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32. The Whole Human Approach

Who knew we’d go from deadlifts for time to dead ass serious convo around how we evolve in our time? Focusing on how we slow down instead of speeding up?… What happened to us!? Evolution… and botox. Worry not. Some things will always remain on brand #corevalues. On this cast I sit down with long time fitness fam and Colorado OG Crossfitters, Courtney and Brandon Miracle. We have known each other for over 10 years and have seen CrossFit grow and expand to what it is today- from the farm up. Courtney and Brandon own CrossFit Surge, one of the longest running and most successful CrossFit gyms in Colorado. They have seen the cf fitness phenomenon as competitors, business owners, and business partners. AND they are still married!! I joke, but maintaining a biz, a competitive athlete’s schedule, kiddos, pups, and all in-between are no easy feats. The real cardio in life is juggling the balance and prioritizing. Responsibilities over ego. 

Like Courtney and Brandon, fitness and sports have been the entrance doors for me questioning a better way. How can I sleep better, eat better, train better… which eventually opened doors to the mental game and further, deeper questioning. How do I actually feel? Is my body telling me something? Maybe it’s not supplements I need, maybe it’s mediation and vision board? And what does that mean? It took me about 5-7 years to really dig into not only knowing myself as an athlete, but as a whole human. From core values, to allergies, to intuition. How can you be your best self when you don’t know what you are fully dealing with? You wouldn’t go compete without the proper training prep and gear, why would the game of life be any different? I have been so lucky to have had so many different people aid and guide in my personal and athletic journeys, but I really had to piece different things together to make it all fit- one group for training, one for recovery, one for nutrition, one for mental and brain wellness, etc. SO, when I saw Courtney and Brandon launching The Shift Project, a whole human approach to human optimization- I knew we had to cast!! They have streamlined a whole process for you to become your best self, from anywhere! It’s for athletes, parents, entrepreneurs- any and every one looking to live their best life as fully as possible. Tune into hear the details and how their real-life experience, evolution, and commitment to the greater good has brought them to where they are today. It was an absolute pleasure to catch up (and cheer on) my meathead, spiritually enlightened friends as they make the world a better place one human at a time. I am so glad they are coaches, business owners, and role models for a successful relationship… but, mostly that they are parents shaping the next generation that will evolve and lead even faster than we did:)!!

Highlights

Human optimization. The whole human approach, The Shift Project. From PR’s in the gym to PR’s in life. Learning the hard way and speaking from experience. Ethos, credibility, ego, and humility. Competing in sports, CrossFit, and life. Balance and checking in with yourself. Universe speaks, breakdown and breakthrough. Passion and persistence to do good for the world, starting with ourselves. Questing a better way. Varsity humans. 

Courtney and Brandon Miracle

Courtney and Brandon are coaches at heart and serial entrepreneurs. Founders and owners of CrossFit Surge, The Happiness Endeavor and co-owners of Rom-Aid. Their entrepreneurial journey started over 15 years ago, but got a lot more real when they opened CrossFit Surge 10 years ago. Over the last 10 years they have learned that there is so much more to helping people become happy and healthy, and the workouts are often the easy part. They created the Total Shift Project to help their clients understand that the life, happiness and health they want is just a few simple SHIFTS away. They believe in a whole life, whole human approach. Connection of mind, body, soul and business that starts from the inside out. They have 2 amazing daughters who are 4 and 6. Their daughters are truly the reason they have become so passionate about helping the world SHIFT. Their mission is to teach them that they can be strong, passionate and accomplish anything they want in this world, and do it without stress, struggle or overwhelm!

@Courtney.mericle

@B.mericle

@totalshiftproject

@crossfitsurge

@theromaid

crossfitsurge.com

Totalshiftproject.com  

TheHappinessendeavor.com 

ROM-aid.com

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31. Letting Go

One of the hardest things to do in life is to let go. Often times you know it’s coming or it’s necessary, but it doesn’t make the process any easier. We have no training in this, so the natural inclination is to hold on… personally,  professionally, spiritually, relationships, ideas, narratives, etc. We cling to what we think we need. Change is hard all the way around and to admit that something is no longer serving you- something that you love, have created, spent a lot of time on, are committed to, or is part of your identity, is WORK. We often get to a space where we can literally no longer bare the situation and come to a choice point. Ideally, you let go, have some time, and can positively reflect on a hard decision that was the right decision and realize how happy you are in moving on.  This process will continue throughout our lives no matter what and the sooner we can be aware of the need to let go in situations, the better. It’s a constant check in point on all things with ourselves. How is XYZ really serving me? If it’s not, we need to let go.

