Metabolism BOOSTING Snacks | Simple No Bake | Healthy & Delicious

Hey Babies!!

Today, for my Fitness Friday segment on my YouTube channel, I shared a video showing you guys 3 super simple, no baking involved snack recipes to help BOOST you METABOLISM! These delicious little treats are packed with amazing ingredients that will help nourish your body and get you metabolism working for you!

I wanted to leave the recipes here as well so you guys could have them in an easy to read form, in addition to the actual video. Hope this helps!




Healthy "Nutella" Spread

Ingredients:
1/2 cup hazelnut butter or 1 cup if whole hazelnuts
1 15-ounce can of black beans, drained and rinsed
4 tbsp cocoa powder
2 tbsp butter or coconut oil (plus 1 tbsp if using whole hazelnuts)
4 tbsp raw honey
2 tsp vanilla extract
pinch of sea salt

Directions:
If using whole hazelnuts, finely chop them in a food processor.

Mix hazelnuts (butter or chopped), black beans, cocoa powder, butter or coconut oil, honey, vanilla extract and salt in a food processor.

That's it! Easy-Peasy! Store in a fridge for up to 3 weeks in an air tight container to avoid drying out.


Oat and Date Protein Bites

Ingredients:
1/2 cup peanut or other nut butter
1/2 cup finely chopped, bitten dates (about 6-8)
1/4 cup old fashioned rolled oats
2 tbsp chia seeds
2 tbsp protein powder (of choice - vanilla or chocolate)
1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 tbsp coconut oil

Directions:
In a bowl, stir all the ingredients together until well combined. Use a spoon or mini ice cream scoop to scoop out small amounts. Use your hand to roll into circles or (trick) you can use a mini muffin pan for the shape.

Aaaaandd you're done! Enjoy them and refrigerate the leftovers!


No Bake Chocolate Almond Bars

Ingredients:
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup coconut oil
1/4 cup almond butter (I used peanut butter in the video)
1/4 tsp sea salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped almonds
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1 cup rolled oats

Directions:
In a saucepan, heat the honey, coconut oil, nut butter, sea salt, vanilla extract and cinnamon over low heat until it all melts together.

Combine the chopped almonds, chopped walnuts, dark chocolate chips, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, cranberries and rolled oats in a bowl.

Stir the wet (heated) and dry ingredients together until combined. Spread into a greased pan and press into the pan. Refrigerate until hardened. Cut into bar shapes and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Eat up, love bugs!

xoxo,
Rocio

Eat MORE, LOSE Weight | Lose Belly Fat

Hey Beauties!

Today I uploaded a new video discussing 10 different SUPERfoods!! I wanted to create a written post to go along with it for those of you who would prefer to read the information, my visual "pen-to-paper/words-on-a-screen" kind of people.

Before I jump into the bullet points discussed in the video I want to note, there are more that 10 super foods that are excellent for your body, health, and weight loss goals! I picked 10 of the bunch just for time purposes to keep my video concise. These super foods actually aid you in losing weight and living a more healthy life. If you find this post and video interesting than use this as a spring board. Start here to try to incorporate more of these super foods into your daily habits. Once they've become part of your go-to for snacks or meals than do some research and pick out another 3-5 super foods that you want to try to incorporate into your meals. A little at a time leads to huge leaps and bounds over time!

10. Cherries: Combat against metabolic syndrome & heart disease

                    Lower cholesterol 

                    Reduce body fat

                   Anti-Oxidants & Anti-Aging benefits

9. Celery: Reduces the risk of ovarian cancer in women

                Full of calcium & Vitamin C which aids in weight loss

                Low in calories

                Full of fiber 

                Great for cleansing and detoxing your body of bad toxins

8. Cucumbers: Vitamin B & C, Great for healthy, glowing skin

                        Rich in fiber

                        Made up of 90% water, very refreshing snack

                        Low in calories

                       Great for detoxing the body

7. Tomatos: Low in calories

                   Reduce lipids in the blood, which then helps control belly fat

                   Fight against diseases caused by obesity

                  Vitamin A, C, iron, potassium

                  Fights cancer

                  Reduces wrinkles

6. Beans: Full of fiber which targets belly fat, breaks it down, removes it from your body

                Full of protein to help build muscle

                Helps you feel fuller for longer

5. Pineapple: Vitamin B6, C and fiber

                     Metabolizes proteins which lead to slimmer waist line

                     Anti-inflamatory, helps with bloating

4. Apples: Contain pectin which is a natural compound that once your body breaks it down a gel like

                  substance is formed. This gel helps trap dietary cholesterol and fat.

                  Full of dietary fiber, helps you feel fuller for longer

                 Antioxidants & Vitamin C, great to combat wrinkles

3. Watermelon: About 90% water, helps counter against water retention

                         Great for fighting bloating

                         Low in calories, low in fat

                         Contains Vitamins B1, B6, C, potassium, magnesium

                         Great for reducing body weight without altering muscle mass retention

                         Helps keep you feeling fuller for longer

2. Avocado: Help you feel fuller for longer

                    Full of HEALTHY fats that your body needs - polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats

                   Your body NEEDS Good Fats

                   Help manage body weight and curb appetite

                   Anti-aging, anti-bacterial and anti-fungal properties

1. Almonds: Contain GOOD fats your body needs

                    Help you feel fuller for longer

                   Great for combatting heart disease

                   High in fiber and magnesium

                   Help you build muscle

If you prefer to just sit back, watch and listen, here is the video for you guys to enjoy:

Okay love bugs, I hope this post was helpful! It's back to bed for me. You might have seen me share on social (@RocioLaura914 on IG) that I have been super sick this past week. I'm happy to say I'm doing much better today but still feeling really weak and tired. Time to rest up and finish recuperating my body from these past few days. I wish you all a super amazing weekend!

