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Free Yourself from Body Pain with Alex Ellis - E18
21 Plays11 months ago
Struggling with constant pain and not knowing how to manage it can be incredibly frustrating and leave you feeling helpless. You might be waking up stiff, pushing through your day with aching muscles, and dealing with the stress that comes from not understanding your body's needs. The good news is that you don't need a medical degree to figure out how to feel better! This episode is here to change that perspective, offering simple ways to incorporate effective self-care and body maintenance into your daily routine, so you can finally move better, feel better, and live with less pain.
Alex Ellis, a self-described "body nerd", is a self-care expert passionate about helping people move better, feel better, and live pain-free. As the creator of the Movement Mavens community, Alex has built a reputation for making body maintenance practices simple. Her approach aims to shift the mindset around self-care from a medical necessity to a daily habit. With a degree in Exercise Biology, she has more than a decade of training people in body weight and stretch programs under her belt. She is also the host of her own podcast, 'The Body Nerd Show', where she encourages listeners to reject a life of aches and pains through regular, sustainable movement. Her mission in life is to teach people how to take back control of their self-care, strength and injury recovery.
“Balance is not a place that we reach. And then you're like, cool, I'm done. Right? It's dynamic and it's always changing.” - Alex Ellis
In this episode you will learn:
- How understanding and maintaining your body can prevent pain and improve overall well-being.
- The significance of incorporating small, manageable self-care habits into your daily routine and the benefits of therapy tools like therapy balls.
- Techniques like belly breathing and controlled shaking exercises to manage stress, promote relaxation, and improve sleep.
- The importance of developing intuition and self-awareness to interpret body signals and modify behavior for better health.
- The benefits of a supportive community for accountability and connection, both online and in-person, to enhance your well-being.
- Practical dietary adjustments, such as prioritizing protein intake and using low-lactose protein powders, to support a healthy lifestyle and simplify daily nutrition.
Resources
- Connect with Alex on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hollaformala
- Learn more about living a pain-free life with AE Wellness: https://www.aewellness.com/
- Listen to ‘The Body Nerd Show’: https://www.aewellness.com/body-nerd-show/
- Shop all the products Alex mentions in the episode: https://alively.com/products/alex-ellis
This podcast was produced by the team at Zapods Podcast Agency:
https://www.zapods.com
Find the products, practices, and routines discussed on the Alively website:
https://alively.com/
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Transcript
Instant Fix Culture and Body Maintenance
00:00:00
Speaker
Oh, I can't just show up to my dentist and be like, hey, I haven't done anything since I saw you six months ago, but like, can you fix it? And they're going to be like, no, are you crazy? Like, absolutely not. But then we do the same thing with our body because it has been presented to us as this big, scary, overcomplicated thing that you have to have a degree in medicine to even begin to understand.
00:00:25
Speaker
This is the Home of Health SPAN Podcast, where we profile health and wellness role models, sharing their stories and the tools, practices, and routines they use to live a lively life.
00:00:39
Speaker
Alex, it is great to see you today. Thank you for joining us. Yeah, thanks for having me. I'm really looking forward to our conversation.
Alex's Journey and Self-Care Philosophy
00:00:45
Speaker
As am I, you know, you describe yourself as ah a body nerd and a self-care expert. And could you just share with our listeners what that means to you?
00:00:56
Speaker
Yes, well, first of all, I'm a huge nerd, so let's start there. ah But also, I'm just fascinated with the human body, um how it works, and most importantly, like what goes wrong to some extent. I'm super passionate too about helping people get out of pain and enjoy life with less pain. And I think, especially here in, say, the United States, because that's my experience, um but there's this like expectation that as we age,
00:01:24
Speaker
Things are just going to fall apart, right? These are just going to kind of hurt. So helping people to move better and feel better and get out of pain is truly like what I wake up every morning. and I'm like, yeah, excited to do. So the body nerd is from that.
00:01:39
Speaker
curiosity and that um excitement like I legitimately enjoy anatomy and cadaver dissection which makes me maybe a little bit dexter but I swear it's like not that creepy ah but being able to teach other people too about their bodies so that you have a little bit more agency and understanding about what is going on when something doesn't feel right.
00:02:02
Speaker
And as far as the self care piece, like that comes in as well of just how to take care of your body so that you can enjoy your life with less pain. So you can move better so you can feel better. I always say like, I feel like we know more about our cars than people are like, no, no, I don't know anything about my car either. I'm like, OK, well, OK, maybe not that. But like we understand, you know, routine maintenance on our vehicles or like um You know, other things in our house that you're not going to just like replace it all the time. And yet with our bodies, I find we're OK waiting and it doesn't have to be like that. And it doesn't have to be super complicated. It could be super simple, like 15 minutes a day of doing some sort of body maintenance.
Pain, Recovery, and Sustainable Habits
00:02:44
Speaker
ah So I'm just on a mission to help tell as many people as possible that it can be super, super easy. but
00:02:50
Speaker
Well, as you're telling us today, I'm going to try to not make this too much self-therapy for me. ah Literally this week and I was messaging with someone about, and I don't know the last time I haven't been in pain. You know, no I just kind of cranked through it, right? It was a mindset that probably served me well.
00:03:10
Speaker
As a distance swimmer, yeah a friend who said, you know, there are two kinds of swimmers, those with talent and distance swimmers. And so it was just being willing to do things that other people were like, that's insane. I'm not going to swim farther that long and just kind of suffer through the pain. But now.
