224. The Recipe to Lifelong Wellbeing | Eileen Kopsaftis

Andrew Fix — Tue, 12 May 2026 12:00:01 +0000

Aging gets blamed for a lot of things that may have more to do with disuse, fear, and incomplete advice than the number of candles on your birthday cake.

Dr. Andrew Fix talks with physical therapist Eileen Kopsaftis about pain, aging, and strength through a lens that challenges the usual story of decline. Eileen questions the idea that weakness, balance issues, loss of independence, and chronic pain are simply part of getting older. Some of these changes may be common, but are they truly normal?

Andrew and Eileen unpack why pain often points to a bigger movement story. A shoulder issue may trace back to an ankle. Foot pain may connect to the hips. A limitation may have less to do with the part that hurts and more to do with the way the whole body works together.

They also talk about strength, stairs, muscle loss, and the subtle ways convenience can speed up physical decline. What happens when we stop taking the stairs? How much of aging is shaped by what we believe our bodies are capable of? This episode is a smart reminder that the body is a system, and aging can look very different when we keep building capacity instead of accepting decline as destiny.

Quotes

“You have to believe that your body was designed to perform based on how you work it, based on how you feed it, based on how you live your life.” (Eileen Kopsaftis | 16:04)
“There is a choice. If you believe you’re gonna decline no matter what you do, you’re not gonna do anything.” (Eileen Kopsaftis | 18:20)
“The human body is not designed on a cellular level to decline. When you’re doing the right things the right way, your body responds. doesn’t matter how old you are.” (Eileen Kopsaftis | 26:45)
“But as soon as that person stops having to climb stairs, they decline.” (Eileen Kopsaftis | 40:43)
“It’s important for people to remember that they’re a whole body and they’re not a body part.” (Eileen Kopsaftis | 56:37)

Connect with Eileen Kopsaftis:

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181. Rehab & Training Through Injury and Pregnancy | Dr. Jessie Czarnecki

Andrew Fix — Tue, 15 Jul 2025 12:00:57 +0000

What if rehab wasn’t a step back but a smarter way forward, especially after injury, pregnancy, or both?

Dr. Andrew Fix sits down with Dr. Jessie Czarnecki, physical therapist, weightlifting coach, and fellow clinician at PhysioRoom, for a conversation about strength training through life’s most demanding seasons including injury recovery, pregnancy, and postpartum. Drawing from her own ACL injury and postpartum rehab experience, Jessie shares how her approach challenges outdated advice and fear-based restrictions around lifting, especially for women.

They discuss why strength training should be part of the rehab process, not something to avoid, and how Olympic lifting translates to everyday functional strength. Jessie also shares how she’s helping more clinicians and coaches integrate barbell movements into recovery plans through her Barbell Rehab Weightlifting Certification.

Quotes

“It’s not necessarily the training that is the bad thing. It’s what our bodies are prepared for versus what our bodies are not prepared for.” (12:15 | Dr. Jessie Czarnecki)
“Making sure that how they’re approaching this new changes to their body, that they’re doing it in a way that makes the most sense for their lifestyle, taking into account what their work is like, what their activity is like. Every single person is different, so there’s not one blanket recommendation you can make for nutrition across the board.” (23:50 | Dr. Jessie Czarnecki)
“It’s more than just talking to them and telling them what I know. It’s more about showing them how they can connect these changes to how they currently train and reconnecting with their body, feeling certain muscles in what they’re doing, feeling certain movement patterns and building ownership of their movement with their own body.” (28:42 | Dr. Jessie Czarnecki)
“Being pregnant or postpartum is hard, but being pregnant, postpartum and weak is harder.” (47:45 | Dr. Jessie Czarnecki)

Links

Connect with Dr. Jessie Czarnecki:

https://www.instagram.com/dr.jessie.dpt/?hl=en

https://barbellrehab.com/brw-certification/

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