# data[].attributes.body
My goal for this class is just to learn more about what I am putting in my body. Learning more about nutrition and what you put into your body and how it effects you. I do a lot of sports and I want to improve my performance with those.

# data[].attributes.headline
Eating a good breakfast everyday SMART goal

# data[].attributes.subject
Eating a good breakfast everyday SMART goal

# data[].attributes.body
Every day for the whole semester, I will eat breakfast that has a variety of whole grains, protein and fruits and vegetables.

# data[].attributes.headline
What gets in the way of a healthy lifestyle 

# data[].attributes.subject
What gets in the way of a healthy lifestyle 

# data[].attributes.body
I always catch myself being very self critical and always striving to do better. I always worry about what others think of me and this often leads me to overthink about things I don't need to be spending my time thinking about. In my article, I learned so much more about the importance of breakfast, not only does if effect your body but it effects your mind, concentration levels and sets the whole mood for your day. Everyday this week I drank a peanut butter banana smoothie. It had ice, almond milk, one scoop of PBFit peanut butter and muli-collagen!

# data[].attributes.body
I thought this video was interesting because, this guy did an experiment on having smoothies. You can see the way it effected him!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
I Replaced My Breakfast with This Ultra Healthy Smoothie

# data[].attributes.body
I accomplished a lot this week, everyday I had scrambled eggs with spinach, I challenged myself to eat something other than a sandwich, like a salad for lunch. That would 3/5 days. I found two other articles very beneficial, they both talked about the importance of eating healthy and that is what made me want to go the extra mile and eat a good, healthy lunch. An obstacle I had this week was temptation, I walked into work and there were a whole box of dunkin doughnuts sitting there. I had to resist the urge.

# data[].attributes.body
This app is very helpful for me because I am getting on the right track with how many calories I am putting into my body. I am eating breakfast everyday even when I don't have an appetite for it because I can long it on my app. I am currently using my 3 day free trial with this app. I'm thinking about paying 10 dollars for this month just to get on the right track. This week I ate a varity of breakfasts,
Mon: yogurt parfait with non dairy yogurt & strawberries
Tues: Whole grain toast with peanut butter
Wed: A banana and protien bar
Thurs: 2 eggs with 2 pieces of beacon
Here is a pic of what my app looked like on Wednesday!!!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Did you know that 88% of people who track their intake on applications such as MyFitnessPal for (just) 7 days lose weight?

That statistic alone should be enough to convince you that if you're not reaching your nutrition goals, you may want to try tracking what you eat. Regardless of if you want to lose weight, tone up, or just get healthy, tracking your food provides priceless insight into your starting point, areas for improvement, and ensuring progress over time.

In this article, we'll discuss the benefits of tracking your food, how to track, and tips for long term success in achieving your health and nutrition goals.

8 Benefits of Tracking Your Food

1. Increases mindfulness. Can you remember what you ate for dinner last night? Often times we forget everything we put in our mouths. Tracking helps you remain mindful of what you eat because you have to log it.

2. Provides you a better understanding of your current eating habits. In order to reach your nutrition goals, you need to know what your starting point is so you can make an attainable plan with steps to reach your goal. For instance, you need to know how many calories you're currently consuming, from what sources, and what ratio of macronutrients before you can tweak anything to make progress towards your goal.

3. Informs you how nutrient dense your food is. Tracking your food helps you determine what foods are "worth it" for you to meet your goals/nutritional needs (after a few days, you may think, "Wow, those donuts from the breakroom are really difficult to fit into my nutrition plan and they aren't that satiating. I think I'd rather eat something else." OR something like, "Cake is my favorite dessert. I know I'm going to have to balance the rest of my day because of it, but I'm ok with that because I don't eat cake that often and I really love cake, so this is worth it to me.") Likewise, it helps you realize what foods are inhibiting you from meeting your goals (and therefore help you reduce the amount of consumption or even eliminate). For example, a latte with whole milk and syrups can add an extra 500 calories to your day. If you consume that latte everyday, that's an extra 3500 calories each week...that's equal to 1lb of fat...every week.

