I’m not quite sure the day or the week, yet I do remember the year when I realized I needed to make a change. It was 2018. After all, I’d started the first strength personal training gym in Old Town, Alexandria. I’d hired and helped to developed over 40 coaches. I’d personally known the fitness stories of over 1,500 clients. I’d expanded my education exponentially each year. I myself was stronger than ever. I was 51.  Our team of trainers was (and still is!) the best in Northen Virginia. Our philosophy about how a strong body translates to a strong mind was almost a cult-like operation. Everyone seemed happy. Yet, it just didn’t feel right anymore. I was still hearing the same one liners I’d been hearing since I started my former company, Fitness on the Run in 2004, from clients. They were:

• • “I need more cardio to lose weight.” 
• • “I know it’s all about calories in and calories out.” 
• • “I take care of everyone around me and have nothing in my tank for me.” 
• • “Can you just give me five things to eat for breakfast, lunch, and dinner and I’ll lose weight.”  
• • I’ll stick to what I know or what I read in the paper/IG/podcast/blog (even though it hasn’t helped me achieve my goals).”
• • “I’ll never be as fit as I want. My body shape is pre-set.” 
• • “My sleep is good (meanwhile I learn they awaken every night).” 
• • “Isn’t everyone stressed? How can stress be the reason I feel so out of shape?” 
• • “I’m working out and eating healthy yet still not seeing results.”

I could give you more, yet these were the main lines or feelings I heard over and over again. So many were frustrated, lacked contentment, and were stuck on the “more is better” mentality. “Maybe I should try another type of exercise.” Maybe I should add a class.” “I guess I need to cut calories more.” Thankfully, those are the same themes that form the foundation for my new company, Alexandria Wellness.On the other hand, I did (and still do!) have a number clients who understood that health and wellness is a journey, not a short term “challenge”. They were – and are - C-R-U-S-H-I-N-G it. Frankly, so was I with my own fitness. After introducing new concepts with my personal clients, we changed the face of their wellness journey. They embraced daily habits, banded together with a belief of “I can”, got rid of “cannot,” and made little changes in their days that made lasting results a reality. So while my fitness clients at Fitness on the Run were happy with our familial culture, my handful of personal clients added contentment, strength of body and mind, a lifestyle of wellness, and new practices that today they profess they’ll never stop. They became more confident not only in their movements in the gym yet in themselves 💥, they felt better than they imagined possible and improved relationships with loved ones. And this is all as a result of adjusting the way they viewed their fitness to a fresh definition of wellness…one step at a time. And, yes I’m still to this day their personal trainer and am darn proud of it. Each session is jam-packed with wellness conversations, sharing, and hard work. We are a community of women who are dedicated to our wellness, not just our fitness.  In this series I will outline their small yet effective food, stress, sleep, mindset, habits, body acceptance, physical movement, and (self-talk) language strategies that resulted in defining their wellness journey. Yes, small changes resulted in massive success for my clients. They embraced a new and fresh way without killing themselves in the gym and starving their precious bodies of much-needed nourishment. Stay tuned – or schedule a free 30 minute consult with me. 

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 Over time I essentially bridged the gap from the fitness-only model into other components of my clients wellness, and they experienced amazing results. That is how I began including nutrition, mindset, language, and the other aspects of the Wellness Wheel into my clients programs.Although fitness is a noble profession I enjoyed for 15 years, the audience of women with whom I work want more than just fitness. They want true wellness – like me.  I believe deeply in fitness. Exercise produces enormous benefits underneath and above the skin and especially in the area between your ears. Yet even the most robust fitness practices don’t address other essential components necessary to keep you fit – of mind and body - for the rest of your life.  Join me in my crusade to help others engage in a meaningful wellness program addressing way more than fitness and diet. Read on for the next few weeks where I dissect the statements above and demonstrate to you the superior benefits of a holistic approach to your health, wellness, fitness, and yes, physique.