Sparta Chicks Radio: Mindset | Confidence | Sport | Women

Hearing Pip Candrick share her love of trail running, it’s hard to believe she only took up the sport in her late 40s after being diagnosed with brain cancer. To regain her health after treatment, Pip joined a gym that challenged her to set a goal. She picked running a Half Marathon which, she says, ‘…was just ridiculous. I don’t know why it came out of my mouth’. Pip quickly fell in the love with...

Elly is a marathon runner and nutritionist who (at the time of recording this conversation in 2018) worked with Steph Lowe (episode 69) at The Natural Nutritionist. Elly first explored an LCHF (lower carb, healthy fat) protocol after various health issues caused her to question the traditional approach to nutrition she’d been taught at University (including the (in)famous food pyramid). After work...

An age group mountain biker and mum of 3 in her 40s, Kate was scrolling through Instagram while breastfeeding her youngest daughter in 2017 when she saw a competition by Liv Cycling (an incredible women’s cycling brand) for a spot in their Trail Squad; the prize included a new bike and entry to a mountain bike stage race somewhere around the world. Needing a goal or something for herself, she deci...

Grant Giles is obsessed with understanding what happens between an athlete’s ears. Grant has 25+ years of experience in triathlons, starting with a 14 year career as an elite athlete. He then turned to coaching and ultimately developed some of Australia’s most successful professional triathletes. These life experiences - together with his own struggles with anxiety - led him to become obsessed wit...

Ellie Greenwood is ultra running royalty. I also got the impression from our chat that she’s incredibly humble and I suspect that description may not sit comfortably with her  — but it’s the truth. A 2x winner of one of the world’s most famous and revered races, the Western States Endurance Run 100 (that’s 100mi/160km). In 2012, she also smashed the course record — a record that stood for 11 years...

If you follow Tracey on social media, you would have seen stunning photos from her work assignments in Far North Queensland, Jordan, Finland, Sweden, South Africa and Botswana over the past 12 months. Of course, social media is just the highlight reel. It doesn’t show the full story. Tracey bravely shares that story (for the first time) in this conversation. Back in 2016, Tracey realised she was e...

Back in episode #17, Hayley shared her story and experience of becoming the first person - male or female -  to kayak the length of the Clarence River. The longest river system on the east coast of Australia, the journey of 400km took Hayley 2 weeks to complete. If you haven’t listened to that conversation (recently), I’d encourage you to go back and listen to our initial conversation first — as i...

Back in 2007, Heather Hawkins was, by her own admission, a desperately unfit and busy mum of 2. Then one day she visited her doctor after noticing some unusual symptoms she had initially attributed to the ‘middle age’ spread, enjoying Christmas a little too much and even menopause. A scan later the same day revealed the shocking news - Heather was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. Fortunately, Heathe...

“Attitude is more important than fact” might seem like one of those weary and overused motivational slogans. But Lisa Bentley lives it every day. A member of the Triathlon Canada Hall of Fame, Lisa is an 11 time Ironman triathlon champion, including 5 straight victories at Ironman Australia (2002 - 2006). She also has cystic fibrosis - a genetic lung disease that results in chronic infections with...

In April 2018, Steph became the first British woman to circumnavigate the world and ride a motorbike (affectionately called Rhonda the Honda) on all 7 continents — yes, including Antarctica! This journey covered 120,000km / 74,000 miles, across 53 countries, and took 4 years to complete. In this conversation, Steph and I discuss: * why you sometimes feel lost and unfulfilled despite achieving the...

Australia’s coolest psychologist, Ali Hill is a CEO, sought-after speaker, author, podcaster, mum of 2 and runner. Perhaps it’s no wonder that after being overcome by a tremendous sense of overwhelm 2 years ago, Ali (as a ‘head mechanic’ to use her words) went on a quest to understand society’s obsession with ‘busy’ and how to live a life filled with meaning, even amongst the busyness. That quest...

Steph Lowe is a triathlete, Sports Nutritionist and the Founder of the Natural Nutritionist, a business based in Melbourne, Australia dedicated to teaching how easy real food living and performance can be. The foundation of her approach is a whole foods, lower carb higher fat (or LCHF) lifestyle, which she also describes as JERF (just eat real food). This conversation ties together with the previo...

