Continuing on!

So I just got back from an amazing vacation!  And for once in my life I'm not looking back at the pictures and wishing I had done more before I went on vacation.  I look at them and I am so incredibly proud of how far I have come!  During my vacation I enjoyed life, food, and everything in between!!  Now I'm in a food coma haha.  It's funny how I could not wait to get back to my clean, healthy life style.  I was sick right after the challenge up until the vacation, so I've essentially had the past 3 week "off" from healthy.  It has not been as rewarding as I would have thought!  My body rejected the food for the most part, and really did not like any of it.  Some of it did taste amazing, such as the pumpkin seed cheese rolls....yes I"m still dreaming of them....but all the desserts were not that enjoyable!  I ate about half of my order with each of them, except the key lime pie...that's my down fall haha. Maybe I'll work on finding a healthier alternative....

I have to add that I am so proud of my husband Josh.  I thought that he would only eat junk food while I was away, but he ate healthy!  He learned how to cook fish on his own :-)  I'll have to make him cook one of these evenings haha.  He also has really committed to his work out routine that him and his trainer have worked out for him!  I cannot be more proud :-)  He helps inspire me everyday. He deserves a wife that is willing to work just as hard as him towards our health.

Tomorrow I start back up with my workout routine, and healthy eating.  My goal for this week is to hit the gym at least 3 times....then slowly work my way up to 5 days a week by the end of the month.  I'm going to go back to drinking 2 shakes a day, but I'm keeping dairy in my diet.  I also will keep a little gluten as well, maybe a sandwich here and there.  I am also going to work on upping the amount of veggies I have a day, and cut down on fruit.  I relied on fruit a little too much during my last detox to get me through, and I believe in turn I got a little too much sugar.

The next 30 day clean eating challenge begins May 2nd and I would love to help you out during it!!  Please comment below if your interested in joining in!! Let me help you, and in turn you will be helping continue to inspire me!  That's why I began this blog in the first place...to help keep my self accountable, and to help inspire others!

While on vacation I also continued to read my book "The Slight Edge" which I mentioned in an earlier post.  It inspires me every day more and more to work towards what I want in life.  It has made me realize that Josh and I can no longer just sit around and wait for life to happen, but that we need to go out and get it!  There's little things we can do every day to make our dreams come true, and we need to make sure we are always doing it.  I do not want to go into much detail right now what exactly I'm talking about for our lives until things start falling into place, but I have great hope in all of it!

Keep reaching for those dreams everyone, whether it's a health journey, work, or life in general! Keep checking back for more posts!

After the cleanse...

Sorry I haven't been on here over the past week and a half!!  I actually ended up sick right after the challenge ended!  How crazy is that?!  When I'm sick my body rejects pretty much any food haha.  I have to eat whatever I can get down so I don't become too weak. So my diet for a few days was a milk shake, some fries, and a couple smoothies.  That was it!! I know bad Michele, sugar, and dairy and fried foods, but that's all that I could even stand to think about eating! Even today all I could eat really was some chicken at lunch, and fries for dinner.  So horrible for me! But if that is what it takes for me to eat right now, that's what I eat! (I have though lost another 1/2 inch around my belly! haha)

I haven't even gotten to work out since the end of the cleanse!  I've done some home stuff, but not a whole lot.  It's been a lot of sleeping for me.  So yeah that's fun!  I have to get better before my trip that I leave for on Friday!  I'm starting to feel much better, so hopefully it just keeps going!  I'm planning on making a shake tomorrow morning before work and seeing how that works for me!

I've already decided that when I get back from my trip that I will be keeping my diet pretty much the same as the cleanse...2 shakes a day, and a clean meal, along with 2 snacks.  I'm going to do a little dairy, but not a whole lot.  Also trying to intensify my work out!  We're trying to work up towards being able to climb a 14er this year, so I have a lot of work ahead of me!  But since the weather is just getting nicer each week, hopefully we'll be able to get out there and start hiking more!

For Josh we reintroduced dairy back, his trainer said that he really needed those healthy fats.  He's still going strong with working out, and I could not be more proud of him!  I can't wait to take another pic of him towards the end of the month to see even more results with him!  You can tell that he just has more and more energy everyday!  He is by far the healthiest he has ever been in his life!

I do have some exciting news though!  I have decided to become a rep for Arbonne!!  It has made such a difference in our lives, that I want to be able to help others out there as well reach their goals!! Not only does Arbonne have some amazing products for nutrition, but they have amazing all natural skin and hair care lines!  Please message me if you want to know more!

Well that's all for tonight, I just wanted to give a quick update to what's been going on, and why I haven't been on here!  I'll be gone on vacation, so my next post will be after I get back!!

Keep pushing for those dreams and goals!

Final Cleanse Weigh In!!

