I can't believe how long it has been since I have written on my website BLOG... Yikes..
I realized tonight that it was time to get a few thoughts done on my blog.
I have been so grateful for the last few months ( starting in January) for joining the Heart & Sole Trail Running Group. I had been discouraged to do any running after coming down with Adrenal Fatigue after my Honolulu Marathon with Team in Training in 2001. I over-trained, gained 14 pounds of FAT, and just didn't feel good about the whole experience. It took me almost ten years to think about adding running back in.
I decided to give it a try again with the Heart & Sole group and have just been amazed at how my body & mind & spirit responded. I first of all know a lot more about the right kind of nutrition that my body needed along with cross-training to balance out my body this time around. My eating for the last few months has been very clean ( lots of organic food/ fruits/ veggies) etc. I even went 100% Vegan for the last six weeks and felt my energy/ endurance/ breathing increase in an amazing way. I am not sure if I will stick with this or occassionally have some wild fish and eggs from my vegetarian friend or go back to a 100% Vegan food plan for awhile longer. I have been able to keep my weight between 120-122 versus 144 when I did my marathon in 2001 and my endurance is so much stronger.
This training group has been incredible. We have about 20+ people in this group but I am so impressed with the connecting we have all been able to obtain through the training. It doesn't matter how fast or slow you are as a runner... the support is there... I have seen my endurance get stronger over the last three months. I am not a fast runner and that isn't necessarily my goal but to be a strong, endurance runner is more what I am looking for. I also feel my body has responded better this time around as I have been cross-training with Yoga, stretching, resistance training, core exercises, balance, power walks with the dogs, getting more sleep, and just taking better care of myself. I have also been working iwth an incredible team of people: Tina Dumbadse as my chiropractor and Linda Marshall for my weekly cranial sacral appts has also really helped.
Do I have the post race blues today? Yes.. I do a bit... What will be my NEXT Challenge?
I look forward to continuing to RUN... I plan on continuing with the Heart & Sole Training Group and meeting a few times per week for some shorter trail runs and then longer runs again on Sunday ( keeping up the cross-training) and seeing how my body responds.
The best part about yesterday during the challenging 15 Mile Race is being able to run along the same trail that my family recently let my grandfather's ashes sprinkle along. My grandfather won the Dipsea Race in 1939 and this was his passion ( to RUN) and he loved this trail. I really felt his spirit with me yesterday to keep me going .
Thank you all for letting me get all of this out. I hope to write more on my BLOG.
What are your own health & fitness goals ?
I am always here to support you ...

Animal Reiki at Whispering Willows Sanctuary in Santa Rosa just last week~

I have LOVED being around animals ever since I was little. I often thought about being a veterinarian when I was a younger, but I was often told that this is a hard field to go into as a woman. I am not too fond of blood anyways ( my grandmother wanted me to become a nurse and that wasn't going to happen). Our family always had a cat or dog around which I cherished and made sure that they were appreciated and part of the " FAMILY" rather than just being being a "PET". I seemed to be energetically pulled towards the animals that needed some extra love or might not be selected at the shelter for something that others might have viewed as a handicap.

My current occupation is as a certified nutritionist and personal trainer which I love, but I also have a HUGE passion for animals and especially the rescues. I have recently been pulled even more in the last few years to work with abused/abandoned animals ( especially black dogs and black cats as they are NOT adopted as often). After my husband ( Dan) and I were married five years ago, we adopted two black labs from the Ukiah Shelter. Angel was about five years old and very skinny ( She is part Whippet) and had a lot of health issues ( I found her on pet finder through the internet), and we also adopted Bandit who only had one eye and also some other health issues. There were other animals at the shelter that appeared healthier but I again was instantly drawn to Angel and Bandit. My husband wasn't quite sure what we were getting ourselves into. We brought them home and the love & healing began.

