27 Apr Get your summer body in the spring!
Newsflash…. SUMMER is coming!! Wouldn’t you like to get your beach body back now? Me to!
I promise these tips are so good you won’t feel any pain!
Read on to discover how you can EASILY get your summer body in the spring.
1. EAT MORE BEANS!
The trick to eating fewer calories in a day is to eat foods that truly fill you up for longer periods of time.Beans are a perfect balance of protein and fiber that your body digests slowly giving you sustained fullness and energy throughout the day. I don’t think you need to read a research paper to realize that the more fiber you eat the fuller you will feel. If you feel fuller, longer, you will be less likely to graze on junk-end of story.
Beans are complex carbohydrates with both soluble and insoluble fiber (which have tons of other benefits from balancing blood sugar to removing bad cholesterol from your system).
300 Cal Cut: Add beans to your breakfast, lunch and dinner.
I add S & W black beans to my scrambled eggs for an additional boost protein. I also add Garbanzo beans to salads and then use salsa as my dressing-yum!
See that wonderful bowl of salad below? That’s my new favorite! Check out the recipe below and make your own!
Ingredients
2 (14-ounce) cans S & W 50% less sodium garbanzo beans
1 English cucumber – peeled, seeded and diced
1 yellow or red bell pepper, seeds removed and diced
4-5 ribs celery, diced
2 carrot, peeled and diced
1/4 red onion, diced
1/2 bunch green onions, diagonally sliced
1/3 bunch parsley, chopped (about ½ cup)
The dressing:
2/3 cup mayonnaise (I used Vegenaise)
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
1 tablespoon minced garlic
Preparation
In a large bowl mix together garbanzo beans, diced cucumbers, bell peppers, celery, carrots, red onions, green onions and chopped parsley.
Mix together mayonnaise, lemon juice, vinegar, dill, salt, basil and garlic; pour over salad, mixing well.
Modified from the original recipe.
2. STRATEGIC SNACKING
It’s human nature to eat all the food that is placed before you. Researchers at Pennsylvania State University found that women who snacked from a big bag of chips consumed 184 more calories than those given an individually sized bag. So you’re left with two options…
1. Spend the extra money on the snack size bag of chips.
2. Or, TRY A DIFFERENT CHIP! I recently discovered, gimMe Roasted Seaweed Snacks. It’s the first USDA Organic and non GMO certified seaweed chip on the market.
Seaweed has the highest density of vitamins and minerals of any vegetable on the planet. Some people even call it sea lettuce. And, at only 25 calories a bag, I can eat a bag or two a day without guilt ☺
3. STAY HYDRATED!
Half the battle in weight loss is making sure you have both food and drinks prepped for your day. After spending 27 years of my life teaching people how to lose weight, one of the areas where I see people blow it is with “surprisingly” sugary drinks. I think most of us know that soda is full of sugar and other potential toxins so what I’m talking about are the surprising sources of sugar in the daily diet. The two most common culprits: canned ice tea and juices. I picked up a can of iced tea last week and discovered that there were 21 packets of sugar in it!
And of course, staying hydrated is key. We often mistake thirst for hunger. When you are adequately hydrated, you can better sense hunger.
300 Cal Cut: Pack your drinks before you leave the house! My favorite new drink is CORE Water. It tastes great and is ultra-purified and balanced with electrolytes and minerals to achieve the body’s perfect pH balance of 7.4.
What I also like about CORE Water is the bottle. It’s designed to be easy to carry so that’s exactly what I do-I take it everywhere with me! Including jury duty…
So excited for jury duty! Okay, not true but I am doing my civic duty
4. VEG Out
I love pasta as much as the next gal, but I have to say that this is one food that I can very easily overdo and then immediately go into a food coma. The average “American” sized pasta dish is actually pasta for 4 people. Yikes!
One cup is an appropriate serving size of pasta. When dining in a restaurant and you need to estimate the serving size of your entrée-use your fist! Your fist is almost a perfect cup and it’s sized for your body. Meaning, the bigger you are the bigger your hand; so if you’re a big (or small person) you dose it down to fit your body type.
300 Cal Cut: Swap out regular pasta for zucchini noodles. Using a spiralizer is a fantastic way to “fake” a pasta meal and add more veggies to your diet at the same time. By swapping out the pasta and swapping in the zuke noodles, I’ve just saved 300 calories and added a nice dose of fiber and nutrients to my meal.
BONUS! The magic happens when you stay active throughout the day.
I think Louie is interested in eating my new Fitbit haha!
The default setting is 10,000 steps. That’s about 5 miles per day. According to research, that’s enough steps per day to help me lower my blood-pressure, lose weight & help prevent heart disease. It doesn’t matter if you get all 10,000 steps in at once. Most of us are too busy to fit all of that in, in one exercise session.
P.S. I hope you had a wonderful Mother’s Day weekend filled with joy and celebration!
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