Hey hey! How are you? Now that we’ve finally made it through what felt like an extra-long and slow January, I found myself thinking about to the holidays. Do you miss them already as much as I do?

Time really seems to fly between Thanksgiving and Christmas. I always find myself wishing I had taken more time to slow down and enjoy the season, although I’m not sure if it even would’ve possible! Which brings me back to this post. Amid all the holiday scrambling, I’m always especially grateful for a quick, easy, and healthy meal… like tasty pecan pie oatmeal that’s practically bursting with pecan pie flavor.

Pecan Pie Protein Oatmeal

The few days leading up to a big holiday, I tend to take it a little easier on the indulgent food. This usually has a lot to do with the fact that I’m too busy scrambling around before the festivities to make anything truly exciting. I try to focus on protein and produce (eat like a PRO!) with more simple eats that I can quickly put together. It’s usually a lot of scrambled eggs, soups, smoothies, oatmeal and salads.

That doesn’t mean that it’s totally boring. A great example: this pecan pie protein oatmeal. It has the flavor and texture of delectable pecan pie baked oatmeal, but comes together much quicker!

I’ve made this a few times over the last few weeks. It’s packed with protein, the texture is amazing (I’ll tell you my secret trick!), and it has the perfect amount of pie-like sweetness on top. Not to mention it makes meal prep a breeze!

So here’s why these oats have been so awesome lately:

a little soaking action overnight.

Regular ol’ rolled oats have been feeling extra grainy/chewy lately, so I started soaking them overnight before cooking. I just cover them in water and let them sit overnight, then rinse and drain before boiling.

It makes the texture super soft, fluffy and creamy. They taste the same way restaurant oats taste, which are usually loaded with milk and butter in the cooking process.

Another bonus from soaking: it makes them easier to digest. I was listening to The Model Health Show (<— fave podcast if you haven’t checked it out!) and one of the speakers was discussing lectins and how they can make certain plant-based foods more inflammatory. Lectins are the plant’s protective response to keep predators or humans from eating it, and can cause inflammation in the body. Soaking, fermenting, and pressure cooking are all effective ways to reduce lectins.

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So excited to have Hannah on the podcast and we’re chatting about gut health.

Here’s what we discuss:

– Tips for optimal gut health

– Food sensitvities

– Eating for optimal digestion

and more!

 151: Gut health with Hannah Aylward

Here’s a bit more about Hannah and her background:

Hannah Aylward is a Certified Holistic Health Coach, gut health specialist, and the founder of HAN, her functional nutrition practice taking a root cause approach to repairing the gut for real. After struggling with her own chronic digestive issues for years, Hannah dove headfirst into the latest in gut health research, seeking answers to her bloating, food sensitivities, and pain. With her science-backed formula, Hannah has overcome her own digestive issues and helped hundreds of other women around the world do the same.

Today Hannah leads her all-women team of functional practitioners who have served over 500 clients globally. HAN’s mission is to help clients transform their gut health and overcome their never-ending digestive issues with functional nutrition, targeted supplementation, and advanced lab work. Now referred by doctors across the U.S., HAN’s signature and highly sought-after Healin’ Guts + Shakin’ Butts Program has brought her clients life-changing results such as getting off of thyroid medication and antidepressants, reversing lifelong food sensitivities, healing leaky gut and brain fog, weight loss, and much more!

Connect with her on Instagram and check out her website.

More resources from this episode:

Join us for Fit Team! This is my online fitness community and you can try it free for 7 days.

I love love love the meals from Sakara Life! Use this link and the code XOGINAH for 20% off their meal delivery and clean boutique items. This is something I do once a month as a lil treat to myself and the meals are always showstoppers.

If any of my fellow health professional friends are looking for another way to help their clients, I highly recommend IHP. You can also use this information to heal yourself and then go one to heal others, which I think is a beautiful mission. You can absolutely join if you don’t currently work in the health or fitness indu

Sharing a roundup of some of the things I’m loving from Vuori. This post isn’t sponsored, but affiliate links are included below which enable me to earn a small commission. Thank you so much to those of you who shop through my links!

Hi friends! How are you? How was the weekend? Ours was great. Meg’s baby shower was lovely – I can’t wait to meet my new lil nephew soon!- and we got together with some friends. We also started planning and prepping because our upstairs floors are being replaced. We basically have to move everything downstairs. It feels like we’re moving again, but it will be SO worth it when it’s done.

