Grow the Good

Confidence - it can be hard to boost your confidence when you feel like you are lacking it.  But research shows that increasing confidence is actually a trainable skill.  A lack of confidence can show up in many different forms; being worried about what other people will think of you, fear of rejection when putting yourself out there,  feeling like you don't have the skills, education, or training to for a task or role, or fear of it not going a certain way and what that could mean about you.  It's normal to experience all of these feelings, but part of mental toughness means you are able to recognize and allow them, investigate the what or the why, and then use mindfulness and some mental tools to overcome it.

There are several elements of self-confidence and a potent one is self-acceptance   One of the biggest landmines with detracting from self-confidence is comparing yourself to others.  I've been there- I feel great about what I did... until I've seen what others have done.  The first step is realizing that you're comparing. The self-awareness around your thoughts and then asking what insight you can gain from it is very powerful. If you find that comparing yourself to others is draining your confidence, check out this post I wrote on how to stop comparing yourself to others.

As a side note, if you're looking improve your mental toughness and boost confidence, check out my Mindset Academy. You'll find 22 lessons based on many years of research, real-life experience and real-world takeaways.

Read the complete show notes.

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The Grow the Good Podcast is produced by Palm Tree Pod Co. 

Pelvic health and training the pelvic floor for performance was something I thought only applied to pregnancy and post-partum women. So when I became pregnant, I went to see not one, but two pelvic floor physios to learn as much as I could about it.  During pregnancy, it mostly about education, but once I had my baby it was time to do the work.  I had some initial symptoms after having my baby- some that disappeared on their own and some that mandated professional help (that have since resolved).  The thing about pelvic health is that it isn't just for women and it isn't just for pregnancy.  If you're an athlete, you might be missing a key piece of making your body work for you. I learned that the pelvic floor isn't just the muscles in your pelvis. It's how your entire core works in synchronicity- your diaphragm and breathing coordination with your abdominal muscles and pelvic floor muscles.

In general, many athletes have tighter pelvic floor muscles.  I've always ha a tendency toward flared ribs, a tight thoracic spine and pectoral muscles. I found that retraining (or rather training my pelvic floor for the first time), I got stronger and more coordinated using my core and with breathing.  It's something I'm continuing to work on.  That's where I met Corinne Wade.  I went to see her post-partum to make sure I came back even stronger.

Corinne is a registered physiotherapist and has specialized in pelvic health for over 25 years.  She is the proud owner of Kare Physiotherapy and provides high-quality pelvic floor rehabilitation and treatment to men and women with pelvic floor pain or dysfunction. She is passionate about Women's health and has a keen interest in helping women and female athletes strengthen their core and pelvic floor muscles postpartum. Corinne frequently lectures on many topics including male and female incontinence, core strengthening, injuries related to pregnancy, and male/female sexual dysfunction. She is a member of the Canadian Physiotherapy Association, the Canadian Continence Foundation, the International Pelvic Pain Society and the Canadian Society of Intestinal Research.

• what is the pelvic floor works and how it's connected to the diaphragm
• how to breathe properly
• addressing the common, but not talked about: painful sex
• some stretches to address a tight thoracic spine
• Mythbusting around pelvic health
  • you only need to see a pelvic floor physio if you've had a baby
  • c-sections don't need to see a pelvic floor physio
  • only females need pevlic floor physio
  • leaking urine is normal
  • I'm too old/it's too late to get help
• expectations around pregnancy and fitness
• debunking the fear around diastasis recti 
• let's talk about prolapse
• do kegels do anything?
• training the pelvic floor for performance

• Instagram: KarePhysio
• Corinne Wade's website: Karephysio.com

• Corinne's general athlete/pelvic floor resources:

  • https://www.girlsgonestrong.com/resources/

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The Grow the Good Podcast is produced by Palm Tree Pod Co. 

Self-talk for performance is like the secret weapon you didn't know you had.  Your body only gets you so far, and a lot of the time it's your mind that gets you to the finish line. If you're challenging yourself, there's no doubt been moments of wanting to quit- or maybe you actually have quit a time or two.  Self-talk in sports is a common thread, but working on your self-talk for anything in your life is key to optimism, resilience, and even equanimity.  I like to say "the most powerful voice in the world is the one inside your own head, and it's the only voice that is with you your entire life."

This podcast is a talk I gave for the TransRockies virtual training camp. It's also with great excitement I'm announcing that enrollments for my Moxy & Grit Mindset Academy are now open.  You can find it at moxyandgrit.com and also on my website: sonyalooney.com.

The course is all about training mental toughness and the skills you need to be your best on race day and beyond.  The course has 4 main modules:  Goals & Habits, Motivation & Mindset, Self-Talk & Optimism, and Race Day Confidence.  I've taken the wisdom of my podcast guests over the years, many books by Phds and experts I've read over the last 6 years, and my own real world experience to bring to you an actionable, engaging course.  Also included is a digital workbook where I've taken some key lessons from positive psychology and productivity to help you move forward to build confidence, grit, and set goals based on identity and process.

