THE NOBULLSHIT MENTALITY
Q: How do you maintain a "NO BULLSHIT, no excuses" mindset as a brand co-founder, content creator, and Sad to Savage program coach?
One way that I maintain my no bullshit, no excuses mindset is by focusing on self-discipline opposed to motivation. I set goals for myself on a regular basis and then break down daily, weekly, and monthly habits I need to do to achieve those goals. I rely on the discipline I have worked to build, instead of motivation, which allows me to be successful. It doesn't matter how I "feel" each day. What I focus on is my end goal and showing up for myself so that I can reach it.
Being disciplined is the most important skill when it comes to success for myself, personally. I have 100 things going on at all times. I own two businesses, run a podcast, am writing a book, building an app, managing employees, and am working on multiple projects at a time, building my dream life all while maintaining my habits and routines. I am able to manage and show up in each area because of my discipline. I know that if I stick to my plan and not my feelings, I am unstoppable.
My mindset is that while I cannot always control my thoughts, emotions, feelings, things that happen to me, or motivation, I can control the guidelines and rules I set for myself and how I show up every day.
Q: Does your mindset change depending on which role you're playing?
Yes and no. In some areas of my life, I am a "beginner," and in others, I am now skilled and more advanced. Some areas take less focus and discipline because they are second nature. For example, waking up every day at 5am and going to work out requires barely any energy or effort from me because I have been doing it for YEARS. It is a habit so engraved in my brain that it is now a part of me. Whereas sitting down and managing multiple people as a CEO isn't second nature because it is something that I am growing, learning, and building each day.
HEALTHY HABITS
Q: Your Sad to Savage program is built around creating healthy habits. How has implementing these habits improved your own life and wellness journey?
My Sad to Savage Program focuses on creating and building healthy habits and routines. In my own life, building strategic habits and routines has completely transformed my physical health and every area of my world. I have been able to improve my mental and physical health as well as my relationships and career.
When I started working on building and changing my habits five years ago, I was struggling across the board. I did not have any habits for my physical health and was struggling with weight gain. My mind was a dark place to be, and my thoughts were very negative. I lost all my confidence and was struggling with my purpose. I was also working a job I hated. I was in a horrible place financially and living in my parents' basement. I also was really struggling with my eating habits.
I didn't realize it at the time, but my problem was lacking consistent morning and night routines as well as just not having established healthy habits. When I started implementing things like waking up early, working out, walking, meal prepping, meditation, and writing affirmations, everything changed for me. By working on my physical health, I was in turn working on my mental health, my happiness, and my confidence. When you improve in one area, it truly bleeds into every other area.
Learning discipline in the gym helped me learn discipline at work, which allowed me to build my own company. I had to learn how to manage my time so that I could start working out and walking, which also helped me create morning and nighttime routines. My program teaches others how to do what I did. I was in such a dark place and learned step by step how to make it out, and that is exactly what I wanted to provide for anyone else out there who wanted to improve or change their own life.
Q: What are some of your favorite habits relating to nutrition and working out?
I absolutely love strength training and Pilates. I have fallen in love with pushing and challenging myself and improving each week. I have turned working out into my social time, and it's when I get to see my friends every single day. I have built a community of people who are committed to themselves and their health in the same ways that I am, and it is so cool to be surrounded with like-minded people.
I also love walking every single day. I habit stack my walk (which is pairing something you have to do with something you get to do, almost stacking two habits on top of each other) and I get so much done. Some days I will walk and FaceTime my nephew or I will edit, write a to-do list, listen to a podcast, or even just watch TikToks.
Another habit I am obsessed with is following a meal plan. Because I have so many things going on at all times and life gets crazy, taking the question of what I am going to eat everyday out of the equation and following a plan makes my life so much easier. It also makes reaching my health goals so much more attainable.
Q: How do you stay consistent with your habits?
I stay consistent with my habits by setting them up strategically. I really think through every single habit, test it, track it, and then learn from myself so each month I can improve. For example, when it comes to waking up at 5am to workout, a few things I do to set that habit up for success are:
- Get in bed by a set time so I can get enough sleep.
- Lay out my workout set the night before and pack my gym bag.
- Sign up for my workout class.
- Prep my pre-workout snack so it is ready to go in the morning.
- Plan out and visualize my day the night before.
Whenever I am building or creating new habits, I have the mindset that failing is okay because every single time I "fail," I am really just learning what doesn't work for me, and from there I can make small changes until I find the solution to being consistent. I also always rely on discipline, and I show up and do what I say I am going to do. I do not rely on my feelings or motivation.
FOOD AS FUEL
Q: How has nutrition played a role in creating a healthier lifestyle for yourself?
Nutrition has allowed me to feel my best and feel confident each day. I think eating healthy sometimes gets a bad rap like it is a sacrifice or makes life not as enjoyable, when for me it is the opposite. Eating healthy is a strategy because when I eat healthy, I truly feel my best. I can think straight and have energy for my busy days. I think that focusing on nutrition has helped me build discipline and has helped me learn that being intentional with what you put in your body matters.
