This is me. A piece of the puzzle that makes me who I am.

I was so scared! 

I didn’t want to have surgery. Breaking my hip and repositioning it and then wearing a brace for almost a year.   To a 10 year old that sounded awful.  

But what was the alternative? 

Exercises that I had to do two times daily and a 3 mile walk every single day.  😳 Again to an 10 year old, that sounded overwhelming….but it was still a better option to me than the alternative.   

And so it began. 

My parents helped me map out how many times I would have to walk up and down our mountain dirt road to equal 3 miles. And every morning and evening I would lay in bed, completing these tedious and annoying exercises.  

From about 8 on my hip imbalance progressively got worse and manifested itself in being severely pigeon toed. In going to specialists we found there was two options. Surgery or trying physical therapy & an exercise plan to see if we could correct things before they continue to progressively get worse.   

 My parents strongly encouraged me to try the physical therapy route before we consider surgery and I was on board. Surgery and wearing a brace for a year sounded awful.  I wanted nothing to do with it. However, the walks and the exercises every single day that sounded dreadful.

To be honest, I feel like first memorable experience with hardship and adversity is what began to build and teach me resilience, commitment, and dedication. 

Every morning, I would wake up earlier than my brothers. I would complete my boring exercises in my bedroom while it was dark and quite. No one but my dad was awake yet. When I was finished, I would bundle up and head outside to complete my mile and a half walk. All alone while my brothers were fast asleep in bed.   

I’d go to school, walk home from the bus and head out for my 2nd mile and half walk. All the while my brother and neighbor kids were riding bike or canoeing in the irrigation ditch outback. And there I was walking up and down dirt road. Having to intentionally consciously think about every step. Concentrating on how I placed my foot every step, thinking about the position of my hip and hoping that this would work. 

I did this for an entire year. 

Through beautiful spring mornings where the dew glistened on every blade of grass in the hayfield to the gorgeous fall, where frost would slowly melt as the sun would rise.  In the beautiful summer mornings where the wrestling Aspen leaves would fill my ears with song and through the mountain snowstorms that felt like the clouds would never stop dumping the fluffiest white snow all over. As my snow boots took one step in front of the other. I felt proud that I committed to do the work.

I feel like the story is similar to so many of our clients. To get the results we desire without taking the shortcut can be a lonely hard road.  Sometimes while others play, it means dedication when we don’t want to be. It means commitment when we want to let it go.  It means facing adversity head on when we would just like to turn and run.  

A year later revisiting the specialist they couldn’t believe their eyes. My hips and gate had virtually transformed to be close to normal. No surgery was needed, and I was able to stop my rigorous routine of walking and exercises.  However they emphasized the need to continue to focus on every step, ensuring that everything stayed balanced as possible.  

I’m not here to judge you or shame you if you choose to take the easy path.  But if you did, where are you now. Have the results stuck. Are you happy with where you’re at or is there still progress that needs to be made? 

I’m here to remind you that WE ALL need to do the work to get the results. 

I will not say it won’t be hard, because it will be. I’ve been there, it sucks. However, you working for your results and for what you desire will taste so much sweeter than taking any shortcut.  

My team and I are here for you, my friend. 

Every single one of us has experienced adversity, setbacks and challenges, and although we may not handle each of those perfectly, we’ve chosen to be resilient and forward.  

And we can help you do the same.   

Please know we’re here for you to guide you on your journey to elevate your health! 

 

1. You need to poop!
2. You ate more salt than normal.
3. You ate more carbs than normal.
4. You are about to start your period.
5. You are recovering from a hard workout.
6. You are a human – not a robot. It happens!

 

The scale can hold so much power and influence our mood, but remember these six things!

Take back your power and don’t give the scale an inch cause she will take a mile!

 

Kim’s goal was to be at her pre-baby weight before she returned to work and SHE WAS!

The day she returned a couple co-workers commented “it looks like you never even had a baby!”

As she thought to herself! Yeah….that was my goal!

 

Even though we may not have met those goals we wanted to reach by this summer, embrace the progress you have made! Keep being proud of who you are!

