Ready to eat better?

So, I know I've been slacking with my schedules and recipes and stuff....and believe me, my eating habits are proof. But no more!
I haven't actually taken the time to write up a schedule yet, but I have been looking thru my Beachbody cookbooks for some ideas for this week. Here are a few--so far. (all from the Beachbody Thin Kitchens Cookbook)

Tony Horton's Sticky Bar

Ingredients:
1/2 medium-sized banana
1/4 c. chunky peanut butter (organic and natural, without hydrogenated oils)
1 c. unsweetened granola

Mix and mash ingredients in bowl. Spoon onto a sheet of wax paper. Roll up contents into a hot-dog shape. Set in freezer for about 90 minutes. Cut in half. Eat frozen or throw into microwave for 10 seconds.

4 servings; serving size 1/2 of bar
Calories: 180
Total Fat: 11g
Saturated Fat: 1g
Carbs 17g
Fiber: 3g
Protein: 6g
*For more protein and a slightly different taste, you can substitute chunky natural almond butter for peanut butter.

***I have made this recipe MANY times. It is DELICIOUS! I just keep it in the freezer and eat it frozen. It doesn't get real hard...just cold and chewy. YUMM!!


Sweet and Sour Meatballs

Meatball ingredients:
1 lb. lean ground turkey
1 c. cooked brown rice
1 8-oz can crushed pineapple in juice, drained
1/2 c. green onions
1 Tbsp. light soy sauce
1 tsp. ginger

Sauce ingredients:
3/4 c. reduced-sodium low-fat chicken broth
1/3 c. chili sauce
3 Tbsp. rice vinegar
2 Tbsp. brown sugar
2 tsp. cornstarch
1/2 tsp. ground ginger

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350*. Combine meatball ingredients in medium bowl and mix thoroughly. Line a baking sheet with foil (this helps with cleanup). Place cooking racks in foil-lined baking sheet. Shape meatballs, and place on the racks. Bake for about 25 minutes or until thoroughly cooked. Transfer the meatballs to a serving dish and cover to keep warm.

Combine the sauce ingredients in a small saucepan and stir until cornstarch is dissolved. Place over medium heat and stir intermittently until mixture comes to a boil. Reduce heat to low, and stir for another minute or until mixture thickens slightly. Pour sauce over meatballs, and gently toss to coat meatballs. Serve warm. (makes 37 meatballs)

Serving size: 4 meatballs
Calories: 120 Total Fat: 4 g Carbs: 12g Protein: 8g

**Okay, I've never made this recipe because it calls for several ingredients I don't have (rice vinegar, chili sauce). Speaking of....does anyone even know what chili sauce is? I'm hoping I can find it at the grocery store later when I go! Anyway...another thing that is confusing to me...what are "cooking racks"?? Anybody know? I figured if I can't figure it out, I'll just put them on the foil lined cookie sheets...!?! Anyway, this'll be my first time making this, but it sounds good and healthy!!!


Apple and Butternut Squash Soup

Ingredients:
4 lbs. butternut squash
4 tsp. canola oil
1 red onion
5 medium Granny Smith apples, peeled and diced
1 cube vegetarian bouillon
1/2 tsp. grated fresh ginger
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
4 c. water
1 1/3 c. skim milk or soy milk
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground white pepper

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400*. With a sharp knife, cut the squash lengthwise in half. Scoop out and discard seeds and fibers. Place the squash halves cut-side-up in shallow baking dish, cover tightly with foil and bake until tender, 45-50 min. Set aside to cool.

In a large saucepan, heat oil over med-low heat. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden, 8-10 min. Add apples, bouillon cube, ginger, nutmeg and water. Mix well. Increase heat to high and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover saucepan and simmer until apples are tender, about 10 min. Remove from heat.

Scoop out squash from shells-you should have about 4 cups of flesh. In a blender, puree half of the squash with 1/2 c. milk until completely smooth. Transfer to medium bowl. Repeat with remaining squash and milk. Add to bowl.

Transfer half of the apple mixture to the blender and puree until smooth. Return to saucepan. Repeat with the remaining apple mixture and add it to the saucepan along with the squash puree. Mix well. Add a little milk if mixture seems too thick. Return the pureed soup to a simmer over low heat. Cook, stirring constantly, until flavors have blended and mixture is heated through, 5-10 minutes. Stir in salt and white pepper.

8 servings; serving size 13 oz.
Cal: 190
Total Fat: 3g
Carb: 42g
Fiber: 7g
Protein: 4g

**I haven't made this soup yet either..but will be trying it this week!

Do you like you?

