Northern Elite Fitness

When it comes to training Abs there’s countless exercises to choose from. There’s more than just the six pack at work when you’re doing an abdominal movement. When referring to the core you have the rectus abdominus, Transversus abdominis, and internal and external obliques. You can also add hip flexors and Quadratus lumborum as muscles that work together to help the core function.... Incorporating movements in your workout that target these muscles will allow for a strong and healthy core.

Shout out to the people on this list. Congratulations to Ashley C, as she continues to be at the top each month. No clue who she is lol but she’s paying her dues and being consistent.... The difference between reaching your goals and falling off the track is literally just showing up. Everyone on this list has put in the work and showed up. whether they want to lose weight, add muscle, train for an event or just understand the importance of staying healthy and active. Once you start to look at fitness as an investment, and not an expense that you have to pay each month, it tends to be a lot easier.

RTW Want to lose weight? Eat more food Confused? Let me explain ... What I mean by this is to eat more volume but fewer calories. Simply eating more food at each sitting will most likely have you gaining weight and moving in the opposite direction unless you know which foods to eat. You’ll want to avoid having too many calorie-dense foods because they don’t take up a lot of space in your stomach and are really high in calories. An example of this is nuts, oils, condiments, etc.A hand full of nuts can be 300 calories or more and you won't be full after a handful. Sometimes you’ll have two or more. But Jeff, nuts are good for you Yeah I know but too much of a good thing is generally a bad thing lol Keep your stomach full by filling it with options like veg and salads. I know this may sound boring, but these are really low in calories and a full stomach can total a few hundred calories. Try to pay attention to the dressings and any toppings you usually put on What was once a healthy salad can quickly double or triple in calories with calorie-dense additives. Half your plate should be full of veg at dinner and drink a glass of water beforehand to help fill up some space

RTW What flavor of ice cream is the best? With today's fitness industry, combined with marketing, the world has become a little cray-cray You’re either for something or you’re against it. The left side is pro dogs and the right side is pro cats, it’s basically a political battle in a sense because they believe what they’re currently doing is the best way to do it. As far as I know, there are many different flavors to choose from, and everyone has different taste buds. ... If a diet (example, could be anything fitness related) works for you and you’ve managed to get results from it, then I would say you’ve found something that works for you. What if I got the same results as another person and they did a completely different diet then me? What does that mean? It should tell you that there is more than one way to get to your destination, and not that your way is the only way that works Punch in your destination in the GPS and it will give you the fastest way to get there. Stick to the route and stay consistent the entire time and you’ll get there within the given time frame. If you’re not serious enough and decided to try different diets, listen to friends and try what their trying, skip progressive overload in your workouts, give 50% effort, skip your meals, cheat days, and consistently miss your workouts, don’t be surprised at how long it ends up taking you to reach your goal. If that’s ok with you, congratulations, Rocky Road is your favorite ice cream. No matter the route taken there will always be roadblocks and detours that come up and that’s just apart of the journey. The path to success is always under construction and when you figure out what flavor of ice cream works for you, don't be afraid to try others along the way.

Slow Cooker Pork Tenderloin Quickly seared the pork tenderloin in a pan and then transfered it into the slow cooker for 2 hours. Added some pineapple sauce and spices and thats it. Only cooked 4 meals this week because life got in the way last week and I still had 1 meal left from the previous meal prep...

