Alicia has been into athletics since middle school. Now and then she would fit in a few sprint triathlons. Here we are, decades later, and Alicia runs marathons for enjoyment. For a long time, her main form of accountability to move daily was to have a race on her calendar. Eventually, though, that motivation began to lose integrity for her. Alicia realized she was running toward a season of life where she wanted authenticity, knowledge and a partnership wrapped up into her accountability.
Authenticity, Meet Accountability
Alicia reached out to Jeremiah Williams at OPEX Lancaster, because the Williams family used to be her neighbors. While living next door to Jeremiah, his wife Kim, and their three boys, she observed their lifestyle. “I saw Jeremiah and Kim being active and healthy and living it out. I watched them doing workouts in the backyard and also encouraging their kids to do the same. So, I knew they had a passion to help others do the same thing.” At the time, she wasn’t ready to join any gym, but knew when she was ready, she’d contact Jeremiah.
Alicia discovered OPEX Lancaster’s 12 Week Experience, and after her free phone consultation with Jeremiah, she signed up. Alicia recalls that first phone conversation with Jeremiah. He heard where she was at, as an active woman, while also hearing where she wanted to go with her goals. That’s when Jeremiah paired Alicia with Coach Kim Williams.
“I know a little about a lot of stuff including physical activity, athletics and nutrition. At times I struggle to understand how best to put that into practice for myself. What I like about meeting with Kim is that I can let her know what my goals are and what I’d like to accomplish, then she programs my workouts around my goals,” said Alicia.
Today, long after her 12-Week Experience ended, Alicia is still showing up to her onsite workouts three times a week and exercising at home two times a week. “I decided to keep my membership going because I was seeing positive results and I really appreciate the accountability.”
Knowledge To Grow By
Alicia admits to workaholic tendencies, and that’s exactly why she books her onsite training time for 5:30pm. “I leave my office by 5pm, and it helps keep me more focused,” said Alicia. She is also partnering with Kim to refine her nutrition. As a runner, she desires to match her nutrition with her strength and endurance goals. One particular focus for Alicia is eating more natural sources of protein daily. “I’m practicing meal prepping. I grocery shop on Saturday and then prep my meals on Sunday.
Throughout the week I keep a list of what I’m running low on and what I need to buy.” One of my go-to snacks is a homemade turkey and cheese wrap or apples with almond butter. My balance is a work in progress, and I’m focusing on making the room to continue growing in my desired goals,” said Alicia. Alicia’s career is not a sit-down job, and sometimes she needs to lift heavy items. One day while lifting a heavy item up to her chest level, she realized that it was much easier than ever before. The functional fitness she’s been doing daily is a benefit to her life. Currently, Alicia is training for a five-mile race, and she has noticed her energy level and core strength is improving the enjoyment of her training runs outside of the gym. In general, the effort Alicia is putting into managing her lifestyle and desire for health and activity is matching her reality – on the job and in her hobbies.
Looking At Fitness Differently
“Putting nutrition and daily fitness together have a great combined effect for me, “says Alicia. And, over time her view of fitness has changed. She discovered there isn’t a cookie cutter approach to fitness. There is value in working with a coach, who helps her pivot and encourages her when life gets busy. There’s a consistency in the unknown because her coach is knowledgeable in functional fitness, nutrition and just being human. Plus, there’s an authentic community within the OPEX Lancaster gym environment. Combined, these attributes have Alicia continuing for the long run.
Alicia’s Protein Packed Simple Recipes
Turkey and Cheese Wrap
1 cheese stick
Turkey Slices
Wrap the turkey around the cheese and munch away on a healthy form of protein and fat with other good stuff like vitamin D, B6, calcium, selenium and zinc.
Almond Butter Apples
1-2 Tbsp of Almond Butter
1 Sliced Apple
Scoop out the almond butter. Slice your apples. Eat responsibly. Nutritional impact includes carbohydrates, protein, fat, B-complex, vitamin C and E, fiber, calcium, zinc and manganese.
Red Lentil Pasta with Tomato Sauce and Fresh Basil
1 box of Red Lentil Pasta
1 jar of Organic Tomato Sauce
Fresh Basil
Cook pasta according to box instructions. Warm up tomato sauce. Chop up some fresh basil. Add your own simple ingredients for your pallet. Mix together and enjoy.
Red lentil pasta is packed with 22 grams of protein per serving. Tomato sauce is loaded with vitamins and minerals and immunity boosters like antioxidants.