Dr Irene Molina-Gonzalez - Running Beyond Burnout and Finding a New Purpose
- 11 minutes ago
- 4 min read
Irene is a sports scientist, endurance coach, and ultra-runner originally from Spain, now based in the UK. She moved to the UK in 2013 to pursue a Master’s degree, intending to stay only briefly, but quickly fell in love with the country and never left.
Her journey into ultra-running was entirely unplanned. She only started running consistently in 2017 during her PhD in Neuroscience, initially as a way to cope with academic stress. Distances gradually increased, and without even realising ultramarathons existed, she found herself constantly curious about how far she could go. Once she ran beyond 21 km, something clicked—and she never looked back.
Running became both a coping mechanism and, at times, a source of imbalance. A combination of PhD stress, under-fuelling, disordered eating, and overtraining led to injury after her first ultramarathon in 2021. While challenging, that injury marked a turning point. Although her academic career appeared highly successful from the outside, Irene was experiencing severe burnout and quietly drifting away from neuroscience.
In January 2023, she left academia altogether after a period of profound burnout. Ultra-running remained a constant during this time and ultimately helped her rebuild. By then, she had already completed coaching and sports rehabilitation qualifications, and the transition into applied sport felt natural. She founded Train4BodyMind, combining science, performance, and a more holistic approach to endurance sport.
Later that year, Irene began a second MSc in Sport and Exercise Science and Medicine, while simultaneously building her coaching business and working in a physiotherapy clinic. Throughout this journey, she became increasingly aware of a major gap in sports science: the lack of research and evidence-based guidance for women.
While searching for answers about her own body, she realised how little research existed on female endurance athletes—particularly in ultra-running.
This led her to investigate how the menstrual cycle affects performance in female ultrarunners, an area that had been largely overlooked despite the extreme demands of the sport.
Today, Irene is passionate about supporting women in endurance sports through evidence-based coaching and education. She is particularly focused on countering the widespread misinformation surrounding women’s physiology and rigid cycle-based rules, which often create fear rather than empowerment. Her work aims to help women understand their bodies better, train with confidence, and use their physiology as a strength rather than a limitation.
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Show notes
Originally from Spain, now living in Edinburgh, Scotland in the UK
Working as a running coach for women, specialising in ultra marathons
Being a sports scientistic and science nerd
Her early years growing up in Spain
Developing an eating disorder and spending time in hospital
Not being able to get involved in sports
Getting into running when she moved to the UK
Starting her Neuroscience PhD in 2017
Wanting to do an ultra marathon
Becoming addicted to the ultra distances
Experiencing burnout
Deciding to do a shift in her career and move into coaching
Getting into running to be able to disconnect
Being an ultra runner before she knew about ultra marathons
Using running to help manage stress
Not fuelling enough during running and dealing with niggles and injuries
Being very alone and not having support around her
Getting injured and having to stop running
The turning point in her life
Working with a physiotherapist
Starting to study coaching ultra marathons
Losing the attachment with her career and starting a different path
Leaving academia, her job and becoming unemployed at 33 years old
Learning how to coach herself
Going deep into the science of ultra running
Studying for her masters in Sports Science
Researching into the menstrual cycle and ultra runners
Why the menstrual cycle is a health marker
Dr Stacy Simms - Tough Girl Podcast episode
Coaching women on an individual basis
The importance of educating women about periods and menstruation
Racing in Snowdonia
Getting the balance right with training and work
Being organised and the importance of knowing what you are doing
Doing strength training and why it’s non negotiable for a runner
Breaking down the training into different phases and periods
The final phase and tapering
Making training work for her
Visualising what can go wrong and right during the race
Helping to prepare your mind
Magical moments from UTS after DNF’ing the race previously
Why it was one of the best races of her life
Training your body and your mind
The mental preparation- advice and tips for other runners to train their brain for success
Her coaching philosophy
Focusing on longevity
How to connect with Irene
Being most active on Instagram and Strava
Social Media
Website: www.train4bodymind.com
Instagram: @train4bodymind
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