Sept. 6, 2012

Vol. 10, Issue 17

Dear Friends,

As the season changes from summer to fall, our minds may re-invigorate, but our bodies may tend to go slack. In this issue I’m going to introduce you to a speaker who will inspire your audiences to stay fit after their vacations are over – or start them on the road to fitness – by showing them how to use two bottles of Chardonnay to strengthen their biceps and how standing in line is an opportunity to firm up your thighs – fitness tricks that are easy and attractive for them to appreciate and apply.

Personally, the first thing that gets my attention after Labor Day is that it’s getting dark earlier in the evening. And it’s dark now when it used to be light when I walk over to my early morning yoga and cardio classes. I guess that’s Mother Nature’s way of letting me know there’s a change coming. I will enjoy wearing sandals and going coatless just as long as I can, but when it’s time to put shoes, socks and jackets on, I’ll know there’s no turning back until spring is again on the horizon.

Do you feel the shift? I’m feeling it’s a time to re-group. Summer fun, vacations, and casual schedules allow us to let loose but the results of letting go of self-care and fitness and nutrition habits can be — Woops! Let’s see . . . surprising, devastating, um, startling.

So, today, I thought I’d share some ideas with you from our fabulous health, wellness and fitness coach and motivational speaker, Mare Petras.

Mare Petras

Fitness with a Twist

Mare Petras is all about fitting fitness into your day. She advises audiences to avoid making a mountain out of a molehill. “If getting exercise is not natural to you, not your ‘thing’, don’t make it a Big Deal,” she says.  “Definitely don’t make it a ‘should’ and definitely don’t make it a J.O.B.”

She should know. After three decades  as a star in the fitness industry, and living through all of the fads and extremes, she believes that a simple, moderate approach to fitness is what feels best and that’s the secret to making it work.  Her fitness background, life coach training and messaging skills offer audiences a unique ‘one size does not fit all” approach to wellness.

“I’m going to meet you where you are,” she says with the unmistakable authority and energy of a champion. “People don’t like being told what to do, so I’m all about giving them choices that fit their lifestyles.”

Here’s a woman with the figure and enthusiasm of a marathoner telling your people not to overdo? It’s not a good idea to overwhelm people with new things, she believes, because too often the reality of daily chores, work and surprises gets in the way, and then they don’t do anything. Instead, she advises her audiences to build up slowly. “I’m in favor of trying one new habit a week. If it works, keep it. If it doesn’t work, throw it out and try something else. Small starts lead to big finishes.”

Recognized by the New York Times as the anytime, anywhere fitness expert, Mare’s playful mind, body, and spirit philosophy encourages people to enjoy their bodies, enjoy their lives, every minute, every day. She’s even up for encouraging a couch potato into motion as she playfully hints in this photo. In her programs, she exposes the most common motivational roadblocks to good health, and provides audiences with fun, easy, and simple solutions to reduce stress, improve attitude, and “refine their exteriors.”

You can tell Mare makes fitness fun by the titles of her three Fitness Simply® books: Tone Up With Wine and Other Fun Fit Tips, The Seven Habits of Highly Successful Swimsuit Shoppers, and Buff Boomers and Beyond.

Here is her philosophy summed up with the letters F I T, which stand for:

• Fun: Take the “work” out of workout, and make it play; exercise can be playful, creative and effective.
• Increments add up. Sprinkle exercise throughout your day.
• Treasure it all — look around, there are props everywhere in your everyday life that you can use to create spontaneous workouts. (If you’d like a list of them, email barbara@speakwellbeing.com and write PROPS in the subject line and I’ll email you the list). Most of all, Mare says, treasure your good health and enjoy every day to the fullest.

When she presents for your group, she’ll explain all this, model it and send your attendees home motivated and inspired to bring exercise into their lives or up their commitment. To bring Mare’s energy and expertise to your event, give me a call at 503-699-5031 or visit our website to read more about her topics, view a video preview (where you can see her demonstrating how to use those two bottles of Chardonnay to strengthen biceps), and inquire about her availability.

Happy Trails Again and Again

As many of our long-time readers know, I had to have my knees (both) replaced in 2008, and this week marks the 4 year anniversary of the second knee surgery. So, it is always with huge gratitude that I ascend a mountain as I have time and time again this summer — as well as descend, which can be a little more taxing on the knees. My husband, who had one hip replaced in 2010, and I are quite the pair (We think we’re unstoppable!). What we’ve learned is that the important thing is to go, do what feels good (turn around if the whole loop or trail feels like more than we want to take on), enjoy it all, laugh about our aches and pains, encourage and support each other, and then the next week, go again. Here are a couple of pictures from our adventures this summer. We are fortunate here in the Northwest to have fantastic hiking within an hour’s drive.

Sometimes we scramble up the ridges that converge on the Columbia Gorge or the Coast Range, and sometimes when the snow has melted, we go into high country toward our volcanoes, Mt. Hood and Mt. St. Helens. The wild iris, delphinium and foxglove bloom later there, but this last trip even they had passed on. Instead it was time for the berries – huckleberries, thimble berries, and salmon berries that lurked along the trail demanding that my husband stop and sample them to make sure they were doing well this year. At Timberline Lodge on Mt. Hood we saw a calender of the names of months used by the original people here; I think it said this is the time of berries. How we appreciate them!

Until next time, I hope you can get outdoors and store up some outdoor energy for yourself for the months ahead — for your well being and those you love.

Yours truly,

Barbara

For Your Well Being is published bi-weekly. We bring you insider speaker reports, exclusive stories about special events around the country, meeting planner tips, and fun stuff from the worlds of health and well being. Be well and be in the know!

The Speak Well Being Group is a specialized speakers bureau, focusing on speakers for hospital-sponsored community events, healthcare organizations, conferences and women’s groups. Our speakers are hand-selected. They are not only experts in their fields, they know how to connect with women and give them life-changing information served on a silver platter of joy, camaraderie, with a side of sauce (spicy, of course).

Finding the perfect keynote speaker for your special event or conference is my personal passion, not just once, but year after year. It brings me endless joy to know that your audience was delighted and moved by the speaker we selected together. I’m committed to making the process easy, pleasant and fun.