It's Cool to Care with HWPO's Preslie Hirsch

In this episode, I sit down with Preslie Hirsch (@heypreslie), CrossFit Coach, Nutrition Coach, Podcast Host, and now spearheading HWPO's marketing! We discuss why "it's cool to care about the Open." Preslie discusses her journey in weightlifting and overcoming an elbow injury. How her background as an athlete, playing competitive volleyball, led to bodybuilding and stepping on stage.

Preslie shares her insights on nutrition and how it is crucial to fuel your body with the right foods to achieve optimal performance. Preslie shares some of her favourite meal prep hacks, including cooking in bulk, using a slow cooker, and prepping ingredients. She also emphasizes the importance of keeping it simple and finding easy-to-make meals that fit your lifestyle.

Preslie discusses her experience with injuries and how she overcame them by focusing on what she could do instead of what she couldn't. She stresses the importance of listening to your body, seeking proper medical attention, and finding alternative exercises to stay active during recovery.

Connect with Preslie (@heypreslie)
Check out the new Gym Class Heroes Podcast on Instagram (@gymclassheroespod)

Chapters:

(0:08:17) - Health and Fitness in Hard Times
(0:13:19) - The Challenges of CrossFit and Weightlifting
(0:19:52) - Weightlifting Tests
(0:31:45) - Performance Nutrition Lifestyle
(0:39:57) - Injury & Meal Prepping
(0:45:19) - Learning From the Best
(0:51:58) - Balancing Priorities for Personal Growth
(1:00:06) - Launching a Gym Class Heroes Podcast

Follow us on Instagram at @livingthefitlifepod
Visit us on YouTube to watch our episodes!
Visit our website to watch or listen to our previous episodes.

Transcript

0:00:07
Community members, coaches, and professionals working as a team of like mining individuals in constant pursuit. Connecting this exclusive group with the tools and resources they require to live a high performance lifestyle, conquering what life has thrown at them. We are Living the Fit Life. Welcome to the Living the Fit Life podcast episode sixty five. I'm your host, Chad Mueller, in If this is your first time live listening to living and feel like podcast, welcome. Thank you for joining. I'm having a fitness nutrition recovery. It's something we call the x factor sort of like mindset motivation, that sort of thing. And those that have been around, you know, the drill. This is our season this is second episode for season three. And I'm really excited for today's conversation and our fantastic guest. Donna Olympic weightlifting meets. She's been a nutrition coach, prostate coach, He's been hustling hard in across his base, previously working at whoop, morning chalk up, and has recently made the switch to HWPO. And she's also the host of a really cool exciting new podcast, couple of Jimmy Class Heroes. Please welcome and super excited.

0:01:10
Pressley Hirsch. How are you doing, Pressley? Doing wonderful. Thank you so much for having me. No problem. No problem. It's great to resume. How does it make you feel when you hear all that So do you ever get a chance to sort of press pause and look back at some of the cool stuff you've been part of recently?

0:01:26
Yeah. As you were saying that I was like, wow. I have to have a lot of jobs and a lot of things. No. No. I probably should press pause more and and reflect on it. I I feel like I always have so much going on that I try to just be pretty focused on what's happening right now, which is really cool stuff. But I probably should take more inventory of of what we've done so far for sure. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, it's it's someone that's sort of passionate across this space and even, like, really into the brands. That's why that is is pretty cool that you've had a chance to work out those company companies. And super exciting. So you've been with HZPL only for, like, a few weeks. Right? I think it'll I think it's about a month now. Yeah. Okay. But not much longer for sure. Yeah. And how's that been going pretty exciting? Oh, it's amazing. It's like a dream job. I I truly I think I love my work more than I ever have for sure. Yeah. That's amazing. Congrats. Congrats. That's awesome.

0:02:19
And then we just finished the open sort of officially over And I and I I was listening to one of your podcasts on the gym on gym class heroes, and you said, it's cool to care. I wanted to bring it up because it resonates well with me. And I think even for our community on this podcast, we call them the sort of the the the weekend warriors of the corporate athletes that listened to the podcast. And we had a great group of people in my local area doing they're open for, like, a lot of them actually for the first time. And it's cool that, like, you know, we aren't really here to make the cast of games or or we're super far in the whole. Journey of it all. But it was cool that you said that because I I would agree a lot. It's really cool to care about the open. And for you, you jump jump back in the open. You've made it to the quarter finals, which congratulations. Thank you.

0:03:15
How did the open go for you this year? Like, was it I know you had an injury, but, like, the open was just kind of was it a goal to make the quarterfinals? Do you always make it a goal to do the open or do specific goals that relate to the open? Or you just gonna do it just to be part of the community and have some fun? Yeah. I mean, just to touch on that, on it being cool to care, you know, I really had to take my own advice a little bit in thinking about quarterfinals because I do think that it is really cool to care deeply about something and to not be ashamed if you are trying really hard for something. Right? And so I think that I just all the time in the gym, I hear people that show up consistently at five:thirty a. M. Or they, you know, or just they're clearly putting in the work And then when it comes time to something for competition or to open, they're like, well, I'm not going to cross the games, but, you know, and they always need to caveat it.

0:04:04
And it's like, no, you can still be proud of your effort and you can still, you know, crush it whatever that looks like to you. You know, it's not like you would never play golf because you're not going on the PGA tour. And it's not like you would never, you know, do certain things because you're never gonna reach the top one percent. So it doesn't make sense in cross fit either. And I've totally fallen into the same thing.

0:04:23
It was a goal of mine to make quarter finals. And then I was really excited about it. And then when I went to post about it, I was like, I feel it's kinda silly. Like every like, a lot of people that follow me who already made it or a lot of people that I'm friends with, like, they already know they're gonna make it, you know. And then I really had to catch myself and be like, No. I do care. And I did really want this. So, like, it's worth celebrating. So, I was trying to make quarter finals. I made it in twenty twenty one. And was very excited then. And I was training a lot of CrossFit at that time. And then after that, I I've I've done weightlifting meets here and there, but I really wanted to make a a push to get pretty competitive in weightlifting. And so I stopped doing a lot of cross fit when I was living in Austin and focused primarily on weightlifting.

0:05:03
I did the Arnold last March where I ended up partially tearing my elbow on a snatch. And I didn't see a lot of I'm sure that injury probably has lots of different outcomes for people. But for me, I didn't see any improvement for six, seven months. And really could not do a lot of movements. And then when I moved back to Pfenex, I started seeing a PT. Dr. Gena has been amazing and I remember when I went to her probably like November, I was like, I just wanna do the open. Like, at this moment, I can't do pull ups, I can't do toe far. I can't go upside down. Like, I couldn't do anything with my elbow. And I was like, I really just wanna be healthy enough by the open to get through the open.

