All tagged choice

Movement is a Method of Expression.

Movement is a Method of Expression.

Stephanie Ondrusek
coaching, mindset

My relationship with movement changed again when I was in my early 20s. I found lifting, and even the EXACT workouts from my swimming days took on a new life: I could feel how my workouts fit together. I began to decipher what my body was trying to tell me. I could challenge myself, having hard evidence that I had it in me to achieve difficult goals.

If I had continued to believe that movement was nothing more than a credit card, giving me a balance to have extra fries, I never would have learned how to express my deepest truths through the activities in which I engage.

My power would have stayed hidden in the cupboard under the stairs.

For me, it was lifting. For you, it might be walking in nature, competing with a Crossfit team, or taking a dance class.

Freedom: it’s yours.

Create Your Life (We Have Zee Powaaa!)

Stephanie Ondrusek
coaching, general BAMFery, mindset, offers

One of my favorite Richard Branson quotes is, “if an opportunity knocks, and you don’t know the answer, take it and figure it out.” Coming from a person who went from big box gym environment to corporate wellness environment to now working for herself, all with very little clue to what she was doing at the beginning of each endeavor (and zero formal preparation for one of those transitions), I can assure you, you got this. It may be uncomfortable, and it may get weird, but it will all work for your good. There are very few things in life that are un-figure-out-able.

We get to create our lives through our choices, and we are more powerful than we realize.

Anti-Resolution, Anti-F It Holiday Thoughts (AKA, Navigate the Middle)

Anti-Resolution, Anti-F It Holiday Thoughts (AKA, Navigate the Middle)

Stephanie Ondrusek
coaching, fooooood, workouts, mindset

ESPECIALLY throughout this season, where many people stress over food (from its preparation to accommodating diet preferences to feeling like we “shouldn’t” eat something), finding what works can seem overwhelming, but it’s simple: what keeps us full but not uncomfortably stuffed, what energizes us, what helps us meet our calorie needs, what keeps our cravings under control, what brings us joy…which, I’ve found, is almost never what someone else tells me should.

Also important to remember is that exercise is not punishment.

It’s tempting to want to “work off” an indulgent season, especially given all the #fitfam fotos of girls in their underwear doing “fasted cardio” at like, 3 in the morning (what are you training to be, Batman? Who works out at that time?). Not to shame them or anything, because if that’s what you want, then, by all means, go for it. This is the perfect opportunity, however, to recognize a few things flawed with fitness trends.

“Working off” an indulgent season is a rocky mindset and one that we will never catch up to, since it’s impossible to be perfect with nutrition and workouts all the time. In my experience, a better way to think about our fitness is by remembering that we (usually) don’t need to tell toddlers to run around and play; they just do it, because it’s fun to move around and wiggle and run with our friends. Finding a form of movement that brings us this joy and that allows us to get in touch with our bodies (and spirits!) will serve us far longer than whatever is trending.

Make up your Mind- Strength Starts Here.

Stephanie Ondrusek
coaching, mindset

Complete strength starts in the mind, and the mind is immensely powerful. This is becoming an increasingly large part of the conversation in fitness- an awesome development!- and yet, I find time and again that each of us, when presented with a crisis, forgets how powerful our thoughts are.

Consider it. You’ve heard the cliché phrases all your life: “mind over matter”, “where there’s a will there’s a way”, “where the mind goes, the man follows”, but have you ever stopped to think about how much more goes right when you are absolutely determined to succeed?