¶ Intro / Opening
So the question is what do you do ? How do you go about adjusting to the changes as you age
¶ What do you do?
, without being negative about it and without beating up on yourself ?
Every little thing you do helps , even if it's just walking to the mailbox a couple of times a day . Our bodies are incredible and they will heal and they will still . Even in our 50s , 60s , 70s , we can still make progress to a place where we feel good again . We're beautiful and glorious just as we are , whether we've got to lose a few pounds .
I wanted that woman who looks in the mirror and thinks ugh , where did she go To look a little harder and find the good things that are still there ?
Hi , I'm Lennis Woods Mullins and I love to help women to vibe , to be more vibrant , intuitive , beautiful and empowered in their life . So come on , let's vibe . If you're like me and I imagine many of us do have a lot of the same topic in common there are times when we look in the mirror and we just wonder what the hell's going on .
You go to the mirror and you expect to see one thing you know the way we used to be , the way we want to be . And then you look again . You're like , oh , that is not quite a match . So the question is what do you do ? How do you go about adjusting to the changes
¶ Adjusting to change without negativity
as you age without being negative about it and without beating up on yourself ? And I'm so glad we have Kim Moism I hope I pronounced that name . How do you pronounce your last name , kim ? It's Moisman , moisman . Okay , we have Kim Moisman with us and she's a wife and a mom and a loving grandma .
And she's also an author and a coach that specializes in empowering women when they're embarking on their second act .
She's a nutritionist with all kinds of certifications , but one of the things that's really special about her is that she has really gotten that unique blend of spiritual and physical wellness that's enabled her to write a book called Reflections of Joy , and I have a copy of the book right here . It's a lovely book .
I enjoyed reading it and there's so much in there , faith infused strategies to help inspire us when it comes to our overall strength and beauty and , basically , holistic growth all mind , body , spirit kinds of approaches to your overall wellness . So , kim , welcome finally to the Vibe Living Podcast . We talked a long time ago . You kindly sent me your book .
It's absolutely beautiful . I'm so glad to have you here today .
Oh , thank you , I'm glad to be with you .
You know , first of all , the book is lovely . It is one of the kind of books that I love , because I just like to go like this and say , okay , what am I going to learn today ? Because there's so many key wisdoms in your book . What made you decide to write it ?
Well before I became an author , I owned a gym and it was a challenge style gym . Big groups would start all at the same time and they'd take a picture and everyone would work out really hard and try to be the winner at the end of nine weeks . But the thing I heard over and over and over again from people was just how busy they were .
They didn't have time to read , they didn't have time to cook , they didn't have time to do things cook , they didn't have time to do things .
And so when I finally decided to write the book , I knew what I wanted to say , but I wanted to make sure that people had time , and so , instead of having seven long chapters , there are seven chapters with seven small parts in each one of them . So if a person has a nice lazy , rainy day and they want to read the whole book , they can .
But if they only have those little moments of time , I tried to give them a little bit that they could chew on and they could think about for 63 days if they needed to , or whatever it was thought-provoking book and it's also very thoughtful the way you've broken things down , all the way down to words and their meaning and what they might stand for or how
significant they might be for us individually , like the word convenience , which is so interesting because I've never really looked upon it in that way . But one of the things that's interesting as we age , that's when we begin to really do a lot of self-exploration in a different way .
We're looking for maybe more , not just the meaning of life , but the meaning of our lives and what it is that we are supposed to be doing and how it is that we can move forward . How has your experience as a wellness coach working with middle-aged women really helped you guide women to figure out you know what their second act is going to be like ?
Becoming a middle-aged woman has helped me understand the women I was working with before when I was young , when I first became a trainer and a gym owner . Gosh , I thought we could do anything .
You could do anything that you set your mind on , and I had never lived in this middle-aged body before and I had never had the pressures or the freedoms of being a middle-aged woman either . And so I guess I learned through experiencing , through watching women achieve things but also acknowledge their limitations as we get older .
