Getting Ready for The Holidays and Thankful Thursday November 30, 2012

With the last day of November being tomorrow, the countdown to the holidays is quickly approaching (or really, has already begun!). I felt the countdown starting as of last week, thinking about all of the things that I need to do. Don’t get me wrong, I love the holidays, in fact, it is my favorite time of year, but I feel that they have snuck up all of a sudden. This year just went by way too fast! We are spending the holidays at my brother and sister-in-law’s house in Montreal this year, thus leaving the week before Christmas, so I’m already feeling overwhelmed in getting everything done beforehand! We are doing a lot of homemade gifts, which is a lot of fun, but also takes a lot of time. Already, every weekend in December is booked, so it makes it challenging to work on things. There is only so much time in the day to do things with Keenan only napping for 2-3 hours. Anyhow, as my husband calls me, “a big stress puppy,” I just need to take a deep breath, make LOTS of to-do lists and start crossing them off! Doesn’t anyone else feel that way?

Fortunately, my husband is very supportive, so he has offered to help me with some of the gift ideas that we are doing, thus taking a load off of my shoulders. I don’t feel as stressed, but the stress is still there. I think a lot of it has to do with how I feel. My cold has gotten worse, in fact, my nose was so stuffed-up last night that I could hardly sleep. Everything has moved in to my sinuses and head, as well as feeling cold one minute and hot the next, so I’m drinking lots of fluids and taking plenty of vitamin c to hopefully get rid of this bug soon! Today was definitely all about laying low with no CrossFit, that’s for sure!

This is how our day started while I was making No Oat Oatmeal for breakfast. Keenan was having fun with an app all about different sounds!

Speaking of the holidays, I’m so excited that Keenan is of the age where he is starting to “get” Christmas. When he sat on Santa’s lap last weekend, he was so excited and no longer scared like last year! He says “hi” to our Santas and baby Jesuses in our nativity scenes (my mom bought him a toy one to play with) every morning. He is learning (and can pretty much sing them entirely) “Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer,” “Jingle Bells” and “Santa Claus is Coming to Town,” with is so cute! Yesterday, as we were driving to the box, “Rudolph” came on the radio (we pretty much listen to Christmas songs in the car from now until the end of December) and he started singing along! Every time we pass by Christmas lights, he is in awe and it is so much fun to see him experience the magic of the holidays. It has brought back many wonderful holiday memories for my husband and me when we were kids. I just love it!

To continue fostering the magic of the holidays, we are starting some family traditions. Last year we were given an Advent calendar and we used it with Keenan, but he was still a tad young for it. As soon as we brought it out this year, he was super excited to “practice” opening all of the boxes. Starting on Saturday, I will place either a sticker, a very small toy or one of his favorite snacks in the first box for him to open in the morning. We will continue the tradition until Christmas!

Our Advent calendar!

In addition, I just bought the “Elf on the Shelf,” after hearing about it and seeing it on so many blogs. It is such a cute idea and a great story! If you aren’t familiar with it, the book is about an elf that comes to live with you from December 1st until Christmas. The elf is watching you at all times and taking notes for Santa, so it can be used as a great tool for fostering good behavior (something I’m looking forward to!). The idea is to put the elf in different parts of your house each day and have your children look for it when they wake up in the morning. I think Keenan is going to love this and I can’t wait to start on Saturday! We are going to read the story with him tomorrow night and then have him look for the elf when he wakes up. I’ll keep you posted on his reaction!

Such a fun tradition!

We accidentally got the “girl” elf, oh, well. I didn’t know there were different ones! Keenan won’t know the difference!

Since the holidays is now all about Keenan, my husband and I are thinking about starting our own tradition of having an “at home date night,” exchanging our gifts and watching a holiday movie a couple of days before Christmas. Dana from Mastering Mommy Brain and her husband do this tradition and I really like it! I mentioned it to my husband and I think we might do it a couple of days before we leave for Montreal.

Since it is Thursday, I also wanted to link-up with Jessie for her fun Thankful Thursday Link-up!