4. Holds you accountable. By logging, you are aware when you near your daily calorie limit.

5. Helps you balance your total calories and macronutrients throughout the day. By logging each meal, you can see how balanced your meals are and this can help you make better choices in the future or ensure you continue to make balanced choices for sustained energy.

6. Helps you reach your goals. Once you know the caloric density of your food, you can't help but use that information for the future to help you reach your goals. For example, while out to eat at The Cheesecake Factory you are debating what appetizer you want to order. Before making a decision, you check to see how many calories are in the Grilled Chicken Lettuce Wraps and discover that they contain a whopping 1000 calories. You also notice that would put you way over your calorie limit for the day and decide to go with a different appetizer. (Side note: this is different than a restrictive, boring diet. Tracking simply allows you to make informed decisions of foods you enjoy)

7. Gives you options. You can feel empowered that you have control over incorporating a variety of your favorite foods, in moderation, into your diet.

8. Allows you to plan ahead. Decide what you're going to get at the grocery store while at home or pre-read the menu and log those foods in advance. If you aren't able to do this, learn after you make a choice why it was good or bad (moving your towards or away from your goal) and how to improve your choice in the future.

How to Track Your Food

We've found that many people find success tracking their food using the free app, MyFitnessPal (MFP). For specifics on how to use My Fitness Pal, check out their how-to guide.

People have seen great success with MFP specifically because it has nearly every food in the database, you can easily scan barcodes (including fit-flavors barcodes), you can save your own personal recipes or favorite meals, and the app is available for iOS and android--you always have your phone on you, so you won't have an excuse not to track something.

Activity: Try to log what you ate yesterday. The first step in tracking your food and utilizing MFP is really just seeing what you are currently consuming on an average day. Then, once you know your starting point and have determined your goal, you can tweak what you consume (based on your own food preferences and goals) to fit your nutrition needs.

A few things to remember when you start tracking:

1. The more often you track, the more likely you are to reach your goals. Tracking keeps you informed about your intake over time. Tracking gets easier the more you do it. There's a learning curve to this stuff. Be patient and overtime you won't even realize that you're making tracking a habit that takes little to no time out of your day.

2. Track something v. nothing at all. Often times we get caught up in picking the correct item to log but just having discipline, staying mindful, and holding yourself accountable to logging is just as beneficial in helping us reach our goals.

3. Lifestyle habits will form by logging each meal, one at a time. As you get more organized with doing this, logging your day ahead of time will force you to have a plan.

4. Log ahead of time to see if that food aligns with your goals. If it does not, delete it and choose something else.

Tips for Lasting Lifestyle Changes

Set custom reminders. If you're prone to skipping meals and snacks because you get busy at work and forget to eat, you can set custom reminders in MFP to help you remember when to eat. You can also set a reminder to log your food.

Make friends.People who add friends on MFP are twice as likely to lose weight as those who don't. Adding friends is a great way to hold yourself accountable, give support to each other, and motivate each other to continue logging.

Save time with short cuts. Save multiple logged items to make a meal (i.e. a salad or something with many components), utilize the barcode scanner for quick entries, and add recipes from the web or your own. The last one is also helpful for seeing what your favorite homemade recipes really consist of. You can create a meal in MFP and alter the ingredients or portions until it fits what you need for your goals.

Log at restaurants. Most places have their nutrition up on their website and are already on MFP database. Another good tip is to log your food before you order it to see if it fits in your day. That way you can change what you order if what you originally planned on getting doesn't fit.

Connect with other apps you use. Connect with your other favorite health and fitness apps such as MapMyRun, Fitbit, and Garmin, so you have all your health data in one, easy to reference place to see your full progress in every area.

At the end of the day, tap "Complete Diary." This tells MFP that you're done eating for the day and MFP will give you feedback on how the choices you made during the day impacted your progress toward your goals.