It's not that , as middle-aged women , we can't do things , but perhaps the things that we want to do we have to do differently , and what I've learned is that if you can experiment and try and approach things with a bit of childlike curiosity , again , we can learn to do things , and really we can do anything , but perhaps we have to do them in a different way
.
I agree . You know , I've just recently I've been coming into the own awareness when I'm talking with my clients is that , look , you don't really want to act and live like you're still 30 years old , because reality is you ain't 30 years old baby . Okay , and there's . That's just the reality of it and with that , this changes .
You know , here's another reality that's really hard for us to talk about , but it's real , and that is we are all slowly aging and dying . Basically , that's the reality and , as a result , there are going to be things we're going to have to do to compensate for those things that are kind of leaving us or not in as high quantity .
Like , for instance , now I understand why my grandmother took so many supplements . I couldn't understand it . She wasn't sick . I'm like , why is she taking all those pills ? Now I get it . Because your body stops making some of the things , maybe not in the quantity that we need to .
And then you know the whole idea of maybe needing to take a nap in the middle of the day . That doesn't mean that you're , you know , an old , crotchety person . That means you're taking care of your body and giving it the fuel that it needs so that you can continue on with your day . These are just some things that we have to realize as harsh realities .
What about you ? How has your journey towards health differed , maybe , than it was 15 years ago ?
I've learned that I need to take things in bite-sized pieces . So , exactly like you said , I need some rest every once in a while . When I was in my 20s , 30s , even in my early 40s , I could go work in the garden . You know , I live in the Midwest . We have this three-month window where we can grow anything and it's glorious .
I used to go out and work in the garden for eight hours at a time and be just fine , you know . But today , if I were to go do that , bent over or on my hands and knees and pulling weeds and you know , doing the different things I'm going to feel terrible tomorrow .
So what I've learned to do for myself is I can still do those things , but I'm going to go out in the morning when it's beautiful , maybe listen to some music , those things but I'm going to go out in the morning when it's beautiful , maybe listen to some music or a podcast .
I'm going to work for a couple of hours and then I'm going to get up and I'm going to walk go for my daily walk so that I'm not all still hunched over . I'm going to eat . Well , I'm going to drink water . You know it used to be . I could do anything for eight hours , push myself , push myself and never nourish myself , and still be fine .
Today I know better .
Right , I can remember doing all kinds of things to my body without even thinking about it , especially when I was a dancer . Normally , usually dancers are the worst when it comes to what they eat and you know all the crazy things that they do to their bodies . You're thinking . Well , you know , of course they're eating healthy , but that is not the case .
But they're young . You know , I was young at that time . Thankfully , I started making changes in terms of the things that I do to my body and what I put in my body . When I was about in my 30s , you know , I began to get those building blocks . But it doesn't always happen that way .
As we go into our own self-discovery , begin to our 50s and stuff , that's in some cases when we start thinking about that . But it's never too late and it doesn't have to be so hard . You know , as I was reading your book about ways to make embracing change easier , what are some of your tips around that ?
I just think you need to enjoy life right . And so when I was young , I used to deprive myself , I used to discipline myself in certain ways and it was okay that I didn't maybe enjoy the food I was eating or the exercise I was doing . But life is too short and the things I'm doing now ?
I eat what I want , but I make sure every time I sit down that I eat a protein , fat and a carb . I don't track it , I don't weigh it , I don't do those things . I know that when I put certain things in my body , I'm going to feel a certain way . I move every day for pleasure . I like to walk , I like to be outside .
I like it even more when I'm at my winter home in Florida and the beach is right there . But what I've learned is to do the things that I like to do , and it makes me keep coming back to it again and again and again . And if I do things that are good for my body , you know I try to do the things that I'm going to
¶ The power of small actions for health
be able to repeat tomorrow . So , walking , you know I used to envy people who danced or who run . My own daughter-in-law is a ballerina . I watch her , push her body in amazing ways , but she too will age someday and it'll feel different and she'll have to find other ways to move .
