Meet Emilie & Stephanie

That awesome lady on the left making her best "beast mode face" is Emilie.  She's one of my chicks.  When we first started training, Em told me, "I'm not an athlete.  I'm smart.  I grew up thinking that since I was smart, I didn't have to be good at physical stuff, so don't expect me to be some athlete."  Since then, we laughed, cried and worked our way through some hard sessions.  She's lost weight, she's run her first 5k (and signed up for more) and we talked about what happens when we define ourselves and put each other in these little boxes like "smart" and "athlete," confining ourselves to a singular definition and what happens when we let ourselves out of that box...Then, a few weeks ago, I get an email from Sarah at a website called SisterhoodAlliance.org letting me know that I have been nominated by this fabulous woman to be spot lighted on their web site for two weeks.  I was speechless.  THEN I find out that Em is one of the editors of the web site as their sexual & reproductive health managing editor, working to help educate women!  This woman is truly amazing!  And she raises chickens (and two cute kids, but CHICKENS?!  Fresh eggs = SCORE!)!!!

That gorgeous lady on the right (the clean one, not the dirty one, that's me :) is my sister, Stephanie.  When I decided to quit my corporate job almost a year ago, she was lovingly honest with me, making sure I had thought it through and what it would mean financially.  She's so protective of me :)  After a great conversation, she was in 100%.  A few weeks later, I randomly received a piece of jewelry and a note from a Lia Sophia rep that my sister had nominated me to win a piece of jewelry and included the touching letter she had written up about this life change I went through.  She never told me about it, it was just a surprise, and again, I was speechless.  

I say all of this to make this point....SUPPORT each other as women.  Lift each other up through love & honesty, working through our issues and becoming more awesome versions of ourselves.  GROW GROW GROW always.  Never stop & never give up.  

Visit www.sisterhoodalliance.org and if you feel so inclined, check out what I had to say in my spotlight at:

http://sisterhoodalliance.org/2014/04/01/lynn-hancock-sisterhood-spotlight/

What's wrong with yoga in America?

Yoga means a lot of different things to me.  Yoga is tough.  It uses your full body, weight & instability.  Not to mention you have to breathe.  And not just pant, but BREATHE.  YES, yoga is a great workout.  But sometimes it feels like that is what we in America have turned yoga into.  Just a great workout.  And that's not "wrong" per se.  Just incomplete.  

Yes, yoga can do amazing things for your body.  It can help burn calories, tone arms and abs, and build stamina.  But that is just a fraction of what it can do for you.  

Here's the thing.  Your body is attached to something.  It's right above your shoulders.  It weighs about 8 pounds.  Figured it out yet?  It's YER HEAD.  Lady Gaga has it all wrong.  You cannot just do whatever you want to your body but not affect your mind or your heart.  Sorry.  I know some people who aren't going to like that.  

The ultimate goal of yoga isn't just a workout.  If that's what you need to get out of it right now, that's great.  I even teach a yoga workout class.  We love it!  It's great.  We sweat, laugh, play music, tone our bodies and connect with each other.  BUT we always end it with a reminder to be grateful for our bodies.  We bring it back to our breath & our connect between that 8 pound organ on top of our shoulders that controls every part that radiates from it.  

The ultimate goal of yoga is mindfulness.  The ultimate goal of yoga is ease in a posture (which yes, requires a certain amount of strength and building up that strength to the point of ease).  The ultimate goal of yoga is to understand that connection between our mind and our body by using our breath.  So if you can do that in a challenging yoga class, bravo!  If you can't, then don't do everything your teacher calls out.  We are not perfect.  We are only guides.  We show you postures and teach you alignment and get paid to stand up in front of a room full of people and try our best to take them through a meaningful sequence that will allow them to release tension out of their muscles and hopefully their minds.  We have our own insecurities.  "What if they don't like it?  What if it's boring?  What if it's not challenging or TOO challenging?  What if they never come back???"  So if doing 50 chaturangas will not inable you to remain mindful in your practice or throughout the rest of the day, don't do them.  We aren't going to make you.  But only you can determine whether you should or not. Not the person doing them ALL and then some on the mat next to you.  

And yoga does not end on the mat.  It continues after you leave the studio or your bedroom or wherever you practice.  So be mindful & live intentionally.  Be mindful of your body, your postures, your breath, your thoughts, your actions, your life.  

And thank you to my "student" who took the time to talk to me about mindfulness.  You teach me more than I can teach you.  

Namaste.  

Have a wonderful 2014!

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Happy New Year! Tips for successful fitness/health resolutions...

1.  Revamp your pantry!   Those Oreos & Doritos will end up in your mouth if you keep them in your pantry.  It's ok to throw them away - you aren't going to get the money back you spent on them.  They won't help you be successful.  Keep good foods around you and you'll eat good foods.

2. Plan out your meals and snacks so you aren't eating from vending machines and fast food restaurants.  

3. Keep a bag packed with gym clothes in your car at all times.  Shoes, socks, shower items, everything you'll need to go to the gym.  

4.  Carve out time in your day to go to the gym.  Early morning, lunch time, after work....Usually the most popular times.  So get in bed early & set your alarm.  Block off lunch time everyday.  Leave work on time (it'll always be there tomorrow).  If you don't like crowded gyms, schedule a late lunch everyday so you can go when it's not quite so crowded.  

5.  Plan your workout.  Every gym has classes!  Find several that fit your schedule and try them all to find the one that works the best for you.  If you don't like working out in front of others in a class setting, then hire a trainer!  But be up front about your goals - let them know exactly what you need. If you don't need them long term, but just need them to show you how to work the machines and give you some ideas on how to put together a workout, let them know!  We can't help if we don't know what you need.  

