Tomato Avocado Salad

In the past few weeks, Hungry and I have kicked up our fitness level to a certain degree. It’s been going fairly well, and we are a mission to achieve our goals and stay healthy! It’s not always easy. We have busy lives, a not-so-great neighborhood, and everyday troubles. However, we rise above and keep fighting for our passion! To go along with that are healthy recipes. Recently, our fridge and pantry have been chock full with delicious fruits and veggies. We’ve been getting great prices on avocados from Trader Joe’s which we’ve been certainly using to our advantage. We’ve been making different things like caprese salads, roasted tomato on toast, and yummy spinach recipes too. In this case, I simply combined a few ingredients to create something very tasty: a tomato avocado salad.

Finished product

Mar042015

American Heart Month… is NEVER Over!

February was American Heart Month and March has begun, but that doesn’t mean that American Heart Month is over. I purposefully delayed this post to show you that while associating a month with this important issue is important, it’s equally important to be mindful all the time. You should be thinking of your heart every day of the month, every month of the year. Most people don’t know what the heart actually does, but it is the most important organ in your body. Your brain and lungs are also key components to the facilitation of your body systems operating, but without the heart we lack the ability to provide oxygen to the brain and the lungs.

Having been through multiple emergency response courses from ARC to AHA to React Right and more, we learn that as soon as you see an individual in need, it’s best to be safer than sorry. Call 911 and have someone get an AED immediately. The ratios of chest compressions to rescue breaths has changed over the years to favor more compressions since it is imperative to get the heart working as soon as possible. CPR stands for cardio pulmonary resuscitation, in other words, creating an artificial flow of blood that carries oxygen through the body, so that brain function stays intact and body systems do not suffer long-term damage, or the worst short-term result of total body system failure, or death.

Feb282015

One-Protein-Fits-All: Sunwarrior

I have a friend at work who struggles to get enough protein as a kind-of-vegan (she just doesn’t eat cheese and milk by itself) and who also can’t eat soy. I can suggest all the protein powders in the world, but they usually end up having either milk proteins or soy in them! It’s been a tough case to try to find one that would work for her. As fitness professionals, we run across a lot of people who are soy or dairy limited, so it can be a struggle to provide enough options for good protein. Here at Hungry and Fit we finally found a one-fits-all product! Enter Sunwarrior (epic name, right?).

Feb112015

The Largest Digital Health and Fitness Community?

I recently received word that MyFitnessPal and Under Armour were joining forces to create a group of over 120 million members. Now, to be honest, I don’t really like Under Armour THAT much. I have nothing against it but when I was a competitive athlete (a while ago), I found Adidas, Nike, and Puma created training apparel that was more comfortable and effective to boost my training. For the high prices of their Cold and Heat gear, their sizing was awkward for certain athletic (and non-athletic) builds and I didn’t find them to benefit thermo-regulation. (The process of the body trying to maintain its proper temperature despite extreme temps on the outside that could lead to hyper or hypo-thermia.)

On the other hand, I recommend MyFitnessPal to nearly all of my clients, athletes, members, etc that are focused on lifestyle changes and losing, gaining, or maintaining weight. I have it myself although I don’t use it, but Fit does. (My closet is all Adidas, Nike, and Puma, but no UA. If you’re curious, all my socks and underwear are Puma, all my shoes are Nike, all my clothing is Adidas.) It’s a great, free tool that has really improved since it was first introduced. I find that being able to watch my clients gives them more accountability and helps them avoid bad choices. The new(er) bar-code feature is great, too.

Now, with this partnership, they are boasting three apps. Under Armour RECORD, “a complete 24/7 fitness dashboard” that I have never heard of before now; Endomondo, “the most social and advanced personal training app in the world” of which I have also never heard or seen; and MapMyFitness, “the industry leading GPS based fitness tracker” which I know of and think of as one of the best. It’s great that MyFitnessPal’s CEO Mike Lee is stating that nothing about the MyFitnessPal experience will change because it has provided such a great service.