Absolutely . And you're absolutely right . It's interesting because I was a ballet dancer for years . I took ballet forever . I actually stopped dancing and performing at 62 . Of course , yeah , I was not doing toe anymore . I stopped doing toe when I was in my thirties .
Like I said , I stopped doing some of the damage and I stopped doing that , but I was still dancing up until 62 . And then I thought , well , you know , I don't want to be one of those folks . And I said , well , she needs to really sit down . She's like sit down , that's too much , you're scaring me . So so I stopped .
I didn't want to be that lady , but I still dance . but I modified what I did because you know intrinsically in the back of my mind if I'm going to do a pirouette or some kind of thing involving rotations , I might be able to do the four or five , but I'm okay if I just do the two because I don't want to hurt myself .
I've learned to embrace this part of aging that keeps me healthy . The good thing is , though , when you have worked out for as long as you do as a dancer , there are some things that are just there Sometimes , when I just kind of I have excellent balance . If I trip over something , I almost fall , but I don't every time .
It's just really weird , and I know that comes from . You know all the dance , but that doesn't mean that you can't still do things with your body and learn how to protect your body . In fact , what can you tell someone who's thinking about exercising to help get stronger ?
You know , as they age , and even if they've never exercised before and they're kind of afraid , what can you tell them ? What steps should they take to get ready to do that ? Because there's really nothing to be afraid of .
No , I would say , if you're thinking about it , just start small . I've worked with people for many years who were very deconditioned and some who were on the backside of an injury perhaps and just starting to move again . Every little thing you do helps , even if it's just walking to the mailbox a couple of times a day .
Maybe it's learning how to position your body and just rising up and down out of a chair , and sometimes people think , oh , that's just such a little action , it doesn't make a difference , but it does make a difference . Little action , it doesn't make a difference , but it does make a difference .
And if people would just take , if people would choose an action that feels good for them and feels right and do it faithfully every day and pay attention to when all of a sudden it's easy , and then do a little bit more and repeat that for a few days , I think most of your listeners would be surprised at how quickly their health and their physical ability can
come back to them . Our bodies are incredible and they will heal and they will still . Even in our 50s , 60s , 70s , we can still make progress to a place where we feel good again .
Absolutely . I've been experimenting with some things myself that I know that I've kind of let go of . During the summer , it's really easy for me to drink lots and lots of water , but in the winter because it's cooler and everything else , it's just not as easy to do it .
So I decided to start preparing myself for the fall time by increasing my water even more , and I discovered a couple of things . First of all , I was not as hungry . I was not snacking in between or any of that . It started getting a little cooler and I saw myself subconsciously beginning to head off the water .
Stop drinking this water as much , and the next thing . I knew I had a craving for this snack and that snack and everything else . I said , okay , times have changed . Even though it's a little bit cooler , I still have to make sure that I'm drinking my water . So these are incremental , small changes .
They don't have to be long and I have found at this stage of life I'll be , I like to say now , I'll be 70 in three years . So do the math okay .
Nice , yes , so when ?
I'm 70 in three years . At this stage of life , I really want to find opportunities to maybe , as they say , hack some things so that I'm still taking care of me , but the effort is different no longer stressing myself out . I am aware of calories , but I have to stop beating up on myself .
You know , if I want to eat a piece of pound cake , I , but I have to stop beating up on myself . You know , if I want to eat a piece of pound cake , I'm going to eat that piece of pound cake Now . Maybe I'll walk a little further the next day , or maybe the next day after that I won't go back for a second piece of pound cake .
You know it's just little tweaking things that go , and you talk a lot about , you know , letting go of some of the stuff that we used to hold ourselves so rigid for , so accountable for , and you share stories of what you've learned and the adventures you've gone through .
What do you think women need to let go of and how will this help them when it comes to easing into what you would call your second act ?
