Episode 97: Get Physically Active For A Better Business – Transcript

In this episode, Jennifer sits down with Christine Blanchette, content creator and passionate runner, to explore how integrating physical activity into your daily life can enhance your business success. Christine shares how fitness has boosted her confidence, focus, and overall well-being, helping her thrive professionally and personally. She emphasizes choosing the right activity for your lifestyle, staying consistent, and listening to your body to prevent injury. Whether you’re running a company or just getting started, movement can be your secret weapon. This powerful conversation is a must-listen for any Business Owner ready to prioritize self-care and level up their mindset and productivity.

Transcript

Jennifer: All right. Hey, everybody. Welcome. Welcome to the Happy Productive Podcast. I am so excited, you guys, for my guest today, Ms. Christine Blanchett. And you guys are going to absolutely love Christine. So welcome, welcome, welcome to the show.

Christine: Thank you so much, Jennifer, for having me. And I love your title, Happy Productive Podcast. Oh, thank you. We are so happy to have you. And Christine, would you mind just give everybody a minute or two, just tell them about you and all of your wonderfulness.

Christine: Yeah, I’ll be pleased to. Well, I’m a content creator. I host, produce two TV shows. One is on, one’s called Run With It. It’s a running fitness and health program. The other one is The Closing Act. It’s music and entertainment. Both shows are on cable. They’re now they’re live streaming, they’re on YouTube. And it’s all about the guests. So I invite guests who are holistic nutritionists to wellness professionals and the musicians. And I love what I do. And I write and I teach and I run. That’s how it all started, with the first show, Run With It.

Jennifer: Yeah. Oh, I love that so much. And you know, it’s very interesting to me because I’ve always been a fairly active person. I would say that I had three kids and after my kids, it was definitely harder to kind of get back into that. And then I had suffered a couple of injuries. And so I had an opportunity to do a Spartan race with my sister, which is obstacle course racing. And many people who listen to our show will kind of know a little bit of my story here, where I had set, this is a couple of years ago, I decided to do three races and I ended up doing 12 in one year.

And over the course of the year, by doing all of those races, my business revenues actually tripled. And it was something that I just could not ignore because it was just like, wait a second, I wasn’t really doing anything else all that differently. But what was happening was that the physical exercise was changing me. And it was really developing my mindset. I was feeling better because I was outside.

I was moving my body, not just sitting in a chair. And so that’s what actually caused us to launch our retreats where we pair a Spartan and business coaching. But also just in my coaching practice, we have health coaches and things like that so that we can support the entire person. Now you are like a super-duper fitness expert. And so I would just really love to hear your thoughts on pairing physical exercise with either your goals or your business. And like, (do you feel like, you know, do those two go hand in hand? And what do you see with people who, you know, make that commitment to challenge their bodies in a physical way?

Christine: Well, you know, that’s a very good question because running saved me because I wouldn’t be here doing this interview with you or conversation because running has allowed me to launch my own show. It’s helped me with my mindset. I did actually the Vancouver Sun just last week. And after that, Jennifer, I felt so good. I felt like I can conquer the whole world. Running has given me the confidence. It’s everything in my well-being. I’ve become a better person. I can,  you know, deal with family and problems better. I find it’s a problem solver when I’m out there, whether it’s Spartan or running or walking or gardening, whatever. It just is a movement.

You know, you’re moving. It just takes you in that therapeutic, I don’t know, it’s the endorphins too. It just makes me a whole person. And it doesn’t like, I not only run, but I meditate. I feel like I take my eye brace. I’m always on a computer, you know, like a lot of us are. I do believe there is a definite bonus to combining both, you know, exercise doesn’t be running and being an entrepreneur and, you know, doing whatever you’re doing in your life.

Jennifer: Yeah. And when you say that running saved you, I know there’s a story there. Tell me a little bit of that story. How did running save you?

Christine: Well, I think because I’ve always been an introvert, like I believe I’m a shy person, but I’m out in the forefront all the time. And it’s given me that confidence. It’s given me like, I can do this, believe in myself. And it’s something I never thought I could ever do. I thought I was never an athlete. It was always last and basketball, all sports, always last. So running found me. And what I mean by that is like once running in my life, it just changed. It saved me because it’s helped me become an entrepreneur. It’s helped me to be successful. It’s helped me to deal with every, every aspect of my life. And without it, I don’t know where I would be.

Jennifer: And for somebody who is listening right now, who maybe wants to experience, you know, the benefits of being able to run. I, in my, in my life, I’ve never, I’ve never been a big runner. The times of my life where I was fit and I could run, it always felt amazing. I remember like the first time I ran my first 5k and I ran the whole thing. And normally I have to stop and walk a few times, but the first time that I like ran the whole thing, it was just such a huge accomplishment.

I was just like, Oh my gosh, I can do anything. But, you know, of course I was probably, you know, the next to the last person to finish, but I ran the whole thing and I didn’t stop, but I was slow, but I, I went it, I did it. And so like for somebody who really wants to take advantage of the benefits of running, but let’s just say they’re on the couch and totally unfit, like what would you recommend? How does somebody like get started moving their body in a way that’s safe and that will help them to, you know, eventually work their way up to meet whatever their running goal might be?

