This episode of the Fitlandia Podcast Christa talks to Caren Marre who has been a part of Fitlandia since before the platform’s official launch. Caren has long been conscious of health and fitness, but (like so many of us) life got in the way and her self-care ended up taking a backseat. After a long period of feeling sluggish following a series of surgeries she started gaining weight and ended up in a spot ready for change. She was ready for a new start and eager to get her first step going. At that time Christa came to Caren with Fitlandia and offered the guidance, structure, and healthy path she needed.
When first starting out the single word that helped Caren was “mindfulness,” keeping track of what foods went in, and how your body felt after that. When Caren started out, it was a simple two-second filter to ask herself if she should eat something, and now it’s become a habit and she barely has to think. Just by paying attention she started to notice things and was able to successfully get healthier. It’s truly a lifestyle change.
One of her biggest hurdles, in the beginning, were the physical cravings. We so often default to “oh, I’m hungry, I want something” but to remind yourself “I’m trying something new” during that introductory phase is definitely a block. She used self-talk “remember, you’re doing this for yourself, Caren” to keep herself on track and leave her previous bad habits behind.
Caren goes on to explain how influential Fitlandia’s Mind Zoning® Recording were in her journey, and how she couldn’t wait to get to bed just so she could set her daily worries aside and take a moment of relaxation and reflexion. Taking time for yourself is huge, and it seems hard, but they allow you to be more efficient, more effective, and more energetic. You’ll use your time better when you have the time to eat better, relax, and move more.
Something Caren did when she was starting out was to integrate her new changes into parts of her life that she was doing already. She went to bed half an hour earlier just to listen to Mind Zonings® and have that time of reflection. What she found was that when she started to self-assess her life and think ‘where could I possibly fit this in?’ she found that she was collectively wasting a good amount of time throughout the day. Whether it was zoning out watching TV or absent-mindedly scrolling through Facebook, she realized that she was able to trim out that excess and find the time.
As “Queen Bullet point Listmaker” Caren has an ongoing list of things that constantly need to be prioritized, and now that she’s incorporated these healthier tasks into her life it’s much easier to get everything done and lead a healthier lifestyle. Everything gets easier as you build that skill of paying attention to the priorities in your life.
“What resources do I have within myself that I don't even acknowledge?” - Caren Marre
Caren ends the episode by sharing her mantra “I have everything to look forward to.” The best is yet to come, and harnessing your energy, health, and spirit to take the fullest advantage of each day is the ultimate motivator.
On the lucky 13th episode of the FItlandia Podcast Christa is joined by Carrie Billings of carriebillings.com for a discussion on goal setting. Carrie is one of the expert practitioners on Fitlandia’s site as a behavioral health counselor and a certified health and wellness coach.
Goal Setting
While some resent the idea of New Year’s Resolution quick fixes, there is simultaneously something beautiful about the collective intention to better ourselves. Goal setting is important because it’s having a plan. If a resolution is broad (eat healthy, lose weight) it is possible to get there, but planning it out in little steps is a necessity.
“Our goals can only be reached through the vehicle of a plan” - Pablo Picasso
When setting goals, it’s important to think about what you will do as opposed to what you won’t do. A goal like “I’m going to stop drinking soda” or “I’m not going to eat sugar” are very hard to measure, but even harder to stick to. Instead, Carrie recommends positive goals replacing “I’ll quit soda” with “I’ll drink a glass of water instead.” Don’t come into your new healthy lifestyle viewing it as deprivation, because that isn’t sustainable.
How Do I Make This Happen For Myself?
It’s easy to set goals when you’re excited, but if they’re vague and without planning, it can “fail” and lead someone directly back into their old lifestyle. There’s good in resolutions because they help you get in touch with what you want deep down, but they if they lack a plan then you’ll end up fumbling around. Asking ‘how do I make this happen for myself?’ is important.
