Take Fitness on Vacation

Just because we go on vacation doesn't mean we should toss fitness out the window. It's important to keep up some physical activity and healthy eating during vacay. What if we're enjoying an extended month vacation? Eating completely off track and halting our workouts would result in fat gain, some muscle atrophy and feeling like crap.


We would not be happy with ourselves especially if fitness is our lifestyle. Besides, we're not taking a vacation from our health and fitness. Time off means stepping away from our daily work routine. It's a time to relax, forget about time clocks, and breathe in some freedom from everyday stress.

Vacations are not for the purpose of binge eating and moving like a sloth. When did this thought process start happening? It appears vacay has become an unhealthy food planning extravaganza.

I'm not saying to snub indulgences. That's unrealistic and by all means, we should all enjoy our choice favorites. What shouldn't happen is a complete drop the ball on healthy food intake.

My push-ups split with swim interval

The same goes for exercise, especially on extended vacations. If time away is only for the weekend, skipping the workouts would not be such a big deal. However, ten days or longer should include some fun physical activity.

I recently returned from a boating vacation and was able to balance indulgence, workouts, and healthy food intake. I made sure to swim a lot and use the boat creatively for exercise. I also planned healthy meals grilled on the boat.

Cheers!

My indulgences included bloody marys, brownies, and barbecued chips. Since I was active, on vacation and eating in proper portion sizes, I didn't even give a thought to eating off track. This is what I'm talking about with balance, fitness, and vacation.

Enjoy your time, but maintain your healthy lifestyle. Drop to the 80/20 rule to allow for indulgences. Refuse to give into mindless food frenzies. It does take a choice and looking at vacay with a fresh healthy mindset. Going on a trip? Remember to take your fitness on vacation.



A few more exercise and healthy foods typical of our boat vacations:

Pull-ups/swim interval

Core work/swim interval

Grilled Salmon

Filet Mignon

                                                                                                                  

                                      
Can a hair test determine our fitness along with foods and supplements best for our body? Read my recent article on this popular subject.

What Does a Hair Sample Say About My Fitness

Are you living well or Very well? Check out my Sports Nutrition page on the network and start implementing a healthy lifestyle!

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Nothing Better than Morning Coffee on the Boat

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Gluten Free Pasta Salad (Dairy and Gluten Free)

Here is a simple pasta salad that uses gluten free noodles.  There is definitely a difference between gluten free noodle brands.  I find the that the GoGo Quinoa Noodles work very well.  They stay soft even for next days leftovers.  This salad is dairy free however the addition of feta cheese would work very well ;) 

Ingredients

• 4 cups small uncooked gluten free pasta (I find this one works the best)
• 1/2 cup chopped cherry tomatoes
• 1/2 cup chopped cucumber
• 1/2 cup chopped sweet pepper
• 1/3 cup black olives
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh basil
• 1 tablespoon fresh parsley
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• chopped chives to taste (I used about a tablespoon)
• 2 tablespoon white wine vinegar
• 3 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 1/3 cup olive oil

Directions

1. Cook pasta until al dente, drain and run under cold water to cool. 
2. Put the pasta into a bowl. Add the tomatoes, olives, chives, basil, peppers, parsley, and cucumber into the bowl. 
3. Add the vinegar, oil and seasoning. 
4. Stir to fully coat pasta and vegetables with dressing.
5. Let sit in fridge for 1 hour to absorb flavour.

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How to Lose 12lbs in 6 Weeks

Losing 12 pounds is not only a realistic goal, but can be done in a short amount of time. I'm not talking about a fad diet or weight loss gimmick. I'm referring to healthy weight loss accomplished with appropriate methods. Being more specific: consistent healthy eating, exercise, increased water intake, limited alcohol intake, and plenty of rest.  

Application of a healthy lifestyle in all areas will allow for approximately 1 ½ pounds on the lower end and up to 3 pounds on the higher end of weight loss per week. Working successfully with clients who use my healthy eating guidelines supplied with their workout routines are losing in the middle range of 2 pounds per week. 

