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my approach to holiday eating

I know first hand how holiday eating can wreak havoc on your mind!

You may think, “I’ll get in a long hard workout so I won’t feel guilty about Thanksgiving food.”

You may say, “I’ll starve all day to save calories for my Thanksgiving meal.”

I played this food obsession game for a really really really long time. As a female personal trainer in Honolulu, Hawaii, I’ve met many others who feel the same. What I’ve learned is that there are no food police. I am not the food police over me or over you.

I coach women to trust their gut. If it looks good, and you are hungry, then eat it. No food rules, no restrictions, just a healthy amount of mindfulness.

I help women to identify their Hunger, Energy and Cravings to eat moderation365.

Moderation365 Nutritional Coaching

Through my moderation365 coaching, I believe in changing one habit at a time. I will not give you more than you are ready because we will celebrate all wins!

So sis, please remember that this is not a time to earn your meal because it’s a holiday. In my Moderation365 nutrition coaching, I’ll teach you to focus on your body’s cues. You’ll learn how to automate your eating. You will be empowered to automate your eating, no deprive no binge. You’ll no longer have to white knuckle your way through a holiday meal again!

If this resonates you, sign up for my 21 Day Fitness Fix. to jump-start your 3M lifestyle. (My 3M Method, the backbone of my personal training programming and my personal training philosophy).

My Free 21 Day Fitness Fix

Over the course of 21 days together, I will ask you to consider making small changes along the way. And I guarantee this – that your achievements over the course of those 21 days will be truly life changing. You will stop scale obsession to quiet your inner critic. Your change will come from within (head and heart) creating the strong and permanent foundation of your health journey. You will be unstoppable!

Join my FREE 21 day email series called 21 Day Fitness Fix  to build the last program you will need. For 21 days, you’ll receive education, an anchor action and a sense of community you’ll receive through my tribe.

What do you have to lose? Take 5 minutes out of your day for your well being!I look forward to seeing you when my 21 Day Fitness Fix launches on November 21st!!!

Questions? I’ll be happy to answer any!

how to balance your exercise

Having balance in your life is important. As a Honolulu based personal and virtual trainer, I’m frequently asked how much time should clients spend on resting, lifting, doing cardio, stretching…

The KEY is to include the core components of a well rounded fitness routine. You can remember it this way:

Make sure your exercise routine includes the acronym CARP:

C = Cardio

A = Active Recovery

R = Resistance Training

P = Playtime

And to make it easier fir you to create your own CARP fit plan, I’ve included the nifty info graphic above! 

To get more insight, education and bonus content like this, sign up for my 21 Day Fitness Fix, a FREE 21 day email series teaching you my very own 3M Method to create a food & fitness lifestyle you’ll love ❤️.

Happy Weekend Tribe!

i knew this would happen

Excessive cardio caught up with me….

or maybe age did 😝 Either way it took about 20 years!

In a very small space of my brain 🧠 (teenie tiny) I knew this would eventually happen; that my over cardio and low calorie dieting days would became unbecoming. 

Through my years, I’ve seen the rebound when I was out of commission during many a triathlon racing surgeries, during colon removal surgery, during late term miscarriage… and with each instance, it became harder or perhaps, my resolve to “keep at it” shifted. 

What changed? Well, me, I changed. My mind changed. My point of view changed. My priorities have changed. 

I’m trying to bring life into this world and I had spent a better part of half of my life exercising LIFE right out of me. 

It worked really well for a really long time. 

That GRIT, DETERMINATION, LASER FOCUS allowed me to achieve many great feats personally and professionally.

But now, I just know better. I know there’s a better way; a much easier way. 

I’ve finally learned that self punishment is not self rewarding any longer. 

I’ve learned that beating yourself up isn’t moving the needle forward; but instead  slicing you open. 

And so now I’m in the acceptance phase; accepting of what will be will be; accepting of the weight I am at now not the weight I’m chasing and in the midst of all this acceptance, ladies it’s still HARD AS F!

Like an addict fighting to stay sober, I too fight to stay sane. I am human after all. 

BUT, all of this, this is why I remain steadfast in my training philosophy and my ability to create safe and successful healthy, happy food and fitness lifestyles for my tribe. 

