Who is Andrea?

I am an athletic academic advisor at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities where I work with Wrestling and the Swim and Dive Team. I am originally from Milwaukee, WI. I was a distance swimmer in college and my background is in Psychology.

What made you want to start your fitness journey?

I have been on a fitness journey probably since about 2015 when I gained a lot of weight after college. I was still eating like a swimmer but was not practicing like one. I felt very lost in the “real world” because my identity had always been as an athlete. I have always loved working out, for me, it is a huge escape and it helps with my anxiety. I just never really had all of the pieces. I loved working out, but I wasn’t eating the right way and I did not have a community. I was motivated to start working with Okon because I was in a very low place mentally. I am very hard on myself and I just had an overwhelming feeling that “no matter what I do...

Traveling outside of your day to day...and suddenly you don't remember how to eat healthy, working out is a thing of yesteryear, you're eating like calories don't count cuz YOLO ... and before you know it you've completely been off track for days maybe even weeks on end. 

What if I told you, you can still go on vacation, travel, or teleport to another planet and stay on track (just make sure you research the food available LOL we will get to that)

Healthy habits and routines tend to fall to the wayside when we go on a trip or travel especially to an unknown area. Whether it be a road trip, a work trip, vacation catching flights. Often we complicate the situation or lack the tools to successfully stay on track.

So let me give you my 4 scenarios, paired with the simple tools to stay on track no matter where you go..  on earth at least lol.

Travel Tip #1: You are going on a fabulous dream vacation, but you don't want to "ruin" all your hard work.

First off, how...

Question: What's the secret to saving money and dropping body fat?

Answer: the Okon Fitness VIP Program

What is the VIP Program?

If you've read about our VIP Program, you already know the answer to this. For those who are new to Okon, the VIP Program is a customized program built for each individual client's specific goals/timeline, lifestyle, and roadblocks. All VIP clients are given a custom-built program that includes a meal plan, workout program, and educational content so they understand the why behind our approach.

Clients go through the VIP Program for a minimum of 12-weeks, however, many will continue on for more rounds as their goals change. Our clients are held to the highest level of accountability through weekly coaching calls to ensure they are staying on track and progressing at a reasonable rate. 

Now, the reason you are here... How the VIP Program actually helps you SAVE money.

Since the VIP Program is a 12-week program where our clients are...

Fake sugar and pumpkin spice, have a little protein slice. 

Whether you're trying to eat clean, or simply want to make healthier choices, these pumpkin spice cupcakes are great to help with sweet tooth cravings, or if you want to bring a healthy treat to your next gathering. 

This recipe makes 12 cupcakes, each with only 80 calories! The best part? They also have nearly 10 grams of protein per cupcake! 

Cake Ingredients

• 1 cup pumpkin purée
• 1/2 banana
• 2/3 cup almond flour
• 1/4 cup almond milk
• 1/2 cup Truvia sweetener (lil extra extra)
• 2 scoops Vanilla Phormula-1 from 1stPhorm
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 2/3 cup egg whites
• 1/2 tbsp All Spice

Frosting Ingredients

• 1/4 packet Sugar-Free Vanilla Jell-O
• Splash of almond milk
• 1/2 container Sugar-Free Cool Whip
• Dash of All Spice seasoning

Cake Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Mix together the dry ingredients.
3. Mix together the wet ingredients.
4. Combine the wet and dry ingredients into a...

Aside from being aesthetically pleasing, having strong, well-balanced leg muscles is key to having a healthy and functional body. It is important to build your legs for not only strength but for stability. Strong, stable legs can help prevent lower-body injuries such as ankle strains, knee injuries, and hips problems. Strength training can be used to both prevent and manage all of these conditions, but done improperly can be a cause of injury itself.

Glute Activation Warm-Up

The best leg workouts begin with glute activation. By taking time to warm up your glutes before a workout, you will be able to establish that mind-muscle connection with your glutes which will be transferred into the rest of your workout. After proper glute activation, your body will be able to engage the glutes easier and maintain that same level of activation throughout the entire workout.

