Ever Forward Radio with Chase Chewning

With a childhood defined by an almost endless barrage of abuse from the people closest to him, and an early adulthood filled with all manner of destructive coping mechanisms in response to those tragic early years, Khalil Rafati had a long road ahead of him to rewire his mind and direct his energy toward the good. From a life of family trauma, homelessness, substance abuse, and at one point being a convicted felon, Khalil has completely transformed his life. Today, Khalil is still addicted—only he has switched out the drugs and alcohol for superfoods and juices. His passion for health led him to found SunLife Organics, a rapidly growing chain of health food cafés with locations in California, Texas, and Arizona. He shares his unique approach to service, which includes allowing his staff to offer items on the house if the customer has recently fallen on hard times. “A lot of people come into SunLife not just for the human connection,” says Khalil. “A lot of people come into SunLife as a lighthouse in the storm.” Beyond the smoothies, Khalil believes that SunLife’s customers come in to be loved, and his ultimate job is to shower them with the love, healing, and inspiration they crave.   Follow Khalil @khalilrafati Follow SunLife Organics @sunlifeorganics Follow Chase @chase_chewning   Episode resources: Save 20% with code EVERFORWARD on Organifi at http://organifi.com/everforward Get his book I Forgot to Die https://amzn.to/2UzcXHq  Get his book Remembering to Live https://amzn.to/3znOjbG  Learn more about Khalil and SunLife Organics at https://chasechewning.com/podcasts/episode/502 

“Let’s put less emphasis on losing 10, 20, 30 pounds and more on what hot, healthy, and confident mean to you.” This is the motto that Lauren Hubert decided to embody as 2021 rolled out. But getting to the point where she could proclaim and live out this mindset for herself was a journey plagued with doubt and insecurity. After gaining nearly 20 pounds as a freshman at Florida State University, Lauren was determined to shed the weight and regain her self-confidence. Unfortunately, she ended up going down a destructive path defined by hours of running, an extreme calorie deficit, and closing herself off from all social events for fear of getting tempted to eat the “wrong” foods. It took a couple of years studying to become a registered dietician before Lauren realized just how toxic her mindset toward health and wellness was up till then. In 2019, with a renewed purpose, Lauren established The Sorority Nutritionist. Listen in as Lauren touches on the value of patience and setting expectations as we create our fitness goals; how to manage failure, avoid burnout, and maintain our positivity as we strive for these goals; not letting yourself be defined by your failures and weaknesses; and how to overcome the two biggest struggles with health and wellness that most people go through today.   Follow Lauren @sorority.nutritionist Follow Chase @chase_chewning   Episode resources: Save 15% on the grass fed beef sticks from Paleovalley with code EVERFORWARD at https://www.paleovalley.com/everforward  Learn more at https://chasechewning.com/podcasts/episode/501

Statistics show that the majority of Americans are now obese, in spite of the fact the fitness industry is bigger today than at any other point in time. Sal Di Stefano of Mind Pump Media dives deep into this alarming disconnect and goes through the laundry list of issues that emerge as a result of poor health both on an individual level and on a society level. In 2021, Sal published the book The Resistance Training Revolution, which details his observations and lessons learned after over 20 years in the fitness world. Frustrated at how the industry has failed to adequately address an obesity crisis that only continues to get worse, Sal wrote the book to tackle some of the common myths and misconceptions around health and fitness. In particular, he hopes to change the mainstream paradigm regarding resistance training, which he believes is “the best form of exercise to burn fat, boost metabolism, and achieve health benefits you cannot obtain from other forms of exercise.” “I made the book to specifically focus on trying to get people to adopt a form of exercise that has now been proven through study, but also one that I’ve seen through experience to be the most effective form of exercise for all of the health problems that we tend to run into in modern society—everything from obesity to diabetes to dementia to Alzheimer’s to loss of mobility to hormone issues. I’m trying to change the stigma that surrounds this form of exercise.” Sal goes on to explain why cardio and tracking calories burned during exercise are two of the worst things to focus on when trying to lose weight. He then gives his thoughts on the dangers of the “self love” trend and why you should never conflate “self image” with “body image”.   Follow Sal @mindpumpsal Follow Chase @chase_chewning   Episode resources: Save 20% on your first purchase from Legion Athletics with code EVERFORWARD at https://www.buylegion.com  For complete show notes and to learn more about Sal visit https://chasechewning.com/podcasts/episode/500 

