Get Fit, Get Healthy: Here’s How

Personal trainer of BeFitFit, Magdalena Romanska, on Bear Mountain.

FITNESS TIPS FROM PERSONAL TRAINER MAGDALENA ROMANSKA

Magdalena Romanska’s own life was transformed by fitness. As a child and teen, she rarely exercised. The Poland native says there were no gyms when she was growing up there in the 1970s and 1980s. She didn’t even participate in physical education at her school. “I was that girl who was in the classes on this side bench, looking at the other students chasing the ball, and I could not participate,” says Magdalena, who was overweight. Magdalena decided she needed to make a change. She spent over a year exercising and losing her excess pounds. She started by taking swimming classes and gradually became more active. “I saw how my life changed when I got myself committed to it when I lost my excess weight when I was 18 or 19,” says Magdalena, a real estate agent with Russ Lyon Sotheby’s International Realty and a personal trainer. Today, Magdalena finishes Ironmans and owns the BeFitFit studio in the Village of Oak Creek. She’s an ISSA-certified general personal trainer and a trainer specializing in working with seniors. She keeps a before and after picture in her studio to inspire her clients. She was encouraged by others to open her business to help her customers reach their fitness goals. “I really, really wanted to start this business,” she says. “I had lots of people asking me around for tips and ideas about how to address their own fitness issues and goal.” Visit befitfit.biz for more information.

FIND WHAT WORKS FOR YOU

If you want to stick with a healthy eating or exercise routine, experiment with different forms of exercise and different foods until you find what you personally like. This will set you up to thrive. “Exercise in the way you like. Do not exercise in the ways you don’t like,” says Magdalena. “The same with eating. Eat what you like. Try to stay on the healthy side. But don’t eat what you don’t like. Because you are not going to stick to it. If you like it, you have more chances to succeed.”

EXERCISE WHEN IT’S CONVENIENT FOR YOU

“If you’re a morning person, exercising in the morning,” says Magdalena. “But if you are an afternoon person, don’t try book a session with a trainer in the morning. Again, that’s going to be something you’re not going to look forward to.”

DON’T THINK FITNESS HAS TO COST A LOT

You don’t have to purchase a pricy gym membership to stay healthy. “You don’t need to have a trainer if you don’t want to. You can go online, and there are so many fitness sources, and some of them are free,” she says.

Bear Mountain Trail

HOW TO MAKE TIME FOR EXERCISE

As a busy real estate professional and personal trainer, Magdalena is nearly always on the go. She makes time for exercise in between seeing her fitness and real estate clients. “I honestly grab every opportunity I can. So sometimes it’s between my morning studio trainees and the real estate,” she says. “Whenever I can I just try to make sure I have time because I know otherwise I would have to have time for all the problems when the health problems start hitting me. After years of exercising, I really feel good about it. I don’t have a good day if I don’t exercise.”

STICK WITH EXERCISE

When you first start being active, it can be pretty hard to stick with a fitness routine. But if you keep at it, exercising can become something you look forward to. “It’s tough, but I mean if you get used to it, you start feeling refreshed after that you are actually looking forward to it, and you are missing it,” says Magdalena.

Bear Mountain Trail

TRY BEING SOCIAL WHEN YOU’RE EXERCISING

If you have a friend or your significant other who likes to hike or bike, consider pairing up to exercise. Staying social is an important part of staying healthy too. “It can be a way to remain social in a safe way. And as we know, socially active people have stronger immunity, and we are less prone to depression and anxiety,” says Magdalena. “Doing cardio for the heart is important, but that’s almost like cardio for the brain.”

MIX UP YOUR WORKOUTS

As much as it’s important to find exercises that you love and will stick with, it’s also a good idea to switch up your workouts. Working different muscle groups is key to building strength. “I never run the same session because we have to confuse the muscles. And I also find that this is way easier and way more fun for my clients to come to the session not knowing what we are going to do. And this way, they are not bored to death,” she says.

ENJOY SMALL INDULGENCES OCCASIONALLY

Magdalena enjoys a glass of wine now and then. Taking time for small pleasures like alcohol or dessert is a key part of staying healthy. It’s perfectly OK to have a glass of wine or some chocolate a few nights a week. “There is nothing wrong with moderation, especially in a social setting,” she says. “That’s going to be easier for us to stick to because it’s easier to have a goal rather than saying, ‘I will never ever have wine or potatoes or whatever is your indulgence.’”

