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You’re Eating Protein WRONG! 5 Mistakes To Avoid

You’re Eating Protein WRONG! 5 Mistakes To Avoid

by | Feb 25, 2024 | Blog, Diet

Increasing your protein doesn’t have to be this disgusting or hard.

Little changes and shifts to how you plan out your meals can really pay off. It just takes you pausing to assess what you’re currently doing and being open to looking at your portions and meals in another way.

That’s why I want to share 5 strategies to help so you can avoid common protein “mistakes” like these.

Let’s start with what I’ve already mentioned…

Increasing your current servings of protein by just an ounce!

Too often we try to find new ways to add in protein instead of just tweaking what we’re already naturally doing.

Which honestly just makes things feel more overwhelming and confusing.

So instead of trying to search for something new or a bigger change, just take a current protein sources your consuming and add an ounce.

If you usually have 3 ounces of chicken at lunch, make it 4.

Small increases to the protein sources you’re already eating can help you keep your meals and prep basically the same while helping you slowly increase your protein intake.

No big dramatic changes.

No having to think of new options.

Now, if you start adjusting your portions and are finding that your fat intake is way too high or you can’t keep your calories in check, this is where you can start to divide and conquer.

Often when a protein source is higher in fat or carbs, we think we just have to cut out something we enjoy.

Instead, we need to divide and conquer, which means we can simply COMBINE two different protein sources with different macros to hit our goals.

Love steak but finding it’s killing your macros while leaving you low in protein?

Try a surf and turf dish so you can have your steak but lower your fat by including another protein source you love that’s lower in fat.

This can sometimes be a better option than just eliminating the cut of meat we love.

Sometimes swapping for a completely different cut or type of protein isn’t enjoyable but the combination of two sources we love is!

So to get that 6 ounces of protein you want at a meal, you do 3 of each.

This can also help you avoid feeling like you’re just having to power through a bazillion ounces of protein as well at a meal.

Because another common protein mistake we make is just forcing ourselves to power through protein portions that simply aren’t enjoyable.

While a new and better result does mean embracing change and often that includes making some sacrifices, if we feel like we’re force feeding ourselves something, chances are we won’t keep doing that for long.

We can avoid this protein overload not only by dividing and conquering with different protein sources but even further HIDING the protein in meals.

How can you hide protein?!

Using dishes that allow you to diversify!

By diversifying your protein sources in a dish and not making yourself feel like you just have to eat more, you can often pack in more protein.

Soups, smoothies or oatmeal parfaits, casseroles or even omelets make this an easy task because it is easy to combine a variety of protein sources so the dishes pack a punch.

Try bone broth as the base for your soup with chicken or tofu and veggies to add 10 more grams of protein per cup.

Combine greek yogurt with a protein powder in your smoothie or even in your oats to pack in 30+ grams while being easy to take on the go.

Heck, even blend in tofu to add more protein while making it extra creamy, especially if you don’t consume dairy!

For your casseroles, bump the protein and cheesiness by adding in cottage cheese on top of your usual proteins included and even swap traditional pastas for edamame or lentil variations.

And in your omelets not only use eggs and egg whites to hit your fat and protein macros, but add in ground protein sources like turkey or ground beef to bump your protein intake further without getting bored of the same flavor!

But by diversifying your ingredients it can make for tasty meals that don’t just make you feel like your force feeding yourself protein.

And then don’t make the mistake of ignoring the boost you can get from so many non-traditional sources of protein.

So often we only focus on the amino acids from complete protein sources.

But there are amino acids in so many of the foods we eat that, combined over the course of the day can really add up!

This can make increasing our protein intake seem so much less daunting!

And by embracing this diversity, we can also get a great micronutrient boost.

Sooo….Don’t ignore the grams.

Small swaps like buckwheat noodles for regular white pasta can bump our protein intake.

Or peas with broccoli in our stir fry help us bump those protein grams and improve our micros.

Nutritional yeast and parmesan cheese are great little ways to boost flavor while adding protein even.

I stole this term from my Dietitian Michelle, but she calls them protein sprinkles. And I love calling parmesan cheese protein salt!

Heck, nutritional yeast is not only a great seasoning for the protein source you may be cooking up that day, but it can even be sprinkled on your popcorn snack.

Yup!

It’s a great way to make your popcorn taste cheesy and add a protein boost to a snack that normally is devoid of protein (and not in the gross protein powder on peanut butter cups way…)

You can even do this by pairing something you want with something you “need.”

Instead of putting protein into something that it doesn’t work in, consider it on the side to your usual snack or treat.

Try jerky with your crackers.

Or some natural deli meat on a snack plate with your apple and peanut butter.

But consider small ways to make those grams add up!

This can help us include the foods we love and not feel like we’re only eating bland and boring foods!

And then…stop seeing increasing your protein as having to be…well…bland and boring and diet food!

We often make the mistake of being lazy with the changes and defaulting into not trying to make the meals taste good.

It’s almost like we get this attitude of “Well it’s a diet. It’s not supposed to be enjoyable.”

But that holds us back from building lasting habit changes or even developing a good relationship with our food!

Make an extra effort to make your protein delicious through sauces and spices and seasonings!

Seasonings and spices can really make a huge impact and they come at basically not calorie cost!

Then even look for sauces that are flavor filled but lower in calories to start.

Consider things like soy sauce or tamari for some extra flavor while being low in calories.

Or use salsas even in place of other salad dressings.

Even consider making some of your own salsas or dressings out of greek yogurt and seasonings.

