Breaking Down Weight-Loss Barriers

< Full Episode

Transcript: Breaking Down Weight-Loss Barriers

Season 10, Episode 9  | April 1, 2025

[MUSIC]

Welcome back to Life Time Talks. I’m Jamie Martin.

And I’m David Freeman.

And today, we are talking about common barriers to weight loss. Weight loss is a top goal for many people, and it’s often common that people will get stuck in patterns that aren’t serving them in this. So we are excited to have one of our go-to guest back. We have our friend, Anika Christ. David, do you want to —
Yeah. So Anika Christ, as you all know, she’s senior director for Nutrition and Weight Loss Program here at Life Time. She spent the last 15 years, creating nutrition programs and solutions for both members and personal training clients. You might recognize her as Coach Anika from the members’ favorite program, D.TOX, as well as Lean and Tone and the 60-Day Challenge. So welcome back, Miss Anika. How are you feeling?

I’m feeling good. Thanks for having me.

All right, let’s get into it. Let’s do this.

You’re always a fan favorite. OK, so Anika, you’ve spent the past decade and a half, helping literally thousands of Life Time members approach different healthy living goals, including weight loss goals. You know well that it can be a really frustrating thing for people, when they’re not seeing progress, when they’re getting stuck.

And why isn’t this working, that thought process that people go through? But they’re not alone in that. It’s actually a pretty common frustration that people have. When they hit a plateau, they’re not seeing progress. So what would you say to that for people? Why is it so common to get stuck?

Yeah, I think when I first got into my career, I never actually thought I would be in weight loss. A lot of dieticians go through this. You’re going to get into sports nutrition. You’re going to do all these really fun things with nutrition. And then, you get into the world and realize how big of a, A, opportunity it is. But then, B, it’s such a problem.

And even I’ve been at this for over 16 years now, and it is still such —still as prevalent as it was when I first got into the field. So I think, for a lot of people, there’s more content now than ever before. So when I first started out, it was very much like people didn’t realize the connection with nutrition.

It was very much like, you just exercise. You’re not exercising enough, if you’re having issues with body storage or body fat storage. Now, I think most people know it’s in tandem. You need both. You need to do a lot of other things, too, that we’re going to talk about. But I think, for a lot of people, they become almost the reason they don’t get far enough with it.

I feel like I see that more now, than ever before, that we’re not short of information or education. It can get really confusing. I think a lot of us compare ourselves to other people, too, and they think, well, that’s working for this person. Why isn’t it working for me? And I would think, when I was trained, it was very much like, you need to hold people accountable.

Very much, it was like food journaling, read penning, telling people what was wrong with what they’re doing. And I haven’t touched that, probably, in over 10 years now, but I really think a lot of us interfere with ourselves. We’re getting in our own way. And a lot of times, I think more than ever, it’s actually in the brain.

A lot of people think they can’t get —they can’t be that individual. And they don’t realize the power that your mind has over your body. And so we have a lot of false starts. We have a lot of misinformation. We have a lot of just like those core foundational things just not being met, that a lot of us could work on, even more every day, I think.

All right. So Anika, let’s unpack that a little bit. So there’s so much out there that people are seeing and hearing. And you just said, people are getting in their own heads. Then, you also said accountability. So let’s just ground people right now with what we, sometimes, see when it comes to weight loss.

Let’s talk about exercise and how it should be used, when it comes to weight loss, health and longevity as a whole, unpack that a little bit. And then, also, how people might associate these same things to their goals. So the goal is the end result. But what you just said, in the head, accountability. You got to have some of these little wins, I would call them, before you get to that goal. So can you unpack that a little bit?
Yeah. So when you mentioned exercise, I think I’ve always thought and seen, especially through the members, at Life Time, exercise is the best drug on the planet. I think it’s actually the kickstart to everything. So I will say, in my career, many people have come up to me like, isn’t it just all about nutrition, though?

Don’t you get so mad at so many people? Because they go after exercise first. And when it comes to transformation, and if we’re going to talk energy balance and calories and all the things associated with food, yes, nutrition has the bigger impact on those results. However, I think it’s really hard just to do a nutrition-only program.

I think exercise is kind of the chain link reaction to everything. I will put people on an exercise program before their nutrition event, because it builds their confidence. It helps their energy. They feel good. It starts to —I always call it chain link, because when you do a workout for the day, and you’re like, I already put my body through that stress.

I did something hard and challenging. I showed up and provided effort. I’m going to be more likely to eat better the rest of the day. I’ve seen it time and time again. It’s science. It’s mental. It’s all these encompassing things. It’s not like one thing that causes that, but I see it all the time with clients, that I’m like, nope, let’s prioritize that movement because you’re going to feel better.

You’re going to be a better parent, better spouse that day. We see that all the time, too. There’s something that happens there, which is why I call it the drug. They can’t exist without each other. You need both. And I think, with exercise, because there’s so many modalities —that’s what’s great about Life Time, too. There’s so many different ways you can do it.

But people, this is how they get in their own way. They’re like, do I do Alpha, or do I do GTX or do I do —and it’s like, it’s all of it. It’s probably depends on where you’re at in your journey. And I think when you know that and learn that, you’re so much more accepting of that, OK, it’s going to be a journey.

There’s going to be things that I start and stop. There’s not a perfect routine for everybody, but it’s figuring out what actually keeps you consistent. Because consistency is king. You probably see that, just in your field. It’s not the type. It’s just if you just show up on a regular basis.

So I always tell people, I want you to move, but don’t give it too much credit either. You can’t just do that. You got to do the other things, too. But I do think it is the reason why people are more likely to stick to their nutrition side of things.

Let me tag on to that. So for everybody watching or the listeners, you said, getting the movement done early on sets the foundation to put you in the right mindset, to start to do all the other things right as well.

Yes.

And then the consistency behind that leads to the result. Is that what I’m hearing?

Absolutely.

OK.

I see it all the time. It’s all up here.