Reflect on non-scale victories. Not every victory is going to happen on the scale -- in fact, most won't. These small victories could include: eating all your meals and snacks every day for a month (if you're someone who forgets to eat), staying within your calorie range each day, having balanced meals at the right times each day for a week, having lower cholesterol at the doctor, passing on the donuts in the breakroom, etc. Block out time to reflect on how your healthy habits are having a positive impact on your life. This will help you continue to make healthy choices in the future.

What now? My challenge to you is to track your food for 7 days. It might feel uncomfortable, but I promise it will get easier the more you do it.
For more assistance with tracking your food, and to develop a custom meal plan to reach your health goals, contact me about one-on-one nutrition counseling.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
8 Reasons Why You Should Try Tracking Your Food

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Did you know that 88% of people who track their intake on applications such as My Fitness Pal for (just) 7 days lose weight? Regardless of if you want to lose weight, tone up, or just get healthy, tracking your food provides priceless insight into your starting point, areas for improvement, and ensuring progress over time.

# data[].attributes.body
This week I didn't do very well with my goal, I didn't eat breakfast most days. However, I had good lunches when I didn't eat breakfast. I only had breakfast two days out of this week, both days I had a protein bar and iced coffee. The rest of the days I didn't eat breakfast. All of my peers videos were about working out, which I did apply at the gym just not with my wellness goal. Here is a picture of my protein bars I eat.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
ADVERTISEMENT

When you're trying to lose weight, it's important to think of the healthier foods you should be eating-not the foods you are missing out on! Weight-loss expert Nicci Micco explains how to build new and better habits. She shows how thinking ahead-by using prescriptive meal plans, eating with a divided-plate method or building your own scheme-can all help you drop pounds.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
ADVERTISEMENT When you're trying to lose weight, it's important to think of the healthier foods you should be eating-not the foods you are missing out on! Weight-loss expert Nicci Micco explains how to build new and better habits. She shows how thinking ahead-by using prescriptive meal plans, eating with a divided-plate method or building your own scheme-can all help you drop pounds.

# data[].attributes.body
Overall, this week went really well. I shifted my goal this week and really tried to challenge myself. I tired to eat a good meal everyday of the week and burn more calories than I took in. I workout a lot so I tired paying more attention to how I was eating. I ate really well!! 2 things that helped me in the video was learning more about the BMS, this went along with my goal this week really well. I also found the importance of water very helpful because Ive been trying to find the balance with that. Here is my workout from yesterday!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Here are the 10 top-tier reasons that make physical culture something worth embracing in your life.
Photo: Active Health
The top 10 benefits of physical activity

1. Weight management

The most prominent benefit of exercising is that it helps with weight management. Exercising increases our caloric expenditure, which helps us lose weight or maintain our ideal weight. Regular exercise also helps to optimise your metabolic rate, which makes weight management a much simpler affair.

2. Bone and muscle health

Exercising makes your body physically stronger because it builds bone and muscle strength. Stronger bones contribute to better balance which means greater stability and less injuries, while stronger muscles contribute to general fitness in carrying out daily activities like climbing the stairs or carrying groceries. There's no need to be averse to actively building muscle; a bodybuilder's physique requires years of very specific training and nutrition. Instead, holistic strength training will ensure that your body's muscles remain functionally healthy in the years to come!

3. Relief from physical pains

Exercise provides rehabilitation for chronic pains such as lower back pain. The right kind of exercise can be a good form of physiotherapy for stubborn aches or long-term injuries. However, be sure to consult a specialist to recommend the ideal workout before you start exercising.

4. Protection against health conditions

Beyond making you physically stronger, exercise also keeps your body healthier by reducing the risk of developing chronic diseases. By helping with weight management, exercise also keeps obesity-related diseases like diabetes and heart disease at bay. Regular exercise also keeps your blood sugar and insulin levels at healthy levels.

