Matcha - it's the new trend!

Does this mean this donut is healthy if it has Matcha in it?? 😂😂🍩🍩

For Ty's first day of school, I was trying to find something "special" and out of the ordinary for the boys and this is what Tyler asked for.  Can you believe these donuts are $8 EACH!!?! That's almost 8 donuts at Krispy Kreme which runs deep with me :)  Come on, I grew up in NC where they were founded and it's in my blood.  I think. Ha. 

On a serious note, Matcha is very popular now.  If you live near Trader Joes, they have it as an ingredient in lots of their items.  I've seen it in salad dressing, desserts, tea, syrups, etc.  It does have caffeine in it, but very small amounts and it's all natural from green tea leaves.  Shakeology added this ingredient back in March and did not increase their prices - YAY!  As of April, all bags are updated.

My first 5K with Tyler

This melts my heart! I'm catching up on life since it's been a "little" crazy since May and found this photo of Tyler and I doing the Wilchester Run for the Arts 5k together.  

Melts my heart that he was holding my hand! Love this boy and so thankful he would do this with me. This morning he was jumping around the kitchen with me doing Shift Shop and said "mommy, this is really fun!" ha! I was thinking more "hard" than "fun" but whatever :) 

Be the example in whatever you do!!  No ones perfect, but we can try our best. 

My famous granola bars recipe!

I literally make this recipe AT LEAST twice a week, never fail!  We've even made them on vacation.  It is super easy and kind of makes you feel like a rockstar because through the week you have quick breakfasts, healthy snacks on-the-go, substantial food for new moms or those that are sick.  I mean, it's a cure all and your kids can be a part of making this.  

Another huge perk to these...they are so impressive at mom's nights out!!  See bottom right pic :)  I make these into balls instead of bars and then roll in chocolate.  if you're rushed on time you can buy melting chips (come in white chocolate or milk chocolate) and just microwave and roll balls in it and then put in fridge to harden.  TIP - store these on a baking sheet so they don't harden together.  I learned this the hard way.  :(  

Otherwise, I melt chocolate chips with a little bit of cream and sugar and roll the balls in that so then I can chose semi-sweet or dark chocolate which I prefer.  

Recipe: 
-5 1/2 cups quick oats (this is import! do not use old fashioned oats unless you have to and then cut to 5 cups and put in food processor first.  they are too large to stick together and soak up too much of the honey so they dry out)
-1 cup honey (doesn't have to be fancy and I actually would go for cheapest.  always best to chose local honey to help with allergies)
-1 1/2 cups nut butter (I prefer peanut butter, but you can chose any just make sure it's clean. and "natural" does not mean clean!! no added oil OR sugar, just nuts and maybe salt if you chose)
-1/2 cup chocolate chips (mini semi-sweet or dark chocolate, regular size choc chips are too big to stick together), OR coconut, OR craisans.  If you add 2 or more of these toppings, drop the oats 1/2 cup so they aren't too dry.

Mix well.  Doesn't require a fancy mixer, but your wrist might get sore.  Ha!  Pour into a 9"x13" pan if making granola bars.  Smooth it out with wax paper and press down.  Put in fridge for an hour and cut with a knife or brownie slicer (I liked them to be even in size so I use this).  Wrap in aluminum foil and separate layers with wax paper so they don't stick together.  

Granola straight from the freezer tastes like cookie dough. You've been warned :) It's hard to just have one bite.

Servings: 20 bars.  freezes for 2 months or can go in the fridge, but don't leave out because it will get too sticky. I like to freeze them so that when I have them for a snack or lunch later they are perfectly soft.  FYI - straight out of the freezer they taste like cookie dough...just sayin' :)

21 day containers:  1 bar = 2 yellows, 2 tsp.  if you roll into heaping TBSP balls then each ball = 1 yellow, 1 tsp.

Chicken and Avocado Salad with Lime and Cilantro

Sour cream and mayonnaise are overused in my opinion.  I can substitute plain greek yogurt and my family doesn't notice unless they catch me in the act. :)  Try it at your house and see. It's an easy way to keep the dish "clean" and cut the calories.  Who wants all those chemicals in their body anyways and makes it pointless to have a "healthy salad" all ladened with processed stuff, right?  Humor me and try this...

