Leap Academy with Ilana Golan - Peloton VP, Robin Arzón: Surviving a Hostage Crisis and Building a Relentless Fitness Brand

Episode Date: January 2, 2025

A former lawyer turned fitness powerhouse, Robin Arzón’s journey is one of resilience and inspiration. After surviving a traumatic hostage situation in college, she turned to running as a way to heal and challenge herself. She went from casual runs to completing marathons and ultra-marathons. Despite being diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes, Robin refused to let it define her. She embraced the mantra, "Why not me?" and continued challenging herself to achieve more. In this episode, Robin shares with Ilana how she transformed a traumatic experience into a driving force for her life’s purpose, made a bold leap into the fitness world, and built a global brand that empowers millions. Robin Arzón is a renowned fitness expert, former lawyer, author, and motivational speaker. She is best known as the VP and Head Instructor at Peloton, where she inspires millions with her high-energy cycling and strength classes. In this episode, Ilana and Robin will discuss: (00:00) Introduction  (01:24) Surviving a Hostage Situation and Finding Inner Strength (05:34) Discovering Running as a Healing Tool (08:38) From Casual Runs to Completing Ultra-Marathons (11:16) Transitioning from a Law Career to Fitness (13:06) How Robin Landed a Job at Peloton with a Cold Email (15:36) Living and Thriving with Type 1 Diabetes (18:21) Juggling a Career, Motherhood, and Life’s Demands (21:26) Pushing Past Her Limits at Richard Branson’s StriveX Challenge (24:41) Building a Global Brand Through Grit and Consistency (28:05) Launching Swagger Society, a Community for Growth (29:49) Upcoming Cookbook and Plant-Based Lifestyle (31:34) Learning to Trust Life’s Redirections  (33:27) Robin’s Career Pivots and Life-Changing Lessons (36:46) How Everyday Actions Define Your Life and Career Robin Arzón is a renowned fitness expert, former lawyer, author, and motivational speaker. She is best known as the VP and Head Instructor at Peloton, where she inspires millions with her high-energy cycling and strength classes. After overcoming a life-changing traumatic event, she pivoted from a law career to focus on health and wellness. Robin is also a New York Times bestselling author of Shut Up and Run and Strong Mama, sharing her personal stories and fitness philosophies. She advocates for mental and physical strength, promoting the power of movement and mindset to achieve personal transformation. Connect with Robin: Robin’s Website: https://www.robinarzon.com/  Robin’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/robinnyc  Resources Mentioned: Robin’s Book, Shut Up and Run: How to Get Up, Lace Up, and Sweat with Swagger: https://www.amazon.com/Shut-Up-Run-Sweat-Swagger/dp/0062445685  Robin’s Journal, Welcome, Hustler: An Empowerment Journal: https://www.amazon.com/Welcome-Hustler-Empowering-Motivational-Self-Care/dp/1454946342  Leap Academy: Ready to make the LEAP in your career? There is a NEW way for professionals to Advance Their Careers & Make 5-6 figures of EXTRA INCOME in Record Time. Check out our free training today at leapacademy.com/training

Movement is fertilizer for the brain. So if you feel stuck, move your body. Robin Arzon, a global fitness leader, 27 marathons and ultra-marathons, two New York Times bestsellers, she's the vice president of fitness programming and head instructor at Peloton. I was not an athlete growing up,

but I think we all have those moments that start as a whisper, and I grabbed onto it. And one of my mantras I developed, which I still use, is, Why Not Me? I'm in this for the infinite hustle. I don't want to do this and flame out. No, baby.

I want to be one of the most badass 90-year-olds you know. You can't make decisions based on somebody else's doubt, because they're not you. If I would have listened to the very well-meaning naysayers, I never would have continued to become the athlete that I am now. So how did you build that kind of a brand? I think that the brand builds itself when you...

Robin Arzon, a global fitness leader, 27 marathons and ultra marathons, two New York Times bestsellers, she's the vice president of fitness programming and head instructor at Peloton and the founder of Swagger Society Media Company. Robin, you discovered your passion for running after a very traumatic experience in New York. Can you take us back in time? Yeah, I mean, it was decades ago now, but it does feel like it was just the other day. In fact, the other day I was walking by where the incident happened, and I was just thrown.

