THREE LOCAL WOMEN WHO FEEL HEALTHY & BEAUTIFUL INSIDE-OUT
Our bodies come in all different shapes and sizes, but the one thing all bodies have in common is the ability to make us feel great or awful depending on how they are treated and how well they are functioning. We caught up with a few of our West Suburban readers who shared the various regimens they use to help them feel healthy and subsequently, look good as well. Each story will inspire you.
Mary Boros of Geneva Pictured Center
Running has always been Mary Boros’s passion since high school. Now, five children later (ages ranging from 5-17), she finds it harder, but even more necessary to take an hour or two out of her day to focus on her training and keeping healthy and fit. She continues to complete about six half-marathons and one or two full marathons a year.
Last year, Mary was diagnosed with a bladder disease called IC (interstitial cystitis) and had to stop running and exercising completely for twelve weeks. “After I completed treatment, I was in horrible shape,” she explains. “I decided to do something completely different and joined H4 Training in Geneva. The various muscle building exercises completely changed my life. My muscles are toned, I feel great, and I have been able to cut two minutes off my mile pace.” Mary’s health issues pushed her to find something that would strengthen her entire body. She feels the knowledgeable trainers at H4 were able to help her overcome the health and fitness obstacles she was faced with. She is back to running, but she makes sure to still include the H4 training three times a week.
While traveling for business two or three days a week, Mary brings her training on the road with her and continues the exercises she has learned from H4. It has also been important to eat healthier focusing on protein and carbs and eliminating processed foods and sugar. “However, I still enjoy a glass of wine or two,” exclaims Mary. –MK
Val Farkas of Geneva Pictured Left
In her twenties, Val Farkas decided to ditch her unhealthy eating habits, do a 180 and entered the competitive bodybuilding arena for a few years. This decision ended up launching her into a permanent lifestyle of keeping her body in shape. She worked out everywhere from garage gyms to big name fitness centers, getting involved in spin classes, weightlifting, boot camps, long distance biking and running. “I found I was overdoing most of my workouts using heavy weights and continually strained my muscles, which would set me back from my goals,” states Val.
Three years ago, a friend introduced Val to Pure Barre in Geneva. “I chuckled at the size of the weights and the teeny tiny movements people around me were doing,” says Val, “but I barely made it through the class and was so sore because I didn’t get the concept.” Val vowed to go as often as possible. Now, 750 plus classes later and just turned 57 in June, she claims she is in the best shape physically and mentally that she’s ever been. She works out as soon as she rolls out of bed at 5:40am and has even recruited her daughter, Alex (26) to join her in the mornings. She truly appreciates the staff at Pure Barre and all her fellow barre-barians for their support.
Along with eating as healthy as possible and drinking lots of water, Val believes finding a type of exercise that you actually like and keeps you active, is the key to keeping your body in its best shape. –MK
Jessica Kellerman of St. Charles Pictured Center
Plagued with rheumatoid arthritis since her early twenties, Jessica Kellerman was not ready to live the rest of her life on prescription medication to ease her pain and discomfort. “I was scared,” says Jessica. “If I felt this bad so young, what were my 40’s, 50’s and beyond going to be like?” She decided to be accountable for her own health and started researching natural options to bring down the inflammation. Then she stumbled upon cryotherapy and found it to be extremely effective with no side-effects. Cryotherapy is the process of standing in a chamber where the temperature reaches approximately -250 degrees for 2-3 minutes. Jessica insists it is more tolerable than you think.
“Besides lowering my inflammation,” says Jessica, “there are so many other benefits that help my body feel and look great. It burns 600-800 calories a treatment, and I sleep better, have more energy and have smoother skin.” She explains, though, you can’t just go once, you need to be consistent. She visits French Med Spa and Cryotherapie in St. Charles at least three times a week and loves the atmosphere there. She explains that many people come in for the therapy that are not suffering an illness but would like all the benefits that help them look better and feel better.
Besides cryotherapy, Jessica has made other lifestyle changes such as drinking a lot of water, eating a lot of plants, and exercising regularly. “I don’t have to take prescription drugs,” says Jessica, “and I am nearly symptom free.” –MK
