A few weeks ago, Sparta Chicks Radio celebrated its 5th birthday. 

And there is no one I’d rather share that celebration with than this week’s return guest, Lucy Barnard! 

Lucy is attempting to become the 1st woman to walk the length of the world.

She set off in February 2017 from Tierra Del Fuego in Argentina to walk to Barrow, Alaska; a journey of 30,000km /20,000mi across 15 countries that she anticipated would take about 5 years. 

When Lucy first joined me on the podcast in March 2018, I realised we share a unique connection; we both started our respective journeys - Lucy started walking and I published the first podcast - on the very same day in 2017.

That conversation turned into our first anniversary / birthday celebration and we agreed to catch up each year for an update on her progress! 

Needless, the pandemic has interrupted her plans again in 2021. 

But that wasn’t going to stop us from talking - and in fact, this could be my favourite of all our conversations! It’s very different from our previous conversations. 

In this wide-ranging conversation, we discuss everything from what happens when you’re derailed or blindsided by things outside your control to identity, goal setting, values, fear, comparison, self-reflection and the power of community.

Get the full show notes for the episode here.

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Follow Lucy on Instagram: @tanglesandtail

Today you’re going to meet the awesome Gill Castle (you’ll understand the significance of the ‘awesome’ once you listen to this conversation!

Gill describes herself as a very ordinary person and Police Officer before the birth of her son in 2011 changed her life. 

His premature birth left her with traumatic injuries, the full extent of which weren’t identified by doctors for 5 days. Those injuries included a fistula, a hole in the wall between her rectum and vagina that left her with faecal incontinence and needing to use a stoma bag (a colostomy bag) for the rest of her life.

A very long physical and mental recovery followed.

Then one day she read an article - she’ll tell you about it in this conversation - that changed the trajectory of her life. And the rest, as they say, is history.

Since then, she’s done triathlons, scuba dived, skydived, sea kayaked and taken up ocean swimming.

And now she’s training for her next challenge: 5 years ago Gill couldn’t swim in the ocean without opening her eyes and now she’s training to swim across the English Channel!

You might be tempted to call her an inspiration, but she actually hates that term. She describes herself as the most ordinary person who just had a life-changing experience that has made her appreciate everything and want to try everything. 

And she will leave you wanting to do the same.

Get the full show notes for the episode here.

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Follow Gill on Instagram: @stoma_chameleon

Kate Bevilaqua returns to Sparta Chicks Radio this week!

Kate is an endurance coach, triathlete, an Ultraman Triathlon World Champion and the first woman in history to win an Ultraman triathlon event overall. 

She shared her story in episode 3 of the podcast.

This time, Kate returns to discuss her experience as a coach and to share her advice for athletes preparing for ultra events.

Even if you aren’t training for an ultra-distance event, I have no doubt you’ll benefit from Kate’s wisdom regardless of what distance, or what event, you are training for.  

Given it’s January and most of us are thinking about or setting our goals, I thought it would be the perfect time to have this discussion.

Get the full show notes for the episode here.

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Follow Kate on Instagram: @katebevilaqua

Welcome to this special edition of Sparta Chicks Radio as we count down the 5 most popular episodes of 2021.

The #1 most popular episode of Sparta Chicks Radio in 2021 was Selene Yeager on the Power of Cycling & Why Balance is Bullshit

Selene is a professional health and fitness writer who is also the author or co-author of 6 books including ‘Rusch to Glory’ about MTB champion Rebecca Rusch and the incredibly popular ‘Roar’ with Dr Stacy Sims.

Selene is also an extraordinary athlete in her own right.

She’s been a semi-professional athlete since her late 30s and has competed in everything from Hawaii Ironman to 7 day mountain bike stage races and 200 mile (that’s 320km) gravel classics.

And she hosts the popular podcast ‘Hit Play Not Pause” for active performance-minded women in their 40s and beyond.

