You know when you realize you are EXACTLY where you need to be? That was my experience when I stayed with Melissa during my final weekend of the Nutritional Therapy Practitioner training. Melissa generously opened her home to me, and the conversations we had were exactly what I needed. And I am ecstatic to invite Melissa onto the podcast to share the conversations we had, with you. 

Melissa Shafer is a Nutritional Therapy Practitioner and Massage Therapist. She helps her clients become experts of their own body, and their own health journey, instead of fitting inside of trying to fit in and attempting to constantly change and control their body. Her message that you are not broken, you do not need to be fixed, and that wherever you are at, you are OK is one that the world needs to hear.

Wherever you are at in your health and fitness journey, I know you'll enjoy the conversation with Melissa Shafer.

You can connect with Melissa on Instagram @_melissashafer_ or on her website: www.melissashafer.com.

“The key to staying active is to frame daily movement as a non negotiable. Don’t ask yourself if you will move. Instead ask yourself when you will move. – Kathleen Trotter

I am thrilled to talk to Kathleen Trotter on the Ascend Lifestyle Performance Podcast. 

Kathleen Trotter has been inspiring Canadians for 15 years on television, through her work as spokesperson for Quesada restaurants, and with her columns in The Globe and Mail and The Huffington Post. Her mission is to move people to the “fitness is an integral part of my daily life” category with her no-nonsense approach to diet, exercise and a healthy lifestyle.

Here’s what we talk about:

How to be compassionate with yourself when making healthy lifestyle changes (and that doesn’t mean ‘letting yourself off the hook’)
Why the notion that you’ll be a ‘new you’ or have a ‘whole new body’ is NOT something we should ever strive for, and what we should strive for instead
The most common diet and fitness mistakes people make when trying to make healthy choices.
And why we cannot keep a jar of almond butter in our house :) 

Most of us love food. Yet, instead of paying attention to the foods that we eat, we often eat breakfast on the go, mingle over a tray of appetizers, or mindlessly polish off a bowl of chips while watching a movie.

Why is it that we can think about food throughout the day except when we are actually eating? If you mindlessly rush through your meal, you miss out on the opportunity to truly savour and enjoy each bite. You may finish your meal and want seconds because you missed out on the enjoyment of eating. And, because you missed out on the pleasure of eating, your body will still feel hungry.

First, I want you to know that you are not alone! But....Why are you doing this?

Join me in the podcast to uncover WHY mindful eating is important and how to practice this crucial habit.

We're told that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and that we need to eat within an hour of rising to rev up our metabolism. But is that true?

Tune into the podcast to learn:

If it really is that important to eat first thing in the morning
WHAT to eat for fat loss and all day energy
The 'healthy' breakfast foods that may be hindering your progress

This podcast is a supplement to the this week's blog on www.ascendfitnesscoaching.com on Nutrition Tips for Joint Health. I dive in to exactly WHY nutrition has such a big impact on joint health, and how to eat to support joint health. Here's to happy, healthy joints!
-Tanja

HELP! I don't know why I'm struggling so much with my eating. I have hard time getting motivated. I know what I should do... I'm just not doing it. I'm stuck!

Sound familiar? If so, congratulations, you're human. And today on the podcast, I'll help you get unstuck so that you can move forward toward your best self.

When it comes to transforming our bodies, improving our health, we love tactics and strategies. Diet books, 28 day plans, intermittent fasting, meal plans, cleanses. And when we don’t get results, or we don’t stick to them, we assume the strategy is wrong. That the plan isn’t working. That we need more information, more education. And while what we eat, when we eat, how much we eat, and how much and often we move our body matter, 99% of the time we don’t need to research more information, learn new strategies and read more diet books. We need to work on our mindset. Today we're talking about the common stories we tell ourselves that get in the way of reaching our goals.

Many members of Ascend come to us because they have body transformation goals- and what they're doing on their own or with another program isn't working. And it's frustrating!

One of the first questions I ask when meeting a new client is WHY. Why do you want to lose weight? Why do you want to improve your health? More often than not it has little to do with the actual weight loss. It's all about the desire to feel good. To feel strong. To have energy. To feel confident.
In this podcast we talk about confidence: what it is, and how to get more of it.

