by Candice Scott | Apr 2, 2020 | Lifestyle, Motivation
When I hear the word pivot for some reason it gives me slight anxiety and excitement…. Not sure why but it does. To be completely transparent I don’t think I really even knew what it meant until recently (in terms of business/life).
Looking in the mirror now though and what life has become the past month, it is a very weird reality. How in the world did we get here? When did everything just stop? When did life as we know it stop? It all happened so fast.
I watch people on TV and think… wow look how close they are…. I mean really? Who would have thought I would watch a movie or tv show and relate it to social distancing.
Everyone has been hit hard. Some harder than others. My husband just got furloughed today actually and it sucks. But thankfully he will still have a job to go back to after all of this and his company has been pretty supportive. Then there is my job, and were pivoting really comes in. I go from working primarily with clients 1 on 1 to not even seeing some of them and others I train via facetime. Not to mention income has gone down substantially. I am now working on pivoting to make some extra in some way in hopes that this stimulus bill helps more want to train in some way again. Like so many others we have had to postpone payments and things we NEVER imagined ourselves doing. We were about to put money down to build our dream home literally right before this happened, thankfully we did not. There is the weird reality of not even going out or seeing friends except via facetime or zoom. No restaurants, dinners in are the only option now. Not even able to go see our parents because they are older. No movies, alot of parks are closed, no sports, no school, no graduation, no vacation.
Then there are the things in every day life we have changed, for the better.
Like living on a budget
Reading more
Investing in learning more and really thinking about business and how to grow.
Chad and I have been praying together. Yall that is amazing I never thought I would be strong enough to pray with someone out loud. Just ask anyone who has ever been to small group with me…. I was always the one who would pass on praying out loud for everyone. I would in my head…. just not out loud. Nope. This is a major step.
I am speaking to friends more.
Sleeping more.
Cleaning more. (I hate cleaning)
Cooking at home more.
My dog is the happiest.
I go on more walks.
I feel more at peace in a sense…. stressed sure, but at peace at the same time.
ITS SO SURREAL.
I am not writing this to complain, I am writing to also share what I think are some positive pivots if you will.
You see I truly believe this is all happening for a reason. It is all teaching us something. The whole world may have been going in the wrong direction and we needed to come together. The only way to do that is to stop everything, level the playing field in a sense and then build back up with brand new attitudes that I think we all will have. Just envisioning the day when I can see my family and friends again at a restaurant or plan a vacation seems surreal now. I wonder what it will be like, how excited I will be.
These challenging times are unprecedented but I believe we will get through this. I am thankful to have stayed pretty healthy and my family has too and hopefully it stays that way. I just want to emphasize to all of you who have experienced the virus first hand my prayers are with you. To all those who are working the front lines, my prayers are with you. You all who are out doing good right now… thank you.
Lets keep our head up, stay focused on the good we can find each day. And keep pressing forward. C
And if you want some help getting going and keeping with goals during this time. Set up a time for your FREE consultation with me.
by Candice Scott | Mar 4, 2020 | Health, Womens Health, Workouts
I may have found a new obsession, and that is involving researching and learning more about how cycle syncing for women can truly help us lose more weight, regulate hormones which can help with decreasing inflammation, and help us feel better, decrease period symptoms and increase our metabolism AND improve workouts!
You may be wondering what the heck is cycle syncing?
I had no idea until I discovered Alissi Vitti’s book “In the Flo”.
Essentially you are working to support your cycle. Your cycle meaning the 28 day or so period we are supposed to rotate through. (here’s your biology talk) It is made up of four phases; Follicular, Ovulatory, Luteal and Menstrual. Each phase consists of a few days where our sex hormones should fall and rise (hormones meaning estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone mainly among others). The first half is composed of the follicular and ovulatory cycles which are aimed more at increasing estrogen and testosterone to help prepare for ovulation when they are at their peak and to make us ladies fertile. The second half consists of the luteal and menstrual phases where progesterone starts to rise and the other two start to drop before menstruation where the lining sheds if no egg is fertilized. With our hormones fluctuating our bodies are going to need different nutrients and things to support them at different times. We should also have highs and lows of energy at different times depending on this. For example it is better to rest during the last part of your cycle (Menstrual) vs. the beginning when you have more energy (Follicular phase).
Cycle syncing works to support these changes we should go through each month.
But what if you are irregular, have been diagnosed with any sort of disease like PCOS, amenorrhea or endometriosis to name a few. That is even more of a reason to try this method. By supporting your cycle when these hormones should rise and fall with foods, the right workouts and movement and self care we can optimize getting these things regulated. We want to get regular, we want to reduce PMS symptoms, by doing so we will increase our ability to optimize our metabolism function among other things.
So now to the good stuff, how does it work with our metabolism and how can our workouts help us???
