Wellness Evolved

Imagine your health failing you during a busy deadline at work. How do you pause to reestablish a nutrition plan and your health without missing a beat at work?

In this week's episode, award-winning General Manager, Jeff Lawrence shares how job stress negatively impacted his physical health.  After a wake-up call in the emergency room,  he realized he needed to change his soda and sugar-fueled diet.  Learn the simple changes in mindset and nutrition that helped him to heal stress ulcers, lose weight, and thrive under the stress of opening and managing a hotel.  You'll also hear how implementing Evolution Hospitality's mindfulness program has helped him lead his teams through change.

In creating wellness, a core element to maintain wellness is our levels of Vitamin D.  In this episode, Dr. Romie discusses the one lab value you should request from your doctor today.  By optimizing vitamin D levels, you can optimize your hormones, immune system, gut health, and brain function.   You will learn foods that contain Vitamin D3, why people living in sunshine states still have low Vitamin D, and how to choose the right supplements.

There is no one diet plan that will work for everyone, so how do we create a nutrition plan for an entire company? Dr. Romie, Evolution Hospitality's Chief Wellness Officer, introduces the science behind food sensitivity testing. Learn the difference between a food allergy and food sensitivity, the symptoms you may be experiencing due to food sensitivities, and how to test for this problem. Evo's custom wellness program, "Nourish", is also introduced. Nourish is a day program created to restore and nourish your gut health and overall well-being.

As a busy senior hospitality executive, father to young children, and newly engaged- the last thing Scott Roby expected was that vague abdominal pain would turn out to be Stage 4 cancer.  

On this week's episode of Evolution Hospitality's Wellness Evolved podcast, Senior Vice President of Operations, Scott Roby, shares his powerful journey on crushing cancer.  Today by focusing on nutrition, mindset, and love of his family he has reached his important 5-year survival mark with a poignant call to action. You will hear what you can do today to start your own wellness journey.  

We also invite you to support Scott Roby's Cancer Crusher team raising money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma by donating or signing up to join our team to "Light The Night" at Angel Stadium in Anaheim on Sept 21, 2019.

https://pages.lls.org/ltn/ocie/OrangeCo19/EvolutionHospitalityOC

Show Notes:

• [02:20] This is the beginning of season 2 where we talk about the path of wellness as we Nourish ourselves.
• [03:18] Scott Roby just celebrated 14 years with Evolution Hospitality. He started out in 2005 as the Corporate Director of Revenue. He was then promoted to Vice President of Revenue Management. Last year, he made the move to operations.
• [04:13] In December of last year, Scott became the father of a baby boy and he also has four girls. 
• [05:17] In order to stay grounded, Scott finds time for himself during his commute.
• [06:54] Scott shares how he wasn't feeling well and eventually ended up being diagnosed with stage 4 lymphoma.
• [07:56] He had just proposed to his new wife.
• [08:23] He spent four months in the hospital with an intensive chemotherapy regimen.
• [08:50] Some of his inspirations were The Art of Mindful Living. He also meditated. His office was also in an eighth floor room looking over the ocean. He was also inspired by The Serenity Prayer.
• [10:36] His wife was super supportive and started researching health and wellness. He cut sugar, alcohol, and nightshades out of his diet and added things like tumeric.
• [11:59] A rigid diet regimen is almost impossible to follow.
• [13:08] He wanted to give back, so he got involved in Light the Night. He also created the Cancer Crusher team. The money goes towards research which has helped a broad variety of cancer patients. 
• [17:12] Find community to inspire you and start now. 
• [18:42] Community is a huge part of the wellness triangle. Social isolation is a big problem in the US. 
• [19:55] Scott is the mastermind behind Rapid Fire where he fires questions at someone for three minutes to get to know them. 
• [21:06] Scott takes a pause in the car. He also pauses with his family. 
• [22:09] Scott's favorite guiding principle is none of us is as good as all of us.
• [23:45] Dr. Romie expresses her gratitude towards Scott.
• [24:44] What can you do to support your wellness?

Links and Resources:

• "Light The Night" at Angel Stadium in Anaheim on Sept 21, 2019
• The Art of Mindful Living: How to Bring Love, Compassion, and Inner Peace into Your Daily Life
• Why Workplace Wellness & Mindfulness is Important for Leaders & Culture: Interview with Evo's President John Murphy

Evolution Hospitality has built their people-driven culture on a foundation of wellness to help Evolutionaries be the best versions of themselves. In the start of Season 2 of the Wellness Evolved Podcast, Chief Wellness Officer, Dr. Romie introduces the focus of wellness initiatives at Evolution Hospitality.  "Nourish" is one of Evo's components in the Wellness Triangle, but what does it mean to nourish your mind, body, and spirit?