00:03:27
Speaker
I mean, i as we're speaking, I'm in a lot of pain. I have a hard time sleeping at night because I'm in a lot of pain. I thought I had torn my rotator cuff, but the MRI says bursitis and tendonitis. I'm like, okay, great. That means I can just keep doing everything and it's just going to hurt. It's not going to cause my damage. Oh my goodness. Andrew, you need to send me your address. I'm going to send you some therapy balls. It's unacceptable. So I guess when when you talk about the self-care, maybe I'm missing some of that. um they're they're There are these two sides of it, it sounds like, from what you're saying. There's the the fitness and movement side, how we're moving our body. But then there's also the recovery and care side of it. And where do you typically start with people? Yeah, well, recovery, first of all, because everyone's like, walk or work out, you know, but they're not doing that recovery piece, case in point, you you know, so. um
00:04:22
Speaker
I mean, i I also think we learn to move and do the things and like our bodies are brilliant at getting us from point A to point B at whatever costs it takes, you know, it doesn't matter. You'll still do it, especially with like an athlete's mindset. You're like, I'll just keep pushing through and like, you know, maybe I'll wake up tomorrow and it'll go away and will be fine And then you're like, oh, it's been like six years. I guess not. I don't know. And mobility and body maintenance, like in our minds, we're like well i I don't have time for it, right? It's so easy to like, I don't have time. I don't know what to do. I don't know where to start or I buy all the things and I have a whole you know closet filled with foam rollers and things that I'm not using at all. right
00:05:02
Speaker
but you probably brush your teeth every day, right? yeah And you maybe wash your face, maybe, right? There are these other things that we understand, oh, I can't just show up to my dentist and be like, hey, I haven't done anything since I saw you six months ago, but like, can you fix it? And they're gonna be like, no, are you crazy? I'm like, absolutely not.
00:05:21
Speaker
But then we do the same thing with our body, because it has been presented to us as this big, scary, over complicated thing that you have to have a degree in medicine to even begin to understand. And it like, again, it doesn't have to be that way. So where would I start, honestly, would be just with whatever you can do. So if that is sitting on the floor and like following along with some YouTube video about hip stretching or whatever, and that's where you're starting fantastic.
00:05:50
Speaker
Because I can tell you five million things to do. And if you go all out, right? You're like, every day I'm going to do it. And then in two weeks, you're going to fall off because life gets lifing. And then I'm more interested in helping you to establish that like daily habit. And that starts with something super, super simple. So I'd say that would be the first piece is just to start something. It doesn't have to be more than 15 minutes a day, even if you're like, I have five. Cool. Fantastic. I love that.
00:06:17
Speaker
Just greater than zero. Yeah. i learned Anything more than zero. Okay. It's like so much better. I am a huge fan of therapy balls and I have a whole product line of massage products as well. um It's sort of like the upgrade from the foam roller ah and the tennis balls or the lacrosse balls, which are way too hard. Have you rolled on any of those in your lifetime? All of the above. As you say, have I have all the things.
00:06:41
Speaker
Right. And then it feels awful. Right. And then you're like, why would I do this? This hurts so bad. Like, I'm never going to do this again. Yeah. I remember the first time the I.T. band on the phone. Yeah. And at some point you'll do it where you're not you don't even hold yourself off of it. I was like, I can't imagine this hurts so much. Lies, lies, lies. So therapy balls are about the size of a tennis ball, but a solid rubber that has some give to it because your tissue is soft. No. It's called soft tissue for a reason. And you don't actually have to go at it with a jackhammer just to get some of that relaxation to occur. Because what's also happening at the same time is a conversation with your nervous system.
00:07:20
Speaker
So if you're doing something that is really intense, it's really hard, it's really aggressive, and you're also telling your body to relax, it's like getting a massage and staying super tense the whole time. Like it's it's not gonna be helpful. It's not gonna be beneficial. So having a smaller tool that's more versatile, you can use the therapy balls on your IT band. I will say it doesn't feel great like ever, but it's definitely like not that bad because you can sort of relax into it and like, you know,
00:07:47
Speaker
tell your brain like it's okay, we're safe, ah which is then where the change can happen, where your body can actually relax into something where you can actually find those trigger points, those points of like irritation and create some relaxation.
00:08:02
Speaker
um Rotator cuff is another one, when thinking of your shoulder. Again, lacrosse ball, super, super hard. Foam roller, too big. You can't actually get into all the nooks and crannies in and around
Tools and Techniques for Body Care
00:08:12
Speaker
the shoulder. Whereas a smaller tool that has some yield is able to get into the shoulder and not create any pinching or bruising.
00:08:20
Speaker
And this may be where I get too aggressive, like taking the Theragun on the highest setting and just like working all over. And my daughter just thinks it's the greatest thing. She just takes it and digs into me. Oh, perfect. You have an assistant. I need one of them. So the Theragun are awesome. I have one of those, too. My problem is like I can never find the charger and then it's like always dead. And then you're like, oh, and then I it it also, though, it like it's different.
00:08:46
Speaker
Right so just like when you go get a massage as well that they have different like pressures and there's different types of massage to create different changes within the tissue. ah Different types of bodywork as well you know something that's more fascial focus is going to be long held the pressure to give the fascias that body wide connective tissue a chance to relax.
00:09:06
Speaker
Um, so I have actually on my podcast, the body and our show, I did interview a guy who was doing research on recovery tools and the massage gun is fantastic. It works. Um, so I was like, well, let me see what'll happen as somebody who rolls on therapy balls of all different sizes on a regular basis. What if I did just the massage gun for like two weeks?
00:09:26
Speaker
um And I find personally, it's just you don't get that same deep pressure that you can create by laying over something that you would like with a therapy ball. So if we're talking about where to get started, I mean, also to give yourself enough credit, you're already doing something.
00:09:43
Speaker
Oh, yeah, no, I mean, I have every morning I do my stretches and my mobility and every night before bed, I do, too. Like I do a bunch of stuff. I'm just still in pain a lot because I probably. Yeah, I mean, we'll get to that. but we'll we'll We'll upgrade your tools and then it'll make a big difference. But a bit also is a great point too is like start where you're at because getting started is the most challenging thing. And then once you are started, then we can start to tweak and like add stuff into it. The massage gun is great, but again, I'd prefer a tool that's like easy to travel with. I don't have to have extra parts like chargers that I i'm always constantly losing and that I can use across my entire body.
