Make that Change

It's election day! A day of new beginnings! Well I think it is pretty obvious that Obama will be reelected.

Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek. 
Barack Obama

This may sound silly but this quote can be used for your health too. I know I have been very up and down in this journey of eating right and exercising but I think I am mentally ready to really make a change. I now have the tools and knowledge to know what I have to do to keep me on track. Here are a few steps that have helped me.

1-wake up and pray

2-start off with a healthy breakfast such as fruit, oatmeal with fruit, a fruit smoothie, Greek yogurt with some fruit and gronola (I dont meant the one packed with sugar, I bought the one Brenda from Leansecrets.com recommends the Go Raw buckwheat) Do you see a trend here?? FRUIT!!! I also do eggs or eggwhites....I am trying to eat healthy and I may go back to vegan but haven't decided yet...for now my first step is "cleaning up" my diet

3-Shop healthy! If you open the fridge you will be more likely to just eat the first thing you see =( In almost every family there are some "bad" foods in your fridge. I took a look at these foods and tried to find healthy versions of them so I won't get tempted. Basically leaving me with no excuses.

Pita Bread or wheat toast- Brown Rice Bread

Lebni (full fat mountain high yogurt)-Fage Greek yogurt

Cereal-Buckwheat gronola

Milk/Lactaid-Almond Milk

Orange Juice-Fresh oranges for squeezing

desserts and pastries-get creative and make your own healthy treat like this month I tried the pumpkin pie

Basically when I look in the fridge I will not reach for the bad version (which I wish my mom stopped buying) because I spent time and effort researching these products and also  drove to the store, spent my money on and the best part.....I actually like the taste AND I feel great after I eat it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Last week I hadn't shopped and I was just a mess eating anything in sight..it was the weekend and I was left  without my healthy snacks handy it was so easy to fall off the wagon. 

PREPARE PREPARE PREPARE! Go to the store today!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

3-Plan ahead! Every week I make a workout schedule and put reminders on my phone calendar of when I need to be working out. When I get to the gym and hear that little reminder alert as I am parking the car it makes me feel so good! It's like accomplishing a little goal every day. What's your exercise schedule this week?

4-Mentally prepare yourself to make better choices...This may be a tough one but it's definitely doable. One way of doing this could be a journal. Write down your goals every morning or before going to bed. For example for me, I know that I have a birthday coming up next month and I really want to challenge myself to not only look good but also to feel good and really say to myself that I am at the healthiest place. Being in my 30s (33 going on 34) is actually very exciting knowing that I have made so many positive changes in my life. 

I do admit it is hard to mentally stay on track, but with consistence you will break the cycle of negative thoughts. Lately, every time I feel a bit down, even if it's around dinner time I will grab my workout clothes put on my shoes and head to catch that last spin class of the night. Exercise just makes you feel good! It also reminds me of how much effort I need to make to let's say burn off those cookies I ate this weekend! When you are working out it's just easier to make choices like eating healthy, not smoking or not drinking. Get positive! 

5-Put on your gym clothes! Once I put on my gym clothes I really don't have an excuse anymore to skip the gym. I would feel pretty foolish if I put on an entire outfit and tennis shoes and then came home to take them off without working out. Although this did happen on Halloween (shhh don't tell anyone) once you put on those tennis shoes its almost like a superhero putting on their cape! 

6-Listen to people that have the same thoughts as you, whether it's reading a book or watching a youtube video. It may be hard because your friends and family want to eat "yummy" food and it's easy to slip. Ok maybe you even want to slip without your friends or family, but have constant reminders maybe even on your cell phone or fb page of positive influences.

Hope this helped you out! Make the change today! No one ever said oh I went to the gym and I left feeling so depressed! ok maybe you might feel a little soar but leaving the gym you are always HAPPIER! so do it!!!! EAT RIGHT and EXCERCISE! THink POSITIVE and LOVe YOURSELF! 

I may have gone off on a tangent today but I think it has a little to do with my wonderwoman breakfast

We had some fruits leftover from the weekend that weren't looking too hot so I decided to throw them into the blendtech. I haven't used my baby in a while! I dusted her off and here is what I put

Blueberries

papaya slice

strawberries

gogi powder

chia seeds

Hemp seeds

cocoa beans

Oatmeal

ok the last 2 ingredients are new for me. the cocoa seeds I have to tell you taste TERRIBLE alone. In the mix though they give a nice chocolaty taste. The oatmeal was recommended by my yogi, he said to blend it raw. I used steel cut oats and I was a little hesitant to eat this raw but I loved it. Oh I also used the last of my coconut milk to add some liquid. I probably should have used some ice bc it was a little warm. Anyways I felt really great after having this! Cheers!

A word about coconut milk. So I decided to use this instead of the Almond Milk to test it out but I have to say I am going to stick with Almond Milk. I just like the nutty flavor and also I felt like the coconut milk was a little too fatty? Also I am a little sick of coconut since I drank like a huge box of coconut waters that I bought from Costco. which reminds me that I need to go back to the store today...

Make it a ritual to go to the grocery store after the gym, this usually works well for me (oh and be careful because that's when you are really hungry, don't buy anything bad!!!!)

Have a nice day!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!