Creamy Avocado Dressing

In our produce basket last Saturday we got 2 heads of cabbage, so the other day I made my cabbage rolls, but used ground tofu instead of ground turkey and veggie broth instead of chicken stock. It was awesome, and no one could tell it was tofu...WIN! I had left over cabbage though so I chopped it up along with some carrots for the base of a cole slaw...but I still had to decide how to dress it without using mayo or Greek yogurt. Then I remembered I had a perfectly ripe avocado I needed to use which would create the perfect base for a creamy dressing. I started blending flavors together in my head and I am ohhh sooo excited about the outcome! I had to share it with you guys ASAP. I know cole slaw isn't terribly exciting for most...but this dressing is to die for!

  I was literally licking my blender clean. I intend on adding it to EVERYTHING... other salads, vegetable pasta dishes, whatever...oh the possibilities!!!

Creamy avocado dressing:

1 avocado

1 tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 tbsp of lemon juice

1 tbsp honey

2 tsp of Dijon mustard

1 tbsp minced garlic

2 stems of green onions

about 1 packed tbsp of chopped cilantro

salt & pepper

about 3 tablespoons of water, more or less for desired thickness.

Literally toss all ingredients in a blender or food processor until smooth, it's that simple! Pour onto salad, noodles, dip veggies in it, whatever. For cole slaw toss evenly on chopped cabbage and carrots and let sit in refrigerator a few hours.

 This dressing is loaded with goodness both in taste and in nutrients. Check out my post on avocados here to get the dish on their health benefits. And if you intend on using it as a cole slaw check out the incredible benefits of cabbage here. 

The vinegar in this dressing is fairly interchangeable, you could try red wine vinegar, or white, or even balsamic, however I am a major fan of apple cider. Apple cider vinegar is a staple in my house, I generally buy the "Braggs" raw unfiltered cider vinegar for the enzymatic benefits that I discussed in my raw-some facts post. I use apple cider vinegar in many dressings such as my Kale salad dressing paired with liquid amino's and some nutritional yeast- yumm. But it can also be added to a glass of water, or juices in small amounts to assist the body in it's detox process as well. We all consume some level of toxins, most consume quite a lot, so giving your body a little help removing these toxins has proven beneficial so that our bodies work optimally, and so we don't store those harmful agents in our tissues and fat.  Naturally detoxing is very effective for those with weight loss goals, because most people carry between 5-15 pounds of toxins in their bodies. Apple cider vinegar is also proven to help those with diabetes because of it's ability to lower glucose levels and regulate blood sugar levels, and some studies show that is slows and prevents cancer growth. I've also heard, but have not tried yet, putting a few tablespoons in a hot bath to help remove toxins exteriorly and to clear skin. My friend, fellow food enthusiast, & fan of home rememdies (that's about accurate right, Megan;)) has tried using it exteriorly. She dilutes the vinegar with water and washes her face with it regularly and vouches for it's effectiveness! Also a diluted solution can be used to kill yeast if area is rinsed at first signs of infection! Point being: it's very beneficial, versatile, and worth keeping some around! 

After I devoured this cole slaw for both lunch and dinner, my husband, my sister, and I took the kids up to the high school to play some tennis, and to do some sprint intervals on the track. Ever since the Olympics Parker has been talking non-stop about track, and how we wants to compete in the Junior Olympics. He was dying to run on a real track- so off we went. I have to admit sprinting is so not my thing, I either blame my short legs, or the tennis match and 4 mile run I did that same day. They just wouldn't push as fast as I wanted them to go, but I didn't let that deter me from continuing to try. Not to mention I had to at least keep up with my 5 year old who ran the 100 meter at least 6 times, and ran the 400 meter twice keeping an 8 minute mile pace each time. Pretty solid- he was so excited and we had so much fun watching his enthusiasm! The point of that little insert is just to motivate you to get creative and find ways to get up and get moving (and to boast about my boy)! 

We all know what they say about beans!

Okay, so I've been back in the kitchen full swing this past week and I can't wait to share my many successes with you guys. I wish I could post them all in a single post, but I need you guys to keep coming back for more, right?! 

So far my vegan experience has been wonderful. Because I have fully committed, without any marginal room for errors, it makes it a whole lot easier to resist processed foods and desserts (seeing as most pastries, ice creams, frozen yogurts, cookies, etc contain both dairy milk, and eggs). That's not to say that you can't make your own tasty & healthy vegan desserts. My calorie count has naturally declined by excluding those rare high fat, high caloric desserts, that I'd very occasionally indulge in. I have also cut out cheese which was another food that I commonly threw in my salads and dishes that very quickly jumped up my calorie & fat counts. BUT with resisting all these foods and cutting out all meat I am super surprised to say that I have not missed any of this..at all. I have yet to feel hungry, tired, or have any crazy unbearable craving for any of the foods that I have cut out.

 How can that be possible?

