Even if you've nixed your membership at the gym, there's no excuse to skip your workout. Forget the days of hauling around free weights, and focus on using your greatest tool — your body's strength!
CLICK HERE FOR 80 BODYWEIGHT EXERCISES!
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Wednesday, October 21, 2015
Best Bodyweight Exercises
Even if you've nixed your membership at the gym, there's no excuse to skip your workout. Forget the days of hauling around free weights, and focus on using your greatest tool — your body's strength!
CLICK HERE FOR 80 BODYWEIGHT EXERCISES!
Wednesday, October 14, 2015
Fat Flush Soup
Well, I'm ashamed to admit that I haven't stuck to my program these last few months. First there was vacation, then this and then that... I finally grudgingly pulled out the scales and confirmed my fears that nearly ten pounds have found their way back onto my body. So, yeah, ashamed. And PISSED OFF. What the...? I mean, really, Suzi, you worked your butt off (literally!) and now here you go again.
But I'm not going there again. Starting today, I'm getting back to it. No more mindless snacking, no more sporadic workouts, no more soft drinks, less hard drinks.
We're all only human and life is short. It's a fine line we walk between being healthy and fit but also enjoying all the wonderful indulgences that life has to offer. Everything in moderation and try to find a balance...that's all I know to do.
So, no reason to beat myself up about it, just got to get back on track. Make it a way of life, not a program. That's the trick I'm still having trouble with, but I'm working on it!
Let's start with this wonderfully nutritious Fat Flush Soup. Packed with nutritional powerhouses such as sweet potato, spinach, garlic, carrots, and tomatoes, this soup flushes the fat away by restoring acid-alkaline and sodium-potassium balance to the body’s organs and glands. It is a warming and deliciously comforting treat that has the added bonus of detoxing your body and adding much needed nutrients.
The superfoods in this soup are packed with antioxidants and fiber and aid with flushing toxins and, subsequently, fat from the body.
Ingredients
1 medium sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1" cubes
3 carrots, peeled and sliced
1 stalk celery, diced
1 small yellow onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
Pinch of Kosher or sea salt, more or less to taste
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/8 teaspoon allspice
1 teaspoon paprika
1 bay leaf
2 (15 ounce) cans kidney beans, drained and rinsed (optional, navy beans)
4 cups vegetable broth, low-sodium
1 (14.5 oz.) can diced tomatoes (no salt added), *this is an optional ingredient
4 cups baby spinach, loosely packed
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil, optional, for serving (1/2 teaspoon per serving)
Directions
Add all ingredients, except spinach and olive oil, to the slow cooker. Cover and cook on low 6 to 8 hours, or until the vegetables are tender. Add spinach, stir and continue cooking just until wilted, approximately 5 minutes. Serve and enjoy!
Tip: If you prefer a thicker soup, after 5 hours of cooking, simply remove 1 cup of soup, along with ingredients, mash ingredients with a fork, return to the slow cooker, stir and continue cooking 1 to 3 hours. When serving, drizzle a little (optional) olive oil over each bowl of soup.
Note: Olive oil helps the body absorb nutrients more efficiently and supports a healthy digestive system.
But I'm not going there again. Starting today, I'm getting back to it. No more mindless snacking, no more sporadic workouts, no more soft drinks, less hard drinks.
We're all only human and life is short. It's a fine line we walk between being healthy and fit but also enjoying all the wonderful indulgences that life has to offer. Everything in moderation and try to find a balance...that's all I know to do.
So, no reason to beat myself up about it, just got to get back on track. Make it a way of life, not a program. That's the trick I'm still having trouble with, but I'm working on it!
Let's start with this wonderfully nutritious Fat Flush Soup. Packed with nutritional powerhouses such as sweet potato, spinach, garlic, carrots, and tomatoes, this soup flushes the fat away by restoring acid-alkaline and sodium-potassium balance to the body’s organs and glands. It is a warming and deliciously comforting treat that has the added bonus of detoxing your body and adding much needed nutrients.
The superfoods in this soup are packed with antioxidants and fiber and aid with flushing toxins and, subsequently, fat from the body.
Fat Flush Soup
Ingredients
1 medium sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1" cubes
3 carrots, peeled and sliced
1 stalk celery, diced
1 small yellow onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
Pinch of Kosher or sea salt, more or less to taste
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/8 teaspoon allspice
1 teaspoon paprika
1 bay leaf
2 (15 ounce) cans kidney beans, drained and rinsed (optional, navy beans)
4 cups vegetable broth, low-sodium
1 (14.5 oz.) can diced tomatoes (no salt added), *this is an optional ingredient
4 cups baby spinach, loosely packed
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil, optional, for serving (1/2 teaspoon per serving)
Directions
Add all ingredients, except spinach and olive oil, to the slow cooker. Cover and cook on low 6 to 8 hours, or until the vegetables are tender. Add spinach, stir and continue cooking just until wilted, approximately 5 minutes. Serve and enjoy!
