First I want us to agree make some agreements.

1. We are no longer going to count calories. Calorie counting sucks out loud. I haven’t counted calories in years!!! In all my years of competing it was NEVER about the calories.
2. We are going to read the back of foods to review the INGREDIENTS list, not just to look at the calorie count see number 1
3. Snacks will no longer consist of  just 1 food item. (ie. just nuts, fruit etc)
4. We are going to learn how to cook 1x week.

The key to nutrition is meal timing. We were taught to eat 3 meals/day. Well that’s really hard and leaves us with low energy spots in they day. Those low energy spots cause us to crave. You want it’s like when you crave. You need to be tied to your chair with chains to keep you from the object of your desire.

Eating should include all food groups, we are not going to ban ANY food group. You have limited quantities but all food groups are include in your plan. ** With that said, some of you many have certain intolerances or food allergies that keep you from eating certain foods. All meals should include:

• protein — unlimited lean protein (cheese is not a protein; keep diary to a minimum)
• unlimited veggies and fruits (exceptions — bananas, mangoes, pineapples, papayas, grapes)
• starchy carbs — limit the breads, pastas obviously the desserts

You’ll want to avoid alcohol, it’s considered a treat, we’ll discuss treat meals at later time. Artificial sweeteners, if you must use stick with Stevia.

Okay now let’s put that together.
Shopping list — grab your list from the email
7 day meal plan — grab this from the email

Okay now that you have an idea of what to eat how do you make it happen” Well.

1. Go grocery shopping every week. This way you have fresh foods in the house and there are no excuses.
2. Cook 1x week, yes you heard correctly. Every Sunday I set aside 2 hours and I cook ALL my food for the week. I know you are asking will it say fresh. Yes.. I leave in the fridge 3 days worth of food and then I freeze the rest and then thaw it when I need. Now I don’t do this freezing every week because it depends on what I’m having, but if I’m cooking up a bunch of chicken or other protein yes this is what I do.
   • My protocol
     • Saturday
       • Grocery shop
       • Marinate any protein that I’ve purchased ( use store-bought that doesn’t have high fructose corn syrup or make my own)
     • Sunday
       • Chop veggies. I will roast or grill them — I like to have flavor (my quirk its post competing syndrome)
       • Grill or roast protein
       • Chop any fruits that need it and put a squeeze of lemon to keep from browning
       • Once I’m done cooking I put everything into glass containers — I recently switched from tupperware.
       • Depending on how much I’ve cooked 1/2 goes in my fridge and the other half goes in the freezer. You can take the freezer stuff out the night before and put it in the fridge and it thaws quite nicely.

       Resources:

       • Recipes
       • Even more recipes
       • Need more I’m a sucker for Pinterest, be sure that you put a timer on this could be a time suck =)
       • Protein powder that I use is called Isagenix — no artificial sweeteners, all organic. Also available dairy free.  For  a free sample shoot me an email with your mailing address. In the subject line write free shake sample.

       Today’s challenge

       1. Review the menu and create your own menu
       2. Make a shopping list
       3. In the comments below on or on my Fab Fit Squad Facebook page please let me know how you feel about today’s challenge, did you learn something new. Where you confused by anything. Do you think this will be hard to sit with or does this seem like something you can achieve.

       BONUS– I’m attaching a measurement sheet. Now… you don’t have to do this or publish where you are but it’s nice to know where you started from.

     Missed a few day — play catch up

   • Day 1 Introduction
   • Day 2 Mindset
   • Day 3 Goal Setting

   ** As with any exercise or weight loss program, you should consult with your doctor and consider any current or past health conditions or injuries before participating. Information provided here is based on my experiences as a certified ACSM personal trainer, fitness professional, Lifestyle Management nutrition manager and ACSM wellness coach.

Every client I work with I always ask what are your goals. What are we working towards. I typically get 2 types of response.  They either know their goals and can rattle them off or they look and me and say hmm what do you think I need to work on. When I hear the lather response I’m always taken a back. My feeling if you are seeking advice from a fitness professional you must have a goal. I can certainly help you fine tune them, but I’ve found that when you work toward a goal that isn’t yours you aren’t as passionate achieving it. Setting goals sometimes requires you to deep dig look in the mirror and really ask what you want.

