Latest / Hurdle with Emily Abbate / 221. Allyson Felix, 5X Olympian, Co-Founder of Saysh

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221. Allyson Felix, 5X Olympian, Co-Founder of Saysh · Hurdle with Emily Abbate

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Speaker 1: I imagine that it's going to be challenging over the next
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Speaker 1: year as I kind of settle into a new phase
0:06
Speaker 1: of life for me. But I have so much gratitude
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Speaker 1: for everything that it's been, and I think that if
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Speaker 1: I didn't feel some type of way, I think that's
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Speaker 1: just an expression of, you know, how much I loved it.
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Speaker 2: Hey, everybody, I'm having a dance party over here. Emily
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Speaker 2: A body bringing you the first episode of season twelve
0:40
Speaker 2: of Hurdle. I my goodness, if you told me four
0:43
Speaker 2: and a half years ago when I started this show
0:46
Speaker 2: in my fourth floor walk up on the Upper East Side,
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Speaker 2: with nothing, no expectations but to try something new, that
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Speaker 2: we would be over five hundred and thirty episodes deep
0:57
Speaker 2: and I would have had the opportunity to talk to
1:00
Speaker 2: some of the most outrageous humans and learn from them.
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Speaker 3: Yeah. I don't know if I would have believed you.
1:07
Speaker 2: I can't believe we're here, but I'm so happy that
1:10
Speaker 2: we are, and I'm so grateful that you are along
1:14
Speaker 2: for the journey. If you're out of the loop and
1:16
Speaker 2: you are listening to this voice right now, then you
1:18
Speaker 2: are officially a hurdler. That's what I call my audience
1:22
Speaker 2: and again I am back today bringing you season twelve.
1:27
Speaker 3: You are listening to Hurdle.
1:30
Speaker 2: A wellness focused podcast reconnect with everyone from your favorite
1:33
Speaker 2: athletes to top experts in industry CEOs about their highest ties,
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Speaker 2: toughest moments, and everything in between. We all go through
1:40
Speaker 2: hurdles in life, and my goal through these discussions is
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Speaker 2: to empower you to better navigate yours and move with
1:47
Speaker 2: intention so that you can stride towards your own big
1:50
Speaker 2: potential and of course have some fun along the way.
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Speaker 3: Y'all know the deal.
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Speaker 2: Season premiere means we've got to do it big, and
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Speaker 2: what bigger way to do it than with the most
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Speaker 2: decorated track and field athlete of all time, the goat,
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Speaker 2: Alison Felix.
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Speaker 3: That's right.
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Speaker 2: For episode two hundred and twenty one, we are going
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Speaker 2: in with a true track and field phenomenon. I list
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Speaker 2: all of her athletes in the first ten seconds of
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Speaker 2: the podcast, but she also happens to be the co
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Speaker 2: founder and president of SAYSH, a mom and an enthusiastic activist.
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Speaker 3: For women's and maternal rights.
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Speaker 2: Worth noting, this is Allison's second appearance on the show, So.
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Speaker 3: If you want to get caught up to speed. I'm
2:40
Speaker 3: going to.
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Speaker 2: Link her first appearance in the show notes for today's conversation,
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Speaker 2: Allison talks to me about retirement. Yeah, I feel like
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Speaker 2: there's a massive, what's the word like changing of the
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Speaker 2: guard right now in women's sports, and it's.
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Speaker 3: Definitely making me feel some kind of way.
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Speaker 2: So many of my favorites, Surren Alison subird. These are
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Speaker 2: only a few, but all of them dramatically impacting the
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Speaker 2: future of sport period, which makes it pretty appropriate that
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Speaker 2: a large chunk of our conversation today is talking about
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Speaker 2: the concept of legacy and how what she thought hers
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Speaker 2: would be, let's say, five ten years ago, is completely
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Speaker 2: different than what she hopes it.
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Speaker 3: Will be moving forward.
3:25
Speaker 2: Alison opens up about the difficulties that went hand in
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Speaker 2: hand with speaking out against Nike in that famous New
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Speaker 2: York Times opinion piece and taking a stand, soon joining
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Speaker 2: Athleta as a sponsored athlete, and ultimately starting her own
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Speaker 2: company with her brother Wes Sashe, where she is the
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Speaker 2: president and co founder. I ask Alison what it's like
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Speaker 2: to have a really special relationship with her brother, how
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Speaker 2: it feels to work together in business, and she also
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Speaker 2: details something really cool that Sasha's doing with their maternal
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Speaker 2: return policy, offering expectant moms and new moms a new
4:04
Speaker 2: pair of safe sneakers. They're an existing customer because, as
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Speaker 2: you may know, women's feet tend to grow a half
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Speaker 2: size during this time of their life and they.
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Speaker 3: Want to accommodate them. All in all, lots of goodness
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Speaker 3: in here.
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Speaker 2: So delighted to have Alison back in the show, and truly,
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Speaker 2: when I say iconic that that doesn't even begin to
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Speaker 2: scratch the surface.
4:29
Speaker 3: I'm going to make a call here.
4:30
Speaker 2: I'm going to be giving away one lucky Hurdler a
4:33
Speaker 2: hurdler hat. If you promote the season premiere you share
4:37
Speaker 2: it in your Instagram story, make sure to tag over
4:39
Speaker 2: at Hurdle Podcasts tag me over.
4:41
Speaker 3: At Emily a Body.
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Speaker 2: I will make the announcement at six pm on September
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Speaker 2: twenty first. Also, don't forget to subscribe to the weekly
4:49
Speaker 2: Hurdle newsletter.
4:51
Speaker 3: Willing to do. That is in the show notes. With that,
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Speaker 3: let's get to hurdling today. I am sitting down with
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Speaker 3: Alison Felix.
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Speaker 2: She's a Can I tell you how nervous I have
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Speaker 2: been to get these numbers wrong?
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Speaker 3: Okay.
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Speaker 2: Seven time Olympic champion, eleven time Olympic medalist. She's also
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Speaker 2: the oldest US woman to win an Olympic track medal.
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Speaker 3: Founder and president of SAISH mother Wife. How you doing,
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Speaker 3: I'm good? Thanks, thank you for that intro. I'm doing well.
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Speaker 3: How are you? I'm good. Did I get any of
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Speaker 3: the numbers wrong? I wouldn't even be able to tell you. Yeah,
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Speaker 3: I never know anything. She is just one hell of
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Speaker 3: a human.
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Speaker 2: Basically I should have just led with that needs no introduction,
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Speaker 2: a lot of accolades. So excited to talk to you
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Speaker 2: for the second time here on the show at an
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Speaker 2: unbelievable time for you of arguably massive celebration. Is that
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Speaker 2: how you're feeling now as a retired please?
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Speaker 1: Yeah, it's been such a mix, you know, like a
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Speaker 1: mix of emotions, like the whole last season was I do.
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Speaker 3: I feel good.
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Speaker 1: I feel you know, like I was really happy that
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Speaker 1: I was able to do this final year and really
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Speaker 1: excited for you know, what's become, what's to come.
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Speaker 3: You know, some of.
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Speaker 2: The greatest things that have happened for you. Some may
6:26
Speaker 2: think those have been on the track, but I know
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Speaker 2: from following along with you and listening to the conversations
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Speaker 2: that you've been having on your podcast, Mountain Top Conversations
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Speaker 2: with your brother Wes, that you may not see your
6:43
Speaker 2: accomplishments on the track as the legacy that you're looking
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Speaker 2: to leave.
