As we step into 2025, many of us feel a renewed sense of motivation to set ambitious goals and create a healthier, stronger version of ourselves. The challenge, however, isn’t in setting the goal—it’s in sticking to it. So how do we make this the year we truly follow through and see lasting transformation? Here are seven proven tips to help you achieve your health and fitness goals in 2025.
Think Less About the “What” and More About the “Who”
We often fixate on what we want—lose weight, build muscle, run a marathon. While these goals are important, what truly matters is who we become in the process. Ask yourself: “What kind of person achieves this goal?” Then work on embodying those traits.
For example, someone who maintains a healthy weight isn’t just someone who diets; they’re someone who consistently prioritizes nourishing their body, staying active, and practicing self-discipline. Focus on developing the mindset and habits of the person you want to become, and the results will follow.
Example: If your goal is to lose 25 pounds, ask yourself: Who do I need to become to lose that weight and keep it off? You’ll need to adopt the mindset of someone who values consistency, prioritizes health, and makes long-term decisions that align with their goals.
Focus on Habits, Not Just the Goal
Big goals are inspiring but often overwhelming. Instead of obsessing over the end result, shift your attention to the daily habits that will help you get there. For instance:
Schedule workouts consistently.
Prepare nutritious meals in advance.
Drink more water and prioritize quality sleep.
By focusing on small, consistent actions, you’re not just chasing a goal—you’re transforming your lifestyle.
Focus on developing the mindset and habits of the person you want to become, and the results will follow.
Example: To lose 25 pounds, focus on habits like:
Drinking 2-3 liters of water daily.
Eating balanced meals with lean protein, healthy fats, and fibre-rich carbs.
Moving more, such as walking 8,000-10,000 steps per day.
Scheduling 3-4 strength-training workouts weekly.
These habits, when repeated consistently, will naturally lead to weight loss over time.
Think Less About Goals and More About Systems
James Clear, author of Atomic Habits, said it best: “We don’t rise to the level of our goals; we fall to the level of our systems.” If you don’t have systems in place to support your habits, even the best intentions will falter.
Create a meal-prep schedule to save time and reduce decision fatigue.
Set up reminders for workouts or hydration.
Use tools like Google Calendar or fitness apps to track your progress.
Create a morning routine with journaling or mindset practices.
These systems remove friction and make consistency easier to achieve.
Take It One Bite at a Time
How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. This analogy reminds us to break big goals into manageable steps. Trying to overhaul your entire lifestyle in one month often leads to burnout.
Example: Instead of trying to do everything at once, focus on small changes:
In Month 1, aim for 3 consistent workouts a week and increase daily steps.
In Month 2, add meal prepping and track protein intake.
In Month 3, refine sleep and stress management habits.
By tackling one area at a time, you’ll avoid burnout and create steady progress.
Focus on Today
Transformation happens in the present. While long-term goals are important, it’s what you do today that truly matters.
Example: Each day, ask yourself: What can I do today to move closer to my goal?
On a workout day, focus on showing up for your session.
On a meal prep day, prep just one meal if you’re short on time.
Winning today sets you up for success tomorrow.
Rest and Reflect
Rest is not a luxury—it’s a necessity. Overtraining or burning out mentally can derail progress. Plan rest days to allow your body to recover and your mind to reset.
Reflection is equally important. At the end of each day, ask yourself:
What went well today?
Where can I improve tomorrow?
Example: On rest days, focus on self-care like stretching, reading, or spending time with loved ones. Reflect on your wins and find areas for improvement without judgment.
Rinse and Repeat: Consistency Is Key
You are what you do consistently, not occasionally. Motivation might get you started, but consistency is what keeps you going. Even if progress feels slow or imperfect, stay the course.
Example: After 12 weeks of following these tips, here’s what your journey might look like:
You’ve lost 8-12 pounds and feel lighter and more energetic.
Your strength has improved—you can lift heavier weights or complete more reps.
You’ve established key habits like meal prepping, staying hydrated, and getting quality sleep.
You’ve built trust in yourself, proving you can stay consistent with a plan.
An Invitation to Build Systems for Success in 2025 Achieving your health and fitness goals isn’t just about willpower—it’s about having the right systems in place to support your journey. That’s why I created the Fit Club App, an all-in-one transformation platform to simplify your path to success.
Inside the Fit Club, you’ll find:
Programs tailored to your goals and schedule.
Recipes to take the guesswork out of meal prep.
Mindset tools to keep you focused and resilient.
And most importantly, an amazing community of like-minded women to inspire and support you.
We’re tribal by nature. When you’re surrounded by people who share your goals and values, you’ll find the strength to stay committed—even on tough days.
I know how overwhelming it can feel to want results faster, especially if you’ve tried before and felt like you failed. That’s why I created the 28-Day “She is Consistent” Challenge—to help you build consistency one day at a time. Together, we’ll focus on creating systems, strengthening habits, and aligning your lifestyle with the highest version of yourself.
Let’s make 2025 the year you achieve your goals and create lasting change.
Introduction: Maintenance is hands down the most misunderstood nutrition phase. People tend to think it’s a time when nothing happens, or worse, they treat it as a free-for-all with their food. As a trainer and nutrition coach, I’ve seen the power of maintenance for overall health, hormones, mental well-being, and performance.
Most women/men spend their lives chasing weight loss, only to rebound because they’re afraid to move out of a deficit. They yo-yo between fat loss and weight gain, never finding the balance they crave. But here’s the truth: maintenance is where the real magic happens. If you’ve felt stuck in a cycle of dieting, it’s because maintenance hasn’t been fully embraced. This article will break down why maintenance is the most important, yet underrated, phase—and how it can completely transform your body and mindset.
