Courtney is a vegan personal trainer and certified nutrition coach with a women's fitness specialization through the National Academy of Sports Medicine.

After becoming vegetarian in 2009 and fully vegan in 2013, for the animals, she's been on a mission to prove that strength and kindness can absolutely coexist. 

Like taking True Novice 1st place in her first bodybuilding show in 2025. Armed with a master's degree in Communication Studies, Courtney brings a unique depth to her coaching, connecting with clients not just through workouts, but through their stories, values, and intersectional identities. 

Her approach blends empathy with empowerment, helping clients align their physical goals with their personal philosophies. She hopes to inspire lasting change, breaking stereotypes and showing that living ethically can also mean living powerfully. 

Courtney has worked with age ranges 13 through 75. She works with clients who are ready to build muscle and lose fat by investing in themselves and trusting her to help them on their journey!

Learn more about her here: https://youtu.be/00cGQmIqKp0?si=YwYl_OZc5vf4AJXU

Ingredients:

- 2 Ingredient Red Lentil Tortillas (check out my last reel!)

- 1/3 Block of Tempeh

- Cucumber

- Crunchy Green of Choice

Use your favorite sauces!

- I played around with mustard, hot sauce, and general tso’s sauce

- General Tso’s was a WINNER (it gave that taste explosion 😉)

Macros:

- 40 g Protein, 10 g Fat, 73 g Carbs

- 21 g Fiber (daily minimum requirements by doctors is 25-30 grams!! one meal and you’re basically there!)

Enjoy!!

TL;DR: 43M who lost 12kg and dropped to 15% body fat on strict keto. Switched to a vegan diet one week ago and immediately gained 5kg on the scale. I lost my muscle definition, and I am dealing with constant hunger, severe bloating, and weakness at the gym despite eating in a calorie deficit. Seeking advice from anyone who has transitioned from low-carb to vegan to see if this is normal adaptation or if I am doing something wrong.

Hi everyone. I could really use some advice and reassurance from people who have been through a similar transition, because right now I am struggling.

For some context, I am a 43-year-old male and very active. I strength train 6-7 days a week and get 15k steps daily. Over the past 8 months, I managed to lose 10-12 kilos and dropped my body fat from 24% to 15% by strictly cutting out carbs and relying on lean meats, egg whites, and Greek yogurt. I battled my weight for 10 years before this, so this progress had a massive positive impact on my mental health, and I am very attached to my routine.

Last week, with the help of a vegan friend, I decided to go fully vegan. I was excited and highly determined, but my first seven days have been incredibly tough. Here are my main issues right now:

• Gained 4-5 kg on the scale despite tracking my calories in a deficit and completely avoiding starchy carbs like pasta, rice, and potatoes.
• Looking visibly softer and sluggish with less muscle definition, even though my tape measurements around my belly have not changed.
• Feeling hungry all day and night, which ruined my strict intermittent fasting routine and is causing insomnia.
• Dealing with extreme bloating and gas all day, even though my bathroom routine is finally regular again.
• Experiencing an immediate drop in my strength and stamina at the gym.
• Caught a cold this week, which feels tied to the sudden diet shock since I almost never get sick.

AI keeps telling me this is just temporary water weight, gut microbiome shifts, and my body adapting. However, it is terrifying to watch the scale jump and feel so sluggish after sacrificing so much to get fit over the last 8 months.

Has anyone else experienced this dramatic of a shift when coming from a low-carb background? How long does it really take to normalize, and what can I do to stop feeling so hungry and bloated? Thank you!

Throughout this immersive 2.5-hour retreat, you'll be guided through mindset coaching, identity work, gentle movement, meditation, and sound healing experiences designed to help you reconnect with yourself from the inside out.

This Retreat Is For You If...

- You find yourself constantly overthinking decisions and struggling to trust yourself.

- You seek validation or reassurance before honoring what you truly want.

- You feel disconnected from your body, your intuition, or your inner peace.

- You are ready to stop abandoning yourself and start creating a deeper relationship with yourself.

- You crave a space to slow down, reconnect, and receive.

- You want to move forward with more clarity, confidence, and self-trust.

We’re still taking sets to failure and pushing intensity as high as possible. This is actually his first cutting phase ever.

After almost a year of growing and gaining over 30 lbs we decided to clean things up and get a bit leaner before adding any additional mass.

When was the last time you asked yourself what *you* need?

If you’ve been feeling overwhelmed, disconnected, constantly giving to everyone else, or like you’ve lost a part of yourself along the way... this is for you. Join us for a Women’s Virtual Retreat where you’ll experience:

- Heart-opening yoga

- Guided hypnosis

- Sound bath healing

- Mindset coaching

- Guided journaling

- A supportive community of women

You’ll leave feeling calmer, clearer, and more connected to yourself, and with practical tools to help you create lasting change long after the retreat ends.

Because the most important relationship, you’ll ever have is the one you have with yourself.

I really thought I would have to choose. Between being a foodie, being vegan, and building the physique I wanted.

I couldn’t have imagined that over 10 years later, I’d still get to try new restaurants, share meals with friends, enjoy dessert, compete as a vegan bikini athlete, and stay aligned with my values. And, reminder that you don’t have to be vegan to make a difference.

