Thursday, November 7, 2013

Health & Fitness ~Food,Apps,Workouts & Music~

Hey Guys! So recently I just posted about my fitness and health on YouTube CLICK HERE TO WATCH IT! I posted it just because I wanted to be able to look back at it to see how I have progressed! :)

So first off to begin I guess I will talk about the Apps that I use.

The first I want to talk about is called My Fitness Pal. This my favorite because you can watch what you eat, track how much you have lost and all of that!! It is free on the app store which is another plus. When you first get the app it asks you a few questions to determine how many calories you should consume in one day. Then on the app you can add in what you have eaten for breakfast,lunch and dinner. As well as the snacks you have in between. You also add in how much water you have dranken for the day and as well as any excercises you might have done! It is very simple to use and is very helpful!

The next app I wanted to talk about is called Health Tips.

This one is great because it tells you a new tip everyday and some can be helpful to you. This one is again free on the app store. So for example the tip I have for today, 11/7/2013, says "Most people need 8 hours of sleep to rejuvenate and balance hormones - especially the hunger control hormones. Plan to sleep 7-8 hours nightly to help control binge eating and weight gain." So I really think it's neat to learn something new about health eveyday.

The last app that I use is called Jillian Michaels Weight Loss.

I really really like this one as well. Now there are 2 different versions of this on the app store. One is 2.99 and another is free. I just choose the free one. Now the difference between the two is that not everything is unlocked on the free one but honestly you don't really need to buy it. So when you first get the app you answer a few questions to determine the best workout plan for you. Then she gives you a summary and for example mine says " I know you're a Proportinate Shape and want to lose 25-50 lbs. I've created this workout plan just for you." Then below that are the different circuits she recommends! There are 5 different circuits she will recommend. Then when you click on one of the workouts there is a video and also step by step on how to do the workout. It also gives you some recipes to make as well! You can also access this online. CLICK HERE TO CHECK IT OUT

Apple Berry Banana Smoothie Recipe:

Ingredients:
3 ounces of apple juice
1 small banana
1 cup of ice cubes
1 cup of strawberries
1 scoop of protein powder

Preparation:
1. Pour ingredients into blender and blend on high until mixture is completely smooth and frothy.
2. Pour into a tall glass and enjoy!

This makes one serving and then it provides you with nutrion facts. This is 285 calories per serving.

Grilled Lemon Chicken:
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1/4 cup of basil, fresh or oregano, chopped
1 tablespoon mustard, dijon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup of oil, olive, extra virgin
1/4 cup olives, kalamata, pitted, halved
1 lemon, juice of
1 tablespoon honey
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon pepper, black ground
6 chicken, breast, boneless, skinless, 4 to 5 ounce halves
cooking spray

Preparation:
1. To prepare the dressing, whisk together the lemon zest and juice, the basil, honey, mustard, garlic and salt and pepper. Whisking constantly, add the oil in a slow stream. Set aside.

2. Place the chicken on a cutting board and lay a sheet of wax paper over it. Using the flat side of a meat mallet, pound the chicken so it is an even thickness. Place chicken in a shallow baking dish just large enough to hold it. Pour half of the dressing about 1/3 cup over the chicken and turn the breasts once or twice to coat. Cover the dish and refrigerate for atleast 2 hours if possible, and up to 8 hours turning atleast once.

3.Stir the olives into the remaining dressing and set aside until ready to serve.

4. If using a gas or charcoal grill, spray the grill with olive oil and preheat a medium-hot grill. If using a grill pan, spray with olive oil and heat over medium-high.

5. Discard the marinade and grill the chicken until it is opaque in the center, 5 to 6 minutes per side. Place the chicken on a platter and drizzle with the dressing. Serve.

Ok now for my workouts that I do.

Right now I am doing the 24 Day Challenge and I have been doing that for 5 days. All you do are crunches, leg raises and 1 second planks.
The picture is of the challenge I am currently doing! My cousin posted this on her facebook and I decided to do it!

I am also doing the 30 day squat challenge. I have been doing that for 3 days now. Basically your squats keep increasing as the days go by. My picture won't upload onto my blog. But you can google and find a picture for the challenge, that's all that I did. Sorry about that!

Also I am doing some of the things that are off of the Jillian Michaels app.

I wanted to throw in a bonus here in my blog, there is also another bonus in my video that isn't on here!

That bonus would be what music do I listen to. That would be using my pandora app and then clicking on either my bad girlfriend radio, nickelback radio or even linkin park radio. Anything that will keep me going and staying pumped.

The reason I am working out is not because I am not confident with myself I am very confident with myself. It is just because I love feeling great and I love feeling sore from the workouts. Sounds crazy I know but I just love feeling healthy. I used to be really overweight and I would have to wear a size 20 pants now I am  down to a size 14! :) Which is so much better, I have a lot more energy now too. Another reason I am doing it is because of my disease, I need to stay healthy in order to not get sick.

So that pretty much sum it all up! Thank you so much for reading!!! :) <3 Be sure to check out my video for more tips you didn't see on my blog post!