Category Archives: mental health

Are popular fitness lifestyles destroying our fertility?

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๐—ฌ๐—ผ๐˜‚๐—ฟ ๐—น๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐˜€๐˜ ๐˜€๐—ฒ๐—น๐—ณ ๐—ถ๐˜€ ๐—น๐—ถ๐—ธ๐—ฒ๐—น๐˜† ๐—ป๐—ผ๐˜ ๐˜†๐—ผ๐˜‚๐—ฟ ๐—ต๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐—น๐˜๐—ต๐—ถ๐—ฒ๐˜€๐˜ ๐˜€๐—ฒ๐—น๐—ณ!

In Summer of 2020, my health began to take a dive. Years of chronic dieting, over-exercising, negative self-talk, and hormonal birth control was taking its toll. I was eating next to no carbs, minimal sugar, low fat, no dairy, lean protein only, working out 6 days a week, hours of cardio & felt terrible physically, mentally and emotionally. I began to take a hard look at the way I was living/eating/training and how it was working against my physiology.

When I began my healing journey and found the “pro-metabolic” community, I wasn’t looking for more diet dogma, but to improve my overall metabolic function and support progesterone creation and a healthy ovulation. Gaining weight was a necessary part of the equation. and when Discussing this with @fundamental.nourishment she brought this research to my attention ๐Ÿค“

We can easily fall into the traps of the diet and fitness industry. We constantly chase perfection and the desire to alter our bodies because we live with the belief that we are not good enough. We want to be a smaller size, a smaller number on the scale.

Recreating the relationship that we have with exercise and why we do it, is one of the most important aspects of shifting from restrictive-driven behaviors to cultivating a happy and lasting lifestyle that is pleasant to keep up.

โœŒ๐ŸผLooking for more support navigating your cycle with fitness & nutrition? Check out my FREE guide & pro-metabolic strength training guide available for purchase!


LINK to apply for 1:1 coaching โค๏ธ


#womenshealthย #prometabolicย #prometabolicnutritionย #prometabolicfitnessย #fitnessandfertilityย #fertilityย #womensfitnessย #dietculturedropoutย #hormonehealthย #hormonebalanceย #fitnessforwomenย #onlinenutritioncoachย #onlinefitnesscoachย #workoutplanย #metabolismย #progesterone

Diet Culture Fitness VS Body Neutral Fitness

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Where my diet culture drop outs at? ๐Ÿ™‹๐Ÿปโ€โ™€๏ธ

Re-evaluating our approach to fitness and exercise is a crucial part of any journey. But just because something like strength training or HIIT cardio can be abused, doesn’t make it “bad”.

Each one of us has a different metabolic identity, depending on past and current behaviors, and it can be very difficult to convey context and nuance for each individual through a social media post.

As you know, my message centers on shifting away from the diet culture mentality, over exercising, and โ€œearningโ€ your food, and refocusing on learning to properly and intentionally nourish, appreciate & respect your body.

We can easily fall into the traps of the diet and fitness industry. We constantly chase perfection and the desire to alter our bodies because we live with the belief that we are not good enough. We want to be a smaller size, a smaller number on the scale.

I’ve learned these lessons the hard way, as I’ve shared my fitness/health journey coming from a fitness/bodybuilding competition background & the health repercussion of competing.

Recreating the relationship that we have with exercise and why we do it, is one of the most important aspects of shifting from restrictive-driven behaviors to cultivating a happy and lasting lifestyle that is pleasant to keep up.

โœŒ๐ŸผLooking for more support navigating your cycle with fitness & nutrition? Check out my FREE guide & pro-metabolic strength training guide available for purchase!


LINK to apply for 1:1 coaching โค๏ธ

More info on http://www.meganmefit.com

#bodyneutral#dietculturedropout#dietculture#bodyneutralfitness#onlinefitnesscoach#fitnesscoach#onlinenutritioncoach#prometabolic#workoutplan#fitnessjourney#fitnessmotivation#mindsetmatters#prometabolicnutrition#prometabolicfitness#womenshealth

What body appreciation ACTUALLY is

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๐Ÿšจ SPOILER ALERT ๐Ÿšจ Weight loss, DOES NOT & WILL NOT improve your body image. Itโ€™s body appreciation and gratitude towards the body that are KEY ๐Ÿ”‘ in cultivating a positive body image.