Well, I believe this is the case because with cutting that stuff out, I have upped my emphases on making sure I am getting enough of the things my body really needs and replaced those unnecessary calories with vital ones. Example: by cutting out even more processed foods has left me with no choice but to incorporated more fresh produce (as if I wasn't eating a lot already), so my body is very efficiently being fueled because of the body's natural ability to break down and utilize plant based foods. So as "extreme" as veganism sounds, it is actually very compatible and natural for the human body. And as I briefly mentioned in my previous post, getting enough plant based protein is high priority, since I do a lot of running and weight training. A no-brainer way to get your protein punch and a mouthful of flavor is beans and rice. Beans and Rice in unison makes a complete protein. So I threw together a concoction that is definitely a keeper. My kids cleaned their plates, and then kept asking for seconds and thirds as the night progressed. The Olympics had kept us all up past our bed time and as 10 o' clock was approaching we were heading downstairs to finally get the kids to bed and both kids start asking for their 3rd helping of rice. This might have been a tactic to try to stay up later, but either way they scarfed it down time and time again.  It has a touch of heat to it but if my kids can handle it over and over, so can you!

Spicy black beans and rice

Ingredients: 

2 tbsp olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

1 bell pepper, chopped

1 tbsp garlic, minced

dried bay leaves (chopped or whole)- optional

1 tbsp ground cumin

2 c. brown rice (I used part brown, part wild)

2 (14 oz) cans of black beans (I used a Cuban variety) -drained and rinsed

1 or 2 (14 oz) cans of Rotelle diced tomatoes with green chile's-drained

3 c. vegetable broth

1 c. water

1/4 c. apple cider vinegar

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Place oil, garlic, pepper, bay leaves, and cumin in large pot over medium-high heat and cook for about 8 minutes. (use 2 cans of rotelle for more spice, or stick to 1 for mild spice)

Stir in rice, black beans, rotelle, broth, water, vinegar, salt, & pepper. Bring to a boil, then cover with lid and reduce the heat to low. Let it cook, stirring occasionally, for about 40 minutes or until rice is tender. Eat it up! 

You can replace the vegetable broth with all water, but the veggie broth just adds a little extra umph. To make my veggie broths I usually use "Better than bouillon organic vegetable base" found in a little 8 oz jar, and you just add 1 tsp of the base per 1 c. of water. It's delicious. I pretty much cook all my rice in this broth no matter what I'm making.

Stay tuned for more smoothie, spaghetti squash, chick pea salad, and snack recipes that I have experimented with this week!

Simply. Healthy. Nikki signing out.

POWER! In less than an hour!

I live in a pretty tight niche community. Okay...who am I kidding... honestly, I live in one of those teeny tiny towns where everyone knows everything about everyone; which I always thought was a "as-seen-in-movies" bad thing but I'm finding that not to be the case. The people here are great. So our neighbors held a welcome party for the new neighbors that moved in on our street. Our participating dish was a salad-but a salad can go SO many ways. I went the simple, but successful route with a chopped salad. Romain lettuce, onions, red peppers, cucumbers, cauliflower, feta cheese, craisins, and pecans. Dressed with a mixture of creamy poppyseed dressing and balsamic vinegar. I kept the dressing on the side so that any leftovers would keep. Last nights dinner was also today's lunch. It was just as good today as it was last night. Salads like this are great to prep ahead of time in bulk and eaten for 3-4 days. They will keep as long as your lettuce and veggies are rinsed and fully dried before putting away into air tight containers for your week. Bottle your dressing choices seperate, and viola- easy, quick, healthy, on-the-go meal.

Now for a workout: Saturday's I usually have a little more flexibility in my schedule for my workouts so they are generally endurance days. I still had a sore lower body from the previous day's workout so I decided on a power total body workout using the medicine ball. Now this workout, because it emphasizes the power phase of training it is not well suited for the beginner. Power training helps increase your dynamic flexibility, range of motion, and explosiveness which essentially results in the building of more muscle mass. It is important though, to have trained in stability, strength, and endurance exercises before embarking on advanced power level workouts. Power workouts burn a TON of calories which is always a plus too! If you are a beginner you can take on or two of these exercises and apply them in your less impact strength training but I wouldn't advise doing an entire power circuit, unless you're wanting to induce injury.

So I started with a stretch followed by a 1 mile run. I started my run at an easy 6 mph pace then increasing a few notches every quarter mile up until a 7.5 mph pace. Feel free to adapt that warm up to better suite your abilities (slow it down if that's too quick, or pick it up even faster at the end if you want more of a challenge), it works very well for me- takes my muscles smoothly from cold to warm.

Next I grabbed a 15 pound medicine ball, if this is your first time experimenting with power techniques and the medicine ball, perhaps consider starting with an 8 or 10 pounder.

