Losing 50 Pounds After Menopause by Eating More Food

Lona: Nobody is going to take care of me better than I'm going to take care of myself. So why don't I go get real help in getting on the other side of some of these things that have been challenges for me over the course of my lifetime?

Nikkiey: So today we've got WarriorBabe Lona here with us. She spent years putting everyone and everything ahead of herself, never fully making time for her own health and her own happiness. But after a powerful mindset shift, which I'm really excited to get into today with her, she realized that she deserved to feel strong. She deserved to feel confident and proud of the woman that she saw in the mirror. And with WarriorBabe, she found the tools. She found the guidance. She found the coaching. She found the support to step into her best self. And now she's not just transforming physically, but she's redefining what's possible for her future. Lona, welcome. I'm excited to dive into your story.

Lona: Thank you so much for having me. I appreciate it.

Nikkiey: Of course. So for the listeners, can you just let everyone know where you're located in the U.S., what you do for work and how old you are?

Lona: Sure. I am 55 years old. I live in Bloomington, Minnesota, which is a first-tier suburb of the Minneapolis area. And I'm a product manager coach by trade.

Nikkiey: Nice. What does that mean? What do you do for that?

Lona: So I help people build good software by teaching them how to go out and discover what's really important and valuable when they build stuff for other people.

Nikkiey: Oh, you're a good connect to have.

Lona: Happy to help anytime. And by the way, I share a lot of things that I think our tools could use, whether it's MyFitnessPal or things like that. I'm one of those people that's typing all the things I think they can improve. So here's the help.

Nikkiey: I love that. You should try to get into MyFitnessPal and be like, hey, guys, improve these things.

Lona: That's right. Because it definitely needs some work.

Nikkiey: There's some work there, for sure. Cool. So let's dive into your health and fitness before you found WarriorBabe. What did that look like?

Lona: I don't think it looked like anything, candidly. I mean, the problem was that it was...

Nikkiey: I love this interview already. You're so candid. You're just straight to the point.

Lona: Yeah. I mean, it didn't look like a routine. It didn't look like a focused set of activities. It didn't look like anything. I was very active as a kid and very active through college. But then I came out of college, got working, and kind of that old thing fell apart. And so, 33 years later or so, I'm sitting there thinking to myself, I'm the heaviest I've ever been. I don't have the stamina that I should have. I don't understand what's happening to me going through menopause. And I just really needed to understand it better. My undergraduate degree is in biology. And so I'm a nerd about data and information and how processes work. And I was really looking for somebody to help me understand what was going on with myself. Maybe I was hitting the gym. Maybe I was doing my walks and that kind of thing. But I really wasn't focused, certainly, on strength training and all the things that we get to do here at WarriorBabe.

Nikkiey: Let's unpack that a little bit. What were you doing? What did your movement, your fitness look like? And then what were you eating?

Lona: Well, I was eating pretty much whatever I wanted and I was drinking a lot. I used drinking as a crutch for a lot of things, and we could talk about that for sure. Most of my eating was around social situations or it was around stress situations. And so it wasn't full of nutrition necessarily. Although I always had a sense for what was good to eat and what was not good to eat. I was never a big soft drinker or anything like that. I love fruits and vegetables. None of that stuff was hard for me. It just wasn't what I was putting in my body. I would not plan meals. And so I would grab whatever I could find at a convenience store, for example. And you do your best with that, but it's full of additives. It's full of other things. And so what I was eating was really a function of going out and being social and eating what looked good at the time, but not necessarily focused on how much fat was in it or what the calories were. And I definitely wasn't eating enough. We could talk about how I learned that despite all of that, I wasn't eating nearly enough food. I wasn't eating the stuff that was good for me and I wasn't eating it in a way that was going to fuel my body and its success.

And then in terms of exercise, I would go on hikes. I love to be outdoors and I love nature photography and that kind of thing. So I was walking a lot, but nothing concerted and nothing strength oriented. I did do Pilates for about 15 years, so I felt like I had good core strength.

