S7 Ep5: Emily Cambell: On body Image and exclusion - "There are girls out there that are standard size that are made to feel massive"

This week on Monday Mile I link up with one of the strongest people I know, in fact she has deadlifted me before! The word inspiration is often banded around lightly but today I will be referencing the term and it’s not to be taken lightly. Emily Campbell, is Britain's most successful Weightlifter. She’s our Olympic Silver Medalist and the current European Champion. She’s a Northern lass that can snatch the weight of a baby elephant… casual eh?!

Emily is in town for a regular check in with the team Physio, so we hit the pavements in Covent Garden for a stroll. We chat about her passion for changing the way women feel about body image, her current work with Nike… and the mass drive for inclusion of women of all sizes. She also gives us an insight into life as an athlete, the reality of the physical work load and the ‘baseline of Doms’ . She also shares the truth of not knowing what it's like "to not be in pain whilst sitting on the toilet" and "if I've not got something to hold onto, I'm not getting down there“ .

She shares her tips on confidence, “Once you look in the mirror and think damn I look good, it gives you the confidence to go out there and execute whatever you need to do” as well as stressing the importance in physical literacy - “There are girls out there that are standard size that are made to feel massive because the biggest size they can find on the shelf is a 14 or a 16”.

Aimee will be probing for answers from the full spectrum of routines; the early birds who have finely tuned Monday mornings, to the late risers who struggle to get up before 11am. How do elite athletes find the motivation to kick start their week come rain or shine? How do celebrities deliver no matter what the time of day? What knowledge can they pass on?

Each episode drops on a Monday morning as a bitesize piece of content and weekly dose of motivation - right when you need it. Aimee will meet each of her guests for a walk and a chat and over the course of the mile she will find out how they cope on a Monday morning - their idiosyncrasies, breakfast routines, alarm noises - and how, when they need to, find the motivation to kick-on through the week. Sharing some of Britain's greatest athletes, entrepreneurs, doctors, authors and broadcasters ’ secrets on self-motivation, candid thoughts on what they struggle with and a sideways look at some of their more unusual morning habits.

Head over to IG to watch the visuals of our episode and what we get up to on our Monday Mile. https://www.instagram.com/aimee_fuller/

Filmed by Jon Moy.