My Health and Fitness Journey: Over a decade ago, at age 40-something, I was certain that my chronic back and hip pain was going to cripple me before I turned 50. I sat 10 hours a day at work (2 hours of that day was for commuting) and when I got home from work I was exhausted, stressed out and in pain. Lying down did not provide a respite from the pain either, so my sleep patterns were also disrupted.

Intuitively I knew I needed to move more during the day, but my overloaded schedule didn’t provide any margin for exercise; however, an especially debilitating weekend of back pain in February 2004 was the tipping point for change. I sent my husband on an errand and requested that he purchase a treadmill for me to use at home. Once assembled later that weekend, I managed, while stooped over in great pain, to walk one mile an hour for a couple of minutes. An hour later, I tried walked again. By the end of Sunday evening, I was standing straighter and feeling like I had found the answer to controlling my back pain.

Fast forward to December 2010 when I graduated from Arizona State University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Exercise and Wellness, and also became an American College of Sports Medicine Certified Personal Trainer. My target demographic: 40+ year old women in the throes of peri-menopause. During my school days I had become very active and was able to exercise at least 4 or 5 days a week. Needless to say, I gained strength and stamina and experienced a well-being in my body I had never enjoyed during my youth. I started running for stress relief and weight loss. My back and hip pain became a thing of the past. I cleaned up my diet, (cut way back on the white, packaged food group) and began my own journey of mindfulness in regards to my eating and exercise habits.

Since graduation, I have enjoyed assisting others towards improved health as a personal trainer and wellness coach. I teach multiple Zumba classes a week in addition to Balance & Strength training classes for senior adults, and I lead a Couch to 5K walk/jog program once a year for community members desiring a personal fitness challenge.

The Blog: I started this blog in 2010, but it has only been since 2014 that I have been able to devote more time to writing about health, fitness, inspirational and spiritual  topics.  You’ll find my topics are varied and I like to share insights and quotes from other sources which have inspired or benefited me.

Principles That Guide My Approach to Health & Fitness: I like to take a BALANCED, HOLISTIC approach to issues of health and fitness. Our body-mind-spirit is intrinsically connected, one to the other, and we must not neglect these concentric components when we engage in a lifestyle makeover. We cannot “go on a diet” and think we’ll be successful “weight-losers” if we don’t also engage in regular physical activity and reduce or manage our daily stress loads.