Week 6 Habit Challenge: Increase your fiber intake

This is the week 6 of the HABIT CHALLENGE and we will be increasing our fiber intake. Last week was about controlling your late night eating and increasing your daily fiber intake will keep you fuller and help you in losing weight and getting those flat abs you have always desired.

If you don't know, let me remind you that there is no fiber in fizzy drinks, in cakes, biscuits, or
chips. but there are fiber in vegetables, fruits and grains. There are many benefits of increasing your fiber intake.

• fiber reduces the risk of certain cancers.
• it relieves constipation
• it reduces the risk of diabetes  and heart disease
• lowers cholesterol
• it also stabilizes blood sugar level
• by filling your tummy with fiber (i.e. few calorie), it enhances weight loss.

there are few easy steps to increasing your fiber intake:

• Instead of snaking on biscuits or cakes why not snack on fruits like banana, avocado, orange or apple, snack on vegetables like cabbage, carrot, lettuces,  tomatoes, corn or green beans and nuts like peanut (our ground nut, roasted or cooked) but all these in moderation (always remember that everything must be in moderation). 
• Instead of white bread, substitute it for brown bread. brown rice instead of white rice.
• Start adding beans to your meals be it green beans, brown beans, white beans or baked beans.
• make oatmeal (Quaker oat) your friend. its lovely for breakfast and keeps you going all day

EAT IN MODERATION......too much of everything is bad.

Update 168lbs

Am so happy that i lost another 5 lbs (i.e. 2.2 kg) this week making it a weight loss of 10 lbs in 2 weeks (i.e. 4.5 kg) wow, that's not bad at all. Hopeful by next week, more will drop.

Easy ways of reducing your calorie intake

• Eat small portions of food instead of a huge portion. if you are eating out, you can share the meal with your friend or partner.
• Eat slowly, it is said the one should spend a minimum of 20 minutes over every meal. chew your food properly so it can help digestion.
• Resist foods that are high in calorie.
• Eats lots of fruits and vegetables, they can fill you up thereby making it difficult for you to eat other foods.
• Drinks lots of water, it does not only make you fill fuller but increases your metabolism.

Simple carrot soup recipe

This is for 4 people, with 5 minutes of preparation and 30 minutes cooking time.
Ingredients
2 tablespoon of olive oil
1 onion (finely chopped)
7 to 8 carrots, peeled and sliced

4 tablespoon of rice
1 liter of water (or stock)
pepper (red or black)
salt
Fresh rosemary/thyme (optional)

Direction

• put the olive oil in a pot  and pour in the chopped carrots and onions. Cover and cook for about 12  minutes, adding little water when necessary. Add stock or water, and rice. Cover and cook for 18 minutes.
• Pour in the blender and blend until  purée.  Pour it back into the pot and reheat tasting for pepper, salt or seasoning.
• serve in a bowl and top with rosemary or thyme

Calories in Nigerian snacks

1 gala contains 297 calories, before you shovel it down your tummy, think again.


1 puff puff is 544 calories, and 120 calories coming from fat alone. think about the white flour and sugar.

Per serving of chin chin contains 376 calories, 17 grams fat and 49 grams carbohydrates.

1 meat pie contains about 580 calories with 36 grams of fat and 38 grams of carb.

If you have any snack in mind that you will love to know the calorie content, do drop a comment below.

Update 172lbs

I was stuck on 177lbs for a long time but in 7 days i lost 5lbs which is 2.2kg. I am so happy and relieved that am off 177. Lets see how this week goes, hopefully another 5lbs (lol).

It wasn't easy, working out morning and evening as well as taking walks and eating healthy.

How are you getting along?

Bombshell Butt Workout

I got emails that the last butt workout i uploaded was a bit difficult, so here is another one but it is not easy.

8 Minutes Abs workout at home

Very wonderful exercise that burns and works. but remember to eat a clean and healthy food. You don't want to work hard exercising and you are sabotaging yourself.

WEEK 5 HABIT CHALLENGE: Control Your Late Night Eating

Its week 5 of the WEEKLY HABIT CHALLENGE. if you have been following the simple, easy way of changing your lifestyle then I believe you are seeing results by now. Well, I am seeing result because just in 7 days i lost 5lbs this is 2.2kg.

This week is all about finding ways to beat or eliminate late night eating. Imagine having breakfast
in the morning, lunch and dinner and by 9pm or 10pm you are sitting in front of the television watching a movie or a show, then the commercial break comes and you see yourself heading to the fridge or cupboard to get a snack or anything to eat. I use to do these and a lot of people do it as well.

There is something known as the Night Eating Syndrome, according to research it affects 27% of obese people and it is associated with depression, stress and other health problems. If you eat late at night in order to cope with stress then it won't be a surprise if you keep gaining weight.

When i stopped eating late at night, i felt better and happier because i knew i was heading to a healthier me and seeing myself losing weight. Once its 6pm, nothing enters my mouth apart from water but sometimes when I cant cope, I can take 2 crackers just to shut up the body.

