This post not only marks my 100th blog post so far (thank you, thank you) BUT also the start of the latest part of my blog – TRAVEL!!
First on the list – CANBERRA OF COURSE!! When you google things to do in Canberra you will be bombarded by memorials, museums and galleries to visit BUT is this really the best that Canberra has to offer? Continue reading “YOU HAVEN’T SEEN CANBERRA UNTIL YOU HAVE…”
“Motivation is what gets you started – habit is what keeps you going”
Gone are the days of being a university student – flexible hours, catching up with friends, home all day long and sleeping in! Now living out of home in a city working full-time – trying to fit in a workout is tough… especially as winter approaches!!! Here come the frosty winter mornings … -6 degrees outside and pitch black when the alarm goes off at 5.30. Stubbing toes in search of the bathroom, blinding ourselves with the heat lights and having to carry cups of hot water out to the car to pour on the windscreen. Yes I am talking about a Canberra winter!! Continue reading “12 WAYS TO CONQUER THE EARLY MORNING WORKOUT”
Ok so this is a bit of a controversial topic and depending on what you read you will get a variety of different opinions and answers. Well it’s the case with every topic right? Eat this, don’t eat that. Take this, don’t take that. Continue reading “HOW MUCH PROTEIN DO I NEED?”
When it comes to eating healthy and working out, I rarely fall off the bandwagon. My daily routine consists of leafy greens, my morning coffee, sweaty gym sessions, stretching (and of course sitting on my bum 9-5… yes it’s not all lululemon and relaxing) But despite being a health nut/gym rat, there is one thing that has always stumped me… What to eat before and after a workout? and when? Continue reading “EATING BEFORE AND AFTER A WORKOUT?”
This week has been a shocker for a good nights sleep. Tossing and turning, waking and checking the time, multiple toilet stops and generally taking AGGGEEESSSS to fall asleep. Waking up tired and falling asleep at my desk by the end of the day. But why? The answer is who knows. Everyone is different. Some people can sleep sitting up in chairs, on planes or on a couch within the flick of a switch. Others struggle.
Nuts are an essential part of an everyday healthy diet. They are popular substitutes for many things in the raw, vegan and paleo diets and lifestyles such as almond flour, macadamia milk and cashew cheese … the options are endless. I guarantee you will struggle to find a wholesome healthy recipe that doesn’t include some nuts in the ingredient list and for good reason. Nuts are tasty, loaded with good fat, protein, fiber, nutrients and phytochemicals that are heart healthy and good for the waistline. Barring allergies, there aren’t many reasons not to include nuts in your diet.
Personally I am a peanut and almond gal. Peanut butter all day long and love a handful of almonds. But there are so many nuts out there each with their own benefit to your health and beauty inside and out. BUT like all good things they should be eaten in moderation. Ever heard the line – “30gms of nuts” – as your daily limit. That is great if you pre package all of your nuts into 30 gm portions (sorry but who has time for this?) or carry a little food scales in your hand bag (I already get enough weird looks for my million containers and healthy foods thanks).
Fun Fact: People who eat nuts generally weigh less than those who don’t.
So you ask – what does 30 gms of nuts look like ? Can’t they just say 30 nuts. The answer to this is NO! Because all nuts have a different weight and daily intake recommendation and this also depends on how active you are too. So I ask again what does 30gms of nuts look like and what are the daily recommendations in nuts please not grams?
Daily recommendation of 30 gms of nuts is equal to…
24 almonds
2 Tablespoons of Peanut butter
9 brazil nuts
22 cashews
21 pecan halves
157 pine nuts
49 pistachios
13 walnuts
22 hazelnuts
If you are not a nut addict and are wanting to add more nuts to your diet. Here are 7 ways you can do just that.
Don’t forgot to eat your nuts – just don’t get too nuts about it!
“everything in moderation”
K
Ever just have those days where no matter WHAT you eat for dinner, you are still hungry and in particularly craving something sweet? Yes we have all been there, especially us lovely ladies with hormones, moods and cravings that just cannot be explained right. Well it is okay to snack on something to kill the cravings and keep you satisfied. Let’s be honest – if you tell yourself you ARE NOT allowed to eat anything after dinner you will spend the whole evening craving something and then most likely smash an entire block of chocolate or in my case a solid 6 cookies or bliss balls from the freezer!!
Here are my 5 top recommendations for after dinner nibbles and treats. These foods are high in protein so will kill the cravings without ridiculous sugar highs that will keep you tossing and turning and counting sheep all night. They are also easy to digest to that stomach of yours can rest too and you wont wake up feeling full or bloated. Sounds good to me.
TOP 5 AFTER DINNER NIBBLES – BECAUSE SOMETIMES WE JUST NEED SOME
1. 3 Medjool Dates filled peanut butter and almonds; Take the pips out of 3 medjool dates. Spoon a teaspoon of peanut butter into each date followed by 3 almonds. Perfect little high protein sweet treat packed with fiber to fight artificial sugar cravings.
2. Greek yoghurt, fruit and frozen blueberries; full of protein and antioxidants this is the perfect little combo to assist with some youthful beauty sleep.