Nikkiey: I've seen some of your videos. Pilates is a lot harder than anybody ever thinks it is, for sure.

Lona: And I love it.

Nikkiey: I was humbled. I was hardly humbled.

Lona: And I'm glad that I did that first because I feel like, candidly, it has helped me with a lot of the form associated with strength training. I think you could get into bad habits and lift heavy and then not have the kind of body positioning that you need. So I'm grateful that I did that. But during the pandemic, I kind of stopped that too. And so 2022 and 2023 were really, really difficult years for me. And I felt that on top of the body changes that I was going through because I was hitting menopause.

Nikkiey: I appreciate you being vulnerable and opening up some of those aspects of alcohol or social situations. Let's dive into that. What were some of the biggest roadblocks that kept you from prioritizing your health before WarriorBabe?

Lona: I think one of the biggest ones was just that I grew up in an environment that had a lot of trauma associated with it. My dad was an alcoholic. My parents got divorced when I was 12. I'm gay, and I had a very difficult coming out process through my teenage years. Lots of Catholic high school education and everything.

Nikkiey: Wow.

Lona: And so in the process of going through that and then getting on the other side of that and then getting into the workforce... I grew up poor, so money became important to me. Fitting in became important to me. And trying to find your way in that combination of worldviews makes for a lot of reactive action as opposed to thoughtful, proactive action. So I kind of woke up after 30 years of a career going, why am I even doing this? It has nothing to do with what I loved when I was a child. It had nothing to do with what my passions really are. And it hasn't resulted in me being able to stop working when I was 40 or anything. So it's not like I got a whole lot out of it. I'm still working and I'm still wondering why I've let this relationship I have with myself go in the process. So that was a big revelation for me in January of '24.

Nikkiey: Wow. That's a pretty self-aware moment to have for yourself. And was that when you came home from travel? Or was that the whole story?

Lona: Yeah. So I was at a work conference event and I had just a terrible interaction with some of the leadership there. And I went back to my hotel and I just started crying. I was like, what in the world am I doing here? I'm away from home. I'm away from my family. I'm trying to do my best, but nobody wants to hear me. Nobody wants to listen to what I have to say. And I'm thinking to myself, I am too old for this shit. I have done too many things in my life to be treated this way, but also it wasn't good for me. I think you get to a point in your life where you have to realize that you're not for everyone, and that's okay. But I thought I was for these people and then they were rejecting me. And so it became a very, very big moment of, wow, something's got to change. Maybe I need to like me better, and then that won't matter as much.

Nikkiey: Wow. Can we talk about that? Because there are so many women that I feel like go through their day to day trying to please others and trying to make others happy. And that right there is such a profound realization: hey, I need to love myself. I talk about putting a bubble around you so that you can't have any of these negative interjections coming into your space that aren't necessarily a part of your story or who you are. They're living their own path and you're on your own path, but you have to feel so confident and secure in yourself. So with that, what emotions came up when you felt like you weren't living as the person that you wanted to be, and you were people pleasing and doing all these things for other people?

Lona: Every emotion you could think of. I was angry for wasting time, not doing it earlier. But at the same time, it was super motivational for me to be like, okay, the only thing worse than yesterday is not doing it today. So get your act together. And it was also a mind shift, and I still work on this, and Haley and I talk about this a lot. I have had such an adversarial relationship with my body, as if it was working against me, as opposed to saying it's my oldest friend and companion. It's been there with me forever. And maybe it's trying really hard. And if I gave it a little bit more love and consideration and attention, we'd have a better relationship. And so it was really profound. I was thinking about all these external relationships I have and trying to understand why I might be going through rejection. And I realized I had been rejecting the most important relationship I have had my whole life, which is the one with me. And that made a huge difference, just understanding that. And that's what led me to looking for a program, which led me to WarriorBabe.