It's funny when you look back at your own history and you're like, wow, I was right there but also I'm a totally different person now. But to get your listeners in up to date or into the story, on a Friday afternoon, I was entering my senior year at NYU, so college age, and I had planned to go to law school the following year. And on the eve of graduation that year, so it was all very exciting times, I was meeting my girlfriends after work, I was at a paralegal at a law firm, doing my corporate gig, and a great day turned into a horror movie really within minutes. A man walked in saying that he'd been shot into the wine bar where we

were sitting, tiny little wine bar in the East Village. Basically, it was like there's a before and then an after. That was the inflection point that it became the after. I was held hostage that night by the man who had shot the gentleman who had walked in. And so the perpetrator walks in, he grabs me, then it's chaos, expletives, guns, flailing. I mean, it was truly like the horror movie. And by the time the police were called, because bystanders had heard shots from outside, by the time the police arrived,

there were probably 20 of us in this wine bar with this man who was spewing hate, wanting to kill everyone that was in there, including me. And I was the person he held onto throughout this incident, literally using me like a human shield. I became basically the pseudo-negotiator between him and the NYPD who had gathered outside. The incident was a few hours long,

and in that time, it was like going from speaking to this man to speaking to the NYPD to almost having the silent conversation with myself that like this was not going to be the end to my story. That thankfully was not and a really brave woman named Anne Margaret basically jumped him from behind and that ended the takeover because they basically were able to get him on the ground and that's when the NYPD were able to rush in. I was standing in front of him, so all of this action happened behind me. So I just felt the sensation falling.

So that was it. And that intensity and trauma brought me in a very meandering way to running, which ended up being a very healing journey for me. So before we go to the running, this is a fascinating and by the way, you talk about it in Shut Up and Run. So it's incredible book like I laugh, I was frantic, all the emotions come in that book.

And you are trying to actually talk to that person and I think that's fascinating. Like you're trying to really understand him and engage with him. Can you talk a little bit of what's going on in your head for a second? Yeah, totally. I didn't realize I was doing this at the time, but I was trying to humanize the folks who were in the room, and I guess humanize him. I didn't want to anger him further. And I thought, oh, well, if he understands that we're daughters and brothers and friends, and the folks in here also have loved ones.

And he was talking a lot about his loved ones, and he was speaking in Spanish. So I started speaking to him in Spanish. I was just like, I just want him to be able to see us because there was just so much rage. And later, having spoken to real hostage negotiators, I realized that that is actually one of the tactics that they use. I didn't even know that I was doing that, but that is what I did at the time. And that's incredible because we actually had Chris Voss, who is a hostage negotiator

from the FBI. Oh, yes, exactly. He comes to mind. we actually had Chris Voss, who is a hostage appreciator from the FBI. Yeah, and he says exactly this, and then I'm reading it in your book. I'm like, how did Robin know? It's somehow your instinct. So you're getting over this. I don't even know if you ever really get over this experience, but that takes you to running.

What happened? Why running? How did that even come about? I don't know why running. I was not an athlete growing up, so it wasn't as if I was trying to relive high school glory days or something at a later point in my life. But I was in law school, and I don't know. I think the added acute stressors of law school,

plus the trauma, it was like something had to give. After this hostage incident, I went back to school. I took like two days off, went back to school, was back in the grind, and I think ambitious folks get it. It's like, okay, well, I'm just going to focus on the to-do list and the calendar and the graduate, you know? It's like the next finish line, so to speak, figuratively. And a year later when I was in law school, I was just feeling overwhelmed to say the least.

I just looked at dusty shoes in my closet one day and I was just like, what if I just wore them and I literally put the keys down, my car keys down. I was like, what if I just went on foot to campus? I have no idea why, but I think we all have those moments that start as a whisper, just like a little fleeting curiosity. And I grabbed onto it. And it wasn't like, and then I was this marathoner and it was this rocky montage. No, it was like these initial runs for a long time were

horrendous. But in those runs, I realized I wasn't thinking about law school stress or almost dying or the trial. What drummed up a lot of emotion as well was this is when the criminal prosecution was happening and I was a witness, but I was also in law school. It was like a lot. I was unpacking a lot, but during the runs or walk jogs, whatever they were, I wasn't thinking about all that.

