The Fit & Free Podcast

For years, I felt fine in my clothes but soft and uncomfortable in a bikini. I thought getting the body I wanted meant eating fewer calories, burning more calories and making the number on the scale go down.

In this episode, I’m sharing the three changes that helped me build muscle, improve my body composition and feel stronger and more confident in my body.

If you’re afraid of eating more, frustrated with your gym progress or unsure how to approach body recomposition, I’ve been there, and I’m walking you through what changed for me.

Here’s what we cover:

💛 Building a healthy relationship with food
How I moved away from restrictive dieting, worked through my fear of eating more and learnt to fuel my body. We also talk about food guilt, managing cravings and making room for your favourite foods, including chocolate!

💪 Strength training for muscle growth
Why I changed my approach to exercise and started following a structured gym programme. I explain progressive overload, training close to muscular failure, choosing the right weights and maintaining good form to support muscle building.

🥗 Nutrition for body recomposition
Understanding calories and macros, including protein, carbohydrates and fats. We break down maintenance calories, calorie surplus and calorie deficit phases, and how these fit into muscle-building and fat-loss goals.

I’m Laura, an exercise physiologist and sports nutritionist. I share practical conversations about strength training, nutrition and body recomposition for women, alongside my own experience of building a stronger body and a healthier relationship with food.

Want personalised support with your nutrition and body recomposition goals? Send me a DM on Instagram about my 1:1 RECOMP coaching.

Follow the podcast for more fitness episodes, strength training tips and honest conversations about getting stronger and feeling confident in your body.

Listen here OR watch the video for the full visual scoop! 

https://youtu.be/7mk78jcJGKM 

Need help with nutrition & exercise?

🌶️ RECOMP MENU: Easy, high-protein meals that actually taste good, all mapped out so you never have to wonder what to eat. https://www.lauraswingler.com/recompmenu?el=yt-recipe-hub

🔥 3-WEEK RESET: Break the all-or-nothing cycle, feel back in control around food and stop starting over every Monday. https://www.lauraswingler.com/reseto?el=yt-reset

💪 RECOMP 1:1 COACHING: Personalised nutrition + training with 1:1 coaching that adapts as your body, goals and life change. https://www.lauraswingler.com/fitandfreeacademy?el=yt-recomp

-----

Follow me on IG - https://www.instagram.com/fitandfreeacademy

Follow me on TT - https://www.tiktok.com/@fitandfreeacademy

P.S. Please review my podcast, as it really helps get it out to more women that need to hear this. Review here: 

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fit-free-podcast/id1651978022 

I'm officially 4 weeks into my stomach transformation journey, and today I'm taking you behind the scenes of my real-life progress, including my surprising DEXA scan results, body fat percentage, core strength gains, and how I'm balancing muscle building with sustainable fat loss.

As an exercise physiologist and sports nutritionist, I'm showing you what it actually takes to build stronger abs, improve body composition, and lose body fat while maintaining a healthy relationship with food.

In this week's episode, we're talking about:

✨ My 4-week stomach transformation update – the progress I've made building core strength and ab definition.

💪 How to build visible abs – why strength training, progressive overload, muscle building, and body composition all matter.

📊 My DEXA scan results – finding out my body fat % and why the number on the scale doesn't tell the whole story.

🥗 High-protein meals and meal prep – what I'm eating during my fat loss phase, including easy cashew chicken meal prep and a delicious protein coffee recipe.

🔥 Sustainable fat loss and calorie deficits – how I'm approaching fat loss without extreme dieting or unnecessary food restriction.

❤️ Food freedom and body confidence – why you CAN work towards your fitness goals, enjoy eating out, and still have a healthy relationship with food.

I'm also sharing my personal experience with body image, disordered eating, and why focusing on strength, energy levels, and overall health is so much more important than obsessing over your weight.

Because you deserve to feel strong, confident, and comfortable in your body WITHOUT sacrificing your food freedom. 🤍

Follow the podcast as I continue my stomach transformation journey, sharing realistic fitness tips, strength training progress, nutrition advice, and the truth about building a body you love without restriction.

Let's get strong, eat enough, and build a body we feel good in. 💕

Listen here OR watch the video for the full visual scoop! 

https://youtu.be/XYXYHCp3ags

Need help with nutrition & exercise?

