Why Am I Gaining Weight After 40 When I Work Out So Much?

Nicole: I completed a full-on Olympic-length triathlon. I saw no difference in my body. None of that post-pregnancy bulge went away. Nothing happened. And then I hit 40. I'm not even just maintaining it. I'm actually getting bigger. It was kind of like putting some of these pieces together that led up to feeling like, okay, I think I need help. But WarriorBabe was one of those that kept popping up. My weight is down maybe five pounds, but inches off my waist. I would say even within that first week, I felt different. Being there for my kids, for the responsibilities that I have. It was like my body was just saying, thank you.

Nikkiey: What's going on, everybody? Hey, you guys. So I have another WarriorBabe here with us, and I'm so excited to dive into her story. Nicole was working out six days a week. She was eating less, she was skipping meals, and she was watching her body get bigger. And at 40 years old with five kids and no time to waste, she thought that maybe this was just how life was after 40 and how it was supposed to be. But she wasn't ready to give up. And I love that mentality. In just five months with WarriorBabe, Nicole's seen more progress than in years and years of pushing herself. And the best part is she's doing less and she's getting more. So let's dive into her story. Nicole, welcome.

Nicole: Thank you.

Nikkiey: So let's dive into where you were before you found WarriorBabe. What was your situation like? And what were you struggling with, both physically and mentally?

Nicole: It was kind of a process that started so many years ago. I think other women can relate to this, but it was almost like every five years, you just kind of feel something is different and something changes. It's like, oh, my metabolism is slowing down. I can't eat quite as much. And then, of course, you throw having kids in there and you have no idea what your body's doing. So I had been watching for so many years, just this, oh, I guess I need to watch what I'm eating a little bit more, or I can't quite eat that, or, oh, I had this other baby, and I guess I'm just not going to bounce back to what I was before. It's okay. That extra five pounds, it's going to be fine. I'll accept it. I'll live with it. I can still do all the things that I love to do. I love being active, swimming, riding my bike, hiking, all those kinds of things.

It's fine until it's not. And I got to a point after I'd had the last baby. I was like, there are no more babies coming. So I know I'm not going to be riding that wave anymore. But the changes weren't stopping. Now my youngest is five years old and it's like, oh, I'm five more pounds heavier. Again, do I just have to accept that? It wasn't like I was necessarily at an unhealthy weight, but you start thinking, do I have to buy clothes again? I've bought so many rounds of clothes. I really don't want to keep doing that. At what point am I not going to be able to do all of these things that I love doing anymore if I just keep saying, okay, this five pounds is okay? So I'm at 40, but does that mean that at 45 there's going to be another five pounds?

It was like looking more into the future and seeing how this was going to continue to affect my ability to do the things that I loved and to keep up with my kids. I still have this somewhat young family, and we like to travel and do things together. I want to be able to hike with them. I want to carry my daughter if her feet are hurting, or give her a piggyback ride, or carry the backpack, go backpacking. And so I just got to that point where I was like, I'm not going to accept this anymore, that this is how it's going to have to be, because otherwise my joy and my life are going to be taken from me long before I'm ready for that.

Nikkiey: Man. I love that. What a way to open this up. You have five kids?

Nicole: Five kids. My oldest is 18 and my youngest just turned six.

Nikkiey: Okay. Super mom. Holy cow. That's awesome. I love that. And I love that we prefaced this with having kids, because the moms listening, or the women listening, can resonate with that. Like, yeah, I know what she's saying about the five pounds, but it was more about what it felt like physically. And then you were looking out into the future, like, am I just going to keep gaining this weight? I don't want to keep gaining this weight, because it's going to affect the way that I raise my family and the way that I show up for my kids.

In the little bio that I gathered from you, you mentioned that you were working out constantly. You were doing six days a week, sometimes up to 90 minutes, yet your body still wasn't changing. So what were you doing, and what did that feel like when you weren't getting the results you wanted?

Nicole: Well, through all those years, like I said, in every five-year increment you're like, oh, my body's not responding the same way. I went from really not doing anything after my first two kids were born, and having my body pretty much go back to what was fine, to number three being born. At that point I was about 28, and I got to about nine months after her birth and was like, oh, I guess my body's not going to do this on its own. I'm going to have to put some work in.

