Live Q&A: Refeeds, Diet Breaks and Too Much Cardio

Nikkiey: What's up, everybody? Hey, guys. Nikkiey here, and welcome to a WarriorBabe Wednesday live Q&A session with me, Nikkiey Stott. I am excited to be here with you guys. I'm doing it a little bit differently right now. I'm actually hosting our live Q&A via my Nikkiey Stott Facebook page. So we'll probably have some people tuning in that follow me via that page that may not be WarriorBabes.

So you're going to get a little bit of an insight on how I do these live Q&As with the WarriorBabe community. So WarriorBabes, what's up, you guys? I am excited to be here with you all. Welcome to our WarriorBabe Wednesday live Q&A. It's 6 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. It's December 9th, and I am stoked to be here with you all.

So as you guys are joining, whether you're joining in from my Facebook page or from our community, comment, say, hey, what's up, so that I can see who's tuning in and who's here. And the more that you guys comment, whether you're tuning in from my Facebook page or from the community, the more it pushes this video, A, in front of other women who are following me on Facebook, who are like, hey, who's this chick? She's live. Let me tune in. Or if you're in the community, it's going to push our video up to the top of the Facebook group so that all of the babes can see that we're live and tap on it and join in.

What's up, Kate? Hey, babe. What's up, Michelle? What's up, Rebecca? Hey, Heather. Cool. From New York, Kansas. Dope. Awesome. So guys, keep commenting and let me know who's here. And if you guys are tuning in after this live video is done, do the hashtag replay, and keep any questions that pertain to this Q&A in the comment thread so that my girl Kate, our community manager for WarriorBabe, will be able to come back in and answer any questions that were left after this Q&A was live.

So this is your opportunity, guys, to ask me any questions that you have. There's no silly or stupid question. Whether you're following me on Facebook and you need questions answered about macros and workouts or mindset and some tough love, I'm really good at doing that. Or if you're inside the community and have questions about your journey, questions about macros, questions about workouts, this is the time to be here with me live and ask me any questions that you have. CT in the house. Let's go. What's up, Michelle? Hey, babe. What's up, Brandi from Texas? Gabriela. What's up, babe?

Awesome. Cool. And remember, as you guys start commenting your questions in the comment thread, there's no silly or stupid question. I'm here to help you guys get clarification on whatever it is that you need for your journey. I will be blunt. I will give tough love wherever needed, just to help you guys get out of your own way and follow the truth of what it actually takes to get to the goals that you're seeking.

Okay, cool. I see that Jodi is firing me with a question. So before I dive in, again, we've got people tuning in from my Facebook page, and we've got people tuning in from the community. I want to welcome all of the new WarriorBabes who have joined us this past week. I am so excited that you guys are a part of our community. For those of you who don't know WarriorBabe, there are thousands of women inside of our community who are focusing on becoming toned and becoming a strong, more confident version of themselves. WarriorBabe is where strong is the new sexy.

So if you guys are new, welcome. I'm super excited that you are a part of the community. It's growing every single week. And those of you who aren't in our Facebook group, you'll get a little glimpse of what it's like seeing these comments here. Everyone is so inspiring, so motivating, so supportive. And the babes follow the truth. They're all working towards building muscle and getting toned, which is different than cardio bunnies and cardio addicts and cardioholics. So that's the main thing with our WarriorBabes, and welcome to all of you who are new.

If you guys are new, and those of you tuning in from my Facebook page, we have an application that gives you monthly updated workout programs and new weekly meal plans to follow, and narrows down your macros to your body type. Guys, if you are new and you're a part of WarriorBabe, make sure that you're going through the application. Don't flood the community with questions that can be easily answered inside of your application. Take the time to search there, then listen to everything. There are so many golden nuggets inside the WarriorBabe Revolution application.

