February News and the MIND Diet

Happy February!! A month of Valentine's, black history, Groundhog Day, and you guessed it.... TRANSFORMATION! We loved watching your progress whether through Transform 30, Transform at Home, and weekly Wellness sessions with Lea.
The year is just getting started though! This month at TransFit we are excited to begin our Iron Sharpens Iron Challenge. The  challenge is based on the verse Proverbs 2, "As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend." We want to embody this verse and lift each other up in our accomplishments and help each other along the way to our goals!

We will have notecards that can be filled out after any class! If you would like a partner, we can also help you find an accountability friend!!

Important Nutrition Information 
The MIND Diet for Alzheimer's Prevention
The Mind diet focuses on improving brain health and preventing the onset of Alzheimer's by cutting out foods that are linked to slower cognitive activity in the brain. Alzheimer's is a progressive and devasting neurodegenerative disease that causes memory loss and confusion. 
MIND stands for Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay and is a hybrid of the Mediterranean and DASH diets! It is a plant-based diet that limits the intake of animal products high in saturated fats. A big tendancy in this diet is a high consumption level of berries and leavy green veggies. Health benefits from foods in this diet include: lower stress levels, lower inflammation, AND slower aging.
When our bodies lack antioxidants we need, oxidative stress occurs and the body can no longer fight toxic molecules in the body. This ultimately causes cell damage in the brain and throughout the body!! Several diseases such as cancer and Alzheimer's are closely liinked to this!
SO... here are some of the BEST and WORST foods for the MIND Diet:
BEST:
- green leafy vegetables
- Nuts
- Berries
- Beans
- Fish
- Poultry
- Olive Oil
- Wine (no more than 1 glass a day)

Foods to Limit:
- Red Meat
- Butter and margarine
- Cheese
- Sweets (brownies, ice cream, etc. No more than 5 servings a week)
- Fried or fast food (Try to only have one serving a week)

A tip to sticking to any diet is to remember it's all a balance! If you starve yourself from the things you love the most, you will eventually crave too much and break and binge! Just try and incorporate some of these habits into your day to day life and remember, we eat to feel good and fuel our bodies with HEALTHY nutrients!!

Tuesday Night Yoga

We now offer yoga Tuesday's at 6pm! Join us in studio for an awesome spiritual and physical growth and stretch!
Click here to see the full TV interview on Fox 5 News of Caroline and the DAWGS yoga!! Yoga is vitally important for all of us! 

Bible Study

Wednesdays at 12pm we are reading through Encountering God by Kelly Minter! These sessions are a knowledge packed hour. Please join us as we learn how to incorporate God in every aspect of our lives every day!

TransFit Girls

We are still having our TransFit Girls sessions every Wednesday from 4:00 - 4:30 taught by Chloe Friedle. You can sign your girls up on our app!

Rise Together 5K Meeting 

Join us to be apart of our 5k supporting ESP. Our 1st meeting will be Friday 10:45am. Come serve with us and make the Rise Together 5k the best yet! 

TransFit Oconee 

New Session Times and sessions, check out the app for schedule updates and email Katie Woodall for details! 

We are so proud of you all for staying strong throughout January and we can’t wait to see you all live transformed in February!💗 As always, you can sign up for classes on our FREE app!

We are here to serve you! If you have any questions or want to schedule a one-on-one session, please email us at transfitathens@gmail.com. 

Blessings,

Team TransFit

❤️ How Can You Live Heart Healthy in February?

Sweet friends,

Last week we had such an incredible time celebrating TransFit’s 3rd birthday! We loved your TransFit Spirit— you came dressed up and ready to work hard every day! We hope everyone was able to join us in the studio to celebrate and experience the fun!

Can you believe it’s already February? February is all about living heart healthy and committing to everything with our WHOLE HEARTS!

This month, we have an amazing deal for you all! You can get 10% off ALL one-on-one sessions with the code “WHOLEHEART”. Make sure you take advantage of this and schedule your session on our FREE app now!

Just like every month here at TransFit, this month is full of awesome events!

Lunch and Learn

This month’s lunch and learn will be held on Friday, February 22nd from 12 - 1 pm and will feature a self defense class! We will have lunch from The Pine. The cost is $15. Sign up on our app!

HIIT for your Heart

HIIT is such a great workout for heart health! Revive your metabolism with these fun, upbeat cardio workouts every Tuesday and Thursday at 9:30!

