WEBVTT - How to get strong (& stay strong)

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<v Speaker 1>Hi, folks, how are you? Thank you for tuning into

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<v Speaker 1>this body and soul podcast called Healthy Ish. I am

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<v Speaker 1>Felicity Harley. Joining me today is a woman who is strong,

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<v Speaker 1>very strong in both body and mind. But we are

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<v Speaker 1>focusing on what it takes to get a strong body.

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<v Speaker 1>In this episode, my guest is high performance coach and

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<v Speaker 1>motivational speaker Alexa Twers. She is also known as Action

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<v Speaker 1>Alexa on Instagram. Anyway, she will tell us exactly how

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<v Speaker 1>to build that full body strength. If you do like

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<v Speaker 1>what you hear from Alexa, I know you will make

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<v Speaker 1>sure you're listening to extra Healthy Ish, where she talks

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<v Speaker 1>more about how to cultivate a strong mind. You can

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<v Speaker 1>search for that wherever you get your podcasts.

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<v Speaker 2>Alexa, welcome, thanks for having me.

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<v Speaker 1>I can't believe we have a met in person. I

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<v Speaker 1>mean I think we have. Well, I've been following you

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<v Speaker 1>for a long time social media because I feel like

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<v Speaker 1>I do know you.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, it's every person I've ever met in person of

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<v Speaker 2>social has never ever called me by my real name.

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<v Speaker 2>What is it like, well, my full name, Like everyone's

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<v Speaker 2>always like, oh, Action Alexa, I've set.

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<v Speaker 1>Down the bus your handle.

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<v Speaker 2>Yes, the guys at a table next to me, being

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<v Speaker 2>like actional Lexa, do you want an arm wrestler? I'm

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<v Speaker 2>like no, Can someone ask me for my number?

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<v Speaker 1>Are you good at arm wrestles?

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<v Speaker 2>I used to be Yeah, used to get me free

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<v Speaker 2>breakfast in Hong Kong.

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<v Speaker 1>Well there we go. I should call you action Alexa.

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<v Speaker 1>Sorry something like that. Okay, strong, I mean you are

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<v Speaker 1>incredibly strong. We'll talk about your strong minded, extra healthy ish,

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<v Speaker 1>but your your strength of body. What does what does

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<v Speaker 1>it feel like to be strong?

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<v Speaker 2>God? Such a great question, you know. My love of

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<v Speaker 2>weight training and being strong stems back to when I

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<v Speaker 2>was fifteen and my mom was diagnosed with a mental illness.

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<v Speaker 2>I was being bullied at school for being too skinny,

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<v Speaker 2>so my nickname at school was actually a Lexa and Arexa. O.

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<v Speaker 1>Gosh, that's c aren't they?

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<v Speaker 2>Yes, they are. And I went to the weights room

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<v Speaker 2>on a mission for muscles and it was kind of

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<v Speaker 2>that was my first ever experience with lifting weights, and

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<v Speaker 2>that place just became my sanctuary, and I think from

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<v Speaker 2>then on in it sort of it became the place

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<v Speaker 2>where I learned to develop physical strength. But then I

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<v Speaker 2>also learned about the connection between physical strength and the

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<v Speaker 2>mental fortitude that came alongside that, and it's just I

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<v Speaker 2>can't describe it. But for me, the gym isn't so

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<v Speaker 2>much about Peb's in the gym. It's kind of about

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<v Speaker 2>the bad assory that you get from lifting the heavy

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<v Speaker 2>weights and then how that translates into the rest of

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<v Speaker 2>your life, because I just feel like it's a catalyst

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<v Speaker 2>for so many other areas.

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<v Speaker 1>I mean, you're so right. I mean when I go heavy,

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<v Speaker 1>which I like doing, not as heavy as you mind,

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<v Speaker 1>you you just you feel unstoppable, you do, and I

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<v Speaker 1>think that's what has given me the confidence to do

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<v Speaker 1>everything else that I've kind of tried to give a crack.

