Healthstyle is more than a program—it’s a mindset shift that empowers women to design lives rooted in balance, vitality, and joy. Dr. Angela Walker shares how her journey from Obstetrics and Gynecology to a wellness-focused practice shaped her approach to integrating mind, body, spirit, and even financial well-being. Drawing on the six pillars of lifestyle medicine—nutrition, movement, sleep, community, stress management, and avoiding risky substances—she explains how small, intentional changes can transform long-term health. Dr. Walker also highlights her work with Girlology, a program teaching young girls to embrace and honor their bodies, and offers practical self-care tools like prayer, meditation, walking, and gratitude practices to inspire listeners to see their health as a gift, not a problem to solve.
Music courtesy of Dealer’s Choice Sound Recordings, Inc.
Music artist: djezi
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Elevating Wellness And Self-Care Through Healthstyle with Dr. Angela CB Walker
We have a special treat in that we have a behind-the-scenes with Dr. Angela C.B. Walker. Before we get into all things healthstyle, how are you? We are, as of the taping of this episode, almost 50 episodes in. Please, if you haven’t tuned in to us before, please go to our website, BossLeap.com, to check out all of our episodes. Also, subscribe and follow us on YouTube. How are you feeling? I’m feeling super proud of us that we have almost 50 episodes. Tell me about this journey for Boss Leap, how you’re feeling, what you thought was going to happen, and where we are.
The overall feeling is grateful. I am very grateful for the opportunity to be able to do this with you, my partner in crime. I have the feeling of gratitude that I was able to commit and execute. It’s not just me, but you and I. With God’s grace, we see a dream come to fruition and continue. Overall, I’m grateful. I am reading a book, The Gap and the Gain.
Tell us about that.
The author is Dan Sullivan. It was probably one of my other episodes that I got the book from. What has resonated the most with me so far is living in the gain. You can either live in the gain and be grateful for where you are, versus the gap where you’re always trying to achieve that next goal and get to that next place where you’re going to be happy.
It’s to be happy where you are and take into account all the things that you have already done. In all of the wins that we have, we’ve accomplished a lot in the last couple of years. I’m trying to remain grateful for this moment, continue to build on myself, and continue to work on myself and my business. To answer your question, I’m very grateful for the opportunity.
Thank you for reminding us to live in the gain. I’m going to rattle off a few of our gains over the last couple of years.
Go for it.
The catalyst for the game was the book, The Game Plan: A Woman’s Guide to Becoming a Doctor and Living a Life in Medicine, which we co-authored with our classmates and sister friends, Leah Matthews, Jessica Osborn, and Diane Boykin. One of the silver linings of the pandemic is that we had a lot of time to talk and plan. All of that talking and planning led to Boss Leap. October 2024 was our first episode. It was on your mom’s birthday, if I remember correctly. We will not say the date.
Celebrating Our Wins: Boss Leap’s Achievements
It seems like a blink.
A blink of an eye. We are almost at 50 episodes. We applied to appear at South by Southwest, both as a producing team and a co-host team with our wonderful sister in crime, Dr. Rhonda Mattox. Also, you have a solo entry for South by Southwest. By hook or crook, we are going to be outside doing big things. I am super proud of us that at this point in our lives, we are being brave women and making big leaps.
Most importantly, we are grateful that what we set out to do, we’re continuing to do, and that’s to elevate the voices of women who are also making bold moves. They have these extraordinary lives that we don’t necessarily hear about because they may not be in the mainstream media or have a lot of publicity, per se. They are still creating these inspiring lives that other women are being inspired by. We’re grateful for the readers who continue to give us positive feedback and continue to ask for more.
Not a week goes by that I don’t get a message from a friend or a friend of a friend who says, “You guys are doing great work,” when I am in that gap period where I forget that we are making a big difference and elevating voices that may not otherwise be heard. The other part is that I’ve learned so much from our guests. I’m like, “Wow.”
If nothing else, it’s education for us. It’s positive, knowledge, and inspiration. Voices of creativity make you think differently and encourage you to do more things and continue to grow. There is so much inspiration.