Chef Lindsey Dale

HEALTHY COOKING AND EATING TIPS FROM CHEF LINDSEY DALE

Lindsey Dale starts off every day by drinking fresh green juice. She even put it on the menu at SaltRock Southwest Kitchen at Amara Resort & Spa – part of a slew of new healthier options that the Uptown Sedona restaurant has rolled out. “People are leaning more towards staying healthy, wanting to be healthy, and we’re positioned in a great area to go hiking. And I think that a lot of our clientele who’s coming in, they want to go hiking and be healthy and have healthier options,” says Lindsey, the executive chef of SaltRock. “Giving them the option to choose that is a huge thing for us.” One of Amara’s brand pillars is wellness, according to marketing director for the hotel, Amanda Leese. The healthier menu options are a part of that. Besides two new green juices, the new menu also includes smoothies, an acai bowl, a butternut squash “steak” served with a cauliflower puree and uses Flagstaff-based NexVeg’s tepary bean hash, shaved Brussels, roasted corn, cauliflower puree and pomegranate pasilla chile gastrique. She has been cooking professionally for 20 years. She trained at the prestigious Culinary Institute of America in New York City. Prior to this job, she worked at The Sherwood Inn in the Finger Lakes area of New York state and Enchantment Resort. She took over the kitchen at SaltRock in February of 2019. “I just really like making people happy through food,” says Lindsey. “You get a sense of accomplishment every single day when people like your food.” To stay fit, Lindsey enjoys snowboarding, hiking, mountain biking and yoga. Head to SaltRock Southwest Kitchen at Amara Resort & Spa at 100 Amara Lane in Uptown Sedona to try Lindsey’s food. Visit amararesort.com to learn more. See Lindsey’s recipes for green juice and an acai bowl below.

EAT A HEALTHY BREAKFAST

“Starting off your day with a decent dose of fruits and vegetables is a good way to start,” says Lindsey. “You feel good about yourself because you made a great decision. You go out, you go hiking, you don’t really want to blow the rest of the day because you started out so healthy. I feel like it’s really important for the first meal of the day to be something that’s healthy but filling. I feel like if you eat really well you don’t want to be like, ‘Oh, I guess we’ll just you know have this hamburger and French fries now for dinner because I did so good all day long.’”

Seared Halibut at Saltrock Southwest Kitchen

MAKE SMOOTHIES AND JUICES

“Juice at breakfast because then you’re getting kale, apple, celery and all of those things are good for you and smoothies as well,” says Lindsey. “You can add a lot of different fruits and vegetables into smoothies and juices, and it’s a good way to sneak them in.”

BUY PRODUCE THAT’S IN SEASON

Although she admits winters are tough to find produce that’s in season – since it’s mostly root vegetables – eating produce in season is usually a good idea. “That’s how I like to eat is with the seasons because you’re going to get the freshest product, and it’s going to taste good. It’s going to be ripe,” says Lindsey.

Local Roasted Squash

BE WILLING TO TRY NEW FOODS

“You have to step outside of your comfort zone. My mom used to hate Brussels sprouts. I cooked them one way for her with, which is not exactly healthy, but with bacon and onions,” says Lindsey. “And she realized that she does love them. Now she roasts them with salt, pepper and olive oil in the oven. And I think it’s making that first step: ‘I’m just going to try this. And if I don’t like it, then it’s OK.’ But then you realize that you can do so many other things with it.”

KEEP HEALTHY, QUICK SNACKS ON HAND

If you’re pressed for time and are feeling hungry, Lindsey recommends these snacks: “Nuts are always a good filler. Obviously, not too many because some of them can be really high in fat. But also, protein bites or granola bars,” says Lindsey.

TAKE TIME FOR YOURSELF

“Always remember to take time for yourself because that’s the most important thing, especially in the industry that I’m in. There will be times where I just shut myself behind my office door for five minutes just to breathe and just re-center because there’s always a lot going on,” says Lindsey. “So you gotta take time for you because that’s the most important thing. Nobody can help you fix that but you.”

Jo Homar of Sedona Juniper Trails Health & Healing on the West Fork Trail, one of her favorite hikes.

