Yoga, Core Strength, Perserverence, Progress. I love this RyR update from Eric

In the last few weeks I've been attacking several problems.

First and foremost, I'm starting to see some very positive results from my yoga practice as far as loosening up the shoulder where I had extensive cancer surgery. (I had a radical axillary
lymphadectomy performed in 2002, and that shoulder -- which already had a blown rotator cuff -- has been pretty much a mess ever since.) With enough downward dogs and a little bit of work warming up to inversions, much of the scar tissue there is finally starting to release and break up. Pincha mayurasana ("feathered peacock inversion") is finally starting to come to me as a shape that actually exists in my current body. A lot of that has to do with building core strength, but there's no question that I wouldn't be where I am with it were it not for the fact that my shoulder is loosening considerably. In light of the fact that the surgeons who dug into that shoulder weren't sure I'd ever be able to raise my arm above shoulder level when they got done, I'm sorely tempted to get somebody to snap a photo of me in the full inversion so I can send it to them.

Speaking of core strength, it seems that every coach I have is in cahoots at the moment to hammer me on that very subject. I run regularly with "Gilbert's Gazelles," and with warmer weather approaching and the number of marathons dropping to a seasonal low,
he's been backing off some of the requirements to log lots of long mileage but cranking up "core conditioning" in their place. At the same time, Greg Galindo has passed along a few tasty exercises with a stability ball that also dig deep into core. And the two yoga instructors with whom I train the most -- Logynn and Sanieh -- are both pretty merciless in their driving home of the whole "core conditioning" concept. Also, since I've been with them both long
enough, niether seems to be at all bashful about singling me out for "special attention" during class. Other people get a bye on a lot of poses where I don't. But this is probably all to the good. As Sanieh says, "It's my job to make you uncomfortable, and I'm okay with that."

Meanwhile, I'm going after two giant problems that have always plagued my workouts. First, I like to eat. A lot. And second, I like to stay up way past my bedtime. So I'm continuing to
do more intelligent "portion control" of my intake as well as putting myself to bed earlier. Actually, if I'm rested, I'm also generally a lot less hungry, since I'm not trying to compensate for lack of energy by shoveling more food into myself. The key there is just to stay disciplined. Not always easy when you have a startup business and clients who'd like you to work all day and night on their stuff. Or when you're networking your way through another restaurant
meal. But as best I can, I'm trying not to let the realities of having to earn a living interfere with the real goal of leaning out.

Wish me luck...

Jessy gets faster with speed workouts + gains upper body muscle tone, too!? Sweet.

From Jodi's client, Jessy:

The last time I had any upper body muscle tone was when I worked in a
restaurant in high school, which was a good mumblity years ago. I've
knocked about 15 seconds off my mile and am sticking to my
Tuesday/Thursday speed workouts, but the muscle tone is the one huge
measurable difference. That is, three months ago: nothing; and today:
something. I don't weigh myself or measure in inches, so those are
all guess based on how I'm feeling, but the upper arm tone is back.
I'm actually amazed as I'd resigned myself to weak arms years ago.
I've got about a month until the Congress Avenue Mile, so we can see
if all this training comes to fruition. I'm not looking forward to
having to design my own workout schedule after the RyR is over, but
now I have a handful of resistance exercises I know work, so that's
one less thing to stress about.

Laura's Update: Five things my RyR'er client is doing right! Take notes!

Valerie, my Resolution Resolve participant, has outlined a solid plan to reach her goals, and is sticking with it. I wanted to touch on five things that have her on the fast track:

1. POSITIVE RESPONSE TO EXERCISE. When she has to skip the gym for a day, and gets back in there the next day, she always reports that it "FELT GREAT TO BE BACK". Even if it means she works out a few initial tears on the treadmill. To me, a positive response to exercise is such a predictor of whether or not someone is going to stick with it, as well as a status update on their underlying general health.

2. OUTLINING WORKOUTS FOR THE WEEK - and then modifying as needed. If for some reason she gets blindsided at work and can't make the spin/pump/workout she had scheduled for the evening - she does something else instead - but she does SOMETHING. Small changes over time yield big results.


3. PRE-PLANNING MEALS - Valerie already ate pretty healthy - her diet primarily focused around REAL foods, balanced meals, with healthy ingredients and nutritious recipes. But, like all of us, she sometimes made choices that were perhaps not "optimal" - especially in the midst of a hectic day at work, when searching for lunch. This could in turn throw off her energy for her evening workout. So, Val started focusing on bringing her lunch and healthy snacks to work. This helped, as she did not get so hungry that she made less than optimal decisions. And, she began to regularly incorporate some more vegetables in to her meals. Vegetables are not only super-healthy but they are really filling. She also cleaned out some of those foods that were not a regular part of her diet, but could add up over time. For now, she is eating extra-clean, so she can hit her personal goals.