So. today’s challenge is about setting SMART goals. I want you to think of goal setting as creating a road map for where you want to go. Imagine if you wanted to go to California. Would you get in the car and just drive, no.. you’d make a plan. You’d figure out do you drive, fly or some other mode of transportation. You’d map out where in California you were going and then you’d figure out when you’d want to go and for how long.  I want you to keep this analogy in your head as we dive into goal setting.

When clients set goals I typically experience two things.

1. They aren’t measurable, I hear something like this

• Tone up
• Get cut you know shredded
• Lose my tummy
• Firm up my J Lo (okay that’s my goal =))

2. They aren’t realistic

• I’m going vacation in 2 weeks I want to drop 20 pounds
• I want to put on 5 pounds of muscle while I’m training for a marathon
• I’m going eat less than 1000 calories to drop weight fast

So.. when you set goals it doesn’t have to be this HUGE over the top goal. Now I’m not saying don’t set challenging goals, but set goals that you will be able to see and have some success.

We all have goals that we are trying to achieve, but are you setting SMART Goals. When you set SMART goals you are more likely to achieve them.  SMART goals are written in such a way that anyone who reads them can see what you are trying to achieve.

Here is what I’m talking about:

Is this starting to make sense” So.. Day 3 Challenge as you can image is to set goals for this 30 day challenge.

• They should begin with I will……
• Now if you are feeling aggressive let’s set some goals for the next 60 and then 90 days.
• I write a lot about goals so here are some additional reading about goals that may help you.
• If you are stuck reach out! That’s why I’m here.

Don’t forget Leave a comment below. Write a facebook post on the Fabulous Fit Squad. If you have a personal blog, write a blog post. Make sure you link back to the site so we can cheer you on and hold you accountable.

Just joining now” Don’t worry you can catch up.
Day 1 — Intro the challenge
Day 2 — Getting your mind straight

Stay tuned.. tomorrow I will give you the building blocks of good nutrition.

Resources:
Hold Yourself Accountable
5 Ways To Successfully Reach Your Weight Loss Goals
Excuseville
Hairy Eyeball of Truth

Mindset is everything. In the video below I talk about getting your mind wrapped around this challenge.

Here are a few of my favorite fitness quotes.

Day 2 Challenge Homework:

1. Why are you doing this challenge’
2. What you do like that you are doing for fitness and/or nutrition right now’
3. What do you want to change about what you are doing’
4. What does success look, feel, taste and smell like’

Missed day 1” Click here to start at the beginning.

Don’t forget keep us all posted on how you are doing.

You can leave a comment below. A Facebook post on my Fab Fit Squad page.

I’m also using Pinterest to track this as well.

I’ve been in the fitness business for almost 20 years and more times than I can count, a client comes to me and says. I want to be RIPPED I want 6 pack abs. Meanwhile they are slurping down a frapsomething or when you asked what they had for lunch they rattle off one of the following:

• a carb and fat loaded meal
• nothing
• salad
• or some combination of the above

I’m sure you have heard this a time or time too, but six-pack abs are not made in the gym they are made in the kitchen. If you want to see definition, to reveal those coveted abs, your diet has to change — you must work to blast away the fat layered on top that keeps them hidden.

For us ladies over 40, this becomes a big challenge as stress and hormone fluctuations hit our belly’s big time.

Here are four fat-torching steps to help melt away the fat for good, exposing that hidden six-pack or even just burn off some of the lingering belly fat.

Step 1: Keep calories low, but protein and fiber high

When it comes to building muscle, getting leaner opposed to just losing weight (and muscle in the process) the quality of your calories matters. The amount of protein, carbohydrates, and fat you eat can change how you burn calories and how hungry you are throughout the day. Cutting calories while keeping the percentage of calories from protein high has been shown in studies to help boost metabolism and maintain muscle (that, in turn helps you burn more fat), while keeping you feeling satisfied longer (1, 2). Getting just enough carbohydrates along with fiber also helps you to feel full longer leading to a reduction of calories over time (3).

You’ll want to focus on getting in at least 20-30 grams of protein each meal.