5. Younger, healthier skin
Photo: Active Health
The post-exercise glow is a real thing - exercise benefits your skin and makes it look more youthful by triggering the production of anti-oxidants. These anti-oxidants repair skin cell damage and stimulate blood flow, improving skin health.

6. Boosts mental health

7. Energy level boost

The rush of hormones from a good exercise session is a significant energy booster that helps you fight through fatigue and stay more focused. This energy boost is especially helpful for people suffering from chronic fatigue or health conditions that affect energy levels.

8. Improvements in mood

Along with making you feel more energised, exercise also makes you happier. Hormones like endorphins that are released during exercise evoke positive feelings and pushes away negative ones. This makes exercise a good form of therapy for people suffering from anxiety or depression.

9. More quality sleep

10. Higher libido
Photo: Active Health
Sleep isn't the only bedtime activity that benefits from exercise; so does sex. Exercise facilitates blood circulation and flexibility, boosting one's libido and enhances sexual performance and the overall experience as well. For older men, exercise helps to reduce symptoms of erectile dysfunction.

In short, physical activity is indispensable when you are striving for optimal physical and mental health. The most straightforward way to reap these benefits is to simply set aside time every week to exercise. Proper, dedicated workouts allow you to maximise the time you spend exercising to get the most benefits. Unsure how to plan an exercise routine? Start from the following three steps.

Planning your exercise routine

1. Set targets

2. Plan workout duration and frequency

Before going into the types of exercise that you want to do, plan how many workout sessions you can fit in per week and how long each workout session will be. Most experts recommend exercising four to five days a week, varying the length and structure of your workouts with a mix of different activity types.

3. Workout structure

There are three types of activities to consider - aerobic, anaerobic and non-exercise. These exercises target different aspects of fitness and health, so it's ideal to commit to at least one to two sessions of each activity every week.

Aerobic activities

Types of aerobic activities:

Moderate intensity: Brisk walking, leisure swimming, leisure cycling

High intensity: Running, swimming continuous laps, spinning

Aerobic exercises are essential for building your physical conditioning as they work your heart and lungs, allowing you to build a greater work capacity. It's important to incorporate both exercises of both moderate and vigorous intensities into your routine to build a stronger aerobic base - aim for a total of 150 minutes of moderate activity and 60 minutes of vigorous activity every week. To make it easier, you can break your aerobic exercises down into manageable 10-minute blocks.

Anaerobic/strength training activities

Types of activities: Push-ups, pull-ups, squats, exercises involving resistance bands, weight-training

Strength training is important because it strengthens your muscles and bones for better health and resistance against injuries. Strength training also helps with weight-loss - as you gain muscle, your metabolism increases which allows you to better convert calories into energy.

Read also: Top 3 workout for 2020

Non-exercise physical activities
Photo: Active Health
Types of activities: Casual walking, stair-climbing, frisbee

Non-exercise physical activities (NEPA)are not meant to be physically taxing, but they are considered a legitimate form of physical activity that does well in supporting an active lifestyle. Engaging in NEPA during your rest days prevents you from lapsing into a sedentary state and adds (slightly) to your overall caloric expenditure.

Apart from deciding what exercises to include in your workouts, it's also necessary to ensure you have safety protocols in place. Catering for safe workouts start with the following steps.

Keeping your workouts safe

* Proper warm-ups and cool-downs

These should last for at least five to ten minutes. Stretches and slow jogs are common warm-up and cool-down exercises.

* Pay attention to signs of injury

When it comes to cardiovascular work or strength training, it's important to stop at any signs of distress to prevent injury. Avoid intense exercises when you already have injuries such as stress fractures or sprains.

* Watch your form during strength training

Most injuries obtained during strength training are a result of poor form, so always pay attention to your form and never try to rush through your workouts.

* Stay hydrated

Heat injuries are some of the most common exercise-related injuries so always stay hydrated. Go for electrolyte-replenishing drinks after long aerobic sessions.
Photo: Active Health
* Dress appropriately

Wearing the right shoes is of utmost importance to preventing injuries. The right clothing will also help you train comfortably and enjoy your workout more.

