No matter who you are or what you do, if you are a human with a functional brain and bodily system, you experience stress. From CEO’s to scientists to stay-at-home moms to bus drivers, stress affects us all. Because of this universally shared experience, we are bombarded with advice articles on “best ways to eliminate stress,” “how to de-stress,” and there are so many products sold that promise to help make you melt or “bust” the stress out of your life.

…But the other day as I walked out of my therapist’s office onto a sunshine-doused sidewalk with spring blossoms scattered about, I closed my eyes and stood there for a moment; overwhelmed, not only by my gratitude to my situation that allows me to see a therapist regularly again, but also the fact that I started on this journey some 5 years ago. I was then reminded that May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and it finally felt like the right time to talk more in depth about my process with therapy over the past few years and why I think there is not a single person on this earth that can’t benefit from it in spades.

The concept of confidence was demonstrated and told to me in so many different ways while growing up. Particularly in my formative years, while struggling to transition out of an athletic career that was all I had known my whole life, knowing who I was outside of the bravado of competitive skating was a completely disruptive experience. All I desperately wanted was to feel confident and comfortable in my own skin, so I started chasing after what I had been told what confidence truly meant.

After reflecting on what helps root my self-confidence now, I narrowed it down to these 5 specific habits that I've established over the years to help me gain genuine self-confidence-- and I hope these help you!

I always love the concept of taking stock of the progressions that have happened in a given period of time in order to appreciate and remind myself of the bigger picture, but I didn't think I wanted to write a 2017 recap post until yesterday. I did little recaps the past two years (2016, 2015), but this year I want to do a little bit of a different recap than just taking this past year into stock. I want to remind you that it is a New Year, yes, but you are the same amazing you you've been in all the years past-- and that is the same person entering 2018.

This is not just a post about paying gratitude and wishing everyone a happy Thanksgiving-- while I will do that here as well, the series of events that happened over the past 36 hours made me think about gratitude in a deeper way. 

The word, "gratitude," is thrown around so often nowadays in this age during which people are realizing more and more how integral our mental health + mindset is to our quality of life. But the concept of what it means to live with gratitude and having an active practice of gratitude tends to get a little muddled up along the way. And sometimes the way we describe it can feel...

Going to work, eating dinner, flopping in bed with some Netflix going, wake up, repeat; it's a vicious and mindless cycle that can make it feel like you never have time for yourself to just take a breath. I know, because I've been there. I've grown to understand the enormous impact a solid nightly routine and wind-down can have on your stress and overall health...

How I start my day is so important to me- having a healthy morning routine in place can totally set the tone for the entire day. Clearer mindset, better mood, and increased productivity are some major benefits you can experience when you have a calmer morning routine established, instead of that frenzied 10 minute rush to get out the door after 5 alarm snoozes that we are all familiar with.

Morning routines are also the perfect opportunity to establish some healthier habits towards a better lifestyle shift. I've written about my 5 easy hacks for a better morning routine, but I wanted to share some specific things I've been doing lately in mine that have made notable differences.

This is 27?? This year, my birthday TOTALLY snuck up on me. Is this what it means to reach your late 20's? 😂

I don't have time to go through old photos to piece together memories from this past year, but I really wanted to notate a few things that I could look back on a year from now, to see how much has happened since then too! 

So on the fly (in no particular order), I'm listing off 27 impactful things that have happened + lessons I've learned this year that I am really grateful for. 

Oh, being an introvert. While I wouldn't trade it for anything, there's no denying that having this type of personality poses for some unique challenges in a world that is more social and connected than ever before. From balancing your own special set of self-care needs with work obligations, not to mention your social life, it can feel like you're constantly struggling in that perilous 5% zone of your battery. It's been a process to learn how to be an introvert in an extroverted world and industry-- and I still don't have it nailed down yet, but I have found things that have helped me thrive.

Well. Just did two things I've never done before. I posted a video of myself deadlifting yesterday on my Instagram Stories, and then I just posted a full-body mirror selfie on Instagram for the purposes of this message. Recently I asked one of my old co-workers from Equinox and trusted fellow trainer to train me and program for me. This may come as a surprise or even might make some of you confused-- after all, I'm a trainer, so why on earth would I need someone to train me?

I'm sharing this with you all today because I want to dispel the negative stigma around asking for help. 

