Real Women, Real Talk – Empowered Living Through Fitness and Nutrition

Real Women, Real Talk: Empowered Living Through Fitness and Nutrition

Kate Beere:
I don’t know 1 woman who doesn’t have a complicated relationship with food.

Wendy Dodds:
So I will often say when I’m training, you know, your body is a celebration of what it can do, not as a punishment for what you ate.

Kate Beere:
If you choose a glass of wine and the bag of Doritos, don’t expect to look like

Wendy Dodds:
a fitness model because women, we feel like it’s either black or white. It’s right or wrong. And if we’re doing something we need to do it perfectly in the same all the time

Kate Beere:
When you get to that place of acceptance, it’s also you have to accept and love your body. Exactly. 100%.

Wendy Dodds:
Welcome to the Living Rich Lead Podcast. We are back with another incredible episode. At least we think it’s incredible, and we think you will too. We are talking about fitness and nutrition as part of our Real Women, Real Talk edition. So let’s just jump right into it. Okay. I never waste any time. I never do.

Wendy Dodds:
Go, go, go. Let’s kick it off by talking about some personal challenges. So if you think about your fitness and nutrition lifestyle, as you kind of went from your twenties now into your forties, What are some personal challenges that you faced in, maintaining that routine?

Kate Beere:
Yeah. There’s, like, like, everything.

Wendy Dodds:
It’s only a 45 minute show. Oh my god. Like, I don’t need talk about this.

Kate Beere:
No. But, I mean, you think about from injuries to all of it. And I think, like, if I’m gonna sum it up, I think the the biggest challenge for me is is always my head. It’s the mental game. It’s that, you know, I’m on a journey to and we’ve talked about this before, but I’m on a journey to loving my body. I think I can say today comfortably, I like my body. I’m nowhere near at the I love it. Right.

Kate Beere:
I appreciate my body for different things now, like mobility, being able to walk, being able to pick something up. Your twenties, what you’re just you assume you can do all that. So I think for me, that’s really the evolution, but it’s that mind body connection. And I think for women, there’s so much pressure on the external, how your body looks, what’s its shape, how And now I’m more focused on, am I healthy, thanking my body for, you know, getting me from point a to point b that I’m healthy enough that I can be on this podcast today. So I think that journey has just been more of that mental

Wendy Dodds:
piece for me. Yeah. And I it’s interesting how it evolves over time because when we’re in our teens and in our twenties, and just a sidebar, we did that episode on self love, body dysmorphia, which if you haven’t, watched that yet, definitely do check that out because that that got some great feedback. But as you move through your twenties, you know, your focus is more, you know, what size jean shorts are you wearing versus now, to your point, healthy enough to be on the podcast, you know, for a lot of people, myself included, dealing with aging parents and kind of watching that progress and wanting to be able to take care of ourselves as well. I think for this 1, we’ve kind of split it up into 5 different kind of segments that we thought would be of value to people, and we’ll jump right into the first 1, which is strength training and sustenance. Now, I hear a lot about that working in the fitness industry and in the gym space around strength training, especially women as they move through their thirties, forties, fifties, and whatnot. So if we talk about strength training,

Kate Beere:
so if we talk about strength

Wendy Dodds:
training, specifically around bone health Yeah. Yep. Let’s just kinda dive into that around Yeah. You know, the importance of that and why do we do that?

Kate Beere:
Yeah. And I, like, I love strength training. It’s probably my favorite thing to do when it comes to fitness. There’s something about lifting weights that I absolutely love, and not just because it it’s good for your for your bone density because it’s it’s just for me, that’s my feel good.

Wendy Dodds:
Yeah.

Kate Beere:
But it is good for your bone density. Right? So you want that that strength, and I I wanna quote this right. Yeah. So we know that regular strength training for the average woman can increase your bone density 2% each year. Right? And so that’s diminishing your risk of osteoporosis, osteopenia, which my mom has, which is the precursor actually to osteoporosis. And then when you’re postmenopausal, though this 1 blew me away, is that if you strength train twice a week, it can increase your bone density by 9%.

Wendy Dodds:
It’s wild.

Kate Beere:
And it’s wild. And so that is you wanna keep your bones strong, right, so you can you can live healthy. For me, that’s, like, just 1 of many reasons that strength training is so important for women.

Wendy Dodds:
Yeah. My mom is same thing. She goes for a bone density test every year, and it’s interesting seeing her in her seventies now and the focus of keeping her bones healthy because as we age, you know, and we hear it all the time, people who fall, you know, don’t necessarily work out, you know, broken hips, broken joints. Right? And so that whole strength training piece, you know, we know it’s important, but why is it important? It stimulates that bone remodeling process and and it’s applying stress to the bones, but stress in a good way because, you know, stress isn’t always bad, but that then encourages the body to be able to build denser bones as well as the bone tissue that surrounds it and the cartilage around the joints. And then the muscle mass imbalance. I will say I hear this often from women is I don’t wanna lift weights because I don’t wanna bulk up, and I don’t wanna look like a man. So for every woman listening to this, lift heavy shit. You don’t have testosterone, so you’re not gonna look like a man unless you are, you know, jacked up on roids or whatever.

Wendy Dodds:
But the whole muscle mass and balance piece, falls, fractures, all of that kind of stuff, and functional mobility. And we think like, well, what’s functional mobility? Well, all of the things that you do day to day, in your body, lifting, pushing, pulling, all of that kind of stuff. So if we if we kinda relate that to our metabolism Right. Because as women in our forties, you know, our metabolism kinda goes down the tubes.

Kate Beere:
I have no idea what you’re talking

Wendy Dodds:
about, Wendy. Oh, we are balls better. My metabolism is rubbing under 20% every day. I don’t know what you’re talking about.