Why “Eat Less, Move More” Isn’t Enough

Lauren Gunter | October 2, 2022

You’ve been told that in order to lose weight, you need to eat less and move more. And that is technically true. However, sometimes you’re doing all that you can to follow that simple rule, and nothing seems to be changing.

 

Even if you understand that way calorie intake and expenditure work, and you trust the science, it’s still really hard to execute for some reason.

 

On Sunday, you stock your fridge with you celery and prepped chicken, and grapes, you signed up for CrossFit, you scheduled food prep and workouts into your calendar like they’re an important work meeting. And yet, by Friday afternoon you have wilted spinach in your fridge, your gym owner is reaching out asking where you’ve been, and there’s not a prepped meal in sight.

 

After this cycle repeats itself week after week, it’s easy to feel frustrated and even a little hopeless. “What’s wrong with me?” we ask ourselves. First of all, nothing. Nothing is wrong with you. You do a lot of really great things like work, raise your family, keep your home clean, support your friends, and while these are all such great things, they definitely complicate the simplicity of “eat less, move more.”

 

We do a lot of things that actually decrease our ability or desire to move, and increase our desire to eat, especially calorie-dense (but not nutrient-dense) foods.

Job – stress, long hours

Family – complaining, constant need for support, can drain you

Sleep – bad sleeper? Waking up, can’t get to sleep

Partner – loves you the way you are and also loves Taco Bell

Take-out – it just saves SO much time

Shame – for eating poorly, so you continue to do it

Kids – you love them, but they’re energetic and take up a lot of energy, especially if child care isn’t consistent

Pain – if you have any kind of injury, moving more can feel good, but it can also increase your pain

Meds – using them to help boost mental health, but certain ones also increase your appetite

 

Every one of you is a complicated person with your own set of obstacles when it comes to “eat less, move more” and that’s why even though that is technically true, it’s not even close to enough. This is why coaching is so helpful, because we want to know the whole story so that we can give you a plan that will work FOR YOU.

 

If you’re not working with a coach right now, a good place to start is identifying what makes “eat less, move more” so difficult in the first place, and start taking action steps with those.

This can looks like:

1. If social situations are the issue: having a tough and awkward conversation with the person who you make bad decisions around. If your partner is constantly bringing you a treat out of the goodness of their heart, explain what your goals are and why, and try to find a solution so they can still show you love, but also help move you toward your goals instead of away from them.
2. If anxiety and worry, or even busyness are the issue: journal for a few minutes before going to sleep to create some separation and resolve from those thoughts so that your mind can relax and fall asleep.
3. If the shame of not being consistent is the issue: keeping a food AND feelings journal. Most of you have tracked your food at some point, stop neglecting logging when you get that Taco Bell, and start journaling your feelings around that eating experience. What were you feeling that made you want to get it? How did you feel while you were eating it? How did you feel after, and why is that? This can be scary, but it will help you start working through some of these shameful feelings.

 

This doesn’t really sound like nutritional advice, so why do those things matter? Because the outcomes make EVERYTHING easier, and when it’s easier, you’re more likely to do it.

 

Having that hard conversation is awkward, but if this person loves you and wants to support you, usually a compromise can be reached. Instead of eating out 5 times per week, decrease it to 3. They still get to eat out, you get two more healthy meals. Being vulnerable is what deters us from doing this, but we often feel more loved and support after. Prioritising your health is NOT selfish.

 

Getting some of those anxious thoughts out of your head, even if it’s just temporary, can help you to relax a little more, get better sleep, and have the energy to make better choices like eating at home, or have more energy to move, like walking to work.

 

Keeping a food journal can help us recognize triggers. Every time I hit a drive thru unplanned, it happens to fall on a day where I had to work late and I leave the office hangry and tired. I feel shame for eating it, and also for not being home with my family for dinner. Once you KNOW this, you can start planning to change it. Spending some extra time with your family in the morning when you know it’s going to be a long day, or bringing a protein bar with you for the car ride home so that your hungriness doesn’t take over and you’re able to think through your dinner choice and eat slowly can help save you hours of stress and hundreds of calories.