So make sure that you're taking the time to search there and learn the material. The things I'm teaching you guys are habits and skills that will serve you for the rest of your life. It's not another 30-day fix or 21 days to the six-pack abs. These habits and skills are the foundations that you're laying down for yourself. It's the systems. It's the systems that will get you to the end result that you want, but you've got to get the systems in place first. Focus on consistency, focus on sleep, focus on water, focus on your workouts, focus on eating your macros. Consistently implementing all of this will get you to your end result.

Okay, cool. Jodi, I only read a little bit of that comment, but thank you, babe. So let's kick off this Q&A. Again, really quick before we dive in: no silly or stupid question. I'm here to help you guys and support you guys. So whether you're tuning in from my Facebook page or the WarriorBabe Facebook group, we're kind of merging here right now, which is pretty cool. We've never done that before. And I'm super excited because it helps other women see what WarriorBabe is all about. And if you guys keep commenting, it'll pop up in other areas for other women to tune into this Q&A. So take advantage of our time here right now and pop in questions that you have. I'm going to start firing away and answering any questions that are popping up in the comment thread.

So Jodi: is it important to do the workouts in order, or does it matter? No, it doesn't matter. You can totally switch up the weekly schedule, whether it be shoulders and biceps, then legs, then chest and triceps, then arms, and then another leg day. You can move them all around. The only thing that I recommend is that you don't have back-to-back leg days or back-to-back back days. You can mix it all up, but just don't put legs back to back, or back days back to back. Awesome.

You guys, I appreciate the love right now. There are so many hearts and so many likes firing away.

Jodi: I have BCAAs in my water all day, take pre-workout Energy Blast, and glutamine post-workout in my protein drink. Is this proper timing for those supplements? Yes, that's proper timing for those supplements. I shared on my Instagram stories, and if you guys don't follow me, definitely check me out, Instagram at Nikkiey Stott, spelled the way I spell it as you see it here. I shared on my Instagram on Sunday about water and how I was putting in BCAAs because it was really helping me to drink water. I was just getting so sick of non-flavored water. So I added the BCAAs in, but I also had Energy Blast, and Energy Blast actually does have BCAAs in it.

So I would probably watch how many BCAAs you're having throughout the day, because I noticed, me personally, my stomach was getting a little upset. I don't know if it was something that I ate or if it was the BCAAs. There are too many variables there, but I would just keep that in mind. But yes, you're doing it right with the timing of those supplements. You can do glutamine pre and post-workout as well. You can do one scoop before and one scoop after.

Again, Jodi: I have a muscular build. How often, and what does a refeed meal or refeeding day look like? So what I recommend for really anybody that has a muscular build or ecto build is to have one to two cheat meals, but I err more on the side of just having one a week, and it's a cheat meal or a refeed. I've explained the difference between a cheat meal and a refeed in a previous Q&A. You can go to the WarriorBabe YouTube channel and look at the previous Q&As. It's a huge thumbnail that says cheat meal, about the difference between cheat meals and refeeds.

I'm not going to answer it in full because you can go and look at that, but in short, a cheat meal is one untracked meal where you don't have to worry about tracking your macros. You can go out to dinner. You can choose whatever you want off the menu. You don't have to worry about it. It's completely mindless, but you still follow a certain amount of set macros for your body during the day. So it's not a complete day of being off track. It's just one meal.

In terms of the refeed, the refeed is an entire day that is tracked, and it's an increase in calories. Both of them increase calories. Both of them speed up your metabolism. Both of them help your body to burn more body fat. But really, choosing between the two is about what works best for your personality. Are you somebody who doesn't want to have to worry about tracking this meal, and you want to be completely mindless and have whatever you want? Or are you somebody who likes to stay kind of on point, likes tracking or doesn't mind it, and wants to track their refeed? So, in short, that's the difference between the two, and that's kind of what it would look like. And I really only err towards one a week for all individuals.

Erin: week one WarriorBabe here. Nice. Welcome, babe.