3. Protein microwave mug cake; this is the perfect high protein snack when you are craving a large slice of CAKE! It only takes 3 minutes all up and is packed with highly nutritious wholesome ingredients, protein and fiber. Bananas are a wonderful pre sleep snack and won’t keep your digestive system awake either. >>RECIPE HERE
4. Avocado chocolate mousse; creamy and delicious you won’t believe it’s avocado and not packed with artificial crap. Full of essential healthy fats and protein this is a wonderful post dinner snack and is easy to digest. >> RECIPE HERE
5. Homemade banana date muffin; high in potassium, magnesium and fiber, bananas help to relax overstressed muscles. They also contain serotonin and melatonin which are the brains key calming hormones. >>RECIPE HERE
So next time you have a little sweet craving post dinner – don’t beat yourself up about it and instead of having artificial sweetened lollies or chocolate indulge in one of these high protein quick fixes and enjoy a good nights sleep!!
K
Honey. Not only is it the perfect little sweet touch to smoothies, yoghurt or cakes – it also has some alternative uses that will surprise you.
I was reading an article all about the uses of honey and thought I would share my top 15 uses which I found interesting. But first a little fun fact; the average person consumes 500gms of honey in 1 year. What busy bees!!
15 USES FOR HONEY THAT WILL SURPRISE YOU
1. Moisturise your skin; Rub onto your skin, leave for 30 mins and then wash off!
2. Repair damaged hair; Add a teaspoon to a dollop of regular conditioner and let it soak in for 20 minutes before shampooing.
3. Soothing bath; add 2 Tablespoons of honey to a hot bath for a skin soothing natural alternative.
4. Homemade facial; got lemons, avocados and honey? you have a DIY facial. Mix equal parts of each ingredient and apply to face. Add a teaspoon of raw sugar for an exfoliating effect too.
5. Thwart allergies; consuming raw honey, in particularly Manuka honey, will help your body build a strong immune system.
6. Stress-free sleep; dab a little honey on your tongue or in a herbal tea before going to bed.
7. Mouthwash; if you hate the taste of Listerine minty mouth wash make your own. Simply mix 1 cup filtered water, 1 tsp honey, 1 tsp baking soda, 4 drops peppermint oil and stevia (optional). mix and swish!
8. Treat eczema; mix equal parts of honey and cinnamon and apply it to eczema to ease the itch. Sounds tasty!!
9. Boost immune system; lemon, hot water and honey is not just beneficial when you are sick. In fact you should be drinking it to strengthen your immune system and prevent getting colds and flus.
10. Tame digestion; Take one or two tablespoons of honey before meals to ease digestion problems.
11. Honey lemonade; mix 1/2 cup honey with 1 cup boiling water, 1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice and 4 cups cold water. Add a little coconut sugar or stevia if you are a sweet tooth.
12. Cure hangovers; add to water and drink. Honey helps eliminate the toxic compounds resulting from the metabolism of alcohol.
13. Use on cuts, burns and bruises; Honey has natural antiseptic qualities so apply a thin layer to the spot and helps heal those wounds.
14. Lip balm; not only will it taste nice but honeys soothing qualities will make for the perfect lip balm. Just try not to lick it all off!
15. Boost athletic performance; The perfect pre workout boost. Have some honey and peanut butter on rice cakes or toast before your next workout. Don’t have a toaster? Simply peel a banana and drizzle some honey over each bite!
So it’s time to pass the honey, honey and not just for your yoghurt or breakfast!!
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
Dear Red Wine drinkers; I have wonderful news… your red wine habit also happens to come with some happy health benefits, such as protecting your ticker and even slimming your waistline. Winding down with a glass of vino is a good call all round.
Red wine is good for your heart; it contains resveratrol, a powerful antioxidant compound which protects your heart and arteries against the effects of saturated fats (which we now know all about after yesterdays post HERE) and can prevent the formation of blood clots as your levels of ‘good’ HDL cholesterol rises.
Red wine contains antioxidants; containing a number of other antioxidants which can slow the signs of aging, osteoporosis and prevent degenerative illnesses like diabetes. These antioxidants can also help fight off a cold, prevent tooth decay by hardening the enamel and protecting the gums, AND believe it or not prevent the growth of fat cells which essentially block the pathways necessary for immature fat cells to mature and grow.
Red wine controls your blood sugar; the skin of red grapes – which is where the rich antioxidant sources lie – actually help diabetics regulate their blood sugar levels. Researches suspect that resveratrol may help stimulate insulin secretion or activate protein that helps regulate glucose and insulin sensitivity.
But above all, red wine makes us happy! It creates an atmosphere that is social, fun and gives us that extra boost of confidence we need to kick off our heels and let our hair down. And lets be honest, we all know the more vinos we consume the louder, more funny and sexier we get right?? Until we cross the line of TOO MANY and it’s time to go home … (and eat the entire fridge contents and sleep << please note this behaviour is NOT promoted) If you get hangovers have a read of my healthy hangover cure on the blog HERE.
Although red wine has well known health benefits, drinking any alcoholic beverage in excess can lead to serious health problems, so of course limit yourself to not more than 2 glasses a day. Now how many of you just read that and thought… “well if I don’t drink Monday – Thursday does that mean those 8 glasses can be added to my Friday’s 2 glass allowance so I can knock back 10 glasses and still be under the ‘healthy’ limit….” well NO!! Sorry is doesn’t work that way. Stick to two glasses a day! (except for special events and one off occasions) remember it matters more what you do everyday than what you do once in a while!
Fun fact; pinot noir grapes have the highest resveratrol content
SAY CHEERS TO GOOD HEALTH
K
KATIE MORGAN 