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Habits and Hustle
Episode 504: Shaun T.: Motivation, Confidence, and the Power of Fun in Fitness
00:28:26
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- [00:01]
A
Hi guys, it's Tony Robbins. You're listening to Habits and Hustle. Crush it.
- [00:07]
B
Hey friends. You're listening to Fitness Friday on the Habits and Hustle podcast where myself and my friends share quick and very actionable advice for you becoming your healthiest self. So stay tuned and let me know how you leveled up. Before we dive into today's episod, I first want to thank our sponsor, Therassage. Their tri light panel has become my favorite biohacking thing for healing my body. It's a portable red light panel that I simply cannot live without. I literally bring it with me everywhere I go and I personally use their red light therapy to help reduce inflammations in places in my body where honestly, I have pain. You can use it on a sore back, stomach, cramps, shoulder, ankle. Red light therapy is my go to. Plus it also has amazing anti aging benefits, including reducing signs of fine lines and wrinkles on your face, which I also use it for. I personally use Therassage Trilite everywhere and all the time. It's small, it's affordable, it's portable, and it's really effective. Head over to therassage.com right now and use code be bold for 15% off this code will work site wide. Again. Head over to Therasage T H E R A s a g e.com and use code be bold for 15% off any of their products.
- [01:52]
A
When people find a way to stay motivated, they find a way to stay motivated by having fun and not being overwhelmed or intimidated. And that's what I agree. That's why people don't. That's why the people who don't go to the gym don't go to the gym. Well, I'm not fit enough yet to go to the gym. I'm too big or I'm. Or for a lot of women, it's, you know, I need to lose weight. For a lot of men it's just like, well, I'm gonna be intimidated by the guys with exactly, it's insecurity.
- [02:19]
B
You don't feel confident in that way. Do you play tennis? Oh, God, don't you tell me.
- [02:27]
A
Are we recording? Oh, yes, I played tennis. I started playing tennis a little over 11 years ago. I crashed my husband and his mom and dad's vacation two months after I met him to Australia. I had no idea about tennis. I played football, track and field and basketball like they were my sports. And when I got down there, they were like, oh, we're going to go to the Australian Open. And I remember sitting in the Westin Hotel in Melbourne. And I was like, I have no idea what I'm about to watch. I didn't know how to score tennis. They go from 15 to 30 to 40. Love, you know, advantage this and all this stuff. And I remember going to the match, and I saw the guys playing, and I was like, this is so fucking. Like. Like, I would be a professional tennis player. Like, I was talking all kinds of trash, right? And I got. And then. So For Valentine's Day 2011, Scott bought me a tennis lesson at the National Tennis center in Queens, New York. I got the first ball over. I thought I was a shit. And I think I hit every other ball over the curtains and everything. And so I, for the last 11 years, have been, like, obsessed with tennis. That's. I use. I did use it as my cardio for a while because I just got sick of doing fitness, you know, So.
- [03:49]
B
I totally understand that. Yes.
- [03:51]
A
So I got sick of doing fitness anyway from that. Scott told me he gets so mad when I tell this story, but he was like, you'll never be able to hit like a professional tennis player. And I'm like, do you know who the fuck I am? Like, what do you mean? And I really, like, I was mad at him for. I held a grudge for, like, a few years after him saying that. And so two things happened. One, we met Serena. I got to play against Serena. You know, we played doubles. My team, me and my partner beat Serena.
- [04:21]
B
No way.
- [04:23]
A
And she was so mad, like, when we were playing. She's so competitive in a good way. She was bombing these balls at me. She was just like. There were a couple of them. I was like, holy shit. Like, if I was playing her one on one, she would whoop my ass. But anyway, we play, and then, like, maybe a year and a half ago, I remember Scott saying to me, like, I just want to let you know I think you can beat me in tennis now, but I'll never admit that in public.
