Every Move You Make

Why do some people like working out, running, playing sports, skiing ? Why can some people hop out of bed, jump into their lycra pants and sports bras and bounce enthusiastically to the gym? Is this a strange and rare breed of person? A genetic mutation? Do these people not feel pain? Does working out feel good to them? Are they masochists?
Or is the secret as simple as this: People who love movement are fakers? I mean, who on earth wants to move all the time? And who thinks it's fun? So fun, in fact, that they encourage everyone around them to do it? Misery loves company and all that....

I love to move. I wake up in the morning and my toes to my nose vibrate, ready to go. My first step when my toes spread into the carpet feels like a welcoming hug. The feeling of my pulse adjusting to movement literally takes my breath away. Grateful. Another day. Cannot wait to get started.

When I move, I feel alive. When I dance, my heart beat pounds the rhythms while my body floats off to freedom. When I run, all sounds fade away, one stride at a time. I see the world in the way I want to always experience it. Fascinating. Always new. Stunning and surprising. It is my daily reminder that everything is miraculous. When I lift weights or train in the gym, my pounding heart and tired muscles remind me that I am a survivor, that I can survive temporary pain for long term health and happiness.

When I move, I feel secure, I feel beautiful, I feel free.

Nice, huh? You convinced to get off the couch yet??

I'll tell you a secret.

I started writing this blog to procrastinate going for a run. Despite the fact that I know all of the above, I STILL. DO. NOT. WANT. TO. WORK.OUT. TODAY.
Even us fitness loving, movement preaching, soapbox standing, smiley sweaty headbanded people struggle. It is simply the knowledge that moving is ALWAYS better than not moving that sets us apart.


The truth us that every single person in the world loves to move. We have just forgotten how to work past the pain, and commit to something long enough that the positive outweigh the negative.

Nothing is easy. But YOU ARE WORTH THE EFFORT.

My three tips for helping yourself love to move:

a) commit to it and stick to it consistently for a significant period of time. 2 weeks is not enough time for your body to adjust to the demands and start to give you positive feedback. Physical fitness is the results of our body's ability to adapt to the demands we place on it. Once it has adjusted, you start to regularly experience some of the multitude of positive effects.

b) take a moment after your workout to note the benefits, either mindfully or by actually writing or noting them down. Take note of how you are feeling when the workout is done. Use sentences, single words,stick figures - whatever helps to reinforce the positive feelings that have come from making an effort today

c) remember that a major factor in maintaining physical fitness is time management and consistency. A successful exerciser may have allotted themselves an hour to work out. Throw in sick kids, late at work, unexpected challenges, and that time quickly whittles itself away to 15 minutes. Stay positive and remember that if you want to feel the positive effects of movement, 15 minutes is better than no minutes at all. Instead of" I only have 15 minutes, I can't workout", you embrace the 15 minutes as the opportunity it is.

So everyone has the capacity to be a happy perky fitness loving unitard wearing fitness addict. You just have to keep moving forward.

Find Your CORE!

"Lose Yourself"

We all go through losses. Sometimes we seek to lose, sometimes it is a surprise. Sometimes you lose what you thought would never go away.
Whether losing weight, losing a friend, or a pet, or your car keys, loss is the beginning of a process of rebuilding. As you lose, so must you find. And unsurprisingly, you always find what you need to make it through.
Over the last two years I have lost my parents. I have found, though, a deep and loving relationship with my brother and his wife, that though always there, has strengthened immensely. I have found a deep chasm in my being that has been left gaping and raw with their loss, but so many people have tended this wound in so many ways, that it heals, slowly, or at the very least does not grow bigger. I have found the part of myself that says I can stand alone in the world, without those who created me. Beside that part, is the bit that says I don't need to.

We will all face losses, both good and bad. From the rubble we learn to pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and look around with glasses tinted a little differently. Life is never quite the same again, that is the abject truth of loss. But it goes on. And there is lots to gain from from that.

Find Your CORE


Two years ago, my Mum passed away. Cited below is my eulogy for her funeral.I reprint it every year to remind myself that she isn't just around the corner, but speaking her name keeps her alive.