 On the cast fitness and wellness rock star, entrepreneur, leader, and longtime friend, Andria Bever, and I discuss scenarios in our worlds where it was HARD, but necessary to move on. Both of us are entrepreneurs, contractors, and creators- anyone in that space knows, things move fast and are constantly changing. Business plans change, people change, budgets change, lots of variables… but that’s also what makes it fun:). We dive into the personal and professional, but focus on businesses and situations that we have built from the ground up and at some point, had to let go and move forward. Like me, Andria is someone that bleeds the brand. There is no middle ground, we are either all in or all out… balance is also a learning process:). We are both a bit type A, so we’ll commit until it’s right… or until we make it right. Right? Naa, we have both acquired an awareness on when it’s time to LET GO. Hopefully this cast can somewhat streamline your process in moving on if that is a current space you are in or choice point you are at. Let our work, work for you!!

Whatever you believe, you can rest assure that there is a larger order to things. Often times our hardest decisions are the ones that point us in the right direction. Trust yourself, your gut, and the good people around you and advise you accordingly. The next thing WILL serve you. 

Highlights

Letting go. It’s in the stars. Larger order. Bleeding the brand. Creating, building, and establishing a brand, only to let it go. Choosing your own path, even when it’s not the popular choice. Trusting your young self and being aware of how what you should be doing (or what you love) shows up early in life… go back to that kiddo!! Breakdown, breakthrough. Evolution and revolution. The next big thing. 

Andria Bever:

My love for sports began at a young age, which allowed me to discover my calling early in life. I found a passion for wellness and discovered the value of taking care of our bodies in order to obtain peak performance. 

My career began in 2001 as a Soft Tissue/Stretch Therapist at Exos (teamexos.com, formerly Athletes Performance) from 2004-2011. This setting taught me the value of Recovery for optimal on-field performance. My experience working with professional athletes gave me unique insights into helping the weekend warrior reach his/her potential.  This belief became one of the guiding principles of Denver Sports Recovery.  As Co-Founder of DSR my work extended far beyond the realm of Soft Tissue and Stretch Therapy. I tapped into my entrepreneurial spirit and ran all aspects of the business. I defined the brand and led the business culture by hiring like-minded professionals, created and implemented all Systems and Processes, managed vendor relationships and established strategic partnerships. 

@andriabever19

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30. The Power of Humor

LOL… laugh out loud. Love out loud. Live out loud. All the things, out loud. If you know me, out loud is a comfort zone:), mostly because I naturally have no volume control. Perhaps my creator knew I’d have a podcast one day? (Thank you God, Madonna, glitter, and tequila)… Who knows, but what I do know, after MANY years of uncomfortable biz, sports, personal, and life conversations- humor can save the day. In our current reality, many tough conversations and decisions are coming to the table, thank goodness, and we need find common ground and connection to communicate effectively, with open minds. The range of education, exposure, and tolerance (and so much more) varies greatly person to person. It’s hard to broch tough convos, to want to have them, and then to know how to have them. What about tough convos with kids? There is no rule book for any of this AND communication is the one thing we need the most right now. So, knowing that all things might be imperfect and that there are likely many uncontrolled variables with every tough convo, I offer humor as an entrance point. This is a skill in itself, hence I am SO excited to have Debbie Scheer on the show with me to cover her background and how her gift with humor has been a powerful entrance point to heavy conversations and challenging points in life. Debbie is gracious, smart, experienced, quick, and humble. She has mastered the art of communicating a heavy message with a comforting wave of humor surfing in the larger topic at hand. It’s a vital skill set that we should all embrace. Enjoy a good listen, notes suggested:)

Highlights

Humor. Communication with adults, kids, and everything in between. Stand up comedy, fundraising, auctions. Sex Education. Life pivot points that are blessing in disguise. Following your heart… out loud. Motherhood and adoption. Positive energy and embracing the universe looking out for you. It takes a village. LOL.

Debbie Scheer is a speaker, emcee, benefit auctioneer, and humor coach/strategist who resides in Denver, CO. with her two children.

As a speaker, Debbie effortlessly uses humor as a way to break through the discomfort that prevents us from talking about the things that we NEED to be talking about. Her motto is, if we can laugh about it then we can surely talk about it, regardless of what the ‘it’ is. 

When Debbie isn’t speaking, emceeing, or raising money for nonprofits, she can be found forcing her children to hike with her in the Colorado mountains. You can’t miss them on the trail because she is the one shouting, “WE LIVE IN THE MOST BEAUTIFUL STATE IN THE COUNTRY”, while her boys let out deep sighs of annoyance as they eye roll their way along the trail. 