Talk soon! xoxo,

Rocio Laura

Extreme Weight Loss in ONLY 8 Hours?! The 8 Hour Diet

Hey Love Bugs!

I'm double posting tonight, but I really wanted to get this out to you asap. A few days ago I posted a video on my YouTube channel reviewing the book, "The 8 Hour Diet" by David Zinczenko and it's gotten a super positive response so far.

I've seen a bunch of questions being posted in my comment section and wanted to follow up with this blog post to share some more information with you guys. In a nut shell the 8 hour diet is quite simply: Eat within 8 hours in any given day. That's absolutely it! The book goes on to claim that you can eat whatever you want, and as much as you want - just keep it in that 8 hour time frame. I go into great detail in the video about the exact science behind this concept and Why It Works! The absolute best part of it is that you don't even have to do it every day - you totally CAN, but as stated in the book - as little as 3 days a week will provide extreme and awesome benefits and results!!

Here are some fast facts that can answer some of your questions:

* You CAN definitely drink water during the intermittent fasting period and its actually encouraged. The book suggest drinking at least 2 tall glasses of water within the first two hours of waking up. This will actually help to further boost your metabolism because it will get to work processing what you're ingesting, meanwhile it's just water. You're hydrating your cells and body but not adding in any calories.

* Being hungry and being thirsty feels the same. Sometimes we're really just thirsty but mistaken it for hunger. When you start to feel that, have some water or a hot drink to curb the hunger pangs for a while longer.

* Hot/Warm drinks can actually help to make you feel fuller for longer. Drinking coffee or tea during the fasting periods is also encouraged. The book even says that it's okay to add some milk or sugar if you must for taste. The amount of you add by putting milk/sugar/etc into your drink is not so much where it will deter your efforts.

One commenter also asked me to share the 7 day sample meal plan to give you an idea of what to eat. However, I want to reiterate that you can literally eat whatever you want. Don't get crazy on me now and go down 3 dozen donuts, a big Mac, and some deep fried oreos, BUT don't feel like you have to greatly change your eating habits or restrict yourself. Remember you get out what you put in, with everything in life.

With that said, I'm going to re-type the exact sample meal plan from the book for those interested. This is directly from chapter 6, page 103 in the book. Many of these meal ideas are included in the recipe chapter in full detail.

Sunday:
Breakfast/Brunch - Huevos Rancheros
Snack #1 - cantaloupe and ham
Lunch - The Ultimate Burger
Snack #2 - oatmeal cookie and a glass of 2% milk
Dinner - Loaded Alfredo with Chicken and Vegetables

Monday:
Breakfast/Brunch - Papaya Berry smoothie
Snack #1 - pear and slices of Brie
Lunch - Chicken Salad Sandwich with Curry and Raisins
Snack #2 - cup of tomato soup
Dinner - Shrimp Scampi

Tuesday:
Breakfast/Brunch - Sunrise Sandwich with Turkey, Cheddar & Guacamole
Snack #1 - sliced tomato with fresh mozarella
Lunch - Spinach and Ham Quiche
Snack #2 - square of dark chocolate
Dinner - Seared Sirloin with Red Wine Mushrooms

Wednesday:
Breakfast/Brunch - The Caffeinated Banana Smoothie
Snack #1 - whole wheat toast with peanut butter
Lunch - Pesto-Tuna Melt
Snack #2 - Triscuits with ham and Swiss
Dinner - Chili-Mango Chicken

Thursday:
Breakfast/Brunch - Oatmeal with Peanut Butter and Banana
Snack #1 - Greek yogurt with chopped strawberries
Lunch - Chinese Chicken Salad
Snack #2 - Chips and Salsa
Dinner - Honey-Mustard Salmon with Roasted Asparagus

Friday:
Breakfast/Brunch - Yogurt Parfait
Snack #1 - pita with hummus
Lunch - Turkey, Bacon, Guacamole Sandwich
Snack #2 - almonds and grapes
Dinner - Super Supreme Pizza

Saturday:
Breakfast/Brunch - Blueberry Pancakes
Snack #1 - bowl of Cheerios with sliced banana
Lunch - Chicken White-Bean Chili
Snack #2 - chips and guacamole
Dinner - Grilled Fish Tacos with Mango Salsa

Remember this is just a SAMPLE. This is an easy peasy diet that can work for you and your lifestyle. There are some general guidelines to follow, as I discussed in the video (8 Powerfoods concept) but you can essentially mold this seamlessly into the life you already live. For example, I follow a mostly plant-based diet. I can still implement the 8 hour eating window with my current dietary customs. Start with the 8 hours and then slowly make further, healthier changes. As you see results and progress you gain more motivation and are driven to make more positive changes. Don't stress yourself out thinking you have to have, be and do all at once. It's like a snowball effect, let your momentum grow on it's own and it will be so easy to just flow toward a healthier life!

I hope this follow up blog post was helpful to you guys and provided some supplemental information! Don't forget to check out the video for much more. If you are interested in the book here is a link to it on amazing: The 8 Hour Diet book

So much love to all of you and bets of luck on your own fitness journeys!

xoxo,
Rocio Laura


P.S. I talked about the idea of an 8 minute workout in the video as well. I see that so many of you have been interested in a follow up video sharing the 8 minute workout routines so I will be creating that for you guys later this month! xoxo