436: Menopause Unfiltered…Back Fat, Beauty Hacks and More with Chalene Johnson

Menopause, if you are a woman, is inevitable. Feeling like crap is is not inevitable. That's avoidable if you've got the right information.

Welcome to Midlife Conversations. I'm your host, Natalie Jill, and I'm passionate about having amazing conversations that matter to us midlife women. On this podcast, I do what I do best, taking complicated health topics and breaking them down simply so that we can optimize aging together. I share actionable steps to help you thrive in what I believe are our best to Come join me as I interview the most inspiring people living their best midlife years and dive into essential topics like hormone changes, health optimization, weight management, blood sugar, emotional well being, relationships, beauty, and so much more. What seems to be happening with back fat as we age? Can we spot, reduce? Can we hide it? And should we even care? And why is it that workouts and nutrition that we used to do no longer work? And what about that dang energy? Where the heck did it go? And and why do we sometimes just feel like we want to hide in midlife? And how much do hormones actually play a role in how we age? A decade ago, I did a YouTube video called Attack of the Back Fat and it helped thousands of women tackle those stubborn fat pockets. Well, I'm back today with Chalene Johnson for something even more important. We're calling it Attack of the Menopause Back Fat because here's the truth. This conversation really isn't just about esthetics or that stubborn back fat. It's about everything that changes in midlife that nobody prepared us for. Chalene and I have both personally been through the frustration, the moments of wanting to hide and the confusion of conflicting advice. We've had to become our own total health detectives and figure out what the heck actually works and what happens to our hormones and what we need to do to fix it. We're about to get really real on how we've had to transform not just our own approaches in health and fitness and confidence during this new chapter, but we're going to have a real unfiltered conversation. No pretending we have it all figured out. Just honest conversation about what's working and what's not. Chalene, I had to have you have this conversation with me because what you all don't know listening is that we go back and forth on voice notes all day long. My husband jokes. He says, do you actually ever talk on the phone? I think maybe once in the last year. Normally it's just voice notes back and forth. That way we don't interrupt each Other, we just. We say our thing and then the next one goes. But we talk about all the midlife stuff happening on voice, all of these.

Things all the time. And I feel like we talk on the phone all the time, because we do. It's just. Yeah. Via voice note. And I can't believe some people don't use voice notes.

It's more efficient. No one interrupts you just. You get. You get out what you need to say. It's fast.

It works. And we're in different. Two different time zones, so it works really well that way.

But one of our recent voice notes, I actually said to Chalene, I said, do you. You look so good in your pictures. Do you have that back fat thing going on? I said, do you actually have that stuff? And so she sent me. Which if she ever makes you mad, it might go out on the Internet, but she sent me an actual unpause picture. And sure enough, if she's not stretching her arms up, she has it like the rest of us. So she's human too. We all have it. But seriously, what is it with the back fat thing? What happens? Because we used to have it up by the top of our bra.

Yeah. And, yeah, it's interesting how that was one of the probably most frustrating and almost embarrassing parts of going through perimenopause is that the shape of my body started to change. And it wasn't until I kind of started understanding that it was a different type of fat. You know, it's visceral fat versus subcutaneous fat. And when we. You and I first met, we were talking about really subcutaneous fat for the most part.

That's right.

We were young and spry and. And working on our abs. And when you start to go through perimenopause and hormones shift, so does where you store body fat. And so for me, what was really kind of confusing part about it is I was only a few pounds heavier, but my body was so different. And that is because so much of my body fat was now subcutaneous. I'm sorry, not subcutaneous. It was visceral. I mean, it's kind of like wrapped around our organs. And that happens as we start to lose those sex hormones are. Those hormones are also very protective, and they tell our body where to store fat. And so when those hormones are no longer there to tell everyone what to do, then the body is like, okay, let's just wrap it around our organs. So it's like, you're like, I'm not much heavier on the scale. But my body is completely different.

Yeah, definitely. And then you add in the gravity part, so it's just, it's all lowering. It makes me think we need to be doing handstands a lot more. But this something about the gravity just goes lower, lower. On the back fat topic, since I promised everyone that in this title, even though I know we're talking a lot about menopause and what changes, I have a few things I want to ask you about your opinion about, and I think they know mine, but I might share a little bit, too. Like, when it comes to people pinching their back and going, I want to get rid of this spot here, and they're grabbing it. What are your thoughts on spot reduction? Is it even possible?

Yes, if you go to a surgeon, it absolutely is. You know, and again, like, that's just. That's one way you can. You can reduce the body fat, but it. It'll never just reduce from just that one area, you know, and typically, the first place it comes on is usually like the last place it comes off. I will say, however, once you start to attack the inflammation and the other things that are causing you to hold on to visceral body fat, what's really great is visceral body fat responds even better to exercise and diet than subcutaneous fat does.

Wow.

So it's understanding, like, how to reduce your inflammation, how to change your nutrition, which you talk a lot about, how to change your exercise in such ways so that you are reducing the visceral fat, but you're not going to lose it just on your back. There's no one exercise you can do that. Like, you lose body fat there. No. You can do exercise to tighten muscles, but you're not losing body fat in one particular area.

One thing I didn't tell you I was going to ask you, but I'm going to ask it right now because you just made me think of it. There's a difference between fat and skin. Okay? So fat is one thing, but loose skin is another. And when gravity is coupled with loose skin, it might appear like you've got these. These fat pockets, but that's skin we just spread out around our back when we were younger and it does fall. What are your thoughts on loose skin? And, like, can you hide it?

What do you.

Can you tighten it like, anything you do there?

I would like a surgery where they, like, cut up my back and pull everything, like, back and up. Like, honestly, I swear to God, I swear to God, I've looked at. L like, is this something like no, thank you. It looks horrible, but oh my gosh. Yeah, skin. It's one of those things where I am really so grateful for what my body will do. I don't focus on the things I don't want to see. You know, I can move a certain way and look in the mirror and be like, ah. And I just quickly look away. I just ignore it. Like it doesn't exist. But it does, you know, and so there are ways you can camouflage it. I thank God this isn't the 90s. While we're menopausal and we were wearing low rise Frankie B. Jeans.

Oh, the whole highlight it all. Yeah.

Which would make a girl who's like £90 look like she's got back fat. You know what I mean? Oh, my gosh. But no. So I love, I love just knowing your body type and how to camouflage these things. And that's girl code. It's like, yeah, there's some things. Like it just is what it is. And I'm also fully in support of a woman who's like, I've done all the things and all I can think about. It's consuming my every thought. I can't get dressed. I can't enjoy myself. I can't have sex with the lights on. I can't do anything without thinking about this. Well, then find a surgeon. Like, I'm not opposed to that.

Like, no, not opposed to it at all.

Like, who cares? Like, it's your body, it's your life. If it's slow, if it's really impeding your every thought, then do something about it because there's, there's nothing we can do about skin. You can drink all the collagen you want, you know, you. It'll improve a little bit. But the texture and smoothness of our skin, now, that's changed by muscle in terms of like muscle or skin getting looser and saggier. You either fill it up with muscle, but for the most part we're, we're aging and yeah, you got to just camouflage it.

