Hollywood Actress Tina Lifford Shares How Important Internal Health Is To Attaining Targets

Tina Lifford, actress, writer, and entrepreneur, currently plays Aunt Vi at OWN’s Critical … [+] acclaimed Queen Sugar series.

Kauwuane Burton

Tina Lifford, actress, writer, and founder of the Inner Fitness Project, is committed to helping others get fit inside and tackling the prediction that by 2030 the nation’s biggest health crisis will be depression. As an internal fitness trainer, she started a wellbeing initiative that teaches effective and reliable practices to navigate your past, present and future with resilience, strength and wisdom. Aside from running her own company, Lifford’s acting career shows no signs of slowing down. With over 30 years in Hollywood, she is best known for her roles as Joan Mosely in South Central and currently as Violet Bordelon aka Aunt Vi in OWN’s Queen Sugar. Although the series is still in season six, it is preparing for season seven, the series finale.

“Whenever something happens to us that separates us from our self-esteem and we feel ashamed or incapable in some way, not good enough, or afraid of ourselves,” explains Lifford, “we go with it. It’s not that it’s happening and then we can put it in a drawer. It’s part of our life and we manage it. … I literally see inner fitness as a brother, sister to physical fitness. One speaks of the importance of the physical body. And the other speaks for how important it is to take care of the inside, the mental, the emotional and the spiritual. So when we are more aware of how we are working proactively with ourselves, building our self-esteem and becoming more knowledgeable and aware of how we deal with ourselves, that is inner fitness work. “

Lifford entered professional life as a PR specialist. She took acting classes and auditioned for the local community theater at every opportunity. One of her mentors asked her to audition for a specific role in a theater production he was directing; however, it required her to quit her job in public.

PASADENA, CA – FEBRUARY 11: The cast of “Queen Sugar”, Outstanding Drama Series winners … [+] Award, posing in the press room for the 48th NAACP Image Awards at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium on February 11, 2017 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Jesse Grant / Getty Images for the NAACP Image Awards)

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A year later, the same director started working in television. He helped Lifford acquire her SAG card while offering her a role on Knott’s Landing. She was enjoying life as a television actress and set out to star in a movie. In 1991, her goal was achieved by acting alongside Steve Martin and Alfre Woodard in the Grand Canyon. This role made her a sought-after actress in the industry.

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Lifford has always purposely pursued her goals and what she wanted in life. She noticed a pattern of writing down her next step, working toward it, and achieving certain goals. By following her routine, she discovered that she had been working on her internal fitness and developing a fit mindset all along.

“We can start by realizing that there is an inner experience,” she explains. “Let’s call it the inner self. That self takes time and attention. This sounds like a simple statement, but it is profound because we go through our day, we live our lives as if the physical body were what we are. And so we have ignored, neglected, denied, lied to ourselves about what is going on in the inner self. So we must first give way to the reality that there is an inner self that requires time and attention. This inner self can be found through our mental, emotional and spiritual experiences, thinking, feeling and choosing. And if we want to take care of the inner self, we have to learn that we can influence and choose our thoughts. “

Her experiences sparked the idea for the Inner Fitness Project and her first book, the Little Book of Big Lies, which was named Best Personal Development Book in Forbes. In addition, the book was recognized as the winner of the Book Authority 2020 in the category “Best Meaning of Life Books of All-time” and the winner of the Nautilus Book 2019 Gold Award in the category “Personal Growth”. Now she is writing her second book.

Actress and CEO of The Inner Fitness Project Tina Lifford practices journaling as a strong inner being … [+] Fitness support tool.

Leta G. Taylor

As Lifford continues to twirl and develop in her career, she focuses on the following essential steps:

• Ask yourself tough questions about how this new opportunity aligns with your mission or values. Will this pivot point bring you closer to your overall goals?
• Trust your gut feeling. If something doesn’t feel right, it is most likely not right for you.
• Have clear intentions. Knowing exactly what you want will result in results faster as you focus on making the goal happen.

“I wrote in November 2015 that I wanted to be on a critically acclaimed show with an incredible cast on a regular basis,” Lifford concludes. “I wanted to be number three or four on the call sheet. And I wanted to give it an undeniable value. I did the audition [for Queen Sugar], and in January or February I got occupied and went to New Orleans. It has received critical acclaim. I’m number four on the call log. Every single actor is amazing. And working with them is amazing. And a woman over 60 is one of the breakout characters. “