We will continue to be inspired. We are talking to our very own Dr. Angela C.B. Walker. She is a bold woman. She’s going to share her brave story of her big leap. Dr. Walker is a mother, a daughter, a wife, a speaker, a podcaster, and a board-certified OB/GYN who has been caring for women for well over 25 years.
Beyond her practice, she empowers women of all ages, including teaching young girls how to love their bodies, helping women design lives of wellness and joy, and showing us all how to take control of our mind, body, spirit, and financial health. Dr. Walker’s insights come from her vast experience and her empathy and genuine passion for helping others create their own story of wellness. I am thrilled to have my co-host, sister friend, and partner in crime, Dr. Angela C.B. Walker. Welcome to the show.
You are very kind, as always. I appreciate all the positive things that you have to say, not only here. You’re a power source of positive energy for me through all facets of my life. I can say it and give you your flowers in person. You’re probably one of the most thoughtful people that I know. I’m grateful for your friendship. Thank you for the introduction, and thank you for your friendship.
The Calling: Why OBGYN?
Thank you. I’m going to receive that. I’m practicing accepting flowers, opposed to deflecting. Thank you. I always say we are card-carrying members of the mutual admiration society. I give what I get. We are going to stop being misty, and we are going to talk about healthstyle. First, why did you go into OB/GYN? Why women’s health?
Elevating Wellness And Self-Care Through Healthstyle with Dr. Angela CB Walker Share on XOverall, in medicine, in general, I have the standard answer that a lot of people say. I wanted to help people. For women’s health, it felt like a calling. When we’re in medical school, we get to do rotations. I went into medical school thinking I wanted to do pediatrics. It’s what I always thought I wanted. I love children, and still do. I love talking to kids.
In your third year of medical school, you do rotations. OB/GYN came before pediatrics. I felt called. It’s not a career for me. I love caring for women. When you’re treating women, you’re not only treating them, but you’re also treating their families. You’re affecting the communities that they live in. I did that first before pediatrics and fell in love. The rest was history.
I remain inspired by women’s trust, particularly in their vulnerable moments. As an OB/GYN, you learn a lot. It’s not just about their physical health. It’s about their mental, spiritual, and emotional health. It is all of those things. It gets to the point where you want to extend the conversation. You want to extend the part that gets to the nitty-gritty of why maybe somebody is feeling the way they do and how it impacts their health. I’m able to help women beyond the exam room through healthstyle. My goal is to help them design the lives that they desire, which is ultimate health and joy. I don’t know if that answers your question.
It does.
That’s what inspired me.
Let’s go back a little bit, though. You touched on hearing women and hearing patients. We know that hearing is more than simply your ears. It’s about your heart. It’s about being present in the room. When we think about maternal mortality rates, particularly among Black women, some of it is because we are not heard when we say we’re having the X feeling or X symptom. How do you make certain that women are heard?
I can say this because I’ve heard from my patients for all these years that I’m a good listener.
How do you be in the room? Visits are short. There are a lot of competing entrances. We don’t have pagers anymore, but we have telephones. How do you keep a sacred space for you and your patient?
My personal approach is I tend to go into the room and introduce myself. I do have my computer, because we have electronic medical records. I have that open, but I am making eye contact with my patient. There’s a lot that I don’t write in the room. I listen and gather information. It’s that connectedness. I’m actually listening. I may be the doctor who is taking longer because I listen. In the long run, that can be a detriment because I may be in the office, charting longer than others.
I don’t know how to say it. I feel like I treat patients the way I want to be treated. I want to be heard if I have a problem. Until you let a patient unload and tell you about their problem, you can’t ultimately come up with a plan with them. I don’t know if that answers your question, but it’s a matter of trying to put myself in that person’s shoes when I’m listening.
My life is going to be different from the patient’s life. Their experiences are different from mine. If I can try to empathize with where they’re coming from, what their experience has been, and perhaps what their experience has been with other providers, a lot of times, patients, once they feel that you are listening, will open up.
You can feel that, though, as a patient or wherever we are.