Image source

Jan302015

Lung Leavin’ Day 2015 (Mesothelioma Awareness)

September 26th, 2014 was Mesothelioma Awareness Day and we published one of our favorite articles of the year just two days before. You can read it here. To sum it up, Mesothelioma is a form of cancer cause by exposure to asbestos. It is extremely difficult to know if you have been exposed and those who are diagnosed typically are told they have 1-2 years left to live.

A friends of ours, Heather, has a tremendous survival story that will make even the toughest individuals feel vulnerable. At the same time, it is equally empowering and it shows you that all you can do is stand up to your fears… and CRUSH them!

February 2nd, 2015 is Lung Leavin’ Day. It marks the anniversary of when Heather had her lung removed to survive her battle with cancer. It is her tradition with those who are close to her to write their fears on plates and smash them into a fire under the night sky. We welcome you to join that initiative to stand strong, face your fears, and continue to raise awareness for not only cancer but specific forms such as Mesothelioma.

If you can’t afford to break plates or are concerned for the environment, please click on the following link and participate through this amazingly designed page. (It’s so awesome I can’t get over it.) Type your fears onto a plate and break the plate in the fire. This is a great way to face your fears in 2015 and become the strongest you have ever been. Share this page on Facebook, Twitter, email your friends… it costs nothing and is a great activity for an even greater cause.

Image Source

Jan142015

How to Get Your Fitness Motivation Back

People who can identify in some way to the title know that going through this is tough. Being a normally active person or simply having a goal to becoming a health nut and not having that drive inside of you hurts. It almost wounds you, if you’re someone who is usually top-notch. Whether it’s due to lack of time, lack of energy, or just plain lack of motivation, it’s depressing to not have that hunger to work the body hard. Since I’m no longer training people full-time, I have found that my fitness motivation isn’t as high as it used to be. When I was training full-time, I was an example, and my clients were my motivation. I appreciated all the hard work they were doing and that, in turn, inspired me to keep fighting hard for my health. Now that I’m not training as much, my motivation dips to what I can do to “stay in shape” or “get by.” This is the worst because just getting by is average and I loathe average.

It’s not all bad news. There’s light behind those dark clouds. It is possible to get out of that slump and the key is within your own mind. I’ve thought about this a lot recently–how I want to beat average and become my truly fit self again. I’ve thought about what has motivated me in the past or what has really fired me up. Being fit is a very personal thing. Everything is in your head–your goals, your inspiration, your drive, and so forth. Motivation is not universal. I can tell you right now that Dani California Cooks does not get motivation to workout hard while listening to a video game soundtrack like I do (she’s nerdy in other ways). We are all different–and that’s what makes humans so interesting. However, there are some tips on how to tap into your inner drive and motivators and how to get your fitness motivation back.

Jan012015

Happy New Year from Hungry and Fit!

Happy New Year to all! We hope it was a wonderful 2014 and we hope you’re planning on an even better 2015. We want to share with you our year in stats! Click on this link to see how WE did this year!

Coming up soon…how to make your goals stick and how to take baby steps! We want to set reachable and obtainable goals this year so we can CRUSH THEM!

So tell us…how was your 2014? And as always…stay hungry and fit!

Dec242014

Fit Over 40

As you can probably tell from previous posts and our Pinterest, we really love infographics. Not just any infographic, of course, but solid ones with good information and great visual content. Fitness and health are great subjects to put into infographics. It breaks down fitness techniques or health studies into relatable and understandable content that the reader can digest. We can totally get behind that. And they are just so fun to look at! We recently found Fit Over 40–an awesome infographic explaining what happens when you age and how you combat those aging effects.

I suggest–even if you’re not 40 or beyond–to take a gander at this infographic and article. We wouldn’t share things with you that didn’t have good grounding or that we didn’t think had good information. This one does and everyone can learn a thing or two from it. I really like the above picture, explaining what changes in our bone mass depending on what age we are. When we think of fitness, we often think of outside appearances. This is a huge “inside” health issue that can completely change your life. Pay attention to these types of things! It also talks about a range of different effects of aging like what happens to your hormones and more. Let us know what you think of the full infographic. And as always…stay hungry and fit!

