Today on the ZenRUN Podcast, I’m chatting with the wonderful Sally Pymer – runner, Ironman athlete, Comrades finisher, former fitness instructor, counsellor, speaker, farmer’s wife and strong believer in the power of a smile.
Sally grew up in regional Victoria in a family where learning, sport and community were all important.
As a young girl, she dreamed of playing AFL. Unfortunately, girls weren’t allowed to join the local team, and the football boots she desperately wanted for her ninth birthday didn’t arrive until her 40th.
Better late than never!
Running at school was a very different story.
Sally always tried hard, but struggled to keep up and was regularly placed in the slowest running heat. What nobody knew at the time was that Sally had chronic lung disease. It wasn’t discovered until she was 19, after a chest infection landed her in hospital.
Rather than allowing the diagnosis to stop her, Sally learned to focus on what her body could do.
She might not be the person you choose for a 100-metre sprint, but give her a long-distance event and she can keep going and going.
Sally’s running journey began when she entered a team triathlon through work. She was amazed that one of her teammates could run seven kilometres and decided she wanted to complete an entire triathlon herself.
She ran five kilometres once before her first event, finished third in her age group and immediately decided to do another one.
Naturally, things escalated.
After running around 15 kilometres, a friend suggested Sally should train for a marathon. Ten weeks later, she completed the 2001 Adelaide Marathon.
She went back the following year, took around 30 minutes off her time and eventually moved into Ironman events, ultramarathons and international races.
Sally has completed multiple Ironman events, competed at Half Ironman World Championships, run the Surf Coast Century and finished both the uphill and downhill versions of South Africa’s famous Comrades Marathon.
She also confirms that the downhill Comrades hurts more – especially when you discover you need to climb stairs to leave the stadium!
But Sally’s story isn’t simply about doing more and going further.
She speaks honestly about exercise addiction, burnout and the way running can sometimes shift from something healthy into a form of escape.
Through her work as an alcohol and other drug counsellor, Sally began noticing similarities between substance dependence and her own relationship with exercise.
Running released the feel-good chemicals, filled every spare moment and became part of her identity. Eventually, she found herself constantly training, eating, working or sleeping, with very little space left for anything else.
COVID forced Sally to slow down after several Ironman events were cancelled only weeks before race day. For the first time, she discovered what it felt like to sleep in occasionally and not be exhausted all the time.
Then, in January this year, a serious bike accident forced another major pause.
Sally hit a pothole, lost consciousness, broke both little fingers and fractured her back. She couldn’t run for three months and has also been navigating the lingering effects of concussion.
Her running currently looks very different.
She runs five to seven kilometres around once a week, walks regularly, strength trains and rides her mountain bike. Instead of fighting her body, she is learning to accept that this is a season of recovery.
We talk about running identity, injury, exercise withdrawal, comparison, smiling at strangers and why we are so much more than the things we do.
Sally also shares some beautiful reminders for runners:
- Focus on what your body can do, rather than what it can’t.
- Running doesn’t need to be fast to count.
- Stop comparing your pace or distance with other runners.
- Pay attention to whether running is supporting your life or helping you avoid it.
- When injury stops you running, find other enjoyable ways to move.
- Accept that your running will change through different seasons of life.
- Take in the sounds, smells and sights around you instead of always filling your ears.
- Smile while you run – it may lift your mood and brighten somebody else’s day too.
- Remember that you are much more than your job, sport or achievements.
Sally’s story is an honest reminder that success isn’t always about running further or faster.
Sometimes success is listening, slowing down and allowing running to become something that supports your life again.
And, of course, Sally answers Nancy Williams’ Pass the Baton question:
“What is the weirdest place that you’ve had to go to the toilet while you’re racing?”
Her answer involves 18,000 Comrades runners, an unofficial toilet and a car wash.
You’ll need to listen to hear exactly what happened!
Sally also leaves a lovely Pass the Baton question for my next guest – but you’ll need to listen to the episode to find out what she asks.
Sally links –
www.empoweredwithsally.com.au
https://www.linkedin.com/in/sally-pymer-6704ba68/
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61558022105068
https://www.instagram.com/empowered_with_sally/
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💛 Want to feel like a runner again?
If this conversation resonated, Feel Like a Runner Again is a simple, practical program designed to help you rediscover the joy of running. You’ll learn how to quiet the mental noise, let go of the pressure, and make running feel like your escape again, not another thing on your to-do list.
👉 https://www.zenrun.app/courses/feel-like-a-runner-again
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🙏 A couple of big favours
1️⃣ If you enjoyed this episode, please follow, rate, and review the podcast – it helps more runners discover these conversations.
2️⃣ I’m always looking for runners to interview. If you (or someone you know) has a running story to share, I’d love to hear from you.
Find me on Facebook or Instagram @ZenRUN.club
or email hello@zenrun.club
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