Eating More Changed Everything for Her w/ WarriorBabe Leah

00:00What did your journey look like before WarriorBabe? Just nothing worked. Started to get desperate. That was just like total burnout fatigue. Let's talk about some of the top wins that you've had with your progress so far. I've never had this confidence about my body that I'm actually proud to say, give me the tank tops, give me the shorts. I want to show off what I have done and it's only been nine months. What's going on, everybody?

00:30Hey, so today I've got another amazing WarriorBabe, which is catching up and getting to know her before we hit record. And she's super cool and super excited to dive into her story. I have Leah here with us. She is a physical therapist who spent her career helping others get strong. Behind the scenes, she was struggling to put herself first, to prioritize herself. And I know that so many of us women have been there, done that. And she was burnt out. She was underfeeding herself. She was stuck in the cycle of inconsistency. And she finally decided that she needed to make a change. And that's where we insert WarriorBabe.

01:02And now she's feeling her body. She's lifting heavier. She's feeling stronger mentally and physically more than ever. And now she's not just excited about getting older. She's thriving in her purpose. And I'm excited for her to share her story. So Leah, welcome. Oh, thank you so much, Nikki. Like you said, hearing it from you, I'm like, wow, that person sounds amazing. And to realize that to me, I'm like, this is awesome. This is great. I told you all we're in for a fun time. She's super cool. Yes, you are super cool. Yeah. And I know we were catching up a little bit before, but can you let the listeners know

01:37where you are from and what do you do? I know I just said it, but what does your day-to-day look like with your clients? Yeah. So I am currently residing in Seattle, Washington area. I am a clinic director, physical therapist. So my day-to-day is the combination of treating patients for about 45 hours a week. And then I'm working on the business with multiple staff PTs and then other support staff and just trying to build up my clinic and working with the community.

02:09So ultimately my day-to-day is full-time PT, full-time practice director, just, yeah, trying to reach as many people and heal as many people as possible. Wow. You just got even cooler. So ladies that are listening to this. Okay. So Leah, like that's a very demanding hourly, like when you just broke down what you focus on day-to-day yet, you started to prioritize yourself and put your health first.

02:39So I'm excited to unpack that to a lot of women that are like, I'm just too busy to do workout, too busy to eat. But like Leah's about to say what's up about that. All right. So let's talk about what did your journey look like before Warrior Babe? Like what were you struggling with physically and emotionally during that time? Do you have the time? Um, so in all honesty, so I grew up active my entire life, uh, athlete from the age of four collegiate athlete with a couple of years under my belt.

03:13Then unfortunately injuries and surgeries, um, shorted my career. Uh, but I was always working out. I was always in the gym. I was always able to, um, you know, I had the education to supposedly know what to do. Um, then I said, okay, I have to get real about life. What am I going to go into? There was a part of me that wanted to become a strength and conditioning coach for collegiate athletes. And it turns out I don't really like collegiate athletes. So I pivoted and said, what was the next, um, you know, what influenced me in my life and

03:47my journey at that time? And I'm like physical therapy. And I had the opportunity to get some behind the scenes experience with that. And I was like, yes, this is what I'm passionate about. So not only did I take my active athletic career, I got to mix it with the medical side of things. And I got my doctorate degree practicing physical therapy for well over 10 years now. Um, but I thought I had it all. I thought I had the knowledge. I mean, I have, I have a high level of knowledge on how the body is supposed to work.

04:18I have all of the experience in knowing how to lift that it should come easy to me. And what I learned day in and day out, year in, year out, that I was just giving so much of myself to everyone else that I didn't know how to prioritize myself. Or I found every reason to put something else first or say, no, no, no. Okay. Next week. Okay. Well, it didn't happen, you know, this quarter, next quarter that that just became the limiting factor. It was a lot of, yay.

04:49You know, I'm in a groove. This is awesome. I'm totally going in the right direction to, oh man, I am in a rut and I don't know how to get out of this. And a lot of times they look the same, but they definitely treat the body differently. And it definitely makes the mental and emotional side a little bit harder to deal with. And as I've gotten older, I realized that's a lot harder to rebound. Um, than it was before. So that's kind of like where I was. A lot of things kind of shifted when the pandemic hit and like, it really affected us out here

05:20in the Pacific Northwest. Um, and that just kind of brought a lot to light of like, wow, you know, what am I trying to do? How am I, can I do this on my own? What do I need? And through that five years from 2020 until now, I resorted to a lot of here. Can I find an online trainer? Can I, I outfitted my entire clinic for all the stuff I thought I needed to keep me motivated, to keep me on track. And just nothing worked. Nothing worked at all. So that's where I started to get desperate.