Yeah , there's so many things that I think that we hold on to as women and our current state of social media although it's lovely to be able to stay in touch with people and to interact , I think about 2020 , when I couldn't make it to the hair salon , or just the different things . Let go of limitations , Like we were talking .
You can be anything you want to be . You can still do the things you used to do . We just have to change them and be adventurous , and sometimes we have to let go of our fear of trying something new .
Since I don't have to work a 40-hour-a-week job anymore and I'm not chasing my kids around anymore , I've had the opportunity to take painting classes and photography classes and write a book to take painting classes and photography classes and write a book .
There are so many things that we need to let go of and really I think in today's society , one of the biggest ones is numbing no-transcript and it's an election year , so it's even more stressful . But I think people are always looking for that thing to make life better , and life is really truly so good as it is .
Ladies , are you ready to vibe your life ? The Vibe Wellness Woman Network is your go-to space for holistic health , empowerment and community , created just for women over 40 . Inside you'll find expert-led workshops , wellness challenges and exclusive coaching , and a sisterhood that supports your journey to being vibrant , intuitive , beautiful and empowered .
Join today and get access to fitness tips , spiritual renewal , menopause support and more All designed to help you thrive in midlife and beyond . Visit thevibewellnesswomannetworkcom and start your journey to wellness today . I'm glad you brought that up , because I always tell people everything works out for you .
Yeah , it does , because if it didn't , you wouldn't be here talking to me right now . So everything really does work out for you . As I like to say to myself , everything works out for me . It may not work out in the way I thought , it may not work out in the timing that I thought it was going to work out .
It may come in a different guise , but it works out . It does , and I think that we need to revel in that and be grateful for it . I know that we happen to be a nation , a nation of strivers and achievers and all those other that we have , but I think in some ways , it has dumbed us down in terms of staying present .
Yes .
And appreciating what's happening right in the here and now . And I'm just wondering , when you're talking with women and when you're talking about your book too , how do you do that ? How do you figure out how to find the joy , hang on to the joy , stay present in the joy . What helps you do that ?
I disconnect , and I don't disconnect for long periods of time , you know days or weeks but when I'm with a person , I try to be with a person , and when I'm in nature or I like to talk to God , when I'm walking it's my version of multitasking , if you will . But I don't put my earbuds in , I don't listen to music , I don't listen to podcasts .
If God's being quiet or I'm stewing over something , I just listen to what's going on around me . I think it's very important in this world full of noise and opportunities for engagement , that we disengage sometimes so that we can experience and so that we can process what we've experienced .
Like you said , there are so many good things and everything will work out . It will work out and you're right , it may not work out the way I've been hoping for or praying for or working for , but it will work out and if we pay attention to those things , it can be so much better than what you were expecting in the first place .
And I know sometimes it sounds a little Pollyanna and I worried when I wrote the book . You know , reflections of joy , la-di-da , my life is great . Well , sure , I have problems too , but I really try to focus in on the what could happen or the what is happening instead of gosh . It didn't work out .
Well , I would imagine that's where your faith comes in . I know that's where my faith comes in . I tell my kids all the time . I have four daughters and they're at that stage what I call hair on fire moments . They're all in their thirties and everything's like at that stage what I call hair on fire moments . They're all in their 30s and everything's like .
You know , and I'm hoping that by the time you get into our stage of life , it's like , oh my god , look at that . And then you go into prayer or you go into gratitude or you we , you know disconnect from it because you know you can only have so much control over things .
And it's interesting how , when we go to these , through these stages of life , how we begin to change how we look at things . And , as I said in the beginning of the podcast , you know , sometimes I look in the mirror and I'm like , oh my God , is that Linus ? I can't . Where's the 21 year old ?
Well , she hasn't been around for 47 years , but still , where did she go ? And you talk about that . You talk about body responsibility . What's the difference between body responsibility and the whole body positivity thing that you hear about ?