Yesterday was our final day of the Arbonne Clean Eating Challenge!!!  And I cannot express how happy I am with the results! This past month was an emotional roller coaster with this!  Like I've said before, detox is so much for than just cutting food out!  It's about will power!  I've also been working towards making smarter decisions in my life and learning to love my life!  This detox has given me so much more energy!  I feel amazing, I'm able to push my self harder, and I cannot wait to keep going!

So my final weight after the cleanse.......170!!!!! DOWN 7 lbs in a month!!  That is not the most amazing part though!! I'm down 7 inches! And that's just measuring around my bust, waist, and hips! I know that I've gone done all around as well!

Now comes the next step...reintroducing some food items back into our diets.  We're going to still eat healthy and make healthy decisions for our selves, but not be so restrictive.  Our first thing we're going to reintroduce is milk and dairy.  Instead of buying whole milk like I normally would, I got 2%! I also got us some cheese for snacks.  I'm going to have to monitor very closely the calorie and fat content I'm taking in, so that way nothing is sneaking up on me!!  We're going to continue with making our morning shakes, and eating 3 meals and 2 snacks a day.

I know this is a short post, but unfortunately I've gotten sick.  Go figure right after the cleanse haha.  So that's all I'm going to write for tonight.  I have an awesome recipe to share with you all, hopefully tomorrow!

Weight = 170
Bust =  37 inches
Wait = 35 inches
Hips = 41 inches

Keep pushing, and keep going, reach those dreams!

Cleanse friendly Shepherd's Pie

So on Wednesday here in Colorado we had a really nasty Blizzard!  So much so that both of us got stuck at home for the day.  I wanted something really warm and hearty to make, so I came up with this little gem!

Shepherd's pie is one of my favorite comfort foods!  Just thinking of the potatoes, the cheese, the beer stout sauce...mmmmmmmm.. OK enough dreaming!  I had to think of a way to make this friendly for the cleanse!  Then it dawned on me...mashed cauliflower in place of the potatoes...and no cheese.  Then came the thought of the missing beer..what to do there? Well just a basic "gravy" I guess could work.  I knew that I needed to pack it full of flavor in order to make this work, that's why I added the mushrooms!

It definitely hit the spot, and was very comforting for a cold day like it was!  We ended up with a little over a foot of snow, which is crazy!!  Just walking and playing in the snow was a work out in it's self!! And we did just that! Ok ok, enough blabbing! Here's the recipe for ya! (sorry the pic isn't the best, totally forgot to take a picture before diving into it!)

Cauliflower Shepherd's Pie

1 lb grass feed beef

bag of frozen carrots and peas

2 cups diced mushrooms

2 T oil of choice

2 celery stalks

2 cloves garlic diced

1 yellow onion

1 head cauliflower

1 cup beef broth

1 T worcestershire sauce

2 T gluten free flour

1/4 C coconut milk

salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

In a saucepan heat up oil over medium high heat.  Saute onion, celery, and mushrooms until onions are translucent. Add garlic and cook until it becomes fragrant. Set aside.

In same pan brown ground beef until done.  Add flour to beef stirring well, and cook for additional 2 minutes.  Stir back in onion, mushroom, celery mix, along with frozen carrots and peas.  Whisk in beef broth, worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper, and bring to a simmer.  Simmer for about 5 minutes, until gravy becomes thick.  

Meanwhile take head of cauliflower and break down.  Place in a microwave safe bowl, and just cover with water.  Cover with plastic wrap and microwave on high for 5 minutes.  Let sit an additional 5 minutes.  (test the cauliflower with a fork to make sure it is tender.  If not microwave until it is)

After cauliflower is super tender, drain off water and blend cauliflower with coconut milk until light and fluffy.  If you need to add more milk you can, but be careful to not make too soupy. Add salt and pepper to taste.  

Layer the beef mixture in the bottom of a casserole dish then top with the mashed cauliflower.  Spray the top of the cauliflower with cooking spray (I have just canola oil spray) and place in oven.

Bake for 30 minutes.  If top of cauliflower is not browned you can turn the oven to broil for 5 minutes.  Mine personally did not want to brown.

Enjoy!

Josh's results!

So my husband Josh decided to take an "after" picture yesterday!  He did not take one at the beginning of the month, but had one on his phone from September, which was his "after" picture from the first cleanse we did! And all I can say is WOW!  What a difference!!  He is down 35 lbs since September, and several inches! I do not know the exact amount!  He now has enough energy to workout and start building some muscle.  His headaches have gotten better, and he just over all feels really healthy!!

I will take my after photo at the end of this week, along with posting all my final stats from the cleanse!  But that does not mean that it ends there! NO WAY! This is a fresh start to our new life styles!!  2016 is the year of us!! We're becoming healthier, gaining new habbits, and hopefully will be purchasing our first house! So excited!!

