Health Coach | Speaker | Writer | Welcome to my digital diary! I'm here to help you blend life & fitness to find your health & happy! Thank you for being part of my family & allowing me to add value to your journey!
I lived over 3 decades of my life scared shxtless. Embarrassed of my messy, scarcity driven life.
Scared to rip off labels I told myself dictated my worth. Like being: an athlete, overweight & skinny, x-ray tech, nutrition & sales consultant, pharmaceutical sales rep, dudes, the list goes on & on.
We hold onto emotions when going thru traumatic experiences. The trauma I encountered as a child & younger adult held me back from incredible experiences & opportunities – stifled my potential.
I see that now & I want y’all to learn from my mistakes.
The trauma of running from debt & the fear of poverty. Embarrassed to ask for help or tell anyone I was living out of my office & eating at the hotel across the road for food.
The trauma of failed relationships which prevented me from dating, asking for what I wanted, & settling.
The trauma of kids making fun of me as a child. Being told I was too big to be a cheerleader, too fat to run track, & not pretty enough to stand out.
The trauma of being told I would “never make it without him” & I wasn’t “smart enough to support myself on my own.”
A scarcity mentality caused me to believe: making money was hard I always had to trade my time for money I couldn’t eat out or make memories with friends because I was afraid I would get fat or I wouldn’t have anything to eat & people would judge me because of my Crohn’s I was overworked & made no space in my schedule for fun, adventure, love, dating – all the things that make life worth living.
I’ve made a lot of mistakes in my life, so if you feel like you’ve are a failure, I’m here to tell you it’s OK.
You’re doing more than OK. The question is, are you able to flip the script, change your priorities & learn your lesson?
When we use what has happened to us & it creates a lightbulb moment for another person – that is you living your purpose. It’s one of the best feelings in the world.
Nothing is wrong with you & your story matters. So what are you telling yourself?
Character is judged when things are going wrong. It’s easy to be your best self when things are going right but the person who is able to flip the script & extract the sunshine from the rain is the one who wins.
Be an athlete of life. Tomorrow is never promised.
Oxox Coach K
Hailing from Fishers, Indiana, Katie is an aficionado of health, mindset, human connection, & entrepreneurship. Writer, speaker, doer of many things, she grew up on her family’s beef cattle & crop farm where agriculture was her first love. She is a Purdue University graduate well known for her storytelling of life lessons & personal transformation through her own relationships, Crohn’s Disease, disordered eating, CrossFit, & adapting a carnivore diet lifestyle. Katie also has over 16 years experience as a Registered Radiologic Technologist, Nutritionist, & Sales Consultant. You can catch her via Instagram @lil_bit_of_fit & blog, Lilbitoffit.com
I had no idea when I lost my normal period in my early 20’s something was wrong.
Admission: chronic exerciser & habitual dieter.
At 25 I was diagnosed with cervical cancer & had part of my cervix removed. Went through divorce number 1 at 27, had a high stress job & lifestyle.
Discovered Crossfit in my early 30’s, which was like chasing a bad shot of cheap tequila with another bad shot of cheap tequila. Exacerbated my tendency for extremes.
I was overly stressed, under fed, experiencing Crohn’s flares, over training — I completely lost my period. Basically I just ignored it. I didn’t care I was just trying to chase PR’s.
At some point in your life, you’ve probably declared that your period is a major pain in the tush. But while it may be a nuisance it’s a good insight into your overall health & one we use as a biofeedback marker to help you achieve your health & fitness goals.
A recent article by Outside Magazine explained how common these issues are with female athletes & avid exercisers:
“Researchers estimate that as many as 60 percent of exercising women may experience one component of the female athlete triad, which includes disordered eating, loss of a menstrual cycle, and loss of bone density.
When an athlete’s nutritional intake doesn’t meet the body’s needs, whether due to reduced dietary intake—intentional or not—or increased exercise, the body shuttles resources to systems that are essential to survival, suppresses energy-intensive processes like menstruation and growth, and alters hormone levels.”
Cred: @theglowingfridge
Quick tips on what your period tells you:
Bright Red Blood
Means you are simply at the beginning of your cycle. The ‘fresher’ the blood the more red it’ll be.
Darker Brown Blood
Brownish blood is basically just older blood that’s been in your uterus for a lot longer than fresh blood. It’s had a chance to oxidize. Can also be prevalent if you have an IUD, especially the progesterone kind. This is because you’re shedding a smaller amount of the uterus lining every month, which means the blood stays in there longer.
