A common theme, in the winter months especially, is a drop in NEAT. The main driver of NEAT is our daily step count. It makes sense- it gets darker earlier, the sun doesn't rise until around 7am, it's colder, our body naturally wants to conserve energy by staying warm (shivering burns more calories per hour). The last thing we want to do is move, so we fidget less, take less steps, and stay bundled up. The reason NEAT is so important for successful fat loss is because it accounts for approximately 15% of our total daily energy expenditure and is typically the largest factor that contributes (our exercise contributes approximately 5%, the rest is made up by basal metabolic rate and thermic effect of food). This is why my clients are required to track their steps and HIT them. Every 2000 steps = ~1mile = ~100 calories burned. You can see how this matters. If I've got your steps set at 8,000, as your coach I am expecting that to contribute to your daily/weekly calorie expenditure with 400 calories. This is apart from your nutrition plan, resistance training, and structured cardio- all of which are setup to drive fat loss at a sustainable rate. If steps are consistently not hit- it's either a discipline issue or a schedule issue- which I try to figure out and address accordingly. I expect feedback on so we can adjust and continue. If it's discipline, you need to think about your "why" again and recenter you priorities. If it's schedule (ie working overtime and being the primary caregiver etc) then steps can be adjusted DOWN and nutrition/cardio will be adjusted to match the caloric expenditure needed to keep the same deficit. Again, this is why tracking variables is super important. It takes practice, especially if you are new to this journey. Sometimes, it IS the plan that isn't setting you up for success. It's a delicate balance between being honest with yourself about your efforts and determining whether or not the plan makes sense to you as an individual.

Hi everyone! Since this is the very beginning of our community, I'd like to have a post for all members to write up an introduction so we can all get to know each other better. This is optional and please only share what you are comfortable with! If you want to do this, please comment below and include: - Name & Pronouns - Where you’re joining from (city/state or time zone) - What brought you here - Primary goal (nutrition, fitness, consistency, energy, WL, etc.) - Current movement style (gym, home, none, returning after a break) - One thing you’re excited about Alright, I am Coach Em (she/her) and I run this from Kansas City. I wanted there to be an inclusive community for queers to learn the CORRECT information about nutrition & fitness. Many of you have joined from TikTok, which is sick!. TikTok is great, but time after time I see viral posts with mediocre and/or just blatantly incorrect information that people try to implement. If you follow me, you know my content is more educational based & long. This place will be for even more dense material so you actually learn the "whys" behind things instead of someone saying "do this bicep exercise for blah blah." Lmao, we will learn the why and the how. My primary goal for fitness is steady strength increase & endurance increase. I am healing my calf from a running injury as well. I'd like to cycle a century when the weather is a bit nicer. With that, my current movements are: weight lifting, cycling, & running! One thing I am excited about is just building this community and getting to know each of you!!! Happy Monday!!!