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Tag: cheat day

FitnessHealthy TipsLifestyle

Healthy Thanksgiving Side Dishes

 

It’s hard to believe that Thanksgiving is only one week away! Time really flies, so make sure you are making this next week count, such as eating really clean or getting in some extra exercise time, because before you know it you will be faced with one of the biggest meals of the year. Whether you are preparing to host, bringing a dish or attending dinner in someone else’s home, there are a couple dishes and sides that can be great options for a healthy and yummy holiday. Here are some tips and tricks for making healthy Thanksgiving dishes.

 

The first recipe is a great substitution. Cauliflower can be cooked and mashed just like mashed potatoes and taste just as delicious. It’s a healthy version of a Thanksgiving staple, and many people at the table might not even notice the difference. It’s a great dish because you won’t feel like you’re missing out on anything and you can feel good about what you’re eating. All it takes is 6-7 cups of cauliflower, a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil and a sprinkle of salt and pepper.

 

 

 

Another simple dish features and great fall vegetable is Brussles sprouts. Brussels sprouts have so many health benefits – they offer extensive detox and digestive support, are packed with antioxidants, and can also help reduce inflammation and cardiovascular problems. If you simply coat them lightly in olive oil and balsamic vinegar, cook them in the oven then you have a tasty side that you can really feel good about.

 

 

This next recipe combines another fall vegetable with a popular grain: Butternut squash and quinoa. While this selection would normally be a main for you on any other day, on Thanksgiving you can take a scoop as a side. This is a delicious, hearty dish that is also packed with mushrooms, carrots and onion. Cook the squash in the oven, the quinoa according to normal instructions, and the rest of the ingredients cook on the stove. When they are combined, you have a sweet and healthy dish that will please anyone at the table.

 

 

 

This last recipe combines a lot of great fall foods in an interesting salad. It includes pumpkin, chickpeas, pumpkin seeds, green beans and beats in olive oil and vinegar. It has plenty of nutrients from the variety of ingredients, such as fiber, protein and antioxidants. Each bite is bursting with flavor and will fill you up with healthy foods.

 

 

 

Having some healthy sides up your sleeve can help make smart choices easy so you can relax and enjoy your family and friends. When you’re not worrying about what you’re eating, you can really embrace the holiday.

 

~Love to Live Healthy with Josephine Fitzpatrick

 

Innovation Weight Loss and Fitness

8031 Jericho Tpke Woodbury, NY 11797

211 E 43rd Street Manhattan, NY 11797

 

FitnessHealthy TipsLifestyle

LIVE IT – BE IT – LOVE IT!

 

DO YOU HAVE A GOAL? Sometimes feeling good about the future is one of the keys to happiness. We all need goals to motivate us. It should be challenging enough to excite you, but also achievable. Choosing an ambitious but realistic goal will give your life direction and bring a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction when you achieve it. A great short term goal for November is Thanksgiving. Where do you want to be when Thanksgiving arrives?

 

THANKSGIVING IS LESS THAN 2 WEEKS AWAY: But regardless of where you are right now – ONE solid week is sometimes all it takes to get back on track to feeling great. When you have a week that is 110% clean and on program, at the end of the week you will see where your weight truly is. You will get rid of the water weight and maybe even a pound or two of real weight. It really doesn’t take much and for those who have been on the program you know that you don’t want to go into Thanksgiving feeling bloated and heavy.  Get back on program because even if it’s not where you want to be it’s going to be better than where you are today.

 

NEGATIVE THOUGHTS AND EXCUSES: YOU CAN DO THIS! If you want to reach any goal (short or long term) you must stay positive. Don’t give in to the negative thoughts and excuses “I will start after Thanksgiving” or “What’s the point of starting now how much could I lose” or “ I will wait until January”.  There are so many excuses – you can find one whenever you need to. But where are they getting you? – The more you put off what you need to do the longer it will take to get to where you want to be.