• 15 squat to wall ball toss
• Start in a deep squat (toes forawrd, butt out, abs engaged, thighs parallel with the floor) with medicine ball held at your chest. As you come up out of the squat use the power in your legs and shoulders to toss the ball as high up onto the wall as possible, then proceed to catch the ball and absorb it back to chest level, and going immediately back into squat position. 
• 10 pushups on med ball (5 on each side)

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• 20 step up torso twist with med ball (10 each foot)
• Hold medicine ball at chest. Use a 6-inch to 1 ft step, step onto the platform your right foot planted. Balance on your right foot and raise your left knee towards your chest while simulatiously contracting & rotating your core bringing your right elbow to your elevated left knee. Step your left foot back down to the floor, followed by your right, then switch sides stepping up with your left foot, and raising the right knee. 
• 30  Oblique twists with med ball (15 each side)

• 30 second plank with toes on med ball
• 20 standing torso rotations with med ball

• 2 minute run on treadmill or elliptical (if you're at home jump rope)
• 2 minute rest

Circuit through again for a total of 3-4 sets- increasing your resistance and speed each set on the treadmill or elliptical. This circuit should only take about 30 minutes and briefly targets most muscle groups.

I spent another 10 minutes practicing sprint intervals on the treadmill (sprint for 1 min, walk for 30 sec), followed by a nice easy 30 minute cool down on the elliptical.


Eat right, stay active, don't quit. You will succeed.

Ch-ch-ch-chia!

Remember chia pets???? Nostalgia right?! I think we had a sheep or maybe a dog when I was a child...who knows, but I know we had a blast growing them! Little did I know that those tiny seedlings were edible and extremely nutritious!


So wayyyy back in the day Aztek and Mayan hunter-gatherers used to consume chia seeds for endurance purposes when hunting. Well why would they do a thing like that? Turns out, chia seeds absorb and retain water super easily- we're talking they can hold 9-10 times their weight in water- which leads to prolonged hydration and retention of those much needed electrolytes. Perfect for endurance athletes today, just as it was for those hunters from way back when! Oh, BUT WAIT, there is SOOO much more! These bad boys contain 22% protein, 35% of healthy fats (omega 3's and 6's) and 25% dietary fiber and then they are rich in calcium, potassium, and iron...Craziness right! 

These seeds are commonly used as relief from arthritis, healthy fats have a way of reducing inflammation which helps with those achy joints! These seeds can absorb sugar which has been known to help those with diabetes. It also can be helpful in decreasing blood pressure, reducing acid reflux and IBS symptoms (by absorbing extra acid), and improving general heart health. They are safe for consumption for those with celiac disease because they are gluten free.
Are you trying to lose weight? Possibly trying a juice cleanse as I talked about earlier this week? Chia seeds are also great for that too...because they form a gel when wet and are also loaded with fiber which cleanses the colon and binds with toxins and properly disposes of them, if you know what I mean;-)

Because it is known for lowering blood pressure, if you already have low blood pressure then it is not safe to consume Chia seeds in excess. A healthy dose of chia seeds a day is generally 1 tablespoon. These chia seeds are extremely bland and flavorless so they are easy to toss on or in just about ANYTHING. Really, you can toss them in your glass of water or juice if you want- you might feel them when swallowing but you wont taste them. I put them in mine and my kids oatmeal, sprinkle them on their peanut butter banana whole wheat sandwiches, sprinkle it on fruit or in salads..anything goes! 


Tomorrow I am traveling alone with my two kids to Florida, and our flight leaves at 7 am...so we have to get up at the butt-crack of dawn and won't have time for much of a breakfast so today I made my famous super moist chia seed muffins, tossed them in a baggie and we will scarf them down on the way to the airport!

Sweet potato chia muffins

Ingredients:

1 tbsp of ground chia seeds (you can toss them in the blender for a few seconds to achieve this)

1 1/2 C whole wheat flower

2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 large roasted sweet potato (or about 1 c sweet potato puree)

1 c unsweetened applesauce

 2 egg whites

1/2 c agave nectar or honey

2 tsp lemon juice

1 tbsp vanilla

2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 c craisins

Directions: 

Roast your sweet potato by wrapping it in aluminum and throwing it in a 350 degree oven for about an hour. I usually do this the day before or a couple hours before I am going to make them. Or use store bought sweet potato puree about 1 cup.

If you are using a roasted sweet potato, take off peel and put in bowl, mash well then fold in remaining ingredients. Put into 12 greased muffin tins and bake for 15-20 minutes at 350 degrees.

These are extremely moist and delicious. My kids and I LOVE them! Enjoy!

Snack time!

I like to munch. Frequently. My mouth likes to stay busy. I am very aware that I am not alone in this. When people think of snacking it's generally thought of as a negative thing...not necessarily! To keep your metabolism continuously working at a quick pace it actually needs to be fed frequently! SCORE for us snackers! How often is appropriate? You shouldn't go more than 3 hours or so without some sort of fuel. This equates to about 6 meals a day so have your 3 main healthy clean meals and then work to incorporate a mid morning, mid afternoon, and post workout or evening snack. If you make it a priority to eat small frequent meals you will not only find that weight loss comes easier, you'll be less hungry and less likely to over eat, AND you will have a more sustained level of energy throughout your day! Triple SCORE! Your blood sugar levels stay nice and even with minimal spiking and dropping which gives you that sustainable energy and even speedy metabolism.

