How do you overcome diversity? How do you get back that sense of self-worth and self-confidence? How do change and become empowered? For strength and nutrition coach Maria Marklove, it was through mindfulness, meditation, and physical training. Listen as she shares her inspiring story, and learn how you, too, can take control of your life.

Visit https://www.bodyshotperformance.com/podcasts-blog for complete show notes of every podcast episode.

Topics Discussed in this Episode:

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  Maria’s life story

  
  
  
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  Where Maria drew support and inspiration from

  
  
  
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  What it was like for Maria to try to make a positive change for herself

  
  
  
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  The initial first steps that Maria took towards changing her life

  
  
  
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  The mindfulness-based stress reduction method

  
  
  
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  What Maria got from her mindfulness and meditation practices

  
  
  
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  How physical training helped Maria overcome anorexia

  
  
  
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  How being physically strong helped Maria feel mentally strong, and the difference that made to her life

  
  
  
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  Some of the things that Maria does to take herself to her discomfort zone

  
  
  

Key Takeaways:

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  The thoughts that you’re constantly thinking about aren’t necessarily the truth. They are more like opinions, beliefs, or habitual responses.

  
  
  
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  Sometimes pain can be the catalyst for change. When the pain becomes too much for you to handle, you simply can’t continue to live your life that way.

  
  
  
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  You can’t change other people in the same way that other people can’t change you. Change has to come from within.

  
  
  
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  If you’re strongly attached to negative thoughts, you’re going to have a very different life and outlook than if you see them for what they are, which is just noise.

  
  
  
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  Your comfort zone is so small and everything else is outside of that. If you want to grow, if you want to make progress in your life, you have to push outside your comfort zone.

  
  
  

Action Steps:

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  Focus on the creative solutions to your problem.

  
  
  
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  Choose the thoughts that you pay attention to.

  
  
  
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  Let go of useless thoughts, no matter how many times they come up.

  
  
  
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  Start with small steps to go out of your comfort zone.

  
  
  
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  Don’t fake it until you make it. Do it until you make it.

  
  
  

Maria said:

“If you want to change your happiness and your self-belief and your confidence and therefore, your life, you have to change your mindset. You’ve got to direct your focus towards things that are helpful.”

“Thoughts are kind of like clouds in the sky. And you can just be aware of the clouds, you don’t have to be inside the cloud… And you can ask if these thoughts, these clouds if they’re actually useful. And if they’re not useful, you can decide to let it go.”

Thanks for listening!

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Links to things we discuss in the show:

TEDxWandsworth: Why fitness is more important than weight by Leanne Spencer

Full Catastrophe Living by Jon Kabat-Zinn

Toastmasters

More from Maria Marklove:

Maria’s Website: http://www.noctrlz.co.uk/

More from Leanne Spencer:

Bodyshot Performance

Bodyshot Performance Limited Facebook page

Remove the Guesswork BOOK by Leanne Spencer
Rise and Shine BOOK by Leanne Spencer

Leanne’s Email