Hi friends! Happy Tuesday! So excited to have my favorite guy on the podcast this morning. He’s been on the show a couple of times and was the most-requested guest when I asked who you wanted to see on episode 60. This was a fun episode (as always!) and thank you to those of you who sent your questions via Instagram.
Here’s what we chat about:
– Our first dance song
– How we’re navigating work, distance learning, and his travel schedule
– What aircrafts he flies and what were his second and third choices
– Did he ever have a fear of flying or has he loved it his whole life?
– Has it been weird/ is he nervous about traveling during Covid?
– Does my “healthiness” bother him?
– Keeping a workout routine while flying and traveling
and so.much.more
Resources from this episode:
Don’t forget to sign up for your free 21 days of Les Mills On Demand! This is one of my all-time favorite workout platforms. The instructors are knowledgeable and motivating, plus the music is incredible. There are so many different formats, you’ll definitely find something you love. Get your free workouts here. Perfect opportunity to switch up your routine now that so many of us are at home.
CBD has been a game changer for me. It helps so much with my anxiety and sense of calmness. You can read more about my experience with CBD here and use the code FITNESSISTA here to get an extra 15% off your first order. (I love the mint flavored drops and bath bombs!)
Have you tried Trunk Club? This is my favorite styling service! All of the pieces are from Nordstrom and excellent quality. Use my link for $50 off your first Trunk.
Thank you so much for listening and for all of your support with the podcast! Please leave a rating or review if you enjoyed this episode. If you leave a rating, head to this page and you’ll get a little “thank you” gift from me to you.
I know what you’re thinking… cardio? Fun? In the same sentence!? But trust me, this full body workout is ACTUALLY tons of fun and also kicks butt. These are my 6 favorite kickboxing moves that also give you that cardio fix all at the same time… and don’t worry, you can totally follow along at your own pace. Just follow along with the blog and take it step by step!
Kickboxing is seriously one of my favorite workouts, especially when it comes to CARDIO. Best of both worlds, am I right!? Sometimes your workout routine needs a little fun and excitement to avoid plateaus, and kickboxing for cardio is such a great way to mix it up. Relying on a treadmill for cardio can get so monotonous, but cardio kickboxing!? It’s sure to be an exciting, lively workout!
And finishing these moves, If you’re just as hooked as I am to kickboxing and cardio workouts, you’ll LOVE all of the other full-length kickboxing and HIIT workout videos on the LSF app. Download and start your 7 day free trial now to check it out! Trust me, you won’t want to miss those HIIT workouts!
1. Sweep Squat Kick x 10 each way
Think of this as a moving lateral lunge with a kick. You’ll sweep your body to one side as you squat low then come to standing, squat again, and kick up with the opposite foot. Alternate from side to side until you’ve done 10 on each side.
2. Jab – Cross x 20 each side
Step forward with your leading leg. If you’re right handed, this will be your right foot. Keep your guard up and core tight. Jab straight in front of you with your leading arm and the across the body with the back arm as you pivot on the back foot. Complete 20 on each side.
3. Side kicks x15 each side
Start in a standing position with feet slightly wider than hip distance. Squat low and as you push back up to standing, kick out laterally to one side. Lower back into your squat and repeat the same movement on the opposite side. Alternate side to side until you complete 15 on each side.
4. Speed Bag x1 minute
Start standing with your leading foot forward in a comfortable stance. Imagine there is a speed bag (or someone you really dislike…ex boyfriend maybe?) standing in front of you. Raise your arms and begin to make tight circles with your fists moving as quickly as possible. This is cardio remember? Allow yourself to have a little bounce in your feet, but keep your core tight and shoulder relaxed.
5. BackKicks x15 each leg
Start standing with feet hip-width distance apart. Lower down into a squat or chair position with weight in your heels. Staying low, kick back fully extending your leg as you press through your heel. Return to starting position and repeat on the other side. Alternate side to side until you complete 15 on each side.
6 Jab, Cross, Sweep x 15 each side
Remember your jab cross and that sweep? Now you’ll combined those two moves here. Complete 15 on one side before moving to the other side.
Cardio Queen
Ok, now that you have the basics down it’s time to put in all together for a full out cardio workout. Move through these exercises as quickly as possible while maintaining good posture and resistance. Take a 1 minute break and repeat. Do this for a total of 6 rounds for a full-out sweat sesh! If you liked this, checkout this 10-minute cardio kickboxing workout on my youtube channel too!
Let’s learn how to use simple spices to make your meals awesome!
Maybe you’re just getting comfortable cooking in the kitchen.
Or maybe you’ve been eating the same chicken and broccoli for weeks and it’s time to spice it up.
Either way, you’re in the right place.
We’ve been conducting “Cooking Classes for Newbies” in Nerd Fitness Prime. Today, we’ll share with you our secrets for making any meal delicious, using only a handful of common spices.
Remember those diagrams of the tongue that you learned about in school?
They told you the tongue tasted different flavors depending on the section. The back tastes bitter, the front tastes sweet, and the sides taste salty and sour.
1. Bitter 2. Sour 3. Salt 4. Sweet
Most of us now know this is wrong.
Your whole tongue tastes all flavors, and it’s not just your tongue! The roof of our mouth and your nose help out too! In fact, there are more than just the four flavors we learned about in school.
There is another lie that has been circulating in the fitness world for years. It’s a lie that says healthy food is boring and bland.
It drives me crazy.
And in this nerd’s opinion, it’s one of the most damaging lies told about getting healthy.
We know diet is 80% of the battle when it comes to achieving our health and fitness goals. And when we tell ourselves eating healthy food is boring, flavorless, and downright gross, we put ourselves on the fast track to failure! Just like exercise can and should be fun, cooking meat and veggies should be delicious.
Today we’re going over some basic skills that will allow you to see maximal benefit for minimal effort.
How? Simple flavors.
Here are 6 foolproof spice combinations to help you level up your cooking skills, explore the world with your tongue, and (hopefully) get you out of your food rut!