I'll post later today with a new recipe :-)

Weigh in day 3 / Final Stretch!!!

So today was weigh in day!! And I"m happy to announce I am down 2 more lbs and 1 1/2 more inches!!! This past week was an interesting week.  I really focused this past week on how much I was eating by keeping track of my calories.  This cleanse is not about counting carbs, but it is good to know where you stand.  And it turns out, I was not eating enough!  No wonder I was having the headaches!!!  I was actually working out almost too much for the amount of food I was eating!  So I cut back on working out for the week to focus on my food side of things.  I think I finally got it down on how much I need to be eating every day when I do not work out!  So my challenge for my self this week is to re introduce working out, but to make sure I'm amping up my food intake to go along with it!!

When loosing weight, at least for women, you should be having a net balance of 1200 calories. It does not mean eat 1200 calories, burn off 300 working out and you will loose more weight! NO WAY!! 1200-300 = only 900 calories for the day.  Your body will go into starvation mode at this point!  When starvation mode happens your body may convert any food it gets into fat to store!  It's thinking that it needs to build up in order to survive.  Please do not do this to your body!  Make sure you eat enough!

Now this does not give you a free for all!  Still make sure the foods you are eating are pure clean healthy foods. Just up the healthy fats some if you are struggling to hit your calorie goal!  That means more flax seeds, chia seeds, coconut oil, etc.  Avocado is a great source of healthy fats if you are not allergic like me haha.  Same with nuts!  We love cashews!  And Josh also loves pistachios!

Another great thing we were able to this week was finally get Josh's diet under control! He did not loose anything this week and gained an inch across his chest!! He met up with a personal trainer this past week and is going to sign up for 5 sessions to get a great work out down to help him start bulking up!  He's never been more excited!!  I'm excited for him!  He's going to also help me out by showing me some of the stuff he learns!

So I have about 3 weeks until my cruise!! If I keep up the weight loss I've been going at, with 2 lbs a week, I'll be down 12 lbs in time for the cruise! Down to the weight I was at before my latest accident!!!  I am so excited!  I feel so good, and feel more and more healthy every day!  It's defiantly a struggle and true testament to my will power, but I'm proud of my self!  As you should be of your self! Even if it's just drinking water instead of soda one day.  Celebrate that accomplishment!!

I'm going to leave you today with a fun Sponge Bob meme about working out haha.  This one always cracks me up!!

Weight = 171
Bust = 38
Waist = 35
Hips = 41

It's not easy!

If anyone ever tells you weight loss is easy....run...it is not easy!  There is no miracle pill, or no miracle drink out there.  Those are all great for quick fixes, but not a lifestyle change!  That is what Josh and I are focusing on.  A lifestyle change!  One step at a time.  There are defiantly moments of weakness, but it is all about over coming them.  And then if you do give into that weakness, forgive your self and move on.  Do not give up! Keep pushing through!

The other night we both just had the urge to go to Old Chicago, have some appetizers and drinks.  It took every ounce of will power we had to not go.  We're dedicated to this cleanse and cannot let our weakness show!  Now after our cleanse we can do that once in a while, in moderation.  That's the key..moderation.  We do not want to completely undo our progress!  Once again, it's all about life style change.  Being healthy beyond doing the cleanse!

Speaking of the cleanse, the past few days have been our days we drink the detox drink portion of all this.  It really helps cleanse out the system, and boy does it!  My energy levels have been a little lower from it, and with the weather change my back has not been happy.  I haven't been able to go to the gym as much as liked this week, but I have to listen to what my body says :-)

My best friend visited the other night, and I needed to do something in a hurry for dinner.  I was really craving breakfast!  So I cam up with this recipe :-) I also did a little side salad with it, and it was pretty darn good if I say so my self!! Also it was super easy!!  Let me know what you think!

Eggs and Sweet Potato

2 sweet potatoes

4 eggs

2 Tablespoons fresh rosemary

1 Tablespoon coconut oil
1/4 cup soft herbed goat cheese

salt and pepper to taste

Arugula, about 2 cups

Dressing for Salad

1 Tablespoon dijon mustard

1 Tablespoon balsamic vinegar

1 Tablespoon agave syrup or honey

1/4 cup oil (I use canola, but you can use olive oil)

salt and pepper to taste

Turn oven onto broil

Shred sweet potatoes.  Heat up oil in skillet and cook sweet potatoes until tender, about 8-10 minutes.  Add rosemary salt and pepper.  Make 4 divots in sweet potato hash.  Crack eggs into divots and cook for a few minutes until whites are partially set.  Sprinkle the top with goat cheese. 

Place skillet in oven for about 5 minutes, until egg are cooked to desired doneness.

