So this week is dedicated to N – Nutrition:

  ~ First, and most important – EAT!  Please do not ever skip meals, or just give in and eat “crap” simply because it’s convenient.  I completely understand that  we are officially in the holiday season and some days life throws major curve balls, and we just have to go with what we have at the moment.  However, if you’ve intentionally thought out your meals for the week, purchased the groceries needed, and prepped the meals then you’re ahead of the game and so ready for whatever life throws at you! 

~  When planning out your meals, be sure that you include protein in each meal and snack.  Even if it’s only 15 to 20 grams, you’re doing great.  Protein is the building block for muscle.  Firm muscle is what gives that toned look, AND muscle mass aids in burning body fat.  You definitely want to build and feed that muscle!

There are SO many protein-packed foods out there, that can be “dressed up.”  Kodiak and Pamcakes are fantastic pancake/waffle batter mixes you can use.  Simply add Greek yogurt and/or eggs when you mix the batter, and the protein numbers get even better!  You can use natural peanut butter, honey, and/or whipped cream to top these.

Please remember that carbs ARE GOOD!  In fact, complex carbohydrates are necessary.  Our bodies need fiber, and complex carbs give us energy, sustained energy.  These are regular baking potatoes, sweet potatoes, brown/wild rice, jasmine rice, oatmeal – etc.  This does not mean that breads are out forever; however, it does mean you should replace white processed/refined breads with Killer Dave’s grain bread or Ezekiel breads.

Just like those caterpillars we watched form their cocoons way back in the spring, they emerged with transformed bodies and beautiful wings.  Those wings were brand new, and they had to learn how to carry and use them!  Each part of your transformation will bring challenges and surprises on your way to a better, healthier you.

So, carrying on with our transformation journey, let’s keep talking about nutrition.  We’ve covered protein, carbohydrates.  Now it’s time to talk about the fats!   We’ve all seen the low fat foods; keep in mind that these aren’t necessarily healthy.  There are healthy fats, and we need those!  These include avocados, almonds, natural peanut butter, extra virgin olive oil.  These healthy fats are actually essential!  So make sure you’re getting the right amount of these, rather than saturated fats.

We defnintely need a balance in our macronutrients!  Lean protein (at least 20 grams in each meal), complex carbohydrates, and healthy fats.  Whether you’re a fan of vegetables or not, we all really need at least two to three servings of green veggies each day.  I know this isn’t always going to happen. . . so that’s why taking a quality multi-vitamin is so important!

And – finally, tracking meals will be exceptionally helpful!  Be sure you log what you eat so you can track the macros you’re actually getting!  Let’s be intentional with getting in enough of the right foods each day.

We’ve got this!!!! And remember that reclaiming and maintaining your fitness and health is essential, and, without a single doubt, an important investment. If you seem to be struggling – maybe you’re unsure how and where to start, need accountability and/or a balanced plan, or maybe even reached a plateau – please consider enlisting the help of a professional certified trainer to get you heading on the right track. I’m absolutely here to help you any time! (From now until Christmas, you can schedule a consultation with me at no charge! I would love to discuss your goals with you to see if we can work together.)

Feel free to click on the Contact Me link on this site, or email me at Fitteachermom@aol.com.

When talking about true transformation, watching the caterpillars were the very best example for my clients and boot campers.  Within the first three (3) weeks, all six (6) of our caterpillars had transitioned into their cocoons.  First we talked about time – trusting the process & managing our time better.   We surely saw this with the caterpillars; of course, their lives are far less complicated than human lives.  But maybe we tend to make the simplest things complicated.  The lesson here is to trust the process and NOT overthink things!!!

While our first week was all about time and time management, last week we talked about removing things:  negative thoughts, sugary foods, excuses & time wasters.

This week we’re adding!  Add more ounces of water in place of the cokes and sweet teas.  Add more fruits & veggies instead of chips & sweets.  Add more complex carbs (fiber- sweet potatoes, oatmeal, brown rice) instead of starchy ones (donuts, white breads, enriched pasta).  Add more lean protein!!  At. Every. Meal.

