Showing posts with label giveaway. Show all posts
Showing posts with label giveaway. Show all posts

Monday, October 13, 2014

I COUNT QUALITY NOT CALORIES

I stopped counting calories years ago, and simply made my focus on eating healthy quality “real” food each day.  I like that motivational poster that says “no one has ever gotten fat eating too much kale” and this is really true and can be applied to most of the healthy food choices out there.  I do not feel the need to keep track of ingredients I know are providing health benefits and awesome nutrients that keep my body looking and feeling the way it does.  I keep my refrigerator, pantry and counters stocked with plenty of organic vegetables, greens, fruits, yogurts, raw nuts, lean meats, and my list goes on and believe me, I am stuffing my face every three hours or less with a nutrient dense fiber rich food.



Maintaining a healthy body is about living a quality life and that means being concerned about the quality of food that I eat.  There is a big difference in consuming a McDonald’s Big Mac and fries compared to an organic chicken breast with a sweet potato and mixed greens.   The latter will be more nutrient dense, health beneficial and less calories, but to the eye will appear like more food.  This is a great example of why I do not bother with counting calories.  As long as I am eating meals like organic chicken and greens, the need and stress behind counting calories is pointless.  I eat for health and listen to the cues of my body that tell me to fuel up.


When it comes to buying my groceries, I hit the perimeter of the store and steer clear of the aisles full of processed inflammation causing crap.  Take into consideration your local grocery and how it is laid out, generally produce to the right or left, dairy to the back and following along to the meat counter on the opposite side.  I stick to my list in hand and the only extras that I dash into the forbidden center would be for dark chocolate, red wine, or something organic like packaged Quinoa.  I really enjoy the local farmer’s markets and stake those out for my produce as much as possible, and I adore the organics at Costco.  I believe in keeping my healthy food intake simple as well.  The food gets too much credit for being complicated when trying to adopt a healthy lifestyle and that is such an unfair assumption. 



Take an organic apple for example, and appreciate the nutrient value and simplicity of this “fast food”.  Now add natural organic peanut butter to that apple and a power fuel meal has been created.  I do not find that difficult and I apply this type of philosophy to all my healthy foods.  I am sure we all know how to prepare and cook an organic chicken breast and other than on the grill, one of my favorite methods is in the crock pot with some fabulous spices or salsa.  I also enjoy sweet potatoes and will prepare those with an olive oil rub, and finish off this meal with a spinach salad topped with walnuts, olive oil and balsamic vinegar.  I am talking about quality food to create a quality healthy body.  Think about our ancestors, what they ate, and how it was created.  It was the simplicity of organic lean meat, dairy and produce from the land eaten throughout a busy physical day and the thought of maintaining a healthy body was not even a thought.  It was lived every day and that is what I think about when I am living my life as a healthy person and eating the way that I do. What I do count is quality when it comes to my calories and that works for me. 

Stay Healthy Fitness Happenings: Want to promote your business through low cost Ad Space or a fun Giveaway with Stay Healthy Fitness? Check out my pages for Ad Space or Host a Giveaway and I look forward to assisting you!




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Thanks for stopping by my Blog, hope you enjoy the content, and if you have not become a follower yet, I would love to see your face on my friend's list, or if you want to receive my free updates, use the button at the right to select your feed preference. I look forward to responding to your comments and appreciate your shares.




Stay Healthy!
Darla




Wednesday, October 8, 2014

SET YOUR BOUNDARIES

It took me many years through this journey of life to learn how to set boundaries and even what the heck that meant. Think of a boundary as a shield of protection around you and one that will provide health and happiness.  Go deeper with the meaning and understand that boundaries are an important part of self-love and not allowing others to treat you in a way that is not healthy for you and your life.  When boundary setting is not demonstrated for us as we grow up into “adult world”, the struggle to understand how to implement them can be difficult, and sometimes scary.  The sacrifice of self to the point of mistreatment by others can be the result if boundary setting is not put into place.  Boundaries make a clear statement of what is not allowed when it comes to each person, and when those lines are crossed, it is a painful process for the one that has been wronged in that way. Sometimes clear communication of the boundary can resolve the conflict and other instances will require radical choices of removing ourselves from the situation altogether.  The most uncomfortable part of a broken boundary is the trust that was there before has now been chipped away into doubt.



