Now That Is Some High Quality H2O (Top 5 Flavored Waters)

Everyone knows you should drink 6-12.5 cups of water a day (If you didn’t, now you do. You’re welcome) in order to stay healthy and hydrated. I don’t know about you, but after like the first cup water gets boring and I can’t stand to drink it anymore. There’s no flavor to it and mama needs her flavor. I then seek out other beverages to satisfy my thirst. Whilst trying to eat healthy my options are pretty limited. Or so I thought. I know to stay away from soda and most juices, way too many sugars, so I tried to find ways to add some awesome to my water. I was able to find five flavored waters that I liked:

1. Skinny Water

I found this one day while shopping in Target. I haven’t been able to find it there since that day. Maybe it was just a Monday Miracle or something. I can’t find them at Wal-Mart or Publix either. However, they do have a website: http://skinnywater.com/. They have 0 calories, 0 sodium, 0 sugar and a plethora of flavors.

2. Vidration (Vitamin Enhanced Water)

I discovered this drink at Publix on my lunch break one day. I was actually looking for Skinny Water but decided this one would do instead. It was actually quite tasty. They come in 5 different flavors and contain 0 calories, 0 sugars and only 5mg of sodium. http://www.vidration.com/

3. SOBE Life Water

You can find this at most stores; Wal-Mart, Target, Publix and I believe at any or most convenient store. If not that’s very convenient is it? It has 0 calories, 0 sugars and 25 mg of sodium. It comes in an assortment of fun flavors including Yumberry Pomegranate. They also came out with new ones that contain coconut water, which is supposedly super good for you, but contain calories and sugars and are higher in sodium. You check out more flavors and facts over at http://www.sobe.com/#!/home/skinsuit.

4. Vitamin Water ZERO

Make sure it says ZERO on the bottle (Can’t miss it. It says it in huge letters on the bottle) otherwise you’re going to be drinking calories, sugars, sodium and who knows what else. http://www.vitaminwater.com/#/0.

5. MiO

Okay this last one isn’t water in itself, but when you add it to water you create so much awesomeness your brain might explode. MiO is a liquid water enhancer that has no calories, sodium, sugars or anything else. Nothing. Nothing but awesomeness that is. This is actually my Number One favorite but I wanted to save the best for last in this list. Check out the website: http://www.kraftbrands.com/mio/

[I thought this was a cute picture someone took of MiO don't you think? Yes.]

 

And That’s Why You Always Read the Label…

So I kind of hit a plateau this month. I was trying to figure out why. I have been working real hard on my fitness and eating right. I was eating out or eating junk food, but the scale still wouldn’t budge. I like to eat a peanut butter and nutella sandwich on a flat roll as a bedtime snack. I often need a before bed snack or else I can’t sleep because my tummy has the rumblies. I didn’t think it was that bad because peanut butter is healthy and so were the flat rolls and nutella only has 100 per 1 tbsp (which is what I use). Until I read the label better. Yes nutella (the love of my life, the best spread in the world that goes with everything) has only hun cal, but it also has 21 grams of sugar! *Collective gasp!* I know right? My whole universe was shattered. I shook my fists at the heavens and screamed “NOOOOOOO!” How could something so delicious and heavenly contain so many grams of sugar in such a tiny amount? This can’t be! But alas, it is true. Nutella is high in sugar. I have written Nutella a farewell/ love letter:

Dear Nutella,

 I love you, but I think you are keeping me from losing weight. I know you don’t mean to, but you are. This is why I can’t enjoy you as often as I have been. Maybe once a week? I will forever hold you in my heart though.

Much Love,

Madison

 

SparkPeople

I found a new website called SparkPeople.com. It’s a free online weight loss community. I just joined early this week but it seems pretty awesome. Here are some of the features it has:

1. Nutrition Tracker- You can track you food that you have eaten for the day. Just type in a food and they calculate the calories, carbs and fat. You can also choose to follow a meal plan that they make for you. The meal plan is totally customizable and you can add or remove items. They also give you a goal of calories you should be eating daily.
2. Fitness Tracker- You can track your daily fitness, cardio and strength. They will also provide you with an exercise plan if you want and tell you how many calories you need to burn. They provide you with a list of different exercises and how to do each one. These are customizable as well.
3. Spark Teams- They have teams you can join. In each team there are discussion forums, goals and challenges. They have a bunch of different teams based on health problems, age groups, geography and much more.
4. Rewards- Spark People has an award system. You have many opportunities to earn points and trophies for doing certain things. On your home page there’s a wheel you can spin daily to earn points.
5. Challenges-The website also has challenges you can join and complete. I just joined one called 5K Your Way Walk/Jog Training Program. It gives a schedule to train for a 5k in 5 weeks. At the end of the week you can do a race (on your own) and report it on the website.

These are just a few of the things I’ve discovered on the website so far. There’s still a lot more on the website that I haven’t had time to look at. It looks like it’s going to be a very helpful website in my journey. Check it out. Join it, it’s FREE. If you join add me as a friend. SparkPeople.com

 

6 Ways To Help You Get To Sleep

I often have trouble getting to sleep. I’ve battled with insomnia for several years. However, I have picked up some helpful tips that have helped me get to sleep and stay asleep. Here are a few:

1. Wear earplugs: I have been wearing earplugs since high school. They keep out background noises, perfect for light sleepers. They also muffle louder noises. Take a little time getting used to. [I like to wear a heavier mask to keep all the light out.

2. Wear an eye mask: This as well takes a bit getting used to, but it keeps out unwanted lights. Even small lights, like the ones on your alarm clock or DVD player and disrupt your sleep patterns.

3. Drink Herbal Hot Tea: I like to drink ones that are especially for bed time. Examples are: Sleepy Time Green Tea, Sleepy Time, Sleepy Time Extra and my favorite, Tension Tamer. I usually drink these about a half hour for bed and they are very relaxing. They are caffeine free of course.

4. Keep an idea journal: I tend to get all of my ideas right before I go to bed or while I’m already in bed. I keep a journal on my night stand to jot down my ideas when they come to me instead of keeping my self awake trying to remember them and keeping them on my mind.

5. Make a TO-DO List: Instead of trying to remember everything you have to do the next day while you should be sleeping, write it all down. Then you’ll be able to count sheep instead.

6. Herbal Sleep Pills: Instead of taking a Tylenol PM, try taking an herbal sleep aid. On nights when I really have trouble sleeping, I like to take one called Super Snooze. You can get it at Vitamin World or GNC. It’s not addictive nor does it make you drowsy the next day. It works in sync with your natural sleep pattern.