Motivational Monday: change or remain the same ~ it's all up to you!

As Albert Einstein put it, insanity is doing the same thing over & over again and expecting different results. If you want to see a change you need to be that change.

I truly enjoy working out so it's not really something I struggle to stick with. Eating clean on the other hand had always been my downfall and put a limit on my results. I would devote my time and give it my all when it came exercising but I just wasn't willing to focus on nutritional changes. For many years that was OK with me, but I always knew I could be better. I can't tell you exactly what made me want to really clean up my eating recently, I just knew I was ready for that change.

I am far from perfect, I strive to be consistent, but I still enjoy "unclean" foods and a beer or glass (or 2) of wine now and then. I wouldn't want to be perfect because 1) you still need to live & enjoy the treats in life AND 2) if I were perfect there would be no room for progress.

If you truly want a change you need to be ready and willing to make that change and work hard for it. Maybe you're not ready right now, and if that's honestly true it's okay, but you need to be the one to decide that for yourself. It took me many years to finally make the change that I knew I should have long ago. In hindsight I wish I would have done it sooner, but in reality, until I was ready I probably wouldn't have been successful.

I'm not trying to be better than anyone else and I'm not here to tell you that you need to change. It's all up to you, be willing to make the change or willing to remain the same. Either way I support you.

I'm excited to see how my nutritional changes impact my marathon this weekend. I have really been focusing on clean eating throughout this training cycle and it has had a big impact on my performance and recovery. Once my marathon is over, after a recovery week, I'm making some big changes to my fitness training as well. I can't wait to see where all these changes take me!

Slow Cooker Balsamic Chicken

I absolutely love slow cooker recipes, especially ones as simple as this. It literally takes just minutes to put together, then cooks itself, so it's basically ready to serve when you get home. When I get home from a long day at work I usually have dozens of other things I want to accomplish. Using up my limited time to cook dinner is the last thing I want to do!

Slow Cooker Balsamic Chicken

It only takes a few minutes to throw this together before heading out the door in the morning

Cover chicken with onions & seasoning

Add tomatoes & balsamic vinegar

chicken will shred a bit as you stir it

Slow Cooker Balsamic Chicken Recipe

Ingredients: 
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast tenders
Salt & Pepper
1/2 T Organic Olive Oil
Medium Onion, sliced (to save time, I used frozen chopped onion)
1/2 T Organic Italian Seasoning
1 t Organic Garlic Powder
14.5 oz. Can Organic Diced Tomatoes
1/4 C Organic Balsamic Vinegar

Directions:

1. Coat bottom of your crock with olive oil
2. Place chicken over olive oil, in a single layer and add salt & pepper
3. Top chicken with onions, then add seasoning, tomatoes and balsamic vinegar
4. Cook at low until chicken is fully cooked (6-8 hours)
5. Stir before serving

We ate this last night over cooked quinoa but it would also be good over brown rice or a pasta. Bonus, we had leftovers and it tasted even better for lunch today.

Taco Tuesday ~ Slow Cooker Carnitas

Clean eating doesn't mean you can't eat anything delicious. This is one of our favorite recipes and it's really simple to make. You can serve it as tacos on clean corn tortillas or over lettuce as a taco salad. My personal favorite is a copycat of Chipotle's Carnitas Burrito Bowl over cilantro lime brown rice & black beans.

Ingredients:

1 t salt
1 t garlic powder                                                                    
1 t ground cumin
1/2 t dried oregano
1/2 t ground coriander
1/4 t ground cinnamon
1 (4 pound) boneless extra lean pork roast
2 bay leaves
2 C low sodium chicken broth

Directions:

1. Mix spices together in a small dish
2. Coat all sides of pork roast with spice mix
3. Place bay leaves inside the bottom of  your slow cooker & place the pork roast on top
4. Pour chicken broth around sides of the pork, be careful not to rinse off the spices
5. Cover & cook on low for about 10 hours, turning once during cooking
6. Once pork is cooked tender, remove from slow cooker and shred with 2 forks
7. Return shredded pork to remaining liquid in slow cooker and set to "keep warm" until ready to serve

Sometimes The Truth is Hard!

I debated about posting this or not, but I have nothing to hide. Sometimes the truth is hard, here's mine...

I'm petite, measuring just slightly over 5'1". Many people assume I'm just naturally small and I don't have to work hard to stay in shape. This couldn't be further from the truth! I've struggled with my weight on and off since 2nd grade. I remember my grandma, rest her soul, poking at me and calling me chubby when I was a preteen. No wonder I've had issues!

When I was 20 I flew down to Dallas, TX for a flight attendant interview. The airline covered my flight but I had to pay to stay overnight in a hotel the night before the interview. I was so excited because for as long as I could remember I had dreamed of becoming a flight attendant. I put on my best navy blue suit and walked into the session full of confidence. The airline had a height/weight restriction for flight attendants which I was slightly nervous about. I wasn't "fat" by any means but I was a little bulky for my height. Also at that time I was really into weight lifting so I had a fair amount of muscle mass, under a slight layer of fat. I knew I would be close, but I wasn't certain they would weigh us. I starved myself for a couple days before just in case.