Chase and May are joined today by Kara and Caleb Campbell. Kara is a celebrity event planner and human connection facilitator, and Caleb is a West Point graduate, former US Army officer, former NFL player, and former US Olympic bobsled athlete. Today, Chase, May, Kara, and Caleb talk all things relationships and the importance and necessity of continuous growth and maintaining a space for you to thrive in. They speak on how this all allows for the introduction of deep, meaningful relationships into your life as well as the strengthening of the relationships you already have. They also dive deep into emotional honesty as being fundamental to progression (or regression, if you lack it). Emotional honesty, they say, serves as a guide that allows you to filter the friendships and other relationships that serve you from those that don’t. That honesty also helps you accept the ease of falling in love and finding your person. Finally, they reflect on why your perspective of events, particularly challenging ones, is the key factor to your getting through them while taking away valuable lessons for growth. From the divine ambush, discover how you can turn the holy frustration which follows into radical acceptance and, at last, go from there into sacred flow.   Follow Kara @bykaraelise Follow Caleb @caleb_campbell Follow May @mayyazdi Follow Chase @chase_chewning   Episode resources: Save 15% on organic instant coffee from Strong Coffee Company with code CHASE at https://strongcoffeecompany.com/?ref=idvqn2vvx5y Save 15% on the 100% grass fed beef sticks from Paleovalley with code EVERFORWARD at https://paleovalley.com/store/beef-sticks For complete show notes visit https://chasechewning.com/podcasts/episode/499 

Wendy McCallum is a burnout and balance coach, author, and speaker. In this conversation, she recounts her own struggles dealing with a high-stress lifestyle in the past, as well as the common signs and symptoms of burnout. She offers practical tools that anyone can use to both recover from burnout and prevent it from happening again in the future. She talks about unhealthy coping mechanisms such as alcohol, food, and social media and how we can learn to rely less on these crutches and become more present. Wendy also gives her thoughts on the unique challenges that many of us experienced in 2020 and continue to face in 2021. One of her observations at the tail-end of the pandemic has been the emergence of a “third shift” in the lives of working professionals. If our “first shift” represents our actual career and our “second shift” refers to the people under our care—whether our children or aging parents—our new “third shift” is helping to orchestrate or manage schooling from home. This, of course, is on top of the overall anxiety all of us have felt in the past year-and-a-half. The pandemic and the resulting lockdowns have led to a significantly higher stress load on the average human being. Burnout is one of the symptoms of this stress. Whether one came into 2020 physically, mentally, and emotionally healthy, or already overworked, almost everybody has had to deal with exhaustion. (On the other hand, a very small minority—mainly business owners and employers—have found opportunities to become flexible and even more productive in their work.) Wendy reflects on her own experience with burnout and how she learned to create a life that she no longer needed to escape from.   Follow Wendy @wendymccallumcoach Follow Chase @chase_chewning   Episode resources: Save 15% on instant organic coffee from Strong Coffee Company with code CHASE at https://strongcoffeecompany.com/?ref=idvqn2vvx5y Save 15% on the cinnamon and honey CBD sticks from Cured Nutrition with code EVERFORWARD at https://bit.ly/3pJAMWr For complete show notes and to learn more about Wendy visit https://chasechewning.com/podcasts/episode/498 

Hailing from the small town of North Pole, Alaska, young Heidi Somers never saw herself as the face of a fitness brand with over 1.7 million followers on Instagram and 765,000 subscribers on YouTube. At the age of 20, the self-proclaimed introvert was working four jobs and left for San Antonio the following year to pursue medical school. It was in university when she began sharing her passion for health and fitness on social media, just for fun. Before she knew it, she’d grown a sizable audience and had company after company at her doorstep. Eventually, Heidi made the big decision to quit school and go all-in on her new business, Buffbunny Collection, which designs and creates luxurious fitness apparel made for every body. The brand showcases and celebrates women of all different body shapes, sizes, and backgrounds. Listen in as Heidi shares her story from shy, small-town girl to entrepreneur and influencer. She also describes her unique relationship with Christian Guzman, who happens to run a well-known fitness brand of his own. Finally, Heidi explains how she stays creative and continues to gain inspiration in an increasingly saturated market.   Follow Heidi @buffbunny Follow Chase @chase_chewning   Episode resources: Save 15% on Paleovalley's 100% grass fed beef sticks with code EVERFORWARD at https://paleovalley.com/store/beef-sticks  Get your free variety sample pack of LMNT Recharge electrolyte drink mix at http://drinklmnt.com/everforward  Watch the complete video and learn more at https://chasechewning.com/podcasts/episode/497 

