I love a good feast, don’t you?

So every month, we have a Clean Eating Gathering where us local gals meet for some yummy, healthy food, and chat and chill out!

Sometimes the group is big, sometimes small. With clients all over North America and some far-away countries..well, the drive is a little far (here’s hoping they’ll start their own satellite of the Clean Eating Gatherings in their neck of the woods!), but I’ve got a pretty strong group of local gals, so we try to meet monthly.

Last night’s Gathering was in beautiful Sooke, along the rugged coast of BC…wow, what a treat! And while I’m always amazed at the food that gets served up (ah, someone has taught these women the principles of clean eating rather well, I may say!), what impresses me more are the women themselves.

See, as a coach and purveyor of physiques, I can’t help myself but notice a nice physique…and well…I’ve known these gals for quite some time, some of them for years, really. And I’m always amazed at the subtle shifts in their bodies over time….

They shift here, tighten up there, remold, re-shape. In general, there are more healthy shapes and curves to the body now, in oh-so-many-places, changes that say ‘I’ve worked hard for this, and I love how I’m feeling’. And it shows in how they walk, sit, dress….I feel so proud and happy for them!

And of course we chat about the not-so-great-stuff too…how we’ve all fallen off at times, how our eating has gotten away from us, how we have lost our time at the gym, or how other commitments seem to seep in and take over our oh-so-busy lives..oh boy!

We talk about struggles with family and friends who don’t understand the journey, or how our mothers (we LOVE you!) may not always understand our focus on fitness because they are from a different generation. And we marvel at how each successive generation has shaped our views of the female form, and boy, are we glad to be a part of this generation, where women are finally daring to change the status quo, to say what they feel and to not settle. And the numbers of women wanting to have – yes, say it – a sexy, curvy, healthy body at any age! – is taking over! Yay! Finally!

Change takes time and dedication, and the courage to believe in yourself and the desire to shed limiting beliefs about what we deserve and what we are capable of.  

Thanks for letting me into your lives, ladies. You remind me of just how strong the female spirit truly is. Now, pass the smoked salmon, will ya?

karen
PS – Sign up for my 10-Week Challenge for January, 2014 has begun! Get your spot TODAY! Only 20 spots!

As part of my Best Shape Challenges, each participant gets a free one-on-one coaching call with me. And I must say, this is one of my favourite parts of the Challenges.

Here, I get to listen and help them over any sticking points, or answer any questions they may have. I’m always amazed at the rainbow of women I chat with.

Like one gal who spends half her time traveling between a tiny gulf island and the eastern arctic city of Iqaluit in Nunavut. Despite her unusual schedule, she is dedicated to working around it, despite having to train late at night when everyone else is asleep, and working the threat of bears (a ‘Bear Alert’ has kept her in her home on more than one occasion!)

Then there is another woman who got the call to duty – she was accepted into the Canadian Forces and is soon traveling to Quebec and Halifax for 5 months training, then onto her new life. She’s taking the Challenge with her, of course, and continuing the work! (No doubt it was that sense loyalty and commitment that got her into the forces in the first place!)

As usual, I have a few shift workers (tough go, you shift workers, but we always make it work), and several teachers whose day starts at 5 am when they make their way to the gym to train before work, the only available free time they have in their busy schedules.

And of course, there are the women struggling through health issues, whose strength and fortitude always amaze me. I was one of those women once, and I know the tough struggle they face every day. But their resolve is palatable and my hat’s off to each and every one of you. We do what we can do, and continue to build health in our own ways.

So when I hear an outsider say, ‘Well, I’d like to try the Challenge but I’ve got this-or-that coming up,’ I know she hasn’t made the switch yet, the one that that says that there is no perfect time to start a program.  The time is now, right now, because unfortunately, life never opens up a 10 week spread of blissful nothingness to allow you to train unencumbered. Not for us anyway. And these 30+ women on my Challenges are all living proof of it.

Through every Challenge, I am reminded of the strength of the female spirit in action. And once again, I am in awe of it all.

Thank you ladies for your generous time and belief in me, the program and yourselves. Onward into the next 5 weeks of self-discovery!

karen

PS My next sign up for the 10-Week Challenge and the 12-Week Advanced Challenge has started! We start January 7th! Get your spot TODAY! (Please note: prerequisite to the Advanced Challenge is for those who have completed the 10-Week Challenge or permission from Karen).