Join handler fitness trainer, Liz Joyce, and me for a podcast all about how you can start — or restart — your fitness journey, gently.  

 Transcript

Melissa Breau: This is Melissa Breau, and you're listening to the Fenzi Dog Sports Podcast, brought to you by the Fenzi Dog Sports Academy, an online school dedicated to providing high quality instruction for competitive dog sports using only the most current and progressive training methods. Today, I'll be talking to Liz Joyce about the role of handler fitness in dog sports and the ways that fitness can be adapted to help all handlers become more effective. Hi, Liz. Welcome back to the podcast.

Liz Joyce: Hey, Melissa, it's so great to sit down with you again. I'm super excited to chat about this stuff.

Melissa Breau: There's some new stuff today, so do you want to just start us off by reminding everybody a little bit about you?

Liz Joyce: Yeah, for sure. I am Liz Joyce and I am the human fitness coach on faculty with FDSA. And I specialize in helping dog handlers move better, stay stronger, and most importantly, prevent injuries.

I've been training humans for close to 20 years, and I've been focusing on dog handlers since 2016. And I work with clients of all different ages and abilities. And I'd like to focus on practical functional fitness that translates directly to life both in and out of dog sports, with a top priority of mine, helping humans develop really good quality movement. And my ultimate goal is to help handlers feel confident, capable and strong, whether they're just starting out or if they've been handling or working out for many years.

And you know, Melissa, historically, you always want to hear about my dog, so I'm going to tell you all about my dog. I have a male German Shepherd. He's 4, and his name is Levi. Levi loves to use his nose. And our primary sport right now is tracking. We also do some agility, if you believe it or not, we just started doing some agility. That is really, really exciting.

It is exciting. Yeah. We have a fun match coming up in a couple of weeks, so I'm pumped about that. And I am hopefully getting a puppy in the new year. And my goals with her are to do agility, which I just cannot wait to dive into. It's gonna be really fun. Am I allowed to ask breed of new puppy, are you getting another shepherd?

Liz Joyce: Oh, I am not. I'm on a couple of lists for both a Malinois and for a Dutch Shepherd, so fingers crossed the Dutchie works out. But they're both, like, both breedings look just amazing. I can't. I can't wait to have that, like, oh, I can't wait to have puppy in my house again.

Melissa Breau: Yay. That's super exciting. Yeah. So let's maybe start kind of with the basics. Right. So in your view, how does a handler's physical fitness or their mobility maybe influence, you know, their dog training effectiveness?

Liz Joyce: This is really important, actually, because how you move gives your dog so much information about what you want from them in the course. For agility specifically, if you're running and you start to slow down with your body physically, maybe you start leaning forward, it's going to give the dog a lot different information than it would be if you were upright or if you were able to rotate your shoulders more.

It would give them, again, more information about where you want them to go on course. So it's just better communication. And, you know, dogs do like to follow body movement. And if you're tight or off balanced or getting fatigued, it can, you know, slow down your cues or limit your ability to change direction quickly. And also it can increase your chance of injury. So, yes, it will impact your ability to hold posture and your ability to hold posture throughout the sport that you're doing.

And also when you're injured, it's a lot harder to do dog sports just in general. So for all of those reasons, it's really important for handlers to dig into it. You know, we give so much to our dogs and having a little bit of time to give back to ourselves so we can be there and like, a really present part of the team is really important. Is it ever too late to start a fitness journey either in terms of, like, fitness level in terms of.

Or something else, you know, what do you think really holds people back? I don't think it's ever too late to start working out or to increase the amount that you're moving. I really don't. I have had clients in their 90s that have started working out that have had huge increases in their quality of life. And that goes the same for people who are in their early 20s. I think anyone can benefit from taking better care of their body.

And in my opinion, you know, there's a few things that kind of hold people back, like a. It's unknown, so it could be uncomfortable, it could be extra hard. It's another thing to fit in. It's inconvenient, basically. That is definitely something that kind of holds people back often. I think if you were to really dig into it. The thing that I think holds people back from trying the most is fear.