And I will say, ladies, some fashion we just need to say. I don't know if it's so flattering anymore. Like, I know at the gym I'll look at these young 20 year old girls and they've got their cute high rise with the tiny, tiny waist, you know, and the highlighted butt leggings. If I put those on, all it does is push the little pockets of fat just right on top of it. I'm like, you know what? It's probably not the look for Me. It's okay. We don't have to embrace every fashion. My thing is if we wore it 20 years ago, 30 years ago, and now it's circling back. We don't have to repeat if we don't want.

It's okay, right? Yeah. Just figure out like what, figure out what makes you feel amazing. Like, I remember this. My girls chat turned into this whole debate on like, are we really giving up our skinny jeans? You know what I mean? And my sister was like, I don't care what you say, I am never doing the big baggy boyfriend jeans. I'm not doing it. She's like, you can call me outdated, whatever. I feel sexy and amazing in my skinny jeans. And that's what you should wear, is what makes when you feel the best, the best.

Yeah. By the way, I'm not giving up my invisible socks and I don't care that it's invisible.

Oh, oh, you mean the no show.

Yeah, I don't care. I try every now and then I'll slide in like the higher ankle ones and I just, it doesn't feel good. I feel like it shortens my leg. I got it. It's out. My daughter tells me I'm not in. That's fine. I think at over 50 we've earned our NFG cards. We don't have to wear everything approved by everybody.

It can be so true.

What we feel good in. What do you actually, I'm curious what you actually do for back exercises. Because I, you know, I looked at my video from 10 years ago and I'm showing these like back strengthening exercises and I don't do any of those anymore to be interesting like I do because I'm more in progressive overload now. So to me I'm like, I'm going to work on pull ups and chin ups. I'm going to work on heavier. What do you actually do for back now?

Well, today was back day. So, you know, the basics are what works. And I think a lot of what we've done in the consumer fitness space is make people believe they have to buy another program, buy another program, buy another program. And because of that, fitness professionals have gone to this level where they try to keep becoming more and more creative. And I think we're doing so at the risk of injury and, and novelty. Like just to be novel doesn't mean you're going to get results. So I, for today I did, you know, seated cable rows. I'm doing a lot for my upper back, like my rhomboids, like I'm doing things that strengthen the big muscles of my lats and doing assisted pull ups. I'm doing bent over rows. What else did I do today? I did single arm posterior deltoid flies. So I'm.

Do you do pull ups and chin ups? Do you work on those at all yet?

I do assisted. You know, that's, I think it's amazing how strong you are upper body. I love that. I really am focusing on things that help my posture, things that feel good for me to do and lifting heavy. Your back is so crazy freaking strong. And so I'm thinking about like metabolically, what muscles do I want to work on so that I, my metabolism's working faster, right? So the, the small muscles, I spend less time on those. I, I train my legs three days a week, I train my back one day a week. And then all the smaller auxiliary muscles, you know, I work those in. But I'm really, at this point, I am training for my metabolism makes sense. I'm training for better bone density and I'm training to get stronger. Like I feel so much better about the shape of my body because I've got more muscle in it now.

Totally. We, I want to, I want to touch on that real. Because how important do you view muscle and strength for aging?

Well, it's essential. A woman who is not strength training will die sooner. She will have weaker bones, she will have less cognitive abilities. Muscle is not just your fountain of youth. It's the key to aging powerfully. It's the key to aging where you can live unassisted. I don't want to have my kids changing my diaper, helping me up off the floor, off the couch for that matter. And muscle is the key to that. And when you start shifting your mindset and following women who are actually stronger after 50, 60 and 70 than they were in their 40s, then you realize it's possible. Then you realize what a difference it makes in their shape, their appearance. When we have muscle, we have better cognitive function, we have better heart health, we have better bone health, we have better muscle shape. Like everything is better when you have muscle. So if a woman, if you're going to prioritize anything, by the way, when you're lifting weights, you're typically in a zone two state. So you can kill two birds with one stone. If you're going to focus on one thing, I would say it would be progressive overload.

Strength makes total sense. And if you're listening, I know people listening. Some people fall into the camp of they've been working out and they hear and they're like, yes, this is great. And then there's always some women that are listening that that's been something they've avoided for years. And I don't want you, if that's you, to get discouraged on this. You can. It's just starting and that's still going to be progressive overload for you. So it's not about looking at what I'm lifting heavy or what you're lifting heavy. It's starting for you and challenging yourself.

Answer that question that I know someone's going to ask below this episode. They're going to say, how much should I be lifting? And so here's the answer to that question. You should be lifting whatever exercise you're doing. You should be selecting a resistance, whether it's bands or weights that you fatigue within a minute. So that's typically 12 to 15 reps. And when I say fatigue, like you can barely do one more rep, I think too often we give women a rep count, like, okay, do 12 reps. And so they pick up whatever light weights and they do 12 reps, but they could actually do like 20 more. And that's a way to know that the weight or resistance you're using isn't heavy enough.

Makes sense.

So wherever you're starting, that's great. You don't have to go. When we say heavy, it's not how much Natalie lifts or how much I lift. It's heavy for you, meaning it's challenging before a minute is up.

I love that. You know, I teach something in my programs. I say when it comes to workouts, you focus on two words, progression and intensity. And people always kind of freak out at that progression and intensity. But I'm going to use the pull up as an example right now. So, yes, I can do some pull ups. Maybe whoever's listening, you've never done one. But if I can do four pull ups and I work on doing eight or doing faster or doing more sets, that's intense for me. If you've never done a pull up and you work on, can I just use my grip strength and hold, that's progression for you. So it doesn't matter the exercise. It's how are you creating that for you to be progressing and making it intense for you.

Exactly. Yes, exactly. And that's why two women, someone who's 78 years old and just starting out, she can do the exact same workout as me.

Yeah.

When it comes to strength training at exactly the same. We're just going to use as you Said different weight. Right. So a different intensity. So she might pick up lighter weights, but we can do exactly the same workouts, which is so great. So freeing because back when I was creating these crazy cardio workouts, most women couldn't do those workouts.

No, I mean, they.

They just were so difficult. The average person couldn't even start until they got fit enough. Any woman at any size, any level of fitness can start strength training today. Yeah. You know, you said something about, you know, like a photo or whatever, but, like, I think so many women, I see a lot of posts where people are like, let's normalize this, let's normalize that. And they post like, you know, pictures of their cellulite or unflattering photos, which I think is great. But that ain't me because I don't want to think about that. And if that becomes our focus and if that's what we're. We see of ourselves, then you kind of resist putting yourself out there. Like, I want to be in a good mood.

Yeah.

So I delete any unflattering photo. I delete it totally.

And we've also. And I know you've been really good about sharing the tricks, even on social media or in your communities. Like, like, we know if we stretch our arms over the head, it's going to stretch us out or we stand a certain way or we pose. Chalene showed this really funn image of her on a side pose, basically digging her fist into her butt to make it look like she had these even bigger glutes, which is funny. So I think I like that we all kind of know these posing tricks and we'll. But I love when women share it with other women in midlife too.