And then I realized, oh gosh, I have a tool for my toolkit now that was pretty magnificent. And that's incredible, Robin, because if somebody has not been a runner, and even if somebody has been a runner, the first few miles are suffering. So what made you go again and again and again? Why not put the towel on this and say, screw this, let's take the car?

I guess it's this idea that we can choose our hard. And it was two things. You can choose your hard. And the second is I liked myself better after a run. This was a totally selfish vehicle to befriending myself. And I just needed to like myself a little bit more. And that's what the run did. And then it was like, yes, when I was doing marathons

and ultra marathons and then I educated myself around it, I was like, oh my gosh, there are all these other benefits. But it really started with the conversation in between my ears. And again, I love the choose or hard, but you choose hard in all directions now. We'll talk about this. I think you forgot the R, you know?

Like you just go in all directions, we'll talk about it. But how from that moment you went into career in Peloton, and there's also a big difference Robin Robin, between I'm going to run three miles and I'm going to do ultra marathons. Take us there for a second. I started learning about, you know, amazing endurance athletes, like Rich Roll, who's now a friend of mine, or Scott Jurick and Alison Felix, Para Goucher, these athletes who are just incredible.

I got really inspired. I specifically got really interested in the ultra running world. That is a world, if folks aren't part of that world, it's just really welcoming and warm and accepting. It's like, so what, you're not a five-minute mile. Let's just go out here on a trail or let's just do it. Let's just put one foot in front of the other." And that was amazing. And also, I liked that you can put training in a calendar and do the work and achieve something. That

just felt really gratifying to me. And it gave me an outlet. You know, at this time when I was doing ultra-marathons, by this time I was practicing law in New York City. It was obviously a lot to balance all of that, but it at least gave me something that wasn't work. The meta message was, you like yourself better, you like yourself more after you've done this. Yes, I definitely took it to some extremes, but that was also out of curiosity.

I was like, well, if my body can do this, why can't it do that? And one of my mantras I developed at the time, which I still use is why not me? I would read these magazines and read these memoirs of these runners. And I thought, oh gosh, well, I don't know if I'll do that, but what if I do my version of that?

Why not me? For those who don't know what's an ultra marathon, tell us a little bit. It's technically anything over 26.2 miles or like 40 something kilometers, 44 maybe. That can go a lot of distances. I have a friend, Bex Gentry, she ran seven marathons in seven days around the world. So there are obviously lots of ways to do it. My farthest distance has been 100 miles or five marathons in five days across Utah for

charity for MS research. But very traditional distances are like 50K, which is around 31 miles, 50 miles, 100 miles. And then there are stage races, which you might do in two, three, four, five, seven days, a lot of miles. Crazy, crazy, crazy. And we actually had somebody that ran the Sahara, Charlie. Anyway, we had some crazy people. Marathon to Saab is a great example. Yes.

Amazing. Amazing. I guess there's never a limit to the amount of craziness, but tell me, Robin, you then decide to not go the law route and completely change. Can you take us there for a second? Why? I was counting down the minutes, the hours, if there are any lawyers who are listening or watching,

you know all about billable hours. So you're living in these increments, say six minute increments. So I was very aware of time, hyper aware of time. And I would count down the hours until I could run, lift, go to spin class and I thought oh my gosh if I'm working out on a good week four days am I really living for like four hours a week three and a half hours a week that felt wild especially having just had this experience in my early 20s by my

mid late 20s I was like like, screw that. If I put all this work to befriend myself, then I should put myself in experiences that I feel excited about, or at the very least challenged by in a way that gets me excited. And it's interesting because practicing law wasn't like, oh, I hate every day. It was just, I'm fine. And I believe that we deserve existences that are more than fine. And I think that is the distinction that we don't often talk about. It's like this malaise that is pervasive and is, what if you deserve better? We almost resign ourselves to this, oh, it's just okay. No, it's not. So that was the impetus. And it was a really slow kind of burn. It was like a two-year

