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!
GRATITUDE: think & name off at least 3 things you’re grateful for & do at least one thing that brings you joy in the mornin. Smile more. Compliment more. Do at least one nice thing for someone every day.
MOVEMENT: get a walk or some kind of movement done 1st thing in the morning. Be intentional about getting your 10K steps in.
FOOD: eat nourishing food that does not cause any negative physical or mental triggers. Eat slow & mindfully. Hit your protein grams daily. At least 30-50g/meal. Average 2-3 meals/d, no snacking. Let your carbs & fat grams fall where they will. Eat at your maintenance calories the majority of the year. Drink at least 1/2 your body weight in oz of water daily + get in adequate electrolytes. Walk after meals, even 10 minutes. Eat your largest meal & carbs after your workout & taper meal sizes off later in the day.
WORKOUTS: strength train 3-4 x/week. Use cardio wisely, get in your daily steps.
SELF CARE: do sh*t you love everyday & fill your cup. Sleep 7-8 hrs/night. Take 2 rest days/wk. Sweat, get some sunshine & nature as much as you can.
MINDSET: make a vision board or list or “Alignment” board on Pinterest & fill it with visions, quotes, pictures, & expanders of the life, love, body, & person you desire to embody. Believe you are worthy & deserving. Listen to positive podcasts, read books, surround yourself with extraordinary people & a nurturing environment.
That’s it. Don’t make it harder than it is. Remember motivation is fleeting, but you have the choice to be a person who keeps commitments to themselves.
Now that know better…
Do better.
You DO have it all together, you just periodically forgot where you put it!
Oxox Coach K
Ps.
Mug is from Kroger!! How cute is this???
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Q: I can’t seem to control my weight, portions, & sugar cravings no matter what diet, currently Carnivore. Some days I’m not hungry.
So I asked her, “What’s your 1st thought in the morning when you wake up? Is it how much you’re scared you weigh?”
She said yes. I said that’s your problem.
Also asked her, “Do you intentionally make sure you are simply moving & hitting your steps every day?”
She said no. I also said there’s your problem.
One thing you can easily control which will also boost your mood, metabolism, digestion, & appetite👉🏻Build a success routine which includes movement. I suggest 1st thing in the morning. That leaves less time for excuses for you not to get your workouts in. I got mine this mornin before work.
When you’re constantly stuck in a negative mindset around dictating your entire day on a number or what you look like in the mirror, that’s the weight actually weighing you down.
You dictate your reaction. Your thoughts & emotions (your REACTION to things) – dictates your behaviors. Your behaviors become your habits. Your habits become you.
Tips we talked about to help navigate sweets cravings, addiction, & mindset around body image:
– Stop body checking in the mirror. Take away the scale. Wear comfy clothes that complement your body. You wear your clothes, your clothes don’t wear you.
– Sweets cravings are addiction: determine if you’re an abstainer or moderator. If you’re an abstainer you need to avoid carbs & sugar, period. Get the food out of your house. Watch artificial sweeteners, keto treats, cheat days, gum, drinks with sweetener, make sure you’re eating enough food especially enough fat. Track if you don’t know!
– Cheese, dairy, nuts, & nut butters can be addictions/triggers, they’re hard to portion control.
– Choose meats easier to portion control like ground meat vs ribeyes, ribs, pork belly, bacon. They are highly palatable (& high fat) which means you’re more likely to eat past satiety.
– You may need a multivitamin to fill in gaps for your specific needs. Always consult with your physician before making any changes. Most common imbalances/deficiencies I see with Carnivore if not eating a well rounded variety: vitamin D, electrolytes, magnesium & sodium, B vitamins, zinc, vit A, calcium & vitamin C
– Check yo stress: Relationship & life stress? Sh*tty sleep? Over training? Under eating? Too much protein? Not enough Fat? Still eating trigger foods? Over caffeinating? ALL STRESS which increases your blood sugar, & increases inflammation even if you’re eating low-carb.
Your reflection in the mirror does not dictate your worth. Neither does what diet you choose to follow. Choose the things that make you a better human!
Going to take a different spin to answering y’alls questions today and I feel no matter what you are wanting to change or bring into your life this is how you’ll get it.
This really has nothing to do with a specific diet, macros, or workouts, BUT everything in your life stems from healing & cultivating a better relationship with just 2 things: knowing your worth & you’re enough & putting action behind it.
