350/365 Plantz a-Make Her Dance: Tips for Getting More Vegetables into Your Diet

Friends and Fitness Enthusiasts,

We know fruits and vegetables are great for us but are we eating them as often as we should? According to the USDA, we are supposed to consume 3-5 servings of vegetables a day. I know it can be hard to add them into your diet but here are a few techniques I use that may be helpful to you:

- If you eat salad, put all of your chopped romaine, spinach, Bibb/Boston, etc. lettuce in a container at the beginning of the week.I have been reusing the same giant, plastic container I got months ago when I bought Earthbound Organics's Spring Mix. Every weekend I go to the grocery store, chop up all my lettuce for the week, and store it in that container. It makes it so easy for me to put handfuls of salad into my container to take to work in the morning.

egg white omelette with broccoli, celery, onions, and mushrooms

- I've always loved omelettes but, never thought I'd ever have time to make them. Not so! My dad is a genius when it comes to working smarter and not harder. He stores all his chopped veggies in a container so he can just take a handful to fry (in grape seed oil, of course) when he's ready for breakfast. You can be so creative with these. This week I'm enjoying red bell peppers, onions, shitake mushrooms, and Chinese eggplant. Putting in that extra effort to chop everything ahead of time cuts down breakfast making by half. This meal also gets an A+ if you're paleo, more on that later.

- Though it's better to have fresh vegetables over frozen, I understand it's hard to take time to chop your vegetables every week. An easy way to prepare vegetables is to steam them either in the microwave or on the stove. If you're microwaving, pour your veggies in a bowl and fill the bottom with water. Microwave it for 3-4min. They should be vibrant and tender. If they aren't, microwave them a minute more at a time until they are.

- If you've got a little more time and want to be a little more ambitious, try roasting your vegetables. Set the oven to 350F. Get your vegetables together. I recommend broccoli, bell peppers, cauliflower, and potatoes to start. Chop them all about the same size and put them in a bowl. Pour oil, salt, pepper, and garlic powder over the vegetables. Toss until they are evenly coated. Spread the vegetables onto a pan and bake them for about 25-30 minutes. Your veggies should be fragrant and a little brown but, not burnt, toasty on the outside and tender. Who knew vegetables could be so dynamic? Roasted vegetables are amazing. I love them. I could eat them literally every day AND since they shrink down and are so tasty you can scarf a whole mess of them down without even realizing it. Heck, you could easily get all 5 servings from roasted vegetables. Moving on...


Vegetables are not as grab-and-go as granola bars or yogurt cups but they are definitely great for you. If you're not convinced that vegetables are super cool or want more of a challenge, watch this video. Jose Andreas is just the coolest:

In health,
Lauren

291/365 Photo Shoot to Stay Motivated

Friends and Fitness Enthusiasts,

Clearly staying motivated has been on my mind quite a bit. I think it's because I'm proud of what I've accomplished and I don't want to lose it as should you for what you've achieved! A fun and unique way to do this would be doing a photo shoot! By getting pictures of yourself taken, you can celebrate your new body, confidence, etc. and capture it forever. I got mine done with Focal Impulse and had a blast. Seriously, it was so much fun and I would do it again in a heart beat.

If you don't have the funds or if you're self-conscious, you can still capture this awesome time of your life. Get together with some friends, get your make-up and hair done, and get shutter happy! Guys, you could also have fun with this too. I'm sure your girlfriend or friends that are girls would have a fun time.

No matter how old you are, you deserve to feel like a rock star, model, actor, triple threat sensation. Go have fun!!

In health,

Lauren

269/365 Not Just for Young People: Running a Marathon

Friends and Fitness Enthusiasts,

Have you heard about this guy? He's amazing! I'm talking about Clarence Hartley who will be running the Boston Marathon for the first time. He started running marathons 13 years ago and has clocked his fastest marathon time at 4:09. Did I mention that he's 81 years old? Read more about this role model to us all at Runner's World.

