Transcript
Speaker: All right, friends, welcome back to another episode of the Basics of Balance. I am here with a fellow coach that I am so excited to introduce to you guys. His name is Jason. He has a quite a lengthy resume. I will say lots of experience. I'm so excited for our conversation today. um And so let's just go ahead and start with ah who is Jason. So let's talk about Jason, what you kind of focus on with your clients, um you know, kind of how you got into this whole thing. And let's just, ah let's have a conversation.
Speaker: All right. Thanks for having me. I appreciate, i'm I'm honored to be here and add value to your audience. ah Well, you know, my lengthy resume can get can get quite lengthy. So how did I start?
Speaker: Well, after um after being bullied in middle school, and trying to find some type of way to gain respect for my classmates, we started arm wrestling in school.
Speaker: But being very small and weak and skinny, I was always last. I'd always get my arms smashed on the table. And it was one day, my dad who was in the...
Speaker: insurance industry had used to hold trainings at the house. And at one of these trainings, I walked in and I saw a barbell set somewhere around. And one of his agents left the meeting and came across to me and signaled a bicep curl. He said, hey, if you do this, your arms will get stronger. was like, cool, let's try that. So with no rhyme or reason, I just started doing some arm curls after school.
Speaker: And about a couple of months later, these boys were arm wrestling again. was like, huh, let's put this to the test and see if this actually works. When I got on the table, guys who were double my size were struggling.
Speaker: to put me down. And in the back of my head, I'm like, yes, this stuff works, right? So they're like, dude, what are you doing? And I'm like, nothing, you know, but that was just my little secret that i I kept to myself. And from that day on, that moment lit a fire that would last a lifetime, right? And that's my first taste of strength training. and Years later, i played soccer at a fairly high level, and then i moved to the US.
Speaker: Now, at that time, my studies were in the construction industry, in um engineering and drafting. i book you know i did all the internships, and I came to the States hoping that I would just pick up where I left off. and that didn't happen. I had to redo everything from scratch.
Speaker: And I dedicated for my internship till about 23, it was like about seven years, studies and experience and you know working with different companies. And I said, I'm not gonna i'm not goingnna do this over. And my wife at the time, she suggested, hey, why don't you become a personal trainer?
Speaker: you you you know you You like to work out, you're athletic, just try And I did, and I twilighted here and there. And then my manager one day, he said, hey,
Speaker: Stick with me and I'll make you X amount of money. Within one year, hit that goal. And then i so I became one of the top trainers in the club. Like we were killing it. We were putting down something like quarter million dollars in personal training revenue a month.
Speaker: That's in February. That's a short month. That's four weeks. So we were we were we were on top. And and that that just, you know, yeah having that ability to help people was, and and given that that that honor, I would say, somebody trusts you with their body and their diet it to help people. it's it It was, you know, life-changing for me. And then... um I went to the city to work with a well-known club um that came from the West Coast. They recruited us. and
Speaker: we stepped into more of a corporate model.
Speaker: And I realized that I couldn't serve my clients like that anymore because we had to produce a certain amount of revenue yeah And um it was you know basically you have to perform to keep your spot.
Speaker: And we were getting top dollar. So we had to produce the numbers. And people at that time, I'm much older, I was 33, 34 years old. And my clients had different issues because I started attracting a different age clientele.
Speaker: I was like, huh, I can't solve your sleep problems. Like, I have no idea how to do it, but I knew how to diet and how to put together stuff. But like I can't solve your problems if I have this much work to do on the other side. And at that point in time, I was like, hey,
Speaker: i I need a practice where I can actually sit and work with people at my pace and still get paid what I'm what what i'm worth and, you know, have a high value coaching practice. yeah And at that point time, I started Body Image.
Speaker: And that's what led us, that's what um we are today. Yeah. Yeah. just like any other industry, you got to get your foot in the door. You know what I mean? And so obviously the easiest way, at least from my understanding, is very similar to your experience. You work with a big box gym. Yes, okay, writing workout programs, but also like you mentioned sleep. How is your recovery? Are you really getting the most out of this training if I'm, you know, really trying to check the boxes that corporate wants me to check when really at the end of the day, there's so much more that goes into it. But I only have so much time. And so that kind of leads us down the line of logic of starting your own thing, which let me ask you, are you working more working for yourself or less working for yourself? But what do you enjoy more at the end of the day?
Speaker: Well, that's interesting. I enjoy what I do so much. It doesn't even feel like work anymore. Some days it feel likes it feels like work, but most of the time it doesn't. Because the services that we provide um really move the needle.
Speaker: So the reward is so much bigger than just putting somebody through a tough workout. yeah So do I work more? Probably, but it really doesn't feel like it. It's a joy to do what I'm doing.
Speaker: Mindset. It's funny how much your mindset really allows you to like enjoy something or feel burnt out. You know what i mean? Like if you truly are bought into something and you feel like I get to do this versus I have to do this, you know what i mean? And I think right a lot of that.
