Help get this done! Reauthorization of the Older Americans Act

The Older Americans Act is up for reauthorization.

The Older Americans Act (OAA), originally enacted in 1965, supports home and community-based services, such as meals-on-wheels and other nutrition programs, in-home services, transportation, legal services, elder abuse prevention and caregivers support. These programs help seniors stay as independent as possible in their homes and communities. In addition, OAA services help seniors avoid hospitalization and nursing home care. As a result federal and state funds that otherwise would be spent on such care are saved.

Congress is currently considering its reauthorization. Access to preventative care, including fitness related activities are on the table. This is one we need to get done!

Why?

And it's not just fitness pros who think so! Check out what Forbes magazine has to say about why this is a biggie and why it's taking far to long to sign on the dotted line.

And then...

Urge congress to get it done and to include access to fitness services as a pivotal piece of the puzzle that keeps this nation strong and healthy.

Here's a super simple way to get a hold of YOUR representation in Washington, DC to be sure they get that this matters to you.

And then, have a great day.
Erika

Say what you want about Valentine's Day. 

I know some of you are in the 'made up holiday designed to boost the greeting card, flower and chocolate industries' camp. And I have had those years myself.

This year however, I am in. I am buying it whole hog.

Not buying cards, not buying candy or dousing anything in chocolate. I am buying the 'heart' of the holiday.

Becoming a woman in my mid-forties has changed the way I think about health. I firmly believe it is my duty to my myself, my family and my community to care for myself. And that means care for my heart.

Heart disease and stroke, leading killers of folks just like me, costs this country alone well over 400 billion dollars each year. Not to mention the devastating if not deadly effect that both have on a person and their family.

So what causes these killers to creep up on us:

• High blood pressure
• High cholesterol
• Cigarette smoking
• Diabetes
• Poor diet and physical inactivity
• Overweight and obesity

Are all huge risk- factors. Which is great news!

"Great news" you say? How are those things that contribute to those monstrous killers great news?

Take a look at the list again.

How many of those things are completely outside our control. Smoking is an easy one. Who decides whether or not we light up? (I'm not saying it's easy to quit once we've started. My dear friend Liz just hit the 6-week no cigarettes mark and is still pretty mad about it. Go Lizard!) But ultimately it is ours to decide. Who makes us stand up out of that chair every hour to mitigate the horrid effects sitting has on our blood pressure? Well, for me it's an app I have on my phone that reminds me, but it's my legs that make it happen! 

Even when you consider genetic predispositions and environmental factors, the bottom line is, most of those nasty risk factors are lifestyle related things that we alone are responsible for.

Powerful.

Wonderful.

Scary.

So, when I think about what to give myself and the people I love this year for Valentine's Day I am thinking about hearts. The ones responsible for pumping life sustaining oxygen and nutrients around our bodies.

Here's my plan:

• Washing and cutting up fruit for my kiddos Valentine's celebrations at school today
• Heart thumping beats on a playlist for a morning dance party to kick the day off tomorrow
• Quick 10 minute couples workout with a friend today and my husband tomorrow
• Special hour carved out on the slopes letting my guy pick the terrain (yikes!)
• A longer than our normal 20-minutes-squeezed-in-between-grandkids-and-work cross country ski with my mom
• Dinner in - Chicken and rice casserole made with broth not canned soup, greens and garlic sautéed in grapeseed oil, and full fat, ingredients we can pronounce ice cream in several flavors so everyone can have their favorite
• Hand written notes to my closest friends and family about telling them I am so glad they are on this planet and thanking them for all they do to stay healthy so I can continue to enjoy their company. Okay, so the handwritten part my be dreaming. I hope they won't mind phone calls and texts. I promise they will be heart-felt all the same.
• And, last but not least, a long, hot shower before a full 8 hours of sleep. I hope ;-)

I know there is a lot to learn out there about how best to take care of ourselves. But really it comes down to moving, eating well, and resting. So for Valentine's Day this year think about all the ways you might instigate a little of any or all of those FREE (okay food costs money but you gotta eat) gifts in the lives of those you love. 