Kate Beere:
Speak for yourself.

Wendy Dodds:
But metabolism, your metabolism plateaus. So when you’re strength training that that muscle tissue that you’re burning and that you’re developing, burns more calories. And so we’re not talking about calories and numbers and and that kind of stuff. But, compared to, calories at rest Yep. To your fat tissue. So maintaining or increasing that muscle mass, it boosts your metabolic rate. So, I like using the example of, think of your body as like a wood burning stove. Every couple of hours, you put wood in your fire, to keep your fire going so that your fire doesn’t die.

Wendy Dodds:
That’s literally what your body is, a wood burning stove. Yeah. So being able to really be able to develop and lift weights, build that muscle tissue, that’s exactly what it does for your metabolism.

Kate Beere:
Yeah. And I think to your point, like you so many women are scared of lifting weights. Yes. I think it’s shifting more. I see more and more women, in the gym who feel, you know, pretty confident in that, but it it really, for so long, felt like a, you know, women were taught to, what, like, you’re doing always 12 to 15 reps, and it’s always like that. I’m thinking back to old school and, like, weight. And, I remember the first time I started lifting heavier, and I was like, oh, this is you get great results without, like, to your point, bulking out. Your frame is your frame.

Kate Beere:
Like, that’s not gonna change.

Wendy Dodds:
Yeah, exactly.

Kate Beere:
I think, too, you talked about this, but as we age, you know, if we’re losing muscle mass, that just in itself will slow down our metabolism. So we wanna maintain that muscle mass to keep our metabolism even at some sort of consistent level. So strength training across the board is is great for women, but it’s also, I think, as we’re in that sort of perimenopausal menopausal stage, it it’s almost like a a really important crucial piece of your workout Yeah. Or fitness regime. 100%. Yeah.

Wendy Dodds:
But it it’s interesting how women we come from the background of cardio, cardio, cardio. Yeah. And when I went through my transformation, which I talked about in my episode, and you can see my before and after pictures on my website at the real life. Ca, but people will say, so how often did you work out to get stage ready before you competed? And it was 80% weights, actually closer to 90% weights, 10 to 15% cardio. My coach had me doing hardly any cardio. And I remember feeling like, oh my gosh, I’m never gonna lean out. I’m never gonna my body fat’s never gonna drop down. And it was almost all strength training, 3 times a week.

Wendy Dodds:
But you look at transformation, sometimes you think, oh my god, they must be doing that 7 days a week. So it’s not about how often you’re doing. It’s not about the, quantity, but it’s about the quality of what you’re doing 100%. Focusing more on, on on, weights instead of cardio.

Kate Beere:
Yeah. 100%. And I think you’re seeing that shift more and more Yep. Across the board. Totally.

Wendy Dodds:
Yep. So daily function daily functionality. So I noticed this, especially simple things like getting out of bed in the morning, right, where you’re kinda achy and creaky a little bit more. We talked about the I mean, sorry. I’m I fly out of bed in the morning.

Kate Beere:
I do not. I do not fly at all. It’s like a roll. I’m slowly rolling over, and I’m like, my back hurts, my hip hurts, and I’m sitting.

Wendy Dodds:
So it’s Rob and I laugh about that all the time because he rolls on 1 side, I roll on the other. I’m like, and we’re up. It’s like and then we get to our feet. We kinda, like, stumble a little bit. Okay. We’re good. Yeah.

Kate Beere:
We’re good. I’m like, I get to get out of bed this morning. That’s where I start,

Wendy Dodds:
which, you know, joking aside, is right? Exactly. I love the get to mindset. So if we talk about reducing risk falls, functional functionality, all of that kind of stuff, I use this a lot when I’m training and coaching. So balance, stability, functional mobility, all of those functional, exercises that mimic all of that stuff. And like

Kate Beere:
I said, I see it

Wendy Dodds:
in my parents. Right? So, when you think about basic squats, that helps you with sitting, standing, picking objects up, off the floor. Lunges, you know, another very functional basic my parents my parents doing it, right? And my mom, especially, because she takes really good care of herself being able to do that kind of stuff. Pushups for that upper body strength. And for women, that’s 1 of our weakest muscle groups is our upper body. But being able to push open a door, get up off of the floor, you think about falling down, getting up off the floor, you need that upper body strength. Planks, you know, any kind of core work, you know, core, functional strength, which is the backbone for for all of that. But all of those things are they’re easy in terms of being able to do them, but we don’t necessarily do enough of them.

Kate Beere:
I couldn’t agree more. I know, like, my mom I’m my mom’s almost 80, so she’s 79, and she still lifts weights. That’s amazing. Yeah. Like, 3 times a week. And she’s super active. And I’m like like she’s a physio, so understands the importance, obviously, of still lifting weights, not heavy weights, but she’s still lifting lifting weights. And I remember 1 of the and she has a a bad hip, so that’s starting to you know, at some point, we’ll need a hip replacement.

Kate Beere:
And I was watching and we’ve talked about this before on the show with the Blue Zone, show. It’s really cool on Netflix. But they what they found, you know, in those communities, it was, like, setting, why do why there are pockets of people across the world in various countries that live longer. Yeah. And 1 of the core elements of that was movement. Right? So what they ate, movement, community.

Wendy Dodds:
Yeah.

Kate Beere:
But the movement, so much of it was exactly what you just talked about. Really basic things, like being able to crouch down so they’re gardening.

Wendy Dodds:
Yes. So you’re

Kate Beere:
in that position, being able to crouch down and get back up. If you’re not doing that on a regular basis, that’s when you start to stiffen. And those are the the regular movements that we want, right, until we’re we’re in our nineties. And it’s interesting how when we talk and we’re gonna talk a bit about movement later, but what what is movement? Right? It’s about you know, for me, I know when I’m 90, I wanna be able to bend down. Like, I wanna be able to bend down and pick something up and not to be, like, oh, my back hurts.

