Skinny Mom loves the fitness motivation and yummy food blog, Sweet Tooth, Sweet Life, ran by the gorgeous and spunky Courtney. Courtney began writing the blog to document her fitness endeavors and food habits as a way to show women that healthy living can be achieved by anyone, you just have to use yourself as the primary tool to get there. She has an infectious personality that seeps through her writing and it simply makes you want to work your life toward healthy living right along side her. Courtney lets her audience in, showing them how emotional turmoil can lead to bad eating habits and new food addictions. She’s human, and she’s easy to relate to. Through being so honest with her story, we can see a little of ourselves in her, which makes her blog even more informative for women who have similar experiences or shared fitness/healthy living goals. Read on to see how Courtney got started, what she hopes to achieve with her writing and documentation, and what some of her favorite workouts are!

1. What inspired you to start writing your blog? After reading healthy living blogs for almost two years, I finally decided to go ahead and start my own. I envisioned it as a way of documenting my daily eating and fitness routines, to show that a healthy, balanced lifestyle is attainable for anyone. I’d already loved making healthy meals, baking sweet treats, and experimenting with new foods, so I figured why not share it?

2. What is your favorite aspect about being part of an online blogging community? The tremendous amount of support that I’ve encountered in the online blogging community is really something. Since starting my blog a little over two years ago, I’ve since made so many wonderful connections with individuals and companies that I never would have had an opportunity to otherwise. I love knowing that I have friends all over the country!

3. What is your favorite topic to blog about? Food and fitness are definitely my top two, and I’m not really sure I’d be able to choose! Some days, I’m all about the food, whether it be a decadent cookie recipe or a healthy dinner idea. Other days, I’m all about the workouts and I love sharing my own workouts, as well as offering ideas for my readers as well.

4. In your opinion, what is the best feature on your blog? One of the things that I’ve prided myself on from the very beginning of starting this blog is that I like to keep it real. This is actually one of my favorite compliments to get from readers, because it just shows that they recognize and appreciate my honesty. If I’m having a bad day, I’ll say it. If I end up eating half of a chocolate cake at a party, I’ll share it. It’s all about being real. Nobody’s perfect, and I think people appreciate when people are real and upfront about that.

5. Where do your fitness routines come from? Me! I do get a lot of inspiration from the internet via other blogs and fitness websites, but for the most part, I tend to put together my own stuff. Last December, I became certified as a personal trainer through NASM, so I feel much more confident putting together a great workout and sharing it with others.

6. What advice do you have for moms and women on getting a workout in with a busy schedule? Take advantage of the time that you DO have. Often times, busy moms and women think that they just don’t have the time in their schedule when, in fact, they’re missing out on some prime opportunities! You can get a great workout in 20 minutes, but even if you only have 5 or 10 minutes, take it. At the end of the day, it all adds up. If you end up taking  10 minutes out of your schedule, say, three times a day, you’ve got yourself a great, 30 minute workout. I have some great examples of quick, effective workouts on my blog, and many of them only require one thing…YOU!

7. What is your favorite exercise? I’m a huge fan of circuit workouts. I love the variety that you can put into a circuit workout and I love how they’re usually pretty quick paced. You can find a bunch of my favorite examples here. Lately, I’m also really loving yoga. I’ve always appreciated how it made me feel so I’ve recently committed to practicing three times a week and I feel great.

8. What are your fitness goals? I honestly don’t have any huge fitness goals at the moment, except to just continue to keep moving. Right now, I’m at a place in my life where I’m working toward the goal of becoming a mom, which has resulted in me having to scale back my own workouts a bit. I’m okay with this though, because I enjoy low-impact work just as much as the crazy, high-impact stuff, and the goal of becoming a mother is far more important to me right now. As long as I’m keeping my body moving and healthy, then that’s good enough for me.

9. What is your best tip on getting the most out of your workouts? Have a plan. I almost always know ahead of time what my workout is going to be. That way, especially if it’s an early morning workout, I have all of my clothes, gear, and any other equipment ready to go and I know what’s in store. If I wake up and have nothing prepared with no idea what to do, it’s very likely I’ll stall or even just bail on the workout all together.

10. What is your favorite fitness DVD or fitness class? I just recently tried a few barre classes and I LOVE them! It’s amazing how they seem to work muscles that I totally forget about, and boy do I feel it the next day. They’re great because they’re still working your body in an incredible way, but it’s much more low-impact, which is perfect for me right now.

11. If you could have any celebrity be your personal trainer, living or dead, who would it be? I have a total crush on Chris Powell (from Extreme Makeover Weight Loss Edition) right now, so to have him as a personal trainer would be amazing. He just seems like such a genuinely nice guy, but will also do what needs to be done at the gym. Chris, if you’re out there…!

To find out more about Courtney or to follow her daily tidbits on Sweet Tooth, Sweet Life, click here. Like Sweet Tooth, Sweet Life on Facebook. Follow Sweet Tooth, Sweet Life on Twitter.