Think about what this means in terms of time. Realize this is only six weeks of sticking to a consistent fitness program. There is no diet but eating lots of amazing healthy food and exercising at least four to five times per week for a minimum of thirty minutes. Sodas are eliminated and alcohol is limited to not more than two nights per week and two drinks maximum. Water intake is increased to drinking 1/2 your body weight in ounces daily to start.

Sometimes it just takes someone to motivate you to start. Well, here you go! A consistent program will guarantee fat loss, lean mass gain and the beginning of a lifestyle of excellent health. 

Doesn't this sound reasonable, exciting, and realistic? Getting fit the healthy way provides knowledge of what and how to eat, how to exercise, and how to live this lifestyle happily for life. It becomes your enjoyable habit and maintains all the positive results gained within the six weeks of consistent application. 

It's time we stop over-complicating weight loss and start implementing the simplicity of eating healthy and exercise. We make things harder than they really are. We want all the results but don't want to give up a current unhealthy lifestyle. If we want to see changes, we need to be willing to make the necessary changes. Giving something 100% effort for at least six weeks should provide the personal feedback needed to continue to make the right decisions.

Below is a sample meal plan and what a typical day looks like for me: 

1 cup coffee with natural vanilla creamer

Meal 1: Organic morning round with 1tbsp natural organic peanut butter

Meal 2: Green shake: 1 cutie, ½-cup chopped pineapple 2 large handfuls power greens, water and blend until combined. 1 slice organic seeded toast topped with soft cooked organic egg to accompany my green shake. 

Meal 3: ¼ cup fresh blueberries, ½ cup Fage yogurt, ¼ cup organic ground flax meal, handful raw mixed nuts (stir it up and eat)

Meal 4: 4 oz grilled salmon or chicken with large side roasted vegetables like Brussel sprouts and cauliflower (drizzle olive oil on veggies, and large tbsp. basil pesto, mix well, roast)

Meal 5: 1oz square of dark chocolate with 1tbsp peanut butter, or 1/2 glass organic low-fat chocolate milk 

I exercise five times per week and for 30 to 60 minutes total.  I'm a believer of being focused and getting my workout done in a short amount of time. I also listen to my body. If I require more rest, I may only exercise in a structured fashion four times in that week. I enjoy active rest days being outdoors with hubby, playing with our dog, going on long walks, hikes or swimming. 

Studies indicate losing one to three pounds per week provides healthy, long-term sustainable weight loss. Unlike fad diets that may shed weight quickly but is regained plus more once the program is over. 

Now is always the right time get fit. Start by implementing a six-week fitness challenge makeover. This is a great beginning and short-term goal of shedding 12 pounds. It will be helpful to keep a fitness journal and track your food intake and exercise. Do your best, and have fun with the journey. 

I would love to hear from you. Sharing success stories, asking questions or sharing concerns is a great way to encourage and support each other along the way.  

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Stay Healthy

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Black Bean Burgers (Gluten Free with Vegan Option)

At least twice a week we stick to a vegetarian meal.  This is definitely a popular one in our home.  I always have a stock of cooked beans in our freezer so it is also a quick easy one to make.

• 2 cups cooked black beans (separated)
• 1 cup cooked quinoa

• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 1/2 chopped onion

• 2 teaspoons chili powder

• 1/2 teaspoon ground paprika

• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 egg or 1 flax egg
• 3-4 chopped mushrooms of choice (optional)
• oil for frying 

Directions (makes 5-6 medium size patties)

1. In a blender add 1 1/2 cups black beans, garlic, and onion.  Pulse until finely chopped.  Place in a bowl.
2. Add the 1/2 cup reserved black beans and all remaining ingredients except the oil.
3. Form into desired size patties.
4. Heat oil in frying pan.
5. Fry 3-5 minutes on each size or until browned and starting to crisp.  Do not over cook or they tend to get too soft and fall apart ;)
6. I like to serve mine with a side of my nacho cheese dip.

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Don't Believe Everything You Think

Self-bashing, doubts, and negative thoughts can derail our fitness. We tend to be harsh with how we think about our bodies and self. This kind of thinking puts a nail in our fitness coffin before we even start.