Nikkiey: Holy cow. Okay. I want to keep on that, but I want to shift slightly to the menopause aspect of it. Were you in menopause before or after WarriorBabe?

Lona: Great question. Kind of during, I guess, would be the right way to say it. My one-year anniversary of not having a period was June of last year. So I had started WarriorBabe right before that. I'm about ready to hit my second year post-menopause, if you will.

Nikkiey: Okay, got you. So when you found WarriorBabe, how did you find us?

Lona: Via your socials.

Nikkiey: Gotcha. What stuck out the most? What was I saying or doing?

Lona: Two things. One was, I was looking for a program for people over 40, because I feel like a lot of the fitness stuff is just for younger people. And I knew that my body couldn't necessarily do all of that, and it wasn't going to be realistic for me to think about that as a way for me to get encouragement. So the first thing was you were targeting folks over 40, which was awesome, and it was a program for women especially. And then second, you talked a lot about the biology of menopause and what it's doing, what hormones have to do with it, and also the physiological effects of things like muscle loss and bone density loss and all these other things, which really intrigued me. One of my favorite college courses when I was at Penn State was the biology of aging. And I'm in this mode of aging, right, and I didn't understand it at all. And so the content that I read and the way that you all were focusing on that was a really impactful way for me to say, okay, this program is going to give me the information that I need to understand where I'm at.

Nikkiey: Gotcha. I love that. Also, muscle is the organ of longevity. The more muscle you build and have on your body, you're going to live longer, for sure. And I love that you have the data and the mindset of the biology and the science, and it makes sense for you.

Lona: It has to make sense for me. That's a big part of it. If it doesn't make sense, I'm not going to do it. So facts and data. I can't get enough of them.

Nikkiey: I love that. So when you found the socials, you were hearing these things. What made you finally decide to take the lead, fill out the 19-question application, get on a call with the team? What was the full send?

Lona: I think the combination of how it resonated for me and the comfort that I had with the information I was getting, combined with this very big, life-altering motivational shift that I had in my brain, which was: nobody is going to take care of me better than I'm going to take care of myself. So why don't I go get real help in getting on the other side of some of these things that have been challenges for me over the course of my lifetime?

Nikkiey: What do you feel like was the hardest belief or thought...

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Nikkiey: ...or the biggest habit that you had to unlearn in this process?

Lona: Most of it has been mental. I'm probably really good at habit forming, but the habits I was forming weren't great. There's this great artist here in the Twin Cities, a singer that's been around forever. And one day she said, you spend the first 50 years trying to kill yourself and the next 50 trying not to die. And I was like, I'm going to tattoo that somewhere on my body at some point, because that's such an important thing. And so I felt a combination of things. I felt a time bomb of sorts that says there's going to be a point of no return, because by the time I realize I can't get out of my chair like I would like to, it's too late. Let's not ever get to that point. Number two, I have to focus on me. Nobody else is going to take care of me. And I have tools that I have been neglecting that will make that possible. And three, I was able to find a program that was going to give me the information that I needed to be successful. That combination of factors was just like, yeah, I'm going to take the plunge.

Nikkiey: Get it done. So what were the first couple of months like as a WarriorBabe?

Lona: I will say I just got so lucky with Haley. I was a sponge, absorbing everything that she was telling me. And one of the things I think she's so good at, which I'm sure you coach when you're working with your coaches, is how to really get to a one-on-one relationship and factor that into the information that they give. So she knew to give me the science behind macros, and she knew to give me the science behind the supplements that we were talking about. And she was so willing to answer any questions that I had, even if they sounded like they weren't really topical, because I could help her understand the reason it was on my mind, and then she would be willing to help me out with it. And so those first few months were just about: you don't eat enough. I'm going to make you eat more, and I'm going to make you eat the right things more. And I looked at her at one point and I said, I don't know how to eat this much. This is so much food. So that first mind shift of just eat more, and then spend the energy by going to do your strength training, was probably the biggest thing that I needed to understand right away.