WHAT IS MAINTENANCE AND WHY DOES IT MATTER? Maintenance means your body is getting enough calories to support your organs, muscles, metabolism, and daily activities—while maintaining your weight. Think of it like balancing a scale: the calories you consume match the calories you burn.
Your maintenance calories come from these main components:
BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate)60-75%: This is the energy your body needs just to stay alive—keeping your heart beating and lungs functioning. For most women, BMR ranges from 1200-1440 calories, and for men, it will generally be higher because men tend to have lean muscle mass, which requires more energy.
NEAT (Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis)15-30%: Calories burned through daily activities like walking, chores, or fidgeting—not exercise.
TEF (Thermic Effect of Food) 10%: The energy your body uses to digest food, especially protein and fibre.
EA (Exercise Activity)5-10%: Calories burned during intentional workouts. While important, this doesn’t have as much impact on overall calorie burn as most people think.
Managing your health is no different from managing your finances. It’s about being proactive, understanding your body’s needs, and thriving. Tracking your macros is the foundation for a balanced, sustainable lifestyle.
Why is this important Because knowing your maintenance level helps you fuel your body properly. It’s about balancing macronutrients -protein, carbs, and fats – so you can recover, grow, and function at your best. When done right, maintenance can help you build muscle, burn fat, and age well. Chronic dieting can mess with your metabolism and hormones, while proper maintenance resets your body.
Most people who maintain an overweight body or struggle with weight gain do so because they’re not tracking their intake. They may be eating enough calories to maintain their current weight or even gain more fat, simply because they’re unaware of how important macros are.
If you don’t track your macros or focus on consuming whole foods, it’s easy to overeat processed, calorie-dense foods that don’t provide the nutrition your body needs for optimal performance. In many cases, if people were to adhere to their macros and focus on eating mostly whole foods, they could see significant changes in their body composition, even without drastically cutting calories or going into a deficit. (We’ll get into body composition and its benefits in a bit.)
To figure out your maintenance calories, head over to my Macronutrient Calculatorfor a custom breakdown. Use an app like MyFitnessPal to track your intake, or get personalized plans through the Fit Club Babes App.
COMMON MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT MAINTENANCE Let’s tackle the biggest misconceptions about maintenance:
“Nothing is happening at maintenance”: False! This is where your body recovers, rebuilds, and grows stronger – both physically and hormonally. Maintenance sets the foundation for long-term progress.
“Tracking is obsessive”: Managing your health is no different from managing your finances. It’s about being proactive, understanding your body’s needs, and thriving. Tracking your macros is the foundation for a balanced, sustainable lifestyle.
“Maintenance is a break”: No way. Maintenance is where you solidify your progress and continue evolving. It’s the phase where your body learns to maintain your hard-earned results.
Most people avoid maintenance because they’ve never been taught to understand or respect it. They often follow strict diet plans, then fall back into old habits when they don’t truly understand their maintenance calories. Worse, many people think of maintenance as eating whatever they want, but in reality, they’re consuming diets full of processed foods, typically high in fats and carbs, which leads to weight gain or maintaining an undesired body composition.
Without proper understanding, people don’t track their intake, and while they may be eating enough to stay at maintenance, it’s usually with the wrong balance of macronutrients. But if you learn to track and maintain your calories and macros, it becomes the foundation for sustaining long-term results, whether you’re aiming for fat loss or muscle gain.
WHY MAINTENANCE MATTERS (CASE STUDY & EVIDENCE) Research backs up the power of body recomposition during maintenance. A study published in Frontiers in Physiology showed that individuals who followed a high-protein diet and strength training program while eating at maintenance were able to build muscle and lose fat simultaneously, despite not being in a calorie deficit(Frontiers).
Another study published by InBody USA found that people who focused on maintaining their weight through progressive strength training and adequate protein intake had a higher chance of improving their body composition, even without calorie restriction (The Muscle PhD).
The same studies emphasize the role of hormonal balance during maintenance. Leptin, the hormone that signals fullness, increases when you’re eating enough calories, helping you manage hunger and cravings better. Ghrelin, the hormone responsible for hunger, decreases, leading to improved appetite regulation. When these hormones are balanced, not only does your metabolism stay efficient, but your overall mood and energy levels also improve, allowing you to perform better in workouts (InBody USA).
For example, I weighed 135 pounds and had 28% body fat, but after focusing on building muscle, strength training, and eating enough to support muscle growth, my body composition dramatically shifted. I now weigh 140 pounds with 19% body fat, and my physique looks completely different. This shows that while my weight increased slightly, the reduction in body fat and muscle gain has transformed my appearance, giving me a leaner, more defined look.
Many people, like me, experience this kind of transformation, where the number on the scale doesn’t reflect the changes happening internally and externally. This is because muscle is denser than fat, so even as weight remains constant or slightly increases, the body’s shape and appearance change significantly.
This is similar to many inspiring stories from women who, at the same weight, look dramatically different after focusing on resistance training and eating sufficient protein to support their goals. For example, one woman weighed 130 pounds before and after making dietary and exercise changes but looks completely different due to her increase in muscle mass and decrease in body fat (WorldWideInterweb). Similarly, men can experience the same transformation by building lean muscle and focusing on macronutrient intake, resulting in significant improvements in strength and aesthetics even at the same weight.
