Going Raw

I just spent a week in west palm beach, Florida at a place called the Hippocrates Health Institute. My dad came down here for 3 weeks in July, came home and was so excited about everything he learned that he tried to get my entire family to come. Most people thought he was crazy but I have a very open mind and am always interested in anything related to nutrition, so I told him I would give it a go, and my cousin came as well. So what is this hippocrates place? Well you can google it or look on their website to get the fool scoop because it would take me a novel to explain how amazing this place is. Basically, it is a place where you can go and stay for 1, 2, or 3 weeks and they promote health and wellness through an all raw vegan nutrition program. Many people who come here are here because they have some sort of illness and they have been told that there is no type of western medicine that can help their illness. That is why my dad came. He has been battling stage 4 prostate cancer for 2 years and was told that he could do hormone therapy, chemo, and then wait to die. He did hormone therapy, and after basically becoming a menopausal woman for a year and a half, said he had enough. Chemo often makes patients worse off than they were beforehand with no real positive results, so he decided to go a different route. He spent 3 weeks at hippocrates eating all raw foods and dropped his cholesterol by over 100 points, lost 20 pounds and 4 inches off his waist, and has more energy than I can even handle. This is an amazing place and is filled with people who have completely reversed debilitating diseases just by changing their diet and their attitudes. What I love most is that it is all science based. There are endless amounts of information and facts that prove why humans are supposed to be consuming a raw, plant based diet, but because of the American Medical Association and the Pharmaceutical companies, people all over the world have been led to believe that what is actually abnormal for our bodies (meat and processed foods), is normal now across the world. 60% of Americans are obese and that number is even higher in England. Did you know that only 10% of a supplement needs to come from a natural source to be labeled NATURAL??? B vitamin supplements are mostly coal tar. Calcium supplements and Vitamin D supplements are mostly oyster shells and chalk. E vitamin supplements are 80% turpentine! Fish oil (which I have been taking forever!) is a known cancer causing substance. For the last 20 years, HUMAN genes have been spliced into pork genes to make pigs grow faster to be ready for slaughter sooner. You can eat a completely raw vegan diet and still get all the macronutrients you need. I could go on and on about all the facts and information I have been given this week. I know this all may sound crazy or made up... believe me I thought it was at first as well, but you just can't argue with science, and they definitely have the facts to back up and the track recored to prove that what they are teaching is 100% real. I want to share more information with anyone who has an open mind and is willing to listen.

Where's The Meat?

Not on my dad's plate anymore! My dad just spent 3 weeks in West Palm Beach, Florida at the Hippocrates Health Institute seeking a way to rid his body of cancer and avoid the typical western medicine path. Most cancer patients are given three treatment options: radiation, chemotherapy, or surgery. Those are the only three cancer treatment options that have been offered for over 100 years, but they don't work. Chemo pumps your body full of toxins and often makes some patients worse off than they were before treatment. White blood cells and other lines of defense in our immune system are the only things that can actually kill cancer cells... so why not try something obvious, and make these natural defenses stronger instead of weaker by pumping the body with chemicals and filling it with radiation? Simply, because doctors wouldn't make enough money if all people had to do to cure their illnesses was eat a specific diet, and the drug companies would be out of business... and let's be honest, drug companies do a large part in running this country. Think about the number of commercials you see in one commercial break that are advertising some new drug. At the Hippocrates Health Institute, they are curing people by simply providing them with the knowledge that they need to cure themselves. It all has to do with diet and exercise, but mainly diet! My dad has been following an all vegan, raw foods diet since being at HHI. His macronutrient needs of protein, carbs, and fats are still met everyday but he eats no meat of any kind, no alcohol, no sugar, no processed foods, and nothing heated over 110 degrees. I have a lot of questions about this lifestyle, and am excited to go to HHI next week and just be a sponge for a week, absorbing all the information I can. I saw my dad for the first time in 3 weeks yesterday, and let me tell you, the results do not lie! I have never seem him look so good or so happy. He was full of energy and life, and at almost 50 years old, was sporting a set of 6 pack abs! He was only there 3 weeks and he looks like  he lost 20 pounds, looks 10 years younger, shaved over 100 points off of his cholesterol, and has been more excited about living than I have ever seen a person be before. He got up at 6 am this morning to go running, went to lift weights with me at 9, then went to hot yoga at 4. The man cannot be stopped! I am so excited to go down to Florida and learn everything I can about making my body as healthy as possibly and living a lifestyle that will keep me strong and thriving for the rest of my life. While a completely raw and vegan diet may not be a realistic lifestyle for a busy college student like myself, after I learn all I need to know, I am going to incorporate this diet into my life so that I will be following it about 70-80% of the time.

<3 Health and Happiness

Smooth Operator

It's summertime.... And for summer reason it is particularly hot and sticky this summer, so who doesn't love to sip on a refreshing smoothie?! Smoothies are great ways to get something healthy and filling in a hurry. However, you might be getting more than you bargained for with a smoothie in the sugar department. In Virginia Beach everyone loves Tropical Smoothie. Other areas of the country have places like Jamba Juice to cool them down in the summer. When you go to these places and look on the menu you can see what the main ingredients are in the smoothies, but not EVERYTHING is listed. One day I was curious so I tried using my eagle eye vision to look over the counter at the back wall to see where they had all the recipes listed for each smoothie. These are the complete recipes that only the employees see, so they know how to make each smoothie. I noticed that in each smoothie, the first ingredient for almost all of them was 1 scoop of turbinado sugar, and the 'scoop' was not a little one. Now, for those of you who don't know, turbinado is a less refined and less processed form of table sugar, so it is a better option in that sense, but sugar is still sugar. Fruit is already very sweet naturally, so next time you go to a smoothie place, ask them to skip the sugar, and if you wanna get even more out of your smoothie tell them to throw in a scoop of whey protein! I promise that smoothie will be just as tasty and refreshing and your body will thank you! :)

<3 Health and Happiness

BACK AND ABS

Woke up early today to hit the gym and was lucky enough to have my girl Stephanie Alexander to go with me! When I told her we were going to start with stiff legged romanian deadlift I couldn't help but notice a mixed look of both fear and confusion on her face haha. First, she told me that she had no idea what a romanian deadlift was and then she told me she had never been in the part of the gym before with all the weights because she usually just sticks to the ab room (or the "girly room" as she called it). Steph is an athlete so I wasn't worried at all about whether or not she would be able to keep up, but it did make me laugh a little bit because I forgot that most women are like Stephanie, and are kind of intimidated at first by the weight room.... And it's not because they aren't capable of lifting weights, but they just don't know what to do or where to start! Do some research on weight lifting, ladies (there's a lot of info out there!), grab a good girlfriend, and have fun together in the weight room learning what to do! You have nothing to lose, but everything to gain, so don't be scared of the iron! :) Today we did a back and abs workout! Tomorrow I'm gonna throw a crazy leg workout at Steph, so hopefully she'll still love me after I turn her legs to jello haha :)

Romanian Stiff Legged Deadlift
Hanging Leg Raises
Seated Cable Rows
Kneeling Cable Pulldowns for Abs
Bent Over Barbell Rows
In n' Outs with Physio Ball
Back Extensions... full and partial range of motion reps

<3 Health and Happiness

Muscle Mashup!