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<v Speaker 2>And I think that feeling of empowerment, you know, not

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<v Speaker 2>everybody has a really positive first experience with fitness, and

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<v Speaker 2>I think I was just incredibly lucky to find myself

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<v Speaker 2>in a place where people really had my back, people

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<v Speaker 2>really inspired me, they really took me under their wing,

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<v Speaker 2>and that sense of empowerment was such a gift that

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<v Speaker 2>it's probably why I do what I do now, because

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<v Speaker 2>I think, for you know, me, as both a coach

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<v Speaker 2>and a female, there's nothing more rewarding than seeing a

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<v Speaker 2>woman become empowered in her training and then watching how

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<v Speaker 2>that translates into her attitude towards the rest of her life, like,

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<v Speaker 2>that's the coolest thing about what I get to do.

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<v Speaker 1>And also linking that, I mean often we go to

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<v Speaker 1>the gym and we lift weights and we think, oh,

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<v Speaker 1>we have to do this to keep fit and strengthen

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<v Speaker 1>our muscles, especially as we're getting older. But to translate

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<v Speaker 1>those same learnings from the gym into other areas of

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<v Speaker 1>your life, perhaps that connection isn't made enough.

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<v Speaker 2>No, And I think, and when it comes to work ethic,

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<v Speaker 2>like I find that if you can cultivate like a

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<v Speaker 2>stellar work ethic and your training, it often permeates everything

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<v Speaker 2>else that you do. So there are so many connections

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<v Speaker 2>that are really undervalued and not spoken about enough.

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<v Speaker 1>For sure. Now on Instagram, you know you write you

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<v Speaker 1>wrote that you're forty four, but your mind says you're

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<v Speaker 1>twenty five. When it comes to lifting weights. Now this

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<v Speaker 1>is probably I think, something that a lot of a

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<v Speaker 1>scrapper with. Oh, I used to be able to lift

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<v Speaker 1>this in the gym. Oh, I used to be able

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<v Speaker 1>to run this. I used to be able to do this,

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<v Speaker 1>and now I can't. How do you like, how do

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<v Speaker 1>you manage this and navigate this look?

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<v Speaker 2>I'm not going to say it's easy, because I think

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<v Speaker 2>it's a really it's a really easy path to fall into,

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<v Speaker 2>especially if you're on social media and there's a lot

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<v Speaker 2>of really fit, fine looking females out there where that

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<v Speaker 2>genetically blessed twenty year old bodies who were doing incredible things.

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<v Speaker 2>And I think when you get older with filters Monday, yeah,

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<v Speaker 2>you know, it's not Everything that you see on social

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<v Speaker 2>media is obviously not real life. And you know, if

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<v Speaker 2>you put two people in front of me, who one

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<v Speaker 2>was twenty years old lifting incredible weights in the gym

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<v Speaker 2>and looking phenomenal, and then you have a forty year

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<v Speaker 2>old lady lifting the same amount of weights and looking phenomenal,

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<v Speaker 2>I'm going to be more inspired by the forty year

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<v Speaker 2>old female and the gym lifting weights, because man, the

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<v Speaker 2>dedication and the discipline and the commitment to cultivating that

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<v Speaker 2>for so many years of your life and still looking

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<v Speaker 2>like that and still being able to do like that

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<v Speaker 2>is so much more impressive to me. And those are

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<v Speaker 2>the people that I go to for education and empowerment

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<v Speaker 2>and inspiration, and I wish more women would look at

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<v Speaker 2>that and be more inspired by that, because I think

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<v Speaker 2>the worst thing we can do as we get older

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<v Speaker 2>is try to fight our bodies to get back to

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<v Speaker 2>what we could do when we're twenty. And I think

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<v Speaker 2>it's natural, Like, you know, when I was in my twenties,

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<v Speaker 2>I had I started out in the gym purely for

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<v Speaker 2>esthetic reason. I wanted to look a certain way, and

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<v Speaker 2>you buy into that. But I think inevitably along the

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<v Speaker 2>journey you kind of then find how weights makes you

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<v Speaker 2>feel or how training makes you feel, and you buy

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<v Speaker 2>into that. You know, I shifted from aesthetics and then

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<v Speaker 2>I went to performance, and now I train because I

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<v Speaker 2>want to feel good. I want to be able to

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<v Speaker 2>do all the things I love to do outside of

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<v Speaker 2>the gym, and I also don't want to be in pain.