Speaker: i'd be curious to hear what you think but as far as you know our clients are concerned right helping them realize like when you first get started in your fitness journey there's a lot of things that you feel like you have to do because you want results right you're working towards a goal and so you have your blinders on and you are checking boxes but eventually that motivation and infatuation fizzles out you know what i mean and eventually we are left with okay now the work begins once the initial infatuation wears off and you don't want to do these things anymore. Now we are really seeing where the work is coming from, right? And at that crossroads, it really does become something that you have to do versus you get to do. And when you feel like you have to do it and you don't want to do it, you're going to find every opportunity to avoid it, right? don't want to, so I'm not going to do it versus choose to do it, I get to do it because I feel so much better when I do it compared to when I don't. you're then going to find every opportunity to do it versus not do it. So it's interesting how much of coaching is really psychological versus let me tell you what to do and you do it and we move on with our day. Like, I don't think a lot of people realize like there's more about coaching that has to do with that psychological component than it is about the logistics. What do you think about that? Yeah, 100 percent. The destination is the journey.
Speaker: Because when you get to the point where you think you hit your goal, there's nothing beyond that. So enjoying the enjoying the destination, as we we can't wait to feel great until we get our goal because that's going to lead to the abandonment of the whole mission to begin with. yeah right So the the journey is the destination. When it comes to mindset, when I when i show my coaching model, right i quote her i my coaching revolves around four pillars.
Speaker: Mindset, exercise, nutrition, lifestyle. And I always show it as a table with four legs. But when I examined it I was like, this doesn't make sense.
Speaker: The table more looks like a circular top with a single pedestal. And the supporting base is just nutrition and the exercise and all this sexy stuff. But that main pillar, that's the mindset pillar because that is where, that's that holds up the entire foundation. Everything else is just the supporting cast, right? um And it's like, if you were a if you were a take, if you were changing in water in, let's say, a fish tank,
Speaker: you would have to take out the dirty water and put clean water in. If you just add clean water to that dirty water, you just get more dirty water. And I believe that a lot of people have this faulty software running on their operating system. And as coaches, we need to help them identify those bad programs because it doesn't matter the the tactics or the supplements or the peptides or whatever fancy training program or recovery program you could layer on top of that faulty program and it will always fail.
Speaker: If you believe you can or you believe you can't, you are absolutely right. So we need to rewire, well, begin to rewire that person, help them identify their beliefs, because what they believe is what they are going to be living.
Speaker: So we need to dig a little deeper and understand where to get that belief system from. And that's the mental work that we do as coaches, little by little.
Speaker: I think it's so funny because when we had talked, you know, a few weeks ago or whatever, we had that conversation about how much of coaching is mental and how, you know, we joke sometimes, or at least I said I joke sometimes with my clients, especially for the like the nutrition side of things. Right. Like if dealing with training is one thing, but dealing with nutrition is a whole nother beast. And it's so funny how I joke when I say sometimes it feels like therapy. Obviously, I'm not a therapist, but so much of what we work through, especially as it relates to like behavior change and kind of what you're talking about, like creating a strong, healthy mindset. If somebody doesn't believe they can, it's going to be really hard to overcome obstacles. compared to somebody who is like, I don't know if I can't, but let's see what happens when I try. You know what i mean? So it's so much about that, that psychological piece, almost in a therapy setting where it's like, okay, let's understand why you believe you can't do it let's see what happens if you try it and you fail and you realize oh the world didn't end you know things like that and it's getting people to understand we get used to what we allow ourselves to get used to and our perception of what's hard matters right and so if we shy away from a challenge because we feel like we can't do it well we're stunting our progress right um rather than leaning into the challenge and just seeing what you're capable of what if you succeed What if you go into a situation like going to dinner, for example, and you tell yourself this is going to be so hard to stay on top of my nutrition and oh my gosh, I'm worried about it versus walking in there with a plan saying I feel confident about how I'm going to handle this meal because I have a structure. I have a plan. I've worked with my coach. One is going to produce confidence and one is going to make you feel so anxious and kind of stunt you before you even walk into that restaurant. You know what i mean? So a lot of, you know, the success or quote unquote failure, because I don't believe in failure, but a lot of the success or failure is truly mental. You know, it's it's not a matter of pass, fail, right, wrong, good, bad. It's a matter of are you trying? Are you putting in that effort? Because if you're putting in that effort, you're growing your perception of what's hard, inherently speaking. And that's where we want you to be. We want you to try to find solutions versus just shy away and lean away from a challenge, you know?
Speaker: Oh, yeah, definitely. Like what's the worst could happen if the tactics don't work and you just adjust tactics and they keep moving? There's no big deal with that. The thing is, is that when somebody is optimistic, the part of partly brain that lights up the prefrontal cortex, pushes them to find solutions when they hit bumps in road.
Speaker: When somebody is pessimistic, it lights up the amygdala. That's the fear center the brain. So now they enter everything with like, I'm not sure if this is going to work. And it research shows that somebody in a positive mindset is becomes automatically 33% smarter than somebody who has a negative mindset. So perception is perception is everything. And what could, as you said, as you highlighted before,
Speaker: Your plan helps to just ease that state of mind. when you go into When you go into that restaurant or that family gathering or that party with a plan, you say, hey I could have this, I could have this, I could have that.
