Tough Girl Podcast

Helen is a Triathlete and Duathlete who is enjoying success as an age group athlete representing Great Britain. Since competing in her first triathlon in 2006 Helen has been very successful in multi-sport competitions, securing a number of victories and podium places in both, local, national and international Triathlons and Duathlons. Helen takes us back to how she first got into running and cycling and why she decided to take it up again, later on in life. She explains how she became a World Champion in both the Duathlon and Triathlon for her age category. We discuss a wide variety of topics from coping with self doubt and how to break down large challenges into smaller more manageable chunks. In the Tough Girl Podcast, we discuss the following: What a duathlon is Which is harder - duathlons or triathlons Why coaching helped to propel her forward Tips for balancing fitness & training with a full time job The benefit of having a to do list Coping with self doubt & coping with the pressure of having to deliver in a race situation. Mental strength training - positive visualisation, positive words, recognising negative thoughts and how to deal with them, positive self affirmation, and self affirming statements The use of music in warm ups & visualisation sessions Tips for the start of an open water swim in a triathlon One day Ahead Challenge - Cycling 2000 miles over 21 days, one day ahead of the professionals during the Tour de France Dealing with injury Breaking challenges down into smaller parts How to choose the right saddle for you and reduce saddle soreness! Why change is good for you! Tips for cycling up those massive mountains As always if you've enjoyed this episode please send a tweet to Helen @HelenGoth, I'm also on twitter @_TOUGH_GIRL! Helen also has her own website which you can check out at www.hrussell.co.uk . For the One Day Ahead Challenge, Helen was raising money for Cure Leukaemia. If you want to sponsor Helen for doing this fantastic challenge, you can find her just giving page here. To celebrate the Tough Girl Podcast exceeding 5,000 downloads, there's also a competition running until the end of the month to win a Tough Girl Training T-shirt. All you need to do is write a review in iTunes and let me know, either via twitter or email you've done it. New Tough Girl episodes are published every Tuesday morning at 7am. Next month we have another four amazing women sharing their stories. Have a fantastic week, thanks for listening! Sarah

We recorded this episode while Natalie was sat outside a cafe on the streets of New York & I was at sat at home in England! It was great to talk to Natalie about how she first got into fencing and how she progressed in just seven months to competing at the Junior Olympics! She has a really insightful view point on training and what the different aspects are. It was really interesting talking about the mental side and how meditation was so important in her sport and being present, being aware and being in the moment. Lots of advice and tips that you can apply to your life, even if you don't fence. Natalie explains about the different types of fencing and how the scoring and competitions work. I didn't know anything about fencing before this interview and feel as though I've a better understand of what's involved. I now want to give it a go and see what it would be like to hold an epee! Natalie is super down to earth, very friendly and loves her sport. She's just about to start competing to secure her individual place for the Olympics in Rio. Natalie loves Instagram and this is how I first heard of her, check out her pictures and be inspired! She writes a regular blog where she discusses her training, yoga, meditation and her life, well worth a read. As always once you've had a chance to listen please send a tweet to Natalie @NatalieVie, I'm also on twitter @_TOUGH_GIRL letting us know what you think! To celebrate the Tough Girl Podcast exceeding 5,000 downloads, there's also a competition running until the end of the month to win a Tough Girl Training T-shirt! All you need to do is write a review in iTunes and let me know, either via twitter or email you've done it. New Tough Girl episodes are published every Tuesday morning at 7am. Next week we have Helen Russell who'll be talking about duathlons and triathlons. Have a fantastic week, thanks for listening! Sarah

Robyn Baldwin is not your typical women, she's a hard one to define. She's a girly girl, who in her own words is a little vain and does fitness and exercise as she wants to look good naked! But there's the other side; the career women, the women who's driven to achieve not only in her career but in anything she sets her mind to; whether that's being a bikini competitor or competing at an elite level in obstacle course races. She's ambitious, driven and has a strong personality and I like her. I want to be around her, she inspires me and after talking to her, she's made me feel, its ok to be an Alpha Female and its ok to be driven and its ok to go after what you want. She doesn't hold herself back for anyone, therefore I'm not going to hold myself back and after listing to this podcast you won't be holding yourself back anymore. Robyn, may seem like the perfect poster child of a woman who has it all going for her; pretty, smart and outgoing, but behind that image she's been through and handled a lot. We only talk briefly about the toxic relationship she was in a few years ago, but this has obviously had a profound effect on her life and the direction her life has taken her. The difficulties she endured has made her a stronger person and she's learn't from that and put what she learned into practice. In December 2014 she was diagnosed with MS and she shares very honestly what this impact has had on her life and how she's approaching and handling the diagnosis. As well as holding down a full time job, dealing with an incurable disease, Robyn, is living life to the full, she's setting herself challenges and goals, she's keeping fit and doing what she loves. You can't fail to be motivated by her outlook on life and how she approaches every challenge that comes her way. Robyn is a Tough Girl and she's a role for other MS suffered out there and an inspiration for other women who've been in a toxic relationship or are still in a toxic relationship and need to get out. Robyn is on twitter @RobynBaldwin, I'm also on twitter @_TOUGH_GIRL please do send us a tweet once you've listened to this podcast episode. Don't forget to subscribe and I would love for you to leave a review and share the podcast with your friends and family. Let's spread the motivation and inspiration! New Tough Girl episodes are published every Tuesday morning at 7am. Have a fantastic week and I'll be with you all next Tuesday for another awesome episode of the Tough Girl Podcast. Thanks for listening! Sarah x

