Healthy Habits for Student Success: Ashton Tate on Wellness & Education

Hello parents, this is Shellee Howard with Parents, Is Your Teen College Ready? And today I have an exciting guest for you, Ashton Tate. Can you please share with the audience a little bit about yourself?

Yeah, thanks for, for having me on. Excited to, to talk with you. Uh, yeah, my name is Ashton Tate. I live in Franklin, Tennessee, just a little bit south of Nashville. Uh, married to my wife Kelsey. She's been an ICU nurse for years and she is amazing. Um, and after losing weighing about 120 pounds when I was, uh, in high school. Me and my wife actually partner with, uh, schools all over the country to help students learn how to be healthy from a young age so we can really combat, um, you know, the way that— and the trends that we're seeing in America for obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and just in general kind of the state of our health. So we've been, we've been really thankful to do what we do and, and, uh, we're helping a lot of kids. It's been fun. Yeah.

I love it. So the first question that comes to mind is, when you were in high school, did you know that this would be your future career?

No, I, it's funny. I, I wanted to be a SWAT officer when I was, when I was a kid, I wanted to bust down doors and beat down bad guys. And that, that just, you know, I did book reports about it, you know, when you had to do all that. And no, this is not what I thought I would, I would be doing at all. For sure.

And it's always interesting because as we have clients on the show, very few of them are— will tell me, oh, this is exactly what I had planned. So not a unique story. So maybe you can share a little bit about what it is that you do, um, and how you got started and, and what's your why.