 

The changes are small at first, but over time, you’re able to eat a little cleaner and move a little more, AND most importantly, feel better about the choices you’re making. Your body will begin responding to these changes, and the emotional and physical health together are what lead to those bigger changes we’re all chasing.

 

Eat less and move more does still work. But we are all complex, and it takes more than you hitting your macros or going to CrossFit every day to see the changes you are looking for. Look behind your difficulty with eating right or working out consistently. How are you managing your stress? How are you sleeping? What are you doing for recovery? It might actually be these things that are preventing your progress.

 

It may seem like this will prolong the process, but caring for your mental health, sleep, and recovery give you the fuel you need to actually follow through on those nutrition and fitness goals you have.

 

https://www.instagram.com/p/CkPZU_nJ1G5/

Do you find it harder to lose weight now that you’re over 40? 

4 Important things that you can do to support hormones through menopause. 

1-Eat more fiber and coniferous veggies

2-Moderate alcohol

3-Manage your metabolic shift by adjusting calorie intake

4-Lower cortisol by taking daily walks outside

These are the woes that a TON of our clients struggle with.  Previously they were able to lose weight easily when they focused and were diligent but now everything has shifted. Now it feels like no matter what you try nothing seems to help.

Eating the right things to support the hormonal shift that is happening in our bodies matters.  Including more fiber and cruciferous veggies is key also. 

The other factor is your metabolism.  This is a key time when things shift and making sure your intake matches your expenditure is important also.

Moderating Alcohol is important during this stage of life because alcohol has a direct effect on hormone production. The other thing that is key is walking!  Adding in a daily walk to your already consistent exercise routine can have great positive impact on those hormones also.  You become more sensitive to stress during this time and walks (especially outside) are a great way to bring that cortisol down and bring those happy hormones up!

How does birth control affect my weight loss journey? 

Could it be the reason I’m not losing consistently?

Short answer: yes.

Complicated answer: it depends.

A lot of women, specifically 18-30 take birth control and for a lot of different reasons. Yes, we are trying to prevent unwanted pregnancies, but it can also be used to help teenage girls regulate their cycles or control their acne. I did learn in a podcast, however, that until your early 20s, using it to regulate your cycle can actually be harmful to your cycle’s rhythm long term.

Birth control is super effective in doing these things, but it also has some huge risks, possibly the biggest one being putting you at an increased risk of cervical, liver and breast cancer. That should scare you.

Another side effect, though, is often an increase in body fat, specifically in the lower body and upper arms, and extreme difficulty losing fat in these areas even when increasing exercise or decreasing calorie intake.

I read a few case studies, and came across a few where the client had been on birth control for years went off of it, and their body fat decreased in two months, and that’s without changing anything with their exercise routine or calorie intake. Now, these girls were pretty lean to being with and didn’t have a super hard time staying in shape, but if they EVER went off track, they’d immediately backslide in a way that made it seem almost impossible to come back from. And if they tried to get leaner, like for a competition, they couldn’t do it.

A lot of the other side effects go far beyond physical health, and I’d argue that they’re worse.

First off, many women report a decrease in their sexual desire and arousal, and discomfort during sex. This is tough on us emotionally and can really strain our relationships, which as we know, can affect our physical health.

So what exactly causes these side effects? Hormones. If you are taking a pill, or have something in your body that is affecting your hormones, you are chemically preventing one of the principle functions your body is designed to carry out, and you’re doing that by altering your hormonal environment. Because everyone’s starting point is different, the pill will affect everyone differently. For some people (me), it’s terrible and I will never do it again. For others, like my sister, an unwanted pregnancy would not go over well, and she has no side effects. And for some, it’s fairly neutral, you use it for a time to prevent unwanted pregnancy or whatever you need it for, and then have an easy time transitioning off of it. 

So, even though they work great as contraception, you are still altering your hormonal set-up which has effects to your physique as well as your overall health. Interestingly, many women report a depressive and “down” mood when on birth control, and many of the symptoms we deal with are the reason that men’s hormonal birth control was actually denied approval by the FDA.

