Week 3

August 13, 2012

Welcome to week 3 of the fitness challenge!

I hope you are starting to understand what makes up a healthy meal or snack. Some of you have mentioned that you are not sure what to make for lunch. Well, here are some lunch options to change things up a bit:

  • buffalo chicken wraps – chicken, spinach, avocado, tomatoes, corn, blue cheese (a little) and
    buffalo sauce in a whole wheat tortilla
  • chicken salad – chicken, avocado, corn, lots of veggies, fat free dressing
  • chicken or fish, sweet potato with avocado, green beans, a green salad with veggies
  • Chicken sandwich on whole wheat bread
  • grapes and cottage cheese (I eat this as a lunch sometimes, especially if I have some good snacks in between)
  • As the cooler weather moves in, chili is a really good option! Use ground turkey instead of ground beef, add a bit of low-fat cheese and sour cream on top
Also, here’s a really simple way to make sure you are eating correctly. Divide your meals up into 5 small meals/snacks each day, three hours apart. Choose a protein and a carb for each meal, but for dinner substitute green vegetables for the carbohydrate. Also, add all of the green vegetables you’d like to your meals. Be sure to drink plenty of water as well. Eight 8-ounce glasses of water per day is a good start.

 

Example:
Breakfast (within 1 hour of waking)
   1 protein/1 carb
Snack (2 1/2 – 3 hours after breakfast)
   1 protein/1 carb
Lunch (2 1/2 – 3 hours after snack)
   1 protein/1 carb
Snack (2 1/2 – 3 hours after lunch)
   1 protein/1 carb
Dinner (2 1/2 – 3 hours after snack)
   1 protein/1 vegetable

 

Healthy proteins include:
Chicken breast, ground turkey, 2-4 egg whites (with 1 yolk), tuna, lean beef (limit to 1x/week), salmon, bass, catfish, pork chops, cottage cheese

 

Good carbohydrates include:
Fruit, vegetables, sweet potato, brown rice, oatmeal, whole grain pasta, whole grain bagel, whole grain English muffin, whole grain tortilla, whole grain pita, whole grain bread

 
If you have any questions or need meal suggestions, please send an email to christy@alittlepieceofsunshine.com

Make sure you are continuing to exercise. Try to get in 20-40 minutes of high intensity cardio 3-6 times per week. Train abs 3x per week. Resistance training is also very important. You can effectively train all of your body parts with 3 sessions per week.

Remember, this is about making permanent, lasting lifestyle changes. The main reasons people gain weight are a sedentary lifestyle and a poor diet. When you do lose the weight, don’t go back to your normal eating habits. Those are what caused the weight gain in the first place. When you are at a weight that you are comfortable with, and you understand clean eating, then it’s okay to not be so strict. But then, if you start gaining the weight back, you will be able to look at your diet and understand what is causing the weight gain. Diet is so important. As we get older, our metabolisms begin to slow down. So, you need to make sure you are eating foods that will fuel your body and actually rev up  your metabolism. Diet accounts for about 80% of how you look. Genetics have little to do with it. You may have larger boned people in your family, but through clean eating and exercise, you can completely change the shape of your body. So, take the time to learn about healthy eating habits and exercise and you can achieve optimal health at any age.

Week 1

July 29, 2012

Congratulations on beginning your journey towards a healthier lifestyle! Developing healthy eating habits and fitting in regular exercise that includes cardio as well as resistance training sessions into your routine is important part of becoming healthy and fit. We are going to keep the first week simple. If you have any questions at all along the way, don’t hesitate to contact me.

Week 1

The Nutrition Plan

With this simple meal plan, you should never be hungry. Although this is a basic plan to get you started, I will be adding delicious recipes each week to show you that eating healthy meals does not have to be boring or bland.

You will eat 5-6 small meals or snacks each day. Meals/snacks will consist of protein, fruits and vegetables and carbohydrates. I suggest you limit carbohydrates to breakfast and lunch. After workouts, you should eat a snack/meal that includes 20-30 grams of protein and 30 grams of carbohydrates, for example a protein shake and fruit.

You should also drink water throughout the day. 8-10 glasses of water per day will keep you hydrated. If you enjoy coffee or tea at breakfast, that is fine. Just don’t overdo it with heavy cream and sugar.

Also, feel free to enjoy a crave meal/snack once a week. So, once a week eat pizza, a cheeseburger, a piece of cake, some cookies or whatever you really like to indulge in and don’t feel guilty about it!

Protein foods would include: protein shakes, egg whites, chicken breast, lean turkey, very lean beef, water-packed tuna, low-fat fish, and non-fat dairy, such as cottage cheese and yogurt.

Vegetables can include any green vegetable with limited amounts of corn, carrots, cauliflower, or other non-green vegetables.

Carbohydrates include oatmeal, brown rice, or sweet potato.

Minimal amounts of non-saturated fat are included, such as natural peanut butter, olive oil, avocado and almonds.

Example meal plan:

7am Breakfast
1-2 slice of rye bread toasted with a tsp of almond butter or peanut butter on each slice
6 egg whites and 2 whole eggs – scramble or create omelet with veggies
or
1 cup oats, veggie omelet, strawberries

9am Snack
fruit and a serving of non-fat yogurt or greek yogurt
or handful of almonds

12pm Lunch
4-6 oz chicken or fish
1-2 cup green veggies
sweet potato with butter or avocado

2-3pm Snack
Protein shake and some nuts
or cottage and grapes
or apple with peanut butter

5-6pm Dinner
4-6 oz chicken, lean steak, or fish
1-2 cup green veggies

9pm or so (if hungry)
Protein smoothie

 

The Workout Plan

Plan on doing 3-5 cardio sessions each week. Cardio should be intense and last 20-40 minutes per session. You should also do 3 resistance training sessions each week. You can do the cardio and resistance training on the same days or on alternating days.

Cardio suggestions:

  • Most cable companies have free on-demand workouts that you can do right in your own living room. Choose a different cardio workout each day so that you don’t get bored
  • Go for a run using interval training.  Here is an example of an interval training workout that can be done outside or on the treadmill.
  • Jump rope
Whatever you do, commit yourself to a minimum of three intense cardio training sessions each week. Some people feel that they will burn the most fat if they do cardio in the morning on an empty stomach. If it helps to get the exercise out of the way in the morning, this might be an option for you . Keep an exercise journal, so that you can keep track of your progress.
Weight/resistance training
shoulder/tris/abs
Sample Workout Plan
Day 1 – cardio
Day 2 – chest/back/bis
Day 3 – cardio
Day 4 – legs/glute
Day 5 – cardio
Day 6 – shoulder/tri/abs
or
Day 1 – cardio/chest/back/bis
Day 2 – rest
Day 3 – cardio/legs/glutes
Day 4 – rest
Day 5- cardio/shoulders/tris/abs
Day 6 -rest or cardio
Day 7 -rest or cardio

12-Week Fitness Challenge

July 16, 2012

 

 

Get Fit! Get Strong! Get Healthy!

We are starting our 12-week fitness challenge on Monday, July 30th. If you are interested in joining us, please click on this link fitness challenge to register. Email completed forms to christy@alittlepieceofsunshine.com. If you are unable to print the form and scan it to send it back, simply email me with your answers to the questions and type your name at the end to sign your registration!

Throughout the 12 weeks, I will provide daily exercises, nutrition plans, and other tips and tricks to put you well on your way to a healthier you! We’re excited to be embarking on this healthy journey with you!

 

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