It's a new year.

It's incredible how fast a year can go by.

It's easy to see how fast time passes five days into the new year.

This is why taking the time to reflect and slow down is important.

There are many mistakes I made in 2023.

A lot of low moments.

Disappointments.

And extraordinary times as well.

Moments where I cried. Laughed. Got angry. Was sad.

The entire human emotional experience.

What's great about reflection is you can learn more about yourself.

Especially when it comes to our unconscious self and the archetypes that exist within all of us.

Earlier this week, I spoke with our private group of VFR students on our Wednesday Mindset Class.

What I love about these classes is that I keep learning more about myself and others.

There was a GREAT share from one of our students, Katie, on how she's created more inner peace and calm within herself by committing to 5 minutes of meditation daily.

A woman who's always doing 100 things, this was no small win.

It's also a reminder of why habits take time to develop.

On average, it takes 21 days to develop a new habit, 66 days to keep it, and 4 months to have a firm foundation.

However, lifestyle integration can take up to 18 months, with identity transformation averaging about 3 years.

So it's a process.

And changing WHO you are doesn't happen overnight.

But reflecting on your growth YEAR after YEAR is one of the best ways to examine your development.

Just a thought going into 2024.

Where and who do you want to be on Jan 1st, 2025?

That's a question we need to answer ourselves.

Lesson: Change takes time. Be patient with your development.

Here is your 5 Minute Friday:

Why You Should Avoid Sugar

If you want to live a long, healthy life, sugar will NOT be your ally.

Sugar will do the opposite.

It will make sure your lifespan is less healthy and shorter.

Telomeres are caps on top of our chromosomes that protect our DNA.

The longer the telomeres, the longer our lifespan.

However, studies have been done on individuals who drink 20 ounces of soda daily and found that this group had SHORTER telomeres.

Correlation?

Quite possibly.

Another reason to avoid sugar is addiction.

Sugar is AS addictive as heroin.

(ever watch a child get upset when you take away their lollipop - it's like taking a drug addict's crack away).

Adults are very similar.

Take away a man or woman's soda drink, candy, or favorite sweet, and you have serious problems.

But there also needs to be a clear distinction between sugar that HARMS us and sugar that benefits us.

Processed sugar or artificial sweeteners fall into class 1 of sugars that harm us.

Natural sugars from fruits, vegetables, and whole foods fall into class 2 sugars that help HEAL us.

With the increase in discussions about sugar over the past few years, many fruits and vegetables have been tossed under the bus.

To be clear - fruits, in particular, are what our body craves and needs.

Our brain, liver, and significant organs rely on a steady stream of glucose to support our health, recover, and repair our body.

Without this?

It's hard to stay healthy and strong, especially during busy seasons.

So, coming back to processed sugar.

Here's what you need to look out for:

• High fructose corn syrup (highly addictive)
• Artificial fructose
• Corn syrup
• Artificial sweeteners
• White sugar
• Any other processed sugars
• Fake sugars
• Any ingredient that you cannot recognize or understand (don't you love the creative names they think of - we have to give them credit for trying hard)

Single-ingredient foods will be your ally.

Your best group of natural sugars:

• Bananas (which kill viruses)
• Apples (which cleanse your colon)
• Oranges (vitamin D, anyone?)
• Papaya (natural bug and bacteria killer)
• The entire rest of the natural fruit, vegetable, and whole food kingdom (since I could write another ten newsletters on each food)

Principles are what I've found work best when choosing the right foods.

As a principle - single ingredients and whole foods (foods from the soil or planet) tend to be the healthiest and highest quality for our body and health.

As a side note, I'd suggest investing in organic fruits and vegetables for foods with THIN skins (apples, potatoes, grapes, etc).

Conventional produce will still be more beneficial than 2 soda pops a day if not possible.

Who knew?

The Best Decisions I Made Last Year

The best decisions I made last year were:

• Moving out of Connecticut - our landlords weren't the most excellent humans, and the weather was horrendous.
• Investing in a new mentor - I invested $24k into a new mentorship and coach to help me continue to develop and grow as a human.
• Attend MindValley University - I'd wanted to go to this event for nearly 6 years, and finally, going to Estonia was a life-changing experience as well as creating new friendships.
• Go on our belated honeymoon - I'll never regret going to Hawaii with Anna and celebrating the past 7 years of being together and four years married.
• Moving to Asheville is hands down the best place we've lived in.
• Spending high-quality time with family in Europe and the States - family is dear to our heart, and as much as we travel, we still love to be close to our family (which seems to get bigger each year).
• Hiring new team members - I've learned that letting go and delegating things outside my zone of genius is a sign of maturity.
• Changing my work role - shifting into my passion for work, including writing, speaking, coaching, and leading - has brought MORE fulfillment to my life inside my career and work.
• Hosting family and friends - we love hosting, sharing good plant-based food, and laughing. Time like this is priceless.
• Meeting our VFR students in person in NYC was an epic time, with great memories and many beautiful experiences shared; I am looking forward to our in-person client retreat this April, too!
• Taking time off - last year was my first family vacation with Anna (ever). It was much needed, and our time in Greece helped me rejuvenate.
• Creating more time for being, writing, meditation, time with Anna, walks, workouts, and eating higher quality food.

If you haven't created time to reflect on your best decisions from last year - do this asap.

There's nothing more powerful than reflecting on your past decisions and learning how to make better decisions moving forward.

Reflect to move forward.

Client of the Month

Meet Alissa. Busy travel nurse. Working 50+ hours a week. Overworked and overwhelmed. She came to us keen on dropping body fat and getting stronger.

Our strategy: Complete 4 strength workouts per week, slice off 500 calories daily, and drink 1/2 her body weight in water in ounces daily.

We also set a moderate step goal of 8k steps per day to keep her moving.

Later, we started focusing on her sleep and getting her to at least 7 hours of quality sleep per night (she was averaging 5-6 hours before).

Now - she's dropped nearly 20 lbs, shaved off 4 inches from her waist, and tripled her strength on her squat, deadlift, and leg press.

What she's most excited about in 2024?

Becoming a powerlifter and dropping down to 20% body fat.

I'm excited to keep watching her growth and development this year, too.

One Quote To Finish Your Week Strong

Maybe it's time we stop New Year's resolutions and do something different.

Something radical.

Something so outrageous people will think we're crazy.

Maybe it's time we commit to becoming who we were born to be - and then being that person.

- Gabriel

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