Speaker: Then it just removes all the fear and anxiety. You just go for it. Absolutely. i And I think a lot of times, too, like when when you hear, well, I'm a type A person. So when I hear your planning, I'm like, OK, this is great. But a lot of people, when they hear the word planning and structure, they think limitation. Right. But like really, at the end of the day, there is freedom in planning because, you know, your boundaries. Right. It's the same idea of, um you know, in my experience, it's a lot easier to diet to a certain degree because you have boundaries, you know, you know, the parameters that you're working within versus somebody who is no longer dieting and who is maybe entering in like a maintenance frame, right? Where the the lines of your boundaries are a little bit more blurred. There's more room open to interpretation. You still want to have some kind of focus and some kind of effort, but not as much effort, right? Like the dial of discipline is being turned up when you're in a diet versus being turned down when you're in maintenance. You're still putting forth some effort. It's just not as much. And I think that that concept is really hard for people to understand. um And it's the same idea of, you know, when you are in a situation where you are learning to stay in control of your food choices. Right. And this is something that's maybe foreign to you. and you have something that you've maybe put on a pedestal, and let's just say it's let's just say it's chocolate, right? And every time you're around chocolate, you tell yourself, oh, I want that, but I can't have it. Oh, I want that, but it's bad.
Speaker: Every single time you mentally restrict yourself from having that, All you're doing is making yourself hyper focus and hyper fixate on that thing you said you couldn't have versus if you allow yourself and I know this might sound woo woo to many people, but if you allow yourself, if you give yourself permission to have some chocolate over time, you're going to realize I can have that whenever I want to. And as a result, you're going to be in more control when you're in front of that food.
Speaker: because you're not restricting yourself. So a lot of these coaching principles are very much rooted in your mind. It's not logistical as much as tell me why you gave in. i want to know why that is. I'm not judging you why you gave in, but like you got to be vulnerable with your coach to get somewhere. You know what i mean?
Speaker: ah Definitely. And, you know, yeah yeah that's part of the reward and salient system of of the brain. And one of the hubs in that is the nucleus accumbens, right? It's when you tell someone that they can't have it, they crave it even more, right? And the brain theris just tags that thing that you said, hey, let's say you can't have chocolate. It tags that chocolate as becoming more valuable.
Speaker: And that's why cravings are so hard to beat. So what what we what I do is I said, hey, if let's say I want to remove bread from breakfast. Let's say let's Let's substitute bread for some veggies for this week And let's see what let's let's see what happens. That is two things. Well, one, they don't feel like they're being deprived and it's a finite timeline.
Speaker: So when you hear substitutions like, okay, I'm going to get something in place and it's a week, I could do that for a week. And that so that's how i get around those hard lines of saying, hey, you can't have that.
Speaker: One of the tricks that I use. but you're also you know in that line of logic i love that strategy in that line of logic you are proving to yourself that you can go without bread for a week and also maybe even recognizing like the difference in how you feel like bread is not wrong right i eat bread multiple times a day however when somebody is only used to hyper palatable foods that are far away from maybe like whole foods based like fruits and veggies
Speaker: it's really hard it's really hard to take that initial jump to be like whoa I'm removing this and I'm replacing it with veggies like how boring is that but I think that experience and that experiment kind of proves to yourself oh wow I just did something that I think I thought I could never do and I survived to tell the tale and also i have a positive experience as a result I miss my bread I'm gonna have my bread this week but I can do it and that's the point you know what i mean Yeah, definitely. That's great.
Speaker: You're flexing that willpower muscle. The part of the brain that lights up is the anterior mid-singular cortex. It's like your bicep when doing a curl. Every time you flex that willpower muscle, it lights up and it gets stronger and it gets stronger. And what I try to tie in my my ah my my my switches with, bread for the veggies,
Speaker: If that person, if I know, if that fix is related to something that this person is experiencing, let's say they get brain fog or they get cravens,
Speaker: Once we re-evaluate the fix, and I'm like, huh, how do you feel? Like, well, I didn't feel this, I didn't feel that. Then it's not me telling them. They have that internal aha moment. So now it increases their buy-in to why we're doing, what we're doing. And it's easier for them to make that a habit. Yeah, they might slip here and there because it's new and they're still flexing that muscle. But then they can actually feel the change and not just listen to what I'm saying.
Speaker: Right. It's always going to mean so much more when you have your own experience to fall back on versus, oh, I'm eating something because I'm told it's good for me. Like that's not a deep enough reason to overcome not wanting to. but You know what i mean? So, you know, you need those experiences. I mean, think about it this way.
Speaker: If you you have children, right? Or a a child. Imagine if you know, when your when your son was a toddler and you told them, don't touch the stove, it's hot.
Speaker: what What's going to happen? All they're going to want to do is touch the stove. So if you tell yourself when you're an adult, I can't have this, It's going to create the exact same response, but now we are hyper fixating on that food and that's when we overindulge on those foods. That's when we lose control is because we said we couldn't have it and now that's all we want. So, you know, um I think. I think it's helpful maybe even for just people to hear, you know, when your coach asks you to do something, there's a deeper reason why. And it's not necessarily as face value as you might seem. And we understand that it might make you feel a little anxious because you've historically, you know, given in and overindulged and we get it, we get it. But we also at the same time, We need your trust at the same time, like a good coach client relationship. It's a two way street. There is a certain level of trust that is i don't I'm scared to do what you're asking me to do, but I trust you. And so I'm willing to do it for the sake of the experiment, if you will.
