Welcome to our new series that takes us traveling through the alphabet – one workout, #FitTip and recipe at a time. Check in every Wednesday to see what’s next on our alphabetized adventure in healthy living with FitStar Fitness A-Z!
FitStar Fitness A-Z | A, B, C: Work Your Abs, Use Your Bodyweight and Eat Carbs!
D is for Detox
We’re not talking about a lemon-juice-cayenne-pepper-all-day-all-week cleanse, here. Nope. D is for Detox, but we like to follow wellness expert Darya Rose’s route when looking to freshen up our habits or recover from a particularly indulgent time (ahem, vacation or holidays). In her article How To Detox Without Starving Yourself, Darya reminds us that it’s all about setting a healthy foundation and staying true to that foundation as often as possible. Highlighting her “Home Court Habits” – daily rituals and routines to make Darya feel like she’s living a happy and healthy life – she emphasizes the importance of grocery shopping and therefore cooking at home, eating vegetables, and exercising. If you’re feeling the need for a detox, you might find temporary solace from a clear-liquid based cleanse, but you’ll also (most likely) feel hungry. And possibly (probably) exhausted. Writing down and working on your own Home Court Habits, and sticking to them as often as possible will set you up for long term success.
E is for Ease Into Exercise
At FitStar we believe moving is magical and you don’t have to experience pain to see major health gains. E is for Ease Into Exercise, and we have the perfect workout for you. Get your body moving with a stroll through some of FitStar’s basic building blocks in Easy Street. This 20-minute total body Freestyle session in FitStar Personal Trainer will warm you up with lunging calf stretches and then get you going with exercises like muay thai kicks, wall press, shadow boxing, and star crawl. Just getting started or looking for a lighter workout day? Easy Street stays at the lower level of the challenge curve and helps you get familiar with our FitStar fundamentals.
F is for Fats
There’s good, there’s bad and there’s ugly; F is for Fats and this article from Health.com lays it all out for us. Some fats that occur in nature are excellent choices for a healthy diet. Polyunsaturated fats (nuts, salmon and tuna), unsaturated fats (olive and other veggie oils), and monounsaturated fats (veggie oils, seeds and avocados) are great options when building a better nutrition plan. Saturated fats that are most common in meat and dairy aren’t evil, but should be consumed in moderation. Trans fats should be given a hard pass – those are the fats in all those fried and highly-processed foods. If you’re going to buy something processed make sure none of the ingredients contain the words “hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated.” Your body and overall health will thank you. Fat is a crucial part of a balanced diet but all fats are definitely not created equal; make sure you figure out fats before you go grocery shopping or indulge at a restaurant.
Want a unique and tasty way to get more good fats into your diet? Huffington Post has 11 Times Avocados Made Smoothies So Much Better (Don’t Be Weirded Out). And we love Jason Mraz’s Avocado Green Smoothie, for a complete meal-in-a-glass, too!
Jason Mraz’s Avocado Green Smoothie
Ingredients
1 1/4 cups cold unsweetened almond milk or coconut milk beverage
1 ripe avocado
1 ripe banana
1 sweet apple, such as Honeycrisp, sliced
1/2 large or 1 small stalk celery, chopped
2 cups lightly packed kale leaves or spinach
1 1-inch piece peeled fresh ginger
8 ice cubes
Instructions
1. Blend milk beverage, avocado, banana, apple, celery, kale (or spinach), ginger and ice in a blender until very smooth.
Makes 2 servings.
Nutritional info: Calories 332 | Fat 18g | Protein 7g | Carbs 45g | Fiber 13g
Nutritional information is provided by Eating Well.
What’s your favorite way to eat healthy fats? Tell us in the comments below?
Make it Happen,
– Team FitStar
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