The Magic of Maintenance: How It Can Change Your Body
Maintenance is where the magic happens. Most people think they can only transform during fat loss or bulking, but the truth is, you can reshape your body at maintenance. With a high-protein diet and progressive strength training, your body has the fuel it needs to build muscle and burn fat, which is known as body composition.
Not only do you get stronger, more focused, and happier, but you also recover faster and slow down the aging process. Balanced hormones (like leptin and ghrelin) are the secret sauce. When you’re eating at maintenance, these hormones stabilize, regulating your appetite and keeping your metabolism in check. This leads to a better mood, more energy, and an overall boost in health that supports longevity and vitality. You’re not just working out for today—you’re setting your body up for long-term success.
Without proper understanding, people don’t track their intake, and while they may be eating enough to stay at maintenance, it’s usually with the wrong balance of macronutrients. But if you learn to track and maintain your calories and macros, it becomes the foundation for sustaining long-term results, whether you’re aiming for fat loss or muscle gain.
Intentionality during maintenance
Maintenance requires focus and intentionality—it’s not about mindlessly eating. You need to track your macros and make sure you’re hitting your protein, carbs, and fats. This isn’t about restricting everything or going overboard. It’s about fueling your body properly and sticking to nutrient-dense meals 80-90% of the time.
You’ve probably noticed that many supplement labels recommend taking them with a minimum diet of 2000 calories. This is a clear reminder that your body needs a baseline amount of energy to function properly, and eating below that can make it difficult for supplements to do their job. Your body needs these calories to absorb and utilize nutrients, supporting vital processes like muscle repair, hormone production, and metabolism.
The guideline isn’t just about hitting a calorie target for supplements to work—it’s about recognizing that your body requires more energy than you might think. Calories are fuel, and when you combine a balanced, intentional diet with the right supplements, you’re giving your body everything it needs to function optimally. Supplements are meant to enhance, not replace, the benefits of a well-rounded diet, which is why hitting your daily calorie goals is key to long-term health and performance.
If you’re unsure where to start, the Fit Club Babes App offers custom meal plans for maintenance, weight training programs, and mindset coaching to help you stay on track without feeling overwhelmed.
Why maintenance is key to future fat loss success
Spending time in maintenance resets your metabolism and hormones, making future fat-loss phases more effective. Hormones like leptin (which controls hunger) and ghrelin (which triggers cravings) get back into balance. Once these hormones are in sync, your body is better equipped to maintain weight and avoid rapid regain after fat loss.
Jumping straight from a deficit to another diet without this reset is a recipe for disaster—you’ll likely lose muscle and regain weight quickly. But by taking the time to live in maintenance, you’ll set yourself up for long-term success.
When you stay at maintenance, you’ll see results that help you perform better and look better:
More energy for workouts and faster recovery (fuels performance and recovery).
Balanced hormones, reducing cravings and mood swings (supports mental health and hormone balance).
Better sleep, improving your focus and daily energy (helps regulate stress and improve productivity).
Building muscle and burning fat (boosts body composition: more muscle, less fat).
A stronger immune system means you get sick less often (improves your body’s ability to fight illness).
Faster recovery from illness and workouts (enhances the body’s repair processes).
Improved mental clarity and focus (keeps you on track with your goals).
More sustainable weight maintenance, preventing yo-yo dieting (builds long-term habits).
Aging well keeps you strong, healthy, and mobile (supports overall longevity and quality of life).
Boosts metabolism, making fat loss easier in the future (keeps your body burning efficiently even after a deficit).
How to Get Started with Maintenance
Ready to dive in? Head over to my website to calculate your maintenance calories. You’ll also find free sample recipes to help you stay on track while hitting your macros and fueling your body correctly.
Remember, maintenance is all about intentionality. Tracking your food and being consistent are the keys to seeing results. It’s not about perfection—it’s about progress and understanding what your body needs to thrive.
Conclusion: Shift Your Mindset, Change Your Story
It’s time to stop thinking of maintenance as a boring or stagnant phase. Maintenance is where transformation happens—it’s the space where you can rebuild, refuel, and truly see your body change, inside and out. By focusing on balance, tracking your macros, and eating with intention, you’re not just holding steady – you’re creating the body and life you’ve been striving for.
Changing your body is about changing your story. It’s about embracing the process, and knowing that true results come from a commitment to consistency and patience, not quick fixes. Maintenance is the foundation of sustainable progress, and it’s time to see it for the powerful tool it really is.
If you’re ready to take control and rewrite your story, I’m here to help. Whether you need support calculating your maintenance calories, or you want personalized advice, don’t hesitate to reach out to me at ask@fitnessministry.ca. You’ve got this – let’s get to work on creating the change you’ve been looking for.
I love using building homes as an analogy to your body. When you build a home, you cannot wing it, you must plan first, and that plan needs a set of blueprints before getting construction running.
Your body is very similar in that to have a successful transformation; you must have proper planning. You cannot just start building a house with no blueprints because those blueprints will tell you the steps to follow to build that house so it stays standing. Your goal body is the same; your goal body is like building a house; setting goals and writing them down is like creating the blueprints. That’s, not enough though, too. Often, when people write goals, they are too vague and, unfortunately, never reach their desired outcome.
Knowing how to write your goals, SMART goals are so important to creating lasting results. In my PLAN DO SUCCEED journal, I have created a blueprint that will help you break down your goals into daily habits to create a lifestyle change that will produce lasting results. This is your blueprint, but like with any blueprint, we have to follow it step by step for proper execution.
The most important part of building a house is the first foundation; without a foundation, the house will not stand or stay standing for long. Your mindset is the foundation for building your goal body and must be the first thing you work on.