It’s a great way to even make some ranch variations while boosting your protein a bit, hiding that protein in your sauce!

But don’t shy away from finding some recipes that use seasoning to their advantage!

While I know it is easy to get overwhelmed by the idea of making changes and default into what seems easy but actually makes the process harder, you don’t have to fall into doing things that just aren’t sustainable and make you miserable.

Increasing your protein doesn’t have to mean destroying dishes and snacks you love.

Avoid making these protein mistakes and start building meals you love that help you hit your macro goals!

Learn how to adjust your nutrition to see all of your hard work in the gym pay off and build your leanest, strongest body EVER…

–> Learn more about the Metabolic Shred

 

5 Signs You’re Actually Burning FAT (NOT MUSCLE!)

5 Signs You’re Actually Burning FAT (NOT MUSCLE!)

by | Feb 11, 2024 | Blog, Diet, Exercises

Have you been celebrating quick weight loss on the scale?

Maybe you shouldn’t be… 

Because those extremes you’re going to so that you can see the pounds fly off are actually sabotaging your results.

It’s also why you feel like you have to starve yourself to get back down to your goal weight and the process just gets harder and harder. 

The sucky truth is…your hard work, trying to do more, is actually hindering your progress.

And no one wants to work hard not to see the results they deserve!

Most of us want to to do less work and get leaner and look more defined.

We want to lose FAT not muscle.

But when we strive for faster results on the scale, we sacrifice more muscle in the process.

Muscle that gets harder to regain and retain as we get older.

So if you want to lose fat…

It may be time to ditch the scale.

That’s why I also want to go over ways to tell body recomp is truly happening – that you’re losing fat while retaining and even GAINING lean muscle…

But first it’s key we understand why the scale is a horrible measure of fat loss and why seeing fast changes to it probably shows our hard work is working against us.

Because so many of us have defined “being in shape,” defined what our ideal aesthetic is in relation to a number on a scale.

And letting that number go at times isn’t easy, but it’s necessary if we even want to look leaner than ever before…

WHY THE SCALE IS HOLDING YOU BACK:

Because being solely focused on the scale changing often leads to us doing extreme dieting and training practices.

Ones that not only set us up for failure because they aren’t sustainable…

But also ones that hurt our metabolism, create hormonal imbalances and lead to us losing more muscle than fat.

And while, yes, in the fat loss process, as we strive to get lean, some muscle mass may be lost…

We CAN gain more control over what we’re losing, muscle or fat, by how we adjust our diet and our workouts.

This means not creating an extreme calorie deficit or trying to add in extra workout sessions.

When we don’t have enough energy coming in, our body will find internal sources.

This is why we do need a calorie deficit for weight loss.

Less energy coming in, our body used what is stored.

And of course we’d love our body to use our fat as fuel first.

But when we don’t focus on macros and we slash our calories super low, the opposite is going to happen.

Instead of turning to our fat as fuel, our body will utilize muscle.

It does this because breaking down muscle not only provides us with the fuel we need, it also SAVES us on the energy we require to survive.

Because muscle requires more energy to be maintained than our fat stores do.

So from a survival standpoint, it makes sense to use a bit of muscle first as fuel and keep the fat stores for later.

This is why metabolic adaptations occur. We lose lean muscle because of our dieting practices and therefore burn fewer calories at rest!

That’s why if we only focus on losing fast on the scale, there’s a great chance the weight we’re dropping isn’t fat, but instead MUSCLE as our body seeks to provide energy for the most important functions.

So it’s time to step off the scale, stop the extreme calorie deficits and focus on tracking progress in these ways.

5 Signs You’re Actually Burning FAT (and not muscle)

1: You’re losing inches as the scale isn’t budging.

You measure and you’ve lost inches…

But then you step on the scale and your weight hasn’t changed.

You’re frustrated because you’ve been so good all week!

You think to yourself, “I’ll just lower my calories further or cut out more of (insert food you’ve decided is bad here)”?

Don’t!

Losing inches while the scale isn’t budging shows you’re actually achieving AMAZING body recomp.

So don’t sabotage it by trying to do more!

How is this possible though that you can be leaning down without the scale changing?

Some of us have heard muscle weighs more than fat, but that’s a slight misphrasing of what is going on.

Because 1lbs of muscle weighs the same as 1lbs of fat.

But 1 pound of muscle takes up a whole heck of a lot less space. So if you’re eating to fuel your training, you may GAIN muscle as you lose fat.

Gain 1lbs of muscle as you lose 1lbs of fat, and you’re going to look leaner yet weigh the same.

So while it may be frustrating to not see that scale change, this can actually be a sign that not only are you losing fat, you’re not doing so at the cost to your lean muscle mass.

And this will help you ultimately reach your goal, not create metabolic adaptations and therefore be stronger and able to sustain your results more easily!

2: Your clothes are fitting better.

If you aren’t measuring, but your clothes are fitting better while the scale isn’t changing, you body is telling you the same thing…

You’re losing fat and not sacrificing your muscle!

I even love having clients keep a specific pair of pants or a clothing item that is just a bit too tight around the areas they want to lose from as reference.

Each week or so they try this on to see how it fits, even taking pictures in it to help them judge.

But as you feel that waist get looser on those pair of jeans, you know you’re losing fat even if that scale isn’t changing.

And sometimes using clothing to judge is easier than measuring because it is easy to not get the measuring tape in the same exact spot!

3: You’re feeling fitter in your workouts.