slow burn that I thought, oh my gosh, well how the heck am I going to pay my bills and I'm living in New York City and obviously I'm super, super privileged to have this amazing gig, this corporate gig, and there wasn't a clear path because it wasn't like, okay, now I want to go to business school and I want to know. I was truly like, I felt like I was just walking in the jungle with a machete or something. I read an article about Peloton and I reached out to the company Cold, and that was really what started my relationship with Peloton. At that time, I had already been writing my first book, Shut Up and Run as you mentioned,

and I was coaching runners and teaching spin classes and doing Jill of all trades, I guess because I was just trying to plant a lot of seeds and seeing what would sprout. So how do you reach out out of the blue, completely cold to Peloton? I think there are a lot of our listeners, they might have a dream, right? But it scares them. Well, maybe it's not for me, or maybe I don't know and I don't know anybody and how can I make it work? How do you reach out?

Energy is such a currency. Obviously these interactions are really great when they're in person, but this happened to be an email. And I was putting in the reps, so to speak. I would get into a taxicab and be like, I love running, do you love running? Like literally anybody who would listen. I went to the 2012 London Olympic Games as a spectator,

and I was like kind of a blogger and I was just putting in the reps, putting in the reps, recording, writing, talking. Anybody who would listen, I'm excited about this. I have a point of view as a Latina, as a woman, as an urban athlete, as a hustler, and I wasn't seeing it represented. So I was like, let me just find the right partners, the right people who also want to tune into this frequency. They want to listen to the radio station that I'm emitting, so to speak. So I basically poured all of that that I've been honing and crafting into the email specific

to Peloton. I was like, I did a vision board in the business quadrant of my vision board. I didn't even know what this meant at the time, but I wrote disruptive storytelling plus technology. And I had a picture of a little Apple computer. I really didn't know what this meant, but when I read about Pelton, I was like, oh my gosh, this is it. And truly it was a cold email to like info at Peltoncycle.com.

And they read my email and responded a few days later. And then I auditioned. This was before the company had opened its New York City studio. And so I auditioned in the corner of the corporate office that only had like 25 employees. Startup vibes, for sure. And they changed my life. I love energy as a currency because it's true.

There's some people that the minute you get in the room, they just suck the air out. And there's people that it's true. There's some people that the minute you get in the room, they just suck the air out. And there's people that it's opposite. It's like, it's just so inviting. But you get into Peloton and you do all these things, running, et cetera. Can you share some hard moments and something challenging and how you tackle them? So actually on the eve of joining Peloton and I was like, oh my god, this is it.

This is my dream job. I've got a steady income again, doing something I'm obsessed with. And probably like a week before I started at Peloton, I was feeling really fatigued and lethargic and getting up at night, frequent urination during the night. I was like, what is going on here? And I thought it was ultra training or jet lag. I had just gotten off an international trip visiting my sister in India,

who was working in India at the time. And we explain away everything, often. And I was trying to explain it away. My mother's a physician. She was like, absolutely not. This is a sign of type one diabetes. I didn't even know what an endocrinologist was, but I made an appointment that Monday, blood work and discovered as an adult, my pancreas was producing little to no insulin

and this training cycle for this ultra marathon, I didn't even notice, but I was losing weight, all these things. So that week was really daunting. And I knew I was basically gonna be then working out in front of folks. I mean, at this point, it was only probably 10 people on the leaderboard, but you know, it was really, really daunting.

And I was starting this new venture and I obviously wanted to feel great and prepared, and I was neither. But you know, I just focused on what I could control. And I educated myself with this new technology and what I would now need, new medical team, new doctor names, new medical terms. I asked questions when I didn't know what I needed to know, and I focused on what I could control.

