Eliptical Trainer better than Running?

The elliptical trainer is a machine that allows you to do cardiovascular exercise and alows you to burn many calories.


Lets start with the benefits of an eliptical machine:

1. Obviously it has less stress on your joints. Running does pound your joints and an eliptical just keeps them smooth.
2. With a healthy diet 20 minuets on a eliptical can do wonders for weight loss.
3. Can burn 200+ calories in 20 minuets at a moderate intensity level.
4. Quick feed back on your workout whilst your working out.
5. Keeps your body burning calories even after you have worked out.
6. Helps to tone muscles
7. Brilliant stress reliever
8. Can go on any time (if you have one at home)
9. You can set all different levels of dificulty by adding inclines.
10. You can ride it backwards to give your calfs a good workout.
11. Gives  your arms a workout as well if you hold on to the ski-poles!

Their are 11 reasons why you should use a elliptical machine!

Good Luck!

DIY: Low Fat Vanilla Milkshake

That taste of a creamy drink is luxury. Soon after we feel guilt. So I have created a low fat vanilla drink that tastes just like the ones we live but that is low fat. Their is a few adaptations you can choose for this so you can customise it too you! You may notice their is no measurements, this is because you need to experiment with measurements. Roughly if you want to make 300ml of milkshake use 200ml of milk. Add 1-2 scoops of yogurt.


You will need; 

• Low fat/ fat free vanilla frozen yogurt.
• Cows milk, 1.7% fat/ 1% fat.
• Vanilla extract (1 teaspoon)

Method;

• Add 1-2 scoops of vanilla frozen yogurt. 
• Add a teaspoon of vanilla extract to your shake.
• Turn on the blender for 5 seconds.
• Add roughly 200ml of milk.
• Blend for 20 seconds or until the consistency is how you like it! 

There is a DIY, this is a healthy alternative for a a shop bought shake! 

Quick and easy, give it a try!

Good Luck!

Getting through a tough workout!

Hello everyone, we ALL have those days when we literally feel like we physically can't work out! Sometimes, we can't! If we aren't well or injury strikes then that's okay! But if you know you should go to the gym but you can't be bothered then I have some help for you! 

Tips to get through a tough workout!

• Distract yourself, if your pushing on the treadmill and you want to stop. Try counting back from 100 or doing the alphabet backwards (this is really hard) and before you know it a lot of time would of past! 
• Examine your form; you maybe lifting weights. Check if your holding the weight right. Look at others forms and see how their doing! Or running, see I your running in the best way possible.
• Use an incentive; give yourself a reason to carry on. 'If I get through this, I will reward myself with ......'  (Fill in with something you love)
• Remind yourself of your goals, this can be the best! Tell yourself why you are doing this. Do you want to get better at a sport, to look more toned or to loose weight!
• Set mini goals, 'I will do two more reps' or 'I will run until I get to the letterbox' then just keep on pushing on!
• Mix it up, don't go through the same routine everyday! Change it up a little bit, this can keep you motivated.
• Bring a friend, you can help them get into exercise and you can motivate each other! Or you can bring along your dog! Exercise for you both!

So they are all the tips I have for you guys! Thank you for visiting blog!

Once again, Good Luck

8 day ab Challenge

No matter when your reading this count 8 days from now. That will be the last day of your challenge. But before we get ahead of ourselves, today is the first. Your going to have a stronger core and more toned abs in 14 days. Yes they may not be Jess Ennis six pack but your core can get stronger. What are you waiting for?

Save the pictures and get going!


Day 1-4 start of easy .

Day 4-8 Much harder!


(the pictures are carried on even though their not labeled)

Good Luck with your goals!



If your having problems, stop immediately and consult a doctor!

DIY: 5 Minute Shamrock Shake

So we know McDonald's isn't known for promoting healthy eating but I think that their new shamrock shake is on another level. I know it tastes so good but what if you could recreate the recipe but a healthy one? Now even the one I have created here is not overly healthy but it has 1/3 of all the "bad stuff" in and tasted the same! 

You can use this for a treat or recovery shake!

