What kind of training do you do?

It's a question we get all of the time and a seemingly easy one to answer, yet, we struggle with it. We feel really strongly that we have created something different with our approach to training. Something that is hard to put into words, but is definitely not just about exercise. Teaching people to move correctly and kicking their ass in a workout is pretty easy. Nurturing relationships and creating opportunities for intentional community around the benefits of health and fitness is a bit more intricate. If it were just about exercise we would all get our workouts in and wander around half naked, stopping by each mirror we passed to admire our chiseled physiques.


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Unfortunately there is much more involved and the biggest roadblock to lasting improvements in health and fitness, for most of us, is fear. Fear of putting yourself out there and not being good enough. Fear of ridicule, rejection, pain, hard work, and failure. It could be one or all of these things. This fear can make the idea of walking through the gym door an untenable one. This is an all too common problem that holds so many back from even attempting to achieve what they really want, not only in fitness but in life.


Our ultimate goal is to hammer home the point that fear is not real. It is a projected emotion based on the idea of a worst case scenario of what might happen and it is not based in reality.  Acknowledging this and joining a community of people who have faced these fears and done the work anyway is the way to reach your goals. We have that community.
 
Regret Nothing.
Make No Excuses.
Work Hard.
Play Harder.
Live.
Love.
Laugh.
Lift.
 
I saw this quote recently and it came right on the heels of an awesome workout with some amazing ladies who find the time to work hard, lift, and most importantly laugh.  
The best part of running our own gym is the relationships that we get to build with everyone who walks through the door. We are so grateful for the amazing community that has grown over the past few years and look forward to sharing stories about the day, getting and giving advice, sharing new recipes, watching strength gains, and laughing. It's the short conversations during the warm-up, the subtle encouragement in the final minutes of a timed workout, the gentle nudging to put five more pounds on the bar; along with the friendly smile first thing in the morning or after a hard day, an ear to listen to your struggles and stressors both in and outside of the gym, the accountability of knowing that someone is relying on you to make their day a little bit better. This is what our community does for one another and this is what kind of training we do.

Getting a good workout is important, but building a lasting support system around an engaging and fun community is the key. We couldn't be more proud of the group of people who we get to work with and look forward to sharing the idea of this community with even more in the future.

 It's about so much more than exercise.

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The crazy spring like weather already has everybody thinking about warmer temperatures and summer time!  It's like a switch goes on and the race to look good in a bathing suit and shorts gets kicked in to high gear.  This switch has been turned on earlier this year due to the mild winter we have had and I am getting a lot of questions about how to lose the extra pounds or the last bit of abdominal or back fat before the summer frenzy begins.  
There are multiple parts to the health equation, but here are my top 6 ways to prep your body for the summer.  I use them all myself and have been testing them out on my closest family and friends and the results are amazing! 
1.Love your body.  Show it compassion every day.  Sounds simple, but women especially have a hard time doing this. When you look in the mirror, say thank you for what you have and get rid of all the negative thoughts. Replace them with positive thoughts.  "Wow, my butt and legs are so strong, they keep my body moving all day."  The more you show your body kindness, the more it will respond.  Get your mind right and your body will follow your lead(more about that in number 5!)
 
2.     Heal your gut.  Your stomach is your second brain.  If you don't take care of it, your body starts to rebel.  If you have had multiple courses of antibiotics, prednisone, or any other bacteria destroying medications, you will need more than just a great nutritional plan which I will mention in point # 3.  You need a good soil based probiotic(maybe more than one) and other gut healing herbal supplements to get your gut biome back in balance.  An unbalanced or unhealthy gut biome leads to weight gain, chronic sinusitis (which I suffered from my whole life), asthma, allergies, skin irritations, leaky gut, etc!  The list is endless.  This is near and dear to my heart and is what has changed my life.  Integrative medicine doctors are great resources in helping to heal gut dysbiosis. 

3.     Eat real foods.  I sound like a broken record, but you can't out exercise a poor diet. Eating whole foods in their most natural state seems to be the hardest concept when I am helping people lead a healthier life.  There are so many amazing foods available to us, yet we have a default button that sends us running to highly processed packaged foods that have zero nutritional  value, but are convenient and easy. Think about what you are fueling your body with and plan ahead.  There are so many amazing cookbooks as well as on line resources available that make meal planning so much easier and right at our fingertips. Two of my favorites right now are   www.detoxinista.com and www.glutenfreegirl.com. 
 
4.Move. Yes, weight lifting is my favorite form of exercise and is what keeps me on top of my game, but there are tons of other great ways to help you get a healthy body.  Hike, ski, walk, ride a bike, yoga, pilates, trail running, sprinting, swimming, etc.  Pick your passion and do it more often.  When you are on the move a lot, don't forget to sprinkle that ever important good nights sleep in to the mix too. 

5.Practicing Gratitude/Mindfulness. I have been talking a lot about this lately.  It has changed every aspect of my life.  We all have so much to be thankful for, but when we are bogged down by negative thoughts, whether it be about our bodies, our health, or our jobs, we stay locked in a loop of negativity.  This loop is hard to break since a negative mindset only allows you to see all that is negative around you and blocks out the blessings and gifts that are right in front of you.  Your body responds to positivity and you will notice some amazing changes when you practice # 1 on my list.  Changes in your body that you have yet to notice since you have been locked on the wrong frequency for so long.

6.  Sleep.  Yes, I am telling you yet again how important sleep is to overall health and weight loss!!  I need to hammer this point home for those of you who still don't believe me.  Lack of sleep causes lack of motivation(energy), funky mood swings, constant hunger pains(you will crave all the foods your body does not thrive on), and memory issues just to name a few.  One night of poor sleep can leave you as insulin resistant as a type-2 diabetic. This state sends signals to your body to store fat. I could go on forever.  I am going to throw my friend, Heather under the bus.  She was a night owl that had to drink coffee in the late afternoon to keep her eyeballs open and craved sugar.  Now that she is working out at 5:30 in the morning, she goes to bed earlier, drinks tea in the afternoon, has decreased her sugar cravings, and feels great.  I am so happy for her and I know it will just keep getting better.  Love you Heather!!  

I know it seems like a lot, but they all have a common thread.....they lead you down the path to health and happiness.  You can start by incorporating one a week or jump in head first.  Whatever floats your boat. Just keep in mind that we are not just made to survive, we are made to thrive. 

"My Mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style."
-Maya Angelou