Some thoughts and discussions from me.

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This post is sponsored by Stayfree via Mode Media. All opinions and text are my own.

This can be said about working out consistently, reaching your health and fitness goals, eating right, and just about every aspiration when it comes to health and fitness. Agreed?

Even as a personal trainer, I find it can be tough to workout every day, cook my meals, incorporate plenty of proteins and veggies, and so on. After a day of teaching and training, I sometimes want to “leave the office” just like everyone else. Additionally, after a day of writing nutrition plans and adjustments, I just want to order a dang pizza.

But I don’t (well, yes, sometimes I do, but I mostly don’t.) And it’s not because I have an infinite amount of willpower. It’s because I do my best to not make a healthy lifestyle any harder than it needs to be.

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It can even be fun!

<I’m going to pause for a second here to remind everyone that eating healthy and working out SHOULD NOT be miserable, nor should it feel next to impossible. If it does, change what you’re doing, or find a new trainer/coach. It will be hard, but NOT impossible.>

The truth is, healthy living shouldn’t feel like a huge battle day after day. It’s basically a series of small, consistent, and persistent efforts repeated over and over again. That gets you the results and healthy life you’re after. And there are things you can do to make those efforts easier on yourself:

5 Every Day Health Hacks to Use to Stay on Track

1. Keep bags of frozen veggies on hand

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I’ve mentioned this in previous posts, but I cook with frozen veggies all. the. time – probably 3-4 out of the 6 nights a week I cook dinner. They’re pretty cheap – even organic – and are typically picked and flash frozen at peak ripeness. Plus, it only takes a few minutes to cook them. I love adding frozen veggies to crock pot dinners, stirfrys, and tacos!

2. Bulk cooking proteins

Once a month, I’ll go to Costco and stock up on my “Big 3” proteins – organic chicken, ground beef, and ground bison.

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(and eggwhites, bananas, avocados, and Dr. Pepper for my addicted husband ;))

I immediately cook one package of each to have in the fridge for grab and go lunches. I like to chop up the chicken into chunks for salads and wraps, and cook the ground beef and bison either with a seasoning to add to veggies, as well as patties for sandwiches or lettuce wraps!

I also keep cans of salmon and tuna in the fridge for easy salads.

3. Keep yoga mats and fitness equipment handy

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In my living room, I have stashed 5 resistance bands, a small foam roller, The Stick, and a yoga mat for impromptu workouts, ab work, mobility work, and yoga sessions.

(Don’t forget, you can get a FREE 30 day subscription to free yoga classes via Gaiam TV and Stayfree with any Stayfree purchase, including Stayfree ultra thin liners, which are perfect to use for yoga during TTOTM.)

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4. Workout in the morning if possible

I know this isn’t ideal for everyone, and I’m a huge advocate of sleep taking precedence over a tough workout, but if it’s possible, working out in the morning can streamline your day. I love AM workouts for a few different reasons:

  • only need to take one shower
  • you don’t have all day to think about a reason not to workout
  • it becomes part of the oh-so-important morning routine
  • you start your day off on a healthy note, and subsequently treat your body as such for the rest of the day

5. Pre-chopped/prepared veggies

This one is along the same lines as the frozen veggies point, but having chopped, prepared veggies on hand is HUGE. I love Costco’s bags of mixed veggies, as well as Trader Joe’s prepared mixes. I also love to quickly chop up a cucumber or bell pepper, and use the shaker method that I showed here to get an extra pop of flavor.

There are lots of other ways to make eating right and maintaining a consistent exercise program a little bit easier, but these 5 tips are what I find to help the most. I’d love your input! Share below how you make nutrition and fitness fit into your life a little easier.

Have a lovely Wednesday, friends!

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What Health Hacks do you have to add to the list?

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