As a busy fitness professional. I rely on having at least 1 shake/day to help me get though back to back clients and classes. I used to be one of those knife and fork meals only, but we all lead busy lives. If clients don’t have time to microwave food and eat you gotta make i easy for them. I like to have full meal replacement so they last longer and I feel more satiated and satisfied.�

Step 2: Lose weight through better sleep

Sleep quality and duration predicts weight loss in dieting adults, according to recent research (8, 9). The reason is that insufficient or poor quality sleep upsets the body’s circadian rhythm, adversely affecting many processes including metabolism and appetite regulation. This may trigger an increase in appetite-stimulating hormones, encouraging overeating and stifling weight loss efforts (8). Even losing moderate amounts of sleep can have devastating and wide spread effects on the body. Sleeping less than six hours per night has been shown to disrupt as many as 700 different genes that regulate metabolism, immune system response, and stress response (10).

I use the sleep spray EVERY night and those nights I forget to take it and wake up in the middle of the night I take a couple of squirts and I’m back to sleep — much faster than counting sheep =)

Sleep Support and Renewal provides melatonin as a healthy way to promote quality sleep. Melatonin is a hormone produced by the brain that regulates sleep and wake cycles. High levels are released at night to promote drowsiness, with levels dropping off in the early morning hours. Light-emitting screens from televisions and cellular devices can interfere with and suppress melatonin production, disturbing the sleep cycle by increasing alertness and shifting circadian rhythms later. In addition, as people age melatonin production wanes. Using Isagenix Sleep Support & Renewal before bed maximizes sleep quality and duration to ensure weight loss success.

Getting at least 7 hours of sleep weight loss goals by replacing high calorie late-night snacks that would otherwise sabotage efforts.

Step 3: Limit sugary beverages�

Working to reduce the amount of added sugar you consume each day is a worthy goal, especially because many common foods and beverages provide extra sugar and calories but very little of the quality nutrition our bodies need.

On its own, sugar isn�t necessarily good or bad. It becomes a concern when you consume foods that are high in calories and added sugar but low in essential nutrients like protein, fiber, vitamins, and minerals. Many everyday foods, beverages, and condiments contain a surprising amount of added sugar without contributing much nutritional value. Cutting back on these sources of excess sugar is a good idea for both your well-being and your waistline.

Step 4: Add resistance training�

Helps you to build more muscle. No you won’t get bulky. Lifting weight helps your body to look tighter and burn more calories at rest. If you are new to resistance training. You’ll want to focus on moving the big muscle groups. Think squats, lunges, push ups and rows.

Start by doing something that you like and start small. The bottom line is that if fat loss is your goal, include some form of resistance training like weightlifting or high-intensity interval training. Aim for a protein intake of 1.5 to 2.0 grams per kilogram per day divided over several meals containing at least 20 grams of high quality protein (10).
Lose the right type of weight during weight loss, which is fat, not muscle.

Want to learn more about fat loss’ Join me in my latest FREE success series #fatlossfundamentals for women over 40 who feel like they always start diets with the best intentions but tend to fall off