The very first thing they made us do was weigh-in.  I stepped on the scale, weighed a few pounds over their limit for my height and was immediately sent away. I was crushed and had tears in my eyes the entire flight home. After this devastating and embarrassing experience I was on a mission to lose weight. I worked out like crazy and basically ate "low fat" or "fat free" everything. I lost weight, but I was filling my body with processed crap so I wasn't exactly healthy.

I did end up getting hired as a flight attendant about a year later with an airline that did not have weight restrictions. It was an amazing experience for a couple years but didn't turn out to be my dream job. While flying I studied to follow another passion, and later became a certified personal trainer.

Fast forward about 10 years, I'm in a completely different career, I still enjoy working out, my weight has fluctuated slightly over the years but I always tried to stay in shape. I watched what I ate for the most part, but I was far from eating "clean". Then I really got into running. As I started running more miles I dropped some weight. In the first couple years I used running as a free pass to eat whatever I wanted and still maintained my weight. It wasn't until training for my 2nd marathon when I finally focused on nutrients rather then just replacing all the calories I was burning. Instead of eating pizza and ice cream after burning 1800 calories on a 20 mile run, I ate more healthy food. It was amazing, I felt better, I recovered much faster and my running improved overall. As my clean eating has evolved, things have continued to improve. By the way I don't eat clean just to maintain my weight, I also don't want to fill my body with artificial junk and potentially harmful chemicals.

I get comments from acquaintances all the time (not to be mean, but many who could stand to lose a few pounds) complaining about how it's not fair that I'm so small. This drives me insane because what they don't realize is I have struggled and this doesn't exactly come easy to me. So please don't judge or hate me (or anyone else) for being "skinny". I work my ass off to be fit. It's a choice I make Every.Single. Day! A choice that others could make for themselves too, if that is what they really wanted.

I'm training for my 4th marathon, which equates to running 25-40+ miles per week over the past 2 years. I'm burning an extra 2000-3200 calories a week so of course my weight is down a little right now. I don't count calories, I eat when I'm hungry, which is every couple hours lately! I eat real food and lots of it. Being "skinny" is not my goal. Once I'm not running so many miles I expect to gain back a few pounds but I will still be fit & healthy because of the choices I make.

I'm sharing my story because I want you to know that losing and maintaining weight takes hard work and dedication. There are no shortcuts, you'll have good days and bad days, it won't be easy, but if you decide it's worth it, it will be. Don't ever give up on yourself!

Having the proper information, tools and support can make it easier and hopefully more enjoyable, it's my goal to help provide that. I'm not here to judge you, I want to help give you the encouragement you need to help you reach your goals. I'm human just like you. I don't always eat perfect and sometimes I miss workouts. This is a journey of progress, not perfection. I may not have a mind blowing weight-loss success story, but I've had my battles and I will keep fighting the fight.

Motivational Monday

I confess, I ate a bunch of junk on Saturday evening and had a few glasses of wine. I ran 20 miles that morning, but that's no excuse, I should have been properly refueling my body not filling it with crap! I did however make sure to drink lots of water while I was indulging to stay hydrated and help flush out the toxins. Instead of dwelling on it and giving in, Sunday I got right back on track.

Maybe you over indulged over the weekend too. I know, sometimes it's hard to have a social life and stay clean on the weekends. But that doesn't mean you can't start clean today.

If you're committed to getting healthy but are overwhelmed and don't know where to begin, why not start one small change every Monday? Maybe you give up soda and drink more water, pack your own healthy lunch instead of eating out, take the stairs instead of the elevator or park at the back of the parking lot and walk a little  more. You'll have a much better chance at success if you take baby steps to change instead of trying to do it all at once.

Monday's always seem to get a bad rap, let's change that and make them awesome!

"Clean" Cleaning

Not only am I into eating clean, I am also a fan of "clean" cleaning. Why would I want to use products that are full of harmful chemicals and toxins that pose a risk not only to my family & pets, but also the environment? Since washing your hands is something you do many times a day, I'll share my ideas on hand soap.

I have never been a fan of anti-bacterial soap products. The overuse of antibiotics can lead to antibiotic resistant strains of bacteria and antibacterial soaps basically act like an antibiotic, killing bacteria. Antibacterial products will kill most bacteria, but they do not kill viruses which cause colds & the flu. There is also no evidence that proves washing your hands with plain soap and water is any less effective at killing germs than using antibacterial products. Antibacterial soaps also contain triclosan, a chemical that the FDA has been reviewing and the state of MN recently passed a bill to ban from products.

If you would like a safer alternative for hand soap, it's very simple to make your own with just a few ingredients.

