Breaking Ordinary with Andy Petranek

You're absolutely committed to your health and fitness... you participate in the WLC, you work out every day, eat a clean diet, but when you head over to your parents house, what do you find? A home filled with processed junk food and home cooked meals with ingredients that are in no way health promoting.

This was the situation for our guest this week, Fanny. She's participated in over 5 WLC's... but up until this year, had been unsuccessful in getting the people who are most important to her in her life on board - her parents.

That all changed with the New Year 2015 Challenge. Her dad, who is over 60 years old, who had given up all hope of getting healthier, has lost 25 pounds and is off his blood pressure medication. Join us as she talks about how it's gone for them... and for her 15-year-old son, who's also participating for his first time!

We're HERE already? Hard to believe that there are only 2 weeks left to go in the Challenge. And now it's time to actually complete, to finish all the way through to the end... in 2 more weeks... not to quit now because you think that you've already got all that you've came for.

And, at this point, it's really great to start looking back - to remind yourself of how it was for you pre-Challenge and back in week one. Think about the things that were really HARD back then that are "normal" today. You've made some significant changes over these past 6 weeks.

The easy way out at this point is to just say, "I've got this..." and to stop paying attention, stop logging your score, stop being accountable. THAT is the first step down the slippery slope back to where you were when you started.

Take advantage of the next two weeks. To continue being conscious, accountable, and "in the game."

Corporate Teams are more prevalent than ever in the Whole Life Challenge, and in this episode, Andy & Michael head out to Universal City, CA to visit with one. 

The team's name is "Proud as a Peacock" which makes perfect sense considering the company they work for. There's Matt Wagner (aka "Magner"), Chira, Jocelyn, Karyn, Lauren, and Anna... and they tell us about the workplace challenges that they've gone through together over the past 6 weeks - things like:

• Trays of ice cream and cupcakes floating by their offices
• Catering business lunches 
• Their "emergency" drawer - open in case of an emotional break-down 
• Social drinking & business dinners 
• Eating off the cheese plate only because of the discomfort of passing

The team is Captained by Matt, who's a 7x WLC veteran, and they have over 20 members on their team that is split between Universal City and New York City.

It happens about this time in EVERY Whole Life Challenge - people starting to comment that, "It's been long enough, I'm over this, This is so long, I'm tired of this already."

And if this is happening for you, it's a perfect time to check in and ask yourself, "What IS it that has been long enough? What are you tired of? What are you over?"

Because the truth is, this IS your life... it's just that most of the time, you go through it unconsciously, not looking each day at the choices you've made. 

So here's an idea for you - instead of just quitting, give yourself permission to eat whatever you want, not exercise, skip a day or two of supplements... go ahead, it's OK. But don't stop recording your score.

If you simply quit participating, you're going to go back to some of the things you were doing before anyway... but you won't have the opportunity to see thier impact like you do when you're in the game.

Alexandra Paul knows about exercise. She knows about diets. She also played a lifeguard on probably the most famous lifeguard show of all time, Baywatch. As a vegan herself, she has a lot of perspective to share about how she manages her performance as an athlete and entertainer on veggies alone.

During our hour together, Alexandra shares her "dirty little secret"... that she is an addict. And she is addicted to... wait for it... sugar. Contrary to what you might think, as a vegan, there is a TON of sugar and processed food available that is "vegan friendly".

Her journey through the WLC challenged her to face some deeply engrained habits around processed food (like snacking every day on Clif bars), and gave her both a reason and the support she needed to give up her dependance on sugar. For her (like many of us), moderation around sugar wasn't really an option. And now, with her newly discovered consciousness, sugar no longer has the power it once had over her.

Listen in as we talk with her about her life and experience in the Whole Life Challenge.

Some of you have found your stride and are starting to see things get easier and are even starting to see the results of this... "you got this." Others, not so much - it's still a struggle or you haven't really jumped in. Join us for our short, start-of-the-week podcast where we talk about all of this, plus fire-roasting peppers like cave-men.

Your hair is falling out, you're going through full on night sweats, you're exhaused every day, and you were given three options to "cure" yourself: prescription drugs, surgery, or changes to your diet. Which would you choose?

Meet Kristin (of Eat Drink WOD)... who was faced with this sort of dilemma about 8 years ago, but who had to figure it all out for herself (no one laid it out in a nice little package for her like this). She chose the route of dietary change, found out later that the prescription drugs her doctor was prescribing were not the correct ones for her particular thyroid condition, and has completely taken charge of her own health and well being through diet and exercise. 

Her story is compelling as is her commitment to helping others navigate the waters of dietary change. She's a self-created WLC "expert" and has a lot of knowledge and experience to share. 

At the beginning of week 4, after three weeks of WLCing, you might be starting to wonder, "Where are my results and why aren't they coming faster?" Simply asking this question is a trap... it gives you an excuse to quit - whether you're getting results or not. The WLC is about sustainable change... and that, like mastery, doesn't come after just three weeks. 

So wait... you mean to tell me that on your team, if you're playing at the WLC lifestyle level, you can drink a glass of wine every day or eat a piece of dark chocolate and NOT lose a point?

That's just one of the things we talk about when we hangout with Chris this week. He's the Captain of an 80+ person team that has players all over the world. He's done some really innovative things with his team in the spirit of the WLC to make it work best for them, so that it stands a better chance of creating sustainable change all. He's also making great use of conference calling to keep the players on his team connected.

This being the third week of the Challenge, do you find yourself thinking about what else you could be accountable for? In this quick "What to expect" podcast we talk about this "strange" phenomenon that both Michael and I encounter. We also talk about the benefits of recovery and sleep - that you should be enjoying now in day 3 of the sleep lifestyle practice.