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Speaker 3: Is that right?
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Speaker 2: Yeah?
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Speaker 1: I mean it's funny. I think so much has changed
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Speaker 1: for me.
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Speaker 3: You know.
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Speaker 1: I when I was younger, it was always like, yes,
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Speaker 1: the legacy that I want to leave is you know,
6:59
Speaker 1: the times of metals, like all of those things. And
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Speaker 1: as I got older, it was like, wow, no, this
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Speaker 1: is not what I thought it was going to be.
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Speaker 1: It's not what I set out to do. It's about
7:08
Speaker 1: the impact that I could have, you know, off of
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Speaker 1: the track and now moving in the business world, it's like, wow,
7:13
Speaker 1: I want to have that be my legacy piece. And
7:16
Speaker 1: so I'm really thankful that there's like passionate work that
7:20
Speaker 1: I'm excited about that's in the future. And Wes always
7:23
Speaker 1: tells me, my brother, he's always like, you know, your
7:25
Speaker 1: next act is going to be, you know, your greatest act,
7:28
Speaker 1: and you know it's a big act to follow, but
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Speaker 1: I'm excited for you know, all this stuff.
7:33
Speaker 3: A big act to follow.
7:34
Speaker 2: It's also an applicable lesson I would say to individuals
7:39
Speaker 2: who may not yet be ready to quote unquote hang
7:41
Speaker 2: up their sneakers, and let's also clarify, like it's not like.
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Speaker 3: You're not.
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Speaker 2: I feel like doesn't feel weird when people are like, well,
7:49
Speaker 2: you're retired.
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Speaker 1: It does, And like, especially now that I think I'm
7:53
Speaker 1: a week in and like I'm hearing it more and more,
7:56
Speaker 1: and it's like, I think you hear the word retired
7:58
Speaker 1: in this like this idea that like your feet are
8:01
Speaker 1: kicked up, and I'm like, I'm not really experiencing that,
8:04
Speaker 1: So it's a transition to other things.
8:07
Speaker 3: But yeah, it's different, different, it's different.
8:10
Speaker 2: Well, what I was saying is that I feel like
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Speaker 2: this idea of like thinking about it being bigger than
8:16
Speaker 2: the time, thinking about it being bigger than just one
8:19
Speaker 2: race or one training cycle, Like that's such a valuable
8:22
Speaker 2: takeaway for so many individuals, regardless of where they are
8:26
Speaker 2: in their athletic pursuits, because it helps you think bigger picture, right.
8:31
Speaker 3: Absolutely.
8:31
Speaker 1: I think for a lot of us, like we focus
8:34
Speaker 1: in on one goal, you know, and for me, for
8:37
Speaker 1: a lot of my career, it was like, Okay, I
8:39
Speaker 1: gotta win a gold medal, gotta win a gold medal.
8:41
Speaker 1: And I think when you zero in like that, like
8:43
Speaker 1: you miss all of these special moments that happened along
8:45
Speaker 1: the way, and you do miss the bigger picture of things.
8:49
Speaker 1: And I think there are so many lessons And I
8:51
Speaker 1: wish I would have known that like younger on, because
8:54
Speaker 1: I think it just wasn't healthy to do that, and
8:57
Speaker 1: I missed out on so much. I'm grateful eventually I got.
9:00
Speaker 1: But I just think the way that we think about things,
9:02
Speaker 1: you know, really has to shift. Sometimes it can't be
9:05
Speaker 1: just solely about one performance thing.
9:08
Speaker 2: I love the concept of that podcast that I just mentioned,
9:12
Speaker 2: the Mountaintop Conversations. Why don't you talk to us a
9:15
Speaker 2: little bit about that?
9:17
Speaker 1: Yeah, something that Michelle Obama talks a lot about is like,
9:20
Speaker 1: you know, reaching the mountaintop, and a lot of times,
9:22
Speaker 1: you know, we have this idea of what it might
9:25
Speaker 1: be or what someone who we think has reached the mountaintop,
9:29
Speaker 1: like what it's taken to get there. And so we
9:31
Speaker 1: have had a lot of great conversations with a lot
9:34
Speaker 1: of interesting people who really kind of break that down
9:36
Speaker 1: and a lot of times their mountaintop moment is not
9:39
Speaker 1: what we would expect. You know, it's not what the idea,
9:44
Speaker 1: you know, the path hasn't been you know, this easy path,
9:46
Speaker 1: and it's just been really interesting listening to different perspectives
9:51
Speaker 1: on it.
9:51
Speaker 2: Yeah, I'm sure as I've listened to some of them
9:54
Speaker 2: as well. I found your perspective actually to be very helpful.
9:59
Speaker 2: This concept of almost reevaluating what you thought your personal
10:05
Speaker 2: mountaintop moment was.
10:07
Speaker 3: Can you talk a little bit.
10:08
Speaker 1: About that, Yeah, absolutely, I think, you know, in zeroing
10:13
Speaker 1: in on a specific goal, you know, for me, you know,
10:16
Speaker 1: wanting to win a gold medal for so much of
10:19
Speaker 1: my career and really having built that up to I
10:22
Speaker 1: thought like, okay, if I win this gold medal, like
10:25
Speaker 1: my life will not be the same. Like, you know,
10:28
Speaker 1: I just I think I just fantasized it almost and
10:32
Speaker 1: when it did happen, after a lot of hardship, after
10:35
Speaker 1: a lot of years, you know, my first two Olympic
10:37
Speaker 1: Games silver medals, and then the third Games, it finally
10:40
Speaker 1: came together and it did not feel like what I imagined
10:44
Speaker 1: it to be, you know, And I always thought that
10:47
Speaker 1: that would be my mountaintop moment, like that would be
10:50
Speaker 1: the moment where I've reached the top. You know, the
10:52
Speaker 1: top of the top. And I think in understanding that
10:56
Speaker 1: it didn't feel like what I imagined. I had to
10:58
Speaker 1: unpack that and it took some time. It took some years.
11:01
Speaker 1: And it was the idea of that, like the magic
11:03
Speaker 1: was along the way. It was the disappointments, the failures,
11:06
Speaker 1: the growing, the stretching, like all of that was beautiful.
11:11
Speaker 1: And I don't think I embraced it enough. And now
11:13
Speaker 1: I look back and I think my actual mountaintop was
11:16
Speaker 1: probably last year competing at the Olympics. You know, making
11:20
Speaker 1: it back as a mother had nothing to do with
11:23
Speaker 1: the metal I won or the time I ran. It
11:25
Speaker 1: was about connecting with women who had been through you know,
11:29
Speaker 1: similar situations and experiences and being able to share that
11:33
Speaker 1: and being proud of myself and you know, celebrating those wins.
11:38
Speaker 3: So totally not what I would have thought.
11:42
Speaker 2: Yeah, I know that you said that that moment for
11:44
Speaker 2: you represented growth and finding your voice and becoming a mother.
11:48
Speaker 2: I would also say that that moment truly represents resilience
11:53
Speaker 2: in every single aspect of that definition. When you stop
11:57
Speaker 2: and look at your career, what would you say the
12:01
Speaker 2: trials and the tribulations really taught.
12:03
Speaker 3: You about resilience and it's important.
