Episode 49: You're Already Amazing!
Today’s guests are a bubbly burst of energy and were so much fun to interview!
Emma and Carla Papas are also known as the Merrymaker Sisters and founders of The MerryBody App – which is a unique combination of physical movement with the mindset work of self-belief, body confidence, and self-acceptance.
I personally have been using the app for nearly 2 years and it’s a workout that makes you feel good about yourself. It’s a workout that makes you quickly realise: “I’m already amazing!” and the best part is, you can choose 10mins or an hour, yoga, pilates, meditation or just follow along!
Emma and Carla are real-life sisters, best friends and business partners. The sisters started their business in 2012, when Carla was 22 and Emma was 24. Through their online platforms, the sisters now reach over 200 000 people every month with their blog, newsletter, social platforms, podcast and Online Classes.
Today we talk about all things from the freedom of quitting dieting, why the practice of self acceptance is so important and the BIG question… Which form of exercise is better… Yoga or Pilates! Oh and there may be a discussion about why pasta is essential to life!
You can find out more about the girls and hang out with them over on social media…
https://themerrymakersisters.com/
https://www.facebook.com/Themerrymakersisters/
https://www.instagram.com/themerrymakersisters/
They have also very generously gifted a free Mood Lifter Yoga and Pilates Fusion Class.
Get ready to experience a full body workout that makes you feel amazing. In 26 minutes you’ll enjoy the combination of mat Pilates and Yoga flow that is designed to help you let go of any thoughts no longer serving you by bringing you into the present moment.
Access your free class here:
https://themerrymakersisters.com/online-yoga-and-pilates-classes/
Links and Resources
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And, if you enjoyed this episode, please leave me a rating and a review? Thanks!
Transcript
Kylie: Hello. Hello. Welcome back ladies, and welcome to the Hormone Hub Podcast. And today I am super, super excited. I have two very special guests. I have Emma and Carla Papas with me. Now you might know them from the Merry Body App, so Yoga, Pilates, body positivity. I’ve been following these ladies for such a long time, like way back in the Merry Maker days, which I’m sure they’ll be very familiar to a lot of you, and so excited to have them on the show today.
Welcome girls.
Emma: Thank you so much for having us.
Kylie: Oh, pleasure. We were just chatting before we went live because Carla’s about to get married and Emma has just had this epic trip through Italy. So it was just like me bombarding them with a thousand questions before we before we hit live. So, welcome girls.
I’m so excited to have you here and, you know, so tell us [00:01:00] a bit about, you know, for those of you who know them, for those of you who would like to get to know them, you know, tell us a bit about yourselves and yeah, tell us a bit about, yeah, the Merry Body, I don’t know empire now.
Emma: Yeah. Well, we’re, as we said, we’re honored to be here, so thank you so much for having us on your show.
Merry Body. In a nutshell, I’m gonna quickly tell you about it. So basically it is movement and meditation, but it’s movement and meditation driven with the mindset work of self-acceptance, self-confidence, and joy. So it’s very different to your usual fitness platform. It’s all online, obviously, not obviously, but obviously to us it is.
So Very different to your usual fitness platform. However, this all came about because of our own personal journey with diet culture, and with, uh, an over exercising mentality. [00:02:00] So let’s go back all the way back to 2012.
Kylie: Yeah, this is, sorry. I was gonna say, this is gonna be something that so many women are gonna resonate with.
Yeah. I, I love hearing this story because I simply resonate with it.
Emma: Yeah. I feel like we all have like a similar shared story or just this really like negative relationship with diet and exercise in some way or another. And for us, you know, I had developed an eating disorder. I was bulimic, Carla had been dieting since like age 11.
Like, we grew up thinking that our bodies weren’t right. Yes. And you know, not, in looking back at photos, like, no, we were fine. We were, we were definitely healthy and, and we just had such negative self worth. And we truly connected our, I guess our worth to the external body. The external body, yeah.
And this was, you know, developed through media, reading [00:03:00] magazines and whatnot. And gosh, I think about today with social media, it’s even more next level. So we got to this point, and in, in our early twenties, we were heavily addicted to exercise, I would say. Yeah. It was like we had to make sure we were working out an hour or two a day.
