Monday, February 24, 2014

NEW OBSESSION: Grapefruit!

So last year it was cranberries, trail mix and more recently nuts.  Nuts nuts nuts nuts nuts!  All things nuts.  Almonds were definitely my "gateway nut" which brought me into the world of cashews, macadamia nuts, peanuts....all sorts of nuts.

Fast forward a couple months and it was ALL THINGS COCONUT.  Coconut this, coconut that....dark chocolate dipped coconut, raw coconut chips and anything flavored would be flavored coconut for sure.

Well nooooow - new obsession is grapefruit.  I was never a fan of bitter but this bitter cross between a sweet orange and pomelo has me drooling at the thought of the Ruby Red goodness.  I've always heard grapefruit is good for you and it tastes like it's better for you then most fruits but WHY?  What about a grapefruit makes it good for you?


Like usual, I have a need to know basis.  I decided to look a bit more into the new fruit and see what these babies are all about......

5 Health Benefits of Grapefruit:

1) Grapefruit helps in losing weight:

This fruit is high in enzymes that burn fats and has a high water content and low sodium.  This combination is the perfect food for helping to increase your metabolism.  If you can eat or drink grapefruit in small amounts everyday you will notice a quicker weight drop.  The study on www.health.com shows that people that ate 1/2 a grapefruit before their meal (without many ANY other dietary changes) lost an average of 3.5 lbs over 12 weeks because their metabolism was quicker eating the super fruit. 

2) Prevents arthritis and works as an antiseptic:

Grapefruit contains salicylic acid that helps break down the body's inorganic calcium, which builds up the cartilage of joined that may lead to arthritis.  The salicylic acid in grapefruit also works as a powerful antiseptic.  In addition, grapefruit seeds extracts can be added to water to make and antiseptic spray for treating bacterial and fungal infection. 

3) Grapefruit helps in cancer prevention:

 Lycopene is a pigment that is responsible for the red color of grapefruit.  It is a powerful agent against tumors and cancers.  There is also an antioxidant compound, called naringenin found in grapefruit.  This helps repair damaged DNA in prostate cancer cells.  

4) Grapefruit helps lower cholesterol levels:

The antioxidants found in grapefruit are effective in reducing cholesterol levels (but watch out - if you're on medication you may be told NOT to eat grapefruit).  This fruit can protect your heart a great deal.  The deep red varieties pack the biggest punch because they have higher levels of antioxidants. 

5) Grapefruit treats various common ailments:

Eating grapefruit or drinking its juice helps treat common cold and fever, dissolve gallstones, boose liver function and enhance immunity again infections.  As grapefruit contains a dietary fiber called pectin, it thus promotes better digestion.  In addition - it will help with having healthier and smoother skin!  Grapefruit also contains essential elements such as iron, calcium, potassium, manganese, magnesium, phosphorus, folic acid and B vitamins.  You can extract oil from the peel and use it in aromatherapy!  Often times they say you can cut one in 1/2, throw some sugar on it and exfoliate your skin just using the 1/2 piece of fruit. 


FYI - some Kettle ONE and some fresh grapefruit juice is fantastic.  The bitter cuts the vodka taste and it's harder to get too hungover because there isn't as much sugar as store bought "mixers"...


I'm beginning to think these new in depth views at various healthy tasty items may become a standard for Jen Is Trayning...  Stay tuned and by all means, send over some suggestions!

Saturday, February 15, 2014

Instagram for fitness - forget celebrities!

When I was at the Alternative MOVE event get together last Tuesday (very cool event where we got to test the new fitness line) we were asked the question from the marketing team "who in the mainstream media do you look up to or want to be like?"  I instantly started to think about the last time I actually picked up an US Weekly and if there was any one in those magazines I 'admire' or 'look up to'.  I responded with "no, the people I look up to are REAL people!"  What an age we live in!

With Instagram I've found a place for my fitness side to gawk on chiseled bodies and get recipes and motivation from people who are just like me.  People who are healthy and active and want to share happy thoughts and positive energy - and it's FREE!  I can look in my feed and see:




As cliche as it sounds - it's NICE!  It's uplifting and exciting to see something and have it motivate you.  On top of that I use Instagram to find recipes!  I screenshot the recipes and spend the weekend to try new and different things I found on some of my favorite Insta-accounts.  




I started an instagram account for jenistrayning and I can be found and followed here: jenistrayning instagram

So - here are some of my favorite Instagram accounts to follow (and growing)...

http://instagram.com/fitmotivation
http://instagram.com/hungryhappens
http://instagram.com/peruvianbarbiie
http://instagram.com/luvfitlife
http://instagram.com/food48
http://instagram.com/ourfitlife
http://instagram.com/inspiralized

Again, a cool change in the times when you stop idolizing air brushed fake people and focus your attention on real human beings that are REALLY working hard to achieve everything they know is possible and more.  It's my regimen to start my work out on the treadmill, walking to get my heart rate up and scrolling through my insta account.  I <3 it!

Happy Saturday and enjoy the weekend!!







Sunday, February 9, 2014

Full Psycle is Full of Fun!

I feel it only appropriate to post about a great exercise establishment on the ONE year anniversary of FULL PSYCLE.  I have been hitting up these spin classes more regularly this year and challenged myself to one week straight of the ass kicking cycling work out.  The class is not only up beat and fun but it definitely has a way of pushing you to your limits.  The trick behind the FULL PSYCLE class is competition.  I, like many of you, am not a fan of competition.  I get anxious and jittery at the idea of pushing myself to compete against others; however, I found that when I started to put the competition to MYSELF is when I started to excel.  The technology FULL PSYCLE employs is staring you in the face on two large HD televisions.  This shows you your POWER, RPMs and OVERALL ENERGY.

I have begun the class thinking "ehhh, I am a bit sluggish this morning, I'm going to take it easy…" and before you know it I'm instantly trying to beat my last high energy or trying to get my power above my body weight (as they instruct you to do).  I can say this sense of determination comes from the awesome staff of instructors that push you to work harder and leave it all out on the bike.  They have fun themes like "Throwback Thursday" and play loud upbeat music that makes you go go go go go!

After every class you get an email where you can view your results instantly.  They'll let you see the leader board compared to women only, men only, total energy or energy per LB.  My goal is always to get in the top 10 and many times I've come in first!  I also really want to get 500 on Total Energy…I feel it coming!




Congrats FULL PSYCLE on a year of helping motivated people achieve their personal best.  I've found this class to greatly improve my energy at Back Bay Fitness in terms of my weight training and I LOVE that it's 45 minutes and shows the results of a typical hour and 20 minute work out or more!  Also - now that I have my heart rate monitor it's fun to get actual calorie results.  Since hitting more consistent FP classes in the last couple weeks I've spun 182 miles.  GETTING IT DONE!