You see you can go to the best doctors or hire all the best practitioners & coaches in the world but if you don’t believe in yourself, that you are worthy of whatever you’re seeking or wanting to heal, you’ll never get it.
We go to coaches & doctors for the “answers,” often seeking more numbing mechanisms to cover up the underlying issue which is us not believing in ourselves. We numb with excess food, shopping, alcohol, giving our bodies to people who don’t deserve them, etc. So I can sit here & give you all the specific diets, macros, & workouts, but they don’t fxcking matter if you don’t believe in yourself & that you’re worthy of these things. That means being able to apply the information as well, & if you’re paralyzed by your beliefs, the application won’t happen either.
For example, chasing beauty, love & success, even if you attain these things, they won’t bring you happiness & love unless you love yourself. Look at Marilyn Monroe, Amy Winehouse, Whitney Houston, Robin Williams, Heath ledger… just had this conversation with one of my best friends the other day while watching A Knight’s Tale with Heath Ledger. These people were so immensely talented & yet they took their own lives because they didn’t love themselves.
Ladies, some of the most beautiful models in the world, the most successful people in the world get left in relationships, are lonely, & are not happy because they don’t love themselves. Beauty truly is in the eye of the beholder and the beholder is you.
When traumatic experiences happen to you, like maybe you were left as a child, or someone left you in a relationship, if you start to believe you’re not enough, & these things pile up on top of you, & you don’t learn to unpack your bag — they will suffocate you & take over your life.
“Bad” shxt happens, but if you seek changing your personality, or chasing a body aesthetic to attain “happiness” you will forever be unfulfilled, you’re not really treating & healing the underlying issue which is you believe you’re not enough. I did this, I did this for decades & chased a smaller body thinking it would make me happier — it did not. It may temporarily give you that “high” but you won’t stay there. You won’t stay there until you become the person you want to be & cultivate those success habits & commitments to stay the person you desire to be.
So take all these talented amazing people like the actors, actresses, models – all these successful people we think have everything, but do they? It’s easy to hide behind & be fooled by filters, editors, & facades.
Take us as young girls or boys, we often times chase after boys & girls, we try to change ourselves, we try to please our parents, please teachers, please other people & where does it get us?
Love & worth are not to be chased, earned, or worked for – just like food, they are essential for life.
Watch your world change when you start to love yourself. It’s like the “Beauty is not the rent we pay to exist in this world.” We matter just because we exist. I have this on a post it on my mirror.
As children what happens is we have unmet needs. We want to be loved, we want to be safe, we want to be viewed as successful & significant & we encounter disappointment in these areas. We begin to believe that our needs will never be met & we are not enough which transcends into our adult lives.
There is no one thing in this world that can meet your unmet needs other than yourself.
To feel beautiful & loved you don’t need to change your shape or get surgery or whatever you seek to change your appearance, the one thing you need to do is believe you are loved & lovable because that is what you will attract in your life. There’s nothing wrong with wanting to better yourself or change something as long as it comes from a place of self loving & not self loathing. Your foundation has to be set on true self love.
People love you & see your significance & appreciate you to the degree that you love & see your significance for yourself.
Think about it, when people say good things about you like, “You’re beautiful, my goodness you are so talented, I just love to hear your voice, etc” — all these good things are warm like a fabulous cup of coffee or that cocktail you love you that warms you from the insides. Exude that energy & other people will see it & you’ll notice better things will come into your life when you vibrate at this high energy. You can choose this feeling right now. Don’t give other people or things that power with which you hold within yourself.
Because when these things leave you, we tend to feel poorly about ourselves. Remember we attract everything that is aligned to our energy. What is meant for you will never miss you & if it’s meant to leave let it go. Release it with a loving heart.
When you learn the art of unattachment, that’s when you start a lifelong romance with your life. One that is fulfilling. One that will give you the body that you want, the feelings that you want, the experiences that you want, & the people that you want, and it all starts with you.- Not a diet, not another person, not the right workouts, or meal plan, or macros.
So how do we do it? You have to learn to nourish your soul like you nourish your body. You have to nourish your mind. Tell yourself what you want to feel & what you want to hear & paint a different picture. Tell yourself you are beautiful & you have a fabulous life & ove being in the sunshine & you have people who love you simply because you are you. Paint that picture & believe it.