Components of Effective Goals
Carrie follows the SMART Goal framework which stands for:
Once you’ve set a goal it’s important to take a look at it and evaluate it based on your confidence that you can achieve it. The next step is figuring out how to improve your confidence in those goals you’re not sure about, and making sure you’re gentle with yourself, not beating yourself up if you don’t do something perfectly. The great thing is that once you start eating healthier and moving more, you’ll be amazed at how more efficient you are at all of your other tasks, and then you’ll be able to handle everything with more confidence.
Another strategy Carrie recommends is to have multiple timelines. Have a goal for where you’d like to be three months from now, and then set smaller weekly goals that will all help you get there. Reevaluating every week, enjoying something different, and feeling progress every time until you reach that bigger goal is the key to keeping your forward momentum.
Trial and Correction
One final piece of advice is to stay away from viewing our efforts as failures if we don’t reach our goals. Often people view goals and resolutions as trial and error when it should be viewed as trial and correction. Looking back at your challenges, seeing what worked, and what didn’t allows you the chance to rewrite it into something different and make it work for you.
“It’s a learning experience every week.” - Carrie Billings
Carrie ends on a note of bite-sized goals. She says starting small (but stretch a little bit) is the single best way to approach your goals. You don’t have to jump straight to running a marathon, a walk around the block is a great goal. Additionally, writing your successes down, and keeping yourself accountable to at least one other person are great motivators for keeping yourself going.
On the 12th episode of the Fitlandia Podcast Christa sits down with Larry Dukes to discuss his story of fitness transformation. On discussing his tipping point, Larry talks about how he reached a peak weight of 315 pounds, but didn’t even realize how big he’d gotten. After a trip to Thailand last year the heat started to get to him, and he wasn’t able to do some of the same activities that other people were. In November of the same year he was visiting friends in upstate New York when they got caught in traffic following a Giants game. As they tried to push their way into the train someone yelled “better watch out for the fat guy!” He turned and said the only thing he could think of which was “you’d better be careful kid ‘cause the fat guy is hungry.”
That experience stuck with him, and eventually he got home and it really began to sink in. He wasn’t able to wear a lot of the clothes, he had trouble fitting in airline seats, and his own weight was keeping him from doing things he wanted to do. His family had a history of Type 2 diabetes, but when a doctor diagnosed him with gout he decided then and there that something had to change.
See Ya, Sugar!
By January 14th he started, and the biggest thing was cutting sugar. He was drinking 64 ounces of soda a day, and decided to flip that relationship and replace that with 64 ounces of water. He got a Fitbit and became obsessed with it. From there he got rid of cookies, brownies, and sweets and completely changed his relationship with food.
“This is not a journey you can take with somebody else forcing you. It doesn’t matter who’s nagging you, if you haven’t bought into it nobody can get you in that frame of mind but yourself.” - Larry Dukes
Larry goes on to discuss his weight loss and how the initial wave of losing so much water weight was a great motivator. That slows down and plateaus, but he says instead of continuing to try to lose weight he focuses on maintaining that weight and lifestyle. There’s tons of great food out there that’s unhealthy, and he still enjoys them, but it’s now all about moderation. That’s key for him. It is about a healthy change, but “sometimes ya gotta eat Grandma’s cake.”
The important thing is being able to maintain your choices. There’s all sorts of pre-packaged food diets, but what happens when you have to go to a party, or a restaurant, or stop your subscription? Are you going to be able to do that? You have to make smart changes that you know you’ll keep. Food is still going to be a part of your life, so make sure it’s a change you can make.
Larry’s life has changed since that diagnosis, he’s lost 80 pounds, his resting heart rate and cholesterol are way down, his blood pressure is impeccable, and his gout is nearly gone. His doctor is “jumping up and down” with his changes. Larry is now feeling better with himself, feeling better physically, and feeling better emotionally. His story is a prime example of seeing a change that needs to be made and committing to it wholly. Change is possible, you just need to want it.
Ready to learn how you can make your own transformation? Visit www.fitlandiafitness.com today and start your free trial. Podcast listeners using the code PODCAST at checkout get 30-days FREE and 10% off for the life of their membership.
