MIND-BODY-HEART CONNECTION
If you struggle with yo-yo dieting, body image or feeling STUCK, this workshop will give you the mindset kick you’ve been craving.
In this workshop, you’ll learn the 3 key steps to
❌STOP struggling to shed weight (and the baggage that comes from living in a body you hate)
♥️♥️ START feeling at home in your own skin while living with a deeper sense of joy
“I’m sick of obsessing over food. Calories. Carbs. Containers. Points. I just want to be able to enjoy my life and somehow fit into my skinny jeans. Is that too much to ask?”
“I want to lose weight, but I don’t want to focus on the scale. So sick of feeling stuck, and that number just haunts me.”
“I want to FEEL better in my skin and finally feel confident about the body I live in…
Maybe even love my body for everything it does for me…”
Girlfriend, if your goals (or wishes) sound anything like these, PLEASE LET YOURSELF OFF THE HOOK.♥️
You deserve to live your very BEST life.
But it’s tough to focus on YOUR unique path when you’re bombarded with messages about how “you too can lose ___ pounds in ___ days or less.”
Want to transform your bod?
>>>It all starts with a mindset shift.<<<
That’s how I lost 25+ lbs and kept it off.
((More on that later.))
In this workshop, you’ll learn:
✨3 signs that the obsession to “get healthy” is preventing you from being healthy
✨ How to release self-sabotaging patterns
✨The KEY “before & after” red flags to avoid when you’re starting your wellness, fitness or weight-loss journey.
This tool will empower you to transform in mind, body and heart in ways you’ve decided aren’t possible.
YOU CAN DO THIS, SISTER.
And please know, I am here to cheer you on with fierce compassion.
Before we begin the Project Light Wellness Workshop series, there’s something you should know about me…
And please don’t laugh (too hard).
I used to believe that:
▪️six packs were the marker of success 🙄…I know.
▪️if a workout didn’t make me sweat, shake and “burn out,” what’s the point?
▪️writing down everything you eat is the only way to lose weight #crazymaking
▪️carbs = 👿. Fat too.
▪️my weight defined my worth as a fitness professional (and as a woman🤭).
That last one breaks my heart.
Not only because I struggled with my body image.
or because my self-confidence yo-yoed with my weight
…but because I know I’m FAR from alone.
My passion for fitness began when I was young. Too young. It stemmed from a desire to feel good inside and out, although I don’t know that my childhood self would have used those exact words. I loved how dancing, ice skating, biking and even running made me feel.
However, that’s only half the story. The desire to feel good also had a dark side. Like too many young girls, I wished that I could have more control over how my body looked.
Since I as young as 8-years old, I remember wanting to be skinnier. “If only I could lose 5 lbs,” I thought.
As I entered high school and joined the dance team, I thought, “10 lbs. If I could lose 10 lbs, I’d feel so much better about myself in my [ridiculously tight] costumes.”
The number only grew as I moved away for college… as I started teaching group fitness and running training programs for instrutors and personal trainers.
I an extreme internal pressure to be “as fit” as my clients wanted to be.
The pressure to be thin nearly crushed my passion for helping others; I took a two year hiatus from fitness and wellness to study meditation, Buddhist philosophy and mindfulness.
Not surprisingly, this break from focusing on the physical empowered me to discover something I probably knew all along.
I bet you know it too.
Loving your body doesn’t start when you reach some far off finish line.
Loving your body (and yourself for that matter) begins now.
It’s not conditional on a certain weight or pant size or shape.
In fact, loving yourself for who you are now is the quickest (and kindest) way to finally weigh what you want.
Honestly, it wasn’t until I completely embraced the 3-key elements that I share in this video that I started actually feeling good about myself, while no longer wanting to be or look like anyone other than myself.
The New Year is approaching. You know the craze that follows.
It’s time to choose a different path.
Because, when we know better, we do better, and it’s time to treat yourself with far more care, Sister.
If we’re going to teach our little ones about positive body image, self-compassion, and true, whole-person wellness, we have to dig deep within.
It starts with lightening the load of guilt, shame, frustration and messed up beliefs that we carry about our weight.
