EmpowerHer Wellness with Morgan Ekovich

Are you choosing your shoes based on the brand, the color, or what everyone else recommends? Finding the right footwear is more personal than you might think.

In this episode of the EmpowerHer Wellness Podcast, Morgan sits down with Carlie Beatty, third-generation co-owner of Playmakers in Okemos, Michigan, to discuss why proper footwear matters for runners, walkers, gym-goers, and anyone who spends long hours on their feet. 

Carlie explains why there's no universally perfect shoe, what happens during Playmakers' six-step fitting process, and how changes in your feet, activity level, and lifestyle can affect the type of footwear that feels best.

Whether you're preparing for your first 5K, starting a walking routine, or simply looking for shoes that feel better throughout your workday, this conversation will help you make more informed choices.

What You’ll Learn

• Why the most popular shoe brand isn't necessarily the best choice for your feet
• What to expect during a professional shoe fitting and gait analysis
• How your activity, injuries, comfort preferences, and goals influence shoe selection
• Why two shoes from the same brand can feel completely different
• Why there isn't one universal rule for how long shoes should last
• How Playmakers supports runners, walkers, and people who simply want to move more comfortably
• Community programs and free injury resources available through Playmakers

Resources & Links:

🔹Playmaker’s website
🔹Playmakers’ Instagram
🔹Playmakers’ Facebook
🔹Carlie’s Instagram
🔹Join Morgan's Cooking Club!
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🔹Join the FREE Facebook Community for Busy Moms
🔹Visit our Website
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🔹Follow us on Instagram 
🔹Watch the full YouTube video

Have an idea for an episode? Send us a message!

Follow up from the first announcement. People can still sign up for $17 if there are spots available.

From Halloween candy and pumpkin spice lattes to Thanksgiving desserts and Christmas cookies, the holiday season brings more opportunities to enjoy our favorite treats. But what happens when those occasional indulgences gradually become everyday habits for nearly 60 days?

In this episode of the EmpowerHer Wellness Podcast, Morgan breaks down what happens when added sugar becomes a more frequent part of your diet, how your body processes sugar, and why the bigger picture matters more than any single food. 

Most importantly, Morgan shares how to enjoy the holidays without falling into the familiar cycle of abandoning your habits in November and attempting a complete overhaul on January 1. You'll learn how to recognize changes in your routine, protect your bare-minimum habits, and approach the season with more awareness and less guilt.

What You’ll Learn

• The difference between added sugars and naturally occurring sugars in whole foods
• How to identify added sugar on a nutrition label
• Why eating sugar doesn't automatically mean gaining body fat
• How holiday changes in sleep, movement, alcohol, protein, and fiber can affect how you feel
• How to make intentional choices about which seasonal treats you actually enjoy
• Practical ways to maintain your routines while still enjoying holiday celebrations

Resources & Links:

🔹Join Morgan's Cooking Club!
🔹Stay updated! Join our Email List
🔹Join the FREE Facebook Community for Busy Moms
🔹Visit our Website
🔹Like Our Facebook Page
🔹Follow us on Instagram 
🔹Watch the full YouTube video

Have an idea for an episode? Send us a message!

Follow up from the first announcement. People can still sign up for $17 if there are spots available.

When was the last time you had a question about your health but hesitated to bring it up with your doctor? Maybe you thought you were too young, assumed it was nothing, or didn't want to seem difficult.

In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Morgan sits down with Beth Read, founder of TWIGS, a nonprofit supporting cancer patients in the Greater Lansing community. Beth shares how losing her mother to pancreatic cancer inspired her to help others navigate the everyday challenges that come with a diagnosis.

Together, Morgan and Beth discuss knowing your family history, recognizing changes in your body, asking questions about screening and preventive care, and finding the confidence to advocate for yourself. They also explore how to support someone facing cancer, why specific offers of help can be more useful than asking "What do you need?", and the importance of continuing to show up long after the initial diagnosis.

This conversation is a reminder that taking care of your health also means speaking up, having difficult conversations, and knowing you don't have to navigate everything alone.

What You’ll Learn

• Why knowing your family health history matters when discussing cancer screening
• Why paying attention to changes in your body is important, even when symptoms seem minor
• How tracking symptoms can help you prepare for medical appointments
• What questions you can ask your doctor about screening, preventive care, and referrals
• How to find support when speaking up for yourself feels intimidating
• How to offer practical support to someone facing a cancer diagnosis
• How TWIGS supports cancer patients and how the Greater Lansing community can help

Resources & Links:
🔹TWIGS website
🔹TWIGS Instagram 
🔹TWIGS Facebook
🔹Beth’s LinkedIn
🔹Join Morgan's Cooking Club!
🔹Stay updated! Join our Email List
🔹Join the FREE Facebook Community for Busy Moms
🔹Visit our Website
🔹Like Our Facebook Page
🔹Follow us on Instagram 
🔹Watch the full YouTube video

Have an idea for an episode? Send us a message!

