Natalie Matthews is a fitness model and influencer. She shares a lot of vegan and workout content on Instagram. Matthews recently shared a carousel post of her recent wellness achievements and habits. She captioned it, “Progress, balance, and all the little wins that make the journey worth it 💪🏽✨🏃🏽♀️🏄🏽♀️🏋🏽♀️👩🏽🍳I finally had a great surf day in South Florida! It feels incredible to get back to one of my biggest passions. Surfing is where it all started. 🥲 🌊”
Matthews revealed in this Instagram post that she likes to do unilateral training. “Some of my favorite movements lately: Today, I focused on unilateral movements. I always start with my weaker side to address muscle imbalances and areas that need more attention. I’ve been enjoying the ankle weight step-ups that @bretcontreras1 taught me. They look easy but are really hard. You must try them! I’m using @bcstrengthofficial ankle weights, which go up to 10 pounds on each side. I highly recommend them, especially if you’ve outgrown the traditional 5-pound ankle weights.”
Matthews is a vegan, and this has a lot of health benefits. MD Anderson states, “It supports your immune system. Plants have essential nutrients that you cannot get from other foods. The vitamins and minerals, phytochemicals and antioxidants in plants help keep your cells healthy and your body in balance so that your immune system can function at its best.”
One of Matthews’ secrets to eating healthy is meal prepping. She shared some of her favorites in this Instagram post. “🌱High-Protein Vegan Meal Prep💪🏽🍽️Breakfast Protein Overnight Oats. Macros: 25g P – 78g C – 18g F. Ingredients per container: •40g sprouted oats •12g mixed seeds (chia, hemp, flax) •5oz plant protein yogurt •2oz plant milk. Optional toppings & sides: •100g berries •30g granola. 🍽️Lunch & snack are from my Fit Vegan Kitchen Digital Book. 👉🏽Enchilada Lasagna (page 108): 28g P – 53g C – 11g F. 👉🏽Protein Brownies (page 170): 10g P – 22g C – 4g F. For the brownies I used @vedgenutrition plant protein code✨Natalie✨🍽️Rainbow Bowls for Dinner. Macros: 26g P – 76g C – 6g F. Ingredients per container: •125g extra firm tofu, air-fried and covered in Furikake seasoning. •200g cooked organic rice from @thepridefoods code✨Natalie✨ •30g cabbage •15g sweet chili sauce. •1 pack of roasted seaweed snack.”
Matthews shared some of her favorite lower body workouts in this Instagram post. “Glute Focused Lower 🍑• Deadlift: 145lbsx12. 185lbsx10. 205lbsx8. 240lbsx1 (7.5RPE) Walking Lunges: 95lbsx24. 95lvsx22. Rotisserie Hip Thrust: 20,15,10,8 *increasing weight each set* Ankle Weight Kickback: 10lbs each 2-3sets 15/15. Abduction Machine: 3×15 *not filmed.”
Matthews is seen doing squats with a ball throw in her recent Instagram post. These have a lot of benefits. Piedmont says, “Squats are a compound, multi-joint movement, which means they exercise several muscle groups. When you perform a squat, you work your calves, quads, hamstrings, glutes, core and part of your back.”