10 Healthy Habits for the New Year

The year 2014 is practically here! :)
As the new year approaches, I am trying to think of habits I want to establish and goals I want to accomplish. Here is my list of 10 Healthy Habits for the New Year. Please comment and let me know what healthy habits you want to establish in the new year. I would love to hear what you are working towards! Have an awesome day and may God bless you always!

Lots of Love,

Mariah

Blogilates!

Hello!

I'm super excited to share a wonderful blogger's fitness exercises today! I'm sure many of you know about Cassey Ho and her awesome blog, Blogilates!

Cassey Ho!

She has a wonderful website filled with great exercises and recipes. :) I think it is so beautiful that she is able to help so many people in their journey to fitness, so today I'll be sharing a few of her newest exercise videos which you will definitely enjoy! She has soooo many exercise videos posted on Youtube- here is her channel: Blogilates Youtube!

Have you seen her newest Hunger Games exercise??! This is the video!

Are you interested in ab workouts? Personally, I never get tired of doing abs! What's your favorite part of your body to train?? Comment and let me know!! For all of you who love to do abs, here is Cassey's workout video! It isn't even that long. :) I actually did this workout today, and it was a really good workout that made me get pretty tired. :)

Try these exercises and then tell me what you think! And by the way, if you haven't seen Cassey's store, I would definitely go check it out: Blogilates Store!

Have a wonderful day :) May the Lord bless you continuously this holiday! 

XOXOXO

Olivia

Peanut Butter Protein Shake

Happy Monday! :)

I thought I'd share one of my favorite shakes with you, before I go for my morning run.
This is just a quick little post, so I hope you enjoy it.

I love having a protein shake for breakfast. Shakes are quick to make, and this particular shake is delicious and satisfying. You can use any protein powder you want for this recipe. I recommend a vanilla whey protein, but use whatever you like. I just so happen to use whey, but I'm sure this would taste great with a soy protein or some form of vegan protein as well. Whatever you've got - use it! :)

Now sometimes this shake comes out like thick, creamy, ice cream. Other times ... it comes out a bit icy and more in a liquid form. I think the trick to making this thick and creamy, is using a frozen banana. I have tried it with a fresh banana, and it never tastes nearly as good. I highly recommend using a frozen ripe banana. If it's not frozen... well, I guess you'll see how it comes out.

Also, make sure that you put 1 cup of ice. If you put too little ice, it won't be as thick and cold. If you use too much, it will be more icy and not creamy. 

Well, that's all for now. I hope you try this super simple and incredibly delicious shake. I'm telling you, this is not only perfect for refueling after your workout, but this is a great meal replacement, breakfast, snack, or... dessert. This cures my sweet tooth like nothing else. Yeah. It's awesome.

Have a fabulous week and may God bless you exceedingly and abundantly this day! Please remember to comment and let me know how you liked this shake, and don't forget to subscribe to the blog! Thanks!

Lots of Love,

Mariah

Eating Clean & Detoxing

Sometimes, it only takes one little thing to set you off on the right path. It is also true, that sometimes it only takes one thing to set you off on the wrong path. Sadly, for me, I got off track for a while. After Thanksgiving, I got into the habit of eating a few too many carbs, a tad too much sugar, and a bit bigger portions. (I am sure you can guess the result of this unhealthy combination.)

Needless to say, I haven't been feeling my best lately. Besides not feeling as slim and fit as I would like, I have also suffered a sore throat and mild cold for the past few days. The sore throat was my wake-up call. It is time to start detoxifying my body and getting back in shape. Sure, I have been faithful in my workouts, but as we all know... diet is crucial.

To jumpstart my healthy eating and re-commitment to fitness, I am doing a 2 day cleanse. I have been looking at quite a few cleanses on Pinterest to get an idea of what I wanted to do. Today was Day 1 of my cleanse, and I have based it off of the "Look Better Naked," Two-Day Cleanse. I am not being as extreme with this first day, I have only had fruits & vegetables, but I have not stuck to the original cleanse completely.

Anyway, I thought I would share with you some cleanses that I had found. I think that these are safe, healthy cleanses to try if you want to jumpstart your weight-loss, healthy eating habits, or to simply detox after the holidays. I am currently working on creating my own cleanse that I am hoping to share with you within the next two weeks. I am not a registered dietitian or nutritionist, and have no qualifications for telling anyone what they should be consuming.

However, I have studied many cleanses and diets, and the cleanse I am designing is based off of a variety of cleanses/detoxes I have tried or seen. I will let you know more about the cleanse when I actually post it. It will basically be a plan to eat as clean as possible for the upcoming new year. I am trying to completely eliminate processed foods, and refined carbs. (I'll explain more later.)

Anyway, here are a few cleanses that I found through Pinterest. I hope that these are helpful to you! 

This first cleanse I have not tried, but I thought it looked like a nice basic meal plan that would help you slim down after a week of slight indulgence.

