MIDDLE AGEish

The Best Version of You Doesn't Have a Time Limit: An Inspiring Discussion with Michelle Rowell

Ashley Bedosky, Lisa Kelly, Dr. Pam Wright, and Trisha Kennedy Roman Season 1 Episode 26

Could you imagine hitting the gym at 45 and falling in love with CrossFit for the first time? That's exactly what our guest, Michelle Rowell did. A nurse practitioner working in weight loss surgery, an entrepreneur, and founder of Ageless Athletics, Michelle shares her journey from a runner to a CrossFit enthusiast, proving that age is not a barrier when it comes to focusing on your health. Her story is a testament to the power of community in encouraging and maintaining our fitness routines, particularly as we age.

We continue the discussion with an important conversation around the obesity epidemic and the crucial part lifestyle changes play in tackling it. Michelle sheds light on the obstacles people face when trying to make healthy lifestyle changes, especially the emotional connection to food and the societal pressure towards unhealthy, fast food. She gives practical advice on beginning an exercise routine without feeling overwhelmed and talks about her experiences in running Ageless Athletics. Michelle's insights serve as an inspiration to everyone, especially those in their middle age, reminding us that maintaining our fitness and health is achievable at any age.

We wrap up the discussion in usual Middle Ageish Podcast form, with a lot of laughs and cheers to our Middle Ageish journey!

To learn more about Ageless Athletics, CLICK HERE
To follow Michelle Rowell on Instagram, CLICK HERE


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Speaker 1:

Welcome to the Middle-Age-ish podcast, authentically and unapologetically, keeping it real, discussing all things middle-age-ish, a time when metabolism slows and confidence grows. Join fashion and fitness entrepreneur Ashley Badosky, former Celtic woman and founder of the Lisa Kelly Voice Academy, lisa Kelly, licensed psychologist and mental health expert, dr Pam Wright, and highly sought after cosmetic injector and board certified nurse practitioner, trisha Kennedy-Roman. Join your hosts on the journey of Middle-Age-ish.

Speaker 2:

Hello everyone and welcome back to another episode of the Middle-Age-ish podcast. I'm Trisha Kennedy-Roman and I'm joined here today with my co-host, ashley Badosky, lisa Kelly and Dr Pam Wright. We are joined today with Michelle Rall. She is a nurse practitioner who works in weight loss surgery and she is also a cross fitter and she has her own clothing line, ageless. She's got her shirt on right now.

Speaker 1:

I love it. Super cool clothing line. I love it.

Speaker 3:

I love that.

Speaker 2:

Not only a fit mom, but an entrepreneur mom with her workout clothing line. So welcome to Middle-Age-ish Michelle. We're glad to have you. Thank you Kind of the clip.

Speaker 4:

Nobody's ever called me an entrepreneur, oh my gosh, you are not Seriously. Because you absolutely are.

Speaker 5:

It's like startling that no one has said that. Wow, that's really cool to be called that.

Speaker 2:

Well, I love that you took a play on your Middle-Age with us. And I love that you took a play. You know it was funny, the whole Middle-Age-ish podcast. I'll give my son credit trace. He one day called me Middle-Age and then I said I'm not Middle-Age. He's like, well, ish, which, I really was Middle-Age but I was like I love that. So I had the name Middle-Age-ish before I figured out what to do with the name. So I love your play on the age. So what made you decide on a clothing line? And I love the name, obviously.

Speaker 4:

So I started CrossFit in December I'll be 11 years ago, and my IG handle was called Middle-Age CrossFitter because I started when I was 45. Wow, but anyway, that was my IG handle and it was a way that I could kind of connect with other CrossFitters. And so there's another lady that has a clothing line that's kind of geared for older women, but the name of her clothing line didn't really align with, kind of the way I felt, although I love her clothes. So I was like gosh, I need to make something for Middle-Agers. And so it originally was going to be called Middle-Aged CrossFitter apparel, like Mac apparel.

Speaker 4:

But my son, just like your son one day, was like Mom, why don't you just call it Ageless Athletics? Because I had been thinking, trying to think of a word that described how I wanted to make people feel when they were working out as Middle-Agers, because I wanted us to have kind of a community of people that could come together and represent middle-age or aging, I should say strong. So when he said that, I was like bingo, that's what I'm going to call it. And plus, you can't use CrossFitter or any derivative of that, because it's trademark.

Speaker 3:

Right.

Speaker 4:

So that's kind of how it came about, and so I made a shirt that said Ageless and it had like a kettlebell in the middle of the back of it with wings, and so I just was like I'm just going to make 25 of these and see how they do, and I just like showed them on social media in March of 2020, which was like ripe for COVID. They shut us down in Georgia for COVID and I sold out in 24 hours. Wow, that's amazing. And what was really cool was that people who were not Middle-Aged were buying them, like the younger 20 and 30 year olds at my gym bought them.

