May 18, 2022
This week Anthony welcomes MJ Gordon. She’s a world-renowned lifestyle and business coach specializing in health, high performance, and energy management. Her time-tested strategies help her goal-oriented clients level up to regain balance, joy, and resilience in their health, business, and life. Her goal is to inspire positive energy and help people maximize their resources of energy, time and money, to create a better life and community.
As a high performer in all aspects of her life, she was used to being on the go constantly. After losing a few big contracts and going into debt, she got a wakeup call when her husband told her it was time to slow down and reevaluate their life. Unable to continue that breakneck pace she was used to, she saw a specialist and learned she had a cortisol deficiency. Rather than treat it with meds, she chose to play the long game and go on a journey to regain balance in her life and her body. Now, she is passionate about sharing all she’s learned with her audience.
The first step to high performance
The most important first step is to be aware of what is going on inside your body. You have to go beyond the typical blood panel you get from a primary care physician. Find a specialist who will at least do a full hormone panel, gut mapping, and allergy testing. The highest performers in all areas constantly monitor what helps them feel better or worse. Approach it like a NASCAR racer. When you’re going at high speeds, monitor your gauges constantly and take a break every few laps so that you don’t overheat.
Rest and recover
The next phase of step one is to make sure you’re not at a deficit, and if you are, get out of it. The way to do that is to create a supportive lifestyle that helps stimulate the parasympathetic nervous system. That means you need to rest and recover– which is the opposite of fight or flight. To be in fight/fight mode at all times is taxing. Instead, you need to give yourself frequent breaks from stimulation.
Fuel and move your body
MJ says most people focus on the diet aspects of wellness. But she emphasizes that step one– knowing your body and fighting deficits– is really the most important part of the equation. Once you have that in place, you can determine what fuels your body most efficiently and effectively. Every person is different. What fuels you might not be what fuels your neighbor. Likewise, how you move your body will vary at different stages in your life, and it’s unique to each person. MJ says not to impose performance expectations on yourself. One day you might be able to hit the gym hard, but the next the best thing for your body might be a long walk and yoga stretches. Listen to your body and give it what it needs.
Waste time on yourself
The non-negotiable for MJ is to have 30-60 minutes to herself per day. That might be gardening, reading, or connecting with her kids, but whatever it is it has to be fully enjoyable and engaging for her. As a business owner, mom, and wife she knows it can be hard to find time to do that, but she makes it happen. She does it by living a minimalist life and knowing when to outsource and delegate. Rather than waste time aimlessly scrolling social media, she puts her phone down. The 10 minutes a day she used to spend vacuuming got outsourced to a robot vacuum. Little changes like that buy back time for her to waste time on herself.
The Everyday Vacation
MJ hosts the everyday vacation podcast. People hear the phrase and assume that means she is suggesting that you sip cocktails by the pool all day. Not so. To her, the everyday vacation means getting your life to a point where you have the feeling of excitement when you wake up every morning, like the one most of us get when we are on vacation. It means having a passion and interest in your everyday life. Phase 1 is getting your energy levels in check, moving/fueling/resting your body, and spending time on yourself. Phase 2 is creating a life where you live on your own terms so you always feel like you are on vacation.