Physical Health: Resetting Our Relationship with Our Bodies #physicalhealth

Foreign. I've learned the incredible impact of Here it comes, ladies and gentlemen, consistency and making sustainable changes. Again, it's not just about shedding pounds. It's about creating a lifestyle that supports overall well being Of George B. Thomas. For you. It's about creating a lifestyle that supports overall well being. Insert your name here. And so when I shifted my mindset from losing we to reducing pain and enhancing my quality of life, well, shoot. Everything started to fall into place. And so to all you listeners, if you're facing a similar wake up call, or God willing, you don't need a wake up call, maybe this podcast episode is a wake up call.

Welcome back to Beyond. You'd default. I'm your host, Liz Morehead, and as always, I am joined by the one, the only one of my favorite humans on this planet, George B. Thomas. How are you this morning?

I am doing absolutely wonderful. Super excited about. Didn't think I was gonna be, by the way. I was like, here we go. Like the kid that probably shouldn't talk about this is gonna try to talk about this. But I'm actually very excited about today. You know, it's, it's been very, like I've been able to look back and it's weird to be able to say this about yourself and hopefully the listeners get moments in their life where they can do this, but it's like, oh, wow, I've actually come a long way. I'll talk about that as we go. But like, physical health is going to be a interesting conversation today.

You know, I actually want to tap into the thing you just said about how far we've come because you know what, usually I have. You start with your low light and highlight for the week. I'm going to start things this week. Oh, I'll admit, my low light is just beautifully on brand with the topic that we're talking about today.

You already know the universe.

I did well. Okay, So I love it from a branding perspective. All right, for background, low light, I was sick starting on Friday. It wasn't great. I had to do things like cancel a podcast recording. I had to actually sleep. I had a whole slate of work this weekend that I still got some of it done, but like, I had to spend most of it kind of like quarantined and actually resting. Why is this a low light? Well, other than the fact that I was sick, we're, we'll get into that when we have this conversation. But the highlight is what I want to drill into because while I was bedbound, you know, you and I were both kind of going back and forth this weekend working on building out our community. Community beyond your default. Com. Go check.

Yep.

Out. We've got courses, we've got resources. It's like Christmas morning for personal growth, people. Get your butts in there.

It's getting good.

But you know what I realized this weekend, George? Oh, we've been doing this for over a year. Think about how far we've come in a year. It's wild to me.

It's crazy.

So that was my big highlight for the weekend, is that, you know, this started as an idea in your heart. Beyond your default is something that has been with you for years. And then you and I started having human conversations and thought, well, what if we just started recording these?

Yeah.

And when we started recording these, I was doing so from a short term Airbnb in New Haven, Connecticut. I was not psychologically in very good shape. I was coming out of a pretty brutal divorce. Getting up in the morning was physically and mentally like running a marathon every single day.

Interesting that we talked about mental health last week and physical health this week.

This week, yep. And now I'm here in this gorgeous artist studio in Annapolis, Maryland. My biggest problem was that, oh, I kind of have a fever. But otherwise life is pretty frickin awesome. Like, yeah, it is amazing how life will continue to serve you little surprises when you are staring down at your feet, so to speak, just doing the baby stepping every day. So that was my highlight. It's just like once a week we've been getting on this mic on Monday mornings and it has been almost religious in terms of like, we don't cancel this. This has been more consistent than my workout habit. You know what I mean?

Well, it's a mental workout, so there you go.

Right? So it was just really neat to think about. Like you baby step, you do the work, you show up once a week, you show up for whatever this thing is you're doing every single day or every single week and you'll be amazed what can change in a year. And I thought that was really cool.

It is cool because the door you're knocking on is this idea of consistency, which by the way, it's not the last time you're going to hear the word consistency in this episode. Just a little foreshadowing there. But it is fun because Liz, even before, beyond your default, the secret to success, the secret to significance of where I was able to get with like starting the business, the key term was consistency. Consistently showing up on a weekly basis to add value to humans who happen to use HubSpot. And now for a year, pretty soon we'll like, maybe it's over a year, we'll be able to say consistently showing up to add value to humans. And that is a great purpose. I'm super passionate about it. So I'm really enjoying this journey.

Tell me about what you enjoyed this weekend. What's your highlight? What's your low light? What have you got going on?

Yeah, so it's gonna sound weird, but I really actually enjoyed going grocery shopping with my wife. Her and I got in the van, we headed out to Costco. Not sponsored. That's just where we went. We also went to Walmart. Not sponsored. That's just the second place we went. But I enjoyed being out amongst the people and hanging out with her and like picking out like different food that we're going to eat as a family. And I just enjoyed that time hanging out with her. So that was like a highlight. Just like on the family side. Now a highlight for the beyond your default listeners is Liz. I feel like I was on like a 5k marathon this weekend pertaining to the community because I got the chance to do like a lot of salt and pepper stuff of like, descriptions here and images here and create a new plan for people who want courses versus, like beyond your default light. And like, oh, well, then let's go ahead and build some courses and like, let's lay out the framework for the next four courses we want to do and amazingly put together the framework for what we've been bouncing around and talking about. The superhuman framework, where when all of a sudden I got off my treadmill because by the way, I was walking on the treadmill the entire time I was working on that part, the superhuman framework. I sat back and looked at it and I was like, oh, gosh. So I had like a personal family highlight. I had a beyond your default highlight. And honestly, like, this is becoming a theme and it scares me, but I don't know if I had a low light. You know, there's normal life stuff that happens, but it's not something that mentally, psychologically, or physically took me down a negative rabbit hole or anything like that. It was kind of just like smooth sailing and like a great weekend.

I don't think there's anything wrong with that.

Yeah, just like I didn't think there was anything wrong with the fact you got rest, but you kind of like demonized that you got some sleep during your part two. But I just didn't say anything about it.

You know what I Feel like you're gonna shame me a little bit about that later. I feel like you're being polite right now because you're saving.

I'd never do something like that.

I feel emotionally comfortable and not at all concerned. Which means it's time for us to dive into the deep end of this conversation because we are back with another episode talking about one of the pillars of the superhuman framework. And this is part one of two, ladies and gentlemen. So health overall, yeah, is a pillar of the superhuman framework.

Right.

Because if this little fleshy tin can of our body isn't working, we're not beyond your defaulting anywhere. But health is actually broken up into two different segments. So last time we talked about mental health, but this time we are talking about physical health. And I'm very excited to have this conversation with you today, George, because we've even done episodes where, you know, you will preach the gospel of health, but then also have situations where we have to have a conversation called George had a plan until he didn't because we had to go into the hospital. And we were just sitting here listening to me though talk about guilt of my body saying, hey girl, slow down. And I have a quote here from our initial conversation about health that I think really sets things up nicely in terms of why people with a growth mindset where sometimes we're coming from. And it starts our conversation off nicely today. And that is this is honestly for me has been one that unfortunately I have put in the backseat or in the trunk or in the U haul of somebody else going in a different destination that I am. And that thing we are talking about, ladies and gentlemen, is health. But one of the things you talk about health as is the great equalizer. Healthy is the great equalizer to the other framework elements in the superhuman framework. A health, healthy lifestyle is crucial for sustained energy, resilience and your well being as a human. But George, let's start our conversation here today. You call it a great equalizer. What the heck does that mean?

