Latest / Tom's Hirschsprung's Podcast / Episode 17 - With Laura O'Reilly @Laura_ibd_and_me_

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Episode 17 - With Laura O'Reilly @Laura_ibd_and_me_ · Tom's Hirschsprung's Podcast

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You are listening to Tom's Hirshprung's Podcast, where our provide a look into the
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remarkable experiences of the most inspiring people around Hirshprung's disease and sports. Hello and
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welcome to episode seventeen of Tom's Hirshprung's podcast. Very special guests. This week,
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I have Laura O'Reilly with me. Laura is very much into fitness,
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socializing, traveling, a former podcaster as well, and we're going to talk
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about Laura's story. Welcome to the podcast, Laura, how So I love
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I love a good podcast, as you know. Also, I'm very happy
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to be here and speak on things hence fitness and what I like to harp
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on a lot. Fantastic. We will definitely get into health, well being,
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fitness, but I'd like to start, if I may, with your
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story and sort of we're going to sort of take it back pre diagnosis,
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sort of diagnosis of of ibing t so, pre diagnosis. What was your
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life like pre diagnoses? God, I was a completely different person in terms
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of how I lived my life and my life stay so I was very sociable.
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I would say I'm still quite sociable, but very very asocially, it's
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very differently now. So my life pre diagnoses, I was probably priority in
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a lot every weekend, most again and traveling a lot, different countries,
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different festivals. I act and drank not very well, and I never looked
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after myself physically. I would have always been quite a head strong person in
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terms of my mentality, but physically and really looking air after my body.
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Something as simple as drinking enough water like I never did that. So I
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my health then then went down the hill. Obviously not just because of that,
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because we know that's not the cause of ABD, but at the same
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time, I never helped myself until I got sick and I was diagnosed with
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SO in the June. It was actually in twenty twenty, and like the
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high of lockdown, you could say, I just started noticing blood in the
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stool, and then more urgency and more urgency, and I was sent to
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my friends one day we were out again, as I was. When we
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were out, actually we were all after getting a take away pizza and we
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were habbing a few drinks because at the time we couldn't go out, and
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I was telling them and they were like, er, it's probably just hemorrhage
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or something like that, and I was like, yeah, and keep an
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eye on it, and it just kind of started to get a bit worse,
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like quite quickly, and I was like, oh Christ, And then
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the dreaded, Oh my bad, the embarrassment of going to the doctor with
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this. So I did put it off sadly for a few weeks, and
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then it was just getting worse. I had to go. I'd of course,
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I turned to Google and almost self diagnosed myself to be six foot under
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quite quickly, so I'm like, right, no, I got to both
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to the doctor, so went tod he all my symptoms. She did a
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physical exam, which I will never ever forget. I was the most vulnerable
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I ever felt my whole life. I was crying, truly the entire thing,
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because I'd convinced myself i'd bear the cancer. And when I asked her
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like of course, she couldn't tell me either. So when she couldn't tell
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me that, that made me worse. So I was like, oh,
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yeah, brite myself off. So I was sent for my colnoscopy, which
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came sure a few weeks later, and immediately I was actually very quickly diagnosed
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with the alstrative collitius then, which I never heard of at all, had
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no clue, like I understood Crohn's disease to an extent, so I just
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thought, Okay, grat I'd a diagnosis. Can I please have my medication
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and let me get out of my life? Like like it like it would
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be that easy, you know, and go. I literally did I know
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what was what I was in for. And that is why it started off
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very mild medication, I guess, as they're trying to figure out how you
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react to things, and nothing was working. I was getting progressively worse,
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and they decided after another few I think it was like two or three months
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that i'd start by logic treatment. So I started on a Juvisha self injections
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and I can remember the nurse coming out of the house teach me like how
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to self inject, and she was like, your life's going to go back
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to norma. This is going to be amazing, and you know the success
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rates they're amazing, and I was like so excited, going really not bothered
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about jabbing myself, Like let's go, let's get it done. So she
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was like, give it twelve weeks, so we gave it twelve weeks,
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absolutely no improvement at all. So then we said we'd move on to influximab,
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so we used go in for my infusions every couple of weeks. Again
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no improvement. At this point my team were like scratching their heads, going
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like, you're quite complex because something usually does work, you know, be
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a steroids whatever, So in flixing map. When in Flixing Map faded,
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I can remember being I was only up the country on holiday at the time,
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and I had to cut the holiday short and come home, and I
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was so so ill I actually brought myself to any something I would never do
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ever, like hones. I was at some limb hanging off and because the
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healths from here, the A department is just horrendous. But anyway, I
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went and they admitted me straight away, put me on IVY steroids, whipped
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me off the treatment I was on, and spoke about possibly removing a part
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of the bowne that was the main problem area, I guess, and they
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spoke about that like it was nothing, but to me that was a huge
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deal, and I was like, whoa, whoa, whoa, what's going
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on here? Like you know, and and quite a person that would ask
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you like a million questions because I want to know every single detail. I
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want to not you know, it's just the way I am. And so
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they were like, right, we'll try another drug first, so they put
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me on Stellara. So I started Stilara when I was in hospital and I
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was released like a week later, and week by week, like quite quickly,
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I started to improve. And I was like, oh my god,
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like I always forgot what it was like to not not be ill, and
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I was kind of going, I feel very odd. So anyway, that
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was like the August and the winter came and gone. I just feeling really
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good. And then I just started connecting. I think I only set up
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my IBDP age in and around that time actually where I was in the midst
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of everything and I was looking for a million answers, and so I was
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starting to connect to a lot of people at that point. And Dan from
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AO Fitness, who's my current coach at the moment, so just like everybody
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else, you know, hey, how are you, how you know,
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what do you have? How you deal him with? What medication you want?
