The Fit & Free Podcast

42% of girls are already thinking about losing weight in primary school 😱 50-70% of girls are not satisfied with certain parts of their bodies by the time they reach middle school. How's THAT for some terrifying stats?! I think it's safe to say poor body image is a pandemic, and culturally, and socially, especially via social media, the world is constantly perpetuating the notion of the "perfect body"...Tall, thin, big breasts, and a big butt. This image of the perfect body can be an extremely powerful, destructive force in our lives. That's why in this episode we are joined by the lovely Sigi. She's a seasoned health and mindset coach, and eating psychology practitioner, and been a health & fitness coach since 2014. She's an absolute wealth of knowledge, and specialises in the body image and mindset space, and so today we dive deep into body image! and practical things that you can do with your nutrition, exercise and mindset starting TODAY to break free from these vicious cycles/ debilitating thought processes, and improve your body image, so that you can actually start seeing some consistent positive change in your body. P.S. Please review my podcast, as it really helps get it out to more women that need to hear this. Review here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fit-free-podcast/id1651978022 P.S.S. No idea how much and what to eat to lose fat & build muscle? Wanna find out EXACTLY what you should be doing next to lose cm off your waist, and tone your body ONCE AND FOR ALL? Take this quiz: https://lauraswingler.mykajabi.com/plateaued

In this episode I sit down with psychologist (and former client!) Kim Edwards. We had an amazing conversation about the missing piece that SO many women are missing when it comes to reaching their physique goals, which is their SELF-WORTH. Having negative self-talk, a low self-esteem or a low self-worth a low sense of self-worth can REALLY put the brakes on your body goals more than ANY exercise or nutrition strategy ever could, and that's why in this episode we dive deep into WHY that is, as well as giving you tangible tips on how you can improve your self-talk, which in turn will help you with your body goals! I hope this episode sheds light onto, and brings into awareness something you may not have been aware of (A.K.A. a BLIND SPOT!) that might be blocking you from reaching your body goals. P.S. Please review my podcast, as it really helps get it out to more women that need to hear this. Review here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fit-free-podcast/id1651978022 P.S.S. No idea how much and what to eat to lose fat & build muscle? Wanna find out EXACTLY what you should be doing next to lose cm off your waist, and tone your body ONCE AND FOR ALL? Take this quiz: https://lauraswingler.mykajabi.com/plateaued

I used to be ADDICTED to MyFitnessPal. 😱 I'd set my target at 1500 a day... and that was it! I HAD to reach those numbers every single day... On the days I'd eat under 1500 I'd be SO proud and happy with myself... but on the days I went over 1500...it was an absolute rollercoaster of emotions. 🎢 I'd be DEVASTATED, and promise myself I'd restrict my calories further/eat even less the next day. At the time I didn’t know what I was doing. Using a random calculator here, a randome piece of advice there. I was stuck in a cycle of always being a calorie deficit, because I was always trying to lose weight. Because I was always trying so hard to stick to a number in MFP, I completely lost touch with my body. It destroyed my relationship with food, and I started looking at food as just numbers... In this episode I take you through my journey, and how I broke free from from my MyFitnessPal addiction, in hopes it makes you think about your own relationship with tracking, and potentially help you beat yours! ❤️ P.S. Please review my podcast, as it really helps get it out to more women that need to hear this. Review here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fit-free-podcast/id1651978022 P.S.S. No idea how much and what to eat to lose fat & build muscle? Wanna find out EXACTLY what you should be doing next to lose cm off your waist, and tone your body ONCE AND FOR ALL? Take this quiz: https://lauraswingler.mykajabi.com/plateaued

