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How I Made Working Out Into A Lifestyle
When I was younger, I was surrounded by sports. I started playing softball when I was only 6 years old and started to play volleyball when I was 13. So, the majority of my life consisted of practices, games, lifting sessions and more practice. But, that all comes with somebody telling me what to do. That was the hardest thing I had to let go when I stopped being an athlete. It is so much easier when you have a coach telling you what to do. When I ended my athletic career I found myself not ever going to the gym, because I just didn’t have a reason to anymore. I eventually found my way back, but it was not easy to stick to. Follow along and I’ll share with you some ways I made working out a part of my lifestyle.
Start Small
This was something that helped me get through the hard days of working out. When I start exercising, I always start with a lot of energy and think I can do more than I really can. However, doing too much, in the beginning, leads to burnout, which leads to quitting. When you first start making working out a habit, your body is most likely not used to it. Ease into it, do not do anything your body isn’t ready for.
Don’t skip a day
It is so easy to say “Nah, I’ve been doing it for four days…I’ll just skip today!” For the first time getting into working out consistently, you need to be consistent. If you do skip a day, don’t beat yourself up. Get back into the next day and continue to keep doing it every day. I work out almost every day, but when I skip a day I know I won’t make it a habit. Since when I started working out a lot I did not skip a day for as long as I could remember. This helped me so much when making it a lifestyle for me. I now feel weird and not myself when I don’t get a workout in during the day.
Listen to your body
I live by this motto so much throughout my life, especially when it comes to working out. Some days you want to push your body and have the best workout of your life, but if your body is just not feeling it, don’t push it!! Pushing yourself is good, and you should always try and do things you normally do not do, that’s how we reach goals! But, pushing ourselves too hard in the face of pain and putting ourselves in danger, that’s not good. If you get to the gym and had a long intense workout in mind but your body isn’t up to the task, don’t push it. Exercise is good, but it has to be the right amount with the right intensity for you. Next time you head to the gym and your running that mile with 3 more to go, but you’re about to pass out, stop! Your goal can be reached when your body is letting and is ready you reach it.
Go to the gym!
This has got to be the most common tip when starting to workout consistently. But it truly is the best tip out there when finding the motivation to workout. There are so many times when I truly do not want to get up and go workout. But, getting your workout clothes on and heading out the door is the hardest part sometimes. Some days I am so tired and sick of the gym, but I go anyway. I can’t tell you how many times I tell myself I am just gonna go do a quick, easy workout but end up doing the most intense workout that ends up being an hour and a half long. You really can surprise yourself when you get up and just go! I still live by this tip and will for a very very long time.
Make it a journey
The one mistake people make when they first start working out is making it a destination, not a journey. Sure, making goals and reaching them is great, but stopping once that goal is reached is too common. When you are trying to make working out a lifestyle you can’t think of it as an endpoint, you need to take it day by day.
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Why Am I Dairy Free?
Whenever I get offered ice cream, cheese, or anything that includes dairy, I now decline. I always get the question “What! why?!.” Well, there’s a lot of reasons actually… Follow along and I’ll share with you reasons why I chose to go dairy free. Along with tips on how I cut out what some people would consider the hardest thing to leave behind. Whether you are lactose intolerant or doing it for the health benefits, cutting out dairy can be a hard transition, but I am here to try and help with that.
WHY, am I dairy-free?
Digestion
When I was a freshman in college I found myself feeling very sick and constant stomach pains whenever I drank milk or ate ice cream. I never ever thought I would ever be lactose intolerant until… I was! After about 30 minutes to an hour after consuming dairy, I felt abdominal bloating, pain, or cramps. I did not realize it was dairy causing these symptoms until I tested it out. I had a bowl of cereal every day for one week with my regular milk that I always drink. I then ate cereal for breakfast for one week with almond milk. The results were insane. I no longer felt bloated or crampy after about an hour of eating the cereal. I then realized that dairy was the cause of this uncomfortable abdominal feeling.
65% of the human population has a reduced ability to digest lactose after infancy. So it is way more common to be lactose intolerant than people think because it isn’t natural. Although some of the nutrients in dairy can be beneficial, there are much better ways to get them. I take calcium vitamins every day so I still supplement my bones with it. Potassium, protein, and fats can all be replaced with certain veggies, fruits, seaweed, whole grains, and certain seeds.
