Alecia St. Germain on The Conscious Edge Podcast discussing health as a midlife entrepreneur

Why Prioritizing Your Health as a Midlife Entrepreneur Is Essential for Your Wealth Strategy

March 3, 2026
Building a Business That Fits Your Life

Your body is not the place to sacrifice for your business. If you're skipping sleep, skipping meals, and pushing through exhaustion to build wealth, you're degrading the very thing you need to enjoy it. In this episode, you'll hear what it actually means to be a good steward of your body in midlife, why your mindset can work against your physical health, and how to start building a business rhythm where taking care of yourself is the non-negotiable, not the thing that gets cut.

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I want to be honest with you about something.

This episode came out late. Not because something went wrong, but because something finally went right. I chose sleep over my deadline.

I sent my podcast producer a message and told her I couldn’t make the timeline. That I was handling a lot, and I was choosing to prioritize my body. She responded immediately: “I so needed to hear that today.”

And I thought, if she needed to hear it, I know you do too.

We talk a lot on this podcast about mindset, emotional intelligence, wealth building, leadership. We don’t often talk about the physical body that carries all of it. As I’m getting ready to turn 46, I’m noticing shifts I can’t ignore. I’m not as strong as I used to be. My brain doesn’t always cooperate the way it once did. And I’ve realized that the thing I’ve been most willing to sacrifice in order to build my business is the one thing no one else can take care of for me.

Health as a midlife entrepreneur is something we don’t talk about enough on this podcast. This episode is me going first. Sharing what I’m learning, what I’m changing, and why I’m done treating my body like the flexible line item on my calendar. If you’ve ever pushed through when your body was begging you to stop, this one’s for you.

What We Cover

In this episode you’ll discover: 

  • Why your body is the one place you cannot afford to sacrifice for your business, and what happens when you do
  • How a strong mindset can actually work against your physical health when grit replaces rest
  • What functional genomics can reveal about your body, your workouts, your hormone health, and why generic health advice doesn’t work for everyone
  • Why sleep deprivation is one of the most significant threats to your brain health in midlife, and what research says about protecting yourself in your 40s
  • The resources you can start exploring right now for gut health, DNA-based wellness, brain health, and strength training in midlife
  • How your financial structure is actually part of the equation, because affording the help you need starts with knowing your numbers
  • Why being a good steward of your body is no different than being a good steward of your money, and what shifts when you treat it that way
Why do women entrepreneurs sacrifice their health to build their business?

Because somewhere along the way, we absorbed the idea that trading today’s comfort for tomorrow’s freedom means trading our bodies, too. We skip sleep, skip meals, skip workouts, and call it discipline. We tell ourselves we’ll take care of it later, once things settle down. But they don’t settle down. They never do.

What I’ve realized, both in my own life and working with my clients, is that this pattern usually isn’t about time. It’s about belief. She believes she’s the only one who can do it right. She believes spending money on help is reckless. She believes rest is earned, not needed. And her nervous system reinforces all of it, because pushing through feels productive even when it’s not.

The truth is, if you’re sacrificing your physical body to build wealth long term, you may not be well enough to enjoy what you’ve built. And that’s not a motivational quote. That’s a medical reality.

How do I take care of my body when I'm building a business and raising kids?

I’ll tell you what I’m learning, because I’m still figuring this out myself. For a long time I organized my life around my business goals and fit my body in wherever there was space. Which meant it almost never got space.

What I’m doing now is flipping that. My body comes first on the calendar. Sleep, movement, food, doctors’ appointments. And then I build my business around what’s left. That sounds radical, and honestly, it still feels uncomfortable. But when I was pushing through, I was less productive, less creative, and less present with my kids.

The shift isn’t about doing less. It’s about restructuring so that taking care of yourself isn’t the thing that gets cut when something has to give. Sometimes that means getting further ahead on your content so a late night doesn’t cost you sleep. Sometimes it means hiring someone to clean your house so you have time to move your body. Sometimes it means looking at your financials with a clear eye so you can afford the support you actually need.

What is functional genomics and how can it help women in midlife?

Functional genomics is the study of how your specific DNA encodes the way your body functions. It’s not the ancestry-style test that tells you where your family came from. It’s a blueprint of how your body works best.

I had my entire family tested through the DNA 360 report with Kashif Khan and the DNA Company, and what came back changed everything. I found out my body doesn’t clear oxidative stress well, which is why running has always made me feel terrible even though I pushed myself to do it for years. My daughter’s profile showed she doesn’t convert estrogen efficiently, which means we now know what kinds of hormone-related decisions to be careful about as she grows up.

What I love about this is the personalization. It takes you out of the generic advice cycle and gives you real information about your specific body. You do it once, and it becomes a reference point for every health decision going forward.

How do I protect my brain health in my 40s?

This one is personal for me. My genetic profile showed I carry one copy of a gene linked to Alzheimer’s. That got my attention.

