Does Muscle Weigh More Than Fat?

I see people posting a lot that muscle weighs more than fat!!

NO!! It does not!! 

We live on earth and everything has the same gravitational pull... a pound is a pound... 

BUT... muscle is more DENSE than fat and therefore it takes up LESS SPACE than fat... 

So when you are working out and you are lifting weights and you don't see the scale moving... DON'T get discouraged! 

You need to look at your measurements... because odds are, you are shrinking!

Pain is Temporary...

Everyday you show up is another day closer to your goals.

What's the Best Time to Exercise?

1. When you WILL work out.

Don't allow yourself the excuse of missing it in the morning so its not worth doing. Exercising is better than NOT exercising unless you are sick or recovering from an injury. Schedule your workouts when you have the best chance of getting it done. For me, its early in the morning... before the roosters wake up. But for some its late at night. Do what works for YOU! 

2. When you FEEL the best.

There are times during the day where you feel your best and have the most energy to tackle chores around the house or run errands. That would be a good time to schedule your workouts because that is when you have an abundance of energy. If you schedule allows you to fit your workouts in any time during the day, pay attention to your patterns and see when you have those energy bursts. And then schedule your workouts within that window.  

3. In the morning on an empty stomach.

In the morning, before you've eaten, your body is forced to utilize its fat stores for energy. I typically workout first thing, before I eat. But, I do take E & E which is Team Beachbody's all natural pre-workout supplement to help give me the boost I need to be as effective in my workout as possible. 

 4. At night before bed.

I only recommend this time of day if its the only time that works for you. Working out right before bed can affect your sleep. Most people have a hard time getting to sleep after a workout.

The thing I want you to understand is that everyone responds differently. If you struggle with morning workouts don't do them just because someone told you that you should. Play around and figure out what time of day you are able to put in your best effort. Once you figure it out, schedule that time daily and commit to it.  

When Opportunity Knocks, Open the Door

Last month I was contacted by someone I had briefly met at the Healthy & Fit Expo last year. Asking if I would be interested in being on the cover of his magazine.

To be honest, when I received that message from him I thought, "Is this guy a creeper?" But after checking out his profile and realizing this was for real and remembering how I had first met him, I jumped at the opportunity.

I was so nervous. I felt completely out of my league and unworthy of such an honor.
I am NOT a fitness model.
I do NOT have a perfect body.
I have stretch marks and loose skin and still some areas I would like to firm up...
and lift....
and suck in.

But what I realized (with the help of some amazing and supportive friends and family) is that I have worked really hard to get to where I am.

I am a work in progress just like everyone else.

But this opportunity might allow for another opportunity to inspire even more people to seek a healthier and more fit version of themselves.

So while I didn't feel the most confident doing it, I pushed passed that self imposed barrier, stepped outside my comfort zone and did it anyway... Because more than anything I want to help other people achieve their goals.

And if I can do it, YOU can do it.

Whatever your goals may be, whatever opportunity you find yourself presented with, if you want it and are willing to work for it, you CAN achieve it!

What is Your Favorite Cheat Meal?

What is your favorite cheat meal? 90% of the time I stick to a plant based diet, it just works best for me. But on occasion I splurge and one of my favorite things are these Spicy Grilled Shrimp Tacos from Chili's... OOoooh, they are sooo good!! Now it's your turn to spill the beans!! What is YOUR favorite cheat meal?

Super Yummy Energy Bites

A friend of mine shared a recipe for Energy Bites on her Facebook page and they looked tasty, but I wanted a little bit cleaner version. This is what I came up with. I hope you enjoy them.

No Bake Energy Bites

1 cup (dry) oatmeal
1/2 cup almond butter
1/2 cup ground flaxseed
1/3 cup raw honey
1 tsp. pure vanilla
  

Mix ingredients together in a large bowl. Roll into bite size balls. Refrigerate to set. Enjoy!!

 

Let me know how you like them or any other recipes you would like to see in the comments!! I look forward to hearing from you!

