Denice Murray Health Coaching

I am SOOOO guilty when it comes to sitting my butt on the couch (or in my chair) after a long day. Whether your job is more mental, physical, in an office, work from home, SAHM, on your feet all day, or whatever, after a long day doing ANYTHING , it’s difficult to find the willpower or motivation to get yourself up and moving again.        To help make sure you’re getting the movement you need throughout the day, I have 3 key recommendations. 1.  Schedule time into your calendar and guard that time like it is a sacred ritual.   Now, does this sound dramatic? Yeah, a bit.  But for some people, this is what needs to be done in order to make it work.  I have clients who treat their exercise time as a non-negotiable part of their day, and someone better be bleeding or missing a digit to disturb that time. If this fits your personality type, or if you’re the kind of busy mom who deeply needs to schedule each part of your day to make sure you’re getting...

I’ve been harping on CONSISTENCY for the last few days when it comes to changing your health and wellness and meeting your goals. But. I would like to address another aspect of creating healthy habits, reaching goals, and changing your health. And that is Starting Small . What?? Yep, that’s right. Starting Small . I’m going to hop up on my soap box for a minute and give a little rant, so just bear with me. It gets a lot more attention when you have a headline like, “Learn the Super Secrets of Changing Your Life, Losing the Weight for Good, and Becoming a Vixen Your Husband Can’t Resist.” You want to read that article or watch that video.  Even I want to read that! And then it tells you to workout for 75 minutes, 3 times per day at high intensity, while drinking aloe juice mixed with exotic spices from the highest mountain tops of the Andes 5 times per day. Eat only organic seaweed, sea bass, and a special blend of crushed herbs from the jungles of Burma, and bathe in...

“Have Six-Pack Abs in 10 Days!” “Lose 33 Pounds in 15 Days!” “Get The Body Of Your Dreams In 6 Weeks!” Any of this sound familiar? Those are just some of the headlines I’ve seen in magazines or on websites over the years. Heck, probably just in the last month! And while there is nothing wrong with wanting six-pack abs, to lose 33 pounds, or to have a dream beach body, the TRUE cost of getting those things is a lot greater than you think. There are definite benefits to striving for such a goal, but there are also many trade-offs as well. It’s also important to understand that there are also many different levels of fitness, not just Overweight & Pudgy to Totally Ripped . Several key factors when it comes to getting ripped include nutrition, activity level, sleep, stress, work, personal time, and your social life. If you work 12-hour shifts (work), have children who rely on you (personal time), volunteer in your community or church (social life), have a sick family memb...

Why is it so hard to improve our healthy habits? To make better choices? To take the necessary steps to live healthier, happier lives? Maybe it's because you don't know what to do. You've never been taught the true fundamentals of nutrition and physical activity. There's a TON of information out there - some of it accurate and some of it not so much. Maybe you're confused. With the plethora of diets and fitness programs out there, maybe you don't even know where to begin. Is Keto right for you? What about Weight Watchers? Fitness class, yoga, or just walking in your neighborhood? Strength training, or no? If so, how much should you be lifting? Most of us have at least an IDEA of what we should be doing. We know we probably eat too much processed food, too much sugar, salt, and unhealthy fats. We know we're not getting enough fruits, vegetables, whole grains and lean protein with each meal. We also know we're not moving our bodies enough - we are more sed...

For anyone trying to live a healthier lifestyle or lose weight, there’s no denying that exercise is considered a KEY step in that process. In fact, some may argue it’s THE most important step to getting healthy and staying fit. But for some, like ME, I’m not into exercise. I may go for walks. I may stretch when I’m sore and tight. I might even bike or swim when it’s for fun. But I have to FORCE myself to get in any movement that is considered exercise (any movement outside of pleasure, fun, or relaxation). There are tons of reasons people don’t actually like exercising – bad experiences in the past (body shaming), pain (injuries or illness), discomfort (difficulty breathing or getting sweaty), exercise feels like a chore or punishment, or you just don’t identify as an exercise-type. And although exercise is great for your body, not everyone gets the “rush” from exercising like some people do. I can personally say that I have NEVER had the “runner’s high” – the rush of endorphins...

We all do it.  I know I’m guilty.  Go for a 2-mile walk in the evening, come home feeling great, and then see a post on FB of someone training for a 5k Run and think, “Gah! They are so much better than me! I should be running more/exercising more/working harder/etc.” Well, newsflash to me – I have knee problems and I'm not supposed to be doing ANY running (unless being chased by something!). So, why would I do that to myself? Compare myself to a person who DOESN’T have knee issues and actually LIKES to run, whereas I’ve NEVER liked running, even when I was perfectly capable of doing it?! Everyone working on their health and wellness, at some point, has thought other people were doing better than them, that their efforts weren’t enough, or they can’t quite seem to get where they want to be like so-and-so does. So, if comparing ourselves to others is a normal part of human nature, how do we stop doing that and focus on feeling good about ourselves? Here are a few ways to...