I’ve been listening to research on brain health, and one of the things that stopped me is that there are things you can do in your 40s to protect your brain that simply don’t work if you wait until your 60s. Sleep is one of the most important. When you chronically under-sleep, you’re not just tired. You’re actively degrading your brain health.

I cannot imagine having a strong, healthy body and losing my mind. Losing who I am. Losing the memories I’ve been making my whole life. That thought is what made me choose my bed over my deadline. If you’re concerned about your brain health, I’d encourage you to listen to the Diary of a CEO episode with Louisa Nicola on Alzheimer’s. It changed how I think about what’s actually worth protecting.

How do I stop feeling guilty for resting when there's still so much to do?

I think the guilt comes from a belief that rest is what you earn after the work is done. And if you’re an entrepreneur, the work is never done. So rest never comes.

What I’ve started to notice, both in myself and in the women I work with, is that guilt around rest is often connected to deeper beliefs about worthiness. She believes her value is in her output. She believes slowing down means falling behind. And honestly, some of those beliefs have kept her safe for a long time. They just aren’t serving her anymore.

Rest is not the absence of productivity. It’s the foundation of it. When I actually sleep, I’m sharper, more creative, more decisive, and a better leader. The guilt doesn’t disappear overnight, but it does get quieter when you start seeing the evidence that rest makes you better, not weaker.

The Loving Hard Truth About Your Body and Your Business

I want to tell you about the night I chose sleep over you.

Not because you don’t matter. You do. But because my body was asking me for something, and for the first time in a long time, I listened.

What I Told My Podcast Producer

A few days before this episode aired, I sent a message to my producer. I told her I wasn’t going to make my deadline. I said I understood the consequences of my choice and I didn’t want her bending over backwards to accommodate me.

She asked what was going on.

Everything was fine. I was just handling a lot. And I had to choose between sleep and getting the episode to her on time.

I chose sleep.

She said, “I so needed to hear that today.”

And I realized this wasn’t just a conversation between me and my producer. This was a conversation a lot of us need to have with ourselves.

“I have mindseted myself many times into physical body exhaustion, because my mind is very strong and I can talk myself into doing almost anything. And sometimes that’s been to a detriment.”

The Sacrifice That Isn’t Worth It

In the wealth building and business building space, there’s an idea that you trade today’s comfort for tomorrow’s freedom. You stretch. You hustle. You do hard things now so that future-you gets to live the life you’re building toward.

I believe in that. I do.

But somewhere along the way, we started putting our bodies on the list of things we were willing to sacrifice. Sleep. Meals. Movement. Doctor’s appointments. And we told ourselves it was temporary.

It wasn’t temporary. It became the pattern. And health as a midlife entrepreneur is what pays the price.

I have mindseted myself into physical exhaustion more times than I want to admit. My mind is strong. I can talk myself into almost anything. I am relentless. I have a ton of grit. And sometimes that has been to my detriment. Because grit without rest isn’t discipline. It’s self-abandonment dressed up as work ethic.

There is no pill that makes up for sleep deprivation. There is no supplement that replaces what your body loses when you don’t feed it well or move it regularly. And some of us are genetically more at risk than others.

My best friend, Anne Marie, died at 42. Tomorrow is not guaranteed. And I don’t say that to be heavy. I say it because it’s the truth, and you deserve someone who tells you the truth.

Being a Good Steward

I heard something once that stopped me in my tracks. The idea that my spirit, my soul, was given this human body to take care of. To be a good steward of. And that when I don’t eat properly, when I don’t sleep, when I’m not giving my body what it needs, I’m not being a good steward of it. In the same way someone might be reckless with their money.

That reframe changed something in me. It made health as a midlife entrepreneur feel like a responsibility, not an afterthought.

Because I would never treat my business finances the way I was treating my body. I would never ignore the numbers, skip the strategy sessions, tell myself I’d deal with it later. And yet that’s exactly what I was doing with the one thing that makes all of it possible.

“You were given this body to take care of, to be a good steward of. It is the number one job that you have that only you can do.”

What I’m Learning in Midlife

Taking health as a midlife entrepreneur seriously started when I couldn’t will the shifts away anymore. As I’m getting ready to turn 46, I’m noticing shifts I can’t will away. I’m not as strong as I used to be. My body doesn’t bounce back the way it did. And I’ve been on a health journey since my early 30s, dealing with food sensitivities, hormone imbalances, migraines, and more. So none of this is new. But the urgency of it is.

I worked with Laura Frontiero, a gut health specialist, and my husband and I did extensive gut restoration. I watched my hair grow back after years of losing it. I saw a gray hair grow back to its original color because my body was finally absorbing nutrition properly. That was the moment I understood how much what’s happening inside changes everything.

Then Laura introduced me to Kashif Khan and functional genomics through the DNA 360 report. We tested our entire family. What came back was a blueprint for how each of our bodies actually works. I found out my body doesn’t clear oxidative stress well, which is why running has always made me feel awful even though I kept forcing myself to do it. My daughter’s profile showed she doesn’t convert estrogen efficiently, which has real implications for her health decisions as she grows up. My workout routine, my nutrition, the way I think about what healthy means… all of it shifted based on what my body actually needs.