Yeah. Yeah. And, you know, I just don't see the harm in wanting to feel better. I think there's this thing where we have this almost like people, women sometimes fighting. Like, I'll have get comments or like, why don't you just accept the aging process? I'm like, I'm accepting the aging process, but I'm doing what I want with it. That's like if I bought a really nice car, do I have to accept that it's just going to rust out in the front yard? Can I. Aren't I entitled to put it in the garage if I want or have the. Have the body repainted?

Yeah. You know, no. And I love that realness about you. I stole a line from you. I admit I got it from Chalene and I somehow thought it was my own. But it's not. It came from her where she says, I'm. You say I'm fully fake and remodeled on the outside, but my inside is completely real. I mean, my personality is completely real. I will say I go with that. And I forget that that came from you, but I feel that same way. But I think we all get to age the way that we want to. If somebody wants to just do it all natural, I don't even know what that really means, by the way. Once they say I'm just all natural. But if you want to go all completely natural, and that's you, great. If you want to fix everything, great. I think we all, as women, get to respect people's choices on how they want to age.

Dude, I was fake when I was in my 20s, so of course I'm fake now. Like, nothing's changed. You know, everything's an aftermarket upgrade. You know? Like, I'm. I am like a magician over here. And so it's not because of aging. It's just who I am. I'm, like, really good at fooling everybody, right?

And, you know, it's funny, though, when people say the natural thing, because most people that say natural, they still had braces. They still. So it's like, where do you draw the line? Like, do we. Did you still had your eyebrows waxed? I mean, so it's somebody who's the police that's saying, this is the line where it's not natural anymore, because that's not fair either. So I just think whatever we choose to do, however we choose to age, I think it's admirable for women to empower other women and accept it and say, this is great.

And even more understanding, okay, this is happening. But why? You know, once you have information, it's like anything. If you've ever had, like, a weird injury or a strange symptom, and you're like, what is going on? And your brain goes to all the worst places, right? You're like, I've got cancer. I've got. You know, I'm. I'm certainly terminal. Like you. Your brain does all these weird things, and then once you have the information, you're like, oh, okay. Even if it's negative, you're like, well, at least now I know what it is and what I can and can't do, what's within my control and what's not. And for so many women, the conversations around aging have happened from our aunts and our grandmas and media, and it's all been like, okay, you're going to be ugly and you're going to be dried up and you're going to be invisible and you're going to be miserable and you're going to be constantly fanning yourself and you're going to be heavy and you're going to be a shadow of yourself. And I know, I heard all of these things and I was terrified of the word menopause. Terrified. But once you have information, you're like, oh, okay, Menopause, if you are a woman, is inevitable. Feeling like crap is, is not inevitable. That's avoidable if you've got the right information.

Let's talk about that for a minute. Because there's a lot of women listening right now that don't feel amazing. They are listening because they don't know what's going on with these changes. They are perimenopause, their menopause, or even post menopause, and they feel like they want to hide. They, they're supposed to know stuff, but they don't. They don't know what's going on, what's been real for you. Because you've had those moments, those times where you let those beliefs kind of take over and then I've watched you also shift out of them. So help that woman understand kind of your thought process there. Like, how, how did you get yourself out of those feelings? How has information empowered you? Help us with that.

So the first thing I did is when I stepped away from consumer fitness videos, doing, you know, doing consumer fitness videos, I was in the throes of perimenopause and didn't realize it. So I assumed that the waking and all the weird body changes I was experiencing over this course of like a three, four year period was because I was no longer abusing my body the same way. So when those changes started to happen, I, in my brain, I was like, oh, I've got to go back to my old ways. Like, I need to work out harder than I was even when I was in fitness and I need to eat less. And so I started doing those things, but with new information, right? So I was eating healthier. I was trying to do all the things to improve, like my gut health and my immune system, all of those markers. So I started to feel better. Natalie. I even started on hormone replacement therapy probably like seven years ago. And I tell women that because they're like, oh, you're doing, you look great now because you're doing hormone replacement therapy. It's like, well, but I was doing it then and I was much heavier. Yeah, I was 10 pounds heavier. It's the hormone replacement therapy is it kind of levels the playing field, but it's not automatically going to make you lose weight. It just made me feel. I had fewer perimenopausal symptoms. I felt more energy, I felt better, but my body was not mine. Like I gaining weight, I was still. And I still felt uncomfortable. So there was about a two year period. There were like, I, I don't want to say hid, but I definitely stayed in a lot more. I was, I felt fortunate. That was during COVID you know. And so I only posted photos of like my head and I always try to like position because of my face was getting fuller.

Yeah.

And the more I would think about these changes, I would like fight with myself. Like, okay, just, you feel better and so just screw it, you know, this is aging. And like, why are you being so vain? You know, so what, you've gained whatever 10 pounds over the course of five years. Who cares, right? But then I would go back and forth and go, but it's putting me in a really bad mood.

Yeah. Oh, it's so, so relatable. In fact, I remember speaking on your stage, I think it was two years ago actually, and I said to you I was 17 pounds heavier then on your stage than I am right now today. And I was, I told you, I said, we were backstage and I said, I feel so super bloated and gross. I said, I wonder if I'm pregnant. Like, literally that's where my head went because I couldn't wrap my brain around why else I was gaining all this weight when I'm eating strict and working out and doing all this stuff. And I thought, okay, yes, I'm aging, but I'm doing all these things. And I literally said, what if I'm pregnant? And you said, I highly doubt you're pregnant. You're over 50. But it was like. But I remember feeling that way too. And then you even your team sent me pictures. And I use those pages, those pictures now and I'll put one in this video here if you're watching on video. But it, when I looked at them, I was like, I don't even recognize myself. And I will use those words that you just said where I felt like I wanted to hide. I felt I started feeling fake. That was a different type of fake where I felt inauthentic. Like, here I am supposed to be leading people with fitness and fat loss and health and I don't have it all together. So I remember feeling kind of like what you Said where? I don't know what's going on. I think I'm doing the right things, but I want to hide now.

Yeah. And I think for both of us and many who are listening or watching, you resort back to what did work. Yeah. So you go back to your old ways of eating, you go back to your old habits, you go back to your old ways of exercising, your old style of mentality. And that does not work in this season because you are a completely different machine. It's like putting diesel into a vehicle doesn't run on diesel. It. It may be used to, but it doesn't now. And so it just doesn't work because our hormones are running a completely different machine when we're in perimenopause and menopause and, and that's probably the hardest piece for me because it's. We've been so great. Like, I mean, from the time I can. The Earl. My earliest memories of thinking about my body was, you know, like in middle school. And that's when like Jane Fonda was all the rage. And just, you know, high impact aerobics and cardio. Cardio, cardio. And snack, well, cookies and everything fat free. And, and so. And it worked. It worked in our 20s and 30s. And that is because our hormones are very predictable. When we. All through our fertility years, our hormones are very, very predictable. It's once we start to enter perimenopause that they start to do this, Right.

Totally.

