Redefining Strength Fitness Hacks

I often get asked, "How long did it take you to get to (insert the result I've achieved that they want here)?"My answer is, "My entire life."This isn't meant to be flippant.But it's the honest answer.Sure maybe I "cut" for 6 weeks to get leaner. Or maybe I did a workout progression that built my pull ups over the last 4 weeks....But these things are still based off a foundation that, in a way, I've been creating my entire life.Even if you are the same weight or have the same "strength" as someone else, you can't compare your journey to theirs.There is just so much more to it than just that starting "number" or spot.Because it's even our experiences that make the difference.Someone who's "cut" before knows what it entails, even if they have the same weight to lose as you who has never done it.And maybe they just recently gained the weight while you've had it on for years, putting them in a very different positio

It’s easy to start a new program and get overwhelmed by all of the changes you feel you have to make.And so..well…we freak out and never end up moving forward.But before you let your brain go into freak out mode…start by focusing on small tweaks!Or as I’ve liked saying “Tweak before you freak!”Because small changes add up. And they help us create something actually sustainable.Too often we feel like we have to overhaul everything, when really those small changes are what add up and allow us to be consistent.They allow us to create new habits we can maintain after that initial motivation fades.So focus on small habit adjustments based on your current routine.What are just 3 small things you can focus on this week?Is it drinking more water? Doing a 5 minute workout when you’re short on time? Simply tracking your food?List out 3 habit changes to start implementing and mark them off each day.Even make them so ridiculously easy you feel silly listing them.This helps you build that momentum and see lasting changes!

I think often in our workouts in an attempt to do more or that harder variation and last the entire interval of work, we CHEAT ourselves out of the full benefit of moves.We don’t try to work muscles as hard as we can. We actually just try to survive the time we are “supposed” to work in the follow along.And this leads to us CHEATING on moves.Letting our hands shift out in front of us as we do mountain climbers. Letting our butt go up in the air as we hold a plank.Not sinking as low or jumping as high in that squat jump.We are focused on doing more over maximizing the movement.And that can even lead to us thinking we’ve earned harder variations than we have because we can seemingly “do” them, but it can also lead to us thinking things are easier than they are.But we are never above the basics. And often if you think something is too easy?You really need to assess how well you’re doing it!Here are some things I think it is really key we do at times to assess if we are really maximizing our results from each tra

I refused to demo the moves and made friends or co-workers do it.I was comfortable sharing my knowledge behind the scenes.But I also really really really (did I say REALLY!?) wanted to share my passion and knowledge and help others.So Ryan kind of gave me an ultimatum...Ryan basically told me at one point, "If you really want to do this thing, you need to suck it up and get over it and be in the photos."(I would say he said it nicer than that as I can't remember his exact phrasing since it feels like it was almost a decade ago, BUT he probably didn't as Ryan has never been afraid to be 100% blunt with me when I needed it. It's why I love to hate him at times and need him around all the more. Love you butthead! Anyway...)I'm telling you all of this because I think we believe there are parts of ourselves we can't change.I know I NEVER ever thought I'd be a person in front of the camera.But really it isn't that we CAN'T change them...it's that we don't

You know that urge to do MORE? To make more changes?Search for a new macro ratio? Workout longer? Train harder?I think this focus on doing MORE stems from the fact that A. Yes we want results faster but B. We also feel more in CONTROL when we do more.The feeling that we are “acting” or taking action gives us a sense of control. Even though we may not actually be moving ourselves forward and even wasting a ton of energy as we set ourselves back.It may be wasted work and energy.And a lot of adjustments that aren’t allowing time to work it’s magic.Because the simple fact is, you can’t out work, out diet, out train time.And to some extent, results are out of our control in that we can’t control TIME.We need to find a way to be consistent with our training, to stay focused, so that results have time to add up.So ask yourself, “Why am I trying to do more? Why am I trying to make a change?”Is it needed? Or are you just trying to feel more in control?The video version of this episode is live on youtube!

Tracking our macros isn’t just about restricting what we’re eating to lose weight. It’s about truly learning how to FUEL.Because no matter what result you want to get, from losing weight to body recomposition to gaining muscle to fueling your endurance sport to even simply feeling more energized throughout the day, the macronutrient ratio you are consuming MATTERS.And by understanding macros, you can better adjust how you fuel over time as your needs and goals change! So here are 4 “hacks” to help you get started dialing in those macros because I know the process can seem overwhelming to start!#1: DON’T START BY CUTTING OUT THE FOODS YOU LOVE#2: “PRACTICE” – BUILD A SOLID THE FOUNDATION#3: STOP GIVING YOURSELF THE EXCUSE THAT TRACKING IS “ANNOYING” OR “RESTRICTIVE.”#4: ACCEPT THERE WILL BE TIMES YOU’RE LESS DEDICATEDThe video version of this episode is live on youtube!

