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My Mission: To improve our “Quality of Life”!

By: Debbie Potts
Date: August 4, 2020

My Mission: To improve our “Quality of Life”!

Our world is a different place today as compared to six months ago. We are living in fear and I see it in people when I go to the grocery store or other places as Costco. People are reading and watching the news and trusting the media on their facts as well as scientific evidence. Why do we trust and have faith in the media or our politicians?

Sadly, we can’t trust them as our only source- we need to do our own investigation into scientific research or find others who we can trust that do think out of the box.

Do you know how our immune system actually works?
Do you know how the virus spreads?
Do masks stop the virus from spreading?
Do you need to wear a mask when outside in an open environment while exercising?

I know I have so many questions but who do you ask, who do you trust… and where to do you look for the answers?

Five years ago, I published my first book on Amazon to share my personal story that CHRONIC Stress impacts all of you. My book, “LIFE IS NOT A RACE” was written to help my own self understand how and why my life changed from an ambitious elite age group high performing athlete to an overweight, tired, and stressed out individual. I was addicted to busy-ness and always multitasking each day- “living life as a race” from the time I woke up (too early!), until I hit the pillow at night (too late)- burning the candle at both ends leading overtime to an internal domino effect of breakdown and burnout.

Over the years, I have become a Nutritional Therapy Practitioner and more recently (finally!) a certified Functional Diagnostic Nutrition Practitioner (FDNP). I am making my purpose and passion into my mission – to help other driven, high performing individuals who are doing all the “right” things but continue to struggle with chronic fatigue, weight gain, and other unexplained symptoms. Now as a practitioner, I am able to investigate the “root causes” and collect clues to a client’s mysterious puzzle. I help guide the client to collect their missing pieces of their health puzzle to identify their sources of CHRONIC stress- we have external ongoing chronic stressors and then we have these stubborn HIDDEN Internal chronic stressors that you don’t know about unless you run functional lab testing to find out if any…

Hormone imbalances
Immune dysfunction
Digestion dysfunction
Detoxification
Energy systems- mitochondria, oxidative stress
Nervous systems- NT and PNS/SNS imbalances

Do you want to get your body and vibrant self back again? I know I don’t want to feel tired, overweight, and struggling to have enough energy to workout. Our current way of living could be a positive or a negative…depending on how busy you were before March 2020. You may benefit from slowing down and creating a new work/life/training schedule. I do believe this time in our world is a wake-up call to work on our health and wellness. Just because you workout each day – doesn’t mean that you are actually healthy as the immune system is influenced by chronic stress and overtraining/over doing life!

What does be healthy mean to you?

To me, I think of being healthy as having a strong immune system, being resilient, feeling energetic and thriving each day. I am healthy when I have energy to exercise, my sleep is deep, and my mood is happy!

If you don’t wake up feeling energetic and thriving each day then we should investigate WHY… what is causing you to feel drained, exhausted, and unhappy?

Are you experiencing an overload of CHRONIC stressors overfilling your “Beaker of Stress” which then creates a domino effect of health imbalances- also known as “METABOLIC CHAOS®”?

For years, I felt burned out and broken down but I only have felt healthier since I identified my main contributors to my chronic stress overload from external sources and investigated the internal chronic stressors with well-chosen functional lab tests.

***Get started on your 30-day meal plan here***

In Functional Medicine- practitioners look at the WHOLE person and investigate the WHY… why do you feel this way or why do you experience these Functional lab tests are important to building your health – instead of constant guessing if you are healthy including your gut health, nutrient balance and microbiome bacteria balance.

Did you know that 70-80% of your immune system resides in your gut?

So while we are staying at home and supposedly “staying healthy”…we should be striving to improve our health and to become health optimizers -especially since most everyone is not as healthy and resilient as they think they are.

Here are a few of my favorite quotes I often tell clients, write in my blog, or share on my podcast:

You are what you eat…but also what you can breakdown and absorb!
You can’t out exercise a poor diet.
You can’t out supplement poor lifestyle habits.
Life is NOT a Race… chronic stress impacts everything and the WHOLE you from the inside out.
Quality SLEEP does matter!