A few years ago I was doing ALLLL the right things with my nutrition and exercise... I was showing up with my exercise daily I was eating in a calorie deficit. I was cutting out food that would undo my progress I was skipping meals and social events out to stay on track but STILL, I had nothing to show for it in terms of body composition results... something was missing. P.S. I'm dropping the juice on exactly how to go from skinny-fat to toned. What you need to do with your nutrition, your exercise and most importantly your MINDSET so that you can eat more, & look better! It’s absolutely free, and it’s happening next week, on the 4th of April, so if you want in, so if you want clarity on what you need to do to achieve your dream body in 2024, click the link below https://www.lauraswingler.com/skinnyfattotoned P.S.S. Please review my podcast, as it really helps get it out to more women that need to hear this. Review here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fit-free-podcast/id1651978022 That's the reason that today, when it comes to nutrition & exercise I preach a 50/50 approach. You need to be fuelling your body correctly and you need the exercise routine that tones and sculpts your body. But that's JUST 50% of it! What's the other 50, then, you might ask? In this episode I take you through how I learned about the other 50% the HARD way. What it is might surprise you when you listen, because it doesn't have ANYTHING to do with my lack of willpower or discipline...but it changed the game completely for me. ...and that’s why I want to share this with you because I know for a lot of you willpower and discipline is not your problem either, and hopefully I can shed some light on something you haven't been aware of up to this point, so that it can change the game for you too! P.S. Please review my podcast, as it really helps get it out to more women that need to hear this. Review here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fit-free-podcast/id1651978022 P.S.S. No idea how much and what to eat to lose fat & build muscle? Wanna find out EXACTLY what you should be doing next to lose cm off your waist, and tone your body ONCE AND FOR ALL? Take this quiz: https://lauraswingler.mykajabi.com/plateaued

Strap in for a raw & honest conversation! I sat down with fellow exercise physiologist Karla Bosnar. We had a beautiful conversation about Karla's journey, and her struggles with her body, food & with exercise, and how she overcame them. Karla shares her struggles with her body image for 10 years, which lead her down a dark path of trying diet after diet, detoxes, restrictions, and 8 week challenges, gaining weight and losing it again, constantly ending back where she started, each diet becoming harder and harder to maintain, all the way up to a full blown eating disorder. NOW, on the other side of it, she's a changed woman. She's a mother of 2 AND business owner, AND SHE'S NEVER LOOKED BETTER! Karla is a PERFECT example of just what you are capable of if you are willing to do the work! So how did she do it? FIND OUT in this episode. Karla's page: https://www.instagram.com/karlabosnar_exphys/ P.S. I'm dropping the juice on exactly how to go from skinny-fat to toned. What you need to do with your nutrition, your exercise and most importantly your MINDSET so that you can eat more, & look better! It’s absolutely free, and it’s happening next week, on the 4th of April, so if you want in, so if you want clarity on what you need to do to achieve your dream body in 2024, click the link below https://www.lauraswingler.com/skinnyfattotoned P.S.S. Please review my podcast, as it really helps get it out to more women that need to hear this. Review here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fit-free-podcast/id1651978022

As you can see by the title of this episode, it is the SECOND part in my 30 lessons from 30 years series. This episode is going to be a flow on from the last episode, so if you haven’t listened to that I highly suggest you go and listen to that one first, because otherwise this one won’t make much sense to you. For lessons 16 - 30, I've included gems and principles that apply BOTH specifically to nutrition & exercise, as well as ones that apply to nutrition & exercise AS WELL as other areas of life. As I said last week, there was a version of me that was so shy, and scared of most things, but I'm so proud of the person I've become after overcoming all of this, because there is NO WAY the old version of me would: A lot of the lessons have come from the last 5 years of my life, where I have gone all-in on my personal development. This one's a full-on rollercoaster going super deep, revealing huge personal struggles and breakthroughs, all the way through to simple tips that just make your life a bit better 😉. I share with you the lessons I’ve learned, the main thing I’ve taken out of it, why it was important to me, the main takeaway, and how it has rippled into other areas of my life! P.S. Please review my podcast, as it really helps get it out to more women that need to hear this. Review here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fit-free-podcast/id1651978022 P.S.S. No idea how much and what to eat to lose fat & build muscle? Wanna find out EXACTLY what you should be doing next to lose cm off your waist, and tone your body ONCE AND FOR ALL? Take this quiz: https://lauraswingler.mykajabi.com/plateaued