I’ve also started following Chalene Johnson’s Phase It Up program, which is designed for women in midlife who want to build strength without the intimidation of a gym. I started the workouts before I even had free weights because I was done waiting for conditions to be perfect. I could feel the difference in my body immediately. And the research is clear that for women in midlife, strength training is one of the most important things we can do.

Protecting What Matters Most

My genetic profile also showed I carry one copy of a gene linked to Alzheimer’s. I sat with that for a while.

I listened to a Diary of a CEO episode with Louisa Nicola on Alzheimer’s and brain health, and it changed how I think about what’s worth protecting. She talked about how there are things you can do in your 40s, specifically around sleep, exercise, and nutrition, that protect your brain in ways that simply don’t work if you wait until your 60s.

I cannot imagine having a healthy body and losing my mind. Losing who I am. Losing the memories I’ve been making my whole life.

That’s what made me choose my bed over my deadline.

Sleep deprivation is not a badge of honor. It is a risk factor. And when it comes to health as a midlife entrepreneur, it’s one of the biggest, especially for those of us with busy, driven, possibly neurodivergent brains.

The Financial Piece No One Talks About

Here’s where this gets practical, because I’m never just going to tell you to rest more and leave you there.

One of the reasons women don’t take care of themselves is because they can’t figure out how to afford the help they need. The trainer. The functional medicine doctor. Someone to clean the house so there’s time to work out. Better food. Supplements. A slower pace that means less revenue in the short term.

That’s why Jenn Baas is inside my program. Because the financial side is part of the equation. When you know your numbers, when your business is structured well, when you’re paying yourself enough to invest in your own health, everything shifts. You stop choosing between your body and your business because the structure supports both.

What keeps most women from getting there isn’t a lack of money. It’s the beliefs underneath. The belief that she’s the only one who can do it right. The scarcity that keeps her from hiring. The inability to relinquish control. Those patterns are what we work on together, because they’re the same patterns that are quietly degrading her health.

“If you can’t enjoy the wealth that you have built, what is it for?”

What Season Is Your Body In?

If you’ve been following this podcast for a while, you know I think about life in seasons. And right now, I’m in a season of honest reckoning with how I’ve treated my body in the name of building something.

I’m not coming on here pretending I have it all figured out. I’m telling you what I’m learning, what I’m changing, and where I still have a long way to go. I might have ADHD. I’m in the process of figuring that out. My body is changing in ways that are humbling and sometimes uncomfortable. And I’m choosing, consciously, to meet all of it with the same compassion I bring to my clients.

So here’s what I want to leave you with.

Health as a midlife entrepreneur is not a nice-to-have. No one is coming to take care of your body for you. That is your job. The one job only you can do.”

And if your business is set up in a way that makes that job impossible, then something in your business needs to change. Not later. Not when things slow down. Now. While your body is still asking nicely.

Resources and Links Mentioned

*I am not an affiliate of any of these companies and do not receive compensation should you decide to work with them.  These are simply resources that I found helpful and wanted to share with you. 

If you're done sacrificing your body for your business and you want to figure out how to build a rhythm that actually works for your life, I'd love to meet you in that conversation. Book your Capacity Assessment Call at consciousedge.com/capacity.
Book your Capacity Assessment Call Here

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Full Transcript Here

Alecia St. Germain 00:00
One of the things that's really important to me is to always be real with you. And today's episode is

Alecia St. Germain 00:10
a little different than some of the episodes we've talked about in the past. We talk a lot about mindset and emotional intelligence. We have had people on talking about various wealth building strategies, one of the things that we often ignore. And it's interesting, because in this podcast, we haven't talked a ton about it, and I think in real life, it's a reflection of what we actually do in real life, and the thing that we most ignore as part of our human experience is our body. So today I want to talk about that physical human that you use to do your good work in the world, and really take a moment to pause and ask yourself, are you really taking good care of yourself? Because the truth is, no one is going to take better care of your body and advocate for your body more than you you were given this body to take care of, and I want you to be here and do what you do as long as you possibly can. So let's dive in.