Dr. Ben Lynch, the author of DIRTY GENES and the founder of SEEKING HEALTH, share that “immune support starts with the basics of healthy living…

eating whole foods
getting restorative sleep
stress management
maintaining a healthy (positive) mindset
reducing toxin exposure

Since our quality of food, minerals in our soil and toxins in our environment, we do need to add specific supplements into our diet and lifestyle with immune boosting nutrients as:

Vitamin D
Selenium
Glutathione
Zinc
Vitamin A

Our microbiome is host to 70-80% of our immune system, so a healthy and happy gut will contribute to a healthy and resilient immune system. Dr. Ben Lynch recommends Probiotics to support a healthy gut and immune response. I like to have my clients, including myself, do a total gut restorative protocol along with an immune boosting diet and lifestyle habits as “The WHOLESTIC Method”.

Dr. Lynch’s company, Seeking Health, most popular immune support supplements are

Vitamin A Drops
Optimal Vitamin D3 Drops
Optimal Zinc Lozenges
Optimal Liposomal Vitamin C
ProBiota HistaminX
Find the immune boosting supplements here

Don’t let our new “normal” create another source of CHRONIC Stress in your life. I actually believe that everything happens for a reason and the world has been taught a major lesson to take ownership of our health. WE need to take control of the situation and not depend on politicians to tell us how to “get healthy” and “stay safe” by isolating from all your family, friends and your community until we have a vaccine. According to my research – by reading trusted health and medical practitioners as Dr. Mercola and Dr. Ben Lynch, the vaccine may create more health problems and negative side effects than positive results. Check their blogs and videos out online!

The media and politicians are creating more STRESS and FEAR in our world – not helping us build our immune system and resiliency. Eating processed packaged foods filled with refined sugars, vegetable oils and other fillers will not create a healthier version of yourself.

Chronic stress impacts your health – learn from my personal journey in my book, manual, blog, and podcast. CHRONIC STRESS, external and internal sources, will dampen your immune system and lead to a domino effect of internal imbalances.

We should be striving to improve our nutrition and lifestyle habits right now – as well as running a collection of functional lab tests (that your doctor or insurance won’t probably do for you or pay for) as the GI Map and BiomeFX test to determine how strong is your gut/immune system. STOP guessing and STOP hiding …instead start testing and start thriving! Contact me to discover easy ways how you can optimize your health and longevity so you stop living in fear of get the virus – as I believe we will be exposed someday to the virus as you would to the flu. How your body responds to any virus is up to you- what can you do now to prepare for the day you are around any type of virus?

The innate self-defense immune system that we are born with SHOULD be ready to “put out the fire” and respond to any type of threats. WE should know how to respond to the threat and support our immune system with supplements as Dr. Ben Lynch suggests (Vitamin C, Glutathione, B-complex…).

What are we to do if we want to move on and live life to the fullest?

How do we get back to our “normal” routine?

Don’t wait until we have a vaccine around to “cure” and stop the virus.

Let’s begin by taking care of the WHOLE you with the eight elements of “The WHOLESTIC Method” program.

Nutrition
Exercise
Sleep
Stress Management
Movement & Mobility
Digestion & Gut Health
Hydration
Happiness- play, laughter, and gratitude

Start with WHAT you eat – but also HOW, WHEN and WHY. Take time to reset and reboot – especially before you put food into your mouth… slow down, take three long inhales through your nose and long exhales out through your mouth. Take time out of your day to get outside – “Breakfast”, “lunch” and “dinner” time of the day.

Find time to play, be silly and laugh with friends or family members. Try to exercise – not too much and not too little… and lift heavy items for strength training (balance anabolic vs. catabolic activities). Are you limiting your screen time each day and disconnect two hours before bedtime?

**Discover more with a call with Debbie here**

Learn more how to transform the WHOLE you with “The WHOLESTIC Method” health coaching services, blog, and my show “The LOW CARB ATHLETE” Podcast.

Debbie helps driven and ambitious people, who are trying to do all the “right” things, investigate what is actually going on “under the hood” to get their body and vibrant self back with an investigative process including running well-chosen functional lab tests and a clinical correlation to find the missing pieces of the puzzle. You have seen multiple doctors and experts, but they tell you everything is “normal” and there is nothing wrong with you. That was my experience.

