31 WAYS TO MOTIVATE YOURSELF TO EXERCISE ›

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fit-and-toned-is-healthy:

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healthyisclassy:

At Breakfast

• Ditch the Pop-Tart for a slice of high-fiber toast with strawberry jam.
• Gotta have carbs? Split a bagel with a coworker.
• Drink your two cups of joe black. Or order a single espresso instead of your usual latte.
• Swap OJ for the real deal—one fresh orange.
• Trade a side of regular sausage for turkey.
• Top your waffles with Reddi-Whip instead of syrup (or use sugar-free).
• Skip the whip on any Caribou Coffee 16-ounce drink.
• Eat your granola from a 4-ounce mug, not an 8-ounce bowl.
• Lose the Yoplait Thick & Creamy and have a Yoplait Fiber 1.
• Order pancakes, but hold the butter.
• Scramble together 4 egg whites instead of 2 whole eggs.

At Lunch

• Leave the Swiss cheese out of your sandwich.
• Slather your bread with mustard rather than mayo and save 80 calories per tablespoon.
• Pass up croutons at the salad bar.
• Use up to 10 pumps of ranch dressing spray instead of pouring 2 tablespoons from a bottle.
• Devour a slice of Pizza Hut cheese pan pizza instead of the meat lover’s variety.
• Take your iced tea unsweetened.
• Reach for a Snapple raspberry white tea instead of a Snapple raspberry iced tea.
• Stuff chicken salad into a whole-wheat pita instead of between slices of multigrain bread.
• Make your burger turkey, not beef.
• Slurp minestrone soup instead of cream of anything.
• Go bunless—shed your hamburger roll.
• Use south-of-the-border savvy: Have a quesadilla made with two 6-inch corn, not flour, tortillas.

 On Your Snack Break

• Drink sparkling water instead of soda.
• Move your stash of Hershey’s Kisses at least 6 feet away from your desk—you’ll dip in half as often.
• Drain the heavy syrup from your can of fruit cocktail and then rinse the fruit with water before digging in.
• Have 1/2 cup of fresh grapes instead of that little snack box of raisins.
• Lay off the Lay’s Classic potato chips and have a handful of Rold Gold pretzels.
• Munch on a bag of Orville Redenbacher’s Smart Pop Kettle Korn, not Movie Theater Butter.
• Chase down the ice-cream truck for a Good Humor vanilla sandwich, not a King Cone. 

During Dessert

• Stop eating when you hit the crust. The edges and bottoms of baked goods are especially caloric because they absorb the butter used to grease the pan.
• Fill your bowl with sorbet instead of ice cream—you can have an extra 1/2 cup of the former and still slash calories.
• Next time a cocoa craving hits, ditch the dish of chocolate ice cream (about 3/4 cup) for a Fudgsicle.
• Have sugar-free Jell-O instead of pudding. Better your nighttime treat jiggle than your thighs.
• Go ahead and have that piece of birthday cake—just scrape off the chocolate frosting first.
• Eat 5 meringue cookies instead of 2 chocolate chip ones.
• Pass on the à la mode and savor that brownie au naturel.
• Can the cone. Have your ice cream in a bowl.
• Top your dessert with 1/2 cup of fresh berries instead of 2 tablespoons of chocolate syrup. 

In the Kitchen

• Substitute nonfat Greek yogurt for a serving of sour cream.
• Use chicken broth (low-sodium is best) instead of oil to sauté meat and veggies.
• Making homemade mac ‘n cheese? Cut 2 tablespoons of butter from the recipe.
• Replace the oil or butter in cakes with Sunsweet Lighter Bake prune-and-apple mixture or any brand of unsweetened applesauce.
• Next time you make meatballs, meatloaf, or burgers, go half-and-half with ground beef and turkey.
• When preparing packaged foods that call for butter or oil, like rice and stuffing, use a broth instead.
• Swap low-fat cottage cheese for whole-milk ricotta when you make lasagna or stuffed shells. 

At the Drive-Thru

• Pass up a Wendy’s baked potato with sour cream and chives and chow down on value fries instead.  Amazing but true.
• Have a McDonald’s cheeseburger instead of a Quarter Pounder with cheese.
• Downsize your drink: Trade a large fountain soda (with ice) for a medium.
• Go for grill marks. Order a flame-broiled chicken sandwich rather than one that’s breaded (and usually fried in oil).
• Treat yourself to an ice-cream cone at McDonald’s instead of Dairy Queen.
• Crunch on one Taco Bell regular taco instead of a Ranchero Chicken Soft Taco. And all the hot sauce you want.
• Slurp a cup of Panera Bread’s low-fat chicken noodle soup instead of the cream of chicken with wild rice.
• Make your daily pick-me-up at Starbucks a skinny vanilla latte, not a regular. 

When You’re Not Cooking

• Request the lemon chicken with white rice, not fried.
• Skip the crunchy noodles with your bowl of wonton soup.
• Ask for an order of Szechuan Shrimp instead of your usual General Tso’s.
• Choose the pasta with 1/2 cup of marinara instead of 1/2 cup of Alfredo sauce.
• Indulge your inner carnivore with beef stroganoff, not meat lasagna.
• Go with the baked potato (butter only), not the mashed, as your side of choice.
• Dip your dinner roll in marinara sauce instead of olive oil.
• Avoid anything breaded. Flour and bread crumbs not only add calories but also absorb more cooking oil.

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thelittlehealthnut:

simplicityobsessed:

How to Make Carrot “Pasta”

1. Get a medium/ large carrot, cut the ends off, and peel off the outer layer. Then, peel long strips off until you reach the center (I personally dislike the inside of a carrot. I don’t know why… I don’t use that part lol)

2. Make the thicker strips thinner by slicing them lengthwise. This step is completely optional, but I like it do it! Now you have your finished “noodles”!

3. Put them into a frying pan with some olive oil (or avocado oil), salt, and pepper. Cook them for a couple minutes, pushing them around on the pan until they are soft

4. Add however much sauce you want to the pan. Stir the carrots and sauce together to warm it up. I used tomato sauce with onions :)

5. Enjoy! This is so good, even if the pictures don’t do it justice.

This looks delicious. Pasta is my all time favorite food but pretty much gave it up because how many calories it can rack up so this looks like a great alternative.

Loooove making this — although nothing beats pasta to me. (It’s the Italian in me!) I just make sure I don’t eat too much pasta, and I eat whole grain when I do. I do LOVE putting carrot strips into stir-fries and things like that though.  

making this tonight!!

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What is a scale? A scale is just a stupid little box made of plastic and glass. It has no rights to define you, make you feel a certain way, or tell you of your worth. The numbers you see are 100% irrelevant. I dunno about you… but I hate math. I hate numbers. Why let something I hate define me? If you want me honest opinion… I say to smash it. Smash all the scales. Don’t let it control you. You are made of blood and flesh and thoughts and memories. Hopes and ambitions. And you’re going to let a silly number define you? You are so much more than that. You are more than glass and plastic. More than a number. More than that silly little box I like to call HELL. Love who you are. Love yourself for all of the things that you are… everything that makes you, YOU. That number is not you. Don’t let it take over.