Well , body positivity is important to me . Everybody is beautiful , everybody , no matter what condition they are in . We're beautiful , we're worthy , we're created in his image . But we have responsibility , and I think that , as we look at our families , it's my responsibility to stay as healthy and fit as I can , for as long as I can .
I want my grandchildren to remember me . I want them to remember me down on the ground , playing with them and giggling , you know . I want them to remember sitting in my lap as I read them a story . I want them to remember spending time around the kitchen counter , you know , baking cookies or whatever that is .
I have a responsibility to be healthy so that my family doesn't have to worry about me , care for me , you know , and so society doesn't have to care for me either .
I mean , and I know that there are circumstances that are beyond our controls , but gosh , if we have the opportunity to move our bodies , eat good food , calm our minds , reduce our stress and live healthy lives , how much better for us , for our families , for our society , is it ? Just by being a little bit aware ?
Yes , I like to think about this in this way , like to think about this in this way . You know , sometimes you hear people complaining about well , it's expensive to eat organic , or it's expensive to hire a coach , or it's expensive to take those supplements .
You know all things that could possibly help them feel better and be better and improve the overall quality of their life . I said , well , you either pay for it on the front end or the back end , but guaranteed you're going to pay for it . And when you pay for it on the front end or the back end , but guaranteed you're going to pay for it .
And when you pay for it on the back end , it's not necessarily you who's paying for it , it's your family and friends and things like that , who you're probably not of this earth any longer if you're paying on the back end , so I'd rather pay for it on the front end and enjoy doing it . At the time . There's movement that you can do . That can be fun .
There are certain organic foods . When they're in season , they're less money and there's so much good for you and they last a lot longer in your refrigerator , and just so many reasons why you want to eat organic . Yeah , sometimes you need the motivation , and it's hard to find the motivation on your own .
You need someone to celebrate with when you , when you get to a certain level of whatever you're working on , and that's where a coach can come in . They help to keep you motivated , they help give you information , but , most importantly , there's someone that can celebrate your wins and kind of commensurate with you when you don't make the goals .
These are all things that can be value added in your life and , yeah , it costs a little , but the benefits are far outweigh the detriments , and I think it's all in how you look at things .
I agree , I agree a hundred percent . And people would always say that to me I don't have the time to cook good food and I don't have the money to spend on good food .
But you know , like you were saying , if you buy fresh organic produce in season and you buy extra , throw some in the freezer , you know I mean there are ways to save it for another season . My husband and I , we live in Iowa , you know I mean , we purchase half a beef and a hog every year and have that processed .
It's expensive maybe at the moment , or not expensive . It's much cheaper in the long run several dollars a pound less . When you look at the whole , it's an investment at the moment . But I can go to the grocery store now weekly and spend less than $50 a week even in this time of , it seems , price increases at the grocery store .
So I'm not buying processed food , I'm not buying soda , I'm not . Those things are very expensive .
Yes , they are .
Yeah , you take those things out , you've got plenty of money to spend . It's amazing , isn't it ?
You know , I always one way to look at it . When you're trying to make some lifestyle changes for the better , instead of thinking about all the things you have to give up , why don't you just start adding things that are healthy ?
And as you begin adding things like that walk , more water , maybe eating a nice fresh green salad in the afternoon instead of snacking on chips ? You know , beginning to make those changes , you will begin to find that you'll start looking for other opportunities to be healthy .
You'll start looking for other ways to add to that list and you'll stop craving some of those things that aren't as healthy . You'll start wanting to stop doing those things you used to do that aren't as beneficial for your mind , body , spirit connection . It really starts with a mindset of you know what I'm going to try and experiment here .
I'm going to see what I can do , especially as I age . That is going to be ultimately improving the quality of my life and it does mean maybe making some changes , but it's worth it . I don't know , it's hard to be joyful if you're sick , but it is pretty difficult , right , but it certainly is a lot easier . You certainly got to jump ahead of the game .