In a similar fashion to what Jessie wrote, I’m not going to make a list of all that I’m thankful for, as I have pretty much said most of it before. After talking about family traditions around the holidays, it has really made me think about the true meaning of Christmas. My mom gave Keenan two great books about the story of Christmas, one from Tommy DiPaola, “The Christmas Pageant.” We have been reading them almost every night and they have made me think about why we celebrate Christmas, not just for Santa Claus. Giving gifts to others is really a side note; it shouldn’t be the main event. The best gift of all is giving back to those in need and spending quality time with your family, truly appreciating all of the moments you have with them. The time you have with your family is time that you won’t get back. Even though families can sometimes be complicated (who has a family that’s perfect?), it is still important to spend quality time and show them that you love them. In addition, helping someone who is less fortunate than you can be the only and most special gift that person has ever received (the true gift of giving).

I’m thankful for Keenan opening my eyes again to the magic of the holidays and making me remember why it is such a special time.

Questions: What are you thankful for this time of year? What kinds of holiday traditions do you have? Any new ideas that you are trying this year? I would love ideas for more traditions!

REMINDER: There is still time to enter a chance to win a stylish and comfortable workout headband from Simple-Trends! Giveaway ends Monday, Dec. 3rd at 8 p.m. PST!! Click here to enter.

Giving Back and Simple-Trends Headband Review and Giveaway!! November 27, 2012

Well, I definitely have a cold. My throat is not as sore as it was yesterday, but I definitely have a lot of post-nasal drip. When I woke up this morning, everything had moved into my head. Ugh…I just hate head colds, because I feel like one giant nose (like in those cold medicine commercials)! Fortunately, Keenan woke up late this morning, at 8:30, so I was able to sleep in a bit, which helped. My husband doesn’t seem to be as affected, so far, and Keenan seems to be okay. I’m hoping he doesn’t get it.

My husband was very sweet this morning and fixed us a nice breakfast of his famous “cheesy eggs” with a pear and a latte. It was nice to come downstairs and have breakfast all ready!

After breakfast, Keenan and I headed to our local retirement home for my MOMs Club service project. As part of my duties as the Vice President, I have to plan at least one service project for the year. Since we haven’t done any work with retirement homes, I thought it would be nice to coordinate some activities during the holidays with them, especially since many of the residents don’t have any family. Today, we did holiday arts and crafts: making cards, pictures and ornaments with the residents. We are going back in a couple of weeks to attend their holiday party and give a card and picture or ornament to each resident while singing Christmas songs. The residents were so happy to have us there today. Some of them enjoyed helping the kids color and glue, while others just enjoyed watching. They kept talking about how they were looking forward to having us come back for their holiday party, as well as starting a regular story time. In January, we are starting a monthly story time where the residents will read their favorite stories to the kids. Overall, it was great morning, both for the residents and for our kids. I look forward to going back, soon!

It feels so good to give back or help those in need, which is what the holidays are all about (or should be). It shouldn’t be so much about shopping and giving gifts to friends and family members; the real gift of giving should be volunteering your time (or money, if you have it) to those who are less fortunate (or don’t have anyone in their lives, like the residents of the retirement home we visited today). Maybe for every gift you buy for someone, you donate money to your favorite charity or donate your time this holiday season–just a thought.

On another note, I’m excited to host a giveaway, just in time for the holidays!

Nicole at Simple-Trends kindly sent me a couple of headbands, one to try and one to give away. They are just what their name implies, simple, but comfortable (and versatile) headbands that you can wear for working out, when out-and-about, or simply spending the day at home. You can wear their bands wide, or tuck them in to be thin. You can also wear them with your hair up or down. All of Simple-Trends headbands are handmade in the U.S. and come in a variety of prints.

I wore my band to CrossFit last week and I have to say, I loved the style and fit (so comfortable, I practically forgot it was on my head!), but as soon as I started my WOD, it slid right off. The band doesn’t have any material underneath to make it stay on your head, so it is definitely a band to wear for low-intensity activities, only, such as yoga, pilates or walking. I love the style and how it feels on my head, so I will definitely wear it out and about, but I just can’t wear it for CrossFit. If you are one who does yoga and pilates, Simple-Trends is the band for you, or if you just want a fun and stylish band to wear out-and-about, I highly recommend them!

