This post is sponsored by BODYARMOR and the Mom It Forward Influencer Network. All opinions included are my own. Can you believe it’s 2018 already? I know. I’m still writing 2017 on my shopping lists. Yes, I date my shopping lists. That means its time to share my fit mom essentials for the year.
Fit Mom Essentials
Many of you may remember that I don’t like New Year’s Resolutions. I think that they cause us to feel like the changes we make are temporary. So instead of a resolution, this year I’ve decided to have faith in the process. I know that eating better and moving more work. So I’m focusing on the ways that I can help these positive choices happen on a daily basis. This means that I’m working hard to set myself up for success.
Which means getting the gym set up in the basement (I’m using the term “gym” loosely. It’s just a collection of workout tools), I’ve stocked our fridge and pantry with healthy options, I’m working completing my Whole30, and I’ve got a few things that I cannot live without.
Here are my fit mom essentials for 2018:
Barre Socks
You’ve heard about not wearing shoes in the house, right? When you wear your shoes outside, you pick up all sorts of gross bacteria (not to mention dirt) that you then track all over your house.
Because of this, we have a ‘no shoes’ policy in our house. We wear shoes outside and take them off as soon as you come in. While my kids aren’t babies anymore, they spend an exorbitant amount of time on the floors. So I want to keep them clean.
Instead of shoes, we each have a few pairs of slippers and slipper socks that we can wear if we are cold. But lately, I’ve been wearing my barre socks over my slippers.
Why? Wearing barre socks allows me to drop some squats, jump on the rowing machine, or even bust a move anytime I want.
They’re lightweight but have grips on the bottom, so I’m not sliding and I won’t ruin my slippers (or use them as an excuse to avoid my workout).
Healthy Snacks
It’s so important to eat well when you’re moving more. Plus, snacking (smart) between meals may help you eat less when you do sit down to eat. I notice that when I have a small snack mid-morning, I tend to eat a smaller lunch because I’m not starved, and the same holds true in the evening.
Some of my favorite snacks are raw almonds, cashews (yes, I know that they’re technically a legume), freeze-dried blueberries, and paleo jerky.
My kids also love my snack choices, which means that they’re eating better without me having to hide food (totally not out of the realm of possibilities!) or beg them.
Electrolyte Water or Sports Drinks
You’ve probably heard of electrolytes. Sodium, chloride, potassium, calcium and magnesium are minerals that when dissolved in water become electrically charged ions that we call electrolytes. Pretty cool, huh?
When you exercise, you need to replace the electrolytes that are lost when you sweat. Depending on how intensely you exercise, you may sweat a ton, or not at all.
I’ve noticed that when I replenish with a sports drink (my favorite is BODYARMOR Lyte) or water (I prefer electrolyte water, like BODYARMOR SportWater), recovery takes less time, and I end up with less “second-day” soreness.
I keep both BODYARMOR SportWater (it has electrolytes, performance pH of 8+, a wide-mouthed bottle, and comes in with or without a sport cap) and BODYARMOR LYTE in my fridge (it comes in two equally delicious flavors: Mango and Cherry Berry). And I can get them at Kroger, so I don’t have to make multiple trips (that’s a total win for me!).
I love that BODYARMOR LYTE uses natural flavors and sweeteners instead of artificial sources (that applies to the color of their drinks as well), and has all the same nutrients as BODYARMOR, with only 20 calories per serving.
I’m actually thinking of getting a mini fridge in my office downstairs so that I can stock it exclusively with BODYARMOR LYTE and SportWater (it’s that good).
Hot Pants (and Shirts)
Not the teeny tiny, should-be-bikini-bottoms. The ones that make you sweat. And I like to wear them all day long.
These neoprene (yes, you read that right) help your body to create a sauna effect whether you’re doing chores, cooking dinner, or actually working out. I find that on days that I wear them I tend to be more active, easily knocking out my daily step goal and getting at least 60+ active minutes
You can also find the same technology in tank tops and even tee shirts if you really want to burn some extra calories.
A Fitness Tracker
And speaking of burning extra calories, if you don’t already track your fitness, you need to. I’ve tried everything from the Apple Watch to my Fitbit, and they all do a great job. Most fitness trackers allow you to set goals and adjust them, and some even talk to your digital scale (as long as they are compatible) via wifi.
This makes tracking your weight loss or health goals super simple. Plus, I’ve never been great about wearing a watch and knowing that I will miss steps or mistrack my workout is all the motivation I need.
And as an added bonus, I’m rarely late for anything now.
Bone Broth
If you’re working your health and you are doing everything right, then you want to make sure that you don’t sabotage yourself. I’m a coffee addict, but recently (as recently as last week), I’ve started to incorporate bone broth into my regular routine.
Why? Well, for one thing, it’s healthy. For another, it contains collagen, which helps to plump the skin and some claim that it helps with cellulite. Even if that’s just a red herring, I’m down to try it.
Plus, it’s winter here in Michigan, and bone broth is warm, low in calories, and does not require creamer (no I will not drink black coffee).
As you work to improve your healthy routine, you may find that small changes result in much faster overall change. That’s because change takes time, and changing one thing at a time (and mastering it) before you move on to something else makes that first change a habit, making another change much, much easier.
None of these suggestions doesn’t require a major overhaul, though, so feel free to try as many as you like. Just don’t skip out on the sport water. It’s so, so good.