Yeah. So first of all, let me just say this. As I sat down to prep for this episode, I really was hit with who the heck am I to talk about this? I'm going to get on the mic. I weigh 274 pounds. That is not the gleaming example of 1% body fat running 5K marathons. You know, whatever the nutritional like value of whatever. You know, I eat more than cardboard in a day. Like there were all these mental things in my brain of like, who are you to think that you should have this conversation I had to actually get past fear. I had to get past limiting beliefs. I had to get past the crazy narratives in my own brain to actually come to be able to answer that question that you're asking me, Liz, which is, why is it the great equalizer? And I, and I realized, by the way, who are you? You're a dude who's been down this journey twice. You're a dude who takes on difficult conversations. You're a dude who can actually maybe simplify the complex to what some people maybe get confused around. And so, Liz, where I started out with limiting beliefs and fear and like, oh man, like the fat kid's gonna talk about physical health. What is going on? What world are we in right now, by the way? I'm speaking about myself, right? But now I actually get on the mic and I'm excited, Liz and listeners, to actually unpack the question. Because when I say health is the great equalizer, what I mean is that physical and mental health are the foundation upon which all other elements of the superhuman framework stand. Because as humans without a solid base of health, it becomes challenging to sustain energy, challenging to have the resilience that we're going to need, the consistency that we're going to need. And by the way, without physical health, that's what we're talking about today. But last week's episode on mental health, like, it's just almost impossible to have like an overall well being as you as a human heading in the right direction. So, but I want to break it down kind of quickly by each piece of the framework. So happiness or finding joy and maintaining a positive outlook, well, if you think about that, health is critical here because a healthy body and mind naturally foster a positive mindset and the ability to appreciate life's moments, both big and small. So like, if you're not healthy, you're kind of cloudy, you're shrouded, your eyes, maybe it's like you got these like physical mental cataracts over your eyes. To be able to appreciate like the moments in life that are actually coming down the pipe. If I think about the hunger or slash healthy hustle or what I'll call relentless pursuit of growth and improvement, well, good health provides the stamina, the energy needed for continuous learning. Again, the resilience mentally and physically, to like, do the thing that you're trying to do, which is, by the way, reaching your full potential. If I think about helpfulness or serving others with a genuine heart. When you're healthy, you have the physical and mental capacity to go the extra mile and trust me, ladies and gentlemen, there are many times in life where you're gonna need, you're gonna be called to go the extra mile and truly support the other humans around you. When I think of humility or showing modesty and respect in the superhuman framework, like health enables clear thinking, it enables emotional balance which allows, by the way, you to interact with humility and grace as you walk this journey beyond your default, trying to live the best life that you can live and be the best human that you can be. When I think about humor or bringing light, hardness and fun, which by the way, if you haven't listened to the hyena energy episode, please, by all that is holy, when this one's over, go check out that episode because it's great. But a healthy lifestyle can reduce stress and it can enhance your mood. And of course, when your mood is enhanced, it makes it easier to see the humor in life and connect with others through laughter. And for me, it's a big thing of like, just not taking myself too seriously, enabling myself to be a fricking big goofball and not be worried about judgment or like, by the way, judgment of myself or judgment of others. If I keep going down the superhuman framework and I think of honesty or being truthful and transparent in life, like mental clarity, which is a byproduct of good physical health, supports clear communication and the ability to uphold integrity in the relationships that we actually have. Humanity, or embracing authenticity and vulnerability in oneself. Well, good health allows you to connect deeply with others, showing both strengths and weaknesses without the burden of physical or mental strain. So like, as you can see, like it's. Let's just go what it the kind of like overarching umbrella to the superhuman framework, which is this holistic approach or holistic thinking or balancing all life areas. Again, I called it an equalizer. I'm going to use a different word. Health acts as a stabilizer, ensuring that every aspect of your well being is considered and maintained, supporting your overall stability. So equalizer, stabilizer stability in life, less of the peaks and valleys, more of the hills and like, and trying to give you like a mental vision to be in there, but then last but not least, holiness or seeking spiritual growth. When I think about this, I think about physical and mental health. They both support your spiritual journey by again providing you the energy and focus needed to pursue what is this deeper connection with your beliefs, this deeper connection with your higher purpose? You see, without prioritizing physical and mental health, it's like trying to build a house on an unstable Foundation. There might be a book that talks about building your foundation on sand. Anyway, every other aspect of personal and professional growth becomes harder to achieve and maintain if you don't have this mental and physical health foundation. So. So guess what, ladies and gentlemen, this is why it's important to make health a priority and see how it transforms every other part of your life. Because if you're going to use the superhuman framework, the 10 pieces, health is part of every single one of them.

The other way I think about it, too, in terms of the great equalizer. And I want to couch what I'm about to say in the fact that there is a bit of privilege here that we need to be aware of. One of the ways that I immediately thought of this question, because whenever I ask you a question, I always know at some point you might turn around and go, but, Liz, what do you think? So I always have to be prepared to answer.

You have to be prepared.

One of the things that I thought of is that it is the one thing that none of us little humans are exempt from. It doesn't matter what your socioeconomic status is. It doesn't matter how hard you work or do not work. You need to keep your little flesh machine running. But I will say from a place of privilege, we need to be aware that some people will have better access to resources in terms of how they can take care of their health. And I remember last year, you know, going back to the start of this discussion, like, this time last year, I was not in a great spot. I had to make a lot of really hard decisions financially very quickly. And because of what was happening, it was really intensely traumatic. And one of the things I had to do was cut my own health insurance. And so for three months, I didn't have anything. And it was really weird to wake up every day and go, well, you better not fall down. I know you'd probably love to talk to a therapist right now, but you can't. Like it would became this thing where I think sometimes we look at our health insurance as a bill we need to pay. And we can have different discussions on a different podcast about whether or not our health care system needs to be overhauled. But the reality is that when you do not have the ability to take care of yourself, it adds an extra level of anxiety to what happens in your life. You can't fall down. You can't get hurt. What about this? What about that? But leaving that aside, when I think about health as the great equalizer, nobody is immortal. None of us are immune Literally and figuratively, from what happens to us, from a physical health perspective, all of us, to some degree or another, will have to deal with this. We'll have moments in our lives where we reach our limitations, sometimes with brute force, sometimes due to genetics, sometimes due to lack of access, sometimes due to what. And even money can't buy you out of everything, you know? And so when I think about health as the great equalizer, it is something that in our rush to do and achieve and live our purpose and do all of these things, you can't. There is no SaaS project management platform that will allow you to circumvent or leapfrog the fact that you have to take care of yourself, that you have to find a way to prioritize yourself, because your body has a funny way of reminding you, hi, I'm in charge.