Yeah. If we skipped a day, we would feel anxious, we would feel bad. If we ate too much or overindulged on the weekend, Monday we would punish ourselves in the gym. Yeah. And it was just like this ongoing cycle and we didn’t feel good inside and really, like we were not healthy. It wasn’t about health, it was about thinness.
Yeah. Like we didn’t, we really didn’t care about health. We only cared about how much we weighed. We only cared about how many calories were going in and what were going out. And it was entirely totally consuming and obsessing. And you know, it got to this point where it kind of reached the, the [00:04:00] peak or the rock bottom, whichever way you wanna go.
And it was when Carla was on this crazy 12 week like body sculpting diet she borrowed from an actual like fitness model, and of course I joined along as many sisters do, you, you kind of like do things together. And I was like, well, you can’t get skinny without me, can you? Uh, so we were on this like total obsession with like weigh-ins every day, or every Friday, was the weigh-in every Friday. And it was like if we didn’t lose weight in these 12 weeks each week, we were really disappointed. And, you know, we punished ourselves even more. We got to our goal weights, we were completely under weight. We’d only been eating chicken and broccoli for the three months.
So tired. Our periods disappeared. We destroyed our hormones. We didn’t even know about about the importance of this, or we kind of were like, cool. No. Period. So this is how out of the loop we were with our bodies. And we got to this point and we were. [00:05:00] Geez. Like we look, we think we look really good, but we feel like crap.
Yeah. And that was when we discovered paleo and we went on that path of like, oh real food. There’s, this is important. And although we don’t follow any diet now, and although we did get addicted to the paleo diet and it kind of took it down, uh, you know, going back a few steps, it was a part of our healing journey with food and exercise.
And then, you know, fast forward we realized actually, no, you know what we need to do? We need to self accept. We need to accept ourselves. And then combine that with good quality produce, a balanced exercise routine, movement, more joy, more happiness. And that kind of just led to Merry Body. It kind of was just like our journey has now been put into an app and it’s such a joy to create these classes and bring it to all the amazing women.
And, you know, a handful of men because we have a few, maybe three, and some husbands and boyfriends. Kids.
Kylie: [00:06:00] Yeah, I was gonna say. Yeah. Cause I’ve been part of the, the Merry Body community now for, oh, probably about, probably about 18 months. And I say my, my dog is a big fan because, he knows that I’m gonna be lying on the ground and, you know, so he’s, he’s down and up and down and up with that as well.
Emma: So they’re so funny. They’re, the dogs are so funny.
Carla: Anytime I roll my mat out, like Chino thinks it’s for him. So he’ll go and like do his downward facing dog, like in his stretch, and then he’ll just lie down like right in the middle of it. Yes. No, you know what he does? He like rubs his face all over the mat and I’m like, dude, like I need to use that mat.
And now you put all your slobber all over it. This is not hygienic, you know, like I love them.
Kylie: Yeah, yeah. No, that’s, that’s funny. So, So, yeah, so I guess I first kind of became aware of you guys during the paleo thing. And you know, we, like we were saying before we hit record, like, I think as a nutritionist, the paleo sort [00:07:00] of movement did great things insofar as it brought a, a really good sort of, I think, general awareness of real food.
And I think, you know, it was really positive cause it was, you know, we should be eating, you know, whole Foods, we should be eating Whole Foods. And I think, you know, it started off as a really positive thing. And then, you know, like so many good things, you know, I think it was then it was picked up by the media and it went way too far.
Yeah. Like it started to then take out whole food groups unnecessarily And I think at the detriment of, you know, a lot of women, like all of a sudden we’ve gone from eat real food, eat real food to oh, except for… And then it was that restrictive kind of thing. Oh, you can’t have grains, you can’t have legumes, you can’t have, you know, I mean, imagine saying to India, for instance, No more legumes for you.
Yeah. Imagine going to South America and saying, [00:08:00] no more rice. Yeah. No more. You know, like it’s just crazy when you think about it. Yeah. So, you know, and I think, you know, paleo Pete just sort of like topped, topped it off. A hundred percent. Yeah. I think everyone knows what I’m talking about here, but you know, and I think that’s where it went too far.
And I think, yeah. You know, he was very instrumental in, in doing a great job of advertising it, getting it out to the mainstream, but also then did a great job of killing it in one go as well. So, yeah, unfortunately.
