One thing that makes being human truly amazing is that we can consciously make choices that will determine how we live our lives.  No other species on the planet has this ability!   

We decide what we eat, how we live, how we think, how we move, what we do for a living, our relationships, etc.  Your current life status has been created by choices you have made up to this very moment (~95%) - I am not talking about accidents that were not your fault and what not...but the everyday basics.

If health issues arise, the most common procedure is to go to your medical doctor and yes, maybe they will give you a choice.  "If you don't change how you are living and make better choices about exercise and what you are eating, you will have to go on ________ medication".  

Let's think about this for a second.  So, are both choices (1. Change your lifestyle or 2. Take this pill) going to lead to the same result?   

Let's give an example:  

If you have high blood pressure and you choose to change your lifestyle, does that lead to the same result as taking blood pressure medication?

In one sense -yes.  Medication and lifestyle corrections have both been shown to reduce blood pressure.  But are both individuals equally as healthy now that they have the same blood pressure score?  

NO!  Medications might change numbers and/or make you "feel better", but they will never put your cells into a better state of health!  Medications will never correct the root cause of the problem.  What happens to the person that chooses option # 2?  Does their blood pressure regulate on its own after awhile where medication becomes unnecessary?  How about 15 years down the road?  

If you chose option #1, do you suppose that maybe another symptom may pop up which would lead to yet another medication? Take a look at your parents' or grandparents' medicine cabinet.  Many of you will find that one pill leads to another, leads to another and leads to another and health status can rapidly decline.

What is the point of my message?  It is definitely not to say that medications are unnecessary in some situations, they can be life saving, but rather, that true health lies within all of us!  We just need to give it the right ingredients (Be Fit. Eat Right. Think Well.)   

Lifestyle changes are HARD to make.  Pills are easy, convenient and "free" or subsidized. They both may change a score, a number, a symptom, but they DO NOT LEAD TO THE SAME END RESULT.

Your health is in YOUR hands.  It is our commitment to help empower you to take control of your health! 

Jackie Biffin Duguay, a friend of mine, made this beautiful cake. It had Pilates exercises around the outside, and inside it was a delicious Lemon cake.  One of my very favorites, and apparently yours too, based on how many of you asked for the recipe!

  ENJOY!

Cake:

1 box lemon cake mix

1 box lemon pudding

4 eggs, 1 cup milk

1/3 cup oil

Blend everything until combined and then blend for 2 minutes.

Icing:

1 cup crisco shortening

1 cup butter (room temp)

2lbs powdered sugar,

1/3 cup room temp water.

1-2 tsp Vanilla

1-3 tsp lemon extract

Blend shortening and butter until almost white, about 6-8 minutes, put vanilla and lemon extract and some fresh lemon juice in the water.  Gradually, and separately add sugar and water to butter/shortening mixture.  Blend until smooth, add some lemon zest and blend everything for 2 min. You can omit the lemon juice and zest if you want and add more extract according to your taste.

Summer Schedule starts July 4th