Since Nicole was so generous and sent me an extra headband to give away, see below on how to win it!

To enter the giveaway, please follow the steps below:

1. Leave a comment on this post stating how you would wear your headband.

(Optional) Earn an extra entry by:

1. Like Fit ‘N’ Well Mommy’s Facebook page

2. Follow Fit ‘N’ Well Mommy on Twitter: @FitNWellMommy

3. Follow Fit ‘N’ Well Mommy by email

4. Post on YOUR Facebook page, or Tweet, “I want to win a headband from Simple-Trends and Fit ‘N’ Well Mommy!”

*Make sure to leave a second comment on this post with your Facebook post, Tweet, like or following, in order for your extra entry/entries to be counted!

The giveaway ends Monday, December 3rd at 8 p.m. PST!! Good luck!

Well, it is time to get ready for CrossFit and finish preparing dinner (crock pot pork and apples with roasted broccoli) so it is done when we get home. My piriformis and rhomboids feel pretty good today, but I’m still not going to go 100%, to make sure I continue to feel better (in addition, my energy is low due to my cold). Enjoy the rest of your afternoon!

Another year older and Life November 5, 2012

My husband captured this picture yesterday afternoon of Keenan watching Avo and Grandpapa talk; this really sums up my thoughts for today.

It is the start of another week and I am now a year older. I still can’t believe that another year has flown by and I’m 31! Crazy how that happens! 🙂

Anyhow, I had a wonderful birthday weekend, starting off with a nice date night with my husband on Friday. We had two great groupon deals: one for a couples massage and one for dinner. It was the perfect evening and probably one of the best massages I have received in a long time! Dinner was really good too; we ate at Monsoon, a fairly new Indian restaurant in downtown Sacramento. My husband and I were so relaxed that by the time we had dinner, we got a little treat at our favorite chocolate shop in midtown, Ginger Elizabeth, and headed home and went to bed! We usually are ones to stay up and watch a movie or something, but we were both so relaxed and tired, that sleep sounded too good!

On Saturday, we slept in (since Keenan was at my parents’ house) and made a nice breakfast. I made paleo pancakes while my husband made “regular” pancakes. He wanted to have the real deal, but I have to say my pancakes were delicious! In the afternoon, we headed to my parents and enjoyed a nice steak dinner that my mom made.

On Sunday (my birthday), after a nice breakfast and church, my mom and I went to the spa at Wine and Roses in Lodi for a nice relaxing afternoon. We enjoyed a nice lunch, some time to read by the fire (I actually read 100 pages in my book, “Paleoista,” which is so interesting!), followed by some pampering. My mom got a massage and I had a facial. In the evening, we met my husband, Keenan and my dad for dinner. Keenan was excited to help me blow out my candle; it was cute! It was truly the perfect day to spend my birthday. Sorry, I completely forgot to bring my camera, so I don’t have any pictures of the evening.

While my mom and I were at the spa, my husband, dad and Keenan had some “guy time” at the shop, riding in the pick-up through the fields and looking at tractors.

Riding in Uncle Chris’s pick-up with Avo!

Unfortunately, today has not been as joyful as the weekend. Last week, a very good family friend passed away, so his funeral was this morning. Since our families grew up together, we stayed to make sure we could be there, today. It was very sad, especially since he passed away so suddenly. It is always so hard to see people pass away who had so much life still left in them. It baffles me as to why it was their time to go, just like my brother, Chris. I can’t help but question it. Attending a funeral not only brings back the memories of when my brother passed away, but it always puts things back into perspective, thinking about life and what is really important. For me, my family is the most important thing in my life. It is so vital to cherish every moment with them, as well as tell them that I love them. You can’t always think about the what-ifs, but you can show your love and appreciation every time you see them because you never know what can happen…

Question: When was the last time you told your spouse, child or family member that you loved them?