Emma: Yeah, and I think it’s like the, the rigidness of it and that whole like, For me, having like disorderly eating patterns and that obsession with counting calories.
Yes, like any diet can really be detrimental. I think if you have this, this really mental aspect with food and things like this is the hard thing cause you know, then you find this, this new routine to do and you become obsessed with this. Yes. Then you get anxious when you are at your friend’s house and you realize, oh my God, like every [00:09:00] salad has, has a bean or a legume and you’re like, I can’t eat this.
Yeah. And it’s like, you know, now I’m like, gee, like I really wouldn’t have eaten that back then. Like, that’s how scared I was of this food. It was like, if I eat this food, I’m gonna get inflammation and I’m gonna get fat because I still was obsessed with that. So it’s like, you know, focusing on just eating more whole food.
Yep. and not cutting anything out entirely, is so much more beneficial for our mental health. I truly believe that.
Kylie: Huge. And just that the stress around food and I think, so I always sort of encourage my clients, you know, eat what makes you feel good. Yes. So food should, you know, it should make you feel nourished.
So you should actually feel like you’ve eaten something, make you feel nourished. It should make you feel lighter. It should make you feel energized. But if you are eating foods that make you feel heavy and asleep, then they’re not the right foods for you. You know? Yeah. So then some people can feel like [00:10:00] that after salad.
So it, it’s, it’s working out what foods work for you. Not what foods are on the list that the diet says that you should eat. So, yeah.
Emma: Yeah. We’re all, we’re all different. Yes. So it’s like what one diet simply does not fit all humans. Right. Like, that’s just impossible. And like, exactly as you said, like depending on your culture, depending on how you grew up, uh, your, your food and how you react and your health obviously and anything, allergies, whatever you’ve got, like you need to be conscious of all this stuff. Yeah.
Kylie: We are very, very individual when it comes to food. And that’s why, you know, in my programs, like I don’t do, I mean I’ve got a 10 day sort of detox thing that, a kickstart that we do, but outside of that, I don’t do meal plans because I want people to sort of explore, you know, get the right balance of nutrients, but also explore what works for them.
And you know, if you’ve got something like cheese or bread or something that you [00:11:00] know doesn’t work for you, but you love it, choose to have it or choose not to, you know? I’m gonna eat it and I know I’m gonna feel a bit yuck afterwards, but I’ll live with it or I’m choosing not to eat it because I know what’ll do to me.
So, yeah, exactly. And I think that’s really empowering when you’re in control of what you get to choose, you know?
Emma: Yeah, yeah. And then it’s like, it’s very freeing when you make the choice to have that food that maybe once before you didn’t allow yourself to have, for whatever reason, whether it is that makes you feel sick, or whether it was on like a no list that you kind of made up in your head and you allow yourself to have it with absolutely no guilt.
Yeah. You just allow yourself to enjoy it. Because like there’s the whole of like not even feeling good, like within your actual body, but then it’s your mind. Yeah. Like we, you know, take us back 10 years, we would eat the food that maybe we had restricted ourselves on, but then we would beat ourselves up for a week or two about that one meal.
Yeah. And so it’s [00:12:00] just like a reteaching your mind how to approach food and realizing that you don’t have to feel guilty about it. You can enjoy it. Yeah. Even if it’s technically not the best food for your body, like in nourishment wise? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And I think, um you know, we were talking about Italy before.
And their relationship to food is so beautiful. And if you do ever get that experience to, to observe like an Italian family and how they cook, how they eat, it’s truly a beautiful thing. And it’s just, I guess, you know, for me it was like, food makes you fat, food makes you skinny, then it was that whole food is just fuel,, like, you know, these messages that we get a lot in Australia. Like, we’re missing the whole magic of food. And like, yes, the magic is that it keeps us alive obviously, it’s healthy, we need it, we depend on it, [00:13:00] but it also can bring so much joy and love to our lives. And I think when we start to look at food, with, with more depth, you know, you’re not gonna go to Maccas and eat Maccas.. Like, because let’s, we all know that that kind of food is not great for us. You know, if Maccas is your thing and you’re like, yeah, I’m, I, I don’t wanna restrict myself, I’m gonna eat Maccas. All right. Just don’t do it every day. All right. But, but maybe there’s a, a better kind of food that, you know, you could make and then it’s not necessarily healthy, but there’s more love in it.