Body appreciation is finding value in our body’s functionality and uniqueness as well as appreciating the differences of others. There is a benefit of having body appreciation above and beyond just the absence of a negative body image. After accounting for body dissatisfaction, body appreciation positively influenced self-esteem and coping skills, Intuitive Eating ability, as well as decreasing the risk of eating disorders.

Body appreciation can be present even in the face of dissatisfaction. We can have things we wish we could change about our body while still respecting and appreciating it for the life vehicle it is.

While we all may have our days where we feel awkward or uncomfortable in our bodies, the key to developing a more positive body image is to recognize and respect our natural shape and learn to overpower those negative thoughts and feelings with positive, affirming, and accepting ones.

Please have compassion for yourself as you retrain your thinking. Do not beat yourself up for your insecurities, show yourself patience and gently replace any harsh thoughts you have about yourself with kindness and understanding. Changing deeply ingrained thought patterns takes time, but with consistency, youโ€™ll get there.

Accept yourself. ๐Ÿ’•

Accept your body. ๐Ÿ’•

โœŒ๐ŸผLooking for more support navigating your cycle with fitness & nutrition? Check out my FREE guide & pro-metabolic strength training guide available for purchase!

LINK to apply for 1:1 coaching โค๏ธ

Sources:
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2014.09.006
PMID: 11948650

#bodyimageย #bodyimagehealingย #bodyimagemovementย #bodyimageissuesย #onlinepersonaltrainerย #onlinefitnesscoachย #onlinenutritioncoachย #dietculturedropoutย #bodyneutralityย #bodyneutralfitnessย #prometabolicย #prometabolicnutritionย #fitnessย #selfhealersย #improvebodyimageย #eatingdisorderrecoveryย #disorderedeating

How your monthly cycle can impact body image.

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๐ŸŒ€Body Image & your cycle๐ŸŒ€

Something Iโ€™ve noticed with myself & with clients is fluctuating body image days. ๐ŸŽข

The more we understand about our monthly cycles, the hormonal fluctuations & how they impact everything from our brain chemistry, energy levels and metabolic function, the better we can support our physiology during these more challenging times.

๐Ÿ‘‰๐ŸปSwipe through to learn what the research says, and my tips for working through this!

Have you ever heard of the term & concept cycle syncing? It was created by @alisa.vitti the founder of @floliving and itโ€™s a practice of planning your life according to the phases of your monthly cycle. Like the foods you prioritize. The movement you focus on, the work project you take on, the social activities you commit to & so forth. Itโ€™s more intuitive than you may think!

โค๏ธ

Listening toย @hormonehealingrdย Are you Menstrual podcast ๐Ÿ”Š is informative as well!

โœŒ๐ŸผLooking for more support navigating your cycle with fitness & nutrition?ย Check out my FREE guide & pro-metabolic strength training guide available for purchase!

LINK to apply for 1:1 coachingย โค๏ธ

#bodyimage#bodyimagemovement#bodyimageissues#bodyimagehealing#onlinepersonaltrainer#onlinepersonaltraining#onlinenutritioncoach#nutritioncoach#pms#pmsproblems#womenshealth#womenshormones#womenshormonalhealth#fitnessjourney#dietculturedropout#period#periodproblems#periodtalk#cyclesyncing#womensupportingwomen#women

Food as Medicine: How food and diet impact the treatment of disease.

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๐Ÿฝ FOOD AS MEDICINE ๐Ÿฝ
My heart skipped a beat when I saw this report released last week, Which also includes 10 key recommendations to stakeholders to advance food as medicine practices in the prevention and treatment of disease which are all very impressive calls to action. ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿป

This is the first of MANY posts I’ll be doing on this.

Let’s dive in๐Ÿ‘‡๐Ÿป
In the 18th and 19th centuries, scientific investigation and innovation dominated Western understanding of medicine During that time, American medical education underwent notable advancements. In 1745, the first formal course in human anatomy was established at the University of Pennsylvania, and in 1829, the first American textbook on pathology was published.

