How to get started and my favorite FREE work out sites

It's been a while since I provided my tips for starting to eat better and get healthy so I've copied and pasted the info from my blog post from January 2014 and edited it a bit. I've updated the links as well with my current favorite work out websites that I incorporate into my work out routine

I love Fitness Marshall videos for cardio when I don't feel like working out because honestly, it doesn't feel like working out. They're that fun. I love the kickboxing videos from Millionaire Hoy (all of his videos really), and I love Fitness Blender for any kind of work out. There is NO excuse to not work out at home when there are so many available FREE options. Walking also counts as exercise and other than runners it is equipment free. Any sort of movement is good for you whether it's running, walking, dancing, jump rope, etc. Just move!


Fitness Blender - www.fitnessblender.com
The Fitness Marshall - https://www.youtube.com/user/TheFitnessMarshall
Melissa Bender - www.benderfitness.com
Millionaire Hoy - https://www.youtube.com/user/yaboymillhoy (edit: no longer free but still available for a monthly fee)
Zuzka Light - www.zuzkalight.com (you now have to pay for ZGYM but it's very reasonable at $10/month)


For food ideas check out my recipes listed on the left hand side, sorted by food, diet, and meal. As I've mentioned before I love Michi's ladder, a tool from Beachbody. It's very helpful to plan balanced meals and snacks. I also found that using a calorie tracker such as My Fitness Pal will help you get on the right track and make you more aware of how many calories you are burning and how many you're consuming. It's quite an eye opener because there are many things I thought were healthy that were full of sugars and empty calories.

Check out the Fitness and Health information tab for some other great links from magazines that I've found over the last year. There are so many resources out there!!! And it's incredible how many magazines publish information on their website for you to use without having to subscribe to their magazine.

Here are some tips when making this lifestyle change and looking after your health and body:

• Prepare at least your lunches for the week on Sunday (or whatever day works for you)
• If you have the time, prepare your snacks and dinners for the week as well (no excuses if healthy food is ready for you to grab in the fridge)
• Allow yourself to have treats IN MODERATION. If you cut yourself off completely you risk losing control, binging, and then feeling awful. Have a treat here and there, again, in moderation.
• Make the time to workout. If this is a priority you should make it a priority. I workout as many days of the week as I can because I never know when I won't be able to after work. When I work early shifts I workout after work. When I work late shifts I workout before work.
• Results take time. Don't give up because you don't see a change on the scale or your body. It took time to gain the weight so it's going to take some time to lose the weight.
• Just because you worked out today doesn't mean that you're 'allowed' bad food. You're not a dog, don't reward yourself with food. **FOOD IS FUEL FOR YOUR BODY, NOTHING ELSE**
• Drink lots of water and cut out pop - even juice has a lot of sugar. I really only drink water and coffee with cream. I only drink diet pop if it has alcohol in it ;)
• Eat veggies with every meal or have as a snack if you miss them with a meal.
• REMEMBER: finding what works for you takes time. Everything I post on here is what works for me and may not necessarily work for everyone. Tweak your diet and exercise after 2 weeks if you're not noticing a change in how you feel. Some people prefer 3 large meals a day whereas I prefer 3 smaller meals and 2 snacks throughout the day.
• If you find that these are too many changes, try incorporating one or two of these into your life a week or 2 at a time. Drastic changes can be intimidating and overwhelming. Try starting with drinking more water and concentrating on what you're eating before you start adding exercise in. I lost 8 pounds by tracking my calories before I started working out.
• My last tip: Try not to eat after dinner. This was probably the hardest habit for me to break. I love eating cereal before bed. But your metabolism slows way down when you're sleeping so eating before bed can damper your results.

I hope this is useful and if you have any questions please respond to this post or can you message me on my Facebook page.

-- Kelsey