Angela Faith Jones April 8th, 1941 - February 20th, 2013

Life is an interesting thing. It is given freely, lived with consequences, and lost. Life is a constant change, an unpredictable tide, and yet when an accounting is taken, not much remains that is unsurprising.
Thank you for coming today to celebrate and remember the life of Angela Faith Jones. I knew her as Mum, as did Shayne and Simon. Many of you knew her as friend, surrogate mother, neighbor, confidante, patient. She was known also as daughter, aunt, sister and more. However you knew Angela, you know that she inevitably touched your heart in some way.
Born in 1941, at the height of WWII, in East Ham, London, England, Angela was born amidst turmoil and wartime strife. She often recalled playing in burnt out structures after the war, and spoke of air raid sirens and food rationing. Born to Albert George Addington Staines and Dorothy Esther Staines (nee West), Angela was the youngest of three children: Jeannine (passed away from thyroid disease at age 6) and brother David.
She was a strong willed, intelligent and inquisitive girl, a talented and celebrated violinist with a wonderful ear for music. Quick to laugh and break into song, she was always ready to get into a game of cricket or football, jump on the dance floor, or for the less rough and tumble, a great game of Boggle or Scrabble. She enjoyed being a part of whatever the people she loved were doing. Reading was a particular passion, loving Dickens, Bronte and Elliot, and other popular favourites like Dick Francis, Agatha Christie and more. She loved classical music, but could sing along to the hits over the decades. One of her greatest pleasures was enjoying the soothing sounds of Zamphir and his pan flute. I did enjoy our own personal drum corps parade, with pots and pans around the house, singing patriotically, “Land of hope and glory”, complete with rousing cheer and bow at the end.
Angela married Alan Jones, and from this union was born a rich base of friends in England and the arrival, in time, of their three children, Shayne, Simon and quite a bit later, myself. Being the youngest by far allowed me the priviledge of being her ear for many embarrassing, funny and animated recounts of the boys exploits. My favourite stories, though, were of her own adventures driving a transport lorry around the round-a-bouts of London, a trailblazer of sorts, sitting on some ledger books to see above the dash.
Angela certainly was a woman who faced a challenge head on. Move the whole family overseas to Canada? Done. Adjust to new country, climate, health challenges, financial difficulties? Absolutely. Rise to the challenges presented in the coming years, raising three children mostly alone? Yes. Perhaps it was her inbred stubborn streak, but letting these difficulties get in her way was against her nature.
Did I mention she had prehensile toes? Yep – with each toe working independently, some very creative puppet shows were born.
Angela loved to garden, loved the miracle of seed to blooming plant, loved to breathe in the fragrance and feel the coolness of the earth. She had a knack of “throwing” everything in and having it look perfect at almost any time of the growing season. She loved to give away clumps and clippings of her plants, with the promise that they would look even more beautiful in your garden.
She joined the workforce in Canada full time with VHB Industrial batteries as Office Administrator, and continued to work there until health concerns became too much and she had to retire. Hard working, organized and articulate, she was a master at convincing people without them even realizing they were being convinced. Also world reknowned for the “persuasive” letter or conversation which may, in the nicest possible way, have put someone in their place. She was well loved in the workplace, and enjoyed the challenge and responsibilities set her.
Angela covered many people with her love, took people under her wing and protected those in need of something special. Human or animal, our home growing up was a constant refuge for anybody who needed it. Even when Simon brought home “Siberian Desert Mice” (most of us know them as rats) she opened up her heart and eventually they too won her heart, pride of place in the house and an array of regal names, naming them all after English Kings. Mammal, reptile, bird, never turned away, neither were confused teenagers, heartbroken friends, downtrodden neighbours or suffering strangers. This was perhaps her greatest legacy – the trail of souls who left her care more fully whole than when they came.
From her birth in 1941 to present our world underwent astounding change. Air mail was incredible when invented, and now we communicate in a matter of seconds via email. Air flight has made unbelievable progress and we have men in space and have been on the moon. She saw the advent of television, technicolour and animated to current 3D films. With each decade came great change, and Angela always embraced it. She loved the Mary Tyler Moore show, but also wholly embraced the girls of Sex and the City. We often watched Star Search together, and now I understand she enjoyed watching American Idol with her neighbor Sharon. She moved with the times as best she knew how.
Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
This is what we shared, my Mum and I. Not only the mutual middle name, passed down from mother to daughter, but the ability to believe that all things are possible. A faith in the basic goodness of human life. A faith in the knowledge that doing the right thing is always better than doing the easy thing. And through the lessons that she taught me, I have gained a most important skill: faith in myself.
If a person’s worth is measured in those who she loves then surely it takes only a quick glance at her beloved grandchildren to see the sum of Angela’s parts. I remember the day Tristan Alexander was born, how she paced up and down the hospital halls in anticipation of meeting him, and how every time she ever looked at him you could see the joy she felt the first time they met. She adored little Zoe and always inundated me with stories of Tristan and Zoe’s many adventures, accomplishments and loving Nana tidbits about her time spent with them. I know how proud she was of them and I wish for them always to remember the feeling of her loving protective arms around them.
Although sharing her beloved baby boys, Shayne and Simon, wasn’t easy to reconcile, I know how pleased she was and how much she loved their wives Cynthia and Andrea. It is a joy for a parent to see their child love and be loved in return.
Life is an interesting thing. We live, as a people, to be with each other, to support, to love and cherish in times of joy and times of hardship. If Angela was here with us today she would be angry that we all came out and had “all this fuss”, but I know that she would have a twinkle in her eye, trying to work out how to make a joke or play a trick to liven up the room, and would also be happy that she brought us all together, to love and support one another, to share stories and songs and to remember.
My Mum hated saying goodbye. She always said it was too final, and I agree.
Until we meet again Friend, Nana, Mum, Angela Faith Jones. Until we meet again.

