Tag motivation
Don’t Let Fear Rule You
We can often be our own worst enemies, laying sabotage upon our own best efforts. The basis of such subterfuge is our own fear-based collection of thoughts, and can be more damaging than any efforts made by others to trip us up. What’s the solution? Banish your fears!
Before you allow that monstrous pull of trepidation pull you into the muck, get into the habit of replacing every single negative and self-defeating thought you have with a positive, hope-filled one.
Yes, every single one.
Perhaps you are doubting your ability to complete a massive work project, and you find yourself grappling with the feeling that you won’t be able to complete it in time, or that you will do a shoddy job because you feel rushed. Instead of feeding that insecurity, tell yourself:
“I CAN do this. I WILL do this.”
Do this repeatedly until it begins to sink in. Allow your positive thoughts to take up space in your mind, so much so that they push out the negativity.
The last thing you should ever do is to knock yourself down. Someone who is bound and determined to succeed quickly learns how to push away negativity from haters, and never allows a bad day to destroy the success plan which is in place. Successful people have a can-do, will-do attitude which has very little to do with overall intelligence, talent, or opportunity.
So stop beating yourself up, push away the haters, and go for your goals!
Too Many Cooks (Repost)
I am getting pretty tired of clients who think they are suddenly fitness authorities, or who think nothing of following the advice of 52 different people on what to do about diet, exercise after signing up for a comprehensive training and meal plan which I customize for them. Honestly, why hire me if you’re just going to follow whatever your whim decides is cool at the moment? I don’t get easily insulted, but it’s more that I put time into customizing plans and don’t appreciate it when a client reads some silly excerpt in Shape magazine, and decides that it must be better than my advice because it was in a popular women’s magazine.
I deal with know-it-all attitudes both as a fitness professional and as a physician. Let me be very clear. I have a four year college degree in Exercise Science from a well respected college. I have almost thirty years of experience with weight training, and have done contest prep coaching since 2010. I am also an IFBB Professional Athlete. On top of that, I have worked as a board-certified and fully licensed physician for over a decade. Yet I am challenged on a regular basis by people who think that because they looked up something on WebMD or Google, they are suddenly more knowledgeable than I am. In fact, I am not sure which bothers me more: the disrespect I get as a doctor, or the disrespect I get as a fitness professional. Both are infuriating.
The BEST advice I can give to anyone who is looking for a comprehensive plan in fitness, nutrition, or hormone balancing is to pick ONE expert and stick with that person’s knowledge, instead of second guessing the individual by throwing other mostly uneducated opinions on what to do. I give people a lot of credit for knowing their own bodies. However, it is important to remember that contradicting your coach, physician or mentor is a study in animosity that will pitch you in poor stead with the very person who is trying to help you.
Hot Logic Is Amazing
Please check out my review of the Hot Logic Mini on YouTube!
It’s a portable mini oven which you can take everywhere with you! All you need is a power source, and you can heat up pre-made meals or even cook something from scratch.
Another HUGE selling point about the Hot Logic Mini is that your food heats up evenly, and is the perfect temperature whenever you’re ready to eat it. You’ll get that fresh baked oven flavor, not that nasty microwave heated flavor. Another great feature about the Hot Logic Mini is that it enables you to heat up a meal in a hotel room (many hotel rooms no longer have microwave ovens), board room, or any room where you have access to a power source.
Go to http://www.hot-logic-mini.com/staceynaito to order, and you’ll save 20% off your order.
Riche Magazine And The Nation’s Top Ten Fitness Models
“America’s Top Ten Fitness Models 2016” is the big feature in Riche Magazine’s July 22nd issue! You can get your copy of this publication by clicking here:
https://www.joomag.com/…/riche-magazine…/0763834001469056114
Guess who took the #1 spot? Drumroll please…
I am so blessed and grateful for this honor! Thank you Alex Deal and RHK Publications!
Make Regular Exercise A Priority
I freely admit that I chuckle to myself whenever I hear people say that they wish they had the discipline to work out on a consistent basis. It’s not that I am insensitive to the rigors of busy schedules, because I spend my days running from place to place, multitasking and barreling through tons of tasks, errands and responsibilities. But I set aside about an hour per day, six days per week, to go to the gym, and I train HARD and HEAVY every time. In recent months, I have also managed to fit in two aerial hoop classes each week. The main reason why I am so consistent about exercising consistently is that it is a priority, as important as brushing my teeth and showering on a daily basis. As a matter of fact, I look forward to my gym sessions as a way to begin each day, which is why Sunday, my rest day, is a bit rough for me and throws me off my usual daily pattern of waking up and heading straight to the gym.
