Common Sense For a Healthier and Fitter Body

Let me ask you a question, "Are you healthy?"
Right away, most people answer "YES" to that question. But the true answer is, most people have no idea if they are or not.
Today, I won't get into what makes a person healthy or not healthy. Why? Because being "healthy", if you will, is an individual thing. To one person, running a marathon means they are healthy. To someone else, being at a certain body weight is the definition of healthy. The bottom line, whatever "healthy" means to you is just that, your definition!
BUT, there are always ways to increase your health, no matter what stage of "healthy" you're in. Some of those things are (in no specific order): Eating right, exercise regularly, stay focused on your weight, and for goodness sake, stop doing stuff that isn't healthy!
Do you have to join a gym to exercise regularly? Of course not.
Do you have to go to some fancy clinic or doctor to control your weight? Nope.
(side note, ALWAYS consult a physician before making any major changes in your life, got it?)
Common sense is not used very often in the fitness and health field. Applying a bit of this common sense to yourself, and sticking with it, is a great start for getting fit and healthy. What I'm saying is, nothing will happen unless YOU initiate it!
Let's start with exercising, since this is probably the easiest place to start. If you currently are on an exercise program, then you don't need me to tell you how you feel when you're done with your workout, right?
But what if you don't like to work out? Not a problem, because a "workout program" doesn't always mean to lift weights or jog 10 miles. It could be as simple as taking your sweetheart for a walk every night. Maybe working in your flower bed or garden for an hour or two every day. Not even every day, maybe about 4 times a week is all.
The human body is designed to be active, so utilize what you were built for and take advantage of it.
Along with the exercise, you need to learn to eat right. This may take a bit longer to learn, but it can be done. Aside from it being healthy, the proper food intake will give you the energy to help stay consistent with your exercise program.
Now, don't get all out of whack with the eating stuff right away, just use good judgment when you do put food in your body. Remember, you've got one body, how are you treating it? Would you put kerosene in a Ferrari? Think about that for a bit.
Oh, and here's a little tip for you. If you're wondering if what you're about to eat is healthy for you or not, chances are it's NOT!
Again, use common sense and quit don't things that are NOT healthy for you!

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Easy Ways to Stop Eating Junk Food

I used to think it was a good thing that adults don't go trick-or-treating. I thought that if they came home with all that candy they would put themselves in diabetic shock in no time. Then, I realized, that adults are sitting at home with the candy bowl. Sure, they give some to the kids that come by, but the rest is going into their mouths. There isn't enough insulin in the world to deal with Halloween.
Unhealthy food is a plague on society. It perks the senses just enough to be satisfying, but all it does is satisfy a craving. It doesn't give the body what it actually wants. The body really wants whole foods. Your body wants to be healthy. Fortunately, there are easy ways to stop eating junk food.
Intuitively, the first step is to stop eating junk food. Sadly, this might end in disaster. There are many people that have had lofty goals to stop eating junk food, but didn't succeed. Actually, that's just about everyone's story. The people that succeed usually replace the junk food with something healthy. This needs to happen all at once. You need to show your body that you're in charge. You're the boss of your body. Never forget that.
I had a friend who loved banana splits. The toppings on their banana split accounted for more mass than the ice cream. Clearly, they were eating a lot of junk food. They decided they wanted to quit banana splits. They decided that they would replace banana splits with bananas. Guess how well that went? Well, they did end up quitting banana splits. Instead, they started eating Sundays.
It isn't enough to just replace one unhealthy food with a healthy whole food. You need to change your lifestyle. If you start a whole foods lifestyle you will be much more likely to stop eating junk food. You are quitting junk food, not just one type of junk food. You are replacing your junk food habits with a healthy routine.
The more healthy whole foods you include in your diet the easier it will be to stop eating processed food. This is because different whole foods provide different nutrients that your body needs. By gaining a variety you will be satisfying the actual needs of your body. Your body will thank you by relieving you of its desires for bad food.
There are many ways to fail at this. The way to succeed is to stick to your guns. At first your processed food cravings will be overwhelming. You'll think there is no possible way to succeed. If you just ignore all of that, then you will be able to realize how much happier you are being healthier.
These are some easy ways to stop eating junk food. It's not as easy as just stopping. I mean, you still have to change your entire lifestyle. Still, that can be easy if you recognize how much happier you are eating whole foods. That is the key to success.

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The Importance of Fresh Fruit and Vegetables

You always hear about the importance fresh fruits and vegetables have in a diet. However, most of this information is never elaborated on or isn't explained in detail enough that it will help you understand why it's so important. Just saying or hearing the words "fresh fruits and vegetables" can sound delicious; however, many people don't understand what exactly "fresh" means.
When purchasing produce from the grocery store, we all look for certain things on certain pieces - with apples we look for no bruising and a good, healthy color; tomatoes are often given a squeeze in order to detect firmness; some people even smell fruit in order to get an idea of ripeness. While this is all great in theory, the fact of the matter is that it isn't about squeezing or smelling, it's about the preparation and incorporation of fresh fruits and veggies into your diet.
There are several ways to prepare fruits and vegetables and different ways of consumption mean different benefits. For example, juicing allows you to get pretty much everything out of a fruit or vegetable vitamin-wise; however, you could be peeling away several important aspects of these foods. For example, the skin of an apple or potato has a lot of vitamins and nutrients that our bodies need in order to feel energized throughout the course of the day.
When you boil things like broccoli or cauliflower, you often boil away the nutrients as well. While it's great to first include these ingredients in your diet, you absolutely want to get the most from them. While both fruits and vegetables are best raw, you can also steam vegetables in order to get a little variety in your diet.
The bottom line when it comes to fruits and vegetables is that they provide natural sugars and essential vitamins that you would otherwise have to supplement if you didn't eat them. In addition to this, most fruits and veggies aren't conducive to heavy weight gain, so you won't be looking at a lot of pounds coming to visit either.
While juicing is a great way to incorporate all of your fruits and veggies in your diet, variety is even more important to maintaining the natural inclusion of minerals and vitamins these foods provide for your body. In other words, whenever you alter a food expect to lose something; whether it's a loss of vitamins or taste. While many people prefer to go the low route and choose to use vitamin supplements, it's best to lean on fruits and vegetables for natural relief. For example, think of how oranges contain Vitamin C and how eating one or drinking a glass of orange juice every day can help prevent the common cold.
Fruits and vegetables have the ability to help your body naturally protect itself and boost the strength of your immune system. This can be great in many different aspects, but mostly in the sense that you won't have to seek out help elsewhere - like from supplements.

