August 26, 2025 • 44 mins
What happens when you find yourself unable to climb a fence while hunting, handing your rifle and pack to your friend because your weight makes simple outdoor activities impossible? For Brad Taysom, this humbling moment became the catalyst for an extraordinary transformation.
Brad shares his powerful journey of losing approximately 70 pounds and completely reshaping his health metrics in ways that extend far beyond the scale. His visceral fat dropped from dangerously high levels to well within healthy range, body fat percentage plummeted from an obese 39.8% to a lean 14.3%, and he shed 73 pounds of actual body fat while maintaining muscle mass.
The conversation explores Brad's first successful weight loss journey years ago when he lost over 100 pounds and became immersed in CrossFit, achieving 10% body fat. However, as life grew complicated with home renovations, growing family responsibilities, and the pandemic, his health gradually took a back seat. The weight returned, bringing with it diminished energy and capability.
What makes this episode particularly valuable is Brad's vulnerability about the pride that kept him from seeking help sooner and the mindset shifts that have made his current transformation more sustainable. He offers practical wisdom about creating lasting health habits despite rotating work shifts, family obligations, and major home projects. As he eloquently puts it, "You choose the right, you're going to feel good... I find a lot of similarities between health and fitness journeys and spiritual journeys."
For anyone who has achieved health goals only to see them slip away, or who feels too busy to prioritize their wellbeing, Brad's experience offers both inspiration and practical strategies. His story reminds us that reclaiming our health isn't just about looking better—it's about living fully and being present for the people and passions that matter most.
Ready to transform your own health? Learn about the Optavia program that helped Brad achieve his remarkable results and receive a special discount when you mention this episode. If you haven’t already had a conversation with an Optavia coach and are interested in learning more, you can go to bekandkev.com, or go directly to bekandkev.com/get-healthy for the link to our quick health assessment that will help you start the conversation with us or one of our qualified coaches. Anyone who signs up for a full month on our program (minimum of $350) and references this podcast with Brad Taysom will get a $50 credit from us to help them get started at even bigger savings!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Kevin Tinter (00:01):
Hey friends, welcome back to the Uncommon
Freedom Show.
Today we are talking with myfriend and a longtime client
named Brad Taysom.
Brad recently lost roughly 70pounds working with me as his
coach.
More important than just theweight loss, though, is the many
health metrics he improvedduring this process.
This is astonishing.
He reduced his visceral fatfrom off the charts of above 20
(00:26):
to 5, which is well within thehealthy range of below 10.
He went from a body fatpercentage of 39.8% to 14.3%,
which is an astonishing 25%decrease in body fat percentage,
and he went from being obese tohealthy.
He decreased his body fat massfrom 101 pounds to 27.8 pounds.
(00:47):
That's a stunning 73 pound lossof body fat and he increased
his skeletal muscle mass from93.5 pounds to 95.9 pounds.
Brad, welcome to the show.
How are you this morning Doingwell?
Welcome to the show.
How are you this morning Doingwell?
Awesome, it's good to see you.
You're coming to us live fromWyoming, right?
(01:11):
Yep, that is right In yourbackyard.
Brad Taysom (01:16):
This is my front yard, actually Front yard.
Kevin Tinter (01:18):
Hard to tell the difference when you have, how
much land do you have?
Brad Taysom (01:21):
Two acres Two acres , awesome, awesome.
Kevin Tinter (01:24):
So, folks, before we get started, I want to just
share that the primary plan thatI helped Brad use to lose this
weight was the Optavia OptimalWeight 5-in-1 plan.
The average weight loss withthis plan is 12 pounds.
Clients are in weight loss onaverage for 12 weeks, so clearly
, Brad is not the average personand the only one who gets to
decide if you are average or incommon is you.
(01:45):
I wanted to share that if youor anyone you know is trying to
lose weight, get healthy orimprove their fitness, the key
mindset shift is to move fromfocusing on weight loss to
improving your body fatpercentage and overall body
composition, which is what Braddid.
One of the things that Iabsolutely love about what I do
(02:06):
is that, in addition to helpingmany people reclaim their health
and live life to the fullest,is that many of my clients
become great friends during theprocess and, brad, I count you
as one of those good friends.
So how are you doing thismorning, buddy?
Brad Taysom (02:21):
Oh, I'm doing good.
It's a beautiful morning herein Wyoming, which these are few
and far between most of the year.
Kevin Tinter (02:30):
Yeah.
So, as we get started, tell usa little bit about yourself.
And, you know, just give us theReader's Digest version of Brad
Taysom.
Brad Taysom (02:39):
Well, I'm the youngest of five boys, the
youngest of five boys.
I live in Wyoming, work in theoil and gas industry and I
remodel homes on the side.
I'm married with four wonderfulchildren.
(03:00):
We've been very blessed and, uh, very fortunate to to be up
here, but, uh, I'm an avidoutdoorsman.
When I can be, and, uh, I lovehunting and and, uh, being in
the mountains, um, but uh, uh,yeah, that's probably the long
(03:21):
and short of it very good.
Kevin Tinter (03:22):
Where'd you grow?
You grow up, Brad.
Brad Taysom (03:24):
I grew up in St George, utah, so Southern Utah.
Uh, most of my family is stillthere.
Kevin Tinter (03:29):
Okay, excellent, uh, and tell us a little bit
about what you do.
I know you're an oil and gas.
How'd you get into that?
Brad Taysom (03:36):
Uh, that was my brother-in-law and uh it uh,
that's what obviously brought meup here.
Um, I had uh done construction,uh, several different trades.
I was my, my dad was a brickMason, Um, and so I was raised
in masonry, um, and still have aa love for it, um, but uh,
(04:03):
construction was always a hardway to make a living and um,
there was a uh uh time in mylife that I needed to rebuild
and I took a safe job that wasuh um in the medical field and
uh didn't like it.
Uh, and the company was goingunder and my brother-in-law
(04:28):
worked for an oil gas company uphere and uh, they were having a
hard time finding help and uh,he told me it'd be a long shot,
but uh, he'd see if he'd get mean interview and um, they uh uh
and um they uh uh.
Oddly enough, they ended upgiving me a shot after two other
(04:48):
people had quit and uh, nowI've been with the company for
almost 12 years, so, um, it'sworked out well.
It's been a huge blessing formy family and I um given us a
definitely some stability andand uh opportunities that
(05:10):
otherwise I would have never had.
Kevin Tinter (05:12):
So that's great, great.
So let's shift our conversationto your health journey.
Uh, we originally met when amutual friend referred you to me
.
I think it was back aroundDecember 2016.
Is that the right timeframe?
Yeah, that is right.
Okay, it's funny, I don'tremember every conversation that
I have, but I remember talkingto you.
I was in the basement of ourold house and I remember a lot
(05:36):
of the conversation.
Would you do you mind sharingkind of what prompted you, your
decision to get healthy back in2016, or cause this was your
original health journey?
Brad Taysom (05:46):
Yeah, it was, and um, I'll probably be a little
bit emotional talking about that.
Um, it's been a long time andeven between now and then
there's been ups and downs.
Um, uh, that particular time,um, uh, I had been hunting, uh
(06:06):
uh uh, with a cousin of mine.
We were uh hunting late seasoncow elk uh in uh northern
wyoming and um, we, uh, duringthat trip I had several
different wake-up.