We spend too much time caring what people think, comparing ourselves to others and unrealistic photo-shopped images. Instead of being positive about fitness, we become intimidated. Possibly even resentful and angry. We give into self-sabotage and what's the use attitudes.

We strive to live up to someone else's standards and fitness results. Our drive to accomplish the grass is greener on the other side has clouded our thoughts. We are so focused on how we don't measure up, we are failing to see how fabulous we really are.

Each day is an opportunity to be proud of our efforts. Instead of being upset about losing only one pound, be happy to have lost one pound. Did you notice how that got switched around? We have to stop believing everything we think about ourselves. This has become a big problem getting in the way of our health and fitness goals.


What we believe determines our life, health, and happiness. Negative thoughts will take us down while positive feelings uplift and carry us to great places. Getting fit takes acceptance of being a beginner and progressing each day. Did you workout? Eat healthier? Awesome and be happy to have achieved a daily goal.

Fitness is really a simple process we often complicate with negative stuff. Time to toss out the negative committee living in our heads. We are stronger than all that useless noise between our ears.

Work on your mental game. If it helps, write positive affirmations on post-it notes and stick on your bathroom mirror or computer. It's not only important to read what they say, but also to believe the words.  Real talk all in fitness love. Be well and Stay Healthy!

Read my articles on the Verywell health network. Time to take charge of your health and fitness. Start with this article on "Eat Right to Lose Weight" and get on track to a fit and healthy body!

Eat Right to Lose Weight

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Happy 25th Birthday to my beautiful Daughter
Love you always and proud to be your Mama

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Find Your Motivation Mojo

Have you found Motivation Mojo when it comes to improving your health? Finding our motivation is an important step when it comes to fitness so we enjoy the journey. 

Let me ask what motivates you in the image below: the left image, center image, the right image, neither images and why?

I'm not going to wow you with a huge before and after weight loss story, or a long list of bikini titles. I will share my journey to health involves one of great physical and emotional adversity. Also, taking care of my health and being a woman of faith has been a huge factor in the woman you see in the above images. 

Some may not be motivated by visual images and respond more to the written word: YOU CAN DO IT, FIND YOUR STRONG, or BE YOUR BEST HEALTHY YOU for example. Regardless of what suits your motivational fancy when it comes to fitness, the important thing is to just get yourself going.  

I will not tell you it will be easy because there are days when it will be straight up hard. I'm speaking from personal experience. We all struggle with tough days of keeping it healthy.  I'm relating to you on a very personal level. At the same time, I want to stress the importance of living the healthiest life you can. We only have one life with no playbacks. 

There has been so much controversy over the image of health. This is why I opened with an interactive exercise of wanting to know your mental game when it comes to visual motivation. I didn't add the famous “what’s your excuse” tag, although I am a no excuses trainer and coach. I don't accept that anyone is too busy to take care of their health, and that includes me. 

Being a very busy woman and if the day only allows a 20-minute workout then I do that. Exercise doesn't have to be some long duration program lasting over an hour. In fact, studies have shown the greatest benefit of exercise is achieved within the first 30-minutes. Also, 45-minutes of focused exercise is sufficient to maintain a healthy body. I adhere to this philosophy and keep my exercise sessions limited to 45-minutes and no more than 5 times per week. 

How do you find your Motivation Mojo?  Get out a piece of paper and write down your active passions … fun things you like to do. It's time to get off the couch, dance your pants off in the living room, go hiking, play games with the kiddos and dogs. What is it that makes you happy and will ensure you keep coming back for more?  No more exercise is a burden stuff. Let’s turn that around and create a plan you can maintain for a lifetime.  Share your Mojo in the comment section and I look forward to reading and responding to all of your shares. 

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Be well and Stay Healthy

                                                                          

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Eat Like a Baby to Lose Weight and Get Healthy

Babies use nutrients to build and develop a healthy body. They have a built in alarm clock every two to three hours that cries out to be fed. They will also stop eating when they feel full eliminating the need to count calories. Babies eat to live naturally.