🌶️ RECOMP MENU: Easy, high-protein meals that actually taste good, all mapped out so you never have to wonder what to eat. https://www.lauraswingler.com/recompmenu?el=yt-recipe-hub

🔥 3-WEEK RESET: Break the all-or-nothing cycle, feel back in control around food and stop starting over every Monday. https://www.lauraswingler.com/reseto?el=yt-reset

💪 RECOMP 1:1 COACHING: Personalised nutrition + training with 1:1 coaching that adapts as your body, goals and life change. https://www.lauraswingler.com/fitandfreeacademy?el=yt-recomp

-----

Follow me on IG - https://www.instagram.com/fitandfreeacademy

Follow me on TT - https://www.tiktok.com/@fitandfreeacademy

P.S. Please review my podcast, as it really helps get it out to more women that need to hear this. Review here: 

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fit-free-podcast/id1651978022 

If you're always planning your next meal, labelling foods as “good” or “bad”, feeling anxious about eating out, or stuck in the cycle of restricting food and then overeating, I want you to know that food freedom and body recomposition CAN go hand in hand.

In this week's episode, I'm breaking down how I stopped food noise, overcame restrictive food rules, and built a healthy relationship with food while still working towards my fitness and body composition goals.

As an exercise physiologist, sports nutritionist, and founder of Fit & Free Academy, I'm sharing the mindset shifts and nutrition strategies that helped me stop obsessing over food, eat my favourite foods without the guilt, and focus on building muscle and losing body fat sustainably.

We're talking about:
✨ Why food noise happens and how restrictive eating habits can make it worse
✨ How to stop thinking about food all the time and overcome food guilt
✨ Why eating enough protein and calories matters for muscle growth and managing hunger
✨ How to enjoy chocolate, pizza, and your favourite foods without feeling guilty
✨ Building a healthy relationship with food while achieving your body goals
✨ My body recomposition journey in my 30s, including my muscle-building and fat-loss phases
✨ How I'm approaching fat loss without tracking calories
✨ High-protein meal prep, strength training, and realistic healthy eating

Plus, come along for a realistic week in my life filled with gym workouts, high-protein recipes, meal prep, and an honest update on my journey to building stronger abs and improving my body composition.

Because you don't have to choose between food freedom and feeling strong, lean, and confident in your body. You deserve BOTH. 💛

Follow the podcast for more realistic fitness episodes, body recomposition tips, high-protein meals, strength training, fat loss advice, and food freedom conversations.

Listen here OR watch the video for the full visual scoop! 

https://youtu.be/uqy9hOSqjd4

Need help with nutrition & exercise?

🌶️ RECOMP MENU: Easy, high-protein meals that actually taste good, all mapped out so you never have to wonder what to eat. https://www.lauraswingler.com/recompmenu?el=yt-recipe-hub

🔥 3-WEEK RESET: Break the all-or-nothing cycle, feel back in control around food and stop starting over every Monday. https://www.lauraswingler.com/reseto?el=yt-reset

💪 RECOMP 1:1 COACHING: Personalised nutrition + training with 1:1 coaching that adapts as your body, goals and life change. https://www.lauraswingler.com/fitandfreeacademy?el=yt-recomp

-----

Follow me on IG - https://www.instagram.com/fitandfreeacademy

Follow me on TT - https://www.tiktok.com/@fitandfreeacademy

P.S. Please review my podcast, as it really helps get it out to more women that need to hear this. Review here: 

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fit-free-podcast/id1651978022 

If you feel like you’re doing everything “right” but your body still isn’t changing, you’re constantly thinking about food, or you keep falling back into the all-or-nothing dieting cycle, this episode is for you.

In this episode, I’m joined by Fit & Free Academy client Maisie to share her incredible body recomposition journey and how she went from years of yo-yo dieting, restriction, over-exercising and chasing a lower number on the scale to finally building a sustainable approach to nutrition and training.

Maisie shares why losing weight alone never gave her the body shape she wanted, how learning about body recomposition changed her approach, and why strength training, progressive overload and eating MORE food and protein became such important pieces of the puzzle.