RTW I’m to busy to do ______. Fill in the blank ... To busy to exercise? Food prep? Eat healthy? Drink enough water? Get my steps in? Go for a hike? We can always find the time to do something that’s important to us. Whether that’s watching Netflix, a new episode comes out and we have to watch it, friends birthday party, a vice of ours that we can’t shake, getting to bed early so we can sleep 8+ hours. Everyone has the same 24 hours in the day and some people can get more down than others, why is that? In my experience, it comes down to a schedule and discipline. If you’re sleeping 9 hours and you can’t find time to do something on your list, it’s probably a good idea to sleep a little faster lol Or perhaps investing in a better bed that helps improve your quality of sleep. Getting up at the same time every day is a great idea and incorporating a morning routine will help solidify the best start to your day. Using a schedule to track your daily activities will allow you to see where you’re wasting time and you’ll quickly see that we’re creatures of habit. If you can find the areas that are making your life harder (sleeping in too much, on social media all day, 3 hours in front of the tv) to stay committed to your goals, you can start making the decision to move in the better direction. It may not sound all that fun to discipline yourself when you are comfortable with your routine but remember, it's your routine that got you to where you are today. If you want something different you have to do something outside of your comfort zone. Suffer the discipline today, so you don’t suffer the consequences tomorrow.

RTT (missed Wednesday) How long does it take to get from A to B Setting a goal to lose weight is often the first thing people talk about when they begin a fitness lifestyle. A very popular question is how long will it take me to lose X amount of weight... What’s the answer? There are several possibilities really, but no one likes to hear that.. If I kept it generic and bland I’d say it depends on calories in vs calories out, genetics, somatotype, consistency, nutrition, blah, blah, blah. I like to use this analogy to best describe someone’s journey from their current weight to their goal weight. Imagine your in a rowboat and you only have two oars to paddle from Vancouver Island to Hawaii. The paddles represent running Now imagine you’re in that same rowboat but there are no oars this time only an outboard motor. The outboard motor represents weight training Ditch the paddles and motor and now you have just a sail The sail represents the nutrition you put in your body Each way can get you there but all will vary depending on the person in the boat. If one person really knows how to use the wind to their advantage I bet they get there a lot faster than if they just relied on the paddling. What if you used an outboard motor but you didn’t really know how to use it and you neglected to maintain it and it decided to break on you A lot of people don’t know how to work out properly and they end up spending so much wasted time or they hurt themselves Might as well do figure eights in the ocean heck, drag your anchor behind you as well Picture this You’re in the boat and you have all three working at once You’re paddling, the motor is going and the wind is pushing you to Hawaii You’d get there way faster, right? All you have to do is a workout, do some type of cardio, and eat the right amount of healthy foods. BonusThrow in a captain (personal trainer), that knows the seas, understands the winds, can keep the motor going, and will motivate you to keep rowing even when storms cross your path Good luck not reaching Hawaii

Oven baked chicken drumsticks Easy to put together dinner prep this week. It doesn’t have to be complicated or have ten different ingredients to be effective, usually the basics will do ... If you have the time and desire, go crazy with your food prep. This weekend was busy for me, so something simple was fine by me.

RTW Start beating yourself up Random old guy- What the hell are you doing?... Jim Carrey- I’m kicking my ass! Do you mind? If you know the above quote You’re awesome and probably were born in the ’90s Or you’re weird like me and remember random scenes in movies like this one. Now I don’t literally mean go beat yourself up. What I’d like you to do is put yourself outside of your comfort zone and see what you can handle. If you want results you’ll need to push past your current limits and give your body a reason to get stronger. Sometimes it requires pushing a little harder than you did the last workout. Don’t be afraid to sweat a little and the last couple reps may make you feel like crying sometimes. Give a mediocre performance Get a mediocre result.. Give the performance of your life Get the body of your dreams

RTW Quickiest way to lose 10lbs I bet you’ve seen that title a million times.... Attached to it is a new fad diet, workout, or gadget thingy that promises you the world in just X amount a days. No matter the promise, it always requires something from you Your credit card number isn’t all that is required it’s the commitment to stay on track from start to finish. No matter the routine or gadget bought, progress will be made as long as you do your best. But one thing is for sure If you want change and something different with your life (i.e. losing 10 lbs) you’ll have to do something you’ve never done before Continually doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result, will get you nowhere. Putting one foot in front of the other (in some cases literally) will get you the results you want in the fastest amount of time.