0:05:44
And then as I was getting as I was progressing, I was like, okay, I think maybe I can make a push for this. So it was just very satisfying that I've all those days of doing the rehab that I didn't wanna do and paying for the needling that I didn't wanna do and all of these things to then make it to the next step was really cool. And to do it healthy. I was ready to to retear my elbow, and that's not to work out if I had to. But I feel glad I didn't have to. Good come back story. That's great. Oh, like -- Yeah. -- that's awesome. Yeah. I mean, the whole cool care thing, I feel like this is a great slogan. I think it's like it's a pretty punchy statement.

0:06:19
And I I would've, like, I would've say even before COVID, I jumped into the golf. I I never did golf. And when I was younger and it kind of became a second sport for me. And I never played golf. So, like, I started really, like, at, like, you know, shooting a hundred and twenty, having a few drinks and just socially playing golf. And then I was, like, that's gonna be something to to kind of like actually try to get better at. And I love the idea of, like, you know, taking on, like, and golf is such a separate thing, like, it most will just do it recreationally and they just go out there and get frustrated. Sometimes they have a good time, but it's like, I never thought about, like, being professional ed, but, like, try to agree with you. Like, if I'm gonna do something, might as well try to be the best I can at it. Totally. And to own it and not be ashamed of that and not be, like, just because I'm never gonna be the tipi top doesn't mean you shouldn't try. Yeah. Absolutely. Yeah. Sure. Sure. Cool. Well, I I often ask this question to almost all of our guests.

0:07:20
But I would like to get sort of an intro into sort of where, like, fitness or athletics started for you. Like, where Were you an athlete at a young age or did you just scramble in the fitness at a later age? How did that how's that story begin for you? Yeah. So I definitely played sports as long as I can remember. I've always been a very active kid from, yeah, literally my earliest memories. I was playing basketball and flag football with the kids at the park down the street. I played competitive volleyball. Most of I played like club, all through school, I played high school, and then it changed a little bit towards the end of high school. I was hoping to play in college, of course, back row. I guess I can't tell him podcast, but I'm on the shorter side. So I was hoping to play in college and then ended up experiencing some really serious health issues and basically was told I could not keep playing volleyball. Like, I had to tailor it way back. Huge life life change.

0:08:17
And so at that time, I decided to start working at lifetime fitness, you know, your variation of a global gym if you don't if you don't have that. And just for the gym membership and to do some like bodybuilding exercises so that I could do something to maintain some activity that maybe wasn't so stressful in my body. And then there There was a lot of people that competed in shows like bodybuilding shows and figure shows. And I was really inspired by that, partially inspired and partially I struggled a lot with eating disorder type behaviors and just those kinds of struggles growing up and at that time in particular. And so I really thought that if I could go on stage and win awards for how I look, that I would finally feel amazing and like this athlete and be proud of my body, So I got really into bodybuilding, did very well. I'm really good at starving myself. It turns out.

0:09:07
However, did not lead to the fulfillment and happiness foiler alert that one might hope. So after much counseling and therapy and getting all the resources I need, that led me then to crossfit. Which has absolutely changed my life. And I started cross fit in twenty fifteen. So it was a roundabout way to get to the healthy relationship that I have with fitness and nutrition now. But it it has had, like, definite chapters for sure. Okay.

0:09:33
Well and, like, how did you, like, what made you step into cross it? Like, how did you find cross it from that? Because, I mean, that's a significant difference of what -- Totally. -- to what cross it is. Oh, I was making fun of crossfitters all the time. Like, I was I was like, you I don't understand why you're swinging in your pull ups and, you know, just total one track mind behavior.

0:09:56
And truly, I just when I was bodybuilding, you know, you would and there's, of course, different ways to do it. But in my experience, I would die it down really hard and and then get really lean and get really dehydrated and do a show. And then you would gain a lot of weight afterwards and not even necessarily whether you struggled with binging or not, you're just giving your body the adequate calories it needs to live and and have a more fulfilled life. And drinking adequate amounts of water. And if you've been replenished of those things, then you gain weight. So I I basically just kept going through this this cycle of losing weight and gaining weight and it was so hard physically. It was hard mentally. It was hard on my health. And I kinda just got to a point where I was like, there has to be another way. There has to be something I don't understand. There's no way everybody's doing this.

0:10:42
And I did start consuming a lot more content and try to be more thoughtful of not just consuming this was really kind of like when Instagram was starting to blow up. And so I was trying to not just follow other bodybuilders but follow people that seemed like they had healthy relationships with food and looked strong and I watched one of the early CrossFit documentaries and remember seeing, you know, Camille LeBlanc. And I was like, well, she has abs, but she doesn't look hungry. Like, and and just kind of putting all of these pieces together. And so at the time, a a guy that I was dating did crossfit. He was he's in the military. And so I remember he kept trying to get me to try it. He kept trying to get me to try it. And then he went out of town. And I was like, okay. I'm gonna drop in just so I can prove that I don't like it and be like, see, I tried it, not for me. And I I'll never forget I walked in, and the girl sitting at the front desk said, something to the effect of you have strong legs like you're gonna fit in here.

0:11:36
And I was like, that's interesting. Like, a bodybuilding coach always wants your legs smaller and you just told me that this is where they belong. Like and so then from there, I just I mean, I got my level one, like, a month later. I was, like, totally bought in, did my first workout with, like, burpees and wall balls, and was, like, Yep. This is this is for me. Okay. Okay. Gotcha.

0:11:57
So, I mean, sounds like the period of when you're sort of doing bodybuilding and you're doing those. How many shows did you do end of doing? Two. I did two shows. Two. I tried to do several. Anyone that's tried knows that it's a lot harder than it seems to get lean enough for a show.

0:12:13
But yeah. When you look back at that time, do you look at, like, do you have bittersweet feelings about that time? Because it sounds like you came out of it and you found a new place. It sounds like you probably learned a few things, but it also sounds like it was a rough time for you. Like, what is your when you look back at that time, what do you think? Yeah, I wouldn't treat the experience for the world. I don't think I would have found fitness and health in the same way if I hadn't gone through that. And I ran a nutrition coaching business. I ended up changing my major in college. I got so into this whole concept that I changed my major from journalism to nutrition. I ran nutrition coaching business that was super successful for a few years after college. And I don't think I would have had the empathy for my clients, the experience, you know, maybe the passion for the knowledge for all of those things if I hadn't gone through that for sure. So I hope that other people don't have to experience the same dark and challenging times that I did to get there, but definitely wouldn't trade the world. For sure, I can look back on it with with a lot of admiration for myself. Okay. Okay. Okay. Cool.

0:13:19
So then you jump in across it. Like many people, you're drinking the Kool Aid, you're right into it. You've already said that you've so I guess now up to this point, you've made the court of funnels twice. What were the early days across it for you? Like like, was this something that you able to kind of, like, just, like, jump in and you felt like you're pretty efficient at CrossFit. You're pretty good. It sounds like you have a I mean, you you have an athletic background. You're pretty equipped with bodybuilding. So, like, you are sort of somewhat aware of your body. Like, did you feel like it was pretty easy for you? It's it's like this is where I belong, and I can just, like, be successful right out of the gate? No. It's it's so hard.