12:07
Speaker 1: Yeah, that you just can't give up. And it sounds
12:10
Speaker 1: like so simple and kind of cliche, but I think
12:12
Speaker 1: it taught me to be a fighter, you know. I
12:14
Speaker 1: think there was so many times I was facing situations
12:18
Speaker 1: that seemed impossible and they didn't always work out like,
12:22
Speaker 1: you know, in a way that the world might feel
12:25
Speaker 1: would be successful. But I think there's always like a
12:29
Speaker 1: lesson and there's always something to take away. And I
12:32
Speaker 1: look at some of the moments where you know, I
12:34
Speaker 1: got silver medals or I it was disappointment and kind
12:37
Speaker 1: of the eyes of the world, but it might have
12:40
Speaker 1: been exactly what I needed, you know, personally. It might
12:42
Speaker 1: have been in the process of growth, in the process
12:45
Speaker 1: of becoming.
12:46
Speaker 3: And when I look back and I reflect, I'm really
12:48
Speaker 3: grateful for those moments.
12:50
Speaker 1: And I think success looks a lot of different ways,
12:53
Speaker 1: and I think we're all on like this different journey
12:55
Speaker 1: and this different path, and sometimes you know you it's
12:59
Speaker 1: going to look different for you, and so I really
13:01
Speaker 1: appreciate that about my career.
13:05
Speaker 2: I feel as though, you're never going to wish that
13:08
Speaker 2: you had been less resilient, right, Like you're never going
13:13
Speaker 2: to look back on a hurdle that you overcame, and
13:16
Speaker 2: think to yourself, like, man, I wish I wasn't so
13:18
Speaker 2: good at navigating all of that adversity when you look
13:22
Speaker 2: back on some of the times that you really had
13:25
Speaker 2: to dig deep to show up for yourself when it
13:27
Speaker 2: felt absolutely impossible.
13:30
Speaker 3: Does any particular story come to mind?
13:32
Speaker 1: Yeah, when you said that, I was kind of thinking about, like, okay,
13:35
Speaker 1: situations that felt impossible. I remember, you know, twenty sixteen
13:40
Speaker 1: the Olympics. I had these like super ambitious goals. You know,
13:44
Speaker 1: I wanted to compete in four events. I wanted to
13:47
Speaker 1: you know, win four metal, like do all of these things.
13:50
Speaker 1: And I shared that with my coach and we set
13:54
Speaker 1: out to do it. And training was going really, really well,
13:57
Speaker 1: and I was like, oh my gosh, like I'm actually
13:59
Speaker 1: on the path to do this, Like I've never been
14:02
Speaker 1: in this good of shape.
14:03
Speaker 3: I've never been hitting these times.
14:04
Speaker 1: And it was two months before our Olympic trials and
14:10
Speaker 1: I was in the gym doing an exercise that I
14:13
Speaker 1: do have done like a million times before, just a
14:16
Speaker 1: medicine ball between my legs. I was hanging from the
14:18
Speaker 1: pull up bar bringing the medicine ball to my chest.
14:22
Speaker 1: I finished the exercise, I dropped the medicine ball and
14:25
Speaker 1: I went to jump down and my ankle just completely collapsed.
14:29
Speaker 1: I ended up tearing all these ligaments in it. And
14:32
Speaker 1: I was just like, wow, I don't think I've ever
14:35
Speaker 1: been in this position, to be so close to a
14:38
Speaker 1: dream and then have it just snatched away. And I
14:44
Speaker 1: could not see like the vision any longer. I was
14:47
Speaker 1: too wrapped up in the emotions of everything. But my
14:50
Speaker 1: team they just rallied and got me into rehab. I
14:54
Speaker 1: was like rehabbing around the clock, and you know, preparing
14:57
Speaker 1: for Olympic trials.
14:58
Speaker 3: And it was such.
14:59
Speaker 1: A a road that to me felt impossible because here
15:03
Speaker 1: it was in like perfect shape, and then I couldn't walk,
15:07
Speaker 1: you know. So I'm in the pool, I'm doing I'm
15:10
Speaker 1: riding the bike, I'm like doing all these things, and
15:12
Speaker 1: I'm just like this is pointless, you know, Like why
15:15
Speaker 1: am I doing this. We're now like a month away
15:18
Speaker 1: from Olympic Trials and I don't see how this could
15:21
Speaker 1: come together. But somehow, some way, you know, by just
15:25
Speaker 1: doing the small tedious things, I was able to get
15:29
Speaker 1: to Olympic Childs, able to compete and able to make
15:32
Speaker 1: the team there, and to me, that was a one
15:34
Speaker 1: of those situations where like it was the team, it
15:38
Speaker 1: was everyone coming together, but you know, fighting every step
15:41
Speaker 1: of the way for just the little pieces of ground
15:45
Speaker 1: step by step.
15:47
Speaker 2: Yeah, and please this first place so impressive. But also
15:51
Speaker 2: that concept of fighting every step of the way really
15:54
Speaker 2: resonates as well with your whole journey of speaking out
15:59
Speaker 2: about what for you in working with Nike and then eventually,
16:02
Speaker 2: as we know the story, coming to create your own company.
16:07
Speaker 2: I'd love before we start talking about Sage, just to
16:10
Speaker 2: acknowledge that chapter and probably the nerves and the terror
16:16
Speaker 2: that came along with speaking your truth, right because for you,
16:21
Speaker 2: I mean, I don't know about you, but in my everyday,
16:24
Speaker 2: like I have to like tell someone that I, goodness,
16:27
Speaker 2: like took the last apple at the grocery store and
16:29
Speaker 2: I'm like, oh my god, I'm so sorry. So to
16:31
Speaker 2: think about the idea of speaking your truth going up
16:35
Speaker 2: against a goliath, how to talk to us about that?
16:40
Speaker 1: Yeah, I was terrified. It was so outside of my
16:44
Speaker 1: comfort zone. I you know, I've been that athlete that
16:47
Speaker 1: I've like I've been hyper focused on performance, like I
16:50
Speaker 1: never want to rock the boat I've been.
16:52
Speaker 3: You know, I think I'm shy by nature.
16:56
Speaker 1: And so when I got in this position where I
16:58
Speaker 1: wasn't fully supported through my and I got I had
17:02
Speaker 1: the opportunity to share that and to share my truth.
17:04
Speaker 1: I was so on the fence about it because I
17:06
Speaker 1: was so worried just about just being scared, like you know,
17:11
Speaker 1: to speak up and scared what how will this be
17:13
Speaker 1: received and what will the consequences be and all of
17:16
Speaker 1: the things.
17:17
Speaker 3: And I got to this point where.
17:19
Speaker 1: Because all this was happening over the course of a
17:21
Speaker 1: long period of time, and I actually had my daughter
17:24
Speaker 1: and we had a very difficult birth experience, and so
17:27
Speaker 1: we had just came home from the nick you and
17:29
Speaker 1: I'm you know, debating, going back and forth, and then
17:32
Speaker 1: I got to this moment where I just looked at
17:34
Speaker 1: her and I think because I was a mother of
17:37
Speaker 1: a girl, of a daughter, and thinking about the world
17:41
Speaker 1: that she's going to grow up in, like that's where
17:43
Speaker 1: the courage came from. Like it was nothing of myself.