00:10:23
Speaker
Because there's also, I mean, you see on social media, you scroll, there's like a tool for this and a tool for that and a tool for this. And I'm like, let's like, keep it simple with like one tool that can do multiple things. Yeah, I have so many plastic devices sitting around the house. Me too. I have a whole closet. And the only answer ever out is therapy balls all the time. So, you know, the you You started with hip exercises, then we started talking about rotator cuff. I guess what is your kind of daily protocol? Do you have something you say, Hey, in the morning, here's what I do before bed or in the afternoon? Yeah. Could you take us through how you do it?
00:11:02
Speaker
I am a morning workout person. um Like I was never a morning person and I have had to become one and it's so rough every morning. ah But so typically I say probably like three days out of the week I go out to my garage to do a workout and that always involves like a 10 to 15 minute warm up. The warm up is my favorite part. And like the workout, like, no whatever, but like the warm up I love. So, you know, moving my hips through full ranges of motion, a lot of dynamic movement, um you know, shoulder circles, things like that. And just kind of looking and ah do the same thing because that is a diagnostic in itself. How does it feel today? And then based on how it feels, I might bring in one or two other things that I'm currently working on.
00:11:50
Speaker
So for example, being on a computer, my shoulders are also bothering me and I can't quite figure it out yet. ah So I make sure that I always roll out the front of my shoulder before my workout and like my forearms. um That's just grip strength, upper body movement, all of that.
00:12:06
Speaker
So a workout happens, then gotta feed myself, feed my dog, walk my dog, do all of that, get to work. And then the recovery piece, I personally like to do at the end of the day as part of the wind down, especially when you're working from home, having a like delineation of like, this is the end of the work day, and now we're into relaxation time. Yeah, so from there, um I'll do like an upper back rollout.
00:12:32
Speaker
because again, any time on the computer or any devices is just like trash for your upper back. So massage that, roll on some therapy balls, also work on breathing. I think that's like another great spot where to start would be with breathing and just making sure I actually am breathing because when we're stressed, we hit that you know high shallow breathing and not deeper diaphragmatic. um So some of that.
00:12:59
Speaker
And then also too, it's a lot of, I call it triage, what hurts? And what do I need to do right now? And what can't I skip because it's so uncomfortable? So I definitely am doing something every single day. And then also too, I'm like sprinkling stuff in throughout the day as well. So as I'm talking to you now, I'm standing at my desk, I'm barefoot, so I'm working on just like the strength of my feet.
00:13:25
Speaker
um I sit on the floor um ah you know when we're watching TV at the end of the evening. I take phone calls walking around. just to I incorporate movement into everything that I do because that's easier to do within your day-to-day than block out 45 minutes every day to do the recovery. It's like, what can I do um top like stacked with other stuff? you know I think that's a ah good point, too, in that it could be wrong. But I believe there was research of if you go and work out 60 minutes a day, but you're sitting at the desk the rest of the time and you're sedentary versus someone working in construction who never goes to the gym, but they're mobile the whole day.
00:14:05
Speaker
It's actually much better fitness, ah much better mobility, lower lower risk of cardiovascular events, all all the things, right? Like that continuous mobility. Because our bodies, chairs were not in nature. Chairs are a relatively new invention. um and So we had to squat, like you'll see in lots of parts of the world that we just don't do anymore in the US. We have those tight Achilles, everything that we can't do it. So that that movement makes a lot of sense.
00:14:30
Speaker
Yeah, yeah, your body was designed to move and there's even physiological processes that rely on movement to happen. And and when, like you're saying, if I just do the little bit of movement in the day and like boxes checked and like now I'm done, sure, that's a place to start, but I would encourage you to bring more movement in.
00:14:48
Speaker
in whatever way that you can. If it's possible, I mean, definitely having an animal helps because come rain or shine, whether it's 115 outside or not, she's like, hello, hi, I need to go outside or an apartment. So the only choice is for us to go out together. um So that accountability helps a lot. But yeah, the more movement you can incorporate, whether it's through even like shoe, like footwear and the shoes that you wear, if the shoes are less restrictive so that your feet can move more, like that's another way to just incorporate movement into your daily life, knowing full well that you're going to slouch on the couch and sit at your desk and work on computers.
Functional Fitness and Home Workouts
00:15:26
Speaker
Like that for me, there's no universe I can imagine where I don't have to work on a computer every day. So let me bring movement in as much as possible to kind of offset that.
00:15:36
Speaker
That's the incorporating throughout the day, which I think is invaluable. You also talked about at least three mornings a week, you're getting out and doing a workout. And I happen to know you're a big fan of kettlebells. So like what are what are your go to workouts when you're doing those?
00:15:52
Speaker
Yeah, I'll also add too, since you were an athlete and still are an athlete, I played soccer in high school and then it was that was it for my career, but I've always been an active person. And so I think it's really easy to kind of fall into the trap of seeing especially people on social media in the fitness space as well, that we all need to train like them. And Like i'm I'm not training for anything right now. I'm not gonna be in the Olympics. I'm not even gonna run a 5K. That's fine. I'm just moving my body in a way to make sure, again, like we've talked about offsetting all of the sitting and the technology so that I can pick up my dog if I need to. I had to carry her home from a walk cause she like hurt her paw the other day.
00:16:33
Speaker
I want to be able to do that. I want to be able to carry my groceries up in one trip, you know, like those life things. So with that in mind, what I like to do with ah kettlebells, I mean, it's just squats, hip hinging, overhead reach in as many different varieties as you can, whether it's laying down or sit standing up or, of course, swings and presses and just like the basics, which I know people are like, well, it's so boring. i'm like Yeah, but if you can do that well, then I can do anything without worrying about how I'm moving. There's certain exercises, right? Like how much you bench how many all this. that You're just never going to use that motion in life. That's just not a thing you come across.
