Streamlining Your Workout

We all have high demands on our time during the day, making it difficult to fit in everything we need to do -- much less the things we would like to do for ourselves. Unfortunately, exercise is one of the number one things we put off or put on the back burner because we don't have a free moment to do it. Here's a few tips to make fitting in a workout a little faster.

Workout where you are.
Driving to the gym, packing a gym bag, trying to arrange your keys and water bottle and headphones in your shorts, waiting for a treadmill... Sometimes going to the gym can really sap your day away! You can easily spend an hour preparing for and cleaning up after a 20 minute work out. Try finding places nearby you (a nearby park or just your own neighborhood) that offer the same perks. If you like the stair-stepper, use the nearby high school stadium and run up and down the bleachers, or find a steep hill in your neighborhood. Carry weights to make it more challenging. Running around the block is usually more physically demanding and a better workout than running on a machine. Bonus points: Research shows that spending just 5 minutes a day outside among greenery boosts your willpower and focus throughout the day. So get out there!

Resist the urge to shower every time you sweat.
I know it sounds a little icky, but you can still be clean and fresh (and save an extra 30 minutes in your mornings) without always washing. If you have access to a shower, give your body a quick rinse. If you're not so lucky, go with a French shower and wipe off extra sweat and dirt with a clean wet washcloth. Deodorizing wipes and body sprays can also help freshen you up.

You can still have gorgeous hair without washing it.
Keep mousse, light hairspray or shine enhancing balm (whatever hair finishing product you prefer) on hand. Spritz on a little, work it through your hair and then blow dry it in sections with a round brush to dry out the sweat. Flip your head over and dry underneath, and finish by blowing cool air at the nape of your neck to help you cool off faster. If your hair gets oily, you can sprinkle cornstarch on your scalp, let it sit for a few minutes and then brush it out with a bristly brush over the sink. Voila! No more oil. It's a super cheap dry shampoo that quickly gives your hair life again. This routine takes all of 5 minutes, smells great and no one will be the wiser.

Find training that works multiple areas.

To cut down on time, try multitasking with your body! You can do a cardio circuit without the machines by just varying the speed and intensity of your runs, or by picking hilly terrain. If it's strength training you're interested in, there are literally hundreds of options for working multiple muscle groups. Fitness Magazine, Nike Training Club, and Beachbody are all excellent (and mostly free) resources for short and effective workouts.

Sleep in your gym clothes.
My sweats double as my PJ's. This way I can just roll out of bed, put on my shoes and go. If you work out during your lunch or after you get off work, lay out your stuff the night before. This way if you have other things on your mind as you're getting ready for the day, you won't be distracted by trying to remember where your favorite pants are.

Keep in mind what prevents you from working out.
Everyone's schedules and lives are different. Take a hard look back on the times you've skipped workouts and be honest with yourself. When you start making excuses, be conscious of it and step outside of yourself and say "What is really preventing me from going? Am I really that tired or hungry? Do I really have to clean the kitchen right now? Can I check my emails when I'm back at work, or does work really demand my time right now?" Only you can talk yourself in or out of doing something, and only you know what's at the heart of what's stopping you. The only workout you regret is the one you don't do. So spend less time lying in bed, dragging your feet and debating about what you want to do or should do and just do it!

The less barriers you have, the more likely you are to get things done. Make it easy on yourself to achieve what you want and you'll be more likely to succeed. Until next time, keep it clean!

Hey There Honey!

   Honey has been utilized as a natural sweetener for centuries, dating back as far as 2100 B.C. Mead, which is made from honey, was once referred to as the "nectar of the gods." Honey has also been honored as a form of currency, tribute, and offering throughout history. It's even been used to make cement, varnishes for furniture, and also has many medicinal purposes. Let me show you a few! 

Anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, and anti-viral: 

   Honey has all of the above qualities making it a powerhouse against disease and infection. You can take honey to prevent and help cure illness, treat athletes food and other fungal infections, and even use it directly on a wound or burn to help increase healing! It's gentle and tastes delicious too! 

Honey helps soothe and heal sore throats and upper-respiratory infection:

   Due to honey's antimicrobial properties, it makes it the perfect antidote for a sore throat. Not only will the sweet, viscous liquid coat and soothe the throat, but it will help fight off infection naturally too! There have also been reports that honey will reduce the frequency and severity of coughs due to upper-respiratory congestion. 

                                             Honey as cancer prevention: 

    While honey will not cure cancer, there is significant evidence that it can help to prevent it. Honey has carcinogen-preventing, anti-tumor properties due to large amounts of flavonoids. These are antioxidants which can help reduce the risk of some cancers and even heart disease.

Bonus - Honey for hangovers:

   If you sometimes indulge a little too much on the weekend, you may end up with the dreaded hangover the following morning (or afternoon as the case may be). Well, here comes honey to the rescue! Honey is super gentle on your tummy and also contains a mix of natural sugars, including fructose. Fructose has been known to speed up the oxidation of alcohol by the liver, acting as a sort of 'sobering' agent. This will help speed up your recovery and increase overall well-being. 


   I hope you have learned some new things about this old standby sweetener. Honey is one of my favorite foods, and I always have a large supply. When using honey for medicinal purposes, it's best to use local, raw honey as it has the most healing powers. Happy health and as always, stay clean!

