You never see me deadlift nowadays, do you?

If you do it’s light and not loaded to challenge my muscles. 

Romanian deadlifts, sumo deadlifts, unilateral deadlifts, conventional deadlifts, off the rack walkout straight leg deadlifts, on the bench stiff leg deadlifts: I did them all for many years!

I train clients who are half my age with unstoppable bodies. Deadlifts are part of their routine to build strength and muscle. 

I used to do 20 sets of heavy deadlifts, if not more, I pretended I didn’t do as much, you know, to not get criticized for doing what I wanted, not following the protocol everyone else had as guide.

I didn’t follow the strength and muscle building programs of other trainers, I did it my own way.

At times I used programs like MAX-OT and the reduction of my extreme workout volume always led to a sudden increase of strength and muscle size.

How come? Well, I let my body adapt to grow. I remember my younger self who reasoned my body didn’t really need periodization, or rest.

My young mind justified training for hours without taking time off for years. 

Since my body didn’t stop me I considered it a right for me to train as much as I wanted and as hard as I wanted, I trusted my body would tell me when I needed to rest or slow down.

Well, when my body was tired my mind turned tougher, dig in, build true discipline, grit, to show myself who’s the master, I identified myself with my mind, I was my mind.

I had a strong body but I did have many strains and tears, they accumulated over the years, and I learned a lot from every setback.

I did not want to stop training, it was my addiction, my drug, my outlet.

I felt it was ok to never rest, you know, since I never took any pain killers and stayed drug-free all my life. 

Do you remember when I was sitting on facebook live crying about having to stop training to have hamstring surgery? I had never taken more than one week off for 18 years and I was terrified about what would happen. How would I train if I did get back to it?

I was in despair and felt I had nothing to live for if I had no body to train hard anymore.

What would my fitness life be without deadlifts? There was no other exercise as powerful as deadlifts and squats, I needed these in my life.

Yeah, you can tell, huh! My mind was closed off, I was filled with fears of losing my strong physique I had built since I committed to bodybuilding Feb 20, 1999.

Let’s now come back to today and my work as coach and trainer.

I have noticed 10 things that make women over 40 believe you can’t build your body after 40.

Most of my clients are unaware of my training life evolution, everyone is living with the fitness trainer Pauline Nordin in my 20s or 30s.

Most women who come to my coaching believe that I am doing the same old I’ve always done, or that I don’t even lift anymore, that I just do yoga and walk in the forest.

But if that was the case I would not have the strong muscle body I still have.

It is very important for me that you know my perspective, my way of training life I live today.

I am not comparing myself to other female fitness trainers who are stronger than I am, who have not trained their bodies like a maniac the way I did.

I am here to tell you about my fitness life so you might feel less defeated and discouraged in your own bodybuilding life after 40.

10 Things to know about my training life after 40, I’m 44.

1. Deadlifts are out for me: the loading curve hits the spots I have injured multiple times. This means I keep hitting my weak spots, I risk tearing again.
   

2. When I record workouts for women who can deadlift I only do the move to demonstrate, I do not load it. You must be aware of this so you load your lifts according to your ability, not copy my too light work you see in my videos.

3. I have made it my expertise to create new ways to override my soft spots and overload my body in other angles, so the toughest overload area hits a stronger muscle or joint area, for instance I purposely flex my hips instead of extending them in moves hitting hamstrings who extend at the hips.

4. I use timed sets to overload my body that produces greater work compared to going by the good old 6-20 reps style. It is harder work I do now than I ever did when I was young, that is why I build more muscle now than in my life doing 6 reps with max weight.

5. I train with excellent techniques instead of doing sloppy cheating, I can’t get away with that, training my ego results in strains.

6. My priority is to stay in training mode, I take care of my recovery like a true professional athlete, not a gym rat.

7. I listen to my body and practice self care for my muscles and stay consistent with healing therapy for my body. I train hard and rest harder!

8. I do way less volume per workout, I do more full body workouts with very little volume per muscle group or body area. The main reason is fatigue and lack of enthusiasm in doing more than a few sets per move.

