Maintain your curves the healthy way: Our must-do list before summer + a recipe that will make you feel great!

FoxyRoxy always encourages loving your curves and I will never want anyone to go through the extreme fad dieting/prescription diet pills/body-hatred HELL of my youth. It is not healthy and NOT RIGHT! This post is about getting ready for the skimpy summer clothes, looking and feeling your healthiest this summer.

You know what size you are most comfortable with and when you feel the most beautiful. For me it is someplace around a size 16. Sometimes I'm closer to a 14, but when I start creeping up to an 18, I get worried I'd go back to a size 20/22, from when I put work in front of my health and just felt awful and tired.

Disclaimer: I am NOT saying all people feel like that at a 20..some people feel healthiest and happiest at a size 26, but for whatever reason, I like being a 14/16. I don't look as odd/deprived as I did at an 8 and not as sluggish as a 20. 

I have been doing the "fat and happy" thing eating with my boyfriend, indulging in all the greasy Chinese, pizza and steaks that we both love, a lot more than I have in a few years. The thing is, he doesn't seem to be gaining weight, but dammit... my favorite jeans are tight!!

Time to get back on the wagon and take my grandmother's advice of "today you splurge - tomorrow you watch" and "everything in moderation."

So here are the things we have found that can make you feel healthier and look even better this summer, but WON'T make you feel deprived! This is NOT a diet but rather an infusion of goodness into your routine, because nothing can get me to give up those boozy, steakhouse dates!

FoxyRoxy's list of faves to do/eat before the summer: 

• I LOVE Livestrong.com!! Not only is there a ton of great info on health, food and exercise but the MyPlate tracker is the foolproof way to make sure you are getting all the nutrients you need while keeping your calorie intake and exercise in balance.  You set your per-week weight loss or maintenance goal and your activity level and it tell you how many calories you can eat a day. I use the mobile app and the website to search foods I had (they have almost EVERY FOOD/Restaurant listed) and throw in any "fitness" I did...even taking out the trash. You will soon be hooked on how cool it is to know how many collies you can burn doing some daily things! I set mine to lose 2lbs a week and so far it works!!!

Lifestyle "Grab 'n' Go" Foods. They are the perfect for workaholics who are sick of calorie-laden handheld foods like donuts and "diet" bars that are gone in a matter of seconds and leave you hungry. These salads and snap trays are perfectly balanced and you really do feel like you are getting a TON for the absurdly low calories...and they are CHEAP! I keep a bunch of these on hand to grab for breakfast and those long meetings. (Hint: Hollywood Snack and Essentials with the bagel are the BEST!)

• YO-GA!!! YO-GA!! YO-GA!! I love yoga and pilates. It is low-intensity but it keeps you limber and your curves toned. I am going to put this in my schedule at least once a week. 
• Taking 30 minutes of your day to to do something fun and active: walk, arm exercises with li'l 5 lb. weights, or put on your iPod and shake it!! 
• Cellulite treatments like Velasmooth, can greatly reduce the look of dimpled skin after 5 treatments at a salon of someone rolling a suction device all over your butt. It sounds absurd but it makes my thighs look a bit better for the summer. Only problem is, it is way too expensive!! If you can find a Groupon, Lifebooker loot or sale for a package, check it out!! Also, NEVER waste money on "slimming" or anti-cellulite creams. Total waste. 






• Do something with your winter skin before putting that suit on, but don't look like Snooki. If you want a spray-tan, get it done by a technician NOT a booth so then they can customize a healthy-looking natural glow for evthe fairest skin tones. Love your skin tone as-is? Great! Staying active, hydrated and exfoliated will make you look radiant. Try Caudalie Cabernet Scrub and Jergen's Skin Radience Lotions 
• Detox your body without the uncomfortable colonic by taking a 4 pills of OxyPowder Cleanse at night with a lot of water. It gently helps you cleanse your system of the heavy foods that have been weighing down your digestive system this winter 

To balance your weekend indulgences, keep an eye on your sodium intake during the week. Going salt-free/low sodium during the week will quickly regulate the water-retention/bloat from Saturday night's beer and nachos AND Sunday's bacon brunch!  Make a big crock pot of a low-sodium veggie soup and large batch of brown rice to last you the week so you never find yourself without good food on hand. A serving of brown rice is very satisfying and you can eat as much soup as you can handle since it's so good for you!

FoxyRoxy's Low-Sodium Minestrone

(All you can EAT! The Whole Crock 6qt Crock pot is less and than 1000 calories and less than 600 mg of sodium!)

4 whole carrots - diced
3 zucchini - diced
5 stalks of celery - chopped
1 tsp of minced garlic
1 shallot -minced
2 red bell peppers - diced
1/4 cup dry lentils
1/2 cup dry elbow macaroni
1 can of Muir Glen No-Salt Tomato Sauce
Add to taste: red pepper flakes, Black pepper, Oregano, and Magic Salt-Free Seasoning Blend
If you use a salt substitute, please use very little as it is still high in sodium.

Grease the crock pot bowl with PAM Olive Oil cooking spray. Put all ingredients in a large crock pot and fill with enough water to cover about a half-inch above the veggies.


In a few hours, you will have a great comfort food packed with vitamins to make you feel great and help you maintain the sexiness of your curves, even when you spend your weekend with late-night cheesy bread and mimosa brunches!!