Fitness4Her

Women's Fitness

Archives for June 2013

Let In The Light With Affirmations of Love

By

Affirmations are like opening the windows and letting the light from the sun shine in. Overcome with negative thoughts and confusing messages from outside sources, affirmations unleash the bonds of negativity to bring forth our own natural light from within. Affirmations are a positive way to affirm your beliefs and resolve to make positive changes in your life.

When you want to improve your body and make it healthier, affirmations can be essential in helping you reach your goal. Affirmations should be spoken aloud and with conviction. You absolutely must believe what you are telling yourself. A positive attitude is essential to harnessing the power of your affirmations.

Positive thoughts and possessing a positive attitude are the weapons needed to conquer negative thoughts and the damage that a negative attitude can have. Negativity is like a weed that grows rapidly to choke out the light and air from all living things around it. If not conquered, it can grow out of control. However, positive thoughts and actions proclaimed through affirmations can squash negative thoughts and feelings.

If you are trying to lose weight, you probably know by now that it is not easy. It’s hard to make lifestyle changes like those needed to reduce calories. There may be foods that you need to avoid; you may feel like you have been dieting without any results. This can lead to negative thoughts and feelings of defeat.

Fight these feelings of negativity with affirmations that let in the light. Affirm that you are losing weight, that your clothes are fitting better. Affirm that the foods that you eat now will help you grow stronger and keep you fuller longer. Reflect on the benefits that you are enjoying because you have made the decision to eat healthy foods.

To help you get started, write down some affirmations that you feel strongly about. Read and reread them so that they feel real to you. Stand in front of a mirror and repeat the affirmations to your reflection. Believe in yourself and let the light in with affirmations of love for your life, your body and your soul.

Your physical health depends on a healthy mind and soul. Stress is responsible for many illnesses and that is why it is important to feed our mind and spirit with positive affirmations. A positive attitude has been known to cure sickness as well as helping the weak conquer the mighty. This only proves that an “I can” attitude really does work.

10 Diet Tips To Help You Lose Weight Now

By

1. Believe in yourself. Believe you have the power to make the changes necessary to lose weight. Believe that this time, you will succeed.

2. State aloud your desire to lose weight. Daily affirmations begin with a truthful revelation and bring forth your true desire. Keep out negativity and feelings of defeat by reaffirming your resolve and your commitment to fulfill your desire to lose weight.

3. Form a plan of what you need to do to lose weight. Making a mental plan is the beginning of realizing your goal to lose weight. It turns a desire into the foundation for a life-changing event.

4. Make a commitment in writing. When you write down your commitment, it sends a definite message to your brain that a contract has been established and that this is serious business. Now you have partnered with your brain, an effective ally when you want to lose weight.

5. Keep a women’s fitness journal. It has been proven time and again that people who maintain a journal of everything they eat and drink lose far more weight than those who do not. Record your exercise workouts too, it’s a great way to stay challenged.

6. Plan your meals in advance. Don’t go through the day not knowing what you plan to eat next. This opens you up to all sorts of temptations and makes it almost impossible to follow an effective diet plan. Plan your day’s or week’s meals with a variety of foods. This way you can be sure to get plenty of vitamins and nutrients without overeating, binging or starving.

7. Align your grocery list with your plan to lose weight. When making out your grocery list, have your meal plan in hand. Choose foods that can be eaten throughout the week so that you get the best value for your dollar and still stay on a healthy diet.

8. Eat an apple and drink a glass of water before heading out to the grocery store. It’s hard to make sensible choices when your stomach is hungry. Best to feed it a healthy snack that will keep you satisfied for a longer period of time. This way you can go to the store and still have time to prepare some lunch when you return. It’s a much better alternative to tearing open a bag of chips or devouring a fast-food burger on the way home.

9. Prepare meals in advance. Especially if you have a busy schedule and like to take foods on the go. You can have some pre-cut carrots, a fruit smoothie or some other healthy snack, pre-packaged and ready to go. Anything you can do, to stay in control of the food that you eat will help you lose weight faster and keep it off.

10. Plan dining out events so that nothing interferes with your diet plan. Most restaurants will cater to your needs like asking for sauces on the side, or asking for an entrée without the cheese. Many restaurants have low calorie meals or meals that come in smaller portions. How you decide to handle eating out is entirely up to you. You may decide to throw caution to the wind on the few times that you dine out. Of course, this is fine. But if eating out at restaurants is a more common occurrence in your lifestyle, make your food selections and portion sizes carefully if you really want to lose weight.

Ficarelli Fagioli

By

A Ficarelli Family Favorite. We try to have this a few times each month, especially in the winter.
Not a quick fix, this meal takes a while to prepare, but the taste is worth the extra time.

1-1/4 cups of favorite dried northern beans
2 quarts water
Olive oil spray
1 tsp olive oil
1/2 cup finely chopped red onion
1/4 cup finely chopped celery
1 Tbsp minced garlic
2 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
2 tsp chopped fresh sage
1 cup peeled, seeded, and finely chopped tomatoes
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
8 oz. Ditalini pasta, uncooked
4 cups coarsely chopped fresh spinach

Directions:

1. Clean, rinse and soak beans for 6 hours.
2. Simmer 1 hour.
3. Transfer beans without liquid to container.
4. Use processor or blender until smooth.
5. Coat large pan with cooking spray.
6. Add onion, oil, garlic, celery rosemary, sage, salt and pepper.
7. Cook until mixture is hot.
8. Add bean mixture.
9. Add cooked pasta and spinach. Cook together on low heat until spinach wilts.

Health Benefits:
Low in saturated fat, low in cholesterol, low in sodium and low in calories. The bounty of veggies in this dish will provide antioxidants, vitamins and nutrients. Spinach is high in Vitmain A and iron, don’t forget it was spinach that gave Popeye all of his strength. Pasta helps to satisfy your appetite and the veggies add a whole new dimension.

Is Your Caffeine Addiction Robbing You of Sleep?

By

For an effective women’s fitness program, every girl needs to get plenty of sleep. Rest and relaxation are crucial to overall health and the lack of sleep can actually prevent you from losing weight. If you are drinking too much caffeine throughout the day or especially close to bedtime, your coffee, power drink or soda may be the culprit that is robbing you of sleep.

Although, experts consider moderate caffeine intake to be safe, if you aren’t getting the rest you need, it may be time to cut back on some of the caffeinated foods and beverages that you ingest. Caffeine blocks the sleep-inducing chemicals in the brain and increases adrenaline production. It’s interesting to note, that caffeine has no nutritional value for the body, and therefore is not necessary for optimum health.

Now, I am not saying that you have to give up your morning cup of Joe, but if you are loading that cup of coffee up with cream and sugar, you could be ingesting a whole lot more calories than you imagine. I suggest a fitness journal as the best way to monitor what you eat and drink. Not only for weight loss but also for tracking fat, sodium, cholesterol, sugar and even caffeine.

Most women need at least 7 to 9 hours of sleep every night. If you feel groggy and fatigued during the day, perhaps it is a lack of sleep that is keeping you from feeling your very best. Apart from caffeine in the diet, lack of exercise can keep you from getting enough rest. Exercise increases circulation and will actually help to promote sleep, as long as you finish exercising at least 3 hours before retiring to bed.

Just remember that a good night’s sleep is essential for women’s fitness and will add significant benefits to your overall health. When we rest, we allow our bodies to build new cells and repair existing ones, we give our minds time to process information and encourage emotional balance. Reasons enough to make sure you are getting the rest you need.