Be Broncho Fit!

Green Smoothie Summer!

Summer is just right around the corner! Who doesn’t love summer? With all the fresh fruit, the family get- together’s; sometimes it can be had to decide what to bring to the function. Green smoothies are the new “it” thing, and why not bring a batch of the best smoothie you can make to the get together? There are so many benefits to drinking green smoothies! They have great anti-oxidants, a bunch of nutrients, and they even have vegetables in it, when you can’t even tell! So next time you are thinking about going to a family get together and have not a clue what to bring, try out one of these amazing recipes, they are sure not to disappoint.

1. Island Blast

1 small to medium banana (ripe and peeled)

1 rib of celery

¼ cucumber (peeled if not organic)

1 cup of fresh or frozen pineapple

1 small handful of parsley

½ inch piece of ginger (or less if you’re new to ginger)

1-2 cups of coconut water (unpasteurized)

2. Banana-Berry Super Smoothie

2 cups of spinach

1 frozen small to medium banana (ripe and peeled)

3/4 cup of frozen mixed berries (or fresh strawberries or blueberries)

¼ cup of raw nuts or raw seeds (my favorites are sunflower seeds, walnuts, flax seeds or almonds, or a combination of the above)

1-2 cups of water or coconut water (unpasteurized)

3. Green Strawberry-Kiwi Lemonade

1 kiwi (peeled)

¾ cup of frozen or fresh strawberries

¼- ½ cup of frozen or fresh pineapple

½ lemon (peeled and seeds removed)

2 cups of spinach

1-1 ½ cups of water or coconut water (unpasteurized)

** More recipes on mindbodygreen.com

By Krystal Nelson

Posted on April 22, 2014 by Buddy Broncho

Losing It: Inches vs. Pounds

Clearly it is not unlikely that a person new to working out’s number one goal is to lose weight. From this, you must ask is there a reason to lose a certain weight, is there a certain weight you are trying to reach, or is the ultimate goal to look better and feel better? Inches versus pounds is an issue of discussion for people who beginning a new workout program and want to lose a few pounds. Some people are quick to be discouraged because they simply focus on what they see on a scale instead of what their body looks like or how their body feels. Muscle weighs more than fat; whenever someone begins an exercise program, or even weeks into an exercise program, they may not lose weight and in some cases may actually gain weight. It is important to notice that they are losing unnecessary body fat and gaining muscle. Muscle is denser than fat and muscle’s greater density means it takes up less room than fat, but it actually weighs more. Don’t let a number on a scale discourage you from continuing healthy habits such as exercise and healthy eating, because even though the weight may stay the same or actually increase, you are becoming much healthier while looking better. Losing weight comes down to the bottom line that you have to expend more calories than you intake; someone with more muscle mass actually burns more calories doing the same exercise than someone with more body fat. Next time you are beginning a program with the goal of losing weight, determine if the actual goal is to look and feel better, and be more driven by focusing on body fat percentage and inches lost rather than the amount of weight lost.
Acquired from http://exercise.answers.com/weight-loss/effective-weight-loss-losing-inches-versus-losing-pounds
-Cameron Pound

Posted on April 11, 2014 by Buddy Broncho

Alternative Fitness

There are so many ways to exercise. There are a lot of people out there who think that exercise means that you have to go to the gym with a bunch of “muscles-heads” and “beauty-queens” to have the ability to exercise. This is so far from the truth. The truth is that anything that you do that causes a purposefully increase in your heart rate can be called exercise. So, this fear that so many people have about exercise not being fun is a hoax because you can make anything fun, even exercise. Here is a pretty good top ten list of fun ways that you can exercise without even knowing that you are exercising.

Go on a hike: hiking is a great way to exercise especially if you are going through a heavily wooded area or any kind of rough terrain. The scenery is beautiful. It is easy to relax and unwind. It is also mentally therapeutic as well as physically demanding.
Dancing: this is one of my favorite things to do. I love to dance because it is so physically demanding. If you do not think so, go to a club somewhere and be the first one on the dance floor and the last one off and see how tired and sore your legs are. Especially if you like country music and swing dancing. If you are in enough shape to do the entire dance to Copperhead Road then you are in pretty good shape!
Roughhousing with your kids: If you have kids then you understand that they can go for days without stopping it seems like. They normally wear you out just watching them. Well if you want to spend more time with your kids and you don’t want to go to the gym then get down and dirty with the young ones and they will show you how to make exercise fun. If you do not have kids find a niece, nephew, or younger sibling. Being the youngest of three, trust me that means a lot when you older ones play with us!
Stop meeting for coffee: there are so many more physically demanding things to do than meet for coffee. If you want to meet with a friend somewhere, meet them at a park and have a good time. Go for a hike. Go swimming. Go play catch with a football, baseball, softball, or Frisbee. Go play golf somewhere. Go to the batting cages. Do something more physical active than meeting for coffee.
Clean your house/car: cleaning can be pretty physically demanding especially if you live like me or if you have kids. There is always something to do around the house.
Play video games that make you be active: there are a lot of physically active video games out there now like the wii fit, wii tennis, just dance, and many more. If you are a gamer then this is perfect for you.
Join a rec league: this is another one of my favorite things to do. I love rec football, softball, and basketball. Joining rec leagues have been a great way for me to change up my routine a little bit and still be very active.
Bike to work: if you live fairly close to your work ride your bike. Riding a bike is very physically demanding so it is a great way to exercise and it is fun.
Learn how to play the drums: not only do you get to exercise but you get to let your anger and aggression from school and work out on beating the drums.