I treat patients the way I want to be treated: I want to be heard if I have a problem. Until you let a patient unload and tell you about their problem, you can't ultimately come up with a plan with them. Share on XI don’t know if that answers your question.
Staying Inspired: The OBGYN Journey
It does. You’re doing great. You’ve had a long career in OB/GYN, obstetrics and gynecology. How do you stay inspired and passionate? You’re up long nights. You have overnights. You’re catching babies. Remember, I’m an internist, so forgive me. We say catch your babies. How do you remain inspired?
As an OB/GYN, it is very easy to stay inspired because you’re inspired by your patients. There are so many women that you see on a daily basis who are overcoming hurdles, whether it’s health hurdles, mental health hurdles, or physical health hurdles. They’re navigating the lives of their families, whether it’s their children, a spouse, a significant other, or, as we are in our stage of life, an elder that’s in their lives. They are navigating all of these things. Unfortunately, oftentimes, they are putting themselves and their own needs on the back burner. We’re conditioned to put others first and leave our needs as secondary.
I remain inspired because I feel like I make a difference. I feel like going to work, listening, potentially inspiring someone to make health changes, and trying to empathize with where they are and figure out how I can be of the best assistance. Educating is a big part of what we do in OB/GYN. Through that education, you empower women to make their own choices. That’s how I stay inspired.
Let’s pull that thread a little bit more. When you talk about educating women and helping women to put their needs first so that they can then care for everyone else, if there’s a woman who is reading who wants to get started on a healthy lifestyle, and there’s only 1 thing that she can do, is there 1 recommendation? It’s hard to shift the battleship. We didn’t get to where we are overnight. We are not putting ourselves first, or we have been unable to exercise. We’re going to practices and those things. We’re Ubering our children everywhere, so we can’t necessarily eat healthy foods. What’s one change women can implement that gets them started as a catalyst?
Catalyzing Change: One Step To A Healthier Life
From a practical standpoint, focus on sleep.
Why sleep?
That orchestrates everything else in your life. If you’re not resting or you are typically running on low battery, it affects your health, in particular, because your cells don’t have time to regenerate and heal.
I’m cranky when I don’t get enough sleep.
Mentally, you are not at your best. Not only does it affect your mood, but it also affects your capacity to make decisions, the way in which you make decisions, and how you function. We can talk about ways to navigate that. From a more philosophical, if you will, approach, remember that your body whispers before it screams. Listen to your body and speak up. When you’re starting to feel the twinge of pain, the fog, or the sadness, and you’re not addressing that, then you’re not paying attention to that whisper that your body is telling you, like, “I need you to pay attention.”
I want to inspire women to reclaim their voice. It begins with believing that your health matters. You have to listen to what your body is saying. I know this sounds nebulous. One of the ways to listen is to journal. How are you feeling? Is this your best day? What did you do today that made you feel good? Are you taking into account what you’re eating, how you’re eating, whether you’re drinking water, or whether you’re sleeping? That’s some of the basics. Oftentimes, we say, “We’re going to do better,” but we’re not taking into account what we’re doing and how we can make that change.
I also think something as simple as when you get into bed at night, before you drift off to sleep, I use that as a time to do a gratitude list. Some people use it as an opportunity to be like, “Let me go through the day to see where perhaps I could be better. Maybe there are some interactions that I would do differently.” Our guest, Sheia Gibbs, talked about doing that mental accountability at the end of the day.
Educating is a big part of what we do in OBGYN, and through that education, we empower women to make their own choices. Share on XMaybe it’s not as grand as, “I’m going to journal.” Maybe it’s something as small as, “I was tired today, and I was short.” For me, if I’m not in bed by 10:30, then I’m not going to sleep early enough, and I’m tired the next day. It’s those little things. We are diving into healthstyle. Let’s go in. Tell us what healthstyle is and when you decide to make the leap.
Health Style Unveiled: A Brave New Leap
Deciding to make the leap has been a long time coming. I have made a leap from practicing traditional obstetrics and gynecology to gynecology only. I no longer deliver babies. I have fantastic, wonderful memories that fuel me every day.
