Episode 16

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Published on:

20th Oct 2025

I Have Chronic Stress. How Can I Avoid Burnout?

How does chronic stress affect our health? How can we find peace, calm and stillness in our life?

In our fast-paced world, stress has become an unwelcome companion, quietly shaping our lives in ways we often overlook. This episode of Built Resilient Motivational Speaker Bart Walsh pulls back the curtain on chronic stress, revealing its hidden impacts and offering practical strategies to reclaim your nervous system.

Bart dives deep into the crucial differences between acute and chronic stress. We explore how our bodies, designed for short bursts of fight-or-flight responses, struggle with the constant low-level anxiety of modern life. This mismatch between our evolutionary biology and current lifestyle lies at the heart of many health challenges.

Chronic stress doesn't just make us feel uncomfortable, it reshapes our biology. We examine how elevated cortisol levels can:

  • Break down muscle protein
  • Contribute to abdominal fat storage
  • Disrupt sleep quality
  • Impact brain function and memory

For athletes and fitness enthusiasts, Bart explains why stress can derail your progress, making workouts feel harder and slowing recovery.

While we can't eliminate stress entirely, we can learn to regulate our nervous system. Bart shares four key strategies:

  • Move like a human, not just an athlete: The power of low-intensity, consistent movement
  • Close your loops: A simple yet effective technique to signal safety to your brain
  • Breathe intentionally: Using breath as the remote control for your nervous system
  • Redefine downtime: Creating true recovery in a distraction-filled world

This episode challenges you to shift your focus from quick fixes to daily practices that build resilience. We explore the concept of "micro-recoveries" and how to anchor stress-reducing habits into meaningful rituals.

By understanding the intricate dance between stress, your nervous system, and your physical goals, you'll be equipped to not just survive challenging times, but to thrive in them.

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Want to contribute to the show? Email:

📧 hello@bartwalsh.com.au

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About the Podcast

Built Resilient
Build Unshakeable Mental and Physical Resilience
Stop fighting your biology and start fueling your breakthrough.

Are you tired of "hustling" only to feel like you’re spinning your wheels? Do you feel like there’s a gap between the life you’re living and the potential you know is locked inside you?

Welcome to Built Resilient, the podcast designed for high-performers, leaders, and anyone feeling "stuck" in the noise of the modern world. We’re moving past the "fluffy" motivation and diving deep into the neuroscience of success, nervous system regulation, and the biological grit required to thrive when the stakes are high.

Hosted by Bart Walsh, international keynote speaker and former Head Coach of Jetts Australia, this show is a masterclass in human recalibration. Bart draws on his experience leading national fitness movements and his own journey of high-stakes career reinvention to show you that resilience isn't a "feeling", it’s a physiological strategy.

Each 15-minute episode delivers tactical, science-backed tools to help you:

* Hack your Nervous System: Move from "Fight or Flight" to "Peak Performance" in seconds.

* Redraw your Identity Map: Break free from the "Success Trap" and find your true mission.

* Master the Focus Economy: Reclaim your attention from the algorithm and build a "Fortress of Focus."

* Develop Biological Grit: Understand how strength, bone density, and physical movement send safety signals to a stressed-out brain.

If you’re ready to stop burying your head in the sand and start building a life that is Built Resilient, hit subscribe. The world is shifting, it’s time you shifted with it.

About your host

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Bart Walsh

Bart Walsh is an actor, father, and one of Australia’s most respected voices in both fitness and resilience. As Head Coach for Jetts Fitness Australia, his professional work impacts thousands of lives, but it’s his personal journey that truly inspires.

In his early 20s, Bart was diagnosed with aggressive cancer. Rather than becoming a victim, he turned inwards, discovering that physical strength could rebuild mental resilience.

In 2020, he and his wife experienced the tragic loss of their newborn son, Aurélien. In response, Bart created Aurélien’s Workout, an annual event that transforms grief into growth and love into legacy.

Most recently, he was diagnosed with Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, a degenerative neurological condition that threatens his ability to move. But instead of giving in, Bart chose to lean in, continuing to live, teach, and speak with even greater purpose.

Now Bart has decided to pic up the mic, and give air to the important questions he gets after his presentations and workshops. Questions whose answers will help thousands of people become more resilient week over week.