Originally posted at: http://www.nerdfitness.com/

Meet Leslie:

A single mom who works long nights and has a long daily commute, found Nerd Fitness, and also happens to be one of my favorite people and one of our best success stories.

Leslie was playing the Game of Life on Nightmare Difficulty with multiple time-sucking jobs, a brutal commute, and a love of fast food, all while being a single parent.

Since joining the Nerd Fitness community, she has become a powerlifting, handstand-practicing, gymnastic ring-wielding, extroverted, cross-country-moving, happily-in-a-relationship supermom.

While Leslie’s transformation started in her fitness, you’ll see below how quickly it spread to almost every area of her life. No matter what situation you’re in, we can all learn something from her powerful story.

I’m extra proud today to be sharing Leslie’s story, because she’s one of the longest running members of our 1-on-1 NF Coaching Program. As a member for well over a year, she’s not shy in sharing about how her personal coach helped her on the journey.

At the end of the day though, it’s Leslie that deserves 100% of the credit for her success, her transformation, and her new life. And we couldn’t be more proud of her.

Let’s see what we can learn from Leslie’s story!

How Leslie lost 100+ pounds and saved her own life

STEVE: Hey Leslie! Thanks so much for taking the time to do this interview with us – for those that didn’t get a chance to meet you at Camp NF 2016 and don’t know your story, fill us in!

LESLIE: I’m a single, working mom who wears A LOT of hats for a living! I’m a Graphic & Web Designer with a freelance design business, and in 2001 I accidentally started a Limousine manufacturing company, which I still operate as my “day job.” Most recently, I’ve added a little online retail side business into the mix that I can run from anywhere, which I’m looking to get off the ground in 2018, so I can spend less time chained to my desk and more time out in the world exploring.

STEVE: Jeez, no wonder you’re so busy and struggled with getting healthy! It sounds like you’re always on the move, always working, and always grinding. Can you talk me through what a typical day was like before you stumbled across Nerd Fitness?

LESLIE: As a total night owl with a long, early morning commute, I would stay up late watching TV, go to bed around 1am, wake up exhausted at 5:30am, sit in traffic for an hour or longer, suck down a pot of coffee to stay awake, grab fast food for lunch, sit at my desk all day, sit in traffic again for an hour or longer, grab fast food for dinner, then sit and watch TV or play video games while munching on cheese puffs, until 1am.

Rinse and repeat.

Weekends would be spent hermit-ing at home, with pretty much the same routine of fast food for meals, and TV/video games or reading until the wee hours of the morning. That’s a whole lot of sitting and mindless eating!

STEVE: I hear ya. When you have long exhausting days, the only thing you can think about when you get home is escape: be it with fast food, TV, video games, or all of the above. I’m interested to know how many times prior to Nerd Fitness had you tried to lose weight?

LESLIE: I’ve been overweight my whole life. I’ve attempted every diet out there, starved, binged, starved again, the whole nine yards. I hated exercise because I couldn’t do anything without launching into a full-blown asthma attack, so I avoided it.

By the time I turned 13, I was severely overweight and heavier than most adults! In my 20s, I joined a name brand program that actually helped me reach my goal weight. I had done it! I had ZERO energy and I was hungry ALLLLL the time but who cared – I was “cured,” right!?

I was now normal and told myself I could stop dieting and just eat like everyone else. I joined a gym and became a treadmill hamster – I hated it, and still had no energy, and was hungry all the time.

Because I was so unhappy I eventually stopped going, stopped eating right, and slowly the bad habits came back and my weight went up. Before I knew it I was even heavier than when I started. From that point on I became a career yo-yo dieter, chasing whatever new fad or gimmick came on the market, with no real lasting success.

STEVE: Do you remember how you found Nerd FItness?

LESLIE: My brother and I were Steam chatting and playing an online game together called “Don’t Starve” (ironic, no?), when the conversation turned to how I was so tired, and I was going to bed hungry so I wasn’t sure how much lower I could drop my caloric intake, when he asked me if I had considered lifting weights.

I laughed and told him he was crazy, because I didn’t want to be all scary buff, just toned.

He then sent me a link to “Meet Staci: Your New Powerlifting Superhero.” I connected with her story instantly, but I was hesitant to do yet “another diet and fail,” so I blew it off for a few months and just kept doing what I was doing.

In December 2015, my 24-year-old son was diagnosed as prediabetic, and I was crushed by the guilt of having taught him all my crappy eating habits. He knew he needed to lose weight, but he didn’t know how to go about it and didn’t want to spend a bunch of time weighing and measuring food or counting points. He didn’t even actually care what he weighed; he just wanted to feel better in his own skin (and not die).

On January 1st, 2016, as had been my habit for sooooo many New Year’s Days in the past, I decided to start dieting again, and brought my son along for the ride. We gave up the daily fast food runs, switched to homemade meals, and the weight started coming off.

We were using a points-based system for calculating our meals at the time, and I was doing all kinds of fuzzy math to figure out how to squeeze our “less-healthy” favorite convenience foods into our meal plan so he wouldn’t get discouraged that he “couldn’t have something.” He then made a comment to me that he would rather have real food than waste the points on the less-healthy option “just because he had points available.”

In that very moment, I realized I wasn’t really changing my eating habits, I was just sacrificing real food to eat processed junk, which offered temporary pleasure but left me hungry at night.

That was the biggest turning point in our switch to eating actual healthy food.

(Speaking of which, I know learning about nutrition can be daunting, which is why we made a free 10-Level Nutritional Blueprint to help you start to make sense of all of this. You can grab your printable guide free when you sign up in the yellow box below!)

Back to Leslie!

LESLIE: In April of 2016, as my progress began stalling, I got a text message from a guy I had a crush on, that said he was going to be in town in the next month, and did I want to meet up for dinner?

I said yes, freaked out, went online to find the fastest way to lose another 10 lbs in a month, and then remembered the story about Staci. I figured I needed to do something different if I wanted different results, and I joined the NF Academy that day!

In the NF Academy I started the “Walk to Mordor” quest, and once my week of walking was up, I found I really enjoyed the daily walks so I kept going, and my son decided to join me.

10 minute daily walks turned into 1 mile walks every other day, which led to 2 mile walks plus a 3 mile walk on the weekends, and so on.

After the Academy, I joined the NF coaching program, then attended Camp NF 2016, and by the end of 2016, we had each lost over 90 lbs.