05:54I guess you could say where I started to say, okay, what do I need here? Yeah. So what led you to realize that something needed to change? Like what was that? Yeah. So from a clinical standpoint, the more patients that I was treating, the population has just kind of changed over the past five years. And I noticed that as I, you know, kind of went into my forties a little bit more, um, women who I was treating more and more complaints of not understanding their body and kind of going

06:26through that. Is this perimenopause? Is this menopause? It's like, how do, how do I treat these patients better? And late last year, I kind of had this idea. I was like, listen, we, I need a better community around here. I want to start offering the ability for, you know, small group of women to be able to get together. And even if it's coming in on Saturdays, I want women between the ages of, and I said 45 to 60, I want kind of that spectrum that I, maybe I can get a small group of women who have been through physical therapy, but they can come together to collaborate,

06:58to just have a community amongst themselves. And so as that idea developed, I was like, well, I've got to educate myself. If I'm going to try to lead these women in a certain way, then I want, I need to educate because I need to know what, what to offer them. And then I started to learn what I don't know. And that was a lot. And I started reaching out to physicians in the area to say, can you help me? You know, can, can we collaborate? Can we offer something to women around here?

07:28And it was amazing how ignorant or how oblivious they were to what women needed and wanted. And nobody could give me that support. So then I was like, okay, well, there's got to be a better resource, a better outlet to get this information. So I started looking online and I came across, you know, I think it was on Instagram, came across warrior band. I was like, hang on, hang on. I'm like, oh, this is hitting that population of what I want. I was like, this is pretty awesome.

08:00Let me just explore like, what are they doing? And I was like, okay, well now if I'm going to teach it, preach it, I've got to do it for myself. I wasn't quite ready to do it. So in January, I gave myself a new year's resolution that by my next birthday, which is in September, I was like, I want to be able to do a pull up because throughout all of my life with all of my athletics, with everything, I've never had the strength to do a pull up. And so I was like, okay, January, I'm going to do this.

08:30I'm going to set, you know, set a plan up. I'm going to try, I'm going to get this done. And January was a failure, like couldn't stay consistent. It was probably the like worst health experiences I've ever had. I was listening to your episode of like updating life and stuff like that. And I'm like, girl, I got you. I was like, dude, that is so how I felt during that time, even to the point that I was rethinking my career. And I was like, if I can't do this on my own, I've got to take that leap.

09:03And I've got to try. So I submitted the application to Warrior Babe. And what was amazing, even compared to the previous four years of working with online trainers, it was how responsive your team was that I'm like, hang on. I was like, they're going to respond in 24 hours, you know, then like, this is a legit thing. This is going to hold me accountable. So, you know, I went into it. I had like that beginner interview. And then they're like, okay, well, just know that this is a year long commitment.

09:36And my jaw dropped. And I'm like, hang on, can I do this? And then I was like, nothing else has ever worked. If this isn't going to do it, nothing else is going to do it. And it was the best. Yes, let's do it here. And now don't even think about it decision I could have ever made. Love that. I love that you feel that way about your journey so far. And I definitely want to like unpack what your initial experience was when you first came in outside, like us responding 24 hours, like what the first couple weeks looked like and

10:08you getting used to our program. But I want to backtrack a little bit to the goal that you set for yourself, the doing a pull up. Or one pull up. Yeah. Sorry. Yeah. One pull up. Yeah. By your birthday in September. And really quick, did we get there? Did you get to do one in September? I got two. Yay. Let's go. You got two. I love that. Okay. But back in January, right? You're struggling to get it on your own. What did that reveal to you about like where you were with your strength at that point? Especially to like you take care, like I've had a couple of women that are physical therapists.

