Yoga is an excellent way to get your body used to daily fitness. A few years and 100 pounds ago, it was 30-day yoga challenges and home fitness workouts that helped me build and establish the fitness routine that I have to this day. Daily yoga helped me get used to moving my body regularly and added to the foundation of my fitness lifestyle. Yoga challenges especially, had me trying a variety of different yoga poses and pushed me to try poses that were outside of my comfort zone. You might be thinking, but wait, isn’t yoga a relaxing activity? And yes, different types of yoga can be very relaxing. However, there are other types of yoga that will have you working up a sweat and burning some calories. Including yoga into your daily routine will help you to build lean muscle, improve flexibility, and overall, help you drop pounds. This post contains affiliate links #ads. See Disclosure for details. I receive a small commission on Amazon purchases at no extra cost to you. Weight Loss and Yoga Yoga for fitness can have incredible effects on your mental health, as well as your physical health. Yoga is well-known for reducing […]
Without trying to sound overly dramatic, Barre Blend has been a life-changing fitness program for me. I know, dramatic. But it came into my life at a point where, physically, I was really struggling. Just before the holidays in December 2019, I herniated a disc in my lower back. If you’ve herniated a disc before, you know it is nightmarishly painful. It was honestly one of the most painful experiences I have ever had, like up there with childbirth seriously. I spent 4 days on complete bed rest. Which meant 4 days wondering how I was ever going to exercise the way I was used too. As much as my injury was physically challenging, it was also very mentally challenging. If you’re new to my blog, you might not be familiar with my journey of losing 100 pounds. But you can read about that and how I did it in this post. So, not only did I have the fear of slipping backward in my journey but once my back started to heal, the fear of hurting it again was overwhelming. I knew that if I wanted to be exercising again quickly, it had to be super low impact and […]
This post contains affiliate links #ads. See Disclosure for details. I receive a commission on Amazon purchases at no extra cost to you. Most people make some kind of New Year’s resolution whether they like to admit it or not. And most often, those resolutions are based around health and weight loss. In fact, in 2018 45% of Americans listed lose weight or get in shape as their weight loss goals. So needless to say, it’s a common resolution for many people. Unfortunately, not many people actually meet their New Year’s resolutions. Stats suggest that only 8% of people actually end up achieving their goals. But it doesn’t have to be that way! I truly believe that the percentage of people who meet their New Year’s resolutions can be much higher! And I think it comes down to proper planning, and setting detailed and realistic goals. Saying simply that you want to “get healthy” or “lose 20 lbs” doesn’t really say anything about how you plan to accomplish those goals. So that’s what I’m here to help with! I’m going to give you 10 weight loss goals that are realistic and achievable. Plus, I’m going to share how to get […]
Check out my YouTube Channel “Healthy Habits With Shannon” to see all my latest body-positive weight loss content! This Is What Finally Made A Difference: My 100-pound weight loss has been a defining moment in my life—truly a moment I never thought was possible for me. For many years, I stared at my reflection, wishing to see someone else. Back then, it wasn’t about being thin or fit; I simply dreamed of feeling comfortable in my own skin. Over time, and after countless weight loss lessons, I achieved a natural weight loss of over 100 pounds, transforming from a size 20 to a size 4 at my smallest. This wasn’t just a physical change; it was an incredible personal victory. It hit me how unusual my transformation was (to lose so much weight without dieting and restricting), and it got me thinking deeply about what made this time different from all my previous weight loss attempts and from what others seemed to experience. After much reflection and numerous conversations, I pinpointed the critical difference: it was my mindset. This post contains affiliate links #ads. See Disclosure for details. I receive a small commission from Amazon purchases at no extra cost […]
It might not be December yet but I’m already planning my holidays. And if you’re like me, you’re thinking about gifts for your family and friends long before the holiday season. But getting the perfect holiday gifts for everyone on your list can be hard. So, I’m here to help you out! Do you have a mom in your life who is obsessed with fitness? Do you draw a blank at the thought of getting her a present? No worries. I’m here to let you know what every fit mom really wants for the holidays (you know, other than privacy, sleep, and strong coffee). This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. See Disclosure for details. Opinions are my own. Holiday Gifts For The Fit Mom For The Mom Who Lifts Do you have a mom in your life who likes to lift weights? Whether they prefer to tone or lift heavy here are some great holiday gifts every lifting mom would love. Every heavy lifter needs a good resistance band. And when you’re lifting heavy, the last thing you need is some plastic bands curling around your thighs. A fabric resistance band is […]