But why are you eating late at night?
It is very important to identify why you eat late at night, is it because you are hungry, stressed or bored? When you must have identified why you are eating late, find smart ways to stop or reduce this. Like eating less during the day and finding little snack to eat at night.

Tips in avoiding late night eating

• Keep healthy snack in the fridge. 
• Portion out your snacks. Portion control is the secret of losing weight and keeping it off. keep unhealthy snacks out of your reach.
• Eliminate problem snacks. If your weakness is chocolate, it shouldn't be in your home. If you love biscuits and you think that you have the will power to keep it at home and still not eat it, you got to be kidding me. you and I know that once it is there, you must eat it. so to avoid temptation, don't buy it
• Take a hot bath 
• Do little exercise before going to bed
• Do something different.

10 Minutes Butt and Thigh workout

If you want your butt and thigh toned and tight, here is a 10 minutes workout. I so much love this workout because it is very effective. for a very good result incorporate this workout with good eating habit. 

Habit Challenge WEEK 4: Portion Control

It’s the week 4 of the HABIT CHALLENGE. I am getting along well, how are you doing? You don’t have to be perfect just keep on trying and progressing.

This week is all about portion sizes, it’s not easy but gradually you can get through. Before my weight loss journey, I ate large (huge) portions of food, veggies, biscuits and all. Don’t say that because it's apple, you can eat 3. Yes apple is fruit and good for the body but it is only okay to eat
half an apple or 1 not a basket of it because it is healthy. Portion control is very important both for those trying to lose or gain weight. Right now I take portion control very serious. Although I started very drastically, from a large plate of rice to 4 tablespoon of rice as a meal, it was not fun and it frustrated me so much. This is how to go about it, gradually adjust the quantity you eat or change the size of your plate.

Try eating one serving instead of five (5) servings. You don’t want to keep gaining weight if you are trying to lose weight, feeling depressed and out of control. I have been there so I can relate to that. Instead of eating 5 cookies at a go, eat one serving which is just 1 cookie.
Don’t try to move from eating huge portions of fast food to eating salad, it will back fire on you, gradually change it. Portion your meals the way you will eat them, even if you are freezing them, try and portion it. Like meat, fish, cooked meal, snack and all.

It is not easy, it has never been easy but it is worth doing. Try to listen to your stomach, because it knows when you are full. Even if you are eating out, watch your portion, divide the meal into 2 parts and ask them to pack the rest in a take away plate for you. If you have already taken control of your portion try eating more veggy than carb, if you still struggling with your portion, I suggest you change your big plate to a smaller one.

Have a lovely week.

Snack: Carrot and Peanut butter

Carrot and Peanut butter is a very lovely and delicious snack. The crunchiness of the carrot and the  taste of carrot (heavenly ...lol) is very healthy and will keep you going when you feel empty or hungry.
But don't get carried away to the point of finishing a can of peanut butter. Eat like 2 large carrots with 1 to 2 tablespoon of peanut butter.
It is very easy to make your own natural peanut butter ( just buy roasted groundnut and blend it).

Easy Sweet potato soup

Ingredients (for 4 people)
1 Onions (finely chopped)

500g sweet potatoes (peeled and chopped)
seasonings (any of your choice, I like the chicken cubes)
Fresh thyme for garnishing
1 Garlic glove (finely chopped or crushed)
Pepper (anyone)
Olive oil
water

Direction
In a large pan, put 1 tablespoon of olive oil, add onions, garlic, and pepper and cook for 5 minutes or until it softens. Add the chopped sweet potatoes and cook for 2 minutes then add water and seasoning, cook until potatoes are very soft. squash/blend or mash it into a smooth soup.

Easy Healthy salad

For some reason, most Nigerian women hates salad once there is no baked beans, corned beef or even cream (dressing) on it. Salad is lovely and a great way for the family to get enough veggy
while eating.
Making salad doesn't have to be complicated or difficult, here is a simple and easy salad you can enjoy. The best part of this salad is that you can get the ingredients anywhere.

Ingredient
2 Tomatoes (fresh and finely chopped)
1 Cucumber (with sink, finely chopped))
1/2 Onions (finely chopped)
1 Lemon / juice (i.e. juice from a normal lemon you get in the market or shop)
2 teaspoon Olive oil
1 Diced garlic
Salt and black pepper for taste
3/4 cup Fresh parsley (optional)

Direction
Combine the whole ingredient in a bowl, and the olive oil then salt and pepper for taste and you are ready to eat.

I love this salad because it saves time and also very tasty

Get your arms toned with Dumbbell exercise

Here is a good workout for the arm and shoulder with dumbbell. If you don't have dumbbell, you can use a water can filled with sand or can of food like baked beans or tomatoes. believe me it all works.

Help: Emails

Hi readers, please help me out when you send me mails through the contact form on my blog. I get a lot of emails from readers asking for my help, i really do want to help but when you don't put your email address I really don,t know how to get hold of you.