STAYING GROUNDED WITH JO HOMAR

After working in reinsurance for 20 years, Jo Homar started having vertigo. When she was trying to find a cure for her vertigo, she eventually saw a craniosacral therapist to find relief. The therapist told Jo that she was “‘seriously connected.’ I didn’t even know what that is.” It was Jo’s first experience with something alternative. “It wasn’t a physical shift, it was an energetic shift,” says Jo, of her vertigo. “It was really calling me to do something other than what I was doing in the corporate world.” “I knew in that moment that that was a path that I was going to go down,” says Jo. “That helped me make the switch in regards to my vibration. It made me understand that there was much more to me. We look in the mirror, we see our physical self, and we think that’s who we are and who we are to an extent. But underneath that shell, there’s so much more going on with us than we realize.” She started developing more spiritually. Jo went to reiki attunements and got certified in reiki. She launched her holistic business to share her knowledge with others. She began working during her lunch break and on the weekends before starting a full-time business. Today, Jo is a wellness facilitator with Sedona Juniper Trails Health & Healing with more than 25 years of experience. She’s also a medical medium and a certified health, nutrition and life coach. She’s currently developing self-help audio programs. Some of Jo’s favorite hiking trails include Thunder Mountain, Coffee Pot and West Fork. Jo makes gluten and dairy-free brownies. See her recipe below. Learn more about Jo and her work at johomar.com

TRY SMALL DAILY THINGS TO IMPROVE YOUR HEALTH

“Healing modalities doesn’t have to mean going to a practitioner to receive the healing. There are many things an individual could do for themselves such as going outside for a walk, getting some fresh air, doing gentle yoga, eating fruits and vegetables, staying away from high fat, high salt foods. Getting plenty of sleep, and they can incorporate deep breathing exercises on their own,” says Jo.

TAKE A WALK

“We’re all made of energy,” says Jo. “And if we become stagnant, then our energy becomes stagnant. So going for a walk, it doesn’t have to be a brisk walk. Going up some fresh air, moving arms a little bit, that moves the energy within our bodies. That’s why going outside refreshing air and get some movement not only helps you physically but also helps you energetically.”

TAKE SOME TIME OUT OF YOUR DAY TO REALLY RELAX

Our bodies have an innate desire to heal, says Jo. To tap into that inherent wisdom, you need to learn to listen to your own internal voice. You don’t need a ton of time to just relax and get more in touch with yourself. “Even something as simple as giving yourself 10 minutes a day, just to be by yourself, maybe listen to some music. That in itself could be enough to help people on that journey to inner wisdom. Meditation takes many different forms. It doesn’t always involve sitting in the dark with your legs crossed,” says Jo. “If people could just give themselves – even if it’s 10 minutes a day to themselves – to really slow down and quiet their mind, that goes a long way.”

EVOLVE AS YOUR NEEDS CHANGE

What works for you today might not work for you in a year from now. “We grow. Our routines change, and what may have worked for us before may not work for us anymore,” says Jo. “We need to
not be so rigid. We need to allow ourselves to organically feel what we think we need in any given moment. So what I say to people is try a few different things. Find what works for you today.”

PRIORITIZE YOUR TASKS

Jo says one of the most key ways to get things done is by prioritizing what needs to be accomplished. So, for instance, when you wake up, you might need to eat breakfast, do the laundry and walk the dog. Try starting with the most important, immediate task – eating breakfast – and then slowly cross other items off your to-do list. “Some individuals take all the information in the morning and get so overwhelmed that they don’t end up doing anything. They just end up sitting on the couch because they’re exhausted just thinking about what they have to do. Never mind doing it,” says Jo. “Most of the things that we have to do aren’t urgent, and that they can wait, they don’t need to be done immediately, or they can wait until the next day.”

