Sparta Chicks Radio: Mindset | Confidence | Sport | Women

Ness Hartge is just like you and I. An age group athlete, a busy mum, small business owner and runner. She’s also someone who struggled to call herself an “ultra runner” despite having completed 3 x ultra distance events — and hoped she’d finally feel comfortable doing so once she finished her first 100km race at the Ultra Trail Australia 100km in the Blue Mountains outside Sydney in May 2017.

Ness has openly shared on social media her struggle with the Imposter Complex. In this conversation we discuss the way the Imposter Complex has shown up in her life, the times it has caused her to doubt herself (including when applying for jobs) and the steps she took that enabled her to line up at the start of the Ultra Trail Australia 100km and know that, as an experienced ultra-runner, she deserved to be there.

In Memoriam: Dr Simon Marshall

In 2017, I was lucky enough to record this conversation with the dynamic duo of Dr Simon Marshall and Lesley Paterson.

Simon is a sports psychologist with a distinguished career. He’s been a Professor, has published over 100 scientific publications on the psychology of exercise, been cited over 10,000 times and has real world practical experience as the Performance Psychologist for the BMC Racing team, a pro cycling team that competes in the Tour de France.

Lesley is a professional mountain biker, 3x World Champion in off-road triathlon, Ironman Triathlon Champion, coach and (according to her bio) foul-mouthed Scots lassie.

They are also married, the force behind Braveheart Coaching and the co-authors of a new book called The Brave Athlete: Calm the F*ck Down and Rise to the Occasion.

In this interview, we discuss how the brain works the way it does, some of the 13 most common mental conundrums (or stories) athletes face in their everyday training and life and how you can train your brain to overcome them with science-based, athlete-tested strategies.

Postscript: this interview was recorded in 2017. Sadly, Simon died of pancreatic cancer in June 2024 at the age of 53. His legacy and the impact he had will not be forgotten.

Melissa Browne’s website describes her as an introverted, socially awkward, shoe-loving accountant. All of those things might or are true. But there is so much more to Mel and her story.

The CEO or co-founder of 3 business, Mel is also an author, speaker, expert on money and finance who regularly appears on TV and is on a mission to empower women and girls to find their voice and become both business and financially savvy.

However Mel is also someone who has (to use her words) overcome a lot of $hit along the way and has started to share some of it, and her journey, in public.

In this conversation, we discuss defying our family’s expectations, fear and self-doubt, the Imposter Complex and why it’s important for women to be financially savvy.

Hayley Talbot is the first person to kayak the length of the Clarence River in Australia - all 400km / 248 miles - which she also did solo, unassisted and surviving entirely off the land.

In this conversation we talk about Hayley’s childhood in the town of Yamba at the mouth of the Clarence River and her journey down it as well as why she doesn’t subscribe to “mother’s guilt”, how she deals with self-doubt and fear (including the human threat which she faced on this journey) and the mental strategies she used to get herself through the dark and difficult times on her journey.

Alyssa Azar is the youngest Australian to climb Mt Everest which she did at the age of 19.

But her journey hasn’t been easy; she only summited Everest on her 3rd attempt after the first two attempts ended in tragic circumstances and she (and her parents) have both been subject to heavy criticism including from internet trolls who didn’t hold back in expressing their opinions about how inappropriate it was someone so young to attempt what she’s done.

In this conversation, we talk about her experience during her 3 expeditions to Everest, how she manages her fear and self-doubt, how she handles criticism, the perfect performance line and goal setting

Melissa Urie is only the second woman (and first Australian woman) to complete the Epic 5, an (appropriately named) event consisting of 5 Ironman distance triathlons on 5 Hawaiian Islands over 5 days. That’s 224km / 140 miles of swimming, riding and running every day for 5 days.

In this conversation, we discuss how she fits her training into her life, why she wanted to do such a seemingly "impossible" event in the first place, her strategies for dealing with the heat, how you inspire people around you often without realising it and how being mentally strong can help you achieve things you shouldn’t, in theory, be physically able to accomplish.

Even if you aren’t involved in triathlons, I have no doubt you’ll learn from and be inspired by Mel’s experience.

Hanny Allston is an insightful, soulful woman with a passion for running, the outdoors and sharing that passion with as many people as possible.

Back in 2006, Hanny became the first non-European to win a World Orienteering title. And in fact, she won two - a Junior and Senior world title in the same year (and became the first person, male or female to do so).

These days, Hanny is a running coach, the host of the Find Your Feet podcast and owns a retail and online store for trail runners and outdoor adventurers with her partner Graham called Find Your Feet.

In this conversation, we discuss the Imposter Complex, what success means to Hanny, why running is play, the role of a coach and why it’s important for women to draw confidence from their sense of self, not just from their physical strength.

Stef Hanson is a triathlete and the Founder of Witsup (Women in Triathlon) - an online and real life community for women in triathlon. Established in 2012, the mission for witsup.com is to break down the barriers of entry for women to the sport but also to give women in the sport the recognition they deserve (at a time when women’s sports is often relegated to a few sentences).

Normally the interviewer, I turn the tables on Stef and share her journey. We discuss how we are all prone to worry about what other people think (despite how confident we might otherwise be), why women’s sports has such a low profile (and what Stef is doing to change that), Stef’s struggle with adrenal fatigue in recent years as well as the importance of looking after yourself, switching off and recharging your batteries. Even if you aren’t interested in triathlons, you’ll enjoy this conversation.

Beth White is a mother of 3, remedial massage therapist and the 2016 ITU Paratriathlon World Champion in the PT1 category.

Beth began losing her sight from the age of 5. Misdiagnosed most of her life, it has only been in recent years she has discovered she has a rare genetic condition (so rare, it does not yet have a name) with numerous symptoms including vision impairment and an inability to sweat. Beth’s 3 children have inherited the condition and each is slowly losing their sight too.

Beth has thrown herself into her triathlon and is on a mission to raise funds, awareness but also inspire people with her story. She has gone on to win 2 medals at the ITU Paratriathlon World Championships; Silver in Chicago in 2015 and Gold in Rotterdam in 2016.

In this interview we talk about the practicalities of triathlon as a visually impaired athlete, how the reward of pushing through your fear is always worth it, the “mother guilt” she experiences, how she isn’t brave or courageous, just determined and the importance of trusting your gut intuition and believing in yourself.

Laura Siddall is a professional triathlete with a difference. With her gap year spent as an Officer in the British Army and a degree in Mechanical Engineering, she only discovered triathlon in her late 20s.  Laura quickly made up for lost time by winning 4 x Age Group World Championships over various distances in just 4 years.

In this interview we talk about the doubt she struggled with after making the decision to turn professional (and how it affected her results for the first few years), why it’s important not to make assumptions or judgements on a day-to-day basis about your training and why you shouldn’t check your watch when you finish the swim leg in a triathlon (hint: anything behind your ears is irrelevant).