Starting with yourself.

Thank you,
Your Heart

PS - Here are some other great ideas for healthy Valentine's Day celebrations.

PPS - Looking for a fun (not free but pretty darn close) way to get moving? Join our Snow Daze Crew. We start on Monday! 

Baby "Steps"

I sit way too much.

Seems strange given that i try to get people up out of their chairs for a living. Ironic.

So I'm working on it. Have a timer on my desk top, one on my phone and am starting to develop the internal one I wish we all had.

And I started doing this thing where I pretend I'm starting to learn to walk all over again. Play a few minutes a day like a baby and call it part of my workout. I am in love!

Check it out:

Thank you for playing!!!

Check out our year in pictures:

Thank you for playing!!!

Fitting it in.

I love working out.

Really.

Not that there aren't days, weeks and months that I forget this and have to practice my best motivational techniques in the mirror to get myself up and at 'em. But, I like the gym, am addicted to group exercise classes of all kinds and will take a brisk walk around the lake over doing the dishes any day. As a fitness professional I feel extremely blessed that exercise is a part of my regular life (although some days there is a decided emphasis on reading and leaning about exercise instead of the actual doing of any!)

Even with the bonus professional need to workout in addition to my other 'Whys' there are lots of days I struggle to make the time to get the exercise I need. Would I love to spend an hour at my favorite studio every day being inspired to sweat and smile by my favorite instructors?

You bet!

And of course that is not on the agenda everyday. Some days not even the 20 minutes (40 if you count mopping up the sweat after) it takes to get a comprehensive at-home workout is realistic. So do i just skip it on those days. No way! I may not get a full body sweat going but rarely does a day go by when I don't find a way to fit in at least a tiny dose of exercise.

One of my favs is the shopping bag curl. It embarrasses my kids for sure but I never apologize and just smile at the stares from other shoppers in the parking lot. I breathe deep, tuck my bottom rib under, roll my shoulders back and go for it all the way to the car.

And you can too!

And there are a ton of other ways to fit some fitness into your daily life!

Stand up every time your phone rings.

Do calf raises any time you have to stand in line.

Press your hands up under the table during a meeting like you're trying to lift it up.

Kegel at every stop light (or clench those cheeks, not the ones on your face)

Lunge around the playground while your kid plays

Press down on the pew at church like you are trying to lift your bottom off the seat

Do jumping jacks while you wait for someone to answer the phone

High knee raises make the coffee brew faster. Just saying.

Stand on one foot while you brush your teeth.

No handed get-ups during commercials.

I could go on and on and I bet you could too. All you have to do is decide to do it! And don't apologize. Be proud of your commitment to wellness. You never know who you might inspire. 

Have a great day!

-Erika

"The holidays make us fat" and other BS

The holidays are a perfect time to focus on fitness.

Really.

The whole over-eating, not exercising thing this time of year is a little bogus. In fact, I'm pretty sure the health club industry pumps the media full of stories about how easy it is to get fat between Halloween and New Year's so their clubs will be bursting with clients January 1.

Okay, not really, but come on!

TV, radio, magazines and social media are flooded this time of year with in-your-face articles and products designed to help keep you from putting on pounds, avoid the flu, reduce holiday stress, maintain your sanity while shopping, keep the peace with family, and deal with a all whole host of other terrifying things we are told to expect this time of year. Read or watch enough and you'll probably think you are doomed to gain weight, get sick, and be so stressed out it will take a miracle to eek even a minimal amount of enjoyment from the season let alone come through flying high with great health and happiness.

Why should that be? Maybe it's just like those other bits of negative self-talk, like "I can't control my eating after 9PM" and "Exercise is so hard" or "I wish I looked better in my jeans".  Okay, that
last one is totally valid.