Bible Study

Pam will continue to lead us through the study of Esther this month! These sessions are from 12 - 1 on Thursdays. Please join us as we learn how to have the courage to commit!

TransFit Girls

We are still having our TransFit Girls sessions every Wednesday from 4:15 - 5:15! You can sign your girls up on our app!

Meet our new personal trainer, Eliza Harris!

“Hi TransFit Family! My name is Eliza Harris. I am a recent graduate of the University of Alabama (I know... I love the Bulldogs too)  where I studied exercise and sports science with concentrations in fitness, nutrition, and coaching. While at UA, I spent 3 years assisting with the strength and conditioning programs of various sports. Most recently I worked with the dance and gymnastics teams. I also earned my certification as a strength and conditioning specialist through the NSCA. 

My love for exercise started at a young age. I was a competitive gymnast for 7 years and then ran track for 3 years in high school doing the triple jump, long jump, and hurdling.  While in high school I began working a few hours a week at a gym where I taught a workout class to middle school girls as well as teaching gymnastics at the gym where I competed.  In college, I found that I missed being an athlete but I started to truly realize my passion for fitness and coaching. I knew that I wanted to pursue those areas as a full-time career, and the Lord has opened doors for me to make that a reality by working as a Personal Trainer at TransFit as well as a gymnastics coach.

I know that exercise has made such a difference in my life, not only physically but in all areas and I hope to help bring that to anyone that I get to serve in personal training.  2 Timothy 1:7 reminds us, "For God does not give us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind." That truth near to my heart and I hope to share my love of whole body health with you!  I will be in the studio teaching TransFormer and small group sessions and will be taking clients 1-1 or semi-private for specific goal achievement. 

I would love to help any young gymnasts, dancers, cheerleaders or female athletes of any kind get stronger for their specific sport. I have experience as a gymnast and a track athlete and have worked with athletes of various sports up to the college level. Whether high school, middle school or younger we can work to increase your sports performance or overall fitness through strength training and cardiovascular endurance training in a fun and safe way. Additionally, I would love to work with any college students to help you meet your fitness goals! 

I am so excited to be in Athens and look forward to being a part of the TransFit community.”

If you haven’t tried our Transformer Plate yet, grab one after your next session!

These delicious lunches are made by The Pine and have a delicious quinoa cake on top! They are $12 and you can pay with cash or we can charge your account.

In honor of heart health, we encourage you to exercise for at least 30 minutes every day this month! This calendar helps keep you accountable when you write down your exercise each day and color in each box RED! When you reach the end of the month, you want your entire calendar to be red!

You can download and print this calendar HERE or pick one up in the studio!

How AMAZING is our new prayer space? We wanted to provide you all with a comfortable area where you can come and spend time with the Lord. You can also submit your prayer requests here. We are so blessed to share this space with all of you!

We are so proud of you all for staying strong throughout January and we can’t wait to see you all live transformed in February! As always, you can sign up for classes on our FREE app!

We are here to serve you! If you have any questions or want to schedule a one-on-one session, please email us at transfitathens@gmail.com. 

Blessings,

Team TransFit

Why YOU Need Strength Training to Transform Your Body! Awesome Olympic HIIT Workout!

Happy Saturday, sweet friends!

We love seeing each of your smiling faces in the studio! Each day is one step closer in the right direction when you are staying accountable to your goals! Continue to strive for progress- this weekend! Come join us this morning at 8 AM or at 10 AM for our NEW Saturday session! Today, we want to share about the importance of strength training and a fun Olympics workout!

Strength training is just what your body needs to fight the loss of muscle, bone mass and strength that comes with age. Resistance bands and balls, hand weights, barbells, and even your own body weight can be used as resistance when designing a strength-training program. Even better, all that new muscle and strength pays off in a long-term boost to your metabolism, which helps keep your body lean and sculpted. Suddenly, dumbbells sound like a smart idea! Below are some extra benefits to help explain why we as women need to build strength training into our weekly fitness plan. 

Benefits of strength training for women:

• Improved body composition & increase lean body mass
• Increased metabolic efficiency (burn fat!)
• Increased bone density
• Decreased psychological stress 
• Increased energy levels and mood

Here is an awesome workout we want to share with YOU! This workout can be done anywhere and is great to take with you when you travel.

Let's work to finish this February strong! We know that you can achieve those goals you set at the beginning of the month. For more workouts, videos, recipes, and inspiration check out our app and website under the HEALTHY LIVING tab!