Mhm. Yeah, yeah, I guess I'll tell you a little bit about, um, just some of my story and, and journey and how we apply that to the kids that we help. So when I was, I'd mentioned I lost about 100, 120 pounds in junior, senior year of high school. Before that, I was pre-diabetic, really, really low self-esteem, borderline, just, yeah, just not my favorite season of life, really. Obviously, you know, was overweight and really struggled with eating and being addicted to food and really, really bad acid reflux for years, especially even as a kid. And yeah, by the time I was in, you know, junior, senior year, I was about 300 pounds. And, you know, I played all the sports. I, you know, I was active. I played football, I did wrestling, I played baseball for 8 years. And but it just felt like nobody really taught me, like, how do I take care of my body? You know, like, I know I'm playing the sports and I know I'm, athletic and I'm doing some of that stuff. But it was like, man, like, I don't, I don't know how to eat. I don't know how to sleep properly. I don't know how I should handle this outside of just going and working out and being on the football field. And so, so kind of towards the end of my football, kind of high school football career, I ended up losing, you know, about 100, 120 pounds. And I really started seeing like, wow, like, if I take care of my body in the way that it was made and designed, like, I feel so much better. I feel so much more confident. I'm not pre-diabetic anymore. I'm able to serve others better. I'm able to focus on others better. I'm able to, and it's funny for me, what do you think the main reason for me wanting to lose weight in the first place was? And as a high school boy, you wanna impress a girl, right? And so, while that was kind of the first initial thing, I really started to see like, wow, it's not about how I just appear or look to others. It's really about how my character and how I'm growing and how I'm walking in and taking care and stewarding my body. So, so yeah, I lost all that weight and then kind of graduated high school and started actually maintaining that. You know, I think the hardest thing about health is the maintaining it, right? It's, it's life gets busy, life gets hard. And there's, you know, there's different seasons of even throughout the year where it's like, man, like it's just tough. And so I started maintaining that, those results, and people started asking me for help. And so I was like, hey, like, I don't really know what I'm doing, but sure, like, I'll tell you kind of what I did and what I'm doing. And so I'd I'd have people come over. I lived with my parents at the time, right after high school, and I threw some rusted old, you know, barbells and some dumbbells in my parents' garage and just started hanging out with people. And people were asking questions and, and then felt like through, you know, just kind of getting some counsel and, and, you know, felt like I was called to get certified as a personal trainer. And so got that and just started helping more and more people. People— it was mostly word of mouth and people that saw my results, the results of the clients I was helping. And so So that was really encouraging because it was like, man, like what I went through and what I was able to overcome, it's like, wow, like I've been there for these people. I know exactly how they feel. And so I was able to then help and kind of level with them like, hey, like here's when I came up against that and when I still come up against that, like here's how I think about it. Here's how a healthy way to view that. And so, yeah, helped hundreds of adults. A lot of it was about weight loss and just general health. And then 2020 hit, right? And that was crazy because, you know, gyms, in-person stuff did not go well. You know, by that time we owned a gym and I had some trainers and, and stuff under me and it was great, but we had to go fully online and it was crazy. And, and I just kept hearing, you know, while we made that pivot and started doing online programming, I just started hearing from the adult clients like, man, I wish somebody would have taught me this when I was young. Right? I'm 40 years old, 50 years old, 60 years old. I'm dealing with this, that, and the other thing, right? I'm dealing with, you know, obesity. I'm dealing with a heart condition. I'm dealing with diabetes. I'm dealing with feeling tired all the time. I'm not sleeping good. I feel lethargic, whatever the thing is, right? And I want to be able to be there for my grandkids. And I mean, you know, you know, all this stuff. And it's like, I wish somebody would have taught me this when I was younger. And I was like, man, like, It's so true. Our country has really gone this way over the years because nobody cares about health education anymore. And it really does feel like a less-than subject where PE is this glorified recess, health class is this one semester check off the box to graduate, and we're not helping kids actually apply what they're learning and teaching them from, from a young age. And so I was like, man, like, we got to change that. The way to change the health of our nation is to change and to equip and empower the next generation, I think. And so So we created a whole platform around just, you know, making health simple, right? Health is a— it's super— it can be super complicated, right? You go on Google right now and type in how to be healthy and all— it's, I mean, like billions of results pop up. You know, even when I was in school for this stuff, I got a full 4-year degree and one class in one semester would say to do something and then the next class the next semester, that book would say to do something else. I'm like, these are college-level classes, like, what are we supposed to do here? And so, so we just broke it down and created really simple methods that worked with adults. And so we took that and simplified it even more and, and fit the standards of what needs to be covered into really simple frameworks that kids can understand and apply and know how to use in any season. And we broke it down really simple. And that's what we teach to kids all over the U.S. And then we partner with teachers and parents to you know, help to kind of intervene and really stand in the gap of our kids. And so, yeah, it's— we're so thankful. It's been, it's been really fun.

Yeah. You know what I love about your story is, well, many things. The first one is that you're doing something to make other people's lives better, which is all about what we do at College Ready. The second piece is you could have just been, okay, I'm good. And moved on and maybe just stayed with your, you know, adult people. And yet there was something we call passion with a purpose where you got to lean in and choose to advocate and to make a difference. And so I'm definitely going to be sharing you, sharing this with our EmpowerEducation.World group. Because that's what we're teaching students is not only in, you know, what you're doing, but in every element, right? It's the children of Uganda. They get 1 cup of like not even oatmeal, like mush a day. And we're, we're gonna help them build gardens where they're gonna have real food instead of just something that is overly processed. So thank you for sharing that. That is amazing. Now, um, who do you— how would one— let's say I'm like, yes, I have a child, they definitely need this, this kind of support. Their high school doesn't have any support. Yes, they check off the box for PE and for health. Yes, I understand all of that, but What about if I have a child who spends too much time on the couch or behind the computer and they just won't listen to me? Is there some advice you can give to those parents?

