Often I’m asked about why I take an ‘It depends…’ approach to fitness, nutrition, and overall wellness; even more so now that the podcast listener base is growing and I’m hearing directly from more listeners. Which I love! But I’ve never really given some details as to why I think this way. Let’s jump into this a bit…The reason I take this point of view is simple - there are no two individuals the same. Whether it is current health or health history, activity level, or overall lifestyle, etc.; we are all different in a variety of ways. These differences are important. These differences drive the main reason why we must self-evaluate constantly, be open to the ideas and experiences of others, and never try to fit into a rigid, very dogmatic program intended to ‘improve’ health and/or wellness. The only dogma we should follow is based solely on our own needs.I mean on some levels there will certainly be similarities, and in some cases so many similarities that a ‘one size fits all’ approach to wellness and fitness will work, for a limited duration.  But let’s face it; a ‘one size fits all’ point of view is too simplistic. It’s way too general, and when companies and individuals identify and push a OSFA approach, they are taking advantage of a potentially disillusioned and vulnerable population.I encourage you to do some self-work to be sure you do not fall into this category.BEWARE THE GENERALITIES!Common issues, interests, and protocols around wellness are all over the media in many different forms – news, TV, radio, podcasts, blogs, books, websites, smartphone apps, etc. This should be good, right? I mean it seems like we have tons of resources at our fingertips.And that leads me to this question: How can we be one of the wealthiest, most technologically advanced countries in the world also be one of the most unhealthy  and “un-well” societies? And getting worse…I’ll tell you why, or at least give you my take: Two reasons - Number One - The wide variety of topics, or clutter as I see it, is very tough to follow and really understand because there is so much available to us. Information overload is what I call it. Our natural filter that helps us determine what is good information, and what is bad information, is clogged, and we become aimless. Our filter no longer works as designed.Number Two – and this is the big one for me, because the information being shared around wellness is not sustainable – it’s way too general. And there are so many experts out there – it’s hard to find people we can trust and that really know how to help us understand our individual needs. How can we trust them when they do not even know us, individually? More on that soon…I’m sure you’ll agree that most of what you read and hear around wellness is designed to be more SHOCKING and reactionary rather than proactive and individual. And what’s more is that there is no encouragement for folks to learn about what is best for them, at least without being introduced to a sales pitch. And enter the expert, guru, leaders, what ever you want to call them, or what they call themselves…Through these folks and their witty charm and charisma, we’re being TOLD what to do; TOLD how to eat; TOLD when and how to workout; and TOLD what to buy. It’s all WHAT, WHAT, WHAT! There are many different opinions and points of view, and it’s very confusing. Absolutely nothing wrong with opinions. We all have them. Our opinions are created and driven by our experiences. But it’s downright wrong to use an opinion to become a fear monger, especially around health and wellness. And that’s what is happening!It makes me think, that some people just cannot be trusted with an opinion.Lot’s of folks have become an expert in absolute theories and modalities in wellness. Being a scientist or researcher reporting results and findings is one thing. But folks outside of that realm, have egos that have overrun our wellness intentions!What has happened to us? Where does this go wrong, and how does it impact us?Let’s take a quick look at a microcosm of where this is getting out of hand. Where these generalities begin to really take their toll:

• People are encouraged to think all generalities apply to them – but information is missing
• Generalities are typically not sustainable at the individual-level – the human body and mind are made of cycles; these cycles drive the diversity in needs for all of us
• Marketers, diet gurus, and nutritional & fitness cult leaders (let’s call them what they are people…) take advantage of the generalities in wellness to pawn-off ideas and advice, feed egos, and build sub-cultures that can be very dangerous

Here’s the nasty paradox you need to be aware of:  the ‘one size fits all’ approach SELLS and it’s easy to execute when a coach/trainer/nutrition guru is looking to make money by providing quick, simple steps to get from ‘BEFORE’ to ‘AFTER’.  That’s it!It all becomes noise - but like I said, rarely does this ‘one size fits all’ approach prove itself to sustainable. Sustainability is the key to life-changing, life-long success. Everyone evolves differently. But there’s a way to avoid this.MAKE THE MOVE!So, how do we transition from hearing the generalities in wellness that cause us to take blind action, and keep us from understanding our own specific health and wellness priorities?First, we need to identify and understand our own needs.For me, as a coach and trainer, to help folks avoid the pitfalls of a limited and often rigid wellness dogma, I try to get people to understand these three concepts: 