This is in the beginning process of setting your goals and then connecting your goals to your WHY. After that, it is working on your mindset daily by feeding it the right thoughts, so your words are aligned with the direction of your goal.
The PLAN DO SUCCEED journal will walk you through setting your goals along with a daily mindset journal to make sure you are setting your mindset each morning. Remember, your mindset is a muscle and each day, and it needs to work to get stronger and take you in the direction you want to go.
Then we have nutrition like the framing and wiring of a home; if not done correctly, the house will not run properly or have power. Because, without proper nutrition, our bodies will not function properly and perform the way we need them to. You must learn everything you can about your macros and personal calories for your goal and get in the habit of tracking it every day; this is the only way to lose fat and or grow muscle. Low-calorie diets are not the way, and following all the diet fads will not give you sustainable results.
In the PLAN DO SUCCEED Journal, comes with a daily food log so you can plan out your meals and make sure you are eating enough for your goals. Then we have training. This is the part of the house that everyone wants to start with first, but without the first two executed won’t last long and lead to injury and fatigue quickly.
Resistance training is the single most effective tool to transform your physique as long as you are tracking your workouts and using progressive overload. You need to know where you’re at now to know how far you have to go, and without tracking, it will be hard to progress.
“Progress improves when progress is measured, but when progress is tracked, it accelerates.” ~Pearsons Law
The PLAN DO SUCCEED JOURNAL comes with a 12-week workout log, fit test, weekly check-ins and a daily habit tracker to make sure you get the results you want. There is so much power in taking control of your life, health and goals and realizing you had that power all along.
Tracking your mindset, nutrition and training allows you to see all the hard progress you are making and keeps you motivated for the journey. Because this is a journey, my friends, not a race, so make sure you fall in love with the process, and the results will follow.
One goal, one thought, one word, one step, one bite, one day and one page at a time; is all it takes to change your story.
The Plan Do Succeed Journal: Mindset Nutrition Training – Purchase here
This topic comes up lost, I find, as a coach, especially with brand new clients or FCB members. I will be sharing six reasons you may not be losing, along with six tips to get you back on track. When you are finished reading, I would love to know what one stuck out to you most? Comment below this post.
The most important thing to remember when it comes to fat loss is that you must be in a deficit to lose weight. A deficit means burning more energy than you consume, which means you would be eating under your maintenance calories.
The second most important thing to remember is fat loss is a slow process. It doesn’t happen at the rate you see on the biggest loser on TV. If you want to lose the weight and keep it off, then slow and steady wins the race.
Don’t get distracted with quick fixes and gimmicks that will only sidetrack you from reaching your goal.
REASONS YOUR NOT LOSING IN YOUR DEFICIT
YOU’RE NOT IN A DEFICIT: If you are not losing weight, it means you are not in a deficit. There are many calorie and macro calculators that use different methods for giving you your TDEE ( Total Daily Energy Expenditure). Let’s say it’s higher than how active you are that can turn what’s supposed to be a deficit into maintenance. FUN FACT: 50% of people overestimate their daily activity and underestimate their food intake.
ONLY TRACKING ON WEEKDAYS: If you are supposed to be in deficit but only tracking during the week and then living your best life on the weekends, this can put your weekly average calories back at maintenance or even higher. Weekends are not magical where nothing counts; when you are in a deficit, it will require attention to detail, preparation & consistency.
INCORRECT TRACKING IN MFP: Pay attention to serving sizes, and different brands of foods will have different nutrient facts. Try picking the foods with a checkmark on them( but even still, those can be off). Different brands other than what you are eating can have more calories to change what you log to what you’re actually consuming.
NOT WEIGHING YOUR FOOD: Weighing your food vs eyeballing it or measuring it can total throw your calories off. Just use the spoonful of a peanut for an example; take a TBPS of peanut nutter from the jar of what you would typically eat, and then weigh out what an actual TBSP looks like. It’s a sad truth for all my peanut butter lovers, one weighed-out spoon of nut butter compared to scooping it out can triple the calories, and when you are in a deficit, you need those calories. Another one that goes with this and the #3 reason is weighing your food and inputting it into MFP for the same. EXAMPLE: You weight raw- you track it raw.
NOT PLANNING YOUR FOOD AHEAD OF TIME: Preparation is the key to success, and if you don’t have food prepared, that’s when you can eat from an emotional place, AKA hangry effect. A few meals that are not prepared and left to the hangry hunger can lead to the drive-through and throw your caloric deficit off.
NOT TRACKING EVERYTHING THAT GOES IN YOUR MOUTH: This one was huge for me, and I know many people. Those sips, tastes( eating off your kid’s plate), dips, sauces, and sweeteners add up and can take you out of your deficit.
OK, so those are why most people from my experience as a coach throw themselves out of their deficit. Does any of that resonate with you? If so, comment below!
6 TIPS TO FIX YOUR DEFICIT
Make sure your calories are correct for your activity level and goal: Again like I said, sometimes calculators can be off a bit based on our information being overestimated or understated. Don’t be married to the numbers, it’s all a part of the process sometimes; we have to readjust along the way ( most times, we do as we lose weight). Make sure you are putting in the correct information and being honest with how active you are. Numbers don’t lie if you’re not losing; this could be why also remember this is a journey of trial and error. Fix it and keep going. TIP: Once you adjust your calories stay there for at least 3-4 weeks to give your body time to adjust.