As adults, we can learn much from our precious infants. The nutrients they consume are usually quality coming straight from Mom’s milk, or formulas containing everything a growing body needs to be healthy. If we could only implement this nutritional strategy, we would be on our way to adopting a healthy lifestyle.

Sadly, the majority of eating is no longer about growing a strong healthy body. Quality nutrients have been replaced with processed fake food linked to obesity and disease.

We don't pay attention to our full barometer and consume too large of portions. We also fill our stomachs with foods that lack in nutritional value. Eating processed foods lacking in nutrients promotes inflammation in our blood stream, the root cause of most disease of the human body. We are eating way too much and making ourselves sick in the process.

Food is not only our fuel but also our medicine. Eating right can truly keep our body feeling top notch and healthy. Quality real foods can reduce our visits to the doctor and enable us to function at our best.

We have come full circle into a fight against healthy food. The majority of people are really pissed off about foods they shouldn't eat to stay healthy. The reason for this unfortunate issue comes straight from what sits on our grocery shelves. Marketing has a great way of presenting foods advertised as healthy but really are quite the opposite. Studies have shown major food producers are making us fat. This is a scary thought.

We can't fault the food companies entirely because we can choose to say no to processed, GMO (genetically modified organisms) products, and non-organic pseudo-foods. These types of food-like items do nothing but provide a momentary good flavor and add fat stores to our bodies.

Anything in a box, bag, or wrapper with ingredients unable to be understood is processed. If the item is marketed as low-fat, low-sugar or low-calorie consider it nothing but a chemical shit storm in a package.

There are some food items packaged and part of the organic and non-GMO certified programs. These food producers are getting it right and understand the importance of supplying this information to consumers. Just a little food education detour, now back to the Blog topic. 

Mastering our daily nutrition for fitness success will mean eating like a baby. Getting back to the basics with our healthy food, keeping it simple, and stress-free is important. It's time to stop over-complicating and just make the focus about eating healthy.

Forget about the chemical shit storms and reach for real organic foods: lean proteins, fresh vegetables and fruits, raw nuts and nut butter, plain Greek yogurts, and healthy fats are just a few of the healthy foods waiting for our purchase and consumption. Change out drinking soda for water and start getting excited about the vast amount of healthy food to choose from.

Personally, my hunger alarm goes off just the same as a baby close to the three-hour mark. I grab something healthy and satisfy that natural feeling. I don't count calories or even worry about doing so. What's important is feeding my body quality healthy food and eating just until I feel satisfied, never to the point of overfull. My body knows how much it needs because I listen to when I should stop eating.

Life was simpler when we were babies and the decisions made for us as we naturally cried out when we felt hungry. We were satisfied within 20 minutes with a boob or bottle full of nutrients. As adults, we can create a similar life by having healthy foods in our homes and eating when we feel hungry. Unfortunately and often we eat out of boredom or to fill an emotional void through unhealthy processed stuff. Our mental game around food definitely needs improvement.  Wouldn't you agree? 

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Be well and Stay Healthy

             

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Wanting a Hot Body Isn't All About Vanity

I want a hot body and there's nothing wrong with that. In fact, I believe health and fitness play a large role in finding the fountain of youth. I have implemented fitness into maintaining my hot body philosophy.  

I feel honored to have joined the over 50 club and this doesn't mean I'm supposed to suddenly become frumpy and lifeless. Life doesn't end at any age when it comes to fitness. I believe age is just a number and what I think is what I will feel in my body and soul. 

Health will always be my priority. I'm not going to lie and tell you I don't want my body to look good in and out of clothes. There should be one of those snarky e-cards that states I do not want a hot body… said no woman ever. In fact, I have created it for you and me. 

Being healthy and fit feels sexy. When we stand before the mirror we should enjoy what we see and feel confident with our body. However, we can be our own worst critics when it comes to our body always finding something we think needs fixing. As long as that is kept under control, meaning it's not an obsessive thing, there's nothing wrong with wanting to work on self-improvement. 

