From Weight Lifting to Yoga, I Am Tuna Strong

Every week, Allie and I look forward to Sundays. Sure, we’ve got to go to work the next day and the weekend’s already more than half over, but there’s a very special reason we love Sundays: Tuna Melts!

For the last few months, I’ve been whipping us up some healthier tuna melts for lunch every Sunday afternoon. We’re trying to get back into shape, so I make them with a light bread, low-fat cheese, just a tablespoon of mayo and we split a can of tuna. Oddly enough, I like my tuna melts as two separate pieces of bread, while Allie prefers hers as a sandwich. Go figure.

The key ingredient, however, is tuna fish. Obviously.

I’ve always been a big fan of tuna fish since I was a kid. My mom’d always make us tuna fish sandwiches for lunch. They were good, but most of the time mom used the Chunk Light varieties, which meant it was the darker tuna. Kind of like the dark meat in chicken. On rare occasions, though, she’d buy Chunk White and oh man was that even better.

So thankfully I married a woman who loves tuna even more than I do. And she’s a huge fan of BumbleBee tuna too. I gotta tell ya, BumbleBee Chunk White tuna makes the best tuna melts!

What’s really nice about tuna is that it’s protein packed. It’s also pretty lean, which makes for a perfect One-Two Combo Punch when it comes to getting fit. BumbleBee even has a great healthy living campaign called Tuna Strong right now! On the site you’ll find loads of videos, recipes and tips for staying healthy through exercise and eating right.

I used to work out a few times a week with a personal trainer and do lots of weight lifting. I loved it and recently started getting back into it. This time, I’m just doing some free weights workouts in the basement. The one thing about “pumping iron” is that it makes me pretty ravenous. And I recall that you really want to eat some good protein within 30 minutes of working out.

I’m looking to add loads more tuna into my diet then, whether it’s just mixing it up in a bowl with a little mayo (or possibly avocado!) or chowing down on some tuna wraps. I may even try making some Tuna Patties (instead of ground beef), as per BumbleBee’s #TunaStrong Suggestion!

Besides lifting weights, I do also try to do some yoga. And to be honest… I’d rather lift weights. It’s just easier.

I hold a yoga pose for 10 seconds and my body’s on fire and I’m drowning in a pool of my own sweat. Allie just looks at me and laughs, in an encouraging sort of way, of course. But just like with weight lifting, yoga’s a fabulous way to get your body in shape. You still need to fuel that body with protein though.

While I wish I could say that’s me in the above photo stretching out… it’s clearly not me. I mean, no way do I have hair like that. But otherwise, I can absolutely see the resemblance.

No, when I do yoga, it’s a wonderful game of balance for me. I might as well just start by lying on the floor, since I usually end up there anyways.

It’s all about practice, though. Working out, eating right and taking care of yourself both mentally and physically. I really like BumbleBee’s healthy mantra: “Tuna Mind… Tuna Body… Tuna Soul… Tuna Strong.” It may sound silly at first, but repeat it enough times while trying not to fall on your face as you do a simple standing Tree Pose and you’ll quickly see the power it holds.

Besides all the health benefits of tuna fish, what I love about canned tuna is that it’s inexpensive and super portable. How easy is it to just grab a few cans and toss them in a bag as you run out the door to a friend’s house or go on vacation with the family? Travel is the worst thing you can do for your diet since there’s so much temptation! But it doesn’t have to be, if you plan ahead.

You can find loads of great travel tips from Bumble Bee on their Tuna Strong website, so be sure to check it out!

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This post is sponsored by FitFluential on behalf of Bumble Bee.