And so where we used to be able to predict and determine how to lose weight, how to whatever, get in shape, it was easy. But how can you predict a roller coaster ride? And you would think like, okay, now I'm menopausal. Are you menopausal?

Yeah, I am now officially.

Congratulations.

Welcome to the afternoon. I know it had to be a full year, but, yeah, I'm there.

We have to. I think we need to have cards made. I know. You know, it's kind of nice, actually.

I mean, once you get through all the rocky stuff, I think that part, it's kind of nice once you know what's going on. Yeah, yeah.

Because it becomes more predictable. And so for me anyways, I was like, wait, why is this not more predictable if I'm in menopause? Like, why shouldn't things be more predictable now? And, and here's the reason why. Because testosterone, progesterone, estrogen, they all tell our bodies what to do with energy. Fat stores, sugars, everything. And so as those things are in decline and they're also protective, they Protect our brain, they protect our heart, they protect our bones, they protect skin, everything. So as those things start to leave, the body's like, oh, wait, so you're still here? I guess we should try to keep you alive. So let's increase some other hormones because, you know, the body's really good at keeping us alive. So it increases cortisol and it increases all of the hormones that help us to produce body fat, because fat is protective. And so as our hormones decline, the ones that increase. If you look at a graph, it's. It's the hormones that produce body fat that increase. So the key is figuring out like, first of all, understanding, okay, I'm not crazy. Yeah, not lazy. I'm not broken. I'm not lazy. I didn't destroy my metabolism. This is a hormone situation.

Right. You know, it's interesting too. There's a whole nother layer that I wasn't even aware of until recently that it makes sense that, you know, there's all. Everything seems to be toxic these days. Like you hear everything's toxic in our environment, but toxic load over time piles up in our bodies too. And then your body stores things in fat to almost protect your organs from it too. So it's another compounding factor that's happening on top of all of this. So if your hormones are not optimal and stuff, you're even having bigger problems with that and how your body's storing and getting rid of toxins. There's a whole compounding thing that happens. So women, I think, go into this self beat up that they should just be working out harder, they need to be stricter and they're not realizing that all of this stuff is, is truly affecting them and going on.

And I don't want anyone to like completely get discouraged right now because I know we're kind of pointing out the negatives and the obvious, but you kind of have to. And what was really. So two things that really shifted everything for me because I was like, I'm doing all the things right. Actually, there's three things. Number one is this is like three years ago, I had a top female hormone expert on my show, Dr. Mary Claire Haver. And I was like, wait a second, I've been working with a hormone doctor. How come I don't know any of this? And that made me go like, okay, I'm just gonna be very self serving on my show and I'm just gonna invite guests on to educate me on all of this. Then the second thing was understanding the difference between the subcutaneous fat and the visceral fat. And understanding that visceral fat is metabolically active. And when, when Dr. Mary Claire Haver said that I was, I was like metabolically active. To me, in my brain, I'm like, that sounds like it's using calories. What does that mean?

Yeah, right. And what did you say it means? What does it mean?

I've not actually heard that term highly inflammatory. It's causing, I mean, another way of putting is like, it is a reality show and it is the villain on the reality show causing drama. It is highly inflammatory. So it set us all these cytokines. It tells your body you are inflamed. And when we're inflamed, the body as we know, like inflammation holds water. Water is protective. It swells. If you roll your ankle, your body's like, oh, let's protect you. Let's swell up and put, you know, a big cushion around this. And so your body becomes you little. I remember just thinking, I'm just a puffy person. Like a puffier. How I felt too puffier version of myself. Yeah. And so it was like, like understanding that I was like, okay, so what can I do about it? Yeah. And what's interesting is I had to go, how do I reduce my inflammation? So the third thing, so it was the interview, it was understanding the difference between visceral and subcutaneous fat and how that changes for us as our hormones in decline. And the third thing was a study that I discovered about athletes. Well, they're not even athletes, semi pro athletes, I guess you would say, people who are like on a collegiate level of their sport. And they looked at the team of rowers and they looked at how their inflammatory markers were very. Almost mimicked people with Cushing's disease. And the way I discovered this, this study was because I was putting in all of my symptoms. I'm like, you know, doing high intensity cardio. I'm going like basically into AI.

I'm doing training and doing cardio and.

I'm training and I'm doing strength training five days a week. And I'm doing this, I'm doing that, and I'm eating this, but my face is getting round.

I put in all my symptoms and basically it was like, oh, it sounds like you might have Cushing's disease. And then I discovered this study which we can link to. Where I learned it is because their bodies had been so conditioned by doing long duration, high intensity. So not just hiit training or tabata, not short duration, but long duration, high intensity. I was running, I was doing kickboxing. I was doing, you know, battle ropes. Like, anything that was just like, if I wasn't crawling on the floor, dripping and sweat, I was like, well, then I didn't get a good workout, and therefore, I didn't burn any calories. And therefore I'm going to be fat.

That's exactly how I felt. Because that's what we used to do in our 30s and 40s to. To lean out or to. We would beat ourselves up like that, work out harder, do it more. And that's what we did.

And now backfiring, because I loved that too. Like, it gave me a high. So I couldn't imagine giving up running, giving up boxing, giving up. But I was like, okay, I'm going to do this for six months, and I'm just going to look, I'm going to implement what it is I've learned from these guests, even though I don't believe. I don't want to believe them. They're showing me studies, and I'm like, it does. It doesn't make sense to me. I think I'm probably different, but what else can I do? Nothing's working. So I cut all of that out, and I just started doing zone two cardio.

And you explain what that means. Zone two cardio.

Zone two cardio is a. You know, we hear you when you hear this word. It's just a fancy way, like a academic way of saying cardio. That's chill. You know, it's walking. Like, what you. You could even do. You could even do boxing. That's zone two. Zone two basically means you're just. You're having a good time doing it. You're not killing yourself. You could have a conversation. We used to call it marking. Right? Like, so when I used to do choreography, I'd be like, okay, I'm going to mark it and show you what it looks like, but I wouldn't, like, be doing it full out. Well, marking it is zone two. You know, I took my mom's Zumba class. I'm like, this is zone, like anything, where you could, like, talk and enjoy.

Yourself, walking with a friend on a mild hike, that type of thing, too.

Yeah. So zone two cardio. You've gotta. You know, you want to keep your heart rate at a place. If we're talking about a scale of 1 to 10, somewhere like around a 5, where you could have a very comfortable conversation. You could be on the phone, you might sound a little bit breathy, but you could do it for an hour. You could do it for an hour and a half and you don't run out of energy. And what that does is it helps your body, first of all, to recover much easier. And it has so many incredible benefits to reducing our stress. Yeah, we're so stressed out. And I don't know about you, Natalie, but I think my weight was stressing. Like worrying about my weight stressed me out so much.

