Jennipher Walters is the co-founder of Fit Bottomed Girls and its sister site, Fit Bottomed Mamas. Her mission is to help women ditch the diet drama, have fun, and embrace their inner confidence to take better care of themselves. Walters has several coaching credentials and received an MA in health journalism from the University of Minnesota. She has also written for numerous online publications including Shape magazine and The Huffington Post.
Walters says that “the Fit Bottom Girls pride themselves on their honest reviews and aren’t afraid to tell it like it is.” Read on for her no-nonsense advice on diet and fitness!
How do you start your own day? Do you have any daily rituals or routines?
I start 2-3 days a week at 4:45 am, with a 5:30 am workout class at my gym and a protein bar on the way there. On the other days I sleep in a bit, enjoy a green smoothie and a cup of coffee, and like to start work early. Sometimes I’ll take a few minutes to meditate—but usually I do that a little later in the day when I need a break.
What are your eating habits like? Do you follow any specific program of eating?
I follow the Anti-Diet way of life! That means that 80 percent of the time I’m eating clean, whole foods and 20 percent of the time, I’m eating whatever the heck it is I’m craving—and savoring every bite. My stomach doesn’t tolerate gluten or dairy well though, so I stay away from those as I can.
There’s so much research being done and advice being published, how do you tell what’s real and what’s fake? How do you decide what’s relevant and what isn’t?
I’m always one for using my common sense (if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is)—and letting my body take the lead. Does making a change make you feel good or bad over the long haul? If you listen, your body will tell you.
Is there any current thinking about diet and fitness that needs to be challenged?
That there’s one “right” way to be healthy. In fact, there are TONS of ways—and it all depends on what works for you and your body. No magic bullet here!
Is there anything new you’ve started doing recently, or anything you’ve quit?
Funny, I just kind of answered this question on our site! I’ve stopped sitting so much…read more about that here!
How do you make adjustments to your workout? It’a hard to know what to do when you’re tired or having a bad workout.
Currently I’m 7 months pregnant so I’ve made so many modifications to my workout and really listened to my body about what it needs and what feels good. Each week though, I like to review what workouts I’ve done, see what’s working and set some goals for the next week. It helps me to stay motivated.
Can you share some of the specific things you notice top performers doing differently than the average person?
The ones that make healthy changes really do it from the inside out and start by deciding to take care of themselves because they deserve it. You can’t hate yourself healthy! They also set small goals and make lots of small changes and tweaks over time—that way it truly becomes more of a lifestyle.
[Tweet “”You can’t hate yourself healthy!” ~@fitbottomedgirl, on making healthy changes”]
Coach.me provides everything you need to improve performance in diet, fitness, productivity, and life. If you’re feeling inspired by what you’ve read, try adding these habits to your dashboard:
- Meditate: Try one or more of our guided meditation plans.
- Stand More, Sit Less @ Work: Lessen the health risks that come with a sedentary lifestyle by standing at your desk
- The Whole Foods Diet: Eat only recognizable foods and avoid processed ones.