April 8, 2024 • 19 mins
Join us in a captivating conversation with Jen Richardson, holistic wellness expert and founder of Cold Community North and EatZen with Jen. In this episode, we dive deep into the transformative effects of nutrition and cold immersion therapy on mental clarity and mood. Discover the powerful link between your gut health and brain function, understand how your diet influences your emotional state, and learn how cold therapy can significantly boost your resilience and well-being.
Jen opens up about the often-overlooked state of being dysregulated—characterized by high anxiety, poor sleep, and emotional reactivity—and guides us through practical steps towards achieving a state of calm, emotional intelligence, and mindfulness.
Whether you're seeking to enhance your focus, improve your mental health, or explore innovative wellness practices, this episode offers enlightening insights and actionable tips. Embrace the journey towards a sharper, healthier you with small but impactful lifestyle changes.
Follow Jen Richardson:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eatzenwithjen/
- Website: https://www.eatzenwithjen.ca/
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Jen Kelly (00:00):
Today's conversation features Jen Richardson,
founder of Cold Community Northand Eat Zen with Jen.
Jen Richardson (00:07):
Dysregulated would seem high anxiety reaction
, no sleep.
And then, regulated, would feelhow Calm, emotionally
intelligent, you're not reacting.
You're able to feel the feelswithout losing control.
Jen Kelly (00:25):
In this episode we'll explore the impact of
nutrition and cold immersiontherapy on our mood and mental
clarity.
We'll delve into the gut-brainconnection, the food-mood
connection, and Jen shares howcold therapy boosts resilience.
Join us and discover how smallchanges can lead to profound
improvements in focus andwell-being.
Let's dive in.
(00:50):
Welcome to the podcast everyone.
I am in studio with JenRichardson.
She is the founder of Eat Zen.
With Jen, as well as the ColdCommunity North.
She has done just a fantasticjob building an incredible
community.
We're going to talk a lot aboutyour business.
You are a registered holisticnutritionist as well, so welcome
to the podcast.
Jen Richardson (01:09):
Thank you so much for having me.
I'm so excited to be here.
Jen Kelly (01:11):
Well, we are too.
I have made a lot of changes inmy life as it relates to diet,
nutrition, wellness, and Ibelieve that this is a really
important topic for leaders.
We need a lot of clarity, andso we have a lot to talk about.
I want to kind of start withyour journey on wellness.
What were some defining momentsas it relates to your wellness
(01:34):
practice?
Like, really what sparked youon this journey?
Jen Richardson (01:38):
The one thing would be my mom.
She had a stroke and kind ofwas struggling with her mood.
It affected her energy levels,hormones, and we weren't really
getting any concrete answersfrom the doctors, and I was on
(02:01):
my own wellness journey at thetime, so I was learning more
about holistic nutrition and theimportance of food, not only
physically but mentally.
Yeah, I went back to school tobecome a holistic nutritionist
and while I was there, mypassion for mental health and
food really grew, and that'swhere I fell in love with the
(02:23):
nervous system and how we cansupport it through cold and
through food.
Jen Kelly (02:28):
Well, let's just talk about mood and food.
What are some things that youlearned along the way that
people might not have as muchawareness around today as it
relates to food and mood?
So please kind of provide ussome education here on how our
food and our mood are correlated.
Jen Richardson (02:43):
So food and mood correlated?
Definitely through the gut.
A lot of people think that ourneurotransmitters are only made
in our brain, but they are not.
They are made in our gut.
That's why they refer to ourgut as the second brain, right,
yeah.
So we see on TV a lot of stuffbased around probiotics, which
are very important, but I thinkwe lack education in prebiotic
(03:05):
and how to feed those probioticsand even to come back before
that.
If your gut is not balanced andyou are giving it that good
bacteria, it doesn't always meana good thing.
Our gut lining is permeable, soif it's keeping the supplements
in our body, if it's keepingthe nutrients in that we're
getting from the kale and theleafy greens, like if our gut is
(03:27):
not in a good place, then allof that really isn't going to do
anything.
Jen Kelly (03:33):
I will just share my personal journey on this.
So five years ago I wasnoticing a lot of inflammation.
I'm an asthmatic, but I couldsee it in my eczema, I could see
it in my skin.
