May 30-Day Body Rock Challenge & Peanut Butter Banana Protein Smoothie

Well I am definitely off to a good start in my exercise routine.  Yesterday, Jess and I even took the kids out for a walk in my fake Burley and went for about 2 and a half miles.  But I have taken more breaks than I intended on in the past month.  So I found a workout that will keep me in check for 30 full days!  It's called the May 30 Day BodyRock Challenge.  I am a bit behind in the schedule, but I am going to start day 1 today and end 30 days from now.  You can find the workout HERE.  They have 6 different videos for day 1 for all levels, so even if this is your first time exercising at all, you'll still be comfortable doing it.  I decided to go for the easy level since the last workout I did with them totally kicked my ass!  If you want to read about it, check out my very first blog.  What I really like about this 30 day challenge is that they are incorporating some yoga into the mix.

For today, I started with some cross training.  Basically you use an interval timer (which I need to get) and do four exercises: squats, push-ups, tricep dips, and crunches.  You set your timer for 50 seconds and do as many as you can during that time, take a 10 second break, and move on to the next exercise.  Then you do it two more times.  Here's the video so you can see what I'm talking about:

Now since I don't have an interval timer, (it's one where you can set it to beep at 50 seconds and then again at 10 and then repeat - or however long you want to set it for) I decided to just make it a standard set of repetitions.  So I did 30 squats, did 20 half pushups (yes from my knees), did 20 tricep dips from the side of a soft bench, and followed it with 30 crunches with a few seconds of rest between each thing.  And then I did it again, and then did it one last time for a total of three sets.  Talon even tried to join in with me on my new yoga mat.  He was very excited that I had pulled it out of the packaging, but not so happy when I went to put it away! ha ha  Apparently 3 year olds don't know how to do crunches, but they can pull of a super squat with no problem!!!   He even changed the squat to where we were putting our hands up over our heads instead of down by our sides.

So after I finished up with that, I did their "Flow Challenge" which is a few basic moves in yoga, and the stretching after that workout felt awesome!

Now I must say, that this lady is super flexy!  I used to be that flexible, but not anymore.  I'm certainly still pretty pliable, but not enough to do that camel pose she did towards the end, or the one she did right at the beginning.  Don't worry, neither of those poses are included for you to do with the video.

After finishing it up, I decided it was time for a protein smoothie.  I know I probably should have done it before the workout, but I had no appetite that early in the morning so I worked one up while exercising.  So I made a Peanut Butter Banana smoothie with 2 super-ripe bananas, 2 spoonfuls of peanut butter, a spoonful of honey, and a about 2 cups of almond milk. (post to follow about my almond milk and hazelnut milk experiments which turned out awesome - much better than store bought and worth the extra work!).  It was a yummy experiment, but next time I'll use one spoonful of peanut butter instead of two.  All in all.... a wonderful way to start my day!

Pineapple Coconut Smoothie

Last week I bought a really big pineapple and cut it up into chunks and tossed it into a container to eat as I wanted it.

Pineapples are one of my favorite sweet treats, and as it turns out... they're healthy too!  Some of the amazing ingredients they contain:

• Bromelain (A powerful enzyme that helps break down our foods and clean blood by removing toxins and debris from the bloodstream.  It also contains anti-inflammatories that benefit our internal organs.)
• Manganese (A vitamin that our body can't produce on its own which is responsible for bone formation, healing wounds, and keeping skin healthy. It regulates blood sugar levels, and helps the immune system fight off diseases.   
• Vitamin C ( a water soluble vitamin that  helps in the formation of collagen, collagen is a protein that grows new skin and blood vessels.)
• Vitamin B1 ( a vitamin that is partly responsible for the development of energy in the body, turning carbohydrates into the daily energy we need. Vitamin B1 is important for the nervous system and muscle functions. Vitamin B1 also goes by the name 'thiamine')   

So as I said before, I bought the biggest pineapple in the store last week, so I needed to use it up or let it go into the compost within a few days.  The benefit of letting it sit so long in the fridge was that it had made its own juice too in the bottom of the container.  So I decided to turn it into a smoothie!!!  A Pineapple Coconut smoothie!

Coconuts are also really healthy for you as well and the tree has been called the Tree of Life.  There are some amazing benefits from all parts of the coconut that can be found HERE.  Some of the ingredients that they contain are:

• Vitamin C
• Vitamin E 
• Vitamin B1
• Vitamin B6 
• Vitamin B5 (Pantothenic acid)
• Folate 
• Vitamin B3 (Niacin) 
• Iron
• Selenium
• Sodium 
• Calcium
• Magnesium 
• Phosphorus
• Potassium 
• Zinc

I'm not going to go fully into the individual ingredients and what each one does, but some of the benefits of coconut milk I will list.  Cause they really are that amazing!

