$1000 worth of giveaways for a healthier YOU.

hello and welcome to another monday! i have a special mid-day post for you guys today that i am REAL excited about.

remember a little bit ago when i posted about fun with fiber?  i reviewed the FiberChoice chewable fiber supplements and also showed you how much fiber i ate that day.  well, FiberChoice has contacted me again and has asked me to share the healthy choices that i make for my own healthier tomorrow.

i love getting asked to talk about stuff like this. as you know, i am a professional rambler, so when they asked me to go off on this topic, i got that kid-in-a-candy-store grin on my face and had a zillion thoughts piling up in my brain.

over the weekend, i had a chance to reign in all my thoughts and really ponder what i am doing RIGHT NOW to be a healthier person.

i have been a very health conscious person for almost three consecutive years now.  i go through spurts of die-hard health consciousness (i call this “in the zone”) and more relaxed healthy habits (being a newlywed is a surefire way to let your healthy habits slide.. trust me).  right now i am trying to find a steady, consistent balance of healthy habits.

things are going great and i think i have finally figured out my own prescription for myself. here are five of my healthy choices that make up my recipe for success in a healthy, happy life. i hope my choices inspire you to make a list of your own healthy choices!

choice #1: stick to a workout plan.

as you all know, i started the 60 day insanity challenge at the beginning of this month.  since starting the program, i have diligently worked out and not missed a single day of the challenge. i have the workout schedule taped to the fridge and i LOVE crossing off each day i complete.  not only am i seeing huge improvements in my physical fitness, but i also feel really good about myself.  there is nothing better than the feeling of sticking to a commitment and following through.  i am super proud and the more time that goes by, the more i want to stick to the program.

i noticed this same phenomenon when i completed the 12 week body for life challenge.  it was a set workout plan and there was never any guessing. i woke up each day knowing what my workout would be.  i stuck to it, followed through, felt amazing and had great results.

on the flip side, whenever i have had a “just do whatever, whenever” workout mindset, i have skipped workouts. several times. i haven’t given it my all. i haven’t set the bar high enough to make any improvements in my physical fitness.. i have simply just worked out to”get by” and never had that huge feeling of accomplishment or motivation to do better.  i touched on how great the feeling of increased fitness is in my “focus on food & fitness” post last week. this is the feeling i am talking about!

because of the above rambles, i have realized that i am the type of person that NEEDS a workout plan. i do my best and, more importantly, FEEL my best when i have a plan and stick to it. and yes, i was the girl who always liked to get gold star stickers in elementary school. go figure.

choice #2: try new things.

while i do love sticking to a plan, i have realized over the years that my body adapts easily to certain plans and it really craves a change.  i had great success with my first go-round at body for life.. but when i tried it again, the outcome was not quite as drastic.  my reasoning behind this? well, my body was accustomed to the plan and it wasn’t being pushed to try anything new.

since having this realization, i have made choices that are new to my body. one example is the insanity challenge.  these daily plyometric workouts i complete are a huge change from the body for life HIIT and weight lifting workouts my body was used to.  i believe this choice is challenging my body to say NO to adapting and YES to progressing.

another new thing i have introduced into my healthy lifestyle is bikram yoga.  i started on april 2 and have consistently gone three times a week.  my body is more flexible, my mind is clearer, my skin is better (for real!) and i truly feel like i am becoming more healthy all around thanks to this new-to-me type of exercise.

i was always afraid to try yoga because i can’t even touch my toes.  now i crave yoga class. i look forward to it and can’t imagine going a week without it.  i urge you all to go outside of your comfort zone and try something new—your body will thank you!

choice #3: keep the kitchen clean.

and no, i don’t mean the dishes and countertops!  i mean the food that is in the kitchen.  i have mentioned that marshall has hopped on the healthy eating bandwagon.  this has worked wonders on my own eating habits.

before, it was SO easy to grab handfuls of unhealthy food simply because it was readily accessible to my grabby little hands. they have a mind of their own, i tell ya.  anyway, we have purged our kitchen of all the crappy food and filled it with plenty of clean eats and treats.

i love the saying “if you fail to plan, you plan to fail,” and i take this approach with what i keep on hand for my meals.  i always make a list of healthy meals i can eat all week long before hitting up the grocery store.  i make sure to include a variety of both sweet and savory items. this way, i can always be sure to have something healthy on hand for no matter what type of craving i run into.

this choice for a healthier kitchen full of food has worked wonders for my bad habit of bites, licks and tastes!

choice #4: talk it out.

i will be the first to say that i struggle.  sometimes people ask me HOW i find the motivation and dedication to eat clean 90% of the time and to work out 6 days a week.  well, guess what? sometimes it’s hard. real hard. but my strategy to get past those hard times is to face them. look those doubts straight in the eye and talk out the problem.

about a month ago, i told marshall that my jeans weren’t fitting and i hated how my thighs had gotten bigger. i also told him that i hated how i had fallen into the habit if eating dessert every. single. night.  i mentioned that it bothered me how often i let myself skip a workout.  i expressed these frustrations to some of my friends, as well.

i found that by voicing these thoughts, i was more motivated to change the things that were bothering me.  instead of bottling my frustrations up inside and letting them get worse, i let them spill out to those who i trust.  in return, i have received positive reinforcement and added support to help me make healthier choices.