Yeah, it's funny because I, you know, we work with parents and teachers all over the country and it's, it's— I used to be a youth leader in my church and we would, you know, help families and, and, and, you know, partner with parents to just help their kids with a lot life and what they're going through, and especially middle school, high school age. And it was funny because I get calls from parents like being like, hey, like, I've been trying to tell my kid this for years, and you say to them once in a, in a meeting, and it's like they're all of a sudden obsessed about it. I've been like, I've been telling you that for— and so I feel like for, for, for our families that we partner with and, and, uh, and for our teachers, it's like, man, having something to back you up where it's not just, hey, my mom's telling me to do this, or hey, my teacher's saying to do this, or it's, it's having another voice behind you that is validating what you're teaching and presenting it in engaging and fun way. Like, we get emails from parents all the time like, man, like I've been trying to get my kids to eat their veggies for so long, or I've been trying to get my kids to think this way about movement for so long, or get up off the couch playing video. I mean, I was Also, I didn't mention this when I was— man, I had a video game addiction for— in middle school throughout. I think I sold my, my Xbox in junior year of high school because I would just play for like 6 to 8 hours a day. I mean, it was like just sitting there eating. That was part of it is I would just eat and play video games all day. Even if I was active, it's like you don't really combat that. And so just being able to have a voice to validate what you've been saying and kind of back you up, I feel like has been some of the best feedback that we get. And just making it really simple and accessible. You know, a lot of our teachers and parents that we partner with, they don't have time, right? You're doing 50 million other things. And in order to be really intentional, like, we need partners, right? We need, hey, I have my, you know, people that, that are speaking into my kids' life with their health and people you can trust that aren't speaking a bunch of, you know, false, just unhelpful things like a lot of influencers out there are. And that's where a lot of our kids are getting their, their content from. And so I feel like that's been the number one piece of feedback we've gotten from parents is like, man, it's so helpful to have something backing me up. So we have— yeah, our platform is, is totally done for parents. It's totally done for teachers. Sometimes even parents recommend it to their schools. A lot of times we've heard schools be like, hey, like our parents weren't happy with where— without— we were covering PE because it felt like just a glorified recess, like it was a throwaway class. And so we do have parents recommend and say, hey, like, I think this could be really helpful for our— for our PE and our health program. So we have that. And then also, you know, parents can go on our website and buy, you know, get access to the platform directly. And it's just— it's a done-for-you platform. It covers everything from nutrition to movement to mental health to sleep to rest to recovery to community to everything. Um, and, uh, and so that's usually how we partner with, with families and, and, uh, just making it simple, you know, for their, for their kids, for sure.

So, so because I have 4 kids of my own, I'm thinking all 4 of them would approach this differently, right? They're— every child in a family has its unique, um, opportunities. And so I'm thinking, how would I have approached this subject with my own child. So can you maybe give some words of advice or encouragement to parents who, they know something's not right, but they're not sure how or what to say or how to engage that child? Like, what, where would one start?