Perhaps you are one of those people who believes that there isn’t time to work out, and you continue to allow your schedule to annihilate any chance of working out. The thing is, if you actually made working out a MUST instead of something to fit into your schedule as it allowed, you would find a way to get your butt to the gym and follow a plan. I have definitely noticed that people who want to reach certain fitness goals are much more successful in reaching them when they follow a specific regimen which provides guidance and structure. Making promises to yourself like, “I will go to the gym on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 6 am to 7:30 am”, or “I will drive straight to the gym after work every day” can be a great start to adding discipline and consistency, but you need to follow through and hold yourself accountable.
I am not kidding when I say that you need to put your workouts into your schedule! Enter your workouts on your iPhone or your Google calendar so that you have the time blocked out in your schedule. Don’t allow other things to interfere with the time you have allotted for exercise either, because when you do that, you reinforce the idea that exercise is not that important and can be pushed off. Those of us who are committed to a fitness way of life don’t allow life’s little hiccups to interfere with our gym time. It’s that simple.
Why I Love Lyra (Aerial Hoop)
Crucifix on the lyra…one of my favorite moves
I fell in love with the lyra, also known as the aerial hoop, from the moment I first mounted one. I remember not being quite sure if I would enjoy lyra, since I had spent several months experimenting with different aerial disciplines, and was still finding my way among them. Here is a summary of the different aerial arts which I had tried, and my impressions of each one.
Pole – I took two pole classes several years ago, and though I was sore in places I didn’t think I would ever be sore in (mostly groin and lower back), I really didn’t enjoy the movements. In addition, the connotation of pole dancing is indelible in my brain, and I just couldn’t get past the feeling that I was a dirty girl for even taking a couple of classes. Both instructors I got were incredibly self-absorbed, and I found them irritating to no end. I also found it humorous that the students were encouraged to explore their sexual energy in the class, because at no point did I feel sexy. If anything, I felt completely foolish and awkward, and basically counted the minutes until class would be over. Yes, it was that bad for me.
Flying Trapeze – Last summer I signed up for a Groupon deal for a flying trapeze class at TSNY-LA on the Santa Monica Boardwalk, and moments after I did so, I had a split second of panic. I remember thinking, oh crap, what have I gotten myself into? Then I took that class in August 2015, and found the experience exhilarating. Once I was on the trapeze, I truly enjoyed swinging and challenging my body to move in new ways. It was the compromise I was looking for, since I had been unable to find adult gymnastics classes to accommodate my desire to return to the gymnastics moves I had learned as a child. I signed up for two more classes at Richie Gaona’s school because I wanted to gain more experience on the trapeze. Unfortunately, my nerves always got rattled whenever I was up on the board, on deck to fly, because that board was so narrow and so high off the ground. I just couldn’t get over being 20 feet up on the air, leaning far forward into the trapeze, while trusting someone to hold me and keep me from slipping off the board. It began to overshadow the joy of flying, so I gave it up.
Silks – I took one class at Aerial Physique, a nice facility in Brentwood which focuses on silks for its aerial offerings. The instructor was a sweetheart, and the class was fun, but my poor ankles did not enjoy the sensation of being wrapped in fabric as my body weight sank upon them for the foot locks I performed. My elbows and hands screamed in agony over the torsion which occurred when I set up for a trick which required me to grip the massive swaths of fabric. Though I enjoyed the beauty of the apparatus, I didn’t like what the fabric was doing to my poor joints, and I also couldn’t remember the complicated trick sequence the instructor wanted the other student and me to learn. This was the first experience I had with instructors who just assumed that you would pick up all the specific vocabulary for all the tricks you were learning, and it irked me. Why on earth would I know these terms if it was my first time taking silks? Grrrrr.
Static Trapeze – I took a class in static trapeze after falling in love with the lyra, so I expected that I would enjoy the experience. What I discovered was that for as much as I loved being on the lyra, I absolutely hated the static trapeze. The ropes were extremely rough and painful to negotiate during some of the tricks we learned, yet they were flexible enough to make me feel quite unstable while up in the apparatus. I did not enjoy the experience of twisting the rope around my thighs and risking significant rope burn and bruising, and my grip strength was definitely challenged by the gauge of the ropes. I didn’t click with the instructor at all either, so I scratched this apparatus off my list very quickly.
