The Fit Habit
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About The Fit Habit

Hey there, welcome to The Fit Habit!

fitness coaching fitness at home
I'm Caren, a certified personal trainer, group fitness and yoga instructor, nutrition coach + healthy living blogger based in Austin, Tx.  My aim is to help busy, career-focused women achieve fitness and weight loss results through simple, sustainable lifestyle tweaks.  I'm particularly passionate about inspiring women over 40 to invest in their health and fitness NOW, so they can look and feel their best today, and in the future.

Here's why your health & fitness matters, right now.

As women, we typically spend our whole lives working hard to raise families and earn a living.  Then at some point down the line, we hope to have the time and resources to enjoy what we've worked hard for.  However, it's at this point where most of us start facing declining health (I lost my Mom to cancer at 63).  I want to change this!  We should all have the health and fitness to truly enjoy a long and happy life, whether that's running a marathon or keeping up with grand kiddos.

Here's what you can expect to find here:

  • Easy, but healthy low carb recipes that supports a lean and strong physique. My motto is that it's got to be simple or forget it.  Are you with me?  All my recipes are carb-conscious and easy to pull together.  I live by, and encourage the 80/20 rule, so I also share sugar-free cocktails and dessert recipes (because a healthy lifestyle has to be one you'll enjoy).
  • Fitness, yoga and barre programs you can do anywhere and on your own schedule.  I'm all about fitness that feels good and I don't buy the whole "no pain, no gain" philosophy.  I strongly advocate for fitness programs you can do from home since my readers tend to have busy lives with little time for workouts.
  • Inspiration, motivation and stories about what's possible.  Beyond cleaning up your food and fitness, you also have to see what's possible!  I love sharing before and afters and inspiring stories of women who are choosing to take better care of themselves and get in shape at every stage of life.  Too often we discount what's possible because we think we're too old.  That's rubbish and I plan to prove it to you!

Ready to dive in?

mind body wellness

How can I help you?

In addition to sharing free resources on my website, I work with clients remotely, either 1-1 coaching or small groups.  My clients are women, mostly over 40 and they're always over-scheduled and over-committed.  I help them lose weight and build healthy lifestyles they love by coaching them on fitness, create macros-based meal plans and keep them accountable to reach their personal goals.

I'd love to work with you!  Here's what it would look like.   

My Fit Habit Philosophy

  1. The journey to fitness, health, and wellness starts and ends with food.  If you don't commit to changing your diet, you will never give yourself a chance to truly transform and feel amazing.  It doesn't have to be drastic or all-at-once, but pay attention to how you feed yourself.
  2. Being fit and healthy isn’t a personality trait or a virtue that you’re born with.  It’s a journey that everyone chooses for themselves and again and again, throughout the course of their entire life. It’s a habit. And the more enjoyable you can make the habit, the easier it will be to maintain.
  3. If you want to change your current health or fitness, it has to come from a place of wanting more for yourself and your life.  If you’re pushing yourself from a place of self-loathing, you’ll always be on a diet, and as you’ve probably figured out, diets are miserable.
  4. Fitness and health aren’t restricted by age - it’s inspired by it.  If you’re in your 40’s now, not only are you entitled to amazing physical condition, you’re also building an even better body for your 50’s.  Your efforts are cumulative over time (that’s why consistency is king).
  5. Your health is never static.  Your body is always either in decline or getting better.  So always be learning and experimenting, but trust your own intuition over what the experts say. Trust your gut and always chose what you know to be best for you.
  6. Working on your physical self is the best way I know how to improve your mental, emotional and spiritual health, too.  If you feel like you need to work on yourself, lace up your shoes and start moving and chose to eat better foods.  You’ll be surprised how it will impact your heart, mind, and soul.

That's it in a nutshell!  The rest are just stories of the journey and sharing what works for me, in case you might want to try it too.

How I lost 80 pounds and changed my life.

I’ve definitely walked my own talk when it comes to fitness transformation.  I grew up really unhealthy and overweight.  At my heaviest (about 210 pounds) I knew I had to make a change because my life was going downhill in more ways than one.  My evolution wasn’t easy and it wasn’t quick, but the changes I made, stuck for the long term.  Today I enjoy great health and a lean physique and I’m nearly 50 years old!

fitness journey p90x

How did I get here?  By changing the way I ate, the way I moved and the way I thought about myself.  Those hard-learned lessons are what I share so that you don’t have to take the many wrong turns that I have!  Wellness is really simple when you boil it down to the basics.  I’m not suggesting it’s easy (at first), but simple? Absolutely.  It’s all about building better habits.

Fitness & Nutrition Credentials

I feel a little weird sharing my credentials because this isn't intended to be a resume, but apparently Google likes to know that I've got some expertise, so here it goes.  [Insert eye roll here.]

But at the heart of it all, I'm a low carb foodie who loves working out at home and wearing yoga pants 97% of the time 🙂

Caren in the Press

Since starting my food + fitness journey, my work has been featured in The Huffington Post, Glamor, The Active Times,  Origin Magazine, The Chalkboard Magazine, Muscle & Performance and Oxygen Magazine.

caren magill in the press

Fun Facts

  • I was recently diagnosed with ADHD!  I don't look at this as a hinderance - just a different way of looking at the world.  Since my diagnosis, I've started an ADHD-specialized coaching certification so I can help adults who suffer from distraction, along with the  fitness coaching I've been doing for years.
  • I'm a proud Canadian, but I moved to California in 2006 and swore never to live through another winter again (I'm still going strong on that commitment)
  • I used to own a food company that served the fitness community.  While I no longer own that business, it was an amazing learning experience.
  • I did my yoga teacher training in India because I figured it would be the “Harvard of yoga”.
  • I’m obsessed with yoga pants.  I wear them 96.3% of the time and it’s a rare sighting to see me in a pair of jeans.
  • You couldn’t pay me enough to vacation in the snow.  I’m all about warm weather destinations.  I typically go to Palm Springs or Cabo at least 3 times a year.
  • I did a bikini competition when I was 42.  It was a crazy experience, and not one I’d ever want to repeat.
  • My little rescue mutts and my husband are my life!  I adore animals and I’m a huge supporter of Muttville - a senior dog rescue in San Francisco and I'm a foster for the Austin Pug Rescue.
  • I’ve always wanted to be a writer.  This blog is a dream come true for me.  I put my heart and soul into it, so I hope you love it!

Thanks for being here and feel free to reach out.  I love hearing from readers.

XO Caren