Tag Archives: healthy lifestyle

Fall Reset

Hope you had a wonderful Labor Day Weekend! It’s known as the “unofficial” last weekend of summer. I don’t know about you, but I am ready for Fall and I’m ready for a reset. I have had a fun-filled summer, including several camping trips, a road trip to Nashville & Mississippi and an amazing Alaskan Cruise! If you said that I may have over-indulged a bit, you would be right. If I can be a little vulnerable with you, my jeans are feeling a little tight right about now ~ it’s definitely time for me to get back on track!

Fall is also “Back to School” time. When I was growing up, I always loved starting school after a long summer vacation (I also loved getting new school supplies, and to this day I love getting new office supplies … but I digress). In hind sight, I think it’s because I now know that I do well having a steady routine. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy the freedom that comes from having a break (summer vacation), I am truly at my best in a more structured routine.

In adulthood, I see so many similarities. When I’m on vacation or during the summer months, I truly enjoy the many freedoms – less hectic schedules, laid back/carefree atmosphere, as well as, food and adult beverage indulgences. However, once Fall starts rolling around, I am more than ready to get back to a regular routine.

I, of course, rely on my Isagenix products to give me the best nutrition while I lose pounds and inches. I get the complete nutrition that my body needs to thrive in a low-calorie meal. I know this program works if I follow the guidelines. If I go back to making really unhealthy choices, of course I will gain weight back (as with any other weight loss program) … follow the program = get results ? Go back to the way you used to eat = you go back to where you were (or worse).

Eat like crap = feel like crap

What’s frightening about our diets is that most of the population consumes foods laden with additives, hormones, pesticides, herbicides and preservatives just to name a few. Yes, eating an organic diet is a great start to avoiding these health-hazardous chemicals, but it is actually more than simply ingesting the chemicals that should concern us. Our topsoil, the fundamental component to growing nutritious foods, is nearly depleted of all its former nutrients. So, what does this mean? We are left with foods that contain significantly less vitamins and minerals. We need vitamins and minerals to support our bodily functions in every aspect; without them, the body is left much more susceptible to disease and illness.

Unfortunately, we cannot avoid toxins altogether (unless you live in a bubble), but there are ways of cleansing the body to help rid of the toxicity that we are exposed to daily. This is where our intermittent fasting with nutritional support (cleanse days) comes into play. When our body is exposed to a toxin, it acknowledges the toxin as ‘foreign’ and it either expels or stores the toxin within a fat cell. Our Cleanse for Life product helps the cell release these toxins so the body can naturally eliminate them … aka cellular cleansing. Of course, this is oversimplifying it, but Isagenix has tons of scientific reports that explain it thoroughly (if you are a scientific report reading type of person, I will get them for you)

So, consider all the diet pop/soda consumed by our society today. I can only guess that people drink ‘diet’ anything because they think they are doing a good thing by avoiding excess calories. Yes, aspartame and sucralose are zero calorie sweeteners, but they may just pack on more fat than any soda drink derived of real sugar because your body has zero idea what to do with that zero calorie sweetener; so, into the fat cell it goes and there it will stay until you learn how to remove it. On a side note, even if you make no other changes to your diet, I hope you figure out a way to NOT drink pop/soda. They have no nutritional value, and tons of toxins … Your body will thank you!

How about you? Are you feeling like you want to get into a healthy routine – get back on track? Ready for a reset? I know I have the tools I need to get back on track and I know they can help you too!

If you’ve been curious about Isagenix, now is the perfect time to find out for yourself. Jump on the wagon with a huge group of people (online) who are offering to coach, encourage and inspire you! Getting started is simple (plus, I am offering free shipping for a limited time) ~ Call me!!

GUT HEALTH is Everything!!

The Gut/Brain connection is undeniable. The gut is literally like our second brain. Gut health is tremendously important when dealing with brain function. About 90% of your serotonin (happy hormone) is produced in your gut, melatonin (which helps you sleep) is produced in your gut, and about 70% of your immune system is in your gut.

Understanding gut health, along with infections, food allergies and intolerances, the gluten issue, bacterial overgrowth, yeast, heavy metal and chemical toxicity, hormone imbalance, high cortisol levels due to chronic stress, etc. is the key to living a life of good brain and body health.

I’ve learned that our SAD diet (Standard American Diet) promotes chronic disease by producing chronic inflammation in our bodies. Our food is literally making us sick in the brain resulting in a myriad of symptoms… what are yours?

Brain fog? Problems with memory? Forgetfulness?
Depression? Trouble sleeping?
Anxiety? Stress? Gastrointestinal issues?
Emotional, Psychological or Behavioral symptoms?

The simple system of nutrition that Isagenix offers works as a foundation for overall wellness and addresses these issues by delivering efficient and convenient nutrition, tackling toxicity and managing stress in the body. Along with our probiotics and digestive enzymes, it is no wonder that thousands upon thousands of people report feeling better than they ever thought possible. What may have started as a weight loss journey for some, has become a celebration of health and wellness that goes way beyond a number on the scale.

This article offers ideas to improve your gut health. Check it out! I would love to discuss this further … let me know when is the best time for us to talk.

We Are Happy Campers !!

Our New Home Away from Home

We did it! We finally bought a new (to us, anyway) camper! We did our walk through and took possession of it this morning! We are the proud owners of a 2015 KZ Sportsmen S302BH Travel Trailer! Eek! I feel like my emotions are all over the place ~ like a combination of excitement & anxiety!