We spent all of 2017 in maintenance mode to help our bodies adjust to the losses and find new set points (Thank you Coach Jim!). Flash forward to 2018, I’ve been in maintenance at my goal weight for over a year!

STEVE: You have officially melted my heart, Leslie – I am so happy for you and how you’ve managed to turn things around for you, your son, and your relationship! Tell me more about coaching with Jim – what made you decide to try out NF Coaching and why did you stay for a full year?

LESLIE: After joining the Nerd Fitness Academy and reading through all of the content, I had a pretty good idea of how to get started, and I knew what end results I wanted.

The problem was I wasn’t really sure what to do “in the middle” to get there and had collected too much information without action – in other words, I had a big collection of underpants!

I was motivated and focused, but clueless.

I wanted to set and tackle goals that were specific to my situation and lifestyle: I needed to lose weight AND get stronger, all without wasting a lot of time and effort in trial-and-error mode.

I realized that the more I read, the more I worked out, the more I tweaked my diet, the more questions I had. Most of all, I wanted to lose the weight and KEEP it off, and I knew that I was going to have to come at this with a completely different approach than anything I had ever done previously.

Then NF introduced the 1-on-1 private NF Coaching program, which sounded like the exact right thing I needed to help me wade through all of the information, develop the exact right plan for my situation, and meet my long-term goals, so I signed up and got paired with Jim (who you might recognize from all of our Academy videos with Staci!)

I loved the idea of training with Jim because he can do cool stuff like this:

It was amazing!

I spent the next several months working with NF Coach Jim to develop the correct eating plans, exercise routines, and habits, while also receiving feedback through form checks, and countless tips on how to stretch properly, increase my endurance, lift heavier, and work smarter (not harder) to reach my goals. I finally had somewhere I could confidently turn to with all of my questions, which was so incredibly reassuring!

But, as I was nearing that “magical goal weight” on the scale I started to panic. I had been at my goal before – that was the easy part. What I didn’t know and needed to learn was “what to do once I hit my goal” to make the changes permanent. I decided to stay a full year so that Jim could teach me how to maintain that loss while fine-tuning my body.

I can say with 100% certainty that had I not joined the NF Coaching Program, I would not have found this success on my own, especially not in such a short amount of time!

STEVE: I hear you, and that’s tough for many to admit! As somebody who has ALSO had an online coach (for 4 years now), I can say it’s the best investment I’ve ever made too.

So I gotta ask, what surprised you about the NF Coaching program?

LESLIE: Simple, it was way more than I expected!

I thought it would be weekly, generic workout/nutrition assignments sent by my coach in an impersonal, drill-sergeant-like, bootcamp fashion, with some check-ins along the way to keep me accountable.

I expected to receive a strict list of what I could/couldn’t eat – when I had to do my workouts – when I had to check in, etc.

What I found instead was a very friendly, intelligent, enthusiastic coach who made an amazing effort to tailor personalized programs for nutrition, exercise, mindset around ME. Jim gave me the freedom of not only planning my workouts around my busy schedule, but he never seemed “judgey” or condescending about what I ate or what I could/couldn’t physically do.

My coach felt more like a “workout partner” than a drill sergeant, always asking how I was doing, where I needed help, what my new goals were, and even helping me figure out ways to stretch better, heal faster, and work harder, the smart way.

He never made me feel bad for where I was in my journey, or what I couldn’t accomplish, which is invaluable in a coach, because it helped keep me motivated and always looking forward!

STEVE: This is the EXACT reason we launched our coaching program: non-judgmental accountability and professional guidance in the way you need to be coached! Talk to me about your workout routine: were most of your workouts done at home – body weight? Or did you do free weights?

LESLIE: The very first routine I did was the free NF Beginner Bodyweight Workout.

You made it look easy, and I loved that I had everything I needed right there in the comfort of my own home – no hunting for parking spots, or psyching myself out to walk through the door of the gym, and even better, no membership required.

I was all excited to get started – I did my warm-up, about 8 squats, and then I thought I was going to die. I knew I was out of shape but hadn’t realized how bad it was.

Then a funny thing happened: the next day I could barely stand up to get out of my car (delayed soreness), and rather than become discouraged, I kept giggling!

Every time I felt the “ouch,” I was so proud of myself, and I actually looked forward to the next workout.

As the bodyweight workout got easier, I began adding in free weights, and then fancy stuff like deadlifts happened!

Now I do a combo of free weights, bodyweight training, gymnastic rings and handstand work, walking, sprinting, and swimming, which I vary with my mood and the weather to keep things interesting.

STEVE: I love how varied your training has become – it sounds like you’re actually doing things you love too! So we both know nutrition is 90% of the battle. What’s been your diet strategy?

LESLIE: In the past I was all over the place on this one, from counting food points, to calories, to macros, and through the Academy and the Coaching Program I discovered that I eat the healthiest, stress the least, and feel my best when I stick to being about 95% Paleo.

It is so much less complicated for me, is more convenient for cooking meals in bulk, and is easier to stick to when I am eating on the run or away from home. I mostly pick simple, whole foods like fruits, veggies, and meats, with the occasional dairy, and add in brown rice/sweet potato on workout days.

I’ve found that I need to stay away from processed foods and quick snacks like cereal, granola bars and almonds/nut butters, because they become triggers for me and I don’t want to slip back into those mindless snacking habits.

To stay accountable, I weighed myself weekly. I was so focused on the numbers on the scale that it didn’t occur to me to take measurements until it was on my NF Academy quest list – but as a gamer I did the quest to get the points and found it helped!

I now take measurements every few months and eventually even bit the bullet and had 2 DEXA body scans. I only weigh myself on the first of the month to make sure I am staying within my target range, and then adjust my routine if needed.

STEVE: You’ve changed so much over the past few years. Looking back, what has been the toughest change you made?

LESLIE: I made little changes as I went along, rather than giant drastic ones, so I was able to adjust to the healthier eating habits and workouts pretty easily.

Where I struggled the most was in seeing myself in photos and coming to terms with what I looked like.

I would feel so freaking amazing and then take a photo and think “OMG, do I really still look that yucky and frumpy?” and it would deflate me.

Inside I felt like gold bikini Princess Leia, but all I could see in the snapshots was Jabba the Hutt. I hated seeing myself in photos so much that I almost quit the NF Academy when I found out I had to take “before pictures.”

I literally cried after seeing my starting photos, cursed you in my head for making me take them, but made a folder called “UGH” and stuck them in there so I could earn my NFA quest points and move forward.