Track 7 days a week: Weekends count however, there are ways to have fun on the weekends and still remain in a deficit; you just have to prep plan. To be in a deficit, you have your daily total and your weekly total. The weekly total is what you want to match. This means if you go out or want more room for flexibility on the weekends lower caloires through the week and add those caloires to the weekend.This would be called calorie cycling or calorie budgeting. Remember it’s the law of averages, that’s most important. Another important thing I want to mention here is you are in a fat loss/deficit; your goal is to lose, so you will have to make trade-offs to reach your goal. That’s just how it works.
If you calorie cycle so you have some room on the weekend to have a dinner out or ice cream, that’s fine. Just know you have to account for it and track it.
Incorrect inputting into MFP: Make sure you read the labels and nutrition facts, and you’re inputting the correct brands and serving sizes.
Weigh your foods: This is so important and easy once you get into the habit of it. This is a must if you are trying to lose weight; how you weigh it is how you input it into MFP.
Plan your meals: You can track on the go because when you do this at the end of the day, you will be like, how am I supposed to eat 80g of protein I have left over? The more you pre-plan your food, the better your results will be because you will be getting everything you need. TIP: The night before or in the AM, with your coffee, input all your food into MFP, so you know what you’re eating, how much you’re eating and hitting your requirements for day end. You cannot wing it when it comes to your goals. You must pre-plan everything.
Track everything that goes in your mouth: If you eat it, it counts. Those sips, tastes, bites, sauces, and dips add up. The better you get at tracking everything that goes past your lips; the more accurate your calories will be. Don’t cheat yourself; you have a goal, so if you want to eat something yummy, input it into your calories and have it but you must track it.
Now, if you read all of this and think I don’t even track my food! Well, tracking is your first place to start! If you go to this link and input your information, it will tell you your calories and your macro breakdowns for your goal.
Track using My Fitness Pal (MFP) is an app, and it’s by far the best out there. I recommend using the 30-day free trial of the premium version as it’s much easier to track, and you can input your macros and calories.
I hope this post was helpful. If you feel stuck, I have my FCB all-in-one transformation platform, MACROS 2 MUSCLE COURS, and I’m currently accepting one-on-one clients; send me an email, and I’d be happy to help.
Make sure to come to hang out with me on IG so I can follow your journey and encourage you along the way.
Want more tips and motivation? Subscribe to the FCB Podcast it’s FREE.
Over the next 12 months, my mission as a coach is to help as many women as possible to change their stories. And like with any story, we must start one chapter at a time.
Chapter one – She is consistent.
“Consistency is a requirement for success in your fitness journey”
January was all about learning to build consistent healthy habits. When we start our fitness journey, we can feel more is better, and that’s not the case; more can hinder us from adhering to our plan long term. The goal should always be to build a lifestyle you love and look forward to.
“It’s less about intensity and more about consistency.”
You must meet yourself where you at, not where you want to be. This means if you are just starting our start by committing to 3x week for 30 days and if you are consistent in that, then add a day.
Where I see most people go wrong is starting from nothing to committing to 6x a week training and restricting calories too low, and it’s not sustainable, so after a couple of weeks, they give up. This may be where they aim to be someday soon, but they must learn to meet themself where they at and build on that.
“Consistency beats perfection.”
You’re not going to be perfect on this journey, and no one is. It’s going to be trial and error; for the most part, even the most experienced bodybuilders still learn by trial and error. You must be ok with failing forward. As long as you don’t give up, you will build momentum and see results.
“Consistency breeds confidence”
Be ok with being a beginner and/or starting over. It’s ok to feel a lack of confidence initially, but the more you keep at it, the better you get, and the more your confidence will grow.
I will finish by saying that it’s never too late; you are never too old or far gone to change your story. With the proper support, encouragement and tools, anything is possible.
I want to share these top 5 ladies that are featured; I first want to mention that all the women who completed this consistency challenge are amazing and a winner. I am so proud of every FCB who decided to leap.
So we have our grand prize winner Tiff Burges who just started her fitness journey in January; she lost 12lbs and 3.5% body fat, but besides that, she has a massive mental shift. Tiff shows you that a lot can change in 30 days if you are consistent.
Then we have our four featured spotlight winners, and these women all have shown consistency. Some have been consistent for two years while others one year and some not quite a year.
What I want you to see is that 30 days is a small chapter of your story, and when you see these incredible transformations, it doesn’t happen overnight, and it takes years and not just for the physical but most importantly, the mental and spiritual change.
This can feel like a roller coaster through your journey. That’s why I always tell my FCB consistency beats perfection; consistency doesn’t mean you do everything perfectly; it means you keep getting back up every time you get knocked down.
It’s never too late to start changing your story; we have a new challenge, each much in the FCB and the most supportive community you’ll ever meet.
For most of us, the New Year represents a fresh start, a do-over; I don’t know about you, but I don’t like going into a New Year with the mindset of failure, and I have to start again.
The best way to be successful is to focus on all the things you have accomplished until this point. And then create more of what made you proud of yourself.
Was it starting your fitness journey?
Eating better,
Walking more?
Are you sleeping better?
Getting out in the fresh air more
Working on your mindset?
How can you add to what you’ve already started and fine-tune it to make it even better?
TOP 5 TIPS
SET GOALS THAT WILL CREATE A LIFESTYLE YOU LOVE
Creating a lifestyle you love that will enhance feelings of joy & peace and a growth mindset.
Don’t think so much about just creating goals rather than a lifestyle. Yes, I know I am a huge believer in setting goals, but sometimes, this is where our goals can get out of alignment with our lifestyle. When setting your goals, ask yourself: “Will this make my life better? Can I do this forever?”
