Week 3 of Insanity

Week 3 of Insanity

Wow I have to say for my husband and I the last 6 weeks has been amazing and crazy all together.  Growing our excavating business and given the opportunity to do the work that we have been working towards is a great feeling.  They say results come after the work when your losing weight and that is so true in just about anything in life.  It does not happen over night or even in a few months.  We made plenty of mistakes along the way but learn as we go along.  Being a stay at home mom and have the choice to just pack the kids up in the car and drive to see daddy at work for sure make me smile.  I have know idea what God has in store for Clint when he gets older but right now any equipment lights up his day.  When Steve comes home at night all Clint wants to do is watch the videos Steve made of the equipment running at work.
STRESS!!  Yep it's everyday no matter who you are and how did I stay on track this week.  Thank goodness for shakeology to keep me on track and to curb my sweet tooth. 

Yippy look at those numbers changing!!  Yes I for sure would say Chalean Extreme I loved but I think Insanity I might love just as much but for different reasons.  I liked Chalean Extreme and enjoyed lifting weights and still find myself popping in a DVD once and a while to workout to but I can tell you I will be doing the same with Insanity in the future when I want to switch things up.
 

I also did something this week that I have not been able to do since I was a teenage.  I think it's so important to not base your day on seeing that magical number on the scale.  You all know what I'm talking about if it's a "good" number your happy and if it's not it sets the tone for the entire day.  I weight myself once a week and beyond the number on the scale I challenge myself in other ways to track progress.  This is not a sprint to the finish line and in that mind set it's key to set other non scale accomplishments. 

I also shared this thought I had one morning this week while working out and thought I would share here as well. 
How I view this is like buying a car meaning you ...have a gym membership, workout videos, or a treadmill. Your in your house looking at the car and you make the choice to get up get your keys and get in the car. Meaning you make the choice to get up put your sneakers on and workout. Great now what? Your sitting in your car waiting.....nothing is happening. You need fuel to make the car run. Meaning you need to put the proper nutrition in your body to make the car move. Sure you can put the car in neutral get out and push but your not going to get far and for sure your not using the car the way it was intended on being used.

So at what point are you at? Are you sitting in the house wishing you had a car? Are you needing to get your keys out? Did you get your keys out and now your sitting in a park car? Or are you going down the road at 55?

So this week think about your car and where you want to go and how you are going to get their.  Happy Eating Clean!!

Tips on how to drink more water daily

Tips on how to drink more water daily

Water is essential for our bodies health, over 60% of the human body consists of water, and the effects of dehydration can be life threatening.  We all know this and everyone knows that pops, juices, and sports drinks don't count for your daily water intake.

How much water should I drink in a day?

A minimum of half your body weight in oz. that is just a base line more water is never a bad thing.  So say you weight 200 lbs. you need to drink at least 100 oz. of water a day.

Tips to remind yourself as the day goes on

• Water is a must while working out so get in the habit of doing so, don't leave your workout area until you have at least drank one glass.
• We all carry phones on use set timers to go off as the day goes on
• Have your screen at the office be a picture of a glass of water to remind you.
• Find a water bottle that you will drink from and figure out how many times you need to empty it to get your water intake and place that many rubber band on it, every time you empty it take a rubber band off. 
• Stick note on the fridge
• When eating 5-6 small meals a day don't eat until you have drank one glass of water.
• Use an app on your phone that has a chart and you can make a mark for every glass you drink as the day goes on.
• Every time you leave the house grab your water bottle make it a habit like grabbing your purse or wallet.

Here is a list of foods that our high in water content.  Anyone that has made their own baby food knows this to be true as these foods become very watery once placed in the food processor.

Here's a handy list of some common foods and their water content:

• Cucumber -- 96 percent
• Lettuce -- 95 percent  
• Celery -- 95 percent
• Zucchini -- 95 percent  
• Tomato -- 94 percent  
• Spinach -- 92 percent
• Watermelon -- 92 percent
• Strawberries -- 92 percent  
• Broccoli -- 91 percent
• Grapefruit -- 91 percent

So between these two list you can see that you are taking water in with the food you eat.  At the same time don't use that as an excuse to not drink your water from a glass.  If you are trying to loss weight, stay healthy or have more energy drink up!!  We all know their are a ton of benefits to drinking you water so bottoms up folks!!  And fill up and repeat!!  Cheers to drinking more!!