Create vision boards. I love Pinterest & save quotes that make me feel alive, loved, understood. I save pictures of the healthy body I want & how I feel. I save pictures of relationships goals & the person I want to be & I want my partner to be. Embody the habits of that person you want to embody & put them in place to get what you want. You have to put action behind the desires, too.
Set your clothes out in the morning to make it easy for yourself to go work out. TImeblock walks in your schedule. Meal prep your food ahead of time so you have good things to eat. Book self care & time to yourself. Unapologetically own your fxcking life & quit letting other people influence your life & live it for you. Don’t let them influence you by putting down a specific diet or things that you love, or telling you you’re weird & you need to change. That’s giving other people power.
The longest relationship you’ll have in your entire life is with you. Kids grow up. Partners leave or they die. Your parents pass. Friends will come and go. But you always will be with yourself until your very last breath.
Believe you are worth it.Because you are. Remember if beauty made you happy every beautiful person would be happy. A bodybuilder knows you have to break down muscle & build it back up & let it recover over & over again to get the body they want — a wounded, broken heart is just the same.
During therapy, she said, “I don’t feel you really have social anxiety & neither do you, I feel, & as self-aware as you are, you feel, you’re surrounded by the wrong people & always seeking truth. Why stay in circles you’ve grown out of? You already know the truth you’re seeking.”
Fxck me. She right. Does this every time.🙄🤔🤦🏼♀️😄
I keep it real with y’all. I don’t just post health & “fitnessey” stuff. Yes, y’all need to learn that content too, but the meat 🥩 (lol always makes me giggle 😆) of what you need work on is self healing, self love, self awareness, & bluntly put – owning your shxt.
🔆The biggest pillars my clients & I work on.
That’s truly how you get what you want – the abundance, love, happiness, body we all dream of.
So, let me share some of my real life lessons that may just help you…
💡 The entire time you may think it’s you but what it really is is the people & environment you surround yourself is toxic & misaligned. Be choosy who you let in your circle.
💡 I will never go thru another stage of life depending on someone to take care of me, validate my worth, have to tell a man/friend/etc – how to treat me.
💡 I do not need to explain my beliefs, definitions, & choices on diet, relationships, religion, politics, or what I choose to do with my body.
💡 Never be embarrassed or ashamed of your current situation. Most people in this world are covering up the same situations with filters & fake smiles.
💡 Choose people who understand, don’t judge, & lovingly allow you to be yourself. Those people feel like sunshine, gravitate to the energy givers.
💡 Relationships truly meant for you should come easily & feel like freedom & home. Any one you have to keep secret, force, chase, change or censor yourself – is most likely one that will end & teach you a hard lesson.
💡 The best decision I ever made was to promise myself I would have the hard conversations I didn’t want to have because those are the ones that matter. I decided hiding my words was hiding me, & they may just be the words someone else needs to here to change their life. Your message & voice matter.
How do you know you’ve found the truth to what you’re seeking?
You get to the point where you feel like your life depends on constantly research, studying, & seeking. When we’re in school, often times it does, our life trajectory depends on our studies.
As we age I feel we more study & seek truth about life, our purpose, & who we are in general. We try to make sense of it all. I can tell you I’ve been doing this constantly my entire life.
So the question has been asked, “How do you know when you found the truth to what you’re seeking?”
👉🏻The way you know you’ve found the truth is the truth that you’re seeking is the residence of who you’ve become.
It feels like home.
It’s easy.
It flows like water.
You’ll hear me say be like water, you have to learn to flow like water throughout life.
The problem is for many of us growing up we are taught the truths of all the other people & society. We’re told we have to blend & fit into all the truths. Which then feels heavy, puts many of us into a box or forces us to feel we have to slap a label on our diets, our relationships, & about who we are as humans.
Like we have to fit in a file cabinet in exactly just the right spot or we’re tainted & to be thrown in the trash.
Blend with the loudest most powerful & most authentic truths.
💡Ask yourself, “What if it does work out exactly how I imagined, or greater?”
How bout we end on that note & entertain that thought?! 🌈
I saw a woman running yesterday. She was red faced, sweating, & workin it! #transformationtuesday
I talk about avoiding labels for a reason. When most people think of a runner, or weightlifter, or whatever “athlete” you choose, you automatically think of a specific body type right?
Someone long, lean, & muscular.
This woman didn’t fit that description at all.
I loathe the word “fat”, because in my opinion,
Rude.