Yeah, so it's funny because my brain is going a thousand miles an hour and I'm trying to remember where I watch this, but there's one piece that I want to lean in of us being careful because you mentioned the word privilege. And sometimes privilege can actually be a detractor, especially in this conversation that we're having. I think it was on Netflix, I think. And I'm going to do some research so we can get in the show notes. But there's this show, and I think it was how to live 100 years wherever you are in the world. And it talks about this indigenous tribe that they walk everywhere, walk or run, even everywhere, walk or run, and the. The life expectancy. And it's like 2 or 3x of like what normal air quotes human beings face or have. And it's funny because when I was watching that show and them walking so much, I was transported back to when I worked at Faith Ranch. Again, I've talked about this on other podcast episodes, but when I was a certified lifeguard, I literally had to walk every day down into the bottom of the valley, up into the top of the hill, down into the bottom of the valley. And then it was probably a good two and a half, maybe three or four miles of up, down, up down hills to go to the lake where I would actually lifeguard and I would walk it there and back every day. The amount of better physical. Plus I was swimming because I was a lifeguard. Like, between the walking and the swimming, I was in a way better physical place there. And by the way, we go to privilege. I'm at 100 bucks a month. There was no financial privilege. I lived in, like, old houses. There was no, like, Housing, privilege. It was that I was back in nature, back with the roots, back. No car, no bike, no skateboard, two feet and some hands for fins, like. And so I want us to be careful because. And again, I'll, I'll find what the show was because it was fascinating, the information that it was providing, and I think it might be another deep dive in here. But I just want us to be careful of that because don't let our perception of privilege or the fact that we are privileged. Well, here's the way I'll say it. I think for many years, myself personally, and maybe you listeners, we allow our privilege to be the hurdles that get in our way from our physical success. And I say that as nicely as humanly possible.

Look at you. Challenging with ownership.

Oh, geez. Hate mail coming in quick. No, maybe not. Maybe not. Not from these listeners. These listeners might be like, oh, I needed to hear that.

This is a nuanced conversation. We're going to move on from it here because this, this could literally be its own episode. But two things can be true. We can have an issue with privilege in our country when it comes to access to health care and what types of treatments people receive. And when given the opportunity, we also need to take ownership of our health and not have it be something that is deprioritized. Because I will tell you, those three. Actually, it was more like four or five months, much to the chagrin of my accountant when I did my taxes. But it was one of those things where I remember saying, like, health care was a negotiable because I was triaging my life. And now I'm like, absolutely not. There are so many other things I would cut now. I did the best with what I could at the time. Yeah, but like, that was an experience of like, yeah, not doing that again. Absolutely not.

That was literally one rule that my wife put in place. There were two, by the way, when I started the business. One, we have to have health care for the family, and two, there has to be a paycheck that enters the bank like you're working somewhere else every two weeks. So health care and paying for health care. And by the way, why would you pay for something and not go get the health care? That's the other side of this. Like, sure, yes, pay for health care, get health care in place, but go to your freaking checkups like you got something growing on your side. Go to the doctor, like, anyway, completely understand.

So let's start digging in a little deeper here. It's been a little over two Months, George, since your most recent hospital stay.

Yeah.

Which you at the time and periodically since then have noted as a full reset on your relationship with your physical health. So just checking in on this. How is that going? Have there been any new lessons you learned?

Oh, oh, freaking master class. Which, by the way, I think we might be at like three months now. Maybe. I like. It's, it's if time flies when you're having fun. But first of all, Liz, I see you. I love how you're trying to sneak in an update on my physical health journey.

I like you in one piece, George. I like you in one piece.

We're supposed to have special episodes where we do this, but you're like, let me go and throw this question in there and see how he's doing. So, by the way, yes, I do consider my recent hospital stay a full reset on my relationship with my physical health, but maybe even an unlock of my mental health, which might sound a little bit weird, but I'm hard headed. And unfortunately, this is not the first time that I've had an aha moment on this subject of physical health. However, it is different this time because, you see, it's been a. And again, I think it's been a little over three months since my latest hospital visit. And just being completely honest, it was a serious wake up call this time for sure. Even more than last time. Because here's the thing, unfortunately, this isn't my first health scare. It's the same.

It's like you knew I was going to follow up and say, like, we've been here before, George.

Yeah, I was in the closet on my knees. Everybody thought I was having a heart attack. But here's the thing, and you can go back and listen to an episode we talked about, you know, me almost dying or thinking that I almost died. But that time I went on this journey and it, by the way, it was like right around the time of COVID and everybody was like, ah, we're gaining weight. And I managed to lose 79 pounds in seven months with a full focus on weight loss. I was focused on weight loss, but this time my goal shifted to something more vital. I'm not focused on weight loss, by the way. I'm focused on living without pain. Living without pain. You see, it's for me, not about providing to myself or to others that I can lose weight. Which, by the way, the first time that I went through this, it was proving to myself that I could slay the ultimate demon, which was weight in food, and show other people that I could externally that I could do the same. Right now it's about waking up in the morning and walking around through the day and not being in pain because again, you can go listen to the episode where I talk about inflammation in my colon, inflammation around my heart and lungs, the fact that I have rheumatoid arthritis, and like, it's inflammation in my body. And so literally just being able to walk around through the day, wake up without being in pain or as much pain. And in an effort to achieve that goal, I've made significant changes to my diet as well. I've stopped eating breads, pastas, sugars, processed meats, and other unhealthy foods and beverages. By the way, when I started to list that out, this is where my brain went to. Oh, I've come a long way with what's happening. I'll get back to that here in a minute. Instead though, I'm focusing on more greens, beans, fermented foods, and paying attention to gut health, which is something that I never nerded out on before. But now it's like my YouTube, like, shorts. The amount of doctors that are talking to me about gut health. Now I'm like, oh, crap, I ruined my feed. But at least let me listen to this information because these changes have made what I'll call a remarkable difference in how I feel day to day. Again, for me, it's about keeping my body from attacking itself related to inflammation. Also, I have realized I can treat myself here and there with something I usually am staying away from and it doesn't impact me as much as it used to when that was all that I was eating and drinking. Like for instance, it was a mind blowing experience last week, maybe Thursday or Friday, where I poured a glass of orange soda. I haven't drank soda pop, cola, whatever you call it, whatever state, whatever country you live in, the syrupy sugar carbonated drink, put your term on it. I hadn't drank any of that since my hospital stay, but I was having a hankering for like orange soda. So I poured a glass and I drank it. And you know what? It didn't impact me. It tasted good. Here's the funny thing. I drank half of it and poured half of it out because half was enough. I was like, no, I'm done. I got my fix. Now let's just move on. I want everybody to realize, because I did use the word diet earlier, that it's dietary changes. It's not that I'm on a diet because diets never worked for me. It's Just a change of life based on wanting to not have pain. Anyway, I digress. I've ramped up my physical activity as well. I've been hitting my treadmill. Like, I've been hitting it hard. I've been walking anywhere from 10,000 plus to 33,000 steps a day. So the physical transformation, it's noticeable. I've gone from £311 when I was in the hospital. And right now as we're recording this podcast episode, I'm down to 274. But more important than that, because I can't let that become the goal because I see success in that metric. More importantly, that the pain I was experiencing has diminished significantly. Heck, Liz, I used to hurt when it rained. Like, I could tell my wife about 10 to 15 minutes before it was going to rain and she'd literally be like, there's no rain in on the weather channel today. I'm like, it's going to rain in about 10 or 15 minutes and sure as I'll get out. Maybe it was 20, maybe it's 22, but within a 10 to 20 minute period, there'd be rain where we were at because I could feel it in my body, in, in the inflammation in the joints. But since I've made these changes, the weather has dramatically decreased in the amount that it impacts my body. Like we had two rainy days in the last week and I was like, I was amazed at how it wasn't impacting me, how much less I hurt based on the weather. And so to sum this kind of up, through this journey, I've learned the incredible impact of Here it comes, ladies and gentlemen, consistency and making sustainable changes. Again, it's not just about shedding pounds. It's about creating a lifestyle that supports overall well being. Of George B. Thomas. For you, it's about creating a lifestyle that supports overall well being. Insert your name here. And so when I shifted my mindset from losing weight to reducing pain and enhancing my quality of life, well, shoot. Everything started to fall into place. And so to all you listeners, if you're facing a similar wake up call, or God willing, you don't need a wake up call, maybe this podcast episode is a wake up call. Because by the way, I would not want you to have rheumatoid arthritis. I wouldn't want you to have high blood pressure. I wouldn't want you to spend three and a half days in a hospital like I've done twice. Like, I don't want that for you. But if this podcast can be your wake up call, Just know it's never too late to reset your relationship. Reset, reboot, whatever words you need to put in there. Your health. And it comes down to this. Figuring out what your big why is and then making small consistent changes that can lead to profound transformations. Focus on the bigger picture, your overall well being, and let that guide your actions as you continue from a physical health perspective to journey down this beyond your default path.

