’ or a means to an end. I am far more conscious of protecting the environment which is giving me so much back – including the trees in the woodlands and the forest. I guess running with greater awareness and care for the environment is a first step towards making those changes which we all need to contribute towards in whatever ways we can.
What do you think about what we’re doing here at Trees not Tees?
I think it’s a brilliant idea to encourage runners to think about the environment they run in rather than simply take it for granted, and I think it’s important to encourage runners to be a part of that movement rather than simply assume that other people will sort out the mess we’re making and that nature will always recover.
Planting trees instead of taking home a race T-shirt or a medal is a fantastic way of encouraging runners to be proactive in protecting the environment rather than simply having a ‘take home’ model for races and events.
Dr Rachel Ann Cullen
Is there anything you would like to see happening in the running events industry, as it moves towards a more sustainable future?
I’d perhaps like to see race organisers commit to some kind of environmental contribution as part of the overall event package. So, for the major races at least I would like to see a commitment to promoting the environmental / climate-friendly message and to offset the impact of the marathon or race event as a minimum. This could happen in many different ways, but offering to plant trees instead of race tees is certainly one way to go about making a change!
Thank you to Dr Rachel Ann Cullen for taking the time to share her latest book and wisdom with us.