 

MAKE ROOM FOR ONLY THE POSITIVE: You need to get rid of the negative thoughts and think only positive. Give yourself reasons why YOU SHOULD do it now. Why you CAN do it. If you are 180 and and want to be 130 – then why shouldn’t you be 130? If you see people around you that have lost the weight and look great – why shouldn’t that be you? If you keep telling yourself that they are more disciplined than you – it’s just another excuse. What that really means is that they are just willing to work harder for what they want. You need to remind yourself that you are no different than they are and there is no reason why if you work hard you can’t be the number you want or look the way you want. The only special people in the world are the ones who make themselves that way. 

 

ARE YOU WILLING TO WORK FOR IT? What weight loss does require is work, commitment and patience. Understanding that there is no end but only a journey to live a clean and healthy life that will get you to your goal. It’ takes thinking, and making the right choices everyday. Now if you don’t want to work hard for what you want and put the time in that you need to – then that’s a different story and that’s on you – and it’s something you have to come to terms with. But if you are willing to work hard, put the time in, make the commitment to make the right choices – you will get your results. 99% of the time the only one that is getting in your way is YOU!

 

EVERY MORNING WAKE UP AND PUSH YOURSELF TO BE THE BEST:  How many times have you heard this? But I bet you didn’t know that people who wake up and remind themselves to be positive and challenge themselves to be the best they can be have the most success. Eventually it doesn’t take much effort because it’s simply the way you live. It’s what makes you feel great and you don’t want to feel any other way. Life is short – and if you don’t make the time and effort to do what makes you happy and you don’t put the work in to change into the person you want to be – life will pass you by and you will look back and wonder, Why didn’t I? 

 

It doesn’t matter if you have 10 or 100 pounds to lose. If you keep putting yourself in the direction of positive thinking and reminding yourself that you can do it, and keep giving yourself goals to get there – you will do it. While it may take some longer than others to reach their goal, we are all on the same journey of living the program – Eating clean and feeling good is a journey that we should all be on everyday. 

 

“Focus on the Journey Not the Destination”

 

~Love to Live Healthy with Josephine Fitzpatrick

 

Innovation Weight Loss and Fitness
8031 Jericho Tpke Woodbury, NY 11797
211 E 43rd Street Manhattan, NY 10019
FitnessHealthy TipsLifestyle

Halloween – Weight Loss and Hard Work!

 

Weight Loss Challenge….. First of all, we want to congratulate everyone that showed up for the Wednesday night and Saturday morning Weight Loss Challenge Classes. Both were not easy to do classes and more importantly not easy to show up to – but those of you that did should be super proud. You all worked really hard and it showed. We already had amazing weight loss numbers this week and as we move into the second week of the challenge you must remember how important this is to you and how much you want it. When you showed up for class you proved that you want it more than just for the moment.  It’s easy to forget how much this means to us. It’s easy to forget how amazing we feel when we are doing all the right things – going into your second week you will remember how good it feels and how important it is to you to stay on your path and make the right choices today, tomorrow, and the next day. When you get weak, reach down deep and use your strength to remember how great you felt when you stepped on the scale and saw the new number you haven’t seen and the excitement and cheers and crying that went on because of the new low number you worked so hard to see. Remember when you finished class and felt that accomplishment knowing each time you are getting stronger and stronger — pushing yourself to the limit can be uncomfortable but it can also be an amazing feeling. Most of all, remember that this is what makes you happy. Eating clean, taking care of yourself, and being the best you can be. You can only do that and feel that when you start from the inside out. This past week you have started and now you are on your way to feeling lighter, healthier, and fitter than you have. Something that you have not seen or felt in a very long time. It’s amazing what one week can do – just think about how more amazing you will feel in 7 more weeks. We are super proud of you all for showing up and giving your all.

 

HALLOWEEN… Tomorrow is the biggest candy day of the year. Be very careful with how you handle this day. Just like many other holidays you can think you have it under control but the only way to really do that is to have a solid plan. Here are some suggestions to help you get through candy day:

 

  • Don’t buy the candy early! Why tempt yourself when you don’t have to. Buy it the morning of Halloween. There is always candy left in the stores they never run out.
  • Have it for your Cheat Day. If you love Halloween and you love the idea of trick or treating with your red cup in hand and tasting all the different treats then make sure you save Halloween for a Cheat Day.
  • Be a Trick or Treater – If you already had your Cheat Day then become a trick or treater. Tomorrow make up your own candy bag with all your favorites and save it for next weekend and enjoy it on your Cheat Day. Everything taste so much better when it’s on your Cheat Day.
  • Have your own snacks – If you are staying clean and on program then make sure you have your own yummy snacks and treats on hand that are on program. So when the urge hits, you can grab what you need to get you through it.
  • Be proud – there is a great feeling of accomplishment getting through a tough holiday and staying on program. You want to be able to wake up Wednesday morning and know that you were 110% because any piece of candy that crossed your path you waited until your Cheat Day to have.

