How I Am Going To Reign In My Eating Habits

This week I am concentrating on changing my eating habits for the better. Lately, I find myself falling back into old habits. Primarily, eating after dinner and drinking Diet Coke regularly. In order to reign myself in I am going to do the following (or not do the following):

In regards to my diet...

• Drink more water.
• Eat less sodium.
• Eat less sugars (baked goods, candy, crackers etc.)
• Cook dinner everyday.
• Not eat after dinner.
• Eat more protein.
• Eat more vegetables in the form of Nutribullet Shakes.
• Eat more yogurt (I dropped yogurt out of my diet for some reason.)

In regards to exercise...

• An hour of cardio at least 4 times a week.
• Stretching before cardio.
• Body Pump twice a week.
• Stretching after Body Pump.

The biggest challenge that I am facing this week (and I actually started last week) is ditching the Diet Coke. I know that it is bad for me, but there is nothing like drinking a cold Diet Coke with dinner. 

Talking about dinner, this weeks meal plan looks like this:

Monday - Spinach Stuffed Chicken with Vegetables

Tuesday - Southwest Meatballs

Wednesday - Salmon Patties

Thursday - Whole Wheat Spaghetti with Lean Turkey Marinara Sauce

Friday - Stir-Fry with Brown Rice

Saturday - Leftovers

Sunday - Whole Wheat Veggie Lasagna

And the workouts look like this:

Monday - 3 Miles & Les Mills Hardcore Abs

Tuesday - Les Mills Pump & Burn

Wednesday - 3 Mile Run/Walk & Les Mills Flow (Stretching)

Thursday - Les Mills Pump Challenge & Hardcore Abs

Friday - Les Mills Flow (Stretching)

Saturday - Pump & Burn

Sunday - Rest

That is the plan for this week! I am sticking to it no matter what. I'm tired of not holding myself accountable and I'm tired of my bad habits...time to kick them to the curb!

No-Bake Oatmeal Protein Bars

Last night I stayed up until 12:30am researching recipes, nutrtition facts and new ideas to bring to FHAF . 

If you know me, you know that I NEVER stay up that late. I am a morning person and usually knock out around 10pm. Lately though, the only time that I've had to blog is like never! So I sacrificed a little sleep and tried to get inspired by reading a few articles and several recipes.

One recipe in particular caught my eye. It was for a No-Bake Oatmeal Protein Bar. It took me about 20 minutes to prepare and I let it sit for 30 minutes in the freezer. BAM!!! In less than an hour I had a yummy snack for the next few days.

Of course, I want to share it with you! Here is the recipe:

Ingredients:

• 2 c. oats -- The real stuff, not that stuff that comes in a pouch!
• 1/2 c. natural peanut butter
• 4 scoops of protein -- I used a vanilla protein
• 1 tbsp. ground flaxseed
• 3/4 c. water
• (optional)1/4c. natural peanut butter to layer on protein bars

Directions:

First, if you don't have ground flaxseeds don't worry you can grind some flaxseeds up in your blender or if you are lucky like me you can grind some up in a Magic Bullet. Line a square baking pan with wax paper and set aside.

In a bowl combine the oats, flaxseed and protein powder. Add the peanut butter to mixture and blend slowly. Instead of using normal peanut butter I used this:

Once the mixture has become crumbly slowly add in the water and mix until you get a doughy consistency.

Spread the "dough" into the wax paper lined pan with a spatula.

As an option you can top the protein bars with peanut butter. Again, I used the Dark Chocolate Skippy Peanut Butter.

With or without peanut butter on top, place the protein bars into the freezer for 30 minutes. Remove from the freezer and cut into squares. This recipe yields 8 bars and the nutrition facts are as follows:

Hot air balloons, my Nutribullet and the family wall.

What started out as a way to get my son to eat vegetables has quickly turned into a re-obsession with my Nurtibullet. I've been juicing and protein shaking it up all weekend. I just made a juice with spinach, orange and watermelon. It was soooo good! Liam even had some. Actually, every time he sees me take out the Nutribullet container he comes over to me and asks me if I can share :) I'm excited that I can sneak in his vegetables this way. The rejection of fruit and vegetables was killing me!

Yesterday evening we went to a festival of hot air balloons. These balloons are impressive. I counted that there were 16 balloons all together.

