FAQ&A

Q&A: Shea Vaughn & SheaNetics® 

    • What is your background in fitness and wellness?

I am a fitness expert, professional trainer and wellness coach with a lifetime of mind-body experience and a passion for health and well-being. My career focus includes inspirational speaking and media appearances in addition to my commitments to a great group of students and clients which includes professional athletes and prominent executives.  My goal is to help them all to build strength and flexibility, prevent injuries, “stay in the game” and live more fulfilling lives.  I am also the CEO and founder of SheaNetics®, a revolutionary lifestyle wellness and exercise practice that blends Eastern and Western values and movements giving you a powerful mind-body experience and a life-guide to creating a personal state of well-being.

My career in health and wellness began as a dancer and teacher and later broadened as a fitness instructor and trainer.  My diverse resume of program and specialist certifications include Yoga, Pilates, GYROKINESIS®, Bosu®, Zumba®, Bodypump™, Spinning®, AFFA Group, PTA Global and AEA Aquatic Exercise instruction which are further augmented by NASM Board Certification as a CES (Corrective Exercise Specialist) and PES (Performance Enhancement Specialist) and an Associate Degree in Applied Science.  

    • What is SheaNetics®?

SheaNetics® is a revolutionary lifestyle wellness and exercise practice that blends Eastern and Western values and movements giving you a powerful mind-body experience. You get in shape, feel great and naturally make life-healthy choices.

The heart of SheaNetics is The 5 Living Principles of Well-Being – Commitment, Perseverance, Self-Control, Integrity and Love; uniting the mind and body as one and inspiring the answers you seek – to live the life you want. SheaNetics takes mind-body transformation one step further with a fresh self-styled approach to exercise that combines yoga, pilates, tai chi, martial arts, ballet and lots more, along with the performance-enhancing benefits of Tri-Core Power Training – to develop your “killer” core. SheaNetics is “Your Pathway To Well-Being”; a life-guide to finding fulfillment, self-confidence and a personal state of well-being.

    • What was the inspiration for creating SheaNetics®?

The origin of SheaNetics was very organic with both its physical and mental components developing simultaneously. SheaNetics was inspired by my students enthusiasm coupled with my own life experiences and today presents itself as an eastern-influenced western-lifestyle wellness and exercise practice. My journey began one day while teaching class when I began to add certain poses and movements to the routine from other exercise forms that just seemed to naturally present themselves and improve the overall flow and diversity of my usual choreography. The feedback from my students was instant and positive. They said, “We don’t know exactly what you are doing but keep doing it.  We feel great.” I realized I had something new and continued on that path.

My own journey has also brought me to the study of martial arts and eastern philosophy which sees well-being as the result of a healthy mind and body working as one.  This is accomplished by embracing regular exercise along with a set of tenets for making better life decisions.  It encourages a positive lifestyle and was the foundation for what later became the SheaNetics® Five Living Principles of Well-Being.  I love teaching and brought the Principles to life with my students during class.  Now they regularly tell me how uplifting they have been and what meaningful encouragement they provide to making ongoing life-healthy choices that come naturally.

    • Who is SheaNetics® for and why should I want to get off the couch?

Most people know that a healthy lifestyle is good for them but not everyone puts knowledge to action.  SheaNetics® is for the person who really wants to make a change in life but just isn’t sure how to get started much less how to sustain the effort.  SheaNetics® gives you the mental and physical tools to make that desire into a lasting reality.

    • What does SheaNetics® do – how does it work?

SheaNetics® helps you to reshape and enhance the overall quality of your life.  It gives you the mental strength and physical ability to make on-going life-healthy changes.  The Principles are always with you.  They inspire your workouts, as you build strength, flexibility and Tri-Core Power and are with you throughout the day encouraging you to make positive and beneficial choices in everything you do.

    •  How is SheaNetics® different?

SheaNetics® is first and foremost an East-meets-West inspired wellness lifestyle practice.  It is a first of its kind combination of both physical and philosophical concepts that is life transforming.  SheaNetics is an energizing blend of many great and effective physical formats including the special performance enhancing qualities of Tri-Core Power Training joined with the heart of SheaNetics -The 5 Living Principles of Well-Being – Commitment, Perseverance, Self-Control, Integrity and Love – which together unite the mind and body toward a common goal of living life on your terms and living it well.

    • Can you share with us what SheaNetics® has done for some of your students?

My students talk from their hearts.  What they have shared with me is that SheaNetics® has evoked in each of them more thought and action about healthy living and being healthy than anything they have ever done before.   They share with me how it has made real changes in their lives mentally and physically.  Most important, their actions are no longer just reactive.  They have the tools to help them think through their actions.  Now they find themselves focused, “in the moment” and better able to take positive control of their lives, decide what they want to accomplish and how to do it.

    • How often do you need to do the workouts?

