I met Roxanne a couple years ago at an in-person coaching session, with her sister…and their babies! From there, we kept in contact every now and again, making sure she was recovering well from baby #2.
Roxy then joined the To Pregnancy & Beyond tribe (my online prenatal and postnatal fitness coaching club). And, perhaps most importantly, she saved us when baby Steele was just a few weeks old by giving us the best baby swing ever, ha!
She’s someone who I want you to meet because she feels like an old friend right away.
She makes you feel comfortable, known, and understood. I’m lucky to know her and I want you to get to know her, too.
Meet Roxy.
Tell us a little about yourself: your real-mom life, where you’re from, and how long you have been part of the To Pregnancy & Beyond tribe?
My name is Roxanne Johnston, and I’m a mom of 4: two bonus kids from marrying my husband and two that I grew myself. My older girls are 17 and 19, and we’ve got a 3 year old boy and baby girl who is 14 months.
I’m from Ontario originally, but I’ve lived in Alberta for almost 10 years now, and I joined TP&B in July 2015.
How did you find TP&B?
My sister worked with Jessie after having her son, and I went to a training session with her. It was a great workout, but personal training was not in my budget so I started reading Jessie’s blog to get some free tips 😉
From reading the blog I knew about her Core + Floor Restore program, and signed up after I had my second baby, and from there TP&B was the natural next step.
Why did you join TP&B?
My approach to exercise was wrong. I am not a person who loves to work out, and I do not enjoy the gym. I work out at home, or not at all.
The problem was I was trying to do these workout DVDs that were too difficult, an hour long, and meant to be done 5-7 days a week.
If I managed to get through one of them, it was a miracle, but then I would be so tired the rest of the day and so sore the following day that I could barely function. I was never ever able to do this consistently, so it felt like constant failure, which was not motivating or effective.
I knew from doing the Core + Floor Restore that Jessie was not about “extreme” exercise or major time commitments. I have always enjoyed strength training, so I knew TP&B would be a good fit.
What is your workout schedule like? Where and when do you do your TP&B workouts?
Most weeks I get 2 strength workouts in, and a few walks outside with my kids. On a good week I will get 2 strength sessions and an interval workout or 3 strength sessions in, but it really doesn’t happen that often these days.
I do all of my workouts at home, in my living room, using minimal equipment, my furniture, and the stairs as my “gym”.
My workouts are super spontaneous, just any time I can fit them in. Sometimes with both kids running around, sometimes while baby naps with my toddler climbing all over me, sometimes at night when they’re in bed.
Why do you exercise?
Mainly for strength, both mental and physical. Mentally, it really helps me feel present and capable in all of the things I do every day.
My life is super unpredictable and I’m a bit of a control freak, so this is what I do to keep my balance and just roll with whatever life throws at me.
From a physical perspective, it gives me energy and makes me feel like I’m working towards something. I’m still breastfeeding my baby girl, and my body just does not shed any body fat while nursing.
Roxy after her sweet baby girl was born!
I can feel my body getting stronger and see the changes in my muscles which is actually way more rewarding than getting on a scale time and time again and seeing no change in the number (and what is the “right” number anyway?!).
What is your favourite TP&B exercise and why?
Romanian deadlifts! They make me feel like a badass, the perfect example of the type of movement I would have never thought I could do with any amount of weight.
Also, I love to work my legs and glutes and the balance element makes this one extra challenging.
What have you learned about nutrition that you didn’t know before joining the group?
The magical protein/fat/fibre equation. I have zero interest in any kind of dieting, I actually don’t think I’m capable of any type of a restrictive diet.
Instead of a “meal plan” or list of foods that are off-limits, it’s so simple to just look at your plate and say do I have some protein, some fat and some fibre? Ok, done, moving on.
What is your favourite “nutrient dense” food? What is your favourite “treat-like” food?
I have two nutrient dense favourites. Green smoothies are my favourite quick way to get a ton of greens into my day. I had to try a bunch of different recipes before I found one that has a lot of vegetables in it and still actually tastes good.
The second is lentils. They’re cheap, they’re easy to cook, super nutritious, and so versatile. I add them to soup, salad, oatmeal, rice & veggie bowls, and sometimes just cook them up with some bacon and onion. YUM.
I usually bake my own goodies with natural sweeteners because sugar generally makes me feel pretty terrible, but my favourite treat is chocolate cake (homemade, not store-bought) and I have yet to find a naturally sweetened version that I like as much as the original, so it’s a super special treat when I do have it.
What have you gained from TP&B?
I’m a lot nicer to myself.
It has taught me to genuinely accept my body as it is now and not to beat myself up about missing a workout or two. It really starts to sink in when you read these positive things on a daily basis, and when you see that every single other mom in the group has the same struggles.
It’s very comforting to see that you’re just another human doing their best to get through the day.
We’re all doing our best in these big, beautiful mama moments.
What is the best part of joining the TP&B program?
The wealth of information you get from being a part of it. You get your workouts, you get mindset coaching, you get nutrition tips.
It’s the mommy group of your dreams, just constant love, support, encouragement, information sharing, commiserating. There are all ages, all walks of life, points of view and different cultures in the group and I have never seen anyone force their opinions or judge anyone else.
Truly sisterhood at its best.
Thanks for sharing your story, Roxy! Big hugs + love, xo.
Jess
For more information on joining the To Pregnancy & Beyond tribe, or for workouts, support, and community in your pregnancy and postpartum journey, click here.