We sort of launched a journeyof our own wellness and removed
sugar, removed a lot of NorthAmerican cheese, removed wheat.
(03:55):
It was a slow process of takingit all out and then two years
into that, we went fullyplant-based eating.
It changed everything for me,like my mental clarity changed,
how I felt every day changed,and it was probably within a
(04:16):
week and a half.
I could feel the differencewhen you work with people.
Is that sort of the resultsthat you see people have?
Jen Richardson (04:22):
Yeah, Especially when people are willing to
remove sugar.
Yeah, because we know this canbe very similar to an addiction.
Right, it causes physicalinflammation in the body, but I
think a lot of people what theydon't know is it causes
neuroinflammation.
You know, you get that dopaminehit, it becomes very similar to
an addiction.
So even if you started doing itfor inflammation in the body or
(04:45):
to help your gut or whatever itis, maybe it's eczema,
something physical yeah, it'sgoing to have such a positive
effect on your mood, your sleep,your energy levels.
Jen Kelly (04:56):
Can we just talk a little bit about sleep?
It has become a popular theme.
Running through other shows theimportance of sleep as it
relates to our overall wellness.
What is your perspective?
Jen Richardson (05:05):
on this.
I know that we don't want tohear it, but like leaving our
phone away from our our bed islike a huge one.
So if you're getting into bedwith your phone, I mean, it's
not really going to work out.
One thing that I think is veryimportant with sleep when you're
going to sleep a little bitearlier and you're waking a
little bit earlier, then you canrise with the sun, and then you
(05:27):
get that circadian rhythm andall that good stuff.
Jen Kelly (05:30):
Yeah, I wanted to shift gears and talk about cold
immersion therapy that you do.
How did this start?
I watch you on social media andI'm just fascinated by this
business.
Can you share a little bit onhow this all started?
Jen Richardson (05:44):
for you.
I was new in my sobriety.
I met a group of five or sixpeople going into the lake and
there was very new research notmany studies, but on mood and,
mostly important the dopamineboost 250% and I was like this
is what I need as a recoveringaddict.
(06:06):
We search for that dopamine.
So I contacted this group andthe first time I ever went into
cold water was the middle ofFebruary.
I had a guide, which I think isvery important.
She was literally picking upshards of ice, moving them aside
as we were getting into LakeOntario A very spiritual
experience and I was hookedFirst time.
(06:29):
First time hooked.
And one thing I will say that'sso important about the dopamine
rush anything like sex, drugs,food, instagram, whatever we're
doing to get that boost, there'sa rise and then a fall and a
big crash.
When it comes to dopamine, withdeliberate cold exposure, there
is really no crash.
Some of my clients will messageme days later being like this
(06:52):
is the best I've felt in years.
So it is about puttingourselves in an uncomfortable
situation to feel better fordays after.
Jen Kelly (07:01):
What was that process like?
So, once you did it foryourself, did you immediately
think that you needed to createa business around this Like?
What was that journey like?
Jen Richardson (07:09):
What happened was I got a tub at home and
started videotaping myself andit kind of grew from there.
People started asking can youcook, can you teach me how to do
that?
And then they wanted their ownvideo.
And then it kind of built andbuilt and built and I was like I
need more tubs, yeah.
And then that's kind of howCold Community North was built,
(07:31):
and we don't only stay at ColdCommunity North, we're a mobile
company as well, so we bringtubs and sauna.
Jen Kelly (07:38):
And your sauna is.
Talk to me about this saunabecause I've seen this on
Instagram.
How does your sauna work atevents and things like this?
Jen Richardson (07:45):
So this is so cool.
It's on a trailer, it's a 10person sauna, wood burning, so
we till the sauna and then inthe back of the truck we have
two to four tubs and, yeah,we're at like music festivals
this year and it's very exciting.
Jen Kelly (08:00):
I feel like so much has changed in our understanding
around cold therapy in the lastfour years.
Was this roughly in thattimeframe?
Jen Richardson (08:07):
Yeah, I'd say three and a half, four years ago
.
Yeah, what's some of thescience that backs this?
So at Cold Community North Ipay more attention to the
emotional side of it.
So there is physical.
Obviously.
There is weight loss,inflammation, the cold shock
protein.
So when you are in the tub andyou find your shiver, this is
(08:28):
when cold shock proteins arebeing sent through your liver.
