Addressing the Wellness Paradox in 2023: Expert Guest Insights

This paradox , as I view it , is the trust , interaction and communication gap that exists between fitness professionals and our medical community .

This podcast is all about closing off that gap by disseminating the latest , most evidence-based and most engaging information in the health sciences , and to do that in episode 112 to close 2023 , we're going to do something a little different .

It's what we did in episode 100 , where we spliced together 15 answers to how certain guests would address the Wellness Paradox . That was such an overwhelming success and I got so much positive feedback from all of you on that episode that that's exactly what I decided to do here in episode 112 to end 2023 .

We're going to take all the guests from this past year from Tom Johnston in episode 87 on being the CEO of your own life , to Hassan Barnes in episode 111 , where we talked about limiting liability as a fitness professional , and everyone in between and we're going to splice out their answer to how they would address the Wellness Paradox to serve it up back to you

for your consideration as you go into the new year . I want to thank all of you very much for joining us on our journey towards addressing the Wellness Paradox in 2023 . I'm confident that 2024 will be another year of great challenges , great information and many great steps towards addressing the Wellness Paradox .

With that said , please enjoy episode 112 of the Wellness Paradox , our recap of 2023 .

I think , when we're elevating ourselves as true fitness professionals and it really is about education , right , like , you know , you , you know , to play at that at that next level , you need to be , you need to have the , you know the , the education , the experience , the certifications , whatever , whatever it might be to to you know , baseline , prove that , hey , I

have the knowledge and I have the , and then the expertise . And then , and then you have to be you know , then you have to work at becoming you know , work at your craft , like , really really practice that your craft and become and again becoming the best version of yourself .

And I think it's always about sharpening your saw and constantly being a learner and then being able to speak the language of healthcare and of a healthcare professional and then recognizing that they're just people . And so the reality is .

The reality is that you know oftentimes , you know the fitness professional right is going to come to the table with way more knowledge about fitness , exercise , science , etc .

Than than a physician will , right , and so now you have this level of expertise and so , recognizing that you're , you know , I'm going to say that you're equals in your partner here , and the partnership is around let's take , let's take care of the client , the patient , and that's the , that's the commonality .

And how do we partner to take the best care of this , of this person ?

And the reality is that you , as a fitness professional , are going to spend a whole lot more time with that individual than the physician is , and you're going to probably know their body in ways that that physician is never going to know their , their bodies , and so being able to speak that language you know , is is you know and educate the , the , the , the ,

the medical , you know , the medical community , on on , you know what it is that you do and the difference that you're making in those people's lives .

And I think , ultimately , it comes down to , as you start to work and partner with , with a physician , and , and , and , all of a sudden , that physician , six months after they've seen the , the person , they come back into their office and they're like holy cow , what have you done ? Yeah , like you don't need the meds anymore , right ? You know you're walking .

You know , whatever it might be like , you have the ability to really impact these people's lives in ways that a physician can't flat straight up .

But I think it's really about getting to know each other's roles and taking time to develop that trust and realizing that you know , we both are here for the same purpose . We both want to help improve the client's lives and I think we have .

I think healthcare professionals need to realize exercise professionals have a luxury perhaps of more time , especially in the context of the UK , with that person , for instance , so we need to be on the same team .

So , yeah , taking time to develop that trust , but a lot of that does come into organizational and challenges and also challenges of the healthcare system .

Get the professionals to feel we have over 20 full-time professional trainers and they're doing extremely well because they've embraced the concept that exercise is medicine and so the two do go together . That's the coin that we use .

Dr Ted Mitchell is now the chancellor of Texas Tech who worked for me for 20 years , ceo of our clinic here , used that in the presentation of our College of Sports Medicine Robies , that exercise is medicine . Now that is by word for the very college . That's course exercise is medicine . So get that together .

Get the physical education people involved in more medical training and get the medical doctors more in vibrant exercise training . We got to get that paradox out of the way and we can do that because I know we're getting more and more physicians want to get involved in the work we're doing here . That's why I'm getting all these invitations to speak .

I want to do that . I've mentioned several times with the soft commercial working on it , so I think that could be a giant step in the proper direction , but it may be mandated by the people , not led by the position , because you know people don't change .

Our problem with what's with problems with the government demands we do is what we decide to do for ourselves . The government's not going to do it and so we have to do this ourselves .

But I found that the patients come back , as I said , because it's that we come back for a very complex examination , because we've proven all years we can prevent all summer submission to things like that If we can't prevent all certain cancer but for all sorts of cancer we can reduce the likelihood of it by having this very complex examination .