Nutrition Info for McDonald Shamrock Shake:        

Nutrition Facts
Serving Size 1 serving (16oz)
Amount Per Serving
Calories from Fat 180 Calories 680
% Daily Values*
Total Fat 20g		31%
	Saturated Fat 12g	60%
	Polyunsaturated Fat 0g
	Monounsaturated Fat 0g
	Trans Fat 1g
Cholesterol 60mg		20%
Sodium 220mg		9%
Total Carbohydrate 111g		37%
	Dietary Fiber 0g	0%
	Sugars 82g
Protein 14g
Vitamin A 25% Vitamin C 0%
Calcium 45% Iron 2%

; 

Now if you make your own it should be:

Calories: 270 Fat: 2g Carbohydrates: 36g Sugar: 25g Sodium: 147g Protein: 20g

You will need:

• 1 cup of Fat free Vanilla Yogurt.
• 2 Scoops of Vanilla Protein Powder (optional)
• 1 banana
• 2 handfuls of spinach leaves
• 1 cup of vanilla unsweetened almond milk
• 1 tbsp of agave nectar
• 1-2 drops of peppermint extract
• 5-6 ice cubes.

All you do is put them in your blender and blend away!

Try it out it is great for recovery after training or just a little treat you don't need to feel guilty about!

Recipe and picture from; http://www.baked-in.com/2013/03/14/healthy-homemade-shamrock-shake/

Bananas worse than Cookies?

http://www.visualnews.com/2012/03/23/are-bananas-really-as-bad-for-you-as-cookies/

So I stumbled across an article titled this and I immediately though, no way! How could that be true. To me it was simple, it couldn't! But I carried on reading and strangely found out some pretty interesting stuff.


So how this ever came about was that some foods are measured on how they fill you up. How satisfing they are. This, is not the fairest test but try and keep an open mind. A picture I found was this one. It explains everything very well. It's worth a read. Website that the picture is found from is linked at the bottom of the page... Brilliant, highly recommend checking it out!





Thank you for reading the post.


Good Luck!

Can exercise make you a better worker?

Cutting down to the chase, exercise increases serotonin levels in the brain. This resulting in mental clarity..Leading to a much productive day. People who workout are much more productive at work than those who don't. This means you will be a better worker, everything better at the work place. You will also have more energy to interact with people. You will come across as friendly and have more stamina for any task your requires. But yes, exercise makes you more tired at first but that wont last for long so you just have to get a little extra sleep in the beginning.


Good Luck at Your Goals!

What's really inside Soda?

So we all know that Soda is not the best drink for us. We know it has A LOT of that "bad" stuff in. But what really is the bad stuff and how does it effect us?


It is said that soda accounts for a quarter of the drinks consumed in america. Soda has been linked to diseases such as; tooth decay, heart disease and osteoporosis. It's easy to not know how bad soda is when the indigence on the back are confusing and don't tell us really what they are doing...


So I thought I would analyse what exactly goes into a soda can and what it can do to us...




Phosphoric Acid;  Can interfere with body being able to consume calcuim. This is how osteoprosis (lack of calcuim) can occour. It neutralises stomach acid interfering with digestion aswell.

Sugar; Unless you get the sugar free version, your not free of this. Some cans have 100% of your sugar intake in one can. That's 6-9 tea spoons in one can of sugar.

Apartame; This is included in the sugar free drinks excessively and mildly in sugar full drinks. This is a dangerous chemical. It has 92 side effects. Studdies have shown it can cause diabeties and  emotional disorders. Even worse if you store warm becacuse it changes to methanol.

Caffeine; This gives you the jitters and can raise your blood pressure.


Summary- Soda is likely to leave your appetite for all the good foods quite low.



Alternative drinks to soda;


GOOD OLD WATER: Health benefits are endless.

Fresh Fruit Juice: This is high in sugars often but they are natural sugars. It is refreshing and you only need to drink 200ml of it to get a portion of fruit.

Tea; Green tea is the best but it's got some many anti-oxidants and is so delicious.




Thank you for reading my blog post, if you want more "What's really inside..." then let me know in the comments and for suggestions..


Good Luck!

