Author: gobefitc

Hey it’s tough times out there, between the enonomy and the impending election I don’t know about you, but my stress level is elevated. My mood has been down too – which isn’t characteristic of me. There’s only so much that SNL can do for me.

Late into my run around the reservoir yesterday I had a a welcome breakthrough – I suddenly got giddy. I’m not kidding, a loopy look snuck onto my face that must have been due to those exercise endorphins beginning to kick into full gear. I was smiling at everyone I ran by.

Yep – I love those feel great moments when you’re in the zone. You feel like a million bucks. That’s what a vigorous dose of exercise does for me – it gets my brain kind of fuzzy and relaxed in a good way. Once I’m finished, I am calmer, productive and focused. In fact, I notice a difference in my mood on the days that I don’t exercise. I’m more irritable and grumpy. So the next day I make sure to get my exercise fix – otherwise I’m cranky and hyper – prone to erratic mood swings. I’m exaggerating – but still once you get those endorphins going you’re going to want them on a daily basis.

 

Duh – “Yes!” The answer to this question seems like a no brainer. So why would I even blog about it? Because there are people out there who beg to differ. They can come up with a million reasons why it’s not a good thing and should be avoided at all costs.  

A while ago an older participant in one of my programs quietly confessed, “Exercise isn’t good for me.” I listened carefully and considered his comment, which is quite rare since most participants choose to be in fitness classes. However, in this case, the clients had the option not to participate. Rather than dismiss his comment as an utter untruth, I respected and appreciated his perspective. A list of possible reasons ran through my head: He may be uncomfortable emotionally and physically, afraid of getting hurt, feel self-conscious of his efforts, feel unsuccessful, bored, unchallenged or too challenged. He may have had a bad experience with exercise, similar to someone who is afaid of dogs because of their bark or bite. Whatever his reasoning was at the time, it was defining his experience and attitude. It was preventing him from participating in a program that could only help him, a program that he needed to be in.

The benefits of exercise are discussed constantly. We hear and read about the latest findings in the media. So why is 75% of our population inactive? Perhaps a part of them still clings to the belief that it’s bad, while somewhere another part toys with the notion that it may not be all that bad. I hope the latter to be the case.  

Now to answer the question: Exercise is good for you. You’re more likely to do it if it’s appealing, so please at least have fun while you do it!

I believe that the health and fitness industry will need to make some significant adjustments this year as people’s financial priorities are changing. I know that I have made some key changes as a small business owner. I am offering more group fitness classes, small group and partner training, as a way to keep services accessible and affordable for all. 

For one thing, I continue to offer classes through organizations whose mission is to keep fitness within everyones reach. I am doing my part to alter the perception that only celebrities or the wealthy can afford fitness services.  Bottom line – everyone needs to stay healthy, especially given the rising costs of healthcare! Fitness is the best prevention.

How does one become or keep healthy and fit in a tough economy? For one thing, you could workout at home using minimal equipment, if that’s too much to ask, you could workout at home with a significant other or a friend, you could also take a group fitness class, or barter with a trainer. Yep – you could barter with me. I’ll do what it takes to keep you fit in these tough times.

 

Even though the economy is slow now there is great opportunity in the fitness industry. In fact, the industry is growing by leaps and bounds. I love my work because of the positive energy required and the chance to transform people’s lives over the long term. My work is deeply gratifying and fun!

I particularly enjoy my group fitness classes because I meet such a diverse community of people who make a positive effort to achieve their health and fitness goals.  I love hearing participants share their success stories as well as failures. I am always learning and growing.

I realize how much need there is to work with an aging population, and how it takes small steps to make healthy changes. Nothing is taken for granted when you are a senior! Every wednesday, 90 year old Dottie keeps me on my toes, as she laughs and chucks the ball right back to me like she was a fiesty teenager. Sometimes she slaps me on my back as if to remind me of what it means to be healthy and fully alive. One the the seniors I work with recently died at 98. I learned that he loved dancing and that women would line up to dance with him at events. 

This industry keeps me and those I work with positive – focused, for the most part healthy and in good spirits.

What more could I ask for?

While on vacation in San Diego, I spontaneously laced up my running sneakers and went for an afternoon jog around the harbor. It had been almost two years since my last run. I had basically given up on ever running again, since my two knee surgeries and osteoarthritis.

“Why run now?” I questioned myself, as I jogged along side the gorgeous harbor that was dotted with towering yachts and pristine sailboats. “Because San Diego is the perfect place to do so!” I exclaimed to myself, as I past other joggers, walkers and cyclists. In the distance, I heard the sound of bagpipes. I thought for a moment that I was imagining the shrill sound, as if announcing and honoring my triumphant return to running. “How selfish and foolish of me,” I quickly thought, the sweat clinging to my body. “The endorphins must be kicking in now,” I toyed with this notion for a brief moment.

My heart was pounding, my face glowing, smiling, I darted past the bagpiper and gave him a thumbs up. A signal that yes – I am back and will run in moderation in spite of my osteoarthritis!

Tomorrow I leave this paradise for San Francisco. I have been here on vacation for the last two weeks and can’t get enough of this glorious place. I have been so busy, enjoying every moment here that I have neglected writing a journal entry in my blog.