On this episode of the Fitlandia Podcast we’re looking forward to 2017 with this third installation in our series on New Year’s Resolutions. Joined by Rebecca Van Damm of Food Mood Coaching, this episode focuses specifically on getting yourself into a good mood for resolutions.
Another thing to notice is how you’re consuming your food. After talking health tips Rebecca brings up the fact that being mindful and enjoying your food slowly is paramount. Additionally, noticing what else you're consuming while you eat is important. You’re putting your body into a receptive mode when you’re eating, and everything is being digested, experiences, conversations, media, etc. so when you’re putting your body into that mode, make sure it’s something that’s supportive and positive.
On Compassion
Whenever New Year’s comes around, there are also a lot of resolutions naysayers, people that say they never work, or complain about the influx of people at the gym. Harnessing that power of intention is a beautiful thing and only serves to build the greater fitness community. Embrace the fact that these people are trying to be as healthy as possible, be a part of their journey.
Episode 10 - What it means to be a Fitlandian?
What does it mean to be a Fitlandian?
In unsettling times of change it’s more important than ever to pause, take a breath, and re-orient yourself. Change of any kind can feel overwhelming at times, but the power of gratitude is a way to ground ourselves and find the power, will, and strength to carry on. As we gear up for the holidays and enjoy this season of thankfulness, it’s a perfect time to focus on gratitude and be appreciative of what we have around us.
“At Fitlandia, we genuinely believe that gratitude is the foundation of any change.” - Christa King
According to this study done by two psychologists, people who kept daily recordings of gratitude had higher levels of alertness, enthusiasm, determination, optimism, and energy. Additionally, this article by Shape Magazine discusses how gratitude can bring you more energy, increased happiness, and more restful sleep. t follows that if you wake up more refreshed and energized then you’ll be more determined to be fit and healthy. It’s all connected.
That’s what this gratitude Mind Zoning® is all about, tapping into the power of the mind and giving you that determination, gratitude, and thankfulness to help you reach your wellness goals. In this episode Christa take you on a four-part meditation:
You don’t have to be “good” at meditation, this is simply a relaxing method to help you along your fitness journey and aid you with making a healthy lifestyle change. Just let your mind follow the voice and allow yourself to take this step in your fitness journey.
We end with a deep cleansing breath to fully-absorb all of our gratitude and move back into our day. Gratefulness can be a powerful motivator, and using it as a tool in your fitness journey will be important in the future.
On the eighth episode of the Fitlandia Podcast Christa welcomes Andrew Arredondo for a talk about the power of intention. Andrew is a gym owner, personal trainer, and coach with 8 years of experience in the industry. After interning at a physical therapy center he landed a job as a personal trainer at a private gym and he knew instantly that owning a gym was what he wanted to do. A year later he started renting space and building his own clientele as an independent contractor and officially opened his doors by starting his facility FIT.
Moving onto the topic at hand, the two discuss New Year’s Resolutions and the beauty of our culture’s collective intention for change. At the same time, Resolutions feel like something we “need” to have, and as a result, are often something that people go through the motions with. If there’s nothing deep behind it then it will wither away. Andrew says if there’s something deeper then people will be far more likely to change.
It’s not enough for your goal to be “look better,” if you look deeper and ask yourself “why?” you see that’s about confidence. If you look deeper at that you’ll see that may be about being appealing to a specific person. Asking yourself these questions and drilling deep to find your true motivating factor is an incredibly important part of the fitness journey and can serve as a major stumbling block for someone, especially as they jump into New Year’s Resolutions.
Even with self-belief and desire to change, negativity and discouragement still serve as stumbling blocks. Andrew and Christa also touch on the idea that fitness and health isn’t a short-term solution, but a journey. Because resolutions are framed in terms of results, hitting a numeric end goal is viewed as success when it really should be an ongoing process.
