This is such a hard post for me to write, but I'm doing it regardless... because I know I'm not the only one who needs to hear it. When I was the girl on the left, I HATED my body. I hated the way I looked and desperately wanted to be somebody else. Is there anything wrong with the girl on the left? Hell no! Should she feel like she is less beautiful, capable and WORTHY than the girl on the right? Absolutely not. Should she spend every waking hour worrying about the way her '

Have you ever worked to achieve a certain goal, but by the time you achieved it, you just moved that goal post further away? This is something I've been talking about quite a bit with my clients & friends, and to be honest... it's also something I'm 100% guilty of doing, too. Oftentimes, we forget to look back on how far we've come and celebrate our current accomplishments. Instead, we're quick to move onto the next one, without one moment of gratitude or sense of appreciatio

Many of you might have seen my Insta story a couple weeks back where I showed you my 2 second transformation. But for anyone who missed it - I thought it was really important to post it here, too. This is just a friendly reminder that it is SO DAMN EASY to manipulate the camera so that it shows only our best angles. But, they aren't our only angles. Take it from me, NONE of us look as good as our social feeds do. Behind every photo, there are always the other 500 photos it to

Lately, I’ve been feeling a little burnt out. (Actually, a lot burnt out.) I’ve been putting so much of my time and energy into helping others, being as available and accessible as possible, studying, cooking, cleaning, learning, teaching, and pouring my heart into all of these amazing side projects, that I’ve barely had any time to step back and think - how am I doing, really? But, isn’t that often the case? How many of us put ourselves - our hopes, our dreams, and our desir

Hi there, friends! Today, I don't have a post to share about improving your health or fitness. I'm not sharing my fave tips for staying productive, or the best exercises for building the glutes. Today, I'm just here to say that it's completely OKAY to be where you currently are - in your fitness journey, in your career, and in your life - right. damn. now. Not in 4 weeks from now. Not once you achieve your goal weight, your dream job or make X amount of $$. But, right where y

Every year, I love to write down an empowering word that becomes the main focus of my year. Last year, my “word” was GROWTH - in business, in personal development, in physical strength. I grew more than I ever thought I was capable of growing in one year. (And I know I’m just getting started!) But, this year, I wanted to focus on something different - something I haven’t been pouring into lately, but I know it can fulfill me in ways I won’t yet be able to fathom. This year is

Over the past year, you guys have all watched me... → completely transform my body through an intense 30-day cut → become a Certified Personal Trainer (CPT) → start my own business → become a trainer at @f45yorkville → complete my first bulk → launch my first ever 4-week training & nutrition program that’s designed to help busy women all over the world achieve their fat loss goals - whether they work out at home or in a gym, called Stronger Ever After It’s hard to believe I’v

It’s been said that “we are the sum of the 5 closest people in our circle”. Which is why it’s so important to keep the RIGHT people closest to us. Personally, I consider myself so lucky and blessed to have finally found my tribe - the friends I can count on when I need them, who constantly push me towards achieving my dreams and goals, and who I can go weeks (even months!) without seeing, and when we reunite it's like no time has passed at all. We support each other. We lift

Ever felt like you’re self-sabotaging your own progress? Whether it’s by making excuses about we you don’t need to go to the gym, wasting time while we’re there, or not just putting your ALL into our workouts - we’ve ALL been there. We’ve all had those days, or weeks, or MONTHS where we haven’t felt like we’ve been doing absolutely everything we need to do in order to achieve a certain personal goal. It happens. And it’s completely OKAY to feel this way. However, what’s helpe

Lately, I haven’t been feeling good enough. Every morning, the first thought that rushes into my head before I can even control what’s happening is to look down at my body and validate that it’s NOT what I want it to look like. “Remember those abs I used to have? Yup. They’re long gone...” “My butt definitely doesn’t look as good as it used to.” “I hate the way my thigh fat jiggles.” You get my point. Many of you who don’t know me personally wouldn’t even realize that I’ve be

Behind these photos lie more than just a physical transformation. Here's a bit more about what was going on in each of these photos beyond what you can see. LEFT PHOTO: At this point in my life, I was trying to navigate all the feelings of inadequacy, of feeling "not _____ enough", after having been bullied for most of my childhood. I chose to use movies, TV and books as a way to escape from my reality and used food as an emotional crutch to hide from the fact that I didn't t

I used to spend my days WISHING that I could be (insert adjective here) - whether it was thinner, fitter, smarter, more successful, you name it - but not actually taking ACTION or doing anything about it. However, one of the biggest lessons I've learned over the course of my fitness journey is this: if you really want something, it’s entirely up to YOU to go get it. Trust me. You’re not going to achieve your goals by sitting around and waiting for someone to realize your full

Happy #ThankfulThursday everyone! Who else is feeling super grateful for everything they’ve accomplished this year so far? As this year is slowly coming to a close (can you believe we're almost 3 months away from 2019!?), it can be WAY too easy for us to feel pressured to reach every single goal we’ve set for ourselves. However, instead of focusing on the checklist of goals we still have yet to tick off, I think it’s even more important to go back and appreciate the ones we D

For those of you who’ve been following my fitness journey, you may already know that I am a HUGE advocate for self love, balance, and sustainability - and openly talk about overcoming personal traumas related to extreme bullying and body dysmorphia. But, rarely do I openly talk about the ripple effect that these past traumas have on my everyday life. From the outside, it may look like I have it all together. From the outside, it may look like I never have to deal with the eff

Hey, you. Yes, you. The one who wakes up in the morning, looks in the mirror and frowns, because you don’t quite like what you see staring back. The one who wears your clothes a few sizes too large because it hides the parts of your body that you’re ashamed to let everyone see. The one who doesn’t go to that party or that event because you don’t want everyone to be staring at you. The one who chooses the salad when you go out to a restaurant, only to come home feeling hungry

Happy September, fit babes! While we can all start to feel overwhelmed by the fact that summer is (almost) officially over, this is just a friendly reminder to take a step back and truly appreciate all the incredible things, opportunities & people in your life that made your summer an incredible one. Here’s a few things I’m grateful for this summer: Getting to do what I love every single day Having some of the BEST sleeps of my life (ever since my Carpal Tunnel Syndrome was f

We live in a society that compares everyone else’s highlight reels to our own “behind-the-scenes” footage - from the tropical beachside vacations (that were planned years in advance), to the perfectly posed selfie (on the 400th try), to the visually stunning meals (that took HOURS to cook and assemble). When we see others living this “perfect” life, it can become so easy to slip into that dreaded “comparison” trap. You know the one. The one where we instantly feel like we’re

One of the main things I really wanted to focus on this month was allowing myself more of a balance between building my career as a personal trainer and actually having a LIFE – being able to enjoy weekend adventures, going out with friends, eating foods that are probably not very nutritious but just taste really damn good, and not worrying for a single moment how many calories are in them. And this past week, that's exactly what I did. Since I'm still recovering from my Carp

Happy August, Insta fam! Can you believe summer is almost over already!? If you feel like you’re still scrambling to get more focused this summer - whether it’s in your career, your social life, your personal life, or your health and fitness - I've got you covered. One of the key ways to ensure that you’re operating at your best each month is GOAL SETTING. In doing this, you get to celebrate the things you did well, reflect on the things that need improvement and focus on how

I spent a lot of time thinking about whether or not I should post this photo. It may be considered controversial to some people - which is why I’d like to explain WHY I’ve decided to share it. REASON 1: People may make assumptions about ANY woman who shares a photo like this: “She’s an attention seeker, she’s showing off too much skin, she must value herself very little.” Women have always been held to a double standard. Whether we’re comfortable or uncomfortable with showing