{Guest Post} Food & The Daily Battle
Welcome to Part II of the Women’s Health series here on Moi Contre La Vie. Today we’re going to hear more from Megan of Kaia F.I.T. Sacramento on the daily struggle to eat well. If you’re new to this series be sure to check out Megan’s bio {Guest Post: Women’s Health} and her previous post – Fashion of the Fitness World.
Part 2: Food… The Daily Battle
I love ice cream, especially cookies & cream. I love cheeseburgers and extra crispy french fries. I can put down a serious amount of pizza. I love crafty cocktails and champagne. I worked in fine dining restaurants for 10 years and was privileged to indulge in some amazing dishes and glasses of wine…
But now I work in the fitness industry. And I constantly try to balance my view of food… Fuel or Delicious Goodness? My answer is both.
The majority of the time, on the day-to-day, food is fuel. Looking at it that way leads me to eating cleaner, leaner, and healthier. I view myself like a machine and if I want to run properly, perform well in my workouts, and feel energetic all day, I need to provide myself with the best fuel available.
I personally feel the best when I eat multiple times throughout the day, always beginning with breakfast. I feel great when I eat lean meat and eggs, lots of veggies and greens, and fresh fruit. I like nuts and trail mix for snacks and dried fruit for dessert. Avoiding the starchy carbs, dairy, and sugar is essential to feeling good.
However, coming from the restaurant industry, I love nothing more than a nice dinner out. I appreciate a perfectly cooked noodle and a salty piece of pork belly. And I absolutely love home-made ice cream and cookies at my mom’s house. These are the good things in life.
So, how do I balance it? When do I decide to devour a sandwich and when do I stick to a salad full of veggies? I practice MODERATION. I try to stick to healthy ‘fuel’ most of the time. When I treat myself to ‘carbs’ and sugar, I view it just that way… As a TREAT. I think it’s better that way anyway. I feel like crap when I eat sugar and bread days in a row and I stop appreciating it.
Everyone has to make their choices, each and every day. But awareness is where it all begins. If you never go without bread, dairy, sugar, alcohol, etc., how will you ever know how you feel without it?
Our go-to detox at Kaia FIT is 7 days without the following:
- All starchy ‘carbs’ (bread, tortillas, rice, potatoes, etc.)
- Sugar over 9g per serving (besides sugar naturally found in fruits/veggies)
- Alcohol
- Dairy
- Processed Foods (if you can’t pronounce something on the label, avoid it!)
Eating clean is a great feeling and I highly recommend letting yourself experience it. And remember, “All things in moderation, including moderation.”
A big thank you to Megan for this great insight into her way of thinking about nutrition. It’s very easy to get into patterns of binging or restricting, so avoid all the negative side effects of both of those ways of eating and try practicing moderation as Megan has suggested.
What’s your personal approach to your daily diet?
{Guest Post} Fashion of the Fitness World
After her introduction two weeks ago – Guest Post: Women’s Health – I’m sure you’re dying to hear what comes next so without further ado please welcome back Megan from Kaia FIT Sacramento.
Part 1: Fashion of the Fitness World
I’m sure there are many people who laugh at the thought of fashion in a gym setting. And, in some ways, I’m envious of that. Most days I’d love to throw on some comfy pants and a baggy shirt… But that just doesn’t work for my kind of workout.
To run, jump, climb ropes, flip tires, swing kettlebells, and do burpees until I want to vomit, I need gym apparel that does a few very important things! 1) STAYS ON. I hate nothing more than having to pull my pants up or adjust my top. 2) LASTS. I wear gym apparel every day and I need it to last wash after wash. 3) IS FLATTERING. Going to the gym is motivated by feeling and looking good. For as hard as we work during our daily workouts, I’m a firm believer that we should feel confident while we do them!