Follow up from the first announcement. People can still sign up for $17 if there are spots available.

Personal development wasn't always something Morgan embraced. It wasn't until she started her own business and encountered new mindset barriers that she began to recognize how much there was still to learn and how valuable personal and professional growth could be. 

In this episode, Morgan shares three personal development books that have stood out to her: Atomic Habits by James Clear, Reinventing Yourself: How to Become the Person You've Always Wanted to Be by Steve Chandler, and The Gap and The Gain by Dan Sullivan and Dr. Benjamin Hardy.

Rather than simply reviewing the books, Morgan pulls out two of her favorite lessons from each and connects them to health and fitness. From building small behaviors that compound over time to letting go of an old identity and learning to measure progress backward, these ideas offer a different way to think about becoming the person you want to be.

What You’ll Learn

• Why Morgan believes personal and professional development can overlap
• Why small, repeated actions can matter more than they initially seem
• How systems can help you rely less on motivation
• Why you don't need to change everything on Monday morning
• How tracking a small behavior can help you see your consistency
• Why your past doesn't have to determine who you become next
• How focusing on what you can control can change your response to difficult circumstances
• Why saying "I've never been consistent" only describes your past
• How acting like the person you want to become can start before you reach your goal
• The difference between measuring progress from "the gap" and "the gain"
• Why constantly looking at how far you still have to go can hide the progress you've already made
• How recognizing small health and fitness wins can change the way you view your progress
• Three questions Morgan wants you to answer about your own growth

Resources & Links:

🔹Atomic Habits by James Clear
🔹Reinventing Yourself: How to Become the Person You've Always Wanted to Be by Steve Chandler
🔹The Gap and The Gain by Dan Sullivan and Dr. Benjamin Hardy
🔹Join Morgan's Cooking Club!
🔹Stay updated! Join our Email List
🔹Join the FREE Facebook Community for Busy Moms
🔹Visit our Website
🔹Like Our Facebook Page
🔹Follow us on Instagram 
🔹Watch the full YouTube video

Have an idea for an episode? Send us a message!

You know strength training matters. You know you should get enough sleep, eat your vegetables, drink water, and fuel your body well. So why can knowing exactly what to do feel so different from actually doing it consistently?

In this episode, Morgan explores why the problem isn't always a lack of knowledge. Sometimes we're still searching for the perfect workout, nutrition strategy, or next piece of information when what we actually need is a better way to follow through. And sometimes the system we're trying to follow simply doesn't fit our real lives. 

The goal isn't seven perfect days. It's creating habits and systems you can keep coming back to without constantly starting over. 

What You’ll Learn

• How to tell the difference between a knowledge problem and a follow-through problem
• Why continually searching for more information can keep you from taking action
• How following someone else's system can create unnecessary friction
• Why a plan needs to fit your actual lifestyle and current season
• How the zero-to-100 approach can make consistency harder
• Why motivation and emotions aren't reliable foundations for your routine
• What it means to keep the commitments you make to yourself
• How routines can make healthy actions easier to repeat
• Why starting with one change can be more useful than changing everything at once
• How to negotiate with your plan without abandoning it completely
• How Morgan uses an 80/20 approach to realistic consistency
• Why "bare minimums" matter on busy or difficult days
• How to distinguish a conscious change of plans from letting an emotion make the decision for you
• Why your systems may need to shift when your stage of life changes
• Three questions to ask when you repeatedly aren't following through

Resources & Links:

🔹Join Morgan's Cooking Club!
🔹Stay updated! Join our Email List
🔹Join the FREE Facebook Community for Busy Moms
🔹Visit our Website
🔹Like Our Facebook Page
🔹Follow us on Instagram 
🔹Watch the full YouTube video

Have an idea for an episode? Send us a message!

Follow up from the first announcement. People can still sign up for $17 if there are spots available.

When you think about improving your health, where does your mind go first? Nutrition? Exercise? Sleep?

Those things matter, but they are only part of your overall well-being.

In this episode, Morgan sits down with Louise Montag, founder of Montague Forward Solutions, to explore the eight dimensions of wellbeing: physical, spiritual, emotional, environmental, financial, intellectual, occupational, and social. Louise explains how these different areas interact and why what needs your attention can change throughout different seasons of life.