I refused to believe that “nothing is wrong with me” and this is part of “getting older”. This was not going to be the new me and stop me from investigating what was really going on from the inside out – under the hood. You have a choice to take care of the WHOLE you and even transform the WHOLE you from the inside out. Please don’t give up and settle, as the struggle is real, and you are not alone. If you feel exhausted trying to do all the “right” things and still can’t feel, move, or look better then we need to take a different approach.

Remember- the definition of Insanity is …“Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”

If you are stuck in the “cycle of trial and error” then it is time to take a different approach and look at the WHOLE person with “The WHOLESTIC Method” investigation coaching program if you want to REPAIR-REBUILD-RESTORE the WHOLE you to be a fat burner, health optimizer and reach peak athletic performance gains. Contact me to schedule a call to discovery more. Click here.

Who is Debbie Potts?

Owner, trainer, and coach of a unique “Health Detective” coaching services with unique “The WHOLESTIC Method” eight elements to guide clients repair, rebuild and restore their WHOLE health back to improve vitality and balance. Debbie helps driven and ambitious people, who are trying to do all the “right” things, investigate what is actually going on “under the hood” to get their body and vibrant self back

Debbie shared her personal story in her book “Life is not a Race… it is a Journey” and created “The WHOLESTIC Method Manual and Workbook”. She hosts “The Low Carb Athlete” Health Building weekly podcast to help athletes of all levels improve ability to burn fat, optimize their health from the inside out and achieve their peak performance gains. Debbie shares her show on Mondays with health guests on Mondays then shares her own thoughts on “Wellness Wednesdays” (Health Building) and “Fitness Fridays” (Athletic Performance Gains).

Debbie walks the talk and practices watch she preaches. After being a top personal trainer for twenty-five years plus years- she continues her education constantly: NASM Certified Personal Trainer (CPT), USAT Triathlon coach, CHEK Holistic Lifestyle Coach, Kion (Superhuman) Coach, Functional Nutritional Therapy Practitioner (FNTP), DNA Fit coach and Functional Diagnostic Nutrition Practitioner (FDN-P). She took her health in her own hands and combined therapy, labs, and lifestyle changes to transform her own life to heal, reclaim energy and reboot her own system. Be a part of the journey to transform the WHOLE you from the inside out with The WHOLESTIC Method Coaching program. There isn’t a one size fits all approach to healing, rebuilding, and restoring the WHOLE you as we are all unique bio-individuals.

Debbie’s focuses on coaching the WHOLE individual from the inside out with elements of “The WHOLESTIC Method” program. Her services include: Personal training, Nutritional Therapy evaluation, assessments, Functional Diagnostic Nutrition Practitioner services, Chronic Stress Treatment, Detox and Digestion Reset Fat loss programs. She teaches groups and individuals to become fat adapted with her three-phase program in the 30-day Total Transformation Program. “The WHOLESTIC Method” coaching program includes lifestyle elements, Nutritional Therapy, FDN-lab testing, DNA Fit reports and more.

Debbie was a top age group triathlete and runner for many years until she broke herself with chronic fatigue and “METABOLIC CHAOS”. Now, she is following her purpose, passion, and mission to help others avoid going through the exhaustion, weight gain and hormonal cascade that she experienced starting back in 2013. Debbie coaches’ groups and individual clients in person as well as online to reclaiming their optimal health for performance and longevity. Whether you are training for running, trail running, cycling and triathlon events to thrive and enhance performance via becoming a low-carb fat adapted metabolically efficient athlete.

Specialties: Health Detective Coaching, Total Transformation Fat Loss Coaching, Personal training, NASM-CPT, Nutritional Therapy Practitioner, CHEK HLC, Superhuman Coach, Kion Coach, DNA Fit coach, Pilates Mat, Yoga, Rehab training, Metabolic Efficiency Testing, Triathlon, and Run Coaching for athletes of all levels. Functional Diagnostic Nutrition Practitioner.

Schedule a DISCOVERY CALL here to learn more about how to get started on your next journey!

You have heard my story before on my blogs, podcast and even my book “LIFE IS NOT A RACE, IT IS A JOURNEY”… I struggled with chronic fatigue, weight gain, poor athletic performance, and other unexplained symptoms. I wrote an entire book about my very personal story, my history, my red flags, and my struggles.

WHY?

I want to be transparent and share my struggles with you as I know others can relate to my story. By sharing my story, I was trying to help my own self understand “why me?” but also how to help others learn about these red flags, some subtle and some obvious, so they would not have to go through what I have happened to me since 2013.

