It’s time for another quick on with Dawn and Tracy. In a snippet taken from Episode 98 the ladies are discussing anxiety, fear and how to be the master of it. The fear of ‘what if’ can often make us behave in ways that are not conducive to our personal or professional success. And this is not healthy. Luckily, Dawn and Tracy are here to share some practical tips and advice, collected from two lives well lived, so that you can become the master of your fear instead of it being the master of you.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Dawn has a healthy approach to managing her anxiety, she talks about her relationship with it and how she has developed skills to help her manage it.
• Tracy muses of the dangers of catastrophizing and how we can self soothe in order to prevent this from happening.
• Dawn and Tracy discuss their past experiences related to fear of failure and how these experiences have helped them to develop tools to cope should it appear.
• The ladies discuss the concept of ‘Surrendering to the Fear’ using the example of Dawn’s friend who is currently going through a breakup.

BEST MOMENTS

“Anxiety isn’t a weakness but I can see how people might think it’s a weakness.”

“When we come back to the present we can look with much more clarity at what is going on.”

“If you let go of your fear, what would you do?”

EPISODE RESOURCES

Original Episode

Real Women on Instagram

Real Women Website

ABOUT THE HOSTS

Dawn and Tracy are real women who are fed up of all the “noise” out there in the real world. Life isn’t simply rainbows and unicorns, it's broken relationships, hard work, hot sweats and never ending laundry baskets. But life as a real woman is also about being honest, having good gossip and speaking our truths. Whether it’s peeling yourself into your spandex for a night out, or running a business meeting barefoot because the heel has fallen off your stilettos, there is always something to laugh about in life.

Dawn is mid 50’s mid menopause straight talking business maverick. Four kids, three grandchildren, two businesses, one husband and a self proclaimed “hottie”.

Tracy is a mid 50’s awesome mum, business and property mentor. Proud of her raw, honest nature, “bonkers” sense of humour and good old-fashioned northern humility.

PODCAST DESCRIPTION

The business of being a real woman juggling life, love and work for many of us is pure sweat, grit & hustle. This podcast is for those of you who are tired of the “noise” and just want real down-to-earth gossip with no filters or fluff. Dawn and Tracy bring heartfelt humour, raw honesty, spandex, stilettos, and intelligent conversion on being a real woman in today's world.

This week, Dawn and Tracy are joined by Christine Van Bleom, founder of the Empty Nest Kitchen. Christine, for many years, ran a cooking school, but when covid popped up and closed her business she found herself lost and dejected. She looked at her own life and realised that people of her generation were being left behind. Determined to do something about it, Christine established the Empty Nest Kitchen, a place where people over 50, whose families have left home, can come together online and cook for fun. In this interview with Dawn and Tracy, Christine talks about her experience and recruits Dawn and Tracy into her tribe.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Christine, who is 56, came to the realisation that society was leaving behind people of a certain age and how this was making them feel neglected and alone. This, as she explains, is her reasoning for starting her empty nest cooking course.
• Christine's previous business was a cooking school, however, when Covid hit, she lost her company. She talks about how she picked herself up and the challenges she faced in setting up a new company.
• Once a month, Christine hosts a free course with over 500 attendees. Through sharing the story of a man who recently became a widower, she details the amazing benefits the participants receive.
• Dawn gets emotional as the ladies discuss the numerous benefits that come with cooking in a ‘tribe’ and how it fundamentally changes the experience of cooking from something you have to do to something you want to do.

BEST MOMENTS

“Business and work will one day pass, but life does not finish there, so find something worth living for.”

“After Covid, I think people really began to realise how important connection is.”

“There’s a beauty in rediscovering the fun in something when you have sent so long doing it because you have to.”

EPISODE RESOURCES

Real Women on Instagram

Real Women Website

ABOUT THE GUEST

Christine Van Bloem is the founder of The Empty Nest Kitchen, teaching live, online cooking classes to empty nesters re-learning how to cook for one or two, while finding the fun in the kitchen with a healthy-ish vibe.

A heart attack survivor, Christine has reformed her butter-loving, heavy cream worshiping ways by making changes in how to cook, taking food in a healthier direction, while still keeping things flavorful and delightful. Plus, there's always room for dessert!

Christine hosts the Empty Nest Kitchen podcast and lives in Maryland (US) with her husband John.

