Rebecca Dent is a high-performance dietitian specialising in ultra runners and mountain sport athletes — from passionate recreational runners to world-class professionals. Based in the Chamonix Valley for the past 10 years, she combines her expertise in performance nutrition with a life immersed in ski touring, trail running, mountaineering, and the mountains she loves.
In this episode of the Tough Girl Podcast, Rebecca shares her journey from the Forest of Dean to the French Alps, balancing elite-level training with everyday life, and the nutrition strategies that help athletes optimise performance, recovery, and health — particularly for women navigating hormonal changes and perimenopause.
We talk race day fuel, strength training, managing limiting beliefs, and why it's never too late to start a new adventure.
Whether you're chasing your first trail race or aiming to summit Mont Blanc, Rebecca's insights will inspire you to push your limits while taking care of your body.
New episodes of the Tough Girl Podcast drop every Tuesday at 7 AM (UK time).
Support the Tough Girl mission via Patreon: www.patreon.com/toughgirlpodcast
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Show notes
- Who is Rebecca
- Working as a high performance dietician for 25 years
- Starting out in the NHS, before moving into elite sport
- Focusing on climber and ultra runners
- Moving to the Chamonix Valley in the French Alps, 10 years ago
- Training for an ultra race in Snowdon
- Being passionate about ski touring, trail running, hiking, climbing and spending time in the mountains
- Growing up in the Forest of Dean in a little village
- Spending a lot of time outdoors
- Starting trail running in her teenage years
- Always enjoying athletics and being inspired by the women on TV
- Doing GCSE PE and A'Level PE
- Having fun doing sports in a team environment
- Deciding what to study at university
- Niching down in her career
- Being exposed in the NHS to different areas of health care
- Starting to enter trail races and pushing herself physically
- Her running journey and progression in the sport
- Entering into races for fun
- Following a training plan for a 50k trail race in Snowdon
- Using Training Peaks and working with a coach
- Doing approx 7hr of training per week
- Using sports drinks, gels, kindle mint cake, chews and jelly sweets
- Needing to get good at running up hill
- Doing 2, 1hr gym sessions per week
- 46 years old and why it's so important to strength train
- Perimenopause and changes in hormones
- Changes in body composition and carrying extra body fat
- Starting to work with a personal trainer once a week
- How a change in hormones can affect your confidence and mood
- Feeling stronger and lifting heavier
- How the extra's were creeping in
- Eating well and focusing on things that were easy to change
- Focusing on the protein
- What a typical breakfast, lunch, and dinner looks like
- Keep things simple and nutritious
- Doing a recovery shake after the gym
- Race day nutrition - before, during and after
- Being guided (by her husband) up Mont Blanc - up and down in 1 day
- Struggling with acclimatisation
- The mental side of running and climbing
- Reflecting and working on her limiting beliefs
- Being able to regulate thoughts that are't helpful
- Reframing thoughts
- Dealing with disappointment
- Being good at feeling your feelings
- Planning, logistics, and being organised
- Deciding to pull back and focus on resting and recouping
- Doing an ultra every 2 to 5 years
- Being a procrastinator
- Having to make training a priority
- Why it is hard sometimes
- Needing to have a balance with life
- Why some things do need to be delayed
- How to connect with Rebecca on social media
- Final words of wisdom and advice
- It's not too late!!!!
- Find what it is you're interested in
Social Media
Website: highperformancedietitian.com
Instagram: @high_performance_dietitian
Facebook: @HighPerformanceDietitian
