Running With Forks

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Running With Forks

Revitalizing the overall health and wellness of busy execs without restriction utilizing a customize DAILY TRAINING IN HEALTHY LIVING. G.F.S.

I coach busy executives to improve their overall health and wellness with my customized 4-Step Process:

1. HOLISTIC HEALTH ASSESSMENT + BIOCHEMISTRY
Deep dive into your unique physiology and underlying issues that may be hindering your health and fitness goals

2. NUTRITION FORMULA (Gradual, Flexible, Sustainable)
Discover what, when, and how to eat for YOUR body and lifestyle, learning how to develop lasting habits while still enjoying the foods and cocktails you love. A simple, flexible, and intuitive plan without taking extra time out of your busy day to meet your goals.

3. SYMMETRY RESTORATION MOVEMENT PROTOCOL
I create a fully customized movement protocol to unlock your overall freedom to express yourself without pain in all of your favorite activities. I continuously monitor form and progress every step of the way so we find the right balance and you are efficient with your time and energy.

4. LIFESTYLE, RECOVERY, AND ACCOUNTABILITY
True health and longevity comes when you apply proper recovery techniques through sleep, hydration, proper blood flow, cellular function, support systems, quality nutrition, and appropriate training load for your unique physiology. When it comes to accountability, I add a deeper layer through our consistent communication, monitoring and adjustments based on your progress and overall health markers as well as a milestone assessment so we’re always on track for your long-term vision. My ultimate goal is to empower you to become self-sufficient with your body where you’ll always make the right choices regardless of what challenges a busy life throws your way. Apply to work with me:
https://bit.ly/3DBpuKX

30/09/2021

Been talking a lot this week with clients on removing the stress from one meal by making it simple, balanced, and THE SAME... Variety and creativity is great, but IMO, sometimes that adds more stress and it’s more important to get the macros balanced, remove the stress, and know that you’re getting proper fuel for your brain and body.
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I haven’t met anyone that doesn’t enjoy finding more ease and more balance, myself included. Here’s my go-to. Every. Single. Morning. High in protein and fiber, balanced in carbs and fat, satiating, and takes less than 5 minutes to make. Give it a go and let me know how happy this makes you 😉
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•35g clean grass-fed whey protein (or other protein of choice - comment below if you need recs)
•2 huge handfuls spinach
•1 medium banana (stop being afraid of carbs - your body needs them)
•1 c frozen strawberries
•1 Tbsp flax seeds
•1 Tbsp peanut butter
•8oz water
(In total this gives me 45g protein, 46g carbs, 16g fat, 10g fiber, and 500cals 👊🏻)
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Have an amazing go-to smoothie or meal of your own? Share the love below 👇🏻 we all wanna know. Need more super shake inspiration? Download the super shake guide (link in bio)

31/12/2020

Kicking the boot today // Last workout in this dang thing. And so excited about it. Pedaling away on a stationary bike when all I want is to be outside on one of my actual bikes is frustrating, yet liberating.
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To drip sweat, to feel my blood pump, to feel capable despite an injury...is empowering. And makes you want to do more of it.
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I hit a slump in 2020. When covid hit, I stopped seeing my own trainer and focused primarily on keeping my clients focused and healthy. Add surgery on top of it and it’ll leave a girl feeling blah.
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I’m so ready for you 2021. ✌🏻

16/10/2020

Not all health care practitioners are created equal. Do your research. Get the third opinion. Find professionals that prioritize your health over their own profit and set you up for success. Find specialists that strengthen and empower you and help you navigate your health without having to rely on them.
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Earlier this week, I reached out to a new client’s chiropractor to align on our programming - I was extremely disappointed to hear his “diagnosis” and follow-up recommendations and frustrated in our health care system.
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This doctor diagnosed my client as having hyperlordosis - an excessive curvature of his lumbar spine (*note: this is the opposite of my assessment)
His treatment recommendation:
-come in for spinal adjustments 3x per week for at least a few months
-“tuck the pelvis" and “avoid arching the back”
-"crunches, glute bridges, and leg extensions"
🤯🤯🤯🤯
Wuttttttttt. Run client, do not walk.
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Any professional who instills fear in movement and doesn't focus on empowering you to strengthen and control your body through active inputs is NOT helping you correct any underlying issues. And recommendations like this may actually be causing you more harm.
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Sure, adjustments can relieve pressure, shift your body into a more optimal position, and create clearer communication between your central nervous system and the rest of your body. BUT, changes from adjustments are short-lived and it’s important they are coupled with active work to make those changes stick. Ever wonder why a day or so later you feel like you neeeeed to go back?
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Your brain, nervous system, and musculoskeletal system need active and consistent input to change and hold strength and control in any newly acquired position.