Michelle: babes, new and old, check out Cheryl's interview Nikkiey dropped today. It resonates, all about eating. Yes. For anybody who follows me on Instagram, I dropped that link on my Instagram. It's also on the WarriorBabe YouTube. You guys, check out me and Cheryl's interview, where she's 58 years old and she's eating 435 grams of carbs. She's gained 10 pounds, but she's focusing on building muscle. So for anybody who needs that shift, where a lot of people don't talk about that kind of stuff, we really nailed it down in that interview, and I couldn't be more stoked on how that interview played out. So again, go listen to it, you guys. It's fire information. It's amazing inspiration. And Cheryl is just amazing.

Jodi: welcome, everyone. I queue my questions all week so I can take advantage of Nikkiey's brilliance. Nice, babe. I can tell you were firing away. That's what I say, guys. I show up to my community every single week. For those of you listening on the Facebook page, every Wednesday, 6 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, I'm here to answer any questions that any of my babes have about their entire programming, about whatever they need. I go even more in depth in my Blueprint and my VIP programs, because I'm passionate about seeing you guys succeed.

And I love that Jodi shows up. That's why she fired those three questions right away. The tip that she's sharing with you guys is to use the notes on your phone to jot down questions and then pop them in here so that you get the most out of this time. Jodi, thank you, babe. Seriously, take advantage. I'm going to be doing this weekly now on my Facebook page as well, and sharing it inside of my community. So those of you following me on Facebook will be able to ask me questions and be a part of it. Become a WarriorBabe. We're entering into 2021. If you're not one already, why not? Why not?

Michelle's question: I haven't done a Q&A yet because I don't want to waste your time, but I've been doing Blueprint for three-plus months. I've lost 10 pounds. Me, happy. Best program ever. When do I call you to adjust macros? I want to ensure I continue to cut successfully. Thanks. Awesome, girl. Awesome. I praise you women who are part of my Blueprint program who really utilize the program and follow it step by step and don't need to make any adjustments, because if it's working, don't break it, don't change it.

So, Michelle, you can tune in whenever progress stalls, when measurements stall, when we're not really seeing changes in photos. That would be a good time to pop into a Q&A on the Blueprint and chat with me. On the Blueprint, guys, I talk back and forth. It's a little bit more intimate there. Then I can assist you in moving in the right direction. Or, week five of the Blueprint program is an absolute gold mine, Michelle. It covers how to adjust your macros if you are hitting plateaus, and if you're not seeing any changes, what your next step will be in the cutting phase to adjust your macros. So that's in week five.

So if you want to keep trying to do it yourself, which I do highly encourage, because that's my main thing with the Blueprint program, for you to be in control of your body for the rest of your life. You're learning it. You're understanding it. You use my knowledge for guidance. But week five is really going to nail home the gold mine of information when it comes to macronutrients.

Jodi: the little educational videos under Transform speak about different module numbers. Where do we find those modules? It says to be sure to watch module two and then three, but I have listened to all the videos. Okay, good question. Most likely, I pulled modules from the old version of my Blueprint program and uploaded them into the Revolution application. So you're getting a little teaser of the Blueprint program, and that's probably why it says modules. Anything that says modules really is a part of my Blueprint program.

Chef: Hola, Nikkiey. Hello. What am I supposed to do for exercise if I am retraining my metabolism? Warm regards from Mexico. I wish I was in Mexico. That'd be so nice. It's so cold here. If you're retraining your metabolism, it's okay to do the strength training workouts, but my only recommendation for you is to not do too much cardio, like one to two days of cardio, because the ultimate goal with retraining your metabolism is to start speeding it up.

If you're somebody who was doing tons and tons of cardio, your body has completely adapted to that kind of training, so you want to pull back on doing that much so that you can focus on retraining your body to speed up the metabolism. And speaking of the metabolism, a big factor that's going to help with that is muscle and stimulating your muscle. Cardio is something that does not stimulate muscle. It does not need strength. It does not need muscle. So what your body does is adapt to using and conserving calories. Whereas when you're building and focusing on muscle, your body's more efficient at burning calories, and it speeds up the burning process.