Yep.

And that’s what’s so funny is, when I got into the field —I’ve talked about this a few times on your guys’ show. I learned that from my mother. She did cardio for her movement up here. It was always about —that was never about transforming her body. So that’s how I got into the field.

Now, being in the field, I’ve worked with many a personal trainers, many members, and that’s where it’s important, but sometimes, we give it the wrong credit. And it’s so impactful. And I think in today’s world, brain health is everything. They don’t. They have to cope. Everything is health, right?

It’s not one or the other, but this has so much more merit. And I think people are really starting to realize that and give it the credit. But together, it’s super powerful. It really is. I see it every day.

I love that.

Absolutely. I know you said consistency matters. Doing something you love, I think, is going to help create that consistency. But one type of movement that is proven to help with changing body composition is strength training. So let’s hone in on that for just a few minutes. Because you mentioned alpha. You mentioned GTX.

Both of those have strong strength components. Let’s talk about strength training and why that really is an essential part of an exercise routine, regardless of whether you’re after weight loss or something else.

Yeah. So strength training, in turn, for me, I didn’t go to school for it. I didn’t study it, but I fell into it, just working one on one with so many people at Life Time. I look at it as a way to build the most durable body possible. And I think when you look at movement that way, it’s more, what am I adding versus what I’m taking away or depriving or purging some of the negative connotations we see with movement or exercise.

Strength training, the more muscle you have, A, we know after the age of it’s now shown after the age of 30. I was always taught after the age of 40, you just start to lose it. You start to waste your muscle. So I’m passionate about it of, oh, my gosh, in your 20s and 30s, try to build as much muscle as possible.
It’s going to be better for your metabolism. It’s going to be better for your structure. Bone mass, bone density, that’s a big thing that, maybe, in our youth we’re not thinking about. But if we could think of it as a bank account, the more deposits, the better. It was the best to start it yesterday, but if you haven’t started yet, start today.

There’s still such a ROI on it. But I think of it, from most of the work I’ve done with it is helping people improve their metabolic rate and their metabolism. And I think when I think of my customers, the look they’re looking for, they want to feel strong. They want to be lean. They want to be toned. That’s why I have a program called Lean and Tone.

That comes from lifting. It doesn’t come from excessive cardio, doesn’t come from deprivation. It’s more building onto it. And I always think of the posture, what people look like after, when they look at their own before and afters. And you’ll hear trainers. Trainers are so smart. That’s who I learned it from.

I think back in 2008, when I joined Life Time, learning that from personal trainers. I was a cardio queen at that time. And I remember just the challenging thoughts they faced every day is people saying, well, I’m heavier on the scale, or I feel like, my jeans don’t fit as great right now in the beginning days of building muscle.

But when you go back and look just the transformation, you see it every day. And I think it’s really cool, because just as a female, just the amount of women on the fitness floor now, if I looked at that 2008 time and now, it’s incredible. People are really picking it up, and they’re feeling great. And they’re putting the work there.

So I think if you’ve ever challenged yourself there or felt like, oh, it’s extra work, or I don’t feel confident there, I’m really big about hiring a coach. Get confident on the fitness floor. Start as young as possible. Do it at least four days a week. I think there’s something about doing it the majority of the week.
So if you have seven days in a week — if you can do it four days a week, I think there’s something to that, too. But any is better than nothing. So even if it’s just one day a week, do it. It’s worth it for your body and your transformation.

I like the deposits.

Yes.

Because we’ve always heard health is wealth, right? So making those deposits, and you saying having a hyperfocal point around the strength training versus just the cardio, helping out with heart health, the strength, and having the currency, if you will, with that metabolism, with having lean muscle mass for the latter part of your life.

So now, that’s movement. That’s exercise. And we know we champion nutrition. That also has an effect on muscles being built, and then, obviously, having great metabolism, and being efficient at doing the things that we’re talking about. So when it comes to nutrition, to help complement a lot of the strength training or even the cardio, how does that play a central role in this weight loss?

So now I’m going to talk out of both sides of my mouth because I’m like, nutrition is everything.

Right?

But moving — and so, again, I love exercise. That will always be the drug. But nutrition, this is where I feel like most of us get in our own way. There is very fundamental, foundational things to do. And I think what’s hard, when I work with clients, I’m usually like, have you — you just haven’t tried it, or do you just not want to do that?

You’re not accountable to yourself, where you’re like, I’ve already tried high protein. I’ve already tried eating whole foods. And a lot of people get really — I always call it like the fringe. The new things that come out, I love it, too. We’re just talking ashwagandha. I love the high up things. People start there. And I’m like, no, no, no, no, we’re going to go back to the basics.

And it’s not sexy. And it’s like, no, I want to do the latest. Should I do fasting? And I’m like, we’re not there yet. We got to — it’s really important to lay the foundations. And I think people don’t realize —we talk protein all the time. And I always laugh, because in today’s age, all the memes on social media, it’s like, I had no idea how much I was going to be thinking about protein in my 40s and my 50s.

And it’s cool, right? Because I think back to those trainers — and I always talk about them, the first ones I met at Palm Valley Life Time in 2008. And I remember just thinking like, they don’t know. I just got out of school. You don’t know nutrition. And their knowledge comes from subjective one-on-one feedback, what they’ve seen people change.

And I always think of those people. They’re probably like, finally, the world is waking up to the stuff we’ve known for decades. They get there first, right? We owe a lot to — I always think just bodybuilders, in general, but personal trainers because of what they do. But protein, number one. If you could just start there.

And I think what’s hard — I have different genres of clients, so the clients that are probably in their 60s and 70s, they’re like, I never had to do this before. And I have to educate them, like foods changed, too. And being in America is a natural stressor that the rest of the world doesn’t have to deal with, because they’re closer to ancestral practices, where we’re very high convenience, high processed.

