How I Went from Fat to Fit

Ok, so after all this time, I realized I've never really told my full story of how I came to write a blog about fitness and nutrition. My entire life I've been active and part of most every sport you can play...softball, swimming, track, basketball, tennis, horseback riding, volleyball, etc. I played sports year-round in both indoor arena leagues, summer travel leagues, and in my own back yard. So you read this and probably think, well she's been in shape her entire life. Not quite.

Gearing Up For Olympia Weekend

Mr. Olympia 2013 weekend is only 3.5 weeks away!! Now don't be fooled, I'm not competing or anything. But I am trying to drop a little weight and tone up for it. I mean who wouldn't?? This is only THE biggest event in the fitness and nutrition industry. So I want to fit the part of it all. 

Coming Back from Vacation...

I've decided to change up the blog a little and make some personal posts mixed in with the informational posts. 

Coming back from vacation (ok, not really a vacation but a long weekend) is always hard. The entire weekend, I didn’t really want to exercise. I wanted to pig out, relax and catch some rays. 

What to Eat After a Workout

We all know that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. But, when most people think they just grab a greasy burger after an all-out, intense workout, they better think again!! This is a big no-no. When you workout, your body is burning fuel from your pre-workout meal. Glycogen stored in muscles begins to breakdown and an hour after your workout, your muscles begin to break down. Right after a workout, your body is the most receptive to absorbing carbohydrates and protein.

Don't Let Snacking Get the Best of You!

Ok, so I've been in a little bit of rough patch lately. I'm human too! This is a common issue for dieters, which makes dieting so damn difficult. I thought I was doing well with my exercises and my meals. So I decided to go the old-school way and write down everything I was eating. I wasn't doing too well tracking in my app and looking back on past calories consumed. 

Fitness Friday Recipe: Healthy Snacks

#TGIF #FitFam! Just because the weekend is almost here, don't forget all of your hard work this week to accomplish your fitness goals! While the weekends typically mean more going out, more snacking, and overall more calories, don't let it get the best of you. Here are a couple really easy, really quick, and really cheap snack ideas to help you stay on track the next couple of days. These are personally my favorite #CleanEating snacks. 

Love ice cream but don't indulge because the calories and fat just aren't worth it? Here's a healthy alternative... Frozen Nutty Banana Nibblers. This delicious-tasting treat is just over 160 calories per serving and offers 4.1 grams of fiber and 3.7 grams of protein, so you can feel good reaching for an extra nibbler or two. For an added bonus, they are a cinch to whip up, and since you can store them in the freezer, you'll have a go-to healthy dessert whenever your sweet cravings kick into high gear. 

Ingredients:

5 medium ripe bananas

1 tbsp. all natural creamy peanut butter

2 oz. nonfat vanilla Greek yogurt

1) Peel one banana and mash it with the peanut butter and yogurt.

2) Peel the other four bananas. Slice into half-inch thick slices.

3) Smear the banana, peanut butter, and yogurt mixture on half the banana slices and top with the other halves, making banana sandwiches.

4) Place on a wooden cutting board or a plate and freeze for at least two hours.

These Apple Sandwiches may look like a kid's treat, but trust me, adults will love it too! Especially if you are dieting and want to eat items that are packed with vitamins, minerals, protein, and good fats. Now don't get me wrong, if your kids love this snack then that's great too! Much better alternative to those french fries at McDonald's!

Ingredients:

1 apple-sliced into thin rounds

1-2 tbsp all natural peanut butter or almond butter

Handful of raisins

Drizzle of honey

Chopped walnuts or almonds

Cinnamon

1) Thinly slice the apple into 8 rounds.

2) Top 4 apple rounds with peanut butter, raisins, nuts and drizzle with a little honey.

3) Top each round with the other 4 apple slices and sprinkle with cinnamon.

Fitness Humor on Hump Day

Well it's HUMP DAY! For those working professionals that means your half way through your work week, but yet the weekend seems so far away! I thought I make a quick blog post to bring you some fitness humor to brighten your week. And, since the work day is winding down and about to come to a close, this means you are probably only a few hours away from hitting the gym and getting your much needed stress reliever on, your workout! You can find more humorous health and fitness posts and images at Facebook.com/FitFadFan and @FitFadFan. So please, take a moment to laugh and read these: 

Get Your Best Butt

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It's Monday and the beginning of the week is never easy. Some of us are going back to our regular routine while others are starting their routine over again. Whichever best describes you and your fitness motivation today, I'm here to help get you through it! So if you're looking for an easier routine to get you started this week, then this is the post for you. 

Just How Healthy Are Sweet Potatoes

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I look around my office filled with competitors, bodybuilders, weekend warriors, and your plain ol' average joes and I notice at lunch time, about 90% of the people are eating sweet potatoes. When you work in a health conscious environment, you start noticing the gym routines, the eating habits, and the little tips and tricks others use to live healthier. And then you find yourself adapting these new habits. 

