F2M2

About six days ago I had this really bad headache that parked itself on the top of my head and hasn't left.  I've tried more than a few things to get rid of it, but so far I am at a loss.  If any of you have a miracle cure, please let me know...:))

     This weekend was a fun one because I spent most of it finishing up the preparations for my Pure Strength party!  At the end of each 12-week session, I host a party at my house to celebrate all of our hard work.  The winter session just ended, and I have to say I worked really  hard to take detailed notes of each class in order to put together a really fun quiz/test.  And I'm so glad I did because we had SO much fun with it.  At the end of the night, two 1st place winners walked away with $50 Lululemon (woo hoo!) gift cards, we had two $25 Target (who doesn't love Target?) gift card winners for 2nd place, and a few very happy $10 Starbucks gift card winners (who doesn't need a little caffeinated spring in their step from time to time?).  And really, everyone was a winner because each person received an AWESOME Pure Strength t-shirt and a super cool water bottle with goodies inside.

     Besides the game, prizes, and goodies - we spent the evening visiting and getting to know each other a little better over Momma Margie's Tortilla Soup, delicious snacks, and some amazing (healthy and sinful) desserts...;))  This get together is something I look forward to each session because it's like spending time with family.  We all have things happening in our lives and as the weeks progress, we really do begin supporting each other and come together just like a family does.  So, with that said, I'd like to say thank you to my Pure Strength family for the trust, encouragement, and support you have given me AND to each other.  We have developed into a family and I very much appreciate your friendship...:))

If you have been thinking about joining Pure Strength or want to know what it's all about, this week is a bonus trial week.  That means you are welcome to come in and try it out for FREE.  Choose any day and any time (from the list below) and email me or find me at the gym and let me know you're interested in trying it out.

Come in and try Pure Strength for FREE:

Wednesday, March 30th - 5 am or 3:45 pm

Friday, April 1st - 5 am

Hey, I'm Patrick, your guest blogger.  Yes, Margie's husband, Patrick.  My assignment, to write about my recent weight loss, seemed simple until it came time to do it.  The place to start seems to be what would be my first tip to anyone who wants to drop some poundage - total honesty.  I finally made a commitment to drop the extra weight I had been carrying around for two basic reasons: (1) This should come as no surprise - my wife was encouraging me to lose the extra weight after seeing me struggle with poor eating habits, loss of energy and very little to no exercise routine.  She is, after all, the queen of uberfit and knows what it feels like (inside and out) to be healthy and she wanted me to be more responsible about my eating habits and to have more energy and stamina for our hectic family schedule and activities.  And (2) I pretty well felt like crap all the time.  I was tired and couldn't do much physically, which meant that when there was a time when neither Margie nor I w as working, I couldn't keep up enough for us to enjoy our time together.  This was bad.  Obviously, I needed to exercise, so I started by going to Kickboxing class twice a week.

     Kickboxing was an easy choice because I knew I could count on myself to be consistent.  Kickboxing used to be my favorite class at Spectrum, so it was an easy choice.  After about a month, twice a week wasn't a challenge any longer and I started going to the gym on Sunday afternoon to run on the treadmill.  A few more weeks of this and again, I needed to add something to my workout regimen to keep improving.  Knowing in my head that you should include some sort of  strength training in your routine to really start seeing the weight fall off, I finally gave up my resistance to weights.  Margie always talks about her "Pure Strength Family" and commented on how proud she is of the difference it has made in her clients weight loss & fitness efforts, I had to sign up.  (I couldn't come up with any good excuses).  Since beginning Pure Strength, my new favorite class, my fitness level has increased steadily and I now work out 5 or 6 times a week.  Aside from my initial apprehension about adding in weights, the workout section of this story is the short one because it was the easiest  part for me in retrospect.  The hard part was, and is, controlling my eating habits.

     Going back again to 'total honesty' - I had to be honest with myself and acknowledge the most important thing to know about my preference for food is . . . I like junk food.  I like all forms of junk food, except those containing coconut.  I really enjoy milkshakes, brownies, chocolate chip cookies, orange soda, gummy critters (of all shapes and sizes), Swiss cake rolls, Milky Way bars, York Peppermint Patties, Peanut Butter cups and/or any combination of the aforementioned.  Did I mention that I enjoyed these treats in tandem with hamburgers, fries, pizza, or fried chicken?  Get the idea?  I tend to gravitate toward junk food when I'm stressed and when I'm in a hurry.  My other major food maladies include eating too quickly and eating too much.

