Top Ways to Ditch Dieting For Good

January 13, 2017January 31, 2017 LauraJoli LookingJoliGood4 Comments

It’s Not About Dieting It’s About A Healthy Lifestyle

1) Find healthy foods you love:

Since I have changed my eating habits I have found so many foods that I thought I hated but I actually now love. Eggplant, Spinach, Swiss Chard, Roasted cauliflower, Baked Kale chips, Sweet potatoes, Mushrooms just to name a few. These are all things that I never would have eaten 18 months ago, yet they are now part of my every day diet…I still hate cooked peppers, I don’t think that will ever change.

2) Get a routine:

Make it easier on yourself to make better choices. Have your fridge stocked with fresh fruits and veggies. Set regular meal times and don’t let yourself graze or snack. Keep yourself accountable with a food and fitness journal. Make a plan and stick to it! It is not about perfection it is about consistency.

3) Do exercises you enjoy:

I don’t like to run. So you know what, I don’t do it! There are sooooo many other way to get in a great cardio workout without having to pound the pavement. The more time I have spent doing different types of physical actives, the more I have discovered the things that I love and things that I don’t enjoy.

I hate lunges, but I love squats. I hate pushups but I love doing plank. I love jumping jacks and cardio kick boxing. I really enjoy lifting weights and strengthen training. Find what you enjoy and do it!

4) Always have a goal:

The scale is not the only place to have goals. There are so many other ways to stay motived and push yourself. Recently I have been pushing myself to increase my reps as well as up the weights. It is so satisfying to reach a goal and set a new one!

5) Indulge:

You know I love sweets! If you are going to a special event, like a birthday party or a friends BBQ, let yourself indulge within reason. Denying yourself can lead to unwanted binges. Instead try to be strict with your diet leading up to the event. Do not, I repeat DO NOT make yourself feel guilty about it later on. Occasionally enjoying a sweet treat or special meal is an absolutely necessary part of a feasible healthy lifestyle. This is a lifestyle we are ditching the “diet.”

6) Don’t focus on denial:

How true is it that all you want is what you can’t have! If you want a french fry, have a fry or two. You don’t need to eat an entire large fry, but a fry or two might be just the thing to keep you from derailing your entire healthy plan.

Remember, It’s Not About Dieting It’s About Lifestyle!

After a few weeks you won’t even have to think about these changes. Making a lifestyle change is worth the time and hard work it takes. Long lasting results are so much more satisfying than short ended quick results from a fad diet.

You and your health and wellness are worth it!

If you want to read more about the benefits of lifestyle vs dieting check out my flab to fab post about Balance.

I would love for you to follow me on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. You can find me as Looking Joli Good on all three. I would also love to follow you on Instagram and Twitter as well, so let me know your user name in the comment section below!

Health/ Fitness

Pre Workout Snacks

January 6, 2017January 6, 2017 LauraJoli LookingJoliGood3 Comments

Starting out on a health and wellness journey can be tough. Let’s face it what to eat, when, and how much can all be a little confusing.

Food is fuel and what you do eat is just as important as what you don’t eat.

Carbs = energy. When we eat them, they break down into glucose, enter our muscle cells, and give us fuel to exercise.

Since they are digested quickly and provide energy, it is a good idea to eat simple carbohydrates before a workout.

The ideal time to eat is between 30 minutes to three hours before your workout.

Here are a few examples of my favorites pre-workout snacks.

Avocado, Eggs, and toast

Try 1 or 2 eggs with 1 slice of whole-wheat toast and half of an avocado, sprinkle with a little bit of salt and pepper.

avocado affirmation | lookingjoligood.wordpress.com — I just couldn’t resist putting this in here, lol!

PB & B toast

1-2 tablespoons of all-natural peanut butter and half a sliced banana on whole-wheat toast

Apple with Peanut Butter

Slice up 1 medium apple and serve with 2 tablespoons peanut butter.

Apple with String Cheese

Don’t have time to fuss around in the kitchen? Well here is a quick grab and go snack. 2 stick part-skim milk mozzarella string cheese and a medium apple.

Clementines and Almonds

Another quick grab and go snack: 2 small clementines and a hand full of almonds.

Eggs and toast

Try 1 or 2 eggs with 1 slice of whole-wheat toast or thin bagel and half of a banana.

Fruit smoothie

One scoop of your favorite whey protein powder with ½ cup ice, and 1 cup frozen berries.

My favorite protein powder is the Trader Joe’s Darwin’s Whey Chocolate Protein Powder, yum!

Yogurt parfait

Top 1/4 cup nonfat yogurt with ½ cup whole grain cereal and ½ cup fresh strawberries.

