Food Prep Day!

~ chanada21 ~ Leave a comment

Okay, so I am going to get on the wagon and try this food prep thing! And I apparently have already failed one of the cardinal rules, I am shopping on the same day as I am prepping!  I read a few times this morning on various blogs and websites to not shop on the same day as you food prep, or it just makes for too long of a day.  Oh well, I reckon I will be fine since I am running on excitement here!

So I started with the Team Beachbody website where I was able to get a weekly list of recipes for each meal and snack.  From there, I was able to pull up the grocery list and x out the items we already had or what we do not like.

The only thing about getting the recipes and grocery list from Team Beach Body, they are only giving the amounts of 1 person.  So I had to problem solve a little and figure out what extra we may need for entire dishes.  I still think I need a few more peppers, but I will work around what I have because I still have tons of food!

food prep

Thankfully I had a great helper (as seen above) that is also thrilled to have some more healthy choices in the house.  And my poor sick girl kept coming to get more strawberries and celery as we were cutting them!  I am already seeing the kids enjoying these foods just as much as some junk we have, something I have been wanting.  So we are on the right track!

Hopefully in a couple of weeks I will have some good tips from what I am learning about food prepping for the week to share here.  Do you already have some tips for food prepping that will be helpful to us as we start new these new, healthy habits?  Please share!

How do you get motivated?

~ chanada21 ~ Leave a comment

It is warming up and I am always motivated to get into shape when weather starts looking so great! I need to get into a routine and stick with it even during the winter months though, that is always where I falter!  When school is busy and it is cold out, I let all those excuses get in my way. It is now warm and I do not have the cold excuse any more, so time to start getting my new routine in!

Getting motivated to get off my bottom and do something about this pot belly of mine is a constant struggle. Here are some things that have motivated me in the past (and/or present) to get moving or to eat healthier!

  • The hubby and kiddos. The hubby is much better about getting down and playing with the kids and I am better about keeping schedules and getting everyone where they need to be. But they are still great motivation for me to go out and enjoy life!

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  • New puppy!  We have a new shepherd mix puppy that has lots of energy. Getting the puppy outside and running has been imperative to keep him from totally wreaking havoc in the house.

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  • Weight Watchers.  Something about paying money to lose weight makes me stick to it.  I lost all my baby weight after having my girl using Weight Watchers online. I stuck with this program for almost a year, and did okay for awhile afterwards with making it a lifestyle change to watch my portion sizes.
  • T25, 21 Day Fix, P90X3, and other similar programs. It is not a secret that I prefer to work out at home than go to the gym and so I love Beach Body programs for that reason. There are some really great programs there (and some I do not like as much), but they are great for getting me moving and they usually come with a meal plan to help jump start healthy eating with some new recipes when I have taken the junk food too far. In fact, I am looking at another program I am interested in starting as the school year wraps up and I will have a little extra time to focus on food and exercise.
  • Community Supported Agriculture. I am so excited to be part of a CSA this year!  A colleague mentioned a great program to get fresh veggies every week for the family through a CSA and it starts the first week of May. I cannot wait to try out new vegetables and recipes as well as some of my favorite local veggies. This is going to force the whole family out of our comfort zone when it comes to food and I cannot be happier to try it out!

And of course, looking and feeling great is a pretty awesome side effect to eating healthier and working out! Have you started a new routine since the warmth is now more prevalent? What motivates you, even when life gets hectic?

Another Goal Met

~ chanada21 ~ Leave a comment

Goal setting has been very important to me when it comes to my girl.  In the past, she has been very passive about setting up goals, partly because she is afraid to fail or not live up to big brother’s accomplishments.  It has been challenging as a mom to see her not want to try because she is used to my boy stepping up to challenges and knocking them out of the park.

This past year, it seems we have reached a turning point and I could not be happier! Cara signed up for gymnastics in February 2015 after a 2-3 year hiatus. She quickly moved up from Division 1 to Division 2 by summer. We are still in Division 2 and had been waiting on 2 big goals to move up, kicking over the bar and tabletop kick over. For an early birthday present, she received a bar and just a couple of weeks ago, she got over on her own!!

My girl at the gym.
My girl at home with her new bar.

She finally kicked one of her goals out of the park, now we are on to that tabletop kick over. It is exciting for me to see her get excited about gymnastics again as we were starting to get into a lull.

I know she is also more motivated at home when I get in the floor with her to stretch and do core exercises. Right now, that girl can kick my butt when it comes to core exercises!  But she is motivating me to do more as well. Do your kids motivate you to be more active? What do you do together to stay active?

5:00 am

~ chanada21 ~ Leave a comment

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I am going to do it!!  I have tried and failed many times, but I am determined!  And putting it on the blog makes it real, right?

I am going to set my clock for 5:00 am, get my booty out of bed and work out to T25.  I know this routine will give me more energy, especially with these cold, dreary months that are ahead of me.  I have known this for years, but somehow end up stopping out of laziness and thus, starting my usual spiral of events to start back up until I am ready to get on the healthy bandwagon again.

I know I am not the only one that keeps falling victim to the endless cycle of healthy vs. unhealthy times.  How can I make it different this time?  I am hoping this blog will help hold me accountable.  My kids are going to motivate me as well.  I feel like I was such a bear with the amount of stress I felt these last few months, I do not want to go back to that!

Even with knowing the benefits of exercise and how I feel when working out regularly compared to not working out, I tend to keep it up for 4-6 weeks, then fall short again.  I want to stick to it this time, I want to feel great, I want to look great as well.  I hope the motivation sticks this time!

If I keep it up, I plan on buying a new exercise program and starting up Shakeology again, but I need to prove that I am going to stick to it first.

What are some things you do that motivate you to keep working out, even if you do not want to?

Happy New Year!

~ chanada21 ~ Leave a comment

I am determined to make working out a hobby.  Otherwise, it feels like something I just do not want to do!  I need to start thinking more positively for not only myself, but for my kiddos as well.  So these are my goals for 2016.  The kids are looking at me for the lead, and so I must lead and focus on our health. It can be hard when I am working so much and taking a class towards my Master’s degree this coming semester.  But I have to stop making excuses and do it anyways.  I need something to think about that is not just about work and school.  I need to be a role model for my children.  Did I mention I have to stop making excuses?

And on that note… Happy New Year to you and your family!!  Have you set a goal yet?  How are you going to hold yourself accountable?