I know you've already touched a bit on this experience as well as previous experiences, but I'd love for us to go a little bit deeper here because I think this is one of those. Of course. Because I think this is one of those situations where have you ever had those moments where you somehow paint a picture of the best possible case scenario and then the worst possible case scenario comes along and you go, well, how did I not see this kind of coming? And I think this is a natural human instinct, right? When we don't want to deal with something, we find a way to mentally kind of leapfrog over it by saying, well, that won't happen and this will happen and it's going to be fine. And da da. Like we get overly idealistic, which is hilarious considering how cynical life can be. So I would be curious to hear from you. What are the actual non physical consequences someone can experience when you don't prioritize your health? And yes, you are welcome to put me back in the hot seat later because I know I've been grilling you.

Yeah, I always love when you lean in to ask me, but. But I want to dig a little bit deeper.

Deeper.

It's funny because when you're asking this question, the first thing that comes to mind is I had a friend slash employer and he used to kind of say, you know, something along the lines of hope for the best, plan for the worst. Too many of us are like programmed to just hope for the best, hope for the best, hope for the best, hope for the best. And we have blinds like blinders on to like the flip side of this. So first of all, you got to remove the blinders and you got to get a framework in place that is like, here's what I'm hoping, dreaming, scheming, strategizing for. And here are all the ways, hurdles, potholes that I need to look out for that might get in my way. So like, if you don't have that mindset or that framework in place, that's one thing that I would suggest that we do. But Liz and listeners, I think it's a great question because I think this is critical to everyone who is aiming for their best life ever. So when I think of non physical consequences of neglecting physical health, I want you to understand that when we talk about physical health, it's not just about looking good or fitting into those genes from high school. But if you look at TikTok and you look at YouTube shorts and you look at the culture, that's kind of where the narrative is, right? By the way, I'd love to fit into the jeans that I wore when I got out of boot camp. What, 19, 8? 90. 1990. Yeah. I weighed 185 pounds. I probably can't even dream about, but it would be nice. Maybe someday we'll see. Who knows, like, if we keep going in the direction that focusing on not being in pain is headed, who knows? But it's about how our bodies, minds and souls are interconnected. And this is another piece that like, so many folks just have these like disconnected parts instead of thinking them as one connective being. And how to kind of take care of our physical selves can lead to a more fulfilled, energized and purposeful life. But when we don't prioritize our physical health, the repercussions go far beyond a few extra pounds feeling out of breath after climbing a flight of stairs. And I think there's maybe five areas that I'm going to lightly touch on, which I think you as the listener will find a couple where you're like, I hope he shuts up real quick. When you feel that way, know that's the direction you should be looking because I'm literally opening up the blinders that I said earlier that you need to take off. So I'm going to talk about mental health, which we did last week as well. I'm going to talk about cognitive function, I'm going to talk about emotional stability, spiritual health, and then we'll wrap it up with social connections. Those are the five things that I want to hit upon. And again, they all tie to our physical health. All right, so first off, neglecting physical health can wreak havoc on on our mental well being. Lack of exercise, poor diet, can lead to increased levels of stress, anxiety, and even depression. I can say that because, ladies and gentlemen, been there, done that. Even though I say that I've very, very rarely been depressed. If I look back, there actually have been times in my life where I have fallen into that but didn't know it at the moment in time. And a lot of it had to do with like, why'd you just eat that? Whole cheesecake or that whole can of Pringles, dummy. And. And the way that that would make me feel afterwards. If. If you haven't listened, by the way, to our episode on Mental Health last week, like, if this is just happens to be the first podcast because you saw Physical Health and you dove into it, I suggest you do so after this episode. Because you see, our bodies release endorphins during physical activity, which are those lovely hormones that make us feel good. Which, by the way, if you're listening to this, you can't see what I'm about to do. If you're watching this in the community, you can. That's why I love that machine right there. Because. And by the way, I'm pointing at my treadmill, ladies and gentlemen, because it releases endorphins. It makes me feel good about myself. It gets the activities popping and snapping in the brain. Right. What are you doing on a daily basis that releases endorphins and makes you feel good about yourself from a physical standpoint, without these endorphins kicking in, without these pops and snaps, our moods plummet, stress takes over. And I'm reminded of a quote from Jim Rohn, which, by the way, if you haven't done a deep dive into, like, his old. Because it's old, like, well, I gotta be careful. There might be some folks who, like, he was new and they were listening. Anyway, I'm watching the reruns, let's just put it that way. But if you haven't dove like in YouTube or. Or search like Jim Rohn. Earl Nightingale too, by the way. Anyway, not why we're here, but Jim Rohn take. There's just a lot of wisdom in historical figures that, like, we're focused on. Okay, but Jim Rohn says, take care of your body. It's the only place you have to live. For so many years, I drove my body like it was a rent a car. Like, if you've ever watched that movie with Tom Cruise and he's the NASCAR driver, and if you remember the scene where him and Rowdy Days of Thunder, oh, my God, and they're racing and rent a cars. That's how I was treating my body for so many years. We never treat the cars or the bodies air quotes that we own in the way that we do. If we thought about it from this way. It's the only place you have to live. Yet so many of us again, myself included, we smashed the bumpers, squeal the tires, don't get oil checks, let the engine overheat our Bodies are not just our physical space, by the way. They're also our mental and emotional sanctuary if we allow them to be, if we treat them like they are. So let's move forward. Let's chit chat about cognitive function. When we don't move our bodies or feed them the proper nutrients, our brains suffer. If our brains suffer, it's like a downward spiral for everything else in our life. I don't know if you're like me and ever had those moments where you just feel sluggish or your brain feels cloudy and you're just like. I call it the funk. Like you just have this like brain funk again. Listen, this is why I believe healthy is the greatest equalizer to the other framework elements in the superhuman framework, AKA other things in our life. Because all of those things take our brain cognitive functions to do physical activity. However, it boosts blood flow, it boosts oxygen to the brain, helping it guess what function better. I mean, think about it. Without regular exercise, you might find it hard to concentrate, make decisions or even remember things. Which, by the way, the older I get, the more it has been difficult to remember things. Sometimes I even want, why did I walk in this room? Just me. Am I the only one? But I'm exercise man. I find that the more that I exercise, the more that I hit that treadmill, the less I've actually had those moments over the last three or so months. John F. Kennedy said, physical fitness is not only one of the most important keys to a healthy body, it is the basis of dynamic and creative intellectual activity. Somebody should just print that out and put it on their wall or on the door or on several places that they walk through during the day, just to be able to see that the key to a healthy body, it's the basis of dynamic and creative intellectual activity. If you're listening to this and you're trying to live a life beyond your default, if you're trying to have your best life ever, guess what you need. You need dynamic and you need to be creative and you need the ticker. The brain tickers the heart, but you need the machine, the brain, to have that activity that needs to have our minds thrive when our bodies are in motion. I wish I could say that. That's my quote. I don't know even know if that's a quote, but ladies and gentlemen, it should be cool. Our minds thrive when our bodies are in motion. The second part to that would be, so keep your body in motion. Now, there's also emotional stability, something I personally actively seek in my own life. I despise the days of mountain peaks and the deepest of valleys. I used to have those like younger George, the not so great George. And I just like this idea of stability. I'd rather have like rolling hills versus these like way up, way down, like type things. Right? So. So I'm actively seeking emotional stability. And when we neglect our physical health, we easily fall into a cycle of negative thinking and poor self esteem. You know how many times I've said to myself, I'm not worthy, I'm stupid, I'm this, I'm that. And just like, didn't feel like I had anything to give to the world. Ladies and gentlemen, I frickin explained this point at the beginning of this podcast. I literally had to go into self esteem, into limiting beliefs, into belief structure, and like, I had to battle this just to get into this episode. So feeling good about yourself is harder when you don't care for your body. I know that sounds weird, but feeling good about yourself is harder when you don't care for your body. This isn't about vanity, it's about self respect. It's about gratitude for the vessel that we've been given. Which, by the way, when I hear vessel we've been given, it makes me think of Corinthians 6, 19 and 20. Do you not know that our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have received from God. You are not your own. You were bought at a price. Therefore, honor God with your bodies. Honor God, honor yourself, and honor others around you by making your physical health a priority. And as I just referenced, there's an impact on our spiritual health. Taking care of our bodies is an act of stewardship, which, by the way, we've talked about stewardship. In another episode, you can go listen to it that see that this is what I'm saying. If this wasn't connected, I wouldn't be referencing so many podcast episodes that you could go dig into the connective dots or tissues of this. When we neglect our physical health, we're not just harming ourselves, we're failing to honor the life and the body that we've been entrusted with. The only place that we have to live. As Jim Rome said, if you want to explore our thoughts on stewardship, by the way, episode 16 is where that bad boy is. It's adopting an owner's mentality in your own life. In that episode, we actually emphasize the importance of adopting stewardship mindset, regardless of whether you're renting, borrowing, or owning something, which by the way we could do a whole podcast on if you're renting, borrowing or owning your body anyway, there's a whole thing there. Stewardship involves the job of supervising or taking care of something, be it a property, an organization, or in this case, today, humans. Now if 16 doesn't get you there, episode six might where we talk about Blessing bombers and getting what you deserve, where we discuss the idea of being a steward of blessings. It's way easier to be a blessing bomber if you have great self esteem and your brain is functioning fully and paying attention to those people around you, AKA the humans that need you to be the blessing. But if your eyes are clouded and you have the physical and mental cataracts on, you can't see those moments anyway. Last but not least. And then Liz, I do want to put you in the hot seat and get your thoughts as we can't Forget about social consequences. Poor physical health can limit your ability to engage in social activities vital for mental and emotional health. Whether playing with your kids, hiking with friends, simply enjoying a walk in the park, these activities nourish our souls and strengthen our bodies. They nourish our souls and they even strengthen our bonds with others. And not to mention ourself, but literally. Like, listen, there's TV shows you can go watch of people who aren't taking care of themselves physically. And a lot of it. You can see how closed in socially they are. We're social beings. We need to be out amongst and interacting with humans. With good health, we can experience these enriching experiences that we're supposed to have, meant to have through life. So to all of you listening and to myself, by the way, so much of this episode I knew I would be preaching to myself. We have to remember that prioritizing physical health is about more than just the physical side of it. As the old saying goes, he who has health has hope and he who has hope has everything. Which by the way, it could be she who has health has hope and she who has hope has everything. It's hard to have hope if you're not healthy. It's about nurturing your entire being. Your mind, emotions, spirit, social connections. It's about creating a life where you can truly thrive, experience joy, and live out your purpose with energy and enthusiasm and consistency. Liz, what are your thoughts?

