Meet Brenda Brailsford | Holistic Health & Wellness Consulting

We had the good fortune of connecting with Brenda Brailsford and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Brenda, what principle do you value most?
Purpose, Health, Awareness, and Gratitude…I value purpose, something bigger than yourself that gives you meaning in your life. Health in all areas-physical, mental, emotional, and soul health and the awareness that must come with it. Meaning paying attention to yourself, to others, to the world around you, to emotions, to situations. It means being able to see everyone and everything clearly – most importantly yourself. Taking the time to listen to your body, to watch your thoughts, to connect with and appreciate the world and the universe that you find yourself in. Gratitude brings it all together, by providing a powerful perspective shift whenever you feel yourself get into a rut.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I guide women in their healing journey to reverse decades of dieting, stop obsessing over food and body without settling. What sets me apart is my focus on women going through a new chapter of their lives and on the psychological aspects of eating and exercise. I promote weight loss and exercise but never at the expense of losing themselves. I am proud to be a representation of a no BS, fearless and authentic woman and to have the opportunity to lead other women on their journeys to becoming just that! Building a community of women over 40, bringing light and a new outlook to the female aging process (peri/menopause) in the most authentic way. I am excited about the programs I have developed to help clear up the confusion around what’s going on with their bodies and help them find the courage to change their relationship with food and self-image. Helping them to find confidence and pleasure in food, and radically love themselves. I got where I am today by surrounding myself with others who push me to level up, break through fear, and not be afraid to fail my way up. Of course, it hasn’t always been easy, failing isn’t fun, there have been moves, adjusting to different gyms, learning to build my own confidence and ultimately breaking off on my own, educating myself more, learning the back end of the business, and ultimately creating my consulting business. I look back and realize that things were coming together in ways I could have not foreseen in those hard times. I have learned that I must start most everything I want to accomplish before I am ready. Taking action, being adaptable, present, and staying true to my core values. I want the world to know I have a genuine desire to create change in the health/wellness industry-Lets be honest, I am actually demanding it! It is my life’s mission to provide an alternative to the status quo for all women. I want women to be able to let go of the BS the diet and fitness industry has been selling them, have bodies they love, but I am not stopping there-I want them to change their lives and feel amazing! Learn to love themselves at this stage of life and at any-body size.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
This is a hard one, I love so many things about Colorado! So much so, that the 3 times I have moved away I always end up coming back. I would take my best friend to Steamboat Springs. We would wake up early and hit a hike at Fish Creek Falls, then make our way for breakfast at Creek Side Cafe to have a mimosa and share a breakfast burrito the size of our heads! We would make our way over to the Steamboat Hot Springs to soak up some beneficial minerals in the most beautiful natural setting. Next would be some cruising around the downtown area shopping and visiting my favorite art gallery Jace Romick. Dinner would be at the E3 Chop House outside by the river, we would start with the charcuterie board and follow it with a 6oz filet. The night would end with a nightcap of whiskey at the Steamboat Whiskey Company. Steamboat speaks to my soul with its unique mix of seasons, good food, laid-back atmosphere, history, and outdoor adventure.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I would like to dedicate my shoutout to all of the CrossFit communities that I have been lucky enough to be apart of. Despite having moved on from the CrossFit space, I feel it would only be right to honor the place where my career started as well as my own health and wellness journey. I was in a rough patch in my own life when I found a great community of people all getting fit together and learning together-what at the time was a very new concept around working out. This group kept my spirits up and inspired me, I fell in love with nutrition and learned to take better care of my body. They gave me my first coaching job after getting my level one certification. I moved away here to Colorado and found a new community that took me under their wing. I worked in every part of the gym, got certified in nutrition coaching, and ran my nutrition business there. I shadowed great coaches and personal trainers, developing the skills that can truly only happen through hands-on experience, trial, and error. I received my level two while working here. I moved on to two other communities in CrossFit that were both short term and both great experiences, where I met some great people and was able to see a new future, where I could take my career further. They gave me the courage and fearlessness I needed to move on to better myself in both my nutrition knowledge and advanced functional fitness. The CrossFit community ultimately gave me health, support, and mentorship. It believed in me despite where I was starting from. CrossFit brings people together through connection, encouragement, and love. The people I have met in these communities have become some of my greatest friendships today. I must mention Marc David of The Institute for the Psychology of Eating for helping me take my nutrition consulting to amazing new levels. And the most important would be my husband who is my biggest cheerleader and has encouraged me in every step of my journey.

Website: https://brendabrailsford.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bhealthandwellnessconsulting/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bspicyconsulting

Image Credits
Photo credit: Chelsea Scanlan