STEVE: I’m glad you read the part of that “take photos!” quest that said “you don’t have to look at the photos, just take them and put them in a folder somewhere, you’ll thank me later”! Anyways, please continue!

LESLIE: People were complimenting me on how great I looked but I wasn’t seeing any progress in my pictures; all I could see were the flaws and how much work I still had ahead of me.

In this journey, the toughest change I’ve had to make has been mentally; I’ve had to work really hard to stop being so critical of what I look like, and start celebrating my victories instead of obsessing over my flaws.

STEVE: That is often the biggest hurdle we have to overcome: what’s going on in our heads! Thanks for your honesty around that Leslie. Let’s bring things back to the positive: what was the most important change you think you made?

LESLIE: Working on my mindset and learning how to cope with different situations and emotions, instead of just focusing on food and exercise, has been the most important change for me.

I knew I had to eat better, and I knew I had to exercise; they’ve been drilling that into our heads since we were kids.

What I didn’t realize was how much of the undertaking involved dealing with issues from my past and learning how to handle them differently so I didn’t slip back into old unhealthy habits. Some of that process meant I had to figure out which situations and people I needed to eliminate from my life in order to begin healing.

I also had to learn to say “no” to people without feeling guilty, which was really hard to do at first, but as people saw my progress, they began to understand WHY I chose to rearrange my priorities and focus on me and my son instead, and they became supportive which helped a lot.

STEVE: I love that, and I’m so glad you and Jim worked together on your mindset too – it’s a big part of our coaching program and a big part of Nerd Fitness! So I have to know, what’s a typical day like for you NOW, after the changes?

LESLIE: I’m still a night owl with a long daily commute, but these days I eat real meals instead of fast food, which saves a crap ton of money and calories, do my walk/run or workout right when I get home from work instead of grabbing a bag of chips and plopping down on the couch.

I limit the TV/gaming time to just a few hours per week, making sure I don’t snack while doing so, and make an effort to head to bed no later than 10pm so I can get a decent night’s sleep, even if I can’t doze off right away.

I rarely watch TV on the weekends anymore, and instead head out to the mountains or desert to go camping or wheeling and get in some hiking and climbing, and go actual grocery shopping to get what I need for the upcoming week instead of zipping through drive-thrus, which really helps me stay on track.

STEVE: Your physical appearance has changed…what else has changed about you?

LESLIE: The change to my physical appearance has been amazing, but the biggest changes have actually been in my confidence levels and mindset, which I believe have made the most substantial difference for me.

I’m very shy and super socially awkward, especially around new people. The old version of me would get invited to something, and the first thought I would have before deciding to accept or not was “can I lose enough weight first.”

I would go into starvation mode to “lose a few pounds” before the event, then fail, then berate myself, then cancel at the last minute. On the occasions where I couldn’t back out, I would hang out on the sidelines hoping to blend in with the wall to avoid having to talk to people unless they came up to me first.

I had a hard time carrying on conversations because I was so uncomfortable I couldn’t look people in the eyes for very long.

These days, when I get an invite to something, my weight never even crosses my mind! I have met some amazing people and enjoyed so many new experiences that I would have missed out on had I not lost the weight!

I no longer have trouble approaching new situations or interacting with new people, and I can keep and maintain eye contact (in a totally non-creepy way, I swear). I am so much more confident in every aspect of my life that I find it much easier to seize new opportunities as they materialize without going into a panic attack, which makes me feel so much more engaged with my life!

And that crush I mentioned that helped kickstart this whole journey? He’s now my boyfriend and we celebrated our one-year anniversary last fall!

And yes, I really do talk in exclamation point these days because I am just so friggin’ happy!!

STEVE: I’m not crying, you’re crying. You’re the best Leslie. Is there anything about the new you that the old you would be surprised to learn?

LESLIE: I am most surprised to find out that I am actually NOT an introvert!

For most of my life I was so caught up in my weight and how I thought others perceived me that I convinced myself my shyness and lack of ability to talk to people was because I was an introvert.

Labeling myself an introvert was like giving myself acceptable permission to not participate in life, like it was something I couldn’t control so why bother.

Now I have no problem talking to people, and I actually look forward to social events! That is a HUGE change for me!

STEVE That is amazing, Leslie! We all give ourselves labels or self-identify as a certain thing that can often keep us prisoner! I’m glad your physical transformation helped you transform on the inside too.

So now let’s talk about what’s next! What are your goals moving forward? What kind of awesomeness do you want to do in your new body?

LESLIE: I want to do ALLLLL the things!

When I started all I wanted to do was lose weight. I had a random target number that I thought needed to be on the scale for me to be happy, and figured once I got there, that was it, the end, roll credits.

What I discovered, instead, was that I actually love running (WTF?), and lifting weights (the Wolverine Workout is my FAVORITE), and exploring the great outdoors, and archery… OMG I love archery! My goals are to add in as much of that stuff into my life as possible, and figure out what else is out there that I haven’t even considered yet!

Speaking of doing new things, for as long as I can remember I’ve wanted to play the drums.

I would pick up pencils or chopsticks and play along to the beats in my favorite songs. I would play Guitar Hero, and do pretty good for a while, but would eventually get off beat because all I could feel were the notes from the drums.

So, when the “Embrace Your Inner Noob” quest from the Academy appeared on my to-do list, I sucked it up, stepped outside my comfort zone, found a drum teacher, and started lessons… and actually didn’t suck.

4 months later, I bought my very own 5-piece drum kit as an Epic Loot Drop!

STEVE: I know there are TONS of Nerd Fitness readers right now who are at your “Day 1.” Do you have any words of advice for those folks?

LESLIE: First and foremost, FORGIVE YOURSELF.

You are where you are for whatever reason, but it is only temporary and does not define who you are or who you can become! Next, make a few tiny tweaks you can live with instead of drastic changes you can’t sustain.

And most importantly, remember Leonard Snart’s “4 Rules of Acting”: 1) Make the plan. 2) Execute the plan. 3) Expect the plan to go off the rails. 4) Throw away the plan.

Allow yourself the freedom to make a plan, experiment, screw up, see what works… and what doesn’t, and give yourself the flexibility to adjust as needed, or start over, without beating yourself up!

There was no one magical thing that worked for me, but instead, several little things that, over time, added up to changes I could make permanently.

STEVE: Thank you for sharing. So I feel like you’ve referenced both Nerd pillars in this interview, but if you had to pick one…Star Wars or Lord of the Rings?