Tip: If you prefer a thicker soup, after 5 hours of cooking, simply remove 1 cup of soup, along with ingredients, mash ingredients with a fork, return to the slow cooker, stir and continue cooking 1 to 3 hours. When serving, drizzle a little (optional) olive oil over each bowl of soup.
Note: Olive oil helps the body absorb nutrients more efficiently and supports a healthy digestive system.
Sunday, August 23, 2015
Get Yourself In A Good Mood
Studies show that people with a positive outlook tend to be healthier and live longer, while negative emotions are proven to harm the body. Serious, sustained stress or fear can alter biological systems in a way that, over time, adds up to “wear and tear” and, eventually, illnesses such as heart disease, stroke, and diabetes. Chronic anger and anxiety can disrupt cardiac function by changing the heart’s electrical stability, hastening atherosclerosis, and increasing systemic inflammation.
Choose to be happy, make a decision to have a positive attitude and be in a good mood.
Try listening to music to change your mood. Even "sad" songs can make you feel comforted simply by their familiarity. Music can directly trigger memory and emotion together. Listening to music causes the brain to release dopamine, a "feel good" chemical which hits the reward system in our brains much like drugs do. This explains why music can be addictive!
Singing can also lift your mood and bring on a happier state of mind. Some suggest this could relate to deeper breathing which gets more oxygen into the blood and increases circulation, thereby increasing your good mood. But, in addition to the physical effects, singing just feels good!
Nobody has to hear; try singing in the shower or the car...don't worry about being silly, just sing.
Don't be afraid to laugh. Once again, don't worry about being silly. Being able to laugh at most any situation is definitely a habit of happy people. The physical effects of a good belly laugh are measurable; from tightening abdominal and facial muscles, to releasing more of those "feel good" chemicals. So, don't be so serious. Find humor in everything. Laugh at yourself. Smile more. The power of a smile is an amazing thing. Try smiling at everyone you meet and watch how many smile back.
Eating well is essential to being happy and in a good mood. When you are hungry, it's hard to have a positive outlook. On the other hand, when you are uncomfortably full, your mood will suffer as well. Eating junk food and too much sugar will cause lifts and crashes in mood. Try to eat three balanced meals a day, with one or 2 healthy snacks. Eat lots of protein, whole grains and fresh fruits and vegetables. Avoid refined sugar and processed carbohydrates. Drink a lot of water. Your body will thank you. When your body is happy, it's easier for you to be happy!
Walking, or any kind of physical activity, will make you feel better and improve your mood.
Exercise is important to overall health, both physical and mental. It's a lot easier to feel happy when your body is healthy. In addition to stronger muscles, a healthier heart, deeper breathing and still more of those "feel good chemicals," daily exercise can also help to reduce aches and pains and fatigue, allowing you to be a happier, more positive person.
Choose to be happy. Choose to be positive. Choose happy over sad. Choose love over hate.
Turn off anger, turn on love.
Wednesday, July 29, 2015
Sodium Bicarbonate: Killer of Tumors?
This is a pretty interesting read. If it's true, that is really cool. Perhaps we should be spreading the word? Maybe adding baking soda to our smoothies?
‘Sodium Bicarbonate is a Killer of Tumors, Safer and More Effective Than Anything Else’
“Everyone should know about this and it is a betrayal of our humanity that most people still do not know.” – Dr. Mark Sircus, Sodium Bicarbonate: Nature’s Unique First Aid Remedy
Sodium Bicarbonate (NaHCO3) is a form of salt that is found in nature in crystalline form, and is usually processed into the fine powder we know as baking soda. Among its literally hundreds of household uses, baking soda is a most potent medicine that has been in use for over 150 years for a variety of diseases and conditions.
Bicarbonate is the active ingredient in baking soda. It is safe because it is produced by the body in the stomach, pancreas and kidneys, and it’s alkalizing properties enable the body to neutralize and eliminate acids. The buildup of acids in the body (as a direct result of the reduction of bicarbonates in the blood) damages the metabolism, reduces the cellular usage of oxygen, disables the proper function of enzymes, and is the literal cause of aging and all diseases.
What are your thoughts on this and other natural remedies to fight cancer and other illnesses?
Tuesday, July 21, 2015
Thursday, July 9, 2015
Six Weeks With Suzi (Take 2) - Results
I completed the second round of my Six Week Challenge!
Six Weeks With Suzi (Take 2) Final Results ... Drum roll please ...
-12 lbs
Once again, I have achieved my goal! With no starving and some cheat days even! I feel so much healthier, I have more energy, I even have fewer aches and pains. Health was my primary goal throughout this challenge. But, I will admit that finding clothes in my closet that I haven't worn in a while and putting them on with ease has been pretty darn fun!
Over this last 6 weeks, in addition to the 12 pounds, I also lost inches:
Chest: ½"
Waist: 1 ½"
Hips: 2"
I posted before and after pictures last time, so here are the Take 2 B&A pics:
BEFORE AFTER TAKE 1 AFTER TAKE 2
A total of 22 pounds in 12 weeks!
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