How to Get Back Into the Healthy Groove AND You're INVITED!

Today is the day to get back on track and get focused on ending this year healthier than we started it!

I've put together a few tips to help us all get back on track.

1. Forgive yourself.  Don’t worry about it – and don’t beat yourself up for having a few too many treats or not exercising as much as you should have!  

2. Drink MORE WATER!  Water helps us feel fuller, boosts our energy and keeps us regular.  Water also helps to flush out excess sodium that we’ve consumed over the last few days!  Warm lemon water will also help wake up your digestive system and help you feel better faster.

3. Eat more fruits and vegetables!  Too often, after people overindulge, they try to cut calories by eating less.  We should eat more fruits and vegetables.  The fiber will help us feel full longer and will help with digestion.  

4. Eat lean protein.  Eat meals high in protein because the protein will help signal our bodies to burn fat.  Protein will also help us feel full longer and help to keep our blood sugar stable throughout the day.

5. Eat clean.  Avoid processed foods and foods with added sugars and salts.   Eat fresh fruits and vegetables along with lean proteins and whole grains throughout the day.  

6. Add exercise into you daily routine and schedule it – make it part of your life and a habit that you do everyday.

7. Begin writing down your goals for the month of December.  Having clearly defined goals will help keep you focused on being healthier throughout the month.   How do you want to feel at the end of the month?  What do you want to accomplish by the end of the month? 

My {{{ Finish Healthier, Finish Stronger Challenge }}} is set to begin prep-week TOMORROW - November 30th! Yes, the Monday after Thanksgiving is the PERFECT time to resolve to use the last 30 days of the year to set goals and focus on being healthier and feeling better. We’re going to end 2015 healthier and stronger than when we started. AND we’re going to start 2016 ahead of the game!

Are you ready to accept this mission? The mission to make 2016 the best year yet!!

If you’re ready to begin your journey (or continue your journey!) this group is going to be PERFECT for you! All you need is to be open to change, be willing to work on yourself and be ready to have FUN! I’m building a community of strong, inspiring, supportive women on a mission to be healthier and would LOVE to have you join us! The best part about these groups is that we share our journeys with each other, our struggles, our successes, everything! We’re in this together!

This is what I'm suggesting:

-- You and I will decide on the best workout program for you to help you reach your goals. Most of the workouts are 30 minutes and I know that we can all find time for that! 

-- You will commit to replace 1 meal each day with the most nutritious shake on the planet. 

-- You will commit to check in with our private group once per day.

This is what you will receive from me:

-- We will discuss your goals for the next 30 days and I can help you succeed.

-- I will give you suggestions for meal plans and healthy recipes.

-- You will have a complete nutrition guide. We know that nutrition is responsible for 80% of our results!

-- You will be plugged into a private community of strong, inspiring and supportive people on a mission to live healthier and feel better. This group will be your daily support system!

-- I will also give you healthy holiday recipes along with strategies and tips to make this the healthiest December yet!

Of course, you will have ME as your coach EACH day to support, encourage and motivate you to succeed. I will be here to answer questions and help you with anything to ensure that you succeed and reach your health and fitness goals. And don’t forget the amazing group of women who will surround you with support!

You will be successful and WE WILL DO THIS TOGETHER!

Are you ready? Let’s get started now!

Fill out the form below or email me at kristingator@gmail.com and I will be in touch!

Healthy Thanksgiving Strategies AND Cookbook

The month of November and December are my favorite months of the entire year!  But during these months I also have the hardest time staying on track with my health and fitness goals.  With travel and spending time at other houses it's not always easy to control the types of foods we will be around.  And for me - if I see it - I will think about it!  Especially cookies and sweet treats!

I've found a few simple strategies to help me stay on track through the Thanksgiving holiday.

1.  Plan to exercise each day during the holiday week and especially the day of the holiday.  I always schedule these workouts to ensure that I make time between travel and everything else.  AND exercise keeps me in a good mood too!

2.  I don't skip breakfast on Thanksgiving day to ensure that I'm not "starving" by the time we eat lunch and supper.  This also helps to keep our blood sugar steady to that we don't have cravings!  I always have Shakeology for breakfast because I know that this is the easiest way to ensure that I'm having healthy and complete nutrition.

3. Another great tip is to pack healthy snacks such as vegetable sticks or fruit or nuts to ensure that you can eat every 4 to 6 hours.  This is great for travel also.

4. Portion sizes are key!  And our plates should have more vegetables than anything else.  My favorite way to measure portions is to use the 21 Day Fix system! (Ask me about this -- it's one of my favorites!!)  Another easy way to judge the correct portion size of each type of food is to use your hand.  
        For example:
        -  Lean protein - what can fit in the palm of 
           your hand
        -  Fruits & vegetables - what can fit into 2       
           cupped hands
        -  Starchy complex carbohydrates (such as 
           whole grain) - what can fit into one cupped 
           hand

5.  Try to eat stabilizing foods during the day. Keep your blood sugar and energy levels steady all day with lean protein, healthy fats, slow-release high fiber carbs (whole grains, fruits/veggies & beans) and leafy veggies.  