My husband was a runner. He had tried really hard to get me into running for a long time. I wanted nothing to do with it. But at this point I was motivated, found some shoes that I liked, and that helped me get going. So that was the first thing. I got into running. You know how that mentality is: I'll do a 5K, I'll do a 10K, I'll do a half marathon, I'll do a marathon. And I could kind of see results that way. But right before my first marathon, kid number four was born. I ended up even training for a triathlon at that point, thinking, oh, that'll really help me get back into shape right after he's born. And nothing happened. I completed a full-on Olympic-length triathlon, and I saw no difference in my body, no difference in the clothes that I was wearing. None of that post-pregnancy bulge went away.

So I was like, okay, well, I guess maybe I just have to do more. I don't even remember where it came from, but there was this idea of, well, maybe try lifting weights. That's something you really haven't done. It might have been my sister-in-law. Somebody was talking about how their running had improved so much because they started lifting weights. I was like, okay, I'll try that. So this was a little bit after turning 30. That helped for a little bit. Okay, I'm lifting weights now. I'm starting to see some changes. This is great. And then I hit 35 and had another baby.

Nikkiey: Oh, man.

Nicole: And it was like, okay, the weightlifting is not doing anything. The cardio that I'm doing is not doing anything. So maybe I just need to do more. Part of it was that I love food. I love baked goods. I love making things from scratch. So I was like, I don't want to restrict my eating. That's no fun. Food should be joy and all the things. So if I just work harder, then it'll be fine, right? I'll just keep going. And that worked for maybe not even a year, where I was starting to see some results. And then again, it just plateaued, and then I hit 40. And now I was actually putting on weight. I'm not even maintaining it. I'm actually getting bigger.

And then you add in that I'd been working so hard. I would do probably a 40-minute strength training session, and then I would go for a 30- to 40-minute run. Or I would go to the pool in the mornings and swim for almost an hour, and then I would still come home and do another 30 minutes of weights or something. And now I'm seeing weight actually go up. And not just weight, because weight has always been one of these things where I'm like, it's a number. It's really about wanting to feel good. I want to be able to do the things I want to do. I want to enjoy the activities, and more so, how are my clothes fitting? But that's the problem. When you start feeling your waist getting bigger and your legs getting tighter in your jeans, you're like, what is happening? I am working so hard. Why am I seeing it go in absolutely the opposite direction?

Nikkiey: Yeah. How did that feel? You're putting in all that work.

Nicole: It was so aggravating. You feel like, I can't possibly be doing it wrong, because I'm doing all these good things for myself. And yet clearly all the results are saying I'm doing something wrong. But I got to the point where I'm busy. I've got all these kids. We've got these activities. I started homeschooling the kids. I teach piano lessons. There's so much going on. I could not put any more into exercise. I finally came to the point where I cannot spend any more time on fitness. So maybe it was time to start looking at my eating.

And it's not that I ever ate junk. Like I said, most of my stuff actually was homemade. I cook from scratch. But I do love my treats. So I thought, well, maybe let me start playing around with some of this just a little bit and pay more attention to what I'm eating and see what that looks like. So I did start tracking macros. I don't even remember what app it was, just for a little bit to give myself an idea. And I was kind of surprised.

Nikkiey: Say more, say more.

Nicole: I was surprised at how much even my homemade goods, my homemade pasta and all the things, had a lot in them that was not great. I mean, the fat content was so high.

Nikkiey: The butters and oils caught up, right?

Nicole: Exactly. Cheese. Cheese is delicious. It was kind of putting some of these pieces together that led up to feeling like, okay, I think I need help. I like doing research. I don't have a problem reading things and figuring things out. And that's really how I'd gotten myself to that point, by listening and reading and paying attention. But I was really like, hey, I don't think I've got this. I don't have the expertise here. I need more support.

Nikkiey: And you did mention that you tried doing it yourself first. That was when you started tracking the macros. And that's what made you realize that tracking macros alone wasn't working. So at that point, how did you come across WarriorBabe? First, how did you come across it? And then what resonated with you the most?

Nicole: So again, I was thinking, okay, I need some kind of help to figure this out, because now I can see what I'm eating, but how do I change that? I do love food. I don't want to just restrict. That felt like an awful idea. So what are all the ideas? What are all the ways that I could go about doing this? So you start Googling diets for women over 40, and there were perimenopause symptoms starting to come in there too. So then you're like, okay, diets for perimenopause, losing weight for women over 40, and you just start putting those things in. Well, then the ads start coming at you. So I was getting ads for all kinds of things, and I was hesitant to click on any of them because I was going to have to pay money. I don't want to spend money.