**Please, if you need a recommendation for a health professional in your area, I am happy to do some research for you. Your health and longevity depend on it. Don’t settle for anything less than the best.

12/10/2020

Brain + Body Communication.⁠⠀
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Question : are you someone that consistently feels tight in one particular area of your body? Or many areas for that matter? Let’s take the hip flexors for example. If your hip flexors tend to feel particularly tight you might think “man, I really need to stretch my hip flexors”. On the contrary, while passive stretching can be very beneficial in gaining flexibility (as it’s the prerequisite to mobility and controlled movement), you most likely need to also be spend time gaining control and strength in this area. How do we do that? Create a stronger communication path between your brain and your “tight spots”.
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Your movement restrictions are caused by the organ that allows you to produce movement in the first place: your BRAIN.⁠⠀
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When your brain isn't comfortable with a particular movement or range of motion (ie: you can't control it), it will limit your access to it by creating tension in your tissues in order to create stability. In other words, you'll feel tight in a particular area because your brain doesn't trust your movement there.
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Wherever you are on the spectrum, teach your body to control your movements through consistent and ACTIVE inputs which start a feedback loop between your tissues, nervous system, and brain.⁠⠀
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• Learn to breathe properly with diaphragmatic breathing (see video on youtube channel) to signal to your brain that you are safe and calm as you move as well as to shift from a sympathetic to parasympathetic state.⁠⠀
• Use controlled breathing during your passive stretching if you’re needing to gain more range of motion.
• Provide that new range of motion with active and controlled inputs at a similar intensity and approach to strength training (reps, sets, time under tension, rest)
• Consistency is key to training the brain

09/10/2020

Ever wonder why some people are able to get their bodies into positions like this and yet, it feels physically impossible for you?
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I’ll be honest … while this is me, I can't even come close to this shape anymore, nor do I have the desire to. At this particular time in my life I was pushing to create more and more space in my body. Space and range of motion that is beyond what is considered “functional”.
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Additionally, there were so many factors at play that allowed me to do this pose in the first place. I was practicing for 90 minutes a day 7 days a week, I had just finished a teacher training and thought that being able to do the fancy poses made me a good teacher so I always pushed for more, I grew up forcing my hips, pelvis, and spine into splits and scorpions as a competitive cheerleader, I have a long torso, and I'm genetically hypermobile.
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Working to create shapes like this with my body without coupling them with the strength and control I needed led to numerous injuries that are now showing up a decade later.
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Point being, it feels really good to stretch and move your body in ways you didn’t think it was capable of and to create really fun shapes in the moment. BUT, it’s EQUALLY important to gain the strength and control to accompany any and all ranges of motion so you can be full functional for the long haul. And if you can’t or won't do that, is doing a pose like this really worth it? Ego check.
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Grateful for all the yoga teachers out there that are jumping on the train and teaching students how to . It's only weird until it's not.

02/10/2020

Always grateful for really great conversations with other coaches. Sat down with recently, who has a deep understanding and appreciation for connecting the body and mind for peak performance.
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A few of my favorite highlights:
•structured variability and how to change up your routine
•mitigating injury, creating longevity in joints, and how to ride a Peloton properly
•”Cautious Carl’s” and “Logical Linda’s”
•my involuntary reaction to the name Running With Forks 🤣 and which gun I’m going to use on my first hunt
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Tune in to hear more (link in bio) and check out Paul’s other incredible podcast conversations ✌🏻