Thankful Thursday and Halloween Fun! November 1, 2012

I hope everyone had a safe and fun Halloween! We had a great time last night! Keenan really took to the whole concept of trick-or-treating and loved going door-to-door! He did a good job with saying “trick-or-treat,” though we would have to prompt him! He would always say “hi” when people answered their door and “thank you,” as he left, being very polite, which was really cute. He loved seeing all of the “big kids” trick-or-treating and wanted to run as fast as they were, in fact, as he was holding my mom’s hand, he kept saying “faster, faster!” The highlight of last night was seeing Keenan experience Halloween for the first time.  He was so excited about everything: dressing-up, going trick-or-treating (especially with Nonna!), eating candy for the first time, looking at all of the Halloween decorations on people’s houses and seeing other kids out and dressed-up. It was so much fun to see Halloween through his eyes and see him so happy! It truly melted my heart.

Here are a few pictures from our evening:

At his first house!

Getting his first handful of candy!

Going through his candy with Slinky at the end of the evening!

A quick family picture! Don’t you just love the sweats and lovely hairdo I was sporting?!

He was SO excited to enjoy his first piece of candy, a mini sucker that he unwrapped all by himself!

Today, after my mom headed home, we  met with an estate attorney. At my MOMs Club meeting last month, an estate attorney made a presentation about the importance of establishing guardianship and making plans if something unforeseen were to happen. Though, my husband and I have casually talked about a few things, we hadn’t discussed anything in depth about who would take care of Keenan if something were to happen to us. I hate talking about these things, but after hearing the presentation, it really made me think about the “what ifs” and how it is better to be prepared than have nothing in place. Fortunately, the attorney offered everyone who attended the presentation a complimentary consultation, so I immediately made an appointment.

Today’s appointment with the attorney made us think about a lot of things that we really never thought about it before (nor really want to think about, but need to). It put things into perspective and made me appreciate what we have in our lives and that we have each other. You just never know what can happen…

With that said, today I’m linking up with Jessie at Jessie Loves to Run, for her Thankful Thursday link-up. When things get busy, or I’m stressed, I sometimes forget to slow down, take a deep breath and really appreciate all that I have in my life. It is easy to take things for granted and not reflect on what we are blessed with or show appreciation or love for others. So, I thought it would be great to make a list of what I am thankful for. Thank you Jessie for coming up with such a great idea!

• My family: I’m so blessed to have such a supportive and loving family. They are my rock and everyone is always willing to help each other. Sometimes, we might not agree on things, but we still respect and love one another.
• My mom: She is my best friend, mentor and role model. I strive to be as good of a mom as she is to me. I love that I can tell her anything and she is always there to listen, offer a shoulder to cry on or a warm hug. She is also a tremendous Nonna to Keenan and my niece and I’m so thankful for everything that she does for us!
• My husband: He is my best friend and the love of my life. I am truly blessed to have met him 11 years ago! He makes me laugh everyday and is always there, supporting me along the way. He is a wonderful father and I couldn’t have asked for a better partner to share my life with.
• Keenan: I am so blessed to have him in my life. He is my sunshine, making me smile and laugh everyday. I can’t believe that already 2 years have gone by, but I have loved every minute of it! His snuggles, hugs, kisses and sweetness are priceless.
• Health and Fitness: I’m thankful for being able to workout and stay active. Even though there are days when I don’t feel like doing anything, I’m thankful for having the ability to exercise.
• Faith: I’m thankful for my faith and it helping me get through difficult times, such as when we lost my brother, or my grandparents. My faith has always been there and it has helped me get to where I am today.

This evening, I am heading to CrossFit to get my workout in and then stay to help with the beginner’s class. My lower back is still a little sore from max deadlifts on Tuesday, so we’ll see how today goes. After doing virtually two workouts yesterday (heavy skill work in the morning and a WOD in the afternoon), I’m a little tired. I’m looking forward to tomorrow evening, because my husband and I have a couples massage scheduled (thanks to groupon!) for our date night!

Anyhow, on the menu for tonight is a roasted broccoli salad with cherry tomatoes, red onion, chicken and feta cheese. I just love roasted broccoli with charred cherry tomatoes; they are just so good together!