Speaker 4:

So of course, at first it was a lot of friends and family. But I was also part of something called WADPREP Masters, which is a group, a community of Masters-aged Crossfitters, and we had a Facebook page. So I had somebody from Norway, by Japan, and so I was like, oh, this resonates with people and they want to be part of a community of other Masters Crossfitters who are trying to age strong and who feel like we are never too old to be healthy, fit and strong. So it was just kind of a desire to make a community. And plus, I like clothes and I like that.

Speaker 5:

There's nothing wrong with that. Yes, At all.

Speaker 4:

So I wanted some cute clothes that represented us as you know, folks that are Middle-aged Crossfitters.

Speaker 3:

So that's kind of what we're doing. So how did you get into Crossfit? I know people have that misnomer. I think that it's like super hard, like the hardest fitness level that you can possibly do. But a lot of clients I have that do it, love it and they're like really, you're just, you're really against yourself, Like you're trying to beat your own time or push yourself to your own level. It's not really competitive with other people. So how did you get into it and what do you like about it?

Speaker 4:

I've always kind of been into fitness. I did aerobics. I can remember doing Richard Simmons at home, oh yes. But when I was 16, I started going to aerobics locally and I've just always kind of done some form of like working out, although I don't. I never considered myself an athlete and I didn't do athletic stuff when I was in high school or anything with musicians. But I started running regularly in November of 2012. I ran a full marathon in Savannah and afterwards I was like okay, what's next? Cause? Kind of like after you do a marathon, you're kind of like, oh, okay, well.

Speaker 4:

I've done it back then. I don't think they had ultramarathons.

Speaker 3:

Oh, my God, yeah I know.

Speaker 4:

Now there's more. So I started looking through Pinterest one night. Pinterest had just come out or I had just gotten on it and I saw this woman and she was called a CrossFit woman. I looked at it and I was like I want to look like that, like how do I look like that? So I was kind of looking into it and like the next week, three minutes from my house, a CrossFit opened. So I went and visited the CrossFit and while I was there the guy did like a fitness test on me and he was like you have no muscle at all. And I was like what?

Speaker 5:

I just ran a marathon, Well guess what?

Speaker 4:

I was just a fat runner. I mean, I was not overweight, overweight, but maybe like 10 or 15 pounds overweight. And I had no muscle, because running doesn't Give you muscle, running burns muscle, right. So anyway, I basically failed that fitness test and so I immediately started going to that CrossFit and I Started it three times a week. I bought a little punch card for ten visits. I went home and talked to my husband it's, it's a hundred dollars a month, you know, this is a lot and he was like sure, and so anyway, I did it and I fell in love with it. I just kept going back and then that turned into one year. Then in two years, and then I had started having family and friends start to come with me and it's, it's just, it's Amazing because it is a mixture of cardio and like Olympic weightlifting and weightlifting Mm-hmm, and they they program it in such a way that Crossfitters kind of get a certain physique, like I can see somebody and I can kind of tell if they're a crossfit or versus a body.

Speaker 4:

Yeah, so, true, a power lifter or whatever. So that's kind of how I got into it. I was a runner and and then I realized, like from that little fitness test, that that guy did that. Oh, I need to be lifting weights and. Boy, was that a game changer as far as the way I looked at my health. It's just amazing. I love it.

Speaker 2:

So you're looking at us thinking that if you guys do CrossFit, Probably already know that we are not crossfitters.

Speaker 4:

That's okay, everybody has their own thing, and my job, I feel like, as owner and CEO of ages athletics, is to encourage Middle-aged athletes in whatever they want to do. Whatever am I partial to CrossFit, of course right but if you want to run, but I feel like for, as women and being in the health care field as a nurse practitioner and working with weight loss surgery patients, people totally miss out on the fact that we need to lift weights.

Speaker 2:

Mm-hmm.

Speaker 4:

When you work at a hospital every day, like I do, I round on patients and I look into people's rooms as I'm walking down the hall and I can see all these people that are our age and older. They have no muscle and when they get sick they have nothing to fall back on and their muscles just atrophy it. If you've ever watched your parent, you know, and our parents most of our parents didn't lift weights, mine didn't then that's kind of the crucial aspect of CrossFit that really made the difference. You get the cardio aspect, like running or biking or whatever, plus that weightlifting.

Speaker 2:

We've had Dr Ramaklain and Dr Alina Zinkoff. Both of them really stress that and yeah, you think you've got a build muscle.

Speaker 5:

Yeah, you've got a muscle and protein. Your older.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, protein and muscle.

