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The Pulse - November 2016 Newsletter

Welcome Rachel Colbusimg_2854

Rachel is originally from Orlando, Florida, but lived all over the world during her time in the Air Force. She retired in Tucson and decided this was the perfect place to call home. Rachel has always been physically active but was never interested in making a career in the fitness industry until a few years ago when she started training a friend who was a beginning runner. This experience inspired her to want to help more people achieve their health and wellness goals. So, she attended the Pima Community College Fitness Professional program and was certified as a personal trainer through ACSM. Rachel has always enjoyed coaching and motivating people and is truly passionate about helping people change their lives.

When Rachel isn’t working, she enjoys spending time with her sons, hiking, running, traveling and finding new adventures.

Welcome Star Wyndimage-2

Star is a Tucson native and Sahuaro High School graduate. She studied Spanish and French at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff and received a BA in Modern Languages. Since completing her studies and returning to Tucson with her husband, she has worked as an administrator for a small women’s shelter downtown. The office skills acquired and the compassion that was cultivated in that job prepared her to be the welcoming face behind the desk here at Body Basics. Star loves people and is excited to get to know each of our wonderful clients. She hopes that her positive attitude will contribute to the culture of happy health living we have at the studio.

In her time away from the desk she plays volleyball, spends time with her husband, family and friends, and enjoys exploring God’s beautiful creation.

Welcome Mike McDowellimg_0003

Mike recently relocated to Tucson after more than 30 years as an environmental scientist and small business owner in Seattle, Washington. He has been active throughout his life with a variety of sports and activities including gymnastics in high school, rock climbing, mountaineering, and river rafting during his college years. He practiced Aikido for more than 10 years and has been a dedicated gym rat for many years. He has worked with personal trainers for most of the last 10 years and when looking for a career transition decided to pursue helping others transform their lives as his trainers did for him. Mike got his certification in May 2016 and has been working with clients since then. He is excited about joining the BodyBasics team and continuing to learn and grow in helping clients achieve their fitness goals.

Outside the gym, Mike enjoys spending time with his wife of 34 years, Suzanne, and keeping in touch with the lives of his two grown children. He also enjoys walking and hiking with his dog, A stronomy, and faceting gem stones.

Fond Farewell to Michele Michele

We’d like to extend a special thank you to Michele Sullivan for the care and dedication she has given our clients. She has recently stepped down in order to focus on her studies to obtain her PHD and to increase volunteer involvement with Emerge! Center Against Domestic Abuse. While we will miss her greatly we wish her all the best as she continues to study and grow. Thank you Michele from all of us!!

Article – Improve Your Will Power With These 3 Simple Steps

The other day as I was getting my morning cardio I found the nutrition coach in me in need of educating. My urge to voice started when a client to the right of me made a comment about their bodyweight when the treadmill digitally suggested that they enter theirs. This in turn triggered another client to the left of me to make a negative body image remark of their own. I spoke out as I felt there was an opportunity for support of an alternative thought process to be had. I started with a simple question. “What are you saying yes to that is making it hard for you to lose the weight you want to lose?” The responses came quickly; “I munch all day”, “I eat too much at dinner”, “I crave salty foods”, “I love sugar too much”.

Our body is an incredible organism. The commander of it all, our brain, keeps a constant read on our energy levels. If they are adequate our brain can invest energy on directing whatever tasks are in front of us. However, if we are low on energy, survival becomes the brain’s number one priority. It’s at these moments in our day that we can find our bodies captivated by our brain as it literally directs our emotions towards pleasurable and readily accessible food choices. The book Switch by Chip and Dan Heath refers to an analogy using an elephant and it’s rider to describe this sudden loss of control with the rider representing our rational thought and the elephant our emotions. “Perched atop the Elephant, the Rider holds reins and seems to be the leader…Anytime the six-ton Elephant and the Rider disagree about which direction to go, the Rider is going to lose.”1

As I continued to ask both clients questions relating to why they thought their issues of munching all day, eating too much dinner and so on were the problems some very interesting patterns started to be revealed. For one, both clients recognized that they were ravenous when they found themselves over indulging in one form or another. Second to that both clients were able to recognize that their choices were made largely based on convenience or availability rather than what they felt was best for them. This was largely the result of a third observation, that of a lack of pre-planning as well as pre-prepping other more healthful options.

In my experience coaching clients toward sustainable and transformational habits to improve their nutritional mind and body, these three points routinely come up as problematic. The clients aren’t usually aware of how problem-filled they are though until they’re revealed. Both clients I was talking to as I pedaled away between them thought the eating too much for various reasons was the problem. It rarely is the primary issue. In fact in almost all coaching situations I’ve been in overeating is a symptom.

As the three of us neared the end of our cardio session, I offered some walk away suggestions. I’ll share them with you as I believe them to be solid strategies for all of us to apply.

For one, plan to eat during your day and schedule time to do so just as you would any other appointment. I understand this can be easier said than done. The main point I want you to understand about this action step is how it gives control back to you. When you’re starving you give control to your brain. Remember the elephant and it rider analogy?

Second, take time to pre-plan and prepare items before you’re in your day. In the moment decision making is too late. Unless you have planned ahead you will routinely find yourself overdoing it. If you know you’ll be eating out with others, do some research. Find out what is on the menu ahead of time. Nowadays a quick search on the internet should suffice. That way you can decide ahead of time how you’re going to plan. It may be that a small snack before leaving to go out gives you just enough control over your brain to make a more thoughtful decision.