Have you ever noticed that you are more focused, creative, feel less stressed or simply feel better after a workout? When asked to list the health benefits of fitness, we often think about the impact on our heart health, weight, or prevention of lifestyle diseases such as diabetes, but we aren’t always as quick to link the connection between exercise and brain health. There’s overwhelming evidence that exercise improves your learning, concentration, memory and keeps your brain sharp as you age. In other words: exercise keeps your brain young.

In this podcast you'll learn how to exercise to keep your brain young! For more information on Brain + Body Power go to www.ascendfitnesscoaching.com/power

This week's podcast is in response to an email I received from a member of Ascend. She wrote:

"Hi Tanja, As I’ve been absent at boot camp for over 4 weeks due to various reasons, I’m experiencing a ‘ getting back into exercise anxiety’. As I’ve also not kept up any other exercises during this time, I feel like it’s a huge mountain to climb, or a super heavy door to open. I’m afraid I will have regressed tremendously and taking the first step this week to return is just almost as hard as entering the doors for the first time? Do you have any suggestions? Thanks"

It's September, and the beginning of a 'new year' is the perfect time to tackle the challenge of getting back on track after being MIA from your regular routine. Join me on this week's podcast as I do just that!

"Where our FOCUS goes, ENERGY flows" -Tony Robbins

The question is: are you focusing on the right things? I decided to record this podcast because this topic has come up a lot in recent conversations; with clients, friends, and emails from podcast listers and subscribers to Ascend. 

A HUGE focus on barriers. Challenges. Reasons why we're not reaching our goals. 
"My spouse isn't supportive"
"I shouldn't have taken that job... it's the reason my health fell apart"
"I have company right now, I'll get back on track next week"
"I don't like water"
"I hurt my knee"
"I need a meal plan"
All of the above are excuses. And while they can make you feel better about not making progress because now it's not your fault, they're not going to help you move in the direction where you want to go. And I get it: I do it, sometimes more than others. And while I can empathize that you do have REAL barriers and challenges to transforming your body and improving your health, focusing on the challenges is not going to help. In this podcast, there may be a bit of 'tough love', but my goal is NOT to make you feel better, its to help you DO BETTER and BE BETTER. 

Hope you enjoy :)

Do you feel exhausted around 2 or 3 in the afternoon? Do you feel hungry soon after eating, crave sweets, or get 'hangry' if you don't eat every 2-3 hours (or perhaps live with someone who does?).

These symptoms are so common place that they passed off as 'normal'- except they're not. They are signs that you are a 'sugar burner'. And you can change that.

In this podcast you'll learn the difference between being a sugar burner and a fat burner, why you should care, and most importantly, what to do to shift to a fat burning metabolism.

Are your expectations getting in the way of making progress? Do you get disappointed when you're not doing as well as you think you should, or getting results as quickly as you think you should? 

It's wonderful to set goals and have high expectations, but when expectations are too high, it's difficult to find the middle ground or progress, and it perpetuates the "ALL IN" or "COMPLETELY OFF" diet roller coaster ride. 

In this podcast we'll talk about setting realistic expectations, and specific action steps you can take daily to help find that middle ground of making consistent PROGRESS.

I like to think of fat loss, (if you legitimately have fat to lose), as the natural consequence of taking care of your health. It’s not the goal: it’s the side effect. And while you may be doing ‘everything right’, your body still may not be shedding fat. And that does not mean you’re unsuccessful, or that you are not improving your health, or that you won’t eventually lose fat. As frustrating as it can be, know that your body never tries to work against you.

For you, fat loss may be the top priority. But for your body, it’s not. Your body is hardwired to help you survive, and your body’s desire to survive and your mind’s desire to slim down may not always jive. Fortunately, there are things you can do to help.

In this podcast you'll learn a few less common factors what impact your body’s ability to lose fat. My goal is to give you a brief overview so that if any of the reasons resonate with you, you can further explore your own health and fitness program and make adjustments if necessary.

As humans, we are motivated by pain and pleasure. We move toward pleasure and away from pain. What if you started manipulating what you link pain and pleasure to so that you increase your motivation and desire to make choices that will get you closer toward your goal, and lessen your desire to make poor choices.

In this podcast you'll learn how to do just that!

To your success,
Tanja

I'm excited to announce a few changes to the podcast: and why I'm making them.

