EPIC Fitness, LLC

01/16/2026

Fitness Defined: What’s Progressive Overload?
Your body is remarkably adaptable based on what you ask it to do.
To keep getting stronger, it needs the right kind of challenge over time.
That’s the idea behind progressive overload, a principle behind strength training programs that often requires increasing the amount of weight you lift, the reps, or the intensity.
Exercise scientists have studied this principle for decades. The American College of Sports Medicine includes progressive overload as a foundational guideline for building and maintaining muscle, strength, and bone density, especially as we age. Without it, muscles just aren’t as likely to grow stronger.
Legendary strength coach Mike Boyle puts it this way: “The goal isn’t to lift more weight forever. The goal is to apply the right stress at the right time.” That’s especially important for adults over 50, when recovery, joint health, and safety matter just as much as results.
Progressive overload works best with coaching or someone with experience; many people also value AI-assisted smartphone apps. The point is to track what you’re doing and make key adjustments based on how your body progresses. This all ensures you’re making steady progress without plateaus, burnout, or injury.
When done right, progressive overload makes strength training effective, confidence-building, and even fun. And it’s one of the main reasons structured training gets you better results than just doing whatever you feel like on any given day.
Want to learn more? Give me a call. Let’s get you strong!
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01/15/2026

Healthy Recipe, Winter Salad with Fruits & Nuts

While you’re still in detox mode from the holidays, enjoy a rejuvenating salad full of the flavors of the season. Start with a bed of mixed greens, including watercress or dandelion greens, since dark-leaved lettuces are more nutrient-dense. Toss it together with a zesty maple-sweetened vinaigrette. You can feel indulgent and virtuous all at once. Serves 4-6. – Susan Puckett

Ingredients
Orange-Maple Dressing
• ¼ cup fresh orange juice
• 1 teaspoon grated orange zest
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• ¼ cup olive oil
Salad:
• 6 to 8 cups mixed lettuce leaves, chopped or torn if large (kale, spinach, watercress, arugula, baby romaine, dandelion greens, radicchio)
• 2 medium seedless oranges, peeled and thinly sliced and torn in sections
• 1 avocado, peeled, seeded, and diced
• ½ medium red onion, thinly sliced (soak in ice water for 10 minutes or so to soften the bite if desired)
• ½ cup broken pecans, toasted of desired
• ½ cup crumbled feta cheese
• 1 cup pomegranate arils or dried cranberries
• Flaky sea salt

Instructions
• Make the dressing: Place the orange juice, zest, syrup, vinegar, mustard, salt, pepper, and olive oil in a jar, cover with a lid, and shake well to combine. (

• Make the salad: Place the greens in a large bowl. Top with the orange sections, avocado, onion slices, pecans, feta, and pomegranate. Drizzle with about half the dressing and toss gently. Serve with flaky sea salt and dressing on the side.

01/14/2026

01/10/2026

01/09/2026

Fad Diets: If It Sounds Too Good to Be True…
You’ve already lived through more fad diets than you can probably count. Remember when grapefruit was supposed to melt fat? Or when cabbage soup was the answer to everything? Now it’s the Kardashians and lollipops, or tea, or …
The packaging has changed. The promise hasn’t. And they’re still just trying to separate you from your dollar.
A fad diet usually shows up with bold claims – in a hurry. Lose 10 pounds in 10 days. Reset your metabolism. Never feel hungry again.
Fad diets can be especially risky after 50 or so. You run the risk of less muscle and energy, nutrient deficiencies, and slower recovery.
That’s the exact opposite of what you want for this stage of life and as you age.
So how do you spot a fad diet?
• It promises fast results with little effort
• It bans common foods with no medical reason
• It relies on testimonials instead of evidence
• It’s “new,” “secret,” or “revolutionary”
• It makes you feel guilty for eating normally
Healthy eating is like exercise. Aim for consistency. Real food, enough protein, plenty of fiber, and habits you can actually live with.
Healthy, sustainable lifestyle choices. A healthy relationship with food.
And no cabbage required.

01/08/2026

Crispy Sheet Pan Chicken with Potatoes, Broccoli, and Carrots
Serves 4

Sheet pan-roasted chicken thighs is a no-brainer of a dinner if ever there was one. They’re an excellent and convenient source of protein and, unlike chicken breasts, stay tender and juicy even if they’re slightly overcooked. This one-pan, whole-meal recipe, adapted from the Simply Recipes website, shows how to keep the skin extra-crispy by first placing the thighs skin-side down on a pre-heated pan, then reducing the oven temperature and flipping them over halfway through. Bite-sized potatoes cook at about the same rate; other veggies can be added when you take the pan out to flip the chicken. Broccoli florets and sliced carrots make a hearty and colorful wintry combo. Any seasoning blend will work here; a squeeze of citrus and grating of zest brighten up the dish and pull the flavors together.

— Susan Puckett

4 meaty bone-in skin-on chicken thighs (about 2 pounds)
1 pound bite-sized potatoes or small, waxy potatoes cut in bite-sized pieces
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 1/2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
Salt and coarsely ground pepper, divided
1 (12-ounce) bag broccoli florets
4 medium carrots, peeled and sliced in ½-inch-thick coins
1 whole lemon, plus 4 lemon wedges

1. Place a large sheet pan on the middle rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 500 degrees for at least 15 minutes.
2. Place the chicken and potatoes in a large bowl and drizzle with 1 tablespoon of the oil. Sprinkle with the paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, and ½ teaspoon each salt and pepper. Toss with your hands until evenly coated with the spices.
3. Place the broccoli and carrot slices in another large bowl. Drizzle with the other tablespoon of oil and sprinkle with ½ teaspoon each salt and black pepper; toss to coat.
4. Remove the hot pan from the oven and place the chicken pieces skin side down. Scatter the potatoes around the chicken and return the pan to the oven. Immediately lower the heat to 425 degrees and roast for 15 minutes.
5. Remove the pan (close the oven door so the heat doesn’t escape). Using tongs, flip the chicken and potatoes. Add the seasoned broccoli and carrots to the pan, arranging them around the chicken.
6. . Return to the oven for 15 to 20 minutes longer, until the vegetables are all tender and the thickest part of a chicken thigh registers 165 to 170 degrees on a meat thermometer.
7. Let the chicken rest for 5 minutes before serving. Grate the zest of the whole lemon (with a microplane if you have one) over the chicken. Serve with lemon wedges.
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01/01/2026

Happy New Year, from EPIC Fitness! "May 2026 bring happiness, prosperity, great health, and amazing new adventures" #ʜᴀᴘᴘʏɴᴇᴡʏᴇᴀʀ2026

12/31/2025

Have a safe and wonderful New Year's Eve!

12/28/2025

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