157. Fitness Talk with Dr. Alex Stewart

Physiotherapy is so much more than treating sore muscles with an ice pack. Physiotherapy looks at the body as a whole. It considers the entire person and their history, including their nutrition, exercise, and lifestyle, not just any diagnosis they have. Dr. Alex Stewart joins me to discuss physiotherapy, movement, and weight loss.   Physiotherapy Looks at the Body As a Whole Nutrition Movement Recreational Activities Family Life All of Life’s Demands   About Dr. Alex Stewart Alexander Stewart received his Doctorate in Physical Therapy and Bachelor's of Psychology from Widener University. Alex has dedicated his years of treatment and consulting to athletes and active individuals from all levels of sport and recreation.  He’s worked with professional athletes in baseball, basketball, figure skating, track and field, weight lifting, powerlifting, CrossFit, and ballet. He specializes in applying high-level training and rehabilitation methods to the everyday athlete and middle-aged mom.   Exercise Without Getting Bulky Dr. Alex Stewart, one of the practitioners we work with for our programs, joins me in this episode to clear up some myths about physiotherapy. But, more than that, we discuss how women can start taking their exercise and health routine more seriously without getting bulky. Men and women receive different targeted messaging. Women have too many social norms to abide by, constantly hearing about the latest weight loss trend or something their friend is doing, and may struggle to make the best choices for their bodies.   How To Optimize Your Body Dr. Alex shares how to optimize the best version of you by finding out how your body best responds to nutrition, exercise, and other factors. We also talk about how to start taking exercise seriously to improve your health – and do so without getting bulky (which, let’s be honest, is difficult to do unless you’re doing some very targeted exercise and nutrition!). Dr. Alex explains why many of us fail to reach our goals – we’re trying to do too much too fast. He recommends making smaller, more achievable goals and working towards them one after the other. It really is about finding joy in the journey rather than constantly reaching for a finish line that is almost impossible to find. How do you plan your smaller, more achievable goals? What do you need to do to optimize the best version of yourself? Let me know in the comments on the episode page.   In This Episode  How physiotherapy looks at the body as a whole [4:00] What women do that prevent optimal health [8:30] Why men and women hear different targeted messaging [10:00] How to optimize the best version of you [14:00] How to start taking exercise seriously [16:45] Why you need to start by setting only one goal to work towards [18:30] Why you have to enjoy the journey [21:00] The balance between what you want and what you have to give up [30:00]   Quotes “That’s going to be the next step in medicine as a whole. Looking at the patient for who they are and not just for their diagnosis.” [4:58] “I think the big thing that I want to bring in is being able to move better and feel better with the workouts you are already doing.” [11:29] “A big thing for me is, one, being able to empower you to be good at your traits. And then, two, being able to help you identify where there are some weaker points.” [15:34] “Don’t compare yourself to somebody’s highest form. Compare yourself to where you are now.” [17:58] “By setting these little goals and accomplishing them week after week, we’re giving ourselves little dopamine hits. […] That’s the big thing that we want to do. Set small, achievable goals, achieve them, set a little harder of a goal, achieve that, and that’s all that we do for the rest of our life.” [19:17]   Resources 31 Days of FIT.  Learn more HERE. Muscle Maintenance During Fat Loss. Waitlist HERE. Fit Woman Collective™. Learn more HERE. Follow Dr. Ali Novitsky on TikTok | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube Subscribe to The Muscles and Mindset Podcast on Apple Podcasts *** Ali Novitsky MD, this podcast, and podcast write-up are NOT providing medical advice ***   Related Episodes  Episode 156: Building Our Foundation with Pelvic Floor Rehab w/ Daria Stewart Episode 152: Beauty in Strength with Becca Failla Episode 146: Exercise Mistakes Preventing Optimal Weight Loss