That could be fear of injury, of maybe not being fit enough, a change in their, you know, perception, whether it's like, what people kind of think about as this is what this person does and now they do a different thing. Or maybe their own self perception I think can be something, something that's a little bit unnerving or maybe the whole commitment to the whole like fitness regime and it never being enough, all of that stuff can really add up to being it.

Seeming like there's just too big of a puzzle to work on. And the goal of the class that I'm running this term is to break it down or make it like you can totally do this and hopefully help people build a habit and even more than that, confidence in themselves that they can try and that also in a six week period of time see improvement in workouts and routines that are not too hard for them, but they're at like an appropriate level for really anybody. So for somebody who's, you know, starting at that kind of very beginning phase.

Melissa Breau: Right. What aspects of fitness do you recommend looking at just to get them started?

Liz Joyce: I think it's important to like start small, you know, when people. I'm sorry, I also want to add this to your last question, but I think it's relevant here too is to like start with a small amount of stuff like jumping into too many, like too big of a routine is really quite daunting.

And I think that where people get a little bit off track is they can sometimes think too far ahead and think about where they want to be in 10 years or maybe where their friend is and they've been working out for many, many years. But comparison is the thief of joy. So it's important to really look for and celebrate all of the small wins and progress. And that is really helpful for things kind of sticking, especially when you're beginning.

And when I'm working with someone who's new and they haven't been working out very much, I'd like to focus on the things that are going to improve their posture and their movement quality and their comfort the most with the least amount of effort. And for me, and these are not all things that need to happen independent of one another. But I am going to list some things that I like to work with.

With new clients, I like to work on their core strengths so we can work on their stability and their power transfer and also posture. That's really helpful for post. I also like to work on balance because it's important to be able to move confidently. But a piece of that too is being able to react quickly. Breathing is something that gets overlooked by people. Often everybody breathes. I think it's like 22,000 times a day.

People breathe. So we assume we're good at it, right? We assume we're good at it. I mean, yeah, you could assume so, but it's amazing how like people's breathing can kind of get out of sync if they've been in pain for a long time, if they've had surgery or if their posture's been affected. There's all kinds of things that can impact how someone breathes. And how they breathe will also go up and downstream in terms of, you know, being able to actually get into a rest and digest state, into also neck tension and upper body tension.

All kinds of things can happen when breathing's out of sync. So that's like a real low lying fruit that doesn't take a lot of time to reprogram that. I like to work on also functional strength. So it's important for handlers to be doing exercises and workouts that are going to directly translate into what they're doing with their dog sports. I think stretching and mobility is also really important.

Having joints and muscles that move freely really enhances a person's comfort in their body day to day and also makes strength training a lot safer for them. And lastly, these nutrition basics. And like, this is not a whole, you know, rehaul, let's rehaul your whole kitchen cabinet. Let's do like only a green smoothie for breakfast type thing. But it's just about helping people understand really simple habits that fuel energy and also recovery.

And I know that it sounds like a lot, but I'd like to break it down and I do break it down into bite size and doable steps or the goal. Well, all that stuff is going on in the background for me. My goal for the person, their experience is for it to not overwhelm them, but it's just about restoring better movement and helping them feel comfortable in their body while we're building a higher quality of life.

I like that. And I feel like, you know, when you stop and think about it, we think so much about quality of life for our dogs and we don't really spend nearly as much time thinking about quality of life for ourselves. And it's so important. And I mean, just on the, the food tips piece, I have a good friend recently who consulted with a nutritionist and the main piece of advice was add more protein.

And she's been amazed just how much additional energy she has on a day to day basis by actually just adding more protein into her life. Like it? Yeah, it's shocking. Little different changes can make such a big difference. It's shocking. Like, it's really shocking energy levels. Also, people that feel hungry all day long, just simply increasing the protein without them consciously, you know, trying to eat different or limit food intake or whatever?

Having higher levels of protein intake, like, that helps so much. And also there's all kinds of hacks to make that happen in a lot easier way. I think. I think it's really important when you're looking at nutrition that it's kind of a play on what you're already eating. You already like these things. It's already a part of your day to day life. You know, food's such a part of our culture too, that, like, you can just make some swaps in what you're already doing. It's really not that hard to fit extra stuff in.