Skincare
Skincare experts are known for telling clients to cut down on their dairy intake to help clear up the skin. Dairy is full of hormones and is mucous-forming. Hormones cause excess sebum to be produced which causes acne (ick, I know). This interesting read is someone’s experience who indulged in dairy after being vegan. Super interesting read!
HOW, can I handle being dairy free?
Dairy product alternatives
Being able to cut out “milk” products from your diet is almost impossible, especially after living with them for 18 years of your life before realizing you can’t have them. We now live in an age where being vegan, dairy free is so so common! My go-to is almond milk, but oat-milk is very similar and is another alternative I am interested in trying.
Ice cream was something I did NOT want to give up. Luckily there are so many different vegan/dairy free ice cream options on the market today. Halo top recently made a vegan line of ice cream that I find myself buying occasionally Ben & Jerry’s is my favorite because it tastes so so similar to actual ice cream. Life is good if you can still eat ice cream!
I know it is not an easy thing to remove from your life. If you feel uncomfortable when eating dairy or having bad skin days, give a dairy-free lifestyle a try.
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Healthy – 3 Ingredient Pancakes
When I wanted to focus more on my diet and start eating healthier foods, breakfast was something I knew I would have a hard time with. I love chocolate chip pancakes, french toast, crepes, etc. I noticed these 3 ingredient pancakes floating around the internet and decided to try them out! All you need is banana, rolled oats, milk of choice OR eggs. I tried this recipe with almond milk and another batch including the eggs. Both options work really well and taste delicious. I chose to mention these 2 options in case someone wants a vegan choice and a choice for those who eat eggs and want to add some more protein to their breakfast. These delicious pancakes were super easy to make and are a great healthier alternative to regular pancakes using cheap ingredients!
Ingredients:
1 ripe banana
1/2 cup rolled oats
3 1/2 tbsp milk of choice (Only if using milk of choice instead of eggs)
OR
2 eggs (Only if using eggs instead of milk of choice)
Ground cinnamon (optional)
How To Make
Step 1 – In a small bowl mash up your 1 ripe banana.
Step 2 – Add your mashed banana and remaining ingredients in a blender
Step 3 – Blend your ingredients until a batter is formed and the banana is fully mixed in with the rest of the ingredients.
Step 4 – Heat a skillet or pan on medium heat and grease it very well, using butter/spray of choice or I personally like to use a bit of coconut oil.
Step 5 – Pour 1/3 cup of batter onto skillet/pan, using a measuring cup to ensure equal size and cooking time.
Step 6 – Allow the pancakes to cook until bubbles appear around the edges, then flip and cook until golden.
Topping options:
Berries of choice
Natural Peanut Butter
Sugar-free raspberry preserves
Maple Syrup – Maple syrup is very high in sugar but there are some maple syrups out there that are a bit better for you. Listed below are some healthy maple syrup options that I personally enjoy.
- Walden Farms Calorie Free Maple Syrup (Walmart)
- Simple Truth Organic Maple Syrup (Kroger)
- Archer Farms 100% Pure Maple Syrup (Target)
- Specialty Selected 100% Maple Syrup (Aldi)
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Keto Diet – The latest Low Carb, High Fat Diet Fad
My older Sister, Emily, recently started a new diet, the ketogenic diet. I never heard of this in the past until she mentioned she was on it. Ever since she brought it up to me, I started noticing more people talking about it. So what exactly is this ketogenic diet? What do you eat? What does it do to your body? I wanted to know more about this new fad because how could a recent college graduate, who is paying off student loans be able to afford it? I decided to sit down with my older sister and ask her all things Keto!
Q: How did you learn about the Ketogenic diet?
A: When I was about 18 I did a low carb diet which worked really well, but once college came around I didn’t stick with it. But I have always known that a low carb diet worked well with my body when doing it correctly. I ultimately discovered the Keto diet while browsing social media.
Q: Did you like it at first?
A: Yes, it was very easy to adjust to. I never had any cravings for carb-loaded foods and it helped that I had a positive, excited mindset going into it. I knew what I was getting myself into since I’ve done a low carb diet in the past.
Q: What do your daily meals look like?
A: I start my day with breakfast which consists of a bulletproof coffee which contains coffee, 1 serving of MCT oil powder
, 1 serving of collagen peptides, 1 serving of coconut oil, 1 serving of kerry gold butter (grass fed butter), and sweetener.