So any free radicals, disease,bad cells, you're really
detoxing.
This is why, as cold plungers,we look for that safe shiver.
So all of the goodness ofphysical, but the mental.
When we get into the tub, thefirst 30 seconds we can lose our
(08:49):
breath, but then what I coachis to extend the exhale, because
this is when we're teaching ourbody to be safe.
So we put ourselves in thatdeliberate stress.
Cortisol is being produced atthis time, so you're putting
yourself in a stressful stateand then, once you pass that 30
(09:11):
seconds, you can sit a bitdeeper and this is when the
dopamine, the norepinephrine,the motivation you're to do, and
then, of course, like buildingresilience.
So for me, with mood coachingor anything like that, building
resilience is what we are tryingto do here.
So I don't really focus on,like the weight loss or anything
(09:34):
like that.
I focus more on becoming moreresilient in life and being able
to handle that stress.
Moms, especially that I guide,are coming to me and saying my
reaction time with the kids.
I I'm able to deal with so muchmore on my plate because they
know like I can do hard thingsthrough your journey of just
(09:57):
beginning.
Jen Kelly (09:58):
You obviously had a guide on your first experience.
Um what would you recommend forbeginners today who are maybe
listening to this and wanting toget started?
Jen Richardson (10:06):
I do think a guide is important, whether it's
in the tub or in the lake, I dothink it is important because
safety and just having theknowledge behind it, but, most
importantly, guiding your breath.
At Cold Community North we dolike a seven minute breath
before we get in to helpregulate the nervous system.
It ends with fire breath.
So the famous Wim Hof right.
(10:27):
So we regulate the nervoussystem first and then I'm able
to guide the breath whilesomeone's in the tub.
It can look different foreverybody, but sometimes what I
will suggest is a long, audiblesigh as you sit, kind of
screaming it out, and it tendsto help a lot of people.
(10:50):
So to have someone thereguiding you, ensuring you're
safe, letting you know that youcan do this, like encouraging
you, I think all of those thingsare important.
Jen Kelly (11:00):
How has entrepreneurship tested your
wellness practices?
Jen Richardson (11:04):
Well, A with being busy.
Yeah, just remembering yourself.
And I think as an entrepreneur,we are like we have to take
anything and everything that'scoming, and I've had those days
where I've been out in coldcommunity north.
I come home from the gym, Idon't eat and all of a sudden
it's 8 pm.
We really have to remember thatwe can't serve others without
(11:28):
serving ourselves first, and Ilearned that very quickly.
I think another thing that Iwould say to entrepreneurs is
you know, I started off food andmood.
I did my bowls and at the endthere I knew that the next step
was coming for me, but I had ahard time letting go because I
thought what are other peoplegoing to think?
(11:49):
Are they going to think Ifailed at this?
Are they going to think when mybull company was so successful,
I was just building all thesestories of what other people
were going to think?
So to entrepreneurs I would sayjust do it.
Everyone is just involved intheir own life.
They have their own worries.
No one's really thinking asmuch as you think they are, you
(12:10):
know.
And to follow your heart,because if your passion is not
in it, people can see it.
Yeah, right, like I rememberthinking but it's my, it's my
company switching to cold nowLike, but people saw it in me,
like we cry in the tub, wescream in the tub, we are
authentic selves and people seethat and they leave feeling that
(12:34):
way and that's why they comeback.
Anybody could sit in their tubat home, but it's the experience
that you get at cold communityNorth that makes it different.
It's the healing in community.
Jen Kelly (12:45):
It seems like this has unfolded for you very
naturally, but what would besome tips in the mix here,
because you've built a wonderfulcommunity?
Thank you so much.
How did you go about doing?
Jen Richardson (12:53):
this.
Yeah, I think it happened quitenaturally when people were
coming and taping their ownvideos and it was getting out to
their community.
So the importance of socialmedia is there.
But then in hosting theseevents where maybe you are shy
or you're not comfortable in agroup or you don't really think
(13:16):
that you're going to share yourstory, when these women come
together, one person has thecourage to share.
It's like spreads like wildfire.
Now everybody's sharing andyou're realizing that you're not
alone.
Building a authentic, raw, safespace was really big for me.
People knew that they couldcome and be themselves.