These innovations, among others, ultimately inspired a shift away from nutrition-based medicine towards allopathic medicine.

Allopathic medicine is defined by the National Cancer Institute as: โ€œA system in which medical doctors and other healthcare professionals (such as nurses, pharmacists, and therapists) treat symptoms and diseases using drugs, radiation, or surgery. Also called biomedicine, conventional medicine, mainstream medicine, orthodox medicine, and Western medicine

However, the use of food as medicine is rooted in science and has been adopted and practiced by numerous cultures despite the fact that the history of food as medicine was largely ignored by academics until the 21st century.

Now, largely because of its increasing social media presence and online attention,academic study of the history and use of food as medicine has begun to gain momentum, finding its place in journals, conferences, and programs of study!

Last slide says it all ๐Ÿ™Œ๐Ÿป

SOURCE:
Platkin, C., Cather, A., Butz, L., Garcia, I., Gallanter, M., Leung, MM., Food As Medicine: Overview and Report: How Food and Diet Impact the Treatment of Disease and Disease Management. Center for Food As Medicine and Hunter College NYC Food Policy Center; March 30, 2022

Pro-metabolic Strength Training Guide 2.0

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๐Ÿฅ Drumroll Please! ๐ŸฅI am so excited for this guide!

My intentions are to educate you on how to approach strength training while honoring your physiology.

When dealing with hormonal issues, PCOS, thyroid & adrenal issues, and autoimmune flare ups itโ€™s important to be working WITH your physiology not against it.

๐Ÿ‘‰๐ŸปIn these women, we typically see low thyroid hormone (either production, conversion or cellular uptake) and high cortisol. So, over-exercising or the KIND of exercise can potentially set you back, push you farther away from achieving hormone balance and reversing your symptoms. ๐Ÿ™…๐Ÿปโ€โ™€๏ธ

As you know, my message centers on shifting away from the diet culture mentality, over exercising, and โ€œearningโ€ your food, and refocusing on learning to properly and intentionally nourish, appreciate & respect your body.

We can easily fall into the traps of the diet and fitness industry. We constantly chase perfection and the desire to alter our bodies because we live with the belief that we are not good enough. We want to be a smaller size, a smaller number on the scale. I’ve learned these lessons the hard way, as I’ve shared my fitness/health journey coming from a fitness/bodybuilding competition background & the health repercussions of competing.

Swipe through to learn more about it!
๐Ÿ‘‰๐Ÿปslide 4 The Pro-metabolic Decision Tree: For clients and I, the top recommendations for non-negotiables prior to incorporating intentional exercise would be: close to ideal temps/pulses, adequate rest and nutritional intake. There is obvious nuance and context here, but this is a general guide.

If you’re low on rest, but really wanting to move your body more than walking/household chores, stick with the blue color-coded workouts which are more core & mobility focused, or a light yoga session. If you’re well rested and well fed, the purple color-coded Strength Training workouts are more appropriate.

LINK TO GUIDES HERE!ย Check out my FREE guide & pro-metabolic strength training guide available for purchase!

LINK to apply for 1:1 coachingย 

#onlinepersonaltrainerย #personaltrainerย #prometabolicย #fitnesscoachย #onlinefitnesscoachย #onlinefitnesscoachingย #fitnessprogramย #pcosfitnessย #womenshealthย #womensfitnessย #strengthtrainingforwomenย #strengthtrainingย #fitfamย #womensfitnessย #thyroidhealing

REMINDER: If you’re a woman adding intermittent fasting on top of exercise, can be harmful to both your performance and health!

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โš ๏ธIf you’re adding intermittent fasting on top of exercise, you aren’t gaining any extra benefits.

Low energy availability is extremely common in females.

A 2019 survey of 1,000 female athletes across more than 40 sports published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine estimated the risk of low energy availability in women athletes at more than 47%.

Nearly half the performance-minded women may not be eating enough for their body to perform basic functions like creating muscle, regulating metabolism, and maintaining homeostasis after accounting for the energy they use for training.

