7DSD Days 4, 5 & 6 of the WF-NC Challenge

Hi!  I hope you are having a great weekend... I am doing very good with the slim down and have followed it to a T thus far; meals, booty calls and afternoon workouts.  Except, I have been cleaning all day today, so I am counting that as my morning "booty call" for today...;o)

 Here's a recap of the meals you did not see on Instagram this week:
Day 4 lunch & dinner

 Day 5 lunch & dinner

Keep in mind that my breakfast and morning snack were the same for day 4, 5 & 6.  My morning snack for these days was 1/2 of a grapefruit.  My afternoon snack consisted of 2 cups of carrots and hummus for day 4 & 5.   If you want to follow me along on instagram, find me @ahealthyfitrme. 

Today has been a bit harder than the past few days though. After my morning snack I could not wait to build a massive salad for lunch!!
Day 6 Breakfast & lunch

 I hate feeling hungry...but I only have 1 day to go, it is a challenge after all!
 You do get enough food (about 1,200kcals) with the 7DSD, but the combination of consuming lesser foods plus 2 workouts a day, is making me hungrier than ever.

Speaking of the ToneitUp 7DSD, I am so impressed with this community and the ToneitUp girls K & K interaction on there.  All kinds of accountability and support going on everyday.   I feel inspired to continue on with this slim down just from reading everyone's updates on there...  I kinda feel like I'll let someone down if I quit.
 I'm happy to be part of this community!  I'm thinking this lifetime membership from ToneitUP could make for an awesome Christmas gift for a couple of special women in my life this year... 

As I mentioned on a recent post, I decided to bake my protein pancakes and my scrambled eggs on Sunday to save me time during the week.   What a life saver!  I am planning to do the same tomorrow just to have those delicious pancakes readily available for my consumption next week. 
 I'm really glad you liked the baking idea!  Can't wait for you to try them!

  I'll see you on Monday with a weekend recap on the challenge. 

As always, thank you so much for stopping by!  Happy to connect with you!

Have a great night!

WF-No Crap: 7 Day Slim Down Day #2

Hello...! It is day two of the ToneitUp 7 day slim down.  As you may already know, to challenge my self for this last week of the Whole Foods-No Crap Challenge,  I took on the 7DSD.  I was up early again for a 30 minute sweaty spin workout from home for my "booty call."  Unlike yesterday, there was no snoozing involved this morning.  I also packed my M1 & M2 for today last night. 

 YEY for prepping ahead!

From left to right:

Yogi cold Mayan Cocoa Tea (plain)

1/2 grapefruit

ToneitUp's Meta-D drink (their morning detox drink)

Baked Slim Down Pancake

My baked pancake got a bit messy when I took it out of the ramekins, here's a close up...lol

BTW!  This pancake was delish and so filling!  I'm so glad I decided to bake them instead.  It felt like I was eating a cake!  So good! You'll definitely see this baked pancake again, even after the slim down.  Yum!
So yesterday, I ended up using my camera for my meals instead of using Instagram.  My lunch consisted of chicken seasoned with Mrs. Dash, a bunch of veggies with a tablespoon of balsamic vinegar and an apple.

 My dinner was a salmon steak also seasoned with Mrs. Dash, green beans and cherry tomatoes with a tablespoon of balsamic vinegar. 

I was still feeling hungry after dinner...  I had ginger tea with a 1/4 cup of unsweetened almond milk.  I also had about 100oz of water yesterday.

Today's lunch...

today's dinner...

Tomorrow's scheduled meals will be practically the same.  I will be Instagraming those for accountability.
Hope you had a wonderful Tuesday!

WF-No Crap: 7 Day Slim Down Day #1

Happy Monday!  It is day one of the ToneitUp 7 day slim down and the beginning of the last week of the Whole Foods-No Crap Challenge.  I went ahead and took my measurements last night to keep track of my progress with the slim down.  

My Measurements:

Chest: 31"

Waist: 25 3/4"

Hips: 35"

Thighs: 21"

Arms: 12"

Hopefully my chest will not go down anymore...lol  We'll see!

 OK!!! I woke up super-duper early this morning to get my "booty call" workout done.  I had zero motivation to get up and ended up hitting the snooze button a couple of times.  Just having one of those mornings, ugghhh!!!  But, no excuses, I have to get that 30 minute BC in no matter what!  The snoozing situation made me a little short on time this morning but, thankfully I had prepared my breakfast for the next 4 days last night.  

