Treat Yourself: Healthy New Year Gifts That Santa Forgot

We made it to the new year! If you’re anything like me, you’re probably still adjusting back into real life while dusting off a trail of cookie crumbs, Christmas tree needles, and wrapping paper behind you.

If Santa ignored all those holiday gift guides you sent him, and your healthy wishlist remains unfulfilled, I have some ideas for some self-care gifts to treat yourself, and to help you transition into a healthy new year.

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If drinking more water and not taking yourself too seriously are your New Year’s Resolutions, you can kill two birds with one stone.

What gets measured gets managed. Yes, we all have the apps, but there is something refreshing about recording your progress with a pen and paper. Achieve all those New Year’s fit resolutions with a health-focused planner.

What you eat is as important as how you train. If you want to eat healthier and fuel your runs properly in the new year, this Runner’s World cookbook has got you covered.

If you need a boost of daily motivation to kick off the new year, try this run calendar to inspire you all year long.

If your new year’s resolution is to read more books, Atomic Habits will help you build sustainable, healthy habits in the new year. I’m reading this now and loving it! Kick those bad habits and build new habits to achieve all your goals in life.

If you are striving for moderation in the new year, this wine glass will help you balance running and wine.

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BUT WAIT...THERE'S MORE!
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The Myth of a Stress-Free Life

If you’ve ever felt like you’d like to win the lottery, quit your job, and sip cocktails on the beach as your new profession, this blog post is for you. While completely eliminating stress from our lives sounds nice, the truth is we need stress to learn, grow, and evolve. The answer to the stress in our lives is not to run away from it, but to think creatively about how to manage it. More ideas inside!

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Why the Nike Boston Marathon Sign Sparked Viral Outrage: A Coaching Perspective

When Nike put up a sign in Boston saying Runners Welcome, Walkers Tolerated, the internet freaked out. Many saw it as elitist. I thought it was a joke. But the reaction proves something deeper about how we tie our identity to external validation. If this offended you, I’d love for you to read my perspective on why you are the boss of your own running journey.

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My Screen time Experiment: I Coach This and I Still Messed It Up

If you read my posts and assume I have it all figured out or do things perfectly, you would be mistaken. I understand why. It’s easy to look at a health and fitness coach and assume they have it all together. But I am human, too. I like sushi, ice cream, and chocolate. I miss workouts and sleep in. Lately, I’ve been running a real-world experiment on my own screen time habits, and it didn't exactly go to plan. Here is what happened when I tried to follow my own advice and why "knowing" is so different from "doing."

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Beyond The Pantry Clean Out: Shaping Your Environment for Success (Part 2)

When we think about changing our habits, we usually start with the kitchen. But the world around us is much bigger than what is in our cabinets. Our environment is made up of different layers, from the items we keep within arm's reach to the digital spaces we scroll through and the people we spend our time with. In Part 2, we look at how to shape these outer layers so that making the healthy choice becomes the easiest path for your brain to follow.

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Beyond the Pantry Clean Out: Shaping Your Environment for Success (Part 1)

Stop trying to force healthy choices. If you ever wonder why your willpower seems to vanish by 6:00 PM, it’s not your fault. The environment around you is likely dictating your actions. In Part 1 of this series, we go way beyond the typical pantry clean out to look at the first four layers of your environment and how to shape a path that helps your habits stick.

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Is It Time To Change The Station? Northeast Tarrant County Toastmasters Speech

I’ve always said I’m a better writer than a talker because writing allows for reflection. For years, I told myself I just wasn’t good at public speaking, but I've realized that the stories we tell ourselves can often hold us back. For the last couple of years, I’ve been more intentional, most recently practicing with my Toastmasters club. I’m learning to challenge those old stories and develop new skills. I recently performed a five-minute speech on this very topic, and I’d love for you to check it out.

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How to Rewrite Your Exercise Story: This is Not an Article About 6-Pack Abs.

If you’ve ever clicked on articles about how to get 6-pack abs or how to lose 15 lbs in two months, but never took any action towards those goals, it might be time to reevaluate your relationship with movement and exercise. That lack of action is likely just a mismatch between what you’re told you should care about and what is actually important to you. Hustle culture is everywhere, but what if you viewed movement as a resource to manage stress, improve focus, build resilience, and gain energy? In today’s blog, we talk about changing our perspective about exercise can give us the best results.

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Beyond the Scale: 3 Reasons to Improve Your Diet That Have Nothing to Do With Your Weight

Most people only think about nutrition or changing their diets when they want to lose weight. What we often miss is that how we eat is a resource that can improve life in many meaningful ways, even if the number on the scale never moves. Today's post cover three reasons to improve your diet that have nothing to do with weight loss.

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Fitness is 90% Mental: The Mindset Traps Holding You Back

Most of us are stuck in habits and thought patterns that we didn’t even realize we were practicing. Whether it’s negative self-talk on loop, the trap of thinking every workout has to be a high-intensity suffer-fest, or being so obsessed with the scale that we miss the small meaningful wins, these mindsets can sabotage our progress. In this blog, we look at how to identify these traps, give ourselves some grace, and start choosing a new way to think about health and consistency.

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The Myth of the After Photo: Embracing the Messy Middle

Before and after photos make it seem like the middle is just something to endure until you reach the end. The reality is that there isn’t really an after picture. The real magic happens in the messy middle. It is found in getting through a tough Tuesday when you’re tired and the fridge is empty. Here is why the middle is where your real life happens and how to find meaning in the journey.