So a part of retraining your metabolism, you guys, which I preach in my Blueprint program, is speeding it up. And you'll most likely drop weight or maintain weight. You may gain a little bit. But the main thing is that you get your metabolism healthy to then go into whatever goal you're focusing on, whether that be a cut or a build. So again, for exercise, I would just focus on strength training and doing little to no cardio.

Jodi: what about within the workouts? Is it okay to do the exercise listed first in the workout for the day as maybe the third? I switch them up depending on the machines available. I get what you're saying. While I don't encourage that, it's okay. So yes, you can, but I don't recommend it. What you want to make sure you don't do, though, is change up the supersets. You don't want to take exercise one of superset one and exercise two of superset three and put those two together. You want to keep the supersets together. But if needed, yes, you can, but I don't recommend it.

Thank you, Janet. Yay, you'll be here. Your energy excites me. Beautiful. I love that. What's up, Trudy.

Trudy: I am loving the Blueprint program. I just started a month ago. I am a menopausal endomorph. Good evening. I've almost met all my macros. I have been eating whatever just to get them in, for example chocolate-covered pretzels, maybe an ice cream bar. How much damage and setbacks am I facing in losing the weight I need to?

I am a firm believer in balance, but you also want to be making more lifestyle changes in terms of your habits. So if what got you to that endomorph body is chocolate-covered pretzels and ice cream, then you may just keep getting the same results that you've been getting. If you're doing it every day, that's a big no-no. Start choosing some things that are a little bit healthier that you can put into play with your macros. But I'm all about balance. Every couple of days, yes, treat yourself with that if it can fit into your macros, but I wouldn't be doing it every single day. But I'm excited that you're part of the Blueprint, babe, and I'm stoked to see how you progress in it.

Jodi: will there be another special on the Blueprint? I was sick with COVID and missed the Black Friday deal. I think I'm ready for the Blueprint. Maybe. Typically, if you feel like you're not ready, that means that you are. The nervous feelings, you guys, are just you and your growth. It means that you're growing in your fitness journey. That's why I'm so excited when people say, oh my God, I'm so excited and I'm so nervous. It's because your future self is like, finally. Finally, Jodi. Finally, Mary. Finally, Michelle. You're finally doing something that's getting you more in alignment with your goals. So if you guys are ever nervous or excited, buy it, get in it, join it. It's going to be a huge answer to all the things that you're trying to accomplish along your journey. I guarantee it. Those kinds of emotions are fire.

And to answer your question, my team and I don't have any specials in the mix right now, possibly for the new year, but we're leaning more towards VIP specials than Blueprint specials. But Blueprint babes, chime in with comments. It's well worth it whether we're doing a special or not. Your health is your wealth. It's well worth your investment in yourself, because that's exactly what it is. It's an investment in yourself. And trust me, I'm biased because I'm the creator of the program, but if you follow it, if you implement it, if you put in the work, you won't need another program again. I'm not just saying that. I'm saying that because women inside the program have said that. So, babes, if you want to drop your Blueprint story and how you've enjoyed it, that'd be awesome, so other people can see your comments, not just me.

Chef: thank you. And yes, the weather is beautiful in Cabo. One more question: for strength workouts, could it be the at-home demo workout, or is there another one that I'm missing? I have full access to the gym, and yes, I love cardio. Well, cool. Tone down the cardio. But for the question about dumbbells, you can do tremendous work with just dumbbells. If you just own dumbbells in your home, you can do tremendous work. But inside of the Blueprint program, in week three, there is an entire at-home or in-gym three-month program that you can follow. It's in week three of the Blueprint program.

Jodi: the Macros 101 video says you should always have a protein drink after every workout. Does this include cardio-only days? No, that does not include cardio-only days. If you're doing cardio-only days, you can be having full, normal meals.

Ashley: yeah, girl, you're killing it up there. Definitely worth the investment in Blueprint.