Christa and Andrew go on to outline two indicators of someone’s ability to reach and maintain their goals. One is having a strong desire for change. Figuring out those “why’s” and keep asking yourself what’s the deeper connection that you have with them. The second is belief in change. Giving your brain a new blueprint and telling yourself that you can achieve that is vital to your own success.
“The starting point for all achievement is desire” - Napoleon Hill
On this episode, Christa talks to her friend Abi Barnett about her personal fitness journey. When Abi set out on her journey she discovered she was very set in her ways. She’d had “fit” friends, but always thought it was hard work. She’d try to eat healthy, but would only last a few days before saying ‘forget it’ and going back to McDonald’s. Sound familiar?
After “eating her way through Europe” with two weeks of champagne, pastries, and beautiful food Abi decided to join in on one of Fitlandia’s Month-long detoxes. Food is a beautiful way to celebrate, but the detoxes are about balance and stepping back from the patterns that we dig ourselves into. Because she’s a clarinetist Abi is incredibly disciplined, and once the switch is flipped she’s fully into it. She approached the detox wanting to achieve 100% perfection and not mess a single thing up.
Abi recounts a few anecdotes about the first few days of her detox, but she ended up finding her own path and loving it so much she’s still doing it. She went from eating six bars of chocolate a day (literally) to drinking water while out with friends at the pub. She’s a prime example of how healthy a simple reset can be for our fitness. Abi was able to break out of her reliance on processed foods and cut herself off entirely to the point where she doesn’t even think of them.
By the end of the episode, both Christa and Abi agree that many people are turned off of detoxes because people often frame them in terms of deprivation. They go on to say that life is still about balance. If you’re in Paris and have a once in a lifetime chance to eat a world-class pastry eat the pastry.
“You’ve still got to have a life. We’re doing this to have a better quality of life, but if we’re depriving ourselves when we go to somewhere nice... we have to allow ourselves that experience and be able to go back to normal after.” - Abi Barnett
Abi’s final piece of advice is to not put up barriers. She wouldn’t have found this new healthier lifestyle if it wasn’t for the Fitlandia detox. Sure the first few days were rocky, but she came out the other side committed to an entirely new approach to health.
On this episode Christa welcomes Vonie Kalich who is a life coach and fitness professional with over 25 years of experience in the industry. Vonie Kalich discusses NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming) which encompases our words, thoughts, actions, and how we operate throughout our day.
Only a small percentage of people are able to reach and attain their goals because they haven’t changed their mental behavior. As children we take in everything, we’re a sponge. We absorb all the positive and the negative. If you spill a glass of milk and are reprimanded, you’ll take that in and it will become a negative belief about yourself being clumsy. People end up developing negative mind patterns, through millions of experiences like this and NLP is about changing those patterns and shifting us from “I could go to the gym” to “I can go to the gym” to “I will do it.”
She uses a mantra of “Clean, Clear, Delete” which she often uses when her clients say something negative. Catching discouragement and negative thought patterns is the first step to repositioning them, and those are the first steps toward a healthy mind and body. It seems so simple, but it’s also hard to recognize until someone points it out. That negative self-talk can keep us defeated and serve as the primary roadblock to achieving our first healthy steps.
“This is how I feel. Becomes this is how I wanna feel.” - Vonie Kalich
If you can feel positive about what you’re trying to do, it will make it so you’re not trying anymore. Bringing positivity to it will bring in the action that you’re trying to accomplish. Vonie goes on to describe several NLP exercises that she uses with clients and offers a few recommendations for combating negative thoughts and emotions.
Nicole Anderson joins Christa this week to discuss her fitness journey and the impact that a corporate lifestyle has on health. Hailing from the Digital marketing space, Nicole reached her unhealthiest point about a year ago as genetics and stress intersected. She searched for a way to change knowing that most dieting platforms simply offer short-term solutions. She jumped into Crossfit knowing nothing about it and ended up losing 55 pounds through that program and coaching from gym’s owner. That community pushed her and she found a way to make that work with her hectic schedule.