Yeah, there’s, there’s more depth to it. There’s more richness to it. It brings more, maybe you’re cooking with your family. Yes. And it brings you together. It connects you together. It’s not just this like boom, fast food, in and out, stuff my face, done. Like I just think that in, and it’s in many cultures, not just Italy, of course, it’s just my favorite cooking.
Kylie: A lot of our favorites.
Emma: But you know, like, like these, these beautiful cultures. I think, you know, I [00:14:00] really wish that australia, you know, we, we kind of took more of that because obviously like we, we’re very multicultural, but I wish that was more a part of our culture. But I think we can each do that in our own households.
Yes. And in our communities even because that’s the other thing, like, you know, you, you go extended lunches and you know, everyone’s bringing plates and it’s just like this beautiful thing. And then everyone’s talking about the food and, oh, I got it from that farm I went, I went to a, a little Tuscan town and I bought this from here and I brought it back for you all.
Like, that was very, very noticeable. Every gathering I went to, someone would talk about this little olive oil I bought from this farmer, this old farmer, or like, you know, these olives here. These beautiful ingredients. Yeah. And. Like, I just don’t have those conversations here.
Kylie: No, no. We don’t have those conversations and I totally agree with you.
Cause food is what connects us. [00:15:00] Yeah. Whenever we get together with friends or it’s a birthday or Easter or you know, whatever it is, there’s food. Whether it’s Friday night and it’s a cheese platter. Like there’s food there. And then, you know, I hear from women all the time, oh, well I, you know, I’ve got this thing on Friday night with my friends, but I don’t think I’ll go cause I’m not sure what I can eat.
I’m like, no, that’s not about that. It’s about connection with people that just happens to be over food. And yeah, the food is the the connector. Hundred percent.
Emma: Yeah. Absolutely. And there was a point like in time where we realized, like we were saying no to life because of these like restrictions we are making.
And that was a really big like aha, like, hang on a minute, we’re saying no to life, and we’re saying no to experiences because of the fear we’re having around food. Yeah. And that was a really big like, you know, a bit of a, a moment where we had to take a step back and ask ourselves like, is this the life we want to live?
Like, do we want to [00:16:00] continue living day to day life?
Carla: This, imagine if we went to Italy on the paleo diet?! Stuff that, honestly.
Kylie: It’s just not gonna work.
Emma: It’s like excuse me, can I have pizza, but do you have a cauliflower base? But yeah, , no, I’ll say this, I’ll say that there was so much gluten free. Like if you are Celiac or like, you know, you really don’t wanna eat gluten because it makes you feel bad. There was so much great gluten-free food and like as we were saying before, Kylie, they don’t just eat pizza and pasta. Like some, some of the best meals I had, I mean, I was there in winter, so there were so many beautiful meat, so many beautiful vegetables and like very simple but beautiful vegetables, beautiful flavors.
So no that like, you don’t, you can be, you can totally enjoy Italy and be gluten free.
Kylie: Hundred percent, hundred percent. And then, you know, I’ve also had clients, I think the, I don’t know if it’s the wheat they use or the cooking or whatever, but I’ve had clients who can go to Italy and [00:17:00] France and eat all the bread. Eat all the pasta and be totally fine, and then they can’t do it here.
Carla: I’ve heard of so many people that, yeah.
Emma: And, and that’s because they have these traditional methods. Yes, yes. They’re not skipping to make the, they’re not skipping the steps to make it more efficient or to save money.
Kylie: Or to make 600 of them in a supermarket.
Emma: Yes, exactly. I mean, there’s definitely some pastas, damian, my partner, he’s like obsessed with everything italy, he’s very proud Italian. Uh, but he was watching like a report, I mean, I feel like every Italian is a proud Italian. Uh, and they’re watching a report on pasta and how like some pastas are like quick drying now, like 30 minutes, boom, they dry.
But then there’s other pastas that are more traditional and they take like the two days to dry. Yeah. And that will help you like it tastes better and it helps your body digest it better. Same with pizza, like the fermentation. Like this stuff is just so amazing and I hate that like, you know, the world has become obsessed with speed.