Here’s today’s special addition – supplements!  Add in a quality multivitamin, a probiotic, and maybe glucosamine or turmeric for inflammation.

While we don’t see the daily changes in the cocoons the same as we did with the caterpillars growth, we KNOW that they are transforming into butterflies.  This makes me think of how we view our plateaus – those little ruts in our progress where nothing seems to change.   We can’t see the internal changes – exactly the same as not being able to see inside those cocoons.  So what do we ADD here?  Ohhhh boy am I glad you asked!

Add:

1.  Faith ~ trust the process.  Do not give up; it’s happening.  Stick with your program. 

2.  Food – YES, I said that!  These plateaus are NOT the time to cut calories or restrict your meals.  Add more protein.  Add an extra meal if you’ve only eaten two or three meals any given day.

3.  Add more water.  If you’re drinking 64 ounces each day, drink more!  You can get in over a gallon each day, and your body actually works better!

4.  Add more lifting!  Maybe add heavier weights, or add another day of training.  Remember, we’re adding additional ab reps, and an additional half mile into our April habits. 

5.  Add in more journaling and tracking.  Make note of where you are today, tomorrow, two weeks from now, etc.  This makes those non-scale victories more obvious.  Focus on those, because these are SURE signs that you’re making progress!

 The thought of adding gives us SO much hope, right?!  Let’s get EXCITED about this journey.  God is in every single detail, and you can count on that.  Let’s talk about adding health self-care habits.  What can we remove and ADD in it’s place?  Get in a yoga scrolling social media or binge watching a tv show.  Add in time to journal and/or track meals and workouts.  Don’t forget to track your water intake as well!  Maybe purchasing a pretty journal and “fancy” pens will be the incentive you need. If your budget and time allow, schedule for yourself a good deep-tissue, or neuromuscular massage and/or chiropractic care.   This can ben extremely beneficial every 4 to 6 weeks.  

Your beautiful wings are loading, my beautiful friends.

While waiting for our cocoons to open, I couldn’t help but think about how important rest is.   The caterpillars  were resting up while those beautiful wings developed.  How about you?  Are you adding in any recovery and self care weekly?  I LOVE that you push yourself and are working hard managing your time, trusting this process, and removing all the things that do not serve you.  I truly want you to ADD in the things that benefit your health, your workouts, and your overall wellness.  Make sure that you’re adding multi-vitamins, a probiotic, maybe Fish Oil, Glucosamine, or Turmeric into your daily regimen.  Be intentional with your workouts, adding in extra reps, heavier weights, a little longer distance or time with your runs/walks.  And definitely be intentional with adding in some form of self care for YOU! 

Remember that if you feel that you would benefit from a balanced plan and accountability, I’m here to help!  I would be honored to partner with you to coach you on to become the healthiest version of you!  FTM Wellness has Black Friday training deals for a limited time, so click on the tab above to see those details.  From now until Thanksgiving, one of the perks is a free consultation! 

Here we go into Week 2 of Transform!! T was last week, and we touched on all things time related.  Remember, true transformation takes time, and we can all improve on time management. This week we will focus on R – Removing bad habits! The first thing we are going to remove is negative self talk (you just knew I was going to say something food related, didn’t you?). We all do it. . . and we all need to give ourselves a break. STOP looking for the worst in yourself! We ALL have things we want to improve, and that is what we’ll be working on during this transformation. From the inside out. But negative thoughts are never productive, and are definitely self-defeating. So let’s work on that, ok?  First things first ~ make sure your evening routine is complete before bed each evening, and that you are all ready for a successful new day.    Invest in some self care before going to bed – YOU ARE WORTH IT. 

