(This photo is not me, just to get my point across)
Its finally spring, and today the sun was shining and I decided to do what I felt like doing and what was good for my body. I was certainly in need of a day where I was commitment free. It is finally spring break and I still have been busy... every once in awhile we just need a break. REST is IMPORTANT!
After waking up and eating an egg on a spinach-potato pancake, I decided to be productive and straighten up the kitchen a bit, and do a little organizing. That simple task along with the inspiring fresh spring sunshine made me feel like I wanted to accomplish something for myself so I decided to go on a bike ride from my house to the local coffee shop on the water. I started off calling friends to see if someone would go with me, but decided I would just go enjoy the weather on my own. After relaxing and drinking my coffee I continued to ride on to the grocery store and then just did a big loop back towards my house. It felt good to get grocery shopping done (although for some reason I enjoy wandering through the store), get some exercise and fresh air, and just have a day to enjoy my own company being out and about.
I got home and made some light calamari marinara, it was delicious. I spent a few minutes relaxing and eventually got back on my bike and headed for the gym. After a workout with my good friend, I rode home and made a tofu and veggie satay with a lightened up version of peanut sauce. I finished my day with a relaxing bath.
The point of my narrative of my activities today isn't to give you a play by play of my day, but just wanting to emphasize that every once in awhile you should dedicate a day to doing things that make you feel good about yourself. While the things I did today may seem simple and none of it was overly exciting, I was able to reflect on my day and feel like I was healthy and happy. Right now I feel relaxed and good about my health! After spending a week forcing myself to go to the gym and dreading my workouts, a refreshing new angle to help me enjoy fitness once again was miraculous.
Different things work for different people, some people (which may even include myself on the right days...) would doing most of the things in the day I just described. It goes to show that having a positive attitude and where you focus your attention has a major impact on how your daily life can go! Find something that makes you feel positive and have an optimistic outlook on the day. I blame the newly appearing spring sunshine for my relaxed positivity :)
It seems that a likely overused excuse as to why many of us don't eat healthy is that we don't have time. People say things like "I didn't have time to cook... so I went through the drive-thru". I'm glad these people aren't starving themselves, but I have found the best way to keep on track to reaching your nutritional goals is to plan ahead.
Ideally you should make yourself a bunch of small meals all at once that will last you the next few days. Tupperware is probably one of my favorite kitchen gadgets and makes it easy to bring things anywhere and pre-portion them, though there are a variety of coolers and containers that serve the same purpose.
Another benefit of prepping meals ahead of time is that you always have food with you right when you feel hungry.
Also, you will likely be saving money due to the fact that you aren't eating take-out all the time.
Here are ideas of some healthy options you could make meals out of, some meet individual needs differently than others:
Grill chicken breast or tofu in batches you can measure out portions and combine to make a meal (here are some examples:
put on salad (with balsamic, salsa, or other light healthy dressing)
mix with rice and veggies
Make a large batch of rice, quinoa, etc that you can take portions from for the week
Chop veggies ahead of time and store them in containers for easy prep or for snacks
Fruit is a good portable snack, just don't overdo it
Dry oatmeal with raisins and pumpkin pie spice- if you have a way to get hot water/cook it where you are going
Protein bars and shakes
Hard boiled eggs/egg whites
Try my easy Jazzy Bean Salad Recipe
Jazzy Bean Salad
This quick and easy salad is great for a pot luck, or just a snack. Its full of protein and contains some good fats.
1 15oz. can garbanzo beans
½-1 can black beans
½ can kidney beans (optional)
1 cup cooked, shelled edamame
½ cup corn kernels removed from cob or cooked from frozen
1/3 cup diced red onion, finely chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
Combine all ingredients in large bowl. Allow ingredient flavors to combine for a few hours more flavor.
These options are just a few of the many ways to bring "clean eating" food with you wherever you go. Remember: "Failure to prepare, is preparing to fail"...
So I just came up with a recipe I feel is slightly out of the box, and it has a good balance of complex carbohydrates, lean protein, and a small amount of fat. The seasonings and spices can certainly be changed up, but these Tuna burgers with whole wheat couscous are very flavorful and don't even need a bun! Hope you like them.
Spicy Couscous Tuna Burgers
·5 oz can of tuna (canned in water, drained)
·1 egg white
·2 tbsp dry whole wheat couscous
·3 tbsp boiling water
·1 tsp garlic powder
·½ tsp spicy curry powder
·Red pepper flakes and black pepper to taste
·½ cup spinach
·1 oz low fat white cheese
·¼ cup minced onion
Boil water and prepare dry couscous with garlic in bowl ready to cover. Once water comes to a boil pour over couscous and cover. Let sit for about 3-5 minutes and fluff with a fork.