I've never been on a hot air balloon ride, but I think I'm going to add it to my bucket list. These balloons are just so impressive. Especially at night:

On another note, remember I was working on a family wall in my hallway? Today I finished putting up the frames and soon I will have the pictures actually in the frames.

Talking about projects, I've also been working on a project that I've wanted to do for a while but I never really got around to doing it. I will probably post about it this week since it's a very small, but a super cute, project.

That's what I did this weekend?

Did you do anything special this weekend???

Lovin' My Nutribullet With A Side Of Maca

Remember how I mentioned a while back that I wanted to try out the nutritional supplement called Maca?

Well, I've been throwing it into my daily Nutribullet shakes for about a week and I can't say that I notice a difference in my body.

However, I do notice the taste. Maca has a very strong earthy taste. Although I use all kinds of berries to try to disguise the taste, I can still taste it. However, considering the many benefits of the supplement, I will continue to chug it down.

Maca was discovered and used by the Incas in Peru. Actually, what we consider Maca these days is really the ground up form of the Maca Root. It is widely marketed in nutrition stores in a powder or pill form. There have been several clinical trials using Maca and it's been found that it favorably effects energy levels, moods and can decrease anxiety naturally. It is also marketed as an herb that can improve sexual desire. Though, this conclusion has been found to be flippy-floppy. Some studies say it works and others say it's all hokey-pokey.

I personally am using it to boost my energy levels and of course my moods. You can never be too positive right?!?! And if it makes me desire things...well then it does. Hahaha!

It's also fairly cheap. The bag that I show pictured above is $10 and will last forever since I'm only using a tablespoon at most in each shake.

I'm not saying that you should go out and try it, but it does have it's positives if you have issues with anxiety. I'm giving it another few weeks to see if I notice a real change in my energy and/or moods.

I'll let you all know if it's really all it's cracked up to be!

Mango Vinaigrette and Breaded Cod

Remember how I said I was going to make salmon for dinner yesterday?

Ummmm, yeah. I lied.

I had forgotten that I didn't buy the salmon steaks at Costco. It was a last minute decision and I opted for the cod fillets instead. Since I have a crap memory, I was left looking at the cod fillets thinking, "What the hell?" Hahaha! To give you a visual: Imagine me standing in the middle of my kitchen with the freezer door open, cod fillets in hand and the dumbest "uh-duh" look on my face...Ha!

Yeah, that was me yesterday afternoon.

Well, I'm not one to get my panties in a twist so I worked with what I had. Thus, I present to you a recipe for not only breaded cod but also for mango vinaigrette. Get ready to have your taste buds blasted with an amazing mix of YUM!

The cod is real simple to make too!

Ingredients:

6 Cod Fillets (or however many you need)
1 C. Italian Bread Crumbs
Olive Oil

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 400o.

Line a casserole dish (I use Pyrex) with aluminum foil. Coat the aluminum foil with olive oil. You don't want to go crazy with the olive oil. All you need is enough so the cod doesn't stick. Put the casserole dish aside.

Lay out a sheet of parchment/wax paper on your counter top. Pour your breadcrumbs onto your paper. Pour a tiny bit of olive oil into a ramekin (or a cup will work) and begin by dipping a brush into the oil and brushing it on both sides of your cod.

Take your oily cod and coat both sides of with the bread crumbs. Place the cod into you aluminum lined casserole dish. Repeat this step for all your fillets.

Put into the oven and bake for 12-15 minutes or until your cod reaches an internal temperature of 145o.

Mango Vinaigrette

Ingredients:

1 C. Ripe mango, cut into medium pieces

¼ C. Rice wine vinegar

2 Tbls. Olive oil

2 Tbls. Freshly squeezed orange juice

½ Tsp. Cayenne pepper 

½ Tsp. Salt

½ Tsp. Sugar

4 Tbls. Water (if it gets too thick)

Directions:

Place all ingredients into your Magic Bullet [or a blender if you don't have a Magic Bullet (poor you!)] minus the water. Blend until smooth. If the consistency is too thick add water and blend that baby one more time.

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I took the mango vinaigrette and mixed it into a bowl of mixed greens (lettuce) and served it as a side. I also took the mango vinaigrette and put some on my cod. It was D-E-L-I-C-I-O-U-S!!!