6 Spice Combinations for Tasty Food
Tons of rebels looking to level up their cooking have asked about re-creating their favorite dishes from around the world. I’ve got good news for you! It’s not as difficult as most people think.
Regional dishes taste the way they do because they are made from the spices and ingredients local to that community. Your ancestors didn’t need Super Processed Stir Fry Sauce™ to make dinner. They used whole foods to create delicious dishes, and we’re going to do the same.
Here are 6 simplified spice combinations that you can use to take your healthy meals from bland to bold. Each is measured for a pound of food:
#1) Mexican:
Chili powder: 1 Tbsp (15ml)
Lime (Juice from 1 lime)
#2) Greek:
Oregano: 1 Tbsp (15ml)
Olive Oil: 2 tbsp (30ml)
Lemon juice: 2 tbsp (30ml)
#3) Italian:
Oregano: ½ Tbsp (7ml)
Garlic: 3 Cloves (½ tsp or 2.5ml powdered)
Basil: ½ tbsp (7ml)
Tomatoes: 1 diced can
#4) Indian:
Cumin: ½ Tsp (2.5ml)
Curry: 1 tbsp (15ml)
Coriander: ½ tsp (2.5ml)
#5&6) Chinese/Japanese (this makes a marinade or stir-fry sauce):
Ginger: ¼ tsp (1ml)
Tamari: ¼ cup (59ml), can also use coconut aminos or soy sauce
Rice Vinegar: 2 Tbsp (30ml)
Garlic: 3 cloves (½ tsp/2.5ml powdered)
Dash Red Pepper Flakes
Sugar (Honey): 1 tbsp (15ml)
Bonus flavors!
#7) Thai (this makes a marinade or stir-fry sauce):
Coconut milk: 1/2 cup (118ml)
Tamari: 1/4 cup (59ml) (coconut aminos could also be used)
Fish Sauce: 2 tbsp (30ml)
Green or Red Curry Paste: 1 Tbsp (15ml)
Cilantro: Handful of fresh chopped
For the complete set, add these to your shopping list (herbs and spices are dried):
2 limes
2 lemons
Can or jar of diced tomatoes
Coconut aminos or soy sauce
Rice vinegar or apple cider vinegar
Chili Powder
Oregano
Basil
Parsley
Red Pepper Flake
Garlic Powder (or fresh bulb of garlic, your choice)
Curry powder
Cumin
Coriander
Ginger powder
If you go to the store and buy these 15 items, you’ll be set to make a wide variety of dishes from all over the world.
These spice combinations can be used for chicken, fish, eggs, beef, or pork; roasted, sauteed, steamed, or microwaved veggies; stir-fries, and more!
For a very minimal monetary investment and one trip to the grocery store, you can have a different dish from around the world every day of the week!
How to Add Spices to a Meal (7 Simple Recipes)
Okay, you’ve got your spices.
Now how do you put them to work?
Glad you asked!
We’re going to take one of your favorite recipes and put your new spices to the test! Grab one of our many recipes and take one of the above spice combos and put them together.
My suggestion is that you omit the suggested spices from the original recipe posts and replace them with the ingredient measurements above. Remember, the above suggestions are by the pound, so if you’re using two pounds of chicken or veggies, double the spices!
Here are just a few examples of how you can these spices for almost any dish:
Roasted veggies – Anyone up for some Mexican chili lime or Indian curry-spiced veggies?
Chicken Stir Fry – Try the Asian spices out to level up this classic!
Shepherd’s Pie – Indian curry shepherd’s pie sounds like an unexpected and delightful combination.
Lettuce Wrapped Burgers – Make some Italian spiced burgers, and top with fresh mozzarella, tomato, and fresh basil!
Scrambled Eggs and Veggies – Try a different spice combo on plain old scrambled eggs each morning this week to see how the flavors differ!
Easiest Chicken Ever – Toss the chicken in some Greek spices, lemon, and olive oil instead of the spices prescribed in the original recipe.
After a while, you’ll learn which spices you like in a dish and which ones you can live without.
Maybe you like cinnamon in your curry or maybe you can’t stand the taste of ginger. That’s totally cool! Your food is YOURS!
Soon you’ll be able to spice your dishes without having to measure them every time. Be sure to use your nose and mouth to smell and taste what you’re making as you go! (Unless it’s raw meat. Never taste raw meat.)
5 Tips for Using Spices While Cooking
So you’re heading to the store, or you already have your spices. Awesome! Here are some tips to make shopping and cooking a little bit easier.
1. Does buying individual spices and mixing them sound intimidating? The spice companies make this easy for us. Check out the spice aisle in your grocery store. Lots of companies make pre-mixed spices for regional dishes:
Italian Seasoning
Greek Seasoning
Herbs de Provence
Taco/Fajita seasoning
Curry powder
Chinese 5-spice powder
To experiment with these, buy a couple and try a new one every time you cook something. Put it on something basic like eggs or baked chicken so you can begin to taste the difference between spices from different areas of the world.
2. Salt and pepper don’t do the same job.
Salt makes your food taste MORE like what it is. It enhances the flavors of the food that are already there. If you over-season with salt, of course it will make your food taste salty, but that’s not salt’s function in the culinary world.
If you’re feeling adventurous and have a little extra cash, buy some fancy looking sea salt. There’s Hawaiian pink sea salt, fleur de sel, coarse sea salt, fine sea salt. There’s even weird stuff like truffle salt, grey sea salt, and black pyramid salt!
The best advice for pepper is to buy whole peppercorns and a pepper grinder. They even sell disposable ones with peppercorns already in them at the grocery store. You don’t have to get fancy. This is what I have. Fresh ground pepper makes all the difference in the world. If you like pepper on your food, this is the way to go!
Sometimes the most simple combination of coarse sea salt and coarsely cracked black pepper is all I use to season a steak, and it’s freaking delicious. Never discount simplicity.