0:13:59
There's still so many movements that I struggle so much with. I I mean, it took me, like, a year to get double unders. I remember I couldn't kick up. Handstand push ups are probably my best movement, and it took me six months to kick upside down. I just had never been to an upside out. I was I was like didn't trust myself to carry my own body weight upside down even out on the wall. Doing wall walks was like, way out of my comfort zone swinging on rings or bars, you know. And then I think I've gotten better over time of being a little more coordinated, but I'm certainly not naturally very coordinated. And I, like, slipped off the bar and got a concussion pretty early on doing pull ups. I slipped off the rings one time and broke my foot. I mean, all injuries that were not CrossFit's fault and a hundred percent my fault. So I definitely have struggled over the last several years. But I I do think that's part of the fun. I really do like challenges.

0:14:54
And and I think CrossFit is so good for, obviously, a lot of things but I've always just been very busy. I don't think I've been bored since I was like four. I just will find things to fill my time. And so because it's so good for you can modify it based on your lifestyle. You can modify it based on the time you have or where you're at. And so when I look back, sometimes I'm like, dang, I've been doing this for a long time. Like, I should be better. And then I'm like, but I haven't dedicated the last eight years to CrossFit, I've dedicated it to all kinds of cool things. Years of traveling and building businesses and building my career and CrossFit has just fit in that really well. You know? So it's it definitely has not come easy, but it's so good for adapting to whatever else is that you're doing. You know? Well, I also think you're a standard for, like, being good.

0:15:43
I think it's probably pretty high too because, like, I mean, six months to to do handsets is not that long. I feel like for some Like, on the wall. Not, like, freestanding. Like, just to kick on the wall. It took me a lot. Okay. Okay. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I mean yeah. Okay. I can I gotcha? I mean, I I think I would I mean, I would agree, like, I mean, I get I guess it seems like you are someone that actively seeks out like new challenges like you did I mean, you have quite the resume of, like, fitness challenges or fitness, whatever we call them.

0:16:17
But, like, you've done a bodybuilding show you've done it probably hundreds of cross for competitions. You've done, let's call the quarterfinal a significant, like, pretty competitive cross for competition. I I just wanna talk with the Olympic lifting me. So it's like, are you actively looking around seeking out for new challenges to kinda test yourself from a fitness perspective? Yeah, I would say so. I think it keeps you engaged and it's also I think it's really rewarding and I feel like that's part of the point of life in my particular lens is to get uncomfortable, challenge yourself. It doesn't appeal to me to keep doing what I already know I can do, you know. Love that. I love that. I mean, our like, we have a big community listening that do kind of like a hybrid of, like, both like, we have a lot of endurance folks -- Uh-huh. -- and also you cross it and cross it at Diaz and Darrin. So, like, we have a lot of we've talked to a lot of religion Ironman, you know, marathon's triathons. Like, have you tested out the endurance world yet?

0:17:26
I did do a half marathon once and and purely so that kind Purely for that, like, I've I've always thought it would be cool to do an Ironman. I I don't know if I'll if if I'll ever get to prioritizing that, but I just think that's such an amazing feat and or or even just a triathlon or or something of that kind. So I dipped my toe in with a half marathon The thing that I I just personally didn't really enjoy it and not that I always enjoy CrossFit, but I do like the process even when it hurts it's hard. And I didn't love running. I didn't like, even when I finished off marathon, I was like, ugh, I'm so glad that's done. But, like, It just didn't quite hit the same for me. So I'm not sure if I'll ever revisit that, but I do think, you know, the fact that people can do incredible things in in sports is so admirable.

0:18:17
I'm not sure if it's like my avenue for fulfillment, but I also think we change all the time. I I could probably say this in the next year, be like, sounds like a fun thing to try. So who knows? Yeah. It sounds like as you're talking, if I chatted with you in the next three years. You would probably already Yeah. Yeah. Something'll change. Yeah. At this moment, it sounds appealing to me. Yeah. Okay. Okay. Get you. I'm the same.

0:18:42
I have a lot of folks that want me to do endurance, and I'm still I'm just like, I'm not sure if I enjoy that. I'm not sure if I'm ready to take my Saturdays and train for four hours. Not sure yet. Yeah. And it's not even like a hard thing. Like, you know, anything you're gonna achieve is gonna be hard. You know, it's not like I just don't wanna run because I don't like running. Which I don't. But, like, it just you know, it doesn't give me quite the same So engaging here. Yeah. Like, weightlifting does, you know, at at this point in my life. So yeah.

0:19:12
So speaking of so you've done you were saying you did the Arnold last year. Have you done more than that lifting meat? Yeah. So the way that something like the Arnold works or any kind of national meat is you have to do another meat to qualify for that. So you'll usually have to do a local meet, some kind of sanctioned USAW meet to meet a certain entry total, to get into the national meet. And so I had done I've done probably three or four national meets like I did under twenty five championships, university nationals, an American Open series and Arnold, I think, maybe four. And then I've done a handful. This is a world. I don't know. It's so world. I don't know much about to be honest with you. Yeah.

0:19:52
It's kind of similar. If you take, like, the Olympics out of it, which is kind of its own process, then it's somewhat similar if you think about, like, open quarterfinal semis and and kind of that process. It's like, anyone can do a local way lifting me, and any gym can basically put one on as long as they're, you know, signed up with USAW. And then from there, you just have to meet a certain combined lifts I lifted this much, and then you can qualify for bigger meats, which just run on a very regular cadence. There's like three American Open series, which is kinda like the most attainable above that is like the American Open. The Arnold is one of the American Open series ones And then there's, like, nationals and things like that. So in American Open finals, which is a little higher. So it's kinda similar in that, like, you basically just have to be able to lift more to be able to move on to the next one. Right. Makes makes sense. So you you get it across it And then, obviously, you're sprinkling on Olympic lifting.

0:20:51
And then you just say one day, I need to challenge myself, and I wanna do a Olympic lifting. How how long did you train being up to all that. And, like, were you training? Like, were you didn't cross it once during the day? And then doing another session that was just the Olympic lifting? Like, how does how does that training change? Yeah.

0:21:10
My first weight lifting me, I did not train very much. I wanna say I did it maybe eight months into CrossFit, definitely not very long. And I know Olympic lifting, no barbell background whatsoever. And I had no plan and was just practicing lifts like before after CrossFit class. And I went and bombed out and I missed all my snatches. And if you don't know how weight lifting works, you do all three snatches first, and then you have a little break, and then you do all three cleaning jerks. And if you don't make a snatch, you don't get to play anymore. Like, you have to you have to get on the board to clean and jerk. And so I didn't make any snatches, but because it was local meat and I kinda knew the people they let me clean and jerk just for the experience But it but but it doesn't count. Like, you don't get anything. Yeah. You base it basically looks like you weren't there. And so that was my first meeting.

