SUGAR OVERDOSE!!!!

Just click on this link and look for yourself. There are no words besides....HOLY COW!! 

...Death by sugar cubes...

Bursting the Fast Food Bubble

Switching to eating whole foods from processed foods was tough at first but then became easier and easier. Do not give up, I will say this in every post, it didn't happen over night. Change takes time. 

Fast food is fast, convenient, cheap, and so completely unhealthy for you. Do you ever notice the more fast food you eat the hungrier you are? In fast food meals there aren't a good source of protein so basically you are just eating carbs which break down to sugar at a rapid pace. For me, I would feel so full for about an hour and then be just as starving as I was before I ate the burger and fries. In my mind, I felt that if I ate bad one day, I would wake up the next day and work out and counteract what I ate. FALSE. The amount of exercise I actually needed to burn the calories I was eating wasn't even close to the amount I was doing in a week. 

Thanks to my Gold's Gym App, you can type in what you eat and see how much exercise you need to do to burn the calories. 

Here are few examples...

I put 3 because who can just eat 1 piece of sausage?

 Now in case, you do decide you just can't go without a Philly cheese steak, now you know what you should be adding to your work out routine. 

There is also this wonderful Fast Food App that has every fast food place listed and their calories, fat grams, and carbs. This app is amazing. 

One look at it and my craving goes away and I am turning to fruit, veggies, or a hard boiled egg. Once you truly take processed food out of your diet, you don't want them. Take it from me, I never thought that I would be satisfied with a breakfast of a hard boiled egg and 3 strawberries (in fact, I laughed in my nutritionist's face when he told me that SHOULD be a substantial breakfast for someone with my size frame) and now I eat that for breakfast at least 3 times a week. 

So now, that I've showed you my secret to avoiding fast food, here is what I turn to for motivation when it is cold outside and my couch is just too comfortable.

FACT.

Then when all else fails....

Summer is right around the corner :) 

Articles

Funny and interesting articles I've come across...

25. Fact: Thinking about the gym burns between 0 and 0 calories.

Sample Lunch and Dinner

I had tilapia, brussel sprouts, and strawberries for dinner. Super easy and delicious!

I seasoned the tilapia with red pepper flakes, salt, pepper, and extra-virgin olive oil and baked it at 375 degrees for 12 minutes.

 The brussel sprouts are the Trader Joe's microwavable kind. First, microwave them for 2-3 minutes and then broil them for 15 minutes to give them an extra crunch. I seasoned the brussel sprouts with salt, pepper, and again extra-virgin olive oil.

BOOM. Delicious dinner in 20 minutes. I added strawberries for color and I needed a fruit!


For lunch this week, I went ahead and made salad for Monday and Tuesday. Simple spinach salad with tomato, cucumber, and 2 hard boiled eggs. I put the extra veggies in bags for snacks throughout the week. 

For dressing, I mix extra-virgin olive oil and balsamic vinaigrette. 

Water does the body good

FYI....9 reasons to drink more water! 

Weight loss
Water is one of the best tools for weight loss, first of all because it often replaces high-calorie drinks like soda and juice and alcohol with a drink that doesn't have any calories. But it's also a great appetite suppressant, and often when we think we're hungry, we're actually just thirsty. Water has no fat, no calories, no carbs, no sugar. Drink plenty to help your weight-loss regimen.

Heart healthy
Drinking a good amount of water could lower your risks of a heart attack. A six-year study published in the May 1, 2002 American Journal of Epidemiology found that those who drink more than 5 glasses of water a day were 41% less likely to die from a heart attack during the study period than those who drank less than two glasses.

Energy
Being dehydrated can sap your energy and make you feel tired -- even mild dehydration of as little as 1 or 2 percent of your body weight. If you're thirsty, you're already dehydrated -- and this can lead to fatigue, muscle weakness, dizziness and other symptoms.

Headache cure
Another symptom of dehydration is headaches. In fact, often when we have headaches it's simply a matter of not drinking enough water. There are lots of other causes of headaches of course, but dehydration is a common one.

Healthy skin
Drinking water can clear up your skin and people often report a healthy glow after drinking water. It won't happen overnight, of course, but just a week of drinking a healthy amount of water can have good effects on your skin.

Digestive problems
Our digestive systems need a good amount of water to digest food properly. Often water can help cure stomach acid problems, and water along with fiber can cure constipation (often a result of dehydration).

Cleansing
Water is used by the body to help flush out toxins and waste products from the body.

Cancer risk
Related to the digestive system item above, drinking a healthy amount of water has also been found to reduce the risk of colon cancer by 45%. Drinking lots of water can also reduce the risk of bladder cancer by 50% and potentially reduce the risk of breast cancer.

Better exercise
Being dehydrated can severely hamper your athletic activities, slowing you down and making it harder to lift weights. Exercise requires additional water, so be sure to hydrate before, during and after exercise.

Words of Wisdom

If you are serious about weight loss, here are a few of my tips: 

1. Have a STRONG support system. I am blessed with an amazing family, bestfriends, and boyfriend. You are going to need them for encouragement, motivation, suggestions, and reinforcement. 

2. Let everyone around you know what's going on. Let them know what you are and aren't eating. This way, they won't offer you pizza or a cupcake.

3. Get a food journal. IF YOU EAT IT-WRITE IT DOWN.

4. Get a scale. I know exactly what I weigh down to the ounce and I will know that for the rest of my life. Once I get in the maintenance phase, if I see my weight go up, I will know I need to add more protein in my diet or do a little extra cardio that day.

5. Cook in bulk. Make a ton of chicken, turkey burgers, hard-boiled eggs etc on Sunday and have them handy throughout the week so when you are scrambling for lunch you can reach for your already made lunch instead of running through the Wendy's drive thru for nuggets (my weakness).

6. BE REALISTIC. There are certain things I will never give up. For instance, Chipotle and Starbucks are non-negotiable. They will always be in my diet. Now, instead of a burrito and Caramel Latte, I get a chicken salad with lettuce, tomatoes, and guacamole (no cheese or sour cream) and a Soy Latte. 

7. Have a workout buddy. I am very fortunate to have several gym buddies and it makes a huge difference. It's very hard to get out of my comfy bed at 5:45am but if I know I have to meet my girlfriends at the gym it's more motivation for me.

8. Get a hobby. I have found that the busier I am, the less I snack. I used to eat when I was bored and when I wasn't hungry. Now, I ask myself my Snack Attack questions and usually I'm fine with drinking water and eating some almonds.

That's all for now...I can't give all of my advice away yet! :) 

Simple Snacks

iPhone's are great for MANY reasons; however, one of my favorite things is the fact that you can take a picture of ANYTHING! Even if it's on my own phone! These are three pictures that I look at ALL the time! When I'm hungry, when I'm grocery shopping, and especially when....I'm....bored. 

Sounds corny, but seriously, it's legit. 

You...are...welcome....

This list has answered SO many questions.