In the mean time whisk all ingredients together for dressing. Toss arugula in dressing

Serves 2

See I told you it was easy!! Once again, let me know what you think of it!!

Weigh in and PI day!

Happy Monday! We are officially half way through the 30 day detox / cleanse!!! WOHO!! So proud of us!  We had our weigh in this morning! I'm down another 2 lbs, and 2 1/2 inches!!  Once again, I was hoping for more, but I had to once again remind my self that it's still a loss!! And all together it is 4 lbs lost!  I'm on my way towards my goal!!  I'm fitting into my "tight" jeans, except my one pair that is a size 10.  I can actually button and zip them, but they're super tight!  I'll get back to them sooner than later!

So I've been reading my book and the past chapter I read was all about how we are in a society of wanting things right now, and that quantum leap essentially that we all expect to happen.  This was a great one to read with my weigh in day.  It was just a great reminder that there is no quantum leap when it comes to weight loss!  It's little by little, but they all add up over time!  And as I've mentioned before, this isn't just about weight loss.  It's about being healthier, and having the energy! That way we can enjoy life more!

The advice that I'm getting from the book I'm not only applying to my weight loss, but also to my Jamberry business.  It's the little things that I do each day for it, that will help me succeed in the long run!  There is no such thing as over night success, but it's so hard to get out of that mental state!!  It's hard to not just run away every time something doesn't go exactly right, but just have to keep going!

I will say that today was one of the most difficult of the cleanse so far, mentally any ways.  We woke up late, so didn't get to the gym. Then we had running around to do and had to eat out.  Not going to lie, that's when we tend to bicker the most! Over where to eat, and then when we're on this cleanse and so limited it makes it even worse!  We finally came to the decision on Wahoo Fish Tacos.  We each had one salmon one, and on wahoo one, both with no cheese.  When we got them, we forgot to ask without the sour cream sauce, so we just ate them as they were.  Oh well.  A little cheat, but it was better than arguing more over it haha.

Today was also international PI day!  Seeing pictures of pies all over Facebook today was a little bit of a killer!! This made the day that much worse with cravings. So what did I do? I got inspired!! I got inspired to make a clean eating challenge friendly pie.  Ok so it was more like a cobbler than a pie, but still hit the spot!!

Tomorrow is a new day, a fresh day, and it will be a better day!  I'm excited to meet up with my awesome Arbonne coach Ashely, and catch up!!  Who knows, maybe here soon Josh and I will be the newest reps of Arbonne!  We really cannot lie on how much this program has helped us out, and how we would love to help others out as well!  Have a great day everyone, and I will catch up with all of you soon!!

Weight = 173 lbs
Bust = 39 inches
Waist = 35.5 inches
Hips = 41 inches

Gluten Free, Sugar Free Apple Cobbler

2 Granny Smith Apples (Peeled, Diced and Cored)

2 T agave syrup

1 T lemon juice

1/2 T gluten free flour

Cinnamon (as much as you like)

Clove (as much as you like)

a pinch of nutmeg

1/2 t salt

Crumble

1 cup gluten free oats

1/2 cup gluten free flour

1 packet stevia

1/2 t salt

1/2 T cinnamon

2 T coconut oil (softened)

Preheat the oven to 350

Combine apples, agave syrup, lemon juice, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, 1/2 t salt, and 1/2 T gluten free flour all together and place in a greased casserole dish.

In a separate bowl work together all the crumble ingredients, until well combined.  Top the apple mixture with the crumble.

Cover in aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes

Uncover and continue to bake for 30 more minutes.  

Voila, a cleanse friendly apple crumble!!

It was pretty darn good, deff hit the spot.  Could have used some ice cream...but that's no cleanse friendly haha!!  Let me know what ya think!!!

Cheat Day and the after effect

Yesterday was a our cheat day!! We finally had a day off together, which is rare to come by these days!  So we decided to use it as our cheat day.  Normally our day is suppose to be exactly half way, but we decided this would be better.  So we took the day and drove up to Estes Park to go to our favorite burger/gyro place! Baba's burgers.  

We had some eggs and OJ before heading up so that it wasn't too terrible for us.  After that we got to go fight with Comcast for a little before heading up.  Always so much fun!  The drive up was amazing!  Such a beautiful day out here in Colorado!  So relaxing.

At Baba's I had their traditional Gyro, and Josh had double cheese burger. We split an order of greek fries, and a soda.  I could only eat about half of my gyro and a few fries before I was full and done.  It did taste really good, but I didn't find my self gorging my self on it.  Now Josh on the other, can eat like there's no tomorrow haha.  He ate all of his, and the rest of the fries!

After we were done wondering around in Estes Park we headed up to Black Hawk.  Here we got to have a couple of drinks, but we were both so full from lunch that we did not end up eating any dinner!  Drinks were good as always, and so was the gambling haha.  We only lost $10, but to play for quite a while. Black Jack is always our go to, and we have our few annoying penny slots that we really enjoy!

