Pamela : Hi, Pamela Wirth with the Encourager Wellness Podcast, and today I have Christina Lecuyer. She is an amazing former professional athlete, TV host, health and wellness champion, and professional coach. Christina, take it away.
Christina Lecuyer : Yeah girl, thanks so much for having me. I appreciate it.
Pamela : So you've been through this incredible journey. Tell us what health and wellness kind of meant to you before and what it really means to you now and how you got to there. What was really...
Christina Lecuyer : Yeah, I think there's two sides of it for me. It's like the mental side of health and then the physical side of health. Just to give a quick background, I always tell this fun little story that some people laugh at. When I was 18, two things happened to me. One, I got really good at golf, and two, I got good-looking. What happened during that time, and people always snicker, but when those two things came together, I truly started loving that experience. I became addicted to the external validation like, "You're so pretty," "You're so good at golf," "Your life's going to be amazing," and all of this when I was 18. Sadly, for about 10 years, I became addicted to that "attagirl" as I called it. I got addicted to that external validation and was doing anything in my power to get more of "You're so amazing."
For me, in my brain, that meant getting skinnier, getting richer, and getting on the tour. I went to college for professional golf and played professional golf. I never ended up getting my tour card, but I did create a horrible eating disorder and a life that I was really out of alignment with. It was always based on "What can I do to get happy?" That's why I say it's both the physical health and the mental health. I struggled with an eating disorder for at least 10-15 years. I was definitely on the more bulimic side than anything else, but my whole focus was if I got skinnier, I would get the jobs and the attention. I was doing some modeling and television hosting, and I associated my worth with being skinny.
For me, health was never a consideration for such a long time. It was about pushing my body to the absolute max. I was the cardio queen, the typical person getting on the StairMaster. I used to pride myself on being able to do the StairMaster for two hours a day. I would out-StairMaster anyone. I did have big muscle legs at the time, which I hated. It was funny that I was on the StairMaster for two hours a day and couldn't tell you why my legs were so big. The health aspect of actually being healthy was never a priority; it was always just about being skinny.
When I was 27, I came to this roadblock. I'd failed at getting my tour card three years in a row. I was probably at the peak of what everyone said I was: making money, in the same relationship (my husband and I have been together for 20-something years, though we weren't married at the time), had the external validation, was playing golf, making $10,000 a day playing golf with executives, and had television gigs. But I was miserable. I remember waking up, ironing in our back bedroom at 10 in the morning, thinking, "This was not the plan for my life. What actually happened?" I looked around and saw people who had a lot less than I did in regards to external stuff and thought, "How is everyone happier than me?"
At 27, I started diving into the power of the mind and became obsessed with personal development. I realized that I had to take personal responsibility for my life. The greatest thing anyone can ever do is take personal responsibility for their life, happiness, health, and whatever else. From 27 to now, I'm going to be 42 this year, I've been obsessed with creating the best life and health ever. I now walk every single day, not to stay skinny, which is funny. At almost 42, I'm probably in the best physical shape I've ever been, and the only thing I concentrate on now is if it makes me feel good. Sure enough, I'm in the best physical shape I can be.
That's a quick version of how I went from feeling unworthy and miserable, unsure if I wanted to live, to now saying my tagline: I have the greatest life ever because I decided it.
Pamela : That's amazing. You know, I have a lot of friends that struggle on and off with eating disorders. How did you get through that? It's a really big deal.
Christina Lecuyer : Yes
Pamela : It is. What was the process? How did you do this?
Christina Lecuyer : Yeah, and I’ve never been to any sort of treatment. I think it’s a combination of what are the three pillars of everything I coach on, which are decision, faith, and action. These are the three things that I coach and preach in my performance coaching, whether it be for business or personal. I remember being over top of the toilet, and this is TMI for many people, but I still have scars on my knuckles from making myself throw up. I always associated it with if things were going well, I never had to do that. But if things were going bad, I had to do that. So, if I played bad golf, I felt bad. I’ve noticed this with many people I work with: people always associate what they do with who they are, and those are two very separate entities. For me, if I was playing bad golf, I hated myself, or if I didn’t get that television contract, I hated myself.
