My theory? We have the ability to commit to the things important to us. We can commit to our families, our friends and our jobs but not ourselves…see where I am going with this? If don’t value ourselves, then how can we stick to improving ourselves? While I’m no psychologist, our level of commitment to improving ourselves is a direct correlation of our own self value. If we constantly put other things before our own health and wellness, at some point, inevitable illness will not allow us this luxury.

Wellness is selfish. It is selfish to allow selfless. Always remember that while it is difficult to break away from the day to do something for yourself, ultimately it will allow you to continue to do the things you love to do for everyone else. Find the time. Break the day into portions. Look for the opportunity to add some level of fitness or wellness into everyday tasks. For example, if you sit, find time to stand or if you walk find a way to make the destination further. Be creative!

Until next time – be well

Women in general have a negative pre conceived notion about what lifting weights will do to them. I have had female personal training clients vomit, pass out and cry before we ever even lift a free weight off the rack. Fear is powerful but women…far more powerful. It’s time to conquer the fear and move forward.

Three things to keep in mind when strength training for the first time:

Pick the right weight – I have handed a woman a 10lb weight and the look I have gotten back could stop a truck. However, when I asked her what she thought her purse weighed and then weighed it…she realized this was so in the realm of what she could and had already been doing without even knowing it, a weight was lifted…some pun intended. Make it challenging but not impossible.
Never Be Afraid To Sweat – Making the most of your time for a workout is imperative. If you only have 30 minutes make them count. Pick a routine that is challenging enough to get the heart pumping and the muscles moving. Think big movements with multi-body parts moving.

Ask for Help – We ask for help to learn to drive, to learn a job, to learn the computer but we are afraid of looking silly to exercise? Really who are we afraid of? Ask a professional to work with you even if it’s only once or twice so you get the basics. Working out with a friend is great for motivation but not guidance. You never know where they picked up their moves.

Women are so much stronger than we believe we are. Sometimes we just need to be reminded of all we do. We carry children, groceries, stand on our feet all day, carry laundry, wrestle pets, fight the malls and balance it all. A little weight lifting…nah that’s nothing.

No, I am not being cryptic on purpose. Pursing wellness gives us a self awareness, a sense of confidence and pride as it should. As we begin to respect ourselves, our bodies, our wellness, we begin to become conscious of other things that can impact not only our own health and fitness but the wellness of the environment around us.

For example, in working with one particular client, one of her goals was to incorporate whole foods based meals into her diet instead of grab and go. During her exploration of whole foods she wanted to incorporate, she discovered “organic”. “Organic” items were not something she had purchased in the past because she was not in a place to care about the differences organic items might mean to her vs. conventional items. Once she began to focus her energies on feeling better and achieving better health, she began to explore alternative avenues to do that and in the course of her own discovery found that different choices could not only impact her health but other areas positively as well. This is wellness breeding respect for other things around us.

Of course everyone’s journey is different but I do believe self discovery to our own vitality and health can lead to other positive impacts on the environment around us. The more we research healthy alternatives to things that we treat as common place, the more we can see how making even small changes can create huge results on a bigger scale.

]]> http://www.dailyevolution.com/blog/2010/12/wellness-breeds-respect/feed/ 0 http://www.dailyevolution.com/blog/2010/12/the-3-c%e2%80%99s-of-fitness-programs/ http://www.dailyevolution.com/blog/2010/12/the-3-c%e2%80%99s-of-fitness-programs/#comments Tue, 14 Dec 2010 18:17:50 +0000 Alicia Kirschenheiter http://www.dailyevolution.com/blog/?p=141 . . . → Read More: The 3 C’s of Fitness Programs]]> There are all types of fitness programs built for all types of people. When it comes to deciding a fitness program that you want to begin, barring any medical restrictions, there are a few things I recommend people look for.

Comfort Zone – Choosing a routine that is way outside your comfort zone for beginners may not be the best choice. For example, if you feel you are uncomfortable exercising with others at first then a group class may not be right for you. A one on one session with a qualified personal trainer may be in order to get your feet wet. Additionally, if you have never exercised before having direction about proper form and movement is crucial. However, if love the electricity of a group, have a qualified instructor, feel the music and love social aspects of group classes, then by all means jump in!

Chock it Full – The best bang for the buck is a fitness routine that incorporates both cardio exercise and strength training. Unless you have a lot of time on your hands, workout sessions should be powerful, to the point and hit all the high notes. I recommend a circuit of sorts choosing between 8-10 exercises performed beginning to end for a 2-3 term rotation. The “circuit” should involve major muscles, alternate working body parts and the rest times should be kept short between the exercises. The heart should be pumping but the muscles should be workin!

Change it Up – After about 6 weeks of performing the same routine our bodies begin to adapt. Amazing things, aren’t they? So let’s change things up to keep the body adapting, developing and changing for the better. The changes can be as simple as reversing the order of the program you are using, changing the weight or scrapping the old routine all together for a whole new one. Whatever it is, keep it challenging, interesting and be certain it speaks to personally to help ensure you stick with.