So now we are here the day after cheating.  We were a little sluggish to wake but, but we did and got straight to the gym!  I have had a goal the past week to hit 5000 reps on the elliptical in my 35 min weight loss work out, and finally hit it today!! I was proud of my self!  I may have to start upping the intensity on the workout, because now it's getting to the point of being easy!  I would not have believed you if you would have told me that at the beginning of the year!  We have a free session with a trainer, so Josh is going to utilize that on Thursday to learn some proper weight lifting techniques so that he can start building some muscle. 

The only side effect we're feeling from yesterday is that our stomachs are a little girgley, and gassey, but not too bad.  We still have great energy, and really had an easy time going straight back to eating well. The only down fall we had was eating some dark chocolate, but I really needed to curb that craving before going ballistic!

We went around and did some shopping.  I needed some ore clothes for my cruise coming up.  And over all I'm liking the way things are looking.  I'm proud of my progress! Weigh in day 2 is coming up here in a few days and I'm excited to see where I stand with everything!  Almost half way through this 30 day detox!!  

Strange things are happening....

So I had a couple of revelations across the past couple of days.  Just some settle changes I'm noticing about my body, and mind.  All great part of the detox!

First off, while getting doughnuts yesterday and today for my class that I teach, I could hardly stand the smell of them!! They smelled incredibly overwhelmingly sweet!!  It almost made me nauseous! Just a couple of weeks ago I could wolf down a couple of these bad boys, but I was so turned off by the smell I had no desire at all to eat any!  I cannot believe how incredible my will power has been here lately!  With my position I literally have junky food staring me down all day long!  I should have gotten a picture to show you!!  I set up my tables for my training class with chips, candy, cookies or doughnuts, and then some fruit as well, all down the center of it.  I look at it all day long!! But not once, since starting my detox, have I had an urge to grab something!

Then today at work I bought lunch for the group.  Good 'ol friend chicken with 2 sides.  I drank my shake like a good girl, and it did not bother me one bit.  I never once found my self going, oh man I wish I could have that too....I enjoyed my shake, felt full, and was ready to keep going.  My mind is slowly shifting towards thinking of food as fuel, and not as a way to cope, or reward my self.  It's crazy how much I'm learning about what my body truly needs and wants, and listening to it is so rewarding!

Now I didn't get to work out today like I wanted to do so.  The pressure in the air must be changing because my back and neck are pretty sore this evening.  This is something I have really learned over time is that I need to listen to my body.  There is a point of pushing, but the over doing it and making it worse.  I think it's coming up time for another massage :-)  Time to reward my body for all it's hard work and everything I have been putting it through!  Now that's a reward not food!

We have our first cheat day coming up.  Technically it's suppose to be next Monday, but we're doing it Friday since we actually have a day off together.  We're planning on heading up to Estes Park! All Josh wants is a burger from our favorite burger place, Baba's burgers.  They really are good!  But while we're up there, we're going to try to go for a hike if it isn't too snowy.  If it is, we'll just end up wondering around the town and enjoying each other's company.  I cannot wait!

Another note, another strange thing I noticed about my body....When I bend over my fat rolls are different....Such a weird statement I know!! But it's true! My fat is folding weird hahaha.  I think it's a good thing!  So crazy to notice all these little changes going on!

Anyways I'm going to leave you with this recipe!  It turned out so amazing!! I cannot take the credit for this one though.  I found it on Pinterest!! So I'll show my picture and give you the link to it!!

Click here for the recipe

Weigh in day!

So today was weigh in day! I'm down 2 lbs and 2 inches.  Now, I'm happy that I did have some loss, but it's not quite as much as I was hoping for!  I should have been more excited than I was when I first weighed, but instead I found my self doubting my self.  Thinking what did I do wrong to not lose more?!?  But quickly I snapped my self out of it!! I have to celebrate! 2 lbs down and 2 inches! Not to mention how much more energy I have and how great I am feeling!!

This detox is so much more than just weight loss.  It's a great beginning to a beautiful future!  This detox is all about changing my lifestyle and mind set, and getting healthy.  Like I said, I feel so wonderful, and full of energy! Something I was really lacking before starting this.

On top of diet change, I'm reading this wonderful book called "The Slight Edge" by Jeff Olsen.  It's all about how we think each and every day, and how our thoughts and actions can add up to be so much.  There was a great story within the book about a frog and his brother.  I'll just give a brief summery.  Pretty much they jumped into a milk pale on a farm.  Soon they realized that they could not jump out due to the slick surface, and not being able to touch the ground.  They tried and tried.  Finally one brother said he's going to give up and accept his fate.  The other brother refused to give it.  He kept kicking and kicking, until one day he was so tired he could harley kick anymore.  Then to his surprise he had a solid surface under him.  All of his kicking had churned the milk into butter.  He was then able to jump out.