But WarriorBabe was one of those that kept popping up. The initial thing that really stood out to me was actually the women's bodies that I was seeing. I was like, that's it. That's what I want to be. I don't care about being skinny, honestly. I mean, we all care about being skinny, but in the big picture, I don't. I want to be strong. I want to do all of my things. And so I was looking at these strong women going, yes, that's it. And then you hear things like, you're going to eat more. And I thought, well, say less. I'm in.

Nikkiey: Let's eat, guys. Let's eat. Say less.

Nicole: So I finally clicked on one of these ads one day and followed through and read through all the stuff. And it sounds too good to be true, that I could exercise less, that I could eat more, and I could have the results that I'm seeing in all these other women. Can it really be possible? And it took me still thinking about it to even then say, okay, I'll sign up for a consultation. We'll just talk to someone. That was the process that brought me in. They said I could eat more. I could do less. That's what made it feel like this could be different, and that it could be doable. If I was going to be asked to spend any more time, I mean, I don't go to the gym. That's one of the things I've always done, too, is work out at home, because I save myself the time of driving there and back.

Nikkiey: Sure. So it was so much about time. And you were hesitant about that investment.

Nicole: Oh, for sure.

Nikkiey: What shifted in your mindset that helped you say yes to yourself and go all in?

Nicole: That first call, where you really get all the information of, this is what it looks like, this is what you're going to do. I came away from it and said, okay, I've got to talk to my husband about this, because this is going to be an investment for both of us, for our whole family. I wanted it. It felt like something that was going to be right for me. So I wanted to talk to him. And as we talked together, I saw there was going to be an element of getting information on my hormones. There was going to be the ability to actually work with not just somebody who knew fitness, but somebody who really knew nutrition. And not just that, but somebody specifically for someone my age and in my stage of life.

And I thought, I could go see four different professionals and spend my time making those appointments and driving to those appointments and getting that information, and having them try to communicate with each other to put together this picture of helping me with my health for the rest of my life. Or I can go to this one place, and while I'm doing it, have an entire community of people around me that are also doing it. And it became obvious. We have to do this. This is an investment in our future like no other. I'd never seen that in any other kind of offering before. It was the whole picture, and we were like, yep, we're going to do it. And we don't even consider it a cost. This is an investment, and we're all going to reap the benefits from it.

Nikkiey: That's beautiful. I love that mindset shift. And I'm going to put a pin there and pick your brain in a little bit on how that has positively affected your whole family. I will circle back to that. I want to ask, once you did make the investment, what did it look like in the first couple of weeks? Talking to the team, talking to your coach, getting the plan. How did that all feel? What did that look like for you?

Nicole: There was, of course, a little bit of trepidation. Like, okay, we're starting something new, new people. But I have to say the matching with my coach could not have been more perfect. I was like, there's got to be a psychologist in there too, looking at people's information and matching them with coaches, because it was so great. Sarah's entire approach to life, her experience as a mom, her expertise in her field, it was everything that I needed. So the very first thing was being able to talk to her, and I was like, I'm home. I'm in the right place.

From there, of course, there's a learning curve, figuring out the technology, MyFitnessPal, figuring out what foods are going to work for me. But even there, your coach gives you tips like, hey, use AI to help you come up with some meals. Here are some ideas of things that I use. And she was able to look at the tracking that I had already done and see the types of things I gravitate towards. I have two daughters that have celiac disease, so she knew right off the bat that gluten-free was going to be a thing, and she knew the way I cook. So all these gluten-free suggestions just came.

Having that support that I could build off of and make my own, and having my coach and team members I could ask questions, it still took time. It took intention. It took purpose and the decision of, I'm going to do this. But I was not alone. When I got to the point of, ah, I just don't know, there was always an answer: ask your coach, try AI, look at the sample stuff she sent you and just pick one of those. And you build off of it. And before long, this is just what I do. This is how I eat. And the biggest thing was, so quickly, I would say even within that first week, I felt different. It was like my body was saying, thank you. We've been waiting. Thank you for feeding me. Thank you for fueling. Thank you for slowing down and taking it back a notch with your training.