who knew marshall would be a great crutch for me to lean on when i was feeling blue about my recent frustrations?  i am so glad i told him what was bothering me instead of just being a total brat all the time.  each day he reminds me of my own goals and helps encourage me to get up, make healthy decisions and stick to them.

i also am not afraid to spew my feelings here on the blog. i think that goes without saying, though…

next time you are having an internal struggle, talk to someone. anyone. put it out there and you will be more inclined to fix the problem. if you don’t think you have anyone to talk to, email me. you can talk to me!

choice #5: spread the love.

i have found that i am the most motivated to stay on track when i express my excitement and passion for healthy habits to others.  whether it be by cooking healthy meals for others or by yammering on about how great it is to work out and eat healthy, i am more inclined to keep working out and eating healthy if i spread the excitement.

this is a win-win situation, because not only am i more motivated, but others are, too!  granted, i sometimes become an over-sharer and blabber a little too much about how great healthy living is.. that’s when whoever i am talking to knocks me upside the head and tells me to zip it. and yes, that has happened, but hey.. sometimes i get so excited about how i feel that i just want to shout about it from the top of a mountain.

i think one of the reasons i love blogging so much is i am able to spread my love of a healthy lifestyle to all of you.  we are all like-minded individuals who are striving for a healthy balance in life and the best way to reach our goals and to help others reach their goals is to share our experiences with each other.  i like to think that we are all in this together. sappy, but true.

so there you have it! my five healthy choices that are helping me be the balanced gal i am today.  it wouldn’t be right if i failed to mention that i still always make a little wiggle room for ice cream. it’s my favorite food group, didn’t you know?

FiberChoice also asked me to talk about how fiber plays a role into my healthy choices, and i believe that fits right in with choice #3.  i have a fiber-filled fridge and pantry and have been mindful of getting enough fiber ever since my post about it last month.

i do continue to take FiberChoice chewable supplements on the days i fall short in the fiber department, but am careful not to eat a boatload of fiber at once since it can cause bloating.

truth is, these supplements taste like candy and it’s hard to only eat two! but two is all you need for four grams of top notch soluble fiber. here are some fun facts about the supplement that i left out of my last fiber filled post:

• FiberChoice Chewable Fiber Supplement is a simple, convenient, natural fiber that provides the regular benefits of fiber, while also helping to support the health of your immune system and digestive tract, and support overall health.
• FiberChoice contains prebiotics – a unique fiber that nourishes the friendly, “good” bacteria in the digestive system.
• Our digestive system performs a constant “balancing act” between good, healthy
  bacteria and unhealthy bacteria. When the levels of bacteria are balanced, the body
  functions well. However, stress, poor diet and certain medications can disrupt this
  balance, allowing bad bacteria to multiply. Good bacteria help to keep the number of
  unhealthy bacteria in check.
• Good bacteria, called probiotics, have a number of health benefits, including aiding digestion, supporting immunity, and destroying harmful bacteria in the gut.
• The prebiotics in FiberChoice help probiotics grow and thrive to maintain a healthy,
  balanced digestive system and promote full-body health.
• Fiber is typically associated with regularity, but fiber is also important for overall digestive and full-body health.

now for the part i am REAL excited about. (hey, you made it this far.. you deserve a prize!)

FiberChoice wants you to get healthy and take some serious steps to do so.  they want to reward you guys for making lifestyle choices to achieve better health!!

here’s the big news: FiberChoice has generously offered to reward FIVE meals & moves readers each with a $200 VISA gift card to use to make your healthy choices a reality!

the possibilities of how you can use this card to become healthier are a mile long. a few that come to mind are:

• buy a pass to a yoga studio (my latest addiction!)
• make a new meal plan and use the money for healthy groceries.
• join a gym and pay for 1 or 2 months up front (depending on the gym’s prices).
• take a class about nutrition or a cooking class that teaches you to whip up a healthy meal.
• spend it on fitness and healthy food literature—whether it be books or magazine subscriptions—so you can inform yourself about becoming a healthier person.
• invest in some at-home gym equipment so you can always get your workout in.

the healthy choices you make are really up to YOU. FiberChoice just wants to help you get there.

to enter:

• leave a comment telling me how you would use the $200 to become a healthier person and to reach your fitness and nutrition goals.

this giveaway will run until friday, april 29th at 11:59 PM. i will announce the five winners on saturday, april 30th.

GOOD LUCK! and here’s to a healthier tomorrow!

xo. janetha g.

I have partnered with GlaxoSmithKline to help promote the FiberChoice “Choices for Better Health” campaign.  I have been compensated for my time commitment to the program, which includes writing about my choices for a healthier lifestyle, and hosting a giveaway where the prize has been provided by FiberChoice.  However, my opinions are entirely my own and I have not been paid to publish positive comments.

−         NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. A PURCHASE WILL NOT INCREASE YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING. LEGAL RESIDENTS OF THE 50 UNITED STATES (D.C.) 18 YEARS AND OLDER. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED. Sweepstakes ends April 29, 2011. For Official Rules, prize descriptions and odds disclosure, visit https://mealsandmoves.wordpress.com/rules/. Sponsor: GlaxoSmithKline, 1500 Littleton Road, Parsippany, NJ 07054.