6.  Examine your excuses.  If you've been sitting at a desk all day, are you really too tired to workout?  Find out really why aren't wanting to go workout.  Find someone to help hold you accountable and keep you from making an excuse.

 

Brace Yourself....New Year's is Coming

Depending on what blog you've read or who you follow on Facebook, you've likely gotten a few impressions on what the relationship between New Year's and Fitness is....

This is the camp of - marketers are coming for....YOU.  They want your almighty dollar and they want you to fall flat on your face when it comes to your New Year's fitness resolutions because then they can sell you McDonalds.  And the only answer here is to shun New Year's and be consistent.  Be consistent.  Be consistent.

OR

Isn't losing weight FUN???  Let's have some fun!!!  YAY!!!!!  And then no one loses weight because you aren't making enough effort to burn a mini Snickers off.  

OR

I WILL EAT YOU ALIVE.  You will scream, cry and possibly bleed and you will love me for it.  

(By the way, nothing against Richard or Jillian....I totally want Jillian's arms or see them before makeup/photoshop).

Why must we wholly shun New Year's and fitness resolutions in order to be successful?  So why can't we meet somewhere in the middle?  Sure marketers and retailers are going to play it up and oversell it. It's called capitalism and advertising.  It's what they do.  Being consistent in your exercise and nutrition is the way you get results but how can you do that if you are not already exercising and eating well?  

Camp #2 draws you in with the ease of their programs and gets you committed to something that won't get you results because it's.....well, easy.  

Camp #3 pushes you off the high dive and tells you to sink or swim, wussy!!  So you quit because who has the time to do an hour worth of plyo everyday (or wants to)???

There is symbolism in the New Year, just like Sunday is symbolic of a new week every 7 days.  I love Sundays.  I teach a yoga class on Sundays and it's our "reboot" day.  Just like it is at my 5:30 a.m. classes.  Reboot, restart, go forth, again and again and again.  Life is cyclic, we've known this from the dawn of time.  There is a season and a time for everything.  There is a time for me to rest my body from so much running and there is a time for me to train for a marathon. There is a time to do more yoga and a time to do more lifting (along with yoga :).  The big secret is to keep that sense of renewal with you everyday.   Don't let a little falling off the clean eating wagon turn into a 12 car pile up on the Nutrition Highway.  And even if it does, picking yourself back up and telling yourself that it's ok.  New day, start again, get back on the wagon, the treadmill, the elliptical, the whatever....and REBOOT.  

So embrace (instead of brace) the New Year!  Celebrate and relish the fact that the cycle is starting again.  And do it again in Spring when Winter slowly melts away and you can get off the treadmill and run OUTSIDE again!  And do it again in Summer when gives us abundant sunshine!  And fall brings some relief, then Winter draws us in for cozy fires, snow days and holidays with the family.  

Keep being consistent....or seize this chance to start.  Show yourself some grace when you fall off and always get back up and work your ass off!!!

Project 52

One of the reasons I quit my corporate job to become a trainer and yoga teacher was to spend more time on myself, in addition to helping others on their journey.  But I have done what I normally do, throw myself into my work and end up over scheduled, over worked and stressed out.  There's something about focusing on ones self that we inherently see as selfish.  While I believe that we should selflessly attend to the needs of others, we cannot do that without pouring into ourselves.  Starting with 2014, I am going to consciously focus on myself so  I don't end up burned out and switching careers because I never paid any attention to my needs.  

I got inspired to treat myself as a project as much as I do other people or the projects that others ask me to take charge of.  That's when I came up with Project 52.  The concept is to come up with 52 items (one for each week of the year) that you want to work on.  First, the items should not be task list items - like "lose 10 lbs" or "go to the gym 5 times a day."  This is the biggest issue in keeping New Year's resolutions is that we often make them quantifiable resolutions versus an intention - very much like setting an action without a priority.  Priorities drive actions.  Not the other way around.  These 52 items should be QUALITY items.  Items that are an intention for your life.  Not an expectation only to lead to disappointment. 

Second, the items should be varied.  Some should be difficult (ask for forgivess), some should be easy (read more).  Some should be fun (dance)!!!  They should be wholistic - mental, spiritual & physical.  

You can keep a journal of your Project 52 - highly encouraged! Each week is a new item that you'll focus on.  As you move on to the next week/item, continue to carry out previous items, just giving that week's item your main focus.  

Here are some I know are making my list:

Slow Down!!!

Meditate

Dance!  :)

Spend more time with D (my son)

There are 16 more days left in December.  Write down 3-4 items each day until January 1st.  Then start with #1 the first full week of January and move down your list each week.  I've started a facebook group for those who would like to share with others or get inspired!!  Click the link and request to join the group!  

https://www.facebook.com/groups/1439250926293991/

Peppermint Mocha Recipe

I love making my version of popular dishes/drinks at home!  Last post was the PSL and this post is the Peppermint Mocha!

4 oz chocolate almond milk

2 oz coconut milk

1 tsp Hershey's dark chocolate powder

1/2 tsp Watkins Pure Mint Extract

Combine (in order) the above ingredients in a Magic Bullet blender or other small blender and mix until frothy.  Pour into a cup of coffee that is about 3/4ths of the way full and fill to top with mixture.  

It is soooooo good!!!  And it has a fraction of the whopping 400 calories and 60+ grams of sugar that a Venti Peppermint Mocha (no whip) from Starbucks has.  This one serving was enough for two big cups of coffee.  MMMMMM......