Speaker 4:

The other thing is my company is called Asia's athletics and I really do feel 56 and I feel like weightlifting and CrossFit and Especially what weightlifting is the fountain of youth.

Speaker 2:

Mm-hmm.

Speaker 4:

If you lift weights. Most people tend to look younger. If they lift weights, women have better bone density. So there's just a lot of aspects of CrossFit that it's just a game changer, that's all.

Speaker 2:

I can tell you I work in plastic surgery and I can tell you that if everyone looks like you at 56 when you're a CrossFit and I'm in a business because, I cannot work. What you just said, your age is yeah, not look anywhere near the age.

Speaker 4:

Thank you, but like, if you look closely, I mean, you know I don't do Botox or anything like that and I'll have problem with it people doing it. It's just that I'm afraid I would like it Addicted, so I think I would. This is probably a better and less expensive alternative. I don't know, everybody has different opinion there's a cross.

Speaker 6:

There's a CrossFit studio besides the studio that I teach in, and it's amazing because I get to see these women when they start off on their very first. You know they're first yeah. They're doing a run around the car park and you could see them. You know they're struggling so much on the first day, but it's amazing how quickly that transformation happens and how quickly their bodies tune up to it. It's it's just fascinating to watch.

Speaker 4:

Yes, yeah, it's, it's. I can. I remember being six months into it and Somebody's telling me, wow, you're starting to look different, you know. And there's a lot of other things that come into play. Nutrition is really important. I mean, I try to. Even on my Instagram page I a lot of times I try to show kind of what I'm eating and I'm not perfect with my diet. There is nobody. That is okay and you gotta be real.

Speaker 4:

Right you just the big thing is to be consistent with your diet and Consistent with working out, and that's that's. The hard part is, a lot of people are like I don't have time, I don't have time, but you just have to find the time and what works for you and there's not one size that fits all with Working out or any business, doing a podcast, whatever. So everybody has their own way of doing things.

Speaker 2:

What's your best booty exercise? Everything drops.

Speaker 5:

Oh my god, let's just get real right here Okay crossfitters all have their butts or they got. They got booties. It's gotta be squats and lunges.

Speaker 4:

Yes, squats, but like glute bridges, hip thrust, that's not even really cross-fee, that's more of a but squats, yes, and you know, any sort of leg work is probably going to help in that area. I'm not a coach, I, I just go every day, except for Sunday, oh my goodness. Yeah, and some days are not, as it is not intense every day. It it has definitely evolved from when it started back in 2000, but it's definitely evolved, and a lot of people are afraid of it, but, honestly, everybody starts as a baby in CrossFit, yeah, and so, anyway, I could talk about no, I think.

Speaker 3:

No, I wouldn't. Yeah, I have a question. As a psychologist have a lot of people who are not happy with their, their weight, their shape, you know who they are, the body size, all those things and they all want to work out an exercise, but they're like walking into a CrossFit gym any gym would be overwhelming Because they know they're not gonna be able to be at the standards of people there. So what do you say to people who are afraid just to like take that first step, and what should they do?

Speaker 4:

So usually any CrossFit gym that I've ever been to even if I go visit others like when I'm on vacation and I go to another gym there's always one person there that's usually very welcoming, typically and I'm kind of that person in our gym a lot of times If there's somebody new, the owner of the gym will say you can work out with Michelle, or she'll choose somebody who's kind of a gentler kind of person. I mean there are very competitive people there, and deservedly so. They're great athletes or whatever. But I jokingly call myself a remedial cross fitter because I scale a lot of the workouts and that kind of thing. So there's always going to be somebody who will welcome you to CrossFit. If it's a true good CrossFit box, we call it. We don't call them studios or gyms. They're.

Speaker 4:

It's called a box because literally that's what it is it's like a warehouse and so or typically, it is just the first step is always to take the first step Right, and you're gonna be. I will tell you you're gonna be intimidated, right.

Speaker 4:

I mean I was. I was intimidated and I had been running for years. I had always worked out. I used to teach aerobics at Gold's Gym. I used to teach step aerobics. I was certified Reebok step instructor and you know it is. It is intimidating, but CrossFit has evolved so much over the years, in my opinion, that it's just such an amazing community of people. It's just like you guys. Like you know, you have three other people beside yourself that you can communicate with. You guys understand each other. You understand what it's like to do a podcast together, the ups and downs to that. It's the same thing with working out as you're going through that workout together. If somebody is behind and I'm a lot of times, I'm last a lot of times I'm the oldest person in the class, right, so I'm gonna be a little bit slower than somebody who's 20, right.

Speaker 4:

So they will.