I’m in it with you. I’m doing it with you. 💪🏾🔥❤️💋

what is your why?

Most of my clients have a weight loss or body fat loss goal. But it’s never really about losing weight.

Over my 20 years of training experience as a female in person and online personal trainer in Oahu, Honolulu, Hawaii, I have 100% certainty that having a simple “loss” goal of some sort isn’t juicy enough, doesn’t give you enough skin in the game so to speak, to keep you doing the thing when you don’t want to do the thing.

Here’s how I use my 3M Method of Mindfulness and the practice of the 5 WHY’s to help you create your real goal, your real why, the deep inside of your soul sort of goal. And THAT goal my friends, will keep you in it for the marathon, not the sprint!

I have (3) one on one coaching spots open in my 3M Method (my most comprehensive and all inclusive program). Email me here to schedule an intake call to determine if we are the right fit for you!

who the 21 day fitness fix isn’t for…

AN EXCUSER – when push comes to shove, this 21 day fitness fix isn’t for someone who relies on excuses to get a pass. No energy and no time won’t cut it here. The emails will take less than 5 minutes of your space and your daily anchor action will give you important insight into how you view food and fitness.

A SINGLE MINDED THINKER – my 21 day fitness fix isn’t for someone who always says “I just don’t have the motivation.” Stop saying you are too tired or too sad or too sick or too busy. It’s simply not true and until you turn your thinking around, you won’t see success. You will just keep feeling sick, tired and run down. With this old mindset of thinking, where will you be in 3 weeks from now, what about 3 months or even 3 years? It doesn’t just go away. It gets worse until you decide that you and your health come first.

A QUICK FIX FINDER – my 21 day fitness fix is NOT a quick fix. It is the EXACT opposite. I do not promote quick fixes or fad diets. My 21 day fitness fix instead looks at the underlying reasons behind your food and fitness behaviors (or lack thereof). My 3M Method in my 21 day fitness fix is based upon forward progress, slowly changing habits and making lifestyle changes that promote living a healthy, balanced life rather than being super strict for three weeks only to fall off the wagon and revert back to old ways in the end. “ALL OF THIS” – THIS is the basics of a living a healthy lifestyle!

No matter what you try or where you go for help with food and fitness, know this: We’re all looking for a ‘fix’, but what most people need more is a ‘long term solution’ so make sure whatever weight management program you choose is sustainable.

ASK YOURSELF:

Do you want to eat 1200 calories (or whatever number of calories they give you) and work out every day forever? If that is what your current program requires you to do, then don’t expect to maintain the results you get from this program (or at least continue to lose weight) over time. We all know what happens when you drop a bunch of calories out of your diet and then can’t sustain that level of restriction? That’s right! That weight comes. Right. Back.

My 21 Day Fitness Fix is a good jump-start to learn good habits in Mindfulness, Movement and Moderation (my 3M Method, the backbone of my personal training programming and my personal training philosophy.

Over the course of the 21 days together, I will ask you to consider making small changes along the way.

And I guarantee this – that your achievements over the course of those 21 days will be truly life changing. You will learn to stop relying solely on the scale or the pictures to show your success. You will start to quiet the inner critic in your head and you will learn how to accept all forward progress as HUGE personal wins! Your change will come from within, in your mind and in your heart, and that will be the strong and permanent foundation of your health journey. You will be unstoppable!

Join my FREE 21 day email series called 21 Day Fitness Fix where I train you to build your food and fitness program once and for all. My 21 Day Fitness Fix email series will give you a daily dose of education, a simple 3M anchor action to implement right away and a sense of community you’ll receive through my tribe.

What do you have to lose? Take 5 minutes out of your day for your well being!I I so look forward to seeing you when my 21 Day Fitness Fix launches on November 21st!!!

Questions? I’ll be happy to answer any!

health hiccup – are you tossing & turning?

Aloha! Today I wrap up the 6 most common health hiccups many of my clients had experienced prior to our work together. As a Honolulu based virtual trainer and personal trainer, I help women find a sustainable food and fitness plan they can commit to long term.

