Staying in Shape

All the tips and tricks for keeping your fitness journey on track through your busy schedule, one step at a time.

BE KIND TO YOURSELF

Don't limit yourself. The holidays are full of good food, and you don't want to deprive yourself and be miserable. The key is moderation. Don't eat Christmas cookies everyday. Make sure you are mindful of what you're eating and incorporate balance. A mixture of food groups like protein, carbs, vegetables, and sugar is better than just eating the sugar and starving yourself the rest of the day to compensate.

DRINK YOUR GREENS

Making a clean green juice with detoxifying ingredients will help boost your immune system and cleanse your body from sweet treats you eat. It's best to drink a green juice in the morning on an empty stomach for the nutrients to really absorb.

STAY ACTIVE

Create a plan for yourself of your best days that you can allocate time to working out. Once you have a baseline create a differentiated routine for each day. For example, Tuesday is for your 6 PM yoga class, Thursday is a Barre class, Saturday you hit the gym for legs, and Sunday could be your freestyle HIIT day. Whatever you decide, the more entertained you are the more likely you are to be accountable and stay on top of your exercise schedule.

ClassPass is my favorite because you can go to any participating gym or studio. You don't have to stick to the same workout routine. The more variability and flexibility you have, the more likely you are to workout. You can use my link to get 15 credits for FREE. Most classes cost 1 to 2 credits so essentially you can attend 15 classes free of charge. Get your first 15 credits for free here!

Workout From Home Edition:

There are so many great YouTube channels dedicated to at home workouts. Some of my favorites are PopSugar Fitness, Yoga with Adrienne, and Whitney Simmons!

VITAMINS ARE YOUR FRIENDS

I take vitamins on the daily to take preventative action. Vitamins help your body stay ahead of colds, flus, and viruses. They also give your body strength. You should always take something with Vitamin C, that is a WHOLEFOOD supplement which means it is not made of anything synthetic. I take Amla Plus (from FeelRite) which boosts immune and has many antioxidants with anti-aging properties. Lastly, Vitamin D is essential especially in the winter if you live somewhere cold. Vitamin D is also a preventative measure against the COVID-19 virus going around as it promotes a healthy respiratory system.

I CHALLENGE YOU...

Commit to giving up one unhealthy food habit for 30 days. I promise you will never go back. There is research behind this theory but speaking from experience, I've eliminated my diet of gluten completely. Also, I gave up sugar for 30 days and I don't crave it anymore. I have continued on this path of avoiding sugary foods like pancakes, cupcakes, chocolate, even granola bars are packed with sugar. If you make a promise to yourself don't break it, that's where true change is made. Give yourself a chance to truly break the ice for a change to occur. Giving up your daily diet coke for three days isn't going to change your habit or help you lose 10 pounds because for a change to be made you have to create a new habit. In this example your new habit would be drinking water instead of diet coke for thirty days straight. By the end of the thirty days you won't even realize that much time has passed.

MEAL PREP

Schedule day a week to prepare for your busy schedule. Even if you don't prepare for the entire week, you can get ahead of at least 3 days that your meals are covered and you're not tempted to buy something quick and greasy. Some ideas for meal prepping that I love are:

1) Salad with mixed greens, oven roasted turkey, almonds, olives, cucumber, carrots, and a balsamic vinaigrette dressing.

2) Chicken, brown rice, spinach with a lemon, caper, butter sauce

3) Soups and chili -- EX: Beef & barley soup is phenomenal

4) Spaghetti and meatballs (gluten free brown rice pasta is my favorite to use)

5) Lentils mixed with barley, spinach, olive oil, and fresh herbs served hot

6) Pan fried brown rice with spinach and kale in olive oil with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Topped with feta cheese & dill sauce

These are all things that can be made beforehand that will be quick and easy to make and will last in the fridge.

I hope you found these tips to stay fit helpful!

xo Alyssa