References

1. Westerterp-Plantenga MS, et al. Dietary protein� its role in satiety, energetics, weight loss and health. Br J Nutr. 2012 Aug;108 Suppl 2:S105-12. doi: 10.1017/S0007114512002589.
2. Belza A, et al. Contribution of gastroenteropancreatic appetite hormones to protein-induced satiety. Am J Clin Nutr. 2013 Mar 6. [Epub ahead of print]
3. Hairston KG, Vitolins MZ, Norris JM, Anderson AM, Hanley AJ, Wagenknecht LE. Lifestyle factors and 5-year abdominal fat accumulation in a minority cohort: the IRAS Family Study. Obesity (Silver Spring) 2012;[20:42]1-7.
4. Res PT, Groen B, Pennings B et al. Protein ingestion before sleep improves postexercise overnight recovery. Med Sci Sports Exerc 2012;[44:15]60-9.
5. Chaput JP, Tremblay A. Sleeping Habits Predict the Magnitude of Fat Loss in Adults Exposed to Moderate Caloric Restriction. Obes Facts. 2012;[5:56]1-6. DOI: 10.1159/000342054
6. Markus CR, Olivier B, Panhuysen GE et al. The bovine protein alpha-lactalbumin increases the plasma ratio of tryptophan to the other large neutral amino acids, and in vulnerable subjects raises brain serotonin activity, reduces cortisol concentration, and improves mood under stress. Am J Clin Nutr 2000;[71:15]36-44.
7. Gonzalez JT et al. Effect of calcium intake on fat oxidation in adults: a meta-analysis of randomized, controlled trials. Obesity Reviews 2012; DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-789X.2012.01013.x
8. Calvin AD, Carter RE, Adachi T, Macedo P, Albuquerque FN, van der Walt C, Bukartyk J, Davison DE, Levine JA, Somers VK. Effects of Experimental Sleep Restriction on Caloric Intake and Activity Energy Expenditure. Chest. 2013 Feb 7. doi: 10.1378/chest.12-2829. [Epub ahead of print]
9. Chaput JP, Tremblay A. Sleeping Habits Predict the Magnitude of Fat Loss in Adults Exposed to Moderate Caloric Restriction. Obes Facts. 2012;[5:56]1-6. DOI: 10.1159/000342054
10. Möller-Levet CS, Archer1 SN, Bucca G, Laing EE, Slak A, Kabiljo R, Lo JCY, Santhi N, von Schantz M, Smith CP, Dijk D. Effects of insufficient sleep on circadian rhythmicity and expression amplitude of the human blood transcriptome. PNAS, 2013.
11. Harvie MN, Pegington M, Mattson MP et al. The effects of intermittent or continuous energy restriction on weight loss and metabolic disease risk markers: a randomized trial in young overweight women. Int J Obes (Lond). 2011;[35:71]4-27.
12. Varady KA, Hellerstein MK. Alternate-day fasting and chronic disease prevention: a review of human and animal trials. Am J Clin Nutr. 2012.
13. Ahmad MK, Mahdi AA, Shukla KK et al. Withania somnifera improves semen quality by regulating reproductive hormone levels and oxidative stress in seminal plasma of infertile males. Fertil Steril. 2010;[94:98]9-96.
14. Krikorian R, Shidler MD, Nash TA et al. Blueberry supplementation improves memory in older adults. J Agric Food Chem. 2010;[58:39]96-4000.

Join the 30 Day FitOber Fest Challenge to create healthy habits.

The aim of this challenge is to inspire you to build healthy habits that can fit into YOURS and YOUR families lifestyle. It’s free to join and at the end of the 30 days my goal is that you have a healthy living plan you that will help you to lose weight, feel great and look fabulous.  Drawing on healthy topics and insights from various fitness sources you’ll have access to fitness tips, recipes, workouts and knowledge to apply to your new healthy lifestyle.

What you’ll learn:

Crawling:

• Understand how to build healthy meal and workouts plans
• Understand what it really takes to live a healthy lifestyle figure out what steps you need to take to make it truly a healthy habit.

Walking:

• Choose the program that works best for your lifestyle
• Create a menu that you can tweak and use over and over again
• Learn how to use online tools to help you reach your fitness goals.
  

Running:

• Prepare to yourself to eat healthy no matter what the situation
• How to put together a workout on the fly without running, that’s not just running or walking
• Establish daily habits and routines that will ensure you stay on your new healthy lifestyle

I’m Ready! Okay, just complete the form and I’ll make sure you get an email when the challenge kickoffs on Tuesday, October 1st.

Name *

First

Last *

Last

Email *

Is there anything you'd like to hear about over this month?

Captcha

If you are human, leave this field blank.

The overall goal of the program

• Teach you the why and how of each step

• Give you daily actions steps, that’s I’d like you to blog about, put on your Facebook page, put on my Facebook page or leave comments below.

• Provide you with resources to help you build your healthy lifestyle.

Ultimately I want you to come away from this challenge with knowledge, tools and resources to live a healthy lifestyle.  This is the first time I’ve structured a challenge like this so I’m really excited to see how this goes. The initial feedback that I’ve gotten has been amazing. So.. join the fun!!!