Keep in mind that the type of snacking I am talking about does NOT involve Cheetos, Doritos, or any other type of O's. Ideally these snacks should be under 300 calories, low in sugar, high in fiber. For those on a lower calorie diet than stick to about 200 calories snacks. My top choice of snack is fresh fruits and veggies of all varieties (apples, oranges, grapes, mangoes, strawberries, blueberries, cucumbers, carrots, broccoli, ect) often dipped in Greek yogurt or hummus. Dried fruit and nuts, small salads, smoothies, homemade granola and granola bars top my list as well. All of which are relatively quick and convenient to grab and go and all of which are appropriate for kids to snack on too! I have tried several organic, vegetable, and black bean chips from the health food store that have been great but they still need to be consumed in moderation along with any other snacks you might not be able live without. 

Here are some sample snacks I am known to keep on hand.

Sliced up some kiwi, strawberries, bananas, and tossed in some raisins and chia seeds. Glass of almond milk on the side.

I like to slice a variety of fruit, I was out of blueberries so I threw in some raisins and topped it all with a few chia seeds. A glass of almond milk or yogurt on the side.

To curb my sweet tooth I go for a banana with raw almond butter, raw honey, and again with the chia seeds. This on a slice of whole wheat toast, or replacing the banana with thinly sliced apples, are yummy alternatives too!

These are a few of my favorites I like to make weekly and keep handy. They are easy to grab and go and I feel like I am eating something naughty but in reality it's guilt-free! They are also fiber-ful, protein punched, and filling! On the left is a PB&J bar, and to the right are energy balls!


PB&J bar throw 8 oz of unsalted peanuts, 8 oz of pitted dates, and 2 tablespoons of no sugar added strawberry jam in a food processor, then roll and shape into saran wrap and refrigerate for an hour. If you don't have a food processor you can put nuts into a blender first, then once crumbly add dates (you might have to stop the blender a few times to stir until dates are chopped and sticky), then scoop mixture out and spoon in your jam then form into bars as stated above.

Energy bars: THANK YOU PINTEREST FOR THIS ONE! 1 cup oatmeal, 1/2 c peanut butter, 1/3 c honey, 1 c unsweetened coconut flakes, 1/2 c ground flax seed, 1 tsp vanilla, (1/2 c choco chips is optional)...combine ingredients, roll into balls and refrigerate in Tupperware.

Juicy Juice

The day I watched Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead on netflix was the day I was converted to power of juicing. Did I think I needed to strictly juice, no! Just supplement. I'm not a fan of store bought juice, at all. My kids drink a lot of water...so once I began supplementing with juice religiously they were so excited- as was I because they're getting raw juice filled with enzymes and an abundance of nutrients from both fruits and vegetables! Parker LOVES his carrot apple juice! 
Juice is so wonderful because it is loaded with goodness and is quickly absorbed. Think about it...it takes at least 4 large carrots, 1 large apple, and 1/4 a lemon to make enough juice for a single person...that's a lot of nutrients in a single glass. Our bodies are able to completely absorb that and put it to work within 15 minutes! Imagine how healing that can be for our bodies. I have read stories about people who juiced for a 2 weeks period and were able to completely heal cysts and ulcers, and rid all symptoms of IBS. And Joe from Fat, Sick, and Nearly dead was able to completely heal his autoimmune disease and come off all medication.

So as I begun my research on raw foods as I discussed in my last post I realized that perhaps a 3 day detox would be a good idea. I fed my body nothing but junk for 21 years of my life...Our bodies have natural ways of ridding itself of toxins but as a society we put SO many toxins in our bodies daily that it is near impossible for it to completely cleanse itself of these. So what does it do with it? Well, it stores them. The average American has 5-10 pounds of toxins stored. THAT IS GROSS! Although I have been eating clean for 2 years, that doesn't necessarily mean that my body has been able to thoroughly rid those stored toxins. That's what made me decide to try a detox- I knew it wouldn't be fun but I was pretty convinced of it's benefits. So a couple of months ago I embarked on my first detox. I juiced a variety of juices 3-4 times a day, and munched on the occasional raw whole fruit or vegetable as a snack for 72 hours. I lost 5 pounds in 3 days- taking me from 110 to 105. My mother who I dragged along with me lost 8 pounds by the end of day 2! AWESOME!

Here was our experience...I will not sugar coat it..it is not exactly enjoyable at all times. The first day and a half my mom and I both were dragging, and suffering from a mild headache. Not to mention the bazaar bowel movements. All I wanted to do was chow down on my oatmeal, and peanut butter, and honey, and chicken, and wheat toast, and you get the idea. But I stayed strong and munched on my apples and celery when I needed to chew on something and guzzled down my juices as well as LOTS of water. By the end of day 2 though, the fatigue and headache subsided. Day 3 was filled with energy and a sense of lightness. I felt clean, new, and refreshed. It was fantastic! 

I wanted to ensure that I avoided a gorge on day 4 and 5 so that I didn't undo all my hard work and sacrifice so I slowly started to introduce more raw whole foods and clean sources of protein. And I still regularly drink juices and smoothies along with my diet. I also decided that I would do this again on a quarterly bases so that I don't accrue toxic waste. Here are a few of the concoctions I created.