I am all for doing whatever it takes to learn how to set boundaries: counseling, support groups, church guidance, etc.  Once the gift of boundary setting has been established in life, it provides a confidence, strength, and overall feeling of worthiness never experienced before, and it will seem as if life has begun in a truly healthy way for the first time.  Once boundaries have been set, it is important to honor yourself by remaining true to those decisions and not allowing anyone or anything to rob you of your shield of self-love.  Even the best of boundary setter can backslide and be tempted into old patterns of trusting someone to the point of letting down a boundary, but in the end it leads only to anger, resentment, and hurt.  Along with the pain will be the shame felt personally for allowing it to happen in the first place and feeling the sting of failure to ourselves.  Boundaries teach us how to respect ourselves enough to know how we want to be treated, and further what is acceptable in our lives.  Boundaries remove the doormats that we as people may have once been, and replaced with a security door of emotional ability to conquer any circumstance placed in its’ way.  



Emotional health is a large part of our physical health and discussing topics like boundary setting are at the top of my list when it comes to being a healthy person.  The journey has been a tough one, but the positive result of learning how to set boundaries has created the person that I am today and I love myself for that. 










Stay Healthy Fitness Happenings: Want to promote your business through low cost Ad Space or a fun Giveaway with Stay Healthy Fitness? Check out my pages for Ad Space or Host a Giveaway and I look forward to assisting you!




DON'T MISS MY FREE UPDATES
Thanks for stopping by my Blog, hope you enjoy the content, and if you have not become a follower yet, I would love to see your face on my friend's list, or if you want to receive my free updates, use the button at the right to select your feed preference. I look forward to responding to your comments and appreciate your shares.




LOVE  a Splurge Now and Then
Stay Healthy!
Darla Leal, Fit at 50

Wednesday, September 24, 2014

THE LAST TEN POUNDS

The last ten pounds can be a struggle, especially when everything comes to a screeching halt.  The scale is no longer budging, frustration is happening and the stress of it all is putting the adrenal glands on overdrive.  A cortisol rush is the last thing our bodies need when we are trying to lose that last ten pounds as studies have shown that it hampers our ability to lose weight.  The important thing to understand is that plateaus are normal in our journey of health and weight loss.  Also, adjustments with our food intake and exercise program will need to be reviewed several times along the way. 



Keep up the positive and progressing with your program regardless of what the scale says.  Many factors are at play when the body begins to slow down and usually a simple review and change up of the program gets things moving again. Things to consider: are you eating enough? The body is a wonderful machine and knows exactly what to do with the food we consume and knows when it is not getting enough fuel.  If we withhold fuel from our body, it will refuse to give up any reserves.  Our body sees that as energy and we need energy to burn energy.  Are you being true to your program?  Sometimes we fall back into old patterns and re-introduce foods that are not on the healthy menu for weight loss and many can even be in denial about that.  Our body will remain in a maintenance or weight gain pattern if we are not honest with our healthy food intake.  Are you exercising less? With a reduction of exercise there will be a reduction in the amount of weight that is lost per week.  Simple math spells out with the expenditure of energy results in the reduction of weight.  Take some time to review your priorities and determine if exercise has taken a backseat.  Are you burned out?  This can happen to all of us and it is important to add plenty of variety to our workout programs and healthy foods to keep the interest high.

The last ten pounds can be a challenge, but they can also be another tool of learning along our weight loss journey.  We can choose to become frustrated and throw in the towel, or open up our minds to do what it will take to get back on track with the program.  It is also important to take one day and one pound at a time and celebrate everything done to create a healthy body.  The last ten pounds will respond to what you are willing to do to be rid of it, or keep it.  It still comes down to choices and changes, and it is always a good thing to get a refresh on the mental battery to provide the motivation we need to keep going.  