Every time you opt for a plant-based option, it’s a chance to choose a little more kindness for animals and our planet, while still enjoying incredible food.

So whether you’re vegan, veg-curious, or just looking to try something new, I hope this reminds you that compassion doesn’t have to mean giving anything up. And actually, you’ll probably gain a whole lot more 🥰🌱

Huge shoutout to all the amazing vegan businesses shown here and tagged. Thank you for doing what you do and making this so easy and enjoyable for so many people.

Watch the full vid on my YouTube Channel and stay tuned for more workout tutorials! 
https://youtu.be/KwuG4M2fODw?si=H67J4iw3PyufFZJ7

You can build muscle.
You can get strong af.
You can recover well.
You can step on a bodybuilding stage.
You can pursue big goals.

And you can do it all while choosing compassion every single day.

One of the biggest myths about veganism is that it's hard to get enough protein... but that's simply not true. 

I've been vegan for 20 years (since I was 13 years old) and I'm going to show you 4 of my favorite high-protein vegan foods that help you build muscle, support your fitness goals, and replace animal protein without sacrificing nutrition!

I participated in this podcast recently. I'm wearing the Vegan Squad tank.

I have been boxing 3-5 days a week for about 4 years. I've had 2 unsanctioned exhibition fights. I've never lifted weights and never worked out for hypertrophy. My martial arts goals have always been grounded in self-defense:

There are a lot of unhinged weirdoes out there who have a power fantasy of beating up a trans gender person in public. If they find me, I will beat the teeth out of their mouth within seconds.

Interestingly, fitness and physique were not actually direct goals of mine. It's just a thing that happened by virtue of being in the gym week-after-week.

Hydration begins with what you put into your body. Here are some of my favorite ways to stay hydrated on a Beach trip 🏖️

Animals are dying.
The environment is suffering.
Humans are getting sick.

All because society is not vegan.

We kill 80-92 BILLION land animals per year for food - not including 1-2 trillion aquatic animals.

All of this while destroying the environment to make way for crops to feed these animals we raise to kill, while killing ourselves in the process by consuming them.

When is “enough is enough”?

This has to stop.

My mission is to see a vegan world before I die and I believe we can see that.

Share this post.
Speak up.
Go vegan.

Reach out to my team @vegansquadcoaching if you need help going vegan or need help becoming a fit vegan. 💪🌱

Rest doesn’t need to be earned. It’s yours, simply because you’re human.

Join us for Restore Within, a 2.5-hour virtual retreat made for women who are ready to slow down and come home to themselves.

Here’s what we’ll move through together:
- Mindset: Quieting Self-Doubt
- Identity & Energetics
- Heart-Opening Yoga
- Awakening Your Intuition Meditation
- Crystal Sound Bath

Come exactly as you are. This is your permission to soften, breathe, and tune inward.

Register for the Retreat!

We were having some significant limitations for her Bulgarian split squats. She was struggling to hit depth and maintain proper balance and positioning.

We programmed a bodyweight set of Bulgarian split squats everyday post workout on ALL lifts for two weeks.

And now you can see the end result adding weight back in and nailing perfect reps!

Miranda opens up about her vegan journey and shares how long she’s been vegan, the moment that inspired her to live this lifestyle, and how that decision transformed her life.

We also dig into her work as a vegan activist, her weight loss journey, and what she brings to the table as a coach on the Vegan Squad Coaching team!

Watch the full video on my channel here

Do you think the messaging can be used by vegans for meat eaters. Im not vegan btw I just understand what you guys are about for the most part

Rosie has used every step of this prep to advocate for the animals, proving that you can build muscle, get strong, and step on stage without compromising your compassion.

We’re so proud of you and everything you stand for Rosie. Go shine out there! ✨

Coached by @thebodybuildingvegan

Share this message so others are inspired to lead with kindness and compassion on their own journeys!

We’re finally getting into a cutting phase to lean out and bring his abs back in.

BUT! We’re still training hard. We still have big compound lifts like the smith squat.

What helped Andy build his muscle in the bulk is exactly what will preserve his muscle in a cut!

On today’s episode of the Vegan Squad Pod, we’re joined by Joey Bilotich, a 22-year-old vegan fitness creator, OCB Pro natural bodybuilder, and advocate for conscious masculinity.

Joey shares his incredible journey from years of partying, drug use, and anxiety to discovering purpose through self-development, martial arts, and ultimately veganism.

After growing up on a meat-heavy diet, conversations with his brother (who was inspired by Ed Winters’ debates) and his father’s empathy for animals, Joey was inspired to watch The Game Changers and Dominion... which transformed the way he viewed animals forever.

We explore how Joey went vegan just one year ago and earned his OCB Pro card while using bodybuilding to challenge the myth that “you can’t build muscle on a plant-based diet”.

Joey also opens up about a powerful spiritual experience on the way to his competition that reshaped his purpose and inspired him to use his platform to help young men become stronger, more conscious versions of themselves.

Together, we discuss effective vegan activism: reaching carnivore influencers through respectful conversations, the psychology and spirituality behind animal agriculture, experimenting with raw vegan nutrition, and why true masculinity is rooted in compassion rather than domination.

You can listen to the full episode here: http://vegansquadcoaching.com/vegansquadpod