Speaker 4:

If you're the last one, they will cheer you on until you're done, or until that buzzer goes off, or whatever so and that is a great feeling to have that community and people and it just makes you want to come back. You're like I hate this, god, this is terrible while I'm doing it, but the results are amazing and the community is fantastic. I mean it is. It is hard, but everything is scalable. A new person can always walk in and you'll start with a barbell or dumbbell light dumbbells. Nobody's gonna make you at a good gym, nobody's gonna just like throw you to the wall.

Speaker 2:

I am, so I'm a nurse practitioner, as as are you. What led you to weight loss? Or have you been in that the whole time, or what? What kind of what did you do?

Speaker 4:

So I've been a nurse for 30 years and I've been a nurse practitioner for December will be 18 years. It's kind of interesting. I've had several different jobs, but the very first job I ever had was trauma nurse practitioner. I work at a level one trauma center in Macon, georgia. There's only like four in the state. So I was trauma nurse practitioner because I had worked in the ER and then transitioned, went to school while I was working there and then transitioned to that job because I was kind of, you know, just natural transition because I already worked in it. So one of the one of the Interns which is a first-year resident Okay, so that's somebody that's that's gotten their undergrad, gone to medical school and now they are going to learn their specialty and in surgery it is a five-year residency and the very first year you are called an intern.

Speaker 4:

Okay, so I had just been hired as a nurse practitioner and then one of the interns, dr Danny Vaughan. This was his first year in surgery, so we worked together that year and I worked with just a whole group of residents and so, anyway, later on I went and moved on to another job. He finished out his residency and I guess it was about like seven years later or so he moved back to this area after he Did a fellowship after his residency. So he was like 33 by the time, you know. He finished everything and he called a friend of mine and talked to a friend of mine and said hey, I'm trying to remember this nurse practitioner that I used to work with.

Speaker 4:

Her name was Michelle. She was really good, and she was like are you talking about Michelle Riles? She was like that's my best friend and she was like yes, and so he called me up and just said hey, would you like to come work with me? I'm gonna start a bariatric surgery program in makin, and so that's how it all started and I was ready to kind of move on. I was actually working at a pain clinic at the time and, uh, that was just a hard job because it's hard to help people get better that are in chronic pain.

Speaker 1:

It's always like something different.

Speaker 4:

So that's how I got into weight loss surgery. So it was. We started that program together from the beginning, along with another surgeon, dr Parrell and Rob Parrell, and so We've been together since the get-go, and now we're 10 years into it. So that was in May of 2013 and I had just started crossing that long before then.

Speaker 4:

So I actually looked different now than I Did back then when we started the program together. I've lost weight and changed my physique somewhat. So I think it all kind of ties together what I do with kind of what my personal convictions are. I don't know how you feel about this. Being a nurse practitioner, my personal conviction is that I should live the lifestyle that I expect my patients to leave no judgment or anything.

Speaker 4:

No, absolutely doctors or nurse practitioners that are overweight. I'm not judging you, but I'm just telling you. If I'm gonna tell somebody that they need to lose weight, I better not be overweight and I better be living the life.

Speaker 2:

We'll see someone middle-aged. I haven't really good because I work in plastic Surgery, so I will totally no problem living that life.

Speaker 5:

Yeah, so with what you do and I mean we've talked about this on the podcast Several different episodes just like, as we get older, you know weight doesn't come off like it used to your body completely changes. Um, what, like what qualifies someone for Services like this, for the, the weight loss surgery, and like talk us kind of through what that looks like.

Speaker 4:

So you typically most weight loss surgery patients have to be at least 80 to 100 pounds overweight. You have to have a body mass index of 35 or greater, okay, and if you don't have any Comorbidities, you can just have a BMI of 40, but you do have to typically have, like diabetes, hypertension, okay, sleep apnea, something like that, and that is very prevalent in the south right at least the right food.

Speaker 4:

Yeah. I mean it's crazy, yeah, and we have just a general lack of knowledge. I don't know why people do but have a general lack of knowledge of nutrition here and people do not understand that it is 85% nutrition and 15% exercise. Yeah, so to have weight loss surgery you have to have a BMI of 35 Comorbidities. Obviously your insurance has to cover it now that you know there are self-pay options.

Speaker 5:

But that's the basic Requirements is it kind of when you go for surgery? Is it kind of like the I don't, I'm this probably not the way, the right way to Say it, but like the last option? Or do you guys try and coach through, like, have they Try to work, you know, with their weight and eat better and change their lifestyle and get a little bit more active?

Speaker 4:

so Insurance requires that they do certain things like a lot of insurance is required that they have three to six months of what we call Medically supervised weight loss, where they try to lose weight on their own, somewhat of a stall tactic, but it's also, you know, that that's what they require. So so, yes, they, you know, when they come to us typically, they know that this is kind of last resort.