Christine: Yes. Well, firstly, see a doctor first. You could be total new at running and you want to try it, or you could be someone who hasn’t run in a while. So I always say, see a doctor first, get checked out and also explore, you know, there’s so many running programs up there. You know, you’ve got, you can join a club, you can join, you can find a trainer, but just start, you know, and one foot in front of the other and, and see what you like, because you may find out like me, I ended up loving it. I mean, yes, it’s hard, you know, when you first start, you’re having a thing and you’re like, Oh, is this for me? But I think you have to try it, you know, a little while, like a 5K and then build yourself. You may not even want it.

You may say, I don’t really like running, I like walking better. Then walk or swim or, you know, it’s, it’s about finding your passion. You know, it has to be something you love, not just to lose weight and not just to say, because my friend runs, so I shouldn’t run or I haven’t run in a while.

That’s all I know. You can try something else. It’s, it’s really, I know someone who was an elite runner, but now doesn’t run, is a power walker and does, you know, Pilates or, or spinning or, you know, it’s, it’s, I love it. So far, it’s taken me on this journey, like Forrest Gump, you know, you just keep running and, but it’s more than one foot in front of the other that there’s, you know, proper shoes, make sure you’re properly fitted. You don’t want to wear basketball shoes or court shoes for running, obviously, you know, dress for the weather conditions.

Nutrition is really important component and just be safe, you know, be patient with yourself. You’re not competing against others, you’re competing against yourself. And that’s what I do and everything I do as an entrepreneur, I am, be who you are. That’s my quote.

Jennifer: I love that so much. Okay. And so when it comes to running, and I’m not an expert, but I’ve heard both sides of the coin where one side says, oh, it’s high impact. It’s going to hurt your joints if you’re a runner. And the other side says, no, it’s not. Running is very beneficial. It’s really, really good for you. And so what’s the truth here? What should we believe?

Christine: Well, you know what, it’s using intelligent rest as Dr. Baldwin would say. It’s cross-training is a really important thing and taking, follow the principle of hard running and then take the day off the next day. So you run hard one day, the next day you would take it easy, maybe cross-training, but build up because I’ve been through injuries myself and I can tell you, I didn’t warm up, I didn’t stretch, I didn’t listen to my body. So yes, cross-training is a really important thing. And also you don’t want to, I used to do this and I’m guilty, but I used to run, run, run every single day. And that was not really intelligent, I would say.

So it’s best hard, easy principle. And then that way you’ll find, and some people make it break down through training on the basketball court or they’re doing hard core, but you will know, listen to your body, see an injury prevention specialist, or I should say a chiropractor, a physiotherapist, Jennifer, because if you have one injury, like one nagging injury, you want to deal with it right off because it will not go away, generally speaking. It may, you may ice it down and be okay, but it’s no point in suffering through it. And I’ve gone through that in my early days, like it’ll go away.

Jennifer: Yeah. You know, the times that I have trained to run, it does seem to be like, I’ve done the six week, you know, to a 5k training schedule and they really do ease you into it. And it’s surprising to me that over, you know, a period of time, a relatively short period of time, how, if you are not running every day, but just running maybe like three or four times a week, and then just gradually increasing it, increasing it, increasing it. Like you can really work your way up to being able to run a 5k without stopping. It’s amazing to me that you can go from couch to 5k in about six weeks, pretty safely and pretty comfortably.

Christine: Yeah. It’s just like the Sunrun has a really great program, walking and running. And it’s like the running where we would say you build that foundation, like, you know, your base, your strength and your speed. And it’s not about competing against others, it’s with you. It’s everybody that I teach running, learn to run. Everyone’s coming from different backgrounds. You have to figure out what their pace is and how they’re, how they’re feeling. It’s so, so important.

How do you feel after the run? You know, are you sore? Because you can do it safely. Because I want to be a life, which I think I am, you know, a lifelong runner. And that’s what I want to be, you know, and keep running until my 70s or 80s. And that’s what I’m doing. I’d rather just be safe than sorry, because if you go too quick, and there’s programs out there that are going to fit your lifestyle. So, you know, and also, as an older adult, you got to be careful that too, like, you know, checking your bone density, like I’m not a, I’m not a physiotherapist or a doctor. But I find, you know, just being really cautious and ask questions. I think that’s another thing too, is ask questions, you know, who do I see? Use, use resources, whoever’s teaching you the class, use them as a resource. They’ll help. They’d be happy to help.

Jennifer: Yeah. I love one of the things that you said. It was like, you know, if you don’t want to run, then walk. If you don’t want to walk, swim. And I do think it is about finding whatever physical movement, physical activity that resonates with you. That isn’t just because, oh, I’m trying to lose weight. I need to go for a run. I want to run. I love to do it. An exercise that you’d love to do. So that way you will actually do it and really enjoy it. Not just because it’s a, you know, a box on your list or a, I must do this kind of thing.