Let's think about some of the things we usually do to stay healthy:

• Exercise
• Eat well
• Stay hydrated
• Wash our hands
• Get good sleep 
• Spend time with people we like

Pop culture tells us that the holidays are a stressful time filled with overeating, over drinking, long 'to-do' lists and crammed calendars. A terrible time to try and get or stay well.  It's true, we add things to our calendar during the holidays, but our schedules are full year long. We have stress in our lives daily and somehow we find time to do the things we commit to do for our health.

There is NO reason for that to change during this time of year. Maybe we don't prioritize a full hour of sweatiness our normal 4 times a week. And I know more than a few of us will choose to stay up late and enjoy family and friends over our full 8 hours of shut-eye. Does that mean we have to ditch the whole list?

Absolutely not.

Let's ditch that negative message "the holidays are a terrible time to stay fit" instead and try this list:

• Exercise, even 2 minutes of blood pumping squeezed in on the stairs at the mall.
• Eat even better that usual. Including a few holiday treats. The ones you really love. And don't apologize to anyone for saying 'no thank-you' to the ones your co-workers pile onto the break-room table because they needed them out of their houses. And pile the rest of your plate high with naked veggies and lean proteins (I promise you can find them if you look hard enough) at the holiday party
• Drink water. That one is pretty easy.
• Wash your hands. Hey look, another easy one!
• Sleep when you can. Even if it means those Facebook statuses go un-'liked'.
• Make and keep dates with people that make you feel good about yourself. Spending time with friends and family members that support your healthy choices and are living the kind of fitness life you aspire to will help you remember that fitness can be on everyone's holiday list.

We can do this! Keep making good choices and giving your beautiful body what it needs and we'll finish off this year feeling great.

Wishing you wellness this holiday season and always!

Before and After - How I got over myself and took my own advice

When I owned my studio I was told all the time "You need to post some 'before and after' photos. I would nod my head and say "you're right, that's a great idea".

Aside from adding one more thing to the astounding to-do list I had, I knew in the back of my mind that I didn't want to do that. I have always been turned off by those things. And not just because I know several trainers who set them up by putting on their most unflattering workout bra, wiping off their make-up, finding some crappy lighting and slouching their way to a compelling case for cardio. A little spray tan, their favorite workout shorts, suck in the gut and, viola "this can be you in just 3 short weeks."

It's deplorable but it sells. You can tell how well it sells by the number of 'before and after' shots you'll get on your Facebook feed if you've ever clicked on a weight loss page. And, it is possible to tell a really great and meaningful story that way.

Here's my favorite 'before and after' image of all time:

If you've worked with me before you've seen the video.  If you haven't seen it, you should. Everyone who has ever wondered if it was possible to meet a goal should. And if you've worked with me live you've probably watched me cry over it. It's not just the heart wrenching music. Or, the triumph. Or the pain he must have felt and having fitness professionals turn him away when he asked for help. What really gets me is the amazing transformation he was able to achieve because he kept on asking for that help until someone answered him. 

Asking. 

It is not easy. I was raised to believe that I could accomplish anything I set my mind to. Belief in that idea is an integral part of being able to pursue your passion. But somewhere along the line lots of people turn that powerful message into the feeling that they are required to accomplish those things on their own. 

While independence and self-reliance are admirable qualities, the notion that you are somehow required to brave the world on your own for your efforts to be valuable is just absurd. Not that there aren't people who are successful going it alone. Or course there are. However, the issue i want to talk about here is avoiding asking for help when you need it. 

Guilty.

Being in the fitness industry for over 20 years, any industry I'm sure, gives one an interesting perspective not just on the work but on themselves. I have put in my 10,000 hours and feel comfortable putting myself forward as an expert in many areas of physical fitness and wellness in general. Usually what that means is when someone asks a question, I know where to look for the answer. Or, I have experience with a client in a similar situation that I can draw on. This gives me confidence that I can help motivate and educate a wide variety of people as they work toward their fitness goals. 

