By mastering proper posture and functional movement, you'll unlock a world of potential: increased strength, heightened body awareness, and newfound confidence.

These are the two most important non-negotiable habits of the fitness & movement pillar of health for a healthy and fit lifestyle.

 

Stop wasting money on gym memberships!

The fitness industry has misled us into believing that hitting the gym is the only path to wellness. Our ancestors were fit without gyms! They moved naturally through daily activities like hunting, gathering, and gardening. Read "The Blue Zones of Happiness" book. While some of these activities are still relevant, others aren't so much.

What can we do?

 

The Solution: Back to Basics!

Before diving into intense workouts, focus on building a strong foundation. These are the levels of developing movement as a habitual way of being vs. just a desired behavior we keep talking about it.

 

Hierarchy of Conscious Fitness:

Step 1. Move more: Cultivate cu...

I am often get asked how I stay in shape. It's true, I've never been overweight, but keeping a healthy weight requires mindful choices. Today, I want to share the 3 key pillars of my fitness routine that I also incorporate into my teaching.

Taking a Step Back: The Power of "Why"

Before diving in, it's important to acknowledge the mental aspect of fitness. Your "why" is your motivation, the reason you push yourself. Maybe it's keeping up with energetic kids, like mine! Whatever your reason, a strong "why" fuels your persistence and keeps you going.

Nutrition: You Are What You Eat

We've all heard it before – nutrition is 80% of the battle, especially for weight loss (we'll delve into common weight loss mistakes next month, stay tuned!). Eating healthy doesn't have to be complicated, but it does require making conscious choices.

The Three Pillars of My Fitness Routine (and Fitness for Life Flow)

My fitness approach is built on three main elements, which interestingly mirror the F...

 I want to introduce you to my dear friend and colleague, Bob. We'll see how he's using functional fitness and bodybuilding within my program to achieve his fitness goals as a 73-year-old in extra-ordinary health conditions. 

"I'm a 73-year-old man who values functioning at my highest potential. A pillar of my mental and physical fitness regimen is working out with Nadya, which I have done for the past five years.

What I appreciate the most about her training is her philosophy of whole-body, functional fitness which exercises all muscle systems in all planes of motion. The balance of cardio and strength training, with body weight and dumbbells, makes each new exercise session interesting and challenging. All the variety leads to optimal muscle confusion, and occasional enjoyable cognitive confusion as my brain processes the movements I'm asking it to do.

This has been the best physical training I have experienced in my life. I'd highly recommend it to everyone, but particularly...

I want to share my fitness story: a story about overcoming self-doubt, embracing movement, and proving that it's truly never too late to start your fitness journey, or any journey for that matter.

 

Prefer to listen?

 

Believe it or not, I wasn't always the fitness enthusiast I am today. In fact, gym class was my least favorite subject in school. Running felt like torture, and let's not even mention sit-ups! I remember dragging my feet to class and feeling discouraged.

Fast forward to my 40s, and things hadn't changed much. Then, a friend invited me on a Wednesday morning run. I was hesitant – 5 kilometers seemed like an impossible feat! After each run, my hips were hurting – the kind of pain no one wants to feel.

One day at the gym, I saw a sign for "leg day" classes. Perfect, I thought! This was the turning point. For the first time, I learned proper form – how to run correctly, how to avoid injuries, and how to truly engage my muscles and use gravity to my advantage for move...

Hey there, fitness enthusiasts or not! 🌟 Have you ever considered the remarkable impact of awareness on your fitness journey? It's time to dive into the world of mindfulness and discover how small changes can make a big difference. Welcome to a blog post that's all about unlocking your potential through simple steps.

The Power of Awareness

Picture this: it's not just about the formal exercise routines; it's about paying attention to what you're already doing (or not doing) while you move (or not move). This concept of awareness creates a habit that has the potential to revolutionize your fitness routine. Let's explore how to kickstart your daily movement habit and achieve those wellness goals.

The Proper Posture Workshop Insights

In our recent Proper Posture Workshop, we delved into the intricate details of postural elements. From the basics like keeping your shoulders down to more specific techniques like tucking your tummy and elongating your chest, we covered a plethora of...

Just go to the bathroom! You can literally do the full-body workout on the way to the bathroom!

 

Exercising at least two times a week is non-negotiable healthy habit BUT how to do that if you are just tooooo busy??

 

In this message we won't talk about a scheduled exercising, like allocating 30 min at a specific time. 

Instead, we will talk about how to squeeze any kind of movement into the flow of your day and how to start so small that it easy to develop the habit of fitting in exercise a minute or two at a time.

The fun part, this approach incorporates both being active and exercising! 

 

This technique is good for those who:

• Need to just get started exercising
• Too busy to exercise during the day
• Too tired  to exercise in the evening 
• Family demands get in the way of exercising 
• Fell off the track for a while and need to restart
• Just simply ain't feeling like it

Ready to be amazed how easy it is to succeed?

 

Step 1. Go tiny. 

We often want all or none...

Strength, balance, fitness, fun and time saving! 

 Let’s take a tour of what happens in every one of my fitness classes, regardless of the level of intensity.

And, by the way, this is the same structure I use whether you are a private client, join a live group class, or work out to a recording on your own.

Let's dive into the three major parts of the class:

Part 1. Warm up with dynamic stretching to increase mobility, joint range of motion, flexibility, and cardiorespiratory readiness. Simply put, you are now ready for a safe workout. We do this portion for about two minutes.

Part 2. The main workout is a functional exercise routine to ensure body confidence in daily life by increasing our muscular strength and cardiovascular fitness. This portion is usually about 15 to 25 minutes depending on the class.

1-min Plank (for levels 2 and 3 with modifications shown) to finish the class together as a group. 

Part 3. Stretching of all muscle groups to cool down a...

Want to look forward to exercising? Listen to this message or keep reading.

"I don't like exercising" is the comment I get A LOT.

And we obviously understand we have to exercise to keep our bodies healthy.

The question is

how do we change our minds so that we can look forward to exercising and actually enjoy it?

Allow me to offer you the Tool. It works for most but here is the disclaimer: I don't know if it will work for you. To check it out,  give it an honest effort for a week.

Ready for the tool?

SMILE

When we smile, we trick our brain to enjoy the current activity. The same goes with exercise. The brain is gonna say: ah, she is smiling so we must be enjoying exercising; let me release happy hormones for her. You will naturally start feeling good; emotionally,  physically, and  mentally. 

Let's dive deeper: choose joy. 

Here are three strategies to choose joy in exercise:

Before.

Before you exercise or even when you catch yourself thinking o...

Hi {{ first_name }},

In this message, we'll talk about types of pain, the causes of pain, and five steps to breaking the pain cycle.

Do you know someone who is in pain? Maybe it is you.

Have you found that when we experience pain, it's really hard to say Yes to many things such as exercising, being active with your grandchildren, and even eating healthier?

We do want to be stronger, feel less inflamed, have more energy, and just simply feel better. We have all positive intentions of doing good but pain cuts into all our good efforts. 

How do we handle pain? Precisely, how do we break the vicious cycle of pain?

If you or you know someone who is experiencing pain, please keep reading. This message may be just the life and happiness saver they need!

The most important foundational step to breaking the cycle of discomfort is to tune into your body and to have two-way communication. 

Btw, what kind of pain are we talking about?
Physical pain (when your body is inflamed or misa...