Speaker 4:

Mm-hmm and I tell them when I try to help them choose the best surgery for them, I tell them like I Feel like this is kind of a last resort to you know, or last to check for its lose weight. If you're gonna do this, you need to maximize it and you need to listen to us when we try to guide you on what surgery you need, because we've been doing it a long time like we're not gonna just, and then you and as a nurse practitioner, you work with plastics. You're not gonna guide somebody on the wrong Right procedure.

Speaker 4:

Help them look better. Mm-hmm, you know, we know we're the experts, because a lot of people you know there's lots of people talking oh, I've heard terrible things about gastric bypass, blah, blah, blah. But the surgery's come a long way. We do it laparoscopically now and that was a big game changer for weight loss surgery as well.

Speaker 4:

So it's one night hospital stay. It's, you know, still big surgery, but you know everything's changed since COVID and it's it's a shorter hospital stay. Patients are educated prior to surgery. They, you know it takes them three to six months to get to surgery. So they meet with our dietitian. We have a registered dietitian and they see them after surgery as well. So you know it's, it's a. We want them to be our patient for life.

Speaker 6:

Yeah.

Speaker 4:

So we have a very long relationship.

Speaker 3:

I don't know if I don't know if you'll do that at your practice, but I actually do bariatric Consultations and testing, oh yeah friend of yours who go through the surgery because they're such a big psychological component, obviously and like so much has to change in their life.

Speaker 3:

It's not just like a quick fix and then you have the surgery and suddenly you know things are like better in your life. There's so much to go through and so many different Formats versus you know if you're in a relationship with someone else, like who does the food and who you know, like all these different things. So as you change, they kind of have to change too, and so the psychological part is really important, mm-hmm.

Speaker 4:

Yeah, we require a site clearance and that is a practice requirement because some of the Insurance is don't require it. Right but we require it.

Speaker 3:

It's important. I feel like like, oh yeah.

Speaker 4:

We have a good relationship with our Psychologists and psychiatrists and so, yeah, very in-depth, you know, lots of pages for them to fill out and lots of. I actually kind of enjoy reading the psych it bells.

Speaker 3:

So yeah, I was just thinking because that's where it comes out like they've tried, you know everything all the different diets, weight watchers, you know catoces, like everything. They've just been through so much and they've got all these medical issues. But you know it's really getting them to like. Know that, you know You've got that year kind of span and you have to lose that weight but then your stomach can obviously, you know, expand again. So it's really like making lifestyle changes, like like what you're saying and doing, crossfit, and 85% of what you eat is what you look like.

Speaker 4:

Yeah, I mean, it's nutrition is such a big part of it, and that's another thing. Like with ageless, I want to. I want to show people that you can age not and y'all were very kind making you know. Thank you for compliments, but that's really not what I want. I want people to know that you can age healthy and strong and fit. It's not so much a matter of what you look like although aesthetics are a nice side effect of working out and eating healthy but you just want to be healthy, right?

Speaker 4:

Like guys, I go to work and that there's 30-year-olds that are on. You know this long list of medicines and I'm just like how did we come to this? You know, and I personally feel like your health is your own responsibility. So you know, I tell patients, like you know, if you have this surgery, there is so much patient responsibility with the surgeon. It's not like going and having your gallbladder out. Where you have your gallbladder out and you come back to see the surgeon once and that's it, and you know it's really more the surgeon's responsibility. This is your responsibility once we give you the tool, because that's what it is right.

Speaker 6:

Commitment the tool.

Speaker 4:

You know you still are gonna have to make those lifestyle changes that probably you should have made before surgery. You know what I mean. But when you weigh 500 pounds it is very daunting to have to think that I've got to lose 350 pounds. I mean, I don't know about you guys, but I struggle. You know postmenopausal, even being 15 pounds overweight.

Speaker 4:

I don't like it you know, and you know we all have seasons in our life where we're up and down. You know that's just part of life. Nobody's gonna be perfect weight all the time.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, and breaking sometimes that emotional component with food. There's such an emotional you know it can be like alcohol, you know, and emotions, but food it can be very, you know, just like a coping mechanism.

Speaker 6:

that's just not healthy, oh yeah yeah, there's so many components to the obesity epidemic you know, and the food dependency is so much harder because of food around you all the time.

Speaker 5:

Everything is so easily available, Absolutely and easy and cheap.

Speaker 6:

So the bad food is really cheap. The good food is expensive. It's like you know, it's very hard for people.