3. Buy a pre-stocked spice rack. I might get some flack for this tip from seasoned (pun intended!) cooks. But when you’re first starting out, instead of buying all your spices individually, sometimes it’s nice just to have it all done for you. Spice racks are relatively cheap, they give you a lot of spices and herbs that you may not have thought about picking up at the store, but you’ll be glad you have it when a recipe calls for paprika and voila! You already have it!
Admittedly, spices and herbs that come in a pre-stocked spice rack from a department store may be older and therefore less flavorful, but it’s better than having no spices at all!
4. Get acquainted with acid. By acid, I mean vinegars and citrus juices. You’ll be amazed at how much adding a little bit of vinegar to a plate of sauteed veggies or your paleo spaghetti sauce makes it pop.
Acids brighten the flavors in your food and help minimize some of the bitter flavors in certain foods (like dark leafy green veggies). An acid can also help you bring down the heat if you added too much red pepper flake to a dish.
5. Fry the spices first. This is called “blooming” your spices. When your oil is heated in your pan, add your spices to the oil first and mix them around for 3-5 seconds, then add your veggies or meat or whatever you’re cooking in that oil. This is a quick and easy way to deepen and intensify the flavor of your spices.
Getting Started Spicing up Your Food (Next Steps)
We’ve all heard people say eating healthy food is boring and bland. If you ask me, the people who are telling you this are doing it wrong.
When we force ourselves to eat the same foods over and over (like plain baked chicken and steamed veggies with minimal seasoning), it can deplete our willpower bar if we crave more flavors and variety.
Companies design Frankenfoods to make us crave the sugars and chemicals they’ve created, so they can profit off of us indefinitely.
How can we fight against that?
By mastering the art of using spices and sauces!
Healthy eating doesn’t have to be boring. Armed with these basic concepts and combinations you can defeat cravings and actually enjoy and look forward to your healthy meals!
Just roll up your sleeves and get going!
If you want some more help, Nerd Fitness is here for you.
We have three options on how to continue with us. Pick the option that best aligns with your goals:
Option #1) Need lots of recipes to choose from? Want someone to walk you through cooking them? Join Nerd Fitness Prime!
Nerd Fitness Prime is our premium membership program that contains workouts and cooking classes with NF Coaches, lessons on how to cook, tons of healthy recipes, a supportive online community, group challenges, and much more!
Option #2) Our 1-on-1 Online Coaching program: a coaching program for busy people to help them make better food choices, stay accountable, and get healthier, permanently.
All the coaches from our videos today are part of the program, and they’re ready to help you level up your kitchen skills, apocalypse or no apocalypse.
You can schedule a free call with our team so we can get to know you and see if our coaching program is right for you:
Option #3) Join the Rebellion!We need good people like you in our community, the Nerd Fitness Rebellion.
Sign up in the box below to enlist and get ourRebel Starter Kit, which includes all of our “work out at home” guides, the Nerd Fitness Diet Cheat Sheet, and much more!
Get your Nerd Fitness Starter Kit
The 15 mistakes you don’t want to make.
Full guide to the most effective diet and why it works.
Complete and track your first workout today, no gym required.
Alright, now I want to hear from you:
What flavors are we missing?
Are there any other spices in your cabinet that you have NO IDEA what to do with?
Let us know in the comments! Maybe we can help!
-Noel
PS: Make sure you catch the rest of our Cooking 101 series:
I know what it’s like to hate exercise, and ALSO want to lose weight and see results. Ugh.
We’ve built an entire company and community around helping people overcome these obstacles – our Online Coaching Program helps people find exercises they love, and also how to make the right nutritional choices.
We are all on a unique journey and we’d love to help you with yours!
ExercIse Sucks. Do This Instead.
“But Steve, I don’t like to exercise!”
While some are like Odie and love to run around all day, others are like Garfield and feel like they must be allergic to exercise.
Exercise is merely a supporting actor, which is why we don’t ever NEED to spend time doing exercise we hate.
We’ve already talked extensively on Nerd Fitness on how to eat better, so I won’t hash that out here.
So let’s talk about exercise.
Sure, it would be great if we all strength trained 5 days a week and got super strong, but the reality is most of us don’t have that time – or the desire – to hit the gym.
“Overweight people have a tendency to sit, while lean ones have trouble holding still and spend two hours more a day on their feet, pacing around and fidgeting, researchers are reporting in findings published today.
The difference translates into about 350 calories a day…”
350 extra calories burned per day ain’t no joke!
As we cover in our “How many calories should I eat every day?” guide, burning an extra 350 calories per day can result in sustainable weight loss and maintenance over time for many.
Not only that, but when you factor in inertia (an object at rest tends to stay at rest, and object in motion tends to stay in motion), it paints a pretty interesting picture:
We spend our lives trying to be more “efficient,” but what if the key to weight loss is to be LESS efficient?
From standing up more frequently to parking FARTHER away from the grocery store, every additional step or movement counts. Today’s guide shares TONS of ways to get yourself used to moving more frequently.
I’m actually air drumming and shuffling my feet as we speak!
From dancing to yoga to climbing to roughhousing with your kids, it all counts.
Which brings me to today’s point:
Exercise is a bonus. Exercise helps your heart get stronger, can help build muscle, usually gets you outside the house and absorbing vitamin D, and brings you a litany of other health benefits. Also, any additional calories burned is a bonus!
Exercise can help us make fewer unhealthy food choices. Instead of “I earned this” you can start telling yourself: “If I’m going to exercise regularly, I might as well make it worth it by eating right too.”
Daily exercise is a constant reminder that we are leveling up our lives – that we should continue to make other good choices or we’re practically wasting our time.
This is the type of stuff we focus on – with personalized instruction, with each of our online coaching clients.
Some clients are learning Olympic lifting, while others are simply focusing on taking the stairs more and tracking their food. We are all on a unique journey and we’d love to help you with yours!
40 Ways to Exercise Without Exercising
#1) Hiking, especially with friends – Strap on a pair of shoes, get out of the comfy confines of your hobbit-hole, and go explore the world around you!