But what if you aren’t feeling your clothes fit looser yet?

What if the areas you want to shrink, like your waist measurement, aren’t changing?

Often our most stubborn areas, the ones we want to lose from most, are the last ones to change.

It stinks.

We lose from areas we don’t care about, and therefore don’t even measure, first.

This is why even tracking progress in your workouts is important.

Not only does this keep you in the habit of staying focused and intentional with your training to allow results time to snowball, but it allows you to see you’re on the right track toward body recomp.

Think about how you often feel when you slash your calories super low and try to out exercise your diet to lose weight…

You feel burned out right? Tired with baby weights?

Like your workouts are sometimes a battle and like your lifts start to drop?

Your energy just isn’t there.

And you start to feel like your hard work isn’t paying off.

But if we are focused on a smaller calorie deficit, clear progression and macros to see body recomp, we often see our strength and fitness IMPROVE.

We feel better in our training.

Like we are able to tackle more and do it more easily.

This is a sign we’re building muscle in our training.

And if the scale isn’t changing, that means we’re also losing fat!

So track your progress in your workouts to see those muscle gains and help yourself even want to stay more consistent with other healthy habits.

The more ways we measure success, the more ways we have to be successful!

4: You’re seeing definition in the mirror…even if it is areas you don’t care about as much.

That’s also why I like having clients take progress pictures.

This is a great way to see that definition popping out and the muscle gains we’re seeing from our strength improvements in the gym.

We just have to remember that lighting plays a factor. So make sure to take pictures in the same place consistently to compare.

And then make sure to take a variety of angles and pictures of areas you don’t “care” about.

Because often we will lose from everywhere besides where we want first.

In this process of losing from everywhere else, it can even feel like our trouble spots look worse.

So be conscious of this if you are tracking your progress pictures.

If an area looks worse, this doesn’t mean you gained fat and lost muscle. You just have to recognize another area around it got SMALLER.

Progress pictures, while not as objective as measurements or a item of clothing, because you can FEEL like you don’t look as good, are a great indicator of fat loss as we not only retain but gain lean muscle.

You may see increases more easily in areas you’ve even wanted to build when you flex for the photos!

So especially if you even want to GAIN a bit of muscle as you lose fat, progress photos can be a great way to monitor body recomp.

5: You’re gaining on the scale but measurements, clothing and progress pictures show a leaner physique.

And while many of us have heard you can’t build muscle as you lose fat because you can’t build muscle in a deficit, this isn’t fully true.

It is why strength workouts and especially a focus on protein is so key.

But this is also why we can’t get just solely focused on a goal weight…

Because we may be losing fat as the scale even goes up.

Yup. You can lose inches and see the scale increase.

You may actually LOOK LEANER, and people may even ask if you’ve lost weight, while weighing more.

This can happen because you’re eating enough to fuel that muscle growth and build 2lbs of muscle as you even lose 1 pound of fat.

And the more muscle you build, the more you may see that metabolic rate increase. And what was once a small deficit may get bigger.

So you may even have to end up eating more to fuel that muscle growth to see the scale increase as you ultimately lose more and more fat.

This is why those measurements, pictures or use of clothing to track is so key outside of just using the scale.

Because had you not had those other methods to see that fat loss occurring, you may have given up seeing the jump up on the scale even though that jump showed you were actually achieving even better results than you thought possible.

As hard as it is to let go of the scale, to forget your goal weight even if you have more weight you want to lose…

It may be the secret to you getting better results and a leaner, stronger body than you’ve ever had before.

And it sets you up to be functional fit till your final day on this planet!

Ready to learn how to dial in your workouts and your diet to work together so you can build your leanest, strongest body no matter your age?

Check out my 3-Step Recipe For Results HERE.

 

If You’re Not Losing Fat, This is Why

If You’re Not Losing Fat, This is Why

by | Jan 21, 2024 | Blog, Diet, Exercises

I’ve literally made all of the dieting mistakes possible.

I’ve tried to out exercise my diet.

I’ve tried to cut out foods I love.

I’ve tried to out willpower and out work time.

I’ve tried to hit someone else’s arbitrary standards of clean eating…

And none of it worked.

I literally got to a point where I wanted to give up and thought that I was a failure as a coach because I couldn’t change my nutrition.

I claimed I just loved food too much.

I thought maybe it was my genetics…I just stored fat around my middle no matter what.

I literally had the thought, “No program will ever work for me!”

But I then realized one thing that completely shifted my mindset toward my training and nutrition…

This one perspective is why I’m now able to continually improve upon my results and strike a better and better balance…

I realized that I was trying to force myself into a mold…

I was trying to find a perfect program just laid out…

Instead of recognizing where I was at and what I needed to move forward and creating the perfect plan for ME.

We hear all the time the statement, “One size doesn’t fit all.”

As we start yet another program where we force ourselves into a mold.

As we believe our lifestyle needs to meet certain expectations.

And this is exactly what keeps us stuck.

Instead we need to shift our mindset from one of seeking a perfect program to CREATING a perfect plan based on what WE need and what we need RIGHT NOW.

Because our needs and goals will change over time.

By constantly seeking to learn about ourselves and focusing on fundamental principles and strategies…the what and why BEHIND the programs that are pushed on us, we can learn how to adjust our lifestyle to move forward.

So if you truly want to see amazing body recomposition results, you first have to assess where you are at currently and what YOU need to succeed.

Only then can you use the TACTICS, the macros, the specific foods, the meal timings, the moves, the tempos, the variables…in a way that move you forward based on your body, needs and goals at the time!

