Motivation

Whenever you start to see a change in your body, does it motivate you to work harder, push harder, train harder? I've started to see a change in my body and it has not only given me more motivation but also more confidence. This past week I accomplished a butterfly sit up, its been something I had been struggling with since day one. It amazed me how one thing could make me feel like I could move mountains. It just takes that one step to start making a change. But you have to be the one to get up and go.

I won't lie this weeks meal prepping took me a little longer. I just love cooking and I enjoy being prepared for the week. It makes things less stressful trying to figure what to eat.

 Cauliflower Fried Rice

1 tbsp Coconut oil

1 clove garlic

1/2 small onion

1 head of Cauliflower

1 cup frozen peas&carrots

1 egg

1 tbsp low sodium soy sauce

1 tsp ground ginger

1. Place cauliflower into a food processor and pulse until it looks like little rice pieces.

2. Heat coconut oil in large skillet and saute garlic and onion. Then place cauliflower, frozen peas& carrots and cook until tender. Then add the egg. 

3. Add soy sauce and ginger.

Chicken stir fry

1 tbsp coconut oil

1 clove garlic

2 1/2 chicken breast

1 cup broccoli

1/2 cup shredded sweet potato or carrots

1 tbsp low sodium soy sauce

1/2 pineapple juice

1 tsp red chili flakes

1. Heat oil in skillet and garlic. 

2. Then add sweet potatoes, chicken, and broccoli. 

3. Add soy sauce, pineapple juice, and chili pepper flakes. Cook until golden brown.

Crock pot Chicken for Mexican soup

1 whole free range chicken

1 tbsp Cumin

1 tbsp Chili powder

1 tbsp Garlic Powder

1 tbsp dried cilantro

Place chicken in a crock pot with a little water add spices and let it cook on low for 8-10 hours. I let mine cook over night.

http://wearegustafson.blogspot.com/2013/09/paleo-mexican-soup-whole-30-recipe.html?m=1

( I topped mine with spinach, avacado,cilantro, and lime)

Roasted Veggies and Sausage

Smoked Turkey Sausage

2 cups broccoli

2 yellow squash

1 zucchini

1 red bell pepper

1 orange bell pepper

salt&pepper

1. Place all ingredients in a pan toss with a little olive oil salt&pepper

2. Cook on 350 for 30 mins.

http://www.gimmesomeoven.com/pumpkin-no-bake-energy-bites/

http://ourfullplate.com/recipes/sweet-potato-egg-and-sausage-breakfast-casserole/

( I added a bell pepper to mine) 

I love hash browns!

I had some leftover shredded sweet potatoes so I thought I would freeze these for rainy day.

Strong is the new Skinny

When I first started working out after having baby number 2 my goal was to just loose weight. I still remember being asked what my goal was and the only thing I could say was I wanted to loose 50lbs or more. It's amazing how my whole mindset has changed since then. I look at photos of myself from over 6 years ago when I first met my husband and I was 110-115lbs. I used to say I would give anything to be that skinny again. But now I just want to be STRONG! Don't get me wrong I still want to loose weight but I want to be healthy and I want to do it the healthy way. It doesn't matter if I'm ever that skinny again if I can't accomplish the things I want to accomplish now. I'm learning to love who I am now and for me that's a very important step in reaching my goals.

Cheat Days

Getting back on track after having a cheat day can be hard for me. Does anyone else have this problem? This past weekend we went to the fair with the family and it was my cheat day so I decided to live a little but I think I might have lived a little to much. I woke up this morning feeling like I had a hangover. But on the other hand it helps put things into perspective for me. I choose to eat healthy because I want to be the best me that I can possibly be. I can't be that if I'm fueling my body with junk every day. This morning I woke up feeling like blah but I had a plan to get in the kitchen and start preparing some meals for the week. I love this weather because I can start making those yummy curl up with a blanket kinda meals.

http://www.foodiecrush.com/2014/01/skinny-slow-cooker-kale-and-turkey-meatball-soup/

 Roasted Veggies

Asparagus

Broccolini

2 cloves of garlic

1 Tbsp Olive

I just tossed these in olive oil and garlic. Then places them in the over at 375 and cooked them until tender.