Ingredients:
2 cups cooked chicken, shredded into large pieces
2 medium avocados, diced
2 TBSP fresh squeezed lime juice (you'll divide this later)
salt, to taste
1/4 cup thinly sliced green onion
1/2 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro (or chop it more coarsely if you prefer)
2 TBSP plain greek yogurt *this keeps it 21-Day Fix, 80 Day Obsession & Shift Shop compliant

Instructions can be found HERE.

Daily Sunshine is here!!!

Samples of Daily Sunshine are finally IN! This is the new shake for kids! It's a 3-in-1 cup-o-yumminess 🙌🏻👅

What does it contain??
#1. Fruits and vegetables
#2. Organic pea protein
#3. Healthy fats

It covers the building blocks of nutrition that kids need every day- whole-food based carbs from veggies and fruit, protein, and healthy fats!

TWO FLAVORS which are both GF, soy free, casein free, and dairy free: Chocolate and Strawberry-Banana! Let me know which you'd like!  Side effects may be feeling awesome and like you're winning this parenting thing for the day!!

Day 1 of 3 on Refresh

Day 1 of 3 day refresh - breakfast and dinner, and plenty of yummy food for snacks and lunch too.  Dinner also includes a Vanilla Fresh shake, but I ate fast because we were on the run and didn't get a picture.  We eat whole foods even though our bodies are detoxing and we are not starving.  So crazy to think of on a cleanse, right?!?

I'm not complaining, I feel thankful, but 86 days of vacation was total over indulgence and I do not feel, or look, like myself. I'm excited to get back on track with healthy habits, stop snacking on my kids food (sorry boys), not eating out 3 times/day (saving time, money and empty calories) and eating when I'm not hungry.

This cleanse is long enough you make real changes and see what your triggers are, but short enough it's doable for anyone!! Side perk, most lose 3-6 pounds!! I will not object to that right now!

I usually wait for challenge groups to do this program because it's more fun with community, and easier to stay on track, but Day 1 of returning to Australia and I'm seriously looking forward to this before I start Shift Shop with Travis next week. I'll run a 3 day refresh group in August after school starts so contact me now to get your kit!! We already have over 20 ladies ready to get back on track and you do not want to be left behind!!

Don't bother with liquid diets or juice cleanses which aren't sustainable; JOIN ME and feel better and lose some unwelcome weight along the way!!!

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Chocolate Shakeology Energy Balls

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We are back at our corporate apartment for 1 last week before we can move into our house. I cannot wait to have SPACE!! I’m so excited that I started nesting and bought this second-hand Kitchenaid mixer from a professional chef on Gumtree (the “Craigslist” of Australia) and its in like-new condition.  YAY!

Here's the best part of the sale 😂😂...she said, "I'm selling it because I used to be a pastry chef, but now I'm into clean eating and there's NOTHING HEALTHY YOU CAN MAKE with it!!" 😳😱 ummmmm...Yeahhhhhhhhh right!!!

I make tons of recipes ALL THE TIME in my mixer!! Pumpkin muffins (to die for), granola bars (my kids hate pre-packaged ones now and mine are cleaner / cheaper), and my new Shakeology energy balls...so many options!! But I didn't elaborate on all that, I shared a little of my story, my website, smiled, and happily took my $750 mixer for $400 and marched right out.  No need to convince her. 😂😂

Here's the recipe, but feel free to tweak it as desired. I've made them a few times and make them different each time. 

INGREDIENTS:
-1 scoop / packet of vegan chocolate Shakeology (Vegan is richer in flavor, but either are fine)
-1.5 cup nut butter (make sure it’s “clean” The label should just be nuts, and possibly salt. No added sugar or oils ever!)
-1 cup honey (use your favorite day-to-day honey). Always try to buy local honey so it helps with allergies
-5 1/2 cups quick oats (cheapest brand will do). * I don’t use Old Fashioned Oats because it makes them to dry.

21-Day Fix container equivalents: serving size 1 heaping TBSP rolled into a ball = 1 yellow, 2 tsp

You can freeze these for weeks, maybe even longer, they've just never lasted that long in our house.  I always keep them in the fridge / freezer though because otherwise they get too sticky.  But they won't spoil, it's just a cleanliness issue. ** you don't need a fancy mixer for this, but your wrist might get tired. ha! ENJOY!!!

4 reasons why exercise might be making you gain weight!

