All posts tagged: #MomLife

The Top 7 Reason Why You Should Include Kettlebells Into Your Fitness Routine

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Having kids give you a lot of love and joy but certainly not a lot of time. As a fitness professional and athlete I used to train 1 – 2 hours a day in a gym setting. I had all the time in the world (oh the life!). Of course after my little bean was born that all changed…drastically! I was now on his schedule with very little time for myself and since fitness  is the business I own as well as my entire being, I needed to find a way to keep it up. I knew for my own sanity, health and overall mindset as a New Mom that I needed to continue training even if the time was cut in half. So…I welcomed the Kettlebell into my routine. As a lifter at heart I loved the fact that I could bring the Kettlebell upstairs and while Jackson napped I could get a full body and challenging resistance workout in 20-25 minutes sometimes even less. I loved it so much that I decided to …

Enjoy Food. Don’t avoid food.

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Over the course of the last decade plus, I’ve experimented with countless of different eating styles and diets – Atkins, Vegan, Vegetarian, Octo-Lacto, Pescetarian, Macrobiotic, Paleo, Juicing, Cleansing, high fat, low fat, Intermittent Fasting, Bulletproof, etc. To this day I continue to try new things and research how I feel and how it applies to my life. Each eating style certainly has their benefits but, in my opinion, there is NO PERFECT WAY TO EAT because each and every single person on this planet is unique. There are different body types, people have different goals, different lifestyles, food sensitivities, live in different climates, geography and food availability could be an issue, age requires different nutrients, and even weather play a part in our food needs. Having countless food options increases your chances to achieve optimal health, vibrancy, and your own fitness goals. Whether it’s too much of a particular type of food or too little of certain nutrients, the best way to harmonize the body is by creating balance but as many of us know …

The Ultimate Universal Language Between A Mother and Her Child

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People can not live without each other, we are social beings. As soon as we are in contact with one another we are communicating. A smile is the universal language to show happiness and nothing is more true than for a new mom. When I witnessed Jackson smile for the first time everything came to a halt. My world stopped and nothing else mattered than his precious smiley face. I saw his soul shinning through and as new mom I finally felt validation that I was doing things right. Watching your child smile means they are happy. It means you are doing a good job as a Mother. It is the best feeling in the world. What makes you smile?    

“Life Always Gets In The Way…”

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None of us are exempt from the pressures in life. We all have stress and situations that test us or possibly even push us to the brink of crumbling. All too often, something or someone or some moment, causes us to lose track of our goal and revert back to behaviours that no longer add value to our lives. We’ve all been there right? Of course most of the time we don’t choose our adversity BUT we certainly have the power to choose our response to it. And it’s this response that I call the “IF Factor”. IF we respond positively to challenges and difficulties, then the outcome will be potentially positive. IF we respond negatively to our challenges and difficulties, then the outcome will be potentially negative. IF we respond to challenges and difficulties in the same manner as we always respond to it (i.e. emotional eating, BLTs, etc.), then the outcome will almost certainly be the same. The pain of adversity never leaves us unchanged, but if treated right, can be the catalyst …

My Top 10 Rules To Be Your Best Self & Best Mother To Your Child

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I love being a Mom, it’s the biggest gift and blessing I’ve ever received. I think as women we build up the perfect picture of what Motherhood should be, while trying to do it all ourselves, not taking time for ourselves and on top of it all trying to look amazing while doing it, sound about right? Why are we so darn hard on ourselves? I’m guilty of this but I have a few rules that I live by to help me replenish my soul and keep me on track to be my best self and Mom to Jax. 1. Cut TV time and get to bed early so I can wake up before Jackson and enjoy a cup of coffee and a book or creative writing time in silence. 2. I weight train 4 times a week and go on a daily walk with my boy. 3. I plan a date night with my hubby once a week. 4. I listen to a podcast while having a mani-pedi. 5. I garden (I usually have …

10 Delicious Fat Burning Protein Shakes

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A Busy Mommy can often lead to unhealthy food choices which will crash energy levels and store unwanted fat on the belly, hips and thighs. Who wants that, right? What do you grab on the go with you? Fruit, nuts, a granola bar? Or worse fast food, chips or crackers? Although fruit, nuts and granola bars seem like the better options they are really limited in the amount of protein per serving. Protein is is the most essential macro-nutrient as it’s integral for building lean muscle so your body can burn more fat. It also plays and crucial role in catalyzing biochemical reactions, DNA repair, maintaining the structural and functional integrity of cells and much more. We all should aim to have 1 gram of protein per body weight. So if you weigh 145 pounds you will need 145 grams of protein per day. That’s like eating 4 4oz chicken breasts per day! As a very Busy Mommy myself I know how hard it can be to prep meals and find the time to eat …

Weight Loss in a nutshell…

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One of the biggest reasons people fail or give up on their diet is because they’ve never truly understood the process or been given realistic expectations for true fat loss. When it comes to weight loss, there will be good weeks and slow weeks. But if you’re fully compliant there are never, ever bad weeks or even reasons to be discouraged. Most of us have tried fad diets in the past and may have lost some weight off right off the bat and this is usually followed by the weight being put back on because the methods were too extreme. I’ll repeat over and over again that this is NOT a good dieting strategy. This would be like getting your hair done and having it look fantastic after the salon only to have it all fall off the next week. A great dieting strategy is one that is long lasting, sustainable and maintainable. This process takes time and does not happen overnight just like gaining body fat doesn’t happen after consuming one off plan meal. …

Daily Rituals

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HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! With 2016 now here (YAY!), I want to ask you all how many of you achieved what you set out to do for the year? How many of you had actual objectives? Some of the things that I’m going to be focusing on with my clients on an interactive basis is goal setting, making true decisions, leaning from your decisions, staying committed to your decisions (but flexible with your approach), and (most importantly) enjoying the decisions you made. Of course all of this encompasses diet and training but obviously can cover a lot of other things in your lives as well. What really changed my life a few years back was to create STRONG, personal, guilt-free behaviours that are congruent to my goals as a person, as a wife (and now as a mother), and as business woman that are done on a DAILY BASIS. Make no mistake in thinking that my rules that I apply to myself are righteous or correct (you might actually disagree with them) but these are rules …

Inside Fitness Hot and Fit 100

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I’m ecstatic to be a part of this year’s Hot and Fit 100’s Top 3! This time every year I look forward to seeing friends, colleagues, new faces, and other Fitness Professionals (that I greatly admire) grace the pages of Inside Fitness’ annual event and the issues just get better and better! A heartfelt congratulations to everyone featured! I am so honoured taking a place within this incredibly gorgeous and inspiring group of women especially since I took some time off from partaking in any photo shoots and events last year due to pregnancy so this recognition is extra special to me (thank you Arthur Kwiatkowski and Valeria Nova for the awesome images!). Thank you to Terry Frendo, Arthur  and the Inside Fitness staff for putting out such an incredible issue and a moment that the fitness industry eagerly awaits in bated breath for. I know it’s certainly one of my most favourite times of the year! Thank you so much to my STRONG GIRLS for continuing to motivate me daily with your commitment to …