July 22, 2024 • 33 mins
Georgia Bell was a great runner as a child - but in college she fell out of love with the sport. She hung up her running shoes - and they gathered dust until Covid hit and she began to run again for fun. Turns out that aged 30, she's one of the fastest women in the world and is now headed to the Olympics!
Georgia tells Dr Laurie Santos how she regained her enthusiasm for the 1500m race - and reflects on the happiness lessons she's picked up in her dramatic return to the very pinnacle of her sport.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:08):
Pushkin.
Speaker 2 (00:15):
This summer, Pushkin is going to the Olympics. We'll be
sharing inspiring new athlete stories across our entire network, including
the latest sports science from What's Your Problem, some amazing
swimmer stories on slight change of plans, a cautionary Tales
tale about how women had to fight to run the marathon,
and an epic season of revisionist history on why America
participated in Hitler's Olympics. Here on the Happiness Lab, I'll
(00:39):
talk to the coaches who coached the team USA coaches,
and I'll hear from an athlete who fell back in
love with a sport that she'd grown to hate just
in time to head to the Olympics.
Speaker 1 (00:48):
Be sure to check it out.
Speaker 3 (00:53):
Good morning, Good morning, hey Georgia, nice to meet you.
Speaker 2 (00:56):
I love interviewing elite athletes, but they're often tricky to schedule,
which means a podcast host needs to grab any opportunities
she can to chat with them.
Speaker 1 (01:04):
Thanks so much for taking the time for this same.
Speaker 3 (01:06):
Problem, thanks to waking up Eadie to do it.
Speaker 2 (01:09):
To talk to Georgia, I had to get up at
the butt crack of dawn. It's like it's pretty out.
The sun's out already here in Boston, so it's all good.
Great your East case. That makes me feel a little
bit better of it.
Speaker 1 (01:19):
Yeah yeah, if it was california'd be a little rough.
Speaker 2 (01:22):
But I was pretty excited to set my alarm for
this interview because Georgia has an inspiring story to share.
Until recently, Georgia was a cybersecurity expert. She ran competitively
as a teen, but had a falling out with her
sport and hung up her sneakers. Then a few years ago,
she decided to try out a few amateur races just
for fun and learned that she was one of the
fastest women on Earth.
Speaker 3 (01:44):
Hi, my name is Georgia bell.
Speaker 4 (01:46):
I am from London and was working about have taken
the summer off to be a professional happy named for
the Olympic Games in Paris.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
I really loved the idea of like, I'm taking the
summer off, Oh what are you gonna do? You're you
gonna like travel to France or something like, No, I'm
gonna run in the Olympics.
Speaker 1 (02:03):
It's just just what I do.
Speaker 3 (02:05):
Fingers cross.
Speaker 4 (02:06):
Yeah, fingers cross was the intro okay, because I know, yeah,
brush people are quite bad at doing their intros. My
mom's like, you need to pick yourself up more. You're
British champion, your world finalists, so if you want me
to do it again, I can do it with a
bit more pizazz.
Speaker 1 (02:21):
You did it great.
Speaker 2 (02:22):
But I think that's another lesson for all of us, right,
is that, like, you know, we all have to kind
of to our own horn a little bit too. And
Georgia Bell has a lot to do her horn about.
After her return to elite racing at age thirty, she's
begun winning both national and international medals. She's also landed
a sponsorship deal with Nike. And what makes all this
even more incredible is that Georgia spent the last five
(02:43):
years sitting in front of a computer, not outrunning day
after day, year after year, like the runners she's now beating.
But George's talent didn't totally come out of nowhere. As
a teen, she was pretty much the best runner in
the UK.
Speaker 4 (02:55):
I was English Schools champion when I was kind of fourteen.
At that point, you call really did too much training.
A lot of it is down to okay, this, this
kid is kind of good at this.
Speaker 3 (03:05):
So yeah, it was something that.
Speaker 4 (03:06):
I kind of knew from a young age was something
that I had a little bit of talent for. And yeah,
it was exciting to be at that level at that
age for sure.
Speaker 2 (03:15):
And so talk about those early days because in the
US right now, kids in sports sometimes feel like they're
doing it out of pressure to their parents or that
kind of thing. You know, was yours from pressure? Did
you really like it? What was your relationship with it?
Speaker 4 (03:26):
Early on, I beat all of the boys in the races,
and one of the parents just spoke to my parents
and said, you should really get her down to a
local running club. And from there I just started going Tuesdays, Thursday,
Saturdays down to my local club. So started running from
a really young age. I think the first race I
ever did properly on a track I was aged eleven,
(03:47):
and just continue to compete from there. Really, I really
liked it. It was really fun, It was really social,
you know, it was an opportunity for me to see
my friends. I was good at it, which I think helped.
You know, kids always feel they want to do things
that they're good at, so that really helped. So, especially
in the early days, I was just really enjoying training
(04:08):
and racing and just getting to do it as a
very social activity while also I guess at the same time,
not that I would have had awareness of this when
I was younger, but getting all those endorphins and things
that are good that come with exercise.
Speaker 2 (04:21):
What happened when you went to UNI? Did you kind
of continue when you started college?
Speaker 4 (04:25):
Yes, so I continued to compete, and I think what
happened was either I got worse or everybody else caught up,
but I just wasn't having the same results that I'd
had as a very successful youngster. Still managed to get
a scholarship to go to university in the US, which is,
you know, it was a really big achievement, and went
over there to the US, to berkeleyn California, to compete
(04:48):
on a track scholarship, but never ran faster than I
did in the UK. And I think that's really the
point where the pressure started to come in. Obviously, you're
a little bit of a business deal if you know
you're being supported financially to go over there and perform.
And I think that was probably the point where it
went from being something that I really loved did for fun,
but actually this kind of new element of pressure added in,
(05:10):
had a bit of an impact on my performance and
probably emotionally as well. The training is very different these
big scholarship programs in the US. They just have huge
roster of athletes and it's kind of a general training
program that you kind of fit into and you sink
or swim.
Speaker 3 (05:26):
For me, I sunk.
Speaker 4 (05:28):
I guess when I did that out in the US,
And you know, it really worked well for.
Speaker 3 (05:32):
Some people, but it didn't work so well for me.
Speaker 1 (05:34):
I mean, what was that like?
Speaker 2 (05:35):
That must have been so stressful to kind of feel
that pressure you're far away from home, Like, how did
you handle it?
Speaker 4 (05:41):
While I was really loving the whole experience of going
to a university in the US, and I still to
this day, I think it is an incredible thing to
experience from a running perspective.
Speaker 3 (05:51):
But I just wasn't as good as I was in
the UK.
Speaker 4 (05:54):
I was perpetually injured in and out of boots because
I had stress fractures, and so that just translated to
not running as well on the track and not running
as fast, and you know, that was obviously difficult to
deal with. You know, there's an expectation on you. You
expect certain amount from yourself, but also your team the
scholarship team, you know, everyone like that, there's an expectation
(06:14):
on you. So yeah, I was definitely a difficult time.
And you just have to keep showing up kind of
week and week out, even if you're not fit, because
it's your responsibility, you know.
Speaker 3 (06:23):
Yeah, it was a tough time in lots of ways.
Speaker 2 (06:25):
I imagine I'm also also been kind of a hit
to your identity as well. I mean, I work with
college students really closely at Yale, and I think it's
hard for them to think of themselves as like, I'm
a person who runs, I'm a person who rows, crew
like I'm a runner, I'm a crew member.
Speaker 4 (06:38):
Right.
Speaker 2 (06:38):
Did you have to kind of update your identity to
deal with these changes?
Speaker 4 (06:42):
Yeah, it was difficult because I was used to being
from such a young age. I was used to being
kind of the girl that's good at running, and then
you kind of go through a period where you're not
so good at running, but everyone sees you that way.
So yeah, it was definitely a bit of a strange
piece for my identity. Also, when I just stopped running
all the the once I graduated college, that was strange
(07:02):
time as well, because again I'd gone my whole life
being the runner, and then all of a sudden I
wasn't running. So yeah, there were definitely periods of time
where this sport that was so combined with my identity. Yeah,
has some strange experiences coming to terms with who I
was without that. So how did you make that decision
to stop altogether? That must have been kind of extreme. Yeah,
(07:23):
it was in a way, I guess. I had finished
my collegiate career and I had graduated from Berkeley, and
I just wasn't running so well. I'd been doing it
for kind of the best part of twenty years, so
I just thought I really wasn't enjoying it anymore as
the bottom line, not only when my performance is not
good enough to sign professionally, but I also was just
(07:44):
really looking forward to finishing running. It had gone from
being something that I really loved and looked forward to
racing and training to I just cannot wait to be
done with this. I just took a complete break after college,
went into the working world, lived in San Francisco, and
it was actually really good period for me because it
was a chance to kind of do all the things
that you say no to you so much, you know,
(08:05):
even things like going for dinner, going away with friends,
just things you cannot do when you are an athlete.
