SexyBack Challenge - Week 2

I’ve had a strange week and haven’t been as dedicated to the sexyback challenge as I should or could be. Shame on me. Besides Friday night, at the Relay For Life, I haven’t pushed myself to get any physical activity in. I need to MAKE time in my days because otherwise it’s not going to happen. My goal next week is at least 4 days of 30-45 minutes of physical activity. I’ve been in somewhat of a haze and I think that physical activity will definitely help to clear my head.

What do you do to keep your workout and fitness motivation?

Besides basically failing on that part of the sexyback challenge, I did much better on food this week. I’m not consistently drinking 3 miir bottles a day, but I’m drinking much more than in the past. I still want to step it up to hit at least 3 a day.

I’ve been eating more vegetables, including salads which lettuce from the garden! Some of my favorite meals this week includes: chickpea tacos, fajita bowls [aka peppers, onions, pinto beans & quinoa], black bean & veggie burgers, zucchini quinoa lasagna, broccoli quinoa casserole, steamed broccoli, tex-mex veggie salad [see picture], and homemade strawberry rhubarb smoothies.

I've included the recipe for this because it's one of my favorites! It's super easy and makes enough for lunches, snacks or dinners for a week. See variations at the bottom of the recipe!

Tex-Mex Veggie Salad
1 can (14 oz) black beans, drained & rinsed
2 tomatoes chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
1 can Mexicorn
1 bunch green onions, sliced
1 jicama, peeled and chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, minced

Dressing
1 1/2 tsp Garlic Galore (Wildtree Herbs)
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup lime juice
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 cup Roasted Garlic Grapeseed Oil (Wildtree Herbs)

Place salad ingredients in a large bowl. Whisk together dressing ingredients in a small bowl. Pour dressing over salad and toss to coat. Chill overnight.

Variations:
Add chicken (if you're a meat-eater) with Chipotle Lime Rub and Roasted Garlic Grapeseed Oil (Wildtree Herbs)
Add to cooked, chilled quinoa for a heartier salad

SexyBack Challenge - Week 1

I was excited when I saw these posts [ONE. TWO.] by Carlos Whittaker last week. I finally got the chance to watch this video on Sunday.

I think this SexyBack challenge is perfect for me. I’ve been slacking on my fitness and don’t remember the last time I worked out. My eating habits aren’t horrible, but there’s definitely room for improvement.

Every Thursday during this challenge [12 weeks] I’ll be posting my weekly update and how I’ve done on my goals. Most of them are general because I don’t need to lose a lot of weight or anything. I really just want to focus on eating healthier and making better choices. I also want to get back into a great workout routine and get toned [where are you abs?].

Here’s a list of my goals for SexyBack:
- 45 minutes minimum of physical activity or exercise 5-7 days of the week
- Utilize workout dvds (30 Day Shred, 6 Week six-pack, BL Cardio)
- Nightly walks/runs
- Use RunKeeper app
- MORE water (3+ miir bottles/day)
- Eat healthier
- MORE veggies, utilize the garden
- Less processed food and more fresh food
- Homemade meals
- Less pop and coffee, green monsters, fresh fruit smoothies or tea instead
- Use MyFitness app & website to track calories & exercise

In addition to my update I’ll include a photo each week that's related to my #sexyback11 journey.

Here’s my picture for the week.

My recap for this week is pretty general, but it might get more specific in the weeks to come. Since I started on Sunday I've done the 30 day shred twice and gone on two 1.5 mile walks. I've made better choices as far as food goes. I'm definitely eating more fruits and veggies and snacking less. I've done really great on drinking more water, especially with working out more & it's been getting hotter here too. I'm struggling with drinking pop and I'm slowly working on cutting it out.

I'll be picking up Jillian Michaels' 6 week six-pack levels 1& 2 workouts from the library tomorrow and will hopefully be doing [almost] everyday for the two weeks I have it checked out. Tomorrow night I'll be participating in the Relay for Life and will definitely be getting some walking in. It's not too late if you want to join the challenge. I'd love if you'd join me, whether you're looking to lose weight or get back on track. You can search #sexyback11 on twitter to see what other people in the challenge are doing.