Well, for sure, me. And I think even worse if we're in a public eye and we're known for fitness or our bodies before, which is a whole nother level that I think makes us feel like we need to know this or we. Why we should go into hiding, which is what I want to ask about you neck ask about next. There's a lot of people listening that they've never done anything with fitness. That's not their. They. That wasn't their business. They don't care about that, but they still can relate to that. I want to hide. I don't feel like myself. I don't. Like they're saying no to things. They don't want to hang out with friends anymore. They don't want to say yes to the invite. They don't. Because they. They want to hide. What do you want them to know? Because you and I have both felt that way for real and. And in different layers. But what do you want this woman to know?

I get it. And I was. I did that, too. And I also convinced myself that, like, I'm just. As I'm older, getting older, I just don't want to be as social. I just am more of an introvert than I realized. I guess as I'm getting older, I'm getting more social anxiety. And I started telling myself these stories and, you know, if I am just going to be, like, all the way real. Even when I started making all these changes and I started feeling better physically, I still didn't want to do anything because I think as women, if we don't like the way we look.

We don't want to do anything.

Yeah.

And it's sad.

It's sad.

Maybe not everyone feels that way, but I think we've just been so conditioned that, like, if. If you don't feel good about the way you're showing up, you're just like, well, then I don't. Then I'm tapping out.

Yeah. And it sucks to feel like that. But on the other side of it, what do you know to be important? Because, like, for me, I know. And I know you think I'm like, massive extrovert. And I don't think I am. I think I'm a social introvert on some levels. I do. Like, I have a lot of friends, so she makes fun of me or a lot of connections. But I feel that way a lot too. But I do think deep down that connection with other women is been so important for growth. And getting myself into uncomfortable places like where I think I'm going to be uncomfortable and making myself go and be social and connect and meet other women has been so healing and has brought me to another level. And I'm just wondering, and I know you, you say no to a lot of things too. But I also watch that when you do get together with friends or when you do actually get together with other women and have real conversations, you, you transform too.

Yeah. You know, I think you and I are really lucky and I think, I think there's a lot of women out there who have just always said, well, you know, I can't find my girl group or I, I don't have those kind of women around me or their friendships have changed as we've aged and that happens to a lot of us and we've. And you don't have time to prioritize it when your kids are little, like, you're just like running from sports and this and that and you just, you just, you're just like, you don't have time to prioritize it and then suddenly you're an empty nester and you're like, I don't have any support. Yeah. And that's when it's time to like. And you're so good at this. But you've got to prioritize that because it's going to affect your health, your longevity, your stress, your support. Like, I just had three of my girlfriends here visiting and all three of them over the course of the last three, three years, we're all in menopause, we've all lost ten pounds. And the reason why, I shouldn't say the reason why, but one of the things that's been incredibly helpful is like you and I, we've got this ability to connect and talk about these things and if I learn something, I'm going to share it with you. And when you learn something, you share it with me. And unfortunately a lot of women, because they haven't had that support around them, they've missed out on that. And it's phenomenal. And you don't realize how important it is, number one, to have somebody who gets it. And it says girl, like, I don't feel like going anywhere either, because this back fat, right? And what are we going to do about it? And to have someone, to have a community around you is really important. I mean, you've moved recently and one of the first things you did was build a community of women.

Well, I feel very strong that community is, is critical and the right community. And I don't want to explain what I mean there. Like, it's one thing to have friends that are miserable with you. That's not the kind of friend I'm talking about. I don't, I don't. And I don't actually want any friends that do that. And I don't mean like, Chalene is having a bad day and she calls me upset, fine, I'm there for her in that. But if every day she's upset and we're just going and repeating the same upset story about how aging sucks or whatever, that's not empowering for anybody. So to me, I think it's important to have access, be around women that are not gatekeeping and women that are also listening, being positive and, and not toxic positivity, like, oh, we're just going to fake it till we make it. But, but like, no, let's find out, let's share information, let's figure out how to uplevel and age well together. Let's talk about redefining it. I will tell you, there's a lot of women, a lot of women in their 50s, 60s, and beyond that are really committed to redefining what that has to mean for women. And that's the type of women that, if you're listening and you're thinking, you know, I just have been so down, I don't feel good. I don't believe you have those women in your life right now. And it's important to get yourself in spaces where you've got access to that because that energy is so contagious and it does get you to want to be better and it helps you be better and it helps you feel more empowered and supported. I think one of the things you.

And I both have talked about is how like, we hear this over and over and over in our communities and, and you know, as you know, it's one of the reasons why I'm like, I want to put together an event where these women who don't have other friends, don't have other girlfriends, don't have that support can come and like, meet up and meet each other and, and realize, like, I don't have to live in the same city. The girls I just had here visiting me. We none of us, we live 3,000 miles apart. And so I wanted to create this event, right, where, number one, you could come and, like, get a fast track of all this information. Because it's a lot.

It's a lot and it gets overwhelming. And we need Cliff Notes. Yes, it's true a lot.

And especially if you're trying to sort through it yourself, you're like, wait, what do I do first? And so I wanted to put together an event where I'm like, I'm going to invite the top female experts in all these areas like sexual health and your, you know, just understanding your mindset and how to find your purpose at this stage of your life. And what does it mean to like, make decisions and prioritize yourself? And what do we really need to know about hormones from a female. The number one female hormone specialist. And what do we need to know about muscles and bones? And how do we. Where do I start if I haven't been exercising? And I need to put together a plan. Where do I start if I have been exercising but what I've been doing doesn't work? And so, you know, and you're going to be there talking about. It's called can't be more. And I don't want to turn this into an ad or anything, but I do want to mention it because if we're talking about the problem and we don't tell people that there's a solution, you know, this is actually a funny story.

We got to bring this up because so what you all don't know about Chalene, it's years ago, she had a thing. She used to teach camp do more. So she used to be of the mindset women need to do more. But what I love about the new midlife, improved version of Chalene is she's like, no, we get to be more, we get to be more. And it doesn't require doing more. It requires being around the right people and being more. So I think this is cool that you've. You created this. I. I was like, please let me come. Please let me share, please. I couldn't wait to do this.

But I have to tell you, I, I mean, have told you this, that it's interesting because I thought just this would, like people would be flocking to this. And of course, you know, the people who support me and been with me from, they trust me, they the first to register. But I had so many women in my community say, I know I need to be there. I would love to meet you in person. I would love to meet all these other speakers, but I don't feel good in my own skin right now. I don't want to have to buy an outfit. I don't want all the speakers you have. They all look so fit and attractive. I don't want to show up in the room and be the only one who's wearing a sweatshirt and nothing fits. And I don't feel cute. I'm like, girl, girl. That's who I've created this for. Like, there's a. It's a no judgment zone. You can't even attend if you're under 40 unless you identify as being perimenopausal or menopausal. Yeah, like, I really want to be this, like, safe judgment free zone. You can come in Crocs and socks or your ball gown. Like, you know, you get to a certain age where you're just like, idgaf. You know what I mean? Like, I can do whatever I want, and I just want them to show up and have fun. And, you know, it's not going to be a fitness event. More was a fitness event. Like, I ran you ragged from 6am until midnight. And for this event, I'm like, okay, ladies, you make the rules. Tell me. Tell me what you want. And it's so funny. We had this Facebook group of people who have already registered so they can kind of get to know each other already, you know, and they're like, don't you dare make us start early. I'm like, that is so funny. Okay, great.

