by Mike Jones
Let’s imagine together a theoretical person, named Wendy. Wendy is 30 years old, has a cool job at a marketing agency where she works about 60 hours a week and travels a few times each month. Wendy likes to exercise when she can and does so about 2-3 times a week on average throughout the year, and tries to eat healthy. Since Wendy can remember, she has made a new year’s resolution to clean up her diet, exercise more, and sleep better. On January 2nd she gets up early and goes to the gym, she eats clean and made-at-home meals, and she sticks to a consistent schedule for a while. She notices fitness improvements and appearance improvements, she’s sleeping better, she performs better at work, she feels great! On a good year, this rerouting will last through spring so come summer she’s feeling good. Summer starts up and she has so many awesome events that she starts working out a little bit less, down to her low-average 2x a week. She starts to eat poor food choices just a bit more regularly than the beginning of the year, and because it’s summer and there’s lots to do, most events she attends involve alcohol so her consumption increases. Come fall she’s not feeling quite as good as she was in the spring, the workouts are less frequent, the eating less diligent. Wendy wants to get back on track, but it’s fall and that means Halloween next month, then Thanksgiving, holiday parties, Christmas, and New Years! So Wendy allows herself to settle into the winter knowing that she’ll clean things up again on January 2nd. Rinse and repeat.
Sound familiar? Wendy is an all-too familiar theoretical person who lives in the modern world. What does 30-year-old Wendy really want? She wants to look good and feel good, and instead of having a consistent approach that gives her the results she wants, she participates in crash diets and exercise plans that are extremely strict for portions of the year and extremely relaxed the rest of the year. We all know this approach doesn’t work, which is why the typical adult gains a few pounds of fat each year and also loses a bit of muscle each year. Luckily for you, we’ve timed our Alchemy 365 Challenge to jump-start your health routine and lead you into the holiday season on a good note so you can end this vicious cycle. Whether you’re similar to Wendy and have been playing this game for years, new to fitness and clean eating, or already pretty tight in most areas but need a kick in the butt, this 6 week challenge is for you. Seriously.
The Alchemy 365 Challenge is a simple and proven way to educate you on the way you eat and what a truly clean diet looks like so you see noticeable results and establish long lasting habits. We’ll ask you to eat a strict whole-foods diet with no processed foods and no alcohol for 4 weeks, and introduce some foods over the course of the final 2 weeks. Combine clean eating with focus on quality sleep and an effective exercise program, and great things happen. Ready to get started? Join us on Monday, September 14th for our kickoff meeting and complete the challenge with a group of supportive individuals and coaches who will help you meet your goals! Still not convinced? Here’s 5 reasons why you should join us:
- Clean eating is educational – Eliminating less optimal foods isn’t sustainable in the long run or really even recommended, but in short periods can teach you volumes about how you handle certain types of food and how your body reacts once they’re reintroduced in your body.
- Group activities increase compliance – Doing a strict nutrition challenge, and focusing on sleep, and getting consistent workouts, can be very difficult to stick with on your own. Having a support group makes these challenges much easier!
- Professional support gives long-term results – every individual is different, which is why it helps to have experienced people assisting when making changes. We have fitness and nutrition professionals ready to answer questions or give advice during the challenge
- Timing is everything – Like I said above, don’t be like Wendy! If you’ve already said to yourself, I’ll clean things up after the holidays, now’s the time to get started! You’ll thank me come New Year’s. Use #IWill and make the change.
- It will be fun – weekly updates, workouts with old and new friends, community events, and lectures on topics from sleep and sex to mindful meditation are all in store for you.
Hopefully I’ve convinced you to join us! Don’t worry if you can’t make the kickoff meeting, we’ll provide you with the information you need. Register here, or send us an email if you have any questions!
Mike Jones is a coach and founder of Alchemy and Union Fitness. In his spare time, he enjoys taking long walks with his Boston Terrier, Wendy.