I haven't been able to get to the gym for a few days since it was closed for the holiday weekend, so today I did an intense total upper body workout. I used a combination of weighted, body weight only, isolated, and compound exercises, so it was a bit of a mashup of a workout, and 90 minutes of nonstop intensity! I moved quickly today between sets, trying to keep my heart rate up throughout my entire workout, and let me tell ya I was exhausted by the end! It was awesome and extremely fast paced... just like me! haha... It felt amazing to get in the gym and workout really hard after a few days of not lifting, and my body is definitely thanking me for getting out all of that built up energy! (I'm a naturally hyper person and after a couple days of no intense exercise I kinda get like a hyper puppy that hasn't been walked or played with haha). So here's my workout! It's a lot of different exercises, but if you keep your waiting time between sets to a minimum you will feel like this workout flew by.

Pushups (4 sets of 15) SUPER-SETTED with...

Side to Front Shoulder Raises (raise your arms straight out to the side, around to the front, then down to your thighs... do this for 10 reps)

Dumbbell Bench Press (3 sets) SUPER-SETTED with...

Tricep Kickbacks with Dumbbells (3 sets)

Lat Pull Down  (3 sets)

Hammer Curls (3 sets) SUPER-SETTED with...

Back Extensions (3 sets)

Tricep Cable Pulls (3 sets)

Seated Cable Row (3 sets)

Hanging Knee Raises (4 sets of 15)

Plank on Bosu Ball (3 sets for 60 seconds each) 

In n' Outs with Physio Ball (3 sets of 15... get in push up position with your feet on then physio ball then bring your knees towards your chest then back to the starting position)

An awesome workout ALWAYS makes you feel better! Even if you don't feel like going to the gym, make yourself go because once you get in there and get into your zone of focus, your mind and your body will be thanking you later for getting off that couch! 

<3 Health and Happiness

Hungry? Don't Grab a Snickers!

Happy 4th of July, everyone! Unfortunately, because it's a holiday weekend the gym has been closed and I don't have much to blog about in terms of my lifting routine... No offense America, but your birthday is really not helping me in my fitness goals. Nonetheless, I have adjusted my nutrition for the weekend based on the fact that I cannot get into the gym to lift. Here I have a few pictures of foods I have been eating the past couple days. I always love looking at pictures people post of what they eat because it gives me new ideas and inspiration for ways I can shake up my meals! 

This is a steak I grilled up (cooked medium-rare of course!) with some mixed greens. Gabe and I found this amazing salsa at the store that is literally just chopped veggies, cilantro, and some lime juice... It tastes amazing and is much better for you than many other salsas that have a lot of added salt. I like using the salsa as my salad dressing and I like dipping my steak in spicy guacamole instead of the steak sauces that are filled with salt, sugar, and ingredients that are definitely not natural! Just making small substitutions in your diet can make a big difference!

Here is what Gabe made for breakfast one morning... It is an omelette made with egg substitutes, turkey bacon, spinach, and topped with that yummy salsa. He also made some oatmeal and added some cinnamon and fresh strawberries. Cinnamon is a really great way to add flavor to your breakfast foods without having to add sugar.

Gabe and I got some fresh salmon portions from the grocery store and created this delicious dinner! We brushed olive oil and a mix of Mrs. Dash spices (all salt-free!) onto the salmon, squash, and zucchini and then grilled them. We also added some mixed greens to our plates and cooked some fresh broccoli in the oven for about 15 minutes. That dinner was so amazing! Grilled veggies are a great side dish in the summertime.... they are filling, full of vitamins, and low in calories and fat.... what more could you ask for?!

This was my breakfast this morning... An omelette with egg substitutes, diced veggies, and turkey bacon. I then toasted some ezekiel bread and spread sugar free strawberry preserves on top. Since I can't lift for a few days I have been limiting my starchy carbs to breakfast time.  

It wouldn't be 4th of July weekend without some kebabs! We had some steak kebabs with onions and green and red peppers that we seasoned with Mrs. Dash grilling spice. I then just had a salad of mixed greens with a little splash of Marie's Parmesan Caesar Yogurt Dressing. Marie's brand dressings are definitely something to add to your refrigerator. They are all natural yogurt dressings, so they are low in sugar, salt, and fat compared to other dressings, and they are also made from all natural ingredients. It is not something I use often, but nice just for every once in a while on a day where I haven't had much fat.

This last item on the menu may not look the best, but it is definitely my favorite when it comes to killing a sweet tooth. This is protein pudding! I get a box of instant, sugar-free, zero calorie Jello pudding mix (cheesecake is my fave), and I add a scoop of vanilla protein, some skim milk, and a bit of cinnamon. Then, you just whisk it together and let it sit in the fridge to get that pudding consistency. It tastes amazing, and is more filling and less guilt-ridden than that candy bar or ice cream you would usually reach for.

I hope everyone had a safe and happy holiday weekend! Not that I don't love a long weekend, but I can't wait for the gym to reopen tomorrow! :)

<3 Health and Happiness

Work Those Quads!

Today at the gym I did a leg workout, but most of my focus was on my quadriceps since I did a specific hamstring workout earlier this week. With my workout today, to make my legs even more sore than usual, I did heavier weights on the weighted exercises and gave myself hardly any waiting time between sets for some extra fat burning.

