Fitness

wellness week // beck and call

01.28

For those of you who are new to following me, you may not know I have a newsletter! In it I share my daily blog posts, along with several weekly exclusive content series – one of which is called Beck and Call. This particular series is a dedicated Q&A, where I answer all kinds of reader question on literally any topic. Each week I answer four new questions – a lot of questions are style, beauty or fitness related, but every once in a while I’ll get one on dating, work, and other life topics. Since today is the last day of #StyleScribeWellnessWeek, I thought I’d do a special Beck and Call and feature it on the blog as well as my newsletter. All of the questions in today’s Q&A are fitness, diet or health related in keeping with Wellness Week. I hope you enjoy it! Be sure to subscribe to my newsletter so you get the scoop and don’t miss any Beck and Calls going forward!

QUESTION // Can you talk about when you did Whole30? Do you recommend it to people?

ANSWER // For me, doing Whole30 was all about a fresh start. I didn’t want to eat that way forever, but I wanted to detox and cut a few things out of my diet that I’d had trouble doing on my own (hint: it was sugar). It was a great way to discover how certain foods made me feel and I definitely think it’s doing at least once in your life! With that said, if you are a social person like I am, it’s pretty much impossible to eat out when you’re doing it… which is why I don’t think Whole30 is actually sustainable long-term. You have to cook with certain oils and avoid a very long list of ingredients, all of which could secretly be hidden in a menu item at a restaurant – you never know what they’re cooking with! I personally just wouldn’t want to do that the rest of my life. It definitely helped me transition to more of a paleo diet though – it’s great if you’re trying to start fresh and introduce a new healthy eating routine into your life.

QUESTION // How did you transition off of Whole30? What things did you continue to stay away from and what not? I’m nearing the end of mine and am starting to get nervous about it.

ANSWER // The item I stayed away from longest was sugar (very surprised by that one)! I can’t remember exactly when I brought it back in, but I never had desserts or added sweetener to my coffee for at least a couple months after I finished Whole30. Alcohol came back immediately (ha!) and so did cheese (I just can’t help myself – it’s the best way to season food!), but I did a pretty good job of not eating carbs for awhile after Whole30 ended. I wouldn’t be nervous about it though! I think as long as you can continue eating healthy without most of the stuff on their restricted list, you’ll be fine. If you want to cook your zoodles with butter instead of ghee, DO IT! I just wouldn’t recommend ordering a pizza on February 1st – try to turn this into an opportunity to continue being healthy going forward!

QUESTION // Did you ever struggle with your weight?

ANSWER // Yes! I actually did a pretty detailed post about my struggle with it a few years ago. You can read all about it here!

QUESTION // Why did you choose to do the e-book over using the app for BBG? 

ANSWER // There are actually a few reasons I went with printing out the e-book over the digital app:

  1. I didn’t like the idea of spending $20/month on an app. The e-book is $50 for each set (so $100 if you end up doing both), but it’s something you can use over and over and over forever. Once you’ve downloaded the guides they are yours – save them on your computer, print them out and have them bound like I did, save it to your phone… Even if I stop doing BBG one of these days, I can still refer back to the guides for workout ideas. At the end of the day, it’s cheaper to go with the e-books if you plan to do it long term like I have!
  2. I like being able to literally turn the page when I’m done with a workout. It’s like crossing something off my to-do list!
  3. I’ve never used the app, so I’m not sure how it’s laid out on the screen… but I like being able to see the whole workout while I’m doing it on a sheet of paper. It’s nice to refer to as I go along!
  4. Just like having it on the app, with it printed and bound I can take it anywhere I go – to Austin for Christmas, when traveling to Asia… truly anywhere!

QUESTION // Are you insecure about any area of your body?

ANSWER // Absolutely! Everybody has insecurities. The area I have struggled with most (especially lately) has been my hips! Over the years I’ve also been insecure about my stomach and love handles occasionally, but when I’m eating right and working out regularly those areas don’t bother me as much. It’s my hips that never seem to want to budge!

QUESTION // I’d love to see how you store and organize all of your fitness clothes!

ANSWER // I’ll be shooting my closet when I get back from Telluride, so I’ll definitely share pics of how I organize my things then! But just to give you an idea… I hang my workout jackets and vests, and my sneakers are hidden right beneath those. I put my sports bras and socks in the same drawer, and then my tops and leggings are in the two drawers below those.

QUESTION // Do you have any treadmill or HIIT workouts you recommend?

