I know this time of year can get super busy and stressful but that is all the more reason to sign up and commit to a class such as this!  It is too easy to put your needs (like exercising and keeping health) off to the side when you get busy with the holiday hustle and bustle.  So put your health needs first.  Commit!  Sign up for this upcoming shorter round of bootcamp to get you through the holiday season.  Just 4 weeks this time and then we will go back to 8 weeks for the following round.

Here are the details:

M/W/F 5:15 am begins FRIDAY Nov 30th.
There will be no class on the following days:  Fri 21st, Mon 24th and Wed 26th which puts the last class on Fri January 4th.
That is 4 weeks.  cost is $78
This group is full
or
Tue/Thur 6am begins  Tue Dec 4th.
No class on Christmas Day and New Years Day.
Last class on Jan 3rd.
That is 4 weeks.  $65

Contact me to reserve your spot read more →

Time to highlight some hard work again.  I asked one of my clients, Diana Bedlington, a few question.  Diana lives a very busy life and it is very stressful and she came to me searching for help getting fit, controlling her stress and blood pressure and learning healthier eating habits.

Here is a question and answer session we had.  Her answers are in white.

WHAT MADE YOU FEEL LIKE YOU COULD USE MY HELP:
"I was gaining weight and had high blood pressure."

WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR BIGGEST STRUGGLE IN THE PAST WITH STICKING WITH AN EXERCISES PROGRAM:
"Time and commitment."

WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR BIGGEST OBSTACLE IN THE PAST WITH EATING HEALTHY:
"Time and the fact I hate to cook!"

HOW DO YOU FEEL I HAVE HELPED YOU IMPROVE BOTH OF THESE ASPECTS:
"With food, all the little tips have helped.  For my blood pressure....you have healed me :)"  (you did the hard work Diana and followed through with everything we talked about so good for you!!)

WHAT ARE THE BIGGEST AREAS YOU HAVE NOTICED CHANGED IN WITH YOUR BODY/HEALTH:
"My blood pressure has dropped almost 50 points on the top (systolic) and 20 on the bottom number (diastolic).  The mental health and stress relief has been great too.  I can handle life without my BP going through the roof most of the time now :)"

BEFORE YOU STARTED WORKING OUT REGULARLY HOW DID YOU FEEL:
"Bad about myself and frustrated."

I KNOW YOU DID THE ADVOCARE 24 DAY CHALLENGE.  WHAT IS THE BIGGEST BENEFIT YOU FOUND FROM TAKING PART IN THAT:
"I felt better.  Even though the weight loss wasn't huge the energy level was much better and I just felt physically stronger."

WHAT HAS BEEN THE MOST REWARDING PART YOU HAVE FELT FROM MAKING THESE POSITIVE CHANGES IN YOUR LIFESTYLE:
"My blood pressure.  I am able to be the person I want to be (most of the time) when it comes to stress and anger.  My family is starting to eat different too."

I KNOW YOU ARE AN EXTREMELY BUSY LADY.  WHAT HAS BEEN THE BIGGEST THING IN HELPING YOU FIND BALANCE:
"Knowing that I am accountable to Amy and not letting her down.  She has found the perfect balance in accountability and being able to push a person to their max.  I also don't want to have a stroke or heart attack.  I have several things I want to experience in my lifetime and I want to live a full, well balanced life."

Diana, you are a harworking, hilarious woman and I love working with you.  I am so proud of you for all of your determination and hard work.   You are tough and always good for a laugh which makes our sessions fun.  Keep up the hard work, you know it is all worth it!
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I am sure you know you do not need to belong to a gym to get fit...but do you know the exercises you can do anywhere and anytime with absolutely no equipment at all to help you on your path to better fitness?  Well, I can help!  Come to my class on Saturday, October 27th, 8:30-9:30am for only $10 and learn an abundance of exercises you can do with nothing but your own body weight!  We could all benefit from learning those!  You will learn the correct form and you will leave with handouts explaining everything you learned so you will feel comfortable on your own.  Contact me to reserve your spot! read more →

Last weekend a group of some of my friends from class and some of their family members participated in the Muds To Suds in Ferndale.  What a blast.  Here are a few pictures from the event.