My weight was, um, I wassitting right at about 300
(06:27):
pounds and um, my cousin hadalways kind of taken care of
himself.
Um, and as we, as we hunted, um, we ended up uh killing some
elk and um, one day, and youknow, we we got those packed out
(06:48):
and taken care of.
And then we still had one moretag to fill and we needed to go
into this area and and we cameto this, this barbed wire fence,
and I watched my cousin walk upto that fence and he, he just
grabbed a fence post, put hisfoot up on the fence and hopped
(07:09):
over it and he turned around andhe looked at me and was waiting
for me to do the same and Icouldn't do it.
I had to hand him my rifle.
I had to hand him my rifle, Ihad to hand him my pack and then
I started to climb up on thatfence and I all but crushed it
(07:35):
and you know we laughed about itand things, but for me it was
kind of a straw that broke thecamel's back.
That that time, um, there's asense of fear, um of uh, because
(08:04):
you don't know what to do.
I was a grown man, in mymid-30s, and I battled my weight
my entire life and I was at aweight I'd never seen before.
I had a young family and I knewI needed to do something, but I
(08:34):
didn't know what to do becauseI'd tried so many things and it
was some success, but rapidfailure at the same time.
But rapid failure at the sametime.
And you know, god knows us andknows what we need.
(09:02):
And you know, a friend reachedout that had known my struggle,
but I'm working with you and, um, he told me about the program
and it sounded too good to betrue, to be honest, and um, but
(09:22):
I was desperate, I really wastruly desperate and I'm like I'm
willing to do anything at thispoint because my life needs to
change, my health in order forme to do all that God needs me
to do and to be the man that Ineed to be.
(09:43):
I needed to regain my health, Ineeded to get control of that
and I knew that.
And and um, you know I, I stillremember our first conversation
and you, you asked me if Icould wave a magic wand, how
(10:08):
much would I weigh?
And I remember telling you thatI would give anything to weigh
220 pounds.
And you said, well, we'll seewhen we get there.
And I remember almost beingpissed, thinking like you're
(10:31):
saying that, like it's easy todo, but I didn't know the
program, I didn't know orunderstand how the program
worked and, um, the system thathad been built and put in place,
um and uh, I don't know.
(10:54):
We, we began, you know, yeah,and what?
Kevin Tinter (11:00):
what if your friend hadn't reached out to you
?
Cause I'm sure that for peoplewho have someone that in their
life that is struggling withhealth, struggling with weight,
and we know that it's impactingthe quality of their life, it's
kind of a delicate subject toaddress.
But what if your friend hadn'toffered that to you?
Brad Taysom (11:24):
It's almost a scary thought, you know, um, I know
that I would not be able to doall that I'm able to do at my
age.
Now, you know, um, you know, I'mnow now 45 and I've, you know,
(11:49):
because of this, my life has,you know, forever been changed.
I know, because of my recentjourney, that it's a scary
thought to me of the life that Iwould be living, mm-hmm, one of
(12:10):
fulfillment and of joy, um, andI think it would, ultimately
would impact my family, becauseif I'm not happy, and I'm not
happy with myself, what kind of,what kind of joy am I going to
bring into my own home?
(12:30):
You know, um, what kind of joyam I going to bring into my own
home?
You know, um, and so, uh, it'shard for me to think, you know,
I'm sure there'd be some crashdiet somewhere in there and me
giving it my best shot andtrying trying something with,
with, not near the success, um,uh, with, with, not near the
(12:54):
success, um, uh, with, withOptavia and this program I've,
I've achieved, you know, myweight loss goals and, and, uh,
body fat percentage that I onlydreamt about, um, I don't.
I don't know that, even in highschool, that I ever, ever
(13:15):
looked the way that I do now umso that's incredible, bro.
Kevin Tinter (13:22):
Thank you for being so vulnerable, um I mean,
uh, we're both emotional gladthis is a audio podcast and not
video uh, yeah, right.
I mean, I remember that storyand you know, my heart just went
out to you, like just knowinghow that impacted you, and I can
(13:43):
just say, you know, as a coach,being able to help you, you
know, change your life and beable to hunt without any fear of
you know what you're going tohave to climb over or having the
stamina.
That's incredible and the truthis there's millions of people
across the world, certainly inthis country, that are dealing
with similar things, whetherit's they're sitting down on an
(14:05):
airplane and they have to askfor the seatbelt extender
seatbelt extender.
Maybe you hear the storiesabout people getting on a ride
at an amusement park and they'reasked or told you're too big,
you can't you can't get on thisride.
And then there's just theday-to-day of not having the
energy to be the spouse orparent to be able to live life
(14:29):
to the fullest, and it's such anhonor to be able to help people
like you and you know.
Thank you for being willing tojust, you know, share your
vulnerable story, because I'msure someone will be inspired by
you.
So you, when we originallyworked together back in 2016,
2017, you ended up losing wellover a hundred pounds and then,
(14:51):
during that journey, you gotinto CrossFit.
How did that initial uh, weightloss journey and transformation
go for you?
And, kind of like you, youreally got into CrossFit.
How did that?
How did that impact your life?
Brad Taysom (15:06):
You know, um, it was, it was awesome.
Um, the you know CrossFit it'skind of, you know, you drink the
Kool-Aid and you can kind ofget carried away with it, which
I, I definitely, I definitelydid.
And um, you know, hindsightthere's always, always mistakes
(15:29):
and things, that things that youwish you could change.
But for me, I think part ofthat Kool-Aid and part of, like,
what was happening for meduring those those years, were I
hadn't been able to move likethat and I mean, I, I couldn't
tell you, um, uh, doing pull-upsand pushups and running, um,
(15:55):
you know, an eight minute milewithout breaking a sweat.
Um and uh, you know, to climbropes, um, to be able to push
your body.
Um, I fed off of it, I loved itand it took my hunting to a new
(16:17):
level.
Um, that you know, there wasn'ta place that I didn't dare go.
Um and uh, between the weightloss and the conditioning of
CrossFit.
It did, it felt amazing, butyeah, it was, I loved it, it was
(16:46):
amazing for me at the time, youknow, and I've learned a lot,
you know, since then, anddefinitely some things that I
will approach differently, thisgo around, yeah, at the time,
you know, and I've, I've learned, I've learned a lot, you know,
since then and, um, definitelysome things that I will approach
differently this go around,yeah.
Kevin Tinter (16:59):
Um, where were there habits or mindsets that
you didn't change when you thefirst time you lost weight?
That you think caused you toregain weight over time?
Brad Taysom (17:17):
yeah, there's, uh, I think I think there's a.
You know the, the word of, ofcaution, I guess that you would
you would say, is so many timesI, I believe, on on these
journeys it's.
You get the body scan or youtake the picture that you're
(17:39):
like I've arrived, I'm there.
I remember the first time thatwhen I lost over 100 pounds it
was 120, I think, is what Iended up losing and I had a body
scan done and I was at 10% bodyfat and there there was that
feeling of like I'm here, I didit, yeah, and.
(18:06):
And so then there's this levelof okay, I'm, I'm fit and
healthy.
Um, I'm doing CrossFit?
Um, clearly, I have, I haveroom to, you know, enjoy myself
with, with foods, um, notunderstanding or respecting the
(18:28):
path that those, those foods andthose old habits can take me
down.
And so it begins, this cat andmouse game of I'm working out,
I'm working hard, but I'mputting on weight and well, is
(18:49):
it muscle?