They also talk about emotional regulation, finding purpose, supportive relationships and environments, satisfaction in your work, keeping your mind engaged, financial wellbeing, asking for help, and giving yourself grace. The goal isn't to look at eight categories and decide you suddenly have eight more things to fix. It's to notice where you are now and identify a small step that could support you in this season.

What you’ll Learn

• What the eight dimensions of wellness are
• The difference Louise makes between health and wellness
• Why different dimensions may need more attention during different seasons of life
• What physical wellbeing includes beyond nutrition and exercise
• How naming emotions can help you understand what you are actually feeling
• Practical ways for releasing and regulating emotions
• How your physical environment can affect wellbeing
• Why social connection and supportive relationships matter
• What occupational wellness can look like beyond having a paid job
• How to find meaning when your current job isn't your passion
• How financial wellbeing includes both present needs and future goals
• Why all eight dimensions can overlap
• How to assess what needs attention without trying to change everything at once

Resources & Links:

🔹 Montag Forward Solutions website
🔹 Montag Forward Solutions Facebook
🔹 Montag Forward Solutions Instagram
🔹 Montag Forward Solutions LinkedIn
🔹 Self-Assessment-Well-Being-Worksheet
🔹 Wonderhell: Why Success Doesn't Feel Like It Should... and What to Do About It
🔹 Limitless: How to Ignore Everybody, Carve Your Own Path, and Live Your Best Life
🔹 8 Dimensions of well-being
🔹 Join Morgan's Cooking Club! Be one of the first 20 founding members to lock in the lowest price ever.
🔹 Stay updated! Join our Email List
🔹 Join the FREE Facebook Community for Busy Moms
🔹 Visit our Website
🔹 Like Our Facebook Page
🔹 Follow us on Instagram
🔹 Watch the full YouTube video

Have an idea for an episode? Send us a message!

Follow up from the first announcement. People can still sign up for $17 if there are spots available.

How do you know if the weight you are lifting is actually heavy enough?

In this episode, Morgan breaks down one of the most common questions she hears from women who strength train. She explains why “heavy” is not one specific number, why the same dumbbell can be challenging for one person and easy for another, and why comparing your weights to someone else’s is not useful.

Morgan also walks through how to tell when a weight is challenging enough, when it is time to increase resistance, and how progressive overload can include more than simply grabbing a heavier dumbbell. Most importantly, she explains why form and movement quality come before adding weight.

If strength training has felt confusing or intimidating, this episode gives you a practical framework to help you train with more confidence.

What You’ll Learn

• Why “heavy” is relative to the individual
• How your one-rep max relates to relative intensity
• Why muscle growth can happen across different resistance levels
• Why you do not need to lift extremely heavy every workout
• Why form should come before adding more resistance
• How to know when your body has adapted, and it is time to increase weight
• Why dropping below your target reps after increasing weight can still be progress
• What progressive overload actually means
• How to progress without heavier dumbbells
• Why strength training should make everyday life easier
• How lifting challenging weights can help build confidence

Resources & Links:

🔹 Join the 90-Day Kickstart Program: Customized strength training + nutrition baseline + habit building + weekly accountability. Only 3 spots available this month! Email "KICKSTART" to: [email protected]
🔹 Stay updated! Join our Email List
🔹 Join the FREE Facebook Community for Busy Moms
🔹 Visit our Website
🔹 Like Our Facebook Page
🔹 Follow us on Instagram 
🔹 Watch the full YouTube video

Have an idea for an episode? Send us a message!

Follow up from the first announcement. People can still sign up for $17 if there are spots available.

Protein is everywhere right now.

Protein cereal. Protein coffee. Protein chips. Protein pasta. Protein cookies. Protein water.

But just because a product says “high protein” does not mean you need it, and simply eating more protein does not automatically mean you will build more muscle.

In this episode, Morgan breaks down how to estimate your daily protein needs based on body weight and activity level, why strength training has to be part of the muscle-building equation, and how to spread protein more evenly throughout your day.

She also explains a simple protein-density shortcut you can use when reading nutrition labels, why whole-food sources should still make up most of your intake, and why carbs, healthy fats, fruits, vegetables, and fiber still belong on your plate.

What Listeners Will Learn:

• Why protein matters for building and repairing tissue
• Why protein alone does not automatically build muscle
• The baseline protein recommendation for healthy adults
• How activity level changes your protein range
• Why more protein does not automatically mean better results
• Why protein foods and supplements still contribute calories
• Why carbohydrates, fats, fruits, vegetables, and fiber still matter
• How to divide your daily protein target across meals and snacks
• How to identify a protein-dense food using the 10-calorie shortcut
• Why protein intake should increase gradually if you are currently eating much less

Resources & Links:

🔹 Protein Calculator
🔹 Join the 90-Day Kickstart Program: Customized strength training + nutrition baseline + habit building + weekly accountability. Only 3 spots available this month! Email "KICKSTART" to: [email protected]
🔹 Stay updated! Join our Email List
🔹 Join the FREE Facebook Community for Busy Moms
🔹 Visit our Website
🔹 Like Our Facebook Page
🔹 Follow us on Instagram 
🔹 Watch the full YouTube video

Have an idea for an episode? Send us a message!