17:46
Speaker 1: It was just like this cannot go on any longer,
17:50
Speaker 1: like without me at least sharing whatever happens from from here,
17:53
Speaker 1: Like I can't control that, but I can at least
17:55
Speaker 1: tell you know my story, and so I did.
17:59
Speaker 3: But I.
18:02
Speaker 1: Think, you know, on the other side of like all
18:04
Speaker 1: that fear is freedom and I experienced that because it
18:07
Speaker 1: was like it was terrifying, But once I did it,
18:10
Speaker 1: it was like this outpouring from all these other women
18:13
Speaker 1: who were supporting me, encouraging me, And then my heart
18:17
Speaker 1: even broke even more because it's like, wow, look at
18:20
Speaker 1: all the women who have also had a similar experience,
18:22
Speaker 1: who could relate. And then that was eye opening of like, Okay,
18:26
Speaker 1: there's work to be done here.
18:27
Speaker 2: There's work to be done here, and not to you know,
18:30
Speaker 2: completely skip over a bunch of stuff, but I know
18:33
Speaker 2: that you're also really passionate about partnering with other organizations
18:37
Speaker 2: that are encouraging girls and women in sport as well.
18:41
Speaker 3: Absolutely.
18:42
Speaker 1: Yeah, I think that experience also just showed me, you know,
18:46
Speaker 1: the importance of mentorship, the importance of you know, just
18:53
Speaker 1: not being alone. I think a lot of that situation
18:55
Speaker 1: made me feel like I'm the only one going through something.
18:58
Speaker 1: I'm isolated, and I think that a lot of women
19:01
Speaker 1: feel that way. A lot of young girls feel that way.
19:03
Speaker 1: So the importance of saying like no, so working with
19:08
Speaker 1: you know Viz and you know the work that they're
19:10
Speaker 1: doing with young girls and just saying like we need
19:13
Speaker 1: to make this a priority and and really support.
19:17
Speaker 2: Did you feel like that sense of freedom, so to speak,
19:20
Speaker 2: carried over not just in of course your day to
19:23
Speaker 2: day but also with how you were performing in your
19:26
Speaker 2: sport at the time.
19:28
Speaker 3: I do.
19:28
Speaker 1: I think I felt stronger, you know. It was like
19:31
Speaker 1: kind of like, wow, if I've been through this, like
19:33
Speaker 1: I can do anything. And I think also just it
19:36
Speaker 1: allowed me just to be more vulnerable with myself and
19:39
Speaker 1: even in a way of competition of saying, like, you know,
19:42
Speaker 1: coming back from having my daughter, like it was very
19:45
Speaker 1: just kind of putting myself out there because I didn't
19:48
Speaker 1: feel exactly how I did before. You know, I felt
19:52
Speaker 1: like a different version of myself and that can be
19:55
Speaker 1: really scary as well, you know, And so I think
19:57
Speaker 1: in all the ways it was just kind of like, Okay,
19:59
Speaker 1: like I I'm going to just be my authentic, unapologetic
20:03
Speaker 1: self and just live in that, live in that way.
20:07
Speaker 3: Live in that way.
20:08
Speaker 2: It's a good piece of advice for anyone, regardless of
20:10
Speaker 2: really what you're what you're getting after, but for you
20:14
Speaker 2: getting after your final trip to the Olympics was surely,
20:18
Speaker 2: as you said earlier, like filled with so many emotions.
20:23
Speaker 3: Right, Oh, it was all over the place.
20:25
Speaker 1: I think, you know, I was in pursuit of it
20:29
Speaker 1: for so long, and I think a part of that
20:31
Speaker 1: was scary as well. I think no matter how long,
20:34
Speaker 1: at least in my experience, it didn't matter how long
20:36
Speaker 1: I've done this, you know, like I still got anxiety.
20:39
Speaker 1: I still felt really nervous about certain things. I really
20:42
Speaker 1: wanted it to be successful. In a different way now,
20:45
Speaker 1: I almost felt like, well, I want to represent for
20:47
Speaker 1: all these women and for these mothers, but like I've
20:49
Speaker 1: got to make this team and I've got to you know,
20:51
Speaker 1: I've got to do all these things.
20:53
Speaker 3: And so it was hard in that sense.
20:55
Speaker 1: And and then it was emotional and just like overcoming
20:58
Speaker 1: and you know, dealing with all juggling all the different
21:02
Speaker 1: hats that I was wearing and you know, wanting the
21:05
Speaker 1: company to be successful and just all of it.
21:07
Speaker 3: And so it was a lot.
21:08
Speaker 1: But I did feel very freeing once I got there
21:10
Speaker 1: that it wasn't like it's not performance bas you know,
21:13
Speaker 1: like it's so much bigger than them. I think that
21:16
Speaker 1: was also kind of a weight off my shoulders.
21:19
Speaker 2: Yeah, you know, you've mentioned and I even kicked us
21:22
Speaker 2: off by referencing like so many of the different hats
21:25
Speaker 2: that you wear. Have you had an experience or maybe
21:28
Speaker 2: you could share a story about trying to pour too
21:31
Speaker 2: much into one bucket?
21:33
Speaker 3: I would assume.
21:35
Speaker 2: I would assume that with you know, being a mom
21:38
Speaker 2: and also having a company and at one time pursuing
21:40
Speaker 2: all of these athletic feats, that at times one thing
21:45
Speaker 2: kind of had to give a little bit.
21:47
Speaker 3: Yeah.
21:48
Speaker 1: Yeah, definitely, this past year I really felt I felt
21:51
Speaker 1: it more than ever because I knew that, you know,
21:54
Speaker 1: I knew it was my final year competing. I knew that,
21:57
Speaker 1: you know, I'm stepping into a bigger role at and
22:00
Speaker 1: I think, you know, there's moments where I just feel
22:03
Speaker 1: overwhelmed where it just seems like it's too much. Like
22:05
Speaker 1: I'm trying to keep up with this intense training schedule,
22:09
Speaker 1: but I'm also trying to do all of the things,
22:11
Speaker 1: you know, all of the meetings, all of the travel,
22:14
Speaker 1: And I remember just kind of having this conversation with
22:17
Speaker 1: my husband and he was like, You've got to slow down,
22:20
Speaker 1: Like you cannot be everything to everyone until you take
22:25
Speaker 1: care of yourself, and I think it's just it was
22:27
Speaker 1: a really good reminder as well that like I have help,
22:30
Speaker 1: and for whatever reason, I don't know why, it's so
22:32
Speaker 1: hard for me to like accept that help, you know,
22:35
Speaker 1: wanting to do it all, but like leaning into my
22:37
Speaker 1: support system and also like saying no, that's really hard
22:42
Speaker 1: for me, you know, saying that, you know, I just
22:45
Speaker 1: can't do that right now, or I'm going to have
22:47
Speaker 1: to come back to it. You know, that's been huge
22:49
Speaker 1: for me. I still am working on it, but that
22:53
Speaker 1: was big. And then just also like setting aside time
22:55
Speaker 1: for myself, you know, whether that's like just some moments
22:58
Speaker 1: at the beginning of the day right in my gratitude journal,
23:01
Speaker 1: like sometimes I need the reminder that I.
23:03
Speaker 3: Need to do those things. It's not lost on me.
23:06
Speaker 2: The irony of someone telling you, Alice and Felix, that
23:09
Speaker 2: you need to slow down.