0:21:57
I remember we so devastated and at some point, I ended up doing a lot of reflection that, like, I hadn't really earned that yet. Like, I I think that I early on in my CrossFit career or weightlifting career, I would get frustrated that I wouldn't make certain lifts or be able to do muscle ups, you know, during the twenty fifteen open. And, you know, and then in retrospect, I can be, like, why did I think I deserved that? Like, had I really worked on my muscle ups? Had I had I sought out, weightlifting help, or was I just snatching with my friends after class and thought that maybe that meant I could do it with any kind of proficiency at a meet, you know.

0:22:31
And and I kinda struggled with that for a while. I would do little local meats and and lift pretty poorly. I would misslifts. Or I would go super light just to, like, say that I did it, but it wasn't really challenging myself. And then I ended up taking kind of a break and leaning more into cross fit. And and over the last couple years, I've definitely I've hired weightlifting coaches and invested a lot more in doing more of a a plan. I still do a lot of cross fit. I love cross fit.

0:22:55
And I think being in the class setting, I think is important socially, mentally, emotionally, physically. And so I'll do class if I'm, like, getting ready for a meet, like, you know, twelve weeks out or whatever, I'll do class, like, probably three or four days a week. In the morning and then do weight lifting, you know, the other five days, like, in the afternoon, I I tend to weight lift better in the afternoon. And then if I'm just, like, right now, I'm just trying to get my elbow back, like build up some volume again. I'll do CrossFit five or six days a week, and then wait, let's say, in the afternoons, you know, most days. So I kind of split it more evenly if I'm not training for something. Okay. So you're you're at least for now.

0:23:37
And previously, it seems like Olympic lifting is still, like, you wanna continue doing meets. Yeah. For sure. Yeah. I would like to make nationals before before I'm thirty. That's been a long term goal. Okay. Cool.

0:23:49
And would you say, like, actually at the meet Is it more of a mental test and a physical test? It's a hundred percent. Yeah. Like that that that first meet you went to and you didn't get a snap was it just like you're just so nervous? Yeah. I think it was I think it was definitely a lack of, like, technical proficiency for sure. But the nerves are huge. I mean, anyone will tell you, when you go out and make your first snatch, it feels like you can breathe. Like, because obviously, if you miss the the having to make one of the three is scary because it's like you go out. And if you're nervous or you just pull something wrong and you miss your first one, now you only have two chances you know, if and a lot of people, if they miss one, they miss the next one. And now it's like, you gotta make this one or you just paid to come out here for no reason. Right? So so that part can be super nerve wracking.

0:24:38
And there's lots of games that you can play in terms of, you know, let's say, I qualified for a certain meet because I lifted a certain amount of local meet. I can't show up to that national meat and open my snatch at sixty five pounds. Like, I have to open it within something reasonable of what I qualified at. So you also, you know, if you're feeling bad and having a bad day, there's only so much wiggle room for being like, okay, I'm gonna start super lights. Or start super heavy, you know? Or if you need to make a certain total of that meat, you might say, I'm gonna take all three chances to try and hit a max. Right? Like, there's lots of games that you can play with that. So it is very mental for sure.

0:25:16
I I feel like you've, you know, you've done the work, you're not gonna get stronger, more mobile in in the time it takes you to get to a meet, it's all about showing up mentally. And so what what is your so let's say over the past, I know, like, let's say, three months. What is your like what is it what does your day look like from a fitness perspective? Do you work it in the morning, in the afternoon? Do you do sessions one session? So Yeah. I do five thirty AM class. Okay. I love it.

0:25:46
It's you know, obviously, it's hard to start if you haven't done it. But once you get in a rhythm, you know, and and a lot of times I get up and I don't wanna go, but I've never regret it going. And I do live in Phoenix where it's nice most of the year. So I can imagine if it was, like, snowing or somewhere super cold, it might be a little harder, but So I do five thirty class. I just think starting my day with like social interaction, getting out of breath, like feeling like I've done something productive, you know, then come home and, like, make breakfast and coffee, and then it's, like, seven. And I've already, like, started my day, you know. So I do that. And then I'll go back and train weightlifting. Sometimes, you know, if I'm doing like a local if the open's coming up, maybe I'll do more Metcons in the afternoon or or or like a skill session. But generally now, especially I'm doing weightlifting in the afternoon.

0:26:34
And the other thing I like about the morning is if life happens, you already worked out. You know, it's like, I tell myself I'm gonna go every single day, you know, maybe Sunday's a little different or Saturday, but I tell myself Monday through Friday, I'm gonna go at five thirty AM class, and I'm gonna go back in the afternoon, and I don't make it most weeks. Like, I don't get all ten sessions most weeks. You know, life I sleep through my alarm or I have a meeting that starts at six thirty or, you know, someone's birthday in the afternoon. Right? But if just plan on it, then most of the time you'll get there. So that's about that's something right now. Yeah. That's the biggest reason why I have always done the five AM, six AM just because Yeah. Yeah. So she with a a small family. It's like, Yeah. There's always gonna be some sort of reason to get you to get in the way or try to get in the way. Totally. If you can make it back great, but And and some people just do longer sessions personally for my productivity, mental clarity, variety of things.

0:27:36
I just enjoy starting my day with fitness, working, and then having that to look forward to. I I think there's a lot of people obviously that start work early and then just do a really longer session in the afternoon or what have you. I just I feel like if I just wake up and start working, it gets to be, like, ten or eleven. And I'm, like, god, I just have, like, the wiggles. Like, I need to, like, move the bottom. You know? And then if it's if I just do morning and then work all day, then it's like five o'clock and I'm like, what do we do now? Like, we have a whole day left, you know? Like, so It helps it helps me break up the day a little bit. Yeah. You seem like someone that's definitely always trying to be busy for sure. Yeah. For sure. Yeah.

0:28:16
I I've never done, like, I've never done, like, the whole two a day thing. Like, usually, our work at, like, our class I'll do the class five six and this group of s f l going in the back room and kinda just do some extra accessory work or skill work or Olympic lifting. I'm usually out of there by six thirty. So, like, an hour and a half I've never thought about, like, I should actually do that and try to see if I would actually be able to routinely get myself back into the gym after doing once. Yeah. Schedules obviously, that's tough, but I should try. Yeah. Yeah. It's kind of a fun way to to break up the day for sure. Mhmm. Mhmm. I I I didn't even ask him it, and I feel like I I should have asked when you're what's your I don't think that thing, like, what what weight class are you competing at?