Speaker: Yeah. And that that that takes time to build. Absolutely. That time to build. Because, you know, even let's say from a mechanical perspective, if we're putting a heavy bar on your back, trying to a back squat or trying to do a deadlift, most people scared of getting hurt.
Speaker: But you're yeah You're with them. They've done it with their body weight. They've done it with lighter weights. You just execute what you've done with ten pongs, with 200, and you would be fine. Yeah. But it comes from repetition. Mm-hmm.
Speaker: Absolutely. I have a week in my programming. I'm sure you have something similar where I call it, I call it drop set week. And it's basically you remove a set of every single exercise with the intention of making up for the loss of weight lifted in your remaining sets. Okay. And so many different reasons for it, right? However, one of the biggest and most valuable reason for my clients is They experience what it feels like to push themselves. So their perception of what's hard grows, right? Their perspective on what they're able to handle grows.
Speaker: And they obviously close the gap of, you know ah you know, thinking they're lifting heavy enough and no, no, I know I'm lifting heavy enough, right? And so all of that to say, it's that experience, that time and that repetition and experiencing, oh, I'm scared to lift heavier, but hey, I lifted heavier and I didn't get hurt. That builds your confidence. And it's just like any other muscle. confidence grows with time and repetition. Self-control grows with time and repetition. You know, every single time you make a choice in the same direction, you're creating that new neuropathway and it's going to make it easier for you to make that choice in the future. Not easy because nothing necessarily is easy. You still have to make that decision. But at the end of the day it's easier it's less foreign um i would love to hear because i think either i cut you off or you left out the part of your uh journey about your bodybuilding so you started you know from grassroots into strength training you kind of worked your way into bodybuilding which is so much more of a higher level you know focused discipline as far as fitness is concerned. So I would love to hear from you. You're working with, you know, everyday people right now, but you also have so much experience in the bodybuilding world. And I do believe that those two, even though they are polar opposite, you know, as far as like dial of discipline is concerned, what similarities with those two polar opposite demographics do you see rings true across the board? So like, What kind of very basic, simple things um are true with both of those levels of discipline? There's two differences.
Speaker: It's very simple. Bodybuilding is the intensity and the timeline. High intensity, shortened timeline. Whether it's 90 days, 120 days to step on stage for your competition.
Speaker: For regular people, you dial down the intensity. increase the timeline that's a difference with that the tools are exactly the same you still got a strength training you still got to do cardio you still got to plan your meals you still got a rest recover um have a a a well written training program The tools are exactly the same.
Speaker: The difference is intensity and timeline. And that's how I that's how i started really, my through my bodybuilding experience, that's how I started becoming um very effective as a trainer and a coach.
Speaker: i was like, huh, how can I use what I did for myself and this population? Because I started training tons of fitness and bikini competitors after. what did I use to make them successful that I could use to make this population successful?
Speaker: Wasn't anything different. Intensity and timeline. I want my people at a constant seven. If you're at a constant seven, we're within range when your 60th birthday is coming up or your 40th birthday is coming up.
Speaker: We're at third base. We're just like two bases away from the home plate. It's it's like when those old school bodybuilders offseason, let's say their stage weight was 220, they were 230 in the offseason, 235. Now these guys are like 300 trying to get on to 245.
Speaker: And that's what I did when I was competing. I was always taking down a lot of weight to step on stage. And now I just stay within range, just so outside the ballpark. So the tools are the same, intensity, again, and timeline. That's your indifference.
Speaker: and i think i think that that is something that a lot of people fail to realize is a sustainable healthy lifestyle not a lot changes from a you know a disciplined frame of mind like a cut right your dieting your deficit you know you're dialed in to every day that is what makes it sustainable so you're not necessarily overhauling your life you know as much as you're tweaking little tiny things, the intensity you're taking up a notch, right? Versus taking things down a notch. I know that a lot of times the transition from, you know, dieting, right? That phase in your journey to maintenance, a different phase of your journey A lot of times people feel like nothing is going on. They get bored. They get so used to seeing the the scale go down. They get so used to seeing them, you know, they're defined and they're chiseled and that feels good to see and whatnot. And they don't have those same points of reference in like a maintenance frame of mind. And so they their their headspace wants to jump right back into a cut because that dopamine, they're craving that dopamine hit, right? And I think that that is so important to understand Nothing necessarily needs to change. Your meals don't need to change. You can eat more of them in a maintenance or a surplus and less of them in a deficit, but nothing needs to change necessarily. your workouts. Strength training is the foundation in a deficit. Strength training needs to be a foundation in maintenance, you know, and I think a lot of times people are looking for things to keep them interested and bought in. But at the end of the day, if we're talking about living a sustainable, healthy lifestyle,
Speaker: lifestyle for the rest of our life. There is no end date. We keep doing the same things over and over again, regardless of what goal you're doing. We just increase intensity or decrease intensity. depending on that. You work with a lot of data as far as like biofeedback, right? In that data frame of mind, when you're working with somebody who is dieting versus who is maybe in maintenance or like a surplus, are you able to differentiate biofeedback as far as that's concerned?
