Healthy Sydney

Hi, I'm Sydney! Welcome to my personal health and fitness journey. Working on health, self care and overall confidence 🦋

[healthy-sydney]

💙

[healthy-sydney]

Trying to pretend that its summertime in my new matching set from the Sarah’s Day collection :)

[healthy-sydney]

love love love your blog! just started mine, would you mind checking it out? xoxoxo

I just followed and checked out your blog - amazing material!!! Everyone give this gal a follow :)

[thegoodvybe]

[healthy-sydney]

I love when the weather warms up back in my hometown and I am able to go on some great hikes! There is nothing better than getting a good workout in, and with a beautiful view. I wore my FitBit for the day to track my hike - I went 4.5 miles and I burned over 1,000 calories. I am exhausted but ready to get back into Tucson for my last week of college!

Anyone have any recommendations for great hikes in Arizona? I am moving to California soon and would love to get a last great hike in before I leave the state. Please message or comment if you have any recs. I’ve already tried Seven Hills and Tumamoc Hill here in Tucson.

Happy Saturday everyone!

[healthy-sydney]

Hey guys! I’ve posted before about calculating your macronutrients based on your individual fitness needs (I’ve calculated mine through this website https://healthyeater.com/flexible-dieting-calculator) and I recently found this great app that helps you track for free!

Lose It is an app where you can scan your food items or search for them in the system to track calories or track macronutrients. I have never really liked tracking calories before - I eat when I am hungry, and refuse to limit myself based on a number. However, I do love seeing my macronutrients, so I can tell if I am getting enough protein, carbohydrates, and fats in my daily diet that suits my individual fitness goals. Here’s an example of my macronutrients yesterday, screenshotted from the app!

[healthy-sydney]

Happy Earth Day! I celebrated today by going on a run through this beautiful campus before it got too hot! How are you celebrating our planet today?

[healthy-sydney]

Benefits of Regular Hot Yoga

Today I thought I’d talk about a workout that is relatively new to me - hot yoga. Throughout my fitness journey, I’ve tried many different hot yoga classes, but I never made it part of my routine to go to hot yoga consistently. This past month, I’ve been going to classes at 4th Avenue Yoga here in Tucson. It is affordable (only $5 a class, compared to $15 at Sumits) and I’ve been loving what is has been doing for my body and mental wellbeing. Here are some of the benefits I’ve noticed from going to hot yoga 4x a week.

1. Anxiety Reduction

I’ve struggled with minor anxiety in my adulthood, and these classes have seriously been the best way to reduce my stress. I always leave the class feeling more relaxed. By focusing so much of the exercise on deep breathing and my mental wellbeing, it is the best medicine for my anxiety. 

2. Release of Toxins

By sweating profusely for an hour to 90 minutes each workout, I have begun to feel so much healthier and cleansed after every session. If I am even slightly hungover, I always leave the exercise feeling completely cured. This is a great way to really sweat out those unwanted toxins and feel rejuvenated afterwards.

3. Becoming More Flexible

The more I’ve been going, the more I’ve been able to bend and stretch in places I thought my body couldn’t go. I have never been super flexible, but just from my regular attendance this month, my overall flexibility has increase immensely.

4.  Weight Loss

I started going to hot yoga mainly just to try something new and work on my flexibility, but with all the sweating and movements, I have actually been losing weight. I wear my Orange Theory heart rate monitor during yoga, and I’ve been able to burn up to 500 calories a session. With my regular attendance and all the sweating, this workout has toned my body in ways that other high intensity workouts haven’t been able to do.

If you’re thinking about trying any sort of hot yoga, I highly recommend it! It can be intimidating at first, but it is so worth it!

[healthy-sydney]

Cheers to the week being almost over! My roommate Bailey and I decided to treat ourselves to a wine night with our best friends.

I love drinking wine, and it is something I’m not willing to cut out of my diet. I definitely limit myself with drinking now that I’ve gotten older, but I love a good couple of glasses of a wine when I’m out with my friends. I wanted to recommend some of my favorite low calorie choices for those of you wanting to cut cals but still enjoy wine.

Skinny Girl Wine Collection: I love sweet wines, and this brand has it all. They make almost every type of white wine in a skinny version, and they still taste great. I’ve had the Rosé, Moscato, and Pinot Grigio and they were all amazing. Plus, there’s only 100 calories a glass.