FitOber Fest Challenge Guidelines

1. No purchase necessary. You do need to link to this page, tweet or Facebook each daily challenge. How else will I know you are participating.
2. Plus — fitness is a team sport. By posting you will get support not only from me, but others who are taking the challenge.
3. You don’t need to “blog” every day, but leave a comment about how you are doing. I know when I planned this some folks chucked some days together if they got behind.
4. FitOber Fest runs from October 1st – October 31st

In July, my colleague Stephanie told me I had a lot of ideas and I struggled with follow through. That made me take step back and pause. I don’t have follow through on things that are ABOUT ME! So.. this blog challenge for me was about 2 things.

1. really setting my focus and going for it!!! and 2. following through.

This has been a little bit longer than 30 days, but guess what!!! I did it!! I finished it I did have some hiccups along the way, but I kept plugging along. I’ve laid out my plan for what I want to do with my business and how it could be possible for it to be done remotely.   This summer was a good trial when we were away and I was able to still run my business and have a good time on vacation.

I’m glad I did this. It really helped me to make out a plan and get organized. Now that I’m organized it’s time to take ACTION!

Watch out over the next few months here are somethings you can expect to see.

• FREE full workouts including videos
• FREE 30 day challenges ~ including workouts, motivation and nutrition advice
• Recipe books
• More coaching programs
• Did I mention videos!

So buckle up.. it’s going to be an amazing year for us all!!!

I’ve taken this blog off topic for about 2 months. But that’s okay in my book. Theses past 2 months I’ve needed go off topic so I can ground myself and find the voice that will help my readers. Over the past 60 days I’ve reset my goals and I’ve re-prioritized what I want in life. I’m hoping that this little diversion has given you some insight into me and why I do want to do. So what does living the dream REALLY look like to you’ Today is day 29 and we’re asked what does living the dream mean to me. So.. here’s my first stab at it.

• What do you want in your life beyond all certainty’
  • I want to work with women to help them better understand how to find the balance between life and healthy living for themselves and their families.
  • I want to be able to work from any where I have cell phone reception and an internet connection.
  • Would love to chase the sun and live where I don’t have to put on a winter coat and hat
  • Be able to give me husband as many gifts and experiences as he’s given me
• What’s a non-negotiable you are not prepared to give up for anything else’
  • Balance — now don’t get me wrong I do have periods of time when I get a little hectic, but I’m not longer going to make someone else’s poor planning my program (been there done that — have the tee shirt and post traumatic corporate stress disorder to prove it)
  • My happy marriage — I’m lucky that my husband supports me in all my endeavors. He may ask regularly am I crazy, but no matter what I do for business and professional I want to make sure that I don’t take him for granted.
  • Need for the products and/or services that I’m promoting to be in line with my values.
  • Never forget where I can from. There are people who helped me and supported me no matter what.
  • Always be surrounded by great friends. I’m really lucky that I have some of the best friends. They always have my back and I can’t imagine what life would be like without them.
• Am I willing to go for it”
  Yes betcha!! For that past few months I’ve felt like a caterpillar — just waiting to blossom into a butterfly. I can’t imagine what next year will be like for me.  Hey.. the next 90 days. I’m ready to make it happen — how about you!!!

How do you know if you are a fitster”

We are a place for busy women who want it all!  You want to celebrate your achievements, while trying to be a great friend, wife and/or mom.  You are looking to find a balance among the chaos. You want to feel better about what you see in the mirror (hell even look in the mirror again). You want to reach in your closet and everything fits =)  You no longer have fat clothes and skinny clothes.

Over the years, you’ve let your fitness routine fall off  due to career and/or family conflicts, but you are looking for a way to fit in back in. You’re a fitster if you’ve even flipped through fitness magazines and said someday.

All have Fitsters have one thing in common they are ready to get their bodies back and lead a healthy lifestyle.

If you are looking for someone who can cut through all the fitness and nutrition BS that’s out there and help you understand and how you can take ACTION toward changing your habit, then you are a Fitser.  To learn more about me check out the about page.

Where else can we hang out together”
You can find me on Twitter. Be sure to follow me.

You can find me on Facebook. Be sure to like my fan page.

I also like to have a little fun on Pinterest. Make sure you check out some of my pins.