Speaker: that's that That could be a question for like a half. That could be a long answer. So... we do We do two things here. Well, we do a lot of things, but if you're looking at blood work, you'll see the difference with serum blood work in terms of like ah glucose, A1C, triglycerides, cholesterol, CRP, C-reactive protein, interleukin-6, those inflammatory markers.
Speaker: But what we do, and just to tie back into your previous question, the previous discussion about dieting and maintenance versus um going after a goal, we try to morph or tie the aesthetics into the longevity pathway.
Speaker: Because fat loss is just the entry point. Metabolic health is just the entry point to longevity. There are the things that you need to check along the way to ensure that you live in this healthy the selfy lifestyle. Because you could look a certain way and go under the hood and then discover that things are not where it's supposed to be. I've seen that, right? And in terms of biofeedback, i if someone is not...
Speaker: Let's see, just start the journey. in terms of let's say they're drinking or they're eating late or they just want to start getting themselves back. They want to get themselves healthier.
Speaker: I don't look for biofeedback from that person because there's a lot of low hanging fruit that we need to get first before we actually get deep data. So to to to two to to kind of answer your question, I can share like a quick case study.
Speaker: Right. So about four years ago, I'll just call her G, walked into the facility. And like with everybody, she wanted to lose some weight. She was like a buck 80, buck 82, five foot six.
Speaker: And you know that when people are trying to lose weight, the first thing they think that they need is more exercise. It's a great way to start. But it's not the only thing that you need because mechanical solutions can't only solve metabolic problems.
Speaker: We need to do a full circle on that. So she worked with us. She started doing well. And then we moved her up into coaching. And she coached with us for about two years.
Speaker: Fast forward, she lost 30 pounds. She looks much stronger. Like I wouldn't grab her back on the sidewalk. Like I know I'm going to get some.
Speaker: Right. She's deadlifting way above her body weight. Right. And she just got her first pull up. So at that point in time, I said, hey, you're ready for the next step.
Speaker: And then we did some biofeedback in terms of biological age versus chronological age. And she is 64.
Speaker: Her biological age is 49. Wow. And that's without that's without any advanced stuff. That's just laying down the foundations that you teach your client. You teach your client sleep, eat, recover, rest, supplement, do this, get some sunlight, walk on the grass, drink some drink your water, whatever it is you build in to help support your people.
Speaker: That's what we did with, you know, cleaned up our guts, um did some stress reduction techniques, helped us sleep better. And that moved the needle so much. And I often joke with her and said, hey you're to have to start looking for new husband.
Speaker: ah She has the, the but of a 49 year old woman. And that just goes to show how important the fundamentals are.
Speaker: But when I looked at her data at that point in time, I saw that she had um risk far on for heart issues. So what I did was, you know, I i you know put on ah couple of peptides,
Speaker: to help reduce her oxidative stress. And that's it. There's nothing fancy about it because she had this solid, solid foundation. so in terms of biofeedback, when somebody comes in and they are not doing the things, I could simply just ask for some blood work and see where they're and then start making small changes. But you need, there's a lot of low hanging fruit that we miss and we tend to try to go for the multipliers.
Speaker: That's just nearly basics for us. did i did Did that answer your question? Yeah, no, definitely. we You can't replace the basics. I think, you know, there are so many times we are looking at extreme measures. And again, like we look at, you know, overhauling our life and going from not working out ever to like, hey, I'm waking up at 5 a.m. every single day and I'm going to, you know what mean? And it's like, whoa, whoa, whoa. it things really don't have to be as extreme as we think they are, they have to be. And arguably, because we see so much, you know, information coming at us telling us this is the next thing and the next thing. And the thing is, is that really, at the end of the day, you don't need the next thing because you already have the things that we are just don't want to do because we don't think that they move the needle. And at the end of the day, that is what moves the needle. Yeah. vibration plates are not going to move the needle. You know what i mean? Strength training will move the needle, um you know, things like that. You can't, you know, even when you're trying to build muscle, okay, if you are not focused on sleep, it's not happening, period. You know what i mean? So it's like these things that you don't want to prioritize and focus on. We have to, we don't have a choice. um i I do want to circle back to what you said, because it is so common. And I see this every single day on Instagram, on threads. I talk to my goodness gracious, my family and my friends. And it's, you know,
Speaker: you working out can enhance your nutritional choices, which will drive your physical results. Okay. But working out is not the main lever that we pull when you are trying to lose weight. um That I think is so misunderstood. I'm spending so much time in the gym. I'm doing all this cardio. Why am I not seeing changes? You know, all of these things. And it's like, I think that there's such a fundamental,
Speaker: disconnect in how we understand what actually moves the needle, what what lever to pull. And unfortunately, working out, obviously, it's great for many, many reasons, but the main source and the main reason why we work out is not to look a different way. That is driven by our nutritional choices. And that's the hardest part. And that might not be something that people want to except because it's harder, you know what i mean? It's easier to spend an hour in the gym and not think about what you're eating throughout the rest of the day. oh yeah, definitely. Or think you're doing it right and you know, all of these things, right? But I think it's just, it's so it's one of those things where we have so much research that shows
Speaker: There are so many other reasons that we exercise and we move our body. And even if you never wanted to lose one pound, you still need to be exercising regularly. But that's not the reason that you exercise is to look a different way. That's your nutritional changes. um And so, you know, obviously you you did bodybuilding. You are no longer in bodybuilding. So, you know, I'm curious to kind of hear your expert or your experience as it relates to that. What What has changed?