Nikkiey: I love that. And shout out to Haley M., because I understand now the dynamic you guys have, since I'm learning who you are right now. She's so smart, and she can throw facts and give you biological breakdowns and give you the science behind things. And that is your brain. You're very analytical. You're very data driven, metrics, all the things, break it down so I can understand it. So I can understand why y'all are the perfect match.

Lona: It's really great. I'm super happy that she's my coach, and I get a lot out of every interaction that we have.

Nikkiey: That's so cool. And I love that you said it's more mindset for you in this relationship and the one-on-one that you have with her, because I think that's what we do really well at WarriorBabe. It's not just about your nutrition. It's not just about your workouts. Hell yes, they're so important, but it's also the mindset that you came into this program with. Can we break down the limiting beliefs or the stories that are being told? I can't eat this much, or I don't know how to work out, or I don't have enough time, or whatever it is. Can we break that down and give you more confidence in yourself and how to show up for yourself, how to put yourself first? So I love that you said it's more so the mindset aspect for you, because that's truly how we want to be perceived in this space. It's not just workouts and macros.

Lona: I think that's really important for people to hear, because you're right. I think you could go out and get a workout program from a lot of people and be somewhat successful physically. In this particular case, that wouldn't have been the thing that worked for me. It would have worked for me maybe partially. But for me, we journal, and I share my journal entries with her, and then she goes, okay, let's unpack that another layer. And it's like, oh my God, so many parfait layers. It's crazy. And we've done the hero's journey workshop, and she did a great little advent thing this past Advent where we did a journaling session for 25 days. And then I've sought out other ways to do mindset changes, whether that's books. She runs a book club for some of us. There's just so much about how we've been programmed, and we don't even know it. The intersection of me being white, a woman, but also queer, that's a very specific intersection of things. And you have babes that are BIPOC, women of different ages, and straight. And so we have all these intersections, but there are some really common beliefs that have just been ingrained in us since we were really, really small, and we don't even know that they happened. And so I'm grateful that you all spend the time with us to unpack what's behind the reasons we say we can't do something. Progress over perfection has been my number one mantra in WarriorBabe. And it's because of that. You go anyway. I just say, go to the gym anyway. The mindset stuff is the most important piece here.

Nikkiey: Let's go. I love that. That's huge. And it goes back to your point of building the one-on-one relationship, because as you just mentioned, everyone is different. And the reason behind the "I can't" is different for everyone because of what they've been carrying with themselves for so long without even realizing it. And then once you get past that story, it's like a whole new narrative and you can just be unstoppable.

Lona: I'd like to think so.

Nikkiey: Love that. Hey, while you're listening, if you're getting value from this episode, take a moment to tap that review button or share this podcast with a friend. It's a small gesture that goes a long way in helping more women find their way to feeling stronger and more confident in their skin. I appreciate you so much for taking the time to support this show.

So I want to pull in the aging factor of what you just talked about, aging and fitness. As a menopausal, postmenopausal woman, how did WarriorBabe challenge the myths that you once believed about aging and fitness?

Lona: I think one was just that I can still do things that I didn't think that I could do. It's a strange thing to walk into a gym at 54 and that's the first time you've ever done a bench press. It was wild. And by the way, it's one of my favorite exercises now. I really love it. And it feels like such a bro thing to go do. And I want to be in the gym being like, no, I can do this too. Look at this old lady getting it done. So I think that was just the overcoming of, yeah, your knees are going to hurt a little bit more than a kid in her twenties doing the same thing, because they don't have the wear and tear on their knees. But that doesn't mean that you can't modify the exercise to still be very successful in doing a squat or a lunge or whatever.