You have a quarter of a century of memories of delivering babies, if I am correct. We had been talking about you doing GYN only in some iteration for probably the last couple of years. Correct me if I’m wrong.
You’re correct, but I’ve been thinking about it for quite a while. It’s an evolution. The thought is there, and then it’s a matter of seeing what that looks like, how it looks, and whether you can, for me, get off the hamster wheel of doing the same thing and expecting things to change. In OB, you encounter a lot of sleepless nights. There’s a lot of joy that’s involved in that, but ultimately, for me, it was starting to take a toll on my own health. I was not functioning as well after not sleeping for 24 hours. I knew that I still loved women’s healthcare, and I still wanted to make an impact.
We want some nitty-gritty here. When you talk about, “I wasn’t feeling well after not sleeping for 24 hours,” how did that show up in your life?
Functioning-wise, when I was at work, I was fine.
We’ve got to power through.
You’re on point in the office, but it was afterwards with how I felt when I was leaving the office at 6:00 or 7:00 at night. It was how I felt after the call, and perhaps not being as kind as I would like to be with my family. I knew in my heart of hearts that it wasn’t the healthiest way to live my life. You’re not designed to stay awake for 24 hours. Our bodies don’t perform as well. Ultimately, long-term wise, I felt like, for me, if I continued at that pace, I was going to take years off my life. That’s honestly how I felt. It’s that listening to your body whisper to you before it starts screaming. I don’t know if that answers your question, but I started to feel like something had to change.
When I was allowed the opportunity to look at some other ways of still being a doctor and still using my knowledge, but going outside the exam room, that’s how healthstyle came about. In the last several years, I was introduced to health and wellness coaching, which is what I’ve done a lot of for 25 years in the office, but it wasn’t called that. There’s a lot of coaching that we do with patients. Coaching entails helping to guide someone to the point that they’d like to be at. Much of it is bringing out what you already know internally, so I don’t necessarily have to give you a prescription.
You are also board-certified in lifestyle medicine, correct?
Yes.
How did that help on your coaching journey?
Your body whispers before it screams. Listen. Speak up. Share on XTremendously. I’ve always had a lot of that lifestyle medicine foundation in my own life. When I go back to my letter that we have to write in terms of why we want to go into medicine, one of the things I reflect on is that I wanted to be a catalyst for prevention. I wanted to help prevent things that we know we can prevent, like hypertension, diabetes, and obesity. I wanted in my practice of medicine somehow to incorporate prevention versus treatment.
Lifestyle Medicine: The Six Pillars Of Wellness
We give pills for everything, but we want to do what we talk about, which is primary prevention. That means stopping the disease before it happens. You are what you eat. It is about movement. Tell us about lifestyle medicine. That sounds like a high, lofty phrase. What is lifestyle medicine at its basis?
Lifestyle medicine is based on six pillars of health.
I didn’t know that.
You’ve got nutrition. There is a big focus on plant-based, whole food diets. There are a lot of vegans who adopt lifestyle medicine.
Are there some paleo people?
Absolutely. It’s not an absolute. There is a lot of education, and more importantly, a lot of evidence that eating a vegan or minimal meat-based protein or animal protein diet has a lot of health benefits and potentially longevity of life. There’s evidence there. Most importantly, what people should take away is that we should be incorporating a lot more plant-based foods in our diet. That helps to balance out the scope of not only the microbiome of our gut, but if you evaluate how you feel incorporating those things, they give you more energy.
The pillars include diet and nutrition. What else?
Movement. I talk about movement a lot. You know that I like movement versus the words physical activity or exercise.
Exercise is a dirty word.
You don’t feel like it’s something you have to do. You’re trying to identify something that you love to do or that you can do that still does not feel like a chore for you. We talk about that a lot in healthstyle, trying to figure out what you can do with your current situation with your job or responsibilities that you have. You may not be able to go to the gym. You may not have the money or the resources to go to the gym, but if you can walk, then that’s a form of exercise. You can dance. You can swim. You can do all of these other things. I digress, but that’s movement. There’s sleep. Restorative sleep is huge. We talked about the ways in which we don’t talk a lot about sleep rituals or good sleep habits per se from the time that kids are young. That’s so important.