10:43You take care of women. You take care of patients on a daily basis, making them stronger. So what did that reveal to you? Was it kind of like a mirror that like what you see in your patients, you're like experiencing for yourself? Like I'm actually not as strong as like I want to be. Like what did that reveal for you when you're like, I couldn't even do a push up or pull up in January? Yeah. So I think like in all honesty, it kind of stems back to, we'll say 20 years, 25 years of life. Like though I may present like this, I've never been one of those like, hey, I need the scale

11:18to look like a certain thing. But I was raised under the circumstances of like, hey, Leah, genetically, you're probably never going to look like some of your friends. You're never going to have this body or this physique. It was always like, I always called myself a little teapot, short and stout, you know? And it was like, there was always like some good strength, but there was never that physical presentation that I was proud to show off my body. It was the more you could cover up, the better off you're going to be. And, you know, you're always going to be cautious of what you eat.

11:53You're always going to be conscientious of what you put in your body because unfortunately, your body is just not going to be the thing that you're going to be proud of. So I always worked out to, because I knew I had to, because the alternative was from genetics, I would be overweight, you know, obese for that matter. And so working out was never the, like being able to do a pull-up was never on my spectrum of things because I was always told that most likely it's not going to happen.

12:24So, so training wise, it was never to have that goal to accomplish this. It was, you should work out because if you don't, you're going to look like this half of your family. So it wasn't necessarily like, Hey, was there a reflection of I'm not as strong as I want to be? It was, I was always just settling to maintain or keep this up because I have to, not always because I wanted to, but I didn't want to face what the alternative could hypothetically be.

13:00That makes total sense. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I hear you. Yeah. Quick break. If you're finding this episode helpful so far, it would mean a lot. If you could hit pause for just a second, leave a quick rating or a review or share it with someone who could benefit from it. Your support helps more women discover these tools to build muscle, lose fat and feel confident. Thank you so much for being a part of this journey with me. So going and talking about, um, you mentioned to a couple of minutes ago, you're in a dark

13:32place before warrior, babe, you were considering doing a different, uh, major life change. Like, considering like if your, this job was even made up for you, what did that period feel like for you at that time? Oh man, that was just like total burnout to a T, you know? I mean, you were a nurse, you know, you you've worked in healthcare and over the past five years, it's only gotten worse as far as the demand. It was give everything, take nothing.

14:03Um, you know, but it was, it was the constant. And I kind of say, it's like being a chameleon, you're adapting to everything around you. You were putting on different faces for everyone and everything. And it was just becoming very repetitive, very draining and getting older there. There's been minimal time to actually take care internally, even, you know, getting, going to my own doctor's appointments, doing those things that it was just like, well, hang on,

14:36you know, I've been doing this for so long. It should be a routine, but why am I going home saying like, I have nothing more but tears to give, you know, like just things that weren't common of my personality of like, you know, becoming more, you know, recluse, not wanting to socialize quite as much, you know, just working for the weekend, which I've never worked for the weekend. I love what I do, but I'm like the weekend cannot get here fast enough. But then when the weekend comes, I do not want to leave my house because I do not want

15:07to have to people anymore, you know? Yeah. So that time it was just like, I have not, like, I went through a period of trying to get back into mental health therapy and being the people pleaser, the giver. I felt like I was therapizing my therapist because I was constantly like trying to engage with her. And I'm like, no, this is for me. I could not turn off that side of things that it was just constantly make, you know, making sure everybody else was okay. And I didn't know how to change it.

15:41Interesting. So when, was there a moment when it came, when you were like, dude, I need this from me? Like I need to do this. Yes. 1000%. It was because again, like what I do for a job, this is me. Yeah. I, you know, I would do it if I didn't get paid anything. I will do it until hopefully in the swam and warrior, babe, until I'm 73, you know, like I want to do this forever. But the second that I was starting to feel like this isn't, I'm like, hang on, I've got

16:12to flip the script because I have, I, and I've said, I'm like, you know, I'm doing warrior baby because I want to be selfish. And everyone that I've talked to, they're like, that's not a selfish move. You know, like, why do you think you're being selfish? And I'm like, well, because I'm doing it for me. And they're like, but you don't need that being selfish. But yeah, there was, there was absolutely, if I don't make a change for me, if I don't start prioritizing me, then I don't know where I'm going to be in six months or in a year from now.

