More than my BODY

This morning I shared the following video on my facebook page. I encourage you to watch the video!

https://youtu.be/o75DivztU1I

In this video Kaisa Keranen is real about body image.

She goes into explaining how she is viewed by others for her body. She was critiqued for being too muscular a few years ago, but now is glorified for her body because strong and beautiful is currently accepted. But as the video plays on, she explains there is more to her. There is more to this woman than her body. Media changes and in a few years from now, the media could go back to glorifying
women who are skinny and don't have a muscular frame. But ultimately, the take away message is,

The way YOU view your body can't ride on how the world views our bodies.

Movement isn't about being able to look a certain way in a pair of jeans.

Kaisa asks the question at the end of the video, "Why do you want to look a certain way? If you accomplish that goal, is that what will make you happy?"

Hmmmm...
Deep question right?

What is happiness?
The dictionary defines it as feelings of pleasure or contentment.
Synonyms are contentment, satisfaction, pleasure.

My question to myself is, can I look in the mirror with feelings of pleasure or contentment?
I literally see this every single day. I train women daily who REFUSE to look in the mirror. They HATE and despise the person looking back at them. This breaks my heart because I look at the individual and think, do you not see what I see? Do you not see your beauty?

All too many times, myself included, we look in the mirror and see every single one of our flaws. We see that strand of hair that won't fall right, We see our hips are too wide. We see the muffin top hanging over our pants. We see our back fat. We refuse to raise our arms to wave at someone for fear that our arm flab will wave too. C'mon ladies!

If all of these things we see were magically fixed, WOULD YOU BE TRULY HAPPY?
Real question.

Happiness is an inside job. I know I'm not THAT old, but with age comes a greater understanding of WHO I am. I tweeted last week that for the first time in my life, I can look in the mirror and love myself. Let's be real, our worth isn't based off of our jean size and all too many times if we can't fit into a size 2 jean, our worth is somehow less.

Great real! Who are you? Are you a mom, daughter, sister, aunt, granddaughter, god-mom, school teacher, accountant, personal trainer, stay at home mom, saleswoman, or whatever title you recognize with... YOU ARE MORE than the size pants you wear.

Ultimately, the question comes down to are you working on being a better version of yourself? Are you taking time to show your kids what healthy means? Are you taking time to show them how to cook? Are you taking time to go for a walk? Are you taking time to read or listen to a book? Are you teaching and instilling honorable characteristics in your children?

Honesty is WE ALL HAVE our flaws. We all have things we need to work on. But we all also have our strengths. We all have things we're good at and God has blessed us with. Don't try to be a robot and become someone or something you are not. BE YOU because ultimately, the best person you can be is you.

Strive to be better. Challenge yourself to be better. Love yourself. Love God. Love Others.
Be Blessed
Alison

1st Phorm Level 1 Protein Review

Let's be honest, when it comes to making healthier changes in our lives, giving up our favorite treats are hard. I have more than a handful of my clients tell me they just can't give up such and such.I scream, you scream, we all scream for protein.

And for the most part, I don't make them. If your eating 5 bowls of ice cream a day or eating a whole pizza for lunch, yes I'm going to suggest some changes. But for the most part, nobody wants to completely give up ice cream, pastries, cookies, pudding, and so forth. It's about finding a realistic balance for many of my clients.

And as for me, I try my best to recreate some of my favorite dishes and treats in the healthiest form. For example, I love pancakes and/or waffles and on the weekend it's nice to change things up. There are various recipes one can use. Many times I steal the easiest protein recipe offline (https://1stphorm.com/blog/1st-phorm-simple-protein-pancakes-recipe/). Then there are protein energy bites, cookies and cakes that I enjoy making and many times I will make these kind of deserts to friends and family when we get together. It gives me something to snack on as well and not completely blow my diet. (See Emily Frisella's website: www.fithomeandhealth.com for more amazing cooking/baking ideas. Her instagram is @emilyfrisella)

However, the hardest questions to answer is,
Which protein do I use?
What flavor TASTES good?
Where can I purchase a good protein at?
How do I know if a certain protein is worthy of my money?