Screen time is going to be the thing that kills the next generation.
It’s detrimental for us in our generation as well. That’s restorative sleep. There’s community. It’s being involved in the community, whether that’s your family or church. Some people have community in their work atmosphere and friendships. Nourishing those things is super important. We know from our girls’ trip and our friendship, more importantly, how community can make a difference and elevate your mood, but also be a source of inspiration for you.
I heard nutrition. We have movement. We have sleep. We have a community.
In addition to those four, there’s stress management.
That’s a big one.
Managing our mental and emotional health has to do with stress management. We talk about a lot of ways that we can do that, whether it’s through your social life.
We use the other four to manage our stress. If I’m eating right, sleeping, and moving, all of those things help my stress level.
It’s taking into account ways that we can manage our mental health and be intentional about that. Lastly is looking at avoiding things that are risky. Avoid risky substances.
McDonald’s French fries, would that be risky?
Yeah. That’s risky, so is smoking and drinking. Moderation is your first goal if you are somebody who indulges.
You know what I always say, though. Everything in moderation, including moderation.
That’s the key. I’ve taken it to heart. I reserve alcohol for celebrations instead of nighttime before going to bed. A lot of those things inherently make sense to us as physicians, but we didn’t necessarily learn ways in each of those pillars to help our patients. There’s evidence that shows that practicing lifestyle medicine principles cannot only prevent the disease that I mentioned, but also reverse it. For somebody who has diabetes or hypertension, there are plenty of people who, by adopting a lifestyle medicine practice, have reversed those diseases. There are exceptions.
Health Style: Your Personalized Path To Joy And Balance
At least their numbers have improved. If you’re on dialysis, then that’s a bridge too far. We’re talking about lifestyle medicine. Let’s go ahead and segue into healthstyle. You have something new or something you’ve been working on. We want to hear all about it. Healthstyle is your plan where you help women design optimal wellness. You guide women into creating a life that is filled with health, joy, and balance in mind, body, spirit, and finances. I need all of those things, so tell me. What is health style, and who is your ideal client?
Coaching entails guiding someone to their desired point, largely by bringing out what they already know internally. Share on XHealthstyle was born out of this whole idea of helping women who feel stuck in their current health situation, whether that’s mental health, physical health, emotional health, which we can all relate to, or even financial health. All of those things together provide an individualized framework for identifying what’s working for you and what’s not, and trying to create a bridge to get to what ultimately will work in all of those areas.
Ultimately, you can create this life of optimal health and joy without feeling like you have to follow someone else’s formula, but by keeping the pillars in place. I’m using pillars, not trying to use lifestyle medicine pillars. As a physician, I do have the knowledge in terms of certain things that can help in terms of our health, which can help you design your own healthstyle.
Ultimately, my goal is to be able to work outside the confines of the fifteen minutes that we get in the office. Women oftentimes ask for that but haven’t had the platform to do that. I am able to do that through health and wellness coaching as well as speaking in terms of larger audiences. In healthstyle, we can do one-on-one coaching and health coaching. I have a program that is more of a 90-day group program.
It’s like a jumpstart.
You’re also coming into a community of like-minded women.
I like that.
For me, it’s been helpful doing that in a coaching atmosphere. I have gotten my coaching certificate versus just being a physician.
You have a coaching certificate. You’re board-certified in OB/GYN, and you’re also board-certified in lifestyle medicine. You’re bringing all this together in healthstyle and using your stellar listening skills so that women can be heard. Is that what I’m hearing?
That is my goal. That is what brings me joy. I am so grateful that I have the opportunity to do this. If I can help one woman, that’s what I feel like keeps me going. You asked me before what inspires me. It’s being able to pour into somebody else and help to draw out what’s inside them already. Helping, encouraging, and empowering them to create this newfound vision of how they can become healthier in all realms of their life is what brings me joy.