LESLIE: Ohhhhh, so much LOTR! If I could magic myself into that world as an Elven Ranger, I would do it in a heartbeat! In fact, the NF Character System that allowed me to be a Ranger was one of the things that made me excited to join NF in the first place, and then when I saw that there was a Nerd CAMP… with ARCHERY… I was sold!

STEVE: Any other nerdy passions or pursuits?

LESLIE: I’m a huuuuge Sci-Fi and fantasy fan, and love all things Marvel, DC, LOTR, Star Wars, Princess Bride, Doctor Who, Goonies, Indiana Jones, zombie, vampire, witches, time travel, etc! The nerdier, the better, and I will take it in movie, book, game, or comic form, don’t care… if there is a Sci-Fi or fantasy story to be told, I want it! Except for ghosts… and clowns… those are just a whole lot of no!

STEVE: Fair enough, I’ll cancel that “life-sized ghost clown” I was gonna send you as a thanks for letting me interview you!

The 6 Keys to Leslie’s Success

I bet there are parts of that interview above that made you go “hey, I do that too!” or “Hey, that’s exactly how my brain works as well!”

I wanted to quickly distill the most important parts of Leslie’s journey into bite-sized nuggets of wisdom you can take with you (but not eat):

#1 LESLIE HAD A GREAT BIG WHY

Leslie had started and stopped a bazillion times in the past with regards to getting in shape. She was always chasing quick fixes and losing weight in a miserable way only to put the weight back on. She began another half-hearted attempt to lose weight and then life threw her a powerful curveball: Her son was diagnosed as pre-diabetic.

This rocked her to her core, knowing that it was HER habits that he had learned from. She knew something had to change, and they began exercising together. Knowing that she had to fail differently, she thought back to that success story that resonated with her.

#2 LESLIE HAD SOMEBODY TO LOOK UP TO

Leslie had stumbled across Staci’s success story on Nerd Fitness and instantly identified with her. Here was a woman who had been overweight, tried every diet under the sun (which led to an eating disorder), exercised in a way that made her unhappy, and then ultimately found her new identity as a powerlifter.

She gave herself permission to believe that if Staci could become a powerlifter and not get bulky, than MAYBE there was something to this whole “pick up heavy weights to get strong and lose weight and look damn good and actually enjoy the process” strategy.

#3 LESLIE MADE AN INVESTMENT IN HERSELF

Leslie wanted to be like Staci, but she didn’t know where to start. She knew the starvation/treadmill option didn’t work, and she didn’t have years and years to spend doing more trial-and-error. She decided to make an investment in herself and try a program that spoke her language as a gamer: the Nerd Fitness Academy. She started following the quests to earn points, even then quests that pushed her outside of her comfort zone!

As she started to see progress, her mentality started to shift: after years of struggle, things were finally working! And she wondered what would happen if she dialed up the guidance, accountability, and expert knowledge. Leslie was in a fortunate position that she could afford to invest in herself to save time, but most importantly, hire expert guidance and accountability. It led her to try out Nerd Fitness Coaching and make a commitment that helped her supercharge her transformation.

#4 LESLIE STOPPED THINKING IN TERMS OF WEEKS

When Leslie encountered Nerd FItness, she had 30+ years of boom-and-bust, starve-and-gain-it-back mentality to overcome, and 100 pounds of inertia to overcome too. It was a daunting battle that she had lost many many times before.

When she joined our community, and ultimately made a 6-month commitment to our coaching program (which ended up continuing for a year), she did so because she started realizing that this wasn’t a problem that could be fixed in a few weeks.

I talk about this in our short video “days and years, not weeks and months”:

Leslie had a LOT of baggage to unpack, a lot of mental hang ups that needed to be addressed, and knew that building new habits takes time and accountability!

#5 LESLIE CELEBRATED HER SLOW START

This is the one that I think separated Leslie from another half-hearted attempt and failure at weight loss. When she attempted our beginner bodyweight workout for the first time, she was so tired during and so sore the next day that she could barely move. This is where most people use soreness or the fact that they struggled with the workout as a negative thing that causes them to give up before they get started. Leslie flipped the script, and like a true stoic, laughed at her “slow start.”

Well okay, she giggled.

She took the soreness as a sign that what she was doing was WORKING! And she loved feeling sore. Leslie knew that if she struggled at a beginner workout, that she started at just the right time and that she could see progress would come. Week after week, month after month, she chased that soreness and challenge. Eventually the bodyweight workout became too easy, so she constantly upped the difficulty (with the guidance of her coach) to stay addicted to progress and learning what she was capable of.

After all, as gamers we need to feel progress and that our efforts are WORTH IT, right? Which is why she kept searching for more dragons!

#6 LESLIE KEPT FINDING NEW DRAGONS TO SLAY

Leslie had lost weight in the past the traditional way – treadmills and low calorie plastic food. She was so miserable that she eventually gave up on this strategy and put all of the weight back on (and then some).

This time around, we helped her change her mindset. She knew that she would “never be done,” and that a temporary diet meant temporary results. So she had to enjoy the process! And that meant having fun and picking activities and a style of eating that she could live with permanently.

At the same time, Leslie had a coach that was constantly updating her goals and giving her new challenges and dragons to slay.

Although she initially set out to just “lose the weight,” once she started approaching her goal weight, she found a love of exercise and the pride and confidence that comes along with it.

Now Leslia wants to find out what she’s capable of – she does handstand practice. And gymnastic rings work. She’s getting strong as hell. She loves running! This is the same woman who couldn’t be bothered to get off the couch 18 months ago.

It’s no longer about weight loss for her – she is always working on something new and thinking of what her new body is capable of.

And I love that more than anything! Nothing makes me happier than hearing from somebody who just wanted to lose weight and then realized they somehow actually like exercise these days.

I want that for you too.

Make A Commitment to be Nice to Future You. Be like Leslie!

It’s tough to put Leslie’s words into a condensed format, but if I had to TL;DR the whole thing, it would be this:

• She had a “Great Big Why” to get in shape (for her and her son).
• She invested in herself with a community she trusted (NF Academy).
• After she started having success, she decided it was worth the money to hire professional accountability and expert guidance (NF Coaching).
• As she lost weight, she and her coach constantly picked new goals that she enjoyed and that challenged her so that she never fell back into old habits.
• She knows she never gets to be done, so she is enjoying her journey!