Fruit and Oatmeal

My favorite thing to eat pre workout is 1/2 cup of rolled oats with half a banana two cut up strawberries and 2 tsp of chia seeds.

oatmeal and fruit | lookingjoligood.wordpress.com

Energy Bites

Remember these energy bites from a previous post? I love these things both pre and post workout! Click HERE for the link to the recipe for these delicious energy bites.

Notice a pattern? Carbohydrate paired with protein. Now get up and get your workout in!

Keep in mind that everyone’s body is different and will have its own specific needs and preferences. Find what works for you and what you like.

lookingjoligood.wordpress.com

Flab to FAB

Give Yourself Permission To Enjoy Food

December 16, 2016December 16, 2016 LauraJoli LookingJoliGood2 Comments

When I decided to make a drastic dietary change in my life, I knew I didn’t want to be on a “diet”. I wanted to make a lifestyle change that would last forever. I LOVE to eat. I go to bed thinking about breakfast and wake up looking forward to all the wonderful things that I am going to eat during the day.

I have given myself permission to enjoy food.

Being able enjoy a special meal with friends and family or have a piece of birthday cake at a party is all part of enjoying life. I allow myself to go on vacation and fully enjoy foods at restaurants that I will not be visiting again for a long time (or possibly ever). It makes the whole balanced healthy diet attainable for a lifetime, not just to reach a specific goal. I don’t want what I don’t allow myself to eat to hold me back from living my life.

Once again it is all about BALANCE.

My diet is balanced and not overly restrictive. It doesn’t just consist of spinach, kale, and celery. (although, I do enjoy eating those things.) Every once in a while I will let myself have a bowl of ice cream or M&M Chocolate Chip cookies. I enjoy every spoonful and every bite, and I do not make myself feel bad about it. The key is to not eat the entire pint of ice cream or the whole plate of cookies.

Eating healthy is not a chore, it takes thought and preparation, but it isn’t a chore.

Since reaching my final goal weight I follow the 80/20% rule. Eighty percent of what I eat is healthy, and I let myself splurge the other 20% of the time.

I love to eat and I love to exercise, but all diet and no exercise is not right, just as all exercise and not eating a healthy diet is also not best.

Trust me I have tried to only exercise and not eat healthy! For 5 years I diligently worked out so hard, 5 days a week, 1- 1.5 hours each day. During those 5 years I sweat a lot, I got a lot stronger, and I always ate whatever I wanted to. It wasn’t until I improved my diet that I finally started to feel amazing and see all the awesome results I had been trying to achieve with exercise only.

Giving myself permission to enjoy the food I eat and not make myself feel bad about indulging once in a while has helped me to be successful in the long run…being truly healthy is a marathon, not a 500 meter race.

What about you? Have you been on a journey from flab to FAB? Have you made any major lifestyle and diet changes? What do you do to keep yourself on track and accountable?

If you would like to read more about my journey from flab to FAB, you can do so by clicking HERE.

Delicious Recipes

How to Make Spaghetti Carbonara

December 8, 2016December 7, 2016 LauraJoli LookingJoliGoodLeave a comment

If you know me in real life you know that there are not many things in life that I love more than my Boston Terrier Tessie. This little video could literally be her.

I have been cracking up watching this and just had to share it! Hope you are having a good day, and if not take 2 minutes to watch this little Boston Terrier whip up some carbonara and your day will be so much happier.

My favorite part is when Panda is googling how to make carbonara, lol!

Delicious Recipes

Sweet Potato Casserole

November 23, 2016November 23, 2016 LauraJoli LookingJoliGoodLeave a comment

I look forward to Thanksgiving every year for one reason. It is not the turkey or the mashed potatoes. It isn’t even the pies and desserts, although those are great too. The reason I look forward to Thanksgiving is this awesome Sweet Potato Casserole! It is so delicious!!! We are going to my in law’s house this year for Thanksgiving and I knew that no matter what else I would be making to bring I was also going to be making this! I just finished prepping it and it will be in the oven soon. I cannot wait to eat this tomorrow!

Ingredients

4 cups sweet potato, cubed
1/2 cup white sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons butter, softened
1/2 cup milk

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons butter, softened
1/2 cup chopped pecans

Directions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Put sweet potatoes in a medium saucepan with water to cover. Cook over medium high heat until tender; drain and mash. (or use canned yams and skip this step all together.)
In a large bowl, mix together the sweet potatoes, white sugar, eggs, cinnamon, salt, butter, milk and vanilla extract. Mix until smooth. Transfer to a 9×13 inch baking dish.
In medium bowl, mix the brown sugar and flour. Cut in the butter until the mixture is coarse. Stir in the pecans. Sprinkle the mixture over the sweet potato mixture.
Bake in the preheated oven 30 minutes, or until the topping is lightly brown.

Flab to FAB

So Sweet! ~ Flab to FAB

November 12, 2016November 11, 2016 LauraJoli LookingJoliGoodLeave a comment

The struggle is real!