• Helps to maintain blood sugar places: Glucose intolerance may cause manganese deficiency in your body. Coconut milk is a rich source of manganese. Whole grains, legumes and nuts are some other excellent sources of manganese.
• Keeps skin and blood vessels flexible and elastic: Copper is a very important mineral for most of the bodily functions. Copper and vitamin C help to maintain the flexibility and elasticity of the skin and blood vessels.
• Aids in building strong bones: Coconut milk is not rich in calcium, but it is rich in phosphorus. Phosphorus is an essential nutrient that the body needs for strengthening bones. It is must to take phosphorus with calcium particularly to prevent bone loss because it supplies phosphate to the body.
• Helps to prevent anemia: Lack of iron is the most common nutrient deficiency among the people throughout the world. Iron deficiency in body does not allow the body to develop enough hemoglobin for keeping sufficient oxygen levels in red blood cells, resulting in anemia. Each cup of coconut milk supplies the body with nearly a quarter of daily value of iron.
• Relaxes muscles and nerves: Whenever you feel muscle cramps or muscle soreness, have some food along with coconut milk. It is rich in magnesium and can help you in relieving the problem. One of the functions of magnesium is it acts as a gate block in many nerve cells. If magnesium is not present in body, nerve cells become very active because of calcium that activates nerves. Excess contraction of muscles is caused by over-active nerve cells.
• Helps in Controlling Weight: This can be good news for people who are trying to reduce weight. Coconut milk makes you feel full very quickly because of high concentrations of dietary fiber.
• Decreases the risk of joint inflammation: Selenium is an important antioxidant. It controls the free radicals and thereby helps in relieving the symptoms of arthritis. It is observed that people with low levels of selenium may suffer from rheumatoid arthritis.
• Helps in lowering high blood pressure: People who are concerned about their blood pressure will not face any problem consuming foods containing potassium. Potassium helps in lowering blood pressure levels in the body.
• Helps in maintaining healthy immune system: Coconut milk helps in warding off colds and coughs by keeping the immune system healthy. It supplies vitamin C to the body which boosts the immune system.
• Promotes the health of prostate gland: Zinc plays a vital role in promoting the health of prostate gland. A preliminary study showed that it slows down the activities of cancer cells.

So now that I have raved for a full two pages on how great coconuts and pineapple are, let me tell how awesome of a drink I just made!

Ingredients
2 c. Fresh pineapple (cut into chunks)
1/3 c. Fresh pineapple juice (remember how I said it sat for a week - this was the advantage!)
1 can coconut milk (I normally use a Taste of Thai, but the store was out so I got the Roland instead)
2 heaping Tbsp. Greek Honey Yogurt
2 Tbsp. Unsweetened Coconut Flakes
1 Frozen Banana (not in the pic as it's already in the blender)

Directions
Very simple!  Pour it all into the blender and blend until smooth!

I topped it off with a couple of wedges on the side of the glass, and it made two full glasses and one half pint mason jar as well.  I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!  And now I have the energy to go do some Zumba.  So cheers!!!

Thanks to my little man for the pic!

Zumba Rocks My World!!!

So over the next few weeks I had planned to try a bunch of different types of workouts to see what I liked the best.  On the last post I did about exercise I did a really intense workout that left my body pretty exhausted.  Today I decided to try something I had heard about from a few different places called Zumba.  It is a Latin-inspired dance fitness program that uses international music with the workout.  So when I found a video on my Pinterest page, I just had to try it!

I saw that it was a 25 minute video which I thought would be a great length. Too bad the actual workout was rather blipy.  It was more like different segments of a longer workout, but I went ahead with anyways.  And it didn't even start until 4 minutes in and the last third of the video had nothing on it.  So all in all I was definitely feeling like I had a workout, but being that it was only 15 minutes long.... I wanted more!

So again... off to the internet I went for another search and on my first try I found one that I REALLY enjoyed!!!

Now this one was actually 20 minutes long, but one of the things I really liked was that it started out slow, worked its way up to a faster pace, and then ended with a little stretching.  Exactly how all workouts should be.  Another thing that I really enjoyed was the focus on the core of the body and the explanations of how to properly execute the moves as well.  To me the core of the body is the most important and everything else just falls in line once that is strong.  And I could feel my target areas being worked especially my abs and obliques.  Bye bye love handles... see you never!  I will definitely be doing this again tomorrow, and may even follow it up with another type of workout as well.  I highly encourage you to try this workout especially if you have not tried Zumba before, and even if you have!  It is wonderful!!!

After my 35 minute Zumba workout I decided to follow it up with another 5 minutes on my Air Climber which gave me a full on burn in my calves and quads.  It's a wonderful little machine!