Alecia St. Germain 01:33
Hey, you, leader, entrepreneur, business owner, solopreneur, whatever you call yourself. We know you're a visionary business builder, wealth seeker, looking to combine a passion for doing good with leading consciously. It's time to shift from a traditional focus of pure wealth accumulation to one that integrates well being and fulfillment. You're here for a purpose, and it's time to shine your light. So here we go. You

Alecia St. Germain 02:05
a welcome back to the conscious edge podcast. I'm your host, Alecia St Germain, founder of the conscious edge where I help women entrepreneurs and small business owners to create more capacity in their life, whether that's emotionally, energetically, financially, we put everything into alignment so business becomes sustainable and enjoyable and fulfilling, and you live a full life. If you are brand new here, I am so glad you are here. We put these new episodes out every single week, and we cover every single aspect of what it's like to be a human build a business, and everything that we go through. So typically, these podcasts will cover some aspect of leadership or emotional intelligence or wealth building, strategy or mindset around wealth building and money, but we don't often talk about our bodies. And as I am in my midlife like getting ready in a couple months to turn 46

Alecia St. Germain 03:15
I am noticing a lot of shifts in my body. And I said something to my Podcast Producer, you may very well be listening to this podcast. You may have noticed if you are a loyal listener, you thank you so much for being here, and you may or may not have noticed that this podcast episode aired not on our usual Tuesday.

Alecia St. Germain 03:40
And so I had sent a message to my podcast producer, and I said, Hey, listen, I have to reprioritize some things. Some things have come up, and I'm not going to make my deadline. Totally understand that the podcast may not get produced on time. This is my choice. Like, please don't feel obligated to, like, bend over backwards, or I know the consequences of the choices that I'm making. And we were talking, she, you know, of course, immediately, was like, Everything okay, what's going on? And I said, No, everything is fine. I just am handling a lot, and I'm having to make the choice between taking care of my body and getting enough sleep and getting the podcast done on time and some other things done on time, and I am choosing consciously to prioritize my body, because what I have come to realize is that

Alecia St. Germain 04:41
if, as I age, there are things I'm learning and I'm going to share some resources today, some things that I'm following and doing that you can go check out. I am NOT an affiliate of any of these things. These are just things I am using in my real life to help me be optimal.

Alecia St. Germain 05:00
To help me be at my best, because I know that I want to age well. And I don't just mean, like, you know, I noticed more wrinkles showing up on my face, and I'm definitely like, seeing my grandmother's face start to appear in the mirror. More and more people always said I look like her, and even as she I've aged, I'm like, Oh, I'm seeing her as I remember her even starting to show up in the mirror. And so it's not just about the wrinkles and those things. It's about feeling strong mentally and physically. And so I want to share with you some things that I'm learning, some resources that have been helpful for me. Because I know if I'm going through this, someone else is too. And it's interesting, because I told my Podcast Producer, listen, I've got to advocate for myself, my body. Because if, if, no, if, if I'm not taking care of me, who else is? And she was like, Oh, I so needed to hear that today. And I said, You know what, I'm going to do a podcast episode about that. Because if you're telling me you needed to hear that today, then I know that there is someone listening that also needed to hear this today. And if this isn't for you, I'm a woman. You may be a male listener. Some of what I'm going to share is going to be helpful for you as a man, but also some of what I'm going to share maybe will give you some perspective and resources that you could share with a woman in your life that you also care about, because some of the things are also related, maybe to women, but generally, everything here is could go either way. So I just want to say that piece as well. So one of the things that has come up for me in midlife is I've started to notice that I am not as physically strong as I used to be, and I am someone who was very fortunate through my life. I did not need to work out to look like, have a nice body type, so it was something that came easy to me. I have been naturally in I like my shape, all of the things, so I never felt compelled to go have to put effort into what I ate or working out. And as I've entered midlife, though some of that has, I've seen a little bit of shift, you know, things start to droop a little bit more. So there is that piece. But more importantly, I'm not as strong as I used to be, and that does not feel I don't like that. I'm a very independent person, you know, I've had some neck surgery. I've had to have a disc replaced in my neck due to an injury in my 20s, and so I do have to sometimes be careful, and maybe my body doesn't do what it used to do. But also being strong is so important. And as I am listening, I love to listen to podcasts. One of my absolute favorite podcasts is the diary of CEO. They just cover so many things, and I feel like it just gives me I don't agree with everything that's on there, but it just keeps me, like engaged in learning new things and then deciding what's for me and what's not. So that's one of my absolute favorite podcasts, and they do talk a lot about when Steve Bartlett does an amazing job of advocating for women's health and for talking about aging and aging gracefully and preserving your brain and brain health. So that's been really helpful to have that information as well. And so as I am kind of analyzing like, what's in alignment, one of the things that I am very adamant in the coaching that I do with my clients at the conscious edge is we are the intersection of brain science, like how the brain works like a soul based business, where you are fulfilled and it feels soul led, and it's coming from a place of you are part of a bigger picture, and you serve a purpose. So it's really about being purpose driven, like solid financial strategy. And that is why we have Jen boss, who comes on regularly and does the monthly Money talks with Zen Gen. And so I look at every single one of my clients, and I am looking at the holistic picture. I am looking at what about your life is working and is in alignment with your values, and what is not working? And then how do we shift that so that all of your needs are met? And I am not the type to say like, oh, just go do what you love and you'll be happy.

