Strong Core

Dr. Iris Nafshi
  • 5.0 (1)
  • FITNESS
  • SERIES

Strong Core is a podcast for mother-athletes who are figuring out who they are beyond the roles they play. Through honest conversations, we explore what it takes to pursue big goals while staying grounded in who you are at your core.

Season 1

  1. EPISODE 1

    From “I’m Too Far Gone” to World Championships, Rachel Kippenbrock’s Comeback Story

    Send a text In this episode of Strong Core, Rachel Kippenbrock, a mom of three training for three Ironman 70.3 races plus a major summer bike challenge, shares what it really looks like to pursue big athletic goals while raising a family. Rachel talks about 4:30 AM workouts, feeling stretched thin, and the courage it takes to ask for help and set boundaries. This is a conversation about identity shifts, motivation versus habit, grief, growth, and the truth many women need to hear: you can have it all, just not all at once. If this conversation resonated, follow Strong Core and share it with another mother who needs to hear this. Connect on Instagram at @iris_strongcore for more conversations on mental and physical strength in motherhood and sport.

    57 min

  2. EPISODE 2

    Queen of Pain: Marjaana Rakai on Joy, Grit, and What Endurance Sport Gives You That Nothing Else Does

    Send a text Marjaana Rakai (@tiredmomruns) grew up in northern Finland, training to be an Olympic cross-country skier. Then she hurt her back, moved to Norway, met a Canadian on a ski exchange, and spent the next two decades raising three kids across four continents, with no village or extended family nearby and a husband who traveled the world for work. Triathlon saved her. Literally. In this episode of Strong Core, Iris sits down with Marjaana, Ironman World Championship qualifier, coach, expat mother of three, and COO of @Athletica.ai,  for a conversation about what endurance sport gives you that nothing else does, and why mother-athletes keep coming back to the start line even when life makes it almost impossible. They talk about the Olympic-distance triathlon in Rio, which reminded her she had forgotten how to have fun. About training for Ironman Worlds with her bike in the kitchen so she could ride six hours and still be present for her kids. About the moment she said no to Kona, and what her youngest son said when she came home, that she will never forget. About finding your tribe through bike rides instead of expat lunches. About perimenopause and the unexpected freedom of not recognizing your body anymore,  and caring a lot less about what anyone thinks. About javelin throwing. About the 15-minute run between meetings, and why showing up small is an act of self-trust. And about what her coach told her at kilometer 25 of the Ironman marathon — welcome the pain — and why she ran the last 17 kilometers faster than the first. Marjaana's closing words to every mother who wants to start but is scared: Joy is right outside their steps. If this conversation resonated, follow Strong Core and share it with another mother who needs to hear this. Connect on Instagram at @iris_strongcore for more conversations on mental and physical strength in motherhood and sport.

    1h 2m
  • 2 Episodes

About

Strong Core is a podcast for mother-athletes who are figuring out who they are beyond the roles they play. Through honest conversations, we explore what it takes to pursue big goals while staying grounded in who you are at your core.

Information

  • Creator
    Dr. Iris Nafshi
  • Episodes
    2
  • Seasons
    1
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Strong Core
  • Show Website
    Strong Core