Health Coaching 101

Greetings readers!

I've gotten some questions on about what this 'health coaching' thing is and why I'm going it.

Well, first of all, it's not necessarily 100% only focused on nutrition. I am not and will not be a dictator when it comes to different diets or exercise. The entire focus of this is people. You as a whole person. It's focusing on you as a living, breathing, person. There is so much more to you than your food and the food is secondary. The main concern is nurturing you as a person in all aspects of your life because if your life isn't giving you joy or making you happy the food on your plate suffers.

My goal is not to force any nutrition or diet ideas, it's focusing on the roots of you and how everything makes you into you.

It's more of a holistic, wellness approach to your being rather than the focus on various diets. I'm really excited to dive in and am excited to start sharing my learning.

If you're interested in following my journey go to my facebook and like the post or comment here because if there is interest, I'll keep writing!

Thanks in advance!

Yoga

It's been a minute since my last photo/update so I'm going to take this opportunity on Christmas to give you a peek into my world since my last posts.

Over the past four months, lots happened. I moved, the new job became hectic, personal life shifted immensely, and for all those reasons, my eating and workouts suffered. I was going to pilates maybe twice a week but mostly didn't want to get out of bed to go. I was still doing yoga but not as much as I was when I first moved here. At the beginning of December, my friends agreed to go to yoga with me, which meant accountability. I also figured out I could go to more classes than just the one studio I had been attending for the one class so that meant I had more options! For a few weeks, I've been going consistently! I have to say I have figured out more about myself and my body through yoga than ever before.

I have strong feelings about being a white woman who practices yoga and what that appears as and could be read as but for me, it's deeper than being cool or hip. It's about the connection to my body, the connection to a greater being, the connection to my breath which I often forget. I find myself holding breath throughout the day but through my practice, I have figured out how to breathe.

When I first moved here, my eating and body suffered greatly. As any person would, I was trying to find my footing. Now that I have a "routine", my community, and have a commitment to eat like I normally would, I am finding myself more centered and balanced.

I decided to take a picture today while doing laundry to show how far I've come in my practice. My body responds in a different way than it has to pilates or barre. It has become longer and leaner and slowly I'm seeing different muscles. One of my teachers pointed out my strong neck. Cool...LOL. But in all seriousness, my body (and soul, really) have taken to this new practice and I feel more me than I have ever.

This move has changed my life in so many (unexpected) ways and for that I'm grateful.

In a month, I'll have hit my four year Paleo anniversary and what a wild four years it has been! I'm so thankful for the ups, the downs, the tears, the laughter, the strife, the changes, but most of all, I'm so happy to be where I am. I am so grateful.

Today's practice was about the root chakra and how to lead from a place of gratitude. Therefore, today I am thinking about the people I am thankful for, the body that I am grateful hasn't crapped out on me, and the ability to move at my own pace.

Happy Holidays all.

Self-care

Self care is very important. I have been going at full speed since January between work, love, and school and this summer was no exception. As many of my readers know, I changed jobs and moved from LA to Monterey Bay. Honestly, this move was partially motivated by self care. The ocean is my happy place. There is healing in the air and in the waves. I become rejuvenated by the sea. This move has been so healing. While I miss my friends, chosen family, and students in SoCal, I am feeling more and more myself every day.

This morning I woke up pretty early and decided to drive to the beach. I've been working pretty hard since I started my new job and haven't really had a moment for myself during the week. I jumped in my car and headed to Lover's point. I walked and reflected. I took my self-care one step further and went to the best breakfast place for gluten free pancakes. I'm taking my time this morning before I have to be at work. I'm taking time for me and getting energized. Take time for you today. It's so important to make sure you put your body and mind first for a few minutes every day.

Balance

Good morning friends and readers!

This past weekend I celebrated my 31st birthday! And during the process, I thought a lot about balance and lifestyle. I believe it's important to maintain balance especially during times of celebration! I indulged this weekend but I balanced it out with some Pilates--focusing more on stretching than anything and getting a massage. Balance is key to a healthy life. I can drink hard cider, eat gluten free tiramisu, gluten free pizza, and whatever else my heart desires as long as I know my limit and can regulate my activity to balance it out. I find what works for me.