Speaker 3 (08:10):
It's a full lifestyle choice.
Speaker 2 (08:12):
I'm just curious, though, because I think, you know, so
many people go through the kind of thing that you
went through, maybe not with running, but with something else.
You know, this job that you totally love now you
hate it, or maybe this volunteer activity that you were
into is now putting all this pressure on you. I'm
kind of curious just like how you navigated that transition
and the sort of emotions that came up from that.
Speaker 3 (08:31):
Yeah, it was hard.
Speaker 4 (08:32):
I mean, on the one hand, I think people can
just continue doing things because it's been habit for so long,
and it's tough because I do think there is real
value in just showing up to things that you don't
want to do. That's what builds discipline, and then if
you do enough of those days over a period of time,
that's what makes the difference. So in running, you keep
showing up, that's when you become fit. You know, shop
(08:53):
on the days you want to show up, on the
days you don't want to show up, and then after
a couple of years, you know, you you become really
good appy, and I think that can translate into other jobs.
You know, you keep showing up for your job and
you get better at it and then suddenly you like it.
But I think, yeah, it had just been such a
long period and I just I'd thought about it for
a while and yeah, I just kind of sat down
(09:16):
with myself, talked to my friends and family and just
decided that for me, at that point in my life,
it was really time for a break.
Speaker 3 (09:23):
So it's not an easy decision.
Speaker 4 (09:25):
I'm sure other people going through that it would be
a tough decision. But I think ultimately, if you're not
enjoying it and haven't been enjoying it for a while,
then you need to make some changes to make sure
that you can be happy.
Speaker 1 (09:36):
And so how long was the break and how did
you come back from it?
Speaker 3 (09:40):
I think I didn't go.
Speaker 4 (09:40):
For a run for probably like a year, like a
full break. I gained a little bit of weight, but
just kind of completely stopped for a while, and then
I really got back into it over COVID. So obviously
during that period of time, I was back living in
London at this point and there was just nothing else
to you know, everything was shut down and pretty much
(10:02):
the only time you were allowed to leave the house
was when you were exercising. I obviously took the opportunity
on to get out of the house, and then I
just found that I was really enjoying that release of
just going for a run. And then suddenly I started
adding things into my run instead of just going for
a small job and realized that I was liking that
competitive element to it again.
Speaker 2 (10:23):
You know, what was it like when you first put
the running shoes back on, Like were they the same
ones that you had at Berkeley? Like, you know, just
kind of curious what that moment felt like.
Speaker 4 (10:31):
Yeah, exactly, Like it was shoes that have literally been
gathering dust, had them in touch for so long. And Yeah,
originally I like the why of getting out of the
house was I just need to get out of this house,
you know, like we've just been cooped up here all day.
And then suddenly it was a part of the day
that I was just so looking forward to. Yeah, I
guess it just felt really natural again, just running felt
(10:54):
like myself again. That's still how I feel about running today.
You know, when I have training or a workout is
still the best part of the day, The part that
I look forward to the most, and I think everything
had just been so intensified in COVID that, yeah, it
was probably even more heightened when I put the running
shoes on and got out of the house because it
was just such strange times that we were living in.
But it was definitely just like a realization that this
(11:17):
is something that I feel like I'm I meant to do,
I really love And yeah, it was a bit emotional
just coming back to that point. And then after lockdown
subsided a little bit. I'd gained some fitness over that
period and entered what we have of you here in
the UK was just quite big board park run. Every
park on a Saturday just hosts these five k runs
(11:40):
and it's just a really measurable way of seeing your fitness.
So I hopped into one of those ran a pretty
fast five k. I think I did a sixteen minute
five k, and then after that that made me think, Okay,
I'm actually in pretty good shape. Maybe it's time to
get back on the track after five years off, and
that kind of us at the who'll come back?
Speaker 2 (12:01):
Let's put George's park run performance into perspective, shall we
running five thousand meters in sixteen minutes, puts Georgia about
ninety seconds behind the British record and just two minutes
behind the fastest woman on the planet for an amateur
race in her local park. George's time was pretty amazing,
But how did she take the next step to make
the steep climb back to the pinnacle of her sport.
(12:22):
We'll hear how when the Happiness Lab returns in a moment.
After years as a gifted runner in school, Georgia Bell
fell out of love with the sport. She just couldn't
see a life for herself as a professional athlete. But
the COVID lockdown her back and her running shoes and
she began clocking some pretty impressive times. But there's a
(12:45):
big difference between a park run and the Olympics. Running
may seem like an individual pursuit, but it's really a
team sport. As a teen, Georgia trained with renowned coach
Trevor Painter. If she was going to become a serious
contender again, she'd need his help.
Speaker 4 (12:59):
I was just going for runs and training on my own,
which you know is not so fun. But I decided
at that point, okay, I've run a decent time I'm
actually going to get in touch with my old coach
who I was working with before I went over to
the US on a scholarship. And so I got back
in contact with him and said, look, no we haven't
spoken for years, but I've kind of run these times
(13:21):
on my own. Do you think it would be worth
us working together again and see what we can achieve?
And I know that Trevor had always said, you know,
I was the one that got away. He really didn't
want me to go to the US. He really thought,
stay in the UK. I can train you to be
an incredible athlete. He has got incredible athletes. You know.
Keey Hodgkinson is one of his who is hopefully going
for gold this summer. She got an Olympic silver medal
(13:43):
when she was just nineteen, So there's a lot of
pedigree in the group and his training. And yeah, we've
been working together now for two years and it's just
going so well. It's great to be part of a
community and you know, getting that guidance. Yeah, I just
felt very lucky that I was able to kind of
go back to him after all those years away, and
he said, yeah, let's give it a go and see
(14:05):
what we can do.
Speaker 2 (14:06):
He must be thrilled to get you back, like it
must be like such a cool thing for him to
have the one that got away at coming back.
Speaker 3 (14:11):
Yeah, definitely.
Speaker 4 (14:12):
I think it's been great for the whole group because there's,
you know, so many athletes that are doing well at
different times in their life. You know, I'm definitely one
of the more mature athletes in the group. A lot
of people just think of like sixteen year old phenom
runners that go straight into professional contracts and then the Olympics,
whereas I'm an example of doing it another way around
(14:33):
but still hopefully getting to that point. Yeah, he's just
been a fantastic coach, emotional support and guidance, and yeah,
I have full trust in him, and I think that's
one of the things that has led to a lot
of the success as well.
Speaker 2 (14:46):
And it seems like now you have a slightly different
relationship to running than you did when you left Berkeley.
What does it feel like now when you engage in it.
Speaker 4 (14:53):
Even though I am on a professional contract now, like
I am a Nike athlete since earlier this year, So
in a way you would think, Okay is kind of
pressured there as well. But it doesn't feel like that,
like I'm much more mature. I think I'm making a
lot more decisions over my body and racing and training
that I just felt like I didn't really have before.
And that means that I just feel a lot more
(15:14):
in control and enjoying it. So I'm just so grateful
for having a second shot with running that I think
it's just translating really nicely into races. I'm just happy
to be here seizing every opportunity. So yeah, I'm just
loving it at the moment.
Speaker 2 (15:30):
It seems like you're less injury prone as well. I mean,
it seems like there's a kind of different model of
training where it's not like push push push, but trying
to maybe is taking in more rest and sort of
taking more breaks.
Speaker 1 (15:39):
Is that right too?
Speaker 4 (15:40):
Yeah, So I probably do about half the amount of
running that I was doing in the US and the USA.
I was on fifty five sixty miles a week. Here,
I'm running about thirty. But I'll do a lot more
on the bike to make sure I'm getting that work
without any impact. And yeah, take a recovery day at
least once a week, and then just some hard track
sessions to make sure that we're fitting her fee to compete, which.
Speaker 1 (16:01):
I think is its own message.
Speaker 2 (16:02):
I think when we're trying to push ourselves to something,
whether it's as an athlete or at work, or just
you know, with some sort of new personal habit that
we're trying to develop, we can sometimes want to push, push, push,
and like do it in this extreme way. But sometimes
engaging in a little bit of self compassion and taking
that rest can actually mean the difference between being able
to do it long term and like just some short
blip of whatever we're trying.
Speaker 3 (16:22):
To do exactly.
Speaker 4 (16:24):
And I think for me, knowing what it feels like
to be constantly injured and trying to come back to fitness,
I never want to be in that situation again. So
I'm much better at kind of listening to my body.