For today’s post, I wanted to share some of my fave things from Vuori. Vuori has skyrocketed to become one of my favorite athletic and athelsire brands over the past couple of years. I find that they’re prices are better than some other spots, but the quality and fabrics are SO good. I also tend to like their color options more, too! Just wanted to share the good stuff if you’re looking for new athletic wear as a burst of workout motivation mojo. 😉

Latest favorite Vuori finds

The Daily Legging

I love these so much, I have four pairs in the closet. The most recent ones I’ve added to the collection are Sawyer and a light purple grey color (that I think is maybe a little too light.

Why I like these:

They’re a little bit cropped so they’re not baggy around my ankles. They also have a cute drawstring, aren’t see-though, and have stood the test of time. I’ve had my black pair for three years now and they still look brand new. They’re also cheaper than Aligns but sturdier fabric.

Halo Performance Hoodie and Joggers<

Hi friends! Happy Friday! The weekend is heeeeeere. What do you have going on? I’m taking my first Spenga class with a friend – I’ll report back!- and putting the finishing touchings on February Fit Team programming. New workouts drop on Sunday! If you want to try it, sign up here – the first 7 days are free.

I’m also looking forward to teaching a barre class, Meg’s baby sprinkle (Kyle and Meg are having baby #3 in a month and a half!), and a family hike. I hope you have a fun and relaxing weekend ahead.

(A leftover lunch of chicken with artichokes and mushrooms, plus radishes, broccoli and homemade hummus on the side)

It’s time for the weekly Friday Faves party! This is where I share some of my favorite finds from the week and around the web. I always love to hear about your faves, too, so please shout out something you’re loving in the comments section below.

 Friday Faves 1.26

Read, watch, listen:

Liv and I saw Mean Girls last weekend and LOVED it. I had low expectations but was blown away – I want to see it again.

SO proud of the #1 spot on this list! One of my all-time faves. Tucson has a few spots on this list!

Don’t miss this week’s podcast episode here chatting about breast implant illness.

What do you always pack for a trip?

Fitness, health, and good eats:

Latest pair of Vivobarefoots (<— my referral link gets you 15% off). This is the 7th pair to enter our house. The Pilot, P, and I are all on board the barefoot train. (Liv sticks to her Jordans and Converse.) It’s wild to see how constricting *normal* shoes feel now. They squish my toes so much! These are extremely light, comfortable, and plenty of room for proper toe splay and foot function. 😉

(Also worth mentioning her

Hi friends! How’s the day going? Thank you so much for the beautiful birthday wishes for Miss P. I read them all to her and she loved them. (She also LOVED having everyone sing “Happy Birthday!”) I’ll be sure to recap the birthday festivities in one post after her party. 🙂 For today, I have a brand-new workout for you, combining two of my very favorite tools: the kettlebell and the TRX suspension trainer.

(Wearing Nikes, lulu crops, and this Zella tank which I later realized was inside-out for all of these pics. Derp. haha)

TRX Kettlebell Circuit Workout

Kettlebells and the TRX add an entirely different dimension to training, as they target our deep internal core stabilizers. You have to work harder to maintain balance or center of gravity with the kettlebell, and the TRX encourages a plank position for the exercises. You’re in a moving plank the entire time. These are excellent tools to to challenge yourself and keep your muscles guessing!

The workout is meant to be completed circuit-style, moving quickly from one set of exercises to the next. After you finish one round of the entire circuit, you have the option to move through it again 1-2 times for 3 total times.

What Is Power Circuit Workout

Here are a couple of interesting things about this circuit, which increase its *excitement*:

-It’s a longer circuit (11 exercises). This use uses quite a few unilateral movements, focusing on one side at a time. If you’re in a time pinch, you can do a couple of bilateral movements instead. (For the burpees, do regular, non-TRX burpees, and for the kettlebell squat and press, hold two kettlebells instead of one. Ditch one of the squat exercises if you’re trying to bring down the time.)

-Speaking of unilateral movements, this is SUCH a great way to train. If we’re always training both sides at the same time, it’s easy to depend on your stronger side, or ignore how each side is feeling. You may find that you can make simple tweaks to improve form because you’re really paying attention to the working muscles.

-It’s a leg crusher. These are challenging movements to work your entire body, with a lower body and glute emphasis. You’re welcome. Mauaha.

As always, talk with a doctor before making any fitness changes. Honor your body and modify as needed. This workout assumes that you’re comfortable working with the TRX and kettlebell, and know how to execute these moves safely. If you have any questions, please let me know, or ask a personal trainer at your local gym to help you. We are happy (and stoked!) for the opportunity to help others work out more safely.

Now, let’s move onto the workout!

(Pin for the next time you need some gym inspiration!)

Form cues and tips:

1. Squat and reach: step away from the TRX base point, holding onto the strap with one hand. Sink down into a squat (chest listed, and weight in your heels), as you tap your free hand to the floor. As you exhale to rise, squeeze your glutes, and “c