I love that. We are all on a journey of growth and evolution. Like we have a coach when it comes to our fitness or our movement, we also have healthcare and our physicians. We have a dentist. We have a hairstylist. We have all these people who help us be better. What I am hearing from healthstyle is that you surround people with community and the tools with which they can design an individualized, authentic plan that is unique to them. Therefore, it sets you up for success. Meaning, if you tell me that the plan was designed for so-and-so, whoever that happens to be, that may not necessarily gel with my life. That’s what I’m hearing with healthstyle. Tell me. When a woman comes to you, what’s the first thing that happens?
Initially, it’s, “Why are you here??” It’s not necessarily the 1 thing, but let’s say your top 3 concerns. Some women are not happy in their current careers. I’m not necessarily a career coach, but diving into what it is that’s making you unhappy. Is it that you’re not happy with what you’re doing? Does it not bring you satisfaction? Is it the hours? Is it the fact that you don’t get enough sleep?
The money, the location, and the travel.
We should incorporate a lot more plant-based foods in our diet. Share on XAll of those things. Sometimes, saying that you’re not happy is the whisper. It’s getting underneath what it is, and then trying to identify what’s one thing that you could do maybe this week that would help. Not everybody can put their finger on it.
Small, achievable goals.
It’s the small steps that add up to the big change. A lot of listening, but trying to identify, “Why are you here? What made you click on the website? What made you sign up for the discovery call? What is it that you think I can help you with? What are you willing to invest?” I’m not talking about money, but in terms of time.
Sometimes, you have to give up something in order to move forward.
That’s true. It’s making time to make the change. I can write a prescription for a pill, but I can’t give you a prescription on how to get unstuck from where you are. It wouldn’t healthstyle or creating your own style if I gave you a prescription. There’s not one way to do it.
The answers don’t rely on someone else. The answers all lie within me. I have to do something about that.
I can guide. That’s the goal of a coach. It’s to help guide, but not give you the plan. I help you create the plan.
Girlology: Honoring The Gift Of Your Body
That is helpful. Switching gears a little bit, you have been a speaker for Girlology. You can tell us about Girlology or a one-liner. Can we spend a little bit of time teaching women to love their bodies? With Girlology, it’s about young girls. What is one thing you wish every girl growing up would know and love about their body?
The one thing, if I could wrap it up, is for girls to know that their body is a gift to be honored. It’s not a problem to be fixed. There is nothing that happens that is a problem that needs to be fixed. We go through all the changes in our lives. It’s individualized.
Menopause, premenstrual cramps, the pain of childbirth, fibroids, and endometriosis.
Specifically for young girls, their hips are getting bigger. They may have pimples on their face. Their period comes. Their chest is growing. They’re different than others. My body’s bigger than hers. Her curves are different than mine. They’re all gifts to be honored. That comes from mothers and women in young girls’ lives who tell them that their body is perfect the way that it is, instead of us trying to create this other body all the time.
Social media is a bear with all the filters and the idealized photos of bodies. That’s tough.
Practicing lifestyle medicine principles can not only prevent certain diseases, but also reverse them. Share on XTo answer your question, Girlology was developed by wonderful physicians, a gynecologist and a pediatrician. Their idea was to help young girls navigate the changes in their bodies, educate them with evidence-based information, and create an atmosphere of celebrating the changes in their bodies. They also bring in women or someone in their lives who can be on that journey with them, who would be a valuable source of information. It is so that they’re not having to go outside their valued source of information to get education about their bodies, such as social media and friends, which we all know oftentimes is misinformation instead of actual information. With Girlology, I fell in love with it.
What did you enjoy the most about Girlology?
The interaction with the mothers or the caregivers and the girls. Watching them come into the room, especially the girls, they’re very nervous and do not have a clue what is going on.
They’re ten, eleven, and twelve, usually.
Around that age, in 4th and 5th grade. They’re very timid and do not necessarily want to ask the questions. With the presentation and the talk, we make it interactive. We’re slingshotting bras across the room. We’re showing them pads, tampons, and all these normal things in our lives that shouldn’t be a secret or hidden. We get midway in the program, and they’re raising their hands and giggling. The caretaker who’s with them has a smile on their face of relaxation. We’re making it a fun, informative environment. Ultimately, it is the celebration of what a woman goes through in adolescence, puberty, and beyond.