 

The most important thing is to a plan and stick to it. Clients who plan each day have so much more success then those who don’t.  

 

WHERE ARE YOU?… If you are not in the challenge but you are on program and following your menu, take a look at your last week. Are you in a good place? Have you done all the right things? Do you feel the best you can feel today? Did you have only ONE Cheat Day this past weekend?? When Monday morning rolls around you have to make sure that you can start your week knowing that you did all the right things on the weekend. That you had ONE Cheat Day and only ONE. You have to be honest with yourself and understand that if and when you have a little over one Cheat Day it’s no longer a weight loss week it turns into a maintain week. If it’s more than a little and becomes an extra day or more – it’s a weight gain week. So when you step on the scale the following week what you did this past weekend will reflect in next week’s numbers. It’s easy to live for the moment but if you want to see a change and a difference in the scale, and in your body then you need to be on program 6 days a week with ONLY ONE CHEAT DAY. Is it hard? Of course it’s hard! But look around you at all the sharks and all the amazing results. It’s clearly worth it.

 

REMEMBER… It’s important to remember at the end of the day that you can’t blame anyone else for the choices that you made. Each choice you make determines the outcome of your weight loss or weight gain. You are in control or out of control – it’s always your choice. If you are unhappy with the way you look and feel – then change it. Instead of crying over it and making everyone around you miserable – change it! Fight hard and don’t look back. Start today and plan for tomorrow. Know what you want and don’t let anyone get in your way. Don’t let any excuses enter into your mind. ONLY YOU have control of what you want – how you want to look – and how you want to feel.

 

HARD WORK… I am a true believer in hard work. If you work hard and put everything you have into something you want – 99.9% of the time you will get the results that you want. This goes for anything in life not just weight loss. While it would be nice to sit and wait for things to come to us – it won’t ever happen. It’s fun to dream but reality is so much better. It’s both a hard but very simple process – If you believe in hard work and put the time in – you will get the results. Sometimes we don’t want to put the work in so we make things more difficult then they have to be. Keep this simple. Work hard and stay on your path and the results will come.  It may not be today or even tomorrow but the results will come.

 

IT’S UP TO YOU… Always remember it’s up to you – no one will hand you the future you want – or the results you want. Take one day at a time – and always believe in yourself. Your happiness is the result of no one else but you. If you are unhappy about the way you look and feel – then you must change it. The choices we have in life are endless and so is the potential for happiness.

 

“Take each day one at a time, and you’ll be amazed at how your difficulties manage to become less difficult”

 

~Love to Live Healthy with Josephine Fitzpatrick

 

Innovation Weight Loss and Fitness
8031 Jericho Tpke Woodbury, NY 11797
211 E 43rd Street Manhattan, NY 10019
FitnessHealthy TipsLifestylePodcast

New Podcast – Out Today!

Listen to our latest Love To Live Healthy podcast:

 

“Skinny Shaming”
You may even have done it or have had it done to you!

 

Go to the “Radio Show” page on our website or click here to listen.

 

~Love to Live Healthy with Josephine Fitzpatrick

 

Innovation Weight Loss and Fitness
8031 Jericho Tpke Woodbury, NY 11797
211 E 43rd Street Manhattan, NY 10019
FitnessHealthy TipsLifestyle

FIRST CLASS TONIGHT!

 

THE IN STUDIO CHALLENGE BEGINS
 

 

 
Tonight at 7pm is the first Innovation Challenge class.

 

Email Jeff innovationjeff1@gmail.com if you are attending.

 

REMINDER:
One class a week is mandatory

Classes are Wednesdays at 7pm & Saturdays at 7am

 

~Love to Live Healthy with Josephine Fitzpatrick

 

Innovation Weight Loss and Fitness
8031 Jericho Tpke Woodbury, NY 11797
211 E 43rd Street Manhattan, NY 10019
FitnessHealthy TipsLifestyle

Weight Loss Challenge – Starts Today!

