Cultivate a sense of community and social connection — If you exercise solo, you may want to participate in group exercise classes or join a sports team which can foster a sense of community and social connections. This can provide you with opportunities to develop meaningful relationships with like-minded individuals. These social connections not only contribute to a greater sense of belonging as well as act as a support system that serve to enhance your overall well-being and personal growth. Group support systems challenge you in a different manner, than just individually working out. You might even learn a thing or two which provides a boost to your routine.
Physical fitness is not just about lifting weights or running marathons; it’s about discipline, resilience, and continuous self-improvement. Fitness champions help coach and inspire others to achieve their fitness goals. As a part of this series, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Bonnie Frankel.
Bonnie Frankel attained fitness when she began her journey in competitive running in her forties. Her athleticism guided her to not only attain but maintain her ability to not only be physically fit but balance her emotions, and ameliorated her cogitation. By achieving a healthy fitness, her state-of-the art coaching skills nourished her emotional intelligence/critical thinking.
Thank you so much for joining us! Before we dive in, our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you tell us a bit about your ‘backstory
Physed was my favorite class dating back from the days of my early education. The activity took the edge off of my emotional anxiety as well as assisted me with bettering my relationships. I didn’t know the why then, but today with all the research as well as the passion of executing my athleticism created my character to complement my strengths and heal my weaknesses. It matured me to improve my leadership skills. Most of the female friends I hung out with, didn’t care too much for athletics, but they were mushy about issues that were superficial trivia. My interest during my life in athletics would wane through life, but I finally found my niche in my forties by permanently staying dedicated. As I attained recognition with my elite athleticism and activist accomplishments later in my years, my dad made reference to the media, “I now have two athletes — my son and my daughter. When I grew up men’s sports were important, but not for women.
Can you share with us the most interesting story from your career? Can you tell us what lessons or ‘takeaways’ you learned from that?
Coaching high school and college kids. Let me take you back to when I began my journey with my development into becoming an elite athlete. My career in running started as a whim when I returned to the educational system by taking a running class with kids. Most of these youngsters had been running most of their young lives. When I trained with this younger generation their expertise knowledge educated me, not my coach. I never would have dreamt I would transpire to be a leader to coach these same age groups who taught me.
You are a successful leader. Which three character traits do you think were most instrumental to your success? Can you please share a story or example for each?
Passionate, persistent, and optimism implemented me to flourish. Equipped with passion provides the energy, motivation, and determination to solidify my dreams to translate them into realities. It is the psychological impetus that provides me with the perseverance until the goals are accomplished. “When the going gets tough, I keep on going.” Psychologically it helps me to overcome obstacles which thrusts me to the next level that transcends in other areas of my life. Persistence is the key element to my success and is well-utilized throughout my lifetime. Perseverance guarantees my continued success because it provides the willingness to continue to proceed even when the odds are bad and my enthusiasm has waned from minor inconveniences to life’s major challenges. As Dale Carnegie states, “Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed no hope at all.” When I continue with persistence, it feeds my ability to achieve my passion to continue to move forward when the excitement fades and the work required to accomplish my goal is formidable. Blessed with my unsinkable optimism, this secures the resilience to continue because it strengthens my will to nourish my goals and dreams to stay alive so the passion doesn’t wither. When I was in battle with changing the NCAA eligibility rule for women, my passion coupled with persistence and unwavering optimism kept my goal alive that lead to achievement. I was told it could not be done but I knew it could be, and it was.
Are you working on any exciting new projects now? How do you think that might help people?
Writing articles and tackling another book on the importance of physical fitness and how it connects to not only to look fit but to include its benefits that make a difference in all areas of our life. I think people just think that the outside package is what fitness is all about, but there is so much more than this. To name a few benefits routine exercises provides: improves leadership skills, enhances active communication, creates optimism, increases your self-reflection, strengthens emotional intelligence, and betters our relationship within as well as others. Writing is a newly discovered passion of mine to enlarge my influence and “the why,” fitness is necessary on a universal range. My intention is to communicate how beneficial fitness assists you to living your life to its fullest. By learning from personal experience as well from researching, exercise tags many areas of life as it joyously improves your living to its fullest capacity.
Ok, thank you for all that. Now let’s shift to the main focus of our interview. What inspired you to pursue a career in fitness?