We want to invite you to save the date for our March Lunch and Learn with Peter Dale! The Lunch and Learn will be March 8 at 11 AM and we will meet at The National to hear more about the delicious and healthy power lunch! We hope you will join us! Sign up on the app! 

Let us know if there is anything we can do to help you! 

Blessings, 

Team TransFit

You are LOVED! 😍

Happy Valentine's Day, sweet friend! 

We hope that you feel so LOVED today! Take time to reflect on this verse from Song of Solomon. This is how the Lord feels about you! You are known and loved by Him! We are so thankful you are apart of our TransFit community of women encouraging each other. We want you to know how loved you are today! 

Let's make this our BEST February. Try these 3 goals each day in February! Let's finish February strong!  

1. Drink 80 ounces of water a day
2. Give a compliment each day
3. Exercise 30 minutes daily 

We believe in each of you and know that you can achieve each of these goals! Let's live faithfully fit this February! Continue to love your body by completing our February calendar challenge! We believe you can do it! 

Dark Chocolate Granola Bark

• 2 cups dark chocolate chips
• 1 cup Kroger Ancient Grain granola (or granola of your choice)
• 2 tsp. orange zest
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 cup dried tart cherries
• 1/4 tsp sea salt

Line baking sheet with wax paper. Melt chocolate. Stir in granola, zest and cinnamon. Spread out onto baking sheet and top with cherries and salt. Chill for 30 mins or until firm. Enjoy! 

We hope to see you in the studio the rest of the week! You can find fun, healthy Valentine's Day recipes on our past blogs and under the HEALTHY LIVING tab on our website! Click here for our recipes page! Don't forget about our Valentine's Day Merchandise SALE! Grab those gifts for your loved ones! 

If you have any questions, please email us at transfitathens@gmail.com. 

Blessings, 

Team TransFit

Check Out Our February Client Spotlight Kathy Cousart! Feel Inspired to LOVE your body!

Happy Monday! 

We are so proud of all of you who completed our TransFive Challenge! Thank you for committing to five days of no sugar and giving it your all! Let's start this week STRONG! Love your body today and take time to make a plan for your exercise and nutrition.

Today, we want to share a client spotlight that will encourage you on your transformation journey! 

I met sweet Kathy Cousart, years ago when I was a GymDog and she was the Assistant Golf Coach at Georgia. We did aerobics together in the old PE building on campus!  Little did I know, 20 years later our paths would cross again! God is so confirming and so good!  I love how He brings us all full-circle and connects us with special people who touch our lives deeply along the way! Each person that crosses your path today could be someone who inspires you and could possibly change your life- you never know what God has in store- but we can be sure His plan is so much greater than we can imagine! Kathy's story is so inspiring because no matter where you are on your health journey YOU CAN begin again and reach your goals.  She was was 5th in our Holiday Extravaganza Contest (love it..still a competitor...always ALL IN) and just told me about her new goals for 2018! Dream it, believe it, achieve it! 

 Kathy, thank you for sharing your story with us and for living transformed by doing everything with your whole heart!

I am so proud and happy to be a part of the community at Transfit. So very special to have finished in the top 5 of my first Transfit Challenge and appreciate the many connections to finding my way to work out there! My admiration and appreciation for Caroline goes back a long way to UGA Athletics. I was actually coaching Women’s Golf at the same time that Caroline was competing in Gymnastics. My Golf Team did aerobics and worked out with the Gymnastics Team and it was always a fun supportive environment all the way around. Loved it!

Fast forward with all the fabulous twists and turns of life and I am now a full-time successful Artist painting almost every day out of my Carriage House Studio right here in 5 Points. I had continued working out and being active over the years but had some issues with my torn Rotator Cuff. I need that arm and shoulder to paint daily so felt I sometimes had to make a choice and painting always won out. I needed a safe way to work out and get back to being strong and lose that bit of weight that has slowly crept on. 

I have been in that “sandwich” place for quite a few years with finishing raising up my daughters and getting them through with college and starting careers while also caring for my Mom and Mom in Law. It gets tough being a full-time caretaker and 11 years really took its toll on me….everyone and everything came first and I just was too tired and worn out to make myself any kind of a priority. I was busy beyond busy with being a full-time caretaker, my art career taking off and beautiful grandchildren beginning to make an appearance. Blessings like I have never known along with some “hards.”  Life. 

