Before I start this post I must say that this is my opinion! I am not a nutritionist!
I have done a lot of thinking lately and I would like to share what I have discovered since, I think that a lot of us are in the same boat on this subject. I have been the type of person that has spent way to much time trying to be skinny. I am not a naturally small person(just ask my sisters). I have always had to work hard at staying in shape. I have set goals and given myself deadlines. Always striving to be a certain weight or size by a certain event. Constantly trying the newest and latest trend and diet. Only to hit the goal weight then watch it slowly go back up to where I began. I started to wonder why? Why waste so much time, energy and emotion on something that wasn't going to last? Why put my family through the emotional rollercoaster that I am constantly on while depriving myself and starving. Why spend so much time feeling like a failure simply becuase I ate the cookie (or 4 since we are being honest) Well enough is enough!
Over the last five years I have had the oppertunity to work in the fitness industry. I spent countless hours helping clients feel, look and be healthier people. I have cried with those struggling and I have jumped for joy with those who have met their goals. I learned something very important along the way. Thank goodness! Better late then never right?! Stop dieting, Stop living to be a certain pants size, stop living for the scale to show the perfect number and start living to be healthy!!!
Life is meant to be enjoyed! Moments are meant to be remembered and people are meant to feel good about themselves. How do we do this? It is very simple. Strive to be an overall healthy person. Eat food for fuel not for fun, exercise because it does a body good, drink water becuase your body needs to stay hydrated. If we try to be overall healthy people with overall healthy lifestyles the weight and pant size will take care of themselves.
With that said you can still enjoy the occasional treat. Just know that if you are going to eat chocolate cake tonight pass on it tomorrow. Add more fruits and veggies to each plate and eat breakfast! Eat to give your body the energy and strength it needs to get you through the day.
You do not need to run a marathon to be healthy. Exercise can be simple and fun! The key is to get up and move. You can go for a walk, take the stairs over the elevator, jump rope, hula hoop,ride a bike, go for a hike the list is never ending. One way we squeeze in a little more movement in our home is a family dance party before the kids go to bed each night. Not only is this a great way to get moving but it is a lot of fun and has given us some great quality family time. Be creative and have fun. Don't be afraid to mix up your exercise program. If you do not enjoy it find something you do!
Your body needs water so drink it! I could go on for hours on this subject but for now just put down the can of soda and pick up the glass of water! Your body will thank you for it!!
By simply making your overall health your priority and not your pants size you will find yourself healthier, happier and ,the fabulous bonus, thinner permanently! :)
Friday, August 30, 2013
Thursday, August 15, 2013
Red Light Green Light
I have two daughters. As parents of girls my husband and I have a goal to raise them to be as confident as possible. We want them to feel good about who they are. We want them to focus more on how they feel not on how they look. As someone who grew up with some serious body image issues I am aware of all the pressure and misconceptions of what a healthy person looks like to young girls. My husband is 6'5 I am 5'2 so the chance that my girls will be shaped and built differently then each other is very likely. We want each of them to know that no matter what their heighth, shape or build as long as they are healthy they are perfect.
The first thing we did was to eliminate the words fat and diet from our house. I do not believe a person can be fat. Fat is something that we can have on our bodies and in our food but it is not something that defines us. I believe we are healthy or unhealthy. I do not believe in "a diet" I believe in a life style. You can be living a healthy life style or an unhealthy lifestyle. When it comes to eating being healthy and having a healthy lifestyle comes in two parts. First having balance and second having moderation. It was our goal to find a way to teach our daughters to have balance in their eating and to be able to recongnize what moderation means. In doing so we started to use the Red Light, Green Light Method and have been amazed at how well it has worked not just for our daughters but for my husband and I as well.
The Red Light Green Light Method is simple and easy to use! I will explain what the colors mean-
Green Light Foods are our healthy, non processed, clean, whole foods. They are fruits,veggies, whole grains and lean meats and healthy dairy products and of course water.
Yellow Light Foods are those in between foods. Pastas, breads, cereals, crackers foods that are not the best but by far not the worst.
Red Light Foods are the treats, resturant foods, sodas you get the idea.
The key to having a balanced lifestyle is to not cut out items or deprive yourself from things you enjoy. This only leaves you starving and eating the whole cake (yep been there done that because I love cake)
Each day your menu needs to be made up of all three lights. When planning your meals make sure 75% are green lights, 15% yellow lights and 10% Red lights. This helps you eat what you need and what you enjoy.
We started teaching our daughters how to use this method at dinner. Every night as we sat at the table we would discuss what on our plates were the green, red and yellow lights and why. They picked up on it suprising fast and were soon telling us on their own what color different food items were.