I’d love for you to check out our 1-on-1 NF Coaching Program and decide if it’s something you’d like to learn more about.

If coaching isn’t your thing, we also have two other options that have helped tens of thousands of nerds like you:

• The NF Academy: 1-time payment to join a self-paced online course and private community
• Rising Heroes: our habit based, story driven team monthly adventure.

And if you want none of those things and just want to keep reading free Nerd Fitness content, that’s cool too.

Here’s what I’d want you to take away from Leslie’s story:

Make a commitment to yourself. Decide that 6 months from now you’re going to be a different person. Start with small changes and surround yourself with people that are cheering you on.

Make an investment in yourself, be it with time or money. Research programs to follow, or work with a pro to build one that fits your situation. Find an accountability buddy or hire professional accountability. And you can figure all of this out on your own too – I hear Nerd Fitness has some okay resources 🙂

Have a damn good reason why you’re getting in shape. The weight loss is the side effect of what you’re really doing: turning yourself into a badass hero that is capable of physically active and challenging and fun things.

I hope to hear from you six months from now with a great success story that we can add to the hall of heroes that have inspired millions around the globe!

If you have any questions for Leslie, please share them in the comments!

-Steve

PS: Just a quick heads up: The NF Coaching program has really exploded over the past 8 weeks (a great problem to have!), and we’re operating with a waiting list for the foreseeable future.

We actually speak on the phone with every single person that is interested in coaching to make sure we’re a good fit for each other, and you can schedule your call at the end of our Coaching page.

PPS: Do you have a Nerd Fitness success story of your own? Email us at contact(at)NerdFitness(dot)com and let us know so we can share your adventure with the galaxy!

http://www.marksdailyapple.com/

Often the first action people take at the start of the new year is to clean out their kitchen. Personally, I highly recommend it. There’s something gratifying about creating space for a new habit—and the foods that will support it. Yet, I know some folks hang onto previous food purchases to “cycle through” what they have on hand and gradually introduce the new into their cooking routines.

For those ready to overhaul their kitchens—or for anyone interested in fine-tuning how they stock up for Primal eating, I wanted to point out an article I offered up just a few years ago that is as relevant now as it was then: “Top 50 Essential Paleo Pantry Foods.”

With everything from canned food suggestions to appropriate snack options to Primal/paleo baking supplies (several of you have asked about these lists this month), it’s an easy way to make sure you have everything you need on hand for good, Primal eating every day.

More to come today, everyone! Thanks for stopping by.

The post Primal Action Point: Upgrade Your Pantry appeared first on Mark’s Daily Apple.

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Powerlifting — images featuring well-muscled men wearing singlets, sniffing nose tork and clapping their chalk-covered hands together as they stalk up to the bar might pop into your head just from reading the word.

If that’s you, I totally understand. Many people who are new to powerlifting — who have felt the first spark of interest but have not yet competed — may feel intimidated by a world they’re not familiar with yet.

And listen, it’s not just the men who are playing hard: women are also ruling the powerlifting world. Lifters like Kim Walford, Bonica Brown, Stefi Cohen, and Shirley Webb continue to set incredibly inspiring records while drawing more and more women into the sport. (At my very first powerlifting meet in 2014, there were nine women competitors; that same meet in 2017 hosted more than 90 women.)

Powerlifting is much more than a workout, it’s training for a specific and simple purpose: to improve the most you can lift in the squat, bench press, and deadlift. That specificity can be a big draw.

In a world that continues to debate beauty standards, as well as who gets to be fit and what fit actually means, powerlifting is refreshingly objective.

On competition day, there is only one question to answer: can lift it or you can’t you? (The good news is that with a great training program and coach, you will.)

Easy access to heavy-hitting lifters through social media is likely to be why many women hold back from competing, telling themselves “I’ll compete when I’m strong enough.” While social media may seem to be dominated by scores of lifters hefting weights that one may have a hard time believing without visual proof, I promise that when it comes to competing, the range of lifters in regards to strength, age and experience is wider than you think.

Yes, the playing field can look daunting if you don’t know exactly what you’re getting into. However, as the head powerlifting coach at The Movement Minneapolis, as well as the woman at the helm of Unapologetically Strong Online Coaching, I’ve trained hundreds of lifters to prepare for their first powerlifting meet.

I spend a lot of time answering questions and clarifying what exactly is involved in training for and competing in powerlifting, because I know firsthand that the more information you have in advance, the better you’ll be prepared to say yes when it comes to participating — especially if it’s something you’ve never done before.

So let’s talk about exactly what you’re getting into, and why I think you just might love donning that singlet!

The Entry Requirements Are Lower Than You Think

Can you squat to just below parallel, touch the bar to your chest when benching, and perform a deadlift off the floor? If your answer is yes, you can compete in powerlifting.

But how strong do you need to be? According to the USA Powerlifting Rulebook (the largest powerlifting federation in the United States), the absolute minimum amount of weight a competitor needs to be strong enough to lift in a powerlifting meet is an empty bar, plus the collars. This equals 55 pounds, or 25 kilos.

55 pounds — sounds pretty approachable, yes?

It’s worth mentioning that while a 55-pound bench press or squat is doable, it will be hard getting into a good position for deadlifts when the bar only has the collars on it. The lightest plates used in competition, which weigh 15 kilos each, will bring the bar to a more ideal position — about nine inches off the floor — and the weight up to a total of 55 kilos, or 121 pounds.

So if you want to compete in powerlifting, your first goal is a 121-pound deadlift.

Almost Any Age Can Compete in Powerlifting

Meets are organized by gender, weight class, and age. Age groups are usually divided into Youth, Open, Teen, Junior, and Masters classes. The following are from the 2017 USAPL Rulebook:

• Youth: eight to 14 years of age
• Open: 14 years of age and older
• Teen: 14 to 20 years
• Junior: 20 to 24 years
• Masters: 40 years and older

The youngest lifter I’ve ever seen at a powerlifting meet was eight years old. The oldest? Almost 80.

If you are a Teen, Junior, or Masters lifter, you have the option of registering for the Open as well, and competing in two age classes. This increases your chances of winning a medal, but that doesn’t mean you need to make any more than the three attempts required for the squat, bench press, and deadlift. If you register for two classes (usually at an extra fee of around $20), the greatest amount of weight you lift in each lift will count towards both.

Any Size Can Compete in Powerlifting

Let’s talk weight classes for a moment. This is something many women get nervous about when they first dive into powerlifting and for good reason: we’re taught from an early age that weight is a topic to be discussed in whispers and conditioned to be dissatisfied with the number flashing at us on the scale.

