Happy 2023

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Happy 2023!!! 

Are you sick of all the gym, meal plan, and weight loss advertisements yet? Are you ready to throw your (too many) resolutions at the window? Are you overwhelmed from the overstimulation of the holidays and the “excitement” of a new year?

 If so, you’re not alone.

To be completely honest, “New Year, New You” is one of my least favorite phrases (it comes right behind “Get your Body Back after pregnancy”). So it shouldn’t come as a surprise that that’s not what we’re going to focus on today. Instead, I’m going to beat the same drum I’ve been beating for years. It’s all about making sustainable life changes.

  • Which is why I’m not a fan of going on diets

  • Which is why I don’t advocate for a starting a four or five day a week workout program right out the gate

  • Which is why I think expecting yourself to make a complete 180 just because it’s a magic time of year (the New Year) is total B.S.

 Okay Erin, so I’m not going on a diet, I’m not starting a super strict workout routine, I’m not adding in 30 minutes of meditation and making sure I get 8-9 hours of sleep every single night right off the bat. So what am I supposed to do?

It’s all about the Baby Steps

 Start small.

 Seriously. If you haven’t done it recently, I recommend taking the first couple weeks to take inventory of where you’re at right now. Track your food/drink, your movement, your sleep… or whatever it is that you want to improve. Know your starting point.

 Then get started, but start small.

 Maybe after a week of tracking your nutrition you realize you are only drinking 30ish ounces of water a day. Start by adding an additional 6-8 ounces to your day. Once that gets consistent, keep adding until you reach an optimal hydration level for you.

 Or perhaps after a week you realize there are some days you are only eating one serving of vegetables (or, gasp! Your only vegetable one day was French fries… which is a potato, which is a starch, not a veggie, but I digress….). Instead of making a huge deal of taking things OUT of your diet, think of adding things in. Add an additional serving of veggies every day. Once two servings is habit, add another. The neat thing about adding in things like clean protein and veggies is not only do you get all the great nutritional benefits from those foods, but you won’t have as much room for the junk (see what I did there? Sneaky, right?).

 You can do the same thing with movement or sleep.

 Bump up your bedtime by 15 minutes. Add a 10 minute walk somewhere in your week. Take 10 minutes out of your day to do a bodyweight workout. Then gradually increase as these things become habit.

 Of course you know I’m a HUGE advocate for strength training. I’d love, love, LOVE for you to find a way to get two 20-minute strength training sessions in weekly at minimum. Adding muscle to your body is one of the absolute best things you can do for your health. And, BONUS!, you can do it at any age at any stage of life.

 Yes, I strength trained throughout my entire first pregnancy, and I’m still lifting weights in the 3rd trimester of my second. No, it doesn’t look the same as the way I lift during other stages of life, and there’s nothing wrong with that. Different phases of life call for different ways to train, eat, and live in general. But no matter where you are, you CAN and SHOULD strength train.

 In fact, because I KNOW strength training is so important, I created a workout template that can be modified to work for anyone, which you can download completely free. I even linked videos to each of the exercises and recorded warm-ups and cool-downs for you.

THAT’S HOW IMPORTANT I THINK THIS IS —-> 

Of course, if you want more personal attention (for strength training, nutrition, or both), I currently have openings for online clients (and one opening for an in-person client).

But if you do nothing else, just start. Figure out where you are, and make a decision to make small changes that can become habits.

No, you probably won’t see drastic results overnight, but that’s okay. We’re in this for the long run.

Don’t wait, don’t quit, don’t give up

You’ve got this.

 

BONUS RESOURCES

Being A Perfectionist is Holding You Back
February People
P.S. You’re on the Wrong Diet
Cardio for Weight Loss
Is the Elliptical Making you Fat?
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