Inspiration of the Week: Karen S!

Meet Karen S!

Back in the middle of the pandemic, April of 2021, Karen joined FCF at the recommendation of a good friend and man do we love having her apart of our community! Since joining she’s lost over 17 pounds, 14.7 of that has been fat! She has also seen her visceral fat drop by 4 points and she has gained strength and balance. All of this has made her feel lighter and daily activities seem easier. She has also seen a big increase in her energy level; she doesn’t get sleepy every afternoon while working from home, she can get up and down from the floor with greater ease, gets out of the house and enjoys the outdoors more and is just plain happier! She even went on a 4 hour hike a few months back with us that included stream crossings and some bouldering while walking one of my German Shepherds, King, and she did amazing! (see pic)

The best part has been watching her transformation over the last year. She came in with a positive mindset, even on the tough days, she showed up, put in the work and part way through the session you could see her spark come back. She works hard, is the first to welcome new members, crack a joke and give Coach Jack a hard time and that’s why she’s such a pleasure to have in our community and to coach each week.

Here’s her story on what pushed her to make a change…

In early 2021 with the stress of the recent election, changes to her work schedule, lack of work travel, and isolation from living and working alone at home during the pandemic she was feeling like many….she didn’t have control over all these changes and felt isolated. So, she made a massive shift in her mindset and decided she could control one thing…

To use this time to get herself healthy!

When Karen started at FCF she has already made some dietary changes and had lost over 20 pounds, but she wanted something that would provide mental stimulation, improve her stamina & cardiovascular health, continue her weight loss, improve balance and increase her strength. Once she tried her first session she was hooked!

For the last 10 years she has been doing pilates a couple of days a week with her good friend, Karen. Yep they have the same name! But she wanted to work on her stamina and cardiovascular health a bit more and the small group sessions at FCF were just the right fit for her. When we asked her what keeps her coming back each week even on those hard days she said:

“To me, the people. I look forward to meeting up with so many like-minded people. Everyone is so generous in sharing information and we all support and push each other. The whole coaching team is the best – all very positive and welcoming. Personal attention and care is so important since we are all at different levels. I could do exactly the same exercises with a personal trainer or in a busy gym but it wouldn’t make me smile like at FCF. If I have had a stressful day at work at 5:35pm I can forget it all. I love the other activities hiking and Tai Chi in the park.”

Along with the changes to her exercise routine, she made a few changes to her nutrition as well. In early 2021 she did a keto diet for a bit and has now moved to a mostly Mediterranean diet and is gluten free. With these changes she now feels so much better, doesn’t feel sluggish after meals, and no longer has acid reflux at night. On top of that she has been taken off a blood pressure medicine!! Karen acknowledges that it is definitely a process and continues to learn what serves her body best so she can continue making progress.

Karen says her commitment she made to herself, the people, and the feeling she has after a good training session is what keeps her consistent and coming back even on those tough days when she doesn’t feel like it. Living alone she needed human interaction and not only did she find that, but she’s made good friends as well. Coach Mercedes knows just how much to challenge her, but also have some fun in each session and there’s nothing like coming in for a work out and knowing you will have some fun while doing it too!

If you want to kick off your own journey like Karen did, we would love to guide you on your journey to a happier, healthier you! Just shoot us an email, info@fcfitness.com or call us at (957)231-6207 and we can chat about you.

Life’s too short to wake up each day feeling sluggish, weighed down and not living up to your best.

What will you decide today?

Talk soon,

Rosa

Answering the Call of Adventure

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Will you be ready if adventure beckons?

For Rich and Liz Clapp, the answer was a resounding “Yes!” Their journey to conquer Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa wasn’t just a testament to their physical fitness, but also to the commitment they share to embracing life’s opportunities, no matter their age.

At 66 years old, they both have been dedicated to fitness for almost a decade, working out four times a week now. Their fitness routine includes strength training, endurance exercises, and Pilates at our studio!

“We try to stay active on days when we’re not working out at Full Circle,” Liz says. “We’re both in better shape than we’ve ever been. And we hope to maintain this and live independently as long as possible.”

While they may not consider themselves super-athletes, they embody the spirit of embracing life on your own terms — even if you never want to travel around the world and climb a mountain.

A Question of Why Not?

The pair have gone on long hikes in other countries before, like Peru and New Zealand. But those were just warmups for the 19,341-foot-high Kilimanjaro. The iconic African peak had never crossed their minds, let alone appeared on their bucket list.

But when I (Rosa) pitched the idea for a family expedition, Rich and Liz were all in. They knew they were capable of the rigors of traveling so far, and of going on a guided tour up the mountain.

The youngest in the climbing group was 39, the oldest 79.

The climbing wasn’t as difficult as some might imagine, they said, but it was increasingly cold the higher they went.

And the lack of oxygen that high meant Liz had to stop just short of the top. Rich and I made it to the summit just as the sun was rising and were rewarded with spectacular vistas.

“The thing that motivated me was seeing the other people. They weren’t super-human. I said, Hey, we can do this,” Rich says. “It’s an amazing feat to get up there. There are glaciers. The horizon is very long and dramatic… The emotion was overwhelming.”

Ready for Life

The adventure reinforced the Clapps’ love of life and staying active – and the awareness that the strength, endurance and agility they gain in the gym is essential for living a fulfilling life.

For peers who are out of shape and afraid to start exercising, the Clapps have heartfelt advice. They believe there’s still a lot of adventure awaiting them, and they don’t want to miss a thing.

“I hear people say, ‘I’m old, I’m 60, I can’t do those things now,’” Liz says. “I would like to encourage people. You don’t have to go to a gym and lift heavy weights. It’s just moving our bodies, getting up and down, traveling or just playing with our grandchildren.”

“People need to get past the fear and live life,” she says. “I don’t need to be 20. I can be 66 and still achieve what I want to do.”

How Many Steps?

No one’s sure where we got the idea that 10,000 is the ideal number of steps everybody should take every day. It doesn’t seem to be based on anything scientific or medical. And the number might be daunting to people who are new to the idea of daily exercise.


But a new analysis says the magic number is just 4,000 steps a day to reduce the risk of dying of any cause.


A team of Polish researchers analyzed 17 studies that followed more than 200,000 people for an average of just over seven years.


“The analysis showed that benefits began at around 2,300 steps per day, which was associated with a significant reduced risk of dying of cardiovascular disease. At around 4,000 steps, the risk of dying of any cause also began to fall significantly. Both figures — which represent medians — are under the 5,000-step limit for what the study notes is normally considered to be a sedentary lifestyle,” The Washington Post reported.


“But there were benefits beyond these numbers: Every extra 1,000 steps was associated with a 15 percent reduction in the risk of dying of any cause, while an increase of 500 steps per day was associated with a 7 percent reduction in the risk of death of cardiovascular disease, the study said.”


Any movement is good – but remember that walking is just the first step (no pun intended) to fitness and health. Come see us today and we’ll show you what’s next.