Healthy Lifestyle Beginnings...

Hi there! Lets start today's post by saying WELCOME! 

Today is the start of a Brand New Experience, for me and for my family. My main goal personally is to be healthier and to lose weight, but also to set a good example for my family, ESPECIALLY for my children.

 ( Ah... aren't we cute..)

Now with that said, let me tell you about, US! 

We are a typical small family, living in rural Minnesota (It is about -33 below 0 right now, not sure WHY Minnesota at times like these...Brrr!) We each have full time jobs that we go to EVERYDAY, and our son attends daycare EVERYDAY while were at work.(Daycare is a total blessing!) But, like MOST family's out there we fall into the fast paced lifestyle of the 21st century... AHEM, example: Eating out for lunch WAY too much cause we haven't taken the time to MAKE a lunch to take to work, Getting done with work late and opting for the quick and easy meal at the end of the day,( Papa Murphy's pizza, Chicken, ect..) And, lets face it... we have all DONE this before, it isn't bad on occasion, it's when it becomes a habit that makes it a problem.  

Okay, don't get me wrong, I LOVE to cook, it's taking the time to plan and set specific meals for each day of the week that I need to work on. And that my friends is one of the things you will be seeing here on my blog, among may other things.

Now, lets be REAL shall we... I don't eat breakfast.. PHEW glad I got that off my chest. I like breakfast, ( let's rephrase that) I LOVE breakfast and all the food that comes with breakfast, I just don't take the time to make myself eat breakfast. STUPID I know, I make my son breakfast why not myself... Many years of making that mistake has taught me a few things that I know are true: 

People who eat breakfast maintain a healthier weight, and lose weight faster... Why, because eating after you rise perks your metabolism, which turns food into energy.

People who skip breakfast tend to eat more during lunch, and let's face it, is usually something not so healthy.

Making a smoothie for on the go, has always been my best bet.

Now your probably thinking, DUH! Eat some breakfast already!! And, yes that is STEP #1 for me on my journey, but we will get into that a little later, and I will share the smoothie recipe that I will be using.

STEP #2: Water... why is water so important? Well, I will tell you...

• Our bodies are made up of 60% water, our brains are 70% water, and our lungs are 90% water... ( figure it out yet?) Our bodies need water to survive... and, no soda does NOT count and neither does that fancy squirt stuff they make to give water flavor.. No! Yes those thing's still play a part in helping us stay hydrated, but they are filled with less than satisfactory thing's ( artificial coloring, fake sugar, TOO MUCH sugar). We need water to survive more than we need food, you can live about a month without food, but only a week without water... Crazy, huh!
• Not enough water causes Dehydration, which can reduce the amount of blood in our body's causing our heart to pump harder.
• Remember this.. if your thirsty your already Dehydrated..

They say we need 8 glasses of water a day... but that's just an average.
Body weight / 2 = #ounces you should consume each day
so, if you are 170 divide that by 2 =85oz per day

I have to say I do pretty good at my water intake, but I can always do better. I am a recovering Popaholic (if that's a word) and we all know how toxic pop aka soda is for our bodies. But, I will say I indulge in one every so often, but soda is not allowed in our home, if we HAVE it we DRINK it, so it is just easier not to buy it.

STEP #3: Exercise.... We meet again old frienemy!
Lets face it, you can't lose weight without changing your diet and habits, and you can't do it effectively without exercise.

How many times have I searched for that fast fix... TOO many times to count. How many protein shake trends have I tried... again TOO many.

How long did it take me to get to the weight I am now 30 years, so it isn't going to happen overnight. 

Basic principle, Healthy Diet and Exercise= weight loss and it is weight that you KEEP off. It won't be easy, I wont be at my goal weight tomorrow or by next week, BUT I will have something to show for my hard work.

STEP #4 Getting out of bed EARLY...
Most people would be saying #4 should be "getting 8 hours of sleep" BLAH, I do not have that problem. My problem is GETTING MY BUTT OUTTA BED. I enjoy sleep, too much actually. And I have always found getting up earlier makes my day so much better. I am not rushed, I can take my time, enjoy my workout, EAT BREAKFAST(lol) It makes for a Happier Me:)

STEP #5 Filling my mind with positivity...
I don't know about you, but I struggle with this on a daily basis. I have gotten better, but I need more work. I will be adding in some affirmations, as well as doing some meditation to help with this.

and of course..STEP #6: FOOD
I will be testing and trying a wide variety of different recipes from week to week. Now, this could be challenging, (My almost 3 year old can be picky) so making healthy, yet not so boring meals for me and my family is REALLY going to be fun. I will post the recipes as well as the votes from my family on what they liked and didn't like about them all.

So, with further adieu, I present to you...DAY #1

• WAKE UP TIME: 7:30 AM
• WORKOUT TIME:8:30 AM

(So.. didn't get up SUPER EARLY, but its's a start anyway)

I am working out with YOU TUBE's only Dance fitness with Jessica, this girl is awesome. She successfully choreographs workout's to target a specific area, done to a Hit song found on the radio(mostly Hip Hop, can be provocative, but I won't be doing this anywhere else other than the comfort of my own home) 

You can find the ones I did here today.

FYI-some of the workout's I have done with her I have had to learn the steps first before effectively finishing the workout. Makes for a longer workout:) But, it is so worth it!

• BREAKFAST SMOOTHIE:( I am using a Nutibullet. it is an amazing machine!)

1 Handful of  spinach 

8 oz of REAL pineapple juice

5-6 large broccoli florets

Half of a frozen banana

Half of a pear cut into inch size cubes

Half a cup of red grapes
Half of a diced avocado (makes for a thick smoothie, very good!)

2 TBS hemp seeds 

and a few ice cubes

Blend until smooth, Drink and enjoy:)

This smoothie I tried out before day #1, my BF even liked it and asked that I make it for him for breakfast. Hmm crazy, guess he read my mind:)

Well that concludes the Morning of Day #1 and I feel AMAZING! My son helped me enjoy my smoothie this morning and LOVED it which made me SUPER happy.

Today's agenda for lunch is:

• LUNCH SMOOTHIE: 

8 oz of fresh Pineapple Juice

Handful of Spinach

1 scoop of Juice Plus Complete protein(French Vanilla)

About a 1 Cup mixture of frozen Strawberry's and Blueberry's

Half a frozen Banana

• SNACK: 

Multigrain Tortilla Chips

Half ripe mashed Avocado

Mix in: tsp of fresh lime juice

Dash of salt

Dash of pepper

Dash of garlic powder

Feel free to adjust to your own liking.

And for Dinner, I will post later on what we have tonight!

Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed it. Have an amazing day everyone!

Sincerely,

Healthy Lifestyle Mama