As I uncork the champagne for the 100th episode of "Asking for a Friend," I'm taking a moment to share a slice of my life's journey—a true midlife pivot. It's been a road paved with the trials of menopause, a quest to get my body back, and an unexpected turn toward the world of nutrition and fitness with the FASTer Way program. Beyond my own very positive results, this path has led me to become a certified nutrition coach, determined to empower others to take control of their health.
Marking the second anniversary of our heartfelt conversations, I'm grateful to you, our dedicated listeners, for sharing in the ebbs and flows of this podcasting voyage. With the start of my coaching business, I'm extending a personal invitation to those of you yearning to write your own stories of transformation. Whether you're seeking one-on-one coaching or just a spark of inspiration to ignite change, I encourage you to reach out. Your next chapter may just be a message away, and I stand ready to guide you through every step, squat, and spoonful toward feeling better in your own skin.
Have questions about Faster Way? Feel free to reach out. mfolanfasterway@gmail.com
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Michele Folan:
Health, wellness, fitness, relationships and everything in between. We're removing the taboo from what really matters in midlife. I'm your host, michelle Follin, and this is Asking for a Friend, and this is Asking for a Friend. Welcome to the 100th episode of Asking for a Friend. We are two years in and you know how, when you start something new, no matter what it is, you have doubts or uncertainties. Well, I had hoped we would get to this point, but you never know for sure. But your support has gotten us into the top 2% of podcasts globally.
Michele Folan:
On the topic of starting new things, I have spoken of getting myself some health and nutrition coaching last year, now. I'd always been pretty fit. I was certainly very health-focused with my background in the health industry. I've always had a gym membership. I've always eaten well. I do love to cook. I have been honest about the fact that I think alcohol was keeping me. Fromopause had not been real kind to me. I was very tired, low energy, I was not sleeping well, I was gaining weight and, honestly, I was really starting not to recognize my body. There's a certain amount of acceptance that goes along with the aging body and I know that. But this is where I'm going to fight the fight. So let me explain. I have a beach trip coming up. I want to feel comfortable in my bathing suit. I don't need to look like a hot 26-year-old, but I do like to feel comfortable in my swimsuit. I'd like to fit into my favorite pair of jeans, but, most importantly, how do I feel? And at 80 years old, will I be mobile? And now you've heard me say that I want to be able to get up off the floor when I'm 86. And the reason why is again, I've told you this story that my mom was almost 86 when she fell in the kitchen and she could not get up. She wasn't hurt, but she lacked the body strength to pull herself up off the floor, and this was a huge wake-up call for me. So back to why.
Michele Folan:
I got some coaching, I started doing some research and I was looking at a lot of the online options. I was looking for a program where I felt like the science made sense to me. I wanted an app. I wanted some daily exercise routines that they were offering. I wanted it to be midlife friendly, because I didn't want to feel intimidated by a bunch of 22-year-olds working out. I didn't want this program to necessarily be gym focused because I wanted to be able to work out at home with not a ton of equipment, and I also like the macro focused nutrition that you hear so much about out there in the market right now. Here's what I decided to do.
Michele Folan:
I went with the Faster Way program and you may be familiar with Faster Way. You may have seen it out there. There's a lot of coaches that are Faster Way coaches out there. They started about eight years ago but they have done a really good job at adapting and changing as the data has changed. But what really appealed to me was they have 30-minute workouts with strength as being the emphasis. When they have their daily workouts, they have three people doing the actual exercises. So these people all have varying degrees of skill and fitness so that you never feel left behind. So if you're a beginner, you don't feel out of place trying to do these exercises. So I love that you can do them at home or at the gym without you know a ton of equipment.
Michele Folan:
They focus on eating the right foods and when I say right foods, I mean whole foods at the right times based on your activity level. So based on what the exercise is that day, your food's going to reflect that. There's recipes, they have a nutritionist on staff, they have a functional medicine practitioner and there is an intermittent fasting component to this, but I don't think that is the full emphasis. Your macros are set by whatever your goals are, and I found that I wasn't eating enough calories and I was probably stunting my metabolism, which was part of my issue. You always get support. There's always accountability, there's meal plans, there's educational resources. The program is sustainable and you can have food freedom without a restrictive diet.
Michele Folan:
Like I said, this is not a diet. The benefits of more energy, I'm sleeping better, I've had fat loss, I feel as if I have better mental clarity, but, honestly, that is all secondary to the strength and the overall improved health that I feel, and my nurse practitioner at my last appointment told me that all of my biomarkers had improved and to just keep doing what I'm doing and that was all I needed. I was sold. So I completed the initial six-week program and I'm still with FasterWay, but I'm in their VIP group and this way I keep access to the app and all of the workouts. But it was then that I decided to become a Faster Way certified nutrition coach. Okay, the one thing that I have loved about my career was the coaching aspect, and this tied in really well with the podcast as well. I have learned so much from my guests and then with my 26 years in the health industry. So I got certified with the Faster Way in 2023. With the Faster Way in 2023. But if you fast forward to 2024, here I am a certified coach and I still have my full-time job and a podcast, but I wasn't doing any of the Faster Way coaching.