It’s a label & stereotypes someone as being unfit or unhealthy when that may not be the case at all. You don’t know their story.
I find all bodies beautiful, especially voluptuous ones. I smile whenever I see someone working out, especially young kids, the elderly, and someone who doesn’t fit the stereo typical profile of an “avid exerciser” & it motivates me.
I’ve shared my journey with y’all many times. I’ve told you that in high school I was told I was too big to be a cheerleader or an athlete. Truly I couldn’t even run around a track once without seeing stars & wanting to pass out. Before CrossFit I had never touched a barbell nor could I do one pull up to save my life.
Fitness, running, health, weight lifting, & fat loss were not things I was genetically gifted or came easily or naturally to me.
It’s something I still have to continue to work at. The difference is I have made it a part of who I am, I choose consistency over excuses, & I’ve learned to love my journey & all the seasons, shapes, sizes, & puzzle pieces that come with.
So a reminder & message to you, that it abso-f*ckin-lutely doesn’t matter how much you weigh, how small or big you are, what diet you choose, whether you eat meat or not, what your story is/has been — fitness & health don’t have a size or requirement.
It all starts with a choice to be your best self.
I’m motivated by anyone who gets up & moves. It doesn’t matter their skill & it sure as sh*t doesn’t matter their size.
I’m most inspired by those who are just starting out in their fitness journey because I know exactly what it’s like to start from scratch & have no fuggin idea what you’re doin or worried about what people think of you.
I’m not the fastest runner, I’m not the fittest or strongest person, I have cellulite & stretch marks on my thighs, BUT I am strong, I am dedicated, & I love this body that keeps me alive.
So to the woman I saw running, thank you. You’ve inspired me & millions of other humans in the world in more ways than one.
Because you are the human that chooses to be better & proves beauty & fitness comes in all shapes & sizes.
Had a follower ask how I stay so happy & positive being alone. Because being alone is something she struggles with.
I felt her emotions to my core, for I used to be the girl always in a relationship, one right after the other.
I responded with, “Well there’s a difference between being alone & being lonely. Just because you’re alone doesn’t mean you have to choose to be lonely.
For example, I met new friends this weekend at the pool.
It’s amazing how the right people come into your life when you choose to do things by yourself with an open heart & an open mind.
We talked about this very subject. One gentleman, also single & vintage like myself 😄, stated this very thing. He was definitely an extrovert, vibrant personality, & stated the majority of his married friends envy his single life & are unhappy in their marriages.
I’ve observed similar experiences. Like I’ve said before, I believe the most creative couples who define their own relationships openly are the happiest.
I’ve observed some monogamous, some in open relationships, some polyamorous, different sexual preferences, didn’t matter – “happiness” & “fulfillment” in those relationships came down to common denominators: those people having self-love within themselves, being able to evolve together, & open communication.
I told this particular follower, I didn’t know everything — I don’t & I’m still learning just like her & everybody else out there.
I said I can’t say when you’ll get love or how you’ll find it or even promise that it will happen. I can only tell you, & you have to believe this yourself, you are worthy of it.
It’s never too much to ask for & you’re not crazy to fear you’ll never have it again, we’re human. I will tell you your fears are probably wrong, though.
Love is like the most nourishing & essential nutrient of life. Without it life has a little meaning. And this could be love for yourself, love for a greater purpose, or love for another.
It is the most important thing we have to give freely & the most valuable thing we can be receive.
You can have love without being in a contractual relationship or “relationship” that society deems the norm. You have to Believe you are deserving & open yourself up to receive love in whatever version or person or people the Universe & God give you.
You don’t have to & shouldn’t settle for anything that is less than. And you shouldn’t have to abandon yourself for said love.
Looking back, I always thought I was the sole problem in my past relationships. I was too deep, emotional. Maybe too needy. My personality was too big. I was simply too much.
And I did display unhealthy behaviors, trauma, & actions in past relationships, I own that. I have worked diligently doing my own work & in therapy to learn how to develop healthy patterns, beliefs, self-love, & grace, a WHOLE LOTTA grace when old behaviors want to come back. You have to learn to let them go.
Our job is to not settle for love or a life that is lackluster, abusive, emotionally damaging, or vanilla. Equally important we cannot settle for that kind of love from ourselves. 🤍
“You’re just too big to be a cheerleader, hon.” -cheerleading coach, middle school
“Pretty girls are in the front, you fit better in the back.” -a mom, childhood birthday party pictures
“Well, you’re just not polished enough.” -recruiter, job fair in college
“I’m sorry I cheated, I like you, it’s just, she was prettier.”
