The Comparison Hole

Getting stuck in the comparison scroll hole nearly killed my vibe after I had Grace.

It’s hard to not feel badly about how you look when you see the mom on IG who’s had baby #6 8 weeks ago and is already posting selfies of her 6 pack. Oh and she looks like she slept through the night 🌙 too…which is awesome for her, but it’s hard to NOT go to the negative place when you see the highlight reel.

Compound that with being in the fitness industry where I literally am a walking billboard for what I do, and feeling badly is taken to a whole new level. At least for me.

I remember telling my clients that when my doctor gave me the clear to workout again, I went into the studio alone. I tried ONE exercise and struggled so badly with it that I thought I would need to find a new job. I didn’t know how I be able to teach things that my body couldn’t currently do much less with how I looked. Which wasn’t like myself. I felt weak, and I felt worse than discouraged. 

I busted my butt to feel strong again. To feel like myself again. But it didn’t work. I did two workouts a day, sometimes three, at least 5 days a week and NOTHING.

I found myself looking on social media for insight into how to get my strength back. I thought surely even with all my years of experience, I was missing something, but I couldn’t find any answers. The only thing I found where women who bounced back seemingly without any effort.

It only made me feel worse.

So I became determined to create a community for women to have the support they needed to find their strength and confidence again, without feeling like they needed to be shoved into a box.

I want you to have a community that is going to support and love ❤️ you on your journey with fitness, and a coach who understands that everyone’s BODY, life, and journey are completely different.

I want you to have that safe space to let go of your frustrations and find the power in your own body without worrying about how you look or what other people think about how you look. I want you to focus on your own journey with the tribe around you to get you to your goals.

I couldn’t find that for myself so I created it. Join us. We’re always accepting new members.

I Just Need 5 Minutes

Can I just get 5 minutes by myself PLEASE?

I mean I’m not complaining…but…🤯 

Time to go hole up in my garage gym. 

✌️ Mama’s busy.

Grab the workout below for a little break from the stress that is adulting.

3 Rounds

25 reps each exercise

Toe touches

Bridge hip taps

Side leg lifts

Bicycle crunches

Winner of the Fitness Goal Award

The only one who’s going to make sure you achieve your fitness goals is YOU.

I know the one time you’re thinking you would actually ask for help, it won’t really do a whole lot. Even when you hire a coach, the work is still ultimately up to you.

The people I train who get the transformation they’re wanting, the one they crave so much they can taste it and the one they don’t tell anyone else about, are the ones who know that whatever happens is their doing.

They know that even with the support they have, the choices they make are ultimately their own and achieving their goals is ultimately up to them.

Want to know how they do it?

They show up.

☝️ it’s that simple. 

Not every workout 🏋️‍♀️ is going to be easy, not every workout 🏋️‍♀️ will be your best, and that’s ok 👍. Because in those no so awesome moments is where you truly build your strength and where you show yourself that you are WORTH achieving your goals.

What matters more is continuing to show up and to put in the effort even when the going gets tough or things don’t go as planned. That doesn’t mean it’s always going to be pretty but it does mean that you will progress because you’ll be consistent. 

My Pro Tip for establishing those consistent habits? Make appointments with yourself in your calendar like you would for the doctor or to get your haircut. Then don’t cancel. You wouldn’t cancel those other appointments so why would you cancel on yourself? Then keep doing that until showing up becomes second nature.

Grab Your Dumbbells!

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Healthy Living is Bigger than Changing Your Diet

I don’t subscribe to the healthy living programs that have you vacillating from one side of the pendulum to the other. There is nothing more frustrating 😤 than giving up every enjoyable aspect of life, getting this HUGE transformation and then totally losing it because the changes were too drastic.

That my friend, is the yo-yo of healthy living and I feel some aspects of that are worse than the lifestyle you currently have. Not only can it potentially mess with your body in irreversible ways, it also messes with your head. There is nothing a whole lot more defeating than working so hard to get this amazing transformation and not being able to hold on to it because the way you got it isn’t realistic for your daily life. 

I want a tailored program for you that teaches you the easy healthy habits you can have in your daily life, so you can still enjoy the life you work so hard for without feeling like you’re deprived of the things you love 💗.

It’s the harder change to make because it takes longer and I know you want the results NOW. It’s also the harder change to make because it’s going to challenge you to unpack why you make certain decisions so you can truly understand why you’ve gotten to where you are. But I know this change is more effective because I know once you make it, you won’t have to make any more changes. Ever again.

You’ll know why you make decisions about food and working out, and you’ll also know how to navigate around those reasonings so you can have the healthy life you want with the balance you also want.

Grab Your Dumbbells!

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My Supermodel Days Are Over

I’ll never look like that.

That ☝️ thought ever cross your mind? It sure has crossed mine. More times than I would care to admit. Welcome to the age of social media right? Where every mom that pops into your search feed looks perfect, put together, and like she’s never stressed. Ever. 

Like OMG how does she have 6 kids under the age of 10, 6 pack abs, AND she cooks every single freaking meal from scratch??

Ok so how do I look like that AND actually sleep through the night? Or is that just a total unicorn?

It’s not fun. Especially after you’ve had a baby, and now you’re working while trying to juggle this whole parenting thing AND have balance in your own life. Good luck. I guess those flat abs were a thing of the past?

You can go deep down a rabbit hole of despair when these thoughts begin to invade your mind. In like the worst way possible because the next thing you know, you’re depressed AF and you’re giving up on every single goal you’ve set for yourself. Because why try when you’re never going to actually get to your goal?