I mean, certainly not as eloquent as yours, but here's what I will say if you're listening to this, you have things you want to accomplish. You have things you want to do. If you are not minding the shop when it comes to your own health, you're not going to be able to do anything. Like that's just the reality. And what will happen is one day your health will just sneak up on you, knock you on your back and say, hi, remember me, howdy. It's also something that will just run in the background of your mind of the thing that you're not taking care of. Like, that's the thing, you know, when you're not taking care of yourself. You can feel it. I remember last year when I didn't have health insurance. There was literally not a day where I did not wake up during that four to five month period where it's like, don't fall down. And wouldn't it be nice if you could go talk to somebody right now and not have it cost you $200? Like, that would be great. You have a constant reminder that you're not taking care of yourself, you know, and that's where it gets tricky. It becomes the. It's like your car, guys, what happens if your car just stops running?

You in trouble?

Yeah, you're in big trouble. Like, it doesn't really get any more simple than that.

The big junkyard in the sky.

But I like what you pointed out about like, you know, you don't have hope when you're not taking care of your health. Because you know what will happen is that it's not just the physicality. Right. There is a mental load toll that will happen. Not just from the perspective, like I was speaking from my lived experience of not having insurance. That was the mental load piece of it. But then there was also just like, I knew I needed to go to the dentist and I couldn't. I could feel that was not good. And because I wasn't taking care of myself in one way, I started not taking care of myself in other ways. Like it's this weird cascading effect. And I kind of equate it to. I can always tell when I'm mentally not okay with how disorganized my physical living space is.

Yeah, yeah.

It's very similar to that in that if I don't have a good relationship or handle on my physical health, like it's just kind of like all hell breaks loose, you know what I mean? Like all of a sudden it's this cascading effect. Well, I'm not treating myself well. Well, I'm not eating well, I'm not working out, I'm not exercising. All of a sudden it's just this big pile on of things. I know I'm not doing. So let me ask you something. All you growth mindset people who have put your health physically on the back burner, how much mental space would you be able to free up right now if you had a better focus on your physical health? If you didn't have that 10 to 20% of your brain that is subconsciously going, well, you're not doing this and you're eating that and this, that and the other, and blah, blah, blah. Like, it's a little bit of chatter that just never quite goes away. Now, I will say one thing that made me a little bit anxious. I finally got my health insurance back. Right.

Yes.

I will admit I wasn't immediately, like, signing up for the dentist. Signing up for it.

I had about a few weeks of, like, a backlog.

Well, it's like, well, now do I want to know?

Yeah, maybe this is a bad idea.

Maybe this is about it. We want to leave in this kind of bubble of, like, everything's fine. My body isn't literally on fire. I can wait another week. I can wait another whatever. But then that becomes the mental load of, well, what is it that I don't know, like, you're mortal. Just get ahead of things there. You will always have regrets if it comes to waiting until things are too late or things get too out of hand. Yeah, you will never. You may not be happy about some things you find, but you will never regret being ahead of something.

Yeah, it's interesting I got to throw in here because my brain goes through this thing, and I deal with this a lot, and I realize the more I can battle against this, the better. I call the curse of non closed loops. And if I leave a bunch of loops open, oh, I should pay that bill. Oh, I should go to that appointment. Oh, I should do this thing. But I don't close the loop. Then all of a sudden, I have these, like, 12 or 24. And because they're not closed, they're sitting there spinning, unclosed in my brain. And it just becomes this curse of overload. And so I'll find myself where it's like, okay, today is a close the loop day, because, oh, my God, my brain can't handle no more. That's where my brain was going to.