Alecia St. Germain 10:00
Because there is a reality to life, right? We need money. And so one of the first questions I always ask my clients is like, what's your immediate need financially? Like, are you safe? Maybe you don't have everything you want, but like, do you have your basic human needs met? And so we do look at all of those pieces, but how do we start to take steps to bring everything into alignment where you feel fulfilled, it is sustainable, and you are taking good care of yourself. And one of the things that I think happens in the wealth building and business building space is that there's this idea that you are trading today's comfort for tomorrow's freedom, right? So you might do things today that are uncomfortable, that stretch you, that are outside of your comfort zone, and give up certain things so that you can build a free future where you have enough, maybe passive income coming in that it covers your expenses, so you have that opportunity to do what you want with your time, the way you want, with who you want, where you want, that ultimate freedom. But see, here's the big but, and this is what I have come to realize even more so in the last year, I had a period of time where I realized that the way I had put my business together did not reflect how I wanted my life to be. I had a little girl daughter who didn't sleep very well. I was working my business at night, and I was training people in a strategy of investing in real estate, and it was like, this isn't working for my life. I am not sleeping at night. I'm waking up early with her. I'm not happy. So I reorganized my business so that I was working differently. And that really worked, right? So it worked to bring my business into alignment with my lifestyle, but the thing that I have continued to struggle with all along, and I know I'm not the only one, because I think a majority of of entrepreneurs that I talk to also have some aspect that they don't take care of their bodies really well. And so it's like, I'm going to put off my comfort, right? So we think of like going without sleep, skipping on workouts, not eating healthy, not slowing down to eat properly. And that, unfortunately, is not the place to sacrifice. It would be better if you're going to sacrifice, it would be better to sacrifice from like fun and like finding the fun and finding the joy in your business, and like saying no to some of the relationships and some of the superficial things that are not important to you. When I was young, I used to have a lot of superficial relationships where they weren't the kind of people that I could really depend on, but they were a lot of fun to be with, but they were definitely not the people I would call if I needed anything. And as soon as I stopped calling those people, those relationships went away like there was no effort made, and so sacrificing sleep to keep those kinds of empty, not meaningful relationships, or taking vacations that maybe are not necessary because you need to get away, if you need to get away from your life to go on vacation, then I really question, like, what's not In alignment with your life? Because here's the thing, there is no pill that is going to make up for sleep deprivation. There is no pill that is going to make up for a lifetime of unhealthy eating. There is nothing that's going because what happens when we do those things is we are are increasing our risks for certain health things, and some of us are genetically predisposed towards more things than others. There are some people who go through in a lifetime of not eating healthy, not taking good care of their bodies, doing things that we know scientifically are not good for us, and they live well into their 90s. It's their genetics. It is what it is. And then there are people who do the right things, and we lose them very early, like my best friend, Anne Marie, who died at 42 and we have no idea. We don't know tomorrow is not guaranteed. You don't know if tomorrow you're gonna step off and that'll be the last day of your life. So one of the things that has become so and I don't mean to make today like a heavy podcast.

Alecia St. Germain 15:00
But also I wanted, I just want to be real with you from for where I am, and so I've done a number of things for my health, and over the years, I've always been someone who has a lot of food sensitivities. For a huge part of my life. I did not know why I was sick. I have struggled with hormone imbalances. I have had very irregular periods throughout my life. I know you like, I'm sorry, guys, I apologize just right now, and that has always caused problems for me. I've had lots of migraines through my life, and lot of food sensitivities. So my health journey of really, like turning around my health really started in my early 30s, and it's been a continuous journey, because the science is evolving so much, and there is so much research, finally, now starting to emerge, just like a little bit. I mean, not, I don't even want to say so much research, because it's like very little compared to the other kinds of research that is out there. But there's some research now emerging for women in middle age, and women around hormone health, for young girls. And I'm just doing the best that I can. Any of us are just doing the best we can with the information we have available now. And so I'm very I find myself very grateful that right now there is such a push towards women's health in midlife, once you find the resources, right? So like, once you're into the algorithms, once you're into some of the things that you start to see more and your awareness goes up so you see more and more information emerging and coming out. If it hasn't been part of what you're looking up and you've just been dealing with how you're feeling, then maybe this is a moment to stop and say, like, Okay, let me look because I know I want to be optimal, and my experience going to doctors offices, I have some really great doctors, but it's taken me a long time to