Right off the bat, it’s important to note that this doesn’t happen to everyone, so this isn’t a preemptive excuse not to exercise! Don't even go there!!  :) However, if you do happen to gain weight when starting a new program, don’t worry, it’s completely normal and temporary. Odds are that weight gain is not fat, but rather temporary water weight due to inflammation. Give it some time and it will pass.

That said, it might be a few other things, all of them fixable, so let’s run through the list and see if we can find a match.

1. Temporary inflammation

The most likely reason your scale crept up is inflammation. When you work out, it causes little tears in your muscle fibers. This is called micro trauma and it’s why you feel sore after a workout. (Recover is great to take after hard workouts where you think you'll be sore the next day. It is high in protein and very low in carbs which is the best combination post workout)  On the upside, your body heals these little tears, making the fibers tougher than they originally were. That’s how you become stronger and fitter. It’s part of a process called adaptation.

To make these repairs, your body uses its standard healing process, including the inflammation phase—something that’s become a dirty word in our modern world. When you incur injury, including microtrauma, your body releases various substances generally known as inflammatory mediators that swarm the area and perform triage, bringing in healing white blood cells and opening up blood vessels to flush out debris and toxins. There’s so much going in that area that it swells up, or inflames.

The fluid required for inflammatory response obviously weighs something—and that might show up on the scale. When inflammation is allowed to occur in a healthy way, it’s temporary.

Of course, eating clean and allowing for adequate rest and Recovery will help speed the body to less inflammatory phases of healing, but the main key is to keep calm and carry on. If you’re new to fitness—or perhaps just new to a particular kind of fitness—there’s going to be a lot of adaptation going on and therefore a noticeable level of inflammation. It should subside in a couple weeks.

2. Muscle gain

Another reason you might be gaining weight is that you’re building muscle faster than you’re shedding fat. The general consensus in the fitness community is that the most weight someone new to fitness will gain in muscle is about two pounds a month, but that’s not a hard-and-fast number.  The trick here is patience and get excited to watch that fat burn off,

3. Your diet needs to work

If you’re not eating clean and watching your portions then you could actually put on fat while starting a new exercise regimen. Yes, exercise burns calories, but it also increases the release of ghrelin, a hormone that promotes hunger. So if you’re not paying attention you’ll probably eat more.

Even if you are consuming a low quantity of calories, poor food choices can cause all kinds of issues, usually centered on hormonal imbalances that cause your body to hold onto fat. Every one of Beachbody's programs comes with a nutrition guide that should alleviate this issue and is tailored to your specific program, weight and activity levels.

4. Too much stress!

Exercise is a good thing, but it also puts your body under stress. By itself, that’s great. It’s part of that adaptation I mentioned earlier. If done right with the proper nutritional support, rest, and recovery, the stress caused by exercise toughens you up, fortifying your body against further stress.  However, if you pile exercise on top of a bunch of other lifestyle stress—or if you work out beyond your limits—balance will be lost. Exercise will contribute to your total stress load, becoming part of the problem as opposed to part of the solution.

So, if you work twelve hours a day, drink more than two alcoholic drinks a night on a regular basis, smoke, sleep less than seven hours a night, have a chronic injury, eat a junk-filled Standard American Diet and are overweight, exercise will tax your body just like all the bad habits on this list and actually cause weight gain in a couple different ways. First, the inflammation process does not progress to the later phases of healing, and you can end up with chronic inflammation throughout the body. Second, you’ll increase the release of the stress hormone cortisol that, in turn, can promote fat accumulation—particularly fat around the stomach (no one wants that).

Should I Stop Exercising if I’m Gaining Weight?

No, keep going! And, remember, fitness is a holistic issue. If your goal is to lose weight, build muscle, or simply get healthier, you want to look at your sleep and other lifestyle habits, not just your diet and exercise regimen. Sparta wasn’t built in a day. If you’re 50 pounds overweight and want six-pack abs, it is achievable but you have to be patient and consistent, and talk to me so we can chose a program right for your level that will keep you motivated.

Don’t give up. Give your unexpected added pounds a couple of weeks to work themselves out. If they don’t, step back and see if there’s any other aspect of your life that needs fine-tuning. See the full Beachbody blog article HERE.

Snake Beans!!

We discovered a farmers market on Wednesdays downtown that's awesome!! I called these green beans and was quickly corrected... SNAKE BEANS! 