0:29:04
And what is, like, your what is your, like, your max? Yeah. To get you to nationals. Yeah. I so I've lift generally at sixty four, which is I think I can usually wait up to, like, one forty four pounds. There's ranges. So it's it's, like, one thirty six ish to one forty four. Technically, I walk around at like one thirty five, which is really more like in the fifty nine kilo weight class.

0:29:31
I have just found given my eating disorder history, it's just not super healthy for me to try and, like, cut ever to make a weight class. And granted that's not really a cut, you know, you would just kind of maintain. But every time I've tried to to think about competing a little bit lower, I just it hasn't been a super healthy experience for me. And if I was gonna be super competitive, then it would make sense. But last, I usually compete at sixty four, but I might compete at fifty nine kinda depending. But and then, to date, so we typically count, like, PRs, like, in competition versus, like, in across the gym. Mhmm.

0:30:08
So, like, in competition, I've clean and dirt. One eighty eights, and then I've cleaned, like, one ninety nine, but I didn't I missed the jerk few times. And then for snatch, I've snatched one fifty six competitively or, like, in competition. And then I've, like, made one sixty five in training. Do you have, like, a lifetime, like, number that you wanna get to? I wanna snatch one seventy five, clean and jerk two twenty five. Yeah. For sure. I mean, you seemed like you're pretty close. So I think they're doable. Yeah. I think they're doable, but, yeah, still got some time for sure. Awesome. Good luck with that.

0:30:56
And I I I wanna jump into nutrition because I don't know that you've targeted a few a bunch of things, and I feel like this section, like, I'm, like, just gonna probably listen because you're the nutrition coach. It sounds like you have a lot of experience in it. But I don't like, you were touching upon it a little bit, like, you got into a nutrition coaching and you changed your changed, like, your whole sort of education plan to jump the nutrition back when you were also doing bodybuilding and you're having some difficulties. Like, imagine this is a long game of sort of learning and experimenting. But, like, what, like, what is your, like, journey? How do you sort of sum up your journey of nutrition and where you're now in? Sounds like you've done performance nutrition. It sounds like you've done more a balanced nutrition. Like, how do you sum that all up to where you are now? Yeah. Yeah.

0:31:45
So I have definitely done I've done a lot of elimination diets. I've done Epilio for a long time. I've counted macros. I've followed meal plans. I've definitely tried a lot of different things. They've had several coaches, some of which was for actual to help, and some of it was more like market research of how other people coach, you know.

0:32:05
And now I would say I'm probably a balance between kind of lifestyle and performance nutrition in the sense that if I was truly training for performance, I probably would eliminate certain things like all or anything that could be inflammatory. Right? Or I would probably I have probably just like make my diet even more clean. However, I kinda like that balance of eating different things, still being able to go out to eat with my friends, but I'm still gonna think about I'm not gonna just gonna eat whatever before I go train. I am thinking, okay, I need higher carbs, lower fat, moderate protein. So I think it's kind of a hybrid.

0:32:44
I am very intentional with what I eat pre and post workout for the most part. But I I do have, you know, a fair sense of balance and kinda similar to, you know, trying to set up your training so that you're gonna train every day. And then when you can't it still works out to be quite a bit. I try to eat really well all the time because I'm not going to be perfect all the time, you know. So at home. I'm pretty I eat kind of the same things pretty often, and but I'm definitely gonna go get Rochelle with my mom if she asks. You know, and I'm definitely gonna go eat pizza. Everyone's involved with my friends on the weekends. And so I try to just do well most of the time, so that I don't have to worry too much about the fun life stuff.

0:33:23
I do track my macros. I work with a coach at training think tank right now, Tracy, who's fantastic. And so I because I was trying to lean out a little bit, and then get it ready for the open, and then gain a little bit more strength for getting back into a weightlifting cycle. So even when you know stuff, just the accountability, the people that bounce ideas off of, all that stuff is super helpful. So we we follow a macro based approach. Which has been awesome. So, yeah, that's kind of where I've ended up finding myself.

0:33:53
But I think the the biggest thing is just to try things and know why you're doing it. You know, if if you follow keto because your friend's doing it, I don't think that's the worst thing in the world, but I think that you should understand what keto is good for. And if that makes sense of what you're doing. Right? Same thing with any other diet. I think just trying to understand, like, who it's good for and when? And and and know the purpose, you know, if you think I'm gonna do this forever. Well, you're probably not gonna do keto forever. And that's okay. It doesn't mean you shouldn't do it for a short period of time. Just being really clear on those things. Yeah. And I love that you as a nutrition coach yourself have a nutrition coach. Yeah.

0:34:31
So some people will be like, oh my god. That's such a such a waste of time. I'd like what this person does. But, like, what are the like, is it is it from an accountability standpoint or, like, another perspective? Like, what are some of the reasons why you I think it's both for sure and it's almost like I it's like sometimes you know too much. Or if you're too close. Right? So, like, if you told me, hey, I woke up and I weighed two pounds extra. You know, knowing a very whatever I know about your history, I would have a certain response. But let's say I woke up and I gained two pounds, it would be really easy for me to be like, well, then I need to change your macros. Or, oh, it could be this. Or, oh, it could be this. And, like, it's almost, like, now I have all of these things that I'm thinking about, whereas it's, like, I need someone that's looking at it from a different perspective to be, like, no, this is what's happening, you know. So it is the accountability is super helpful, and I do think that being able to talk through certain things and then just having someone looking at it from a different lens is is super helpful. Yeah. That makes sense. That makes sense. And for, like, do you still do you still have clients for No. No. No. Mm-mm. Right. When when you did and sort of, like, even, like, thinking about, like, sort of the the general population and sort of the weekend where you what are some of the most significant areas? Of improvement that sort of gives them the most bang for the buck when they talk nutrition. Yeah.

0:35:54
I would say, more often than not, a lot of people just had no awareness around how much or what they were eating. And even if you think you do, I would argue you probably don't. And so tracking your food to any extent, I think can be a really great first step, even if you don't know what to do with the information. There's lots of apps out there, but you could also just write, like, a note in your phone. You know, if you were to download one of the apps, I would just maybe change the goals. You know, I would I generally don't think like my fitness pal, great app. I don't think, like, their goals are all that personalized. It might not be good for you based on, like, your history So you can almost like ignore those or change those to something crazy, like super high, so it's not like influencing what you eat. And just use it as a food diary.

0:36:35
I think most people just need to track for a week because then what you'll find is some days you're eating a lot, some days you're eating not enough, you're probably not eating enough protein, you're probably eating too much fat, and too much just in a sense that it probably doesn't make it feel super good, you know. It's not like too much, like, from any other perspective, And so once you have all that information, then you can kinda look and be like, oh, I do eat donuts every morning when I go to Starbucks. Like and you might not realize that or even if it's not that latent, you know, if I didn't track my food, I am sure I would not eat enough protein. You know, I'll put four ounces in every meal and a couple eggs at breakfast and a couple of eggs at pre workout. And then I get to the end of day and that's still not enough protein. You know? So it's like if I wasn't tracking it, I definitely wouldn't be adding a protein shake. I wouldn't be upping those ounces to five ounces and things like that.