So before I go over 2 fundamental essentials you need to focus on if you want to see results…

I want you to assess…

What does your current diet and workout routine look like?

How are your workouts mapped out? What moves, reps, sets are you using? How hard are you pushing?

How are is your diet? What is your meal timing? Do you know your portions? Are you hungry all the time? How’s your energy?

Really assess what you’re doing currently and how you feel with your lifestyle.

Then off of knowing your current lifestyle, find ways you can make small changes!

What are the smallest of small changes you could make that even feel easy to start moving forward using these tips based on where you are right now?

This mindset will get you truly creating lifestyle changes that snowball.

This is how DISCIPLINE is built!

And…

KEEP THINGS SIMPLE.

Focus on the basics first.

So often we try to optimize for the details when we don’t a solid lifestyle foundation built first.

That’s why if you’re looking to achieve amazing results I want you to focus on these two fundamentals that will lead to amazing body recomp first…

Increasing your protein intake
Focusing your workout routine on strength training

As “simple” as these two things are, that doesn’t mean they are always easy.

This is where having assessed our current lifestyle is so key.

This helps us make changes based on our starting point.

This may mean increasing your current protein intake by just 10 grams to start, even if your ideal goal is 50 or 100 grams more.

Too often we try to make these huge jumps and then don’t create sustainable habits.

We have to remember that change is hard and our body and mind will rebel.

So start with something small.

And even try to do the new habit early in the day.

Increase your protein at that first meal you eat.

By doing the new habit FIRST, we make sure we’re making a change before we get tired or stressed or life gets in the way.

Too often when we leave a new habit till later in the day, it falls by the wayside.

So if you’re seeking to increase your protein, focus on even that small addition of a protein source to your breakfast.

Now you may be thinking, “Ok I can do that to increase my protein, but I can’t put my workout first in the day as much as I’d like to.”

Remember you can also hold yourself accountable and help yourself make those habit changes by having a plan mapped out ahead of time.

Having a clear plan in place, that clear workout progression, gives us that accountability,

So map out those strength workouts ahead of time and focus on designing for the time you have.

Don’t try to force 6 days a week if 3 is realistic for you.

When we design for the time we have, we allow ourselves to get consistent and see those results build.

And the more you do, the more you do.

When you feel successful completing your routines, you’ll often want to do more of the habits that help you see results.

So instead of making yourself feel like you failed because you can’t maintain a workout schedule that isn’t realistic for you, make it something you know is doable.

And then remember, if it challenges you, it will change you!

Design those workouts to challenge those muscles but in a way that meets you where you are at.

Strength training doesn’t have to mean deadlift your 1 rep max. Regress to progress even so you can get more out of every exercise.

Start with bodyweight training even if you need.

But challenge yourself and be intentional with building so your muscles have to adapt and grow stronger!

Remember results happen because we create those new habits and routines in line with our goals.

But creating those sustainable habits all starts by knowing where we are currently so we can make adjustments that are realistic for us to move forward!

For more workouts, diet tips and motivation, join my free daily newsletter!

–> Join The Redefining Strength Newsletter

 

STOP Sabotaging Your Results…How To Create Lasting Habits

STOP Sabotaging Your Results…How To Create Lasting Habits

by | Jan 15, 2024 | Blog, Diet, Exercises

You want to lose weight. Gain muscle. Adjust your diet to really feel better…

But creating new habits is HARD.

So many of us have thought…

“I just don’t have the willpower.”

“I don’t have the self control or discipline!”

But what if it isn’t that you don’t have enough willpower or self control?

What if it is that you’ve been approaching how you make workout and diet changes all wrong?

What if you need to embrace that discipline is BUILT?

Because so often we are sabotaging our own results in how we go about making healthy habit changes, I wanted to highlight 6 mistakes I often see clients making and how you can avoid these same issues!

The first mistake most of us make when looking to work toward a new goal is not first pausing to assess where we are at CURRENTLY.

So often when we want to lose weight or gain muscle we look for what we “should” be doing.

But searching for some ideal workout routine or diet is often what keeps us stuck in this yo-yo dieting cycle, never really seeing results build.

Because often we aren’t considering whether those ideals are actually even doable right for us right now or even sustainable.

And while we do need to embrace change if we want a new and better result, the more these changes are far from what we are doing currently, or what we feel capable of doing, the less likely we are to even do them or stick with them.

Often in trying to make these massive changes far outside our comfort zone all at once, we also just ultimately overwhelm ourselves and stop ourselves from even starting!
Instead approach making changes like you would approach driving to a new destination.

You not only enter your destination into your GPS. You put in your current location.

This gives you the fastest, most accurate route.

So before you start to make any changes and create a plan, really understand where you are starting from.

What does your lifestyle look like? What is a schedule that is realistic for you?

What are easy changes you could easily make today based on your routine and habits?

When you truly take a look at your lifestyle, you can make the changes YOU.

One size doesn’t fit all and by knowing ourselves we can find the things that will yield the biggest impact for us personally over wasting energy making changes that really don’t matter for our situation!

And then start with something SMALL first to get that momentum building.

Because that is often the second mistake I see clients making…and one I’ve made myself a ton…

We don’t start small.

I don’t know about you, but when I want a goal, I want it yesterday.

So often in my attempts to get results as fast as possible, I try to do everything at once.

But this can not only lead to me overwhelming myself, but also burning myself out on all the new things I have to do.

