Women In Wellness: Cynthia Williams On The Five Lifestyle Tweaks That Will Help Support People’s Journey Towards Better Wellbeing

As a part of my series about women in wellness, I had the pleasure of interviewing Cynthia Williams.

Cynthia Williams, Integrative Nutritional Practitioner, specializes in women’s hormone and gut health while achieving weight loss. With a background in occupational therapy, Cynthia has worked in the wellness industry for over 15 years with hundreds of clients. She aims to create a network that allows people more avenues and accessibility to reach health and wellness goals. Cynthia’s programs teach women how to live a healthy, sustainable lifestyle with a focus on education, including extensive tools for success in getting healthy. With her unmatched programs, Cynthia was awarded 2020’s Most Admired in Fitness by Today’s Woman.

Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Our readers would love to “get to know you” better. Can you share your “backstory” with us?

Thanks for having me! My name is Cynthia Williams, I am a mom of a spunky almost 3-year-old, a wife, and business owner who thrives on helping women become the healthiest and happiest version of themselves. I am an Occupational Therapist by trade but found my true passion in nutrition and exercise about 15 years ago. I have struggled with weight gain, hormones, and gut health, and I want to help others learn what I have over the years, to be their own health advocate, and not struggle like I did.

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you started your career? What were the main lessons or takeaways from that story?

It is all very interesting because no client case is the same. Hormones and your gut are so individualized, and reactions to imbalances can happen one way for one client and not another. The biggest takeaway I get from this, is to never stop learning, studying, and listening. The unhealthier our society becomes due to environmental toxins, heavily processed foods, chronic stress, lack of sleep, social media rabbit holes, etc., the more practitioners like me need to learn the effects of these and how to help heal bodies in a successful, sustainable way in today’s culture and society.

It has been said that our mistakes can be our greatest teachers. Can you share a story about a mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

I would say my biggest mistake when first starting out was due to youth and ego. I thought I knew it all when it came to exercise and training. I also thought nutrition was as simple as calories in and calories out. I was wrong on both. There is so much that can affect a person’s metabolism and their ability to be in a calorie deficit to lose weight. Now my motto is health first, and then weight loss will be a by-product of getting healthy.

Let’s jump to our main focus. When it comes to health and wellness, how is the work you are doing helping to make a bigger impact in the world?

My work is catered to helping women become educated about their bodies, the symptoms and signs, what they mean, how to fix it, and how to become their own health advocate. Too many times women are dismissed by a doctor, told that their complaints are a “part of aging” or it is as simple as “eat less, move more.” Women do not have to settle. They can feel fantastic in their 40s, 50s, 60s, and so on. You don’t have to settle for low libido, dry skin, hair loss, increased fat around belly and thighs, low mood or energy, or any other unwanted symptom. You can feel amazing. You can have great energy. You can look and feel your best. The current medical system is not designed to help educate, prevent, or prepare women for the changes that occur with aging. The system is 100% reactive and women are typically prescribed birth control or xanax to “fix” these symptoms. This is not an answer, and women do not have to settle, be dismissed, or be made to feel small or uncomfortable when seeking answers. I hope to arm as many women as possible with knowledge to get the treatment and answers they desire.

Can you share your top five “lifestyle tweaks” that you believe will help support people’s journey towards better wellbeing? Please give an example or story for each.

My top five lifestyle tweaks would be:

• Walk. Walk. Walk. Walking, getting steps in, or just moving is one of the best ways to improve hormone and gut health. Building an active lifestyle, and I am not saying work out more, I mean more moving during the day, is great for stabilizing blood sugar and improving digestion. Try to move for a minimum of 5–10 minutes after eating meals. It is also great in aiding weight loss, but more importantly, sustaining weight loss.
• Hydrate! Get plenty of water. Aim for 100–120oz of water daily. Your skin, digestion, joints, muscles, energy and mood will all improve when you are properly hydrated.
• Get plenty of protein. This is one of the best ways to help cut cravings, improve energy and your composition. Aim for 20–30 grams of protein per meal.
• Get plenty of fiber. Another easy and great way to cut those sugar cravings is making sure you are eating your veggies. Beans, legumes, and whole grains are also great sources of fiber.
• Prioritize sleep. Sleep is where all the magic happens. All your bodily repairs take place during sleep. Sleep is necessary for healing and hormonal balance.

If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of wellness to the most amount of people, what would that be?

Follow the 5 lifestyle tweaks listed above! This would help so many start to feel better. And when you feel better, you make decisions. Those better decisions lead to results. Results lead to motivation to keep making more and more better decisions.

What are your “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Started” and why?

1. Be empathetic and have grace. I have to work on this. By nature, I am a very driven, type A, hard-working person. I focus on a goal, and I will not stop until it is completed, no matter the roadblocks. I had to learn not all people are geared like me, and my way isn’t the best or only way. I had to learn to listen more, become more flexible, and open to helping others get from A to B the best way for them, so that they can be successful in their own right.
2. Set parameters between myself and work. When you start a business, you work non stop. You answer emails, messages, and texts from clients at all hours of the day. Work bleeds into home life. There are no boundaries or “off days.” This is still a work in progress, but I wish I had set these parameters from day one, and it is the first piece of advice I give to anyone looking to become an entrepreneur.
3. Starting your own business is HARD. I mean really hard — long hours, stress, stress, and did I mention, stress?
4. Learning how to accept compliments when your work proves beneficial and impacts others. Creating a business that helps others is rewarding beyond anything someone could tell you about. I knew I loved helping others, but to the magnitude of the work I am now doing with women, I honestly was not prepared for and still get a bit uncomfortable when clients send praise my way. I think the clients are doing the hard part, I am just providing the how-to.
5. Have fun. Despite owning, building, and growing my own company, I don’t let having fun slip away. It can happen quickly and easily when your work is your life. Don’t let work take away from chances to make wonderful memories with family and friends. Work will always be there.

Sustainability, veganism, mental health, and environmental changes are big topics at the moment. Which one of these causes is dearest to you, and why?

Mental health is the dearest to me. Between social media and the epic decline of physical health among Americans, mental health is taking a beating. I am a HUGE advocate of therapy. Many of my clients have deep-rooted issues that they have used food or alcohol to try and medicate. If these issues are not worked on at the same time as the weight loss, the weight loss will not be sustainable. One of my infamous quotes for clients is that “you can not change the triggers, but can change your response to those triggers.” As I work to help change mindset, behaviors, habits, and thought patterns around physical health, many need to work on the same for mental health.

What is the best way for our readers to further follow your work online?

They can find me on Instagram at Cynthiawilliams_wellness, on YouTube at Cynthia Williams Wellness, or on Facebook at Cynthia Williams Wellness.

Thank you for these fantastic insights! We wish you continued success and good health.