23:13
Speaker 3: You're like, it's true, though, Oh my gosh.
23:19
Speaker 2: So then, I mean, when you came out and spoke
23:23
Speaker 2: your truth to dial back a little bit to Nike
23:26
Speaker 2: and the whole New York Times piece came out at
23:29
Speaker 2: that time, did you even have the foundational idea of
23:34
Speaker 2: what sayshe would become.
23:37
Speaker 1: No, I didn't even have the idea of saishe you know,
23:40
Speaker 1: and at that time, it was just it came about,
23:43
Speaker 1: you know, later than that. At that moment, I was
23:45
Speaker 1: just consumed in like, Okay, what happens next? You know,
23:50
Speaker 1: now I've parted ways with Nike because of this. Eventually,
23:53
Speaker 1: you know, they changed their policy, which was amazing and
23:56
Speaker 1: great for you know, the women who were coming up
23:58
Speaker 1: at that point, But for me, you know, it was
24:00
Speaker 1: like kind of like, well, I know that I'm still capable,
24:03
Speaker 1: Like I know that I can make it back to
24:05
Speaker 1: the Olympics, but I'm in this position where I now
24:09
Speaker 1: I don't know where to go and I'm not feeling valued.
24:12
Speaker 1: I feel like I got to the point where I
24:15
Speaker 1: was just exhausted of like going to these different companies
24:18
Speaker 1: and you know, trying to you know, sell myself, see
24:21
Speaker 1: the value in me, and it was just like it
24:23
Speaker 1: wasn't happening. And then that's when in talking to my brother,
24:27
Speaker 1: it was just like I was venting to him about
24:29
Speaker 1: all those things, and he was like, well, what if
24:31
Speaker 1: we did this ourselves? And I, to me, I think
24:35
Speaker 1: I felt like it just felt too big. You know,
24:37
Speaker 1: It's like well, I don't think that we could do
24:40
Speaker 1: that for whatever reason, you know, and he really empowered me.
24:45
Speaker 1: I think also, you know, being around other strong women
24:48
Speaker 1: and having mentors in the business world that empowered me
24:51
Speaker 1: as well. And I was like, no, like, yeah, I
24:54
Speaker 1: can do this, like we can create change, like instead
24:56
Speaker 1: of asking somebody else, like, we can do this ourselves.
24:59
Speaker 1: And so that's really when you know, the idea was born, and.
25:04
Speaker 2: It was kind of off to the races, one of
25:07
Speaker 2: those like why not me moments that we have like
25:11
Speaker 2: from time to time, right, And it's funny, right because
25:14
Speaker 2: they still take practice. Like you showed up and ran
25:19
Speaker 2: so many races and came out on top, and it
25:22
Speaker 2: was like you understood, like this is my capability, this
25:26
Speaker 2: is mine, I have this.
25:28
Speaker 3: But still another opportunity avenue idea.
25:31
Speaker 2: Comes down the pipe and we all have these moments
25:33
Speaker 2: of like inherent self doubt.
25:35
Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean you can be so confident in another area,
25:38
Speaker 1: you know, like I would never doubt my ability on
25:41
Speaker 1: the track, but then moving into a new space and feeling,
25:44
Speaker 1: you know, really intimidated and just like I didn't have
25:48
Speaker 1: that confidence at the beginning, and it was like, you know,
25:51
Speaker 1: really having to look at myself and ask myself why,
25:55
Speaker 1: you know, why would I not be capable of doing this.
25:58
Speaker 1: You know, I've been a runner for the past twenty years,
26:00
Speaker 1: and I have incredible mentors and incredible you know, people
26:05
Speaker 1: to work with and to build with, and so I
26:07
Speaker 1: think it was kind of realizing that and then you know,
26:10
Speaker 1: being able to move forward and finding my confidence along
26:13
Speaker 1: the way.
26:18
Speaker 2: Taking a break from today's episode to give some love
26:22
Speaker 2: to my sponsors and no unsponsors. The only brands, companies,
26:27
Speaker 2: products that you will hear about on the show are
26:30
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Speaker 3: Ninety nine point nine percent of the time.
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Speaker 2: If you hear about something on the show, I was
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Speaker 3: Just feel so much more clear.
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29:11
Speaker 3: Once this is under my bell.
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Speaker 2: And that is kind of crazy for me to say,
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Speaker 2: Let me know what y'all think, and I cannot wait
30:08
Speaker 2: to see you in class. You know, I love what
30:17
Speaker 2: you said in your ted talk. You said you don't
30:19
Speaker 2: have to be an Olympian to create change for yourself
30:22
Speaker 2: and others. Each of us can bet on ourselves, which
30:25
Speaker 2: is really you know, resonating with what we're talking about here,
30:29
Speaker 2: because betting on yourself comes with some fear, right, So
30:35
Speaker 2: that's what your advice for someone who hears this and
30:39
Speaker 2: they're like amped and they're like, I want.
30:41
Speaker 3: To bet on myself, but I'm so scared. Yeah, where
30:44
Speaker 3: do they begin? Right? Where do they begin? Yeah?
30:47
Speaker 1: I think that it's okay to be scared. You know,
30:49
Speaker 1: even when I spoke out, you know, my brother had
30:51
Speaker 1: told me this, this idea of like even if your
30:54
Speaker 1: voice shakes, like you can use it. And I held
30:56
Speaker 1: onto that and I think I continue to hold on
30:59
Speaker 1: to those things. So like, even if you're scared or
31:01
Speaker 1: nervous about something, it doesn't mean that you're not capable
31:03
Speaker 1: or you can't do it. And so I think for
31:05
Speaker 1: a lot of us, like it might look different, Like
31:07
Speaker 1: it might not be shouting from the rooftops. It might
31:11
Speaker 1: be having a conversation with a friend or a coworker
31:14
Speaker 1: or you know, being an ally to someone. Like I
31:16
Speaker 1: think there's all these different ways that we can start
31:19
Speaker 1: to you know, push for change in you just our
31:22
Speaker 1: everyday life. And so I think also when you're connected
31:26
Speaker 1: to purpose and meaning and you want to bet on
31:28
Speaker 1: yourself and you deeply, you know, had that conviction and
31:31
Speaker 1: believe it, I think that is like that is that
31:34
Speaker 1: feeling that you're moving in the right direction, you know,
31:36
Speaker 1: because you have that belief system.
31:38
Speaker 2: Yeah, that belief system can be super, super powerful. I
31:42
Speaker 2: feel the need to just like take a moment here
31:46
Speaker 2: to acknowledge the rare relationship you have with your brother.
31:52
Speaker 2: It's so special to not only have someone that supports
31:57
Speaker 2: you and cheers you on, but sees you for all
32:01
Speaker 2: that you are and recognizes the potential that sometimes you
32:06
Speaker 2: don't see.
32:07
Speaker 3: Just yet, talk to me about what that relationship means
32:09
Speaker 3: to you.
32:10
Speaker 1: Yeah, we've always had a really special relationship. I mean
32:14
Speaker 1: we were the classic like fighting, arguing siblings growing up,
32:18
Speaker 1: and then I think somewhere along the line, we're like, oh,
32:20
Speaker 1: we can be friends and this is really cool. And
32:24
Speaker 1: you know, we've gotten to work together in different capacities.