Make sure you follow our Beginner Hiking Guide on how to find a hiking spot near you, what shoes to wear, what to bring with you, and more.
#2) Walking – No time to hike? Go for a simple walk. Even a 15-minute brisk walk is enough time to get close to a mile walked, which gets you one step closer to Mordor.
Do you have a 30-minute meeting at work? Have a walking meeting instead. Steve Jobs was known for doing this.
You should know Tim, a member of our Nerd Fitness community who lost 50 pounds – while injured – just by fixing his nutrition and going for long walks every day!
I’m proud that Tim used the philosophies laid out in our online courses under Nerd Fitness Prime, to get his results!
#3) LARP – Live Action Role Playing. Might seem silly to those on the outside, but to those playing, it’s an amazing adventure that reminds us how awesome our imaginations are.
Also, depending on the game, you could be wearing a heavy costume, swinging heavy weaponry, and running for your life!
#4) Rock Climbing – I love rock climbing. It’s one of the best arm/back/forearm workouts in existence, you get to feel like a badass when you reach the top of the wall, and all climbing routes are graded so you can level up the challenge as you get stronger/fitter/better.
It’s a fit nerd’s dream!
#5) Geocaching – If rock climbing is a fit-nerd’s dream, then geocaching is an adventure nerd’s dream brought to life. Become a real-life treasure-hunter (Lara Croft? Nathan Drake? You decide!), and get a great workout in while you’re at it.
Or, if you’re truly nerdy, you can do some Digital Geocaching with Pokemon Go or Harry Potter: Wizards Unite.
#6) Dancing – Ever tried serious swing dancing? You’ll be sweating within ten minutes. How about hip hop? Drenched in sweat, and sore as hell the next day.
Zumba? Tango? Flamenco? You’d be surprised at what you can sign up for and what will elevate your heart rate.
#7) Roughhousing with your kids. I don’t have kids, but when I do, you can bet your ass I’ll be the dad out rolling around in the back yard with them. Don’t forget what it’s like to be a kid – it keeps you young.
#8) Climbing on stuff – A few years back, I attended a great conference, Midoricon, I was walking through the woods with NF Rebel Joe (No, not THAT Joe).
It was awesome to see this guy, having lost 100 pounds since finding Nerd Fitness, explore the woods like it was no problem: climbing on stumps, balancing on fallen trees, climbing trees, and more.
We work with LOTS of Coaching Clients to get them outdoors and help build them “fun climbing programs” that burn tons of calories but don’t really feel like exercise.
Whether it’s Kung Fu, Muay Thai, Tae Kwon Do, Karate or Capoeira (breakdance fighting, seriously), there’s a martial art out there that will make you feel like a badass.
#10 Consider a standing desk – Although we all know that correlation does not prove causation, it’s no surprise that there’s a strong correlation between sitting all day and an unhealthy lifestyle.
Why not fix your posture, strengthen your legs, get more “fidget time” in, and spend the day being more productive with a standing desk? I have THIS desk and it allows me to switch between sitting and standing.
#11) Have an active meeting – Hat tip to Charlie Hoehn on this one. If somebody wants to meet up with you for coffee, suggest something active: throwing a baseball, tossing a frisbee, going for a hike – anything that gets you up and moving.
I say yes to pretty much anybody that invites me to play golf. Wink wink.
#12) You know… – That thing that consenting adults do?
Yeah. Do that.
Self-explanatory.
Moving on…
#13) Clean! – Ugh, nobody likes to clean the house/apartment. It’s not my favorite thing to do. So I instead make a game out of it.
I see how much I can accomplish with a single song blasting at max volume, while probably also dancing. I also CRUSH podcasts while doing the dishes.
Of course, after getting through one song, I figure “welp, I’ve already started, might as well keep going.”
#14) Try handstands –Here’s how to do handstands. This is a fun activity that builds up some serious arm and core strength and will leave you sweating bullets after even a few minutes.
So go find a park, go do handstands, cartwheels, somersaults, and whatever else makes you feel young again.
#15) Parkour – Our beginner’s guide to Parkour is one of the most popular on Nerd Fitness. I don’t care how old you are, there’s no reason you can’t get started with rolling around in your yard and vaulting over picnic tables and bike racks.
Or, you can do it in your office:
#16) Playout – Is Parkour too serious for you? Try a playout! Spiderman was on to something – climbing walls, swinging from skyscrapers, and popping flips around the bad guys.
You might not be able to swing between buildings, but you can definitely visit a playground in your area and get creative!
#17) Adult gymnastics – In the same vein as Parkour, gymnastics will help you build some of the BEST real-world strength you can get with any type of exercise, and it’s all done in a playful way without a single weight being picked up.
Swing from rings, somersault, flip onto pads, and more.
There are gyms all over the country.
#18) Yoga – Build flexibility, strength, and learn to freaking relax.
There are a million kinds of Yoga, including awesome stuff like Acro-Yoga, baby goat Yoga (not kidding), and Yoga with beer.
Sign up for a few different kinds and see which one lines up the best with what you’re looking for.
#19) Play video games that make you be active – Beat Saber. DDR (Dance Dance Revolution) counts too. Just Move. Anything that gets you off your ass and moving!
Oh, what’s that? You’re playing a normal game like Grand Theft Auto V? Make a rule that you can only play while standing up, or that you have to do 10 push-ups every time you die.
That’s what I do to keep myself from spending twelve hours on the couch in marathon gaming sessions!
#20) Play on a playground – Go down the slide, swing across the monkey bars, climb the rope all, balance on the balance beam.
Create an obstacle course for yourself and see how quickly you can get through it.
Full guide to the most effective diet and why it works.
Complete and track your first workout today, no gym required.
#23) Bike to work – I know there are a lot of Rebels in our community who dropped a bunch of weight by making one change: they biked to work, or biked to their friend’s house, or started biking generally.
You get from Point A to Point B, you save money on gas, and you get a workout. That would make Michael Scott proud.
Here’s our Guide to Biking if you want some help getting started.