When our hormones are regulated and working efficiently we are able to absorb the right nutrients, burn more fat, and feel better with less stress on our bodies. We know that less stress leads to less inflammation like I have talked about many times before. If we can get our workouts to aide us in this by timing them correctly within our cycle (or when we should be at x part of our cycle) then we should be able to recover better and get more out of them when timing is right. Here is the low down on that- each phase should rotate between different focuses/energy output for the most part to help alleviate excess stress on us at the wrong times or when we are lacking certain nutrients to recover. Follicular Phase : During this beginning part of your cycle estrogen and testosterone should be on the rise so should you have more energy, meaning you can do more HIIT and intense heavy lifting. This is a time to work harder and push yourself more because you will be able to recover better. Ovulatory Phase : This is when everything is at its peak so you can really work harder here. Luteal Phase: The first half of this cycle (it is longer almost 10 days) can be harder workouts but when hormones start to drop towards the end that is when you want to start doing more yoga, active recovery like long walks, stretching, non intense cardio to preserve your energy. Menstrual Phase – There is a reason sometimes you are fatigued during this part of your cycle.. You have lower levels of everything as your lining may shed (bleed) and if you push yourself too hard then in turn you will feel even worse during this time. Really try to use this time to lay lower doing low intensity stuff and really resting your body. When you preserve your body during this time it will allow you to have even more energy next phase (follicular) where you can go harder again. Try things like stretching, infrared sauna, gentle yoga, easy walks, massage etc. So how can you start implementing this? Easy if you are regular, just pay attention to where you are in it and start adding in these types of workouts accordingly. But what if you don’t know?? If you are like me and are irregular or have been or on birth control and have recently stopped and have no cycle then go with the moon…. yup I said moon… no this is not crazy stuff there is research behind it oddly enough. You can sync with the moon phases (follicular – first quarter , ovulation – full moon, luteal- third quarter , menstrual – new moon) and do week to week and follow those guidelines. I am working with this as a guide, and I am going to be sharing my experiences so stay tuned! Next up will be how foods affect your cycle and what can help 🙂 So if you are going to try this lets aim to have patience, start slow and work on adding in things versus restricting. Keep stress low!
If you want a free guide to help you know the right workouts for the right time of your cycle – get it below!
by Candice Scott | Feb 3, 2020 | Womens Health, Workouts
Working out should make you feel good.
(Exhibit A … clearly I was working out here lol) 😂
Working out should help you.
Have you ever really stopped to think why you are doing a certain workout? Have you really looked at your progress in other areas than aesthetics (losing weight) over the past year or however long you have been working out?
You should be PROGRESSING!
Our world is stressed. We are stressed. We do all the things and try all the workouts and go hard. We may keep doing the same thing over and over and get frustrated when results stop or plateau or we get injured.
This is where progression can come into play. We progress in life and we should in workouts.
Do you?
Have you followed a progression with your workouts? Or are you just starting out and not sure where to start? Jumping into a HIIT class or something intense is a sure fire way to start and either not stick with it or get hurt. If you have been working out then I hope you took time to work on imbalances or if you feel them or aches and pains in workouts you stop and try to assess and work on those things before pushing through even more.
Progression is a major factor in building a balanced healthy and fit pain free life.
When we workout so hard we hurt for days after or we are exhausted the rest of the day- your body is speaking to you, you went too hard and it is taking all its energy to repair the damage.
Stop and think about this.. were stressed.
If we go into a workout already in a heightened stress state….. meaning cortisol is high due to no sleep, mental stress at home or work, or not allowing our body to recover enough from the last workout, OR even certain autoimmune diseases or conditions…. Adding another stressor to our body like an intense workout is only going to increase that stress which in turn can increase inflammation and cause recovery not to happen properly.
This is why understanding progression and recovery is so important.
When we are starting a new workout plan or type of workout, we have to start slow and progress. Meaning if you have never lifted heavy weights you do not start with heavy weights, you start with body weight, get strong there then start adding lighter weights until that gets easy, then progress from there.
Same with cardio, you build endurance by starting with walking, then when it gets easier go into jogging, add in some intervals, then increase pace more and more as your body and cardiovascular system adapts.
With every scenario we have to allow recovery, without recovery our muscles cannot break down and rebuild. If we keep breaking them down without allowing them to build back up we will only hurt our progress in the long run. We will hurt too much, they wont grow, and in turn it could mess with your metabolic rate and recovery.
Have you ever heard the quote that your body is built overnight… well it is. Sleep is also vital in recovery.
A good rule of thumb to follow is to allow 48 hours between repeating training sessions if not 72. For example if you do a strength workout on Monday focusing on squatting, lunging, and pulling then do not repeat those exercises until atleast Wednesday, Thursday being best. In between that does not mean you cannot workout but it means maybe do cardio on Tuesday or Wednesday. Or do a yoga class or do a workout focusing on Pressing or pushing and rotational movements. Rotating focus of muscle groups and training can allow for recovery and results in toning and weightloss AND strength because you are allowing your body to repair itself.
Some things to consider-
If you are stuck in a workout rut, maybe progression is part of the problem. If you need some help find someone who can. Someone who will take time and figure out your strengths and weaknesses, things that may need to be changed up to help you, and be sure to help you with correcting imbalances. Imbalances WILL lead to pain down the road along with overcompensation patterns which could cause injury. Taking time to work on these WITH your workout program will only help you later on.
If you have pains when working out- find someone to help (reference above)
If you have no idea where to start- then focus on your foundation. Breathing first, mobility, then move into resistance once bodyweight stuff is easy. For cardio start slow and build up as it gets easier! Track this stuff. If you want a FREE workout guide with 5 exercises to help start that mobility focus then check this out – get your FREE guide here! [mc4wp_form id=”458″]
As always I am here to help! I have numerous ways I can and please do not hesitate to reach out I am taking on 1 on 1 virtual clients right now where we address these things. Let me know! Contact me!
Next up- focusing on breathing and building that foundation. Stay tuned 😉
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