Beyond fad diets or giving up the foods you enjoy, we discuss how to create a sustainable nutrition plan that can be executed in a busy work environment by eating an anti-inflammatory diet for just five days every month.  

Show Notes:

• [02:24] This is the official start to Season 2. The Power of Pause was Season 1. You can still listen to all 16 episodes with included guided meditations.
• [04:11] What does it mean to nourish? You are adding something to your body that is contributing to good health. At Evo we believe in cultivating the whole person.  
• [04:44] When you nourish yourself it's your mind, body, and spirit.
• [05:13] At Evo, we believe in cultivating every person to reach their full potential.
• [05:27] This season is going to focus on nourishing your body through food and movement.
• [06:38] Nourish means creating a customized nutrition plan that serves both men and women of all ages and fitness types.
• [07:16] The core of our nourish program is going to be about reducing inflammation.
• [08:19] We want to balance the bacteria in our gut to reset our gut health and brain health by clean eating for just five days a month.
• [08:30] This means removing inflammatory foods and filling our body with antioxidants.
• [09:45] We will be bringing experts in to talk about these topics.
• [10:04] We'll also be breaking down the 5-day eating plan.

Links and Resources:

• To learn more visit EvolutionHospitality.com

Vice President of Sales at Evolution Hospitality, Gary Spencer, answers one of the most commonly asked questions from Evolutionaries, "help, I'm going to corporate, what do I wear?"  As one of Evo's founders, Gary breaks down how fashion is a mode of self-expression, and the style at Evo is really to show up as your authentic self. Learn about how "The Power of Pause," Evo's corporate mindfulness program has been adopted within the sales division.  Gary also discusses how Evo's guiding principles based on servant leadership are implemented with new team members.

Show Notes:

• [01:36] Founder and Vice President of Sales Gary Spencer is here.
• [02:25] The biggest event EVO is the Annual Leadership Conference.
• [02:49] A lot of people were wondering what to wear leading up to the leadership conference.
• [03:21] As a Southern California company, we try not to take ourselves too seriously. We want people to be comfortable, but we also want them to feel good and look good.
• [04:45] Looking hip and cool starts with a great pair of jeans. Get dark colored jeans that fit your body style. Tuck your shirt in, and sneakers are okay. You can also wear a blazer for the conference.
• [08:24] The point is to dress for comfort.
• [09:29] Gary embodies the spirit of fun and working hard.
• [11:22] The power of pause is fantastic for new hotel takeovers. The first thing we do is start with the power of pause to alleviate anxiety. The power of pause is centering.
• [13:52] Mindfulness isn't a gimmick, it actually works.
• [14:27] The power of pause is our corporate mindfulness program that is based in neuroscience, psychology, organizational psychology, and mindfulness.
• [15:45] If you are healthy at home, you will be healthy at work.
• [16:44] At Evolution the power of pause begins from the top.
• [17:22] Gary answers rapid-fire questions.
• [17:51] Celebrate success wildly is Gary's favorite guiding principle.
• [20:08] Saying thank you and recognition releases feel-good hormones in the body.

Links and Resources:

• Met Gala 2019 Red Carpet: See All the Celebrity Dresses
• EVO Annual Leadership Conference
• Hard Rock Hotel San Diego

Use this guided meditation recorded by Dr. Romie before a team meeting, stand-up or huddle. Take three minutes to pause with this controlled breathing exercise to help quiet the busy brain, connect to calm, and feel focused. The Power of Pause is Evolution Hospitality's corporate mindful movement, and the program based in neuroscience, organizational psychology, and mindfulness.

In order to improve sleep, reduce stress, and feel energized, we promote digital detox before bedtime at Evolution Hospitality. Thirty to sixty minutes before bedtime shut down your digital devices, get yourself organized for bedtime, and use this 10-minute meditation to help clear your mind and welcome sleep. This recorded guided meditation by Dr. Romie is based in mindfulness techniques and can be used anytime during the day when you need to find your center and connect to calm. The Power of Pause is Evolution Hospitality's corporate mindful movement, and the program based in neuroscience, organizational psychology, and mindfulness.

When you feel like your schedule is controlling your day, your mind has lost focus.  Join Dr. Romie in this brief guided meditation for a brief pause for to refocus your mind.  By using this mindfulness-based exercise, we learn how to anchor our minds in present-centered awareness.  Once we anchor in focus, we then feel back in control of our minds and our day.

This recording is a bonus meditation created for Evolution Hospitality as a part of our Power of Pause corporate mindfulness program.