Sunday, July 18, 2010

An Addiction: Take Control of Your Eating


Hey ladies, my journey to eating clean (avoiding procesessed foods and eating food in a natural state) has been enlightening. I want to share some of the things that I have learned. Also pick up a copy of People Magazine! I am in the July 19th issue!!!!!!


Most of you know the feeling: you open a bag of your favorite chips (or your food of choice) for a little snack and next thing you know you ate 2-3x the amount you wanted too. At some point you loss control and you are no longer eating because you want to or because you are hungry. Take some time to observe if this happens to you and what type of food this happens with. If you are like me this only happens with processed foods, typically junk foods. I don't think people lose control when eating a bowl of broccoli or even a bowl grapes. Have you ever thought about why that is? In my opinion there is something in these processed sweet and salty foods that makes you lose control. Not to sound like a conspiracy theorist but all those artificial ingredients may be associated with your loss of control feeling. Think about it you lose control when eating a bag of Doritos so you buy more, that leads to a nice profit for the company.

If you are tired of feeling like you are not in control then try to avoid processed foods (no refined sugar, no white flour, etc.) . I know that sounds really difficult but it gets easier with time. Please do NOT think just because you can't have white flour or sugar you can't eat good food. There are so many healthy great tasting things you can eat! Consider Dr. Ian Smith's Fat Smash diet there are so many recipes and support online. Everyday I become more and more creative and I come up with new recipes and healthy ideas that makes eating healthy easier for me. To give you an idea here are a couple of changes I made over the past month.

1. I switched from quick oats to the rolled kind, I make a big batch (2 cups) that lasts for the week. I sweeten it with 1 banana and berries (feel free to add your fav. fruit and cinnamon). I also add flaxseed meal to it. It tastes great and no sugar is necessary!


2. I love popcorn but microwave popcorn has all that fake stuff! Did you know you can make your own microwave popcorn. It's much healthier that way, it's all cheaper than store bought and just as quick, click here to see how

3. I switched my artificially flavored yogurt to plain greek yogurt. I add my own fruit, just throw some blueberries in it and it's delicious!

4. I don't really have sweet tooth any more, but when I go to the movies or a place everyone will be having junk food or dessert I usually bring a LaraBar or Jocalat bar (just in case). These bars are delicious and they have no added sugar and most varieties have 4 or less ingredients. They are really are delicious. Whole foods carries them for about $1.25. You have to try one....they are so good I may do review post just for them!

What healthy swaps have you made to avoid processed foods?

Thursday, July 15, 2010

Fitting In Fitness

Ladies I am happy to share a Guest Post by Television Personality Stephanie Humphrey. She has taken the time to write an inspiring post to get you ladies motivated!

Enjoy:

"I'm just so busy!" "There aren't enough hours in the day!" "It's impossible to balance it all!" We've all heard and we all have our own reasons for not working out. And I'm not saying it's not a challenge sometimes to get it done, but I am saying that it can be done, if you make working out a priority. In my career, I have workdays that can start before dawn, and workdays that can stretch over 36 hours, but that doesn't give me an excuse to skip the gym. First and foremost, maintaining my workouts gives me the energy to get through those long days. Also, I work in television, so it's definitely in my best interest to stay in shape! So when I'm running in a thousand different directions at once, there are some things that help me fit fitness into my busy schedule.

First, there is usually always a packed gym bag in my car. When I'm not sure when I'll be able to work out, I want to be prepared to go at a moment's notice. It's always easier for me to go to the gym straight from work while I'm still motivated to do it. Usually, if I make it to my house, I'm probably going to stay there! I keep wipes in my bag to wash off makeup, hair ties/scarf/etc., and my ipod so I'm always ready to go when I get the chance. I also invested in a treadmill for my home as well. It may seem like a huge expense, and I know everyone won't be able to do this, but it definitely gives me the flexibility to get a quick 30 minutes in literally whenever I need to. I got mine off of Ebay, so that is a great way to find less expensive options. Craigslist is good too. But even if you can't afford gym-quality equipment, a couple of 5 lb. dumbbells and a Billy Blanks dvd go a long way as well! Finally, I work out wherever I am. One of the studios where I freelance has a large landscaped campus that is about a half-mile around the facility. If I get a break, I take a walk if possible. A few times around the building and I've done a pretty decent cardio workout.

The bottom line is, if your life is so jam packed that you can't carve out 30-60 minutes for yourself a day, there is some serious self-examination that needs to get done. You should be your top priority, and your health is the most important part of that. Once I truly understood that, fitting in fitness wasn't a problem. It keeps me healthy so I can maintain my crazy schedule, and I get to look fabulous too!


Stephanie Humphrey is an Engineer turn Television Personality, Model and Entreprenuer. You can find her weekdays modeling on QVC Shopping Network or interviewing celebrities for Rollingout.com. Contact Info: www.stephaniehumphrey.com Twitter: stephTVStar