Clotting
Totally normal, but if you have large clots on a regular basis, they could be indicative of a larger problem like hypothyroidism, uterine fibroids, symptomatic anemia, or heavy bleeding (menorrhagia).
Irregular or Absence (Amenorrhea)
Occasional irregular periods may be totally normal, but it could also be a red flag. For starters, stress is a huge culprit.
When you’re stressed, your body produces more cortisol. Elevated cortisol levels can block signals that lead to the release of an egg that then leads to your period.
Other Common symptoms related to overdoing it, warranting an overhaul:
Irritability, mood swings
Cold extremities, hair loss, gut issues, bad digestion, bloating
No sex drive, Irregular or no menstrual cycle
Increase in belly fat, unexplained weight gain, plateaus
A prevalent problem in the fitness scene as discussed above: UNDER EATING & OVER TRAINING resulting in amenorrhea
Experiencing this myself first hand, here is some advice to help you destress & rebalance — not only to help you get your period back, but to also move the needle forward towards achieving your fitness goals.
Tap for link to all info
Tips to Help
EAT. Eat enough food to support body systems & your activity
The number one reason athletes & avid exercisers lose their cycle & go down a rabbit hole of metabolic adaptation & basically life sucking.
We’re preconditioned to think 1200 calories is the magic number to eat to lose weight. We spend endless time punching numbers in calculators that have no idea our medical history, lifestyle, stress level, or the fact we think sugar free jello & rice cakes dipped in Walden Farms Syrup are meals. Invest in a coach y’all, life isn’t a template or calculator. It was one of the best decisions I ever made.
We underestimate the calories and nutrient dense foods needed to support muscle growth to get the ‘tone’ that every woman talks about but refuses to eat & lift weights accordingly to gain. We also tend to over exercise & do too much HIIT & cardio on top of under fueling. Focus on strength training & reduce high intensity activity.
When we don’t eat enough, and/or our body fat is very low, we don’t have enough energy stores to efficiently support body functions like reproduction. As a result, hormones and body systems down regulate (like your period & thyroid function) to survive.
Many women can have trouble losing weight and may even gain weight when eating a chronic deficit over a period of time. This is typically due to the down regulation of thyroid hormones that slow down metabolic rate. This has become commonplace in women who are training hard, competing, repeatedly doing HIIT style workouts like CrossFit and the Orange Theories without adequate food and recovery.
Find the “Right” Diet for YOU
Look, I tried to do paleo for years trying to run and CrossFit despite not being able to properly break down fruits, vegetables, nut & seeds. Add it to my list of dumb shxt Katie learned the hard way.
Not only did my physique not change, my performance suffered, my recovery suffered, I was sore all the time, pissed off, bloated, and hangry.
I was officially finally diagnosed with Crohn’s in 2018. Guess what my body cannot digest and absorb? Nuts and seeds, fibers, raw fruits & vegetables.
Guess what makes up the majority of the Paleo diet? All of the above.
We need adequate food and the right kinds of foods for our unique needs for lean muscle gain, recovery, reproduction, healthy hormone balance, and cortisol control. More food is not automatically going to cause you to gain weight and go into the dreaded ‘fat storage mode.’
Carbs are by far the most insulin-stimulating macro & antagonist to your cortisol level (stress hormone). So if you’re eating a low carb diet and performing highly glycolytic activities like CrossFit, all the boot camps and Orange Theory‘s, your insulin levels will be low. If you have a good relationship with carbs & can digest them with ease, they’re not the devil. You may need to incorporate more into your diet if you feel things are “off.”
Your body senses that resources are limited and down regulates accordingly.
Now, with that said, carbohydrate requirements will vary. We all have different fitness goals, train in different modalities and metabolize carbohydrates to varying degrees.
If you are one with PCOS, for example, you may do better on a lower carb approach but lifestyle and training needs to be tailored appropriately. Work with a qualified practitioner.
If you don’t know how many calories to eat for your activity I wrote a phenomenal post and resource on that here. Below are helpful infographics to guide you to more optimal choices.
Meat based macro ratios more applicable for healing & muscle gain phases
Meat based macro ratios more applicable for maintenance phases
Remember, standing on the podium or holding that medal in your hands doesn’t require you to have abs. Athletes don’t eat less & train more, they eat more & train intentionally.