WEIGHT LOSS CHALLENGE STARTS TODAY!

 

– Weigh in today: In-studio (Friday 10/20 or Saturday 10/21 for your starting weight to be re

 

corded)

– First Class is Wednesday 10/25
*Each exercise class will finish with Nutrition Information and a Q & A for all participants.

 

RULES

 

– You must be an active online or in studio client to participate
– You must attend one class per week
– Classes are every Wednesday 7pm and Saturday 7am
– You must weight in once a week (Friday or Saturday)

 

Because of the High Demand we will be also starting an ONLINE ONLY competition that will be for clients who DO NOT live ON LONG ISLAND that would like to participate. Stay Tuned for email.

 

~Love to Live Healthy with Josephine Fitzpatrick

 

 Innovation Weight Loss and Fitness
8031 Jericho Tpke Woodbury, NY 11797
211 E 43rd Street Manhattan, NY 10019
FitnessHealthy TipsLifestyle

When Is It Enough?

 

ARE YOU WAITING?… The biggest mistake so many people make is waiting. Is it the right time? Should I wait until next week? When summer is over?… After the holidays… Thanksgiving is coming I will start in December… What you must understand is when something is hard and uncomfortable you are never going to feel like doing it. No one really wants to ever step out of their comfort zone. But if you don’t step out of it and never push yourself to where you want to be, you will never reach your full potential. You will never reach your dreams of who you are and what you really want. You will end up being one of those people who just kept waiting… floating.… making excuses…. never really finding the right time and never quite feeling the true happiness of where you are and who you are.

 

CHOOSE THE GOOD… There is good and bad – there is non committed and committed, and there is positive and negative. If you let it – The bad, Non committed and Negative will always win over the Good, Committed and Positive. Why? Because it’s easier. It’s easier to make the excuse and it’s easier to be overweight, and it’s easier to float through life not really committing or working hard for what you want. It’s always going to be harder to commit to doing the right things, to work hard and stay positive. It all comes down to what you want out of life and how hard you are willing to work for it. How long you are willing to put aside your dreams and how long you are willing to feel the unhappiness of not being comfortable with who you are or are becoming. But just remember when you take the easy path you have to live with the consequences of it everyday. There will be a time that you look back and say, Why? Why did I give in to overeating when I know it made me so miserable? Why did I spend so much time unhappy and spreading that unhappiness to those I love for something I could have worked hard to change? Why did I use every excuse and bring so much negativity in my life for something that I can’t even remember if I enjoyed or not? Why didn’t I just work hard and do the right thing if I new that was what was going to make me happy.

 

THE HARD YOU DON’T SEE… The past couple of weeks even through the holidays and after – we had so many clients who did amazing. They got on the scale and saw the number go in the right direction and it just motivates them to keep going. In order to gain that motivation you need to commit to yourself and work hard. Very hard. The clients who reach their goal and look amazing – they work so hard. It’s the kind of hard you don’t see. The routine of staying on when everyone else is off. They stay on their path because they know it makes them happy. They know it makes them feel good and, most important, they have come to realize that their actions have consequences. They are consequences that are not worth the results. For them, it’s about feeling good all the time. Doing the right things and putting the work in even when it’s hard. You see, when you stay committed when it’s hard that’s what makes all the difference in the results. It’s easy to stay on path when you are in a good place. It’s easy to stay on when everything is perfect in your world. But we all know those days are few and far between. What really shows who you are and what you want is when you stay on program when it’s hard. When the temptation is in front of you and you walk away. When you know and commit to doing the right thing because you know that is what makes you feel your best. Think about what really makes you happy and work toward it. I am a firm believer that if you work hard and stay on your path it will lead you to the best possible results. But again, you can’t just do it when it’s easy – you have to stay on that path when it’s hard. When it’s challenging when everyone around you is going off of the path, you have to stay on it. When your life has challenges and things just aren’t going your way – you have to stay on it. That’s when you will see the best results, and the hard work and commitment that you have made to yourself will pay off and change you in the most positive way as a person. It changes you into the person you want to be – and the strong person that you knew existed. The one that was waiting to come out and work hard and take advantage of the wonderful life you have and feel good everyday living it.