It's October and the Rugby World Cup has kicked off in the UK and I thought this would be a fantastic opportunity to talk all about rugby, with a former England player and Captain. Catherine Spencer loves rugby, and always has, she was born into a rugby playing family and she started playing with her twin brother when she was just eight years old. She was one of the only girls playing on the team, but that did not stop her, she loved the game and she found out she was pretty good at it! One of the great things about podcasts is you can hear the passion in peoples voices when they talk about something they love. In her own words, "Rugby is the best game in the world". I was so inspired listening to Catherine, it's made me want to go and give it a go and see what it's all about! Rugby is a physical full on contact sport which generally women haven't been involved in. It was not offered when I was at school and it was something that girls just didn't do. But this attitude has been shifting especially over the past five, to ten years. More and more women are coming to love rugby and I wanted to understand how and why this change came about. In this podcast we get to hear one women rugby journey from playing mixed rugby with the boys to leading the England Team out on the field at Twickenham. We discuss teamwork, leadership, going after what you want, dealing with failure, and how you can come back from utter defeat and be stronger than before. After retiring from rugby, Catherine started her own business which is about inspiring women! She has also partnered up with Endure to lead a team on a 150km unsupported trek across the Namib desert to the Skeleton Coast. The aim of this expedition is to raise awareness and help stop the illegal trade of wild animals in partnership with the David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation. Catherine is on twitter @CathSpence8 I'm also on twitter @_TOUGH_GIRL please do send us a tweet once you've listened to this podcast episode. Don't forget to subscribe and I would love for you to leave a review and share the podcast with your friends and family. Let's spread the motivation and inspiration! New Tough Girl episodes are published every Tuesday morning at 7am. Have a fantastic week and I'll be with you all next Tuesday with Robyn Baldwin an Alpha Female, MS Warrior & OCR lover! Sarah

Tori James is most well known for being the first Welsh woman to conquer Mount Everest in 2007. However, she has also raced to the magnetic North Pole in an all female team, cycled the full length of New Zealand and completed the first Beeline Challenge in Britain. Tori loves a challenge and an adventure, when she sets her mind to a goal, nothing or no one will stop her; not sea sickness, not injury, not the cold, and certainly not people telling her she can't do it because she's too small! Tori at 5'1 is not afraid of pushing herself to her limits and finding out what she's capable of doing. (Which is a lot!) If you want to be inspired and learn more about one women's journey from being in the Girl Guides to scaling Everest, then this is the podcast for you. Hear about her journey, what drove her and understand the steps she took to achieve her goals. Learn how you to can break down your next challenge and make it happen. During this podcast, Tori takes us right back to where her love of adventure really started and we get to go with her as she re-lives her challenges in detail. We get to hear about her first big adventure with British Exploring, where she spent four weeks on a glacier in Iceland when she was just a teenager. This cemented her love of geography and the cold! Tori continued to take advantage of the different opportunities that came her way, this was why she and two others decided to compete as the first all female team to be involved in a polar race to reach the magnetic North Pole. These challenges helped to prepare her and teach her valuable skills which paved the way for taking on the highest mountain in the world - Mount Everest. Tori talks through her mental and physical preparation, how she dealt with the risks; the ones she could control and the ones she couldn't and how she handled the negative comments that were directed to her when she shared her dream. Tori discusses team work, how to keep going when you really want to stop and how to build confidence and belief in what you're doing. This is not an episode to be missed! We also have an exclusive announcement about the Duke of Edinburgh Diamond Challenge to celebrate 60 years of the award. Listen here as Tori explains it all! Tori is on twitter @torijtweets, I'm also on twitter @_TOUGH_GIRL please do send us a tweet once you've listened to this podcast episode. Don't forget to subscribe and I would love for you to leave a review and share the podcast with your friends and family. Let's spread the motivation and inspiration! New Tough Girl episodes are published every Tuesday morning at 7am. Have a fantastic week and I'll be with you all next Tuesday for another awesome episode of the Tough Girl Podcast. Thanks for listening! Your Tough Girl Host - Sarah xx