Seated Leg Extensions (4 sets supersetted with 12 Jump Squats)
One legged squats using the smith machine (3 sets of 6 on each leg... hold one leg out straight in front of you as high as you can and squat down as low as you can with the other leg; keep the elevated leg up the entire set)
Split Legged Lunges with Smith Machine (3 sets of 8 on each leg... place a bench behind you and place you foot behind you on the bench while the other foot is not directly under your hip but a little in front of it; then do 8 lunges and switch legs)
Push-Press Barbell Squats (3 sets of 12... hold the BB at your chest with your elbows pointed down, then squat as low as you can; as you come up from the squat simultaneously press the BB over your head)
Leg Press Machine (4 sets)
Side Lunges (3 sets of 8 on each leg... start with your feet together, then reach out to the side with your right leg and lunge so that your toe, knee, and nose line up... make sure your toes stay pointed straight ahead the whole time. Do 8 then switch legs)
Ab/Adductor Machine (3 sets on each machine)

Enjoy that jello leg feeling! :)

<3 Health and Happiness

Goin HAM... Back and Hamstrings Workout

Today I changed up my workout by doing back and hamstrings. I usually just include hamstrings with my leg day workout, but I really wanted to focus on hamstrings today. Females are naturally quad dominant, meaning that our bodies naturally lean toward are quadriceps being stronger than our hamstrings, which is why so many females suffer from ACL tears as opposed to males. Males also have a quad/hamstring strength imbalance as children, but as they get older this uneven strength in leg muscles begins to even itself out. With females, however, our bodies work the opposite way... As females go through puberty hamstring strength gets worse as quad strength increases, making the imbalance even worse with time. This is why it is really important when you go to the gym, to not forget about the exercises that are SPECIFICALLY geared towards increasing hamstring strength. With all that said, HERE is the workout I did today :)

Romanian Stiff Legged Deadlift 
Torture times 5 using lying hamstring curl machine (Ok I made this one up myself, so try to hang with me as I attempt to explain my creative genius/ creative method of hamstring tortue)... Lay flat on your stomach like you normally would on the hamstring curl machine; complete 5 reps of curls at a full range of motion then without taking a break, curl so that your legs are pulled as close to your butt as possible and complete 5 reps in which the range of motion is from your butt to halfway down; after your last rep, lower your legs past the halfway point down to where your legs are almost at the fully extended resting position but not quite because WE AREN'T RESTING YET; from there do 5 reps in which the range of motion is from almost fully extended legs back up to the halfway mark; then do 5 reps with complete range of motion. DONE. now try to walk. and then do the whole thing 3 more times :)
Back Extensions
Lat Pulldown
Cable Kickbacks
Bent Over Barbell Rows
Single Leg Deadlift with dumbbells
Single Arm Dumbbell Rows


There ya have it! A workout guaranteed to make getting out of bed the next day be extremely painful :)

<3 Health and Happiness

Fuel for Thought

Ok, so Gabe and I made some pretty delicious food earlier today and I just thought I would share (Actually, Gabe was so excited about his food that he told me I needed to put it in my blog :) haha). So here's what we made!


Here we have what Gabe created. A baked sweet potato ("baked" in the microwave) with cinnamon and a quarter cup of sugar free syrup (only 15 calories in 1/4 cup!)... And he also cooked some lean ground turkey meat with fresh salsa, some sautéed spnach, and Mrs. Dash chicken grilling seasoning. It might not look fancy, but it tasted awesome and is a good example of a balanced meal. Here's the numbers breakdown of this meal:

• a little under 600 calories
• 40 grams of protein
• 47 grams of carbs
• 18 grams of fat

And here is my protein pancake! I added a banana to it to get me some extra calories because I had an intense workout ahead of me... This may sound weird to some people, but I have a hard time meeting my calorie goal everyday and most of the time have to force feed myself or Gabe will remind me to eat more. Don't get me wrong, I love food, but eating is just not something that I think about a lot, and I tend to forget to eat lol. One of the things I have really been working hard on is making sure I eat about every 3 hours and get more protein. I aim to eat a gram of protein for every pound of body-weight, so about 150 grams a day for me. 

Just mix together a banana (easier if you mash it first), 1/2 cup blueberries, 1/2 cup oats, 1 cup egg whites, 1 scoop of vanilla protein powder (any flavor will work!), and cinnamon to taste. After I cooked the pancake I put sugar free syrup on it. Numbers breakdown:

• 630 calories
• about 50 grams of protein
• 45 grams of carbs
• 0 grams of fat

Get in the kitchen and make your body some fuel! :)

<3 Health and Happiness

What Motivates You???

     Motivation. It's just one word, but it carries a lot of weight to it and is fascinating to me because the word motivation means something completely different to every person. I feel like every single person has something that motivates them, whether they admit it or not. There is motivation behind every action we take. Some people had amazing motivation at a point in their life and maybe now that motivation has gotten buried beneath other things, but it's never to late to find that motivation, put it on the front of your mind, and let it lead you through the day. Our motivations may change and evolve over time, but they are always there. I know a lot about motivation, losing it, rebuilding it, questioning it, and being confused by it. When I was about nine years old, I decided that no matter how long it took, I was going to be in the Olympics for Taekwondo one day. I carried that motivation with me everyday. Sometimes it got muddled and faded a little into the background, but it was always there. When I kept training through vomit, tears, and snot bubbles that motivation was there. When I would wake up at 4am during high school to go kick by myself before school started, that motivation was there. When I made national team and won silver at Junior World Championships in Turkey and bronze at the Pan Am Games in Puerto Rico, that motivation was definitely there. Even this past December when I got a concussion in a car accident, less than a month away from the most important step in getting to the 2012 Olympics... my motivation never faded. Although the 2012 Olympics is no longer in my future, it doesn't make me any less motivated to strive to be the absolute best at everything I aim to accomplish.
      There are many things that motivate me every morning when I wake up. My amazing mom, who has always been my number one fan and supporter in all my endeavors, motivates me more than she knows. My dad, who has the will power and attitude for life that could throw even Ghandi for a loop, is so motivating to me, and still even 2 years in the running with stage 4 prostate cancer, looks like the picture of perfect health. He is a perfect example of what kind of attitude to have when life doesn't exactly go the way you planned, and reminds me all the time how important it is to just live for each moment. My brother inspires me everyday even though he may not know it, and so does my boyfriend, Gabe. He pushes me to be my best and challenges me in ways that no one else does. A lot of my motivation everyday comes from the people that are most important in my life, but also from within myself. I have a strong desire to make a difference to someone, to even just one person, and to do things that no one else has done before. From a young age I have never been one to settle for mediocrity or follow the crowd... I mean, when I was six I decided I wanted to start kicking girls in the face instead of doing ballet (although, I still made sure my mom put bright bows in my pig tails) haha. I stay humble, work hard, and throw everything I've got at whatever goal I'm striving to achieve. After all, no one can achieve something if they hold back and don't even try. I'm not afraid of failure because I know that with every failure, I will gain an opportunity to learn something and get closer to success the next time. I would rather try and fail a bunch of times, then just sit back in my comfort zone and never fail at anything because I'm too afraid to put myself on the line. I have a lot of goals that I am very passionate about, and I plan on making all of them a reality one day. 100%. No doubt about it. :)

TueSDay stands for Total Shoulder Destruction

Here's what my shoulder workout looked like today. I used a combination of isolated and compound exercises.

