my relationship with fitness lately

Hi friends! How are you? I hope you had an amazing weekend! Once again, Liv’s team crushed their competition; they took 1st, 2nd, and 5th overall for their categories! It was so much fun to watch them shine and enjoy a little Phoenix staycation. We’ll be back in a couple of weeks for the next one.

For today’s post, I thought I’d pop in and share a little bit about how my personal relationship with fitness has changed and my mindset around it.

When I first got into the fitness world, I was omgsoexcited about trying and doing all the things. I loved teaching all of the classes, taking as many classes as possible, trying new exercises and strategies in the weights room, and was absolutely in the honeymoon phase of fitness. This *phase* actually lasted for many years, hence the name of my blog and why fitness has become more than a hobby and the baseline for my entire career.

Currently, I don’t feel very Fitnessista-ish 😉 It’s become more of a box that I check… and that’s ok.

I don’t look forward to strength training on my own the same way that I used to, so I haven’t been lifting consistently on my own for quite a few months. I walked into the gym yesterday to teach a class, and the weight room felt so foreign to me, when it used to be a daily staple in my life.

Instead of using a lack of excitement as my reason to quit strength training entirely, I’ve done some other things that have helped me to stay consistent.

Right now, it involves taking classes (F45, hot yoga, barre, Sculpt Society), working with an amazing local personal trainer, and I enjoy encouraging others through Fit Team and with my one and one clients.

I’ve realized over time that health and wellbeing is so much more than what you do in the gym each day. Yes, it’s absolutely important to move your body consistently, but I’ve been emphasizing the other 23 hours in the day more than what I do for my workout. I just make sure to get in a walk each day, usually with Maisey, get daily steps in on my walking pad and doing chores, and strength train 3-4 times per week (whether it’s through training or taking classes).

When we lose the honeymoon phase of anything, it’s when we really need to lean into our dedication and commitment, instead of depending on excitement and motivation. Goals can impact our attitudes about certain things, and I don’t really have any fitness-related goals right now.

I’m not looking to get incredibly strong or lean. No PRs or races or distance goals in my near future. While these things used to be exciting and motivating for me, I don’t think they would be right now. Just typing the word PR makes me feel stressed lol. I just want to be healthy with tons of energy, have full function and mobility, and for my clothes to continue to fit well.

Here are some of the other things I’ve been working on:

– Stress management. This is a huge one because stress can impact so many factors in the body, can negatively impact your sleep, mood, immune system function, hormones, digestion, and performance/recovery. It can be SO hard to minimize stress – especially when you have a lot going on – but for me, it looks like time in the sauna blanket 3-4 times each week, daily chilling on my PEMF Go Mat (if you’re going to order; wait until Thursday!) with binaural beats and my prayer journal, and weekly time with friends.

– Blood sugar balance. Using Nutrisense every few months or so has been a game changer for me. (You can read more about my experience here!) I’ve been able to make some simple changes in my routine that have improved my numbers significantly. I’m going to add another sensor later this week — after hot yoga because I found out the hard way that my CGM basically falls off afterwards.

– Continuing to minimize alcohol. I’ve taken my alcohol intake way down and sleep and feel SO much better without it being a key player in my life. I had my first cocktail last night after three weeks without alcohol, and didn’t even realize I hadn’t had wine in so long.

– Sleeping. A lot. Why is sleep the best ever?! I love staying up late because it’s quiet and it could be my chance to read longer or get more work done, but I’ve been forcing myself to wind down and turn lights out by 10:15 or 10:30 and my energy levels are the best they’ve ever been.

– Eating enough to fuel my body. I never thought this would be difficult because I love food so much, but when I get busy, I tend to skip meals and some variety of chips instead (potato or chocolate). Each night, I quickly brainstorm what I’m going to have for lunch, and even if it’s something super quick and easy (and already prepared for convenience sake), I’m gonna go for it. Our freezer is stocked with Daily Harvest bowls and smoothies, which are some of my favorite lunch options.

So tell me, friends: what’s your relationship with fitness like right now?

What health goals are you currently setting for yourself?

xo

Gina