Jared Hardcastle

Posted on April 4, 2014 by Buddy Broncho

Change It Up, Keep It Fresh

One of the biggest issues noticed with people involved with exercise programs is getting bored and ultimately leading to not continuing on with exercise. There are large numbers of people out there who know someone who this has happened to or it has personally happened to them. With the epidemics of disease, cancer, and other sicknesses that currently plaguing the United States it is important that people are exercising on a consistent basis because this could play a huge role in these cases being limited.

One of the important ways to help keep individuals involved with exercise programs and exercising in general is changing up routines and finding ways to exercise that are enjoyable. For example, some people do not enjoy running especially on a treadmill, for these individual they need to find alternatives that will help them achieve fitness needs. Depending on the person, playing basketball, flag football, or playing soccer with friends or joining a local league can be a great way to have fun and get exercise at the same time. Other great examples could be boxing, martial arts, yoga, along with many others ways to incorporate creative ways for a person to exercise. For those individuals who enjoy strength training and cardio workouts need to make sure routines are switched up and staying fresh to avoid staleness and repetitive. This will not only help with making the program more enjoyable, but more health benefits and improvements will be a product of doing so. An example of this would be mixing up treadmill runs by doing flat and incline intervals weekly with some weeks focusing on shorter intervals at higher speeds and others having longer intervals at lesser speeds but just constantly changing things up. With strength training, a person can change of variations of squats by doing back squats, front squats, jump squats, and mixing different intensities and loads weekly. One week can focus on larger weight reps and then the next week can be a speed week, which focuses on lighter weight.

These are just a few ways to change things up and keep your own personal programs fresh. Figure out what works best for you individually and get out there, get after it and have fun!

Posted on April 4, 2014 by Buddy Broncho

Just 5 More Minutes…

With Spring Break behind us, there is a crippling realization for a lot of college students: our sleep schedule is in shambles and we are barely making it to class on time, much less fully prepared. How do we get our sleep schedules back to perfection? It will take a little planning and dedication to get your body’s internal clock to reset. It sounds weird to have to plan for sleep doesn’t it? That’s because it’s something your body already does for you naturally with an internal clock set by light levels, when you eat, exercise, and most importantly when you start your day. Here are a few tips to help reset your body’s sleep clock and get back on track:

1. Use Bright Light in the Morning: The best way to jump start your morning and shake off the grogginess from leftover melatonin is to flood your room with light. When you wake up, turn on bright lights and throw open the curtains to bring in daylight. This will give the same effect as walking out of a dark movie theatre in the middle of a bright afternoon.

2. Dim the Lights in the Evening: Too much light at night pushes your sleep time later. To cut down on light at night keep lights low near the end of the day. Dim lights or turn off overly bright overhead lights and use lamps instead. Try not to use laptops, tablets, cell phones, TVs, or other electronics too close to bed time. Our eyes are especially sensitive to the blueish light emitted by electronics, especially at night, and will keep the sleep inducing chemical melatonin at bay.

3. Time Your Meals: At home, keep a regular routine for meals and exercise. This helps steady your internal clock with a comfortable routine. This one can be tricky for college students already balancing class, work, and studying but it will help greatly in getting your sleep back on track.

4. Limit Your Time in Bed: If you lie awake when you’re in bed, try getting up and doing something mostly inactive, such as reading a book. Lying in bed awake only discourages the body from sleeping in bed in the future. Don’t nap during the day, either. A nap will make it almost impossible to fall asleep at a proper time later in the day and you will end up lying awake in bed.

5. Limit Caffeine: You may be tempted to use caffeine to get over the afternoon hump for the first couple of days. This is the last thing you want to do, with caffeine taking roughly 8 hours to work its way out of your system.

6. Most Importantly: Wake Up!: This sounds so simple and obvious, but it is the most neglected aspect of a healthy sleep schedule. By waking up as soon as your alarm goes off every morning, sorry snooze addicts, your body will naturally shift your sleep schedule to match. Even if you neglect all of the other aspects of a healthy sleep schedule, as long as you get up and get moving at the same time every day your body will adapt and restful sleep will soon return to your bedroom!

Source: http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/features/reset-sleep-cycle

By Taylor Lesser

Posted on March 27, 2014 by Buddy Broncho

Keep Calm & Snack On!

