Small Steps

Colder or busier times of year always seem to take a bigger toll on our immune systems. And while getting sick isn't always a bad thing, constantly getting sick isn't helpful to our bodies or living the rest of our lives. This episode covers 5 ways you can boost your immunity that can also be helpful in your everyday life as well.

Small Steps in the Show:

• Take a moment to reflect on which of these you feel you're doing well on and others that might be helpful to incorporate
• Choose 1-2 to incorporate
• Be clear on how you want to incorporate those and how often
• See what might need to adjust to make these happen
• Know that you're doing your best and give yourself kindness and compassion

Mentioned in the Show:

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F.lux

Blue blocking glasses

Small Steps Podcast #58 with Kayla Nedza

Small Steps Podcast #62 with Jessie Mundell

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A lot of people come to exercise with the intention to keep their bodies smaller. And as more of us realize that's connected to diet culture and want to move away from that, exercise can feel a bit weird. On today's podcast I talk with fitness coach Jessie Mundell on how she shifted her relationship with exercise and found joy in movement.

About Jessie Mundell

Jessie Mundell is a Kinesiologist, Fitness Educator, and Fitness Coach specializing in prenatal and postnatal exercise training. She's the creator of the Postnatal Fitness Specialist Academy, Core + Floor Restore, To Pregnancy & Beyond, and the co-author of Training New Moms, and Moms Gone Strong.

She's focused on effective exercise during pregnancy and postpartum, rehab of the core and pelvic floor, and C-section recovery. Jessie teaches womxn how to exercise safely and strongly in pregnancy, and how to regain their core, confidence, and fitness as moms.

She aims to steer the conversation away from the 'pre and post-baby body' madness and into a place where postpartum people feel supported, encouraged, strong, and confident.

Small Steps in the Show:

• Question your relation to your body
• Question your motivation to exercise
• Push your ideas around your exercise structure or routine (tracking included)
• Changing your definitions of exercise and places to exercise
• Allow yourself to feel hard, uncomfortable things
• Figure out ways to release your emotions
• Let yourself express emotions with people you trust

Mentioned in the Show:

Buy my Enamel Pin

Aimée's episode of the To Birth and Beyond Podcast

Small Steps Podcast #40: Liz Winters

Small Steps Podcast #4: Marilene Caetano

Listen to the To Birth and Beyond Podcast

Postnatal Fitness Specialist Academy

Jessie's Website

Follow Jessie on Instagram | Facebook

Get the full show notes here!

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Edited by Eilise Bonebright

So often we can get caught up in the holiday whirlwind of "what's always been done" or "what we're supposed to do" that we end up doing a lot things we don't want to do this time of year. That can be stressful, wear us down or get us sick. This episode invites you to take some time, set some intentions for the season and put you first.

Small Steps in the Show:

• Create some space to think on these questions
• Give yourself some time to think on them after you write or talk things out
• Once you've decided on how you want to show up this season, share that with the people closest in your life
• Think of small steps on how you can show up in the day to day, with families/friends/partners, in traditions and just try them out
• Give yourself a lot of kindness and compassion throughout all the things

Mentioned in the Show:

Buy my Enamel Pin

Small Steps #25: How Are You? A Self Care Check In

Small Steps #31: How Do You Feel? A Rest Check In

Small Steps #45: What Do You Need? A Busy Check In

Small Steps #60 with Yin Li

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As the holidays approach, we may be thinking on plans to visit our families and that can come with some tension and baggage. I talked with Yin Li, LMFT about how we can get clear on our fears or uneasiness and potentially try a different approach to being around our families than in years past. We also talk about her site, Asians Do Therapy, that helps break the stigma that Asians and therapy don't mix.

About Yin Li

Yin Li is an Asian American marriage and family therapist licensed in California and Oregon. Her own therapy lead her to become a therapist. As a therapist, Yin works primarily with Asian and Asian Americans addressing a range of concerns. She enjoys working with folks who are either brand new to therapy or have had "bad" or ineffective experiences in therapy.

In addition to her work as a therapist, Yin created #AsiansDoTherapy and the subsequent website Asians Do Therapy to help normalize mental health, wellness, and therapy services in Asian communities. In sharing culturally relevant information and stories of Asians doing therapy, Yin hopes that more Asian and Asian Americans will seek therapy as a resource, available and meant for them, to lead more fulfilling, embodied and empowered lives.