• Why do you want to achieve those results
• How do you plan to achieve those results, and 
• What does success look like or reveal itself to be for you over time based on a specific current assessment of your health and wellness 

And this is a cycle that repeats over and over again – needing constant attention. And that’s what being ‘WELL’ takes – constant attention to be sustainable.Honestly, I find it difficult to connect and work with a client or athlete that doesn’t really grasp this concept. It’s like people expect immediate change, or they begin to compare themselves to others. That doesn’t work. Again, it takes time.But once you begin to ‘see’ this, you’ll know you’re on your way! Progress is encouraging and can be the most effective motivator – but those first few indicators of progress can take time.Our lives our busy! We are not professional athletes, or celebrities that have blocks of time where our schedules are open and we can spend 90% of our time on our own wellness. This is where the ‘How’ comes into play. Your ‘how’ will look different than somebody else’s ‘how’ because you lead different lives and have different responsibilities. This means we must intelligently prioritize our needs – this assessment of priorities really begins at understanding our intentions.So, for now, and the rest of this episode, let’s focus on the ‘Why’….Why your ‘WHY’Simon Sinek so eloquently stated in his TED Talk that “inspired organizations, regardless of their size, regardless of their industry, all think, act, and communicate from the inside out.”Think about that for a minute – from the inside out: think, act, and communicate. These inspired organizations do not allow outside influences to dictate their direction; they change the game themselves – on their terms! According to Sinek, this is all based on the fact that people buy into you because of your ‘why’ and not your ‘what’. This is a fascinating concept that I’m really bought into because this concept forces me to start asking myself:“Am I bought in to what I believe?”. But more importantly, “Am I ACTING on what I believe?” Now you think about it: “Are you taking action based on what you believe, for yourself?”I’m a big fan of leadership and management theory – It is part of my unique ‘nerdy-ness’. These are theories that have fascinated me, and molded my style of leadership in management positions throughout my career. Now I’m beginning to applying these theories to myself, on another level and introducing it to others that engage my help – creating internal missions and values focused less the outside influences and more on internally-rooted needs.I’m not going to sit here and regurgitate Sinek’s entire “why” philosophy to you – that would be unproductive, and probably some sort of copyright infringement that’ll put myself on the hot seat. I do encourage you to watch the two extraordinary TED talks featuring Simon Sinek. You’ll get a lot out of them. I only wish I had his speaking ability.So, again – in a different way, I ask this question based on Sinek’s point: Are we; are you, bought into your own ‘Why’? Is there an alignment between what we believe – truly, like deep down – and our actions? I ask you to really think about that. Then think about what brought you to those beliefs. Some of you may be surprised what you find out.Again, this concept is conventionally applied to leadership in organizations with clear visions and missions. But how can we apply this to our own values and mission in our life? Our own mission which is an ever-changing journey to wellness?Very simply - But it takes time and some work – but well worth it, in my opinion.You must establish your own value set and mission statement. This is where you will begin to understand your “why”.When you begin to understand your values and personal mission, the reason why you want to accomplish a certain goal, the path towards achieving the goal, and what the action looks like to get there becomes much clearer, and may even change.Let me give you example:Very often these days we are bombarded with blogs and articles that give us lists or numbered steps on how to do something like: 5 steps to wellness; 10 foods to avoid when trying to loose weight; 12 steps to avoid procrastination; 8 ways to support your kids, How to quit sugar, etc. I think most of the content in this form, just states the obvious.While this information is helpful as a reference, this information almost consistently leaves out one important concept: the “why”. It also leaves out the “how” and “when”. It’s like getting your hands on a really good recipe for chocolate chip cookies, but you’re missing the details on what to do with the ingredients – like how long do you bake them for, what temperature, etc.So, with all of this, how do we decide what to pay attention to, so we are making this abundance of wellness and health information work FOR us, and not AGAINST us?Understand your “why”? To do this, I suggest you write! Begin to journal!Journaling, by writing out your thoughts, feelings, and anything that comes to mind is a great step to begin identifying what’s important to you. Connecting with your thoughts by putting them down in writing is one of the best ways to relieve stress and stay connected to your inner-self. In other words, it’s a great way to get to