Seneca McCue is a 500-hour Registered Yoga Teacher, NASM CPT. She specializes in core, mobility, and suspension training. She has worked as an accountability coach, and motivational speaker, and has been a nurse for 18 years.
Her commitment to her clients is clearly visible, as said by her “My goal is for you to succeed and for you to not only TRANSFORM your body but to also TRANSFORM your life!“
Women Fitness President Ms. Namita Nayyar catches up with Seneca McCue, a yoga expert who specializes in core, mobility, and suspension training.
Namita Nayyar:
How did yoga happen to become an inseparable part of your life?
Seneca McCue:
In 2016, I was teaching TRX at a yoga studio in North Carolina and I started to take the yoga classes offered at the studio. I was 37 years old and had been working out regularly for 5 years. I quickly realized that my recoveries after strength workouts were much faster once I started consistently practicing yoga. I wanted to learn more so I registered for a 200-hour yoga teacher training. I love to learn and am always looking for ways that I can improve myself and better serve my students. After teaching for a few years I registered for my 300-hour yoga teacher training and studied under Cathy Madeo. This training transformed me as both a practitioner and teacher. Teaching and practicing yoga is so much more than just a physical practice for me, it is a creative outlet, and keeps my mind in a calm peaceful state.
Namita Nayyar:
How do you like to kick-start your day? Your first meal of the day would look like?
Seneca McCue:
As a working mom in her 40s, I am constantly on the go and my morning routine gives me the energy I need for my day. After dropping my two kids off at school I come home and eat breakfast. Typically I will eat something high in protein like 3 eggs with tomatoes, spinach, and feta cheese, or Greek yogurt with nuts, and fruit. While I digest I enjoy a cup of coffee and I either meditate or journal before I work out. This sets my day off on the right foot and I am far more productive!
Namita Nayyar:
You seem to propagate that when it comes to fitness, age is just a number. According to you, 5 tips women should incorporate into their training routine once they near their 40s or 50s?
Seneca McCue:
I truly believe that we can achieve anything we put our minds to. I want to inspire women to not let their age define them. It can be intimidating to start lifting or practicing yoga later in life. I want to help women overcome that fear so they can feel amazing both inside and out. After the age of 40, we naturally lose muscle mass. It is essential to our long-term health to maintain as much muscle mass as possible.
- I recommend women do a progressive overload weight training program in order to build muscle. Three to four days of strength training per week is sufficient to build muscle mass.
- Yoga is a perfect complement to strength training. It helps with recovery and keeps us mobile and moving with ease as we age.
- NEAT movement such as walking is also extremely beneficial to our health as we age and can be done on rest days.
- To build muscle mass we must also allow our body to rest. I recommend two rest days per week. Long bouts of high-intensity training are stressful on our bodies and can be counterproductive after the age of 40.
Namita Nayyar:
What motivated you to pick your Instagram handle name as @myplankfullife?
Seneca McCue:
Myplankfullife is a play on words for my grateful life. I practice gratitude on a daily basis. When choosing a name for my fitness page I wanted to incorporate this idea of gratitude into the name. The name represents my gratitude for being able to exercise and inspire others to live a healthy lifestyle through movement.
Namita Nayyar:
What is your daily fitness routine? How do you go about training through the week?
Seneca McCue:
I practice yoga 4-5 times a week and I strength train 3-4 times a week. I use yoga as a warm-up or cool-down for strength training in addition to doing a full stand-alone practice. I use TRX straps to practice handstand endurance, improve my flexibility through PNF techniques, and hit new fitness goals such as a dragon squat. In the summer I add paddleboarding into my workout routine. I love being on the water.
Namita Nayyar:
Tips to grow flexibility and strength?
Seneca McCue:
To gain flexibility I would recommend dynamic stretching prior to static stretching and incorporating PNF techniques into a yoga practice. A type of PNF technique called reciprocal inhibition is when you contract the antagonist muscle of the muscle you want to lengthen. For example, while in a forward fold contract your quadriceps to further stretch your hamstrings. Myofascial release is also beneficial to gain flexibility. My kids play lacrosse so I always have lacrosse balls nearby and I use them to incorporate a few myofascial releases after I practice. It doesn’t take long to improve flexibility, but it does take consistency! My flexibility was unlocked within a year and after the age of 40!
To gain strength I recommend using a progressive program where you will continue to increase the resistance through either lifting heavier, decreasing the tempo, or adding a pause during the lift. To gain strength in a yoga practice I would recommend focusing on building core strength, holding poses or adding pulses to a pose, and challenging yourself with learning balance poses. I love creating prep yoga flow sequences that help people build their strength and flexibility as they work towards poses like handstands. I couldn’t do a handstand until I was in my 40s and if you had asked me even a few years ago I never would have thought I would be able to, but now I can. It is never too late to work towards your fitness goals!
Namita Nayyar:
According to you what should a healthy diet comprise? 5 foods you try to include and 5 you like to keep to a minimum.
Seneca McCue:
A healthy diet for me is a clean diet consisting of real food. I eat to balance my blood sugar and drink a ton of water. I eat a lot of protein to maintain my muscle mass. My favorite source of protein is salmon. My favorite snack is apples and almond butter. I eat vegetables at every meal. I love avocados and eat one almost every day. I limit processed food and refined sugar. I don’t drink soda or sugary drinks. I love wine and dark chocolate, but save them for special occasions.
Namita Nayyar:
How can one incorporate TRX suspension into their yoga routine?
Seneca McCue:
TRX is a great tool to help learn how to do balance poses! It teaches you what muscles need to be engaged to hold the pose and helps you feel the shift of weight needed to achieve the pose. For example, when doing a TRX crunch you are using the same core engagement that is needed for the crow pose while your feet are secure in the straps. I have been doing TRX for 10 years and it has helped me achieve strength and my first crow pose! It is a tool that more yogis should try out.
Namita Nayyar:
What motivational quote do you live by? Plans for 2023.
Seneca McCue:
“If your dreams don’t scare you they are too small” -Richard Branson
These are words I try to live by so in 2023 I am taking a big leap and launching an online fitness program. TRANSFORM A Strength and Yoga Program! It is an online program that consists of a 12-week progressive overload program, yoga classes, a mobility and recovery program, core classes, and suspension training classes. It lights me up to help other people achieve their goals. I am really excited to offer live coaching calls to motivate and inspire all my members while giving them an opportunity to ask questions. I am thrilled about this next chapter in my work and being able to make fitness more accessible for people of all ages. You can learn more about the program and sign up to hear about the launch on my website www.senecamccue.com
Namita Nayyar:
Share some tips to build a meditation routine.
Seneca McCue:
To build a meditation routine start small with 5-10 minutes each day. There are many great meditation apps with short practices that can be helpful when starting out. With any new habit, I recommend scheduling it into your day and habit-stacking it with something you already do daily. For me, that looked like adding my meditation practice to my morning coffee routine. Meditation is a fairly new practice for me. It was difficult at first, but once I felt the positive effects of it I started to crave that time.
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