Vanilla Chia Pudding

It's pudding time!!!  And with the health benefits from chia seeds!  Have you tried these crazy little things yet?  Did you know that chia seeds have the highest-known percentage of omega-3s among plants?  They are also an excellent source of calcium!  Combine them with a simple combination of almond milk and your sweetener of choice and you'll get a tapioca-like pudding snack loaded with nutrients.  So if you have consistency issues with things like cottage cheese or tapioca, this might not be your thing.  That's okay!  You can also grind chia seeds and add them to shakes, jams or your own pudding for thickness.

Here are your basic ingredients!

Prep Time: 1 minute
Chill Time: 60 minutes (or longer)

Serves: 2

1 1/2 c. Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk (I like Silk brand)

1/4 c. Chia Seeds
1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
1/8 tsp (scant) NuNaturals pure stevia extract (or your favorite sweetener to taste)

Directions
 
It doesn't get much easier than this!  Put all ingredients in a Mason jar, cover tightly and shake.  Refrigerate for 5 - 10 minutes and then shake again.  Shake yet again after a few minutes so the seeds don’t clump all together.  Return to refrigerator for 50 minutes or longer.

Super healthy!  I will add that I am a chocolate person and sadly, I was OUT of cocoa powder.  Rats!  But this was still really good.  For a chocolate version, simply add 3-4 tbls. cocoa powder and give it a good stir and shake before sticking it in the fridge.

Where can you find chia seeds?  Pretty much any grocery store these days.  I think my Costco is now carrying them too.  I had purchased a gigantic 5 lb bag from Amazon and slooooowly working my way towards finishing it.

The finished product! 

per serving based on the brands I used:  143 calories, 8 g fat, 10 g fiber, 10 g carbs

Move over Reese's...now there's something healthier!

Shakeology Peanut Butter Cups

Those bunnies, eggs and peeps are STILL around! But the reality is that candy and junk will ALWAYS be everywhere…especially if you work in just about any office setting or have kids. Reese’s are just so darn good. The longer I’ve stayed away from them, however, the more fake and plastic-y they taste to me. Oh, maybe because they are fake? Well, never mind - try these healthy, full of nutrients, no guilt candies instead! For this recipe, I used Vegan Chocolate, but really any flavor can be used.

Ingredients

2 tbsp Nutiva Organic Extra Virgin Coconut Oil
5 tbsp Vegan Chocolate Shakeology
3 tbsp PB2 or all natural peanut or almond butter
2 tbsp water (may need to adjust if you're using natural PB or almond butter)
small cupcake liners or silicone ice cube tray

In a microwave safe bowl add the Nutiva coconut oil and nuke until melted. Remove and add Shakeology to the bowl, stir. Add just barely enough of the Shakeology and coconut oil mix to to cover the bottom of your cupcake liners or tray. Once filled, put them in the freezer for 1-2 minutes. In the meantime, in a bowl combine the PB2 with the water. Pull the liners/tray out of the freezer. Add about 1/2-1 tsp of the PB2 mix on top of the Shakeology layer. Finally, top off the PB2 layer with enough of the remaining Shakeology/coconut mix to cover the PB2. Pop in the freezer for about 5-10 minutes. ENJOY! Keep in the freezer so they stay solid! 

I will admit that I was in a mad rush to make these and wanted a sample - fast!  So instead of waiting for the layers, I just mixed all up in one batch and guess what?  Came out just as good.  :)

Healthy Coconut Oil Chocolate!

Do you happen to have some bunnies, as in CHOCOLATE bunnies staring you in the face?  So tempting to eat an ear, nibble off a foot, chomp off his little nose.  STOP the bunny from making it’s way into your belly!  Make these little coconut oil candies instead! They are chocolatey, provide healthy fats, and are super fast and easy to make!

Ready for the line up? All 3 ingredients! You can get fancy and add any nut butter, shredded, unsweetened coconut or vanilla extract. Super easy to play around with:

1/2 cup coconut oil (measure melted)
3 tbls. cocoa powder
1/8 teaspoon pure stevia powder (start with 1/8 t and add by teensy amounts from there for desired sweetness)

Mix all together and pour into mini cupcake liners or I like to use these silicone ice cube trays I picked up at IKEA. Place in the fridge for about 20-30 minutes until they set and THEN put in the freezer for another 20-30 minutes. Trust me, it's a PIA to clean up coconut oil that has spilled in the freezer.  Mmm hmm.  Store in the freezer as they melt really easily. Yum!

Training lean and mean for Summer!

I love T25 because it is a quick and effective workout - and you will see results EVERYWHERE!  But it's always nice to change things up and mix in a different program.  Below is a hybrid calendar that focuses on working the entire body in just 30 minutes per day.  There are no double days here, but you can certainly add in a T25 cardio session if you want maximum burn!  Rest days are on Sundays, but again, feel free to change it up so that your rest day falls where it fits your schedule best.  T25 Stretch is also a great way to fill in your rest day...and it feels SO good!