- [04:48]
B
Oh, my. Well, I feel like anything you do, though, you become good at just from the podcast we did at. On your podcast. Like, you have a lot of, like. Like, hidden talents that people either don't know about or you just don't talk about. Or is that true? Like, are you the kind of person that if you put your mind to it, you can become good? Exceptional, I should say, at a lot.
- [05:09]
A
Of things, I think that I am a life's decathlete. Meaning, you know, if I went to the Olympics, the only thing I could. Probably the only Thing I would win a gold medal in, if it were an Olympic sport, would be fitness. Like, if it was like, you have to, like, do a live class. Like, I feel like that's the thing I excel at the most. Right. Like, I would be on this. I would be on a medal stand, you know, first, second to third, you know, probably gold. But I'm down to lose to really good people. But, but so, but for me, it's about the trying. Like, if. If I find that I'm capable of doing something, if my mind tells me I can do it, I can do it. I can sing. I'm not the best singer in the world, but I can definitely be the lead in a Broadway show, which I really want to be the lead in. Kinky Boots. It just came out. I want to be Lola so fucking bad. But anyway, can you really sing that well? But I can sing really good. I'm not Mariah Carey or you don't need to be Craig David or any, you know, Brian McKnight, but I can definitely. I can sing, I can dance really well as a professional dancer, you know, so I do a lot of things really, really well. But the secret is if I don't do it well, you're not gonna see me doing it.
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B
Yeah. Yeah.
- [06:23]
A
So just. I mean, there are things that I'm not really great at, you know.
- [06:27]
B
Like what? Name me one thing that you've tried, tried and that you aren't great at.
- [06:32]
A
Writing a book was really tough for me because I'm not a good writer. I'm a good. I express really well my voice. So, like, even when I write posts, you know, Chip will look at my post. Chip is my everything in my business, I should say. Chip will look at my post and be like, yeah, you made some errors, like grammatical errors. And like, they're sometimes grammatical or, you know, but I'm very. I don't think I'm adhd, because I know my friend Charlene Johnson talks about that all the time, but I'm definitely. I'm just. I'm not good at organizing my life necessarily. That's why I have really good people around me.
- [07:09]
B
Yeah. And that's a. That's a true statement for a lot of people who are extraordinary at a high level at certain things.
- [07:18]
A
Yeah.
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B
So that's not that. That's not that unique. Right.
- [07:21]
A
It's not that abnormal, you see. But, you know, in therapy, because I'm going to therapy.
- [07:26]
B
I know.
- [07:27]
A
And my therapist, you know, he calls it a high achiever because I was just like, you know, one time I was telling him to your point about the question of, like, you're good at a lot of things. I have this thing in my head where if I'm not doing anything, I think I'm lazy. And he said, a lot of high achievers have that totally mindset. And so, yeah, so, I mean, you know, there's a lot going on in his brain. Most of what comes out now is the messiness and always the real. But before, it was just. It was really tough, you know, and I wasn't at this level of, like, confidence and belief in myself always, you know, now being 44 is just a different story.
- [08:03]
B
When did it start? Like, what was. Like, so walk me through this, right? So how did you even become the Shaun T that we know from insanity and from all the mega programs? Like, becoming that? Like, were you naturally very, very talented with, like, even talking to a camera? People don't even know how came difficult that is to be on cue and to be doing that and to be engaging while also doing the moves. Like, did you audition for it? Like, what was the evolution?
- [08:31]
A
First of all, can I just tell you, I love you. Like, I know we just met, but.
- [08:34]
B
I love you too.
- [08:35]
A
Great talking to you. Like, it's amazing.
- [08:38]
B
That is so nice. I feel the same way towards you. I really do.
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A
That's so true. It's so true. Like, I just, like, you're wonderful.
- [08:46]
B
Oh, you're wonderful too.
- [08:47]
A
Thank you. Oh, like my grandfather used to say, we're fearfully and wonderfully made. I just wish most people would, like, actually believe that they're wonderful. But that's a whole nother story.
- [08:56]
B
That's a whole other podcast. Actually.