I believe that my art and painting came to me at just that right time.   I was watching my Ph.D. Mom- the smartest woman I have ever known - struggle through a battle with Severe Vascular Dementia. I found that my art and painting was such a gift and place of peace to go to escape that sadness.  As my Mom needed full-time care, it was important to me to be there while she still “knew” me and care for her.  I learned the most important lessons I think I will ever learn about myself during that time and was such a gift. She remains the kindest person I have ever known and I try so hard to be that kind every single day.   

Over a year ago….Within a 9 month span….I wound up losing not only my Mom and my younger brother 6 weeks later but two other family members and finally my big sister best friend Meg.   It was a huge wake-up call to taking care of yourself and being strong enough to fight whatever fight comes your way.   

With all of that in mind and circling back….I had heard amazing things from several friends about Transfit and started going.   As with almost everyone there…..that last few minutes of stretching out and taking a moment to appreciate that we are here and embracing this day gets me every time.   I can’t say enough about how knowledgeable Caroline is.   I have always been pretty lucky and able to eat anything I wanted with my level of activity and good genes.   I finally understood to watch carbs at my age—-I can’t quite process them like I used to could.   I learned to eat a healthy snack when hungry and to make better choices.   I learned to LOVE water….what a difference when you listen to your body and really re-fuel it with healthier options. 

I have changed so much with being at Transfit…it’s a positive and uplifting environment with gals of all ages encouraging each other along this journey.  My tastes have completely changed and it’s a lifestyle now——with healthy options to satisfy that sweet tooth.   I want to know that I am doing all I can to take better care of myself and able to be all that my grandbabies want me to be.

I want to be strong for whatever comes my way. I want to be strong to be able to carry around my grandchildren who trust I will catch or carry them at their whim. I want to feel as good as I do working out at Transfit and being surrounded by everyone else there working on their own journey. It’s an amazing place and always a supportive environment. I have loved reading everyone else stories and am inspired by every single person there each day. I have always believed that anyone can do anything they set their mind to….if they want it bad enough and work hard enough. If I can do this….so can you!

Kathy, we are so proud of you! Ladies, may we all feel inspired by Kathy's story! Let's make this week count!  Keep pushing yourself to get active every day this month! Send us your February calendar challenges at the end of the month! 

We are also offering two NEW session times! Starting tonight, we will now have a 7:15 PM session and we will offer a Saturday at 10 AM session starting February 24! Come join us! Sign up on the app HERE! Also, don't forget you can always find FREE recipes, workouts, inspiration, and videos on our website and app! 

If you have any questions, please email us at transfitathens@gmail.com. 

Blessings, 

Team TransFit

Are You Up For the Challenge?! FREE 5 day No Sugar Challenge Meal Plan to Start February Strong!

"Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men."

Colossians 3:23

We have had an amazing week here at the studio! Thank you for coming to help us celebrate TransFit's birthday! Let's start  February 2018 strong! We have talked about the importance of setting goals and now we want to commit to doing everything with our WHOLE hearts this month! Here's a goal for you...5 days no sugar!  I know you are rolling your eyes right now and think we are crazy... but we believe in you!  How about trying our 5 day NO SUGAR CHALLENGE (TransFIVE) starting Monday (yes...tomorrow)? The TransFit community and all friends will start the TransFIVE Challenge this Monday! Join in the challenge to eliminate sugar and feel your best going into February!  Download the (FREE today), plus be added to the TransFit Facebook group to join other ladies on this journey! We are stronger together!  You will find recipes, meal plans, inspiration, and a 5 day devotion to allow you to complete these 5 days! In honor of our birthday celebration, you can purchase the TransFive eBook for FREE! Let's do this as a TransFit community of strong women and hold each other accountable to having no sugar next week! 

We challenge you to join us for FIVE days of NO sugar! We believe you can do it! We want to remind you to sign up for your sessions in advance and meal prep today! Scheduling your workout in advance allows our trainers to have workouts set up specifically for you and provides you accountability if you sign up at the beginning of the week. 

We also have our February calendar challenge! We hope that you will join us for this challenge. The winner will receive a month of FREE sessions!  In order to win, you must fill out the calendar with your exercise each day and send it to us at the end of the month! Yes you can do it!  

This month we are also offering YOU a special - $180 Love Your Body All Access Pass. This pass will allow you to come to unlimited sessions for the entire month! You can purchase it on our FREE app HERE! If you have any questions, please email us at transfitathens@gmail.com. 

Blessings, 

Team TransFit