Meanwhile, mix can of drained tuna with curry powder, pepper flakes, pepper, 1 tsp of grated cheese, onion, and egg white. Combine mixture with couscous once couscous is done.
Heat a skillet (sprayed) over med-high heat. Form 4 patties out of tuna mix and grill until browned on both sides. Finish the patty by melting the cheese on top. Serve on a bed of spinach. Enjoy!
*Note this photo is not actual recipe, just an idea of what a plate of these may look like.
Many of us out there like to drink things. Whether it be something comforting and warm, something cool and refreshing, something sweet, something bubbly, or something with a little extra strong kick in it, most of these things are unfortunately full of empty calories. Alcohol suppresses fat oxidation and adds unnecessary calories to the diet.
Drinking a giant glass of juice, a liter of soda, or even a mocha is something many people do without thinking each and every day, not realizing that even if what they are drinking isn't filling them up, its still adding on the calories. Even if you are one of those people who doesn't care about calories and isn't concerned about gaining weight etc, many of these beverages are actually full of sugar and not exactly healthy for us.
Speaking of unhealthy habits...
This is the last thing you probably want to hear, and being a college student, I realize it is somewhat hard to avoid, but drinking alcohol really overall isn't going to help your health. Obviously no one thinks of alcohol as a healthy thing, but people out there tend to not take the effects into long term consideration. The other day someone asked me why I don't just drink vodka instead of passing on alcohol, because "vodka is clear" it has no calories".... yeah clearly they were uneducated, because vodka has roughly 100 calories per shot. Like I said before those are empty calories, because they don't provide your body with nutrients to use, and don't fill you up. I am not suggesting that you go become antisocial and never have a drink again, be realistic about your life, but keep your health in perspective, even if you are at an age where it seems like you are invincible. If I had to choose an alcoholic beverage that is "better" when dieting, I would probably say some form of a red wine lower in sugars. Obviously moderation is key as well here. If you aren't a wine drinker, try calorie free seltzer with a little vodka or something, maybe with a twist of a citrus fruit in it. Dark beers, mixed drinks, and dessert drinks are probably the worst for you often loaded with sugar, syrup, and artificial ingredients. Here's a corny video of a lady making a "healthy cocktail" but you get the point from it...:
Regularly drinking soft drinks may not be the cause of obesity alone, but it is definitely a contributing factor to an unhealthy diet. I get it, soda is sweet, gives you the idea of being thirst quenching, generally inexpensive and conveniently located just about everywhere. However keep in mind, one bottle of soda from the vending machine has about 180 calories in it. Sugary ones that damage your teeth, weaken your bones, lead to diseases (such as diabetes), kidney/liver/digestive system damage, heartburn, increased blood pressure, dehydration, toxin chemicals etc. There are so many healthy alternatives out there to soda, so it might be a good resolution to try to kick the habit if you are a regular soda drinker.
Another thing people may not realize is how much sugar other beverages contain. Many chocolate milks seem like a healthier option, yet some of them contain the same sugar content and more fat than the soda just discussed. It is nice that milk actually has some nutritional value, but as an alternative, I would recommend adding your own bittersweet dark chocolate to milk without all the sugar. On a similar level, 100 percent fruit juice isn't bad for you, its definitely got its vitamins and nutritional value, but it is much more beneficial to eat a piece of fruit than drink a glass of juice. Not only do you feel more satisfied, but the fruit is in a purer form and has less calories and more fiber.
As far as many of the no-calorie drinks go, it is nice that they don't have calories obviously, and there is some benefit to that if you are trying to watch calories. The biggest issue here is that almost all of these types of beverages are made with the chemical aspartame, which is an artificial sweetener like you might find in those little pink sweet-n-low packets you see when getting coffee at a diner. If you must have artificial/chemical sweeteners, I would recommend looking for things made with splenda, which is made with sucrolose a less harmful chemical, or better yet something more natural like stevia.
Your best bet is to stick to good old H20! You can and should always load up on plenty of water every day because there is tonsss of benefits and not too many risks of water drinking here in the US. Drinking plenty of water may actually have side effect to aid you in weight loss. Herbal tea is a good alternative if you want something warm, and as I previously said nonfat milk and 100 percent juice are good as long as you are watching your serving sizes. Obviously not everyone can follow this, some of us like myself are coffee drinkers (try switching to black coffee and only using a small splash of nonfat to save some calories!) and some have other vices. The message here is just be informed of what you are drinking and think about the effects on your body. Doing this and cutting out many unnecessary beverages and calories in them may save you pounds!
Also heres a great compliment of ideas of new fitness things to do this month. (I tried the most random... geocaching with a friend... it was actually lots of fun!) http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/calendar_2009_fun_fitness_ideas.pdf