Wendy Dodds:
Yeah. Well, when you think about from a family perspective, there’s so many people, and so many women as as our goals start to shift more from what size clothing I’m wearing to, I wanna be able to get down on the floor and play with my grandkids. I wanna be able to pick them up and lift them into their car seat, go down water slides, like, whatever. Yeah. That just becomes a whole new level of enhancing your quality of life. 100%. Now 1 thing I get asked often is I wanna lift weights, but I’m super intimidated. I don’t know where to start.

Wendy Dodds:
There’s so much on the Totally. So much online. So, you know, how women can start lifting weights. I think it’s about finding a place that you are comfortable with, and that’s different for everyone. It sure is. Some people thrive in a group fitness setting. Yeah. Now I coach at Orangetheory, so we have group fitness, but it’s in a smaller setting Yeah.

Wendy Dodds:
With 1 on 1 personal training that’s included. So people aren’t paying for a personal trainer, but they get the best of both worlds. So they’ve got that community, but then they’ve got that personal training. Yep. For some people, they like doing it on their own. Yep. Other people, it’s 1 on 1. So, do you have any

Kate Beere:
Yeah. For me, like, I’m 1 of those loners. I love to work out by myself.

Wendy Dodds:
Yeah.

Kate Beere:
Although I will say recently, like, Eric and I started going to the gym together and working out together, and I love that. And that’s new for me.

Wendy Dodds:
Good.

Kate Beere:
It’s always been a very individual, like, head down, headphones on, my music like, that’s almost like my meditation time for me. I have friends who, like, absolutely need a gym buddy. Like, they can’t they won’t go to the gym unless they go with somebody. Yeah. So I think what you said is just find somebody and be okay with not knowing. It’s okay that you don’t know what you’re doing. No one’s expecting you. Like, I think there’s so much pressure.

Kate Beere:
If you think of a gym environment, there’s so much pressure. And people look around, and they’re they’re doing that, like, comparison game, and they’re like, I have no idea what I’m doing. Right? And it’s okay to not know what you’re doing. So grab a friend and go. Go on your own. I highly encourage everyone, if you’re going to a gym, get a personal trainer. And it doesn’t have to be for the whole, like, the rest of your life, but a few sessions just so you understand the equipment, you understand what kind of level of weight, even how to even if you’re with a free weight, what are some exercises, your positioning? That’s not the word, but you know what I mean? Like, what’s your form? Like, all of that matters. And I think if you’re able to, then I would encourage that.

Kate Beere:
Also, online, there’s a ton of stuff. You just have to really if that’s what motivates you and you’re not comfortable going in gym, do it at home. But just I think to your point, it’s try something until it sticks, and then and then stick with it Yeah. Is the key.

Wendy Dodds:
Yeah. And I would say don’t overthink it. A lot of times, especially as women, we get ready to get ready. Oh, I’m gonna buy my new workout clothes first, and I What? What? Then I gotta buy my gym shoes, then I’m gonna, you know, research, whatever. And then 1 thing that you often say, Kate, in a lot of our podcasts is just start. Start. And I love that. I really love that.

Wendy Dodds:
A tip on personal trainers, find someone that matches your personality, but also look for somebody that’s just starting their PT business. So apprentices, that kind of stuff, who are looking to build their clientele because their rates are usually lower than That’s a great tip. Yeah. And that it’ll still give, people that 1 on 1 opportunity where they’re spending it, like, to your point, a couple of sessions so that you know what you’re doing. I love that. Because there’s nothing more intimidating than going into a gym as a woman, and you’ve got all of your sorry. I’m not trying to classify all the men, but all of the meatheads, all of that. You know? Like, I don’t know where that came from.

Wendy Dodds:
Like, can we do it? Right? That, you know, the and it’s very intimidating. Yeah.

Kate Beere:
Yeah. It’s funny. I just, my 1 of my kids is just signed up for Good Life, 1 of my boys. And so, I just took him to the gym. We did the whole walk through.

Wendy Dodds:
Yes. And

Kate Beere:
I like, it’s when you’re 14, it’s really intimidating. Absolutely. Like and I was intimidated. I’m like I’m like, are you good? Do you wanna do the personal he’s like, no. I’m gonna figure it out. I’m like, okay. And I’m like, it’s just as the mom in me, just more so, like, I just I’m like, I’ll come with you. I’ll show you the machines, and he’s like You

Wendy Dodds:
guys are like,

Kate Beere:
I don’t think so.

Wendy Dodds:
No. Like No. Do you think

Kate Beere:
that’s you?

Wendy Dodds:
Need help?

Kate Beere:
No. It’s also like, mom, you can’t just go with me around the gym. You’re killing my vibe. I was like, okay. Right, mom.

Wendy Dodds:
I’m not I’m not cool anymore.

Kate Beere:
Yeah. Like, brother and my heart. But yeah.

Wendy Dodds:
But good for him, though, because I a lot of gyms and for parents out there are moms who are looking to get their kids more active, and I think it’s great that he’s open to that. There’s a lot of gyms. I know Good Life in in particular, they have a summer, and it’s free for teas, which is great. Which is fantastic. Fantastic. Yeah. So look around, lots of stuff. Let’s kind of dive nutrition has been like as we age.

Wendy Dodds:
So, Olivia, where do we begin?

Kate Beere:
Oh, it’s so complicated. It’s layered. And I think, you know, we always talk very openly on the show. I don’t know 1 woman who doesn’t have a complicated relationship with food. I just don’t. From eating disorders to just restricting what they eat to obsessing over what they eat. I don’t know anybody who hasn’t struggled with it, and that’s that speaks volumes to me. Yeah.

