What 15 Hours in a Backyard Ultra Taught Me About Resilience

What 15 Hours in a Backyard Ultra Taught Me About Resilience

In this episode of The Resilient Life, I share the story of my Backyard Ultra experience, why I deliberately chose a challenge that only had a 50/50 chance of success, what kept me focused throughout months of training, and how falling short of my goal ultimately made me stronger. We explore the power of consistency, the camaraderie of endurance events, the difference between motivation and discipline, and why setbacks should be viewed as feedback rather than failure. IN THIS EPISODE YOU'LL DISCOVER: • Why challenging goals accelerate personal growth • How uncertainty can increase commitment and focus • The mindset needed to keep going when things get difficult • What 15 hours of running taught me about resilience • Why failure is often the best teacher • How these lessons apply to health, fitness, strength and life after 50 Whether you're training for an endurance event, trying to lose weight, build strength or simply become more consistent with your health habits, this episode will help you see setbacks differently and approach your next challenge with greater confidence and resilience. Subscribe to The Resilient Life – The Art of Ageing Strong and discover how to stay strong, fit and capable for life.

The 80% Problem: Why Most Diets Fail As We Age (And What Actually Creates Lasting Health)

After nearly 30 years of coaching and living this myself through strength training and ultramarathons in my 50s, I’ve learnt that lasting health is rarely about the diet itself. It’s about building the mindset, environment, structure, and accountability that allow you to stay consistent when life gets hard. Why do so many smart, capable people still struggle to stay consistent with their health after 50? In this episode of The Resilient Life Podcast, I break down the real reason most diets fail, and why the problem usually has very little to do with nutrition itself. Drawing from nearly 30 years of coaching experience, as well as my own experiences with strength training and ultramarathons in my 50s, I explain why lasting health is built through systems, identity, structure, and resilience rather than motivation alone. You’ll learn why mindset, environment, and planning matter far more than most people realise, and how accountability can help you finally close the gap between knowing what to do and consistently following through. In this episode, you’ll learn: • Why motivation is unreliable after 50 • The hidden reason most diets fail long term • How your environment silently shapes your habits • Why identity matters more than information • The importance of daily structure and minimum standards • How accountability builds resilience and consistency If you want to stay strong, capable, healthy, and independent as you age, this episode will help you focus on the 80% that truly creates lasting results. If this episode resonates with you, subscribe to The Resilient Life Podcast and share it with someone who wants to build lasting health after 50. And if you want support building the mindset, structure, and accountability needed to stay consistent, visit www.reigateover50andstrong.com [http://www.reigateover50andstrong.com] to book a free discovery coaching session.

You Are Stronger Than You Think: Why Your Mind Will Let You Down Before Your Body Does

In this episode of The Resilient Life — The Art of Ageing Strong, I explore one of the biggest lessons I have learned from running ultra marathons in my 50s: the body is often capable of far more than the mind allows. Most people think they stop because their body has reached its limit. But often, the mind steps in first. It calculates discomfort, fatigue, fear, distance, effort and past experience, then convinces you to slow down, stop or take the easier option long before your body is truly finished. I explain how this same pattern affects health, fitness and consistency after 50. Whether it is strength training, walking, nutrition or building better habits, your physical body may be stronger than you think, but your system, mindset and environment determine how much of that strength you actually access. This episode will help you understand why ageing strong is not just about training the body. It is about building the mental resilience, structure and accountability that allow your body to keep showing up. If you want help applying what you have learnt from this podcast, join my 28-Day Resilience & Habit Challenge. You’ll choose one habit, commit to it daily, and build real consistency with structured accountability and coaching. Because staying consistent isn’t about trying harder. It’s about having the right system. Join my 28-Day Resilience Challenge For Free [https://chrisdeavin.substack.com/about].  Discover what it takes to never give up on your goals and how to become someone who consistently shows up and does what is needed to succeed with weight loss, becoming stronger and fitter. No matter your age.  Your first 28-day challenge is free to join.

Want Better Results As You Age? Make Sure You Do This One Thing.