Speaker: um I'd be curious to hear. Of course. And, you know, when you're a competitor, the only thing that matters is the date that you need to step on stage. Right. That's it. Everything else just fades into the background. no You have kids and you have a partner and you have a business and you got family and you got clients. Like all those things compete for your attention.
Speaker: Yeah. So now you have to learn how to develop the attention so that each or no arena suffers. Each yeah aspect of your life maintains at a certain level.
Speaker: Sure, sure. And I think that's, you know, that that's so important. What you just said, fitness is a component of your life. It's not supposed to be your life. Fitness is supposed to enhance your life. It's supposed to improve your quality of life. It's supposed to give you energy. It's supposed to you know allow you to be strong enough to do whatever you want to do and not wonder if you can do it, but know you can do it, right? You're fast enough that you can run after your kids and all of these things, right?
Speaker: But you only have so much capacity in your day, in your brain, right? And if you, let's just let's talk about a A pint glass or here, my my big water jug, okay? This only has as much capacity as it has, all right? If we fill it up three quarters of the way of water, right, we're only going to have a quarter left. Water is our obligations, okay? Water is our responsibilities that we don't have a choice we have to do. That only leaves us with a quarter capacity of things that we want to do. That means thinking about what you're eating. That means meal prepping. That means working out. That means...
Speaker: Insert activity here, right? Health and fitness or otherwise. You only have that much. And if you get into phases or seasons of your life where there is even less capacity for that health and that fitness journey, it's not that we don't do anything. It's that we do what we can within that capacity, right? And so there might be seasons of your life where you have way more capacity for health and your fitness. However, at the end of the day, you're ebbing and flowing. There's that dial of discipline again. If you don't have capacity to do all of the things, don't do nothing. What can you do? Turn down the dial while also putting forth effort at the same time. And that's how you keep moving forward because nobody expects you to show up for yourself 100% of the time every single day. That's not sustainable. But 100% might mean something different in one phase of your life compared to another phase of your life. And if you gave effort, then hey, you gave that 100%. That's something to be proud of, you know. But the perfectionist mentality, the all or the nothing mentality stops so many people from realizing that and feeling defeated that they can't
Speaker: show up the same way that they showed up when they were in college, when they didn't have kids and they didn't have a full time job and they didn't own a house. And it's like, that's not even fair to ask of you. It's not fair. You're holding yourself to a standard that's just unattainable. And no wonder why you feel defeated. It doesn't have to be that difficult. It's a part of your life, but it's not supposed to be your life, you know? Yeah. And and I think I think ah most people get mistaken with what 100 percent means. If you have if you have, let's say, in that cup, you had some strawberries and you had some blueberries and then you had some raspberries like, you know, each will take up a different amount of space. So you give 100 percent of the space that you have.
Speaker: right And that's still 100%. But you're right. like Seasons, this is this is ebb and flow. And well, you know in in life, nature shows us there are seasons. So in your life, you're going to seasons too. going to have projects that going have to work on a little later. right You might have ah a sick kid or a sick parent that you have to take care of. And um this is where, again, the all or nothing mindset usually fails.
Speaker: And this is where you just need to... Take a deep breath and do what you can. and as and as coaches, we help people navigate that. And this is why I believe coaching is so very valuable because those are the times people give up.
Speaker: They're like, oh, well, I started and I fell off and I started and I fell off. I heard that conversation yesterday with um with a new client on one of my trainers. He told him about five times why he fell off in the last two years.
Speaker: And listening to it, I told my trainer, said, hey, we need to start working on on giving him something that's more sustainable, stuff that he can do when he gets busy.
Speaker: Because most people feel that they want to get in shape because they have time. Well, you're not always going have time. So the first thing going drop is your fitness. The best time to start to get in shape is when everything is on top of you.
Speaker: So when some of that burden lets off, as you said before, you have more time, more capacity to dedicate towards your journey. Yeah. 100% looks different.
Speaker: Yeah. I would agree. I would agree for sure. I mean, ah again, I kind of just think that that goes back to, you know, what we talked about initially. It's the whole mindset thing, you know, and it's one of those things where, know, If you are working with a coach, your coach wants to know. Your coach wants to know what you're struggling with so we can help you. We don't expect you to have all of the answers. That's why you have hired us, you know. But at the end of the day, it does require that honest conversation and saying, i fell off track for us to say, You didn't fall off track. And this is why I'm telling you you didn't fall off track.
