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 st ..read more

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 ..read more

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

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 o ..read more

Sarah Davis is a professional risk manager with a passion for risk-taking. And she’s back for her 4th visit to Sparta Chicks Radio! In 2019, Sarah became the first woman to lead an expedition along the length of the Nile (and joined me on episodes 34 and 134 to share that story). Then in February, 2021 (episode 155) she returned to share details of her next epic adventure, in which she planned to swap her paddles for pedals and ride (with her friend Tara Lal) 5,000km unsupported across Australia for charity. She’s back today to share how the epic adventure unfolded! Get the full show notes for ..read more

If you're struggling with motivation, your mojo is MIA or you feel like you've lost your spark, this is for you! You can find all the details here ..read more

Raised in India to adventure-loving parents, Vedangi Kulkarni set out on her first epic ride - crossing the Himalayas - when she just 17. Then in 2017 at the age of 19, she set out on her quest to become the fastest person to circumnavigate the world and to complete the journey in 100 days. And while she missed both of those goals, after riding 29,000km / 18,000mi and 160 days, 14 countries and 1 birthday later, she became the youngest woman to ever circumnavigate the world on a bike. She was 20. In this conversation she shares: - her 850km solo cycling adventure across the Himalayas at 17 and ..read more

You’ll meet Lauren Tischendorf on Sparta Chicks Radio this week. In 2021, Lauren because the first woman to swim around Lord Howe Island - a distance of 32.2km that she completed in 13 hours and 50 minutes. Lauren’s story is captured in an award-winning documentary called "I Just Went For a Swim”. Lauren is a school teacher by day and an endurance athlete outside school hours. An ultra-marathon runner, she started focusing on her ocean swimming about 5 years ago. In that time, she’s become an accomplished ocean swimmer and is the reigning 5km ocean swimming champion of NSW. And yet, an off-han ..read more

Josie is a New Zealand based runner and Holistic Wellness Coach who grew up watching her Dad compete in running events. As she tells the story in this conversation, she was a chubby kid who was teased about her weight so she started running during her teenage years to lose weight. Unfortunately, she soon found herself in a cycle of overtraining, under-recovery & under-eating for about 9 years. Ultimately it culminated in her experiencing the female athlete triad (as it was referred to then, which is a combination of disordered eating, amenorrhea and osteoporosis or low bone density) and ul ..read more

Based in Boulder, Erin Carson 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 the best strength training for endurance athletes.  Get the full show notes for the episode ..read more