Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Lisa Taitelman. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Lisa, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Was there a moment in your career that meaningfully altered your trajectory? If so, we’d love to hear the backstory.

Hi! I am Lisa Taitelman. I am a mother of 2 incredible kids, and a wife of 25 years to an amazing partner and friend. It was after the loss of my mom, over 26 years ago it took all my strength to forge ahead. In that time of unbearable grief, I started on my path of self-discovery and learned how a hike changed the trajectory of my life.
I have been a stay-at-home mom for 19 years and dove into it with a vengeance. I always felt a pull to do something in this life, to make real change but didn’t know what that meant. I always came up with excuses why I could not do it, The truth was I was scared. Who would take me seriously after being a stay at home mom for so long? But the pull was so strong I could not ignore it anymore.

With the empty nest upon me, I decided to go back to school at age 53 to become a health coach, working alongside an amazing tribe and community and is where I found my trail. I have had many mentors along the way, but most inspired by Oprah, Marie Forleo, Brene Brown, Mel Robbins and Louise Hay to name a few. They have all inspired me along the way, but one of the most powerful lessons I learned through this journey is that I found my voice, and through my voice, I have helped countless others in finding their own through my hiking program called Follow Your Trail. I also was trapped in self-doubt and second guessing myself and felt the need to reach out to others for their opinions and validation while not listening to my own. The voice inside me was what I needed to listen to. All of their opinions were only getting in the way of the message I wanted to share with the world. I started listening to ME and my own truth and that is when the universe was right there to guide me!

So, I wanted to shout out this experience to everyone I knew, what hiking taught me, how it healed me and how it changed everything for me. I have been hiking now for over 2 decades. I have trekked countless trails, guided many groups through nature, provided hundreds and hundreds of inspiring group shares, led numerous meditations, given thousands of hugs and high fives, made incredible friendships, cried, laughed, shared, bonded and built a community. I found my voice and by using my voice, it has helped others find their own. I believe the most powerful way to inspire and educate others, whether it is from loss, divorce, illness or struggle is through the healing powers of nature.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

It was after the loss of my mom, over 22 years ago to cancer it took all my strength to forge ahead. In that time of unbearable grief, I started on my path of self-discovery and self-love and learned how a hike changed the trajectory of my life as I once knew it.

Although I felt dead inside, I knew I had to get out of this overwhelming feeling of despair and grief. A friend suggested I get outdoors and go for a hike with her. I didn’t know at that time how this hike would change the course of my life.

I started hiking 25 years ago, alone, with my dog, my husband, with friends and my kids. With each step I took, I learned more about what hiking had to teach me. Hiking forces you to go within, be in the moment and be away from the noise in our lives. It puts you in the present moment because you are forced to be there, to be raw and real with yourself and with others. I noticed that when I hiked and was out in the wide-open space, breathing fresh air and surrounded by beauty and nature, I started to feel better mentally as well as physically, I was getting stronger in my body as well as my mind, and I started to heal. I found mind-body connection, and it was on the top of that mountain that I started to feel alive again. Hiking is about the goal, it’s a form of nourishment you give to yourself, I call it my moving meditation, my moving therapy.

I wanted to shout out this experience to everyone I knew what hiking taught me, how it changed everything for me. And it can for you too. I started to think about all the people I can empower with what I learned so they don’t feel alone in their struggles or challenges, all through the healing power of nature and being outdoors.

I went back to school a couple of years ago to become a Transformational Certified Health Coach, through Health Coach Institute and it was here that I found my own trail, working with women to bring out all their goodness.

Today, I am the founder of Follow Your Trail, a unique hiking empowerment program that guides small groups and challenges them physically, mentally and spiritually through hiking, connection, and meditation. The focus is geared toward finding one’s truth out in nature through self-discovery, and self-love. FYT is a community and has been featured in local magazines, Thrive Global, podcasts, Yahoo Finance and local newspapers.

