A Whole New Fitness Journey! Next year I turn 40! I’m in ready to make it the best decade of my life. And to kick it off, I’m starting a new fitness journey that looks totally different from my original weight loss journey at 32. Like many women, I’ve noticed changes in my body over the past couple of years that I wasn’t entirely prepared for…thanks to perimenopausal weight gain and the lasting impact of past injuries. But these aren’t obstacles that hold me back instead I see them as new challenges to overcome. I’m excited to share this new chapter of my life with you, and I’ll be documenting the whole journey on YouTube, beginning with a 21-day fitness program that I’m modifying to fit my current place in life. If you’re tackling your own fitness and weight loss goals in midlife, or if past injuries have made getting back in shape feel overwhelming, this post is for you. I’m sharing what’s driving me and how I’m adapting my approach to fit my aging body’s constantly changing needs. Perimenopausal Changes One of the catalysts for this new fitness journey was the realization that my body is changing as I […]
My “How To Lose Weight For Beginners” YouTube Vid!⬇️ Transforming My Life: 10 Powerful Habits That Helped Me Shed 100 Pounds and Embrace Health A huge weight loss journey is an epic commitment to yourself—especially when it means losing well over 100 pounds. There are a lot of myths out there, but trust me, there are no shortcuts or magic fixes for significant weight loss. Big weight loss takes dedication to yourself, perseverance, deep self-reflection, and a change of lifestyle habits. To be honest, for the longest time, I doubted my own strength and value, and had myself trapped in a belief that a healthy lifestyle and weight loss was out of reach for someone “like me.” But along the way, I learned a lot about myself and slowly but surely started changing my story, leaning into true self-love and seriously stepping up my game. This kind of weight loss journey is about so much more than just dropping pounds—it’s about living a life you might not have thought was possible. One day everything changed… One day it just clicked for me: I deserved to chase and reach my dreams no matter how far away they seemed. I realized that […]
Post contains affiliate links. See Disclosure for details. Opinions are my own. So let me preface this whole post by saying that absolutely nothing happens overnight. Losing over a hundred pounds took a couple of years and a tremendous amount of effort. But if there is one thing I know for sure, it is that big weight loss is 100% achievable. Something else I know? Keeping the weight off is absolutely achievable too. Obesity is a big problem across North America. Recent studies show that a shocking 69% or 2 in 3 people in North America are overweight or obese. It affects people across all races, religions, and economic class. Worldwide, it is estimated that roughly 500 million adults are obese and by 2030 it is estimated this number will rise to 1 billion. I don’t know about you, but I find these numbers scary. I also know that at one point I just stopped wanting to be a part of the problem. At the time when I started my weight loss journey, I had twin babies who were starting to eat solid foods and all I could think was that I didn’t want them to end up like me. […]
Contains affiliate links. See Disclosure for details. Opinions are my own. Honestly, part of me barely knows where to begin with this post! There are so many aspects of a large weight-loss journey that have been surprise. Or at least, many things I hadn’t previously thought about. At the beginning of my journey I was like most people with a large amount of weight to lose. All I could focus on was the scale and numbers. When I started my journey I was 249 lbs, a new twin-mom, and was overwhelmed by life. While I had been overweight all my life, I had never before been this overweight. I was in a really low place. I was so close to tipping the scales over to 250 lbs and for me, I knew that if that happened, I would fall down a hole that I might never be able to get out of. So that was the first day that I pushed play on a fitness program. And from there, I never looked back. It was about putting one foot in front of the other. Numbers, Numbers, Numbers When I started my weight loss journey, it was all about the numbers. […]
This post contains affiliate links. See Disclosure for details. Opinions are my own. Disclaimer: Intermittent Fasting is controversial, although a proven healthy diet. Before starting any diet change, always consult your health care provider. Intermittent fasting is a huge trend right now. People of all different health and fitness levels have found success with this style of eating. Whether people are looking to lose weight, maintain a weight loss, or improve their relationship with food, intermittent fasting is there to help. There are so many benefits to fasted eating. Not only are there numerous health benefits but many people have found it helps with time and money as well. This because they are eating more consciously. Fasting is far from starvation. Starvation is involuntary whereas fasting is all about control. Fasting is a practice that has been around for hundreds of years. In fact, many religions have periods of fasting for spiritual purposes. So in that way, intermittent fasting is nothing new or special. When you think about it, people fast every day during that lovely period we call sleep. And “break” their “fast” with breakfast. See what I did there? And that isn’t a coincidence. The English language simply […]