Legend-wait-for-it-daryI love hearing Barney say this in How I Met Your Mother.And almost every time I try to repeat the line, I somehow butcher it hahaAnyway, the simple fact is…Not every day can be legendary or no days end up being legendary.You can’t know the good without the bad!BUT even on those not so ideal days we can take something out of them that moves us forward.Here are 4 questions to consider to GROW from those not so fun days to make your lows less low!Do I know what triggered it?What can I learn?What would I do next time?What good still happened?Remember we can’t know the good without the bad BUT we can always learn from it to make our highs higher and lows less low!The video version of this episode is live on youtube!

So on my Unicorn coaching call this last week, I was trying to figure out another way to describe what I see as the issues we often blame on “age.”Because while, yes our body does change as we get older, so often so many of our issues are from well…a leaky ceiling we didn’t address.If you had a leak and over the years the water kept dripping in that same spot, you wouldn’t be surprised when, finally one day, the leak made the ceiling board collapse. You’d know that even though it was only a little water, that over time, those water droplets built up. Same thing can be said about so much of what we just attribute to age.We’ve so often implemented improper mobility practices and horrible dieting habits for DECADES and then we say it’s cause we are “old” things no longer work as we feel they should.We can’t lose the weight as easily. We now have aches and pains.But really these things aren’t just popping up.The’ve been caused by a leak we haven’t addressed over the years.So now if you’ve realized the leak?DO SOM

One of my amazing Unicorns  Ellen commented this in the group last week..."Maybe things are not going a 100% as I want them to go, maybe I am not doing as much as I would like to do....but I have a lot of lemons at the moment and not enough glasses to make lemonade in so I just make lemonade out of the lemons where I have the glasses for."So often we have a ton of things going on and simply not enough time to do as much as we'd like for each of those things.But we also have to remember that all we can do is give 100% of what we've got at that time.We are CONSTANTLY in the act of balance.And often our desire to do more isn't really that we aren't doing enough...it's just that we want results faster.The thing is, and I know I say this a lot, we simply can't out work TIME.And while you may want to make more lemonade, you may want to do more, there is really only a finite amount of time in a day...a finite number of glasses we have to hold the lemonade.So at some point, you

Progressions are earned…Often we feel like because we “can” do something? We should do it or we deserve to do it.But the question is…are you really doing it WELL?Are you actually optimizing the movement or doing it just for the sake of doing the “harder” variation?Are you putting a “bandaid” on the true problem? Applying a quick fix just to get through the workout?I don't like doing something to progress a movement we haven't EARNED.Like putting your hands behind your lower back during ab movements, specifically leg lower movementsSure it allows you to do that harder movement right then, but it's also probably why you consistently tend to feel your lower back in other moves you shouldn't.You're allowing yourself to "cheat" to pass the test...but you're not actually learning the information you need to pass the next test...or the next one...or succeed long term because you've actually BUILT your knowledge on the subject.You just sought out a quick fix.And I'm s

Motivation that will burn out…especially often the more intense and restrictive we are to start.As cliche as it is…it really is true you’ve got to find a way to enjoy the journey.And that means creating new habits that do fit your lifestyle to some extent. Habits that you enjoy enough to keep repeating until they require no self control to do.Now…You won’t enjoy every habit to start that you have to implement - change does require change and for us to be uncomfortable. BUT the more you can create new habits with things you DO enjoy, finding maybe new activities to do, new healthy restaurants to eat at, the more you’ll accept some of the things that aren’t as easy to implement to start.All about that balance!Here are 3 tips to help you create those new habits to carry you through!#1: Tweak your current lifestyle.We need to create new routines and habits if we want to make the changes sustainable. The easiest way to do that is to start with small tweaks to what we are currently doing. Small adjustments to thing

One of my amazing Unicorns asked, “I was wondering if there were general “success” habits that you’ve noticed yourself and/or all clients who’ve met / exceeded their goals practice consistently on the daily?”One of the things I told her that I think is actually at the heart of whether or not we succeed is…We have to remember that we will NEVER be perfect with anything. It's about learning to recognize the detour  more quickly to get back on track!She summarized this thought so nicely as…Shift as soon as I notice drift.The video version of this episode is live on youtube!

When we start a new program we of course have “expectations” about what we’ll get out of it.But what if the reason we’ve never fully seen the results we want is because of our “expectations” of what the outcome will be?What if we are expecting too much? What if our binary definition of success is holding us back?What if the benefit of each thing we do isn’t as simple as “did we or did we not get (insert outcome here)”?Now I’m not saying not to expect yourself to work or not have high expectations when it comes to what you want out of things.But I think too often we set our expectations only on reaching a specific goal and not on the LEARNING PROCESS involved in achieving that outcome.It’s also why we can get really down and feel like nothing has ever worked for us.We are only seeing victory as did we or didn’t we reach our goal.If we instead saw each thing we’ve done as a chance to LEARN so we can build upon that next time?Well we’d end up getting a lot further faster. And we’d probably feel like we’re “start

With our nutrition, it can be hard to make changes. For some reasons, any time we seek to make a change, we see any sort of tracking or logging as restrictive.But no matter our goals - from performance to aesthetics to health - understanding our diet better is key. And having data to make tweaks? Only makes it easier.We are the ones judging ourselves, not the tracking.And we have to remember, everything in our lifestyle is constantly evolving. What is easy at one point, may not feel sustainable at another. That’s why it is key we take time to really LEARN about our personal needs. So we can constantly be evolving our nutrition to match our ever changing needs and goals! The video version of this episode is live on youtube!