This cleanse is going to be largely what I am basing my Eat Clean 2014 Cleanse on. I love the idea of really cutting out all of those unnecessary processed foods that we tend to consume without much thought. I would really like to cut-back on my dairy intake for the month of January. In fact, my New Year Goals will be coming soon in another post, so stay tuned. :)

This is the cleanse that I am tentatively doing right now. Today is a bit more lax, but tomorrow I plan on following it almost completely. I can't do the shake exactly, but I'll make a modified version with the ingredients I have. The second snack is another no-no. I don't have any asparagus. :( I'm just making do with what I've got on hand, but I am already feeling so much better.

Okay, this one is very intense. I understand that this might seem a bit extreme to some people, but I believe that it is a great option for someone who truly wants to cleanse their body. Actually, it's not that much different from the "Look Better Naked" cleanse.

I know from experience, that after binging on the holidays, I need something like this to get me back on track and relieve me of that gross, bloated feeling. If you are able to have self-control during the holidays, chances are you probably won't need this. However, this is for those of us who tend to overdo it a bit. ;)

Please understand that I am by no means advocating binging. In fact, I highly recommend that you do not binge - ever. Eat clean 80% of the time, and have your indulgences every once in a while as a special treat.

Please let me know if you have any recommendations for the cleanse I am creating, and let me know if you are interested in seeing some meal plans. Also, I would love to hear of any diets/cleanses you have tried. Were they successful, or unsuccessful?
I'd love to hear your thoughts on the cleanses/detoxes I've shared here. Thanks!

Have a fabulous weekend and may God bless you always!

Love & Grace,

Mariah

My Banana Bread Mistake

Happy Holidays!

I know I haven't blogged in quite a long while, so I thought I would get back in the groove with a healthy and delicious recipe - banana bread. I LOVE bananas, and I LOVE bread. So... what could be better than a warm slice of banana bread for breakfast?

A few weeks ago, my mom asked me to whip up some banana bread for breakfast. I was more than happy to help, and I began pulling out the ingredients. Now whenever I cook/bake, I always try to modify the recipes and make them as healthy as possible. When my mom suggested I make a banana bread, I immediately thought of a banana bread that Taralynn had made. (You can find her recipe here: Healthy Gluten Free Banana Bread.)

Taralynn's Banana Bread

I explained to my mom what the basic ingredients were, and she said that I could base mine around that. Well, Taralynn uses a flax & whole grain, gluten-free flour in her recipe. I thought we could use some milled golden flaxseed in ours. Apparently my mom said to use 2c. of whole wheat flour, and 1/2c. to 1 c. of milled flaxseed. I completely misunderstood her, and put 2 c. of milled flaxseed and 1 c. of whole wheat flour, thus resulting in a whole new creation - Flaxseed Banana Bread.

My mom was shocked when I told her what I had done. She said that she could taste a different flavor in the bread, but that it wasn't too bad. She said it was good, but she prefers the original recipe. I guess I added too much flaxseed for her liking. :)
However, my dad really liked it, and I LOVED it! I was very pleasantly surprised by the unique flavor of the flaxseed, and I actually prefer this recipe to the other. This one is not as sweet, but it is delicious and filling. I especially enjoyed eating this with a bit of peanut butter spread on top. Yum! :)

I hope that you will give this banana bread a try and love it as much as I do - or more! Please remember to comment below and let me know how you like this recipe if you happen to try it. Thanks!

Healthy Flaxseed Banana Bread

• 2 c. milled golden flaxseed
• 1 c. whole wheat flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 3/4 - 1c. sugar
• 1/4. oil
• 1/4 c. applesauce
• 2 eggs
• 4 very ripe bananas
• 1/2 c. almond milk
• 2 tsp. vanilla
• 1 c. raisins
• 1/2 c. walnuts (optional)
• 1/2 c. shredded coconut (optional)

You will first need to assemble your ingredients, and preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. If you are using frozen bananas, make sure that you allow time for them to soften before making this recipe. 

In a large bowl, add in your flaxseed, flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and sugar.

Next you will need to add in the oil, applesauce, eggs, bananas, milk, and vanilla. 

Stir very well, then add in the raisins, walnuts, and coconut. I didn't add any walnuts this time, but they are sooo delicious in this bread. If you can add them, I highly recommend that you do.

Once thoroughly mixed, pour batter into a greased 9x5 inch loaf pan. Bake at 350 degrees for about 30-35 minutes, or until light brown/golden. It should feel firm to the touch. Let cool for about 5 minutes, then slice and enjoy!

I recommend topping your slice of bread with a teaspoon of peanut butter. The peanut butter really compliments this bread. In fact, I actually prefer the bread with some peanut butter on top. Also, I enjoyed my banana bread with a steaming cup of chai tea. It was the perfect breakfast for a cool winter morning. I hope you enjoyed this recipe.

If you enjoyed this post, please subscribe to the Fit2Be Blog, or follow through BlogLovin'. I hope you have a fabulous day and may God bless you always!

Question of the Day:

Have you ever made a cooking/baking mistake? If so, was the result a masterpiece or truly a mistake? :)

Love & Grace,

Mariah