Jen Kelly (13:38):
What do you think the biggest beginning of that
education lies?
When people come into you, isit the self-regulation of their
nervous system, like what's thetop problem that you see most
common?
Jen Richardson (13:52):
Nobody notices how dysregulated they are.
Jen Kelly (13:54):
Yeah, and I wanted to talk a little bit about this
because I don't think this iscommonly understood right now.
Jen Richardson (14:00):
Dysregulated would seem.
High anxiety reaction, no sleep, running on coffee, and I know
that that's sounding so familiarto a lot of people.
Jen Kelly (14:15):
Yes, I think that so many people live there and then
regulate.
It would feel how.
Jen Richardson (14:21):
Calm, emotionally intelligent, like
you're not reacting, you'retaking time to sit with whatever
emotion will come up.
No anxiety, able to feel thefeels without losing control.
Jen Kelly (14:40):
If I want to live in that other space a little bit
more often.
What are the tips to begin thatjourney?
Jen Richardson (14:47):
I have reminders on my phone, a little timer
kind of that will go off, and alist of things that regulate my
nervous system, whether it'spetting my dogs, doing just a
sequence of breath Like breath.
Work does not have to be 50minutes in a classroom.
It can be like a box breath for50 seconds.
(15:12):
It will really regulate thenervous system.
Again, hugging your child,taking a moment with your
husband, whatever it is justthat like where your body feels
safe?
Jen Kelly (15:23):
How many times a day should somebody be doing this
self-checking and like is thislike a morning, afternoon kind
of thing?
Jen Richardson (15:29):
I think like not making it um, such a task, yeah
, and having a little bit ofbalance.
But yeah, maybe once in themorning, once in the afternoon,
once in the evening, somethinglike that, or even if that
sounds too overwhelming, um, onthe weekend, setting like time
blocking, like this is my timeand I will not give over to it.
(15:52):
Yeah, this is a perfect example.
When I go and walk the dogs, Iwas always like I need to have
it stack, I need to listen tothe podcast while I'm walking
the dogs.
Well, I'm like, okay, have itstacked.
Jen Kelly (16:03):
Hold on here.
That's a line for all of us.
Jen Richardson (16:06):
Yes, right, so like just try and go outside and
walk and not listen to anything, yeah, and be present, right.
Jen Kelly (16:14):
To me, the signal is like am I allowing the moment
to almost enter into my presence, my consciousness, and am I
enjoying and creating anddancing with that moment?
Um, how do you see the showing?
Jen Richardson (16:31):
up for men being in the holistic space.
I do see it, uh, being harderfor men, yeah, but with that
said, you are seeing more likemen's groups giving that alpha
the moment to express or cry,where they can kind of lean a
(16:52):
little bit more into theirfeminine.
I think for women, when we'rein that situation we're we're
more like oh thank God, I'm here, I can do this now, we're ready
.
Jen Kelly (17:02):
Yeah.
Jen Richardson (17:03):
Men I think need a little bit more of.
We need to offer them the spaceand let them know that it's
okay.
Jen Kelly (17:10):
As you've been building this venture over the
last six years, what has ittaught you the most?
Jen Richardson (17:16):
You might as well just be the best version of
yourself, because there'salways going to be someone more
successful, stronger, younger.
So the comparison games justhave to go yeah, and also
realizing that, like you'rehuman, okay, so a comparison
(17:37):
comes, let that thought come,recognize it and then let it go.
Jen Kelly (17:42):
We have to rethink how we self-care, how we
navigate our everything, ourdiet, our moods and it can seem
a little bit intimidatingbecause the world is going
holistic.
Jen Richardson (17:55):
I feel like it's making that shift.
Jen Kelly (17:57):
Yeah, and even if it's just like one day, we take
one thing out of the diet.
I'm pretty sure that if wetried to do that in our
household, we needed the gradualevolution of it, because you
shock the system too much if youdo everything all at once right
, Then you'll end up could endup failing, yeah.
(18:17):
We covered a lot of groundsbetween nutrition and cold
therapy.
The community, the great workyou've done and this entire
venture for six years like what?
Jen Richardson (18:28):
what a celebration to be in business
for six years.
Jen Kelly (18:31):
So thank you for being on the podcast and thank
you for sharing all of thisinsight with everyone.