6. Decide on the sweet treat or indulgent treat ahead of time then limit yourself to a small serving.  Remember that it is OK to have a treat once in a while!  We all deserve it!

7.  A great way to fell better after eating is to get outside for a walk or bike ride.  Enjoy the beautiful weather and work off some of the calories.

I've also complied a collection of HEALTHY Thanksgiving recipes that I would LOVE to share with you!  Fill out the quick form below and I will email the collection to you.  These recipes will help you and your family have a healthier Thanksgiving.

French Onion Soup - Healthy and Clean

With the cooler weather I've been thinking about soups, stews and chili!  This week's meal plan has a wonderful, simple, healthy French Onion Soup.  

French Onion Soup (serves 4)

This recipe is adapted from the Fixate cookbook.

Ingredients:

1 tbsp olive oil

4 medium onions, sliced

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped

2 bay leaves

2 springs fresh thyme sprigs

1 dash salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1/3 cup red wine

6 cups, low-sodium beef broth

4 slices low-sodium sprouted whole-grain bread

4 tbsp shredded Gruyere (or Parmesan) cheese

Directions:

1. Heat oil in large saucepan over medium-high heat

2. Add onions, cook, stirring frequently for 8 to 10 minutes or until translucent

3. Add garlic, cook for 1 minute

4. Add bay leaves, Thyme, salt and pepper.  Reduce heat to medium-low, cook stirring occasionally for 25-30 minutes or until onions are a soft brown color

5. Add wine.  Bring to a boil over medium-high heat.  Reduce heat, gently boil for 2 to 4 minutes, or until most liquid is absorbed.  Remove bay leaves and thyme.

6. Add broth.  Bring to boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat, gently boil for 15 minutes.

* If you want to have the cheese toast

7. Preheat oven to broil

8. Place bread on baking sheet, top with cheese.  Broil for 3 to 4 minutes until cheese is bubbly.

End of the Year Goals

Last night while making my weekly meal plan I decided that I will be ending this year heathier than I started.  AND I’m going to continue to help others do the same!  I’ve decide that the holiday season will not cause me to slack on my health and fitness goals! 

I’ve set a few new S.M.A.R.T. goals to finish this year strong.  Over the last year I’ve learned the power of writing down specific goals with deadlines.  

1. I will exercise each day until December 31.  Today I began my last month of ChaLEAN Extreme then I will complete another round of 21 Day Fix to finish out the year.  And I will begin our brand new program in January!  Hammer & Chisel is going to be an amazing program!

2. I will limit myself to only 2 treat meals or snacks per week.

3. I will sleep 2 extra hours each night.  My average sleep right now is about 5 hours each night and I know that this isn’t enough!

4. I will read and/or listen to at least 30 minutes of personal development each day.  And on the days that I’m off from work, I will read and listen to at least 1 hour.

5. I will host a special online accountability group beginning after Thanksgiving to help all of us during December.  December is my favorite month and the happiest time of year for me.  I want all of us to enjoy the season without gaining weight and still feeling healthy, having more energy and feeling good.  This group is going to be awesome!  Complete the form at the end of this post and we will get started on your goals also!

6. This next goal is going to be more of a challenge for me, so I will need a little accountability with this one.

I will not bake treats for Thanksgiving or Christmas.  I love to bake, which means that I also love to sample while I’m baking, icing and decorating cookies.  To prevent myself from sampling everything that I bake, I simply won’t bake!

What Exactly Is Clean Eating?

I have so many questions about clean eating, so I thought it would be a perfect time to share with you a little about clean eating and my journey.

Clean eating has become part of my lifestyle for almost 2 years now.  When I realized that nutrition was about 80% of the battle, I began to learn all that I could about making healthy changes, limiting processed foods and limiting added sugars.  The first book that I purchased was one of Tosca Reno’s Eat Clean books to learn the basic clean eating principles.  I incorporated these principles with the 21 Day Fix nutrition/portion system to create lasting lifestyle changes that helped me lose 35 pounds and continue to maintain my current weight.

What is clean eating?

- A lifestyle change that will help to increase our metabolism.
- Consciously choosing to eat the most nutrient-rich foods to fuel our body.
- Limiting or completely eliminating processed foods and added sugars to naturally detox our bodies and prevent our bodies from storing chemicals and preservatives from food in fat cells.
- Eating fresh fruits, vegetables, lean meats/fish/proteins, healthy complex carbohydrates, nuts and healthy fats to provide healthy nutrition without added chemicals from processing. 