This is often what causes me to feel like I just don’t have the willpower or self control to keep implementing all the new habits.

But really it is just too many big things all at once.

By breaking down habits and even starting with the smallest changes that meet me where I’m at currently, I find results more easily snowball without me falling off my plan or feeling constantly stressed out.

So today write out all of the things you “could” do to make a change and circle the easiest one.

Do that.

Don’t worry about the other changes that you should or will eventually have to make.

Focus on one you can do right now.

The success of getting started, of moving past that first hurdle, will lead to you even WANTING to do more.

And this focus on small changes can even help us embrace the fact that often something is better than nothing.
I mean how often do you just simply skip a workout because you can’t get to the gym for a full session and think, “What’s the point of just doing 5 minutes?”

But if instead we had the view of one small thing adds up, we may do that 5 minutes anyway.

And not only may that 5 minutes lead to a 30 minute workout, it is also still 5 more minutes done that week than we would have done otherwise.

And 5 minutes more, week after week, adds up!

So focus on small changes.

Especially changes that don’t mean restricting the things you love most first!

Because that is a BIG mistake many of us make…

We cut out all of the things we love first.

We often do this because the things we generally like the most are lifestyle habits that are the least healthy for us or the most in opposition to our goals.

For me…dessert was always what sabotaged me.

I loved dessert.

But I also knew those high calorie, carb and fat loaded foods, were probably working against my body recomp efforts.

So because it was the most obvious thing to cut out, I would always restrict that first.

But the second I cut out dessert, I found myself wanting even more.

I would look at dessert food porn constantly on Instagram. It took over my feed.

And eventually, I would give in and not only eat the dessert I was craving…I would eat until I had food twins and couldn’t sleep I was so full.

Then I would struggle to make any diet changes again for awhile and end up not only regaining any weight I lost but even more.

It was only once I stopped that cycle and planned in my dessert FIRST that I was able to make changes that snowballed.

I first focused on ADDING in more protein over cutting things out.

I focused on small swaps to foods I didn’t care about as much, using a lower carb tortilla over a regular.

Swapping in greek yogurt with more protein for a regular yogurt.

Changing up berries for mangos in a smoothie.

Little things to hit my macros that didn’t make me feel like I couldn’t have something.

And on top of deciding to make those changes, I realized how much I could work in whenever I wanted which made when I DID cut something out really feel like a CHOICE.

Because often when we are looking to lose weight or make a change, we feel like we are being FORCED to do things we don’t want to do.

But…who’s forcing you?

Often NO ONE is technically making us do those things.

We are CHOOSING to.

But we don’t see it that way as it feels like we HAVE to do certain things to see results. We’ve been conditioned to believe that dieting means deprivation.

And this is a big part of what hinders us from making lasting changes…OUR MINDSET.

We need to recognize that mindset matters most.

As odd as that sounds, this is mistake that holds us back from seeing results…

We put this emphasis on new tactics, macros, workouts, meal timing, best moves…

But we never consider our mindset behind the changes.

And I can tell you, you can have a less than perfect plan and see results if your mindset is in the right place.

Or you can have the perfect plan and never move forward because mentally you hold yourself back.

As cliche as it is….

Whether we believe we can or we can’t, we’re right.

We can doom ourselves with doubt or help ourselves achieve amazing results because we trust in the process.

But just blindly believing in something is hard to do. What if it doesn’t work?

So often nothing really HAS worked, so why should this?

This is why we need to realize that we can create motivation through actions.

We can MAKE ourselves feel successful by how we approach change.

This means boiling things down into easy to manage bite-sized actions that allow us to get moving forward and feel successful right away.

Instead of overwhelming yourself with a ton of changes you feel bad at so you don’t want to do them any more, take one action that would make you feel successful and start with that.

Because when we feel successful with what we are doing, we want to do more. And we become open to bigger and harder changes.

We build confidence in our ability to even overcome.

So start small with actions you know you can do…even easily…

Maybe it’s 2 10 minute workouts.

Just writing down your food.

Just eating one more serving of veggies.

But realize you can create that motivation by allowing yourself to make those small changes that meet you where you are at.

And this motivation will allow you to BUILD.

Because so often we jump to trying to do everything we “should” be doing over trying to stack behaviors.

This is what leads to us falling off and feeling like we’re constantly not strong enough…like we just don’t have the willpower or self control to make the changes we need to see results.

But instead…

We need to focus on that habit build.

What’s one small habit you can do right now?

Can you go drink a glass of water to improve your hydration?

Now once you add in that glass of extra water every day this week, how can you build off of that habit?

Can you add in another?

Can you now move to adding in 1 more ounce of protein to your lunch?

Can you then make a swap to another food in a meal to lower carbs or increase them?

The more you make habits that allow you to stack more off of them, the more you will prepare yourself to make bigger and bigger changes.

And 1% improvements add up the more you make.

So while it may not yield the immediate sexy results you want, it creates a snowball that ultimately leads to better results long term and ones that truly last.

Now…just because you’re making small changes and avoiding cutting out the things you love most first…

This doesn’t mean that everything will always feel easy or fun.

Too often we try to oversell changes to ourselves.

We tell ourselves this program will be soooo easy or fun.

That this is the best lifestyle EVER.

Instead of recognizing that there is a downside to every upside.

Not embracing the negative is a BIG mistake.

This is often why we feel like there must be something wrong with us when we can’t make changes other people have made.

But the only thing wrong is that we didn’t recognize that doing something different than what we’ve always done WON’T always be easy or fun!