I'm very quick to kind of share information with my
coach if I'm feeling any kind of concerns, whereas in
the past perhaps I wouldn't do that. I would just
keep it to myself and it would translate into a
(16:45):
bigger problem. And so yeah, I'm just much more mature
in terms of looking after myself and making sure that
I am maybe doing less miles, but that means that
I can consistently build a year and year in year
rather than taking breaks out because I'm injured, and that's
resulting in, you know, some good performances on the track.
Speaker 2 (17:04):
I mean, it seems like you're embodying a couple of
the happiness principles that we talk about on the podcast.
I mean, one of them is just this idea of
kind of mindfulness or being present. And they hear you
talk about running now, it seems different than the way
you talked about it at Berkeley, where it's like, oh,
it is this pressure thing and I'm worried about the scholarship.
Speaker 1 (17:19):
It seems like you're able to just be present now.
Is that really kind of what's going on in your
runs these days?
Speaker 3 (17:24):
Yeah, definitely. I mean being present.
Speaker 4 (17:27):
There's nothing that you could get as close to that
as is with race day because you know, you haven't
got any distractions around you and on your phone, there's
no screens and you just are so in the moment for.
Speaker 3 (17:40):
That period of time.
Speaker 4 (17:41):
So my race is about four minutes long, and I
just love the feeling that you have where you're just
so present, You're running off instinct, you're reacting to the
crowd things around you, and yeah, it's just for me,
it's the closest thing to just feeling alive when you
have that race day moment, and yeah, you're just so there,
You're so present, and it's just something really special.
Speaker 1 (18:02):
I think I love that.
Speaker 2 (18:03):
Another one of the kind of happiness principles you've embodied
kind of comes with that. When you got your Nike scholarship,
which is it. My understanding is that you were kind
of doing these part grunds and getting faster and faster,
but you were also like working full time, right, Is
that right?
Speaker 4 (18:16):
Yeah? I was, so, I've only I've gone on a
sabicycle over the summer period when I started running again competitively,
I was working full time and I have been until
quite recently. So in a way it was good because
it took off all the pressure financially, you know, I
wasn't relying on running for that in a way that
perhaps in the past I might have been, or how
other athletes might be. But definitely from a timing standpoint,
(18:39):
I did not have a lot of time. I was
pretty much just waking up early to train for for
work and then training after work. So there were really
long days and it was really tough, and so yeah,
since the beginning of May, I've been on just full
running mode and it is amazing. I'm just very happy
to have time back in my life to recover, train
and not be rushing around. But yeah, I was a
(19:01):
big juggling act at the beginning of this year. I
was at World Championships in March, taking zoom calls.
Speaker 3 (19:08):
Between my heat and my final.
Speaker 4 (19:10):
Not an ideal scenario for performing well, but luckily, luckily
it went well. But yeah, no, I'm very happy to
be having some time back in my life right now.
Speaker 1 (19:19):
And that's so nicely fits with everything we know from
the science.
Speaker 2 (19:22):
You know, researchers talk a lot about this phenomena of
time famine, where you're kind of feeling like you're starving
for time, and that's like a huge hit on your
happiness and a huge hit on your performance. And so
it's so nice to see that you embraced, embrace the
kind of time affluence, which is the opposite where you
kind of really had some free time.
Speaker 4 (19:38):
My life when I had that kind of time famine
was just I was always just rushing, like rushing to
get to the track, to train, rushing to get back
to be on my next zoom brushing in the five
minutes I had between calls to make a protein shake,
so I could not be starving while I sit there
between my next kind of block of calls, And that
kind of took me away from being in the moment,
(20:00):
you say, for lots of those things, because I'm always
thinking about the next thing that I have to do
and stay on top of, and so kind of removing
that whole time pressure has just meant that I can
enjoy those aspects of the day, my training and recovery
and all those things that you need to do to
be a top athlete.
Speaker 2 (20:16):
I bet not everybody at your cybersecurity firm is like
taking off time to like go to Olympics this summer. So, like,
how have people reacted like you do? You are people
like shocked that you're kind of at this level now?
Speaker 3 (20:27):
Yeah, definitely.
Speaker 4 (20:28):
I mean I think once I started running well, which
has only been since the beginning of this year, really
where I've been in that elite territory. So it's gone
from being Oh, Georgia kind of does some running on
the weekend. She used to be a good runner when
she's younger, to like Okay, George is a British champion,
she's a Nike athlete. Now she's trying to go to
the Olympics this summer, so.
Speaker 3 (20:48):
It's been a big switch up.
Speaker 4 (20:50):
Work have been really supportive, but yeah, as you say,
they were very surprised. I kind of told them, turn
on BBC. I'm going to be racing in World Championships now,
I'm taking a couple of days of anual leave to
do it. And then I think they kind of realized,
you know, how good an opportunity this is, especially ahead
of the Olympics in Paris. So yeah, people have been
incredibly surprised, especially because it's just kind of started as
(21:14):
doing some part runs and has now escalated into this
world athlete situation. But everyone is really happy, I think,
and excited by the story. Like I've got lots of
messages from people, both people I know and also just
kind of strangers who are following the story on social
media just being like, I just heard your story. It
(21:34):
just inspired me to get back into my local kind
of football club or boxing, or you just inspired me
to go for a run.
Speaker 3 (21:42):
Just hearing the story.
Speaker 4 (21:43):
I think people can kind of relate to it because
when you get into the working world. When you start adulting,
you kind of just give up on your passions or
things you used to do quite easily. But actually, this
is kind of a situation where you continue to do that,
and actually, if you keep showing up, if you can
get to these kind of exciting opportunities.
Speaker 2 (22:03):
That's what I love about Georgia, As she explained, so
many of us fall into adulting, we give up on
the hopes and dreams we had growing up. Georgia was
able to rediscover her childlike joy for running, and that's
taken her right to the Olympics. But Georgia knows that
real life is not a movie. To compete at this level,
Georgia realizes she'll have to face the same doubts and
fears that have ruined many an athlete's career. So how's
(22:26):
she handling all that? Well, she'll share what she's learned
when the Happiness Lab returns from the break. Fifteen hundred
meter champion Georgia Bell loved running as a kid, but
competing under pressure as a young adult became less enjoyable.
Speaker 1 (22:47):
Over time, she came.
Speaker 2 (22:48):
To dread her meats, But at age thirty, Georgia has
returned to her sport with glee. She says that changing
the way she thinks about the stressful parts of competition
has made all the difference.
Speaker 4 (22:58):
The way how I used to see races, I would
get really nervous for races. I would feel like this
big expectation and I'd always be thinking about the things
that could kind of go wrong and just let doubt
creep into your head, which inevitably, if you have that
in a race, it's going to impact your performance. Whereas
now I just genuinely go into races so excited. I
(23:18):
always think, you know, I could be in an office
right now doing a zoom call, but I'm said, I'm
in Oregon at Nike HQ going into this massive race
with huge athletes, Like how cool is that? Instead of thinking,
oh my gosh, this is completely overwhelming, feel really out
of my depth, and so yeah, I genuinely, as I say,
I just love that feeling of being in the moment racing.
Speaker 3 (23:39):
Look forward to it so much.
Speaker 4 (23:41):
As soon as I finished my last race last week,
I was onto my coaches, like, when's my next one?
I think I've bought a two week break, now can
we get another one in?
Speaker 3 (23:48):
Before I know.
Speaker 4 (23:50):
Within athletes, you know, life, it's not something you can
do forever. And I think in a way, just having
that kind of time limit on it just makes me
appreciate it so much more in a way that I
just wasn't mature enough to do when I was in
my young twenties, because you know, you think the world
is your oyster then, and in any ways it is.
But it's almost like getting a little bit older and
(24:11):
just seeing, actually, you know, this is really special, this
really unique.
Speaker 3 (24:14):
Go for it in every race that you've got.
Speaker 4 (24:15):
And yeah, luckily for me that's translating really nicely into
how the results are turning out in races because I
just take advantage of every opportunity and go for it.
Speaker 2 (24:24):
And I think that gratitude is so important, and I
think it does come from maybe not age so much
or wisdom so much, but really this ability to like
recognize like this isn't permanent, right, you know, the ancients
talked about this phenomenon of negative visualization, right where it's like,
what if I'm injured and I can't run anymore. What
if I'm you know, way too old to run at
the same pace or to participate in races and it
(24:45):
seems like you kind of have that negative visualization almost
on the stand. You're not thinking like, oh, I'm so nervous.
You're thinking, you know, how many more of.
Speaker 1 (24:51):
These do I have? Like, you know, I'm so grateful.
It's so cool.