Here’s our recap:
Health Hiccup #1: Forgetting About Muscle
Health Hiccup #2: Ignoring Your Body’s Cues
Health Hiccup #3: Scale Weight Obsession
Health Hiccup #4: Skipping Meals
Health Hiccup #5: Making too many big changes too quickly

The final health hiccup is NOT GETTING ENOUGH SLEEP. How much sleep are you getting?

Many people in their 40s face pressures as they juggle career stress and family obligations, which can result in limited sleep. I have found that most people don’t get the recommended seven hours per night. Lack of sleep will affect your energy levels, your mood, your willingness to exercise and the quality of your food choices. Sleep is the most often underrated factor when it comes to clients being stuck in a rut.

Lack of sleep actually alters the way your brain works. A lack of sleep can increase appetite by changing hormones, makes us more likely to eat unhealthy foods, and influences how body fat is lost if even though you may be counting calories.

Lee-Ann’s 3M Method Fast Fix: Along with eating right and exercising, getting quality sleep is an important part of weight maintenance. To make matters worse, lack of sleep can become a vicious cycle. The less you sleep, the more weight you gain, and the more weight you gain, the harder it is to sleep.

On the flip side, establishing healthy sleep habits can help your body maintain a healthy weight. Here are some two of the top strategies I explore with my clients to up their sleep game:

  1. Take This Magnesium Supplement. I personally take 3 heaping scoops of Thorne magnesium right before going to bed. Magnesium is an important mineral that is necessary for overall health. Benefits of these supplements range from fighting inflammation and lowering blood pressure to improving sleep.
  2. Protect Yourself From Junk Light. Junk light — the blue light that emits from your smartphone, laptop, and tablet screens — is wrecking our sleep. Too much blue light messes with our brain’s production of melatonin — the hormone that tells your body when it’s time to snooze. Blue light wakes you up and tells your brain that it’s daytime. Screens aren’t the only source of junk light — street lamps and LED lightbulbs are also to blame.The best ways to protect yourself from too much blue light exposure:

DON’T MISS OUT! You are invited to my FREE 21 day email series called 21 Day Fitness Fix where I train you to build your food and fitness program once and for all. Launching on November 21, 2020, my 21 Day Fitness Fix email series will give you a daily dose of education, a simple 3M anchor action to implement right away and a sense of community you’ll receive through my tribe.

What do you have to lose? Take 5 minutes out of your day for your well being!I I so look forward to seeing you when my 21 Day Fitness Fix launches on November 21st!!!

Questions? I’ll be happy to answer any!

signs of a good workout…

For a really long time, I associated this with a good workout:

Pain-exhausted-sweating-high heart rate

And granted, during specific instances (racing triathlon), all of *those* feelings were #expected. 

But then my entire workout attitude got all fucked up and I associated all that as being ABSOLUTELY necessary for a “worthy” workout; which meant I was “good” and I “worked for my food.” Anything less than wouldn’t be good enough. 

I’ve been working on the #mindset switch since May 2018. And it’s been a game changer for me personally, mentally and also professionally as a Coach to all the other women who suffer as I did and who feel the same as I felt. 

So this is my friendly reminder to all of you that you don’t need to… 

-feel pain during a workout for it to count
-you don’t need to sweat for it to count
-you don’t need to be exhausted for it to count 
-you don’t need it to be anything at all for you to earn your meal because you deserve to eat food whenever you want food! 

Next time that nagging bitch voice inside your head tells you otherwise, hit me up on the DM or Voxer so I can help you silence her! 

If you want to learn how to build your own mindset shift with food and fitness, jump on my 21 Day Fitness Fix! I am here for ya! You are invited to my FREE 21 day email series called 21 Day Fitness Fix where I train you to build your food and fitness program once and for all. 

My 21 Day Fitness Fix email series will give you a daily dose of education, a simple 3M anchor action to implement right away and a sense of community you’ll receive through my tribe.

What do you have to lose? Take 5 minutes out of your day for your well being!I I so look forward to seeing you when my 21 Day Fitness Fix launches on November 21st!!!

Questions? I’ll be happy to answer any!

health hiccup #5: making too many big changes, too quickly.

Happy Sunday Fit Fam! We are at #5 of the 6 most common health hiccups my clients make before we begin our work together. Here is what we have discovered so far:

Health Hiccup #1: Forgetting About Muscle
Health Hiccup #2: Ignoring Your Body’s Cues
Health Hiccup #3: Scale Weight Obsession
Health Hiccup #4: Skipping Meals

The 5th health hiccup is MAKING TOO MANY BIG CHANGES, TOO QUICKLY. Have you done this?

