Fit to Print Volume 25 Issue 4 December 2016

M e m b e r Pe r s p e c t i v e by Dolores Falco Up on a Tightrope The Trick is Finding Balance Partners in Fit: Dolores and Michelle and was not focused on my needs. I let myself go, and that is when I gained all my weight. Now that I can prioritize myself I need to. I will never let myself get back to where I was. I must ﬁnd ways to stay in balance to keep the weight I have lost off and the muscle I have built strong. n the tightrope we call life, keeping balance is essential. We all are being pulled in too many directions, whether it is our families, jobs, extracurricular activities, or just even our minds getting too far ahead. Finding and keeping balance is tricky but an essential key to success in maintaining and continuing my weight loss journey. The fun part is ﬁguring out this balance, since it pretty much changes daily. I know this all too well, being a wife and mother of 3 young boys – all of whom have different needs and schedules – while trying to balance my own healthy lifestyle. There are so many different things that can throw your balance off. It can be an illness, an injury, negative thoughts, the anticipation of an upcoming event or even just the upcoming holidays. Yup, I said it, the holidays. They are right around the corner; parties, gift shopping, family time and more parties. The thought of it alone can totally derail and send anyone off balance, especially diet wise. Many people will just throw their diets to the side and hope to pick up where they left off in January (wishful thinking), but not me. I try very hard to ﬁnd that happy medium, where I can indulge a bit but not see the scale inch up. Dietary balance is what I try to achieve, and it is not easy. Everyone wants to indulge, have that piece of chocolate cake, that scrumptious looking cookie or some fancy new drink, but the key is to not over indulge and to not completely derail your healthy lifestyle. I ﬁnd it very easy for me to avoid the salty snacks and stick to veggies, but when it comes to desserts, it is hard. But if I allow myself a little something, a small bite – not the whole cake – I can ﬁnd that balance and enjoy the holidays with everyone else as well. To keep my lifestyle in balance, I try very hard to keep to my schedule, with some wiggle room for life's curveballs. Keeping to my schedule helps me keep things in control and the less chaos—all the better for my balance. But occasionally, a monkey wrench gets thrown in, and everything gets thrown off. Something as simple as missing a workout will throw me off for the rest of the day. I take my time at Fitness Incentive very seriously. It is my time to work on me, and it helps me to focus. So when my schedule is thrown off, my whole day is thrown off. Don't get me wrong, I joke and laugh when I am here at Fitness Incentive, but my need for my time is a serious need, part of my balance. If I know in advance that I am not going to make it in, no big deal, but that monkey wrench in my day can totally throw me off. For a very long time, I was only focused on the children and their needs Working with Eileen and Jillian helps keeps me focused and balanced. Since I train three times a week most weeks, we balance it out with one day of upper body, one day of legs and a combo day. So, every part of my body gets a good workout. Plus, I have also started taking ViPR classes to increase my cardio strength training. VIPR is an amazing workout; if you haven't tried it, you should. I have been working with Eileen for over two years now, and I cannot say enough great things about my time and experience with her. She truly was the game changer for me. Eileen taught me so much about a proper balanced diet, a balanced exercise program that includes both strength training and cardio, as well as staying positive when those plateaus hit. I have a lot more work to do, and nothing will stop me from achieving my O 20 Holidays 2016 FIT to Print goals. #Unstoppable. The friendships you build while at Fitness Incentive help in keeping you balanced as well. When you ﬁnd that right person to work out with, you motivate each other; you keep each other going. Like my friend Michelle. Michelle and I have been training together with Eileen for almost two years now. Many people have come and gone from our training sessions, but Michelle and I stay together. We motivate each other; we get each other there. We challenge each other to do better and to do more. Michelle gets me to spin class; I get her to Pilates. We balance each other out, plus we have become great friends. It is amazing how what you learn in the gym can be applied outside in life, and I am not talking about the algebra that the math teacher swore you would use one day. For example, I love taking Pilates with Dina (Voigt) and Linda (Cunningham). I have learned a lot abou

Fit to Print Volume 25 Issue 4 December 2016 | Page 20