Valecia Weeks is licensed through the state of Texas as a therapeutic massage therapist who specializes in providing on-site chair massage for corporations and events. She currently provides massage for such organizations as the Houston Ballet and The Methodist Hospital. Valecia is also a certified personal trainer with NESTA, as well as a licensed ZUMBA instructor
Recently, this spring weather has felt like summer and an ice-cold lemonade will definitely hit the spot when the temperature is hot beyond our bearing, but this thirst quencher is not doing your waistline any favors. Certain brands of lemonade contain over 250 calories and several grams of sugar. Fortunately for us busy ladies, there are plenty of refreshing summer sips that can be guilt free. Some of these may actually help you in other ways also.
I know you are probably wondering what drinking water would have to do with trimming down. Drinking plenty of water helps your body maintain proper fluid balance, stops your body from retaining water (which sometimes can cause the belly to bloat), and water can even cause the feeling of fullness so that we don’t have the urge to consume the extra calories that are staring us in the face and tempting us. If you are like me and are bored with plain water, try sprucing it up with fresh herbs, citrus fruits, and other flavor enhancers that have low calories.
Smoothies are a guilty-free way to stay hydrated. I must admit that in the past I’ve added the sugary mixer, sherbet; but now that I know better, I’ll do better. Watermelon is a great, low-cal smoothie base. It is a natural hydrator because of its water content. Watermelon also has tons of nutrients that are good for your body system. For example, watermelon contains cancer-fighting lycopene.
Iced Peppermint Tea is a great minty thirst quencher and will be very refreshing on those scorching summer days that are in our near future. Peppermint helps your stomach process fat. Peppermint even works with those high-fat foods like triple meat burgers and steaks. It helps those hard to digest foods digest quickly which will help prevent bloating in our midsection.
Pineapple Frappe Talk about a “beach vacation” in a glass. Just add a tablespoon of flaxseed oil and you have two belly-flattening ingredients. Flaxseeds oils carry monounsaturated fatty acids which have been proven to be belly flatteners. The pineapple itself contains bromelain which is an enzyme that helps to break down protein, ease digestion, and banish bloat.
Dark Chocolate Shake means more than just a refreshing thirst quencher on a hot day. I know you are probably saying, “REALLY?” This particular drink packs around 400 calories. But chocolate—especially dark chocolate can help you slim that belly fat because it decreases appetite and lessens food cravings overall. This, however, will make a quick breakfast to help keep your appetite tamed for hours.
So, the next time you are experiencing your “private summer” (hot flashes) or just want to cool off or quench your thirst, cool off with refreshing sips that help keep your abs flat too.