GIVEAWAY TIME:
WINNER RECEIVES A FULL SIZE BOTTLE
Want to win a full size bottle of THE Herbal Face Food Facial Serum and have glowing skin like never before? 

Go to my Giveaway Page and enter to win the World’s 1st Organic, RAW, Edible, 100% plants face serum with an ORAC antioxidant rating of over 10 million, making it the most potent and powerful SUPER anti-oxidizing product of any kind. Made from organic plant concentrates, antioxidants and enzymes, which are sourced from all over the world.

Herbal Face Food™ is created by J. Michael Zenn, author of the bestselling book ‘Self Health Revolution’



DON'T MISS MY FREE UPDATES
Thanks for stopping by my Blog, hope you enjoy the content, and if you have not become a follower yet, I would love to see your face on my friend's list, or if you want to receive my free updates, use the button at the right to select your feed preference. I look forward to responding to your comments and appreciate your shares.




Stay Healthy!
Darla


user of THE Herbal Face Food and proud to show my images without photo shop or airbrushing. I am 50 years young and celebrate Fit at 50!

Monday, August 11, 2014

SABOTAGE STEALS SUCCESS

Sabotage is a strong word to describe the behavior that can sneak into our life and steal the success that healthy eating and exercise has provided our bodies.  It can come in the form of our own thoughts, an unsupportive spouse, friend, and even co-workers. The important thing is to be on guard so that the forms of sabotage can be recognized and dealt with in a way that is healthy, and keeping us on track with our fitness goals. I am not addressing the occasional cheat meal or even day, I am talking about a chronic issue of falling into a trap of being swayed away from a healthy lifestyle, and allowing that to happen.



Living a healthy lifestyle takes mental strength and a loving commitment to maintain our best self through consistent healthy choices each day. Let’s address self-sabotage and how it can creep into our mind and try to convince that “just this once” or “just a few bites” can become part of the healthy plan.  The issue with this type of sabotage is that it does not stop at the “just once or a few bites”.  Often times, this mindset flows into several days, weeks, and even months, and before it is over, the weight loss achieved is back up to where it started, and possibly more than the initial weight. Convincing ourselves that eating crap on a regular basis is never a good thing for our bodies, and remaining on guard so that self-sabotage can be recognized and dealt with immediately is crucial to stay on track with our fitness and health goals. Keeping a daily fitness journal is a helpful accountability tool to keep us on track.

Another sabotage culprit is that wonderful person you live with until death do you part.  Love has nothing to do with sabotage of this type and the non-supportive spouse may not get the whole new health thing or does and is struggling with acceptance of your new healthy lifestyle.  There are many relationships like this and living a healthy lifestyle becomes difficult, as the processed foods and other temptations continue to hide in your pantry and refrigerator.  Sometimes, a spouse turned healthy and leaving the other behind can cause friction in the relationship as guilt trips occur over the change in lifestyle.  It is so important to realize that each person is ready when they are ready and force-feeding a new healthy lifestyle on your spouse will only drive a wedge in the relationship.  As the one wanting to live a healthy lifestyle, model by example, and when the cupcakes come calling, politely say “no thank you” and grab a yogurt and piece of fruit to eat along with your partner. Mental strength has to be on overtime in these circumstances as there will be a daily guarantee of temptation.  Keep that promise of creating your best healthy self and great positive attitude, and almost assuredly your spouse will eventually join you.  Patience will be your best friend here.



Sabotage among friends exists and it can be ugly.  Creating a healthy lifestyle will mean making hard choices and dismissing ourselves from possible temptations that will steal our accomplishments. Some friends may not understand that you no longer want to eat processed foods or drink alcohol all night long, and are happy to provide the peer pressure to get you to fold on your commitment to self.  A strong mental game is definitely a requirement and sometimes a request of support from your friend will be necessary.  A true friend will understand and come alongside of such an important decision and one that does not care will continue to sabotage your efforts. If you continue to hear that it is OK to let your hair down and relax with your program on a continual basis from a so-called friend, you may want to re-think the motives of this friend.  It is unfortunate, but jealousy does exist and can rear an ugly head during such times, and some may not be able accept that your body is changing in beautiful positive ways.  The important thing in this type of situation is to be true to you, regardless of what is said or pressure felt.  Going out can be limited to a glass of wine and water in addition to healthy food selection.  Continue to enjoy your life and implement the healthy choices and the rest will take care of itself.