My lunch is usually meat-based so its either pulled pork, brats, or meatballs with a side of starch free vegetables. After work, I head to the gym so I like to have my dinners consist of protein. For example, Tuesdays I make grass-fed beef tacos (without the shell obviously) with my homemade taco seasonings because the store bought taco seasonings have hidden sugars. I have another
side of starch free vegetables. The only thing I usually drink throughout the day is water. I try and have a gallon of water a day. Some nights I make myself some dessert. I have recently been making chia seed pudding for nights I’m craving something sweet.
Q: How are you able to afford this diet?
A: I have recently been starting to budget each month. I will take out my set budget for groceries in cash and only use that money for groceries so I do not have to use my debit card. I do the majority of my grocery shopping at Aldi, which is a global discount supermarket chain. I get the basic foods that I eat on a regular basis at Aldi like, grass-fed meat, vegetables,
almond milk, cheese. If I would go to let’s say, Pick n Save, my groceries would be almost double than what I spend at Aldi. I look for deals on things that are typically more expensive, like meat. If I do find a good deal I will stock up on that product and freeze what I don’t need at the time. I also do frozen vegetables rather than fresh vegetables so they last longer and are cheaper. To help save money, I go to Walmart and use their savings catcher on the Walmart app. I find different apps such as ibotta.Q: How has your support system helped you through this diet journey?
A: I have an account on Instagram where I post updates on my diet and my day to day life. So having a hugely supportive community on Instagram is amazing. Having a good connection with other Keto members gives me other ideas for recipes and wellness tips. My boyfriend Brad is a great support system, he even started eating healthier because of my lifestyle change. My sister’s friends love my Instagram account so that is a confidence booster as well.
Q: What tips do you have for people interested in this diet, but are a little skeptical?
A: Start small, start eliminating bread, carbs, sugars where you can. Do your research, there are a bunch of podcasts, youtube accounts, Instagram accounts that are all things, Keto. Everybody’s body is different, don’t get discouraged if it isn’t working. Listen to your body and try and focus on how you feel. If you feel like nothing is working or you are feeling worse, maybe it just isn’t the diet for you, and that’s okay!! What you eat is 70% of it and exercise is 30%. So working out will only help you during this. I don’t work out like crazy but being physical is going to help your body so much.
Follow Emily!!
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5 Ways to Help You Feel Better Today
Mind-and-body wellness is something I am always interested in and improving upon. Ever just wake up with low self-esteem, bloated and just uncomfortable? Today I am going back to the basics and discussing my 5 go to wellness tips to help me start feeling better!
- Stretch
- When I wake up I always try and get a good stretch in. It makes me feel more awake and limber. Stretching will help with your flexibility and jump-start your mind and body as well as increase blood flow. Some days I feel lazy and tired I always stretch and I feel so much better. Waking up and going to a yoga class or even watching a yoga video at home is a great way to get your body moving.
- Do Something Physical
- On days I wake up feeling not quite like myself, I always try and fit in something active into my day. You can go to the gym and have a full workout or even just a 30 minute walk outside. You’ll never regret any kind of workout when you’re done with it. Physical activity targets brain chemicals that may leave you feeling happier and relaxed.
- Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate!!
- On days I’m not staying hydrated, my skin feels dry and I feel drowsy. So making sure I keep drinking liquids throughout the day is very important. I find that putting lemon in my water makes me want to drink more water during the day. Lemon water helps aid in better digestion and makes me feel fresh. Drinking water is a natural way to detox. Sometimes I mistake thirst with hunger so drinking water helps me eat less during the day too!
- Green tea is another drink I prefer on days my gut isn’t feeling good. Hot drinks, like green tea, relieve my cramps and uncomfortable gut feeling. Green tea helps with your metabolism and will make you feel full. And since there’s caffeine in green tea I have more energy!
- Mindful eating.
- Days I want to feel better, I eat better. Eating whole foods, and avoiding processed foods make me feel happy and healthier. I usually gravitate towards foods that are lighter, full of energy, and that won’t make me feel bloated. And while I am eating my meals I slow down and enjoy the meal. I try not to watch or read anything while I eat so I don’t get distracted and overeat.
- Put the Phone Down.
- This is something that I have just recently started to do. I notice whenever I am browsing on my phone I go on Instagram or Pinterest and look at other users. I always compare my life or body to others even if I don’t realize I am doing it. I am always so concerned about who is looking at my story or who just liked my Instagram. Sometimes just putting the outside world away can really help clear your head.
- Stretch