This story really spoke to me.  It may seem hopeless, or impossible at times, but just keep pushing and pushing and eventually, you will see the results! We can apply this to our philosophy when it comes to weight loss.  So many diets out there promise immediate results, loose 10 lbs in one week guaranteed!!  But if you really look into those, they're all about either starving your self, or its all water weight.  There's nothing healthy about these!  As soon as you go off of it, you gain all the weight right back, and most people are even more discouraged then!  We're such a society of right here right now, but we need to get out of that mind set.  Results take perseverance, and hard work to finally see results, much like the frog and the butter.

Click here to buy

So my friends just keep pushing! Celebrate any loss!  Even if you don't loose anything one week, think about all the other changes.  Do you have more energy? Can you survive without coffee? Is your skin looking clearer? How about have you lost any inches?  So many other factors besides what the scale says! Just keep pushing (or swimming as Dory would say).

So I went back and read some of the materials and for optimum weight loss everything says to do two shakes a day.  So I will be doing two shakes and one meal, along with my snacks.  See how this adjustment works out for me and see if I have any greater results!  Josh will still be eating two meals, but we are adding an extra shake for him as well.  He does not need to loose any more weight.  He's on a medication that he has to be careful about not loosing too much, so to adjust he will drink another shake!

I did not end up getting to work out today.  I had every intention of doing so after work, but I got this awful migrane!  The kind that makes you kind of dizzy.  With my recent head injury, I decided it was best to listen to my body, and relax for the evening.  Maybe here in a bit I"ll get some ab exercises in at least :-)  I did get another meal made this evening for the week, so here I will share it with you!!

Weight = 175
Bust = 39.5 inches
Waist = 36 inches
Hips = 42.5 inches

Chicken with Mushroom Garlic Quinoa

3 chicken breasts

1 cup quinoa

1 cup water

11/2 cup chicken broth

2 cups sliced mushrooms

5 cloves garlic

1 T ground thyme

1 T cajun seasoning

1 T oil

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

Toss chicken in oil and sprinkle cajun seasoning all over.  Place in baking pan and bake for 35-40 mins. Make sure it's done all the way through.

In the mean time rinse quinoa thoroughly until the water runs clear.  Then combine water 1 cup of chicken broth and quinoa in a pot.  Bring to a boil, then turn to low, cover, and let simmer for 15 minutes.  

In a separate skilled add 1 T oil, then mushrooms. Sautee until tender.  I like to do mine a little longer so they melt like butter!

                                   

Add garlic and continue to cook until garlic is fragrant, only about a minute.  Toss in cooked quinoa and rest of chicken broth and thyme.  Stir all together and let simmer for another minute.  And voila, all done!  Serve with chicken!! 

Now for portion control, the picture that I have is a Josh serving, I'd only eat half the breast!  Also it's on a small plate haha.  My little white plate looks better in pictures than my red ones :-)

Now don't forget our talk! Keep pushing, and celebrate the little accomplishments!  Before we all know it, we will see our goals come true, on little step at a time!!

So it's Sunday fun day! We started our morning with an amazing hike!! The weather has been so beautiful out here the past few weeks!! We've really taken advantage of being able to get out side! Our total hike was just about two hours, and 4 miles! We climed about 80 flights of stairs! Such a beautiful day. And what's great is our younger dog, Fry, loves to go hiking with us!

When we got home we had lunch! Some awesome salmon and asparagus. So yummy!! I'll post that recipie at the end of this post for all of you! I also started working on meal preping for the week.

Today I was chocked full of energy, and ready to rock and roll!! Zero cravings!! It's pretty amazing! I went to my parents for the evening and made my own version of what they were having and also got me some "ice cream" I can have!  But the urge to cheat is not there at all!

So Josh and I tend to work complete opposite meals, so I try to make enough meals for 5-6 days. I'll make enough of each dish to feed us twice, so I make 5-6 different meals for the week! Now most Arbonne coaches give a meal plan out that is amazing to follow, but I love coming up with my own. I will fail if I follow someone else's meal plan haha. I also have a lot of allergies to food. So I have to be careful!

For our meals this week it was $100 for 10 meals, which makes it out to be $5 per meal per person. Not bad right? I splurged a little for today's lunch with salmon and asparagus cause neither were on sale! I shop primarily at King Soopers, being that we both work for the company, and they have a great line of organics with their simple truth line!

This week we are having...

Sweet potato Brussels sprout hash with chicken
Steak rellenos
Frittata
Quinoa and mushroom with chicken
Pizza (yes pizza)
And then the salmon we had for lunch today!