16:42Yeah. We're going to pin the air and we're going to circle back to that. But now I want to lead into, okay. So you saw us on Instagram or Facebook or one of them. Yeah. Instagram. Yeah. Yeah. Was there anything that I was saying in particular that was really like catching your eye or what was resonating with you the most? Like the craziness to it, it was actually being a woman specific and then 45 and up. And I'm like, I know I'm underneath that, you know, but I was like, but, but this is who I want to work with as far as patients clientele that I was like, let's just see.

17:18And I was like, and if they accept me, yeah, you know, but, but let's just see. But honestly, it was, it was as simple as that. That's all initially. That is all that I needed to say, this is different than every other trainer or coach I've ever worked with. Ladies, are you feeling frustrated with body changes you're experiencing during menopause? It's time to take control. If you're between 45 and 65 years old and tired of struggling with body fat and muscle

17:52loss, warrior babe is here for you at warrior B we've helped over 18,000 women, just like you lose body fat, build toned muscle and understand their bodies better with personalized plans based on hormone and thyroid testing. And more imagine knowing exactly what your body needs to see real results and results that last. Look, don't wait anymore. Take charge of your health and join our community of strong, empowered women. Visit warrior babe.com forward slash apply today to start your transformation.

18:26That's warrior babe.com forward slash apply. All right, let's get back to the show. Love that. Love that. And I also love that the difference about your signup experience that gave you confidence. What you mentioned earlier was that we were responsive previous from other things that you've tried and the programs you tried, right? We were responsive in like 24 hours. So next thing I want to talk about is the nutrition aspect. Okay. Cause you said that it was like very humbling, right?

18:56Almost embarrassing to realize that you were eating around like 1400 calories. Right. That's how you came up, right? So what did that like in the first initial weeks of joining warrior babe, what did that process look like for you at first? So, so that goes back to kind of that intro interview thing. And I forget who I was talking to, but it was an awesome conversation. And she kind of makes this joke. Like, yeah, a lot of women, when they start, they think that they can survive off of like 1200, 1400 calories. And I chuckled. I was like, why would any grown individual think that they can do that?

19:28So they're like, okay, so the first thing you're going to do, you know, get on my business file. You're going to track for a week. Don't change anything. And day in and day out, I was like, oh no, I'm like 1400. Oh no, I only got 1300. Like, like every day I was like, I've got to get more. I was like, I'm what person without, you know, without changing anything. I was like, holy cow. Well, and the, you know, no hunger cues, nothing like my day is I treat between 14 to 16 patients a day. It is go, go, go grab something on the run.

20:01And when you start to track, I was like, oh my gosh, like, no wonder why I'm feeling so tired. So, um, yeah, that was very humbling to be like, yep, check. I'm one of those. You can put me on, you know, I'm part of that statistic. And so when to break it down to like, when we started really saying like, okay, I started working with my coach, Adrian amazing. She's like, okay, we got to bump that up and it's going to be a slow process, but we've got to start getting that going.

20:31So I was like, okay. So I think like, in all honesty, we tried to get up to 1800 first and it was a struggle. I always joked. I was like, this is a part-time job, literally a part-time job of saying, okay, where do we go here? How do we balance this? How do we get the proper, you know, macro set to balance out that it was a, it was a lot of hard work that put me in the gym all day. I can knock that out. I love being told what to do there, but just the, the fuel consumption, as I call it, like

21:03that was something that had to completely, completely change how my brain worked and what my habits were in those regards. So you guys, how long did you do a reverse? Like from, did you die, the, the getting to the, do you get to 1800? Yeah. Yeah. Got to 1800. Ultimately. How long did that carry in? Well, here's the thing. Started eating more. All of a sudden the hunger cues started coming and I was still losing weight. So all of a sudden you wake the metabolism up and I'm like, buddy.

21:33Yeah. So got up to 1900, 1950, 2000, I think when like through maintenance, I think I was like at 2050 was maintenance. And you were losing weight. Body weight was still going down and that was not a goal. Body fat was continuing to go down. And I'm starting to see like, even as a physical therapist, I'm looking at my arms. I'm like, didn't know you're supposed to have a muscle there. That's pretty awesome. And, you know, just these small definitions that I'm like, this is what it could look

22:05like on me. Like it was an amazing thing. So yeah. So my maintenance calories kind of sat there around 2050. Yeah. I love that. So would you say, would you say that those were some early wins or is there any additional like aha moments that you had that helped like shift your, shift your focus, your momentum when you first like joined and like, you know, the eating more and it was there any more aha moments that were happening for you? Yes. It was the actually, Leah, you have to do less.