know you. And, yep, you guessed it – It’ll help you get to your “why”.It may not happen immediately, in fact, it won’t. But over time, with consistency you should begin to understand common themes and feelings that come up – I mean both physical and emotional. Journaling doesn’t have to be about what you are feeling emotionally – but the consistent exercise of journaling physical feeling can elude a lot about us.Journaling does more for us than help connect feelings to actions. Journaling helps us connect, in some ways, to what we stand for – what we want out of our lives. What our intentions are. From journaling, you can get to place where you find and put together a personal value set, and mission statement.Now, I do suggest that folks attempt to draft some sort of value set and personal mission statement, when the time is right for them. This is very thoughtful no matter what your goals are. I’m not going to get into how to draft a mission statement or values – you can easily find this on-line somewhere. Blogs around how to do this are very common. But we must start with small steps - Let’s start with the exercise of just writing at first.But, I do believe there should be a connection between wellness and your mission and/or value statement.When it comes to wellness, specifically, you need to develop vision for yourself that will connect some sort of ‘end state’ to go after, even though there is never really an end to the ever-evolving journey of wellness. Why your ‘WHY’So, here’s my call-to-action:Let’s keep it really simple, I say. Maybe a few days a week, give your self a short block of time each day of quiet time to write. If this sounds like a lot at first, just start with 5 minutes at a time, 2-3 days a week. Then move to 10 minutes, 15 minutes, or more. Then maybe go to 4 days a week, then 5. Move at your pace – this is for you.This is your time to hunker down with a note book and pen, your laptop, a keyboard – whatever medium you’re most comfortable with – and just start free-writing about what you want to look like, accomplish, change physically, how you want to feel in the morning when you wake up, your career path, etc. Anything….This can be a wide range or topics, and I’m sure you’ll find yourself wandering a bit, and that’s ok. This is not the next best selling novel or fitness book.Why writing – because thoughts can disappear. Writings do not!But do keep this intention in mind - part of journaling is to help you identify and establish your “why”. You are doing this by thinking about what’s really important to you – what makes you feel fulfilled, satisfied, and motivated by writing it down!Think about specific details about your life now and how you may want it to improve and evolve. Write those down!What are the bad habits you want to remove and what are the good habits your want to adopt? Write those down.Think about the clutter in your life - “Things”, people, issues, other obstacles or limiters that may be causing anxiety or acting as roadblocks to your progress - all the toxic parts of your life and how they make you feel. Write those down!Think about your personal priorities – family, wellness, career, finances, etc. Write those down!How about the foods you eat? Do you need to make a change? Write it down!There is no limit to where journaling can take you. It’s an exercise that should never end.Also, as you’re doing this, remember there is no wrong answer or wrong way – this exercise is for you, on your terms. Keep at it until you feel some comfort and connectedness to what you’re writing. Stick with it – it’ll take time! You’ll get there. And your writing will evolve.Who knows – maybe you do have a novel some inside of you, or an autobiography, or an incredible memoir people absolutely must read. Go for it!Go back and read your writings. Again, journaling is an exercise in exploring thoughts and connecting actions to emotions and vice versa. One of the many benefits of journaling is that you begin to think about what traits and characteristics you value in others and yourself. Reading your own writing will be very revealing.But the biggest and most powerful takeaway of journaling is that you’ll begin to establish a clear direction about how you’ll improve your wellness by understanding your intentions - your “why”.What will you get out of knowing your “why”? I encourage you to discover the answer to that very question – the answer will be different for all of us and will never be the same over and over again.Once you know your ‘why’, your individual goals will become much clearer – at least for that time being.To sum this all up, and going back to the beginning of this conversation, I do not want to sound like what everyone is telling you is wrong; I’m not saying that nutrition and fitness experts are wrong; I’m not telling to ignore the information and advice out there. But be wary.What I’m telling you is to learn as much as possible, but more importantly learn what you need.  Information is good – there will be things that work, and things that don’t - everyone is different.Your “why” is what should drive you. Think of yourself first, and be cautious of what others tell you how to train, eat, work, live, or rest. They do not know you – you know you, and you know your “why”.Thanks for listening….Be well, and go get it!

