We’ve all been there, we hit the groove with getting to the gym and we’ve finally started eating healthier.It starts off like this: “I was doing so great until”__________: “My job started getting crazy, I moved to a new city and it disrupted my routine, I got sick, I lost motivation.” Then something happens and throws us off course. Here’s how to stop struggling with your workouts and diet and get back on track with your routine (or establish them for the first time!)

It always goes great until it doesn’t. Until life throws you a curve ball.

Believe me, I get it. The curve balls in life are never ending. That’s just a fact of life and the sooner we get on board with the ebbs and flows of life’s inevitable changes, the quicker we’ll be able to ebb with the flow.

How so?

1- Life is going to throw you curve balls.

Bank on it. The empowering part of this is that WE KNOW IT’S GOING TO HAPPEN. So we can plan and be prepared.

Look ahead at your week and notice any pressing deadlines or social obligations that threaten to throw off your scheduled workout. Plan ahead – instead of stressing yourself with a trip to the gym when your time is already tight, plan to do your workout at home.

2- Set yourself up for success.

Need to make sure you get your workouts in this week? Look ahead and anticipate any curve balls the week has for you and then write down when and where you plan on working out this week.

The same goes for adopting healthier eating habits. Write, in advance, specifically what you’re going to eat for the day. Wake up, spend 60 seconds writing out your plan and then, when your energy is low or you’re busy and distracted at work, you’re not relying on that energy to resist certain foods all day long. You’ve got a plan.

3 – Prime yourself.

Instead of focusing on the thing(s) you DON’T want to do (overeat, eat the whole cake, skip your workout), focus instead on what you DO want to do. IE  when you’re cleaning up from a dinner party and realize someone left an untouched pie, instead of focusing on ‘not eating the pie’ instead, focus on 1) choosing to have a few bites, or 2) choosing an alternative sweet treat like fruit, wine, etc.

The more we focus on what we don’t want to happen in our lives, the more it will appear. What we resist, persists. 

Focus on one thing at a time. Implement change in your lifestyle one habit at a time. In The Power of Full Engagement, I love the sentence that perfectly states what we all struggle to accept:

“If nothing succeeds like success, it is equally true that nothing fails like excess.”

Recently, I was talking with a handful of clients about simple switches they can make on a daily basis to better support their nutritional balance, and keep them moving in the direction of their goals (happy, healthy with a little side of fat loss).

If a few people are asking for an example of a day in the life of, then other’s are likely curious. And more so, if sharing with you what a typical day of eating looks like for me helps you to come up with solutions for yourself, great!

Curious to know what a fit pro (me) eats in a day?

Breakfast: 

If I’m NOT fasting, I always eat a breakfast with: protein, carbs, and a bit of fat.

What that looks like: 1/2 cup of rolled oats, 1/4 cup fresh berries, 3 eggs (or a protein shake).

Essentials: Breakfast, for those that eat it, is a meal that sets the tone for the day. To stay full and satisfied, make sure you have 20-30 grams of protein, around 40 grams of carbs, and average 5 ish grams of fat.

Dinner: 

Another big ass salad OR a mixed blend of sautéed veggies with a side of protein (chicken, shrimp, etc)

Optional snacks:

1 cup of greek yogurt with 1/4 c. mixed berries or a few pieces of frozen fruit. This is also a great time to toss some dark chocolate pieces into a bowl of yogurt. You’ve got a solid 20-25 g. of protein, low calorie and delicious snack.

Takeaways:

Serving of protein at every meal I sit down to eat. A serving, for women, is around 20 grams. For men, double it.

Also a serving of complex carbs. I frequently toss 1/4 cup of cous cous or quinoa in my salads.

But what happens if I eat out? And what about WINE?!

Not much changes. I can go out and grab a big ass salad from anywhere. Or more so, if I’m craving a steak, I eat the steak and skip the mashed potatoes or sides of bread.

All of you know that I drink wine, and enough of it. What that means is I preemptively factor in a glass of wine every nite or every 2nd or 3rd night. If that’s the case, I MAY have a LITTLE less carbs that day, or opt for a little less than the normal heaping amount of salad dressing. I also know that I’m going FULL OUT in my workouts, consistently.

I don’t drink 10 glasses of wine a week. That’s an average of 300-600 empty calories a day. Not to mention a lot of sugar. And my wine consumption ebbs and flows. Some weeks it’s more than others, other times it’s less (like now because I’m fighting off a cold so clearly, no immune suppressing wine for me #adulting).

It’s about choice. We all have choices to make in our lives, our careers, in the way we parent, and the ways we choose to eat and move.

Generally speaking, living an active life serves the above laid out eating lifestyle just fine. I eat how I like and move how I like. The two are interrelated but not codependent.

I really hope this example of a day in the life helps paint the picture of what moderate, balanced nutrition can look like and how I make choices.

We are constantly choosing what we want to eat, drink, do, or not do and at the end of the day, those choices are always ours to make.