This city is bustling with activity! From the buff surfers in Mission Bay, the fitness walkers in Carlsbad, to the diehard cyclists in La Jolla, there is something here for those who live to be outdoors. I spontaneously laced up my sneakers one magnificent afternoon and ran along the harbor in Shelter Island. I was so mesmerized that I nearly ran into the bay! I confess that I haven’t run in two years due to osteoarthritis of the knees. Oddly, my knees haven’t bothered me running or since I’ve been here. I attribute this to the perfect weather conditions here- dry!

I dread heading back east where my knees will once again be subject to the idiosyncracies of the New England weather. I will miss the ocean breeze – the dry air – the bright sun – I guess that I am a Californian at heart!

This year’s Olympics will go down in history for being one of the most riveting of all time. Michael Phelps just won his 8th gold medal. A superhuman beast, Phelps has racked up 8 gold and smashed world records. Then there’s Misty May-Treanor and Kerry Walsh winning game after game and crushing the competition. Or how about the US gymnasts Shawn and Nastia taking the silver and gold medals? We can’t forget Dara Torres either – the oldest swimmer on the Olympic Swimming team, a whopping 41 year old, who took the silver.

The Olympics humble and inspire. All of us have our gifts, yes, you could say great genes help shape and make an athlete. Take Michael Phelps, he is blessed with amazing genetics, athletic championship talent, and grit. Bottom line – discover your gift – develop it and use it! Whether it be in sport, art, school, business or life – live your dream. If it’s one of the many things that we learn from Beijing – it’s that there are no limits, unless you create them.

Don’t even think of it. If it’s one meal that you don’t skip, it’s breakfast. The bottom line is that you should not skip any meals. In fact, six mini meals is the way to eat healthy. Keep that metabolism fired up and stoked! Yet, the more people I poll, the more I learn that they skip the most important meal of the day. The meal that sets the tone for the day. By the time lunch rolls around they are stark raving and starving zombies!

I know that I can’t function without a hearty breakfast. I’ve made a lovely ritual of choosing the morning coffee beans of the day, to grinding and french pressing them and then pouring a delicious cup of coffee into my mug. Once I’ve done that I choose a high fiber cereal like Kashi Crunch, or Kashi Go Lean or oatmeal. Of course I top the cereal off with some fresh berries and sprinkle vanilla soy milk over it. Then I sit down to a tasty breakfast.

The next time you skip or think about skipping breakfast – think twice. Remember – you are depriving yourself of the most important meal of the day! If you are trying to lose weight – rest assured that omitting breakfast will not aid in your weight loss efforts.

This week I learned that Aaron, my husband’s brother in law, was diagnosed with dementia. This discovery is deeply disturbing, since Aaron is only 58 and will be moved into a nursing home permanently. I am shocked and can not believe this is the truth, as I type this entry – a tribute to Aaron.

Aaron is an intelligent, independent and opinionated man, whose love of classical music is the passion we in particular have in common. Complicated and hardworking,  he became bitter in the later years. Living in Israel, is a tough life. Aaron was battered by years of silent suffering. He wasn’t one to share his emotions, or reach out and ask his family for help. His career as the manager of a reputed textile company came to a sudden end in his early 50’s. He needed to begin a new, which was devastating to him. Over the years, his family of origin betrayed him, his marriage dissolved and his kids grew distant. Aaron suffered tremendous stress that he internalized. The signs of stress were evident to all that knew him but not to him. 

The last time I saw him was in January of 2006. I hadn’t seen him since 1994, a long time to go without seeing close family. There were the telltale signs of stress, the chronic smoking, the underlying anger and bitterness present in his body language. A language that communicated defeat, alienation and isolation, a worn man who was beaten down by the years of sadness and struggle.   

Now I cry for Aaron. I cry for the years of pain and suffering – the years of denial. I ponder what could have been done to free him from his agony – the burden of life. I know that to live is to live each day as a precious gift that has been given to us. The reality is that none of us, young or old, knows what lies ahead of us. We do know what we have now in this moment and that life can change in an instant.

Aaron, this blog entry is dedicated to you,  to those who live with dementia, an incurable illness and to the family and friends who must go on and live with the pain and loss.  

There’s a lot going on in the mind and body when doing familiar exercises and learning new ones. On the surface it seems so simple and yet, it is quite technical and complicated. The mind has to process the information and then the body needs to organize, plan and coordinate the exercise with good to near perfect form. The mind and body need to cooperate as a team without any glitches in communication.

When teaching group fitness classes, I make sure that the material I cover is accessible to all kinds of learners. Being a former teacher, I have an appreciation and understanding that people learn differently. It was a welcome encounter with Howard Gardner’s, “Theory of Mulitple Intelligences,” in which I first discovered the concept of kinesthetic learners. Finally, it was affirmed that there is such a thing as learning through movement. For one thing, as a kid I was always moving. I learned by doing.

Whether working one on one or with groups, I use the “tell, show, and do,” approach. I’ll encourage and talk you through the exercise as I break it down into steps, show and do it myself. I’ll demonstrate the correct form over and over again to ensure your safety and success. Then you can tell, show and do it yourself!