Q: What's your best advice for people looking to form better nutrition habits?
Start slow. You do not have to change your life overnight and go 0 to 100. How I started working on creating healthier nutrition habits was by becoming aware intentionally. I started learning how to read food labels and started paying attention to the ingredients and foods I was consuming on a daily basis. From there I started paying attention to what foods made me feel my best and what made me feel not so good.
I started realizing how much better I felt when I was making healthier choices. I then started trying out new habits like meal prepping and planning and eventually tried an anti-inflammatory whole foods-based diet and LOVED IT. I think starting and becoming aware of your current eating habits and finding small ways you can improve is how to start.
Q: How does nutrition play a role in the Sad to Savage program?
In my Sad to Savage program, I worked with a registered dietician to teach the basics of nutrition. We go over how to create a balanced meal, why nutrition is important, how to read a food label, and more. We also talk about small daily habits you can build and incorporate in terms of nutrition as well as weekly habits. For example, daily you could create the habit of eating a healthy breakfast at home or building the habit of drinking a specific amount of water. On a weekly basis you could build the habit of meal prepping or meal planning.
The program also teaches you how to follow a meal plan and focuses on an anti-inflammatory whole foods-based approach to nutrition.
Q: What are your favorite healthy recipes?
My program comes with an anti-inflammatory meal guide, and I absolutely love all of the recipes. I am obsessed with eating chicken and hummus every single day. I personally am not a picky eater so I will eat anything, but I love sweet potatoes, LOVE eating salmon, and my current favorite sweet treat/pre-workout snack is dates with almond butter, dark chocolate, and sea salt.
TRIED AND TRUE TRAINING ESSENTIALS
Q: Part of feeling good is looking good. How does your workout gear help you stay motivated to achieve your healthy habits?
Working out is my hobby, my social time, my job, and something I genuinely love. I love looking cute and feeling confident when I do it! I have worn NOBULL shoes for the last three almost four years. I have been OBSESSED with them since getting into working out. I love that other people in the gym wear them, and they make me feel a sense of community. I also love buying myself new workout clothes, shoes, and accessories as rewards for my workout habit.
Q: What are your workout essentials?
I love a cute matching workout set, a water bottle that matches, or an energy drink, and I LOVE my NOBULL Alldays. I have gotten my entire family and BIL's hooked on NOBULL.
WHERE GRIT MEETS GEAR: SHELBY SACCO x NOBULL
Q: Describe your experience with NOBULL products. Do you have any favorite gear for the gym? For everyday activities? For Sad to Savage training?
I have so many pieces from NOBULL that I love. I have a cute sweat set that my mom is legit hiding from me. She borrowed it one day and refuses to give it back. I love my NOBULL Alldays. I feel super attached to them because they were the first workout shoes I saved up and spent money on.
I absolutely love that they look cute, are comfortable, and truly my shoe of choice when it comes to strength training/my fitness habits. I work out and walk 24/7 and am always busy, so having a shoe that works for everything and doesn't make me sacrifice my style is INCREDIBLE. I cannot express this enough; I am a true and genuine NOBULL fan and user. There is not a day or week that goes by that I do not wear my NOBULLs.
Q: What's most important to you in performance gear—and how does NOBULL deliver it?
The most important thing to me is support and comfort. I have had shoes that make my feet ache and negatively impact my relationship with fitness. For example, I had a pair of shoes that hurt after 1-2 miles on the treadmill. That only hurts my relationship with fitness because then I am forming a negative thought process around that activity when really it was just the shoes.
My NOBULLs are comfortable, supportive, stylish, and easy to get on and off. They are truly the perfect shoe, and it's why I have been loyal to them for YEARS. They have been with me my entire fitness journey.
Q: What does it mean to you to wear NOBULL across your chest?
I absolutely love being associated with the brand because I LOVE NOBULL. To me, when I see other people in the gym wearing NOBULL, I feel connected to them and like they are a part of the fitness community. I think NOBULL's products and message are exactly who and what I want to be aligned with.
Q: If you haven't described it already, can you tell us when and how you discovered NOBULL and how you've worn NOBULL through the years?
When I started getting into the fitness world and started creating healthy habits and routines, I started going to different workout classes and following different fitness influencers online. I started looking for shoe recommendations because I only had my old cheerleading shoes and tennis shoes with thick heels that I had to get when I broke my foot and had a boot in high school.
I saw so many people wearing NOBULL in my classes and online. I didn't have money at the time to buy them immediately, so I saved up for my first pair and then asked for my second pair for Christmas. I loved that they helped me further align with being someone who works out and is a part of the workout community, especially when I first started creating it as a habit.
I love that they have stayed consistent as my strength training and workout shoes of choice, and I love looking back on my fitness journey and how many different goals they have helped me hit.