Is it not what's going on?
And then there comes a point ofof frustration to some extent,
um, as you're messing with yourworkouts and with your diet a
little bit and you think youhave it figured out, but it's
not working like you thought.
Um, and it's uh, and it's uh,it can get extremely frustrating
(19:21):
.
Um, you know, for me, it uh, I,I know the uh.
The second time that I didOptivea leading up to it, I was,
I was doing CrossFit, um, I was, I was still working out, um,
(19:41):
but I had lost control of myeating and my habits, that had
slipped and, um, I had to, youknow, get recentered in an
effort.
And even that time, you know,every time I've had to reach out
for help, um, there's a lot ofpride that has to be swallowed.
(20:01):
Um, and it is very difficult,uh, which is you know why,
before this last, this lastjourney, that it took me so long
to reach out and to talk to youagain.
Um, because it's somewhere inthe back of your head.
You're like I can do this, likeI know I can do this, like I
(20:25):
don't have to have, you know, Idon't have to have my health
coach, I don't have to haveOctavia, I can do this.
But the thing is, it works, itis an anchor.
(20:52):
It is not something you shouldnot be ashamed to ask for help.
Kevin Tinter (21:07):
Yeah, One of my recent guests.
He mentioned I think he calledit the paradox of transparency.
I'm not sure if that's theright term.
The point was, when we're inthe spot where we need help, we
feel like we feel shame aboutneeding to ask for help.
You know, the pride creeps inthere.
Yet when someone like youreaches out, I don't have any an
(21:30):
ounce of judgment.
Um, I'm honored that peoplewant to help me and I need to
remember that when I need helpbecause I'm a huge fan in
coaching you know any, any areaof your life that you want to
improve in spiritual, marriage,physical exercise.
If you want to improve, youneed a coach, right, that's what
the top performers at everylevel and every discipline,
(21:52):
that's what they do.
They hire coaches, and I thinkit's this.
I don't know this.
You know Satan likes to putthis pride in us to keep us from
asking for the help that weknow that we need.
So I'm grateful that youfinally reached out.
So, basically, I know you didgreat managing your weight for a
while and then COVID hit andthen, obviously, now we're in
(22:15):
2025.
What caused you to decide totake back your health in a very
serious way this year?
Brad Taysom (22:28):
The last time that I had been at a healthy weight,
I think it had been like 2021,maybe 2022.
I think it was 2021.
I think I made it through 2020pretty good.
I'd just come off doing Optaviaagain with you.
I'd had my weight down under200 pounds and I'd done pretty
(22:51):
good.
And then I bought a real doozyof a fixer upper and, um,
somewhere in the middle of that,being in my forties somewhere,
I thought it was a good idea tohave another kid.
So we threw a, we threw a babyon top of a very overwhelming
(23:16):
remodel.
So I'd gotten overwhelmed andstressed and, you know, freaked
out and my health, you know,took the back burner.
And every year it's kind offunny.
The hunting, you know, is kindof a sanctuary thing for me.
(23:38):
It's a place of peace in themountains.
I feel a special connectionwith my Heavenly Father and the
(24:00):
peace that I have out there.
It's not about the killing ofanimals, there's something way
more to it for me.
But every year my health washaving a pretty bad impact on
that experience and, um, makingit extremely miserable and, uh,
(24:23):
making me feel older than I knowthat I was.
And um, I, uh, I had a friendthat I was riding around with in
the wintertime.
It's kind of our deal we go forrides and just look around for
(24:48):
animals and BS and just friends.
He knows that I'd beenfrustrated with my weight and my
health for a while and he justsat there and he looked at me
one day and he's like Brad, why,why have you not gone back and
called your health coach andgone on Optavia again?
He's like you know, it worksfor you and it would help you
(25:13):
get your life back.
Wow and um, and you know helooked at me and he's like you,
you need to do something.
And it was that voice ofconcern.
You know I wasn't 300 poundsagain by any means, but I was
still very heavy and my weighthad done nothing but creep up
(25:34):
year after year.
And um, it was kind of thatvoice of warning.
And then my wife and I had beentalking about extensive projects
that we have planned for thefor home this year to try and be
done with home projects onceand for all, and I knew that
(25:58):
there was no way that I wasgoing to be able to do it
physically.
Um, I just couldn't.
I mean just the projects thatI'd done, you know, in the
previous years, a few thingsthat I'd done.
It just I'd work for a fewhours and I remember just being
exhausted and, uh, beat down andrecovery was terrible and and
(26:21):
all of it and uh, so there's asense of urgency with that and
my kids are getting, you know, alittle older and I want to set
that example, I want to be thatexample for them and it was kind
(26:44):
of a myriad of all of thosethings.
Yeah, and you know my wife wife,I think she wanted to shoot me
because, um, I don't know if youremember or not, but my, my, my
first box showed up while I wason vacation in um cancun, uh,
(27:07):
with my wife and my brother andhis wife, and uh, it was waiting
for me when I got home and, uh,I started the five and one and
you know, coming off of thattrip, you're not eating good
stuff out there, um, and my wifeis like you just flip a switch,
(27:32):
just like that.
Huh, you know.
Kevin Tinter (27:38):
Brad, what's really cool is that both times
you really decided to go all inin your health journey.
You had friends, you andholding you accountable, and I
think it's a great reminder forus to be that friend to other
people.
A lot of times we have friendsthat are encouraging us to go
down the wrong path.
There's like, oh, you deserveto have that to eat, that to
(28:08):
drink, just be happy.
Or you know, you know, if it'sin a tough marriage you might
have some friends that are like,oh, you know, she's a jerk, you
deserve better.
And what we really need arefriends that will hold us
accountable and encourage us tobe the best version of ourselves
.
Brad, I know it costs to behealthy.
It also costs to be unhealthy.
(28:28):
In your opinion, in yourexperience, is it worth making
the investment in yourself to bethe healthiest version of
yourself?
Brad Taysom (28:38):
Oh, 100%, without question.
My dad and I actually weretalking about it one day and I
(29:06):
said, you know, I was like,instead of spending my money on
treats and fast food and junk, Ispend my money on, you know,
supplements and you know,healthy foods to help keep me on
track.
You know, and it's interestingthat I, I do that and it's funny
when I get hungry, I don'tthink of a restaurant, I don't
think of think of something atthe convenience store or
anything else.
When I get hungry, I'm thinkingof something that I can cook at
(29:32):
home.
It's usually meat and veggies.
If I'm feeling depleted or rundown, I'm looking for a good
(29:52):
source of meat somewhere.
Doing those things, doing theright things for your body, to
have that respect for God's giftto us, these bodies that we
have, you know, and you reap theblessings of making those
(30:15):
choices right.
I mean no different than livingthe gospel.
It's.
You choose the, the right,you're going to feel good, right
and um, this is.
It's funny.
I, I, I find a lot ofsimilarities between you know,
(30:37):
health and fitness, and journeysand and spiritual journeys as
well.
So many parallels there to bedrawn, but it gets easier and it
(30:57):
gets better and it gets better.
Um, you know, I've I've gonelong enough now, uh, without the
the treats, um, that, uh, it nolonger bothers me to be at
birthday parties and uh otherspecial gatherings.
