Why Plan Meals? 5 Reasons Why You Should Consider Meal Planning

Ever been really frazzled at your last wits and then heard the dreaded question, "What's for dinner?" Gah! It just makes me want to rip my hair out! I want to help you because I know how you feel. Meal planning will help you in many ways.

Meal planning/prep is a great way to have constant control of your eating habits throughout the day. If you are going to school or work every single day and never know what you're going to have for lunch, chances are you're going to buy something gross on campus or get fast food. Planning ahead is always a good idea. I'm not the best at this, I often find myself grabbing a pizza stick or junk food for lunch if I'm in a bind. Here are 5 reasons WHY meal planning can be effective in your diet.

1. Obviously you will eat healthier if you plan healthy meals and have them readily available to take with you each morning. 
2. Grocery shopping will be more efficient! If you make a list of foods you need for your meals for the week you will end up only buying the essentials. When I go to the grocery store without a plan I buy everything in site... including oreos and ice cream. While you may think buying healthy food is expensive, it can actually save you money to plan ahead and make a list.
3. Variety! Variety is very important in your daily diet. If meals are planned you can choose what you'd like each day. Whereas, if you don't plan you are stuck with the only options available where you're at. Eating the same things every day isn't terrible but you may get sick of it and planning what nutrients you need each day will definitely increase your diet variety. Print out a blank calender each month and start planning! 
4. No Stress! This is probably my favorite point. I absolutely hate to cook. I used to plan every meal for the week on Sunday nights and grocery shop on Mondays. Example) If I knew we were making chicken Alfredo that night I would remember to thaw the chicken. If I just decided to make it that night I would get frustrated and cooking is more burdensome. Also if you have busy days and you have lunches packed and ready in the mornings you don't even have to think about it. You just grab your pack and head to school/work. It feels good to be prepared and organized!
5. Last but not least, you utilize everything in your fridge/freezer/pantry. Often times I'll find that things go bad in my kitchen because I totally forget that I even bought them. If you are meal planning and making a list for groceries you will obviously CHECK your kitchen for what you've got already! You also learn that you can plan meals using foods already in your supply. You'll end up using the food you've already got on hand and only buying the extras that you absolutely need to create the meals.  
6. OH AND BONUS NUMBER 6: your husband/significant other/family/roommates will LOVE you for doing this!!!

Look forward to my next blog post! I will be featuring my very first experience with meal planning and prepping for the entire week in one day. AKA Tupperware central in my kitchen. 

10 Things that Should Motivate You to Hit the Gym

Alright, I must confess! I'm totally eating a doughnut right now as I post this! BUT, I did however go to the gym this morning so I feel like that outweighs the doughnut? No? welp, it's gone now. No turning back.

Have you ever felt like you have ZERO motivation to go to the gym? Like every possible excuse you can think of pops into your head as soon as you put your gym shorts or yoga pants on? This list is for you excuse-maker! If you've got a great way to motivate yourself that I don't mention, please leave a comment below! I would love that!

1. New Gym Clothes: I mean, come on! Am I right? Once you buy that new sports bra or pair of Nikes you're BOUND to go to the gym at least once! Those babies have to make an appearance because let's face it, you look great in them. Plus if you go early like I do you'll need cute gym clothes to distract from your 5AM, makeup-less face.
2. Timing is Everything: find a time that works for your schedule and STICK with it. If you don't have time in your schedule set aside for the gym or you go at a different time every day, chances are you AREN'T going to go every day. 
3. Nice Bod Bro: hello? Don't you want to look good? Look Good, Feel Good. I'm not saying you have to look like those super model fitness girls/guys. Everyone has their own body type and looking good means something different to everyone.
4. Do it for the Goodness of the Day: Honestly, have you ever gone to the gym and NOT felt great afterwards? (Sure, your muscles are on fire and you can fill up a cup with the amount of sweat dripping.... BUT, at least the rest of the day will feel wonderful!)
5. Stress Relief: Some days I feel like punching a wall with my head. These are the days that I really appreciate the gym. (these are also the days that I work the hardest at the gym so it's a win-win)
6. Affair with your Ipod: Who doesn't love jamming out to your favorite songs while fighting old ladies for a stretching mat and dumbbells? When I'm at the gym I listen to classic 80's rock n roll baby. It's one of the only times during the day that I actually get to listen to my music so I really appreciate it.
7. Justify Eating More: You knew it was coming. 
8. Better Sleep: Studies have been done, and this crap is true! I've cited an academic journal at the bottom on exercise effects and sleep fluctuations if you're interested.
9. Social Interaction: Yeah, so maybe the old guy that runs on the treadmill next to you everyday is the only one that you talk to, but at least it's a start! I like to go to the gym with my husband. If you've got a roommate or significant other that wants to start going, GO WITH THEM. I promise it makes it so much easier when you have someone pushing you and vice verse. Word of advice though: don't go with your really good friend that you go on McDonald's runs with... or you'll probably end up there instead.
10. Something to Brag About: What's going to the gym if you don't post about it? LOL only joking. please don't do this. Your confidence will increase though, and you'll feel better and better about yourself each time you go. 