I am going to be out right honest, I am really having a hard time keeping my diet balanced. All I want to do is eat sweet treats ALL DAY!

Keeping a healthy diet around this time of year is alway hard for me! I love all things sweet. It starts out with Halloween candy, then my daughter’s birthday, all the delicious pies and desserts of Thanksgiving, and then on to the baked goods and treats of the Christmas season and ending with my birthday cake in January. With all these wonderfully sweet things available I really have a hard time keeping my diet in check.

It is crazy how quickly a mainly healthy balanced diet can easily get derailed by sugar cravings.

Even though it may not be an actual “addiction,” sometimes it really feels like one. Cravings, shakes, headaches, feelings of loss of control, anger and impatience, and also lack of self control and over eating more than I should. I get so upset with myself because I know better!

I have been giving in to my cravings way too often lately! I feel like junk, my skin looks like junk! I have been breaking out on places on my face that have never been an issue for me. I know it all has to do with my poor dietary choices.

All food is not created equal. Unfortunately the two hundred calories from a Little Debbie Snack Cake are not equal to the 200 calories in steamed veggies. I really wish that this was not true! I really wish that my body would use the calories from desserts the same way it uses the veggies.

The problem is my brain and body really do need some sugar to be able to function. The brain also sees sugar as a reward. Although, by eating a lot of sugar and constantly rewarding the brain can make it tougher to break the bad sugar habits I have let creep in.

The thing is, I know I don’t need as much sugar as my brain (and tongue) thinks I do. I know I don’t have to go cold turkey and give up all things that are sweet. In fact, I have been trying to retrain my taste buds to enjoy things that aren’t as sweet.

Instead of satisfying my sugar cravings with Kitkats (my favorite), M&M’s, and Reese’s Pieces, which in turn cause me to crave more sugar, I am going to be eating natural sugars high in fiber: apples, bananas, berries and oranges.

Increasing proteins like lean chicken, greek yogurt, eggs, nuts, and beans will help to kill sugar cravings. Also increasing my water intake has helped me with sugar cravings in the past.

By making small, simple changes to my diet it will be easier to overcome the cravings. Over time, I know that I will again lose my cravings for that sweet sugary taste. I just wish that it was instant instead of gradual.

I have always believed in preparation and success being partners. I have been trying to have healthy options readily available for myself. Prep work is so time consuming, but it is also very important.

I know all the right things to do, now I just need to do them!

Thank you for continuing to journey with me from flab to FAB ! If you would like to read more posts about this journey click HERE!

Lifestyle · Love and Life

#PSL

September 11, 2016September 10, 2016 LauraJoli LookingJoliGood7 Comments

I have a secret that may just cause me to lose a friend or two, but I just have to get it off my chest…I don’t like Pumpkin Spice Lattes or pumpkin spice added in everything. I know, I know, my age, color, and gender suggests that I should, but I just really don’t. I’m sorry if you are hurt by this revelation, but I cannot go on living a lie. 😉

Quote

Heathy Is the New Skinny

September 2, 2016September 24, 2016 LauraJoli LookingJoliGoodLeave a comment

Healthy feels and looks so good no matter what the size! Skinny never looks as good as healthy feels!

I’d love for you to follow me on Instagram Lookingjoligood and on FacebookLooking Joli Good!

Ditch The Diet for Healthy Habits · Health/ Fitness

6 Ways to Ditch Dieting For Good

August 26, 2016January 31, 2017 LauraJoli LookingJoliGoodLeave a comment

It’s Not About Dieting It’s About a Healthy Lifestyle

1)Find healthy foods you love: Since I have changed my eating habits I have found so many foods that I thought I hated, but I actually now love. Eggplant, Spinach, Swiss Chard, Roasted cauliflower, Baked Kale chips, Sweet potatoes, Mushrooms. (I still hate cooked peppers, don’t think that will ever change.) These are all things that I never would have eaten 18 months ago, yet they are now part of my every day diet.

2)Get a routine: Make it easier on yourself to make better choices. Have your fridge stocked with fresh fruits and veggies. Set regular meal times and don’t let yourself graze and snack. Keep yourself accountable with a food and fitness journal. Make a plan and stick to it! It is not about perfection it is about consistency.

3)Do exercises you enjoy: I don’t like to run. So you know what, I don’t do it. There are sooooo many other way to get in a great cardio workout without having to pound the pavement. The more time I have spent doing different types of physical actives I have discovered things that I love and things that I don’t enjoy: I hate lunges, but I love squats. I hate pushups but I love plank ups. I love to lift weights and strengthen my muscles. Find what you enjoy and do it!