(31:19):
Um, I just had my birthday, umyou know, a couple of weeks ago,
and uh, other specialgatherings, um, I just had my
birthday, um you know a coupleof weeks ago, and uh, I didn't
even, I didn't think twice aboutthe um uh, having birthday cake
(31:40):
or ice cream, or or giveyourself the gift of health
instead of junk food.
Kevin Tinter (31:42):
Right, yeah, brad.
So you did this.
I mean you started.
It was either late January orearly February that you started
this round.
Your life and your workschedule are very difficult.
You rotate between day andnight shifts.
I mean your schedule is crazy.
You have a family, four kids.
You've got this house.
This project I know you'rebuilding is crazy.
You have a family, four kids.
You've got this house, thisproject you know, I know you're
(32:04):
building an outbuilding thatyou've done a ton of the work
for you, excavating all kinds ofstuff, all kinds of excuses.
How did you manage to gethealthy with a life as chaotic
as yours?
And what would you tell someonewho's like I don't have time,
my life is too busy to gethealthy?
Brad Taysom (32:20):
You know that that's the beauty of OptiBea is
it doesn't it doesn't requirethat time.
It actually gives me more time.
The because of, because of thefive and one and the simplicity
of it, um, and the leaninggreens, um, I'm able to, I get
(32:48):
up and I have a bar and I get towork, Um, that's the beauty of
the fat burn and and and all ofit.
It it so simplifies my life andit it takes away the need for
those decisions, those difficultdecisions at times, at
(33:10):
different times.
Um, my, my hardest, hardestthing was probably realizing,
depending on what my day was andhow hard I had been working,
was, you know to, and I feltextremely depleted and and
(33:31):
hungry.
You know it was okay.
Like, if I'm gonna do anyvariation or vary from this plan
at all, I'm going to eathealthy sources of protein and
fats and it always served mewell and so I.
(33:54):
That's the beauty of of theprogram is there's not you don't
have to have a mandatoryworkout schedule.
There's nothing stating thatyou need to do this crazy
workout in order to see yourbody change.
(34:15):
I will be the first to admitthat my life is's different than
most and my workouts are kindof built into what I'm just
doing every day.
Um, a lot of the time there isa.
There's a time coming soon thatthat will change from working
(34:36):
on my home as my workout is togoing to the gym and rebuilding
those habits.
But if your life is busy, thiswill simplify it like a hundred
times over.
Like it will like um, you getthe feelings that that fit your
(34:57):
life, that are easy for you totake and grab, and um, it's your
.
Your focus is more on becauseit's all laid out and you know
exactly what has to happen eachand every day and you're only
planning one meal, it it.
(35:19):
It takes all the distractionsaway from you and at the worst
case, at the end of the day, I'mthrowing chicken thighs in my
air fryer and I'm throwing somebroccoli in the in the microwave
and I'm good you're done, yeahum and the amazing thing is you
(35:41):
and anyone else who follows youknow a good program.
Kevin Tinter (35:45):
They can get to 15 percent sub 15 percent body fat
, which is incredible.
I mean the physicaltransformation, the visual
transformations, profound for aman.
That's healthy.
And most people don'tunderstand.
They think that they have to dokiller workouts to get there.
And you and I, we both loveexercise.
But the analogy I use isexercise is really the fine
(36:06):
tuning tool.
You know the, your diet, yourhabits, that's the heavy lifting
.
And when you realize, when youlearn that you can get to a
healthy weight without having toimplement a crazy workout
schedule, that you can takeyourself to that next level.
But you'll always fall back toyour habits and you'll always
fall back to your diet.
(36:27):
And so if you learn how tocreate lifelong habits, healthy
habits in those areas, then whenyou go through busy seasons
where you can't work out the wayyou want to, it doesn't mean
that your, your health and yourweight goes out the window.
So, brad, you're, you knowyou've wrapped up.
You're wrapping up transition,you're kind of moving into this
what we call optimization stageof your life and you know you
(36:50):
might need a slight tune upevery once in a while, but
certainly I know your goal isthat you never have to lose a
significant amount of weightagain.
What are some of the lifestylechanges and habit and mindset
changes you're committed to thistime around to help you stay
healthy even longer and, ideally, just to continue to improve
your health for the rest of yourlife?
Brad Taysom (37:25):
ties in protein in my diet, um, whole foods, as you
know, in general, like you know, the fresh fruits and veggies
and and things, I, I really umstaying away from processed
foods altogether.
Like I, I don't see any reasonfor me to need to reintroduce
those things into my life, right?
Um, that's, uh, what littlesatisfaction, or brief
(37:49):
satisfaction, or joy that mightcome from them.
Um, there's not worth the, thelonging, you know, lasting
effects of it.
It's not.
It's not that those temptationsaren't there, don't get me
wrong.
I mean it's, it's there, it'sbeen.
It's not that those temptationsaren't there, don't get me wrong
.
I mean it's, it's there, it'sbeen a part of my life, um, and
and there's all kinds of thingsthat are, they're tied to it.
(38:10):
Food is an emotional thing, um,for a lot of people.
But you know, I've I've hadconversations even with my
daughter, um, as she's trying tomake changes, and for me, a
constant reminder to myself is,no matter how good that, that
(38:31):
treat or that food might be atthe time, the consequences of
eating that, and it's not thatI'm going to eat that and
instantly gain five poundsthat's the problem, right yeah,
like it's, you're not like, Imean, it's just not.
(38:51):
But what am I going to feel thenext day, or the day after that,
or even the hour after that?
It doesn't stop with just thatone, that one treat, that one
indulgence, the the food isdesigned and and to trigger
those, those thoughts and thosedesires for that, for the
(39:16):
unhealthy foods, and so for me,when I'm, when I'm faced with
those things, it's not worth it.
It's not even worth the risk.
I don't, I don't, even if itdoesn't do that to me, even if I
could just have that and bedone with it and everything's
good for me in my history, it'snot worth having that indulgence
(39:42):
and risking the fact that Imight have to deal with that for
the next two or three days.
Kevin Tinter (39:48):
Yeah, it's choosing your heart right.
You can either choose the harddecision of eating healthy and
making healthy decisions, or youcan choose the easy decision in
the moment, of eating crap, butknowing that you're going to
experience the hard after thefact.
Um, if you do that and andwe're certainly not saying that
(40:10):
you can't ever have a treat youknow, you and I have talked
about the fact that we bothstruggle with, you know, sugar
addiction, and it's just one ofthese things where, uh, you know
, if you're an alcoholic andyou've been sober for years and
you get to the point where youthink you can maybe manage a
drink like it's, you just haveto decide is it worth the risk,
cause you don't know what'sgoing to trigger, um, that full
(40:32):
on addiction again.
So, um, for those who arelistening, if you haven't
already had a conversation withan Optavia coach and you're
interested in learning more, youcan go to beckandkevcom.
Or go directly to beckandkevcomslash get-healthy.
So that's slashG-E-T-H-E-A-L-T-H-Y for the link
(40:55):
to our quick health assessmentthat will help you start the
conversation with us or one ofour qualified coaches.
And the cool thing is anyone whosigns up for a full month on
our program a minimum of $350and references this podcast with
Brad Taysom, will get a $50credit from us to help them get
started at even bigger savingsand, most importantly, start
(41:16):
your own personal journeytowards your version of healthy
freedom.
So, brad, again, brother,congratulations.
It really is.
It's an honor to be your coach.
I'm honored to count you as afriend.