- [08:58]
A
I do like the fact that you asked me, like, how did you become Shaun T from what people already knew? Because most people ask the question, like, how did it happen? Yeah, but I love how you ask, like, the evolution, because we know what we see on tv and when you see actors and when you see people that are, you know, on TV or, you know, somewhat famous, if you have.
- [09:17]
B
No, but you are in the fitness space. Like, there's not. There's like, very few names that are household names, right? Very few. You could be a really successful fitness person, but, like, there's like a handful. And you are one of those people, like, probably my. Maybe not my mom, because she's 80, but most other people, if you say Shaun T, people automatically, oh, yeah, Insanity. Beachbody. Oh, yeah, that guy. Hip hop abs. You've been like, kind of part of the DNA and The fitness space for so many years that people at some level will know who you are.
- [09:50]
A
It's funny you say so many years because someone said to me the other day, they were like, yeah, I've been doing your tapes since 2001. And I'm like, no, you haven't, because I was still in college. But to answer your question, which is a really good question, I'll tell you a really interesting story. So I used to teach at Equinox in West Hollywood when I first moved to Los Angeles.
- [10:09]
B
Was that your.
- [10:10]
A
Really? So, yeah, I used to teach there. And people used to wait like an hour for my class. And it was always packed, especially my Saturday class. And it was a dance class. I taught 10 classes a week or 12. And they were. There were all kinds of fitness classes, from BOSU to Bosu Step to, you know, camp, everything. But my most popular class is my hip hop dance class. And so people would wait. And so there was a producer that worked at Beachbody that came to my class. Two of them would, like, she would always look from outside the window of my class one day, came in anyway, she got in touch with a trainer who then reached out to me and said, hey, this woman wants to meet you. Her name is Lara Ross, who's one of my great friends to this day. But they had me coming in audition, and I remember the director, Andrea Ambandos, who I love to death. She said, now, I just want to let you know, you have to be yourself when the camera comes on. And she used her hand, she was like, so this is the camera, and you have to try not to act like anything else. And in my head, I'm like, just bitch. Know who the fuck I am, like. And she and my relationship are very. That, like, you know, I think she's very tough, actually. She's super tough. But I'm literally her face.
- [11:16]
B
Yeah, well, of course you are.
- [11:19]
A
Know that sounds really. No, but I am.
- [11:21]
B
Perfect sense.
- [11:21]
A
And she's like, she's just wonderful. But so I just remember, I was like, okay. And in my head, I'm like, I've literally taught on every continent, almost in different languages. Like, you know, this isn't my first rodeo. I'm saying that in my head.
- [11:39]
B
Yeah.
- [11:39]
A
And literally that day I taught about, like, maybe 15 minutes, like, for them. And I walked out of Beachbody with my contract that day. Like, there was no, like, wait. There was no, like, are you serious? Yeah.
- [11:53]
B
They gave it to you on the spot.
- [11:54]
A
They walked me to the lawyer's office.
- [11:57]
B
What did you do? In that audition.
- [12:00]
A
So, funny story is I call all my dancer friends to my. Wow. To my house. So I was renting a room out of a really good friend of mine's house. And so I called them over. It was like six of them. And. And I was like, hey, meet me at my garage at like 9:00'. Clock. And they all came to the garage. And I pulled the sliding glass mirrors from my closet in my bedroom and took them downstairs and I put them in the, in the garage. And I made up a routine of like what we were going to do at this audition. And I walked in there and that's what I did. I just taught a dance. And they were just really impressed with my cueing. They were just like, wow. Like you cue really well, like for, like if, if I'm doing a move that goes boom, boom, bop, I go, go up, down, out, take it down, flip around, boom, boom. Cause like, my thing is I want people to know what I'm doing before I do it. But that also, you know, I'm also putting my personality into it. So.
- [12:57]
B
Exactly.
- [12:58]
A
It was exactly what I guess Beachbody needed at the time. So.
- [13:01]
B
Well, you had two things. A group X, like teaching an actual class day in, day out. That many gave you the, it gave you the skillset. So you, that's. You knew what you were doing. Because queuing is super difficult. People don't realize that. And because of the choreography stuff, like, you already, like, you were already a professional by the time you got to that place.