By day 2 I was sick of drinking juice so I got creative and made a Tomato soup juice and tricked my mind by eating it with a spoon instead of drinking it. IT WORKED!
2 tomatoes, 1 stick of celery, 1 nappa cabbage leaf, 1/4 of a bell pepper, 1 large carrot, 1/8 of an onion, 1 clove of garlic, parsley and cilantro.

Beet juice...it was quite pretty and a great post workout juice because ginger works great as a natural anti-inflammatory! 1 beet, 1 carrot, 1 apple, 1/4 lemon, 1/4 inch of ginger root.

Cucumber melon! This was a favorite! 1 cucumber, 1/2 canary melon (honey dew or cantaloupe would work great too), and some soaked chia seeds.

Strictly juicing is quite extreme and not an easy thing to endure but in my opinion it is worth it. If you don't think you could do it I would advise incorporating more of these detoxing juices into your regular diet and continuing to eat as clean and organic as possible to avoid over consumption of toxins!

Here are a list of a few foods that really help aid in the detoxifying process so they're important to add into your juices.

-Cilantro: Removes heavy metals from body
-Parsley & wheatgrass: Detoxifies the kidneys by flushing out toxins and boosting cell regeneration
-Lemon: Flushed toxins and burns fat naturally
-Celery: Stimulates digestion and removes excess fluids from the body
-Ginger & tumeric: Anti inflammatory
-Apples: Cleansing for the colon and binds with heavy metals and toxins
-Other green leafy vegetables that are rich in chlorophyll all aid in the cleansing process as well! Fruits and cucumbers work great as a base for juice due to their high water content which assists in flushing the bad stuff out.
DON'T FORGET TO DRINK A LOT OF WATER!!!

Abs are made in the kitchen.

I woke up at 3 am to a thirsty and scared little girl, I got her a drink and comforted her back to bed. I closed my eyes to return to a sleeping state again...and nothing. What do you do at 3 am when you can't sleep and the gym doesn't open until 5...well, blog of course! Today is a cardio day for me, cycling here I come but I always throw in a good 20 minutes of ab work in as well...but wait, Nikki, you just said abs are made in the kitchen! I know, I know let me explain. There is a common misconception that if you isolate and exercise your problem areas (abs, thigh, whatever) enough then they will become lean and sexy. You absolutely will grow and develop and tone the muscles in that area...but it does not isolate and burn off the fat in that particular area. You can do crunches all day everyday but if you have yet to clean out that pantry, the stomach fat will still be there so you will be unable to see that super strong sleek six pack you've been working so hard on. See, the basic formula for weight loss is simple...use more energy than consumed (energy being food). Once your body uses all it's consumed energy it goes into back up mode and fuels off it's reserved fat stores. Our bodies gain and lose weight proportionally to our different body shapes. Example, some people are pear shaped (small on top, bulky on bottom), or visa-versa, then others are rounder more like an apple and get it everywhere. Wherever your body stores fat, is where it will lose fat, it will not just drop in the tummy area because you are doing exsessive crunches. If you want a 6 pack, you have to drop that body fat percentage WHILE strengthening training those core muscles. WEIGHT LOSS IS 80% DIET, 20% EXERCISE. Lets break it down a touch further.

DIET:

Dropping body fat as stated above requires you to spend more calories than consumed- common sense will tell you that you need to eat fewer calories. But don't let that deter you food lovers. Less can be more...a 300 calorie meal could be a monster sized spinach salad or it could be 2 Reese's pb cups, which will keep you fuller longer? Chose your calories wisely. Fill those calories with protein, fiber, fruits, and vegetables...this will fill you up, keep you satisfied longer, and will give you a smaller caloric intake than a high sugar and fat meal. Eating clean has a natural way of lessening caloric intake without altering portion sizes...because you're taking out those empty calories. And as my blog is here to show you, eating clean doesn't have to be bland and boring- no need to sacrifice taste! It still enables you to indulge sensibly, but remember clean sweets can get up there in calories so you'll want to eat those in moderation to your goals.

Now with that said, you never want to create too large of a calorie deficit because your body will start fueling off of it's lean muscle mass as well instead of just your fat stores. Consuming enough protein and exercising regularly will help reduce the likelihood of that occurring. 

How do we get our bodies burning the most amount of calories per day without decreasing or depriving ourselves of too many calories? Calculate your BMR (or your resting metabolic state). HERE is a BMR calculator. Now whatever number it spits out, that's how many calories your body burns internally, at rest, without movement. Now add activity to that and you're burning even more daily. I never recommend consuming less that 500 calories than your resting metabolic rate, for moderate weight loss consuming 100-200 calories less than that BMR and adding exercise will easily give you a healthy 1-2 pounds of weight loss a week. If you lose too much more than that, odds are you're losing that lean muscle mass.