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And we just kind of came became friends really just through having the same
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disease. I guess and I can remember in that January he was putting out
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something like he was looking for I don't know. It was some challenge like
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a certain amount of people to take on, like a twelve week fitness challenge.
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Now this is coming from somebody who did never lifted a dumb bell in
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my life. Well, I was there after getting a feel for feeling normal
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and not sick again, and I really started to like appreciate my body a
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bit more and kind of start making more of an effort and like you know,
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copping myself on basically, So I was like, will I won't do
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when I won't out? Well, I really I was so close to not
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doing it because I had no confidence of fitness, never minded Jim I would
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have ran a mile, I'd be so embarrassed, like there would be no
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way. So I was like, erfecket, I'll do it. So I
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signed up in that January, so January last year, and I started with
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home workouts, like my plans were based around home workouts because again I was
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petrified to step foot in the gym. I didn't know what anything was.
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And so I did home workouts for like five weeks and I really, really,
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really enjoyed them and enjoyed the nutrition plan, and I was just like
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really getting in the zone. And I was like, who's this, you
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know, And I was obviously feeling well at the time, so I was
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just like, this is amazing. And then I messaged one day and I
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said, right, I'm gonna I'm gonna take the leap. I'm gonna join
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a gym. And I can remember him saying to me, right, that's
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absolutely amazing. On your first day, feel really really overwhelmed. Ring me
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go into the child and ring me and I just talk you true or you
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know, like really supportive. But he didn't have to do that, but
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obviously he knew how nervous I was. So I started the gym in I
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think it was Marched last year. So I'm thirteen months in the gym now
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I've never missed one workaw everr and now it's part of my life where I
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cannot go without it, and I feel sorry in between that let me just
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quickly, So that was tree By Logic's done. That My six month little
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amazing I'm as Stellaria came to an end also, so I had to go
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back and so between like March last year in April like another scope and they're
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like, no, unfortunately it's fair as we're going to movie on to Rinbach.
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So I'm currently on Rinboch now. So I'm in the gym thirteen months
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and I'm in Rinbach thirteen months. So is it ironic? Who knows who
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else like this incident? But I've been really well since then, and now
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my whole life and probably Instagram pages you can tell, revolves around promotingly health
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and fitness and just having people I guess see that I really really was on
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the other side of where I am now. You know, I did a
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character myself. I neglected my body. I was solely relying on education.
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So just by putting all of those things in place, an invest in a
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court has completely flipped the switch for me, you know, and my disease
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and my illness and how I feel and my energy and just everything. Sorry,
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that was a big spiel there. You didn't even get a word in.
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No, No, I'm more than happy to sit back and listen to
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some incredible stories. Absolutely, yeah, that's and again a fantastic story.
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And I talked to a lot of people who who find fitness and maybe maybe
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they hadn't done so before and they think, well I'll start because I might
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feel better and this, that and the other, and they really do find
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a lot of different positive benefits. And I think when when some people say,
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oh you join a git, you think, right, okay, you
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think mainly physical benefits. And there are lots of physical benefits, don't don't
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get me wrong, but it's so much more than that. I fight the
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only mentally, inally, socially. Did you find it where exercises is far
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more than just than just physical? Ah? Yeah, and I and I
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think in anybody who does find her Instagram page and would sort of look at
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that and say, oh, this is somebody who's been exercising their entire life.