Recently, a busy 40ish-year-old mother of two came to me for help.  Following a traumatic injury she had gained 30 pounds. Fit for most of her life and one of those people who quite enjoyed a good sweat and yes, even at the gym; when her surgeon and therapists gave her the green light to workout again she hit it with enthusiasm. 

For a while.

Already carrying an extra 15 pounds left over from kid #2; months of steroids, pain-killers, bed rest, and the trauma of the surgery itself had left her with a body that neither looked anything like or operated anything like she was familiar with. While her doctors had been wonderful and tried to prepare her for the long road she had to travel back to her physical self, all of the exuberance she had been creating in the gym was washed away by the vision in the mirror of a body that no longer followed her commands or fit into her pants.

Weeks passed and she made it to the gym occasionally and tried to start running again but mostly she ate whatever she wanted, single handedly kept the local liquor store in business, and wallowed in a self-loathing pity party.  Friends and family stepped up. Went on walks, emailed motivational quotes, asked if she knew how many calories she could cut if she gave up wine, and offered all other sorts of assistance. All received with a smile and a firm, "thanks but I've got this" response. And the needle on the scale kept creeping up.

In the back of her head a little voice kept saying, "You need help!" "Please, we feel like crap, get help!" And each time the little voice was shut out with one of the well-intentioned motivational quotes or a bottle of wine. 

Now, you may be asking yourself "How does Erika know what that little voice inside the woman's head was saying?" It is true that being a personal trainer is a lot like being a hairdresser. We hear details of people's lives that they may not share with anyone else. But in this case, in case you haven't already figured it out, those voices were in my head.

As I write this I am still not sure I will have the guts to push 'publish'. I worry that as a fitness professional, specially one that tells people being physically fit is their duty to themselves, their families and their villages; admitting that I am 40 pounds overweight and not able to overcome the excuses I have been making is the most terrifying thing I have ever lived. And I have two boys. 

Since most of my business is online and I have been speaking only a very limited schedule since the injury, as far as most of my clients know I am the poster child for how being fit can help you withstand and bounce back from things like childbirth and surgery. It is true that my level of fitness going into the surgery gave me a distinct advantage that it would be successful. And, if I hadn't been quite well before the injury things could be much much worse. However, in my head, because I am a professional fitness expert I should not be in the overweight, under nourished position in which I currently find myself. 

Found myself. 

Past tense. Because I realized that if, in fact, a person come to me and told me the story I just told you, I would have had the answer for her. It would have been easy. I would have said to her "You need help."

So when my dear friend said she had just come from an inspiring meeting of a weight loss support group she had recently joined, an action I have recommended to countless others in my position, I felt like someone had slapped me upside the head. I took a deep breath, closed my eyes and jumped. 

Could join her the next week? I asked. And she said "yes." That one word, her radiant smile and the giant bear hug that followed was the light at the end of the darkest tunnel.

So now, I am getting professional help. 

That's right. At least once a week those voices saying "You know how to do this. What will people think if they know you can't control your own weight? Everyone will quit working with you. You'll lose all credibility. Just be disciplined. Just be stronger." will have to face a room full of people all traveling the same fitness road as I am. And a professional counselor who has worked with hundreds of people in just my same situation. 

I already belong to a fantastic network of people who are committed to making wellness a daily priority in the Challenges I run for Taylored Fitness. I get to work out with a crew of passionate instructors at the fitness studio where I am a member. And now, i get to spend an hour every week remembering that i am not on this part of my fitness journey by myself. And so it is with them behind me that I'm ready to share my own 'before, after, before' photos:

My body and my dog, doing what we love.

Just a few days post spine surgery. Surrounded by love.

Me and the pants from photo number 1.  The body I am learning to love again!

Okay, there it is. Asked for help, identified the problem, getting to work. When the Gratitude Challenge starts tomorrow, I will have a clear goal in mind. Keep getting stronger and get into those pants so I can enjoy the gift my surgeon, therapists, family and friends gave back to me: my amazing body.

Wishing you wellness! 

-Erika