This post is to serve as a reminder that you all should strive for balance. Whatever that balance looks like for YOU. No one can or should dictate that for you. Look at your life. Where are you missing balance? How can you achieve balance? Take an inventory and try to change one thing a day to help you achieve a balanced lifestyle!

Meditation

Yesterday I decided that I would diffuse some oils, listen to a peaceful Spotify station and meditate. For those of you who know me, or don't, this is somewhat challenging for me. While meditating I remembered going to a meditation class sometime within 2004-2006 (yes large span) and I remembered being very uncomfortable, fidgety, and unable to turn my brain off. It made me so uncomfortable that I was being vulnerable in a room full of people I didn't know.

Well last night, I meditated for 13 uninterrupted minutes....I tried for 15 but heard someone at my door so stopped at minute 9 and restarted the timer for 10 minutes. It was my first time intentionally clearing my head and pushing every thought out. I did use that time to focus on quiet, clear, breathing, and the universe.

I asked during my meditative state for my journey to become clear. There are so many things I want to do and I get so caught up in the could be and excitement of all the new things. I just need to figure out my path, whatever that may be.

There are major health benefits to meditation. My goal is to meditate for 15 minutes 3-4 days a week working up to every day.

I challenge you today, to take 5 minutes in stillness and just listen; to your body, your desires, your heart. Take 5 minutes of quiet to hear what you've been missing.

Update on the intake of coffee

About an hour and a half after ingesting coffee, I threw up multiple times. Apparently, my body is literally rejecting coffee or maybe it's the creamer? Either way, I'm glad to not drink it again. I'm kind of surprised but thankful that I'm not doing anything today but reading because now I feel like crap.

No more coffee for me! Now we know!

Are you a coffee drinker?

Someone asked me today "are you a coffee drink?" and I literally paused and said "no, tea." This girl has been coffee free for 18 days! But what does that REALLY mean? I do drink caffeine in the form of mate and Rebbl (see previous post!) and herbal teas containing caffeine. I am so happy to be coffee free. Though it's weird, I think it makes a huge difference, like I've said in previous posts.

Another huge difference is the way I workout. So as some people may know, I stopped working out almost altogether in February. Some would say it was my funk but I think I was at a moment where I needed more. And for the past week, I've been doing more. I've done a lot of what I learned in Barre, at home and combined some heavy weight lifting and A LOT of walking. I'm easing myself back into my fitness as to not hurt my back and to just do what I can/when I can.

I'm feeling pretty great about my choices lately and not beating myself up for anything that isn't deserving of my time. I'm not stressing about my body looking different because my mind is feeling great. I'll get to where ever I want to be and there is no need to rush or stress.

Taking one day at a time and really trying to break some of the addictions to food/drinks I have :)

Take a deep breath and exhale the peace of knowing you are just where you are suppose to be.

Week two of the diaries

Two full weeks of no espresso, no coffee with almond milk, no cold brew, no lattes...WOW. I'm amazing myself with my lack of coffee intake. I've cut my caffeine intake by at least 500mg and I'm feeling great.

I'm noticing differences in my moods and my ability to handle stress. It's so odd that coffee/caffeine would affect my ability to handle stress but I have two distinct instances of not freaking out. I'm generally pretty prone to freaking out but I handled stress this week in a way new for me. I took in the information, the stressor, didn't freak out and made a plan to fix it. That's a new skill. I did some googling this morning and found it does have quite the affect on stress levels. Below is an article.

http://corporate.dukemedicine.org/news_and_publications/news_office/news/5687


Needless to say this cutting coffee out thing has been beneficial but I did wake up today really wanting a Mike's Special from our local coffee place. I didn't cave, instead made tea and will most likely go to Sprouts and get my new favorite Tonic and some La Croix water for the weekend. Check out Rebbl:  http://rebbl.co/ . It's so good. I really enjoy it and it gives me some natural energy like coffee but not at the same level.

Overall, things are looking up since giving up coffee and heading back to therapy. Now for some life decisions and PhD homework :)

Happy Saturday!