Small Steps in the Show:

• Get clear about your feelings around being with your family.
• Consider not going to your family's gathering/home this year.
• If you do decide to go, plan so that you can arrive as resourced as possible.
• Consider removing yourself from the situation as best you can.
• Reach out to friends and trusted family to get support while you're going through things.
• Get clear on your intentions around being with your family.
• Consider creating some intentional time with your family that aligns with your intentions.

Mentioned in the Show:

Buy my Enamel Pin

California Institute of Integral Studies

Asians Do Therapy Website

Follow Asians Do Therapy on Instagram

Theralane Counseling Website

Follow Theralane Counseling on Instagram

Get the full show notes here!

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Edited by Eilise Bonebright

With the holiday season starting, the anxiety around all of the "bad" or "unhealthy" foods making more appearances than normal in our day to day or at the many family or friend gatherings you may be attending. I talk about how to work through that anxiety and remember that you have choice and can make a decision that works for you, whatever that decision is.

Small Steps in the Show:

• Take a beat at get clear on what you want, need and what's important to you
• Enjoy what you do eat and savor it
• Keep practicing the things that feel good to you and support your health
• Practice kindness and compassion as you move through this
• remember that this could be new to you and you could make decisions that you don't feel great about later and that's okay

Mentioned in the Show:

Buy my Enamel Pin

Get the full show notes here!

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When you're a high performer or high functioning person, it can be really easily to work through or miss signs that your lifestyle may not be the best for your overall health and wellness. My guest today, health coach and nutritionist Kayla Nedza shares how her high performing behaviors stopped working for her and how she helps fellow high performers find a better balance in their lives.

About Kayla Nedza

Kayla Nedza is a certified International Health Coach and Holistic Nutritionist who is dedicated to helping high performing women create lasting calm with food, movement, and lifestyle through her company, Women Creating Calm. Drawing heavily from both her clients' and personal experiences as well as her studies, Kayla presents a practical and realistic approach to stress management and performance optimization.

She also hosts the Wellness Glow Up Podcast, a weekly show devoted to helping women of color become their healthiest selves by providing the tools and knowledge to be their own health advocates. When she's not researching, coaching and interviewing health professionals, you'll find her weight lifting, twerking around her kitchen or watching Grey's Anatomy.

Small Steps in the Show:

• Set check-ins 3 times a day to see how you're feeling, whether that's on your phone, work calendar, etc
• Get curious on what you're feeling and see what you need if you're feeling overwhelmed, tired or stressed
• Get clear on what you need and what you want
• See if you can take some more breaks in your day
• Try not work during lunch and make yourself unavailable or don't talk about work when you eat lunch with coworkers
• Check in with what you really want
• Get clear with your values and intentions
• See if you need to change or leave your current stressful situation/environment
• Simplify your decision making process and take action

Mentioned in the Show:

Buy my Enamel Pin

Aimée's episode on the Wellness Glow Up Podcast

Paul Jarvis

Real Food with Dana Podcast

Women Creating Calm Group

Kayla's Website

Follow Kayla on Instagram | Facebook

Listen to the Wellness Glow Up Podcast

Follow the Wellness Glow Up Podcast on Instagram

Get the full show notes here!

Follow Aimee on Instagram | Facebook | Pinterest

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Interested in working with Aimee? Find out information here.

Edited by Eilise Bonebright

You can be adding things to improve your health and feel in the groove with in one day, and then after some days or weeks, those things feel so hard and overwhelming. While this may feel strange and upsetting, this can be normal. Today's show I share the signs it might be time to take a break with health or nutrition things so you can feel some relief overall.

Small Steps in the Show:

• Give yourself some space to check in with yourself
• Write out or talk out why you feel resistance around this thing
• Reflect on some of the questions in the show, especially ones around what's going on in your life right now
• If you're working with someone on this, talk with them as well
• Make a decision to pause or cut back and try that out for a few days to a few weeks
• Pay attention to if that helps relieve some of the stress, tension or pressure you might've previously felt around it
• Check in with yourself (potentially your medical professional as well) and see how this current decision is and isn't working for you
• See if you want to keep pausing, doing less than previously or if you want to try the thing again in its original volume
• Give yourself a lot of kindness and compassion

Mentioned in the Show:

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Steph Gaudreau

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As we move forward in our lives, we can often feel lost in where we're headed or feel stuck comparing ourselves to past versions of ourselves, even if we know they don't ring true for us anymore. Today's guest, health coach Shanique Allen is on the show to share her many transitions in her life and how she's navigated growing and figuring things out with lots of kindness and experimentation.