I’m not saying anyone needs to wear perfectly matching Lululemon outfits every day (although I’m certainly a fan of their products) or that the way you look in the gym even matters. Many of our girls at Kaia FIT look forward to their hour in the gym as the one hour they can sweat it out and be free to grunt, groan and throw their hair up in a bun. And I love that.
But here’s an interesting observation I’ve made during my time at Kaia FIT. Most women walk into the gym for their first time in some old workout pants and a baggy sweatshirt (including me). But after some time, whether it’s because we all realize we’re tired of our pants falling down or because we’re feeling more confident, we graduate into some new workout clothes. It’s a great moment when I see a woman walk into the gym in a new outfit. She holds her head a little higher because she knows she deserves to wear that outfit. She has shown up everyday, lost a few pounds, and gained a whole lot of strength and self-love… And that outfit says so!
Fashion in the fitness world… Does it really exist? Sure it does. But not because you’re on a runway while you do your workout or that any of us really notice what color your top is. Instead, the fashion that exists in the gym is often the sign of hard work, reward, and confidence gained… And those things will never go out of style.
Coming up: Food… The Daily Battle
What did you think of that? I don’t know about you but I get inspired to hit the gym when I get new workout gear and get motivated when I set a goal with a trip to Lulu as the reward. In the market for some new duds? Check out my Workout Gear vs Streetwear post for some of my picks for the gym!
Beginner Fitness
In 2012 a reader came to me with a simple request – Could I help her ease into a workout routine that would put her on the path to overall better health? I documented a part of the process in the following series of posts – Want To Achieve Gym Goddess Status?, Part II, Part III, Part IV & Part V.
I’ve recently received a similar request and thought that 2013 would be a great time to share some of the details with my readers again because I think it’s such a worthwhile topic and achieving better health is widespread goal. I’m sure there have been countless New Years Resolutions related to this so why not get started on your path to health and happiness now?
In addition to providing short beginners workouts for the next few weeks, I’ll be recommending reading and do my best to keep you all motivated and inspired – Which is half the battle.
Workouts:
You want to ease into a new workout regime regardless of your current level of fitness, however if you’re not currently working out, attending classes, and/or running on a regular basis I would suggest starting with one or two small workouts a week and gradually increase to 3-5 as you start improving and feeling stronger.
Let’s start Week One with two short workouts to get us in the mood:
Day One
Warm Up: 5 minutes of cardio {Walking quickly, jogging/running, elliptical, stationary bike, rowing, stair climber…}
- Elbow plank {Mark’s Daily Apple’s How-To: Proper Plank Technique} Hold for 10 seconds, relax, return to plank & repeat – 3 rounds of holding for 10 seconds
- Walking lunges {FitSugar’s Back to Basics: Walking Forward Lunge} 3 rounds of 10 lunges on each knee
- Plie Squats {Women’s Health Magazine’s Plie Squats} 3 rounds of 10 squats
Warm Down: 5-10 minutes of intervals on a machine of your choosing {See the suggestions under Warm Up}
- 30 seconds as fast as possible
- 1 minute 30 seconds recovery – moderate speed
- 30 seconds as fast as possible
- 1 minute 30 seconds recovery – moderate speed
*My recommendation is to turn this into a mini circuit workout – After your warm up do one set of planks, one set of lunges, and one set of squats, then repeat the process a second and third time to complete the circuit before your warm down.
Day Two
Warm Up: 5 minutes of cardio {Walking quickly, jogging/running, elliptical, stationary bike, rowing, stair climber…}
- Reverse Lunges {FitSugar’s Back to Basics: Stationary Reverse Lunge} 3 rounds of 10 lunges on each knee
- Crunches {Dummies.com’s How To Do Crunches} 3 rounds of 20 – Be sure to watch your form & keep your chin & elbows UP form is important w/ this move
- Leg Lifts {Shape Magazine’s Double-Leg Lower & Lift} 3 rounds of 20
Warm Down: 5-10 minutes of cardio {Walking quickly, jogging/running, elliptical, stationary bike, rowing, stair climber…}
Nutrition:
Following diets, participating in cleanses, and going through detox programs are interesting ways to find out how your body responds to things, but they’re not a way of life. Learning to eat well & make smart food choices on a daily basis is going to do much more for you than any short-term healthy eating “fix.”
