Fitness4Her

Women's Fitness

Fast Black Bean Chicken Salad

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I love this recipe because it is so versatile. Sometimes I like to add red bell pepper and even corn to the mix. It’s simple, fast, and all the ingredients are easy to find at your local grocery store.

4 chicken breasts
1 can low sodium black beans
Favorite jar of low sodium or fresh salsa
1bag of clean spinach
1 avocado

Directions:

1. Grill chicken.
2. Heat beans over medium heat.
3. Place a handful of spinach onto each plate. I serve spinach straight out of the bag.
4. Lay one piece of chicken on top of spinach. The heat of the chicken will wilt the spinach.
5. Spoon a tablespoon of beans, a tablespoon of salsa and a slice of avocado over the chicken.
6. If you like add a dollop of low fat sour cream.
7. Enjoy!!
8. Other options: use rice instead of spinach. Use wraps or tacos. Mix it up and make it fast and easy.

Health Benefits:
Black beans are an excellent source of fiber, protein, iron, Vitamin C and calcium. Low fat, low in cholesterol, low sodium content and low in sugar, black beans are always a nutritious treat. Chicken is a low fat choice of meat and a delicious way to get the protein your body needs every day.

Guts, Inspiration And Determination…The Three Steps To Motivation

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Beginning a fitness program takes guts. It also requires inspiration and determination. If you really want to get fit, you have to go all out. You may find it necessary to change many of your old habits, exchange exercise for lounging on the couch and snack on carrot sticks instead of potato chips.

Many women begin an exercise and diet program full of guts, inspiration and determination; but somewhere between day number two and day number 60, the motivation ceases to exist. Sadly, once the motivation is lost, all the guts, inspiration and determination in the world don’t seem enough to get you back into the groove.

If you need some help staying motivated, try following these 10 tips:

1. Prioritize your goals. Long term goal: up to 12 months for fitness, medium range goal should be at a 3 month marker and short term goal could be at 2 weeks. Post these somewhere that you will see them every day.
2. Confide your fitness goals to three positive minded people. This is not a time for nay-sayers so you want to announce your goals to people who believe in success.
3. Find a partner or friend to exercise with. If none of your friends are game, then hire a personal trainer or try to become friends with someone at the gym. Having someone to work out with makes it much more enjoyable and less boring.
4. Plan your meals ahead of time. Nothing throws off a diet more than not having easily accessible healthy foods to eat. Deny temptation by replacing sugar laden and fatty foods with healthy whole foods that are deliciously appetizing.
5. Create a journal to keep account of what you eat and drink each day. Be sure to record all of your physical activities too. Charting your progress helps to keep you motivated to keep improving.
6. Remember that everyone is unique and realize that it may take you longer to lose weight than someone else. Don’t let that discourage you from working towards your goal.
7. Start each day with a positive affirmation. Concentrate on what you are rather than what you are not.
8. Reward yourself for your achievements. A new blouse or new jeans can really make you feel special about the weight you have already lost, and will help to keep you motivated to continue your fitness regimen.
9. Make healthy eating a family affair. Enlist family members to help in food preparation and swap fatty, calorie-laden foods with healthier choices.
10. Mix up your exercise routine. Pick 3 days a week to participate in Fun activities. Swimming, bike riding, skating, running or even walking are all fun ways to get aerobic exercise.

Angel Hair with Clam Sauce

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Italians like to have a dish of pasta with clam sauce along side most of their entrees. I enjoy the Angel Hair pasta and have even eaten it for breakfast before. The clam sauce is healthy and delicious and a little bit goes a long way.

1 tsp olive oil
1/3 cup chopped onion
2 Tbsp chopped green pepper
2 garlic gloves, minced
3 cups chopped tomatoes
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
Salt and pepper to taste
1 can 6 or 7 oz minced clams
1/4 cup parsley
8 oz. angel hair, uncooked

Directions:

1. In large skillet add olive oil, onion, green pepper and garlic and saute.
2. Stir in tomatoes, red pepper, parsley and clams. Simmer 5 to 10 minutes.
3. Cook pasta according to directions.
4. Add clam mixture to top of pasta and toss gently. Best served hot.

Health Benefits:
Loaded with antioxidants, tomatoes, olive oil, garlic, green pepper, parsley and onion. This dish is like the dynamic duo when it comes to fighting fat. It’s low in fat, low in cholesterol, low in sodium, low in sugar and low in calories. Delicious and nutritious.

Harnessing The Power To Succeed

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Inspiration is the first step towards greatness. The next step is learning how to harness that inspiring power in order to succeed. How do you capture the essence that is inspiration and turn it into a tool for success? First of all, you must really want to succeed, without that desire, the inspiration will die off before you even have a chance to try it out.

It you have ever harnessed a horse; you know that you must be in control or the animal will have his way with you. That is because he outweighs you by hundreds of pounds and if you let him go, you may not be able to encourage him to come back. The same proves true for harnessing your inspiration. It is much bigger than you can even imagine and if you let it go, you might run the risk of having it desert you forever.

To harness the power to succeed, you need to capture your inspiration and develop a plan to make this spark of motivation work for you. Whatever your inspiration for women’s fitness, you will want to put it to the test. How far do you want to go? What results do you anticipate and how long will it take you to realize this goal?

Harnessing the power to succeed is not impossible. Successful people do it all of the time. They come up with an idea, run it around in their heads, write out a plan, check out the feasibility and act upon it as quickly as they can. This is the same attitude you can take when it comes to women’s fitness.

Fitness4Her makes it so easy with a diet that you can live by, an exercise program that is simple to follow and an online journal to show you the results. Get inspired and get moving with a fitness program that has been developed exclusively for women. Members have the ability to access all the tools they need to look and feel their very best and Empower the beauty within.

Affirmations for Healthy Eating

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Affirmations are the appetizer for the brain when it comes to a successful diet program. We all know the important role that the brain plays in most of the habits that come from overeating or eating the wrong foods. That’s why affirmations work so well in a women’s fitness program. When it comes to staying committed to your body, these daily declarations of victory can bring you closer to your fitness and weight loss goals.

Daily affirmations are great tools for any women’s fitness program. When you want to lose weight or do just about any kind of self-improvement, affirmations set the direction and the pace for the mind to follow. A simple practice that doesn’t cost a penny, daily affirmations have the potential to deliver massive results.

That is if you truly believe in your affirmation. Think about that sentiment before you choose the affirmations that you want to say. It’s not enough to just recite an affirmation, you must believe completely in the power to make it happen. You must be committed to making the declaration a reality.

This week, concentrate on eating healthy. If there is a food that you want to abolish from your diet, use your affirmations to rid yourself of the desire for that food.

Affirmations for healthy eating:

• I enjoy eating healthy food.

• I stop eating when I am satisfied.

• I am careful when salting my food.

• I eat protein at every meal.

• I watch my sugar intake.

• I don’t eat fried foods.

• Fried foods taste greasy to me.

• Soft drinks taste too sweet for me.

• I limit my servings of bread, rice and other starches.

If you tend to eat too many and too much of the wrong kinds of foods, start eliminating them from your diet. Use affirmations to help you curb the desire for these temptations.
Healthy eating doesn’t have to be difficult. It’s the cornerstone of a successful women’s fitness program and the key to losing weight while keeping a nice sexy shape.

Find a place where you won’t be interrupted. Some people like to say their affirmations in front of a mirror, while others choose a place of solitude like their bedroom or even their car. It’s best to be somewhere you can give over complete concentration, and that probably shouldn’t be while you are driving.