He's not the only older person with whom I've been impressed. We have a 62 year old man at my gym who has been doing 30 minutes of calisthenics every morning and running ~4 miles every day since he was 20! He is 42 years strong and his hoping he's got at least another 16 years left. I say 16 because he told me about someone who is 92 and had to stop running at the age of 78. Mind you, these two met at a gym where the 92 year old still works out today. Another example is a 53 year old woman here. Three years ago, she decided that she's going to start exercising. Her walk became a jog, then a run, and finally running a marathon. These people don't consider themselves to be gods or superhumans; they are just regular people who had a goal and decided to go for it.

I hope this inspires you to realize that it's never too late to start. However, if you wait too long, you run the risk of not making it there.

In health,

Lauren

116/365 The Temple Technique

Friends and Fitness Enthusiasts,

You've heard it before now hear it again: "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own?[...] glorify God in your body. (1 Cor 6:19-20)"

Whether you are religious like not, you can recognize this truthful phrase. Your body is a temple where your spirit, soul, intellect, and mind reside. Without your body, you have no vehicle through which you can express yourself. You have got to respect your body for it is the only one you have.

Here are ways that I believe you ought to respect your body, a temple:
1. Eat foods that will make you wealthy in nutritional value. Do not be greedy and consume in excess.

2. Drink alcohol with the intention of enjoying its effects in good company. Do not drink to get drunk.

3. Sleep; give your body rest so you begin the next day refreshed.

4. Utilize all the muscles in your body. A temple must be fortified to withstand the most destructive winds, storms, etc. that attempt to ravage it. Strengthen your body with frequent exercise.

5. Enjoy everything in moderation.

6. Laugh every day. Life is much too short not to have fun with it.

This list could go on but, I'll stop myself here. Just wait for when The Temple Technique © is a legitimate program made by yours truly.

All the posts I have written before and beyond have this temple idea in mind. Your body deserves respect in everything you do. You are a person of dignity are you not? Treat your body with the same respect and care that you give to yourself. Likewise, treat your soul with the same attention you give your body.

In health,

Lauren

106/365 Can't Spell Time without ME

Friends and Fitness Enthusiasts,

What I am trying to emphasize in my title is the importance of taking time for yourself. Often we get caught up in other people, homework, or politics that we forget about quieting ourselves and finding peace there.

Part of living a healthy lifestyle is having down time. My parents always made sure my sister and I had time just to ourselves, a time without being in the car to go to practice or piano lessons, a time without our friends, so that we could just be with ourselves. This isn't always easy to do since the world is unpredictable. However, we can still try. We can get into bed an hour or half hour earlier than usual and simply lie there; collect our thoughts, discover dreams and ambitions, listen to our breath. We can go for a walk by ourselves without our MP3 player and take in the world. We can turn off our technological devices and be with our thoughts. We can sit down and really enjoy a meal. We can (insert whatever brings you peace).

It's important to enjoy the quiet moments we may infrequently encounter. It also may be necessary to plan these quiet moments. Either way, I encourage you to have down time where you do absolutely nothing except that which truly brings you joy.

In health,

Lauren

2/365 Breathe Deeply and Feel Good

Friends and Fitness Enthusiasts,

Yesterday was my second session with a new client. I asked her if she felt sore from our work out the other day. She replied, "No but, I woke up the next morning feeling good[...]usually I wake up and I'm dragging." How exciting! After one day, exercise has already affected her positively. Exercise and fitness doesn't always have to be about improving your looks or losing weight. Sometimes, feeling good is all we need. In my own experience, I have stopped caring about what the scale says and focus instead on how I feel.


To help you feel good, today's tip is to begin your day or work out with a breathing and stretching exercise inspired by Yoga.
1. Begin by standing with feet hip-width apart and arms at side.
2. As you inhale, bring your arms out to the side. At the top of your inhale, hands should be overhead.
3. In a fluid motion, arms come down to the sides stopping at shoulder height as you exhale. Still exhaling, bend from the hips, keeping back arched (swan dive). Once you get halfway down, round out your back and bring hands down to the floor.
4. Stay bent forward for two complete breaths.
5. Repeat as needed.

This stretch is also good if you feel tired and need to be energized.

In health,
Lauren