100 ideas.

Below are 10 of the 100 healthy ideas listed on the AccentHealth website that they posted to celebrate their 100th show. Check them out! There are some fun and easy tips that will help you get moving a little more often.

Don't forget about the challenge this month! Be the one to post the most days of getting a good night's sleep this month and you'll win!  To see more about this contest click here.

Set a goal of trying one new fruit or vegetable every week

Keep a bowl of fruit on your desk at work

Switch from ice cream to frozen yogurt

Substitute sweet potatoes for regular baked potatoes or fries. You'll get more Vitamin A.

Get more fiber. Add canned beans or a handful of nuts to your salad.

Take the stairs, not the elevator.

Don't e-mail your office mate. Walk down the hall and deliver the message personally.

Get a dog. Commit to walking 10 minutes in the morning and 20 minutes at night.

Buy a soccer ball. Kick it with your kids or a neighbor.

Buy shoes at the end of the day when your feet are more swollen from use.

To see the other 90 tips...click here.

fit. LIFE.

- A   six pounds.

       The following things are what I'm going to be doing as I get back into a routine this upcoming school year. I did well for most of the summer and then I went to Love Affair and ate wayyyy too many good tasting, high calorie, high fat foods and gained SIX pounds in one week!! How does a person do that? I thought at first that it was just a symptom of traveling, etc. But I'm still 6 pounds heavier than the day I left for Love Affair. Geez!

So   So I'm posting the following for myself and for anyone else who may have fallen out of routine or off the wagon or whatever you want to call it. Here's to second chances and new beginnings! :)

*Accept that you’ve made a mistake. Once you own it, you can redirect yourself and put it behind you

*Remind yourself that the old behavior you are indulging in can’t give you the new results you desire. Remember your personal reasons for working on change

*Do something pro-active that will create more positive thoughts and feelings and enable you to get back on track

*Learn from the experience. Ask yourself what this episode can teach you about your vulnerabilities as well as your personal strengths, resources, and potential for success.

new. LIFE.

colorful foods+antitoxidants=heathy body

It's important to eat colorful fruits and veggies everyday.

Here's the breakdown on why colors are good for you from the Eating Well site.  Make sure to check it our for more great info! (click on each of the links in brown for each of the great recipes)

Antioxidant Rich Recipes

Red/pink: Great source of lycopene, which may protect against prostate cancer as well as heart and lung disease. Tomatoes and watermelon are two sources.

• Quinoa & Smoked Tofu Salad
• Strawberry Bruschetta
• Sugar Snap Pea & Cherry Tomato Pasta Salad
• Watermelon Gazpacho
• Watermelon Slush

Orange: It’s easy to remember carotenoids, the class of antioxidant found in this color: just think “carrot-enoids.” Fruit and vegetables, such as carrots, mangoes and sweet potatoes, store beta carotene, which the body turns into vitamin A.

• Curried Chicken with Sweet Potatoes & Cauliflower
• Fresh Mango Chutney
• Mango-Lime Sorbet
• Moroccan-Rubbed Grilled Steak & Sweet Potatoes
• Sichuan Carrot Soup

Yellow/green: Get your lutein and zeaxanthin—two antioxidants linked with reducing the risk of cataracts and atherosclerosis—in honeydew, avocados and yellow corn. Many green cruciferous vegetables also contain indoles, another antioxidant, which help fight cancer.

• Avocado-Grapefruit Relish
• Broccoli with Caramelized Onions & Pine Nuts
• Calabacitas
• Chipotle Cheddar Chard
• White Sangria

Purple/blue: This color, common to summer treats like blackberries and eggplant, comes from a very powerful kind of phytonutrient: anthocyanidins, which may protect against heart disease by preventing inflammation. Since different foods contain different anthocyanidins, try to eat a range of purple and blue foods to benefit the most.

• Blueberry Ketchup
• Grilled Eggplant Panini
• Quick Pork Saute with Blackberries
• Roasted Eggplant Dip
• Rustic Berry Tart

And don't forget about the challenge this month to get more sleep.  To see what the prize is click here for more info.

colorful. LIFE.

get some sleep.

Sleep is an important part of good health.  In an article here it lists all of the details about why you should get a good night's sleep.  The short version of the list I've put below.  To read more click here.

1.  Sleep keeps your heart healthy.

2.  Sleep may help prevent cancer.

3.  Sleep reduces stress.

4.  Sleep reduces inflammation.

5.  Sleep makes you more alert.

6.  Sleep bolsters your memory.

7.  Sleep may help you lose weight.

8.  Naps make you smarter.

9.  Sleep may reduce your risk for depression.

10.  Sleep helps the body make repairs.

July winner!

Laura!  You're the  July winner!  You gave some awesome tips every day of the month except one day.  Way to go!  Thank you so much for being part of our little Move it Monday community.  Send me a quick email and tell me where you'd like to have your $50 gift card from.  Have a wonderful Artist's Day out!

August Contest:

So...the contest for this month is on your honor.  Come to the Move it Monday post for the week everyday of the month and tell us how many hours of sleep you got and if you went to bed before midnight.  The person who goes to bed the most often before midnight and gets at least 7 hours of sleep per night will be our winner for the month.  The winner will get a $50 gift card to their local spa toward a massage or some other pampering treatment.  It's time to stop staying up so late and to start getting more than four hours of sleep a night!  You deserve it...and need it!

invigorated. LIFE.

Hello Blog Friends and my dear Love Affair Ladies,

I have to come on here and say I'm so sorry for completely neglecting my posts this week!  I've been at our Love Affair Workshop and had an amazing time that included every day being about a 17 hour day.  I would come back to my room and fall into bed...and promptly forget what day it was and even that there was a world moving on outside of the Love Affair Workshop.

It was a fantastic week filled with beautiful women and life changing moments that I'm very blessed to have been apart of...thank you to all of the women who attended Love Affair.  It was so difficult to see you leave our safe little haven and at the same time I felt like a proud parent watching my child walk out into the world and do beautiful, blessed, sweet things...without fear.

I miss you all...

sweet. LIFE.