I often find myself getting these sort of backwards compliments about my weight. You know, after people see the amount of cupcakes and Nutella on my blog, they look at me and ask how I’m not 500 pounds.
First of all, I never bake anything unless I have someone to share the results with. If I left a dozen cupcakes in my kitchen, I would undoubtedly eat all of them. So instead, I bake for friends, family, special occasions, and if all else fails, I bring my goodies to work.
My other main two strategies are working out and keeping a supply of healthy snacks around for between meals. I get hungry a lot and usually crave sweets, so I plan ahead and have healthy and filling snacks prepared for that inevitable 3pm hunger pain. Here are some of my favorites:
1. Nuts and seeds
Nuts and seeds are full of healthy fats, fiber and protein, all things that help keep you feeling full and satisfied until your next meal. For a quick snack on the go, measure out a serving (1/4 cup) into little tupperware containers or small baggies. Keep it interesting (and more healthy) by varying them day by day. Try walnuts one day, sunflower seeds the next, then almonds, and so on.
You can eat them raw, but I get bored with that quickly. Here are some easy roasted nut recipes: pumpkin pie almonds, slow cooker sweet and spicy roasted nuts, roasted pumpkin seeds.
2. Greek yogurt
I like Greek yogurt more than regular yogurt because it’s strained more, which makes it extra thick and creamy. Plus, it has a lot more protein than regular yogurt, which will keep you feeling full for longer. Get unsweetened to avoid excess sugar and add your own fresh fruit or honey to taste. Another way to sweeten up Greek yogurt is with jam, apple butter or pumpkin butter.
You can also make a smoothie out of Greek yogurt and fruit. A couple of my favorites are this chocolate raspberry smoothie and tropical green smoothie. And if you want something even cooler, you can freeze a smoothie into Greek yogurt pops.
3. Larabars
Larabars are the most simple and straightforward energy bar I’ve ever seen. The ingredient list is very short, from 2-9 ingredients and all whole foods – mostly dates and nuts plus spices or fruit. They have fun flavors like peanut butter cookie (dates, peanuts and salt) and banana bread (almonds, dates, unsweetened bananas). They’re also raw, vegan, gluten free, dairy free, soy free, non-GMO, and kosher. Sounds too good to be true, right? Well, they’re pretty awesome but also pretty expensive (over $1/bar). Luckily, you can make them pretty easily at home. So far I’ve tried making copycat cashew cookie Larabars, copycat chocolate Larabars and (this is similar to Larabars but with some added grains) healthy cookie dough.
4. Hard boiled eggs
Eggs are a pretty cheap source of protein. I always get local, cage-free eggs (which costs a little more, but is worth it to me for the peace of mind that the eggs are safe and also the chickens are treated humanely). Boil a bunch of eggs over the weekend and you’ll be set with snacks for the rest of the week. Plus, if you don’t want to wait around for a pot to boil, you can try hard boiling eggs in a CrockPot!
5. String cheese
Remember the days of string cheese? I still enjoy this classic childhood snack. I usually get the “light” version, which is only around 60 calories but has a little fat and protein to keep you full. And while I’m often a food snob, I must admit that my favorite string cheese is Target’s generic brand. It’s a little sweet, not too salty, and tastes creamy too.
Working out isn’t as simple as healthy snacks unfortunately. I don’t really like going to the gym, and I don’t want to pay for a monthly membership unless I know I’m going to get my money’s worth. For a while I tried out Jillian Michael’s Ripped in 30 DVD, but workout DVDs are repetitive and get boring after a while. Lucky for me, my friend Yu Hannah has been working on a great solution to my problem – a website, Yufit, the first-of-its-kind online fitness experience in the cloud.
What does that mean? Basically, for a small monthly fee, you get access to a variety of 30-60 minute fitness classes, streamed on high definition. Classes are updated twice a week so there’s no getting bored. Plus, you can interact with the instructors, integrate your account with your Facebook profile, and access extra videos and blogs from the instructors with lots of tips and advice.
I’ve been a tester for the last few months and I’ve been loving the convenience and variety of Yufit. My favorite is Fernando’s cardio kick-boxing class – it’s only 30 minutes and he keeps me moving the whole time. There’s also yoga, balletone, buns & thighs, core burn, street jazz, and much more. There’s an easy way to pick out classes too: put in how long you want to work out, your goal (cardio, strength, flexibility), and your fitness level to find out the best class for you.
Now you can try it out too! Sign up now and get a free 14-day trial. After the trial period, and for a limited time, Yufit is only $9.99/month for one year (regularly $14.99/month). SO much cheaper than a gym!
I’m also giving away membership for an entire YEAR to Yufit (that’s worth almost $180)! Enter using the Rafflecopter form below:
Questions about Yufit? Check out their FAQ section.
More recipes you’ll love:
26 Comments on Staying Healthy in the New Year {Giveaway}
1Pingbacks & Trackbacks on Staying Healthy in the New Year {Giveaway}
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[…] you’re still working on healthy eating and exercise resolutions, check out my post on healthy snacks and enter a giveaway to win a year membership to a new fitness website that lets you stream workout videos anywhere you […]
Andrea D.