Officially 10 days without coffee

Here we are, 10 days later and I still haven't had coffee. It's been quite the experience. The addiction isn't broken yet but I know that I'm better off without it because I do feel (and see) a difference. These last few months I really let it go and started putting almond milk AND sugar in my coffee and I saw a difference in my body. I haven't done any formal exercise in quite a while but I'm seeing some bloat in my stomach go down. My clothes are fitting better around my tummy which is good. I'm sleeping better which is also nice. I think the best feeling since giving it up is not feeling (so) anxious.

This morning I woke up and despite a terrible night sleep (thanks, Ernie for waking me up every few hours) I did some push-ups, planks, and an ab series in my living room. I'm amazed at myself for actually being able to not drink coffee for 10 days. Surely, I thought I would've slipped by now! But I haven't, despite REALLY REALLY wanting coffee. Despite this urge, I keep telling myself it's better that I don't drink it. Maybe in a month, I'll see how it goes if I have some...

That's all I got. 10 days without and I'm proof it can be done!

another day in the breaking the addiction diaries

dear diary,

It's day five of no coffee. I have consumed more tea than I would like to admit and treated myself to a nice cold yerba mate! I immediately felt the difference after consuming it. I was slightly jittery but not like I would be if I downed a coffee. It's funny because I really should've given up caffeine all together but thank god my therapist realizes I need SOME.

I'm not anxious. I'm oddly calm and don't have spikes in blood sugar or mental cloudiness. It might be lack of coffee and as a result of omitting coffee, I'm omitting a lot of sugar and almond milk. Believe me, I love a cup of coffee. I think about it every day. I miss it; it might be more the act of it but I still miss it. It's going to take time to break the mental dependency too. It's hard because it's integrated into my routine. Maybe someday I can enjoy a cup but for now, it's tea and yerba mate!

Tomorrow is another day and I keep asking myself WHY did I give up coffee now?! I'm in a PhD program, my parents are visiting and I'm not drinking coffee?! What is wrong with me!? But I'm pressing on and counting myself lucky for not feeling super anxious all the time.

Thanks for reading another entry of my diary ;)

Day three of the breaking the addiction diaries

Today was day three of no coffee. It was harder than the weekend. I'm significantly more aware of my headache and an overall sense of tiredness. I'm feeling more irritable which I'm linking to the lack of coffee. That said, I did drink 4-5 cups of tea today. Nowhere near as much caffeine as before but generally felt like I was constantly drinking.

It's going to take awhile to break this addiction but I do feel the difference. My blood sugar isn't spiked and I'm really not anxious, just irritable :D I'm sure that will go away. There is a good chance I'm going to bed early tonight because I'm feeling that tired.

Outside of coffee detox, I hit my goal for steps three days in a row and am feeling generally pretty good about my eating. Now to integrate stretching and more strength training! My legs, hips, and back are bothering me so I will be seeing the chiropractor this week as well as making a massage appointment. It's really important to listen to your body and do what you can. I know I haven't been doing much of anything for two months but slow I will get back to my typical movements. Just need to listen to my body for now during this detox.

I think tonight I'm going to reward myself with a nice bath with some essential oils my close friend sent me. I think I deserve it :)

Night!

Day two of zero coffee

I've gone two days! 36 hours give or take with no coffee! I even went out to breakfast to a place that has the BEST almond milk lattes and I resisted! That said, I think it was decided I can have coffee every so often once I'm completely weened off of it. Here I am the evening of day two and I have a slight headache. Yesterday I didn't have any terrible headaches or anything but I did sleep until 11am this morning. I'm not sure if that's the amount of walking (in the sun) we did yesterday or if that was a result of the coffee withdrawal. I'm feeling pretty good right now.

It's amazing how coffee affects me. I get really shakey and my blood sugar spikes and I'm feeling semi alright. Next step: give up sugar. I think once I kick coffee, the whole 30 or 21 day sugar detox might be easier.

Stay tuned! Here's to day 3!

Day one of breaking the addicition

This morning I wanted to wake up and make a delicious cup of coffee. I was really looking forward to it, then I remembered, nope, no more coffee. So instead, I used my coffee pot to make the water for the tea. I'm on my second cup of green tea peppermint from Traditional Medicinals (a brand that I know for a fact is organic, without pesticides and gluten free). So far, so good. I'm excited to see how this change changes my body. 