“I found a way to make myself and my health a priority and still manage my job.” - Nicole Anderson
As her health was improving she was simultaneously reaching a wall in her career. Through this weight loss experience and Crossfit she discovered that health, fitness, and helping others was her passion. After a moment of realization she realized she needed change. She’d been doing the same job for 18 years. She didn’t just need to change her job, she needed to change her career. She left her corporate job and is currently in the process of launching her new health coaching career to help people become their best selves. Her goal is to help others overcome their roadblocks the same way that she did.
“You are three times more likely to achieve and maintain your goals when you’re connected with a community.”
It’s about putting an end to dieting. Whatever form that may take. You’re creating a lifestyle, you’re figuring out what works best for your body, and what works for each person will be different. In addition to her work/life imbalance, Nicole’s change was brought on after being diagnosed with genetic high cholesterol. Her rock bottom point was when she realized she hated having her picture taken because it meant she had to look at herself, and once she brushed the point of needing the seat belt extender on a plane she knew it was time for a change.
That diagnosis combined with her desire for a physical change made her decide that it was time to be proactive rather than reactive. She took a look at her eating habits, got into Crossfit and gradually eased into her new lifestyle. After realizing she was addicted to sugar she borrowed a mantra from Jillian Michaels “Will this bring me closer to my goal, or further away?” which went on to help Nicole combat the lure of sweets. She also touches base on how much our culture values independence but says do not be afraid to ask for help. Trying to do everything yourself leads to burnout, and the beautiful thing about us is that we are willing to help each other out no matter what form that takes.
Keep an eye out for Nicole’s business Born To Fly within the next month and on the Fitlandia website as one of our expert practitioners.
Today Christa welcomes expert practitioner Dr. Jerome Craig to discuss nutritional Ketosis. Before jumping into the topic Dr. Craig discusses his profession and what it means to be a functional medicine practitioner. He explains functional medicine as getting to the root cause of something. Instead of treating a condition, he looks for the root cause which can range from nutrition, lifestyle, genetics, and more.
Dr. Jerome Craig defines Nutritional Ketosis as switching yourself from being a sugar burner (which most of us are) to a fat burner. He says many people misunderstand this as being low-carb or high-fat, (and while those are true to some extent) he says nutritional ketosis is more about switching to a state where you’re burning fat as your primary fuel and creating ketones that will fuel the brain and the body.
Many of us lean on carbs as a primary fuel because they’re accessible and fast, but nutritional ketosis is about switching our body over (which obviously doesn’t happen overnight). It’s about going from burning carbs to burning our fat stores. Dr. Jerome Craig cites Dr. Stephen Phinney and Dom D’Agostino as two major champions of Ketosis who have been bringing the concept more mainstream. Additionally, Jimmy Moore has been a long-time advocate of ketosis and its positive health benefits for people with type 2 diabetes. Meanwhile other scientists are using Ketosis to combat dementia, cognitive degeneration, and even certain types of cancer.
For the average person Ketosis has many benefits including easier digestion, sleeping better, increased energy, and resetting our microbiomes which reduces (or eliminates) many of our cravings. Those positive results don’t come immediately, and require some build-up to get to, but Dr. Craig goes onto say that “there’s no such thing as failure if you learn.” One thing he cautions about ketosis (as with all fitness) is to avoid comparing yourself to others. Results vary, and everyone’s body reacts differently, so there is no set path.
When discussing the downsides of ketosis, Dr. Jerome Craig explains that often people think to get into ketosis that they have to eat fatty foods which means that they lose out on a lot of other foods that are healthy for us like veggies and fruit. He also says that the transition from carb-burning to ketosis results in losing water weight and minerals, which if not properly paired with vegetables, can result in muscle cramps and digestive problems.
In the end it all depends on the person and their goals, but Ketosis is a viable nutritional plan for someone starting their weight loss journey. If you want to learn more about the details of ketosis check out the full podcast below.