The important thing also is to kind of remember your North Star, because I was in a lot of different rooms where it was like, oh, now that you're type one, ultra training, oh, now that you're this and that, you know, and it's folks, I think most of the time do mean well, but you can't make decisions based on somebody else's doubt because they're not you. And if I would have listened

to the very well-meaning naysayers, who I think were just being protective, I never would have continued to join Peloton. And for sure, I wouldn't have continued to become the athlete that I am now. You'll hear a thousand things from different people, whether it's in entrepreneurship, whether it's running, whether it's whatever you try to do, there's always the people, the voices that will try to keep you there's always the people, the voices, that will try to keep you safe. I don't necessarily think that they mean bad,

but it's exactly not what you need to hear at that moment. You can listen, but you need to decide what you're actually gonna listen to, what you're actually gonna take their advice or not. Let's talk about it, because you do all of this with two tiny ones. And I saw you in Necker Island. I mean, can we talk about this for a second? Like we're just friends in private island and adventure race. And you are with two tiny kids nursing one, running,

biking. Seriously, like we were all dead there and you were doing also motherhood. I have no clue how. I mean, listen, I think moms, caregivers, we just figure it out. And you know, I'm really grateful for help. I mean, my husband is an incredible partner. We did bring our nanny on that trip

because otherwise that would have been totally unrealistic for the care. It would have been a disaster, absolutely. And I think I'm just in the season. I will look back to this time in my life, I'm certain, even the hard days, and be like, gosh, what I wouldn't give for that amount of chaos in certain ways. You know what I mean? For me, these are the good old days.

So I'm okay maximizing, I'm okay with more. Yes, that requires some element of protecting my peace. There are a lot of social engagements that I say no to, you know, because I'm business. Basically it's like business and family life. And there's a lot of the in-between, you know, the happy hours, the things, the charity events, like stuff that I would love to attend, but it's usually a no. And that's why. And then it's also really understanding very clearly what a yes looks like. I think before becoming a mother, there would be opportunities that came my way that I'd be like,

well, I just have to do this because someone so did it or this person, you know, it's just, I have to do it. And it's like, well, no, you don't. Why? What does a yes even look like? And I think especially after you've had some successes or sometimes like it begets something else and it's like the next expected thing, it's like you really, you publish one book. It's like, oh, what about the next book? You do one race. Oh, what about the next? And it's like, oh, wait, but what's my yes? I'm proud that I've been able to read the tea leaves, so to speak, for my own definition. You know, when that's deciding whether I'm going to do a partnership, whether I'm going to take on a certain brand deal or a certain project. I really try to go internal rather than my initial, oh, I have to do it. I use my no pretty judiciously.

And this is so, so, so important because every time you say yes to something, you're actually saying no to something else. And the question is, what is the no? The no is time with family. The no is time at work. The no is time on your personal branding, whatever that is. There is always a no when you say yes to one thing. So you just need to figure out what am I shutting the door on when I do say yes.

And sometimes it's totally worth it and sometimes no. So I love that. And the way you were able to balance it all, I thought that was really inspiring. I personally don't bring my family with me because I was just like, when I'm working, I'm working. When I'm doing this, like I need to compartment. But it was just beautiful to see how it's all part of you. But let's talk about that adventure

before you go back to Peloton, because I still wanna go there for a second. But we're going to this adventure race or whatever that is, crazy biking, like running, even swimming for you, which I wanna talk a little bit about. What was it like for you? Yeah, being on Necker Island with Richard Branson

for the Strive X was... I mean, I think it was an adventure. It was pushing yourself physically so you can drop the pretense mentally or emotionally. I think there's always this tipping point with physical endurance and strength and activities that you kind of just, you don't have the energy anymore to have the wall up. And I think for especially high achieving people, that is a really unique environment.

Especially when you're in front of somebody like Richard Branson, who if you're going to Necker Island, you admire and know who Richard Branson is. And so you can go much deeper and have much more connected experiences when you have that physical element. And I think the way that we experienced the trip, you know, it was about what, like 30 of us. So just big enough where you feel like you can actually connect with folks. And it was really paired, the physical activities every day, call it four to six hours of activities every day were paired with really meaningful conversations and workshops at night. So for me, it was like a dream, a dream week. And yeah, you mentioned the swimming. So I didn't know how to swim. I would like, I could like doggy

paddle, but I really didn't know how to swim before this. And I was one of the co-hosts of this Strive X event. And I thought, okay, well, I have to do all the stuff, right? Like I can't opt out. And I had about three months and I was like, okay, I have to do all the stuff, right? Like I can't opt out. And I had about three months. And I was like, okay, I have a finish line, so to speak. And I really learned. And I truly, I hired a coach and I went to the Long Island Sound and I did open water swims. And it was really, really hard. And it's interesting. And I did do the swim. I swam a mile freestyle, you know, no swimmies, no, no, anything, no unassisted. I was really proud of that.