BONUS KITTY PIC

Dec192014

The Truth About Supplements

Every day we hear something new in the media about different supplements. This one can stop Alzheimer’s and this one can prevent you from getting fat! It’s hard to know what to trust or what to believe in. You become hesitant with everything OR you simply start trying everything. Recently, my coworker showed me this incredible infographic on supplements and correlating studies. I got really excited about it because I am a firm discourager of fads. Most often, many supplements (I’m talking health supplements so things like coconut oil and garlic extract are included here), are popular fads without real grounding. Take a look at the Interactive: Snake Oil Supplements (no it’s not about snake oil, it’s just the title).

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So how does this infographic work? It’s hard to understand at first. If you’re starting from the top, you’re looking at supplements with the most studies behind them which make them “Strong.” And if you scroll to the bottom, you’ll find “Slight” or “None” meaning there are very few studies behind it. This provides a wonderful foundation for the infographic–it’s all based on research. In addition, to keep this infographic fresh, the bubbles are all tied to a google doc. So when more studies come in, the infographic gets immediately adjusted. Pretty freaking cool, I think!

There’s also the size of the bubble which–at first–could be misinterpreted. We usually think big is better, but not necessarily. You’ll notice garlic high at the top in the “Strong” field yet its bubble is smaller than, say, copper, which is at the lower end of the spectrum. The bubble simply represents the popularity of the supplement. So even though egg shell membrane is a tiny bubble, it is backed by many strong studies.

I love infographics. I love health and fitness. And I love when they come together to provide free information to the masses. What do you think of this infographic? Are you going to start taking garlic extract now? Don’t forget your probiotics or B3! It’s always fun to learn more about supplements and I believe this infographic is a great way of doing so. Tell us your thoughts in the comment section below! And as always, stay hungry and fit!

BONUS ANIMAL PIC

Nymeria keeping an eye on Noke

Dec172014

Hungry Meets TRX

It might seem weird that after all these years in competitive sports and then the fitness industry, I haven’t really come across TRX before. None of my coaches, trainers, or sports medicine staff ever had me use it for my sports performance and I never felt the need to take a class or take a course to be an instructor. Well, that changed when we moved to LA and I found myself working at a new fitness facility where all three of the personal training staff were also TRX instructors. After some pressure was applied by my boss, I said… what the heck, why not?

In TRX, you don’t get certified; instead, you obtain qualifications for every course you take. With one TRX qualification, you are considered an Equipped TRX Instructor. (That’s me.) With three or more, you are Advanced and so forth. The system is based on the number of qualifications you have and the points that each is worth (Level 1s are worth 8000, Level 2s are worth 16000). The tiers also are color coded, like belts in Martial Arts.

All of this information is on the TRX database on their website, www.trxtraining.com. It’s a great system and free as a resource. If you want to pay a little bit every month, you can be a member of TRX Core, which gives you access to every TRX resource online, including a library of workouts, live chats with Master level trainers and Gurus, etc.

Fitness training courses

As for the qualifications, I took the Group Suspension Training Course, an introductory course to teach group exercise classes. Now, I’m signed up for their RIP trainer course and their level 2 TRX TEAM. It’s something different and it’s effective. It’s more challenging than elite athletes think and less challenging than health-seekers feel it might be. They find the straps intimidating but it can be scaled to hit any fitness level.

I would recommend beginners and people recovering from injuries do a few TRX personal training sessions before jumping into a group class, but since you’re on your own straps, you can go on your own pace. If your instructor is pushy and tries to make you go at the class pace when you shouldn’t, get a new instructor. Once you grasp the fundamentals and trust the straps, it’s fun. And while you should still be doing strength training to get stronger or practicing your sport to increase your skill, this is a great addition to any exercise regiment. It keeps you humble, builds balance, increases stability, and eventually mobility.

It has a lot of benefits, just be mindful of your knees and shoulders. Make sure you warm up properly, even before your instructor starts class. And make sure you change your grips so that you aren’t constantly squeezing the handles like you’re going to fall off a cliff. You don’t want to stress those forearm muscles.

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Stay in touch, I’ll keep you updated as I teach more classes and get a few more qualifications under my belt. Still, feel free to ask any questions about TRX and I’ll let you know if you should give it a shot! And as always, stay hungry and fit!

BONUS PUPPY PIC