XO-Tanja

Let’s talk about weight, and that darn number on the scale. Perhaps you have a love/ hate relationship with it. Maybe it keeps you accountable to your fitness and nutrition, and you don’t attach emotion to it. Maybe you never weigh yourself (or never weigh yourself when you’re ‘off track’). Maybe you weigh yourself 10 times a day. Maybe that number in the morning impacts your entire day.

The scale is one tool, just like a kitchen knife is a tool. You can use the kitchen knife to prepare a wonderful meal, or you could seriously harm someone. It’s neither good nor bad, but it DOES have limitations. In this article, I’m going to go over some of the limitations of the scale and what you can do instead.

I often write about fitness, and nutrition. But living a full, vibrant life is more than exercise and macronutrients. It starts in the mind.

Some days are easy. You’re on fire. Focused. Productive. Energetic and happy.

And some days, are, well, not.

You probably already know what I mean when I say ‘feeling blah’ or ‘in a funk’. If you’re unfamiliar with ‘blah’, then lucky you. Here’s how I describe it: you feel down, a bit ‘off’, unmotivated, uninspired, generally dissatisfied, and you can’t pinpoint why. Your dog didn’t die. You didn’t just have a fight with your spouse. In fact, externally, things can seem pretty good and there’s much to be grateful for. Despite knowing all this, you simply feel, well ‘blah’, and you can’t quite shake it off. 

I spent the better part of the today (the day I’m writing this article) feeling just that way. On the bright side, it inspired me to write this article.

I have learned, through personal and professional experience, however, how to create a shift. I did it this afternoon, and I’d like to share it with you.

Your thoughts impact your beliefs, which impact your actions, which impact your results. What do you tell yourself? 

I'm coming at you in this quick podcast with a reminder to check in with your self talk!

Eat less, move more. That’s the typical theme behind most diets and weight loss programs. Count our calories, limit them, burn more at the gym and we’ll lose weight, right?

In this podcast I go over WHY fats are so important to our health and why they can help us shed fat. Cheers to bacon and avocados :)

Strengthening your willpower is just part of the equation; the other part of the equation is to set up your environment so that you don’t always have to rely on willpower, and reduce the amount of times you draw from your willpower.
In this podcast, I’ll share six ways to reach your goal without relying on willpower alone.

Do you wish you had more willpower? Ever say to yourself "I'm so weak" or "why can't I have more discipline"?

In this podcast I dive into willpower: what it is, and how the heck to get more of it.

Thank you so much for being here! Really really appreciate it :)

One of the most common struggles my clients have is SUGAR cravings! And I can definitely relate!

Join me in this podcast as I dive into WHY we crave sugar, and more importantly what you can do about it!

I'm back! It's been a while... a long while and I'm back at it. Not perfectly, but I'll do my best because it's my PASSION to help you make ignite positive changes so you are free to take on life's adventures and today's episode is all about just that!

Thank you for your patience, and your encouragement to get back out there and start my podcasting. 

I get a lot of questions about my own personal 'life planning' system. I've been tweaking it for the past 3 or 4 years, and have been pretty regular (but not perfect) on planning everyday so that I show up in life the way I want to be. So that I become the person I want to be. Because it's not enough to just say "I'm going to be more happy" or "I'm going to spend more time with my family" of "I'm going to eat healthier". We need to get specific on what ACTION steps we do weekly or daily in order to be the person we want to be.

It's the things we do every day that matter.In this podcast I walk you step by step on how to plan your every day so that you actually live the life you want to live.

Click here to download the weekly success list!

Enjoy XO
Tanja

The turning of a new calendar year, and the disruption of routine over the holidays make it a perfect time to pause, reflect, and to create intentions for the year ahead. Each year, we block off two full days to review our business and to plan the year to come (this years planning day was the day I created this 1-dish chicken dinner recipe).  I also think its a very useful, and fun exercise to do personally. It’s an opportunity to check in with yourself, where you’re at, and to write your story for the year to come.

Join me in this month's podcast as I go over how do a meaningful review of the previous year and set intentions and goals for the following year. Of course, setting goals and 'themes' for the year is one part, but actually taking action is the other, more important part. In episode 75 of the podcast I share how to break larger goals down into smaller, daily actions. After all, all we have is this day, one day at a time. 

We'll also go over setting goals to ensure you don't plateau after working on health and fitness for a while, and achieving initial benefits. 
Enjoy!