But that’s probably the number one thing I see is just getting back to the root of nutrition. And if there’s a block, I see that a lot. That’s the mental side of this, where they’re not willing. I’m like, you’re not ready yet then? And it’s very simple. And I’m always been that coach. I’m a little direct. I’m a little blunt.

I’m not going to lie to your face. I’m very much like, this is the way. But I will help you. If you’ve got mental blocks, we’ve got to work through that, sometimes, too. And I get excited when people get excited about the latest. And I’m like, that’s great, but if this isn’t started, we’re not going to.

It’s great if you want to do that, too. I’m all about it, but don’t think doing that is going to get the result that you told me you’re looking for. And that’s where the transparency has to come from. So there’s a lot to unpack with nutrition.

I like that. That’s a great place to start — transparency and rawness and realness. I love that. I love that.
OK, so you already mentioned protein, but there’s the two other macronutrients we want to make sure to get to. And they’re often misunderstood in terms of their role in weight loss. So let’s talk a little bit about fats and carbohydrates.

Yeah. So I think of them as two fuel tanks, in general. You will see a lot of really great expert nutrition coaches. I always tell people, everyone knows high protein. I feel like every great diet —I’ll call it a diet out there. There’s several out there — usually, they’re all closer to each other than they’re different.
It’s the irony behind it, but high protein is the way. If you want to do high fat and low carb or low fat and high carb, it doesn’t matter. It depends on the individual, and that’s where I work with. And so there’s people that get really passionate on both sides like, no, no, no, carbs are the devil. You should do high fat. They’re more natural foods.

And then there’s the reverse, where people are like, I do not do well with fat. I’ve tried it. I do better on high —and it doesn’t matter. It actually doesn’t — we don’t need to get dogmatic about a way. I actually don’t love that side of nutrition. I’m always like, dude, I’m like, whatever works for that individual, but with the foundations in, I would say, at the forefront of the mind, high protein, high quality food.

But fats and carbs are fuel tanks. They’re fuel resources. If I blanketed statement America, I’d say, most of us are probably getting too many carbohydrates for what we’re actually using. And I always think of that as the quick fuel. If you are moving active throughout the day, you’re probably going to get away with it a little bit more.

When we talk about strength training, hey, that’s a great way to earn carbohydrates, if you really like those foods or you like the idea of that. I don’t like low carb, though, no carb. And that’s what it’s like, is it low or no? Because low is defined by less than 150 grams per day.

Some people have gone down the whole track of absolutely none. And that’s where I’m like, well, OK, let’s talk fruits and vegetables. Let’s talk about those things. I think there’s a lot of really great information out there, too. During the season, you guys have talked about it, like blue zones and stuff, too.

When you’re in warmer climates or warmer times of year, your body, naturally, probably does better with more fruits and vegetables, because it’s in season. We’re Vikings up here in the cold Arctic, so it’s been said that during the colder winter months, we actually do better with a lower carbohydrate, because we were hibernating.

Our guts evolve. We’re always going to evolve. We’re evolving creatures and nature. So again, I don’t get dogmatic, like this is the way. But I think people have to monitor it. And I think if you’re doing in whole food form, you’re going to do better.

Fruits and vegetables, it’s really hard to over consume. It’s really easy to consume a box of cereal. So don’t make it. They shouldn’t be in the same territory. In my mindset, I’m like, I don’t like when they get compared, the same are lumped as carbohydrates, right?

They’re one group that’s right there, right?

Yeah.

Plus, not to mention that fruits and vegetables are amazing sources of phytonutrients and other bioavailable things that we need. All the things we need.

Fiber.

Yes.

Yeah. And we’re probably not getting enough fiber in general. And that’s what I’ve learned because these blanketed statements —just working with coach or clients, of things they’ve tried. People have removed them entirely. And then they’re like —and I’m like, well, OK, there’s a difference. Skins on fruits and vegetables have fiber in them, and there’s different things.

So I think that’s where the confusion comes from. There’s almost too much education out there, so then, people get scared. And I’m like, go back to finding your intuition. If something grew in the ground or comes from the planet, different than something in the box, start there. And that’s where it’s like, it can be eye opening for people.

And they’re like, I never even thought about it that way. So fats, generally speaking, again, great fuel tank, great satiator. If you eliminate fat, people have a really hard time staying full or satisfied. It also has a really good mouth appeal for food. So I feel like, when you’re talking just about pure enjoyment, oils, olives, natural sources, like avocado, I think they all have a really great place.

And I think, in general, variety is king. Variety is great for your gut health. We talk about gut health. That’s a whole other episode. But your ability to fight off — your immune system to work functionally to fight off disease, that comes from gut health.

So that’s where nutrition is so multi-platform, where it’s in the tone of weight loss, I think as much variety as you can give, high protein, balance your fats and carbs, whole foods, as much as possible, it’s a really solid plan, if you think of it that way.

That feels accessible, when you think of it that way, versus, OK, I can’t have this, or I can’t have that, or when we’re limiting things. But if you’re focused on a few things — and I love — I know I so often hear about the additive approach versus the restrictive, which when we’re eating more of these things that are actually good for us, we maybe don’t want those other things or don’t need them as much.

You called it out, as far as the other countries have this ancestral practice that they’re closer to getting a lot of the things that they need in their foods. And you said, here in the US, it’s all about the convenience and mass production and processed foods.

So now, the individuals who have the right mindset are trying to do these things, then they’re probably still not meeting the demand, based off of how processed certain things may be, or if the fruits and vegetables are not in the soil as long, so they’re not as rich with the nutrients.

And then comes in segment supplements. And now, we have these supplements. But you just said it. Foundationally, you do the right thing. Make sure you’re actually eating a lot of these whole foods and eliminating the processed foods. When do supplements start to come into play to help close that gap that we might have in the space?

Yeah, and it gets confusing, too, because people are like, with the role I do, I’m really passionate about supplements, high quality. There’s an angle. I don’t love the industry, in general, because just the opportunities for people to put in a lot of false claimed things and just things that don’t work.