In this conversation, we discuss the power of cycling, the importance of storytelling and why balance is bullshit.

Get the full show notes for the episode here.

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Follow Sparta Chicks Radio on Facebook: facebook.com/SpartaChicks 

Follow Selene on Instagram: @fitchick3

Welcome to this special edition of Sparta Chicks Radio as we count down the 5 most popular episodes of 2021.

The #2 most popular episode of Sparta Chicks Radio in 2021 was Erin Carson on Strength, Personal Power & Writing Your Own Story

Erin Carson is the strength coach to the stars of the endurance sports world.

Based in Boulder, Colorado she is the co-owner & operator of Rally Sports and is the head coach for EC Fit. Her clients include the dynamic duo of Mirinda Carfrae (3 x Ironman World Champion) and  Tim O’Donnell (fastest American ever at Kona).

Aside from the World Champions she coaches, Erin also coaches everyday people - like me!  I use Erin’s ECFit on Demand app for my strength and conditioning program. 

She’s a visionary who is changing what it means to be a strong athlete and what is considered to be the best form of strength training for endurance athletes. 

Get the full show notes for the episode here.

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Follow Erin on Instagram: @ecfit_strength

Welcome to this special edition of Sparta Chicks Radio as we count down the 5 most popular episodes of 2021.

The 3rd most popular episode of Sparta Chicks Radio in 2021 was Lucy Barnard on Year 4  of Walking the Length of the World

Lucy is attempting to become the 1st woman to walk the length of the world.

She set off in February 2017 from Tierra Del Fuego in Argentina to walk to Barrow, Alaska; a journey of 30,000km /20,000mi across 15 countries she anticipated would take her 5 years. 

Yes, years.

Lucy was first on the podcast in March 2018. And when I was preparing to speak to Lucy for that episode, I realised we share a unique connection; we both started our respective journeys - Lucy started walking and I published the first podcast - on the very same day in 2017.

That conversation turned into our first anniversary / birthday celebration and we agreed to catch up each year for an update on her progress! 

This is our 4th annual episode and Lucy joined me to share how 2020 unfolded for her.

Get the full show notes for the episode here.

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Visit the Sparta Chicks Radio website here

Follow Sparta Chicks Radio on Facebook: facebook.com/SpartaChicks 

Follow Lucy on Instagram: @tanglesandtail

Welcome to this special edition of Sparta Chicks Radio as we count down the 5 most popular episodes of 2021.

The #4 most popular episode of Sparta Chicks Radio in 2021 was Tara Diversi on Swimming the ‘Ice Mile’ 

The next time you hop in an ice bath or stick a sprained ankle into a bucket of ice water, I’m sure you’ll think of this episode of the podcast with Tara Divesi.

Tara is a Sports Dietitian and an Accredited Practising Dietitian and an accomplished athlete and marathon swimmer, having completed the English Channel, the Gibraltar Straight, the Rottnest Island swim and the Palm Beach to Manly swim here in Sydney (amongst many others).

But the focus of this conversation is on her most recent, and coldest, challenge - becoming the first Australian woman to complete an Ice Mile. 

That is swimming one mile (1.6km) in water that is 5 degrees or less. 

To put that into perspective, ice baths used by athletes to help with recovery generally sit around 14 degrees.

So why does a woman who lives in tropical Far North Queensland set a goal to swim a mile in ice water?

Let’s find out!

Get the full show notes for the episode here.

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Follow Sparta Chicks Radio on Facebook: facebook.com/SpartaChicks 

Follow Tara on Instagram: @taradiversi

Welcome to this special edition of Sparta Chicks Radio as we count down the 5 most popular episodes of 2021.

The 5th most popular episode of Sparta Chicks Radio in 2021 was Brooke Nolan on Confidence, Compassion & Comparison (in the Arctic)  

Growing up exercise was a source of shame and embarrassment for Brooke Nolan. 

It was only in her late 20s that she discovered a love of outdoor adventure.