It starts with shedding a light on the power of awareness, conscious decisions, intentional action and mother-freaking compassion.
It starts with you choosing to be unconditionally kind to yourself this year.
It starts here.
In this video, you’ll learn:
➕ EXACTLY why 90% of diets and fitness programs fail
➕ 3 key elements that will free you to rise above these pitfalls.
➕Actionable Steps you can start taking TODAY to love your body and live your truth.
This tool will empower you to transform in mind, body and heart in ways you’ve decided aren’t possible.
YOU CAN DO THIS, SISTER.
And please know, I am here to cheer you on with fierce compassion.
◾️If you’ve ever struggled to make a change
◾️If you feel like you’ve tried EVERYTHING, but your body just seems to yo-yo…
((EVEN THOUGH you own all the diet books, workout programs, fitness mags and food-tracking apps.))
◾️If negative body image sabotages your efforts to gain confidence (or at least feel comfortable) in your own skin
THIS [FREE] SERIES IS MADE FOR YOU.
◾️Especially if your sick and tired of quick-fix, magic pill solutions… and want someone to just be real with you about how HARD it is to make a lasting transformation.
You‘ll learn how to SHED fear-based beliefs around food, weight and exercise so you can finally: weigh what you want, transform into the woman you were meant to become, and reclaim your life.
Be the first to know about upcoming workshops, LIVE Q&A sessions, and exclusive trainings when you become a member of my FREE private facebook group!
,,,and you’ll receive daily doses of kick-your-ego-in-the-pants self-compassionate inspiration.
If you’re struggling with confidence and/or me-time, this is a sign, girlfriend.
Get your sweet self in here NOW!
This tool will empower you to transform in mind, body and heart in ways you’ve decided aren’t possible.
YOU CAN DO THIS, SISTER.
And please know, I am here to cheer you on with fierce compassion.
Do you want to try yoga, but aren’t sure where to begin?
Have you signed up for a class but felt like an outsider?
In the video below, I’ll share my 3 (unconventional) tips with you about beginning a yoga practice with confidence, presence and a sense of humor.
But first, I’ve got to tell you:
I get it.
I know how it feels to want to get into something that you hear is beneficial… but then feeling LOST about where to begin.
While yoga has been my passion, my therapy and my job for 14-years, I nearly ran out of my first meditation class.
I wish I was joking.
I went in with confidence. I thought I was a mindful person. I mean, I had done my fair share of self-reflection during my yoga teacher training and I found great value in the silence and stillness in my yoga practice.
However, meditation felt completely foreign to me.
My sneaky A-type personality convinced me that there had to be a “right” way to meditate… and if had racing thoughts and felt even more annoyed than when I sat down, I had to be doing it wrong.
But I want you to know what I wish I would have learned during my first class.
There is no “right” when it comes to mindfulness.
I know this goes against the grain; there are numerous “how-to” books, videos, retreats and tutorials out there on the step-by-step process to begin meditation or how to start a proper yoga practice.
However, after 14-years studying yoga (and 10-years struggling with meditation) I’ve learned that the only wrong ways to be mindful is to fail to show up OR to show up without a sense of humor.
And you, my friend, are reading this for a reason; by virtue of being right here, right now, you are showing up. You are curious, and curiosity breeds humor.
If you’re ready for an unconventional, open-hearted, slightly humorous introduction to yoga, I’d love to share my 3 against-the-grain tips with you today, so you can practice yoga with confidence, presence and genuine joy!
If you’d like to dive right into a humorous practice, try your own (toddler-friendly)
10-minute toddler yoga session!
Do you ever feel like you’re completely, utterly STUCK?
I remember feeling like I was swirling down a helpless sink hole during my first winter in Chicago.
I was in my early twenties (which feels like a lifetime ago) and I was working 12-16 hour days, commuting on public transit to four different gyms and studios all over the city, and I was creeping towards my heaviest weight ever. It’s always difficult to not feel at home in your skin, but I felt an extra layer of shame because I was a fitness professional. It was my job to help people live healthier lives… and here I was, approaching severe exhaustion and extreme hopelessness about my own health.
