Rachel Avey • Strength & Wellness

08/03/2026

I don’t even know how to start this one. My town is burning. 70,000+ people displaced. 650+ structures gone, and that number keeps climbing by the hour. 8,000 acres. 0% contained.

Right now my house is still standing. I know how lucky that makes me, and I don’t take it for granted for one single second. But it could change in a moment, and that reality is sitting heavy on my chest.

My heart is shattered for every family who’s lost everything. This isn’t a headline to me, this is my neighbors, my community, people I know. Please hold this town in your prayers tonight.

🙏 🔥

07/27/2026

I haven’t posted a workout in about 5 weeks, and I want to be honest about why.

I have PMDD (Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder). It’s not just “bad PMS.” It’s a hormone sensitivity disorder where the normal rise and fall of estrogen and progesterone in my cycle triggers real physical and mental symptoms. Bloating that makes me look pregnant. Skin flares. Exhaustion that no amount of sleep fixes. Mood shifts that feel completely out of my control. This last cycle hit me especially hard, and it collided with a medication adjustment, which made everything louder.

I’m sharing this because PMDD affects an estimated 5-8% of women in their reproductive years, and most of us go years without a name for what we’re feeling. I want you to know that if your body does things that feel confusing or extreme around your cycle, you are not crazy and you are not alone.

Here’s my plan going forward. I’m working closely with my provider on management. I’m adjusting my diet to support my hormones (more fiber, smaller meals, less caffeine). And I’m giving myself permission to rest when my body needs it, not just push through.

Salt & Steel isn’t going anywhere. I’m just doing this the honest way, the hard weeks included. Back in the gym soon.

06/02/2026

body dysmorphia and a caffeine addiction walk into a gym… and somehow she’s still showing up 💀

06/02/2026

06/02/2026

Monday lower day is done and logged. Back squats, RDLs, hip thrusts, step ups, kickbacks, hip abductions, pullovers — all from my home gym on my own program. Week 1 of Salt & Steel is underway 🌊🏋️‍♀️

05/30/2026

3 babies in 5 years and I’m out here doing 21s 🔥

leg day
no excuses
pump it up

05/29/2026

the day nobody talks about.

not the heavy lifts. not the burnout sets. this — the slow work. single leg RDLs, lunges, dead bugs. the session that actually keeps you in the game long term.

control before load. always.

salt & steel 🌊

05/27/2026

the window between drop-off and the rest of the day is mine.

no audience. just the work, the weights, and whatever’s playing in my headphones. this is what week one of a new cycle looks like — upper body, intentional, not rushed.

building something slow. building something real.

salt & steel 🤍

05/15/2026

I just did 10 pushups. Three sets of them.
For the first time in my life.
If you can do 10 pushups you’re stronger than 53% of Americans. I just became one of them.
45 weeks of consistent training built this. It’s never just about the glutes. 🍑

05/14/2026

2.5 years postpartum. Stronger than I’ve ever been.

3 babies in 5 years. My body went through everything.

And then I said, watch this.
If you’re on a health journey, postpartum or otherwise, it’s not about how fast you get there. It’s about not stopping.

You’re not behind. You’re just still going. 🍑