Speaker 4 (24:54):
So you do that, yeah, exactly, And I just I
always smile on the start line and in the room
before we go onto the race, which people probably look
at me and think I'm crazy, but I think it's
just a good habit. It's kind of like tricks your
body into reminding yourself that, like, you are going to
have fun this, it's gonna hurt, but like, this is
a really cool opportunity. So when the camera comes around,
(25:16):
you'll see that. You know, some people are super serious
and in the zone, but I will always be there
smiling and waving. So I'm just thinking, how cool is this?
Speaker 1 (25:24):
That's awesome, It's so funny.
Speaker 2 (25:26):
I've started working out with my old trainer again, not
nearly at the level that you're working out, but he
always in the middle of like you know, squats or
something will be like and remember to smile, and I'm like,
I don't want.
Speaker 1 (25:36):
To smile, Like my legs hurt.
Speaker 2 (25:37):
I hate this, but now Olympic athletes are to do this,
so I'm gonna I'm going to find I think it
does help.
Speaker 4 (25:43):
It kind of tricks you your your mind and your
body just a little bit. And especially people say if
you're doing a long race like a marathon or things
like that, you know, if you see friends and family
throughout the race, like it's good to smile and just
like take a moment. And people do say there is
a real connect between the mind and the bob when you
do that, like if you're feeling really tired, it does
a view kind of boost that you might not have
(26:04):
had before.
Speaker 2 (26:05):
And so I'm curious about how you're kind of dealing
with the competitive parts now, right, I'm sort of curious
how you're thinking about your comeback and sort of what
it means.
Speaker 4 (26:14):
Yeah, you know, there is obviously a lot of pressure.
Team USA and TGB are probably the hardest teams in
the world to make.
Speaker 3 (26:21):
There are just so many.
Speaker 4 (26:23):
Good athletes, and you have to run the Olympic qualifying time,
which is basically the Olympics saying you're fast enough to come.
So I've done that, so i know I'm good now,
which is awesome, But I think I just look at
it as if you told me this time last year
that I would go to the Olympics, there's no way
I would have believed you. So I just feel like
even to be at this point, I just feel like
(26:45):
this is something so special and I'm just really grateful
for the opportunity, which is how I deal with the pressure.
I think I'll know I've kind of given it everything,
especially with taking the break off work this summer. I'd
really given it everything to make it to such a
special opportunity.
Speaker 2 (27:00):
When you talk about enjoying your racist so much, it
seems like you're kind of prioritizing fun in a different way,
And I'm curious, is that something that your coaching staff
has really emphasized, Like do they want you to also
be enjoying this and have fun too.
Speaker 4 (27:13):
They adjust to me a little bit. So every athlete
is individual, and running is such an individual spot that
they kind of work with what they see their individual
athletes works for them, And I think, yeah, they notice
for me that when I am having fun and in
a good mood, that's when I'll run my best. And
so my coach will always say to me before a race,
like go out there and have some fun. And I
(27:34):
think that does work for me for me because I've
had that kind of break from corporate life and even
if you like your job, it is a bit mundane,
you know, the commute, the day to day zoom calls like.
And so for me, I'm like, this is so awesome.
I'm going to have some fun out there. And yeah,
that's that's what I see fun as being. Now, you know,
(27:55):
it's not going out with friends, it's not things like
going on holiday. For me is and that's what I
look forward to the most. So that's why I see
it as being the most fun.
Speaker 2 (28:05):
That's so interesting because I feel like so many people
with the same situation if they could let that competitiveness
come in or a certain kind of fear, like you know,
how do you fight off those kinds of things.
Speaker 3 (28:14):
Don't get me wrong, like I have that competitiveness.
Speaker 4 (28:16):
I do want to win, but I just think it's
it should be hard and it will be. And I
think racing is fun when you don't know what's going
to happen. So the thing about the distance that I do,
you know, fifteen hundred meters just under a mile, is
it's it does have tactics in it, so it's kind
of like a game of chess. So ahead of that race,
I'm going to be studying, you know, what other people
(28:38):
have done in other races and when I can make
a move and based off my strength. And I think
it's fun and adds pressure to it, you know, when
there's a championship on the line, a European medal, that
if you take a risk and it pays off, like
it's the best feeling, but you have to put yourself
in those kind of dangerous or tricky situations in the
race to get the reward. If you just play it safe,
(29:00):
not gonna win. And so that's what I find exciting
about it, And yeah, people watching the race will also
be like this is awesome. And when people when you
watch races and people take risks like that and it
pays off, like it's just the best feeling for the athlete,
but also amazing just for the sport and the atmosphere
as well.
Speaker 2 (29:17):
It seems like even with taking these risks, you're kind
of just like shoving the fear away because I imagine if
you're kind of doing something novel that that could be
kind of scary and things like what's your relationship to fear?
Is that something you've also kind of pushed to the side.
Speaker 4 (29:29):
I'm pushing into the side a lot at the moment,
and you know, don't get me wrong, Like I'll see
people compete and be like, oh, that's you know, they're
gonna be really tricky to come up against, or just
understanding that the race is gonna hurt, like you're gonna
put yourself in pain.
Speaker 3 (29:42):
I will train for it. I will do the work.
Speaker 4 (29:45):
And it's almost like that's the tough part of the
training day in day out, the missing time with family, friends, weddings,
all that stuff that you have to do, and then
the racing is the time where you get to have fun,
you get to actually showcase, and you need those pressure
environments to get the good results, and it's exciting to
see what can come out of that. There will always be,
(30:05):
you know, fear and doubt naturally, but as long as
you can kind of overcome them, and I just think
I fill my head with more positive thoughts and exciting
thoughts and just over time, I've got really good at
pushing away the fear, and especially in the race, I
go into races just with positivity and I hope I
can continue to do that. It might be a bit
(30:26):
of naivety as well, because I'm kind of new back
into the spot, but I hope that I keep that
naivete because it just means you go for it in races,
whereas you could get overwhelmed with some of the big
names and things like that, but I don't, And I
just like how that translates into racing.
Speaker 2 (30:43):
It's so lovely how you've been able to kind of
re embrace the beginner's mindset. It's just a reminder to
all of us that even if we're used to something,
we can kind of get back to the mindset when
we had when we first started something.
Speaker 4 (30:53):
Yeah, exactly. It's like when you learn to ski or something.
When you're a child, you'll do it better, but when
you're an adult you can think of all the things
that could go wrong, and you could be a bit
more scared. But actually, you know, embracing that kind of
young mindset and going for it, like you'll learn more quickly,
you'll enjoy it more. And yeah, I've been taking that
into races.
Speaker 2 (31:12):
There's such an interesting moral to your story, right, which
is like, you know you were this runner at Berkeley,
feeling like you're you know, kind of losing your time,
and that was it, and now you've really had such
an amazing turnaround, maybe even one that that runner back
at Berkeley couldn't have imagined. If you were able to
kind of tell her something or kind of go back
and give advice in some time machine, what would that
be for her?
Speaker 4 (31:31):
I think I would have just said to her, you know,
make sure that you're happy first. This doesn't mean this
is all or nothing situation. There are opportunities in the
future for you to come back and get into running
when you're ready, when it feels right. I wish I've
had known more stories of people who have these comebacks,
and hopefully you know, if someone's hearing this, he's going
through a tough time or who used to have a
(31:53):
real passion for something and was good at it and
it's kind of just died out. Like I wish I
had known that there are opportunities to come back. And yeah,
there are just a lot of amazing stories. In the
moment with me. On the one hand, you kind of
went into the working world, just got back into doing
something for passion and fun, kept showing up and as
now in this position to go to the Olympics this summer.
But there are other stories like Ellie Saint Purier, who
(32:17):
is an American runner who is now running faster than
she ever did after having her baby last year. You know,
if you told her before that she's going to be
running even better after she has a baby, like she
probably wouldn't have thought that's the case. Now that I'm
aware of kind of my situation and my story, you
keep hearing others that are similar about having this kind
of break and then coming back stronger. So that's what
(32:39):
I would just say to my younger self and to
anyone else.
Speaker 3 (32:41):
You know, not everyone's path is linear. There are all
these different scenarios of how you can get to the
same spot, And I think key is just getting back
into something and doing it for happiness, and then if
you keep showing up, then the results will come naturally.
Speaker 2 (32:57):
I for one, can't wait to see Georgia's smile beaming
the Olympic start line. It's so inspiring to see the
joy she brings to running. But Georgia also has a
lot of happiness tips for non athletes. She's taught me
about the importance of giving myself grace and time and
having the confidence to take risks and doing stuff merely
for the enjoyment that comes from living in the moment.
(33:17):
I wish Georgia and Team GB well, but my heart
this Olympics will still be with my countrymen and women
from Team USA, partly because I know some of them
are benefiting from the lessons they've heard on this very show.
Speaker 1 (33:29):
This is such a special occasion for me.
