Step by Step

I am currently reading a book called The Compound Effect by Darren Hardy. I am only a few chapters in and am loving this book (and I rarely just pick up a book and read it). This quote really stood out to me and can be applied to any aspect of our lives whether it is fitness, nutrition, self-improvement, spiritual growth, finances, relationships, parenting, etc. Think about it!

November Challenge Group

So excited for Healthy Living Fitness 90 day challenge. Head on over to Facebook Like Page and join to find out more. Don't let the holiday food take you over. Start the New Year well on your way to being fit and healthy. Only a few spots left so check it out.

Sweet Potatoes Stuffed with Chipotle Black Bean and Corn Salad

Earlier today I found a recipe from Alaska From Scratch that looked amazing and not only that, we already had all the ingredients at home. My pictures aren't nearly as good but I basically followed the recipe but then added diced up chicken. It was so delicious. The lime juice and adobo sauce offset the sweet potato to perfection. (Side note: I used to think that sweet potatoes were white and yams were orange but I found out that there are some sweet potatoes that look like yams. Costco had an informative insert in the bag of sweet potatoes explaining all this.) Now the question is: How do we know if the stores are selling yams or sweet potatoes? I have had yams but the sign said sweet potatoes. 

It isn't all about weight!!!

Going to try these for the kids lunches

I am tired (and I am sure my kids are too) of the same old sandwiches for lunch. I found these and am going to try them. Homemade Chicken Nuggets

Eat Right and Eat More!

One of the hardest things for me isn't only to eat right, but to eat enough of the right things. So many people start eating clean and feel that they are starving all the time. The thing is that clean foods have fewer calories for the most part and you can eat more of them. I struggle to eat enough!

"Who Are You?"

This past weekend my family completed our first Spartan race. Before our race and the kids race the announcer would ask, "Who are you?" and athletes would yell, "I AM A SPARTAN!" and this was repeated over and over again, louder each time. The definition of a spartan is one who is "courageous in the face of pain, danger, or adversity" and one who is "self-disciplined." Working out, eating healthy, and trying to reach health and fitness goals involves all of this. You may feel pain, you may be sore, you may be scared to try something new, you may feel beaten, you may feel like you will never make it, you may struggle with what foods to eat or not to eat, and you will have your ups and downs. Just like the Spartan Race, you will be challenged physically, emotionally, and psychologically; in the end, you will realize that you kept going and finished what you set out to do. You overcame pain, danger, and adversity through self-discipline. IT IS ALL WORTH IT!  Look at the expressions on my kids' faces when they finished. And then ask yourself . . . "Who are you?"

PiYo: Combining Pilates and Yoga . . .Can it get any better than that?!

Do you have sore knees that can't handle all the high impact workouts? PiYo is a new low-impact but high intensity workout that doesn't involve all the jumping that can bother sore or injured knees. "Chalene Johnson took the very best Pilates- and yoga-inspired moves and cranked up the speed to give you a full-throttle cardio, strength, and flexibility training--all at once. PiYo packs it ALL into each workout so you can build lean muscle mass--as you're burning crazy calories." If you haven't experienced Pilates or Yoga before, you will be amazed at the results you will get. And Beachbody is offering the most amazing deal right now: You get PiYo and a month of Shakeology for $140.


Buy PiYo Challenge Pack NOW

Sweet Chili Caribbean Jerk Whole Wheat Pizza

My husband and I love to cook and find new recipes to try and then change them to have more options to our meal planning. We double the chicken recipe and have a Caribbean Jerk Sweet Potato for the following night. Love getting two meals out of one recipe:) We have made this pizza before but last night we perfected it and even made it with a whole wheat crust. It does have a little spice to it so you may want to adjust how much of the scotch bonnet or habanero pepper if you don't like a lot of heat. Some of the best pizza we have had.

We make jerked chicken from Guy Fieri's recipe on Food Network. We don't always grill it. It can be fried in a pan as well.

Jerked Chicken      

-Food Network/Guy Fieri-

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp	Ground Nutmeg	¼ cup	Fresh Thyme Sprigs
1 Tbsp	Ground Allspice	1	Lime, juiced
1 Tbsp	Cinnamon Stick	3	Garlic Cloves
1	Red Onion, chopped	1	Scotch Bonnet Pepper or Habanero Pepper
3	Green Onions, chopped	1 (2-inch)	Fresh Ginger, peeled
¼ cup	Extra Virgin Olive Oil	To taste	Salt
1 cup	Freshly Squeezed Orange Juice	To taste	Pepper
¼ cup	Soy Sauce	2 lbs	Boneless Chicken, diced into 1 ½ inch pieces

Directions:

1.   In food processor, combine all ingredients except chicken. Puree until smooth.

2.   Add all but ¼ cup of the mixture in a 1 gallon sealable bag.

3.   Add chicken to bag and marinate in refrigerator for 1-2 hours.

4.   Heat grill to medium-high. Skewer chicken pieces and grill on one side for about five minutes. Flip and grill other side until done and grill marks appear.

5.   Serve with unused sauce for dipping.

Then we make a whole wheat pizza dough recipe. Could use any one that you like but this is an easy one we use:

Pizza Dough 

Ingredients:   Makes 4 Pizzas

3 C	Hot tap water
2 Tbsp	Honey
6-8 C	Whole wheat or Unbleached White Flour (or half and half)
1 Tbsp	Instant Yeast
1 Tbsp	Real Salt
1 Tbsp	Kitchen Resource Dough Enhancer (optional)

Directions:

1.  Put water, honey and 3 cups of flour in Mixer bowl. Mix until paste consistency.

2.  Add yeast and salt. 

3.  Add additional flour quickly 1 cup at a time only until mixture pulls away from sides of bowl.  You may not need to add entire amount of flour or you may need to add a bit more. 

4.  If using all white flour, knead 5 minutes. (If half white, half wheat, knead 8 minutes.  If all wheat knead for 10 minutes).

5.  Add dough enhancer last 2 minutes of kneading. (I don't add this!)

6.  Place pizza stone in oven and preheat to 500F

7.  Roll crusts to desired shapes and sizes. Add toppings and bake on stone for 7 minutes.

Sweet Chili Caribbean Jerk Whole Wheat Pizza

Ingredients:

       Sweet Chili Sauce

       Shredded Mozzarella Cheese

       Thai basil

       Pineapple

       Diced Red Pepper
       Green onions

       Jerked Chicken

Directions: Once you have your pizza dough rolled out, then add the above ingredients to your taste, using the sweet chili sauce instead of regular pizza sauce and bake. Depending on your oven you may have to reduce temperature and cook longer. I generally have it at 450 degree and cook about 10-12 minutes.

Create YOUR own LIFESTYLE!!!

I am not a personal trainer or a doctor. I am simply a person, like you, who wants to live a healthy lifestyle and feel good when I wake up in the morning. I want to be able to run and play with my kids. I want to have the energy I need to do what I need to do everyday. I was tired of being tired and changed it.

Figure out what your goal is. What lifestyle do you want to live and how are you going to get there?  I choose a cheat meal (just not quite as healthy as usual, but no burger and fries) once a week. I know that if I can be healthy all week I will get that cheat meal. Find your balance. Some people choose not to have a cheat meal because then they will fall away from their goals. Create a lifestyle that YOU can live with. Identify unhealthy habits and make them healthy. Get creative with your nutrition and exercise. Find a workout that you enjoy and look forward to. CREATE your own personalized LIFESTYLE!