Depending on your typical diet transitioning to a clean eating regime can seem pretty daunting, so to make the switch more manageable I’ll just recommend a few tips and suggest some things to cut out of your diet each week.
To start, it’s time to get cooking! Your first goal should be to cut out packaged, processed, and pre-made food from your diet. Don’t panic! That doesn’t mean that you’ll never be able to order Chinese again or never enjoy a handful of chips in the future, but if you want to transition to a clean diet the first step is to eliminate all of these types of foods. So your mission for the next two weeks is to start giving up anything processed, stop hitting the drive-through, and spend more time in the kitchen and less time at restaurants.
Here are a few alternatives:
- If you like chips or salty other snacks – Try raw almonds, butter-free air popped popcorn, or baby carrots w/ hummus
- If you crave the beta-endorphin rush of sugary treats, baked goods, or candy – Switch these high calorie picks for fresh fruit, natural almond butter, or homemade sweet treats like Choosing Raw’s Cinnamon Caramelized Cauliflower or Maple Cinnamon Candied Pumpkin Seeds
Homework:
Understanding why you feel the way that you feel and how to improve your health is important. Anyone can blindly follow instructions, but learning about health, nutrition, and your body will help you for your entire life.
So with the goal of educating yourself and expanding your horizons here are some interesting articles you might enjoy:
- Healthy fats like avocados, olive oil, and nuts & seeds {in moderation} are an important part of a healthy diet. Learn more about this subject by reading Natalie Jill Fitness’s Eating Fat Will NOT Make You Fat…
- One of the things that impacts your health almost as much as nutrition and fitness is stress. You need to pay attention not only to how much stress you have in your life, but how you deal with it – How Stress Affects the Body.
So what do you think of this new series? Are these topics and the information I provided above interesting and relevant to your life?
Disclaimer: I am not a trainer, doctor, or dietitian nor do I have any certifications associated with physical fitness or nutrition. I’m merely an enthusiast {and former athlete} who reads & does research daily and has worked out alone or with coaches & trainers since the age of 6. I am lucky enough to have access to a handful of blogs, websites, and trainers to answer my questions though. Prior to making any dramatic changes to your fitness routine or diet I suggest that you consult a physician.
For more inspiration, my daily workout routines, and more Moi Contre La Vie you can find me on these platforms:
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/moicontrelavie
- Twitter: @moicontrelavie
- Instagram: @moicontrelavie
- Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/mclv/
The Man Behind The Camera
Other than my dear friend Liz, the remainder of the MCLV Personal Style photographs are taken by the current boyfriend Sean. He has written a guest post for us in the past and trained me in the ways of CrossFit, but has never been featured on the blog for his fashion prowess before.
That is, until today.
True, he spends the majority of his waking hours in workout clothes, but when he does deign to put on street clothes, he has a great personal style.
When we initially met in our senior year of high school he was extremely preppy – Polo shirts, button downs, and wool or cashmere collared coats. But over the years his style relaxed, becoming more and more low-key, and when we got back together two years ago he wore very little other than t-shirts, jeans, and flip-flops.
But miracle of miracles, over the last two years his sense of style has begun evolving again. And more than that, he has actually started to enjoy clothes and fashion more, like he did when he was younger. Now he shops online, asks for advice on putting together pieces in his wardrobe & picking things out, and genuinely has an interest in shopping and expanding his wardrobe.
These days he prefers to keep his daily look low-key and minimal, and primarily wears black, white, and navy. Jeans are usually his preference and he traditionally pairs them with a Lacoste Pima V-Neck, a button down, or a Polo shirt. As for brands, we’ve found that the shirts that fit him best are Express for Men and Lacoste, they both have slim fit versions that work well for his frame.