- [13:20]
A
Yeah, I mean, I was a professional dancer. Yeah. And you know, but the queuing, the choreography, like being on beat was the choreography. And I had taught, I had taught. You know how they say it takes 10,000 hours to be. I had taught probably. I mean, I started teaching when I was 20, almost 21. And I taught like, I remember teaching 25, 30 classes a week just in college.
- [13:46]
B
Wow.
- [13:46]
A
So by the time I left college and then like traveled around the world, I mean, I had, I, I've been, I just was all over the place. You.
- [14:01]
B
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- [16:01]
A
Yeah, it's so funny when people come up to me, they're like, oh my God, you're like a social media influencer. And I'm like, oh my gosh, no, I'm not.
- [16:07]
B
Exactly, I'm not.
- [16:09]
A
But yeah, like fitness back then was very different. And I'm sure, you know, there were all the conventions and like people don't even know names like Calvin Wiley, Patrick Godot, Tony Stone, Angie Bunch, Patricia Moreno, Rest in peace. You know, there's so many of these incredible people that I learned under that taught queuing that was able to build a class. Every class was an experience. And so from that then I had to work my way up to be able to teach at one of these conventions. And then, and so I taught at those conventions for a while and one day I was, I would, I would teach and I would still take like six classes a day. And one day I was in a back row of a class. I was just like, because I like to support people and I always was like, I'm going to soak up anything that they do.
- [16:56]
B
Totally.
- [16:57]
A
And I was in the back of the class and it was a guy from Turkey that was just like, hey, you want to come to Turkey and help me open up a gym? And like create, you know, this like, fitness program and personal training also. So he did all this stuff and it was just like, I went to Istanbul and I, you know, I was like, where am I? I don't speak this language, but the guys are hot and I'm here for it.
- [17:21]
B
That's awesome.
- [17:22]
A
You know, it was on my mind in my twenties.
- [17:23]
B
100.
- [17:24]
A
No shade.
- [17:25]
B
No, no. It's amazing. So that then did you come up with Hip. Was your first program Hip hop abs, though?
- [17:31]
A
Yes, my first program was hip hop abs.
- [17:33]
B
Did you do it or did they give it to you or how does it work? Like, what's the, like, give me the secret skinny, you know, excuse the pun on, like, what happens inside. So you get the job, then what happens?
- [17:42]
A
Yeah, so get the job. And it literally is we go into a boardroom with the producers, with Carl Daikler, who's the CEO, and then we just kind of ideate on what it is that we want to do. At least that's how every experience of mine has been. So they knew that they had just come out with P90X was before insanity. And then the most amazing, Charlene Johnson had just come out with Turbo Jam.
- [18:09]
B
I remember that too.
- [18:10]
A
Right. So. So she had come out with Turbo Jam. And so really. So what happened was they were just like, we want Turbo Jam. Did so good. It was like rhythmic. It was kind of like. I don't want to say it's like Taebo, but it was like the rhythmic boxing for people who don't really understand it. And then. So they wanted something that was like. They felt like movement was really good, so. And I was really popular for dance.
- [18:33]
B
Right. And so that's what you're known for.
- [18:35]
A
Yeah, but the way we came up with hip hop abs was I'm actually going to shout out these people, these two women, their names are Gillian and T. They had yoga booty ballet. I don't know if you remember that.
- [18:45]
B
Of course they do. Yes.