DIY: Guilt Free Brownies

Brownies, my guilty pleasure. One of those foods you look forward to eating but you always feel guilty after consuming. Imagine if you could have a brownie and not feel even slightly guilty? Well you can! This recipe I have been cooking non-stop and is great if you have friends over or even just for you! These are Vegan Brownies and they make 12 servings! 

Ingredients;

1/2 cup of whole wheat flour
1/2 cup of unsweetend cocoa powder
1 cup of sugar (any type)
1 tsp salt
4 1/2 tsp of Ener-G Egg Replacer      Read about it here; http://www.ener-g.com/egg-replacer.html
1/4 cup of water
1/2 cups unsweetened applesauce
1 tsp vanilla extract

Now you have all your ingredience and utensials...

Utensils;

• Large Bowl
• Small Bowl
• Electric Whisk
• Baking tray or oven proof dish (size up to you)
• Baking Paper (optional) 
• Sieve
• Wooden Spoon
• Timer

Nutrition Information:

• Servings Per Recipe: 12
• Amount Per Serving
• Calories: 100.2

• Total Fat: 0.6 g
• Cholesterol: 0.0 mg
• Sodium: 196.2 mg
• Total Carbs: 24.3 g
• Dietary Fiber: 2.0 g
• Protein: 1.4 g

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Farrenheit (180 degrees Celcius/Gas Mark 5)
2. Take out a Large Bowl, sift together all your dry ingredience (Flour, Cocoa powder, Sugar, salt) It does't matter what order you do this in just make sure you mix them all in.
3. Add the apple sauce to the mixture. Do not stir just yet.
4. Take a small bowl, whisk in Egg re-placer and water. Make sure that they are well combined, this make take longer depending on the strength of your whisk. 
5. Line a baking tray, the size is up to you. If you want the brownies to be thicker, use a smaller tray but you will have less.
6. Mix both bowls together, be careful not to over mix.
7. Pour mixture evenly over the tray.
8. Put in the center of your oven and let cook for approximately 25 minuets. Insert a skewer into the brownies, if clean its ready!

If you try out the recipe make sure you send me a picture. These brownies are just perfect! If you want more recipes make sure you let me know. Recipie originally found from; http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-detail.asp?recipe=1129008 

Top 10; IPhone Free Health Apps (August 2013)

Did you know that 73% of people own an IPhone. That's quite a big amount of people. Also, Apple released figures that more IPhones are sold everyday than babies born! IPhones are so popular and is it because of their interface and all their technical features. Is it due to their vast number of apps available on their leading app store?
Apps can be paid or free. So today I thought I would review some of the best fitness/health apps out there. These are the best IPhone apps free. A paid version will be coming soon!

Free;

10. Davina Fitness; So when I saw this I was optimistic. I wasn't sure of the point of the app but I did get into it. I like the way you can do a workout through your phone and that is what attracted me to the app. being able to workout along to a video for free. You can also keep track of runs however it's very basic and I would recommend using a specific app that offers more features. I do think it is a good idea to check out the app and see if it's for you.


9. My diet coach; Weight Loss for women; This app rightly deserves to be in the top 10 because of its features available. It has a very new food craving idea that lets you count down and gives you an estimate time of the craving. I liked this because this hasn't been done before and credit is needed for them. Your also able to look at photo's in your reminder sections. This is an app that once your using daily, good habits are hard not to do. Highly recommend to try. The premium feature allows you to see a graph of progress but doesn't offer much other features with the purchase.

8. Noom Weight Loss; Quite a handy little app this one. It gives you ideas of how to have the perfect meal. This I find is quite useful because often I am stuck for what to eat for breakfast or to have for lunch. It gives you it in too easy categories. "Super healthy" being green. "OK food" being yellow. "Indulgence" being red. Also with the average calorie value next to the side. Very appealing to the eye. A good interface and easy to use. Other features include, workout log and weigh in.


7. Complete Gym Guide Lite; This app is a good guide for a free app however, with the free version you do miss a lot of the features that would be available on the paid app. It is a very informative app and gives you useful information about how to target certain types of muscles but does lack the easy to use graphic that attracts us to apps. It had diagrams linked to exercises but it wasn't eye catching. Not coloured diagrams always put me off a little.


