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January 7, 2025 21 mins

What if seizing control of your day was as simple as shifting your morning routine? Audrey Dietz, a dedicated mom and full-time college math professor, shares how her mornings transformed from the impatient chaos of motherhood to feeling more in control with the Early Morning Habit program. 

Discover the profound impact of prioritizing quality sleep and a holistic approach to wellness that encompasses mental, emotional, and spiritual health. 

For all the night owls out there, our discussion offers insights into moving beyond traditional fitness and nutrition plans to embrace a more balanced lifestyle by prioritizing your mornings.

We also explore the life-changing power of waking up to stillness and starting your day with God's Word and a workout.

Audrey's story offers inspiration to break free from an all-or-nothing mindset. 

The episode crescendos with the compelling story of Audrey and her invitation to join the nurturing Early Morning Habit community. Joining this community is more than just a step towards better health; it’s an opportunity to connect with other busy Christian moms on a journey to renewing from the inside out every single day.

Join the revival today. https://ahnafulmer.com/early-morning-habit/?ref=Audrey+Dietz

Echo Glow Sunrise Lamp (Works with Alexa) https://amzn.to/3BL7UcE

☀️ Grab my FREE TRAINING on 3 Powerful Secrets to Rise Renewed Every Morning.
☀️ Join the Early Morning Habit course and community today.

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Episode Transcript

Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
If I can do it, anyone can do it and becoming
pretty much feeling like I'm amorning person it's weird to say
that I feel like I still enjoymy nights, but I've also now
come to appreciate my mornings.

Speaker 2 (00:16):
It is so lovely having you here and it has been
so fun having you in earlymorning habit.
But I would love to just hear alittle bit share with people
who you are, a little bit aboutyourself and what initially drew
you to early morning habit inthe first place.

Speaker 1 (00:32):
Yeah, so I'm 34 and a mom of two.
I have a one and athree-year-old, and I also work
full time as a college mathprofessor at University of
Delaware, and so life has beencrazy, and having children has
definitely always led me tobasically like regain the weight
that I've lost, and so I feellike I go through this cyclical

(00:54):
pattern in life of trying tolose the weight so that I can
get pregnant again and haveanother child, and so just
trying to regain control of myown body was a big motivator for
me, and to try to get myself inas healthy of shape as I can to
potentially have more kids.
We'll see what the Lord has instore with.
That of sparked my curiosity ofwhat this new program was with

(01:28):
her, and so I'll give credit toyour mom and your sister who
gave me the last edge of takingthe leap of faith to try it, and
I'm so glad that they did.

Speaker 2 (01:36):
I'm so glad they did too.
I'm grateful anytime peopleshare about early morning habit,
but what um?
With that in mind, when youwent through the program then,
was there elements to it thatstood out?
When we talk about health andfitness programs, in your

(01:56):
experience, were there thingsthat made early morning habit
different or unique in a waythat you haven't experienced yet
in a health and fitness program?
If so, what?
What would that be?

Speaker 1 (02:07):
Absolutely there would be multiple that I could
speak on, and surprises too.
I mean I'll say I was terrifiedat first.
I have always been a night owl,since graduate school and still
today.
That's when I find I have thefewest distractions and I'm able
to really think and get workdone or just to decompress at

(02:30):
the end of a long day, that typeof thing.
So the biggest surprise to methat I have never experienced in
any other health and fitnessprogram was the emphasis on
sleep, getting good sleep, Causeyou hear early morning habit
and you think, okay, it's allabout how you start your day,
but it's actually a lot more ofbefore you start your day you

(02:53):
have to sleep the night beforeand how that's going to prepare
you.
I mean, again, it's all a cycle, so you're going a step before
the early morning and makingsure that you get a good night's
sleep.
So I was surprised by that andhad never experienced that
before.
And then the emotionalintelligence and the gratitude

(03:16):
emphasis was new to me and justthe comprehensiveness of this
program not just being aboutphysical health but your mental
health, your spiritual healththat I hadn't experienced before
all in one program.
I've tried to like add thosethings in myself as I was doing
other programs, but it wasreally nice to have it all in
one.

Speaker 2 (03:33):
I love that and for those of you not familiar, I
should back up a minute.
The faster way to fat loss is afitness and nutrition program,
and I want to plug this in notfast way to fat loss per se, but
this, you know, what we try toemphasize in early morning habit
is not that it is at theexclusion of fitness and
nutrition programs.

(03:54):
What we're trying to do atearly morning habit is offer
almost like a foundation,because what happens is a lot of
times we enter into fitness andnutrition programs and we make
these massive lifestyle changesand it's hard to sustain the
changes because we haven'tformed basic habits first, like
sleep.
It's so true.