 

I think we all had a great time and hope to do it again next year with maybe even some more people on our team.  Thanks to: Jessica Jager, Missy VanderYacht, Corey King and her family, Amy Ritter and her family, my hubby Jeromy, Alison Nolte, Angela Allen and her hubby, and Mandi Hamilton.  What a good bonding adventure!!   By the way it is almost 1 week later and I am finally almost pink free in my hair...just a touch left.  Thanks Missy :) read more →

I am taking sign ups for the next round of classes.
M/W/F 5:15am - full
Tue/Thur 6am
Wed/Fri 9:30am
All classes begin the first week of October and run for 8 weeks.  At the start you will receive a booklet with helpful nutrition/wellness info and every week I will give you a healthy recipe. The 2 rounds that still have space are $130
Let me know if you would like to reserve a spot. read more →

As this round is finishing up it is time to open up sign ups for my next round of classes.  Here is what I have available:
M/W/F 5:15am (outdoor).  choose 2x a week for $130 or 3x a week for $155
or
Tue/Thur 6am (primarily indoor) $130
As always healthy recipes will be handed out each week and at the start you will receive a folder of helpful nutrition/wellness information to help guide you in your healthy lifestyle.
Classes will begin the week of July 23rd and go 8 weeks.  There will be no class on Friday August 3rd and that class will be made up at the end. 
Space is limited in both rounds so confirm your spot by contacting me today. read more →

Don't you just love summer time!  Besides being able to enjoy fresh air and sunshine (well hopefully most of the time), camping trips, running through sprinklers. having campfires and more we also get to indulge in many fruits and veggies in season and being able to buy them fresh and local.   The quality and variety of the local products  really exceeds what you find in a conventional grocery store.  When we do shop at buy fresh food locally we are putting money directly back into the local economy and the produce is fresher.   Eat what is in season right now.  It is not only cheaper but tastes amazing.  Of course what is in season depends on where you live but generally speaking here is a list of what is in season in June and July (and I am sure I am missing some): 

Fruit

• strawberries
• cantaloupe
• watermelon
• raspberries
• cherries
• blueberries
• peaches
• kiwi
• apricots
• plums
• of course bananas seem to pretty much always be in season

Vegetables

• corn
• lettuce
• cucumbers
• tomatoes
• green beans
• summer squash

Wow, I am making myself hungry.  Doesn't this list just make your mouth water :)  it is a great idea for you to can some of your favorite fruits or vegetables during the months that they're cheap.  So stock up while you can.  Summer is a great time to make jam too.  My family loves strawberry and raspberry jam and it is healthier to make it yourself plus you get the added bonus of knowing there aren't any bugs in your jam when you make it yourself :)  We all know there are some smashed up bugs in those jars in the grocery store.  Yuck!  I worked in the berry fields enough in my youth to know what goes in there.  Of course I am not saying that little ol' me let a bug or 2 go by me on the berry belt just because it was too big and nasty to touch, I would never do that :)  Ahhh, fond memories.  I also buy extra berries to freeze and have year round for my smoothies.  I can't believe how many berries I go through.  I have a smoothie every single day and they just need berries to taste good.

Ok, time for me to get a snack.  

 

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A new find – Pure organic bars.  They were created when looking for healthy vegetarian snacks.  Their requirements when trying to create these yummy bars were: They would only use real ingredients, organic fruits (certified organic, which means 95% of their ingredients are organic) and healthy nuts untouched by harmful herbicides and pesticides. No refined sugars, no chemicals, no genetically-modified stuff. They wanted ingredients rich in antioxidants, vitamins, and omega-3 fats. Most importantly, it had to taste amazing…and they are gluten free…yippee!   Sounds pretty great right!  Sign me up to try them.

The bars have between 3-5 grams of fiber and 5-7 grams of protein.  You won’t find refined sugar in these bars.   Awesome news!   Hate it when they hide that stuff where it isn’t needed.   They use agave nectar as their sweetener.   Keep in mind though that these bars range around 200 calories each, so I wouldn’t recommend more than one in a day or even necessarily every day but they make a good snack.  There are good to have in your car or purse for when you get stuck between meals and need something to grab quickly or hey, throw them in your kid’s lunch.  I just really like when I find something and read the ingredient list and can actually read and know what every ingredient is that is listed.

They sent me so many flavors to try and I was looking forward to sampling each of them.  Here they are in order of my favorite to least favorite.   I enjoyed the texture of each bar.  Nice and crunchy, not gummy or grainy which some bars I have found seem to be like.  Apple cinnamon (wow, holy taste bud alert – in love), wild blueberry, banana coconut (love me some coconut), cranberry orange, chocolate brownie, dark chocolate berry, chocolate almond, peanut raisin crunch, cherry cashew bar, super fruit nutty crunch (this is the only one I did not like the flavor of).  Wow don’t those flavors sound inviting?  You want to try them?  If you are local you can find them REI, otherwise check them out online.

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