Kate Beere:
My own personal journey is, like, very different. It used to be, like, strict intake, counting calories, you know, wanting to be way thin. That’s what it was in my day. Like, so much pressure around looking a certain way. So early, that’s just not a not a healthy relationship with food. Like, food was the enemy. That’s like, to me, food was not fuel, which it is for me today. So the big difference for me is now I see it as a as a way to fuel my body.

Kate Beere:
That being said, you talk to any of my girlfriends, and they all joke about how poor my diet is, and I’m fully aware of that. So I’m like, I won’t eat till, like, 1. I don’t eat in the morning. I’m not this is not please don’t follow what I do. This is what

Wendy Dodds:
I do. Follow me.

Kate Beere:
But I, like and I eat, like I honestly eat like a 5 year old. Like, I’ll have lunch meat and crackers, and I’m lucky I might have, you know, 2 carrots on the side. Lunchable box. All my like, literally, they used to make fun of me at work. They’re like, oh my did you pack it for your kid and they forgot it so you took it?

Wendy Dodds:
I’m like, no.

Kate Beere:
This is my lunch. It’s my cracker. It’s like, it’s actually cheese cute.

Wendy Dodds:
My cheese cut into stars.

Kate Beere:
It’s so like, I’m not a not a huge fruits and veggie person, so I take a lot of supplements because of that. Yeah. But I’ve just, like I’m now starting, I think, finally, to be, like, fuel. You have to fuel your body. I finally have appetite for understanding what foods my body reacts well to. I think to figuring out my gluten intolerance has really helped me to be like, oh, why is my stomach so off? Yep. So it’s a journey for me. It’s never been overly healthy, but I’m really excited about where I’m going and wanting to understand more about food and its impact on me and my gut health, which for me is also well, for everyone is linked

Wendy Dodds:
to brain. Right? So Yeah. Yeah. I agree with you a 100%, and when I coach, through the real life, that’s 1 of the top things that women say is I’ve had an unhealthy had, have Yeah. An unhealthy relationship with food, very much on and off. 1 big thing that I hear often is the feeling of guilt and needing to punish themselves to work off whatever. So, I will often say when I’m training, you know, your body is a celebration of what it can do, not as a punishment for what you ate, which that that’s easy to say, but that comes with a lot of mindset work around using food as fuel. Yep.

Wendy Dodds:
But I have also struggled with that same journey as well. And it has varied depending on my stage in life. I’ve gone from, you know Yep. Typical teenager, unhealthy habits, you know, eating out at the mall or whatever, doing all the things, to being obese, to having disordered eating, but learning to love myself and take care of myself. And I’m still on a a journey. Right? III don’t even think that ever ends. No. But if we talk about some key nutritional tips now I will start off by saying a lot of this stuff.

Wendy Dodds:
So here’s the thing. We know what to eat. Like, we know what we should eat, what we shouldn’t eat. So that’s not but for a lot of people, it’s just, small tips. So even if people are just taking away 1 thing that we’re sharing today, then I feel like we’ve done a service to helping people.

Kate Beere:
Well, I hope so. I think, like, it’s you know, what I think is important and if I’m gonna give 1 tip, and it’s the 1 tip that really helped me is when I was very, like, rigid in my, you know, my fitness routine and and what I was eating and my regimen is if I, you know, 1 day went out for dinner and it was a family dinner and I ate more than I was supposed to eat that day based off my nutritional program. I the what you just talked about was that game in my head of beating myself up. Like, why did you do that? Why didn’t you order this? What were you thinking? And the whole like, remember the whole time you’re I’m at that dinner, the I’m looking at the menu stressed. Like, it’s this whole experience of being like, oh, don’t eat that. Why would you eat that? What’s wrong with you? Now you ate it. Now you’re gonna be fat. Now you’re gonna go to the gym tour.

Kate Beere:
Like, that is a real dialogue that a lot of women have. And I think it’s you’re you’re not always gonna hit it a 100%. Yeah. So when you fall off the horse, if you wanna call it that, just get back up. Like, just stop the beating yourself up about it, and just tomorrow, great. Like, nothing it’s not gonna affect your journey in any way. Yeah. But we take so much energy and focus it into that negative self talk, and we punish ourselves over and over again, where if we just parked that and just got up the next day and just started doing where you were without that negative, I think, like, that would be my tip.

Kate Beere:
I I wish I could have done that when I was younger.

Wendy Dodds:
Right. But you’re doing it now.

Kate Beere:
I’m totally doing

Wendy Dodds:
it now. And I think that that comes so I guarantee people are listening and thinking, well, it’s easy for you guys to say because whatever whatever. But I think, like, the work that we do, in complement, so your get to mindset Yeah. Because everything you just described all comes down to mindset. You can’t fix No. This without fixing this. Right? So your get to mindset, when I’m coaching, I do so much accountability coaching around working on strategies, mindset, creating that positive influence where people are able to start navigating away from the, I I should, why did all of this kind of stuff to learning how to celebrate where they are. Because it’s it’s it’s easy to say, and it’s easy to do, but it’s easier not to do.

Wendy Dodds:
And to your point on falling, you fall off, get back up. I’ve said this before, but it’s like you get a flat tire. Yeah. You’re not gonna then just say, fuck it and slash the other 3. You deal with the 1 flat tire. Yeah. And Yeah. 1 bad day isn’t and we all fall into this notorious, oh, it’s you know, I was good.

Wendy Dodds:
Yeah. Whatever good is. Whatever that is. On Monday Tuesday. By the time Wednesday comes around, I’m bad. Yeah. So fuck it. I’m gonna just I’ll restart again on Monday.