Jacqui Holth is the co-founder of the Adventurous Life Project - a community with a commitment to harness the power of play and the psychology of adventure to regain purpose, vitality and energy in life. Born in Sydney, Jacqui spent her adult life living and working overseas before returning to Australia at the age of 42 in 2013 on a quest to reinvent herself.  In this conversation, we talk about...

Who better to ask about fear and self-doubt than one of the best stuntwomen in the world, Ky Furneaux? Ky was raised in a small country town in South Australia and has gone on to work on many big-budget Hollywood blockbusters and become one of the best stuntwomen in the world. In this conversation, we discuss: * her adventure-seeking ways as a child and the grandmother who inspired her love of tra...

Born in Canada, Jill was working as a Physical Education teacher in Bavaria in September 2014 when she was hit in the head with a ball in a freak accident. Taken to emergency and quickly discharged with only a “black eye”, Jill was later diagnosed with a fractured skull and a traumatic brain injury (amongst other injuries). 2 years, 7 hospitals and 3 countries later, Jill’s black eye never re-open...

Alise Selsmark is a professional triathlete based in Noosa here in Australia. Although Alise had a background as a competitive swimmer as a child, she only entered her first triathlon - a women’s only event - at 28. And just 4 years later, she qualified to race as a professional. In this conversation, we discuss what she learnt from watching a boy called Alan at her first swim squad when she was 1...

The tables - or microphone - is turned this week onto the host of Sparta Chicks Radio and the founder of Sparta Chicks, Jen Brown.  Interviewed by Richelle Olsen (founder of Escaping Your Comfort Zone and who was our guest on the podcast during episode 40), Jen shares her childhood, her transition from law to coaching and some of the various projects under the Sparta Chicks umbrella including the...

Back in 2013, Michelle Hocking was 41 and “overweight and overwhelmed with depression, anxiety and panic attacks”. Then one Saturday afternoon in July 2013, she struggled to walk 5 metres without being short of breath. Less than 24 hours later, she was diagnosed with viral cardiomyopathy. Her husband was asked if her affairs were in order and a heart transplant was being discussed. Fast forward 5...

Jamie Moreno is on a mission to empower girls and women to get involved in motorsports and to follow their dreams regardless of age, race or gender. A Latina woman, Jamie grew up with a passion for cars after spending hours with her dad as a child in the garage working on cars but didn’t start racing until she was 25. However, she didn’t start racing until she was 25 because - despite a love of ca...

Nicole Bunyon is a trail runner, mum of 3 and founder of Running Mums Australia (RMA). RMA is an Australia-wide network and community for mums who love to, or are interested in, running. You can’t go to a running or triathlon event in Australia without seeing a woman sporting their distinctive logo. While RMA shares many women’s stories, I wanted to turn the tables (and microphone) and Nicole and...

Rebecca Stone is a busy woman. She’s a midwife, a mum, and someone who loves racing her mountain bike for 24 hours - all while living with fibromyalgia. In 2010, after 9 months of severe pain which ultimately left her unable to work, drive or walk for more than 5m, Rebecca was diagnosed with fibromyalgia, A chronic condition, fibromyalgia causes widespread pain and sensitivity throughout the body....

Katee Pedicini is a triathlon coach based in Melbourne, Australia and has a degree in Exercise Science who specialises in managing fatigue, stress and hormones in endurance athletes to achieve not only athletic performance but optimal health and happiness. Kate first appeared in episode 21 (our most popular episode in 2017!).  This time, we dive deeper into two specific issues concerning women’s h...

Sarah is an accomplished rower, rock climber, multi-day cyclist and triathlete. She’s completed the Race Across America twice, including as part of the winning Velouoos squad. And when we recorded this episode in 2018, she was returning to competition after a terrible accident left her in a coma for a month. How do you pick up the pieces, rebuild your confidence and get back on the bike? Let's...

Jo Sorrenson is an age group triathlete, busy mum of 3 and lives with PTSD after a career in the police force. In this interview, we dive deep into Jo’s career - both as an officer and as a triathlete. We talk about mental illness and the shame associated with it and how Jo discovered cycling as a powerful form of therapy for her. 8 x Ironman 70.3 races later - including the 70.3 World Championshi...

Caroline Pemberton was crowned Miss Australia in 2007 at the age of 21. You might assume she grew up dancing, modelling and competing in pageants, only to discover outdoor adventure later in life — but nothing could be further from the truth. A self-proclaimed “goofy tomboy girl with messy hair”, Caroline grew up with two older, outdoorsy brothers and spent most of her childhood chasing them aroun...