Make Sleep a Non-negotiable
We should be sleeping well for at least 7-9 hrs per night. Make sure your environment is:
Cool & dark
Shut off electronics an hour or so before bed
Read & wind down with things that are relaxing
Keep caffeine <200 mg per day ideally and only in the mornings
This transitions into what it means to be metabolically flexible…
What we want is Metabolic Flexibility
I used to be a huge sugar burner. I didn’t understand why I had energy crashes, craved carbs & was hungry all the time despite eating plenty of food. Even when I was eating in a surplus, training for performance & muscle gain. I was eating plenty of meat paired with more rice, rice Chex, & rice cakes – no matter how large my meals were I was always hungry like 2 hours later. It was super frustrating & not convenient at all as I work in healthcare & don’t have time to have meals every 2 hours. I fluctuated from a sugar burner, to metabolically flexible, & everywhere somewhere in between during my health & fitness journey. Since going meat-based with my diet I no longer have these issues of being a “sugar burner.” I now can incorporate smaller portions of white rice based carb around training occasionally with minimal negative issues. I really don’t crave them anymore. Becoming metabolically flexible, which just means you’re able to burn both glucose & fat as fuel, was the biggest life changer. It took a lot of experimentation & patience but there is light at the end of the tunnel for y’all! I can easily fast overnight & in between meals for hours, without having to force it or feel like I want to rip someone’s head off because I’m hangry lol! I don’t have to worry about multiple snacks available at all times because I have to eat every 2 hours. That’s food freedom for me. Here are a couple cheat sheets simply to help educate & help you along your health journey!
PR’d this 5k fat fueled & fasted, metabolic flexibility is where it’s at y’all!
Stop ignoring the problem, seek help from a qualified doctor, health practitioner, & coach. Your quality of life hinges on it❤️ I’d love to hear yall’s experiences & if you struggled with this like me!
Experiencing any of the problems above in this blog?
If you’re an athlete or woman struggling like I did, and need personalized help tailoring your nutrition, work with me one on one HERE.
Don’t forget to share this with the women in your squad who deserve to be well-fed!
Tips to optimize a low carb lifestyle as an athlete/avid exerciser with special digestive needs:
▫️For my carnivore low carb’ers:
1.) Just get adapted-eat meat, find the low carb sources you love, cut the junk, find what eat windows that work for your schedule, track to make sure you’re eating enough food.
2.) Focus on healing any gi issues & give it time. Be patient & consistent. You don’t feel good all the time, as with any diet it takes time to find your groove. Most hit a slump around 2 weeks. Reduce the intensity & volume of your workouts (especially my crossfitters & Orange Theory enthusiasts)
3.) Thrive & THEN play around with fat loss or muscle gain goals. You’ll be more self aware & educated once your reach this point.
Not until someone is adapted & healed do I recommend any kind of playing around with fat loss cuts.
For some it may take 3-6 months or it can take years depending on what kind of healing (gut, hormonal, metabolic etc) you have to do.
▫️For someone who is just learning how to best manage IBD – I wanted to share my learning tools as an athlete. Do not give up who you are because of IBD – you will need to adjust & pay attention to your body, but you can continue to do what you love as well! There will be good days & bad days. Some days you may need to modify workouts, movements, intensity & volume.
SLEEP & HYDRATION
I drink water with electrolytes from @goultima Sleep has made the biggest impact on me physically & mentally. Shoot for at least 7 hours. I am in bed asleep by 8:30 at the latest most days, wake at 4am the majority of week days. Sleep is the most important thing to manage during any season. NON NEGOTIABLE.
NUTRITION
Everyone has different triggers & different needs. Do not apologize for having to eat a certain way or bring your own food in social situations. Food choices are extremely important. For me, I find lowfodmap, easy to digest, gluten free, low lectin, minimal dairy, animal based nutrition with the exception of white rice, plain rice cakes, & rice Chex cereal if I feel like I need some carbs (don’t crave or need them anymore now that I’m fully adapted to a more carnivore lifestyle). But I believe you should always leave room for flexibility & no diet dogma. Do what works for you. Carbs are most optimal post workout & in the evening prior to bed.
SOCIAL SITUATIONS
I understand this is a rough spot for many with autoimmune issues &/or special digestive needs. Use your uniqueness to educate others why you need to eat the way you do. Maybe it’s something they need to hear too. Be confident, bring your own food if you have to, eat before you go out, custom order your meals. I set a limit of 2 alcoholic beverages in social situations & also mix my own drinks the majority of the time. Just order a shot of whatever liquor you want & whatever mixer you want. That way you have control over how much alcohol is in that drink. There have been times I’ve also brought @zevia as a mixer. Voice your needs to the restaurant & they will accommodate.
STRESS MANAGEMENT
Stress plays a huge role in inflammation. Sleep, take more rest days when you need them, make sure you’re eating enough food for your activity, take walks, spend time alone.Learning how to manage stress is a skill. Be kind to yourself!❤️