 

ONE LIFE TO DO THE RIGHT THING… You need to remember that you get one life and that doesn’t mean that you should spend it indulging and abusing your days. It means that you should appreciate each day and spend them doing what makes you happy and feel good today and tomorrow and the next day. That’s the key. It’s not only about today – there are lots of negative things that we can do today that will make us feel great for the moment, but will you have that same feeling about it tomorrow? You need to focus and spend your time making sure that how you treat your body and mind today will give you the same or better result and feelings tomorrow and the next day. When you do that, you are creating positive links that will change the outcome of your future. Some lives are more challenging than others but you need to stay focused and stay positive and committed to what you want because that is the only way you will get it.

 

MAKE THE COMMITMENT… If you want to change and be the amazing person that you know is inside of you… then you need to commit to yourself and what you want. Commit to your dream and understand that it won’t be easy but the stronger you are the further you will get. Committed people go the extra mile to reach their goals. Isn’t that who you want to be? Don’t you want to put the work in to become the most amazing person you can be? Only you can do it. Listen, life is hard and weight loss is hard but at the end of the day it’s something you can control. You have to want it more than what’s on the table, in the cabinets or in the glass. It has to be about you, your dreams and your commitment to yourself and those you love. You know what will make you happy and you know what makes you sad – you need to work hard for the happy because we all know the sad will win if you let it. But when you put the work into what makes you happy it’s truly life changing. Before you know it, it will become second nature and you will feel that positive feeling of being committed to yourself and what you want. It’s always a great feeling to do the right thing, and doing the right thing always creates amazing results.

 

KEEP WORKING HARD… The more work you put in to this and in to yourself is what makes the difference between where you are and where you are going. And at the end of the day we all know what we really want – it’s just a question if you are going to keep making excuses for yourself or are you going to commit to being the positive, hard working person who does the right thing, stays on the healthy path and creates the happiness you want and deserve. You have the control and the want to do it – now you just have to put it into action – and when you do it you will see everything has been right in front of you waiting for you to make the changes to become the lighter, fitter, healthier person that you always wanted to be.

 

STAY COMMITTED BECAUE RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU IS YOUR DREAM

 

 ~Love to Live Healthy with Josephine Fitzpatrick
Innovation Weight Loss and Fitness
8031 Jericho Tpke Woodbury, NY 11797
211 E 43rd Street Manhattan, NY 10019
FitnessHealthy TipsLifestyle

8 Week Challenge

 

ARE YOU READY FOR THE INNOVATION 8 WEEK CHALLENGE?

 

We have received so many request to help motivate you through the fall with another Challenge.

 

YOU ASK, WE ANSWER!

 

Fall is one of the hardest times of the year to stay motivated. HOWEVER – it’s one of the most important times to put the work in and see the weight loss. In the weight loss world we call it “down time”

A time when not too much is going on. It’s a great time to put the work in to see the weight loss

 We are starting to put layers of clothes on and it’s easy to hide under them. But many of us have vacations and parties that are right around the corner.

 

Now you can do the Innovation Challenge and have no excuses not to stay on program and on your healthy weight loss path.

 Challenges are not for everyone – this challenge is for those who need the extra motivation to succeed

 

1 LB A WEEK = 8 LBS

2 LBS A WEEK = 16 LBS

COMBINATIONS OF 1, 2 & 3 LB WEEKS = 20 LBS

 

WHETHER YOU DECIDE TO DO THE CHALLENGE OR SIMPLY JUST STAY ON PROGRAM

FROM NOW UNTIL DECEMBER 16 YOU HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO LOSE UP TO 20 LBS.

ALL VERY DOABLE IF YOU ARE WILLING TO WORK HARD AND FOLLOW YOUR PATH AND PROGRAM.

IF YOU NEED THE EXTRA MOTIVATION AND ACCOUNTABILITY – DO THE CHALLENGE!

 

WARNING:

 

THIS CHALLENGE IS NOT FOR CRY BABIES!

