3 Steps to Improved Heal & Wellbeing

3 Steps to Improved Health & Wellbeing!

Meet Kacie…mom of 3, business owner, entrepreneur, loyal friend, community builder, faithful wife and awesome human!  Kacie is a beloved friend of mine as well as client.  What I adore most is her unapologetic ability to show up and DO IT! She’s vulnerable, genuine and faces her fears head on by showing up and making things happen!!  I LOVE it and am continually inspired.

Here’s a little bit about the first 8 weeks of Kacie’s recent health & wellness journey from Kacie herself:

 After 3 kids, 3 c-sections, gall bladder removal, gaining 45-55lbs with each pregnancy, 4 finger gap in my abdominal muscles (diastasis recti), I have finally taken back control of my body & mind! It will never be what it used to, but I am embracing all it has endured! I vowed to myself that by the time I turn 40 in February 2020, I would be in the best shape of my life. (mentally & physically) 

My time is limited during the day as a full time photography business owner (Kacie Jean Photography & Santa Barbara Boudoir Studio) and having 3 active kids, so I started waking up 60 min earlier every morning and doing 20-30 min workout videos from my tv with Beach Body on Demand 4-5 days a week. I eventually added a mile run around my neighborhood and started bringing my dog so I could get him his daily walk in there as well. 

Most importantly I hired a registered dietician (https://www.caitlinbealewellness.com) to help figure out what my constant pain & digestive issues were. From blood work from the MRT test, I found out most of what I was eating was very reactive to my body and caused a ton of pain & inflammation. After 10 days of only eating my low reactive foods, all my symptoms went away!!! Even my PMS and horrible cramps went away! (For years my doctors just wanted to medicate me as a band-aid, but would never dig deep to figure out what the actual cause was)

I worked with an amazing specialist (Goula Gals) that helps women with diastasis recti & pelvic floor issues and she closed my gap and got me so much stronger! I now incorporate her exercises into my daily routines. https://www.goulagals.com

Lastly, I had to get my head straight since my kids were driving me crazy! I hired an amazingly loving woman, Claire Cetti Parent Coach. She helps parents understand their children and become the parent they strive to be. She gave me tools to figure out each of my children’s “love language” and parent them in a way they would respond best to. 

Yes I chose to invest in myself and it was worth every penny! I couldn’t do it on my own, so I asked for help from specialists. I went from being exhausted, overwhelmed, overweight, in pain & uncomfortable, to feeling energized, empowered, strong & balanced!!!

If you're ready to move toward improved health & wellbeing like Kacie has done, follow her lead with these 3 important steps:

1.Tap into some intrinsic motivation….an internal driving force rather than an external reward. Is it really the 6 pack abs or 20 lbs of weight loss that you’re after or is it that you truly want to feel good about yourself or that you enjoy being challenged or that you want to have more energy? Think about your initial desire and then ask yourself WHY again and again until you dig deeper to the heart of the matter.  Use that as your daily reminder and motivation to keep moving forward.                                  

2.Identify your obstacles or challenges and get help.Kacie knew she had some physical breakdowns after her youngest arrived.  She had a 4 finger diastasis recti that was contributing to instability and pain. She and I worked together, often during nap times or with the kids running around the backyard, to get the deep center of her body re-integrated so she could support the activities of her daily life with strength and confidence.

Kacie was also aware that she might have food sensitivities and that her nutrition was likely contributing to the way she was feeling so she got some help! She dug into the situation to better identify her individual needs and made the adjustments to optimally support her body with personalized nourishment.

She also knew that she was feeling overwhelmed at home and with her kids and house. It’s a lot to juggle a family, household and a business! I know this one all too well! Knowing this was a challenge, she brought in outside help to get her started in making positive changes around the house to ease her stress and create more peace of mind.

Do you share some of these same obstacles? Or maybe it’s negative self talk or an old injury that are your obstacles for getting started. Whatever it is, identify them in advance so they don’t become excuses that stand in your way. Then, search for resources to help you manage them. If hiring a professional is financially out of reach, ask a friend, read books on the subject, or look for online resources! Identify what your obstacles or challenges will be and make a plan to account for them.

3.Begin the work from the inside out. I see this a lot with friends and clients…and l’ll be honest, even myself. First, we decide we want to make a change, like lose 20 lbs (which if this is your goal I highly encourage you to go through step 1 to identify your intrinsic motivation). So, we decide to attack the plan in the way social media and our social norms have led us to believe we should. We run 5 miles, take yoga once a week, lift weights 3 days a week and reduce our calorie consumption by 400 calories/day….CRAZY!  Not only is this approach likely not sustainable, it also doesn’t account for any of our individual obstacles & challenges. Instead of going from 0 to 60, do the work required to smoothly accelerate. A good rule of thumb for physical activity is to begin the work from the inside out. Address your nourishment and your deepest line of physical support first and build from there. These might not be glamorous activities that seem IG-photo worthy but if you can take the time to go through the seemingly boring and un-sexy steps, the outcomes are typically better and more sustainable.

Take Kacie for example! She knew she wanted to get back to exercise because she feels better when she does but she also knew that her body had some breakdowns and she was experiencing pain that could prevent her from carrying out a long-term commitment with exercise.  So she took the time to do her GoulaFIT workouts and exercises. She focused on breathing, intentional postures and movements in order to reintegrate the deepest line of muscular support in her body. Because she took the time to start here and has chosen to make this practice part of her daily routine she can now sustain her Beach Body morning workouts, mile runs and more!

 Similarly, with her nutrition, rather than just cutting back on calories she took the time to identify what her body needs and made the appropriate modifications. Maybe there are GI issues that need to be addressed or certain foods to be avoided. Whatever the case may be, it is well worth the time an energy to work with a professional to identify your specific needs.  The changes you make will more likely lead to positive, sustainable results rather than the typical yo-yo cycle of calorie deprivation.

Thank you Kacie for being an inspiration to us all!

 

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