4. TRYING NEW CLASSES. Valerie has been GREAT when it comes to trying new classes. Among others, she has tried Mallory's Ballet Class, Stephanie's Pure Pump and Kickboxing (sometimes back to back!), Cardio Circuit, and a bunch of new Pure Cycling Classes. She reported back to me the ones that she liked the best, and made them a regular part of her schedule. This is SO GREAT! Making a class a regular part of your workout schedule gives you a scheduled "appointment", and also the motivation from someone who can push your harder than you might push yourself. And, because she has a shoulder injury, she will inform the instructor ahead of time and/or modifies herself to make sure she keeps that shoulder on the road to healing.

5. BEING OPEN TO CHANGE. Valerie really inspires me with her positive attitude and her progress, despite all the setbacks that inevitably show up in our lives - and she has had more than a few these past couple months. In her last update, she told me is feeling VERY FIT - oh yah!!! And that is pretty impressive since she already has quite the fitness and running background. So, her initiative, focus, and raw talent, (coupled with a few practical changes to her diet and modifications to her workout routines) are totally spelling success. Take note, other contestants! Val is in it to win it!

Chelsea's updates. RyR'ers: Making Fitness a Lifestyle

Jeanel and Mary are rockstars!  Each are making progress.  Small steps are paying off and consistency is the name of the game.

Jeanel improved her Splash and Dash times from the last time she participated.  In 2008 she finished in 43:29 and yesterday she finished in 39:19.  Wow!  How cool.  Master swim and practice payed off.  She is also wearing pants from 2006 that she hasn't been able to fit into.  And even when work or motivation gets in the way, she is hopping right back on the wagon when life knocks her off. 

Mary is still getting to the gym in the week when sometimes she'd rather stay in bed.  She knows what she is working for and she keeps putting one foot in front of the other.  She use to have immense tightness in her hips and lower back.  With a consistent workout plan and attention to flexibility, our workouts have sky rocketed!  She is doing things she couldn't do due to tightness.  And this gives her confidence and motivation.  She is also wearing clothes that use to sit in the closet and taunt her.
My girls rock, for they keep chugging along.  Life gets in the way and it only takes them a few to get right back on track.  That's the important part of this contest!  Making fitness a lifestyle............

Chelsea Paul

Meet our Members! Hi Christy!

We love to learn more about our members! This week, we got to know Christy!! Christy's brother David also works out at Pure Austin!


Hi, Christy!! Tell us, what kind of workouts do you do?
-I do a mix of workouts, because I get bored easily and have to change it up. Classes work well for this reason, and when I get tired of those, I do a mix of cardio/strength training and random stuff I see in fitness magazines. I also like to run outside with my precious puppy Tucker, who has surprisingly strong endurance for being a Yorkie.

Are you training for anything specific? What are your workout goals right now?
- I'm not training for anything specific, and my goals are only to minimize stress and maximize confidence. When I work out, I feel better about myself, I am less stressed, and both of these things make me a happier person. When I look good, I feel great and Pure helps me do both.

What keeps you coming back to Pure?
- I keep coming back to Pure because they keep me interested with new classes, changing schedules, great people and good atmosphere.

How do you fit in your workouts?
- The time of day I work out differs, because I fit workouts in whenever I can. I work out most frequently at the end of the day, probably between 4 and 7, but if I can squeeze in a lunchtime or early morning workout on a day when I have evening activities planned, I'll do it.

Tell us more about you! How do you fit your workouts in with a busy schedule?
- I am in technology sales, and am also a freelance makeup artist. I make workouts a priority by fitting them in no matter what, as often as possible. Even if I only have 30 minutes to get in and out, I'll do it, because in that amount of time I'll do something good for myself and will feel better for it.
 

Chelsea works with Mary to successfully create habits to combat 40+ metabolism changes

Many people I talk to about their health and fitness goals want to improve.
They want to lose weight and look more fit. People have told me that their
weight has been a struggle for them all their lives and they have been on
various diets most of their lives.

This is not my story. I was a thin child and adult for most of my life. I
could eat whatever I wanted without gaining weight. But then I reached 40,
my metabolism began to slow down. I started gaining weight even though my
eating habits were the same as they had been. I started to work out for the
first time in my life and started paying attention to what I was eating, but
didn’t really diet. I kept my weight mostly under control although at times
it would fluctuate up or down by 5 to 10 pounds. I really thought my
metabolism had come to a halt and couldn’t slow down anymore and as long as
I cut down on my food intake and worked out I would keep control of my
weight. Then I hit my mid-fifties and found out my metabolism could slow
down even more and doing what I was doing wasn’t enough any more.