TB****************************- Check out the Tioga Wellness Podcast page (...coming soon) on Facebook. - Lot's of great discussion in the Fitness & Endurance Training group on Facebook. - Visit the show page and subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher. Give the show a review? ;-) - For more about me, see my personal blog at www.heytombarbieri.com.- Contact me at [email protected].

As a parent, introducing and leading our kids in sports can be tricky in our competitive and very superficial culture. But it doesn't have to be that way. Let’s talk through it!Many of you know Brett Blankner from his widely popular podcast and blog, Zen and the Art of Triathlon. Brett joins me to talk about his own experience is sports as an active kid and how he translates his experience to raising his son through healthy participation in sports. We talk through:

• • Team sports vs. individual sports
  • What is a parent’s role in introducing kids to sports
  • Encouraging kids to try different sports
  • When to coach, and when to watch
  • What can parents do to keep an eye on their kids as they progress in sports
  • What to do when kids sports become too much
  • And more….
  Visit Brett’s website and check out his podcast.Here are some related items to check out:Purdue study around parents whose children play team sports FAQs and concerns about kid’s participation in sports and fitnessGreat post on the popular blog ‘Daddylibrium’ featuring Dr. G about kids in sportsTake a listen and share your thoughts and experiences around this important topic. Thanks for listening in! Be well, and go get it!TB****************************Want More?- Check out the Tioga Wellness Podcast page (...coming soon) on Facebook. - Lot's of great discussion in the Fitness & Endurance Training group on Facebook. - Visit the show page and subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher. Give the show a review? ;-) - For more about me, see my personal blog at www.heytombarbieri.com.- Contact me at [email protected].

Welcome to the second edition of our “Athlete Spotlight” on the TWP. I’d like to introduce you to Jody George, an age-group triathlete in the UK balancing family, a job, and a love for triathlon. Sound familiar?

Jody does not have an uncommon story about his entrance into triathlon years ago – teaming up with some buddies to do some local sprint races, and building up to longer distances while managing nutrition and fitness around life changes.  Most recently, Jody registered and trained for the inaugural Challenge Weymouth 140.6 triathlon with not only the goal to have a 140.6 finish part of his resume, but with the goal to raise money for a local ambulance service, Dorset & Somerset Air Ambulance.

But Jody’s participation in the Challenge event on September 14th took an unexpected turn before the race even started. I’ll let you listen in to the podcast to learn what really happened.

This is a great story of someone who overcame a potentially esteem-devastating situation to go beyond completing a long-course triathlon. Jody shares his story in our conversation. Listen in!

-         Article about Jody in the Daily Mail.

-       Jody’s triathlon club in the UK.

-       Jody’s donation portal

Be well, and go get it! TB ****************************

- Check out the Tioga Wellness Podcast page (...coming soon) on Facebook. - Lot's of great discussion in the Fitness & Endurance Training group on Facebook. - Visit the show page and subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher. Give the show a review? ;-) - For more about me, see my personal blog at www.heytombarbieri.com. - Contact me at [email protected].

In the first of our “Fitness Roundtable” episode series here on the TWP, I sit down with Chris Hague and Meghan Fanning about topics ranging from how to balance fitness training with other things in life to learning about when to get a coach and how to assess training. We get deep in this one!

Some topics include:

·        Assessing training progress

·        Changing training and race plans mid-season

·        Dealing with injuries

·        Exploring short-term training plans

·        Discovering the ‘why’ behind training and racing

·        Nutrition – understanding change and what YOUR body needs

Read more about Chris and Meghan:

-  Chris Hague - www.chrishagueracing.com

-  Meghan Fanning- www.zendurancenow.com

Thanks for listening, and I hope you enjoy the show!

Be well, and go get it!

TB

**Sound quality note: Chris, being the dedicated triathlete he is, was on the trainer (…his cycling trainer, not his personal trainer – c’mon people!) during the first part of the conversation. This is the squeaking you hear. Just accept it – it’s not that bad.

****************************

- Check out the Tioga Wellness Podcast page (...coming soon) on Facebook. - Lot's of great discussion in the Fitness & Endurance Training group on Facebook. - Visit the show page and subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher. Give the show a review? ;-) - For more about me, see my personal blog at www.heytombarbieri.com. - Contact me at [email protected].