6. Smart Alarm Clock; With these apps, I have noticed them coming up a lot around the place. I was optimistic about the reliably of them. Though I do think, these are something everyone should try. I don't know much about this but after some research I discovered you have sleep cycles. These are in times from going to sleep and waking up. These apps monitor your sleeping patterns and wake you up at the right time of the end of the cycle according for when you went to sleep. To me it's all confusing but I recommend giving the app a go!


5. Moves; Now this is a type of app I haven't seen many of. It's essentially a standard pedometer however, it can track the time of walking, running and cycling. It tells you how much you actually move in steps! Even on a daily commute! All you do is carry your phone in your bag and at the end of the day, retrieve the data! This is an up and coming app however, it can be training for the battery.

4. Endomodo; This is a app for the runners. Another app to track progress out on runs. The premium version is available if you pay. The features are basic on the lite version. However, it does give you good feed back. Just not overly advanced.


3. Fitness Buddy FREE; This app is different to most, it has already loaded workouts. This is more for weightlifters I would say. It has a journal and you can track the specific muscle you want to work and it will give you the moves you can do. The graphics are high quality and the usability was great!

2. Nike+ Running; This uses GPS on your smart phone to give you accurate data about your run. Whether it's the distance, pace or calories you can see statistics and graphs.. This helps you understand where you peak and areas you may feel like you need to work on. 
1. My fitness Pal; Calorie counter and diet tracker. This rightly deserves top spot. It can accurately track your calories. Different to most calorie counters because it allows you to search through all the foods on a data base and not have to manually enter them in. This is a massive bonus, as for stock. I haven't come across a brand that it doesn't have loaded. Some people find it a pain to constantly track. If not, this is perfect for you!





Thank you for reading my article, if any of you want a blackberry/android top 10 I am able to do that. Let me know by sending a contact form or a comment. Thank you for reading, Good Luck with your Goals!

10 Tasty Tips

10 tasty tips for anyone wanting to be healthy..

1. Almonds, we know almonds are good but a 30g serving gives you 160 calories. They contain heart healthy fats. Lowering your risk of heart disease.
2. Dip in something else, change your fatty sour cream into something more like hummus or black bean dips. Raw vegetables like carrots and celery are great dipers!
3. DIY, skip yogurts with fruit already in. Jam is mostly the filler, containing as much sugar as a fizzy drink so buy your own and put fresh berries in.
4. Suck a mint or chew gum. This can satisfy your cravings and will leave your breath fresh!
5. Change up your garnish. Use healthy garnish to make bland food scrumptious. Worcestershire sauce is a great one!
6. Spice it up, adding a little spice will make you eat slower and this will increase you metabolism.
7. Drink the milk, in cereal your milk may absorb vitamins leaving you with no vitamins if you don't drink the milk!
8. Honey Honey Honey, Pure honey contains a huge amount of vitamins so put that on instead of Nutella or chocolate spread for a perfect start to the day.
9. Enjoy a bit of dark chocolate! This was a surprise to find that dark chocolate can be good for you with all the anti-oxidants! 
10. Brain Juice! A gulp of orange juice in the morning can kick start your day in the right way

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So there you are, 10 tips to help you make the right food choices! If you would like even more then send me a note in the contact form! 

 Good Luck!

20 Reasons to Lace up and Get Out Running

We all need motivating sometimes to get out and get exercising. We know we will feel much better once we have finished so here are 20 reasons why you should go out and run!