Speaker 4:

I tell this to patients all the time. You know we live in a society where we get our food through a window, yeah, and I've told a patient today. I said you need to make it your goal not to go through a window for a year. Yeah, yeah, you need to make your food at home. You need to eat your food at your desk at work so you're not exposed to whatever's brought into the office. And you need to. You know you have to change your lifestyle.

Speaker 4:

But America, we're so fortunate, but at the same time, the flip side of that is, you know, the food is hyperpalatable at restaurants and not nutrient dense at all. So we think we don't like things like cottage cheese and Greek yogurt because they're not super hyperpalatable yet they're so nutritious, and vegetables and fruit. So it's just a lot of education and redirection and teaching people you can be in control of your health and a lot of it is nutrition and a lot of it is working out and you know that's how you can be ageless. All of my shirts, by the way, with my company have a play on the word age and I think that's kind of what makes some kind of fun and anybody that crossfits, or you know, I've told patients actually that have started exercising, that are middle-aged, like, hey, you know, go get you some fun clothes so that you feel good when you're working out, because everybody is kind of, I feel, self-conscious you know, yeah, there you go and.

Speaker 4:

I want to look good when I work out and I want my patients to look good when they work out and to feel good. So I tell them go get some clothes that you like. You want to feel good about yourself when you're working out. So that's another aspect of working with patients and kind of knowing what people need, because people, like you were saying earlier, people are afraid to walk into gyms. They're intimidated, but everybody has to start somewhere.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, I love ageless. I love the meaning behind that, because I think you know we've talked a lot about, especially at this point in our lives a lot of times. You know if you've had children or not, even if you have put your time in your career, you kind of have given to something else or someone else and you've kind of let yourself fall behind, and so it's. I think it's very intimidating, when you hit middle age if you have not been taking care of yourself, to jump into you know fitness or whatever, but just hearing ageless and thinking you know fitness doesn't have an age limit, it's never too late. Obviously, it's better to start when you're young and to grow up with fitness, but I think that you know just because you're in your 40s, your 50s, and you've not been doing anything to. Obviously with health conscious in mind, though, but it's never too late to get yourself healthy. That's exactly it.

Speaker 4:

You're never too old to be healthy, fit and strong. That's my slogan, is hashtag, never too old. I feel kind of like my spiritual gift if you guys believe in that is that I'm an encourager by nature and I am at my happy place when I'm at CrossFit and I feel like I can encourage people and when I Can tell people that are our age that, hey, you can come into the gym, like you need to come into a gym and start lifting weights, but I'll, I'll be your friend so you won't be alone and you can work out with me if you want. You know, that's what I want to be as a nurse, practitioner, as a business owner, entrepreneur as.

Speaker 2:

As a crossfitter you know amazing. I love it. So do you have a website for your ageless clothing line? Yes, it's shop agelessathleticscom.

Speaker 3:

Love it.

Speaker 4:

That's great I have IG page for ageless athletics and then one for middle-aged crossfitter Awesome.

Speaker 2:

Maybe if I buy the clothing, I'll start working.

Speaker 5:

Look cute, you work out, oh it's so we, yes, I truly believe that yeah, you are so right, it's, it's important to.

Speaker 4:

I don't know, for me it's important to. Aesthetics are a little bit important to me, yeah, so.

Speaker 5:

I don't think I was like. I think I mean, and there's nothing wrong with that, so it's a motivator.

Speaker 3:

I mean it is it's like motivating, and I think that you use what, what was important to you, but you use that to help and encourage other people, which is, I think, what we're meant to do.

Speaker 5:

If that's your gift, I like do that and that's because it and then that comes across is very authentic.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, I think especially being real.

Speaker 5:

Yeah, at our age we can pick out someone who is doing something just for the money or the fame or whatever, and when you can be just authentic and real with your encouragement and your words and whatever it does, shine through and that's why you know that it matters to those that are getting started and whatever so true.

Speaker 2:

Well, I love your philosophies as a healthcare practitioner. I love your, your encouragement as being someone who definitely does not look their age, by the way, but who is, who's really into fitness even at this age. And I love the theme of your clothing line.

Speaker 1:

I think it's awesome.

Speaker 2:

I love ages, so we really appreciate your time.

Speaker 4:

Yes, thank you so much. I'm excited to go on here.

Speaker 2:

I'm honored to be here. Well, you're definitely an entrepreneur, but also a great encourager, so we really appreciate it.

Speaker 4:

Thank you doing what you do. Yes, all right, thank you, and I'll see you at the box soon. Yes, thank you. Thank you, bye.

Speaker 2:

Bye, she's fun, she's lovely.

Speaker 6:

Yeah, so have you ever done and has anyone ever gone into a crossfit?