I think in America, they’re absolutely necessary, though. And I will say that you said it a little bit of it, like hey, fruits and vegetables don’t have as much nutrition as they once did. That has a lot to do with the soil here and what we perceive as important in America on quality sources of foods. I wish it wasn’t the case.
But I always look at it as there’s foundational things that we are not. Even if you’re eating perfect, you’re still not getting it enough through food. And that’s really a high quality multivitamin, omega-3 fish oil, and then what’s known to be the highest deficiencies in America with a vitamin is vitamin D.

We talk about that a few times. It’s more of a hormone, but it’s labeled as a vitamin. And then on the mineral side, it’s magnesium. And it’s shown in lab chemistry. So if you get your blood work done, you can actually measure your levels. We know a lot of the vitamin D comes from us, just not getting sun exposure every day on a regular basis, especially in this Viking climate we’re in right now.

We’re not outside. And I always say that to parents, too. You need to check your kids’ vitamin D. They’re not outside anymore either. And sometimes, we can plan against that. And we can say, hey, I’m going to that important. But the reality is, they are in school all day. A lot of times, they’re not running outside, and it’s easy to hibernate. It’s darker earlier.

So there’s a lot of different elemental things that ignite that. But I always tell people, if you really want to look at the high quality — because when I look at quality nutrition, sometimes, that interferes with people’s success, and I say that delicately. I’m a big proponent of organic meats, organic produce.

But if it, all of a sudden, makes someone say, I’m not even going to try, I can’t afford. I don’t have access. That’s too complicated. That’s too much money. Whatever the reason, I’ll work through those barriers quietly and silently with them on the back side. But in the beginning, I’m like, I just want you to eat healthier. That’s the goal.

And if you can’t, let’s figure out ways that you can. And if you can do it through food alone, I’m going to champion you all day, but it’s really, really hard. And I say that. And I have a lot of different client types, where they realize that, and they might need way more supplements than the other person who’s eating high quality meat at every meal, hitting their protein targets really into advanced organic nutrition, putting sea salt in their water all day.

I do have some clients like that, too, but it just depends. And I’m always going to look at blood work, and I’m always going to say, I want to check your metabolism. So that I am not giving you a bad recommendation to say, yeah, you’re probably good enough without it. I want to make sure you’re good and optimal.

So supplements, I think, have a place, especially if you live in this country. The food quality just isn’t there. And then you have to —this is where you have to be accountable. Look at yourself in the mirror to say, am I really doing all these things? I’m the first person that will say, I hate salmon.

I’m not going to eat salmon every day for omega 3. And that’s real. That’s me. There’s some foods, I think, we all have on our list that we’re like, I’m not going to get down. I don’t care how healthy it is. Not everyone’s like that, but most of the people I’ve met are. But I am —to me, I’m like, I will never quit fish oil because I just do not have that intake.

And I’m purposely not intaking it to at the same point. And I think we need a reality check there. But that’s where, again, we talked about ashwagandha. We’re talking about all these other nutrients come in, and I get those sent to me all the time. I always use my mom as an example. She’s like, should I do this for my hair and nails?

I’m like, you’re doing omega-3? Oh, shoot. No, you’re right. OK, go back to the foundation. Let’s start over. Don’t hang out on the fringe. The fringe is exciting. But if you’re not doing all the basics and the fundamentals, it’s not worth it. So to me, it’s like I said, the multi, the fish, magnesium, and D, time and time again.

If you check your D, and you’re getting —you’re against the rest of America, and you’re just getting enough, great, then, you don’t have to tak e it. I love that for you. Check it, though.

For our listeners, I want them to know, based off of the deficiencies that we see usually here, vitamin D and magnesium, can you tell us what the byproduct is, if you are deficient in those? Yeah.

Oh my gosh. Yeah, well, vitamin D, I would say, your immune system is usually pretty taxed, if you’re getting sick often. Now, I think that that’s interesting, because people are like, what does that mean? I don’t even know what often means anymore. Because we’ve all just gone through the last five years together.

But usually, two sicknesses a year are normal. That is normal. That’s normal for adults as well. I think what’s happening now is people are getting cold, respiratory illnesses way more often. Or if you feel like, hey, you get a viru, and it takes you down for a week or two, I would check your vitamin D, OK?

Definitely check your immune system. There’s all sorts of things you can help support your immune system, in addition to vitamin D, but that, to me, is number one. Low mood, seasonal depression, also very highly correlated with low vitamin D, blood sugar issues. There’s all sorts of things metabolically, that it actually helps.

That’s why it’s more of a prohormone. And this is where — I’ll use the fringe word again. I have clients who are like, I want to check my hormones. And I’m like, that’s great. Let’s also check your vitamin D. Because that, actually, in reverse, helps each other, too. So if one is off, you start to see side effects of the other thing.

So I love full body blood work, but that’s what I most often see, especially with kids. There’s a lot of low mood with kids, and I’ll be like, check your vitamin D, and it’s usually low. It happens all the time. Magnesium is responsible for 400 metabolic reactions in the body. It’s actually insane.

And you actually need — here’s the thing. Those two work together. You can’t have a good, healthy vitamin D without magnesium, so you should take them both together. That’s optimal. Restless legs, tennis elbow is what I hear a lot of lifetime customers complain. I’m like, oh, cramping of the feet? Did you check your magnesium? Let’s check your magnesium.

But it’s responsible for so many things, as well as just energy production in general. So it’s a big deal. It’s the number one mineral deficiency in America. And so, then, I will get the question of, well, what kind? Because there’s 12 forms of magnesium. And I’m like, first of all, let’s just supplement your intake.

You’ll look at the Life Time multivitamin. We have a form of magnesium in there. But then, in addition, I will say, magnesium is so big, if you put optimal levels on the pill, you wouldn’t be able to swallow it. So we also recommend additional supplemental magnesium.

