June 20, 2025 • 6 mins
Brooke McIntosh is halfway through running 14,000km SOLO around the entire country. That’s two marathons a day, every day, for 180 days. She’s raising over $1.4 million for suicide prevention through The Blue Tree Project
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:10):
High Heart podcasts, hear more Kiss podcast playlist and listen
live on the free iHeart app. Now we have the
most amazing woman on the line and I'm calling it now.
I'm saying next contender for Australia of the Year. I
reckon too, absolutely and if not, we're going to submit
at ourselves for her. Now. Her name is Brook Macintosh
and Brook is halfway through running fourteen thousand kilometers solo
(00:33):
around the entire country. That is two marathons a day,
every single day, for one hundred and eighty days.
Speaker 2 (00:40):
Oh my god. Now it's either crazy or brilliant, or
probably both because I can't even run a kilometer without stopping,
so this is really something impressive.
Speaker 1 (00:49):
But also Brook is aiming to raise one point four
million for suicide prevention through the Blue Tree Project, which
she needs all of Australia to get behind her. I
know that there's been a couple of male runners over
the last year that have made it through the media
and have been you know, people have spoken about the
quite amazing feats that they've done in running. But I
do think some of the things that Brook has had
(01:10):
to face as a woman doing this across the country
is something that is unfathomable. Brook, Welcome to the show.
Speaker 3 (01:16):
Yeah, it's a massive feat just wrapped up seven thousand
kilometers and your ladies wouldn't believe it. But I've been
doing a few detours and I've actually added an extra
five hundred kilometers. But why Yeah, No.
Speaker 2 (01:30):
It is truly incredible and I cannot fad them doing
two marathons a day. I did one half marathon once
and I just thought I deserved a medal. I was like, Wow,
this is incredible. Tell us why you're doing this, Like
what happened in your life that you thought I'm just
going to go run around Australia and raise millions of dollars.
Speaker 3 (01:46):
There is so much to unpack there. But in August
twenty twenty two, I was going through the depths of
suicidal ideation myself, and the week that I was actually
wanting to take my own life, I was actually involved
in a massive high speed car accident and it was
through the healing and the recovery of that process that
I realized that I didn't want to die. I just
wanted my internal pain to end. Ed me on a
(02:07):
path of having just one more conversation, and I was
working five all at the time. So I went back
to site and I opened up about my mental struggles
with the guys on site and it was actually a
permission slit for them to start having more conversations. And
by me doing that, I received so many thanks and
gratitudes for opening up. And in August twenty twenty three,
I ran sixteen hundred kilometers top of Wa to bottom
(02:30):
of Wa to raise awareness of mental health. And when
I finished, I was like, oh am I stopping here.
There's still so much more of Australia that need to
hear this message. So now I talk the queens lamb Brooka.
Speaker 1 (02:41):
You're incredible, honestly, I mean, I can only imagine how
taxing this has been on your body. How are you
feeling at the moment, and what's been the effects on
your body so far?
Speaker 3 (02:51):
The first four weeks of this run was pretty horrendous,
Like my body was just adjusting to what was happening.
But now my body's pretty adjusted. I don't feel too
many aches and pains at the moment. But I'm also
something else that we experience out here is our PMS
and our periods and all that I'm always battling that
not battling that, but that is a massive challenge every
(03:12):
single month. On like the week leading up to that,
I'm like, all right, cool, you've got to tape for
a little bit and then you can go full again
for three and a half weeks. That's been a huge adjustment.
Speaker 1 (03:20):
But also, like you know, you think of there's been
like people like ned Broklyn that people have been talking
about who have done big runs and stuff. There's other
factors that they don't have to think about, and that's
the safety element, Like being a woman being out there
running around Australia, there is so much more risk involved.
How are you keeping yourself safe on this run?
Speaker 3 (03:38):
Yeah, so we do our run in smaller blocks, So
I would run ten kilometers and then the caravan would
be there quickly checking refuel of anything, and then I
would run ten kilometers. I also carry like a safety
SOS device on me and a two way radio as well,
especially in the parts where we have no reception, just
so I know I can always get a hold of
the guys.
Speaker 2 (04:00):
What do you want people to know? Like, now you've
got so many people listening to you, You've got so
many people following your journey, and I hope these conversations
you know more people your journey. What do you want
to say to people that might be feeling what you
were feeling a few years ago.