But it has to be an educational motivation experience . We only see it for patients today because our physicians spend an hour and a half with these patients , because we want to educate and motivate our patients . That's why they come back , get up to date information when we're talking and get them recommendations that are safe , effective and realistic .

Don't tell them things that are totally unrealistic . They'll just start to never come back . But then get them back . That's the force that we use to try to get our patients involved in our programs and that's why 74% return patients .

So to get that message across to the Physication community , with that presentation that I've done into the field of physical education , maybe you'll find more physicians . Medical societies want some of the people from the Physical Education Society , the Extra-Cycology Society to the . I've done that to medical groups already .

Of course I'm a physician , I can identify with it but have an outsider . But one time I'm telling you , I'm telling you , physical education , physical education , people , you know , the best thing to prevent progression of Parkinson's , autism is exercise .

Do you know that that's the only thing that has really been proven , that's just guidance can slow down the progression of Alzheimer's . That's why we have a program here at our Center for Alzheimer's patients . It's a dance patient and we've seen that improvement . So you people out there , physical education are starting branching out to other things .

Well , on top of that list there'll be special programs for people with Alzheimer's . We're working at the Atlantic Club down in New Jersey . It's recent we have a program down there with our concepts program at all and I was pleased to see they have a very dynamic program for Parkinson's patients Because they've shown the same thing that we're seeing .

You can slow down and even reverse some of those changes that people get when they get the something in order . You get from Parkinson's disease . They don't know that and so some of these things and I said the possibility produces Alzheimer's . To mention just controlling weight and exercising . Why don't they load that in the physical education field ?

And so go on your own there and start doing some studies among the members of your club and document the people that are following your program . So they get sub chronic disease . Are they seeing the same thing ? They're prolonging lives Recent death is all causing .

So you might want to get some research involved in some of these physical education programs , health clubs around the country , around the world . So I think there's a bridge where we get into that I'm going to . For years I've been trying to bridge the gap between FADDism and something in legitimacy .

You can actually find the pressure , but now the results are too impressive to be ignored .

I think it's kind of reaching out and seeing how you can support them to better support their patients , One of the things . I actually had a conversation just a little bit ago with a doctor who focuses on working with people with Down syndrome . This is true , I think , with many doctors that serve people with disabilities .

They often get very focused on some of the elements that are specific to the disability , which leaves them less time to support some of the more chronic disease needs and they maybe don't even know where to recommend how do you get more active ? How do you all of those pieces ? And so you , as a fitness professional , can be that person you can .

You know , you've shared with the doctors in your area that you have that knowledge and you can support and fill that gap for them , and so I think it really is just making sure that you've recognized or you've shared that you're a resource in that area .

For years I traveled around and lectured on the on the fitness stage and I learned how to present the information and I also learned what was of interest to the individual who's working with an older population .

And I think that this is a very , very important two-way street for us that you should not consider us people who work in isolation in a laboratory somewhere and don't consider what you're doing , and we should not consider you someone who's working in a gym that has no idea what we're talking about .

I remember when I first went to teach , someone said to me I told someone I was going to teach a force velocity curve and what it had to do with with modifications in training , and I was going to relate that to bioenergetics , and the person told me you can't teach that because no one will be able to pick it up , and I think that is a tremendous insult

too the fitness population , because not only could they pick it up , they could teach me things that I didn't know .

So my recommendation is attend things like this invite us to come and talk to you so that we can exchange ideas , because I need to know what the problems are out there in the fitness community so that I can design my training in order to do that .

We do all clinical studies , and so I need to know what the best clinical question is , and so we're more than happy to have that interaction , and I think that that's an important thing .

Have open communication because we need to work together . It's way overdue that it's like oh , doctors , you do that , trainers , we do that , and we refuse to meet in the middle . It's really like you said I love that term bridge that gap . It's been way too long . There's a trust to be had . Really embrace , sharing what you know with your clients doctors .

It can really change their programming , it could change their results if you know what's going on with them .

Or oh , they think they know more than me . I was like , well , they do know more than you in their area , yes , so . Or oh , I don't come across , I'm not respected .

You know , I think as long as you come across as someone who doesn't know everything and all your goal is to provide as much value to the people that that clinician sees and you are prepared with the research and the science on that and you're able to say yet , according to these studies , exercise is good for this population , do you agree ?

And most people should agree is like , and in addition to that , if we consider these variables which are sometimes barriers to participation and exercise for the population , do you agree ? I'm actually very much driven to gather continued education or education I've already taken to address this population .

I'd love to work with one or two of your clients , provide some progress , or patients , provide some progress notes . I'll do it at a discount rate . Let's do a trial and see how we work together , and you could wash , rinse and repeat with three , five , 10 clinicians .