But back to today's podcast- it's a chip off the iceberg from the topic of self-talk for performance.  Today, I give an overview to some topics I cover in detail in my course.  Things like:

• Defining self-talk
• types of self-talk
• how to make self-talk more effective
• changing your explanatory style
• powerful mantras

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The Grow the Good Podcast is produced by Palm Tree Pod Co. 

Metabolic health might be something you've never considered.  Metabolic health is way more than just the number on the scale or your BMI.  It's considering things like having ideal levels of blood sugar, triglycerides, HDL cholesterol, blood pressure, waist circumference and more without the use of medications. These factors directly relate to a person’s risk for heart disease, diabetes, and stroke. Your metabolic health also affects sleep, energy levels, recovery, appetite, and more. A study with 8,721 adults from UNC Chapel Hill noted that only 1 in 8 people, aka 12% of the population have optimal metabolic health.  

I've mentioned how much I love InsideTracker on this podcast because you can order a very comprehensive blood test that teaches you about your metabolic health and so much more to optimize your health.  In today's podcast, I got to sit down with Stanford MD, Casey Means.  She is also the Co-Founder & Chief Medical Officer of pioneering digital health startup Levels. Dr. Casey is focused on using continuous glucose monitoring to solve the epidemic affecting the health and wellbeing of 88% of the US adult population: metabolic dysfunction.  She also promotes plant-based nutrition for optimal health.

Dr. Means has been featured in Forbes, Entrepreneur Magazine, Business Insider, Endocrine Today, Startupbeat, Healthy Human Revolution, Well + Good, and more, and her writing has been recently published in TheHill.com and Metabolism with articles about the strong relationship between chronic lifestyle-related diseases and COVID-19 mortality, and innovative healthcare and policy solutions to ameliorate this. She is an award-winning biomedical researcher, with past research positions at the National Institutes, Stanford School of Medicine, and NYU. Her clinical work focuses on Functional & Lifestyle Medicine, with an emphasis on whole foods plant-based (WFPB) nutrition, mind-body connection, and physical activity as foundations of metabolic and overall health.

An app that some friends of mine have recently released is called 80/20 plants that offers one-on-one coaching for changing your diet. There are daily lessons with videos + meal planning help + hundreds of recipes and a supportive community

• defining metabolic fitness and why you should care about your

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The Grow the Good Podcast is produced by Palm Tree Pod Co. 

2020 was a crazy year for everyone.  2020 isn't only the year of COVID-19, Black Lives Matter, and the biggest voter turnout in the USA- it was the year I had my first child.  Even though this year had its challenges, there were a lot of positive things I pulled out of this year and having a baby really helped me along the way.  I hope you enjoy! 

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The Grow the Good Podcast is produced by Palm Tree Pod Co. 

What are the real exercise guidelines during pregnancy and post-partum exercise guidelines? How do you safely exercise through your pregnancy? With the varied advice from medical doctors and midwives, it's important to get up to speed with the current pregnancy exercise research.  Enter Catherine Cram, MS.  Catherine is an exercise physiologist and the owner of Comprehensive Fitness Consulting, a company that provides pre- and postnatal fitness certifications and information to hospitals, health and wellness organizations, and the military. Comprehensive Fitness Consulting offers the most current, evidence-based fitness information to pregnant and postpartum women and their healthcare providers.

Catherine Cram is coauthor of Exercising Through Your Pregnancy with Dr. James Clapp.  She is the author of Fit Pregnancy for Dummies and a contributing author of Women’s Health Care in Physical Therapy: Principles and Practices for Rehabilitation Specialists.

We talked about everything you want to know- how hard to go, heart rate guidelines, how exercise benefits the fetus and pregnant mother. We talked about exercise and core temperature during pregnancy, how to know if you're going too hard.  I loved that we went deeper into how your physiology changes and how that affects your cardiac, respiratory, and musculoskeletal systems.   We also talked about return to sport post-partum.  We also talked about breastfeeding and the energy needs associated with it.

Want more on information on being a pregnant athlete?  Here's all of the blog posts and podcasts I've published on the subject. 

• biggest myths about exercising while pregnant
• how to safely exercise during pregnancy
• the data about how exercise positively affects the mother and fetus
• heart rate rules for exercising during pregnancy
• how hard can I go and for how long
• warning signs of exercise being too much during pregnancy
• post-partum return to sport
• dispelling fear around diastasis recti
• breastfeeding and exercise

"I don’t want set (pregnancy exercise) guidelines because in doing that, we limit some and we overdo it for others.  I don’t believe in these limitations being put out there for absolutely no reason. We shouldn’t do that. We should empower women, empower them to understand what’s safe and effective. I can tell you in all the years of working with the 1000s of pregnant women I’ve worked with, I’ve actually never had a woman become injured or have a problem with her pregnancy because of the workouts she did, which is pretty amazing."