Apparently there are reported benefits of drinking tea. I wouldn't drink just any tea though. There are teas with a lot of crap in them so choose wisely but here are the benefits:

Taken from : http://www.today.com/series/one-small-thing/top-10-health-benefits-drinking-tea-t81111

• Tea contains antioxidants.
• Tea has less caffeine than coffee.
• Tea may reduce your risk of heart attack and stroke.
• Tea may help with weight loss.
• Tea may help protect your bones.
• Tea may keep your smile bright.
• Tea may boost the immune system.
• Tea may help battle cancer.

Here's to day one! I'll be reporting back :)

Saying goodbye to coffee

Today I went to a new therapist. It was decided that she is going to make changes in my diet and she will start with my coffee intake. She decided this pretty damn fast. So I'm saying goodbye to coffee. I have been drinking coffee for over 10 years and this will be sad but she's convinced my anxiety will immediately decrease so here's go nothing. Goodbye, coffee. We've had a great relationship. I will start documenting this because this detox may be tough!

Starting tomorrow I will be drinking tea and only tea. Upon the end of my session, I went to the store to get caffeinated teas. If anyone out there has a favorite, please let me know because I found a few I'm going to try.

I'm hoping my anxiety will level out and I'll start to feel better generally. In addition to starting a new regimen in terms of my mornings, I'm going to start doing yoga and some other exercise routines outside of barre to start centering myself more.

It's the beginning of a new month so it's fitting I went to see my new therapist today so I can start the month out strong. Here's to the road back to health!

The magic of dry brushing!

                              

         This photo was taken March 26, 2016.

        

This photo was taken within the last 6 months before I started dry brushing or right when I started.

I really wish I had a before photo of my stretch marks but you can hardly see them here! I spend maybe five minutes before my shower and lotion up. But I'm not really, at this moment, doing anything else. As I've said, barre and eating habits are suffering but this is proof that dry brushing works!

* the only thing altered in these photos is the case of my phone which doubles for a wallet :D

Living with sadness

Social media has become a place for happiness, praise, babies, weddings, engagements, and politics. Social media is not for sadness, fights with our significant other's, true feelings, work talk, etc. Social media is meant to only show someone's happy life. Who wants to read about sad stuff? No one. But I feel that it's important to connect sadness to our daily lives because we all deal with it. It's hard because sadness can touch every corner of our lives. The purpose of this post is not for sympathy or "oh it'll be okay" it's so people know it's okay to be sad. It's okay to be vulnerable.

And with that, I will share...

For about two months, I have been super negative and not myself. I'm not finding much enjoyment in a lot of things that I lived for just a few months ago. I'm sure I know where it stems from but it's hard to overcome. Sadness is something we all battle, at one point or another but right now, I'm in it. Notice I do not say depressed. I'm not clinically diagnosed with depression and therefore, I will not say I'm depressed. I'm just in a funk. It happens to all of us but it's not depression unless you are assessed by someone trained like a psychiatrist or therapist.

One thing that has suffered greatly is my sleep quality which has impacted my ability to get up and feel good for barre, during the week or on the weekend. In two months, I've been to the barre four times. That's crappy for me but I take comfort in the fact that I will one day get back into the groove. Last night, I was convinced I'd get up and go today but when I woke up, I felt like I was holding a ton of bricks all over my body. *For those of you who don't know, I suffer from scoliosis and haven't had an adjustment since January--explains a lot* But my whole body hurt and was so stiff, I knew it wasn't going to happen.

Another thing to suffer is my eating. I'm not really eating like I use to. I'm eating way too much gluten free bread and other things that I shouldn't be ingesting like candy and brownies (only once though, which is a HUGE deal considering they use to be my favorite food)... could be a part of the problem. So while my body isn't changing too much, the image of myself I have is starting to shift. I feel bigger than I am and more bloated than I actually am. So to supplement for barre, I've been walking, or at least, trying to walk. It's also hard when I was on call for two ROUGH weeks and never really got back into my groove after them.

