The Fitnessista Podcast: Healthy In Real Life

*Throws confetti into the air* I'm SO SO pumped for this week's episode and so thrilled to welcome a good friend to the show: Caitlin Boyle, whom many of you may know from the very popular blog Healthy Tipping Point. Caitlin is one of the OG healthy living bloggers, and I'm so thankful that the blog world introduced me to her. Her blog was one of the first things I checked each day for many years, and I always loved that she shared glimpses into her life, recipes, questions of the day, and even covered controversial topics. She stopped blogging regularly back in 2015, and after a 7 year hiatus, she wrote a couple of new posts and the internet rejoiced. She's one of the smartest people I know, and I'm thankful to have her as a blog friend and real-life friend. I asked her if she would join me on the podcast, and was so excited when she said yes. We spent a lot of the episode chatting about a topic that's so prevalent today: identity and labels. We talk about: - the power of labels - the pros and cons of having an "identity" - the fact that it's OK to change your mind with new information - how we can better understand those who don't agree with us - what it felt like to close the book on her blog and drop the "blogger" identity - what she's been up to since she blogging days - Operation Beautiful and what it would look like today and so.much.more. Here's a little bit more about Caitlin if you're not familiar with her: Caitlin Boyle is the author of the Healthy Tipping Point, which covered healthy living topics from 2008-2014. She's been on a 7 year hiatus from blogging but returns to the blog to share some life updates and musings. She's a mom of two and the founder of Operation Beautiful. Some of my all-time favorite posts that she's created: The mommy wars That one time she was on the Today Show for Operation Beautiful Will we or won't we? Raising vegetarian children Her entire discussion series on birth control Resources from this episode: Join us for Fit Team! You can try it out here for just $7. Sign up now and get June's workouts (plus the bonus spa recipes for this month) this weekend! If you are looking for a phased workout plan based on results, this is your chance. I love love love the meals from Sakara Life! Use this link and the code XOGINAH for 20% off their meal delivery and clean boutique items. This is something I do once a month as a lil treat to myself and the meals are always showstoppers. Get 15% off Organifi with the code FITNESSISTA. I drink the green juice, red juice, gold, and Harmony! (Each day I might have something different, or have two different things. Everything I've tried is amazing.) Thank you so much for listening and for all of your support with the podcast! Please be sure to subscribe, and leave a rating or review if you enjoyed this episode. If you leave a rating, head to this page and you'll get a little "thank you" gift from me to you. If any of my fellow health professional friends are looking for another way to help their clients, I highly recommend IHP. You can also use this information to heal yourself and then go one to heal others, which I think is a beautiful mission. You can use my referral link here and the code FITNESSISTA for up to $250 off th Integrative Health Practitioner program. This is the certification I'm currently working towards and highly recommend it. You can check out my initial thoughts on IHP here!

Today's podcast episode was a common request in my 100 podcast episodes post, so I thought I'd cover this topic today. It's also something that I feel has been magnified in some way or another for the past few years, so think it's a relevant topic for this week. Today, I'm chatting about my experience with anxiety and some of the things that have helped me over time. PLEASE keep in mind that I'm not a therapist or a doctor. This is not medical advice and I'm just sharing my experience. If you struggle with anxiety or any mental health issues (or if you just want to chat to a trusted third party who can give you advice!) seek out the help of a local certified therapist. I always lurk the reviews online when we first move to a new place. You deserve to feel great; please seek out the help you need to feel better!! 104: Things that have helped my anxiety As a first-born Type A perfectionist, I've had anxiety for as long as I can remember. When I was younger, I had a TV in my room and would fall asleep watching the news sometimes, which is the perfect way to brew some worry and anxiety. There was also some transition in our family, since my parents got divorced when I was in kindergarten, and I've just always been a worrier. My anxieties and worries have ranged from very mild, like deadlines, wanting specific details to be perfect, or wondering if someone is mad at me, to much bigger things, like a husband who was abroad fighting in a war (four times!), a baby with severe reflux who had stopped breathing on a couple of occasions, health concerns, and family stuff. Something that has always helped me, no matter what I was going through: therapy. I've been blessed to see some incredible therapists in my lifetime and think it can be SO helpful to have one in your back pocket, even if you don't see them super regularly. It can feel a little weird and awkward at first, but I always leave each session feeling lighter, relieved, and like I have a plan. I wanted to note first that while NOTHING can replace traditional therapy, there are also some strategies that have also helped: - Exercise! The key is to do this in a way where you can recover easily and you aren't perpetuating a constant flight or fight response in the body. Think about your personal "stress bucket," and make sure that exercise isn't the thing tipping it over. If you're an anxious person, I would shift focus from intense and high-impact workouts (like bootcamp workouts and CrossFit), to more low-impact options like yoga, barre, walking, Pilates, moderate strength training, or dance. - Bringing myself to the present moment. What are 3 things I can see? What are 3 things I can hear? What are 3 things I can touch? - Scheduled worry time each day. - Meditation. This is also tied to breathing. Shallow breathing can increase our heart rate and lead to increased feelings of anxiety. - A daily walk, in the sun. - Unloading all of your worries into a journal each night. - Paying attention to fueling my body. - Sleeping at least 8 hours. If you need sleep tips, check out Sleep Smarter. - Delegating as many things as possible, as a decreased task load and mental to-do list can potentially decrease anxiety. What can you take off your plate so you longer have to think about it? For myself, it's usually things like extra help with the kids when I have work deadlines, house cleaning, and certain meal prep items. What can you do to make your life easier? - Scheduling joy into my day. It's SO easy to get wrapped up into the to-do list, chores, kid stuff, work life, that you get to bedtime and realize you've literally been working all day. It helps my anxiety immensely when I take 30 minutes each day to do something I enjoy, like read a book, sit on the patio and chat with the Pilot, play a board game or bake something with the girls, play the ukulele, etc. It seems counterintuitive, but when I have a little *fun* during the day, I'm SO much more productive during my work blocks. - Focusing on gratitude. Even when things feel hard and ridiculous, there's always something to be thankful for. When I shift my focus to gratitude, I feel more calm throughout the day. Every day, after I meditate, I write down three things that I'm thankful to have in my life. It takes less than 1 minute, and makes a huge difference in my day. So tell me, friends: do you experience anxiety? What are some of the things you've found to help? xo Gina