In this episode, Nikou speaks to Michelle McLain who has an incredible story to share about how she's failed forward in so many aspects of her life – through mental health, weight loss (130lbs in 9 months), being down at the bottom and pulling herself up to become a badass in business.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Every day I wake up and my goal in life is to change, inspire or save just one life. When you go through what I went through your whole life changes. On November 16th 2016 every single thing that I thought I knew about life changed.
I went to bed at 10pm and at 2am I woke up in the lifeless, cold arms of my husband. A couple of days later I found a suicide note.
About a year later I was spiralling, drowning myself in a couple of bottles of wine a day and I grew to the biggest I'd ever been in my life.
You look at yourself in the mirror and you have these people that see you as a ray of light and an inspiration to people, but I see the person on the inside that's screaming to get out.
I needed a trainer would wasn't going to listen to my excuses as to why I was 300lbs.
Every day I had to think that no matter how I feel and how I felt about doing the work, I had to do it. I looked at pictures of my kids and thought, they're not going to have a Mom if I don't discipline myself.
I couldn't walk up and down stairs without getting out of breath and feeling sick.
I've stuck with keto and intermittent fasting for over a year. It doesn't work for everyone, but it works for me. Finding the right diet is trial and error.
When we figured out what it was that I wasn't responding to, that's when the game changed and I started losing weight quicker than I'd ever imagined. I wasn't in the gym for 4-5 hours a day or killing myself with cardio, I literally did 45 minutes of cardio and some strength training with weight, but the one thing I had to do every single day was drink a gallon of water and get 10,000 steps. I literally lost half of my weight doing just that and watching my calorific intake.
Once I saw the initial results and I got into that routine I'd write notes to myself on post-it notes to myself and stick them around the house and in my car.
Another thing that was super powerful for me was surrounding me with the right kind of people. I left an emotionally abusive relationship in July 2020 with someone who I never should have been with. It was about eliminating people, places and things in my life that didn't bring me joy.
I started documenting every step of my journey and that attracted other people in the same situation as me who were inspired by my journey which made me accountable.
Putting on those size 6 jeans yesterday and they fit was the culmination of the whole last year's journey. I did it. It's indescribable.
My kids were kidnapped by a cult after my husband died and I've been trying to get them back since 2017.
Sometimes we call out to god, or a higher power and ask why things have happened to me. But I wouldn't be the person I am today had I not had to go through all that and had to figure it out myself the hard way. I wouldn't trade any of it.
Every single day you should take out 10 minutes for mindful meditation.
You're one connection away from your best life.
If there's one thing I've learned over the past few years is that no amount of guilt we have over the past and no amount of anxiety we have about the future can change the present. You have to learn to live in the now, there's no guarantee that you're going to have a next week, day or 10 minutes. When I did that, everything in my life transformed.
Focus on fixing one thing at a time, continuous forward momentum. Understand that you're not alone, every single one of us goes through horrible things in life and we've just got to pick ourselves back up a move forward.
BEST MOMENTS
‘In the blink of an eye, everything you think you know about life can change'
‘I physically started with one step with the goal of getting to 10,000 steps and lose 50lbs.'
‘Don't ever use you scales as a measure of success, look at how your clothes fit and how your energy levels are.'
‘Every single thing you want in life starts with a mindset shift.'
ABOUT THE GUEST
On November 16, 2016, Michelle McLain's life changed forever. She woke up in the lifeless and cold arms of her husband and would ultimately discover that it was his own doing; there aren't enough words to describe that kind of pain.
Michelle was months into launching her business and after experiencing that loss, began a downward spiral that she didn't know how to pull out of. She ultimately had to make the choice of victim or victor and after a year of drowning in her own misery, Michelle took a leap of faith, bet on herself and decided that she would WIN, no matter what challenges she faced.
What began as a journey of self-discovery, turned into a complete life and physical transformation. Michelle took control of her health and fitness and through diet and exercise, managed to lose 130+ lbs in 9 months. She changed the people, places and things that were holding her back from her best self and began connecting with those that had a growth mindset rather than self-limiting beliefs. Michelle started to use her pain for a purpose and by pouring into others, her life began to transform in ways that she never could have imagined.
Michelle is a successful brand strategist, CEO and influencer, better known as The Queen of
Clubhouse: “People are my passion. My goal is to impact lives and use my journey to help others navigate theirs. Your story is your greatest asset and it deserves to be told.”
GUEST RESOURCES
Website:www.michellemclain.com
Clubhouse: @werisetogether
#werisetogether
VALUABLE RESOURCES
Email: nikoulohse@gmail.com
Instagram: @nikoulohse
ABOUT THE HOST
Nikou Lohse is a mom of three, wife to former MLB pitcher Kyle Lohse, Master Pilates instructor, yoga teacher, and lover of all things MOVEment, MINDFULness, and commUNITY.
Nikou is a serial entrepreneur. She started her first company at 21 doing sales & marketing for Fortune 500 companies, made her first million at 24, and decided to exit at 30 in order to pursue her passion for helping others. She became a yoga, Pilates, barre, and mindfulness instructor, but her own struggle with SIBO and postpartum depression led her to redefine the way she took care of her body. Now, as a holistic health coach, she is on a mission to empower women and help them heal their gut through nutrition, movement, mindfulness, and spirituality.
CONTACT METHOD
Email: nikoulohse@gmail.com
Podcast Description
Failing forward is about the successes we find after enduring failure. Each episode is an opportunity to hear interviews and stories from professional athletes, entrepreneurs, executives, doctors, and loved ones who have fallen down, struggled, and transformed.
They'll be sharing how they got to where they are today, and the lessons they learned along the way. We'll be covering topics in entrepreneurship, careers, relationships, holistic wellness, mindfulness, gut health, and finding your competitive edge. With raw human moments and empowering information, this podcast is here to inspire you, remind you of your greatness, and give you the knowledge to up-level in every area of your life.
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