-Catherine Cram, MS

• Visit Catherine Cram's Website on Designing Pre-Natal and Post-Natal Exercise Programs
• Some of Catherine's articles for BabyCenter (she is on the medical advisory board)

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The Grow the Good Podcast is produced by Palm Tree Pod Co. 

Plant-based baking is on the rise and a fun fact you may not know- sourdough is actually plant-based!  It's also considered a fermented food. Enter today's guests- the owners of the first vegan bakery in the Sea to Sky Corridor in BC- Eds Bred.

I'm always fascinated to learn about the different journeys people go on to work towards optimal health.  And I also love to hear what they do next. Once you start changing small daily actions, these new habits start to form a new identity and with that identity often comes a slight shift in purpose and what you believe you are capable of.  Today's guests are both intriguing and are passionate about sustainable business and plant-based baking. 

Originally from the UK, Ed has been working in the restaurant business since the age of 13 and went to a culinary college to become a fine-dining chef.  Natasha is also from the UK and the two met in 2003 and soon after began traveling. After taking a snowboarding trip to Whistler, they both fell in love with the location and decided to make it their home.  Ed took his passion for cooking from scratch and started making sourdough bread.  It started off as a thing to do for friends and family but quickly grew into a business he co-owns with his wife -  BReD and is the first vegan bakery in the Sea to Sky Corridor in BC.  That's right! Ed and his wife are both plant-based and so is all of their delicious baking.  Ed found that after he went plant-based, he was able to come off all the heart medication he was on for heart disease.

Ed and Nathasha feel that their concept of being plant-based is a fresh take on the tradition of baking, as well as being zero-food waste, with a strong emphasis on organic and locally-sourced ingredients, differentiating them from other bakeries. 

This conversation goes far beyond baking. We talked a lot about life- about labels in society, gender constructs (like what it means for Ed to be a man who eats plant-based and goes to yoga), journalism, meaning and purpose, fine dining hacks and so much more.

"How did meat become such a manly affair? I think it came from this providing for your family. When there wasn't food to forage, the men would go off and hunt and bring back a beast and everyone would have food, and it was a survival strategy. Well, now when we look at the society we're in, what is the survival strategy? It's not going back and killing everything that's running around. It's actually taking it back to the forager mentality. We have fewer resources, fewer land resources, and if we really want to provide for our families, then the plant-based diet takes up a lot less water and land than any animal-based diet."

-Natasha Tatton

• history of sourdough bread
• their plant-based journey
• the movement of plant-based food and fast-food
• how eating plant-based can reverse heart disease
• fine dining hacks
• gender constructs applied to nutrition
• owning a business as a couple
• meaning and purpose balanced with making money

• Visit Edsbred.com
• The journalist mentioned: Katrina Fox

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The Grow the Good Podcast is produced by Palm Tree Pod Co. 

Dealing with Mom Guilt is real for many busy women. 

This podcast is an audio re-creation of an article I wrote for Velonews via their Active Pass subscription service.  I got to interview some very successful cycling moms whom I admire like Rose Grant, Larissa Connors, Laura King, and Jennifer Smith.  

Dealing with mom guilt and trying to balance cycling (or being an athlete), self-care, spending time with your baby, child, or children, working, and having relationships is hard.  Realizing that prioritizing self-care and happiness is the foundation of your pyramid and is what helps you show up as the best mom, human, partner, and employee.  Studies show that having an optimistic outlook on life increases both resilience and productivity.

That said, I don't really believe in balance. I believe in intentional imbalance.  Balance doesn't exist but being intentional about how and where you focus your energy is useful and effective.

Here's the audio of my article for Active Pass/Velonews.  

InsideTracker is a company that uses bloodwork to assess biomarkers, blood analysis, athletic performance, and nutrition software to optimize fitness and longevity.  Founded in 2009, the Boston company first started working with professional athletes who wanted to see what their biomarkers, hormone and mineral profiles looked like during their training and how they could use nutrition and lifestyle to improve.  They measure over 30 biomarkers and recommend food and supplements to optimize thinks like your energy, cognition, endurance, heart health, and more. I started working with InsideTracker in 2017.  I liked it because their ranges for your biomarkers change based on your goals. I also think it’s important to have baseline and also recurrent bloodwork as you age and also simply as an athlete.

Listen to the Episode with Jonathan Levitt from InsideTracker

If you would like to support the growth of my show, I’d love your contribution on.  Patreon.  The current production of this free show is primarily supported out of my own pocket and a small portion is covered through the donations on Patreon. With my 

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The Grow the Good Podcast is produced by Palm Tree Pod Co. 