But if you were to ask me, are you a swimmer? I would still say no because in my mind, and I remember this point also in the beginning of my running journey, I took me the longest to say I was a runner, and I was already doing races and whatever. I think in my mind,

it's such an interesting example of we become the stories that we tell ourselves because I have done a lot of different things and played a lot of different roles in my life, and swimmer is yet to be. And I think next summer, maybe I'll solidify it, but I think I need a few more of those moments where I'm just like putting myself in the ocean

or putting myself in the pool and remembering that neurological piece of me that I guess developed. But I don't know, it's so funny how we can just, we can do a lot of things, but then there are always these pockets of hard that it takes our identity to embrace. That's such a powerful quote. I literally wrote it down because I don't see myself as a swimmer. As far as I'm concerned, I kind of survived the swim. It was the first time I ever needed to swim,

what was it, four and a half kilometers. I'm like, that was brutal. But I just, I will never call myself a runner or a biker or a swimmer. But it's so interesting how you create identity out of things. So you grow up in Peloton, but beyond Peloton, you start creating this mega brand that has, I don't know how many millions, Robin, like I can't keep up, but there's millions of people that the minute they hear Robin Arzun, I'm like, oh, now you're the cool kid.

If you know her, you're cool. So how did you build that kind of a brand? You know, I think the brand, I mean, I'm sure there are a lot of marketers who have varied opinions on this, but I think that the brand builds itself through consistency. And for me, it's always been about using my voice,

even when it shakes and trying to hold space maybe for folks who feel like that wellness isn't for them or maybe they didn't grow up seeing examples of folks who looked like them or talked like them in some of these spaces, especially traditional white male spaces. And, you know, as a woman, as a Latina, I really try to hold space for lots of different types of communities, but more so it's a value of I think I live the value of a hustler and somebody who really is gritty but appreciates a work ethic and is willing to define their own finish line. And that really, it still excites me.

So I guess reputation becomes a form of wealth. And I think that the brand builds itself when you show up consistently. And I have done that. You know, I've been at Peloton 11 plus years and, you know, I've been in wellness for longer than that. So a lot of different moments where you can show up and tell a consistent story in that time. But you do tell a very consistent story.

And by the way, there's also a book, right? Welcome Hustler. Yes, welcome Hustler. Right? Because I think it does take some hustling for sure. But also that consistency, Robin, again, most of us don't feel like posting every day or don't feel like doing something every day. And you're still able to, even though you have the brand and you have a lot of followers,

you will still get up every morning and you'll, or whatever that is, right? Whatever the cadence is, and you'll still post something and you'll still give back and you'll still think about what are my followers need to see right now? What drives you? You know, I call myself a fire starter. Like I think in a lot of different environments, I can be the spark for somebody's curiosity,

for someone's motivation, for someone's excitement. I found that that is my purpose. And the different hats that I wear, whether it's mother, entrepreneur, business person, spin instructor, strength coach, running coach, That is the through line through all the partnerships, all the brands, all the experiences. I want to light fires under people and I want folks going back to that malaise, going back to that I'm okay. Yes, being okay is better than being a lot of worse things, especially clinically, but you deserve more.

Why not you? That has always been, not always, but since adulthood, that's been a very pressing question, why not you? And then I want to offer folks tools, a toolkit for how, because if the why is big enough and strong enough and loud enough inside, the how is always going to be achievable. and loud enough inside, the how is always going to be achievable. And that's what started also the Swagger Society community, and you're continuing with another book launch. So tell us a little bit, Robin, what is going on?