Close the loop day. We're not gonna discuss why, but that. Okay, I'll be doing that this week.

Yeah. Curse of the non Closed loops.

My gosh, I love that. But I also feel attacked, which means we need to move on to the next question. We've already started talking about this But I want to get your take on this. Why do you think it's so easy for so many of us who are super growth oriented folks? We're focused on optimizing and being peak performers in every other way. But when it comes to our health, we're squirrely little butt heads like a three year old toddler being dragged through crate and barrel by their mother, being asked to care about spoons. That's how we act about our health.

Crate, cool place.

Yeah, I do. I like it.

In other words, Liz is asking George, how, how do you keep screwing this up? That's like what? That's what this question, George, how come you keep screwing this up? That's what I hear with this question. But, and I'm, I'm waxing a little bit funny, but also being a little bit truthful because I mean, who else better to answer this question? Because I have fudged it up like many a time. And I think there are many reasons, some which I may not cover here. This again, it's you are you, you have your story, you have your issues. But, but out of all the many reasons, they're often deeply intertwined with our daily lives and our personal mindsets, our belief structures. One of the biggest factors, and again, ladies and gentlemen, remember, I'm preaching to myself here, one of the big factors is time, or dare I say our perception of time in our lives. We're all juggling so many responsibilities. We've got work and family and social commitments that carving out time for exercise or preparing healthy meals, well, frankly, can seem impossible. We think to ourselves, I'll get to that later. But often later never comes. And to be honest, this is really less of a time issue and more, if we're being honest with ourselves, more of a priority issue. Because you see, we make time for what is important in our lives. We just need to flip the switch so that our physical health is a priority. I mean, that's why I set a fricking treadmill smack in the middle of where I need to do most of my meetings or most of my work. I have no excuses. It's right there. Step on it and walk and have that meeting, or step on it and walk and do that work, by the way, that builds habits. And that's another reason that we fall short of this, is our habits. Many of us are stuck in routines that don't include healthy behaviors. Breaking out of old habits and creating new, healthier ones requires effort. And sometimes we're just too tired or overwhelmed to make the change. Guess why we're too tired or overwhelmed to make the change because we're not getting the benefits of what we talked about earlier in this podcast of the actual energy that comes from fitting in the physical exercise, the clearness that we can now think based on the exercise. So it's like this never ending cycle of we don't do it because we don't do it. And now we feel like we're tired and overwhelmed. I I like this when it comes to habits. By the way, Romans 12:2 says, do not conform to the patterns of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Now let's just take the Scripture away from that for a second. And I'm not being sacrilegious here. If I didn't tell you Romans 12:2 and I just said, hey man, quit conforming to your crappy patterns of your day and reboot or reset or transform your mind into the way that it needs to be. You'd be like, wow, that's some sound advice. Yeah, you think? Then that's why we got to do it. It's about shifting our mindset and being intentional about our health, prioritizing our health Again, treadmill in front of my desk where I need to stand to do work. Here's the other thing that's weird because it's like a thing but not a thing at the same time. We have this and I'm using air quotes. If you're listening to this, if you're watching it, you see me still holding up the air quotes. But perceived effort, perceived effort. It's another hurdle. Let's be honest. The thought of starting a new exit, just the start. Thought of starting a new exercise routine or regimen, or just the thought of changing our diet, not going on a diet, changing our diet can be daunting. We picture long hours at the gym, bland, tasteless cardboard style meals. And that perception, that perceived effort alone by itself can be enough to deter us from even starting down the path. But remember, by the way, my brain went to this when you were talking earlier about like going health doctor List o things. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. By the way, it's Benjamin Franklin wisely said, a ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. And the reason I'm bringing this up now is because we can't let the perception or perceived thoughts dictate the thing that's actually going to activate the change that will then reactivate the other things that are important to our mind. Social all the things that we've talked about in this podcast. And again, how do you beat that perceived effort? Small, consistent changes over time lead to big results over time. So lessen the perception of what you need to do and ease your way into it, but ease your way into consistency of it. Also, the funny thing on this one is when I've said things like, I'm only gonna go for a 15 minute walk, Liz. Once I'm out there, I typically end up walking 45 minutes to an hour. But I had to fake out my brain at the start to overcome that perceived effort hurdle that was getting in the way. So just go to the gym for five minutes and see how long you're there. Just eat this one meal and see how many times you can rinse and repeat it. Now, another big one that we humans face is ignoring mental and emotional barriers. Stress, anxiety, depression can make it incredibly challenging to prioritize physical health. Funny thing is, when we do, it helps against these things that are holding us back. But when we're feeling low, the motivation to exercise or eat well can. Let's just call it elusive. Like it's a very almost invisible character in our lives because we're just not in the place or space. And again, it's a vicious cycle. And again, I'm speaking from experience. Neglecting our physical health often maximizes in the worst way possible, these mental health issues. And Liz, you alluded to this. I've alluded to this with our car analogy. The last one that I want to talk about is something that we are really, really, really, really bad at and that is a lack of understanding. Immediate consequences. Immediate consequences can trick us into complacency. By the way, this might be the big daddy for many of us listening to or recording this podcast. Unlike financial debt, where missed payments lead to immediate penalties, poor health choices often don't show their impact until much later. This delay can lull us into a false sense of security, making it easier to ignore our physical well being. If someone was standing in front of me and said every time I shove a donut in my mouth, high blood pressure, rheumatoid arthritis, or listeners, by the way, you can insert your ailment that caught up to you later in life into that we had, we may have made, or at least I know I would have made some, some different decisions along the way. But I couldn't see three and a half days in the hospital with high blood pressure. I couldn't see three and a half days in the hospital with inflammation. Couldn't see it. Nobody was standing there smacking Me in the face with a two by four saying these things. So I was like, ah, this double Whopper with cheese and onion rings and a large Coke won't hurt me. I'm invincible. But here's the kicker. Taking care of our physical health is one of the most profound acts. I'm going to say two things. One, I know, Liz, you're going to smile and get all giddy, but our physical health is one of the most profound acts of self care.

Yes, I knew you were going to say it. I knew you were going to say it. Yes.

And self respect and gratitude for who we have been created to be and who we can become in the future. So listeners, I have to ask this question. I thought about not asking it, but I have to ask this question. Are you grateful for the life that you're living and the person that you're able to become? I must let that sit for a second. Are you grateful for the life you're living and the person you're able to become? And I fully understand that that might sting a little bit depending on where you are in your journey. But the big question in that is, do you respect yourself? If I'm honest, I'd say historically for me, no, I didn't respect myself. No, I probably wasn't grateful for the life that I was living. No, I didn't realize that I could become somebody more or better than the life that I was living until it all switched and I realized that I could. And I realized I had to respect myself and I realized I had to change my beliefs. Listen, if you're in the same boat as me, then let's commit to breaking these barriers. Start small, be consistent, and remember that every little step towards better health is a step towards a more vibrant, fulfilling life that is way beyond your default. Liz, what are your thoughts? I see you jotting down notes.

Well, first, the first note I made was we need to do an episode on self respect. Just throwing that out there.

I like that.