Yeah, I think when I was in high school, I was horrible, horrible at math. Like, just bad. They put me in this remedial math class just so I could graduate. It was called like finite math or something. I don't even— what does that even mean? And so, so I graduated and I passed, whatever. And, and I, and I just remember being like, why do I need to know any of this stuff? Like, I'm not going to use any of it. Like, why does this apply to me? Why does it matter? And I think one of the most helpful things for kids to understand, it's not that you have to explain to them everything and justify everything you're trying to get them to do, but if they can understand like why this is important and how it's going to benefit them, It's huge. Like, I would, I would start to take, um, I started in college taking these really hard accounting classes that a lot of people really struggle with. And I mean, it's math, you know, and A's in all of them, like, just crushed it. And it wasn't because I was smarter or I'm some smart person. It was like, oh, I understand how what I'm learning right now is going to help me in business or it's going to help me in whatever I was learning. And so I think I think for us, you know, you know, teaching this to kids, it's helping them understand, hey, you know, it's not just, hey, eat your veggies because I said so and you can't eat dessert until I— like, it's not— then it's just, okay, like, then they fight against it. It's, hey, here's how your body— just like a car needs gas to go, your body needs this to be able to function for you, be able to be able to do the things that you're called to do. Right. And so it's, it's helping them and giving them frameworks to understand, hey, like, here's why we're doing this. Here's, you know, and so like we, we break everything down into 4 simple frameworks or 4 simple pillars. It's a framework for healthy living in any season for kids. So it's called the FORM method. The curriculum is called the FORM curriculum. And so the F is just an acronym, and the F stands for functional fitness. So how do we, in every season of life, when no matter what, you know, how old we are, How do we have a simple routine of moving our bodies right in a functional, simple, fun way? And that may look different for, for different people, right? Some people may play tennis or pickleball on a regular basis. Some people may work out or do CrossFit or play whatever it is like. And so you can really, you know, make that simple where you, as long as you have a simple routine of taking your body through full ranges of motion, getting your heart rate up, putting healthy stress on your muscles and bones, That's, that's number one. That's functional fitness. And we have a whole pillar that goes through and teaches kids how— here's how your body is made, here's how it works. And movement, doing these things, getting up off the couch, you know, training your body, that's going to help to make everything in your body function better. You're going to have more energy, you're going to enjoy life more, all that stuff. So that's, that's number one, functional fitness. Number two, we call it optimal nourishment.. And so it's all about nutrition. So we talk about every— everything about nutrition, you know, calories, you know, food, all the different macronutrients, micronutrients, sugar consumption, all that type of stuff. And, and we talk about one of the main things we talk about there is food as fuel and food is fun, right? So most of the time, just like a car needs gas to go, right? We need— our body needs food to be able to function properly and to be able to fuel our bodies, and we need to get that from good quality sources, right? When I go to the gas station to put gas in my car, I'm not thinking about, oh, I don't need to put, you know, lighter fluid in my gas tank. I don't need to put slushie in my gas tank. You're thinking about what it does need, and you go, you get the pump, and you pump it into your gas tank. Same thing with your body. Most of the time, let's fuel our bodies properly, and then we teach kids what all that looks like and how to do that, and we give them really simple ways of doing that. But then on the other hand too, sometimes we can use food as fun. And, you know, and kids can enjoy and celebrate, uh, you know, right? We just had Thanksgiving, uh, this past week, right? I feasted, I enjoyed, I had some fun, I had rolls, I had mashed potatoes, I had desserts and things, but it was about celebrating and it was using food as fun about community and family. And so there's a balance of those two things. And I think a lot of times with kids, it's helping them understand it's not the, hey, you know, don't eat cookies all the time, or don't, uh, have that bag of candy, or hey, don't— you know, you need to eat your veggies. It's helping them understand, hey, like, here's how your body's made, here's what these things are, and here's how it's going to affect you. Most of the time we need to eat it as fuel, because what you feed on, the things that you feed your body, those are the things you're going to hunger for more. But then also it's okay to sometimes enjoy food, um, and to, to, to feast with, you know, family and friends. And so Those are just kind of some of the principles that we teach of like, hey, and if student— and if, you know, if our kids understand that, then it opens up their minds like, okay, like it's not just mom telling me that I can't, you know, I have to eat my veggies or that I can't have sweets or it's understanding, hey, here's how I need to balance that and what that needs to look like. And again, you can go deeper with different grades and different ages, especially with, you know, teenage, you know, middle and high school girls, you know, nutrition. You have to be really sensitive, obviously, with how you cover that and how you teach that. And it's where it's not restrictive and it's not weight— because it can— it's a lot of really harmful stuff that influencers and stuff that can get mixed in there. So that's why we have this really balanced approach of, hey, like, just eat what your body needs. There's no— and even like the principle of, um, you know, cheat days of like, hey, I'm— this is a cheat day, I'm doing something wrong, I'm cheating on— it's like, no, like, it's okay to do that sometimes. It's most of the time fuel But some of the times it's okay to give yourself permission to enjoy food as fun. And so those are just some of the principles and stuff we teach with nutrition. So that's number 2. And then we have a whole pillar that goes into depth on what that needs to look like and all that stuff too. So that's 2. 