ANSWER // I don’t own a treadmill and I’m not a member of a gym anymore, but whenever I have access to one I use it! I don’t have any crazy specific workouts to share, but when I do have access to a treadmill this is what I do. I start with a five minute warm up walk on 5-7 incline at 3.5 or higher speed. Next I’ll alternate between sprints and a still state. I’ll sprint for 30 seconds and then jump on the side rails for 15 seconds to rest, alternating those for 10-15 minutes. I usually try to increase my speed by a couple points each time I sprint, but sometimes I get too tired by the end and have to decrease the speed!

QUESTION // I’ve been following you for a while now and I remember at the beginning of your BBG journey you were having issues with knee pain. I too had this issue when I did BBG 1.0 and I was wondering if you had to modify some of the exercises to be less impactful, i.e. scale back on all the jumping? Is that still the case?

ANSWER // I had quite a bit of knee pain in BBG 1.0 because of all the jump lunges (when you get to the end you do around 200 in a day!) – I did take a supplement, but it didn’t do me any good. BBG 2.0 has less jump lunges involved, so I haven’t experienced much (if any) knee pain while doing BBG 2.0. While there still are jumping moves like box jumps, jump squats and long jumps, the impact of those doesn’t bother me as much as the lunges did. If it’s the impact of the jumping that’s bothering your knees, you might try just adding weights and doing stationary or walking lunges instead and see if that relieves any pain. I also just did regular jump squats when things like tuck jumps bothered me in BBG 1.0!

QUESTION // Do you have any specific Lululemon pieces you love to wear for spin? I’ve been wanting to buy more spin clothes, but thought I’d see if you had a favorite bra and/or leggings that you wear to spin or workout.

ANSWER // Yes! My all-time favorite legging style is the Wunder Under High Rise (I own both the full-length pant and the 7/8 length), and I most recently tried the Train Times and Speed Up leggings and LOVE those too! Both fit great, are super comfortable and don’t move when you’re running or spinning. My current favorite bra is actually this style by Nike – it’s very supportive and the fit is flattering.

QUESTION // When you finish BBG 1.0 do you always move to 2.0 or have you done the same one over again?

ANSWER // When I first finished BBG 1.0, I started over at the beginning of BBG 1.0 and did it all the way through again. I did BBG 1.0 for three rounds before I decided to invest in BBG 2.0 and more gym equipment! This summer after I finished my second round of BBG 2.0, I went back and did BBG 1.0 and have since decided I won’t be doing that again. I prefer the more weight-centric workouts of BBG 2.0 to the more cardio-focused workouts of BBG 1.0.

QUESTION // I’m struggling to get on a good diet routine. What motivates or helps you stick with your diet?

ANSWER // What motivates me for eating right also motivates me for working out. You can read about that here, along with some great tips for getting yourself motivated to stick with a routine!

QUESTION // Can you share any probiotics or vitamins you take?

ANSWER // For awhile I took adult gummy vitamins (what can I say? I like candy), but when I started Whole30 last January I stopped taking them… and truth be told haven’t started back up with them. I read somewhere recently that there is no evidence to suggest supplements actually do any good (I’m pretty sure I shared the article on Six Things?), but I also have just been lazy and haven’t spent the time researching what might be the best one for me. I’ve never had issues with digestion, so I’ve never had the need for a pro-biotic!

QUESTION // I’d love to see some suggestions of things to throw on over workout outfits… for the times I’m in workout clothes but need something a little more modest to go run errands, etc!

ANSWER // For sure! Here are some items I’ve found that would be perfect:

  • Loving the length on this jacket and this hoodie from Athleta! Great for covering up your bum in leggings post-workout.
  • This wrap from Lulu is on sale for under $90! It looks super soft and ideal for throwing on over your tee and leggings.
  • I love the loose fit of this North Face jacket. So comfy! This Alo sweatshirt is super similar and comes in more colors.
  • If you want something a little more styled, try this sleek poncho – easy, but refined.
  • This warm cardigan is on sale for under $40 and looks casual, but super cute! Here’s another by the same brand with a chic cinched collar!
  • This cardigan from Lulu comes in four pretty colors, is machine-washable and covers your arms and butt!

QUESTION // Can you please include some kind of good headphones to use while doing BBG? I need some!

ANSWER // I may be the only one, but I’ve only ever used the earbuds Apple gives you when you buy your iPhone! What I did buy, however, is this arm band to put my phone in if I’m traveling or in a gym and can’t blare my music on my portable speaker. With that said, I’ve heard these are a great investment, but these are a great budget-buy!

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