Fashlete of the Month

I am honored to be Fashletics Fashlete of the Month. When Sarah reached out to me and asked if I would be interested in an interview, I was thrilled. Fashletics is a collection of handmade jewelry inspired by a passion for fitness.  Each piece of jewelry serves a badge of honor and an expression of strength. The brand’s mantra, LIVE LOVE LIFT™, has inspired a collection of apparel.  LIVE LOVE LIFT is more than a tagline, it is a way of life and a state of mind.  In addition to creating unique jewelry and clothing items, their goal is to empower and inspire people to live a fit and healthy lifestyle.

Excerpt from the interview--
As our Fashlete of the Month, Megan is receiving this customized sterling silver necklace from Fashletics engraved with the word of her choice. She chose the word BALANCE because it encompasses every bit of who she is-- work hard, play hard.  Megan values balance in her life, making sure that she never becomes too extreme with one thing in particular.  This balance ensures that she will not miss out on any of life's incredible opportunities.

This attitude is exactly what makes Megan a perfect Fashlete - she understands the connection between physical fitness and real life.  She has become a leader in a community that is committed to encouraging positive change inside and outside the gym walls. 

Read the entire interview HERE.

The Triune

The Triune from CrossFit Central on Vimeo.


Culture. Community. CrossFit. The Triune is a compilation of all 3 coming together on one central website. I have the privilege of writing articles for the Pulse section of the website. My first article published was Remember to Rest. Check it out on the brand new site HERE.

Holiday Fun

(Me & tinyFIT at our end-of-year Staff Banquet)

Relentless Training Systems are off for the next 2 weeks. It is a nice break for us coaches, but I do know our athletes still want to get in some workouts. Personally, this time of year is full of going out with my friends (see pic above), but also making time to get in workouts. Work hard. Play hard.

Below are a few workout suggestions that require minimal equipment.

Workout #1- Compliments of up and coming coach, Adam Martin
100 air squats
90 russian twist with a kettlebell
80 grasshoppers
70 russian swings
600m run
50 american swings
40 KB sumo deadlift high pull
30 KB wall balls
20 pushups
10 wall walks

After many visits to Dave and Sam at Next Level, I learned I need to work the glute max and medius. If you have a Perform Better band then I recommend the following right before a workout:
20 lateral band walks (10 on each side)
90 seconds of static bridge holds (place 1 to 2 bands above knees)
Jane Fondas (minimum of 60 seconds on each side)

Workout #2- I did this workout with my sister yesterday.

Wheelbarrow- She held my feet 1 direction and then we switched. Followed by 10 ring rows while the other partner did as many plyo pushups as possible until the partner was done with the ring rows. 4 rounds.

Next we did the following KB complex:
Power clean
Front rack squat
Swing & clean
Snatch
Thruster
 *equals 1 rep. Perform 3 on right, 3 on left, followed by 10 V-ups. 4 rounds

I challenge you to get creative over the holiday. Use ledges for box jumps, dips, decline/incline pushups. Find a tree to do pullups or visit the closest track. Find a way to workout with family members. I always love when my sister and I workout together. Most importantly, HAVE FUN! It's all about balance.

Meet tinyFIT!

(pictured: Michelle, tinyFIT, Showout)

Meet Lauren McAuliffe, also known as tinyFIT! Lauren is the newest coach to jump on the scene with Relentless. I had the honor of coaching Lauren for about 8 months along with seeing her transform during the 8-week Trojan Challenge.

Lauren is full of life, energy, and fun and is one of the toughest tiny people I know. Her and I share quite a bit in common-- from our core values of Balance and Integrity to the Communication aspect of our Strengths. We talked the other day on the phone for a good 30 minutes and created new business ideas within Relentless, new boot camp locations, and refined her future within our company.

I am blessed to have someone like Lauren in my life. Someone I get to work along side, someone I watched get engaged and now begin creating a new life, but also someone I hang out with and fills my bucket.

Team PURSUIT is a bucket full of go-getters and Lauren is absolutely one of them!

Work hard; play hard

Megan and Mary are a mother-daughter duo. Megan joined her mom this summer at Relentless Boot Camp while she was home from college. ClearLLLLLLLLLLLLy they know the greatness of SPARK and paired it with beer at Oktoberfest in Germany. Now that is what I call good to GREAT! Megan, Mary, and I are on the same page-- BALANCE -- or what I also like to call it, Work hard; Play hard.

Core Values

Every coach and staff member within Trinity Training Systems (aka: CrossFit Central, Relentless Boot Camp, CrossFit Central ATX, RedBlack Gym) are writing out their top 4 personal core values. The words I chose are the foundation on which I perform work and daily conduct myself. The road map to how I live my life.

• Balance- Work hard, play hard. I feel this Core Value encompasses everything from family, fun, faith, and friendships. When I choose the all or nothing route, my life is chaos.

• Integrity- I was back and forth between choosing integrity and respect. I, personally, use them interchangeably. However, I did a little research into the 2 words and after reading more I know without a doubt integrity is one of my core values. Read more here to distinguish the difference between the 2 words.

• Character- My Dad always said to me, "It is the quiet moments out of the spotlight, when no one else is looking, that most defines your character." That statement has stuck with me forever. I even received a poster at Baylor basketball camp when I was in junior high with the exact statement and hung it on my wall.

• Making a Difference- This is why I do what I do. Coach. Train. Lead. It is the reason why I left my job and started a brand new career. The core of who I am is to make a difference in others lives.

Teachers Rock!

My evening Relentless boot camp switched to 6:15pm on Mondays & Wednesdays at Little Stacy Park. Over half the class are teachers. Three of the ladies pictured above are in their 2nd week back to school. After a full day of repeated questions, teaching, lunch duty, study hall...these athletes/teachers still make time for an hour that is completely devoted to them. Do you schedule an hour "meeting" 3-4x/week for yourself? If not, I highly recommend you take a good look at your priorities.

After all, it's balance we're after. Work and Play. Water and Wine. Reaching and Resting. Loving and Letting Go. Freedom really isn't about a release from responsibilities; it's about the status of your heart in the midst of it all.”

Black & White...Grey

Black and White. All or Nothing. Good and Bad. Yes or No.

The words above are strong, complete, precise. There is no maybe, possibility, or gray area. The words above state exactly what they say.

When individuals first make a lifestyle change and decide to start eating more nutritiously, exercising daily, and getting more sleep, they often have the above mentality. The Black and White; All or Nothing; Good and Bad. The thought process often goes something like this..."Today was a good day. I ate well, did a CrossFit workout, feeling strong..."

However, let's be honest. Life happens. There are days where we do slip up. There are moments when we do miss a CrossFit class. There are weekends when we have 1 too many mexican martinis. But this is no reason to throw up your hands and say "I'm done." I strongly believe in balance. I like to call it "living in the gray." We have to be ok with not being perfect and having a moment of weakness. The strongest people are the ones who recognize moments of weakness, accept it, and move forward. The slip-up becomes a problem when it happens consistently. Do not allow self-defeating thoughts to get the best of you. I was a victim of this All or Nothing thinking for so long and it got me absolutely no where.

Believe in yourself and the strength inside. You are strong. You are beautiful. You are smart. You are SIC FIT. Be ok with living in the gray. It's all about balance.

***After I posted this blog, I came across Shannon's blog on the same topic today as well. Check it out here. We are all in this together. GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO TEAM!