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Yeah. So yeah, So that's the thing that really struck me about
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you is the fact that it's been so would say thirteen months. I think,
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yeah, thirteen months. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, it's
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mad. And that's where I suppose I love. I like to mention that
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at last, because, as you said, if you did go on to
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my page, you probably think, oh, yeah, this is just another
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person harping on about the gym blah blah blah blah that when actually normal,
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My entire life has benefited and changed so so so much, and as you
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said, it's not just physical, it's so much more. Like I only
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share something on my story this morning, and it was like, you know,
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you don't just go fitness isn't about just changing your body. It really
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is a huge, like life changeing thing, and like not just the gym
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anything. It's amazing. Yeah. Well yeah, And when we were sort
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of chatting off there a little bit before, you said, but your whole
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family, brothers and everybody were going to fitness and you were sort of the
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odd one else as such. I yeah, did that? But did that
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help in a way in having people around you that was so into fitness?
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Did that make it easier for you to transition? Or did you kind of
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think I'm going to try and keep up with them and it's going to be
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a bit odder, do you know what? I don't think any of it
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played Actually no, it didn't impluent me at all because they've been doing it
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for years and I just be like, oh whatever, or like we'd all
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go on holiday and they're like bringing their running gear. I'm like, are
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you for real? Whereasn't how I go on holiday and I might the hotel
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has to have a gym. Yeah, but no, I mean the minute
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I got into it, they're absolutely delighted. Like my brother is always wearying
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and what's the story blah blah blah, and only wants to see. Like
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we chat a lot about like my plans, what I'm doing, like the
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fat loss I've gone like because it's been a whole fat loss journey for me
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as well, so my goals, and I just think it's just something I'm
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really really passionate about now. I read about it every single day I learn
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about it. I'm not upset, but I am so interested that I just
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dig deep and I really really want it on stand as much as I can
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about the body and stuff. And I really do have to thank my disease
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for that, you know. Yeah, So you think sort of without the
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the colitis, would you be in the gym or would it just be absolutely
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not? Absolutely not? And I can say that confidently. I just wouldn't
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of. I would have continued on just like living with my best life and
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kind of care free. And I still do that now, but I do
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it for different reason and the reasons are better being all for myself. No,
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I wouldn't of. No, So I'm always very thankful for having a
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shaky disease. Basically, yeah, it does happens benefits. I couldn't try
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to. I keep trying to put this on the podcast, and not everyone
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believes me, and I don't know how many episodes it will take, but
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somebody somewhere will believe me at sol Boy and actually actually, amidst the hundreds
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of things that maybe aren't so positive, there are lots and lots of positives
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that do come out of it, And there are exponents of any people like
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yourself who has said, right, okay, I you know, I want
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to do something. I want to do something that's going to help me.
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Yeah, and maybe join the gym, maybe started running, maybe maybe it
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Maybe it doesn't have to go that far the some side you said, you
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know, you said that you were really nervous and about joining a gym,
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and that that goes for an awful lot of people. And I think that,
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yeah, that mentality of Jim sort of inverted commas, that that that
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sort of you know, you imagine, you know, incredibly muscle bound people
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and you know you've got to be listing the heaviest thing and and doing this
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out of the other and and it's I'm not going to say, oh,
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it's not like that for everybody, because they might be some gyms which are
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very much like that. But many of the people are spoken to have had
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many different experiences with gyms and they can go at their own pace and maybe
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they're, like like you, they found somebody else to build, somebody to
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help them a lot. Yeah, yeah, did you find I know you
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said sort of it's been incredibly helpful, But did you find sort of having
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a backup as such and going to the gym, did you find that really
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beneficial, like having a coach, yeah yeah, or somebody else that's just
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there for advice or or oh my god, a million percent. It's having
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a coach is an investment, right, It's money out of your pocket.
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And the way I look at it is I could spend money on so much
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rubbish, which we all do our taims, you know, and that's fine,
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like it's just part comparisons. But the money I spend I do spend
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on having a coach is absolutely priceless to me. At the moment, I
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buy coffee bloody in a coffee shop a few times a week. I you
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know, you might just buy random bits and pieces here. All of that
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money is the same as paying for a coach, you know, but you're
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getting so much worried of it. I genuinely, even though I feel like
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I'm in a really good place, I understand a lot now about exercise,
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and you know, the plans and the exercises. I know them all now
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and blah blah blah, but I don't know all. So I will continue
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to have a coach regardless of how confident I get, because I just think
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for the accountability for me and having someone that's very, very knowledgeable, and
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I mean like I wreck his head, like I ask so what well?
