MINDFULLY PRIMAL

                 

A little more than a week ago, I got married. It was an amazing and intimate ceremony with our immediate family in attendance. Our original plan had been to get married in the park where we first met, and that we did. Although we had to adjust a bit to a covered patio, due to an incredible morning thunderstorm, our wedding ceremony was truly perfect. It was the beginning of so much new and powerful in both of our lives. Following the ceremony, we transitioned to a short brunch reception at a local Tulsa restaurant and our honeymoon began. A honeymoon to be filled with exploration together and with a much needed dose of rest and relaxation from our fitness based lives. My wife is a gifted yoga instructor and I am a Natural Movement Lifestyle Coach. We own a small studio in Tulsa, Oklahoma aptly named Mindful Body Fitness. Our days at home are filled teaching others the importance of mindfully moving well, eating well and the positive impact that it has throughout all aspects our lives. In the midst of our honeymoon, inspired by adventures and conversations with my wife, it became apparent that it was time to join the vast blogging community. We hope to share bits and pieces of useful information in order to help others mindfully transform their lives toward better health both inside and out.

  
   Well, I guess it's time for an introduction. My name is Aaron Baulch. I have been involved in the fitness industry in one way or another for more than 25 years now. It's truly crazy when I think about it!! So many interesting fitness trends have come and gone since I began in this business. How did I get started? In 1993, I graduated from Oklahoma University and having just earned my first personal training certification from NASM, promptly moved to Dallas, Texas to become a personal trainer. I still remember the look on my parents faces when I told them my plan. A look that combined disbelief and lack of understanding. However, they were then, as they are now, completely supportive of my decision. After the shock wore off!!

      My personal training career path was driven throughout the 1990's by bodybuilding. The desire
for true movement education came later. Bodybuilding took me up into the super heavyweight class and an off season weight of around 300 pounds. I'm six feet tall, so this was a lot of weight to carry around. It wasn't the prettiest of 300, but it wasn't horrible either. Ultimately, I had a little success on the amateur level, but decided to call it quits in 2002.

     My body and my mind had grown tired of the bodybuilding grind and it was during the next several years that I moved into an exploratory time in my life. A reckless time spent in a never ending party cycle that consisted of everything and anything imaginable. A time that will be discussed in this blog at some point, in hopes of both helping and inspiring others to create positive change in there lives. I am thankful for the time spent in exploration...because of it, I am able to find so much joy in how I live life today. I am blessed with a 9 year old son, an amazing wife and a supportive family. All of whom I love more than they know and learn from in some way each and everyday.

    Ok. With the introduction complete, it's time to get the ball rolling and go into a bit about this blog and what will be found in it. I am currently a student in the Primal Health Coach Program. It is a course that is based upon the writings and teachings of Mark Sisson, author of The Primal Blueprint. Along with being a student in this program, I am an NSCA Certified Personal Trainer, MovNat Level 2 Certified, am finishing up the Restorative Exercise Specialist Program ( from Katy Bowman's Nutritious Movement) in January of 2017 and our studio is proud to be a MovNat Licensed Facility. Having spent time studying in many other disciplines as well, it seems like the right time to begin sharing what we do at Mindful Body Fitness. I currently teach and educate on everything from the awesomeness of being barefoot, benefits of the  primal lifestyle, all the way to how and why being able to crawl is important to our mobility, stability and strength...and all things in between. So, that is what will be found within the contents of this blog. Bits and pieces of hopefully useful information that can be translated to  everyday life situations. I hope to fill it with stories from my personal experiences, guest posts from others and even some sciency stuff on occasion as well. Typically, when I have written something to be read by others, I go through the process of writing and editing to get a finished product. This blog is going to be quite a bit different. I hope to share a short piece ( ha!! this one is getting pretty long ) every couple of days that has been discussed, or is being practiced in or around Mindful Body Fitness. Movement, primal nutrition / lifestyle and other applicable cool information that might be of interest. I am looking forward to sharing some of my thoughts, ideas and experiences in hopes of inspiring others. At almost 47 years young, I feel as if I am just getting started...so, here we go!!

     Check back soon as I am going to detail how my experience on the 21 Day Primal Transformation is going after my wife and I REALLY ENJOYED our honeymoon. Until next time... Invest in Yourself. Learn to move again. Train for life.   - Aaron