To save me time and frustration I  decided to bake the "Slim-Down Scramble" and the " Slim Down Protein Pancake". For some odd reason those pancakes are a "witch" so difficult to make.     I believe that the pancake recipe is on the ToneitUp website for everyone to see.  Have you tried making their pancake recipe?  Do you have any tips for me?  ;o)

 Anywhosers...I just combined and assembled all of the ingredients together and placed the mixtures into ramekins.  After preheating my oven at 350 degrees, I placed all 4 ramekins in the oven for 40 minutes, then removed the protein pancake ramekins and left the slim down scramble in, for an additional 5 minutes.

Done!  Now my breakfast is ready for the next 4 days! 

I will be having one of the scramble ramekins for breakfast today.  Also, I will be "instagraming" the rest of my meals for today!

What did you have for breakfast?

Hope everyone is having a great Monday morning. ;o)

Meals, ToneItUp & Last Week of WF-NC Challenge

Happy Sunday!  Tomorrow is the beginning of the last week of the Whole Foods - No Crap Challenge.  Therefore, in order to challenge my self even more this week, I have decided to take on the 7 Day Slim Down from the ToneitUp girls.  There is some dairy in meals on this plan so I will be replacing or omitting those.

Now, I have mentioned their workouts, I have also shared recipes using their protein powder but I could not get my self to invest in the ToneitUp meal plan.  Mainly because I feel that I eat pretty healthily and  I have a pretty good understanding of what works and does not work for me nutrition wise.   But, after a year of consideration, I finally gave in and bought their Gluten Free plan last week!!

 The truth is I was so intrigued and curious about it, particularly their Slim Down plan.  The slim down part of the plan is essentially the beginning of their 3 part meal plan.  There is also a toning meal plan and a maintenance meal plan.  What I love the must about this entire series is that they measure progress by measurements/inches lost not by pounds.  I LOVE THAT!!!

Part of the slim downs strict routine, is that you need to get-in 2 workouts a day for the next 7 days; one first thing in the morning and one in the afternoon.  

Below is the workout schedule I put together for next week:

This is going to be interesting, I hope I can keep up!

Ok, so I have been "Instagraming" must of my meals.  In order to keep this blog post "short" I have decided to only share on here, the ones I did not post on Instagram.  You can follow me on Instagram if you like at @ahealthyfitrme.

Below find my non-instagramed meals for week 3 of the WF-NC Challenge (no specific order:)

 Lots of repeats this week...

 Soups & Moose stew...

 ...

 Are you a ToneitUp member?  Have you tried their 7 DSD?  Any tips you want to share?

I hope you are having a great weekend!

Vitacost Haul!

It is always a good day when you come home to a Vitacost package.  

If you do not know what Vitacost is, it is essentially an online wholesaler for a bunch of stuff.  I believe that their headquarters is in FL, which makes it much more appealing to me for some reason.  Ok, off subject...Anyway, you can find things like supplements, beauty products, food,  organic items, gluten free items, protein powder, I mean you name it and Vitacost has it.  They even have their own line of products now, which are cheaper than most well known brands.  If you sign up for email updates you'll receive all kinds of deals daily.  Also, you get 2 free samples with every purchase.  I appreciate the free samples; it gives me a chance to try new things.

"I went to town" with this order because I wanted to try out a few different breakfast choices and they had really good deals that I just could not pass up. 

Now, I want to mention that where I live I have 0(nada) access to any of these stuff.  I have to drive 1 1/2 hours to find some of them (on a good day,) so having reliable websites such as Vitacost really helps us out.

I love sharing my purchases from Vitacost because most of us are scared to order things like apple cider vinegar and amino acids bottles, crackers and chocolate chips online. I have never had a problem with any of my Vitacost packages.  I must say that this was a pretty big package and it all made it safe and sound.   I am just so happy I found this website and I want to let anyone who's willing to listen know about it.  I love how fast their shipping to AK is.  However; as many other online companies out there, their special shipping for purchases over 49$ does not apply to Alaskan customers; bummer I know!  The shipping cost to Alaska is $10 no matter the size of your purchase.  I wish they will come up with some sort of shipping special for their loyal Alaskan customers.  ;o)

Ok so here is my haul.

