Adventrous April and Mexican Shredded Beef

Hi guys~

I really am trying to keep up with this blog.. or at least get a post in at least once a week.

I wanted to share a blog that I really love.. you can check it out here..http://mealsandmovesblog.com/ The gal is super cute and has delicious recipes and all sorts of fun stuff going on. One of the fun things she's got going on this month is something called Adventurous April. Basically, do something or many things this month that are out of your comfort zone or try something new. Here's the post about it..http://mealsandmovesblog.com/2012/04/01/announcing-adventurous-april/. I've had this concept in the back of my mind this month and I'm trying my best to do some things that make me uncomfortable and that are new for me. I'm a firm believer that getting out of your comfort zone is a must. It breaks those barriers of fear and when you don't live your life with fear of failure, embarrassment or disappointment it's then that you are truly free!!

So in good spirit of Adventurous April these are a few things I've done...

1. Tried Quinoa.. I LOVE it.. it's delicious and healthy. Quinoa is a gluten free seed that was harvested over 5000 yrs ago by the Incas. even though it's eaten like a grain it's technically a seed and is related to the beet, spinach, and chard family. It's a complete protein and it's high in Iron and Calcium. And it's super easy to cook. Rinse Quinoa and combine 1 part Quinoa to 2 parts liquid, bring to a boil and simmer for 10 - 15 mins until all liquid is absorbed.. Try it!!

2. I bought some Tempeh. Organic of course because this is made from soy. Which in the U.S. is a GMO crop. I haven't made it yet but I've been wanting to try my version of a Kale and Tempeh salad that I saw in a Tone it up video. Here's the video.....

3. I tried Fage yogurt (pronounced fahya) in place of sour cream and mayo it was love at first bite!!!

4. I participated in Tuesday Trainer.. here's the link...http://lindsayslist.co/tuesday-trainer/
scroll down to read about it..
This week it was Core moves and this is the video I submitted. I'm hoping it gets to her because this was my first time doing a video response on youtube and I didn't realize I needed to add the text before hitting post. But if she doesn't post it I will try next week.

Let me know what you think of my core move.

On to my Mexican Beef Recipe ~ 

This is so good! you can make it in a pan on the stove or your crock pot. I like both ways but using a pan works a bit better for me because at the end I like to boil off the liquid so the meat is really flavorful. So when I make it in a crock pot, it adds an extra step because I just scoop out the meat put it in a pan and add some of the liquid to get all that good flavor.

2 lbs lean organic (if you can) Stew meat

2 1/2 cups Beef broth

2 cloves Garlic minced

2 Tbls Chili Powder

1 Tbls Red wine vinegar

2 tsp Oregano

1 tsp salt

1/8 tsp pepper

Combine all ingredients and simmer 2 -3 hrs or until meat is fork tender. Shred meat and serve any way you like.. tacos, enchiladas, salad, nachos, whatever!! 

This is how I had mine... first pic is dinner the second is the next day leftovers!

I paired this with cilantro, lime quinoa! YUMMY IN MY TUMMY!

Here's the workout I did Saturday

4 min Tabata skipping rope warm up

10/40/20rds/2x thru = 16 mins

1. Kettle bell squats 15 lb KB

18, 14

2. Russian dancing ~ kinda like high knees but bring your feet in and touch them

62, 62

3. Side to side squats ~ keep right foot planted you move the left foot out for your squat, then moving left foot back and then the right foot moves out and squat, going back and forth

22, 21

4. med ball wood choppers on the floor  8lb ~ this is an abs move. hold ball over head with legs up feet on floor laying on back, sit up keeping ball over head then bring ball from one side to the next, put ball back overhead and lay back down, that's 1 rep

18, 20

5. using dynex ball plank star jack in and out. This is the T.T. video I posted above. keep your core tight and elbows directly under shoulders and tucked at your sides

12, 10

6. Inner thigh lifts with a resistance band. I don't know the actual name for this but you lay on your side up on your elbow with your top leg over your bottom leg. top leg bent bottom leg extended out put the handle of the RB over your flexed toe and be careful not to let it slip off and hit you in the face. make as much resistance as you like and pulse your extended leg.

34, 40

7. same as #6 but opposite leg

40, 41 

8. Squat 2 side steps.. squat then shuffle 2 steps to the side squat then shuffle 2 steps back to starting position and repeat. 

14, 16

9. Star crunches. do a crunch and as you come up put hands between legs moving legs out to sides and back as you lay back

17, 18

10. reverse crunches

17, 18

Then I did 20 mins on the elliptical forward incline 8 resistance 9,  backwards incline 8, resistance 7 

my average heart rate was 153 and my peak was 166.

It's very important to keep track of your heart rate. You should know what your max is and where you should be to burn fat and to get good cardio conditioning for heart health. You should also know how fast your heart is recovering which means it's healthy. 

Here's something from the National Academy of Sports Medicine...