Since I’m not sure if you regularly read my blog posts, or this is your first one, I’ll recap some of the story leading up to today. We first started camping about 10 years ago. That first year, we camped in a tent. We had a lot of fun, but it is also a lot of work. I also figured out that I’m not a big fan of sleeping on the ground ?

The next year, we bought a used pop-up trailer. We loved that we could store all the camping gear / supplies we needed in the camper … not to mention sleeping in a bed. It was also nice to have a warm, dry place to hang out during rainy weather. We owned our pop-up for 5 years and usually went camping 4 or 5 weekends a year.

I think its human nature to want what you don’t have. Like after tent camping for a season, I wanted a bed off the ground. Then after 5 years of having a bed off the ground, not to mention a warm/dry space to play games or read a book on wet/dreary days, we wanted to have a bathroom.

So, the next year we bought a small travel trailer. We actually bought it on eBay. There were plenty of pictures and the owner was prompt in answering my questions. I placed a bid and then set the auto bid feature that stops when the auction hits our price limit. Then I sort of forgot about it until I got an email informing me that we won the auction. We were so excited!! ~ that is, until we got it home ☹ But that’s another story for another time (or you can read it here now if you want).

We only used that trailer for one camping season. If you’ve read the story, you know that purchase left me feeling taken advantage of and not so trusting. However, we knew that we loved camping and that we loved owning a camper. That summer, we learned the basics of owning a travel trailer. We also used our camping trips as a time to scope out other campers at our campgrounds, making lots of notes of what we liked and didn’t like. We ended up selling that camper in the fall and started saving money for the perfect camper.

For two summers, we cabin camped. It’s a lot more work than camping in a travel trailer. Think of it like tent camping except with a roof over your head.

We knew we need a bigger, more powerful vehicle to tow the type of camper we wanted, so we saved to buy our Yukon Denali. Then we started looking for a trailer that fit our tow capabilities. Lots of online browsing until I found a few that checked off most of our wish list boxes. We went to see them, and we fell in love with one. We thought the asking price was a tad high for a used model. It was the middle of RV Show season and most dealers usually offer great discounts. But we really liked this one, so we made a lower offer and they accepted it ?

Our camper has a large slide.
Outdoor kitchen on our new camper.
Looking forward to making great memories in our camper.
Our new camper is nice and roomy.

Today, we dotted all the i(s) and crossed all the t(s). We are now the proud owners of a 2015 KZ Sportsmen. While we were having our walk-through, we had them install a new weight distribution hitch on the Denali. We can’t wait to go on our maiden voyage, hopefully in May.

? Now to find the perfect campground …

My Health Journey ~ These Hangers Tell A Story

As June is coming to a close, I’ve been thinking about the past year quite a bit. June marks my one-year anniversary of improving my health through changes in my nutrition.

As you probably know I actually started my health journey in January of 2016. I was very overweight (yes, obese) and quite unhealthy. I had high blood pressure and my Dr. told me I was on a fast path to Type 2 diabetes if I didn’t make changes soon. Continue reading →

Tracy Helps You is Celebrating 5 Years of Business

Happy Anniversary to us !!

Today, March 21, is our anniversary 🙂 It’s hard to believe that Tracy Helps You is celebrating 5 years of being in business! I still remember all the time I spent dreaming and researching that cold winter season. I talked to many friends for their thoughts about starting a business. There were as many ideas as there were people I talked to (no surprise there). I would bounce ideas off anyone who would listen. Finally, I had the general idea of what my business would be, I wanted to help people.

Then came even more challenging decisions to make … not the least of which was the name of my business. My cousin was helping me brainstorm, I had a long list of possible names that we narrowed down to three I really liked. Of course, we then discovered that the domain name was not available for any of those 🙁 It was like 11pm, both of us beyond tired, we were at our wit’s end … We were like “how many other ways could we phrase “Tracy helps you” ?? Then a lightbulb went on … that’s it – Tracy Helps You !! I loved the sound of it, the domain was available, it was available on all the social media platforms … It was meant to be – Tracy Helps You was born on that cold night back in 2013.

Then came weeks and months of learning how to run a business (I love that learning is an ongoing process) and all things entrepreneurial. So many decisions needed to be made … so many things to learn.

Over the past few years, I’ve added and eliminated some services that I’ve offered. Two years ago, I added Virtual Assistant services. This year, I am adding Health & Wellness Advocate services as another area that Tracy Helps You can be of service.

As many of you know, I started on my “getting healthy” journey about 2 years ago. It started out with a weight loss goal and has now expanded into a yearning to live a healthy lifestyle. I’ve lost a lot of weight (still a little more to go), I try to choose real / natural foods (whenever possible) without all the chemical & preservatives. I feel my health is more important than the convenience of pre-packaged foods. I use intermittent fasting to cleanse my body of some of the environmental toxins. I walk at least a mile every day to incorporate more activity in my day. I feel fantastic, better than I have is more than a decade. I want to “help” everyone to feel as good as I do!

As a Health & Wellness Advocate, I plan to help by coming alongside you and “help you” as an accountability partner and give encouragement. I can help you with meal planning. I can share ideas for ways to burn calories doing fun activities. Since I have experience with several well-known weight loss systems, I feel I can help guide you. I can also coach you in my nutritional system, Isagenix. It has programs geared to help with Weight Wellness, Healthy Aging and Athletic Performance.

So now, Tracy Helps You can help in three different areas:

as a Personal Assistant
as a Health & Wellness Advocate
as a Virtual Assistant ?

Tracy Helps You

~ A Personal Assistant Can Be A Real Lifesaver ~