Sparta Chicks Radio: Mindset | Confidence | Sport | Women

Natalia Cohen is a member of the Coxless Crew, the first fours boat (and all-female team) to row, unsupported, across the Pacific Ocean (the largest ocean in the world).

The journey, which took 257 days at sea, is documented in the film "Losing Sight of Shore" (available on Netflix).

In this conversation, we discuss why she decided to apply (despite not having any rowing experience), her interesting struggle with the Imposter Complex now that the journey has been completed, how she used mindfulness to get through the tough times, how the sharks that kept them company on the journey were a highlight and why it’s important not to be afraid of the unknown and instead to embrace it.

Lisa Tamati is one of the world’s most experienced ultra marathon runners, especially when it comes to racing in hot conditions. She’s competed in over 130 ultra marathons, traversed almost every desert in the world, cycled through 20 countries, run the length of New Zealand for charity and is a successful businesswoman, running coach and New York Times best selling author.

She also suffers severe asthma, broke her back at 21 and struggled with self-doubt and self-esteem throughout much of her younger life.

In this conversation we discuss her severe asthma and the surprising advantage it has given her as an endurance athlete, what she learnt from a disastrous (and potentially life threatening) crossing of the Libyan desert, how ultra running helped to heal her self-esteem and self-confidence, why you should start working towards your goals even before you know how you’re going to achieve them and what she wished someone had told her as a young girl.

Chloe Chick is the Founder of Sisu Girls, an organisation I love and support that is dedicated to the empowerment of girls through sport and outdoor adventure in order to foster bravery, resilience, determination and self-confidence in them.

Chloe founded Sisu Girls in 2014 after seeing her daughter Olive start to show signs of a lack in self-confidence in certain situations (including being intimidated by boys in the playground or not wanting to play “boys” sports).

In this conversation, we discuss Chloe’s experience attending an all-boys primary school and what she learnt, the importance of storytelling, role models and the impact they have on shaping who we are, her fear, self-doubt and experience with the Imposter Complex and why you should recognise and celebrate your everyday acts of Sisu.

Our first return guest, Kirrily Dear, is about to set out on a mammoth challenge - The Run Against Violence in 2017 will take Kirrily 1,300km / 807 miles throughout remote and regional Australia over 19 days on a mission to raise awareness and start conversations about family violence.

This time we talk about how she has prepared, mentally and physically, for such a demanding and challenging event, her powerful and profound new perspective around comfort zones she recently gained on top of a mountain pass in the Andes as well as the Run Against Violence itself; the community and commercial support it has received and the logistics involved  (including how many pairs of shoes she’s going to pack)

Nadine Champion is a Thai Boxing and Kickboxing Champion, an author, speaker and cancer survivor. In her new book called “10 Seconds of Courage” and in this conversation, Nadine shares a real, raw and emotional account of her journey.

We discuss her excitement at discovering martial arts at the age of 10, the practical strategies she uses to change her thinking when faced with a situation that is outside her control, how the lessons she learnt from martial arts helped her through her cancer battle, the question she asks herself when she’s afraid and how you can use 10 seconds of courage to push through your fear.

Michelle Lee is a quintessential ordinary Australian woman who has set out to do something extraordinary. In December 2017, she’ll attempt the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge, a 5,000km unassisted and self-supported ocean rowing event across the Atlantic from the Canary Islands off the coast of Spain to Antigua in the Caribbean. If she completes it, she’ll become the first Australian woman to row across an ocean.

But Michelle isn’t a rower and doesn’t come from a rowing background. So how does an ordinary everyday woman find the courage and bravery to attempt one of the world’s toughest nautical challenges as an absolute newbie in the sport? And what does it take to complete this event? I ask her in this episode.

Margie Warrell is a best-selling author, keynote speaker and Women’s Leadership Advocate whose clients include NASA, the United Nations Foundation, Facebook, the Marriott Hotel Chain, the Australian Federal Police (and the list goes on). Not bad for a girl who grew up on a dairy farm in regional Australia and is a mother of 4.

Margie’s expertise is around bravery and courage and helping people make braver decisions and lead bigger lives. In this conversation, we discuss everything from how growing up on a dairy farm shaped her as a person, managing the doubts shared by your family about your goals or your ability, the Imposter Complex, gender bias in the way we treat and encourage boys and girls differently and how you can make braver choices in your life.

Michael Milton knows all about fear, self-doubt, bravery and courage. After losing his leg to bone cancer at the age of 8, he has gone onto become one of Australia’s most talented, decorated and all-around athletes.

He is a 5x Paralympic Gold Medalist who has competed in 6 Paralympic Games, both in Winter for skiing and in Summer for cycling. Michael is a World Record holder in both speed skiing and for the fastest marathon on crutches who has also summited Kilimanjaro and walked the Kokoda track twice.

In this conversation, we discuss what it’s like to ski at in excess of 200km/hr (132mph), his experience with fear, self-doubt and the Imposter Complex, why he’s entered many races over the years knowing he’ll finish last, why you should keep pushing forward when your instinct is telling you to back off and his experience competing in the Ultra Trail Australia 50km race earlier this year.

Julie-Anne Hazlett and Sarah Anne Evans are two members of the Veloroos, an Australian non-professional cycling team. The team broke the course record for the 5,000km Race Across America in 2015 and later this year tackle the equally challenging 2,200km Race Around Ireland.

In this conversation, we discuss fear and self-doubt, the logistics of riding across America or around Ireland, how everyday women, like you and I, who work full time and have families, find the train to train for such epic events as well as the importance of having a support network around you.

Katee Pedicini is a coach with a degree in Exercise Science who specialises in managing fatigue, stress and hormones to achieve optimum performance. She runs Holistic Endurance based in Melbourne, Australia.

In this conversation, we discuss what stress is, the impact it has on your body, why many women train a lot, eat well and struggle to lose weight (or worse, put it on) and the small changes you can make to your lifestyle to improve your overall health.