I turned 30 this month, and to celebrate that, I decided to share with you the 30 biggest lessons I've learned to date. 🎉 I think this might have been one of my favourite episodes to plan and record! When I sat down to plan this episode I reflected on everything I've learned up to this point, when it comes to nutrition, and exercise, but especially LIFE, and I found SO MUCH. There was a version of me that was so shy, and scared of most things, but I'm so proud of the person I've become after overcoming all of this, because there is NO WAY the old version of me would: A lot of the lessons have come from the last 5 years of my life, where I have gone all-in on my personal development. This one's a full-on rollercoaster going super deep, revealing huge personal struggles and breakthroughs, all the way through to simple tips that just make your life a bit better 😉. I share with you the lessons I’ve learned, the main thing I’ve taken out of it, why it was important to me, the main takeaway, and how it has rippled into other areas of my life! P.S. Please review my podcast, as it really helps get it out to more women that need to hear this. Review here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fit-free-podcast/id1651978022 P.S.S. No idea how much and what to eat to lose fat & build muscle? Wanna find out EXACTLY what you should be doing next to lose cm off your waist, and tone your body ONCE AND FOR ALL? Take this quiz: https://lauraswingler.mykajabi.com/plateaued

This week I'm brining on special guest Robyn Shaw. Robyn has over 7 years of experience as an online coach, and it was SO great having this conversation with her, because we have so many aligned values when it comes to nutrition & exercise! She mentions this beautiful quote which I totally align with, and it's consequently exactly what I teach all the girls in the Fit & Free Academy as well.: "I LIVE in the grey area when it comes to exercise & nutrition" How to live in that grey area pretty much sums up what this entire episode is about. What does it mean? It means finding that perfect balance between losing weight and toning up consistently AND also just living life, enjoying foods you love, and not being miserable, stressing about food & your body all the time, so that you can create an environment that allows you to stay in a calorie deficit for long enough to actually see the results you want. P.S. Please review my podcast, as it really helps get it out to more women that need to hear this. Review here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fit-free-podcast/id1651978022 P.S.S. No idea how much and what to eat to lose fat & build muscle? Wanna find out EXACTLY what you should be doing next to lose cm off your waist, and tone your body ONCE AND FOR ALL? Take this quiz: https://lauraswingler.mykajabi.com/plateaued

Let me tell you a little story about a woman I knew a few years ago. Picture this: She sits down for breakfast and have the same thing she has most days. Half an hour to an hour later, she's hungry again, thinking to herself: "I just ate a big meal, WHY do I need to eat more right now? I don't even WANT to eat more, because if I do it'll just ruin my progress..." ...but there's a part of her that's just so freaking hungry she can't handle it anymore. So she tried to eat some low calorie rice cakes, with powdered peanut butter... 30 minutes later, she's STILL hungry and STILL not satisfied...🫠 She tried to wait until 12 o clock so that she can push out her calories until lunch time, so that she doesn't end up over for the day. For lunch, she has a big portion of protein, with HEAPS of vegetables, thinking "the more vegetables I eat, the more it'll fill me up, and I'll be full and satisfied, and I can go on with my day. 30 minute after lunch she's hungry AGAIN...At this point she just can't handle it anymore, and starts eating everything she's forbidden herself to eat. Chocolate, sweets, cakes, pizza, pasta, you get the picture. Now she feels TERRIBLE about herself...Ashamed, guilty....how could she be so undisciplined and lose control like that? Undoing all of her progress? She KNOWS she's gone over her cals for the day, so she decides she HAS to do a second workout today to compensate for the extra calories she ate.... If any of this woman's story just resonated with you...if you feel freaking stressed about counting every last calorie you eat in MyFitnessPal, or if you feel so guilty any time you go over your calories for the day, and even though you know you WANT to stick to your calories, because you WANT to reach your body goals, for some reason you just keep going over your calories for the day/week/month... THEN don’t worry, because this episode has got YOU covered 😉 P.S. Please review my podcast, as it really helps get it out to more women that need to hear this. Review here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fit-free-podcast/id1651978022 P.S.S. No idea how much and what to eat to lose fat & build muscle? Wanna find out EXACTLY what you should be doing next to lose cm off your waist, and tone your body ONCE AND FOR ALL? Take this quiz: https://lauraswingler.mykajabi.com/plateaued