Breaking The Silence: Menopause Awareness
I’m so happy that the conversation on menopause is out. We have Halle Berry, Oprah Winfrey, and Dr. Sharon Malone talking about menopause. That is so helpful because it brings it out of the shadows. If you are a woman and you live long enough, you’re going to go through menopause. If you have some sort of health issue that interrupts your reproductive years, then you, too, may go into early menopause. It is not a secret or something to be ashamed of. I’m glad that we’re having that same conversation.
That could be a whole other episode. We have briefly talked about that. The pendulum has swung from the time that I started practicing OB/GYN. We came out knowing all of the hormones that we were supposed to give women. In 2001, the Women’s Health Initiative came out with a study that reversed things. We know a lot more about the flaws of the study.
We know a lot more in terms of studies in women’s healthcare that hormones are not a bad word, nor are they necessarily prohibited to women at any age. It’s a great conversation for us to be having on a continual basis. I see a lot of empowered women who come into the office, and they’ve got their questions. They’re not backing down. They’re feeling empowered to say, “I need help.” That’s the beauty of us continuing the conversation about menopause.
Crafting Your Story Of Wellness: Design, Not Destination
In our conversation, there’s been an emphasis on community. We’ve been talking about listening and making sure that patients and women are not feeling heard, but are being heard. When we talk about women ready to create their own story of wellness, what wisdom or tools do you hope that they carry with them?
Looking at wellness as a design for your life, not a destination. We’re not trying to get to this point where we’re like, “I’m well.”
We stop and revert back to the other stuff we were doing because we’re well. I’m like, “You’ve got to continue all that stuff. It’s a continuation.”
It’s creating the continual changes that ultimately make your journey bigger, better, brighter, and healthier. It’s adopting the lifestyle changes that ultimately will get you into your later years still feeling vibrant and full of life. There are certain changes we can’t make overnight, but we can take one step at a time. It may be identifying again one of those changes, whether it’s sleep, stress management, or nutrition. Addressing all of these things is beneficial, but taking one step is moving towards that change.
Wellness: A design for your life, not a destination. Share on XEat elephants one at a time.
I like elephants. I hate that analogy, but it is a good visual. You have to start. That’s the key. This is what I find in the office. People are waiting for the ideal time. They’re like, “After Thanksgiving. After Christmas. After my child graduates.” Right now, make one change.
I found photos at the beginning of my movement journey. I saw what my body looked like. This must have been 2017. I started two years before what should have been my 50th birthday. I look at the photos of myself and can see the huge difference from 2017 to 2025. That’s a long time. That required me to be consistent and intentional about my choices, not only my nutrition choices. I had to continue to move when it’s cold, when it’s hot and humid, when I’m tired, and all of those things. You’re right. Consistency is important.
You have made an impression on me in terms of your Pilates. You’re so strong. The things we need to be shifting to, particularly in our stage in life, are building that strength. It’s not just about what you’re going to fit into, but becoming stronger with weight-bearing exercises, strength training, and all of those things. You have to start the movement and what resonates with you. You may not know it right away, but you have to start to figure it out.
I’m going to thank Deanna Companion. Please go to our archives for the show. She was one of our earlier guests. We work out of Bridge Body Pilates.
She’s amazing.
She’s fantastic.
You want to do all the things for her. She gives you that encouragement.
Dr. Walker’s Self-Care Regimen: Prayer, Movement, Gratitude
She’s tough. Tell us, on more of a personal note, about your self-care regime and what it looks like, or maybe 1 or 2 things that you are focusing on.
I don’t know that I’ve changed a lot. I’ve tried to be more focused on making sure that it happens. On a daily basis, my self-care starts with prayer and then meditation. We both love the Calm app with Jay Shetty. I like guided meditation. My patients get sick of hearing me say it. I haven’t evolved to being able to do it on my own, so I like the guided portion. I can do it throughout the day.
