It’s been over two years since I changed my lifestyle and how I live my regular life.  I guess you can call it a weight loss journey or a lifestyle change.  The point I want to get across is; on this journey I have learned so much about dieting, weight loss and exercise…..It’s hard!
And people ask me questions like “what does it take?” or “what’s the secret?”  To help with this, I’ve created 10 rules of weight loss that include my ideas of what it takes to be successful. 
1. You can’t outwork a bad diet

• I’m sure you’ve heard someone say it before, or maybe you’ve even said it yourself. “I hit the gym today, so I can have pizza!” or something along those lines.  Truth is, it doesn’t work like that.  Hitting the gym more often won’t actually make you lose more weight; unless you’re assisting it with a proper nutrition plan. 

2. Always measure and track your food

• You don’t actually know how much you’re eating unless you’re tracking it.  I use MyFitnessPal to track myself and we recommend everyone to use it as well.  I see people on our nutrition plan get lazy and say they don’t have time to track their food, but they still know how much and what they are eating.  But when the results come out, they really don’t know.  The same goes with measuring your food.  A lot of people will guess on their amounts.  ½ cup of rice or 1 tablespoon of honey and it can easily end up being a little extra every time.  Tracking is also good for monitoring your sugars, sodium and balancing your macronutrients.  Bottom line is, if you’re not writing it down, you don’t have a good idea of what your daily intake of food really is.

3. They are cheat MEALS….not cheat days

• Cheat meals.  We all need them every once in a while, and some of us even deserve them. But I’ve noticed how quickly a cheat meal can turn in to a cheat day or even a cheat week!  For example, you decide to go out for lunch with some friends, and decide to have your cheat meal of a burger and fries.  You deserve it and you want to enjoy it with your friends.  Fair enough.  But don't let yourself fall down that steep hill and think that because of this meal, you’re entire day is ruined and there’s no point in trying anymore.  This is how you fall off track.  Enjoy your cheat meal, and then get back to your regular routine.   Your body will thank you for giving it nutritious food again.

4. Just because it’s advertised as a “healthy choice”, read the fine print…it’s likely not

• Everywhere in the grocery store we see these 100 calorie snacks, or gluten free or fat free products that make us want to believe the product is going to be a healthier choice.  But most of the time, they still aren’t your best option.  I generally try to follow the 5 ingredient rule.  If it has more than 5 ingredients, it’s not healthy.  This rule doesn’t apply to everything, but if there is sugar added, or ingredients that I can’t even pronounce, it makes me wonder what I’m actually eating.

5. Planning is everything

• Meal prep: It will save you and your diet.  It’s a weekly task, and it’s not necessarily the greatest chore in the world, but it works and it makes your week a whole lot easier.  Prepping your breakfasts, lunches and dinners ensures you have healthy food planned for the entire week and doesn’t allow you any excuses to fall off track.  Take the time one day of the week to get it all done.

 
6. Avoid restaurants

• Although I know this is impossible when you want to have an active social life, but try to avoid eating at restaurants as best you can.  You never really know how they’re preparing your food, or what is added to it.  But if you are planning to eat out; here’s a few tips on how to make some better choices:
  • When ordering salad – always order dressing on the side so you control how much you add to your salad.
  • When ordering vegetables – ask for them not to be fried in butter.
  • When ordering meat – ask for it also to be not finished in butter.
  • Order plain baked potatoes – no toppings.
  • Always order water – it will help you fill up faster and it’s free!

7. Don’t force down food you don’t like.  Find the good stuff you actually enjoy eating

• If you don’t like something you’re eating, but you’re only eating it because it’s healthy for you, find an alternative.  You need to actually enjoy what you are eating if you want your weight loss to actually be sustainable.  If you don’t like broccoli, don’t eat it! There are plenty of other options for vegetables or fruits you can still eat and enjoy. 

8. Always carry water with you

• Make it a new habit to always have a bottle of water with you everywhere you go.  You might want to buy a couple more water bottles to help with this, because it’s a lot better than spending $3.00 on bottled water from the vending machine.  Take it to work with you, or when you’re out getting groceries or when you’re at your kid’s soccer game.  It will help with cravings and keep your stomach full throughout the day.  Just make sure you always have access to washrooms!

9. Have a solid support system

• Weight loss might be one of the hardest things you do in your life.  It takes a lot of willpower and strength to be able to fight off certain food cravings.  This is why you always need help and encouragement from your friends and family.  Tell them what you’re doing so they know.  If they don’t know, they can’t support you.  You need this, you need the positive support and continuous encouragement to keep on powering through. This will help you learn who really is there to support you, and who really isn’t; which nicely ties into rule number 10…..

10. Everyone’s an asshole

• Seriously!  Friends, family, co-workers….they’re all assholes.  They’re the ones doubting you, tempting you to have that piece of pizza and questioning all your healthy decisions.  They’re the ones asking you to skip your workout to have drinks with them, and when you say you can’t miss your workout, they put shame on you like you’re a bad person.  And be careful; assholes are everywhere.  They’re impossible to avoid.  So how do you deal with them?  They are a difficult creature to handle, but the best thing you can do is have patience and remind yourself why you started in the first place.  Let the assholes be assholes, and let yourself be yourself.  Your true friends will meet you at the gym anyway!