Don’t get me wrong, there’s so much power in embracing your own strength and beauty, but it takes a hot second. Arguably the hardest aspect of this journey is in embracing that your journey is yours alone and you can’t compare what you’re doing to what someone else is doing. I remind myself of this ALL THE TIME. I also remind myself that life presented on social media is often not a realistic reflection of what is happening in that person’s real life.

Here’s my Pro Tip when that negativity starts creeping in:

• Sit your ass down and write down 10 amazing things you’ve accomplished. It’s just 10 friend, and it’s not as hard as you think. If you want the help, if you’re that hung up, I’ll help you. Because I see you and I see your resiliency, your strength, and every single thing you’ve accomplished.

When you find yourself letting that negativity creep in again, because it will, remind yourself of at least one of those things. Then put your phone down and get back to work.

We Don't Regress

I don’t care if you become stagnant or even plateau, but your ass better not go backwards. 

Life is going to get chaotic. That’s just a reality of adulting. Whether you work outside your home or not, between managing a household, pets, a family, or whatever it is that’s a priority to you, life can be crazy. The days pass by quickly and seem to be filled with a million things that NEED to get done but might not necessarily happen. 

I know exactly what happens to you when shit hits the fan and life seems crazier than normal. The first thing to go are your workouts. You just don’t have time right? You have this activity or that activity to get to, your kids need whatever they need from you, and frankly there’s just not enough hours in the day to get it all done. So bye bye fitness. You know what goes usually right after that? Your eating. I mean you’re not working out anyways so why worry about what your shoveling in your face? Plus you’re so busy that you don’t have time to even think about it. You’re more concerned with just having something as opposed to nothing at all. 

That’s all backwards motion to me. Regression at its finest. And no one is immune from it. But we have to have better coping mechanisms than that so when you are at the point where you can get consistent in your routine again, you don’t feel like you’ve been set back so far that there’s no catching up so there’s no point in TRYING to catch up. 

Don’t throw all your hard work out the window. When life gets crazy, we have to learn how to adapt and overcome. Have a plan for your week so you don’t get caught up in the chaos. Know the days that would work for you to get a workout in. Maybe that means you don’t get your workout one day, or maybe it means the workout is modified, but compensate for that in other ways. Be mindful of what you’re eating, make the effort to prep healthy snacks so you’re not grabbing for whatever is available and be intentional with your water intake. Maybe even cut out the alcohol on the days you know you’re not going to be working out. 

It doesn’t have to be perfect, this is all a journey and walking this journey means making the necessary adjustments to ensure you can still be making progress towards your goals. 

At the end of the day, don’t give up. Don’t quit on yourself and don’t go backwards. Remind yourself that your goals are still important and still deserved, even if the day isn’t perfect. 

How Do You Breathe When You Workout?

I get this question all the time, in relation to specific exercises. When am I supposed to inhale and when am I supposed to exhale?

As a trainer, I love this question. What it shows to me is a greater understanding the person working out has about the power of exercise as well as a willingness to learn about said power. It also shows me that the person is wanting to make sure that what they’re doing is effective.

Here’s your technical fancy answer: for working out you should be inhaling on the eccentric phase of the exercise and exhaling during the concentric phase of the exercise. 

I know, you’re like eccentric? What the HECK is that? The eccentric portion of an exercise is when your muscle is lengthening under load. The easiest way for me to think of this is when you straighten out your arm in a bicep curl. That’s when you inhale. It prepares the muscle for work. Lengthening the muscle helps with muscle repair and increasing metabolic rates.

Conversely, concentric action of the muscle is when the muscle is contracted. Like the top of a bicep curl. That’s the actual work. When the muscle is shortened, it generates enough force to move an object. The concentric movement is when you exhale. Without getting too deep into the fancy science behind filaments and tendons, the exhale helps the work seem easier.

Ultimately, the breath works with the length of the muscle so you get maximum results. Really that’s what you want right? To make sure you’re getting the best results and the most effective workout in the short amount of time you have in your day TO workout. 

While all this depth of understanding is awesome, and definitely knowledge you should be aware of when you’re working out, at the end of the day, it’s not the primary focus for me. The primary focus for me is that you’re moving your body and taking time out for yourself, doing something that will more actively move you towards your goals.

It’s definitely something you should be practicing and while you need to have this awareness and be mindful of it while you’re working out, if it’s not being used with every single rep of every single exercise, it’s not the end of the world. Just make sure you’re breathing while you’re working out and you’re good. All those details will come with time and practice. 

Grab Your Dumbbells!

All you need are some weights for these time efficient workouts that are sure to make you sweat!

Make Discomfort Your Ally

The day you discover discomfort is your ally, your life will change. 

Working out sucks. Be honest. If working out was easy, or comfortable, everyone would do it. In reality, working out is NOT cute. The visceral effect of working out, that sweating, heart pounding, lungs burning feeling, is not ideal. At least not to most people. 

So now you’re in this tough catch-22 because you KNOW you need to workout. That’s how you’re going to reach your goal right? Working out and eating well. But then you have to get over what you know is going to be an uncomfortable and occasionally painful experience.

I would argue that you’ve been in uncomfortable situations before and gotten through it so there’s no reason why a little workout should scare you. Granted those past experiences might not have in a gym, but maybe they were at your work, with your family or with a friend. 

If you can get through those things, and do it well, you can get though the workout. Hell maybe that’s even a good catch-22 to get yourself in. Intentionally making yourself feel uncomfortable in a safe setting, seeing how you handle it so you can figure out how to handle it more effectively. Or just make the uncomfortable feeling not so foreign.

That’s what getting uncomfortable does to you. It makes you expand the limitations you’ve put on yourself by learning in a practical setting how strong you actually are and by doing so, you create change.