Ideally 2-3 times a week for 50 to 60 minutes each time or you can break it into 20 minute segments daily and add in some cardio.

    • How is eastern philosophy part of SheaNetics® and why are The 5 Living Principles of Well-Being so important?

We sometimes say SheaNetics® is “meditation in motion and thought” and this body-mind connection is very much a part of eastern philosophy.  My development of SheaNetics® also gives a respectful nod to the gifted Bruce Lee who earlier in his career combined the different fighting styles and philosophies he had studied into a way of life he named Jeet Kune Do.

In a broader sense, eastern thinking also generally embraces tenets or principles as a personal guide to living a good, healthy and rewarding life.  SheaNetics® too embraces this same philosophy using our 5 Living Principles of Well-Being as a thoughtful approach that encourages you to naturally make healthier choices and meaningful connections with others.

While many of us seek the health and balance that comes through creating harmony within our mind, body and heart, finding well-being can seem as challenging as climbing Mt.Everest.  Really, it’s more like Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz who clicked her heels and realized the answers she had been searching for were there all along – just as SheaNetics® is there for you.  Your body and mind are meant to move and to connect with others.  SheaNetics® with its 5 Living Principles of Well-Being are the catalyst for making those connections and more.

    • Can you share with us what SheaNetics® has done for some of your students?

My students talk from their hearts.  What they have shared with me is that SheaNetics® has evoked in each of them more thought and action about healthy living and being healthy than anything they have ever done before.   They share with me how it has made real changes in their lives mentally and physically.  Most important, their actions are no longer just reactive.  They have the tools to help them think through their actions.  Now they find themselves focused, “in the moment” and better able to take positive control of their lives, decide what they want to accomplish and how to do it.

    • What does the SheaNetics® phrase Embrace It • Own It • Live It® mean to you and your students?

We feel like SheaNetics® is a best friend.  Your journey to well-being begins as you Embrace It.  Be open, wrap your arms around it with the same spirit of commitment you would give to anything you value and hold dear.  Own It by accepting your responsibility to do what is good for you and having the perseverance and integrity to do it right.  Live It.  Set a good example and reveal the quality person you are by bringing SheaNetics in as your guide to everyday life.  It’s made great changes in my life and I promise it can in yours.

    • What are your future plans for SheaNetics®?

I want to continue to share quality information, healthy tips and newsletters on wellness to anyone who is interested in creating and maintaining a life of well-being.  Along these lines we have a radio show in pre-production, as well as a book that will be coming out later this year.  The DVDs and CDs have been well received, so we’ll continue to produce great new workouts and inspiring music.  SheaNetics® has added jewelry to its products and has a book due out in fall of 2011.  We also have an excitingly new and innovative exercise machine we hope to introduce later this year as well as plans to promote a SheaNetics® clothing line.  So we’re staying pretty busy.

    • How can I get started?

Well, we all need the right tools for the job.  Visiting the website (http://www.sheanetics.com/) and purchasing the SheaNetics® DVD/CD collection is a great way to begin.  Do the workouts 2-3 times a week and add the same amount of cardio to make up the core of your workout program.  Stay connected with SheaNetics® by signing up for the monthly newsletter and let the Five Living Principles of Well-Being be your guide to everyday living.

Q&A: Shea Vaughn’s BREAKTHROUGH- The 5 Living Principles to Defeat Stress, Look Great and Find Total Well-Being – HCI Publishers

    • Tell us about your new book “Shea Vaughn’s BREAKTHROUGH”…

“Breakthrough” inspires a lifestyle of wellness that is sustainable. It invites you to find the clarity, balance, and fulfillment that await you…to live without fear and regret the life you deserve.  “A new beginning is just a breakthrough away.”

    • What inspired you to write this book? How do you think the book will benefit women who read it?

“Breakthrough” is really the story of SheaNetics® which was inspired by real life personal and student experiences. Watching my students embrace The 5 Living Principles and transform their lives to a healthier and sustainable lifestyle was my gift. Each time they walked out of class they were less stressed, they felt great and looked great; and they continued to make better choices and set better examples all through their lives for themselves and for others. Touching hearts and making a difference encouraged me to want to share my Breakthrough’s with a greater audience.

I hope this book will wake up your heart. My wish is to encourage you to look inside yourself and admit the things you need to do and to help guide and inspire the positive breakthroughs in physical health and emotional peace of mind you are looking for.  “Breakthrough” gives you the tools to Embrace It, Own  It & Livet®…!

    • What is a Breakthrough?

Have you ever had a moment or a time in your life when you just “GET IT”?  You saw something before only a certain way or did not give any meaning to it, and all of a sudden it takes on a different importance.  Your perspective has changed opening a new doorway to understanding.  It is like flipping a switch, and a Breakthrough can happen any day, month or year – the bulb goes on and with it comes enlightenment.