Think of some previous goals you set out that you have already accomplished; how did those make you feel? Make a list of them and, beside each one, write the feeling attached that you felt at that moment.
Now write your new list of goals for 2022 and keep your list of accomplished goals beside them where you can see them daily.
Remember to start with your most important goal or the one you can start on right away, don’t try and chase all at once as this will be counterproductive and lead to discouragement.
Pick one goal and start small; remember consistency beats perfection.
PRIME YOUR ENVIRONMENT AND PREPARE FOR SUCCESS
Now that you have your goals, you must prime your environment to help you reach those goals and have everything prepared. We will talk about the three areas you should have this done; you may only need to focus on one of these or all three. But remember, like anything starts small.
Nutrition:
If you struggle with the nutrition part, make sure your fridge and pantry are set to help you not derail you. Having food pre-planned and prepped in advance will help you with this.
It’s important to know you can only resist something for so long before you cave, so let’s use the mantra ” out of sight, out of mind.”
Remove it from your house if it will be a stumbling block.
Mindset:
You have to have a plan for your mindset, no matter who you are. Again, start small 5 minutes every day or even one day a week, and then as you get consistent with this, increase your time or frequency. The best time to work on your mindset is as soon as you get up in the morning.
Make sure you have your morning routine set up in a place where it has everything you need and creates the environment for you to focus. This means a podcast, book, bible or journaling, a gratitude list and maybe even your goals for the day.; this will help set your intentions for the day.
Workouts:
If you struggle with doing your workouts, make sure you schedule them for the week. Set your schedule up to meet you where you’re at, not where you want to be.
Example:
You haven’t worked out in 3 months, and you set up your schedule to train 5-6x a week…maybe that’s your end goal, but you have to start where you’re at, so start with 3x a week and then build from there. This will help you not feel overwhelmed and build your confidence when you accomplish your 3 workouts that week.
CONSISTENCY IS KEY
It’s important to remember that for any success in life, with must be consistent. As long as you take small daily action steps towards your goals, you will reach your goal no matter how small the steps are. Remember, consistency doesn’t mean doing things perfectly; it means never giving up no matter how many times you fall.
SURROUND YOURSELF WITH LIKE-MIND PEOPLE
This is so important! Who is your support system? Who are the people that inspire you, give you words of wisdom, encouragement and mental push when you need it? The FCB community does just that! So if you are looking for support, then we got you 😉
CHECK YOURSELF OFTEN
You must be willing to check in with yourself or your coach if you have one, to make sure you haven’t wandered off or got distracted.
We must be willing to reevaluate where we’re at.
Consistency is going to require weekly and sometimes daily reflection and even redirection.
I hope these tips will be your guide; and help you have a new year and a new you never liked before. I can’t wait to hear all your success stories and all the goals you’ve accomplished!
The only thing standing in the way of your ultimate dream body is the bullshit story you keep telling yourself. When I changed my story, everything changed. It didn’t happen all at once. It takes time, but as the saying goes,
…… Little by little, a little becomes a lot.
I struggled with my weight and body image from the time I was a little girl. I had a really toxic home life, not the one you would want any child to grow up in. I grew up knowing abuse on many levels, seeing addiction and disorders to the extreme. Growing up, I turned to food to cope, then exercise that eventually led me to many unhealthy choices, including eating disorders, body dysmorphia and addictions of all sorts.
So what does this have to do with building your dream body?
EVERYTHING!
We all have a story, and that story, if led by traumas and pain, will always lead to distortions of our mind, body and soul. You can follow the next diet fad, cut out food groups, overtrain, take diet pills, and get plastic surgery, but nothing will change if you do not change your story. It doesn’t matter where you came from, what others have said about you or your body. It only matters what you believe.
If you want to achieve your dream body, you must change how you think and speak about yourself to align with the person you want to become.
In the FIT CLUB, I have a Plan do Success journal that all the members use to write their goals, create a vision and track their progress for their mindset, nutrition and training. To reach your dream body, you first must come up with a plan and then prepare for that plan; then, you will succeed.
Your brain needs direction to focus, just like a GPS in your car needs an address to take you to your destination. Your goal acts as an address. Your GPS is the plan that will take you there. However, if you don’t trust the GPS and start taking shortcuts, you will soon be derailed, lost and frustrated.
Sound familiar?
If you do not change your story, you will not trust the process and soon look for shortcuts and quick fixes. Those quick fixes only take you around the mountain but never to the peak of the mountain. If your story is full of negative thoughts, self-talk, doubt & fear, your brain will start showing you all the reasons it won’t work. You then begin to self-sabotage, and it’s a never-ending cycle.
When you change your story, you will change your focus on building instead of destroying. Your mindset changes from I can’t to I CAN; you start seeing your body as this amazing thing that works for you, not against you.
If I can change my story, so can you!
Are you ready to create your dream body? Let’s rewrite that story.
Let’s talk fat loss plateaus; they are so frustrating if we don’t understand what type of plateau we are in. If you are reading this, I’m sure you have experienced a plateau at some point or another in your fitness journey, and if not, you will.
I’ll start by saying that plateaus are normal and will be a part of your journey. We all go through them, and it’s just recognizing what stage you are in so you can navigate and pivot through the plateau. There are three stages when it comes to plateaus, and these stages are all based on where we are at in our fitness journey.
Leave me a comment below on what stage you’ve been through or are currently in? Is there anything new you’ve learnt from me today? Can’t wait to hear.
