69. Is Social Media Bad For Our Wellbeing?

77. It's Never Too Late to Change Your Life w/ Steve Day

The Home of Wellbeing and Joy Welcome back to The Mood Booster Podcast. This week, Charlie and Dr Marcus are joined by Steve Day, founder of Imagination Running, community runner, psychology student, and one of the most honest guests we have ever had on the pod. Before we get into Steve's story, we open with a letter from a member of our community: a 42-year-old who has worked in retail since the age of 15, who desperately wants to change direction but is asking themselves whether it is too late. Steve's answer, in every sense, is his life. Please note that this episode contains open discussion of mental health crisis, alcohol abuse, drug use, and time spent in residential rehabilitation. We have included some links and resources below for anyone who needs them. As always, we are grateful you are here. https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/mental-health-services/ https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/ https://www.samaritans.org/how-we-can-help/contact-samaritan/ 🎧 𝐈𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐞𝐩𝐢𝐬𝐨𝐝𝐞: Steve had it all on paper. Corporate career, house, car, family. But behind it he was exhausted, unfulfilled, and heading toward a mental health crisis he did not see coming. In this episode, he takes us through the heart scare at 30 that first got him moving, the panic and anxiety that built quietly through his corporate years, how the pandemic became an unexpected catalyst for change, and what it actually took to walk away from everything and start again at 40. He now runs Imagination Running, is studying for an undergraduate degree in psychology, and got a first in his most recent module. This is one of the most open, warm, and quietly courageous conversations we have had. 🛠 𝐏𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐀𝐝𝐯𝐢𝐜𝐞: From understanding your why before you make a leap, to using movement as a genuine mental health tool, to knowing the difference between being comfortable and being stuck, this episode is packed with lived, honest insight on what it takes to start over. Whether you are 25 or 52, if you have ever felt like the life you are living does not quite fit, this one is for you. 📍 𝐏𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐝: Community and Connection, Introspection and Inspiration, Wellbeing and Joy 🔔 Don’t forget to follow and review, it really helps us grow  📲 Follow us for more: 👉 Instagram: @themoodboosterofficial  [https://www.instagram.com/themoodboosterofficial/] 👉 TikTok: @themoodboosterofficial  [https://www.tiktok.com/@themoodboosterofficial] 🌍 Website: www.themoodbooster.co.uk [http://www.themoodbooster.co.uk/]  🎥 Prefer video? Watch this episode on YouTube @TheMoodBoosterOfficial  [https://www.youtube.com/@TheMoodBoosterOfficial]

76. We Ran 123km in Under 24 Hours. Our Ultramarathon debrief

We Ran 123km in Under 24 Hours. Here's What Actually Happened | EP - 76 | The Mood Booster Welcome back to The Mood Booster Podcast. This week, Charlie and Dr Marcus are sitting down with their hard earned medals and doing something they have been saving for the pod: a proper, honest debrief of the most physically demanding thing either of them has ever done. Six months ago, they said yes to running the National Forest Way Ultra 75 by Beacon Hill Events. 123 kilometres. 22 hours and 47 minutes. Vomit, blood, blisters, rain, and a fence they had to scale in the dark at 1am. This is all of it. 🎧 𝐈𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐞𝐩𝐢𝐬𝐨𝐝𝐞: Charlie and Dr Marcus take you through every stage of their inaugural ultramarathon, from the 5am start line and imposter syndrome in the dark, to poppy fields at 60K, a full panic attack at 80K, blisters that required medics at the 70K aid station, and a final 10K that was almost entirely uphill through brambles and tree roots at midnight. They also explore what the experience revealed about pain, partnership, the mental game of endurance, and two very different ways of coping when your body wants to stop but your mind refuses to let it.  🛠 𝐏𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐀𝐝𝐯𝐢𝐜𝐞: From breaking a race down into manageable blocks, to the psychology of not giving pain the air time it needs to take hold, to the role that partnership plays when solo willpower runs out, this episode is full of honest, lived insight on what it actually takes to do something that feels impossible. Whether you are a runner or not, this one is for anyone who has ever had to find something extra when they had nothing left.  📍 𝐏𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐝: Community and Connection, Introspection and Inspiration, Wellbeing and Joy 🔔 Don’t forget to follow and review, it really helps us grow  📲 Follow us for more: 👉 Instagram: @themoodboosterofficial  [https://www.instagram.com/themoodboosterofficial/] 👉 TikTok: @themoodboosterofficial  [https://www.tiktok.com/@themoodboosterofficial] 🌍 Website: www.themoodbooster.co.uk [http://www.themoodbooster.co.uk/]  🎥 Prefer video? Watch this episode on YouTube @TheMoodBoosterOfficial  [https://www.youtube.com/@TheMoodBoosterOfficial]