22:38It, yeah. It was. What does that mean? Yes. So, you know, throughout life, it was, okay. Collegiate sports. We are training six days a week and, you know, playing two to three times a week, whatever the case may be doing two a days, even working with other trainers, they were programming five to six days of resistance and cardio work a week. And then I'm supposed to do that on top of working 10 to 11 hours a day.

23:14And it was, you know, a lot of like zoom to cardio that I'm like, okay, well, we see how beneficial that is as we get older. But it was one of those that I remember early on that I'm like, you know, Adrian, I was like, I need to do more. I was like, I don't feel like I'm doing enough. And she's like, no, no, slow it down. You need your rest days, like, like, you know, put the reins on a little, I don't need you to do more. Or if you want to do more, we're going to kind of transition into like incorporating some sprint interval training that you're not going to be doing these prolonged workouts.

23:48Do not think lifting five days a week is going to be necessary. And that's where I really had to come to terms with doing three to four days of resistance training was actually going to give me the results that I wanted to. And that was really, really, really hard to come to terms with because it's always been more is better. You know, like, you've got to keep that balance, energy in, energy out. You've got to do that. And it was like, no, you've got to give your body the fuel to recover.

24:20And I think like, that's another thing is like really understanding that the breakdown, you know, occurs in the gym, the build up occurs during the recovery time. It's kind of like, oh, wow. Even as a physical therapist being like, you know, that's all I tell the patients. I'm like, yeah, but that needs to be emphasized more. So that was definitely this like mind blowing eye opening. Oh, yeah. The recovery is just as important. I love that. But yes, less is more.

24:50And I love that that like was an aha move early on. Yeah. You know, you were able to switch gears pretty quickly to, you know, work that for you in the program. Can you share a little bit about how like Coach Adrienne helped guide you and what like her support has meant to you? Like what it's been like for you to work with like a coach? Yeah. So, I mean, it's a blessing. You guys match, you know, people up really well to those coaches. Like when you do that, all of that intake and that, you know, who needs to, I don't, I don't know what your process is, but you definitely hit the nail on the head.

25:24But as far as, you know, having Adrienne be mine. We are of a similar age and have had a similar journey in life. And so, in a sense, you know, I mentioned that I was trying to like did a little bit of like mental health therapy early on. And the reality is I think like this is better therapy for me. But with Coach Adrienne, she has really acted as, you know, a physical coach programming and doing what I need to push me but holding me accountable.

25:56She has been there to be a mentor both from a work standpoint and a life standpoint. And she has just been there, you know, as an ear for me to say, I don't know if I can do this or I'm screwing this up. And she's like, Leah, stop being type A personality. You are doing fine. Like it is not going to be perfect every week. Get over that. This is a long-term thing. So there's, the relationship just built really well, well, built really quick.

26:26And the way that she approached me, it was, you know, some tough love sometimes. But then she was a cheerleader that I didn't know I needed in so many realms that truly just allowed the week-to-week motivation. But then those monthly check-ins, whenever I was feeling like, okay, all right, you know, I feel like I'm getting back into one of those ruts. Where's the groove? She just knows exactly like where to kind of pivot or try to support me for me to be like, oh, yeah, I got this.

26:58I can do this. Oh, I love that. I love the perfect blend of tough love and cheerleader. Yeah. Exactly. Yeah. That's awesome. Yeah. So let's talk about you since joining Warrior, babe. Yeah. And where are you now? Like what? Let's talk about some of the top wins that you've had with your progress so far. Okay. So, you know, I'm a total numbers person, but I'm not going to go objective here. It truly is more subjective. So, you know, we mentioned, yeah, I found maintenance calories and I'm like, cool.

27:28I understand what that is. Far from 1400. I'm actually currently like I started a build phase. So. Oh, no way. Yeah. Yeah. So I'm six weeks into a build phase and this is set up for the next year, ultimately, because obviously I signed on for another two years of this because why wouldn't I? So. Let's go. Yeah. So right now I'm in a build phase and I would say the wins ultimately are one just in learning how my body works.

