To be clear, I absolutely took part in and promoted these type of workouts at the beginning of my career as a coach.

It was heavily modeled at just about every gym I worked at (and anywhere you get your fitness).

And I understand the intention- making fitness fun .

Yet the impact of these workouts- associating fitness as a means to ‘make up for’ food- is more harmful than the workouts are entertaining.

The diet industry LOVES this time of year, and they have a script the follow…

It’s starts off by warning you of the dangers of the holiday season, sells you on meal and workout plans to keep you ‘in check’, and then REALLY dials in come January.

That’s when they capitalize off off of making you feel shitty for enjoying your grandmother’s pie or taking some time off your workouts.

SOME THINGS TO REMEMBER AS YOU SEE SHIT LIKE THIS IN YOUR FEED. Candy references soon to replaced by turkey, mashed potatoes, cobblers, etc...

FITNESS IS A LONG GAME....

The idea that you can change the length of muscles is a myth.

 They have a point of origin and a point of attachment, attached to bones by tendons.  These are fixed points.  

 Unless you undergo specific limb lengthening surgery, you’re stuck with the length of the muscles you’ve got.

 When it comes to spot reducing, research continues to confirm that this isn’t a thing.  You have no control over where you gain or lose pounds.

 You can’t change your DNA, how big or small your frame is, the structure of your frame, where your body holds weight and doesn’t, or whether you’ll ever have visible abs even if you do thousands of sit ups a day.

 Listen, it’s 1,000% up to you if you choose to pursue weight loss (and you can guess I’m not the coach for you if that’s your goal).

 I just want you to have all the information, so much of which is left out of the conversation, or just...

I love a good full body, no-muscle-left-untouched kinda exercise.

I came up with this one for a client who loves her some TRX.  And who has worked with me for a LONG time- so I know it's appropriate for where she's at today.

But if you look at this and wonder what's even happening?  Think of it in terms of each part and break it down.

An exercise will only meet your needs if you're able to perform it without compensating.

So start with the first piece- which is a hip mobility exercise- the kneeling hip hinge.  From there, it's a get up.  Then it's a TRX plank, then it's a Tricep Extension.  

Work where you're at, and only add on when you feel confident and strong in the pieces you're confident in.

Your weight can fluctuate from 5-8 pounds EVERY DAY for just some of these reasons:

Your body retains water after a workout to help repair muscle damage

For every one gram of carbs you eat for energy, a lower risk of cardiac diseases and production of healthy gut bacteria (among other things), you retain 3 grams of water

The medicine you take that makes your life infinitely better may cause you to either retain water OR change how your body absorbs and stores glucose

When you drink an excessive amount of alcohol, you weigh less- since alcohol is a diuretic- until your body starts retaining water from the foods and drinks you consumed in your drunken state

For many of of us, stepping on the scale works to reinforce the idea that we can and SHOULD have control over that number.

And so often that number determines not only how our day goes, but how we feel about ourselves, our value.

Whatever your relationship is with your scale, it’s always worth asking yourself if using it to...

Hear me out on this one folks.

“I just can’t keep that stuff in my house- I’ll end up eating it all” is a common refrain I hear so often- from clients, friends, you all here on IG.

And I absolutely spent MANY years keeping foods I deemed ‘addictive’ or ‘unhealthy’ out of my own house too.

A pint of ice cream would disappear REALLY fast.

But here’s what I’ve learned- not only from my own experiences with Intuitive Eating, but in years of digging into the research of dieting...

Restriction- in a real physical sense but also when you mentally label foods to avoid- is the BIGGEST predictor of binging.

If you never allow certain foods in your house, then OF COURSE you’re going to eat it when you get your hands on it for ‘just this once’.

I don’t believe any food or ingredient- nope, not even sugar- is addictive (and the studies that say sugar is as addictive as cocaine were done on AND were determined after...

I love all variations of crawling, rolling- any movement that allows you to be connected to the ground. 

Your skin is your largest sensory organ. So when you use these types of movements, you not only develop your sense of where your body is in space (proprioception), but also full body coordination and strength.

And since the two sides of your brain have to work together when your moving on the ground with your hands and feet, you're building and strengthening neural connections.

Mind body connection at it's finest.

Here is one version of grounded locomotion.  If you work with me, you will have experience with MANY variations of this kind of movement :-).

This video gives you 3 different options, depending on what you need and where you're at.  Take what works for you.

How to:

TAP OUTS, KNEES UP OR DOWN (version 1 and 2): If you start with knees down, create a straight line from the top of your head to your tailbone, glutes and core engaged, wrists under shoulders....

When most of my clients first come to me, they’re used to doing random workouts on, or following programs that have 3 different workouts in a week.

That kind of training relies on the principle of ‘muscle confusion’, which claims that in order to gain strength, you have to keep trying different exercises so your body doesn’t get used to them.

Except that it’s not an actual training principle at all, but a marketing strategy used to sell programs like P90X all those years ago- and it somehow continues to stick around.

The reality is, the more we do an exercise, the more efficient our brain becomes at recruiting muscle fibers- and the more strength gains we get from it. This is, in part, the concept of Progressive Overload.

NOT being adapted to an exercise is one of the biggest reasons why we get injured. Our bodies aren’t used to the new movement patterns, and don’t know how to respond.

The people I work with are often surprised at how much they...

When was the last time you picked up an evenly weighted box? Or needed to grab something that wasn't directly in front of you?  Or had to reach to get something in your backseat?

Life isn't perfectly aligned like that.  

So when we talk about 'functional training', we've got to consider how we move outside of the gym, not just inside.

Deadlifts are one of my most favorite exercises.  

But to make the most out of them- and give your body a change to experience hinging and picking things up at weird angles just like you do in life- you've got to mix it up.

Directionally AND positionally.

Here is one example of taking an exercise and changing the direction.

Or is it because we live in a society that is deeply rooted in anti-fat bias? A post for another day…

I’ve said it before and you know I’ll say it again: weight loss (or gain) is not a behavior, it is an outcome. For a large variety of reasons- that is ALSO for another day.

So often, weighing less is given credit for a whole lot of things it shouldn’t be given- like our health, our importance in society, our happiness.

So before you feel a way after hearing someone’s ‘successful’ weight loss story (reminder that you have no idea how they really achieved said weight loss), consider that there are things you can do that will make you feel better too.

Get more sleep. Eat nutrient dense foods and get exercise if you have the access and privilege. Get outside more. Connect with friends. See a therapist.

And remember that weight loss doesn’t have to be a part of that equation in order for you to feel better.

Did you know feet have over 100 tendons, muscles and ligaments, and over 7,000 nerves?

Most sneakers out there have a bunch of padding, a heel lift, arch support, or all three. When we wear them all day every day, our body realizes that it doesn’t need the muscles that strengthen the arch, so they begin to atrophy. Even a tiny lift in our shoes can decrease the ability of the ankle to raise the foot towards the shin (dorsiflexion). And having so much cushion takes away from your body’s awareness in space, your sense of balance.

Any imbalances in your feet climb right up the kinetic chain, affecting all the ways you move. You know that saying ‘you’re only as strong as your link?’

Thinking about making the switch to either barefoot or minimalist shoes? Here’s some ways...

1. TRANSITION SLOWLY- like 6+ months. Start with your current shoe, and then look for one with a thinner sole, a wider toe box and a sole you can easily...