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Habits Over Diets
Hey!
I'm Joanna Lopez, aka Coach JoLo —
A Personal Trainer, Nutrition Coach, and Habit-Based Weight Loss Coach for women over 40 who want to get leaner, stronger, and feel at home in their bodies again.
After 20 years in the wellness industry, I’ve learned that lasting change doesn’t come from extreme diets or perfect plans. It comes from building simple, steady habits that feel good and that actually fit your real life.
WORK
After graduating from McGill University and Humber College, I spent 10 years working in corporate marketing and PR. But I always felt pulled toward something more meaningful — work where I could make a real difference in someone’s life.
At 30, my mom and I opened two Curves Fitness & Weight Loss Centres for women, which we ran for 10 years. That experience confirmed what I already knew: helping women transform their fitness, health, wellbeing and confidence is the work I was meant to do.
Sitting at the reception desk in one of our 2 Curves Fitness & Weight Loss Centres.
I was around 32 years old in these pictures. Over 20 years ago. Mamma mia!
During a fun event day, posing with member, Karen, while I coached her on our Glute Kickback machine.
It’s my PASSION to help women feel their best
I love love love looooove witnessing transformations,
and hearing women tell me how happy they are to:
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Lose weight and keep it off
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Tone up
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Feel stronger
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Feel amazing
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Lower stress and anxiety significantly
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Decrease osteoporosis
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Cure their joint pain
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Lower blood pressure
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Reverse type 2 diabetes
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Fit into fav clothes they hadn’t fit into in years
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Feel more confident in all areas of their life
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And so on!
Education and Training
Personal Trainer
– CanFitPro*
Precision Nutrition Coach
- Precision Nutrition
Fitness Group Instructor
– CanFitPro*
Resist-A-Ball C.O.R.E. Course
– CanFitPro*
Zumba
CPR
Bachelor of Commerce
– McGill University
Public Relations Post-Graduate Certificate
– Humber College
*Canadian Fitness Professionals is the largest provider of education in the Canadian fitness industry.
FAMILY
Here's my family of 4 - Cameron and my 2 kids, Evan and Isabel. Although Cam and I are now separated, we're still great friends and are committed to maintaining a loving family. Yup, I'm the photo bomber trying to be cool in front of my kids. I actually look like the Joker from Batman but oh, well. Sometimes I go all out to look good and sometimes I don't, and that's ok! This photo is from 2019 and my kids are now 22 and 19 so I'll update the photo soon!
2019 - Blue Lagoon, Iceland
Sporting the white clay mask to “rejuvenate our skin.” Soft as a baby’s bottom, I tell ya ;)
My Own Healing Journey
In the summer of 2022, I experienced emotional burnout that forced me to step back from work and life for a while. It was the result of several things coming together at once — the lingering stress of the COVID years, entering menopause, watching my daughter go through her first heartbreak, and my son leaving for university. At the same time, I realized I had been carrying decades of emotional weight I hadn’t fully processed.
For most of my life, I had been “the strong one” — the caretaker, the fixer, the person who put everyone else’s needs ahead of my own.
That season of burnout pushed me to finally do deeper personal work. Through therapy, plant medicine ceremonies, and ultimately completing the Hoffman Process in October 2025, I began to understand and release some of the patterns and beliefs I had carried since childhood. The Hoffman Process is an immersive program that helps people identify and break negative emotional patterns inherited early in life. The experience was profound for me. It helped me move from self-criticism and old resentment toward compassion — both for my parents and for myself.
That journey didn’t just change how I live my life; it changed how I coach. Today I help women approach their health and habits with curiosity and compassion instead of shame — because lasting change never comes from beating ourselves up. It comes from learning, growing, and moving forward steadily. And like everyone else, I’m still learning and growing every day.
RANDOM FACTS ABOUT ME
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I have an older sister named Vanessa who is a Psychotherapist, and an older brother named Alex who is a Tech Genius. I’m lucky to have them.
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Dancing isn’t just something I do; it’s my happy medicine. Whether it’s salsa in my kitchen, disco in my living room, or shaking it out between coaching calls, dance is my not-so-secret sauce for staying joyful and sane. Yes, even in a public place like a store where people look at me funny when I like the song they're playing, I bust a move to try and make my friends laugh.
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I was born in Venezuela and moved to Canada at age 11.
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With a Venezuelan father and a Newfie (Newfoundland, Canada) mom, I'm always looking for the next laugh (telling jokes is a favourite past time of both these cultures). Got any jokes for me?
