A solid Friday update from A
Let’s Get Loud! with J&A
Let's get Loud with A - A wellness journey, tampons and road trips
Well, good morning everyone, welcome to the Let's Get Loud podcast. This is a solo podcast episode with a hello you guys. I just want to say how much I love having these moments with you. It's like my little place on the internet where I really feel like no one is actually talking to me or listening to me, but you guys are okay. I want to update you. So last time I talked to you, I was recording a little bit early because I was headed to Quebec City and Ottawa from my uncle's wedding. And you know, I had a really set of goal for myself to not create a massive surplus, to not lose control. And I'm just super proud of how I showed up. I listened to my hunger cues, I chose opportunities that were felt worth it to me to indulge. I moved my body, I prioritized water, I just did, you know what, it doesn't even matter what I did. Do you know what feels really good doing what you said you were going to do? That's what creates confidence. That's what creates confidence. When you are, you know, you have a friend who always shows up. They say they're going to be there, they're there. You're confident that they're going to show up. You know, you have that friend that says she's going to come, but then always makes her an excuse or a reason why. And maybe one and every five times she shows up. Are you confident that she's going to show up every single time? You're not, you're not. And I use that example for a friend, but I want you to think about it for yourself. When you start showing up for yourself on a consistent basis, you start to feel confident in yourself. You're not confident in the way your ass looks, you're confident in you. Oh, God, this, and that's a very powerful feeling. So like I said, it doesn't even matter what I did, it just, I showed up as who I wanted to be. I did what I said I was going to do. And that felt really good. And I came home and I was up on the scale like a pound and I was like, yes, police. After five days on the road, you know, the last day we drove 12 hours. So obviously I was just sitting on my ass the entire day. And I was just really happy with that result. That felt really great. So that's my update on that. I'm continuing to really focus on the overall wellness. I kind of shared this on the internet yesterday, but I feel like I've shared it here already with you guys that yes, I do want to create weight loss for myself. But the reason why feels bigger than just weight loss right now, it really feels like a holistic wellness journey that I'm on that is very like rainbows and butterflies. I never thought this would be me or where I would be at. But here we are. And it's really how I'm feeling. And so I'm really focusing on, you know, not just calorie deficit. It's like whole foods. That's probably even the biggest change. Okay. So let's just talk quick. So I have been over the last couple of years, for sure, reducing the amount of alcohol that I drink. So that will continue to be a part of it. And then I'm also going to be focusing on whole foods. So I don't know how this happened this moment, but I was just like, it's been nagging, okay? And actually, this is an important part because I had this same nagging feeling about eight years ago, when I nine years ago, when I decided to join your really loss. My twins were one. And I just had this like, I just had this thought that was like, you know, reaching your potential. You're not happy. You're not satisfied. You're uncomfortable on your skin. You know, you're not your weight is holding you back. And listen, guys, that is me. That is my experience. I am not saying that if you have extra fat on your body, it is holding you back. That is not what I'm saying. Only you get to choose the size of the body that you would like to exist in. Okay. Hi. Oh, good morning. I'm just recording a podcast. Do you guys want to say hi quick? Oh, look how cute they are. Look at these beautiful little girly pops. Hi. Oh, these guys, they go sleepy faces. What are you guys doing down here? Oh, you're going to watch. Then have breakfast. Okay. Can you just shut my door? Thank you. Love you. Man, when I think about doing what I do, I'll cry. I think about doing it for them. And I think about that, if I can make a difference in the world, that women stop connecting their worth with the size of their body, then I have like done what I need to do in the world. Oh, okay. Wow. So let's go back to that nagging feeling and that nagging thought and the size of your body. So you are the only one in charge of deciding if your body is not the one you want to exist in. Okay. I want to make that abundantly clear. And when I discuss my personal goals with my body, I beg of you to not look at the size of my body and think, oh my gosh, she looks fine. It's not about the look. It's about the feeling and it is a feeling that I deserve if I want and you do too. And the opposite, if you are existing your life in a bigger body and you feel so great and you feel happy and satisfying, you feel like you're living your full potential, then I could not support you more. Okay. That is, I want that to make that so clear. So when I was, you know, nine years ago, when I was making this decision, I had that nagging feeling. It was coming in and it was like, it just about, I was pushing it away because I knew that when I let it in, I was going to have