Are You Just a Little Curious About Beachbody Coaching?

If you have any questions about what you just watched, email me at: Kford924@gmail.com 

You will never know if you don't ask.

Pumpkin Spice Mochachino

I LOVE finding new and yummy recipes for my meal replacement because sometimes I want a little pizazz... and this recipe has that in spades!

Not to mention this recipe mixes 3 of my most favorite things, pumpkin spice, coffee and Shakeology!  

Oh sweet-my-oh-my!

Pumpkin Spice Mochachino

1 scoop vegan chocolate Shakeology
1/4 canned pumpkin
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 cup cold coffee
1/2 cup almond milk
Ice to taste

I don't know about you, but I think Starbucks should offer this!

Do You Struggle With Late Night Snacking?

The most common problem I hear from people trying to lose weight and get their nutrition under control has to do with late night, unnecessary snacking!  And trust me, I can totally relate! But I learned to overcome it! 

Try these tips:

1)  PITCH those items that get you every time.  They are not worth sabotaging your results in fact, don't even buy them!  At first your kids might wonder why you don't have pizza rolls in the freezer or Cheetos in the pantry, but if you just "forget" to buy them at the store it can't be helped!  Eventually they won't miss them.

2)  Have a smaller dinner so that you CAN have a small, healthy snack or 'treat' a couple hours later!  Make sure you plan for the small treat and save enough calories in your daily alottment so it doesn't slow your progress!

3)  When you have cravings and you're not actually hungry, DISTRACT yourself w/an inspiring book, magazine, etc.  What motivates you?   Think about how good it feels to wake up the next morning feeling FIT and closer to your goal versus bloated and guilty!!

4)  In place of dinner on most nights, try having a huge Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Shakeology smoothie with phytonutrients, high protein, antioxidants, digestive enzymes, probiotics, and 70+ fruits and vegetable ingredients.  It's like a dessert and since it's low in calories and high in nutrition, you can have something later too!  
 
5)  Get to bed earlier and  take baby steps to improve your nutrition DAILY!  Not getting at least 8 hours of sleep and not getting proper nutrition will make you feel the 3 O'clock slump and crave snacks later at night.  Give your body what it NEEDS!

Ok... what else do you struggle with??

Monday Motivation!

If you want to change your lifestyle... YOU HAVE TO CHANGE YOUR LIFE!!!

~Bob Harper

Who Do You Inspire?

It's never the person in front of you who you inspire...it's always the person behind you who you never realize is watching. Don't quit! 

- Brett Hoebel

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

• 1-1/4 cup whole grain flour
• 1 cup oats (preferably rolled oats, but instant oatmeal is okay)
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/3 cup (1/3 scoop) vanilla protein powder
• 3/4 cup thawed apple juice concentrate
• 1/2 cup applesauce
• 1/2 cup raisins, dried cranberries, cherries, and/or blueberries

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.


Combine flour, oats, baking soda, and protein powder. In a separate bowl, mix apple juice concentrate and applesauce. Stir the wet mix into the dry mix. Fold in raisins. Drop batter by the spoonful onto a lightly sprayed baking sheet. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, or until lightly browned.

Paula Dean's White Bean Chicken Chili -- Modified

This is by far my most favorite White Bean Chili.  I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Ingredients

* 1 jar white beans
* 5 cups chicken stock
* Olive Oil pam
* 1 tablespoon minced garlic
* 3/4 cup diced onion
* 1 1/2 cups chopped green chiles (fresh or canned)
* 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, finely chopped
* 1 tablespoon ground cumin
* 1 tablespoon dried oregano
* 1 to 2 teaspoons ground black pepper
* 1/2 teaspoon white pepper
* Pinch red pepper flakes
* 1/2 bunch cilantro leaves, chopped

Directions

Put the beans in large pot with the chicken stock and bring to a boil over high heat.
Spray a saucepan with Olive Oil Pam. Add the garlic, onion, and chiles and saute for 5 minutes. Add chile mixture to pot with beans. Add the chicken, cumin, oregano, pepper, white pepper, red pepper flakes, and cilantro. Lower the heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, for approximately 1 1/2 hours.