I decided a few years ago to learn more about Reiki ( especially with animals) and took a Reiki I course with Kathleen Prasad at Brighthaven Sanctuary in Santa Rosa ( this is an amazing place for senior pets). I was amazed at what I learned and how my body ( energetically shifted) after I became attuned from Kathleen. I knew that I wanted to continue to go through Reiki 2, 3, etc... I started having Reiki sessions on myself with Reiki Master Teacher- Lori Furbush and again was amazed at how my body shifted in such a cleansing and positive way. I decided to go to the next step so I did Reiki I again with Lori and then II, III and just recently Reiki Master Teacher. I do hope to teach Reiki classes in the new year. I highly recommend you check out Kathleen Prasad's website at www.animalreikisource.com and Lori Furbush's website at www.enerqihealing.com. They have both been such healing Reiki teachers for me.

" What is Reiki and how does it work?" is the question many people ask?

" The term " Reiki" is usually translated as " universal life energy. It is a holistic healing system, meaning that it treats the whole being, addressing problems and healing at all levels: physical, mental, emotional and spiritual. Along with other therapies, such as acupucture, homeopathy, QiGong and flower essence therapy, Reiki is a part of the emerging fielf of energetic healing, rediscovered from the wisdom and knowledge of ancient cultures fr use in modern times.Everything in the universe is made up of connection by energy. By transmitting the healing energy of the universe along energetic pathways through the practitioner's hands to the client , Reiki heals as deeply as needed within a being to create a shift toward health. Reiki can heal physical illness and injury in animals as well as problems on emotional and spiritual levels. It is a powerful tool for emotional healing following trauma, abuse, neglect, fear and trust issues, reaching deeply into even the most damaged spirits"- Quoted in Animal Reiki Book ( Using energy to heal the animals in life by Kathleen Prasad & Elizabeth Fulton)

I have been enjoying doing Reiki on my four furry animals- We still have Angel and Magic ( Black Lab) who we adopted from Big Dog Rescue in Penngrove, CA three years ago. We had to put Bandit down a few years ago from Bone Cancer. I didn't know much about Reiki while Bandit was going through Bone Cancer. I did have Lori Furbush and others work on him towards the end of his illness and crossing to the other side. Dan and I also have two rescued cats ( Amber & Midnight).

I am available to work with a variety of animals and will be volunteering my services with Reiki several hours a week. I will be specifically volunteering at Whispering Willows Sanctuary on a consistent basis on their horses, pony, goats, chickens, dogs and any other furry or feathered animal that Janet feels needs some extra attention.

I am offering Animal Reiki as a service ( sliding scale available).