Scotch Eggs anyone? Not the quickest meal prep but definitely worth the extra time. Easily one of my favourite preps but can pack a punch in the calorie department so be careful... Wanted something other than chicken and rice lol

RTW A little H-two-O goes a long way Having trouble getting your water intake each day? Here are some tips I use daily.... Leave a bottle of water by your bedside (500ml-1 liter) and when you wake up that should be the first thing you drink to start your day. Fill up a large bottle (I use a 2.2 liter) and mix something flavourful in it. Your more inclined to drink it that way and your goal is to finish that jug before you get home from work. Have a glass of water before you have supper and/or a glass of water before bed You may be thinking, But Jeff, I’ll be running to the bathroom every 45 mins or so. Yeah, you will, but that’s normal if you’re drinking adequate amounts of water throughout the day. Plus, your boss makes a dollar and you make a dime Pee away I sayPee away lol

Super convient prep for the week. Threw the chicken in the slow cooker and went out to do some errands and a hike with the puppies. One way to save you even more time is to have a rice cooker... ... Imagine having your chicken and rice cooking while your out doing some errands and when you get back all you have to do is quicly cook some veg and bam! meal prep done... i didn't keep track of how long it took me but im sure it was a record.

Cajun Mango Chicken Quick and easy meal prep this week... Surprisingly a good combination, taste great ... Pro tip- be aware of the splash zone when pouring this onto rice... shirts tend to attract mango sauce for some reason lol

If you're short on time a simple slow cooker chili will save you. You can buy either the bag beans and pre-soak them overnight or buy them in the can ready to go... Some lean ground beef cooked in a frying pan and toss them in the pot with sliced tomatoes, mushrooms, corn and broccoli. ... Just let it cook for a few hours on low and you're prep for the week is done

Nothing Fancy Chicken Pasta! Back from a couple weeks of vacation... Coming back from a couple weeks off can be pretty hard to get back into your routine,... One thing that helped me is just starting small and building back to where I was before I left. Meals don't need to be complicated and often times simplicity is key to your success.

RTW How many days are there in a week? This should be a pretty easy answer for most people get.... 7 days in a full week but most people usually only worry about Monday to Friday. Staying committed all 7 days of the week is what will give you the result your striving for. Eating right, from Monday to Friday is better than nothing but when the weekend rolls around (most cases starting Friday night) all the good habits you’ve stuck with throughout the week go down the drain. You lose the momentum you’ve gained going into the weekend and getting back at it Monday morning is often slow going. If you’re serious about changing your life and losing the weight and gaining the physique you’ve always wanted, you have to begin to do things that are out of your comfort zone. That may include saying no to nights out or at least changing what you order on the menu. You don’t have to eliminate your favorite treats/meals but you should control when you indulge in them.

Chicken stir fry with a little bit of this and dat. Since I’m going on vacation next Saturday I used what was lurking in the depths of my fridge and cupboards for food prep this week There's no right or wrong way (unless it tastes like crap) to do your food prep for the week. Feel free to be creative and work with what you have. ... Not sure of the exact number but I'm sure it's in the tens of thousands, of different combinations of food prep possibilities. Don’t be afraid to experiment. Worse case Ontario (yes you read that right) you have some gourmet dog food.

RTW What does success look like? The sum of small everyday efforts, repeated each and every day until you reach what you were striving for. That’s a pretty good example of what it takes to be successful.... Hollywood likes to show us great achievements in a quick 90-minute movie of someone accomplishing a task that normally should take years to complete. In reality, it takes years to do half the stuff we see in the movies but there's no profit in that Instead of worrying about someone else's success and how long it took them, worry about yourself. It’s your habits and rituals that you tackle every day that will ultimately compound into you reaching what you deem success is.

