Wellness Entrepreneur Andrea Leigh Rogers Releases New Book

Celebrity trainer, motivational coach and founder of Xtend Barre, Andrea Leigh Rogers, knows what it’s like when life gets busy.

As a single mom of two daughters running a successful fitness empire, she found that, over the years, the women in her life, whether they were clients or friends, frequently asked her the same questions. 

How does she keep herself relaxed and focused through the chaos of life? How does she find time for mindfulness while working and single-parenting? Does she have some sort of magical secret the rest of us don’t have that makes it all possible for her?

It turns out, her “secret” isn’t “magical” and it’s actually a lot simpler than you might think. In fact, it can be summed up by a series of seven daily practices that only take a few minutes each. 

These practices she’s implemented for herself over the years are the basis for her book, Small Moves, Big Life: 7 Daily Practices to Supercharge Your Energy, Productivity, and Happiness (in Just Minutes a Day), which was released on October 14. 

Rogers spoke with Life & Style about her book, the wellness industry and her journey to where she is today.

Initially, Rogers put her practices together into a workshop and then a series of retreats. But she knew that not everyone had the time, money, or ability to attend those events, and she wanted her practices to reach even more women that could benefit from them. So, her idea to capture them in a book began to take shape.

“[I was] like, okay, we need to put this into a book,” Rogers said. “This needs to be something that is tangible. I want this to be on women’s bedside [tables]. It’s something they can go to as a tool kit. It’s like a best friend that you’re sitting down with a glass of wine and having a real honest conversation with [about] what you need to do to get out of your funk. And that’s really how the book came about.” 

While Rogers’ life may seem glamorous, there was a time when she was barely holding it together. As she details in the book, years ago, her divorce left her reeling as she tried to figure out how to stay afloat both mentally and financially for her and her daughters as a newly single mom.

Her seven daily practices were born out of this difficult point in her life, and they helped her take the baby steps she needed to eventually create the beautiful life that she and her daughters now enjoy. 

Even now, though, Rogers is still human and has days when she’s running low on energy or motivation, but her daily practices help keep her from getting too far off track.

“You know, there’s this thinking that people that work in the wellness industry wake up every day motivated or we always make the right decisions, and we never have to, you know, reset or rewire or reignite. And that’s obviously very far from the truth,” Rogers explained. “There are many days that I have to remind myself of my ‘why’ and my purpose, and my drive has to be what pushes me to get there.”

For Rogers, each day starts out with the first of her seven practices: a few minutes of breathwork, which she says helps her to start her day off on the right foot.

“Before my body is upright, I’m focused on just a few simple moments of intentional breathing, which helps to not only get my body awake, like physically helps to wake me up, but it also helps to set my mood for the day,” she shared.

Like all of Rogers’ seven practices, doing deep breathing exercises has been scientifically proven to be beneficial for combating stress and is even used by the Navy Seals to help them stay calm under pressure. 

Considering Rogers’ background in the fitness industry, it’s no surprise that her next two steps involve mindful movement. 

While Rogers is a professional fitness instructor and personal trainer, don’t let that intimidate you. Just two minutes of gentle stretching followed by giving your all in a 10-minute high-intensity low-impact workout is enough to notice a difference, she shares in her book.

Knowing how busy life as a mom of young children can get, her practices are specifically designed to be realistic and achievable.

“I believe that many of us think self-care involves a full day at the spa in order to supply ourselves with a recharge,” Rogers said. While a day at the spa is great, she’s hoping to change the narrative that self-care requires an abundance of time and money. 

“I think it’s important to identify what you need, when you need it, and then understand that self-care doesn’t have to be a massive, huge thing. It can be pockets, little bite-sized moments, throughout your day,” she continued.

For Rogers, this is the very core of what Small Moves, Big Life is all about.

“I think it’s important to not lean into this mindset that in order to create change, you need to overhaul your entire life,” Rogers explained. “There are a lot of incredible, supportive programs out there, but a lot of them require you to make significant, massive changes. And Small Moves, Big Life is about understanding that lasting change, real transformation, comes from the everyday little things that you do that add up and compound over time to create this big life.”

Beyond just giving her readers a framework to work with, Rogers is helping set them up for success with tangible guidance. Purchasing the book comes with access to a series of 10-minute workout videos from Rogers for readers to follow during their daily movement practice. 

Small Moves, Big Life: 7 Daily Practices to Supercharge Your Energy, Productivity, and Happiness (in Just Minutes a Day) is available for purchase now in paperback, ebook, and audiobook formats.