Health and Fitness

Hey! You thought I forgot about this. Nope. It sits at the back of my mind all the time about how I should keep posting. Today won't be about make up, but rather health and fitness so you feel beautiful on the inside. I used to play tennis for my school so during every season I would lose weight and feel fantastic, but once the season ended I would start to gain it back; not this time though. Last January I started to feel extra chubby, so I was thankful that tennis season was about to start. But I didn't want to wait until then to start my weight loss. I also recently purchased a fancy phone (the iPhone) that has helped me dramatically in staying fit and feeling great!! So I thought that today I'd share with you the things I use to help me stay healthy:

I downloaded a couple of apps that have seriously changed my life! The best thing about both of them is that they are absolutely free!! It shocks me that they have so much to offer with no charge. You may have heard of them before, but I cannot recommend them enough
        My Fitness Pal: This is a calorie counter that tracks what you eat. It sounds simple, but this is genius. You put in how much you weigh and how much you want to weigh along with your height, gender, and age. it then calculates how many calories you should be eating a day to reach your goal. When you eat, you enter your food in to the counter (you look up what you ate or you can scan the bar-code with your phone!) and when you exercise it takes off the calories you burned, so then you can eat more. This helped me SO much because it showed me how much I should be eating and made me aware of portion so I wouldn't over eat. You can also see what you eat and make modifications to your diet, like if you need to be eating more protein or more produce.
       Nike Workout Trainer: This is what I workout with a lot. I do belong to a gym but sometimes I'm just so bored with the elliptical and treadmill I can't even look at them. This app allows you to choose your fitness goal (slim down, tone up, get strong, or a quick focused workout) and your fitness level. Don't be fooled, these workouts make you SWEAT and I'm usually sore the next day. This app will never tell you to run for 10 minutes but rather have you do moves that involve the whole body. A lady guides you through a work out and there are videos of the moves to teach you each one, and there is a pause button (which I always have to hit at least once).


Besides these two apps, I try my best to eat healthy, but reasonably. I am a normal person and any one of my friends will tell you I love my mozzarella sticks or a cupcake. because life would be no fun if you deprived your self of yummy things. But I do make conscious decisions about what I eat. I'm always on the look out for things to add to my diet that have maximum impact for my health. Be real with yourself when setting limits about what you eat. For me, I don't eat meat except seafood and I watch my carb and protein intake, but it won't stop me from ordering a pasta dish while out, I just ask for extra veggies in it.
What is new to me is this green smoothie craze. I tried it though it looks beyond gross to me. I make them here at home and I put it in an opaque container so I can't see that it is green.

Here is my favorite recipe of the moment:

I use a magic bullet blender and just make it in one of the cups.

4 chunks of mango (the orange pigment in foods are extra good for you, or so 'the Drs' show told me)

3-4 strawberries

hand full of pineapple

teaspoon of chia seeds (good source of fiber, some protein, omega 3s and 6s, calcium, iron. these babies are a super food!)

teaspoon of coconut oil (so good for your skin and to help keep your body hydrated; and adds a tropical flair!)

lime juice from half a lime (to help cover the leafy taste)

hand full of Power Greens, from Trader Joe's (includes Kale, Chard, and Spinach. the most nutrients in any greens)

a vial of royal jelly (this adds sweetness as well as being a super food packed with just about everything. It helps with keeping the brain healthy and growing)

water to the top after adding everything.

Whip all that stuff together and your in the Bahamas and feeding your body so much good stuff. It does turn out green, but the fruit and royal jelly do a prime job covering that taste so all your tasting is tropical goodness!!