In this episode, we sit down with ex-England international footballer and Lioness Karen Carney OBE to discuss her distinguished playing career, how the women's game continues to evolve, and the unique barriers to fitness that women face.

In conversation with our host Hannah, Karen also discusses how periods can impact performance as a professional, what her fitness and wellbeing routine looks like now she's retired, and how it felt to represent her country at the highest level.

0:00: intro

0:31: career highlights

4:20: biggest challenges as a professional female athlete

5:37: the continuous evolution of women's football

9:17: the menstrual cycle in sport and exercise

15:33: the effect periods have on training

17:00: changing attitudes to training as we get older

18:54: adapting to retirement after football

21:35: motivation and drive

24:35: exploring other opportunities in retirement

28:05: one piece of advice for making positive change

29:15: outro

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In the first episode of the Let's Talk Health Podcast, we sit down with double-Olympic gold medalist Dame Kelly Holmes and England footballing legend Fara Williams MBE to talk about their career highlights, women's health, and the strain that professional sport can put on the mind and body.

Kelly and Fara also address the barriers to sport that young women face, retirement, and how adjusting to a new, less intense fitness routine poses a unique challenge for ex-athletes.

0:44 guest introduction

1:24 career highlights and favourite moments

6:03 resilience, focus and motivation

9:46 overcoming adversity, challenges and injury

19:49 mental health discussion

24:00 solo training versus team training

28:18 retirement and making adjustments

38:40 changing perspectives on exercise

46:42 grassroots athletics and challenges around funding

49:00 barriers to opportunity for women in sport

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.