Hi Friends!

One of the things I love to make is granola. I literally make it about once a week; that’s how long it lasts around here. Store bought granola has so many added things that I don’t want, and they usually use canola oil, yuck!, so I make my own healthy version. You can flavor granola so many ways, but currently I have been doing pumpkin spice granola. It is fall after all! We put granola on top of yogurt, smoothie bowls, oatmeal, and just eat a handful as a snack sometimes.

 

Ingredients:

3 cups oats ( I use gluten free oats)

1/2 cup slivered almonds

1 cup whole almonds

1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

1/4 cup coconut oil

3 tbsp maple syrup

4 tbsp honey

1 tbsp pumpkin pie spice ( I use Flavor God)

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp salt

 

Directions:

1. Pre-heat your oven to 300 degrees.
2. Mix oats, almonds, slivered almonds, and chopped peans in a bowl.
3. Add pumpkin spice seasoning, salt, and cinnamon
4. in a separate bowl, stir melted coconut oil, honey, maple syrup, and vanilla extract together.
5. Pour over oat mixture. Stir really well to evenly coat everything.
6. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
7. Spread oat mixture in a thin layer on parchment lined baking sheet.
8. Bake for 30 minutes. Gently stir oats around and bake for another 10 minutes.
9. Let cool. You can add dried fruit at this point if you want.
10. Place in a cute jar or store in a gallon ziplock bag.

Sometimes we just want a little something sweet at the end of the day. But, we don’t want to ruin all of the hard work we have done, right? I have a little recipe for you that satisfies the sweet tooth craving but isn’t as bad for you as reaching for a big bowl of ice cream. If you omit the PB2, it is a paleo dessert as well.

Ingredients:

2 tbsp coconut flour

2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 tsp baking powder

1 egg

2 tbsp coconut milk

2 tbsp maple syrup

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 tbsp PB2 (powdered peanut butter)

2 tbsp chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Mix well and pour ingredients into a large mug. Heat in microwave for 2-2.5 minutes.
2. Eat!!! You could add a small dollop of coconut whip cream too!

Sometimes you just need a sweet, protein filled treat. Know what I mean? I have a sweet tooth, and if I don’t have a healthy option available I am likely to reach for something I don’t need. These cookie dough balls hit the spot! I love having them as a snack or dessert.  My kids love them too! They are simple to make and require only a few ingredients.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup honey

1/2 cup almond, peanut, or cashew butter. (my preference is almond butter)

1/2 cup shredded coconut (oats work too, but since I avoid grains, I use shredded coconut)

1 scoop vanilla protein powder (Sun Warrior, or Nutiva are great choices)

Pumpkin Pie seasoning (add according to taste. I did about 1/2 tbsp)

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 cup chocolate chips

 

Directions:

1. Mix everything together in a bowl. It will be sticky, so it can take a few minutes to mix.
2. Place in fridge for about 5 minutes. This helps for rolling them into balls.
3. Remove from fridge.
4. Scoop out a small spoonful and roll into little balls. (make them any size you want)
5. Place in a container, store in the fridge, and eat them whenever you want!

Happy Monday Friends!

Today I am sharing a breakfast casserole recipe with you. You can make this ahead of time and store it in the fridge until you are ready to eat it, or eat it right away. This recipe is adapted from Paleo Magazine.

Ingredients:

1 tbsp coconut oil

1 lb ground turkey meat

1 glove minced garlic

1 medium sweet potato, peeled and shredded

2-3 cups fresh spinach

12 eggs

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

1/4 tsp smoked paprika

1/4 tsp chili powder

 

Directions:

1. Grease a 9×13 baking dish.
2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add ground turkey meat. Cook until no longer pink.
3. Add garlic and sauté for 1 minute.
4. Add sweet potato and spinach, sautéing until spinach wilts. Transfer mixture to the greased baking dish.
5. Pre-heat oven to 375.
6. In a large bowl, whisk eggs,salt, pepper,paprika, and chili powder. Pour evenly over meat, spreading it out with a spatula. You can prepare up to this step in advance and cover, refrigerate and remove from fridge 20 minutes before you want to bake.
7. Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until the casserole is set in the center. Cool for 5-10 minutes before slicing and serving. (slices of casserole can also be individually wrapped and frozen for later use).

