You can look at Mondays one of two ways: either they're a bummer, because they mean the weekend is over, and it's back to the ol' grindstone; or, they're a new beginning, and a chance to get your week off to a great start!
Here's an awesome way to eat healthier and feel better/more energetic this week: follow this simple mix-and-match meal planning & exercise guide. Just choose one item from each list every day. Plan your whole week ahead of time, or refer back to the list each day. It's healthy living, made easy.
Make sure to check out the notes below, too. Have an awesome week, everybody!!
Breakfast
Lunch
Antioxidant-Rich Blueberry Quinoa Grain Salad
Southwestern Chicken Fajita Mason Jar Salad
Zucchini Bean Salad with Bulgur
Snack
Two hard boiled eggs and half an avocado on toast, sprinkled with sea salt and olive oil
Banana spread with almond butter and rolled in Ezekiel sprouted grain cereal
Homemade trail mix of raw nuts and dried fruits and seeds
Greek yogurt and honey, sprinkled with ground flax or hemp seed
Dinner
Quinoa Risotto with Kale and Peas
Spaghetti Squash Tempeh Stir Fry
Herbed Chicken with Sugar Snap Peas
Exercise
25-minute Walk-Jog: Jog until you're out of breath, then walk for 2-3 minutes until you get your breath back. Then repeat.
30 minutes of swimming laps – alternate breast stroke and freestyle
Find a free local yoga class (bonus points if it's outside!)
30 minute after-dinner walk with a friend or family member
Treadmill interval workout: start at a comfortably easy jogging pace. Warm up at this speed for five minutes. Then increase speed by half a step (so if you're at 5.0, bump up to 5.5). Run for a minute, then go back down to your base speed. Repeat, but this time, bump up twice (so a minute at 5.5, then a minute at 6.0), then go back down to base again. Repeat for a total of 25 minutes. Walk for 3 minutes to cool down.
Notes:
Try to stick to water, tea, and coffee as your only beverages. Soda and fruit juice are both full of unnecessary processed sugars, as well as empty calories (meaning calories that don't provide your body with any useful nourishment).
Listen to your body, and structure your day however suits you best. You can exercise before breakfast or after dinner; eat your snack between breakfast and lunch or right after working out. The most important thing is that you pay attention to what your body is telling you!
If you haven't worked out in a while, take it easy. The biggest victory is getting out there everyday – just get moving, and worry about intense exercising later.