to do something about it. And this kind of the same thing has been happening over the last year when it comes to just my overall wellness. And it came from my body, you know, when I feel like when I turned 40, just like my body went huge. And I had the beginning of this year, I had some significant like physical ailments. I had my joints, it was my foot, my shoulder, my hips. And really my body was just kind of like, Hey, what's up over there? And just seeing some family members struggle with some health concerns. And it's just like been compiling, and it, and you know what, also this little thing in my brain was like focusing on weight loss feels exhausting for you right now. It doesn't feel where you want to be. But it felt scary to like let go of weight loss because I've pretty much been trying to lose weight my entire adult life. So it's like, I don't know anything otherwise. And focusing on wellness feels scary because it's focusing on wellness, but I also want weight loss. And I did a poll on the internet and I said, Do you guys want weight loss? Do you want better physical health or better mental health or do you want it all? And most people said they wanted it all. And I'm like, gosh darn it. I want to show them how they can have it all because I think we can. And so I just, there was just a few little things. And even in Ottawa, you know, getting ready for the wedding, I had had a lot of noise about the size of my body just because I'm not at the smallest I've been as an adult, I guess, you know, being up maybe 10 pounds from my lightest. And but I felt so beautiful and I felt healthy and I felt proud and I felt energetic. And I thought, Alicia, who cares how much you weigh right now? And I was surrounded by a lot of elderly people, you know, 50, 67 of them, not but all of these 50s, you guys, that is like, I just, I'm going there, but you know, 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s. And I thought, do you think that they know how much they weighed in their 40s? They don't, but do they maybe remember how they felt and the energy they had and the experiences they had with their family because they were feeling so great in their skin, maybe. And I don't know, all these little things just kind of like came together and I sat down with my journal when I got home and I was like, okay, it's time. Like, I've been kind of doing it, shifting my focus to wellness, but like, because reducing alcohol was not about weight loss, I'm going to be super honest, I, the calories in that come from alcohol is like not a concern for me. I, and it's not like, it's not even that many, like what I choose to consume as far as alcohol goes does not have a lot of calories in it. It was more how it was making me feel and not being able to sleep after I consumed alcohol and then not going great the next day because I didn't sleep and it was all about how I felt. And so I've really been doing it, you know, for the last couple and flirting with my supplements and getting a bit more consistent, but it's like I just didn't say it out loud. And so it was like, oh, this is what you're doing, Leisha. You're focusing on your wellness. And right before we left too, I was kind of, I was looking at chocolate and I was like, do you know what? That's not serving me. You know, I love having chocolate in my life and I'm not getting rid of chocolate or alcohol. Let's make that abundantly clear. I am not, I, I'm a firm believer in not completely eliminating specific things unless there's like a real reason. Like, you know, I have people who have chosen to eliminate alcohol from their life because they were struggling with their relationship with alcohol. I obviously support you, but that's not the situation for me. And so for me, it's not the right choice for me to eliminate altogether. I already know if I decided, oh, I will never drink again, boom, scarcity mindset kicks in, same as chocolate. But I was looking at chocolate and I thought that's not giving me anything. That's not nourishing my body. And I do crave sweets after every meal I've created a habit. It's neither good nor bad. It is a habit. And sometimes one mini chocolate bar turns into three. Nothing wrong with that. But I'm like, that is just energy going in my body that is not serving me. It's not nourishing me. And I just feel have this feeling to like really look at every time I'm nourishing my body every time I'm eating as an opportunity to nourish my body. And that I never thought I would say that you guys, I've always been pretty much like 80% Whole Foods, 20% processed foods like I've always been quite full food based. It's just the way I was brought up and raised. And I continue to do with my children. But I just like feel this calling so dramatic to increase the amount of Whole Foods. And you know, I was sharing this on our community group and someone said, well, obviously Whole Foods will give you more energy. And I was like, just the light bulb went off. Energy is my most driving factor. And I don't know if it stems from when I was struggling when I was 70 pounds heavier than I am now. And just how exhausted I was all the time and how I remember that feeling. Or I just I want to have enough energy every day to wake up early, do all the things be physical, spend time with my family and then go to bed and not need enough and not be exhausted. I that's what I want forever. And obviously, I know water helps me with that. Good sleep helps