- [18:46]
A
But they had one workout in yoga booty ballet called hip hop abs. It was just like one little. It was just like where we would do like buns in butt or whatever. Buns and thighs. It was hip hop as. But anyway, the way we came out with hip hop abs was actually really cool because I was a hip hop dancer and one day we were just ideating on choreography in this room and so I took off my shirt and, you know, they're like, oh, my gosh, you have like really great abs. And I was like, thank you. You know, so I was Like, I don't know who said it, but they were like, oh, my gosh, like, what did we focus, like, did an ab program. And so I breathed in and I made my, my belly really big. And I was like, you know, all you got to do is tilt, tuck and tighten. And it, it went from my ass and they were like, holy. And because they were like, what do you do for abs? And I was like, I don't do abs. Like, at that time, I did not get down on the floor. I literally danced. And they were like, well, show us how you move. I was like, well, in hip hop, you know, you got to stay low, you got to keep your core tight. You know, all this stuff. And so that's how we came up with hip hop abs. It went from like, hip hop hot abs to like hot hip abs. It was like all these things were like, okay, we have to use this name because hip hop abs is great. So then that's how we came up with hip hop abs.
- [20:07]
B
And were you, like, was everyone shocked at the popularity of the, like, how, how it became, like, massive?
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A
Yeah, it was a phenomenon at the time.
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B
It was huge.
- [20:15]
A
I think what was really great about it, it was, you know, it was just like all the ingredients of a, of a great fitness program came into one. And this is going to sound really funny, but you have dance, you have low impact, and you have a gay black man. I know that sounds really, really crazy, and I could say it because I'm black.
- [20:36]
B
Right, right, right.
- [20:37]
A
But, like, you know, I believe people are probably going to roll their eyes at this, but I just believe that gay black men in fitness is like, is not intimidating because some people can be intimidated by really, you know, super ripped other women.
- [20:52]
B
Women for sure.
- [20:52]
A
Or like beefy guys. Kind of like I am now.
- [20:55]
B
You're super beefy now. But you weren't back then.
- [20:58]
A
I wasn't back then. Who's the. Who's the kid out there? Is that. Is that your kid? Oh, my God, he's so cute.
- [21:03]
B
Thank you. That's Dylan. He's probably like. Well, yeah, he's probably. He's used to.
- [21:07]
A
Oh, my God, he has great hair. Sorry.
- [21:08]
B
Thank you. I love that. Yeah, he's. He's delicious. So I don't know, I was like, looking at him, but. So what was he saying about your hip hop? You were telling me, not Dylan. No, I was going to say something about the hip hop, oh yeah. People. And I don't know if this is like, politically incorrect also, but the gay teachers always, like, who are at the clubs are always the most popular. Like women flock to these classes and if you're like a pretty girl or like it's. You could be intimidating. Like, they like the personality that comes with it.
- [21:42]
A
I think that if I can, like, if I can just even take sexuality out of it for a second, I think what happens is, you know, gay people in general, like, we live a life of being suppressed for mostly a quarter or more of our lives. You know, I didn't come out till I was 21. Most people don't come out till they're 18. You know, so you have these people who are suppressed for the youngest years of their lives. And so now you take somebody who actually loves fitness, who loves to dance, who wants to be expressive, and you put them in front of a room and it's not, it's not intimidating. And people are having a good ass time.
- [22:16]
B
Totally.
- [22:16]
A
People do not care about, I don't want to say they don't care about fitness. Yes, people want to lose weight. They want to. But hear you like that when they, when people find a way to stay motivated, they find a way to stay motivated by having fun and not being overwhelmed or intimidated. And that's what I agree. That's why people don't, that's why the people who don't go to the gym don't go to the gym. Well, I'm not fit enough yet to go to the gym. I'm too big or I'm, or for, for a lot of women, it's, you know, I need to lose weight. For a lot of men it's just like, well, I'm going to be intimidated by the guys with exactly, it's insecurity.
- [22:52]
B
You don't feel confident in that way.
- [22:54]
A
So you have, you know, you have a gay black man or a Chip, because Chip is a really good gay teacher.
- [23:01]
B
Oh, you are too.
- [23:02]
A
He's not a gay teacher, but he's a fitness instructor.
- [23:04]
B
Are you. Where do you teach? Equinox too? He used to.
- [23:08]
A
I'm on the little pause right now.
- [23:09]
B
You are on a little pause right now with the schedule? Yeah.