Alecia St. Germain 17:09
find them, and it takes me a long time sometimes to get into them, so I have to, like, plan ahead much more, and that's really hard for someone with my brain, because I Don't remember to do things or take care of myself as actively as I should, and so I have to plan ahead, because it's going to take me a minute to get into these amazing doctors that I work with, but also the what is covered, and you've experienced this, Like, what is covered on your insurance is not necessarily what you need for figuring out what's going on with your body and what's needed. It's just what's covered enough to keep you normal. What I have realized about our healthcare system is that it is about you being just like every other average person. And so as our population becomes more and more unhealthy, they just move the numbers of like, what's average? Oh, you're in range. Not optimal. You're in range for what's what everybody else. You're equally as unhealthy as everyone else. So as I'm going through and I don't want to be average, I don't want to be as equally unhealthy as the next person. I want to be optimal for my body. And I have come to realize like what works for one person does not work for everyone, and and part of what opened my eyes to that I worked with a gut health specialist. Her name is Laura frontero. I'm going to link all of these people that I and resources in the show notes for you. But So Laura was somebody that I met through a mastermind, actually, and I just, we really, really resonated with her. And so my husband and I have done a lot of gut health and gut restoration, and I saw my health get better. In fact, it was really cool. I was starting to lose my hair at one point after my son was born, well beyond, like, pregnancy when you lose your hair, it was like continuing for years, and like, gobs of hair would fall out, and as I started to work with her and restore my gut health, I had, like, this halo of hair that was growing back. And this was really cool. Now I'm getting a lot more grays now, but this was really cool. I had plucked a gray hair out one day a couple years ago, and my gray hair had dark roots, so, like it actually started to go back to color from being Gray, probably because it had the proper nutrition and those kinds of things happening, and I was absorbing nutrition better. But Laura.

Alecia St. Germain 20:00
Laura brought in a gentleman named Kash Khan, who founded the DNA company, and he shared with us a DNA report that you could get done. It's called DNA 360

Alecia St. Germain 20:15
and so I had our DNA pulled for my entire family, so both my kids and my husband and I, we did functional genomics. It's called functional genomics. That's not like your family history. Where are you from? It's called functional genomics, and it is the blueprint of what DNA your body is encoded with. So you do it once, and I look at it as like, this is how my body functions optimally. Now, just because you have something genetically doesn't mean that the gene is being expressed or turned on, but if you're experiencing certain things, then the genetics maybe are the clue like, Okay, this is why I'm experiencing this. So part of the reason that working out has never been a thing for me is because I don't feel good like those of you, like those people, if you're a marathon runner, like more power to you, and they get done with the marathon like I feel so alive. I love to run. Running makes me feel amazing. Running makes me feel like crap. I need to go take a nap after I run. And what I learned in my genetics is because my body does not do a good job clearing oxidative stress, so what it takes for me to convert and burn energy, I'm not going to explain this nearly as good as his, he could, but what it takes for me to burn that energy and I create oxidative stress that my body does not clear well, and then I don't feel well. So my workout routine, based on my time of the month and based on what my genetics say is different than some than my husband's like, my husband does a better job being able to do more like cardiac and aerobic type exercises, so it helped give meaning, but also direction, as to what my workouts maybe really should look like instead of what was popular or on trend, and so that was really helpful. We also found out that, like my daughter, is not someone who converts estrogen to a usable form well, and it can actually be toxic for her. So she as she grows up, if she's going to do any kind of hormone replacement therapy or birth control, we have to be very careful about what kind of birth control or hormone replacement she chooses to be on later in life. And I my children are young, but I think like what a gift to my child to be able to maybe help give her more information about her body and how it's going to function best and protect her, maybe from breast cancer, because she might have been one that just didn't know. And why this isn't something we just do, I don't know, probably because there's not enough research to support it, but I wish everybody did, and that's part of why I'm coming on this podcast, and I'm telling you, and I want to empower you to take control of your health and take care of your body, because no one else is doing this. I wish I could remember the name of the man. This is not mine, but I heard this, and it just stopped me dead in my tracks, and it has changed the way I think about my body. It was like my spirit, like I believe in spirit and my soul, right? Was given this human body to take care of, to be a good steward of. And so when I don't eat properly, when I don't take care of it, when I am not giving it the nutrition that it needs and the sleep that it needs, and doing everything I can to take really good care of it, I'm not being a good steward of my body, just the same as someone might not be being a good steward of their money and being reckless with their money. So I want to empower you, because no one is looking out for your body the way that you would. And one of the other things that came up in my genetic profile is that. So there are some genetics that are linked to Alzheimer's, and I have one copy of that gene. So if you've listened to some podcasts over the summer, Jonathan and I talked about, like, neuro divergence a little bit, and I was talking about how I'm on this path to kind of figure out what's going on in my brain. I do think that it's possible that I may have some kind of ADHD. It's very common. I'm hearing that in midlife, a lot of women, because of estrogen, creates dopamine that a lot of women in midlife.