I'm willing to bet 80% (if not more!) of women have been here at SOME point: Trying to use EXERCISE to compensate for food that they ate. Maybe you're trying to stick to a certain calorie target, or maybe you're just trying to use the calories you're burning with exercise to put you in a further calorie deficit, so that you can see weight loss/fat loss results in your body faster. In this episode I tell you WHY this is an INEFFECTIVE, and often even COUNTERPRODUCTIVE strategy, and dive into my story around coming to this realisation years ago. We'll go through the long-term health risks of not changing this mistake, and what you CAN do to see results faster instead 😉. So if any of this resonates with you, come join me this week and give this one a listen! P.S. Please review my podcast, as it really helps get it out to more women that need to hear this. Review here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fit-free-podcast/id1651978022 P.S.S. No idea how much and what to eat to lose fat & build muscle? Wanna find out EXACTLY what you should be doing next to lose cm off your waist, and tone your body ONCE AND FOR ALL? Take this quiz: https://lauraswingler.mykajabi.com/plateaued

In this episode we build upon the previous one titled "How to eat out guilt free, without impacting your body goals", but instead of talking about the biggest mistakes women are making around this topic, we go more in depth on WHY the food guilt is happening in the first place. Because as soon as you figure out WHY you've got a certain problem, it puts all the power back in your court, giving you the opportunity to change it easily. So if you've ever said something like this to yourself: 🫠 "I can’t go to the restaurant because they use too much oil" 🫠 "I can’t eat at my friends house because I don’t know how many calories are in the foods, so I can’t track it" 🫠 "I can’t go out with the girls, because they’re going for Italian, and Pizza has too many carbs which has too many calories, which is going to undo all my progress." ...then first of all you're probably STILL unhappy with your body, so you KNOW this strategy isn't working, and something has to change. I'll explain the root cause of WHY that is, and give you the first steps to STOPPING it, so that you can finally see results with your body that ACTUALLY stick around. P.S. Please review my podcast, as it really helps get it out to more women that need to hear this. Review here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fit-free-podcast/id1651978022 P.S.S. No idea how much and what to eat to lose fat & build muscle? Wanna find out EXACTLY what you should be doing next to lose cm off your waist, and tone your body ONCE AND FOR ALL? Take this quiz: https://lauraswingler.mykajabi.com/plateaued

Ever felt like eating out just un-does all your weight loss progress when it comes to your body goals? Ever wonder if it would be possible to eat out, enjoy drinks on the weekend, and go on holidays without worrying about how it was going to affect your body? Then THIS ONE'S FOR YOU. In this episode I go through my experience with this, I talk through some of the biggest mistakes I see women making when it comes to this, and how I learned how to do eat out without impacting my physique, so that you can do it TOO. LIVE Masterclass link HERE

If you've ever felt like your body was different, like your metabolism is just slower, or getting the body you want simply isn't possible for you, like maybe YOU'RE THE PROBLEM, then keep reading 👇 There was a version of me that didn't believe I was EVER going to be able to get a body I was proud of. I was never the smallest girl in school This carried on into adulthood, where I started to believe that maybe my body was different...that maybe I was just big boned, or had too slow of a metabolism, because no matter what I tried, nothing was working for me. For AGES the ONLY way I knew how to see results was through cutting my calories low, being super restrictive, eat super clean, and do as much cardio and HIIT as I could, and I STILL wasn't seeing the results I wanted. This only strengthened the belief that IT WAS ME. I was the problem. So if you can relate to any of this message, then this episode is absolutely for you, because I'm going to show you exactly why this is happening to you, AND exactly how getting the body you want IS possible for YOU. P.S. Please review my podcast, as it really helps get it out to more women that need to hear this. Review here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fit-free-podcast/id1651978022 P.S.S. No idea how much and what to eat to lose fat & build muscle? Wanna find out EXACTLY what you should be doing next to lose cm off your waist, and tone your body ONCE AND FOR ALL? Take this quiz: https://lauraswingler.mykajabi.com/plateaued