0:37:22
So I think just the awareness is a great first step. And if you work with a nutrition coach, they should a hundred percent ask you for that information. So if you ever go to hire someone and they just give you numbers or a meal plan, you should take that as a as a red flag is is my advice. So track it even just for yourself or if you're thinking about getting help, that's a great first step just to build that awareness. Yeah. And we've yeah. We've had a few nutritionists on on this call on the podcast previously, and we've talked about, like, our pediatrician is a good app.

0:37:53
And I I I would agree with you, like, tracking is definitely an eye opener. I've learned a lot just from tracking periodically. It just wants a lot just like that. I feel like I'm really not on course So just do it for, like, two, three weeks just to check-in. Because, yeah, it is a headache to do it on a consistent basis for a lot of people.

0:38:11
It's it's difficult. And it can't create a bad relationship with food, but I totally totally understand. And it feels like more people I talk to, like, everyone always says, like, Generally, you're just not getting enough protein. That's that's the biggest thing that I hear everyone says. This is just like Yeah. It's good for energy. And so there's no I mean, like, if you have a bowl of cereal at breakfast, it completely makes sense that you're hungry two hours later. Like, you had nothing to say shooting in that meal. Right? You didn't have any pat to control your blood sugar. You didn't have any protein to keep you satiated. So it can be frustrating.

0:38:47
If you feel like you're eating often or you feel like you're always hungry, you're not losing weight, so that that awareness is huge. And It sounds so silly, but there's so many examples of things that you can catch by doing that that you might not otherwise. You know, if you have a hard time binge eating at night. You know, maybe the kids go to bed and then you you wanna snack a dinner, you get home for dinner, and you're just like eating while you're making dinner because you're so hungry. If you just tracked your food for a week, you might see that you eat lunch at eleven thirty, and then don't eat until six thirty. And if your lunch a super carb heavy, it makes sense that you're hangerine when you get home. So then you could track for a week and be like, okay, I'm gonna add in some trail mix at three o'clock. And then stop tracking. And do that for a couple weeks that I feel so tracking also doesn't have to be, like, because you start it, you're gonna do it forever. It's just get the information make a change or hire someone help me make a change, and then keep going. And then take the information again. You know? And it's like, not so much more methodical way then to try and follow, like, a meal plan that's not gonna work a lot of the time because life happens. Right? And and it's not teaching you anything. So I think the awareness is such a good first step. You'll you'll see things that you wouldn't see otherwise. Yeah.

0:39:57
It's really, it's unfortunate. It's so frustrating that, like, protein there isn't that many sexy options for protein. Right? Like, it's like it's like everything else looks so delicious, but it's like you can only take so much, like, eggs or so much, like, chicken. And it's like, oh, there's ground chicken over there. That just looks so delicious from my three o'clock snack. It's like, It's very frustrating thinking like every time I eat, I have to associate some sort of protein just to make sure that you stand up. It's just man. If that was easier, you know. I know.

0:40:28
I tried to sneak it in, like, small ways, and it really does all add up. You know, I do every morning, I basically do like some carb with a couple of eggs and bacon and fruit. And, you know, instead of just a couple of eggs, I'll pour hundred grams of egg whites in there, you know, with my fried eggs. And it's super simple. You hardly notice it, but that's like ten grams or something, you know. And like that adds up. Over the course of a day. And so just little, like, adding little things, five ounces instead of four, you know, three hard boiled eggs instead of two, like, it it makes a difference, but it is so that you don't get to in a day and feel like you have to have like chicken breast. I never want chicken breast before bed. So it's like you gotta add it in throughout the day. That sounds awful. That sounds awful. Yeah.

0:41:13
So, like, what is, like, what is one of your go to meals that you you head up? Yeah. I do oatmeal pretty religiously. I love I'll do oatmeal in the microwave. I do cinnamon, a little bit of peanut butter, mix it all up, and then add blueberries, and sometimes a lot of apples. And then I pair that with some protein, usually hard boiled egg. So that's like one of my go to meals and then I actually make crock pot like turkey bowls most of the time.

0:41:43
I kinda alternate between pork and chicken. I'll do chicken thighs, and those I literally just put chicken thighs in the crock pot. I pour an entire jar, you know, like a regular jar. Of salsa in it and then taco seasoning and that's it and cook it for like five hours. It gets all shredded in with the salsa and it heats up super great. Stays moist. A lot of chicken, it gets dry when you reheat it. And I just put that over, like, microwave rice or or black beans -- Yeah. -- with some salsa and for dinner most of the time. And then sometimes I'll do, like, boneless pork batter, boneless pork shoulder. And that has a few more spices, and then I'll do, like, oranges, some onion, and put that in the crock pot and then same thing make talkables with it.

0:42:23
I love Chipotle. I love Mexican food, so I'm eating it every day, but in a way that's slightly better. Is is a good approach. Yeah. Awesome. Yeah. Yeah.

0:42:33
I mean, when you say like that too, then it also, like, a lot of times, we have a lot of questions at the time of, like, meal prepping. I don't have time for meal prepping. And and, like, we're prepping, like, saves saves a day for sure. And a lot of those things you're just saying, like, take, like, Just a little bit. Just a little bit. Yeah. And I write out, you know, I'm big on I don't buy things that I don't plan for at the store. Because then I end up spending too much money, getting frustrated and wasting food. I don't I really don't spend a lot of time cooking.

0:43:01
It's the crockpot stuff that makes it easy. Oatmeal obviously is super easy. There's lots of good quick options for breakfast. And so I'll go the store and be like, what am I gonna eat every day this week? And it's just the same thing, times seven. And then the next week, by the time you get sick of it, if you just say I'm gonna have pork every night for dinner, by the time you get sick of it, it's the next week and then have something else. It's just like but if you but if I'm, like, home and a half fish on Monday, chicken on Tuesday, pork for a couple nights. I'm I'm not gonna make seven different proteins this week. Like, realistically, I just won't. You know? So it's like, I just commit per week and then change it. Yeah. I mean and yeah.

0:43:42
You you it's surprising that, like, you you don't get tired of food as much as you think you won't get tired of food as quick as you actually think you do. Like, you're, like, you're gonna go and eat this for the next seven days. It's, like, when you're doing it, it's just, like, all so convenient. I'm saying this is probably don't even think about it. Totally. You're saving money. It's keeping it.