Michelle: Blueprint is awesome. The one-on-one conversation with Nikkiey is unbelievable. Such specific direction on your journey. Speaking for itself, you guys. Thank you, babes, I appreciate it. There's only so much I can say because I'm biased. I think it's bomb, but it's so much more helpful when you guys speak up. It helps other women as well.

Michelle: Blueprint is so worth it. The amount of knowledge in the program is incredible. I thought I knew a lot prior, but I didn't, not compared to what I've learned. It's a formula specific to my body, and I'm in control of it. I'm accountable to myself, and it's awesome. Also, all I have at home is dumbbells and mini bands, and I make it work. Yes. Fire. Thank you, babes.

Trudy, a question about cardio days: I do the step mill three times a week, 30 minutes. Am I benefiting from adding 20 more minutes of abs afterwards? I wouldn't do 20 minutes. It's kind of overkill. What I do recommend is around three sets of two to three different exercises, with rep counts of 15 to 20, or one-minute holds of planks or Russian twists, things like that. But 20 minutes is just overkill. Naturally, you guys, in all of the strength training workouts, your abs are engaged. So you're working them all of the time. They're just like the calf muscle. They're being worked all of the time. It's more so a decrease in body fat that's going to get them to show.

If we're doing body weight training only, are we limiting ourselves, or is it still positive? As long as you are creating resistance and putting in that time under tension on a week-to-week basis, and maybe you hold some movements, like going into a hold in a squat like this and then coming up, keeping the rep a little bit longer in terms of time, more time under tension, then sure, absolutely. That's definitely a positive move.

The main thing with body weight is you want to create mind-muscle connection. If you are somebody who is really good at that mind-muscle connection and you feel the muscle engaging and it's burning, then yes, you're putting it into that metabolic stress range. That's good. That's okay. That's what you want. But to be blunt and honest, from a progression standpoint, you want to be able to focus on: are you getting stronger? Are you breaking down the muscle appropriately? Are you increasing your weight just a tad bit each week?

So while, for me, where I am six years into my journey, I can do body weight because I've gotten such a great mind-muscle connection, I don't know how far along your journey you are, and for somebody who may be just starting out, resistance is really key. So you really want to implement that resistance on your body, on your muscles. I'm not saying body weight is a bad thing. It is a good thing. You can totally make progress with body weight, but I'd almost do body weight and then add resistance. If you're working out from home, Autumn, and you only have access to your body weight, get a pair of dumbbells. Literally, that's all you need. Like I just said, you can make amazing progress with just dumbbells.

Eliza: hey, babe. Question. I know I've heard you say that we shouldn't stay in a cut for more than six months. I'll be approaching six months in January. If I haven't met my fat loss goal by then, should I just move into maintenance macros? I talked about this in a rally call, and Eliza, you can find this on the WarriorBabe YouTube channel. You might have to scroll back a couple to find where I talk about a diet break. That's probably something that I would implement for you if you have more fat to lose and still have more of a journey to go on with decreasing your body fat.

You can give yourself a diet break, which lasts for one entire week, and then see how your body responds. I break it down inside of that rally call. Coming off of that, you go back into a cut slowly and bring your macros down, but you're giving your body a break, and you're giving your mind a break during that week of the diet break. You bring your numbers up to maintenance for that entire week. It's not like you have to sit there for an entire month or two months. For somebody like you, if you know you have more fat to lose, that's something that I would recommend. So I would go check out the rally call that I did on this. I don't know which one it was, but it's on the YouTube channel.

Jacqueline: what tips do you have for keeping on track with your nutrition for people who work jobs where they are constantly on their feet? I'm a veterinarian. I can totally relate to this, Jacqueline, because before I made WarriorBabe my full-time thing, I was in nursing. I was a tech in an emergency room. In the nursing field, being in an emergency room, you have no clue what's going to come through those doors or what's going to happen. I was constantly on my feet, constantly busy, and had no idea what was going to happen.