How to Create Balance in Your Life

I am a mom, a wife, a substitute school teacher, a part-time office assistant, recently finished my elementary teaching certification, and I have a growing online fitness business.  I have had to learn a few things about balancing it all.  Fortunately for me there are experts on the subject of balancing my family life with my work life and my fitness life, and my personal life.   Just saying it like that makes me think I should be tired, but the truth is I have lots of energy and I am not tired, most of the time.  I think that is in large part because I have found a way to make it all work for me and I enjoy everything I do.  No, that does not mean that I enjoy cleaning the toilets or grocery shopping, but I do enjoy having a home that is clean and neat and a pantry and refrigerator stocked with healthy foods.  So while I may not enjoy each and every task, I do enjoy the rewards of those tasks.  My goal today is to share the things I have learned about balancing all these facets of my life with you so that you can better balance yours, regardless of your pursuits.

1.  Define what your priorities are.  This step is critical and without it you are setting yourself up to feel like you are spinning your wheels without making progress.  Take the time to list what your top 5 priorities are.  And when you do this, don't make the mistake of being vague.  If your family is priority number 1 then be specific.  Is it spending time with your family?  Is it providing financially for your family?  Is it making sure you sit down every night at the dinner table with your family?  Make sure you define it specifically, that will help you later on.

2.  Set some goals.  What is it that you want to achieve?  Whatever they are, list your goals.  Keep your list of priorities handy so you can make sure the goals you are setting are in line with your priorities.  If the goals you have written on your list don't match, you will always feel out of balance.  You will feel like your life is pulling you in one direction and your passions another and balance will seem like a distant dream.  This is not to say that your goals and dreams need to change completely.  There may be a way to tweak them to be more in line with your priorities.

3.  Create a Daily To-Do List.  Chalene Johnson calls this a CCDMTDL, otherwise known as a Carefully Crafted, Diligently Maintained To-Do List.  And to be honest her way of explaining this is what propelled me into a life filled with glee.  Once you have brainstormed your ideas on paper and broken down your goals into action items you can begin your To-Do List.  I have items on my To-Do List that are there each and every week, items that are there daily and items that come and go as soon as they are completed.  The point is you need to have your list so you know each and every day what must be done.  That also allows you to know when you can stop and enjoy some down time.  I use Task App on my DROID called "Check It Off" but there are others that may work better for you.  You will need to find one that suits your needs.  I like having it on my phone because my phone is always with me.  I definitely recommend Chalene's Car Smart CD on Creating a To-Do List as well as her FREE 30 Day Challenge that walks you through the process.

4.  Schedule, Schedule, SCHEDULE. Now that you have your To-Do List you have to the tasks into your daily schedule.  I like using Google Calendar because I can update it either from my phone or my computer and have it at all times.  I do not have the sort of schedule that says I am at work from 8-5 every day.  My schedule fluctuates, sometimes I don't know what I am doing or where I am going until 6am.  But, I have my To-Do List handy all the time and I can schedule my day first thing in the morning. That way I know when I have to pack lunches, clean toilets, call customers, write blog posts, socialize on Facebook, etc.  Yes... I even schedule my Facebook time, otherwise I would get lost there for hours!  Whether you create your daily schedule every morning or every Sunday night for the week to come, make sure you do it.  This is critical to your success.  Also, don't forget to give yourself a little extra time.  You never know when your sister will call with a crisis, you will get stuck behind a slow driver, or the 3 page email you just typed will get itself lost in cyberspace because your computer freezes.

5.  Recharge your batteries.  With a task list a mile long and only 24 hours in a day you may be thinking that you will have to work from sun up to sun down with no time to relax.  That is not true.  The point of your list and schedule is to allow you to get your work done, make forward progress each and every day, and STOP when you have checked off the items on your list for that day.

If you find that no matter that you have a To-Do List and a schedule you find yourself procrastinating, check out Eat That Frog! By Brian Tracy.  It has made a huge impact on me and it is one of those books I have committed to re-reading every January!