๐Ÿ’ฅ Diets such as intermittent fasting and keto disrupt kisspeptin production. Women are more sensitive to kisspeptin, neuropeptide thatโ€™s responsible for sex hormones and endocrine and reproductive function.

๐Ÿ’ฅ Adding exercise to the equation just adds to the stress of denying our bodies important fuel sources. Our thyroid activity is depressed as a result, which messes with your menstrual cycle.

๐Ÿ’ฅ The long-term effects of intermittent fasting with exercise for women athletes is endocrine dysfunction, increases in abdominal fat, more prone to depression, and subsequent fat gain.

Pretty much the opposite direction of your goals.

I think back on before I truly grasped this concept, not only was practicing intermittent fasting days, fasted workouts/cardio, I was also chronically under-eating and over-training in general. ๐Ÿ˜Ÿ Never again!

๐Ÿ‘‡๐ŸปLMK Whatโ€™s your experience with IF?

Iโ€™m excited to expand more on this topic for Wild + Well Fed wellness Collective in July! @iamannikanicole@wildlyonswellness

Looking for more support navigating your cycle with fitness & nutrition? Check out my FREE guide & pro-metabolic strength training guide available for purchase!

LINK to apply for 1:1 coaching ๐Ÿ’œ

Sources:
PMID: 29860237
PMCID: PMC4818825
PMID: 27046965
Front. Endocrinol., 28 March 2018 | https://doi.org/10.3389/fendo.2018.00123
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41574-020-0363-7
Dr. Stacy Sims
#intermittentfasting#intermittentfastingforwomen#womenshealth#womensfitness#onlinepersonaltrainer#personaltrainer#onlinefitnesscoach#fitnesscoach#fitnessmotivation#strengthtrainingforwomen#nutritionist#womenarenotsmallmen#womensfitness#fitnessforwomen#dietculturedropout#bodyneutrality#intermittentfastingdiet

Movement creates HOPE! Let’s talk myokines aka ‘hope molecules’!

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โ”Did you know your body can help your brain feel more hopeful through movement?
โ€œEvery time we move our muscles, we are giving ourselves an intravenous dose of hope.โ€โ€” Kelly McGonigal, PhD

๐Ÿ’ฅ Let’s talk The Power of Hope Molecules ๐Ÿ’ฅ Swipe ๐Ÿ‘‰๐Ÿป to learn.

Exercise & movement are about much more than weight loss.

People who are active are:
-Happier & have more life satisfaction
-At a lower risk for things like depression & loneliness
-Better able to cope with stress & anxiety
-Feel more of a sense of purpose & social connection

Among its many life-altering rewards: the generation of hope, happiness, a sense of purpose, greater life satisfaction and rewarding connections with others, are benefits of exercise that go under appreciated.

Emerging research suggests that when exercised, your muscles become “basically a pharmacy for your physical and mental health.”

If you are willing to move, your muscles will give you hope. Your brain will orchestrate pleasure. And your entire physiology will adjust to help you find the energy, purpose and courage you need to keep going.

Recreating the relationship that we may have with exercise and why we do it is one of the most important aspects of shifting from disordered and restrictive-driven behaviors & cultivating a happy and lasting lifestyle that is pleasant to keep up ๐Ÿค

Looking for more support navigating your cycle with fitness & nutrition? Check out my FREE guide & pro-metabolic strength training guide available for purchase!

โœŒ๐Ÿผ๐Ÿ’ฏLINK to apply for 1:1 coaching

SOURCES:
Psychosomatic Medicine 62:633โ€“638 (2000
PMID: 31142190
PMID: 30627775
Dr. Kelly McGonigal

#mentalhealth #myokines #muscles #moveyourbody #bodyneutral #dietculturedropout #onlinepersonaltrainer #personaltrainer #personaltraining #fitnesscoach #hopemolecules #fitness #hope #antidepressant #strengthtrainingforwomen #prometabolic #exercisemotivation #fitnessmotivation #womenshealth #resilience #trauma #mentalhealthawarenessmonth #explorepage #movementismedicine

Ever felt “low on motivation”? This post is for you.

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๐Ÿ’ก If you’re frustrated about not being motivated, this SHOWS that you do actually have some motivation.

