Hi friends! I’m so excited to have Sarah Merrill Hall on the show today! We’re talking about navigating postpartum, including C-section recovery, postpartum fitness, breastfeeding, and more.

135: Navigating postpartum with Sarah Merrill Hall

Here’s a bit more about Sarah:

Sarah grew an audience of over half a million Instagram followers by bringing humor and relatable content to everyday struggles. With a mission to help her followers embrace their imperfections, laugh through the hard times, and live their best kid lives, Sarah has turned Big Kid Problems into a relatable and infectious brand.

But her adulting content took a turn when Sarah became a new mom!

Enter the next era of Big Kid Problems: Bottle Service, a new kind of pregnancy and motherhood podcast. From recounting her ultimate C-section recovery guide to being open about her “failing” her breastfeeding journey, Bottle Service by Big Kid Problems is here to open up a new motherhood conversation.

You can check out her personal IG here, Big Kid Problems here, and listen to Bottle Service here. 

More resources from this episode:

I’m still obsessed with my sauna blanket (Memorial Day sale weekend of 5/26). This is one of my favorite ways to relax and sweat it out. I find that it energizes me, helps with aches and pains, I sleep better on the days I use this, and it makes my skin glow. Link to check it out here. You can also use my discount (FITNESSISTA15) for the PEMF Go Mat, which I use every day, and the red light face mask, which is a staple in m

Sharing some of the good stuff we’ve found lately on Amazon. I always love to hear about new things you’re loving, too, so please shout out in the comments below!

Hi hi! How are you?? I hope you’re having a great morning so far! I have to get some things ready for a photo shoot – we’re taking pics for the landing pages + social for my new program – and some end-of-the-year events.

For today’s post, I wanted to share some of the recent Amazon fashion and fun finds. Amazon has come a looooong way in their fashion game, and while I tend to invest more in the classics, it’s the perfect option for trendier items when I don’t want to spend a ton. As far home goods and essentials go, it just makes life so much easier.

Here are some of my favorite finds lately!

May Amazon Finds

This casual beach dress

I ordered this color because I’m trying to lean into the whole *deep winter* color scheme. It’s a perfect casual beach dress or coverup; perfect to layer with your swimsuit and wear to lunch. It’s super lightweight and flattering, plus they have a ton of colors.

This bodycon midi dress

Love the square neck of this dress! It’s more form-fitting (I always wear Spanx with things like this. It’s always worth it, I promise!) and they also offer it in a lot of colors. The fabric is much nicer than I was expecting, too.

Read more

Hi friends! How was the weekend? I hope you had a wonderful one. Ours was filled with events – a very typical Maycember – but lots of fun time with friends and family. We had a birthday party, graduation party, dance party, and I taught a couple of classes.

It’s been a while since we’ve had a little catch-up post around here. While I wish I could have a green juice or coffee with you in real life, virtual will have to do for now. 🙂 So please grab a green juice or coffee, let’s share a giant pastry, and catch up a bit on life!

If we were having green juice right now…

I’d ask you about summer plans! I always love to hear what you’re up to over the summer, camps the kiddos are doing, and if you have upcoming travels.

I’d also tell you about our upcoming trip to Italy and Greece! I’m SO so looking forward to it (the scenery! the food! the SHOPPING) and the kiddos can’t wait, too. If you have any tips for jet lag, please send them my way lol.

Also, I’m having the hardest time finding sandals with a strap that don’t look like old lady sandals or toddler shoes. If you have any Europe sandals (with a heel strap) that are comfy for all day walking and still stylish, pleeeeease lmk. I don’t want to go the Birks or Tevas route, and am just looking for something neutral, comfy and cute! I’ll be wearing these unicorn sandals and my white Vivobarefoots while we walk around and explore.

If we were having green juice right now, I’d tell ya that I’m thisclose to finishing my Integrative Health Practitioner Level 2 certification and am so pumped about it. I could have blasted through the material and finished quickly, but I wanted to make sure I absorbed as much as possible and truly learned everything I could. I’ll also repeat modules to review material later on because it’s a LOT. I can’t wait to put this into practice, interpret real-life test results, and help clients and friends make some incredible and positive life changes.

I’d also probably tell ya about a program that I’ve been working on, and will be sharing later this summer/ early fall / when it’s finished. It really is the whole package and it’s something I wish would have existed when I was in the depths of my health journey. When I wanted to nap all day, couldn’t wake up in the morning, depending on sugar, had horrible anxiety, I wish this would have existed.