00:17:14
Speaker
Whereas these things you're talking about, you're like, yeah, you're going to need to be able to hit pinch quite a lot. That's a very useful skill. The squatting is incredibly useful, maybe not backloaded, right? Like, because often are you're just throwing a ton of stuff on your back and and squatting. yeah So goblet squats, these other things are behaviors and and movement patterns that you need. So do you, you keep a set at home, you have a set of kettlebells you use?
00:17:40
Speaker
Yeah, I actually um I put on when we I've been married almost 10 years and I put on our wedding registry a set of dumbbells and somebody got them for me because I have friends in the fitness industry. I was like, yeah, but she got me the heavier ones. And I was like, oh, no, what do I do with these?
00:17:56
Speaker
But I had to, you know, build up strength to get there. And we have a garage outside of our apartment. So um I have that built. I got some flooring in there. I have a box so I can do, you know, whether it's like step ups or box jumps or single leg squats, bench press, even on that. I have an exercise bike out there. I call it my philaton because there's no power. So, you know, you just put the phone on the bike and ride the bike and you can still follow along with the instructors.
00:18:22
Speaker
Is it an assault bike or when you say there's no no, I don't know, just like ah ah a stationary bike with resistance. Oh, okay. Yeah. how How do you do the resistance? It has like one of those little dials, like a regular, like a spin bike.
00:18:36
Speaker
Okay. With all shoes clipping. I mean, I don't know the technical term. this can I've never done a spin class, but I know what you're talking about. Were you going to adjust the tension so it's a normal? Okay. Yeah. I always thought of myself like, Oh, you could be a runner. And I've done a half marathon and 10K and a 5K and still don't like it. So I'm like, let's do, you know, cardiovascular training in another way. And listening to music while someone, you know, you can do it is apparently what works for me.
00:19:04
Speaker
I think that ties back to something you were saying before. You know you see people on social media and you say, oh, and do I need a train like them? And that's a big part of why we profile so many different people on the show is if you say, hey, I don't like exercising.
00:19:18
Speaker
Say, OK, well, what have you tried? Wolf running. Say, no, no, and no. You don't like running. That doesn't mean you don't like moving your body. You just haven't found the modality that really clicks for you, that you really enjoy. And it could be kettlebells. It could be bicycling. It could be walking dance the dog. It could be dance. It could be yeah swimming. right it's you have The world is your oyster. Don't paint yourself into a corner for something you don't like. Life's too short.
00:19:43
Speaker
And again, start with what you like. And I would still say, though, add in strength training, especially for females as we age for bone density and all that is super important to have that lean muscle mass. um And it doesn't have to be a huge build out. So like in my garage, like I say, I still have that original set of dumbbells because guess what? They don't wear out. There's no moving parts.
00:20:03
Speaker
um And then I had to get heavier because I got stronger. That's what happens when you work out. So I have, um you know, like a middle and then a little bit heavier and then ah a lighter kettlebell for overhead work.
00:20:17
Speaker
yeah And then another kettlebell for swings, which actually I've kind of, I need to get a heavier one in that, but like, that's enough. And even with like, and and something you can do, you know, deadlifts with, and then something you can do overhead, and even the the weight I have for deadlifting is like not heavy enough, but then you get creative, right? What if I do it single leg? What if I do a kickstand? What if I add something else into this while I'm doing it, do it on an unsteady surface?
00:20:43
Speaker
So you can be creative with what you have in your home gym and then not necessarily need 50 million pieces of equipment. you know Do you have anything you use for that instability on the surface to try to force yourself to work on balance?
00:20:59
Speaker
I got a Bosu ball for Christmas like four years ago. um And I love that too for like ankle stability and working on that. um But even just like single leg stuff, balancing on your single leg and doing, um whether it's like halos with the kettlebell overhead or even just like circling around your hips.
00:21:16
Speaker
like don't underestimate the basics. They are just as beneficial, you know? Yeah, it's ah I had heard a podcast lady maybe in her 70s was talking about stability and and balance. And so she had started brushing your teeth that you would alternate standing on one leg um each side. So then, of course, I did that and then starting to incorporate like the little half squats, one legged squats in there. And so it's just like all these things that you can just incorporate into your day. I'm going to be doing this anyway. How how can I incorporate some movement to it? Oh, totally.
00:21:46
Speaker
i The other thing too with like brushing your teeth, bouncing on one foot or like trying to use the other hand, have you ever tried that? Oh yeah, no, I do it with my left hand. Yeah, that I definitely do. I'm left-handed and I can't really brush my teeth with my left hand. I don't understand. It's just, it's like confusing to the brain, but it's stuff like that too.
00:22:04
Speaker
and doing the things that you do normally, but like with the other side, right? So I think, um you know, sitting down crossing the legs and we tend to do the same way every single time. And then you're like, gosh, my right hip is so tight. I'm like, well, yeah, you do the same thing every single time. So how can you make it different? How can you add more movement
Nutrition and Simple Eating Habits
00:22:23
Speaker
in? So, you know, crossing your legs the opposite way for if you're holding a bag and you tend to have the bag like a backpack or a purse on one shoulder all the time,
00:22:31
Speaker
What if you put it on the other shoulder? What if you carried your groceries in the other hand? And just, again, ah allowing and bringing more movement into our body in all the ways that you can, because we were designed to move. So you mentioned you do you're a morning workout person, and then you go and you fuel your body. How do you think about nutrition? Because that that is going to be a key component of self-care. We have to give ourselves good nutrients to to take care of ourselves. So how do you think about that?