Aerial Cube – Now THIS is a fun apparatus, and I definitely intend to take more classes using this. Imagine an open cube, consisting of bars around which you can wrap your body and hang from. It was like being on the monkey bars at the park, and incredibly fun. The only caveat is that since there is a lot of metal, you are basically in a suspended cage, and if you don’t time certain moves properly, body parts like shins can collide with those bars and leave nasty reminders of your time on the cube.
Aerial Cube:
Lyra – Love at first knee hang. Truly. There is something about the simplicity and symbolism of the perfect circle which has a strong appeal for me. The lyra also seems to be incredibly accommodating to many different body types and sizes, because I have seen people of all shapes and heights manage to wrap their bodies around this sturdy apparatus with more ease than some of the other aerial equipment. However, don’t be fooled into thinking that performing on a lyra is easy! In order to properly mount a lyra (or any other aerial apparatus, for that matter), you must have strong abdominal muscles and decent upper body strength. It took me three classes before I was able to properly do a straddle mount without cheating!
I took my first lyra class at the beginning of May at Aeriform Arts in Hollywood, and am still taking classes, though I have switched for the time being to a facility near my home. I have in fact lost count of how many classes I have taken so far, but it’s been more than a dozen now. Once or twice a week, you will find me swinging from a suspended hoop, enjoying the challenge and not minding the calluses which have taken up permanent residence on the palms of my hands. My back is wider and has more detail as a result of lyra, and my shoulders are also more developed. I don’t mind the fact that my elbows scream from the tendinitis which flares up more often now, nor do I mind the deep ache from my lats which asserts itself if I resume lyra practice full force after a few days of rest. It’s also incredibly empowering to find a new form of creative expression at the half century mark of my life, one which most people my age would be terrified of. I have learned many new tricks, including the Russian splits and Yoga Cat pictured below (no, that isn’t me, but I have performed these moves successfully a number of times).
Russian Splits:
Yoga Cat On Top Strop:
There is a good reason why the time spent on aerial equipment is referred to as flying, because I really do feel like I am flying when I am in class, free as a bird. I intend to continue this love affair for quite a while!
Keeping Pace With A Crazy Schedule
The last few weeks have been NUTS. I am talking about day after day of so many shifts in my schedule and demands on my time, that I am torn in many different directions, and cannot focus on a darned thing. When this kind of chaos ensues, I begin to lose items, certain basic vocabulary terms escape me, and I feel like I am rushing by everything and everyone, like a bullet train zooming through a bustling cityscape.
For the life of me, I can’t find a gray tank top which I had recently purchased and put…somewhere. I honestly can’t remember where. This isn’t like me, because I am VERY organized, to the point of having all of my clothing organized by color, sleeve length, etc. So why can’t I find that gray top?
I literally run around in my bedroom, grabbing for clothes, rushing, trying to keep up with the stressful demands of being in so many places all the time. It’s starting to get old. Forget about having time to read a book, or watch a TV show, because by the time the dust settles from the crazy days I have been flying through, the notion of blissful sleep is so seductive that I don’t want to do anything else.
What keeps me from unraveling is the consistency I demand with my eating habits and my workouts. I am not joking about this. Despite the insane schedule I have been juggling lately, I still weight train six mornings each week. I attend lyra class one to two evenings during the week. My meals consist of clean foods like chicken breast, salmon, tilapia, green beans, asparagus, brown rice, quinoa, avocado, almonds, oats, and Greek yogurt. I have been drinking plenty of alkaline water. I have also been consistent about consuming MitoXcell every morning (I LOVE this supplement and intend to post more about it when I get a chance to breathe!), and I also take my regular supplements (like turmeric, CoQ10, folic acid, etc.) daily. My energy levels have been decent, and my mood has been generally great, with only a couple of stark exceptions.
There are two days next week which I have designated as clean up and organization days, and I desperately need them. During those days, I will perform the deep cleaning throughout most of the house which the housekeeper always neglects, I will reorganize cabinets and drawers, clean up the garage and patio, and find that gray top!
Make Your Goals BIG Ones
We should all have goals which we set for ourselves, because they make us grow as individuals. We may fall a bit short on reaching our goals at times, but the journey and struggle involved in pursuing our passions keep us moving forward. That is why I honestly believe that we need to set big goals, with clearly defined blueprints which keep us focused on the finish line.