I've done it with psychologists , neurologists , psychiatrists , other physical therapists and as long as you maintain that humility and show that you're willing to do your homework and you're not coming across as cocky or you don't follow up less than two times and give up , I think you'll you'll be more successful than not .

I think it's more of like what I want , where we're starting to see the shift and what I want fitness professionals to realize is they're going to work , starting to see this shift , where fitness professionals are going to start to become that first intermediary before primary care , right , with the accessibility to all of these new technologies that we're seeing come

out and things that we're seeing that we have access to either on your phone or within a gym , you know , boutique , whatever that kind of setting is , wellness center setting .

That is then going to be kind of that bridge to hey , it might be time to go see your primary care or there might be , with telehealth now these days there might be primary care already integrated within that saying , hey , we flagged something , we're going to recommend that you maybe go see , you know , this primary care .

Or , hey , go to your primary care specifically to interpret your results or understand your results on a deeper level , because we see a flag .

So that's I see it going there and , you know , really want to encourage everyone that's you know , within this fitness industry and kind of wellness industry to , you know , take pride that you're going to be that first line of understanding someone's health and wellness and then being able to direct them and guide them on the proper steps to further take care of

their health .

So fitness professionals and our identity is so locked up in that , and I think the medical profession is the same . Coming from a medical family and background , I see it in . Number two , don't let simple be considered simplistic , and I just , I just really , when I think about that , I don't mean it in a pure sense , but I think about .

You know , we're a society of people who have lived and worked and have agriculture , been touching the earth and been outdoors , and then we lost that and we actually are having to go back to remind ourselves what it's like to be outdoors and be comfortable outdoors , and that's .

It's almost hard work to make it simple , because we've removed that tolerance and that grit , and so I just would encourage us all to think about . You know , we might not have all the analytics , but it doesn't mean it's wrong . You know , we don't necessarily need to get , we need the studies .

I don't want to misquote that , but we don't need to overthink it . I think we just need to move people . We need to be healthier as a society , and this is one strategy to do it . There's no one right way .

So there isn't them and us , and believing in that means acting it out . So when you're a fitness professional and you notice that something's not quite right about someone's health , and maybe something as sensitive as hearing loss , it is your responsibility to address it , to bring it up , of course , in a respectful way . That doesn't mean diagnosing .

It doesn't mean overstepping your boundaries . It means driving awareness , and I think that if we all take responsibility for recognizing we're working toward a common goal and if we can responsibly drive awareness around important issues that are outside of our lane , I think we'll have a better healthcare system .

we've lost because of COVID . A lot of folks with experience have retired from the industry , so those folks have a track record and a reputation that's very credible . So now we have to start over to reintroduce the skill sets of a great fitness professional , to take the handoff from the medical practitioners to continue their journey to success .

The handoff has got to take place , but we have to have mutual respect and understanding as to where their practice begins , where it ends , where we begin and where we end , and again , just take those folks to the end result , which is whatever their goals from a health , fitness , wellness standpoint happen to be .

All my medical professionals should know , have all the same data about my activity levels , my health history , my functional movement screens , because everybody should be able to see that information and give me feedback or input on how to keep me going and how to keep me moving .

So I think that would be the one thing that I would love to see in health clubs is more of a team approach . Oh , man .

A lot of it is because it distills a lot of the way , the way I would consider prepared to do it . So I think it's just like it . Then , using like to like terms , I think that that's kind of like , I guess , a simple version of it .

I will say that I guess it's like if you're if you're going to press me on how to answer it , it's , I think it's programs over people . That when I think we did a survey at ACSM of our physicians and I think it's just like , and there was like really kind of three survey questions , it was a really elegant survey .

It's really kind of like captured , I think , a lot of what we see in the industry . One is what is your level of trust as a physician ? To refer to specifically an actual , an exercise professional who has education , training , experience about 50% , which is kind of scary . We're going oh my gosh , what the heck .

Yeah , and then it's what is your level of trust that you have of referring to a facility that has run by qualified professionals , which I kind of describe about 50% ? The third one was what is your trust to send them to a program that has measurable outcomes , key performance indicators of improving health , wellness , etc .

Because if you can adjust that and go , okay , look , we're running a cardiac rehab program , a pulmonary rehab program , diabetes Prevention Program , exercise Ecology Program , the program that is shown to have efficacy in the research and is improving health and well-being and reducing costs . That program is really the key .

Now , in order to run an efficacious program that reduces risk , it has to be delivered by qualified people . That , to me , if you're going to connect the two , is what needs to happen .

So it's working with this really ties in the research that we see at the universities are happening , working with the employer sector and healthcare and being able to connect them all together . So this is the education , the training , the experience , everything else .