Finding your strong isn't always easy, but if you're familiar with SWAP Coaches David and Megan Roche, you are probably familiar with their infectious optimism.  David and Megan are both coaches of their company, SWAP- Some Work, All Play that David founded in 2013.   The powerhouse couple coaches some of the top trail runners and obstacle course athletes in the world.  Their coaching speaks for itself with over 17 US National Championships won, athlete appearances on Team USA 14 Times, Spartan World Champions, and more. 

"For us, it's all about finding your strong. We want athletes to really embrace the athletic strength-based nature of being an endurance athlete.  What that means in practice is that everyone's strong looks so different. So you can't go on looks, you can't even go necessarily on what you're seeing in the mirror because that is so distorted. And it's not analogous to anything with performance or growth or anything. What we really want is someone to be "Ok, I want to be a boss! I want to be strong!"  And that's how you eat, that's how you train. What we're there for is supporting that with gentle affirmation that you're enough as you are,  you are perfect the way you are and things like that, but then also coming in with science. "

-David Roche

Megan is the 2016 USATF Trail Runner of the Year at the ultra and sub-ultra distances. She is a five-time national champion, a North American Mountain Running Champion, and a six-time member of Team USA. She graduated from Duke University with a degree in Neuroscience and received her M.D. from Stanford Medical School. At Stanford, she is doing a PhD in epidemiology, focused on population health and genetics for athletes. Megan started coaching with SWAP in 2016 with the premise that she could help athletes learn to love the process of training, embrace their inner ninja, and recover using a Taco Tuesday approach.

David is the 2014 USATF Trail Runner of the Year at the sub-ultra distance. He is a two-time national champion and three-time member of Team USA. He graduated from Columbia University with a degree in Environmental Science and received a master's degree and law degree from Duke University. He also is a writer for Trail Runner Magazine.   

The two also wrote a book, the Happy Runner.  I had David on the podcast once before going all into their book. David and Megan's book really resonated with me because it's about being a happy athlete. 

This year, the couple started the SWAP podcast which happens to be one of my favorites. This episode is packed with energy, fun, and great learning about secrets to happy coupledom, eating lots of food, self-acceptance, how to deal with quitting, death, talent and so much more!

David and Megan's message to you is:

YOU ARE SO LOVED AND PERFECT

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The Grow the Good Podcast is produced by Palm Tree Pod Co. 

The ultimate resource for plant-based nutrition for children and teens is here! Brenda Davis is one of the top authorities and dietitians in plant-based nutrition.  She is the author of 11 books including the incredibly comprehensive book, Becoming Vegan and is the co-author of the new book, Nourish: The Definitive Plant-Based Nutrition Guide for Families along with Reshma Shah, MD.  Brenda is one of the world's leading plant-based dietitians and an expert in reducing the world's Type II Diabetes problems with Plant-Based Diets. She teaches lifestyle medicine courses all over the world, has been flown by the prince of Saudi Arabia to Saudi Arabia to consult on diet.  A highly sought after speaker for nutrition and medicine conferences, she has presented in 20+ countries on 5 continents. She has already been on the podcast twice which I'll link in the shownotes. 

And now, her co-author Reshma Shah, MD joins us for today's episode. Reshma Shah, MD, MPH, is a board-certified pediatrician and an affiliate clinical instructor at Stanford University School of Medicine. She received her undergraduate and graduate degrees from Johns Hopkins University and her medical degree from Drexel University College of Medicine. She has additional training and certification in plant-based nutrition and cooking. 

Nourish is an evidence-based, practical resource that explores the many benefits of a plant-based diet and provides parents with the tools they need to provide excellent and balanced nutrition to their families. 

“In this book, we wanted to provide the answers to all the questions parents may have. Whether they are already fully plant-based or they’re just beginning their journey. So that they can do it with confidence, with a sense of joy, and without anxiety and fear.” -Dr. Reshma Shah

In Nourish, parents will learn:

• How a diet centered around plants can optimize health, prevent chronic disease, care for our planet, and be an act of radical compassion.
• Nutrition specifics for all the stages of childhood—from pregnancy and breastfeeding all the way through adolescence.
• Tips, strategies, and mouthwatering recipes to bring all of this information to the dinner table as families explore the wonderful world of plant-based eating. Best of all, the authors don’t insist that families have to commit to 100% plant-based eating if they are intimidated. Simply changing up your family’s menu a week at a time can really make a difference.

• nutritional requirements for infants
• can infants eat plant-based diets
• decoding breastmilk nutrition facts
• how to get your kids to eat healthier
• deficiencies to watch out for in both plant and animal-based diets
• supplements you need for exclusively plant-based diets
• baby-led weaning

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The Grow the Good Podcast is produced by Palm Tree Pod Co.