Sunday ... Meal Planning Day!

It's Sunday!  In our house that means it is meal planning day.  I thought I would share my meal plan for this week with you.  I have color coded everything according to the 21 Day Fix program.  I am not as strict with counting some of the small ingredients in my recipes, but I don't really count less than 1/2 of a portion.  I am in the lowest calorie bracket for the 21DF, so my number of servings will reflect that.  You will also notice that I tend to repeat lunches and snacks throughout the week.  It makes it easier for me when grocery shopping.  I can save money by having fewer things to buy each week.  As I meal plan, I also do my grocery list at the same time.  As I write a meal down, I add the ingredients I am missing to my grocery list.  I also tend to sort my grocery list by area of the supermarket.

If you are struggling with meal planning or are ready to start a clean eating program, let me know.  I'd love to help!  The 21 Day Fix is a great program since it focuses on clean eating principles and also has the portion control cups.

Next week, I will share with you my method for making my grocery list!  Happy Meal Planning!

Focused on Fitness for 2016

We are a month into the new year.  How are your goals holding up 30 day in?  I spent many New Year's resolutions saying that this year I will exercise more or I will eat better.  I even decided one year that I would begin a running regimen in January.  Well, it lasted until the first snow storm.  Using the Beachbody workouts and Shakeology have been the only program I've been able to stick with.  I think it's because we use a winning combination or exercise, nutrition, support and accountability.  Whether you are a Beachbody customer or not, here are some tips to help you stay focused on your health and fitness goals throughout the year!

1 - Post Them
If you can see your goals, you are more likely to achieve them!  If you are following a workout program, post your workouts for the month.  You could also use a calendar and cross off each day you complete a workout.  If you like sticky notes, post them on your computer, your refrigerator, your closet, etc.  Put them where you can see them and be reminded often of your goal!  Almost everyone has a smart phone.  If you set reminders in your phone, you see them more frequently!

2 - Share Them
When you know others are watching and looking to see if you stick to your plan, you are more likely to do it!  This is why having a coach is so important.  Sometimes it is that daily Facebook post that reminds you to workout or knowing that you have to post your workout of the day makes you get off the couch.  Your accountability partners will celebrate your achievements with you and help motivate you through the rough patches.

3 - Break Them Into Manageable Parts
If your overall goal for the year is to lose 40 pounds, that can be very intimidating!  If you break that down into 12 monthly goals, it means you only need to lose a little over 3 pounds per month.  That now sounds much more attainable than your 40 pound goal.  If you believe you can do it, you will be so much more likely to reach it!

4 - Reward Yourself
When you reach your small goals, allow yourself a reward.  Maybe it's a new workout outfit after the first month.  For your second month, you could get a new pair of sneakers.  Every time you lace up, you will think about why you bought them and what you accomplished.  We all love those extrinsic motivations, even if we think we don't need them!  It's okay to bribe yourself a bit, if it means that you will be healthier in the end.

5 - Revisit Your Goals Often
It is important to look at your goals to make sure they are still going to work for you.  You might decide to change your workout program or that your schedule doesn't allow for a workout at that time of day.  If you update them, you will keep your goals relevant and applicable to your real life!

If you need help getting started, setting your goals or working to reach them, let me know!  I'd love to help you on your health and fitness journey!

Crispy Chicken Tenders with Honey Dijon Dipping Sauce

Here's my latest video recipe.  This recipe came to be one night when I couldn't sleep.  I thought it would be a great thing for my kids.  They love chicken nuggets, but I don't often make them.  I try to avoid deep frying at all costs.  I thought this would be a great recipe for the families with picky eaters.  They might not want the sauce, but I think it pretty tasty, and both of my kids loved it!

If you give it a try, please comment below with your thoughts!  I love to hear feedback!

Italian Vegetable Soup

I made this recipe almost two weeks ago.  I planned to post it a few days later, but I completely forgot!  As I was going through my notebook to plan my next video, I remembered this recipe.  I just love to make chop and drop soups.  I don't like to make things too fussy or difficult.  I was originally planning to made my Tortellini Soup, but as I started putting it together I was missing some tomatoes.  I figured that I would just change it up a bit.  The outcome was delicious, so I figured I would keep the recipe.  This can easily be a crock pot meal, too!  I would do the onion, garlic and ground turkey ahead of time.  After that is browned, you can add it and the rest of the ingredients to the crock pot and cool on low for 6+ hours.  Here it is!