I mean…why should something feel easy to start?

It is new…

It is awkward…

We’re probably bad at it…

It isn’t what you’ve always done.

Things outside our comfort zone, many habits we do to get a great result, simply aren’t sexy or cool.

I mean who wants to wake up with an alarm?
No one. But who wants to miss their 4 am flight to their beach vacation?!

That’s a downside to the upside.

And there are lots of those.

But the more you do those habits, the more you don’t even think of them in a negative way.

They are just the downside to the upside.

The cost to get the reward.

So if a change right now feels unsustainable, don’t just give up on it.

Assess the benefit it is providing. Consider if it COULD be worth it enough to give it a chance.

Then realize that just because it is awkward now, doesn’t mean at some point it won’t feel good or at least be tolerable and WORTH IT.

We need to recognize that what feels sustainable right now is simply what you’ve always done until you’ve given the new habits and behaviors time.

Because often if we embrace that things can stink a bit to start and we push through that immediate mental barrier, we’ll see results snowball and find ourselves thinking…

“Why didn’t I make these changes sooner?” as the habits become normal and even enjoyable!

Changing habits is hard.

And often we are our own worst enemy.

We sabotage ourselves in how we approach making changes.

But by understanding these 6 mistakes, you can help yourself avoid them and see results snowball!

Apply to my Online 1:1 Coaching if you need that kickstart to see the results you deserve and avoid these mistakes!

–> Apply Today

How to Lose Fat AND Gain Muscle At The Same Time (Step By Step)

How to Lose Fat AND Gain Muscle At The Same Time (Step By Step)

by | Jan 2, 2024 | Blog, Diet, Workouts

What should I do first…I want to build muscle and lose fat?

The great thing is…

You CAN do both at the same time!

But how you do that may depend on where you are currently in your fitness and body composition journey.

While you can achieve both goals, you do need to set a primary focus as that will impact how you adjust your diet to start.

That’s why in this video I want to break down two different nutritional approaches to body recomp whether you want to lose fat as you retain and gain lean muscle or you want to gain muscle as you maintain your level of leanness while potentially getting even leaner!

And then I want to share a bonus workout tip to help you make sure your diet and workouts are working together.

Now if you’re thinking, “But I heard this wasn’t possible to lose fat and gain muscle at the same time.”

I’m going to let you in on a little secret…

It is possible.

It just takes embracing something that so many of us want to run from…

A habit so many of us have labeled boring and tedious and hard…

Tracking macros! 

Now before you just write this off and click back saying tracking macros isn’t for you, I want to explain why it is so key and a SIMPLIFIED approach that can yield amazing results…

So that person that has said to you…“You can’t lose fat and gain muscle at the same time?”

It’s probably because they’ve always dieted by just cutting their calories super low. 

They lost weight, but probably often have also lost muscle in the process.

They may have even gotten skinny without really looking more toned. 

So they decide they want to build muscle to get more defined, so they eat in a surplus. 

They end up, yes, putting on muscle. But also gaining fat. 

So they then go back in a calorie deficit, repeating the same rollercoaster over and over again. 

They may try a bigger deficit to lose faster or a bigger surplus to gain.

More is better right?

WRONG.

These bigger extremes may actually lead to their body composition becoming WORSE.

It is because while we can lose or gain weight simply by creating a calorie deficit or surplus, we aren’t controlling for what we are losing or gaining. 

We aren’t controlling for fat loss or muscle mass retention.

This is something we CAN control by adjusting our macros.

And one macro in particular – our protein intake. 

Increasing our protein intake is key.

High protein diets have been the only diets shown to not only help us retain lean muscle but even GAIN lean muscle mass while in a deficit. 

And increasing your protein intake while in a surplus, due to the thermic effect of this macro, can help you avoid gaining unwanted fat while making it easier to build muscle due to the extra energy consumption.

So if you’ve struggled to embrace tracking macros in the past but really want to see those defined abs and arms…

It’s time to start tracking…at least your protein intake!

While in a calorie surplus, you may get away with slightly lower protein intakes than in a deficit as long as you are consuming enough carbs as well as instant fuel, going even higher while in a deficit due to the fact that you’re not really consuming enough of anything is key. 

While you may consume about 30-35% of your calories from protein in a surplus, you will want to bump that to more like 40% of your calories from protein while in a deficit. 

Starting out don’t worry where your carbs or fat fall.

Just first only focus on that protein intake.

Doing this alone will lead to amazing results and you’ll be surprised by how much you see those inches being lost and the definition popping through in your progress photos.

But that high protein really is what yields that body recomp magic. 

So even if you’ve been resisting tracking macros, set that percentage to hit of your calories from protein and adjust the current foods you eat through small tweaks to see results.

Here’s a video that has 7 tips to help you easily bump protein!

But before you decide on exactly what protein percentage to use, you have to determine your calories.

Which should you be in – a calorie deficit or a surplus? 

And that depends on your main focus.

While the goal is to lose fat as you gain muscle or gain muscle as you lose fat, you have to have a primary target.

What is your main focus?

This will be based on your current leanness level. 

Are you currently basically as lean as you’d like and would like to add more muscle while just staying lean? 

Or do you have more weight to lose but really want that muscle definition especially to stay strong as you get older?

If you’re already lean, consider a calorie surplus to focus a bit more on gaining muscle without any fluff. 

If you’re not yet at your weight loss goal, consider a calorie deficit to start to help you lose fat without losing muscle. 