"I Honestly Love You"

It's St.Valentines week! I am one of the few cheesy people left in the world who loves Valentine's Day. Because love is my kind of thing, I greatly appreciate the opportunity to remember and celebrate this, my most cherished and really the only, emotion that I easily identify with.

I don't need the grand gestures. It's the little things that I love the most. A card, some chocolate (chocolate actually for any occasion, but that's a whole other blog), an acknowledgement in some way meaningful to tell someone what they mean to you. Or a letter. Letters are good. They contain words, which are among my favourite things. My favourite letter I ever received began with, "to my beautiful wife" and ended with "here's to happily ever after". I know. Awwwww.

I love to write letters as well, and at the end of an absolutely fantastic day, capping off an amazing week, which is the tip of an incredible year, I thought this may be the perfect time.

5 years ago I took a leap of faith and hung out my sign. "Fitness Monkey for Sale" (or something like that). My family and I agreed to make the necessary sacrifices to allow me to have a job that gave me freedom to be able to drop my kids off to school, nurse flu bugs and still contribute to the household expenses. I worked long days and longer nights, tired and achy, but happy. Over these years I have had the immense pleasure of meeting and teaching so many wonderful people.

Our decision to start our own business has changed our lives. Yes, it has been hard. But it truly has been the most rewarding opportunity I have ever been given, and each one of our lives is so much richer for it. So this, My friends is my love letter to you.

An Open Letter to My Clients (past,current and future)

Dear COREfitfam;