My life has recently changed for the BETTER.

Actually, life seems pretty amazing right now even though we have CV pandemic in our world that doesn’t seem to be getting the right solutions. My struggles with “adrenal exhaustion” or HPA axis dysfunction …or best summed up as “METABOLIC CHAOS®” since one body system is dysfunctional then we experience a domino effect of other internal breakdowns and burnouts, showed obvious red flags in 2013, but it didn’t just suddenly appear and it didn’t just suddenly disappear for good. My personality, genetics and lifestyle habits were always making me susceptible to “relapsing” back into my nightmare years in 2013-2015.

I did change my way of living back in 2013 a little bit… then a little more in 2015 because I didn’t change it enough and resulted in taking one step forward and two steps backward. Honestly, I realized last year, 2019, one of my main sources of my chronic stress was hiding… my fitness studio. I opened up my own “brick and mortar” boutique “all in one” fitness studio in 2010, and my health went sideways since then, so I don’t completely place blame on my over training and racing career in endurance sports because that was only part of the chronic stress.

On October 1^{st, 2019}, I closed my Fitness Forward Studio after ten years of business. Running a small business and doing all of the behind the scenes work on top of training clients and teaching group fitness classes (plus more) was too much chronic stress for me…especially operating a business in a competitive market with high rent (Bellevue, WA). Every month was a struggle financially to make my business profitable – that was for ten years. Marketing, recruiting, hiring, programming and always re-inventing myself/business was a constant stress.

Starting in October 2019, I continued to personal train a few long time clients in a local CrossFit Studio were I rented space ten hours a week plus training some clients at their home gym and training run clients outside at the local park. My stress level started to decrease. No longer did I have the financial obligation to pay $8000 each month in overhead. Now I could pay off my debt and take care of myself.

The many months leading up to my closing my studio, an entire year, were extremely emotional for me (surprisingly) – perhaps since I felt like a failure if I closed my studio doors. Honestly, I should have never renewed my lease as I knew the constant stress was breaking my health down from the inside out, but I was too proud and too embarrassed to show I was struggling. Fortunately, I was finally able to “get out” of the small business owner duty last October because our building was being torn down. I had over a year to look at other spaces and options to re-locate but I finally came to the realization that I didn’t have the passion or drive to continue owning a fitness studio. I am sure everyone could see it as my energy levels dropped again and then my emotional self re-appear the last May 2019 when I started to cancel group training and just survive the last five months of my lease with personal training and nutritional therapy/health coaching.

I was able to use the excuse of the building being torn down for my main reason why I was closing my business! Actually, it was me that needed out and that was my escape card. I finished the FDN Practitioner program in December 2019 and was on a mission to focus on being a fat loss, health, and athletic performance coach – plus continue to train a few personal training clients.

Then came Covid in March 2019.

I knew this was not a short term pandemic once we had to follow “new” rules of washing our hands and not touching our faces then to stay six feet apart then we had to stay home in isolation waiting for the virus to magically stop spreading.

That is another story.

My experience with the new “stay home and stay safe” guidelines (state law), forced me to stop being able to personally train clients in a studio or in public. I had to re-invent myself and focus on my online coaching fat loss, health, and athletic performance services- which now including virtual personal training on ZOOM! once again

The world was changing and so was my own way of living.

Suddenly our fast-paced busy active lives changed- as did every other athlete.

No longer did we wake up at 430AM to go to the gym to lift weights Monday, Wednesday, and Fridays.
No longer did I go to master’s Swimming at noon Monday, Wednesday, and Fridays.
No longer was I able to run/walk with a client two days a week
No longer were we doing bike/run workouts in the gym Tuesday and Thursday mornings at 530AM.
No longer where was my husband heading to the office to work all day while I was personal training clients at the CrossFit studio and their homes.

Now we were both working at home, working out at home or from home and eating at home.

I am sure you can relate!

Fortunately, my husband is also my best friend and training partner, so we have survived this crazy historic time in our world together and even are more compatible.

We were missing lifting heavy weights but instead we started doing Travis Eliot yoga in the mornings and yin yoga in the evenings plus walking a “mealtime” or running or cycling or both on work breaks. I used to teach yoga for many years and go to a yoga studio, but I cut it out the past few years as I was “too busy” to find a class to get to… now we were finally motivated to get on our yoga mats in our own home.