I've been, like, listening to her as she's been planning this for quite some time. And what I love, she said, we're not starting early. We're not making anybody dress a certain way where it's going to be fun. We're not sitting and listening to boring lectures. We're going to make sure everybody gets their questions answered. And this is the other cool thing. I can't speak for all your speakers coming because I don't personally know all of them. But, like, I would be willing to bet me for sure. Like, I'm not. I didn't. I didn't want to be paid for this. I'm like, I just want to come and have fun and I want to give back because I understand how you listening probably feel if you are not feeling good. I've been. I've been you before, and I just want help and answers. And there's nothing better than learning that speakers or people presenting are just like you. They are literally you. They Might be a couple steps ahead in the knowledge. Like, maybe they figured something out ahead, but they are truly just like you. And I know I could speak for you, Chalene, and I could speak for me for sure. When I run into people that have maybe been with me online or. And they. They're like, you're the same in person. I love this. And that's what I. I want to be around you. The women worried because this is. It's not a fake online thing like this. We are really midlife women that have walked through this, and it is so cool to connect with other women and be able to help guide and show them the steps that they can take, too.

We keep getting messages from people like, can you make it a virtual event? And I'm like, of course we could, but we're not going to.

But it's missing the whole connection piece.

Exactly. And I'm like, I. You know, I don't know. Maybe I'll change that sometime in the future. I don't know. But right now, my gut tells me not to do that because it's too easy to say, oh, I'll just watch from my couch.

No, in personal development, we always call it a stretch. Like, you got to stretch yourself. So you have to almost put yourself in a little bit of an uncomfortable position if you want to have change. You all have heard this before. You have heard that if you want to grow and change, you have to get a little uncomfortable. You have to get out of your comfort zone, right? So if something feels a little scary or intimidating, that is actually the thing to lean into if you want to change. Because if you stay in your comfort box, nothing changes. You'll. You'll never get to that next level. I want to talk about. This is interesting. I just put this together, but your agenda with camp be more kind of lines up to all the things you did in your life to become, like, this bigger health detective and figure things out and improve your life. So how did you, like, come up with, like, are these all the literal steps that you did? Can you share?

Because it's kind of how we organize the event, too. It's like, okay, first you have to understand, like, from a scientific, like, from a hormone standpoint, what's going on and why? Because until I understood that, I just wouldn't believe any of the advice I was hearing. I'm like, that just does not make sense. How could I possibly lose weight and body fat by not working out as hard? That doesn't.

A little bit of science, a little bit of like, you've got to understand why this happened.

And then we've got women who, you know, and by the way, these aren't all, like, super fit, you know, amazing women, because it's not just about weight. It's a mindset shift, too. So I've got, you know, a segment where it's women who have discovered that they have a whole new passion after age 45, and they want to put themselves out there. And, like, how do you do that? And how do you get back in the dating scene? Yeah. How do you make friends? And then we've got a sex segment where we're talking about what's going on. First of all, from a scientific standpoint, from biological standpoint, and what should you have to accept and what do you not have to accept and what is possible? And for women our age, it is so. It's so taboo to talk about.

Yeah. And a lot of women are embarrassed by it. They're like, I'm just not interested anymore. Like, what's wrong with me? That's like a whole. And they're afraid to ask that. It's. That's very real.

And also thinking, like, well, I just. I. I just don't need it. You know, I'll hear that a lot. And so, you know, I've got that covered. We've got. And so many of the women have their own transformation stories. So they look amazing, but they were in your shoes at one point. So, you know, talking about how to physically change, how do you have to lift differently? Like, we're going to break down. What does that mean to lift heavy? What does that even mean? What is progressive overload? How do you put a plan together to start? What does midlife nutrition need to look like? What does it look like when you feel like you. You. You're a weirdo, like, you're a neurodivergent? How do you turn that into something that you're proud of and people are attracted to and how do you make these connections? And so for me, I kind of went like, okay, what were the areas.

Yeah.

That transformed me? And how do I. How do I get the best expert who I learned from there? And then here's the other thing. How do I get them to give us the TLDR version?

Yeah.

Meaning too long didn't read. Like, we're at an age where it's like, I ain't got time to.

No. The cliff. The cliff.

Don't make me. I don't need to. My girl doesn't need to know what adenosine triphosphate is. You don't need to impress her. Just. Just the facts, ma'. Am. What do I need to do?

You know, I have a. I have a question. Okay. So you. You and I both have podcasts, and we. And we've been exposed to a lot of experts in a lot of these topics, especially. Let's take hormones as an example.

Yeah.

There is tons of conflicting information, and it's very confusing. I get flipping confused myself because there's so many different experts, different opinions. How did you navigate, like, what's actually right for you? And then how did you even know which guests to pick? So it's. We don't confuse people more because this is. This is a. This is a big, open, confusing topic for people.

Yeah. I pay attention to who they're certified with and what. How devoted they are to looking at new research. Is this someone who I know they're going to report on the latest research within, like, 24 hours of it being published? That matters to me, you know, and so those are the people I paid attention to, number one. And then number two, understanding for myself that the first. Even. The first, probably.

I would say even still, I'm tweaking my hormone replacement therapy and understanding that it's not even so much that there's a lot of conflicting information. It's understanding that we are so individuals, so individualized that our approach to hormones has to be so different. I'm sure you get this all the time. I do. People will say, can you tell me exactly what you take and your doses?

Yeah, but it's like, it depends on our numbers to begin with.

And I'm like, unless you are my identical twin.

Right. And there's no way.

And we're doing everything like, it just. It wouldn't be. It wouldn't be useful. No.

And it's. And it just goes layers. I'll tell. This just happened to me, literally, with testosterone, because I'm on HRT also. But I was like, you know, I interviewed Kelly Casperson, and I'm like, okay, I gotta go. I gotta really look at the testosterone. And then all of a sudden, my total testosterone was super high. Like crazy. Like over 200 high. But my free testosterone was only 2. Now, why does that matter? Well, we hear parts of information. Like, you hear if your total Testosterone is over 100, that's way too high. But no, your free testosterone is what actually is going to matter and make a difference. So it's these little, like, nuances like this where if I just tell somebody what my patch is or what my dose is. Like, we're all so individual. And it's your labs and how it's processing and how it's working together. Everything is so unique. And I think this is a big part of the puzzle missing. Like, we people just hear these little pieces of information like, oh, I just need to start this or I got to do what Chalene's. But it's, it's bigger than that. It is.