Speaker 2 (33:31):
I have been a big fan, and it resonated so
much with me that we were sharing episodes of the
Happiness Lab with the coaches we were working with. So
join me to hear how happiness Science helps the coaches
who coach the Team USA coaches. All that next time
on the Happiness Lab with me, Doctor Laurie Santos
Pushkin.
Speaker 2 (00:15):
This summer, Pushkin is going to the Olympics. We'll be
sharing inspiring new athlete stories across our entire network, including
the latest sports science from What's Your Problem, some amazing
swimmer stories on slight change of plans, a cautionary Tales
tale about how women had to fight to run the marathon,
and an epic season of revisionist history on why America
participated in Hitler's Olympics. Here on the Happiness Lab, I'll
(00:39):
talk to the coaches who coached the team USA coaches,
and I'll hear from an athlete who fell back in
love with a sport that she'd grown to hate just
in time to head to the Olympics.
Speaker 1 (00:48):
Be sure to check it out.
Speaker 3 (00:53):
Good morning, Good morning, hey Georgia, nice to meet you.
Speaker 2 (00:56):
I love interviewing elite athletes, but they're often tricky to schedule,
which means a podcast host needs to grab any opportunities
she can to chat with them.
Speaker 1 (01:04):
Thanks so much for taking the time for this same.
Speaker 3 (01:06):
Problem, thanks to waking up Eadie to do it.
Speaker 2 (01:09):
To talk to Georgia, I had to get up at
the butt crack of dawn. It's like it's pretty out.
The sun's out already here in Boston, so it's all good.
Great your East case. That makes me feel a little
bit better of it.
Speaker 1 (01:19):
Yeah yeah, if it was california'd be a little rough.
Speaker 2 (01:22):
But I was pretty excited to set my alarm for
this interview because Georgia has an inspiring story to share.
Until recently, Georgia was a cybersecurity expert. She ran competitively
as a teen, but had a falling out with her
sport and hung up her sneakers. Then a few years ago,
she decided to try out a few amateur races just
for fun and learned that she was one of the
fastest women on Earth.
Speaker 3 (01:44):
Hi, my name is Georgia bell.
Speaker 4 (01:46):
I am from London and was working about have taken
the summer off to be a professional happy named for
the Olympic Games in Paris.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
I really loved the idea of like, I'm taking the
summer off, Oh what are you gonna do? You're you
gonna like travel to France or something like, No, I'm
gonna run in the Olympics.
Speaker 1 (02:03):
It's just just what I do.
Speaker 3 (02:05):
Fingers cross.
Speaker 4 (02:06):
Yeah, fingers cross was the intro okay, because I know, yeah,
brush people are quite bad at doing their intros. My
mom's like, you need to pick yourself up more. You're
British champion, your world finalists, so if you want me
to do it again, I can do it with a
bit more pizazz.
Speaker 1 (02:21):
You did it great.
Speaker 2 (02:22):
But I think that's another lesson for all of us, right,
is that, like, you know, we all have to kind
of to our own horn a little bit too. And
Georgia Bell has a lot to do her horn about.
After her return to elite racing at age thirty, she's
begun winning both national and international medals. She's also landed
a sponsorship deal with Nike. And what makes all this
even more incredible is that Georgia spent the last five
(02:43):
years sitting in front of a computer, not outrunning day
after day, year after year, like the runners she's now beating.
But George's talent didn't totally come out of nowhere. As
a teen, she was pretty much the best runner in
the UK.
Speaker 4 (02:55):
I was English Schools champion when I was kind of fourteen.
At that point, you call really did too much training.
A lot of it is down to okay, this, this
kid is kind of good at this.
Speaker 3 (03:05):
So yeah, it was something that.
Speaker 4 (03:06):
I kind of knew from a young age was something
that I had a little bit of talent for. And yeah,
it was exciting to be at that level at that
age for sure.
Speaker 2 (03:15):
And so talk about those early days because in the
US right now, kids in sports sometimes feel like they're
doing it out of pressure to their parents or that
kind of thing. You know, was yours from pressure? Did
you really like it? What was your relationship with it?
Speaker 4 (03:26):
Early on, I beat all of the boys in the races,
and one of the parents just spoke to my parents
and said, you should really get her down to a
local running club. And from there I just started going Tuesdays, Thursday,
Saturdays down to my local club. So started running from
a really young age. I think the first race I
ever did properly on a track I was aged eleven,
(03:47):
and just continue to compete from there. Really, I really
liked it. It was really fun, It was really social,
you know, it was an opportunity for me to see
my friends. I was good at it, which I think helped.
You know, kids always feel they want to do things
that they're good at, so that really helped. So, especially
in the early days, I was just really enjoying training
(04:08):
and racing and just getting to do it as a
very social activity while also I guess at the same time,
not that I would have had awareness of this when
I was younger, but getting all those endorphins and things
that are good that come with exercise.
Speaker 2 (04:21):
What happened when you went to UNI? Did you kind
of continue when you started college?
Speaker 4 (04:25):
Yes, so I continued to compete, and I think what
happened was either I got worse or everybody else caught up,
but I just wasn't having the same results that I'd
had as a very successful youngster. Still managed to get
a scholarship to go to university in the US, which is,
you know, it was a really big achievement, and went
over there to the US, to berkeleyn California, to compete
(04:48):
on a track scholarship, but never ran faster than I
did in the UK. And I think that's really the
point where the pressure started to come in. Obviously, you're
a little bit of a business deal if you know
you're being supported financially to go over there and perform.
And I think that was probably the point where it
went from being something that I really loved did for fun,
but actually this kind of new element of pressure added in,
(05:10):
had a bit of an impact on my performance and
probably emotionally as well. The training is very different these
big scholarship programs in the US. They just have huge
roster of athletes and it's kind of a general training
program that you kind of fit into and you sink
or swim.
Speaker 3 (05:26):
For me, I sunk.
Speaker 4 (05:28):
I guess when I did that out in the US,
And you know, it really worked well for.
Speaker 3 (05:32):
Some people, but it didn't work so well for me.
Speaker 1 (05:34):
I mean, what was that like?
Speaker 2 (05:35):
That must have been so stressful to kind of feel
that pressure you're far away from home, Like, how did
you handle it?
Speaker 4 (05:41):
While I was really loving the whole experience of going
to a university in the US, and I still to
this day, I think it is an incredible thing to
experience from a running perspective.
Speaker 3 (05:51):
But I just wasn't as good as I was in
the UK.
Speaker 4 (05:54):
I was perpetually injured in and out of boots because
I had stress fractures, and so that just translated to
not running as well on the track and not running
as fast, and you know, that was obviously difficult to
deal with. You know, there's an expectation on you. You
expect certain amount from yourself, but also your team the
scholarship team, you know, everyone like that, there's an expectation
(06:14):
on you. So yeah, I was definitely a difficult time.
And you just have to keep showing up kind of
week and week out, even if you're not fit, because
it's your responsibility, you know.
Speaker 3 (06:23):
Yeah, it was a tough time in lots of ways.
Speaker 2 (06:25):
I imagine I'm also also been kind of a hit
to your identity as well. I mean, I work with
college students really closely at Yale, and I think it's
hard for them to think of themselves as like, I'm
a person who runs, I'm a person who rows, crew
like I'm a runner, I'm a crew member.
Speaker 4 (06:38):
Right.
Speaker 2 (06:38):
Did you have to kind of update your identity to
deal with these changes?
Speaker 4 (06:42):
Yeah, it was difficult because I was used to being
from such a young age. I was used to being
kind of the girl that's good at running, and then
you kind of go through a period where you're not
so good at running, but everyone sees you that way.
So yeah, it was definitely a bit of a strange
piece for my identity. Also, when I just stopped running
all the the once I graduated college, that was strange
(07:02):
time as well, because again I'd gone my whole life
being the runner, and then all of a sudden I
wasn't running. So yeah, there were definitely periods of time
where this sport that was so combined with my identity. Yeah,
has some strange experiences coming to terms with who I
was without that. So how did you make that decision
to stop altogether? That must have been kind of extreme. Yeah,
(07:23):
it was in a way, I guess. I had finished
my collegiate career and I had graduated from Berkeley, and
I just wasn't running so well. I'd been doing it
for kind of the best part of twenty years, so
I just thought I really wasn't enjoying it anymore as
the bottom line, not only when my performance is not
good enough to sign professionally, but I also was just
(07:44):
really looking forward to finishing running. It had gone from
being something that I really loved and looked forward to
racing and training to I just cannot wait to be
done with this. I just took a complete break after college,
went into the working world, lived in San Francisco, and
it was actually really good period for me because it
was a chance to kind of do all the things
that you say no to you so much, you know,
(08:05):
even things like going for dinner, going away with friends,
just things you cannot do when you are an athlete.