About Shanique Allen

Shanique Allen is a health coach based in Seattle, Washington. After several big life changes, she fell into a rut, unsure how to reconcile who she once was with who she wanted to be. Shanique overhauled her mindset around her life, nutrition and health to feel like someone she wanted to be. Now, her mission is to empower other women to embrace themselves where they are, use those life experiences as fuel and build a wellness blueprint that will be as dynamic as their lives are.

Small Steps in the Show:

• Be kind and gentle to yourself when you're comparing or beating yourself up.
• Take a break
• Be aware of the language you're using about yourself
• Journal things out when things are weighing on you
• Talk with someone about what you're going through (whether that's a friend or a mental health professional)
• Release the comparison when you notice when that comes up.
• Find something that gives you joy and reach for it or create that joy and gratitude.
• Drink more water (at least half your body weight in ounces)
• Make a meal out of what you have
• Add in veggies and protein into your meals.
• Pay attention to what you're eating and what you like to eat and how your body is feeling.

Mentioned in the Show:

Buy my Enamel Pin

Ignited Womxn Summit

Steph Gaudreau

Small Steps Podcast #49: The Art of Noticing: Your Language

Shanique's Website

Follow Shanique on Instagram | Facebook

Get the full show notes here!

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Edited by Eilise Bonebright

The Small Steps Podcast turns one! This week I reflect on what it's been like podcasting for a year and how it's helped me grow and feel more comfortable in my own voice. I also share some of my favorite podcast episodes from the past year, as well as your top five favorite episodes from this year.

Small Steps in the Show:

• Remind yourself that you can do the thing
• Know that the things you want to do may seem scary and that's okay
• You're going to learn so much by trying new things and going with the flow as much as you can
• Ask for what you want and need, even if you're scared.
• Think on one small step you can do right now, even if it's not super glamorous and take it.

Mentioned in the Show:

Buy my Enamel Pin

Lisa Olivera

Small Steps #42 with Lisa Olivera

Small Steps #32 with Dr. Tee Williams

Small Steps #14 on Being Biracial

Small Steps #30 with Shirin Eskandani

Small Steps #18 with Chrissy King

Small Steps #6 with Steph Gaudreau

Core 4 Club

Small Steps #1, My Healing Journey

Small Steps #2 with Steph Ondrusek

Steph Ondrusek on Instagram

Small Steps #4 with Marilene Caetano

Marilene Caetano on Instagram

Small Steps #3, One Size Doesn't Fit All

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It can feel normal to feel very out of place and confused as a person of color navigating how you fit in it, especially if you grew up or have been in the minority in your environments for a long time. Today's guest, Lillian Farzan, AMFT, talks about how there are stages to rejecting, connecting with and integrating our races, heritages and cultures as we move through life.

About Lillian Farzan

Lillian Farzan is a pre-licensed therapist focused on racial identity development and working with marginalized communities. She works with populations including first-generation individuals, survivors of sexual trauma, and members of the LGBTQ community in Los Angeles. Lillian is a first-generation Iranian Jewish American passionate about supporting her clients through coaching, therapy, and advocating for social justice by engaging in broader dialogue.

Small Steps in the Show:

• Journal on different parts, aspects and feelings on your identities, how others have seen you, the expectations you've been told to live up to.
• If journaling isn't your style, talk it out into a voice memo, app, or to a listening friend (who will just listen to what you're expressing).
• Meditating to create time to connect with yourself.
• Gather with like-minded people in your community to talk about these shared aspects of your identities more.
• Interview people in your family or people in your community to understand more about your heritage and culture.
• Look more into your heritage and culture to connect more with it in ways that resonate with you (museums, restaurants, books, shows and movies, music, other events or community gatherings)
• Lean into the discomfort that may arise as you look more at your racial identity development
• Intentionally let go of binary thinking.
• Practicing radical acceptance of the things you don't agree with or like about your culture and also embracing the meaningful things about your culture.
• Keep an open mind as you learn more and connect more with your culture.
• Take your time moving through this, go at your own pace.

Mentioned in the Show:

Buy my Enamel Pin

Sue and Sue Stages of Racial and Cultural Identity Development Model

Lillian's Blog

Maria P.P. Root

Mixed Race Bill of Rights

S. Carlos Poston's Racial Identity Development Model for Mixed Race Folks

Lillian's Website

Follow Lillian on Instagram

Get the full show notes here!

Follow Aimee on Instagram | Facebook | Pinterest

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Interested in working with Aimee? Find out information here.