Erin Shaad Lashaw of Village Yoga Sedona

HOW ERIN SCHAAD LASHAW OF VILLAGE YOGA SEDONA FOUND YOGA

Physical activity has always been a big part of Erin Schaad Lashaw’s life. Growing up, she was a swimmer. In college, she worked as a personal trainer. But a relative’s health diagnosis made her focus more on wellness. “I was really impacted by my mom developing cancer when I was in college, and it really started making me think deeper about wellness in the body, and also wellness in the environment,” says Erin, who majored in environmental science in college. After college, she was living in San Francisco when she first became interested in yoga. “It was really just a seed that popped off in mind,” says Erin. “I really think this is going to help me.” And her beliefs became truth. Erin has scoliosis and turned to yoga, in part, to help relieve her of back pain. She says that today she lives almost pain-free from the condition. She also found a different kind of relief from her practice. “It wasn’t until I was in my late 20s that I started really going deeper because of the mental health benefits,” says Erin, telling us that yoga helped alleviate mental stress she was feeling. “It just starts to do things to the body and to the mind together that kind of allow the body and the mind to come together and heal.” After she graduated from law school, she was living in Los Angeles working in film and felt unhappy. She became a yoga teacher after experiencing a quarter-life crisis. “I love how much yoga has helped me, and it continues to help me kind of just navigate life. And I love sharing that with others. I love seeing how it helps others do the same thing and to find deeper happiness,” she says. “It might take a year or two of working with someone, but then when you see it, when you see that shift for them, and their life, and things start to open up, and they become brighter and happier. It’s just so rewarding.” She moved to Sedona in 2015 after a long period of traveling and teaching. She was living in the Village of Oak Creek and wanted to open a yoga studio since the Village didn’t have a dedicated yoga studio. So she and her husband, Nick Lashaw, opened the 2,500 square-foot studio featuring an indoor and outdoor space back in April of 2019. As of press time, the studio is offering online classes. Visit villageyogasedona.com for more information.

MOVE DAILY

“I have to say my number one tip is just to do something physical every day,” says Erin. She says practicing yoga multiple times per week can really benefit you. “If you just do yoga once a week, you’ll just barely hang on to that feeling of balance. But when you start to do it every day is when you start to see that real physical transformation and mental transformation into a deeper feeling of health and wellness.”

PRACTICE MEDITATING

In some scientific studies, meditation has been shown to lower blood pressure and treat patients with depression or anxiety. Start small. Try sitting still for five to 10 minutes every day. Just focus on your breathing. “I definitely would recommend trying to sit for five to 10 minutes minimum a day. The word meditation I’m really comfortable with, but some people prefer the word ‘contemplation’ because the word meditation can trigger this idea that I have to change religions. It’s not that. The word meditation in Tibetan means to re-habituate the mind. And so if the mind is habituated toward stressful thoughts, that’s going to start to increase our stress in our body. And so if we can re-habituate that and even just simplify our thoughts to just count our breath and watch our breath go in and out of our nose for 10 minutes.” Erin also recommends a gratitude review meditation. “Just sitting and reviewing things for 10 minutes that you’re grateful for every morning is a great way to shift the body and the mind into a feeling of an awareness of all the things you have in your life versus coming from a place of a deficit. So those are two really great meditations,” she says.

STRETCH OUT

Stretching is a simple yet effective physical activity you can perform to help reduce post-workout soreness and prevent injury. “Stretching is such a great way to release tension in the body. And you see people who are bodybuilders or people who are marathon runners, and I used to do half marathons. And if you don’t stretch in combination with those, a lot of times you’ll see people get so tight in their body that something will snap. And so it’s just a great way to prevent injury,” says Erin.

DON’T FORGET TO BREATHE

Simply focusing on inhaling and exhaling can just relax you. “A basic one would just be to lay on the floor and put your hands on your belly. And try to feel your hands lift and feel your lower back expand when you take a deep inhale, and then let it go,” says Erin. “And that’s just diaphragmatic breathing, and that is one of the main ways to lower cortisol [a stress hormone] in the body.”

Erin Shaad Lashaw practices yoga at the Village Yoga Sedona. She’s the co-owner of this village of oak creek yoga studio.

TRY YOGA

The reasons why someone should give yoga a try are varied: “To feel happier, in general, to feel more balanced in the body, to prevent injury, to lower stress and anxiety. It can lower blood pressure. And it’s just a great complement to any other physical practice. So even if you love weightlifting or you love group sports, or whatever it is, it’s just going to help you be better and more comfortable in those other things,” says Erin.

Canyon Vista Campground, near the trailhead for Sandys Canyon, a favorite of Jannienne Jones Verse of Northern Arizona Healthcare.