Fast forward a few years and in March 2020, Brooke found herself on the first all-female team to cross the Finnmark Plateau, which is an ice plateau in Arctic Norway.

The crossing was a journey of 250km 14 days that required the team to drag sleds weighing up to 50kgs up to 20km each day in temperatures as cold as -30.

Oh, did I mention?

Before committing to this expedition, Brooke had never seen snow before, and certainly didn’t know how to ski!

Now we could have spent the entire episode talking about the expedition, but as I said, this was March 2020 and Brooke and her team were off the grid for 14 days.

When they left, Covid-19 was a blip on the radar.

By the time they returned, it had become a pandemic, borders were closing and it was a race to the airport to try and get a flight home, which ultimately took her over 4 months. 

 Get the full show notes for the episode here.

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Follow Brooke on Instagram: @giveintoadventure

This week on the podcast I’m delighted to welcome Bonnie Hancock.

This episode is very timely because today - December 19 - Bonnie sets out on an epic quest: to paddle her surf ski around Australia. 

Her goal: to become the fastest and youngest person to do it.

It’s a journey of 16,000km that will take her around 6 months, along some of the most remote parts of Australia and not to mention through (in places) shark and crocodile-infested waters.

Bonnie grew up in the same coastal town of Sawmill and was joining in activities at her local surf club from the time she was 5. 

At the age of 17, she (and her sister Courtney) moved to the Gold Coast to train and attempt to join the professional (surf life saving) Ironwoman series here in Australia which she did, just a few months later.

After competing in the professional ranks for close to a decade (and a bout of overtraining and burnout), Bonnie switched her attention to ocean ski paddling and finished the Molokai Challenge - a 52km ocean ski race between the islands of Molokai and Oahu in Hawaii, finishing fifth - in her first race in the sport.

Sometime later, she read a book written by the first woman to paddle around Australia, the seed was planted and the rest, as they say, is history!

Get the full show notes for the episode here.

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Follow Bonnie on Instagram: @bonniehancock

Jo Lum is a Sydney-based triathlete and busy mum who has been a regular on the triathlon scene in Sydney for years.

Jo and her friend Katie were originally training for Ironman Australia in 2020.

That race was postponed 4 times - twice in 2020 and then twice in 2021 - before it was eventually cancelled.

So Jo and Katie decided not to let their fitness go to waste and designed and completed a DIY Ironman distance event in May 2021.

They swam 3.8km in a pool, then hopped on their bikes and rode 180km primarily along bike paths, before heading to their respective homes to finish their ‘race’ by running 42km around their neighbourhoods.

There were even race bibs, finisher’s t-shirts and (to their surprise) finishers medals!

I’ve shared this story multiple times over the last few months because it’s a powerful example of two important things: focusing on what you can control and asking for help (and being willing to accept it when offered). 

Get the full show notes for the episode here.

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Follow Jo on Instagram: @jomumlum

I’m delighted to welcome Dr Anita Heiss to Sparta Chicks Radio this week

Anita is a proud member of the Wiradjuri Nation of central New South Wales and one of Australia’s most prolific and well-known authors. 

She has written 18 books including her latest novel, an epic tale called Bila Yarrudhanggalangdhuray (or River of Dreams).

It’s also the first time in Australia a commercially published book has used a First Nations language for the title.

Anita enjoys eating chocolate, running and being a 'creative disruptor'.

Initially, I wanted to talk to Anita to explore her running career and how she uses running as a tool to support herself and her work. 

Yet the more research I did, the more I realised I wanted to speak to her about:

-  awareness, history and truth-telling, 

- the importance of getting comfortable with being uncomfortable and 

- the power of using your voice, sharing your story and telling your truth.

Get the full show notes for the episode here.

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Follow Sparta Chicks Radio on Facebook: facebook.com/SpartaChicks 

Follow Anita on Instagram: @dranitaheiss