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

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 t

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).

Kirrily Dear is an ultra-marathon runner, a lover of trail running and the co-founder of the Run Against Violence; a volunteer association established to use running and other sporting activities as a conduit to educate and engage communities in family violence protection.The Run Against Violence in 2017 will take Kirrily 1,300km / 807 miles throughout remote and regional Australia over 19 days.In this wide-ranging interview we talk about why this cause was so important to Kirrily (despite not having any personal experience with family violence), how you achieve something that is so far beyond your current capabilities that it seems impossible, the icky murky world of self-limiting beliefs and how you can get involved with the Run Against Violence.

Natalie Cook is a 5-time Olympic and winner of two Olympic medals in Beach Volleyball; Bronze in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and Gold in the 2000 Sydney Olympics.In this interview, we discuss her 4-year journey of personal development after the Atlanta Olympics when she realised she didn’t have the mental toughness or emotional stability needed to achieve her goal of winning the Olympic Gold medal in Sydney. Plus in an unexpected twist, I get called out on why I’m hiding behind my fear and not telling the world of my goal for 2018.

Masha Gordon failed PE at school and admits that she “opted out” of sport from her pre-teen years until her mid-30s when she discovered hiking. Just 6 years later, the mother of 2 now holds the record for the fastest ascent by a woman of the Seven Summits as well as the women’s record for the Adventurer’s Grand Slam (the Seven Summits plus the North and South Pole).In this interview we discuss mothers (or parents) guilt, the challenges she faced during her epic adventure, why you need to surround yourself with people who celebrate your small wins and the importance of not letting what you couldn't do as a child shape your decisions as an adult

Tanya Geisler is a Leadership Coach based in Canada who specialises in the Imposter Complex.You may not have heard of it before but I can assure you that you’ve felt the sting of it. It is found in the stories - or lies - we tell ourselves about not being ready, good enough, that we don’t belong or that we are fooling everyone and that any moment everyone is going to find out we have NFI what we’re doing. We dive deep in this personal and revealing interview.

Born and raised in Tehran, Shirin Gerami only became involved in sport when she settled in the UK at the age of 15.After discovering triathlons in University, Shirin became the first woman ever to represent Iran in triathlon (women had previously been banned from participating in the sport). She has since gone onto to become the first Iranian - male or female - to finish the Hawaii Ironman.She is now on a mission to prove that clothing should not be a barrier to participation in sport for millions of women around the world, who want, need or choose to cover their body (whether for cultural or religious reasons, humility or sun protection).

Back in the 1980s, Janine Shepherd was an elite cross-country skier and member of the Australian ski team training for the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics. Then one day, her life changed. She was hit by a truck while riding her bike. She left hospital 6 months later, a partial paraplegic.Her defiant human spirit saw Janine overcome the odds, and her body, and she went onto not only walk again but obtain her commercial and aerobatics pilots licence, compete in equestrian events and have 3 children. She has written about her journey in her extraordinary new book called “Defiant”.

Di Westaway is an Adventure Coach, the founder of women’s adventure training company Wild Women on Top and a team trekking event called Coastrek. She also holds the record for the world’s highest handstand.From her early days as a gymnastics champion to her record-setting handstand in 2016, we talk about how adventure is the key to endless motivation, how to fit your training (and not exercise) into your busy life, that your family always benefits when you look after your own mental and physical health, how to tackle fear and what it means to lead an adventurous life.

Kate Bevilaqua is a professional triathlete, the 2016 Ultraman World Champion and the first woman in history to win an Ultraman title overall.From her early days in the sport when she hated running through to her 3 Ironman triathlon titles and 2 Ultraman victories, we talk about the fear of not being ready or not having done enough training (which she still experiences after 10 years as a professional triathlete), the sacrifices she made to chase her Ultraman dream, the importance of understanding what success means to you and how hard work, and not natural talent, has been the secret to her success.

Aerial skier and Olympic Champion Lydia Lassila knows a thing or two about how to manage and control fear.The Gold Medalist from the Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver in 2010, she became the first woman in history to land a highly technical jump that included a quadruple twist.From her early days as a gymnastic to life as a mother of 2 who is currently training to compete in her 5th Olympic Games, we talk about the importance of being open-minded to opportunities and following your curiosity and intrigue (the part of you that says “that sounds cool, I’d love to try that), how to manage and control fear, how to deflect the fear others are experiencing and how you prepare to do something never before achieved by a woman.

How do you use your fear and self-doubt to get the best out of your yourself? That's the question we explore in our interview with Siri Lindley who was 2x-ranked the #1 triathlete in the world and the 2002 ITU World Champion in 2002. Since retiring, Siri has gone onto have an extraordinarily successful career as a coach and is regarded as one of the best triathlon coaches in the world.Even if you aren't interested in triathlon, I have no doubt you'll gain a lot from Siri's heart-centred approach training, racing and life.The author of Surfacing: From the Depths of Self-doubt to Winning Big and Living Fearlessly, in her book and this interview Siri talks openly about her struggles with self-doubt as an athlete and how recognising and challenging your fears is the key to getting the best out of yourself. And once you hear the story of her first triathlon, I think you’ll agree that nothing is impossible with self-belief, passion and hard work.