Do you remember March 2020? It was a crazy time in our lives. Hopefully, I never have to experience a full global pandemic for the rest of my life. The positive is, we now have history to depend on moving forward, future generations can learn from our experiences. I hope they learn that hoarding toilet paper won’t help anyone. 😂  

What I learned from Covid over these last 15 months has changed my life. In that time, I created new habits that helped me realize my purpose. I found that I am here to inspire the world to fitness and better health. The more I can share, the more people I can help. I have a family history of obesity, type 2 diabetes, and cancer. I work out almost daily, I eat healthy 90% of the time, I work on my mental space, and I spend quality time with my loved ones. My goal is to live a long wonderful life filled with joy and happiness.

Health is My Priority

Health is a priority and it is my responsibility. I have been teaching health and exercise since 2003. For many of those years in my own personal life, I undervalued simple nutrition concepts and exercise consistency. I now eat a well-balanced diet of vegetables, fruit, lean proteins, complex carbohydrates, and healthy fats. Of course, I’m not perfect, over this last weekend I consumed over 20 chocolate chip cookies. I had to, my daughter made them for father’s day. But I didn’t kick myself, I realized what I did and how I felt 🤢 and I’m moving on. I did throw the last 4 in the trash. 🤫

For many years, I believed you had to be on a diet to lose weight. But our partner dietitian, Jessika Brown, taught me otherwise. With her approach, the Fuel Plan, I became a more intuitive eater. I now consume food for taste, how I feel, and for fueling purposes. I do this about 90% of the time. Like I said earlier, I still love anything sweet!!

Early in the pandemic, I got on board with tracking my food to make sure I hit my daily goals. The fuel plan helped set up those goals and tracking methods. We now have an app in beta testing that is allowing full tracking capabilities. This has been 2 years in the making!

The Fuel Plan helped me lose 12 lbs of body fat and gain 2 lbs of muscle since December 2019. I went back to the “My Fitness Pal” app and saw my heaviest was in March of 2017, I was 208 lbs. For years I struggled to get and stay below 200 lbs. I tried many things, mostly because I thought it could not be as simple as a balanced diet approach. There had to be another way that made things a lot more complicated than it should be.

I also established a schedule that consisted of daily exercise, whether it was a home gym workout. Or maybe an indoor bicycle ride, I made time to workout. Of course, there were many times I told myself that I would get a double workout the next day. But I created a schedule for myself that led me to be more consistent, and not skip a day. Now, that daily habit is ingrained and the momentum keeps pushing me forward. 

Education and Teachers are Undervalued

Did you try to be a homeschool teacher? I did and I was only successful at PE. Luckily we had some great online curriculum for my daughters. And we are fortunate it was taught by some great teachers that were also learning a new way of teaching.

I learned that for my daughters, the classroom is necessary. They are able to engage with others and have teacher help when needed. This is something you can’t get behind a screen. I thank all the teachers that had to make a significant change in their methods of teaching. I know what you do is priceless!

Time is Precious

While spending more time at home around my family and some friends, I began to feel an appreciation for the time I have. I became more present in the moments I was around them, which forced me to put down my phone and live my life. I created activities that we could all do. From buying my little one a new bike to restoring a wrecked Xterra so we can spend more time outdoors. I found ways to be around more. I did many home projects that led to having a more organized household. My backyard project was my most recent and it brings the entire family together outside! These are moments that I will never forget. 

Value Those Around You

I have great people around me every day. I have a wonderful staff of coaches that are absolutely amazing people to work with. They inspire me when I see them help people live a healthier life. They truly care about helping others and they want to share your success.  

I value the friendships I have. Whether it is spending time with friends on the trail or talking about life around a campfire, these relationships are treasured. Having real conversations over the phone became more common in 2020/21. I truly appreciate these conversations as they helped me become a better person.

One thing I know about myself, I love being around positive people! And I love encouraging others to strive for success. This is what makes me happy!

Adventure is necessary

Growing up, I spent countless hours in the outdoors. Between camping, fishing, and hunting I spent several weeks per year living life beyond the gym wall. Last year, we got back to my roots and starting venturing out to the outdoors more often.

Also, getting on a new bike last year was a blessing. It had been over a decade since I owned a new bike. And last summer, World Cup Downhill Champion Aaron Gwin approached Jon Jones and me about sponsorship from his factory team. Intense Cycles became our bike sponsor. I was beyond excited to get a new bike and express the skills I have been working on for quite some time.

Getting out on the trails with friends and members over the last year has been amazing. Our rides are always open for those that want adventure. We call these rides “Rowdy Ranchero” thanks to our longtime client Tim. This is because we love going downhill more than up! Just email me if you are ever interested in these weekly rides.

What’s Next

I will continue to educate through writing and videos via our YouTube Channel. We will be providing more education to our members via online learning and in-person workshops. So far this year, we had a successful ladies night out Self Defense Class and we launched our online nutrition program. If you want any information on how we can help you, just email me at lawrence@theperformanceranch.com

I am looking forward to helping many more people reach their goals. With the Performance Ranch coaches and programs, we can help many more people live a healthy life!