Just For The Fit Of It

Its so important to be active. Your activity level affects your overall health! Get a moderate level of activity for at least 30 minutes a day. It doesn’t have to be 30 consecutive minutes, just 30 minutes total!

Here are some easy, almost-effortless ways to increase your activity level and burn extra calories:
• Play with your kids.
• Go for a walk.
• Do a little dance! (9 Minutes of Zumba burns 100 calories!)
• Go for a jog.
• Ride your bike.
• Do some yoga or stretching.
• Get some house work done: ironing, general cleaning, tidying up, sweeping, moping, vacuuming, etc. all burn a surprising amount of calories.
• Garden (19 minutes in your garden burns 100 calories!)
• Wear ankle weights while you grocery shop.
• Play with your dog or other pets.
• Use a work-out app or YouTube videos to get in little work-outs throughout the day or a longer one at the end of the day. (You only need 2 and a half minutes to boost your metabolism and start burning calories!)
• Sit on a stability ball at your desk.
• Go window shopping – or real shopping!
• Get to knitting! 50 Minutes of knitting will burn 100 calories!
• Cook! 30 Minutes of cooking burns 100 calories!
• Go bowling!
• Go for a 2 minute walk every hour.
• Play mini golf!
• Go for a hike or exploring a local park.
• Volunteer with local youth, at an animal shelter, a local food bank or a senior living facility.
• Donate blood!
• Play pool – every couple of games played burns 100 calories!
• Stand for phone calls. Next time the phone rings, stand to answer it and while you’re on the call! Even try balancing on one leg for a little extra calorie burn. Then switch which leg you balance on for the next phone call.
• When you’re stuck at a stoplight engage your core and abs by sitting straight up, put your hands on the steering wheel at 10 and 2, and breathe your belly button in towards your spine and lower back. Release and repeat focusing on taking deep calming but forceful belly breaths to get a mini-ab workout at every stoplight!
• Fidget more! Bounce a leg, tap fingers on a table, play with rings, etc. While you may annoy your officemates or others around you, you’ll be burning calories with every movement!

Looking for some healthy snack options? All of these make great snacks and are loaded with nutritional benefits!

• Avocado
• Fresh Fruits: bananas, kiwi, apricots, apples, pears, clementine’s, oranges, grapes, cranberries, any kind of berry
• Nuts: sunflower seeds, almonds, walnuts, pumpkin, flaxseed
• Fresh Vegetables: celery, carrots, grape/cheriub tomatoes, sugar snap peas, cucombers, sliced banana peppers
• Legumes (Beans)
• Coffee
• Green Tea
• Greek Yogurt
• Granola
• Dried Fruits
• Leafy Greens
• Oatmeal
• Nut & Seed Butters
• Whole-Grain Crackers
• Avocado Crisps
• Jerky: uncured, low in sodium and made from few ingredients
• Popcorn
• Tuna or Salmon Packs
• Dark Chocolate
• Chickpeas & Roasted Chickpeas
• Nutty Granola Bars: KIND, Larabar Fruit & Nut Bars, RxBars, Fiber One Bars, Luna Bars, Oatmega Bars, Health Warrior Chia Bar
• Pita Chips
• Green Pea Snack Crisps
• Sweet Potato Chips
• Applesauce
• Veggie Chips
• Bean Chips
• Rice Cakes: top with avocado, honey, nut butter, hummus
• Hummus
• Honey
• Dry-Roasted edamame
• Cottage Cheese
• Raisins
• String Cheese
• Seaweed Snacks
• Healthy Smoothies

All of the following are for two servings – make and share or halve the recipe for a single serving.

Classic Green Smoothie

• 1 frozen banana
• 1 cup greens (baby spinach, destemmed kale, collards, chard, etc.)
• 1 cup unsweetened milk (nut, soy, animal)
• Optional: Honey or maple syrup, to taste

 Essential Green Smoothie

• 1 cup spinach or other leafy greens
• 1 banana, frozen
• ½ cup unsweetened vanilla milk or other milk/milk alternative
• 1 tablespoon peanut butter
• ½ cup plain reduced-fat Greek yogurt
• Optional: 1 scoop protein powder or Carnation Instant Breakfast

Strawberry Banana Smoothie

• 1 banana, frozen
• ½ cup strawberries
• 1 ½ cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk or other milk/milk alternative
• 2 tablespoons chia seed or flax seeds or oats
• Optional: For an added veggie boost, add 1 cup of spinach or another leafy green

Chocolate Peanut Butter Smoothie

• 1 frozen banana
• 1 cup unsweetened milk (nut, soy, animal)
• 1 tablespoon natural peanut butter
• 1–3 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa powder, chocolate protein powder or chocolate Carnation Instant Breakfast
• Optional: Honey or maple syrup, to taste

Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie

• 2 frozen bananas
• 2 tablespoons natural peanut butter
• 1 cup unsweetened milk (nut, soy, animal)
• 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
• Optional: Honey or maple syrup, to taste

Strawberry Banana Smoothie

• 1 frozen banana
• 1/2 cup frozen strawberries
• 1 cup unsweetened milk (nut, soy, animal)
• 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
• Optional: Honey or maple syrup, to taste

Mocha Smoothie

• 1 frozen banana
• 1 cup strong-brewed coffee
• 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
• Optional: Honey or maple syrup, to taste

Mixed Berry Smoothie

• 1 frozen banana
• 1 cup frozen mixed berries
• 1 cup unsweetened milk (nut, soy, animal)
• 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
• Optional: Honey or maple syrup, to taste

Clementine Avocado Smoothie

• 2 clementines, peeled
• 1 ripe avocado, pitted and scooped from the peel
• 1 ripe banana, peeled
• 1 cup unsweetened animal or plant-based milk
• 2 cups fresh baby spinach
• Optional: 1 tablespoon honey to taste
• Handful of ice

 Tropical Smoothie

• ½ cup pineapple, frozen
• ½ cup mango, frozen
• ½ banana, frozen
• 1 cup coconut water + ½ cup water
• 1 tablespoon flax seeds
• Optional: For an added veggie boost, add 1 cup of spinach or another leafy green

Breakfast Smoothie

• 1 cup spinach or other leafy greens
• ½ banana, frozen
• 1 ½ cups unsweetened vanilla almond milk or other milk/milk alternative
• ¼ cup oats
• 1 tablespoon peanut butter or other nut butter
• 1 tablespoon honey

Raspberry Protein Smoothie

• 1 cup raspberries, frozen
• 1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk or other milk/milk alternative
• ½ cup cottage cheese
• 1 tablespoon of almond butter or other nut butter
• 1 tablespoon honey
• Optional: For an added veggie boost, add 1 cup of spinach or another leafy green

You can print these recipes here!