We are preparing for another round of gear release and we want to hear from you!
Email LOVE@MindsetPT.com with any type of gear / clothing you want us to make along with any awesome designs (like the one above!)
Attention future or past MamaBears!
Join us on Friday, May 19th from 7 to 9 pm for a presentation with Emily Betros, LMSW, Therapist and Certified Health Coach.
Emily will be helping us understand ways in which we can frame and re-frame nutrition in the dialogue we choose with our children, families and ourselves. Her goal is to help children grow up feeling good about their bodies. Emily’s presentation devotes time to discussing our relationship with food, and how we can teach our children to have a healthy relationship with food.
Topics include body image, dieting, physical activity, social influences, and what constitutes healthy nutrition. Plan to bring supplies to take notes! We also ask you to try to bring a photo of yourself from when you were between the ages of 5 to 8.
WHO: This course is for anyone wanting to learn the physiology of meditation, the benefits of this practice, and how to truly incorporate meditation into your life!
***We are awarding ONE lucky young female a FREE session this summer!***
We invite you to nominate and share about a young female (ages 12 to 15) that is in your life and whom you admire. We feel strongly that young women need the support of each other and they deserve to learn healthy ways in which to honor and BE THEMSELVES.
Together we can empower the next generation of females! Know that your nomination can make a difference.
The winner and nominators will be notified no later than Monday, May 15th.
We are overjoyed to announce our partnership with MRC Artworks!!
This is an incredible organization! Their mission is to encourage and support individuals living with a disability to achieve the fullest potential through employment, skill building, and active community involvement.
We have 14 pieces for sale! We will be collecting any sales then giving all the proceeds back to MRC. Artists will receive 75% commission on all sales!
Come check them out at our office or at their downtown location!
Dr. Ellen’s Health Tip
Assessment Week is back!
Here are some great ways to prepare yourself:
Breathe! Remember you have actually been preparing for this for months through our programming.
For those of you doing this for your first time, have fun and gather baseline data.
Remember that none of these numbers show any value about you as a human! It is just information you can use to track your progress over time.
Eat nutritious food! Give your body the energy and nutrients it needs to perform and recover.
Drink your water, people! Consider adding some salt or electrolytes to your water. Remember Carrie’s tips regarding electrolytes in a previous newsletter?
Try to get to each Assessment Day once to expose yourself to the different areas of testing.
RING THE BELL when you achieve a personal record! Write your achievements on the board! Celebrate every single win and attempt!
Have FUN! CHEER on your fellow workout buddies!
Use your coaches! They are here to help you work on form, technique, activation and decisions!
GIVE IT YOUR ALL!
Functional Medicine Corner
Like many, my daughter came down with the stomach bug this week. It was a doozy, and speaking with several patients and friends, she is not alone. Symptoms can linger for quite a while, leading to fatigue, nausea and other GI symptoms longer term. Thankfully, there are a few tools we can use to help to rehab the gut more quickly.
Bone broth and/or gelatin – This superfood contains several nutrients and minerals, including glutamine, which helps to literally soothe and heal the intestinal cells. Anytime we get some sort of stomach bug, it can lead to a bit of “leaky gut”, which if you recall means that our cellular wall in our intestine is not able to protect us from outside elements, and our immune system is inflamed. Adding in bone broth can help restore those cells so they can protect us and allow for better absorption of nutrients. For kiddos or even us big kids, this homemade jello recipe doesn’t take much time and contains good quality gelatin that serves the same purpose.
Electrolytes/Hydration – When we toss our cookies, we lose quite a bit of chloride especially. As you recall from previous discussions, this is one of many important electrolytes that needs to be in balance to keep our body functioning optimally. We are all dehydrated after a GI bug, so getting water back in is important! However, it is also important to consider adding electrolytes to your hydration routine. Gatorade, coconut water or LMNT (the salty water we had at the party) are just a few options. Bone broth also has some minerals in it, allowing for some replacement.
BRAT diet – Just in case you haven’t heard of this, this refers to the ideal foods we add in once our belly is able to tolerate any foods (in addition to the above) – Bananas, Rice, Applesauce, Toast. Basically, stick with foods that are easier to break down. Well-cooked meats and veggies, like in soups or stews, are also much gentler on the stomach in the short term. Avoid salads for at least a couple of days – the nutrients are not at all helpful if you can’t break them down. 😉
~ Carrie Palmer PA-C, IFMCP Please feel free to reach out to Carrie directly with additional questions at 269-224-1659!
Member of the Month
It is that time! JOANNA SHIELDS is our rocking member of the month!
This athlete is incredible! It gives us such joy to witness her growth in strength, core control, stability, awareness and technique! She is truly a force!!!