#24) Play a childhood game – What games did you play as a child? Capture the flag? Kick the can? Simple tag?
Get a few friends together and give it a try – it will be the most fun you’ve had in a while!
#25) Park at the far end of the parking lot – Every step counts.
Every tiny decision that is slightly different than the “OLD you” counts.
#26) Take the stairs. It’s only two flights! And we are designed to move. You can do this.
Sure, you’ll get winded the first handful of times. But it eventually becomes routine.
And it all counts! Make a game out of it.
#27) Crush audiobooks while “exercising.” This is called ‘temptation bundling.‘ Pair something you love with an activity you’re trying to do more of.
But I bet if you could only listen to Harry Potter (for the 600th time) while walking on a treadmill, you’d be more likely to get to the gym.
#28) Build stuff. Whether you’re building a fort with your kid in the backyard, or trying to figure out why you have 5 extra screws in that IKEA dresser you’re putting together, building stuff involves lots of moving and bending and picking up and maneuvering.
Warning: you’ll swear no less than 100 times building furniture. Earmuffs!
#29) Sit in a squat, or pike position on the floor while watching TV. No, not leaning against the couch. Sitting up actively engaging your core!
You can also do some sort of stretch or movement like these bodyweight exercises during commercials (or in the 15 seconds between Netflix episodes!)
#30) Impromptu dance parties. Kids or no kids, I find that great Disney songs are fantastic for bringing out your inner child.
Blast the tunes, dance around the house, and be absurd. WHO CARES! As a wise woman once said…”Let it gooooooo.”
#31) Go for a walk while on the phone. What if you just decided you had to stand for all of your phone calls?
For starters, I know many people who do phone interviews while standing because it makes them more alert and a better guest.
Next: you’re gonna get so many steps in while on the phone without realizing it!
#32) Having an impromptu picnic. Instead of sitting and gorging yourself at the dining room table, why not eat on the floor?
Grab a blanket or a towel, eat in your living room or head out into the backyard, and make it a picnic!
You’ll need to adjust your posture and seating style constantly.
#33) Sit in a squat. We cover this in our “How to squat” guide, but sitting in a deep squat – often for long timeframes – is built into us as a species! We’ve just become soft from sitting in chairs all day long.
I try to accumulate 15 minutes of “squat time” each day – sitting in a squat while reading a chapter in a book, or journaling, or answering an email with my laptop on the ground.
Here I am sitting in a squat while reading Level Up Your Life(available online and in bookstores nationwide!)
#34) The “Pull-up bar Tax”. Get yourself a door-frame pull-up bar. Put it on a door that you have to cross through regularly.
And every time you go through, you have to do either 1 pull-up, 1 negative pull-up, or 10 seconds of hanging from the bar.
#35) Lasers around the house. Set up colored string pulled tightly across your kids rooms or in certain hallways, and you have to go over and under the lasers each time you traverse the hallway.
Don’t touch the lasers!
#36) Climb a tree. Your level of safety and ability on this will be dependent on your experience here, but I remember climbing trees like a monkey as a kid and loving every minute of it.
Even if it’s just hanging from a tree branch or trying to scramble up to a low branch, it can be a great way to “exercise.”
#37) The floor is lava. This is both great for exercise around your apartment, for a fun date night or night with the kids, and for playing True American. Though one is slightly more healthy than the other.
#38) Casual Parkour. From avoiding cracks on the sidewalk to balancing on curbs, or jumping from tile to tile, or hopping up onto a bench and then back down, it all counts!
Just get yourself to move differently than you would have otherwise! We are currently working with a woman who has lost 100-pounds through our Coaching Program, and her exercise is all “fun parkour in the woods behind the house!”
#39) Literally fidget more! Yes, from tapping your toes to music and twitching your legs to the beat of the music. Getting up and sitting back down. Doing laps around your office.
You don’t need to get a standing desk or treadmill desk, but there’s a definite correlation between those that can’t sit still and body composition.[1]
#40) Your kid is a backpack! From piggyback rides to playing horsey, staying active with your kids is really powerful in instilling a love of fitness in them.
If you’re a badass mom like Brownwyn – a success story from Nerd Fitness Prime, you can even do pull-ups while your kid holds on!
Full guide to the most effective diet and why it works.
Complete and track your first workout today, no gym required.
Challenge yourself to Have fun: Next Steps!
If you are you looking for more guidance beyond the 40 Fun Exercise Suggestions above, we have three options to continue your journey:
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The 15 mistakes you don’t want to make.
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No matter which path you pick above, I want you to commit to trying something new, or doing something different, at some point in the next week:
Say yes before you can say no. Stop saying “I don’t have time” and realize you do. Stop saying “I can’t afford it” and find a way to make it a priority. Do all of this before you can talk yourself out of it. The best way to do that?
Commit in advance. Put down a deposit and make an investment in yourself. I pre-paid 6 weeks of swing dance lessons. Having already paid for it, I knew I’d be just throwing my money away if I didn’t attend.
Go with a friend. I went to my swing classes alone, which forced me to further develop my social skills, but if you happen to be TOO afraid to attend a class, get a friend to drag you there.
Expect to suck. If you are learning a new skill, expect to suck at it. You’ll get better as long as you remember to…
Have fun. Remember, we could get hit by a bus tomorrow. Every day above ground is a blessing, so enjoy it!
When in doubt, move more.
That one thing you always wanted to try but have been putting off?
Today’s a good a day to get started. Just take that FIRST step.
Google classes in your city. Find a site that focuses on beginners, and read about it. If there’s a place to pre-pay or make a deposit, do it.
“If you want to gain weight, eat more calories than you burn regularly. Want to put on the right KIND of weight? Exercise and eat the right way too.”
Now, there’s plenty of nuance to this when comparing men and women:
Due to our natural hormones, it’s generally more difficult for people with typical female anatomy to gain muscle than people with typical male anatomy.[1]
We have a lot of factors (such as hormonal birth control) that have been proven to make it even harder as well.[2]
But that doesn’t mean it’s impossible!