me with that supplementation helps me with that. And it's like, I never really thought about the fact that nutrient dense foods will also give me more energy. And so I am just like on this really intense path of wellness. And it's exciting. And I'm reinvigorated. And I feel excited. So I have a now, I have a weekend that is heavy with alcohol and food. And I'm still not 100% sure how I'm going to navigate it. So we're going to a grand opening of a restaurant. Boulevard, if you lived in the month, if you live in the month in D.F area, get excited. The golf course in D.F. where St. James Gate used to be. Boulevard is a brand new restaurant that's opening same owners as Sofia. And it is beautiful. And the food is incredible. And they're having a great opening on Friday. And they should be open. You guys should be able to make reservations like this week next week. So anyways, it there'll be food passed around and there'll be alcohol passed around. And I've decided I'm going to drive. That is a tool that I use that I notice. When I choose that I do not want to drink, I'll say I'll drive. And that kind of is just a tool that helps me stay accountable to what I said I was going to do. And so that's easy. So I don't know. Do I have one drink? Do I have no drinks? Do I have a mock pail? I haven't decided yet, but I will come back and report to you guys and see how I how I chose and what I chose and how I navigated it. And I do want to consume some of the food, but I also don't want to feel super stuffed. I don't want to go to bed feeling super stuffed. I want to get a good night's sleep. And I want to wake up feeling refreshed, because I really see the value of sleep. And when I start to get in a really good cycle of a good sleep, good sleep, good sleep, I notice it. And the opposite, when I have like one bad sleep, it haunts me for days now. And to me that feels unacceptable. And sometimes when I drink two alcoholic beverages, that I will not sleep that night. Like absolutely not. No. Anyways, and then I'm going to quarks and claws. Well, I actually can't find my tickets right now. I like they're gone from my life. They're not on my phone. They're not an email. They're not on an event, right? So I need to find my tickets. But I'm going to quarks and claws, which is a wine and lobster tasting thing. So there's like booths. And you get to go around and have a glass of wine and a lobster. Now, last year, I drank Josie's wine too. That I won't be doing that this year for sure. But I'm still unsure of, do I want to consume all of that wine? Is that a worth it opportunity to me? And you know what? And get that's tomorrow. Let's worry about today. And let's see how I feel today. And let's see how I go tomorrow. So I would love to use you guys to report back how my weekend went, the choices I made, how I feel about them, how they impacted my my sleep. And next week, I'll give you guys an update on that. But so that that's it. That's where we're at. And I will also update you guys on my weight, because this is a part of that journey. I truly believe that with less fat on my body, my joints will feel better. And I will have more energy. And so and I'm just on the path of this wellness journey. And wherever weight I end up while on this path. Great. So see what I'm doing. I'm just chasing that. And I'll know when I'm at a point where you've arrived, you'll know. And then we carry on. Anyways, it's just also exciting. Okay, so I will of course update you guys. Good talk. Have a great weekend. Oh, one last thing that got me all fired up. Okay, wait, I need to drink a coffee for this. Did you guys see the article that came out about tampons? So they tested 14 different tampon brands and all of them came back with heavy metals in them. Not good for our bodies, you guys, not good. And I really feel like I'm like calling on you right now. I really feel like this is a moment in history where a female empowerment moment, if you have a vagina and you have your period, you have the buying power right now to show those brands that that is unacceptable. If we want change in the world when it comes to our personal care products, we need to do that with our dollar. Unfortunately, changing the law is the most painful, lengthy process ever. But we can change it with our dollar. And if we leave the tampons on the shelf. So I purchased myself a diva cup. I chose a dome shape. It seems like there's a few different options. I am committed to sharing with you guys my menstrual cup journey of course on the internet. I think I'm going to buy myself a few pairs of like the nicks period panties as well. I think that would be a really good comment combo. But honestly, this is a moment in time where we can show those companies that that is unacceptable. And it just as much as I hate moments like this, I think it's important because it reminds us that we cannot just assume that what is on this shelf is safe. So there you go. That had me all fired up today. So if you guys, I'd love for you if you're listening to this and you've had experience with the diva cup, the dome, the period panties, I need to hear everything. Please send me a DM on my Instagram because I love hearing your experiences. And then I can learn from your experiences. Okay, now I'm actually done talking. We're actually going to take the kids strawberry picking today. We're going to do strawberries and do brassberries. Oh, so exciting. Okay, bye guys. [BLANK_AUDIO]