Speaker 3 (08:10):
It's a full lifestyle choice.
Speaker 2 (08:12):
I'm just curious, though, because I think, you know, so
many people go through the kind of thing that you
went through, maybe not with running, but with something else.
You know, this job that you totally love now you
hate it, or maybe this volunteer activity that you were
into is now putting all this pressure on you. I'm
kind of curious just like how you navigated that transition
and the sort of emotions that came up from that.
Speaker 3 (08:31):
Yeah, it was hard.
Speaker 4 (08:32):
I mean, on the one hand, I think people can
just continue doing things because it's been habit for so long,
and it's tough because I do think there is real
value in just showing up to things that you don't
want to do. That's what builds discipline, and then if
you do enough of those days over a period of time,
that's what makes the difference. So in running, you keep
showing up, that's when you become fit. You know, shop
(08:53):
on the days you want to show up, on the
days you don't want to show up, and then after
a couple of years, you know, you you become really
good appy, and I think that can translate into other jobs.
You know, you keep showing up for your job and
you get better at it and then suddenly you like it.
But I think, yeah, it had just been such a
long period and I just I'd thought about it for
a while and yeah, I just kind of sat down
(09:16):
with myself, talked to my friends and family and just
decided that for me, at that point in my life,
it was really time for a break.
Speaker 3 (09:23):
So it's not an easy decision.
Speaker 4 (09:25):
I'm sure other people going through that it would be
a tough decision. But I think ultimately, if you're not
enjoying it and haven't been enjoying it for a while,
then you need to make some changes to make sure
that you can be happy.
Speaker 1 (09:36):
And so how long was the break and how did
you come back from it?
Speaker 3 (09:40):
I think I didn't go.
Speaker 4 (09:40):
For a run for probably like a year, like a
full break. I gained a little bit of weight, but
just kind of completely stopped for a while, and then
I really got back into it over COVID. So obviously
during that period of time, I was back living in
London at this point and there was just nothing else
to you know, everything was shut down and pretty much
(10:02):
the only time you were allowed to leave the house
was when you were exercising. I obviously took the opportunity
on to get out of the house, and then I
just found that I was really enjoying that release of
just going for a run. And then suddenly I started
adding things into my run instead of just going for
a small job and realized that I was liking that
competitive element to it again.
Speaker 2 (10:23):
You know, what was it like when you first put
the running shoes back on, Like were they the same
ones that you had at Berkeley? Like, you know, just
kind of curious what that moment felt like.
Speaker 4 (10:31):
Yeah, exactly, Like it was shoes that have literally been
gathering dust, had them in touch for so long. And Yeah,
originally I like the why of getting out of the
house was I just need to get out of this house,
you know, like we've just been cooped up here all day.
And then suddenly it was a part of the day
that I was just so looking forward to. Yeah, I
guess it just felt really natural again, just running felt
(10:54):
like myself again. That's still how I feel about running today.
You know, when I have training or a workout is
still the best part of the day, The part that
I look forward to the most, and I think everything
had just been so intensified in COVID that, yeah, it
was probably even more heightened when I put the running
shoes on and got out of the house because it
was just such strange times that we were living in.
But it was definitely just like a realization that this
(11:17):
is something that I feel like I'm I meant to do,
I really love And yeah, it was a bit emotional
just coming back to that point. And then after lockdown
subsided a little bit. I'd gained some fitness over that
period and entered what we have of you here in
the UK was just quite big board park run. Every
park on a Saturday just hosts these five k runs
(11:40):
and it's just a really measurable way of seeing your fitness.
So I hopped into one of those ran a pretty
fast five k. I think I did a sixteen minute
five k, and then after that that made me think, Okay,
I'm actually in pretty good shape. Maybe it's time to
get back on the track after five years off, and
that kind of us at the who'll come back?
Speaker 2 (12:01):
Let's put George's park run performance into perspective, shall we
running five thousand meters in sixteen minutes, puts Georgia about
ninety seconds behind the British record and just two minutes
behind the fastest woman on the planet for an amateur
race in her local park. George's time was pretty amazing,
But how did she take the next step to make
the steep climb back to the pinnacle of her sport.
(12:22):
We'll hear how when the Happiness Lab returns in a moment.
After years as a gifted runner in school, Georgia Bell
fell out of love with the sport. She just couldn't
see a life for herself as a professional athlete. But
the COVID lockdown her back and her running shoes and
she began clocking some pretty impressive times. But there's a
(12:45):
big difference between a park run and the Olympics. Running
may seem like an individual pursuit, but it's really a
team sport. As a teen, Georgia trained with renowned coach
Trevor Painter. If she was going to become a serious
contender again, she'd need his help.
Speaker 4 (12:59):
I was just going for runs and training on my own,
which you know is not so fun. But I decided
at that point, okay, I've run a decent time I'm
actually going to get in touch with my old coach
who I was working with before I went over to
the US on a scholarship. And so I got back
in contact with him and said, look, no we haven't
spoken for years, but I've kind of run these times
(13:21):
on my own. Do you think it would be worth
us working together again and see what we can achieve?
And I know that Trevor had always said, you know,
I was the one that got away. He really didn't
want me to go to the US. He really thought,
stay in the UK. I can train you to be
an incredible athlete. He has got incredible athletes. You know.
Keey Hodgkinson is one of his who is hopefully going
for gold this summer. She got an Olympic silver medal
(13:43):
when she was just nineteen, So there's a lot of
pedigree in the group and his training. And yeah, we've
been working together now for two years and it's just
going so well. It's great to be part of a
community and you know, getting that guidance. Yeah, I just
felt very lucky that I was able to kind of
go back to him after all those years away, and
he said, yeah, let's give it a go and see
(14:05):
what we can do.
Speaker 2 (14:06):
He must be thrilled to get you back, like it
must be like such a cool thing for him to
have the one that got away at coming back.
Speaker 3 (14:11):
Yeah, definitely.
Speaker 4 (14:12):
I think it's been great for the whole group because there's,
you know, so many athletes that are doing well at
different times in their life. You know, I'm definitely one
of the more mature athletes in the group. A lot
of people just think of like sixteen year old phenom
runners that go straight into professional contracts and then the Olympics,
whereas I'm an example of doing it another way around
(14:33):
but still hopefully getting to that point. Yeah, he's just
been a fantastic coach, emotional support and guidance, and yeah,
I have full trust in him, and I think that's
one of the things that has led to a lot
of the success as well.
Speaker 2 (14:46):
And it seems like now you have a slightly different
relationship to running than you did when you left Berkeley.
What does it feel like now when you engage in it.
Speaker 4 (14:53):
Even though I am on a professional contract now, like
I am a Nike athlete since earlier this year, So
in a way you would think, Okay is kind of
pressured there as well. But it doesn't feel like that,
like I'm much more mature. I think I'm making a
lot more decisions over my body and racing and training
that I just felt like I didn't really have before.
And that means that I just feel a lot more
(15:14):
in control and enjoying it. So I'm just so grateful
for having a second shot with running that I think
it's just translating really nicely into races. I'm just happy
to be here seizing every opportunity. So yeah, I'm just
loving it at the moment.
Speaker 2 (15:30):
It seems like you're less injury prone as well. I mean,
it seems like there's a kind of different model of
training where it's not like push push push, but trying
to maybe is taking in more rest and sort of
taking more breaks.
Speaker 1 (15:39):
Is that right too?
Speaker 4 (15:40):
Yeah, So I probably do about half the amount of
running that I was doing in the US and the USA.
I was on fifty five sixty miles a week. Here,
I'm running about thirty. But I'll do a lot more
on the bike to make sure I'm getting that work
without any impact. And yeah, take a recovery day at
least once a week, and then just some hard track
sessions to make sure that we're fitting her fee to compete, which.
Speaker 1 (16:01):
I think is its own message.
Speaker 2 (16:02):
I think when we're trying to push ourselves to something,
whether it's as an athlete or at work, or just
you know, with some sort of new personal habit that
we're trying to develop, we can sometimes want to push, push, push,
and like do it in this extreme way. But sometimes
engaging in a little bit of self compassion and taking
that rest can actually mean the difference between being able
to do it long term and like just some short
blip of whatever we're trying.
Speaker 3 (16:22):
To do exactly.
Speaker 4 (16:24):
And I think for me, knowing what it feels like
to be constantly injured and trying to come back to fitness,
I never want to be in that situation again. So
I'm much better at kind of listening to my body.
I'm very quick to kind of share information with my
coach if I'm feeling any kind of concerns, whereas in
the past perhaps I wouldn't do that. I would just
keep it to myself and it would translate into a
(16:45):
bigger problem. And so yeah, I'm just much more mature
in terms of looking after myself and making sure that
I am maybe doing less miles, but that means that
I can consistently build a year and year in year
rather than taking breaks out because I'm injured, and that's
resulting in, you know, some good performances on the track.