A timeline ensures that your intentions are filled with purpose, and keeps you from falling into irrational, delusional thinking. It isn’t unreasonable to reach for the stars, because you never know what you may accomplish over time. Let’s say your ultimate goal is to be the leader in your industry. Perhaps you have just launched a start-up company in which you began making products at home, and you strive to be the industry leader. Why not have that as your end goal? Who’s to say that you can’t attain the pinnacle of success in your business? There are countless businesses which started out in the same way, out of a kitchen with a shoestring budget, and which are now huge successes.
Read on to learn more about businesses which started out very small, and are now considered industry leaders:
Burt’s Bees – This company has become a huge name in natural skin care products, but it started out in an abandoned one-room schoolhouse. Burt Shavitz and Roxanne Quimby founded Burt’s Bees in Maine in 1984, and rented an abandoned schoolhouse to make candles with the excess beeswax from Shavitz’s honey business. Quimby also began crafting homemade skin care products from the wax. Burt’s Bees became incorporated in 1991, and by 2007, it was bought out by Clorox for $925 million.
The Yankee Candle Company – This company was the brainchild of an enterprising teen named Michael Kittredge, who created his first scented candle in his Massachusetts home with melted crayons. By 1975, the first store opened, and the business spread thoughout Massachusetts. There are currently over 500 stores across the United States, and a wholesale network of over 20,000 stores is in place.
Apple – The vision of Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniack and Ronald Wayne resulted in the trio establishing a business in 1976 out of a garage space in Cupertino, California. The Macintosh line was introduced in 1984, causing their business to explode. Apple has established its unquestionable foothold on the world of technology with revenues of over $14 billion yearly.
Google – Another brilliant trio created this household name in 1998 in a garage in Menlo Park, California, indexing web pages, and developing their search algorithm. The following year, they moved into what is now known as the Googleplex. Today, Google has made an indelible mark on the world of technology.
Mattel – Though Mattel is known as a toy maker giant, it had humble beginnings in the 1940’s making picture frames. Ruth Handler began taking wood scraps from the wood used in making those frames and crafted doll furniture from them. The doll furniture was so popular among customers that the company decided to shift their focus to toys, and by 1959, introduced a doll which they called Barbie.
Now that you have some inspiration, now is the perfect time to dream big and reach for the stars! Good luck, and may great success ensue!
Powerful Women
This is a repost of a recent article on MSN Money which showcased 13 newcomer women who made it onto the list of the richest self-made women in the United States. The original article can be found by clicking the link here, but I have also copied and pasted the body of the article so you can read about these extraordinary women here.
13 newcomers named richest self-made women in US
Forbes’ second annual definitive tally of America’s wealthiest, most successful self-made women includes 60 trailblazers – 10 more than last year – who have crashed ceilings through invention and innovation. These women, who are worth a combined $53 billion, have created some of the nation’s best known brands, such as Gap, Spanx, Proactiv and Vera Bradley. A number of them have also helped build some of the most successful companies in tech, including Facebook, eBay and Google, while still others got rich entertaining millions through their music, books or TV shows.
These women have achieved unparalleled success through invention and innovation to create their own fortunes. ABC Supply’s Diane Hendricks (No. 1) tops the list with a net worth of $4.9 billion, followed by Oprah Winfrey (No. 2), worth $3.1 billion. The Gap’s Doris Fisher and Founder & CEO of Epic Systems, Judy Faulkner, are tied for No. 3, both worth $2.4 billion. Elizabeth Holmes, Founder & CEO, Theranos, who was No. 1 on the list in 2015, misses the cut this year due to recent investigations involving Theranos and information indicating that the company’s revenues are less than originally projected.
With sold out arenas, billion-dollar companies and best-selling books under their belts, 13 newcomers joined the ranks of America’s Richest Self-Made Women in 2016. Big names (Celine, Barbra, Taylor) and big brands (Nasty Gal, Vera Bradley, Douglas Elliman) define the group who cracked this year’s $250 million cutoff, and together have a combined net worth of $5.65 billion.
GAIL MILLER
Net worth: $1.6 billion
Rank: 11
How she did it: The only newcomer who is also a billionaire, most of Miller’s wealth stems from basketball team the Utah Jazz. She purchased it with her late husband in 1986 for $22 million. It’s now worth $875 million.