00:23:00
Speaker
as much protein as possible okay is like definitely like where I start. And then I actually, I did a gut health test earlier this year um and it was all messed up. I was like, oh no. um So trying to, you know, they they recommended like a low carb approach and I'm like, I could totally do that. So protein and vegetables.
00:23:25
Speaker
yeah as much as I possibly can, you know, and as I'm not necessarily like a busy person, but I, you know, I run a business, I have clients, like my brain is making decisions all day every day. So if I can make less decisions in other places, like sign me up. So I love the like preset salad kits. And I know they're a little bit more expensive, but to be able to just go and like dump stuff on a plate and like the dressing and the cheese and like the little crunchy bits are like already included and I didn't have to like meal prep on Sunday for two hours like it's all cut up and like yeah yeah yeah and then you just like throw some meat on the plate and you're like we're done this is amazing but 100% about self care. The nutrition piece coming into that as well. And for me too, that's also a like an indicator ah that things aren't going well is like if I'm not thinking about my food or if I find myself like looking to even soothe or relax.
00:24:23
Speaker
through food, then I'm like, o where else are we missing? Is it my sleep? Am I you know doing too much in my workouts? And now I'm like not able to recover enough. like Where can I make some changes so that everything feels a little bit more balanced? And that being said, balance is not ah a place that we reach. And then you're like, cool, I'm done. right It's dynamic and it's always changing. And you're always just you know paying attention to what's going on.
00:24:51
Speaker
I discovered more, it's a dynamic equilibrium, right? Because balance equa implies it's like 5050 that it has to be balanced or equilibrium saying, hey, the right point in these different parameters that I'm trying to to navigate may shift with time because seasons of the year stages of life, whatever else is going on, it can change. Yeah. So ah is that kind of that's lunch and dinner, you do the protein plus Okay, all the protein in the world. Let's see. Post workout, I usually do like a protein shake and some Greek yogurt. And I'll mix some protein in that. Because like I was looking at some of the other like, there's so many different like high protein yogurts and stuff. And then they're like overly sweet for my personal preference. So
00:25:40
Speaker
you know, a plain Greek yogurt, and then I can add in protein powder or, you know, whatever things I want to my liking is my preference right now. And I also I'm the type of person I'll eat the same thing, especially for breakfast every single day because it's one less decision I have to make about something else.
00:25:57
Speaker
Easy peasy. And then, yeah, like I said, lunch is usually like protein and some salad vegetables on a plate. And then for dinner, um my husband and I, again, like protein and some sort of vegetable, um he is far more picky. He won't listen, so he won't know. He's way more picky than I am when it comes to vegetables. So that's also where the salad kit comes into play because I'm not having to prepare a bunch of vegetables that then I'm trying to like get through myself.
00:26:24
Speaker
So again, what is like the the lowest, like least friction I can do and then just go with that. And for the protein, do you have a go to protein you like these days? Protein powder. For the powder, yes. sorry Oh, yeah. Yeah. I really like iconic. They have like their chocolate is delicious and the vanilla as well. um It also is like low Lactose so I don't you know, I'm like eating Greek yogurt I used to be like not have a ton of dairy and then when I cut out gluten I was like life is too short I have to have cheese like I can't have something I can't can't do it all um so yeah iconic for their protein they also have like pre-mixed drinks that are really really really tasty and Um, definitely a little bit more on the pricier side. So the powder, you know, with like a little milk frother and throw in some oat milk. I also, if those of you who like chocolate protein, um, there's like coffee concentrate. Um, I do decaf, but there's and this company called Javi, um, not sponsored in any way, uh, but they have a coffee syrup. And so it's a decaf coffee syrup, like a quarter teaspoon of that in the chocolate
00:27:35
Speaker
protein powder with oat milk and it's just like so freaking good. 10 out of 10, highly recommend. You got to try it. Sounds delicious. Yeah, I got a coffee protein based on recommendation. I created this stuff. It's delicious, but it's not non-caffeinated. I'm never going to drink it late in the afternoon, so I haven't had it yet. It's just been sitting there and I really want to try it, but I got to force myself to try it. See, I get some decaf coffee concentrate and then all your coffee drinks can come true. I would, I would love that. Yeah. I found it was part of like self care. I guess it's probably been now eight years. I cut out caffeine as coffee because it was getting to be kind of extreme. And that was also when like Bulletproof coffee was super popular. So, you know, I had, it was like jet fuel black. It was so thick of a huge cup of coffee with coconut oil, collagen powder, like the whole nine yards and it was delicious. And then I couldn't go to sleep at night.
00:28:31
Speaker
ever. And then I'd wake up in the morning and be tired and like, well, we just have another giant cup of coffee. and This will help. I know how to fix this. I mean, this also too it is like so very body nerd of me. I was like, well, maybe it's the coffee. Why don't we just stop drinking coffee cold turkey? Don't do that. so Like I do not recommend I could feel my brain stem for about four days as things started to like, well like make their way out of my body.
Supplements and Mental Self-Care
00:28:55
Speaker
And then I realized I'm highly sensitive to caffeine.
00:28:58
Speaker
like highly sensitive so even i drink ah black tea now but not always ah but even like a black tea at like four o'clock will keep me up all night and to think that i was having french press espresso every single day i'm like wow think of all the sleep we missed out on but i mean that you know the best time would to learn would have been 15 years ago the second best time was exactly when you did so it was good to to eventually learn for sure Are there any other supplements you do just to say, so I don't have to think about, yeah.
00:29:32
Speaker
I only got so many supplements. I mean, also, too, you know, we after the pandemic and, you know, trying to navigate health and wellness and doing all of that, um that's kind of where I ended up with the gut health test of like post covid, long covid symptoms that I like can't quite put a finger on. So my supplement regime is ah quite extensive, I think. OK. So definitely like a daily vitamin. um I what else is in there? Which daily vitamin?