Alecia St. Germain 25:43
to my eye, like, I don't know if it's a brain tumor, you know, because if you look anything up on the internet, you have a brain you know, it's a brain tumor. And I'm in the process of figuring that out. So I'm not coming on here to say, like, I have all the answers. I'm just telling you what I'm figuring out and sharing with you and what I'm experiencing and what my thought process is around it. So because I have this one copy of the gene for Alzheimer's, I'm really interested in my brain health and having a very strong brain and figuring out how to protect my brain optimally. So recently, I listened to one of the diary of a CEO podcast episodes with Louisa. I think it's Luisa Nicola, and she did an episode on Alzheimer's. I will link it because if this is you, if you are someone who has experienced been a caregiver for someone with dementia or Alzheimer's, if you are concerned about your brain health, this podcast was life changing for me in the way that I think about what is really important. And one of the things that she was talking about is that there are things in your 40s that you can do to protect your heart health and your brain health, that if you wait until your 60s, it's too late. Now, if you're somebody in your 60s, like there's things that you can still do, but being that I'm in my 40s, this is where I am right now that symptoms of this will even show up in your 30s. I just think this is really important podcast episode, because for me,

Alecia St. Germain 27:28
I cannot imagine having my body like be in great like having a stable body and losing my mind, losing who I am as a person, and the beautiful memories that I have been making for my whole life, I'm going to protect that with everything that I have. And so, like one of the things that she said in there was how important sleep is, and I know that for a lot of people sleep, there's a certain population of people, especially people with ADHD, some of the neuro spicy types of brains, sleep is challenging, and so It increases your risk significantly, and degrades brain health significantly when you don't sleep. And so when I told my Podcast Producer, I was like, You know what? I love you, my audience, I love you. I care about women and men creating wealth and living full lives and having amazing lives, but if you can't remember it, if you lose that and you don't have your health, like if it's your brain, if it's your body, if you can't enjoy the wealth that you have built, what is it for? And so when I said to her, is like, I'm actually going to go to bed. I'm not going to push through to do this right now. I'm going to let it be late, and I'm going to level with the audience, and I'm going to say I had to prioritize sleeping for my brain health, because having a strong mind, being strong is important, and it is taken effort for me to have also started to try to develop. I am developing. I'm not trying. I am developing a habit for working out. And part of what is research showing is that more lifting, which is actually what my body, from a DNA standpoint, needs, is more lifting. So I'm following a program with Chalene Johnson. She used to be part of the beach bodies. She was one of the you probably worked out to one of her beach bodies things at some point, if you did any kind of Beachbody workouts, and she felt like she was living a really unhealthy lifestyle. So she's really. Really got a really fun podcast. I don't always listen to all of it. I don't even listen to a majority of it. I just get little tidbits. But she's just such a real person, and she's like your girlfriend who is just going to tell you the truth, like the ugly truth, whatever it is. I admire her courage. She's not afraid to stand up to anybody. She is a Spitfire, and so she created this program as part of her journey. One of the things I love about her, and it kind of makes sense, because I share with you my real life and my journey, is whatever she's figuring out, she creates a product. She's had several businesses over the years, but she creates something for herself, and then she creates a product, and she sells it to other people to help them as well, which I So stand behind. So she has a community that she created called phase it up, which is specifically for women in midlife. It has workouts. It has ideas for recipes, which I love to cook, but sometimes I get in a food rut, so I really appreciate, like, just tell me what to make tonight. And so that makes it really easy, because it like, reduces the cognitive load of figuring out sometimes what to make for dinner. And she's really big on just whatever you have to start with is enough, and then you're going to make little improvements and tweaks. So I started her program, and for a little bit I was delaying, because, like, I don't have free weights here at the house yet. And I was like, You know what? Instead of like, I need to order my free weights before I can start the workout. What if I just do the workout without the weights and my body? I could feel it. I can totally feel it. So I'm just committing to the habit of it, and I'm going to keep recommitting and getting better, because for me,