If you’re over 50 and feel like you know what to do when it comes to your health, but you’re just not doing it consistently, this episode is for you. In this episode of The Resilient Life, I break down the real reason most people struggle to get results after 50. It’s not a lack of knowledge. It’s the gap between knowing and doing. I’ll walk you through a simple, practical system you can start using today to build consistency, improve your strength and fitness, and take control of your health long-term. We’ll cover why most plans fail, how to use discomfort as a tool for growth, and why accountability is the missing piece for most people. This isn’t about motivation or quick fixes. It’s about building resilience, creating structure, and learning how to follow through, so you can stay strong, capable, and independent as you age. If you’re ready to stop starting over and start making real progress, this episode will show you how. Join my 28-Day Resilience Challenge [https://chrisdeavin.substack.com/about]. Discover what it takes to never give up on your goals and how to become someone who consistently shows up and does what is needed to succeed with weight loss, becoming stronger and fitter. No matter your age. Your first 28-day challenge is free to join. 🎧 Listen weekly on The Resilient Life Podcast🌐 Learn more at www.myhealthcoach.online [http://www.myhealthcoach.online]📩 Subscribe to the myHealthCoach Substack for insights, guides, and real client stories: myhealthcoach.substack.com [https://myhealthcoach.substack.com/] Free Download: Living With Wisdom – The Six-Pillar Framework for Health After 50 If this article resonated with you, you’ll get even more value from my free guide, Living With Wisdom. It’s a practical framework I use with my coaching clients to help them stop starting over, build lasting habits, and create strength, health, and consistency that actually lasts after 50. Inside, you’ll learn: * Why willpower fails — and what works instead * How to build identity-based habits that stick * How to stack small wins into long-term momentum * How to design your environment for success * How to bounce back quickly when life gets in the way This isn’t another diet or workout plan. It’s a system for turning what you already know into a lifestyle you can finally sustain. 👉 Download your free copy of Living With Wisdom here [https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfHSc2s8admLFn_Ze8kiuGQ9w3-YpiCef6FAhrXd5FLFdnJ7g/viewform?usp=header] If you know what to do but struggle to do it consistently, this is a great place to start. Chris DeavinFounder, The W.I.S.D.O.M. ProgrammyHealthCoach.online | The Resilient Life The Resilient Life is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to The Resilient Life at myhealthcoach.substack.com/subscribe [https://myhealthcoach.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

If You Fix These 5 Nutrition Habits, Everything Changes After 50

Most people over 50 don’t struggle with knowing what to eat, they struggle with doing it consistently. In this episode of The Resilient Life, I break down the five nutrition habits that actually matter if you want to stay strong, lean and capable as you age. This isn’t about dieting harder or being perfect. It’s about building simple, repeatable behaviours that stabilise your energy, protect your muscle, and make consistency easier. We cover why protein becomes non-negotiable after 50, how blood sugar impacts your decisions (especially in the evening), why hydration is often the missing link, and how your environment, not your willpower, drives your eating habits. Most importantly, we explore why consistency is a skill, and how accountability is the fastest way to build it. If you want your health to match your standards in the rest of your life, this episode will show you where to focus. Join my 28-Day Resilience Challenge [https://chrisdeavin.substack.com/about]. Discover what it takes to never give up on your goals and how to become someone who consistently shows up and does what is needed to succeed with weight loss, becoming stronger and fitter. No matter your age. Your first 28-day challenge is free to join. 🎧 Listen weekly on The Resilient Life Podcast🌐 Learn more at www.myhealthcoach.online [http://www.myhealthcoach.online]📩 Subscribe to the myHealthCoach Substack for insights, guides, and real client stories: myhealthcoach.substack.com [https://myhealthcoach.substack.com/] Free Download: Living With Wisdom – The Six-Pillar Framework for Health After 50 If this article resonated with you, you’ll get even more value from my free guide, Living With Wisdom. It’s a practical framework I use with my coaching clients to help them stop starting over, build lasting habits, and create strength, health, and consistency that actually lasts after 50. Inside, you’ll learn: * Why willpower fails — and what works instead * How to build identity-based habits that stick * How to stack small wins into long-term momentum * How to design your environment for success * How to bounce back quickly when life gets in the way This isn’t another diet or workout plan. It’s a system for turning what you already know into a lifestyle you can finally sustain. 👉 Download your free copy of [https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfHSc2s8admLFn_Ze8kiuGQ9w3-YpiCef6FAhrXd5FLFdnJ7g/viewform?usp=header]Living With Wisdom [https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfHSc2s8admLFn_Ze8kiuGQ9w3-YpiCef6FAhrXd5FLFdnJ7g/viewform?usp=header] here [https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfHSc2s8admLFn_Ze8kiuGQ9w3-YpiCef6FAhrXd5FLFdnJ7g/viewform?usp=header] If you know what to do but struggle to do it consistently, this is a great place to start. Chris DeavinFounder, The W.I.S.D.O.M. ProgrammyHealthCoach.online | The Resilient Life The Resilient Life is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to The Resilient Life at myhealthcoach.substack.com/subscribe [https://myhealthcoach.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]