Be great & be well

What is good support? Well, not all the people we surround ourselves with can truly be viewed as positive lifestyle support. For instance, my mom to this day still smokes and unless it is broil or fried doesn’t eat too much of it. We laugh that she is my worst client. However, my mom is generally surrounded by other people who support her let’s say, not so health conscious lifestyle habits. They help her perpetuate the bad decisions by reinforcing the behavior with their own bad health habits.

Conversely finding people that have the healthy lifestyle you desire or who are making positive lifestyle changes, may help reinforce your positive lifestyle momentum. Now that’s not to say every person you socialize with need be a fitness junkie, but it would be my hope that the people In your life respect and support healthy minded choices and changes. I have had the occasion where people closest to my clients actually rebel against them becoming fitter and healthier. Change is hard, not just for us, but for the people who love us. Sometimes bettering ourselves can cause fear and insecurity in others. Be patient. Seeing that you truly want the best health for yourself and that you want to be your best self for them too will win them over.

Of course your fitness may also inspire someone else. The greatest compliment I have ever received was being an inspiration for someone else to become healthy. It creates an inexplicable feeling of doing something right.

Be inspiration and be well.

A while back I was asked to host a wellness presentation for a company on how to fit fitness into your work day. Basically, I stood in front of about 100 people and we openly talked about the benefits of fitness, exercise, wellness and stress reduction tools to be implemented throughout the work day. So, in the course of 2 hours, one woman in particular asked a multitude of questions about how she could get more active in the day. One suggestion I always use is for people who have the ability to take the stairs to do so. She loved that answer and told me that from that day forward she would take the stairs to the bathroom on the first floor for every break.

The presentation concluded and I exited the office and started for the stairs. I glanced toward the elevator and to my surprise stood the woman that had asked all of these really great questions, waiting for the elevator doors to open. I couldn’t help myself. I approached and said, “Excuse me but I am pretty sure you told me not 10 minutes ago that from this day forward you would use the stairs to go to the bathroom every break?” She answered, “Yes I did but now I am going to the café.” Sometimes the truth is better than what you can make up.

Be well and I hope you laughed as much as I did on the inside.

Retreats are opportunity to really explore whatever parts of your wellness you’d like and the options are endless. Yoga in the mountains, meditation on the sea, food exploration in the plains or fitness in the forest, there are a multitude of choices. While many retreats offer a mixture of all of these services, I always enjoy an experience that allows me to experience a part of the culture I am visiting…usually through food. I love to eat and am definitely not shy about it. The opportunity to explore what I love is amazing.

Recently, I have had the opportunity to work on some different retreats with some really great destinations. One thing I always focus on in the program development is that the things learned, the things you desired to experience, become a part of the guests everyday at home life. Finding the right retreat is finding the right partner. Search, investigate and ask questions about the services offered. It can be a life changing experience.

Be well-

Remember what the spirit of the holidays are all about…simplicity and appreciation for the things we love.  The things we need.  Shouldn’t that include our own health and wellness?  Without continuing the path of our own health, we can’t continue to do things like wait in line for the latest video game for 4 hours.  We need to keep on path and the big prize in sight.  What is that again you ask? To create the best health possible for as long as possible.

Keep on schedule with fitness routines to the best of your ability or adapt them to something that works with the hectic holidays;

Make the best food choices possible.  Aim for whole foods.  Smaller spaced meals involving lean proteins and whole grains….and of course enjoy in the fruits and veggies of the season…long live the cranberry and pomegranate!

Last and of course most importantly…appreciate.  Appreciate not only this time with family and friends but appreciate your place in time.  Do everything in your power to make it last for you and the people you value most.

Be well.

Here are some simple beginning steps that are easy to implement and will get you going in the right direction.  Now they are not cure alls and they are not going to achieve you great results over night but they aren’t meant to.  Wellness is a life long journey that should bring you gradual positive results that can be sustained for the long haul, not the, “I dropped 30 pounds in 3 days” we are so used to seeing thanks to the media, diet commercials and of course…Hollywood.

Think Whole Foods, Not Short Cuts

Short cut foods are generally things labeled too good to be true…for example fat free cookies, artificial sweeteners and foods that have notoriously been bad for us but that are now new and improved to include things like fiber and all the daily vitamins and mineral allowances.  If it sounds too good…it is.  Include things in your meals like “raw” sugars, agave nectar or honey.  Frankly, if the only thing you are using sweeteners for are those cups of coffee a day, the average calorie count for a teaspoon of sugar is 15 calories…go ahead and live it up…just go unprocessed.

Taste Your  Foods

My good friends who cook taught me a great lesson a long time ago, taste your food before you cover it up in something like salt, butter, ketchup, mayonnaise or BBQ sauce.  Try seasoning instead.  Spices are a great investment, add tremendous flavors and a little goes a long way.

Pace Yourself

Only commit to a new level of fitness, well frankly, you can commit to.  Grand ides of exercising for 2 hours a day while juggling a home, family, job and who knows what else isn’t for the average Joe.  Walking for 45 minutes broken up 3 times daily however far more likely.

Find Your Space

I don’t mean a beach house (but if you have one I am open to invites…) I mean a quiet place you can breathe, clear your mind and regroup even for 5 minutes.  A recharge, no matter how small, can do volumes for your inner peace.

Sounds simple enough?  Good it’s meant to be.  Until next time – Be well.