-someone not even worth mentioning here🖕🏻
Naturally I’d be lying if a part of me didn’t want to tell these people of past chapters of my life they can sxck it. 🙅🏼♀️🤣 but I’ll take the high road🌈 & use it to help y’all if you’ve ever struggled when someone has devalued you.
People will teach you how to love well by hurting you. They will teach you how to love yourself by not loving you back. Life will teach you evolution & growth thru pain & stagnation. Pay attention to the wisdom the Universe is trying to teach you. Gold is found sifting thru gravel & diamonds are created under pressure.
Hxll, crispy airfryer meat bars were discovered by me being late to work & literally throwin the shizzle my nizzle in the airfryer basket. Now we can’t live without them! 😆♨️❤️
In these situations I should have not taken these statements as a reflection of my worth, simply moved on, & not allowed a single encounter to take up so much energy in my heart & taint decades of my being with negativity & shame.
I’m not sharing this for pity, I’m sharing this because I talk to a lot of you who are still choking & drowning on past trauma/shame which are transpiring into every facet of your lives from your relationships to your body to your careers.
This world is made up of a plethora of different people with different priorities with different life situations all 50 shades of fxcked up.
You’re not alone, the difference is how you react to what life throws at you.
People who have broken my spirit have actually led me to having more empathy, more self worth & appreciation for who I am, & the desire to reach out to all of you because I have felt what a lack of human acknowledgment & compassion can do to a person.
Know that your feelings have a real place, & this life can be so much more beautiful & grander if we let love & optimism fully into our hearts.
Stuck between young enough to do it often, old enough to do it right & old enough to know better, young enough not to care.
-mood.
Anyone else? 😆
2020 was hard work, 2021 has been no different. It’s like we thought with a new year everything would magically be rainbows & sunshine, right?!
Reflecting back, I feel the years 2018-today have been the most transformative (painful & pleasurable) years of my life, physically, mentally, emotionally, financially, spiritually, & relationally.
Doesn’t matter what level of 50 shades of fxcked up I wade thru, even in a global pandemic, I love having something to work towards. Call it an obsession, whatever, kind of like the obsession I have with my airfryer & crisy meat bars.
Y’all can thank me, I know I’m not the only one out there 🙃🥩♨️❤️
Where To Begin
One thing I learned the last 2 years was that things can change in a heart beat! Relationally speaking, I went from being single, to a solid relationship, to single again, to married, to divorced. Some would be devastated, however, being the relentless optimist, I am so grateful for every sweet & sour drop of experience I gained thru that chapter of my life. No ragrets , no what if’s, y’all🙏 Not one bit.
I always go back to how I want to FEEL in my life (on all levels), I romanticize about specific things I desire but I leave the specificity to the Universe (God, whatever you choose to believe in. FYI, I am a non-specific manifestor, manifesting generator energy type #humandesign for all my people of WOO✨ out there)
I believe in divine timing, that I deserve everything I desire, & the Universe will bring me that – OR BETTER. (That “or better”part is important. Setting intentions I always add that to the end of my statements.)
So it was important for me to begin with thinking how I want to FEEL in 12 months time.
I started by writing a long list of all the descriptive words that resonated with me. Words such as authentic, healthy, successful, wealthy, luscious, thriving, vibrant, loving, grateful, loved, significant, creative, satisfied, joyful.
I kept thinking them through until I decided on the word, NOURISHED.
Immediately I knew that was how I wanted to feel.
Nourishment is usually associated with food however I want to apply that feeling to all parts of my life.
By focusing on how I want to FEEL, it reminds me what I could influence regardless of what was happening in the world❤️
Have you set yourself any goals? Or are you just seeing how the year pans out?
As always I would love to hear your thoughts & I appreciate y’all reading the ramblings of @lil_bit_of_fit 💕
Thirsty for professional goals, relationship goals, self healing goals
Thirsty for freedom & adventure
Thirsty for peace
Thirsty for ambition
Thirsty for love
Thirsty for clarity
— Thirsty for all kinds of things & I don’t want any of you to apologize for your needs, wants, successes, &/or “failures.”
