The Good, The Bad & The Ugly - More Good . . .

My friend Laura’s son and my daughter have been friends since just about the day they were born and we try to get together for play dates as often as we can.

Two weeks ago I was excited to learn that Laura had turned to (organic) veganism around the same time that I had.  This meant that I could look forward to our play dates even more.

Do you know how challenging it is to have play dates with mothers who feed their children poorly?

You find yourself cringing slightly as they pass their little one Ho Hos,  white bread sandwiches, and pesticide-laden fruit.

Now that I know Laura and I have the same eating habits, we have been trading recipes, educational websites, and other informational emails regarding our new way of life.  This has not only, in my humble opinion, made our friendship stronger, but is really helping me find more creative ways to make meals.

On Sunday we joined forces at a bounce place in Carmel so the kids could release their “sillies” and we could have some chit chat time.  Imagine my surprise when she gives me the amazing book “Radiant Health, Inner Wealth” http://www.radianthealth-innerwealth.com/newbook.html.  The book is loaded with advice, recipes, and solutions for vegan challenges.  It has been in my possession for less than 24 hours and I have already read through the entire book, made one of the recipes, and planned a menu for the upcoming week.

A trip to your local Whole Foods-type store will probably be necessary for many of the recipes, but items like “cilantro lime rice” can be made easily without a lot of fanfare.  The book also acknowledges the many challenges with gluten and soy and has a variation for almost every recipe to make it soy-free or gluten-free.  Some of the most commonly endorsed ingredients in the book include: almond milk (or any dairy-free milk you use), quinoa, millet, whole wheat flours (I use almond flour or other gluten free flours), milled flax seed as an egg substitute, rolled oats,  all organic vegetables, and tons of herbs and spices for the recipes.

Her theme is easy to follow. Whole grains, loads of veggies, and anything that is sweet should use real maple syrup, REAL sugar, fruits, and spices.  She also has an organic whole food recipe for chocolate chip cookies and one could certainly replace the chips with carob ones if they were so inclined.  One of her recipes is “Apple Pie Acorn Squash” and I can’t wait to give it a dry run before Thanksgiving! In fact, my whole Thanksgiving meal may come from this book.
Her recipe for mashed potatoes looks DIVINE.

And the best part of the book for parents? A kids section!

Trying to raise a vegan child? OR even just trying to get your little person to eat veggies?  She gives you ideas on where to begin and what to try. Her recipes for kids are great!  Sydney and I already made the eggplant chips and she loved them! We dipped them in hummus and had a great late day snack together.

I am so thankful to Laura for giving me a copy of this book. The recipes are simple and book is easy to understand. This book is a win for the GOOD team.

Signing off,
Erin 003

Mom Does Know Best:)

Here is a really nice note from Sarah's (004) Mom.  I appreciate the kind words.  I enjoyed meeting and training with you and Mike while you were visiting.  You just let me know the next time you'll be back...I'd welcome the opportunity to roll more ropes with you guys. 

Josh

From Sarah's Mom:

As I was flying back to Texas a couple of weeks ago I was thinking about the time I’d spent with my daughter, Agent 004.   Of course, we talked non-stop for the 10 days I was there.  That’s what you do when you live 900 miles apart. 

But often the conversation would turn to Josh and what he said, the training move that she had learned, the nutrition information, his inspiration, blah, blah, blah.  This new man in her life, I have to say, left me a little concerned.  Why was this who she always brought into the conversation?  Who was this mysterious man?

But she arranged for her dad and me to work out with Josh when we came for this visit.   My thoughts were this.  We are in pretty good shape for 61 and 62.  Two years ago, when I retired, I made our health my new hobby.  We eat “plant strong” (vegan and no added fats) plus Mike is a long distance runner, lifts weights and practices yoga.  I cycle, work out with weights and get in some cardio at the gym on a regular basis.  So I was not nervous about this workout at all.  I have used a Bosu ball before – but not like this for goodness sake!  And those monster ropes – gimme a break!  I was so sore the next day.  But it is not just the workouts. 

Josh truly cares about his clients.  He does everything he can to make them successful.  He is a nag and a motivator.  And WOW is that important for my daughter.  You see she too was an athlete.   But 15 years later she needs a new approach to nutrition and exercise and I am convinced Josh is it.  She can tell you all you need to know about how many calories are in that brownie, how many fat grams and how much exercise you have to do to negate that.  But she has not been able to use that information to improve her own health.  But now with Josh’s help she is using the knowledge she has. 

I saw a huge improvement in her conditioning and just overall lifestyle on this trip.  After two bouts with gestational diabetes I have hope that this pregnancy will be better.  She’s had a recent set back with a back injury.  But I am positive that once she is not afraid to injure it again, she will be back in the gym with Josh throwing those darn monster ropes a lot farther than I can.   Now I understand why Josh is what she talks about all the time.  He is just what the doctor ordered at this time in her life.  I just wish that we lived closer so I could work out with Josh too.    

Karen

Your Fitness Footprint

The following is a post I made some time ago on the blog of my technology company, Yootrain. Intended to speak specifically to personal trainers...as I read through it again, it applies to everyone and their abilities to create real and meaningful change in others lives. I wanted to post this here, as it applies directly to some of the upcoming posts you will see from the others agents...their progress, their challenges and the real changes they are making...

Josh

Before we get into to the next few posts, I want you to consider something…I want you to think about your fitness footprint.

What do I mean exactly?

I mean, when is the last time you took a step back and thought about how many lives you are currently impacting in a positive way? Take it a step further and consider those you may have impacted in the past. And then, consider what you can accomplish in the future.