I know we've only seen eachother in person one time, but
that was a special.
(41:37):
I remember that and it was atreat and I consider you a good
friend and I know that if I andI, you know, I consider you a
good friend and I know that ifI'm ever in your area, that we
would connect and have some goodtimes, and I hope you know that
if you and family ever downhere, you are welcome the same
way.
So again, congratulations.
Thank you for sharing yourstory.
It's an inspiration to me and Iknow it will be inspirational
(42:00):
to many other people.
Thank you, kevin.
I appreciate it.
Awesome, all right, friends.
I hope you enjoyed.
Um, if this strikes you assomething that would be helpful
to you, please reach out.
And if, if it's not for you, Ithink we all know someone, uh,
that is in the shoes, similar towhat Brad has been a couple of
(42:21):
times in his life, and thequestion really is are you going
to be that good friend to reachout and offer a lifeline to
someone who desperately needs it?
So thanks, brad, so much forbeing here.
Thank you, friends, forlistening and go have a
wonderful uncommon day.
God bless.
Hey friends, welcome back to the Uncommon
Freedom Show.
Today we are talking with myfriend and a longtime client
named Brad Taysom.
Brad recently lost roughly 70pounds working with me as his
coach.
More important than just theweight loss, though, is the many
health metrics he improvedduring this process.
This is astonishing.
He reduced his visceral fatfrom off the charts of above 20
(00:26):
to 5, which is well within thehealthy range of below 10.
He went from a body fatpercentage of 39.8% to 14.3%,
which is an astonishing 25%decrease in body fat percentage,
and he went from being obese tohealthy.
He decreased his body fat massfrom 101 pounds to 27.8 pounds.
(00:47):
That's a stunning 73 pound lossof body fat and he increased
his skeletal muscle mass from93.5 pounds to 95.9 pounds.
Brad, welcome to the show.
How are you this morning Doingwell?
Welcome to the show.
How are you this morning Doingwell?
Awesome, it's good to see you.
You're coming to us live fromWyoming, right?
(01:11):
Yep, that is right In yourbackyard.
Brad Taysom (01:16):
This is my front yard, actually Front yard.
Kevin Tinter (01:18):
Hard to tell the difference when you have, how
much land do you have?
Brad Taysom (01:21):
Two acres Two acres , awesome, awesome.
Kevin Tinter (01:24):
So, folks, before we get started, I want to just
share that the primary plan thatI helped Brad use to lose this
weight was the Optavia OptimalWeight 5-in-1 plan.
The average weight loss withthis plan is 12 pounds.
Clients are in weight loss onaverage for 12 weeks, so clearly
, Brad is not the average personand the only one who gets to
decide if you are average or incommon is you.
(01:45):
I wanted to share that if youor anyone you know is trying to
lose weight, get healthy orimprove their fitness, the key
mindset shift is to move fromfocusing on weight loss to
improving your body fatpercentage and overall body
composition, which is what Braddid.
One of the things that Iabsolutely love about what I do
(02:06):
is that, in addition to helpingmany people reclaim their health
and live life to the fullest,is that many of my clients
become great friends during theprocess and, brad, I count you
as one of those good friends.
So how are you doing thismorning, buddy?
Brad Taysom (02:21):
Oh, I'm doing good.
It's a beautiful morning herein Wyoming, which these are few
and far between most of the year.
Kevin Tinter (02:30):
Yeah.
So, as we get started, tell usa little bit about yourself.
And, you know, just give us theReader's Digest version of Brad
Taysom.
Brad Taysom (02:39):
Well, I'm the youngest of five boys, the
youngest of five boys.
I live in Wyoming, work in theoil and gas industry and I
remodel homes on the side.
I'm married with four wonderfulchildren.
(03:00):
We've been very blessed and, uh, very fortunate to to be up
here, but, uh, I'm an avidoutdoorsman.
When I can be, and, uh, I lovehunting and and, uh, being in
the mountains, um, but uh, uh,yeah, that's probably the long
(03:21):
and short of it very good.
Kevin Tinter (03:22):
Where'd you grow?
You grow up, Brad.
Brad Taysom (03:24):
I grew up in St George, utah, so Southern Utah.
Uh, most of my family is stillthere.
Kevin Tinter (03:29):
Okay, excellent, uh, and tell us a little bit
about what you do.
I know you're an oil and gas.
How'd you get into that?
Brad Taysom (03:36):
Uh, that was my brother-in-law and uh it uh,
that's what obviously brought meup here.
Um, I had uh done construction,uh, several different trades.
I was my, my dad was a brickMason, Um, and so I was raised
in masonry, um, and still have aa love for it, um, but uh,
(04:03):
construction was always a hardway to make a living and um,
there was a uh uh time in mylife that I needed to rebuild
and I took a safe job that wasuh um in the medical field and
uh didn't like it.
Uh, and the company was goingunder and my brother-in-law
(04:28):
worked for an oil gas company uphere and uh, they were having a
hard time finding help and uh,he told me it'd be a long shot,
but uh, he'd see if he'd get mean interview and um, they uh uh
and um they uh uh.
Oddly enough, they ended upgiving me a shot after two other
(04:48):
people had quit and uh, nowI've been with the company for
almost 12 years, so, um, it'sworked out well.
It's been a huge blessing formy family and I um given us a
definitely some stability andand uh opportunities that
(05:10):
otherwise I would have never had.
Kevin Tinter (05:12):
So that's great, great.
So let's shift our conversationto your health journey.
Uh, we originally met when amutual friend referred you to me
.
I think it was back aroundDecember 2016.
Is that the right timeframe?
Yeah, that is right.
Okay, it's funny, I don'tremember every conversation that
I have, but I remember talkingto you.
I was in the basement of ourold house and I remember a lot
(05:36):
of the conversation.
Would you do you mind sharingkind of what prompted you, your
decision to get healthy back in2016, or cause this was your
original health journey?
Brad Taysom (05:46):
Yeah, it was, and um, I'll probably be a little
bit emotional talking about that.
Um, it's been a long time andeven between now and then
there's been ups and downs.
Um, uh, that particular time,um, uh, I had been hunting, uh
(06:06):
uh uh, with a cousin of mine.
We were uh hunting late seasoncow elk uh in uh northern
wyoming and um, we, uh, duringthat trip I had several
different wake-up.
My weight was, um, I wassitting right at about 300
(06:27):
pounds and um, my cousin hadalways kind of taken care of
himself.
Um, and as we, as we hunted, um, we ended up uh killing some
elk and um, one day, and youknow, we we got those packed out
(06:48):
and taken care of.
And then we still had one moretag to fill and we needed to go
into this area and and we cameto this, this barbed wire fence,
and I watched my cousin walk upto that fence and he, he just
grabbed a fence post, put hisfoot up on the fence and hopped
(07:09):
over it and he turned around andhe looked at me and was waiting
for me to do the same and Icouldn't do it.
I had to hand him my rifle.
I had to hand him my rifle, Ihad to hand him my pack and then
I started to climb up on thatfence and I all but crushed it
(07:35):
and you know we laughed about itand things, but for me it was
kind of a straw that broke thecamel's back.
That that time, um, there's asense of fear, um of uh, because
(08:04):
you don't know what to do.
I was a grown man, in mymid-30s, and I battled my weight
my entire life and I was at aweight I'd never seen before.