But there’s different forms to help you sleep, relax. That’s great for all the different things that it does in the body, the blood-brain barrier as well. But we’re all just about, just get enough in first, and then we can get really specific.

All right, y’all heard it. You heard it.

Supplements are great, because they help, right?

Yeah.

They shouldn’t overtake your diet. It shouldn’t be — I have a couple clients like that, too, where they’re like, just what’s the next supplement? I’m like, OK, hold on. Let’s try to eat some of the stuff, too. There’s a way to eat. There’s so much food, in general.

I think it’s cool how an apple is designed to have all these things together. There’s something with that, too. So I’m like, I like it to supplement, but the supplement should take you farther, but you still want a foundation of a really great healthy eating diet, for sure.

Absolutely.

Well, we’ve got the foundational things down, right? We’ve talked exercise. We’ve talked nutrition. Some of the other things we want to get to in this episode are some of those common barriers. And one of them, that we’ve all talked about in different episodes, too, is stress.

Yeah.

What role does stress play as a barrier to weight loss? Because we could be doing all the exercise — all the exercise things, all the nutrition things, right? But then, we’re really stressed.

Yes.

And that could deter or detract from our success within this program, if we’re doing a program.
Yeah, when we look at just metabolic issues, in general, stress is probably the number one, where I would say, it interferes with everything. They’re always in tandem. We talk about it a lot with sleep. Because when you’re high stress, it’s really hard to sleep. And when we’re not sleeping well, we don’t eat well, right?

Because we’re naturally craving more sugar. There’s all sorts of metabolic disruptions that happen with that. I think stress is slowly hurting all of us. I’ve never seen it as high as I have now as a practitioner. I always say, in my early days, people were like, oh, yeah, but she’s stressed, too. She’s a mom, too.

There was always this comparison, and I would never have thought, like today’s world, where people are like, I am overstressed. I need help. How do I fix it? People are starting to realize, that it’s not just stress exists, it’s your resilience against stress. And again, that goes back to building that durable body, making sure your strength training.

When I can validate someone’s body as maybe over producing stress, or we always talk about it as cortisol, and we do testing to check that. And you see, oh, yeah, we’ve got imbalance of stress hormone in the body. We know that’s catabolic. We know that’s super inflammatory. And the irony, though, is the recommendations I usually make are very similar to what I would tell you to do every day.

It’s like you need to prioritize strength training. We need to have high protein, high antioxidant to help support what’s going on in your body, less cardio. And they’re like, what? And I’m like, it’s actually not helping you right now, but a really great walk outside, deep breathing, breathing exercises, in general, super helpful for people to just — that are accessible, free, something to pause, and actually think about what’s happening in your body.

I will go through people as like — I don’t want to call myself a life coach, but I’d be like, all right, unload. What are you overcommitted? Are your kids overcommitted? What’s going on? What are things you can stop and start? Even though my focus, primarily, is nutrition, supplements, and wellness, I usually will do a full intake of, you tell me everything.

And then let’s help each other decide what you can actually quit. You can’t always quit your life, can’t quit your job. What are the things, though, to help build up that resilience against that stuff, that you need to start prioritizing. I think number one that I’ve seen is telling people, you need to be number one on your to-do list.

Yeah.

You have to be.

Which is so hard to do.

It’s so hard.

It’s so hard.

And we all have different moments in life, where it’s easier, right? Where you’re like, let me think about when I was feeling really good. Oh, yeah, I was prioritizing my workout time every day. I was going outside first thing in the morning and just taking a beat for myself. People don’t realize the importance of a lot of that stuff. I learned it through our customers and our members — everything.

I’m always like, from coaching them, before I became a parent, I became, I feel like an amazing parent, because I was learning from them, the things I needed to prioritize. The amount of young parents or new parents that will stay up after kids go to bed to watch TV because they feel like they just haven’t gotten their time. And I’m like, but —

I know.

— let me tell you about going to bed early and waking up earlier. That’s the flex for your metabolism, for your mental health, for your awareness. So there is a little bit of that. That goes through it, too. But stress, it will kill you. I hate to say it that way, but catabolically, what’s happening to your body, it interferes all the time.

So the foundational stuff is the recipe, though, if your body’s under stress. But then, it’s unwinding. How can I recommit, deprioritize things that aren’t serving me well. It’s a great question to ask, how is it serving you?

I love that question.

Well, you said you’re a straight shooter. I mean, that’s not morbid at all. Stress will kill you. That’s a real thing. So with that, you just said it earlier, as far as in tandem with sleep, and how we can get ahead of this, in some which way or form, sleep is essential.

Yes.

We talk about it all the time, and it sounds catchy. Sleep is essential. With that, I know I even reached out to you and Sam so many times, when just trying to be optimal in what I’m doing. And they lead, a lot of times, with, well, how is your sleep, Dave? And it’s like, I don’t answer that one right.

Back to that.

Yeah. And that’s the reality. I’ve noticed over the past three or so months, since implementing 7, 8 hours, sometimes, of sleep, it is a different me in the morning.

Oh, yeah.

And I’ve obviously been accustomed to figuring it out with only five hours, but the difference, I feel and see, and people, too, they see. Oh, you’re different. Your energy is even higher. So let’s unpack that a little bit.

Yeah.

The benefits of sleep and all the things that we talked about, prior to this, as far as making sure that we’re moving, making sure our nutrition is on point, making sure we’re managing our stress. Let’s say we’re doing all three of those pretty well, but then, we are sucking at sleep. What happens?

Well, how is your body supposed to recover when it’s not sleeping? It goes back to that intuition a little bit. And I will say, I’ve seen it change with clients. I think of it early days all the time, and people are like, I don’t need to sleep. And now, I feel like there’s so much information out there.

They’re like, oh, it’s that bad? It’s like, it’s that bad. It really, reversely, just like stress, can really harm your body. I mentioned already, it has a huge impact on nutrition. And then, I just think blood sugar regulation in general. You don’t want your blood sugar —you want your blood sugar nice and steady.