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Boy, I to be always like I'm getting my money's work there at the
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end. That's what I'm paying you for. Absolutely, there is actually nothing
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wrong as you as you said there with being curious. I you know,
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when I when I coached people, did it for sort of a decade or
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so. Yeah, I would always like to coach people and ask me questions.
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Okay, it's great having the people you go do this and they go
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and do it that. Yeah, that's great. But I'd always enjoy teaching
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people who wanted to know or said, oh why why am I doing this,
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Tom, or what benefit is this to me? Tom? Yeah?
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I loved having that and and and I think it's just great that you're you're
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curious about it and want to know more and starting from you know, a
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beginner effectively, Yeah, and and and then and then wanting to know more.
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I think that's fantastic. Yeah, like I do. And I suppose,
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as you says, they're like, when you're asking questions from a COAGEOS
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perspective, you know, then that person is really really interested, you know,
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or like I'd often send across videos and be like, can you check
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my form on this? And just so much. And I think it comes
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down to having that are building that rapport, I guess with a coach,
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because not every coach is for everybody either, you know. I just got
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lucky. I think from the first, from the first off, that he
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understands the disease first and foremost because he has himself, and which is obviously
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amazing because if you come into a flare up, they're like, I totally
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know how it feels, you know, so yeah I will I will forever
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encourage anybody that is unsure where to start or how to start, to literally
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take it from me, who had no intention ever to be in do fitness
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or anything like that. To get a coach, get a coach, and
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the great instead a coach can give you is just invaluable. I think you
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know, and you've obviously been a coach. You all that yourself, so
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you can vouch with that too. I guess you know. It's short good.
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It's just so good. It's money well spent, well worth every penny,
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absolutely definitely. And going along the lines of fitness, is there anything
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in particular, I know that there is something on your Instagram page, on
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the top part of your Instagram page that you're training for at the moment.
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I actually have a fitness shoot next week. Okay, I've not. I'm
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quite nervous about it because obviously, as we just spoke, I'm only doing
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this thirteen months. I'm not ripped. I'm not doing this photo shoot to
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gin like Missus Muscle and you know, this just slept away. This is
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about my fat last journey. Like I'm down, I'm just breaking in.
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I started, I was like seventy six point six CAGs and I'm just breaking
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into sixty three now, wow, fantastic. So it's been like it's not
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been super quick, you know, the we're some drops off people and whatever.
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It's just been really consistent and that's how I'm gonna continue with it really.
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But after the shoot, I guess we're gonna increase my calories, which
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would be a big deal for me, and try work on a building more
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muscle, and maybe next year's shoots will look a little bit better and more
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professional. Well for now, the fitness shoot next week is fun. It's
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going to be fun, and it's going to be just all about my fat
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last journey and I guess how emotionally, physically, mentally, just stronger the
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whole the whole thing has been for me, you know. All So yeah,
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that's kind of a goal of mine. And obviously then I think in
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time it's possibly something I'd like to maybe go down into that kind of field
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myself, you know, yeah, now for sure. And and also you
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do an excellent job, if I may say my so with raising awareness IBD.
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You didn't do an awful awful lot of great work. Thank you.
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Are there any particular charities that you work with as well? So I've been
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I've had a few zoom cards with Crowns in Kladus, Ireland, it's probably
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our only main Crowns and Kaladas charity in this country. Unfortunately we don't have
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as many, like there's so many in the kids amazing. So I've been
25:00
a volunteer with Crones and Kladist Ireland. They're just in the process of like
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setting up and delegating different roles and things like that to people, so it's
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just a case of waiting to hear there's like I think there was thirteen of
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us on the call. Also, I'm doing a Tough Mother in July this
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year with my coach and on the team, and that's for Gut's charity Ukay,
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So that's a fundraiser at the moment, and I think we're at like
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six or seven hundred pound at the moment, and some of the guys on
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the team, like their employments are like going to match whatever we made,
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like, so it should be fun. That's in July. Am I ready
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for it? No, I've probably passed out halfway through, but I'm game
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ball. I'm feeling well, so all of these things now, I'm just
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like Yadis gust, let's do it in fast and if people want to donate
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to your your Tough Mother adventure where would they find where would they find?
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The link in my bio And the link is on my bio, are on
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my coaches page which is Ale Fitness, are Ale, Prawn, Serry and
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whoever else is involved with everybody I think it shared a link, but my
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one anyway is on my bio on my Instagram page. And and also just
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very briefly, you did delve into the world of podcasting at the start of
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the year, that with with two to two other people as well, and
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and I have done that for was it about four four months or so?