Seated Shoulder Press... (4 sets)

Incline DB Front Raises... (3 sets)

Standing DB Lateral Raises... (3 sets... hold your arms straight out to your side on the last rep of each set for as long as you can)

Standing BB Rocky Press... (3 sets... using a barbell, alternate bringing the bar up and down to the back of your neck and then up and back over to the front)

Cable Lateral Raises (3 sets)

Assisted Dips on the Parallel Bars (50 reps... take as many breaks or sets as you need to, just reach 50!)

BTW if you want to taste the most amazing protein in the world, try Up Your Mass Fudge Brownie flavor! Best tasting protein I have ever had! Tastes like you are just eating brownie batter! Nom nom :) I'm a bit of a chocoholic, and if I can get it in protein form, it's a win-win situation! I ordered the protein from Bodybuilding.com last night around 8pm and it was on my doorstep by 11am this morning... talk about instant gratification! 

<3 Health and Happiness

What's in YOUR shopping cart???

Some people consider going to the grocery store, a tedious chore that they prefer to put off until their fridge is completely bare. I, however, love going to the grocery store! I think of it as an adventure each time I go, excited to see all the good food and discover what new recipe will be inspired by my shopping trip. Unfortunately (and for reasons I cannot even begin to comprehend), buying wholesome, fresh, healthy food is pretty expensive... Don't get me started on how our society can justify an entire meal at McDonald's  being cheaper than a pint of blueberries. However, if you budget your money correctly, stay organized, and shop smart, you can make affording healthy food possible. Next time, you are in a store and see a $50 shirt you think you just can't live without, think about all the amazing fuel you could power your body with by using that $50 at the grocery store! Takes some willpower if you are a shopaholic, but your body will thank you! Tonight I went to the grocery store, and here's what was in my cart:

• strawberries
• blueberries
• golden delicious apples
• bananas
• sweet potatoes
• celery
• spring mix salad
• provolone cheese slices
• la tortilla wraps
• plain multigrain rice cakes
• ezekiel bread
• steaks
• turkey bacon
• greek yogurt
• egg whites
• egg substitutes 
• skim milk
• sugar free strawberry preserves
• fresh salsa
• kashi dark chocolate and coconut bars (for when that sweet tooth hits me)
• honey bunches of oats with almonds
• flax seed oil

Here's a tip to check how healthy your shopping is! For those who haven't heard this little self-gauging tip before, next time you go to the grocery store, pay attention to where you are in the store. You are most likely going to make healthier choices if you do most of your shopping along the outer edge of the store as opposed to the aisles in the middle. The aisles in the middle are where foods are displayed that do not require any refrigeration, which is mostly processed food; cookies, salty canned soups, candy, chips, cake mixes, etc. If you notice, fruits, vegetables, meats, eggs, and dairy products, are all going to be found along the outer rim of the store.

<3 Health and Happiness

Monday Madness!

Happy Monday! For many people, Monday is an unwelcome visitor and a signal to start counting down the days til it's the weekend again. But hey, when Monday comes it's never a surprise, right? You know that Monday will always come no matter how long you try to make the weekend last or how many times you wish on eyelashes and 11:11 and shooting stars that Mondays will be eradicated... So, do your mind a favor, throw the universe a curve ball, and look forward to Monday! Say bring it on Monday... I will RULE you! Chances are, if you have a kick-ass, "I'm unstoppable" mentality to start off the week, it will carry through the rest of the week, and it will be the weekend before you know it! Your brain is a pretty powerful thing... every thought you have is like a radio wave into the universe, and the signals you send out are the same signals you will get back, so why not send out some good signals?? Start your Monday with a bang and the rest of your week will follow suit.

I always like to make my Monday workout a little different and exciting, so I start my week off motivated and engaged in my workout. It makes me feel excited about my workouts for the rest of the week. Even just adding a new exercise to your routine, a new song to your playlist, changing the order of your routine, doing different variations of supersets or dropsets, or decreasing the waiting time between each set can shake things up and break up the monotony that people feel on Mondays (or any day for that matter!).  Just little things can make me more motivated and excited to workout. For example, I just ordered a new flavor of protein powder (Up Your Mass Fudge Brownie), and I know that the day it gets here I am going to be so excited to go workout just so that I can have that new protein in my post-workout shake. My headphones also just broke so I ordered some new ones, and I cannot wait to workout with them!

For today's workout, I am going to be doing biceps and triceps and alternating sets involving weights with sets that just use my body weight to perform them. As soon as I finish my weighted exercise I will immediately begin a set of a body weight exercise (for those who do not know, performing one different exercise after another is called a superset).

Arms:
Alternating Seated Bicep Curls (3 sets with 15 push ups right after each set)
Skull Crushers (3 sets with 12 bench dips right after each set)
21's (3 sets with incline push ups right after each set)
Overhead Cable Extensions (3 sets with assisted parallel bar dips after each set)

[After these exercises, I will do abs. Although there are only 4 weighted exercises, my arms are definitely exhausted because they are supersets.]

Abs:
Hanging Leg Raises (3 sets of 15)
Rainbows (3 sets of 20) (Using a med ball and with your feet together and arms straight the whole time, slam the ball to one side of your body then catch it again (arms still straight), and quickly bring the ball over your head like a rainbow and slam the ball to the other side)
Plank on a bosu ball (3, 1 minute planks) (elbows on the flat side of the bosu ball and feet on the ground)
Cruches on a declined bench with barbell (3 sets of 15) (laying on a decline bench, hold the barbell straight over your head and try to reach straight up with the barbell as high as you can)

Buns and Thighs!

It's leg day, people! Lift heavy, get a good pump, and never allow yourself to do less than you are capable of. Your mind is so important during every second of your workout; never let your mind leave the gym to start thinking about other things. Our legs are huge muscles, and take a lot of energy to exercise, so let your mind work WITH your body as much as possible.

• Leg Press Machine- feet together, 5 partial reps after your reps at a full range of motion at the end of every set 
• Wide leg barbell squats super-setted with Jump Squats
• Smith Machine Lunges
• Hip Ad/Abductor Machine- at the end of every set hold for 30 seconds then do 5 partial reps
• Weighted Bench Step-Ups
• Lying Hamstring Curls

Enjoy your workout! I hope you won't be able to walk afterwards :)

<3 Health and Happiness

Pump Up The Volume!