So, how do you like yourself these days? Are you the kind of person you'd want to be friends with? Are you the kind of woman you hope your son will marry someday? Or the kind of man you hope your daughter finds to marry?
That's tough, huh?
I know it is for me.
While I love the person that God is shaping me into...I'm still a work in progress and I'm fairly certain that at times I get in the way of what He's trying to accomplish!
I just want to encourage you that while you're on this journey of getting fit and living healthy, be sure not to neglect the side of you that really counts--the inside! These bodies that we're working so hard on...they're gonna get buried in the ground one day...but our spirits will live on forever! I'll be hangin' out in heaven...and I sincerely hope you'll be my neighbor!
Challenge yourself to spend as much time "working out" your spirit as you do your body! Can you imagine if we did the spiritual version of P90X? WOO! Man!
C'mon-Bring It!

Are you on the "Jen Diet"???

The "Jen Diet" is defined as this: 4 steps forward, 3 steps back.

In other words...do you eat good (moving forward toward your goals) Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday only to slip up (backwards) on Friday, Saturday and Sunday?

Boy I sure do! It's like a wicked cycle I'm in and even though I'm sticking my big toe out and TRYING to stop the wheel from turning that same direction....I'm hardly slowing it down.

Go with me here:
I wake up Monday morning and I'm off to a great start with my veggie omlet and slice of fruit. Tuesday goes well, Wednesday is good, Thursday and I'm still hanging in there because I know what's right around the corner...the WEEKEND!!!
Friday morning I wake up and say T.G.I.F., Let's have PANCAKES with SYRUP for breakfast to celebrate!!! Noon rolls around and I think, "I've been good all week...I think I'll just have hotdogs and mac-n-cheese with the kids for lunch!" Dinner time arrives and of COURSE...I've cooked dinner all week...so "LET'S GO OUT!!!!", I say!
Saturday-repeat from Friday
Sunday-repeat from Friday
Sunday 9 pm..."Oh! My! Gosh! I feel like a rhino! I have GOT to stop eating like this!!!"

Hmmmm...and I wonder why I can't lose any weight!?!
Do the math...I move up, up, up, up and then go back, back back....4-3=1. So while I'm still moving somewhat toward my goal..I'm going at a riduclously slow pace.
I still have 15 pounds I want off by Memorial Day.....so what's a girl to do? I guess even Beachbody coaches/fitness instructors need a swift KICK in the BUTT sometimes!
...wonder if I can get my foot back there?

Valentines Day

So, I did a whole post about my Valentines Day on my other blog, which you are more than welcome to read....but....I've been waiting to post this because I bought this card for a good friend (KC) and I wanted to wait until she got it before I posted this on here. BUT...where she lives, the mail runs slooooooooow...and she STILL hasn't gotten it, so I said 'ta heck with it' and I'm putting this on here. I think this is the funniest card ever! The fact that it says my name on it is just priceless!!! Of Course...it's NOT true...I never leave unsatisfied.... :) but still it's funny as heck because if anything was gonna "do it for me" it'd be a box of chocolates! ha ha ha

Oh Wow...

So, those of you who are my Facebook friends might have already read this...but I had a FANTASTIC day yesterday. I woke up feeling AMAZING. Like weirdly good. Better than I have in a loooong time. I had the kind of energy I would have after several cups of strong coffee, but without any caffeine. I also felt chipper and cheerful and silly and was WAY WAY nicer and goofy with the kids than usual (man, I didn't realize what I a grouch I can be sometimes!). I also felt clear-minded....which is something I've been lacking lately. I was making decisions left and right without a bunch of confusion and concentration and I was able to move from task to task with excellence all day long. At 11 pm when I MADE MYSELF get into bed, I told Matt, "I feel like I could hop up and go run 5 miles right now!" (and that's after a looong, productive day). He was like "WHAT IN THE WORLD??" because as he KNOWS and probably many of you have heard me say...I love my sleep and I usually drop into bed dog-tired every night. I told him...the only thing I've done differently is this:

I drank my first Shakeology shake last night for dinner. Could this be it?

I don't know...but it IS what they claim this super-drink does for you!???!!! I'm certainly willing to try it again and see! You oughta give it a try too! If you choose the home-direct option...you don't even have to pay shipping AND you get some free workout DVD's along with it (and a cool shaker cup on your 2nd delivery!)

Just click here for more info!

So far, so good...