To go back to your question, I was literally on top of the toilet, and I made a decision that day. It was almost like a come-to-Jesus moment. An eating disorder is very similar to an addiction to alcohol or drugs. I think for me, it was just realizing that the power of the mind is the strongest thing on planet Earth. Your thoughts become your reality, and I knew that if I just decided I was no longer going to do this anymore, I also realized I had to reprogram everything I had done up to that point. I always say you have to reprogram stories, patterns, and habits. My situations, habits, and patterns had gotten me into this. When I did something, this was my go-to. So, I made the decision to no longer throw up. I had to decide to do something different to reprogram that habit of binging and purging or whatever it was when I felt bad. I decided to reprogram that with something that served me, as opposed to something that didn’t.
I also say that, as a Christian, you have to believe in something greater than yourself. For me, it’s God. I don’t care what it is for you. You can say God, Source, Universe, doorknob—I don’t care—but you have to believe there’s something outside of yourself. That was the first time I said, “Oh, I can’t do this all by myself. I have to have help. I have to believe there’s something out in this world that wants better for me.” The second thing was reprogramming what I was doing to get a different result. The third thing that helped was knowing there was something better for me. That was the first time I started having hope. They often say, and I’m not educated in suicide, but they say people who end their lives have no hope. I had hope because I was starting to help other people. I was finding passion for things that weren’t golf. I was only playing golf because I was told it would make me happy, rich, and famous. It never did. I checked the boxes, and it didn’t give me that sense. But I started understanding I had a greater purpose on this planet. I had a reason and something greater than myself.
It was a combination of all three of those things. I can firmly tell you I do believe with 100% certainty that I am healed and cured from that. I know many people can never say that, but I have had zero desire to do that in probably seven or eight years. It has never even crossed my mind. I remember about four or five years ago, I got sick and threw up for the first time because I was actually sick. I remember it being a very traumatic event. My husband was shaking because it brought back so many of those horrible memories. But I do believe it’s possible to heal yourself from it, and hopefully, I can give someone else hope.
Pamela : Before you were cured, was there an activity or thing you would do if you ever had an inkling that you may want to?
Christina Lecuyer : Yeah, for me, it was just about taking myself out of the situation. Ed Mylett, a big figure in the personal development and mindset space, says you have to create some sort of trigger. As a golfer, what really resonated with me was having a pre-shot routine. In golf, it takes four to five hours to play, and if you're thinking about golf for that entire time, you're probably going to play really badly. The only time you need to think about golf is when you're right on top of the ball, and you start the process with a pre-shot routine. Many golfers have a specific routine, like grabbing their glove or placing their hand on the club in a particular way.
I associated Ed Mylett's idea of having a trigger to get you out of your normal habit with this. When I felt the urge to purge, I needed to break that pattern. For me, it was about taking myself out of the situation. As hard as it was, I always say that our bad days won't just disappear, but we can reduce their intensity. My bad days used to last a week, but now they might just be minutes or an hour, which is a huge win. When I felt the urge, I would literally grab my stuff and go for a walk, go into a different room, or change my surroundings in some way. I needed to replace the trigger.
An elastic band is another tool I've recommended to clients for years. Wearing a hair tie around your wrist and snapping it can help. It interrupts the typical pattern and stops the habit in its tracks. Snapping the elastic helps you do something different, starting the process of reprogramming.
Pamela : That's really smart.
Christina Lecuyer : Yeah, I thought it was pretty good.
Pamela : I think that would work really well with teenagers too.
Christina Lecuyer : Yeah, honestly, people ask me all the time what I actually do as a performance and mindset coach. If you break it down, I figure out what story, pattern, and habit you have currently that isn't getting you the result you want. Your upbringing or something that happened has created a pattern, story, or habit that isn't working for you. To get a different result, you have to reprogram whatever is holding you back with a different story, pattern, or habit. Money is a good example. People grow up with a bad money mindset, not because their parents are bad, but because those are their parents' stories. You don't have to take your parents' stories anymore. We have to implement different stories, patterns, or habits to get what you want. It's not hard, yet it's the hardest thing you'll ever do.
Pamela : Yeah, those are the things I wish I had known in my 20s. I don't know if it's being stubborn or just closed-minded, but that stuff is so much easier in your 40s. Anyway, it's super interesting. So, you're going through all of this, and thankfully you're still with the same person—at the time, your boyfriend, now your husband. How much was he involved in that part of your journey?