This is what they are and how to break through them:
Stage 1: Lack of adherence with your plan
This plateau happens due to a lack of adherence to your plan and is broken with working harder and progression in mindset, nutrition, training, cardio, and consistency. I usually tell the FCB members to rate themselves from 1 to 10 in each area ( mindset, nutrition, training, cardio and consistency). Whatever one is the lowest, that’s your area that you need to dial in.
MINDSET: Look over your goals. Are they smart goals? Are they attainable? are you doing your mindset work daily? What are you feeding your mind? How is your self-talk?
NUTRITION: Then there’s nutrition. Are you tracking your food or following a meal plan? If you’re not doing any of those, you have no idea if you are in a caloric deficit and chances are you are not.
TRAINING: Then there’s the training component. Are you tracking your workouts? are you adding Progressive overload? Chances are, if you’re not tracking, you are not adding progressive overload.
As I said, this type of plateau is broken with working harder and progression. Most times, it’s working hard in the kitchen and working harder in the gym, tracking your workouts pushing yourself.
CARDIO: Another thing to consider is cardio. Are you the type of body that just needs to do a little bit more cardio? Do you have more weight to lose?
CONSISTENCY: Then there’s consistency. Are you consistent? Results come from consistency; consistency is going to require TRUST, FOCUS & PATIENCE.
So whatever area you rated yourself less than an 8/10 needs focus! So dial in, don’t complain just do the work.
Metabolic Adaptation: This type of plateau happens around 3-4 months into your fat loss plan because of loss in total body weight. The more weight you lose, the more your deficit shrinks because your BMI decrease.
Adaptive thermogenesis : This means your hormone system detects a change in body weight below its usual set point. It works like the thermostat in your house. If your temperature drops below the normal set temp, your furnace will kick on the heat. In the same way, if your hormones detect a significant decrease in weight loss, it will turn the calorie-burning down and increase the hunger hormone, so you eat more, burn less, and your body can get your weight back up.
If you are already in a pretty low caloric deficit and you’ve lost weight, decreasing your calories more will not work. You need to re-establish a new deficit for your current weight.
There are six ways to re-establish a deficit and break through a stage 2 plateau: choose one method from below.
Add refeeds 1-2x week increasing calories: this will tell your hormones everything is good and make you mentally feel better.
Calorie cycling: this means you will have higher and lower calorie days based on your training program.
Carb cycling: this means you will have days that are high carb days and lower carb days, and this will again be tailored to your training program
Clean up your food choices ( food quality), so if you like me and your flexible diet, you may have to limit those soul foods and start eating more whole foods.
Add HIIT or PLYO as this will help create a new deficit as well. If you already do this, you can increase the frequency, intensity or duration.
Increase your NEAT (non-exercise activity). This means moving more. Increase your daily steps, standing instead of sitting, taking the stairs instead of the elevator, walking instead of driving.
STAGE 3 PLATEAU:Overtrained & Depleted
This stage can happen 6-8 months into your fitness journey. This is a late-stage plateau, and you have to break through this differently than the first two. I have gone through all stages, and this one is by far the hardest, in my opinion. You have to understand that training harder and dieting harder won’t always work, especially in this plateau type. A dieted down, taxed out nervous system and depleted body will not respond the same way as a well-fed, well-rested body.
HOW TO BREAK STAGE 3 PLATEAU
Take a reload week: decrease volume, intensity, duration, frequency.
Take an entire rest week, no workouts at all.
Take a diet break, stop counting, tracking- eat some yummy soul foods and give your mind and body a rest.
NOTE: rest periods for this may be more extended than others. Some people may need just a week; others may need up to a month. Just know whatever you need, listen to your body and don’t worry about losing all your gains. I can promise when you start again; you’ll get even better results.
I am happy to help; if you feel stuck in your plateau, feel free to send me an email at ask@fitnessministry.ca
If you are a visual learner, watch my YouTube video.
Want to start tracking your progress and start seeing amazing results? Get my PLAN DO SUCCEED JOURNAL
What does it take to have a successful transformation?
Some of you may think this is just physical, like a huge weight loss or increased muscle size. While those are a part of a transformation, the physical change is just the by-product of the complete transformation.
“Health and fitness tools without purpose or direction become sources of addiction, dysmorphia and disorders.” ~ Hannah Dawson
I teach the five pillars to a successful transformation on my online platform called the Fit Club, and my PLAN DO SUCCEED Journal.
If you apply all five pillars, you will have a successful, lasting transformation.
1. MINDSET: You are only as healthy as your mindset. Mindset is the first pillar and one of the most important pillars. Just like the foundation of a house is the most important for building a home, your mindset is the most crucial foundation for building your body and relationship with yourself.
Like you have to train your muscles to get stronger, you have to train your mind to stay focused, disciplined, and positive.
Training your mind takes work and planning, just as training your body does. You have to have a plan and follow through on that plan. You couldn’t expect you to walk into a gym and wing it with no program and see results. You can’t expect to have a strong mindset without coming up with a plan.
3 KEY INGREDIENTS FOR A STRONG MINDSET
Trust, you must trust the process, the program, and your coach.
Focus, You have to lose all distraction and focus on your goal.
Patience, results take time, so you will have to practice patience daily.
Ways to build a strong mindset:
Write out your goals and your WHY
Practice gratitude daily. It’s pretty hard to be negative when you are thankful.
Create a morning routine and set your mind right for the day. It May look like making a list of all the things you’re grateful for; it could be journaling and setting your intentions for that day.
It could be prayer or meditation, or both.