You don’t want it going up and down. If you’re not getting sleep, it’s already starting high, higher than normal. Your body recovers from those exercises, too. And you probably see it all the time, too, where, sometimes, it’s not the exercise. It’s like as you’re giving your body optimal time to recover, to shut down, to rest, the amount of people that don’t rest is —you think of stress of workout, I think of it as a good stress.

But you want your body to — you stressed out the muscle, you want it to rebuild. So that’s where nutrition and sleep come in. But then the everyday life of an American, everybody is under stress, right? I have some clients —I remember, I’ve had several anesthesiologists that did 13-hour surgeries, and getting them to have stable blood sugar before that surgery, because they couldn’t eat throughout it, that was how —

I love complex too, but it was figuring that out. And I’m like, that’s stress. I had a client that, as a 911 operator, it’s a really stressful job to take those calls. So sometimes, it helps with your perception of what’s real stress, and then what is self-induced stress, and what’s overcommitment?

That’s why I do like to do that intake, but it was — this is where the accountability, looking yourself in the mirror. I’m like, no, you absolutely can go to bed before 9:00. I can show you. If you have a normal, corporate, regular, 9:00 to 5:00, 8:00 to 5:00 work schedule —I have kids, too, so that’s helped me become more of a powerful practitioner.

I’m like, this is how I do it. It can be done. But that is, I would say, 9 times out of 10, it’s people just lack their own stubbornness. They’re not willing to do it. They’re like, well, this is when I get caught up on my Netflix shows or — and I’m like, I get it. Let’s prioritize that time elsewhere. But every night, it’s just like reading.

That’s a big thing. People are like, I don’t read anymore. You should read in bed. Let’s start that. That’s a better, healthier approach. So it’s really, a lot of times, it’s in people’s own hands to make the change there. Now, that’s where supplements can help. So again, high stress. If you’re my 911 operator, he’s got a whole adrenal protocol, because his job, he’s not going to quit.

He loves it. I’m going to help him there. I’m going to do other advanced nutrition to support that. But when he sleeps, he might need to use sleep supplements, too, like a melatonin, like an ashwagandha, to help calm down that nervous system. I do think I’ve learned about the nervous system through the people.
I think in the next few years, we’re all going to be starting to talk about the nervous system a lot more, which is exciting, parasympathetic versus sympathetic, really doing advanced strategies to help support it. You’re already seeing it with children quite a bit, too. I think that’s the thing. But you need to go to bed.
And I would say, pick a bedtime, stick to it. Do everything you can to protect that. And if you’ve got things that actually get in the way, there’s supplement solutions that can help support that. But it is being accountable to yourself and as an adult, and I would say 9 times out of 10, that’s what I see, is people just not willing to do it.

Right. I will use myself as an example. I go to bed, most nights, by 9:30, 9:45. But I like to read. But then, I get into a good book. And then I stay up too late. And then, I’m like, I was in bed. I just like —
The intention was there.

The intention was to go to bed, but then, one more chapter. And then you’re like, oh, gosh, it’s 11 o’clock. And I just now —I cut my sleep back from what would have been 7 and 1/2 hours to 6 and 1/2 or six. Why do we do this? I mean, exactly — but I think that’s just what happens.

Enjoyment.

It’s enjoyment. It’s like that little bit of pleasure we have in our busy lives, like that time for you. But it’s a lot. But it also just the downstream effects it has, just what we see later.

I want to — and that’s what I was about to say. The individual who now goes to bed at 9:00 and gets up at 5:00, tell the difference that happens from going to bed at 12:00 and getting up at 8:00. There might be —I’m still getting my seven to eight hours of sleep, but isn’t something different happened in those wee hours of the night?

Yeah. I mean, I’m not a full-blown sleep expert, but I would say, there is certain times, where REM sleep can go up, and people would say, there’s an optimal time. I think it’s between 11:00 and 7:00. If you can get before 11:00, even better, but that’s like optimal. That’s why, people that have swing shifts in our medical community, they have huge issues, a lot of the times, with their metabolism.

And what happens from being opposite of when the sun is out and trying to sleep during that and being awake when the moon is up. But that’s, naturally, we’ve talked about the circadian rhythm and the cortisol production. And usually, you’re naturally supposed to have a higher cortisol, first thing in the morning, when the sun rises.

And if you think of sleep as a nutrient, you start to think of the sun as a nutrient, too. There’s things that we’re human body, full of electrons, that outside of nutrition and exercise, we look at as triggers of nutrition to the body. So I always think of fresh air outside sun, sleep, as just as critical as the other ones.
But you can have a huge negative downturn on your metabolism, your blood sugar, your ability to just be, I would say not friendly inviting, but you know what I mean? Friendly inviting, it has a huge impact. But I like that you are just your own case study, too, because I always tell people, subjectively, how do you feel?

And they’re like, you’re right, I feel a lot better. It’s a flex. It’s like that first early morning, especially if you’re a parent, to have that time to yourself early in the morning —there’s a book called The 5:00 AM Club, and I fell hard in love with that book. Because I was like, yes, I love being up at that time, having the world to myself. There’s something with that.

But even if you’re not up to six or seven, but you’re getting that solid eight, that’s the other thing is you have to learn what works for you. I have some clients that need nine, because they are go-getters at the gym. They just need the recovery time. And I’m like, then you need nine.

And there’s different times of life I’ve needed nine, where I sleep deprived because I was a new mom. There’s different things with that, but the seven to eight is ideal for most, for sure.

OK. We have a couple more barriers to get through, and I know we’re coming up on time here shortly. So let’s talk about the microbiome. You already mentioned gut health, but that’s often one that we don’t think about as having an impact on whether or not we can lose weight.

Yes, the microbiome. That’s what’s so cool is there’s so many different microbiomes in the body, too. But I always think of just gut health, in general. And I deal with it, subjectively, with a lot of clients would be like, I’m just always bloated. I don’t feel well when I eat certain foods.