I can almost guarantee you will find the opposite to be true in the culture of powerlifting. Strength and size is embraced as an asset, no matter how big or small you are.

Witnessing such a wide representation of bodies lifting weights in various ranges is an invaluable side benefit of competing in powerlifting.

It will retrain the way you brain perceives body shape — for the better.

In powerlifting, weight is nothing more than another means of organization. Groups of people who share similar body weights are grouped together to help level the playing field: it simply wouldn’t be fair to pit a 120-pound lifter against a 200-pound lifter.

The classifications below represent the standard women’s weight classes in local, regional, state, national, and international and regional events sanctioned by the USA Powerlifting:

• 43.0 kg class: up to 43.0 kg (only applies to junior lifters)
• 47.0 kg class: up to 47.0 kg
• 52.0 kg class: from 47.01 kg up to 52.0 kg
• 57.0 kg class: from 52.01 kg up to 57.0 kg
• 63.0 kg class: from 57.01 kg up to 63.0 kg
• 72.0 kg class: from 63.01 kg up to 72.0 kg
• 84.0 kg class: from 72.01 kg up to 84.0 kg
• 84.0+ kg class: from 84.01 kg up to unlimited

See? All sizes are welcome to play here.

Anyone Can Win in Powerlifting

This is fun! Placing in powerlifting isn’t solely dependent on how strong you are, but how you stack up against the competitors who showed up that day. At my first powerlifting meet, I won third place (and a medal!) simply because I was the third strongest woman in my weight class to show up that day.

Placing is determined within the age and weight classes listed above, or by lightweight, middleweight, and heavyweight classes (weight class categorization will be determined by the meet director). In computing the score for every competitor, body weight is factored into the formula used for overall scoring, called the Wilks Coefficient. For example, if a 181-pound woman and a 182-pound woman (both competing in the same 84-kilo class) both deadlift 300 pounds, the 181-pound lifter will receive a slightly higher score than the 182-pound woman for that lift.

Anyone can win in the sport of powerlifting, but you can’t win if you don’t sign up and give it a shot!

It’s Easy to Relax When We All Look Like Clowns

Powerlifting is divided into two camps: raw and equipped. Raw powerlifting allows for just a few items of support, like wrist wraps and weightlifting belts. Equipped powerlifting meets include additional wearable equipment that actually help the lifter execute the lift, like a bench shirt, squat briefs, and a deadlift suit.

The list below covers what you need to compete in raw powerlifting according to the USA Powerlifting Rule Book, but remember to check the rules for the federation in which you are competing, because there can be small differences. In general, for raw meets you will need:

• A non-supportive singlet (single ply, not a squat suit)
• A T-shirt to wear underneath your singlet
• Tall socks for the deadlift
• Flat-bottomed shoes (no heel rise is good for the deadlift)
• Cotton underwear with no legs (brief- and bikini-style underwear is fine, but boy shorts are not)

I know that wearing a singlet makes a lot of new and potential competitors nervous and outside of some local, non-sanctioned meets, you can be certain you will be required to wear one. And you know what? It’s fine! Singlets not only afford the meet judges a great view of your body performing the lifts, they are also a great equalizer: when every single person is looking slightly ridiculous in their singlet and belt, all covered in chalk, it’s hard to feel like you stick out like a sore thumb because, well, you don’t.

Getting Started Is Easy

Now that I’ve convinced you, you might be wondering how you get started on the road to competition. Your first step is to get on a program. If you’re not sure where to start, ask one or two people you trust in the fitness space for a recommendation. I advise you against putting this question out on social media because you will likely garner an overwhelming number of responses and risk paralysis over which one to choose.

(Note from GGS: the Strong Women Lift Each Other Up group can be a good place to ask!)

If you have a solid grasp of squatting, benching, and deadlifting, working through your program on your own, with your favorite workout partners, or with a remote coach are viable options. If you’re new or new-ish to the big three, I highly recommend working with a trainer in person, either one-on-one or in a small group setting, to get the personal attention you’ll need to get square on the mechanics of the lifts.

Next, you’ll want to find a meet! If you’re not ready to sign on the dotted line just yet, commit to watching a meet from the audience first. Watching how a meet rolls, from how the lifters execute the lifts to how the judges issue their commands, will go a long way towards tamping down the meet-day jitters when you decide you’re ready to compete.

Finding a powerlifting meet can be as easy as googling “Powerlifting meets in [your state]”. You can also use the Meet Search function on PowerliftingWatch.com. There you will find which federations host meets in your state, province or country, when those meets are held, and a list of powerlifting gyms in your area.

Each federation also has a local chairperson and if you don’t see an event listed, that doesn’t necessarily mean there isn’t on the calendar. Emailing your state chair and simply asking about upcoming powerlifting meets is an easy way to find meets in your area.

Let’s Do This!

After coaching dozens of meets at local and national levels, I’ve learned the powerlifting community is incredibly welcoming. And while strength, age, and skill levels vary greatly, there’s still a sense of togetherness as everyone is united towards a common goal: to lift more weight than they ever have before.

Can you or can’t you? Great question! Sign up — I would love for you to see for yourself!

A message from GGS…

Understanding how to get more results in less time so you actually enjoy exercise and can have a life outside of the gym isn’t hard, you just have to understand the Blueprint and be willing to trust the process.

Tell me how!

The post What You Need to Know to Get Started With Powerlifting appeared first on Girls Gone Strong.

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Day 287 Of 360

Alternating as directed, keep kettlebells in-hand for L-to-R set, and then rest/ adjust weight as needed. When the scheme is listed as “3 x 5L, 5R″, it always refers to “Sets” x “Reps”.

Reminder: Position and range of motion always govern weight, and overhead is not a relative position.

read more

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If you’re like most people, chances are you think salt is a bad thing. Dietitians, doctors and health officials across the globe continue to warn people about the dangers of a diet rich in sodium. And for the most part, they’re not wrong. But there are one teeny weeny little details they’ve failed to mention… […]

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Something interesting happened to me when I was young. At the age of 14, I stayed up late one night as I sat on the couch surfing aimlessly through tons of reruns and bad programming. As I continued to scroll through the TV guide with a plate of burger sliders on my lap, I ran […]

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Social media has spawned a lot of flaky trends, but the so-called “Tide Pod Challenge” certainly ranks as one of the most bizarre. News reports that large numbers of teenagers have been daring one another to eat the popular laundry detergent packets (and post videos of themselves doing so) has prompted alarm and mystification among both […]

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I haven’t talked much about stress this month, and I don’t want to give it short shrift. Yes, there’s a lot to take apart with food and exercise, both of which can feel more “actionable” at times. But stress can be a major roadblock to success. How we deal with emotional and physical stress will invariably impact our health, well-being and performance. Until we dial it in, we’ll compromise the results of all our other Primal efforts.

