Here's 5 Podcasts That I Enjoy
From mental health to psychology to science and true crime and running
I listen to a lot of podcasts.
I only started listening to them in the last year or so. Not sure why I didn’t before now. I’m late to the party (as usual with things for me!).
But now that I’ve started, I listen to them all the time.
I listen to them at work, at my desk job.
I listen to them when walking the dog (when I’m walking her by myself, not with my husband - that would just be rude!).
I listen to them walking to and from work.
I listen to them while running (I was going to say ‘on the run’ but that made me sound like I was on the lam after committing a crime!).
The only time I don’t listen to them is when I’m at home (unless I haven’t finished one and I might listen while I’m making dinner or something).
Anyway, I thought I’d recommend a few of the podcasts I listen to and really enjoy.
I mainly listen to running podcasts. I listen to a lot of running podcasts.
But I know not everyone is into running, so I thought I’d share some non-running podcasts (and okay, one of the running podcasts I do listen to but mainly a spin-off podcast they’ve just started that isn’t to do with running).
So here we go. Here’s 5 podcasts that I really enjoy so I thought I’d recommend them to you!
I am a meditation/mindfulness (and yoga) teacher. I started meditating back in 2016 as part of my Yoga Teacher Training, and when I downloaded the Calm app. I use the Calm app daily - to meditate (and also for their sleep stories and short movement videos).
During the start of the pandemic, I discovered Dan Harris and his 10% Happier meditation app (now just called Happier), when he did a Ten Percent Happier Live thing on Youtube during those first fraught and uncertain days and weeks right at the start of the pandemic. Dan is a modern day mindfulness guru (though I’m not sure he’d call himself a ‘guru’).
He’s also here on Substack at
.He cuts the BS out of mindfulness and makes it accessible to everyone - even if you’re not the type of person to ever meditate. Check out Dan’s 10% Happier podcast (and Substack).
A recent episode I listened to that I enjoyed was: Modern Life Numbs You. Here’s the Neuroscience of Waking Up (this will take you to Spotify).
This is a podcast I just recently discovered about a month or so ago. I don’t even know why or how I came across it. Probably through an ad on one of the other podcasts I listen to. I love science. I’m all about research backed stuff - even if it’s more ‘woo woo’ stuff, like meditation. I’m more likely to try it if there’s some scientific evidence that it works or that there are benefits. And Science Vs. looks at a variety of topics through a scientific lens (they mention the number of citations used in each episode!) - everything from microplastics, the pandemic, serial killers and so much more.
I really enjoyed their latest episode on menopause: Menopause: The Myths and the Madness, because I’m entering that time of my life at the moment (well, perimenopause).
This is for the true crime lovers out there. I have a background in Criminology and work in the field, and so I enjoy (well, maybe ‘enjoy’ isn’t the best word but…you know what I mean!) true crime stuff. When I was a kid I’d watch endless hours of Forensic Files.
This is a fairly new podcast, and it’s only up to episode 4 that’s out in the world for free (without a subscription), but it’s fascinating. It’s about a, well, hitman for hire list on the dark web, and the host (a journalist)’s mission to help the people on that list. This is a short-ish podcast at only 45 minutes, so good to listen on your lunch hour.
Okay here’s the running podcast on this list. I love, love, love this running podcast! Because the two women who host it (Holly and Esther) are hilarious and so relatable. And they usually chat for a large chunk of the podcast about non-running stuff. I actually wrote a whole article on Medium about it months ago.
They just started a new spinoff series Am I Nuts? which looks at the worries that the two hosts often talk about. They’re a couple of worry warts (just like me!). So they’ve started this 10 part spin off podcast. The episodes are short, at around half an hour each (so far). It’s only at 2 episodes so far. The first was on cancer, the second on aging.
Last but not least is Being Well, hosted by psychologist Dr. Rick Hanson and his son Forrest. Forrest is the main host of the podcast. I first learned about Dr Rick through his practice of Buddhism and seeing him on various online conferences on mindfulness/meditation, because he practices mindfulness and Buddhism, along with being a psychologist. So that’s how I came across their podcast Being Well.
It mostly deals with psychological and mental health topics like anxiety, depression, relationships, trauma, self care and of course mindfulness and meditation.
A great episode I listened to recently was: How To Live In an Anxious World: uncertainty, agency and resilience.
So that’s it for what I’m mostly listening to right now (along with bonus running podcast Choose Strong which is tied with The Women’s Running Podcast as my favourite running podcast - hosted by ultrarunner Sally McRae and her husband Eddie).
I’d love to know what podcasts you listen to and would recommend?
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Great tips!