I had back surgery last May. So I started WarriorBabe and then had two major surgeries, and I've been dealing with the accommodation of that through modifications as well. Those have served me. My back is stronger today than it was before I had surgery. And that's a great thing. And I haven't hurt it, despite the fact that I've been doing this for seven months since I got out of the don't-touch-anything phase of the surgery recovery. And that's a great story for somebody who's older, who might need a knee replacement or some kind of shoulder surgery, to say, no, this is still going to work for you. You can make those modifications to get back to where you want to be. So I've been very, very happy that I didn't let my age get in the way.

My age is a motivator. My mom died of cancer when I was 32 and she was 63. So I am now only eight years away from surpassing her in age, which is mentally a very weird thing to be thinking about. But I know what she was like at that age, cancer aside. And I know what I want to be. And I want to be different. I want to be stronger. I want to be more active, more mobile, more in love with myself. I want all of those things. And so that's very motivating in a way. It's terrifying that at some point I will have lived longer than my mom lived. That's weird. And at some point... I can't do math. When I'm 65, I will have lived longer without her than I lived with her. These are really interesting numbers. Again, my data mind.

Nikkiey: Your data brain.

Lona: These are really interesting numbers, but they don't scare me like they used to. That used to make me very sad and very afraid. Am I going to live past 63? And instead now I'm like, I'm going to be my best self at that age.

Nikkiey: Amazing. I love that for you so much. That's incredible.

Lona: It's really another mind shift. It's more about mind shift than anything else, really.

Nikkiey: It is. And I love hearing that through your story. Let's talk about where you're at now with WarriorBabe. You mentioned when we were catching up beforehand how long you've been a WarriorBabe. How long now?

Lona: A little over a year. I'm in my second year. My anniversary is the 31st of January.

Nikkiey: I love that. So you mentioned when you first came into WarriorBabe, Haley was telling you to eat more, eat more, eat more. What did that look like in terms of numbers, if you can remember? Once she assessed where you were at with your calories and asked you to eat more?

Lona: I can absolutely tell you exactly, being a data nerd. I started at about 1,570, then we went up to about 1,680, and now I'm at 1,965.

Nikkiey: Let's go.

Lona: And I've still lost... In January of 2024, I weighed 233 pounds, and I'm sitting at 182 right now. So that's despite the fact that I'm eating like crazy.

Nikkiey: Holy shit.

Lona: I know. It's crazy, right? That's 50 pounds, if I can do math.

Nikkiey: No, you did. Just about 50 pounds. Oh my gosh. And you're eating almost 500 more calories every day.

Lona: Every day. And as you can imagine, because I'm a weirdo, I hit my macros six out of seven days a week, like clockwork.

Nikkiey: That's not being a weirdo. That's being consistent. And again, consistency is everything.

Lona: These are habits that I'm forming that I didn't know I could. We could talk about food all day long, because now I can go into a restaurant on the days that I do go out and I know exactly what a portion size looks like, because I've been weighing my food.

Nikkiey: Can you say that louder for the people in the back?

Lona: Weigh your food. Weigh your food and get a sense of it, because you want to be able to go out and know exactly what that portion size looks like, and eat it. Absolutely eat it. And by the way, throw that extra chicken breast on there. Don't be afraid. That's the other thing. I go in and I'm like, I'm going to need to add a side of this to this. And people are like, what? And I'm like, no, girl, I'm eating. I have to eat.

Nikkiey: Every time I go out, I'm like, just double the protein.

Lona: Absolutely. And people are weirded out by that, but I don't care. I'm like, no, I've got to eat it. I don't want to step off that track.

Nikkiey: So you lost 50 pounds by eating more food, and you just mentioned that you're going into a cut.

Lona: That's the hope, anyway. We're seeing how we do here. I plateaued in October. When we went up to the 1,965, I stopped losing weight. I didn't gain any more, but I stopped losing weight, and I was still doing recomposition. My fat loss is still there. The proportion of fat-free muscle mass versus fat is still changing, which is awesome. I just went and got a DEXA scan not that long ago, so now we have real data to look at to understand a little bit more about it. Again, because I'm a nerd. The theme here is nerd. So now, in late April, we're going to look at doing a cut. And I started some cardio now as a means to test the theory here. We'll see how it plays out, but I'm excited about that.