Wendy Dodds:
There’s always a restart date. Right? But that’s when you that cycle, that hamster wheel of on again, off again, it all comes down to really finding program, nutrition, or fit, whatever Yeah. Is gonna work with you and whatever is gonna be whatever you can be consistent.

Kate Beere:
Well and I like how you’re talking about the mental part in there because it is so, it’s so important to understand too. Like, part of that, you know, your fitness journey, your relationship with food journey as you get older, there’s it does shift. Yes. But there’s also, like, a part of me now that is like, okay. I wanna enjoy my glass of wine and have a bag of Doritos tonight, so so I’m gonna do that. And I’m now at a at it’s actually very frequent at Doritos.

Wendy Dodds:
But Is it like are

Kate Beere:
they cheese Doritos? Are they golden bread? No nacho. The nacho. Real. The the OGs. Like, the OGs. My favorite. But but I’m now in a headspace where I do that. I don’t punish myself.

Kate Beere:
Myself. But I I wanna be really honest. That comes with my body looking differently. And I think what we don’t talk about enough is that kind of link where it’s like, if you choose a glass of wine and a bag of Doritos, don’t expect to look, if you choose a glass of wine and the bag of Doritos, don’t expect to look like a fitness model. Like, there’s balance, right, about being healthy, and it’s not always about looking, like, perfect on the outside. Taking care of your body, yes, it matters. I don’t encourage a glass of wine and a bag of Doritos every night. However, when you need that for for your head, right, then you you do it.

Kate Beere:
But I I think it’s important to understand sometimes, we want that. Right? We want the Doritos in wine, and we wanna look like a fitness model. And those 2 will never live in the same world.

Wendy Dodds:
Yep.

Kate Beere:
So when you get to that place of acceptance, it’s also you have to accept and love your body exactly. 100%.

Wendy Dodds:
Well and I so you need to choose or

Kate Beere:
Yes.

Wendy Dodds:
You know, lifestyle or life sentence.

Kate Beere:
That’s right.

Wendy Dodds:
Now I’m not saying that fitness models, it’s a life sentence for them. Yep. I will say, though, having gone through that journey of training, being very regimented with diet to be able to step on stage where the expectation is your body fat is as low as possible, all of that. That is that is not a lifestyle, In my opinion, that’s not something you can maintain. So I will often say to women, you know, let’s choose your hard lifestyle or life sentence, and sometimes it’s a balance Yeah.

Kate Beere:
I agree.

Wendy Dodds:
Of both. Right? Agree. So nutrient dense foods, I mean, again, we know what we should be eating, what we shouldn’t be eating, but protein and finding the right protein. A lot of now for a lot of people, you know, they’re like, oh, I can’t get enough protein. Well, you’re not gonna sit and slam back 12 chicken breasts. Maybe you are. Yeah. But, like, the body can only consume and and and absorb so much.

Wendy Dodds:
Yeah. But find the right protein, especially if you’re using a protein powder, powder, powder, I should say. Balance meals in a busy schedule. Meal prep, I hear this often from people on a time. I don’t want to. But all of those things, batch prep, so taking an hour on Sundays, we all have an hour. Guaranteed, we all spend an hour scrolling on our phones. Totally.

Wendy Dodds:
Guaranteed. So batch prep, freezer meals, sheet pan meals. Yep. We’ve used meal services before, HelloFresh. And while people think they’re expensive, when you think about your time and your prep, it’s it it saves so much. You’re probably spending maybe $20 more if that than picking everything up at the grocery store. Excuse me. But that has that has helped us out a lot.

Wendy Dodds:
And then I will say cleansing, at the cellular level. So supported intermittent fasting works very well for people. Your body was not designed to to handle the level of toxicity that, like, a lot of people say, well, your liver cleanses, you know, absolutely, it does. But you look back to 20, 30 years ago, your body and our environment, all of the toxicity, our bodies were not designed to do that. So, when I coach, I will often coach women, with the nutritional products that we use, cleansing at a cellular level. So reducing the inflammation from your organs, your joints, targeting the visceral fat, where you’re keeping that body in that semi fasting state, not for a long period of time, but enough to help reduce that inflammation, can be very helpful.

Kate Beere:
Yeah. Agree with all that. I think, too, just to help, we talked about metabolism, but and you talked about protein, and protein’s so important for that piece. Like, most women don’t eat enough protein in their day. And I remember when I was was counting everything, trying to get all that protein and

Wendy Dodds:
there’s lots of, you know,

Kate Beere:
protein powders, and you throw it in a smoothie. Now there’s a lot more, options. I’m on to, like, Quest protein chips, which I love, so it gives me, like and I actually discovered those, and I’m not Quest is not sponsoring this podcast, by the way. It’s just 1 of my favorites. But then and, for me, when I cut out gluten, I miss, like, crackers and crunch. And so, like, that was a great 1 that I oh my gosh. Did you if for those who are listening, the, microphone just attacked me. It didn’t.

Kate Beere:
I actually bumped right into it. Anyways, so we went right through. Oh, happy recording, guys.

Wendy Dodds:
What

Kate Beere:
was I saying? No. I’m kidding. So yeah.

Wendy Dodds:
Quest chips because because those sound delicious.

Kate Beere:
They’re so good. And I’ll and there’s 20 grams of protein in a small bag. So, you know, the day you don’t wanna have the 1 in Doritos, I’m having Quest and a glass of water. So but similar sort of experience, mind body experience

Wendy Dodds:
for me. But I think, I think people are always looking for those, types of products Yeah. And nutritional things that they can incorporate. We use Isagenix. Again, Isagenix isn’t sponsoring this, but we’ve been using it for over a decade.

Kate Beere:
Yeah.