Follow up from the first announcement. People can still sign up for $17 if there are spots available.

Every few months, life changes.

School starts. Summer begins. Holidays arrive. Work gets busier. Travel happens. And suddenly, the health routine that felt solid a few weeks ago seems impossible to maintain.

In this episode, Morgan asks a bigger question: why do we keep feeling like we have to start over every season?

She explains how to create a personal wellness baseline, or “bare minimum,” across areas like water, daily movement, nutrition, sleep, and exercise. These are not your maximum goals. They are the realistic habits you can maintain throughout the year, even when life changes.

Instead of constantly chasing a new plan, this episode will help you think about which habits should remain steady and which ones can increase or decrease depending on your goals, bandwidth, and current season of life.

What You’ll Learn

• Why seasonal transitions often trigger the urge to restart
• Why your baseline should not be your maximum effort
• How to create realistic step and water goals
• What foundational nutrition habits should look like outside of a focused fat-loss or muscle-gain phase
• Why sleep routines can remain consistent even when total sleep changes
• Why more exercise is not automatically better
• How unrealistic goals make it harder to return after vacations or busy seasons
• Why 90 days may be enough to build a foundation but not complete a lifelong health journey
• How to choose one habit and make it feel automatic before adding another
• How to create health goals that reflect your real life

Resources & Links:

🔹Join the 90-Day Kickstart Program: Customized strength training + nutrition baseline + habit building + weekly accountability. Only 3 spots available this month! Email "KICKSTART" to: [email protected]
🔹Stay updated! Join our Email List
🔹Join the FREE Facebook Community for Busy Moms
🔹Visit our Website
🔹Like Our Facebook Page
🔹Follow us on Instagram 
🔹Watch the full YouTube video

Have an idea for an episode? Send us a message!

Follow up from the first announcement. People can still sign up for $17 if there are spots available.

The number on the scale can change without telling you whether you gained muscle, lost fat, retained water, or changed your body composition at all.

In this episode, Morgan sits down with Jason and Abby Blonshine, co-owners of MetaTec, to break down what a DEXA scan measures and why body composition can give you a very different picture of progress than scale weight alone. Jason explains how DEXA measures fat mass, lean tissue, bone density, visceral fat, regional body composition, and asymmetries, and why having a reliable baseline can be useful when you’re trying to understand whether your health habits are actually moving you in the direction you want.

They also talk honestly about the emotional side of seeing body-fat numbers and scan images, why losing weight is not automatically the same as becoming healthier, and why preserving or building muscle should be a much bigger part of the conversation, especially for women thinking about strength, bone health, independence, and healthy aging.

This episode is a reminder to stop treating the lowest possible number on the scale as the ultimate goal and start asking a better question: What am I building my body to be capable of?

What You’ll Learn:

• What a DEXA scan actually measures
• How DEXA differs from ordinary body-fat scales and handheld devices
• Why hydration can influence some body-composition measurements
• Why having a reliable baseline matters when tracking progress
• The difference between fat mass, lean mass, and bone mineral content
• What visceral fat is and why Jason pays particular attention to it
• Why scale weight can stay almost identical while fat decreases and muscle increases
• Why losing weight does not automatically mean you are becoming healthier
• Why muscle matters for metabolism, balance, mobility, joints, strength, and independence
• Why bone density deserves attention before later life
• How to approach DEXA numbers as information rather than judgment
• Why the healthiest weight loss is not necessarily the fastest
• How protein, calories, resistance training, sleep, and recovery enter the body-composition conversation
• What resting metabolic rate testing measures
• What VO2 max testing can tell you about exercise capacity

Resources & Links:

🔹Metatec’s website
🔹Metatec’s Facebook
🔹Metatec’s Instagram
🔹Use the coupon code GFWM10 for 10% off! You can still book directly, or use that code when checking out.
🔹Join Morgan's Cooking Club! There are still a few spots to lock in the lowest price ever.
🔹Stay updated! Join our Email List
🔹Join the FREE Facebook Community for Busy Moms
🔹Visit our Website
🔹Like Our Facebook Page
🔹Follow us on Instagram
🔹Watch the full YouTube video

Have an idea for an episode? Send us a message!

Follow up from the first announcement. People can still sign up for $17 if there are spots available.