00:30:01
Speaker
It's not one of the fancy brand name ones because those were too expensive at some point, you know? yeah um what is It's like one multivitamin I get through my functional medicine person. Because also too, this little bottle, was i'll share I'll send you the link. It ah has everything, right? Whereas on some of these other companies, I was like, well, I had to buy this, then I had to buy this one, I had to buy that one, then I had to buy this one. I'm like, now we're spending like $150 a month on supplementation. like and Come on now, that's too much. It's too much. So daily vitamin fish oil for sure, um collagen powder, which I mix in my tea. um I also started doing a fulvic acid, which was recommended both for like a long COVID and gut health.
00:30:49
Speaker
So that comes as a liquid and I mix it in water. So here again, body nerd for you. I have an Apple watch attracts your heart rate variability. And um I added another app called like training day or whatever so that it would translate that heart rate variability into like a daily readiness number, sort of like I think some of the other trackers have. um When I started incorporating the fulvic acid, my heart rate variability improved.
00:31:16
Speaker
which too is like a marker of like how much stress, right? like Okay, um so that also is when I'm looking at supplementation, how do I feel? um How does my wallet feel? And then are there any physiological changes that I'm noticing that make it worthwhile? um So that one will stay in rotation for a while. You know, it's so funny, I took them all this morning, just a handfuls like one after the other. And I'm like, I don't know what they are i forgot. But definitely, like, I think a daily by Oh, daily vitamin, a probiotic.
00:31:48
Speaker
for sure, and like the collagen powder and the fulvic acid. Now the probiotic, because there's so many, like you hear this one's alive, this one's not, this one's good, this one's not. I know, I know. Have you found one? that You're like, yeah, this I feel different, this is good.
00:32:02
Speaker
Yeah. um So also to comment, side note to all the supplementation, eating the real thing is always going to be better. And I think for gut health as well, like fermented foods are always going to be better. Yeah. It's just some people can't really process them, right? Like some people can't have the fermentation. Like my mom, she had colon cancer, she can't have anything for a minute.
00:32:21
Speaker
Right, right. Yeah, there's different reasons in which you can't do fermented foods. So I'm currently using seed because also, too, I started looking at how much I was paying for fiber and probiotics. and I'm like, this is the same thing. um And they is it marketing or is it research? I don't know. I mean, they did have a lot of research studies that they talked about that they're actually looking at the different strains that they have.
00:32:46
Speaker
And I just find that like my energy levels and my digestion is so much better now having incorporated probiotics and prebiotics and that fulvic acid to the point where like stuff I thought I was sensitive to before I can eat now without like absolutely having terrible stomach pains and things like that. So does it work? Shrug um also to the placebo effect is a real thing. There are studies on that. So if you believe that it works, it works and it's working for me right now.
00:33:16
Speaker
It's the thing if you feel better at everything then it's working, right? Whatever it was placebo effect or the exact strain like it that's working and Totally. No when it comes to self-recovery, you know, there's certainly the the physical aspect of Okay, how do we do this self-care? What kind of recovery do we need? um But there's a entire mental emotional mindset side of self care that I think is important to to talk about as well. How do you think about that and incorporate that into your your days and weeks? Nervous system, right? Like what is the health of my nervous system and how do I feel? And the way I look at that, honestly, like the mindless scrolling where you're like trying to numb out for me personally is a big indicator when my stress levels are
00:34:08
Speaker
above and beyond like my zone of comfort, you know. um So I'm like, man, I'm spending a lot of time on my phone today. I'm like, OK, let's like pull stuff back. So how do I do that? Number one, sleep and trying to get as much sleep as possible um and good quality sleep. So making sure that like I'm off devices before bed, um even like last night, I was like, the light is too much. So turning on like turning off brighter lights and doing you know more dim lights to help just let your body unwind from the day. The therapy ball work that I do as well, you have specialized nerve endings called rufini endings in the um layer of fascia directly beneath your skin that respond to touch. So massage in itself is a way to flip that off switch for your nervous system much faster than anything that you can consume by mouth. um So also you know rolling on my abdomen to do breathing and that relaxation, that's like a huge one when I can feel myself being really out of balance with that. And then also I'll do different like somatic type exercises um to just like literally shake it off um to help bring myself back to baseline so that I can get to sleep and have that good quality sleep.
00:35:31
Speaker
What's an example of a somatic exercise? Yeah, um there's ah something called ah traumatic or yet trauma release exercises. um If you Google that or Terry, you can find um I think also on my YouTube channel.
00:35:47
Speaker
I know I know I've made a video, but I'm like, is it on YouTube or is it in the membership? But it exists somewhere. um So basically you lay on your back and you have ah you're in like the butterfly pose. So bottoms of your feet are together. Knees are open out to the side. And if you start to slowly bring your knees together, the goal is not to bring your knees all the way together, but to get them to a point where this involuntary shaking happens.
00:36:13
Speaker
And so the idea behind that is that you're initiating this like literal shake coming from your psoas, which is a deep hip flexor that runs along the front of your spine from the bottom of your rib cage to your inner thigh. um And it's like our fight or flight muscle, right? Your psoas is going to either kick the person or help you run away. And so just like animals, you know, my sweet, sweet dog with her anxiety and her PTSD like shakes all the time. like She shakes when she's excited. She shakes when she's stressed out. As humans, we also do that if you've ever been in like a car accident or a fender bender, this involuntary shaking happens because your body is just like, I got to get rid of some of this energy somehow. But there's so many times during the day where your brain is like, oh, but I can't. it's not It's not right now. right I'm in public or I'm in a meeting or whatever.
00:37:03
Speaker
So we like shove all that down. So ah TRE and this involuntary shaking helps to like literally move some of that energy through your body. um You don't do it for a super long time, like even like 15 seconds. And then when you're done, you just straighten your legs out. Like it's not a super long thing. And I think of it too, as like, if you had, uh, like, uh, a bottle of sparkling water, right? Or kombucha, you don't just like open the top, like, whoa, you know, it's going to explode everywhere. Just like let a little bit out, close it. And then like, you can come back later. So I will do that literally after my whole bedtime routine is done, you know, the lights are off.