Everyone can say that they have had a craving for something between meals every now and then! It can be a sweet, savory, crunchy, or even something to drink that puts you in the mood to look into the cabinets and refrigerator for a between meal munch. It is easy to grab a donut or chips , but we all know those are not healthy and many of us regret eating them after the deed is done. There are healthy, tasty ways to get over these food cravings without feeling remorseful after their consumption! Here are few tips that may help.

*Look for nutrient dense snacks– These will help keep your energy levels up throughout the day. Plus you will not have consumed empty calories that can later put your mind and body in a “slump.”

*Be whole-grain and fiber friendly– Whole-grains and fiber will keep you feeling more satisfied until your next meal without consuming overbearing amounts. They allow you to snack then stop because a feeling of satisfaction comes along with these snacks, helping you from eating an entire package of cookies or chips.

*Split your favorite snacks into portions– If you like to snack with an item that can be considered a meal in itself such as popcorn, divide it into different small bags. This will help you from over consuming, as well as, give you a feeling of control that you have not consumed an entire bag. This works for all items that can be separated!

*Choose wisely-Focus on fruits, vegetables, and low fat dairy products. They are the best calories that you can consume with your whole-grain and fiber to make the snack last. They also are nutrient dense. Fill your counters and refrigerators with these to make the choice easy!

*Do NOT buy “junk food”– You cannot eat it if it is not available! Keep the junk out and replace it with you healthy snacks. Your healthy snacking will automatically replace your empty calorie snacking and you will feel better throughout your day!

Below are healthy choices of snacks that can help with satisfying your cravings!

Crunchy:

• Apples

• Carrot and celery sticks

• Green pepper sticks

• Zucchini cirdes

• Radishes

• Broccoli spears

• Cauliflower

• Unsalted rice cakes

Munchy:

• Unsalted sunflower seeds

• Whole-grain breads or toast

• Cherry or grape tomatoes

• Low-fat or fat-free cheese

• Plain low-fat or fat-free yogurt

• Unsalted almonds, walnuts and other nuts

Sweet:

• Unsweetened canned fruit

• Thin slice of angel food cake

• Baked apple

• Raisins

• Dried fruit gelatin gems

• Frozen bananas

• Frozen grapes

• Fresh fruit

• Low-fat or fat-free unsweetened fruit yogurt

Thirst Quenchers:

• Fat-free milk

• Unsweetened juices

• Low-sodium tomato or mixed vegetable juice

• Water

By Lakisha Laster

Posted on March 27, 2014 by Buddy Broncho

The Importance of a Post-Workout Meal

After a grueling workout, you might find yourself becoming one of two people. First, there are the people who want to go home and eat everything in sight. On the other hand, some people are too exhausted to even fathom the idea of putting any food in their stomachs. While you might falls into one of these categories, many people do not understand the importance of a post-workout meal. The popular post-workout meal includes a healthy dosage of protein, and with good reason; research shows protein within 30-60 minutes post-workout allows the muscles to recover. Without the proper amount of protein in a post-workout meal (and in your everyday diet), your muscles can go from needing 48 hours to properly recover from a workout to taking 72 hours or more before working the same muscle group without doing any damage. Secondly, don’t let the myth of the effectiveness of a low-carb diet prevent you from treating your body to some carbohydrates. Carbohydrates are a main energy source for your body, and taking in carbs 30-60 minutes after your workout can replenish your body’s energy and assist in getting rid of that post-workout exhaustion. Here is a website with a few ideas on post-workout meals that are mostly simple and not time consuming. Get the most out of your workout; don’t punish your body by not having that all important post-workout meal!
Cameron Pound

Posted on March 12, 2014 by Buddy Broncho

The Importance and Benefits of Sleep

College students have busy lives which revolve around school, relationships, jobs, and other responsibilities which can be time and energy consuming but staying healthy is crucial for everybody. In the process, it is important to try to keep up with overall health which includes many aspects such as; exercise, diet, stress levels, nutrition, etc. One area that is routinely overlooked and not payed attention to as much as other areas is the importance of sleep. There is an article on health.com titled, “11 Surprising Health Benefits of Sleep” which examines how critical sleep can be on an individual overall well-being. Some of the most important benefits that can be experienced are better memory, higher levels of creativity, improved grades, sharper attention, lower stress levels, ability to maintain healthier weight, and helps individuals avoid depression. There are also studies that suggest getting proper sleep can help with longevity and living a longer life. To experience these wonderful benefits try to get the recommended eight hours of sleep on average every night if at all possible. This can be challenging with busy schedules and long nights of studying late into the night preparing for a big test the next day or in the near future, but try to manage and prioritize to where everything can be balanced without depriving yourself of sleep. Keep in mind the great benefits that can be realized through consistently getting eight hours of sleep a night and make it a priority along with other healthy lifestyle choices.

Donny Hein

Posted on March 11, 2014 by Buddy Broncho

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