Category Archives: mindset

Are popular fitness lifestyles destroying our fertility?

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𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳 𝗶𝘀 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲𝗹𝘆 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳!

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 🤓

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.

✌🏼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 ❤️


#womenshealth #prometabolic #prometabolicnutrition #prometabolicfitness #fitnessandfertility #fertility #womensfitness #dietculturedropout #hormonehealth #hormonebalance #fitnessforwomen #onlinenutritioncoach #onlinefitnesscoach #workoutplan #metabolism #progesterone

Diet Culture Fitness VS Body Neutral Fitness

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Where my diet culture drop outs at? 🙋🏻‍♀️

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 “earning” 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.

✌🏼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 ❤️

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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🚨 SPOILER ALERT 🚨 Weight loss, DOES NOT & WILL NOT improve your body image. It’s body appreciation and gratitude towards the body that are KEY 🔑 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, you’ll get there.

Accept yourself. 💕

Accept your body. 💕

✌🏼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 ❤️

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

#bodyimage #bodyimagehealing #bodyimagemovement #bodyimageissues #onlinepersonaltrainer #onlinefitnesscoach #onlinenutritioncoach #dietculturedropout #bodyneutrality #bodyneutralfitness #prometabolic #prometabolicnutrition #fitness #selfhealers #improvebodyimage #eatingdisorderrecovery #disorderedeating

How your monthly cycle can impact body image.

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🌀Body Image & your cycle🌀

Something I’ve noticed with myself & with clients is fluctuating body image days. 🎢

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.

👉🏻Swipe 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 it’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. It’s more intuitive than you may think!

❤️

Listening to @hormonehealingrd Are you Menstrual podcast 🔊 is informative as well!

✌🏼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 ❤️

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

Pro-metabolic Strength Training Guide 2.0

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🥁 Drumroll Please! 🥁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 it’s important to be working WITH your physiology not against it.

👉🏻In 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. 🙅🏻‍♀️

As you know, my message centers on shifting away from the diet culture mentality, over exercising, and “earning” 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!
👉🏻slide 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! Check out my FREE guide & pro-metabolic strength training guide available for purchase!

LINK to apply for 1:1 coaching 

#onlinepersonaltrainer #personaltrainer #prometabolic #fitnesscoach #onlinefitnesscoach #onlinefitnesscoaching #fitnessprogram #pcosfitness #womenshealth #womensfitness #strengthtrainingforwomen #strengthtraining #fitfam #womensfitness #thyroidhealing

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

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

💥 Let’s talk The Power of Hope Molecules 💥 Swipe 👉🏻 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 🤍

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

SOURCES:
Psychosomatic Medicine 62:633–638 (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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💡 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 💩 that you’re not motivated. 🤣

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 “lost motivation”, they usually mean they lost intrinsic motivation.
👉🏻(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. 🤷🏻‍♀️

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: 💯 Truth be told, you’re not always going to be motivated. It’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 💛

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

Unhealthy relationship with exercise VS a healthy one👇🏻

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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.

🙌🏼Freedom is exactly what I wanted, I wanted to live my life full of joy and experiences, outside of obsessing about my food and workouts.

🙌🏼And now I am doing just that.

💯 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 🔑

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 💛

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

You’ve got to earn your right to diet PART 2 Reverse dieting & Nutrition periodization

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It’s common for new clients to hire a personal trainer wanting to lose weight (fat loss). While I understand the desire to do this, we can and will get there..
⁣
We usually have to enter a different kind of approach before we can actually “diet” for fat loss because ⁣our first intention must be to achieve optimal psychological & physiological baselines.⁣

Most clients have struggled with yo-yo dieting, binge eating, poor relationship with food, negative body image and sporadic consistency with their workouts.
When we first discuss the concept of dieting in reverse, they are naturally hesitant because it’s quite different than what they are used to. 😲

The amazing part throughout this process they realize that achieving maintenance is a massive progress flex! 💪🏻 It still requires lots of effort and consistency.

In maintenance phase you experience:

🔘Better sleep
🔘Improved performance
🔘More muscle
🔘Not 🤔 about 🥘 all the time
🔘Stable energy
🔘Less mood swings😃
🔘Ability to be social🥂
🔘Restore hormone balance
🔘Increased libido😈

It’s important to spend enough time optimizing your metabolism, building muscle, and enjoying your life, so that when & if the time does come to enter a diet phase, things will be easier, an the progress will be sustainable.

Curious to see what this process looks like for you? Apply for coaching here ✌🏼

#onlinepersonaltrainer#personaltrainer#onlinenutritioncoach#nutritioncoach#nutritionist#nutritionperiodization#reversedieting#reversediet#maintenancephase#chronicdieting#dietculturedropout#sustainablenutrition#eattonourish#nourishyourbody#fitnesscoach#newyorkfitness#hudsonvallyny#newyorkpersonaltrainer

Let’s get BACK to BASICS for Digestion & Absorption

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📌Back to basics- Digestion & absorption edition 🤓

It’s important to address these GI basics before thinking you need any advanced protocols.

The biggest culprits I see in my coaching practice is improper stress management, poor chewing and rushed eating! Focusing on these “low hanging fruit” lifestyle changes can make dramatic impacts!

Next is HCL insufficiency, bile salt insufficiency, enzyme insufficiency, and a lack of dietary fiber (Insoluble vs Soluble).
⁣
Stomach acid is essential for proper digestion, especially protein and supports the absorption of essential nutrients, such as, Zinc, Copper, Iron, Calcium & B12. Not only does it help with digestion but it plays a vital role in protecting the body from harmful pathogens.
⁣
🙅🏻‍♀️Stop: Taking stomach acid suppressors, skipping meals and eating a low protein diet!⁣
✔️Start: Addressing chronic stress, eat a nutrient dense diet, improve your gut / brain connection with mindful eating practices. 🧘‍♀️
⁣
Lack of digestive enzymes production which are vital to properly break down the food we eat, can lead to slower transit time and poor nutrient absorption. This can result in feelings of bloat, constipation, acid-reflux, and gas.
⁣
🙅🏻‍♀️Stop: Rushing your meals and slouching around after eating.⁣
✔️Start: Supporting stomach acid production, chew your food properly (20-30 Times) and address any underlining gut inflammation. ⁣
⁣
Bile release is crucial for the emulsification of fats, so that they can then be properly broken down and absorbed. You won’t get the all the benefits of these healthy fats if they are not properly broken down. 🧈⁣
⁣
🙅🏻‍♀️Stop: Restricting fats or consuming too much of the wrong kind, like vegetable oils & fake butter⁣
✔️Start: Getting enough healthy fats in your diet and support stomach acid production
⁣
Finally, a healthy and balanced gut flora supports our body to proper digest food and protects from harmful pathogens. 🙌🏻
⁣
Complete digestion = more optimal nutrients! 🍽

⁣

Interested in working together? Apply here for coaching!