And again, my message toeveryone listening is we cannot
give what we do not have.
We have to leave fully.
We have to be taking care ofourselves and, you know, let us
all aspire to go to the nextlevel of our own possibility
with these practices.
So thank you for being on.
(18:52):
Thank you so much, jen.
Thank you for joining us.
Don't forget to follow us onInstagram and LinkedIn, where we
transform the wisdom from ourpodcast into practical tips,
tools and takeaways for yourleadership journey.
Find us at gritgracepodcast.
See you next week.
Today's conversation features Jen Richardson,
founder of Cold Community Northand Eat Zen with Jen.
Jen Richardson (00:07):
Dysregulated would seem high anxiety reaction
, no sleep.
And then, regulated, would feelhow Calm, emotionally
intelligent, you're not reacting.
You're able to feel the feelswithout losing control.
Jen Kelly (00:25):
In this episode we'll explore the impact of
nutrition and cold immersiontherapy on our mood and mental
clarity.
We'll delve into the gut-brainconnection, the food-mood
connection, and Jen shares howcold therapy boosts resilience.
Join us and discover how smallchanges can lead to profound
improvements in focus andwell-being.
Let's dive in.
(00:50):
Welcome to the podcast everyone.
I am in studio with JenRichardson.
She is the founder of Eat Zen.
With Jen, as well as the ColdCommunity North.
She has done just a fantasticjob building an incredible
community.
We're going to talk a lot aboutyour business.
You are a registered holisticnutritionist as well, so welcome
to the podcast.
Jen Richardson (01:09):
Thank you so much for having me.
I'm so excited to be here.
Jen Kelly (01:11):
Well, we are too.
I have made a lot of changes inmy life as it relates to diet,
nutrition, wellness, and Ibelieve that this is a really
important topic for leaders.
We need a lot of clarity, andso we have a lot to talk about.
I want to kind of start withyour journey on wellness.
What were some defining momentsas it relates to your wellness
(01:34):
practice?
Like, really what sparked youon this journey?
Jen Richardson (01:38):
The one thing would be my mom.
She had a stroke and kind ofwas struggling with her mood.
It affected her energy levels,hormones, and we weren't really
getting any concrete answersfrom the doctors, and I was on
(02:01):
my own wellness journey at thetime, so I was learning more
about holistic nutrition and theimportance of food, not only
physically but mentally.
Yeah, I went back to school tobecome a holistic nutritionist
and while I was there, mypassion for mental health and
food really grew, and that'swhere I fell in love with the
(02:23):
nervous system and how we cansupport it through cold and
through food.
Jen Kelly (02:28):
Well, let's just talk about mood and food.
What are some things that youlearned along the way that
people might not have as muchawareness around today as it
relates to food and mood?
So please kind of provide ussome education here on how our
food and our mood are correlated.
Jen Richardson (02:43):
So food and mood correlated?
Definitely through the gut.
A lot of people think that ourneurotransmitters are only made
in our brain, but they are not.
They are made in our gut.
That's why they refer to ourgut as the second brain, right,
yeah.
So we see on TV a lot of stuffbased around probiotics, which
are very important, but I thinkwe lack education in prebiotic
(03:05):
and how to feed those probioticsand even to come back before
that.
If your gut is not balanced andyou are giving it that good
bacteria, it doesn't always meana good thing.
Our gut lining is permeable, soif it's keeping the supplements
in our body, if it's keepingthe nutrients in that we're
getting from the kale and theleafy greens, like if our gut is
(03:27):
not in a good place, then allof that really isn't going to do
anything.
Jen Kelly (03:33):
I will just share my personal journey on this.
So five years ago I wasnoticing a lot of inflammation.
I'm an asthmatic, but I couldsee it in my eczema, I could see
it in my skin.
We sort of launched a journeyof our own wellness and removed
sugar, removed a lot of NorthAmerican cheese, removed wheat.
(03:55):
It was a slow process of takingit all out and then two years
into that, we went fullyplant-based eating.
It changed everything for me,like my mental clarity changed,
how I felt every day changed,and it was probably within a
(04:16):
week and a half.
I could feel the differencewhen you work with people.
Is that sort of the resultsthat you see people have?
Jen Richardson (04:22):
Yeah, Especially when people are willing to
remove sugar.
