All tagged coaching

Is This You? [[Last Call!]]

Is This You? [[Last Call!]]

Stephanie Ondrusek
body image, Bold Body Initiative, coaching, offers, mindset

So, you’re sitting there, half-drunk smoothie at the corner of your desk, zoned out on a Thursday with the trillion things you have to do before you bring work home for the weekend running through your mind. You’re wondering why this smoothie doesn’t just taste better and why exercising feels like such a chore and why you never follow through on anything, and this ever-growing to-do list gumming up the works like the smoothie that won’t come through the straw is proof.

When you think about the person you want to be—that you swear you could be, if you just got it “right”—instead of feeling inspired, you mostly want to take a nap. Having enough time to do that, though, is laughable, so you grit your teeth and think, “just one more day/week/month.” You know you’re juggling too much, but you’re not sure how to stop. It all feels so urgent, so important, so much like no one else will do it if you don’t (and it needs to get done, so guess what!). What you really want is someone to take a good look at it all and help you see what you can put down so you feel like you again.

→ Hi, hello, this is what I do. ←

If You're Tired of Feeling Confused, Beaten Down, Powerless, and Stressed About Fitness...

If You're Tired of Feeling Confused, Beaten Down, Powerless, and Stressed About Fitness...

Stephanie Ondrusek
body image, Bold Body Initiative, coaching, FAQs + hacks, offers

Body image work is life-changing, truly transformative work.

But why is a positive body image so important, though?

Staying preoccupied with thoughts about your body is a distraction. 

It keeps you from showing up in the world, constantly telling you you’re not enough, at least not until you lose that weight or fit back into that old pair of jeans.

It’s keeping you from sharing YOUR unique magic with the world, and that’s something we’d all be lucky to see.

It's also creating a world that further marginalizes those in larger bodies, or disabled bodies, or bodies that don't conform to an ever-shrinking standard. It's confining to all of us, keeping all of us from being fully ourselves without apology (and without the room to even exhale fully, letting our hair down and our bodies loose).

Having a positive body image is about SO much more than thinking your body looks good.

I'm a Personal Trainer, and I Don't Care How Many Squats You Did.

I'm a Personal Trainer, and I Don't Care How Many Squats You Did.

Stephanie Ondrusek
coaching, mindset, offers

What frustrates me about fitness is its pull to be reductive, to erase nuance, to make everything a 1-2-3, a tempo, a 12-step program, into which, “anyone,” can plug in and be healed/”fixed”/”better.”

But I don’t think anything in my life has worked in that cookie-cutter way, and I’d guess that’s at least as true if not more so for you, too, if you’ve found yourself in this space (thank you, and welcome, again or for the first time). That thought carries a lot of unwieldy energy, though, and it’s not very fun to think about what we don’t like or what doesn’t work for months (years) on end.

Why the Words We Choose to Describe Our Bodies Matter

Why the Words We Choose to Describe Our Bodies Matter

Stephanie Ondrusek
body image, coaching, mindset, offers

I know many people who wake up every morning, and right before they look in the mirror to greet themselves for the day, they feel pure terror. Dread. Fear. We steel ourselves up to brace for the, "flaws," someone else has told us will be there, and we wonder how, "bad," they look that day, and the chorus starts:

"Ugh, gross."
"I can't wear that. Do I have any clean, flowy tops?"
"I'm giving a presentation today; will this hold across my chest?"
"I shouldn't have eaten ____ last night. I never get this right."

The language you’re using has a profound impact on your perspective.

Many clients come to me unhappy with their bodies, desperately hoping the fitness program I write will hold all the secrets to body change, and, as a result, happiness. They're disappointed to find out that it doesn't always work that way, and, in fact, countless repeated incidents of this led me to examine my coaching philosophy, such that I no longer coach with a focus on intentional fat loss.

One Self-Care Tip for Your Weekend (and Every Day, to Nurture Your Inner Boss)

One Self-Care Tip for Your Weekend (and Every Day, to Nurture Your Inner Boss)

Stephanie Ondrusek
coaching, FAQs + hacks, mindset, offers

Sometimes the best I've got is doing a #Friday morning face mask, putting laundry in, and deciding⁠—mid-Marco-Polo-client-checkin as I'm trying to escape my super loud washer/dryer, no less (I didn't exactly think that timing through)⁠—working from bed is the move for the day.