Stupid things that get me excited to workout!

Buman, M., Hekler, E., Bliwise, D., & King, A. (2011). Exercise effects on night-to-night fluctuations in self-rated sleep among older adults with sleep complaints. Journal of Sleep Research, 20(1), 28-37.

Dear Protein,

.....at least I hope not. Don't eat eggs like Rocky either.

What's the deal with everyone thinking they need more protein? Okay, I get it, you lift weights and think you look cool while you drink your protein shake... but do you really need that protein shake? Maybe, but not necessarily. Here's a little math problem for you to figure out how much protein you need daily. Find where you fit in on the graph then calculate your weight in pounds or kilograms. If you choose to do kilograms all you have to do is divide your weight in pounds by 2.2!

		gm/lb		gm/kg
Sedentary adult		0.4		0.8
Recreational exerciser, adult		0.5-0.7		1.1-1.6
Endurance athlete, adult		0.6-0.7		1.3-1.6
Growing teen athlete		0.7-0.9		1.6-2.0
Adult building muscle mass		0.7-0.8		1.6-1.8
Athlete restricting calories		0.8-0.9		1.8-2.0
Est. upper requirement for adult		0.9		2.0

Multiply Kg x _______(number from chart gm/kg column) 

OR

Multiply lbs x_______(number from chart gm/lb column)

The number you come up with will be your daily protein need!

Is the number you came up with smaller than you thought it would be? I'd bet it is! You should be able to reach your daily protein need each day just by eating meals throughout the day that contain protein. Here's a little exchange chart to help you realize where you can find protein at in your food.

Food	Portion Size	Grams of Protein
Milk or yogurt	8oz	8 grams
Cheese	1 oz	7 grams
Meat	1oz (JUST 1)	7 grams
Egg	1	6 grams
Cooked Legumes	1/2 cup	6-8 grams
Peanut butter	1 Tbsp.	4 grams
Bread	1 slice or equivalent	3 grams
Pasta	1/2 cup cooked	3 grams
Vegetables	1/2 cup cooked	1-2 grams

Plan your diet accordingly! Try to get around 30-40 grams of protein for each meal/snack. REMEMBER: Protein isn't everything! You need to make sure you're getting enough carbs and fat as well as protein in your diet. There are carb exchange lists as well! If  you'd like to see a more detailed exchange list I've linked it HERE. Now you can tell all of your "meathead", protein-loving, weight-lifting friends the truth about protein! 

How to Keep Eating Treats without Getting Diabeetus.

If you haven't seen the Diabeetus guy on youtube... I suggest you scroll down & watch it!

Have you ever bought 3 bags of candy expecting it to last the entire week only to realize that it's gone the next day? Why is sugar so addicting? Sugar is a total mood-booster because it tells the body to release serotonin (a neurotransmitter that regulates sleep, mood, and appetite. AKA it makes us HAPPY!). I've also discovered that our "sweet tooth" starts at birth! Babies actually prefer sweet, sugary things. Sugar is EVERYWHERE. You may not realize how much sugar something has because you may not know the different names and types of sugar. Sugar is tricky! It hides everywhere under all sorts of different names.