I’ve said in the past that stress has been one of the hardest aspects I’ve struggled with—and continue to now and then. Living Primally means I’m running on full rather than empty to be sure, but that doesn’t mean the rest of the world always conforms to logic or sanity, let alone my preferences. And emotional tension aside, I like to push myself periodically in the gym or on an outdoor adventure, which means I’m dealing with physical stressors, too.

Here’s one thing I’ve done for twenty years to counter both emotional and physical stress.

Recently, I sat down with Brad Kearns to talk about one of the best kept secrets in performance nutrition—a potent anti-stress agent called Phosphatidylserine (PS).

PS is the lead ingredient in Primal Calm, a custom formulation that has been proven to help blunt the spike of cortisol in the bloodstream in response to stress. Old time endurance athletes like Brad and I have been using PS for over 20 years to help speed recovery from crazy training binges, but PS and the supportive ingredients in Primal Calm are also effective against routine modern life stressors like jet travel, hectic daily routines, compromised sleep, and so on.

We talk in the video about the physiology of stress and the best ways to use PS or Primal Calm—with more specific recommendations for bouts of heavy stress or training.

The goal isn’t to blunt the edge that can sharpen your focus or performance. It’s to achieve an evenness or, in some cases, a mellowness rather than the amped-up fight or flight response. I could easily write more, but check out my talk with Brad, and let me know what you think.

Now For the Giveaway…

I don’t think I give enough attention to Primal Calm on the blog, but today I’m going big. I’d like to give one random commenter a year’s supply of Primal Calm (12 bottles).

Just tell me what questions you have about stress—emotional stress, training related stress, etc.—or what stress-related topics you’d like me to write about on MDA.

Be sure to comment before midnight tonight (1/23/18 PST) to be eligible to win. (And be sure to use a functional email address when you comment. We’ve had to choose alternate winners on a few occasions this month because emails were undeliverable to the listed addresses.)

Thanks for stopping by today, everybody. Take care.

The post The Anti-Stress Tool I’ve Used For 20 Years (and a Giveaway) appeared first on Mark’s Daily Apple.

http://www.thealternativedaily.com/

Even a gynecologist who says she’s “heard it all” was shocked by the trend of women (as well as the famous case of actress Gwyneth Paltrow) steaming their vaginas. But, most of the evidence suggests there isn’t too much to be afraid of. Vaginal steaming, also known as V-steaming and yoni steaming, involves women squatting or […]

http://chriskresser.com/

Each week, around 23 percent of U.S. adults, or 52 million Americans, use a medication containing acetaminophen, according to the Consumer Healthcare Products Association (1). The ubiquitous use of acetaminophen, both by itself and as a component of over-the-counter and prescribed medications, is a major public health issue. Acetaminophen is generally considered safe when taken as recommended, but the margin between a safe dose and a potentially lethal one is incredibly small.

Even when taken as recommended, acetaminophen use can have major side effects. In this article, I’ll discuss the many reasons we should avoid acetaminophen whenever possible and share several safer alternatives for pain relief.

Liver toxicity

Overdose with acetaminophen is the leading cause for calls to poison control centers in the United States, with more than 100,000 instances per year (2). It’s responsible for more than 56,000 emergency room visits and an estimated 458 deaths every year due to acute liver failure. In fact, over half of all acute liver failure cases in the United States are due to acetaminophen overdose (2). Taken over several days, as little as 25 percent above the maximum dose, or just two additional pills a day, has been reported to cause liver damage. This staggered overdosing may be more dangerous than a single large overdose (3).

Think twice before you reach for Tylenol.

Current guidelines recommend taking no more than 4,000 milligrams of acetaminophen daily (4). Yet according to a 2006 study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, even this dose, taken for four or more days, frequently causes elevated serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT), a marker of liver injury. Moreover, the elevations in ALT often persisted for several days after the acetaminophen was discontinued (5).

Concerns about liver toxicity were raised as early as 1977, when an FDA advisory panel said it was “obligatory” to add warning labels about liver damage. The FDA dragged its feet until 2011, when it finally issued a statement urging drug manufacturers to limit the strength of each capsule to 325 milligrams of acetaminophen and mandated warning labels about liver toxicity (4).

Acetaminophen toxicity is increased when combined with narcotics like codeine or hydrocodone, when more than the prescribed dose was taken in a 24-hour period, when more than one acetaminophen-containing product is taken at the same time, or when alcohol is consumed while taking acetaminophen (6, 7).

How does it cause liver damage? Acetaminophen depletes levels of glutathione, the body’s master antioxidant. Glutathione helps protect cells from damage by free radicals. Interestingly, prompt administration of N-acetylcysteine (NAC), the precursor to glutathione, can prevent mortality from acetaminophen toxicity (8).

Gut health and microbial drug metabolism

Chronic use of acetaminophen doses greater than 2,000 milligrams has been associated with a 3.7 times increased risk of bleeding in the upper gastrointestinal tract (9). Acetaminophen can also cause intestinal permeability. Overdose with acetaminophen causes massive necrosis of the liver tissue, which releases a protein that results in leakage of bacteria from the gut into the bloodstream (10).

I’ve written before on the Kresser Institute blog about the role of the gut microbiota in drug metabolism. Interestingly, those with higher levels of certain gut bacterial metabolites may be more susceptible to acetaminophen toxicity (11).

Cardiovascular health, kidney disease, and cancer

Several recent studies have also shed light on acetaminophen’s relation to cardiometabolic health. One study, published just this month, found that those taking opiates (some of which contain acetaminophen) were 95 percent more likely to be obese and 63 percent more likely to have hypertension (12). Of course, we can’t separate out the effects of acetaminophen in these combination drugs.

The kidneys are also affected by acetaminophen. Heavy use of acetaminophen is associated with an increased risk for kidney disease. This is especially true when combined with alcohol consumption. One study found that concomitant use of acetaminophen and alcohol resulted in a 2.23 times increased risk for kidney dysfunction (13).

