Old Chicks Know Sh*t Podcast

Reclaiming Your Calm: Nervous System Health for Women 40+ with Maryann Jacobson

In this episode, I dive into one of my favourite topics: the fascinating changes in the human nervous system, specifically for women over 40. I’m joined by Maryann Jacobson, a top nutrition and lifestyle expert specializing in midlife health and the author of [insert book title]. Together, we explore how aging impacts our nervous system, affecting both mental and physical well-being.
 
Maryann shares her personal journey and explains the importance of tracking biomarkers, moving your body in ways that feel good, and using breathing exercises to not only calm the nervous system but also manage symptoms like hot flashes. We discuss how vital it is to slow down, prioritize rest, and set boundaries as we navigate the menopausal transition. Plus, Maryann offers practical advice for self-care and the power of understanding your body during this stage of life.
Don’t miss this insightful conversation packed with actionable tips for thriving in midlife! You can connect with Maryann and dive deeper into her work on her Substack community.
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Maryann Jacobsen is a leading nutrition and lifestyle expert specializing in midlife women. She is a registered dietitian with over 15 years of experience researching and writing about developmental stages and their relationship to nutrition and lifestyle. Initially focusing on child and adolescent nutrition for a decade, she authored six books and hosted the Healthy Family podcast. Since 2020, Maryann has shifted her focus exclusively to midlife women, delivering impactful talks and launching the Midlife Strong Substack in June 2023. Her work has been featured in WebMD, Huffington Post, Parents.com, Today’s Dietitian, The New York Times, and numerous other online and print publications. Maryann is dedicated to ensuring midlife women fully grasp the changes in their bodies and discover comprehensive strategies to sustain their well-being.
 
https://www.instagram.com/midlife.strong/ https://www.facebook.com/MtjacobsenRD https://maryannjacobsen.substack.com/ 
 
 

Courageous Authenticity: Anne-Marie Zanzal's Story of Self-Discovery in Her 50's

If you’ve been listening to this podcast for any length of time you’ve undoubtedly heard me say that midlife is the chapter of Authenticity.  It’s  about letting go of who the world wants or expects us to be and becoming more of who we really are. 
In this episode I’m chatting with Anne-Marie Zanzal about her journey to finding herself in her 50’s including coming to terms with her sexuality, and getting divorced.  Anne Marie shares that finding oneself later in life and coming to terms with our truth can be uncomfortable process but being in true alignment is key to living life of happiness and peace. 
We explore the challenges of self discovery including navigating fear, deconstructing societal norms and expectations and self-trust. We also dive into self-love, regret and  the power of mindfulness and self-compassion in finding true happiness and peace. The key message in Anne Maries courageous  journey is that honouring the truth of who you are is an incredible gift of self love.  
It’s a deep and inspiring conversation that shares many insights on the importance of being our authentic selves to live a life of joy and fulfilment.
 
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With a background rooted in group work, healthcare training, and spiritual leadership, Anne-Marie Zanzal, M.Div. has dedicated her career to supporting individuals through life’s transitions. Anne-Marie is a graduate of Yale Divinity School, ordained minister in the United Church of Christ, hospice chaplain, coming and divorce support expert, and certified as a Compassionate Bereavement Provider. She brings a unique blend of empathy, expertise, and spirituality to their work. Anne-Marie’s personal journey of coming out later in life profoundly shaped her understanding of the challenges faced by the LGBTQIA+ community, particularly those navigating these experiences often after a heteronormative marriage and children.  Through individual coaching and group work, Anne-Marie empowers individuals to embrace their authentic selves with courage and confidence.
 
Later in life workshop: https://comingoutsupport.net/ 
Join our weekend in Provincetown: https://wingwomenweekend.com/ 
Download your free coming out guide: https://annemariezanzal.com/
 

Midlife - The Perfect Time For Radical Change

On today’s podcast episode we’re talking about why midlife is actually the perfect time for radical personal change. 
Meet Sue Willoughby, a powerhouse coach who  guides women over 40 to break through their personal barriers using the transformative power of Equus Coaching. Yes you read the right Horses, who help her clients discover the profound impact of non-verbal communication and self-awareness through interactions with horses.
Sue’s journey is nothing short of inspiring. Raised by a single alcoholic parent, she learned resilience and self-sufficiency early on. She faced numerous challenges, from coming out at 17 to attempting suicide at 19. Her life took a turn for the better when she found support and the opportunity to relocate, return to school, create a new career and became a successful real estate investor.
With a lifelong passion for horses, Sue transformed her love for these majestic animals into a coaching career, providing the support she once needed. Sue’s life is a testament to stepping out of comfort zones—she’s been a nightclub DJ, standup comic, actor, private pilot, and Roller Derby referee.
We talk about why midlife at midlife we are perfectly prepared to make big life shifts and the role of intuition in guiding our decisions and the need to trust and listen to our own inner voice.
It’s a fascinating conversation that offers much insight into how we navigate the inevitable changes that we face at this time of life.
Web: http://www.willoughbycoaching.com/ IG: http://www.instagram.com/sue_willoughby FB: https://www.facebook.com/willoughbycoaching LI: https://www.linkedin.com/in/suewilloughby/
 