Yeah, because we know this canbe very similar to an addiction.
Right, it causes physicalinflammation in the body, but I
think a lot of people what theydon't know is it causes
neuroinflammation.
You know, you get that dopaminehit, it becomes very similar to
an addiction.
So even if you started doing itfor inflammation in the body or
(04:45):
to help your gut or whatever itis, maybe it's eczema,
something physical yeah, it'sgoing to have such a positive
effect on your mood, your sleep,your energy levels.
Jen Kelly (04:56):
Can we just talk a little bit about sleep?
It has become a popular theme.
Running through other shows theimportance of sleep as it
relates to our overall wellness.
What is your perspective?
Jen Richardson (05:05):
on this.
I know that we don't want tohear it, but like leaving our
phone away from our our bed islike a huge one.
So if you're getting into bedwith your phone, I mean, it's
not really going to work out.
One thing that I think is veryimportant with sleep when you're
going to sleep a little bitearlier and you're waking a
little bit earlier, then you canrise with the sun, and then you
(05:27):
get that circadian rhythm andall that good stuff.
Jen Kelly (05:30):
Yeah, I wanted to shift gears and talk about cold
immersion therapy that you do.
How did this start?
I watch you on social media andI'm just fascinated by this
business.
Can you share a little bit onhow this all started?
Jen Richardson (05:44):
for you.
I was new in my sobriety.
I met a group of five or sixpeople going into the lake and
there was very new research notmany studies, but on mood and,
mostly important the dopamineboost 250% and I was like this
is what I need as a recoveringaddict.
(06:06):
We search for that dopamine.
So I contacted this group andthe first time I ever went into
cold water was the middle ofFebruary.
I had a guide, which I think isvery important.
She was literally picking upshards of ice, moving them aside
as we were getting into LakeOntario A very spiritual
experience and I was hookedFirst time.
(06:29):
First time hooked.
And one thing I will say that'sso important about the dopamine
rush anything like sex, drugs,food, instagram, whatever we're
doing to get that boost, there'sa rise and then a fall and a
big crash.
When it comes to dopamine, withdeliberate cold exposure, there
is really no crash.
Some of my clients will messageme days later being like this
(06:52):
is the best I've felt in years.
So it is about puttingourselves in an uncomfortable
situation to feel better fordays after.
Jen Kelly (07:01):
What was that process like?
So, once you did it foryourself, did you immediately
think that you needed to createa business around this Like?
What was that journey like?
Jen Richardson (07:09):
What happened was I got a tub at home and
started videotaping myself andit kind of grew from there.
People started asking can youcook, can you teach me how to do
that?
And then they wanted their ownvideo.
And then it kind of built andbuilt and built and I was like I
need more tubs, yeah.
And then that's kind of howCold Community North was built,
(07:31):
and we don't only stay at ColdCommunity North, we're a mobile
company as well, so we bringtubs and sauna.
Jen Kelly (07:38):
And your sauna is.
Talk to me about this saunabecause I've seen this on
Instagram.
How does your sauna work atevents and things like this?
Jen Richardson (07:45):
So this is so cool.
It's on a trailer, it's a 10person sauna, wood burning, so
we till the sauna and then inthe back of the truck we have
two to four tubs and, yeah,we're at like music festivals
this year and it's very exciting.
Jen Kelly (08:00):
I feel like so much has changed in our understanding
around cold therapy in the lastfour years.
Was this roughly in thattimeframe?
Jen Richardson (08:07):
Yeah, I'd say three and a half, four years ago
.
Yeah, what's some of thescience that backs this?
So at Cold Community North Ipay more attention to the
emotional side of it.
So there is physical.
Obviously.
There is weight loss,inflammation, the cold shock
protein.
So when you are in the tub andyou find your shiver, this is
(08:28):
when cold shock proteins arebeing sent through your liver.
So any free radicals, disease,bad cells, you're really
detoxing.
This is why, as cold plungers,we look for that safe shiver.
So all of the goodness ofphysical, but the mental.
When we get into the tub, thefirst 30 seconds we can lose our
(08:49):
breath, but then what I coachis to extend the exhale, because
this is when we're teaching ourbody to be safe.
So we put ourselves in thatdeliberate stress.