Researchers have also found associations with cancer. A 2013 meta-analysis of epidemiological studies found that acetaminophen was associated with a significantly increased risk of kidney cancer (14). A 2011 study of more than 64,000 older men and women found that acetaminophen use was also associated with several different types of blood cancers, including myeloid neoplasms, non-Hodgkin lymphomas, and plasma cell disorders like multiple myeloma (15).

Blunted emotions and empathy

Researchers at Ohio State University wanted to determine if acetaminophen affected emotional processing. They found that participants who took acetaminophen “evaluated unpleasant stimuli less negatively and pleasant stimuli less positively, compared with participants who took a placebo.” In other words, both negative and positive stimuli were less “emotionally arousing” to people who had taken acetaminophen (16).

In another double-blind, placebo-controlled experiment led by a different research group, participants rated their perceived pain, personal distress, and empathic concern after reading scenarios about another person’s physical or social pain. Participants who had received acetaminophen beforehand showed less empathy towards others’ pain (17).

Together, these studies raise concerns about the broader social side effects of acetaminophen. If a quarter of Americans use this every week, what impact is this having on us as a society?

Autism, ADHD, and brain health

Acetaminophen is currently marketed as safe during pregnancy. However, acetaminophen use may have neurodevelopmental consequences for the fetus. A 2016 study followed more than 2,000 mother–child pairs from the first trimester of pregnancy and performed several tests of behavior when the children were about five years old (18).

Forty percent of the children were exposed to acetaminophen in utero. Exposure to acetaminophen was associated with lower attention function and a greater risk for ADHD-like hyperactivity and impulsivity symptoms. In boys, acetaminophen exposure was also related to a greater number of autism spectrum symptoms, and mothers who used acetaminophen more frequently had an even greater chance of having children with autistic-like behavior. The authors even ran the data again, excluding mothers that had chronic illness, urinary tract infections, or fevers during pregnancy, and found the same results, suggesting that it was not illness itself that contributed to the association.

Some researchers hypothesize that activation of the cannabinoid system by acetaminophen may be affecting neural development (19). A study in rats found that acetaminophen causes toxicity to neurons even at concentrations too low to cause liver failure (20). It caused the neurons to undergo apoptosis, or programmed cell death.

Severe skin reactions and asthma

Acetaminophen has also been linked to rare but very serious skin reactions such as Stevens-Johnson syndrome and toxic epidermal necrolysis. These reactions can be fatal. Between 1969 and 2012, there were 107 such cases, of which 67 required hospitalization, and 12 people died. In 2013, the FDA issued a warning and mandated that skin reactions be listed on acetaminophen-containing drug labels as a potential adverse effect (21). Exactly how acetaminophen causes these potentially fatal skin reactions is unknown, but particularly alarming is that they can occur even if you’ve taken acetaminophen in the past without any problems.

Researchers have also found an association between acetaminophen and asthma. A 2009 systematic review and meta-analysis found that in both adults and children, the risk of asthma increased with prior acetaminophen use. Moreover, prenatal exposure to acetaminophen also increased the risk of asthma in child, possibly by increasing oxidative stress during prepregnancy. (22)

Of course, these are only associations, and they don’t prove that acetaminophen is the cause of these problems. Some of these children may have received acetaminophen due to viral respiratory infections that may have also contributed to the development of asthma. Still, the evidence is strong enough that several experts have recommended that acetaminophen use should be avoided in children with asthma or at risk for asthma (23, 24).

Altered reproductive function

Acetaminophen is also an endocrine disruptor. In a 2016 study, rats given acetaminophen had female offspring with fewer eggs, smaller ovaries, and smaller litters when they reached reproductive age. Male offspring had fewer numbers of sperm progenitor cells early in life, but these returned to normal by adulthood. Particularly concerning was the effect it had on the next generation. Granddaughters of the rats given acetaminophen were also found to have smaller ovaries and stunted reproductive function (25).

How did this happen? The researchers speculate that it has to do with acetaminophen’s effect on prostaglandins, hormones that are involved in pain and inflammation but are also important in regulating female menstrual cycles and reproduction.

In humans, acetaminophen use during pregnancy, especially for durations of more than four weeks, is associated with an increased risk of having male children with an undescended testicle at birth (26). Prolonged exposure to acetaminophen also decreases the amount of testosterone produced by human fetal testes (27), which could have major effects on male development.

Alternatives to acetaminophen

Hopefully, I’ve convinced you to think twice about taking acetaminophen. Ultimately, pain is a sign of a deeper problem, and throwing pills at it is only suppressing symptoms. Eating an anti-inflammatory diet, getting adequate sleep, exercising, getting exposure to sunlight, and managing stress are all part of an effective pain-management strategy. For acute relief, there are some alternative painkillers that are far less toxic and, in many cases, just as effective as acetaminophen. Here are a few that I always keep in my “medicine” cabinet:

1. Curcumin: a potent anti-inflammatory, curcumin is one of the natural compounds found in turmeric. I recommend 1,500 mg up to three times a day of the Meriva-SR form, which is much more bioavailable than other forms of curcumin. (Note: curcumin is contraindicated if you are taking blood thinners.)

2. Magnesium: three of the most common reasons for taking acetaminophen over the counter are headaches, muscle pain, and menstrual cramps. For many people, magnesium can provide significant relief from these symptoms, often equivalent to or better than Tylenol. I recommend 400 to 600 mg of the magnesium glycinate form.

3. Boswellia: another anti-inflammatory, the resin of the Boswellia tree has been used medicinally for centuries. It works via a different mechanism than curcumin, so they are complementary when taken together. I recommend 100 mg up to three times a day in the AKBA form.

4. Clove oil: works like a charm for toothaches. Mix a few drops of therapeutic-grade clove oil with a spoonful of coconut oil and swish it around the mouth.

5. CBD oil: also known as cannabidiol, this is the non-psychoactive oil of the cannabis plant that has pain-relieving and anti-inflammatory properties. It does not produce the “high” that THC does, and as of now, it is currently sold legally over the counter. I recommend one to two droppersful once or twice a day of the Ojai Energetics Super CBD product.

6. Acupuncture: can be quite effective at modulating local and systemic pain and reducing inflammation.

7. Mind-body interventions: emotional-freedom techniques, yoga, and meditation can all provide short-term pain relief.

Now I’d like to hear from you. Did you know the dangers of acetaminophen? What do you use for pain relief? Share your thoughts in the comments below.