I have my vitamin D. I get the sunshine in the morning. I’m going to have to gear up for the fall and get all my layers on. You know I don’t like the cold. Sebastian, my bulldog, loves the sun. I can’t even get the walk in. I don’t know what it is for him, but it is his golden nugget in the morning. I’m getting vitamin D and walking. I’m trying to adopt your habit of walking in the morning. I try. I haven’t perfected that one, so it’s usually more in the evening.
Other than that, I’m trying to make sure that I do the gratitude practice in the evening. I may have gotten into bed, and there’s a journal right beside my bed, but I don’t want to turn on a light. I could practice the list of things I have to be grateful for in my head. Saying those is very helpful and peaceful. It gives you that peace before going to sleep. One other thing I learned, which I read about, is waking up in the middle of the night. Those of us in menopause, even if you are on hormones, sometimes you do have an occasional awakening in the middle of the night.
I have to empty my bladder.
Same. That’s often when your mind will be on overdrive, like, “What do I need to do tomorrow? I need to fix this. I need to help this person or that person.” It was something of a reframing of, “I am okay. Everything else can wait.”
Even you saying that now made me take a little sigh. I’m like, “I’m okay.” Thank you for that reminder. Please say that again for our audience.
“I am okay. Everything else will be all right.” I don’t even know what I said the first time, but the most important thing is, “I am okay. Everything else can wait.” The other part was, “Best decisions will be made when I’m fully awake.” That’s been a new one. It’s helpful because I got to that point where I was thinking about my mom, my kids, and what I needed to do. I am okay. Everything else can wait. That’s been a new adoption in my self-care regimen. I would like to get back to massages. That’s my goal with self-care on my list of things to do.
Where can people find you to sign up for healthstyle or to find more information about healthstyle?
My website is the best place. It’s DrAngelaWalker.com. You can reach me or DM me through Instagram @IAmDrWalker. Those are two good places to reach me.
We thank you. We are so grateful to have you on the show. I am okay. You’re more than okay. Everything else can wait. I’m going to leave us with those sage words. If you enjoyed this episode of the show, which I’m quite certain you did, please drop us a line at BossLeapPodcast@gmail.com. You can subscribe to our show, Boss Leap, on YouTube. Please send us a line, subscribe, like, listen, follow, and share. Until we meet again, may you be well.
I thank you so much. This was your idea. I’m always grateful to hopefully be able to inspire. We are both on a mission to make women’s lives healthier, happier, and more joyful. I am grateful to the readers for your feedback. Until we meet again, may you be well.
Important Links
- Dr. Angela C.B. Walker
- Dr. Angela C.B. Walker on LinkedIn
- @IAmDrWalker on Instagram
- The Gap and the Gain
- The Game Plan: A Woman’s Guide to Becoming a Doctor and Living a Life in Medicine
- The Journey Through Life’s Messy Middle: Finding Clarity In The Process With Sheia Gibbs
- Wellness Journey: Finding Your Unique Path With Deanna Companion
- Boss Leap Podcast on YouTube
- BossLeapPodcast@gmail.com
About Angela Walker
As an OB/GYN taking care of women for 25 years she shares her journey as a wife, mother, daughter and woman of color along her path of achieving optimal health and wellness. She helps others succeed in life by providing wisdom and steps to create their own story of wellness.
Dr Walker is also a co-author of the book “The Game Plan: A Woman’s Guide to Becoming a Doctor and Living a Life in Medicine”. In this book she shares her insight and personal stories of what it is like and things to consider as a female in medicine.
She is also a transformational speaker who lives in Georgia. Her message comes from the heart, sharing many of the changes she has made in her own life while fulfilling her purpose and pursuing her passion. She translates her office practice of listening to her patients letting them know their voice matters into clear and concise steps to owning and actively participating in their own health outcomes. Her joy comes from hearing patients say they are feeling better after having made healthy lifestyle changes by becoming more mindful and intentional in their health journey.
Dr Walker speaks to women of all ages. She has spoken to many audiences and is a speaker with Girlology teaching young girls and adolescents about loving their bodies.
Dr Walker graduated from Texas A&M University undergraduate, Georgetown University School of Medicine and trained in OB/GYN at University of Texas – Houston.