0:43:59
And I think people write themselves off too quick. I mean, so many times, like, especially in earth bodybuilding, people would say, oh, I can never do that. I'm like, well, you don't know. Like, you just think you couldn't. But, like and maybe you couldn't. But you're that that isn't based in anything. You know? It's just a lot of people will say, I couldn't eat the same thing several days in a row. Many times have you tried? How many times have you spent your harder and money, spent a little bit of time prepping, and then decided that you were gonna eat that for a few days. And then actually not done it. Because I feel like if you did plan it that way, you probably would, you know. And it probably wouldn't be as bad as you think. So Yeah. Yeah. For sure.

0:44:39
I wanted to ask you you mentioned you mentioned you have a recent elbow injury. I did wanna talk about we have had a few guests that talk about injury in, like, the mindset of overcoming injuries and stuff. So, like, this was so you've been dealing with that injury for the past year. Yes. Mhmm. Yeah. Yes. And so when that happens, you happen to the Arnold doing something that you love to do, how was how did you approach that? It sounds like you're in a much better place now. It sounds like you're in a place where it's, like, the experience has been somewhat positive.

0:45:19
But how did you approach sort of the injury? So oftentimes, like, even myself, like, I I have been able to injury and and I've had days where it's just like, man, it's just like it's so frustrating. Like, it's something you want you wanna be active. You wanna be fit. You wanna be durable. Doing things to do and then somehow doing the thing you want to do is the reason why you have injury. And so it can be It can be it could lead a lot of people to a dark place. Yeah. So, like, how did you approach that from both like a mindset perspective and just kind of, you know, seeing trying to see the end of it. Yeah.

0:45:54
I mean, I definitely have bad days. You know, I tried to do this past open workout on Thursday when it was announced, and I didn't warm up my elbow very well. In my head, I was kinda thinking I didn't wanna waste any energy on my elbow. I wanted to save it for the workout, and it just totally gave up on the second set of snatches. It just would not lock out. It hurt really bad. And I was very frustrated. Because if you were to write an open workout for me, it would probably be twenty three point three. It's like all my best movements and, you know, before my injury. And so I definitely have days where I get super frustrated.

0:46:30
But, you know, I feel like I've had instances in my athletic career, you know, like when I was playing competitive volleyball and I got really sick with with some long term stomach issues and and that wasn't my fault, and I still wasn't able to compete anymore. And then, you know, I have really bad endometriosis. And and I've had to get surgery for that and missed days of training and missed days of work for that over the last handful of years and and that wasn't, you know, that's not my fault and and Granite getting injured isn't always your fault either, but I guess I feel like life is gonna throw you obstacles anyway. And so there's lots of people that would love to work out that are in wheelchairs or people that would love to work out that for whatever reason are not able to. Right? So like who am I to sit here and, you know, be so upset that I can't snatch one twenty five with a healthy elbow.

0:47:25
When I can, go to the gym and do so many other things for my mental health, for my social health, for my physical health. Right? So I think it's like it sounds so cliche, but you truly have to focus on what you can do. You know, and like when I broke my foot, I was like, I hate strict pull ups. I really don't work on them, but like now's the time. Like, I can't squat. So, like, we're gonna get really good at pulling, you know. And now, I've I've done a squat cycle and I've been doing all kinds of things, you know, that don't impact my elbow. Which are all super beneficial. And like, what's the alternative? Like, you you just sit there and feel bad for yourself and don't get better. You know, that seems like a terrible way to live your life. So I can say that from the place of having done it now several times and saying, I totally have bad days. Fircher. And there's days where I'm like, universe, this is rude. Like, I really would like it to Yeah.

0:48:14
I try to take care of myself. I try to do all the things right. Like, I definitely have those moments, but it it does not take long for me to remember that there are people that want to be in the position that I'm in. And so for me to take that for granted, and decide that my elbow pain is too hard that I can't go and use what I'm able to do feels like such a waste. I mean, that's an amazing approach on it, for sure. And it's it's amazing to hear that mindset shift because I I I agree with you, like, the biggest feedback that I got during it because, yeah, like, it it happens. You're frustrated. You use it, like, you feel sorry for yourself, and then it's, like, sounds like, well, guess what you can focus on something else. If you can't use your legs, then you can do some sort of upper body. And there's always something else you can down yourself with. And it definitely does, like, bring, like, kind of, like, light bulb moment to the whole scenario.

0:49:04
I was like, oh, that is actually kinda cool. And we actually talked to Dave Lipson last week. And his approach on injuries, you know, he's super overly positive and optimistic, and he went through some significant things to it. So He was my level one coach. Oh, is he? Amazing. Yeah. Yeah. That's cool. That's a cool -- Yeah. -- level one coach for sure. It's just yeah. It's it's like Yeah. That's what I tell myself a lot.

0:49:31
Like, what's the alternative? Like, if I don't wanna do something, you know. Let's say I And and again, it does not like I'm perfect and I do this every day. But if I don't wanna get up at five AM to go to class, what's the alternative that I don't work out today? Well, that doesn't feel good. So it's like, no, I gotta go. You know? And it's like, yeah, if you're injured and and you're frustrated, what's the alternative? You're just gonna stop working out? Is that really your game plan? Like so you gotta just, you know, adapt because it's, like, your other option's not good either, you know. You you hit another great punchy statement. You should have started, like, writing about proper stickers or something that are motivational. It's like, that's great. What's the alternative?

0:50:08
Currently, I'm stolen them all from podcasts. They consume way too much content. You capture capture the moment in such a small, little sentence. It's good. I mean, I I grew with you though. Like, I do wake up in there some days where it's like, ugh. And it's like, you're right. If you ask yourself, what's the alternative? You're gonna sit here on your phone probably for the next twenty minutes. And then you're gonna feel like we should hear because now you realize that you just wasted. Your time instead of getting up and doing something productive. Yeah. Yep. Yeah. Okay. Good. Stick at that. A true podcast on that moment. Yeah. Click that. Click that.

0:50:46
I I wanted to ask you because you it's I mean, you you're buffing shoulders. You have a you sort of a unique opportunity you've had a unique opportunity with some of the best athletes in the world at the sort of the peak of their sport. Right? You rub shoulders with some of them. You have been around the sport for a few years in both like working past you know. And I'm sure you've sort of you know, met a lot of the the athletes. What what do you think sort of sets them apart? And do you ever sort of like are you ever like just watching and, like, learning as a spud and and just bring what they do into your lifestyle. Like, have you like, should we feel, like, obviously, work with Matt and Sammy and they're the sort of the, I guess, his peak was a few years ago, but, like, you know, he's still the go and all the sort of stuff. So, like, do you find yourself? Have you have you witnessed any of this stuff? Have you seen how they live their life and employees from those types of cities you wish so? Yeah. I would say But they're just normal people. They're definitely stable. Yeah. A hundred percent.

