Fitness
At Strong with Sarah, fitness is more than just exercise—it's a lifestyle. Our coaches work with you to create movement routines that align with your unique goals, preferences, and body type.
While some foundational techniques apply across ages, abilities, and goals, our individualized approach is at the heart of every plan that we create. Whether you're starting your wellness journey with the Silver plan or striving for peak performance with the Platinum plan, you'll have direct access to one of our experienced weight loss coaches every step of the way.
Explore the nature of our personal training and fitness philosophy and its benefits below.
Training Philosophy of Strong with Sarah
At Strong with Sarah, we will work with you and take your goals, your body composition, and your movement preferences into account when discussing movement with you. If you are someone who knows your exercise preferences, we can help hold you accountable for the workouts that you enjoy as part of coaching with us.
Something that we offer all clients is the option to add customized strength workouts (or online personal training) to any of our coaching plans.
Strong with Sarah adheres to five main pillars of personal training that we know will transform your body and mind. While not every pillar may seem groundbreaking, we base our approach on tried-and-tested scientific data.
Simplicity
Fitness is meant to challenge your mind and your muscles, but workouts don’t need to be overly complex in order to be effective. Our workout philosophy is tailored to suit your environment —whether at home or in the gym— and makes the most of the equipment you have available and the movements you can perform.
As your body adapts to strength training, we gradually add novelty to your routine by incorporating more exercises. But don’t worry, every movement will be achievable and suited to your current level of fitness.
2. Individualization
A set of exercises our coaches customize for one client is unlikely to yield the exact same results for you. That’s why our approach is personalized and based on your fitness level, goals, and workout environment.
Whether you have a busy schedule, are caring for a baby, or are recovering from surgery, we’ll create a workout plan that seamlessly fits into your lifestyle.
In theory, any exercise program can seem effective; however, in practice, only a tailored workout plan suited to your abilities, body type, and goals can yield the best results. This plan will be suited to how many days you can workout, the style workout that you are looking for based on the gear that you have at home or at the gym, or even without gear. It is based on a progressive overload that will allow you to increase your overall capacity to reach your goals.
Oftentimes, these individualized programs will run on 4-6 week phases to stimulate that overload and help increase lean muscle and decrease fat mass!
3. Effectiveness
Repeating the same exercises may seem effective at first, but true progress comes from pushing your limits. It’s important to start with a manageable routine that gives your body enough time to adapt. As you continue exercising and maintaining your diet, your training routine should evolve with a new challenge.
Our weight loss coaches will monitor your progress closely and progressively overload your workout routine with advanced exercises. This transition does not happen overnight – we gradually increase the level, giving your body enough time to recover between levels.
4. Consistency
Consistency is key and a huge part of our accountability coaching, where we help you identify your obstacles and pave the path to your goals. When it comes to exercise, similar to nutrition, consistency is key. A big part of consistency is maintaining motivation, and our coaches make sure to remind you of what you want to achieve.4.
5. Fun!
Our fitness and movement philosophy is not all about techniques and following a routine—we want you to enjoy what you’re doing. Exercise becomes sustainable for the long-term when you’re able to push yourself but also while enjoying what you’re doing!
Our customized strength workouts (available as an add-on to any of our coaching plans) are created specifically for you by Coach Victoria.
These workouts are conveniently delivered to you within our coaching app, making them easy to access and complete. 💪🏻
Why Strength Training Is Important for Weight Loss
At Strong with Sarah, we don’t believe there is any magical “workout program” that is best for everyone to lose weight and be their healthiest. Our clients successfully lose weight while enjoying all sorts of activities, from yoga and riding a Peloton bike to HIIT bootcamp workout and strength training.
However, with that being said, research suggests that strength training is one of the best ways to get you closer to your desired weight. Here are the benefits of strength training, specifically for weight loss:
Increased Muscle Mass: Building muscle through strength training boosts your resting metabolic rate. Muscle tissue burns more calories at rest compared to fat tissue, so having more muscle means you’ll burn more calories throughout the day.
Improved Metabolism: Strength training can boost your body’s metabolism. This means not only are you burning more calories at rest, but your body also becomes more efficient at using energy from the food you eat throughout the entire day.
Enhanced Fat Loss (versus muscle loss): Strength training helps you lose fat while preserving muscle mass in a calorie deficit. This is important because when you eat in a calorie deficit without strength training, you may lose muscle along with fat, which can slow down your metabolism and lead to a “skinny-fat” appearance.
Better Body Composition: As you build muscle and lose fat, you improve your overall body composition. This can lead to a leaner and more toned look, even if the scale doesn’t change dramatically.
Increased Strength and Functional Fitness: Strength training improves your overall strength and physical capabilities, making everyday activities easier and more manageable. This can encourage a more active lifestyle, which supports weight loss and overall health.
Long-Term Weight Maintenance: Incorporating strength training into your routine can help you maintain weight loss over time. The muscle mass you build can support a higher metabolic rate, making it easier to keep the weight off in the long run.
Better Insulin Sensitivity: Regular strength training can improve insulin sensitivity, which helps regulate blood sugar levels and may reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes.
Reduced Risk of Injury: Stronger muscles, tendons, and ligaments help support your joints and reduce the risk of injury during physical activities, including cardio workouts.
How Our Training Philosophy Fits into Your Lifestyle
While strength training is one of the best ways to exercise for weight loss, it’s not the only way to move your body and successfully lose weight. In fact, you can burn calories without hitting the gym three times a week—by simply living a more active lifestyle.
In fact, you burn more calories through daily activities like walking, running errands, or cleaning than you do during your structured workouts. This is called Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis (NEAT), and it makes up about 20% of the calories you burn—compared to just 10% calories burned from your workouts.
Here’s how incorporating something as simple as daily walks can help you shed pounds:
Increased Daily Activity: Walking is a low-impact exercise that can be easily incorporated into daily routines. This increased activity contributes to a higher total daily energy expenditure (meaning more calories burned), which supports weight loss.
Boosts Metabolism: Regular walking can help boost your metabolism, which means your body will burn more calories even when you’re at rest.
Improves Cardiovascular Health: Walking is a cardiovascular exercise that strengthens the heart and improves circulation. Better cardiovascular health can enhance overall energy levels and stamina, making it easier to engage in other forms of physical activity.
Stress Reduction: Walking can help lower stress levels and improve mental health. Lower stress can help manage cortisol levels, which is important because high cortisol levels are associated with increased appetite and weight gain.
Enhanced Mood: Regular walking has been shown to improve mood and reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression. Feeling better emotionally can support more consistent exercise and healthier eating habits.
Accessibility and Sustainability: Walking is a low-impact exercise that’s easy on the joints, making it accessible for people of all fitness levels. It’s also a sustainable activity that can be maintained over the long term, which is crucial for lasting weight loss.
Helps with Appetite Control: Some studies suggest that moderate-intensity exercise like walking may help regulate appetite and reduce the likelihood of overeating.
“Fun Fact – If you’re looking for extra motivation to walk, all Strong with Sarah clients are invited to participate in a monthly step challenge against other clients, where you have the option to win either a discount on your next month of coaching or an Amazon Gift Card! 🤑”
Make the most of your daily activities and boost your weight loss journey with Strong with Sarah! Check out our coaching plans with online personal weight loss coaches to get tailored guidance and support every step of the way!