EXERCISE: 

Most people are familiar with crunches and sit ups and do them for days. Yes, they can be effective when performed properly, the problem is if that's all you are doing you are not strengthening all your core muscles. The rectus abdominis is the main centered abs that you see when admiring someones 6 pack and are the primary muscles used in your typical sit up. However, that's not all the muscles that make up the core. Balance is important or else you're asking for injury. There are hundreds of small stabilizing muscles through out your core that support your spine that need to be strengthened to carry you, with proper posture and control, through your daily life. These stabilizers are also needed to properly assist those larger prime movers through other exercises. So my advice is always start with stabilizing exercises then move onto the bigger exercises that target those prime movers. It's important not to leave out those back muscles and obliques as well. 80% of Americans suffer from chronic back pain, do not impose this on yourself by being sedentary or even more dangerously, by over working certain muscles but under working those back and other supportive muscles. Here are a few exercises to get you started. 

I tried to have my 5 year old son take a few photos of me completing these exercises. 1 out of 6 pictures turned out, so here are some strangers from the Internet you can admire. 

Most of you are familiar with the plank, it is an excellent stabilizing work out and there are many variations.  For those of you who are just starting out aim for 3-4 sets of holding it for 30 seconds at a time with forearms on the floor. Those more experienced hold it longer or advance to an elevated feet position or onto the stability ball as shown below.

For those back muscles, particularly the erector spinae (which is the muscle that runs directly along the spine) and the lower traps, try the cobra as pictured below. Be sure to lead with the chest NOT THE NECK, stare at the floor to ensure the neck stays in neutral! 3-4 sets of 15 for starters but hold the position at the top for 2-4 seconds before releasing back down each time.

Lastly, Lying oblique twists work wonders for the obliques as pictured below.

 3-4 sets of 12-15 (on each side) for starters, as you advance begin to straighten out those legs doing the same full range motion, or put a weighted medicine ball between the knees.  

Include your sit ups, crunches, or bicycles as usual! You could circuit through these few exercises back to back 1 set of each exercise with no rest, then take a 2 minute break and begin set 2 as described in my blog about circuit training for a more intense workout.

Questions, comments?! Hope this helps! Good luck readers!

Did someone say breakfast?!

We've all heard it before. Common knowledge is that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. But why? Let's start with the basics. What does the word itself tell us... that it is a break from our fast. Our body slows down at night but that's not to say that it's not hard at work still. The body repairs itself and detoxes every night while we are resting our muscles and brain. Let's say you eat dinner at 6 pm, and you don't eat breakfast until 7 or 8 am...your body has been hard at work all night, yet you haven't eaten in over 12 hours. It NEEDS fuel asap to properly function. If you skip breakfast and don't eat until noon, your blood sugar is likely to be extremely low. Energy levels non-existent Brain incapable of function. Muscles fatigued. It's a concoction for disaster, and you're setting yourself up for a serious lunch time gorge, which isn't a healthy thing either. Studies show that those who skip breakfast (both adults and children of all ages) are at higher risk for obesity than those who eat breakfast regularly. If you think you are doing your body a favor by opting out of those calories, you're very very wrong. Your metabolism slows at night because it knows you wont be eating for a long period of time...if we don't fuel it within an hour of waking then our metabolism can't "wake up" either. Which would you rather...a quick metabolism, active brain, fueled muscles or a dragging metabolism, dead brain, and groggy muscles? Take your pick. Children are constantly growing physically and mentally- it is even more important that their bodies and minds are constantly being fueled. Skipping breakfast can be even more harmful than in adults.


Now we know why we need to eat it. Let's move on to WHAT we need to eat. This is where I get excited, because I LOVE breakfast! No, I don't think you understand the extent of my obsession with breakfast foods...I LOVE BREAKFAST! I dream up my breakfast all night long, then wake up...pee...drink a glass of water (because your body dehydrates over night) then I eat. It takes priority to just about everything. My kids love breakfast too, the first thing out of their mouth when they wake up is "I want breakfast" and it's because there body routinely gets fueled and fed first thing when they wake up. It's all about training that metabolism!


I used to be a serious cold sugary cereal eater...I had a inadament object crush on cinnamon toast crunch, I've long sense moved on. Walk into your pantry. No really, get up out yo chair and go look at the nutritional facts on the cereal currently in your pantry. Look at 3 things...the serving size, how many grams of sugar, and how high up on the ingredients list is sugar listed. I'd throw down some serious cash that your jaw will drop. First off that serving size...1/2 c-3/4 c. You know your cereal bowl gets filled to the rim with 3 times that much cereal. Now grams of sugar...raisin brand which most people view as a "healthy" option averages 16 grams of sugar per serving depending on the brand. Even if you just double that serving size that is 32 grams of sugar in a single mean, oh and that's not even taking into account milk. Sugar is most commonly in the top 3 ingredients in most cereals. Yes, I'd like a little corn flake with my white refined sugar! Gross. Your blood sugar and your child's blood sugar is going to spike and then crash and burn shortly there after leaving you just as dysfunctional if you hadn't eaten. Just pay attention, read the labels...not all cold cereal is bad so check the label and purchase the cereals with less than 5 g of sugar per serving AND have contains whole grains.

