8 Questions With Actress Alexa PenaVega
Remember growing up and thinking how badass Carmen Cortez was in the 2001 hit Spy Kids? Turns out, the real-life actress who played the role, Alexa PenaVega, has grown into an equally badass woman.
Just like all of us, Alexa has had struggles when it comes to health, insecurity, motherhood and more, but one thing she isn’t struggling with today is keeping the conversation real. So, we asked her some rapid-fire questions about herself. Cue the inspiration.
the void: What makes you the most proud to be a woman?
av: The amount of strength we have. We are so strong and our pain threshold is like no other.
the void: What has been your biggest struggle as a female?
av: I think that would be our compassion; we lead with our hearts. That can sometimes be taken as a weakness, but I actually think there’s a lot of strength in compassion.
the void: How has being a mom changed you?
av: Becoming a mom has taught me a lot about grace. I think it is super easy to be judgmental of other people but then you become a parent and realize that you don’t have it together whatsoever. So you not only realize your own grace, but also the grace of others.
the void: How did having a baby change your view of your body?
av: I look at my body now with A LOT more respect—that’s something that is so easily neglected. But when you have a baby and you see what your body is capable of doing and the world that it is capable of creating, suddenly you are just in awe.
the void: What message do you have for women dealing with insecurity or anxiety?
av: Insecurities, anxiety, those things are always going to be there. It’s gonna creep up every single day and you’re just gonna have to fight it. So if you go into every day prepared, knowing that it’s going to come your way, and realize “I am special, I am strong, I was built for something greater,” then you can defeat it and get ahead of it.
the void: If you could give one piece of advice to women struggling with their own sh*t, what would it be?
av: We all have our junk, and if you look at getting through your junk like getting through an exercise, you come out of it stronger. And you’re gonna be sore. It’s gonna hurt, it’s not always gonna be great, but the outcome is beyond what you can imagine.
the void: what is your current feel-good song?
av: Right now, my feel-good song is called “be there” by KRUELA. I work out to it, I do spin class to it. It’s super inspiring. I may have overdone it a bit in our house a little bit, but it’s that good.
the void: Finish this sentence: Women are ___________.
av: Women are exactly what they say about themselves. So, make sure you are speaking life over your life, and that you are saying positive things about you: You are strong, You are bold, You are compassionate. Speak what you want to be.