This brings me to the present. I have seen some results over the course of
this challenge so far. I try to be at one of the Pure Austin locations at 6
am Monday through Friday to work out for an hour. It has helped. I have
lost body fat and can get into my size 6 pants again. I do see a change in
my body although I have not lost any weight. I have to admit I haven’t
been as careful about my eating as I should. My struggle has been planning
my meals ahead of time and having the right foods on hand. I tell myself
every weekend that I am going to find the time to plan out meals and prepare
the right food. The weekends go rushing by without a moment to sit down and
the planning doesn’t happen. This is my struggle. I like going to the gym.
I work out with Chelsea twice a week. I love my sessions with her. I work
out on my own or take a class three days a week. I feel like I need to get
to the point where I can plan out my meals ahead of time with the foods that
are going to allow me to lose weight. I plan to keep trying to accomplish
this and make it a habit like I have made exercising a habit.

10 lbs lost, cleaning up diet, goals constantly evolving.. Hil's on to something!

When I started the RyR Challenge, I had just completed the biggest athletic goal thus far in my life- I completed my first Half Marathon!

I know, you’re thinking huh? Why start a resolution challenge if you’ve already met such a big goal? I spent months training for the half marathon & felt such a great sense of pride & accomplishment after I finished. But that’s just the thing…it was finished. So, what next? I’ve come to realize with my RyR challenge- my goals have to be constantly evolving. Improving your health and fitness is never finished.
Mallory is an excellent trainer, especially at helping me keep my goals fresh & relevant. She’s always encouraged me to set goals that were measurable & within sight. She also leads an incredibly active lifestyle, so you can’t help but feel motivated around her. I have a short attention span, so she does a great job at varying our workouts & muscle groups. I think it’s her goal to make every muscle in my body sore!
During the challenge I’ve tried to set several BIG goals & lots of small ones. Every week I try to come up with one small goal: run 10 miles during the week, drink 8 glasses of water, try that Blackout class I’m afraid of, etc. Some weeks are definitely better than others, but I’m teaching myself not to get discouraged. No excuses on the bad weeks… just move on & gear up for the next.

My big goal other than weight loss is to complete my first triathlon! I grew up swimming competitively & I’ve tried to keep up a consistent running schedule, so I feel good about those legs. I also bought my first bike a few weeks ago- the first one I’ve had since I was 12. For a naturally clumsy person the bike has been a challenge! Within the first five minutes I’d already fallen over trying to snap in my cleats. I’m staying positive & I’ve been trying to ride my bike 2-3 times a week. I’m really excited about this goal!

While my workouts have been solid during the challenge, my big struggle during the last few months has been food. Mallory created a great plan to clean out my diet- eliminating processed foods, caffeine, and all the good stuff (ha). So far within the last two weeks I’ve lost 5 pounds, for a total weight loss of 10 pounds thus far. Modifying my food has made a huge change- my body feels better, stronger. Hoping for another 10 pounds before we’re finished!
Loving the challenge so far-
Hil

After losing 13 lbs already, Jeanel breaks through her plateau with PAC

I seem to have hit a plateau in the last few weeks. I've been letting the rest of my life (two jobs, buying my first home, and planning a trip to Peru) push my resolutions to the back burner.

But I know myself and what works to keep me on track, and I think Pure Austin Coaching is just the thing to get me going again. I do best when I have a firmly scheduled workout time, preferably first thing in the morning, and with other people expecting to see me at the workout. I think Pure Austin coaching can give me all that and then some. My schedule doesn't allow me to attend all 11 weekly workouts, but I can get to 3-7 workouts per week. And one of those workouts is open water swimming in the quarry, which is perfect for helping me prepare for the Splash and Dashes and the Red Licorice open water swim on May 2nd. I'm planning to do the 2.4 mile swim, which is twice as long as my previous open water swims. Opportunities for such long open water swims don't come along very often, so I can't wait to see what it's like to swim such a long distance.

Wish me luck and I'll be seeing you in the quarry!

More success - with Shawn's guidance, Michelle motors towards personal victory!

 
I've never felt so strong!  I started this program with some yucky knee pain/tendonitis after my 2nd week!  Shawn has been incredible, giving me the advice on how to treat the knee and my gait and I have not slowed down!  I ran the Cap10K this morning and felt so strong, the knees were happy and finished with tons of energy left over while maintaining a great heartrate range as well!  This program has given me SO much confidence too!  I'm back on my bike which was a real hesitation for me, but Shawn encouraged me and now I'm cycling with confidence!  I've entered my first Triathlon and have momentum to get this accomplished successfully.  Now, to master the swim and the pull ups, will be such a personal victory and I'll be super happy!

More great news - this time from Kim. Makes us so happy!