32:26
Speaker 1: You know, he's an agent as well, and so we
32:30
Speaker 1: worked together, you know, in that way, and so we
32:32
Speaker 1: knew that we worked well together, and so now to
32:34
Speaker 1: be building a company together is incredible.
32:36
Speaker 3: But he's a true big brother. You know.
32:40
Speaker 1: Growing up he was just a fierce protector and he
32:43
Speaker 1: always spoiled me, and it kind of carries over, you know,
32:46
Speaker 1: into a working relationship as well. And now I think
32:50
Speaker 1: we just compliment each other, you know, really well, and
32:54
Speaker 1: we always laugh. It's like we can finish each other
32:56
Speaker 1: sentences at this point. But it's really fun to build together.
32:59
Speaker 1: And he's been on that journey with me, and you know,
33:03
Speaker 1: when I was dealing with all the maternal protections issues,
33:06
Speaker 1: you know, he was the one fighting alongside of me,
33:08
Speaker 1: and so a lot of times, you know, people ask me, well,
33:11
Speaker 1: how can a man be an ally and what can
33:13
Speaker 1: they do? I think he's been the perfect example of that,
33:17
Speaker 1: you know, he's allowed me to use my voice, he's
33:20
Speaker 1: empowered me, he's encouraged me in the company, you know,
33:24
Speaker 1: saying that I'm fully capable and standing alongside of me.
33:28
Speaker 1: So it's really been just incredible to be able to
33:32
Speaker 1: work together, build together, and do something we deeply believe.
33:37
Speaker 2: Last week and it'll all be just over a month
33:41
Speaker 2: by the time this episode comes out. But you recently
33:45
Speaker 2: ran that last hundred meter race coming in second. Can
33:50
Speaker 2: you talk to me about what you think about now
33:54
Speaker 2: when you think about that final run.
33:58
Speaker 1: Just how incredible a day it was. It was a
34:01
Speaker 1: full circle moment for me. So Athleta put on this
34:04
Speaker 1: incredible street race. It was we called it a race
34:07
Speaker 1: for change, and it was literally in Los Angeles. So
34:10
Speaker 1: I'm from Los Angeles and you know, I had my
34:13
Speaker 1: first races there and I just in talking with them,
34:16
Speaker 1: we're kind of like, well, what can we do to
34:18
Speaker 1: kind of celebrate and like, how would I want to
34:20
Speaker 1: do that? I was like, well, like in a dream world,
34:22
Speaker 1: I would love to just be running in the streets
34:25
Speaker 1: of LA have my community there, have all the people
34:28
Speaker 1: who I love and who have supported me, you know,
34:31
Speaker 1: be able to join in the day and it was
34:34
Speaker 1: absolutely everything I wanted it to be. You know, it
34:37
Speaker 1: was the race, but it was also I hung out
34:40
Speaker 1: the entire day, just talked with people and met people
34:45
Speaker 1: and kids got to race. My daughter ran, and so
34:48
Speaker 1: it was just this incredible celebration of all of the
34:51
Speaker 1: years and it'll definitely be unforgettable for me.
34:57
Speaker 3: Unforgettable.
34:58
Speaker 2: So, now as you shift into kind of assuming other
35:03
Speaker 2: titles or filling other buckets up a little bit more,
35:07
Speaker 2: what would you say excites you the.
35:09
Speaker 3: Most at the moment.
35:11
Speaker 1: I mean, my work at saytiaus like is so exciting
35:14
Speaker 1: to me. You know, it's kind of that next great challenge,
35:17
Speaker 1: and I think when I think about the competitiveness of
35:20
Speaker 1: track and field and looking to make sure like there's
35:24
Speaker 1: not a void in my life, I kind of see
35:26
Speaker 1: that playing the part.
35:27
Speaker 3: You know.
35:27
Speaker 1: I'm excited to just continue to grow and to find
35:31
Speaker 1: new ways to support women and to just be thoughtful
35:33
Speaker 1: in what we're creating. And so I'm really inspired by
35:36
Speaker 1: my work there. I mean, the top of the top
35:39
Speaker 1: is like being mom and being at home and kind
35:42
Speaker 1: of things that I'm sure people feel like are really
35:44
Speaker 1: small have been really special to me, like school drop
35:48
Speaker 1: off and making lunches and taking Cami to gymnastics and
35:52
Speaker 1: kind of all of those things, and then I'm looking
35:55
Speaker 1: forward to, like somewhere along the line, like a little downtime,
35:59
Speaker 1: a little big case, and just slowing down a bit.
36:03
Speaker 2: I was thinking just now reflecting on how earlier you
36:07
Speaker 2: were talking about being scared to speak up, and this
36:13
Speaker 2: saying that I revisit time and time again on the
36:16
Speaker 2: show about be careful that the sword that you used
36:19
Speaker 2: to help others isn't the one that you fall on.
36:22
Speaker 2: I'm sure in the wake of your action, you started
36:29
Speaker 2: to hear so many stories from so many women about
36:34
Speaker 2: their experiences, and I'm curious if at any time, although
36:40
Speaker 2: you were so content to be a voice for them
36:42
Speaker 2: and so proud to stand in your truth, that it
36:46
Speaker 2: got to feel like a lot.
36:50
Speaker 1: It was definitely heavy, I'll say for sure. You know,
36:54
Speaker 1: I think in just listening to the stories, listening to
36:59
Speaker 1: the hards, I think I did have moments where I
37:03
Speaker 1: felt like, can we do this? You know, like it
37:08
Speaker 1: just seems so much at times, and it seems like
37:10
Speaker 1: such an uphill fight.
37:13
Speaker 3: That it is.
37:14
Speaker 1: Sometimes it can feel disheartening, you know, I think even
37:18
Speaker 1: just the whole situation that all of this occurred in
37:21
Speaker 1: twenty nineteen. You know, that's hard, the whole the reproductive
37:25
Speaker 1: rights you know that are happening now. You know, that's disheartening.
37:29
Speaker 1: It just seems like sometimes you go through things and
37:32
Speaker 1: you take these massive steps backwards.
37:35
Speaker 3: And that's really hard.
37:37
Speaker 1: And I think, you know, that's just a part of life,
37:40
Speaker 1: and that's a part of you know, any time I
37:42
Speaker 1: think you're trying to push for things to be different,
37:44
Speaker 1: you're going to have those moments. And I think it's
37:46
Speaker 1: good to acknowledge them and like feel those feelings because
37:50
Speaker 1: they're valid. But it is, it can be really heavy
37:54
Speaker 1: at times.
37:56
Speaker 2: I want to go back to the conversation that we
37:58
Speaker 2: are having about being more involved with STAGE. I know
38:02
Speaker 2: one of the things you're really passionate now with STAGE
38:05
Speaker 2: is the new I.
38:07
Speaker 3: Want to make sure I get this terminology right here.
38:09
Speaker 2: We are the new maternity returns policy, which allows to
38:12
Speaker 2: expectant mothers who have previously purchased a pair of Stage
38:16
Speaker 2: ones a complimentary pair of fresh sneakers and a new size.
38:21
Speaker 3: That's pretty innovative. I love that.