It just means we have to work harder for it.
Ugh, I know.
Now, one thing I want to touch on quick: if you see a woman who is absolutely jacked and at an extremely low body fat percentage, I guarantee she has been working her butt off for a very long time with the goal of building muscle.
It’s not something that happens overnight, or by mistake.
In addition, some women with larger amounts of muscle mass choose to take steroids to help assist them in gaining muscle, because we simply don’t have the hormones naturally to get to that size.
So if you’d like to build muscle, but not as much as a professional bodybuilder – don’t worry, it’s not something that happens by accident.
With that out of the way, let’s talk about body fat and body types:
As we point out in that body fat percentage guide, we women can look very different at any weight depending on our body shape and how much muscle we have. It comes down to our own personal goals!
This guide is going to primarily focus on two things:
How to eat to gain weight and build muscle.
How to strength train to build muscle.
We’ve helped thousands of women with our online coaching program, many of whom are trying to gain weight and strength train for the first time in their lives.
Everybody is on their own journey, at their own pace, and everybody will end up with different results too!
Should women build muscle? (7 Reasons Women should Grow Muscle)
If it can be harder for women to gain muscle (compared to men), why go through the trouble?
I’m glad you asked!
Here are the top 7 reasons why women should strength train:
#1) When you’re stronger – everyday life is easier. No need to call for help to get that 50lb bag of dog food off the top shelf, or carrying an air conditioner unit up a flight of stairs. LIFE is easier when you’re stronger.
#2) Less injury risk – when you build strong muscles, you’re also building stronger bones, ligaments, and tendons, making you less prone to injury doing things you love (like playing in a quidditch league).[3]
#3) Helps combat age-related muscle loss,[4] allowing us to remain independent longer as we age:
#4) Muscle is harder to maintain, which means you need to eat more just to hold on to it.[5]
#5) Reduce pain – having a strong body makes living easier on your joints, as well as allows you to hold better posture, and reduce back / hip pain.[6]
#6) Appearance – this is a personal preference! Some women like to have a lot of muscle, and some don’t. While you can’t spot reduce fat, you can choose to build more muscle in specific areas, changing your body shape. Growing up, I was an extreme pear shape, but due to strength training, I now have more of an hourglass shape.
#7) Live longer – want to spend more time on Earth? Strength training and growing muscle will help you do just that.[7]
How to Eat to Gain Muscle as a Woman
As we said above, gaining weight comes down to thermodynamics and science.
Every day, we burn a certain number of calories just existing, which is called our BMR (basal metabolic rate). We then factor in our daily activity level, and get a number that is called our “total daily energy expenditure.” You can calculate yours below:
(Note: we have used The Mifflin-St Jeor Equation to create this calculator! [8]).
Since we want to gain weight, we want to take our TDEE and add 250 calories to it to get our daily goal. This should result in gaining half a pound per week.
Now, although eating ANY EXTRA calories from any source will result in weight gain, our goal is to gain the RIGHT kind of weight, in a healthy way.
And thus, we’ll be focusing our efforts on a “healthy muscle building” strategy.
We could easily add more calories each day, and gain weight quicker, however, the slow method gives you the best chances at gaining mostly muscle, and minimal fat. The faster you try to gain weight, the higher the percentage that will likely be fat – so starting off at half a pound per week is a great place to start!
In addition to the number of calories we’ll be adding, we also want to pay attention to the type of foods we’re eating.
As we cover in our “Healthy Eating Guide,” we’re going to build muscle by consuming the three big macros in the correct quantities:
Protein: rebuilds muscle after you break it down.
Carbohydrates: provides your muscle with fuel and body with energy.
Fat: helps your bodily functions and can also be burned as fuel in the absence of carbs.
Let’s look at each of these individually:
PRIORITY #1: PROTEIN
Protein can come from any number of sources, including:
As we cover in our “How much Protein do I need?”, claims for the amount of protein required for muscle growth vary wildly from source to source (and athlete to athlete).
Here is our recommendation:
If you’re of healthy weight, active, and wish to build muscle, aim for 1 g per pound of bodyweight (2.2 g/kg).
If you’re an experienced lifter on a bulk, intakes up to 1.50 g/lb (3.3 g/kg) may help you minimize fat gain.
Let me simplify it for you:
“To build muscle, target at least 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight (2.2 grams per kg).”
If you’re curious, from our healthy eating article, this is what a portion of protein looks like:
Here’s how much protein is in a serving of food:
4 oz (113 g) of chicken has around 30 g of protein.
Fat is a macronutrient that can help you reach your calorie goals (in the right quantity), as fat can be high in calories. Plus, you can eat lots of it without feeling full. Helpful if you’re trying to put on weight.
Healthy fat can be found in foods like:
Avocado
Almonds
Walnuts
Macadamia nuts
Olive oil
Almond butter
Peanut butter
Science has recently come around on saturated fat too.[10] Once completely vilified, but now considered okay for moderate consumption.
Saturated fats can come from things like:
Whole milk
Full fat dairy
Coconut oil
Grass-fed butter
Fatty cuts of meat
Lard
To help you gauge: a serving size of fat is roughly the size of your thumb!
For reference, this is a single serving of almonds (162 calories):
THIS is a serving of olive oil (119 calories):
As you can see, you can eat an extra 500 calories of “healthy fats” by eating lots of “heart-healthy” fats like nuts or adding more olive oil to your meals.
PRIORITY #4: VEGETABLES!
Last but not least, you need vegetables in your diet.
As you start to eat more food, your stomach, intestines, and other bodily functions will thank you for consuming more high-fiber vegetables!
A serving of veggies is about the size of your fist.
Here’s a quick, non-complete list of high-fiber veggies that can fill your plate:
Consume 1-1.5g per pound (2.2-3.3g per kg) of bodyweight in protein every day.
Consume the rest of your calories from foods composed of carbs and fats.
Always eat vegetables so that your body can actually PROCESS all this extra food. I like to aim for half of my plate of vegetables.