It could be listening to motivational speakers on a podcast or youtube videos.
It could be having a look at your workout and planning your meals.
It could be ALL OF THE ABOVE.
The point is to saturate your mind with the right stuff, the stuff that will inspire you to stay focused and reach your goals.
2. NUTRITION: You can’t out-train poor nutrition To transform your body, it starts with what’s on your plate. Your food has the power to accelerate your results, health, and quality of life.
Understanding that you must adhere to either a caloric deficit or surplus if you want to burn fat or build muscle; means to build muscle; you must eat more than you burn, and to burn fat, you must burn more than you consume.
To transform your body, you have to follow your meal plan and be consistent with your nutrition. You must adhere to your calories but also proper energy balance ( proteins, carbs, and fats). You will base your calories on the goal you set, body type, age, height, weight, and activity level.
Lastly, educate yourself on your food sources, proteins, carbs, and fats. Get to know your nutrition; the more you know, the more flexibility you’ll have and the more creative you can be.
If done right, your nutrition will enhance your results, goals, sleep, hormones, and energy levels.
3. WEIGHT TRAINING: Weightlifting is one of the most powerful tools to transform your body and mind. Weightlifting will transform your body and mind. If you want to burn fat, then lift weights. If you’re going to build muscle, then lift weights.
Like with your nutrition, you need to track it and hit your caloric needs to see results. Tracking your workouts is just as important; you cant progress what you don’t track. For each exercise, you should be adding progressive overload.
“When performance is measured, performance improves. When performance is measured and reported back, the rate of improvement accelerates.” ~ Pearsons Law
You have to show up with a plan and keep showing up; that’s it. Just like you need repetition in your exercise to get stronger and build muscle, you need repetition in your workout routine to create consistency and transform your body.
4. CARDIO: This is a fat accelerator but not the foundation to lasting fat loss. I find women obsessed with this one but can do so much damage if not done correctly. Your cardio routine should complement your training and nutrition in adherence to your goals.
Cardio is a tool to enhance your results; unless your training for a marathon or a runner, it’s not the main focus. Cardio is like the sprinkles on the cake.
Cardio is excellent if implemented right, but if not done correctly can leave you with extreme sugar cravings and adrenal fatigue.
The key is doing the right amount for you and your goals to adhere to long term.
5. CONSISTENCY: It’s less about intensity and more about consistency. To reach your goals, you must be consistent. Once you reach your goal, you must be consistent.
Being consistent is a mindset that creates a behavior. Doing something intense for a week because you want your results faster is counterproductive. What you want to focus on is changing daily behaviors that will guide you towards your goal, and keep doing that until you reach your goal.
Lastly, consistency beats perfection, you will not be perfect at this, but you must be consistent.
I found myself in a slump; my days were routine, and my evenings, well, I would binge on my favourite show and eat treats, leaving me feeling blah when I woke up. I said to my husband, I feel like what’s the point?
What’s the point if I work hard all day only to undo everything at night?
This past year, with a worldwide epidemic, has made one question whether there’s any point to setting goals. I get it. Everything feels uncertain and unpredictable. Sometimes it feels easier to get lost in a Netflix show and a bag of M&M’s and forget about everything. But that doesn’t work either; just because the world feels at a standstill doesn’t mean our goals need to be.
ULTIMATELY WITHOUT DIRECTION IS EASY TO FALL INTO A NEGATIVE MINDSET AND LIFESTYLE HABITS. GOALS CREATE A FOCUS AND PURPOSE; WRITING YOUR GOALS DOWN GIVES YOU DIRECTION.
I realized I have to redefine my goals for this season, that my goals right now are going to be different from what they used to be. They would be different because I would have to change the way I saw achieving them. What I have learned during times of uncertainty is that we need our goals the most. Having goals helps us channel our energy towards something productive and beneficial for our mental health.
How you channel your energy will determine the direction of your focus, mental health, and quality of life. You have the power to either channel that energy to enhance your quality of life or rob your quality of life. There’s a saying that goes like this: “If it costs you your peace, it’s too expensive.”
Eating junk food and binging on Netflix is going to cost you your peace.
Drinking every night is going to cost you your peace.
Not getting quality sleep is going to cost you your peace.
Not eating quality foods is going to cost you your peace.
Complaining is going to cost you your peace.
All of the above things you have power over to change. Setting health and fitness goals keeps you focused and enables you to channel your energy to the right things and away from the peace-stealing things. The best way to channel your energy to produce results in your health and quality of life is by setting goals that give you small daily wins. Just like when you go on a trip, you need to input the address of the destination in the GSP. Your goal will set a destination of focus for your mindset, body & quality of life. Without the GPS set, we would be lost and frustrated; sound familiar?
As I said in the beginning, I had to redefine my goals for this season. I had to set more short-term goals that could create small daily wins to keep my mindset positive.
What if you decided to take one day at a time?
What if you decided to say three things you are grateful for today?
What if you decided to work out just for today?
What if you decided to track your food and eat on the plan just for today? What if you decided to go to bed a little earlier just for today?
When I struggle in my day, I remind myself that junk food and Netflix will always be there; social media, gaming, drinking, shopping, or whatever your thing is, will always be there. It’s not going anywhere. You have to remind yourself that after you set your daily goals and gratitude list, you will feel so much better. After the workout, you will feel so much better; after the meal that you didn’t want to eat but did, you will feel so much better; after you get some fresh air, you will feel so much better; after a good night’s sleep, you will feel so much better.
And when I’m struggling at the moment, I tell myself …..Just for today!