We have a slew of testing we do at Life Time, one that just looks at the reactions of foods, food sensitivities, where we start to really unpack, hey, is there foods that you don’t do well with right now more so? Because a lot of times, people use that as very black and white, like see, I don’t feel good with almonds. That might be true.

But usually, what’s happening is you’re starting to react to foods. It’s your microbiome that’s under stress. And we’re going to go back to stress, because when I tell people, hey, there’s things we can do. We can do a good probiotic. We can eat fermented foods. That’s another food thing that a lot of people aren’t willing to do.

They don’t want to, or they don’t like it, or they’re like, I’m just not good at eating fermented yogurt and pickles, let’s say, every day. But that is actually what creates diversity in your microbiome. And that’s what probiotics are. And that’s why we tell people, it’s not one and done with probiotics. You want to have a variety of different probiotics, as you grow older.

You don’t want to take the same thing over and over. It’s really diversity that helps your immune system. It helps your body fight off inflammation and disease. But again, if we test it, and we know, subjectively, I’m not doing well with food, which those symptoms can be acne, stuffiness, people that get, I always say, the histamine sniffs, or they’re sniffing.

You can tell they’re reacting. Their immune system is reacting when they eat. We’re figuring out, well, why is your microbiome off? And it can be a lot of different challenges. Today’s world is a challenge. I hate to say it that way, but we’re exposed to more toxins than ever before. We know this, right?

Cleaning, makeup, all the things, it’s too much, a lot of times, for our bodies, and then stress. And I always tell —I have so many customers that are this rotating food sensitivity client for me. And I’m like, it won’t fix by removing the foods and adding probiotics. It just won’t. You have to unlock your stress and how your body is responding to stress and figuring out the triggers.

And that’s where —again, when I got out of college, did I ever think I would be doing box breathing with my clients? No. And I’m not the expert, but I have enough, where I’m like, this is a strategy I want you to do every day. Go to bed early, and get up early, and start visualizing your day.

Meditating through the Life Time digital app is a great resource for our clients now, but really spending time to send the signals to your body that it’s OK to calm down. It’s OK to be relaxed. We’re all just like this all the time. When people are driving —just watch people drive over and put your head back on the rest. Try it.

You instantly calm down. But people are just intense. So the microbiome is something that, I think, it’s so cool, because there’s so much research continuing to coming out. I’m cognitive of that for my clients. I’m like, I don’t want you to get confused or frustrated, though, with all this information.

It still goes back to those fundamentals diverse food. If you’re reacting to food, we do protocols to take it out and then feed it really great stuff. But stress is like the number one with it, and it’s really hard. I hate to keep saying that word, but it is. It has an impact. And I’ve seen people not change and do everything right, but they don’t address that, and it doesn’t go away.

Well, you’re just getting right into the interconnectedness of all of these things. I mean, you have not said one thing. I was like, this is connected to that. You know what I mean? They’re all connected. And it really is all working together. And that’s the part that you don’t have to do everything perfectly right, but you can start doing little bits of each one to start making a difference, right?

Absolutely. And just remembering you’re human. The things that make us feel good, generally, are good for us, most of the time. I will say, with the microbiome, too, even talking about alcohol with my clients is a big conversation. I didn’t used to have to have. There’s confusion with alcohol, a lot of times, but that also is super disruptive. I’m like, it’s a toxin.

It’s a toxin.

Call it what it is. And it goes back to that intuition, though, right? Because I get confused with all the information out there. I remember when I was in school, it was like red wine is actually good for you. And it’s like, call it what it is, right? And that’s OK. I will consume an alcoholic beverage. I’m not Miss Perfect by any means.

But if you understand the impact it’s having, you might make different choices and maybe say, hey, less is more there. But calling it intuitively, yeah, it’s a toxin, duh, right? Why are we so confused? Because we want to be happy. And we feel bad, and we’re stressed. And it all circulates together, for sure. It’s why D.TOX is so popular, honestly.

I love that thing.

Yeah. You still love it, right?

I do. I do it at least twice a year.

I do, too.

Yeah.

And it’s so funny, because I will have people come in and come out of it, and they’re like, God, that program is so good. And it’s so — I mean, it’s 15 years old. We’ve had it forever. But it was — we were early with the fundamentals, and it holds true to being like, yeah, it gives you a little bit of a break, starts to reintroduce you to things that make you feel good, take out the things that don’t make you feel so good. And then you decide, hey, what gets to serve me and what doesn’t serve me after this?

And it almost comes back full circle to what we started — the whole conversation with, what’s in between our ears? The psychological pieces of a lot of things. And you just said a few things that stand out to me when it comes to — maybe it’s the comparison game.

Someone wanting to look aesthetically pleasing of what they’re seeing on social media, whether they’re putting makeup on, or maybe they’re trying to cook the right thing, but then, they’re exposing the food to plastics or whatever. There’s so much going on.

So let’s talk about the psychological effects that individuals may be going through, if they’re not getting the result in the time frame that they want it, and how that also plays a significant role on the end result, too. So it goes back to stress in my head, but let’s just talk about the psychological effect on weight loss.
Yeah. So there’s so many different turns you can. Because I’ve had the clients that have had massive success, but this didn’t match the transformation. That’s a whole thing.

That’s huge, yeah.

That’s a whole episode, I think, a lot of the time. And a lot of that comes with, you have to do the work up here. And that’s why quick fixes are never great. A lot of times, people go through really fast transformations, so they also don’t give themselves enough time to go along the way. But it is doing the work up there.

And so I refer a lot of clients out to therapists all the time. Because I’m like, I can only do the nutrition side of things, and I’m going to be a passionate coach and support of you, and I’m going to constantly tell you you’re worth it. You’re human. You deserve this. And you get control of re-identifying yourself.

