Coming off a fantastic weekend of friends and fun, we pretty much went non-stop. Doing all the touristy mumbo jumbo everyone talked about when we first got here. Byron and I both knew that we wouldn’t do any of it until someone came to visit; and sure enough, 8 months deep into Chicago residency we finally have a touristy weekend. We wandered around Chicago: walked along Michigan Ave, saw the bean, did an amazing architectural tour, attempted to do the Tilt view at the John Hancock building….not entirely bummed it wasn’t working. The view was pretty phenomenal without the anxiety of being “tilted” at a whatever degree angle. We stayed out later than normal playing corn hole (full disclosure…I watched, I can’t be bothered with that game) and completing a 1000 piece puzzle. Ironic that I turn 30 this year and all I want to do is stay up late...Read more

I am not sure when I started evaluating myself, my actions or my comments but this has become one of my most valuable personal growth lessons. The human brain is extremely powerful and our influence on the brain makes it all the more powerful. If we wanted to, we could convince ourselves that the sky is purple. My main point for bringing this up is to inspire you to embrace an internal locus of control. Many of you have probably heard of having an internal versus external locus of control. “A locus of control orientation is a belief about whether the outcomes of our actions are contingent on what we do (internal control orientation) or on events outside our personal control (external control orientation).” (Zimbardo, 1985) Give yourself some credit, we have way more control then we sometimes let on. We have control over our actions whether they are good...Read more

You are probably thinking “how in the world am I supposed to prepare meals with everything I have stacked on my life plate?” Here are a couple of tricks that worked for me through a period of crazy transition. Included: Crockpot tips, overnight oats, and tips to keep your nutrition on track during busy times! Stressed? Too much work? Not enough play? Not enough time in the day? You are probably thinking “how in the world am I supposed to prepare meals with everything I have stacked on my life plate?” During the process of relocating our gym just down the street…I felt all of these things. I’m the first to admit I love my little bubble of a life when things aren’t quite so…crazy.  All I kept thinking was I know I am not sleeping enough and the last thing I want to do is fall off the food...Read more

Time warp to 8 years ago when alcohol had a comfortable place in my world. I didn’t have an alcohol problem but was a social “binge” drinker. I never considered myself out of control but I would definitely throw down 5+ drinks 2-3 nights per week and live to fight another day. I told myself if I worked out, ate a little less during the day, drank plain old vodka with no fillers I would keep my calorie count down and I wouldn’t see any negative effects.Read more

Time and time again we fall short of our food goals because we fail to prepare. This is like taking a test without studying the material first. Or better yet, you study the material and know all the answers but you forgot your pencil…my point is if you really want to reach your goals you have to set yourself up for success. A little dirty work in the kitchen can make your week run smoothly. The question is…do you WANT to succeed or are you just WISHING to succeed?Read more