• There's glucose and fructose which are simple sugars
• Sucrose is a disaccharide of the two and it's considered complex. 
• Then there's lactose, maltose, and high fructose corn syrup. 

When we consume large amounts of sugar our blood glucose levels sky rocket! Our body secretes insulin into the blood stream in an effort to control the madness. I think the main reason we KEEP eating so much of it is because it's such an empty carbohydrate. It stimulates our brains but not our stomach. Solution? Eat treats that will satisfy the hunger and chill out on the suga, sugar.

Food Sweaters & other cool food crap HERE

I'm the type of person who wished that was really pie.... and I really want that sweater. What side of the pie are you on?  I'm going to share with you a few of the treat or snack recipes I've found to be super delicious AND aren't chalk-full of sugar. So whether you eat healthy, balanced meals or not so much... you'll appreciate this post!

                               

Obviously appropriate for October:

Flourless + Healthy Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies HERE

SUGAR FREE Peanut Butter Cups OMG! HERE

Yogurt Banana Pops HERE

 HERE!

Awesome ENERGY balls {great for hiking trips!}

This Blog {cupcake & kale chips} is WONDERFUL! 
Check it out!

Gluten Free Banana Snack Cake w/ Greek Yogurt Cream Cheese Frosting HERE

DIABEETUS with Wilford Brimley Video! Hilarious!

                        

3 Easy Tips to Start Squeezing Into that Little Holiday Dress

You like donuts? Hate running? You're in the right place.

So I figure since I'm probably the number one culprit for being lazy and eating like crap, I'm a great person to tell you how not to do that. Am I right? haha I mean who doesn't want to take nutrition and fitness tips from someone who's just like them? I'm a nutrition major with a MAJOR problem with sweets and soda. I like donuts, cookies, cupcakes, ice cream, candy, okay okay, anything with added sugar. BUT... this isn't about me! This is about US. Super cliche but I've decided that as I help myself become better I'd like to help others better themselves as well. Don't worry, it won't be super hard. This blog is going to be dedicated to taking shortcuts, doing the minimum, and bending the rules as much as possible without totally failing. Gotta start somewhere right? This first post is dedicated to my general guidelines to starting somewhere! Anywhere really!

Rule #1: START SMALL. 

Keep your goals realistic and obtainable. "I'd like to lose 40 pounds in 2 weeks for my cruise" is not exactly something that can be done... at least not safely? Or probably not at all! Anyways... start small with your goals then work your way up gradually as you accomplish them!

Rule #2: PICK YOUR FAVORITES

What I mean by pick your favorites is this: pick 2 or 3 really yummy things you love that you're going to allow yourself to keep eating every now and then. I mean come on. You can't just quit eating things you LOVE cold turkey! Examples: every now and then I like to eat half of a pizza... oh and cinnamon sticks with icing. It's fine.... that's one of my "favorites" get it?

yes, those are powdered donuts.

Rule #3: THE GYM; TO BE OR NOT TO BE?

If you're the type of person who loathes the gym and would rather run outside, first of all you're freaking nuts, and second of all, DO WHAT WORKS FOR YOU! If a gym pass isn't going to do it for you, then don't do it. Some people like to run, I am NOT one of those people. I would much rather go to the gym and WALK on the treadmill LOL. Okay... BUT, if you do think you can handle the gym, go sign up for a membership. If you can't commit to a big long membership just go with the month to month payments! They're great! and cheap if I might add! What I'm getting at here is make the effort to set aside time and energy to get a daily (or 2-3 times a week) workout in. You'll feel so much better throughout the day if you've even sat down on the living room floor and stretched or something! Do some yoga! I don't care, just figure out  something and dedicate some time to it.

Alright, those are my super simple rules for now! Easy enough right? If you've got questions about nutrition, would like to see a certain topic on the blog in the future, or just want to get in contact with me, let me know! My email is in my profile! Oh and enjoy my favorite you-tube video about gym stereotypes.... it's a good one.