Speaker 3:

I am no, no no no, I don't count for them. I have like pictures of, like our thoughts of people like pushing tires. You know how you get the big tire and you flip them.

Speaker 6:

Yeah, but you feel so cool doing it.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, no, I've done it. I mean I've done it a couple. Like we know, I'm not a work outter, but I did feel cool a couple times. I went you walked in, yeah, and then I walked in and I was walking out the door people saw me that she crossfits. I have to stick with bar.

Speaker 6:

I kind of feel with bar as well, though it's your body weight, so it's right like you're using. You're using weight all the time.

Speaker 2:

Actually I was really dumb today with the patient, but I was talking to them and I said something about you have pure bar and, like you know, pilates, and she's like pure, I was in Pilates, isn't that? I'm so ignorant with that? I don't know what Pilates and pure bar like. What's the difference?

Speaker 5:

It isn't. I mean there's some aspects, especially when they first like there is some aspects of Pilates.

Speaker 1:

I mean.

Speaker 5:

I mean we don't, we don't use the reformer machines. No but there is movements that are similar. If you did Pilates. No, is it a Pilates? No, it is, it's a really good, I feel, kind of a combination. Obviously a bar, but yoga and Pilates but, it's just snippets of those put into the bar routine.

Speaker 2:

Love it, I want to do it really bad. I just wish that I didn't live so far away.

Speaker 6:

Yeah, do you know what I? Why I love it is because it's different every single class, yeah, so it's the same. It's the same layout but it's different exercises every time I go. It's very rare, although I've done fire hydrants more than I ever would do them. But apart from that, and it's always different, so you don't your muscles kind of change, you do different.

Speaker 2:

So it's a fire hydrant like what I picture? Yep, yeah.

Speaker 6:

Exactly, it is not attractive at all.

Speaker 5:

It's not fun.

Speaker 6:

Now, anytime they say to me, get, you were going to get on the floor, I'm like oh or the fetal yeah with the band. I can't do this. I'm useless at those putting my foot out in front. Yeah, I can't do anything that involves me being on the floor.

Speaker 5:

I mean it's amazing because the workout is not easy and I know people think it is they're like oh my god, this little bar?

Speaker 6:

I see it is not, but when you're listening to the most amazing music, you actually can start to zone out and so um, because it's music driven like that's like the whole way through the, the whole way through the class.

Speaker 2:

I can't loud people find, just go to the class.

Speaker 6:

You can't hear me.

Speaker 5:

It's like it's so loud it's loud and and no one's looking at anyone else because you and you don't understand it until you're in it, but you're so focused on getting through a 10 count, I literally joke. I'm like I could be taking class next to big bird and I would never know, right. I mean, I could have a unicorn, I could have a leprechaun.

Speaker 2:

Now we get.

Speaker 5:

Um, but I I have no idea who's standing next to me in class.

Speaker 6:

It's very individual. That's why I like it, because there's no small talk like you can obviously there's. You know, great chat before or after the class, but during the class is no small talk, it's just go in, do your job and leave.

Speaker 5:

Your brain literally goes like you it, it takes you to and that's what we hear all the time is like if someone Will come in and they've been so stressed and they're just like this is what I need, because you literally Like you, just check out for 50 to 55.

Speaker 6:

You really do. I suck at it, scott as well, because I'm like, I'm terrible, I can't do yoga. I cannot switch off so my brain doesn't stop. Unless I'm going to bed my brain doesn't stop, but because I have to focus so much on what I'm doing in bar.

Speaker 3:

I guess fast.

Speaker 6:

I just well, I just switch off everything else. If I'm worried or I'm stressed, I don't even think about it, because I'm focusing on this on the 50 minutes. The first few times the 50 minutes was very long you know, my best workout class was actually Scott. I love the adult Irish dance.

Speaker 5:

Yeah, we did that together. Okay, can I just tell you something? I totally did not think that you were talking about her, scott I thought you were talking about your Scott. I was like Damn.

Speaker 6:

She was. The best workout was with my husband. I thought she was talking about her Scott, and I was like okay, we want to.

Speaker 5:

If we want to pivot, let's pivot.

Speaker 3:

Are we going into detail, or what?

Speaker 5:

I was like wait, oh Scott.

Speaker 3:

I thought you were talking about your work. That actually sounds worse though.

Speaker 5:

Her best work. That was with her, scott.

Speaker 3:

Oh my gosh.

Speaker 5:

Oh my god, I just, we did that together.

Speaker 6:

It was good Actually.

Speaker 5:

It was amazing.

Speaker 3:

I did.

Speaker 6:

Yes. I know he still talks about his wonderful ladies.

