Fit Fuel Family Favorites

I am always asked, "well, what do YOU eat?" So I thought I would share some fit fuel family favorites. These are actual dinners we had last week and that I always resort to when we are pressed for time! The first is some type of marinated meat and veggies with rice. Very simple:

• In a glass dish, marinade chicken (or whatever is your freezer) and a variety of veggies that work well together. In this case, I used squash, zucchini, and broccoli. I always seem to use the veggies that need to be used up quickly before they go bad!
• For the marinade, I stick with low-sodium, organic options. Here, I used a roasted garlic teryaki sauce and olive oil. Ginger and italian salad dressings work well too.
• Cover with aluminum foil and bake in the oven @ 350 degrees until meat is cooked thoroughly, about 30-40 minutes. Stir/flip meat and veggies 1-2 times while baking
• Serve over whole grain rice

       

The second fit fuel family favorite is called Mexican Chili. One pot makes plenty of leftovers that I use during the week for taco salads; also freezes well:

• Brown 1lb. lean ground hamburger, turkey, or buffalo with diced onions
• In a big pot combine 1 drained can of the following
• Pinto beans
• Light Red Kidney Beans
• Whole Kernel Corn
• Refried Beans
• Diced Green Chiles (small 4 oz. can)
• 16 oz. Petite Diced Tomatoes ( I like the roasted variety)
• 14 oz. Tomato Sauce
• Add browned meat and heat thouroughly. Add 1 cup of water. Stir in 1 pkg. of organic ranch dressing mix (powder form) and taco seasoning to liking.
• Serve with organic corn muffins!

          

Beyond What Is Comfortable

Progress is made by doing what you have not

done before. To truly grow stronger, you must step

beyond what is comfortable and familiar.

Just outside your door is a whole wonderful world

of new possibilities. And with those new

possibilities come new and difficult challenges.

Go ahead, and have the courage to open that door

and to step outside your comfort zone. For though

the challenges are many, the rewards are more

valuable than you can imagine.

You are designed and equipped and intended for

great things. You are flexible and adaptable and

creative and intelligent enough to successfully

handle whatever you encounter.

Beyond the comfort of what you already know,

you'll find the wonder and magnificence of all you

can become. Go explore and fulfill the very best

possibilities.

Copyright ©2009 Ralph S. Marston, Jr. All rights reserved

for greatday.com

Muscle Is A Girl's Best-Friend

Excerpt from fitnessmagazine.com

There are literally hundreds of studies published each year expounding on the payoffs of resistance training. Researcher William Kraemer, PhD, a professor of kinesiology at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine, has authored dozens touting the benefits for women in their 20s, 30s, and 40s. Some of the benefits, like improving muscle tone, bone density, athletic performance, and strength (about 30 to 50 percent more after three to six months of training), are obvious. But there are a few surprises: Resistance training helps women fight the aging process by maintaining lean muscle tissue. Women who regularly lift weights have better self-esteem and get sick less often. Others have found weight training improves the way the body processes sugar, reducing the risk of diabetes.

For women who want to lose weight or prevent weight gain (and most of us fall into one camp or the other), strength training is key: In our mid-30s, we begin to lose 5 to 10 percent of muscle strength each decade. Since muscle burns an estimated three times more calories than fat, adding two to four pounds of muscle can translate into an extra 100 calories burned each day. A high-intensity strength routine has been shown to bump metabolism by 20 percent for several hours post-workout.

Couple weight training with cardio and the benefits are exponential. One study found that women who did 25 minutes of step classes plus a total-body resistance routine for 12 weeks significantly reduced their resting heart rate, body-fat percentage, and blood pressure, and increased their strength and endurance significantly more than those who only did aerobics.

Finally, there's the reality that when you have more strength, many of the daily demands of life -- from picking up a child to carrying armloads of groceries -- are simply easier. It's one reason many trainers today emphasize "functional fitness." "It's not just about isolating one muscle, like your biceps or abs," explains Joan Pagano, women's fitness-expert spokesperson for the IDEA Health and Fitness Association and author of Strength Training for Women. "In real life, your body acts as a whole unit, engaging multiple muscles simultaneously."

Be on the lookout for my functional fitness video series to follow! 

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Fit Fuel

We are having this for dinner tonight!

Bison Stuffed Peppers
Ready in 1 hour • Makes 4 servings

• 4 bell peppers
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 lb lean ground bison
• 1 egg
• 1 stalk celery, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup chopped onion
• 2 tbsp ground flaxseeds
• 1/2 cup marinara sauce (find one with low sugar)
• Sea salt, ground pepper and oregano, to taste
• 1/2 cup shredded light mozzarella cheese

1.   Preheat oven to 350°F.
2.   Cut a golf-ball-sized hole around pepper stems. Then pull out the stems, seeds and membranes. Rinse peppers, inside and out.
3.   Brush peppers’ outer skin with olive oil. Set aside.
4.   In a large mixing bowl, combine bison meat, egg, celery, onion, flaxseeds, marinara and spices.
5.   Using a spoon, stuff mixture into peppers evenly.
6.   Pour water into a cooking pan (just enough to cover bottom of the pan). Place peppers onto pan and then bake for 30 to 45 minutes, until meat is browned throughout. Remove peppers and top with cheese. Place back in oven for 5 minutes to melt cheese.

Vision Board

This is a classic, old school tip from the pros > create a vision board.  Whether it be on a huge bulletin board or on a page in your private journal, make a visual collage of your desired ambitions, physical fitness goals, and inner motivations to be healthy. I have two; a long-term one and a short-term one. My long-term vision board is composed of the core things that drive me to press on: scripture, hubby and motherhood pics, motivating song lyrics, insecurities, etc. I keep these posts in my personal journal. My short-term vision board is a simple cork board tile that represents my main focus for the next 90 days. For example, now that spring and summer are right around the corner, my vision board shouts the quote "FLAT ABS, TIGHT TUSH, KILLER LEGS"! I keep this one in my closet so that every morning and night I can make a connection with what I want to achieve for the season....and bring awareness to choices I have to make to get there.

I am still working on it, but here is what my short-term vision board looks like. I would love to see yours!!

Music Motivation

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