In this first edition of the “Athlete Spotlight” series here on the TWP, I chat with John Newman – husband, dad, engineer, endurance athlete, healthy lifestyle advocate, and popular fitness blogger. 

John just completed his first 140.6 event at Ironman Lake Placid in July. But his journey did not just begin at training for the glory of becoming an Ironman. 

About ten years ago John was heavier ‘gym-rat’ who was bored of going through the same fitness routine and achieving little, if any, results. He then discovered cycling which then evolved to triathlon where he finally experienced the results he wanted. But he wanted more. In 2013, John made the decision to move onto the 140.6 distance in triathlon and signed up for Ironman Lake Placid. 

I wanted to highlight John, not just because he completed one of the toughest endurance events in the world, but because of his insightful perspective throughout his training and looking back at the entire training and racing experience. 

The post-race assessments John made really highlight a self-actualization around training, nutrition, and lifestyle that he is using to more effectively train for his next event, and most importantly use to better balance life as an endurance athlete, a husband, and a dad.  This is an excellent example of why a periodic review of goals, actions, and results - like John did here - is key to any wellness program regardless of the level or sport of the athlete. (Remember, we are ALL athletes!)

Some of these assessments John made, and what we discuss in this episode, include:

• - Why strength training is key
• - Incorporating tempo/Race-pace training
• - Racing vs. training with a power meter on the bike
• - Swim – Accepting reality… ;-)
• - Much more...

When not working, being a husband, and a kick-ass Dad, John co-authors a popular wellness lifestyle blog along with his wife Tara: Family Sport Life.net. 

Through their blog site, John and Tara have the simple objective of providing motivation, support, and solutions for the challenges individuals and families face day-to-day while managing a busy, healthy family, career, and wellness. Whether you’re an ultra-athlete, fitness newbie, health nut, or just trying to get through each day, visit Family Sport Life for some great tips and fun reading to help you manage your journey.

Thanks for listening (...and reading), and until next time…Be well, and go get it!TB****************************

- Contact me at [email protected]

- Our show page: www.tiogawellness.com/podcast

- Check out the Tioga Wellness Podcast page (...coming soon) on Facebook. Lot's of great discussion in the Fitness & Endurance Training group on Facebook. - For more about me, see my personal blog at www.heytombarbieri.com.

Welcome to the first episode of the Tioga Wellness Podcast – I’m calling it the TWP, just for fun!

I’m so excited to start this adventure and begin a whole new way for me to share the passion I have for health, fitness, and overall wellness.

I bet you want to know why I’m doing this – or maybe you don’t! That’s OK. Anyway, here’s the deal:  I want to help people find their way – because that helps me find my way. So, in a sense, this podcast is a way to hold myself accountable in my own journey to wellness and my new mission in my life. Let’s do this together!

About Me:

My name is Tom Barbieri. I’m a fitness trainer and healthy lifestyle advocate, a wellness coach and consultant. I take an individual approach to everything I do for clients. I apply that individualized-focus to all things fitness- and wellness related. I call in my “It depends…” model. I think you’ll get to understand this about me as you tune in to more shows.

I love human anatomy, physiology, and functional biochemistry. In other words, I'm fascinated with how the body works and adapts to exercise, stress, and nutrition in the "real world". That's why I do this!

I studied biology in college, with an emphasis on human anatomy, physiology, and athletic training. I spent many hours in the anatomy lab with my arms elbows-deep in cadavers learning muscles, bones, and the other organ systems of the body. I moved this learning to more applicable environments – the football field and in other team sports in college as an assistant athletic trainer. This is where I began to really understand how the specifics of individual human movement and activity are so important when it comes to training, nutrition, injuries, and general stress recovery.

While it's important that I've had the lecture and classroom experience, I also have vast experience working 'in the field' with athletes at all levels. This hands-on experience is rooted in working closely with variety of experts: general physicians, chiropractors, metabolic specialists, podiatrists, cardiologists, and professional athletes and sports teams. These valuable mentorships allowed me to observe, learn, and understand how to apply key fitness training, endurance coaching, and wellness systems that have helped individuals achieve their goals.