So, why should you follow me on any of these platforms”’ I post workouts, recipes, motivation, inspiration and things I just find humorous.

I look forward to having you join the team!!!

PS.. I’m working on videos.. so stay tuned!

In my past I used to travel over 100,000 miles each year and I had a routine. Over the past few years, I’ve barely traveled, with today’s challenge I’m really scratching my head and thinking hmmm what tools do I need to be happy in this gypsy lifestyle.

Here goes.

1. Given all that is going on with the world I must first check to see if thee are any trouble spots in the world
2. Not one to be sidelined with diseases, I’d really look into see what shots are needed.
3. Ideally I’d like follow the seasons and move from place to place before it gets to hot or to cold. So I’d need to check the weather.
4. Can I plug my stuff in” What sort of plug devices will I need.
5. This may sound a little DIVA — but I need my internet. Yes, free Wi-Fi is great when you can find it, but if I need to pay bills or buy stuff on so I’d need to invest in a mifi — or find a place I can secure wifi.
6. A gym or an area to workout.

How about you” What are you needs when travel” Leave me a comment below.

Back when I was working in corporate America I typically few 100,000/year. The only thing that got me on the plane was the promise of going to Hawaii first class. In one year, I made my goal and then I met my now husband. I told him if he played his cards right I’d take him to Hawaii first class using miles. Well…. I did it and we went to Hawaii first class and then again using the miles accumulated from my days of travel a few years later. During this time we got credit cards that accrued miles and I was able to use those miles to fly to London a few years ago.

So.. I do believe in being travel savvy with that said, between my husband and I we have accumulated a ton of points that we now are ready to use again. The question is WHERE SHALL WE GO”’

I do know that I’m not one of those people will land somewhere and try to live on $25/day . Sorry that’s just not how I roll.

The 2 ways I become travel savvy — is to use our miles to fund a trip. I will also use our miles to pay for a hotel stay.

Do you have any other suggestions”

Okay — I’ve said it loud I’ve said it proud. I’m a pack rat. So if you know of  a support group holla!! Now..don’t go thinking that if you came to my house I would be an episode of hoarders. I just have a way of holding on to things. I will say the my grandfather was a hoarder to the tune that you there were rooms you couldn’t go into because they were filled to the ceiling with crap. He was the king of filling paper bags worth of stuff. I really think it may be a little genetic.

So.. could I live a minimalist life. I really don’t’ think so. I could start and then slowly build back up my stuff. My husband could he believes your home should like Architect Digest will be coming over to do a photo shoot. Given that my office looks like this, that’s not happening =)

Today is all about when traveling how do you stay up your business.  This past year, I’ve traveled more than I have in several years and it’s become a little bit of a juggling game, but I think I was able to manage it with freaking myself out or having my husband feel like I was working while on vacation. So.. here is how I was able to do and still enjoy 15 days in Europe.

Productivity –– I was 6 hours ahead of the east coast, so in the AM I checked emails and sent out information. I set a timer and limited myself to just 1 hour of work. The agreement with my husband was if I got an email that made me crazy and “not fun” I had to do a shot of tequila. There were no tequila shots =). I also gave my clients 2 months notice that I was traveling and they were aware that this was a special trip. In the past, I’ve done the same where I worked for a few hours in the morning giving myself a deadline and then enjoying the day and coming back and night to finish up or play catch up.

Let me put a different spin on this. If I were staying somewhere for a period of time. The big thing would be to have structure. I need to set up time block so that I know and my clients know when I’m available and when I’ll allow myself some downtime to explore and enjoy where I am.

Staying healthy — This is a non-negotiable. I always make sure that there is a gym either on location or within close proximity. I also make sure that we do a lot of walking to make sure we are maximizing our activity levels.

Keeping up with clients — Here is where I would struggle, a bit. I had a great scheduling tool that I loved and then it was “sunsetted” then I found another tool that was okay, but now that’s having challenges as well. So.. now I really need to find another tool that I will like and can ensure that clients can book my time easily.

Keeping in touch with your network — This is something I will need to write into my schedule. I am a big user of social media, so this will be a general what’s up, but to make folks feel special, I will use Zoho to create my follow up list. This gives me all the information I need in 1 place and I can update what the conversation was about.