It's hard to not let this sadness define you, especially when there are moments of happiness and laughter. It can be really difficult to go about life as if nothing is wrong so I throw myself into school, tv shows, and my cats to hide away.

I called a therapist this week so next week I'll get back into that too. I know I have a lot of unresolved feelings from a lot of events in my life and maybe they are catching up to me.

So that's where I've been. I've been dealing with these feelings. I will come out the other end of this thing and be a better me :) So don't worry! :)

Be gentle with yourself

Getting back to the barre has been tough. I had a rough February and was unable to find the time, energy, or motivation for going to the barre. I've been twice in March and it's been hard each time. I know it's because I'm not going very often. This morning was rough because of the time change. My body was unwilling to get up for my 6am class because my alarm went off at 5:15 but my body thought it was 4:15. HELL NO. I listened and just slept.  I'm glad I did because I really needed it. Thankfully we're on spring break this week so I'm hoping to get back into the barre at times I wouldn't normally be able to go. I've said it before and I'll say it again, active lifestyle is a commitment and it's a commitment I haven't been able to make in the area of barre.

I am getting movement in other ways which is nice but not shaking at the barre. For now, it's the best I can do. I will get back to my old barre self, eventually, but until then, I'm okay with what I can do. Going back to the barre after a month away is always tough but it reminds me of important lessons:

1. I don't have to be the best on day one.
2. I do what I can do and not let anyone make me do more.
3. My best is good enough.

As I go into my Monday, I'm going to remember my lessons and the saying below:

Staying active

This weekend was very busy in terms of physical activity. We did a lot in terms of walking, barre, one of us did a crossfit workout while the other rode a stationary bike (that was me) and we walked to and from the house we are checking in on. It's been awesome to be moving so much. On the weekends, I rarely get to my goals on fitbit but this weekend I made them all! I made some conscious choices and got off my butt. I know people who make a point to move extra on the weekends but to me, weekends are made for "slothing." But not anymore. I need to make a conscious effort to be the best possible me I can be.

I find that if I spend time watching tv or just laying around, I don't want to do anything else. Because I'm in school now, my time is even more precious. I must make time for all things I want to do including being physically active. I know too many people who let that go while they are engaged in PhD work. There has to be balance so I can stay me.

For me, active life isn't about working out excessively, it's about moving around and making sure my body isn't stationary for too many days.

This body is the only one I have so why not take care of it? If I don't pay attention to the cravings for movement, food, water, leaning, etc, I'll fall apart. So everyday make a choice to take care of this one vessel you've been given. Try new things and surprise yourself!

Be Vulnerable

My new anthem is going to be "be vulnerable."

Something my week at NSO taught me was to allow myself not to be the expert; be a sponge, be vulnerable to everything, especially the process of starting school and today, I applied it to Barre.

I've been going to Barre for over a year and today humbled me. I was a wreck. I thought it was because I hadn't been in a week but it wasn't about that, it was new and challenging. Challenges change you. If I'm not vulnerable to challenges, I won't grow. That being said, I just slowed down, took it in and fell into the space of vulnerability. How special that I have found this place? How amazing that I am giving myself permission to be a primary school kid again (that's my mentor's favorite phrase). I do not have not have to know it all. I do not have to be the best in the room. This is a marathon NOT a sprint.

Apply that to eating.
Apply that to life.
Apply that to work.
Apply that to school.
Apply that to working out.

You will burn yourself out by starting with such force that you cannot sustain. How important is that lesson? It's not about how quickly you do things. This is something that has taken me A LONG time to understand. 

When we are vulnerable, we open ourselves to new experiences and challenges. There is no point in becoming comfortable because things will always change. I'm so happy to be internalizing my mentor's advice so early. It's going to make a world of difference in all aspects of my life not just my studies but my eating, my working out, my relationships.