* Rest days

The most important safety tip is to always have rest days after intense exercise sessions. Giving your body enough time to repair itself helps to prevent overuse injuries and mental burnout.

Life hacks to sneak in more physical activity

* Take the stairs

Forget escalators and lifts, take the stairs whenever you can because stairs give your muscles a good opportunity for some resistance training. Just one minute of climbing stairs a day can be beneficial for your muscles and help to build up strength.

Read also: 5 easy workouts you can do at home.

* Walk

Walking is one of the best ways to exercise because you can do it anytime and anywhere, without the need to change into sports attire or do some warm-up exercises. While you don't burn as many calories from walking as you do from running, you are also less likely to binge eat after a good walking session.

* Stand up

The simple act of standing up does wonders for your body. Standing improves blood circulation, burns more calories, increases your metabolism and improves posture. You don't have to go out of your way to stand up - opt to stand on public transport or take breaks from work to stand or walk around.

* Carry bags

Carrying your grocery bags by hand allows your arms to get some strength training in. The best way to get some benefits out of grocery bag lifting is to extend your arms all the way down and keep your back straight and shoulders back. This also engages your core and helps you work on your posture.

* Squat daily

A daily 30-second squat is something that's easily doable for everyone and helps to train what is considered the most fundamental aspect of human movement. Squatting helps to train your ankles, legs and hips and also improves stability throughout your entire body.

Scan here for GameOn!Nila

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Here are the 10 top-tier reasons that make physical culture something worth embracing in your life. Photo: Active Health 1. Weight management The most prominent benefit of exercising is that it helps with weight management. Exercising increases our caloric expenditure, which helps us lose weight or maintain our ideal weight.

# data[].attributes.body
After last week, learning about BMS. I’ve decided to track my food. I use an app called “my fitness pal”. I should be taking in 1,338 calories everyday, but I am also trying to do a calorie deficit, meaning eat less than my calories. Here is my breakfast for this morning. Two pieces of Rye Toast with black coffee & almond milk creamer! I have not had lunch yet or any other food since.

# data[].attributes.body
I have continued to track my food. It has really put into realization of how many calories are in food and drinks I put in daily. I feel as though I am almost eating too little, I eat around 500-900 calories a day and I should be eating 1,330 calories. I also have been logging my sleep, I have realized I get a lot less sleep than I thought. Here’s a picture of what I eat in a day, & my sleep schedule. I will continue to do this so I can see my progress.

# data[].attributes.body
I am still tracking my food and my sleep with an app called My Fitness Pal. I am still eating between 500-900 calories. I have made an effort to burn more calories than I take in. I have always loved working out, lifting, running and playing soccer. I focused more on getting enough sleep this week so I have enough energy throughout the day to get everything accomplished. I am feeling the results with my goal and I am very happy with them. Monday was my best day this week with sleep and my diet and my workout!!

# data[].attributes.body
This week, I continued with tracking my food and my sleep. Recently I have been getting up at 5am to workout, the gym opens at 6 and I go with my mom. I am still working on burning more calories then I take in. However, I took Friday as a rest day because I have a soccer tournament this weekend. I have been really working hard and I'm really happy with how I am feeling.

# data[].attributes.body
This week was a minor setback, I sprained my ankle over the weekend at my soccer tournament, so I haven't been getting up at 5am to workout. I have mostly been focusing on going to bed early and still eating healthy especially sense I haven't gotten any major exercise. I will pick up working out next week!!

# data[].attributes.body
I went to the gym 3 times this week, slowly getting back into it. I'm still going to bed at a reasonable time and eating clean. Here is my logs for this week!!

# data[].attributes.body
I went to the gym 6 out of 7 days this week. I also had soccer 5 out of the 7 days this week!! I have been doing very good and sticking with eating clean and going to bed at a reasonable times. Heres my log!!