My music is an absolute necessity when it comes time to hit the gym. I gotta have music blasting in my ears that is fast and upbeat, with a tempo as hyper as my energizer bunny personality.  When I have the right song playing, I fill unstoppable in the gym, like there is no wait I can't handle. Here are a few songs that are on my workout playlist... you can click on the song to hear it :)

Hands Up- Steve Aoki & Afrojack vs Vandalism edit

Ghosts n Kesha n Afrojack

Take Girlz Over Control Mashup

C'mon Fat Bass

Party Rock Anthem (Remash)

Jump Poltergeist

Warp It Down (John Roman Mashup)

Turbulence

You Used To Hold Me

Rock N' Roll

These are just a few of the songs on my workout playlist, but they are my favorites! Benny Banassi, Calvin Harris, Afrojack, Steve Aoki, Kaskade, and Skrillex are all people you can't go wrong with when you wanna get that extra pump in your workout! 

<3 Health and Happiness

Turn It Up Tuesday!

Happy first day of summer! :) I decided to celebrate the official arrival of summer with an early morning scoop of SuperPump Max and an intense 25 minute run through the streets with music blasting in my ears. After finishing my run, I fueled up my body with a cup of egg whites with Mrs. Dash seasoning, Oatmeal with some cinnamon added, an orange, and a big glass of milk. Like the old saying goes, breakfast honestly is the most important meal of the day. Unfortunately, I am not much of a breakfast person, but I know that if I want to build muscle and feel great throughout the day I have to force myself to eat a big breakfast. It is difficult for me to eat a lot in the morning, but on the days where I don't have a big breakfast I can definitely notice a difference in myself; without a big breakfast I find myself more tired during the day and I get much hungrier and just don't feel like my normal bubbly, high energy self. So do yourself a favor and fuel that body as much as you can when you wake up! :)

Later today I am going to lift and my workout is going to be somewhat of a total upper body circuit. I like to alternate doing days of isolated muscle group workouts (i.e. shoulder workout one day and back the next, etc.) with days of multiple muscle group workouts because it keeps my body guessing and keeps my mind interested and engaged. Also, for me personally, my upper body is what I have the most difficulty building up and toning, and I found that my muscles are responding better by keeping my workout routines new and by doing fewer reps with heavier weights. Every person's muscles are going to respond differently to workout routines. What works really well for one person may not be the best option for another. The only way to really find out is by trial and error. It takes time to figure out, but if you love fitness like I do, then figuring out what works best for you will be a fun experience as you learn more about your body and how you can manipulate and change the way it looks. That is what keeps me so intrigued with lifting weights: I am in complete control of how my body looks and I can change the shape of muscles exactly the way I want with time and effort. 

Here is how my workout is gonna go today:

Triceps: Skull Crushers

Biceps: 21's

Shoulders: Dumbbell Shoulder Press

Back: Romanian Deadlift

----- After Romanian Deadlift I will do 15 minutes of HIIT cardio. I like to split up my workout with cardio in the middle sometimes because my upper body, particularly my arms, are my weak points. By giving them a quick rest and doing cardio, I can finish the second half of my workout with the same intensity and heavy weights as in the first half of my workout. I am also giong to finish my workout with a super set for each body part I am working. A superset is when upon completing one set of an exercise, you immediately begin a set of another exercise. Again, this is just what works for my body, so it may not work for you.-------

Triceps: Bench Dips super-setted with Cable Overhead Extensions

Biceps: Hammer Curls super-setted with Overhead Cable Curl (I will do one arm at a time)

Shoulders: DB Incline Shoulder Raise super-setted with DB Lateral Raise

Back: Lat Pulldown super-setted with Back Extensions

And there you have it! Make every workout count. Your mind is just as important in a workout as your body. If your mind is not 100% focused and engaged, then you will just be going through the motions of your workout and not getting anything out of your workout. Stay enthusiastic and stay engaged! If you find it hard to get pumped up about your workout, switch things up: change your routine, add new music to your workout playlist, change the time of day you workout, or go to the gym with someone you haven't gone with before. 

<3 Health and Happiness

Back and Shoulders

Today I am doing a shoulder and back workout. In my workout I alternate a shoulder exercise with a back exercise. If you click on the name of the exercise I have listed, you will be linked to bodybuilding.com where you can get a full video explanation of the exercise, what kind of equipment to use, and what specific muscle group the exercise targets. Don't be afraid to go out of your comfort zone on your last set! Even if you can only get two or three reps, going up in weight is what is going to help you get stronger, build muscle, and torch that fat! If you are comfortable during your workout, then you aren't using your full potential! Going to the gym with a friend is a great way to make sure that you always push your limits.... they can spot you so you won't be afraid to lift heavier, and motivate you to do more than you think you are capable of. Happy lifting! :)

Back and Shoulders Workout:

Wide Grip Lat Pulldown
Seated Dumbbell Press
Barbell T-Bar Row
Front Incline Dumbbell Raise
Back Extensions
Bent Over Cable Lateral Raise
One Arm Dumbbell Rows

At the end of my lifting workout I will do 15-20 minutes of high intensity interval training. Many cardio machines offer preset interval programs you can choose from or you can control the intensity yourself. Doing cardio after you lift weights is going to increase the amount of time that your body continues to burn after working, which is always a good thing!

<3 Health and Happiness

Eggs Really Are Incredible!

Before working out I like to eat something that is going to fuel my body for an intense workout. I usually eat about an hour and a half before I hit the weights. Today, I made one of my favorite things to make... an omelette! Eggs are amazing and power-packed with protein. I buy egg whites or egg beaters from the grocery store, so that I can get all the protein that eggs have to offer without the cholesterol. An omelette is a quick and easy way to make something that is filling, healthy, and full of fuel for your body! And... you can put just about anything into an omelette to make it taste exactly the way you want! :)

I put some corn, roasted red peppers, spinach, and Mrs. Dash seasonings together on a medium heat and let them cook together for a few minutes before adding the egg beaters. I like to use Mrs. Dash seasoning in almost every dish I cook because they taste amazing and are salt free. My favorite seasonings that Mrs. Dash offers are Garlic and Herb, Extra Spicy, and the Original.

Next, I pour in the egg beaters. Let the eggs cook until you can lift up the sides and tilt the pan without the eggs running. Flip the omelette once you feel that the consistency is at a  point where you can flip it without tearing.

Once I flip my omelette, I added some mozzarella cheese to get some good fats in before I workout.

After the cheese melts a little bit, I fold the omelette in half, let it sit in the pan a little longer and it's done!
SOOOO TASTTYYYY :)

<3 Health and Happiness

Back On My Blogging Grind.

Hello world of cyberspace! Ok so I know I have been pretty bad on blogging in the last month, but I'm back at it now! Once I got home for a few weeks I just wanted to enjoy being with my friends and family that I only get to see a handful of times throughout the year... O and I got my wisdom teeth out so there wasn't much activity in the nutrition and fitness department to report... A diet of jello, pudding, soup, and no working out didn't exactly give me much to work with in terms of blogging material haha...