If you are not gaining weight, (and you’re hitting your protein goals), add more carbs and/or fats to your meal.
It really does come down to the following:
If you are not gaining weight fast enough, you’re not eating enough. Increase your portions of carbs and fats!
Whenever we work with coaching clients who struggle to build muscle, this is the area we target: adding more carbs and fats to each meal.
8 Strength Training Exercises For Women to Build Muscle
Years from now, you’ll look back and thank “Past You” for starting strength training today.
And don’t worry, I’m going to tell you exactly what to do so you can start strength training TODAY!
Here’s why strength training is so important: when you eat a caloric surplus (more calories than your body needs each day), the extra calories have to go somewhere.
If you don’t do any exercise, your body will choose to store the extra calories as fat for later.
However, when you strength train, your muscles are broken down and then they’ll use the extra calories to rebuild themselves bigger and stronger over the next 48 hours!
“Staci that sounds great, but I’ve never strength trained before, and I don’t know what I’m doing…Halp!” You might be saying into your computer or phone.
Fear not! I’ll help. Strength training doesn’t need to be scary or overly complicated.
Simply put, “strength training” means:
“Movement of any weight against “resistance” (including your body weight) – Doing ANY exercise that pushes your muscles outside of their comfort zone, forcing them to rebuild stronger to prepare for the next challenge.
Progressive overload: doing slightly more than last time (lift a heavier weight or do 1 more rep) consistently. Your muscles will have to constantly adapt and rebuild themselves stronger. This is called “progressive overload.”
This means if you drop down and do ONE push-up or knee push-up right now…
Here’s what you need to know about strength training:
Strength training is one of the BEST things you can do for yourself.
Strength training will help you put on muscle while eating in a surplus.
While you can’t spot reduce fat, you can focus on building more muscle in specific areas, which can help you attain a specific look you’re going for.
If you don’t like the gym, you don’t need to go, ever. But I hope you do. Because that’s the easiest way to start training with weights.
Regardless of your fitness level, body fat percentage, strength level, or gender, you have every right to be in the free weights section in the gym, training with heavy weights, with everybody else. The people in the gym who are very strong with a lot of muscle started somewhere, too!
I used to be a CrossFit instructor, and my favorite thing about CrossFit was that it destigmatized barbell training and heavy lifting for many women.
In order for us to strength train and build muscle, we’re going to approach this intelligently.
We’re not going to pick up small dumbbells and do lots of reps.
We’re not going to sit down at various machines and scroll through our phones while doing leg curls.
Instead, we’re going to:
Get very strong with compound movements that recruit LOTS of muscles to work together.
Do our workouts quickly and get out of there. The workout should take no longer than 45-60 minutes.
This is how we efficiently build muscle in the minimum amount of time. What are the exercises that we’re going to target?
1) The Push-Up: The best exercise you could ever do for yourself when it comes to using your bodyweight for push muscles (your chest, shoulders, and triceps):
2) The Bodyweight Squat: This exercise serves a dual purpose: it is the foundation for building strength AND helps build proper mobility. If you are going to ever do barbell squats, you need to work on hitting proper depth with a bodyweight squat first!
3) The Inverted Bodyweight Row: Until you can get your first pull-up or chin-up, these exercises are GREAT to start building your pull-muscle strength (your back, biceps, and forearms).
4) The Pull-Up and Chin-Up: Once you can support your bodyweight above the bar, the world becomes your playground. No strength training routine should be without pull-up or chin-up work! (Click here if you can’t do a pull-up or chin-up yet):
And now we’re into the best weight training exercises:
5) The Barbell Squat: Probably the best exercise when it comes to building strength and muscle throughout your whole body. It also burns crazy calories and makes life better. This is a MUST:
6) The Barbell Deadlift: Maybe the best exercise of all time. Actually no, it IS the best exercise of all time. It’s certainly the most primal: “pick the weight up off the ground. Done.”
7) The Barbell Bench Press. Lie on a bench, squeeze your shoulder blades to keep your back tight, and then lower a barbell until it almost touches your chest. Pause, and then press it back up towards the sky. Repeat! And get strong.
8) Barbell Overhead Press: Stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart and lean back by pushing your hips forward. While keeping your entire body tight, press the bar overhead.
Once the bar passes your forehead, move your body back under the bar by driving your torso forward and back into a standing position. At the top of the lift shrug your shoulders slightly and lock your elbows.
These are some of the best compound exercises you can complete in order to build muscle. Want more muscle? Great! Get stronger at these movements!
One quick note: when I first started lifting, it took a while to build up the strength to be able to bench press or overhead press with the 45-lb bar. If your gym doesn’t have a lighter bar, dumbbells are a great option!
Your mission, should you choose to accept it:
Commit to trying ONE of these movements in the next week. Use 20 seconds of courage, recruit a friend who has lifted or trained before, and try your best.
I have three options for you next:
Select one of the muscle-building routines for women in the next section.
Work with me and our coaching program to follow a custom strength training routine for your goals.
5 Muscle Building Workout Routines For Women
I’m going to walk you through three different levels of strength training, and by the end of today, you’re going to know exactly how to get started.
My advice: do 2-3 strength training routines per week, with 1-2 days off in between. As the saying goes: “muscle isn’t built in the gym, it’s built in the kitchen!”
So your goal should be to do a strength training routine, and then make sure you eat a caloric surplus so that your body has enough calories to rebuild your muscles bigger and stronger!
10 Dumbbell rows (use a milk jug or other weight).
15 Second Plank.
30 Jumping jacks.
We also have a downloadable worksheet of this beginner’s workout that you can print out and hang on your fridge to track your progress! Get it when you sign up below:
Grab Your Beginner Bodyweight Routine Worksheet. No Gym Required!
Complete this workout at home, no equipment required
Avoid the common mistakes everybody makes when doing bodyweight exercises
Learn how to finally get your first pull-up
LEVEL 2: DUMBBELL WORKOUT
If you have dumbbells at home or access to a gym, you can pick our Level 4 workout from our 6-Level Gym Workout Routine.