I had a young family and I knewI needed to do something, but I
(08:34):
didn't know what to do becauseI'd tried so many things and it
was some success, but rapidfailure at the same time.
But rapid failure at the sametime.
And you know, god knows us andknows what we need.
(09:02):
And you know, a friend reachedout that had known my struggle,
but I'm working with you and, um, he told me about the program
and it sounded too good to betrue, to be honest, and um, but
(09:22):
I was desperate, I really wastruly desperate and I'm like I'm
willing to do anything at thispoint because my life needs to
change, my health in order forme to do all that God needs me
to do and to be the man that Ineed to be.
(09:43):
I needed to regain my health, Ineeded to get control of that
and I knew that.
And and um, you know I, I stillremember our first conversation
and you, you asked me if Icould wave a magic wand, how
(10:08):
much would I weigh?
And I remember telling you thatI would give anything to weigh
220 pounds.
And you said, well, we'll seewhen we get there.
And I remember almost beingpissed, thinking like you're
(10:31):
saying that, like it's easy todo, but I didn't know the
program, I didn't know orunderstand how the program
worked and, um, the system thathad been built and put in place,
um and uh, I don't know.
(10:54):
We, we began, you know, yeah,and what?
Kevin Tinter (11:00):
what if your friend hadn't reached out to you
?
Cause I'm sure that for peoplewho have someone that in their
life that is struggling withhealth, struggling with weight,
and we know that it's impactingthe quality of their life, it's
kind of a delicate subject toaddress.
But what if your friend hadn'toffered that to you?
Brad Taysom (11:24):
It's almost a scary thought, you know, um, I know
that I would not be able to doall that I'm able to do at my
age.
Now, you know, um, you know, I'mnow now 45 and I've, you know,
(11:49):
because of this, my life has,you know, forever been changed.
I know, because of my recentjourney, that it's a scary
thought to me of the life that Iwould be living, mm-hmm, one of
(12:10):
fulfillment and of joy, um, andI think it would, ultimately
would impact my family, becauseif I'm not happy, and I'm not
happy with myself, what kind of,what kind of joy am I going to
bring into my own home?
(12:30):
You know, um, what kind of joyam I going to bring into my own
home?
You know, um, and so, uh, it'shard for me to think, you know,
I'm sure there'd be some crashdiet somewhere in there and me
giving it my best shot andtrying trying something with,
with, not near the success, um,uh, with, with, not near the
(12:54):
success, um, uh, with, withOptavia and this program I've,
I've achieved, you know, myweight loss goals and, and, uh,
body fat percentage that I onlydreamt about, um, I don't.
I don't know that, even in highschool, that I ever, ever
(13:15):
looked the way that I do now umso that's incredible, bro.
Kevin Tinter (13:22):
Thank you for being so vulnerable, um I mean,
uh, we're both emotional gladthis is a audio podcast and not
video uh, yeah, right.
I mean, I remember that storyand you know, my heart just went
out to you, like just knowinghow that impacted you, and I can
(13:43):
just say, you know, as a coach,being able to help you, you
know, change your life and beable to hunt without any fear of
you know what you're going tohave to climb over or having the
stamina.
That's incredible and the truthis there's millions of people
across the world, certainly inthis country, that are dealing
with similar things, whetherit's they're sitting down on an
(14:05):
airplane and they have to askfor the seatbelt extender
seatbelt extender.
Maybe you hear the storiesabout people getting on a ride
at an amusement park and they'reasked or told you're too big,
you can't you can't get on thisride.
And then there's just theday-to-day of not having the
energy to be the spouse orparent to be able to live life
(14:29):
to the fullest, and it's such anhonor to be able to help people
like you and you know.
Thank you for being willing tojust, you know, share your
vulnerable story, because I'msure someone will be inspired by
you.
So you, when we originallyworked together back in 2016,
2017, you ended up losing wellover a hundred pounds and then,
(14:51):
during that journey, you gotinto CrossFit.
How did that initial uh, weightloss journey and transformation
go for you?
And, kind of like you, youreally got into CrossFit.
How did that?
How did that impact your life?
Brad Taysom (15:06):
You know, um, it was, it was awesome.
Um, the you know CrossFit it'skind of, you know, you drink the
Kool-Aid and you can kind ofget carried away with it, which
I, I definitely, I definitelydid.
And um, you know, hindsightthere's always, always mistakes
(15:29):
and things, that things that youwish you could change.
But for me, I think part ofthat Kool-Aid and part of, like,
what was happening for meduring those those years, were I
hadn't been able to move likethat and I mean, I, I couldn't
tell you, um, uh, doing pull-upsand pushups and running, um,
(15:55):
you know, an eight minute milewithout breaking a sweat.
Um and uh, you know, to climbropes, um, to be able to push
your body.
Um, I fed off of it, I loved itand it took my hunting to a new
(16:17):
level.
Um, that you know, there wasn'ta place that I didn't dare go.
Um and uh, between the weightloss and the conditioning of
CrossFit.
It did, it felt amazing, butyeah, it was, I loved it, it was
(16:46):
amazing for me at the time, youknow, and I've learned a lot,
you know, since then, anddefinitely some things that I
will approach differently, thisgo around, yeah, at the time,
you know, and I've, I've learned, I've learned a lot, you know,
since then and, um, definitelysome things that I will approach
differently this go around,yeah.
Kevin Tinter (16:59):
Um, where were there habits or mindsets that
you didn't change when you thefirst time you lost weight?
That you think caused you toregain weight over time?
Brad Taysom (17:17):
yeah, there's, uh, I think I think there's a.
You know the, the word of, ofcaution, I guess that you would
you would say, is so many timesI, I believe, on on these
journeys it's.
You get the body scan or youtake the picture that you're
(17:39):
like I've arrived, I'm there.
I remember the first time thatwhen I lost over 100 pounds it
was 120, I think, is what Iended up losing and I had a body
scan done and I was at 10% bodyfat and there there was that
feeling of like I'm here, I didit, yeah, and.
(18:06):
And so then there's this levelof okay, I'm, I'm fit and
healthy.
Um, I'm doing CrossFit?
Um, clearly, I have, I haveroom to, you know, enjoy myself
with, with foods, um, notunderstanding or respecting the
(18:28):
path that those, those foods andthose old habits can take me
down.
And so it begins, this cat andmouse game of I'm working out,
I'm working hard, but I'mputting on weight and well, is
(18:49):
it muscle?
Is it not what's going on?
And then there comes a point ofof frustration to some extent,
um, as you're messing with yourworkouts and with your diet a
little bit and you think youhave it figured out, but it's
not working like you thought.
Um, and it's uh, and it's uh,it can get extremely frustrating
(19:21):
.
Um, you know, for me, it uh, I,I know the uh.
The second time that I didOptivea leading up to it, I was,
I was doing CrossFit, um, I was, I was still working out, um,
(19:41):
but I had lost control of myeating and my habits, that had
slipped and, um, I had to, youknow, get recentered in an
effort.
And even that time, you know,every time I've had to reach out
for help, um, there's a lot ofpride that has to be swallowed.
(20:01):
Um, and it is very difficult,uh, which is you know why,
before this last, this lastjourney, that it took me so long
to reach out and to talk to youagain.
Um, because it's somewhere inthe back of your head.
You're like I can do this, likeI know I can do this, like I
(20:25):
don't have to have, you know, Idon't have to have my health
coach, I don't have to haveOctavia, I can do this.