Italian Vegetable Soup

1 onion, chopped
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tbsp olive oil
1 lb ground turkey
1 zucchini, chopped
1 can of diced tomatoes
2 stalks of celery, chopped
4 carrots, chopped
4-5 mushroom, chopped
1 small package of frozen spinach
1 cup frozen green beans
6 oz tomato sauce
3 cups of beef stock
1 cup of water
2 tbsp prepared pesto
1 tsp oregano
1 cup of whole wheat elbow macaroni
salt and pepper to taste

In a stock pot, sauté onion and garlic in olive oil.  Add ground turkey and brown it.

Add the rest of the ingredients, except for the elbow macaroni.  Stir well and cook on a low simmer for 2-3 hours.  You can always cook it longer, if you have time.

About 20 minutes before serving, bring the soup up to a boil.  Add the macaroni and cook it according to the package directions.

Serve and enjoy!  You can add a bit of parmesan cheese, if desired.

Slow Cooker Pineapple Pork Recipe

I've been seeing recipe videos pop up all over my Facebook news feed.  I've even had a few people share videos to my timeline.  Most of the recipes look absolutely delicious, but are totally not clean eating or on plan for the 21 Day Fix.  I create tons of recipes for my challengers, so I decided to make a video myself using clean eating principles.  This is my first attempt - Slow Cooker Pineapple Pork.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZ6cfuRp_Mw

This video took me more hours than I care to admit, but it was a huge learning curve!  I know that all of the following videos will be much faster.  My job now is to work on better lighting!  My kitchen is dark, so I've got to work on adding more production style lighting to my recording area (aka my kitchen table!).  Feel free to share!  If you make it, please leave me a comment!

Slow Cooker Pineapple Pork

Pork tenderloin (sized for your family)
1 red pepper sliced
1 green pepper sliced
3 carrots chopped 
1 onion halved and sliced
2 cups pineapple
salt and pepper to taste. 

The sauce is:
2 tsp minced garlic
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds and ground ginger mix (or separate them if you can't find a blend)
2 tsp honey
1/4 cup soy sauce.

Add pork to the bottom of your slow cooker.  Season with salt and pepper. 
Mix sauce in a small bowl.  
Add veggies to the slow cooker.  
Pour sauce over top.  
Cook on low for 6-7 hours.  If you want to be able to slice your pork, cook no longer than 6 hours.  If you don't mind that it shreds, you can cook it longer.  

For my fellow Fixers - I would measure it as 1 Red, 1 Green, 1 Orange (seeds and sesame oil), 1/2 Purple (depending on your serving size of pineapple)

Tasty Tuesday - White Chicken Chili

I LOVE to cook!  It is one of my favorite parts of the day.  It is so interesting to me to put together new and different ingredients and create new meals.  Usually they are good, and sometimes they are amazing!  There are also those occasional meals that I will never repeat, but I guess those are better left to my husband's memory.

My plan is to share a new recipe with you each Tuesday.  This first recipe is by far a favorite of so many people that join my free recipe groups on Facebook!  My dad now likes it better than regular chili.  If you try it, please let me know what you think!  I hope you enjoy it!

Ingredients:

1 tbs Olive Oil

1 small onion diced

2 cloves garlic crushed

1 red and 1 green pepper chopped

1 stalk celery chopped

6 tomatillos chopped (Optional)

8 oz of salsa verde 

1 can cannelloni beans undrained

3 chicken breasts

1 tbs cumin

salt and pepper to taste

2+ cups of chicken stock

Directions:

-Saute onion, garlic, pepper and celery in olive oil.

-Once soft, add veggies to your slow cooker.

-Add tomatillos, salsa verde, beans and chicken.

-Add chicken stock and spices.

-Stir ingredients and cover.

-Cook on low for 6-7 hours.

-If your chili is too thick, add some additional chicken stock to thin it out.  If it is too thin, let is sit with the lid off for a bit to thicken.

Here's a photo of the delicious meal!  When I'm home, I usually choose to make this on the stove top.  If you make in in the slow cooker, it tends to be a bit thinner.  You might want to use a bit less chicken stock.  Also, the last time I made this, I used dried beans, instead of canned.  I really liked it better.  I've avoided using them, because of the overnight soaking required.  I found a quick way to prepare them.  Comment if you want to know how!

Happy New Year!

It's that time of year when there are so many people who make resolutions about what they want to change for the coming year.  Unfortunately, without a plan, resolutions are daunting.  Since most resolutions fall by the wayside before the end of the moth, I've decided to do something different this year.  I've decided to pick a theme for my year, and set my goals around that.  The word I chose for 2016 is BOLD!  


The definition of bold is - showing an ability to take risks; confident and courageous.  I'm going to apply this to all aspects of my life.  I made a list of goals from here that apply to my coaching business, my personal life and my own health and fitness.  

I'm excited to see what this year will bring!  Did you make any resolutions for 2016 or did your choose a theme?