I’ll share more soon, but it’s going to be geared towards moms who feel completely burned out and want

Hi friends! How’s the week going? I hope you’re having a lovely morning. I’m so excited for today’s podcast episode because it’s with someone I genuinely admire as a fitness professional and instructor: Lauren George! She is a powerhouse instructor and posts the best new barre and strength combos on IG. I always check out her page when I need inspiration for classes!

Here’s what we’re talking about today:

Tips for fellow fitness instructors and how to launch your own program

Home workouts – what equipment do you need?

Tips for getting the most out of home workouts (and not getting distracted by chores and social media)

Her tips for being Healthy in Real Life

and so much more!

134: Getting more out of home workouts with Lauren George

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

With more than 16 years in the fitness industry, Lauren George has created multiple fitness formats and educational workshops, run group fitness programs at large health clubs and university campus recreation centers, and trained thousands of new instructors. She is the creator of Pumped Up Strength, The Musicality Method, co-creator of Barre Above, a program specialist for Balletone, Balanced Body certified Pilates instructor, consults on numerous fitness projects for other companies, and is adjunct faculty for Non-Profit Leadership at Clemson University. Additionally, Lauren has launched multiple businesses including Clemson Fitness Company, a boutique fitness studio in Clemson, SC, the Fit Biz Club, PulsePointe barre, and the LG Fitness Virtual Studio and app.

Connect with Lauren on Instagram and through her website. Try a Pumped Up Strength workout here!

More resources from this episode:

I’m still obsessed with my sauna blanket – use the code FITNESSISTA15. This is one of my favorite ways to relax and sweat it out. I find that it energizes me, helps with aches and pains, I sleep better on the days I use this, and it makes my skin glow. Link to check it out here. You can also use my discount for the PEMF Go Mat, which I use every day, and the red light f

Sharing some tips on how to maintain your fitness and activity levels even with a broken toe. 

Hi friends! How are ya and how was the weekend? It was a great one over here. The Pilot was originally supposed to leave for a weeklong trip on Mother’s Day, and as he was driving to the airport, his flight was canceled! He ended up getting to stay home, which was a gift in itself.

We had a lovely brunch at Hacienda del Sol with madre and nana, dropped off plants for my nana and stepmom, and then had an amazing family dinner + swimming at madre’s. I hope that my friends who were celebrating enjoying a beautiful Mother’s Day! Mother’s Day can also be a difficult day for many, for various reasons, so if it wasn’t your favorite day, I’m sending you a big hug and holding you in my heart.

How to work out with a broken toe

For today’s post, I wanted to talk about something I’ve experienced too many times: working out with a broken toe. I’ve broken the pinky toe on my right foot countless times – the Pilot said at this point, they should just amputate it – and for the first time ever, I broke my left pinky toe. It was exactly two and a half weeks ago, and I was running around the house getting things ready to film Fit Team videos. I raced into the living room and WHACK. I hit my foot in between the wooden chair leg and immediately fell to the floor, moaning in agony.

Usually when I stub a toe, it’s a few swear words and I move on with my life, but this one. Wow. I knew I really hurt it. I lied on the floor writhing in pain for at least five minutes. Then, I used pure adrenaline to film the 6 Fit Team workout tutorials (whew!), it throbbed all night, and the next morning, my foot was completely bruised and swollen. I got it good.

Because my foot was alarmingly purple, swollen, and hurting so badly, I actually went to urgent care to see if I truly damaged something. (Usually I know a toe is broken, buddy tape it, and let it heal.) They wanted to do an X-ray and sure enough: oblique fracture. The treatment doesn’t change and they just buddy tape it, so that’s my destiny for at least 2 more weeks.

The good news is that the doctor said I could work out as long as it feels ok. I can’t flex hard at my toes (no lunges, and definitely no high impact) but I was surprised to see that I can still do a LOT even with a broken toe.

In today’s post, I’m going to share some ideas and some of the things I’ve been doing! A broken toe doesn’t have to sideline your fitness goals. With a little creativity and some modifications, you can stay active and keep that body moving.

Talk to your doctor and make sure you’re ok to work out

First things first, safety always comes first. Make sure to consult with your healthcare provide