In Part One of our interview, Tawnee talked about her own racing history, her approach to coaching, and the questionable usage of the phrase “bio-hacking.” In Part Two, we talk about what she’s learned from her podcast, functional movement, and why when it comes to sport, women aren’t just “small men.”
By Greg White
Greg White: You place a big emphasis on women’s health in sport and life. What makes women unique as athletes and not just, as one of your guests joked, “tiny men.”
Tawnee Prazak: You nailed it in the question: Women are not small men. Of course, I can’t take credit for that phrase, it was my friend Stacy Sims who coined it. It’s true though. Women are different, and we have different needs. Sadly, a lot of the ways we program training, build nutrition plans and make recommendations are based on what works for men, not women. The vast majority of research is done on men, not women. And even a lot of media (podcasts, etc.) is male-dominated still. So if you get advice that was “shown in a study” somewhere or that it worked for Joe Shmoe, be skeptical, there’s a good chance the study or experiment was done on males. (Men are more often researched than women because a woman’s cycle and hormonal fluctuations makes studies more complicated to execute so they often will avoid using them….ugh.)
Thankfully the tides are changing and there are many of us doing more to address the specific needs of women in sport whether through new research, anecdotally, and so on. Yes, there is already a large amount of research on the female athlete triad [eating disorders, decreased bone mineral density, amenorrhea] and that’s very valuable and important, but women’s needs go far beyond that. For example, how about a simple education on the female cycle for athletes, and how hormones work in conjunction with diet and exercise? No one ever taught me these things even when I was in a prestigious exercise science grad school program, which seems absurd looking back.
In fact, I suffered from amenorrhea for years and was too afraid to speak up because it seemed like a taboo issue or like I was flawed. Finally I let that go of that fear and talked about my issues openly as well as how I resolved them–you know what worked to fix myself? Not using the recommendations that were based on men and learning how to embrace my womanhood and treat myself accordingly. So I’m here to say, “hey, guess what women have periods–or at least they should and if they don’t let’s fix that!” These are the things we need to be talking about more in the mainstream (don’t even get me started on ketogenic and low-carb diets for women).
Anyway, call me a feminist or don’t, I just want to be a voice of reason and comfort for fellow female athletes and women as a whole. For a long time I didn’t have anyone to go to when I was dysfunctional, I suffered, and I had to figure things out largely on my own. I don’t want other women to have to shy away in fear. Come talk to me and we’ll make it ok. It seems ridiculous to me that talk of menstruation is this taboo hush-hush thing. You won’t find that in my camp. (But, I’m also the coach who asks her clients about their “poop health”).
Lastly, there’s the whole topic of body image and other things that come along with being a female. We deal with a lot. A lot of pressures, whether real or perceived, to look, be and perform a certain way. Pressure to do it all. I want women to do what’s right for them–regardless of what society says.
At the end of the day, women’s health is a unique area and what works for a man does not automatically qualify as a worth recommendation for a woman. Not to mention, there are a zillion issues that will never even concern men but that doesn’t mean they’re not important.
How does the work you do on Endurance Planet translate into your coaching, and vice versa?
My podcast, Endurance Planet, has a lot of Q&A-based shows on everything related to endurance sports, so I feel this has been great for me as a coach because at this point I think I’ve “heard it all” when it comes to things athletes will ask a coach. I also am a big research nerd, and I like to bring on guests to talk about a lot of cutting-edge information in the exercise science and nutrition worlds. As such, I’m constantly studying for my podcasts by digging into scientific literature, and likewise I research a lot for coaching and I kind of have my own continuing education thing always going in order to be the best I can for my athletes–so with EP and coaching there is a lot of crossover when it comes to the topics and information I’m digging into, so that’s nice.
Plus, since becoming CEO and owner of EP in 2014, I’ve also taken the podcast in a direction of promoting health and wellness for athletes, and avoiding the “fit but unhealthy” syndrome, and our numbers have tripled in the past few years so obviously people like the content! Finally, I don’t advertise my coaching on EP, but people know I’m a coach so it gets my name out and it’s cool because it’s allowed me to reach audiences worldwide and thus get clients worldwide, which is really fun. I’ve had/have athletes in Russia, Bahrain, Indonesia, Australia, England, Canada…. All in addition to everywhere in the US.
What are the biggest lessons you’ve learned as a coach?
Don’t take things too personally!
What are the biggest lessons you’ve learned as a small business owner?
Make time for yourself, and don’t work every day! Both of which I used to do and that was a ticket to getting burnt out and overly stressed. I’ve learned that taking breaks is the most important component to success. You have to have a fresh mind and be hungry to get at it–and you won’t have that if you work every day, you just won’t. Meanwhile, owning your own business is not all fun and games, it can be lonely, and it can actually be very expensive. Yea, we make our own hours, we don’t answer to a boss and we can essentially take off whenever we want, but there’s a lot of moving parts behind the scenes that makes this a hard life that needs a lot of attention and organization, and if you’re not on top of things, it can get really stressful. So I just have learned to stay organized and never let myself feel overwhelmed. Overall, I wouldn’t trade it for the world, though, it’s a good life.
How would you like to see Endurance Planet evolve over time?
I love it just how it is and honestly I’m not really thinking about how I can change things at this point. The biggest change happened when I became owner in 2014 and we reorganized the business so that I no longer was “wearing all the hats” and we started hiring help. That honestly saved me life! And by “we” I mean my husband and I; he is a business attorney and small business owner himself, so he stepped in and spent countless hours helping me clean things up and get it all organized and streamlined. Now, I just want to keep it that way!
What is the most common issue you see when an athlete comes to you for coaching or a consultation? (Could be a dietary issue, or a training error etc).
