I get it, you mean well, but unless you've been there it's hard to know what to say. But let's start with what you should NEVER say.

A quote, challenge, or Tone It Up-themed inspiration for every month of the year so you can build your own workout calendar, and track how b

Let's be clear — I don’t give a shit what you think about my healthy lifestyle. But that doesn't mean that your pestering and snide

Ten minutes. Ten minutes out of your entire day to build some ab strength. Sun-up, sun-down, on lunch break, the sidelines of a soccer field

The workouts I did in the first couple weeks, months, and up to a year postpartum that helped me lose my baby weight, and then some!

Fresh-faced {day five}, and post-workout, so — be kind. The New Year kicked off and everyone was all, "Let's detox!" And I was all, "No way, I was pretty good over the holidays!" But then the flu was all, "HA — yes way. Here's your mandatory flu detox — you'll want to take one dose a day for five days." Uh, thanks? So, instead of sipping shamps at midnight on NYE, I was sipping Theraflu. And instead of starting the New Year with a killer workout routine {a la my beloved Tone

Every year I make a fitness inspiration calendar that I hang in my workout room and glance over at when I need an extra push. Sometimes it gives me a chuckle, sometimes a nod of "you know that's right!" and sometimes it lights a much-needed fire under my bum. I also jot down every workout that I do on the calendar so I can track my progress and beat my PR's! There's no better competition than yourself. Here are my favorite 12 fitness quotes that I used for my 2017 calendar

You know how they say, "just make it to your second trimester—you'll feel human again"? "They" speak the truth! In the first trimester you might be battling morning sickness {aka, all day nausea}, you lose your breath much easier {HOW did I used to do 10 jumping jacks...in a row?!}, and the bloat - oh god, the bloat. Fun fact: your body is now pumping 40 percent more blood to allot for baby - and that's werk on your body. But, by the second trimester, you get the pep back in

Growing up, I was never a fan of bananas—not banana cream pie, banana foster or even {gasp} sliced bananas in my cereal. I've since come to realize that I am a very picky fruit eater in that they have to be the perfect ripeness. Bananas are the biggest culprit of not-ripe-enough or too-dang-ripe. You have your too-green bananas that are actually painful to eat and leave your mouth somehow stuck like peanut butter. And then you have your spotted and mushy 'nanners that don't b

Now, before you turn your nose up - just hear me out. One time in Paris {I love that I can say that} we were strolling our favorite street, Rue Cler, and came across a quaint little ice cream shop {aren't all shops "quaint" in Paris?}. Seeing as how I was in my most dreamed-about city, I threw caution to the wind and told the ice cream'er, "you choose!" Much to my surprise—and a little bit to my disgust—he put a big dollop of chocolate in the middle {we were on the right path

When the hubs and I finally got pregnant {and it stuck!}, I was hell-bent on doing whatever I could to protect the baby - even if that meant not working out {for an avid-fitness girl, this would be HARD, but having this babe was WAY more important}. To my surprise, my doctors encouraged me to workout - even asking, "are you still running? I hope so!" every time they saw me. Except for a three-week stint when I was on "light" rest to help the embryo really bury in and settle,

We started to consider trying to have a baby — that's when the lies started. They were our own doing and denial at first...but then they

This was just about the easiest veggie dish to throw together - and the best part is that it can feed the masses! While the grill is already packed with endless rows of 'dogs and sausages, you can pop this bad boy into the oven and maximize on time and space! It's the perfect mix of summer veggies and more than likely something you can throw together with stuff you already have on hand {seriously, I grabbed from my veggie drawer for this one.} P.S. Think of those succulent &

After my first ShakeO bowl I was h o o k e d. Now I rarely sip a ShakeO from a glass - but rather spoon it from a bowl! And since I gobble most of my ShakeO bowls at lunch, I thought—duh, what says lunch like PB&J? Amirite?! A few trial & errors later {not enough grapey taste; not enough peanut taste; way to peanutty...}, I finally found the perfect blend. In pure bowl-O style, I loaded it up with ice to turn it into that creamy consistency that you'd dig into with a spoon, a

Oh sweet naive girl. When Jonas first started to trickle down I was as giddy as a 6-year-old. It was the first real snowfall of the year and I was counting all of the ways to spend it—hot cocoa loaded with 'mallows, a nonstop fire in the fireplace, too many calories to keep track of, a constant stream of wine, shoveling for hours {only so I could count it as a workout and throw snowballs at the hubby}, and so so much binging on Scandal. Thirty inches, 5 days, and 10 pounds la

It doesn't get easier than pulled chicken in the crockpot and five ingredients {plus some seasonings} thrown into a casserole dish. It also doesn't get any more delicious than this mash-up of Mexican flavors. It's warm & cozy & packed with sneaky nutrition. And it'll officially be added to your list of go-to favs—trust me. First, throw some boneless, skinless, chicken breast in the crockpot. Or, lay it nicely side-by-side - depending on your mood. {Note: You'll want to coat y

It's officially 2016 and you have grandiose plans about how this year is going to go... But, we're a measly two days in and you've already snuck a bite of those Christmas cookies you should have tossed, or you haven't even cracked the surface on your treadmill/closet clean-out/new year-new you plan. I'm here to tell you that it's totally okay. As perfectionists living in a world where social media glorifies what life "should" look like, we have become our own biggest cr

A fitness frenemy: someone who you dread seeing, despise while in their "presence," andoccasionally cuss at - yet whole-heartedly credit for your strength, stamina & health. Take Jillian Michaels for example - she was one of my first workout DVD purchases, and I stalk her social accounts for any mention of a new DVD. Then, I spend a few times a week cussing Jillian to hell and wishing I had never "met" her. But I'm hooked, and I'll never give her up, no matter how much I h

The other day I told someone who I had just met that I have lost nearly 80 pounds since my heaviest. Her reaction is one that still gets me, every time. She jolted her head back, eyes wide, and said, "I don't believe you. You're so FIT." Slightly embarrassed, but equally as proud, I say, as I always do, "It was a process." From start-to-finish, my fitness "process" has been 10 years in the making. I should really say, "from start-to-today" because it's a process that will n

If you're on the east coast right now, you are getting slammed with dreary, rain-soaking, want-to-stay-in-bed-all-day weather {Thanks, Joaquin}. But I have a reason for you to get out of bed—even if it's just for 10 minutes to throw together this warm, comforting, Crockpot Balsamic Chicken. And by "throw together," I really do mean, throw together - with any canned, jarred or frozen ingredients you have on hand. You know the saying "everything but the kitchen sink?" That tota