I spent so many decades feeling shame for not living up to other peoples expectations, timelines, & living a life that wasn’t authentic to my story.
Do you know that’s one of the biggest regrets of the dying? – Not living a life authentic to you.
Guess what?
My life is a BIG beautiful cocktail of chaos & joy. 🥃
It is never boring. 😉
I wanted to remind you guys today you don’t need to apologize or explain your life to anyone.
You don’t need to people please.
You don’t need to disclose everything if you don’t want to.
You don’t need to let that nagging pit of shame we all get we think we’re wrong or we’re not doing what is expected of us or we’re ebarrassed we changed our minds or we think we “failed” — whatever — control your thoughts
& actions
& belief about yourself.
Let your hair down & live a little, ya know?!
One of the biggest lessons I learned in my 20s & early 30s was that I didn’t have to EARN food, anyone’s approval other than my own, & that enjoying the present moment was more precious than waiting to lean into life waiting for the some days when…
when I’d lost weight
when I earned more money
when I was “pretty” enough
when I had achieved more
when I had the perfect relationship
We all deserve to write our own dxmn story, to eat the diet that helps us thrive, to choose movement & workouts our bodies & minds love, to choose the people we love, to give into our wildest dreams, spontaneity, sink into our routines, & fxck up.
You see there are different seasons of life I’ve in catagories:
The Mundane – the everyday “boring” stuff. Routine, chores, work, etc.
The Mess – the chaos, the road blocks, the f*ck ups, the contrast, the things & shadows we don’t like about ourselves.
The Magic – the sweet spots, the little things, the peace, the moments that make your heart sing with joy & make everything else melt away.
We must learn to nurture & love every season with grace. They make us – US.
My body has been all shapes and sizes through the years.
When I first started struggling with body image I was around 8 years old.
I was labeled as the “fat” girl and that label stuck with me for years. It paralyzed me from reaching my potential. Total mindf*ck. When you’re attached with a powerful label, it’s hard to simply pull that label off like a tag on a new pair of leggins. It takes the dirty work to remove.
I’m almost 60lbs lighter now today, after going meat-based with my diet over a year ago to manage my crohn’s. I’m a lot less f*cks lighter too than I was decades ago. Most of all I’m proud to love ALL my seasons, and I know my worth is not based on a number on the scale or my barbell.
My biggest pain point of criticism – I loathed my legs. I hated the way they looked. I hated the way they rubbed together. I hated the cellulite, the stretch marks. I hated the way they jiggled.
I spent years trying to attain slender legs with fasted cardio, strict low fat & low calorie dieting, binging, purging, running and walking often 30,000 steps a day – that’s not a typo.
What did I lose? Not the legs I was trying to get rid of. I lost friends, and memories, my health, and MYSELF along the way.
Here are some life truths I discovered along my journey that I hope can help reframe your life wherever it may be…
1.) You will never become the person you want to be if you don’t take care of your body. Do you perform, feel your best, & serve your family at your highest when you’re tired, overweight, your gut is a mess, and/or you’re obsessed with food, exercise, & basically hating life? Didn’t think so. Invest in yourself, it’s not being selfish.
2.) You are the sum of your surroundings. This includes your friends, your work, your hobbies, your food, and what you mentally consume. Are they nourishing you or depleting you on your path to who you want to be?
3.) A wish is not a goal. Make a plan and ACT. THAT is when your dream becomes a goal. You know my MO, you either DO or you DON’T. You wanna be a DOer or a DON’Ter?
4.) The most important relationship you have is with yourself. Noone can make you happy but yourself. If you can’t love the reflection in the mirror with tummy rolls, you can’t love the reflection with a six-pack. Appreciate your seasons. Losing lbs is not the answer to gaining your happiness. It’s a band-aid.
5.) The beauty is in the mess. It’s ok to try and chase the best version of your life, but if you’re constantly dreaming & searching for the perfect life you’re never truly living in the now. You’ll be forever unsatisfied.
6.) Rich is in the eye of the beholder. Rich doesn’t always mean money or material things. In fact, the most important things aren’t seen or felt. They’re experienced-freedom, peace, pride, laughter, love.
As we grow older, and hopefully wiser, we realize that a $300 or a $30 watch both tell the same time. You will realize that your true inner happiness does not come from the material things of this world. Whether you fly first class or economy, if the plane goes down-you go down with it. -Steve Jobs
7.) The most important food in the world is soul food. You can’t pour from an empty cup.