It’s become [00:18:00] obsessed with saving money at the detriment to our health. It just doesn’t make sense. Like when, you know, we should be also like prioritizing our health. Yeah. So it’s, you know, it takes longer to make the, the produce or the whatever, the food. Like that’s time well spent.
Kylie: Yeah, a hundred percent.
Emma: And, and maybe we can take that message for ourselves in the kitchen. Because, you know, I’ve been obsessed with being fast, you know, fast cooking. I love fast cooking. Not much time. I’m like, maybe I can appreciate the time that I spend in the, in the kitchen. Yeah. And I can know that, you know, this time and effort is well spent because I’m going to enjoy a beautiful meal for my, for my health.
But, Mental, soulful and connection with the people. So yeah. Yeah, definitely. Many good, many good lessons.
Kylie: Yeah. It, it’s not just food, it’s not what’s on your plate. It’s the meaning and love that goes behind that. Gosh, I love it. So next let’s talk [00:19:00] about, you know, from, you know, let’s talk about the Mary Body app, and you know, like I said, I’ve been sort of with you guys now in your world for about 18 months and I love it.
Emma: Yay.
Kylie: Uh, I do wish Emma would learn to count cause like just 10 more is never like, just 10 more
Emma: I knows. There’s at least 50 Kylie.
Carla: I try, I try to keep her on track.
Kylie: Like now I know just 10 more means about 50, but you know, obviously we’ve got team yoga, team Pilates, and I do enjoy both of you equally.
I have to say. Alright, so, so, yes. So which one’s better? Ha. Alright, lemme reframe that if you were starting out, okay. First up, we’ve got sort of, you know, we’re told to exercise, we’re told to, you know, do it. And when you were talking before about, you know, your obsession with the, the hour of the gym and all of that, You know, and we were, we were taught go hard, go home.
You know, there was no point going to the [00:20:00] gym if you weren’t going to flog your guts out sweat, you know, vomit, all of the things. Yeah. Your heart rate had to be at a certain number and Yeah. So all of that. So we kind of moved, you know, and I’m a big believer, and this is where, you know, we’re all on the same page here.
I’m a big believer in moving your body. I actually, you know, I say to my clients, actually, don’t care what you do as long as you move. Yeah. You know? So, so how would you, what would you say to someone who, you know, has come from that high intensity, they’re still doing, you know, F 45, they’re still doing, you know, boot camp. They’re still, you know, doing that intensity, but, you know, they’re just exhausted and they’re needing a sleep later.
Carla: Oh gosh. Yeah. Well, I mean, That was, I mean, we were totally, that was us. Yeah. And like it’s, it is a, oh, I don’t wanna say the word hard, but it, it is a, It takes time to [00:21:00] undo the idea that we have all come, not all of us. But if you have this idea of what exercise should be, yeah. That it should be hours or it should be no pain, no gain, or that you should be thrashing your body until you can’t walk up the stairs. Yeah. It takes time to kind of unlearn all of that. Like anything, like it takes time to learn a new language.
It takes time to unlearn something that we’ve been doing forever and ever and ever. I would say to add, instead of like stopping completely, I would just say, let’s add something different. For example, let’s add a slow beach walk or a slow nature walk, or let’s add a five minute deep breathing session, or let’s add a 10 minute Yin yoga session.
Yeah. And notice how you feel after those sessions. Yes. That would be my thing. I would just, I would ask you to check in with how you feel, and then perhaps compare how you feel to when you do that really high intensity to how you’re feeling after that yin yoga. Are there any differences? [00:22:00] And just notice.
Yeah. And there’s no, there’s no right, there’s no wrong. You’re just noticing. And then my prediction is that you might feel really nourished and calm and grounded after these slower movements, and you might feel really good. Yeah. And suddenly you might want a little bit more of that, and you might wanna start to, you know, every second day it’s this, what did you call it? Well, I think someone else coined the term, but I really like it. The lit. You might want a little bit more.
Emma: Oh no, I called it that.
Carla: More lower intensity training. The lit training rather .
Emma: And I think, and I think that’s what it’s, it’s not saying, you know, you have to stop. I mean, in some cases maybe you do have to stop if you’re like Absolutely adrenally depleted.
