Something I think everyone will need...GROCERY SHOPPING TIPS

I always tell my husband that if he did the grocery shopping, we would save a lot of money on food. This is because I go in the store with a list prepared, and come out with the list fulfilled PLUS a hundred-and-one more items then I need.

I get distracted by all of the deliciousness in the store and just start grabbing things that look good.

Come on....I KNOW I can't be the only one!

So today I am going to talk about grocery shopping tips. (Say HALLELUJAH!)

I found an article with 50 tips for grocery shopping and I find it to be very useful.
This article includes tips such as "keeping a list on your fridge" and "cut back on meat by eating vegetarian meals a couple times a week" and "try the store brands" and "go when the kids are in school" and many other very helpful tips.

If there is one mistake I personally make on the regular, it's going to the grocery store when I am hungry. But I mean I LOVE FOOD.

I would recommend downloading your grocery store's app if they have one. I don't know how many stores do this, but where I am from we have Kroger. Kroger has an app that let's you load coupons right to your Kroger card. It is very convenient because then I don't have to carry around a bunch of paper coupons. They automatically ring up when you checkout.

Here is another helpful article...My Top 10 Tips for Creating a Grocery Budget.

If you have a Sam's Club or Costco or whatever else you might have where you live, consider buying in bulk. If not, it's totally fine! There are so many resources out there for us when it comes to grocery shopping. Have fun with it!

Let's REFLECT

Okay, so as I'm writing these I can't keep up with what I have and have not written about. I also would love to get feedback from you guys on how I can improve my blog.

As I've said before, this is my first time ever writing a blog. If there are any ways that I can improve, topics I need to discuss, ect.,  PLEASE feel free to let me know. I am open to criticism and ideas.

So far, we have covered these topic:

- What is nutrition?
-SODIUM (blah)
- SUGAR (sweeet)
- SALADS ( mmm...leaves)
-Yummy..SMOOTHIES
- COFFEEEEEEEEE!
- YOUR Favorite Healthy Food (never got feedback btw)
- How to Prepare a WEEK's worth of healthy meals
-VEGGIE-TABLES
- FRUIT
- everyone dreads....Weight Gain
-NUTS, NUTS, NUTS
- How to combat Bloating (eek)
-Be your very own nutritionist! (If you can't afford or don't want your own)
-How to keep your WHOLE Family healthy
- EXERCISE (ewww for some, awesome for others)

aaaaaaaaand that brings us to where we are now!

If there is a topic you would like to be covered, or you have an idea on how I can improve my blog to make it more interesting, worth reading, ect., just let me know! :)

P.S. Here is a picture of Maslows Hierarchy of needs just in case you needed it lol 
The bottom two needs (physiological needs and safety and security) are the basic human needs, the next two (love and belonging and self-esteem) are the physiological needs of humans, and the top one (self-actualization) is the self-fulfillment need. The idea is that each layer, starting from the bottom, motivates our behavior more and more. Once each level is fulfilled, we move up a layer. So for example, if you do not have access to food and water, shelter, ect., you will not feel safe so the next level will not be accomplished.

Just a little knowledge in case you needed something new to learn today. I just learned this in one of my college classes. Thought it was neat.

Exercise, Exercise, Exercise

If you are an exercise fanatic, I salute you. I was an athlete from the age of 3 to the age of 18. Then I got so tired of it. Since I entered college, I barely exercise at all aside from walking around campus. It is worse now that I have baby weight from giving birth to my son a few months ago. I am also way too busy to maintain a steady exercise routine.

My question was "how can I fit a simple exercise routine into my schedule?"

So when you want to get exercise tips, you don't listen to people like me who don't exercise much or don't know much about exercise. You consult professionals. So I have 17 Tips from Fit Moms on Finding Time for Exercise. It includes tips such as including your kids in your exercise routine and picking your exercise outfit the night before so you don't spend time worrying about what to wear.