28:00I now want to push it to the limits to understand what more can do, especially while I'm, you know, still at the age that I have a little bit more availability to make those changes. Um, you know, just like hormones can still be managed right now where I am. So I want to do this where I am now, because again, I've always been told that you're just not going to ever look that way. And I'm like, do you see what I did in three months and six months?

28:31You know, now going into nine months that I want to go through this build. And I think it's an amazing program of what coach Adrian has kind of set up that I'm like, I'm thrilled about this. I do have to eat more. So that is, that's a thing, you know, but it's about that. So, so legit, I would say the harder thing is that like, I'm just over 2300 calories that I have to eat. The hard part is just because of my schedule, I get more hungry throughout the day that I'm

29:04like, I need to go. I need my snack. I'm messaging like my team. I'm messaging my staff. I'm just like, I'm hungry. I need somebody to help me so that I can just take in some food real quick. And I'm like, this was never how it was in the past. I'm actually being told. Double your intake. I know. That's crazy. I know. And that's why let's talk objectively really quick. Cause you lost seven pounds and starting you dropped 3% body fat you, and then you've doubled your intake. Right. And then I've doubled my intake.

29:35And even now coach Adrian's like, Leah, you need to gain some weight because that ensures you're actually taking in enough calories to fuel the muscles you are trying to put on. And I'm like, okay, I've gained one pound. I'm like, she's like, you're going to fall back to maintenance. You gotta, you know, you've got to be aggressive with this. But it's more so the subjective component. I'm like, I have never like actually filled out my pants through the backside, the butt

30:06area as well as I have. But my waist. Oh yeah. But the waist, I'm like, I don't have enough belts. Like I'm putting watches in my belts to try to keep the waist cinched. I was like, this never been how it is. I've never had like shoulders that fill out the shoulder region to where I'm like, oh, I love that. I can feel my shirt just being a little tighter. I've always worn my clothes a little baggier. And now I'm like, I want to go to a size smaller because I want to show off what I've actually built. And right now it's like 50 degrees in Washington.

30:36So it's not the most conducive time. But I've never had this confidence about my body that I'm actually proud to say, give me the tank tops, give me the shorts. I want to show off what I have done. And it's only been nine bucks. Wow. Yeah. That's incredible. You're a rock star, Leah. It's you guys. What your program is capable of doing is just outrageous. And every woman should take the chance, take the opportunity.

31:12I mean, like, it's huge. It is so amazing what Warrior Babe promotes, what it teaches, not what it preaches, but what it teaches and then what it supports. It's astounding what we are truly capable of doing when we have the right guidance. You know, my favorite part about this is that you are your words right there were saying that you are learning exactly how your body operates. Like you're learning cues. You're hearing hunger cues. Yeah. You're learning like what your body needs.

31:43As you're going through the build, you're aware that like, hey, I need to eat more periodically throughout the day so that I can get my 2300 calories in so that I can really aggressively go into this build and really take it on head on. Yeah. I love it. And what you said, like what we're not preaching something, we're teaching you guys these this aspect. Yeah. To know and listen to your body and understand what it's wanting to tell you. But it's also so unique to you. Like you are learning all of these by eating double the intake that you're eating, experiencing the experience, experiencing the results you're experiencing, both objectively and subjectively.

32:17But at like your own like course, right? Like nine months. Like this has been nine months for you. Yeah. And you're taking in everything that you're learning, which is so cool. I love that. We're not preaching something. We're teaching you guys this methodology for you individually by working with your dream. Dream. Yes. So cool. So back to that question that I wanted to ask you, I put a pin in it, but I want to circle back to you. Okay. Is if you had never made this change, where do you think you would be right now?

32:48Honestly, it's kind of scary to think, you know, like, and I know you can relate. It is one of those that what's, you know, pretty awesome about the beginning experience of things is like going through and like getting the hormone panel of stuff done. And like, girl, I got you. I can understand everything that you exposed. When I had that done, like the things that were exposed, I was like, they must have screwed this up in the problem.