25/09/2020

The best posture is the one that changes - frequently. How long have you been in the position you’re in right now?⁠
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Staying in any one position for extended periods of time forces our muscles, ligaments, and nervous system to experience abnormal loading and stress by overworking to sustain tension in order to maintain the position. Over time, this has the potential lead to structural changes, pain, tightness, weakness, and degeneration.⁠
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Every time we move (or don't move) we’re sending signals to our nervous system and brain on what we need and don't need and are creating new motor skill memories, further etching specific patterns into our tissues with each repetition. You know that old adage "use it or lose it"? This is the process of neuroplasticity (the brain’s ability to be molded), and can work for you, or against you. This is also true if you avoid certain postures or positions. Fear of slouching, twisting, or picking something up with anything other than a "neutral spine"? Your brain will begin to recognize that it doesn’t need that movement anymore and signal the body to respond accordingly. Remember, there are no bad postures, only prolonged positions.⁠
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Unfortunately, we live in a world where many people are required to stay in one position for their jobs which is why we see so many “tight" hip flexors and hamstrings, back pain, and poor breathing mechanics. ⁠
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If this is you, the best thing you can do is to perform stretches that move in the opposite direction of any prolonged position and stay as active as you can outside of work to keep your muscles strong and joints mobile.⁠
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Have you struggled with changing your habits lately? Send me a DM I'd love to offer support.

10/09/2020

a very special and favorite spot of mine is permanently closing their doors on sept 20th. so many of my weekday lunches were spent plopped down at the community table downing a turmeric green juice and a quinoa greens salad in between appointments. creature of habit here. i have record of more snaps than i can count of a quinoa greens salad riding in my lap while driving to my next appt.
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not only did this sweet little cafe provide the most delicious, high-quality, and nutritious bites when i needed them most, but they catered our wedding with the most unbelievable and memorable food that our friends and family still talk about. you created magic with and your incredible team of witches. i’m going to miss this special place so much (what on earth am i going to eat now?!) but i can only imagine what you’ve got brewing for .wine
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just a friendly reminder to continuously (if you can) support those small businesses you love so much. we have to keep holding each other’s hands. xx

08/07/2020

Long post alert 🚨

If you know me well, you know that I’m a quiet one by nature. More of a listener that a speaker. My heart and emotions have always been bigger than my spoken voice and because of that I have always naively assumed that others would lead the fight against the many unjust policies, thoughts, and behaviors in our society. I would be the listener and supporter, and the more powerful voices would be the charge for change. I’m aware that this way of being is not the answer.

For the past 6 weeks, I’ve quieted my voice even further to take a deeper look into where I personally need to do/be better. Better at helping shift the unconscious biases and racism that I know exists within myself as well as how to be a better human being to others (on so many levels). I’ve been achingly moved by the urges of others to dig deep and question the truths of my own privilege. I have sat with immense feelings of shame, fear, and sadness and had uncomfortable conversations with others in which I’m forced to recognize my own faults and ignorances and the reality of who I think I am versus how others actually see me - hello, ego.

I’ve gone back and forth on when/how it is right to be present here, not wanting to say or do the wrong thing — speak too soon, be too quiet, wait too long..who even knows anymore? Maybe some of you do, but I still don’t and am still afraid. I recognize the work I’ve been doing is primarily passive and is not enough. I understand that by being quiet, I am silencing the trauma, pain, fear, exhaustion, and beyond of BIPOC to my own heart. And this goes against all that I stand for and who I believe myself to be as a human. Oh hi again, ego. I’m trying to break through my own way of being and hope you stay with me in the process.

The work that I do daily with others is a physical and mindful practice to prove to ourselves that we are capable of doing really hard things in order to create change. Of sitting in discomfort to create change within our bodies, minds, hearts, and communities. Just as I encourage my clients, I am committed to growth and healing of myself and our society as a whole. Moving forward, I’ll begin to share, but with a new, more inclusive lens. ❤️

07/05/2020

This well-rounded yoga practice is designed to address specific tightnesses associated with cycling as well as improve balance and coordination through a seq...

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ABOUT RUNNING WITH FORKS

DAILY TRAINING IN HEALTHY LIVING. Running With Forks is a coaching and lifestyle management company with a highly customized approach to empowering individuals to live their healthiest life possible through movement, nutrition and life balance. Kirsten McCormick – Movement and Performance Specialist, Yoga Teacher, Nutrition Coach and Personal Chef – educates and inspires individuals to enhance their health and wellbeing while creating dramatic improvements in their quality of life through a means of constant balance. With over 15 years in the fitness industry, Kirsten's coaching has evolved into a very mindful and science-based approach that reflects her love of movement, focus on alignment, appreciation for food, and desire to teach the balance between strength and openness.