January 11, 2012 at 12:30 pm (13 years ago)I workout five times a week to stay healthy.
Karen
January 11, 2012 at 12:49 pm (13 years ago)Thanks for the tips! I love the snack ideas and the website you mentioned. If I don’t win I’ll definitely think about joining.
Karen
January 11, 2012 at 1:07 pm (13 years ago)I don’t do enough to stay healthy! I need a convenient form of exercise that I will actually do.
amy marantino
January 11, 2012 at 2:34 pm (13 years ago)i eat well, and exercise daily
brighteyedbaker
January 11, 2012 at 5:06 pm (13 years ago)I eat healthy and walk a lot! Plus I do other forms of exercise here and there.
Lee
January 11, 2012 at 7:50 pm (13 years ago)I try to eat healthy & exercise
Emily @ Life on Food
January 12, 2012 at 3:20 am (13 years ago)Great tricks! I try to do all of them too. I have never heard of this online work out library. I love the idea.
Tulika
January 12, 2012 at 4:58 am (13 years ago)Pre-planning meals definitely helps! I crave sugar a lot and if I don’t have something ready to eat… well, I’ll just eat whatever I see 🙁 Thanks for this inspiring post and the giveaway, God knows I need all the help I can get!
Emily
January 12, 2012 at 6:37 am (13 years ago)I don’t really eat healthy…but I try not to eat poorly either. I try to exercise on my own and have workouts planned with others 2-3x a week.
Kari
January 12, 2012 at 6:47 am (13 years ago)My biggest issue is portion size. I try to plan out healthy meals for the week and then make them last for a few days.
Beth
January 12, 2012 at 6:53 am (13 years ago)I follow work out video series – TurboFire, Chalean Extreme, etc. I also chase my kids around all day and try to plan meals ahead of time so that I don’t wait until the last minute and eat junk.
Michelle
January 12, 2012 at 10:21 am (13 years ago)I make sure to get some physical activity in during the week and I prep snacks (e.g., take all of the seeds out of the pomegranate, cut up the carrot sticks) so I can just grab them when I’m hungry at work.
kimberly michelle
January 12, 2012 at 10:26 am (13 years ago)plan out my meals and take that list to the grocery store! It helps so much to only have food in the house that’s supposed to be there, and that you mindfully shopped for! It also stops me from snacking or picking up take out, because I know we’ve got something planned for dinner that night. 🙂
Kelly D
January 12, 2012 at 2:37 pm (13 years ago)I tried the balletone exercise through the free trial and it was awesome! I really like the idea of yufit, thank you so much for sharing!
Jennifer
January 13, 2012 at 3:52 am (13 years ago)I am struggling with healthy living. I need to be more active and plan more healthy meals.
Danica
January 13, 2012 at 2:20 pm (13 years ago)jeezum crow you guys are some healthy people. Mostly, to stay physically healthy, I:
– take mushroom pills (Mycommunity Immune Boost or something like that, which everybody says is the best thing they sell for building the immune system)
– cut back on added sugar (no more than 4 times a day, 20 minutes each time, even if it’s just sugar listed in the ingredients in the salad dressing… my latest thing is to do no more than 8 grams a serving, too, often less. but I do allow myself the odd binge day!)
– get 8-10 hours of sleep at night
Danica
January 13, 2012 at 2:23 pm (13 years ago)Steph I am SO HAPPY you said that about the target brand string cheese. I will have to try it… I almost never find ones that I like! they’re all salty or too hard or whatever.
Gesina
January 15, 2012 at 9:02 am (13 years ago)Staying fit? I, uh, walk to class. That’s my super cliche but incredibly earnest resolution for 2012! Thanks for offering such a great giveaway 🙂
Anita
January 17, 2012 at 1:31 pm (13 years ago)Workout & watch what I eat.
Melissa @ Best Friends For Frosting
January 17, 2012 at 11:08 pm (13 years ago)Love all the tips. I am dieting as we speak. I need to shed these last 15 pounds from my pregnancy.
Melissa @ Best Friends For Frosting recently posted Valentines Heart Cookie Cutter Cupcakes Recipe
Melissa @ Best Friends For Frosting
January 17, 2012 at 11:09 pm (13 years ago)Ooops. Sorry I forgot to include what I do to stay healthy. Walking, the iphone app My Fitness Pal, eating 1200 calories per day, healthy balance, etc. =)
Melissa @ Best Friends For Frosting recently posted Valentines Heart Cookie Cutter Cupcakes Recipe
Amita
January 18, 2012 at 7:42 pm (13 years ago)Keeping healthy snacks at my desk- carrot sticks, almonds,
Peggy
January 20, 2012 at 12:47 pm (13 years ago)You’ve got plenty of good snacks and great tips for staying healthy! And I’m glad you mentioned Yufit because it looks awesome!
Peggy recently posted Latkes a.ka. the Potato Pancake
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Nate Anglin
April 24, 2013 at 6:26 pm (12 years ago)Great stuff. Eating right during the day is so important because it allows us to keep our insulin levels in check and to ward off an desire to binge. The more we choose the right foods the better our energy levels will be and the motivation to push through the day driven to succeed. I just wrote on snacks as well.
Best Office Snacks