On the third episode of the Fitlandia Podcast Christa welcomes her first guest, Shauna Dexter-Lowe. While Shauna didn’t have a single “ah-ha” moment, her fitness journey began after seeing the progress of a family member and being inspired by that journey. With a focus on diet and nutrition initially, she set out with an easy goal: to cut fast food. Shauna went on to admit that her initial inspiration was also vanity. But she says that as her journey progressed the health benefits also became apparent.
“Get healthy on purpose, lose weight on accident” - Dr. Jerome Craig
Starting with a simple journey around the block (literally) Shauna created a self-competition and slowly began adding street after street until she was able to walk miles without losing her breath. She found the motivation to exercise within herself and kept competing with herself.
Shauna also touches on the shifts that come with weight loss including how you perceive yourself, and worrying about keeping the motivation to stay on top of her exercise and not fall back into old habits. There’s a lot of acceptance that comes with this lifestyle shift. Going through the process of accepting a new me, a way of eating, and a new mindset.
Instead of relying on a sugar, carbs, or alcohol as a crutch, Shauna views exercise and her health as a motivation factor because it’s something she can control. Even when everything else is chaotic, her health is something that she can control and it becomes comforting. She also admits that shift definitely doesn’t happen overnight. It’s as much about getting through the hard days as it is having a way to tackle them.
Later on the two discuss the obstacles of nutrition including peer pressure to “let loose” and indulge every once in awhile. Shauna discusses how supportive and encouraging her family has been for her journey and how her journey has actually led her to feel more connected because now she can join in with them on activities. Her biggest obstacle has been simple dinners with extended family, but just knowing where you're going and a little bit of planning goes a long way to combat that.
In this episode of the Fitlandia Podcast we introduce you to the process of Mind Zoning®. Mind Zoning® is like hypnosis or meditation for weight loss and serves to reorient negative thought patterns in your brain. Those negative thoughts are self-reinforcing, so if you keep putting off exercise because you’re too busy, then you’ll take it out on yourself and keep digging that hole deeper. The brain takes the well-worn path, and often that path involves managing stress with sugar, alcohol, and carbs in order to soothe. Mind Zoning® is what makes Fitlandia unique and serves as the first step in our member’s fitness journey. Rewriting these negative thoughts allows you to stop dieting, embrace the power of positivity, and make a healthy lifestyle change.
There are two types of thought patterns: ones that you’re consciously aware of (I need to get groceries today) and ones that happen subconsciously (like tying your shoe). 90% of our behavior is driven by the subconscious mind. These patterns are developed over the course of our lives, and the more you repeat an activity or hold onto a thought, the deeper the path in our brain. So we’ve spent our entire lives reinforcing these activities and connections. Dieting doesn’t work, because it forces you to change your short-term behavior my eating differently, eating less, or exercising more. We focus on the mind first and lead up to these changes.
Mind Zoning® is about creating a new path in your brain. One that combats stress and negative emotion with exercise, not food. This particular Mind Zoning® is called “The New You Now.” In it you will take 20 minutes to close your eyes, relax, and visualize your future self. Everything from their physique to their posture, and energy. What will it take to become that person?
Giving yourself this mental blueprint is an important step in your fitness journey. This holistic exercise will use your mind to lose weight and help you figure out what needs to be done. The Mind Zoning® is broken down into four parts:
You don’t have to be “good” at meditation, this is simply a relaxing recording to help you along your fitness journey and aid you with making a healthy lifestyle change. Just let your mind follow the voices and embark on this first step in your fitness journey.
On this inaugural episode of the Fitlandia Podcast, Christa King shares her personal fitness journey, tells you what to expect from the show each week, and how you can put an end to dieting. Christa’s story serves as a prime example of how our environment, negative emotions, and life stressors can create a self-reinforcing process of unhealthy patterns. Her story is also an example of how making a healthy lifestyle change and the power of positivity can end the cycle of yo-yo dieting and result in permanent weight loss.
Over the coming weeks, The Fitlandia Podcast will serve as a platform for others to tell their personal fitness journey. It’s a place for fitness tips, weight loss strategies, and motivation. Fitlandia provides the tools to engage the power of your mind and change.