When it comes to shoes he’s tried virtually everything, from boots to slip-ons to boat shoes to loafers. He loves slip ons and its all I can do to make sure he doesn’t wear his rubber soled slippers out of the house. The most worn pair of shoes he has are his tan, lace-up Banana Republic loafers, but he did just get a new pair of slip-on boat shoes that are very versatile.
They can even be worn with pink!
And a style post wouldn’t be complete without mentioned his creativity, he picked a kick-ass Halloween costume last year that suited him quite well despite being an incredibly last-minute choice – The Travelocity Gnome! 🙂
In the mood for more? Check out my Let’s Hear It For The Boys post filled with tips, ideas, and inspiration for putting together a complete and stylish wardrobe.
What do you like most on the men in your life? Are there certain styles that appeal to you more than others? When it comes to mens accessories, do you think less is more?
A Healthy Mentality
With bathing suit season nearly upon us I think that now’s a good time to turn our thoughts to health and fitness. Rather than crash diet or give ourselves 10, 15, or 20 days to reach specific goals in the upcoming months, why not change our habits and lifestyles so that we can stay healthy, happy, and in-shape all year around?
So with that goal in mind here are some health and fitness-related to links to get you motivated and in the mood for positive, healthy life changes. It’s a well-rounded list of reading materials, from interesting new workouts to healthy daily changes you can make to recipes you should try out. This is a great first step in a healthier direction!
Workouts:
Whether you’re a fan of free weights, classes at the gym, running, or yoga, we all know the importance of staying active in maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Getting your heart rate up a handful of times a week is vital and adding walking to your daily regime will make all the difference in the world. I promise. You can even try low-intensity fasted cardio and get some walking in first thing before breakfast. Or ride to and from work each morning on your bike! Below are some ideas for different types of workouts to try, ways to mix up your trips to the gym, DVDs you may be interested in trying, and running tips.
- Fit Bottomed Girls shares their 10 Favorite Workout DVDs From a Guy Who Knows His Workouts. This list includes virtually everything you can think of – martial arts-inspired workouts, circuit training, yoga, and dance DVDs. Quite the comprehensive list!
- If you’re dedicated to the gym be sure to keep your workouts interesting and challenging by mixing things up each week so that no muscle groups are overlooked and you wont plateau on your goals. For inspiration on creative ways to mix up your workouts read FitSugar’s From Total Body to High Intensity: Elliptical Workouts For All, Mark’s Daily Apple’s The Importance of Pull-Up Bar Training, Prevention’s 7 Reasons You Need To Try Kettlebells Now, Self’s The Insanity Workout: 20 Minutes to Totally Toned, jump roping, and 3 CrossFit Total-Body Workouts. Add some new moves to your circuit workouts or try a new tempo on the elliptical, whatever it takes to keep your body, and mind, engaged and enjoying the results!
- Were you brave and ambitious enough to sign up for a race this Spring? It doesn’t matter whether it’s a 5k, 10k, half marathon, or triathlon, just getting out there is what really counts. Here are some tips and tricks and no-no’s: Most Common Running Mistakes, 25 Marathon Training Tricks, The No Meat Athlete’s How to Run Long (and Strong!), How To Start Running: Couch to 5k, and From Training Schedules to Meal Plans: Everything You Need For Your First Race.
- Want to try a new-to-you workout on for size? Whether you’re in the market for a new daily exercise regime or just something fun to do with a friend, here are some interesting choices: Ballet Boot Camp: Barre Fitness, Pilates, P90X, Cycling, Spinning, The Hunger Games Workout, yoga, or CrossFit.