I don’t know when or how, but one beautiful spring day, a LIGHT BULB switched on in my head. Out of nowhere, I realized:
I don’t have to live this way. This doesn’t need to be my reality any longer.
Money had been my biggest concern, and I let the concern over earning “enough” cloud my vision of how sick, puffy and sad I had become.
Within a month, I decided to quit two of my jobs – the jobs that were draining me most – and decided to start my own fitness business. It was time for me to lean into my personal wellness philosophy, which had less to do with “go hard or go home” or selling clients on extended training packages, and more about fitness as a form of therapy – an act of self-compassion.
I was quite young, I made mistakes, but I learned by taking messy action.
The sadness lifted, the hustle turned to flow, and my winter pounds started melting off.
I was genuinely happy.
Unfortunately, that’s not the end of the story. I would go on to yo-yo in weight, work-life balance, and happiness for nearly the rest of my twenties, until I stumbled into the value of mindfulness.
When I look back at my 20-something self, I still cringe. Even though I owned a business that supported me more than my splattering of jobs ever did, even though I felt like I was making a real difference in others lives, even though I cut my working time in half, even though I had the best clients in the world…
I continued to feel itchy in my own skin.
I couldn’t find balance.
This feels awfully raw to admit, but I didn’t want to face my own loneliness at a time when my heart was ready for growth, but I couldn’t get out of my own way.
I drank and ate too much most weekends and spent my entire week atoning for my Friday, Saturday and Sunday Funday sins, eating extra “clean,” attending all the yoga classes, restricting myself from food I perceived as a “treat,” and berating myself for falling so far off track.
The weight of my guilt was unbearable, almost as unbearable as the indulgence, guilt, restriction cycle itself.
Once again, I was stuck. Painfully stuck.
On the outside, it looked like it took a move to Boulder, Colorado, a 30-day meditation retreat, enrollment in grad school and meeting my husband to find my true path.
However, I know that one internal shift changed everything.
I gave myself the space to be myself.
What does that mean?
I reflected on why I craved the escape of the weekend… or food… or the strangely satisfying return to my regimented weekdays.
I began to listen to my body and my heart about what I need. Slowly, the “shoulds” and the shame in my mind started to fade into the background.
I faced tough emotions. I acknowledged and eventually released the self-sabotaging patterns. I broke down and I broke through.
Often, we forget how far we’ve come, especially when we feel STUCK in our current situation. We fail to recognize that this season of life is just that: a season. Finding morsels of light and truth in this season will allow us to emerge when we are truly ready, in mind, body and heart.
Today, sweet friend, rather than beating yourself up for where you’ve been or how far you (think you) have to go, use this 3-minute journaling practice to uncover authentic gratitude for this very moment.
It’s not about ignoring your past or stifling future growth, but rather appreciating the true beauty in who you already are.
The video below will teach you my 3-minute journaling method that I have the honor of sharing with our Strong Mama VIP Experience this month.
Watch this video to:
If you’re curious about the Breakthrough, doors are currently closed.
However, the principles — gaining true strength, healing your relationship with your body and becoming more present in your life — are available to you NOW!
Join the LIFT UP, RISE UP Butts, Guts & Body Image Challenge to begin filling YOUR cup again today.
One morning, it all just clicked.
I had been feeling sorry for myself. I found myself in complaint-mode too often. I mean, I had been to ONE solo yoga class since Max was born. One class in 15 months.
I never get any time to myself, I shouted internally.
And then I did something crazy.
I started consciously breathing… and moving.
I reached my arms up, drank in a deep inhalation, and started stretching.
Max usually tells me to “sit, sit” when I start moving my body in strange ways. He pulls at my hands and says, “off,” when I try to plank or push-up.
But on this particular morning, as if he could sense how much his mama needed this little win, Max kept playing.
I indulged in a little forward fold… Max kept playing.
I dared to lunge, to twist, to plank and downdog… and my mama-obsessed, busy little boy kept playing.
It was a toddler miracle!
