Laura Forte Fitness

727-612-2883
Laura@LauraForteFitness.com
  • Personal Training
  • Boot Camp
    • Full Schedule
    • Boot Camp Sign Up
    • How Does Boot Camp Work?
    • FAQ
  • Get Started
    • $5 for Five-Day All-Access Pass
  • Our Story
    • Contact Laura
    • As Featured On
  • Transformation Stories
  • Blog
  • Store

The single BEST change I made to my diet!!!

August 15, 2011 By Laura 1 Comment

You have about 5 minutes before you need to leave for work and you need to grab something to eat.  The typical person will make toast, cold cereal, bagels, pop tarts, breakfast bars, or toaster strudels.  Even worse.. sometimes we don’t have enough time to make something at home, and the only thing available in the office kitchen are muffins, croissants, or donuts.

What is a good solution for a quick, healthy breakfast that takes less than 5 minutes to make, eat, AND clean up???

THE SOLUTION: GREEN SMOOTHIE!!!

I believe making a green smoothie every morning for breakfast has been the single best improvement to my diet.  Here are the differences I noticed right away after making green smoothies for breakfast:

1. Increased Energy – I no longer craved the cup of coffee at Starbucks – I actually had MORE energy than if I had ordered that cup of joe!  My brain actually worked in the morning – and I became much more productive!!

2. Stay Full Longer – I used to eat a bagel or grab a breakfast bar, but I would always be starving within an hour or two.  When I drink a green smoothie in the morning, I’m full for at least a few hours (this is huge for me – I’m always hungry), and then I crave healthy foods before lunch, not sugary snacks.  This is because green smoothies have a ton of fiber, which keep you full much longer than empty carbohydrates.

3. Crave Healthier Foods – When you start your day with multiple servings of fruits and vegetables, you actually crave healthier foods throughout the rest of the day.  Your body doesn’t have an insulin spike like it would with many of the ‘traditional’ breakfasts most Americans eat.  Therefore, you will experience much fewer cravings for salty and sugary foods.

4. Improved Digestion – I won’t go into too much detail on this one, but let’s just say you won’t need to stack up magazines in your bathroom anymore!  Being more regular will get rid of toxins in your body and make you much cleaner.

5. Weight Loss – When you start your day off with fruits and vegetables, your body is getting the nutrients it needs!  You will have more energy for exercise, feel better during the day, and you WILL see the scale start to drop!!

Try mixing up making different green smoothies every morning – you need variety in your diet!  I started making my green smoothies with mostly fruit and a little bit of spinach.  You will slowly start to add more spinach to your smoothies.

Here is a recipe from Green Smoothie Revolution, by Victoria Boutenko for you to try out!!  Also, see my ’33 Best Kept Secret & Fat Burning Recipes) for more smoothie recipes!!

Tropical Green Smoothie

 2 cups spinach
1 mango
1 banana
1 cup pineapple chunks
1 cup water

Yields 2 quarts.  Blend spinach and water first, then add fruit.  This will ensure you don’t have clumps of spinach in your smoothie!!

Please post below if you have tried green smoothies before!  Also please share any recipes that you love!!

To your health!!

Laura

P.S – Bay View Boot Camp is live!!  We would love for you to come try out a class any time!!

P.P.S – Are you on our newsletter? Click here to receive fitness tips, workout videos, and healthy recipes!

Filed Under: Nutrition, Recipes

Next up on the Superfood Series… MACA!!!

August 8, 2011 By Laura Leave a Comment

The next food in our superfood series might pique your interest because of its strong medicinal and aphrodisiac properties.  Here is an excerpt straight out of David Wolfe’s book:

Legend has it that during the height of the Incan empire, Incan warriors would consume maca before entering into battle to make them fiercely strong, but after conquering a city the Incan soldiers were prohibited from using maca, to protect the women from the excessive sexual desires of the men.”

Maca is a great addition to your morning smoothie – it has a slightly malted flavor combined with a sweet butterscotch flavor.  I like to add about a tablespoon into my green smoothies in the morning to get it into my diet.  There will be a few recipes for you at the end of this post, but here are some health benefits!!

Maca is known to improve the following conditions:

  • Anemia
  • Chronic fatigue
  • Depression
  • Infertility
  • Malnutrition
  • Menopausal symptoms
  • Menstrual discomfort
  • Poor memory
  • Stress tension

Maca is a pretty powerful food!  You can buy it as a dried powder, or also take it in a capsule.  Whole Foods or your local organic grocery store will absolutely have it!

As promised, here are a few recipes!

Maca Superfood Smoothie

1 handful of greens (I like spinach)
½ cup – 1 cup fresh young coconut water
1 ripe banana
1 ripe kiwifruit
1 tablespoon dried maca powder
1 tablespoon coconut butter
1 tablespoon raw honey

Blend all ingredients until smooth.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Nutrition, Recipes, Superfood Series

More on the Superfood Series – Cacao (raw chocolate) is #2!

August 1, 2011 By Laura 1 Comment

I was jumping up and down when I read that CHOCOLATE was David Wolfe’s second superfood!!  This shouldn’t be too hard after all!  All chocolate is made from cacao beans.

The cacao bean has always been and will always be Nature’s number-one weight loss and high-energy food.  Cacao beans are probably the best-kept secret in the entire history of food.

This is AWESOME!! The only caveat is that cacao mixed with refined cane sugar actually draws minerals OUT of the body, causes blood sugar disorders, and lowers the medicinal content of the cacao beans.

Good news though – you can still get your chocolate fix without the refined cane sugar found in most chocolate bars!