staying on track while eating out

Staying on track while eating out

So for most of us eating clean is not hard to do and we can control what we eat when we are making it.  But what happens when you head out to a restaurant?  How to stay on track I hope these helpful hints help you to stay on track while out.  In study after study, eating frequently in restaurants correlates to higher body fat.  In 1955, Americans spent 19% of their food budget on meals prepared outside of the home.  Today that number has more than doubled to 41%!!  That's big!  With that number going up and the number of overweight has more than doubled with it, obesity has more then tripled.  According to the U.S. department of Agriculture, $222 billion is spent every year at in restaurants and $118 billion of that is on fast food restaurants!  That's a lot of grease and garbage if you are not careful to stay on track.  The biggest problem is the amount of high calories that is packed into the increasing portions you our served while dinning out.  Most restaurant meals contain at least 1,000 calories with out dessert.  If you include and appetizer that could add another 1,000 calories on.  Trust me I know this is so true after working in restaurants for the past 12 years it caught up with me and need address right away! 

One slice of cheesecake contains more then 700 calories and an order of cheese sticks without dipping sauce contains more than 800 calories.  A typical steak house prime rib or porter house steak could have anywhere from 1,200 calories to 1,500 calories alone.  So what if you add a glass of wine and an appetizer to that!!  Wow!! Can I say unwanted calories.

I know for myself when I started to eat clean and did so after the first few months I would save my cheat meal for a dinner out with my husband.  But even then I would leave and feel like crap.  So it's to the point now where it's really not a treat to eat out.  If I'm watching what I'm taking in why would I give myself crap as a reward for staying on track all week.  These are some of the basic guide lines I use to stay on track while eating healthy.

 So how to stay on track-

• Start your meal with a tossed salad not an appitizers
• Avoid any deep-fried foods
• Ask the waitress to leave the bread in the kitchen
• Ask your server if you're not sure how something is prepared, especially sauces ,oil, butter, and any other hidden calories
• Look up menu's online before heading out for dinner
• If you don't know how many calories are in a dish don't eat it
• Choose grilled chicken, fish, or lean protein
• Order steamed vegetable as a side (ask to have them plan)
• be extra nice to your waitress to help you order to stay on track
• Ask for fresh fruit as dessert
• Avoid anything smothered
• Don't clean your plate when you receive your dinner ask for a to go box and place half in the box so you don't have a chance of over eating
• Avoid buffets
• Eat only until 80% full it's just like at home
• Order dry baked potato, sweet potato, or brown rice
• Lots of water!!!
• By asking for water alone you while eating out you will save yourself
• Take a walk after dinner

For most of us weekends are the time to let your guard down with staying on track.  Eating out does not mean going all out keep your portions in check, ask when you don't know, and enjoy your company rather then what you can shove in your mouth.  Keep your guard up even when the weekend comes!!

Clean Eating Chili Recipe

Clean Eating Chili Recipe

Chili is one of those recipes that also brings good memories before my husband and I got married we would make chili together.  Fun times and every time we made a batch we would say it was better then the last.  So I took our original recipe and made some small changes so it would be clean to eat.

Ingredients:

• 1 lbs. of ground turkey
• 1/2 cup of chopped onions
• 1/2 cup or red and yellow peppers chopped
• 1/4 cup of jalapeno
• 1 table spoon of extra virgin olive oil
• 50 oz. of clean marinara sauce
• 1/2 cup of water
• 12 oz. of low sodium black beans(drained)
• 12 oz. kidney beans
• 12 oz. of low sodium tomatoes (do not drain)
• 1 teaspoon of chili powder
• 1 teaspoon of oregano
• 1 teaspoon of pepper
• 1 teaspoon of parsley

Directions:
Brown your ground turkey set aside, next place your peppers, onions, and jalapeno's in a nonstick pan with olive oil and cook until translucent.  Place your medium size soup pan on medium heat and combine all of the chili ingredients and simmer for at least an hour. 

I'm big on taking a day and doing a bunch of cooking at once freezing and getting ready for the day.  This recipe allows me to do just that.  Happy cooking!!  Happy keeping it clean!!  One recipe at a time!!  One meal at a time!!  Staying on track and have energy is a must with two little one's and a busy schedule.

Chalene Extreme Transformation

Bethany's Transformation

So when I saw these before and after photos of my sister so many things went through my head.  First and for most what if?  What if I just went on with my life fat and unhappy waiting for things to take place?  The fact that I decided to make a change is now having a ripple effect on everyone around me.  It did not happen overnight trust me the first time I asked my sister if she wanted to join my challenge group she said no.  How did I respond I thought she is just not ready but I knew that with be consistent in my own weight loss journey she would come around?  A week later she called me up and said I'm ready!!  I was thrilled because all the days I did not feel like working out or eating healthy I did it and pushed myself hoping to help my sisters (they both are doing just that).  So Bethany started with Brazil Butt lift and training for our first 5k!!  Every day she took in the information in the challenge group and applied it. 