Cortisol is being produced atthis time, so you're putting
yourself in a stressful stateand then, once you pass that 30
(09:11):
seconds, you can sit a bitdeeper and this is when the
dopamine, the norepinephrine,the motivation you're to do, and
then, of course, like buildingresilience.
So for me, with mood coachingor anything like that, building
resilience is what we are tryingto do here.
So I don't really focus on,like the weight loss or anything
(09:34):
like that.
I focus more on becoming moreresilient in life and being able
to handle that stress.
Moms, especially that I guide,are coming to me and saying my
reaction time with the kids.
I I'm able to deal with so muchmore on my plate because they
know like I can do hard thingsthrough your journey of just
(09:57):
beginning.
Jen Kelly (09:58):
You obviously had a guide on your first experience.
Um what would you recommend forbeginners today who are maybe
listening to this and wanting toget started?
Jen Richardson (10:06):
I do think a guide is important, whether it's
in the tub or in the lake, I dothink it is important because
safety and just having theknowledge behind it, but, most
importantly, guiding your breath.
At Cold Community North we dolike a seven minute breath
before we get in to helpregulate the nervous system.
It ends with fire breath.
So the famous Wim Hof right.
(10:27):
So we regulate the nervoussystem first and then I'm able
to guide the breath whilesomeone's in the tub.
It can look different foreverybody, but sometimes what I
will suggest is a long, audiblesigh as you sit, kind of
screaming it out, and it tendsto help a lot of people.
(10:50):
So to have someone thereguiding you, ensuring you're
safe, letting you know that youcan do this, like encouraging
you, I think all of those thingsare important.
Jen Kelly (11:00):
How has entrepreneurship tested your
wellness practices?
Jen Richardson (11:04):
Well, A with being busy.
Yeah, just remembering yourself.
And I think as an entrepreneur,we are like we have to take
anything and everything that'scoming, and I've had those days
where I've been out in coldcommunity north.
I come home from the gym, Idon't eat and all of a sudden
it's 8 pm.
We really have to remember thatwe can't serve others without
(11:28):
serving ourselves first, and Ilearned that very quickly.
I think another thing that Iwould say to entrepreneurs is
you know, I started off food andmood.
I did my bowls and at the endthere I knew that the next step
was coming for me, but I had ahard time letting go because I
thought what are other peoplegoing to think?
(11:49):
Are they going to think Ifailed at this?
Are they going to think when mybull company was so successful,
I was just building all thesestories of what other people
were going to think?
So to entrepreneurs I would sayjust do it.
Everyone is just involved intheir own life.
They have their own worries.
No one's really thinking asmuch as you think they are, you
(12:10):
know.
And to follow your heart,because if your passion is not
in it, people can see it.
Yeah, right, like I rememberthinking but it's my, it's my
company switching to cold nowLike, but people saw it in me,
like we cry in the tub, wescream in the tub, we are
authentic selves and people seethat and they leave feeling that
(12:34):
way and that's why they comeback.
Anybody could sit in their tubat home, but it's the experience
that you get at cold communityNorth that makes it different.
It's the healing in community.
Jen Kelly (12:45):
It seems like this has unfolded for you very
naturally, but what would besome tips in the mix here,
because you've built a wonderfulcommunity?
Thank you so much.
How did you go about doing?
Jen Richardson (12:53):
this.
Yeah, I think it happened quitenaturally when people were
coming and taping their ownvideos and it was getting out to
their community.
So the importance of socialmedia is there.
But then in hosting theseevents where maybe you are shy
or you're not comfortable in agroup or you don't really think
(13:16):
that you're going to share yourstory, when these women come
together, one person has thecourage to share.
It's like spreads like wildfire.
Now everybody's sharing andyou're realizing that you're not
alone.
Building a authentic, raw, safespace was really big for me.
People knew that they couldcome and be themselves.
Jen Kelly (13:38):
What do you think the biggest beginning of that
education lies?
When people come into you, isit the self-regulation of their
nervous system, like what's thetop problem that you see most
common?
Jen Richardson (13:52):
Nobody notices how dysregulated they are.
Jen Kelly (13:54):
Yeah, and I wanted to talk a little bit about this
because I don't think this iscommonly understood right now.
Jen Richardson (14:00):
Dysregulated would seem.
High anxiety reaction, no sleep, running on coffee, and I know
that that's sounding so familiarto a lot of people.