What are you continuing? What is the Swagger Society? Yeah, so Swagger Society Media Company is really became a lifestyle membership club that we spun out a year and a half ago to go deeper with folks who are of the growth mindset, who wanted to go a little bit deeper than the traditional Instagram post or Facebook post with me. And so we have quarterly, we call them Queendom halls, and we gather and it's an extension of my masterclass outside of social media, right?

So we built our own private app and Swagger Society now is taking these conversations to media partners and brand partners and we host in real life events every single year, twice a year and this really becomes an opportunity for the community to gather in real life and connect both virtually and in person and have conversations. So whether it's me interviewing the editor in chief of Women's Health or whether it's bringing an amazing person, former athlete, you know, I interviewed Mark Cuban, for example, you know, as part of a conversation teeing up to agrisociety. So these are things that if I'm curious about it, and I have questions about it, in related

to leveling up one's life and growth mindset values, then that's under the umbrella. And we're going to be spinning out licensing and merchandise and clothing. And so it's the place that lives for me to play, but also play with purpose. I'm looking forward to seeing what we can blend with careers and that together, but that's still in the making. So talk to me a little bit about your cookbook. That is coming.

It's a big one for you. It is. 2025 is my big cookbook preparation year. I am literally recipe testing right now. It will be out in 2026. I'm a plant-based athlete. I'm vegan. I've been vegan for over 12 years. That means I don't eat meat or dairy,

eggs, and I basically thrive on plants. I wanted to create a protein-packed plant-based cookbook for folks. Yes, of course, there are plant-based folks who are like, wow, great, I need more recipes. But for me, I'm taking a wider approach, a broader approach. This is for the person who just wants to increase their protein portfolio. Like you look at your investments,

it's like, this is what I want for folks is to think, okay, maybe tonight I'll try one of these recipes. Obviously I believe it's great for the environment and it's great for our bodies. But as an athlete, I'll try one of these recipes. Obviously, I believe it's great for the environment and it's great for our bodies. But as an athlete, I have lived this and I know as someone who trains multiple hours a day, six days a week, I know that you can fuel intentionally with these recipes. That's the goal, is to put something out in the world that allows individuals, athletes, families, and just the plant curious to have a resource.

I love that. And also it's very real. Like it is how I cook. It's not like, okay, we need to curate this recipe for 72 hours and then you need this special dish and this pot and this special machine. No, this is like how I cook in my kitchen. I have 15 minutes. My kids are going

crazy. I am starving. This is what I eat. That's the goal. That sounds a lot more for me. So when you're looking back, Robin, what would be some of the things that you wish you could say to your younger self? Oh, gosh, there were closed doors and they say like, be grateful for the redirection. I know there's some kind of saying that I'm blanking on now, but the many moments where I felt like

I was being redirected and now I look back and I'm like, oh my gosh, if I didn't do this, that that wouldn't have led me to that and da da da da, then I don't meet my husband. If I don't do this and da da da, da da da da, then I don't end up a Peloton. And as somebody who's ambitious, as a hustler, me my husband. If I don't do this and da da da, da da da, then I don't end up a peloton. And as somebody who's ambitious, as a hustler, finding the way to continue to hustle, but

also trust in closed doors and life's timing, that I'm proud of. So I would tell the younger version of myself, you will find the balance of your hustle with life's and the universe's signs and timing. And I wouldn't have believed you. I would have just been like, but here's my to-do list and here's my calendar and da-da-da-da and I'm going to force it. And it's just, no girl, that's not it. So I think that there's a more nuanced energy that I have now to the hustle, which gosh,

I'm grateful for because that means that my hustle has a long game. Like I'm in this for the infinite hustle. I don't want to do this and flame out and say, oh gosh, yeah, wow, I had it in me for a year. No, baby, I want to be one of the most badass 90 year olds you know. I believe you. But I think what you just said is so powerful because I think the balance is really hard for high achievers, right? If you're driven and you're a high achiever,

when something fails for you, you're driven and you're a high achiever, when something fails for you, you're trying to continue. I know I did. And it took me time to realize this is a dead end. You're knocking on the door that is not going to open. If it is, it's not where you want to be anyway. So you better trust and go with what looks right. But at that point, it feels very hard. So can you share for us a hard moment that you needed to like lean into and say, you know what, this is probably the wrong door that I'm knocking on. I have two examples.