38:24
Speaker 1: Yeah, I think it's the you know, being able to
38:26
Speaker 1: have a team, you know, we're making shoes for and
38:28
Speaker 1: by women. So there are so many women who are
38:30
Speaker 1: at the table, so many thoughtful women, you know, and
38:33
Speaker 1: just wanting to do things differently. And I feel like
38:36
Speaker 1: our maternity returns policy is something that we would love
38:39
Speaker 1: to see the industry adopt, you know, and really push
38:41
Speaker 1: for that because a lot of people aren't even aware that,
38:44
Speaker 1: you know, a woman's foot can change sizes during pregnancy,
38:47
Speaker 1: and then that.
38:48
Speaker 3: Change is like a permanent change.
38:50
Speaker 1: So yeah, just another way that we want to say,
38:53
Speaker 1: like we are here to support women.
38:56
Speaker 2: Not the only big thing though. Coming down the pipe
38:59
Speaker 2: from Stage I mentioned to you this episode coming out
39:01
Speaker 2: in late September, so I believe that you have some
39:04
Speaker 2: news to share with us.
39:06
Speaker 1: Yeah, we're super excited to be offering Stage two. It
39:09
Speaker 1: is a beautiful, sophisticated shoe, still a lifestyle shoe.
39:14
Speaker 3: It's it's leather.
39:16
Speaker 1: It has really feminine printed laces that I absolutely love.
39:20
Speaker 1: I've been wearing them a lot with kind of you know,
39:24
Speaker 1: elevated clothing and a little bit dressier, and so I'm
39:27
Speaker 1: so excited for people to experience this shoe.
39:31
Speaker 3: It really kind of comes.
39:33
Speaker 1: About with just the evolution of myself and I've always
39:36
Speaker 1: been the athlete that's a bit more quiet and you know, reserved,
39:40
Speaker 1: and I've found my voice over you know, the last
39:42
Speaker 1: couple of years, and so this shoe is more bold,
39:46
Speaker 1: you know, it really stands out there and it represents that.
39:49
Speaker 1: And with so much going on in the world, you know,
39:53
Speaker 1: regarding women, you know, our company exists to support and
39:56
Speaker 1: to see women. And here's another way to say that,
39:59
Speaker 1: we see you too.
40:01
Speaker 2: Yeah, and I know that it's bigger than just the
40:03
Speaker 2: products that you make. It's your mission to do just that,
40:07
Speaker 2: to support women. What else can we look to Stage
40:11
Speaker 2: four in the coming months, What else can we expect
40:14
Speaker 2: from the brand as the year continues?
40:17
Speaker 3: Yeah?
40:17
Speaker 1: Absolutely, I mean you're you're exactly right. You know, we
40:20
Speaker 1: are so much more than We don't look at ourselves
40:23
Speaker 1: as a shoe company. We look at ourselves as a
40:26
Speaker 1: company that supports and stands with women. And so we
40:30
Speaker 1: are excited to do more on our community front, offering
40:33
Speaker 1: more for a collective. We also have performance, but we're
40:36
Speaker 1: coming next year and so I'm really excited about that
40:39
Speaker 1: and just continuing to grow and to be thoughtful in
40:44
Speaker 1: the way that we're building for women.
40:47
Speaker 2: Competition is something that you are not a stranger to.
40:50
Speaker 2: And it's quite interesting that over the last three hundred
40:54
Speaker 2: and sixty five days, many sneaker companies are now finally
40:59
Speaker 2: following suit and creating sneakers on a woman's last How
41:05
Speaker 2: does that make you feel?
41:07
Speaker 1: It actually makes me feel really great.
41:09
Speaker 3: I mean, that was really the purpose.
41:12
Speaker 1: Of doing this, you know, and shining a light on,
41:16
Speaker 1: you know, the fact that shoes have not been made
41:18
Speaker 1: for women, and a lot of companies aren't doing it.
41:20
Speaker 1: And so now to see you know, Lulu Liban launch
41:23
Speaker 1: their you know, their shoes for women, it's incredible because
41:26
Speaker 1: we've been saying that and we've been pushing for the
41:29
Speaker 1: industry to focus on that, and so for me, it's
41:31
Speaker 1: like we're moving in the right direction and we want,
41:34
Speaker 1: you know, all the companies, all the big brands to
41:37
Speaker 1: be doing this.
41:38
Speaker 3: Yeah.
41:39
Speaker 2: Yeah, you know, we've dabbled with the word legacy a
41:42
Speaker 2: little bit.
41:43
Speaker 3: Here.
41:44
Speaker 2: Does that feel like something that is fully within your
41:50
Speaker 2: grasp at this moment, this idea that you are making
41:55
Speaker 2: a lasting impact on so many both within your local
42:00
Speaker 2: community but well beyond that, I mean.
42:04
Speaker 3: I hope.
42:05
Speaker 1: So I had this moment a couple of weeks ago,
42:08
Speaker 1: I was flying and I got on the plane and
42:10
Speaker 1: the first woman I saw, I looked down and she
42:13
Speaker 1: I'm always looking at what people will have on their feet,
42:15
Speaker 1: and so I looked down and she had a pair
42:17
Speaker 1: of safe sneakers on and it was like this moment
42:21
Speaker 1: the first time that was like nobody, I don't know
42:23
Speaker 1: this woman, no connection. You know, obviously, I've seen the
42:26
Speaker 1: shoes on a lot of people, but I typically you know, know,
42:29
Speaker 1: or they're a supporter, or you know, it's at a
42:31
Speaker 1: track meet or something like that. But here it was
42:33
Speaker 1: just you know, in the wild, and she had these
42:35
Speaker 1: shoes on, and I was so excited, and so I
42:37
Speaker 1: went to go talk to her and she had this
42:40
Speaker 1: incredible story. And what touched me the most and made
42:43
Speaker 1: me just more inspired than ever, was that, yes, she
42:47
Speaker 1: loved the shoes and you know, it was amazing to
42:49
Speaker 1: have a shoe for women, but she had a story
42:51
Speaker 1: and she connected with you know, the purpose, and she
42:54
Speaker 1: was standing with the mission, and to me, that's what
42:58
Speaker 1: it's all about. And when I think about the future,
43:01
Speaker 1: I hope that that continues to grow. You know, that story,
43:04
Speaker 1: that connection, that symbol that you know you're standing for
43:07
Speaker 1: equality that you're standing with women.
43:09
Speaker 3: That's really what it's all about.
43:13
Speaker 2: Do you see yourself doing or creating more companies in
43:20
Speaker 2: the future.
43:23
Speaker 1: I mean, I absolutely am open to it, of course,
43:27
Speaker 1: you know, long term, but right now, you know, Seiche
43:30
Speaker 1: has my complete focus and it's my big project.
43:34
Speaker 2: When you say that, you know you have a heavy
43:37
Speaker 2: hand and everything that's going on there right now. Can
43:39
Speaker 2: you give us an example of like some of the
43:41
Speaker 2: stuff that you may do over the course of a
43:43
Speaker 2: regular week when it comes to your role over there.
43:47
Speaker 3: Yeah.