Someone asked me today what I love about my profession. I was about to spout off some drivel about inspiring people to good health etc..etc... which is fine and true, but not really the heart of the matter. Truth is, I need you more than you will ever need me. I do not change your lives (although I am glad to be a part of the process). You change. You work. You commit. And you make your own dreams come true. And every time I see you embrace your strength, love yourself a little more and be empowered by your amazing accomplishments, I cannot help but strive to do the same for myself.
I am a fitness professional because I love people and I see their potential for good, and in it the ability to surprise themselves and in turn empower others.
Thank you to every single person who has moved with me.
Thank you for:
- saying hello and taking an interest in my family every time you walk through my front door. My children have learnt a whole lot about how to treat others from the way you have treated them.
-laughing at my absolutely terrible jokes
- showing up to every class or session with commitment and determination.
- not laughing when I screw up dance steps, or fall of the stage, or call an elbow a wrist.Or if you do laugh, well, I get to be in on the joke.
- trying to not have your back make farty noises when you do situps
- reminding me everyday with your best effort that you deserve nothing less from me
- being a community of people who cheer each other on.
- for not laughing (too hard) when there are real farty noises.
- for supporting my kids charitable causes, and going out of your way to do so
- for always saying something is not possible, but believing me when I say it is, and trying it wholeheartedly
- for being comfortable with being uncomfortable
- for letting me come into your homes, cuddle your pets, tickle your children, and be a part of your lives.
- just for being the type of people who realize that their health is worth the investment of money and time, and staying on the path of good health.

So this Valentine's Day, know that I am overwhelmed with the many, many, many blessings in my life. I count them each and every day, and you are all among them.

Thank you all for changing MY life.

Happy Valentine's Day.

Annie

Find Your CORE

If It Ain't Got That Swing

Kettlebell.

I have a client who bought 3 on Amazon. Because I was talking about them and they looked cool. I love her. Her friend bought some too. It's contagious.

I have a packed Kettlebell Warrior class on Saturdays. Kettlebells are becoming more popular as people learn their many benefits and feel the effects of working out with them. They are dynamic, convenient and a wonderful addition to any fitness toolkit.

The kettlebell or girya is a cast-iron or cast steel weight (resembling a cannonball with a handle) used to perform ballistic exercises that combine cardiovascular, strength and flexibility training. They were developed in Russia in the 1700s, primarily for weighing crops. It is said that these farmers became stronger and found them useful for showing off their strength during festivals. The Soviet army used them as part of their physical training and conditioning programs in the 20th century. They had been used for competition and sports throughout Russia and Europe since the 1940s.


Unlike traditional dumbbells, the kettlebell's center of mass is extended beyond the hand. This facilitates ballistic and swinging movements. Variants of the kettlebell include bags filled with sand, water, or steel shot.The kettlebell allows for swing movements and release moves with added safety and added grip, wrist, arm and core strengthening. The unique shape of the kettlebell provides the "unstable force" for handling - key for the effectiveness of the kettlebell exercises.

A word of caution before beginning any training with kettlebells. Due to the unusual movements you can make with them, it is ALWAYS advisable to go to a professional experienced with kettlebells to help you establish proper form and technique.

Used properly, kettlebells add an element of fun and effective movement to any workout. And also an element of "ow I can't get out of bed or sit on the toilet" the next morning.

I do a full body kettlebell workout once a week. It gets my heart pumping, sweat dripping and makes me feel like a total fitness badass.

Kettlebells can be purchased pretty much anywhere that sells fitness equipment, from WalMart to Fitness Depot. So be sure to drop by Kettlebell Warrior and then run directly to get yourself a set.

Find Your CORE

!

Itty Bitty, Teenie Weenie, Yellow Polka Dot....Sports Bra??

bod·y im·age
noun
the subjective picture or mental image of one's own body.

Most of us don't see ourselves as we truly are. I do not know a woman in the western world who hasn't shed a tear trying on clothes in the harsh glare of changeroom lighting. I personally believe that all changerooms buy their mirrors from the fun house, but I'm assured this is not the case.

Bathing Suit shopping. Yes. I know every woman reading this just shuddered. What a special brand of hell it is. Being chirped around by a commission motivated fetus who looks like they rolled out of their mother's womb last year. I'm quite certain that only those who have yet to reach puberty are hired in these places, just to make the pain of walking out of the changeroom, bulging and stripey, all the more humiliating. The look of fear in the eyes of the young nubile innocent is worth it, though, as you hiss knowingly "under your breath" about how age gets EVERYONE!

But enough about my day.