Show her some love this month and say hello to her to be graced by her incredible smile and natural joy! Joanna – You are one amazing and beautiful human!
WHO: This course is for anyone wanting to learn the physiology of meditation, the benefits of this practice, and how to truly incorporate meditation into your life!
I am currently in the middle of a challenging and high-pressure 10-week course full of deadlines, demands and meetings. I find myself returning to my breath more than usual. This type of intense stimulation doesn’t feel good in my body. Can you relate?
Mr. Rogers put it best: “I’m very concerned that our society is much more concerned with information than wonder, in noise rather than silence. How do we encourage reflection? … Oh my, this is a noisy world.”
The world and our lives can be very stimulating to our bodies. Therefore, it is deeply important to center yourself often! Do less, seek silence, and focus inward.
This week is about assessing yourself, evaluating your recovery, and connection breathing! We will be using connection breath work frequently with many opportunities to calm and center yourself. I look forward to hearing your experiences when you are curious about these moments of wonder.
Functional Medicine Corner
One of my mantras for 2023, and one that I share with so many of my patients is “find joy”. Not just once in a while. Not just when it happens to occur by chance. I’m talking every single day. Even *gasp* multiple times a day if possible. What does this mean? Why is this so important to me personally, and why do I take the time to discuss this with my patients as a health care provider?
First of all, many of our very best life experiences and memories occur when we are having fun, or joyful. And truly, that is a big part of what life should be about! But science also shows us that when we are having fun and finding joy in our daily lives, it helps us to decrease or manage stress, boost our mood, and even improve our health and longevity. So, one of the most important prescriptions I can give my patients is to find joy and play!
This TED talk – yes another one, and I promise it is worth it – discusses FUN, and the fact that fun is a feeling, not an activity. (For instance, for some riding roller coasters may be loads of fun, and for others it is a cruel form of torture). And to “have fun”, it often includes playfulness, connection with others, and flow, or a sensation of losing sense of time while completely immersing ourselves in the moment. This can look like so many different things, and we don’t necessarily need to set aside hours to have fun. Playing a game of Uno or having a dance party with your kids or partner for even 15 minutes can bring a little fun into your day!
For those of us who are productivity driven, taking breaks to find joy and have fun also allows us to be more present and focused when we are working. So, find joy as often as possible – even WODs at Mindset count, especially when we are laughing our way through them!
~ Carrie Palmer PA-C, IFMCP Please feel free to reach out to Carrie directly with additional questions at 269-224-1659!
Member of the Month
It is that time! JOANNA SHIELDS is our rocking member of the month!
This athlete is incredible! It gives us such joy to witness her growth in strength, core control, stability, awareness and technique! She is truly a force!!!
Show her some love this month and say hello to her to be graced by her incredible smile and natural joy! Joanna – You are one amazing and beautiful human!
WHO: This course is for anyone wanting to learn the physiology of meditation, the benefits of this practice, and how to truly incorporate meditation into your life!
Want to know more about Julie or what the heck is Vedic Meditation?
As we approach Assessment Week, the coaches are frequently asked “What should I have as a goal for my squats/deadlifts?”
This is a great question and answers will vary based on your progress and goals. Ultimately, everyone has different goals for function, performance, quality of life and more!
But if you would like to see what kind of ranges are out there, here are two charts with body weight ratios that are widely accepted in the health and fitness domain.
Enjoy and please bring your questions to class!
Functional Medicine Corner
We all know that our gut bacteria impact our overall health significantly. One important aspect of maintaining an optimal microbial composition is to have a diversity of species. However, one species has been getting more attention recently for its ability to provide significant benefit to not only gut health but also improved metabolism and blood sugar control – Akkermansia muciniphila.
There is still much we are learning about this super bug, but we know that it makes important short chain fatty acids (SCFAs) inside of our gut. These fatty acids then feed some of our other good bacteria such as lactobacillus and bifidobacteria.
SCFAs also help to support the mucosal lining in our intestine, which then helps to aid in absorption of nutrients as well as strengthens tight junctions which keeps unwanted food particles and toxins from getting into our blood stream and activating an inflammatory response.
Research is also showing that those with increased levels of Akkermansia tend to have improved insulin sensitivity, providing further benefits in increased metabolism.
Akkermansia is an anaerobic bacterium, so supplying it in a probiotic capsule is incredibly difficult, and you can’t get it in probiotic foods. However, there is still much we can do to increase Akkermansia inside of our gut.
Generally, our microbiome improves overall when we add in plenty of colorful fruits, vegetables, legumes, and whole grains. Specifically, Akkermansia thrives off foods such as strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, pomegranate, grapes, and apples. Pecans, walnuts, and green tea also provide phytonutrients that allow this bacterium to flourish. So add some berries and nuts to smoothies or oatmeal regularly, and your gut will thank you!