Level-1 Meal Replacement Protein

Honestly speaking, 5 years ago when I started my fitness journey I had absolutely ZERO guidance. I just started and began reading everything I could about diet and nutrition. Couple magazines I followed were, Oxygen Magazine, Women's Health, and Clean Eating. Oxygen always had a "Shake of the Month" and I would always find myself trying to recreate them. So many articles I would read out of these magazines stressed the importance of protein. There were advertisements for days at each magazine and I would just go to Walmart and find a flavor that looked good. That was until I read a research article were protein distributors were being investigated and found that many times the content in the containers didn't match the nutrition. The tubs of protein were full of fillers and I wasn't getting out of my protein powders that I thought I had been.

This is when I started buying my protein at an actual supplement store and taking recommendations from trusted individuals. So yes, I'm picky! I want to know what is in the protein, is it real, is the brand a trusted brand, does the company hold high standards for the the product they create? So the answer is no, I don't just buy a cheap protein anymore, I do my research. And when I find a company I like and flavors I can appreciate, I buy 4 tubs in various flavors!

One product I had seen at several bodybuilding competitions is 1st Phorms Level-1 protein. I tried their Peanut Butter Cup Level-1 Protein sample when a guy handed me a small cup, but due to the fact that nobody in the area which I live actually sells the product, I didn't want to buy any. What if I ordered something I didn't like? Heck no I'm not paying for shipping! ;)

Click here to get your Level 1 Protein!

However, few months ago 1st Phorm released a flavor that caught my attention. How does Level-1 Cinnamon Cookie Batter not sound like love? I had to check it out as well as Level-1 Ice Cream Sandwich. First off I had to
try Protein Oats with the Level-1 Cinnamon Cookie Dough. This is one of my favorites because usually I'll mix cinnamon in with my oatmeal. However, when the protein got here I dove in and didn't even had to add my cinnamon. It gave me life to say the least! That night, my sweet tooth was getting the best of me. I saved enough protein macros up for protein pudding. I literally mixed the Level-1 Ice Cream Sandwich protein up with low fat Greek yogurt, some almond milk and then drizzled a little Waldon Farms Chocolate Syrup on it. HEAVEN.

This is how I stay on track from day to day which adds up to weeks, months, and years. Small tweaks of finding things that TASTE good and playing around with recipes. After all those to flavors made their way into my home, it lead me to getting a few other flavors. I'm going to have to give the flavors that I've personally tried a high rating. I've tried many proteins where it upset my stomach or made my stomach boated. I've tried other proteins that I've had to add Stevia to because there was barely any flavor. There's other proteins I've tried where the artificial sweetener left a bad after taste. I can honestly say this is one top notch company that stays in touch with it's customers. They're about creating the best high quality protein out there.

Lastly, one thing I appreciate about the company is when you visit their website, you are able to contact 1st Phorm https://1stphorm.com/contact. They have individuals on staff if you have questions about their Meal Replacement (Level-1) or Isolate (Phormula-1) proteins or if you have a nutritional based questions. I'm positive if I was just starting my fitness journey out like I did 5 years ago, I would be messaging them. There's so many myths out their surrounding nutrition and proper supplementation that I would highly recommend individuals using this tool.

Overall to summarize this product I'd have to give it a 5 star rating. I actually wish I had given the product more of a chance a while ago! Level-1 Protein is an awesome meal replacement and for a personal trainer like myself, I wish I had more time to sit down and eat my meals. But reality is, I don't. I train 10-14 clients a day and if I'm not training clients, I'm teaching Boot Camps, TRX, Spin, and Yoga/Pilates. I wake up at 4 am each day and many times the day doesn't end until 9pm. I also am working on my personal goals of stepping on stage to compete in Figure. I can't afford to skip meals and Level-1 Protein has helped me to stay fueled. I know I'm not the only one who struggles to get their meals in each day between running to work, meetings, workouts, taking classes, doing laundry and for many of you also are chasing kiddos around. I don't have any doubt in my mind that you'll love the flavors as well as be able to do a better job at staying on track with your diet!

Low down on Level 1:
It's a whey protein.