In this episode we get to hear from Great British high jumper, Isobel Pooley who is a remarkable young women, she's passionate, driven and loves what she does. Isobel has had a stunning start to her career, winning a medal at the Commonwealth games in 2014 and then going on to smash the British high jump record which had stood for over 32 years. It hasn't alway been easy for Isobel, she has faced challenges from a young age, being over six foot tall in her teens, and having to deal with random strangers coming up to her and commenting on her hight. She has dealt with loneliness, being unhappy and not fitting in. During this podcast, she talks openly on how she coped and handled these situations. Isobel shows a real love for her sport and she has shown commitment and maturity in her approach to how she trains and how she gets the best out of her body. She talks about physical and mental preparation for competitions as well as what it feels like being in the big sporting arenas. While she talks, I could picture myself in the stadium, seeing what's going on in her head as she prepares to jump. You too will be able to learn from Isobel, she is positive, optimistic, and isn't afraid to be tough as she speaks her mind about topics she feels strongly about. Isobel has been on a journey of discovery, building her confidence and belief in what she can accomplish in the high jump. She now knows who she is, what drives her and she has finally accepted herself and her height and sees it for what it really is, a unique and special gift. She is one of Britain's great hopes for Rio in 2016 and I know after listing to this you will understand why she's so good at what she does. Isobel is on twitter @IsobelPooley do give her a follow and check out her website and blog to be kept unto date of whats she's been up to. I'm also on twitter @_TOUGH_GIRL please do tweet us a shout out once you've listened to this podcast episode. Don't forget to subscribe and I would love for you to leave a review and share the podcast with your friends and family. Let spread the motivation and inspiration! New Tough Girl episodes are published every Tuesday morning at 7am. Have a fantastic week and I'll be with you all next Tuesday for another fantastic episode of the Tough Girl Podcast. Thanks for listening! Sarah www.toughgirlchallenges.com

Tough Girl Challenges is all about motivating and inspiring women and girls. This is an episode not to be missed, especially if you're interested in swimming or want to know more about open water swimming. Lisa Williams is a down to earth normal woman in her thirties, who has gone on to do an extra-ordinary challenge. Lisa has just swam the English Channel, the 21 miles from England over to France! During this podcast, Lisa explains how she first got into swimming as a young girl and why she decided to take it up again later on in life. She clearly explains everything, and gives awesome actionable tips on how to get involved in swimming through masters clubs, and how to make an individual sport, fun and sociable. It has certainly encouraged me to go for a swim, but definitely in a heated pool! Let Lisa tell you more about the challenges involved in training for the English Channel swim, the hours of dedication over a two and half year training plan and having to put on over two stone in weight! Lisa is knowledgeable and passionate about swimming and she will also inspire you to give it a go - Like all the challenges we talk about on the Tough Girl Podcast, it's not just about swimming the English Channel and doing a massive challenge. It's about getting fit, active and doing something fun for you. Swimming may or may not be right for you but it's fascinating to hear about her experience of what she went through to raise money for an incredible charity - The Royal Marsden Cancer Charity. To donate any amount large or small please donate here. Lisa has a Blog where she has recorded the day to day trials of training for the swim. She's also on twitter @lisa_j_williams I'm also on twitter @_TOUGH_GIRL. Once you've listened to the podcast do send us a tweet and let us know! It would be great to hear from you. New Tough Girl episodes are published every Tuesday morning at 7am. Don't forget to subscribe and I would love for you to leave a review and share the podcast with your friends and family. Let's spread the motivation and inspiration! Have a fantastic week and I'll be with you next Tuesday. Sarah

Tough Girl Challenges is all about motivating and inspiring women and girls. As well as interviewing athletes, explorers and adventures. I also think it's important to interview the women behind the scenes, the women who support and help others to achieve their goals. In this episode I interview Gale Bernhardt, she has a real passion for helping others and she found this passion when she was sixteen years old. As a renowned Olympic Coach with over twenty years experience she knows what she's talking about. She's also heavily involved in cycling and multi-sport athlete development. In this episode, Gale gives a fascinating insight into how the sport of triathlon has grown over the years since its birth in 1976. She has been there from the start. Gale was one of the first female coaches to realise how big triathlons were going to be in the future. Gale reminisces about her first event, and why she became hooked on the sport. She provides advice and tips for women who want to do their first sprint triathlon and its not as difficult as you think it would be. She is realistic about the training and the time frames needed to complete an event and its not the twenty or thirty hours of training each week as you would expect. You can train for your first sprint triathlon in five hours a week! Gale also discusses the importance of goal setting and gives great advice on how to sit down and do this. I also share one of my more outlandish goals! She's worked with Nicole Freedman a road racer who wanted to go to the 2000 Sydney Olympics. She had been written off by everyone else in the States and no one else believed she would be able to get there. She was overtrained and undertrained at the same time, and was in a really difficult place. Gale helped her and she can help you to! This is an episode not to be missed, especially if you're interested in triathlons and want to know more about how to start. Gale also talks about mental preparation and the importance of nutrition in your diet. Please visit her website www.galebernhardt.com. Gale is on twitter @GaleBerhardt I'm also on twitter @_TOUGH_GIRL. Listen to the podcast and send us a tweet! It would be great to hear from you. Please check out the website - ToughGirlChallenges.com and subscribe to the newsletter to be kept updated of future podcasts and challenges.