Tonight, Gabe and I had some southwestern/tex-mex inspired dishes for dinner. We each made something different but with similar ingredients, and of course the common goal of making something that tastes good and makes our bodies feel good! Gabe made a really awesome wrap, that had so much going on in it, he could barely keep the contents of the wrap tucked neatly inside the quesadilla.

Gabe's Wrap:

• One tortilla (we use the La Tortilla brand... less carbs and calories and more dietary fiber)
• Some salsa
• Chopped Lettuce
• Diced Tomatoes
• Black Beans
• Roasted Red Peppers
• Uncle Ben's microwavable rice
• Mozzarella Cheese (any cheese you like will work)
• Grilled Chicken
• Fiesta Lime flavored Mrs. Dash Seasoning

...He first cooked the chicken (seasoned with the Mrs. Dash), then cooked the rice and mixed the black beans in with the rice... After that he put all the ingredients onto half of the tortilla and then folded the tortilla in half and placed it on the George Forman grill to press the quesadilla, melting the cheese and making the tortilla a little crispy. And there you have it! Easy and inexpensive to make and delicious to eat :)

My Mexican Pizza:

• One 8 inch Bobolli Whole Wheat Pizza Crust
• Salsa 
• Cheese
• Spinach
• Garlic
• Roasted Red Peppers
• Mrs. Dash Fiesta Lime Seasoning
• Mrs. Dash Extra Spicy Seasoning

...I just made a simple pizza with only a few ingredients, but of course you can be as creative as you want and put just about anything on a pizza! I topped the pizza with the salsa first then added some seasonings, the peppers, spinach, garlic, and topped it with cheese... then I just put it in the oven for about 8 minutes and it was perfect! :) Eating healthy is delicious! 

Hope this will inspire some creative dishes of your own... I love experimenting with food and finding new ways to make great tasting foods that are also healthy. I read so many fitness websites, blogs, and magazines where bodybuilders and fitness models talk about what their daily diets are like. Most of them are all very similar and do not stray far from plain grilled chicken, oatmeal, eggwhites, and protein shakes. That's great if you are training or preparing for a specific event when you need to really be strict about your diet, but it is misleading to people who want to be healthy and fit, but still enjoy food. Eating is awesome! Don't be afraid to get in the kitchen, make a mess, and experiment with foods and combinations you have never tried before! :)

<3 Health and Happiness

Home Sweet Home

Two years of college down... seems almost surreal to me. I am now a rising junior at Rutgers University and it seems to me that I was just a junior in high school. I got home yesterday and as I went over the Chesapeake Bay Bridge, I rolled down my windows and let the salty ocean air flood my nostrils, and at that moment... I knew I was home. One thing that I love about Virginia Beach are all the restaurants... small, little local places are the main food fare of vb, with one or two chain restaurants but it's the local places that keep people coming back. Today, my mom and I went to one of my favorite places called The Leaping Lizard. It's a little place off of Shore Drive, but the parking lot is always packed and you are lucky if you don't have to wait for a table. All of their food is as fresh as it gets and the fruits and veggies they serve are all organically grown by them. They even have a produce barn out back where you can get the best fruits and vegetables you have ever eaten. It's the local places like Leaping Lizard that make me feel like I'm home.

Fresh strawberries, my crabcake lunch, and the produce barn at The Leaping Lizard.

Of course, no day for me would be complete without my workout! If you click on the actual name of the exercise I listed, it will send you to link that will show you step by step how to perform each exercise :)

Wide Grip Lat Pulldown (on the last rep of each set: pull the bar down so that your chin is just above the bar and hold as long as you can) 

Front Squat 

One Arm Incline Lat Raises

Leg Press

Skull Crushers

Hanging Leg Raises

<3 Health and Happiness

Pictures That Make Me Smile

A Girl's Best Friend

Sooo today's blog isn't really about fitness or nutrition, but I guess you could say it's about happiness and realizing how important best friends are in your life. Sammy, my roommate for the past two years and best friend at rutgers is going to be moving to Paris for her junior year, which is amazing and I am so excited for her but I would much rather set the entire country of France on fire or release some sort of deadly plague on them so she can't go. What's even more amazing is that she is not just doing a study abroad program through Rutgers... no, she applied to a French university and is literally transferring out of rutgers and will have to apply to transfer back into rutgers for her senior year... which, if you knew Sammy, is completely something she would do. She's from cali and I'm from virginia and we both ended up going to school in new jersey, and becoming random roommates our freshman year. Random roommate situations are very tricky and you never know how it's going to end up... I got very lucky because sammy ended up being my best friend and we roomed together another year. I can't think of a better friend to have than sammy. She has helped me through some really hard times dealing with my dad's cancer, took care of me when I had swine flu, yelled at me when I tried to go to the gym whenever when I was hurt or sick, we've stayed up late complaining about our boyfriends (and then talked about how much we love them the next day), helped each other come up with ultimate methods of procrastination during finals, threw me the only surprise birthday party I have ever had, we've stayed up late just being hyper and listening to christmas songs for hours, and we have told each other things that we would never tell anyone else. I really don't know what I am going to do without this girl next year. Someone better come up with a teleportation device or I better win the lottery so I can get my own private jet, because experiencing Sammy withdrawals is going to be ugly. So here's to you Sammy, my strong, beautiful best friend. I love you and I know we really will be best friends for the rest of our lives no matter where we are in the world.

A Balancing Act

A picture of today's lunch for me at the lovely dining hall (not really...but I make it work). I try to create a balance between all my macronutrients at every meal. Macronutrients are nutrients that our bodies need a relatively large amount of in order to function properly... Carbs, fats, proteins, and water! A glass of milk, apple, handful of mixed nuts, and a whole wheat pita filled with hummus, turkey, spinach, and some spices give me a good balance of all my macros, and will keep me full until my next meal. I eat about 5-6 small meals a day and I plan them ahead so I always know exactly what I am going to eat and will not be tempted to stray from my plan once I get to the dining hall. Being organized and planning ahead is key to making sure you get enough calories everyday and that all your daily requirements are met.