Then my husband got a new job that was for a company in New Zealand – so now we both had jobs that we were able to work from anywhere.

My point today is that we have learning lessons from every experience- including positive lessons we can grow from and help us become better people.

My fitness studio was a stress for ten years and was part of why I have never felt “healed” and regained full energy as I did prior 2013. I definitely repaired, rebuilt, and restored my health since 2013, but I have always a fine line to be aware of too much stress and too little recovery. My epigenetics, microbiome, food sensitivities, gut health, pathogens, and hormone balance are always “hidden” internal chronic stressors that I need to re-check and assess with functional lab testing as I am prone to take one step forward and two steps back.

Until these past few weeks, I was not aware of how busy our lives still were “pre-covid” days. I do believe everything happens for a reason and this pandemic around the world is hitting everyone hard, but I hope it is a learning lesson for everyone and an eye opener… how healthy are you?

My health is a priority for me, but CHRONIC stress impacts every part of you from the inside out. My stressful busy life was finally changing since I was “forced” to close my studio then “forced” to stop personal training clients in person and “forced” not to go to the gym anymore.

Life SLOWED way down for all of us.

Slow down, pushing PAUSE and taking time to REBOOT the system is beneficial for all of us… if you do it the right way!

I am talking about getting outside for morning light exposure, doing strength training as power yoga or home strength workouts, getting outside for longer walks, taking short runs and getting out for bike rides and hikes. Then we need to focus on eating nutrient dense food- ideally without a food label and fresh from the local farmers market.

Now we finally had time to make our health our priority including our nutrition, exercise, sleep, stress reduction, movement, digestion/gut health/immune system, hydration, and happiness… or rather “THE WHOLESTIC METHOD”.

I know my husband and I have slowed down and changed our ENTIRE life the past few months. We decided this was the ideal time to finally make a move I have dreamed about since I was a teenager and moved to North San Diego. We are renting a cute one-bedroom apartment on a property in the mountains north of Escondido and east of Oceanside, CA for two months while we find the right area to live for us – cycling and running!

We explain WHY we moved for #QOL = quality of life. Yes, the taxes are a lot here and the politics are always open for arguments but the quality of life for us is ideal. WE love to bike in the mountains and then run along the coast and enjoy the farmers markets, healthy food and amazing time on the beach watching the waves crash.

Life is a journey.

I am now finally taking care of the WHOLE me as I was “Forced” to slow down, reset, and reboot the WHOLE me for once. It has taken me many years to understand what “slowing down” is really about and now, thanks to CV19, we have arrived in our happy place.

Now I hope to heal and rebuild myself as we reduce life stressors and start a new full time with my online fat loss, “Health (RE) Building” and Athletic Performance coaching business. Once we move into a new house and get settle in our new hometown- then reality will set, and stress levels will go down another level!

Stay connected and join my journey!

Learn more about my story and my WHY by reading my book and manual on Amazon here!

Amazon Life is Not a Race book and “The WHOLESTIC Method Manual” here

I help driven and ambitious people, who are trying to do all the “right” things, investigate what is actually going on “under the hood” to get their body and vibrant self back.

Perhaps you have seen multiple doctors and experts but they tell you everything is “normal” and there is nothing wrong with you. That was my experience. I refused to believe that “nothing is wrong with me” and this is part of “getting older”. This was not going to be the new me and stop me from investigating what was really going on from the inside out – under the hood.

You have a choice to take care of the WHOLE you and even transform the WHOLE you from the inside out. Please don’t give up and settle, as the struggle is real and you are not alone. If you feel exhausted trying to do all the “right” things and still can’t feel, move or look better then we need to take a different approach.

Remember- the definition of Insanity is …

“Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”

I would love to hear from you if you relate to my story! You can schedule a DISCOVERY call here.

Debbie Potts

Health Coach, Author, Speaker & Podcaster

Host of ‘The Low Carb Athlete’ Health Building Podcast

Creator of ‘The WHOLESTIC Method’ Coaching Program

FNTP, FDN-P, NASM CPT, CHEK HLC, Kion CoachBURN FAT. OPTIMIZE HEALTH. IMPROVE PERFORMANCE