(04:14):
This is why it became such ahuge component in my life,
because I was so focused on whatyou just said getting back in
shape, focusing on my nutritionwhere meanwhile my sleep was not
restorative and there wasreally no one to help me.
You know, you read Google andWebMD and it was like well, that
makes no sense.
So all that to say it's not atthe exclusion of really good

(04:38):
fitness nutrition programs.
Rather, it's meant to becomplimentary so that you can
overhaul nutrition, that you canget stronger.
There's great programs for that, but we're trying to offer
exactly what Audrey said is thatholistic approach, and
especially one that is speakingto Christian moms, because
that's a whole nother elementthat it's really hard.

(04:59):
How do we bridge that?
Because you can't pull themapart, you can't pull our
spiritual life away from ourphysical health and our mental
and emotional and social health.
So I love what you said there.

Speaker 1 (05:11):
Yeah, and the last thing I'd add too, which I feel
like I've only scratched thesurface of, is and this was a
big surprise to me like theskincare, the makeup, the
wardrobe, changing your style orfiguring out what your style is
not necessarily changing it,and I was like, wow, this is
really in depth and, like theprofessionals that are brought

(05:34):
in, it's just amazing.
Those are the training videos.
I feel like I could watch 10times and learn something new
every time.

Speaker 2 (05:41):
You and me both, and let's be let's also throw this
out here I did not do.
I did the skin.
I did skin from a healthstandpoint, but in terms of
fashion style, that is not myforte.
So we did bring in some amazing, amazing women and yeah, it's
like that holistic picture andtrying to like kind of whittle
down the uh, the basics and makethings less uncomfortable,

(06:04):
because some of us didn't growup with fashion advice.
I didn't know.
I didn't know how to fit andflatter my body.
But you know, there's nothingwrong with wanting to feel
beautiful, and God designed usto, and so let's learn from the
experts and actually be able toget ready for the day.
When you look at the generalcontent and the umbrella over it

(06:25):
in this initial six-weekprogram, was there one lesson or
one training that especiallyimpacted you or stood out to you
?

Speaker 1 (06:39):
Yes, and this is the one that I like to go back to.
So, since people don't realizethis, you know this because I've
mentioned it, but I listened tothe training videos on my work
commutes a lot and I have anhour commute to work, so it's
good to fit in at least one,sometimes two.
So the one that I go back to alot to re-listen to is the one
on neat fitness and thedifference between non-exercise

(07:04):
activity thermogenesis.
I think I got that right andyou did nailed it Exercise
activity thermogenesis.
That's what I've listened tomultiple times.
So that was the one that reallystood out to me.
Realizing, you know, the smallthings can really add up and I
park on a four story parkinggarage, so I'm more intentional
about parking on the third orthe fourth floor to force myself

(07:26):
to take more stairs.
And my office is on the fourthfloor and I used to take the
elevator a lot, but trying nowto take the stairs more often
when the time allows and I'm notlugging a hundred pounds with
me.
So, yeah, that was one thattouched me the most.
I remember sharing thatinformation with my husband too,
trying to educate him on someof that, and realizing, you know

(07:51):
, even if you get those 10,000steps in, you're not getting the
cardio exercise that you reallyneed for the health benefits
and reducing your risk ofchronic disease and things.
So yeah, while someone mightsay, oh, I'm getting 10,000
steps a day, so I'm good to go,that all is part of the meat and

(08:11):
not the exercise activitythermogenesis.
So yeah, I could go on and on.
I just I.
That one was my favorite.

Speaker 2 (08:18):
I love that you can tell she's a math teacher girl
after my own heart.
She likes the data, likes thedata and the numbers.

Speaker 1 (08:27):
Absolutely, it's ingrained in me.

Speaker 2 (08:31):
Listen, we all need them.
I like the data, but math I'mlike where's the calculator?
You, you touched on the sleepelement.
I would love to hear yourpersonal thoughts on if you were
in a conversation with a friendor a family member.
Or there's a woman listeningand she's been following.

(08:53):
She's seen the posts, she'slistened to some of these
interviews, but she's stillconcerned about either the time
required, the potential loss ofsleep or the financial
investment.
What would you say to her?
In your opinion, what makes itworth it?
How would you speak to some ofthose perceived barriers,

(09:15):
especially when you're not amorning person?

Speaker 1 (09:18):
Yeah.
So the first thing I'll say interms of the financial aspect,
my husband has said that themeal guides alone have been
worth the investment.

Speaker 2 (09:29):
That's amazing.