CAROLYN RAFAELIAN
Net worth: $700 million
Rank: 22
How she did it: The Alex and Ani founder launched her Rhode Island-based bangle-maker in 2004. In 12 years, she’s grown revenues to an estimated $500 million and operates 65 stores around the country.
CELENE DION
Net worth: $380 million
Rank: 37
How she did it: Dion has sold over 220 million albums in her career, but the bulk of her net worth ($260 million) comes from the Las Vegas residency she began in 2003.
BARBRA STREISAND
Net worth: $370 million
Rank: 38
How she did it: Happy days are here again! With a career full of hits and accolades spanning sixty years, Streisand has had a No. 1 album every single decade she’s been in showbiz and is the best-selling female musician of all time.
JESSICA ALBA
Net worth: $340 million
Rank: 42
How she did it: Alba launched The Honest Company in 2012. Just three years later, she was featured on the cover of Forbes’ Self-Made Women’s issue with a $200 million estimated net worth from her stake in the nontoxic-household-goods-startup. The actress-turned-entrepreneur did not make the $250 million net worth cutoff for the list in 2015, but secured her spot on this year’s list when her 20% stake in the company shot up last August after raising $100 million at a $1.7 billion valuation.
NANCY ZIMMERMAN
Net worth: $320 million
Rank: 46
How she did it: Launching her career buying currency options on the floor of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Zimmerman later made her way to Goldman Sachs to run their interest rate options group. She left Goldman to co-found Boston-based Bracebridge Capital in 1994. It’s grown to $10 billion in assets under managements and is now the largest in the world run by a woman.
DANIELLE STEEL
Net worth: $310 million
Rank: 48
How she did it: Steel joined fellow romance novelist Nora Roberts on the list this year proving sex, and lust, really does sell. She’s written 129 books and sold more than 650 million copies in her career.
PATRICIA MILLER and BARBARA BRADLEY BAEKGAARD
Net worth: $300 million (Miller); $270 million (Baekgaard)
Rank: 49 (Miller); 54 (Baekgaard)
How they did it: Queens of quilted prints, Miller and Baekgaard founded Vera Bradley in 1982, sewing bags in Baekgaard’s basement and selling their first ones in gift shops. There are now 139 company stores and with products sold in another 2,700 retailers around the country. Vera Bradley IPO’ed six years ago and has a $590 million market cap.
SOPHIA AMORUSO
Net worth: $280 million
Rank: 53
How she did it: The original #GirlBoss, at 22 Amoruso started her online retailer Nasty Gal. Ten years later her company is raking in $300 million in sales, Forbes estimates. She also released her memoir “GirlBoss” in 2014 and it became a bestseller. Amoruso has since expanded the #GirlBoss brand to radio and TV.
DOROTHY HERMAN
Net worth: $270 million
Rank: 54
How she did it: Overcoming a tragic adolescence, Herman got her start as a real estate broker for Merrill Lynch on Long Island. By 2003, she’d bought New York City brokerage Douglas Elliman. It’s now the country’s fourth-largest brokerage firm and the largest in New York City.
TONI KO
Net worth: $260 million
Rank: 57
How she did it: In 1999 Ko started NYX Cosmetics aiming to sell department-store quality makeup at drugstore prices. The company did $4 million in sales in the first year alone. She sold to L’Oreal in 2014 for $500 million and has since moved on to launch a new sunglasses line in early 2016.
TAYLOR SWIFT
Net worth: $250 million
Rank: 60
How she did it: Coming in at the last spot on this year’s list, Swift’s earnings shot up with her transition from country music starlet to worldwide pop star, raking in the most from last year’s 1989 tour that earned $250 million.
In case you want to know how these women made it to list, read on for the methodology employed…
Methodology: Members of the 2016 list needed a minimum of $250 million in net worth to make the cut. To compile net worths, Forbes valued private companies by speaking with an array of outside experts and conservatively comparing the companies with public competitors. In cases in which women started businesses with, and still share with, their husbands, Forbes assigned them half of that combined wealth.
Forbes calculated the stakes in public companies using stock prices from May 13. For entertainers, they based estimates on net lifetime earnings. Real estate, art and other assets were also factored in where applicable. To be eligible for this list, women had to have substantially made their own fortunes and be U.S. citizens or longtime residents. Forbes attempted to vet these numbers with all list entrants.
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