My passionate pursuit of health and wellness evolved from my inquisitiveness to understand the intricate dance between the mind, body, and soul at an early stage. This comprehension inspired from life experiences gradually validated the true value of fitness. The relentless passion for running affected me in positive ways that sprinkled like bread crumbs led to other forms of exercise to affect various areas of my life. I frolic in the journey of assisting others for them to achieve the knowledge that their health is their wealth because I know that they will profit as I have in transforming their life. Simply put, the wanting to feel better and healthier in my own skin to live to a hundred wiser and independently. The dire need for fitness coaches is in need today from the lock-downs of the coronavirus and the backlash of the many who are struggling today to break the pattern of stillness and random eating instead of pursuing exercise. The pharmaceutical industry is luring those in their web to make them dependent to lose weight. Wouldn’t you want to lose your extra pounds naturally by simply exercising? I would think so, because there are always repercussions to your mind and body when you use a drug.
What unique strategies do you use to keep your clients motivated and engaged in their fitness journeys?
I begin my orientation with individuals or groups by communicating the importance of using the process to self-reflect so that they are aware and responsible with their own fitness expectations in their journey. The process of self-observation develops their emotional intelligence which allows them to grow to learn what they think and feel about themselves by using mindfulness that include: meditation, journaling, mindful movement, and then we join to discuss what changes can be by engaging in active communication. I implement this procedure periodically so that we both can converse and review if changes need to be modified. Another useful method is to challenge them to exceed in an unexpected achievement with their fitness program because their priorities and goals shift. Included in this: I re-enforce them to self-observe and to engage with self-awareness as this results in guiding their psychological state to be in the self and be their focal point. When they workout with their exercise of choice, I encourage them which usually happens naturally, to direct the thoughts to be in the present moment, not scattered thinking. In this manner, they allow their thoughts to flow into their subconscious unexpectedly and it can lure a positive idea or a connection that they would not have anticipated it to be in their spirit. An example, when I am running, or doing a pool workout, I am so focused on the joy with each step in my run, and the natural resistance of the water. Both of these separate forms of exercise can prompt a solution to a problem unexpectedly or just simply address a grateful moment that changes my whole mindset.
Can you share a particularly memorable success story of a client transformation that you’ve helped achieve?
One of my clients turned seventy-six and was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer. She struggles as well with an eating disorder to brush aside her emotions. She is fifty pounds overweight and her choice of exercises is limited because of the possibility of injury. The ideal physical activity would be exercising in the water because not only does she have a passion for this medium but will have a low impact on her joints. Her pattern of exercising starts like a firecracker but fizzles. To assist this problem, I added a noodle to support the flexibility for her to engage in various movements with the ability to run forward and backward, and move side to side, not just the motion of swimming. By golly this addition to her workout was successful. Her weight is gradually reducing and her food choices are amazingly healthier. We vary her workouts in the water using different times, various speeds, with an emphasis on using intervals. I recommend that she use self-reflection which leads to her self-awareness and use mindfulness by skillfully using her writing skill because of her passion for this art form.
How do you stay updated with the latest fitness trends and incorporate them into your coaching?
The internet is my first go to because it hosts a multitude of forums where professionals relay the latest in functional training and handy to use. These platforms are like treasure troves of information where I can learn new workout methodologies, equipment, training programs, and thought- provoking growth processes. Engaging with the variety of materials not only keeps me informed but presents the opportunity for me to contribute my own insights. Another favorite of mine is to dedicate time to use the library to read and research. This provokes the privilege for an in-depth understanding of the scientific principles behind the trends and view their personal opinions. It’s a method for me to build a solid foundation of knowledge that can afford me an edge. I also like to converse with various coaches that are presently coaching or have coached in various sports. This type of format prompts the opportunity to learn and share the latest trends and innovations in functional training on site Ater compiling the information, I use the method of self-awareness and self-management to understand my ideas. With these tools in hand, I approach my clients utilizing active communication to see if they agree to incorporating a change in their workout and welcome their thoughts on this. Using these tools gives me the opportunity to know and digest what I have learned with the ability to share it with my clients works like a gem.
Based on your research or experience, can you please share your “5 Things Anyone Can Do To Improve Their Fitness Routine”?
1 . Refresh your goals — Practice introspection because it empowers your insight gifting you the confidence in your ability to advance your routine. This exercise enables you to expand your alertness to the signals your body sends which creates a healthier understanding of your emotions, thoughts, and physical sensations. This fosters a more holistic approach to your well-being which can spice up your ability to devise a new workout out goal or just change a portion of your workout to spice up the adrenaline. Utilizing the processes of self-reflection, self-awareness, and self-efficacy, you may want to challenge yourself by: entering a competition, a time change, make a switch in weightlifting, or walking or running a distance that you haven’t attempted which can remediate your routine. When I am frustrated and want to refine my fitness program, I engage in a pool workout to include various forms of gymnastic exercises. By implementing this change, it symbolizes the notion to enjoy a more flexible mind and body that will refresh my running workouts.