In reality, yoga doesn’t work for us in every moment. Sometimes I fit in a stretch or two, other times I get in a good 10 breaths before Mr. Max demands my attention, and other mornings, like this one, I get to stretch, flow and breathe for 10 glorious minutes.
I have the honor of working with a great range of women, and I’ve discovered that moms in particular feel particularly torn between their health and their responsibilities.
Can you relate?
If you feel torn between your time-limits and your deep desire to do something for yourself, short “pockets of time” self-care moments like this Yoga class could serve as a beautiful bridge between where you are and who you’d like to become.
(If you’re brand new to yoga, watch this video about the how-to’s of starting a yoga practice.)
No matter where you are on your yoga journey, please allow yourself the space, grace and self-compassion to engage in your practice with the following tips:
Whether you attempt to do Yoga with a toddler or alone, I hope you enjoy this Awakening Yoga Flow as much as Max enjoyed running around during this session.
Leave a comment below with one word or phrase reflecting how you feel when you complete this practice! If you’d like to see more Yoga classes like this, in addition to mindful life-hacks, meditation practices, fun workouts and intuitive eating conversations, make sure to join our Transforming Wellness facebook group today!
When I first decided to get back into working out
with an unpredictable newborn schedule, I had three notable options:
a) Randomly piece my own workouts together, praying that I’d “make” time or “find” energy. I had an idea about what I “should” do, but I couldn’t quite get there. I lacked an intentional plan, so I ended up feeling frazzled, frustrated and like I was wasting precious time rushing through a workout that left me feeling more stressed out than when I started.
b) Drop serious money on a gym membership, yoga classes or maybe even a personal trainer. Sure I’d appreciate the structure, but I couldn’t afford that time away from home and I didn’t have it in me to research the most cost effective option. Great resources, just not my path at this season in my life.
c) “Press play” on a video workout. Honestly, this method worked on and off for me, but that was precisely the problem. With my hangry, explorative baby, I had to start and stop so many times. I felt frustrated, even though I was working my tail off. I questioned whether working out was worth all that negative energy.
I needed a quick win – not a quick fix – but something to help me feel like myself again.
I needed something that would go beyond getting me started… something that would launch me forward. More than anything, I wanted to rekindle my strength and give me the push to do something for myself each day, even if that “something” was as small.
And that’s when I started dreaming about that glorious “F” word. Freedom.
I fantasized about a workout program that didn’t have me bound to a gym, limited to a class schedule or glued to a TV, but that instead gave me the freedom to workout on my own terms. I dreamed about a legit full-body program that I could do in pockets of time throughout my day… That I could do anywhere – including my disaster of a living room… That I could customize so that I’d feel empowered from Day 1, and that I could adjust as my fitness grew… That wouln’t leave me wondering if my efforts are “enough.” (Oh what an ugly word.)…
And as I talked with more women, I realized that I wasn’t alone. So many of my friends, from new moms, to busy students, to full-time working women felt the same desire to rediscover their strength, to reclaim their time and to find a workout that was truly meant for their individual bodies at this particular season of life. That’s when it clicked. Busy women need this freedom + strength. Busy women need to move more with less hassle. Busy women need this program.
I’m determined to give people a simple path to feel stronger and more comfortable in their own skin
without feeling like they’d need 26 hours in a day (or a nanny, personal trainer, in-home chef combo) to get there.
That’s why I created this program and the corresponding community page; I’m excited to help you discover a customized workout rhythm and, most importantly, to empower you to live in a body that you love!
Want to sample the workout that you can literally do ANYWHERE, at any time, with any (little) one?
I’ve created a sweet sample for you, which includes the ins and outs of the circuit in the video above… plus some bonuses I won’t share anywhere else. You will feel AT EASE, yet EMPOWERED in your workouts as you learn how to create “Pockets of Time” circuits, how to enhance your workouts, and how to give yourself a mind-body experience with one simple shift.
Sign up below to gain access to the {FREE} Strong Mama Insider experience.
You’ll get:
* 3-Total Body Workouts complete with exercise descriptions, video tutorials,
and multiple modification options
* 3 Beautiful Mantras (downloadable & printable)
* Clear directions on how to create your very own 30-minute workout sequence with recovery intervals and Pockets of Time circuits
My child is a wonderful, sweet, explorative little person.
