The Pursuit of Healthiness

The Pursuit of Healthiness
Your Guide to Getting Healthy

Monday, November 28, 2011

Tip #23: Clean Out the Fridge!

I know. So soon after Thanksgiving? You couldn't imagine tossing out the turkey, stuffing, and pumpkin pie so soon! And I certainly can't blame you! But don't turn Thanksgiving into a week! The average person consumes over 4000 calories for dinner on Thanksgiving. If you eat Thanksgiving dinner every day for a week, you could be packing on an extra 8 pounds!

This weekend was your free pass. You overate (don't deny it! We all did!) but now is the time to toss out the food. That one slice of pumpkin pie and cup of stuffing should be cleaned out. While you are at it, look for the foods that may not be Thanksgiving related, but still just as bad for you. Anything high in fat and calories goes. Be a little more lenient with the carbs. Half your daily calories should come from carbs.

However, I'm not one for wasting food. You don't need it. But someone else does. All unopened containers and still full Thanksgiving essentially should go to your local soup kitchen, not the trash.

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Have a Happy Thanksgiving! That being said, why can't a healthy thanksgiving coincide with that? According to Today.com, the average thanksgiving dinner contains over 4000 calories. A dinner should be about a tenth of that! But don't sweat it! I've compiled a list of ways to save calories on turkey day (without depriving yourself!) and its easy to follow!

Party Time!
1. Don't let your clothes save room for dessert. Choose an outfit that's rather tight-fitting, so when your stomach starts to feel stuffed in that body-con dress, you'll know you've got to stop.

2. Carry a clutch. If you have you're clutch in one hand, and a drink in the other, it won't be so easy to pig out on those appetizers.

3. Mingle. You can't catch up with your friends and family with a full mouth. If you leave your mouth to talking, it can't be full of food.

4. Stay out of the kitchen! Entertain yourself by watching the game, even if you're not a big football fan. You can always enjoy the halftime show, or just have fun watching your uncle and brother go head to head on who the MVP is. If you volunteer to clean up afterwards (good for you!), get the dishes in the sink before the leftovers end up in your mouth!

5. Watch the little ones. My little cousins always keep me occupied on Thanksgiving. I'm so busy making sure they eat, are entertained, and basically stay out of trouble, I hardly eat dinner myself.

6. Stay on your feet. It torches extra calories. Plus, when you're sitting down with little to do, those mini quiches will look extra appealling.

Drinks and Appetizers
7. Avoid soda or sugarfied drinks. They are empty calories and only increase your appetite. Stick to water for the most part.

8. Watch the alcohol. Other than the fact it clouds your judgement making you more likely to say "oh screw it!" and binge on thanksgiving, alcohol is mostly empty calories, like soda. Avoid anything with tonic especially. If your friends offer you a drink you've never heard of like a "Thanksgiving cocktail" make sure you ask what's in it and do the calculations for it before downing it.

9. Stick to a veggie based appetizer. Leave the meat for dinner. Try to eliminate dips as much as possible. Shrimp isn't a bad option either, but skimp on the cocktail sauce.

10. Only take one of each appetizer. Don't take a handful of jumbo shrimp and call it diet.

11. If something sounds good, eat it! Just eat one serving, and keep a track in the back of your mind.

Dinner and Dessert
12. Say it with me: white meat, no skin, light on the gravy. Fill up on the meat.

13. Opt for a veggie based side like carrots and green beans (green bean casserole doesn't count) and go easy on the stuffing and other carbs.

14. Drink water with dinner and drink at least one full glass before you sit down to dinner.

15. Go splitzies on a slice of cake or pie for dessert or a roll for dinner.

16. Start eating after everyone else, be the slowest eater at the table, and finish the second  you're full.

17. Eat at the kid's table! Well, maybe not. I mean, eat as much as they eat. While the adults binge, the kids eat around the size of a normal adult meal on thanksgiving.

18. Don't go back for seconds. Just because the mashed potatoes are there, doesn't mean you have to eat them.

19. Stick to one moderately large dessert, or a few small ones. Don't eat half the cake and go back for a plate of cookies.

20. Most of all, enjoy the day. Eat things that you might not usually get to have. For me, I have stuffing sometimes on an average weeknight so I won't eat that on thanksgiving. I'll eat the stuffed mushrooms that I only have once a year. Same goes for dessert. My cousin is a pastry chef so I'll eat the new and innovative dessert she brought for us, not the chocolate chip cookies.

I hope this guide helps you to a healthy, happy thanksgiving! I'm sure this will help you to a ho-ho-ho healthy Christmas (or whatever you celebrate. I don't judge!) Hope this helps you have a great winter!

Thursday, November 10, 2011

Beach Body: New and Improved!

I know everybody's seen the commercials for Beach Body. The ones that say it's insane and show those perfectly toned people saying how hard it is, but have you ever actually seen the results? The results are what is really insane! I have this friend who was always, well, baby-faced. He wasn't exactly overweight, but he was cute because he has chubby cheeks and that layer of baby-fat he never lost. He tried P90x and you wouldn't even recognize him now! He has those six-pack abs and the baby-fat is gone! Now, without exaggerating, he's got all the girls chasing after him.

Whether you're a guy or girl trying to lose some weight or tone up, Beach Body seriously works! I was recently contacted with some new programs Beach Body has come up with and thought I'd share it with you.

First there's p90x2 (p90x2 preorder) the sequel to the crazy p90x. If you've seen p90x, you know exactly how well this one will work. (Order it now to get it in time for the holidays!)

Second there is the Body Beast workout (Body Beast preorder) which is still in developement. I'd recommend this one for the guys who are looking to seriously build up their muscle mass, as it was developed by the renowned body builder, Sagi Kalev!

The Tai Cheng (translated to Supreme Accomplishment in Mandarin) is finally available for preordering! (Tai Cheng preorder) It is dedicated to your whole body health! Every day, the program teaches you a new Tai-Chi, designed to give you more energy, loosen joints, develope balance, tone muscle, and increase your range of motion. Personally, this one is my favorite and I can't wait to order it!

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

Playlist of the Week

Here's a heart pumping playlist to blast away those halloween calories!

Warm-Up: Time is Running Out- Muse

Criminal- Britney Spears

Love You Like a Love Song- Selena Gomez

Without You- David Guetta

Cool Down: Turning Tables- Adele

Tip #22: Portion Control Your Extended Halloween!

Halloween isn't a day. It's a week or a month of giving into your sweet tooth. This year might just be the worst of them all! In my town, thanks to the crazy snow storm, trick or treating, basically the greatest thing in a world for a kid, was cancelled. All the candy that we bought, all six bags of it, was left for us! Within one day, I almost finished an entire bag of "fun size" Reeses.

I do not want a month of binging and regretting. I'm down to 145 pounds, leaving me just ten more to lose by Christmas. If I gorge myself on candy, I'm afraid I'll be right bak where I started. The only way to prevent me from polishing off the rest of that bag of Snickers is to portion it off.

First, start off by finding a reasonable number of candy calories you can eat, mine is 100 or less. Don't know how much candy is 100 calories? Check out Fitsugar for a reminder! Then grab OPAQUE bags and portion out 100 calories per bag. This way you can only eat 100 candy calories a day as opposed to splurging your entire daily amount of calories on candy!