HOW TO LIVE MORE HOLISTICALLY WITH JANNIENNE JONES VERSE OF NORTHERN ARIZONA HEALTHCARE

Jannienne Jones Verse knows what it feels like to get an unexpected diagnosis. Back in 2010, she walked into a doctor’s office for a routine checkup when she found out she had high blood pressure. So high that she could have had a stroke. “I learned that I was at high risk. And not only was I at high risk, I was at dangerous risk, and I had been a long time,” says Jannienne, chief strategy, business development and marketing officer of Northern Arizona Healthcare (NAH). “That was a wake-up call. And that was my turn and in fact, did have an effect on my family. And so we started to focus much more holistically together on, ‘What are we eating?’ How are we spending time? How are we de-stressing?” Keeping her high blood pressure under control is one way that she stays healthy with her family. She lives in Flagstaff with her husband and their three children. One of her daughters is a vegetarian, and they often up come with veggie-forward recipes. One of her family’s favorite recipes is making cauliflower-based pizza. She tells us her family has been on a smoothie-making spree. Prior to joining the NAH team, she worked for North Carolina based Vidant Health, Dayton, Ohio-based Premier Health, Pennsylvania based Geisinger and Massachusetts-based Berkshire Health Systems. She started at NAH in October of 2019. She decided to go into health care after a meeting with a former colleague who had started working for a health care system. He was asking her about her recent successes in her job. She started talking about the return on investment on a recent campaign. He leaned in and said, “You know what I’m experiencing in my new space working in health care? All of the things that you’re describing to me that you’re doing, that’s what I do. Instead of numbers in the millions of campaigns, he said, ‘It’s lives.’ And can you imagine bringing that type of energy and the passion that you have for your work and at the end of the day, something that you’re doing could save a life? As opposed to any member number on a campaign? And that was it.” That conversation over coffee changed her career trajectory, and she hasn’t looked back since. She says she feels grateful to work in health care. “I really do feel like I’m in a sweet spot because every day I do something that I love, but at the end of the day, it’s not a numbers game. And it’s not something that’s superficial. It’s the honor that we have of doing something that would improve a life,” she says. Visit nahealth.com to learn more.

GET CREATIVE IN THE KITCHEN

Her daughter is a vegetarian. Jannienne creates dishes that are designed to help keep her blood pressure under control. They both work to come up with recipes that are tasty and healthy. “We’re actually exploring a few new recipes with almond flour. A few rice dishes, and she is working on her spice collection. I work to keep my blood pressure under control. My options are non-salt and tastier options we’re learning about together,” she says.

MAKE SMALL CHANGES

“Just those small changes have made it really interesting, and it’s surprising what you can come up with and how delicious it can taste,” she says. Try using different sauces and spices.

PREPARE MEALS AHEAD OF TIME

Meal planning is one way to make cooking easier. This includes planning on what you’ll eat during the week and chopping up veggies and fruits ahead of time. Purchasing fresh produce weekly. “So we try to put together you know some of the components of what we’re going to be cooking so that we’re not spending a lot of time in prep,” she says.

EAT MORE WHOLE FOODS

“This isn’t necessarily how it should work for everyone. But for me, it was making more whole food choices, more non-processed food choices, packing my lunch and my snacks for the day, making sure that I was drinking enough water, learning about ingredients and what’s in some of the foods,” says Jannienne.

MOVE MORE THROUGHOUT THE DAY

Jannienne tries to move as much as she can. She uses a standing desk at work. She takes the stairs when she can and will often stand instead of sit in meetings. “But just the fact of moving and standing and not being complacent in one space, for me, has made a big difference in my ability to level up and feel like I’m at least burning a few calories,” she says.

START THE DAY OFF RIGHT

“I have just a very simple routine of stretching and waking myself up. And I call it ‘Welcome to the Day.’ Simple exercises to bring my body to a full state of being awake and getting myself ready for work,” she says.

GO FOR ROUTINE CHECKUPS

“It’s really important to stay on top of your standard physicals and your checkups and staying tied in with your primary care provider. That’s the main gateway. And if you know that you’re at risk and are under the care of a specialist, be sure to follow through with those appointments. It’s really important because you never know what may be happening behind the scenes,” she says.

Eric A. Haggard & Linda M. Haggard of Sedona Integrative Medical Clinic/Sedona MediSpa & Wellness (DBA).