I didn't let that deter me, though. I was somebody who made sure I could scarf down my meal in five minutes, literally, no joke. I would tell my coworkers, hey guys, I'm going to scarf my meal. And I would always be five steps ahead of everything else that was going to be happening that day. For instance, if I heard the ambulance phone ring and we were getting a code or something that was going to require a lot of time, I would run into the break room, scarf down my meal, and go back out on the floor. Not only was I fed, but my energy was fine. I wasn't shaky from low blood sugar. I was able to perform better for my patients.

So it's just a matter of prioritizing your time and saying, hey, I need to step away for two to three minutes. Sometimes, you guys, I would go into the freaking bathroom and scarf down my meal. And once I started doing this for myself, the entire emergency department started getting on board with it. So when you better yourself, you also better everyone that you're working with. I know you're not using it as an excuse, but I don't take that excuse from anyone. Coming from me working in an ER, I made it work, and you guys can make it work too. So those are some of my tips.

Kate: I've been a WarriorBabe for five years and still use information from the Blueprint to keep moving forward in my journey. Life-changing. Yes. Thank you, Kate. Kate is our community manager too. She's bomb. She's always on top of everybody inside the community. I appreciate you. You've done such an amazing job with your body in those five years. It's freaking incredible.

Jodi: how much of a time commitment does Blueprint require for the learning pieces, not gym time? I work full-time and I'm worried I won't have time to get the knowledge piece in. Well, you have access to it forever. Your membership doesn't expire. It's a one-time payment, and you have the entire course for a lifetime. So you can listen to the modules at your own pace. The longest of my modules is 35 minutes, 37 maybe, to be exact. All the other ones are like 10 to 15 minutes. So it could be you listening to it while you're doing cardio. It could be you listening to it while you're doing a workout. Screw the music, turn on some knowledge bombs. So it's a matter of, again, prioritizing your time. But if it's something that's serious to you, I look at time as: you'll make it work.

Eliza: I feel like fat is continuing to stick around on my stomach more than anywhere else. I don't really have to answer that. It's more of a statement.

Autumn: I follow BBG. It's just a workout plan, exercise-wise, and it keeps me engaged, motivated and always pushes me. I have no idea what BBG is. Anyway.

Okay, where are we at? Melissa: I caught last week's Q&A a little after the fact, and I just wanted to say that I would love to have an at-home build option, especially with COVID. Something to think about and consider for the future. All right, babe. Thanks. Considering it.

Catherine: can I join just for the macro aspect and continue going to group exercise classes, three days of HIIT? I'm really big on this: if your goal is to be toned and build muscle, you want to follow my strength training workouts, because the macros I'm giving you inside the program go in accordance with that. You guys need to understand, you cardio people that do Orangetheory and are trying to build muscle, there's a fine line between the two of these. There is a fine line between the two of these.

I want to explain it so you guys understand that, at WarriorBabe, what I do in terms of strength training, what your cardio should be like, and macros, they all really, really go together. If you're intertwining my macros with Orangetheory or group training classes, you've got to understand that you're adapting your body to be a cardio endurance person by doing those types of classes. My coaches for the VIP were telling me, because one of them was an Orangetheory coach, that you burn like 800 calories in that freaking class. That's just absurd.

And this is why so many people who do a lot of cardio, who are eating lower calories, who have a lot of stress on their body, running for long periods of time, doing a lot of cardio, actually slow down their metabolism. This has been deemed in the fitness world as metabolic damage, but it's really just that your body has adapted, and the metabolism is slowing down.

So what I mean here is, if you're doing cardio activity that requires very little strength and very little muscle, like these group training classes and Orangetheory, and you're doing a lot of it, that activity burns a lot of calories, and your body's just going to start adapting to that. Your metabolism is adapting to that. Your body recognizes: okay, we're burning a lot of calories here doing this activity, doing cardio. We need endurance. We don't need a lot of muscle and strength. So let's learn how to conserve calories by paring down your muscle. And guys, muscle is metabolically active. So when you pare down your muscle, you're slowing down your metabolism at the same time. At that point, if you're focusing on cardio, you're becoming more efficient at being an endurance cardio machine.