1. Teaches you discipline, keeping you focused.
2. That high you get when you have finished a run! The endorphins are kicking in. It's a priceless feeling and gets you pumped.
3. That PB (personal best) feeling when you have put the wok in and it's paid off..
4. Feeling like you belong to a club. Being a valued member to a club is a great feeling! You will also get to make many new friends.
5. Your body is great, you have a toned body after regular runs. You deserve to show it off!
6. You can afford a little treat..you won't need to worry if you ate a brownie because you know you'll just burn it off.
7. Free, now technically you need trainers and all the clothes but it's the cheapest sport because you don't need excess equipment. 
8. Joy of exploring, whether it's out on the trails or through the streets you can see new places you wouldn't of seen before.
9. Can replace a harmful habit. You can now make running your habit not something dangerous for your health.
10. Medals aren't just for Olympians. Finishing a race is enough to get you a medal, the pride of hanging up all your medals so everyone can see.
11. Get more kip, studies have shown running regularly can help reduce your time getting to sleep by a half.
12. Strong bones, many people think that running weakens your bones. On the contrary! 
13. You can do it in any weather, yes you may like it in the sun. But in the rain, it's still an adventure.
14. You don't need to learn rules, you just put one foot in front of each other. It's that simple.
15. You can compete in fun runs for charity or marathons. Or any distance, to raise money for people in need and get a feeling of pride.
16. Make friends, either at clubs or seeing them out regulaly. You will make many of friends just by getting active.
17. Gives an excuse to buy new clothes. "Well I need this to go for my run next week" 
18. Ultimate stress reliever. If your having trouble at work, lace up and get out!
19. You get out what you put in. Simple as!
20. Last one. The most obvious, it will do wonders for your health!

So there you go, 20 reasons to go out and run! Hope this inspires you. If you have anymore send them in the contact form! 

Good Luck and Lace Up!

Is a strong core beneficial?

If you think no matter what action you are doing you are involving your core. It may only be a small amount but you are still involving it.
 If you are running a lot then your core needs to be strong to keep you up right and so that you don't waste energy when you get tired. You core keeps all of these muscles working hard and it has a tough job. A simple way to strengthen your core without doing a physical workout is too sitting up straight. This helps keep your core strong. Your posture will also improve. If you think about it your tummy muscles are working so much harder to keep you up right than if you were to just slouch. If you want to go for a workout to work your core I have wrote a blog post on it called "super quick ab challenge" this has ways to make the moves easier or to make it more challenging for you. Go on, give it a try! What are you waiting for? http://behealthy2behappy.blogspot.co.uk/2013/06/super-quick-ab-challenge.html

Setting Goals the Right Way

So, we all have goals. Some may be more formal others just a small one at the back of their minds. We don't need to be aiming to go to the Olympics or anything like that, just maybe to get healthier by the wedding coming up or anything you want. You may of heard of setting goals called SMART GOALS, they are very strategic and too complicated for me so I thought I would find the do's and don'ts for goal setting.

Do's:

-Decide the end goal of what you want to achieve, what is the final achievement?

-Think of how you would be able to achieve your goals, do you need equipment?

-Set mini goals, if your end goal is long, break it up so it's more manageable! 

-Be specific, don't say "I want to eat more fruit!" It has to much wiggle room!

-Track your progress, whether it's weight or maybe the more energy you have.

-Reward yourself, after you have achieved one of your mini-goals give yourself a treat this can help to keep you motivated.

-Make sure your committed, don't do anything your not passionate about.


Don't:

-Be down if you feel yourself reaching a plateau (stage of not improving) the progress slows down after you start.

-Obsessively check your progress, instead of weighing yourself everyday check more like 1-2 times a week. 

-Think you will never fail, now no matter how hard you try you will fail at some point but it's how you bring yourself up from these failures that matters.

-Set too many goals. You can have many mini ones to achieve a big goal but don't have many separate ones. This could force you to loose focus and not achieve any.


 Stay focused and Good luck!



Thank you for reading my blog post, I hope this helped some of you. If you have any questions, leave them in the contact form and they will either go in my FAQ or I will contact you directly.

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Biggest Food Myths

We have all heard them, even believed them. They impact your food choices because you once heard something of someone, who told someone else and then they told another person. I thought, today we will bust these myths and laugh when we hear other people say them. Want to know them...keep reading.

1. Eggs are bad for your heart?

I have defiantly heard this one before, a shame to say believed it. Well, it makes perfect sense doesn't it, eggs contain a high amount of cholesterol in their yolks and we know that cholesterol is not good, it's the fatty stuff that cloggs our arteries.
That can lead to heart attacks. For me the facts were right there, no denying it. Though experts say labelling eggs as "bad for your heart" is not correct. A very healthy person can have an egg a day with no problems. Also, the cholesterol that we get from eggs we could easily get from other foods without knowing it. It also is proven that it doesn't have a huge impact on raising blood pressure.
 The body simply compensates and makes less cholesterol it's self. Now eggs aren't the healthiest food on the planet, I know so don't go crazy. For most people having 2 or 3 a week is perfectly fine.