Speaker: If you look at every single opportunity, like every weekend, for example, to say, i deserve this. You know, I'm going to eat like this because was eating so dialed in over the week. OK, well, we are creating a situation where you are basically choosing to fall off track. Yeah. You know mean? Like we are creating a situation where you are choosing the outcome. And listen, the thing is, is that at the end of the day, if that's your choice, like you're an adult, you're in the driver's seat of your journey. I'm only here to help guide you and show you, you know, what's possible and support you and encourage you and all of these things. But if you straight up come to me and say, know I could have made a better choice. I chose to not because I was so tired because it was such a stressful and busy week and I just needed to turn my brain off and X, Y and OK, well, you thought about it. That wasn't just like a mindless decision. And let's work through that so we can improve on that in the future. But like that doesn't sound like it was just a, well, I forgot to plan and then I didn't do this. And then the day got away from me. And it's like those are two very different things. One is making an active decision and one is making a passive decision. One is being in the driver's seat of your journey and one is letting life choose for you. And one is going to make you feel guilty and one is going to keep you in control and make you feel empowered. So those are not the same thing, you know? So again, context matters. The more open and vulnerable you can be with your coach, the more we're able to have those kinds of conversations. Yeah. That talk you off the ledge. Yeah, definitely. And not making a decision is a decision. It is a decision. It's a decision to stay the same. It's a decision to stay stock.
Speaker: Got to make a decision. Choose. Absolutely. Well, and I think a lot of times, too, you know, some people, they really, truly need a deep enough reason as to why. OK, they need a deeper reason than just physical changes. It might be enough to get you started. Like you said, fat loss is the entrance, right? It's the entryway. But it's not going to be a big enough reason to keep going, especially when you don't feel like it, especially when you don't want to. especially when everybody else is staying out for one more drink but you have goals right you're the boring one you're the one that always has something it's like you need a deeper reason as to why and it's those experiences like we talked about earlier that are your anchors that become your reason why okay i might want to stay out and have another drink with my friends but i know that i'm gonna wake up at the same time every single day and i can't have my monday starting With me not being able to give my clients 100%. And so therefore, I'm choosing to say no to that drink. It's not that I don't want to, it's that you have that experience to ground you to help you make that decision. And it's not coming from a place of I have to as much as No, I don't want to feel that way tomorrow. So I'm choosing to. There's a difference. Yeah. It's it's funny that you said the word boring, right? Like earlier on in the, I think it was February, we family went out and I'm i' Catholic.
Speaker: So during Lenten period, I remove a couple of things. Alcohol is one. So they're outside on the drink. was like, yeah, take a drink. was like, He's like, you're so boring. Right.
Speaker: i I was like, listen, man, like if if if I allow you to take my life points, right? Let's say we fast forward. I'm on my deathbed.
Speaker: i can't get any back from you. so I'm not allowing you to take it right now. ah You have to stand guard at to your mind, stand guard what you eat. Like this is this is you, right? I'm not going to allow you to ruin my health.
Speaker: Right. And if and I'm saying allow you at the end of the it's our decision, but I'm not going to give in to peer pressure. You're influenced, though. I mean, we all are. Yeah, you're correct. And on part, whenever I deliver a coaching program, that's like at the top of the list. That's like a like a memo on the top. That's like one of the most important things I put. It's like you're going to feel pressure.
Speaker: from your family, from your friends, you might feel even alienated by some of the choices that you're going to make. I said, but you will get more respect from having a hard line from just trying to trying to fit in and just be one of the bunch.
Speaker: I said, this is your journey. So once you have once you establish that line and that boundary, And you're not you're not going back and forth. People eventually see you know what, this is what you stand for.
Speaker: And it becomes easier. at first, it's a bit awkward, but it becomes easier. i remember going to Easter dinner, Easter lunch, and eating tilapia and salad while everybody's eating mac and cheese and having cake. And I'm like,
Speaker: you know um But that's the hard line. Everybody respects that. Now, when they want to get a diet plan or a training plan or whatever, guess who they come to?
Speaker: They come to me because they're seeing that I lead from the front. And that's very, very important. You can't just, I don't want you to do as I say. I want you to do as I do.
Speaker: And that just reinforces your position and your authority and your trust as a coach. Very important to lead from the front. Yeah, absolutely. And I think too, there is a level of you have to be willing to go against the grain.
Speaker: in anybody's journey. And I think it's, it feels very, um there's a lot of shock value initially, right? At the beginning, because it's so new to you. You know what i mean? You're not, you're not used to taking criticism or, you know, whatever the case is. Number one, you don't have to announce what you're doing to everybody. So if you're going out and you're choosing to not drink, you're ah not you, but people in general, you're allowed to go to the bar and ask for a soda water or, you know, a soda or whatever. and come back to the table with a glass and not announce, hey, I'm not drinking. Like you're allowed to do that. You know what I mean? like
Speaker: you're allowed to order whatever you want and to not also explain to people why you are ordering what you want. You're allowed to, when somebody gives you, know, gripe for whatever reason,
Speaker: Oh, you're eating this again. Just simply say, yep, this is how I feel my best and not give in to, you know what i mean? Like you're allowed to go against the grain while also not furthering that discomfort that we initially feel before we are so comfortable in this lifestyle that it's just something that we do and we don't care who says what. Yeah. I don't care if you think that I'm boring.