When I meet a potential client, we either do a phone call or meet in person to get to know one another. It is during this meet and greet where we both figure out if we are a right fit to move forward with actual “in person” work together. As we discuss goals, this always happens – a client is super pumped to lose weight, stuck in a rut and wants to exercise, lift weights, change their diet, cut out sugar, get in 9 hours of sleep, eliminate caffeine, do more yoga, meditate… you see where I am going with this?

We tend to get so excited about our new adventure that we tend to want to DO ALL THE THINGS ALL AT ONCE since we have the motivation to do so. Sounds right, right?

Making too many changes too quickly is a sure fire way to burn out! No matter how motivated you are to make these changes, it is important to realize that any food and fitness change will create some stress in your life on top of the daily stress you already deal with (work, chores, household, etc.).

Lee-Ann’s 3M Method Fast Fix: I’m the trainer in your back pocket to talk you off of the ledge so to speak. My 3M Method will work with you to determine the best approach for YOU and YOUR BODY. And the best approach is to have a long-term goal, and then break it down into shorter-term goals and small changes. For example when I first work with a client, instead of changing their diet AND starting a new exercise routine the same week, I would have my client replace one sugary drink with water or commit to walking a mile each day to start. When you make changes that aren’t too extreme, you can go at your own pace and develop healthy habits that stick. This is the foundation of my 3M Method – helping women creating a healthy and sustainable relationship with food and fitness to create a wellness lifestyle they love!

I am the Personal Trainer ladies find when all of their yo-yo diets and extreme exercise has stopped working and their mental health has taken a toll because they live a diet & exercise obsessed life.

I am the Coach ladies find when they need a different point of view to help them navigate their wants, with their needs with their busy and overwhelming schedules.

I am the Partner ladies get into a relationship with because I help them transform their relationship with food and fitness into a sustainable and balanced 3M Lifestyle they love, that lasts not for 12 weeks but for their lifetime. (BTW – my proprietary 3M Method includes Mindfulness, Movement and Moderation; my 3 pronged approach to long term health and wellness with food and exercise!)

Jump on my 21 Day Fitness Fix! I am here for ya! You are invited to my FREE 21 day email series called 21 Day Fitness Fix where I train you to build your food and fitness program once and for all. 

My 21 Day Fitness Fix email series will give you a daily dose of education, a simple 3M anchor action to implement right away and a sense of community you’ll receive through my tribe.

What do you have to lose? Take 5 minutes out of your day for your well being!I I so look forward to seeing you when my 21 Day Fitness Fix launches on November 21st!!!

Questions? I’ll be happy to answer any!

health hiccup #4: skipping meals

Happy Weekend Fam!

Today is Day 4 of the 6 most common health hiccups my tribe suffered through before they started my 3M lifestyle switch with me! 

My 3M Method:

Mindfulness 🧘🏽‍♀️ Move 🏋️‍♂️ Moderate 🍱 

To recap, here’s what we covered so far:

Health Hiccup #1: Forgetting Muscle

Health Hiccup #2: Ignoring Body’s Cues

Health Hiccup #3: Scale Weight Obsession 

DRUM 🥁 ROLL PLEASE! 

Health Hiccup #4: SKIPPING MEALS! 

Have you done this? I have, more often than I’d care to admit and something I still have to watch out for when I fall back into food obsessive behaviors. #workinprogress

Skipping meals negative effect worsens after the age of 30. We think, “One less meal equals fewer calories in your day, right? So the less I eat the better.” 

Sorry sistah! Not exactly.

In order to lose weight, your body needs to create an energy deficit — taking in fewer calories than it’s putting out each day. But if you skip meals, your body might think it’s in starvation mode and learn to function on fewer calories. This can put a halt to your weight loss efforts.

Skipping meals can also cause you to end up eating more — and less healthy — in the long run. You may find yourself hungrier later in the day, and consuming more fat and calories than you would have, had you not skipped a meal. In our Moderation365 coaching, we call this The DEPRIVE INDULGE SCALE (DIS). And typically when we suffer in the DIS, we ping pong back and forth 🤯.

