#205 Ryan McLeod: UK Half Marathon Champion, heart surgery, Mo Farah and the marathon comeback

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Kristian sits down with Ryan McLeod, a Puma Project 3 athlete with one of the most remarkable comeback stories the podcast has featured: a former sub elite British runner who trained alongside Mo Farah, quit running for nearly a decade after a serious heart condition, and came back to run a 2:19 marathon comeback race at London this year.

Ryan walks through his early running career, cut short by a heart condition that caused his heart rate to swing wildly out of rhythm, and the scary night before scheduled surgery when his insurer refused to pay, forcing a seven month wait through the NHS. He shares how running was quietly taken away from him for years, and how pushing a friend in his wheelchair at the Great North Run for charity was what pulled him back into training, eventually leading his team, Run With Drew, to a Guinness World Record for the fastest half marathon pushing a wheelchair. The conversation covers reconnecting with his old coach after a decade of silence, sneaking into a competitive London Marathon entry, joining Puma Project 3, and the recovery focused philosophy behind his rapid return to elite level running. He also shares Race Calendar, the website he built to help UK runners find their next race.

Content note: this episode includes a detailed discussion of a serious heart condition, surgery, and a difficult experience with health insurance. Please take care while listening.

In this episode:

- Training alongside Mo Farah and early half marathon titles

- Developing a serious heart condition mid-run

- A heart surgery cancelled the night before by his insurer

- A seven month wait through the NHS with a dangerous heart condition

- Quitting running for nearly ten years

- Pushing a friend in his wheelchair at the Great North Run for charity

- Chasing and breaking a Guinness World Record with Run With Drew

- Reconnecting with his old coach after a decade

- Sneaking into a competitive London Marathon entry

- Joining Puma Project 3 and running a 2:19 marathon comeback

- His recovery focused training philosophy

- Building Race Calendar, a website to help UK runners find races

Timestamps

00:00 Welcome and introducing Ryan McLeod

02:39 Kristian's Ironman and Valencia training update

16:57 Introducing Ryan and his early running career

17:26 Training alongside Mo Farah

23:32 Racing against Galen Rupp and Mo Farah indoors

53:28 The scary run that led to his heart diagnosis

54:35 Developing atrial fibrillation as a young, fit athlete

56:04 Being told he needs surgery to fix it

58:24 Weighing his health against his running career

58:53 A heart surgery cancelled the night before by his insurer

59:41 A seven month wait through the NHS

1:00:59 Getting the surgery done and the road to recovery

1:07:48 Pushing a friend in his wheelchair at the Great North Run

1:09:01 An unexpectedly fast time that changed everything

1:09:25 The idea to chase a Guinness World Record

1:10:37 Setting a training plan and a new goal

1:25:57 Reconnecting with his old coach after ten years

1:26:37 Sneaking into a competitive London Marathon entry

1:27:03 Discovering and applying for Puma Project 3

1:28:02 Running a 2:19 marathon comeback at London

1:28:40 His recovery focused training philosophy

1:41:57 What his coaching relationship looks like now

1:43:38 Introducing Race Calendar, his website for UK runners

1:44:56 Closing thoughts and where to follow Ryan

Ryan on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fastforties/

Race Calendar: https://racecalendar.co.uk

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Full episodes + the Boston 2025 documentary: https://www.youtube.com/@Warwickruns

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