If you're on a mission to lose weight, build muscle, up your fitness, or increase your overall health, one of the most dangerous things you can do is hold yourself to a "perfect" standard. 

Trying to be perfect will kill your motivation and result in feelings of failure and defeat. When people feel defeated, they quit. 

Health and fitness is a long game. It's a journey that will always be in your life. 

Are you playing the long game? Or are you playing the perfectionistic go-hard, crash-harder game?

Missing a workout sometimes or overshooting your daily caloric intake is not the enemy here. 

Perfectionism is the enemy. 

Do not throw in the towel because you indulged in some late night tacos or ice cream one evening. Do not throw in the towel because you were having a difficult week and blew off the gym to take care of somethings in your life. 

If you find yourself beating yourself up because you got off track and strayed from your perfect road to fitness, here are some things ...

Morning habits can make or break your day. Ditch Team Snooze Button and start your day like a fitness rockstar with your morning routine!

Check out these morning routine ideas to help you get your day started right!

Wake up early

Instead of running around frantically and caffeinated trying to get all the things done before you head out the door, try waking up earlier so you can move through your morning routine with grace and ease. 

When you wake up early, you're more likely to have time to yourself to focus on your goals without interruption from family, partners, or work related interruptions.

And yes, this means you're going to want to turn off Netflix and your all your other screens a little bit earlier now so you can be ready to K.O. at a decent time. 

Hydrate. Hydrate. Hydrate. 

Let's jumpstart your metabolism and flush out those toxins first thing in the morning!

• Drink a tall glass (or two) of room temperature warm BEFORE pumping yourself with your morning cup of Joe. 
...

We've all been there before.

It's 3pm, you're oozing stress through your eyeballs, and you just want a freaking cookie. 

If you're prone to stress eating when life feels out of your control, check out these healthy, quality foods you can turn to instead. 

Here are some quality foods you can reach for when you're feeling stressed out that may help  stabilize your blood sugar, help you take back control of your emotions responses, and maybe even bring your stress levels down. 

The Future Is Green

Leafy Greens

Leafy greens contain a healthy dose of folate which actually helps you produce dopamine, your brain's happy chemical. 

Eat greens, feel good!

Avocados

Avocados have been shown to help you feel fuller longer (by up to 40%) which keeps you feeling calm, satisfied, and away from the pantry and candy jar. 

Lean, Mean Protein Machine

Eggs

Eggs are an excellent source of tryptophan, an amino acid that aids in the production serotonin which regulates mood, behavior, sleep, me...

Would you believe me if I told you that the thing that's keeping you from achieving your fitness goals is not properly resting during your workout?

Did I just blow your mind? 🤯 Because it's totally true!

Before we get into the awesomely nerdy science behind rest periods during a workout, let's define what a rest even is!

A rest is time you spend allowing your body to recover in between your sets.

Now, I know what you're thinking, "Shouldn't I be pushing myself to work hard and push past my comfort zone?"

The answer is: Yes! Absolutely! You should definitely be trying hard and pushing yourself. In fact, that's exactly how we get our muscles to grow! BUT with the addition of strategic rests during your workouts, you're going to get much better results, much quicker. 

Let's dive into why you should take rests during your workout.

Why You Should Take Rests During Your Workout

1. Resting lets the lactic acid flush out of your muscles so you can continue to have a killer workout. 
...

Oh summer...

The season we prepare our bodies for the most.

On the other hand, it's also the season where we become more lenient with what we put into our bodies and how we treat it.

If you've had a summer filled with fun, food, booze, little exercise, more food, then you're probably looking for a reset.

Here are 5 ways you can reset and get back on track once summer is over!

1. Make Time For Physical Activity

This doesn't mean start killing yourself at the gym for an hour a day.  Just start  moving your body.  Start incorporating a walk in the morning or even some yoga at night.  Most of us are trying to get back into the groove of work and school for the kiddos that we forget to take care of ourselves.  MAKE. THE. TIME.  Schedule it in. Start with 20 minutes of movement and work your way up!

2. Create a Sleep Routine

Late nights, early mornings, travel and lack of sleep has your body feeling totally out of whack.  The best way to set yourself up for success the followin...

Consistency.... In training, it's the key to your fitness goals.

Consistency is arguably the most important component when working to accomplish goals in or out of the gym.

Without consistency, programs are unorganized, the body has a harder time adapting, and forming habits may be more challenging.

Building a habit of healthy, consistent eating can help people reduce weight variability and lose weight more consistently, even if it’s at a slower pace.
You heard it before ...

Consistency is the key to success > Consistency leads to habits > Habits form the actions we take every day > Action leads to success.

• Consistency allows for measurement
• Consistency creates accountability
• Consistency establishes reputation
• Consistency makes you relevant
• Consistency maintains your message

Consistency is one ☝️ of the most powerful tools you have.

Your brain actually craves it.

It powers you through the day to day so you can reach your goals but also makes tough routines automatic,...

If you’ve paid attention to the health and wellness industries over the past couple years, chances are that you’ve heard someone talk about intermittent fasting.

So what exactly is it?

Basically, intermittent fasting refers to any diet that cycles between periods of fasting and eating for a predetermined period.

Many fast as part of their diet because it offers flexibility. It is an effective way to reduce total caloric consumption and can be much easier than trying to stick to a traditional reduced calorie diet.

Instead of strictly counting calories every day, intermittent fasting is all about when and how much you should eat.

And with benefits ranging from fat loss to improved focus, it’s a wonder that’s its become so popular in recent years?

Reason #1 Enhanced weight loss

The main reason intermittent fasting help you lose weight is because it is restricting the amount of calories your take in during a day.

Unless you're going to be gorging during the period yo...

When you are trying to lose weight, there are certain things you know you should do.

You give up sugar and junk foods in favour of eating more vegetables, lean protein and complex carbs.

You hit the gym regularly and try to move as much as possible throughout the day.

What you may not realize, though, is that getting enough sleep is a very important part of losing weight.

The amount of sleep you get directly affects your diet.

People who are sleep deprived tend to weigh more and have more trouble losing weight than those who get adequate rest, even when following the same diet.

When you don’t get enough sleep, your body over produces the hunger causing hormones lepton and ghrelin.

You could be more susceptible to overeating, while at the same time being less satisfied afterward.

People who get less than 6 hours of sleep consistently also show glucose and insulin levels and characteristics similar to diabetics, even if they are otherwise very healthy.