Wendy Dodds:
And when you talk about chips, they have something similar where they are gluten free, soy free, all of that kind of stuff, but you’re getting 20 grams of protein

Kate Beere:
Same thing.

Wendy Dodds:
Per right? It’s

Kate Beere:
the same

Wendy Dodds:
thing. Love that. If we talk a little bit about, mental and emotional well-being, we won’t spend, like, too much time on this because we 1 of our episodes that we did on Real Women, Real Talk was around that mental mom disease. And, if

Kate Beere:
you haven’t listened to

Wendy Dodds:
it, make

Kate Beere:
sure you go back and, and

Wendy Dodds:
listen to it. But mental and emotional well-being, just around that mind body connection. And I hear often, in order to get fit, I need to be, like, running or doing HIIT training or, you know, you know, doing something really hardcore several times a week. Never underestimate the power of walking or yoga, things like that. I look at my mom, and she is in her, heading into her late seventies. She has belonged to the walk club at the mall I love that. For years. And they walk, they’re getting their walking in, but they’ve also they also get that community and that connection together.

Wendy Dodds:
She does yoga. She swims. So all of those lower impact activities that really connect your mind to reducing anxiety and depression. It releases those endorphins. Yeah. Stress of any kind spikes up your cortisol levels. Right. Super high.

Wendy Dodds:
So carving out time for those coping strategies to be able to lower your stress hormone while still moving because movement is movement. Doesn’t mean you need to get your sweat on or your heart rate up every single time, but stretching, breathing, meditating, you know, all of the things that you do with the get to mindset around that mind body connection.

Kate Beere:
Yeah, that calm is so important. And I know, for me, when I work out, I’m always mentally clear. I always feel better after. It’s sometimes hard to roll out of bed and start, but the second I’m done, I feel better. I feel lighter, and I do get mental clarity from it. So for me, like, the physical actual workout itself improves my mental health. And we know there’s a connection there. And I know for me, definitely, my meditation is, like, something I love.

Kate Beere:
And setting my day off right with meditation, for me, also calms me. And there’s times where I do both. I will meditate mindset piece. Today, I’m, like, I’m feeling really stressed, so I I’m gonna sit and meditate. And the other times, you know, honestly, if I’m feeling really stressed, I’m feeling really stressed, so I I’m gonna sit and meditate. And other times, you know, honestly, if I’m feeling, like, anxious or I’m just feeling really, like, I don’t know, like, angry, or I’m bothered, something happened, I’ll work out. Yeah. Because for me, that helps get that kind of, like, the energy, that kind of negative energy Yeah.

Kate Beere:
Out of my body.

Wendy Dodds:
Well, and I love that point that you brought up because I feel like, as women, we feel like it’s either black or white, it’s right or wrong, and if we’re doing something, we need to do it perfectly and the same all the time. So the fact that you get up in the morning and you listen to and you have that check-in with yourself, how am I feeling today, I think is huge. I’m coaching a woman right now, and she really struggles with diving right into her day. She’s a business owner, and she’s always so that there is no mind body connection at all. And we talked about exactly what you just said, like, doesn’t have to be journaling every day, meditating every day, movement every find something in terms of how do you feel? Give yourself that 10 seconds. Sit for 10 seconds. How do I feel? What do I feel connected with? And then find something that’s gonna be able to, steer you in that direction that’s gonna bring you to where you need to be.

Kate Beere:
What do I need today? So I relate to that being, like, a business owner and waking up and feeling like it takes everything in me to not roll over and check my email first thing in the morning. And so it it is very much, what do I need today? And I think that’s a great way of looking at it. It’s like, what do I need today? Oh, today, I have, like I’m in meetings all day. If I don’t do this piece of work, I’m gonna be super stressed out for the rest the day. So I’m gonna get up, and I’m gonna work this morning. And that’s what I’m gonna do this morning. Yep. There are other mornings I wake up, and I’m like I’m like, oh, I just like, I didn’t sleep well.

Kate Beere:
I’m not feeling great. I’m gonna do a meditation. I just wanna get my head straight for the day. There’s other days I wake up, and I’m like, I’m feeling stiff. I’m gonna work it. Whatever that is. Yeah. But I to your point, it it doesn’t have to be so rigid.

Kate Beere:
Right.

Wendy Dodds:
Right. And it’s almost like when we’re raising our kids. Like, we would never speak to our kids the way we speak to ourselves sometimes around, like, if your kids are how how do you feel today? You know? And we would give them options. Yeah. But for some reason, we don’t give ourselves I

Kate Beere:
wonder why. We don’t give

Wendy Dodds:
ourselves options. But when we speak about activity and just staying active and movement and and and what that means and what that can look like. If you were to think about the word active, what does that mean to you today?

Kate Beere:
Yeah. Very different. So active to me is movement now, and it doesn’t have to be high intensity low I don’t care what it is. It’s movement. So in COVID, for the very first time, I experienced well, me alone, the whole world experience, but I didn’t move. So I would literally get up in the morning, go to my computer, and sit and and sit there all day. And sometimes, depending on what was happening, I could sit there for 12 hours in a day. Yeah.

Kate Beere:
And I would literally get up from my chair, go to the kitchen, get something to eat, and come back to that chair. And then at the end of the day, this is like when I didn’t have children and we were all in isolation, I would then go move to the couch and watch TV. So I literally did not I probably took I can’t even imagine if I had a step counter on my watch what it would have said. And because of that, and because I always sit cross legged and crooked because of a bad injury I had years ago, I’m not straight, so I sit crooked. And it just it attacked me again. I’m like, it’s I’ll just share with our viewers. I’m just gonna share this because I think it’s worth sharing. I’m wearing my glasses for the very first time.