Can you find my dog's head? lol  

From left to right:

Bragg Apple Cider Vinegar Organic Raw

Bragg Liquid Aminos

Vitacost Vitamin D3 (as Cholecalciferol) -- 1000 IU

Vitacost Thyroid Complex† with L-Tyrosine

Yogi Organic Herbal Tea Caffeine Free Ginger

Yogi Herbal Tea Mayan Cocoa Spice

Yogi Organic Comforting Chamomile

Yogi Perfect Energy Herbal Tea Vanilla Spice

Yogi Organic Herbal Tea Caffeine Free Chai Rooibos

Bare Fruit Fat FreeDried Fat Free Granny Smith Apple Chips

Nature's Plus Animal Parade® Children's Chewable Multi-Vitamin and Mineral Assorted Flavors

Auromere Ayurvedic Bar Soap Sandalwood-Turmeric 

Mary's Gone Crackers Original Seed Crackers Black Seed

Mary's Gone Crackers Original Seed Crackers Herbs

Wisdom Natural SweetLeaf® Liquid Stevia Vanilla Creme

Twinlab 100% Whey Protein Fuel SAMPLE Chocolate Surge

Twinlab 100% Whey Protein Fuel SAMPLE Vanilla Slam

Ancient Harvest Organic Quinoa Flakes

Jason PowerSmile® All-Natural Whitening Toothpaste

Eden Foods Organic Pumpkin Seeds Dry Roasted Spicy

Yummy Earth Organic Lollipops Assorted Personal Bin

Annie's Naturals Organic Dijon Mustard

Farmer's Market Organic Canned Pumpkin

Queen Helene The Original Mud Pack Masque

Click here for a 1st time customer 10% discount code.

I hope this was helpful to you.  Are you a Vitacost lover?  Share your haul with me!

Have a wonderful Saturday!

Coco-Carrot Chai Tea/Smoothie

 This tea is becoming my favorite afternoon pick me up.  It contains the perfect amount of sweetness to help with those sweet cravings we all get around 2pm at the office.  I have been having one of these everyday this week and I wanted to share what's in it with you. 

What you'll need:

1/2 cup of U. Coconut Almond Breeze

1/2 cup of homemade carrot juice

1 cup of already brewed Yogi Chai Tea

5 drops of vanilla liquid stevia or 1 Truvia packet (optional)

a pinch of cinnamon ;o)

Add a couple of ice cubes and mix well with a spoon.

Turn it into a smoothie!!

Add one scoop of your favorite vanilla protein powder with a tablespoon of almond butter.  Add a few more ice cubes and blend!  I have been adding PerfectFit to mine for a meal replacement or as an afternoon snack. 

Enjoy!

Gluten & Sugar-Free Veggie Delights

 I love finding different ways to use my veggie juicing pulp.  I refuse to let all of that organic goodness go to waste.  I have made different variations of: veggie pulp burgers, veggie pulp bread, veggie pulp smoothies, veggie pulp soups and even veggie pulp chips!  When I asked my hubby and son what they were in the mood for (holding my pulp bag) they said "we want something cinnamon-ish & nutmeg-ish, please"!

So... here is my take on a fall inspired veggie pulp recipe based on their request...

Gluten & Sugar Free Veggie Delights

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup of organic coconut flour

one cup of veggie pulp from juicing (Fall Inspired Juice recipe)

1 egg

1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder

20 drops of liquid stevia

2 mashed bananas

1/2 cup of organic no sugar added apple sauce

1/2 cup of Unsweetened Coconut Almond Breeze

1 t. of vanilla extract

1 t. of cinnamon

1/4 t. of nutmeg

1/4 t. of ginger

1/4 t. of cloves

a pinch of sea salt

 

Preheat your oven at 375 degrees. Grease a baking sheet with cooking spray and set aside.  Mash your bananas well.  Add in your veggie pulp, apple sauce, coconut milk and eggs to your mashed bananas and mix.  Add in the rest of your ingredients and mix with a hand mixer or with a fork.  Your mixture should end up with a "couscous" like consistency.

 

Like this...

Form your Veggie Delights by making small size balls with your hands...

Bake for 30-35 minutes or until the inside is fully cooked.