Effective programs , I think , is our physio , and so I think that to me there are a number of tentacles that come out of it , of those effective programs .

But for the coalition for the registration of Actions professionals , it's you have to get minimally qualified , you have to be registered in order to be a part of that , because we cannot break that trust and therefore you have to use other components that deliver these types of programs , that can show those KPIs that help their needs and the way they need it .

I think that's our way ahead . I know that was kind of like it started off with just the registration , but really to me I think if you're bridging that gap , it's effective programs .

And it was hard , but it was the best thing because when I had that , even though it didn't stay the same , I knew what I needed to do , I knew where I needed to focus and then that was easier to plan an attack or a guide . I do the same thing with clients .

Right , we have to have a goal , we have to find what you're willing to do and then we can form a solution . But without that and that's another thing about your company , that bridging of the gap and providing these podcasts , education , more of this needs to happen and we all have to be playing the same big blue ocean together .

Let's check in with the needs . So to me , I'm not sure if they're specific . If you were going to say something that comes up for you in the gap , as a medical doctor , what would you say is one of the gaps or contributors to the gap ?

We all have different skills , we all have different competencies and we all can contribute and ultimately have the same goals , which is helping people feel better and live better . So the more we can get rid of that , those levels and I think that's going to take time .

So if you're a wellness professional and you're experiencing it instead of judging it back , so let's say you have an experience where somebody , your judgment is they are talking down to me or they're disregarding me , imagine if I came back with care and empathy and saying I'm imagining what I'm saying isn't landing well for you , or is it a little bit unclear as

to why I'm valuing , doing X , y or Z , and you're prioritizing A , B and C ? Would you like to connect around that ? So I'm not judging them and saying , oh see , they're doing that again . I'm sort of trying to bridge and empathize and be with them .

So the more I can get a hold of my hate or judgments , which is my work to do , I think , the more we're going to come together versus trying to change the other person .

We have become very siloed and it's the medical or the wellness or the nutrition or the trauma-informed or meditation or whatever it is , has just become their own silo and we forget we're a whole person and there's room for everyone and that collaboration just makes us stronger .

And so I think , setting that intention and coming from that intention and saying where do we have the opportunities to collaborate and to elevate both of our fields , yeah .

This starts with becoming aware of the paradox in itself and then , once that awareness is called to it , I do think on the fitness side of things , we need to educate ourselves , or at least get connected with some type of entity or person to educate us around what is actually happening in the healthcare landscape and how we could be a big part of solving that

problem . I think it's not lost on me , you and probably a lot of other fitness owners or fitness professionals that when COVID hit , that basically was the world saying what you guys do isn't all that important , and if that didn't rile you up , then I don't know what does .

But that visceral emotion , at least for me , is going to cause me to seek to understand what is the problem that exists right now in our current healthcare climate . Get educated and then find out a way that you can start to help . So education in one word , michael .

So this chain reaction will spread throughout the medical community and people will hear the message and will start paying attention and thinking how to extend their hand to you .

Like I said , it's a system problem and I think it needs to be fixed all the way back at the roots of the conversation way down the road . But those conversations that you have with a doctor , a nurse , a nurse practitioner , even a registered dietitian , that comes into the gym .

That open communication is step one , because open communication leads to maybe more ideas , more referrals for you if you're , you know they like what they're seeing and they're able to refer some patients over to you .

I really wish every patient could have a consultation . So kind of form , those partnerships so that your services are accessible to us as well , would be great .

Right that it can actually like we're now seeing studies that are saying it can kill Parkinson's disease using movement .

Right that we've been looking at movement and fitness all the wrong way , that now conversations like this are having we're having , where we can say , hey , let's look at this not from a two separate lenses or two separate spaces that we're trying to merge , but rather let's look at it as a coalesce thing , that there is no separation , that fitness and wellness

should be one and the same as medicine and that , as with doctors and practitioners , they have to figure out how do they make that coalition , that collision because that is where we're at as a society is not just saying , oh , I'll just add this in later , or oh , which is too much work , to throw in some fitness into my regimen , but it becomes like this is

the prescription , and that's sure you have doctors , but how would it be as a society if doctors , if a patient comes in and they're like , hey , I'm having all these issues , the doctor writes a prescription and says , hey , I'm prescribed you to go do fitness , and here the providers that we have , like , how would a society change if that became the new language ?

And that's where I think that is where we need to be going to this point that it's not us in this umbrella , but it's us in this intermix .

Any information we'd like to share with you from today's episode can be found on the show notes page , that's by going to wellnessparadoxpodcom . Please be on the lookout for our next episode when it drops in two weeks , and don't forget to subscribe through your favorite podcast platform . Have a happy new year and until we chat again next , please be well .