Health Benefits of Cacao

  • Contains the highest concentration of antioxidants of ANY FOOD IN THE WORLD (by weight, cacao has more antioxidants than red wine, blueberries, acai, pomegranates, and goji berries COMBINED!!)
  • Also contains the highest concentration of magnesium (heart health and brainpower)
  • Iron – has 314% RDA (Recommended Daily Allowance) in 1 ounce serving of cacao
  • Cacao is a rich source of Chromium, Manganese, Zinc, Copper, Vitamin C, Omega 6 fatty acids, Tryptophan, Serotonin, and Fiber

Here’s how to purchase REAL cacao beans at the store (Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, etc. have them)

  1. Buy raw cacao beans (nibs) – you can sprinkle these on dessert or frozen yogurt.  You can also mix them with goji berries, hempseed, almonds, etc. to make a trail mix.
  2. Get cacao powder (not cocoa powder) – you can put this in your smoothie or morning coffee.
  3. Cacao butter – you can make all sorts of desserts with cacao butter.

CACAO RECIPES

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Nutrition, Recipes, Superfood Series

Goji Berries – Superfood #1

July 27, 2011 By Laura Leave a Comment

Get ready for your very first superfood… GOJI BERRIES!!!

You might have heard some buzz about these berries on Dr. Oz or on the news.. and it is for good reason!!  Goji berries are the most nutritionally-rich berry on the PLANET!!!

Here’s a list of some of the advantages you get from eating GOJI BERRIES:

  • Boosts immune system
  • Improves eyesight
  • Anti-aging properties (nicknamed the longevity fruit)
  • Complete protein source (has 19 different amino acids)
  • Contains more than 20 trace minerals (zinc, iron, copper, etc.)
  • Loaded with vitamins (B2, B6, Vitamin E)
  • One of the highest antioxidant rich foods on the planet (2 – 4 times the amount of antioxidants than blueberries)
  • Stimulates the production of Human Growth Hormone (HGH) naturally (only known food to do this!!!)
  • Supports neurological health (help our bodies produce choline which combats free radical damage linked to Alzheimer’s disease)
  • Keeps vital organs healthy (helps with digestive problems and liver detoxification)

Are you excited about goji berries yet?

So what exactly IS a goji berry and where can I get them??

A goji berry is a deep red, dried fruit about the same size as a raisin and tastes similar to the combination of a cranberry and a cherry.  You can get them at your local organic food store (Whole Foods, etc.).  There are lots of ways to eat them.. you can steep goji berries in tea, add them to trail mixes, or toss them into your smoothie or Greek yogurt.

Goji Berry Recipes

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Nutrition, Recipes, Superfood Series

Brand New Superfood Series!!!

July 25, 2011 By Laura 1 Comment

Have you walked through Barnes and Nobles and seen some books with the title ‘Superfoods’ on the cover?  I was curious about these foods – what made them so special?  I dug a little deeper and found out some AWESOME INFO that I wanted to share with you!!

David Wolfe (dubbed the nutritionist’s nutritionist) wrote an amazing book on Superfoods.  Here are 7 golden nuggets from his book – and what YOU need to know about superfoods!!!

1. Superfoods have more than a dozen unique health benefits, not just one or two.  They are actually a cross between a food and a medicine, and THE most nutrient-rich foods on the planet.

2. Superfoods will make it easier to achieve your ideal weight, diet, and food habits. By eating more superfoods, you will get more nutrition with less eating.

3. Superfoods should be eaten raw to retain their nutrients – this way they don’t lose the vitamin content, enzymes, etc. that could be diminished by cooking.

4. Organic fruits and vegetables are great and very much needed in our diet, but they don’t come even CLOSE to the nutritional content in superfoods.  By eating these specific foods, you can guarantee you will get the necessary nutrients to be healthy, boost your immune system, and give you double the energy.

5. Most modern American diets are nutrient and mineral-deficient by nature – our metabolism slows and it is much more difficult to lose the weight.  Foods that are low in nutrition don’t give us much energy – so it’s even HARDER to get in the gym and burn the calories.

6. By eating superfoods, you can kick start your sluggish metabolism and train your body to be more efficient, give you more energy, and burn calories to finally be able to lose that excess weight!!

7. David Wolfe names 10 superfoods that you can incorporate into your diet at home.  You will have much more energy, less cravings, boost your immune system, and feel much healthier!!

 

I will be doing a series on superfoods and give you a new food each week with the health benefits and a few recipes for each one!!

 

Take Action: How will you incorporate superfoods into your diet?


Stay tuned for the very first superfood and recipes coming soon!!!

To your health!!

Laura

P.S – Are you on our newsletter? Click here to receive fitness tips, workout videos, and healthy recipes!

Filed Under: Nutrition, Recipes, Superfood Series

  • « Previous Page
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
  • Next Page »
Join Us For a
$5 for 5-Day Trial

Join us on Facebook

Recent Posts

  • Transformation Tuesday with Yapi!
  • Transformation Tuesday with Sari!
  • Transformation Tuesday with Davina!
  • Transformation Tuesday with Tara!
  • Transformation Tuesday with Erica!

Receive your FREE Recipe Book!

About Me!

LET US HELP!

Tell us what your fitness goals are...

KEEP IN TOUCH!

CONTACT US

SERVING DOWNTOWN
ST. PETERSBURG,
ST. PETE BEACH, AND SURROUNDING AREAS

SEARCH

Home / PROGRAMS / BEFORE & AFTERS / GET STARTED! / ABOUT / Contact

Copyright 2018 - LAURFORTEFITNESS.COM