Jess introduces the alphabet and speaks from the perspective of being part of the LGBTQIA+ community. Jess and Torrie explain what pronouns they use to describe themselves, how they address others. They talk about the gym community and the notion of being a binary.  Some of the athletes were eliminated from the Olympics because they had too high of a testosterone level. Should trans athletes compete with biological women? And it goes deeper than sport. Trans people, in general, are more likely to drop out of school. The lifespan of black trans women is very low. There is a lot of hate crime, sexual violence. How do we start to change it? Listen to this episode and be inspired. 

Episode Highlights

09:00 – Some people are just truly unaware that it is a thing that is done and I try to bring more knowledge in, talk about the LGBT community, explain some basic stuff. 

12:56 – We are not arguing that testosterone gives you certain advantageous characteristics. That’s pretty black and white; this is what testosterone does as a hormone in your body. We are arguing that any person at any given time can have a fluctuation of higher or lower testosterone. So, hormones themselves are an outdated way to divide people in sport.

20:13 – One of the things that often gets ignored when we’re having this conversation is how we’re having the conversation. Is it fair for trans athletes to compete purely on a biological level? That is one conversation, but that is not the conversation that we had. The conversation is about morality. It is about why would you let these people compete with biological women. And they hide behind the argument of fairness in female sports. 

23:01 – Thinking of things outside of binary is difficult for some people. Because it is so easy to categorize people. Man/woman. Gay/straight. That is easy. When you start diving into that gray area and investigating maybe things are not as they seem, it makes people uncomfortable. And it is easier to be combative with the uncomfortable than dive deeper and make the changes.    

44:02 – If you are looking to create these kinds of spaces, are you trying to center yourself and be the main guy? Or are you really trying to create a space for people? 

Contact:  

Robbins Nest Consulting

FitPOWER LLC

The Mighty Dames 

Podcast Town

In this episode, Jess talks about what she has learned about neurodiversity and what she is doing to create safe places for neurodiverse people. Torrie shares about her journey in discovering she is a neurodiverse person. She talks about her struggles with anxiety and compulsive thoughts during the covid lockdown. Jess gives some recommendations to business owners to get them going to create a more welcoming space for a neurodivergent employee or a participant. 

Episode Highlights

05:34 – I am very interested in how I am creating spaces where these people feel safe, where they do not have to mask, to put on a show, use that mental energy to just try to get to the world as a neurotypical person would. I have reached out to people who are more neurodiverse to come in and speak to my coaches and train them.  

06:45 – It works on two layers: you can be masking from yourself, and masking from other people. I masked myself for years. Because mental health is something we do not talk about in the black community.    

20:00 – I’m working on something with Torrie. It’s called the Everybody Collective. It’s a new adventure we’re going down. 

30:19 – People are looking for something to blame or something they can pinpoint – it is very easy to point the flaws on another person to make yourself better. 

34:22 – The fitness industry, trainers, is an abusive kind of industry. With coaching, you are using a lot of mental space to work with other people. So, imagine having to work an eight-hour day. I am giving every coach six health days for a year.

Contact: 

Robbins Nest Consulting

FitPOWER LLC

Every Body Pulls

Jess on Instagram

The Mighty Dames 

Podcast Town 

Both Jessica and Torrie have made the decision to create their paths, their opportunities. They both had to overcome their insecurities and to break some rules, and overcome biases. They share their stories and give some tips that might help you overcome yours. Listen to this episode and find out why representation matters. 

Episode Highlights

07:23 – At the time, I was like, well, what do I do? I’m going to do it myself! And as a woman, as a cis woman, part of the LGBTQ community, it was challenging. But I was never scared. I was insecure. I was insecure in a lot of areas because a lot of the people were telling me what to do.  

11:50 – Some tips to overcome the insecurities 

20:54 – Creating my own path – I recall two moments. Number one was Diet culture. Pandemic is number two. 

33:29 – To me, representation matters because when I think of representation, I see someone doing something, and it's proof that it can be done. 

38:27 – You can’t start the process unless you can say it out loud. 

Contact: 

Robbins Nest Consulting

FitPOWER LLC

The Mighty Dames 

Podcast Town