Live a Balanced Life at The Louis

If eating a well-balanced and organic diet, and healthy living habits are something you value, look no further than The Louis at 14 apartment homes. It can be difficult to remain focused on your diet and exercise regimen when you're busy with work and a social life. However, The Louis' close proximity to healthy restaurants and grocery stores, in combination with The Louis' healthy-living amenities allow you to stay (or become) fit and healthy!

Healthy Restaurants & Grocery Stores
Sweetgreen: This fresh salad eatery sources local and organic food. You'll find plenty of veggies, grains and good fats in each meal. Sweetgreen's signature salad is the Rad Thai, which is made up of arugula, cabbage, sunflower seeds, shrimp and other veggies for a filling and healthy meal. To view Sweetgreen's full menu, click here. Sweetgreen is at 14th & W, just a 5-minute walk away from The Louis.

Trader Joe's: This grocery is located literally at your feet, below The Louis! Trader Joe's buys directly from suppliers to offer shoppers a lower price, and offers an array of organic, gluten-free, kosher, vegetarian and vegan options to shoppers.

Whole Foods: Soon, The Louis will be within half a mile of TWO Whole Foods markets! According to The Washington Post, the supermarket chain is constructing a new Shaw location, which will be 40,000 square feet in size. Currently open is the Whole Foods P Street Location in Logan Circle.

Yes! Organic: This locally-owned, family-operated market is a member of the Independent Natural Food Retailers Association. Located along 14th Street, Yes! Organic is committed to offering fresh, organic, natural food options.

Amenities at The Louis
At The Louis at 14, residents have a number of options at their disposal to maintain or better their fitness. Our group exercise room offers the space and equipment necessary to squeeze in a quick 20-minutes on the treadmill or spend an hour getting in a high-quality cardio workout. The Louis Yoga Studio offers a more relaxing environment for practicing poses and flow, and our free weights area is where our residents go to get toned and complement their cardio.

Maintaining a healthy lifestyle can be a challenge, but at The Louis at 14, residents have the tools at their disposal to not only make a healthy diet and exercise regimen possible, but enjoyable! What are your favorite area locations for healthy dining and shopping? What are your favorite spaces at The Louis to work out? Share your thoughts with us on The Louis Facebook and Twitter pages!

Cold & Flu Season Kitchen Essentials

"Tea for two" by Naama ym is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0

Whether we want to think about it or not, cold and flu season is right around the corner. When you’re not feeling your best, the last thing you want to do is leave the house. So while you’re healthy, make sure you stock up on these sick day essentials, courtesy of The Kitchn, so that you’re back to health as quickly as possible!

The Drink Essentials

Herbal Tea: Make sure your stash is well-stocked, as herbal tea is probably the #1 go-to drink for most of us when we get sick. Black and green teas are nice too, but don't soothe the throat quite as well.

Honey: Tea by itself is fine, but tea with honey is extra soothing...

Lemons: ... and even more so if you add a squeeze of lemon. In fact, why not just go ahead and make this ginger honey and lemon tonic? The shot of whiskey in the recipe is optional, but highly recommended. (Trust me.)

Ginger and/or High-Quality Ginger Ale: You'll want fresh ginger for the tonic above, or to make any one of these stomach-soothing teas. You may also want to pick up a bottle or two of high-quality ginger ale — the kind made with real ginger, not just ginger flavoring and sugar — when you're feeling like a little light carbonation would be helpful.

Orange juice or oranges: Give yourself an extra shot of vitamin C with a glass of orange juice, even better if it's freshly-squeezed. (But hey, you're sick! Do whatever is easiest.)

The Food Essentials
Chicken soup: It's not all in your head; there's scientific proof that chicken soup really does help soothe cold symptoms, so buy a few cans for your pantry, or make and freeze a big homemade batch. Looking for the perfect soup recipe? Try one of these → 5 Soups to Soothe a Cold and From Chicken Noodle to Egg Drop: 10 Soothing Broth-Based Soups.

Applesauce: An essential part of the BRAT diet, applesauce is low in fiber but has lots of calories, so it's easy on a delicate stomach.

Bread for toast: Keep a loaf of sliced bread in your freezer, and you'll be so glad you have some bread around when you can't keep anything else down.

Quick-prep frozen meals: If your stomach isn't the problem and you're just wallowing in a head cold, quick-prep frozen meals (like these Trader Joe's recommendations) mean you can get some food in your system fast. You can also reheat one of these excellent freezer meals.

Your favorite comfort foods: This is different for everyone. What makes you feel good when you're sick? Maybe it's something from childhood, like mashed potatoes or a bowl of ramen noodles. Whatever it is, pick it (or the ingredients to make it) up the next time you go to the grocery store.

Do you have any secret cold and flu fighters?