There is a BIG chance if you're in my world that you have this blind spot. "I need to lose weight/be in a calorie deficit to get the body I want" If you've ever said this or thought this to yourself, I recommend listening in closely to this episode to see how this might apply to you, because it could be the VERY thing that is STOPPING you from actually getting the body that you want. P.S. Please review my podcast, as it really helps get it out to more women that need to hear this. Review here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fit-free-podcast/id1651978022 P.S.S. No idea how much and what to eat to lose fat & build muscle? Wanna find out EXACTLY what you should be doing next to lose cm off your waist, and tone your body ONCE AND FOR ALL? Take this quiz: https://lauraswingler.mykajabi.com/plateaued

"NOW'S NOT THE RIGHT TIME" How many times have you said this to yourself when it comes to your exercise/nutrition? How many times has it STOPPED you from going to a pilates class, joining a gym, or working with a coach? What were the reasons you gave yourself for it not being the right time, and how real was that reason ACTUALLY? Was there genuinely a BETTER time to act? Or is this something you told yourself (consciously OR UNconsciously!) to keep yourself in that warm plush padded box that we call the comfort zone, and STOPPING you from actually doing the things, and HAVING the things that you truly want in your life? All of these questions will be answered in this episode! ✨ P.S. Please review my podcast, as it really helps get it out to more women that need to hear this. Review here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fit-free-podcast/id1651978022 P.S.S. No idea how much and what to eat to lose fat & build muscle? Wanna find out EXACTLY what you should be doing next to lose cm off your waist, and tone your body ONCE AND FOR ALL? Take this quiz: https://lauraswingler.mykajabi.com/plateaued

In this episode, we dive into the story of another ride or die client of mine. Joanne and I have been working together for over 2 years already, and before working together she was doing just about everything she could to lose weight. She thought that to get the body she wanted, “you had to strip back everything you’re eating, eat super clean, so healthy, and then smash out all your workouts” So that's exactly what she tried, and surprise, surprise, IT DIDN'T WORK. She had no idea why it wasn't working for her. She was so sick of putting in all the effort, and have nothing to show for it. In the space of just 12 weeks, she was able to build muscle, lose fat and find complete food freedom! I love sharing these stories with you, because Joanne once believed that it wasn’t going to be possible for her. She didn’t believe she could eat more and look better, but look at her now! I really hope by sharing this story with you, it shows you what actually can be possible for you when you have the right strategy! JOIN THE FIT & FREE ACADEMY NOW

EVERY DAY GETS TO BE THE WEEKEND, AND YOU CAN STILL REACH YOUR BODY GOALS. This week the spotlight is on one of my clients Gerri! We've been working together for almost 2 years now, and back then she was: 🫠 trying to eat as little as possible 🫠 strength training in the morning and going for another run in the afternoon 🫠 avoiding going out with friends 🫠 only cooking her own meals so she could count her macros properly ...basically doing anything she could to look the smallest, and always trying to drop pant sizes. She'd only feel good if she was doing the MOST, and ALL the wrong things for her body. If you relate to this in any way, you're going to love this episode, because in it we dive deep into Gerri's journey, and talk about where she was when she started, and where she is now, and all the hurdles we had to move through for her to become the toned, fit gym girl she is today. We'll show you what it is really like behind the scenes inside the Fit & Free Academy, AND to show you that all of this gets to be possible for you, too