Kate Beere:
And because, yeah, and it’s throwing me off because it’s actually for reading. And so I’m looking at Wendy who’s all fuzzy, and I actually can’t see where my mic is in front of me. So anyone watching, that’s what’s happening. But I became so immobile that everything locked up, and I had to go to physio. And I spent months in physio just trying to get my mobility back. So so for me now, I’m like, I have a sit stand desk. I will not sit for too long, then I stand up. It’s important to me, like, you’ve been in the same position for too long, just move.

Kate Beere:
Right? And that’s, like, something my physio taught me was like my mom’s a physio, so same from her. Just it’s not necessarily you’re sitting wrong, you’re sitting in the same position. Yeah. So you have to get up and move. And if that means just going for a walk sometimes, and it’s a conscious decision for me to bring in more movement Yeah. Into my life.

Wendy Dodds:
And learning to be intentional with it. Intentional. As silly as, for some people, putting a reminder on their phone. Like, I need to I need to put a reminder on my phone because I will just get caught up in, oh my god. I’ve been doing this for an hour, and it feels like it was just fine. Right? So learning how to be intentional with getting up and moving. Yeah. I know, right after I teach at the gym, a lot of people are like, okay.

Wendy Dodds:
Go. Go. Go. I gotta go back to work. The email inbox is always full. Like, can we take 3 minutes just to cool the body down, bring the body back down to that neutral state, add in some of those stretching, especially when we’re sitting during the day. Right? Yes. I know I’ve learned, and I still am learning, celebrating what I can do, not what I, think I should be doing.

Wendy Dodds:
Yep.

Kate Beere:
So celebrating

Wendy Dodds:
what I can do, especially after I’ve had a couple of major surgeries, hysterectomy. I just had foot surgery, 10 weeks ago.

Kate Beere:
Yeah.

Wendy Dodds:
But learning to be able to, okay, so I don’t have my foot to use or my leg

Kate Beere:
Yep.

Wendy Dodds:
And starting to feel the imbalance on my other leg. So what kind of things can I do? And I can still work up. And it, you know, it really is a choice in how you look at it, meeting yourself where you’re at, and be really intentional about filling your own cup. Yep. Because the work is always gonna be there. The shit’s always gonna be there. You’re

Kate Beere:
yep. You’re I the expression I always say is your inbox will will be full when you’re dead. Like, it’s just it’s always gonna be full.

Wendy Dodds:
So Yep. Yep. And, we’re so easily replaceable, but we’ve talked about that in other episodes as well. But it’s so true.

Kate Beere:
Right? True. I think it is.

Wendy Dodds:
So so true.

Kate Beere:
Yep. So if

Wendy Dodds:
we talk about, some ideas around just low impact exercises,

Kate Beere:
a low impact now. So I used to run for years, and that has done I can’t anymore. It just it’s not worth what come the pain that comes from that. So walking is great. Swimming is another great 1. Biking, just anything where you’re not getting that harshness on your joints. Yep. And I think we have to take care of our joints as we get older in particular.

Kate Beere:
And so there’s so many sort of, low impact exercise. You can even do, like, low impact aerobics. Like, there are things that you can do.

Wendy Dodds:
So many different things.

Kate Beere:
There’s so many options. Just Google it, and you’ll find a 1, 000, 001 things. But I do think, like, finding, and and weaving more low impact into your into your routine as we get older is super important.

Wendy Dodds:
Yeah. And it’s about, not forcing yourself to do something that you don’t enjoy doing. I love people say all the time, oh, I wish I could run. I wanna be a runner. I I need to start running. You don’t need to do anything. You need to find something. Maybe running works for 1 person, maybe biking or swimming.

Wendy Dodds:
So find because when we don’t enjoy what we do, we can’t be consistent with it. It’s same with an eating plan. People will say to me all the time, like, what’s the best eating plan? The best eating plan is something you can be consistent with. I love that. But it’s true. Right? It could be keto. It could be whatever, you know, any kind of different nutritional program, high protein, low whatever. But where people don’t see results, it’s the same with fitness, is they’re always switching every Yeah.

Wendy Dodds:
Every couple of weeks or every month. And then you’re not seeing the benefits of anything, and you’re getting frustrated because you’re always changing stuff up. Yep. Flexibility and mobility, we just kinda talked about that. But, being able to really, train your body as you get older to maintain that full range of motion and prevent, stiffness. I will often post on my, Real Life with Wendy Facebook page different stretches Yep. That people can do right at home. There’s also a great resource, and we’ll link it in the show notes, but, it’s called yoga wow.

Wendy Dodds:
We’re on fire. We’re on fire. Yoga with Adrienne. And she has a monthly calendar. It’s completely free. It’s on YouTube, and it is a fabulous resource. So for people that are, you know, wanting to pay for extra stuff, we’ll link that in the show notes as well. And then, like like we said, finding things that we enjoy.

Wendy Dodds:
You have to

Kate Beere:
you have to like it. Like, if you don’t like to golf, don’t go golfing. If you don’t like to run, don’t go running because you’re never gonna show up for it. It’s like, if you don’t like mint chocolate chip ice cream, like, I don’t, like That’s gross. Yeah. Who would that I don’t understand that. But, anyways, if you’re gonna eat like, don’t don’t try and like it. You’re never gonna like it if you don’t like it.

Kate Beere:
Like, it’s just I think, like, trying to force it into a box sometimes, it’s like 100%. We wanna we really wanna like it.

Wendy Dodds:
Yeah.

Kate Beere:
And that’s a lot of pressure to put on yourself just to to wanna like something versus, like, really find what fills your boots. And that might mean you try kayaking, paddle boarding, running, soccer, gym, like, but find what really fuels you, because it that does make it easier. You’re more likely to go. You’re more likely to do it and and really sort of weave it into your life.

