I’ll be honest, writing this week has felt harder than usual.

There’s a lot of chaos in the world right now. Things happening that are heavy, unsettling, and hard to ignore. And living in an idyllic mountain bubble, I sometimes notice an unexpected mix of disconnection and shame, like I’m somehow escaping when others are paying a much higher price.

That story can get loud in my head.

But lately, I’ve been reminding myself of a lesson I’ve been learning (and relearning) for years now: I don’t have to hold everyone and everything up to be a good person.

About a year ago, I had a conversation with a veterinarian I used to work for. She was fired up about the political climate, protesting, showing up loudly, taking direct action. I remember telling her that I respected that deeply… and that my fight looked different.

Mine has been about creating and holding a sacred space, a place where people can come together in healthy community, regardless of how they look, what they believe, or where they’re coming from. For me, that’s been the studio and my coaching work.

That work has mattered. And it’s also been labor.

I’ve spent years holding up underserved people, absorbing emotional weight, trying to be everything to everyone. Somewhere along the way, I realized it was draining me and pulling me away from my deeper passions and the parts of my career that light me up.

I was reminded of this again recently while talking with a client who felt so familiar to me. They described doing all the emotional labor in their relationship. Avoiding questions they had every right to ask, because they didn’t want to hurt their partner.

And it hit me: How often do we hold ourselves back and sacrifice ourselves, even when it’s actively harming us? What’s the tipping point where we finally say, I can’t do this anymore? And how do we change direction without blowing everything and everyone up along the way?

I used to think you couldn’t.

I used to stack everyone’s responsibilities onto myself like a classic obliger… until I’d hit a breaking point and swing into full-on rebellion. These days, I live in what I call quiet, gentle rebellion, and honestly, it’s my happy place. Paired with boundaries, so things don’t get that far anymore.

This week, I found myself reflecting on how much happier I am in environments where my values are shared, where diversity, equity, and inclusion aren’t buzzwords, science is respected, and people genuinely want to help. Places where I don’t have to “fit in” or perform, but can actually be myself.

I’ve been saying this a lot on client calls lately, and I think it’s the through-line of all of this: The way we do one thing is the way we do everything.

When we’re clear on our values, decision-making gets simpler. Alignment shows up across all domains of life, relationships, work, health, boundaries. And in my experience, that alignment is the real ticket to happiness. Even financial abundance flows more easily when we’re not constantly betraying ourselves.

So maybe the question isn’t what we should be doing next, but where we might be out of alignment right now.

Where are we holding things that aren’t ours to carry? Where are we silencing ourselves to keep the peace? And where might a quieter, gentler form of rebellion actually bring more ease, clarity, and integrity into our lives?

You don’t have to answer all of that today. But noticing is a powerful place to start.

If this stirred something for you, I’d love to hear what you’re sitting with. You can reply to this email, or bring the conversation into the studio, or our coaching session, these are the kinds of reflections that grow stronger in community.

Until next week,

NBC-HWC | ACSM-CPT

woman in brown and white tank top standing in front of fruit stand

⛰️Nutrition PEAKS: About those new dietary guidelines…

Before zooming in on specifics, I want to name something clearly: the biggest failure here hasn’t been nutrition science itself, but the messaging around it. I’m far less interested in dividing people into camps or dunking on past recommendations than I am in pointing out where the guidance has actually been consistent all along.

I won’t lie, some of the current messengers are infuriating to me. Claims that nutrition science “made us sick,” especially when backed by cherry-picked data and research funded by meat and dairy lobbying groups, don’t align with my values or with the broader body of evidence. Rather than adding more noise, I’d rather focus on clarity, common ground, and helping people make sense of this without whiplash.

The newly released dietary guidelines do shift the visual hierarchy, placing protein, healthy fats, fruits, and vegetables more prominently, with grains and refined carbs lower. That change may genuinely benefit some populations.

But here’s where the confusion comes in, and why people are understandably reacting:

The guidelines still recommend limiting saturated fat to less than ~10% of total daily calories, yet the visual pyramid elevates foods that are naturally higher in saturated fat (like red meat and full-fat dairy). That visual-written disconnect is a big reason nutrition advice feels contradictory, even when the underlying recommendations haven’t radically changed.

What the science actually says:

So here’s the reconciliation:

First, we had a “war on fat,” which became confusingly not really about fat itself, but about excess calories in the public eye.
Then came a backlash that demonized carbohydrates, often without distinguishing between refined, ultra-processed carbs and whole, fiber-rich sources.
The newer guidelines do advance some science (like a stronger emphasis on protein), but they also muddy the waters by visually elevating foods they still advise limiting.

That’s how we have now ended up with: “Butter, meat, full-fat dairy? Totally fine!”…and simultaneously…“Keep saturated fat under 10%.” No wonder people checked out, and this message is no better.

In my view, the real problem wasn’t that the Food Guide Pyramid or MyPlate were fundamentally wrong. It’s that most people never followed them, and the food industry capitalized on confusion and oversimplification to sell ultra-processed foods that are cheap, convenient, and engineered for cravings.

So what can you actually do, without getting lost in the noise?

Here’s the practical, nuance-friendly version I stand behind:

Anchor meals in whole foods: fruits, vegetables, lean or mixed protein sources, legumes, whole grains, not perfection, just consistency.
Favor unsaturated fats most of the time (olive oil, nuts, seeds, fish), while recognizing that saturated fat isn’t “toxic,” just something to moderate.
Zoom out from single nutrients, patterns matter more than macros, pyramids, or headlines.
Be skeptical of extreme claims, especially when they come from heavily funded or ideologically driven sources.
Remember: broad recommendations aren’t personal prescriptions. Your context, health history, activity level, and preferences matter.

So yes, recommendations have evolved, but the reason people got lost wasn’t the science. It was the way the message was simplified, marketed, and sold back to us.

I’m curious, what was your reaction to the new guidelines? Confusion, clarity, agreement, or something else entirely?

Hit reply and tell me!

Goal Smash 2026: In-Person + Virtual Workshop
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