Melissa Breau: Yeah. So can we dive into each of those pieces just a little bit more? Is that cool?

Liz Joyce: Yeah, for sure.

Melissa Breau: So looking at kind of balance and core strength, how can improving, you know, your balance and your core strength directly translate into better handling, better timing, you know, better movement with your dog? And how are we kind of talking about balance in this fitness context?

Liz Joyce: Great question. Okay, so core strength sits at the heart of every effective fitness program, and it should, and it's there all across the board for a very good reason. Having a stronger core will support better movement and also help you better coordinate your body. Think about it like the, you know, communicator between your upper and lower body. So when people are running, having a strong adaptive core that's functioning well will help them coordinate movement a lot better.

It also makes slowing down, changing directions a lot safer. And also, balance is obviously about what we're doing with our lower body, but a huge part of that is your core strength and your pelvis. If you think about your pelvis like a bowl and your legs come out, coming out the bottom of the bowl, there's a lot more at the top of the bowl. And, like, a lot of balance in your pelvis and your legs and your hips all comes from having a good functioning core.

It also impacts your posture, like I said, and your breathing. So your diaphragm should be your breathing muscle. But also when your core lacks the strength to do the things that you need to do. Your diaphragm steps in. Our bodies are amazing adaptation machines. It steps in, and then it can become one of your primary postural muscles, which makes breathing just so much harder. So having a stronger core and working on your breathing will make you have so much more energy during the day.

And if you're someone who's doing agility. It makes it finishing the runs just a lot easier on you because you're not trying to breathe. And also hold your posture with the same muscle. That is like a lot of extra work we can like, not do. And almost everything we do as handlers improves when our core function improves. You know, holding a tug and, you know, tugging with your dog.

Having a strong core will protect your back. I mean, it's not gonna. I can't say for sure it's gonna protect it all the time. A lot of that is mechanics too, but it gives you a stronger base. And, you know, balancing isn't just about standing on one leg. Well, that is a part of it, and it is a good way to work on it. For us as handlers, I think about balancing is more about controlling our body when it's in motion.

And when your body and your balance, when your core and your balance are solid, it helps people pivot quickly, change directions smoothly, and also stay lighter on their feet. Their body just becomes a lot more responsive. A large amount of people that work with FDSA and also all over the world, of course, we're all like every day getting older. And balance is something that people assume they have until they kind of don't have it anymore.

And it's important to be working on these things when you're, you know, when you still have it, it's easier to kind of keep it up, but also the course breaks it into like 5 or 10 minute little bite sized things so you can kind of work on. The goal is you being able to have simple drills you can do during your day to kind of always be thinking about how you're sitting in your skin and moving around.

Melissa Breau: Yeah, you mentioned breathing in there kind of passingly. But how does breathing in particular impact our ability to handle on course during the ring? Can you dive into that a little more?

Liz Joyce: Yeah, for sure. Like I said, when you're. There's all kinds of reasons that people's core function can get disrupted. And surgery is one of them. Being in chronic pain also, you know, whether that's from medical stuff or if you're in pain in other places or if you're kind of chronically stressed.

But people tend to breathe kind of up into the top part of their ribs, you know, or they don't allow the bottom part of their ribs to open in kind of a 360 degree fashion. So the diaphragm isn't ever really able to move its full course or through its like full range of motion. And when you're running on course, like if that's happening, the top, the bottom of your bridge will kind of clamp in and get really, really tight.

So it's really tough to get a full lung of breath. And also it changes how the rest of your abdomen is working as a unit. So it makes your sprinting stride. It will affect your sprinting stride, how much you're able to extend your leg or drive your knee up. It also impacts how your back feels and your diaphragm function and your psoas function are so closely tied. And that can really also change how your back feels.

I think a lot of that also comes down to people being protective of their body when they're moving, whether they need to be or not. And I think the biggest thing that people would notice is that it's just a lot easier to breathe when they're breathing and their core is working as a unit instead of opposing each other. Did that answer your question?