4)Always have a goal: The scale is not the only place to have goals. There are so many other ways to stay motived and push yourself. Recently I have been pushing myself to increase my reps as well as my weights. It is so satisfying to reach a goal and set a new one!

5)Indulge: You know I love sweets! If you know you are going to a birthday party or a friends BBQ let yourself indulge within reason. Denying yourself can lead to unwanted binges. Instead be strict with your diet leading up to the time before the indulgence. And do not, I repeat DO NOT make yourself feel guilty about it later on. Occasionally enjoying a sweet treat or special meal is an absolutely necessary part of a feasible healthy lifestyle plan. This leads me into my next point…

6)Don’t focus on denial: How true is it that all you want is what you can’t have! If you want a french fry, have a fry or two, you don’t need to eat an entire large fry, but a fry or two might be just the thing to keep you from derailing your entire healthy plan.

After a few weeks you won’t even have to think about these changes. Making a lifestyle change is worth the time and hard work it takes. Remember, It’s Not About Dieting It’s About Lifestyle! Long lasting results are so much more satisfying than short ended quick results from a fad diet. You and your health and wellness are worth it!

If you want to read more about the benefits of lifestyle vs dieting check out my flab to fab post about Balance.

I would love for you to follow me on Instagram and Facebook. You can find me as Looking Joli Good on both.

Health/ Fitness

Plateau!!! Why Can’t I Lose Weight?!

August 19, 2016August 10, 2016 LauraJoli LookingJoliGood2 Comments

Hitting a plateau is so annoying! Every body is different, there is no magic formula or just one specific answer to how to get over a plateau.

Sometimes it feels like you are doing everything right and still not losing weight. You might need to ask yourself a few simple questions…

Are you really taking the best care of your body and health or are you just going trough the motions?
Are you being patient giving your body time to respond to healthy changes?

Or maybe you think you are doing everything right but in actuality you are missing something in one area or another…

What you are eating? (Are you eating too much? Not enough?)
How you are sleeping?
Are taking care of yourself? How is your stress level?
What types of work outs are you doing? (Are you working out too much? Not enough?)

Losing weight is not just a simple formula, it is a very personal thing. You may be working out and eating right but you are not sleeping enough or maybe you’re always stressed out. Our bodies love to hang on to those extra few pounds just in case they need it later on.

I know that it is so annoying to be doing everything right and not see the scale moving. Remind yourself that even if the scale isn’t heading in the direction you want it to, your body might be changing in a positive way internally.

Listen to the signals that your body is giving you. Also, just because you have that perfect goal weight in your mind doesn’t mean that number is where your body can comfortably maintain itself.

Personally, I had a goal weight in my mind that I wanted to reach. Once I reached that goal I was so proud of myself, but when it came time to maintain my weight at that weight it was really hard. My body wanted to rest about 3 lbs heavier than that goal number. Instead of fighting it, I have embraced those 3 lbs, and because of that decision I have not had any difficulty with my weight maintenance. (I even indulge with a small bowl of ice cream every now and then, I couldn’t do that when I was trying to keep those 3 lbs off.)

While I am not a wellness coach, nutritionist, or personal fitness trainer, I am a nurse who loves to learn as much about health and wellness as I can!

I’d love for you to follow me on Instagram Lookingjoligood and on Facebook Lookin Joli Good!

Looking Joli Good

Kindness is beautiful!

Tag: food

Top Ways to Ditch Dieting For Good

It’s Not About Dieting It’s About A Healthy Lifestyle

Remember, It’s Not About Dieting It’s About Lifestyle!

You and your health and wellness are worth it!

Pre Workout Snacks

Here are a few examples of my favorites pre-workout snacks.

Fruit smoothie

Keep in mind that everyone’s body is different and will have its own specific needs and preferences. Find what works for you and what you like.

Give Yourself Permission To Enjoy Food

How to Make Spaghetti Carbonara

Sweet Potato Casserole

Ingredients

Directions

So Sweet! ~ Flab to FAB

The struggle is real!

It is crazy how quickly a mainly healthy balanced diet can easily get derailed by sugar cravings.

I know all the right things to do, now I just need to do them!

#PSL

Heathy Is the New Skinny

6 Ways to Ditch Dieting For Good

Plateau!!! Why Can’t I Lose Weight?!

It’s Not About Dieting It’s About A Healthy Lifestyle

Remember, It’s Not About Dieting It’s About Lifestyle!

You and your health and wellness are worth it!

Share this:

Here are a few examples of my favorites pre-workout snacks.

Fruit smoothie

Keep in mind that everyone’s body is different and will have its own specific needs and preferences. Find what works for you and what you like.

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Ingredients

Directions

Share this:

The struggle is real!

It is crazy how quickly a mainly healthy balanced diet can easily get derailed by sugar cravings.

I know all the right things to do, now I just need to do them!

Share this:

Share this:

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