Be Healthy. Rock Your Business.
For some of us, taking up a new sport is nothing short of intimidating.
Growing up, between the severe asthma, broken collarbone at 14, and broken back at 16, I wasn’t exactly a childhood athlete. I was always picked last for teams, placed in team positions where I could do the least damage, and was generally considered to be a liability on the field. [Read more...]
You’re awesome at something. Or more likely, many things.
Go ahead, make a list of your awesomeness. I’ll wait right here.
Nicely done. I hope you didn’t limit yourself to just awesomeness at work, because you are a lot more than that. You might be the best daddy ever at playing horsey, and we wouldn’t want to overlook that. (You think I’m joking, but I’m serious. My brother ROCKS horsey.)
You became awesome at the stuff that you practiced. It’s pretty much a universal truth, like death, taxes, and that dark chocolate is way better than milk chocolate. In physiology we have a term for it, called the SAID Principle, which stands for Specific Adaptation to Imposed Demands. Or, as we like to say in Z-Health, you always adapt to exactly what you do. You get better at what you practice, and worse at what you don’t. [Read more...]
My dirty little secret is that in spite of what I do for a living, I struggle taking care of myself, just like you do.
There is always one more phone call to return, another blog post to write, client programs to write, current research to keep up on. Add on cooking, cleaning, and traveling 10 days a month – and actually taking care of myself frequently falls to the bottom of the list.
I had a friend point this out to me recently. She said to me, you’d never leave on a trip without making sure the dog had a safe place to be. If your brother needed help with your niece, you’d be on the next flight out. You ALWAYS take care of your clients.
“But, Jen, and I need you to hear me when I say this. If you end up getting really sick (or heaven forbid, worse) you aren’t of use to anyone. What if you get too sick to take care of those you care about? You actually OWE IT TO THEM to take care of yourself so you can always be there for them.”
8 out of 10 deaths in the US are from what are known as “lifestyle diseases.” Things like chronic heart disease, diabetes, cancer, etc. All of these are largely preventable through leading a healthy lifestyle. [Read more...]
You are greedy!
It’s actually that simple. You want it all, and you want it now. (Cue up Queen music.)
Life doesn’t work that way. Sorry.
Deciding to significantly change a bunch of your life habits because of what is essentially a random day on the calendar is a sure way to not get what you want.
Don’t get me wrong, I actually love New Years – it’s my favorite holiday. I LOVE that so many people wake up with resolutions and a desire to change their lives. Many people view the proverbial turning over of the calendar as a fresh start. That is really inspiring to me. I’m eternally optimistic about people’s capacity to change – YOUR capacity to change – I’m just not sold on the idea of New Year’s Resolutions. [Read more...]
What is the story you tell yourself and the world about who you are? As a parent, employee, boss, athlete, friend, lover.And, is that story consistent? Are you living it?
My story is a bit circuitous, but at the end of the day my story is what led me to leave my six-figure management consulting gig to help people.
How did that happen?
Honestly, I’m not sure. I think I’m a fairly unlikely candidate; I grew up with a whole host of allergies and asthma. I was the kid who spent her summers in her room reading while her friends played outside, I was always picked last for sports teams, and spent years in and out of the hospital with asthma and other respiratory disorders. But, maybe that is what got me here. I’ve had to constantly fight to be healthy, become athletic, and to lose weight.
My Mom died unexpectedly of a heart attack at 47, my grandfather had a quadruple bypass and I watched him struggle to recover. Shortly after college I had a close friend die of breast cancer in her mid-20s. And somewhere in there a switch flipped. I went from being completely non-athletic to searching out the Fountain of Youth — researching, reading, and trying just about everything. All I knew is that I wasn’t willing to die in my 40s, didn’t want to ever go to an assisted living facility, and desperately needed to be healthy to remain independent. I went through everything from step aerobics to Tae Bo to Tai Chi to Tae Kwon Do to Pilates and Yoga, the Bowflex, and just about every exercise video ever made. “Abs of Steel” anyone?
I’ve always been game for just about everything, but athletic endeavors have never come naturally to me. Even now, I’m a Master Practitioner movement coach, but still fall down the stairs with alarming regularity. But, I continue to work at it, to learn, to improve, and yes, to struggle. For me, Persistence is King.
In 2006, I got my first personal trainer certification, the RKC (Russian Kettlebell Certification). I never actually intended to teach – but when I decide to learn something, I’m going to learn from the best so had to go through the course. I started getting phone calls, got my first couple of clients, and I LOVED it. Since I was already a consultant, the shift was fairly easy. At the end of the day both are about helping people make changes in their lives – this is just another tool.
In 2007, I found, Z-Health, which is the current trajectory I’m on. I instantly fell in love with the system because it just made so much sense to my extremely pragmatic and scientific brain. Instant assessment? Sold. I didn’t get the whole nervous system thing, but I’d figure it out. Fortunately for me, Z-Health turned out to be a good match on both sides, and shortly after meeting the system founder I started working for them in a consulting capacity to help the company grow.
In 2008, I left corporate consulting for good, and now am lucky enough to be able to chase my dreams and passions. I work for a company whose mission statement is, “We help create professionals in the top 1% of their respective fields.” I also get to build my own coaching practice filled with individuals of all ages and all walks of life who just want to get in shape, be pain free, and live longer, healthier lives.
I know this may sound really idealistic, but it’s something I believe in. I love helping people become who they want to be. And, it’s not nearly as altruistic as it sounds – working with my clients gives me the energy and inspiration to continue to work to make myself better.
So, that is my story. Every day I work to align my actions to it. There are days that I fall down, but I always get back up. Because really, what other choice is there?
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