Throw it Away - or - What I learned from Shaun Week

Shaun Week - what is it? or - What was it?

Shaun week was 7 days of brand new Shaun T workouts - one released each day for an entire week - on Beachbody on Demand - Beachbody's suite of thousands of dollars worth of streaming workout programs. The workouts weren't very long - between 27 and 43 minutes each. Most of them didn't even require any equipment, tho a couple sets of dumbbells were needed for two different days.

The workouts went with me where I went - in my living room; at my girlfriend's house; in the back yard if I wanted them to.

But I've done Shaun T programs before. And I've been doing Beachbody at home workouts for over two years now. So what made this week special?

We had a special group going, of people doing just this one program - and I'll tell ya, I've never had a more motivated, engaged health and fitness support group than this (and I've been running them online for over a year)!





I've never had more fun waiting each morning, for the next workout to be released - to find out what it was going to entail.


And I have never found myself grinning during my workouts, quite as much as these past seven days.

It was like having workouts led by a motivational speaker and therapist all at once. Shaun had me "digging deep", finding new levels of fitness, and so much of what he said spoke to me beyond just the daily sweat.

There was one move - kind of a rotational, cardio thing that hit the obliques - where he talked about throwing "it" away. The excuses, the bullshit, the negative self talk, all the "shit" that holds us back.

It got me thinking about all the childhood crap we carry with us into adulthood. All the disordered eating that was created by the "well-meaning" adults of my childhood. All the comments and looks that stung... that I still recall - from classmates, from parents, from teachers, guidance counselors, and the list goes on - all the judgments, all the critics, all the shit that I still carry with me and still let control me in so many ways. And there, on my TV (or laptop, or cellphone, depending on the day) was Shaun T, telling me to "throw it away".

We all have it - baggage we carry with us through our lives. But my question is - what do we do with it? How can we do something more productive with it, than letting it govern us? Letting it dictate to us how we approach social situations? Health? Fitness? Food? Our relationships with people, and with ourselves? That's not okay anymore.

At 46 years old, the looks I got when I was ten - it's time to throw it away. And when I get those same looks, or comments now, as an adult? When my mother looks down her nose at me for eating two bites of birthday cake? Or my father asks me how many potato chips I'm going to eat? Know what? I'm an adult now. I'm not ten. I work out every morning. And I make healthy food choices 80% of the time. And I've lost 130 pounds. And I've kept it off. And I'll eat as many damn potato chips as I want. And you can look, and ridicule, and judge all you want. Because at the end of the day, I'm throwing it away. I'm better than those judgments. I'm better than those looks. I'm better than those comments. The ones I received at eight... or ten... years old... and the ones I received last weekend.

And SO ARE YOU! 

You (and I) can get so much more out of a workout, than a bunch of calories burned. We gain self esteem. We gain self control. The endorphins and dopamine released in our bodies make us feel good. Inside and out. It's not just about burning calories. It's about everything. And when we feel good - we can help others feel good. And as an online health and fitness coach, that's where I get my greatest joy - helping others take control, and feel good about their bodies - in and out.

Interested in learning more about how incorporating a daily fitness routine can change your life? Want to make some small changes to bring yourself to a new level of emotional, mental and physical well being but not sure where or how to start? It would be my pleasure to help!

Get in touch by email or on facebook to learn more.

Orlando Shooting

On Saturday, June 11th, I had the privilege of attending Boston Pride.

I freely rode the T into Boston, along with many other openly LGBTQ individuals, many clad brightly in rainbows and literally wearing their support, joy, and freedom, from their rainbow colored hair, to socks, to tees and tanks, and more.

I watched a parade of such diversity – from bikers to seniors, from elementary schools to a float honoring Prince, from banks to politicians to Jewish groups to Christian groups, all supporting, blending and celebrating equal (not special) rights.

Sure there were a few bible thumping Jesus freaks trying to promote their beliefs – hey, they have a right to free speech and expression too; poor choice of audience, though.

After the parade, I found myself in City Hall Plaza, where I couldn’t help but feel the crowd was smaller than previous years. It may have been the weather – it was a bit chilly for a June afternoon. But my other thought was – we have our equality here in the United States. Maybe we, the LGBTQ community in the United States, don’t feel the need to be as “loud” as we’ve been in the past. My first thought about that was – what a great feeling to know that we are accepted, that times really have changed, to the degree that not as many feel the need to dance about it in the streets of downtown Boston. I’m a little embarrassed about that. There are still so many places in the world, where the LGBTQ community does not share the same equal rights that we do here in the United States. It’s our responsibility to continue to be loud, for those who are still persecuted, still shunned, still forced to hide in the closet for their own safety. And later in the afternoon, as the weather cleared some, the crowd did grow thicker. Thankfully.

And then I woke up Sunday morning to learn of the shooting at Pulse in Orlando.

I know many say it was an act of terrorism; not a hate crime. I have a hard time accepting that. If it were merely an act of terrorism, there were other venues, other gatherings of larger numbers, that would have made more sense for the shooter to target. I’m not saying I would have preferred that; I’m just saying I, for one, fully believe that the venue chosen, as well as the date – a date when the majority of pride celebrations were taking place - had something significant to do with the choice. I fully believe that it was not just a terrorist attack, but a strategically planned hate crime as well.

I’m not expecting everyone to agree with my opinion, or with my lifestyle. I’m not expecting everyone to think the way that I do. I wish I could expect everyone to accept and embrace equality. What I do expect – and I think this is beyond reasonable – is that those who don’t agree, don’t resort to violence against me and my LGBTQ family (and for those who don’t grasp this – when I say LGBTQ family, I mean ALL LGBTQ individuals ALL OVER THE WORLD) simply because you don’t support our lifestyle choices.

Until these acts of violence; until these hate crimes; until these anti-human (because that’s what we are – humans – somebody’s son, daughter, mother, father, wife, husband, lover, cousin, sister, brother) demonstrators, haters, and criminals are ALL stopped; until not just the United States, but all countries, share equal rights regardless of race, religion, skin color, sexual preference, gender, and so on, we need to stay loud, and keep getting louder. And when we do all share those equal rights, we need to keep shouting from the rooftops and everywhere else with our appreciation of our equal (not special) rights, and our freedom. We need to cherish it, and we need to be sure that we never, EVER lose it.

Sandi Prosnitz: Building Your Better Body