Last, and very important especially if losing excessive pounds is your goal, learn to listen to your body for signs of hunger before eating. This action step can be incredibly difficult, especially if you’ve grown accustomed to constantly having one or more distractions affecting your attention all day long. I’ve talked with incredibly successful people who find that they routinely overdo simply because their ear to hunger is so muted that they literally can’t hear it until they are absolutely “eat a mountain of food” ravenous. A general approach is to check in for a few minutes every hour distraction free. Listen to your thoughts. Are they including food in some way? Next, listen to your stomach. Is it making grumbly noises? Last listen to the rest of your body. Do you note calm? Are you focused or are you starting to note that you’re less so?

If you have a desire to lose body fat and maximize your energy levels practice daily these three action steps. My observation with those I talk to, whether paying clients or not, is a consistent adoption of these principles equals better choice making and therefore more control back to you when it comes to losing weight. We all have our thoughts on what is considered optimal nutrition. I have mine as well. However optimal behavior, regardless of your personal take on nutrition, is integral to you realizing sustainable change.

1 – Heath, Chip, and Dan Heath. Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard. New York: Broadway, 2010. Print.

Client Spotlight – Jill Owenjill-owen

Some of you will relate quite a bit to this month’s client spotlight, Jill Owen. Jill started both training and nutrition coaching at BodyBasics in July of this year at the suggestion of her functional medicine doctor, Dr. Jonathan Tait. Jill met with Dr. Tait to discuss strategies to reduce months of repeated arthritic flare-ups. Her knees in particular have both seen better days. She’s already been told by an orthopedist that they will need to be replaced at some point. Dr. Tait aided Jill in adopting an anti-inflammatory diet and also suggested she begin regular training sessions with a trainer.

Jill contacted us and committed to twice weekly sixty minute sessions. Aside from some travel here and there, she has not missed a single appointment! That’s even through some additional flare ups which unfortunately do happen with arthritis. Jill started with the goals of losing weight, improving her nutrition, and upgrading both her strength and overall fitness in order to get back to participating in a wide range of activities she really wanted to get back to.

Fast forward to today. To date Jill has lost 13 pounds by improving her behaviors associated with her nutrition. She’s much stronger and more capable as well. Presently she is focusing on mastery of her Romanian Style Deadlift with a recent high of 70lbs. for 8 reps!

Welcome New and Returning Clients

The greatest compliment we can receive is a referral from one of our clients or allied health network!

Curt Bertelsen referred by Dr. Griffin

Anne Doherty referred by our very own Kristian Martorana

Gregg Price referred by Dr. Tait

Liana Ruggles found us through Thumbtack

Eileen Starr referred by Dr. Tait

Dave Webster referred by Vivian Kaplan

Cindy Olson found us through Thumbtack

Robert Bloom referred by Kerry Culver

Mary Davis referred by Dr. Griffin

Amina Farah referred by our very own Kristian Martorana

Deborah Kaye referred by Dr. Griffin

David Welsh referred by our very own Mike McDowell

Leslie Cochran found us through IDEA Connect

“Shout Outs”

Shout outs are about us voicing victories we witness you all having at BodyBasics. We’ll keep it to our top 5 each month.

Kelly Frost – for recently reaching a milestone of 3 miles walking, 2 away from her stated goal when she started training at BodyBasics at the end of August!

Mary Holloway – for continuing to walk without her walker for greater stretches of time during her sessions!

Denise Roepke – for making a stop to BodyBasics for exercise a daily part of her routine Monday through Friday!

Jon Green – for hitting an all time high on his bench press of 210 for 10 reps!

Heidi Thompson – for realizing renewed excitement in her exercise programming and recently setting a personal record on her swim activity!

Recipe – Fruity Cashew Quinoa

Chris uncovered this yummy recipe on Precision Nutrition as a post workout meal.  It is SO good!

Quinoa has earned the title of super-grain for its low glycemic index, high fiber and complete protein content, rich vitamin and mineral profile and gluten-free composition.  It’s super good for us but can be challenging to make taste super good.  This recipe handles that challenge.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup Quinoa

1 cup vegetable broth

1/4 cup diced apple

1/4 cup orange peeled, seeded and diced (you can swap the orange out for any dried fruit like cranberries.)

1/4 cup raw cashews chopped

1 Tbsp fresh cilantro chopped

Instructions:

Rinse Quinoa in a fine strainer and drain.  Bring broth or water to a boil in a medium-sized sauce pot and then add the rinsed Quinoa. Cover with a tight-fitting lid and reduce heat to low.  Simmer for 10 minutes and then add the apple, orange and cashews.  Remove from heat and let it sit for another 10 minutes with the lid on.  Add the cilantro, stir all the ingredients together and serve.

Nutritional Information:

1 Large serving, 580.2 calories.

Fat (g) 20.1 (3.2 saturated), Carbohydrates 82g, Fiber 9g, Sugar 11.8g, Protein 17.8g

 

Video – Side Lie T-Spine Rotation w/ Two Arms

Team BodyBasics

Chris, Kris,  Myrya, Kristian, Lance, Rachel, Mike, Star

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