Exactly how great a calorie surplus or deficit you create can also impact the results you get and be based on where you are in your fitness journey. 

If you have more weight to lose, 500 calories is the most extreme you want to go with a deficit below your maintenance. But this is really aggressive and best only done if you have more than 50lbs to lose and aren’t as active.

Otherwise to help focus on losing fat without also costing you muscle, consider a deficit of only 100-300 calories at max. Think closer to 300 if you have over 15 pounds to lose and more like 100-200 if you have less than 15 pounds are are super active!

If you are already basically as lean as you’d like or even as thin as you’d like although you wouldn’t mind more definition, you will want to consider a small surplus. 

Since you don’t really have energy stores to tap into, and you want to be able to push hard in your training to create that progression and stimulus for muscle growth, the extra calories will help you make sure you’re retaining that lean muscle. 

Think 100-200 calories above maintenance unless you’re truly as lean as you’d like and really increasing your activity level – then go 300-400 calories.

Especially if you are just coming out of a deficit, slowly increase those calories only 100 at a time! 

As essential as your diet is to losing fat and gaining muscle at the same time, the best results happen when our diet and workouts work together. 

And without that stimulus for muscle growth in our training, we won’t see our nutritional changes fully pay off. 

That’s why I wanted to share a bonus tip with you about what workouts are best to see body recomp.

Bonus Tip: 

Now you may be thinking, do I need workouts for fat loss or for gaining muscle.

And I had a client even email me recently, “How do I know if a workout is for fat loss or building muscle?”

My email back said, “A good fat loss workout should be focused on building muscle.”

Muscle is metabolism magic. 

Our training shouldn’t be about burning calories in our sessions and feeling destroyed.

It should be focused on building lean muscle. 

We need that training stimulus for growth if our diet is going to have an impact. 

And the more muscle we have, the more calories we will burn during the day, making it easier to lose fat.

Muscle stokes our metabolic fire and helps us avoid metabolic adaptations as we lean down. 

So your training should be focused on building lean muscle no matter your aesthetic goal focus.

Sure if you love endurance sports, you don’t have to ditch them. 

But even then strength training will only help you get stronger at what you love.

So focus on building strength in your training no matter what.

And for a great workout design to help you see those strength gains, check out my 6-12-25 protocol.

–> 6-12-25 Workout Technique 

This is an amazing way to build muscle and strength no matter you age!

Using these tips you can build muscle and lose fat…or lose fat as you gain muscle. 

You can see the body recomp you deserve but you need to TRACK.

What gets measured gets managed so we can adjust and see better results faster!

Ready to achieve amazing body recomp, losing that stubborn fat?

Join my Metabolic Shred!

The Limits of Age and Exercise (Control What You Can Control)

The Limits of Age and Exercise (Control What You Can Control)

by | Dec 18, 2023 | Blog, Diet, Exercises, Pain Relief

“I feel like I’m moving better than I did in my 20s and 30s!”

Want to know what led to my client saying this?

In this video I’ll go over not only the workout adjustments but also nutritional changes we made to help her feel her most fabulous.

Because we need to stop just blaming our age and ACCEPTING pain!

The simple fact is…you can’t change your age. You can’t stop getting older.

And yes, there are changes to our body as we get older.

But so often we just write off those changes as out of our control when so often there are lifestyle factors we can CHANGE that do have an impact.

Yes, as we get older, our recovery times change.

Aches and pains have had more time to accumulate…especially as often we haven’t truly taken care to rebuild from previous injuries.

Even the hormonal changes of perimenopause and menopause can lead to increased inflammation making our joints achier.

But through adjustments to our training and nutrition, we can reduce the aches and pains and even feel like we move better than ever!

That’s why in this video I want to go over controlling what you can control and adjusting your lifestyle to move your best at any age!

Let’s start with adjusting our workout routines. 

I wanted to outline the 2 key things I implement with clients in their workouts that have led to many saying…

“I feel better than I did in my 20s and 30s!”

First, We Include That Prehab Process Every Warm Up

Injuries…Daily postures… Daily posture

They can change our mobility and flexibility. They can change our recruitment patterns or how we use muscles to perform movements.

And so often, even when we’ve done rehab for previous problems, we STOP doing what made us better. 

This leads to us defaulting back into incorrect movement and recruitment patterns and can lead to aches and pains again adding up.

And while we may have “gotten away with this” when we were younger, it is also why aches and pains are adding up more now!

We start overusing muscles and joints not meant to carry the load. It’s why we may feel like lunges or squats only constantly hurt our knees!

That’s why that full 3-part prehab process of foam rolling, stretching and activation in every warm up is so key. 

It addresses any mobility, flexibility or stability issues we have, and preps our body to work that day.

And it’s key we use the system as a whole. Too often we pull out parts of things we “like,” and then are surprised when the benefits aren’t there.

But this process works because of all 3 components together and in that order!

Before you workout, foam roll tight and overactive muscles that may impact your workout or hinder you from performing moves fully. 

This then will help you better mobilize your joints with the stretches.

So if you’ve had hip pain and struggle to engage your glutes or squat deeply, you may roll out a hip flexor and quad muscle that is tight like the rectus femoris. 

Then include dynamic stretches to warm up your body and mobilize your joints. 

As you do these stretches, focus on the opposing muscle group engaging to drive the stretch.

To stretch out your chest in suspension trainer snow angels, focus on engaging your back to feel that stretch more.

Finally include activation moves that isolate muscles that are weaker or that you struggle to use correctly.