00:37:41
Speaker
or get on the floor because it's better like surface, the mattress sometimes is almost too squishy for me personally. Spend like 15 seconds doing that, breathing a little bit and then hop in bed and then I'm able to fall asleep so much faster. So that like TRE for me personally, whenever I'm in a tremendous amount of stress or I can just feel like, hey, it's nighttime and I'm not ready to sleep, then that's a tool that I pull out of my toolbox a lot because it's so super effective.
00:38:10
Speaker
Yeah, I'll have to try that one tonight. Yeah, yeah, I'll send you a video. Okay, I appreciate that. Are there you mentioned breathing a few different times? Are there sources you get your breathing exercises from? Or how how do you? Yes, the ah Movement Mavens video library has a ton of breathing exercises. But honestly, like for anyone listening, like where to start, it's just of laying on your back, like I'm pointing to the floor, cause this is like where I do it all the time, um laying on the floor and breathing into your belly. And if you're like, well, how do I actually do that? Even if you just like rest your hands on your abdomen and try to breathe into that. um That is like that belly breathing is something we know inherently as children and like infants do it. And then at some point we learn about stress and we forget how to do it. And I remember in my very first yoga classes, the teachers being like, we'll just breathe into your belly. i'm like what does that mean? But it ends up being you know a very valuable life skill because your breath and your diaphragm specifically, breathing is kind of like a ah doorway into our nervous system. When you're stressed, you breathe high, quick, shallow. When you're relaxed, you're able to breathe slow and deep, but you have conscious control over how you're actually breathing. And so if you can tap into deeper, slower, longer, breaths, you can help bring your entire nervous system more into that parasympathetic, that rest and digest aspect of your nervous system. So breath, in addition to a bunch of the other stuff we mentioned like therapy balls or somatic exercises, ah is a way to get yourself out of that stressed state and into more relaxation.
00:39:55
Speaker
But the thing, too, about breathing is it's not for everyone. There are certain people, you know, your own trauma background. Maybe it's super stressful to lay on your back with your eyes closed and breathe. And and that's just not accessible for you, which is also why having other tools to be able to get to the same end point are so important. So having a toolbox where you have like your mobility closet, right? You have these tools, but then to actually know, well, what can I pull out right now? What can I try? What's going to work?
00:40:25
Speaker
if you're doing a ah presentation, right? I can't lay on the floor and breathe slowly when I'm like super keyed up and super stressed. I got to do it a different way. So yes to breathing with the asterisk in that it might not be for everyone for every situation, but it's definitely an important place to start.
Body Awareness and Community in Wellness
00:40:45
Speaker
You've mentioned several different times, this kind of intuitiveness or or noticing in your own life of, oh, wait, I'm maybe now craving or eating foods I normally wouldn't have, or this normally when I'd be tired and going to sleep, but I'm not right now, or I'm on my phone, or how have you cultivated that intuition? Because I think Maybe I'm just speaking for myself, but I think for a lot of people, you can go through life almost more zombie-like. You just go and there's very little watching your own behavior. You just do versus that noticing. And it's in the noticing that we can see those triggers earlier than six years down the line, like, yeah, this has been really painful for six years versus I'm moving a little different than today than I did last week. Like, what's going on?
00:41:39
Speaker
So how did you cultivate that? I remember there was a, it was like a and before memes way back in the day, it was like a quote about um learn to listen to your body's whispers so you don't have to wait to hear it scream. And that was i just like, oh my God, yeah, that's exactly what we're trying to do.
00:42:00
Speaker
And the process of actually like cultivating that is ah we call it becoming a body detective inside Movement Mavens, my coaching program. And it is exactly that. How how do I become a better student of my body so I can notice things without judgment and then make a choice of what happens next? And that just happens also through practice and asking that question. Right. And allowing space for yourself to notice how you're feeling. And then the most difficult piece of that is not passing any judgment over what has or has not happened because of that. okay um So a lot of time and a lot of practice. um And also knowing too, like I also don't get it right every single time and that's okay, right? Nobody's perfect. And like you said, it's an equilibrium. It's not a balance. the Balance is not a destination that we're ever going to get to.
00:42:52
Speaker
um but being willing to ask questions. and And also too, I find that the therapy ball work in itself allows you to be more in your body and notice sensations so that you can be more present in your body. And also so that the sensations that do come up aren't quite so scary because you have a tool that you can use to do something about it. It's not just, oh my gosh, my shoulder hurts. Maybe it'll just go away and then I wait and wait and wait. And then when I do end up at you know, an orthopedic surgeon's office, of course, the only recommendation at that point is surgery because so much time has passed. So little steps in practice, and you're going to mess it up, but that's okay. Because like, whatever is life. It's about the the direction, I guess the direction of travel as long as it's forward. Okay.
00:43:40
Speaker
Yeah, that makes sense. Now, you've mentioned movement mavens a few times and there's this whole component of health that our surgeon general talks about a loneliness epidemic that we're in and the need for that social connection, that that purpose above and beyond ourselves. And so, you know, you have your coaching work, then there's also developing that community. Can you talk about how you think about that and how you incorporate that into your own health and well-being practice?
00:44:10
Speaker
I mean, yeah, definitely community and as a body nerd, right? Like I've always been a huge nerd and it was trying to find a community of people who similar to myself were willing to be curious and willing to be students of their body and willing to ask questions and then also be like, oh my gosh, that's so cool.
00:44:28
Speaker
You know, when we like look at something related to the body. and So I kind of made the community that I wish I had had before. And I'm so grateful for everybody who has passed through our group. And so, yeah, I mean, it's just it's nice to the accountability to know that people are there to work out with you.