This experience in applied, in-the-field exercise science is the foundation of my unique ability to effectively match sport- and fitness-specific modalities to the goals and objectives of athletes of all abilities. Yes, everyone is an athlete, to some degree - even YOU! I have over 25 years of experience as an athlete in endurance sports. About fifteen years ago, I’ve began to be approached by athletes with questions around training and staying in shape. I happily and excitedly gave some advice - And it worked! I saw runners and triathletes that sought my advice begin to perform really well – even qualify for such events as the IM World Championships, Boston Marathon, be invited to be a part of pro cycling teams, and even participate in Olympic trials. This is where I began to see myself as a legit coach.

Ever since, I've built many fitness and endurance training plans for at all levels, in all individual conditions and circumstances. I always like to keep it simple and use a combination of my own experience, the specific experiences of each athlete, and basic biofeedback markers as the attributes to design and adjust training based on tracked progress of individual adaptations to physical stress.

I do not have the deep ‘textbook’ and ‘lab-test ‘science background many folks have that do what I do. However, I do not really think that having that background provides true value to an athlete. Yeah, it’s nice to know this information and it sounds cool to quote or talk about a specific study. But I think that the most important knowledge to have is to know how to help athletes realize their own potential, train in a way that matches that potential, assess their results, and change their training as a result of individual performance. This is where the practical experience I have – both as an athlete, a trainer/coach, and as a dad/husband/employee is so valuable.

Some more personal background:OK, so really what do we have in common? Lot's! I'm a husband, and a Dad to two (very active) boys. I live in Reston, Virginia in suburban Washington, DC. I run a small business and have a ‘day-job’, I have a mortgage, bills, help with school carpool, share in managing kids activities, love to have fun and at the same time have all the concerns you may have as we get older – when it comes to health and fitness.

To add some balance to my life, I continue to be avid age-group athlete. Not a 'weekend warrior', but I'm not what I would consider fast or 'elite'. I'm an experienced runner, swimmer, and cyclist having participated in over 100 triathlons, 25 marathons, an ultra-marathon and many other endurance events over the past 25 years. I love these sports! I grew up playing team sports, but moved away from them after high school. I found that participating in these individual endurance sports provided a safe place for physical expression based solely on my terms – I could decide the “when, where, and how” of my runs, rides, or swims free of any expectations of others.  Running, specifically has never let me down.  I’ve been so lucky to run in some of the most spectacular locations in the US. I look forward to many more years of the well-beaten path of running!

My personal experience in fitness and health has not been without its challenges. After successful completion of Ironman Lake Placid in 2011 - my 100th triathlon - fitness and overall wellness was no longer a priority. Boy, was that a mistake! Upon going through some serious soul-searching, I identified some key changes I needed to make to my active life and nutritional habits. This changed my life and may have even saved my life! The results have been incredible: Weight drop of over 50 pounds, vastly improved bio-markers, improved muscular endurance, more efficient training protocols, and faster race times. Oh, and I just feel better! It's your turn. Want to know more about me? Visit my personal blog site at www.heytombarbieri.com.

What does Tioga Wellness mean?

Tioga Wellness is the name of my wellness consulting company.

I hope you know what wellness is – but I’ll expand and briefly share my understanding of wellness.

To me, wellness is the measurement (…in any way) of the balance between the mind, body, and spirit. Simple, right? But this is so hard for some of us to understand and obtain. It is for me! We’ll get into this more as more episodes come out.

The word Tioga is from the Iroquois culture and means 'where it forks' and 'moves fast' when referring to a river or stream. The name has special meaning to me. Tioga Pass is the name of the eastern entrance to Yosemite National Park in California and is one of the highest passes in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. I've spent many summers of my youth in Yosemite and developed a particular attachment to Tioga Pass and the surrounding high-country. Whether it was the multi-day hiking adventures, rock climbing, trekking across glaciers or just swimming and relaxing in nearby Tenaya Lake, this place has special meaning when it comes to natural beauty and awe-inspiring views.

My time spent in this part of the World always included some sort of activity that rewarded me with a sense of accomplishment. This is what I hope to bring to and share with my podcast listeners, blog readers, and the clients of Tioga Wellness - an appreciation and passion for fitness, endurance sport training, and general wellness for a better quality of life. In this business, I come across many folks that have a time in their life where fitness and wellness become a priority and everyone has different goals. This means no two fitness, training, or wellness action plans can be the same. I work with you, individually to understand your goals and needs, experiences, and your current fitness level. Then I recommend an individual action plan to go after those goals and offer to monitor performance at the right pace so we can be sure you stay on track to success. When I meet with clients or potential clients, I ask them to 'lay it all on the table' so to speak. I like to go through everything like current fitness level, nutrition, health history, mindset, bio-mechanics, etc. This may sound like some work, but its well worth it!

