With Thanksgiving quickly approaching I thought this would be the perfect topic for a new blog post. Aside from the Thanksgiving holiday, this time of year always brings to mind a wonderful friend that, sadly, passed right before the holiday several years ago. Year after year my friend would take to social media each day during the month of November and post about something that she was grateful for. My friend’s life was full of challenges and a lot of heartbreak but her daily posts each November were so full of joy, happiness, and thanks. I would often notice her mood change…

Starting a health and wellness journey can be daunting. Often, we know we need to make changes, but soon find it overwhelming and get stuck trying to make ALL the changes at once. A quick browse of social media wellness pages can leave you feeling bombarded with infinite possibilities, there’s products like shakes, vitamins, packaged meals, new exercise programs, and enough nutritional information to make your head spin. All of this can leave us on information overload and confused about where to start and what will work best.

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When I started my wellness journey, I had just reached 50. I had lived a rather healthy,,,

It’s summertime and our tastebuds are ready to be delighted by all those fresh and yummy healthy treats! Here in southeast North Carolina, it’s strawberry season-and I literally cannot get enough of these incredible sweet and juicy locally grown berries. I’ve been making a trip to my farmers market several times a week to keep our bowl full of these tiny bites that are not only delicious, but also pack a powerful amount of nutrients. Before we dive into the fascinating world of strawberries and uncover their numerous health benefits that make…

Oh my GOSH, the holidays are OVER and a fresh new year is laid out before us with unlimited possibilities! I hope your holiday season was FABULOUS, full of peace and fun, and that you are ready for new beginnings! How did it go with your healthy holiday habits?? I, personally, had a little battle with some incredible cream cheese sugar cookies that I tried baking for the first time…I got a little overzealous with the baking process and ended up making about 300 cookies-for THREE people! They were…

Cuz, everything in moderation!!!

I know, I know! I’m the health nut who posts about clean eating, exercise, and self-care, but it’s the holidays-So I wanted to share my all time favorite cookie recipe! I’m not a sweet eater, and not even a fan of cookies, but these are a game changer; not overly sweet, the perfect texture, and so so yummy. I strongly believe that when indulging on something, it should be absolutely yummy and worth the calories-and these whipped shortbread cookies are so WORTH IT! I strongly recommend making…

Staying on track with our health and wellness goals can be HARD during the holidays! Busy schedules, exhausting to do lists, travel, and social events revolving around food can make it hard to stick with-or build-our healthy habits this time of year. I thought that offering a few healthier versions of some favorite holiday dishes could be helpful as we head into this incredible season…

I woke up this morning feeling and looking quite horrible. Despite getting over 7 and a half hours of sleep, I almost fell asleep in yoga class. My balance was off, my head felt achy, my stomach was a mess, my skin was puffy and blotched, and my plans to sit and write had to be put off for hours because my brain was foggy, and I couldn’t focus. Was it a cold? Was I just exhausted? Nope-I knew precisely what was wrong: Sugar hangover. I normally eat a sugar free diet and am not a big fan of sweets (my go to treat is buttered popcorn!) but on occasion, will indulge in a sweet treat. This past stormy weekend…

It’s still in the 90’s here at the beach and I’m still wandering around barefoot, but my social media has gone crazy for FALL and with that, pumpkin EVERYTHING! It seems that every fall there’s more and more products featuring pumpkin, and everyone, just literally, eats it up!

Fortunately, when products contain actual pumpkin (not just those flavorful spices) is really can boost our nutrition! Pumpkin offers many health benefits and is very versatile when meal planning. It can be used in baked goods, soups, sauces, pies, and even pancakes and waffles. While some…

Hello Readers! It’s been a minute or two since I last posted, but I’m happy to be back to it! This has been summer of crazy schedules, crazy weather, and lots and lots to keep me super busy, but also super healthy and happy to share my passion of all things nutrition, fitness, and wellness with my clients and friends.

Honestly, one of the most popular conversations that I’ve have this summer concerns metabolism. How it works, how to make it work better, and why it slows down as we age. So, I thought I’d speak a bit on that today…

When it comes to sweet potatoes, I think most people instantly think of Thanksgiving dinner-but this amazing superfood definitely deserves to show up on your menu more often! Sweet potatoes are super filling, packed full of vitamins and antioxidants, and can be prepared in a variety of ways to please even the pickiest eater. You may be thinking that sweet potatoes are a cold weather food, but I’ve added a yummy, cold, summer salad recipe starring sweet potatoes at the end of….