2 . Cultivate a sense of community and social connection — If you exercise solo, you may want to participate in group exercise classes or join a sports team which can foster a sense of community and social connections. This can provide you with opportunities to develop meaningful relationships with like-minded individuals. These social connections not only contribute to a greater sense of belonging as well as act as a support system that serve to enhance your overall well-being and personal growth. Group support systems challenge you in a different manner, than just individually working out. You might even learn a thing or two which provides a boost to your routine.
3 . Foster mindfulness and present-moment — When we use this method, it helps us to self-reflect to gift us to become more self-aware as well as boost up our confidence (self-efficacy). It puts us in the present moment, whereas when we get comfortable in a workout, our mind tends to wander because we are no longer content in our workouts. Mindfulness training adds to your awareness of how exercise freshens your mood as we can use that goody to actually train ourselves with setting goals. Meditation enhances our attentional capacities through gains in working memory. There are some of us that use our workouts whether on a bike, lifting weights, walking, swimming, or yoga/tai chi, not only for simply working out to master a skill or improve your condition, but it propels you to move and breathe in a way that shifts from feeling busy and distracted to feeling strong, balanced, and capable. I use my run and water workouts to practice mindfulness.
4 . Chiropractor Adjustments — This is geared to not only align your mind and body but also includes to enhance your joint mobility which expands not only your movement but overall health. It promotes a better blood flow throughout the whole body. Bottom line, it improves your range of motion and is your shiny knight in armor protecting you from injury. You will also feel the easiness it provides for your body to function. Spinal manipulation keeps your mind and body in alignment as you are able to continue to thrive in your exercise. This method will assist you to maintain your health and pursue fitness goals. I always suggest to clients that they locate a chiropractor that they feel a connection with. Do your research.
5 . Self -indulgence. Gifting yourself by doing something you love, somewhere you love. You may want to treat yourself to a place you have been wanting to visit, perhaps a weekend getaway, a relaxing massage, or just simply indulging in your favorite guilty pleasures. Self-indulgence also acts as a form of self-care as it allows you to recharge to rejuvenate physically and mentally. Taking time to relax and pamper yourself after exercising can reduce stress, improve sleep quality, and enhance your overall sense of well-being. You may look at it as a way to honor your body and give it the care it deserves. By executing this in your schedule provides a healthy balance between discipline and pleasure. It reminds us that life is not just about restrictions and sacrifices, but also about enjoying the fruits of your labor. I treat myself to a massage to calms my excessive energetic nature.
What role do you believe mental health plays in physical fitness, and how do you address this with your clients?
Those of us who exercise regularly relish the gift as it provides us with an enormous sense of well-being naturally. Being physically active bestows us with positive thoughts throughout the day, initiates a restful sleep, enhances sharper memories, and betters are relationship with not only yourself but with another. I convey in an open forum or privately by using open/active communication whereas I discuss the important connection physical fitness is to our mental health which is the essence of your mindset. This is the framework of attitudes and beliefs that shape our perceptions and responses to challenges, and is paramount in the ability to attain their fitness goal. I apply a supportive and non-judgmental training environment that encourages individuals to challenge themselves to embrace growth-oriented attitudes.
You are a person of enormous influence. If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-)
JUST DO IT.
What is the best way for our readers to continue to follow your work online?
BonnieFrankel.com, Amazon.com. — BONNIE’S THEORY Finding the Right Exercise, Authority and Thrive Global medium, LinkedIn, Facebook
This was very inspiring. Thank you so much for the time you spent on this. We wish you only continued success.
About the Interviewer: Wanda Malhotra is a wellness entrepreneur, lifestyle journalist, and the CEO of Crunchy Mama Box, a mission-driven platform promoting conscious living. CMB empowers individuals with educational resources and vetted products to help them make informed choices. Passionate about social causes like environmental preservation and animal welfare, Wanda writes about clean beauty, wellness, nutrition, social impact and sustainability, simplifying wellness with curated resources. Join Wanda and the Crunchy Mama Box community in embracing a healthier, more sustainable lifestyle at CrunchyMamaBox.com .