43:47
Speaker 1: Absolutely, So I am leading up our partnerships and our
43:51
Speaker 1: collective and so that looks like, you know, a lot
43:54
Speaker 1: of meetings, a lot of meeting with our team. You know,
43:57
Speaker 1: I'm heavily involved in the product product development process, and
44:01
Speaker 1: so meeting with the teams there, all the updates. It's
44:04
Speaker 1: been fascinating learning this industry, like you know, with factory
44:08
Speaker 1: meetings and you know, our samples and materials and you know,
44:13
Speaker 1: I've just been geeking out on like all of that
44:15
Speaker 1: stuff because I've I've loved shoes since I was little,
44:18
Speaker 1: and so now the inner workings of all of it
44:20
Speaker 1: have been fascinating. But then also just you know, overseeing
44:23
Speaker 1: our team as a whole, you know, are all hands
44:25
Speaker 1: meetings and just one on ones with our with our team,
44:30
Speaker 1: and just because at the end of the day, you know,
44:32
Speaker 1: we being a mission driven company is just making sure
44:36
Speaker 1: that we're all aligned on that and it makes it
44:39
Speaker 1: really special because everyone is and we have all these
44:42
Speaker 1: you know, really purposeful topics to talk about and hold
44:45
Speaker 1: space for. And it's been fascinating now to work on
44:49
Speaker 1: a team being that I've been you know, working by
44:52
Speaker 1: myself for so long. It's just very refreshing and I'm
44:55
Speaker 1: having so much fun.
44:57
Speaker 2: What's what's the last thing that you did for yourself?
45:03
Speaker 3: Ooh, the last thing that I did for myself. That's
45:07
Speaker 3: a good question. It shouldn't be this.
45:10
Speaker 1: Well, actually, tonight I'm getting a massage and so I'm
45:14
Speaker 1: really excited about.
45:15
Speaker 3: That that will be for me. It's so interesting.
45:19
Speaker 2: Though, like we all know the things right earlier, you
45:22
Speaker 2: said make sure that in my schedule I make time
45:25
Speaker 2: for me, and it's like we know we have insight
45:29
Speaker 2: into the recipe, but that doesn't make it easier to
45:32
Speaker 2: always follow with implementing it.
45:35
Speaker 1: Absolutely. That's like the hardest part. It's like, Okay, I
45:38
Speaker 1: know what to do. Now, let me actually go out
45:40
Speaker 1: and do it. So I gotta be better.
45:44
Speaker 3: We all got to be better.
45:45
Speaker 2: You obviously have nothing going on, so it's totally fine.
45:51
Speaker 2: Do you feel a little bit sense of like obligation
45:54
Speaker 2: or excitement to be able to show up for your
45:56
Speaker 2: community in a different way than you were capable of before.
45:59
Speaker 3: Oh?
45:59
Speaker 1: Absolutely, I think that's one of the things that I've
46:01
Speaker 1: been really excited about, you know, in being able to
46:04
Speaker 1: step back. I feel like I've had to say no
46:07
Speaker 1: so many times two different things, you know, different, you know,
46:11
Speaker 1: whether that's showing up for friends, family, you know, I've
46:14
Speaker 1: missed out on so many monumental things for so many
46:17
Speaker 1: other people because competitions and Olympic Citical championships like it
46:21
Speaker 1: always came first, and you always feel selfish, you know,
46:26
Speaker 1: in doing that. But it's pretty much the only way
46:28
Speaker 1: to be successful, you know, in that way. So I
46:31
Speaker 1: am excited to be there, to be present, to be supportive,
46:36
Speaker 1: and be return what so many people have been for
46:41
Speaker 1: me for so many years.
46:43
Speaker 2: Right now, my friend, you have an opportunity to offer
46:47
Speaker 2: yourself a piece of advice at this very moment, at
46:51
Speaker 2: this pinnacle changing point for you, and your career looking.
46:55
Speaker 3: Toward what's next.
46:56
Speaker 2: What advice do you give yourself go into this new chapter.
47:02
Speaker 1: I think I tell myself cherish these moments. I think
47:06
Speaker 1: so often I've just looked to the future so much,
47:09
Speaker 1: you know, I've looked at this moment. Then I can
47:12
Speaker 1: take it in, then I can step back, I can
47:14
Speaker 1: enjoy it. And I just even though you know I'm
47:17
Speaker 1: going to be working hard and I have a lot
47:19
Speaker 1: of things that I want to do, I want to
47:21
Speaker 1: enjoy it. I want to enjoy the process. I want
47:23
Speaker 1: to enjoy my family. I don't want to look back
47:25
Speaker 1: and feel like these moments escaped me.
47:27
Speaker 3: So I would just say, slow down, take it in,
47:30
Speaker 3: enjoy it.
47:31
Speaker 2: Are you having a hard time with the shift of
47:33
Speaker 2: letting go of doing everything that you used to do?
47:38
Speaker 3: I think I will.
47:40
Speaker 1: I think it's like, you know, it's very new at
47:42
Speaker 1: this moment, and I've been kind of nervous about just
47:46
Speaker 1: like what that will feel like. And I've talked to
47:48
Speaker 1: a lot of different friends, and so I've tried to
47:51
Speaker 1: just you know, prepare for it.
47:52
Speaker 3: But I imagine that it'll be challenging.
47:54
Speaker 1: You know, it's like you're losing something that you've loved
47:58
Speaker 1: and done for the last twenty years, and I know
48:01
Speaker 1: I'm going to miss it, and so I imagine that it's
48:04
Speaker 1: going to be challenging over the next, you know, year,
48:07
Speaker 1: as I kind of settle into a new phase of
48:10
Speaker 1: life for me. But I have so much gratitude for
48:13
Speaker 1: everything that it's been, and I think that if I
48:16
Speaker 1: didn't feel some type of way, I think that's just
48:18
Speaker 1: an expression of, you know, how much I loved it.
48:21
Speaker 2: I know you're good friends with Candice Parker, and when
48:23
Speaker 2: I was listening to the two of you talk on
48:25
Speaker 2: your podcast, I was thinking about just that right now,
48:28
Speaker 2: as a woman who loves celebrating other women, it does
48:31
Speaker 2: feel as though like there is a graduating class of
48:34
Speaker 2: just like elite stellar athletes that we have all had
48:38
Speaker 2: the opportunity to follow and watch for so long. So
48:41
Speaker 2: I'm sure that although that transition will be challenging, that
48:46
Speaker 2: you have some good company along.
48:47
Speaker 1: The way, absolutely, and company that I can call on,
48:51
Speaker 1: company where we can support each other, and company that
48:54
Speaker 1: inspires me. I think what's really cool is everybody is
48:57
Speaker 1: doing really neat things in a lot of different spaces,
49:02
Speaker 1: and so we're not stopping anything we're just kind of
49:04
Speaker 1: shifting into new roles.
49:07
Speaker 3: Definitely.
49:07
Speaker 2: Well, Alison, I'm so glad that we were able to
49:10
Speaker 2: make this happen today.
49:10
Speaker 3: I'm so grateful for your time.
49:12
Speaker 2: I'm so excited for Sage two and I can't wait
49:15
Speaker 2: to get my hands on a pair. How do the
49:17
Speaker 2: hurdlers follow along with you? How do they keep up
49:19
Speaker 2: with you going forward? And give us the details?
49:22
Speaker 3: Yeah?
49:23
Speaker 1: Absolutely, Well, you can definitely follow Sage dot com everything there,
49:28
Speaker 1: and then me on social I'm just Alison Felix and
49:33
Speaker 1: on social Sache is by Sache and Yeah, I'd love
49:36
Speaker 1: to for you to keep up on the journey.
49:39
Speaker 3: I love it.
49:39
Speaker 2: I'm over at Emilybody at Hurdle Podcast Another Hurdle conquered.
49:44
Speaker 3: Catch you guys next time.