Speaker 3:

It was so fun though it was so much fun. When you're learning like a routine or combo and you just have to focus on that, you don't really feel like you're working out. Yeah, I feel like like it was good.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, I mean Irish. I never Irish dance I dance, but Irish dance like the whole, like the fast, I mean it's kind of mind-blowing.

Speaker 6:

Yeah, I still can't do it. Worst Irish dance.

Speaker 3:

I don't believe that.

Speaker 6:

Oh no, it's not something that's just you know. Let's be super honest with Lisa Okay it's got to be in the water she's such an amazing.

Speaker 5:

Okay, that's all you need to be good at. Yeah, you can't like get everything.

Speaker 2:

I mean you cannot be. I mean seriously Lisa.

Speaker 6:

I mean, it was like I like people who I was in school with you know when they go oh, you were in Riverdance, I didn't know you. Irish dance, I'm like you know I did an Irish stud. Yes, obviously there is a cigarette.

Speaker 3:

I'm dancing, yes.

Speaker 5:

Yeah, you can only be good at one. I mean, okay, that's fine.

Speaker 6:

I'll take the second.

Speaker 2:

I'll take the second, I just want to mention every photo she takes is good, which is just.

Speaker 3:

Yes disgusting.

Speaker 6:

No, you should see the Instagram ones my daughter posted today. I was like that's disgusting.

Speaker 5:

No, I don't even I bet they're good, I'm not an Instagram, so it's fine I don't care. I don't, I don't believe that at all. I've never seen a bad picture.

Speaker 2:

Oh there's plenty of ladies. No, you look beautiful. Yes, I can't make a video in December, me too. Oh my gosh, I'm so excited.

Speaker 6:

Yay.

Speaker 5:

I mean, if you want to give us a sneak peek, you know, just shoot it out.

Speaker 6:

I didn't know. You recorded us. No, I've no you are kidding. Yeah, no, Ellie.

Speaker 5:

Okay, so this is why you need to have an entourage go with you. Yes, well, it can be. It's so funny.

Speaker 6:

I brought Ellie and Harry, my youngest kids. My two youngest kids came with me, so Ellie has seen me on stage. Harry hasn't really seen me on stage much. Harry bold his eyes out.

Speaker 5:

Oh, my goodness Through both performances.

Speaker 2:

Oh my goodness, Really so sweet. I would say I've cried watching Lisa sing Because her voice is like Well, I mean, it is magical, gorgeous. No, it is magical, it's angelic, like I've cried at her concert.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, but that's so sweet, she cried, she cried.

Speaker 6:

I'm not sure if it was for me or for Chloe, because he has like a big crush on Chloe. So who?

Speaker 5:

knows.

Speaker 6:

Oh, I am so sweet he was so he was so overwhelmed, it was actually. It was so sweet it was for you. But that's why nobody? Well, they were also. Nobody was allowed to record either.

Speaker 5:

And you know what that actually makes sense, because they would get leaked.

Speaker 6:

Yeah, I didn't even think there was photos for like.

Speaker 3:

No, I don't think Instead you should do the Saturday Night Live thing. That could be your preview. I will say, that could be our preview.

Speaker 6:

We will post the Saturday.

Speaker 3:

Night Live, and then we'll post the real thing.

Speaker 6:

Yes, we will, yes, we should do our own Celtic women's skit. That would be great we should.

Speaker 3:

Oh my God, oh yeah, no. Oh no, yes, that would. I don't know.

Speaker 5:

We all know how angelic my voice is.

Speaker 1:

And so you know what I really feel that I mean. I just don't know if.

Speaker 6:

Lisa could compete with me and I would never want to overshadow. You'll be going back for the parody of reunion?

Speaker 5:

Yes, oh my God, all technology would break.

Speaker 3:

Ashley Soto saying I wonder if I should dance, and I'll just be the leprechaun in the corner. I just like cheering everyone on. We'll give you a fiddle. Yes, I'll have a fiddle.

Speaker 2:

I'll be great. Yes, we've just jumped all over the place.

Speaker 6:

Yes, that's nice. I mean, hey, it's like yeah.

Speaker 2:

Squirrel, squirrel, but it's fun. Thank you all for joining us.

Speaker 5:

I know. Thanks guys, and hey again, cheers, cheers, cheers.

Speaker 1:

Thank you for joining the ladies of the Middle Ages podcast as they journey through the ups and downs of this not young but definitely not old season of life. To hear past episodes or make suggestions for future episodes, visit wwwmiddleageshcom. That's wwwmiddleageshcom. You can follow along on social media at middleagesh. Also, if you have a moment, to leave a review rate and subscribe. That helps others find this show and we greatly appreciate it. Once again, thank you so much for joining us and we'll catch you in the next episode of the Middle Ages podcast.

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