9. I focus on 1-3 exercises and work each set with full attention, mindfulness and presence. Every second under tension matters, it’s a type of meditation: laser focus.

10. My reduction of workout frequency has given me more muscle strength and muscle mass than I had in the past. And I stay leaner than in my toughest, hardest training era of my life. The reason is my nutrition discipline is consistent, not fluctuating.
    
    I hope this gives you insights and helps you feel more confident in your own training life.
    
    I welcome you to join my coaching and training community to get more real fitness life coaching instead of living under the cloud and believing you’re inferior, inadequate or too weak.

You’re not, you’re just not in the right fitness training tribe!

Watch my Deadlift tutorial today! 

The whole Seizing the Training Day Thing

Long gone are the workout days when my body let me do whatever I wanted without holding me back.

I was young, ambitious and hungry for building my body the way I envisioned a Frank Zane like physique, but as a woman.

My young self looked down on people who listened to their bodies.

To me that was a real sign of a weak mind! Nobody gets strong with a weak attitude, that was my motto.

Compared to many I took good care of my body, and yes, I did, but on many conditions.

Nutrition, stretching, body work to heal my aches and pains were all part of my routine.

I trained with good form, the gym crowd always complimented me on my dedication.

Yes, I was always training, I never quit, I kept up my discipline, practiced the daily fitness and bodybuilding lifestyle for years, decades.

But if I ask my body today about what its master was like it would be "she never let me rest, she never quit, she kept taking out her lack of dietary discipline on me so it was hours of training for months in a row with no pause at all.

She just expected me to be there and talked about me like I was worthless, unwanted, never good enough. When I needed her love she got mad, she was going to prove to me who's the boss...I was not allowed to BE a body with any needs. That is how I felt".

-Signed by my physical body from my younger fitness life era.

Today I listen to my body since I know I can not replace it, it is the only real home and asset no money can buy and time can't rebuild back later.

When I say I must seize the training day no matter what it truly means exactly that.

Instead of destroying my body or overtraining I focus on quality and keep my true motivation for doing so close to heart:

I want a strong body that feels good to live in for as long as I live.

That is why I expect myself to train accordingly.

I expect myself to show up to train at the level my body permits and find a way, not get discouraged comparing myself to my younger body self or to others who can train harder, longer or are stronger than I am.

It is hard to stay motivated and train to gain strength with physical limitations and body restrictions, that drive and energy to go hard and give it all fades away when you can't do it without risking injuries.

However, the way I choose to see it is this is the real test of character.

I choose to be grateful for everything my body lets me do instead of assuming I can do it all.

This mindset has transformed my training philosophy for the better.

I will never take my body for granted again, this insight has given me the greatest love for training I've ever felt.

Paulinenordin.uscreen.io

Today is Memorial Day.

I became a naturalized U.S citizen in 2013 on my birthday.

It was my dream and life goal to live and work in California as a fitness trainer.

So on this day, as a US Citizen living abroad in Sweden I honor all the men and women of the United States military who have sacrificed their lives while doing their duty to the United States of America.

Today I remember and honor their selfless service.

I am grateful and thank you from the bottom of my heart.

-Pauline 

Now it's time to train and honor our health and bodies:

Welcome to Day 1 of my 4-12-1 Wild Woman Workout with my sister!

This is a 10 min superset workout with resistance bands.

The focus is on lower body!

We are embarking on a 4-12-1 workout routine together for reaching our training goal number 1 for a whole month.

4-12-1 stands for 4 weeks with 12 workout sessions to complete with one goal only: just seize every training day!

I'm done sending you clients on an overwhelming build muscle burn fat program with heavy loading and tons of sets so you feel wow that was a tough session!

Guess why? Most of you end up exhausted, overwhelmed and in pains! You gotta ease into it, for the mind and body.

For beginners, this might be way too tough. I know those bands look innocent!

Do without the bands to get a gentler workout!

For anyone with physical limitations, me included, try it out and adjust as needed.

