xfurbeauty

What I’m Thankful for…

Hey everyone! Thanksgiving is just around the corner. It’s next week! Let’s take some time and think about what we are thankful for. This is what I’m thankful for. You can share what you’re thankful for too. 🙂

I am thankful for my parents. ♥

My parents are the most hard working people I have ever known in my whole entire life. I hardly ever saw my parents when I was little. They were always working from morning until night to support the family. But I knew they loved me. They showed it through their actions. I am grateful for them. I will never forget how much they have sacrificed for the family. I’ve instilled what’s important in life and prioritize it like no other. Family comes first.

I am thankful for my siblings.

No matter where we are in life. Near or far. I will always love them no matter what. They have always been here for me when I needed help. I appreciate them very much. They are technically my best friends by blood. I love how I can open up to them and be myself fully. It’s very hard to find people that will accept you for who you are. They love me for who I am. They tolerate my bullshit. I’m very thankful for that. 🙃

I’m thankful for friends that are still here with me today.

True friends don’t come by too often. You can have a large circle of friends, but not all of them are true to you. I’m thankful for having a small circle of friends that are still here with me today. They get me and always check up on me no matter where life takes them. They care. I love them very much. Thank you for being wonderful people. I’m very thankful for having you all in my life. I feel blessed. 😊

I’m thankful for the kindness of strangers.

The world isn’t rainbows and butterflies. There’s good and bad people out there. Fortunately, I’ve met some good ones. Thank you for helping me when I was lost in the middle of nowhere. Thank you for buying me food when I was hungry. I will do the same for anyone in a heart beat. You are angels in disguise.

So I am thankful for food.

Many people take food for granted. It’s because it’s convenient. It’s everywhere. When we are hungry, we just go buy food and don’t think much about it. But not everyone has this. I’ve seen places where poverty is high. It breaks my heart knowing that circumstances like these exist. It’s not fun being hungry. It hurts. If you see someone in need, please help them. Don’t pass them by and ignore them. A meal doesn’t cost much.

Most of all, I am thankful to be alive and breathing.

Life is very delicate. Don’t take it for granted. Surround yourself with people that lift your spirits up, so you can do the same for them. I am very thankful to be alive and breathing considering everything I’ve been through. I thank God for leading me on the right path. Thank you. ♥

8 Ways to Eat Healthier

I’ve been trying to eat a lot healthier. I’ve been doing alright. There are times where I’ve been tempted and caved in. I’m human afterall. After shifting from a vegan to a vegetarian diet, I’ve noticed that I have way more options now than before. So…yeah. I decided to come up with 8 ways to eat healthier to motivate myself and others to get on the right path. I hope this helps anyone that’s going through this struggle too. ♥

1. Add fruit to your diet

Don’t be afraid of sugar. Adding 1-2 servings of fruit into your diet helps to stave off the sugar cravings. Fruit is better and healthier for you. Fruit contains vitamins, minerals, and fiber, while processed sugary junk foods are nutritionless. Fruit is low in fat, low in sodium, and contains no cholesterol. Most fruits are low in calories. Fruits like bananas and apples are portable. You can easily stash them in your bag when you’re in a hurry. They make great healthy snacks when you’re on-the-go!

2. Choose healthier snacks

If you’re having trouble giving up junk food, what you can do is find healthier alternatives. For example, chips. You can make better choices by replacing chips with popcorn. Choose whole grain popcorn that’s less processed. Not the ones that are drenched in lots of oil and loaded with salt. Popcorn makes a healthy, whole-grain low calorie snack. Another good example is ice cream. Choose yogurt over ice cream. The texture may not be the same, but you get the idea. Yogurt contains calcium, protein, and probiotics that are good for digestion. Ice cream, on the other hand, isn’t nutritionally dense.

3. Eat more protein

Increase your protein intake to stay fuller longer. Protein consists of essential amino acids to maintain, repair, and promote muscle growth (with strength training). Good sources of plant-based proteins are beans, legumes, lentils, peas, tofu, soy milk, whole grains, nut butters, seeds like chia and hemp.

4. Eat healthy fats

Healthy fats from almonds, peanut butter, hemp seeds, chia seeds, and avocados are good for your health. Healthy fats are good for the heart. It may help lower the risk of heart disease. So it lowers bad cholesterol levels, while increasing good cholesterol levels. Healthy fats fights inflammation in the body, and it may reduce the risk of cancer.

5. Replace soda with water

Choose water over any other beverage when you’re dining out or at home. Water is good for the body and skin. It keeps the skin hydrated from the inside out. Water not only cleanses the body from toxins, but it also keeps fluids in your body balanced. Water helps to lubricate your joints and muscles too. So drink up!

6. Eat your vegetables

Vegetables can be difficult for a lot of people to incorporate into their diet. I’ve heard people say YUCK to vegetables. Well, try your best to add more vegetables into your diet because it’s VERY good for you. It’s good for your body and your skin! What you can do is try to incorporate vegetables into every meal. Boil, sauté, bake your vegetables. Anything you want to do to increase your vegetable intake. Doing this every day will get you into the habit of eating your vegetables. You’ll feel like you’re missing something with your meal when you don’t have your serving of vegetables for the day. Another good way to add vegetables into your diet is making green smoothies. Add spinach, kale, arugula, spring mix into a blender and chug it down! Simple as that! Vegetables are low in calories, rich in antioxidants, with lots of fiber. Vegetables help to maintain healthy blood pressure, reduces the risk of cancer, and are rich sources of potassium, vitamin A, and vitamin C.

7. Choose whole grains

Choose whole grains such as brown rice, oatmeal, quinoa, couscous, bulgar over processed grains. Whole grains are packed with nutrition including vitamins, minerals, protein, and fiber. It may help lower the risk of heart disease and reduce cholesterol levels.

8. Don’t skip breakfast

Eat your breakfast! It’s called ‘breakfast’ for a good reason. You are breaking the fast. Eating breakfast provides nutrition to your mind and body. It helps you to focus and concentrate better. A good healthy breakfast provides you energy to get you through the day! So don’t skip breakfast. If you do, you’ll be ravenous later on in the day.

Good luck! 🙂🙂🙂