Food, Exercise, and Body Image Coaching

Trying harder is doing more of what isn’t working.

We live in an insane culture around bodies.

Occasionally, obsession with diet and exercise makes people more health-conscious, exercise-conscious, and food-conscious. Most of the time, this obsession works the opposite way.

Most people, including an increasing number of men, are on some sort of low-key or not-so low-key diet, hating their bodies all day, hoping that self-hatred will motivate them to better fitness and health. Hating yourself until you change doesn’t work, so being harder on yourself every day is doing more of what doesn’t work.

Yes, there does come a time when some of us say, “Enough already, I can’t stand being out of shape and uncomfortable in my body another minute; I have to make a change.”

That realization is not necessarily bad, but what kind of change do you want to make and how do you want to make it?

When you focus on the problem, the problem grows; when you focus on the solution, the solution grows.

I like to use the wall and the racing track metaphor when discussing exercise and nutrition. When learning car racing, the instructor will tell you that when you are inevitably going to crash, don’t look at the wall as you are approaching. Instead, turn your head toward where you want to go, and the wheel will naturally turn that way.

When we focus on positive nutrition and movement that feels incredible for our bodies we will eat more postively and exercise to feel good not because we should.

When we focus on hating ourselves and how shitty we are at losing weight or gaining muscle, we will “crash into” more of that. Whatever we resist persists, and resentments toward our bodies persist when we don’t question them. When we focus on our “shitty genes” instead of on behaviors that change our DNA for the future, a war with our genetics will persist.

Do what’s right for YOU!

Focusing on the scale and our imperfect bodies is a lot like focusing on the wall before you crash into it. Focusing on fantastic behaviors and healthy foods we love, on the other hand, will get us back on the track.

I have been a fitness coach for over a decade, but I also come from a family with “fat genes,” so I know how tricky this issue can be. I couldn’t, and still can’t, will myself into a Hollywood body. Every day, I can show up for my body, learn about the physical therapy I need, do great exercise with a low orthopedic cost, and experiment with the optimum nutrition FOR ME, not for someone else.

I have had to remember that part of health is mental and emotional health. As a human being, I will not eat perfectly, nor should I expect myself to.

I bring my curiosity to my body and health, and I stay in the fitness and healthy eating arena rather than give up because I don’t look perfect. I do my best and leave the outcomes up to God/reality.

Forget about perfection – focus on self-care.

Using simple techniques such as faster eft (emotonal freedom technique) we will get to the root of emotional eating and food cravings and we can even change your set point weight. We all have so many limiting beliefs about ourselves and our bodies and these can be changed simply by updating our programming.

All it really takes to succeed on a health and fitness journey is a willingness to make adjustments in the way we treat ourselves and talk to ourselves. Negative self talk creates stress which makes it hard to lose weight and feel good. I seek to take the stress out of eating and exercising so you can have a peaceful relationship with your body. I can help you heal your metabolism and can take the guess work out of eating and working out so you feel confident to let go and follow the simple plan.

This journey is about self-care, not self-control because self-control will always feel like fear.

Join me if you struggle with body image, fear of being fat, creating healthy habits, and knowing how to approach diet and exercise while living in a sick diet culture that always thinks that more is better. You deserve more love, not less; so don’t hate yourself thinking that self-hatred will create change. It won’t.

Try curiosity and openness to your body and yourself instead. And then make the neccesary adjustments to your exercise and nutrition program. I can help you figure out precisely what that means for you.