We also dive into food noise, the binge-restrict cycle, perfectionism and the all-or-nothing mindset that keeps so many women stuck. Maisie explains how she learned to eat out, travel, enjoy birthdays and go on three overseas holidays without feeling like she had “ruined everything” or needed to start again on Monday.

Six months into her journey, she’s almost reached the waist measurement goal she originally set while creating a healthier relationship with food, exercise and her body.

In this episode we cover:

• Body recomposition vs simply losing weight
• Why more workouts don’t always mean better results
• Progressive overload and strength training for women
• Eating more protein and building balanced meals
• How under-eating can increase hunger and food noise
• Breaking the binge-restrict and yo-yo dieting cycle
• Overcoming perfectionism and all-or-nothing thinking
• Sustainable fat loss while eating out and travelling
• Building habits you can maintain for life
• Creating a healthy relationship with food and exercise

If you’ve spent years trying different diets, exercising more, eating less and wondering why you still don’t have the toned, strong body you’re working so hard for, Maisie’s story will show you there is another way.

Listen here OR watch the video for the full visual scoop! 

https://youtu.be/bK3R_Dhuwo4

Need help with nutrition & exercise???

🌶️ RECOMP MENU: Easy, high-protein meals that actually taste good, all mapped out so you never have to wonder what to eat. https://www.lauraswingler.com/recompmenu?el=yt-recipe-hub

🔥 3-WEEK RESET: Break the all-or-nothing cycle, feel back in control around food and stop starting over every Monday. https://www.lauraswingler.com/reseto?el=yt-reset

💪 RECOMP 1:1 COACHING: Personalised nutrition + training with 1:1 coaching that adapts as your body, goals and life change. https://www.lauraswingler.com/fitandfreeacademy?el=yt-recomp

-----

Follow me on IG - https://www.instagram.com/fitandfreeacademy

Follow me on TT - https://www.tiktok.com/@fitandfreeacademy

P.S. Please review my podcast, as it really helps get it out to more women that need to hear this. Review here: 

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fit-free-podcast/id1651978022 

I’m taking you through exactly what I eat in a day to hit around 125-130g of protein while working towards body recomposition, losing fat and building muscle without extreme dieting.

If you train regularly but still feel like your nutrition is the thing holding you back, you’re constantly wondering what to eat, or you think hitting a high-protein diet means living off chicken, rice, broccoli and protein supplements, I want to show you a much easier way to approach it.

In this podcast ep, I’m sharing how I structure my meals to get at least 35g of protein at each main meal, how I use snacks to easily reach my daily protein target, and why you do NOT need every single food you eat to be labelled “high protein.”

You’ll also see a full day of realistic high-protein meals, including:

🥯 Bacon and egg bagel
🍝 Homemade high-protein lasagne
🥣 Yoghurt, granola and fruit snack
🥧 Slow cooker beef and mushroom pie
🍦 Dessert

I also take you through how I meal prep several days of food at once, portion my meals, make meal prep faster and create meals that are macro balanced, satisfying and actually enjoyable.

Towards the end of the episode, I also share an update on my own body recomposition journey and the short fat loss phase I’m about to start after spending time building muscle.

My goal is to make nutrition feel simple, enjoyable and sustainable, so you can stop overthinking every meal and actually stay consistent long enough to see results.

If you enjoy realistic What I Eat In A Day podcasts, high-protein meal prep, body recomposition, fat loss tips and simple nutrition advice, make sure you subscribe for more.

Thanks for listening 🤍

Listen here OR watch the video for the full visual scoop! 

https://youtu.be/oHLGNerem6k

Need help with nutrition & exercise???

🌶️ RECOMP MENU: Easy, high-protein meals that actually taste good, all mapped out so you never have to wonder what to eat. https://www.lauraswingler.com/recompmenu?el=yt-recipe-hub

🔥 3-WEEK RESET: Break the all-or-nothing cycle, feel back in control around food and stop starting over every Monday. https://www.lauraswingler.com/reseto?el=yt-reset

💪 RECOMP 1:1 COACHING: Personalised nutrition + training with 1:1 coaching that adapts as your body, goals and life change. https://www.lauraswingler.com/fitandfreeacademy?el=yt-recomp

-----

Follow me on IG - https://www.instagram.com/fitandfreeacademy

Follow me on TT - https://www.tiktok.com/@fitandfreeacademy

P.S. Please review my podcast, as it really helps get it out to more women that need to hear this. Review here: 

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fit-free-podcast/id1651978022 

Come along for a realistic week of body recomposition in my 30s as I take you through healthy meal prep, high-protein meals and snacks, my full-body gym workout, getting back into walking, mobility and what I do when I genuinely don’t feel ready to train.