Speaker 3 (04:13):
My biggest message is there's two parts. It's one to
have just one more conversation, and it's to speak up.
But before we do that, we need to build the
courage inside of ourselves to be able to do that.
So my biggest message is to have courage to have
just one more conversation. And on the flip side of
that is to have courage to call out BS behavior
(04:33):
because I believe it's the best behavior that happens in
society that sends people down the society about this spiral
of suicidal ideation depression anxiety PTSD.
Speaker 1 (04:44):
I mean you've said it here in your Manchad, just
one more breath, just one more day, and just one
more conversation Brook. How can people get behind you? Because
there's so many Australians listening right now and what you're
doing is absolutely phenomenal. How can we all help you
get behind you and raise more money.
Speaker 3 (05:00):
It's sharing the message, sharing the cause, and donating to
the cause. So by googling just one more Brook, you'll
be able to find our donations link. And also we've
been really encouraging people to hold their own fundraisers in
their own communities and then donating the funds raised directly
to the course.
Speaker 1 (05:15):
Can people follow where you're at in your journey? How
can people you know specifically if you're coming through a
town that might be near them, or you're in an
area around Australia. How can people see where you're at?
Speaker 3 (05:25):
Yeah? I love runners coming out to run with me.
That just keeps me going and it's such a forest
gump moment whenever that happens. So we post all the
time on our Instagram. Instagram's the main one that we're on.
Inside our channel, we post the towns that were coming
through that day. But we've done a huge part of
Australia right now. So now we've got the top end
of Queensland and then Northern Territory and Western Australia's go, Brook,
(05:48):
what is.
Speaker 2 (05:49):
Your Instagram now? So people can go and find you
right now? Follow along and any runner wherever you are,
go and join our in her efforts.
Speaker 3 (05:57):
Brook Macintosh double underscore.
Speaker 1 (05:59):
Oh you're amazing, honey, well done, And like we said,
I reckon you're a very strong contender for Australia the
un Actually, it's just crazy what you've done. You should
be so proud of yourself, and so was Australia.
Speaker 2 (06:09):
Yeah, we need more women like you, Australia go and
get behind Brook
High Heart podcasts, hear more Kiss podcast playlist and listen
live on the free iHeart app. Now we have the
most amazing woman on the line and I'm calling it now.
I'm saying next contender for Australia of the Year. I
reckon too, absolutely and if not, we're going to submit
at ourselves for her. Now. Her name is Brook Macintosh
and Brook is halfway through running fourteen thousand kilometers solo
(00:33):
around the entire country. That is two marathons a day,
every single day, for one hundred and eighty days.
Speaker 2 (00:40):
Oh my god. Now it's either crazy or brilliant, or
probably both because I can't even run a kilometer without stopping,
so this is really something impressive.
Speaker 1 (00:49):
But also Brook is aiming to raise one point four
million for suicide prevention through the Blue Tree Project, which
she needs all of Australia to get behind her. I
know that there's been a couple of male runners over
the last year that have made it through the media
and have been you know, people have spoken about the
quite amazing feats that they've done in running. But I
do think some of the things that Brook has had
(01:10):
to face as a woman doing this across the country
is something that is unfathomable. Brook, Welcome to the show.
Speaker 3 (01:16):
Yeah, it's a massive feat just wrapped up seven thousand
kilometers and your ladies wouldn't believe it. But I've been
doing a few detours and I've actually added an extra
five hundred kilometers. But why Yeah, No.
Speaker 2 (01:30):
It is truly incredible and I cannot fad them doing
two marathons a day. I did one half marathon once
and I just thought I deserved a medal. I was like, Wow,
this is incredible. Tell us why you're doing this, Like
what happened in your life that you thought I'm just
going to go run around Australia and raise millions of dollars.
