Nirjala is a 41-year-old Nepalese national triathlete and a mother of two. She was Nepal's national mountain biking champion for 12 years, from 2001 to 2012, and after dominating the mountain biking scene for 12 years, Nirjala was known as the "Mountain Queen" by her peers. Nirjala is now a triathlete on the Nepal National Team. On June 6th, 2021, Nirjala completed the UK Ultimate Triathlon event in Whitchurch after 15 hours and 13 minutes. The full Ironman distance includes 3.8 kilometers of swimming, 180 kilometers of cycling, and 42 kilometers of running. She then became the first Nepali female athlete to complete a full Ironman-distance triathlon. Her historic achievement was publicly recognized as the "First Nepalese Female Athlete to achieve" by Nepal Triathlon Association President, Mr. Nilendra Raj Shrestha.   New episodes of the Tough Girl Podcast go live every Tuesday at 7am UK time - Subscribe so you don’t miss out.  You can support the mission to increase the amount of female role models in the media. Learn more by visiting www.patreon.com/toughgirlpodcast . Thank you.   Show notes Who is Nirjala Speaking with Nirjala previously on the Tough Girl Podcast Discovering triathlon  Living in UAE in 2011 and training for mountain biking  Thinking about doing an Ironman Making the transition from mountain biking to triathlon  Stopping mountain biking and focusing on family  Wanting to lose weight after having children Getting back into training after having a C section  Why she wanted to do a triathlon  Learning how to swim as an adult  Overcoming her fear of open water Taking on her first sprint triathlon  Learning to swim front crawl in 2018 Not feeling confident in the water  Dealing with feelings of panic while in the water Feeling more confident in the water  Training for open water swimming  Learning how to float  Doing her first Full Ironman triathlon Following a free training plan found online Balancing training time with her family  Being on the start line of the race Being worried about the cold water Eating during the race Feeling relief and happiness crossing the finish line Recovering afterwards Feeling a lot of pain at the end and not being able to sleep How to connect and follow on the social  Final words of advice to motivate and inspire you to take on your next challenge How to face your fears even when you are afraid  Why you can do anything you want in your life   Social Media   Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NirjalaTamrakar