Tone it Up: The Community and My Personal Experience

Have you ever tried a fitness program? Have you ever done a meal plan? I went through a period in my life where I thought programs like this was the "answer" to getting healthy, even though I was already a generally healthy person and worked out a lot because I was an athlete. I alluded to crash diets, cutting carbs, strict meal plans, fitness challenges, and who knows what else because I just thought that's what I needed to do in order to become fit. The majority of them aren't even worth talking about though because we all know that short term fixes are not the answer.

I joined the Tone It Up community when I was in High School. I started following along way back when they only had their YouTube videos available. I would do them in my room and felt so good afterwards because they were so much fun and I could feel my muscles getting a god burn. It became my "me time" and I loved how I could choose which body part I wanted to work that day. I looked forward to coming home and working out in my room even after lacrosse practice!

I was excited about having access to fun workouts, amazing trainers, and a flexible yet delicious meal plan. I tried many of their challenges and stuck with them, but never competed because winning wasn't the most important factor to me. The workouts were fun, there were so many girls cheering other women on, and I saw my body transform very quickly. Coming from a history of disordered eating in high school— more info in a post to come later— Tone it up helped me enjoy food in a healthy way again.  Disordered eating made me realize that a "meal plan" wasn't the best thing for me so I've learned through the years how to listen to my body and practice intuitive eating.

I loved using their recipes and found joy in baking and cooking again. I became more knowledgable about nutrition and all of the positive effects that so many foods have on your body. I learned to love new flavors and how spices can make anything taste delicious. I stopped being afraid of what was off limits and became excited about the endless nutritional foods that I could include in my diet.

I use their program more as a lifestyle nutritional base, and of course to get fun and delicious recipe ideas. I use their protein powders in my smoothies & baked goods and love all of their snacks, especially the TIU protein bars. Their products are all plant-based, which is great for nutritional benefits and digestion. I talk a ton about plant based in general on my Instagram page so I may write a blog post about why I have recently started to transition to a plant based lifestyle. 

TIU also helped me learn a few things about myself. I've learned that fitness isn't one size fits all and it doesn't have to be the same strict regimen everyday. Fitness can be both fun and effective, not dreadful and painful. There's no point in doing something that you don't love because then it has a negative effect on your body. I've learned that how you treat your body and yourself is greatly tied to your mood, hormones, and happiness. Do it for yourself. I've also learned how to love nutrition and how that can be fun as well. Your lifestyle doesn't have to be about low calorie or what's off limits, but rather focus on fueling your body, consuming what you love and what makes you feel good. It's true when you hear that the correct nutrition for you personally really is an important factor to feeling your best.

To be clear, this doesn't mean if you gain weight easily by eating carbs, cut out carbs. This means being aware of how your body reacts to something and taking that knowledge and turn it into the most positive outcome for your body possible. This may mean eat the majority of your carbs in the morning, or after workouts. Find all those other yummy foods that are higher in fat and protein and incorporate those alongside your carbs to prevent crashing or insulin spikes.

The same goes for workouts. I'm not an endurance person, so I'd rather do sprints or hit the weights than run a 5k every Sunday afternoon. It's what works for you! I'm grateful to have learned this early on. Karena and Katrina, along with all of the TIU trainers are so inspiring and promote such a healthy lifestyle. The best thing they've taught me is to always remember what your needs are and stay true to them.

It's all about what's right for you, your body, and your schedule! Once you figure out what you like, it's a lot easier to go from there and then flourish on your own. Make it fun for yourself and don't be too strict. Life is way too short to worry about how many calories you're burning or what your body fat percentage is. At the end of the day, if what you're doing makes you happy and feel like the best possible version of yourself, then you're doing it right.

stay vibrant

xo lindsay