Food:
How we fuel our bodies is the single most important thing that we do for our health on a daily basis. We make countless decisions every single day about food and beverages, and its easy to make the wrong choices if you’re not paying attention, haven’t educated yourself, or even if you procrastinate and wait until you’re starving before reaching for something. Fad diets will come and go, but eating a healthy, balanced diet is always going to be the best approach. Always.
- A big part of starting a healthier way of eating is making better choices, whether you’re swapping calorie-dense processed foods for fresh fruit and vegetable-based snacks on a daily basis, reducing your portion sizes each meal, or giving up refined flours and sugars. Cooking in your home is always going to be the best way to ensure that you’re eating the healthiest that you can eat – Here are some tips and ideas to get you started: What can you make with avocado, 7 Nutrient-Rich Juice Recipes, 6 Healthy, Crowd-Pleasing Spring Soups, know your good fats from your bad fats, summer salads, 10 healthy raw recipes, oven-roasted vegetables, 10 healthy egg recipes, vegetable quinoa pilaf, 5 healthy hardboiled egg recipes, and Recipe Roundup: Bars, Kale Chips, and Other Ideas for Quick, Easy, High Raw and Vegan Snacking!
- Interested in trying out a plant-based this Spring but worried that you’ll miss out on your favorite foods? Check out Vegetarian Comfort Food Recipes from Women’s Health, Fitness Magazine’s Endurance Athlete Brendan Brazier on How to Fuel an Active Lifestyle the Vegan Way, FitSugar’s Filling Veggie Meals That’ll Boost Your Metabolism, or even hit the grill with vegan-friendly burgers or Bourbon Tempeh Sliders!
- Try a healthy, nutrient-dense, filing breakfast to start your day out right: Vegan Overnight Oat Parfaits- 12 Recipes To Kick Off The Season, Smoothie Love, Mouthwatering ways to improve your oatmeal, Green Juice & Smoothie Recipes, or Scrambled Eggs with Smoked Salmon, Asparagus and Goat Cheese.
Motivation:
Finding the internal motivation to lace up your sneakers or grab your gym bag can be a challenge sometimes – when you have a bad day, when your schedule is hectic and you swear you don’t have time, when you’re tired, or it’s that time of the month…
- Sometimes it’s the little things that motivate get us to the gym – Wanting to show off our new gear, being excited to listen to a new playlist, meeting a buddy for a workout… Don’t be embarrassed, use anything you can think of to get yourself to the gym! Read Rachel Wilkerson’s Lesson #115: How to Bribe Yourself to Work Out, FitSugar’s Foolproof Ways to Motivate a Weekend Workout on Friday Night, Prevention’s 7 Home Workout Excuses to Bury, Shape’s 12 Sayings to Get You Moving, Lifting, and Laughing, and Real Simple’s Friday Find: Style Firm.
- Different ways to motivate yourself: 5 Crazy Fit Female Athletes, 3 Motivational Musts That Get Me To The Gym, Motivational Quotes to Get You Moving, 9 Ways To Use Your Smartphone To Stay Motivated, Move It or Lose It! How to Motivate a Lazy Friend to Exercise, Why Eating Right and Gym Motivation is Mental, and How to Jump-Start Your 2012 Workout Action Plan.
- I love looking at inspirational sayings and pictures to amp me up before a workout (or to encourage me to hit the gym when the couch sounds amazing…) – Check out Pinterest for all the motivation you can handle!
Extras:
- If a great playlist is a must have check out Gala Darling’s Workout: A Mixtape!, Fit Bottomed Girls’ 80’s Workout Playlist, Women’s Health’s Workout Playlist: Pop Music, or FitSugar’s Top 100 Workout Songs.
- Want some new workout duds to spice up your workouts? Check out FitSugar’s 5 Places to Find Cute, Cheap Workout Clothes, Refinery 29’s Cute Workout Gear You Actually WANT To Wear, or MCLV’s Workout Gear vs Streetwear for some great ideas.