- Chelsea 

                                             **New 10 week session to fit your summer schedule!**

This 10 week program requires a full commitment and is designed to help you achieve your goals. All fitness levels are welcome; don’t be afraid if this is your first time, we will build from the basics, and if  you are well conditioned I promise to challenge you.  By following this plan 100%, I guarantee your results. I will also issue challenges within the 10 weeks to  help keep you motivated. Prizes will vary from Lil’MissFit apparel, massage gift certificates and the  chance to win your next session free!

The nutrition portion will be the toughest challenge, but will prove the greatest difference and amazing results.  Together, we will set your personal goals, take before and after progress pictures and every four (4) weeks I will record your weight, measurements and help you reassess your goals.

Class times:
The next session will run from April 11, 2016 to June 18, 2016.

Morning Session:  Tuesday and Thursday 5:15 AM and Saturday 6:45 AM
Early Evening Session: Tuesday and Thursday at 5:45 PM and Saturday at 7:45 AM
Evening Session:  Tuesday and Thursday at 7:00 PM and Saturday at 9:00 AM

** Each class requires a minimum of 4 people to run**
**Spots are limited!!!  Be sure to sign up right away!**

Before the program begins there will be a nutrition seminar to talk food and set up specific meal plans.  It's set for Sunday April 10th.  This is a great time to meet the other participants, get to know one another, hear other questions and concerns. I also take the before pictures and measurements at this time. 

If you are interested in joining or have any questions about the program, please send me an email.

I look forward to working with you!

It’s always been about the number....You can pretend it isn’t.  You can even tell your friends you don’t care about yours.  You can avoid talking about it....but it’s always about the number.
And you already know which number I mean....the number on your scale....your weight.  
The first thing they do when you’re born...they weigh you.  
Every time you visit the doctor....they weigh you.
You start a nutrition program....they weigh you. 
They tell you “it’s only a number” and “the number isn’t important”....but they still weigh you. 
They make charts and compare yours to other people’s and determine if you are a healthy weight, underweight, or overweight.
They tell you it’s only a number, but they write it down and it becomes your number. 
I don’t remember a time in my life when I was happy with my weight.  I always wanted to weigh less than I did.  Be skinnier.  Be more like that girl.  Be smaller.  
When I was at my heaviest, I avoided even thinking about my weight.  I snuck past my scale, I 
avoided the doctor’s office, I didn’t even think about going to a gym.
And then I started working with my nutrition/fitness coach and, of course, she weighed me, and 
she wrote it down, and she compared it to the charts, and she told me “it’s just a number”.....but 
that day, it became mine, my reality, my place on the chart....and I had to look at it and accept it.  
I hated it.
So, I made a goal.  I picked a new number, out of thin air, and I decided when I reached it, I  would be happy.  My life would be complete.  I would be defined by my number and my life  would have more meaning.  I never lost sight of it.  I put it in my brain and it became my focus; never far from my thoughts.  
For two and a half years I fought to get there, with sweat and tears, waiting and hoping....and
then it happened....I stood on my scale and there it was....my number.
I expected fireworks and trumpets and excitement to rain down on me.  I’d finally achieved my
goal.  My life would be perfect now....but there was nothing....I just stood there and stared at 
the number and it just sat there and stared back up at me, with absolutely no pomp or circumstance.  And I thought....”hmmmm, that wasn’t very exciting.  I don’t feel any different.  It didn’t change me or make me feel complete.  What now?  
I messaged my coach and shared my feelings.  Told her straight up....I don’t feel any different.  
Why don’t I feel any different?  This was my great achievement, this is what I worked so hard for,
my life is supposed to feel complete.....and that’s when I understood they were right....it is “just 
a number”.
I started thinking about my real goals.  I understood what I really want to achieve stretches far  beyond my weight.  I want to be healthy, fit, lean and most of all alive and vibrant.  None of  these things can be defined by my weight.  They are defined by my energy, my spirit and my  smile.
Do I still think about my number?  Damn straight I do, but in a different way.  Now I think about  how it doesn’t help me achieve my goals.  Maybe, just maybe, that number even needs to go up  as I build my lean muscle.  

Hmmmm, how will I toss that thought around in my brain?

- Sheila

The picture on the right was me 4 years ago. This was this picture that changed everything. I remember when my sister posted it on Facebook; I couldn’t believe that’s what I looked like.

In my mind, I was the same as I had always been; small petite lil’ Krista. But there was more to it. I was at a point in my life where I was struggling to find my happy. I was very much lost.  Looking at that picture sparked something…it sparked a drive in me to change. I didn’t like what I saw.

So, like everything I do in my life, I jumped in.  I started going to the gym and taking fitness classes on my lunch hour. I thought of myself as active, I  liked being outside, I liked working up a sweat, but I didn’t have any real focus, I didn’t know where I was going and I didn’t know how I was going to get there.  And walking with wine in my go cup, with my girlfriends, wasn’t exactly the ticket to get me there! 

I kept going to fitness classes and I started noticing my changes. It dawned on me; I really like this, I’m happy when I am here. How can I incorporate this feeling into the rest of my life?

Thankfully I’m a believer in timing is everything. The gym owner was short staffed and having trouble finding reliable trainers so I thought; well I could do that.

And that....sparked a whole new flame!  I didn’t want to be a chubby trainer. Why would anyone want me to be their trainer?  I wanted to lead by example.  So I started and I’ve never looked back.  For the past 4 years I’ve learned and practiced and learned some more.  

Am I where I want to be? No, and I hope I never will be.  Where I want to be is always one step ahead of myself and this drives me to be a better version of myself every day.

Whether it’s physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually or professionally, I always want to be working towards something.

REMEMBER WHY YOU STARTED