July 24, 2009

Wow.. It has been 7 months since I have written on my BLOG. It is time to be more consistent with this...
I hope all of you have been well and continuing to eat your organic fruit and veggies ( especially right now) with the cherries, peaches, plums in season.. I am addicted to the cherries right now. I figure it is fine to be addicted to the cherries since they won't be in season too much longer.
This has been a challenging time for me as my AMAZING 92 year old Grandfather " Allan Oliver Nelson" passed away last Thursday night. He has been like a second father to me and I am so grateful for what he has shared in my life. He was an avid athlete ( runner) and influenced me to making exercise a HUGE part of my life. I remember thinking of him often when I did my First ( and ONLY) marathon in Hawaii 9 years ago for TNT ( Team in Training). I kept hearing his voice in my head... you can do this and finish.. I am here rooting you on...
When he retired from the foreign service he went to work at Korbel Champagne for 31 years as a tour guide. I remember drinking Korbel Champagne as a child when we were celebrating some occassion as a family. It wasn't until earlier this year when my grandparents came back from their annual time away in Maui, Hawaii that he had a bad fall in the house. This fall set him up ( he went down hill from there). My grandparents had been coming into the GYM that I train at on a regular basis to workout with me and work on balance. I guess this just wasn't enough and this is WHY it is so important to practice some form of balance on a daily basis as you get older. My grandfather ( my brother and I call him Papu) had a bad fall and broke his shoulder and fractured his hip. He went from being in the hospital for a few weeks to a local rehab to recover. We weren't sure if he was going to make it home. I am so grateful that I made the time to either visit him at the hospital, rehab on a daily basis or call him daily to see how he was. I always brought him the Press Democrat to read when we visited so he could stay atune to the local happenings. I would also bring him fruit and other goodies since he was quite limited to the choices at the hospital and rehab. I have told Dan ( husband) & family & friends that if I am ever in the hospital again ( they will have to go to whole foods or make and bring me my green smoothies) to help my body recover. I just can't eat the hospital food. I focused on Papu while we visited and connected with him in a new way. We have always been close but I feel that this time together brought us much closer. The family finally made a decision to bring him home to continue to recover. We had a nurse & physical therapist come out to the house to help. It seemed that Papu was continuing to decline. I think he was happy he was finally at home and sleeping in his own bed and around loved ones ( my grandmother of 68 years , my mom , uncle, brother, sister-in-law and great grand children) but he just wasn't feeling well. He did make a request that he wanted to take a drive out to the ocean. It was a bit of an ordeal to get him in my mother's van but we did it. We were all with him that day. He was a bit grumpy and in pain but I think he enjoyed his time out. He was quite winded getting back up the stairs when we got home and had to use his oxygen tank. This was a hard time for me to VIEW his body decline so fast and see my Strong & Vibrant grandfather getting smaller & skinner and weaker every day. It was last Thursday that I headed out to see him as I knew I was going to be out of town for a few days and wanted to see him since he was continuing to decline. I drove out to their house and learned that he had stopped eating much food or drinking liquids. This was not a good sign. He requested " ensure" which we didn't have so I made him a quick milkshake of milk , bananas and ice which he loved but wasn't able to keep this down for long. I sat with him and held his hand for awhile. My mom's dog ( Sequoia) came into the room and wouldn't leave his side. Animals are very psychic and she knew that he was ready to leave his body. Papu was with it until the end. When it was time to leave, I told him that I loved him which he replied " I love you Marina", I also told him that I would be calling him over the weekend. I left around 9:15 and got home around 10 pm. I had some strange feelings as I drove home but ignored them. I was just heading to bed around 11 pm when the phone rang and I knew before Dan handed me the phone. It was my mom calling me to tell me that Papu had passed .
I just couldn't cry at first. His tired body was ready to be healed. I have cried since this evening and BOY.. Do I miss talking to him on a daily basis.
I am so so grateful for this connection with such an incredible soul and what he brought to my life.
His memorial will be on Sunday " Celebration of Life" with friends and family. I am looking forward to being with everyone and talking about how " Papu" touched our lives. I am also amazed how my family, friends, clients have sent such loving and supporting e-mails, flowers, cards, letters, and phone calls during this time in my life.
Thank you all .. and thank you for letting me get this out on my BLOG.
This was a wake up call to start writing again about what is important in my life and share it with all of you.

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE.. It is almost year.. 2009... I am so excited for this new year to begin..
I am grateful for everything that I have gone through in this last year ( all the ups and downs).. It has really made me grow...
Thank you to all my amazing friends and clients that have brought much joy to my life..
I know this last year has been a bit challenging but let's put it out there that 2009 will bring us much HOPE and PROPERTITY to all of our lives...
Blessings to all of you...
Marina

I am so grateful that President OBAMA was elected as our new President last Tuesday evening.. what an amazing night hat was...

I am also grateful that Prop 2 also passed... " Save the chickens, Veal and Pigs"... Let's hope this makes a HUGE difference in the quality of our food.

Brandy McCans and I had our first Raw food prep Class yesterday with a full class. We had a great time being with everyone. We have our next one scheduled for December 7th and then our healthy RAW dessert class scheduled for Dec 21st. Please contact me if you are interested in this one as we still have a few spaces left. The cost is $45 and it is from 1-3 pm in my home in Santa Rosa, CA. Brandy and I are trying to come up with our business name so if anyone has some ideas.. please send them our way.

Enjoy the crisp weather and this beautiful time of year with the changing colors on the trees.
Health & Veggies, Marina :)

It is the NIGHT before the ELECTION of our NEW PRESIDENT for the next four years. I hope that things turn out well tomorrow ... I am a BIG Obama/ Biden FAN... and see that we do need change to happen in this world. I am also a HUGE supporter of Proposition 2 in California to save the animals from living in cages. I have read/ watched/ learned a lot about this Proposition and can't imagine anyone being against it. I like to tell someone " Imagine if you were stuck in an elevator with 10 other people and you couldn't move or turn around - among other things.. " how would you feel? We seem to forget that cows, sheeps,veal, chickens, etc are not just ANIMALS but have " FEELINGS" as well. How can we not think that this aggressive energy doesn't get into the FOOD that we eat..