So one, before the Peloton entered the chat, so to speak, I've always been really into fashion and very kind of enamored by design. And I thought, okay, this is back in the day, back in the day. I had already left my law firm and I was flailing about New York City. And I thought, okay, I'm going to start a leggings, I'm going to start an athleisure company, as if that's a casual endeavor. And I put money into the company.

I was sourcing designers, fabric was coming from Asia. It was starting to be birthed, but I was also writing my book and I was doing all these other things. And you don't just casually do this, right? And I realized, oh my gosh, if you don't pull the plug, if you don't just eat the cost now, you are going to be such a failure in this. And that inability or unwillingness to see that through really

felt like a failure. And then fast forward to now, I am working on an entirely crafted line with Peloton that is going to be coming out later this year. It is like, right girl. That distinguishing between a failure and a pivot is really tricky. Sometimes you don't know which one it was until you zoom out a little bit. But I'm very grateful for that. Then a more recent one, a more concrete one, I was signed up for the New York City Marathon in 2024.

I thought to myself, okay, you're one year postpartum, you must run this race, you have this entry, people would kill for this entry. The long runs just were not sitting well with my body. I think I was still healing a little bit from having Atlas, my son. Again, it was like four weeks of just like, try again, lace up, do it again. You know how to do this. You've done 27 marathons. You got this,

number 28. And I just had this crushing 10-mile air where I could barely eke it out. And I was like, girl, why? So I pivoted and I pivoted in a way that made my life so much more enriched. I ended up signing up for a Hi-Rox competition, which is eight 1K runs and eight strength things. That 2024 training cycle was so much more rewarding because I pivoted and yes, I might have eeked it out. Yes, I might have crossed that New York City marathon finish line. To what end? If I was miserable, then what was the point?

I think, yes, there is gonna be a level of discomfort in any of these achievements. So it's, you're kind of like, oh, is this discomfort? Or am I just like cutting out too early? So I don't know, you know, I can't answer that for folks. It depends, but for me, those are two examples of it was totally the right call to pivot. And I do believe that creates the muscle that you need to build in

order to do the next things that you want to do. And I think that just so powerful, but we need to sometimes tell our stories from the scars, not the wounds. So when there's a really open wound, it's sometimes really hard to admit to the story, but we needed to wait a little bit until it's sometimes really hard to admit to the story, but we needed to wait a little bit until it scars. So Robin, for people who are listening or watching, and they're saying, I want to elevate my career,

I know I'm a fraction of who I could be, I want my name out there, I want to make an impact, what would you say to them? I think that those are all the right questions. Now it's figuring out what story are you telling yourself, and then what story are you telling the world through how you're showing up, how you send the text, how you sign the email, how you show up to the event.

These are all branded moments. Earlier when I said the brand builds itself, it's like these are the small inflection points. Obviously, education is a huge passion of yours. It's like how are you educating to stay relevant? Finding the spark, finding the question that you want to answer for the world, that's a big, but once you have that, that's such an amazing aha that it's like, yo, now you got to run with it. And you might be like run into a few wrong directions and be like, not that way, not that way, not that way. But you still carry that charge with you. And that is so exciting. And I think if you're like, oh gosh, I don't know, I'm flailing, I don't know what I like, continue to have the conversation

with yourself. Lead with curiosity rather than judgment. And I say this really seriously, develop a running practice, develop a movement practice. These movement practices where we look under the hood of how we're speaking to ourselves, that directly informs how we are showing up in the world. And I continue to feel like a creative person, even in the throes of motherhood and all this, because I continue to carve out those movement practices that allow me to befriend myself. And then on a great day, I'm like, oh my gosh, I'm journaling, I'm putting notes in my phone. I'm like, yeah, I've got an idea for this,

an idea for that, an idea for that. Because movement is fertilizer for the brain. So if you feel stuck, move your body. Powerful, Robin. Thank you as always. So amazing to see you months after running and biking and you're amazing as always. Thank you, this was so fun.