Motivational Monday! Benefits of a Healthy Lifestyle & eating

I hope everyone had an awesome Thanksgiving. I know I did! Also, I will be the first to admit that I indulged in some amazing food. It all started Wednesday night at one of my most favorite restaurants; "The Melting Pot". One thing I like about that place is you do not eat nearly as much as you think. You are severed relatively small portions that are spread about through your normally four-course meal. Once the chocolate Fondue came in turn, I gave it all I had! The waiter laughed at my mom and I because we had over half of our dessert left over. Thursday I kept my portions in tact (the best I could, lol) but I also splurged on my macaroni and cheese casserole that I made.

On a side note, I am an avid "movie-goer". I love it! Probably one of my most favorite things to do if I am not working or training. I went and saw two movies this weekend that I was dying to see. "Faster" staring: Dewayne Johnson and "Love and Other Drugs" staring: Anne Hathaway and Jake Gyllenhal. Both are awesome and go-see's! Faster was just a kick-ass movie with tons of action, high speed chases, and sexy people! "Love and Other Drugs" will make you laugh and make you cry. Lots of nudity with Anne Hathaway (I was surprised) and love scenes with Jake but it was over all a really good movie. I am going to see "Black Swan" this weekend and I cannot wait!

I trained hard all weekend. Kept my heartrate up and my body moving. It was all about cardio! One of my favorite types of cardio is jump-roping. It is a VERY effective type of cardio work out that you can do ANYWHERE, even if you do not have a gym membership or access to one. Go to Wal-Mart, spend $5 dollars, and you can burn a ton of calories. See! Again, no excuse.

I am starting to intensify my work out's on the StairMaster. It is a tough machine but I also started adding some things to make it even harder. For example: walking on every other step, jogging on the stairs, stepping from left to right, and my new most favorite thing to do: leg kickbacks while walking on every other step. Talk about a booty blaster! It is awesome! Today's work out at the gym is High Intensity Interval Training on the tredmill for 50 minutes. 5 minute warm up and cool down. 90 second walk followed by 45 second sprints. I will really be burning the calories tonight!

Back to work today from a long holiday weekend and I definitely feel the need for motivation. I do not want to be at work and I miss eating all of the amazing home-cooked food. So today my mission is to help spread motivation! I have got to amp myself and others up to continue to eat healthy, even during the holiday season. Let's do the best we can before Christmas rolls around and all the delicious home-cooked food is back!

Benefits of a Healthy Lifestyle and Eating:

-Healthy eating promotes your body's natural energy. This keep you at the best of your ability all day long through work, school, or any type of obligation you may have.

-There are vitamins and minerals in healthy foods which can boost your immune system and protect you from many common illnesses. In some cases, healthy eating can help fight extremely dangerous diseases such as different types of cancer.

-Healthy eating can improve your sleeping habits so you sleep better at night.

-Keeping your body at a sensible weight. A weight reduction of just 10 percent will significantly reduce risk of heart disease and other obesity-related illnesses. Obesity/overweight is the second leading contributing factor to many childhood diseases such as orthopedic disorders, sleep apnea, type II diabetes mellitus, asthma, high blood pressure and cholesterol, skin disorders, emotional and psychosocial problems (Spigel, 2002 and EZine Articles, 2008).

-Weight-bearing exercise such as walking and strength training helps slow the onset of and/or prevent osteoporosis and some research shows that participating in such activities can actually build bone density and begin to reverse the disease. (EZine Articles, 2008)

-Exercise can lower blood pressure, reduce weight, and lower the risk of developing diabetes.

-Exercise for medical reasons! In a study conducted by Tufts University at the New England Medical Center, among patients with cardiovascular disease, an exercise program was shown to significantly reduce LDL cholesterol and other risk factors beyond what's provided by drug therapy.

Now that you have read this entry, put down the fudge brownie and opt for a handful of almonds and an apple!