But the thing is, it works, itis an anchor.
(20:52):
It is not something you shouldnot be ashamed to ask for help.
Kevin Tinter (21:07):
Yeah, One of my recent guests.
He mentioned I think he calledit the paradox of transparency.
I'm not sure if that's theright term.
The point was, when we're inthe spot where we need help, we
feel like we feel shame aboutneeding to ask for help.
You know, the pride creeps inthere.
Yet when someone like youreaches out, I don't have any an
(21:30):
ounce of judgment.
Um, I'm honored that peoplewant to help me and I need to
remember that when I need helpbecause I'm a huge fan in
coaching you know any, any areaof your life that you want to
improve in spiritual, marriage,physical exercise.
If you want to improve, youneed a coach, right, that's what
the top performers at everylevel and every discipline,
(21:52):
that's what they do.
They hire coaches, and I thinkit's this.
I don't know this.
You know Satan likes to putthis pride in us to keep us from
asking for the help that weknow that we need.
So I'm grateful that youfinally reached out.
So, basically, I know you didgreat managing your weight for a
while and then COVID hit andthen, obviously, now we're in
(22:15):
2025.
What caused you to decide totake back your health in a very
serious way this year?
Brad Taysom (22:28):
The last time that I had been at a healthy weight,
I think it had been like 2021,maybe 2022.
I think it was 2021.
I think I made it through 2020pretty good.
I'd just come off doing Optaviaagain with you.
I'd had my weight down under200 pounds and I'd done pretty
(22:51):
good.
And then I bought a real doozyof a fixer upper and, um,
somewhere in the middle of that,being in my forties somewhere,
I thought it was a good idea tohave another kid.
So we threw a, we threw a babyon top of a very overwhelming
(23:16):
remodel.
So I'd gotten overwhelmed andstressed and, you know, freaked
out and my health, you know,took the back burner.
And every year it's kind offunny.
The hunting, you know, is kindof a sanctuary thing for me.
(23:38):
It's a place of peace in themountains.
I feel a special connectionwith my Heavenly Father and the
(24:00):
peace that I have out there.
It's not about the killing ofanimals, there's something way
more to it for me.
But every year my health washaving a pretty bad impact on
that experience and, um, makingit extremely miserable and, uh,
(24:23):
making me feel older than I knowthat I was.
And um, I, uh, I had a friendthat I was riding around with in
the wintertime.
It's kind of our deal we go forrides and just look around for
(24:48):
animals and BS and just friends.
He knows that I'd beenfrustrated with my weight and my
health for a while and he justsat there and he looked at me
one day and he's like Brad, why,why have you not gone back and
called your health coach andgone on Optavia again?
He's like you know, it worksfor you and it would help you
(25:13):
get your life back.
Wow and um, and you know helooked at me and he's like you,
you need to do something.
And it was that voice ofconcern.
You know I wasn't 300 poundsagain by any means, but I was
still very heavy and my weighthad done nothing but creep up
(25:34):
year after year.
And um, it was kind of thatvoice of warning.
And then my wife and I had beentalking about extensive projects
that we have planned for thefor home this year to try and be
done with home projects onceand for all, and I knew that
(25:58):
there was no way that I wasgoing to be able to do it
physically.
Um, I just couldn't.
I mean just the projects thatI'd done, you know, in the
previous years, a few thingsthat I'd done.
It just I'd work for a fewhours and I remember just being
exhausted and, uh, beat down andrecovery was terrible and and
(26:21):
all of it and uh, so there's asense of urgency with that and
my kids are getting, you know, alittle older and I want to set
that example, I want to be thatexample for them and it was kind
(26:44):
of a myriad of all of thosethings.
Yeah, and you know my wife wife,I think she wanted to shoot me
because, um, I don't know if youremember or not, but my, my, my
first box showed up while I wason vacation in um cancun, uh,
(27:07):
with my wife and my brother andhis wife, and uh, it was waiting
for me when I got home and, uh,I started the five and one and
you know, coming off of thattrip, you're not eating good
stuff out there, um, and my wifeis like you just flip a switch,
(27:32):
just like that.
Huh, you know.
Kevin Tinter (27:38):
Brad, what's really cool is that both times
you really decided to go all inin your health journey.
You had friends, you andholding you accountable, and I
think it's a great reminder forus to be that friend to other
people.
A lot of times we have friendsthat are encouraging us to go
down the wrong path.
There's like, oh, you deserveto have that to eat, that to
(28:08):
drink, just be happy.
Or you know, you know, if it'sin a tough marriage you might
have some friends that are like,oh, you know, she's a jerk, you
deserve better.
And what we really need arefriends that will hold us
accountable and encourage us tobe the best version of ourselves
.
Brad, I know it costs to behealthy.
It also costs to be unhealthy.
(28:28):
In your opinion, in yourexperience, is it worth making
the investment in yourself to bethe healthiest version of
yourself?
Brad Taysom (28:38):
Oh, 100%, without question.
My dad and I actually weretalking about it one day and I
(29:06):
said, you know, I was like,instead of spending my money on
treats and fast food and junk, Ispend my money on, you know,
supplements and you know,healthy foods to help keep me on
track.
You know, and it's interestingthat I, I do that and it's funny
when I get hungry, I don'tthink of a restaurant, I don't
think of think of something atthe convenience store or
anything else.
When I get hungry, I'm thinkingof something that I can cook at
(29:32):
home.
It's usually meat and veggies.
If I'm feeling depleted or rundown, I'm looking for a good
(29:52):
source of meat somewhere.
Doing those things, doing theright things for your body, to
have that respect for God's giftto us, these bodies that we
have, you know, and you reap theblessings of making those
(30:15):
choices right.
I mean no different than livingthe gospel.
It's.
You choose the, the right,you're going to feel good, right
and um, this is.
It's funny.
I, I, I find a lot ofsimilarities between you know,
(30:37):
health and fitness, and journeysand and spiritual journeys as
well.
So many parallels there to bedrawn, but it gets easier and it
(30:57):
gets better and it gets better.
Um, you know, I've I've gonelong enough now, uh, without the
the treats, um, that, uh, it nolonger bothers me to be at
birthday parties and uh otherspecial gatherings.
(31:19):
Um, I just had my birthday, umyou know, a couple of weeks ago,
and uh, other specialgatherings, um, I just had my
birthday, um you know a coupleof weeks ago, and uh, I didn't
even, I didn't think twice aboutthe um uh, having birthday cake
(31:40):
or ice cream, or or giveyourself the gift of health
instead of junk food.
Kevin Tinter (31:42):
Right, yeah, brad.
So you did this.
I mean you started.
It was either late January orearly February that you started
this round.
Your life and your workschedule are very difficult.
You rotate between day andnight shifts.
I mean your schedule is crazy.
You have a family, four kids.
You've got this house.
This project I know you'rebuilding is crazy.
You have a family, four kids.
You've got this house, thisproject you know, I know you're
(32:04):
building an outbuilding thatyou've done a ton of the work
for you, excavating all kinds ofstuff, all kinds of excuses.
How did you manage to gethealthy with a life as chaotic
as yours?
And what would you tell someonewho's like I don't have time,
my life is too busy to gethealthy?
Brad Taysom (32:20):
You know that that's the beauty of OptiBea is
it doesn't it doesn't requirethat time.