It seems like there is no safe place for the healthy person to hide from the forms of sabotage and the workplace is no stranger to being involved.  Do you have a break-room filled with daily temptation, or that co-worker who always brings the donuts and gladly sets one on your desk? Put up the mental defense when it comes to accepting sabotage at work because you do have more control here.  Bringing a cooler filled with your healthy planned meals will keep your fingers off the bagels and cream cheese with a side of cookies.  Be stronger than the saboteur and say “thanks but no thanks” to the invitation of work indulgence eating.  If a strong mental game is not put into play, visiting the break-room can become a daily occurrence with the results showing up on the waist line, and a complete derail of the healthy lifestyle you want to implement.


WIN A FITNESS TANK

Stay Healthy Fitness Happenings:  WIN a fitness tank from Chase Infinite Apparel. Chase Infinite is a fitness apparel company focused on empowering women and fighting domestic violence. They donate $1 from every shirt sold to charities that fight domestic violence and breast cancer. They are also having a promotion going using the discount code “STRENGTH” to purchase a tank for $20.  Go to my Current Giveaway and Winners Page and Enter Today.  The winner will be selected next Monday. Stay Healthy!  

Thanks for stopping by my Blog, hope you enjoy the content, and if you have not become a follower yet, I would love to see your face on my friend's list.  If you are inspired, LIKE my entry, leave a comment and I look forward to responding!

Stay Healthy!


Darla

Wednesday, July 10, 2013

GIVEAWAY TIME!!!

Hi Everyone!

I am excited to announce my first giveaway and of course all in fitness fun...YEAH! I have always been a clip the hair back girl forever until my friends at a Girl and Her Band got in touch to try their product.  I am sporting the Forever In Blue Jeans band and I will share...I AM CONVERTED TO A BAND GIRL!  I was able to wear the band the whole day without it slipping out of place during my workout and throughout the rest of my evening...I had to give it the full go.  Anyway, after wearing it and being happy to have a band that sticks, is comfortable, and keeps my hair back without having to wear a clip and spray, I was happy to want to share it with you. So, I am offering a GIVEAWAY for a HEADBAND of YOUR CHOICE and BIG thanks to my new fab friends at a Girl and Her Band for the opportunity.  Now to get to the GIVEAWAY RULES:
1. Like a Girl and Her Band on Facebook and tell them that Stay Healthy Fitness sent You.

2. Like Stay Healthy Fitness on Facebook and let me know that YOU entered the contest....YES...you can brag...lol. 

3. Leave a comment on THIS BLOG POST sharing the most awesome place you plan to sport your new Head Band.

4. Winner will be randomly selected and chosen on July 17th by noon!

5.  All entries MUST be submitted by Tuesday, July 16th at midnight in order to be counted.

6. Winner will receive a Girl and Her Band Headband of your choice.


Optional rule: wear your new headband with a smile and let everyone know that you plan to live a Stay Healthy LIFESTYLE! Well...I want YOU to enjoy that healthy lifestyle at the very least :)

Have fun and I look forward to selecting a WINNER next week. Good luck and Stay Healthy! Darla


Thanks for stopping by my Blog, hope you enjoy the content, and if you have not become a follower yet, I would love to see your face on my friend's list.  If you are inspired, LIKE my entry, leave a comment and I look forward to responding! 
Stay Healthy~ Darla 
- See more at: http://stayhealthyfitness.blogspot.com/#sthash.RA7566LU.dpuf


Thanks for stopping by my Blog, hope you enjoy the content, and if you have not become a follower yet, I would love to see your face on my friend's list.  If you are inspired, LIKE my entry, leave a comment and I look forward to responding! 
Stay Healthy~ Darla 
- See more at: http://stayhealthyfitness.blogspot.com/#sthash.RA7566LU.dpuf