And I wish it were like, you could set and forget it. And so like, let's be completely transparent with anyone, any woman who's struggling with this, who thinks, like, I'm gonna figure it out and then I can forget it. You really can't. There. This is something you're going to have to pay attention to for the rest of your life because this is how we live. It's how we survive. It's how we age powerfully versus just aging. Right. And I, I, I don't want to live to be 180, but whatever years I'm alive, I want to be powerful. I want to be optimal. And so that means I'm always trying to do lifestyle things so that my body's producing or leveling some hormones out. Some they're just never going to come back. Right. But like when I'm lifting heavy and I'm really focusing on like gaining strength, usually my testosterone tends to be higher. And so then I can down regulate or down titrate my dosage that I'm doing. And I like to play with it. I, I don't just take a dose and go like, okay, I want to see like, do I. What, what Would I feel better if I took less estrogen? Will I experience more symptoms if I take more? Like, you know, it's your lifestyle affects it. If a woman is deficient in sleep, everything totally works in opposition. Like, there's so many things that affect your hormones and everything works better when your hormones are balanced. I don't know if you recently saw this study about GLP1s and hormone replacement therapy and how much more effective it is. It was like 40 women who were on hormone replacement therapy and doing a GLP1 had a 40% better result. That's remarkable. Wow. And that's because you're, you went. And that is because your hormones, when they're gone, you are fighting upstream. And for women who can't or think that they can't take hormone replacement therapy, I would say first make sure that your clinician actually knows what they're talking about and that they are trained in menopausal care. Because if they're going off of what they believe is the latest research, it's probably the women's health initiative, which is outdated, flawed, and debunked years ago.

Yeah.

So we walk into a room, a person's got a white lab coat on, and we're like, I don't want to challenge them. You know, and so we just accept what they say and we shouldn't do that. We need to advocate for ourselves. And, you know, maybe you aren't a candidate for hormone replacement therapy. That's okay. There are some hormone therapies that almost every woman is perfectly safe. And I'm not a doctor, I just pretend to be one. I'm just a girl with the microphone, as we like to say. But, you know, look into it. Look at the research yourself. And, and what's so cool, Natalie, is now because of AI, like back when I started my podcast, I had to learn how to use PubMed and how to do research and how to analyze it. And now you can just use AI tool like Perplexity and, and have it do peer reviewed academic research and have it break it down and you can say to AI, like, find for me a study that fill in the blank any question that you have.

So I wanna, there's. If I look at a whole, I'm gonna put this in buckets right here because this is really important for everyone here. And I, and I know you and I know a lot of people are so close to this that they might even not even see these buckets. But for you, those of you listening that are like, okay, I'm relating to what you said at the beginning and I'm hearing you on the hormones, but I want to share that it's not just that piece. I look at it, I look at midlife in these buckets. Like, number one, do you believe it's actually possible to age girl?

That's number one.

Like, we have to be there, like mindset. And people say mindset and they roll their eyes. But if you believe getting older sucks, that your genetics have to catch up to you, that everyone goes downhill, that it just stinks, that's a problem because then we're operating from a bad foundation. But if we can start focusing on, I believe it's possible, that's like step one, can you even be open to possibility? Then we look at, I'll say, like nutrition and movement. Like nutrition and movement. Yes, you still eat well. And I know we, we have so many episodes. And we can, we'll go Deeper there too. But on. On nutrition and like how do you actually eat well and what changes and then movement and like you touched on movement can change over the years. Like where maybe it was these hardcore workouts. That's not what's serving us in midlife. We need these zone two and a different then we look at obviously hormones and what's changing there and all the misinformation and how do we. What's the right information. But here's the pieces we didn't bring up and I really want to make sure we hit on these because this is. Is so critical. The next two areas that we didn't really touch on. I want to go a little bit deeper here is connection and community. This is critical and connection and community. I'm going to lump into getting out of your comfort zone. And this is why this is so important to. I would love first of all, I would love all of you to come to Vegas and be at camp. Be more because I want to meet you and hug you and I know Chalene does too. And I want to actually help you jumpstart that if for some reason you can't go there and I and I think you should move mountains and get there. But if you can't get there, you've got to take this what I'm saying seriously. You've got to find a way to have connection and community in your world. And if you want to jump start it, I'm going to say come to Vegas and do this with us over two days because we will force feed you and we will make sure that you have connection and you get this. But this is so important. And then, and then I'm going to come back to it with you in a minute. But the other piece we didn't bring up is the external and some of you are like what do you mean the external. But this you get to feel good in your body. So if that means the beauty tips, if that means the tweaks, all of that, I think it's important because if you don't love what you see looking back at you in the mirror, if you're feeling and hiding there, that's also affecting how we're aging. So I want to just go a little deeper on those two things because those are two things you have really focused a lot on whether you realize it or not too. And you're doing at in Vegas.

Yeah, I think that's really fun. The let's talk about connection and commute like who you're surrounded by. Right. We all know Somebody who, they've lowered their standards because of the people that they're surrounded by. Right. I know that was true for me. Like I just, I had limiting beliefs based on the way I grew up, where I grew up, and it didn't, things didn't shift. Like I, I could have never imagined the success that I have today or like where I live or what my life looks like, because I never saw it, you know, I did. I never saw it growing up. You have to see it and then realize like, oh, it is possible. You know, there was a time when we didn't think a human could run a four minute mile, you know, and now that's like the standard. Yeah. So I think community is that. Community is like you raise up because you see, oh, this is what is possible for me. This is, this is the standard. Like this is what I want to be. And that's why I love this, this group of girls that I surround myself with. And it's why I think it's so important that other people, you prioritize that. I mean, you look at longevity studies, you know, where they've followed people for 100 years, year after year after year, decade after decade, these ongoing longevity studies. And the one thing that we never hear about on the news that has the biggest impact on longevity is community.

Yeah, you're right. And it's, it is critical. I mean, I, I see this, I see look. And you guys, I am, I, I know you think I'm an extrovert, Chalene, but those of you listening, you might sound like one on the show or whatever, but I'm really not. I'm nervous too. And when I moved to Arizona, I didn't know anybody here. I think I literally knew nobody. And I, I posted in a Facebook group. Like I said, I'm looking for friends. This is my it because I know how important it is and it's not comfortable. And you do have to kiss some toads sometimes along the way like finding your, your people. But it is important to actually have in person connection. Not just listening to a show or reading a book or listen like we've got to have in person connection. It shifts you. Not to mention, I'm just going to say a little surface level thing here. You know, in the world of social media, you see filters, you see the perfect lighting, the perfect makeup. In person, people can't hide behind that stuff.

That's right.

So you get to see us the real daylight. You get to see all the things you know.

That's right.

So that's if anything else, it's to help. Help break some of your beliefs around what actual midlife women look like. They're like, yeah, I want you to see that. And real conversations, not behind a computer screen or whatever. So connection is so critical for leveling up.

It really is one of the reasons why, with this event, I mean, like, I think about how uncomfortable it is to be the person who, like, walks up to a group of women, like, hi, my name is, you know, like. Like, oh, my God. I'm getting nervous thinking about that, because you feel like, oh, they're a clique. They already know each other. I'm the outsider. I'm introducing myself now. I walk away from the circle, and they're all talking about me. And so I'm like, this is an event where no one's going to know anybody. You know what I mean? Like, everybody's walking into the room as a newbie, as somebody who's like, hey, I'm looking for friends, or, yeah, you know, if you don't want to. You know, if you just want to come to experience it, you can do that, too. But I really do think when everyone's guard is down, you realize, like, oh, we're all pretty much the same.