Tasty Tuesday

I don't think I ever thought I'd be saying this, BUT I think I'm going vegan, well, at least vegetarian. AND IT'S ALL JENNY'S FAULT!!

Okay, not really, but kind of. Let me tell you why.

I posted back in September that I found a lump. I ended up cancelling my consultation with the specialist because I needed time to wrap my mind around what was happening and look into other options. Because I'm under 30, uninsured and the level of risk (or whatever) of the lump was considered low, I'm not eligible for any kind of assistance from anywhere.

In my searching I found some alternative treatments for fibroadenoma which include changing my diet, i.e. more fiber, less caffeine, etc. I was talking to Jenny and she recommended that I read The Kind Diet by Alicia Silverstone just to get ideas and figure out where to start. I just started reading it last week (thank you library, but I think I need my own copy). I don't have much spare time so it's taking me a while. But what I've read so far, I really like. It just makes sense. Read it for yourself and make up your own mind. Check out the website: The Kind Life.

I'm trying to make this lifestyle/diet change while living at home and I think it's going to be harder because of it. I won't be successful if I don't have my family's support. It'd be one thing if I would or could volunteer to cook dinner every night, but my schedule doesn't afford the luxury.

Are you a vegetarian or vegan? Please share any thoughts, recommendations or tips for me personally or to help get the family on board! I need all the help I can get. Thanks in advance!

Tasty Tuesday: Current Fav Snack

I'm all about super fast and delicious snacks. Everyone loves chips and salsa, right? This is a fun twist on chips and salsa. Wildtree Herbs has an amazing Roasted Tomatillo Sauce that I eat with these yummy multigrain chips the parents found at Costco. You can use the sauce for other things like enchiladas, burritos, etc., but I love it straight up.

You may have seen Heather's post last week that she became a Wildtree Rep! This Thursday and Saturday she's having tastings to launch her business. Check out her website HERE to learn more about Wildtree and see some of their delicious and natural products!!

Spice Up Your Life

Last night my mom hosted a Wildtree Herbs tasting party at our house. We heard of Wildtree from a woman who attends the networking meeting that my mom and I go to once a month. Wildtress products are natural, with no additives, preservatices, MSG or food dyes. They sell gourmet culinary blends, infused Grapeseed oils, dressings and sauces. With Wildtree, cooking is not only healthy and easy, but also delicious! At the tasting we sampled some of the following things:

Grapeseed Oil, which is made from grape seeds after wine production. It has no preservatives, sodium, trans fatty acids or cholesterol. It has the lowest levels of saturated fats of all oils. It is also ideal for frying at high temperatures without burning. We sampled the basil pesto, butter flavored, hickory smoke, zesty lemon and roasted garlic. They were all fabulous and incredibly flavorful!

Garlic Galore Seasoning Blend, we dipped veggies in this yummy stuff. This blend can be used for a dip, like we had, or for garlic bread, pasta, sauces and almost anything else you can think of.

Bayou Blend, we sprinkled this blend over chicken and then grilled it. It can be used on seafood, shellfish, tuna salad, pasta salad, French fries or even popcorn.

Rancher Steak Rub, which was sprinkled on mini burgers. This was insanely good! It added so much flavor to the little burgers. Heather and I took the leftovers for lunch at work today and just ate the burger cold and without a bun. Amazing!

Very Berry Cheesecake Blend, was one of my favorites! You can mix this blend with yogurt and serve it as a fruit dip. Amy mixed it with a cream cheese and whipping cream for our tasting. I loved spreading it on a graham cracker and topping it with blueberries and a strawberry. It wasn't too sweet, but super light and refreshing.

I recommend checking out Wildtree Herbs, finding a rep and hosting a tasting. Amy shared for a little while, but mostly we chatted and ate all the delicious food. The Wildtree website has a recipe section to give you ideas of many different ways to use their products. I've been in such a food rut lately and I can't wait for my mom to get her order so I can spice things up.