I must say I am proud of our EDGE family! I know we sprung some big changes on you and for the most part you are flowing with them. It is difficult to make everyone happy and also create a business that is sustainable. We had to decide one way or another to continue with our a la carte system or switch to an all inclusive program. We based our decision on your responses to our survey and most of you seem very happy with the change. We love that it coincides with our philosophy that fitness should be a lifestyle not a hobby. We hope that this opens you up to try new things and perhaps spend a little more time building a healthy body.
Most people do NOT like change. Many of you have your "favorite" class or "favorite" teacher. I would guess that for most of you it might just be the FIRST class you took or the first instructor you had..... am I right? We find things in our lives that we like and we stick with them! Let me offer something up to you though. We hear things like this all of the time -"I don't dance", "I am not coordinated", "I only like dance classes", "I can't do high impact" etc etc etc..... My husband often says "argue your limitations and they are yours" and he is right. Notice the words in what I just wrote above.... don't, not, only, cant. All negative and all describing limitations. What if we changed our thought process to make life about embracing things not pushing them away. What if we had the patience to try something more than once before making a decision on whether or not we liked it.
Example A - "Sally" takes mash-up on Friday and struggles with it. She says to herself "this is too hard and I am not coordinated enough to get any of this". She walk out and never takes the class again.
Example B - "Amy" takes the same class and feels the same emotions while taking the class but decides to give it another shot and understands that she might not get it on the first try. She takes it two more times at which point she is starting to enjoy parts of the class. She feels a sense of accomplishment in ADDITION to feeling good about working out.
Humans want to succeed and master tasks but most of us are too afraid to leave our content, happy place to try and master new things.
Example C - "Kristin" was always the last one picked in PE at school. She was tall and gangly and uncoordinated. In fact, her sixth grade teacher told her she couldn't hit the side of a barn if she was inside of the barn with the doors closed. Kristin spends years avoiding things she knows (or thinks) she is not good at. She avoids speaking in public, sports, jobs that she doesn't know exactly how to do. One day she looks at her life and realizes..... it is boring and she is not learning anything. She slowly steps out of her shell and eventually takes a fitness dance class. She is gangly and uncoordinated and frustrated taking it, but she doesn't give up. She gets better and starts to love it - so much so, she eventually teaches it.
Change is GOOD! Change helps us to grow and reach and achieve and thrive. It isn't always easy but the alternative is boring. Even then life will just get in there and change things anyway. I LOVE change now - I look for it and thrive on it. I hope you will give some new classes, or new instructors a try. You may just find that your life is richer and more rewarding than is was before. A caterpillar has to change in order to know what it is like to fly.
This Saturday, April 19th, we will begin our biggest loser challenge. It will last 3 months and is geared toward weight loss. We are requiring a minimum of 20 pounds of weight to lose to participate. This is where you come in. As you know the EDGE is all about making people feel comfortable. We don't care about what you wear or what you look like while your exercising. We are just after a healthier community. We know the hardest part is getting through the front door. We know every excuse that has ever been created to not go through that door. You also know that the people that come to the EDGE are very special. It is difficult to describe but the FAMILY we wanted to create has become a reality. Everyone is supportive, friendly, encouraging and accepting. We all get along well and love one another. Those that don't fit this profile don't stay and that is just fine with us.
How do we reach more people in our community? How do we get the non-exercisers to start exercising? You. We can advertise until we are blue in the face but people trust their friends and the opinions of those they know. Can you think of someone that has been wanting to start that weigh loss journey but can't seem to motivate themselves to start? Do you know someone who would feel better mentally and physically if they started exercising on a regular basis?
Our program will be motivating, encouraging, and most of all successful because we are all going to help one another. Please share this with your friends and family and maybe come with them to our meeting next Saturday at 11am. We are so excited to help more people feel good and have the energy to really LIVE their lives because that is what life is all about.... living.
I used to be a huge procrastinator. If I could put something off I would. To this day I still procrastinate - it is a hard habit to break (my taxes are not finished and probably wont be until the 15th). For the most part though, I try and do things as I think of them. I have since learned that all procrastination does is clog up your brain. It is always sitting in there waiting in the queue until you get to it. My brain needs all of the help it can get to fit things like choreography and swim meet dates into it (and all of your names!) I have also discovered the benefit of actually doing things right when you think of them. It doesn't give you a chance to get out of it. You just do it. No need for second guessing or allowing fear to come into the equation. No need for reminders or lists or post-its.
I think there are two reasons we procrastinate - fear and laziness. Fear is understandable but these things usually have a BIG payoff. If it is enough to scare you but you know you should do it, it is probably something that will benefit you in the future. Laziness is just laziness. Work is work..... or is it? I will go back to my previous post and say it is all about attitude and perspective. I know that if I do the dishes at night I wont have to do them in the morning. If I make that phone call right now I have a better chance to get an appointment.
Exercise is probably the one things that people procrastinate about most. I can see how sometimes it might be fear - can I do it? will people look at me? how out of shape am I? - and it is easy to see how laziness could factor in. Sitting on the couch sounds a whole lot easier than burpees at 5:30pm. I think giving yourself the option or choice to not workout is the biggest problem. When you change your mindset to know that it is something you NEED to do you will make the time and do it.