The Clean Eating Basic Principles (by Tosca Reno)

1. Eat more – eat five to six small meals each day

2. Eat breakfast every day, within an hour of rising

3. Make your last meal 3 hours before bed

4. Eat a combination of lean protein and complex carbohydrates at each meal

5. Eat sufficient healthy fats every day – 2 to 3 servings daily

6. Drink 2 to 3 liters of water every day

7. Carry a cooler packed with Clean foods each day

8. Depend on fresh fruit and vegetables for fiber, vitamins, nutrients and enzymes

9.  Adhere to proper portion sizes
      a.  Protein – what can fit into the palm of one hand
      b. Starchy complex carbohydrates – what can fit   into one cupped hand
      c. Carbohydrates from fruits and vegetables – what can fit into two hands cupped together
      d. Healthy fats – one scant handful of nuts, or one to two tablespoons of healthy oil or nut butter

10. Eat only foods that have not been overly processed or doused in chemicals, saturated trans fats and/or toxins.  Processed foods are stripped of nutrition and have chemicals added for flavor

Each month I host a free 7 Day Clean Eating FIX challenge open to everyone.   During this challenge, I teach the basic principles of clean eating to make the transition into clean eating simpler.  I also share tips, meal plans and recipes.  

Would you like to learn more about clean eating?

Would you like to learn more about how I can help you on your health and fitness journey?

Fill out the form below and I will be in touch soon!

I Was Tired of Being Tired!

I was tired of being tired.  I was tired of using snacks & drinks loaded with sugar to make it through my afternoons at work.  I was tired of feeling run down from the sugar crashes and having severe fluctuating blood sugar.  I was tired of not seeing results from all the hard workouts that I had been doing.  I was tired of not being comfortable in my clothes and not being confident about my body.  I was tired of not having enough confidence in myself to make changes.
I distinctly remember the night that I decided enough was enough.  The night that I decided I was important and I had to change.  I was up late watching a workout infomercial and reading a motivational blog post that seemed to be written specifically for me.  I knew that I had to start taking care of myself and needed to make changes to my nutrition to become healthier.  That was almost 2 years ago.  That decision was one of the most important of my life.  I knew that I wanted to change more than I wanted to stay the same.  And it was time to make it happen.  This was when my journey began when I finally had enough.

My nutrition became a priority for me and I learned how good I could feel when I fueled my body with clean, healthy, unprocessed foods.  Shakeology was my first step and became a non-negotiable for me every day.  This gave me dense nutrition loaded with vitamins, minerals, superfoods, antioxidants & protein each day.  Then I began to learn about nutrition and the power of clean eating with Tosca Reno's book.  I stopped eating so many processed foods.  Then I eventually cut out almost all processed foods (just an occasional treat here & there).  Then I started a simple, ingenious portion control system that taught me how to eat healthy - the 21 Day Fix system.  I now use a combination of the 21 Day Fix, PiYo meal plan and Tosca's Clean Eating principles.  This works for me and helps me maintain my weight.

During my own journey I made another life-changing decision to become a Beachbody Coach.   It was at this point that those 2 decisions came together to completely change my life, change my mindset and change my perspective.  I learned about the power of sharing my journey, my successes and my struggles.  I’ve learned about the power of personal development and continually striving to be better.  I’m inviting others to join me and create their own success stories.  We’re creating a family of like-minded health seekers who support each other, motivate each other, and inspire each other.  Together we are becoming healthier and stronger both physically and emotionally.  This is much more than a workout program and a bag of powder.

Now I am about 40 pounds lighter with more energy and feeling healthier than ever.  I drink Shakeology each day and eat clean about 90% of the time.  My blood sugar is stable because I’ve learned the importance of eating to fuel my body.  All of my cholesterol numbers have improved, my blood pressure is better and my BMI has decreased.  These improvements are because of Shakeology each day, clean eating each day and exercise each day.  That’s the magic formula, simple as that.  One step at the time, one healthy meal at the time and one workout at the time.  When we combine these daily habits with the support and encouragement from others, we become unstoppable and absolutely successful.

This is where my story gets good!  This is where it gets exciting!  My personal passion for health and fitness has aligned perfectly with my passion to help others feel healthier and be healthier.  I have found the perfect platform to help inspire others to begin their journey as I continue my own.  I have found what I was meant to do!

I'm a pharmacist on a mission to be healthy and help others find their own healthy.  I’m on a mission to spread the power of prevention.  It all starts with taking care of ourselves in an effort to prevent disease.  It's not one size fits all, but together we will find what works for you.  We all have our own version of what healthy means.  

Together we will be stronger – together we will succeed!
Are you ready to create your own success story?

Email me at kristingator@gmail.com or fill out the form below and I will be in touch.