I think what you said that really hit me the most that I want our listeners to tap in on because it's the most uncomfortable thing that you said, which means it's the most important, which is, you know, when we talk about our finances, debt piles up, interest piles up. But that idea of you can mask and lie to yourself in ways that you can never take back. When it comes to your physical health, you have to exact your own interest. You have to be unflinchingly honest with yourself about your own health. And that is not something we enjoy doing because it's the thing we can deprioritize when we're trying to focus on other things. But I would be curious to hear from you, George, because I have not intentionally tried to needle you about the fact that this is quote unquote, something you think you have not done.

Well, because you did a great job at it.

Well, one of the reasons why I wanted to have this conversation with you is I've been watching you over these past two to three months. You really have dedicated and devoted yourself to health in a way, physically speaking, that it's. This isn't something that's going to slip. And I think that's incredibly inspiring. So how do you stay motivated to continue to prioritize your physical health? Because it's not like your life suddenly got less busy or less stressful. You run a company, you're the owner of an agency in a consulting business in this economy, and then you also have two different podcasts and you're a speaker and you're working on a book.

It's funny to hear you say that. My wife asked me, she's like, I don't get it. Why do you, why do you keep. Why do you keep doing. And again, probably a totally different podcast episode, but leaning into answering your question. I feel called to do the things that I'm doing. I feel called to be on stage as a speaker and an emcee, and to impact individuals lives in person. I feel called to create an agency culture that isn't a toxic waste dump, that people can actually enjoy working there. And clients are like holy crap, this is like nothing I've ever had before. I feel called to create beyond your default because a little behind the scenes, and I've never said this out loud, but I feel like this is a great episode to do it beyond your default. The podcast, the book, the community. It's my ability to create the church that you'll never walk into or the therapy couch you'll never lay on. I feel called to do these things, to be this person. The only way that I can fulfill these callings is to stay on this frickin planet. And the only way that I'm going to stay on this planet long enough to achieve what I feel I'm called to do is by making sure I get this engine from a three cylinder to an eight cylinder, that I'm checking the oil, that I'm like getting the tires rotated, whatever analogy you want. Like I have to be hyper focused on. Like this is the only place you have to live. George, do you want it to be done in a year or do you want it to be done when you're 98? I choose the latter. By the way, 98 would be dope with multiple grandkids, a rocking chair, a nice dogie, and a great bourbon. And a lot of humans that we've helped. That would be great. So here's the thing. I have to answer your question, Liz, of, like, how do I stay motivated and prioritize physical health, especially when life gets busy or stressful? I'm probably the wrong person to answer this fricking question because I'm a little different than the average bear right now. Like, everything I'm doing is to avoid pain. Everything I'm doing is focused on extending my life so that I can provide the value and passion and purpose to the callings that I feel have been placed on me as I'm on this planet. Listen, arthritis sucks. High blood pressure sucks. Three and a half days, two different times in my life sucks in the hospital, like, but the lessons that I've learned from them and what I need to take from it. And by the way, go listen to George Had a plan till he didn't. I was about as raw and as transparent as I could be through that whole, like, debacle of myself that I put myself into. Episode 40. Just go listen to it. I'm coming from this at a different angle, but I want to answer the question in a way that I think the listeners, if they haven't been in the hospital twice for three and a half days, and they're just like, hey, I'm just trying to live a better life in my job or live a better life in my. Like, I'm not trying to start three companies. I'm not trying to be 98. I'm not trying to, Like, I don't want all of what is me to get in the way of understanding that I'm different than maybe what some people are focused on or trying to do or can even hook into. So I'm going to start to really kind of answer your question like this. You have to connect with your why. Like, I gave you my why. It's a calling. I just feel like I'm supposed to do these things. You as a listener or you as Liz, have to connect deeply with your why. Why do you want to prioritize your health, whether it's to be more energetic for your kids, to live a longer, more fulfilling life, to feel better in your own skin, or in my case, just to have less pain, like, keeping Your why Front and center can be a powerful motivator. But I also think historically about some things that helped along the way when it comes to being focused on being physically healthy, even when life gets stressful. Also, the funny thing is, if. If you're physically focused, stress is a lot harder to come by. I know that's weird. We kind of alluded to it. But if you're staying physically healthy, then stress is a little bit harder to come by because of the endorphins and chemicals that are being released in your body. But setting clear, achievable goals is key. Break down your health objectives into manageable steps. Instead of aiming to lose 20 pounds, focus on losing one to two pounds a week. Again, my story isn't about pounds. It's about pain. But for you, if it is a certain amount of weight, then break it down. This approach of breaking it down makes your goal feel more attainable and less overwhelming. And by the way, it gives you more we success moments, because now it's for every two pounds and just that of two weeks, the 20 pounds and those we moments again, release these chemicals in your brain that make you want to keep going. This is something that's baffling to me, the amount of people that will go do something that they fundamentally hate or sucks from a physical regiment. Like, find activities that you love. Like, I love to walk. I love to listen to motivational inspirational videos while I'm walking. I like to listen to books. Find activities you love, whether it's for you. It might be dancing, it might be hiking. Shoot, I love swimming. Like, I can't wait until we move and potentially get, like, a swimming pool. I'll be the most fishiest fish swimmer person on the planet if I could just go out my backyard, dive in. Maybe it's playing a sport, but make exercise. Make physical movement something you look forward to rather than this chore of like, oh, I got to go to the gym and lift things up and put things down. Lift things up. Like, maybe that is exciting for you. Like, me personally, I'm like, nah, I don't need to go to a building and be judged by a whole bunch of people. Like, that's not my thing, but maybe it is for you. Buddha, by the way, wisely said, health is the greatest gift. Contentment, the greatest wealth and faithfulness the best relationship. When we focus on things that we enjoy, we're getting the health through the health and doing something we love. We're content in the moments of the things we're doing. And because we're content and because we're enjoying it, we become faithful to the relationship we're building with ourselves and others. By the way, that's consistency. Contentment in your activities leads to consistency. Now, Liz, I want to throw a fun little twist to the make it enjoyable thing that we're talking about right now. Gamify that junk. People like, come on now, we live in a modern world. Gamify your health journey. Use fitness apps that track your progress. Set challenges, rewards, badges, points, whatever you need to get that like ding, like Pavlov's dog, whatever, like response that you need to like gamify. Heck, I just like looking at my health app and seeing if I can beat the steps from the day before. That for me is a way that I'm gamifying it. Compete with your friends or join online communities. Liz, you've talked about how you can see like so and so has walked X, Y, Z miles or ran such and such today. Like that. That should be motivators now. As soon as it detracts, shut it down. But if it's a motivator to get going, then again, compete with your friends. Join online communities, places where you can share milestones and celebrate success. In fact, Liz, you know what we should do in the future? We should do a challenge around this in the beyond your default community.

I'm listening.

Yeah, this would be a great challenge of like something around physical health in the community with certain people that wanted to be part of it. Anyway, more to come on that listeners. We got to do some brain scheming around it, but I think a physical health challenge in the community would be pretty cool. Yeah, I think that my mind's trying to bake it out and I don't need to bake it out. Right now. We're on a podcast, so turning your fitness goals into this game or gamifying it, or being able to be part of a community and share the successes, they make the journey more engaging and they make the journey more enjoyable. The last thing I'm going to mention here, and maybe this is only me again, I've prefaced that I'm preaching to myself. You might not have this. I've learned that I have this. Sometimes you just gotta tap into your resilient stubbornness. Resilient stubbornness. Sometimes you've got to tap into that. It's about fighting your own brain. When it tries to talk you out of working out or eating right, remind yourself why you started and push through those moments of resistance. This grit, this determination can be your secret Weapon. It is my secret weapon. I have said I'm hard headed, I'm stubborn and I will use this resilient stubbornness to keep the toxic thoughts in my brain away. And you even said, Liz, this seems like something that's not going to slip. No. Because I'm going to just have stubbornness, resilient stubbornness that's going to help me overcome the mental barriers and stay on track. Let's one of your thoughts.