If you're ready to see your best body ever, mixing these two programs is a great way to get there!  T25 for amazing, FOCUSED core and cardio burn and X3 to get you ripped and see those muscles pop!

And always a good reminder that nutrition is key.  You can workout as hard as you want, but if you're not putting even greater effort into what goes into your body, your results will suffer.  Clean, healthy eating is key!

Contact me if you need help or have any questions!

The Love that is Shaun T and T25

Many of you that know me know that I have been working out in some way for many years.  I belonged to a gym for years and like all the other worker bees, I would get there after work and try to get in a good workout.  Sometimes I would spend 30 minutes just driving around looking for a parking place!  Drove me crazy!  After I moved to a neighborhood and a new job where the nearest 24 Hour Fitness just wasn't around, I decided to quit the gym.  I didn't really know what I was going to do, but I knew enough about sticking with a fitness program that if it's not convenient, it's just not going to happen.

I remembered seeing an informercial about the FIRM on tv and decided to look into it.  These looked like other normal women getting into shape at home!  I can do that!  A lot of them were moms that needed to fit something into their busy schedules, and even though I didn't have kids at the time, finding something that didn't take up 1-2 hours was just fine with me.  At the gym, I was either doing an hour step class or cardio and weights for 1 - 1.5 hours.  And let's just say that my results were not all that great.  Anyways, I decided to order the FIRM and to my amazement I really liked it!  It was challenging at first but I stuck with it and had better results than I had ever had with gym workouts.

Over the years I built up my FIRM library and I now have many, many DVDs.  After Gavin was about a year old, I decided that I needed to step things up a notch.  Going back to the gym was now not even on my radar and having the convenience of working out at home was key.  I had seen all the informercials for Insanity and started to look into it, but man!  Those are long workouts!  I knew I needed something different (and shorter!) and that's how I came upon T25.  It looked too good to be true!  Motivating workouts from the same creator as Insanity, RESULTS, and in only 25 minutes?  No way.  But I was intrigued and kept reading page after page of glowing reviews on Amazon and Beachbody.  Done.  Ordered!

The first workout I did was Alpha Cardio and I was just following the workout calendar.  O M G.  I seriously thought I was going to vomit.  I thought I was in pretty decent shape but this kicked my you-know-what in a major way.  What in the world did I sign up for???  But I kept at it and I kept struggling, but soon the struggling was a little less and soon I could tell I was getting stronger and my endurance was improving.  For the first time ever after working out for all these years, I DID take my before pictures.  And I'm so glad I did.  The results blew me away.  I knew I had lost some weight, but the scale never tells the full picture.  It honestly wasn't until I saw my before and after pictures that I fully realized how my body had changed.  Changes that I had never been able to make before...even when I was much younger and even before having two kids.  I got it.  Now I understood why so many people love this program!  It was because of the results I was having with T25 that inspired me to become a Beachbody coach.  What if I could spread the word about this amazing program, Shakeology and all of the other amazing programs that can be done at home?  What if I can help lead others to their health and fitness goals through an online fitness group, just like the one that I participated?  Well, pretty darn cool.

My after picture was taken in December 2013.  I have added in other Beachbody programs into the mix and love them.  But T25 continues to be my #1 favorite.  You're busy just like me.  You want results just like I do.  You want to be motivated and engaged in a fun workout?  Yep, me too.  This is it!  You will not be disappointed in the love that is Shaun T and T25.  And earning a free t shirt?  Yay!

All Natural Deodorant!

I get pretty excited when I find something that you can make at home, is 100% natural and is really effective!  I love this little concoction.  It doesn't get any easier than this!  Try ditching your regular aluminum-based antiperspirant and see what you think!!

1/4 c baking soda (for no stinkies and dryness)

1/4 c corn starch (for smooth and dry.  You can also use arrowroot powder)

5-6 Tbsp coconut oil (for soft and anti-stink, also antimicrobial.  LOVE this stuff!)

Combine powders. Add oil as needed and mix until proper consistency is achieved.

Keep in mind that coconut oil is solid under 76 degrees, so you'll get significantly different results depending on the weather.  During colder weather it is solid like conventional deodorant, and on warmer days it's more like a lotion. Either way, I scoop out a pea-sized amount with my finger and apply.

I keep mine in a jar in the bathroom.  Some people are sensitive to baking soda and may want to play around with the ratios.  Another note about the possibility of redness:  "Detoxing the chemicals absorbed from antiperspirants is also a real possibility that can sometimes manifest in temporarily red or irritated skin."  I found this online and of course I cannot recall the source!

I made it the first time and just used a 1/2 recipe and that was quite a bit.  So if you're thinking about trying it go with half the amount - it will take minutes to make and probably with ingredients you already have at home!

Now go get yourself all natch and non-stanky!!!  :)