Before (Dec 2011) After (Sept 2012)
So, many of you expressed interest in fitness/healthy food tips-no time like the present-correct? I personally believe that exercising (if physically possible, because I know that there are some people who can't exercise) and healthy eating are something very important for Christians. God has given us this amazing, incredible body that does so many things! Through much "Google research" I've discovered some incredible things about our bodies! Including (but not limited to):
1.Our bodies are designed to adapt to the work we do every day, building resistance and equipping our body to do the work easier next time! (good for work, bad for losing weight!)
2.If you pair resistance training with cardio-you'll actually burn more calories! A pound of muscle burns 5X as much fat as a pound of fat!
Those are just two of MANY things I've come across that are cool about our bodies. The first (as I'm hoping to write more posts up) thing I want to address is a food lie. Lots of us have been told that you're supposed to eat 3 meals a day and big meals at that! However, according to any fitness person you ask-you should eat 3 small meals and snack in between each. Ideally, you should eat every 2-3 hours (not while you're sleeping of course...LOL!). This keeps your metabolism going constantly, instead of sending it into starvation mode and causing it to store fat, instead of burn calories. Now please understand that I'm not talking about huge snacks and huge meals! I'm talking small snacks and meals-enough to satisfy your hunger. You should never stuff yourself, only eat till you're satisfied. I do want to go on the record to say that I don't eat perfect (in fact tonight is a junk food night-which is okay-but that's another post). I try my best, and obviously like anyone else slip up. That being said, here are a few snack ideas:
- An Apple
- Celery with peanut butter
- 100 calories worth of almonds
- String cheese
- Vegetables of any kind
Fruit, while still good for you, isn't very low calorie and still contains quite a bit of sugar. Your best bet is to stick with vegetables, they have high water content and thus are low in calories.
Still wondering how many calories to consume per meal/snack? Here's a nifty little calorie calculator:
To find out, simply enter your info into the calculator and then divide the number by 5 or 6 (depending on when you eat and how many snacks you plan on per day) so someone who should consume 2,000 calories to lose weight, should consume no more than 400 calories per meal/snack (using 5).
QUESTION: What are your favorite healthy snacks?
Wow! Looking good! I love fitness so this post was awesome!!!
ReplyDeleteMy favorite healthy snack is steamed broccoli :)
I like steamed broccoli, too, with lemon, garlic, or horseradish.
ReplyDeleteAnd trail mix with almonds, pecan, and/or walnuts, chocolate chips, dried banana chips? and raisins is a favorite! :)
It depends on the day and my schedule, so it vary from a small pot of yogurt with fruit (usually are banana, apple or pear) to almonds.
ReplyDeleteI eat yogurt every morning for breakfast. I've noticed that my hair now has a natural shine (not greasy type of shine) and easily dropped a few pounds in my mid-section. I used to eat a frozen tv dinner which by the way are SOO good, it is making my mouth drool, but I had to give it up -- too much salt!
ReplyDeleteJustine