Getting into a habit of skipping meals can also become dangerous. If you start skipping multiple meals per day, every day, you may develop an eating disorder, such as anorexia.

The number of meals each person needs in a day can vary. You might be a breakfast-lunch-dinner person, or a five-mini-meals-throughout-the-day person. 

A registered dietitian can help you discover the healthiest meal plan for your individual needs.

THIS is the real stuff I tackle in my 21 Day Fitness Fix; a 21 day email series teaching you how to create your unique 3M Method to create a sustainable food and fitness plan that you love ❤️. 

What do you have to lose? Take 5 minutes out of your day for your well being! Register using the link in my bio!

health hiccup #3 – focusing solely on scale weight, sound familiar?

Welcome back! Over the past few days, I have been writing about the 6 most common health hiccups my ideal clients experience before we start our work together.

Hiccup #1 I called my Cardio queens, all my ladies using only cardio to chase a weight loss goal. My 3M Fast Fix is for my ladies to start focusing on lean muscle gain!

Hiccup #2 is people ignoring their body’s cues – the messages our bodies give when we are tired, hungry, craving something, stressed, sad – most of my ladies before picture including “pushing through all of these very real, very serious body signals which left them worse off than before. My 3M Fast Fix is for my clients to start to lift heavy stuff! right away!

Today, Hiccup #3 is a good one because ALL of my clients have at one point or another have done this – only focusing on the scale weight. Does this resonate with you?

It’s very common to feel like you’re not losing weight fast enough, despite faithfully sticking to your “plan”. However, the number on the scale is only one measure of weight change. I will remind you and coach you to remember that weight is ONLY 1 SMALL VARIABLE for success and that weight is influenced by several things, including body fluid fluctuations, how much food remains in your system, your hormonal shifts, if you ate a lot of salty foods the few days prior and we can go on and on and on.

In fact, weight can fluctuate by up to 4 lbs (1.8 kg) over the course of a day, depending on how much food and liquid you’ve consumed.

Also, increased estrogen levels and other hormonal changes in women can lead to greater water retention, which shows up on the scale.

If the number on the scale isn’t moving, you may very well be losing fat mass but holding on to water.

If you’ve been working out, you may be gaining muscle and losing fat. When this happens, your clothes may start to feel looser — especially around the waist — despite a stable scale weight.

Lee-Ann’s 3M Method Fast Fix: Include Other Metrics along with Scale Weight as Your “Win.”

Pull out your tape measure and measure these areas of your body: Waist on top of the belly button; Waist smallest part of your waist; your left thigh; your left calf; your left bicep; your bust at the nipple line and your hips at the widest part of your hips. Using a tape measure and taking monthly pictures of yourself can reveal you’re actually losing fat, even if the scale number doesn’t change much.

In my work with clients, I never rely solely on one’s scale weight. We rely on tape measurements and mood – how do you feel, how are you sleeping, are you finding enjoyment in your food and fitness plan, etc… Life is too short to be rocked by the scale, right?

I am the Personal Trainer ladies find when all of their yo-yo diets and extreme exercise has stopped working and their mental health has taken a toll because they live a diet & exercise obsessed life.

I am the Coach ladies find when they need a different point of view to help them navigate their wants, with their needs with their busy and overwhelming schedules.

I am the Partner ladies get into a relationship with because I help them transform their relationship with food and fitness into a sustainable and balanced 3M Lifestyle they love, that lasts not for 12 weeks but for their lifetime. (BTW – my proprietary 3M Method includes Mindfulness, Movement and Moderation, my 3 pronged approach to long term health and wellness with food and exercise!)

Jump on my 21 Day Fitness Fix! I am here for ya! You are invited to my FREE 21 day email series called 21 Day Fitness Fix where I train you to build your food and fitness program once and for all. 

My 21 Day Fitness Fix email series will give you a daily dose of education, a simple 3M anchor action to implement right away and a sense of community you’ll receive through my tribe.

What do you have to lose? Take 5 minutes out of your day for your well being!I I so look forward to seeing you when my 21 Day Fitness Fix launches on November 21st!!!

Questions? I’ll be happy to answer any!