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I believe life is better with rainbows, chocolate chip cookies, and a sprinkle of confetti. I’m serious about science-backed weight loss, but I’m also serious about not taking life too seriously, always finding ways to laugh even while we struggle.
MY ROAD TO WEIGHT LOSS
When my youngest was almost 4, I was finally ready to lose the 15 lbs I still carried after my 2nd pregnancy.
Simple? Yes.
Easy? No.
I kept at it — relentlessly — until I reached my goal.
The first thing I started to do was exercise regularly ...youtube workouts, walking and biking. I felt amazing.
But I didn’t lose any weight...
Before - 40 years old
Because I focused too much on exercise at first
SO HERE'S WHAT I DID TO LOSE THE 15 LBS:
01.
I made sleep a priority (so less TV at night), and kept the 3pm sugar/carb cravings (mostly) in control. I allowed myself a 100 calorie non-fruit “treat” when I couldn’t control my cravings.
04.
I kept picturing myself strong and toned
I got past the guilt of letting my kids watch TV in the weekend mornings so I could sleep in, and letting them watch TV on weekdays while I cooked a fresh meal for the family.
02.
05.
I weighed myself weekly and didn't let the number on the scale determine my worth. It was just data to measure progress.
I worked out 3x a week for 30-60 minutes, to strengthen my heart and my body. My house was often messy and family members helped with the kids when needed.
03.
06.
I walked 4 kms, 5 days a week (walking kids to and from school).
07.
I followed a diet where I restricted carbs(but this was a bad idea - see why below), tracking my food on the MyFitnessPal app so I was 100% aware of what was going into my body.
BUT I’m going to admit here that when I lost the weight I knew a lot about fitness but limited science-driven nutrition for weight loss, so I focused too much on exercise and following a strict diet where I focused too much on cutting out carbs, and I love carbs!
I lost the weight in 12 weeks, but I struggled to stay at my healthy weight because I felt restricted and tired all the time. I didn’t have a simple and healthy nutrition plan in place along with my exercise habits to maintain my weight loss easily.
Enter Precision Nutrition.
I took the year-long certification and became a certified Nutrition Coach by the world's no. 1 most recommended Nutrition Certification, Precision Nutrition. It’s no. 1 because it’s founded and run by Nutrition Science PHD graduates. That certification set me on the path of diving deep into scientific research and journals for all things related to weight loss. I spent hours and hours the last few years doing this research, which included behavioural psychology on how to help people improve their relationship with food in order to control cravings and stop overeating.
So as I became both an expert in research-driven fitness and nutrition, I discovered what I was missing for scientifically proven weight loss and easy maintenance, and it isn't cutting out carbs, any restrictive dieting or long extreme workouts.
Based on some of Precision Nutrition’s and other scientific findings...
HERE'S WHAT I DO NOW
TO KEEP THE WEIGHT OFF,
FEEL AWESOME,
STRONG AND
HEALTHY:
Now - over 50
I still make sleep a priority. Within an hour of lights out: No TV , no reading that stimulates my mind like the news, no social media scrolling, no eating a heavy meal, no sugar or salt in excess at dinner or after dinner. My bedroom is also for just sleep no TV or working in bed.
I follow an easy hand portion control system following the Mediterranean Diet principles that includes ALL food groups, so I know what to eat, including carbs, at every meal! I learned how to eat slowly and mindfully until I'm 80% full. I allow myself a 100 calorie daily treat(dark chocolate) to keep my sugar cravings in control.
I weigh myself regularly(every 1 to 2 weeks) or when I know I have overeaten at a restaurant or gathering; and when my weight goes up by 1-3 lbs, I reverse small weight gains by eating SUPER healthy for 1-3 days - using the super easy hand measurement portion control system.
To decrease brain fog, increase energy and improve mood, I added the following 4 habits, which reduce my glucose spikes: 1) If possible, I eat my veggies first, then proteins/fat and last carbs 2) If I can't eat my veggies first or for a carb heavy meal such as a plate of pasta, I dilute a TBSP of apple cider vinegar in a glass of water and drink it 5-10 minutes before the meal. 3) I never eat anything sweet on its own(including fruit). I always pair it with a fat or protein. 4) I eat a savoury breakfast or add fruit just for flavour. I switched to Green Tea in the morning because I like my coffee sweet(one day I'll train my pallet for black coffee!). If I do have coffee, I stopped adding sugar and instead use Splenda.
I reach 7,500+ steps on most day so I burn extra calories as I eat ‘em.
I work out for 30-60 minutes 2-3x per week. My workouts are always total body so they include cardio, strength training and cool down. That way I look after my heart AND build muscle to look and feel toned.
I take Vitamin D and calcium daily