Thanksgiving is upon us, which usually includes an abundant amount of delicious meals for our families to gather around. While the food may be delicious this time of year, it is most certainly not the healthiest. Make sure you make your holiday meals are the healthiest you while still having fun by following these basic tips: Continue reading “5 Healthy Thanksgiving Traditions”
There are many types of fats coming from varying sources of which media makes claims to their benefits being positive or negative. Contrary to what you hear or may believe, not all fats are bad. We need fat in our diet in order to remain healthy and function properly. Here are the main types of fats and what you should know about them: Continue reading “Nutrition 101: Fat Types & Their Sources”
In today’s go-go-go world, coupled with the constant sense of instant gratification, raising a healthy and fit family can be challenging. I often get asked, “How do you and your wife have time and energy for yourselves? How did you get your daughter to do this and eat that?” The answer to these questions is actually very simple: Discipline. While discipline is not something that comes easily to everyone, there are many reasons and actions you can take to encourage your child to live a healthy lifestyle. Continue reading “Raising a Fit Family”
No matter what your physical goal is, preparation is key in order to stay on track and progress from the efforts you have already put in. You won’t go on a 10-day vacation without being prepared by taking the days off work, kenneling your dog, packing clothes and other items, right? So why do we think allowing ourselves to be unprepared for our day will yield success? Continue reading “Food Preparation: It’s Easier Than You Think”
There are always going to be times when we are either just hanging out at the house, on our rest days, or busy running errands and traveling. In those times we need to be prepared to make sure that we stay on track with our food. It’s easy to forget because we get so busy, and our stomachs start rumbling. Then we’re in trouble. We want to grab anything and everything in sight just to satisfy our hunger and typically it’s not the greatest choice.
Having unhealthy options in the house is one of the most dangerous things because they are readily available and typically don’t need to be cooked or microwaved. They’re easy to just pop into our mouths and then ten minutes later, after we’ve almost devoured the entire bag of whatever it is, we feel completely guilty and either keep going or do it all over again later. There are ways around that with better options. All it takes a small amount of time right after you get home from the grocery store.
When shopping for healthy snacking options, pick snacks like deli meats, veggies, or nuts. All of these options can be easily packed into grab-n-go bags and taken from the fridge or cabinet to snack on. When you get home from the grocery store, take all of your snack items out and split them up to their proper portion sizes into baggies and containers. This strategy is so you don’t end up eating the whole bag of those too. You won’t have to worry about what you have in the house to snack on because you will already know what you’ve prepared ahead of time. No thinking involved! Just remember to keep track of how much you’re eating to avoid mindless eating.
When you’re on the go, make sure to have snacks that don’t need refrigeration. Nuts including pecans, macadamias, walnuts, almonds are all great choices; as well as fruit, dried fruit, seeds, and some types of jerky. The options are endless! Snacks don’t need to be boring. Making healthy trail mixes are a great way to change things up or roasting nuts like chickpeas.
There are many healthy snacking options out there that are easily accessible. Look snack recipes up online or ask a friend or co-worker for their favorite snack. Researching new ideas is an easy, fun way to find your new favorite, easy snack.
Now that we are through the holidays with all of the cookie baking and comfort foods, let’s get back on track. Kicking bad eating habits can be a difficult task, but so rewarding. Even if you are someone who is trying to begin eating healthy, these tips will work for you as well.
Take a look at everything that you are eating. Does it seem healthy to you? How many sugary items are you consuming in a day? How does your body feel? Are you reaching your goals by eating this way or has nothing changed? Whether it’s foods filled with sugar, salt, or fat, it can be managed. These questions will show you what needs to be taken out of your daily food intake or just changed to a healthier option. Continue reading “Kick Those Bad Eating Habits”
Determining carb, fat and protein intake to achieve fat loss can be overwhelming at first. However, once you’re in the habit of macro tracking and you understand how to position meals around workouts, it gets easier to see results for gaining mass or getting lean. Logging food provides structure to nutrition plans—especially when changes need to be made to meet your goals. Continue reading “Determining Carb, Fat, & Protein Intake for Fat Loss”
“Fat burning foods” are all over the media and it all sounds so simple: if you eat these foods, your body will burn fat. If this were the case one could continue any fitness regimen or none at all, ingest these foods and still lose fat. As much as we all would love this quick and easy fix, that’s not the case. Continue reading ““Fat Burning Foods”: Fact or Myth?”
There’s no mistake: protein is good for us and we need it to function properly. However, there are some myths surrounding this necessary nutrient. Continue reading “4 Protein Myths Debunked”