Nikkiey: You're in a great space to do that. You spent so much time staying up at almost 2,000 calories.

Lona: It'll be four months or so by the time we go into that cut.

Nikkiey: So your body recognizes that as most likely your maintenance. Once you slash the calories down a little bit, not much, you'll probably start dropping a little bit more. That's super exciting.

Lona: It will be exciting to see if there's a six-pack underneath this well-insulated area of my body.

Nikkiey: What's the goal that you want to get to?

Lona: My original goal was 165, but depending on how that goes, if I could get down into the 150 space, that'd be great. But I've actually never weighed that little. Even when I was a junior in college and I was probably in the best shape, playing co-ed football and volleyball and rollerblading all over campus and all kinds of other things, I still was 165. I just had muscle at that point. So if I could look like I did in my junior year of college, that would be amazing. But maybe we'll do better. I don't know.

Nikkiey: And it may not even be that you get to that number, but you look physically more toned, built, the muscle's showing more.

Lona: Absolutely, for sure. People don't recognize me. I've had people come up to me and they're like, wait, who are you? All of this is gone, and the arms are strong. It's been really great. I feel great about where I'm at. And that's the biggest thing. It seems like a long time to talk about doing this for over a year, but I signed up for year two back in July before I was even done with my first year, because I knew I was going to need a long-term program to get me there.

And that's the other thing that you guys do such a great job with. I walked into this, and in the first couple of conversations that Haley and I had, she said, you're not going to get results in six months. If you think this is that program, you need to check out, because this isn't going to work for you. You're going to get frustrated and you're going to be mad at us. You've got to realize that this is a journey and that you're going to do different things over the course of a number of years to get where you're going. And the people that you're looking at now, like yourself, Nikkiey, who are in top shape and feeling great, that took them years too. So don't discredit their hard work by thinking that you could get that in three to six months. That's not fair to them. And it's not fair to you, because you're setting yourself up for failure.

Nikkiey: I love that so much. I love it, Haley. That's what we talk about inside the team. All of our marketing is like, dude, if you want results in three months, it's not for you, because you're going to blame the program.

Lona: That's it. People are going to get down on WarriorBabe, as opposed to realizing that that was never the intention.

Nikkiey: Oh, and it's happened.

Lona: I believe you. I'm sure there's all kinds of hate out there. But at one point, when we had a really stark conversation, I said, well, how long is it going to take for me to really see what I want to see? And she said, five years. And I was like, oh boy. Okay. I had to know that upfront.

Nikkiey: That upfront honesty, straight out like that.

Lona: Yes. It was huge. And it made a big difference in me deciding that I was going to be a part of this anyway, because I felt like I had the right answers. Now I had all the information that I needed to make a decision.

Nikkiey: Let's go, man. I freaking love that so much. So you're training them really well. And Haley's really awesome.

Lona: She's a gem. She is truly a gem.

Nikkiey: She's an incredible human. What are some of your other top achievements that you've had with WarriorBabe, aside from the weight loss?