And if you’re just starting out in the fitness arena and feeling a bit unsure of where to begin read through my Gym Goddess posts for workouts, inspiration, and things to keep in mind for beginning gym-goers:
- Want to Achieve Gym Goddess Status?
- Gym Goddess – Part II
- Gym Goddess – Part III
- Gym Goddess – Part IV
- Gym Goddess – Part V
What are my personal health and fitness goals for this Spring and Summer? Finally get through my spinal injury, start running, hitting the gym for circuit training, going to Pilates classes, and get up the courage to check out boxing and martial arts classes!
And just to make you guys laugh, here’s Shit Girls Say At The Gym!
Workout Gear vs Streetwear
Whether you fit your gym sessions in before, during or after work, you’re always faced with a very specific quandary – what do you wear as you traverse between locals?
This is something that I’ve always thought about and is one of the things I notice most during my walk home from work. If you go abroad you’ll notice how rarely you see anyone on the street in tennis shoes, let alone full head-to-toe workout gear. And in car-centric cities where you drive to the gym, this isn’t really an issue.
I prefer to keep my street clothes on the appropriate side of the spectrum so when I see girls walking around in spandex shorts and a sports bra it gives me ulcers. On the other hand, I have to confess that when I used to head straight from work to Pilates, which is near my apartment, walking over in my workout gear was the most convenient option.
So that begs the question – what’s a girl, or guy, to do? With an endless number of adorable workout gear companies, there are tons of chic choices that can go straight from the street to the gym.
{Spandex done right – Gents, take notes! I also love the bag & old school kicks, fun additions to the look}
Whether you like mesh shorts, running tights or cropped pants there are great options available, from high-end to basic. There are great speciality stores like Lululemon Athletica and Raw Threads as well as more readily available stores like Old Navy, GAP, Adidas, Nike, or other porting goods stores.
{Old Navy – Left: Men’s Active Track Pants – $30 & Right: Women’s Boot-Cut Yoga Pants – $20}
{One of my personal favorites! Groove Crop – $90 @ Lululemon}
{Karolina Kurkova paired her bright pink highlighted running tights and orange shoes with a snug wool coat.}
Especially during fall and winter you need some extras to keep you warm and outerwear is also a great way to cover up during your pre and post workout time and keep your sweaty shirt and sports bra straps out of the public eye. 🙂 
{The Cover-up Game: Left – Run Baby Run II Athletic Jacket – $75 @ Roxy & Right – The North Face Men’s Sargent Full-Zip Hood – $65 @ Zappos}
{Not sure what the best way to accessorize is for your next gym trip? The Sartorialist’s Gym Dandy knows just what to do… And here I thought no one worked out in Italy!}
{Gym bag for him: Left – Cheap Monday Gym Bag – $75 @ Asos.com & Gym bag for her: Right – Kipling Adara Large Tote – $110 @ Macy’s}
{This is one of my gym bags – I got it off of Ideali years ago – and I alternate between this and one of my smaller Longchamp Le Pliage totes}
{Victoria’s Secret model Alessandra Ambrosio at Pilates – Cropped yoga pants, tank, leg warmers, a high ponytail & a long-sleeved shirt to throw over everything!}
While you may not be in the mood for leg warmers, because let’s admit there’s really a time and a place for those, there are plenty of non-tech gadget accessories that can make your workouts run smoother. 
{Toys for the boys: Top Left – Coal Knit Beanie – $25 @ Nordstrom & Top Right – Saucony Ultimate Run Glove II – $20 @ Zappos, Toys for the girls: Bottom Left – Fuel Belt H20-2 Bottle Belt – $40 @ Zappos & Bottom Right – VSX Sexy Sport Headbands – $15 @ Victoria’s Secret}
Now you’ve got the gear it’s time to get your booty to the gym, and that way you’ll be in amazing shape by the time New Year’s Eve rolls around… 🙂
What workout gear or gym goodies can you not live without?
Moi Contre La Vie 