DISCOVER THE PERSONAL WELLNESS ROUTINE OF CO-OWNER OF SEDONA INTEGRATIVE MEDICAL CLINIC ERIC A. HAGGARD

Eric A. Haggard, PT, CHT and CMT, has always had an interest in movement. After he graduated from college with a degree in dance and movement therapy, he worked for different dance companies and became a massage therapist. He went to physical therapy school to deepen his knowledge of the human body. “As a dancer and martial artist and athlete, it was a smooth transition. The practice I originally established was a massage therapy practice working with dancers and athletes. And so I reached a limit in terms of the depth of my understanding of the human body. So physical therapy is a step above that kind of credentialing in terms of the knowledge base and also what I can do,” says Eric. He’s worked in private practices and at large rehab hospitals. About 14 years ago, he met his wife when they were both working at an integrative medicine clinic. At that job, they would work together to help patients. For instance, if a woman came in for a wellness exam and had just taken a fall, Linda would ask Eric if she needed an X-ray or physical therapy. The two combined forces to open the Sedona Integrative Medical Clinic/Sedona MediSpa & Wellness (dba) in the Village of Oak Creek 12 years ago. Today, their office is in West Sedona. Eric is the co-owner along with his wife, Linda M. Haggard, PA-C, MPAS and ABAAHP. Linda is a primary care provider who does integrative medicine and hormone replacement and women’s health. Sedona MediSpa also has an allergist, estheticians and a chiropractor. “We try to walk our talk,” says Eric, of the critical role health and wellness plays. “It’s central to my life, especially when one considers the broader meaning of health and wellness. It has to do with how we’re on the planet and how we relate to each other as well as how we take care of our physical selves.” Visit sedonamedispa.com to learn more.

STAY HOPEFUL

To Eric, being of service to others is very important. “One sure way to become unhealthy is to lose hope, to lose a sense of direction, to lose a sense of purpose. And so having some sense of those things: ‘Why are you on the planet? What are you doing to make the world a better place?’ is really, really important,” says Eric. “The other aspect of that, in terms of for me as a therapist is, people come to me and they have lost their way. ‘My shoulder’s hurting and it’s been hurting for six months, and I tried everything, and it’s not getting better. And I don’t know what to do.’ ‘And I’m getting depressed because I can’t do the sport I love to do or I can’t get out of a chair,’ or ‘I fell the other day, and I realized I couldn’t get off the ground.’ And so my job as a therapist is to help a person re-establish their hope. To know that they can get better and to trace out the pathway, not just to say, ‘OK, yeah, you can do it. Go off.’ But to say these are the steps that are most likely to get you from where you are to where you want to be in a most efficient way, in the shortest period of time, that kind of thing. So it’s easy to lose our way, in the midst of all the chaos of the world, and so purpose is really important.”

Eric A. Haggard poses next to his surfboard in Monterey, California. He’s recently taken up surfing.

SPEND TIME IN NATURE

“To surround oneself with things that are nurturing and beautiful makes us nurturing,” says Eric. He and his wife live on a two-acre Cornville property. “We live in this incredible place. This gets back to the environment: when we spend time in nature, it clears us,” he says. “For us, sitting out on our back patio, looking at our waterfall coming down into the pond with all these amazing flowers that Linda’s planted and the trees that I planted. And it really is the center of the universe almost.”

TEND TO PLANTS OR PETS

When people think of nurturing our relationships, we tend to just think of our relationships with other people. But if you have the time, resources and inclination, taking care of plants and pets also can benefit your health in tremendous ways. He and his wife take care of dogs, cats, birds, fish, goats, ducks, chickens, mini-donkeys and alpacas in addition to roses, flowers and vegetables. “To feel a part of our world, both personally and socially, is a big component to feeling healthy,” says Eric. “Gardening is incredibly therapeutic. It reestablishes the most basic connection that we’ve had for millennia of growing and nurturing. It’s a way of nurturing our environment and also being nurtured by it.”

TAKE SMALL STEPS TO BECOME HEALTHIER

“Eliminate one thing that you know to be unhealthy. Do one thing and one thing only that you know to be healthy,” says Eric. “And maybe not even eliminate completely. Not three Snickers bars, but one Snickers bar. Take one positive action that would help you be healthier and more vital.” For instance, if you’re starting an exercise program, it’s better to just start with a few exercises you can manage and build up to what you’re trying to accomplish.

HOW TO REMAIN GROUNDED

One of Eric’s personal mottos is “I stay calm, centered, grounded and focused. Calm is what we talked about with breathing. Centered means that I’m not flying around all over the place. Grounded means that I’m literally aware of being in the present moment, as opposed to past or future. I’m grounded. My feet are planted energetically, if done physically, it focuses that whole thing about purpose. I have a direction. I know what I want, where I want to be going, even if it’s just to sit still,” he says.