If you’ve had hip issues or lower back pain, you may focus on things like single leg reverse hypers or lying lateral raises to really target those glutes and engage them. 

But this prep work in your warm up, and even the rolling and stretching in your cool down, will help you not only move better in your workouts to get more out of those sessions but also recover better for the next workout!

However, we can’t just do our mobility work then rush through our workouts if we want to avoid aches and pains.

That’s why the second thing I focus on with clients is…

Seeing Every Movement As An Assessment! 

Every rep of an exercise is you practicing that movement.

If those reps are rushed and we aren’t focus on the quality of our movement, we aren’t going to get the full benefit of those exercises and may even end up injuring ourselves.

And if you’re thinking, “My form is great! I’m experienced with these moves.”

“Good form” doesn’t mean you aren’t cheating.

Often the more advanced an exerciser we are, the more we can cheat and overuse muscles or seek out mobility from other joints to mimic a movement.

We know what it SHOULD look like and our body is good at replicating what we want even if it means overloading muscles that shouldn’t be carrying the load.

It’s why you may be able to do that deadlift or pull up, BUT you’re also ending up constantly with lower back or neck and shoulder pain. 

That’s why I have every client see every movement as an assessment and always ask themselves…

“What do I feel working?”

Because the muscles we feel DURING the exercise, are what are powering the movement.

If the correct muscles are working, we’re going to see those results build.

However, if we are feeling muscles taking over that shouldn’t be the prime movers, we are going to end up with injury.

When we are able to feel this happening, we can regress to progress, adjust our form or cueing and even modify the movements to get the correct muscles working.

Even if we can do a squat with one weight, we may find increasing to a point then changes what we feel working. 

It’s why you want to be intentional in your training over just zoning out or rushing through.

Even changes in the TYPE of exercise, say a back squat vs a front squat, could impact how the move feels. 

The more we are conscious of what is working, the more we can make sure we are truly maximizing each movement and even working through the fullest range of motion possible.

Because we can’t out mobility work the movements we are doing in our workouts.

If you want to keep that flexibility you are working so hard on, you need to strength through that range of motion.

You can’t hope to improve your hip mobility while doing a two inch squat because you’re trying to go heavy! 

So be intentional with your training and you’ll see those movements improve and those aches and pains go away.

Not to mention you’ll even see improvements to your strength and muscle gains faster!

Next let’s talk about our nutrition and how we can adjust that as well to reduce those aches and pains. 

And I’m going to start by telling you something you don’t want to hear…

But that has been eye opening for my clients…

First and foremost…Track your food. 

So often we only think about tracking what we’re eating when we want to reach an aesthetic goal.

But tracking can help us truly understand the impact our diet is having on our health and even those aches and pains.

By tracking you may realize you aren’t eating enough protein to support optimal recovery or getting in the antioxidants or omega-3s you need to reduce inflammation and support optimal joint and muscle functioning. 

Protein is key. 

As we get older we are less able to utilize it as efficiently which means we need MORE of it to get the same muscle building response.

And protein isn’t just used to build muscle, it makes up all of the tissues of our body and even helps promote healthy bones and hormonal balance.

Without enough protein to properly repair, we are going to see more aches and pains add up!

Not to mention put ourselves at greater risk for other injuries such as falls and fractures.

And it isn’t just our macros we want to track but those micros and the types of each macro we consume.

Antioxidants like vitamins C and E, as well as beta-carotene, can help protect joint tissues from oxidative stress and inflammation.

This is why we want to track to make sure we’re consuming plenty of colorful fruits and vegetables, such as berries, citrus fruits, and leafy greens.

And then we don’t want to fear FATS in our diet either. Especially Omega-3s. Omega-3 fatty acids have anti-inflammatory properties that can help reduce joint pain and stiffness. 

Tracking to make sure we’re including fatty fish such as salmon, mackerel, sardines as well as plant-based sources such as flaxseeds, chia seeds, and walnuts is key! 

And then second, we focus on hydration and even tracking that water intake. 

Many of us have even set the goal to drink more water…and it’s a surprisingly hard habit to change!

It’s why I love to add this in as something clients also track in their daily logs for accountability.

What gets measured gets managed.

But increasing your water intake as you get older keeps those joints, as well as our other body tissues, healthy and happy.

It also helps us recover faster!

And it’s key we actually shoot for MORE water as we get older, especially if you’re increasing your protein intake to assist in better recovery and muscle gains!

When you increase your protein intake, you want to increase your water intake to help with absorption and digestion of the protein.

We also have to recognize that, as we get older and go through menopause, we simply need more water too to stay hydrated.

With decreasing estrogen levels, we often need to increase our water intake.

Not to mention during menopause you may find you do better on lower carb ratios.

Carbs help us retain the water we need.

So fewer carbs in our system may mean increasing our water intake and even being conscious or our electrolyte balance.

This is why shooting for 70% of your bodyweight (in pounds) in ounces is key.

And you want to track to get this over the day.

You’re not seeking to have your pee be clear either with this. You want that light lemonade color.

But this focus on proper hydration helps keep cartilage, the cushioning material for your joints, lubricated and functioning optimally.

You can move and feel your best at any age. But it does mean addressing what your body needs right now instead of focusing just on what used to work.

But stop blaming your age.

Control what you can control and make these changes to your workouts and your diet to feel amazing at every age!

Learn more about how to create the perfect plan for YOU and see the results you deserve…

–> Schedule A Coaching Consultation