WEEKS 1 – 3. Building stability and core. WEEKS 4 -6. Strength building. WEEKS 7 – 9 Power & Speed.
Meet Stephanie Garafola
Founder of StephaniesSanctuary.com
My name is Stephanie Garafola and I currently reside in NJ. I am a 200 HR experienced certified yoga instructor, NASM personal trainer, barre teacher, and health coach. I have a Bachelor’s of Science in chemistry from Brooklyn college and a Masters in Nutrition from Maryland University of Integrated Health.
My journey started in 2014 when my father was diagnosed with Huntington’s Disease (HD). It is a rare hereditary neurological disease that there is no cure for. The symptoms range from involuntary movements, trouble swallowing and speaking, rapid eye movements, poor balance (high risk of falling), unwanted weight loss, and severe depression and anxiety. After months of doctor visits and family therapy we learned the best way to decrease the severity of symptoms was to stay physically active and to keep the brain active by proper nourishment and activity. I was always an athlete and into fitness but this family disease made me realize even more so just how important it is to pay attention to how you move your body and what you put inside of it. My father passed away in February of 2020. He was my best friend, we shared a birthday, and he was my inspiration for everything.
In June of 2023 I had my son, Nicholas named after my dad and my main focus is nutrition in pediatric care. I work on everything from post-partum moms, to starting solids with infants, to picky eaters, to teenagers with eating disorders. I am extremely passionate about getting children to enjoy eating and trying new foods. I come from a big Italian home where we made everything from scratch and I find it is very important to get in the kitchen from a young age and make this a fun journey where families can bond together. Eating and feeding our children shouldn’t be an added stress to our lives; it should be a fun experience where we make some of the best memories with our loved ones.