3 is rest and recovery. So, you know, a lot of people, rest and recovery is reactive. So it's, hey, there's something wrong, or, hey, I'm burnt out, I'm exhausted, I'm injured, I'm mentally stressed or I have, you know, I have some mental stuff going on now. I need to focus on that versus preventative routines of sleep, of rest, of mental health and stretching and stress management and community and all that stuff. Like, how do we do that preventatively so that we're not chronically tired, we're not chronically worn out, stressed, injured, stuff like that. So that's kind of that third pillar of how do we have a good routine of resting and recovering. Mentally, physically, and everything there. And the fourth pillar is called Multiply Maintenance. So that's kind of how do we maintain the other three pillars by setting the right goals and looking at our, our lives and saying, hey, like, you know, a lot of people become— I say like a lot of people become slaves to their health, right? They work so hard for just because I know I need to be healthier. I know I can't eat this or I have to work out. It's like Why, right? Why do you need to do that? What is the purpose of it? And so I think a lot of times people just do it just to do it because they know that the industry or influencers or whatever has told them that they need to work out or need to eat good or not eat that cookie or whatever, when, when really it's saying, hey, what do I feel called to do? What do I want to do with my life? And how can my health help me to do that better? Uh, and structuring your health and your goals and your routines specifically for that versus just trying to do a bunch of random stuff and hopefully you're doing the right stuff. And so it might look different for, you know, a mom versus a professional athlete versus— I mean, so there's so many— there's such a wide variety of what that needs to look like. And so how can I be healthy for what I feel called to do? So that's, you know, setting the right goals, you know, surrounding yourself with the right community, you know, learning how to manage your schedule. Right? You can have the best plan in the whole entire world, but if you don't implement it, if you don't do it and you don't fit it into your schedule, like, nothing's gonna happen. And so, you know, we teach kids how to do that and how to practice that and then everything there. And so that's kind of that pillar is how do we maintain everything else. And then we go deeper into emotional health and substance abuse and addiction and some things like that from a really good, solid stance and stuff too. So Um, yeah, that's just kind of some of our framework and a little bit about what we teach. But that's— that framework helps kids understand, okay, hey, in every season of life, I just need to have a good routine of movement, got a good routine of nutrition, good preventative routines of resting and recovering, and then I have the right goals. I'm surrounding myself with the right community. I'm fitting things into my schedule, and that allows it to be really simple so that when they do grow up and get busy, and they're 35 with 3 kids and a full-time job and it's— they don't play baseball anymore, play the sports, they can understand, hey, like I remember learning good routine of movement, good routine of nutrition, and then they can recall the things that they've learned about those different areas. So I'd say that's a good simple framework of kind of what we teach around it. So I don't know if that's helpful, but yeah, so amazing.

I remember back in the day, this will date me, we had the Presidential Fitness Award And I remember fighting for that patch like it was like the biggest trophy, and other kids could care less. And I always thought like, why, why aren't they excited about this? So I think what you're doing is, is game-changing. Now, for parents who are listening, how can they reach you? What if they have more questions or they are— have a situation they want to run by you?

Yeah. So, so our website is formeducation.org. That's formeducation.org. On that page you can view, you know, we work with faith-based schools, we work with public schools, charter schools, homeschool, just regular, just parents. They can kind of check out more about what we're doing there. Or you can also shoot us an email at hello@glorytogloryfitness.com and You know, we'd love to answer questions and have conversations, just see how we can help and see— we have so many different resources just for kids. But also, like I said, I worked with adults for years. And so we have, I mean, crazy amounts of resources and trainings and fitness stuff and nutrition stuff for adults too. So if there are any questions about that, happy to send over anything that, you know, anything that we have that'll help for sure.

Outstanding. So parents, if you have a teenager or even preteen or even adult who might be struggling to balance life and movement and food and mental health, Ashton's your guy. So until next time, parents, is your teen college ready? Thank you so much, Ashton, um, and I hope everybody has a fantastic week.

Yeah, thanks for having me. Good seeing you.