TAKING ACTION: ✅What is one way you get your fiber in? Share with us in the comments below! ✅ Don’t forget - NO BACKGROUND NOISE CHALLENGE THIS WEEK! We have a big week ahead with our monthly Feast Day and 24-hour fast coming up—but it’s important not to put your steps on the back burner this week. We’re still locked into our STEPtember Challenge for a little while longer! 👟 It’s critical to balance all your meals with a healthy serving of protein and fiber! Both protein and fiber should be staples in your diet. Protein + fiber is a power combo when it comes to feeling your best and feeling satiated for longer! 👏 Check out the high-protein + high-fiber recipes below! Please use discretion if you’re completely dairy-free and/or gluten-free. 🥦 22 High Protein High Fiber Meals - The Real Food Dietitians

TAKING ACTION: ✅Look at your week ahead and let me know in the comments if you see any potential hiccups for Feast Day or our 24-hour fast this week. Let’s get a plan together now so you’re well-prepared and set up for success! We’re stepping into our fourth week of our STEPtember Challenge and in case you haven’t heard—it’s a big week around here! We not only have our monthly 24-hour fast coming up this week, but we also have our monthly Feast Day (which is a total fan fav, by the way) AND our No Background Noise CHALLENEGE starts TODAY and runs through Friday (no music in car, TVs OFF, etc..) and really sit in our thoughts and learn to enjoy the silence which will help with anxiety (long term), nervous system regulation + being able to form actual thoughts. I always like to touch on a mindset topic on Mondays, and today, I want to talk about reducing decision fatigue by having a plan. Decision fatigue is a real thing, and if you wait until the last minute and try to wing it with your diet and exercise, you may find yourself too mentally overwhelmed to focus on your plan this week. 💯 Today, I encourage you to look at your week ahead. What could potentially cause a hiccup on Feast Day? What about our 24-hour fast on Thursday? Note anything that might pose a problem and figure out how you’re going to navigate it. Have a plan. Again, with all of the decisions that come up in a day, waiting to create a plan until it arrives typically doesn’t turn out in your favor. If you know of anything that might cause a hiccup this week, share it with me in the comments below, and I’ll help you think through it! That’s what I’m here for, and I want to see you succeed! 🔥

TAKING ACTION: ✅Share your weekly win in the comments below! I want to hear ‘em all, both big and small! 🎉 “Fight your brain’s negativity bias by appreciating and lingering on the tiny, positive moments you experience day-to-day.” ~Rick Hanson Take a moment to consider these questions today ⬇️ ➡️How many things can you consider as a win this week? ➡️How many things did you consider a failure this week? If I were a bettin’ woman, I’d bet that you can think of a lot more failures than wins… This is because humans are hardwired to focus on the negative. We have a negativity bias, and unfortunately, it causes us to place more emphasis on negative experiences than positive ones. This might be why some of you don’t show up every week to celebrate your weekly small wins. If science is correct, you’re far more focused on what you did wrong than what you did right—and even if you can think of something you did well, you probably brush it off as “not good enough”... Am I right or am I right? While negativity bias is something we all probably struggle with to a degree, the good news is that it’s totally changeable because your brain is neuroplastic—but it doesn’t happen without you putting in some effort. If you want to change your brain to focus on the positive, you must start focusing on the positive—and that means you should start celebrating even the smallest of wins each week. 💯

TAKING ACTION: ✅What carbohydrate are you looking forward to enjoying today? Share a picture if you have time! Hey, just the carbs alone are enough to conquer Hump Day, wouldn’t you agree? 😉 Let’s look at why carbohydrates are so important with our increased activity this month ⬇️ 🍎Fuel for the extra daily volume: Walking runs largely on carbohydrates. Adding consistent walks on top of strength and HIIT raises your total energy demand. Whole-food carbs supply the steady glucose needed so energy stays up and the body doesn’t lean harder on stress hormones or muscle tissue. 🍎Better recovery for your existing training: Strength training and HIIT already use up muscle glycogen. Extra walking increases the load and can leave you under-recovered if carb intake isn’t sufficient. 🍎Protect energy, mood, and hormones: More movement without more fuel will lower your energy availability. This often shows up as intense hunger, irritability, poorer sleep, or hormonal disruption. It’s important to remember that whole-food carbs will serve you best. Whole-food carbs supply the steady glucose you need for energy. Consuming whole-food carbs will also prevent your body from leaning harder on your stress hormones and/or muscle tissue as you increase your activity this month!

TAKING ACTION: ✅Share one tip for getting in your protein each day! I want to hear from everyone today! Let’s talk about protein. We’ve discussed why rest & recovery and sufficient carb intake are important with our extra movement this month, but it’s also important to make sure you’re hitting your protein goal every day this month. As you’re well aware, protein is our anchor macro. However, it’s even more critical this month because we’ve increased our activity with our STEPtember challenge. Here’s why ⬇️ 🍽 Extra muscle repair: The added walking increases overall muscle stress on top of your HIIT and strength sessions. Protein supplies the amino acids needed to repair that tissue so you recover better and keep progressing. 🍽 Protecting lean muscle: Higher activity raises your calorie burn. Without enough protein, your body is more likely to break down muscle for energy instead of using fat or food. 🍽 Better recovery & adaptation: Adequate protein helps reduce soreness, supports strength gains, and keeps your body adapting to the new training load instead of just getting more tired. Again, we don’t want our extra activity this month to be done in vain. Protein is always the priority, and especially this month! Check out the simple ways to sneak more protein into your diet! How to Get More Protein: 11 Easy, Dietitian-Loved Tips | The Output by Peloton