So your Dumbbell Workout is 3 circuits of the following:
10 goblet squats (holding the dumbbell like a goblet with 2 hands):
If you like this Kettlebell workout and want to follow along on a worksheet, simply print out our Kettlebell Workout and bring it with you:
Grab Your Beginner Kettlebell Routine Worksheet!
Complete this workout at home or gym with 1 kettlebell.
Avoid the common mistakes everybody makes when doing kettlebell exercises.
Build strength, burn fat, level up your life!
LEVEL 3: BARBELL GYM WORKOUT
Here’s a Barbell workout you can follow from our Level 5 Gym Workout Routine.
BARBELL BATALLION WORKOUT A:
3 sets of 10 barbell squats
3 sets of 10 push-ups
3 sets of 10 bodyweight rows:
BARBELL BATALLION WORKOUT B:
3 sets of 5 barbell Romanian deadlifts (video pulled from our courses in Nerd Fitness Prime)
3 sets of 10 bench presses:
3 sets of 5 pull-ups, assisted pull-ups, or negative pull-ups:
PICK A WORKOUT, GET STARTED!
The whole point is to do challenging movements that really make your muscles work, and then try to do ONE more rep, or lift a SLIGHTLY heavier weight next time!
Still overwhelmed? Check out our coaching program. We get to learn your story, and then build a program and strategy around your goals that you CAN do.
10 Tips for building muscle as a Woman
I interviewed multiple other coaches on our team and asked for their best advice on how to build muscle as a woman.
Here’s what they said:
Susy (Coach, BS in Psychology, Certificate III & IV in Fitness, 5+ years of experience)
Tip #1: Food is your friend when you are looking to build muscle and get stronger – your body will need fuel, so you may need to eat more on the days that you work out!
Tip #2: Strength and muscle building requires structure to your workouts – you progress through getting better at specific movements, so make sure that you enjoy the style and structure of your workouts so that you can be as consistent as possible.
Tip #3: Your progress will always be fastest if you avoid injury, so correct form and listening to your body is super important. Your muscles will fatigue and feel sore, but joint pain and sharp, stabby pain means something isn’t moving quite right.
Kerry (Coach, NASM-CPT, 6+ years of experience)
Tip #4: Fall in love with the process. Getting stronger is a journey, one that is both rewarding and challenging. So no matter where you are starting from, take the time to celebrate each small step along the way towards a more badass version of yourself!
Christy (Coach, BS in Applied Health/Fitness, National Personal Training Institute Graduate, Precision Nutrition Certification, 6+ years of experience)
Tip #5: To get strong, you gotta lift weights. When lifting weights to get strong, you gotta be okay with testing your boundaries every now and then.
After exercising with your current weight, for the next training session…stop…and try a few reps with the next weight UP to test it out! It might surprise you how much more weight you can lift!
Here are some other tips to help you build muscle.
Tip #6: Boost your testosterone naturally: Consume enough saturated and monounsaturated fats, keep your sugar intake low, and make sure you’re getting enough Vitamin D and Zinc.
These are items linked with boosting your testosterone naturally.[12]
Speaking of testosterone – I know you may think of this as a “male” hormone, but it plays a huge part in women muscle building,[13] fat loss,[14] increase bone mass,[15] and many other health-related issues[16](remember: estrogen is made from testosterone).
Men make about ten to fifteen times what we make naturally,[17] but it doesn’t mean we don’t need it too.
Another way we can help our testosterone levels is to watch our cortisol levels.
Cortisol is a hormone that is promoted by stress and reduces free testosterone levels (in addition to signaling for your body to store fat).[18]
Steve drinks two smoothies a day to reach his protein goals and you can check out our Guide to Protein Shakes for his personal recipe.
On the go with no blender? I like to keep protein powder with me in a small Ziploc bag – that way I can grab a bottle of water, rip off the corner of the Ziploc bag, and use that as a funnel to get the powder into the water bottle. Then, just replace the cap and shake and you’ve got a protein-filled snack!
Tip #9: Get more sleep! When you build muscle, your body is working overtime, burning extra calories. It’s going to need some time to recover. Remember, muscle is built when you rest, not when you actually lift.
Go to bed!
Tip #10: Start today!
Gaining muscle comes down to eating right and strength training. Let’s get you lifting today!
You’ll work with our certified NF instructors who will get to know you better than you know yourself, check your form, and program your workouts and nutrition for you.
2) Exercising at home and need a plan to follow? Have questions you need answered? Join Nerd Fitness Prime!
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3) Join the Rebellion! We need good people like you in our community, the Nerd Fitness Rebellion.
Sign up in the box below to enlist and get our guide, Strength Training 101: Everything You Need to Know. It’ll help you begin your journey on building muscle.
Download our comprehensive guideSTRENGTH TRAINING 101!
Everything you need to know about getting strong.
Workout routines for bodyweight AND weight training.
How to find the right gym and train properly in one.
Lastly, I’d love to hear from you!
PLEASE leave your questions, eating or strength or otherwise below so we can answer them and become best friends and practice karate kicks in the garage:
How can I help you get bigger and stronger?
What part of this journey are you still struggling the most with?
What are your favorite bulking up foods!?
Share with your friends in the comments so we can all go buy it in bulk at Costco.
-Staci
PS: Make sure you check out the rest of our Strength Building Articles!
“Testosterone in women–the clinical significance” Source; PubMed
Check out this study “Exogenous androgens influence body composition and regional body fat distribution in obese postmenopausal women–a clinical research center study” Source: PubMed
“A concise review of testosterone and bone health” Source: PubMed
Check out this interesting interview with Dr. Stephanie Faubion on testosterone in women. Source: MayoClinic
You can check out this study “Circulating Testosterone as the Hormonal Basis of Sex Differences in Athletic Performance” for more: PubMed.
Check out “Effects of mindfulness meditation on serum cortisol of medical students” for a study on meditation lowering cortisol levels. Source: PubMed.