For my advanced clients with limitless bodies and higher ambitions than just do a 10 minute workout for a total count of 12 in a month: this is how you make it tougher:

-Use a stronger band

-Do all training with appropriate load, squat your 145 lbs for 20 reps instead of 30 seconds in the bottom for instance.

-Triple up the volume so you do this circuit three times in a row.

-Greater Volume of work and more challenging work of the same exercises is what brings stronger muscle gains.

And then, if you still feel it's too easy, download my old school ebook attached to this video:

Badass Workouts volume 1!

I would love to see you check in with me in my Seize the Training Day community on Facebook!

Give me feedback on how did this workout feel for YOU so I can come back with a suitable workout for you!

https://paulinenordin.uscreen.io/programs/4-12-1-wild-woman-workout-1

Hello Superstars! 

It's Sunday and I am preventing my Sunday Blues from taking over! 

The best way to manage my mind is to focus on all I'm grateful for and truly put in my effort into setting my mind straight right away in the morning.

I start my day like all days with 10 minutes Laughter meditation in bed. 

Then I start with a gratitude for having health, food, a home, family and a cat.

I take big breaths and AAAAH a few times, then it's time for coffee. 

On my table I found my list of to do for Sunday I had in plan...But that was Saturday night when the energized creative night owl in me is operating.

Here comes the bookkeeping with two citizenships, trying to figure out forms and systems, then those blocks on my accounts for me to verify over and over because it does not work (glitches, errors etc). 

Then I have my editing the workout videos and lessons on my workout playlists, feeling that stress of not being able to keep up, missing the energy to set up descriptions, SEO it and then somehow promote all I do too....

My productive self wants me to keep working on my website for presenting my coaching and training services, build kits and programs, keep writing my blog, update my uscreen sites that share about my philosophy...but that website is not optimized for pictures so they get cropped off, not looking good....I can't keep up with myself, what I create one day I've forgotten to package or upload the next day.

My book I'm writing Ram the Super Cat is haunting me, it is itching in my fingers, but then my eye sight is fried from looking at screens. I got that dry eye disease LOL. Yeah, it is apparently real. Saffron extract does help a bit.

In this I am just anxious, worried, feeling overwhelmed. Being a dual citizen and now for the first time filing federal tax USA and Sweden, Europe...I'm a startup again, all costs add up, you know the drill!

"Just hire a pro to help!"...Yeah that is very affordable always!

Now.

I learn so much, I have to dive into it not run away and just do what I love, coaching and interacting with YOU...

I adjust my mind from resisting to spend time calmly to process and educate myself, to enjoy that new information, I gain more knowledge. It is very good for me. 

Today I was going to train, I had it planned. I just don't feel like it. I gotta roll out my glutes and legs, it would motivate me to train since the pains and stiffness would go away, making my training more rewarding.

But do you think I'm motivated to do that? Apparently not. Sunday feels like the wrong day to be diligent. I know it would push me out of my fog and Sunday blues.

I know all this. Still, nah, not today.

I have weaknesses, they are my forever projects in life, and I embrace that. Some things are going to be my challenges that require me to work on it, to commit and never quit or stop doing my best.

And some days I accept I don't want to be or do my best.

That is ok, I don't have to achieve, obtain or get to some goal with my self work.

This is very liberating for me who has the drill sergeant in me who will go wild and enforce things if I let it.

I am writing this because it is SO IMPORTANT you know that you believe you will follow a structure, a plan if I just give you the right plan.

But that plan will not stay the same, it will not be a certainty that the program or workout will work out. You will need to improvise, adjust, tweak and be willing to change plans to keep going.

If you fail to plan you plan to fail, when you plan then you can improvise, and I want you to realize this with me:

When I create my own training plan I do not know if it will be what I end up doing. I know when I get to the training.

If something feels off, pains, aches or I get injured I must be ready for a revision so I keep going, not stand in the middle of the room without knowing what to do.

To you all who are looking for that solid plan....It might be an outdated mindset, you think you can just DO IT, being stubborn and put your effort into it, prove to yourself that you can do it....But to me, it is not how I live my life anymore. 

I would not have a great fitness life or a life if I held on too hard to my plans, instead of going with the flow.