So that's all to report for today!! Good luck to those of you starting tomorrow! I'll be posting my first week results tomorrow with weigh in! I cannot wait!!!!!

Dijon Crusted Salmon with asparagus

2 salmon filets
2 T Dijon mustard
1/4 C gluten free bread crumbs
2 T oil
1 bunch asparagus
2 t paprika
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Spread 1 T Dijon mustard over each filet. Season with sale and pepper. Combine 1 T oil with bread crumbs, then sprinkle evenly over the filets. Sprinkle with paprika.
Trim the ends off the asparagus and toss in rest of oil. Place asparagus to the side of the pan and salt and pepper.
Bake for 10 minutes. My oven took 12, so be sure to check for doneness!!
Enjoy!!

Days 1-5 (the hardest part)

Ive heard so many people say, oh a detox or cleanse can't be "that hard..." But let me tell you... It's not as easy as it sounds! Part of Arbonne's detox is cutting out all allergin foods from your diet. So gluten, dairy, sugar, eating all natural, organic, grass fed meats. Doesn't look too bad on paper, but it's amazing how addicted we get to these things! Another no go is coffee! This was one of my hardest things to let go of! We've been primarily gluten free during Josh being gluten sensitive, but the coffee part is hard!
So I know I haven't really posted for my first week, but it is rough on your body. So many changes going on, that remembering to post as well is not easy! But I'll give you an overview of what goes on, the nitty gritty stuff people don't like to talk about!
So really day 3 and 4 are the worst! At this point your body is starting to realize that your not going to give in to your sugar or coffee addiction and it starts to retaliate! You've upped its fiber content, and it's not happy with you! For these two days I was soooo gassy!! Like pain staking cramping from it! I'm sitting there trying to facilitate my classes and not just let one rip! So embarrassing!! I had to take several bathroom breaks where I felt like I was going to explode! Also let me tell you, that fiber you add to your morning shake works! It deffinantly cleans out your system haha! (I told you this would be the nitty gritty side of things).
On top of the gas and bloating came the headaches! Josh and I both got these bad, and all it is is us withdrawing from sugar and caffeine! Wholy moly! You don't realize how hooked you get on that stuff!! I've had to withdraw from a medication before from my first car accident, and it feels pretty darn similar! But just push through it!! Know that there is a light at the end of the tunnel!! I promise!
Yesterday was day 5, and the tiredness set in! My body was whiped from what I had put it through for the week! I worked out 3 of the 5 days on top of detoxing and I was exhausted!! I listened to my body and slept in some before having to go to work.
Today is day 6, and it was difficult to get up, but we did, and got straight to the gym since we had missed the last two days. After finally getting to the gym all of a sudden I found my enegery!! I pushed way harder on the elliptical than I ever have!! Then I came home got ready, cleaned up, got groceries, went and saw a movie with my friend, went to the mall, going out tonight with Josh! Sooooo much energy, no gas, and I haven't had to take my heart burn meds the last 2 night!!
Like I said the first week is hard, no matter who you are!! Just push through it! You can do it!!! You will be so happy that you did!
Tomorrow is meal prep day, I'll post some pics and stuff showing off how I go a out it all!!

Arbonne 30 day detox

Back in July of 2015 I was introduced, by a friend, to Arboone's 30 day clean eating challenge other wise known as 30 day detox. My friend had some amazing results with it and my husband and I were ready to jump on board! So we did the challenge eg in August! We were pretty bad with exercising like we were suppose to, and we snuck in way too many "cheat days." Regardless we had some pretty good results!
Come October I was down to 165, the lowest I've been in a long time and was able to fit into a size 10! Life was amazing! We went on a trip to Florida and I wore all my shorts with confidence and was proud of my body!!
Then in November, I was involved in yet another car accident. Not nearly as bad, but if left me with a mast concussion, and took me out of the gym for two months! My state of mind was gone, and all I wanted to eat was super unhealthy foods!
Then the Holidays rolled around, and my diet was really out the window!! I couldn't be stopped.
Come Janurary I tried to diet a little but my self control was not there at all. Before I knew it here I am in March and I've gained 17 lbs since November!! How did I let my self do that?!?!
So I sat down with my husband and we both decided it was time to buckle back down, and focus on our health. (He's lucky and didn't really gain anything back, but yet he was out of shape.)
We thought back to August and what really helped jumpstart us. Arboone's 30 day challenge!
This time around doing the detox were not going to squeeze in extra cheat days and we're going to hit the gym hard! No excuses!! I am so motivated to do this it's quite ridiculous!!
We started on leap day, 2/29/2016.

Weight = 177
Bust = 40 inches
Waist = 37 inches
Hips = 43 inches

And the dreaded before picture... I cannot believe I'm posting this pic!

This is not going to be easy... But I know we can do it!