Christine: Yes. And that’s the thing too, like going back, as I said, you may want to run because you lose weight quicker or you’re all your friends are running or it’s something you did a long time ago in high school. And you feel that’s the only thing. No, there are so many activities out there you can try. Like power walking. I love walking. I have to tell you, I never used to like walking. I’m a runner. I don’t walk. I love walking. It’s a low impact. You can go for one hour and you not only lose weight, but you feel good just as the same. It’s just a different activity. And then there’s spinning.

You know, that’s another activity. And then there’s gardening. You know, people think, well, what’s gardening?  Gardening is excellent. You know, you’re bending down, you’re taking care of your plants and you’re having that exercise, you know, it could be raking leaves, you know. But again, see a doctor before you go out and do that, you know, because you never know. Right. And that’s what I tell everybody.

Jennifer: Yeah. Yeah. There’s a great book, Tiny Business, which goes and Elaine, the author, (she goes into researching entrepreneurs who have achieved seven figure revenues and they’re single person businesses. And in the book is very interesting. One of the things that she found was that I think if I don’t butcher the stat, it was eighty eight percent of these very successful entrepreneurs who had crossed the seven-figure mark, which, guys, less than five percent of business owners ever crossed that mark. So it’s a it’s a really significant thing to cross that mark. But eighty eight percent of them exercised.

That was one of the things that they had in common was that they exercised. And so that’s why I think it’s such an important topic for us to be talking about, even on a podcast where we’re talking to business owners about time management, our health, our energy, our vitality are so important. We cannot put these things aside or we will not have the energy to show up in our business, to solve problems, to be leaders, to feel good about our businesses. Right.

Or and we certainly don’t want to resent our businesses for stealing our health because it’s like, oh, I can’t exercise because I’m working in the business, which if you guys are listening and you make that excuse and I’m speaking from experience here because I’ve made that excuse my site myself several times. It’s total bullshit. OK, you have to call BS on yourself. This is an excuse that you’re making. This is something that you can absolutely overcome. It is not true at all.

You can absolutely fit exercise into your day, no matter how busy you are as a business owner. It’s just a decision that you have to make to step into your power, adjust your schedule accordingly and just do it. I love the Nike. Just do it. Right. You just have to do it and you should know this because in our businesses, we just do it all the time. We make a decision and we make it happen. But we’ve got to do that for our own self-care as well.

Christine: Well, I say my point with myself, if I may say it’s like and you know what, 10 minutes of your day, 15 and first thing you’ll feel so much better about yourself. Like it’s not so much better about yourself, but you can feel like you have to take care of you. It’s self-care. And you will be surprised how much more active you are and how productive you are. And where do you start? Start now. Like just look around, ask people, you know, and

Jennifer: right. I love that so much. Don’t wait until, oh, I’ll start next week. Don’t wait until your New Year’s resolution in January. Like you can just waste the whole year, guys. This is happy, productive. OK, the time to start is now and you don’t have to be perfect about it. Pick something that you actually want to do. Yes, it’s going to be a little hard when you’re first starting because everything is I’m on a yoga kick right now. And so I committed to 90 days every single day of yoga. And and guys, the first couple of days, my body was screaming. It was hurt. It was uncomfortable. I think I’m on day, I don’t know, like 12 or 13 now. And and today it felt really good. You know, I still have to work on flexibility and there’s still plenty of room for improvement.

But today my body was like, yes, it feels really good. And I know with running, it’s like that, too. You know, it’s almost just like the day where you go out for a run and it doesn’t hurt and you’re not keeled over and you feel good and you’re strong. It’s just like you feel so empowered. You feel so confident. It’s such a good feeling to get to that place, right, where you just go out and it actually starts to feel good.

Christine: It does. And, you know, I know the weather’s sometimes before. If you have a gym, I like the elliptical. The elliptical is really great. And it’s overall body conditioning with your arms. And it’s just you know what? It’s putting writing it down to like saying my point with myself, my point with myself. This is me. And then it works every time.

Jennifer:  Absolutely. All right, Miss Christine. So tell everybody if they want to learn more about you, if they want to listen to your shows, tell everybody where they can find you.

Christine Yes. Well, go to remitha.ca or on socials, Instagram, Christine Blanchett underscore TV, Facebook, Christine Blanchett, or just Google my name, Christine Blanchett. It should come up.

Jennifer: So wonderful, Christine, thank you so much for being here with me today. I hope you guys that somebody listening is inspired. I know a lot of people will be are inspired to just, you know, get up, make the decision, start moving your body in whatever form that you want to. And if it’s running wonderful, you guys go please check out Christine.

She clearly knows her stuff here when it comes to the running game. And she has a lot of great resources to offer. Thank you, Christine, for being here with me.

Christine: Thank you for having me.

Jennifer: All right, guys, that’s it for today’s episode. Get out there. Bye.

Links:

Connect with Christine: www.instagram.com/christineblanchette_tv/?hl=en

Join our Academy: www.jenniferdawnacademy.com

Connect with Jennifer: www.jenniferdawncoaching.com

Retreats: www.jenniferdawncoaching.com/our-retreats