ABOUT THE HOSTS

Dawn and Tracy are real women who are fed up of all the “noise” out there in the real world. Life isn’t simply rainbows and unicorns, it's broken relationships, hard work, hot sweats and never ending laundry baskets. But life as a real woman is also about being honest, having good gossip and speaking our truths. Whether it’s peeling yourself into your spandex for a night out, or running a business meeting barefoot because the heel has fallen off your stilettos, there is always something to laugh about in life.

Dawn is mid 50’s mid menopause straight talking business maverick. Four kids, three grandchildren, two businesses, one husband and a self proclaimed “hottie”.

Tracy is a mid 50’s awesome mum, business and property mentor. Proud of her raw, honest nature, “bonkers” sense of humour and good old-fashioned northern humility.

PODCAST DESCRIPTION

The business of being a real woman juggling life, love and work for many of us is pure sweat, grit & hustle. This podcast is for those of you who are tired of the “noise” and just want real down-to-earth gossip with no filters or fluff. Dawn and Tracy bring heartfelt humour, raw honesty, spandex, stilettos, and intelligent conversion on being a real woman in today's world.

This week Dawn and Tracy are joined by master Pilates teacher, CoreAlign master instructor, posture and gait specialist and Neurosomatic Intelligence coach, Kristen Iuppenlatz Grech. After 2 car crashes, Kristen experienced chronic pain for over 15 years. One day, whilst in her kitchen, she had a revelation - what if she could incorporate her pilates knowledge into daily life? Not only did this work, it eventually led Kristen to launching her programme “Seven Good Reasons to Dance in Your Kitchen”. In this interview, Kristen will motivate you to become more energetic, alert and healthy and, at the end of it, will have you dancing in your kitchen.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Kirsten, who has been a long time pilates tutor and suffering from chronic pain, recognised that the amount of time she spent in the kitchen was not good for her posture. She explains how implementing some of her pilates practices into her cooking, which ultimately led to ‘Dancing in the Kitchen.’
• Most people at work spend their time in unnatural, unhealthy positions that can have negative long term consequences. Kirsten shares some simple tips on how to adopt a better posture.
• Moving your body isn’t just good for posture and pain, there are so many long term health benefits. Kirsten focused on seven of them to create her ‘Seven Good Reasons’ programme. She breaks down what they are and the benefits of each one.
• What Kristen has discovered through her community is that implementing exercise and positive body movements don’t just impact your health, but your wider world. She explains how the positivity you feel is transferred to your work life and relationships.

BEST MOMENTS

“You’ve got to embrace who you are today, not wait for a time that may never come.”

“It’s not just you that will benefit from positive movements, your co-worker, friends and family will feel the positivity bouncing off you.”

“The bottom line is, if you move, you will feel better. It is the only guaranteed way to elevate your mood.”

EPISODE RESOURCES

Kristen’s Free Mini course

Kristen’s Facebook

Kristen’s Instagram

Kristen’s Youtube

Real Women on Instagram

Real Women Website

ABOUT THE GUEST

Kristen Iuppenlatz Grech is a master Pilates teacher, CoreAlign master instructor, posture and gait specialist and Neurosomatic Intelligence coach. She's also an actor/dancer/musical theatre nerd who loves to dance anywhere!

Kristen struggled with chronic pain for over 15 years after two car accidents within two years. She studied with incredible mentors over the past 25 years trying to figure out how to heal. Now she shares all the insights and hard earned wisdom she's gained that she wishes she’d been able to find back then.

ABOUT THE HOSTS

Dawn and Tracy are real women who are fed up of all the “noise” out there in the real world. Life isn’t simply rainbows and unicorns, it's broken relationships, hard work, hot sweats and never ending laundry baskets. But life as a real woman is also about being honest, having good gossip and speaking our truths. Whether it’s peeling yourself into your spandex for a night out, or running a business meeting barefoot because the heel has fallen off your stilettos, there is always something to laugh about in life.

Dawn is mid 50’s mid menopause straight talking business maverick. Four kids, three grandchildren, two businesses, one husband and a self proclaimed “hottie”.

Tracy is a mid 50’s awesome mum, business and property mentor. Proud of her raw, honest nature, “bonkers” sense of humour and good old-fashioned northern humility.

PODCAST DESCRIPTION

The business of being a real woman juggling life, love and work for many of us is pure sweat, grit & hustle. This podcast is for those of you who are tired of the “noise” and just want real down-to-earth gossip with no filters or fluff. Dawn and Tracy bring heartfelt humour, raw honesty, spandex, stilettos, and intelligent conversion on being a real woman in today's world.