This bring me to a book that I highly recommend to all of my readers of this BLOG " Quantum Wellness" by Kathy Freston. You can check out her website at www.kathyfreston.com . Kathy was on Oprah this past spring or summer. I missed the show but saw a few clips along with reading her BOOK. I really have learned so much about what is really happening to our planet by the consumption of animal proteins. I first want to state that I respect where everyone is on their path and am not trying to persuade or think less of anyone who eats animal protein. I am personally still eating some animal protein , although it is getting less and less and my body feels great. I have mainly given up red meat and most dairy for now. I am not sure where I am on this path but I am taking this one day at a time .

My friend Dr. Brandy McCans and I just started a 21 day cleanse. We are eliminating all animal protein, sugar, wheat, corn, gluten, chocolate, alcohol from our diet. We met the other day to take measurements of each other and take our weights and body-fat. I am not posting that here but am excited about having something to look at on a daily basis. We each set our goals for where we would like to be in 3 weeks. We each want to lose about 5 pounds and some inches. We will mainly focus on raw foods with some cooked veggies or gluten-free grains if needed. We will also continue our normal workout schedule which differs for each of us. Brandy and I have become fast friends and have learned a lot from each other. Brandy has been following the path of Raw foods a bit longer than myself . I have learned a lot from Brandy, Shea Baird who I see for colonics ( www.shealynnbaird.com ) and Cecilia at www.rawglow.com . Brandy and I took a class from Cecilia which was so informative and then I took another one with my friend Jesse who is also experimenting the Raw food lifestyle with me.

Brandy and I are excited to be having our FIRST Raw food Prep class this Sunday. We met last weekend to go over all the recipes which turned out perfect. We have a class this Sunday which is now FULL and again on Dec 7th. I believe we have one space left. Our desire is to continue to expand this and see where this leads.

I also found another great website to check out called Raw Divas. You can check them out at www.therawdivas.com for more information. They have some great information on their website.

I also just decided to subscribe to this new Raw Magazine from the UK called " Get Fresh " .. you can check out their website at www.fresh-network.com.


The last website that I highly recommend you check out is www.organicalthlete.org
Justin Torrelas who is the Director of Organic Athlete will be a guest speaker this Friday night at Cecilia's Raw Food potluck in Petaluma. You can check out the details on her website www.rawglow.com

Happy fall to everyone and I will be posting new Information on a more consistent basis. I welcome any comments/ feedback.

Health & Veggies, Marina

Happy Sunday afternoon to everyone.. WOW.. I can't believe it has been 1 1/2 months since I have written anything in my BLOG.... What is really going on??? Life gets busy and where does time go?

I hope that all of you are doing well as we approach FALL. I will be working/ sending out my second Vibrant Health Newsletter in the next week or so and you can then just sign up to receive this monthly newsletter. This way I can try and get as much info out to all of you each month instead of sending things here and there which I know is hard to read everything with having a BUSY schedule.

I have been doing WELL with my eating regimen the past 1 1/2 months. I am still staying away from RED meat/ Buffalo for now and haven't done much DAIRY at all either. I am still eating some fish/ turkey and chicken for now along with eggs every once in a while. I do overall feel FABULOUS from eating more veggies/ greens and having a GREEN Smoothie EVERYDAY. I will be posting some recipes in the new Newsletter so check this out.

I am seeing clients full-time at Studio Fitness now for Nutrition Consultations as well as Personal Training sessions so please call me if you are interested in having an appt.

I am also having a fabulous time with my Mona Vie Business. I am leaving this Thursday for a few days to the Annual Mona Vie Convention in Salt Lake City, Utah to be with all the other amazing Mona Vie distributors. I will let you know what I learn. I don't leave the house without my 2 -4 ounces in the morning to get my day going right.

Good health to all of you and more great info in this newsletter coming out in the next week.
Blessings, Marina :)