75. What It takes to Build a Community w/ Jonty Brown

The Mood Booster Podcast | Episode 75 - The Home of Wellbeing and Joy What does it take to build a community from nothing? In this episode, Charlie and Dr Marcus sit down with Jonty Brown, co-founder of Run Limited, the world's most collaborative running brand, to explore community, leadership, and what it means to live many different lives in pursuit of the one thing that matters most. Jonty has been a barista, a barber, a motorcycle builder, a surf instructor, and now a running store founder and ultramarathon runner who ran nearly 500km across America as part of the Speed Project. His story is one of curiosity, courage, and relentless consistency. 🎧 In this episode: We cover Jonty's journey through many different careers and how those experiences shaped who he is today. We explore the founding of Run Limited, what "most collaborative running brand in the world" really means, and how Jonty and co-founder Molly created a space for the entire running community, not just their own. Jonty opens up about being diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at 11 years old and how he manages that through extreme endurance events. We dive into what it takes to be a good community leader: presence, consistency, getting in the room, and genuinely caring about the people around you. We also talk about the Speed Project, fuelling for ultras (including newborn potatoes), imposter syndrome, and finding joy in the worst moments of a race. 🛠 Practical Advice: How to build a community around a passion, even from zero. What to do in the first two years of any new venture. Why showing up consistently matters more than almost anything else. How to lead well by focusing on others rather than yourself. 📍 𝐏𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐝: Community and Connection, Introspection and Inspiration, Wellbeing and Joy 🔔 Don’t forget to follow and review, it really helps us grow  📲 Follow us for more: 👉 Instagram: @themoodboosterofficial  [https://www.instagram.com/themoodboosterofficial/] 👉 TikTok: @themoodboosterofficial  [https://www.tiktok.com/@themoodboosterofficial] 🌍 Website: www.themoodbooster.co.uk [http://www.themoodbooster.co.uk/]  🎥 Prefer video? Watch this episode on YouTube @TheMoodBoosterOfficial  [https://www.youtube.com/@TheMoodBoosterOfficial]

74. Addressing The Hate Comments

How to Deal With Hate Comments (When You're Just Trying to Help) | The Mood Booster Podcast Ep. 74 The Home of Wellbeing and Joy Welcome back to The Mood Booster Podcast. This week, Charlie and Dr. Marcus are recording live from the New Forest, fire pit roaring, stars overhead, and they are fired up for a reason. After a wave of hateful comments flooded in following last week's episode with Gaz Oakley, the guys decided to do what they always do: lean into the experience, unpack it honestly, and find something useful in it. This is not a "woe is me" episode. It is an honest, grounded conversation about what it actually feels like to put something meaningful into the world and be met with cruelty, and more importantly, what you can do about it. 🎧 In this episode: Dr. Marcus and Charlie open up about the specific hate comments they received following the Gaz Oakley episode. They explore why anonymous online environments lower the threshold for cruelty, what psychology tells us about why we hyper-focus on negative feedback over positive, and how negativity bias is a wired survival mechanism that we can consciously override. The conversation also covers how hate comments are always a reflection of the sender, not the recipient, and why no genuinely happy, fulfilled person directs that kind of energy at others. 🛠 Practical Advice: The guys share grounded, honest tools for processing online hate, appraisals at work, and everyday rudeness alike. From anchoring yourself in the objective evidence around you, to the simple but powerful act of leaving a kind comment or saying good morning to a stranger, this episode is a reminder that what you put out shapes both your world and the world around you. 📍 𝐏𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐝: Community and Connection, Introspection and Inspiration, Wellbeing and Joy 🔔 Don’t forget to follow and review, it really helps us grow  📲 Follow us for more: 👉 Instagram: @themoodboosterofficial  [https://www.instagram.com/themoodboosterofficial/] 👉 TikTok: @themoodboosterofficial  [https://www.tiktok.com/@themoodboosterofficial] 🌍 Website: www.themoodbooster.co.uk [http://www.themoodbooster.co.uk/]  🎥 Prefer video? Watch this episode on YouTube @TheMoodBoosterOfficial  [https://www.youtube.com/@TheMoodBoosterOfficial]

73. Leaving The City and Living Off The Land w/ Gaz Oakley

Reflecting on: Slow Living, Nature and Self Sufficiency with Gaz Oakley | The Mood Booster Podcast Ep. 73 The Home of Wellbeing and Joy 🌱 Welcome back to The Mood Booster Podcast. This week Charlie and Dr Marcus are joined by for one of our most reflective and grounding conversations yet. From leaving London behind and reconnecting with nature, to growing food, rejecting labels, building community, fatherhood, sustainability, anxiety, and the pursuit of a slower life, this episode explores what it really means to live intentionally in a world that constantly pushes us towards speed, convenience, and consumption. Gaz shares how reconnecting with the land completely changed his relationship with food, wellbeing, stress, identity, and purpose, and why modern life can leave so many of us feeling disconnected from what truly matters. This is an honest, thoughtful, and wide ranging conversation about nature, self sufficiency, mental health, compassion, and finding joy in simpler ways of living. 🎧 In This Episode Charlie, Dr Marcus and Gaz explore slow living as both a philosophy and a practical way of life. The conversation moves through growing your own food, reconnecting with nature, anxiety and nervous system regulation, community living, the pressures of modern culture, labels and identity, fatherhood, sustainability, consumerism, and the emotional impact of living more intentionally. Gaz also opens up about why he no longer labels himself vegan, the complexities of modern food systems, and how trying to live compassionately often means embracing nuance rather than extremes. 🛠 Practical Advice The key insight from this episode is that wellbeing is often found in reconnection rather than accumulation. Reconnecting with nature, community, craftsmanship, slower routines, meaningful work, and the simple act of growing or creating something with your hands can profoundly change the way we experience stress, purpose, and joy. 📍 𝐏𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐝: Community and Connection, Introspection and Inspiration, Wellbeing and Joy 🔔 Don’t forget to follow and review, it really helps us grow  📲 Follow us for more: 👉 Instagram: @themoodboosterofficial  [https://www.instagram.com/themoodboosterofficial/] 👉 TikTok: @themoodboosterofficial  [https://www.tiktok.com/@themoodboosterofficial] 🌍 Website: www.themoodbooster.co.uk [http://www.themoodbooster.co.uk/]  🎥 Prefer video? Watch this episode on YouTube @TheMoodBoosterOfficial  [https://www.youtube.com/@TheMoodBoosterOfficial]