Fitness and Healthy Eating

Healthy eating and exercise is one of my New Year’s resolutions again this year, because I want to practice self-love. I can honestly say that I don’t want to change a single thing on my body. I want to practice self-care by giving my body what it needs. My body does not need botox, perfect abs or whatever else I’m supposed to strive for. My body needs nutritious food and exercise to be strong and healthy. When I was younger beauty was my main motivation for working out, today I only want to be healthy.

I was struggling with eating disorders and anxiety about how my body looked for most of my twenties. It wasn't a fun way to live. Our world is obsessed with looks and beauty, take a quick look at Instagram and this becomes obvious. No matter how much the beauty ideal changes, the result is the same. We are still told that looks are very important. Imagine how much world change we could accomplish together if we spent that same energy on something else than our own faces and bodies. The obsession with the self in our culture is astonishing to me, it’s not making anyone happy.

We live in a world where much of a woman’s worth is based on how she looks and because of that I’m not a fan of book titles like “The Bikini Body Guide”. That said, I understand why Kayla Itsines is a popular personal trainer, she does her work with excellence! I don’t like the book title, but I love the recipes!

Kayla’s new book is filled with yummy healthy recipes and I love the pictures of the food! I personally don’t like cooking books without pictures. I’m also a big fan of Kayla Itsines’ workout programs so I was very happy to buy her new book this month. The book is exactly what I needed to find some new inspiration for healthy eating and exercise this winter! Thank you Kayla!

Healthy Eating Made Easy

One of my New Year's Resolutions was to focus more on healthy eating. One reason I tend to slip into unhealthy eating habits is because I get bored with eating the same foods. I used to find new healthy recipes in fitness magazines but these days the magazine industry seems to be slowly dying. I haven't found any good recipes in magazines for the last couple of years. Social media is the new place to find your inspiration.

There are tons of people on social media who blog about healthy eating and exercise but not everyone is a professional. One of my favorite youtube channels about healthy eating is Becca Bristow. Becca is a registered dietitian and I love her "What I Eat in a Day"-videos. I like that Becca's meals and recipes are simple and quick to make. I don't like when healthy eating becomes too complicated and time-consuming. If you are on the lookout for some healthy eating inspiration I recommend Becca Bristow's Youtube channel!

Healthy Food for a Strong Body

One of my New Year's resolutions was to focus more on healthy eating. Three months into 2017 I can see the connection between planning and healthy eating in my life. On weeks when I take the time to look through recipes and plan a grocery list I have no problem making healthy choices. On weeks when I'm a little too busy and don't prioritize planning my meals ahead of time I end up eating more unhealthy foods.

Going grocery shopping without writing a list goes a lot quicker, but I come home with more unhealthy foods in my grocery bags. It takes time to look for new healthy recipes and to plan all my meals for the week ahead, but it's the only way that works for me. My favorite healthy breakfast at the moment is organic cereal with almond milk and blueberries.

My favorite healthy snack is green apples dipped in all-natural almond butter.

On the weekends when I'm out and about in the city I like to grab lunch at Freshii.

The Hawaiian Poke Bowl and the Vegan Chili are my favorite healthy lunch choices at Freshii at the moment.

A protein-rich smoothie is my favorite afternoon snack. I like to blend together plant-based protein powder, vanilla almond milk, raspberries, blueberries, banana and agave.

On the weekends I like to treat myself to whatever I want at dinner time, without focusing too much on healthy eating. I'm in a pasta phase right now and I love spending time with friends and family over a tasty dinner at Il Fornello. I prefer to eat as healthy as possible during the weekdays so that I can treat myself to pasta, pizza and dessert on the weekends and still have a balanced diet. This past weekend I decided to treat myself to a big slice of Red Velvet cake at Baton Rouge on Saturday. I love cake!

Joyful Moments in January

This January I'm joyful as I look at the pictures from our Christmas celebration in Finland. I really enjoyed spending time in the archipelago during our trip to Finland.

I don't get to spend every Christmas with my family in Finland since I live in Canada so when I get the chance to do that it's a very special time. As a child growing up I was mostly focused on what kind of presents I would get for Christmas and as an adult you realize how little stuff matters. The joy that stuff brings to life is temporary but the joy that family brings is worth so much more than all the stuff in the world.

In January I'm also enjoying the last few days with our Christmas tree, in a week or so it will be time to pack up the tree in a box and put it away until next year. Our home will be a lot less sparkly without the Christmas tree.

We have almost no snow in Toronto at this time but I really enjoy sunny winter days when I can take walks along the beach with my hubby.

January is also a time to set new goals for the future, so far the only goal I have is to get back to healthy eating and exercise. I got sick during Christmas and didn't do a single workout during our trip to Finland so now I'm really looking forward to getting started again. My goal is to do four workouts per week and eat healthy four days a week. On the weekends I want to treat myself to pancakes, hot chocolate and other wonderful winter treats.

Back to Healthy Eating

All the kids are back in school and I'm back to healthy eating. I love having seasons during the year when I enjoy more treats than usual, after a season like that I usually start craving healthy foods again. This approach keeps me from getting bored with healthy eating.

During summer I treated myself to ice cream for dessert many days per week and burgers and hotdogs for dinner. I also enjoyed healthier foods during summer, but only when I felt like it. I naturally eat more salads for lunch during the summer months because we grow our own vegetables both in Canada and at the cottage in Finland.

My favorite workout during the month of September is to take a long bike ride in a beautiful natural setting. Biking is more than exercise to me, it's like meditation at the same time whenever I get the chance to take a bike ride along Lake Ontario. That's life quality to me!

Healthy Eating in the Summer

On a hot summer day I love to treat myself to an ice cream cone or an iced latte.

I definitely have dessert more often during the summer months than in the winter. I balance up my summer diet by eating more healthy lunches and breakfasts instead.

A protein smoothie or a green juice is my favorite summer breakfast. I love the juices at Juice Generation in New York!

During our trip to New York I treated myself to a green juice and an acai bowl for breakfast. One thing I love about summer is being able to have your breakfast outdoors in the sun.

A healthy lunch at Le Pain Quotidien is another one of my favorite things to treat myself to in New York. Is it just me or is it a lot easier to find tasty healthy food in LA and New York than in most other cities?

The avocado sandwich is easy to make at home when you want a quick and healthy lunch. Toast the bread, spread it with avocado and decorate with vegetables.

It becomes easy to eat healthy in the summer when you can find food trucks that sell organic juices and smoothies on the street.

During summer I love to eat a burger for dinner and have a scoop of ice cream for dessert, a summer with only healthy food would be really, really boring if you ask me.

Of course you also have to treat yourself to a nice summer drink every now and then to celebrate the summer vacation! I love anything with mango or pineapple in it.

Have a joyful summer everyone, fill it with good food, good company and a lot of love! :)