I also chat about learning to listen to my body after being sick, and how my menstrual cycle and PMDD affect my training, energy and mental health. Rather than forcing myself through every workout, I’m taking you through you what sustainable fitness actually looks like when your goal is long-term body recomposition.

You’ll also see some of the high-protein foods I eat throughout the week, including my chicken and egg breakfast, high-protein yoghurt snack and Mediterranean-inspired chicken meal prep, plus a full-body strength workout with hip thrusts, chin-ups, cable step-ups, lateral raises, biceps, triceps and core work.

Subscribe for more realistic body recomposition, high-protein meal ideas, strength training, healthy habits, nutrition tips and weekly fitness poddies. 🤍

Listen here OR watch the video for the full visual scoop! 

https://youtu.be/eCI27wJWc4o

Need help with nutrition & exercise???

🌶️ RECOMP MENU: Easy, high-protein meals that actually taste good, all mapped out so you never have to wonder what to eat. https://www.lauraswingler.com/recompmenu?el=yt-recipe-hub

🔥 3-WEEK RESET: Break the all-or-nothing cycle, feel back in control around food and stop starting over every Monday. https://www.lauraswingler.com/reseto?el=yt-reset

💪 RECOMP 1:1 COACHING: Personalised nutrition + training with 1:1 coaching that adapts as your body, goals and life change. https://www.lauraswingler.com/fitandfreeacademy?el=yt-recomp

-----

Follow me on IG - https://www.instagram.com/fitandfreeacademy

Follow me on TT - https://www.tiktok.com/@fitandfreeacademy

P.S. Please review my podcast, as it really helps get it out to more women that need to hear this. Review here: 

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fit-free-podcast/id1651978022 

Listen along for a realistic week of body recomposition, high-protein meal prep, full-body strength training and learning when to actually REST when your body needs it. I’m sharing what sustainable fat loss and muscle building looks like in real life, including the weeks where training doesn’t go perfectly.

In this weekly fitness poddy, I take you through a full-body gym workout, easy high-protein meals, meal prep ideas for fat loss, and some of my favourite macro-balanced recipes including high-protein Malteser brownies, Malteser Weet-Bix, lazy sushi meal prep and fish tacos. We also talk about how to build balanced meals with enough protein, carbohydrates, fats and fibre so you can reduce food noise, feel satisfied after eating and stop constantly thinking about food.

I ended up getting sick this week, which meant taking extra rest days and adjusting my training.

Later in the vlog, I’m finally back in the gym for a deload week, taking you through part of my full-body strength training program and how I use progressive overload while working towards building muscle and changing my body composition.

PLUS, there’s a little Bali wedding update because we officially have a date and venue booked 👀

Subscribe for realistic body recomposition, high-protein recipes, sustainable fat loss, strength training, meal prep ideas and weekly fitness podcasts that show you how to get results without making your entire life revolve around dieting.

Listen here OR watch the video for the full visual scoop! 

https://youtu.be/06A-AlY0SwA

Need help with nutrition & exercise???

🌶️ RECOMP MENU: Easy, high-protein meals that actually taste good, all mapped out so you never have to wonder what to eat. https://www.lauraswingler.com/recompmenu?el=yt-recipe-hub

🔥 3-WEEK RESET: Break the all-or-nothing cycle, feel back in control around food and stop starting over every Monday. https://www.lauraswingler.com/reseto?el=yt-reset

💪 RECOMP 1:1 COACHING: Personalised nutrition + training with 1:1 coaching that adapts as your body, goals and life change. https://www.lauraswingler.com/fitandfreeacademy?el=yt-recomp

-----

Follow me on IG - https://www.instagram.com/fitandfreeacademy

Follow me on TT - https://www.tiktok.com/@fitandfreeacademy

P.S. Please review my podcast, as it really helps get it out to more women that need to hear this. Review here: 

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fit-free-podcast/id1651978022 

In this weekly episode, I’m showing you exactly how I structure my weekly meal prep, plan my meals and groceries, make easy high-protein meals and create a system that makes healthy eating easier during a busy week.