Michele Folan:
Oh, and I was just about to turn 60 years old, but I knew morally and ethically that I could not start a coaching business while gainfully employed. But the thought of giving up my career and, frankly, my financial security, that was just such a daunting thought. You know, a lot of my self-identity was tied to my career and you know I look back and I was able to support my two children as a single mom. At one point in my life I was talking to a good friend of mine. She's also a podcaster. Her name is Rochelle Conde Now and she is the host of the Unabashed you podcast and I was telling her about my quandary and what I was thinking about doing, but I was scared and she always tells me you know, do it scared. But she said hey, michelle, you know it's never too late, but late is coming. And that stopped me in my tracks. I thought, oh my gosh, she's right. So, after many discussions with my husband, michael, I eventually decided that it was time to make the jump.
Michele Folan:
But this was not without creating a whole bunch of anxiety for me. You know, I'd been working since I was 18, except for during the pandemic. And I now, looking back, think that those 10 months or so when I was not working was preparing me for this moment, because that gave me a taste of what it was like to not just not have an income but to just not be working, because it's hard to just all of a sudden turn it off. It's hard to explain, but then you know, you have the thoughts in the back of your head what if it doesn't work out? And then will women have trust and faith in me to coach them to improve their health? So on February 28th, on my way home from a work trip, I called my boss and I told him that I was resigning. It was surreal, but it really didn't hit me until about four weeks later, when I had wrapped up my last day and I had had a few days of not answering a second phone, zoom calls and also a lot of emails.
Michele Folan:
A few days later, after I had resigned, my daughter took me to see a psychic and this was for my birthday, for my 60th birthday and I know some of you are going to totally poo-poo this and, trust me, the skeptic in me had me a bit leery because I thought, oh, you know, this guy could just Google my name. He can get enough information about me, just you know, on the internet. But this guy is so busy he's booked six months out. He's got back to back to back clients. I don't really see where he would have enough time to do a good Google search on anybody. But the minute I walked in I noticed he had all these religious relics around his office. It was really interesting. And when I sat down he goes oh my God, there's so much energy coming off of you. He's like wow, just wow. And I started laughing and I said well, I just resigned from my job and retired from a 40-year career and he said yeah, I can absolutely tell.
Michele Folan:
One of the first questions he asked me was what I was doing for a creative outlet, and I thought that was a very interesting question. I told him I have a podcast and he said well, you need to write a book. And I started laughing because I said oh my God, the reason I have a podcast is because originally I was going to write a book. And he said I think you should still write the book. I know you don't see yourself as a writer, but I see a book in your future. So I thought that was interesting.
Michele Folan:
He told me I needed to go back and listen to the recording, because he records our conversation, because he sensed that I was only listening or hearing about half of what he was telling me, which is also true. I did share with him that I had planned to do health and nutrition coaching and he said we need to talk about your angels. He said that I should be talking to my angels every day and that I have a tendency to only ask for what I need and not for what I want. He said when you're going through a really hard time, you can call out 10,000 angels. You can call out 100,000 angels, he said. But just, you need to ask for what you want, not just for what you need. And I can't begin to tell you how true that has been. Probably in my whole life I've always just asked for what I need, the basics. I've never really asked for what I want. He said that I would be successful in my new venture and I'm not kidding you when I tell you I think at that point I was finally finally able to take a deep breath. Someone outside of my immediate family was telling me that everything was going to be okay and I almost started to cry.
Michele Folan:
We keep so much bottled up within us sometimes that we don't realize how this stress affects every part of our being. It affects our sleep. It increases our cortisol. We can have weird neurologic symptoms, stomach issues. For me, my eczema flares up. But ever since my meeting with the psychic flares up. But ever since my meeting with the psychic I've had this almost eerie feeling of calm that I have not had in a very long time. I found some peace in making a really tough decision and having the resolve that I want to help other women find health and body confidence and continue to create a community of collaboration and education around the podcast. I know the pieces of the puzzle are finally fitting together. So why am I sharing all of this personal stuff with you.
Michele Folan:
If you are faced with a big decision, a life pivot, or you just want to make some changes and try something new maybe you want to finally get serious about your health you can do it. It's okay to be scared and have uncertainties and doubts. I want you to feel empowered to make the jump, because you have life experience, knowledge and know yourself and your capabilities better than anyone. You can do hard stuff and do it well, but it doesn't have to be perfect. You just have to get going. What are you waiting for?
Michele Folan:
With all this said, I would love to tell you more about my coaching business. I will be using the Faster Way platform, but if you would like private, one-on-one coaching, we can talk about that too. I would ask that you shoot me an email or a DM through Facebook or even Instagram so that we can connect, and I'll put all of my contact info in the show notes of this episode. Thank you for two great years of the podcast, for listening and sharing the show. I appreciate you being here and sharing the show. I appreciate you being here, follow Asking for a Friend on social media outlets and provide a review and share this show wherever you get your podcasts, reviews, and sharing help us grow.