Tough Girl Challenges is all about motivating and inspiring women and girls. In this episode I interview Liz Yelling. Liz is a British long-distance runner, who excelled in the marathon distance (26.2 miles), and her personal best is a staggering time of 2 hr 28 mins 33 seconds! Liz has competed in two consecutive Olympics Games, Athens and Beijing, she's also a Commonwealth medalist winning a Bronze medal in Melbourne in 2006. During this podcast, Liz talks about how she first got into running, and how she progressed from running cross country at school, to joining an athletics club before becoming a professional and making the transition from 10K races, to marathons. For anyone interesting in running and wanting to understand the mind set of how runners train for the big event. This is the podcast you need to listen to. Liz has a fascinating story to share, its full of highs and lows and during this interview she is very open as she discusses a variety of topics, from confidence, how she trains and what she learnt from training over the years, her mental and physical preparation before races as well as her life after running. Liz has dealt with a lot over her running career and it hasn't always been a smooth road, she's dealt with injury, chronic fatigue, and lack of belief in herself. She talks about overcoming disappointment in her career and how she moved herself forward and handled potentially career ending set backs. Her outlook on life is hugely pragmatic and positive. I personally really enjoyed hearing about her Olympic runs in Athens and Beijing and how she trained and got herself into the best physical and mental state possible so she was ready to do what was needed on the day. For Liz, running will always be a huge part of her life, she now runs for pleasure, taking her children with her. Liz also coaches athletes through, Yelling Performance which she runs with her husband Martin. Here she shares her knowledge of running with complete beginners to more experienced runners. This is an episode not to be missed! Liz is on twitter @girlwhatruns I'm also on twitter @_TOUGH_GIRL. Listen to the podcast and send us a tweet! It would be great to hear from you. Please checkout the website - ToughGirlChallenges.com and subscribe to the newsletter to be kept updated of future podcasts and challenges.

Tough Girl Challenges is all about motivating and inspiring women and girls. In this episode I interview Ann Daniels a record breaking polar explorer. Described by the Times as "living proof that humans really can reach new peaks". In 2002, Ann became the first woman in history to ski to the North and South Poles as part of all women teams. She has sledge-hauled over 4000 miles, completing over 10 polar expeditions and surviving over 400 days on the ice. During this podcast Ann talks about how she took her first steps to becoming a polar explorer. At thirty years old she'd never done anything like this before. She was going through a tough divorce and she had just given birth to triplets! Ann decided she needed to follow her dreams and she wasn't going to let anything or anyone stop her. She applied for a relay expedition to the North Pole in 1997. She was not one of the strongest candidates, with her limited knowledge and experience. But she made up for this with her work ethic and drive. She set her goal and she went for it, she kept on learning and she kept on adapting. She faced huge challenges in one of the most inhospitable environments on the planet and that's were she learnt the most about herself and what she could achieve. She built her own self confidence; she overcame monumental physical and mental challenges and became stronger and tougher because of it. She developed a mindset where she would not give up. On this podcast you can listen to Ann in her own words as she explains in detail how she coped with serious setbacks in the Arctic. How she honed her leadership skills and empowered herself and others along the way. Ann provides tips and advice and is passionate about what she does. She also talks about a future challenge that's going to take place in April 2017. Her eyes were opened to the difficulties that young people face in terms of dealing with mental illnesses and the stigma that surrounds it. It was brought closer to home when her eighteen year old daughter was take ill. Ann will lead an expedition of six young people on a journey to the Arctic that they will never forget and in the process raise £3 million pounds for charity. To learn more about Ann and her challenges please visit her website www.anndaniels.com. This podcast will inspire you, and get you to think about what you've always wanted to do? What chances do you need to take to go after your dreams? What's really stopping you? What excuses are you telling yourself? Ann will encourage you to believe in yourself and believe in the opportunities that are coming available to you. Listen to Ann and go for it. Give it a go and see what happens. No matter what, you will learn more about yourself by saying yes, than you ever will by saying no. Ann Daniels is on twitter @AnnDanielsGB I'm also on twitter @_TOUGH_GIRL. If you've enjoyed this episode lets us know and send us a tweet! It would be great to hear from you. Please checkout the website - ToughGirlChallenges.com and subscribe to the newsletter to be kept updated of future Tough Girl podcasts and challenges. "If it doesn't challenge you, it doesn't change you."