Some days I train really hard, I give my all. Some days I train like a great sissy and I am proud of that.

I am proud that I do not always run myself over, that many days it's OK to just be and escape from it all.

And that is why, today I'm not following my plans, I am going to the forest, listen to the birds, quiet my mind, walk in meditation for 4-5 hours, it goes up to about 30000 steps. 

This routine is in no way the way to maintain my muscle strength, build my body etc but it DOES keep me at peace with myself. That is most important for me.

I AM BEYOND GRATEFUL for YOU who are here!

Do you see the deer? Magic moment yesterday.

See you tomorrow in the FACEBOOK GROUP!

facebook.com/groups/coachpaulinenordin

Hello Superstars!

It's Saturday!

As your coach it's my role to portion out programs to avoid stress, overwhelmingness and burnout I notice is what happens from getting a load of books to download! 

This is why I'm planning on continuously feed my community with suitable training plans, build teams of clients within my community.

For me as coach I can help many more by having this structure and it helps clients succeed by reducing pressure from trying to keep up with others, or training beyond what your body or life allows.

I rather listen to your needs and share an appropriate program for you than to just send you a long list of fitness transformation books. You won't know what to pick, or how to implement it into your training routine, so then we are back to square one. 

My solution is to welcome you to slow down your mind, start small and build up one day at a time. This is why you join my community. To have my guidance!

Who's excited about my private Facebook Community for women?

Monday will be my first work day building up the group and leading you there!

To join you simply need to be a subscriber via paulinenordin.uscreen.io 

The Private group link is Facebook.com/groups/coachpaulinenordin

Hello Superstars! GREAT NEWS!!!!!

Who remembers my irritation with the fact all Fighterdiet challenge groups closed after each Before & After Fitness Challenge?

It made me so angry that I knew everyone would fall off track and end up depressed and discouraged.

I wanted to build long-lasting results and build my clients up to become consistent and fall in love with the way of life we live to be strong, healthy and happy.

Unfortunately this is not popular with people who are looking for a quick fix and don't want to commit to the daily practice of healthy eating, training well and keep showing up.

I felt disconnected to that mindset, I didn't want to keep investing myself in my clients who never had the interest to stay around to keep building a strong body and a strong mind.

SO...I quit. I left and dissolved my business. And started from nothing again to build my community my way.

This is it. Now....

Welcome to my coaching and training life community!!!

This is for women only and the purpose is to enjoy the Daily Practice of Mind & Body Fitness Life with me as your leader.

This is where I intend to keep you present, engaged, growing and connected to me and likeminded women around the world.

I look forward to teaching, coaching and motivating you my clients.

Only members who are actively subscribed to my platform paulinenordin.uscreen.io are invited to be here.

My Seize the Training Day community is my health & wellness focused oasis I welcome you to come home to.

When You are subscribed you can request to get added to the group! https://www.facebook.com/groups/coachpaulinenordin

-Coach Pauline Nordin

Hello Superstars,

Build your Back with me!

Here's a 10 min Back & biceps workout with half pull-ups, inverted rows & biceps curls This back and biceps workout builds up strength to do pull-ups from a pull-up bar.

How come pull-ups are so challenging?

They require great strength in your upper body to lift your whole body up. In the seated position you'll be able to work on staying erect to hit your back muscles efficiently.

Typically what happens when you want to build up strength for a real pull-up is turning it into a shoulder killer.

When the focus is on getting up over the bar no matter what it takes you lose the connection with your back muscles.

Your shoulder blades should marry in the top position.

That means they are squeezed together when you're in the top.

When you start training pull-ups you you need to check your ego so you avoid tearing your rotator cuff muscles of the shoulder, your biceps or your neck.

The workout with my half pull-ups will build muscle and keep your back training safe.

The benefit from avoiding in the start position of a pull-up bar is huge reduction in risk of tearing your shoulders.

You might think this it too easy, if it is you might just offload too much weight from your body by using your legs to push you up. In that case, straighten them out and keep them that way!

Do YOU want to train to get strong for pull-ups? Do it!