In all seriousness, most of us fail to see the sum of the good, and instead focus on the bad, or, not perfect. This is regardless of whether you are over, under or at a healthy weight. Perception doesn't meet reality. For many people, this can become a chronic struggle. People with poor self image can have an entire day ruined from one glance in the mirror. Your perception of yourself on the outside can have a profound effect on how valuable you consider yourself on the inside.
People with healthy body image can shake off a "bad hair day" and move past or work through to prevent it from robbing you of any enjoyment. People with unhealthy body image sometimes can't see past the demon in the mirror.

I don't have all the answers to cure poor body image, but I do know from my own experience that you do have to test your preconceived notions.
Be brave.

These are things I believed (mostly because I was told them by people I loved)
- wearing heels will elongate your legs and thin out your trouble areas. I did not own a pair of flats except for running shoes until I turned 32.
- you are not beautiful, but pretty enough you may mature into an attractive woman.
- black. clothes. That is all. Black is slimming, right? Nothing like permanent mourning garb to help you look trim.
To name a few.

I have terrible body image, but I am pretty much past most of that now, with some hard work. I wear flats, love colourful clothing, and I have no opinion on my outer beauty. If I look in the mirror I may see hideous, but all it takes is a look into my heart to see otherwise. If I am meeting new people, my introverted self will generally pop back over to the dark side and dress safely, but after that all bets are off.

NOW - having read all of the above, know the following. I DO NOT WEAR BARE MY BELLY IN PUBLIC. There are two exceptions:
a) I am out of the country where NO ONE will ever see me.
b) I am teaching a Zumba Fitness Event with awesome music and my girls KT and Lisa. On this occasion I have a habit of ripping the shirt off of my back. Literally. I do tend to get a little carried away.

So, my challenge this year is to buy a cute little sports bra top and cute little shorts and wear them to complete the Warrior Dash. Oh my. I actually just threw up in my mouth a little.
There are around thirty clients and friends doing this Dash with me, and some of them are also committed to doing this ridiculously silly but oh so scary clothing challenge with me.


So go ahead. Do something a little scary. Be brave. Work your butt off to make sure you are the best and healthiest person you can be. Then look in the mirror, and smile.

Find Your CORE.

A Very Merry Un-Resolution To YOU!! (and you, and you...)

Full disclosure. I have never, ever,ever,ever,ever fulfilled a New Year's Resolution. I hold the resolutions themselves completely responsible for this because I am not a quitter. Clearly the failure to complete them had nothing to do with me. Or maybe. Ok fine. It was all me.
I made the obligatory resolutions. Why? Everyone was doing it, peer pressure at it's best. Besides, everything about me always needed to change. I never really measured up, so it was easy to find a million things to change about myself.
I feel the need to clarify here a little though. I am an excellent goal setter. And I always (I mean ALWAYS) reach and usually exceed even my ridiculously high expectations. But if you label it a New Year's resolution I suddenly am rendered useless and incapable.

Now that I am older and getting a little wiser, I realise that this is because I don't really need to change all that much. I am perfectly imperfect, and have so many flaws I'd have to start a new blog about them, but for the most part I am pretty ok. And no resolution to eat healthier, move more, apply more sunscreen, whatever, is going to change that, whether I reach the goal or not. All of the many little things I need to do to help myself to be all of the things I find most important (kind,loving, loyal, helpful, thoughtful) and want to accomplish (be a good Mum, wife and friend. Be a motivating force. Help others in my community)are ongoing efforts (sometimes battles) and the work on myself to make myself be the person I want to be is ongoing and constant. I work at my physical, mental and emotional health all the time, because these three components of my well being directly contribute to my ability to be the type of human being I aspire to be. Every day.

Life is an ongoing and constant state of employment. Invest in yourself every day so that you can invest in others.
I never kept a single New Year's Resolution because I never found one as important as worthwhile as that.