Because if you’re truly not motivated, you don’t give a ๐Ÿ’ฉ that you’re not motivated. ๐Ÿคฃ

We are complex beings who are rarely driven by only one type of motivation.

There are many qualities of motivation, and when people say they โ€œlost motivationโ€, they usually mean they lost intrinsic motivation.
๐Ÿ‘‰๐Ÿป(Intrinsic motivation refers to behavior that is driven by internal rewards. In other words, the motivation to engage in a behavior arises from within the individual because it is naturally satisfying to you.)

But that’s fine, we aren’t always going to feel intrinsically joyful to meal prep our food for the week, or to get in the 12-15 workouts on our program each month. ๐Ÿคท๐Ÿปโ€โ™€๏ธ

Taking motivational inventory is the ability to search for and leverage other reasons.

Maybe you:
-want to feel less aches & pains
-want to sleep better
-want to be a good role model for your kids
-want to have energy to play with your kids
-want to improve your performance & physique

ALL of those are motives, some are for external rewards for an outcome that feels rewarding.

Others are when you identify the outcome is meaningful to your current values, you may not want to exercise for FUN, or focus on your protein intake but you will do it because you want the outcome in the end.

You’re not always going to be motivated to workout.

Out of 12 workouts in a month:

Two workouts you might feel JAZZED and PUMPED

Seven workouts are like meh….

and three workouts you may have to force yourself to get it done. (Those are the ones that matter the most).

MOTIVATION

Simply put: Motive + Action

is the driving force behind your actions. It isn’t something you simply have and keep forever; motivation is like campfire that you must keep stoking to benefit from the warmth.

Because: ๐Ÿ’ฏ Truth be told, youโ€™re not always going to be motivated. Itโ€™s normal. Motivation itself is unreliable!

Looking for more support navigating your cycle with fitness & nutrition? Check out my FREE guide & pro-metabolic strength training guide available for purchase!

LINK to apply for 1:1 coaching ๐Ÿ’›

#onlinepersonaltrainer#personaltrainer#onlinenutritioncoach#motivation#motivationtips#trainertips#trainertiptuesday#trainertip#originalaudio#fitnessmotivation

Unhealthy relationship with exercise VS a healthy one๐Ÿ‘‡๐Ÿป

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Exercise addiction is a state characterized by a compulsive engagement in any form of physical exercise, despite negative consequences.

While regular exercise is generally a healthy activity, exercise addiction generally involves performing excessive amounts of exercise to the detriment of physical health.

It may also involve a state of dependence upon regular exercise, which involves the occurrence of severe withdrawal symptoms when the individual is unable to exercise.

Exercise addiction shows a high comorbidity with eating disorders with approximately 39-48% of people that have an eating disorder being addicted to exercise.

TLDR: An unhealthy relationship with exercise tends to involve rules and rigidity, be joyless, shame-based, and shame inducing.

A healthy relationship with exercise tends to be flexible and fulfilling. It varies in the type of movement we are doing and the amount of time we are devoting to that activity.

Over a year ago when the gyms shut down, it illuminated that I had obsessive compulsive exercise behaviors. I NEEDED the gym. It was my therapy. Now I know, therapy is therapy. And while exercise can enhance our mental state, for me how I was doing it, was destroying my mental & physical health.

๐Ÿ™Œ๐ŸผFreedom is exactly what I wanted, I wanted to live my life full of joy and experiences, outside of obsessing about my food and workouts.

๐Ÿ™Œ๐ŸผAnd now I am doing just that.

๐Ÿ’ฏ I choose every day to nourish my body, to eat enough food, I give myself plenty of permission for rest days, I strength training 4 times a week max. My health is improving, my soul is thriving! Patience is ๐Ÿ”‘

Looking for more support navigating your cycle with fitness & nutrition? Check out my FREE guide & pro-metabolic strength training guide available for purchase!

LINK to apply for 1:1 coaching ๐Ÿ’›

#onlinepersonaltrainer#personaltrainer#healthylifestyle#relationshipwithexercise#fitnessmotivation#dietculturedropout#dietculture#onlinefitnesscoach#fitnesscoach#disorderedeatingrecovery#disorderedeating#nourishyourbody#movementismedicine