As I have said many times, personal trainers are in many ways akin to physicians. They have the ability to have a positive and lasting impact on individuals health and wellness, on their lives. It is a truly important role. I could write for hours about what our health care system might look like if the masses maintained overall better health, while building a solid case for personal trainers taking a more prominent position in our overall “health care” portfolio.

But today, I want to focus on impact. (and this applies to everyone...not just trainers)!

Improving a clients health is a tremendous accomplishment. It should be rewarding both professionally and personally. It should also yield some return from a business perspective. That yield could be in the form of referrals, continued training programs, etc. In some cases, improving someones health through personal training can lead to loss of revenue or potentially that client. How many times have we seen the newly motivated ready to sign up in Jan/Feb, right? And, how many times have we seen them complete their package of sessions, successfully lost weight, feel and look better; yet then decide to go it alone…there are many contributing factors, which we will be addressing in the next few postings.

However, if we don’t focus solely on the business side, the question remains…did you impact someone in a positive way?

If we presume that you did, that’s wonderful! But, that isn’t where the impact (or footprint) ended.

Perhaps the business man felt so much better from his training that he began throwing a football around with his son after work. Maybe the overweight diabetic you train, decided once an for all to remove the “bad” foods from her home, leaving a much healthier selection for the entire family. Or maybe, that overachieving commercial real estate broker (who was always on edge), treated someone in his office just a bit more kindly…Do you think the son, the family or the office worker may have then done something different based upon their experience?

You see where I’m going. Call it karma, six degrees of separation, whatever…I call it your footprint.

Impacting one individuals life in a positive way (driven by improved health and wellness), has direct impact on others. Your footprint may be larger then you thought.

So what now? Think about how to make your footprint bigger (essentially what the agents are all doing collectively). Consider the rewards you may see both professionally and personally. Finally, think about your own knowledge as your most valuable asset. Yootrain’s technology will help you extend your footprint. However, it is your expertise, motivation and experience that will dictate how big it ultimately becomes.

Teach your children well...

Of the many accomplishments I have achieved over the past few years, there is one area in general that always stands out to me...the impact my commitment to wellness has had on my children.

I will never forget being at a birthday party recently when a parent handed my son Jack a Capri Sun drink pouch. Jack looked over at me, then asked the parent, "is this a healthy kind, or the not healthy kind" (you can imagine the look I got from that parent!) What he meant of course, was this particular pouch the kind made with high fructose corn syrup and almost no juice, or was it the 100% juice variety. For those who don't know, they make both...try explaining that logic to a six year old.

Even at 6 (almost seven now), my son has enough knowledge to know how to make many healthy choices regarding nutrition. He knows that protein is an important part of a meal, especially breakfast. He knows that a 100% fruit juice popsicle is a great dessert that we can all feel good about. And most importantly, he knows to ask questions about nutrition and make subsequent choices about what he decides to put in his body.

There is no question that instilling this knowledge in younger generations, will certainly contribute to healthier adults in the future.

Agent 004, also known as Sarah, passed along a very cool looking product to help facilitate this exact kind of behavior in kids. She uses it with one of her own. If you have little ones (or even if you don't - could make a great "healthy" gift), you should check out Chikin feed.

Teach your children well...think of it as an obligation, not as an option.

Josh

004 - Sarah

My name is Sarah, I am a 33 year old mother of 2, wife as well as a student. I am not however, defined by any of the above roles.

Merriam- Webster defines “example” as ‘one that is representative of all of a group or type’. As a parent you do not have a choice other than to be an example. You do, however, have the CHOICE to be a good example or a bad example. Children look to adults in their lives to shape and mold them. I look to shape and mold my children into strong mind and body individuals who are not afraid to stand up for themselves or what is right. By having this as a life goal I CHOOSE to be a good example and have them CHOOSE or not CHOOSE to follow but be proud of the decision that they make.

The journey of who I am, like so many others, began when I was young. I was an athlete. I was a swimmer and a soccer player. I was strong, both in mind and body. This all came crumbling down when I was 15 and was injured in both sports. I was devastated. I was told that I should not continue to swim based on the condition of my shoulders and got out of the pool competitively forever. Looking back what I have learned is that the role or label of athlete did define me. That is what I was, it was what I did. Since then I have continuously put on weight. This has gotten me to where I am today. I have had 2 shoulder surgeries and am essentially scared to do anything that threatens me and another injury either physically or mentally.

This January I have CHOSEN to make a change. After being in the work force for 18 years in one capacity or another I have quit to go back to school for nursing. I have a desire to make a change in not only myself but others as well. In addition, I have CHOSEN to work with Josh. I met Josh about a year ago in COSTCO with Erin (003), heard about his story from her and then read for myself here on this site. His story was very inspiring because unlike those on the Biggest Loser TV program, he did this himself. He was able to transform his body and mind without the glam of Hollywood. I was impressed. The more I got to know about him the more I had a desire to make a change in myself; after all he was a father of 2 and had a wife… surely if he could do it I could too. As a life coach/trainer Josh has been able to teach me things that have helped me get through some days where I thought it would just be easier to maintain where I am now rather than get up off my butt and do something to CHANGE. I CHOOSE everyday how I am going to act and react. What I have to remember is that these are CHOICES that I make and that no one can make them for me.

I am amazed and honored that Josh has asked me to be part of his movement and to help CHANGE others. CHANGE is a CHOICE. What do you CHOOSE??? What kind of a example do you CHOOSE to be?