Wendy Dodds:
Yep. You’re more likely to build that routine. I’m sorry. I’m still on the ice cream piece. Like, I recognize that this is all about, you know, nutrition about but so we’ve talked about Doritos, and we’ve both agreed that, like, the not the the real nacho, but so I need to know what your favorite ice cream flavor is. Oh,

Kate Beere:
okay. So I’m old school.

Wendy Dodds:
Tell me.

Kate Beere:
I’m a heavenly hash girl. Oh, okay. Yeah.

Wendy Dodds:
Okay. That’s okay. I’m I’m a that yeah. We can still be friends. That that that’s a good 1. I like that 1. Yours? Well, I’m I’m I’m like, I like fruity things. A bunch of, like I know.

Wendy Dodds:
So black cherry.

Kate Beere:
It’s like my least favorite I don’t know. I’m questioning our friendship. Why. Tell you what.

Wendy Dodds:
We’ll share Doritos, but we won’t we’ll have our own ice cream.

Kate Beere:
But see, I’d actually prefer that because I’ll just eat my whole tub of ice cream very happily on my own. I don’t wanna share.

Wendy Dodds:
Follow us for more health and nutrition tips. The best. But we laugh about it, and I think we can kinda tie this into as we start to wrap up, building a strong support network for longevity. We always have a great time together when we do we laugh. We talk about things like this. And so that power of community, finding people that you can relate to, that motivation, accountability, the emotional support, and really about, finding that sense of belonging with who your people are, and showing up for yourself, showing up for your group, your community. Yeah. Finding the right people in your circle who are going to cheer you on, but also wanna do things with you, and who holds you accountable.

Wendy Dodds:
Right? Like, the people that if you set a walking date or you’re going kayaking or you’re going to the gym, finding that person that’s like, no, no, no. Come on. Get up. Like, we’re going kind of thing, where sometimes you just need that kick in the ass to be like, okay, yeah, I’m gonna go. Finding those people.

Kate Beere:
Yeah. And I think too, you can find sometimes for for some people, there’s online communities that you can embrace. There’s, like just that kinda hold you accountable. There’s enough apps now that can help hold you accountable. Like, I’m not the watch Apple Watch person, but so many people love to count their steps or just even, like, it just helps kinda give you, like, if you don’t have someone, there there’s lots of sort of online communities or online tools you can leverage just to kinda help you, I guess, really just stick with it or maybe feel motivated Yep. At the end of the day.

Wendy Dodds:
And to find people that like the same things as you. Yeah. You know, I mean, not knocking to any social media app, but, like, it’s fun and games to, like, scroll through Pinterest or TikTok. But are you being intentional with the time that you are using online to fall or to find Yeah. Those groups? And part of it can also be around that accountability. Like we said earlier, we know what we should do and what we I don’t wanna say shouldn’t do, but Yeah. We know what benefits us and what doesn’t benefit us. But for a

Kate Beere:
lot of

Wendy Dodds:
people, it’s finding somebody to be able to hold us accountable and to be able to literally hold our hand and guide. And that’s why I started, the real life, because there were so many people who were like, I know what I’m supposed to do, but I’m just not doing it. And I’m having conversations in my head on, come on, just get it done. But I’m just, I’m stuck because I’m not moving the needle. So that’s where I really started working on case. So let’s just cut all the BS out. Let’s figure out what’s important to you. Let’s build out step by step plans.

Wendy Dodds:
Let’s hold you accountable. Yep. Like, a 150% accountable to where it is that you wanna be, in any aspect, whether it’s mindset, whether it’s fitness, whether it’s nutrition, like anything around that.

Kate Beere:
Yeah.

Wendy Dodds:
And it’s been I like to think it’s been game changing for some people.

Kate Beere:
I well, I mean, everything, you know, I read and hear from all of your clients is just phenomenal. And and, you know, you’re 1 of those great coaches who will hold people accountable, not in a, like like, you know, scolding way, but you hold them accountable. Like, if you’re gonna show up and this is you know, you have a goal, I’m gonna hold you accountable. That’s my that’s your role, right, in getting them there. So so many great things. We’ll link to we’ll link to Real Life 2 in the show notes for people to go check it out. Yeah. And I think, like, if if I can leave it 1 thing, it’s find what works for you.

Kate Beere:
100%. Like, I think you we might have said it a 1000000 times today, but nutritionally, find what works for you. Fitness, find what works for you. There is no 1 size fits all.

Wendy Dodds:
Yep. No. There’s not. And I will say Kate and I are obviously online. Reach out to us. Reach out to to me for, you know, fitness, nutrition, you know, advice, questions, that kind of stuff. Kate is phenomenal at mindset for people that are looking at building out more gratitude, intentionality. So and a lot of that stuff kinda interweaves.

Wendy Dodds:
So never be shy in reaching out, because guaranteed, if 1 person has a question about it or not, right, it’s on everybody’s mind often. So well, this was this was good.

Kate Beere:
This was awesome. Ice cream. Thank you, everyone, for joining us today. As always, we encourage you to please like, share, or subscribe. You can also check out our website at livingrichly.me. Our Facebook group, the Living Richley Nation, is taking off and couldn’t be more thrilled about what we’re seeing, across the Facebook group. So many great conversations.

Wendy Dodds:
Oh, it’s an amazing community.

Kate Beere:
Loving it.

Wendy Dodds:
It fills my cup.

Kate Beere:
My cup too, always. And also, you can then check us out, our 15 day life vision challenge, which is blowing up as well. And this is an amazing course. It’s free. It’s robust. It’s gonna help you map out a vision for where you wanna take your life. So be sure to check it out. And until next time, get out there and continue living your best life.

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