This is why I stress that cardio is not the answer. I'm getting so amped up over this because it hits home for me, and for so many women who need to hear this. If your goal is muscle, if your goal is to be toned and to be lean, you can't be doing Orangetheory and these group training classes and bootcamp and those kinds of full-body workouts. You're adapting your body to be cardio endurance. You're adapting it to be a cardio addict.

So if your workouts don't really burn that many calories but require strength and muscle, now your body is like, hey, let's build this muscle, and we can be less efficient with calories and speed up your burn. So if you eat less and exercise more and more, especially doing things like that cardio, which doesn't demand a lot of muscle and a lot of strength, you're teaching the body to become more efficient and not need a lot of calories, and your metabolism then slows down. If you guys do workouts that are solely focused on muscle, solely focused on strength, you're fueling your metabolism to speed up. Guys, smash the freaking like button right now if this is making sense.

I just shared this with my VIP group last night, and I'm so glad it got brought up. I'm kind of going on a rant, but I'm glad it got brought up tonight because you guys need to hear this. You guys need to hear this. Thank you. The like button's being smashed. If your goal is to build muscle and be toned and be lean and have that sexy physique, cardio is not your answer. You need to train your body to strength train. You need to veer away from training it to do endurance. Yo, my mind's going crazy right now. Let's go. I love it. Fire, fire, fire. Cool.

Where did I leave off? Michelle: one of the best things I've learned in Blueprint is the importance of low-impact cardio, simply walking. We don't have to work our bodies into the ground doing constant HIIT. Yes. Thank you. It seems like my rant happened at the right time. Thank you, Michelle. Yes, you guys, steady-state cardio, while it may be boring, is a lot less stressful on your body. This 800-calorie-burning Orangetheory and group training classes, yeah, that's cool and all, but not when you want to build muscle.

Amy: new babe. I have been building muscle, so I feel a bit like a seal with a layer of fat, trusting the process is going to work and waiting for the macro part to do its job. I went through menopause two years ago. Yeah. If you're focusing on building muscle, babe, building muscle is a mindset, and it's a journey. It's a six-month journey, like I talked about with Cheryl inside of our interview. It's something that doesn't happen in two months. Building the body is a process. Building muscle takes time. So yes, you're going to put on a little bit of body fat with building muscle. It's totally normal. But when you go into a cut and bring your macros down into a caloric deficit, that's where your hard work shows.

Melissa: I have a question about stretching. When doing upper body and then cardio, would you suggest stretching after strength training and before cardio, or after the entire workout is complete? I would do it after the entire workout is complete. And while you're stretching, you can be drinking your protein shake and all that jazz.

Eliza: sorry, that was related to my previous question. Eliza, maybe you can recap. I've answered so many questions since then. I'm going to be brutally honest: I do not remember what you wrote.

Amy: everything I want is on the other side of consistency. That's a fire freaking affirmation. Everything I want is on the other side of consistency. Let's go. I love it.

Vicki: hey, Nikkiey. In your IG story, you were in your pool in super cold water. Curious about the purpose of that. Yeah. It does metabolize fat a little bit more if you consistently do it. I used to do it when I lived in Bali, three to four times a week, in 40-degree cold pools. It helps with metabolizing fat, but it also helps with your brain and being clear. It's kind of like a form of meditation. It's really good on so many deeper layers too, like cellular processes and being healthy. Research it. Look up Wim Hof. I'm doing such a bad job of explaining it, but Wim Hof, W-I-M H-O-F, is known as, oh my God, what's he known as? He has an interesting name. He's a crazy guy, but he's so brilliant. So definitely check him out.

Do you have a website for your plan? www.warriorbabe.com.

