Tips and Tricks - Week Seven

Tip: If you only have a few moments for fitness in your day, the three most important exercises to do (according to Discovery Fitness) are: squats/lunges, bicycling the abs, and push-ups. Even if you're constantly strapped for time, you need to stop accepting personal excuses not to throw these three exercises into your daily schedule. In fact, after I started writing this, I dropped and gave me 16... I figure, I should practice what I preach and do some push-ups. And it only took a few moments. NO EXCUSES!!! JUST DO IT!!!

Trick: For you working gals, here is a trick I picked up that works "like a charm"... bring a piece of portable fruit (apple, plum, nothing messy) to work with you. When you get off work and you're driving home, eat the fruit on the way home. The fruit should ease up some of that "after-work snack" desire so that you don't start mindlessly munching as soon as you crash on the couch and kick your feet up. Not only that, but you're getting in some healthy food as well. It's not like you'll have a choice in the car--single piece of fruit--but if you're hungry when you get home, so many choices--everything--is up for grabs. And since not everyone is working, here's a little common sense trick for everyone (and it's always good to be reminded of the common sense stuff we forget about): if it won't immediately go bad, cut fruit up and leave it in a highly visible, see-through container on the main shelf in the fridge. Plain and simple. If it's grapes, pull them all off of the vine at once and put them in a pretty bowl. Easy snacks are the ones you will eat, so you are more likely to eat healthy items if they are easy and attractive. Duh! but... sometimes we get lazy or forget. :)

Recipe: Well, I'm not really much of a cook. I can tell you some things that I eat every day, if that's interesting to you. I start my day with a Slimfast shake, glass of water. For lunch, I have one ham sandwich on light bread with mustard. On the way home I eat a piece of fruit. Then a glass of water (or two). Then a snack... perhaps some fat free Pringles, 4-8 marshmallows, more fruit, all chased with some water or a lite pop. Then a sensible dinner (fish, chicken, pork prepared lightly and accompanied by some kind of vegetable, often cooked in olive oil). Okay, so that's not at all a recipe. But I like to look at it as kind of my recipe for success. When I eat healthfully every week day, I seem to survive the more lax weekends mostly intact. Hope this helps...