What is Follow Your Trail?
It is a program about the transformation of the mind, body, and soul. Small groups of participants (around 12) work together for up to 12 weeks through hiking or similar movement. The basis of this program is physical exercise, spiritual awakening (meditation), and emotional connectivity (conversation and sharing) – the evolution from week to week is profound. Each week is designed with an intention. Along with your choice of movement, there may also be an activity or action step to accompany the week. The weeks are designed to build upon the previous lessons and teachings. As each participant starts to peel back their emotional layers and dig deeper within, the magic starts to happen.

I have always felt pulled to do something greater, to be part of a movement and to create real change. I felt for quite some time that something was missing in my life, and it was that I found my own voice, and by using my voice, it has helped others find their own.

What I have learned through my education and life experience is that showing up as myself, and speaking from my heart, a ripple effect has been created. A deeper connection with women who crave more in their own lives.

Today, I am committed to helping others in “finding their own trail”, their truth and their passion all while I am fulfilling my own by building this awesome community through the these incredible trails in our own backyard. I no longer feel something is missing and I am excited for you to be on this journey with me!

I have also come to learn is that we cannot do this alone. For a lot of us moms, particularly stay-at-home moms like myself, we lose our identity in many respects.

We are always helping everyone else, our kids, our husbands, our careers, and even our pets! We tend to always put others first, and what happens is we end up at the bottom of the totem pole and sacrifice a great deal for others. What I have found is that when this happens resentment, frustration and unhappiness builds, and it affects everyone around us. Why not make ourselves happy first, now there is a thought!

But then, I thought to myself. “How would anyone take me seriously after being a stay at home mom for over 19 years.? Can I go back to school at the age of 53? SO, that is what I did. But I still felt this nagging feeling of how can I now call myself a Health Coach after being a stay at home mom for 18 years? This is when the fear sets in and self-doubt, you know all those lies we tell ourselves why we can’t do it. Did I have fears? Hell yes! But what I have found is, it is not our fears that define us, it is what we do despite our fears.

I had spent two years going to back to school and struggled with all the knowledge I learned, I was in many different lanes and had a difficult time trying to find my own path. I was beating myself up. This was the struggle for me, I soon found out that I had to be still and quiet and hike alone with my thoughts to get the clarity I needed.

This is when a fellow health coach noticed me at a retreat and how stuck and frustrated I was. She asked me a very simple question that changed it all for me, and that was “what brings you joy”? I told her hiking and being out in nature and she said that is what you need to incorporate into your coaching, and that is where your heart will shine and be your authentic self.

Wow! The lightbulb went off and in that moment, I started to really TRUST, and BELIEVE in myself because that is when everything shifted. I started truly trusting in me and the universe was right there to help me! It all starts with you and your beliefs. We MUST trust ourselves because that is when the magic begins.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

When the program became so in demand, I designed a licensed version that can be packaged and branded for like-minded businesses to increase their offerings across the globe. Many health coaches have reached out to me to take this program into their own towns, make it there now and to add to their own programs. I am so proud to have share this program across the country and have made a ripple effect with other coaches who want to add an outdoor program to their already coaching business and it feels so good to build other communities around the globe!

FYT is a community and I am so very proud of the connections and relationships I have made because of this program. I have witnessed firsthand new relationships and bonds that have been formed because of me! I love to see the girls around town having lunch together and hiking together even when our group sessions are done!

I truly feel we live in a world of disconnect and lost the art of togetherness. FYT gives me that togetherness that I feel we have lost, this deeper connection with other women.

Sometimes just getting outside and connecting with others and really BEING there is enough of a destination,

Putting training and knowledge aside, what else do you think really matters in terms of succeeding in your field?

What I have learned through my education and life experience is that showing up as myself, and speaking from my heart, a ripple effect has been created, a deeper connection with people who crave more in their own lives. What I know to be true is that it is never too late to reinvent yourself or make real change, it is really up to us. It is a decision. We can stay stuck, or we can embrace new possibilities we never knew existed. I know now I have the power to change my thoughts and when I did that, I changed my life as well as countless others along the way. And the best part of all is when you help others transform their lives, you also transform your own— again and again, this is how we grow, and before you know it, your mission is impacting thousands…or maybe even millions of lives!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.lisataitelman.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lisataitelmanhealthcoach/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lisa.taitelman.7
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisa-taitelman-68b14224/

Image Credits
Lisa Statt