Nikkiey: I love all that. And shout out to Sarah. You're a rock star of a coach.

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I want to dive into something you mentioned, because I'm curious about it. You said you love to make everything from scratch, and a lot of women can resonate with this. Women feel like they have to track every ingredient, every spice, every type of thing in their macros. It can be a little overwhelming for women who love to cook like you, but then also have to track the macros. Can you shed light on how your cooking was before and how you've integrated it now into WarriorBabe?

Nicole: Sure. This is one of the blessings in disguise that I don't think I was anticipating, but my cooking has actually become a lot easier. So again, I'm saving time. I'm not working out quite so much, and I'm saving time because my meals are still satisfying and delicious, I know they're good for me, and they take less time. The intricate sauces and all of that kind of stuff, I probably do less, but it's not that I don't do it at all. I get to save them for the days when I know, okay, this is going to work and this is going to fit in. I just put my favorite recipes right into MyFitnessPal, so that when I make that thing, I pull it right up and put it in there. It's not that hard to do. And I can still have those on a very regular basis, but I'm not going to have them three meals a day. And that's okay, because I feel better. I don't even notice it.

And there are so many things, even the baked goods that I loved so much. I don't even remember when it came about, but I realized I don't have cravings for cookies and brownies on a daily basis anymore. I can still have them. In fact, it's kind of a family tradition. We have Sunday dessert. I still have Sunday dessert. I still make it and I still have it, and I still meet all of my goals. But I don't need it. The craving is not there. And it's amazing. I never thought I could say that.

Nikkiey: Right. Isn't it wild? I can totally relate to you there. Many women say they were under-fueling their body and weren't eating a lot of protein in the beginning, and then they started to fuel their body appropriately. Before that, when you're not fueling your body appropriately, you have all types of cravings, and you're wondering why. And you're feeding them because you think you have a sweet tooth, but really it's just that your body's not getting the nutrients it needs to make you feel full. And then you go into that world of fueling your body appropriately, and you're like, wow, isn't it wild? I don't have that many cravings anymore. I too had a sweet tooth when I first started my journey, and it's no longer there anymore, which is crazy. It's like, well, I'm fueling my body the way it wants to be fueled. It doesn't really want the sugar.

Nicole: Exactly.

Nikkiey: But a craving person thinks the sweet tooth is always there, right? So we can have it in balance, just like you're saying, on a Sunday night. I love that. One other thing, you mentioned you work out from home. That's what I heard.

Nicole: Yeah.

Nikkiey: That's been saving you time too. How has your coach helped build your workout routine around being at home?

Nicole: Right from the get-go, she wanted to know what equipment was available to me and what I already had. So I just sent her a list, and all the exercises that she sends me use just my dumbbells and the bands that I have. What's funny is that I love it so much now, and seeing how much heavier I'm lifting after just these five months versus five years of trying to push myself, that just on Saturday we cleaned out our garage to make room for a cable machine that we're going to put in. Because I'm like, no, I'm committed. This is my life now. We're doing this. So let's get more. I'm still not going to go to the gym, but I'm growing my home gym.

Nikkiey: I love that. What better way? When you work out, you can just walk into your workout room rather than getting in the car and driving to the gym. That's awesome. That's so cool. So where are you now in your journey? Let's talk about results. Let's talk about some of your biggest wins. What have you accomplished in these five months?

Nicole: What's funny is, again, with this idea of weight being just a number, my weight is down maybe five pounds. And of course that's going to fluctuate, so I would say three to four is probably more accurate. But inches off my waist. And I teach an early morning class to high schoolers, and one of the girls just said to me this morning, hey, your triceps are popping. And that's the first time anyone has ever commented on that. I was trying so hard to be cool, because they're all high schoolers. Like, yeah, thanks, I've been working on it. But I was feeling so good.

Nikkiey: Oh, that's awesome. What would you consider your biggest win so far?

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Nicole: Again, the funny part is I think we go into these things thinking it's about something we want to look like, right? And yet my biggest wins, the things that have changed my life, are not very fancy. I am so grateful for my stress level being so much better managed, and that has come so much through sleep.

Nikkiey: Girl, I'll take that as fancy any day.