All i see is message but not your email. you can send me direct mail on natachyy@live.com and i will reply you asap.

Oat Pancake

Who doesn't like pancakes, well i love pancake but i have realized that white flour is not totally good for me and for those trying to lose weight or even for the health. taking in the wrong carbohydrates will only store fat in your body, athletes and those trying to keep fit totally eliminate flour from their diet.I love my pancake hot on Saturday morning, so how do you enjoy your pancake while trying to eliminate any flour. My pancake recipe is lovely and also delicious, it is very cheap to prepare and consists of what you already have in your pantry. the oat in the pancake
will provide you with the energy need to keep moving.

Ingredients 
Oat (3/4 cup of regular oatmeal)
3/4 cup of Oat flour (oat flour is blended regular oat)
water (1 cup)
pinch of salt (optional)
sweetener (optional)
Egg whites (4)
pinch of cinnamon or nutmeg or vanilla extract

Direction

• Boil the water and pour in the regular oatmeal and set aside. 
• In a separate bowl, mix the oat flour, pinch of salt/sweetener and cinnamon/nutmeg/vanilla then pour it into the first mixture of water and oatmeal. 
• Beat your  egg whites in a bowl and gently fold it into the mixture until it is properly mixed.
• If your overall mixture is still thick, do add more water. 
• In your hot pan, spray olive oil or coconut oil then make your pancake. 

ready to eat...

SIZE UPDATE

Okay last week was a big day at work, a huge event and also opportunity to shop for a new cloth. Its like this, every event at work, we get clothing allowance (isn't that cool). Before my weight loss journey i was a size UK 24/26 but last week during my shopping i realized that i am now a size UK 14, how cool is that.
Am not talking about 14 Large or Regular but Medium

Week 3: Love your Veggies

First, I have to apologize for my absence, I have been extremely busy.
Week 1 and Week 2 were about drinking water and moving. This 3rd week is about loving and eating your vegetables. If you have stopped the challenge or didn't follow it up you can still join or start all over again by going to WEEKLY HABIT CHALLENGE  . For this week, you don't have to consume all the veggies around you but you can start by eating one, maybe carrot or cucumber
. you might hate veggies but just try, one at a time.

Challenge yourself this week to eat veggie every day. I have shown in my previous post how i love my omelet, with spinach. You can have yours with green (our normal 9ja veggy), eat your sweet potatoes with veggies like tomatoes and green or water leaf.

Try and have 5 different veggies a day, like tomatoes, green veggy, onions, carrot and cucumber. eat your meals with different veggies, enjoy eating it, mix it up. You don't have to go gaga on veggie but eat in moderation

Introduction to Weekly Habit challenge

A lot of us trying to lose weight in one way or the other get stuck on the way. Maybe due to circumstances, environment or you are finding it hard starting your weight loss or continuing in your journey to loss more weight. People walk up to me asking how did I did/do it; they ask how I stay motivated. It is common trying and failing, I have been there so I understand that, I kept starting over and over but never lose any weight. It is very obvious that losing weight is not easy (let’s be truthful now, it is very difficult).
There is no magic capsule, recipe or potion that can make one lose weight. If there are anything like
that, believe me everyone will be slim. The secret lies on eating less and moving more. Make sure you burn more calories than you actually eat. Sounds easy right? But why is it so difficult to do it.

I believe it is because we try to change everything at once. That is a huge step to changing your life style but it is even harder maintaining it. I spent 6 months maintaining my first weight lost. It wasn’t easy at all. Now you might ask: what should I do? How do I go about it?

Enter my weekly habit change challenge and understand how easy it is to change your habits weekly. You try one thing everything for a week then move to second week then another week and another week until 15 to 16 weeks. These habits will help you in moving to a healthier you and also in losing weight. Try, don’t just sit and wait for the habit to change. Don’t just say you cannot do it when you have not tried. Losing weight is entirely a choice that only you can decide when you want to do it but the earlier the better. Starting August 26th I will post a new habit, I will do this every Monday until the 15 or 16th week. You will have to focus on only one habit all week. If you continuously do it without sabotaging yourself, then you will lose weight (I SAID IT, WEIGH YOURSELF BEFORE STARTING IT). The ball is in your court. If you want results don’t shoot yourself in the leg. Just try it.

But before you start this challenge, I will like you to pencil down the advantages and disadvantages of you losing weight. If the advantage is more than the disadvantage then you are good to go but if your disadvantage is more, I suggest you see a counsellor to discuss why you think losing why is not for you.

In this challenge, you don’t need to have a set goal, just commit every week to the habit set. My promise is that if you stick to it, you MUST lose weight. I am also going to participate in it as I still have a lot to lose. For some time now, my weight has been stagnant and it’s not funny.
I will encourage you to join in this challenge, drop a comment; don’t think that you can lose weight alone because you can’t. You need support and I need it too. It is the secret of staying motivated. If you need help ask for it because if you don’t, no one knows that you need help. Just prepare yourself for the challenge.