If you don't really know much about exercise and don't even know where to start to create your own routine or plan, this article is for you. It will help you create an exercise plan that works for you and fits in with a busy schedule.

If you are exhausted all the time like me, because I have an infant and I am a college student, this article is perfect. It is a Quick and Easy Fitness routine specifically for tired mommies and could also be used for daddies as well!

Despite these articles, you can always do simple things such as take the stairs instead of the elevator, park further away from the entrance of stores so you can walk more, take your pets for a walk, go to the park with your kids and walk the track while they play, and of course do what you can to cut back on food calories. Whatever works for you is what is right for you!

How to Be Healthy as a Family

Today I am thinking about family. If you have a spouse and/or children like I do, life can get pretty busy. How do you make sure your family eats healthy meals during the week and have healthy relationships with one another?

Healthy meals are not only difficult to make, but expensive. I even see that schools are starting to demand that parents send their children to school with healthy lunches. In my opinion, the most difficult thing about making healthy meals is trying to find new and different meals to eat. Who wants to eat the same meals every single week?

My blog on making meals on a budget had some tips about making kids lunches and family-sized meals, but didn't really explain how to be healthy as a family. Being healthy as a family is more then just making nutritious meals to eat.

There are six simple steps your family can take to maintain a healthy lifestyle. The full article is on heart.org but I am going to tell you the six steps.

Step 1: Identify free times for activity.
Step 2: Make time to plan a weekly menu, go shopping and prep your meals.
Step 3: Simplify your family's schedule.
Step 4: Take baby steps, not giant leaps.
Step 5: Ask everyone in the family to do their part.
Step 6: Live by example.

I just so happened to find another article that gives examples of these steps. There is a lot of good information in this article that I will start using in my family. This article even gives you a chart so you can determine how active you are.  I would definitely take a look if I were you!

There are certain regular habits you can maintain on a regular basis to be a healthy family. For both the children and guardians, you can make sure everyone gets at least 20 minutes of exercise per day. For just the children, you can tell them bedtime stories before bed. For just the parents, you can aim to have sex at least twice a week. Having healthy relationships is just as important as eating healthy.

Be a healthy family!

How to Be Your Own Nutritionist

If you are like me, there is no way you can afford your own nutritionist. You may not even live in an area that offers nutritionists. I thought about it, and I realized, "why can't I be my own nutritionist?"

There are ways you can help yourself loose weight or become healthy. You can read blogs (like this one), you can try to force yourself to exercise or go outside, you can look for things to do around your neighborhood, town, or city, or you can do research and learn how to become your own nutritionist.

This is a process, so you need to be dedicated to it in order to make it work. Maybe you should charge a close friend or loved one with the task of making sure you stick to your plan.

Step 1: Give yourself a personal assessment. You can check your body mass index here. 

Step 2: Ask Yourself Why.

Step 3: Be realistic. Set yourself goals you can easily attain no matter how busy your life is.

Step 4: Check out your medical history. Do you struggle with things like high blood pressure, cholesterol, diabetes, and more? Sometimes there are ways to help or combat issues like these.

Step 5: Keep up with how many calories you consume. At least try to keep a rough estimate, because I know sometimes it's hard to keep up.

Step 6: Re-visit the past. Try to think back to what made you gain weight, and what made you loose weight. (If you've tried to be healthy before.)

Step 7: ALCOHOL. If you are an alcohol drinker, be mindful of how much you consume, as alcohol can pack on the pounds.

Step 8: I know you love the taste of fast food and restaurant food, but STAY AWAY. You can eat foods such as these in moderation, especially fast food. Just not all the time. (Admit it, you're guilty.)

There are about 10 more steps to this process, and to see them all, visit the article "How to Be Your Own Nutritionist". It will tell you ALL you need to know. It's fabulous.

I know it sounds like a lot of steps, but just breathe and think about it. Most of the steps are so simple and you can do them with little to no effort. It is essentially being mindful of the way you live and in some cases, changing the way you live (health wise).