Why a Podcast:

Why a podcast? I’ll get into that more in a minute. But I wanted to share a little about the journey I took to get to this point.

As I shared earlier, post-Ironman (…in summer 2011), after taking time off of training consistently, I began to see the signs (…emotional and physical) of poor wellness and health.

It was time - I had to put myself through some pretty extensive changes around my nutritional habits and fitness regimes. My goal then was to lose weight, improve body composition, and become more effective, and focused in my endurance training. I achieved my goals, and then some!  For details on this transformation, your can visit my blog www.heytombarbieri.com. I have a three part blog series that chronicles this experience – I’ll link to it in the show notes.

Going through this journey was very enlightening as I not only changed my body, but I also came to understand that changing my day-to-day habits led to a change in lifestyle. This change really came to light for me in my innate behaviors like cravings for and the increased satisfaction from whole, real foods – like vegetables, fruits, whole grains, etc. This is what needs to happen in order to sustain a healthy lifestyle – including a healthy weight, bio-markers, and just plain ol’ feeling good!

As I was still learning to be comfortable with this new way of living for me, I began to wonder how other people arrived at the same destination I had. Specifically, I was interested in nutrition and why folks chose a certain way to eat that was labeled in a way that made it different from a mainstream way of eating.

In this searching I went to the all mighty internet. I found blogs and on-line communities that were like little clubs aggregated of people with similar habits and nutritional lifestyles. I also found podcasts. From podcasts, I came back to social media. Full circle!

Through podcasts, and as related to social media, this is where I discovered how powerful social media channels can be – both in a bad way and a good way. As it relates to my experience around health, nutrition, and fitness, via social media I observed the behaviors of many people in different stages on the journey to their ideal wellness. This was fascinating to me! I loved reading stories of success, learning best practices, and helping to cheer people along their journey. But one thing was very apparent…

To see people, including myself, attach themselves to ideologies and dogmas was like watching a train wreck. Again, I include my self in this too! I wanted inclusion, and I found it.  It felt so good to ‘interact’ with others who had the same goals. However, it became more and more apparent to me that these groups were not just about inclusion, but about esteem – the esteem of those individuals who were part of the group and frequent contributors.  I mean, beyond just sharing commonalties, the ‘passion’ around these groups on Facebook was just out of control. And I admit, I fully par-took in this – guilty as charged! I mean I got fully into it – from these groups, and I mean I was all in, even helping some of these podcasters and ‘leaders’ organize and drive their content to their audiences.

One of the more common things I heard from all these people I observed and interacted with on-line was that, in most cases, they were the only one in their family making the change to stick to a certain diet. While on the surface this looks fine, and you can say “well, that just means the other people in the family weren’t ready to change…” all you want. This is trouble below the surface.

I saw people put together ‘challenges’ and post on Facebook groups that they were going to go without sugar for 30 days, or coffee for 60 days, and other activities that seemed to celebrate the fact that they were going to subject themselves to some sort of deprivation that was supposed to end up in a positive result. Some did! But I have an issue with these types of activities – the issue I have is it provides and end point. While I must applaud the legitimate attempt to get fit and improve health – and some of these certainly are. I caution people so as they do not focus too much on the end date, so they can go back to the way they were. Why not just make small changes to eliminate a habit or adopt a healthy behavior rather than going to the extreme – just my take.

I also heard quite frequently, and I must admit here too, I was part of this – that going a long time without food was, in a sense, celebrated. I heard things like “…all I have to eat is one egg and a cup of coffee at 5 am and I’m good until after 1 pm.” Or “I just did a 14-hour hike on only coconut oil and three strips of bacon.” This is not good! My wife even told me that when she heard this, she thought it was encouraging folks to deprive themselves and if they couldn’t last that long with out food, something was wrong with them. Interesting….. I’d agree with her. I know that this was not at the heart of what was being shared, and not everyone would see it this way, but it was being delivered the wrong way.