Such a loaded question but I’d say: Utilizing the MAF Method, figuring out nutrition (regular diet and sports nutrition) usually to adopt a cleaner diet and be more fat-adapted, and fixing or improving health and hormonal status (both females and males). People really want to “do it right” and not just train their brains out, which is great!
You’re a big proponent of MAF training (Maximum Aerobic Function). Why?
As humans, from a primal perspective, having strong aerobic fitness is everything. Unfortunately, a lot of training plans looks to the end result–how that athlete will perform in a race–and this leads the athlete into a lot of intensity relatively soon into a program without properly developing aerobic fitness first. MAF fixes that. In fact, it could take years to dial in your aerobic efficiency and potential! Ultimately, when aerobic fitness progresses you can and SHOULD add intensity. MAF also allows for a lot of flexibility and the athlete to become intuitive, and being an intuitive athlete is arguably the best thing you can do for yourself–know when to push hard, know when to take it easy, and don’t just blindly follow a plan. Listen to your body.
Plus MAF also takes into account more than training–it’s a lifestyle that promotes overall wellness, teaches patience, and how to be intuitive. MAF helps set a solid foundation of health and wellbeing through diet and stress management as well.
I have my own unique spin on MAF training for athletes that’s a bit different than how Maffetone himself tends to dish it out. But overall, I’ve learned a lot from him, so much in fact, and couldn’t be more grateful for what he’s done in the endurance sports world. He’s a reoccurring guest on Endurance Planet, if you want to hear he and I chat about all things health and endurance.
Another focus of yours is functional movement. Could you talk a little about what that is, and why it matters?
Take everything we’ve talked about in this interview, and if proper mobility, stability and function are lacking you can throw performance out the window! We simply can’t be our best in sport if we don’t move well. And we especially can’t maximize our potential in sport if we’re constantly injured, which is what will happen as a result of poor movement patterns and imbalances.
So, functional movement is one of those components that is just necessary in setting up the athlete for success. It’s a necessary part of my coaching and I do an in-depth functional strength assessment to hone in on each athlete’s unique needs (the assessment is a battery I developed myself after all these years of seeing common issues and figuring out what matters most). Heck, even if you’re not a hardcore athlete, functional movement is KEY to a pain-free happy life!
What are your favorite functional movement exercises?
Anything that is going to address an athlete’s needs 😉 I’d say anything that focuses on a healthy T-spine, hips and ankles. Start small, but ultimately we want full-body exercises that challenge the athlete and promote quality movement patterns to overcome injury and boost sports performance. I like using a TRX and kettlebells, maybe some resistance bands, and that’s about it, you don’t need a fancy gym to get good functional movement!
If you could build the perfect endurance runner from scratch, what would that look like? Obviously there are key differences in individuals, but what would the broad “best case” traits be?
Good health – assessed by testing blood markers, gut health, hormones and organic acids
Good stress management – just the right amount of stress needed for training adaptations, but with life stress in check, and using HRV to monitor stress. The ability to activate vagal tone and turn on the parasympathetic mode, and not be chronically revved up in the sympathetic mode.
Strong aerobic fitness – a MAF pace that progressively gets faster and faster (i.e. getting faster at the same aerobic HR)
Healthy, clean diet – not low carb, not high carb, and not on a diet, but rather clean eating that helps to properly fuel performance and also allows for strong metabolic efficiency (fat burning) without going to diet extremes
Happy and well-rounded – has a life beyond sport, and is genuinely a happy fulfilled person
Performing well
Injury free
All-around athlete – strong and able to jump into pretty much any sport or activity at any time and do well by having built athleticism
Consistent year after year for a long “career” in sport
Flexible and always evolving, open to change
Strong spiritual practice
Striving to live in a healthy environment
Open to resting, relaxing and taking time off
You recently created a website called Life Post Collective. Could you talk a little bit about it and what people can expect to find there?
I’m constantly being asked for advice on how to live healthier, fuller life especially when it comes to smart eating habits, exercise, a clean environment and strong mind. Because holistic coaching is pretty demanding and I can only take on so many athletes at once I figured out a way to open up my tools in how to apply holistic methods for optimization in sport and life, and in 2016 launched my inner-circle community called Life Post Collective where I post all my coaching resources, videos and more. We attract a like-minded community who also can share their tips on holistic wellness and performance.
So I set up Life Post Collective, where I offer my coaching library of evidence-based and experienced-based information that I use in coaching. You’ll find ways to lead a healthy, happy life and perform your best—whatever performance means for you, it doesn’t have to just be sport. It’s the full package for holistic wellness with the tools you need to build a richer, fuller life.
We have articles on diet and nutrition (and how to apply to your needs), custom recipes, workout ideas, tips on functional training and strength training, how to achieve optimal health and wellness, how to grow stronger mentally, and even guides to improve your environment—such as adopting clean safe alternatives for the home, office, and personal care.
Plus videos, forums, and live webinars with Q&A. I’m also excited about is the community we’re building at LPC–you can learn from not only me but also like-minded people all working toward common goals. Ask questions, offer thoughts, share stories, and participate! I’ve seen it first-hand with my coaching clients: It’s so nice to have a sense of community and the support of others who are in the same boat as you.
Finally, if you could send one message out to the endurance community at large, what would it be?
Remember you are doing this for fun. If it’s not fun, reevaluate why you’re doing it at all.
LINKS
CoachTawnee.com – for coaching & consult inquiries
LifePostCollective.com – (You can join for $1 for the first month with code “holiday2016.”)
EndurancePlanet.com – for the podcast (also free on iTunes)
TriTawn.com – Tawnee’s personal blog
Social media:
@tawneeprazak on Twitter
@Coachtawnee on Facebook
@tawneegibson on IG