This has also helped with treats at our house. When the girls ask for a treat or dessert or a free cookie from Publixs all I have to do is ask "Have you had a lot of Red lights today?"
They always take a second to think and will answer yes or no. Once I asked my 8 year old if she wanted dessert after dinner, she replied with " No thanks there was a party at school today and I had a lot of yummy red lights." Happy Mom moment!
Now I must let you know that when it comes to vacations and holidays we have Red Light Days! Halloween is a total Red Light Day ,as it should be, as well as Christmas and Easter. That is just the way it is supposed to be. We also know that before and after visits with Grandparents we eat extra green lights. A Grandparent's house is and should be a total red light zone :)
This is what we have found to work in our home. This may not be what works for you and your family as we are all different. There are a lot of fun and creative ways to teach your children to be healthy. The important thing is to teach them! Give them the tools they need to be healthy, happy and confident!
The first thing we did was to eliminate the words fat and diet from our house. I do not believe a person can be fat. Fat is something that we can have on our bodies and in our food but it is not something that defines us. I believe we are healthy or unhealthy. I do not believe in "a diet" I believe in a life style. You can be living a healthy life style or an unhealthy lifestyle. When it comes to eating being healthy and having a healthy lifestyle comes in two parts. First having balance and second having moderation. It was our goal to find a way to teach our daughters to have balance in their eating and to be able to recongnize what moderation means. In doing so we started to use the Red Light, Green Light Method and have been amazed at how well it has worked not just for our daughters but for my husband and I as well.
The Red Light Green Light Method is simple and easy to use! I will explain what the colors mean-
Green Light Foods are our healthy, non processed, clean, whole foods. They are fruits,veggies, whole grains and lean meats and healthy dairy products and of course water.
Yellow Light Foods are those in between foods. Pastas, breads, cereals, crackers foods that are not the best but by far not the worst.
Red Light Foods are the treats, resturant foods, sodas you get the idea.
The key to having a balanced lifestyle is to not cut out items or deprive yourself from things you enjoy. This only leaves you starving and eating the whole cake (yep been there done that because I love cake)
Each day your menu needs to be made up of all three lights. When planning your meals make sure 75% are green lights, 15% yellow lights and 10% Red lights. This helps you eat what you need and what you enjoy.
We started teaching our daughters how to use this method at dinner. Every night as we sat at the table we would discuss what on our plates were the green, red and yellow lights and why. They picked up on it suprising fast and were soon telling us on their own what color different food items were.
This has also helped with treats at our house. When the girls ask for a treat or dessert or a free cookie from Publixs all I have to do is ask "Have you had a lot of Red lights today?"
They always take a second to think and will answer yes or no. Once I asked my 8 year old if she wanted dessert after dinner, she replied with " No thanks there was a party at school today and I had a lot of yummy red lights." Happy Mom moment!
Now I must let you know that when it comes to vacations and holidays we have Red Light Days! Halloween is a total Red Light Day ,as it should be, as well as Christmas and Easter. That is just the way it is supposed to be. We also know that before and after visits with Grandparents we eat extra green lights. A Grandparent's house is and should be a total red light zone :)
This is what we have found to work in our home. This may not be what works for you and your family as we are all different. There are a lot of fun and creative ways to teach your children to be healthy. The important thing is to teach them! Give them the tools they need to be healthy, happy and confident!
Wednesday, August 14, 2013
Mommy Time
This is what a mom who has been cleaning up vommit all day looks like. My poor six year old daughter has the flu. So not a fun way to spend the last week of summer vacation. My two daughters are now in bed and my husband is still at work. I have an hour to myself to relax. What am I going to do? For me the most relaxing thing to do is pop in an Insanity DVD and work out. I had a great run earlier today but I need some of the feel good endorphins a good work out can give me right about now:) Plus this will help me unwind and relax so that I am able to sleep better. The next time you are stressed or anxious try a quick workout. A work out will help you feel relaxed, happy and like you have accomplished something. If you are a mom like me and the kids are in bed you need something that can be done in the living room. Try a jump rope for 5 minutes. Rotating Jumping jacks, squat jumps and push ups in 30 second intervals for 5 minutes is another thing you can do. If you love pinterest search workouts and you will find a whole bunch of quick at home workouts. There are so many options out there for you to use! Now go turn on your favorite music and get your night time sweat on :)
Time to get things going again! I am so excited that I get to start back up in the fitness world. I will be training at Time Efficient Fitness in Ponta Vedrea, Florida(Google Ponta Vedra it's beautiful and on the beach). I have missed my fitness studio and work out buddies in Eagle Mtn,Utah and am so excited to jump back into things. I am going to start using this blog as a place to post work outs, clean eating recipes, running tips and more! My goal is to update this blog atleast once a week. So stay tuned there will be lots of fun things to come!!!
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