33:19Like that can't be me because I wasn't like the outward physical side of things. I'm like, I don't have that. I don't have that. I don't have that. But it was, you know, the estrogen, testosterone, DHEA, my cortisol would start low and end up high at the end of the day. And they're like, it's got to be the opposite direction. Like everything was out of whack. And it was that, you know, the epiphany of like, okay, everything that I've kind of felt

33:50even in that moment of getting that understanding from an internal standpoint to say, it's not me, but it's me. We can work around that. That component leading to the coaching, the support, the accountability has made me kind of feel like I have a purpose because I have a presence. I have always, always, always, I've been very confident in my job and I know how to do my

34:21job really, really well. And to kind of compare and contrast, you know, like in your journey of things, you've always, you know, battled with the masculine versus feminine energy and stuff. And you have found things that I feel have made you feel more whole in a sense that you're fine in your entirety. And that's amazing. And listening to your journey in your life, like I think about what this has been that warrior babe has brought a wholeness to me that I knew I was missing something, but I didn't

34:56know what I was missing. And it fulfilled the kind of the confidence that for years, I didn't feel like I was taking up space and I didn't know why. I knew that I could do a good job with certain things, but being such a people pleaser, being, you know, you, I stayed passive. And now with being stronger, being proud of what this external physique looks like, it takes that internal mentality to say, no, you don't have to be passive and sit on the

35:31sidelines and let, you know, the world walk all over you. It's, I have this purpose. Look at me. I know what I'm capable of. You know, don't get in my way. And even it, it even, you know, is present. Like now when I go to the gym to work out, I have my program. And when I go to the gym, it is like a nine to one ratio, men to women. And when I go in there, I'll be on whatever machines. And I am so confident sitting and giving myself my three minute rest time in between sets.

36:07And I don't care if somebody else is looking at me saying, what are you doing? I have purpose to be there because I'm doing this for my body. What you're doing? Sure. You're on your journey doing your workout, but I have purpose. Don't try to, you know, bully me out of doing something that I need to. I'm not going to rush life because it's going to make it more convenient for you. Or I'm not going to bend over backwards because it's going to make it more convenient for someone else. So, you know, when you ask like, where would I be?

36:37Um, that that's a very broad question. And the answer is going to be very broad. But I know where I am now. And I'm thrilled with where I am now and so excited about the future. That's so powerful. That's such a powerful response. It's like, it's like you take up the space. Yeah. Take up the space. Yeah. We're not meant to shrink or be small. We're meant to shake up space. And you're doing it with purpose. Yeah. You're doing it with intention. You have a reason to be in the room. You have a reason to show up for yourself.

37:08And that is super, super powerful. I love that. Yeah. Yeah. Oh, man. That's super cool. How has it impacted like your, your work, your work life? Like you're, you're, um, you being a PT, you know, clinical director, like you mentioned that you're pivoting from the more of the practice ask to helping more of the Perry to post-menopausal women, like that's what you said at the beginning that you wanted to do that. Um, how is that now? How is it like encompassing now in your world, like having this knowledge and these tools and

37:40these resources and now helping and maybe pouring into, you said you wanted to do it yourself. You, you needed to be the one that experienced it before you could actually teach it. Like, how is it, is it like coming full circle for you? Uh, so not entirely only because I always want to be really good and really knowledgeable about something that I'm going to pass on. It has definitely given me more confidence to speak about my experience to say, this is

38:11why I want you to do it. Look at what I have done. These are things that, um, you can have the opportunity to do also. Okay. So as far as full circle, where, you know, this is still the short, you know, the early side of the marathon that I'm running. So, so, so that, so that's the biggest thing is that, oh, I know this is laying the foundation for great things to come, but you know, it takes time for those great things to occur. And so how I really look at this is saying, okay, you know, in three years, five years,

38:4610 years, like, this is how I kind of want to reshape or pivot how I practice on what I do that in nine months alone. Nope. This is still for me. This is for me, but I speak with more confidence. Um, but what it's going to do to continue the way that my professional career goes, this is just laying the most solid foundation of anything I'm going to do in the future. So it is, it's, you know, getting more personal experience. It's allowing me to physically get through a certain phase, which is then leading to me

39:23studying and researching other elements, which is then going to lead to me getting other certifications so that I truly have all the backing I need to provide my patients with the best, the best experience, but as much like research knowledge as possible, as opposed to being like, well, I think you can, or you might be able to, I want it to be, these are the things that have been shown to work. This is how we're going to do it.