Speaker 1 (09:32):
We have loved the recipes and I'm still repeating
some of our favorites and cause.
I've been doing the carbcycling and intermittent fasting
on top of the, you know, tryingto have protein before bed and
things Um.
But as far as the sleep concerngoes, I mean some nights are

(09:52):
better for me than others, whichleads to some mornings being
better than others.
So you have to give yourselfgrace in the moments where you
realize that you know you.
It's just not realistic thatyour body needs sleep.
I know I have to drive an hourinto work, so sometimes I've had
to prioritize getting thatextra hour of sleep over waking

(10:12):
up an hour early to get mydevotion and workout in, workout
in.
But I try to make it the habitand the norm that I'm able to
and just to, so that it becomesroutine.

(10:34):
So the sleep guide too.
It's something to ease into.
That's what helped me is it's alot at once you get like this
long checklist and you're like,oh my goodness, and I am still
there are some things that I'mreally resistant to.
But I've tried to just like picklike one thing at a time and
then once I feel like, okay,I've got that down, I have the
sunrise alarm, um, and actuallyI use an echo glow that ties to

(10:55):
my echo dot, which was reallycool.
I was looking into this and Iwas like, oh, I wonder if I can
can get something that wouldwork with that.
So it's just like a light andthen you can actually get
different colors and things.
But then it works like with myAlexa in my bedroom, so I can
just be like oh, Alexa, turnthis off, yeah which the danger

(11:16):
is, you can stay in bed and say,alexa, turn it off.

Speaker 2 (11:19):
How do you avoid that ?

Speaker 1 (11:21):
Well, I don't turn it off until I'm walking out of
the room.

Speaker 2 (11:27):
Oh I gotcha.
See, man, you're way moredisciplined than me, I'd just be
laying in my bed and be likeAlexa, turn it off.

Speaker 1 (11:30):
But my daughter loves it.
She comes in and she's learnedthat she can tap it and it
changes color, so you basicallywake up.
But they have a setting onthere's called sunrise alarm, so
I just set the time and then itwill, and you can.
You can even set the duration,whether you want it to be like
30 minutes, that it will slowlyget brighter, or longer than
that.
So I usually do it for 30minutes, um, but yeah, so that

(11:52):
was one of the things.
And then, once I had masteredthat, then I started trying the
magnesium glycinate and I wasactually really surprised by how
effective that's been for me.
I didn't really expect it.
I had never tried magnesiumever before in life, let alone
before bed.
So yeah, I'm trying to think,oh, and the lavender lotion.

(12:13):
So I used to put lavenderlotion on during the day, even
like after showering or in themorning, and so trying to stay
away from putting on until justbefore bed.
And I love the scent too, sothat, and then diffuser.
So just trying like one thingat a time to slowly build in, to
not get yourself toooverwhelmed.

Speaker 2 (12:32):
I love that and it is possible.

Speaker 1 (12:35):
And, like you even said about your own testimony,
is I feel like if I can do it,anyone can do it, and becoming
pretty much feeling like I'm amorning person.
It's weird to say that I feellike I still enjoy my nights,
but I've also now come toappreciate my mornings.

Speaker 2 (12:53):
I love that I can die happy when people are like I
think I've become a morningperson even though I'm not
biologically one, like I thinkI've become a morning person
even though I'm not biologicallyone.
Do you feel like the quality ofyour sleep has improved?
Or what would you say to theperson I'm speaking to myself
right Six years ago, who wouldlisten to this and be like there

(13:15):
is no way I feel terrible inthe morning, like what would you
say made, and maybe youwouldn't have said that you're a
night owl.
But it's not like you feltterrible in the morning, or
maybe you did.

Speaker 1 (13:26):
Um, what would you say shifted for you in the
morning um, realizing that I canwake up to stillness instead of
waking up to activity.
And even though we do a workoutin the morning, it's nice that
that's not the first thing.
So that has definitely helpedme to grasp the mental idea of

(13:52):
getting up earlier.
It's's like okay, just to tohave more control over my the
start of my day, instead of itbeing just jumping in, diving in
, basically not even just divinginto hectic.

Speaker 2 (14:04):
Yes.

Speaker 1 (14:05):
Yes being dragged into.

Speaker 2 (14:07):
It is how I felt.