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<v Speaker 2>You know, as you get older, your body doesn't respond

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<v Speaker 2>the same way to either training or nutrition, and you

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<v Speaker 2>can spend all of your time fighting that and have

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<v Speaker 2>your body be like have an absolute tantrument about it

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<v Speaker 2>and you not get anywhere, or you can lean into

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<v Speaker 2>what your body actually wants, start listening to it, and

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<v Speaker 2>start preparing for like, you know, less summer bodies more

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<v Speaker 2>old Lady bodies, you know.

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<v Speaker 1>Like, bring on the old lady bodies.

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<v Speaker 2>We want strong muscles and dense bones to kind of

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<v Speaker 2>carry us into a really strong future. Like the statistics

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<v Speaker 2>surrounding osteoporosis and women quite terrifying, you know, like forty

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<v Speaker 2>percent of women after menopause will develop, you know, will

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<v Speaker 2>have an osteoproduct fracture. And by the time you're eighty,

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<v Speaker 2>forty percent of women will have osteoporosis. I don't want fractures.

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<v Speaker 2>I don't want to be falling over and getting injured

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<v Speaker 2>and not having functional independence when I'm old, and we

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<v Speaker 2>need to start preparing for that.

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<v Speaker 1>What does your weekly strength through team of client?

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<v Speaker 2>I since I had my head replacement, I had a

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<v Speaker 2>have replacement six seven years ago now, and it changed

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<v Speaker 2>the way that I train. It forced me to reassess

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<v Speaker 2>the way that I trained, and now I probably train

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<v Speaker 2>two to three times a week structured strength training in

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<v Speaker 2>the gym. My warm ups and my activation and mobility

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<v Speaker 2>and stabilization stuff are probably longer than my actual workouts themselves.

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<v Speaker 1>Oh interesting, Yeah.

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<v Speaker 2>I take a long time to warm up and then

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<v Speaker 2>I have probably two days where I do some pilates

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<v Speaker 2>and more restorative type stuff where I focus more on

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<v Speaker 2>stress management.

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<v Speaker 1>Now talking about stress, you are coming up in a

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<v Speaker 1>show called Naked and Afraid. Actually's out in the US.

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<v Speaker 1>It's coming to Australia in December. There must have been

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<v Speaker 1>a lot of stress being in the Colombian junk call Naked.

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<v Speaker 1>Were you afraid God?

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<v Speaker 2>More afraid of failure? To be honest, like, not afraid

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<v Speaker 2>of the jungle her self, more afraid of failure. I

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<v Speaker 2>think I spent my whole life trying to hit specific

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<v Speaker 2>goals and being out there. The goal was to survive

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<v Speaker 2>and that was the only thing I was really worried about,

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<v Speaker 2>like not pulling my own weight for lack of a

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<v Speaker 2>better term, out there. So I really leaned into all

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<v Speaker 2>the physical hard work. I was like, the way I'm

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<v Speaker 2>going to get through this is by being a workhorse

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<v Speaker 2>and using the work ethic that I've developed, And that's

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<v Speaker 2>exactly what happened.

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<v Speaker 1>We look forward to talking about about it extra Healthy.

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<v Speaker 1>Thank you for coming on the podcast.

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<v Speaker 2>Oh, thank you so much for having me.

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<v Speaker 1>I hope you enjoyed this chat with Alexa. Hearing from

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<v Speaker 1>her now we have to get her back on when

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<v Speaker 1>her series of don Alive drops. It is towards the

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<v Speaker 1>end of the year, so yeah, if you do want

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<v Speaker 1>a little snapshot of it, make sure you listen to

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<v Speaker 1>Extra Healthyish because we talk a lot about it on there.

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<v Speaker 1>If you did enjoy this chat, jump on rate and

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<v Speaker 1>review it. You can subscribe to this podcast, share it

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<v Speaker 1>with a friend someone who needs a bit of motivation

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<v Speaker 1>when it comes to building strength anything else. Head to

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<v Speaker 1>body andsoul dot com dot you follow us on socials.

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<v Speaker 1>Grab our print edition which is out in your local

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<v Speaker 1>Sunday paper and until tomorrow it Stay healthy Ish