 

Pizza Cupcakes!

   I love to experiment and have fun in my kitchen. I also loooove pizza. After perfecting my pizza dough recipe (took a few years to get the proportions just right!), I soon became bored with making the same old pie. So, with a little inspiration, I give to you:

Pizza Cupcakes!

You will need: 

• Pizza dough (homemade or store-bought, though I highly recommend the former - recipe below ;))
• Marinara or pizza sauce (again, homemade or store-bought)
• Mozzarella cheese (regular or vegan, shredded)
• Pepperoni (regular or vegan, diced small)
• Oil (I use coconut oil for this)
• Cupcake pan (or a muffin pan for pizza muffins!)

If making your own dough, you'll also need:

• 2 1/4 teaspoon yeast
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 cup bread flour (or all-purpose flour + 1 tbs vital wheat gluten)
• 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 tbs oil (I use grapeseed in mine)
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 cup warm water

   To make the dough, add the yeast and sugar to the cup of warm water. Let sit until bubbles form. Then add the rest of your ingredients. Knead the dough to form a soft ball. Let rise, covered in a bowl, for 30 minutes to an hour, or until doubled in size. Mine usually doesn't  take long to rise at all! Once risen, punch the dough in the center and then knead again briefly. Now your dough is ready to use!

   Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Grease your cupcake pan using the coconut oil and a paper towel. Then pinch off enough dough to cover the bottom of the cupcake pan. Spread it out and make sure some of the dough is coming up the sides. Now you'll spoon a little marinara on top of the dough and coat evenly. Then sprinkle on the cheese and diced pepperoni. Bake for about 15-20 minutes until the tops are brown and the cheese is melted. Let cool briefly and enjoy your cute mini pizzas! :)

   Thank you for letting me share this recipe with you! It's a hit for both kids and adults and is super easy to make. Have fun in the kitchen and as always, stay clean!!!

Building Healthy Credit

Even if you are not in the market to get a loan, having and building a healthy credit score in the United States can be beneficial and even fundamental for managing your bills. Your credit score is a complex algorithm designed by lending agencies to allow lenders to quickly and easily judge how likely you are to pay your bills and manage the amount of debt you request to borrow. Your credit score can earn you discounts and perks, even on basic utilities like electricity (or washer and dryer rentals!), or it could prevent you from being able to obtain loans in the future, all depending on how you spend your money over your lifetime. Though it takes years to build credit, don't feel intimidated! There are a few simple things you can keep in mind to build a good score.

Credit is based mainly on your borrowing history.

Even if you have a bank account and pay your apartment rent on time and have never had a credit card or been in debt, you may not have an established credit history. Having no credit can be just as detrimental as bad credit because lenders don't have any idea about how likely you are to pay your debts. The credit bureaus recommend that you have somewhere between 4 and 6 accounts that report to credit agencies to have a healthy score. A credit line could be a student loan, a car loan, or even as simple as a card that you buy groceries with and pay off at the end of each month.

You don't have to start off with no credit when you turn 18.

Parents can add their children's names to credit accounts when they are of age, usually around 16, to begin building credit. Your teenager does not have to use the card or even make payments, just having her name on the card will piggyback off of your credit score. However, keep in mind that if your credit is bad and you do this, your child will inherit bad credit too.

The amount of time you keep a credit line matters.

Having long-standing accounts that are paid on time for several years helps to build your credit. This is another great reason to start early when building your credit. Even if you pay off your debts, try to keep at least one card around that you have a long history with.

Keep a low balance on your cards and low overall debt.

Try to keep the amount of debt used on your credit line below 30%. A heavy determinant of your score is how much debt you have compared to how much you make each year. But just having a maxed out credit card can be damaging to your credit. Try spreading out your debt over a couple of cards and try to be as pragmatic and conservative as possible when judging how much you need to borrow. Just because you can borrow a lot doesn't mean that you should.

Hard inquiries to your credit do effect your score, but not by much.

Any time someone other than you checks your credit -- that is, any time you show interest in taking on more debt-- lenders see this as a potential risk factor in lending to you, which can potentially damage your score. However, the actual debt you have compared to your income and whether you pay your bills on time is far more weighty than an outside agency checking your credit. To limit the number of checks, check your own score regularly so that you have your rating in mind. Then whenever you are interested in dealing with a company who checks credit, be sure to ask what general score range they look for to get the best rate. This will help you judge how likely you are to be approved at the budget line you are looking for without adding unnecessary dings to your score.

Checking your credit score is free!

Though all of these factors are very important, the best way to keep on track is to check your score and your detailed report. Credit scores vary so much from person to person because everyone's financial needs are different. You can check your score as many times as you want, as well as obtain at least one annual detailed report from each of the three main credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian and TransUnion) at no cost. Credit monitoring sites such as CreditKarma.com are a great free resource for gaining insight into your credit history. If at any time you see major changes in your score and you're unsure why, get a detailed report from each of the bureaus to make sure your affairs are in order. Big unexplained changes can point to errors in reporting or even identity theft.

Remember, knowledge is power! Keeping your credit rating in mind when you're budgeting can give you an edge in the future. Though credit scoring can seem scary and mysterious, it's just another factor in balancing your finances that you can use to your advantage. So keep an eye on it every month, just like your bills and your bank account. And until next time, keep it clean!