Fitness treats

A light pudding cake made with Laughing Cow wedgesRecipe:...

Fri, 10 May 2013 19:16:00 +0200

A light pudding cake made with Laughing Cow wedges
Recipe: www.fitnesstreats.com/2013/05/laughing-cow-custard-cake

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Fri, 10 May 2013 11:05:00 +0200

Training moves from pro fighters

Thu, 09 May 2013 22:58:00 +0200

Training moves from pro fighters

Vegan cookies I’ve made with: - 3 tbsp almond butter- 1/4...

Thu, 09 May 2013 15:31:00 +0200

Vegan cookies I’ve made with:
- 3 tbsp almond butter
- 1/4 cup coconut milk
- 2 tsp carob powder
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup vanilla flavored rice protein
- 1 tbsp coconut flour

(Recipe and nutrition facts on: www.fitnesstreats.com/2013/05/carob-almond-protein-cookies)

These images are from the book ‘Hungry Planet: What the...

Tue, 07 May 2013 16:18:00 +0200

These images are from the book ‘Hungry Planet: What the World Eats’ by Peter Menzel and Faith D’Aluision. The idea behind the project is “to better understand the human diet, explore what culturally diverse families eat for a week”.

These portraits feature pictures of each family with a week’s worth of food purchases.

To see all the different photos: Part I and Part II on time.com (There’re many different countries so there’s a good chance you’ll find a family from your own country.)

A self massage sequence from a book I’ve bought...

Mon, 06 May 2013 22:35:00 +0200

A self massage sequence from a book I’ve bought “Reflexology, Hands-on treatment for vitality and well-being”.
According to reflexology practitioners, reflex points on your feet and hands correspond to your whole body, so stimulating those points helps release tension and gives you a feeling of overall well-being. Sounds like the perfect excuse to ask your boyfriend for a foot massage! No helpful boyfriend available? Here’s a sequence you can perform on yourself.

From www.rehabs.com/explore/dying-to-be-barbie

Mon, 06 May 2013 21:41:00 +0200

From www.rehabs.com/explore/dying-to-be-barbie

Hi! I have a problem, which I can't solve by myself. I'm 20 years old and currently I weigh around 55 kg. I used to weigh around 51.5 kg (that was in January 2013). From January, I have started to run, and at best I have runned 7.5 km. Before I started this hobby, it was out of question that I could have runned over a km. So could my weight gain be because my muscles has grown? Aside running, I compete in showjumping.

Thu, 02 May 2013 08:46:00 +0200

Hi! Running doesn’t really build muscle like weight training does. I’d say that gaining 3.5 kg of muscle because of running sounds unrealistic, even if you had very little muscle mass when you first started.

Showjumping is actually closer to weight training than running. Have you been doing more showjumping and eating a bit more to ‘compensate’ your runs? That could be an explanation.

But besides the scale, how do your clothes fit? Do you still fit in your favorite pair of jeans? Here are a few tips to gauge where you’re at:

Hey! I have a bit of a sweet tooth and I'm trying to stay away from the sweets as much as possible, but it doesn't always help. You have any tips for me to control it better?

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 10:04:00 +0200

Hi! I’ve written a blogpost about cravings, listing all the tips and strategies I’ve read in various fitness magazines: www.fitnesstreats.com/2013/04/usual-and-unusual-strategies-for-controlling-sweet-cravings
It’s kind of a long post but you may find some new ideas to control your sweet tooth.

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Fri, 19 Apr 2013 17:57:00 +0200

"Plant, cultivate, harvest."

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 09:21:49 +0200

“Plant, cultivate, harvest.”

- “When you make the right choice, you won’t see the results. At least, not today.

We live in a result-focused world. We expect to see results, and we expect to see them now. Push the button, the light flicks on. Step on the scale, look in the mirror, check the account balance online 24/7. Give me feedback, trip a sensor, hit a buzzer, tell me, tell me, tell me it’s working!

But that’s not how success is built. Success is the progressive realization of a worthy ideal. “Progressive” means success is a process, not a destination. It’s something you experience gradually, over time. Failure is also just as gradual.

There is a natural progression in life, which everyone knew intimately back in the days when we were an agrarian society. You plant, then you cultivate, and finally you harvest. Plant, cultivate, harvest.

In today’s world, everyone wants to go directly from plant to harvest. We plant the seed by joining the gym, and then get frustrated when a few days go by and there’s no fitness harvest.

The step we keep overlooking (and overskipping!) is the step of cultivating. And that, unlike planting and harvesting, takes place only through the patient dimension of time.

Just as a farmer has to wait a full season to reap his harvest, you must do the same. In my opinion, this is the hardest principle for our microwave and fast-food culture to deal with because we want instant results now, not in 120 days or a year from now!”

From the book “The Slight Edge” by Jeff Olson.

Quinoa Protein Cookies with Rhubarb SauceA vegan, gluten-free...

Thu, 11 Apr 2013 20:12:00 +0200

Quinoa Protein Cookies with Rhubarb Sauce
A vegan, gluten-free dessert for a little “spring detox”.

Ingredients (for 10 small cookies):
- 1 cup cooked quinoa
- 1/2 cup cashews soaked in water overnight
- 3 tbsp vanilla flavored pea protein
- 2 tbsp coconut flour
- 1/4 cup almond milk

Instructions: Mix everything in a food processor. Use a cookie cutter to cut out the cookies and bake for 25 min at 230 degrees Celsius.

Ingredients for the pink rhubarb sauce:
- 6-8 rhubarb sticks
- one pink grapefruit

Instructions: Steam the rhubarb sticks, mix in the flesh of the grapefruit, puree using a handheld blender.

Nutrition facts on my blog: www.fitnesstreats.com/2013/04/quinoa-protein-cookies-with-rhubarb-sauce

evepostapple: Why I Start My Day With Warm Water & Lemon I...

Wed, 03 Apr 2013 10:00:25 +0200

evepostapple:

Why I Start My Day With Warm Water & Lemon

I had no idea how beneficial this was for me growing up but everyday, like clockwork, mom would pour out a cup of hot water and squeeze some fresh lemon into the cup.

Usually in a mad hurry to get through breakfast so I could get outside, would gulp it down, scarf my processed breakfast (we lived in blissful ignorance around breakfast cereals, lucky me) and then grab my bike and I was gone.

Fast forward 20 something years to now where I, now knowingly, live my life according to the principles of Ayurveda and yoga that my family instilled in me at a young age.

So why do I think drinking this is a big deal? In a nutshell:

It raises your PH levels so from acidic to a more alkaline internal environment - Disease cannot live in an alkaline environment as it needs acidity to thrive. When we sleep, our bodies become acidic so the simple act of drinking water & lemon in the morning balances the body.

Empowers your immune & nervous system - Lemons are rich in potassium and vitamin C stimulating your neuro-impulses and strengthening white blood cells.

Improves digestion by removing toxins from the digestive system and promotes bile production in the liver.

Aids in weight loss again due to keeping the body in an alkaline environment. Lemon is also a craving buster.

Purifies the body by eliminating toxins, clears the liver and the skin.

Calms you with a high level of Vitamin C first thing in the morning.

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Tue, 02 Apr 2013 18:44:00 +0200

No-equipment workout: shoulders, legs and coreThis is a circuit...

Fri, 29 Mar 2013 13:57:10 +0100

No-equipment workout: shoulders, legs and core
This is a circuit of 10 exercises. Perform each exercise for 50 seconds with a 10-second break (use the free Gym Boss app; if you don’t want to use a timer, you can also perform each move for 10 to 12 reps instead):
1. In-and-outs on the right leg
2. In-and-outs on the left leg
3. Bear to squat
4. Low plank to high plank (both arms at the same time if possible; on your knees if too difficult)
5. Plank walkout with right leg up
6. Plank walkout with left leg up
7. Down dog knee-to-elbow, right leg up
8. Down dog knee-to-elbow, left leg up
9. Bridge-up (substitute with a glute bridge if this move is too difficult)
10. Dancing crab

(Exercise descriptions on www.fitnesstreats.com/2013/03/bodyweight-workout-shoulders-legs-and-core-but-without-push-ups)

Repeat circuit for a total of 3 rounds!

Hi! I'm 57 kg 173 cm. I'm 21 and i have a very healty life, no alcohol, sports, fruit and veggies. But my problem is my belly, I would love to have a more tonic abs, and my Hips. I am doing a lot of exercises every day, a lot of cardio and I do squat every day. Please help me, summer is almost here. thank you!!!

Fri, 22 Mar 2013 16:38:00 +0100

Hi! 57kg for 1m73 is actually pretty skinny (but still a normal healthy weight for your height). I’m guessing you probably have ‘skinny-fat’ tendencies: meaning even if you’re slim you have too much body fat and too little muscle mass.

You may want to try to build a bit more muscle mass. Building muscle means regular strength training, clean eating, and upping your protein intake.

Concerning the workouts, you can back off on the cardio. Focus on basic multi-joints movements such as squats (with weights), lunges, push-ups, dips, chin-ups and presses, making sure your muscles have enough time to recover between workouts.

Hi! I'm 5'5 and 128lbs. I'm a college student, and try to eat as mindfully as I can, ex. cereal for breakfast, turkey sandwich (wheat bread, turkey, lettuce, 1 slice swiss cheese), salad with vegetables and grilled chicken no dressing for dinner and light snacking (pretzels, cheerios, orange or banana) throughout the day. I do intense yoga twice a week with 1 swing dance class. How I can lose 5-10lbs? mainly stomach fat?

Fri, 22 Mar 2013 11:31:00 +0100

Hi! Thanks for your message which gives me a pretty realistic idea of what you’re eating and what you’re doing.

Here are a couple of suggestions to lose the stomach flat:
- Eat plain oatmeal instead of commercial cereals for breakfast.
- Stop light snacking throughout the day. Just stick to 2 snacks maximum. Ditch the pretzels and the cheerios. Snacks on fresh raw veggies (cucumber, celery, carrots) and lean protein (tuna, cottage cheese).
- Kick it up a notch when it comes to exercise. If you want to lose belly fat you need to do some kind of cardio intervals and some kind of weight training. Yoga is very good for you but if your goal is fat loss – it should be an “extra” when you’ve done your strength/metabolic/cardio work.

Hi, I'm 167cm and about 57.3kg, 15, and I was wondering what you would think my ideal weight would be. I know it differs between person to person, but if you need more info I'm a sort of square/pear shape and have a pretty robust build. (Alpine genes.) I exercise 4 hours a week on average, although I'm pumping it up to about 5.5 hours after Easter. On average, I eat about 1400 calories a day, but I try to go for 1200.

Fri, 22 Mar 2013 11:17:00 +0100

Hi, you’re at a normal weight for your height. 1,400 calories are not enough for an active 15 year-old girl who’s at a normal weight. And 1,200 is definitely not a healthy range. Teen girls need 1,900 to 2,300 calories (see this article from Jillian Michaels’s “Master your metabolism”). Even if you’ve finished puberty, you don’t have the same needs as an adult when it comes to calories and sleep.

If you want to shape up at your age, you need to look at the quality of the foods you’re eating. Eat more vegetables and protein instead of focusing on calorie amounts. At your age and where you’re at right now, it doesn’t make sense restricting yourself.

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Thu, 14 Mar 2013 14:07:00 +0100

I find your blog so amazing! I just need some help. Next semester I will be living in my first apartment and I have no idea what to do for groceries. I want to eat healthy but I can't afford to spend that much on groceries a week. My goal is around $20-30. Is it possible to eat healthy and cheap or is it just a pipe dream?

Thu, 14 Mar 2013 12:52:00 +0100

Hi! Well it’s difficult for me to tell because I live in Europe so I don’t have a good idea of American prices. $20-30 sounds very low. But you definitely can eat healthy and cheap, here are a few suggestions:

Buy beans and lentils: they’re nutritious and a good value for money.
Buy canned fish.
Buy local vegetables and fruits.
Don’t buy bread, cereals and biscuits: just buy plain oats.
Don’t buy in bulk: buying in bulk is usually one of the classical tip you read to save money, but it’s not that interesting for you as a single person because you don’t need that much food anyway.
Couponing can be interesting for toiletries but when it comes to food products, couponing is usually all about unhealthy products you shouldn’t be buying in the first place.
Plan what you need for the week, make a list and stick to it to avoid impulse buys.
Never throw away food, freeze for another time.