Yeah. Depleted. And you need to rest. but like this is the whole point. Like let’s not work ourselves so hard that we get to that point. I think like you can feel it, especially [00:23:00] women like it’s like we’re, I think we can, we’re really in tune with our bodies if we allow ourselves to be.
Yes. Yeah. And I could feel it that like, you know, my frequency was too high. Like, I was like, I was like on the edge. Yeah. And this, this faster, and like pushing myself. Not only did I actually not enjoy it as well, like I actually dreaded it. I hated it while I was doing it. Only after I’d be like, okay, I’m good now.
Like I’ve ticked that chore off. Now I can be rest assured that I’m okay. I did my one hour of crazy like nearly killed myself workout, boom. Done. And then, but then you realize that it doesn’t actually bring any goodness to your life. And actually you might be doing more damage than good as well.
Yeah. Uh, so it’s just like slowly changing your mindset around it and tuning in as Carla said, and knowing that, again, with food, same thing that just because sally’s doing this workout, Dan’s doing this workout, whatever, whoever it [00:24:00] is, doesn’t mean that’s the right workout for you. Yeah. So I think that’s really important, knowing that, you know, you are different to everyone else.
Carla: Yeah. Yeah. Like we always say like, we don’t mind, like if you wanna join Merry Body, give it a try. If you absolutely hate the way that we move inside Merry Body, please don’t stay. Like, we don’t want you to hate movement. We want you to find a way to move that you actually look forward to that It can, that it becomes like a favorite part of your day.
Because it can be that. It can be, it’s just that you haven’t found it yet. Yeah, and like often you have to try different things and that might be okay going for that morning walk. Or going to that dance class that you’ve been wanting to try or putting on your favorite song and dancing around the house. Like with no one else here. Maybe that’s your choice of movement. That’s great. Yeah.
Emma: Maybe even gardening. It’s such a good workout, such a good workout. You’re up, down, weeding. I was doing the gardens yesterday and I was like, I’m exhausted from this gardening, it’s a [00:25:00] hardcore thing.
Kylie: Yeah. Well, I remember, Sean, my husband, like his grandmother, and she would’ve been in her, she would’ve been about 94 at the time. And she, she dropped something on the floor and she bent down to pick it up with straight legs and she just bent down with straight legs and picked it up. I was like, oh my God. Your flexibility is amazing.
Emma: That is amazing.
Kylie: She said, oh, she said it’s gardening.
Yeah. And you know, she said, oh, cause I can’t squat down anymore. So she said, I bend over and, cause she was growing strawberries and she still lived alone.
Carla: Amazing. That’s amazing.
Kylie: And her flexibility was incredible. And it was just from that, you know, that function.
Emma: Yeah, yeah. And this is like, you know what you hear, like, you know, the blue zones around the world.
Like they’re not, they’re not scheduling five, 10 kilometer run every day. Like they’re, it’s this incidental life movement that happens because of what their day looks like. Yeah. So it’s [00:26:00] like, you know, they’re walking to the market or they’re walking to get their coffee and like, I, I love this, I love it when I have a day where like, I don’t actually plan to move, but I finished the day and I’m like, oh my gosh. All I did was move around today without even meaning to. And it was just because that was my life choice today. Like I walked to the beach and then I walked back and then I walked to get my coffee and then I walked back. And it’s really nice as well to to know that your movement can also be that, like it doesn’t have to be this scheduled in thing that you do for an hour.
It doesn’t have to be something that you go to. It can be something that is just weaved into your life.
Carla: Yeah. And I mean, that’s what we’ve found with many of our members. because a lot of our members are moms or like, they just, their schedules are crazy. Yeah. And they don’t have time for exercise.
Yes. So that’s why we make sure we have like the 10 minute classes. Yes. And it’s like, you know, you just you just find the time in your life, in your busy life. It’s like, okay, if you have to get up 10 minutes earlier, do that. If you, if you’re doing your, your Pilates or your yoga [00:27:00] just before bed, you, it might not be your preference, but you’re getting it done and then you do the meditation and you’re ready for bed.
Kylie: Absolutely. Without having to go and find a class.
Emma: Yeah, exactly.