As much as we can become scale obsessed, wanting to see that number go down, what we TRULY want is fat loss.I mean would you honestly care what that scale said if you loved how your arms looked in that tank top or fit back into your “skinny jeans?”NOPE! You wouldn’t.And I can tell you from personal experience, fat loss doesn’t always mean losing weight on that scale. It can actually mean your weight doesn’t change at all as you lose fat but gain and retain lean muscle.So in the end?You look leaner but you haven’t lost any weight.I mention all of this because I think so often we strive for faster results on the scale or greater weight loss and ultimately hold ourselves back from true body recomposition.We do these extremes that don’t help us retain lean muscle and even cause us to lose it. And then after maybe seeing some fast weight loss results from extreme deprivation that depletes our muscles of glycogen, causes us to lose water weight and maybe some fat but also muscle, we just end up regaining the weight

Results Aren't Happening Fast Enough! HELP!I don’t care who you are or how much you know…Results never happen fast enough.And the even worse part?Often not only do results not happen fast enough but progress is NEVER linear.I bring this up because I know we are all guilty of wanting more.Of considering going to more extremes or doing more to try to get things to happen faster.Or on the flip side…of getting so frustrated we give up.Which really if you think about it is super stupid considering giving up for sure isn’t going to get us results faster.But well, it’s still tempting none the less out of frustration.Honestly, often really the issue is we simply haven’t given our results enough time to build.While I know we become afraid that we’re repeating the same thing hoping for a different result, or sticking with something that won’t work?Often it’s really just that we haven’t done it long enough. We can’t out exercise or out diet time.So what can you do to help yourself trust the process a bit more? Be w

The easiest path, the intuitive path and the RIGHT path? Aren’t usually one in the same.I shared this story in this video I did for my one on one coaching clients and I thought it was so relevant after seeing some comments in my Facebook group over the weekend, I wanted to share it with all of you…You know those bug zappers…You’d be sitting out there and just hear pop! Pop! Bug after bug would fly into them even though they saw their friend bugs dying. Why did they keep flying into the zappers even though they knew it would lead to their demise?!Well…the obvious answer is…because they’re dumb bugs. But honestly, if you look at how we often approach change? Our instincts really aren’t any different than those silly bugs. We too do things we know we shouldn’t because they are INSTINCTUAL….and…well…EASY! We take the path of least resistance even when we have evidence it isn’t good for us. Our instincts don’t always guide us toward the best outcomes. As one of my clients told me one day, “My instinct is to eat ic

EVERYONE has doubts, fears, times of insecurity. We all need reassurance at points. Feel down about our progress. We all have a better and worse.I know it can seem like someone else has all of the answers, never has a moment’s doubt about themselves. But I’m sorry.We’re human.Pobody’s Nerfect.I was musing over this the other day when one of my coaching clients was talking about feeling down about her recent progress. Talking about how she still sees the areas she really wants to change.And I said I totally get it.Cause we were on a zoom call I could see her fascial expression of, “Uh huh.”You will always want to improve something. It’s human nature.Even if you reach the goal you think will make all the difference, even if you really like your results, you’re still going to have better and worse days. You’re still going to have times you wish you could change or improve something.You’re still emotionally human and have those insecurities.Being happy all of the time. Feeling perfect? It just doesn’t exist.I mea

Movement is medicine.Now I’m not saying that if you have an injury to just keep pushing through, but too often we simply do NOTHING.Then after some time off, we jump right back into what we were doing and wonder why we end up injured again. Why nothing changed.And it’s because we never addressed what lead to the injury in the first place. We never addressed postural distortions, compensations and imbalances that lead to overload. We never addressed the mobility restrictions and muscle weakness.If we want to move and feel better? We need to train our bodies to know how to move well. And that means returning to basics and focusing on that prehab work.If we want to see a change? We have to make a change.And simply resting changes nothing.So if you’re injured what can you do to help prevent future issues and even get to still train?Address the rehab work you need. Seeing someone is good if this isn’t just a minor ache or pain. But even with those, you need to include the proper prehab work. Like if your wrists hu

While we want to work toward a new and improved version of ourselves, we have to remember…IT’S STILL US.Same flaws. Same struggles. Same reactions to things like restriction.So we need to remember who and want we are to address our needs and goals as we work to create changes. We can’t go in thinking all of the sudden everything is just going to change because it is a new year.I actually think this is often why our resolutions fail.We aren’t basing how we do things off our “old” self.So I wanted to share some tips to help you create a realistic program for yourself to start moving forward toward that new and improved you.1. Assess thy self. Are you really an all or nothing person or does the slightest sign of restriction send you running for that food you now can’t have. If you KNOW YOURSELF, you can design a plan around this. You may be that person that cuts out everything at once. Or you may be that person that needs to make changes slowly. Don’t force a plan that doesn’t fit who you are.2. Celebrate habit