Without futher ado, here are my yearly UN-RESOLUTIONS. An unresolution is simply an acknowlegement of what you did well in 2014 and a vow to continue!

a)Run Forrest, Run! Over the last few years, I have turned my relationship with running from a brief fling, to a heated romance, a steamy honeymoon and now a comfortable, loving marriage. What was once a struggle is now a joy, and I can honestly say that apart from being with my family and friends, there is nowhere else I would rather be than the open road or trails.
b)Kindness & Gentleness: Learned this year to apply these traits to all areas of my life. Tried to stop living life on attack mode, and instead to nurture, apply patience, love and sometimes ice packs, to wounds that need to heal, those both literal and metaphorically.
c)Forgiveness: for others and myself. It's work, and it's working.
d) To avoid school trips like the plague. Luckily most are scheduled on my work days. Only got roped in to one last year - a personal record. Looking to continue that streak.
e)Friendships. I love having friends. And I have the BEST friends ever. So I will work on letting them all know that, as often as possible.
f) Wine. I started drinking the occasional glass of "occasion" wine (or maybe two glasses. I can't remember exactly)
It tastes good, and I plan on having more "occasions" to drink a glass!
g) Relaxing. I'm getting better at it (see the above statement about wine)and am hoping to do more.
That's the most important points I can think of, except I'll keep loving my husband, kids, family, friends, jobs, clients and random people I meet and to keep inspiring, energizing and motivating people to move!!

Find Your CORE!

"New Year, New You?" Perhaps, but probably not.

Every year at around this time I turn into the "Incredible Hulk". Every time I see any one of the following statements/catch phrases/tag lines or memes I turn green, boil and seethe with anger and grow super tall, muscular and burst out of my racerback tank top and tights until the are little shreddies.
"New Year, NEW YOU!"
"Resolve to make big change happen in 2015!"
"Got a little chubby over the holidays? Try this diet/pill/coconut oil/scam....."
"Join our ______________ and be the best/fittest/richest/thinnest/prettiest/smartest you can be in 2015"

What was so wrong with you on December 31st that you must resolve to change yourself completely on January 1st?
And if so much is wrong that you must resolve to change it all (usually immediately) why, oh why, wait until January 1st to do it?

Look, if you need to make changes, you know it already. You know it in June, you know it on your birthday, on family Day, on Thanksgiving and Easter. You know it on Monday and you know it on Sunday, and every day that falls between. If you have unhealthy habits (and all of us in priviledged North America do - ALL of us) you know them. And you know they must be addressed. The sooner the better. And by you. You alone can make a plan to make positive changes in your life and you alone can make them stick around permanently.

Annie's Tips for Implementing Change and making it happen:

1. Don't set deadlines and start times. If something is worth improving, it's worth starting NOW. If your goal is to add more movement into your life, don't wait until January 1st. Go out for a walk today, even if it's ten minutes! Keep moving in small amounts and add on with other types of movement, longer times, classes, personal training - what ever you like. But get started.
If better nutrition is your goal, and you resolve to start eating healthy tomorrow - you know that your entire day will be spent consuming all the sugar and chocolate and chips in your postal code. Start with making better choices today, and slowly and surely making easily sustainable changes over time.
2. Know your weaknesses and confront them. Hate exercise or are unmotivated? Join a class, get a personal trainer, gather friends to move together and keep accountable. If chips are calling you from the cupboard, remove their salty little ripples from your life.
3. Challenge Your Fear. The toughest. What is the worst thing that is going to happen if you succeed? If you lose the weight you must in order to feel great and be healthy, you win. If this time nothing changes, well, you aren't any farther behind than you were. You have nothing, I repeat NOTHING, to lose.
4. Make a plan. Nothing happens without planning, goal setting and education. Sit down with a professional or a friend who has an eye for this type of thing, and come up with realistic goals and a basic,realistic plan to reach them. Realistic is the key here. Nobody likes to fail,so being sensible here is the key.
5. Find your why. I often have clients write down their anwers to the following questions:
a) Why is this goal/lifestyle etc..important to you? ( simply : Why must you change?)
b) Why did you choose unhealthy habits to be a part of your life? ( simply : Why did you get here?)

Everyone can make change happen. But don't start tomorrow. There is no better time than now.

Find Your CORE!