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Is that going? Yes, it's like Instagram lives for like three or four
26:52
months, and then we did we went on to podcasting at the beginning of
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February, so it was actually kind of true month, really, wasn't it
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for Prey much? Yeah, but it feels longer actually, probably because of
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the lives. But yeah, the podcast has sadly come to an end with
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all three of us. But you know, all these things sometimes work out.
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Sometimes you just kind of move on. And but it was a lot
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of fun and made a lot of really nice connections and like you, like,
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I love listening to other people's stories and understand you know, how people
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deal with different things and illnesses and all that kind of stuff. So yeah,
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it was it was. It was fun, yeah, fantastic, and
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that was keeping up with the gals, correct packing up the gals. Yeah,
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so it won't be around anymore, to be honest, I'm not sure
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what happens with the Spotify and things like that, but yeah, it's no
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longer. But it was fun. It was fun excellently. There's some back
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episodes in there that are really worth to listen. So if you have a
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little bit of signe once you finished listening to Laura's podcast, on Laura's Story,
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on my podcast and all the rest of my podcasts, then listen to
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that. Yeah. But lastly, what does the fitness future of Laura look
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like to you? Because obviously he'd made massive progress since since twenty twenty,
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what do you Obviously you've got the Tough Mother coming up, and you have
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the photo shoot coming up, and you've lost things going on in the near
28:48
future, but what do you think your fitness journey will look like in the
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next few years or so? Really good question, because they do think about
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it a lot, and I do think I'm at the stage in my life
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where I can even put more time and effort into it. So I would
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love to further on in the head and fitness field as I'm happy to do
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it as a self development thing for myself, potentially doing health and fitness and
29:27
personal training course myself, which I've spoke to my coach about. And you
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know, I would also remain having a coach at that time because I find
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a lot of people I suppose you know that maybe do a personal training course
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all of a sudden think they're qualified and on paper you are, but you're
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really not, Like you still you know you're you're not are your tom?
29:52
No, No, you can't do a weekend course and get ten years worth
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experience. It doesn't work. But sorry for people we were about to go
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to the course, it doesn't work, like absolutely, like you're sorry,
30:07
and it's it's just like everything now all go on to YouTube learn this.
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Are they going in the hairdresser? Go on to YouTube and learn how to
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conor your hair? No? Please don't like, please don't so, yeah,
30:18
the same kind of thing. If I you know, I would love
30:22
to go down that route or I would have the support of I'm I'll keep
30:27
my coaching well confident enough like, I have a hell of a lot to
30:33
learn, but there's no harm in starting. And it's never too late to
30:37
start either, you know. Yeah, yeah, I think I think if
30:41
anybody takes anything away from this, it's just just start. Just start to
30:45
see where you go. It's not too late, it's it's it's yeah.
30:49
I know lots of people who started running, you know, into the when
30:53
they started in their fifties and things like that, and there now getting on
30:56
really really well. So au I think looking around never and I just think
31:03
looking around you see people in those heresies and forties and they're bloody looking,
31:08
so insane. I just think you get to that point in your life where
31:12
you've almost like lived a little bit of a wildest time maybe, and you
31:18
really start investing in yourself, and you just think looking around just that middle
31:23
age ground is just like thrumpin held bitting like life everything. I love to
31:32
see it, you know, and I really hope it sticks around the whole
31:36
heath and fitness kind of encouragement and stuff. That's I'm going at the moment
31:40
for anyone at any levels, any exercise, just start moving, you know,
31:44
definitely, definitely, And I know I said lastly, but this is
31:48
the really lastly we had can people and I We've mentioned and touched it before.
31:52
Where can people find you? So my Instagram page is it's a bit
31:59
of a lone one. So it's like Laura underscore, IBD underscore and underscore
32:07
Me underscore like so basically Laura, IBD and Me a short fantastic like,
32:15
Yeah, I always say to everyone you know, message me whenever. I
32:17
love chatting as you can probably tell us, so like I'd answer anything.
32:22
You know, we are you perfect for this podcast? Yeah, there we
32:25
go fantastic. We're in the years off you. But yeah, it's all
32:34
for a good good cause and it's always just to encourage other people you know,
32:38
are inspired possibly which is lovely. Definitely definitely on behalf of the podcast.
32:45
I just want to say thank you so so much for coming on.
32:47
It's been an that's a bit pleasure to talk to you. And I'm good
32:52
luck with your your tough mother and your photo shooting the future hurry. Thank
32:57
you so much. It's all for the games, the absolutely thank you.
33:02
Thanks Tom, thank you for listening to the podcast. Find us on Instagram.
33:10
Tom's Underscore, Hirshbrun's Underscore Podcast. Listen to previous episodes on Spotify by
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searching Tom's Hirshbrun's podcast