Level-1 is comprised of the Level-1 Matrix which is an ultra bio-available, sustained assimilation protein formula consisting of Cross-Flow Micro-Filtrated Whey Protein Isolate, Low Temperature Micro-Filtrated Whey Protein Concentrate, Low Temperature Processed Milk Protein Concentrate, Pure Egg Whites and Sodium Caseinate. The Level-1 Matrix is specifically formulated to deliver the highest quality, premium proteins in a sustained release which mimics the protein assimilation rates of whole food. Level-1 uses only proteins that have been low-temperature processed to take extra precaution to not denature or damage delicate protein fractions.

Click to find your flavor!Click to get free shipping on your purchase!

Make the most of YOUR life*

I haven't been doing an awesome job at posting lately! I've been using Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat more so I can make brief posts, but as I was driving to meet with a client today, I decided I needed to get back to my habit of writing. I actually love writing for my mental sanity as well as I love hearing from those who take the time to read this blog! So thank you to you!

As for me, not a lot has changed in my life besides having started new clients within the last few months. Starting new clients is always hard for me. Somehow, people trust you enough to pay for your 1-2 hour services a week, yet don't quite want to believe or trust you when you advise them on working out on their own and guide them along on nutrition. Maybe people start thinking, "I just need to workout more and I'll lose weight". However, I try to really emphasize with my clients that it's not just about the scale. Many times before someone loses weight, they start feeling better, having a positive attitude, sleeping better, gain more strength, and their level of energy improves. But not everyone focuses on that. They step on the scale after a week or two and 3 workouts and a couple salads and magically want to see the scale say 10 pounds down. Sorry, for many it doesn't work that way. That's why I start with small habit changes like encouraging people to begin logging their food consumption, drinking more water, eating breakfast, switching out less healthy snacks for better choices.

Sometimes for some individuals, these changes are BIG and very hard. Others just make it happen! And this is my day to day life with my clients. Trust me I'm not complaining. It's constantly help others see their potential and make positive and healthy changes and not letting them give up on themselves!

Now as for a new client I started working with today. He has Parkinson's Disease and I do an at home visit with him. Today was my first time visiting his home where I spoke with his amazing wife before I got to their home. They have home health there each morning to help the gentleman get ready each day. I'm going to start working with him twice a week as well as help his wife and their home health know how to help him to continue living HIS life to the fullest.

1st off, let me just the wife of this man is an angle. She meant "For better or for worse" when she took her vows. She is 100% dedicated to keeping this man moving and healthy. I honestly had to kind of hold back tears as she did her typical daily routines with him. I basically spent today observing and watching him move so I can create the best exercise plan for him to do with me and when I'm gone and they're able to work with him.

I tested out his strength after some time of talking with the gentleman and his wife. I was impressed! I was impressed to see a man who has Parkinson's Disease, as well as has had back surgery. Best way to describe this man is DETERMINED. He's determined to make each day count. The more I was there at their home, the more he began to open up. When I was getting ready to leave, He asked if he could show me how he can do what I call sit to stands. (My clients love sit to stands- sarcasm). Here was a man doing ALL HE COULD physically. I asked him to show me his lateral movement, which we will continue to work on! As I was wrapping up, I told his wife I would write up a plan of exercises and stretches for him to do daily and when I returned next week, we'd go through all of it so she felt comfortable and had a full understanding of our goals and plan of action for accomplishing those goals.

She had tears in her eyes which honestly made me want to bawl. She said they'd been praying for help like what I have to offer and I was completely humbled. Humbled to know that something that I'm passionate about is something that is going to better this gentleman's life as well as hers to see her husband moving more and getting the help he needs.

As I drove home, all I could think about is how un-thankful I can be at times. Many times I take my daily breath each day for granted all the while this man is making the best out of each day he has. Today made me take a step back and realize how blessed I am to be able to work with some of the individuals I do. I learn a lot each day from my clients and I'm thankful for each one of them.

Life is short, live it with purpose. If you're unhappy, you're in control. Get up an change the channel. Get up and change WHAT YOU HAVE control over and let God have the rest.

With Love
A