Sports Bra // Leggings // Blonde Sweatshirt // Wireless Headphones // Monogram Necklace – XL 16″ // Faux Diamond Studs // Fitness Tracker Smartwatch – Fitbit Versa in Peach/Rose Gold //
Hey y’all! Happy Thursday! I hope you’re having a great week so far. This week has FLOWN by it feels like, which is always so nice but makes me realize how much I still need to get done for this week. This weekend we’re going to the GT Homecoming game, and I’m so excited to catch up with some old friends & watch football. The weather is FINALLY cooling off here and feeling like fall. Hallelujah!
Last week I shared the new fitness app called Ladder that I’m following with y’all on my Instagram stories. I had so many ladies reach out to me about trying it, so I wanted to share more about the app, what it is, and how I use it! I’m also going to chat a little bit about what I eat in a day, what my fitness routine consists of now 7 months postpartum, pregnancy fitness tips, and all that fun stuff!
ladder personal training app
I’ve been so good about working out post-partum, but the past 2 months or so I really started to slack. I’ve been so busy with work and have been just trying to find a balance with everything. I needed something to keep me accountable with working out, and I was so happy to find the Ladder app. Y’all can use promo code ‘MORG‘ to get 7 days of Ladder for free + 10% off your subscription after that! 🙂
getting paired with your own personal trainer
You get your own personal trainer for a fraction of what they typically cost and you can do everything at home! You fill out a survey sharing your fitness goals, fitness level/ability, and what type of coaching style you like. I like to be challenged, so my coach likes to challenge me as that’s my fitness style. You get a few options for coaches, can read about their backgrounds, and even watch videos on them before you pick a coach.
my fitness goals
I love that you can enter your fitness goals and personal goals on the app too. For me, I’m so bad about mindlessly browsing on my phone at night and I have a goal to be off of my phone by 9:30 every night to help me unwind and de-stress. For my fitness goals, my biggest goal is continuing to strengthen my core. I love that my coach incorporates abs/core into the end of almost every workout. The bicycle is my favorite ab exercise for strengthening my core and I love that she uses it in my plan frequently. Another goal is working on my cardio fitness. I hate HIIT workouts but I feel like they truly yield the best results. I want to be in the best shape I’ve ever been, and I am already so much stronger from using Ladder consistently for the past month.
why I love ladder
You don’t have to be a fitness expert to get started or go to a gym. I can do them at home, anytime or anywhere! There are so many moves I’ve never seen or heard of before, and they have how-to videos showing you how to do each exercise. I love that and it is seriously so helpful. Because I have a real-life coach, I want to work hard to make her proud. I feel like that really helps me stay accountable to stay on top of my workouts and complete them when I have them scheduled! It has allowed me to make time for myself as a mom to work on my physical and mental health. I feel so recharged and empowered after every Ladder workout, and it’s such a nice break after a long day of working and being with Olivia.
accountability
My coach is so great about checking in with me, adjusting to my schedule, and providing modifications for me. My typical workout takes 45 minutes to an hour and she’s helped me modify my routine if I need to be done in 30 minutes one day. I’m not going to lie, the first few workouts kicked my butt. And I *like* to think that I’m in pretty good shape haha.
how often i workout
My goal is 3-4 days of training a week. Depending on what is going on work-wise, if Drew is traveling, my schedule, all of that factors in to how many days I commit to. I really try to walk for at least 30 minutes daily, and am working towards an hour! There is so much research that walking helps relieve stress and helps you unwind. We love taking family walks together right before sunset, and is a great way for me & Drew to catch up with each other while spending time with Liv! 🙂
what i eat in a day
breakfast + snacks
Typically in a day I wake up around 7:30-8 and immediately eat breakfast. I eat steel cut oatmeal {I love the Oat Revolution instant steel cut oats in the maple brown sugar flavor!} every single day for breakfast with one scoop of collagen powder. It adds protein to my oatmeal, and I swear by collagen for health + beauty benefits. My skin seriously glows and recovered so well from my pregnancy (no sagging skin, no stretch marks, etc.) and I really believe that played a huge role in everything. I usually have a protein-packed snack around 11 like greek yogurt, and then eat lunch from 12-1. I also typically eat a snack like flaxseed crackers with colby jack cheese, a protein bar, or another greek yogurt for a snack in between lunch & dinner.
lunch & dinner
For lunch I usually eat a simply steamers frozen meal (I get them at Kroger, Target, or Walmart), 1 serving some of fruit (usually grapes or apples), and extra protein if I’m hungry (I’ll add chicken that I made in the crockpot to my frozen meals for more food/protein). For dinner we typically eat crockpot chicken, and we make tacos, quesadillas, buddha bowls, and so many other things with it. I have the recipe for my “crack” chicken saved on my Instagram highlights! I will have a healthy dessert every night too – light a skinny cow ice cream sandwich, a healthier option ice cream bar or popsicle, or some lightly sweetened kettle popcorn (I love the boom chicka pop one!).
finding balance
Day to day I try to limit dairy, fried foods, butter, all that good (but so bad haha) stuff. On occassion I will have a chicken biscuit from Chick fil A (y’all know my love for the chicken, egg, and cheese biscuit is so real haha) or nuggets for dinner. But, it’s not every day. I choose when I’m going to eat these foods and they’re a treat! Cutting out everything will only make you go crazy and cheat so bad, so find a balance and don’t be too hard on yourself.
I don’t count calories or anything like that, but I know what my “goal” is calories and protein wise for the day. If you’re new to health + fitness and are starting from square 1, keeping a food log is so helpful. Sometimes you don’t even realize how much you eat in one day until you start tracking it all or writing it down!
working out + pregnancy
Always talk to your doctor about what is best for you. My doctor told me to keep doing what I was already doing, and I did up until my 3rd trimester. I walked daily throughout my entire pregnancy for ~30+ minutes and feel like that made a huge difference. There are a lot of pregnancy modifications you can do, especially during ab-work that I always asked my doctor for or researched online.
I also was conscious about what I ate, and never had the eating for 2 mentality. I ate the same things (besides the foods that are off limits when pregnant) that I ate pregnant as I did when I wasn’t as far as calories and nutrients go. If you don’t have time to workout or can’t or are too pregnant, try to walk! 🙂 I gained around 30 lbs during my pregnancy and it was so much easier to lose after delivery because I didn’t gain too much. I was back down to my pre-pregnancy weight around 3-4 weeks postpartum.