Today I'm on the 3-day refresh so I passed on eating lunch here, plus the fact that waking up at 4am means lunch is at 10am. 😂😂 

Seriously last night we had dinner at 3pm and were in bed by 4:30pm. Travis came home to the 3 of us still in our daytime clothes cuddling with a book 😴😴😴😴 hoping to stay up till 5pm today!! #partyanimal #melatonin

I think next Wed Matthew and I need to meet daddy here for lunch though because it all looked so good!!  They have the most delicious looking quinoa, spinach and sweet potato salads ever!

How prepared are you?

We came to Australia prepared for healthy living and dense nutrition. I hope in the three years we are here Beachbody will launch out here!  It would be much more convenient than hauling it in our luggage, but you do what you gotta do when you worry about how you fuel your body!  

Let me know if you want samples of daily sunshine or Shakeology or want to mix & match it. 5 packets for $25! Your kids will ❤️❤️ it and you'll feel like a rockstar parent :)  I promise you this!!

I'm a Sherpa!

In my challenge groups we post clean fridge and clean grocery cart pictures. Sounds silly, but accountability is huge and sometimes you get other snack / protein ideas from seeing what other challengers bought. Sharing is caring right?  :)

I ❤️❤️ being able to print my grocery list and just GO! And Travis and the boys love what I make, so I feel like I'm winning every week and fueling us all with good stuff. 

Since we haven't gotten our rental car yet, I walked a mile like this. Basically I'm a Sherpa 😂😂

Let me know if you want to join all the others working hard towards their weight loss and toning goals. Where do you want to be 21 days from now??

Yes that's a book bag on the front and back 😂😂 I think that's in style right??

Zucchini Apple Turkey Sliders

These are delicious and I don't care how much your friends, spouse, kids, whoever, don't like ground turkey...MAKE THESE :))))  And thank me later. haha  If you are doing low carb, pass on the buns and use romaine lettuce instead (then it's Shift Shop Approved too).  The leaves are hearty enough to hold it all together. Or, just go for the burger as the recipe is written and have people talking about your party long after the night is over!

Ingredients
-1 lb ground turkey meat
-1 medium zucchini, grated and liquid squeezed out (about 1 cup)
-1 small apple, grated (about 1 cup)
-1 egg, lightly beaten
-1 heaping TBSP apricot preserves
-2 tsp kosher salt
-1/2 tsp pepper
-1 tsp garlic powder
-1/2 tsp onion powder
-3/4 - 1 cup quick oats
-Cheddar cheese
-Whole Wheat slider buns (see notes above, for buns I prefer Thins so I can eat 2 pieces and counts as one)
-Arugula
-Ketchup (look for clean ingredients)

Instructions can be found HERE.

Watch your mailbox!!

I think it's safe to say that my challengers and coaches are hitting their goals and then some!!! So proud of you all!!! 

Shift Shop, low carb menus, 25-45 min bootcamp-like exercises, daily dense nutrition and accountability starts on Monday. Email me to be included. I can't wait and 21 days from now you don't want to look back and wish you'd participated.  Get stronger, feel better, lose weight, gain confindence...these side effects are pretty rad!

Last date night in Houston!

It's our last date night in Houston 😓 so sushi, sake and Ohh Lala desserts are totally in order. Calories don't count when you move. I heard that somewhere so I'm sure it's true!! 😂😂😂 

Chris Downing is coming for us both on the 24th 😵 I think he sees this post and what vacation has done to me 🤗 come and get us baby. We. Are. Ready. To. Make. The. Shift. 

Houston, it's been grand. We will be back. But until then, let the adventures begin. Disclaimer: no poisonous animals please and no more ER visits. Ok. Thanks 👍🏻

Finally live today!!

To be the first to know when the Shift Shop launches, visit http://bchbody.life/The-Shift-Shop Ready to rebuild your body? Reinvent your life? The SHIFT SHOP is the first Beachbody program from our newest Super Trainer, Chris Downing.

You guys...this IS FINALLY LIVE TODAY!! I just hung out with CHRIS DOWNING in New Orleans and he is a humble dad, who wants you to change your health, MIND and body, all while having fun, working hard and believing in yourself. YOU CAN DO IT!!!

I'm starting a challenger TEST GROUP this Monday the 24th, and I'll coach it just like the Coach's Test Group I completed. This is LOW CARB, 24-45 min exercises and accountability at it's best. And modifiers for EVERY EXERCISE! To say I'm excited is an understatement. And, my biggest supporter is ALL IN TOO! Join Travis and I as we shift our mind together. Who's IN???