Alignment Over Intensity: How We’re Doing 2026 Differently

BETTER TODAY
My Word of The Year: Alignment

My word for this year is alignment, and it is shaping everything I am building and coaching.

Alignment means:
You stop forcing routines that do not fit your life.
You stop chasing extremes that only work short term.
You start choosing habits you can repeat even on imperfect days.

In fitness, alignment looks like training that supports your energy instead of draining it.
In nutrition, it looks like eating in a way that fuels you without constant mental stress.
In life, it looks like fewer promises and better follow through.

This is the lens I am living and coaching through in 2026.

FITNESS
Better Today Kickstart Challenge

Starting January 5 through January 25, I am running the Better Today Kickstart Challenge inside my Skool community.

This is not a reset, detox, or transformation challenge.
It is a foundation builder.

What it includes:
Structured workouts that are effective but realistic
Simple nutrition guidelines that remove decision fatigue
Daily prompts and accountability to keep you consistent
A community of women who are focused on progress, not perfection

The goal is not to overhaul your life in 21 days.
The goal is to prove to yourself that consistency is possible when things are aligned.

If you have ever started January motivated but burned out by February, this is for you.

MIND
The Problem Isn’t Motivation. It’s Misalignment.

Every January, motivation is everywhere.
New programs. New goals. New plans.

And yet by mid-February, most people feel behind again.

That is not a motivation problem.
That is a misalignment problem.

Most women don’t fail because they don’t want it badly enough. They fail because the plan they chose does not match their life.

They pick:
• A workout schedule that requires too much of their time
• A nutrition plan that only works when there are no hiccups in their days
• A version of themselves that ignores sleep, stress, kids, work, and mental load

Then when life does what life always does, the plan collapses and they assume they are the problem.

What Alignment Actually Means

Alignment means your habits make sense for the season you are in.

It means:
• Training that fits the energy you have, not the energy you wish you had
• Nutrition that fuels your workouts without dominating your thoughts
• Goals that support your life instead of competing with it

When things are aligned, consistency feels easier. Not because it takes less effort, but because it stops fighting reality.

Signs Your Health Plan Is Out of Alignment

If any of these sound familiar, this is not a discipline issue:

• You start strong but burn out quickly
• You feel behind even when you’re doing “enough”
• You skip workouts because they feel too hard or too long
• You eat well all day then unravel at night
• You constantly feel like you need a reset

That is friction. And friction always kills consistency.

How to Realign Without Starting Over

This is where most people overcomplicate things. Alignment does not require a new plan. It requires better questions.

Ask yourself:
• What can I realistically do on my worst week?
• What habits make me feel better immediately, not just later?
• What am I forcing that could be simplified?

Then start here:

1. Shrink the minimum
Your “bare minimum” should still move you forward.
Three strength workouts beat five missed ones.
Protein at two meals beats perfection at none.

2. Match effort to output
Hard workouts require fuel and recovery.
Lighter days require less.
Stop eating and training the same way every day when your days are not the same.

3. Choose repeatable habits
If you cannot imagine doing it in March, it is not aligned.
Progress is built on what you repeat, not what you start.

The women who make progress this year will not be the most extreme.
They will be the most aligned.

NUTRITION
The Real Reason You Snack at Night 

If you’re disciplined all day and then feel completely unhinged after dinner, this one’s for you.

You eat “pretty well.”
You stay busy.
You hold it together.

And then 8:30 pm hits and suddenly the pantry is calling your name.

This isn’t because you lack discipline.
It’s because your biology has been quietly setting you up all day.

Reason #1: You Didn’t Eat Enough Earlier (Even If It Felt Like You Did)

The most common cause of late night snacking is simple energy debt.

When calories or protein are too low during the day, your body compensates at night when cortisol drops and hunger hormones rise.

Research shows that inadequate daytime intake increases ghrelin, your hunger hormone, and reduces leptin, the hormone that signals fullness. The result is delayed hunger that shows up strongest in the evening.

This is especially common in women who:
• Eat light breakfasts
• Skip lunch or eat “snacky” meals
• Save calories for later
• Drink coffee instead of eating

Reason #2: Blood Sugar Crashes Late in the Day

Meals that are low in protein and fiber digest quickly and spike blood sugar, followed by a crash.

That crash often happens a few hours after dinner, which is why cravings feel urgent and specific. Usually sweet, salty, or crunchy.

Stable blood sugar depends on three things:
• Adequate protein
• Sufficient total calories
• Meals spaced consistently

Reason #3: Cortisol Finally Drops

During the day, stress hormones suppress appetite.
At night, when you finally sit down, cortisol drops and hunger turns back on.

This is why night snacking often feels emotional even when it isn’t.
Your body is simply catching up.

If your days are busy, overstimulated, or under-fueled, night hunger is a biological response, not a character flaw.

Reason #4: You’re Using Food for Decompression

Food is regulating.
Chewing, sweetness, warmth, and familiarity all signal safety to the nervous system.

If the only time you slow down is at night, food becomes the tool your body uses to come back to baseline.

The problem is not that food feels good.
The problem is that food is the only thing doing that job.

What Actually Helps (That Isn’t “Just Stop Snacking”)

1. Eat a real dinner
Dinner should include protein, carbs, and fat.
If your dinner looks like a sad salad or “whatever was left,” expect to snack later.

2. Increase protein earlier in the day
Aim for at least 25 to 35 grams per meal.
This alone reduces evening cravings significantly in studies on appetite regulation.

3. Plan a purposeful night snack
If you need something at night, make it intentional.
Greek yogurt with berries.
Cottage cheese and fruit.
Protein hot chocolate.
A planned snack prevents a spiral.

4. Add a non-food decompression habit
Five minutes of stretching.
A short walk.
Journaling.
A shower.
Something that tells your nervous system the day is over.

5. Stop moralizing night eating
Shame increases stress.
Stress increases cravings.
The cycle feeds itself.

Your body is simply responding to how it’s being fueled and managed.