Moving on to the “R” – removing unhealthy negative self talk. Get out of your head with the what ifs, should haves, if onlys. . . That is never helpful. It’s always easier to find something negative about yourself, which leads to giving up and making unhealthy choices. So, SNAP OUT OF IT! You are SO much better than that, and you deserve so much more. YOU are the daughter of THE KING. I’m certain that most of  you would never speak to each other the way you speak to yourself. Right? So as you are encouraging others, save some positive, encouraging vibes for yourself. Remove any negative thoughts and doubts about yourself the instant they pop up; they are from the pit of hell. If you’re unsure about something that maybe you’ve been convicted of, maybe during Bible study or the message at church, pray over it. Ask God Himself to guide you. I’m not saying that any of us are perfect, and that we’re “there.” We ALL can do better at some things. We ALL can grow and improve. Honestly, that’s a positive attribute when we recognize areas we can improve, right? Beating yourself up over a mistake or not being where we need to be spiritually, physically, fiscally, or professionally will not bring about the growth we want. Recognize any need, pray over it for His discernment and guidance, then move FORWARD. You’ve got this!!!

Another part of Removing Bad Habits is. . . yup, you guessed it. On to the nutrition! Have you been tracking your meals? Do you see changes you can make to your daily nutrition cleaner? Remove your excuses about being too busy. Remember our first work was all about time. It takes time for a true transformation. Invest some of that time in setting yourself up with productive, time saving habits! Go back to your evening and morning routines. Go back to the meal prepping. Build a healthy menu for yourself. Build a grocery list from that, then prep those meals ahead of time. Store the meals in serving size containers in your fridge so all you have to do is pack those lunch bags, grab and go in the morning. You CAN do this! Once you get started, stick with it. It will quickly become a habit.

One quick note – REMOVE processed, refined foods. Most of these are the really “sugary” foods that none of us need. That comfort food thing is also a lie: Sugar feeds inflammation and suppresses our immune systems. Don’t fall for it! You deserve better!!!

Even though we can’t see changes happening within ourselves as easily as we can in watching caterpillars building their coccoons, it’s still happening. Can you feel it? Are you sleeping better? Feeling a little more energy? Are your workouts becoming a little too easy so you’ve had to go up in the amount of weight you lift? Are your clothes fitting a little more loosely? Are you looking forward to those workouts a little more than you used to? Are you getting more water in than you were a couple of weeks ago? How about chronic issues such as headaches, inflammation, digestive issues, joint pain? Are these easing up? Have you noticed you are a little stronger? That your balance and/or flexibility has improved? Any of these non-scale victories are just the beginning!

So remember, REMOVE all of the negative thoughts. They absolutely will not serve you, nor will they lead you forward. Leave them behind, along with processed, sugary foods. Cut out coca colas, and limit sweet tea. I promise you will feel better!  

Finally, one other thing we need to Remove is our excuses. Other than illness or injury – don’t skip your workouts. Remove any excuses for not getting enough clean, nutritious meals in. What can you remove here? For me, it’s time wasters like scrolling on my phone or watching tv. If you can remove 30 minutes on your phone, that’s 30 minutes of meal prep, yoga, lifting, walking, or heck – even dancing, that you can do! If your household chores are piling up – the last thing you need is to spend that time scrolling on your phone. Get busy, and get that stuff knocked out! Remove procrastination along with your excuses. I would imagine that sometimes, they go hand-in-hand. Make sure you carve out time for your own self care as well! If that means removing 30 to 45 minutes of watching tv to soak in your tub or get some yoga in, it’s MORE than worth it! I’m preaching to the choir here, so I definitely know sometimes this seems harder to do. I promise, though, removing bad habits and being productive can result in building better habits and a happier, healthier lifestyle!

When my boot campers and training clients were watching the caterpillars transform into their cocoons, the key takeaway for us was: they are transforming on their own timeline, not all exactly the same!   While one or two caterpillars were in cocoons, the others were still crawling around or just beginning to build their cocoons.  Each of us is just different enough to have our own timeline, and our own genetic “blueprint.”

So remember that every transformation takes time. Be patient, trust the process, and enjoy each part of the journey. Manage your time wisely!

R – Remove ~ Get rid of the negative things! Negative thoughts, time-wasting habits, and sugary, unhealthy foods do NOT serve you or your goals. Remove them!