Breakfast needs to contain healthy protein and plenty of fiber. We fill our mornings with 100% whole rolled oats oatmeal (lots of it, my son will eat it everyday, multiple times a day, if I'd let him), fruit, eggs and omelets, smoothies, turkey bacon, whole wheat toast w/ nut butter..we even eat whole wheat muffins, french toast, waffles, crepes and pancakes. YES, WE EVEN EAT PANCAKES! We are not deprived, we just eat the cleaner alternatives that have just as much if not MORE taste!

Here is my ALL TIME favorite pancake recipe....so far ;-)
When we purchased our vitamix we got a recipe book which had a recipe for apple whole wheat pancakes...well I have made them several times and have made some modifications and this is my favorite version.

Ingredients:
1 c whole wheat flour
3 TBSP of stevia
3 tsp of baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp of cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 egg
1 1/2 tsp of coconut oil (or other oil of choice)
1/4 tsp of vanilla
1 c of milk (I generally use soy or almond, but have made it with skim as well)
1 large apple deseeded (remove core too if you don't have a powerful blender)

Directions: Combine the first 7 dry ingredients in large mixing bowl until well blended.
Put the last 5 ingredients in blender and blend for about 30 seconds until well mixed and there are no apple chunks. Pour the wet mixture into dry mixture, combine well. Pour onto hot skillet greased with healthy oil of choice (I used coconut). Check frequently and flip when lightly browned on the bottom and bubbles are starting to form on top.

These are good enough to eat completely plain. Or spread some peanut butter on it and drizzle it with honey. Or a little pure maple syrup or agave. Less than 100 calories a pancake yet fully satisfying and satiating. All the fiber you need to jump start your day! Guilt-less eating at it's finest! More breakfast recipes to be posted, because, well I LOVE BREAKFAST and I hope you learn to love it too!

Who you calling chicken?

Are you chicken? 

What are your fears? Are you afraid of failure? Are you afraid of the unknown? Are you afraid of suffering or sacrifice? We ALL have our fears, our weaknesses, our skepticism's, but there is few greater feelings than that of accomplishment. Over coming those fears, conquering those weaknesses, is extremely empowering and worth every bit of sweat, blood, and/or tears that might come along with that. You need to know that you are strong enough. Repeat with me... "I AM STRONG ENOUGH." Whatever your goals may be: to lose weight, gain muscle, gain energy, live healthier, eat cleaner, run faster, run longer, lower cholesterol, strengthen heart...YOU ARE STRONG ENOUGH TO ACHIEVE YOUR GOAL. No one ever got to where they wanted to go without a little hard work, heart ache, or sacrifice. You can't take a vacation without working for the funds to travel, and moving around the schedule to make time available to travel. Thomas Edison didn't invent the light bulb on his first try (but aren't we glad he didn't quit on himself). I didn't get to where I am today with out a lot of hard work, personal heart ache, and sacrifice. Here are a couple of tips I use with my clients to get you started. 

1. Remove "I can't" from your vocabulary. LIKE NOW! Then replace it with "I WILL"...You have to fully commit: the words "I will" enable that. It is 90%+ mental.  But really, I can't tell you how many times my brain has started to say: "okay, Nikki, you can stop running now" or "you are too tired today" or  "you could really go for a cookie right now" and I have had to use every last bit of will power I have to just keep running, or just get out of bed, or literally throw the cookies out. However bad it sucked in that moment... I do not regret it at all when I set personal records in my running, or step on the scale and drop another pound. Just remind yourself that it DOES and WILL pay off. Stay strong. Why? BECAUSE YOU ARE STRONG ENOUGH.

2. WRITE DOWN YOUR GOALS. Don't just jot it in your head, your head lies. Physically write them down. We've all heard this time and time again...I can attest to it's validity. So just do it...write it down and put it somewhere in plain sight so that you can be reminded why you are making these sacrifices. Perhaps even on the pantry or refrigerator door? Then share your goals with others, so that you are held accountable.  Don't forget to give yourself a deadline, and then set new ones once those are achieved. What got my running going was actually signing up for my first race. It was done, I paid for it, it was happening whether I was prepared for it or not....I HAD to make it worth my while. As soon as I finished my first race, I registered for another and wrote down my goal finishing time for that race. AND I KILLED IT:-)

3. Create a game plan. You can't just say "I want to be rich" and expect money to be handed to you because you thought about it long enough and hard enough. Set those goals, and then write down and plan out HOW you will achieve them. Write these on a calender or set notes or alarms in your phone to go off, whatever works for you,  so that you can follow through with your game plan. Set that alarm to go off 6 am Monday through Friday so you get to the gym or take that walk. Written on your calender: Monday is the day to clean out that fridge and pantry. Feel free to get specific with it too. I like to write down which muscle group I'm training on what day. 

4. Make the achievement of these goals a priority. Rearrange your schedule to MAKE it work for you. Tell that sneaky little part of that mind of yours that likes to come up with all those nasty excuses that YOU AIN'T LISTENING! 

5. Mentally prepare yourself for the roadblocks, and hard times to come. It is going to get hard, you are going to feel weak (again it's all in your head)...but if you're prepared for it then you will prove to be strong!