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Eating Healthy Meals on a Budget

The best food to eat every day is not the stuff that is in the freezer section at the grocery store. Not only that, but it is pretty expensive as well. Since most of us cannot hire someone else to cook for us, we need to figure out some fast and easy options.
Chicken is a great meat to use for general cooking because they are cheap, and they also go a long way. Making a nice chicken dinner can also provide meat for sandwiches or even soup for the next couple of days.
You can do a lot with chicken, but most importantly, you can do nothing too. Pop it in the oven, and all of a sudden you have a couple of hours to do other things that need your attention.
If you are a vegetarian, you can always use some pasta instead of chicken in a lot of different dishes. The great thing about pasta is that it is cheap, and you don't have to fuss with it when you are cooking. Also, it is very tasty, and there are tons of different combinations that you can try.
There is very little that you cannot do with pasta dishes. Tomato sauce is a great mechanism to incorporate a long and varied list of healthy foods into the diet. Use your imagination and see what inspires you.
Another great idea is to have breakfast at dinner time. This is a family favorite in a lot of homes, and they are a piece of cake to do. Think about how easy and delicious breakfast can be, and then think about what a great dinner they make.
Finding alternatives to eating a big and complicated dinner is not at all hard, but you do need to add a little creative thinking to the process. In the end you and your family will enjoy mixing things up a little bit.

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Tips on How to Avoid Fast Food & Road Trips

Whenever I hear the phrase "family road trip", my head goes immediately to the "holiday road" tune from the National Lampoon movie and I think to myself; who really ties their dead great-aunt to the roof of a station wagon? And the answer is, the one and only Clark W. Griswold.
That movie has made families laugh for many years because it perfectly depicts a family road trip...funny experiences are waiting behind every turn with lodging, the car, or the food. I recall road trips from my youth fueled by Twinkies and Ho-Ho's and McDonalds. My memories are of long days, late nights and a set of parents fried from the four fighting offspring in the back seat.
Fast forward twenty some years and picture my Subaru, the cargo carrier, the cooler, the dog, the backpacks, the books, and the snacks. Road trips still include some late nights, long days and always a set of parents fried from the two offspring in the back seat attempting to make each other as uncomfortable as possible.
Tackling the idea of what to eat on the road seems like a huge mountain to climb, but with a little preparation, I think you'll be happily surprised. When on the road with kids, having healthy options available is an absolute must to staying out of truck stop and fast food restaurants. Here are a few tips on how to make that happen:
Avoid fast food on your road trips by avoiding these blood sugar crashing empty calorie foods. You don't want these items taking up precious space in your cooler:
· Candy
· Soda
· White flour products (if going with bagels, go whole grain or pumpernickel)
Stock up beforehand with the following (or similar) items:
· Water
· Cheese sticks
· Crackers ( whole wheat or gluten free)
· Fresh fruit ( which you can purchase pre-cut at almost any grocery store to save on time)....apples and pears work well as they're not too messy and can be cut into slices beforehand and sprinkled with lemon juice to keep from browning.
· Fresh produce: mini carrots, celery sticks, bell pepper strips, etc.
· Mini packets of natural peanut butter such as Justin's
· Whole wheat pita bread holds sandwich contents nicely
· Rice cakes
· Nuts and seeds
· Pre-packaged trail mix packets (Trader Joe's carries perfectly sized packets for kids)
· Organic Valley milk in aseptic containers, Rice Dream carries small juice-box sized cartons for Rice Milk as well
· If you're up to it, go ahead and bake some whole grain muffins or cookies as a special treat. Remember to use alternative sweeteners such as applesauce and real maple syrup.
· Air popped popcorn with a little coconut oil and salt make for a tasty treat everyone will enjoy
· Granola bars-home made or purchased. Watch the sugar content here.
· Dried fruit...this will also help keep everyone "on schedule" for potty breaks as you're limited on activity with long road trips.
Other essentials to pack:
You can use truck stops for one thing, their parking lot. Pack a picnic blanket and a few jump ropes so in the event you can't find a nice rest stop, you can pull over to a grassy spot after fueling the car, lay out the blanket, break out the cooler and catch a bit of fresh air, sun, activity and good food. You'll all feel much better when you get back into the car after you've raised your heart rates a bit.

• jump ropes ( not JUST for the kids!)
• picnic blanket
• baseball and glove
• chalk (in a corner of the parking lot, draw lines on the asphalt such as for a relay race or sprints and challenge each other for who can run back and forth in the least amount of time!)

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