part 2: FOUR myths that used to shape my view of wellness.
We’ve all been duped by the myths that the wellness industry preaches to us — maybe even indoctrinates within us. I’m here to help muck through the murky water! In order for us to truly step into optimal wellness, it sometimes takes rerouting in order to do that. This is okay, it’s even normal. Over the course of my journey, I’ve learned several lessons that I feel grateful I can now share with others, including my clients, and help them learn from my experience.
Back with PART TWO of myths I used to believe about nutrition and wellness, be sure to check out part one!
Myth: Cardio is king. Your girl used to spend at least 45-60 minutes on the treadmill/elliptical and that was it. By the time I’d be finished there, I would either have no interest to hit the weights OR I would be so tired, I’d muster through a 5 minute circuit and then leave the gym. Since beginning to focus more on strength training (really got into a rhythm when I began Madeline Moves in January 2019), things changed. Now, I am in the best shape of my life and it is all because cardio is no longer my first priority and I am consistently training with weight and resistance. I love how strong I feel and I can attribute it all to my strength training and the progress I’ve made over the past several years. Muscle mass is such a critical part of wellness, some may even say it is the most valuable asset we could have to healthy aging. Be sure to reexamine your relationship with exercise!
Myth: Sleep doesn’t matter. I truly get so sad reading this statement and thinking at one point, I believed this to be true. Sleep is the most important non-nutritional tool for our health and wellness — I firmly believe this. My sleep schedule used to be a wreck, especially because I worked nights. Sleep gives our body and our brains the opportunity to refresh — this analogy I learned helps me explain it best. Imagine your brain is a small town and at the end of each day, each resident puts their garbage at the end of their driveway to be picked up over night. The garbage people, otherwise known as your glymphatic system, can perform waste removal if all the residents are sleeping. If you’re not clocking consistent, adequate sleep — the garbage is not being removed — and you can imagine what this means for the small town. Be sure to prioritize sleep. If you struggle with sleep — insomnia, restlessness, quality of sleep, etc. — these are all symptoms of an underlying issue. Let’s chat!
Myth: Upper body will cause me to become bulky/big. I am no personal trainer but I do know, training my WHOLE body has changed my life. When I wasn’t doing cardio, I was working on training specific body parts for the ultimate ‘summer bod’ (insert eye roll here). Trying to target train, or focus only on abs and glutes, will not only burn out those muscles and lead to potential injury, but you will never make the progress that you are looking for if you are not engaging your entire body along the way. What’s fascinating is more often that not, most movements engage your whole body, if you bring awareness to them. For example, I rarely do isolated core workouts anymore because as I began to prioritize a balance of upper and lower body, I learned that I can engage my core throughout and effectively train my core muscles without having to do 100 crunches. All your muscles need love — don’t forget your upper body.
Myth: All supplements are created equal. Nahhhh my friend — the supplement industry is RIGGED. Kidding, but not really. Prioritizing HIGH QUALITY supplements is essential — especially when some supplements claim to contain ingredients that research reflects nonexistent within the product. I used to be very frivolous in this department, hopping on Amazon — buying what ‘looked good.’ Having a solid understanding of what to look for on ingredient labels and leaning into trusted brands is essential to ensure you are getting what you’re paying for. Work with a trained professional and do your research before investing.
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