It was breast cancer that put personal trainer Tanya Gendle on to the path of holistic health. Today she draws on her experiences to help others to nurture their health and fitness at Strive Holistic Personal Training.
“Being told I had breast cancer at the age of 27 was devastating. I couldn’t understand how this could have happened to me, a young, fit woman, and I fell into depression.
“Learning about holistic health made me realise that being fit was only part of being well – if one element of your life is out of balance then your whole body suffers. Five years on I’m free of cancer and depression, and enjoying helping others on their journey to wellness.”
In founding Strive Holistic Personal Training Tanya looked to the six foundation principles of holistic health: diet, exercise, sleep, breath, hydration and thoughts.
Bringing these elements into harmony helps to increase energy levels, prevent future illness and pain, reduce stress and develop healthy sleeping patterns, making us all feel better about ourselves.
For Tanya making your health a priority is the first step forwards.
“We all know that we’re supposed to be eating better and exercising more, but it can be hard to find the time,” she says.
“In coming to Strive there’s no need to try juggling several services – we offer a well-integrated program that addresses food and exercise, as well as giving you some valuable ‘me time’.
“We’ll work with you to identify areas of your life that need to be brought back into balance. Then we’ll give you the education, physical training and resources you need to bring your body back into harmony.”
The first step on the Strive journey is a holistic training workshop. An individual health and fitness assessment is done, with recommendations for meal plans according to your metabolic and blood type. An exercise plan is developed, and personal goals are set.
This is then maintained with a food diary, homework, and health advice, with a review of your progress every five weeks.
A blog from Tanya, featuring recipes, exercise tips and news of workshops or latest research, as well as a weekly yoga class, also helps to keep up the momentum.
For Tanya ‘move it or lose it’ is an important principle at Strive.
“We use a functional training approach, which involves training the body for the activities performed in daily life,” she says.
“At Strive you’ll work one-on-one with a personal trainer on exercises tailored to your needs, from strength and flexibility to endurance and cardio fitness.
“Our emphasis is on improving and maintaining the body’s natural ability to move. Making movement in daily life easier prevents future pain occurring due to age and increases fitness at the same time.”
Improving your emotional wellbeing is also important to holistic health.
“In embarking on a fitness program we can often forget that our thoughts need to be changed, just as much as our food or exercise habits,” says Tanya.
“In our modern society we often ‘live in our heads’; being so caught up in thinking about work and all the things we have to do that we forget to listen to messages from our body.
“Sometimes for homework I’ll suggest just sitting in the sun with a good book, simply taking some time out to rest.”
Tanya says her clients are often pleased to hear that she believes a balanced life can include the occasional treat, from a good espresso coffee to a piece of organic chocolate or a glass of wine.
‘I always say that life is for living. Aim to follow your diet and exercise program at least 80 per cent of the time, and allow yourself another 20 per cent for some downtime. Life is for living.’
Strive Holistic Personal Training is offering readers of The RiotACT a free 45 minute consolation with Tanya
Call Tanya Gendle on 6260 5553 or visit www.strive-training.com.au
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