It actually gives me more time.
The because of, because of thefive and one and the simplicity
of it, um, and the leaninggreens, um, I'm able to, I get
(32:48):
up and I have a bar and I get towork, Um, that's the beauty of
the fat burn and and and all ofit.
It it so simplifies my life andit it takes away the need for
those decisions, those difficultdecisions at times, at
(33:10):
different times.
Um, my, my hardest, hardestthing was probably realizing,
depending on what my day was andhow hard I had been working,
was, you know to, and I feltextremely depleted and and
(33:31):
hungry.
You know it was okay.
Like, if I'm gonna do anyvariation or vary from this plan
at all, I'm going to eathealthy sources of protein and
fats and it always served mewell and so I.
(33:54):
That's the beauty of of theprogram is there's not you don't
have to have a mandatoryworkout schedule.
There's nothing stating thatyou need to do this crazy
workout in order to see yourbody change.
(34:15):
I will be the first to admitthat my life is's different than
most and my workouts are kindof built into what I'm just
doing every day.
Um, a lot of the time there isa.
There's a time coming soon thatthat will change from working
(34:36):
on my home as my workout is togoing to the gym and rebuilding
those habits.
But if your life is busy, thiswill simplify it like a hundred
times over.
Like it will like um, you getthe feelings that that fit your
(34:57):
life, that are easy for you totake and grab, and um, it's your
.
Your focus is more on becauseit's all laid out and you know
exactly what has to happen eachand every day and you're only
planning one meal, it it.
(35:19):
It takes all the distractionsaway from you and at the worst
case, at the end of the day, I'mthrowing chicken thighs in my
air fryer and I'm throwing somebroccoli in the in the microwave
and I'm good you're done, yeahum and the amazing thing is you
(35:41):
and anyone else who follows youknow a good program.
Kevin Tinter (35:45):
They can get to 15 percent sub 15 percent body fat
, which is incredible.
I mean the physicaltransformation, the visual
transformations, profound for aman.
That's healthy.
And most people don'tunderstand.
They think that they have to dokiller workouts to get there.
And you and I, we both loveexercise.
But the analogy I use isexercise is really the fine
(36:06):
tuning tool.
You know the, your diet, yourhabits, that's the heavy lifting
.
And when you realize, when youlearn that you can get to a
healthy weight without having toimplement a crazy workout
schedule, that you can takeyourself to that next level.
But you'll always fall back toyour habits and you'll always
fall back to your diet.
(36:27):
And so if you learn how tocreate lifelong habits, healthy
habits in those areas, then whenyou go through busy seasons
where you can't work out the wayyou want to, it doesn't mean
that your, your health and yourweight goes out the window.
So, brad, you're, you knowyou've wrapped up.
You're wrapping up transition,you're kind of moving into this
what we call optimization stageof your life and you know you
(36:50):
might need a slight tune upevery once in a while, but
certainly I know your goal isthat you never have to lose a
significant amount of weightagain.
What are some of the lifestylechanges and habit and mindset
changes you're committed to thistime around to help you stay
healthy even longer and, ideally, just to continue to improve
your health for the rest of yourlife?
Brad Taysom (37:25):
ties in protein in my diet, um, whole foods, as you
know, in general, like you know, the fresh fruits and veggies
and and things, I, I really umstaying away from processed
foods altogether.
Like I, I don't see any reasonfor me to need to reintroduce
those things into my life, right?
Um, that's, uh, what littlesatisfaction, or brief
(37:49):
satisfaction, or joy that mightcome from them.
Um, there's not worth the, thelonging, you know, lasting
effects of it.
It's not.
It's not that those temptationsaren't there, don't get me
wrong.
I mean it's, it's there, it'sbeen.
It's not that those temptationsaren't there, don't get me wrong
.
I mean it's, it's there, it'sbeen a part of my life, um, and
and there's all kinds of thingsthat are, they're tied to it.
(38:10):
Food is an emotional thing, um,for a lot of people.
But you know, I've I've hadconversations even with my
daughter, um, as she's trying tomake changes, and for me, a
constant reminder to myself is,no matter how good that, that
(38:31):
treat or that food might be atthe time, the consequences of
eating that, and it's not thatI'm going to eat that and
instantly gain five poundsthat's the problem, right yeah,
like it's, you're not like, Imean, it's just not.
(38:51):
But what am I going to feel thenext day, or the day after that,
or even the hour after that?
It doesn't stop with just thatone, that one treat, that one
indulgence, the the food isdesigned and and to trigger
those, those thoughts and thosedesires for that, for the
(39:16):
unhealthy foods, and so for me,when I'm, when I'm faced with
those things, it's not worth it.
It's not even worth the risk.
I don't, I don't, even if itdoesn't do that to me, even if I
could just have that and bedone with it and everything's
good for me in my history, it'snot worth having that indulgence
(39:42):
and risking the fact that Imight have to deal with that for
the next two or three days.
Kevin Tinter (39:48):
Yeah, it's choosing your heart right.
You can either choose the harddecision of eating healthy and
making healthy decisions, or youcan choose the easy decision in
the moment, of eating crap, butknowing that you're going to
experience the hard after thefact.
Um, if you do that and andwe're certainly not saying that
(40:10):
you can't ever have a treat youknow, you and I have talked
about the fact that we bothstruggle with, you know, sugar
addiction, and it's just one ofthese things where, uh, you know
, if you're an alcoholic andyou've been sober for years and
you get to the point where youthink you can maybe manage a
drink like it's, you just haveto decide is it worth the risk,
cause you don't know what'sgoing to trigger, um, that full
(40:32):
on addiction again.
So, um, for those who arelistening, if you haven't
already had a conversation withan Optavia coach and you're
interested in learning more, youcan go to beckandkevcom.
Or go directly to beckandkevcomslash get-healthy.
So that's slashG-E-T-H-E-A-L-T-H-Y for the link
(40:55):
to our quick health assessmentthat will help you start the
conversation with us or one ofour qualified coaches.
And the cool thing is anyone whosigns up for a full month on
our program a minimum of $350and references this podcast with
Brad Taysom, will get a $50credit from us to help them get
started at even bigger savingsand, most importantly, start
(41:16):
your own personal journeytowards your version of healthy
freedom.
So, brad, again, brother,congratulations.
It really is.
It's an honor to be your coach.
I'm honored to count you as afriend.
I know we've only seen eachother in person one time, but
that was a special.
(41:37):
I remember that and it was atreat and I consider you a good
friend and I know that if I andI, you know, I consider you a
good friend and I know that ifI'm ever in your area, that we
would connect and have some goodtimes, and I hope you know that
if you and family ever downhere, you are welcome the same
way.
So again, congratulations.
Thank you for sharing yourstory.
It's an inspiration to me and Iknow it will be inspirational
(42:00):
to many other people.
Thank you, kevin.
I appreciate it.
Awesome, all right, friends.
I hope you enjoyed.
Um, if this strikes you assomething that would be helpful
to you, please reach out.
And if, if it's not for you, Ithink we all know someone, uh,
that is in the shoes, similar towhat Brad has been a couple of
(42:21):
times in his life, and thequestion really is are you going
to be that good friend to reachout and offer a lifeline to
someone who desperately needs it?
So thanks, brad, so much forbeing here.
Thank you, friends, forlistening and go have a
wonderful uncommon day.
God bless.
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