But he won’t leave my side.
I know in about 12 years, I’ll miss his need for “Mama” to “carry” him everywhere. (Maybe I’ll miss that…) But right now, I come close to insanity by the end of the day IF I don’t make a little time for myself.
As the sun starts to shine, I’m looking forward to taking our workouts outside, but just in case you need some rain day motivation, I have a mindset trick to share with you, which may sound silly (or as Max says “siwwy, siwwy, siwwy,” but this simple mindset shift completely removed the pressure I had placed on myself to make a conventional workout “fit perfectly” into my day.
Last winter, when I felt my mood and outlook start to dip, I knew I had to make a big mind-body-heart shift. Movement is the gateway to transformation in my life, so I decided to be playful and open and creative with my workouts. I let go of the expectation that I had to finish my workout within a 30-minute block. I carved my movements and circuits around what Max was doing in that moment. Almost immediately, our workout time together shifted into light-hearted, hilarious, joyful moments. Yet, I still felt like I was gaining strength, feeling the endorphin lift and doing something wonderful for my mind, body and heart.
As you can see, my “workout space” is a constant mess.
My “weights” often involve my child.
I rarely change into formal workout clothes.
My circuits are often chopped up and spread throughout our day.
However, the joy, satisfaction and strength that these workouts bring to my soul are what compel me to share this unconventional type of workout with you. In fact, the 4-Circuits that I spell out for you in this workout guide are exactly how I integrate self-care into my day, when when I’m home with Max.
Let your workouts be playful.
Be creative with your self-care.
Laugh about your mess (at least, that’s what I’ve decided to do).
Remember, there is no “perfect” or “ideal” way to balance mom-life and me-time.
What matters is that you make the time for your sweet self… and that you discover a little joy in the process. You deserve it, Mama!
Do you have images (of yourself) that you look back on and just laugh?
I’ve got to say, watching myself point at my preggo belly in this video makes me both cringe and giggle every time.
In some ways, I feel like pregnancy allowed my inner dork to emerge more than ever… and in other ways, I KNOW it made me stronger than I ever imagined I could be. (More on that another time.)
But my favorite thing about this workout isn’t that Mr. Max was in my belly (who at the time, we fondly called JoJo) or that I had felt him kick earlier in the week (I’ll blame his movement on my goofy smile).
My favorite part of this workout is that this lower body series can truly be done anywhere at any time with anyone. Whether you’re six months preggo*, stuck in an office, wearing a baby, chasing a toddler or enjoying a unicorn moment by yourself, you can take advantage of nearly every exercise within this series, and end each circuit feeling energized, stronger and grateful to have “snuck” a few moments to do something just for you. (SIDE NOTE: *I should be a responsible guide and note that you should absolutely check with your doctor – especially if you’ve got a JoJo on the way – before beginning an exercise program.)
Wellness isn’t about reconfiguring your entire life so your actions can fit into some box.
Whole-person wellness is about making small shifts that allow you to feel more awake, present and comfortable in your body both in this moment and in the long-run.
In other words, rather than feeling like you have to spend hours at the gym or in the kitchen or on your meditation cushion to be “good enough” or “fit enough” or “healthy enough,” I want you to know that the small, mindful MOMENTS matter.
Choosing a nourishing food over something that irritates your stomach, choosing to step outside for a walk rather than scrolling your newsfeed (I almost deleted that one… it stings, it feels too true), choosing to turn on your music and cruise through this leg circuit rather than (or before) pouring a third cup of coffee at 2PM – these seemingly small choices make significant shifts in your mind, heart and physical well-being over time.
While we may know this in theory, it’s important to act on our wisdom.
Today, I invite you to transform your inner wisdom into ACTION.
Make that small but mighty shift in your day by digging into this workout with the Free Workout Guide I’ve created for you.
Your legs may shake, your booty may feel an extra burn the next day, which is precisely the reason I created a fun Workout Guide for you. Check out
Download your Free Workout Guide and set yourself up to feel as refreshed, proud and beautifully balanced.