00:44:49
Speaker
um you know, when we do our live sessions, um or that when you ask a question about, Hey, man, my shoulders really been hurting, like, what do you recommend? And I'm like, Oh, well, what what about this isn't this based on your history that I know, and it's gonna help somebody else too, because we all have the same question rather, whether or not we're willing to like, actually, verbalize it and ask it so yeah having a place on the internet where I can and we can collectively um share I'm just laughing like ah weird fitness things that you see on the internet or you know these movements or also that like hey today you walked around the block and that was all you had the capacity for like that's freaking awesome I'm so proud of you and to have people who like have your back in that way is so important
00:45:31
Speaker
And certainly, you know, the internet online, it gives us the ability to maybe find more of those people that align with our way of thinking everything than what we would be confined to in a single geography. But how do you also think about kind of in-person cultivation of social connections and in getting that part? Because in a world where if you're working out at home, you're you're on a desk a lot at home, you know, you can miss Yeah, look, look, a very similar situation. So I'm curious how people prioritize it or if they do and and and how they manage it.
00:46:11
Speaker
Yeah. um Well, one of the things we do within the membership is live in-person events. So I do a retreat. I try to do that every other year because it is a beast to organize, like holy guacamole or like a a weekend workshop to get people together. Because yeah, like there is no replacement or online equivalent to what it is to like see a body move and to be able to give you in the moment feedback about how to move or whatever um so those are a high priority and then for me personally working out at home and working on the computer and like i'm here at home by myself all day every day i'm super grateful to be have been able to cultivate community with even my neighbors
00:46:56
Speaker
So it might not be a movement thing. Um, we did used to work out together before I started working out at six 30 in the morning. The three year old downstairs doesn't get up that early. ohga Um, but yeah, just, you know, yeah maybe, maybe one day also too, as like a movement person, I, um, not only ah again, as a coach, I'm very particular about how I want to be coached and how I want to move my body.
00:47:20
Speaker
um And for me getting into my car in Los Angeles to go somewhere to have a class that may or may not meet my personal expectations, just like it wasn't worth it. It was too much work. So I personally like to find my community outside of my movement through, like I said, like my neighborhood or um um even this weekend, you're talking to me on a great week because I actually have plans to socialize this week. I'm going to a book club for the first time.
00:47:48
Speaker
I know. I haven't read the book. I didn't read it. It's the first meeting for me. But, you know, I'm like, OK, I could read, you know, do the Cliff Notes real fast and like there's beer involved, so it'll be fine. Can you say what the title is? Oh, what is the book? oh Oh, the book, I think, is a Yellow Face. I don't I can't tell you the author.
00:48:07
Speaker
But I don't know, my friend read it. So I was like, well, I'll just like tag along with you. But I think, you yeah, i I think for me personally, like cultivating community with the people who are close to me and maintaining like deep relationships in that way is for me most important. And then when they are available or and in town, because I have friends all over ah making it work that way.
00:48:31
Speaker
And I think too, like, I'm not gonna lie. I also, you know, you see people online who they're like, oh, here's like my best friend group. And we've been friends since we're three. And like, we have the group channel. I'm like, oh, that might be nice. That's like not me. Like, that's not my style. Like, that's okay, too. So, you know, however it works for you and allowing that to be enough, right? That enoughness, I think is like the forever life.
00:48:56
Speaker
journey. Finding ways to make it sustainable like you said right so it for you the tying it to your movement was not a match made in heaven right like they could be in tension because of some of your goals on different things so you have to find it elsewhere where there are other people that say hey it's the community that gets me into the movement right like I wouldn't do a ton but joining this tennis league or this pickleball league or whatever this intramural league that gets me my movement and the social and so it's It's back to that listening, listening to the signals your body is giving you of, hey, is this something I'm leaning into or that I'm shying away from? And am I shying away from it in a way that it's it's just stretching me and this is actually good for me? Or am I shying it away from it in the sense that, yeah, I may do it this one time, but that just means I'm not going to exercise again starting next week. And that's probably not the right way to go.
00:49:50
Speaker
Yeah, yeah, I mean, even whether it's like habits or community or your workouts or whatever, finding what works for you and then leaning into that, like I know my strengths at this point. And there are some that I have changed, like, for example, becoming a morning person. And there are others that I'm just like, that's just not for me. And that's okay. You know, and not as difficult as it is not trying to like fit yourself into somebody else's idea of like what things should be.
00:50:20
Speaker
Um, and that in itself would be the key to happiness. I think if we could like figure that out, you know, so let me
Conclusion and Resources
00:50:26
Speaker
know when you get it. Okay. All right. Well, I think that is a a great place to wrap of a, we don't need to try to fit into anyone else's version of our own happiness, but it is the journey of a lifetime to discover our own happiness. And so to make sure that you're listening to those signals, um Alex, before we part, is there anything you want to share with our listeners before we go?
00:50:48
Speaker
Um, everything you just said. No. Um, well let's hang out and be besties. Um, I have a podcast, a body nerd show. I'm on social medias, all of them, Tik TOK, Instagram, um, the works. Um, and you can find all that information at a E wellness dot.com. And also to like, whatever questions people have about the body, apparently shoulder impingement or bursitis will be a future episode on the body and show just for you, Andrew. Thank you so much.
00:51:17
Speaker
definitely reach out because like I love hearing from people and that also helps to inspire this kind of content and things that I'm sharing out in the world. Fantastic. And we will put all of this in the show notes and the links and make it very easy to find Alex at AEWellness.com. um But thank you again. It was a lovely conversation. Thanks for having me.
00:51:36
Speaker
Thank you for joining us on today's episode of the Home of Health Fan podcast. And remember, you can always find the products, practices, and routines mentioned by today's guests, as well as many other health fan role models on the lively dot.com. Enjoy a lively day.