So I did P90X Legs & Back yesterday. Insanity Plyometric Circuit today. Had my first Shakeology shake this afternoon and it was quite good.
I feel strong and encouraged and off to a great start this week. Eating hasn't been perfect, but it is improving as the days go by. We had our lasagna last night along with chocolate chip cookies, but tonight it was grilled chicken over whole wheat linguine with broccoli soup-DELISH!
I have to tell those of you who are on the fence about ordering Insanity, I really feel so grateful that this program was made and that I own it! It is harder than heck..but when I finish, there is such a feeling of accomplishment and strength! When I got done today, I could hardly see for all the sweat pouring into my eyes but my body felt solid and ripped and tight and empowered! There just isn't anything quite like it. You need it!
As for the Shakeology, I wish I could give a more detailed review...but only having 1 sample, all I can really tell you is that it tastes AMAZING! It is like melted (cold) milk chocolate. Seriously. And if you don't know what all the shakes have in them, you should really go check it out. It is practically a miracle that they can get all that in one shake AND make it taste good!

So, I know that was short and sweet...but that's where I'm at right now. How about you? How are you doing?

life may now resume as previously scheduled...

Now that I've had a little break from the norm, I'm ready to get back onto my schedules and get serious!

#1-P90X and Insanity workouts start again today. This would be like starting week 3 or Day 15 if we were keeping "count", but we're not. Today's workout is Legs & Back and Ab Ripper which I plan to do this morning since I have homeroom mom duties in Grant's class today (Valentine Party) and have to be showered and cutsied up by 1:30 pm.

#2-Eating clean starts again....tomorrow! Ha! It would be today except that I bought all the ingredients to make lasagna and had planned to make it last night...but we ended up eating Superbowl snack foods and didn't want a big dinner...so I'm making it tonight. It is most definitely NOT on the "diet" ..so this will be our last hoo-rah before it's back to lean and green!

#3-Demi sent me a sample packet of chocolate Shakeology and I can NOT WAIT to try it!! I am waiting, however, because I want my hubby to get to taste it too, which means I have to drink it in the evening. I figure I'll have it for "dinner" tomorrow night since Tuesday's are a busy night for me anyway. I will DEFINITELY let you guys know what I think about it! If it lives up to all the hype I've been hearing about reducing appetite and increasing energy (among many other awesome things), then I will be SOLD!

#4-I didn't make any real new years resolutions this year...but I am thinking it would be beneficial to sit down and write out some goals for myself. Without something to hope for...or look forward to, I just kind of wander aimlessly with no destination in clear view. Not only do I want to achieve some very speficial physical goals in the coming months...but even more importantly, I want to see some changes on the inside of me. I want to seek God more than ever before. No more reading books--just the Word, the whole Word and nothin' but the Word! Not that there is ANYTHING wrong with books..I love them...especially Andrew Wommack, Joyce Meyer, Joel Osteen, Mark Gorman...etc. BUT...I think I've gotten so wrapped up in all these different peoples revelations and ideas that I've got myself thinking there is some kind of equation that I'm missing in order to have the abundant life Jesus came to give us. Just like being physically healthy is simple: You have to exercise and eat right; To be spiritually healthy you really only need 2 things two: The Bible and prayer.
Time for me to get back to the basics!

So there you have it peeps! That's what's floating around in my mind this morning. I hope you are all doing well and pushing play?! Leave me a comment or send me an e-mail if you need some encouragement or a kick in the tush. I'm here as your coach to give ya whatcha need!

Ps. I'm trying to decide if I should keep posting the meal plans. If you care to see them/use them/read them...let me know!

mini hiatus

So, I'm taking a mini hiatus from everything. No eating plan, no workout regimen, no schedules. This wasn't thought out--as a matter of fact--it was a very impulsive decision I made yesterday--but now that I'm finished teaching classes at the gym and am also not attending my normal classes at the gym for a little while, I think a little break is in order. I've been having a bit of that "burn-out" feeling lately and I know that all it'll take is a few days off before I MISS IT ALL like CRAZY!
Not to say that I'm not still working out and eating healthy descent. I am...I'm just not going by a set schedule every single minute. On Monday night, my mom was so sweet to watch the kids for me while I went to the gym and did an hour of Zumba and then kickboxing. It felt GREAT and I burned 886 calories according to my HRM. YAY!

Anyway, if you're one of my faithful followers who has been using the eating plans I have been posting and feel "lost" this week...just go back and use the first one I posted again. It's been a few weeks so you should be ready for those dishes again! :o)

So...last but not least, here is a pic I snapped of Matt the other day during P90X Shoulders & Arms. He looked amazing and he never seems to see what I see---so I decided the proof would be in the pix....and it IS! This program works. Period!

If I get a chance to do some "fun" blogging over the next week, I will...but if not, I'll see ya'll all back here on Sunday night for next weeks meal plan!

P9OXOXO!~Jen