“Find what makes your soul sing with joy & try, as much as you can, to let that happen as often as possible. Listen to the inner-workings of your mind and be honest with yourself when things don’t feel right. Leave what doesn’t sit well and walk into new relationships, connections, & places with open arms. Forgive yourself for the shortcomings you’ve had (or think you’ve had) & celebrate where you will go next.And most of all, know that what you have to offer this world is valuable. And noone else can do it.” -Marisa Donnelly
Real Steps to consider for Successful “Dieting”
Everyday I have beautiful women come to me wanting to lose body fat. Absolutely nothing wrong with wanting to see what your body can do. Change is good. Change is energy. We are entitled to see what our bodies can do no matter what season we choose.
The question: have you earned the right to lose body fat and are you mentally ready?
Avoid Common Mistakes:
Not being clear about what your goal really is? Do you want to gain muscle or lose fat? Two different things. Two different requirements, one a calorie surplus, one a calorie deficit.
Not setting a realistic goal and not being honest about how flexible or strict you want to be. Eating for general health and wellness is more flexible. You can go out with friends and have those occasional cocktails. Cutting for a photo shoot or competition? That means strict diet, training, and minimal “cheats.”
These require different levels of commitment:
Not periodizing your nutrition. You should not be “cutting” or “dieting” forever. Keep cuts 8-16 weeks MAX, limit to 1-2 times per year. Follow up with 4-6 months of maintenance or surplus calories to upregulate body systems.
Automatically assume you need to cut carbs to lose weight. Carnivore, low carb, & keto absolutely have their place. They work wonderful for people who need an insulin reset, an elimination diet, have autoimmune disorders, poor relationships with carbs, etc, but they’re also not “right” for everyone if they don’t suit your needs or preferences. What kind of training are you doing? Are you doing CrossFit, HIIT training, Orange Theory, Bootcamps, marathon training? You may do better utilizing some quantity of carbs in your diet. All of our bodies are different. YOU have to eat for YOU!
You think punching numbers in myfitnesspal, an online calculator, or following a template will spit out magic macros to solve all your problems. Do you think a calculator or template cares you’ve been surviving on poverty macros, struggle with work stress, travel, kids back talking and getting in trouble at school, gut issues, and can’t sleep at night? All affect your mindset, digestion, recovery, relationships with food, relationships with other people, and most importantly yourself. INVEST in a qualified coach! I offer consults every single day, even weekends and holidays for YOU. Inquiry HERE.
These were from a fat loss cut for photo shoot prep. I reversed for 3 months prior and then ate at surplus (2300 calories daily) for 2 months prior to going into my cut. I didn’t have to drop below 1500 calories during my 12 week cut BECAUSE I did my due diligence to heal and recover FIRST.
Truths about Fat Loss:
Healthy, nourished bodies lose body fat. Eating 1000 calories a day, surviving on sugar-free jello & lettuce is not a balanced diet, nor a protocol to set you up for a successful fat loss phase. You need to work on yourself for months to get your calories up & your body functioning like a normal human being.
All your systems should be in check BEFORE considering diving into a cut: your metabolism, your hormones, your period, your mindset, your stress level.
Ladies, your period is like your internal gauge your body is functioning properly. If you’re not having a period that is the biggest red flag. Did you know your body can conserve 30,000 cal/year by not having a period. Why? If your body takes away a natural process to conserve energy, that’s called survival because reproducing is not a priority. This also goes for down regulating your metabolism, your thyroid, & your sex hormones.
Your metabolism is not one singular thing like your brain or your arm or your liver. Your metabolism encompasses everything it’s everywhere. Your brain, your digestive system, your reproductive system – they all contribute. It will adjust to low calories and this is when you plateau. We can’t cut you any lower as a coach when you come to us eating 1200 calories a day.
Your body will not respond to a cut if you have not properly taken care of it before hand. This could take months or even years. Your body does AMAZING things on the daily. Appreciate it. It’s main priority is keeping you alive & guess what?
Your body gives two f*cks that you want to have abs & look good in a bikini. #REALtalk
I empathize with your frustrations. It took me years to work my calories up to true maintenance, 4 years to be exact. Took me even longer to heal my gut, manage triggers, and most importantly, step into my worth and cultivate a growth mindset.
My door is always open. Feel free to message, dm, or email. I would love to help you on your journey!
