Lift some weights!

Ladies! Cardio is my fave. You know, the endless running, in my case panting while running! Instead, I like to focus my efforts on strength training and weight training, which also increases your endurance/stamina and builds muscle to burn fat! Did you know that lifting weights can actually cause those muscles to CONTINUE burning fat long after your workout is completed? And I just feel very powerful after a lifting session.

You are NOT going to bulk up! And lifting anything lighter than your purse is futile. No point. If I were you, I would grab 2 sets of dumbells, one light set and one heavy set. For your light set, please don't lift anything lighter than 5 pounds. And your heavy set can be whichever weight is going to challenge you. I started with 6s to be honest, then moved to 8s. You can do 10s, 12s, 12.5, 15! Whichever you're comfortable with!

I love these!! The flat surfaces make exercises where you rest the weight on the floor in between reps MUCH easier. 

*This post contains affiliate links and I may be compensated a small amount. 

Get rid of the junk

Hey all! Thursday Mini Challenge- Whos' in?!

It's time to DE-JUNK your home!

Saying goodbye to treats and guilty pleasures is probably the hardest part of the fitness process! Everyone has a secret stash of goodies tucked away in the cupboard (or closet if you're a mother). If you don't have this stash, I'm in awe of you! For me, it was always a big ol' bag of chocolate chips, and it's just sitting there, waiting for the day I lose my willpower. I recently had to stop buying it because I couldn't resist!

I'm going to make your day right now and tell you that every meal plan you'll ever see me recommend will include desserts. So you're not having to say buh-bye to everything, hold tight! I've got your back with some recommendations coming for amazing (and clean) snacks and desserts! But now is the time to de-junk your kitchen of most of it. Keep a few things that will go along with a clean eating meal plan. Get rid of anything processed and junky, like chips, bye bye cheetos.

When you’ve got goals to meet, don’t let anything get in your way. We will naturally reach for the convenient snack, and it's always the least healthy! Don’t leave something in your cupboard just waiting to de-rail you!

If your family still wants their treats and snacks, hey I've got teens, I get it, just keep their snacks separate from yours. And keep them out of eye level for you! My trick is to place them LOW in my cabinet in a non-transparent container. It's all a mind game, out of sight, out of mind!

Make a commitment to de-junk your home as part of this Squat Challenge and it will take you into July with a great start for a healthy lifestyle!

Zucchini Meatballs and Spaghetti

This is a huge hit! Not only could I eat these by themselves, like pop one in my mouth and call it day, but my husband said they were good and my 15 year old son thought there was meat in them! Winning! 

 

olive or coconut oil

2 garlic cloves, minced

3 medium unpeeled zucchini, grated

1/2 tsp pink Himalayan salt

1/8 tsp black pepper

1 tbsp fresh chopped basil

1 cup panko breadcrumbs

2 tsp Italian seasoning 

1 large egg

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

Jar of marinara sauce

Whole wheat spaghetti, zoodles, or your noodle of choice

DIRECTIONS:

Heat the oven to 375°F. Spray a large rimmed baking sheet with coconut or olive oil spray or brushed on. 

Add 1 tsp of olive or coconut oil and minced garlic clove in a large skillet over medium heat. Sauté 1 minute. 

Add the grated zucchini, season with salt and pepper and cook on high heat 5 to 7 minutes, stirring frequently.

Transfer the zucchini to a colander to get rid of any excess water. I use a thick paper towel or cheese cloth to press the excess water out of the zucchini.

In a mixing bowl, beat the egg and add the Parmesan, breadcrumbs , seasoning, and basil. Combine zucchini into mixing bowl. 

Form the zucchini mixture into 12 balls about 1 1/2 tbsp each, rolling tightly and transfer to the prepared baking sheet. Cook until lightly browned on top, about 20 to 25 minutes.

 

Heat the sauce in a large deep skillet to warm the sauce hen add the meatballs to the sauce and simmer for 5 minutes.

 

* I cooked these with beef meatballs for my family. I added whole wheat spaghetti because since I was serving them zucchini meatballs, I didn't want to push my luck with zoodles also, but this would be ah-maze-ing with zoodles. My son thought there was beef in the zucchini meatballs anyways! 

Make it vegan: Use 1 flax egg and nutritional yeast as Parmesan.

Progress!

I never would have thought that 11 months after my second c section, my tummy would resemble anything close to this 🙌🏼💪🏼❤️ Work hard, play hard. #nofilter #skinnyjeans ALSO, 3 friends have messaged me today to shout out their weight loss progress! 8 pounds, 11 pounds, 14.9 pounds... all started mid February. What can YOU do in 6 weeks with the right tools? Health makes life so much sweeter 😍😍😍

 

Vegan waffles

 

1 1/2 cups of oat flour

2 teaspoons baking powder 

1/2 teaspoon pink salt m

Dash of cinnamon 

1/2 cup unsweetened apple sauce 

3/4 cup non dairy milk 

1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon melted coconut oil

2 tablespoons maple syrup

1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

Mix the wet ingredients. If the coconut oil solidifies, microwave it for 20-30 seconds. 

Add the dry ingredients and mix well. You'll want to let the batter sit for about 10 minutes to allow the oat flour to soak up the wet ingredients. 

Preheat waffle iron. 

Add the batter and cook about 6 minutes until lightly crispy. The waffles will be pretty delicate because there's no egg. Cool them on a baking rack or sheet NOT stacked. 

Makes 8-10 waffles

Common subs: 

Sub out 2 eggs for applesauce

Sub dairy milk for non dairy

Sub 5 tablespoons of butter for coconut oil

Vegan protein

And to go along with my effort to reduce dairy and be more plant powered, Vegan Shakeology! What do vegsn diets provide for protein? That's the question that I would guess is asked the most, I wondered too. Actually, vegetables and beans have just as much protein as animal protein. You can be completely plant powered. And I love supplementing my lifestyle with Shakeology because it has ALLLLL the nutrition that our regular diet may be lacking plus everything we need for optimal health, and the vegan formula is plant protein based! 

 

New foods

Okay so, if you follow my fitness posts, you know I'm a health coach, I love clean eating, and making food taste good. Enter my latest challenge: No/extremely limited dairy, and very little meat. My son is allergic to dairy (and eggs) and since I'm nursing, my dairy intake messes with his tummy and his skin. In the meantime, I've started feeling REALLY bad when I have dairy. So that's a bummer cause I love cheese. Also, I've noticed I just feel better when I have a plant based diet. So there's been an effort to reduce dairy and meat. Sticking with organic and non gmo whenever possible and necessary! 

Here's my dinner tonight! I totally went outside my comfort zone and bought a blend of lentils, peas, and barley. I cooked that seasoned with pink salt, cumin, and chili powder. Added pinto beans and corn. Then sautéed mushrooms, spinach and red onion with garlic and olive oil. Added that! And next, I made an avocado sauce with 1 avocado, 1/2 cup almond milk, 1 basil leaf, pink salt, half lemon squeeze, cumin, garlic, red pepper flakes (all to taste). 

This is SO good! It's my Costco week, so we don't have a lot of groceries I normally would. If I make this again, it would be great with some orange peppers, and if you like tomatoes, add those too (I dislike them). And spice up the avocado sauce with cilantro, lime, and jalapeño! 

So my advice, don't shy away from the lentils! It was easy! And delicious. Experiment with food, eliminate foods that make you feel bad, and meat is totally negotiable 😘