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Science, experience and perspective on strength, food and energy
What the research says, what I see coaching women every week, and what I'd tell a friend.
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Energy and recovery
How to Actually Get Better Sleep (Start Here Before Trying Anything Else)
Better sleep starts with one decision: what time you are going to bed today. Here is the 10-3-2-1-0 framework and which habit to start with.
Client stories
You're Not a Low-Energy Person. You're an Under-Resourced One.
If you sleep enough and still feel flat, the answer probably isn't more rest. Energy is an output. Here are the three inputs one client changed.
Nutrition
Why the Diet Advice You Grew Up With Doesn't Work on Your Body Now
Eating less isn't the same as eating enough of the right foods. Why 90s and 2000s diet rules leave women who strength train underfed.
Mindset
I've Checked My Stomach in the Mirror Every Day Since I Was Sixteen. Here's What Finally Changed.
I have checked my stomach in the mirror every day since I was sixteen. The habit didn't go away. My relationship to what I saw did.
Strength training
Do You Need Cardio to Lose Weight or Get Toned? Probably Not, and Here's What to Do Instead.
Most women start with cardio, but for the toned look it is the wrong starting point. Strength training builds the muscle that makes it visible.
Strength training
What Is Zone 2 Cardio, and Do You Actually Need It?
Zone 2 is a sustained, conversational pace you could hold for 30-60 minutes. What it is, how to tell you are in it, and how much you need.
Strength training
How to Design Your Own Strength Training Program (The Part Most Guides Skip)
Most guides tell you which exercises to do. This one covers your constraints, the four movement patterns and why a program stops working.
Strength training
I Was the Most Consistent Person in the Gym for Years. Here's Why I Had Nothing to Show For It.
Being consistent with your workouts isn't the same as training effectively. Why years of showing up built nothing, and what changed.
Strength training
The Programming Mistakes I See Most (Including the Ones I Made for Years)
Most workout programs stall for the same structural reasons, not from lack of effort. The six programming patterns that quietly stall progress.
Mindset
The Only Way to Do an Exercise Wrong? Not Doing It.
The fear of doing an exercise wrong is almost never about technique. It's about being watched while you learn. What to do instead of waiting.
Nutrition
How to Hit Your Protein Goals Eating Fast Food (A Framework I Taught to Teenage Athletes First)
What to order at a fast food chain to hit your protein goals: prioritize grilled protein, add vegetables or fruit, and go easy on the sauces.
Mindset
How to Actually Get Back Into Working Out After a Break
Getting back into exercise after time off works best when the plan adjusts to where you are today. Why the first few weeks matter most.
Mindset
What Happens When You Actually Get What You Wanted
Reaching a goal and feeling strangely flat isn't a sign you didn't want it enough. It has a name: the arrival fallacy. Here is what it means.
Client stories
Run Your Race
Wanting to quit a program right when it's working isn't a sign the plan is wrong. Often the repetition is wearing on you, not the results.
Strength training
Can You Build Muscle After 40? Here's What the Research Actually Says.
Yes, women can build muscle after 40, including well past menopause. What changes with age is how much training volume it takes to get there.
Strength training
Strength Training for Runners: A 2-3x Weekly Routine You Can Take and Run With
Strength train two days a week, three if your mileage allows, 30-40 minutes a session: prep, produce force, one-leg force and absorbing force.
Energy and recovery
Why Walking Beats Burpees for Getting Leaner
Burpees burn more calories per minute, but walking wins over a day: 25 burpees burn about 20 calories, a 15-minute brisk walk about 70.
Mindset
Lost Your Motivation to Work Out? Why "Looking Hot" Stops Being Enough
Lost your motivation to work out? If looking hot got you started but isn't keeping you going, here's why your why ran out and how to find a new one.
Mindset
Athletes Get Coached. The Rest of Us Get Cut.
Never been athletic? Fitness feels harder when you were left out before anyone coached you. It's a coaching gap, not an ability gap.
Mindset
The "Good" Rice Pudding: How to Make Time for Fitness When You Can't Be Great at Everything
Making time for fitness means choosing what to let slide. A strength coach on optimization culture and why fitness needs a permanent seat at the table.
Mindset
Struggling to Work Out as a Busy Parent?
For busy parents, losing a workout often means losing an hour out of the house. Why that third place matters, and how to protect it this winter.
Mindset
Why Is It So Hard to Work Out When You Work From Home?
Working from home took away the start and end of the day. Why that makes workouts slip, and how to put a start line back into your workday.
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