The goal will always be for me to be better than yesterday given my genetics and medical issues. Also acceptance of what I can do with this 50+ body. I am getting older and feeling pretty frisky about being over fifty. The fact I can still fit into the same size I wore in high school is pretty exciting. I'm all about trendy and refuse to wear the mom jeans. Wanting a hot body is not all about vanity, but about what feels good for me. Living a quality life spiritually and emotionally is equally important.

Maintaining a hot body has so many health, self, and relationship benefits. I would be missing out on great stuff not to stay plugged into this lifestyle. I want to look good naked, feel good in clothes, and enjoy great sex with my hubby, which are all easier with a fit physique. Straight up truth and plenty of studies to back this up. 

It really is the confidence gained that enables such a feeling of contentment and accomplishment. Having a hot body is only one result of living a healthy lifestyle and what a great side effect to reflect outwardly. There is a sense of pride that goes along with the fruits of fitness labor. These benefits keep me motivated to want even more. Each sweaty workout may be hard but going through those motions, I feel awesome and sexy. Wanting a hot body is a motivation. It keeps me plugged into having fun with challenges toward improvement. 

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Being Fit Makes Life Better

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Gluten Free Bulk Pancake Mix

I have been trying to simply some things at home as well as teach more independence for the girls.  I now have my oldest making pancakes using this bulk mix.  This mix can be prepared in advance and makes about 4 batches.  Each batch makes about 8-10 pancakes.

Ingredients 

• 2 cups tapioca/arrowroot starch
• 2 1/4 cups sorghum flour
• 1/2 cup buckwheat flour
• 1 cup coconut flour
• 1 cup chickpea flour
• 1/4 cup baking powder
• 1 teaspoon sea salt

To Make Pancakes

• 2 cups mix
• 1 1/2-2 cups milk
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla (optional)
• chopped apple (optional)
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)

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Turn Your Brain Back On and Stop Mindless Eating

Mindless eating is ugly and what it does to your body is even worse.  We are

walking around with our brains turned off and grabbing whatever food items in our grazing path.  No rhyme or reason but doing an auto-pilot action of putting something in our face. You know the glazed over look watching TV and mowing through a whole bag of chips. How about the work break room crap we bring to our desks and continue back for more as we plug away at our computers. We're not hungry, not thinking but we're surely eating ... and it's not good.

What the heck is going on and why?  It's no wonder America is plagued with the highest obesity rate and enormous doctor bills for self-induced illness.  Mindless eating needs to stop and instead have enough self-respect to take care of our bodies.  Living to eat is not what life is all about but eating to live, and this does not include processed "fake" food.

Emotional eating can play a role in the whole mindless eating issue, and I would recommend getting to the bottom of what is going on internally.  There is no amount of tasty donuts or pizza fixing an emotional problem.  What it will do is add fat to your body and another reason to be stressed.  Seek out professional help, go to a counselor, see a minister or talk to a trusted friend.

Most of the time, mindless eating is done out of habit and convenience.  If it's there, put it in your face and so on.  We're the true "Walking Dead" existing in our zombie like state and feasting on gross things doing gross things to our body. It's time to turn your brain back on and break unhealthy habits.  

Start the process of mindful eating by doing food inventory.  Toss the junk food in the frig and pantry and replace it with healthy "real" food.   Get off your butt and start working out instead of sitting on it so much.  Stop blaming your spouse, significant other, friends or circumstances for mindless eating.  Just because someone in your home brings in crap food doesn't mean you have to eat it.  

We have choices and mindless eating is like being brain dead.  Wake the hell up and take responsibility for what you're doing.  Get your sh*t together and start thinking before eating.  Make a plan to eat healthy and stick to it.  Keep a food journal and be honest with yourself.  Turn your mindless into mindful eating and you will start down a path to a healthier you.  Straight talk but all in fitness love! Be well and Stay Healthy. 

Read my current articles on eating for the body you want and put the information into practice!

Achieve Your Best Body with Sports Nutrition

Eat Your Way to a Beach Ready Body

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