 
 

Reinvention & Resilience: Tosca Reno's Journey from Fitness Icon to True Self

On this weeks episode of the podcast I’m fan-girling a bit because I get to interview a woman that I have been following for more than 20 years. I was a religious reader of her magazine column in the 90’s and have purchased all of her books. Today she shares with me her inspiring multiple reinvention stories from an overweight unhappy housewife  in an abusive marriage to fitness icon to tragedy, bankruptcy and finally discovering her true self.
 
Tosca Reno, is a  New York Times bestselling author and founder of the Eat Clean diet movement who became a model and celebrity in the fitness world in her 40’s at time when it was unheard of for a woman of her age, only to have it all come crashing down after the death of her stepson and husband. Faced with having to reinvent her life yet again Tosca began a deep emotional and spiritual journey of self-discovery and healing. 
 
Through this journey, she  learned the importance of authenticity, emotional self-care, and connecting with her inner self. Tosca discusses the importance of stepping out of your comfort zone and embracing change in order to live a fulfilled life. She shares her own journey of letting go of her old identity in order to find her true self. 
 
 
More about Tosca:
Hi! I'm Tosca Reno, a New York Times best selling author and founder of the Eat-Clean Diet. Thanks for joining me. I've created this short course to help introduce the concepts of my Eat Clean System. After thousands of group and personal coaching sessions with my clients over the years, it's clear there is a need for greater clarity about how to Eat Clean and implement it into your life.  
 
You can find her at: @toscareno on IG, Facebook and YouTube

Becoming More Me - Living Your Most Authentic Midlife

The journey of reinventing yourself to find yourself and live your best midlife  is often not an easy one. It requires us to step out of our comfort zone to confront ourselves time and time again. Today I’m chatting with Theresa Lear Levine, an EFT Master Practitioner and Hypnotherapist and author of a book called Becoming More Me who helps her clients align with their most authentic life through an integrative approach to nervous system regulation, subconscious mind work, law of attraction, and energy strategy.
In this episode, we dive deep dive into:
Releasing Fears & Limiting Beliefs: Discover how shedding doubts can help you align with your true self.
Subconscious Patterns: Learn how old beliefs might be holding you back and how to overcome them.
Being Present & Grateful: Find the balance between appreciating the now while still pursuing your dreams.
Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT): Explore how EFT can calm the nervous system, unlock the subconscious, and create lasting positive changes.
Self-Trust, Acceptance, & Love: The trio of transformation—how they play a pivotal role in your journey.
Processing Emotions: The importance of facing negative thoughts head-on instead of sweeping them under the rug.
Purpose & Meaning in Midlife: Transitioning from seeking external validation to nurturing internal fulfillment
This conversation is a reminder that true growth starts from within and that we all have what it takes to find our most authentic selves and live a life that feels truly meaningful to us.
 
 
You can find out more about Theresa and her work here:
becomingmoreme.com
theresalearlevine.com
@theresalearlevine
youtube.com/@theresalearlevine

Financial Empowerment For Mid-life

This episode of the podcast is all about empowering women take control of their finances to create the life they want.  My guest, Libby Wildman, is a financial planner with 35 years of experience in helping her clients reach their financial goals while wading through all the details and the emotions to arrive at a place where your money is a tool that helps you achieve your life goals. She is skilled at helping you have your money work for you and implementing proven strategies to have you arrive at a place where you know what your money can accomplish for you.  She is a continuous student in both tax and estate planning as well as understanding the psychology behind the “money brain”.
 
In this conversation we explore the reasons why many women feel disempowered around money, including societal conditioning and intergenerational beliefs.  We also talk about the beliefs and behaviours that might be holding us back from the financial life we want. Libby shares practical advice and strategies for achieving our financial goals, even when we think we might be behind or its too late. We also dive deep into the topic of finances and relationships with what Libby calls financial infidelity. She shares the importance of open communication and aligned goals. 
 
We also dive deep into the idea of finding meaning and purpose for your life while also planning and saving for retirement,  how we define retirement  and the different ways to approach work and financial security in later stages of life 
 
This is an informative and insightful episode that will definitely make you think about how you are approaching your finances in this chapter of life. 
 