STAY MENTALLY SHARP

Physical exercise and mental exercise are both important. Try reading a book or engaging the intellectual side of yourself. “If you just want to spend your life passively being inundated by images from television, none of that trains you to ask questions, to be inquisitive, to be curious, to be alive to learn to do. Asking questions, learning and doing keeps us alive and stimulated,” says Eric.

KNOW WHEN TO ASK FOR HELP

“The first thing is to recognize that you’re having a need that you’re not able to meet, whether it’s for information or therapy or guidance, and then reach out to people that have wonderful reputations for consistently delivering on what they promise,” he says.

Director of Outdoor Adventures and Activities at Enchantment Resort, Jim Foss

STAYING HEALTHY AND ACTIVE OUTDOORS WITH JIM FOSS OF ENCHANTMENT RESORT

Director of Outdoor Adventures and Activities at Enchantment Resort, Jim Foss, has loved sports since he was a child growing up in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. He played baseball, football on Thanksgiving and ice hockey on the pond when it froze over. “Sports teaches people how to have amazing life skills that they can use later, how to work together, how to cooperate, how to compete, how to have fun, how to exercise. There’s a nutritional aspect to it. Keep your body fit. I think exercise cleanses the mind. There’s just so many positives with exercise and sports,” says Jim. His love of sports has taken him all over this country and the world. After he graduated from college with a bachelor’s of science in sports management, he joined the Hartford Civic Center in Hartford, Connecticut, as booking and event manager. He managed a few high-profile events including the 1996 U.S. Presidential Debate and the National Hockey League Draft. He then went to Bakersfield, California, to open and run the Rabobank Arena. Other gigs include serving as senior vice president of strategic planning for the Arizona Coyotes Hockey Club and general manager for Mercedes-Benz Arena in Shanghai, China. After living in metro Phoenix for many years and vacationing to Sedona numerous times, he moved up north to start his job in July of 2019. Jim manages Trail House, a 4,000 square foot adventure and activity center that sells bike rentals and purchases, athletic equipment and outdoor apparel. Jim enjoys the veggie wraps that change about weekly from the employee cafeteria at Enchantment. During his spare time, he likes playing with his four dogs. He loves to mountain bike all throughout Red Rock Country. Some of his favorite trails include Mescal, Boynton Canyon, Doe Mountain and Western Civilization. He also likes admiring the views from the Chicken Point Overlook. “Mountain biking is my favorite activity,” he says. “There is something special about being on a trail watching the sunrise, the smell of pine trees and the warmth of the sun on your face.” Visit enchantmentresort.com for more information.

Enchantment Resort Trail House

SET SMALL, ACHIEVABLE GOALS

“I like to compete with myself. I like to improve and get better. Whatever it is, you know, whether it’s your career or physical exercise. I think setting goals is important. Raising the bar each and every year, I think is important,” says Jim. How you measure that progress is up to you. It could be that you ran or biked on a trail without stopping the entire time you were on it. He personally considers completing the Ground Control Trail as one of his most recent and best accomplishments. “When you can keep pedaling and keep your feet on the pedals without stopping or putting your foot down,” he says. “It’s not about speed. Not for me, anyway. It’s about, ‘Did I clear the trail without putting my foot down or falling over?’ That’s always an accomplishment.”

GET PLENTY OF SLEEP

“My wife laughs at me because sometimes I’m in bed at 9 p.m. 10 is my normal,” he says. “But sleep, I would put that on par with diet. Getting a good night’s sleep is super important.”

KEEP YOUR PERSONAL SPACE ORGANIZED

Coming home to an organized house or office can help give you peace of mind. “I’m a bit of a neat freak,” says Jim. “I was just in the shop yesterday, just folding towels and making them all aligned. And sometimes a little bit obsessive about it. But when everything has a place and it’s nice and neat, you know where it is. I don’t know about you, but I just feel better coming in the next day knowing everything is in its place.”

LISTEN TO OTHERS TO IMPROVE YOUR RELATIONSHIPS

“Being a good listener is important,” he says. “I think when people stop listening, I think the other side stops talking, and that’s when communication breaks down. I think listening is very important. I think feedback is very important. So people can make educated decisions, whether it’s career or personal life. I think taking the feedback and you know, what can you do with it?”

Inside Enchantment Resort’s Trail House