~ Carrie Palmer PA-C, IFMCP Please feel free to reach out to Carrie directly with additional questions at 269-224-1659!
Member of the Month
It is that time! JOANNA SHIELDS is our rocking member of the month!
This athlete is incredible! It gives us such joy to witness her growth in strength, core control, stability, awareness and technique! She is truly a force!!!
Show her some love this month and say hello to her to be graced by her incredible smile and natural joy! Joanna – You are one amazing and beautiful human!
WHO: This course is for anyone wanting to learn the physiology of meditation, the benefits of this practice, and how to truly incorporate meditation into your life!
Most of us live life by default rather than by design. So, it comes as no surprise that the most common regret people express as they look back over their lives is that they wish they’d had the courage to live the life they wanted. In this TED Talk, Sonia Ovenden shares her 5-step system that anyone can apply to create their dream life and not become another statistic.
Check out this 15 minute video when you have time to listen fully and are ready to dream.
Functional Medicine Corner
We’ve talked about stress before in the Functional Medicine Corner, and the effects that long-term stress can have on our health. However, one of my patients shared the TED talk below with me, and it challenges the assumption that stress isn’t necessarily bad for our health. Crazy, right?!
Kelly McGonigal is a health psychologist and speaks for approximately 15 minutes about how our perception of whether stress is good or bad can literally change the physiology of our stress response. For example, if we perceive an increased heart rate during a stressful time as helping us rise to a challenge, rather than a sign of anxiety, our body physically responds differently. Because if we are stressed and worried, our blood vessels constrict and become inflexible, decreasing oxygen and nutrient delivery, and increasing parameters like high blood pressure.
However, if we view an increase in heart rate as a helpful tool to allow us to rise and meet the challenge, like when we are excited or have courage, then our blood vessels remain open and pliable. Literally, if we can change how we approach a situation, with courage and excitement, rather than fear, our body’s response will match, and the negative effects of stress decrease or disappear.
Oxytocin, our body’s love hormone that is released when we nurse a baby, hug someone, or help others is also released during stressful situations. In addition to helping drive connection and compassion, oxytocin also has anti-inflammatory effects as well as helps the vessels stay relaxed and dilated. AND oxytocin can work on receptors on the heart to help heal damage from increased stress. When we have a stress response, our body is sending us signals to reach out to others. And when we do, we can then get some pretty amazing health benefits in return.
Kelly is an amazing speaker – take a few moments to watch this video, and start to change the way you perceive stress. Your body will thank you!
~ Carrie Palmer PA-C, IFMCP Please feel free to reach out to Carrie directly with additional questions at 269-224-1659!
Member of the Month
It is that time! JOANNA SHIELDS is our rocking member of the month!
This athlete is incredible! It gives us such joy to witness her growth in strength, core control, stability, awareness and technique! She is truly a force!!!
Show her some love this month and say hello to her to be graced by her incredible smile and natural joy! Joanna – You are one amazing and beautiful human!
WHO: This course is for anyone wanting to learn the physiology of meditation, the benefits of this practice in your life and how to truly incorporate meditation into your life!
Darren Hardy, author of The Compound Effect, has been a source of perspective for me over the years. If you haven’t heard of him, consider signing up for the Daily Darren, a free video sent to you every day about becoming better everyday.
Here is a video from Darren about how to plan for success. Given this week’s mindfulness goal, I thought this video would help you learn a bit more about PLANNING!
Functional Medicine Corner
The queen of the question “What’s for dinner?”, our amazing coach Cassidi, and I were talking after a WOD this week about our favorite high-protein snacks. So many foods that are easy to grab are quite carb heavy. Especially when we are focused on building strength and muscle after workouts, getting good protein in is essential!
When thinking of high protein snacks from a whole food perspective, there are several options available. And many of these also take very little prep time and can be easily packed to travel. Ideally, we can also combine protein with complex carbohydrates to provide additional quick energy as well as fiber for good microbe-feeding fuel! Some of my favorite simple combinations include:
~ Sliced apples or bananas and peanut or other nut butter
~ Nuts and dried fruit, ideally without added sugar
~ Yogurt with a nut or seed-based granola or berries
~ Cheese with crackers, nuts, or other whole fruit
~ Beef or other meat sticks (Epic brand has several options alone)
~ Hard-boiled egg, or chicken, tuna, or egg salad with crackers or veggie sticks
If you have a little extra time for baking or preparing, here are a few sweeter options that can also pack a protein and complex carbohydrate punch. And they can feel like a treat!
Pumpkin cookies – I believe I’ve shared these before, but worth the repeat because they are nutrient dense and yummy!
Peanut butter chocolate chip energy balls – These are a favorite in our household, but there are many recipes on Pinterest or Google for numerous flavor combinations. And no baking!