Melissa Breau: I think so. I think that kind of tackles that. Okay, so I think the next thing you kind of listed when we were talking about all the pieces, right, was functional strength. So how is functional strength kind of different or how do you think about it differently, I guess, than like gym style strength? And why is that kind of where you want to start when people are just starting to build a fitness habit?

Liz Joyce: So when I think about gymstrong, I picture people using machines that guide the movement or doing most of their strengthening with both of their feet planted or in a seated position.

And there's nothing wrong with that. I think it's great for people who are for starting out to have the help of a machine to kind of force their body into, you know, specific movement patterns and. But functional strength, you know, makes me kind of think this question, like, does this exercise or does this use of this person's time serve the function or the goal that they have? And for handlers, that goal usually means some in.

And this shows up in a bunch of different ways in different dog sports. But what that usually means is having stabilizers and a core that can react to real life. And whether that's adjusting to uneven ground or responding to a dog that has a sudden change in their tugging monster habits or handling, you know, twist and twists and turns or changes of direction. On course, I also think about functional strength as it reinforcing practical day to day movement in things that people are actually doing in their life.

So squatting, lunging, stepping up onto things, pushing, pulling. It's the stuff that people actually do in their day with less assistance from machines. So they have to learn how to use their body rather than rely on a machine to put them in a specific movement pattern. And it also should be mimicking what they're doing with their dog, both in life and in their dog sport. And gym style strength doesn't always and doesn't necessarily translate into better handling the focus.

In gym style, strength is not about keeping a tall posture while you're going through a more complex movement. And those kinds of things. Teach people's bodies and their brains how to move better. And it's amazing, Melissa. It will blow your mind. People focus on those things for a short period of time, how much their movement patterns change. It's really quite incredible. It would be fun to sit down and really look at some of those before and afters and be able to see.

Yeah, yeah. For real. It is really cool. Okay, so mobility. I think that was the next one. So how do we start rebuilding mobility in, like, a gentle way? I mean, hips, ankles, spine, I'm assuming those are kind of the pieces, right? Like, how do we do that in a way that's not overwhelming? I guess when I am working on stretching and in this class, the types of stuff that we're going to be doing in the mobility portion is focusing on the stretching patterns and movement patterns that are going to make the biggest impact to how the person's feeling and how they're functioning.

Then I think people kind of get into hot water when they're stretching and working on mobility stuff because they want to build Rome in a day and rome was a project, you know what I mean? Like, those bricks were made one by one and, you know, like, it was a project. And when people push mobility or stretching too hard, too fast, the body kind of will tense up and doesn't actually stretch the stuff that they necessarily need to be stretching.

So again, what we're doing in this class is focusing on the things that are going to make a really big impact to how person is moving and also, arguably more important, how they're feeling in their body. Things like their rib cage or their thoracic spine. Are they able to move it in different ways and stretch it? Are the muscles in the rib cage allowing the diaphragm to move properly?

We're also going to be looking at people's feet and their calves, because handlers, by and large, y'all, we walk a lot. We walk and hike and run with our dogs, and the feet are the fall guy for that a lot of the time and can cause people, if you haven't had sore feet that have taken you out, like, this is amazing. And those of you that have, know that it's important that we are taking care of those things in a proactive way.

And then I also like to work on, you know, rotational ranges that we would need to use for running. And also walking is just a more muted way than. It's the same pattern as running, but just a little bit muted. You walk a lot and you're not moving great. It doesn't necessarily add up to you feeling so much better or as good as you could be if you were moving really well.

And I also like to focus a lot on like side bending. So we do a lot of stretching of the obliques or the side of your torso and your lats so we can build better ranges for your shoulders and your hips and your lower back and all that stuff kind of ties together. There's even a 10 minute thing you can do in bed because I mean, any place you can fit that in is a good thing.

