Whether you are in Australia soaking up the summer heat or walking through the winter Christmas markets sipping mulled wine in London, there is no hiding the fact that the Silly Season is upon us. Only 5 sleeps until the most wonderful day of the year; Christmas. Continue reading “A HEALTHY SILLY SEASON”
My favourite unhealthy biscuit on the market is a a two way tie between the Gingernut biscuit and the Monte Carlo – both Aussie Aarnott’s classics. But we all know that these highly processed biscuits are packed with preservatives and refined sugars that aren’t good for our waistlines when consumed out of moderation. So how can be have our biscuit and eat it too? By removing the nasty stuff and baking my healthy alternative ginger bread biscuits yourself. You can add a thumb print of homemade strawberry jam (recipe from the I Quit Sugar blog) for a cheeky festive touch and Monte Carlo effect. I shall call these my ‘Gingerbread men from Monte Carlo’ biscuits. Don’t forget to put a couple out for Santa with a glass of almond mylk too. He will love them! Not to mention how insanely incredible and festive your house will smell. Continue reading “OH MY GINGERBREAD MEN”
With the Christmas season in full swing it is time to get out the baking tins and wooden spoons for some seriously delicious Christmas baking. Not only will it brighten your day and make the last weeks of work that little bit sweeter – homemade baking makes for wonderful Christmas presents for loved ones and colleagues. After all Christmas is about food… and giving!! Continue reading “NAUGHTY ‘N’ NICE RUMBALLS”
I had the pleasure of listening to the wonderfully talented Nutritionist Ruth Tongue at Tally Rye’s Secret HIIT Club event on the 5th of December. After we refueled from our insanely intense sweat sess with the most divine chocolate peanut butter protein shakes from ProteinHaus, we sat down to talk about the healthy way to ‘survive’ the silly season. It seems silly that we even have to refer to it as ‘survive’, like we either miss out on the Christmas treats and cry or we eat them and die. Sounds rough right. She was so informative and I honestly felt like I learnt a great deal. So here is a little recap from the notes I scribbled down. Continue reading “SILLY SEASON TIPS WITH NUTRITIONIST; RUTH TONGUE”
When it comes to a Christmas feast you cannot go wrong with a big colourful fresh festive salad. They can be a lot easier to whip up then you imagine – and far less time consuming than roasting a turkey. If you have to ‘bring a plate’ this silly season, then whip up one of these amazing salads.
The following recipes are taken from my favourite 5 famous foodies! All of these women give me inspiration daily and have helped me achieve the healthy life that I live today. Trust me – they know their stuff and they seem to have one thing in common – festive colour, feta and beetroot! Tis the season!!!
1. TERESA CUTTER – Beetroot salad with pomegranate and pistachio (RECIPE HERE)
2. SWEAT AND ORANGES – Classic Greek Salad
A classic mix of diced cucumber, cherry tomatoes, kalamata olives, feta, red onion and capsicum tossed with some balsamic vinegar, lemon and oil.
3. HEALTHY FRENCH WIFE – Healthy Christmas Salad (RECIPE HERE)
4. KAVISHA JEGA – Massaged Kale and Mango Salad
This winning recipe includes massaged kale (massage with you hands in olive oil to remove that tough kale texture) tossed with diced mango, avocado, feta and walnuts.
5. JESSICA SEPEL – Green Beans and Roast Beet Salad (RECIPE HERE)
K
Fruit mince tarts, sangria, biscotti, rum balls, beer, champagne, glazed hams? Have I got you guys drooling yet? I don’t know about you but you had me at fruit mince tarts!!! Yes I have noticed that woolies and bakers delight have been stocking fruit mince tarts for a while now and YES I have consumed (only) 2 thus far… and its not even December I know!!
Before you know it the silly season will be upon us and eating and drinking in excess will become the norm. But why do we do it to ourselves? Firstly its just ‘that time of the year’, or we don’t want to offend peoples baking abilities and general lack of discipline. But we all do it so lets not be too harsh!
How many of you will have a new years resolution that contains something about getting fit, losing weight or being healthy? Let me just tell you one thing… DONT WAIT UNTIL THE NEW YEAR. Be the healthiest and best version of yourself right NOW and throughout the whole festive season.
With the silly season only DAYS away we want to look our best so here are three things that we can do daily to avoid the silly season bulge:
1. Detox your body with lemon and water; no I am NOT talking about the ridiculous lemon detox diet or some ‘lose 5kg in a week’ detox. Trust me they wont work and you will be doing so much damage to your overall health and well being. Simply squeeze 1/2 a lemon into water or put it into your water bottle for the day. The lemon will wake up your metabolism and get your digestion moving! (lemon water and hydration blog post here)
2. Move your body; set yourself a goal like ‘3 walks’ or ‘3 gym sessions’ this week. (Just don’t make them too unrealistic or unachievable.) Take the stairs rather than the lift, go for a walk to the nearest coffee shop at morning tea time (which is only 4 meters away so that wont work for me), go for an evening walk with your partner or friend, stretch in front of the tv, do 20 squats whilst waiting for the microwave to beep or brushing your teeth… what ever it is… get that body moving!! (ab work out here)
3. Eat Fats, Proteins and Carbs; This is one of THE BIGGEST food rules that will ensure you don’t get food cravings or sugar swings and will keep you feeling satisfied and full for longer. I consistently eat protein, fat and carbohydrates at EVERY meal or snack and have found this the major reason behind my speedy metabolism and overall weight loss. Some perfect combos include; rice cakes boiled eggs with avocado, rye toast with peanut butter and banana, bliss balls, yoghurt with berries and granola, watermelon with feta, apple with cheese, banana nut smoothie, avocado cacao mousse (recipe here), celery with almond butter, dates with almonds, tuna rice and beans and so on! Carbs are your friends (blog post on Carbs here)
Do these 3 things daily and enjoy your silly season. Remember you can be silly and healthy at the same time!!
K
KATIE MORGAN 