<3 Health and Happiness

Thintervention

Let's pretend you have a daughter (or maybe you already do)... Eventually that little girl is going to say, "I want to be just like _________ when I grow up!" (If you are lucky they will say YOU)... Now, what are that chances that she will fill in that blank with names like Brandi Chastain, Laila Ali, Gina Carano, Holly Holm, Venus or Serena Williams, or Allison Stokke? Chances are, unless you read her fitness and sports magazines before bed every night or ESPN is the only channel on your T.V... she probably has no idea who any of these women are, and most likely neither do you! All those women by the way, happen to be on a list called "15 Female Athletes That Could Snap You Like A Twig"... And they are all beautiful... Just sayin. It is more than likely that your young daughter would come back with a reply like "Hannah Montanna, Lady Gaga, Ashley Tisdale, or some other pop star or 20 year old playing a 12 year old on the Disney Channel. The fact is, the media plays such a huge role in our lives today that it's hard to escape it, and unless you can explain to girls that those stick thin models in ads, commercials, on billboards and the cover of magazines, are not what healthy women look like... then they are receiving very mixed messages. I'm not saying that the media is the devil or that you should boycott T.V, because in the world we live in today, it is impossible to escape the media. Technology and the media have done many things in society that are positive, but there are also negative sides, just as there is in every aspect of life. When young girls are constantly exposed to images of models that are too thin and pop stars that are wearing too little clothing and too much makeup, that is what they are going to aspire to be whether it happens consciously or unconsciously, which is why issues of anorexia, bulimia, and poor body image and low self-worth are more common among young females now more than ever. This can be stopped with a little intervention from a parent, a positive female role model, or anyone that cares to take the time to tell a little girl that strong, healthy girls grow up to be the most beautiful women. 

<3 Health and Happiness

Carb Controversy

Have you ever thought that the key to losing weight was to eat as little as possible? Maybe just suck on an ice cube and gnaw on some celery to get that body you always dreamed of? I mean, that's how all the "fit" people got to where they are, right? WRONG! So so wrong. Starving yourself will result in lack of energy, dehydration, loss of muscle mass, and the tendency of your body to HOLD weight instead of shedding it. Ok, I'm about to get a little scientific on you, but I am gonna try to keep it as simple as possible, so stay with me!

... Glucose is vital to everything our bodies do. Cells cannot operate without it, and you may have noticed that if your blood glucose level drops below a certain level, you feel tired, weak, dizzy, and shaky. Too much glucose is also just as bad as too little glucose, and the careful balance of glucose is regulated by hormones created in your pancreas called insulin and glucagon. Glucose is a carb, so when we eat more carbs our blood glucose level rises, signaling the release of insulin to take up that glucose to be used in cells, transformed into glycogen OR transformed into fatty acids to keep the blood glucose level from rising too much. SO, if glucose is transformed into fatty acids and glucose comes from carbs, I won't gain weight and get fat if I avoid all carbs, right?! Not exactly. Stay with me here... glycogen (which we just learned comes from glucose) is stored in the liver or in our muscles. Blood glucose levels increase right after we eat and begins to fall around 3 hours after eating (which is a good reason to eat small meals every 3 hours instead of just 3 big meals everyday)... once those blood glucose levels fall, the glycogen stored in your liver will break back down into glucose to be released into your blood. The source of glycogen in your liver has a limit and is completely depleted after about 24 hours. So, once your body has gotten all the glucose it can from the liver, where will it get the glucose it needs to function? The glucose that was stored as fatty acids??? Unfortunately, no. Unlike the glucose to glycogen transformation, which is reversible, glucose to fatty acid transformation is IRREVERSIBLE. SO, when your body needs more glucose, and can't get it from the liver, it will start to take glucose from the glycogen in muscles, which is NOT good. To lose weight we want to lose fat, definitely not muscle!

SO WHAT THE HECK DOES ALL THIS MEAN?!

A. Starving yourself decreases glucose availability...
B. When your body needs glucose it goes to the liver first and then will start to breakdown muscle
C. Fat is the LAST thing you will lose if you starve yourself or consume a diet with extreme calorie restriction

But what about all these low carb diets??? Low carb diets appear to be good in the short run, but not in the long run. Most of the weight loss seen in low carb diets is water loss. Why?

Every 1 gram of glycogen is bound to 3 grams of water, so when glycogen is broken down, it is mostly WATER that is being lost.

There are lots of different diets out there, but I believe that the best way to achieve a healthy body is all about moderation. A diet too low in carbs is not healthy in the long run, but neither is a diet high in carbohydrates. Trying to find a balance with a moderate amount of carb intake is the best option, and getting your carbs from good sources is another important point. Sugar is a carb, but that is not where your carbohydrate sources should come from. Whole grains, fruits, and vegetables are the best sources of carbohydrates. Moderation is a good thing to remember for all aspects of life, not just nutrition.

<3 Health and Happiness

ARMageddon (ok, I know it's not that creative)

Today was an arm workout for me... specifically biceps and triceps, but you can't really workout the bi's and tri's without also working other muscles because our muscles are all connected in one way or another! As a Taekwondo athlete since the age of 6, I have spent most of my life using lower body strength, which is probably why I love leg day so much because my legs are used to be worked really hard. For me, it is the upper body workouts that I dread the most because my upper body is my weakness, which is an even better reason to work it out! My upper body strength has been improving with every workout and the progress I can see and feel is amazing motivation. Today my weight training routine went like this...

Pull Ups
Bench Dips
Push Ups
Triceps Pushdown
21's  (7 reps from bottom to midway, 7 reps from midway to top, and 7 reps in the full range of motion)
Skull Crushers (I promise it only SOUNDS scary)

...And there you have it! An awesome workout to get you one step farther away from shapeless, "skinny-fat" looking arms, and one step closer to beautiful, strong arms! These exercises are easy to perform. There is nothing fancy or unusual about them, but you you don't have to stray far from the basics to get the results you want. There is no magical or secret workout that fit and healthy people are keeping from the world... It's just consistency and effort that make the difference between people who are successful in their fitness goals and those that seem to constantly be at battle with themselves. Just going to the gym, however, is only half of the equation to a healthy body. You can spend all the time and effort in the world at the gym, trying to sculpt every muscle, but if you leave the gym and stop at McDonald's on the way home, everything you just worked for has gone out the window. Diet and exercise go hand in hand. Diet without exercise or exercise without diet is like having a cell phone with no battery or a bike with only one wheel... IT JUST DOESN'T WORK! Flipping your world upside down and changing everything you have ever done is hard at first, but soon becomes a habit just like anything else  and the physical, mental, and emotional rewards you get from living a healthy lifestyle are going to by far outweigh those fast food meals you might miss.

<3 Health and Happpiness

Need a new summer read?

This book, "The New Rules of Lifting for Women," is a great choice for a summer read because unlike all those romance novels women usually reach for as their book of choice for poolside reading, this book will actually improve your life. Granted, you may not follow or believe each suggestion or claim about health the author of this book makes, but it is definitely worth reading. Gabe got me this book for my birthday, and I haven't been able to put it down. The author takes an honest, straightforward approach to health, fitness, and nutrition without making foolish claims of going from fat to fit in two weeks by simply taking a diet pill that has been endorsed by a celebrity. The truth is, there is no, miracle, fast track, or secret to achieving a fit and healthy body. If you do the work and stay consistent, you will get the results. This book makes a lot of sense, is easy to follow, and I promise you will learn something new no matter how many health and fitness books you have read. This book explains in detail everything you need to know before throwing you into a new fitness and eating routine, provides amazing, REALISTIC recipes for every meal of the day that you won't need a personal chef to successfully create, and 6 months worth of workout routines that will challenge your body and keep your mind engaged and interested. There are step by step illustrations and instructions for all the exercises so that even the newest women to the world of weight training will feel confident and comfortable doing them. Do something great for yourself by reading this book and making your body more beautiful than it already is!