Cense Sauvignon Blanc: Created by Weight Watchers, this is a great white wine with only 80 calories a glass and no added sugar. I’m not a huge Sauvignon Blanc girl, but this brand tastes better than the wines I’ve tried before, and it is half the calories.

FitVine: This brand sells varieties of wines, such as Chardonnay, Pinot Grigio and even some reds. They aim to have less sugar, carbs, and calories than other wine brands. Both their white and red wines go for about 80-95 calories a glass.

Hope these recommendations help anyone who loves wine like me and cannot cut it out of their lifestyle :)

[healthy-sydney]

Grocery store day! I love Trader Joe’s so much.

This week I wanted to focus on incorporating more protein into my diet, which is why I got turkey breast for sandwiches, grilled chicken for dinners, SW salads, Think Thin protein bars, high protein veggie burgers, and my favorite snack of all time - turkey jerky. The TJ’s turkey jerky is incredible if you’re into snacks like that - it is 60 calories per serving with no fat, only 6g of carbs, and 11g of protein. My favorite snack ever!!!

Other highlights from this trip would be the Trader Joe’s version of whole wheat bread (this has only 60 calories a slice and less carbs than a brown rice cake has), the yummy mandarins when I’m craving something sweet and want some vitamin c (so much better if you keep them refrigerated), and Fiber O’s. The Fiber O’s are a pretty standard cereal, but are packed with fiber and protein and made from bean powder.

What are your favorite groceries to get?! I’m always in need of some inspiration. I love trying new foods, especially when they’re good for me too.

[healthy-sydney]

Will you stop 🛑 posting when the semester ends?

No! Planning on continuing :)

[healthy-sydney]

My roommates love to make fun of me whenever I do any type of yoga or meditation. I am the least flexible person in the universe, but I love yoga and the way it makes me feel. Shoutout to my roommate Bailey for invading my privacy and snapping this photo!

Today, I wanted to take it easy on my body, as I am super sore from Orange Theory. I decided to do a quick 15 minute yoga session with light weights, and I followed along with this video from YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kqdByum6mEs

YouTube has so many great workouts that are easy to follow at home! Definitely check those out if you’re ever in a rut. 

Hope everyone has an amazing day! Namaste :)

[fashionshitiscray]

[healthy-sydney]

My favorite vitamin packs ever! I got this for $10 at my local Walgreens and I have been using this brand for months. They come in the cutest little packages and are perfect for women. All of the vitamins serve great purposes and can help you take your health to the next level.

A multi-vitamin is great to take in general. Though we should be getting enough vitamins in our daily foods, a lot of people don’t, and multi-vitamins can work to make sure we get the nutrients we need. Fish oil is great for brain and eye development, and reducing risk of heart disease. Vitamin D 3 and Calcium both work to build strong bones and helps with blood pressure issues. A daily cranberry pill is good for sugar control, immunity, and it can help prevent UTI’s and bladder infections. All great supplements to be taking as a woman!

[healthy-sydney]

Good morning Tumblr!

I wanted to post this because sleep is so important to your overall health and fitness lifestyle. Before I ever started regularly working out and eating healthy, I never prioritized my sleep. Now that I make sure I get at least 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep in a cold room after my night routine. I function so much better and am able to get my body to the gym as the sunrises. When you go to sleep after a hard workout, it’s your body’s time to recover, and make sure you are ready and able to go for the next day. 

To help you sleep better, try sleeping in a cold climate with a fan on if you have one and like the white noise it makes. I try to make sure I don’t eat a lot before bed, just because I don’t sleep as well when I am full. If you can, stick to a consistent schedule, and develop a routine that tells your body it is time to go to bed. For me, I put lavender essential oils in my oil diffuser, take a hot shower, and write in my planner what I am going to accomplish tomorrow. This helps me sleep soundly every night.

[breezypastels-deactivated201603]

[healthy-sydney]

I am so happy it’s Wednesday! One step closer to the weekend :)

I was super busy all day catching up in school and I had an 8 hour work shift. Luckily, I was able to get a quick run in around my neighborhood before the sun set. 3 miles down and I’m feeling great!

Some days I really just don’t have the time to have the workout I’d like to have, and that’s okay. If I don’t get to a workout, I’m never heartbroken about it. I just listen to my body and my needs, and if I can get something easy in, like a run around my neighborhood, then I’ll do it.

I hope the rest of the week goes by quickly for everyone! Two more days until the weekend!