Health and Wellness Coach, Personal Trainer, Group Exercise Instructor, Yoga Teacher, Fitness Fanatic
Blending a formal education in psychology, the study of human behavior and three decades of experience in fitness along with a background in holistic health - I give you “No Excuses!”
05/11/2026
Week - it doesn’t matter and exercise - who cares, that keeps me sane:
Exercise the Brain!
This Saturday I will be graduating with my masters in counseling psychology. I left my masters at 27 and it’s taken me 27 years to get here. Learning new things at my age isn’t easy however it does feel good to expand my mind and work my brain. The learning doesn’t stop after graduation, it’s just the beginning!
Week 7, exercise 15 that keeps me sane: Focus Breathng! Nothing settles the nerves, calms the heart and stills the mind like turning all of the body’s attention to breath. Breath is one of the few ways to tap into the bodys automatic processes through healthy voluntary actions. What does that mean? People can use the breath as a remote control to turn up or down the body’s stress system.
Week 8, exercise 14 that keeps me sane: Exercising When No One Is At The Gym!
It’s like the phrase, the early bird gets the worm. Everything has its pros and cons and right now all the equipment is clean and available. A 4am workout on Friday is not ideal however it has its worth! Find the value in your efforts!
Week 9, exercise 13 that keeps me sane: Heavy Weight Training!
Feeling strong is an understatement. Feeling empowered is more like it. The body’s physical strength is determined by many factors that we can’t always control however the power to take action that promotes making choices and initiating change is something that we can always flex.
Do the heavy lifting!
Week 10, Exercise 12 that keeps me sane: Slow Foam Rolling!
Allowing the body to slowly stretch with pressure requires listening to the body, and listening means you are in the here and now. Anyone can move through life fast and distracted. It’s when we slow down and quiet down while under pressure that strengthens our ability to be resilient.
Week 11, Exercise 11 that keeps me sane: Get to the gym!
There are some days I just don’t have it in me. So instead of not going to the gym: I did 15 minutes on the treadmill, 10 minutes on the bag, 15 minutes on the stationary bike. Doing something you don’t have motivation to do yet you know is beneficial is called behavioral activation (BA). BA combats what people call bad habits and works to form discipline and empowerment. In other words practice BA and not BS!
Week 12, Exercise 10 that keeps me sane: Being upside-down!
Flipping the body, flips the mindset and shifts perspective. Anytime you can see things in a different lens you are investing in a growth mindset that promotes motivation, resilience and learning versus the fixed mindset that produces feeling stuck, burnout and unable to receive feedback.
Week 17, exercise 9 that keeps me sane: walking my dog!
Going outside, getting fresh air and caring for another being always helps me get out of my brain chaos and into a mindful calmness. A simple 10 minute walk in my neighborhood is all it takes. (Franky has to wear his dog armor because there are coyotes in our neighborhood.)
Week 18, exercise 8 that keeps me sane: hotel workouts! Making time to shut out the world and turn off my brain to focus on my body and breath is crucial, even while I am away. It is important to keep a daily self-care routine that keeps you connected to your body in a positive way. Consistency is an ingredient to optimal health.
Week 19, exercise 7 that keeps me sane: hand shaking/flicking
You ask, “What the hell is that and how is that an exercise?” Imagine you have something sticky on your hands and you are trying to get it off with just movement-that is it! I do this often, especially when I am walking into the gym and I want to get rid of the “stickiness” of my day or the things that are “stuck” in my mind.