September 29th was D day meaning time to run our 5k!!  It was so much fun it was also on my bucket list of things to do.  After Brazil Butt lift came Chalean Extreme and she is in the push phase right now.  Just yesterday she needed to buy heavier weights because she is getting stronger.  One of the things I really focus on in my challenge groups is not only changing the outer looks and losing weight but changing the internal conversation you have with yourself.  I really want everyone to have a transformation from the inside out.  And from that to be able to make this a life style not something you start and stop.  I'm always looking for new recipes new foods and helping tips for my challenge groups.  It goes beyond "selling something".  Not one day have I felt I'm out selling things because this process sells itself? 

Yesterday we got together at my parents farm for family time and my sister suggested we try to run the mountain that sits behind my parents’ house.  It was something she did in high school when she played soccer.  So my mom watched the kids and we set off to run the mountain.  After about 1 third of the hill we bother hit a wall and had to stop and walk for a few minutes.  We laughed and had a good time we also ran the top of the ridge as well.  After we finished we set our next goal for the next time we run the mountain. 

If you would have asked me last year at this time what I would be doing I for sure would not of said running a 5k or running up a mountain side.  I took it day by day I started May 5th and told my coach I could not wait to see where Beachbody took me in the next year.  I'm six months in and just keep setting goals for our family and moving forward.

Trust me I was right where you are today I sat at my house fat and needing change.  I know how it feels to not have anything that fits and to feel ugly. I had zero energy to keep up with my kids.  I joined a challenge group and learned about clean eating; the benefits of drinking shakeology daily, making exercise part of my day, and helping others do the same.  Next challenge group start on November 18th and we will get preseason underway on the 11th.  Beachbody has some amazing deals to offer this month and I would love to help you along the way.

 

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Shakeology Oatmeal Bars

Yummy Shakeology Oatmeal Bars

So this month when I received my shakeology order along with the normal monthly calendar cam other recipes to make besides shakes.  So before I could do anything else I was whipping these yummy oatmeal bars up.

Ingredients:
3 scoops of chocolate shakeology
3 cups of old fashion rolled oats
1 Tsp. of cocoa powder
1 dash of cinnamon
1 cup of almond milk
1/2 cup of almond butter
1/4 cup of pure maple syrup
1/4 cup of un sweeten coconut flakes

Directions:
Combine all ingredients together and mix well with electric mixer until blended.  Next take an 8x8 baking dish lightly dust it with extra virgin olive oil and press your ingredients into the bottom.  Cover with plastic wrap and press down to seal it up.  Place in fridge for 3 hours and the cut into 9 servings.  Trust me I ate 2 serving because it was so yummy!!  And of course the entire family enjoyed this recipe and I hope your family does as well. 

Week 2 Insanity going strong!!

Week 2 Insanity going strong!!

One of the things I noticed in week two is how quickly I see my endurance getting stronger.  This week I was really able to push harder and jump high for all of the moves.  I have to be honest I hate stretching I know how important it is so I for sure always do it but I get board quick and my mind wonders.  But I really enjoy the stretches that go along with Insanity very affective and I like the fact that Shawn T does a really deep stretch half way into the workout.  It for sure tricks me plus it also creates time for my heart rate to come back down before the next set.

Oh yes and Halloween was this week as well!!  How did I stay on track?  Shakeology played a big part in the fact that it curves my sweet tooth plus a ton of yummy recipes.

Also here is my meal plan that always keeps me going Sunday is the day to get ready for the week and in doing so I'm able to save money by not being prepared I can't remember the last time we ordered pizza last minute.  If losing weight is 80% nutrition it's key to stay focused and not to get off track and beside when I eat garbage I feel like crap, tired and slow!!

I was so exited to take a few quick  measurements this morning and in two weeks of Insanity I lost 1" in my stomach!! Yippy biggest problem zone but that does not mean I will not have abs, it just means I will keep on working on it.  My goal is to loss 3 more inches off of my stomach to be at my goal measurement.  Next week I will be stripping down my meal plan I did this for a week in August and saw great results this time around I will be doing it for 30 days.  It will be the final push to get me to my goal weight.  And yep I will be going right into Thanksgiving with that,  Stay tuned for what a meal plan looks like for my stripped down plan. 

Another week is going to be taking place starting tomorrow, what are you going to do this week to bring you closer to your goals.  I'm not just talking about fitness goals I'm talking about personal goals you want to achieve.  Put a plan into action and look at those goals daily and brake it down daily on what you need to do to get their. 

Make this your best week yet!!