 

 

Hi Friends!

Welcome to my blog! I am so happy you are here! This is a place where I will post recipes, workouts, share struggles and successes, and share any tips I learn. I want to provide a place for you to find resources that make life easier for you. We all need help, and I hope to provide that for you. Please let me know if there is any way that I can help you. I want to be your cheerleader, friend, and a resource for healthy living.

Healthy living means many things to me. It is not just a physically fit body on the outside but on the inside too. To be honest, being fit on the inside has been my biggest struggle. I am an introverted person, who loves people, but struggles to feel worthy of having friends. I have battled self loathing for a majority of my life, and it has been a struggle to overcome it. Of course, I have good days and bad days, but my good days are becoming more frequent then my bad ones. Yay! Deep down I know that my worth is in Christ and Him alone, but my desire to be accepted by others is a real struggle for me. However, I refuse to let it have a hold on me any longer. My value will not be estimated by the opinions of others, so I will do what I love and whoever doesn’t like me doesn’t have to. It’s perfectly okay to not be everyone’s “cup of tea”.

My passion has been fitness and nutrition for over 20 years. In fact, I went to school to be a personal trainer exactly 20 years ago. I loved learning about exercise and implementing what I learned. I worked for a large fitness chain while I was in school as an aerobics and water aerobics teacher. I also interned as a personal trainer to gain experience. It was during my internship that I became discouraged about my future in the fitness industry. I was constantly being told to “sell, sell, sell”, which is not my personality at all. I decided to cast my dream aside. I just figured that I wasn’t meant to be a personal trainer. My passion for fitness never wavered, but my desire to work in a gym did.

Instead I worked out for my own benefit and raised children. Fitness helped me lose 55 pounds of pregnancy weight 3 times and kept me sane while raising little ones. While my kids were little, I would be lucky to fit in 3 workouts per week. I did my best but sometimes it just didn’t happen. As they got older, I found it easier to stick to a consistent schedule. I missed the gym at times, but working out at home was much easier then lugging 3 kids to a gym. Sometimes I did my workout in my pjs!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In the last 4 years, I have definitely stepped up my intensity in workouts. I found that the harder I worked, the more results I achieved. There were times when I literally thought, “I can’t do one more tuck jump or lunge”. But, each week I got better and better. Seeing progress pushed me harder. I started making little goals for myself. My first goal was to run 6 miles. The funny thing is that I hated running; I still do, but I wanted to achieve something I never thought was possible for me. After 4 months, I did it. I ran 8 miles! I started to have more injuries, so I switched gears and headed back into my basement to workout. I set a new goal to do at least one push-up on my toes. Slowly, I got better and better at it. I can currently do about 26, but I am pushing for 30. I also jumped back into weight training. I always loved lifting weights, but I had set it aside to focus on running; I don’t recommend that. Cross training is important. After a period of time, I found myself lifting heavier and doing more push-ups. Progress can really motivate you! I also fell in love with HIIT training. I made huge progress through HIIT training and Tabata style workouts. I made more progress then I thought I could in a relatively short period of time. I started constructing my own workouts again, like I did when I was in school.

So there is a little back story for you. Well actually, that was a pretty long back story! Sorry! From here on out, I aim to share at least 2 recipes per week, workout tips, workout reviews, products I love and much more. I am not an expert at anything! But, I love teaching and helping people, so I will share what has worked for me and recipes I love. Nothing I say replaces the opinion of your doctor, so before you try anything I recommend, get their okay first. Let’s do this together!

I have a blog!!! Yay!! This is my place to share my journey with you!