0:51:58
I would say that I haven't been privy to maybe some of those things because of the kind of work that I do. If you are a videographer or photographer in your in mouse training session. Maybe you're a little closer to that. I'm usually and, of course, this particular role is newer But, like, in my last couple of roles, I've been more on the I'm doing supporting things. So maybe I'm, like, in the press room during the event or maybe I'm, like, updating leaderboards while the event is happening, you know, and and during an event, you're not really learning a lot. Right? So I feel like where I'm at is maybe not in the best position to learn some of those things up to this point.

0:52:37
But I do think, you know, just based on the people that I work with now and the people that I've had the chance to work with, you know, obviously, consistency is a huge one. And I think people just I think that you could probably work harder or do things better than you are, and maybe you're just not getting creative enough. You know, I think about not when I was working there, of course, but but if anyone's read Matt Fraser's book or maybe heard him on a podcast, he talks about how close you know, closer to competition, he wouldn't even like use a knife. To cut things in the kitchen because he couldn't risk cutting himself and then not being able to to hold a bar. Right? And I would argue that most people are not going to that extreme. And so I I think that there's things.

0:53:25
If you even tailor it back a couple steps, I bet there are things that the elite are doing, that people aren't thinking about or aren't considering and then just doing them with consistency. You know, you might think I'm not gonna go out on the weekends because I wanna make quarter finals or semi finals. But then there's a wedding and you're gonna go to the wedding, you know, and you're gonna stay up late that night and maybe you'll drink or or what have you. Right? So then you'll make exceptions. And I think I'm a big believer in balance. I think that that's great. But you need you need to be real with yourself and ask if the work you're doing is aligned with the goals that you want. And so I think that the great often miss out on a lot of things to be great and a lot of people are not willing to do that. Or don't see it as an option. You know? Yeah. The level of sacrifice and drive to one common goal is is really yeah.

0:54:15
I I was I mean, Josh Prit just said set up a few times too. Like, he hasn't been to a wedding in, like, a decade. There was, like, a time frame he had been to a wedding or a birthday or, like, any of those types of events. You just miss them all. Yeah. He was okay with it. And, you know, he says, if you wanna be just Mhmm. Yeah. And and even for yourself, like, it seems like you are a person that's, you know, actively busy all the time. You you're training Training's a priority, nutrition's a priority, your career's a priority. How do you balance it all, like, it sounds like you have some whatever end goal in all these different categories. You know, passion for building something great. Like, how do you balance it all? You travel a lot, you know -- Yeah. -- how do you balance it all? Where do you find the motivation to kinda keep going?

0:55:09
I use my calendar religiously. I just I feel like I need to save my brain space for immediate things, creative things. So ever I mean, truly doing my laundry is in my calendar, going to the grocery store is in my calendar. Feeding my fish is in my calendar. I mean, like, literally everything that, like, makes my life run is written down so that I don't have to remember it. To do them. You know, and I write down very silly specific things. You know, if I'm going on a trip tomorrow and my calendar told it today, it'll say, like, do laundry, go to target, to get whatever you need. Right? Like and and so I work backwards in a lot of those things, probably in a little bit of a neurotic way, but it it works for me. And a lot of those things are, like, tasks. So it's not like they're assigned to specific times. But that helps me manage my time to to get everything in, and and I don't really struggled to stay motivated.

0:56:04
I guess I kind of look at it. Certainly, there's days that I don't wanna go to the gym or there's days that, you know, not working sounds better. Right. I'm still human, but I guess it kind of comes back to the alternative thing. Like, would I just not accomplish things. That seems like a boring way to live your life. I don't know. You know, like Do do you actively, like, you know, do, like, you write down your vision and do you after you do goal setting, do you actively check-in with yourself to kind of, like, make sure that you are on the path that you wanna keep going? Yeah. I used to be very into that. For years, I would I would make big things out of New Year's and I would have, like, daily check ins, I'm writing, like, ten year goals. And I've gone through seasons and phases of that at this point in my life and over the last probably year or so.

0:56:56
I haven't done that as much on kind of on purpose. I feel like over the last couple years, I've had such a change in trajectory in terms of career and opportunities. And it almost feels limiting to me to pick something because I I don't even know what I want yet. You know, like, I didn't know that working at h dash a p o would be possible for me until I worked at morning chocolate. And I didn't know working at morning chocolate would be possible for me until I was working at WHOOP and became friends with some people that worked at morning chocolate. And and it's almost hard for me to think of the plan because I don't even know what's possible, you know. And there's jobs that are you know, my job at H. R. P. O. Didn't exist a couple years ago, you know.

0:57:40
And so I don't do as much of that anymore because it almost feels like, well, I don't know what to write down. I'm just, like, working really hard and trying to be nice people and trying to learn lots of things and then it ends up working out, you know. Right. And so it's a I kind of been following that that process thus far. And I'm sure I'll circle back at some point to getting more specific about some of those things.

0:58:02
But the last, you know, year or so. I've focused a lot more on, like, personal growth, gaining knowledge, gaining skills, more of those kinds of things, and then letting some of the goals take care of themselves. Okay. I mean, that that that's fair. I know I know I've gone through that the whole system kind of, like, ran it. Sometimes you're out of it. So makes sense. Makes sense. Yeah. Yeah. This is this has been amazing.

0:58:32
Thank you so much for jumping in the call. Thanks so much for -- Yeah. -- telling, you know, sharing your story. I and some practical tips and some really punchy clubs. So And, yeah, I guess, one last I was gonna ask one last thing.

0:58:50
You you recently started a new podcast. Can you kind of tell some of the listeners on this podcast kind of what what it's about and what you guys are trying to do with it? Yeah. So the gym class heroes podcast is on Spotify and Apple. And it's with my friend, Keefer, who is the assistant coach of underdog athletics up in Vegas. And we have a really fun banter. You know, I I had a podcast that he pressed a podcast for about four years that that was more of a lifestyle podcast. Super enjoyed it. But it's been so fun to have someone else to bounce off of and and have more of a conversation with.

0:59:27
And our goal is just to make fitness maybe more specifically crossfit. Approachable and to talk about everything but the top one percent. So especially coming from journalism, there's a huge need and huge market for talking about who's winning the crossfit games and who's really close to them and and like the very competitive side. But there's also a ton of crossfitters that don't care or that doesn't feel relevant. And so we're truly trying to champion the everyday crossfitter. With conversations, knowledge, interviews that that help them continue to better themselves, feel like they have a place to basically, like, come hang out and chat about crossbow with their friends. But that they can take anywhere.

1:00:06
So we started out a few months ago. It's been a lot of fun. And, yeah, it's a gym class heroes pod on Instagram or gym class heroes on where we get your podcast. Awesome. Awesome. And, yeah, I was in the first few assessments report, so I would definitely encourage you to add the links to the show notes for sure. It's been a cool podcast. I see you to see that. Thanks. Well, thanks, Wesley. Really appreciate the time. And sit down, and thanks everyone for listening. It's been awesome. Good start to season three, and we'll have a few more awesome guests coming up in the future. To think about.

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