One of the few photos of me as a cheerleader that exists. Interestingly, me and the guy holding me up here both went on to play rugby. Cheerleading –> rugby. Not a standard path. When I was a senior in high school, I joined a gym for the first time. It was a rough but transcendent year for me. My …

My kids get bored in the produce section because it’s where I spend the most time. This is how James entertains himself.  I’ve been getting a lot of emails and direct messages lately in an SOS fashion: “HELP! I want to lose some weight! What can I start doing?!?” I hate that this is the month we’re inundated with messages …

  When you go on vacation, do you pack sneakers and workout clothes or are you more of a, “I am going on VACAYYYYY-TION! NO WORKOUTS FOR ME!” I have friends who fall into both camps, and I truly don’t judge either way. One of my hard working one-on-one clients, who suffers from sleep issues, usually comes back from vacation …

On Saturday, I burrowed into my couch to watch the season finale and reunion special of Survivor. Yes, I still watch it. No, I am not afraid to admit it. It’s one of the few shows I actually watch these days, along with Top Chef and Drunk History. (Please tell me you’ve watched Drunk History. SO FUNNY.) During the Survivor “reunion …

Before I became a personal trainer, I was a big box gym devotee. I’d go four mornings a week religiously, always staying for about an hour, sometimes up to 90 minutes. When I had to cut my workout short, I got frustrated. Anything less than an hour felt like a waste of time. But then I discovered metabolic conditioning (or …

If you follow me on Pinterest, you will see a LOT of recipes for “energy bites.” I finally made a batch that came out good, using Big Spoon Roasters Chai Spice nut butter, which is made in Durham. I don’t often talk about weight loss here because, frankly, I get much more excited talking about women getting stronger rather than …

It’s getting cold outside, so if you’re working out outside, don’t forget your hat! It’s December, which means we’re now in one of the busiest months to scurry around like busy little elves. Between kids’ school concerts/plays/class parties, gift shopping, Elf on the Shelf shenanigans, baking cookies. mailing holiday cards, and going to holiday cocktail parties, it is WAY TOO …

You know how everyone always tells you to listen to your body? Well, lately, mine has been saying this to me: STOP BEING AN IDIOT. I have a long history of ignoring the warning signs from my body. I remember when I was in college and our rugby team made it to the playoffs after a long dry spell. I …

Post workout selfie from Wednesday’s lunchtime workout. That workout was just what I needed that day. Wow, friends – this has been quite a week. And when life dishes up a week like this, I seek solace in three things, usually in this order: My family Lifting heavy Running hard My husband PJ is the yin to my yang. When …

It started out with a trip to a local health food store in Chapel Hill called Weaver Street. I stood in front of the colorful display of protein bars and tried to decide which ones to buy for the week. So. Many. Choices. The packaging was so enticing: 25 grams of protein! Cookie dough flavor! More chocolate flavor than ever …