• Things that CAN happen as a result of birth control:
  • You aren’t losing weight no matter what you do exercise-wise or comply with your diet. This COULD be why.
  • The trade off of gaining a little weight or not being able to lean out might be worth it to prevent pregnancy, say for a college student or young professional.
  • Sexual desire COULD decrease which strains relationships and thus strains health.
  • It COULD be hard to lean out if you’re working really hard, and it also COULD lead to fast weight gain if you took a break from working out or eating clean, and you COULD see this reverse pretty immediately when you go off of it.
  • You COULD see a change in mood, just not feeling like yourself, feeling sleepy and tired a lot of the time
  • If you take progesterone, you know that feeling before/during your period? That’s how you ALWAYS feel

 

• What do I do?
  • Research what options are out there and don’t just go with the first things your doctor recommends, there are non-hormonal methods like the copper IUD or condoms
  • Not every birth control will give you every side effect. Some people do fine on the pill, but don’t respond well to injections, etc.
  • Remember: no bikini contest is worth an unwanted pregnancy, but no prescription is worth years of hormonal disruptions

Listen up!!! YOUR WRONG!

Typically women have about 10% of the testosterone men do. This means that the likelihood of a woman getting bulky with a focus on strength training is very low! Can it happen?  absolutely, we see it all the time. 

Those ladies that look like that have trained long and hard for that physique and the performance that the physique gives them!

You lifting 3 to 4 times a week is not going to do that! 

Stop being afraid to lift heavy! 

“My sex drive is the best its been in a decade!” JM –

Ok is this TMI for you?  

A healthy libido and sex drive is so important and a clear sign of hormone health.

This was feedback from a client who started the betty bites and was 3 months in!  

Our bodies are so amazing! It is so exciting to see hormone health not only recover but THRIVE!!!! 

 Balanced Betty & Frisky Freddie Bites 

Here are 3 different seed bite recipes.  One traditional – One for Chocolate lovers – One for Peanut Butter Lovers

 

The OG – Traditional with no frills added

Ingredients

1/2 Cup Almond Butter⁣⁣⁣⁣

4 Scoops Collagen Powder⁣⁣⁣⁣

2T Raw Honey⁣⁣⁣⁣

2T Chia seeds⁣⁣⁣⁣

1/4 Cup Almond Milk

1/2 Ground pumpkin seeds

1/2 Cup Ground Flax seeds

1/2 Cup Ground Sunflower seeds

1/2 Cup Ground Sesame seeds

 

Instructions: 

Fresh grind your seeds – Mix all ingredients

Weigh out 14 of each.  I double this so it makes a full month worth at least! 

Store in freezer until ready to eat.⁣⁣⁣

Macros: 8P   10C  14F

 

Peanut Butter Lovers

1 cup old-fashioned oats

1/2 cup creamy peanut butter

1/2 Ground pumpkin seeds

1/2 Cup Ground Flax seeds

1/2 Cup Ground Sunflower seeds

1/2 Cup Ground Sesame seeds

1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips my fave are the fairlife (or vegan chocolate chips)

1/3 cup honey

1 tablespoon chia seeds (optional)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions: 

Fresh grind your seeds except for the chia – Mix all ingredients

Weigh out 14 of each.  I double this so it makes a full month worth at least! 

Store in freezer until ready to eat.⁣⁣⁣

Macros: 10P   18.9C   19.8F

 

Chocolate lovers 

1 cup old-fashioned oats

1/2 cup Nutella

1/2 Ground pumpkin seeds

1/2 Cup Ground Flax seeds

1/2 Cup Ground Sunflower seeds

1/2 Cup Ground Sesame seeds

1/2 cup semisweet dark chocolate chips my fav are the enjoy life (or vegan chocolate chips)

Or ½ cup cocoa nibs

1/4 cup honey

2 tablespoons Cacao or Cocoa powder

1 tablespoon chia seeds (optional)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

 

Instructions: 

Fresh grind your seeds – Mix all ingredients

Weigh out 14 of each.  I double this so it makes a full month worth at least! 

Store in freezer until ready to eat.⁣⁣⁣

Macros: 11.8P   25.2C   19.4F