A lot of people have this perception of ourselves that was given to them by others, too. I was never an athlete, so I don’t deserve to show up at Life Time. Bull crap. Whatever. Screw those people. You get to identify who you are. And again, something I was not trained, learned along the way, like, wow, this is all a psychological game with ourselves.

So I help a lot of people on that path. Now, today’s world of social media, a whole other ball game. And I think there is a lot of gatekeeping of what’s reality and what’s fake. And again, there’s that intuition check, where it’s like, OK, online, we all know what people share online. It’s the best versions of ourselves. It’s aspirational.

We all do it. And so you have to put that in a box and check that for what it is. Usually, there’s so much more. They’re also not showing that. And I think of that with our younger generations, teaching —that’s actually not what they look like. That’s a filter. That’s an angle. Being real and remembering, we had this conversation in the makeup room, too.

I’m like, sometimes, you just got to go outside and go talk to your neighbors and be like, oh, those are real people. That’s the reality check. So for a lot of people — and I always think of this one client I had at Palm Valley. He brought me in — back then, it was all about the magazines. We didn’t have social media yet.
He brought in this magazine of this physique, and I was like, I want look like that. That’s my goal. And I remember saying, OK, because you know me, I’m frank. And I had his food log, and I was like, we can’t eat at P.F Chang’s. I was like taking away everything.

And he was like, well, no, I want you to build a meal plan around the things I like to look like that. I go, that’s not possible. And he got so mad at me. And I was like, do you want me to lie? I can lie, but you’re paying me to lie. I’m not going to lie to you. And then I remember being like, no, you talk to any of the bodybuilders or anything, this look is not something they maintain.

This is like a 48-hour window of specific remedies that they, themselves, wouldn’t say are healthy. But in his head, that was healthy. That looked real. That looked achievable. And so, sometimes, it’s having those conversations, too, with women. Some of us are meant to have cellulite. That’s OK.

I don’t care if that trainer doesn’t have a pimple of it. That’s her body type. There’s different body types, too. And sometimes, I think we need more positivity in anything and a reality check. So that’s a whole other thing with that. But there is such a thing as body dysmorphia. I think it’s exploded because of social media.

So I think, for me, I’m always figuring out, what’s the things — what’s the deposits for the body as strength training for the mind? What are the healthy deposits we can do to actually feed that? That is quality nutrition. That is good water. That is good sleep. That all helps that. Sunlight, outside — sometimes, I’m telling people just to go outside to feel better and remembering those things that feel better.

And I think you can bring that in. That’s where exercise —I will go back to that. that’s how we started —helps at the most, finding things you enjoy, realizing what that sends the signal. And that’s why I will never tell people to not exercise. I’m like, oh, my gosh, no, because it’s all connected, but it goes back to that mind. If you don’t have a healthy brain, none of this is worth it.

Right.

Right?

Yeah.

That’s what I see.

OK, we’ve covered a lot of ground. Did we miss anything? I know there’s — I mean, you mentioned toxins. We talked about health. Did we miss any other common barriers that people like don’t relate to weight loss?

I would say the only other thing I can think of in this moment is having a community around you. I think that’s huge. I didn’t in my early days. I will say that, because I never thought I required that per se, but if I’ve seen anything, that is having the right people in your circle.

It doesn’t have to be — when people hear community, I think they think a plethora of people. It could be three to five really great people that are championing you, holding you accountable, being honest with you, that tough love person, and not interfering. There’s a lot of — my clients, they’ll have people where I’m like, this person sucks. Quit them.

I don’t think you should be friends with them anymore. I’m like, oh, check yourself, Anika, But there’s people that create just negativity for people, and they don’t realize they’re in their way. So I love the communities that Life Time. You can join Life Time. You can join a group, Alpha. Pick your poison — a good poison, not a bad poison, a good poison, not a toxic poison.

But hire a coach. I mean, I will always envy personal trainers, the work that they do, because the positivity they bring. But I’m hiring a really great person to actually be in your circle, sometimes, necessary. And they can help you identify the people that probably shouldn’t be there. But community can be everything for people. I know you’re probably — that’s you.

That connection elevation, all of the above. You know what time it is, right?

No.

It’s mic drop moment time.

Oh, there’s always a surprise.

So 2025, think about it like this. What do you want to see happen in the health and fitness industry before the end of 2025? If you had one wish.

One wish.

Mic drop,

I would say that people are confident with sharing, like I’m working on my mental health, honestly. I think that would be incredible. I think it needs —we’re at that time, where it should be just as normal to go leave for the dentist, as it is to my therapist and be up front about that. And again, that’s not even my expertise.
Because of the clients I’ve served and everything, I’m like, that is such a big deal. And I want people to start talking about that, like, no, I go run because that helps it up here. It’s less about just eating and exercise for this, for health. It is the whole system. And doing things for the health of it, of the brain, I think would be incredible. And I think we’d all be healthier and happier, honestly.

I mean, you’re really talking about the mind-body, right? We often think it’s the mind and the body over here, but it’s like mind-body. Because they’re interconnected, again. These things are connected to each other, and they influence one another. So how do we take care of both, one? They’re all the same thing.
And show the next generation the way.

Yeah.

Yeah. That’s it, right there.

I think our generation is in the middle of it, which is great. We’re way more open than the generation before, but it’s like, it needs to be the normal all the way through.

Yes.

I love that.

Awesome.

I love that. I sum that up — mind right, body right. I’m going to say it again.

Do it. Do it. That’s your thing. I love it. Alright Anika, you always come with so much great info. Thanks so much for being here. If people want to follow you, they can find you @CoachAnika on Instagram. You have lots of articles at Experience Life. You have some programs in the Life Time app that people can follow and sign up for.

Listen to past episodes of the podcast. We’ve had another one on — what do we call it? Holistic approach to health and weight loss was one you did a couple seasons ago. So we have lots of great content. Anything else you want to point people to?

No, that’s perfect. Thank you for having me.

Thanks for being here.

Always.

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