Nicole: It's not luxurious. It's so basic, but I can't even tell you the difference it makes every day in being there for my kids and for the responsibilities that I have, to just not be exhausted. I've learned so much about being aware and watching certain things about my stress level, and when I'm feeling certain things at certain times, and then being able to go into a mindset or use a few supplements to help me out with that. And all of that has come through my coach, being able to share, okay, this is what's going on. Because you go in with these goals, like seven to eight hours of sleep, and it's like, well, I'm struggling to fall asleep, I'm struggling to stay asleep. And you talk about that, and then you get suggestions, and you get to work on it, and something works really well. So then you share the next thing that's going on, and you get another suggestion. It's been this beautiful climb of everything getting better and better.

One of the other things is pelvic floor. I have so much more bladder control. Again, I know that's probably not one of the things everybody's thinking about.

Nikkiey: Girl, after five kids? Anybody listening to this who has five kids, or even four kids, or maybe even three, is like, yes, I hear you and I feel you.

Nicole: It's wonderful. It's so freeing.

Nikkiey: I bet you're not jumping around feeling like you're going to pee yourself, right?

Nicole: Exactly.

Nikkiey: I love that. And you mentioned your energy is increasing too.

Nicole: Oh, yes. I would always have this slump right at the time when it was time to start driving kids around to their activities. So I'm in the car desperately trying to be a safe driver. I don't have that issue anymore. I'm alert. I'm there. We can have conversations. The connection with my kids while they're with me in the car, I'm there. I'm present. And then the great thing is, when it's time to go to bed, now I'm tired, and it's time to go to bed, and I invite it and I welcome it.

I was listening to one of The WarriorBabe Show podcasts just the other day, and you were talking about self-care, and about using productivity, go, go, go, go, I'm being productive, as the excuse for, I don't need to. That was me. 100%. I have all the reasons in the world to never stop, because of all these good things, all these great things that I'm doing. And it catches up to you.

Nikkiey: 1000%. It totally does. And now you feel okay with slowing down, giving yourself the self-care and the rest that you need, so that you can go back and be more efficient in your productivity.

Nicole: Yes. Yes.

Nikkiey: Love that. What does it feel like now that your body is finally working with you instead of against you?

Nicole: It's funny how the priorities change just a little bit, I guess. And freedom. There's so much more freedom. We know that life can always throw things at us. You never know. There can be accidents. There can be sickness. There can be all these things. But I get to look to a future where I know what feeding my family looks like. I know what feeding myself looks like. I know what time it takes to take care of myself. I can see it for years and years to come. And I've got this. I can make any of that work and come together, because I have the plan. I have the vision. It's long term. And that's the beautiful part.

When I heard in the WarriorBabe ads that this is a lifestyle, I thought, okay, so then it has to be something that's sustainable. It cannot be one of these crazy things where you're going to cut out one thing for the rest of your life, because that's not going to work for me. And it's true. Everything that WarriorBabe advertised to me is absolutely true. This is something I can do forever. It's this awesome thing to look at what's happened in five months and to say, I see the women in their 70s that are WarriorBabes. I'm going to be one of them. So let's look at 30 years from now. I'm so excited. This is a beautiful life, and I'm just excited to live it.

Nikkiey: Oh, I can feel your energy through the computer. I love that. This is so beautiful. And I love that you're thinking that way, about yourself and where you're going to be in 30 years. But I also want to dive into this last bucket. You mentioned that your family has transformed alongside you. What has it meant to see your husband and your daughters thrive in this too?

Nicole: As a mom, there's plenty to worry about. There's never not going to be anything to worry about.

Nikkiey: I'm just going back to the five kids. That's superpowers. Seriously.

Nicole: It takes a little element of insanity. I'll claim it. It's all right, though. I chose it.

Nikkiey: Yes. I hear you. I want upwards of that number too, so you're my inspiration right now.

Nicole: I will support you in the good times and the bad. Just let me know. But when you can find one thing where you're like, I don't have to worry about that, it's so great.

My oldest daughter has always struggled, from the very minute she had her first period. The very first day of her period, she cannot function. She is curled up in the fetal position crying. We saw doctors, and the suggestion was, as soon as she has any sign that it's starting, take ibuprofen. Basically three every three hours for three days. So that's what she's been doing for years. Sometimes it works great. Sometimes she can't catch it early enough, and she is out for a solid day in excruciating pain.