"The time it takes for the heart rate to return to normal after exercise is called Heart Rate Recovery.  Heart Rate Recovery is the measured heart rate at a fixed period of time after stopping activity; typically measured over a 1 minute period.  The recovery time setting on a heart rate monitor will track the heart rate of the individual for the pre-determined time.  The recovery time setting can be used to track progress after workouts.  The healthier a person's heart is, the quicker it returns to its normal beat, and the less healthy the heart is, the longer it takes it to return to its normal beat."

 I found the info about Quinoa at the livestrong website.. one of my favorite sites. :) once again here's the link...http://www.livestrong.com/

Light Whole Wheat baguette

Hey!

Yesterday it was very wet and rainy. Which was nice. I'm from the Pacific Northwest where it rains all the time, living on the other side of the mountains is a lot different. In Spokane we get more snow and hotter temps in the summer. It's very dry around here. But this winter has been mild and the rain is a refreshing change from snow!
Being cold and wet out I of course knew I would be making a yummy pot of soup. I settled on Green Lentil and I remembered seeing a Light Whole Wheat Baguette recipe on www.pinterest.com. I love that site! I really like the recipes and the D.I.Y. stuff.

I made the recipe and it's really good and was really easy to make as well.

Here's the link for the recipe.... http://www.goodlifeeats.com/2011/01/light-whole-wheat-baguette.html

this took me about 5 mins to mix up and the rest is just rising time.. I got about 6 smaller loaves out of this recipe. I made 3 and put 2 in freezer and 1 in fridge, which I will most likely make tonight to go with my salad. You most likely will have to get your hands "dirty" :) just get the dough mixed and let it rise... that's all there is to it.

I  love to eat healthy. And I'm glad that I notice the difference. I Don't all the time, I fall of the health wagon too now and again. But I get back on track too. You can't have that defeatist attitude. You know what I'm talking about "oh, now I might as well eat the whole bag and have pizza for dinner."
You just need to say "this moment I can change it."

When I started out on my "Healthy Journey" as I call it. I was no more educated about this stuff than you or the next guy. I did all the research myself. I read books.. a few I really enjoyed that are along the same lines is.. Jillian Michaels Master your Metabolism.. this is a super in depth (on the nerdy side), book about hormones and your endocrin system and how environment and what we put into our bodies does to them. Also Jackie Warner's Book This is Why Your Fat and How to Stay Thin Forever.
This book touches on the same topics as Master your Metabolism but on a less in depth scale. This book also has a full chapter dedicated to sugar and how bad it is for us. It really is worthless!!  I started doing research online.

Then I wanted to join a gym but knew that I wouldn't be successful unless I felt comfortable. Right!! I've belonged to other gyms and found myself standing around feeling like a moron having no clue what to do. This time I had a game plan. I joined my local Gold's Gym and I also hired a trainer once a month. She trained me and the wrote down what I was supposed to be doing when I was at the gym. How convenient!! I did that for about a yr. During that time I became very familiar with the gym and working out. I then started checking out workout videos on youtube and stumbled upon Bodyrock.tv. I then started doing there workouts. I was feeling like "If this is what I want to do and I want people to pay me to help them, then I should be able to do it on my own" So I split up with my trainer and I now do it by myself. I do get inspiration from watching workout videos and looking at magazines. And for now that's how it will have to be.. Until I get that elusive job and start working towards a personal trainers certification. Helping people with their weight, diet and out look on life are what I really want to be doing. Slowly but surely :)

Enough of me yammering on.. talk to ya later
Sherice ox

You will be surprised at how your body changes and adapts to what you put into it. I realize that eating less bread makes me feel better, I've replaced a lot of bread with Ezekiel sprouted grain bread. At first it took a bit of getting used to, But now I really like it. It's got a chewy kind of after bite to it.. Sounds weird, I know but give it a try. I like that my body wants water, nice cold water. I love the stuff and have it with me at all times.. no joke! I have a great 24oz BPA Nathan's water bottle I take everywhere.
I like that I crave fresh, delicious, vegetables, salads, and roasted veggies. Eating this way makes me feel, lighter, healthier, less weighted down. I think we've all felt that feeling. That's what unhealthy, fatty, starchy foods make you feel like. I can for sure tell the difference between eating a pile of mashed potatoes and gravy and a salad with a light oil based dressing on the side!! With the mashed potatoes, I'm sluggish and want to take a nap, with the salad I'm ready for a nice hike or something else active.
If you don't understand what I'm talking about than I challenge you to get a notebook and start journaling what your eating, how your feeling about it after wards, physically, mentally, emotionally. Then start switching up things, more fruits and veggies, less starchy breads and potatoes. more water and less carbonated soft drinks. Less cheese, dips and sauces. Use more lemon juice, fruit juices, spices, peppers, Celtic or sea salt instead of reg table salt. less processed foods and more fresh foods. no chips, cookies, candies. Trade them for nuts, dried fruit, Dark chocolate pieces.

Okay, I think you get the point. :)