You know, I will say I'm going to zig instead of zag the way you had it.

Oh wow.

I liked what you were saying in terms of breaking down your health goals into things that are bite sized and manageable. So I'm currently down about 65 pounds. Let's go where I was this time last year and I don't get to make the joke now because it used to be like man, people, you, you look great, Liz. Thanks. Depression and divorce. Now I'm actually prioritizing myself. But you know what the big change was for me? I stopped thinking about numbers.

Yep.

To be fair, the health challenges and goals that I have, I don't need to be as micromanaging about weight now to be fair. Am I overweight and plus size? Yes. But my point more is that like our bodies, they don't listen and they don't function the way we think they do. So for example, I do like a lot of strength training and lifting. So I'm losing a lot of weight but I'm putting on muscle mass and muscle mass weighs more than fat even though I look like leaner, even though I'm healthier. Sometimes you're going to have weeks where you plateau. Sometimes you're going to have weeks where you end up taking a lot off. So instead what I did is I said, well, I'm focused more on building a new lifestyle and I'm going to live that lifestyle and my body is going to catch up and my doctors are going to tell me if I need to push harder or do whatever it is that I need to do. But I loved what you said though about like, just show to the, show up to the gym and see what happens. The way I actually was able to develop a good working out plan was just that I don't care what you do for 35 minutes, cupcake. You just, you could sit there and doodle on a counter at the gym for 35 minutes, but you're going to go to the gym for 35 minutes, you're going to do something.

Yeah.

So really for me, the big breakthrough moments for me was really more thinking about my health in terms of this is less about hitting a goal where there is an end and more about like, girl, your lifestyle has to change. Like, you just need to become someone who moves where activity is part of your daily. Whatever. Now, does it help that I also live in a third floor walk up?

Oh, yeah.

Oh my gosh. It does really make me mindful of, well, how much food do you really want to carry upstairs? How. How badly do you want those grocery list? How badly do you want that cake? The answer is not badly enough. Not badly enough.

Yeah.

But as we round out today's conversation, what advice would you give to someone who is struggling to find the time or energy to focus on their physical. I already see you shaking your head, so I'm going to back up off the mic because I think we're all about to get schooled here for a few. No, George, no. Oh, no, no. I know that face.

No, it's just I immediately go, ah, I love advice. Maybe sometimes, like again, the value is in some of the advice that you can give, but people need to take the advice that actually fits for them. And heck, many times I'm giving advice to the listeners, but honestly, sometimes I'm giving advice to myself all at once. Like the listeners are learning. I'm learning. So some advice for those struggling to find the time or energy to focus on their physical health and without being a butthead. Okay, I'm going to go back to that. We have to connect deeply with the reason that you're wanting to be a healthier you. Again, I mentioned why, but that's such a linchpin. That's such like a key piece of like understanding the why and connecting deeply for the reason that you want to be a healthy whether it's again, more energetic for your kids, live a longer life, feel better in your skin. Keeping that why front and center can be a powerful motivator. The other thing that we have to do and again, hence why there's a treadmill in the middle of my desk area because I suck at this. Schedule your workouts. Like any other important meeting, this is when I'm going to do this thing. I'm going to walk in the morning, in lunchtime, and in the evening, which I had that sitting on my calendar for a year and a half and never went and did it. So I suck at this. But you have to schedule your workouts like any other important meeting, meaning block out time in your calendar and treat it as a non negotiable A non negotiable. Again, we have mentioned this word several times. Consistency, ladies and gentlemen is the key. And having a set time can make it easier to stick to that routine, AKA habits that you're trying to build around being a healthier you. Fundamentally, we have to understand that prioritizing your health is an essential part of God. Here we go again. Self care. Okay, I'm gonna say the word again. It's what, twice? Maybe three times in this episode? Understanding that prioritizing your health is an essential part of self care. Think of it as an investment in your future well being. Ann Wilson Schaefer has a great quote. Good health is not something we can buy. However, it can be a precious savings account. I love thinking about every movement that I do as saving and I think it's because for me that ties close to my ripples mentality. One being the outcome of my value to the world, the other being the income to myself and the self respect and the self care that I'm investing. Another big part of this, not the biggest, but another big part of this is. And again, the question was if they're challenging or being challenged with this. Start with small manageable changes. It could be a 10 minute walk during your lunch break. A healthy snack instead of something sugary like small steps in the right direction can make a big difference and help you build and this is the word you're looking for. How can you mentally build momentum for the physical goals and challenges that you're facing? Try integrating physical activity into your daily routine. So many of us try to find the closest parking space at Walmart or store of choice. We'll go around the circle 17 times to get the one right near handicap parking. Park away from the entrance, take the stairs. Liz knows what that equals. Or stretch. Just try even stretching during breaks. Like these small activities add up and can be seamlessly incorporated into your daily life if you're focused on making that a action or habit that you do when you go to the store or see a flight of stairs instead of the ramp. Utilize fitness apps or wearables to track your activity and set reminders. Again, I gamify the crap out of this. If you're listening, you can't see me holding up my phone. But the health app. I love it. I love paying attention to. I have Apple Watch. It'll tell me as well. Gamify your fitness journey by earning rewards, setting challenges. It keeps you active, it makes it fun, it makes it engaging. And the last thing I'm going to say. And again I mentioned earlier, but I would implore you to find your own resilient stubbornness. Find that switch on the wall in your brain that you can be like, nope, not on my watch. Find that switch so you can flip it and push through mental barriers and fight the urge to skip workouts or make unhealthy changes. This inner strength, this switch that you can flip can help you stay committed. And here's the thing, regularly remind yourself of the benefits that you're reaping. It's great to say like 60 plus pounds, 40 plus pounds. You know what we don't say? Five more years added to my life, new pair of pants. A few perks that are going to happen of regularly reminding yourself of the benefits for the investment that you're making into this health savings account is improved mood, better sleep, increased energy, reduced stress. Anytime that you can point back to one of those things, say to yourself, oh, that's why I'm being healthy. That's why I'm making these habits. That's why I'm setting these goals. Keep these in mind because they can help you maintain your motivation. And remember this, by the way, because so many of us get in this trap. Habits, goals, habits, goals. It's okay to have a day off, ladies and gentlemen, a day off. Now, don't let a day become a year or a day become two years. Been there, done that. But practice self compassion and don't let a missed workout or a day that you purposely design as a off day derail your entire efforts. It's, it doesn't need to just reset, reboot, and go back after it. Celebrate your progresses, no matter how small, and keep pushing forward. I'm trying to incorporate all of these strategies. If you incorporate these strategies into your life, you'll find that prioritizing your physical health becomes not just doable, but enjoyable. That's where we want to get. Well, that sounds doable. I want to wake up and be like, oh, that sounds enjoyable. Like, let's go. Like, I'm excited about this. At the end of the day, listeners, I'm here, Liz is here, the rest of the community is here. We're here to say you got this and we're here again. I know we don't physically meet, but virtually we're here to cheer you on every freaking step of the way on what I hope is this exhilarating physical health journey to a life beyond your default.