Besides my overall weight loss goal, one of my main goals this year is to participate—sounds silly, right? Not really. Very often I would watch my family being active and taking part in silly activities while I sat on the sideline usually because of my weight. I have resolved this year to join in the fun. I really did this over our spring break vacation to New Mexico. I jumped into the middle of a snowball fight, I led the building of a fantastic snowman and tested myself by trying to do some pull-ups on the monkey bars in the playground. This made the vacation so much more enjoyable and memorable for me.

In addition, I have discovered another resolve in me. Pure Austin really brings this out, I believe. I have resolved to try different things—classes, activities, multiple work-outs in one day… this weekend included my first ever Spin class on Friday, an awesome, kick-butt Kickboxing class on Saturday and my first ever 10k that I walked on Sunday—walked this year, maybe run next year. This is so out of character for me. But it sure feels good!!

This is all accomplished with Ricci’s encouraging words egging me on. Thanks Pure Austin for this great opportunity and thanks for being such an open, inclusive, encouraging, comfortable, challenging environment.

Taylor's Resolution Resolve Progress - Sweet!

So far the Resolve Your Resolution program has been fantastic for me. I was paired with Drew Hill, and it has been great training with him. We really seem to get where each other are coming from.

My main goal in the program was to finally cross the line with bicycle racing. I had raced in the past, but was never able to push through and really compete. When I started the program, I was probably in some of the worst shape I had been in for four years.

Drew got me back on my bike. I started with several weeks of base mileage. Consistently getting out on the bike was great. I really remembered why I had been so excited about cycling in the first place. Now I have started into doing more intervals during the week to start building leg strength and power. All the cycling has strength workouts in the gym mixed in to increase overall and core strength. And of course, the racing has started.

We decided that the weekly Driveway race series would be my benchmark. Every Thursday I get to see how I'm doing in a real race environment. So far... well, not so great. But, I really feel great on the bike, so I know I am making progress. I feel stronger, I feel faster. And considering how out of shape I was when we started, I'm pretty happy with how things have progressed.

But I haven't used this opportunity just to put more bike hours in my week. I have finally made a consistent effort (with the help of my wonderful wife) to get my diet in order. We cook a lot, we are eating quality food, trying to limit meat, we have eliminated dairy, and eat lots of raw fruits and vegetables. Eating delicious, healthy food really makes a difference in how you feel.

The RyR program is a great opportunity, and I feel so lucky to be a part of it. I have made a lot of progress, but there is still a long road to go. Oh, and by the way... I finally feel like a cyclist again, so my legs are now definitely shaved. ;)

Take it easy,
Taylor

Mallory checks in with her Resolution Resolve clients' update

Both of my girls are doing great. They hit the ground running when the competition started. It was difficult during the second month to keep the motivated. So, we have decided to clean out their diet. We are focusing on raw and unprocessed foods for the most part. Alcohol and caffeine is extremely limited. Breakfast is consisting of oatmeal, berries, and nuts. Lunch is mostly made up of veggies and fruit. Dinner is focused on lean protein. This seems to be helping out the girls! Their first month, they both dropped approx 5 lbs. The second month, they each lost only around 1 pound. With their weight starting to plateau off, we need to start getting down to the details of what they are eating. They are on a roll now!!

Ricci checks in with Kim's 11 lbs weight loss since starting Resolve your Resolution!

Participation was a huge deal for Kim. Starting this endeavor as overweight, she felt like she couldn't and didn't want to get involved in social events or even family events.

Since the start of this competition with a few nudges and motivational emails, I am pleased to say that Kim has kicked some ass in the physical and mental side of things. She has lost 11 pounds and has completely gotten involved in all aspects of her life including family and social events.

Everyday has been a challenge, but with the right attitude and determination she has stayed consistent and has done this all on her own with the support of her loving family.

Kim knows that this is just the beginning but I have complete faith in her that her goals will be met. She is blessed with the fortitude and patience to keep making this happen. Kim, keep up the great work!!

Emily checks in with great news on her Resolution Resolving..

I am excited to say that I conquered one of my goals this past Saturday! One of my goals for the resolve your resolution challenge was to complete a 10K in the four month time frame. Well, for once I went above and beyond. I’m happy to report that I finished the Zooma Austin Half-Marathon this past Saturday and let me tell you I loved it! No doubt I’ll be doing more of those! Attached is a picture of me right after the race - hydrating of course!

Good nutrition is hard for me. That’s the next big thing for me to work on over the next two months. I love big meals so adjusting my diet to small meals many times a day has been difficult. I’m still working on it but I’m getting better. I’ve also lost 7 lbs which is encouraging!

This challenge is definitely causing me some positive lifestyle changes and I consider myself privileged to get to do it! Thank you Pure Austin! And thank you Shirley for all your help, you’ve still got two more months of me. Get excited!