Denice Murray Health Coaching

“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...

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...

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...

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...

I read a really interesting article this week on the concept of Slow Eating , or Mindful Eating . Not gonna lie, at first, I thought the idea was kind of woo-woo. Mostly because I've spent most of my life in a hurry and trying to shove food in my mouth as fast as I can so I could either get to my next "thing" that I needed to be doing, or to get whatever delicious food I was eating scarfed down so I could eat MORE. Not to mention for the past few years I've been dealing with 3 teenagers who stuff their faces as fast as possible, and there was a good chance I might not get to eat at all if I didn't hurry. But the more I've learned as I studied health coaching, as well as working on my own personal wellness journey, the more Mindful Eating kept popping up in my classes and in my research. It almost sounds too simple to be effective. Eat slowly. Ummm....okay? Why? What does eating slowly do for your body? Well, based on research from the University of Rhode Isla...

My post last week was an introduction into the concept of the Six Dimensions of Wellness. This week, I wanted to discuss one of those dimensions: Physical Wellness . I don’t know about you, but when I think of health or wellness, this is the first area that pops into my head. Exercise. Nutrition. Those are the main two items when I think Physical Wellness . If I were to go into other areas of this dimension, I might think about hydration, sleep quality, a strong immune system to help me fight or prevent infections or diseases. But the main two topics of Physical Wellness – Exercise and Nutrition – provide hundreds, if not thousands of areas to explore. The definition of Physical Wellness, according to Dr. Hettler and the National Wellness Institute is as follows: “The physical dimension recognizes the need for regular physical activity. Physical development encourages learning about diet and nutrition while discouraging the use of tobacco, drugs, and excessive alcohol con...

When talking about health and wellness, the first thing that pops into most people’s heads are eating healthy, being physically active (exercising), staying hydrated, maybe stress management, or even sleep quality. I did a search on Pinterest to see what popped up and found topics that included hormone balancing, gut health, tips for boosting energy, mental health improvements, and even acupressure points to try on yourself to improve your overall wellbeing. All of these topics have their place on the health and wellness journey. And since each person’s journey is unique to them, it might leave you wondering, where do I start? What aspects of my overall health and wellbeing do I want to look at first? And it might surprise you what topics are out there that might not have occurred to you yet. I know when I started studying Health and Wellness, it sure opened my eyes. One of the first things I learned about was a concept by Dr. Bill Hettler, co-founder of the National Wellness I...