Snacking.

So I fell off the wagon and went on a week or so of not working out and snacking and eating really bad (like lots of queso and Dr. Pepper bad). Oops... But let's be honest, it's going to happen because we are human and sometimes life gets hard. It's easy to stop eating healthy and head straight for your pantry full of snacks like chips, candy and cookies. But once you go off a track, how do you get back on? It's hard. REALLY hard. Here's a few tips that have helped me get back on track and stay away from snacking.

1. Throw out those foods that constantly tempt you. I found that the only way I won't snack on Doritos and Oreos is if I don't have them in the house! It's an easy fix. If you have that one snack that is keeping you from getting back on track and you find yourself binge snacking on it..THROW IT AWAY!  Seems pretty simple right? Because it is!

2. Have a food to fall back on if you do want to snack. There's nothing wrong with getting a little hungry after dinner, but you have to be ready for it. Have some healthy little treats in your pantry. I like chocolate rice cakes, they are yummy and chocolaty and only have 60 calories (which is pretty good compared to 3 Oreos which have 160 calories).

3. Make a routine. If I brush my teeth and floss after dinner, I notice that I am much less likely to snack. It's like that clean mouth feeling is reminding my teeth that they are off duty for the night. So since they are off duty I go for a big glass of water instead!

4. Put your snack on a plate. By doing this, you are giving yourself a limit of how much snacking you can do. DO NOT take the whole bag with you to go sit on the couch and watch tv. Before you know it you will have eaten almost the whole bag in one sitting.

Basically, be prepared. If you're prepared for hunger then you won't end up over eating. Life gets busy and hard and it's easy to snack on the bad foods, but if you're ready for those times then it'll seem easier to pick the good foods and before you know it you will be turning down those foods that used to be your favorites snacks. And then you'll be back on track to getting

healthy-ish.

Thirsty Thursday.

That's right, it's Thirsty Thursday! But does that mean you should run as quick as you can to the first cocktail/beer/choice of drink you can get your hands on? I would say probably not. Alcohol is often times a "no-no" for people who are trying to watch their weight or get more fit, and I think I have to agree. However, there are ways you can still enjoy it.

Alcohol triggers overeating. It makes the aromas from food seem more appealing. So when you go get drinks with your girlfriends/buddies before dinner, you end up ordering a bigger meal and then end up eating much more than you normally would. Drinking alcohol also leads to those late night snacks and binges. I know that at least 90% of you all reading this end up going to Taco Bell after a late night out drinking.

Alcohol is packed with calories. It has 7 calories per gram, and that's just the alcohol part. Most drinks are mixed with sugary and sweetened drinks and flavors. One cocktail could end up being around 400 calories!! Here's average calories of some drinks: 5 ounces of red or white wine is 125 calories, 12 ounces of light beer is 100 calories, 1.5 ounces of vodka is 96 calories. Just a few drinks at a night out could end up being 1,500 calories. So if you do decide to get a drink, go for the lower calorie drinks and watch out for margaritas, sugary mixed drinks, mudslides and other sweet cocktails.

So am I saying to stay away from Thirsty Thursdays forever? No! There are ways you can enjoy a drink at dinner and still be on the right track. Here are some helpful hints to make sure you don't overload the calories with drinks.

- Limit yourself to two drinks.
- Avoid the higher calorie drinks.
- Drink water between your alcoholic drinks so you can stay hydrated.
- Sip slowly and take time to finish each drink.
- Try to keep your calorie budget below 200 calories.

So go ahead and enjoy this great Thursday, but be sure to pay attention to what you're drinking so you can make sure to stay

healthy-ish.

Spin Class.

Recently I have been really into going to spin class (or cycle, whatever you want to call it), and I am LOVING it. My dad is a biker. He does a race once a week and basically bikes every other day of the week also. I decided I would give it a try because he was always talking to me about it and saying how much he loved it. So I decided I would try it out and see what the hype was all about.

So I said to myself, "I'll try it! Everyone says its so fun, so let's do this!!!" And then walked into the class excited and thinking it would be fun and easy, like a bike around the neighborhood.

But boy was I wrong... The instructor starts the class and by minute 5 I was already panting like a dog and ready to be done when the instructor said "great warmup everyone!" WARMUP?? That was the warmup??? How was I ever going to last another 55 minutes...

After deciding it would be too embarrassing to walk out of the class after only being there for 5 minutes, I gave myself a quick pep talk and decided to keep on pedaling! After the exhaustion left me  and the music playing in the background hyped me up and left me singing along to forget how bad my legs were hurting, I thought to myself "hey look this isn't that bad, I'm getting the hang of it and it's actually kind of fun! 

After the hour was up, I hopped off my bike and walked out of class drenched it sweat, and gave myself I mental pat on the back. I was proud of myself, I had finished it and didn't die. I had accomplished the task that seemed impossible!

I woke up the next morning feeling like I had been hit by a train. NEVER had I been that sore before. Muscles in my legs I didn't even know existed were sore, I could barely walk!

But even though my legs were telling me no, I went back to spin class that evening and did it all over again. I did it for the legs that spin would give me one day!

After all of the soreness and thoughts of "I am never doing this again," I continue to go back to spin. Everyone who told me it was a great workout and that I would love it was right. It's cardio and building your legs up, and sometimes even we get off the bike and lift weights. It's the total package! So if you haven't tried a spin class, hop off the computer right now and head to spin! You will learn to love it just like I did and you'll be one step closer to being 

healthy-ish.