Speaker 2 (17:04):
I mean, it seems like you're embodying a couple of
the happiness principles that we talk about on the podcast.
I mean, one of them is just this idea of
kind of mindfulness or being present. And they hear you
talk about running now, it seems different than the way
you talked about it at Berkeley, where it's like, oh,
it is this pressure thing and I'm worried about the scholarship.
Speaker 1 (17:19):
It seems like you're able to just be present now.
Is that really kind of what's going on in your
runs these days?
Speaker 3 (17:24):
Yeah, definitely. I mean being present.
Speaker 4 (17:27):
There's nothing that you could get as close to that
as is with race day because you know, you haven't
got any distractions around you and on your phone, there's
no screens and you just are so in the moment for.
Speaker 3 (17:40):
That period of time.
Speaker 4 (17:41):
So my race is about four minutes long, and I
just love the feeling that you have where you're just
so present, You're running off instinct, you're reacting to the
crowd things around you, and yeah, it's just for me,
it's the closest thing to just feeling alive when you
have that race day moment, and yeah, you're just so there,
You're so present, and it's just something really special.
Speaker 1 (18:02):
I think I love that.
Speaker 2 (18:03):
Another one of the kind of happiness principles you've embodied
kind of comes with that. When you got your Nike scholarship,
which is it. My understanding is that you were kind
of doing these part grunds and getting faster and faster,
but you were also like working full time, right, Is
that right?
Speaker 4 (18:16):
Yeah? I was, so, I've only I've gone on a
sabicycle over the summer period when I started running again competitively,
I was working full time and I have been until
quite recently. So in a way it was good because
it took off all the pressure financially, you know, I
wasn't relying on running for that in a way that
perhaps in the past I might have been, or how
other athletes might be. But definitely from a timing standpoint,
(18:39):
I did not have a lot of time. I was
pretty much just waking up early to train for for
work and then training after work. So there were really
long days and it was really tough, and so yeah,
since the beginning of May, I've been on just full
running mode and it is amazing. I'm just very happy
to have time back in my life to recover, train
and not be rushing around. But yeah, I was a
(19:01):
big juggling act at the beginning of this year. I
was at World Championships in March, taking zoom calls.
Speaker 3 (19:08):
Between my heat and my final.
Speaker 4 (19:10):
Not an ideal scenario for performing well, but luckily, luckily
it went well. But yeah, no, I'm very happy to
be having some time back in my life right now.
Speaker 1 (19:19):
And that's so nicely fits with everything we know from
the science.
Speaker 2 (19:22):
You know, researchers talk a lot about this phenomena of
time famine, where you're kind of feeling like you're starving
for time, and that's like a huge hit on your
happiness and a huge hit on your performance. And so
it's so nice to see that you embraced, embrace the
kind of time affluence, which is the opposite where you
kind of really had some free time.
Speaker 4 (19:38):
My life when I had that kind of time famine
was just I was always just rushing, like rushing to
get to the track, to train, rushing to get back
to be on my next zoom brushing in the five
minutes I had between calls to make a protein shake,
so I could not be starving while I sit there
between my next kind of block of calls, And that
kind of took me away from being in the moment,
(20:00):
you say, for lots of those things, because I'm always
thinking about the next thing that I have to do
and stay on top of, and so kind of removing
that whole time pressure has just meant that I can
enjoy those aspects of the day, my training and recovery
and all those things that you need to do to
be a top athlete.
Speaker 2 (20:16):
I bet not everybody at your cybersecurity firm is like
taking off time to like go to Olympics this summer. So, like,
how have people reacted like you do? You are people
like shocked that you're kind of at this level now?
Speaker 3 (20:27):
Yeah, definitely.
Speaker 4 (20:28):
I mean I think once I started running well, which
has only been since the beginning of this year, really
where I've been in that elite territory. So it's gone
from being Oh, Georgia kind of does some running on
the weekend. She used to be a good runner when
she's younger, to like Okay, George is a British champion,
she's a Nike athlete. Now she's trying to go to
the Olympics this summer, so.
Speaker 3 (20:48):
It's been a big switch up.
Speaker 4 (20:50):
Work have been really supportive, but yeah, as you say,
they were very surprised. I kind of told them, turn
on BBC. I'm going to be racing in World Championships now,
I'm taking a couple of days of anual leave to
do it. And then I think they kind of realized,
you know, how good an opportunity this is, especially ahead
of the Olympics in Paris. So yeah, people have been
incredibly surprised, especially because it's just kind of started as
(21:14):
doing some part runs and has now escalated into this
world athlete situation. But everyone is really happy, I think,
and excited by the story. Like I've got lots of
messages from people, both people I know and also just
kind of strangers who are following the story on social
media just being like, I just heard your story. It
(21:34):
just inspired me to get back into my local kind
of football club or boxing, or you just inspired me
to go for a run.
Speaker 3 (21:42):
Just hearing the story.
Speaker 4 (21:43):
I think people can kind of relate to it because
when you get into the working world. When you start adulting,
you kind of just give up on your passions or
things you used to do quite easily. But actually, this
is kind of a situation where you continue to do that,
and actually, if you keep showing up, if you can
get to these kind of exciting opportunities.
Speaker 2 (22:03):
That's what I love about Georgia, As she explained, so
many of us fall into adulting, we give up on
the hopes and dreams we had growing up. Georgia was
able to rediscover her childlike joy for running, and that's
taken her right to the Olympics. But Georgia knows that
real life is not a movie. To compete at this level,
Georgia realizes she'll have to face the same doubts and
fears that have ruined many an athlete's career. So how's
(22:26):
she handling all that? Well, she'll share what she's learned
when the Happiness Lab returns from the break. Fifteen hundred
meter champion Georgia Bell loved running as a kid, but
competing under pressure as a young adult became less enjoyable.
Speaker 1 (22:47):
Over time, she came.
Speaker 2 (22:48):
To dread her meats, But at age thirty, Georgia has
returned to her sport with glee. She says that changing
the way she thinks about the stressful parts of competition
has made all the difference.
Speaker 4 (22:58):
The way how I used to see races, I would
get really nervous for races. I would feel like this
big expectation and I'd always be thinking about the things
that could kind of go wrong and just let doubt
creep into your head, which inevitably, if you have that
in a race, it's going to impact your performance. Whereas
now I just genuinely go into races so excited. I
(23:18):
always think, you know, I could be in an office
right now doing a zoom call, but I'm said, I'm
in Oregon at Nike HQ going into this massive race
with huge athletes, Like how cool is that? Instead of thinking,
oh my gosh, this is completely overwhelming, feel really out
of my depth, and so yeah, I genuinely, as I say,
I just love that feeling of being in the moment racing.
Speaker 3 (23:39):
Look forward to it so much.
Speaker 4 (23:41):
As soon as I finished my last race last week,
I was onto my coaches, like, when's my next one?
I think I've bought a two week break, now can
we get another one in?
Speaker 3 (23:48):
Before I know.
Speaker 4 (23:50):
Within athletes, you know, life, it's not something you can
do forever. And I think in a way, just having
that kind of time limit on it just makes me
appreciate it so much more in a way that I
just wasn't mature enough to do when I was in
my young twenties, because you know, you think the world
is your oyster then, and in any ways it is.
But it's almost like getting a little bit older and
(24:11):
just seeing, actually, you know, this is really special, this
really unique.
Speaker 3 (24:14):
Go for it in every race that you've got.
Speaker 4 (24:15):
And yeah, luckily for me that's translating really nicely into
how the results are turning out in races because I
just take advantage of every opportunity and go for it.
Speaker 2 (24:24):
And I think that gratitude is so important, and I
think it does come from maybe not age so much
or wisdom so much, but really this ability to like
recognize like this isn't permanent, right, you know, the ancients
talked about this phenomenon of negative visualization, right where it's like,
what if I'm injured and I can't run anymore. What
if I'm you know, way too old to run at
the same pace or to participate in races and it
(24:45):
seems like you kind of have that negative visualization almost
on the stand. You're not thinking like, oh, I'm so nervous.
You're thinking, you know, how many more of.
Speaker 1 (24:51):
These do I have? Like, you know, I'm so grateful.
It's so cool.
Speaker 4 (24:54):
So you do that, yeah, exactly, And I just I
always smile on the start line and in the room
before we go onto the race, which people probably look
at me and think I'm crazy, but I think it's
just a good habit. It's kind of like tricks your
body into reminding yourself that, like, you are going to
have fun this, it's gonna hurt, but like, this is
a really cool opportunity. So when the camera comes around,
(25:16):
you'll see that. You know, some people are super serious
and in the zone, but I will always be there
smiling and waving. So I'm just thinking, how cool is this?