The begining

So here I am, February 29th 2016, leap year.  4 years ago today, my wonderful husband and I were enjoying ourselves at Disney's extra day celebration at Magic Kingdom.  We arrived bright and early, eager and young, to ride all the rides.  We would probably never believe if someone told us that on the next leap year, we would be living back in Colorado.  Renting from my in-laws, and still trying to figure out life.  Our vision was much different at that point.  We envisioned our selves owning a house in Florida, having at least one kid, me working in the entertainment industry, Josh with the theme parks, and loving life.  But here we are, 4 years later, in Colorado, not homeowners, not parents, and both in the Grocery industry.  I'm not saying that our lives are horrible or bad by any means, just much different than we ever imagined they would be!  We are both very sucessful in the industry, me being a Divisional Technical Trainer for King Soopers and City Market, making a fairly decent pay, and Josh is a Deli Assistant manager for King Soopers, also making decent money.  We're both in decent health, despite a few problems here and there, but nothing horrific.  We have family and a few friends.  Our two dogs are our lives, and we get out and enjoy life as much as we can.  But, what happened to those dreams and aspirations?  How did we get so far away from them?

It all started on June 10th 2012, around 2:00 in the afternoon.  I had gotten off work early, and eager to get to Target, to buy a few grocery items needed to make Josh's Birthday cake!  I was planning on working on it the next day since I was off, and we were going to go to Sea World's new water park for his Birthday!  We were both very excited.  Unbeknown to me, life had other plans.  I was rear ended on my way to Target, and not just a light tap, but full speed of 45 mph, while I was dead stop.  I had stopped for a Police vehicle going through the intersection with their lights on.  That right then and there, is what started our journey to where we are today.

I ended up with 4 herniated discs in my neck and a torn rotator cuff.  Doctors had a hard time figuring out exactly what was wrong and how to help.  We ended up having to get a lawyer involved because the other insurance company was not agreeing to pay my medical bills.  Life started wearing on us.  All of our days off from work were spent back and forth to Dr. visits, and lawyer visits.  Work was going down hill for me, because I got stuck in an industry I did not want to be a part of.  I only took the job back in March to be temporary, as I worked my way back into entertainment.  I was in constant pain, and on and off so many different kids of medications.  Money was getting tight from all the driving we were having to do, and all the work being missed from doing so.  We saw no light at the end of the tunnel, and everything was closing in on us at once.  We made the decision to move back home to Colorado, to be around family for moral support, and to try to find our way again.

Over the next few years, we had to fly to and from Florida for the lawsuit, which finally settled September of 2014!  Yes you read that right, two years after the accident.  While out here I found a back Dr. that was amazing.  After a few failed tries with steroid shots, we finally found that working out is what helps my back the most, but that I would have to live with the pain.

Both of us ended up in a couple of dead end jobs, with companies and managers that did not respect, nor treat us correctly.  At one point in time, we were sinking so bad that we applied for Food Stamps.  We got denied, even though we were both jobless.  All seemed lost.  We both found a couple of jobs that ended in complete disaster, but I finally got hired on with King Soopers as a Front End Supervisor.  Finally! A company that not only did they treat their employees well, but also paid well too!  Eventually I convince Josh to also apply, and he too got hired on!

I just celebrated my one year anniversary with King Soopers back in December.  Life seems to be treating us pretty well.  So why am I still not fully satisfied?

One reason I know is my weight/health.  I've been overweight forever it seems, and have always yo-yoed with my weight.  Heck, even last year towards October I was the fittest I'd ever been!  I was down 20 lbs, down to 165!!  A number I hadn't seen since my internship with Disney.  After that initial car accident I had gained quite a bit, due to lack of movement, and well depression.

But then life happened, and I got into another car accident in November.  Not nearly as bad, but I ended up with a nasty concussion, and I let my self fall again in the health department. I kept using excuses for gaining weight, but now it's time to end that!

Here I am 177 lbs, 5'2".  Yes, do the math, that means I'm obese in society's eyes.  I know that we are all to love our selves and our bodies, but I want a healthy body.  If I truly love my self I will treat my self right, and keep this body healthy.  I need to do this, not only to look good, but to keep my back feeling good, and to work towards our dreams and goals.  I need a healthy body, so that I may have healthy, happy children!  I need a healthy body, so that I can travel and ride my roller coasters that we want to do.  I need a healthy body so that I can climb that 14er this summer!!  But a healthy body also has to come with a healthy mind.



That's what this blog will be.  It will be my new Journey in life that I am setting out to take.  Towards a healthier body and mind.  I need to figure out what it will take for me to be successful, not only in my goals with health and fitness, but also my goals with life and business.  Please join me for this wonderful journey.  There will be a lot of ups and downs, but I'll get through it, one day at a time.