When to push hard and when to take a nap...

Hey hey Diva friends!

The past few years have been a rollercoaster of ups and downs in my fitness journey. Sometimes I wondered if I was doing enough, and sometimes I wondered if I was doing too much. Ultimately, knowing my body and being willing to shake things up has paid off!

Today I wanted to keep it simple and tell you to always:

Listen to your body!

There are so many things that go into deciding whether you will workout today and if you do decide to workout what workout is best? The super intense program you've done all month or is it time for  a break? Below I'm going share 3 ways you can begin to tune into what your body is telling you.

1) Do you feel energized or sleepy during and after a workout?

If you are feeling excessively sleeping during and immediately after a workout it may be a sign that it's too much stress on your body at this time. Symptoms are one of the last things to appear when something is breaking down in the body...when we are under chronic stress and that begins to turn into metabolic chaos ( breakdown in multiple systems) we notice things like fatigue more frequently. The last thing you want to do in those situations is add stress to your body by doing some crossfit, HIIT, or bodybuilding work. Instead, focus on getting quality sleep, and incorporate healing movement like yoga, and long walks. Make sure you are moving as often as possible ( in a gentle way) as that promotes healing throughout the body.

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If on the other hand you leave a workout feeling pumped up an energized then you're doing what's right for you at this time! Push those weights up, run a little faster and see what makes you feel your best!

2) Is your body refusing to budge?

Maybe you've started doing a lot more than you used to but your weight isn't shifting. There are several reasons this may be the case:

a) You're not moving as much as you need to (up those weights, or increase the amount of time you move in a day).

b) You're eating the wrong foods for your body causing stress and inflammation.

(see my blog on #Youtrition here)

c) Your hormones are out of whack causing you to store excess fat.

d) You're under chronic stress and your body thinks it's protecting you by storing the fat.

Some of this is relatively simple to experiment with on your own. Even C you can make great strides in diminishing your stress and increasing your quality of life. However sometimes working with a practitioner to dig a little deeper opens doors and explains things you simply cannot guess on your own. If you suspect a lot of hormone issues and/or gut imbalances of any kind we should talk! (comment below or email me: thetinyfitdiva@gmail.com)

3) What is your cycle telling you? 

This is my most recent fascination. Tracking your cycle and how you feel working out during each phase can be very beneficial! Some weeks you may find that you're consistently a little fatigued and others that you're charged up and ready to go!

Use a tracker like MyFlo that assists you in noticing these patterns. When you identify which weeks you have energy to spare then assist your body by lifting heavier and running faster. On the weeks where you notice you're consistently more fatigued prioritize walking, yoga, and rest!

Ultimately, YOU know your body. If it's giving you signs like headaches, fatigue, regular injury or pain of any kind then it might be time to take a break.

If you notice an increase in strength, energy and vitality then kick it in to high gear and keep doing what you're doing!

Just remember  - it's OK to take a break.

Often you come back stronger when you do!

p.s. if you are struggling to find out why YOU haven't been seeing results and you're READY for a change I'd love to have you in my January 2018 program Get Gutsy With Me! Don't wait, you'll miss the early bird discount available until December 15th!

Not sure you want to jump in? Feel free to set up a 30 minute call with me so I can get to know you and hear your goals and your struggles. Just e-mail me at TheTinyFitDiva@gmail.com or comment below!

Healthy Tips for Travel

Traveling can be tough. We all have to do it periodically whether for business, vacations, road trips, or last minute emergencies. So how can we still prioritize our health when on the road?

The simple answer is: Don't compromise on your long-term health and nutritional values

That's probably a little TOO simple, so I thought I would share few more details.

Here are my top 3 tips:

1. Pack Snacks

Packing snacks has saved me from compromising choices many times! I. GET. HANGRY. Anyone else? No? Just me.....well if you're anything like me, when the hanger strikes then anything goes lol. So I always bring snacks and it changes from trip to trip but it generally includes things like:

• Beef jerky
• Crackers 
• Nuts/Seeds/Trailmix 
• Clean Snack Bars
• Dark Chocolate
• Shakeology

For this specific trip I had some fun things in the house and if you missed my live video you can check it out below: 

p.s. the Brami beans were no bueno :(

2. Know your non-negotiables

For me, my non negotiables are dairy and gluten. I will, however, relax on sugar when traveling which allows me some more freedom when I eat out! When you know for certain what you won't compromise on, it actually gives you freedom (and less stress) when eating out! For example - I usually stick to a meat and vegetable dish and will occasionally splurge on something fun like a gluten-free bun or gluten-free dessert! When going out to eat choosing a protein and vegetable is usually a great choice.

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Bison Burger with butter carrots and a gluten-free bun! The lemonade was hand squeezed and I'm sure full of sugar - but that was a treat!

My 2 days away:

Tuesday (on the road in the afternoon):

Dinner: Texas Roadhouse: 6oz steak +vegetables side + some of the crispy potato skin from the baked potato (+snacks in the car)

Wenesday:

Breakfast: scrambled eggs with some fresh chopped salsa from the hotel continental breakfast + coffee with some dairy free creamer.

S: Starbucks tall mocha with coconut milk no whip

S: snacks in the car ( see video)

Lunch/Dinner: We stopped at Ted's and I had the above bison burger with a gluten free bun, butter carrots, and hand squeezed lemonade :)

3. Relax and have a good time - 2 days away won't kill you!

If your vacation is only a few days try to relax and not stress out about the details. If you are consistent in your day to day life at home then a few days will not ruin that. As long as it doesn't break your non-negotiable then enjoy yourself! If you are vacationing somewhere for more like a week, do try to plan ahead, utilize the hotel room refrigerator, google restaurants and menus in advance, and make sure to have those healthy snacks on hand!

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