Lona: Non-scale victories have been really fun. A couple of things. Like I said, I recovered from the two surgeries that I had, and I'm feeling stronger now than I was beforehand, which is great. One of the other things we talk about is the fact that we've forgotten how to play as adults. We don't play anymore. And it's sad. When I was a kid, I was literally that tomboy running, jumping, climbing trees, all that kind of stuff. And I forgot how to do that. And so I joined a parkour gym in January as an augmentation to what I'm doing with WarriorBabe. I get to learn how to flip upside down again and wall run and all kinds of other stuff. And it's not easy, but it's super fun, and I'm excited to be doing it. And I would not have done that if I didn't have the first year with this program to really gain the confidence and the willingness to take a little bit of a chance on me in new ways, and also to understand that your physical body should bring you joy. It's a worthy companion. The one thing that you carry with you your entire life is your physical self. And if you don't give it time and you don't give it attention and you don't give it chances to express itself creatively, that's not good for it. And in our culture, unless you get to be an artist, which is amazing, and I'm so grateful that they exist, most of us are in the grind. Most of us are nine to five, Monday through Friday, sitting at a desk. And that's not the right way to live. And so I'm grateful that I'm going to get into my crone years, if you will, with a very active and mobile body and mind, and a connection that I've not had since I was a kid.

Nikkiey: Wow. You should be so proud of all the work that you've done. Getting to hear your story here now is so dope, in terms of hearing where you were before and then hearing where you are now. You're so much more confident, energetic, you're playing. That is so fun. I love that for you.

Lona: It is fun. It's really fun. I'm really old compared to most of the people that are there, but I don't care.

Nikkiey: I love that for you. What I loved too, when I was reading your form, was that you mentioned that you actually enjoy looking in the mirror now.

Lona: Yes, it's true.

Nikkiey: How does that make you feel?

Lona: It's really interesting. I think I said that I look at myself in the mirror more now than I have in my entire adult life. And it's true. I don't have a full-length mirror in my house. I would ask other people if my clothes looked all right, but it really was not something I cared about. Now, I have always loved my hair, so that's not to say I didn't fix my hair. I always did my hair up. But for the most part, it was weird. I realized I just don't do that. And the accountability associated with taking the pictures every week and looking at that and feeling good about those achievements, and getting feedback from my coach about, hey, don't neglect that just because the scale hasn't changed... I've lost about 10 inches around my waist. I can't even fathom that I used to carry that much extra, literally visceral fat, because of where it was located. And so, yeah, it's nice to look in the mirror now. I like to smile at myself and say, go on, girl. I feel like Stuart Smalley, but that's all right.

Nikkiey: I don't know who that is.

Lona: That's because you're too young to know who that is. Al Franken had a character on SNL called Stuart Smalley, and he would look in the mirror and say, you're good enough, you're smart enough, and doggone it, people like you. I didn't do that for myself, but I do now. And that's really awesome.

Nikkiey: We used to joke around about that when there were only six coaches on the team. We would get on Zooms and we would have to talk to clients and babes that were having a hard time. One of the coaches would share with the team what she does, which is she looks in the mirror and says, I'm a really good freaking coach. And it's the same thing. I'm good enough. I look great in my body. I feel confident in my body. And you look at yourself in the mirror and say that with so much oomph and so much confidence.

Lona: But to your point, sometimes you have to do it anyway. One of the things I said is, I don't want to go to the gym today, I'm going anyway. I'm getting off this call and I'm going to the gym because I have a gym workout to do today. I'm going to do it. Today I do want to, but if I didn't, I would anyway. Same thing: talk to yourself, give yourself that pep talk even when you don't want to, because eventually it becomes something that you look forward to.

Nikkiey: Correct. A hundred percent.

Lona: And it doesn't hurt that people look at you better too. I've got to be honest with you, but I don't think that it's physical for me necessarily. Maybe some of it is, but I think I'm a better person. I just think I'm a better person. And people like me better.

Nikkiey: And that's all that matters, from what you were sharing beforehand. You felt rejected by the people around you, but now you're so confident in yourself and you stand your ground and you know who you are. That comes across differently to the people that look at you, and they like you more because you are who you are, and you're accepted that way.

Lona: I think that's it. The idea that I don't have to be for everyone is something I didn't understand. But it's also really freeing to know that being more authentic may mean that people figure that out sooner rather than later, but then that means there's less rejection for you too, because you find your tribe.

Nikkiey: Exactly. And even with the rejection, it's just redirection.