And look, I'm glowing (cause I don't sweat!  I glow brilliantly ;)

Java Chip Smoothie Experiment #1

So yes, this totally goes against all things healthy, but the other day I came across a recipe for a Java Chip Smoothie on my Pinterest account, and I do love some coffee! So I decided to go ahead and try it anyways and just add a super workout afterwards to make up for it.  After making it and bringing it up to the shop for a test taste, we realized it was not a very good smoothie.  When I made the original recipe, I had to add a bit of almond milk to it just to get it to blend before I could go any further with the recipe!  And it tasted quite powdery for my liking.  So I decided to opt for my own version on the second go round.  And I was much happier with the result.  My husband wasn't a fan, but I liked it.  Perhaps a bit less protein powder next time and he'll like it too.  I wanted to share, so here's how I did it. First I gathered up my ingredients.

Ingredients
2 Handfuls Dark Chocolate Chips
2/3 c. Greek Honey Yogurt
1 c. Dark Organic Coffee (and I mean DARK)
1 c. Non-Flavored Almond Milk
1/3 c. Cream of Coconut Milk
1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
2 Tbsp. Cocoa Powder
1/2 heaping tsp. Organic Hemp Powder

Directions
I started by brewing up some coffee!  And while I was waiting for the water to boil I chopped up my chocolate chips into smaller pieces as I knew that my blender wouldn't do as good of a job as I could do by hand.  Once the coffee was brewed and cooled off a bit, I put it in the blender with the chocolate chips and pulsed it a few times.  Then I carefully opened my can of coconut milk making sure not to shake it.  Most of the other coconut milks I have gotten are pretty creamy all the way through, but the Taste of Thai brand tends to separate and deposit the cream at the top of the can (the way I like it) as long as you don't shake it up.  I gathered up about a third of a cup of the creamy top and added it to the blender, along with the rest of the ingredients, and blended until smooth!  And voila!

I was really happy with the turnout.  It was a lot smoother and drinkable, unlike the original version of the recipe I found that you really had to eat with a spoon.  Next time I am going to try adding frozen coffee cubes, which are already in the freezer just for this purpose. In total it made 2 and a half glasses (the ones pictured).

After drinking it I had plenty of energy and decided to go do a workout!!!  Yay for motivation... and coffee!

About Me and My Goals

Well, well.... look what I have done!  I have started my very own blog.  Welcome to my own personal space.  I plan to use this space as a motivator of sorts.  OK, so let's start out with a little bit about me.  I live out in the woods in a cute little cabin on 20 acres of forested land in central western Oregon in the wonderfully green luscious mountains about 30 minutes away from the coast.

I'm a mom of a wonderful three year old boy, Talon, who is a bundle of joy!

Oh and I'm owned by two wonderful four legged furry friends: Nefradite, an Akita (the dog), and Isis, an Egyptain Mau (the cat).

And now onto my journey.  Being a mom has been a whole new experience, but one that is totally worth it.  The sleepless nights and all those diaper changes were all totally worth it.  There's nothing like the unconditional love of a toddler.  The toll that having a baby had on my body was also worth it.  However, I am not 100% comfortable in my own skin, but I am working on it!  So let's see.... a few more things about me.  I'm a very spiritual person, and I will never stop learning.  That's one area that I am completely comfortable with myself.  I have a ton of interests, but one of them that is my most passionate is healing.  I love using herbs and herbal remedies to take care of the things that ail me and others around me.  Over the years I have been searching for what it is that I want to pursue as a career, and 30 years down the road I have it figured out.  I am a healer.  Always have been!  Once I realized that, I realized that I needed to start with myself before I could help others.  After all they always say on the airplanes that you should put your own mask on first.  Soooo, this is where my journey on this blog begins.

I have set myself out a goal.  Well a few actually.  The first and foremost is to become a happier and healthier me.   One thing I realized is that I lacked motivation.  So I found some websites that motivated me.  On these websites they have different exercises that you can do, affirmations to help me keep going, and also recipes of different healthy meals.  I plan on sharing my journey here.  I feel that putting it out to the world is definitely motivation to keep going until I achieve my goals, which I will!!!  I am going to start eating healthier and also exercising.  It is high time I did something for me, and a healthier me equals a happier me.

Once I am happy with myself, I plan on using my new found motivation to help others.  Recently I organized a First Aid/ CPR/ AED class in our local community and got re-certified in those healing methods.  And I plan to continue my education in that field and go on to become a Wilderness First Responder.  Since we live about 45 minutes away from an ambulance reaching us, it is essential for people like me to know what to do if an emergency arises.  Yes, it will take a lot of studying and hard work to make that happen, but I am passionate and I will do it.

OK, well that's enough for my first blog.  I look forward to sharing my growth and spiritual journey!