Here’s How the Founder of Gauge Girl Training Prioritizes Her Own Fitness While Running a Business

Gauge Girl Training founder Christine Hronec makes time for her own fitness and wellness, despite a totally hectic schedule. / Photograph by Christine Hronec.

Welcome to Sweat Diaries, Be Well Philly’s look at the time, energy, and money people invest in pursuit of a healthy lifestyle in Philly. For each Sweat Diary, we ask one area resident to spend a week tracking everything they eat, all the exercise they get, and the money they spend on both. Want to submit a Sweat Diary? Email lbrzyski@phillymag.com.

Who I am: Christine Hronec (@gaugegirltraining), 37

Where I live: Northern Liberties

What I do: I’m a food scientist, nutrition expert, YouTuber, and online health coach. I’m also an author, engineer, former bikini fitness competitor, and former marathon runner. Holding a B.S and M.S. in Chemical and Biological Engineering from Drexel University, I got my start at DuPont as a chemical engineer for six years before branching out as an entrepreneur with small and mid-size start-up companies in the biotech and nutraceutical industries. Currently, I am the founder and CEO of Gauge Life, LLC., an all-natural dietary supplement company, and the founder and CEO of Gauge Girl Training, an online nutrition and fitness coaching service established in 2013.

What role healthy living plays in my life: Healthy living helps me function at my highest capacity. In my teens and 20s, it used to be all about looking good and obsessing over a number on the scale. It wasn’t until I started weight training, eating according to my macros, and competing in fitness competitions that I learned how much more the human body is capable of with strategic guidance and disciplined habits. As an entrepreneur, healthy living is crucial to keep my energy up to meet the mental demands of growing multiple businesses. When I fall off track, it impacts every area of my life. Eating healthy, working out, and prioritizing self-care keeps me sane and makes me the most productive version of myself and allows me to pour my energy and gifts into others.

Health memberships (and what they cost):

• Retro Fitness — $19 per month, plus $60 per year
• LA Fitness — $34.95 per month

Monday

From team meetings to Instagram Live and YouTube content creation, Hronec spends the majority of her days putting in the work as an entrepreneur. / Photograph courtesy of Christine Hronec.

4:30 a.m. — Wake up, let the puppies out, and prepare myself a 12-ounce black coffee with one scoop of Gauge Life Nutrition collagen peptides. I can’t even begin to function before this happens. After getting the first few sips of coffee in and feeding my two pit bulls, Boss and Cash, I automatically answer my DMs on Instagram and respond to social media comments across YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, and my private Facebook forum. And this is all before 5 o’clock!

5 a.m. — I work my way over to my home gym where I wear my weighted vest, put on a DVD, and do about 60 minutes of fasted cardio walking on an incline.

6 a.m. — Time to shower, do my makeup, and get this Monday started!

9 a.m. — Every Monday and Wednesday, I have a staff meeting via Zoom with my operations, customer service, and team of nutritionists. After, I get myself organized for an entire day of batch filming new YouTube content at least once per week. I aim for a minimum of four new nutrition science videos every week, which typically takes me all day.

9:30 a.m. — Pop on Instagram Live to say what’s up to my followers and share tough love and encouragement with those who need a push.

11 a.m. — I implement intermittent fasting at least three times per week. I love high protein savory meals and prefer leftovers or dinner style meals for breakfast. Today I’m having egg white fried rice with spinach and bacon.

12 p.m. — Pop on YouTube Live to chat about my health goals and provide encouragement for my followers. After, I continue filming YouTube videos.

3 p.m. — I’m hungry! I reheat protein that I batch-cooked over the weekend and serve it with fresh stir-fried veggies and pre-portioned rice. Lately, I’ve been all about cilantro and Tabasco sauce.

4 p.m. — More YouTube content creation, which I expect to take me into the evening.

7 p.m. — Eat dinner of leftover chicken thighs with asparagus, zucchini, and rice.

7:30 p.m. — Pop on Instagram Live again to share announcements with my followers and perform nutrition Q&A.

8 p.m. — Head to Retro Fitness to lift. I can get my workout done in about 45 minutes, but I’ll take my time and add extra stretching and post-workout cardio depending on how stressed I am on a given day (more stress = more cardio to chill out).

9:30 p.m. — Home for the evening. I drink a post-workout shake and answer more DMs.

10 p.m. — Shower time!

10:30 p.m. — Another round of content creation for Instagram, caption ideas, infographics, and newsletter planning.

12 a.m. — Pass out and call it a day.

Daily total: $0

Tuesday

Hronec enjoys a well-rounded dinner from Not Your Average Joe’s. / Photograph by Christine Hronec.

7 a.m. — I wake up and do fasted cardio walking on an incline with a weighted vest for 45 minutes.

8 a.m. — My first long day of coaching calls for the week. I take most of my one-on-one check-in calls with clients on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The calls are done via Zoom or over the phone based on the client’s preference. They are scheduled every 30 minutes with an hour break at noon, and today it looks like I’ll be finishing up around 6:30 p.m. I plan to answer DMs on Instagram between calls.

12 p.m. — Instagram stories check-ins to share client success stories and pop on a live stream. I make a late breakfast (another egg white fried rice with spinach, asparagus, and bacon) and take food pictures for the ‘gram.

4 p.m. — Bi-weekly meeting with my PR Team.