Speaker 3 (01:46):
There is so much to unpack there. But in August
twenty twenty two, I was going through the depths of
suicidal ideation myself, and the week that I was actually
wanting to take my own life, I was actually involved
in a massive high speed car accident and it was
through the healing and the recovery of that process that
I realized that I didn't want to die. I just
wanted my internal pain to end. Ed me on a
(02:07):
path of having just one more conversation, and I was
working five all at the time. So I went back
to site and I opened up about my mental struggles
with the guys on site and it was actually a
permission slit for them to start having more conversations. And
by me doing that, I received so many thanks and
gratitudes for opening up. And in August twenty twenty three,
I ran sixteen hundred kilometers top of Wa to bottom
(02:30):
of Wa to raise awareness of mental health. And when
I finished, I was like, oh am I stopping here.
There's still so much more of Australia that need to
hear this message. So now I talk the queens lamb Brooka.
Speaker 1 (02:41):
You're incredible, honestly, I mean, I can only imagine how
taxing this has been on your body. How are you
feeling at the moment, and what's been the effects on
your body so far?
Speaker 3 (02:51):
The first four weeks of this run was pretty horrendous,
Like my body was just adjusting to what was happening.
But now my body's pretty adjusted. I don't feel too
many aches and pains at the moment. But I'm also
something else that we experience out here is our PMS
and our periods and all that I'm always battling that
not battling that, but that is a massive challenge every
(03:12):
single month. On like the week leading up to that,
I'm like, all right, cool, you've got to tape for
a little bit and then you can go full again
for three and a half weeks. That's been a huge adjustment.
Speaker 1 (03:20):
But also, like you know, you think of there's been
like people like ned Broklyn that people have been talking
about who have done big runs and stuff. There's other
factors that they don't have to think about, and that's
the safety element, Like being a woman being out there
running around Australia, there is so much more risk involved.
How are you keeping yourself safe on this run?
Speaker 3 (03:38):
Yeah, so we do our run in smaller blocks, So
I would run ten kilometers and then the caravan would
be there quickly checking refuel of anything, and then I
would run ten kilometers. I also carry like a safety
SOS device on me and a two way radio as well,
especially in the parts where we have no reception, just
so I know I can always get a hold of
the guys.
Speaker 2 (04:00):
What do you want people to know? Like, now you've
got so many people listening to you, You've got so
many people following your journey, and I hope these conversations
you know more people your journey. What do you want
to say to people that might be feeling what you
were feeling a few years ago.
Speaker 3 (04:13):
My biggest message is there's two parts. It's one to
have just one more conversation, and it's to speak up.
But before we do that, we need to build the
courage inside of ourselves to be able to do that.
So my biggest message is to have courage to have
just one more conversation. And on the flip side of
that is to have courage to call out BS behavior
(04:33):
because I believe it's the best behavior that happens in
society that sends people down the society about this spiral
of suicidal ideation depression anxiety PTSD.
Speaker 1 (04:44):
I mean you've said it here in your Manchad, just
one more breath, just one more day, and just one
more conversation Brook. How can people get behind you? Because
there's so many Australians listening right now and what you're
doing is absolutely phenomenal. How can we all help you
get behind you and raise more money.
Speaker 3 (05:00):
It's sharing the message, sharing the cause, and donating to
the cause. So by googling just one more Brook, you'll
be able to find our donations link. And also we've
been really encouraging people to hold their own fundraisers in
their own communities and then donating the funds raised directly
to the course.
Speaker 1 (05:15):
Can people follow where you're at in your journey? How
can people you know specifically if you're coming through a
town that might be near them, or you're in an
area around Australia. How can people see where you're at?
Speaker 3 (05:25):
Yeah? I love runners coming out to run with me.
That just keeps me going and it's such a forest
gump moment whenever that happens. So we post all the
time on our Instagram. Instagram's the main one that we're on.
Inside our channel, we post the towns that were coming
through that day. But we've done a huge part of
Australia right now. So now we've got the top end
of Queensland and then Northern Territory and Western Australia's go, Brook,
(05:48):
what is.
Speaker 2 (05:49):
Your Instagram now? So people can go and find you
right now? Follow along and any runner wherever you are,
go and join our in her efforts.
Speaker 3 (05:57):
Brook Macintosh double underscore.
Speaker 1 (05:59):
Oh you're amazing, honey, well done, And like we said,
I reckon you're a very strong contender for Australia the
un Actually, it's just crazy what you've done. You should
be so proud of yourself, and so was Australia.
Speaker 2 (06:09):
Yeah, we need more women like you, Australia go and
get behind Brook
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