Oven-baked/pan fried mushroom chicken breast Super quick meal prep this week. Took less than an hour and added an extra step. Normally I just cook chicken in the oven or in the frying pan, but this time I pan seared the chicken breast and popped it in the oven to cook. ... There are different techniques you can use to cook your meal prep so it doesn't always have to be in the oven... Feel free to use the BBQ, Pressure cooker, stove top, large pots, slow cookers, open fire pit, microwave... These are all useful methods of cooking your food for the week. Avoid doing the same old thing each week to help keep you engaged and even challenged.

RTW Rome wasn’t built in a day It’s important to keep showing up each day and give it your all. A week generally isn’t enough time to see any drastic effect on your body and sometimes a couple of weeks doesn’t do any better. ... To really get results it’s a continuous process that should become apart of your routine. Week after week, month after month, year after year, you’ll look back at how far you’ve come and be proud of the knowledge you’ve acquired along the way. Next time you’re at your grandfather's and you're in his garage, ask him how long it took him to acquire all the tools and parts he has. Ask him how long it took to gain the knowledge he has and the life experience he passes on. I bet it was more than a month, a year, ten years even. Its patience and consistency that’ll give you the results you're looking for. This doesn’t happen overnight, but eventually, you’ll build your own version of Rome.

Spinach Stuffed Chicken Breast Chicken breast can be very plain, especially after having the same old chicken night after night. There's plenty of ways to cook a chicken Some even involve a beer can lol ... When I’m thinking about how to cook something for the week I always go back to the scene from the movie, Forrest Gump. Bubba: Shrimp is the fruit of the sea, you can BBQ it, boil it, broil it, bake it, saute it, shrimp kebabs, shrimp creole, shrimp gumbo, panfried, deep fried, stir-fried, pineapple shrimp, lemon shrimp, coconut shrimp, pepper shrimp, shrimp soup, shrimp stew, shrimp salad, shrimp and potatoes, shrimp burgers, shrimp sandwich, that- that’s about it. Just replace the shrimp with whatever your cooking that week and have at it.

Random Tip Wednesday (RTW) Priorities I lost count how many times I missed a workout or didn’t feel like working out that day so I skipped it. ... There are so many things in our lives that dictate how we feel and what actually gets done when we hoped for more. Unless you’re a professional athlete and you’re being paid to workout and perform at a high level, you’re going to have a number of task throughout the day/week that need your attention. Working out should be a priority for your physical and mental health, period. However, beating yourself up and quitting because you missed another workout is a sign that you’re confused about what a priority is in your life. Some of the major priorities in your life should be your kids, work, vacations, family, health, relationships, etc Labeling another night out on the town with friends as a priority and the following weekend it's their birthday or a special event, isn’t a good sign.

Lean Ground Pork balls And Mashed Sweet Potatoes Sometimes not everything goes to plan. I bought five fair sized sweet potatoes thinking that would be enough to make my weekly dinner prep. Once everything was finished I quickly realized I was in trouble. Luckily, I have plenty of rice on hand and it doesn’t take long to cook a serving or two. ... Its always a good idea to have a back up just in case something doesn’t go as planned. Plus it’s nice having a slightly different meal for dinner at least one night during the week.

Random Tip Wednesday (RTW) Baby steps Jumping headfirst into something is often too much for most people. They get frustrated because they either can’t stay committed or don’t see the results they're looking for. ... Try this instead Start with a micro quota for the day or even the week. For example. You set a minimum standard of walking a total of 25 thousand steps each week. That’s 3,571 steps each day, not as intimidating as 10,000 steps each day but this should be the goal you work towards if you're looking at living a healthier lifestyle. Getting into a routine of reaching these mini quotas will get you into developing tiny habits that help you take action towards the bigger goal and stop overanalyzing the reasons why you're not where you want to be. It's better to take steps forward no matter how little they are at first than to take no action at all.

Meatloaf with roasted baby potatoes! When I finished my meal prep all that was left to do was, nothing. When one thing was finished, I cleaned the pot or washed the cutting board. There’s enough time to make everything run smoothly during a prep. ... Planning is important and knowing when to cook something first can make your life a lot easier. Which one of these options is a better outcome? A) Spending 1 hour doing your prep and having no dishes to clean up after your done? B) Spending 1 hour doing your prep and still have 15-20 mins of clean up left? I don’t know about you but option A seems pretty good to me.