If you can do things , you can still be joyful when you're feeling good . You know when things are going well . When you wrote this book , what was the message that you wanted people to get from Reflections of Joy ? I want to show it to you , sandy .
I wanted to reach women who were in the circumstance that I was in . I wanted that woman who looks in the mirror and thinks where did she go ? To look a little harder and find the good things that are still there harder . And find the good things that are still there If we search for the good , whether it's in , my eyes are still 20 .
Thanks to a great hairdresser , my hair is still 20 . My body may not look like it did when I was 20 , but it gave me good things . It gave me two wonderful boys and it's given me a lifetime of movement and joy .
And if we start looking at that what we can have and what we can do , rather than what we can't have and what we can no longer do you can start to turn things around a little bit and you can look forward to it . It's so much easier to continue momentum when it's going in a positive direction . And you know you talked a little bit about adding things in .
I tried to give opportunities in everything I talked about to find ways to crowd out something . I don't like to give things up . I don't like to tell my clients oh , you can't eat potato chips , right ? But I like to tell them . You can try jicama , because it you know it's great for dipping , just like the chips . You can try a new movement .
You can try yoga . You can try whatever . You can Look at the things . You can Look at the things you can do , look at the things you love about yourself . You know , I may have gained weight two or three times in my life , 20 times , 30 times , whatever it is you know , but I still got great legs .
I can look in the mirror and put on that skirt that hits at my knees . I don't wear them shorter than that anymore because you know , I am almost 60 . But I've got great legs . Look at the things you love and if you
¶ Beauty in every stage of life
can't find anything you love in yourself , ask someone , Because you have those four daughters . Those four girls look at you and they see someone incredible that they love very much , you know . Look at your spouse . Look at your parents , if your parents are still here , you know .
I mean , I think about the way I look at my sons and my daughter-in-laws and it makes me sad when they are feeling frumpy and yucky . I can always find something beautiful in them and I know that they can find it in me . So if you , if you're struggling to look in the mirror and find anything good , ask someone .
That's a great idea yeah , that's a great idea , because how we view ourselves is very rarely how others view us . We have a tendency to be so hard on ourselves and be our own worst critic . We can't stop that , especially as we age . You can't stop that . You really should have no time for that . Really you should be , talking about all .
I was just talking with my daughter this morning about how abundantly blessed we are all the gifts that he has given us . And it's really amazing when you really take a look at what you have versus what you don't have , you always come up on the upper end . And I'm so glad that I had a chance to talk with you today , kim , and to share your wisdom .
I love this book I really do , and if you see , I keep it . I didn't just keep it here because I knew I was talking to you today .
It's been here ever since I got it really because I will stop and just kind of reflect and find something to kind of uplift me and you know , being an entrepreneur sometimes can be a lonely journey , because it's just you , you know .
I can you know ?
let me see if I can find some joy today to kind of help me out . So thank you for writing this book and sharing parts of yourself . It's really been wonderful having you here today . Thank you , I've enjoyed it as well .
Good , and for those of you want to find out more about Kim and her services and also her book , go to her website it's right there on the show page , as well as all of her social media . Find out more about her . Thank you so much for listening .
You know I am so happy that you have and I want to invite you to listen to the other podcasts that are here . It's amazing , the shows that we've had this past year . I've talked to so many great people and I hope you have enjoyed them .
And , if you have , don't forget to subscribe , like and share the podcast , because we want to kind of you know , was it sharing is caring , spread the joy , spread the vibe as it was . Thanks so much for wanting to learn more about being vibrant , intuitive , beautiful and empowered , about learning how to vibe .
Thanks everyone , have a fantastic day and don't forget to vibe . Bye , bye , everybody . Thanks for listening to the vibe living podcast and don't forget to subscribe , like and comment and share this podcast . Have a fantastic day and don't forget to vibe . Bye , bye , everybody .