6. Find a support person or group. Perhaps it's found amongst those that you chose to share your goals with, or someone else who has similar goals, challenges, weaknesses. Someone to lift and motivate when feeling hard. Someone to contradict those lies that your sneaky mind might be telling you. Someone to remind you that "YOU ARE STRONG ENOUGH"

I'm sure you get the idea by now. The point is don't hold yourself back. You can do it by preparing and then running at those hurdles full force. Why wait for tomorrow?

Don't be a chicken, eat chicken! (I'm pretty punny right)

As many of you know I don't really eat any meat besides the occasional turkey or chicken. I'm picky and just prefer leaner meats. Some think this could get bland or boring, my meals are hardly either of those! We had some plain cooked and shredded chicken left over from the whole wheat chicken enchiladas from the night before. So last nights dinner was a breeze. I threw together a mayonnaise-less chicken salad. It was awesome so I thought I'd share my concoction. 

CHICKEN SALAD LETTUCE WRAP

(about)3 boiled boneless skinless chicken breasts-shredded (could sub canned chicken)

3 TBSP of plain greek yogurt

2 TBSP of yellow mustard

2 TBSP of relish or pickle juice.

2 TBSP of raw honey

1/2 avocado-mashed

1 stalk of celery- sliced thin

1/4 an onion-diced

1/2 bell pepper (I used orange)

1 apple- remove core and dice

handful of craisins

salt and pepper to taste

A few leaves of lettuce of choice (I used romaine)

garnish with chopped pecans

Toss all ingredients in a bowl (minus the pecans and lettuce) until well blended. Spoon it out onto lettuce- sprinkle pecans on top. DEVOUR. 

Simple & Devine! It's wonderfully versatile as well. Experiment with your favorite diced fruits and veggies...you could try some of these add-ins as well: raisins, grapes, cucumbers, walnuts, ect. Or for a little more fiber put your lettuce and chicken on whole wheat bread or tortilla. 

Introducing me!

HOWDY! The name is Nikki. I am new to the blogging world so please forgive my errors of all varieties, as I am sure there will be many! I have had many of my close friends and family request that I start a blog and load it up with my fun nutritional facts, recipes, favorite work outs, ect. So get pumped, because I am jumping into this thing head first! I am excited...NO, I AM ECSTATIC, to share my knowledge and passion for healthy living with the world (well, the blogging world at least- it's a start). I am going to share my advice on how to eat clean, train mean, and get lean! I feel it important to start with a little selfish insert about ME, before we switch gears and focus on you.

This was me....2 years ago. This was about 6 months after having my second child.


This is me...NOW!


I went from weighing 135 to 105. I went from never running over a mile in my life to running marathons. I went from being depressed to happy. I went from self conscious to confident. I went from chronically fatigued to bursting at the seems with energy. I went from over 26% body fat, to 17%. I went from never working out, to working out 6 days a week. I went from not knowing how to cook anything that didn't come from a box to becoming an innovator of gourmet healthy meals composed of whole foods. I went from not knowing or caring what a calorie was, to obtaining a personal training certification through NASM. And now my next certification will be in holistic nutrition and health coaching. I am a completely new Nikki, and not just physically. This wasn't a 3 month fad diet. This was a lifestyle change. It took baby steps, determination, sweat, perseverance, and time. BUT HOW SWEET THE REWARD. I had no idea that, what started as just a weight loss venture, would change my entire demeanor and perception on life. I want others to feel how I feel. I want others to know what I know. I didn't know how gloomy life really was until I experienced the light on the other side. NOW I WANT TO SPREAD THIS LIGHT AND MAKE THE WHOLE WORLD SHINE. SOOO WITH THAT SAID- LET'S GET TO WORK!

I'll start with a simple delicious recipe today. These are my new favorite snack!


CANDIED CARROT STRIPS

5 medium carrots (washed, peeled, remove stem)
1/4 c coconut oil (could sub olive oil)
3 heaping TBSP of organic Agave nectar (or raw honey)
2 tsp of cinnamon
2 tsp of garlic
dash of ginger & nutmeg
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350
Wash, slice, destem carrots and cut length wise with knife or mandoline slicer, if you have one, for more even strips. Place carrot strips on parchment paper on a cookie sheet.
Stir all remaining ingredients except salt and pepper in bowl until well blended then brush it evenly over carrots. You might have to flip the carrots a time or two to ensure both sides are evenly coated. Then salt and pepper lightly to taste.
Throw it in the oven for about 45 minutes- flipping carrots over once about halfway through.

ENJOY! These are the perfect balance of sweet and savory, chewy with a touch of crunch.

FUN NUTRITIONAL FACT ABOUT CARROTS: Carrots are pretty much the only vegitable that become better for you once cooked. Although you lose the enzymes once cooked, it breaks down their protective barrier releasing a much more potent dose of beta carotene. Beta carotene is one of those rock-star, cure-all antioxidants our body needs to fight off free radicals. It boosts the immune system and vision, while lowering risk of heart disease, cancers, and diabetes. What's not to love about Carrots!