Two primary reasons: Firstly, I am busier and more stressed than I've ever been, leaving me very little brain + energy left to be a coach to myself. My second reason is that

Here's the thing. Living authentically doesn't mean being chipper and happy all the time-- living authentically means owning your reality, facing our fears, and chasing wholeness over happiness. For me, it was only lately that I realized how out of touch with myself I had gotten this past year, because I have been feeling more like myself than I have in a long time. After all, it's only when you come up for air, do you realize you had been holding your breath...

I'm a huge advocate of being forward when it comes to your business. It may go against my introvert tendencies sometimes, but as an entrepreneur or a small business owner, you are essentially your only advocate. If you don't drive your business's train, it just doesn't move. 

When you are trying to create a business or further your career, you can't be complacent and wait for opportunity to come to you. You have to get out there, and yes, that tired word: network. Cold-emailing and asking people for a breakfast meeting or to coffee can be intimidating, because no one likes to be ignored or rejected right?

Well, that chance of rejection is always still there. But today I'm going to help you guys boost your chances at getting responses from people, as well as covering THE most important thing when cold-emailing someone: HOW you ask them. These are absolute musts when cold-emailing, pitching, or asking someone to meet over coffee.

Happy hump day and first day of March, everyone! It's been awhile since I've done a Wellness Wednesday, and what's a better topic to jump back in with, than talking about how to get back on the fitness wagon?

I'm a big proponent of doing the little bits of effort everyday to stay on the wagon, because it is much easier to maintain being on the wagon than it is to get back on it. But sometimes life and shit happens and you go through phases. And suddenly, you find yourself on your butt, off the wagon. A basic principle of behavioral modification that my Precision Nutrition coaching taught me to teach my clients, is that you need to master a goal before you can add a...

We all fail. I'm not talking about the inevitable life failures that happen. I'm talking about the fact that we tell ourselves that we fail, all the time. And that is the one way we sabotage our contentment in life.

Don't think you do this? Sounds ludicrous, right-- why would you tell yourself you fail, all the time? Have you guys thought any of these things, even just this morning?

Being a strong communicator is one of the few key skills that helps you in every single aspect of your life. Good communication helps you be a better colleague, boss, intern, parent, husband/wife, boyfriend/girlfriend, friend, daughter/son, sibling, and the list goes on. 

When I ask you, "what's the best way to be a better communicator" what is the first thing that pops into your mind? Word-choice? Body-language? Thinking through your thoughts before you speak? Talking confidently and clearly?

Actually, I really don't think the answer doesn't have anything to do with talking at all...

More than ever, time has become our most precious commodity. So many professions now don't rely on punching in on a clock-- it's not about how much you're working, it's how much you're producing. Because we all know that busy ≠ productive. In a world where distractions are aplenty, it's really difficult to really utilize your time to the max. We all would love to nail how to be more productive, but working as a small business owner or freelancer can bring unique challenges since you have to be your own boss, secretary, and worker all by yourself. 

Working remotely from home also can make it tempting to run an unstructured day, but this leads to an unhealthy work-life balance because you're...

Today is Monday. Today is the last Monday in January, and in two days, we'll be into February. 30 days from the New Year goes by rather quickly, doesn't it. What did you set out to accomplish and attend to at the beginning of this month? Was it to pick back up on a hobby? Re-establish good habits? Spend more time with your friends/family? Cleaning up your act? 

Now let me ask this: How are things going with that?

If they're going well, hurray! You're a lil overachiever, aren't ya. Because by this time, more than 75% of us have waned or given up completely on changes we set out to make at the beginning of the year (resolutions- achoo!). After all, life gets busy and things fall by the wayside that aren't of emergent urgency. But what if one day, we wake up and those things are no longer available to us? Would not being able to have or do those things make it feel like you should have prioritized it as urgent earlier? 

It's that time of the year again! Blue Monday has come and gone, and research shows that by the third week of January, more than 50% of New Years Resolutions will have faded away. It's understandable- it's cold and drearier out than usual, that initial boost of motivation for your New Year goals have faded and your willpower is struggling. 

With this cold I'm currently on the struggle bus with not helping things, I'm right there with ya.

I was going to write a post on tactics on beating those unmotivated feelings, but then I realized I've already written a lot of posts about getting your mojo back-- so today, I've rounded up some of my favorite motivational blog posts to help you get back into your groove! I'm dividing things up into different categories, so you can find what you're most in need of now or some posts to bookmark for later. Without further ado, here we go!