Well, the very first change that happened with our nutrition was the protein. I was so low in protein, because pasta and carbs and homemade breads are so good.

Nikkiey: When you said that at the beginning, I was like, I know she did not get protein.

Nicole: Nope. I literally was the person who was like, I don't really need protein. I don't really crave it. It just doesn't sound good. So leave the meat out of the pasta sauce. Who needs meat in the pasta sauce?

Nikkiey: Oh, girl. What? That's crazy.

Nicole: That was me. That was me. I now eat 135 grams of protein.

Nikkiey: Hey. Love it. Amazing. Love it.

Nicole: But my daughter, so that was the first thing. There were just more options in the house because I was doing it. There's a protein shake. There's a protein bar. There's meat left over now from dinner. And so she just started having more protein herself. It wasn't like I had to tell her to do it. She just started. And about a month and a half after I started WarriorBabe, she had a period, and no ibuprofen, no pain. It was lighter. Usually her periods would go for seven to eight days. It was shorter. She had a five-day period with no pain. And that has stayed. Every period since has been the same way.

Nikkiey: I'm shocked. I'm shook. For those of you who are just listening on audio, my jaw just dropped. Nicole, that's amazing.

Nicole: Like I said, that's one of those things. Just to not have to see my daughter go through that every month. And that's her life. She gets to take that with her for the rest of her life now. I'm so grateful.

Nikkiey: That's amazing. That is amazing. I'm sure there's such a weight lifted off your shoulders, not having to watch your baby curled up in pain anymore. Now she's fueling her body the way her body wants to be fueled. What a result to experience. And at a young age too, like you said, she can carry it through the rest of her life. That's incredible. And how about hubby? Is hubby in it too?

Nicole: Hubby is working out. Of course, as is the case, he's lost 15 pounds.

Nikkiey: You see, men can just look at food and lose weight. That's just unfair.

Nicole: Yeah, exactly. But it's the same thing for him. He was just as bad as me, if not more so, as far as the sweets go, and that's all gone. He's lifting with me and is just as excited about this idea of, yeah, let's get some equipment so we can keep going and keep going harder. And the other fun thing is, we used to go for runs together, but I love going for walks together now. We can talk. We can chat. It's this connection time, supporting each other in our goals. That has been great for our relationship too.

Nikkiey: That's awesome. That's incredible. So as we wind down this chat, thank you for sharing your story. I know a lot of people are going to resonate with many points of your story, whether they're a mom, or they were a runner, or they're 40, or they were experiencing these things in their thirties. So many bits of your story are very inspiring. I want you to end this with: if somebody is watching or listening right now and they're in the same spot you were in, what would you want them to know about WarriorBabe, about your journey specifically?

Nicole: If there's anything that you think is going to be hard, it's not harder than anything else you've already done, and already tried, and already been through. Life is such that there are always things we have to deal with. So sometimes you have to pick your hard. Pick the WarriorBabe hard, because it is so much more fulfilling, not just from the perspective of your body and your strength. All those things are awesome to see, and they're going to happen. If you do what your coach says, it's going to happen. That's such a wonderful thing. You don't have to guess anymore, and you don't have to follow all the hundreds of voices out there that are going to tell you a million different things. Listen to the one voice, and you will find the results will happen.

But there will be so much beyond any of that, that you didn't even anticipate, that will make every effort you put toward it, everything that feels like a sacrifice initially, worth it. So do it. Buckle down, dig down for that strength, find the support that you need, and reach out to people when it doesn't go perfectly. It's okay, because this isn't a program about perfection. But do it. It's worth it.

Nikkiey: That's awesome, Nicole. Thank you. So well said. For everyone listening, Nicole's story shows you what's possible when you stop running yourself into the ground, literally. She was running, doing all these extra things, not eating enough. And it shows that once you start fueling and lifting and living with intention, it's not about doing more. It's about doing the right things, what's right for her body. And the same goes for you guys who are listening. And as you heard, Nicole's entire family is reaping the benefits. If you're in your 40s and you think you've tried it all, Nicole's journey is a reminder that it's not too late to change your life. So if you're feeling compelled after listening to this, go to warriorbabe.com/apply and see if it's the right program for you. We'd love to see you on the inside. Nicole, thank you again for being here and sharing your story. I appreciate your time.

Nicole: Thank you.

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.