Michelle: you speak the truth. I burn on average 200 to 250 calories during weights, and I'm dropping weight. Yes. Amen. That's exactly what I just said. You're training your body to build muscle and be less efficient with calories, but speed up your burn. When you're doing too much cardio, your body's like, I need to conserve these calories because this woman's doing endurance, so I need to hold back and save it, because it needs to be able to send you bursts of energy throughout that kind of workout. But with weights, you're building muscle, and muscle is metabolically active. It's a part of your metabolism.

What if you do cardio and strength workouts? Yeah, absolutely. I'm not saying do no cardio. Just like the babes mentioned, you can walk on a treadmill for 20 to 30 minutes at a low steady state, an incline of around eight and a speed of three, and you will still drop weight. Steady state, less stress. You're putting stress on your body when you're doing the workouts, in a good way.

Spot on, makes 100 percent sense. I love your passion. Thank you so much for that explanation. Yes, you're welcome, guys. Fire.

I do want that lean and toned body, but I love jogging. I'm new to Blueprint and love it. I guess I need help combining both, if it's possible. Yes, it's absolutely possible, you guys. I'm just saying don't do the 800-calorie-burning classes like Orangetheory and that jazz. You're adapting your body to train like that. Now, with strength training, you're adapting it to train with strength, focusing on that. And yeah, cardio can be done, again, on the stair master at a steady pace. A steady pace is still going to kick your ass. Don't underestimate steady-state cardio, because it's going to kick your ass. But it is possible. You can combine both. You just don't need to be doing 800-calorie-burning classes.

How important are rest days? Rest days are very important. Very important. That's where the muscle grows. It grows during rest. It grows in the 24 hours, 48 hours outside the gym, through proper nutrition and being able to sleep properly and all that jazz. So they're really important. I like to do two to three a week. I used to only do one, and I just drilled my body into the ground. I work out four to five times a week right now, and it's optimal for my body.

Stephanie: how about the sauna after workouts? I find it a meditation after a workout. Yeah, absolutely, 100 percent. You can do the sauna. I wouldn't count it as cardio, but yes, for sure. Sauna is a great form of that, and it's great for health as well.

How many days of workouts, three to five? Well, if you're on the WarriorBabe plan, we have four-, five- or six-day plans that you can follow.

All right, you guys. I freaking love coming and hanging out with you guys on these Q&A days. I appreciate being here with you. I'm going to answer these last couple of questions coming in, and then I'm going to turn off the Q&A because in 15 minutes I jump on with my Blueprint program and do a Q&A with them. We go for two hours on those Blueprint calls, and it's more intimate. We do Zoom, so I'm actually able to unmute you and chat with you. So it's pretty cool. Definitely, guys, if you're following me on my Facebook page, check out warriorbabe.com, check out the Blueprint program, check out the VIP program. Honestly, getting inside one of these is the best thing you could be doing for yourself for 2021.

How do you feel about cottage cheese being one of the best muscle-building proteins for the body? Absolutely, if you can handle dairy, for sure. I love cottage cheese.

During my build, I do less cardio to zero cardio, because I'm lifting more and burning more, and adding cardio would not help in this process. I'm starting a cut in mid-January. Then I will add a couple of HIIT workouts or runs. Yeah, that sounds correct. 100 percent.

Okay, I'm going to jump off because I know more questions are going to keep firing in. I would love to hang out with you guys and spend the whole evening here answering questions, but I need to tune out and jump on my Blueprint Q&A in 15 minutes. But guys, if this is your first time tuning into one of my Q&As here, if you're following me on Facebook, I'm going to be doing this every Wednesday. So make it a point to schedule it into your calendar and set your alarms: Nikkiey's going live at 6 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. I thoroughly enjoyed being here and spending this time with you guys.

And my Facebook group, my community, WarriorBabes, you guys know the drill: every Wednesday, 6 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. All right, you guys. Boom. Awesome. Cool. Have a great rest of your day as well. See you guys.