    • Does “Breakthrough” speak to a certain audience? 

The book has a practical appeal for many but is most relevant to women around 45 and over.  They have experienced enough of life to appreciate the benefits that come from a breakthrough but still have challenges and questions and are looking for answers and guidance.  Women in this life phase seem to have unresolved issues of all types (mental, physical and emotional) which left unaddressed have festered until life’s mid-point when they usually begin to boil over.  “Breakthrough” will help you recognize your issues and show you how to take action.

Most times it is easier to keep our heads down and keep doing what we always do until we have no choice but to look up and there it is, smack – wack, right in our face and we have no options but to address what we tried to avoid.  Breakthroughs confirm you are either on the right or the wrong track.  They are a proactive and positive way to take more control of your life; to confront your challenges, desires and dreams and to finally reach out for the truth, help or fulfillment you have been longing to find.

    • What does your life look like living breakthroughs?

My life has been blessed and rich with love and acceptance from both family and friends.  But it has not been by accident.  I believe we determine our own destiny and along my journey my personal breakthroughs came from my efforts to live the Principles.  They been key to maintaining a lifestyle of wellness and improving and continuing the valued relationships I have with family, friends and others.

    • How is the “Breakthrough” different from other books? 

Breakthrough is a straight forward method for living a better life.  You get tangible advice along with the practical tools and techniques to find the answers to your personal questions.  It gives you the inspiration you need to discover and experience your own breakthroughs and create a lifestyle of wellness and the state of well-being that comes with it.

The process of self-discovery and finding fulfillment is very personal and the road traveled is different for each of us.  In this book I also share my journey which I feel demonstrates the value of SheaNetics and the lessons learned along the way and the positive prospect that what works for one person may work for anyone who will Embrace It, Own It, Live It ® …!

Q&A: BREAKTHROUGH – In-depth:

    • What is “Being In The Moment”?

It is a meditative act.  It is tuning out distractions and trying to understand what is going on in the here and now and how that contributes to the richness of your life.  It is your awareness that you can’t take money with you or possessions – but what you can take with you are memories and relationships.  It means you are focused and not thinking about everything you have to do or have done, not multi-tasking but have both your mind and body present.  You are personally committed to being there and in doing so it makes you more attuned to yourself and others so you can just enjoy the time or open the door to making important breakthroughs in your life.

    • How is “Being In The Moment” achievable?

Being in the moment can be achieved by a conscious effort to redirect your thoughts.  This is what you do when you meditate.  You focus concentration upon a sound, object, visualization, the breath, or movement in order to increase awareness of the present moment.  In SheaNetics we call this process “Meditation in Motion and Thought”.

    • What negative effect does muli-tasking Have?

It causes STRESS. Your attention is divided which can cause short term memory loss, or sleep deprivation.  It can compromise your immune system, cause inflammation and chronic illness and it’s impossible for you to give your best in all you are doing.

    • What role does stress play on falling short of “Being In The Moment”?

Unfortunately, stress is always with us like an unwanted companion and continues to affect your physical and mental well-being in many ways.  Being in the moment is a place of single minded focus but stress distracts us from being there.  It just gets in the way of creating presence of mind and self-awareness.  So to be in the moment we must realize you can’t manage stress but you can learn to give it a break.

    • What are some effective ways to reduce stress?

Wouldn’t it be nice if you could shoo fly – the boss, bills, chores, deadlines …  Stress is something we have from the moment we wake up until we lay our heads down at night.  It comes in varying degrees from minor annoyances to the most debilitating.  We all need some kind of approach to help us take a break from stress.

You can’t manage stress…harder you try the more stressful it becomes…but there are simple ways to give stress a break through exercise, laughing, listening to music and positive thinking.  They help you to be in the moment, clear your mind of the clutter and help open the door to well-being.  But creating a healthy lifestyle means to refocus from what is just bugging you.  That is were The 5 Living Principles of Well Being come in: Commitment, Perseverance, Self-Control, Integrity and Love.  They are the catalyst to being in the moment and an inspirational guide to enriching your life.

BOOK CLUB Q&A: BREAKTHROUGH:

  • Have you ever had a breakthrough or made a change in your life that you only realized later was a breakthrough?
  • Is there anything holding you back from having a breakthrough?
  • What would you like to bring back into your life that you left behind?
  • Have you found out your perception of someone or something was not the true reality?
  • Is a lack of honesty complicating or impeding your relationships?
  • How do you deal with conflict and adversity?
  • Is there anything keeping you from fulfilling your ambitions and aspirations?
  • Do you always take on more than you can comfortably complete in a day, week or year?
  • Has your understanding of meditation changed?
  • What role do you feel “being in the moment” can play in your life?
  • What do the 5 Living Principles of Well-Being mean to you?
  • How can you “Embrace It, Own It & Live It” in your own life?