Christina Lecuyer : Everything. I think he knew about my eating disorder. We started dating when I was 21, so we've been together for about 22 years. He probably knew within six months, although not many people knew at the time. People always ask because I now believe with my whole heart that the best thing that's ever happened to me is my marriage. My husband is the greatest human on the planet, and we have an amazing marriage. I'm very blessed to say that. But there have been different seasons. When we first met, I was definitely a train wreck. He was never part of my decision to change my life. I had to decide that whether he was in or out. I got very lucky that he decided to join me on this transition over the last 15 years.
Unfortunately, many women say they want to make changes, but their husbands aren't on board. It is very hard, but I was dedicated to changing my life because I believe we all have a purpose, and it's our responsibility to fulfill it. Even if my husband hadn't gotten on board, I still had to do what I needed to do. That's a hard thing to say, and I'm now in a position where my husband did get on board. I made that decision before knowing if he would join me. I happen to have a great human who decided to make some changes and get on this train too. We've both gone through tough seasons. I was a train wreck, then he was, then I was again. We seem to be in a good season now, but sometimes when I'm high, he's low, and we've looked at each other in bad seasons and decided we need to change.
Pamela : Yeah, everything that goes up comes down, everything that goes down comes up, and there is equilibrium in the middle. It's good that you guys support each other—that's super.
Christina Lecuyer : Yeah, he's definitely on board and totally into self-development too. He has his own coaches, implements everything with his teams, brings in off-site meetings, does SEO, and uses traction. They've implemented everything under the sun to be the best versions of themselves, and I'm very grateful that he's on the same page as I am.
Pamela : That's awesome. So, where are you going now? What are you doing? What is really driving you and giving you your purpose and mission?
Christina Lecuyer : For years, when I first started out, I never set out to be a coach. In the beginning, I worked with a lot of guys. During my golf career, I tried to play professional golf and then realized I was good at three things: golf, looking good, and communicating. When you put those three things together, it creates a great way to make business connections on the golf course. Companies hired me to play golf with executives, and I did that for about ten years.
In the meantime, people were always asking me how I stayed so positive and accomplished what I did. I didn't have a tour card, but I was getting paid $10,000 a day to play with executives. I had the mindset and confidence to create a unique career. People started coming to me for advice, and I realized I could get paid for coaching.
Slowly, women began asking me how I commanded confidence to charge high rates and command a room. My business grew organically. I started with conferences, live events, mastermind groups, and one-on-one coaching with guys. Now, I've transitioned to a model that most would say is bad, but I love it, and the results are there. I only do one-on-one coaching, with two ways to work with me: full-time coaching and a monthly subscription with one call a month for long-term accountability.
I take 30 clients at a time, which is a lot to manage, but I'm usually sold out with just one spot available at times. I do a lot of speaking events and in-person events for businesses. I'm excited about what I do, and I love it.
Pamela : No, that's cool. So do you find that each person is a little bit different in how you work with them, or is it kind of...
Christina Lecuyer : Absolutely everyone is different. I always say that everyone has two to three things that are their core issues. It could be worthiness, trust, accountability, confidence, or the inability to make fast decisions. Having someone to be that safe space for the person who is the go-to for everyone else is crucial. For example, I just had a call with a business owner with seven or eight employees and $3 to $5 million in revenue. She's got kids and a husband at home, and I'm her space to process and make fast decisions. When you trust yourself and can make quick decisions, you tend to move faster and grow quicker. I'm there to reassure you when you're feeling uncertain and to help you trust yourself and your decisions.
Pamela : I love that. Some people might say, "Why would I hire a success coach instead of a psychologist?" Maybe you could explain the difference between some of your methods and a psychologist's.
Christina Lecuyer : That's a fantastic question. I get asked this all the time. The difference between a coach and a therapist is significant. I'm not a therapist, but within one call, I can usually pinpoint why you are the way you are. A therapist often wants to delve into that over a long period of time. I can identify that your mom or someone else screwed you up, or that something someone said to you at 15 has impacted your behavior ever since. My job is to help you reprogram that to get a different result. We don't need to talk about it constantly or even know all the details. It's helpful to understand the origin, but we focus on changing the habit, story, or pattern that's not serving you. To get a different result, we implement a different story, pattern, or habit. That's the main difference between a coach and a therapist—I'm about taking action to achieve different outcomes.