     So what's a guy  supposed to do?  Was I really going to move to a radical diet of raw vegetables and tofu?  Not likely.  Margie suggested taking it a step at a time.  I knew I could give up sodas, so I  picked that one thing and did it consistently.  Next, I began to substitute healthier choices of the food items I was eating.  For example, low fat turkey or chicken in place of beef.  Only after a couple of weeks of being consistent with each additional change, did I make another.  With this method, I have been able to radically change my behavior without making any changes that seemed radical at the time.  Sounds easy, huh?  Actually, it was, which surprised me greatly.  Only two things have required a real concerted effort of will: (1) actually BELIEVING that I could be satisfied with much less food and (2) learning to satisfy my urges for sweet things with items that contain less processed sugar and also have some real nutritive value has been key.  The method for training myself on being satisfied with less food was to consciously eat less and to promise myself that I would not eat anything further for a minimum of half and hour.  Soon, I realized that I could satisfy my real needs with a great deal less than I was previously consuming.  Regarding the second effort of will -  my sweet cravings - there was no trick, just plain practice.  The things that seem to work for me when I get a sweet tooth during the day are Emerald cocoa almonds, a cup of tea sweetened with agave nectar, or Greek yogurt with fruit.  I also keep sugar free chewing gum handy and this helps as well.

     The last detail I will share is that altering the timing of my food consumption has helped me a great deal.  Since most of my activity and the majority of my movement occurs in the morning and early afternoon, it made sense to me to consume most of my calories in the morning.  My first meal of the day, which is usually around 9:30 am, is the largest.  For the rest of the day I consume somewhere between 100 and 300 calories  at a time.  I eat when I am hungry and I don't eat if I am not.  I'm not 100% consistent, but with my wife's encouragement and support, if I stumble a little I get right back on the plan.

     I hope my story has been encouraging or helpful to you in some way.  If nothing else, I hope it is gives hope to those who are struggling with weight issues.  My eating and exercise habits were exceptionally poor and I had to be honest with myself and commit to a healthier lifestyle.  With the help and guidance of my wife and very little mental effort, I have found decent success.  I'm certainly in no danger of being featured in the hunk of the month calendar, but I have  experienced real change and am so lucky to have the support of my wife - the queen of uberfit.  I'll be happy to share my encouragement and any info I can with anyone who wants it.  See you at the gym! :)

My Tay is in town and I am one happy Momma!  If you're in town, come see me at the gym - I will be teaching all of my classes this week!  Regardless of your plans, be safe and as always, make good choices!

Next week, I have a nice little surprise for you!  We'll have a guest blogger!!!  Can't wait!

Have a great Spring Break y'all...;))

In kickboxing class, if there's one thing I look forward to doing, it's pads.  It is a really great workout for me and for the person getting them . . . which is why I know you also look forward to hitting them.

     Generally speaking, there are more than a few things I'm keeping track of in your kickboxing class.  The choreography itself, which is done twice a week, is a fun challenge for me.  It's exciting to design the workout, then try it on Monday and tweak it as needed throughout the week.  I'm constantly analyzing the moves in an effort to maximize your workout.  Also, keeping an eye on you to be sure you have good posture (to prevent injury) is a critical part of teaching the class.  Obviously, the bigger the class, the harder it is to be sure everyone has their toe pointed in the right direction or making sure they're not leaning into their squat.

     Those things, along with remembering your name, making sure you are having fun and engaged in the class are all jobs of a good instructor/teacher.  Then when we throw in the pads, it can get a little complicated.  Doing the routine with you, cueing the next move, keeping count, remembering who got pads on the right side AND going back to them for the left side can get a little tricky.  But, I think you'll agree that I am usually on top of things and probably make it look a little easy.

     If you attend all of my classes during the week and are in the 'pad zone', then there is a high possibility you will get pads at least once during the week.  However, if you don't - it's nothing personal.  I do my best to look around and include all who want to be included, but hopefully you understand - especially when it's a big class - that it's easy to miss someone . . . considering the other 10 things that have to be managed each class...;))  So, if I ask if you want pads, raise those hands high and I will do my best to get to you.

Have a good week...;))