How many times have you tried applying nutrition and exercise advice from other fitness influencers, books, diets, etc, but you didn't see any (sustainable!) results from them? Sure! I know you can achieve SHORT TERM weight/fat loss by cutting out foods, going for extra runs, and being super strict, but how long does that really last? If you're anything like I was, it's likely just a few weeks after you relax all the strict rules before you start to fall back into your old ways and regain lost weight/fat... That’s EXACTLY what happens when we don’t focus on our blind spots, and so in this episode I introduce blind spots to you. Uncovering my own blind spots has made a huge difference in my life, and has allowed me to achieve so much that I otherwise never would have been able to achieve. Every single one you uncover is like a weight taken off your shoulder. The second it comes off you feel so much lighter. I take you through my journey of uncovering my blind spots, and then I go into depth on how you can recognise your own blind spots, as well as going into depth around one of the big ones I coach my clients through: PERFECTIONISM, and why it does more harm than good. By the way, if you're one of those girlies that's thinking: “I don’t subscribe to this woo woo stuff, can you please just help me with my nutrition and exercise?” To you I say: I AM helping you with your nutrition and exercise, because unless you are able to stick to every exercise/nutrition program you've ever done, then YOU'VE GOT SOME BLIND SPOTS HOLDING YOU BACK FROM YOUR GOALS. P.S. Please review my podcast, as it really helps get it out to more women that need to hear this. Review here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fit-free-podcast/id1651978022 P.S.S. No idea how much and what to eat to lose fat & build muscle? Wanna find out EXACTLY what you should be doing next to lose cm off your waist, and tone your body ONCE AND FOR ALL? Take this quiz: https://lauraswingler.mykajabi.com/plateaued

If you're here, chance are that you have some sort of resistance around eating more food (especially carbs and fats): Maybe you don't want to: 😔 gain weight 😔 gain fat 😔 come out of your calorie deficit 😔 lose the progress you've been working for with your physique ...and this is EXACTLY the reason why SO many women stay skinny-fat, sometimes for a REALLY long time (like 5 years all the way up to THEIR ENTIRE ADULT LIFE). WHY? There are so many different reasons, like: 🫠 Low energy 🫠 Binge restrict cycles 🫠 Not progressing in the gym 🫠 Not building muscle/losing fat 🫠 #startingagainonmonday etc. All of which stem foster thoughts like: "Omg I fucked up again" "I've undone so much progress" "I'm never never gonna get the body I want" "I can't trust myself around X food" "I'm just not disciplined enough to get the body I want" So, in this episode we'll be going through the why 9/10 of you should be eating more, and that chances are you probably already KNOW you should be eating more, but why that's not as simple as it sounds. P.S. Please review my podcast, as it really helps get it out to more women that need to hear this. Review here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fit-free-podcast/id1651978022 P.S.S. No idea how much and what to eat to lose fat & build muscle? Wanna find out EXACTLY what you should be doing next to lose cm off your waist, and tone your body ONCE AND FOR ALL? Take this quiz: https://lauraswingler.mykajabi.com/plateaued

A little while ago I was approached by a fellow coach named Sheridan Jackson, to feature on her podcast, and talk all things exercise, nutrition, and mindset. In this episode, Sheri and I talk about how to create that BALANCE between achieving body composition, and having “food freedom”. And yes, that ABSOLUTELY exists. We talk about food relationships, and how important they are in the process of achieving success long term with your body composition, and how ignoring this stuff can lead you down a dark path, ultimately leaving you with little to nothing to show for it in terms of losing fat & building muscle. We also give you some of the common pitfalls, roadblocks and blind spots we often see and how to avoid/ overcome them, as well as how to use numbers like scale weight and MFP tracking without obsessing over them, so that you ACTUALLY get results sustainably. P.S. Please review my podcast, as it really helps get it out to more women that need to hear this. Review here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fit-free-podcast/id1651978022 P.S.S. No idea how much and what to eat to lose fat & build muscle? Wanna find out EXACTLY what you should be doing next to lose cm off your waist, and tone your body ONCE AND FOR ALL? Take this quiz: https://lauraswingler.mykajabi.com/plateaued