Random Tip Wednesday (RTW) Weight-in don’t weight watch Your body weight fluctuates multiple times a day so you could be up or down a few pounds and not know why this is happening. This can be caused by multiple reasons but generally its water retention and food intake. ... If you weigh yourself several times a day you will most certainly get a different number each time, sometimes if its just 30 mins later. In time you’ll lose the weight you are looking for but don’t be so concerned about the day-to-day. Weigh yourself once in the morning around roughly the same time and keep track of that number. Do this every day and add up your weekly total and divide by 7, that’s your weight for the week. If your eating and exercising properly you’ll see a general weight loss trend each week. Some days your weight will go up and some days it will go down. Think of your weight as a stock market and as long as the trend is going down you’re doing the right thing.

Chicken thigh stir fry with Thai peanut sauce Besides saving you time throughout the week, meal prepping can also save you some money. These meals are roughly $4 a piece. You can make them cheaper or more expensive than this but this is what the meal prep worked out to be. ... You'll also use more of the food you buy and you'll save even more money because you're not throwing out as much.

Forgot to post a RTW (Random Tip Wednesday) yesterday ... Here's a RTT instead lol Friends who train together stay together A great way to hold yourself accountable is to bring a buddy to the gym. There’s no rule that you have to work out by yourself. Grab your best friend or partner and hit the gym. ... Challenge each other and stick to a routine that allows you both to succeed. You can even join bigger fitness groups (boot camps, yoga, spin, etc.) to get that extra support. If you want to go fast, go alone, if you want to go far, go together - African Proverb

Lean ground chicken balls stuffed with parmesan cheese and red chili flakes. Supper easy to make and I topped it off with some chipotle sauce. How long does it take to cook dinner each night of the week? 30 mins? 45? 1 hour? Add in clean up time and a good chunk of your night is taken up. ... If it takes 5 hours (roughly) throughout the week to cook dinner/ clean up, that's 5 hours you've lost and you could have been doing something else more important... This food prep was 45ish mins from start to finish... Take up a little of your weekend to free up a lot of your weekday.

Random Tip Wednesday (RTW) Wait, what am I doing again? We often forget what we’re supposed to do in the gym because we didn’t track the results from our previous workouts.... If you’re new to the gym and you go in without a game plan 9 times out of 10, you’ll end up looking like a chicken with its head cut off. Did I do 12 reps last time or was it 11? I think I did an extra set last time or did I? I did a giant drop set last time but I don’t remember the exact reps I got for each weight Etc.. If you want to continually see results, it's important to track your progress in the gym. A simple pen and paper will do but I recommend an app because you’ll always have your phone on you.

Honey Garlic Chicken Drumsticks. Super quick and easy prep for the week. Multitasking is key when doing your meal prep. When one thing is in the pan cooking you don't always have to be hovering over it until its done. Turn down the heat a bit and start prepping other ingredients for the meal or do some snack prep as well. ... You'll be jumping from one station to the next but you'll get twice as much down in the same amount of time. While also burning more calories in the process.

Random Tip Wednesday (RTW) Pass me a hit of that dopamine Want to get in better shape and become healthier overall but don’t know how to start? A Great place to begin is by setting a bunch of short-term goals that are attainable over a few months. ... Each one you reach will release dopamine in your brain. This chemical release is referred to as the feel good neurotransmitter because it does just that makes you feel good. Think of it as a natural drug that's actually good for you. The more dopamine hits you can get the better chance you’ll have at staying committed to reaching your goals.

