Holiday Fitness and Nutrition Helpers!

The holidays are a time for family, friends, and food. It can also be a time when your fitness routine goes out the window. If you’re struggling to stay on track this month, don’t worry – we’ve got you covered. In this blog post, we will discuss some tips for staying healthy during the holidays. We’ll also provide a guide to creating a workout schedule that will fit into your busy holiday lifestyle!

First, it’s important to set fitness goals for yourself. Make sure they are achievable and that you can measure your progress. For example, if you want to lose weight during the holidays, aim for a healthy weight-loss goal that is realistic. Or, if you just want to maintain your fitness level, plan out how much time you want to dedicate to fitness each day.

Next, make sure you plan a fitness routine that works for your lifestyle. If you’re short on time, try shorter, more intense workouts like HIIT or Tabata-style exercises. Alternatively, if you have more time available, schedule in longer cardio or strength training sessions. Whatever fitness activity you choose, make sure it’s something you enjoy and can stick to.

Finally, reward yourself for sticking to your fitness goals. Whether it’s a massage after reaching a fitness goal or treating yourself to a new workout outfit once you reach your fitness target, having small rewards along the way will help motivate you during the holidays.

The holidays don’t have to derail your fitness routine. With a little planning and a few fitness goals in mind, you can stay healthy and fit during this special time of year. Best of luck!

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5 Confessions of a Pilates Teacher and Personal Trainer

We are not in good shape purely just because of our jobs as trainers! 

Being a trainer is a very active occupation,  however, I schedule my workouts, have trainers that I work with, have a running coach and I plan my students around my workouts.  So, when I have to miss, I have 6 other full days!  I had a friend who mentioned after I opened my first studio, “OMG, I saw you running the other day!  How do you have time?”  I don’t-  I make time.  Every day.   My alarm goes off at 4:30AM most days.   Some nights, I don’t leave the studio until 9:30PM but I get on the treadmill at 11PM.  And, it is very difficult sometimes, but so very much worth it to me.  I am in much better shape in my 40s than I was in my 20s.  My 14 year old son is always my first priority, then my health, then everything else!

We cram too much into our days! 

I never get enough sleep.  I have a Fitbit for the sole purpose of tracking my dismal sleep patterns.  It’s 11PM, I’m getting up at 4:30 to run.  Do the math (because I am denying it- haha).  I’m not done with the post either.  There’s a lot going on in my life and I am supremely lucky to be able to function on not a lot of sleep.  Am constantly working on this one.

We don’t eat perfectly all the time, but we also know that diet is the biggest contributor to our students’ overall health! 

I am not a breakfast person at all.  I will eat toast prior to a long run, but I’d rather have a salad mid morning or a cheese sandwich if I’m really hungry versus any other typical breakfast food. I also believe that banana bread should never be made without chocolate chips and during marathon training, I eat an entire baguette- almost every day.  Wine is a food group, medicine, happy juice.  I have been a vegetarian for 25 years.  In 2010, I cut out all the chemicals and preservatives I could out of my diet and never had a “boofy” belly again.  I eat things that I love that make me happy and would never deny myself a treat if that is what I wanted, but I am a maniacal label reader and will lecture you on the ingredients in the foods you eat. And, expect me to ask for ingredients lists if we are out to dinner.  But, only because some of them do make you puffy- and mess with everything else in your system.  I only eat real sugar.  I don’t believe in shakes or bars- mentally, I feel like they mess with your body’s ability to recognize nutrition and sustenance, so you are still hungry after 500 calories of processed stuff- as good as those ingredients may be.  I try and eat well 95% of the time, so when I want to have that piece of cake my student just dropped off for me, I eat the whole thing, never feel an ounce of guilt and can smile when I well her how much I on

We are maniacally picky about who we work with- doctors, trainers, physical therapists. 

I will question decisions, go with my instinct and seek out other opinions.  All the time.  At least once a month, I will travel 3+ hours to workout with a trainer.  Because I deserve to work out with somebody that I can learn more from as a student and as a teacher.  It is worth it to me to pay for and seek out the best available when it comes to health.

I sometimes wonder if my leggings are appropriate for dinner out.  I sleep in them, teach in them, workout in them.  I get excited to put on heels and a dress- like it is the highlight of my month!  I can’t imagine life in any other sort of work clothes.  And, if you tell me that yoga pants are not appropriate as pants, I will fight you on that!