Guiltless and delicious!

Feel free to drizzle a little honey over top!

Enjoy!

What do you do with your juice  pulp?

Fall Inspired Veggie Juice

You know fall is near when the trees start changing colors...

when your house starts looking and smelling like a pumpkin farm...

and when football is the only thing on your TV...Go EAGLES! Woohooo!

 Fall is by far my favorite season of the year.  I love watching how nature transforms to get ready for winter, love the weather, the fashion and of course the food!

I have definitely been inspired by the season with all of my meals lately; pumpkin this, sweet potato that.  The colors and the smell of these is what makes fall such an exciting season for us.

Since we are on our way to finding healthier versions of Fall, instead of baking you a pumpkin pie, I have decided to juice!  Nothing like a veggie breakfast with beautiful orange colors to get you in the fall mood.

I have been asked for juice recipes lately.  I love simple recipes that can be "amped-up" to use in other dishes.  I know that the whole concept of juicing is scary to some, just remember that you can juice anything.  The key is to stick to organic produce to get the benefits and the nutrients of whatever it is you are juicing without any toxins.

  Here's our favorite veggie juice:

In my juice:

20 organic carrots

6 organic purple carrots

4 broccoli stems

I used my Breville juicer and re-used Santa Cruz juice jars to store my juice.

 

Love purple carrots!

See, you don't need a pumpkin, a turkey nor a sweet potato to get a fall inspired meal. ;o) If you are not a fan of veggie juices; feel free to throw in your favorite organic fruits!

So...what do I do with this juice?  We drink it as is for a lunch or breakfast, we add it to smoothies, to substitute for chicken stock in soups and for making chai lattes!

Super simple recipe to help you on your juicing journey!

What is your favorite juice recipe?

Almost-Worless Day 15 & 16 of WF-NC Challenge Meals

Day 15

 

Out to a rice-less sushi dinner...

Matcha Tea

Day 16

Workout Schedule for this week:

Have a lovely Monday!

Hubby's Chicken Salad

This is such a simple but delicious salad.  Joseph was inspired by a salad he had at a restaurant while visiting Santa Monica, CA last week.  If you are like me, you're probably wanting the name of the restaurant/salad  but you know how it goes; men and important details, just don't mix/connect well. 

Here's what he used (serves 2):

2 poached chicken breast (left-over chicken) 

1 cup of baby spinach

1 cup of cilantro leaves (chopped)

juice of 1/2 a lime

4 cups of lettuce

1 large red pepper (diced)

1 large yellow pepper (diced)

1/4 of a large red onion (finely diced)

2 celery stalks (small diced)

1/2 cup of crushed nuts ;o)

Simple Dressing:

1/2 cup of balsamic vinegar

1/4 cup of EVOO

2 tbs of cilantro leaves

a pinch freshly ground black pepper

In a food processor add in the chicken breast, baby spinach, cilantro leaves and lime juice.  On a large bowl, assemble the rest of your diced veggies and lettuce. Add in the chicken mixture.  Mix your salad with the chicken well.  Pour in your dressing over salad and mix well.  Throw in the nuts over top.

Enjoy!

Super simple, but full of flavor! 

Thanks for a great dinner babe!

Day 14th of the WF-NC Challenge and more...

Hello!  I hope you are doing well.  I am super-duper excited because I finally received the rest of my DVD order in the mail yesterday!

 I have heard great things about these 2 series; can't wait to start!

Yesterday (day 14):   OK, I don't know if it was the fact that it was a Friday or what but, I was having crazy cravings for, chocolates, wine, olives, cheese and nuts.  In other words; I was in the mood for a wine tasting tour or these could simply be signs that my TOM is coming.  

Now, there's nothing wrong with any of those things (in moderation), but some of them aren't Whole Foods-No Crap Challenge approved.  Whenever I get the: "I want to eat the entire kitchen and drink all the wine in the world" cravings, I go through old photos.  This serves as a reminder of how far I have come and all the work that I have put in.  Besides, I'm 2 weeks into this challenge so... Why give up now?  

Upon my photo browsing I came across this photo which was taken June 2011 on a camping trip to Valdez.

If you want to see my current photo update click here.  The photos did the trick!

OK!  On to what I ate on day 14 of the Whole Foods-No Crap Challenge.  

