One-on-One

Ian and Emily Matthews, owners and personal trainers at i.e. fitness in Westmont, believe that clients have to make a commitment to themselves to get healthier. “Commitment and accountability are critical for anyone achieving anything,” says Emily. “If you put your mind to it, the sky is the limit on what you want to do. If you commit fully with your mind and your body, you can make a lifestyle change.”

Ian and Emily encourage clients to start with small goals and build from there. By achieving goals daily, one can make great strides in changing their lifestyle. “We are honest with our clients and we let them know that change isn’t easy,” says Emily. “But if they work on achieving small goals, it’s more manageable, and they will see the success they want to see.” Perhaps the easiest way to take control of your health is to is try one of i.e. Fitness’s monthly “Nutrition Challenges.” These challenges help you reach small, monthly goals.

According to Ian, women, specifically mothers, tend to care for everyone around them before taking care of themselves. “I encourage women to be more selfish,” explains Ian. “It might sound bad but it’s important for them to take care of themselves, too, by making their own personal goals a priority.” Signing up for a boot camp class or small-group training with a friend are two ways to jumpstart your health in 2017.

Ian and Emily offer as many avenues of support as they can to help their clients stay motivated to reach their goals. They often receive text photos of clients’ meals asking for opinions and advice. “I’ll text them back to show what I’m eating, as well. We have a very familiar and friendly communication channels that aren’t intimidating,” says Ian.

Workout Fun

If you’re looking for something unique and new to infuse into your fitness routine as a way to stay motivated and be healthy in 2017, head over to Rising Goddess Fitness in Westmont. This aerial-focused fitness studio will have you fit in no time—and you’ll barely know you’re working out.

Michelle Tenuta and Laurial Hides, co-owners of Rising Goddess Fitness, believe people want to be more than just a number in a big gym and to them, staying healthy means having fun, as well.

Born out of the admiration for Cirque du Soliel shows, aerial fitness has become a fast-growing trend in the past 10 years and this fun approach to fitness has kept clients hooked. According to Tenuta, social media has also helped launch the creative and fun fitness craze. “People like to post videos of new tricks they’ve learned on the apparatuses,” says Tenuta. “It really taps into the creative side of the brain, as well.”

Tenuta and Hides opened the studio three years ago and have retained many of the same clients as when they first started. “We are very community-based,” says Tenuta. “We have 25 instructors here and every week they reach out to their students after class to congratulate them on successes they’ve achieved.” Rising Goddess Fitness also has a Facebook group where clients share stories or post photos of their successes.

Rising Goddess Fitness offers both kid and adult classes and works with clients ages 9 and up. “Our oldest client is in her mid-60s,” says Hides.

They have three apparatuses—the aerial hoop, the aerial hammock and pole fitness. “We have weighted hula hoops, as well,” says Tenuta.

A fun way to stay healthy in 2017 is to host any type of party at Rising Goddess Fitness. They offer birthday parties for adults and children, Girls’ Night Out, Bachelorette Party, Book Clubs, and more.

You Are What You Eat

The reality is, you can’t workout or be healthy unless you feel good. And the basics of feeling good come from what we eat. “Over 70 percent of conditions, symptoms, and diseases result from our diet,” says Kathleen Napleton, Founder and Wellness Chef of Nourished Table & Home in Hinsdale. “We want to get people eating real food again.”

When looking for a place to establish her business, Napleton picked a 120-year-old farmhouse which is fitting because her approach to wellness is organic, earthy, and “farm to table” food choices.

Napleton says that first and foremost in order to be healthy, people need to be educated on how to prepare, eat, and maintain a healthy diet. “People aren’t getting that food education any more,” says Napleton. “The further we get away from Mother Nature, the sicker we become.”

Napleton sees whole generations moving away from the kitchen. “People learned the important life skill of eating well in the kitchen with mom, grandma, aunts, uncles, and family,” says Napleton. “Today, it’s not unusual for people to tell me, ‘I don’t even know how to cut an onion.’ We teach techniques here and once you have the techniques down, you can make anything.”

In this busy day and age when mothers are running children from various activities, eating well is more important than ever. Yet it is daunting to prep, cook, and serve healthy meals if you’ve never done it before.

The cost of organic foods is also a deterrent for some. But according to the women at Nourished Table & Home, all of these fears can be easily alleviated with proper education. Says Napleton, “We need to eat with the seasons and listen to what nature is telling us.”

Clients are encouraged to choose foods that are in season because they are cheaper. If organic fruits and vegetables aren’t in season, it’s okay to buy them frozen. “Shopping seasonally for fruits and vegetables is a huge cost-saver,” says Lauren Mandarino, Director of Business Development and Lifestyle Programs. “We have a What to Eat Now page on our website that highlights season by season what’s available.”

Heading to local farmers markets also teaches us what foods to buy at the appropriate time of year. “We want people to get to know their local farmers and not their local pharmacists,” says Napleton.

Nourished Table & Home offers a plethora lifestyle classes to help jumpstart the healthy living process. They offer Nourished Cooking Classes which is a step-by-step hands-on, demonstration-style series. They offer Nutrition and Wellness Consultations, Lunch and Learn Classes, Infusions Aromatherapy Bar classes, and more. “Clean eating itself is a detox,” says Nutrition and Wellness Consultant Taylor Wessell. “Our Lunch and Learn classes are quicker snippets of knowledge. You get a nice healthy, plant-based meal and then I present on different topics which range from ‘Crack Your Cravings’ to ‘The Eight Pillars of Health’ and more.”

Drinking water is also a key ingredient to healthy living. “We lose two liters of water a night when we sleep,” says Napleton. “We need to put that moisture back in our bodies every day. It’s one of the healthiest things you can do for yourself.”

Surprisingly, air quality throughout our homes in the wintertime can also negatively affect our health. Mandarino explains, “What people don’t know is that indoor air is more polluted than outdoor air, so although it sounds counterintuitive, in the winter you should crack your window to let those pollutants out.”

Also, don’t forget about all of the toxic smells we inhale every day. Shannon Roche, aromatherapy coach and Reiki practitioner explains, “All essential oils can be used for various healing modalities. It’s such a large part of wellness that people don’t know much about but it’s been around since ancient times. Aromatherapy helps the body heal itself and also prevents infections.”

In all, to be healthy in 2017, everyone agrees that we need to set priorities, make wellness a commitment, and become educated on how to improve our lifestyles. “The body is designed to heal itself if given the right conditions,” says Napleton. “Small changes make a big impact that will have lasting results.”

For more information:
i.e.fitness , 416 E. Ogden Avenue in Westmont, 708-601-8233, ie-fitness.com; Rising Goddess Fitness, 208 E. Chicago Avenue in Westmont, 630-824-7485 risinggoddessfitness.com; Nourished Table & Home, 111 S. Vine Street in Hinsdale, 630-968-9355, nourished.com