Banded Monster Walks

1. Step both legs through the band. (Band can be around knees, ankles, or feet...

Look BACK at it.

Not only is it aesthetically pleasing (in our opinion) to have a strong back, but it is also a key muscle group used to achieve total body strength. The back is arguably one of the most difficult parts of the body to train. It is the largest muscle group in the upper body, making it a key group to train for total upper body strength and posture. By strengthening your back muscles, you're building up the main support structure for your entire body. A healthy and strong back will stabilize and brace your spine, which will make reaching your health and fitness goals even easier.

How to train to GROW your back

You may be reading this thinking that you’ve tried every back movement in the book to grow your back, but it may not be the movement itself that is hindering your progress, it could be the WAY you are training.

#1 Focus on your mind-muscle connection.

The mind-muscle connection is a conscious and deliberate muscle contraction. The...

Protein: The G.O.A.T.

We've all been there, looking for a quick fix to drop 10 pounds, or searching for a one-step tip for success. Unfortunately, this is not usually possible. We know that exercise is important in creating a caloric deficit and body recomposition... but diet and proper nutrition is the main driver for fat loss. We also know that everybody is different and will require a different strategy to achieve the goal of fat loss. That being said, we are here to tell you, with a high degree of confidence (backed by science), that protein is one of the main keys for every individual to successfully drop body fat (the right way).

Here's why:

#1 Helps you feel fuller, longer.

One of the biggest reasons people fail when starting a new meal plan or macro goal is due to feeling excessively hungry. When someone is hungry, they are much more likely to stray from their goals and overeat. This is where protein comes into play. Protein is the most satiating macro, compared to...

Who is Becky?

Becky is a hard-working, competitive, and highly focused woman in pursuit of her personal and professional goals. She is kind & has a lot of energy with a zest for life others find contagious. 

Mom to four fur-babies of all ages and sizes. Becky’s husband of 5-years will tell you her love for her dogs surpasses her love for literally everything else.

Becky spends the summer months on her boat in the St. Croix River and in the winter, you can find her snowmobiling and spending time with her pro Snocross team. 

What made you want to start your fitness journey?

I’ve always been extremely active playing in multiple co-rec leagues & and working out regularly.  I was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 27 years old. The chemotherapy treatments made me lethargic, had a loss of appetite, and suffered from insomnia. My body’s muscle and fat loss were unreal, changing my body composition in the 4-months of treatment and maybe even...

Graduations

Weddings

BBQs

Boating

Birthdays

Bonfires

The list goes on...

Summer is a time for activities, celebrations, and countless social gatherings. While we greatly enjoy being actively part of our social groups, it can be quite challenging to maintain your waistline with all the delicious temptations that come with many social gatherings. So how do we enjoy these outings without the anxiety of the pressures we put on ourselves around food? First off, we need to remember that we eat to live, not live to eat. When we look at it from that perspective, we are then in a better mental space going into social gatherings. 

With any goal, there will be times where sacrifices/changes need to be made in order to reach said goal. However, there can be situations that allow exceptions to that rule. In general, we recommend finding a balance somewhere between complete restriction and overindulgence. We call this controlled enjoyment. 

Controlled enjoyment: how it works?

The...

Try these sweet and savory recipes that are perfect for summer! All of the recipes below have macros listed, as well as tips for preparing. Feel free to swap ingredients as you see fit, but be sure to log the ingredients into your macro tracking app so you know the new macro count. Tag @okonfitness on Instagram with your favorite recipe!

Dessert Fruit Pizza/Bars

Macros per bar (makes 12 bars): 5F, 36C, 9P

Tips to prepare: Preheat Oven 350°. Grease pan (10-inch pan is ideal) can be any shape to do pizza or bars. To make the crust, in a large bowl, combine oats, oat flour, cinnamon, vanilla extract, salt together. Add honey and coconut oil into the mix until all ingredients are stuck together. Press mixture down firmly on the pan. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes, then allow time to cool.

While the crust is cooling, make the protein cream filling. In a mixing bowl combine yogurt, honey, and vanilla protein powder. Once the crust is cooled, spread cream topping across the cooked...