Bacon wrapped chicken breast for the win! Taste sooooo good and goes great with roasted baby red potatoes. This whole weeks prep only took 1-hour 10 mins to prepare. (supper & snacks)... You save a lot of time during the week if you're able to sacrifice a little of your Sunday and make your meals in advance. Think of the time you'll save... You'll free up your evenings during the week and have more time to do the important things like hitting the gym, watching Netflix, going to bed on time, and spending some quality time with the kids.

Random Tip Wednesday (RTW) Bite-sized pieces When you set a goal to lose weight or gain muscle its impossible to do it all in one day, but a lot of people get discouraged when they don’t see results right away. ... Break up your long-term goal into 4 or more little pieces (mini goals) and the closest one will be the only one you focus on. Once you reach it, look at the next mini goal and keep heading forward. Before you know it, you’ll be standing at the base of your long-term goal looking back at how far you’ve come.

Food prep will make your life a lot easier. Chicken thighs marinated in pineapple jerk sauce. Cooked with some of my favorites...mushrooms, garlic, jalapenos, and onions. Mashed yams with butter and sauteed zucchini with cherry tomatoes.... Snacks for the day include yogurt with protein powder & berries... walnuts... beef jerky and fresh veg... Not shown but will be included in my snack prep: hard-boiled eggs, protein bar, apples... To complete a full weeks prep of food it can take as little as 45 mins or as much as 2 hours. It all depends on the type of food you want to prepare and your organization. Also, the more you do it the better and more efficient you'll become.

Janet demonstrating another use for a foam roller besides rolling out your muscles. Great exercise to hit the abdominals especially if you rock back with the foam roller then come forward and drive your knees to your chest. Try your best to keep your hips up and back straight throughout the entire movement.... Keep up the hard work Janet

Here are a few pictures from a photo shoot I had a couple weeks ago, just getting around to uploading them now. Had a great time involving my fur child (Samantha) and would highly recommend Phoxie Photos if you're in need of some new photos for the new year. #Happynewyear

Change Your Mindset If you’re unhappy about the way your body looks/feels, simply changing your diet isn’t enough. It may give you some temporary results but fixing the problem requires you to go much deeper than that. Eating healthy Monday to Friday is only five out of the seven days in a week. The weekend shouldn’t be a right off, and the week shouldn’t be the only time you stay consistent with your healthy habits. You get what you put in. Period. That has been o...ne of the motivational quotes I’ve used to push my clients, and myself, through their workouts. But honestly, it’s for more than just the gym. When it comes to changing your life, whether it’s your mind, body, or spirit, it should all come from a deep desire to really change who you are. If you continue to do what you always done, you’ll continue to get what you’ve always had. If you expect to get results when you haven’t changed your mindset, think again. We, as humans, are suckers for routine and don’t like to venture too far out of our comfort zones. This keeps us in a tiny little comfort bubble, wishing for everything under the sun but never actually venturing out. You can wish all you want, but if you don’t buy a lottery ticket you’re never going to win. Albert Einstein once said, The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting different results. No matter your goal(s) you’re going to have to decide what you have to change to reach them. For most people, sleep will be a deciding factor and giving up 1 hour of their 8+ hours will be a good place to start. Take a step back and look at the bigger picture (3rd person), where are you wasting your hours in the day. Are you spending 3 hours or more each night watching tv? What about your phone, are you constantly scrolling those social media feeds? There are only so many hours in the day and electronics seem to be commanding our life. Take the first step. Decide what your goal is and set a date to accomplish it. For example, say you want to lose 20lbs in the next 6 months. This will give your mind something to strive for and will shake up your current routine, which is the right direction in changing your mindset. Next, you’ll need to set little checkpoints or check-ins along the way. This is crucial for you because it allows you to see progress, even though it may be little, it’s still moving in the right direction. Example Last day of each month, weigh yourself; take progress pictures, and measurements. Each time looking back 30 days and you’ll be surprised by how empowering that feeling can be and how it can change every aspect of your life. Yes, it takes time, but who you are now and who you want to be is not that far apart. It’s a mindset switch that, when taking in the right direction, can lead you to a better version of yourself.