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Libby Wildman a principal at Davis Rhea Financial has over 35 years of financial services and planning experience. Libby has the expertise, education and industry knowledge to provide insight and the right answers for her client’s individual questions and circumstances. She is a continuous student in both tax and estate planning as well as understanding the psychology behind the “money brain”. Libby believes that as humans, self connection drives so much of our behaviours. To this end she creates retreat experiences, to help people know their purpose and work on their relationship with money. She also founded a women’s entrepreneur community, The Collective, to help women scale and feel seen while connecting with other super successful female business owners.
 
Find our more about Libby at:
www.LibbyWildman.com
LinkedIn: Libby Wildman
Instagram:  Libby Wildman

Serial Reinventionist, Jean Peleen's Blueprint for a Dynamic Life

Today’s guest is Jean Peleen, an 83-year-old writer, speaker, and activist who refers to herself as a serial re-inventionist. She has reinvented her life over and over again from stay-at-home mom to lawyer, to elected official, to model and actress and so much more.  We chat about the inspiration behind her multiple reinventions and how she knew it was time to move on from one phase of her life to the next. Jean emphasizes the importance of embracing new opportunities, learning new things, taking risks and living boldly, even if it means starting from scratch.  And she shares her winning formula to help us do that. 
 
We also talked about the importance of older women taking on new roles as leaders, teachers, and mentors and the need to find ways to connect with younger generations. 
This was lively conversation that contains so much insight and wisdom from a women who has most definitely been there and done that. She has much to share with the world through her reinvention experiences. This conversation was pure gold. I just love learning from the women who have gone before us.  I  hope you enjoy it as much  as I did. 
 
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Jean Peelen is an eighty-three year old first time writer,  leader of many lives and  believer in living life boldly. Currently exploring who we are when we are old. She is the founder of  “Old Women Who Write” a writing group for women to create, express themselves and share their wisdom with the world. 
You can find out more about Jean at:
 
https://www.oldwomenwhowrite.com/
 https://www.jeanpeelen.com/ 
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeanpeelen

Beyond Fitness: Julia Linn’s Inspiring Journey of Transformation at 62

Although on the surface today’s conversation appears to be about weight loss and fitness but  it goes so much deeper than that. 
My guest is Julia Lin, author of 'My Power Decade’, body builder and fitness coach who shares her inspiring transformation story from being sick and overweight to competing in fitness shows at the age of 62.  
What I love about Julia’s story is that it’s not just about physical transformation. She shares the deep mindset and spiritual journey that has lead to her living as the best version of herself in all areas of life.
Julia shares that the foundation of any lasting physical or life change is built from the inside out.  
We chat about self love and acceptance, having a vision vs a goal, working through limiting beliefs, getting your mindset right and tuning into soul whispers to guide your path.  
I loved this conversation so much as we touch on all my favourite things. Julia is a such an inspiration  for all of us looking to live our best lives well into our later years.  
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Julia Linn, a force of inspiration born in 1957, wears many hats - she's a beacon of motivation, a celebrated author, a guiding light in online body and mindset coaching, and an awe-inspiring bodybuilder. Her journey defies convention, especially at the age of 67, where she redefines what it means to be a senior citizen. Having traversed continents as a professor, retirement wasn't in Julia's vocabulary at 65. Instead, she embarked on a remarkable journey of physical and mental transformation, stepping onto the bodybuilding stage with the determination of a warrior. Her resilience stems from a life peppered with medical challenges, beginning at the tender age of 11 with diabetes. Against all odds, she faced failed kidneys, diabetic blindness, heart disease, and more, defying the grim predictions of her doctors. Julia's life was spared by a double organ transplant and triple cardiac bypass surgeries, each a testament to her unwavering spirit. At 62, Julia committed to a newfound mindset centered around fitness, catalyzing a profound internal transformation alongside her physical one. Her mission crystallized: to empower women aged 40 to their 70s to break free from limiting beliefs and embrace their full potential. Through her certification as a personal trainer and mindset coach, Julia illuminates the path of self-reinvention, intertwining the realms of mind, body, and spirit. Certified by the International Sports Science Association (ISSA), Julia's expertise spans over four decades as an educator and keynote speaker on personal development. Her bestselling book, "MY POWER DECADE," serves as a roadmap for achieving fitness goals through mindset shifts and has garnered acclaim in Women's Health circles. Julia's passion extends beyond the pages of her book; she founded "Body Beauty Love Life™" to extend her guidance and coaching globally. Her mission? To help women connect with their inner strength, unearth their true purpose, and lead lives of profound meaning. For Julia, true wellness transcends the physical - it's a holistic journey of transformation from within.
 
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/dolphinine/?hl=en (@dolphinine) Website https://bodybeautylovelife.com/
YouTube youtube.com/@julialinn LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/julia-linn-06bb77251/
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100087666122649