So fit it into your day. Squeeze out some time. Make room for endorphins and sweat and mental health and muscles. You will NEVER regret it. JUST DO IT!
I wish I could wrap it up and give it to all of you. I hope that everyone, at some point in their life, receives it. I am not sure how to even label it but it is one of the greatest gifts I have ever received. Admittedly I was blessed with it long before my cancer diagnosis and although that journey re-affimed it and made it stronger it was extremely helpful in my fight. I am talking about gratitude and a positive attitude. I wholeheartedly believe that life is based 100% on how we choose to look at it. I don't care what circumstances have transpired in your life, or how tragic the events, life can always be looked at with gratitude and positivity and the positivity comes from the gratitude.
I have one particular friend who I have seen change into a new person. He started a gratitude journal. 5 things that you are thankful for every day. He told me there were days when it was extremely hard to think of 5 things but he would not go to bed until he had those 5. He is a different man and is excited to share his transformation with others.
I drive my daughter to school everyday and lately she has been complaining about it. "I don't want to go" she would say or "it is only Tuesday". We sat down and made a list of all of the things that she is learning that go beyond the academics. How to deal with peer pressure and talk to adults. How to be assertive and have a good self image regardless of the mean things people say to you. I want to wave a magic wand over her and have it magically be better but that is not how it works. Her "gift" will come someday but it will have to come from inside her.
You may be stuck in a job you don't like, or a relationship that is rocky. You might struggle physically on a daily basis or feel lonely. Regardless of your situation I can guarantee that if you change your perspective your life will change.
At least I have a job, security, a pay check.....I will give it my best.
I fell in love with this person for a reason.... I will give them my best.
My foot might hurt but the rest of me feels good..... I will focus on that.
Feeling lonely? Come to the EDGE. We can fix that one for you.
I don't know about you but sugar is a bit like crack cocaine don't you think? I mean I have never done crack but I would guess that you can't just do a little bit of crack. Same with sugar - who really stops after one bite?
I don't usually share my diet (boring!) but thought I would share just a little something. I have been sugar free for about a week now. Not COMPLETELY sugar free. I eat fruit and veggies that have "sugar" in them but no added sugar. No desserts, or sweetened yogurt, or drinks... you get the idea. Here is what I have noticed. I feel so much better. I have more energy and a more consistent mood throughout the day. I am not as hungry and my skin is starting to look better. Most of all I have noticed that in the last few days I don't crave sugar like I used to. I guess I have been going through detox and am now on the other side of it. I like how I feel. I am going to try and continue on this "sugar-free" journey. I am not big on a whole bunch of restrictions - it just makes me want things more - but this is definitely doable. Who wants to join me?
I have been thinking a lot lately about what the EDGE really is. What business are we really in? The obvious answer is fitness or health but I don't think that is truly what we are providing. I think we are in the business of making people feel good. Simply that. Feel good emotionally, spiritually, mentally and physically. When you walk in the door I hope you feel good emotionally - I hope you are greeted by name with a sincere smile by someone who looks you in the eyes and really does care about your answer when they ask "how are you?" I hope while you are here you feel peace and comfort that goes beyond a surface level. I hope the positivity and love the EDGE was built on comes streaming into every sweaty pore and you walk away feeling refreshed and energized. I want the challenges that come with each class - following the moves, creating a mind/body connection, feeling the beat of the music - bring you mental clarity and help you focus and become sharper in other areas of your life. Lastly, I wish for you to physically feel great! I want you to notice one day that those aches and pains you perhaps had before are now gone and you just feel good being in your skin.
How could we be in any better business? We are so blessed to be able to provide something that everyone needs and desires and we do so with love in our hearts for you. As we grow I want to keep that integrity that we have built. I never want the EDGE to become "just another gym". We are special - and the reason we are special is because of all of you. Thank you for being an inspiration to others, motivation to others, a friend to others, and sharing your time with others. Suzanne and I know that life knocks you down sometimes. It always will.... that is life. When it does you have to brush yourself off and get up and keep going. The EDGE is a great place to safely do that. Sometimes the last thing you want to do is the first thing you need. The next time you are feeling crummy and want to just hide on the couch, take a breath and get yourself here. All you have to do is walk through the door and we will take care of the rest. We will help you feel better...... we might even help you feel GOOD.
What a great day New Year's Day is! Full of promise and opportunity! A chance for a fresh start - wipe the slate clean. How do you feel today? Ready to take on the world? Up for new challenges? Feeling motivated? I am sure many will say to themselves a sentence that starts with "this year I am going to.....". Why can't every day feel like this? Why don't we wake up every single morning thankful for the opportunity to start over and excited to do things better? No reason. This is my resolution and has been for a few years now. Take on life with vigor and appreciation - every day a new day. Every day a new chance to love, give, learn, grow, succeed, accomplish, experience and climb. We wish you a year of new beginnings and if you find yourself walking through our door we will be here to help you reach and strive toward a life of living on the EDGE.
Happy New Year!!