Another Sunday Funday in the books. Hiked Lone Tree Hill, on a sunny (15 degrees) afternoon in October can’t complain about the cold weather....... yet lol Fall tends to be the season where people start to drink their sugary beverages and eat treats, while watching Netflix. All that sounds good, but exercising takes a back seat in most cases. The numbers on the scale start to creep up over the colder months until spring comes along and everyone’s got to get their summer bo...dy in gear. Balance is important. Giving up on a fitness routine because it’s colder out can, and eventually will, become your normal lifestyle throughout the rest of the seasons, if you let it. A healthy combination of walking/ hiking multiple times a week will help keep those extra calories to a minimum. You don’t have to give up exercise because of the cold weather. You can always adapt and change your exercise to suit the weather conditions, I.e. workout indoors or bundle up when you’re headed out Sam and I do Hikes (Sunday Funday) ever Sunday and we know the closer we get to zero degrees the fewer people we see on the trails. From Mid November to early March, it’s basically just us out there Grab your four legged friends and start moving peeps

One of the simplest, yet very effective, ways to lose weight and get your life back on track is to move. It may sound silly but it’s often over looked. To lose weight you need to be in a calorie deficit, plain and simple. You can either eat in a calorie deficit, exercise to put yourself in a calorie deficit, or a mix of both. The more steps you can take in a day the more calories you’ll burn. It may sound like a lot but I average 14,000 steps a day and I don’t focus on gettin...g over 10,000 steps, it just happens. Walking your dog(s) multiple times a day, steps at work, going for a run, morning/evening walk, pacing back and forth on your phone, playing with the kids, chores in and around your home, all this adds up really fast. If you’re getting 5,000 or less you might be spending too much time in front of the tv or your job is too sedentary. If that’s the case, a simple walk on your lunch break or investing in a stand up desk may be a possible solution. Fitbits, or something similar, are great tools to give you an idea of how active you are. You’ll see patterns in your activity levels throughout the week, which may be the kick in the butt you were waiting for. There are apps as well, that can do the same thing as a Fitbit. Are they 100% accurate? No, but what is really 100% accurate now a days? It is definitely consistent and gives you really good idea of how active/inactive you really are. 10,000 is just a start, feel free to do 12,500, 15,000 or more, once you’ve become accustomed to the extra steps in your day. Semi-pro tip get your steps in as early as you can. When you get home and you still have 4,000 steps to get in, and your favourite tv show is on, you’re gonna have every excuse in the book not to reach your steps

woohoo 100 Likes!!! The first milestone reached...Thanks, everyone!

Here's a blog I wrote on nutrition!!! How many diets have you started??? https://www.northernelitefitness.com/blog-1

Having a hard time staying with your fitness resolution? Most people start their New Year’s off with a big bang! They jump head first into the new fad diets or they commit to hitting the gym 5 days a week in an attempt to reach their goals. They end up burning out or get frustrated with the results they see or lack thereof. Here are a few tips to help you on your way to reaching your fitness goals for 2k18: ... 1) Start with small habits Drink water at each meal, start the morning with a walk before work, start off going to the gym 2X per week instead of 5 These are small habits that will help you become disciplined. 2) Setting attainable goals No matter how big your goals are, break them down into manageable pieces and set little goals to help you along the way. 3) No one’s perfect! No matter how hard you try you’re bound to slip on your diet or miss days at the gym. Think of your fitness journey as a long marathon rather than a sprint. Take your time and you’ll eventually build the discipline you need to continue a healthy lifestyle for the rest of your life. Here's a good link to some more ideas! https://psychcentral.com//10-sure-ways-to-keep-your-new-y/

Thanks everyone for liking and sharing the contest post, these last two weeks sure went by really quick. I would like to congratulate the three winners of the draw. 1st place - Jacquelynn Wainwright 2nd place - Jessica Baldwin 3rd place - Sonja Sage