My Fitness and Nutrition Philosophy

My fitness and nutrition philosophy has evolved over the years but one thing that has always been steady is to help women find an approach that works for them.

With an overload of health and fitness information it can be hard to find accurate (and realistic) information about what is best for weight loss and overall heath. My goal is to provide you with simple strategies and help you actually implement them.

Here are some perspectives I have learned over the years.

Train for where you are not where you think you should be. If you are a busy mom it may not be realistic to train 6 days a week. If you are 52 your training will probably look different than it did when you played sports in high school. If you just had a baby your training will look different than before you were pregnant. Or if you are just getting back to exercise after a hiatus your training will look different than if you have been consistently working out for years.

So many factors play a part into your individual workout program, including but not limited to, your age, your schedule, how frequently you currently train, your goals and etc.

Done is better than perfect. Something isn’t nothing. I find that many people teeter back and forth between an all or nothing mentality with exercise. They either commit to a lot of exercise that is hard to sustain, don’t do anything at all, or good intentions that only become fleeting workouts.

It can feel like just doing a little isn’t enough. I teach my clients how to find the minimum of exercise that fits into their lifestyle, depending on how often they have to workout and then build from there.

Often with my clients we use the phrases and reminders that done is better than perfect and something is better than nothing. When we adopt the expectation that we must commit to more exercise than is realistically possible, it sets us up for disappointment. If you can commit to two 30 minute workouts a week for an entire year (approximately 100 workouts ), this is a better alternative to working out every day for a few weeks and then doing nothing for months. Plus, it keeps you in the habit and feeling better about your choices and efforts.

Weight training is the best foundation for our bodies. There are a lot of different types of training, but the one that will have the most overall benefit for your time is weight training. Not only will you build strength (crucial for activities of daily living especially as you age), but you will also add muscle to your frame which benefits everything from strong bones to burning more calories at rest if your goal is weight/fat loss.

This doesn’t mean you don’t do other types of exercise (dance, swim, bike, yoga); it just means using weight training to complement it will benefit you most.

Nutrition philosophy.

My food philosophy is shaped by my education and personal experience. While over the years I have learned about proper food intake for health and/or weight loss, I also know traditional methods to lose weight or change eating habits do not work.

Also, I want to note that while weight loss can help with health related issues, what you weigh is not always synonymous with health. The number on the scale is not a reflection of health or self worth.

I take a habit- based-meets-education approach when it comes to eating, focusing on foundational elements that support over all health. Food quality is important, but it doesn’t matter if you can’t actually implement it consistently over time.

I believe that our nutrition choices should make us feel good physically, not fee deprived or starving, but not stuffed to the point of discomfort either. Our food choices should make us feel good emotionally (not guilty or shameful).

Some programs give you a meal plan and tell you exactly what to eat, and some focus on habits without focusing on what food choices you are making. I focus on both.

The most overlooked aspect when it comes to eating is enjoyment. Your diet SHOULD include foods you enjoy, like bread, wine or sweets. There is no point trying to eliminate it from your diet if you know you want to eat it again in life. There is a way to include all foods in your diet and still reach your goals.

If this approach sounds good to you, you are in the right spot.