Yeah. I think when we're stretching too, and you're asking how can people start it in a gentle way and like not overdo it? It's important to understand that when we stretch, we want our body and our nervous system to feel safe enough to actually like let go. And that's how we build good range without overdoing it. I've seen so many people stretching that have overdone it and torn muscles and injured themselves or trying to make a movement look a certain way rather than thinking about why they're doing that stretch that can get people into kind of hot water.

But overall, the goal is to build ranges that last again without overdoing it and help people create better movement patterns. They carry over directly to better handling, smoother running. And it needs to be like repeatable and approachable bite sized pieces. And I think that's really the key thing is that it's like a doable sort of thing. All right. We talked a little bit about nutrition, but other than our protein tip there, that.

Melissa Breau: So where do you start when you talk about nutrition? Is protein? Did we kind of cover it or, you know, is there other, are there other pieces? Where do you, where do you start?

Liz Joyce: That's definitely a piece for sure. Nutrition is a big, complex topic and research shows like, I mean, can you imagine doing a randomized trial with like 5,000 people if you guys are going to eat exactly this thing for, you know, a ten year time span?

And let's see how everyone feels. Everybody's so, so different. There's like so much that we don't know. And the debate about nutrition and what people should and shouldn't be eating in different diets is like endless and exhausting. Like. But what research does consistently show is that eating fewer processed foods, increasing your protein, your produce and your water intake can make a huge difference in how you feel from day to day.

Even like down to having better digestive regularity for people that don't have that, that can be such a game changer in people's quality of life. In this course, we are going to be focusing on making it really simple and easy for people to follow. Again, there are no meal plans, there's no recipes for people to follow. This like simple, practical strategy. I love this. We focus on pro foods and those are protein and produce.

So every meal, it's ideal. And the goal is that every meal to have protein and produce at every meal and then in addition to that, have a minimum of 64 ounces or 2 liters of water each day. I think it's important to keep nutrition straightforward, sustainable, flexible to people's lifestyles and culture and their social situations. And it also shouldn't feel overwhelming or too restrictive or rigid. Again, it needs to be doable.

And that is like the way that I've found to be the easiest way for people to. Also, portion control is really helpful when you're having enough protein and you're also getting produce in it. Every meal helps a lot with portion control. Fat loss of. People are wanting to do that and if you don't want to do that, it's just the. Like you were saying earlier, your friend saw the nutritionist.

The increase in energy and brain function is just wild when people introduce just a little bit more protein. So we talk about that and also some practical swaps that people, people can put into their life that make that really easy.

Melissa Breau: I like that. All right, so you mentioned the class a little bit here, but obviously we're talking about this because you have a new class on the schedule called Get Going gently handler fitness 10 minute daily reset. So go ahead, tell us a little bit more about the class. Maybe who might want to join you. What are we talking about?

Liz Joyce: Okay, so this class is for a wide group of people and you could fit into any one of these or all of these categories. People who are short on time, people who are just getting started, which might mean that the habit's just getting started. So they need something that's shortened bite size.

It also could mean people that are at, you know, a lower fitness level. Getting started with something like this is a great way for you to have a bit of a launch pad to get into, you know, a more robust fitness routine. I also really like this course for people who are managing illness, and whether that is them who's not well or they're in a caretaking role in their family, both of those things can be exhausting.

Physically, emotionally, mentally, all the different ways. And so having something that's achievable is fantastic to slip into this period of life. Also, people who have been medically cleared, of course, but if you're recovering from surgery or something along those lines and you just need something that's simple and easy to follow along with, I love it for that. Also, people who are kind of coming back from injury and they just don't really know where to start.

I also really like this course for people who have restarted their fitness journey more times than they can count, because for me, that's often a sign that that person wants to do so much more than what their current habits or their energies will allow for. So I'd like to think about this course as a gentle launching paddle. And each session is 10 minutes. I've got it scheduled out in a way, so you can either follow the schedule that I have laid out, you can print it out and check it off each day that you've done the different tasks to do, or you can kind of aim to have two core tasks per week, and two functional strength and two, balance, or however it is that you want to set it up.

