Meet this week’s Healthy Face Sarah Perine. The Healthy Faces blog is sponsored by Healthy Harrison Health Games - the Encore:

 

I’m Sarah Perine.  I am 39 years old and I live in Shinnston with my husband Andrew and four kids Maddox, Easton, Adley and Emme.  We also have the sweetest dog, Milo.  I’ve been a Registered Nurse for 17 years. 

 

What is your favorite self-help book?  I’ll be the first to admit I’ve read more children’s books over the past few years than my own books.  I am currently reading Glennon Doyle’s, Untamed.  It is a slow process. I don’t have much alone time!

 

What about your healthy meal?  I love to eat.  I love to fuel my body with real foods.  I do not love to cook, so that can be a problem.  My husband jokes that I eat all day.  I eat simple things like eggs and Ezekiel toast for breakfast, always a big salad with chicken for lunch and a dinner typically with chicken.  I love to roast vegetables and eat on those all week. 

 

What is your favorite workout? Oh gosh! At one point in time, cardio, like running and Hiit workouts were the only things on my workout calendar.  I have learned to love so many new workouts lately.  Strength training has done wonders for preventing injuries.  I must say I love Boxing as well as Rumble at Main Street Fitness.  Those two classes make me feel strong and really do relieve any stress or tension that may be built up. 

 

How do you fit health and wellness into your busy life? That has never really seemed like an “option” to me.  If I want to keep up with four kids and feel good, I know I need to take care of myself.  I try to lead by example with my children.  They see me eating well balanced healthy meals.  We eat together.  They see me working out to be healthy and strong.  They work out with me.  My husband and I created a home gym and I love to go down there with the kids and work out.  They think it’s fun and I know we are setting some strong foundations for health and wellness in their lives.  I truly believe that setting aside the time each day to move my body, to prepare healthy food and to mentally reset simply makes me happier and I couldn’t imagine it any other way.

 

What are your favorite inspirational quotes? You ask about motivational quotes; that makes me giggle.  I actually have a little journal that I write down quotes or snippets that I come across.  Sometimes I pull it out on a particularly rough day or just for fun.  A few of my go to’s are:

“Success is not final; failure is not fatal.  It is the courage to continue that counts."

 

“You are a perishable item, live accordingly.”

 

“Don’t stop until you are proud.”

 

When did your health journey begin? I can’t remember a time when I didn’t work out or follow a particular diet.  I can, however, remember doing it for the wrong reasons.  I wanted to look a certain way or see a certain number on the scale.  Over the past couple of years, I have really changed my mentality when it comes to being healthy.  I don’t diet.  I eat balanced meals and real food.  I don’t worry about how many calories my workout might burn.  I work out to feel strong, to be strong.  I feel like this health journey is ever-evolving.  Our bodies are ever-changing and we need to work to keep them healthy so we can enjoy our time on this earth as much as we can. 

 

What are some easy steps to take to implement a healthy lifestyle? Getting started leading a healthier lifestyle can be a hard step.  All the information we have access to can be overwhelming.  Eat this, don’t eat that.  Do cardio, don’t overdo cardio. Lift big weights, lift light weights.  It can make your head spin.  I would say start small.  Make little changes and keep adding to it. Don’t completely restrict food groups and don’t eat too few calories that you lack the energy to work out.  Plan your meals, plan your workouts.  Then show up for yourself.  Do whatever workout you enjoy.  If it’s not fun, you won’t stick with it.  Start your fitness and health journey in a way that it is sustainable long term.  Being healthy is not a punishment to your body, it’s a way to reward it.  And be kind to yourself.  Change takes time.  Change can be hard. 

 

What’s on your playlist? What music motivates you? A good playlist can take you a long way.  It can help get you motivated to work out and motivated to finish.  My current playlist is pretty random: Imagine Dragons, Bon Jovi, and some songs Spotify recommends so my oldest son will think I’m not too lame.