When you have health and wellness goals, your expectations can determine whether you reach those goals or not. Everyone wants wow-worthy results, be it weight loss, body re-composition (toning and tightening), better sleep, or managing your stress, but having unrealistic expectations can lead to giving up entirely. Meeting your health, nutrition and wellness goals comes with trade-offs. That’s simply the reality of changing your behaviors and habits. And unless you are able to understand the trade-offs and set your expectations accordingly, you are setting yourself up to be disappointed. Let’s use stress management and yoga as an example. It’s been proven that a regular yoga practice helps reduce stress, reduces anxiety, improves mental health, and can improve your quality of life – along with numerous physical benefits like increased flexibility, strength, balance, boosted immunity, and better sleep . But what does it take to achieve the FULL benefits of doing yoga? Five minu...

You REALLY want to lose 20 pounds. You’re exhausted all the time and pounding Red Bull or coffee to make it through your day. You can’t walk up a flight of stairs without stopping to catch your breath. Any of this sound familiar? You’ve tried to make changes to your health in the past, but nothing seems to stick. The motivation is there. The desire is there. All the logical reasons for WHY working on your health is a GREAT idea are there! But you still can’t make it stick. You’re not getting your 5 servings of fruit and vegetables every day. You’re not getting enough (or ANY) physical activity. You’re not sleeping well at night. Now might be the time to look a little deeper into WHY your efforts are falling short. It could be any of these possible reasons.  T here is something Specific that is a problem behavior.   Ex. Mindless snacking throughout the day or late at night; binge eating on the weekends; dropping onto the couch at night and not getting up again or bi...

Yes, I said it! If you are not used to living a lifestyle where nutrition, movement, and stress management are a regular and routine part of your life, it’s hard to get there. That’s why it’s so important to build a health and wellness routine that fits your current situation. But you have to be ready. It will be that much harder if you’re not prepared. It’s important to start with a few essential questions. What’s Important to You RIGHT NOW? Is it losing weight? Longevity? Treating a medical condition? Improving your body composition? Strength or Flexibility? Better nutrition? The things that are most important to you will determine what you’re willing to put the most effort into. For me, I’m more interested in improving my nutrition and eating habits. I know I will be putting food into my body at least 3 times per day, and it’s more important to me to work on my eating habits than it is to focus on fitness. I’m already fairly active, and even though another area I want to...

You’re on a health journey. You want to lose weight/build strength/improve your eating habits/whatever the case may be. You’ve talked to your spouse, your co-workers, your family, your friends. They ALL know you’re working on making healthy changes in your life. And for a while, things are good. The first couple of weeks your family is fine when you make grilled chicken with steamed broccoli and brown rice for dinner a few times. The junk food is mostly gone and has been replaced with a fridge full of fresh fruits and veggies, string cheese, and Greek Yogurt cups. Overnight Oats has become the go-to breakfast in the mornings, and lunches are pre-made salads, wraps, or dinner leftovers. You’re finding the time to exercise regularly, but conflicts are starting to pop up. Dinner is becoming an issue. Not enough variety for the family and not having processed snacks available is wearing on your household’s nerves. Your co-workers continue to bring unhealthy snacks for the breakroom –...

Fats have gotten a bad reputation over the years.  For most of my childhood, teenage years, and even into early adulthood, I was taught that fats are bad for you, they make you gain weight, and it’s best to cut them out as much as possible – hence the rise of “fat-free” products that litter the grocery store shelves. But as nutrition research continues to develop, recent studies have shown that fats, are in fact, very good for you and necessary. Fats ARE essential for a healthy diet! It just depends on what type of fat you’re consuming whether they are helping your body or harming it. They can either cause disease in the body or help prevent it. The 2 main kinds of fats are Saturated Fats and Unsaturated Fats. Saturated Fats usually come from animal sources (meats and dairy products) and are solid at room temperature (think cooled bacon grease). The exception to this is Coconut Oil or Palm Oil, which are also saturated fats. Unsaturated Fats come from vegetables, nuts and...

New Blog. New Adventure. I started the journey of becoming a health and wellness coach over a year ago. My reasons were simple. My husband was diagnosed with Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension, and I wanted to find a way to help him ease the burdens of not only his disease, but also the side effects of the medications he will now have to take for the rest of his life. And let me assure you, the side effects of these medications are worse than the disease itself. PH is no picnic, but the side effects ravage his body on a daily basis. The good news from all of the bad news we've faced in the last couple of years is that his body weight directly correlates with the amount of medication he has to take. So the more weight he can lose, the less medication he has to take and the less severe the side effects are. And that leads me back to health coaching. I wanted to find a way to help him effectively lose weight, but also help myself get in better shape and have more energy to deal with the ...

Hello. I took this week's post from an article I read from Precision Nutrition . I am a huge nerd and love learning about my topic of choice when it includes graphs, charts, research studies, etc.! So this information was super fun for me to read about. The author of this piece is Brian St. Pierre and compiled by Adam Campbell. I hope you find the information useful on your health and wellness journey.  "Here’s a fun chart, courtesy of some clever scientists in the Netherlands. It tracks changes in people’s average daily energy expenditure from 1900’s to the early 2000’s. But to make it interesting (this is why they’re clever), the researchers also plotted the widespread adoption of both time-saving and time-wasting technology. The finding: there’s been a 60 to 70 percent reduction in total daily energy expenditure over the last century . In a previous study, the same scientists calculated that actors at a historical theme park set 150 years ago were 1.6 to 2.3 times more ac...