WARRIOR
“Running empowered me to realise that I can do things alone and that I’ve got more in me than I give myself credit for”
How running gave Katie Piper strength, resilience and sanctuary
Words: Rachel Ifans
Katie Piper WARRIOR
Katie Piper is a writer, activist, television presenter and model. She entered the public eye in 2009 in the Channel 4 Cutting Edge programme called Katie: My Beautiful Face, which documented her experience as the victim of an acid attack that left her needing pioneering surgery to restore her face and vision.
She’s a mum of two young girls, and juggles motherhood with a busy role as a TV presenter and founder of the Katie Piper Foundation, a charity which works towards a world where scars don’t limit a person’s function, social inclusion or sense of well-being.
Katie talks to us about how running helped give her a level head after the devastating attack and how it’s helped build her self confidence over the past decade.
Undercover runner
There are so many reasons to start running but for Katie it was loneliness in the evenings that pushed her into it. She explains, “Ten years ago I was living in a flat on my own and it was quite isolating. I wanted to get healthy but I didn’t really have the confidence to do a team sport thing at the time so I thought I’ll step out the door and try it, and if it goes wrong no-one will know!”
That’s the thing about running. It can be such a perfect low-pressure option for people who aren’t confident enough to ‘go public’ with their exercise. Even though you go outside to do it, there’s an anonymity about running in the early mornings or dark evenings, or putting on a cap and shades and keeping the paparazzi of your life at bay.
But for Katie there was much more to think about when she started running.
Because of the injuries she sustained to her respiratory system during the attack in 2008, the doctors said she should only do light exercise and nothing too taxing. She explains: “I have a shadow on my lung, my oesophagus has a stent in, and my nose has been rebuilt with cartilage from my rib meaning that it’s quite restrictive and narrow in there.” In terms of running, this means that Katie can only really breathe through her mouth which makes it all a bit harder.