 Bison meatloaf muffins

1lb ground bison

1 zucchini

1 cup diced mushrooms

1/2 onion

1/3 cup green onion

2 tbsp parsley

2 cloves garlic

pinch of salt&pepper

1 egg

1/2 cup oats

I started off by chopping my mushrooms and onion, and green onion then grated my zucchini. Then I mixed them up with the ground bison. I add the garlic,parsley, salt&pepper, oats, and egg. I used an ice cream scooper to measure each meatloaf into a muffin pan.  I cooked on 375 for about 30 mins. 

Salad with chicken, coconut flakes, sunflower seeds and cherry tomatoes. 

This is quick and easy to make and you can use almost any kind of ingredients.

 Crockpot roast with baby carrots

You can add whatever seasonings you like. I chose parsley,garlic, and rosemary. I placed a little water in the bottom so it wouldn't burn.

 http://brokeandbougie.blogspot.com/2013/10/breakfast-for-week-clean-eating-berry.html

I decided to use pumpkin pie spice and almonds in mine

http://www.skinnytaste.com/2014/04/pb2-flourless-chocolate-brownies.html#_a5y_p=1539584

All these meals were easy to make and now I'll be prepared for the week.

Green Pancakes! WHAT?

I woke up this morning wishing I had made it to the 8:30 class but didn't get up in time. Excuses Excuses! Anyways I figured I would try this new recipe for green pancakes that I found on pinterest. They were pretty good the only thing I see being hard for some people to like is the texture. I like them because I didn't feel stuffed after eating them like I do when I eat regular pancakes. This might also be fun for people with little ones who don't like eating their veggies.

1 banana

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

cinnamon

2 cups of baby kale&spinach

1 tbs ground flaxseed

1/2 tbs chia seeds

1 tbs PB2

I blended all the ingredients in a blender and then cooked them on a griddle. Don't add any extra liquid because it will make them flat and harder to flip. I added chocolate chips to mine and drizzled them with a little honey.

It doesnt have to be boring

The past 3 months I've learned a lot about what I've been putting into my body but that doesn't mean I still don't have those days where I just completely fall off the wagon. I mean really don't we all get tired of the same boring chicken&veggies. I've noticed that when I'm not prepared or I get bored with what I'm eating I tend to make BAD food choices and then I even go to the extreme of convincing myself it will be OK because I can just work out really hard the next day. That's why I intend to show people with this blog that eating healthy does not have to be boring, cooking doesn't have to be boring. When I cook something that I know taste good and is healthy I get excited about eating it especially after a hard workout. This week I'll be posting some hardy fall recipes, anyone who knows me knows that this is my favorite time of year. Tonight I made a paleo white chicken chili with spinach&baby kale.

3 boneless skinless free range chicken breast

1tbs coconut oil

1 large onion diced

1 bell pepper seeded and chopped

1-2 jalapenos

4 cloves garlic

2 tsp salt

1 tbs ground cumin

1 tsp ground coriander

4 cups free range chicken broth

1-2 7oz green chiles

3 tb thick coconut milk

3tb arrowroot

1. Chop the chicken and veggies. Then place a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the oil, onions, peppers, jalapeno, and garlic.
2. Saute for 5 minutes, then add the chicken, salt and spices. Saute another 5-8 minutes, until the chicken is nearly cooked through. Add the broth, green chiles, and coconut milk. Whisk in the arrowroot powder and bring to a boil.
3. Lower the heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Then take a potato masher (or ladle) and smash the chicken pieces to shreds. Serve topped with green onions,cilantro,baby kale, and spinach.

I hope you enjoy this recipe I sure did!

I honestly don't know if I'm going to be any good at this, but I decided I would give it a try and be completely honest with people. I want to first start off by telling people a little about myself. I'm 26 years old married 6 years to a wonderful man and we have 2 beautiful girls 6 months and 4  years old. It wasn't until after my first born that I started to show more interest in working out and from there on my weight just fluctuated. I didn't have the first clue on what I was doing not until about 3 months ago. I started working out at this place called The Compound and since then my life has changed. I'm on this exciting journey learning how to Eat Clean and Train Dirty.