When it comes to shedding pounds, the amount of misinformation floating around can be overwhelming. It’s exhausting trying to filter out the noise and pinpoint what really works. Luckily, I’ve gone through a lot of this myself and am here to help clear up some major misconceptions about weight loss. Let’s dive into some of these common weight loss myths so that you can focus on what truly matters on your weight loss journey and get real weight loss results. The Myth of the Secret Formula It sometimes feels like everyone—from that fitness guru on social media to your neighbor down the street—claims to hold the elusive “secret” to quick weight loss. They might tout a special diet, a new exercise routine, or even a particular supplement as the magic solution to all your weight problems. But here’s the truth: there isn’t a mystical secret or hidden shortcut to losing weight. The fundamental principle behind weight loss is pretty straightforward—it’s calorie balance. It’s all about the calories you take in versus the calories you burn. If you consume fewer calories than your body burns each day, you’ll lose weight. On the other hand, if you eat more than what your […]
It’s been a couple of years since I did, P90X, my very first home workout program. And it was that first program that completely changed my life. And I do mean completely. But first, the backstory! Post may contain affiliate links. See Disclosure for details. Opinions are my own. 3 years ago my life looked so different. I was over 100lbs heavier than I am now, I had two-year-old twins, my depression and anxiety weren’t being treated properly, and I was struggling to do just about anything. I was miserable and I felt trapped. Thankfully, I had friends who saw my struggles and suggested a solution. P90X. A friend had previously had great success losing weight (he lost 70lbs!) doing P90X. However, like many people, I thought that I wasn’t capable of success the way he was. I assumed he had better will power, better genetics and a host of other wrong ideas. I was full of excuses as to why P90X worked for everyone else but it wouldn’t for me. However, the day that the scale in my bathroom flashed 249lbs, I knew I had hit my rock bottom. I knew that if I went a pound over 250lbs, […]
Water is my jam. But believe it or not, I used to have a really hard time drinking water. I couldn’t drink a straight glass of clear water, I always felt the need to add water flavouring. Which isn’t healthy at all, let’s be honest. And I’m almost embarrassed to say how long that lasted. Let’s put it this way, I was a parent before my H2O habits changed. But when I finally decided to get serious about my health, I knew I needed to be drinking more water. And not just more H2O, but more clear and plain H2O. Now, weaning myself off of the sugary water “enhancers” was a separate (and difficult) task. And if you struggle with drinking enough water and think that adding water enhancers with help, I urge caution. Firstly, once you start using them, its a hard habit to break. Secondly, is drinking flavoured water better than soda or juice? Just barely. The truth is that these water flavours contain artificial sweeteners, colours and more, and there is not nearly enough research done to say whether they help or hinder weight-loss. There are other ways to add flavour to your water (if you feel […]
Changing my relationship with food is an ongoing process. When I talk to other people about health and fitness, food is always the biggest pain point. Many of us who live in western culture tend to have a deformed relationship with food. Although when I think about it, even that statement isn’t entirely true. It’s more like we have bizarre relationships with food-like products. Because, when was the last time you heard someone talk about their out of control stir-fry addiction? And I’ve never heard anyone berate themselves because they went back for that second serving of sautéed vegetables. But if I replace the words stir-fry and vegetables with chips, candy, or anything covered in cheese and it’s a different story. It’s these food-like products that have us chained to an unhealthy lifestyle. And it’s our attachments to these foods (and the meanings we’ve assigned to them) that hold us back. Post contains Affiliate links #ads. See Disclosure for details. Opinions are my own. Convenience isn’t that convenient. You know that saying, ‘if something sounds too good to be true, it probably is’? Adults of the ’80s and ’90s should have held that in mind when the convenience food explosion […]
Fitness motivation is easy to find…at first. When you’re first starting your health journey finding fitness motivation is easy. You’re eager to go to the gym, you’re purchasing cute gear, and you’re feeling pumped! But, flash forward a couple of months down the road and those feelings aren’t nearly as strong. And that’s normal! But to be successful on your journey you need to be able to dig deep on those hard days. One of the easiest ways to maintain fitness motivation is to be prepared for the hard days ahead of time. First, you have to acknowledge that there will be hard times. Shake off the idea that you’re not allowed to struggle in your journey. Acknowledge that you will doubt and question yourself. But those hard times are not a reflection of your commitment to your health journey. They just are what they are, tough days. Post contains Affiliate links. See Disclosure for details. Opinions are my own. Don’t mistake hard times for failure. When times get tough, a lot of people tend to give up. They ‘try their best’ but then call it quits. I can understand that line of thinking, I’ve done it myself many times […]