Ep. 65 Amanda Eatwell: Going Ultra – Part 2

Rilke said “the purpose of life is to be defeated by greater and greater things.” This may sound a little, well, defeatist, but what he means is that in order to fulfil our potential, to see what we’re capable of, we need to face those challenges that seem insurmountable, and keep facing them until we overcome them. And then, with the grit that we have obtained from that challenge, we move on to the next, bigger challenge. And so on, and so on. This isn’t an easy philosophy to adopt, especially given the hardships of life, in this increasingly difficult and confusing world that we’ve created for ourselves. But how do we know who we really, or what we’re really capable of, unless we face life, face our challenges, and choose not to let them own us, but to keep pushing forward, to keep getting stronger and more determined, until we own them. Last week we spoke to professional ultra runner Kieran Alger, in the first of a two-part podcast about ultrarunning or, to be more specific, about how we can go ultra in our own lives. How we can go beyond the limitations of the normal, push through the improbable, and make the seemingly impossible, possible. And whether it’s running, whether it’s our careers, our relationships, our pastimes, or our long-held yearning for something more, there are lessons to be gained about what it takes, the grit required, and how if we dig deep enough, we are capable of achieving much more than we give ourselves credit for. Last week we talked to a professional, who runs ultra marathons for a living, and then writes about. Today we’re talking to someone who has just completed their first ultramarathon, to get a first timers perspective, that might be a bit more relatable to those of us who are closer to the sofa than the ultra. Amanda Eatwell is a photographer that I met when we were both member of the London Independent Photography community. In this podcast we talk about setting small goals on the road to bigger ones, and about how doing gritty things gives you the grit to face tough challenges in other parts of your life. You can find out more about Amanda and her photography at www.amandaeatwell.com.