Jen Kelly (14:15):
Yes, I think that so many people live there and then
regulate.
It would feel how.
Jen Richardson (14:21):
Calm, emotionally intelligent, like
you're not reacting, you'retaking time to sit with whatever
emotion will come up.
No anxiety, able to feel thefeels without losing control.
Jen Kelly (14:40):
If I want to live in that other space a little bit
more often.
What are the tips to begin thatjourney?
Jen Richardson (14:47):
I have reminders on my phone, a little timer
kind of that will go off, and alist of things that regulate my
nervous system, whether it'spetting my dogs, doing just a
sequence of breath Like breath.
Work does not have to be 50minutes in a classroom.
It can be like a box breath for50 seconds.
(15:12):
It will really regulate thenervous system.
Again, hugging your child,taking a moment with your
husband, whatever it is justthat like where your body feels
safe?
Jen Kelly (15:23):
How many times a day should somebody be doing this
self-checking and like is thislike a morning, afternoon kind
of thing?
Jen Richardson (15:29):
I think like not making it um, such a task, yeah
, and having a little bit ofbalance.
But yeah, maybe once in themorning, once in the afternoon,
once in the evening, somethinglike that, or even if that
sounds too overwhelming, um, onthe weekend, setting like time
blocking, like this is my timeand I will not give over to it.
(15:52):
Yeah, this is a perfect example.
When I go and walk the dogs, Iwas always like I need to have
it stack, I need to listen tothe podcast while I'm walking
the dogs.
Well, I'm like, okay, have itstacked.
Jen Kelly (16:03):
Hold on here.
That's a line for all of us.
Jen Richardson (16:06):
Yes, right, so like just try and go outside and
walk and not listen to anything, yeah, and be present, right.
Jen Kelly (16:14):
To me, the signal is like am I allowing the moment
to almost enter into my presence, my consciousness, and am I
enjoying and creating anddancing with that moment?
Um, how do you see the showing?
Jen Richardson (16:31):
up for men being in the holistic space.
I do see it, uh, being harderfor men, yeah, but with that
said, you are seeing more likemen's groups giving that alpha
the moment to express or cry,where they can kind of lean a
(16:52):
little bit more into theirfeminine.
I think for women, when we'rein that situation we're we're
more like oh thank God, I'm here, I can do this now, we're ready
.
Jen Kelly (17:02):
Yeah.
Jen Richardson (17:03):
Men I think need a little bit more of.
We need to offer them the spaceand let them know that it's
okay.
Jen Kelly (17:10):
As you've been building this venture over the
last six years, what has ittaught you the most?
Jen Richardson (17:16):
You might as well just be the best version of
yourself, because there'salways going to be someone more
successful, stronger, younger.
So the comparison games justhave to go yeah, and also
realizing that, like you'rehuman, okay, so a comparison
(17:37):
comes, let that thought come,recognize it and then let it go.
Jen Kelly (17:42):
We have to rethink how we self-care, how we
navigate our everything, ourdiet, our moods and it can seem
a little bit intimidatingbecause the world is going
holistic.
Jen Richardson (17:55):
I feel like it's making that shift.
Jen Kelly (17:57):
Yeah, and even if it's just like one day, we take
one thing out of the diet.
I'm pretty sure that if wetried to do that in our
household, we needed the gradualevolution of it, because you
shock the system too much if youdo everything all at once right
, Then you'll end up could endup failing, yeah.
(18:17):
We covered a lot of groundsbetween nutrition and cold
therapy.
The community, the great workyou've done and this entire
venture for six years like what?
Jen Richardson (18:28):
what a celebration to be in business
for six years.
Jen Kelly (18:31):
So thank you for being on the podcast and thank
you for sharing all of thisinsight with everyone.
And again, my message toeveryone listening is we cannot
give what we do not have.
We have to leave fully.
We have to be taking care ofourselves and, you know, let us
all aspire to go to the nextlevel of our own possibility
with these practices.
So thank you for being on.
(18:52):
Thank you so much, jen.
Thank you for joining us.
Don't forget to follow us onInstagram and LinkedIn, where we
transform the wisdom from ourpodcast into practical tips,
tools and takeaways for yourleadership journey.
Find us at gritgracepodcast.
See you next week.
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