Hero

It wasn't until college that I found folks to admire. I wasn't that kid who had a hero who was a celebrity. I really didn't find my place until I was at Clark. I didn't find people who truly believed in my until I was a junior at Clark. So to this day, I have few mentors and fewer folks I look to for advice and for guidance. In a lot of ways, my years at Clark and the countless times I sat on the Dean's chair across from her, looking at her photos and thinking what a wonderful dean she was, I was lucky. I saw in her something I wanted to be. It was from that experience that I knew I wanted to be a dean. Well, I've been on the road to Dean-ship since I graduated grad school but tomorrow I begin my latest strategic move toward that goal of becoming a dean of students. Tomorrow I begin my PhD program. I really did not know if I would make it to this point. Not many of you know my educational story so I think on the eve of my going back to school, I shall share:

Settle in with some coffee because this is a long one....

When I was 7 or 8, I was diagnosed with learning disabilities and held back in the second grade due to a catastrophic death of my grandfather and the divorce of my parents. I wasn't attending school the way I should so the kept me in the second grade. From the diagnosis I was put into special education classes. It was a space that allowed for me to take extra time on things but it was really torture. Those "classes" completely failed me. The teacher was awful. I still remember her. She had no desire to be there and had no desire to actually help us. I was acting out in class and my parents were being called a lot for various meetings.

Flash forward to high school: I had two teachers that actually gave me and my intelligence the time of day. One of those teachers started tutoring me and that helped because I could sense she cared. But other than her and her class, I was drowning in my lack of being able to focus on my work or my academics because I was also figuring my identity out and choir gave me a chance to focus and really be around people who "got me." I fell in love my junior year of high school with an amazing human who was a year younger. She was so smart. AP classes and here I am in special ed, being told I was dumb, not getting good grades at all but she loved me too. I started skipping classes and getting detentions, then I'd skip those and get In-School suspension but then I skipped that by telling the teacher I had an exam in choir--who believes a 17 year old??? I did stint in summer school as to not be held back again but then another catastrophe happened...not for this blog but to give you context, my girlfriend's mother discovered our love and I moved in with my dad. 

Moving in with my dad was the best decision I ever made. I made a conscious choice that I was worth more than what I allowed myself to be. Yes, I have disabilities but I figured out who I was and I was comfortable with that. I didn't see anyone at my new high school that looked like me but I found the most amazing group of friends (we are all still friends to this day). I was welcomed and loved despite my past. I was accepted into this group with no questions asked.

Luckily I think I was able to forego special ed classes which was awesome! I was just like everyone else! I started applying to college and was rejected by every school, except one but I wasn't in love. My family decided to send me to a community college...BEST DECISION EVER. For two years, I was able to focus on school and getting involved. I was so involved. I became the Student Government President and with the belief of some awesome people, including my new partner, I was applying to transfer! I was learning about various colleges and was doing so well, I thought, let's go for a reach school!

Clark was my top choice. I didn't care about my SAT scores--which were maybe 1000. My parents and I went to Clark and visited. I remember very clearly my parents being skeptical that I'd get in because of my past in education. The Director of Admissions didn't seem phased by my past and was certain that I would get in. Boy was he right! I applied to three schools: Northeastern, Clark and American University. I got into all three and Clark was number 1! So I went. I did well in classes. And that's how I met my mentor, the dean I mentioned earlier.

It was at Clark that I met the most supportive people. From faculty, to student affairs staff, to admission staff, all of whom I keep in touch with; I was cared for and felt like I had a place. I have friends from Clark that even after all these years we see each other. I made some of the best friends there. I found my voice at Clark and found a place to consider home. (I should be donating more money then.) 

I'm telling you all this because it's been in the past 10 years that I've become what I wanted. A supportive mentor for students. I have become someone that I would have admired. I reach every day for my goals to give students, who might be just like me (struggling, longing, wanting to be accepted and wanting to thrive) someone to look up to. So I became who I needed 10 years ago. I keep that goal in mind as I wake up each day.

And tomorrow, I embark on the next section of this dream. Become a dean like the ones I had at Clark who accepted and loved me and pushed me to dream big and not accept failure. They challenged me to change the world and I'm doing that, one day at a time. Tomorrow I become a doctoral student. I do it with all these memories and stories right inside my head. I carry all those people in my community in my heart as I enter this new stage in life. I'm nervous but I do it with everyone cheering me on. Another day closer to Dr. Verlezza.