 

8 WEEK CHALLENGE

STARTING OCTOBER 21 – ENDS DECEMBER 16

 

RULES

 

1. FOLLOW YOUR MENU

 

2. YOU MUST ATTEND ONE OF THE INNOVATION CHALLENGE CLASSES:

7PM WEDNESDAY NIGHT CHALLENGE CLASS

7AM SATURDAY CHALLENGE CLASS

Classes will include modifications for those who need it

*You have option of attending both classes – one class a week is mandatory

 

CLASSES

Every WEDNESDAY 7pm & SATURDAY 7am

JOSEPHINE and THEA WILL BE TEACHING THE CLASSES

* FIRST CLASS BEGINS WEDNESDAY 10/25/17

 

3. Weekly Weigh-In

WEIGH IN WILL BE HELD EVERY FRIDAY AND SATURDAY AT INNOVATION

 7AM-6PM ON FRIDAY AND 7AM-3PM ON SATURDAY

ALL weights will be logged in and whoever loses the

most weight by DECEMBER 16 wins!

 

WINNERS

 

MALE – $125 INNOVATION MONEY

FEMALE – $125 INNOVATION MONEY

 

RULES

THE RULES ARE BASED FOR YOU TO COMMIT AND DO WHAT IT TAKES TO STAY COMMITTED FOR 8 WEEKS.

IF YOU STAY COMMITTED FOR 8 WEEKS YOU WILL HAVE THE MOST AMAZING RESULTS.

– IN ORDER TO BE IN THE CONTEST YOU MUST BE AN ACTIVE ONLINE OR IN-STUDIO CLIENT

– IF YOUR MEMBERSHIP EXPIRES OR DISCONTINUES YOU ARE DISQUALIFIED

– YOU MUST ATTEND AT LEAST ONE OF THE INNOVATION CHALLENGE CLASSES

IF YOU MISS A WEEK YOU ARE DISQUALIFIED

(ABSOLUTELY NO EXCUSES WILL BE ACCEPTED)

– EACH WEEK WE WILL POST FIRST NAME AND AMOUNT OF WEIGHT LOSS EACH WEEK ONLY (no weights will be posted)

-YOU MUST WEIGH IN STUDIO

IF YOU DON’T WEIGH IN EVERY WEEK YOU ARE DISQUALIFIED

Weigh-ins are every Friday or Saturday at the Woodbury Studio with Jeff

IF THIS IS SOMETHING YOU REALLY WANT TO DO AND SEE THE RESULTS THEN YOU WILL FIND A WAY TO BE AT A CLASS AND YOU WILL

FIND A WAY TO WEIGH IN

THESE 8 WEEKS WILL MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE IN HOW

YOU START THE 2018 NEW YEAR

If you would like to be part of the challenge please sign up at the front desk and make sure you weigh in this Friday 10/20 or Saturday 10/21.

NO LATE WEIGH INS WILL BE ACCEPTED!

 

$25 PER PERSON

 

“SOMETIMES IT’S JUST SO MUCH EASIER TO NOT MAKE AN EXCUSE THEN TO SPEND TIME THINKING OF A GOOD ONE”

 

~Love to Live Healthy with Josephine Fitzpatrick

FitnessHealthy TipsLifestyle

Fall Recipes

 

Pumpkins and spice makes everything nice!

 

Recipes for the thirst of fall…

 

It seems that the start of Fall brings out the “Pumpkin Spice Everything” phase. Walk down any grocery store aisle and you will see Pumpkin Spice flavored items everywhere. The biggest craze seems to be Pumpkin Spice flavored drinks. Now I’m sure it goes without saying, but most of those Pumpkin Spice drinks that we all look for in the Fall are loaded with a ton of fat and sugar. If you’re looking for a yummy Pumpkin flavored drink, try one of these options below. If you do make these please feel free to share with us as we would love to see! Email or text us a picture, or tag us with #InnovationRecipes

 

For all of you out there who are like me that live for their iced coffee, then try this guilt free option below:

 

Flavored Iced Coffee: A good idea is to prep this the night before so it’s ready in the morning

 

 

Ingredients:

-3 cups fresh coffee

-ice cube tray

-unsweetened almond milk

-McCormick Apple Pie or Pumpkin Pie Spice

 

Directions:

-brew 3 cups of coffee

-Take 1.5 cups of coffee and pour it into the ice cube tray. Freeze overnight for 6-12 hours

-Take the other 1.5 cups and place in a cup that you can refrigerate over night (a mason jar works great for this)

-Add the coffee iced cubes in a glass (using coffee iced cubes helps prevent your coffee from becoming watered down). Pour the plain cold coffee on top.