If you follow me on Instagram, you know I’m a super fan of home fitness. Don’t get me wrong, I’m one of those freaks who loves the gym, but the gym just isn’t convenient. Plus, I’ve learned that for me personally, I need to be following a program to see real results. Every time I try to do things “on my own” it never works out the way I want it too. For example, the pic below. The picture on the left was from the end of 80 Day Obsession and the picture on the right was taken after doing random fitness for the summer. Clearly, I’m more fit in the first picture. So, I’ve learned that home fitness programs are just something that has to be a part of my life for me to achieve the fitness goals I want. And I’m definitely okay with that! So, Why Choose a Home Fitness Program? A home fitness program, such as 100 Morning Meltdown or 80 Day Obsession, is like having a personal trainer in your own home. You get all the knowledge and intensity of having a trainer, but you can press pause if you need to take a breath. […]
This post contains affiliate links. See Disclosure for details. Opinions are my own. My weight loss journey began in 2014 not long after I had given birth to twins. I was at my highest weight ever, coming in at around 249 lb. I remember the day that I stepped on the scale and saw that number. It made my heart sink to my feet. And it felt like it couldn’t be true. But when I looked in the mirror I didn’t recognize myself. I felt like I was trapped deep inside my body. And I had no idea who I was anymore. It was an exceptionally low point in my life. But thankfully the person who I was back then didn’t give up on herself. She took that dark time and turned it into something completely different. I made the decision to take control of my life. That meant taking care of my mental health, my emotional eating, and getting over my aversion to exercise. With the help of my supportive husband, some fit friends, exercise programs and anti-depressants, I was able to lose over 100 pounds. And so far, I’ve maintained that 100-pound weight loss for over a year. […]
This post contains affiliate links. See Disclosure for details. Opinions are my own. Gym anxiety is a real thing. And it prevents so many people from starting their health and fitness journey. I get it, I let gym anxiety (and just anxiety in general) stop me from reaching my goals many times. I have a very long history of anxiety at the gym. All stemming from the time when my parents thought it would be a good idea to force a sixteen-year-old to get a gym membership and a personal trainer. We won’t even get into that at the moment but I’m sure you can guess where the anxiety comes from. I stilled joined many gyms over the years. Always going a few times before quitting altogether. Because at the end of the day, I always let my insecurities get the better of me. Eventually, I learned how to move past my gym insecurities. Now, I find the gym to be a place where I can relax and simply workout. But it took a change in mindset and that’s what I’m going to share with you. Overcoming Gym Insecurities Do you struggle with endless worries at the gym? Worrying about […]
This post contains Affiliate links. See Disclosure for details. Opinions are my own. It’s Important For Runners To Strength Train So to be honest, I ran for a long time before I added strength training to my fitness routine. And if I had known how important it was to strength train, I would have started much earlier. Especially when I was training for big races like my half-marathon. But I didn’t and lesson learned! Strength training is not just for people who are looking to tone muscles or bulk-up. It can play a big role in your running and your run performance. And if you truly want to be athletic, you need to do more than just run. Strength training has me focusing on other areas such as balance, flexibility, and strength. All of which makes me a much better runner. So, do you find yourself getting the same running injuries over and over? Or have you been running for a while but not getting any faster? It’s time to start strength training. Help Tight Muscles Due to the nature of running, it is really easy to overuse very specific muscles. This overuse is what leads to cramping, often in […]
Running a half marathon is my greatest physical accomplishment to date. Honestly, just thinking about all the training and effort that went into preparing for that run can still make me feel a little emotional. I went from being a non-runner to running a 10 km race and a half marathon in the same year. And doing that took a lot of work! Before I started running I had already had a weight loss of about 60 lb. I had done that weight loss mostly through nutrition and some exercise here and there. I talk more about my weight loss in this post if you’re curious. But I knew that if I wanted to take my health and weight loss even further that I needed to add consistent exercise. So to make sure I didn’t quit exercising, I signed up for a 10 km and a half marathon. I know, I’m crazy. This post contains affiliate links. See Disclosure for details. Opinions are my own. For a full year, I made running my obsession. Everything I did was because of running. I focused in on my nutrition for the first time in my life because eating crap made my runs […]