Later Gators!

Another Nutribullet Recipe

Tonight I made a very good green monster. I added romaine lettuce, avocado, orange, carrot, flax seed and pineapple to top everything off. I wasn't anticipating that the avocado would make the shake soooooo thick so I ended up splitting the shake in half and adding water until I liked the consistancy. You can tell the grean monster was thick by the final picture. I mean the air bubbles didn't even float up to the surface!

 

 

 

And done...

 

 

 

 

 

Nutribullet Diet

Today, I am starting a Nutribullet "Diet." I put diet in quotes because I'm really not going on a diet. I'm just going to incorporate more of the Nutribullet shakes into my diet.

Originally, I bought the Nutribullet as a way to get more greens into my diet. I've never given the Nurtibullet a shot at helping me lose weight. I didn't buy it for that. Up to this point I have been using the shakes as a supplement to my diet. Usually replacing a snack meal with a shake.

However, I go on vacation in 71 days and I want to look hot. Hahaha! So basically, it's crunch time and I think that if I stick to a more plant-based diet for the two months leading up to my vacation I should be able to shed at least 10lbs.

Combined with more weight training and incorporating some cardio in the routine, I think that I should be okay for vacation. Luckily for me, I'm out about 9 weeks so it shouldn't be too hard to accomplish.

Anyways, Today I started with a spinach, celery, carrot, blueberry and flax seed shake. Here are the nutritional facts as well as how much of each vegetable/fruit I used:

As you can see I need to up the amounts on the spinach and flax seeds. I would like to see the calories for each of my shakes around 250 calories. This will allow me to keep my calorie count where I need it to be without having to worry that I am going over my daily calories.

I wish Myfitnesspal.com could show the mineral values for each Nutribullet shake because that is where these shakes shine. Oh well, I'll just deal with the calorie count.

Wish me luck!

I Love My Nutribullet

Last fall my husband and I were in Target perusing the aisles when I happened to go into the blender / chopper / food processor aisle and noticed that next to the Magic Bullet there was a big silver Magic Bullet looking thing. I could feel my little heart pitter-patter once I realized that it indeed was another product from the people who brought us the wonderful Magic Bullet.

Before I go any further, I must say that I am a huge fan of the Magic Bullet. I have had it since Christmas 2010 and I have used it for anything from a protein shake to blending up stewed tomatoes. I love my Magic Bullet. To me it is more useful than a blender. With a blender you have this bulky pitcher which can fit everything in it, but to clean that sucker it takes a goose neck faucet and a deep sink or a lot of tilting and clanking on the sink. Not to mention the daring finger acrobatics it takes to clean the blade without cutting yourself! Don't forget that you also have to remove the rubber o-ring that separates the blade from the pitcher or else it will mildew and rot! Can you tell I HATE blenders?!?!?!?

A Magic Bullet is so much better! You just put everything into the cup, screw the blade on, pop it onto the motor, push down on the cup and within seconds whatever you put into it has been decimated! Cleaning it is even better! You unscrew it, swipe the blade a few times with a soapy sponge and rinse. Washing the cup is just like washing a mug. THAT'S IT! Do I need to keep going or have I convinced you about my love for my Magic Bullet??? HA!

Back to the Nutribullet, I freaked out when I saw it in Target and coveted it until I got it about 2 months later. Once it was in my house, I swear I went a little crazy. Everyday I was trying out new things. Blending things that I really don't like normally. Like beets! I'm not a fan at all, but I blended them up and I actually like them now. Well I like them blended in a shake with other things...but I at least eat them now!

However, when the holidays rolled around I went on what I am calling "Winter Hibernation" and stopped blending :(

To be honest, I missed my concoctions! So when the holidays were over I was determined to get back into it. I must confess that I didn't get back into until this week. However, it's been an amazing week! Tasty things have been blended and my body feels amazing again :)

Today I blended romaine lettuce, pineapple, blueberries, carrots and chia seeds.

It was so good!!!

My biggest piece of advice is if you are ever in the market for a juicer, please think twice before you buy one. Think about buying the Nutribullet instead. It is a better buy and it keeps the pulp in your juice, which is the best part!
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Disclaimer: I was not paid by Magic Bullet to write this. I just love their products!