“Why is it so easy to take our health for granted? What is going to become the trigger that makes us say, ‘I need to check in with myself?’” Riley Rees is the Founder and CEO at Sofia Health, an airline pilot, and a veteran who has served for 20 years in the U.S. Air Force. Listen in as Riley does a deep dive into prevention and holistic health, drawing from her expertise in healthcare alongside lessons learned after almost two decades of service in the military around one’s physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual wellbeing. She talks about the value of self-awareness as the first step toward taking control of your health and explains why integrative medicine—an approach to healing that takes the whole person into account—is finally gaining steam and greater acceptance in the mainstream healthcare industry. Finally, Riley shares what led to the founding of Sofia Health and how it offers a “business in a box” to healthcare providers around the world.   Follow Riley and Sofia Health @sofiahealthandwellness Follow Chase @chase_chewning   Episode resources: Save 20% on the all-natural men's skin care line from Caldera + Lab with code EVERFORWARD at https://caldera-lab.pxf.io/gbOd7X To learn more about Riley and Sofia Health visit https://chasechewning.com/podcasts/episode/496

At the start of 2020, health and fitness professionals everywhere stumbled into opportunity amid crisis when they realized that, through virtual classes or coaching, they could make the same level of income—if not more—while enjoying location independence and time freedom all at the same time. The question then became: How can I turn what I now have into a sustainable, and even scalable, business? Listen in as Jill Coleman of JillFit shares how health and fitness professionals can build and run an efficient and successful health and fitness brand online. She offers advice on defining your brand as an online coach, best practices for content creation and running paid ads, knowing when it’s time to pivot, why you might need to look for a mentor or support group, and how to move past burnout.   Follow Jill @jillfit Follow Chase @chase_chewning   Episode resources: Save 15% on Strong Coffee Company instant organic coffees with code CHASE at https://strongcoffeecompany.com/?ref=idvqn2vvx5y Save 20% on Organifi's Gold with code EVERFORWARD at http://organifi.com/everforward  For expanded show notes and to watch the video with Jill visit https://chasechewning.com/podcasts/episode/495 

“If we have a platform that allows us to account for the physiological and psychological variables that impact our performance, then we can effectively choose our level of performance at any given moment.” Kristen Holmes is the Vice President of Performance Science at WHOOP, a platform that delivers personalized insights on your fitness, sleep, and recovery to you in real-time, effectively facilitating the connection between you and your body. According to Kristen, WHOOP allows us to apply our behaviors, because once we can understand, in a quantifiable way, why our body is performing the way it currently is, we then gain the confidence to be intentional in everything we do—from the sports we play to the daily routines we live out day-to-day. Ultimately, we’re all just trying to be as engaged, present, and available as we can be, no matter the task at hand. To be able to track performance changes through data in real-time is a powerful way to pinpoint weaknesses, fill gaps, and adapt to environmental stressors. Listen in as Kristen does a deep dive into how personalized insights by WHOOP can help anybody, athlete or otherwise, to live their lives with more energy and joy. She also shares why it’s not just the physiological parameters that influence our adaptive capacity; that the research indicates that the psychological component impacts us more profoundly than anything we can do physiologically.   Follow Kristen @kristen_holmes2126 Follow WHOOP @whoop Follow Chase @chase_chewning   Episode resources: Get your WHOOP 3.0 activity tracker band for free at https://join.whoop.com/everforward Save 20% on your entire first purchase from Legion Athletics, #1 all-natural supplements brand in the world, with code EVERFORWARD at https://bit.ly/2LmdpUr The Superpower of the 21st Century: Controlling and Directing Thought. by Kristen Holmes For expanded show notes and more info on WHOOP visit https://chasechewning.com/podcasts/episode/494   

As with any journey of self-improvement, weight loss starts and ends with mindset. “Stop thinking of food as ‘good’ or ‘bad’,” says today’s guest, Carter Good. “There’s just food and the context in which it is eaten.” The struggle to form healthy nutrition and lifestyle habits comes down to the stories that you tell yourself around every decision you make, big or small. Carter himself attributes his past obesity to “using food as an emotional suppressant.” Carter goes on to say, “It’s really about reframing things and getting people to a place where they don’t feel like they have to make better choices and they have to exercise, but that they get to do these things.” Carter Good is a weight loss coach and the founder of the Leaner for Life community. He shares the story of how he lost 100 pounds in eight months, and why the hardest part of his journey came only after he lost all that weight.   Follow Carter @cartergood Follow Chase @chase_chewning   Episode resources: Get the best night's sleep of your life with Chili Sleep and save up 15-20% on either the Chili Pad or Ooler at https://www.chilisleep.com/ChaseChewning Leaner for Life: A FREE 5-Part Video Series to Kickstart Your Weight Loss Journey Learn more at https://chasechewning.com/podcasts/episode/493