It’s finally summertime in my little corner of the world, and I could not be happier! Although I live in rather warm and mild climate of southeast North Carolina, I found this winter to be rather brutal and was counting the days until summer while glaring at my winter coat hanging in my closet for several months. I’m definitely a warm weather kind of gal!

One of my favorite things about summer is the abundance of fresh fruits and veggies that show up in produce stands alongside my local roads. Freshly harvested…

Without a doubt, one of the biggest health concerns I hear about from friends, family, and clients is that they are just not getting proper sleep. Either they can’t fall asleep or, once they are asleep, they cannot seem to stay asleep. I, personally, am a lifelong insomniac who knows the struggle first hand. I’ve spent years trying to find what works for me-and that fix usually only lasts a few weeks or months before I’m looking for the next solution. Many turn to over the counter sleep meds which are not to be used regularly, or to herbal remedies which can have odd side effects. There are many different things you can try to get a better night’s sleep including certain foods that can help us drift…

One of the biggest questions I get from people trying to change their eating habits is about food labels and food packaging. Whether you are trying to eat healthier, lose or gain weight, or just get the highest quality food for your dollar, reading food labels is an important part of the process. Although the labels have gotten a bit easier to read in recent years, they can still be a bit confusing, and the way products are designed and marketed on the shelves can be even more confusing. Knowing how…

Almonds are crunchy, tasty, filling, and absolutely packed with superfood benefits! I keep individual serving packs of almonds in my pantry for a grab and go snack on busy days, or for when I just need a little protein boost before or after Pilates class. Just a single 1 ounce serving satiates my hunger and fulfills my need to crunch on something while providing me with so many great nutrients. How can you beat that???

The most popular form of almonds is unshelled, and either raw or roasted, salted or unsalted. We can also find almonds used in SO….

Hello Heathy Readers! It’s been a bit since I last posted because I was focused on reaching a goal I had set for myself! After a few decades, I finally got re-certified as a personal trainer! It required a few months of study, a lot of focus, and a rather crazy end story concerning my final exam, but I passed with flying colors and can now tuck that long term goal away in my “accomplished” folder.(if curious, you can read about my crazy exam issue at the end of this post) All of this got me thinking about how we go about setting…

I hope you had a chance to check out the Superfood Super Sunday healthy snack recipes I posted for Super Bowl Sunday! Super Bowl Sunday is followed up with that awesome day of LOVE, Valentine’s Day-or, for some of you, perhaps you’ll be celebrating the joy of your female friendships with Galentine’s Day! Either way, I’ve got you covered with some super yummy, yet super health sweet snacks to celebrate with! Share your love of yummy, healthy treats with someone you love this holiday-or just enjoy them while treating YOURSELf-after all SELF LOVE is the BEST LOVE!…

Super Bowl Sunday is upon us, and in my family-that means HOLIDAY! As a child this was always one of the biggest days of the year in my house as we also celebrated my football obsessed dad’s birthday on the same day. The amount of food bought and consumed was ridiculous! We usually started off the day with a huge breakfast, and about 2 hours later the table and countertops in the kitchen would be completely covered with lunchmeats, chips, cookies, various chips, potato salad, macaroni salad….

We are one month into 2022 and spring weather is hopefully right around the corner! It’s been a long, cold, dark winter here on my island in the southeast-we even had snow! I’ve stuck to my winter workout plans consistently, but I am SO ready to get back outside to bike, hike, beachcomb, kayak and paddleboard under the warm sun! I hope that your winter weather has not been too horrible, and that you’ve managed to stay active in recent months.

Sticking to those health and wellness plans…

Hello dear readers, and blessings of the New Year ahead of us! Despite my best intentions, I found the end of 2021 quite exhausting, and though I spent a wonderful holiday with my family, I felt great need to take a step back from my business duties and practice a bit of self-care. I hope the holidays treated you with joy, and you were surrounded by much love and peace.

As we head into this new year, I am feeling very aware of the emotional impact the last few years has brought us…

For many of us, winter is either right around the corner or already here. As I write this, it’s close to 80 degrees and sunny here on my little island in North Carolina, but I know that will be changing quickly in the next weeks. I’m a pretty tough person but have to admit-I’m a big baby when it comes to cold weather! I absolutely despise being cold; I hate wearing heavy clothes, I hate gloves on my fingers, and if it were up to me, it would be 40 degrees and snowing from Christmas Eve until New Years-and then right back to 80 degrees for the remainder of the year! Cold weather makes me want to stay inside, bundled under blankets, in front of a fire…