2.  Carbohydrates make you fat?

This one I think is the most common. We have all heard of the diets that you take out all of the carbohydrates and just stay on other foods. Is this the right move? Mainly it all comes down to can you stick to these diets that don't let you have carbs. Now eating foods that are refined like white bread, pasta and doughnuts are not good for you but it doesn't mean you can't enjoy other types of carbohydrates. It's essential for a healthy body to eat fruits, whole-grains and beans. So cutting carbs out of your diet could be a mistake. It's also proven that it's more easy to stick to the diets that have "good carbs" in the long run. If you can stick to the diet of the Atkins, then stick with that! But carbs are vital for energy so don't cut yourself short.

These are good carbs, anything whole-grain is fantastic!

These are the bad carbs, they are full of sugar and don't give your body benefits.

3. Calories eaten at night are more fattening?

Calories are calories. No matter when they are eaten. All calories are is a measure of the amount of energy your being given so the energy won't change the time of day you eat them. However, to loose weight you have to burn more calories than you take in so if your eating loads of calories before bed then your not going to burn them off sleeping. However, your body needs an amount of energy to function so starving yourself from 7 on wards is not a good idea. The best plan would be to regularly take in food and keep drinking and not starving yourself because the energy your being given won't change the time of day.



If you want to find more about myths visit, http://www.eatingwell.com/nutrition_health/nutrition_news_information/the_13_biggest_nutrition_and_food_myths_busted?page=7 I chose the biggest myths that I thought most people would of heard of. Hope this busted some of your myths!

5 irresistible summer foods

This is a list of 5 super yummy foods that are perfect for the summer time, in this hot weather. Also, how to include them into your diet to get the benefits.

1. Blueberry's; these are good for you because with one serving of these you have got almost a quarter of your vitamin C recommendation for the day! Not to mention, they are packed with anti-oxidants that your skin and your body will love you for! An easy way to include them in your diet is to have them for a mid morning snack. Have these with some water to keep hydrated. These will then keep you going until lunchtime.

2. Bell Peppers; these are irresistible with a salad or added to any evening meal your cooking. Also, they contain a low amount of fat and a very important blood-sugar balancing property. Their vivid and bright colours are so summery and instantly lighten up any meal. Containing anti-inflammatory goodness your body will defiantly thank you! Caution; cooking bell peppers at a high temperature can destroy a important phytonutrient. Grilling has shown to destroy 40% of this anti-oxidant. so it's recommended that you cook low heat, short period of time. This is unless you need to keep the food in the oven for reasons such as; raw chicken cooking. You can always eat bell peppers raw!

3. Almonds; we all know that nuts are high in fat content, this can put a lot of people of these however, it's not saturated fat, it's mono saturated! The saturated fat comes from animals and mono saturated is good fat (in moderation). These are great as a snack by themselves or added to something. A favourite of mine is sliced almonds (often found with baking ingredient)  these are good to add to porridge or to add to any desert. Even though they are high fat, they still are good for your heart? Surely that can't be true? Well in studies it has been proved to be the case. 

4. Kiwifruits; these are a classic food to add to a fruit salad to make it exotic and summery. Containing more vitamin C than an orange, these are more of an unknown fruit. A particular favourite of mine would be the golden kiwi. Most haven't heard of this, it is a hard to get fruit but is so delicious. Much more sweet than a regular kiwi and only 60 calories!To include this into your diet try having strawberries in a bowl of cereal such as muesli, granola or porridge.

5. Strawberries; these are a favourite of many. So sweet and a easy food to snack on. Including these in your diet is so easy all you need to do is take them to work/school or out and about in a bag. Keep snacking on them and you only need to have seven to count as a portion of your FIVE A DAY. A indulgent that you don't need to feel guilty about. What more could you want?


If you want to find out more healthy foods that you can include into your diet visit,http://www.whfoods.com/foodstoc.php just scroll down and view all of the foods in an easy to view list sub-titled format.