The foundation, it seemed to me, of many of these behaviors I saw, and again acted out by myself too, was the amount of anger towards others rooted in food and health. This really came from podcasters and bloggers standing on the proverbial mountaintop screaming that they were here to tell us the truth. That our intentions to be well and eat right were not working. And that all of the devices, programs, and advice we were being given was a lie. Almost like self-appointed preachers calling followers that were down and out, needing a helping hand. And boy did a lot of people follow, me included!

I mean it got to the point that I was told that food companies, doctors, the media, and the government were trying to undermine my nutrition and health. While this may be accurate to some degree, no one was forcing me to eat poorly. I was making my own decisions. This anger does nothing productive for anyone. It only gets attention. Just like shock-jocks get attention on the radio. This anger transferred to me. It also made me very judgmental of others. I’d get to the point to where in my mind, I was criticizing everybody who I saw eat something I thought of as un-healthy. I went on a big no sugar no grain kick for a while. And while I think this approach has its place in a well-thought out strategy to improve health, I went to all lengths to avoid any ‘carb’ or sugar. I was obsessed. It was horrible. I know others go through this same struggle.

Now I know this behavior I evolved to understand and identify was entirely my own doing. Just like the decisions I made about food, were not wise – the decisions I made to obsess and become compulsive around ways to eat was not healthy, mentally.  No one forced me to listen to these podcasts, join and interact in these Facebook groups, and spend my time helping these ‘leaders’ get more followers and sell more books. I was in a vulnerable state, like many people are – unfocused, unorganized in my goals, and unknowing what worked well for me.

This anger then began, BEGAN to turn into guilt around food. This is where I saw a red flag. I never, ever thought I’d be in an emotional state where I would experience guilt as it related to food. This was a bit scary!

After some soul-searching around this for a few months, I’m now finally at a good place - A place of balance. Where I can free enjoy food without the judgment or guilt I was being told I should live with – not is so many ways – but you get the picture.

 I also learned that I’m very sensitive in protecting my own views and opinions. When I began to question the thoughts and views of leaders in the podcasting world around food in their ‘owned’ social media groups, I was chided for not supporting the message, not being on-board, or even told my tone was not productive. Interesting? Ok. I’ll give you the ‘tone’ thing, but I will not stand for not supporting a message that was dependent on getting as many followers as possible. Sounds cult-ish to me! I had enough!

Back to the question: Why a podcast? I want to give back and provide a voice of reason to so many out there that may be in the same boat as me. If you’re not, that’s fine. I hope to provide you some valuable content you can use on your own journey - a forum to help others find their way, as I did. Podcasting is easy, cheap, and popular. I feel I owe it back to the medium and community that was such a large part of my growth in the past three years.

Here’s what I want to do through this podcast:

We all experience this confusion – How do I set my goals? What should I eat? When and how much should I exercise? How much stress is too much stress? How do I know if I’m making progress? What do I need to look out for? When and how do I change my plan? Etc. etc.

In the information age, we have countless informational resources at our fingertips – the internet, social media, television, print, etc.  This can be daunting and very confusing. Add to this the intentions of some fitness and health ‘experts’ to sell books, push supplements, provide ‘quick-fixes’, and honestly just feed their own ego built on a lifestyle dogma – like I experienced. The TWP will cut through all of this and provide valuable content that will help you make the best decisions about living well and achieving your fitness and health goals – according to your needs and way of life.

The TWP will be a valuable part of your tool kit in helping you stay on course as your goals and objectives. Join us and become part of the conversation.

 What to expect:

Not perfection! I’m not a professional podcaster, but hope to improve over time. This will be loosely produced so please excuse any imperfections in the sound quality and production.

As far as content, I want your help. I’d like to know what you want to hear. What type of guests do you want to hear on the show? I have some ideas and some guests and topics lined up. My goal is to keep this a forum for reasonable voices and ideas.

I’d like to get to a point where I’m posting two to three shows a week, on a consistent schedule. But who know when that will happen. I’ll try.

Please share this show with others. I’ve started a Facebook group for more interaction and we have a home on iTunes that is ready for reviews and feedback. A webpage is in the works.

Thank you for listening and will be back soon with another show!

Be well, and go get it!