We've been conditioned to believe we must follow the rules: sit up straight, be here at this time, wear this, do that, be quiet, look like this, eat that. Our worth is often measured by our productivity: we believe we're only worthy of rest, reflection, of any kind of space after we've gotten things ticked off our to-do lists, submitted our reports, proven our value.

You can break the rules, of course, and I'm assuming if you're here reading my work, you already know that. You may just need a reminder, so let this serve as one.

Why I Don't Believe in the, "No Excuses" Movement

Why I Don't Believe in the, "No Excuses" Movement

Stephanie Ondrusek
coaching, feminism, body image

When I decided to become a coach, I realized, first and foremost, this sort of trust was vital to the success of everyone involved: if I can't humble myself enough to listen—deeply and fully—or to understand that at any given moment you may be having an entirely different experience and perception of our interaction and/or environment than I do (and believe you about your experience), then am I really being of service?

Am I really helping you along with your goals?
Does this change when your goals are different from my goals?
Or when they're different from the goals other people have, or have had in the past?

Seems quite basic, when you put it that way, but I haven't always hit the mark, and I find time and again, as I both get to know coaches further and have hired some myself, we could all use work, here. Not being understood seems to be a common experience of the human condition, especially in fitness.

How to, "Release That Which No Longer Serves You," or, "Rewrite Your Stories." (Let's Cut Through the Noise, Shall We?)

How to, "Release That Which No Longer Serves You," or, "Rewrite Your Stories." (Let's Cut Through the Noise, Shall We?)

Stephanie Ondrusek
Bold Body Initiative, coaching, FAQs + hacks, body image, mindset

If you spend much time on the internet, particularly in the personal development and/or fitness mindset space, it's likely you've heard quite a bit of talk about, "rewriting your stories," and, "releasing that which no longer serves you." 

Rather than the freedom these phrases were likely intended to impart, I was left with a slow-burning rage:

OKAY, YOU SUPER-EVOLVED BEING IN THIS TINY INSTAGRAM SQUARE, BUT HOW? WHAT DOES THAT EVEN MEAN?

*insert failure and shame*

How I Start My Morning

How I Start My Morning

Stephanie Ondrusek
coaching, body image, offers

Your alarm goes off, and you blearily rub your eyes as the mechanical beep (or, you know, the sounds of The Rock Clock) ring in your ears.

It's still dark outside. You're dreading putting your feet on the cold floor, but the bills don't pay themselves, so you swing around, hunt for your slippers (you missed one, so now you're awake), and head to the bathroom.

As you brush your teeth, you look in the mirror and take in your presence for the first time today.

What do you say to yourself?

How Do You Care for Yourself?

How Do You Care for Yourself?

Stephanie Ondrusek
coaching, mindset, offers

Loving yourself looks different for everyone, and it's important you find what it looks like for you.

For some, it's strength training. It can be meditating. It can be yoga. It can be cooking. It can be your favorite show on Netflix. It can be a manicure and a bubble bath and a glass of wine.

Those wonderfully-Instagrammable acts of self-care are important parts of loving yourself, for sure, but this picture is not complete. The ultimate act of loving yourself, imo — the one ring to rule them all, if you will — is to protect your energy.

Which of These Scenarios Makes You Feel More Powerful?

Which of These Scenarios Makes You Feel More Powerful?

Stephanie Ondrusek
coaching, offers


Picture these 2 scenarios:

A) How bad do you want it? Push it, push it, PUSH IT!! Pain is weakness leaving the body. Come on, you can't quit until you puke or faint! You can sleep when you're dead. NO EXCUSES.

B) How well did you sleep last night? You got 3 unbroken hours and the rest were up and down, because your daughter had a nightmare? Okay, how about we do a moderate-intensity continuous circuit instead, or would you rather go for a walk? Have you eaten a fruit or vegetable yet today? Would you like me to fill your water bottle for you while you warm up?

Please Allow Me to Reintroduce Myself.

Please Allow Me to Reintroduce Myself.

Stephanie Ondrusek
coaching, offers

My training philosophy has shifted over the years, as I stare down my 10-year anniversay of entering the fitness industry.

How regularly do you stop to take stock of your progress?

It's a practice I highly recommend (and for which I block off time every Friday afternoon, on a micro level, and that occurs naturally on a macro level, I find, if I pay attention to my rhythms and those of nature). I've found both with myself and with the vast majority of my clients, if we don't stop to look around and notice how far we've come, feeling the breeze on our faces of the new places at which we've arrived, things can feel like an eternal uphill battle.

Load More