DIY FOAMING HAND SOAP

In a empty foaming hand soap dispenser combine 2 T. Pure Castile Soap (I use Dr. Bonner's Magic Soap) and water. Optional: add 4 drops of your favorite Essential Oil for scent and a few drops of Vitamin E Oil for added moisturizing. Make sure not to fill the bottle too full so it doesn't overflow when you put the top on. Once the top is on, shake to combine and your soap is ready to use. 

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100 Happy Days

Yesterday I completed the 100 Happy Days Challenge on Instagram. Today a friend of mine sent me a message that I had inspired her and she was thinking about starting the challenge ~ I thought that was really cool and I hope she does it and succeeds too! 

As the website says, 71% of people who start the challenge never complete it. The main excuse is lack of time. As I've mentioned before, I hate excuses, plus when I say I'm going to do something I do it. Quitting is not an option I allow for myself, so once I started this challenge I was committed.  I admit, some days it was hard to find something to post, but I was always able to find at least one thing each day that made me happy if I just slowed down for a minute to think about it. Between working full time, training for a marathon, exercising my 3 dogs, planning & cooking clean meals and my volunteer work, I often feel like there is not enough time and tend to get overwhelmed, but at the end of the day I would rather be completely exhausted than bored! I dare you to take the challenge and make the time for some happy each day. I'm glad that I did and although my 100 days are complete I plan to continue to seek the good in each day.

You may not ever know it, but maybe you will inspire someone too. As it turns out, it was that message from my friend that inspired me to share this post.

Baked Caprese Quinoa

I am slightly obsessed with tomatoes, basil & fresh mozzarella, it's my favorite summer food combination. I still have an ample supply of tomatoes in my garden but with summer coming to an end, soon they will be gone, so I put together another Caprese recipe while I still had the chance. This one is perfect for the cooler weather, yet still has the taste of summer. I hope you enjoy!

this recipe uses some of my favorite ingredients

 I like to cook my quinoa in chicken broth and this time I added a little Italian Seasoning to the mix. While the quinoa is cooking, roast your halved cherry tomatoes in the oven.

While the quinoa and cherry tomatoes are cooking, slice up some fresh mozzarella and roma tomatoes. This recipe was only tested with fresh mozzarella which I highly recommend.

sliced tomatoes & fresh mozzarella

Once the quinoa and cherry tomatoes are done combine them in a shallow baking dish and stir in the Parmesan and spices.

mix in a little Parmesan, garlic powder & basil 

Smooth down the top and layer the tomatoes & mozzarella, overlapping each other.

layer the cheese & tomatoes

While the dish was baking I made some balsamic reduction by simply slowly boiling down some balsamic vinegar in a small saucepan until it turned thick & was reduced in half.

topped with fresh basil leaves & drizzled with a little balsamic reduction

Once finished baking, top with some fresh basil leaves and optional balsamic reduction.

Baked Caprese Quinoa Recipe

Ingredients:

1 C uncooked quinoa
2 C water or chicken broth
1 t Italian Seasoning
15 - 20 Cherry Tomatoes, halved
1/2 T Olive Oil
Fresh Salt & Pepper
2 - 3 Roma tomatoes, sliced
Fresh Mozzarella Cheese, sliced
1/2 C shredded Parmesan Cheese
1 t Garlic Powder
1 t Dried Basil
Fresh Basil Leaves for topping
Optional Balsamic Reduction

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Combine quinoa and broth or water and cook according to package directions.
• Drizzle halved cherry tomatoes with 1/2 T olive oil and salt/pepper, roast at 400 for 10-15 minutes.
• Transfer cooked quinoa to and roasted cherry tomatoes to baking dish and stir in Parmesan, garlic powder & basil. Pat down to smooth out the top.
• Layer sliced roma tomatoes and mozzarella, slightly overlapping each other on top of the quinoa mixture.
• Cover with foil and bake 10 minutes.
• Remove foil and bake another 15-20 minutes or until cheese is bubbly and slightly browned.
• Top with fresh basil leaves and optional balsamic reduction drizzle before serving.

Marathon Training

My current marathon training schedule

This is what has been consuming much of my time over the past 13 weeks 2 years! I am training for my 4th marathon in 2 years so I haven't really had a break from training since November of 2012. It's about this point in my training, more specifically during my 22 mile training run, that I tell myself I'm not going to do this again...but I know that's a lie! The truth is, sometimes it sucks and it's a lot of work, but I really do love it.

I know running is not for everyone, believe it or not I actually hated running when I was younger, but I can't imagine not having this passion now. It certainly isn't my purpose in life, I'm still trying to figure that out, but it has changed me.

My whole point of this post is that I wish for everyone to have something they are really passionate about. It doesn't have to be running or even fitness related, just something that you enjoy doing enough to put some real effort and hard work into.

Most people would think that running is the only thing I'm passionate about, but it's not. I  have many other interests and passions, running just happens to be one that I put a lot of effort into and like to talk about, a lot!