And it's. You know, I used to say this in the gym. This is years ago. This is fun. You know how you'd have, like, a client in the gym, and they'd say, I don't want to go to the gym until I'm fit. It was like a. Same conversation. And what I wanted to say is, no one's looking at you. They're looking at. They have their own insecurities. They're looking at themselves. So, same thing. Walking into a group of women. No one is looking at the other women saying things. They're. They're worried about themselves. So we're all in the same boat.

Yeah. It's so true. And, you know, we know this from the industry that we're in. Sometimes the most beautiful, perfect women are the most insecure. I mean, they are just tortured by their own thoughts. And. And that's sad. And. And I. I don't. There won't be any judgment here. You talked about the external, and I think that's really interesting, too, because.

It'S little things that just make. Can make, like, just. It's like girl code.

Yeah.

You know, I did. I did a YouTube episode recently where I showed everyone, like, all of my secrets, like, all these major hacks.

And, yeah, I'm gonna link it, because I'm obsessed With it. I couldn't. I was, like, dying. I sent it to every girlfriend I know. Really, Literally. She showed us taping her face, y'. All. She taped her face up.

I'm gonna.

Oh, yeah.

Until I can get that facelift, I'm. Look, I've got it on right now. Yes, absolutely. Until I can get that facelift and go ahead and judge me, I don't care. It's my money. I can do whatever I want.

Yeah, I loved it.

Like, you know what? I. I like it.

It's. It looks amazing.

If I could wear it all day long, I can wear it for about an hour, I think.

Well, I didn't maybe show extensions.

Like, all of it.

That's the other thing. I think a lot of you listening, you don't realize how much stuff we all.

We.

A lot of us had done. Like, I definitely have the hair extensions. Heck, I just put my whole eye surgery out on for the world to see. I shared all of it.

Again, that isn't for me anyways. It's not about aging. I've always been a fake bitch. I've always been someone who's like, oh, like, let me. You know, let me do the best with what I've got. Like, let me put on a full face of makeup to go out to the mailbox. Like, that's just. It's fun for me. I like it. It's like a hobby. It's like, yeah, it's like crafting on my face. You all.

I'm not. A lot of people listen. A lot of you listening have asked if I'm going to do a live event. I am not planning on doing a live event anytime soon, but Chalene is, and I'm going to be there, and this is going to be fun, and I can't wait. And this is coming up. Can you. Like, where do they go to even sign up for this? Where do they find out?

You can go to campbe more.com and get signed up. I'm sure early bird registration is still available. So a couple things I wanted to tell you if you. If people are interested, and I hope you are when you sign up. This is new. You won't just get the camp right, because then what? I'm going to be there for you for the whole year. So you're gonna get my workouts? Yep. You're gonna get my spring training workouts. So all. All the things you're going to be learning at camp. And you're like, okay, but wait, how do I put this into a plan? You'll have that plan when you leave. So you'll get. Every eight weeks, you're going to get a new routine of the rest of the. I'm doing the workouts with you.

Meal planners get this stuff, too. Dang. I want to see all this, right?

Meal plans and recipes. And as Natalie knows, I don't cook. So we've got. We have, like, amazing RDs and chefs who've put together these super simple, super cool, easy to follow recipes. And, you know, so you've got a plan once you leave.

Okay.

But I really do want. I. I do want people to.

And I don't want people to do it just for that. I want you to. I want you listening to come for, like, those are amazing bonuses that you get. But I want you to come because I want you to actually be around other midlife women that feel like you. And I want you also to be around midlife women that felt like you, that have, like, are. Are maybe one or two steps ahead. Because the women that are going to be here are all here to help. If they're not there to learn, they're here to help. So it's going to be a fun community. I mean, I'm. I'm super excited for this. I can't wait to come in. I'm like, I. I hope all. I hope a lot of you listening come so I can actually meet you in person because it's going to be fun, and it's going to be. It's not you typing on a zoom, asking questions like, this is like, you get to be real life getting the help, getting the support, and it's going to be super fun. If I know Shelley, it's going to be fun.

We've got a female MC who's also a dj. So, you know, we'll get up and dance and stretch our legs whenever we need to, but.

And what do we have to wear? Do we have to. Because that was a big thing you said. You said people. People can literally wear whatever they want.

Like, you can wear a dress, you can wear your PJs, you can wear your sweatpants that you got boyfriend in college.

Are you gonna be mixing it all up? What are you gonna be doing?

I need to entertain. Like, I'm gonna show up, like, share, like, in a different outfit every time I hit the stage. Because I need a. Like, I'm always in my house. I need a reason to get dressed up. And I want. I want to be visually entertaining for people.

Yeah. I will challenge y' all if you're Gonna come. Don't stress about the clothes, but think about if you could. But I'm. I'm gonna give people an assignment if they're gonna come.

Okay.

Think about. Think about the future version of you. Like, if anything was possible. Like, if literally anything was possible, like, you just click, close your eyes, and go, okay, if it's a year from now and I had the body I want and the energy I want, and I felt like, what would I want to wear? Like, who would that person? Because my. My challenge for you, my suggestion is start acting as that person. Like, just try it on. Like, think of if you could do anything, would it be a pink frilly dress? Like, what would it be if you were that confident person? And my challenge to you is come as that future version of yourself, and let's start getting it into action. Like. Like all the stuff you're learning and asking you. Like, you come as that future version, and you will literally become that person. So that's my challenge.

Yeah. I mean, just.

I don't want them to come in Crocs and socks. I think that's not thinking. I have a fun enough challenge like you. You can have your Crocs and socks. You can bring them as your security blanket, but I think you should come as your fruits version of you.

I love it. At least wear a big hat, right? Yeah. Well, I think that's really fun, and thank you for giving me the opportunity to share with people this.

Of course.

I don't think it's. You know, there's been lots of virtual events. I've attended a lot of them, and, you know, because that's what she says she wants, but I think what she needs is to get out of the house.

I agree. I agree. Thanks for doing this, by the way. You all, I asked. Chalene did not ask me to come on the show. I asked. I said I want to talk about this. I'm. I want every woman to know about this. I'm not doing the event, and you are, and I want everyone to know. So thank you for doing this today.

Awesome. Thank you for having me.

Thanks for tuning in to midlife Conversations today. If you enjoyed this episode, please share it and tag me. Natalie, Jill, Fitz, and our guests on social media. The best way to support the show is by leaving a review. Send a screenshot of your review to supportataliejillfitness.com for a free digital DSR journal download. And just a friendly reminder, I'm here with a microphone, not a medical degree. Half the time, I'm sharing things that I read on the Internet or learned just as you were learning it while I'm interviewing the guest. I'm not an MD or your therapist or your mom, though I do give excellent mom style pep talks. This podcast is purely for entertainment, curiosity and educational purposes. When in doubt, please ask your own doctor. For advertising inquiries, contact sales admintegory3ca and this podcast is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek advice from your physician. Some episodes of midlife conversation may be sponsored by products or services, and I may receive compensation for advertisement of your purchases through affiliate links.

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