Speaker 1 (25:24):
That's awesome, It's so funny.
Speaker 2 (25:26):
I've started working out with my old trainer again, not
nearly at the level that you're working out, but he
always in the middle of like you know, squats or
something will be like and remember to smile, and I'm like,
I don't want.
Speaker 1 (25:36):
To smile, Like my legs hurt.
Speaker 2 (25:37):
I hate this, but now Olympic athletes are to do this,
so I'm gonna I'm going to find I think it
does help.
Speaker 4 (25:43):
It kind of tricks you your your mind and your
body just a little bit. And especially people say if
you're doing a long race like a marathon or things
like that, you know, if you see friends and family
throughout the race, like it's good to smile and just
like take a moment. And people do say there is
a real connect between the mind and the bob when you
do that, like if you're feeling really tired, it does
a view kind of boost that you might not have
(26:04):
had before.
Speaker 2 (26:05):
And so I'm curious about how you're kind of dealing
with the competitive parts now, right, I'm sort of curious
how you're thinking about your comeback and sort of what
it means.
Speaker 4 (26:14):
Yeah, you know, there is obviously a lot of pressure.
Team USA and TGB are probably the hardest teams in
the world to make.
Speaker 3 (26:21):
There are just so many.
Speaker 4 (26:23):
Good athletes, and you have to run the Olympic qualifying time,
which is basically the Olympics saying you're fast enough to come.
So I've done that, so i know I'm good now,
which is awesome, But I think I just look at
it as if you told me this time last year
that I would go to the Olympics, there's no way
I would have believed you. So I just feel like
even to be at this point, I just feel like
(26:45):
this is something so special and I'm just really grateful
for the opportunity, which is how I deal with the pressure.
I think I'll know I've kind of given it everything,
especially with taking the break off work this summer. I'd
really given it everything to make it to such a
special opportunity.
Speaker 2 (27:00):
When you talk about enjoying your racist so much, it
seems like you're kind of prioritizing fun in a different way,
And I'm curious, is that something that your coaching staff
has really emphasized, Like do they want you to also
be enjoying this and have fun too.
Speaker 4 (27:13):
They adjust to me a little bit. So every athlete
is individual, and running is such an individual spot that
they kind of work with what they see their individual
athletes works for them, And I think, yeah, they notice
for me that when I am having fun and in
a good mood, that's when I'll run my best. And
so my coach will always say to me before a race,
like go out there and have some fun. And I
(27:34):
think that does work for me for me because I've
had that kind of break from corporate life and even
if you like your job, it is a bit mundane,
you know, the commute, the day to day zoom calls like.
And so for me, I'm like, this is so awesome.
I'm going to have some fun out there. And yeah,
that's that's what I see fun as being. Now, you know,
(27:55):
it's not going out with friends, it's not things like
going on holiday. For me is and that's what I
look forward to the most. So that's why I see
it as being the most fun.
Speaker 2 (28:05):
That's so interesting because I feel like so many people
with the same situation if they could let that competitiveness
come in or a certain kind of fear, like you know,
how do you fight off those kinds of things.
Speaker 3 (28:14):
Don't get me wrong, like I have that competitiveness.
Speaker 4 (28:16):
I do want to win, but I just think it's
it should be hard and it will be. And I
think racing is fun when you don't know what's going
to happen. So the thing about the distance that I do,
you know, fifteen hundred meters just under a mile, is
it's it does have tactics in it, so it's kind
of like a game of chess. So ahead of that race,
I'm going to be studying, you know, what other people
(28:38):
have done in other races and when I can make
a move and based off my strength. And I think
it's fun and adds pressure to it, you know, when
there's a championship on the line, a European medal, that
if you take a risk and it pays off, like
it's the best feeling, but you have to put yourself
in those kind of dangerous or tricky situations in the
race to get the reward. If you just play it safe,
(29:00):
not gonna win. And so that's what I find exciting
about it, And yeah, people watching the race will also
be like this is awesome. And when people when you
watch races and people take risks like that and it
pays off, like it's just the best feeling for the athlete,
but also amazing just for the sport and the atmosphere
as well.
Speaker 2 (29:17):
It seems like even with taking these risks, you're kind
of just like shoving the fear away because I imagine if
you're kind of doing something novel that that could be
kind of scary and things like what's your relationship to fear?
Is that something you've also kind of pushed to the side.
Speaker 4 (29:29):
I'm pushing into the side a lot at the moment,
and you know, don't get me wrong, Like I'll see
people compete and be like, oh, that's you know, they're
gonna be really tricky to come up against, or just
understanding that the race is gonna hurt, like you're gonna
put yourself in pain.
Speaker 3 (29:42):
I will train for it. I will do the work.
Speaker 4 (29:45):
And it's almost like that's the tough part of the
training day in day out, the missing time with family, friends, weddings,
all that stuff that you have to do, and then
the racing is the time where you get to have fun,
you get to actually showcase, and you need those pressure
environments to get the good results, and it's exciting to
see what can come out of that. There will always be,
(30:05):
you know, fear and doubt naturally, but as long as
you can kind of overcome them, and I just think
I fill my head with more positive thoughts and exciting
thoughts and just over time, I've got really good at
pushing away the fear, and especially in the race, I
go into races just with positivity and I hope I
can continue to do that. It might be a bit
(30:26):
of naivety as well, because I'm kind of new back
into the spot, but I hope that I keep that
naivete because it just means you go for it in races,
whereas you could get overwhelmed with some of the big
names and things like that, but I don't, And I
just like how that translates into racing.
Speaker 2 (30:43):
It's so lovely how you've been able to kind of
re embrace the beginner's mindset. It's just a reminder to
all of us that even if we're used to something,
we can kind of get back to the mindset when
we had when we first started something.
Speaker 4 (30:53):
Yeah, exactly. It's like when you learn to ski or something.
When you're a child, you'll do it better, but when
you're an adult you can think of all the things
that could go wrong, and you could be a bit
more scared. But actually, you know, embracing that kind of
young mindset and going for it, like you'll learn more quickly,
you'll enjoy it more. And yeah, I've been taking that
into races.
Speaker 2 (31:12):
There's such an interesting moral to your story, right, which
is like, you know you were this runner at Berkeley,
feeling like you're you know, kind of losing your time,
and that was it, and now you've really had such
an amazing turnaround, maybe even one that that runner back
at Berkeley couldn't have imagined. If you were able to
kind of tell her something or kind of go back
and give advice in some time machine, what would that
be for her?
Speaker 4 (31:31):
I think I would have just said to her, you know,
make sure that you're happy first. This doesn't mean this
is all or nothing situation. There are opportunities in the
future for you to come back and get into running
when you're ready, when it feels right. I wish I've
had known more stories of people who have these comebacks,
and hopefully you know, if someone's hearing this, he's going
through a tough time or who used to have a
(31:53):
real passion for something and was good at it and
it's kind of just died out. Like I wish I
had known that there are opportunities to come back. And yeah,
there are just a lot of amazing stories. In the
moment with me. On the one hand, you kind of
went into the working world, just got back into doing
something for passion and fun, kept showing up and as
now in this position to go to the Olympics this summer.
But there are other stories like Ellie Saint Purier, who
(32:17):
is an American runner who is now running faster than
she ever did after having her baby last year. You know,
if you told her before that she's going to be
running even better after she has a baby, like she
probably wouldn't have thought that's the case. Now that I'm
aware of kind of my situation and my story, you
keep hearing others that are similar about having this kind
of break and then coming back stronger. So that's what
(32:39):
I would just say to my younger self and to
anyone else.
Speaker 3 (32:41):
You know, not everyone's path is linear. There are all
these different scenarios of how you can get to the
same spot, And I think key is just getting back
into something and doing it for happiness, and then if
you keep showing up, then the results will come naturally.
Speaker 2 (32:57):
I for one, can't wait to see Georgia's smile beaming
the Olympic start line. It's so inspiring to see the
joy she brings to running. But Georgia also has a
lot of happiness tips for non athletes. She's taught me
about the importance of giving myself grace and time and
having the confidence to take risks and doing stuff merely
for the enjoyment that comes from living in the moment.
(33:17):
I wish Georgia and Team GB well, but my heart
this Olympics will still be with my countrymen and women
from Team USA, partly because I know some of them
are benefiting from the lessons they've heard on this very show.
Speaker 1 (33:29):
This is such a special occasion for me.
Speaker 2 (33:31):
I have been a big fan, and it resonated so
much with me that we were sharing episodes of the
Happiness Lab with the coaches we were working with. So
join me to hear how happiness Science helps the coaches
who coach the Team USA coaches. All that next time
on the Happiness Lab with me, Doctor Laurie Santos
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