Tip of the Day for Healthy Living

TIP OF THE DAY: Every day counts! Many people struggle over the weekend to stay on track. And I've noticed on my blog stats that my page views drastically decrease over the weekends. This just proves my thoughts, many of us find it a greater challenge to make time for workouts and stay on top of our meals on the weekends. You may be unpleasantly surprised as to how much hard work you can reverse in just 2-3 days. If your mindset is that you work hard during the week, so you can slack on the weekends, it may be time for a different approach! It's a constant battle and you have to work hard at it each and every day in order to achieve true success. And I'm not going to lie, it's not easy. But nothing in life is easy. That's why life is a constant battle as some so. But I like to look at life as a constant challenge. And I always love a good challenge :) 

DAILY MOTIVATION:

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Green Coffee Bean for Weight Loss

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We live in a world where thin is in and every wants to lose weight and look great. And to help you shed those unwanted pounds, there are weight loss supplements that can aid in your success. But when you go to the store and find the right one for you, the shelves are packed with CLA, Raspberry Ketone, White Kidney Bean Extract, Garcinia, Yerba Mate, and now Green Coffee Bean. So how do you know what to choose? 

Healthy Snacks for Dieters

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So you started a diet and you constantly feel hungry. Think you shouldn't snack? Think again! If you are hungry, you should eat. But, you have to be mindful of what you eat and how much of it you eat. If you opt for the right kind of snacks, they can be your lifesaver to get you through the day without killing someone! LOL (I hope) When trying to decide what to stock up on for snacks, try items that are low in sugar, sodium, fat, or calories. Definitely grab ones that have added benefits like fiber, antioxidants, vitamin D, calcium, etc... 

Southwest Chicken Salad Stuffed Avocado

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If you love avocados then you are going to absolutely love the recipe in this post! Often thought of as a vegetable, avocados are a nifty little fruit that provide healthy fats the body needs along with providing other great health benefits. They support cardiovascular health, contain antioxidants, may help aid in weight loss, enhance the body's absorption of nutrients, and more!

There are many ways to eat or add avocado to your diet. You can eat fresh slices like I do, or add to your salads, add to your morning eggs, or cook it in with your chicken and salmon orzo salad for dinner. The possibilities are endless. But this is definitely a fruit that packs a huge benefit in the health and fitness arena.

Easiest Weekly Workout Plan

Compliments of Back on Pointe, I came across this Daily Workout Plan that I really wanted to share. You can perform these in under 10 minutes and they are great strengthening exercises. And, the more build up your strength the more sets you can do. To start out, you can reduce the reps to something you're comfortable with. But as you continue to exercise, you can begin increasing the sets. 

Happy 4th of July... Diet??

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We all know that with holidays comes lots of eating. The 4th of July is all too often celebrated with backyard BBQ's, pot luck get-togethers, or all day food festivals. Don't let the Independence Day celebration sabotage your weight loss goals! There are ways to still enjoy the holiday festivities while keeping your calorie intake down. 

Small Changes Lead to Weight Loss

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You don't need to diet to lose weight. Making simple changes, adjustments, or improvements can do wonders to your body. So don't starve yourself and don't believe the Atkin's Diet or HCG or whatever the newest fad diet plan is. Just be mindful of some minor things and you can have weight loss success. 

Which Veggies Pack the Biggest Punch in Nutritional Value

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If you don't like the taste of veggies, then you better learn how to love them because they are healthy little things, full of vitamins and nutrients to help you be successful in whatever your fitness goals may be. However, there are some veggies that pack a bigger and stronger punch than others. That's why knowing which vegetables are more nutritious than others can lead to even greater success! 

It's suggested that you eat 5-9 servings of vegetables on a daily basis. I'm just so thankful that I've always loved veggies and every single one, except carrots, eww! 

Diet Tips for Ultimate Weight Loss

While physical activity plays a big role in weight loss and overall health, your diet plays an even bigger role. I've heard that weight loss is a result of 80% diet and 20% exercise. Perfect example is my mom, she joined Weight Watchers and in a year, she lost over 115 pounds! The only physical activity she performed was moderate walking while out shopping for the day... Although, I am still a firm believer in exercise to build a healthy heart, strong bones and muscle tone. But, if perform physical activity and eat junk food, your results will not pan out how you'd like them too. 

Sticking to a healthy diet is a lifestyle change. And, self control is a top reason most diets fail. So here are some diet tips to help you when you're struggling to reach your weight loss goals:

A Spot of Tea or Cup o' Joe?

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Would you like a spot of tea? Or are you a cup o' Joe type of person? There has been an ongoing debate of whether tea or coffee is better for you, which one you should drink in the morning, and what the actual health benefits of each are. I definitely prefer coffee over tea, but there are days a cup of tea taste pretty amazing. So just what is the difference and which is better? 

Eat This Not That Diet

Dieting is difficult, especially if you love to eat as much as I do. Often, when we think of dieting, we think we need to give up everything we love to eat, but that's not entirely true. When we completely give up all the things we love in order to shed a few pounds, we get bored or we let temptation get the best of us and indulge...in the worst way! Instead of cutting things off, make modifications.

For example, if you love tacos you can make a lot of modifications to make this meal healthy: