Tools for losing weight
Hope you had a great weekend!
Losing weight can be easy if you have some good tricks in your back pocket. Like these:
- Decide what your goal is.
- If you have a bad day – don’t give up. Take back control right away!
- Take only one serving and stick to it. No seconds!
- Use a measuring tape to track your progress, not a scale.
- Plan each meal ahead.
- Always have healthy snacks in your bag (nuts, apple etc).
- Make it a daily challenge to add an unexpected activity (take the stairs, park far away, take an evening walk etc)
- Put yourself first and dare to say no if someone offers you food you don’t want to eat.
- Enjoy being in control of your life and your choices.
- Smile, be proud to be in control. Be sure of that you are going to make goal and look forward!
Clean Eating
We get a lot of questions from people about Clean Eating. The beauty of being a member of Stellibell is that you get used to eating “clean” dinners and slowly learn what a clean meal is. You also get tips on our site as a member about clean eating. But the easiest way to explain Clean Eating was said by Jillian Michaels during an episode of Biggest Loser – “if it didn’t have a mom or grew out of the ground, you shouldn’t eat it”. The part about having a mom doesn’t sound very appetizing but it is a good way to explain protein.
Another good source for Good Eating information is Clean Eating Magazine and Tosca Reno's site. Love her!
Honest Fruit and Veggie Wash
We are using this product in our kitchen and just have to share. We love it.
Honest Fruit and veggie wash:
- Naturally cut through chemical residues & wax to leave fruits & vegetables truly clean!
- 100% non-toxic, plant-based formula safely and effectively removes unwanted: toxic pesticide & chemical residues, pathogens, waxes, dirt, handling oils & bacteria surface contaminants (found on both conventional & organically grown produce)
- No taste or odor left behind
The versatile lemon
We have blogged a lot about using lemons in green cleaning recipes. Here are some more uses for lemons.
Did you know that?
- A lemon at room temperature will yield more juice.
- Before juicing, press down firmly and roll the lemon on the countertop to help break up the pulp.
- Freeze lemon juice in ice cube trays and when frozen place in plastic bags.
- Tenderize meat by marinating in lemon juice.
- Squeeze lemon on vegetables while steaming them to help keep the colors bright.
- Add lemon juice to rice while it is cooking for a nice fluffy finish.
- A few drops of lemon juice will help improve the flavor of other fruits.
- To revive wilted lettuce, place it in a bowl of water with 4 tbsp of lemon juice. Put the bowl in the refrigerator and chill until you are ready to use it.
Do you have any other good ideas for lemons? Please share!
Green Cleaning – Grout
This Week's Goal
This week’s goal is to exercise even on the busiest of days. Even just to exercise for 10 minutes is better than nothing. When you are short of time do this circuit as many times as you can during the 10 minutes:
- 20 push-ups
- 20 sit-ups
- 20 squats
- Jumping jacks for 1 minute
- Plank for 1 minute
Remember it is quality before quantity. Make sure you keep good form and focus on the muscle you are working out. We know how difficult it is to find the time, even if it’s just 10 minutes, but you will feel refreshed and re-energized afterwards and happy you took the time to do something. Who knows, you might even do another 10 minutes!
Have fun!
Green Cleaning – Disinfectant
Green Cleaning – Clean your coffeemaker
We all love a hot cup of java in the morning, and cleaning your coffee machine now and then will ensure you get the best tasting coffee. Running baking soda and water through the machine will give it a good cleaning and refresh it. Rinse with lots of water afterwards to remove all traces of the baking soda. It's easy AND all green!
Green Cleaning – Clean your microwave
This Week's Goal
For all of you who have an iPhone know how quickly your battery will run out if you have a lot of apps running in the background. Your life works in a very similar way. The more your mind is wandering and the more things you are stressing about (sometimes without knowing about it), the faster your own batteries are going to run out and it’s going to leave you tired and sometimes unhappy. Mediation can be a very helpful tool to help charge our “batteries”, and in helping us cope with life’s stressful situations.
This week’s goal is to quite your mind for 5 minutes a day (work it up to 10 minutes). An easy technique is to focus on your breathing. If you find your mind start wandering you can say “in” as you breathe in, and “out” as you breathe out.
Happy Mediation!
This Week's Goal
Hope everyone had a wonderful Mother’s day!
So far our weekly goals have been positive thinking, drinking water and stretching. How about exercising as our next goal? It’s often the thing that gets crossed of the list first when life gets too busy. Here is a quote that might help prioritize exercise.
“More than anything else, I believe it’s our decisions, not the conditions of our lives that determine our destiny.” Anthony Robbins
Life is all about making decisions. Think of this quote as you decide to workout or not, make a healthy eating choice or not, etc. We cannot let life and our circumstances take control of us or what we want to do. We must make decisions in our journey to health that support us, not work against us.
Take baby steps so that you are setting yourself up for success. Start with exercising once or twice for about 20-30 minutes this week, and next week you can add another session. Your friends here at Stellibell will work on this goal along side with you!
Good luck!
This Week's Goal
Hope last week’s goal went well and that you are water drinking machine by now! This week’s goal is to stretch. A regular stretching program can help lengthen your muscles and make daily living activities easier. Stretching does not have to involve a huge time commitment, but it can end up giving you huge results. There are simple stretches you can do while watching TV, on the phone, or getting ready for bed. Here are some of the benefits of stretching:
- More energy (resulting from increased circulation)
- Reduced muscle tension
- Increased range of movement in the joints
- Enhanced muscular coordination
- Increased circulation of the blood to various parts of the body
Stellibell is a huge fan of Oxygen magazine. You can find great exercise tips on their site. Here you will find some great stretches that will take you about five minutes to do: http://www.oxygenmag.com/Fat-Loss/Articles/Its-A-Stretch.aspx
Good luck!
This Week's Goal
This week’s goal is to drink more water. There are so many reasons why we should drink more water. Water hydrates you and can help you lose weight since it fills you up. It will help your digestion and flush out toxins. Your skin texture will improve and you will feel more alert.
Some of our team members in the office have struggled with this goal in the past, but there are some tricks you can use to make it easier. Drink a glass of water before each meal, one with each meal and snack, and a glass of water in the evening, then you’ve had about 7-9 glasses which is great. And think of all the exercise you’ll get running to the bathroom all day long! Don’t forget to drink water out of a glass or a reusable bottle.
Good luck!
Snack Time
As a Stellibell member you already have healthy dinners and lunches for the week, but what about snacks? Here are some great ideas. These will give you the perfect mix of carbs and protein to make sure you last until the next meal. Make sure you eat something every 3 hours to keep your blood sugar level even and calorie burning to the max.
- An apple and a table spoon of all natural peanut butter
- A cup of baby carrots and 3 tbsp of hummus
- A cup of Greek yogurt and a handful of almonds
- ½ cup of cottage cheese and sliced peppers
- A cup of edamame
Stellibell members have access to more tips on healthy eating and portion control on our site: Food and Nutrition Page
Non-member can sign up here: Sign Up Page
Happy Eating!