Kylie: And get into the schedule of the center. Yeah. It’s why I love it so much.
Emma: Yeah, yeah. And like once you, like I will say, It takes, again, like learning anything new, it takes a little while to get used to doing your workout at home or like wherever you might be, if you travel a lot wherever you are.
But then when you, you find that routine, you find how it works for you. It’s like you can’t go back. Like, I can’t go back to like a normal studio anymore, cause I’m like, yeah, what, 5:30? That’s such an awkward time. I’m doing things at 5:30, like I wanna get my workout done at 3:30 and no one has a class at 3:30.
Yeah. , like, so it’s, it’s really nice to have the flexibility of knowing that you can do it whenever you want.
Kylie: I like it. Yeah. Because [00:28:00] I’ll, you know, set my alarm and sometimes I’ll get up straight away and do it, and then otherwise, other times I’m like, yeah, I’m just gonna lie here for 10 minutes and I’m not late.
Emma: I love that too Kylie, like, I feel like I’m much more like I just have time to be. Yes. Like, because I have less things to rush to. And I mean, look, I’m very conscious of the fact that I don’t have children and I’m like, my life is pretty like, like I can do what I want mostly. Yeah. Like I do, I have a lot of spare time. But it’s also nice to not feel like I have to get to this class. I don’t have to get anywhere. I can, and if I, if I feel like having a lazy Saturday morning, which I often do, I find the time later in the day to get on the mat and it’s really like just lovely again.
Carla: So lovely. I think it’s like again, this whole freedom, yeah, like this freedom away, like away from that regimented of like, I’ve gotta do this five times a week, or I’ve [00:29:00] got, I’ve gotta show up at 5:30 AM every morning and like tick it off. It’s really nice to release all of that. And you know, there’s so many things that everyone has to do every day, and as Emmy said, like everyone’s so busy and has so many things to tick off.
It’s really nice to just like be a little bit more flexible and fluid with these kinds of things.
Kylie: Yeah, yeah. And I will confess that sometimes, and usually it’s my kids that call me out, but I’ll actually just be sitting on my mat watching you guys do the workout.
Yeah. I think, I’m sitting still and I’m, because I run around like a manic idiot, all day, actually that’s my still time. So I actually feel okay just sitting there watching it. Yeah. And I think because I’m used to hearing your voices in the meditation and hearing, so for me just to sit and watch you guys do the hard work is actually very inspiring. [00:30:00]
Emma: That is like the best. I love that. It’s so funny.
Carla: I like that too, and I think that, you know, lots of people will ask us like, oh, how to get motivated. And that’s like one thing we say, like, just roll out the mat and watch it, and just watch, watch. Yeah. Like you don’t, like you don’t even have to do it.
Like take, even, just take the first deep breath with us. Yes. And maybe the last take breath with us and like that is so enough. I would, yeah, I would much prefer you to like sit and have a moment than feel like you are like, you know, rushing or like, you know, pushing yourself to like some point where like it doesn’t feel good.
Yeah. I think, I think that, these moments of stillness, they’re so limited in our lives that they’re so important. So like, if you are having time and making time for them, you’re on a, that’s a winning streak.
Kylie: Yeah, a hundred percent. And just calm that nervous system.
Carla: Mm-hmm. So, yes. I’m sure you would see that’s like, I don’t know, is that what you see? Like, most of the time it’s like everyone’s stress levels are just extreme.
Kylie: Yes. Yes. And the ladies, you know, sort of that are listening today [00:31:00] and the, the ladies in our audience and my clients, you know, it’s, and your friends, you would see it in your clients as well is that constant Go, go, go, go. And it’s the next thing, next thing. So to actually, I think as women we’re, we’re very capable and we just take on more and we take on more and we take on more and we don’t stop to breathe and we don’t stop to breathe.
Emma: We were just talking about this, how capable women are.
Our friend just had a baby. And we were kind of asking like, oh, how’s, how’s the partner going? Like, is he, is he doing lots? Blah, blah, blah. And then she kind of said, yeah, yeah, he’s been amazing. And then she kind of said, oh, but you know, I just do so much more. And it’s because she’s so good at it, so she just does it, you know?
Kylie:
We’re terrible delegators.
