Mindful Strength

We do so many podcasts on pain because pain is a part of human life, which means it's bound to come up in training at some point or another (or all the time). Most of what we have been taught about pain is that pain = damage, pain is not normal, pain shouldn't be happening.

Avoiding anything painful can really hold people back, limit movement and keep us stuck in sedentary patterns which arguably makes everything worse.

In this episode Kathryn and PT Joe Lavacca talk about helping people keep moving and training, while managing pain. They talk about pain medication, where cardio fits into the picture, and of course strength training in the gym as rehab.

To learn more about Joe and his Strength in Motion rehab practice click here.

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Want to get into some progressive strength training this summer? Our Mindful Strength Membership includes a monthly program that will teach you the basics of progressing to heavier weights. Follow along with our recorded class, fill out your PDF program and feel the benefits. Click here to learn more about our Membership.

Today we welcome Jules Mitchell back to the podcast for a 5th or 6th time, we have lost count! Jules and Kathryn have been colleagues and friends for a number of years, and today they are talking about stability and proprioception training. 

The big question they keep coming back to is why do some exercises get labelled in research as stabilizing, or for proprioception, while others don't? What is a deadbug giving you for stability that a deadlift isn't?

This podcast gets into the weeds of language, philosophy, and will have you questioning the common narrative on stabilization. 

We hope you enjoy listening!

To learn more about Jules Mitchell, her mentorship, classes and YTT click here.

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Our annual Membership sale is on now!! If you want to start strength training with Kathryn and the Mindful Strength team, get signed up for an entire year of strength programs.

Click here to learn more about our Membership and All-Access Sale!

We welcome back Dr. Stephanie Carter Kelley for a third time! In this episode Kathryn asks all about pain, and why it can be so complex and about more than just mechanics. Stephanie sheds light on how the brain creates pain as a protection response and how the immune system get's involved as well.

They talk about stepping back to look at the whole ecosystem of the body, not just the joints or muscles affected. Kathryn asks about menopause and why pain can become so intense at this time in life. Stephanie shares about her own personal journey through menopause and how stress management is often sidelined.

Click the links below to listen to Stephanie's previous interviews on our website...

Ep 243 on back pain specifically

Ep 214 on osteoporosis, lifting and impact training

To learn more about Dr. Stephanie Carter Kelley and her work click here

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To learn more about Mindful Strength and our online platform where you can follow programs and build your strength click here!

Today we are talking about our 10km race last weekend. Kathryn and Kyle talk a little bit about the lead up, balancing training and recovery, and a break down of the run itself.

They talk about pacing, why they kept their start pace even when everyone was blowing past them, pre-race carb loading, the taper week and how to challenge what's possible in a really sustainable way.

We hope you enjoy listening!

To sign up for our upcoming Squat Stronger 6-week program click here.

Welcome to our third solo episode of 2025. Today Kathryn is talking about rest intervals, and why we need them between heavy compound exercises. 

She also talks about super sets and which exercises you can link together with less rest. We hope these episodes help you understand strength training in more detail and help you become more successful with your training.

Episode addition: in this episode Kathryn talks about CNS activation being a main reason why we need rest intervals, but there's more. The energy systems that fuel lifting also need time to recover, and recovery is aided by the cardiovascular system. More on this in an upcoming episode!

If you have not yet listened to the previous two episodes, definitely catch up on them soon.

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To start strength training with us from wherever you are, join the Mindful Strength Membership click here to learn more.

Each month we release a new strength program for you to follow, to build up with consistency. In addition to a monthly program you can browse our other classes i.e. mobility, plyometrics, cardio, stretching and choose a few to round out your training week.

Members also get access to our mobile app. Click here to learn more about the Mindful Strength Membership.

Welcome to our second solo episode of 2025! If you have not already listened to episode 255 we suggest you start there.

In todays segment Kathryn is talking about the value of writing down your lifts and keeping track of your numbers over the long term. 

When you write down your lifts you collect valuable data about yourself, your patterns, and you gain a lot of context. If training isn't going well or feeling great, you have a log to look back through which will help you make strategic changes. 

Tracking your lifts over time also shows gaps in the training, shows where you might need more consistency, more or less volume etc...

Listen to this episode to learn more about writing down your lifts and why it's so useful.

To join our next strength program in January, Pull-Up Club click here!

If you are newer to strength training and want to browse our many classes and equipment tutorials, click here to check out the Mindful Strength Membership

Thanks for listening!! If you are loving this podcast and listening on Apple, scroll down and leave us a review. We appreciate you being here.

Welcome to Kathryn's first solo episode of 2025! In this segment Kathryn talks about the big mistake a lot of people make when it comes to strength training, which is rotating the exercises too frequently.

Building strength means repeating the same exercises over long periods of time. There is a lot patience involved with strength training. Kathryn talks about certain exercises she plans to train forever, and how to make those decisions based on your goals.

She also talks about how most people underestimate how much they are capable of lifting, what to do when you can lift your goal weight, and why you won't be able to add more weight to your lifts forever.

To learn about Kathryn's upcoming Pull-Up Program click here.

To learn about the Mindful Strength Membership and how you can take a range of our different strength, mobility, and relaxation classes click here.

Thanks for listening everyone, if you are loving this podcast and listening on Apple, please scroll down and leave a review!!

In this episode Kathryn and Laurel talk about how they both got into running and what they have learned about cardiovascular exercise. We want to emphasize that you do not need to begin running, there are many ways to build up your cardio including the bike, rower, elliptical machine. In this episode you will learn why strength training and cardio are the perfect match and why it's essential to have both in your weekly routine.

They talk about how adding cardio has changed their lifting routine, their relationship to carbohydrates, and the practical elements of doing varied training consistently.

Both Kathryn and Laurel do running and lifting, but they each excel in different areas which makes this conversation even more interesting. 

To learn more about Laurel click here.

To follow Laurel on Instagram click here

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To learn more about the Mindful Strength classes and programs click here.

To follow Mindful Strength on Instagram click here

Today we welcome dietician and body image coach Deb Benfield for a conversation about finding strength and joy in midlife. Deb talks about the main times in many women's lives that their bodies change quickly, puberty, pregnancy, and menopause. She speaks about how these are moments when we are at higher risk for developing disordered eating behaviours as a means to control our naturally changing bodies. Kathryn and Deb also touch on internalized agism, the longevity movement, the importance of strength and nutrition for muscle and bone strength, and our culture's strong emphasis on macro and calorie tracking.

Deb mentions the following resources in this podcast...

Briefly Imperfectly Human By: Alua Arthur

Ashton Applewhite Ted Talk: Let's End Ageism

To learn more about Deb Benfield click here to follow her on Instagram and click here for her website

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To check out our library of classes and strength programs click here!

To follow Kathryn on Instagram, click here