We’re making chocolate brownie protein balls, hot honey jalapeño chicken tacos and one of my favourite high-protein Ninja CREAMi combinations, while I break down how I organise my weekday nutrition.

Then we head into the gym for my baseline core strength testing. I test my weighted plank, hanging leg raise variation and weighted crunch so I have measurable numbers to compare against over the next 8 weeks.

I also chat about how following a structured strength training program and using progressive overload has changed my results compared with doing random workouts and group fitness without a clear progression plan.

Listen here OR watch the video for the full visual scoop! 

https://youtu.be/BLZ8RmW31uY

Need help with nutrition & exercise???

🌶️ RECOMP MENU: Easy, high-protein meals that actually taste good, all mapped out so you never have to wonder what to eat. https://www.lauraswingler.com/recompmenu?el=yt-recipe-hub

🔥 3-WEEK RESET: Break the all-or-nothing cycle, feel back in control around food and stop starting over every Monday. https://www.lauraswingler.com/reseto?el=yt-reset

💪 RECOMP 1:1 COACHING: Personalised nutrition + training with 1:1 coaching that adapts as your body, goals and life change. https://www.lauraswingler.com/fitandfreeacademy?el=yt-recomp

-----

Follow me on IG - https://www.instagram.com/fitandfreeacademy

Follow me on TT - https://www.tiktok.com/@fitandfreeacademy

P.S. Please review my podcast, as it really helps get it out to more women that need to hear this. Review here: 

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fit-free-podcast/id1651978022 

I’m officially entering my strong core + ab definition era, and I’m taking you behind the scenes of exactly how I’m approaching it WITHOUT extreme dieting, cutting carbs or spending months in a restrictive calorie deficit.

After coming back from holidays, I realised I’d been feeling a little flat and disconnected from my fitness goals. So I sat down, got honest about what I actually want, and created a new game plan: build my core muscles first, then reveal more definition later.

In this poddy, I’m sharing my current physique and starting point, my updated core training program, why I’ve increased my weekly ab training volume, how I structure my full-body workouts and what my nutrition looks like while eating around maintenance and focusing on performance.

My goal over the next few months is to focus on core strength, muscle growth and performance, while continuing to fuel my body properly. Then, closer to summer, I’ll move into a short mini cut to reveal some of the muscle we’ve spent this time building.

Welcome to snatched waist in the making 💪

Listen here OR watch the video for the full visual scoop! 

https://youtu.be/NxFKqJL_YkA

Follow me on IG - https://www.instagram.com/fitandfreeacademy

Follow me on TT - https://www.tiktok.com/@fitandfreeacademy

P.S. Please review my podcast, as it really helps get it out to more women that need to hear this. Review here: 

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fit-free-podcast/id1651978022 

This episode is for you if you’re struggling with getting back into your fitness routine after time off or travel, feeling weaker than usual in the gym, staying consistent with healthy eating without becoming restrictive, or finding meals that actually satisfy you.

I’m taking you through a realistic week of body recomposition in my 30s, including my high-protein meal prep, full-body strength training, pre-workout nutrition, easy healthy meals, cravings, rest days and what I do when I fall into a food rut.

We also chat about something I think we need to talk about more!

In this poddy:
• Easy body recomposition meals
• How I honour cravings while working towards my fitness goals
• Pre-workout nutrition and snacks
• Full-body strength training
• Getting back into a workout routine after travel
• Why rest days can improve your training
• Healthy convenience foods for busy days
• How to get out of a food rut
• Staying consistent with nutrition without restriction
• Feeling weaker in the gym and rebuilding strength
• Training around your menstrual cycle

Subscribe for more realistic body recomposition, nutrition, strength training, healthy eating and fitness content 🤍

Listen here OR watch the video for the full visual scoop! 

https://youtu.be/5Fy2Rx2piRI

Follow me on IG - https://www.instagram.com/fitandfreeacademy

Follow me on TT - https://www.tiktok.com/@fitandfreeacademy

P.S. Please review my podcast, as it really helps get it out to more women that need to hear this. Review here: 

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fit-free-podcast/id1651978022