<3 Health and Happiness

The Final Stretch

Signs of final exam weeks are beginning to show around campus... Libraries are open around the clock and signs that people have been posted up in the library for days are becoming more evident- tables strewn with stacks of papers and books, dozens of empty coffee cups, 5 hour energy bottles, monsters and other beverages that promise a sleepless night, takeout containers, and of course the bloodshot eyes and tired-looking skin.... If you have ADD or ADHD chances are you have had more than one person ask to buy your adderal in a desperate attempt to study like a manic so that they can pass their finals. Anger that facebook exists is also at an all time high among college students during finals because it is irresistable when trying to do absolutely anything to avoid studying. Most of finals week is a blur where everyday seems to run together into one giant, sleepless, stressful mega-day! So as final exams approach, I say BRING IT ON... I will not allow these tests to affect my sanity or smiley personality... I think. :)

<3 Health and Happiness

Thankful Hearts

Today, I felt like writing about living life to the fullest and making each day count. Staying positive and appreciating the amazing lives we have, are things that sometimes people forget to consciously acknowledge... myself included. I try to stop each day and just take a minute to realize how lucky I am and to be appreciative of all the opportunities I have been given, the wonderful friends and family I have been blessed to be surrounded by in my life, and how thankful I am for this healthy body and mind that I have. But of course, there are days when I am busy, a little selfish, not putting myself in other people's shoes before I speak or act, or too caught up in my own trivial issues to take that time to be thankful. Being more thankful and grateful for all that I have, and being more respectful and understanding of the people in my life are things that I am working on making a more conscious part of my daily routine. Life here for us is only temporary and will always end sooner than you planned. We are not in control of the amount of time we have on this earth, only the way in which we choose to spend that time. Talk to your family more, take the time to learn something new about a friend, help a stranger, start each day by saying thank you, let go of something that would normally make you mad, acknowledge when you feel your mood start to go sour and turn it around, and let the people who care about you most know that they are appreciated by just saying thank you for no particular reason. I want to smile, give, appreciate, and love a little more everyday because I don't have perfect control over all the things that will happen in my life, but I have complete control over my attitude and my actions.

"One day your life will flash before your eyes... make sure it's worth watching."

"If there ever comes a day where we can't be together, keep me in your heart, I'll stay there forever." -Winnie the Pooh

"Always believe that something wonderful is about to happen."

"Start each day with a grateful heart."

"If all the hate in the world followed me, I would continue to love and live happily. Nothing can stop me, my ambition won't falter, my attitude is one which nothing can alter. Sunshine and light fill every space in my heart, sharing it with others is my favorite form of art." -Whitney Daniel

"I have decided to be happy because it is good for my health." -Voltaire

<3 Health and Happiness

Feelin The Burn

LEG DAY! Most people have a love-hate relationship with leg day... I tend to be more on the love side of that fence. Your legs contain largest and strongest muscles in your body (which I got to see when we dissected the lower body of our cadaver in anatomy lab... talk about AMAZING)... because these muscles are so large, they take a lot more energy and effort to workout than say the upper body muscles. I love leg day because I am addicted to that wobbly, jello-like, I think my legs might collapse right under me feeling that I get walking out of the gym after a hard leg workout.... and if I DON'T feel like that, I think I obviously must not have worked hard enough. Today my workout went a lil somethin' like this:

Bulgarian Split Squat (I used dumbbells)
Squat With the Smith Machine super-setted with Jump Squats
Lying Leg Curls
Thigh Abductors super-setted with...
Thigh Adductors

Then, for cardio I did 20 minutes of HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training)

And nowww... to go get a lil creative in the dining hall and make a delicious post workout meal!
I am going to make a turkey pita wrap...

Whole Wheat Pita
Deli turkey slices
Some hummus
Raw Spinach
Slice of provolone cheese
Garlic Powder
Red Pepper Flakes...

Put it on the panini press til the cheese melts and MAGIC... If you can be a little creative, eating healthy in a college dining hall IS possible :)

<3 Health and Happiness

A link to make you smile...

Below is link to a page I came across on the website "stumble upon"... It is a page of quotes from children ages 4-8 about what they said when they were asked the question: What does love mean?

Some of these quotes are absolutely amazing and you can't read them without smiling.  :)



A beautiful thing I stumbled upon

Daily Doses...

Move: Get up and do something! Try to push yourself harder than you think you can at least a little bit everyday... Go to sleep at night knowing that today you did something you didn't think you could, tried something new, and made yourself a little more awesome than you were when you woke up :) Today's move is JUMP SQUATS because you can do them anywhere, without any equipment, and it will use almost every muscle in your body. Just stand with your feet shoulder width apart, hands on your hips, and back straight. Squat until your thighs are parallel with the ground (or a little lower if you are looking for even more of a burn), then explode through your feet jumping as high as you can off the ground. When you land, make sure your knees are bent to avoid injury. The faster you do jump squats, the more of a burn you will feel. Jump squats will not only work your muscles but also get your heart pumping. You can even add weights into the mix if you want even more of a challenge. 

Eat: I love pancakes just as much as anyone else... the only problem is that they don't exactly get an A in the nutrition gradebook. One of my favorite foods that Gabe and I make are PROTEIN PANCAKES... They taste just as good as regular pancakes, only one will fill you up, and you feel good about eating them because they are so good for you! What you will need

• One Scoop of protein powder... Any flavor will work... My fave is banana
• 3/4 cup of egg whites... or you can use regular eggs
• 1/2 cup Oatmeal

Mix the ingredients together in a bowl. I like to also add cinnamon to the mix because it makes the pancake taste amazing! Then, just put the pancake mix into the pan and cook it! Couldn't be easier! You can put lots of different toppings on your pancakes- syrup (I like to use sugar free), fruit, peanut butter, almond butter, cocoa powder, the list goes on! Once you got the basic recipe, you can be creative and experiment with different ways to really make it your own.

See:

I love this picture. It makes me miss being little... when life was simple and everything was new.

Feel: "Yes, I've made mistakes. Life didn't come with instructions." Love this quote. We are all human, and part of being human is making mistakes and learning from them.