I hope that these steps that have helped me find balance also help you.  Let me know if you have any questions.  I appreciate each and every comment left here on my blog.

Roasted Sweet Potato Fries

2 large sweet potatoes, peeled
1 Tbsp EVOO
1 tsp chili powder

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil.  Cut sweet potatoes in half lengthwise.  Cut each half into three or four wedges.  In a mixing bowl, combine sweet potatoes wedges with oil.  Sprinkle chili powder over sweet potatoes and stir again.  Place sweet potato wedges on prepared baking sheet.  Bake for 30 minutes, turning wedges several times during roasting so that they cook evenly.

Nutritional Information:  Calories: 66, Total Fat: 1g, Carbs: 13g, Fiber: 2g, Protein: 1g, Sugars 3g, Sodium 36mg, Cholesterol: 0mg

Salted Caramel Chocolate Shakeology Recipe

I love that my healthy breakfast tastes like a sinfully delicious dessert....

Salted Caramel Chocolate Shakeology

1 scoop chocolate Shakeology
1 cup unsweetened Cashew Milk
1 tsp. caramel extract
1 dash sea salt
Ice to taste

What did you have for breakfast today?

Shakeology Frozen Oat Bar Recipe

Splurge this weekend!

1 scoop Chocolate Shakeology
1 scoop chocolate whey protein powder
1/4 cup natural peanut, cashew or almond butter or PB2
1/2 banana
1/2 cup rolled oats, cooked and cooled

Combine all ingredients well, freeze in glass baking pan for about 90 minutes and enjoy!

Pecan Cinnamon Roll

You didn't think I was really going to post a recipe for Cinnamon Rolls did you?

You should know be better than that by now.... 

Enjoy this healthy and tasty Shakeology treat instead!


Pecan Cinnamon Roll Shakeology

1 scoop Chocolate Shakeology
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
8 pecan halves
1 cup almond milk
Ice to taste

And doesn't it just sound like something that would make a cool, crisp fall morning even better?

Easy Salsa and Bean Soup

Salsa Bean Soup

• 1 jar Northern Beans 

•  1 container Jack's Fresh Garden Salsa

•  1 lb. cooked ground turkey or chicken

•  1 cup shredded cheese (Mexican blend)

Empty jar of Northern beans (including liquid) into a 5 qt. stock pot.  Add salsa, meat and cheese.  Mix thoroughly and cook on low heat for 20-30 minutes.  Enjoy!!

I don't know exact nutrition information, but if you are following Weight Watchers, its only 1 point!

Apple Pancakes

I like to make breakfast for dinner a lot because I don't spend time in the morning cooking... there is never enough time...  and, I am lazy.  So I always have my Shakeology for breakfast.  But we do like breakfast foods.  One of our favorite things is pancakes but, as you know, most pancake mixes are not good for you AT ALL and if it is good for you it probably tastes like tree bark.  Last week when I was out shopping I perused the pancake mixes hoping to find something new.  I am willing to give most anything a try in an attempt to find yummy and nutritious foods for my family and I came across this which may NOT be new, but is definitely my new favorite Pancake Mix:

Apple Pancakes:

3/4 cup Hodgson Mill Whole Wheat Buttermilk Pancake Mix
1/3 cup milk
1 cup applesauce
a little bit of cinnamon
1 tsp. vanilla
1 egg
1 Tbsp oil (I used light olive oil)

Preheat griddle to 360 degrees.  Place mix into bowl, add milk, applesauce, vanilla, egg, cinnamon and oil.  Mix just until blended.  Let stand for 5 minutes.  Spray griddle with cooking spray (I use the Pam Organic Olive Oil Spray).  Spoon onto griddle and cook until bubbles form on the edges,m then flip and cook the other side.  Serve Hot.  Top with natural maple syrup, a sugar free variety, or fresh fruit.  If you want the pancakes a little thinner, use less milk.  I like them thick and satisfying!