Pictured below is a possible book you could read to help you on your journey. I haven't personally read the book myself, but hey it would be worth trying. 

Ever Feel Bloated? Here's How to Combat the Uncomfortable Feeling

As I am writing this, I feel bloated. And it is the most uncomfortable feeling. Bloated is excess gas that has not been released from your system.
Feeling or looking bloated can not only be uncomfortable, but cause you to gain weight that you haven't really gained, if that makes any sense. It can also cause you to feel bad about yourself. For example, I am going to a wedding this weekend and if I am bloated, I won't be able to fit into my dress! That would be just awful, wouldn't it?
So I started doing some research about how to flatten my tummy. Here's what I found.

First of all, DRINK WATER. I know that drinking water is what everyone tells you when you are searching for nutrition advice, but when you don't drink water, your body doesn't flush all that yucky stuff out and doesn't balance out your salt and water content. In return, you get bloated. Speaking of salt....

Limit your salt intake. Too much of it can cause bloating. Other foods you should avoid are processed deli meats, carbonated drinks, canned soup, and more. Read more here.

 Foods you SHOULD eat are:
yogurt, cucumbers, ginger, lemon water, shrimp, grainy bread, and much more. Here are 31 Foods that Banish Bloat Once and for All.

If you refer back to my blog about fruits, you will find a bunch of detox water recipes. Detox water is a great way to get rid of bloating. Drink a cup in the morning and viola!

Oh, NUTS!

I don't know about you, but I always hear how nuts (peanuts, almonds, cashews, ect.) are good for you. But I've never really known the health benefits. I normally shy away from them because they aren't very filling (even though they are supposed to). My feelings are about to change. Today, I am going to tell you the health benefits of nuts and how you can make them apart of meals or turn them into a filling snack.

Tree nuts such as pecans, almonds, pistachios, walnuts, and any others you can think of are packed with protein and are good for your heart.  But all of these nuts have different health benefits individually. If you want to find out what those health benefits are, read this article by everyday health. Remember, nuts that are covered in salt or other ingredients are better for you.

When I tried to research healthy nut recipes, it mostly came up with recipes that are nut-free because a lot of people have nut allergies. But I managed to find a wonderful little article that gives you healthy recipes that contain nuts. Check it out here. It contains recipes for foods like caramel-spiced apples drizzled with pecans, toasted pumpkin seeds, homemade chex mix, and cocoa hazelnut banana bread. YUM! Since fall is approaching, I think I might have to try some of these!

Since nuts tend to contain a lot of calories despite being healthy for you, I found a list of the 6 best nuts for weight loss. Brazil nuts take the top spot at number one, and cashew butter comes in at number six. Read more from 'Eat this, Not That!' If you are trying to gain weight, however, Beauty Health Tips wants to tell you the best nuts for that. It also adds a little something extra as well: dried fruits!

Weight Gain

When you think of nutrition, you probably think of eating healthy as a means of weight loss, but what about weight gain? There are people in the world who struggle with gaining weight, and although I have never personally struggled with it, I've known people who have.

I know less about weight gain then I do weight loss, but I imagine that most people who struggle with gaining weight go to the doctor to learn how to do it safely and healthy.

Reasons that someone might be trying to gain weight include prolonged illness or hospitalization, you may be naturally skinny and want to feel better, an athlete who wants to bulk up for sports, or you are growing older and loosing weight as a result. There is such thing as being underweight just like there is overweight.

So today I am going to give you tips on how to gain weight the healthy way and the foods you need to do it.

The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics gives some tips on gaining muscle or bone mass. They say to steer clear of supplements and focus on quality over quantity. If you don't eat very much at each meal, start by eating smaller meals more often, about 5-6 times a day. In meals or cooking, use milk instead of water because milk contains more calories but is still healthy. Avoid "lite" or "low-calorie" foods and go for the full calories. Make your foods more interesting by adding things to them, such as celery and peanut butter or cheese on your chili. If you want to read the whole article, click here.