As a reminder, (because I don't always mention it) I always start my morning with my daily detox.  I have been doing this detox every morning for a year now and will continue with it for as long as I live.  I have been adding an ounce of organic pineapple juice to spice it up a bit since I am not drinking any caffeine and also for an additional carb boost since I do the detox prior to my morning workout.

My Instagramed meals:

Now, if you follow me on Instagram or twitter @ahealthyfitrme, you have already seen some of these above.  I love using Instagram for meal sharing/accountability.  It's also easier since I eat at my desk at work.  You should follow me, I'll follow back!  I love to see what other people eat and such...

Dinner: I came home to a delicious salad made by my hubby...

It was delish!  I went  back for seconds!  Joe has been raving about this salad for a week now.  He had it at a bowling alley (odd) when he was in California last week, and has been wanting to recreate it at home.  Now, I understand why he was so thrilled about it! LOL!  Click here for recipe!

I will be back tomorrow with more meal sharing!  

Question: How do you deal with food cravings?

Day 10, 11, 12 & 13 Meals of the WF-NC Challenge

Hi! I hope everyone is having a great week.   I have been sticking to the workout routine I put together with no additional variations.  However, I was tempted to change it up a bit for tomorrow  because  I received 2 of the 4 DVDs I ordered online over the weekend.  

Here they are:

I have decided to stick to the schedule but, I plan to give one of these a try on Sunday.  Have you tried any of these DVDs?  Any thoughts?

 Really looking forward to trying them!

 I have been doing very good with the Whole Foods-No Crap Challenge.  I have not had any cravings for caffeine nor dairy so far.  My mind is super clear and focused and my skin seems to be doing great!  I feel full of energy but, I find to have been experiencing more cravings for nuts, almond butter and fruit lately. 

So basically I'm craving fats and carbs, a lot!  I don't hold my self back from it, though; If I feel like having an extra spoon of almond butter or an additional piece of fruit I will allow my self to have it.  Damn it!

BTW! I know I owe you an update on my adult acne situation.  I am having a hard time sharing the photos because it has been such a personal struggle for me. The photos are just too scary!!!  I need to do it though, and I will when I'm ready.  I promise!

Here is my meal summary for days 10, 11, 12 & 13 (wordless & self explanatory.)

;o)

 ...

 today ;o)

 Snack Time...

 and...

If you have any questions about my meals, please post them below!

Have a lovely night.

WIATW Challenge Edition, DVD Purchase & FCF

Ok, so I posted over Facebook that I was in the market for new workout DVDs, particularly strength/weight training ones.  I have an entire binder full of cardio based DVDs but not many weight training ones.  I find that I am better at creating delicious healthy meals than scheduling workouts!  Which brings me to this question: If you were given the chance to choose either a personal health chef or a personal trainer, which one would you choose?  I will hands down choose the trainer!

One thing I am getting better at though, is understanding what works for my body and what does not anymore.  If you missed the workout schedule I put together for last week click here.  I noticed that while I did get a pretty good workout I did not get that "workout kicked my butt" feeling the next day.  I need that in order to know that my muscles got a good workout, sounds "cray-cray" but I do!  

Thanks to some of your recommendations I bought 4 workout DVDs; 3 off of amazon and one off of Cathe's website.  The Cathe Total Body workout suggestion was recommended by Brad Casavan (a CPT.)  Michelle Moore the blogger behind Mind, Body, and Goal, recommended 2 workout series from Kelly Coffey-Meyer: Your Best Body & Split Sessions which I have purchased through amazon.  Also through amazon (based on buyers reviews) I purchased the Jari Love get ripped 1000 DVD!

A big thank you to everyone that had suggestions for me!  I now have a wish list with the other recommendations to keep in consideration for my next purchase.
Can't wait to give these DVDs the world!

In the meantime here's the workout schedule I put together for next week:

Just a variation of last week's workout schedule with a little more running involved!

Now, on to what I ate on days 7, 8 & 9th of the Whole Foods-No Crap Challenge.

...

and...

Had one too many of my Pumpkin Muffins today...too full for lunch!

Oooh! Also...

LARABARs are the best!  WF-NC Challenge approved...

Also, my Full Circle Farm Order for  next week!

I hope everyone had a great weekend!  TTYS!