Speaker 1 (14:08):
Yeah, because before doing this program, I was
sleeping until my kids wouldwake me up, and thankfully my
children don't really wake uptill 8am, so I am very blessed
in that regard.
Um, and if they do wake upbefore, they're very content to
just kind of stay in bed until Icome get them.
So, um, but with that, it waslike, well, I'm just going to

(14:28):
sleep in as late as possibleuntil I'm absolutely needed as a
mom.
Um, unless it was a morning, Ihad to get up to drive into work
, so I don't go drive into workevery day, which is also nice.
But so with that, it was likeokay, now I'm starting my day
giving myself attention andfocusing on me instead of the

(14:49):
first thing being attentiontowards others and towards my
children primarily so that'sbeen a big difference maker and
towards my children primarily so.

Speaker 2 (14:57):
That's been a big difference maker and it's so
what you just said is sopowerful because it speaks to
you mentioned mindset, thementality.
But you know, something that wehear from the community over and
over again, which was true ofmy life, was it's almost hard to
make tangible, like we seephysical external changes with

(15:20):
massive, or with massive likediet overhauls or exercise.
You see drastic externalchanges and so it's hard to put
a measuring stick to internalones and make them tangible.
But for me and I hear this overand over again, which is why
early morning habit is literallythe habit that we're trying to
instill of starting your.
If we took the community as awhole, I started to see the

(15:46):
difference in how I feltthroughout my day, directly
correlating to how I started itand, like you just said, even

(16:08):
though biologically I was not amorning person.
Now the sleep rehab definitelyhelped.
But there was a motivatingfactor that became, with
accountability and help, anon-negotiable, because I saw
how much better I actually feltand that motivated me to stay
out when I wanted to go back tobed when my sunrise alarm would

(16:30):
go off.

Speaker 1 (16:32):
I love that.
Yeah, to answer your questionabout the sleep quality, I would
say that when you step back andlook at the big picture, that,
yes, it has definitely improved,but there are definitely still
days mixed in there that arerough for one reason or another.
Yes, because sometimes it'slike, oh, I have to give an

(16:56):
evening exam and I don't gethome until 11 pm and that throws
me off, and yeah, so just lotsof outside factors that
sometimes contribute to, oh,that was a rough night, or
because of children that maybearen't feeling well.

Speaker 2 (17:12):
Mom life yes, exactly .
But what you said too that Iwant to highlight is something
that and Audrey knows becauseshe's done a fitness nutrition
program with me as well in thepast but the importance of
escaping that all or nothingmentality and recognizing that
you are trying to pursue,exactly as you said, a new
baseline.

(17:32):
We're trying to create a newnormal so it's not like, oh well
, I'm never going to have a badnight of sleep again, or I'm
never going to have that morningwhere I hit the ground running
I missed that time with Jesusand I have a chaotic day.
The difference is now it'seasier to snap back to that
baseline of stillness or ofbetter sleep or of even exercise

(17:55):
just all of the kind of likethe big umbrella that we're
trying to create normalbaselines for women so that you
have a stronger foundation whenyou want to take something to
the next level.
Now you're not going from, youknow, point A to point Z in two
steps.
Now you're able to take a moregradual approach because you've
solidified that new baseline,that new normal, in a healthy,

(18:18):
healthy way.
I love that.
My last question for you, ifyou could when you look at the
big picture, especially in thatinitial six weeks.
If you could use one word todescribe how you felt before
early morning habit, or how yourmorning felt versus, in one
word, how you felt after withthe changes that you implemented

(18:41):
after the program from what towhat how would you describe your
experience?

Speaker 1 (18:47):
I would say I went from inpatient to in control.
How would you describe that?
So before doing for the woman,yeah, so before doing it, the
impatientness came from mychildren and just the
frustrations with how long itwould take to get them ready to

(19:08):
go and in the car amen andhallelujah yes and so I was just
getting frustrated, so, and,and that it was just because of
being impatient with my children.
And now I feel like I'm more incontrol, because I'm focusing on
myself first and foremost, andthat is allowing me to then,

(19:29):
when I get my children up, focuson them and not be worried
about my own agenda.
It's like I've taken care of me.
Be worried about my own agenda,it's like I've taken care of me
.
Now I can focus on them and Idon't have this like tension
between trying to do things formyself and do things for them
simultaneously, and so that hasjust led to feeling more in
control.

Speaker 2 (19:50):
That's a great way to put it.
If you are listening to thisand what Audrey is saying
resonates with you, we wouldlove to have you join us at
early morning habit.
There is a link in the notesthat you can sign up for early
morning habit and it is areferral link is a thank you to
Audrey for sharing her story.
Please sign up through her link.

(20:11):
She does get a gift for sharingand we really thank you for
joining the community because wewant to rise with you and
Audrey.
It's such an honor to have you.
I love having you in theprogram.
You're a blessing to me.
Thank you for sharing yourstory Well.
Thank you as well.
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