Owner and run leader of Boobs on the Run, Melanie Warman, has been running for 25 years and a coach for 15. The Balmain mother created a running business as a way to raise much needed money and awareness for cancer research. She tells us about her favourite Sydney running route and shares a recipe for a killer salmon burger.
What motivated you to start a small business around your passion?
Sadly, I lost my Mum to terminal lung cancer 10 years ago this November. She had only been diagnosed with Breast Cancer two years before that and I felt her loss deeply. Running was a bit of escape for me. When my mum got sick, I researched a million things to understand what could be done and what could have prevented it from ever happening and something that kept coming up was the connection between a healthy lifestyle and the risk factors for getting this type of cancer and many others. My mission was born to get women moving and keep them moving so they can lessen their chances of getting cancer, heart disease and various other illnesses. To keep me true to my purpose, I also made sure that we support and donate money to local cancer charities.
What do you love about running with the Inner West community?
I’m blown away by the sense of community our runners feel, and the support we give other local businesses and they give us. We are not just teaching women to run, we’re teaching them about supporting areas of their health that allow them to run and manage their bodies. We’re lucky to partner with several Inner West businesses who have a similar approach and really care about helping others, and sponsor lots of local events including the Balmain Fun Run and Annual Bay Run.
What’s your favourite Sydney route to run?
The bay run is always my home ground and where we teach a lot of our beginners courses. We do have some amazing locations including Bondi Beach, Concord and Putney along the water. Our new courses start on the 2nd August too!
How does running alongside other women and mums inspire you?
Over the past 3 years we have had over 600 women through our courses. Running is for everybody — all different shapes and sizes and abilities. For the most part we give these women back some ‘me time’, and a boost to their self confidence. It helps them improve sleep, their relationships, health mindset and reminds them who they were before life took over. I am always amazed at the way women evolve over the 10 weeks and show such motivation and commitment. They start to see themselves in a different light, and start to use positive language about running and themselves. We’re really building a community of women supporting and helping each other in all areas of life and many form deep and lasting friendships.
What is your dish of choice to enjoy after a nice run?
One of my favourite dishes is a bowl of brown rice, steamed fish and a green curry sauce with lots of steamed veggies. Really simple and you can have a shower while it’s cooking!
Salmon Burgers
Ingredients
2 slices stale bread
zest of 2 lemons and juice of 1/2 lemon
small bunch parsley
2-4 spring onions
600g salmon fillets, bones and skin removed
1 egg
olive oil for shallow frying
Method
- Pulse the bread, zest of one lemon and 1/3 bunch parsley in a food processor and tip into a wide, shallow bowl.
- Pulse in three more stages: add the remaining lemon zest, parsley and spring onions then pulse. Add salmon fillets and pulse again (so you have a chopped texture not a paste). Add the egg and lemon juice and briefly pulse until just combined. Season with salt and pepper.
- Divide into 8 portions, form them into burgers, roll them in herbed breadcrumbs and place in the fridge for 20 minutes to firm up.
- Heat the fry pan to low – medium, and cook in a little olive oil for 4-5 minutes on each side until golden outside and just a little pink in the middle.
- Serve the burgers on a bun, or serve “naked” alongside roast sweet potato, carrot wedges and a big green salad.