Debbie’s Connects:

Website

Facebook

Instagram

Linkedin

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29. Conscious Career Change

When the universe quits encouraging you to follow your heart and finally makes you… this cast is about a conscious career change that highlights one person’s journey to his most purposeful space:)

On this cast I sit down with long time lax and fitness fam brother, Dave Loudenslager. We have known each other for over ten years, both played lacrosse and then both got swooped into CrossFit and weightlifting. We have certainly seen each other “grow up(ish)” over the years, so this was a very cool conversation to highlight the personal and professional evolution (or lack thereof, HA). Dave is a long-time educator, coach, and mindful human being. His journey is the perfect example of consciously blending passion and professional worlds to fuel his new business venture, The Athlete Mindset. I won’t say too much from there, but it’s a fun one. If you are looking to truly do a job that highlights all your natural gifts and acquired skill sets, but are not sure how or when to make that leap, this is a great cast for you!

After looking into promotion gates (requirements for students to advance grades) Dave found that it is not a federal mandated program but up to the individual states to set their own policies. Find your states promotion gate policy HERE .

Highlights

Fitness/sports makes friends. Truly living the turmeric and tequila lifestyle. Aka enjoying life and leading fellow humans. The education system. When you get into a job to help people, but lack the agency to do so. Finding and creating a better way. School and what they do and don’t teach us. The evolution of the student and the curriculum. What do our kids need now? Sports and mindfulness. Merging the physical with the mental. Fun.

Dave Loudenslager

Dave Loudenslager is a coach, teacher and former college lacrosse player that is committed to helping young adults realize and achieve their potential. As a teacher Dave helped launch APS Avenues, an alternative education option for students in Aurora Colorado that focuses on teaching social emotional skills along with challenging academic curriculum. With over twelve years’ experience as a coach he has worked with competitive athletes in lacrosse, Olympic weightlifting and Crossfit and is driven by a passion to help others. 

Athlete Mindset is a performance mindset company determined to help athletes find purpose in sport while providing them the skills needed to discover their untapped potential and achieve success on and off the field.

We teach athletes how to develop the skills of self-reliance, honest self-evaluation and reflection. And that in order to have a successful and sustainable career athletes must find a healthy balance between sports and life. It’s our mission to teach them the tools to thrive in both.

The Athlete Mindset

@athletemindset303

@dloudenslager 

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28. Clean Beauty

If you are in health and wellness, you know at this point it’s not just about diet and exercise. It’s about a full, well rounded approach to how you live and how you consume. Fitness, nutrition, sleep, mindfulness… and now toxins! Who knew there was more to worry about? Until recently, we let the majority of our purchasing behaviors be steered by our family and friend (our immediate environment aka influencers) or straight up marketing. Until recently, we didn’t even know what to question or how…. Our make-up, detergent, air fresheners? Again, it’s overwhelming to know how much you need to know to live as clean as you can.  AND the more you dig in and do the research you really see how much you don’t know. Hello outsourcing. Find someone who lives and works in the space and consult them accordingly. That person is Karen for me. She is a long time, great friend that I met while training at FRCF #fitfam. She has all the makings of a great advisor/coach… certifications, degrees, AND she lives it. She talks about training, tips, tricks, sources on where to find the right stuff, questions to ask… and if you don’t need the ENTRIE clean life 411, she can just tell you what to do and what not to do:). I have come to her many times over the years for nutrition, recovery, supplement advice and now beauty products! I had no idea how many toxins were in the things we were consuming every day and how much is absorbed in our skin. AND a lot of companies know this… WTF. So just like the nutrition and fitness space, transparency is not the highest priority. Karen and I chat all things clean beauty, questions to ask, why she loves and supports Beautycounter (google them if you don’t know already) and how they are taking things to the next level fighting for further beauty regulations federally. I highly recommend everyone watch the NetFlix Doc, Stink, it sums up why you should be wondering what we are putting on our bodies, cleaning our houses with, and what products that are not consumer packaged goods are treated with. Its mind blowing. Cheers to clean living, one convo and product at a time!

Highlights

Clean beauty. Holding companies accountable. Questioning a better way. Ramifications of these toxins? Karen’s fitness and wellness journey. Good options. What you can do to help make a difference. Balance and beauty. Out spoken women and pups:)

Karen Rylander

Karen is a certified nutrition consultant passionate about helping clients uncover their innate, primal health buried under all of our modern toxins. 

She’s a native Texan, but has called Colorado home the past 20 years. She’s been working as a certified nutrition consultant since 2011 when she graduated from Bauman College. She also has a Food and Wine certification from CookStreet and a B.A. in Anthropology from University of Colorado. In 2017, Karen joined forces with Beautycounter, a skincare company on a mission to get safer products into the hands of everyone. She lives in Denver, CO with her husband who is a chiropractor and their dog, Ginger.

Beautycounter.com/karenrylander

goprimalbykaren.com

advancedspinedenver.com

IG @karenscleanliving