6:30 p.m. — Finally done calls for the day, so I step out for dinner as I’m way too tired to cook. I go to Not Your Average Joe’s in Glen Mills. This place is one of my favorites because of their “Simply Grilled” menu options featuring a generous portion of a protein of your choice (i.e. grilled chicken, steak, salmon, shrimp, or scallops) and two sides. I choose the grilled salmon with roasted Brussels sprouts and jasmine rice on the side, and drink mint tea with lemon and a whole lot of water. ($30)

8:30 p.m. — I’m home for the night, and working on technical content by writing articles for my supplement site regarding the benefits of collagen supplementation for gut health. I send it to my digital media manager to post and blast on the newsletter.

10 p.m. — About to pass out in front of Netflix!

Daily total: $30

Wednesday

For breakfast, Hronec prefers savory over sweet, like this egg white fried rice. Peep the adorable doggo. / Photograph by Christine Hronec.

6 a.m. — Rise and shine! Start the morning with fasted cardio walking on an incline with a weighted vest for 45 minutes.

7 a.m. — I’m showered and cooking some egg white fried rice for breakfast. It’s a competition of who wants it more between me and my dog. In all seriousness, I need to make sure I’m fueled for the next several hours because I’ve got a lot of different tasks to complete.

8 a.m. — Hop on a conference call with my CFO for a strategic planning meeting.

9 a.m. — Team meeting via Zoom.

9:30 a.m. — Switching gears to Instagram Live.

10 a.m. — …and again to publish and promote new YouTube content across all platforms.

10:30 a.m. — I take a short break to start a batch of baked herb chicken thighs so I have some meals for the rest of the week.

10:30 a.m. — I’ve got a whole lineup for this late morning/afternoon: create content, brainstorm and write Instagram captions, research new YouTube video topics, and develop info graphics.

3:30 p.m. — Time to eat! Enjoying those chicken thighs, plus some veggies and rice.

5 p.m. — Off to Retro Fitness for leg day. Ready to feel the burn.

6:30 p.m. — I’m home and whipping up a post-workout shake with one-and-a-half scoops of Gauge Life Nutrition Supplements whey protein isolate in almond milk with strawberries.

7 p.m. — For the next hour or so, I’ve got a VIP group coaching call. This is a weekly group meeting with my VIP elite clients where I lead them through visualizations, ask challenging questions, and get them to engage with one another with their health goals to provide a safe place for them to work on themselves.

8:30 p.m. — Wind down with GaryVee YouTube in the background while answering DMs and responding to social media comments.

11 p.m. — Pass out.

Daily total: $0

Thursday

It’s a busy day of coaching calls! / Photograph by Christine Hronec.

5:30 a.m. — Pretty much the same morning routine as Monday: wake up, let the puppies out, and prepare myself 12 ounces of black coffee with one scoop of Gauge Life Nutrition collagen peptides while filming Insta-stories of myself preparing the coffee. How exciting LOL! I also answer my new DMs on Instagram and respond to social media comments across YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, and my private Facebook forum. This part of the business is always ongoing and can be overwhelming at times, as everyone wants a response immediately and I have to remind myself that my business is not open 24/7, even though the internet believes it is.

6 a.m. — 60 minutes of fasted cardio walking on an incline with my weighted vest in my home gym.

7 a.m. — Make a Gauge Life vanilla shake in almond milk and mixed berries.

7:45 a.m. — My second long day of coaching calls, but today is my busiest. I’ll be going until 6:30 p.m. Again, they are scheduled every 30 minutes with an hour break at noon. I answer DMs on Instagram between calls and communicate with my team to help me with follow-up adjustments and requests.

12 p.m. — Quick BIG lunch of two leftover chicken thighs with sautéed Brussels sprouts and a large serving of rice with Tabasco. This is a super easy, super cheap meal. When I’m busy, I need SIMPLE.

6:30 p.m. — Finally done for the day. I need a little time to decompress before hitting the gym.

8 p.m. — Quick back and biceps workout at Retro.

8:50 p.m. — Post-workout Gauge Life vanilla shake in almond milk and mixed berries. What  can I say? I like what I like.

9:30 p.m. — Wind down with Netflix in the background while responding to comments across social.

11 p.m. — Goodnight!

Daily total: $0

Friday

Hronec uses Gauge Life vanilla whey protein in her post-workout shakes. / Photograph by Christine Hronec.

7:30 a.m. — TGIF! The usual morning routine: puppies out, 12-ounce black coffee with a scoop of Gauge Life Nutrition collagen peptides, and respond to comments on social. This is my life!

8:30 a.m. — Fasted cardio in my home gym to get this day rolling.

9:30 a.m. — I write content for my newsletter, which will be sent out as an email blast soon.

11 a.m. — Late breakfast (this time is leftover chicken thighs with stir fried mushrooms and spinach with rice) and film a full day of eating for YouTube, showing exactly what I consume throughout the day.

12 p.m. — Weekly meeting with my mentor/coach. I’ve been working with a mentor to support my career goals with guided training. It’s been a life-changing investment and my only regret is that I didn’t hire this level of professional help sooner. As an entrepreneur, it’s easy to feel lost!

1 p.m. — All afternoon, I’ll be working on an upcoming project that will be launched later this year. It’s a secret, and my lips are sealed!

6:30 p.m. — Done for the day! Simple dinner of reheated leftovers that I meal prepped earlier in the week.

8 p.m. — Wind down for the evening, while still working on the computer. It never ends…

1 a.m. — Where did the time go and how am I still awake?! Goodnight!

Daily total: $0

Weekly totals

Money spent: $30
Workouts completed: Eight
Hours spent promoting on social: The world may never know…

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