Lona: That's it. They don't have to be for me. And it's interesting. I'm a city council member here in Bloomington, so I'm an elected official, which puts me in a very weird spot in a lot of conversations, because you interact with people across all spectrums. And it's a nonpartisan thing. We deal with things like roads and trash collection and weird stuff like that. I'm also not going to be for all of them, but I can approach every single relationship more authentically and more compassionately, and with an ear to really hearing them, if I'm feeling better about who I am and the way that I'm presenting myself to them.

Nikkiey: Amen.

Lona: So it's helping in all kinds of aspects of my life, frankly.

Nikkiey: Let's go. I love to hear that. Now, for someone that's listening in on this story that you're sharing, what advice would you give to someone that is struggling to put themselves first?

Lona: Oh boy. I know it sounds cliche, but do it anyway. I think it's Mary Oliver who has a poem that says something like, what are you going to do with this one wild and precious life? I'm paraphrasing, because I'm never going to get that right, because I'm not a poet. But if I could do anything, I would talk to young people especially about not waiting until they're 54 to figure this stuff out, and to prioritize that relationship with yourself. And I think I'm seeing some of that with some of the young folks that I get to interact with, which is awesome. I have mentors who are 20 and 30 years younger than me, and that's so amazing. So I would say one, do it anyway, even if it doesn't feel right because of all the external pressures. Do it anyway. And two, keep at it. Do it a little every day, because it's those atomic moments, if you will, those little things that are going to make the shift. The ripples on the pond kind of thing is really what it's about. And I just wouldn't want anybody to think that they couldn't, because if I can do it, anybody can.

Nikkiey: Amen to that. A hundred percent. You can achieve anything you put your mind to.

Lona: You've got to do it for you. You've got to get out of your own way and do it for you.

Nikkiey: That is it. Exactly.

Lona: And I don't know why it took so long for me. Better now than never, for sure. And I'm hopeful that it doesn't take that long for other people. But even if it has, even if you're talking to people who are 70 years old, it can still be the best decision that they make.

Nikkiey: Facts. How about one more question that I have for you? For someone that's watching this right now who's unsure about taking the next steps, what would you tell them about WarriorBabe and the impact it could have on their life?

Lona: I think, number one, if they're looking like I was for something that was going to give them information that was going to be useful to actually shifting the mindset that they need to have. Number two, the interaction on the daily with a group of people that are going to be super useful and helpful to them, sharing stories and sharing tips and tricks and all kinds of other things that really make it feel like a community. If they need that support, regardless of where they're at in the world, they can get it here. And then thirdly, it's a science and a methodology that is provable. It's not a fad. It's not a gimmick. It's not a short-term thing with a bunch of stuff you have to buy. None of that has to be there. You literally only need a couple of dumbbells and a good mindset to really make a start here. And if that's what you're looking for, I think you can get it with this program. I am so grateful I found it. I really am. Like I said, if I can do it, anybody can.

Nikkiey: Exactly. And I'm grateful that you found us. I'm grateful that you trusted in us enough to sign up and go on this journey. That's the coolest thing about it. And for anyone that's listening right now, Lona's journey proves that transformation isn't just about physical changes. It's about taking control of your mindset. It's about taking control of your confidence. I mean, you've taken control of your entire life, which is super freaking cool to hear. And she's living proof that if you commit to yourself, if you show up for yourself, incredible things can happen. So if you guys are ready to take the next step and you're inspired by Lona's story, check out warriorbabe.com. You won't regret it. Lona, thank you so much for being here and sharing that. It was awesome.

Lona: Thank you for having me. I really appreciate it.

Nikkiey: Real quick: if this episode resonated with you or gave you the push that you needed, I'd love for you to pay it forward. Drop a quick rating and review, share the podcast with someone who might need it, and help me keep spreading the word. Your feedback not only helps the show grow, but it might just be the nudge someone else needs to kickstart their transformation. Thank you so, so, so much for your support.