Speaker: I went on vacation last week with my in-laws for a week. And I think I posted um a picture of my breakfast and it was ah overnight oats with some yogurt, right? Packed with, you know, fiber and, you know, all of the things that we need, yada, yada, yada. And I posted it and somebody, one of my friends, probably listening. So yes, I'm talking about you. But one of my friends commented and they were like, that's not breakfast on vacation. And and it's like, well, number one there's that YOLO mentality. Just because I'm on vacation means, ooh, I get to eat whatever I want and brunch and all of these things. But also number two.
Speaker: Yeah, because guess what? I'm going to have energy for the day. I'm not going to feel like crap and I'm going to want to go do things. And so you can call me boring, but you don't get to live in my body and tell me that my choice that I'm making for myself is wrong. You know what i mean? And I think that takes time, right? Like that takes skin in the game and that takes those experiences and, you know, things like that. But that also takes time and repetition, changing your thought process, changing your choices and being more willing to make them and not necessarily worrying about what people's criticism is saying, because it's it's just something you do. You know, it's not something that's pulling teeth anymore as much as it's just who you are, you know?
Speaker: Yes, it's it's' it's okay, it's cool. and when people respect you, they're like, ha this is all you eat. And so when they invite you to parties, guess what? You see some of what you eat at the parties, you're like, huh, you're actually getting it, right? And then, you know, unknowingly, you start changing people's behavior around you. How many parties or tables have you sat to eat at that people would normally eat way more or have more dessert and they see, they know that you're in...
Speaker: into your health and your fitness and they start holding back. They're like, huh, right? you You put that pressure on them without actually putting that pressure on them. So you return the favor that you return that pressure that they gave you initially. um And they they they they just they start respecting your boundaries.
Speaker: Well, it's a ripple effect. That's one of my favorite things when a client comes to me and says, my my you know, my father came in town and, you know, we went on walks every single day. And, you know, he's been home for a week and he told me that he's been walking every day because he so much enjoyed ah the walks that he was on with me. um You know, I went out to dinner with somebody and they came up to me and they said, you'd be so proud of me. I've been starting to you know include more protein in my diet and I've been doing this and X, Y and Z. It's like that's the ripple effect. You're you're influencing people, whether we know it or not. You know, we are we are 100 percent emulating the people that we meet. surround ourselves with. And so that's, you know, the reason why it's really important to surround yourself with like-minded people. But, um you know, we create those ripple effects. And I love when those positive choices start, you know, rubbing off on other people in my client's life and my life, because it's like, I'm not even trying to help you as much as like, I'm so proud of you for just like seeing how these choices have improved you know my quality of life or you know my client's quality of life and they are just putting it into practice like that's so cool to me you know it is it is it earlier on when just started training um i was training this young lady and she just couldn't do some push-ups she was a great runner she was fast just couldn't do push-ups so we started doing push-ups and then one day
Speaker: Her dad, now she's a young woman, she's she's a teacher. Her dad walks into the health club and he's like, oh I wanna see who is this Jason guy. he's like it's He's like, listen man, you have my daughter ah around the dinner table after she, between her meals, she's getting on the floor and doing pushups.
Speaker: I said to him, and he's like, this is a big Italian dude, right? I sort of said, I said, hold up, hold up. I said, never gave her that instruction to do that. He's like, he's like yeah, he said, but um I'm interested to see what you do.
Speaker: And he became a client of mine after. It's amazing. It's amazing. Like, that's awesome. And like that that girl was probably just wanting to show like because she's so proud of what she's able to do. And in that, look at that. That's amazing. It's so funny, though Well, Jason, this has been great. I mean, we could talk about this stuff all day long. It's so great to you know have a conversation with a fellow coach who just gets it, you know. um So I appreciate your time. I hope those of you who are listening, I hope this is a helpful resource. I hope this also kind of showed just a different side of coaching that you might have not seen. You know what I mean? um I mean, obviously, we can talk about, you know, basics and health and, you know, how to reach your goals and stuff like that. But your coach should have your best interest in mind. And we were not expecting you to be perfect. And we get it. We have our own journey. We have ah we we were where you were, relatively speaking. So I hope that this is helpful. But I would love to kind of just ask Jason, how how can people get in contact with you? How can they work with you? Who are the the clientele that you typically work with? um Tell us a little bit about how to get in contact with you.
Speaker: Well, we you could get in you can reach in touch, you can in touch Instagram, jaynelson0580 and you could go to bodyimage.health. We serve adults over 40. If you're in the New York Williston Park area, we have a personal training facility. Other than that, we do training.
Speaker: We coach online. We specialize in fat loss and we do offer peptide and HRT therapies as well.
Speaker: We will get you in, get a proper assessment and um take it from there. you know we Our goal is to help you build a body that can support your lifestyle that you've worked so hard to build. Well, I appreciate you taking time out of your day. um But thank you so much for the conversation. thank you. Thanks for having me i appreciate it. Have a good day. Goodbye.