-Add in a splash of unsweetened almond milk and a sprinkle or two of either Apple Pie or Pumpkin Pie spice (depending on the flavoring you want) and stir.

 

Pumpkin Hot Chocolate

 

 

And if you’re looking for something a little warmer then you’ll love this one!

 

Ingredients:

-1/4 cup pumpkin puree (canned or homemade is fine)

-1 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder

-1 tsp vanilla extract

-1/4 tsp cinnamon

-pinch of salt (don’t omit)

-1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk

-low fat whipped cream

 

Directions:

-Blend all of the ingredients together

-Transfer to a mug and microwave 1-2 minutes until hot

-Add 1 tbsp. low fat whipped cream on top

 

 

~Love to Live Healthy with Josephine Fitzpatrick

Innovation Weight Loss and Fitness

8031 Jericho Tpke Woodbury, NY 11797

211 E 43rd Street Manhattan, NY 10019

FitnessHealthy TipsLifestyle

Yom Kippur…

 

Tomorrow at Sundown begins Yom Kippur the holiest day of the year — the day on which we are closest to G‑d and to the quintessence of our own souls. It is the Day of Atonement — Be forgiven and cleansed from all your sins before G‑d.

 

For nearly twenty-six hours — from several minutes before sunset on 9 Tishri (Sept. 29) to after nightfall on 10 Tishrei (Sept. 30) — we “afflict our souls”: we abstain from food and drink, do not wash or anoint our bodies, do not wear leather footwear, and abstain from marital relations. Instead, we head to temple and our time is spent in prayer to G‑d. It’s truly a beautiful holiday.

 

For those of you who follow, it’s a great time to give your weight loss a boost as well. Your last meal on Friday should be a nice balance of protein and healthy carbohydrates and this combination will sustain you throughout your fast. Some great choices would be:

 

  • Grilled or Roasted Chicken (no skin)
  • Vegetables – string beans, broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus
  • Mashed Sweet potato – (no milk or cream)
  • Fresh Fruit – nuts

 

Water water water throughout the day before you fast. You should never go into the fast thirsty. When you feel thirst that means your body is already dehydrated which is not good for any of your organs and will make you feel hunger. You should drink water all day when you are NOT thirsty to avoid dehydration.

 

When you Break the Fast you should not go crazy and eat everything in sight. Some of you will want to and others will not. If it’s your Cheat Day then have a piece and/or spoonful of the foods you like – scoop out the bagel and try to taste smaller choices – instead of eating large servings. If you over eat after fasting you will get sick. Ideally you should stay on program and let the fast work in your favor and Break the Fast with the following:

 

  • Light Tuna or Vegetable salads with ak mak or wasa crackers
  • Whole wheat or rye toast with lox and light cream cheese
  • Egg White salad with vegetables
  • Vegetables and guacamole or mashed avocado
  • Fresh Fruit – nuts
  • Water Water Water

 

If you do this you will lose more weight because you are having two clean meals with a long fast in between. The fast helps the weight loss because when your food is digested and used by the body – your body will then begin to burn stored fat. When the fast is over and you fill it with balanced nutritional foods and snacks you will see how much better you feel and will maintain that lighter healthier cleansed feeling. All the yummy treats that are around the table should be saved and taken home in a goody bag or put in your refrigerator and have it on your Cheat Day Sunday so you can enjoy the treats throughout the day and not try to get them all in after nightfall.

 

You should only be breaking the fast if you actually fasted:

 

If you are not fasting because of medicine, not religious, you just can’t do it….  then you should be sticking 110% to your program, and eating on program Friday and Saturday and unless it’s your Cheat Day Saturday then you should be on program and your Cheat Day is your Cheat Day – Done!

 

Innovation Weight Loss wishes you all a healthy peaceful and fulfilling year.

 

G’mar Hatimah Tovah