Chocolate banana muffins – Using almond flour instead of conventional flour provides some increased protein, and they are naturally sweet with the banana.
If anyone has any favorites to share, please let Cassidi or I know! Happy snacking!
~ Carrie Palmer PA-C, IFMCP Please feel free to reach out to Carrie directly with additional questions at 269-224-1659!
Member of the Month
It is that time! JOANNA SHIELDS is our rocking member of the month!
This athlete is incredible! It gives us such joy to witness her growth in strength, core control, stability, awareness and technique! She is truly a force!!!
Show her some love this month and say hello to her to be graced by her incredible smile and natural joy! Joanna – You are one amazing and beautiful human!
It should be no surprise that we value mental health here at Mindset!
In an effort to identify if our membership is interested in having more support in this area, we have crafted a short survey for members to voluntarily participate in.
The results of this survey are confidential and will only be used for purposes of developing additional programs, courses or events. It is our intention to use this data to better understand the specifics or topic areas that our members have interest in learning more about.
VEDIC MEDITATION COURSE is BACK!
WHEN: April 27th – April 29th
WHERE: Here at Mindset!
WHO: This course is for anyone wanting to learn the physiology of meditation, the benefits of this practice in your life and how to truly meditate long term.
Dr. Ellen’s Health Tip
This week I received a great message from StrongFirst, a company that I have followed for years and I wanted to share this with you! Please enjoy!
Did you know that even plants have “muscles”?
In the early 1970s Soviet scientist Lyubimova discovered a contractile protein similar to myosin in the leaf stems of mimosa. Afterwards, Nikolay Ozolin, one of the fathers of Soviet sports science recounts a fascinating experiment that followed.
If a person touches the leaf of a certain species of mimosa, it folds. Scientists attached a microdynamometer to one such leaf, touched it, and measured the force it generated when it rolled up. Then they secured a thin thread to the leaf and hung a small weight on it. The leaf was touched a few hundred times a day to prod it to “lift weights.”
The weight was increased daily. A month later the team measured the leaf’s strength again. It had increased 400 times! Not 400% but 400 times.
“Why am I telling you this?” asked Prof. Ozolin after reviewing the results.
“So you would tell your students about the miraculous ability of every living thing to change and improve…so you would give them the confidence in the possibility of achieving athletic results…They literally can change themselves by being persistent.”
Functional Medicine Corner
I love it when gut health makes the mainstream news feed! On Thursday, the University of Virginia released some exciting research regarding the microbiome and its role in the progression of multiple sclerosis. Neuroscientists found that by modulating the gut bacteria of mice, they were able to decrease the chronic inflammation that leads to the symptoms of MS including muscle stiffness and spasms, weakness and pain. Incredible, right?!
As exciting as this report is, this is just one of many studies that link several disease states to the health of the gut. Among them are several done by Dr. Alessio Fasano, a researcher at the University of Maryland. He and his team discovered that in order to develop autoimmunity, we need three things:
Genes passed on from our parents
Environmental triggers such as inflammatory foods, viruses or bacterial infections or other toxic exposures….AND
Intestinal permeability or “leaky gut”, which can develop due to inflammation inside of the gut and disruption in the microbiome
Using this research to guide treatment strategies, many in functional and integrative medicine work to address chronic inflammation and autoimmunity from a root cause perspective, especially analyzing gut health. The good news is there is much we can do to reverse intestinal permeability and microbial disruption, therefore improving symptoms throughout the body, just as scientists demonstrated in the above study.
And at Mindset, we are working on a few of these – exercising and moving intentionally, and decreasing stress by focusing on breathing, surrounding ourselves with a kind, like-minded community and having fun! These actions alone can provide significant benefit to your gut health, which then benefits the rest of your body.
Keep up the good work, and please reach out if I can help further!
~ Carrie Palmer PA-C, IFMCP Please feel free to reach out to Carrie directly with additional questions at 269-224-1659!
Member of the Month – Stephanie Murphy
It’s a new month, and that means it is time for a new Member of the Month! For the month of February we are highlighting one of our long-standing Master’s Class members: Pat Sportell!!!!
Pat has been one Master’s member who comes with equal parts spunk and sunshine! We admire her attitude and fun-nature. She enjoys the challenges we present to her in class and we love having her every week. ️She is an incredible human in and outside of the gym!
This Week’s Info
This Week’s Info
WOD Programming Schedule (thru March 25th)
This Week’s Info
WOD Programming Schedule (thru March 25th)
This Week’s Info
WOD Programming Schedule (thru March 25th)
Got some good swag ideas?
This Week’s Info
WOD Programming Schedule (thru March 25th)
This Week’s Info
WOD Programming Schedule (thru February 25th, 2023)