Emma: Yeah. We just, and cause perhaps maybe we think we’re better, which probably we are. [00:32:00] And it’s like we end up doing it all and we wonder why we’re so bloody tired. And also because we probably have seen our mothers, grandmothers, do everything too, so it’s, you know, there’s a whole other level to it.
Yeah.
Kylie: But no, like, it’s good to bear in mind that yes, they did it all, but it’s likely that they weren’t working in a full-time role as well, so we, we’ve kind of stepped up and we’re doing the whole thing. Yeah. At the same time, we’re running, you know, we’ve got careers and jobs and businesses, you know, all the things, so,
Carla: Yeah. So asking for help. Too much. Too much stuff. Yeah. Asking for help. Absolutely. Ask for help. Yeah. And it’s like we have to learn to, that those moments of like, you know, maybe it’s just two minutes of the deep breaths like they are actually so important and they make such a difference even though it feels like it’s just two minutes, what is that gonna even do?
Yeah, it [00:33:00] does. Like four deep breaths makes a difference. It’s like, and then that’s also like, it allows you to be like, okay, well that’s doable. I can take my four deep breaths and like, and know that, that that is a great thing that you’re doing for yourself. But yes, sometimes it’s very easy to forget.
Kylie: Yeah. Yeah, exactly. Exactly. We don’t, we don’t remember until we get that little reminder. Alright, ladies, this has been a great conversation. I’m sure we could just keep talking but you do have a giveaway for our listeners. So do you want to tell us a bit, a bit about that .
Emma: It’s the Mood Lifter Fusion stuff.
Carla: Yes. I was like, what? Which one are you doing? Cause Emma filled out the form that you sent us. So I’m like, you know, like, did we, didn’t we do this? Yes, yes, we did.
Kylie: Yoga and Pilates fusion.
Emma: Yeah. So it’s a really, it’s a really nice balanced class. It’s actually one of our [00:34:00] members’ favorite classes. Whenever we schedule it into the plan, everyone’s like, oh my God, I forgot how much I love this class.
Carla: And I’m in such a good mood now.
Emma: Yeah. And it’s a, it’s a combo of yoga, pilates, and you just feel grounded. You feel accomplished after it, you feel strong.
Carla: It’s 26 minutes, so it’s one of our kind of longer classes, uh, but it’s very, very doable. Yeah. And. I mean, everyone loves it because it starts with those helicopter arm things.
Yeah. So it’s like this kind of breath with relaxed movement and it just feels good. So if you’re feeling a bit of tension in your body, this class is for you. If you’re feeling a bit like, ah, flatness, I don’t know it, life is a bit blah right now, this class is perfect. It’ll really lift you up physically and mentally and soulfully.
Emma: There is a link. It’s a long link though, so I feel like it’s gonna be in your show notes.
Kylie: The link will a hundred percent be in the [00:35:00] show notes and,
Emma: like who made that url? Oh, we did.
Kylie: I don’t know. Some of mine are shockers as well. But you know, ladies, if you would like to, yeah, if you’ve been looking for a reason to roll out your mat, we’ve just given you the perfect, the perfect class. It’s free. We’ll put the link to that in the show notes and we’ll also put, you can find the girls on Facebook at the MerryMakers Sisters and also on Instagram at the MerryMakers Sisters. And, you know, I’ll also pop the link, on their website as well. And there’s more information there where you can have a look at the Merry Body app.
I highly recommend it. It is sort of like your little yoga Pilates personal trainer in your pocket.
Carla: Thank you so much for having us..
Kylie: Yeah, my pleasure. Thank you so much for coming and yeah, it’s been a great conversation and I’m sure we are gonna get some great feedback on the class that you’ve gifted to our [00:36:00] listeners, so thank you.
Emma: Yay. Our pleasure. Yeah, if you wanna let us know how you go, we’d love to hear from you. DM us on Instagram, tell us all about it cause it’s just, it’s really nice to get that feedback and to, to see you guys doing the class. Like it, it will take you from blah to ahh. That’s what we always say.
Kylie: Yeah, it does. Honestly, it’s, yeah, it’s a great way to start the day. All right, thanks girls and thank you for being on the show and I will no doubt catch up with you both very soon.
Carla: Yes, thanks. Bye.