- [23:12]
A
I mean, he was teaching even while working with us for Transform 20 when it had a certification program. But he doesn't know he's my favorite instructor. But anyway, so not anyway. So just like when you have like a gay guy teaching, it's just not intimidating, especially for like being in public. You're going into a room and I really believe, like no one talks about that, but I'm like, it's Very, very, very true. If you go to fitness conventions, like, the gay guys are like, they have, like, these really popular, super fun classes.
- [23:44]
B
They also have a cult following. Yeah, they have a cult following. Cause they make it fun. I think at the end of the day, no matter what, people want to feel inspired and they want to have fun. They don't want to feel like it's like a chore to do it. But you said something that was interesting. So when you were 21, you came out. But so how old were you when you did Insanity? What was.
- [24:03]
A
I was. That was 2009, so. Oh, 31. I was. I was born in 1978. So was that 31? Almost 31. I was 30.
- [24:15]
B
So you were. Okay, so I. I remember now. I don't know why. I remember when. When people said to me, oh, shant Shaun T came out. But that was like, already. This was like, back when, like, we were like. This was like in 2005. Were you keeping it a secret?
- [24:30]
A
It was 2012.
- [24:33]
B
Do you know what I'm talking about?
- [24:35]
A
I do. And it's really funny because I was never in. That was like.
- [24:39]
B
That's the thing.
- [24:40]
A
I'm like, have you done hip hop abs? I'm literally like, I don't got no hair. You know, I'm like, I was never in. In my public, in my real life, professional life, I was never in the clock. I came out at 21 to everybody.
- [24:54]
B
So why did people think that?
- [24:55]
A
I'll tell you why. Okay, so one, because you have hip hop abs where I'm like, cutting up and rocking body. They were my first two programs where they were dance programs. You know, I'm acting like I'm at the motherfucking club. You know, I'm having a good ass time. But then insanity comes out, and it is. There's no time in a program where it wasn't live at the time. Like, if it was. If Insanity was a live class, I would have been acting crazy because I'm like, cool. But, you know, it's a package program where people have to come and have to redo the workouts. So I don't tell jokes. I'm just like, boom, like, we're gonna work, right? And I took on when I. I created Insanity because I wanted people to feel how I felt at the end of a track practice, which is terrible. And so I feel good at the end, but it's terrible. And I'm like, this is like, I need people to feel this way. So they saw Shaun T. From Insanity. Shaun T. From T25 Asylum. Like, these programs that are hardcore, hardcore. So then when my husband and I get married and my assistant at the time tweets, oh, my gosh, she put something like, I'm so happy to celebrate this love. Everyone. Like, the blogs went crazy, and I'm like, who was in?
- [26:07]
B
Oh, right. So everyone just assumed that you were.
- [26:10]
A
They assumed that I was coming out, but you were.
- [26:12]
B
But it was just. Because it just never gave the opportunity.
- [26:15]
A
I'm like, thanks, girl. You know, I was fine.
- [26:17]
B
Right. And I. Because I totally remember that. And I'm like, what? I. Because I wasn't, like, keeping tabs completely, but I do remember that. That, like, in the atmosphere of, like, a beach body, that you came out. Yeah, but it was like, just.
- [26:32]
A
But can we talk about that for a second? Like, why do people even have to come out?
- [26:36]
B
I know. I. I mean, listen, that's a whole other thing. Like, I don't remember. I remember thinking, like, I wasn't even thinking if he was in or out or where you were. You know, I'm like, oh, I like his workouts. You know, I wasn't paying attention to that. But I guess because the conversation wasn't what it was today. Like, back then, people were much more. Well, people are. People are afraid of cancel culture today for different reasons.
- [26:59]
A
Right.
- [27:00]
B
But back then, the cancel culture was much more. There's a stigma, I guess, for whatever reason back then about that or people thought there would be.
- [27:09]
A
Yeah. And I literally never gave.
- [27:11]
B
I know you. I can tell, knowing you now, like, that would. I can't even imagine people thinking that.
- [27:15]
A
Yeah. It's so funny, Sam.