Ahhh we’ve waited all year for this beautiful sunshine, weekend getaways, sand between our toes, and salty ocean breeze. BUT WAIT! Don’t throw away all of your hard work in the gym, at home, and in the kitchen! And Lord knows I’m not telling you not to enjoy the heck out of your well deserved vacation. But here are some quick tips that will help you stick with those goals while you’re enjoying every little last bit of Summer and Vitamin Sea.

Workouts: I know the last thing you probably want to do is go to the gym while you’re on vacation and I sure as heck wouldn’t want to either. What I do suggest are these tips for fitness.

• Turn that all day beach lounging into a nice long walk down to the boardwalk and back. No need to put on your workout clothes for this one either. The sand provides a serious terrain for a leg burning/heart pumping workout. Make sure to dig deep with your heals in the sand so your legs work harder to push you forward.
• Body Weight Workouts- No need for e
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The crippling symptoms of stress, anxiety, and depression can leave us feeling hopeless, unmotivated, and stuck. The good news is that you do NOT have to be a slave to your conditions/symptoms, in fact; you can take CHARGE of your symptoms with the help of these 2 coping strategies that might be able to relieve the pain and stress. Now, since we are constantly bombarded with scientific backed research and super fancy words, I want to break it down in a way we can all understand without feeling lost. Along with any prescribed medications I suggest you try these 2 natural approaches to suppressing symptoms:

1. Start An Exercise Routine: I’m sure you’ve heard it all before but here I will describe in non-medical terms the reason this WILL help allievaite your S.A.D. symptoms. Have you ever noticed that strange “high” you get after you’ve completed a workout? I know you might’ve been a bit exhausted from the workout, but how did your head feel? Not physically, but mentally? During your
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 You step on the scale each morning yet the scale doesn’t reflect all the hard work you’ve been doing. All the hard/sweaty workouts, all the clean eating, all the sleep....WHAT THE HELL IS HAPPENING!? I’m here to tell you...YOU’RE DOING IT WRONG!!

You, my friend, are suffering from what I call “Being a Slave to the Scale”. It’s a terrible condition but I am here to break this horrible habit and tell you that all your hard work IS paying off! 

Did you know that even though 1 pound of muscle is equivalent to 1 pound of fat, they look COMPLETELY different. Here is a visual; one pound of fat looks like a whole watermelon and a pound of muscle looks like a small cantaloupe. Do you see it now? Again, even though they way the exact same, they look completely different. 

This is called body composition and it encompasses all muscle, fat, water, and bone mass in the body. Unfortunately the scale weighs all of these masses rather than just fat. Instead of being a slave to the scale you can do...

I know what you’re thinking “Okay, boring motivational speaker at our monthly business meeting talking about morale, what inspirational quote are you going to leave us with today?”

 First of all, HEYYYY, that speaker is trying really hard to get you all to listen and no one’s paying attention. Second of all, I’m talking about really thinking hard about HOW you talk to yourself day in-day out (because you know we all do it). 

 Take a moment to think right now, what did you say to yourself in the mirror this morning when you first got up? Was it something like “If I could just shed this extra weight then I could finally wear that dress I’ve been eyeing up”. Or, “Ughhh, I HAVE to do my workout later”. “Why am I so fat?” Was it something along those lines or even worse?

 Well JEEEEEZ woman, no wonder it’s hard for you to stick to a workout routine or get so frustrated when you step on the scale! (By the way, I hate scales with a passion). 

 Now let me ask you this; would your best frie...

As a trainer, I’ve worked with over 20 women who have either been pregnant while training and/or trained with me about 8 weeks after giving birth. Because I have worked so closely with this group of women I am able to discuss what works best for their workout regimen.

NOTE: It is important to note that before going out and enrolling in any fitness program you should speak with your doctor first to make sure you are cleared to do so. Every woman is different so just go in and make sure your doctor gives you the okay to get your fitness on during or after pregnancy.

Let’s start with the benefits of exercise during pre & post natal pregnancy. It is important during pregnancy to limit your stress as your baby feels ALL of the emotions YOU are feeling. So crazy, right? Therefore, since working out has proven to boost serotonin levels (happy hormones), baby gets these endorphin surges too. Both you and baby will have happier moods and there will be less stress and risk of injury. Even afte...

The NUMBER 1 question I receive as a Personal Trainer regarding nutrition is “Are carbs bad for me?” First of all, I’d really like to take out the negativity with regarding food as good or bad. All food provides our body a source of energy and it is up to the person to moderate their portions, serving sizes, etc. Usually foods are put into the “bad” category when there is no portion control, leading to weight gain. I’ll be one of the realistic trainers to tell you that I LOVEEE my french fries and burger on the OCASSION, but not all the time. I digress, we’re here to finally give this taboo word “Carbohydrate” some well deserved justice.

Let’s start with the carbohydrate itself, what is it anyway? Carbohydrates are the sugars, fibers, and starches found in veggies, fruits, grains, and milk products. As you can see, carbohydrates are essentially found in all the foods we eat except for meat products. Now, carbohydrates are the body’s MAIN source of energy, so why do we have to diss it ...

Let’s start with a little scenario: Karen wanted to get in shape so got her gym membership down the street for $60 a month, she went for a solid 2 weeks on the eliptical, a little too intimidated to try the other machines other than the inner thigh one she saw a bunch of the other ladies doing. Life got busy, work got more demanding, kids needed rides to sports, and the Karen was left paying the reoccurring $60 a month…it’s now been 1 full year. Karen has spent about $720 for a 2 week gym spree that left her with little to no results. Karen always thinks to herself “Well if I just keep the membership then I can use it when I want”… (Which she hasn’t). And now she’s headed into yet another year of an unused gym membership, essentially flushing her money down the toilet. Now, let me ask you…does this sound familiar to you?

Year after year people are throwing away pricey gym memberships that are barely used. The allure is now gone and life is just too demanding. On top of that, if you do...

While discussing meal planning and how to decrease simple carbohydrate and processed sugars/foods, I like to give my clients some really good healthy snacking alternatives with this list of go-to’s NOW, even though these are the healthier alternatives you still need to follow servings sizes and use portion control! You might need to find some of these online as not all stores carry these super yummy/clean snacks.

1. Instead of potato chips TRY THIS: Beanitos Baked Bean Crunch. These crunchy treats give you the crunch you need while coming in at about 100 cals per serving. No potatoes used here, just BEANS. Because they’re made with beans each serving come with about 5g of Fiber AND 5g of Protein. All the crunch without the junk.

2. Instead of Ice Cream TRY THIS: Wink Ice Cream. This plant based “nice cream” is made with 9 ingredients or less in each pint (and yes, you can pronounce them all!) This delicious treat is 100% Vegan and coming in at only 100 cals a pint. Finally, an ice cr...