39:54Ah, that's incredible. Yeah. I love that. And what I think is so cool too about your journey is for you personally, like you're setting yourself up to go through menopause in like the strongest way possible. Yes. Like you are feeling your, like the symptoms and like actually like experiencing it is going to be so much easier than someone who isn't moving their body, isn't working out, isn't strength training, isn't eating right, is under eating. Like you're doing all of the right things.

40:25Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And that's even where, you know, I'm like, God, I like, it's the thing about warrior, babe. I was like, yes, you know, it is so beneficial to women as they get older to realize what they've, what they have isn't what they're stuck with. But I'm like, God, I wish women just even as they're approaching 40, late thirties, that they would start looking into things like this more because why not set yourself up for success

40:57or at least tolerance for what we're all about to go through compared to just being like, okay, well, this is what we're doomed with because we don't educate people enough regarding it. And that's where I'm like, and that's where I am. I'm talking to more and more of my patients that are of a similar age to say, don't wait. It's, it's inevitable. It's going to happen, but don't wait. Start the changes. Start to educate yourself now, because this is when it's, it's going to be easier to brace

41:29for, but it's going to make the next 20 to 30 years so much better. So much better. Oh, I love that. Okay. So I have one question as we wrap up this, this, this interview together. What is one piece of advice that you would give someone who feels stuck? Um, maybe in like the same way that you were stuck in, like the inconsistencies or fearing food or unsure how to take like that first step. Like what's that one piece of advice that you would give them? I would ultimately say, um, one be selfish.

42:06Um, but, but I would ultimately say, especially, you know, considering the, the clientele that you guys would appeal to, you have strong women within your program. And that that's amazing. I think like we, as women need to be willing to be more vulnerable and ask for help. And I think that was something that, especially, you know, in my profession, like it, it was humbling to say, I can't, I can't do it on my own.

42:38I'm like, am I going to pay for somebody else to do this, but to have a support system, seek out the help because there are people out there to help you. Every woman woman is giving themselves to everyone else. And rarely do they ask for what they need. And in starting something like this, it's acknowledging that it's not that you're weak, you are being wise to ask for what you need.

43:09And this is the perfect platform to do it. Getting this is going to help you mentally, physically, emotionally, spiritually. And that's, what's going to, you know, you're going to find your wholeness. It's just, which one is lacking at this time? And so it would be like, don't be afraid to ask for help. And this may be a different form of help that you're seeking out, but it can be so impactful. Oh, I love that. That's such a wise, wise response. And I think that you're so spot on with so many women have a hard time asking for help,

43:42but yet we're like silently struggling. It's so simple to be like, I need help. I mean, it's easier said than done, but it's really that easy to feel like I need help and then see the reaction and they will get in the, the want of wanting to be, you know, wanting to give help. It's just, it's, that's such a, I love that response. It's so very like heartfelt. And to any woman that's listening right now, let Leah's story just be a reminder that, you know, knowledge isn't necessarily the missing piece. She had all the tools. She had all the knowledge.

44:13Like she knew, she knew all the things, but it's like, what I learned from you in this interview is like the ownership is, is, is, is really that, that missing piece. It's like taking ownership for you, putting yourself first, being selfish and really taking the action and asking for the help. And it's not too, it's not too late to reclaim your strength, your purpose, your confidence. So whether you're a health professional like Leah is, or a mom, or someone who's always putting others first, like this journey is yours to take and yours to finally put yourself

44:45first. Leah, thank you for being here. And thank you for sharing that story of yours. It's really going to resonate with, I know with a lot of women. Yeah. And this is awesome. And thank you for everything that you do. It has been very impactful. Thank you. I thank you for trusting in us. Yeah. Did we deliver on our promise that we, that we, that we, that we, that we can get. A hundred percent. And like I said, I've already signed up for two more years and I'm just waiting for you to roll that out. I'll do another two years. Go, Jadrian's going to be with you. You're going to be here forever. I threatened her with that already.

45:15I love that. All right, Leah. Well, thank you. Absolutely. Hey, really quick before you go, I have one small favor to ask. If this episode brought you value or sparked something in you, take just a moment to hit that review button. Your rating and review make all of the difference. Helping more women discover the tools they need to transform the fitness and their confidence. It takes less than a minute, but it can change the path of someone else's journey. Thank you so much for leaving that review. I appreciate you so much. Thank you.

This transcript was generated automatically and may contain errors.