Pamela : Which frankly sounds better to me, so...
Christina Lecuyer : I get that. I would never say that, but every one of my clients has said, "I have done therapy for years. Why did I not just hire you?" I said, "Good question."
Pamela : Yeah. Is there anything in particular in your training or your life experiences—I mean, obviously, we talked about a more traumatic one. Is there anything, like television or golf or anything, that's really given you the foundation you needed to be a successful coach?
Christina Lecuyer : You know, I just think that I really, really love people. I love what I get to do. I don't think you'll find a happier person than me, and I say this also knowing that there's a lot going on in the back of my life all the time. I have all sorts of troubles, you know, like I have all sorts of crappy things going on. Nothing is perfect, but it's just that training of knowing, believing, and trusting that everything is working out for me. I was doing a podcast yesterday with a gentleman from India, and I said, "When I have this belief that everything works out for me," and I use the example of, let's say I miss my flight. Well, of course I miss my flight because everything works out for me. So, my next flight, I might be sitting next to a person who is going to be the most perfect business connection I've ever had in my whole entire life, or perhaps there was something wrong with that plane, or perhaps I needed to be late for the next thing so I could meet this perfect person. Or let's say I make my flight. Well, of course I make my flight because everything works out for me. So, it's like that belief system that I have that there's always a way to yes. I learned that from one of my mentors. I climbed Kilimanjaro with a children's hospital back in 2019, and one of my good buddies and mentors, who was on the trip and unbelievably successful, has had four to five businesses all over eight figures, bought and sold, and all the things. He said to me that his belief that there's always a way to yes has guided him in business. I love that because there's always a way to yes, and everything always works out for me. It truly is kind of woo-woo and cuckoo, and you might think I'm crazy, but also give it a try. If you truly do believe that everything is working out for you, and if you can find proof that everything is working out for you, I just think that you too can literally have everything that you want. A lot of people know "Think and Grow Rich" by Napoleon Hill, but it's a very similar type of thought process where he says everyone can be a millionaire, everyone can do this, everyone has a responsibility to do this, and once you brainwash yourself enough to believe that that is true, it's almost impossible for it not to be.
Pamela : Yeah, that's true. Anything else that you want to make sure we touch on? What else?
Christina Lecuyer : Sure, I just think that your community is definitely wellness-based, and the one thing I would say is I am definitely not a doctor. I’m not someone who's educated in any of the things that most of your guests are, but what I am very much educated in is the power of the mind. You told me on our podcast together that when your mom said she didn’t want to pass, you were like, “Perfect, no problem, you’re not going to,” and I think that’s one of the... you know, whether you realize it or not, that ability to believe that you’ve decided—like, my podcast is “Decide, It’s Your Turn”—because it’s a decision that does not waver based on circumstances. To me, that’s a definition of a decision: something that does not waver depending on the circumstances. Like, I’ve made the decision not to drink wine today. Well, when your kids go to bed and they’re pissing you off and you drink wine, that’s not a decision. I always use that one as an example because every mom of a 10-year-old wakes up and says, “Today’s the day I’m not going to drink wine,” and then your kids are crazy, you’re stressed about this homework, and you’re drinking the bottle of wine. No, that’s not a true decision. A decision is something that is not wavered upon. But for those of you who are in the midst of your health journey right now, just make that decision and believe that you will find a way to yes and believe that everything is happening for you. If you work that muscle—I always say that confidence, adequacy, and self-trust are muscles—the more that you use it, the stronger it becomes. So if you are in that stage of your journey right now, work that muscle as much as you can. Build that muscle of just believing and trusting that you will figure it out, you will heal yourself, everything is working out for you, and the universe is conspiring for you to be healed and feel healthy.
Pamela : That’s awesome. How do people find you?
Christina Lecuyer : Yeah, absolutely. The easiest place to find me is on Instagram. I show up there every single day; it’s me, not my assistant. But it’s @beChristina because I encourage everyone to be themselves, be your most authentic self. So, be Pamela, be Christina, be Karen, be you. You can find me on all of the platforms, but Instagram and LinkedIn are probably the two that I hang out on the most.
Pamela : Thank you so much, Christina.
Christina Lecuyer : Thank you.