Alecia St. Germain 31:52
I want to be strong again. I don't like this feeling of being weak. So that's another resource if you're a woman in midlife, especially if you have not worked out in your life, and you know you want to, and you want to do it in a way that isn't intimidating. Because I do not like going to the gym. I feel uncomfortable. I feel like I get that people aren't watching you as much as you think that they are, but I don't know what I'm doing. I feel uncomfortable, it makes me not want to go. And so if that's me, then I need to do something different that works for me. And so being able to work out at home, where I don't have to have this like anxiety of going to the gym where I'm not comfortable, then I'm going to do that. So it's called phase it up. So I definitely recommend checking that out. And there's another podcast episode on diary of CEO. It was a two part podcast on women's health, and they had four women that I have been now starting to follow a little bit more, talking all about women's health and working out what's needed, and how a lot of women are doing a lot of like, high cardio stuff that isn't actually helping you lose the belly fat that you get in in your midsection, those types of things. So that's another podcast. It's like seven hours long, and I get that, but like everybody who is struggling with this needs to listen to it. And if you have a partner, you're a man, and you have a partner or someone you care about that is going through some of this stuff, like send them it, and it will give you so much insight into some of the things that you're might currently be doing that are not helping you. So all of that to say, you know, I wanted to share the resources with you. I wanted to share kind of where I was at, but all of that to say, I agree that mindset is everything, and I have mindseted myself many times into physical body exhaustion, because my mind is very strong and I can talk myself into doing like I would consider myself to be, someone who is relentless, who has a ton of grit, who it's like, if you tell me, oh, let's just quit, I'd be like, No, We're going to figure this out. Let's do this, and sometimes that's to a detriment. And so if you are sacrificing your physical body to build wealth long term, my point is we've got to find a different way for you. It is an option. It's a non negotiable. And people are like, Oh my gosh, it takes so much time, like, the time to make sure that I eat what I'm supposed to eat, the time to take to work out, the time to make sure I sleep adequately. Yeah, it's a lot. It takes a lot. Lot of thought and intention to take really good care of yourself. It is the number one job that you have that only you can do. So when I say we've got to figure out a balance for you. We've got to figure out a better way for you. That means working on the big assumptions, the things that you believe that you're doing in your business that keep you from outsourcing it, the things that keep you in a scarcity mindset where you don't want to spend the money and you're not willing to hire or train or relinquish control, those things are killing your body, literally degrading. It shortening your life, making it so that your quality of life long term may not be there to enjoy the wealth that you are building. And so we've got to figure out a different way. It's not that we don't do it, it's that we figure out a different way. And so I'm even thinking of like, okay, great, I could not handle getting the podcast to my podcast producer on time, normal me, like old me, would have pushed through and done it, because I have made a habit in my life of reaching for business goals at the expense of my body and I'm saying I'm going to reach my body goals, and I'm going to figure out how to also reach the business goals too. So we've got to change up our processes a little bit. We've got to get a little bit farther ahead. We've got to get a different rhythm going. And that is in the process, we had some podcast episodes that we kept in like a we had, we're a little bit ahead, and over the course of the next last couple months, we've used up those podcast episodes, so now I'm in a point where I just didn't have a podcast episode to give her, and so thus we figure it out. So I would say to you, if this episode resonated with you, if you are going through something in the process of building your business, where you are not taking good care of yourself in some area of your life, or you have relationships that are super important to you, but are suffering. Then let's talk, because the way that I have put my program together. It's about that holistic view of your business. It's looking at what are you believing to be true in your brain that is causing you to behave in a way that is hurting your body and making it so that you're not taking good care of yourself? What is causing you to abandon relationships and values that are important to you in order to self protect. But then the other piece of that is also looking at the financial side. That's why we brought Jen vos into the program and making sure that your financials in your business are the key to figuring out how to afford the help that you need, where to cut costs, so that you can reallocate funds in a different way, making sure that you are paying yourself enough to be able to invest in optimizing your health, in making sure You have somebody else to clean your house, so that you have time to work out. So for me, I look at the financial side as that's part of the equation to solve, because it gives you the resources that you need to do that one most important thing, because no one else is coming to take care of you. You have got to take care of this physical body that you have. So I hope that this is a wake up call for you. I love to have fun. I love to have light hearted conversations, but I'm also known for telling people the loving hard to hear things that they need to hear that actually create change, and that's why people come to work with me. Is not because I'm going to tell you what you want to hear, not because I'm going to buy your excuses that you're making, but because we create real change, and we create real, lasting change for you that has you thinking and showing up differently in your life, because that's ultimately what you want. And so I stand for that, and I'm going to tell you the hard things. So I would say today's podcast, probably because I. Not feeling my best. I did sleep. I took the morning to like just rest. I moved very slowly. The only thing on my list today was to record this particular podcast for you, and so I am taking care of myself, but also I just wanted to be real with you, and I hope that you take this if this landed for you, I hope you take this as a wake up call. I would love to talk to you if you are finding that your life is out of balance and you're not taking good care of your body, and that is something that you want deeply to figure out how to make the time and have the energy to do. We can look at, where are you misaligned? Where is your energetic misalignment? Where emotionally Are you getting caught up in things that is stealing your time? Where financially are is the math not mathing? For you, those are all things that we can figure out. So I would highly encourage you to reach out to me. Let's talk, and let's figure out how we can support you in showing up for yourself to take care of yourself. So with all of that being said, I am sending you so much love and be well. Thanks for listening to the conscious edge podcast. Make sure you subscribe and take a moment to be kind and share this episode with someone you care about. Leave a review to help us bring more compassionate leaders building businesses and creating wealth to the table. And For show notes, head over to conscious edge. COMM, forward slash podcast. This podcast and the linked materials are presented solely for general information, educational and entertainment purposes, and should not be taken as personal or medical advice or any kind of mental health treatment. Please consult a medical or mental health professional if you feel you need such services. Please be advised that all investing and entrepreneurial endeavors involve risk, and the use of the education and information on this podcast and linked materials is at the user's own risk.

Woman's Voice 42:12
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The Conscious Edge and content posted by Alecia St. Germain and Jonathan Dugger is presented solely for general information, educational, and entertainment purposes and are not liable or responsible in any way for any negative results from users implementing the education or information in the podcast or website. This podcast and the linked materials are not to be taken as personal advice, medical advice, or any kind of mental health treatment. Please consult a medical or mental health professional if you feel you need such services. Please be advised that all investing and entrepreneurial endeavors involve risk, and the use of the information and link materials is at the users own risk.

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