It's flexible in that way. And again, they're designed to help your. Your body just move better in motion. And we focus a lot. We have different. We have four different things we're working on. Core mobility, balance, and also functional strength. And then lastly, of course, nutrition habits. But of the tasks that our people are to do each week, there's those four different categories. I've really worked super hard to make it approachable and sustainable, and also with the goal of setting a foundation to build from, which is great for anyone who wants to feel stronger or steadier or more confident in their ability to do a fitness thing, or also their, you know, confidence when they're working their dogs or doing their dog sport.

Melissa Breau: Any final thoughts or maybe key points that you kind of want to leave folks with on this topic?

Liz Joyce: I know it's a little different than our usual topic because we're talking about handler fitness instead of our dogs. So I know I'm the straggler in this group. But I'm here for it. I'm into it. I love it. Yes, I do. You know, people, what I want to leave people with.

If you've listened this far into the podcast and you're curious about this or any of this has kind of touched a note for you, I want to say to you that fitness absolutely is for you. And it is not just for fitness models or thin people in their 20s or elite athletes. And, you know, when you're wondering whether to start or not to start, I'd really encourage you to think about yourself 10 years from now and what kinds of things do you want to be doing and what kind of freedom and options do you want to have?

And lastly, I just want to say that, like, please, please don't give up on yourself. You are as important as your dog. You are half the team. And beyond that, like, you deserve as much care and compassion and intention as you give your dogs. And progress can take some time, but, you know, small, steady steps really add up. And every bit of movement is a vote for your future self and your future strength and your confidence.

So you can start exactly where you are today. And your future self, regardless of what vision you have for that, is gonna be so grateful that you did. Yeah, you said the ten year thing and it made me think that, you know, I have a couple friends right now who are at the age where they, they're trying to decide can they get another dog still or are they going to not be able to, you know, be functional for that dog's entire life.

And it's such a, I think as dog people or that's such a core part of our identity. It does. It is really an investment in being able to continue to have dogs for a longer period of your overall life and a quality life with them. And yeah, I think it's easy to overlook that. Oh my gosh, it's so easy, especially because you're doing all the things right now so that can see.

I think it seems like it's so far away until it's in your face. And at that point it's like, like it's just a lot to kind of come back from. And, and also, like, like you were saying too, I think about, like, what kind of dogs do I want to have next? And I'm in my mid-40s now. Well, I'm in my early 40s still, but I'm in my 40s now.

So I'm thinking, okay, if I get, you know, a puppy, then when she passes, like, I'm going to be 55, but my next dog, like, I'm going to be 60 or 65. And what kinds of things do I want to be doing with those dogs? And I'm just, I'm personally doing my best to make sure that we can have a freaking blast. Like, you know, I just want to have fun.

Like, do all the things. Yeah. And I think so many of us feel that way right about. Like, we just want to be able to continue to do the fun things with our dog. And this is such an investment, being able to do that for the long haul.

Melissa Breau: I agree. Yeah, I agree. Awesome. Well, thank you so much for coming on the podcast, Liz. As always, it was a joy.

Liz Joyce: Yeah. Thanks so much for having me, Melissa. Likewise.

Melissa Breau: Absolutely. And thanks to all of our listeners for tuning in. We'll be back next week with Kathy Sdao to talk about dogs who kind of balk or they stop and they don't want to get started again. So you're on a walk or you're heading into the vet and they just decide that forward momentum isn't happening. If you haven't already, subscribe to the podcast in itunes or the podcast app of your choice to have our next episode automatically downloaded to your phone as soon as it becomes available.

Today's show is brought to you by the Fenzi Dog Sports Academy. Special thanks to Denise Spencey for supporting this podcast. Music provided royalty free by BenSound.com the track featured here is called Buddy. Audio Editing provided by Chris Lang. Thanks again for tuning in and happy training.

 Credits

Today's show is brought to you by the Fenzi Dog Sports Academy. Special thanks to Denise Fenzi for supporting this podcast. Music provided royalty-free by BenSound.com; the track featured here is called "Buddy." Audio editing provided by Chris Lang.

Thanks again for tuning in -- and happy training!