Have a great afternoon!

Question: What are you thankful for? How was your Halloween?

*The winner of the Artisana giveaway is: Danielle at Clean Food Creative Fitness! Please email me at fitnwellmommy@yahoo.com with your address!

Round and Round and Two New Recipes! October 9, 2012

My husband and I were talking over dinner last night about routines and how they are important, but also how it is good to venture away from them from time to time.  I am a person of routine, thus Keenan is definitely a child of routine. As we were talking last night, I realized how so much of my day–including what I eat and when I workout–is a part of my routine. i.e. my “usual” breakfast and going to CrossFit every afternoon. Having a routine in my life is just who I am, though it may seem mundane to others, I thrive by it! Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE to travel, experience new things and see what the world has to offer (all while throwing the routine out the window!), but I enjoy coming home and getting back into my daily routine (I’m sure my husband’s eyes will roll as he reads this!). Having a routine makes me appreciate new things and experiences. It also helps me maintain a healthy lifestyle for myself and for my family. Without my routine of eating healthy and going to the gym every afternoon, I don’t know where I would be. A routine is vital for establishing healthy habits, such as going to the gym at a set time everyday, packing your gym bag and setting it by the door every night before you go to bed, packing healthy lunches for you and your family the night before, or planning your family’s meals for the week every Sunday. All, in all, routines help you adhere to a healthy lifestyle that last a lifetime. But (a BIG BUT), it is important to try new things and break out of your routine every once in a while. You need change in order to grow.

With that being said, I am going to try my best to break out of my “routine” here and there, not always eat and/or post about my “usual” breakfast or that we always go to CrossFit after Keenan wakes up from his nap. I am going to do my best to mix it up a bit and keep things fresh for you and me!

Speaking of mixing things up, I made Keenan and I “No-Oat Oatmeal” for breakfast this morning. It was perfect for our Fall-like morning! By the way, I’m SO excited that Fall is finally here (or at least it is appearing to be!). I love anything pumpkin, so I can’t wait to make more pumpkin muffins, bread, pancakes, soups and lattes with pumpkin pie syrup! Look for some new Fall inspired recipes with pumpkin to come soon!

Back to our breakfast…I love “No Oat Oatmeal,” because it is loaded with protein (egg whites), so it keeps you full for a long time! You can pretty much add anything to it, as far as what kind of flavor you want and it still tastes great. Since I had a little bit of leftover pumpkin, I threw that in, along with a little pumpkin pie spice and topped it with sliced strawberries and a dollop of almond butter. It was yummy!

Perfect for a Fall morning!

No Oat Oatmeal (serves 1)

Ingredients:

– 3/4 cup egg whites

– 1 Tbsp flaxseed (ground)

– 1 Tbsp chia seeds

– 2 tsp vanilla

– 1 tsp cinnamon

– 1/4 cup milk (any kind, i.e. non-dairy is fine)

– 1 tsp honey

– 1 banana (mashed)

Directions:

1. Mix all ingredients together in a bowl and transfer to a small sauce pot.

2. Cook on the stove on medium heat, constantly stirring, to make sure the bottom doesn’t burn.

3. Cook until it reaches a thick consistency like oatmeal.

4. Top with fresh berries, chopped walnuts, almonds, a scoop of almond butter or peanut butter and enjoy!

Cooking it on the stove.

*Notes: This usually cooks in 5 minutes, but if you want to save time, you could make this the night before, let cool and refrigerate. In the morning, just warm it up in the microwave for a couple of minutes and you are ready to go!

After breakfast, Keenan and I met Giselle and her little guy from A healthy Happy Home at our local park. It was so nice to meet her in person and talk “blog shop,” but also just to get to know each other. Her little guy is adorable and she is so nice. We have a lot of similarities, so it will be great to get together with them again!

Playing with the water fountain at the park (as always)!

For lunch, we ventured out of our routine and made egg sandwiches! I made Keenan an egg sandwich with cheese and tomato spread with Costco’s yogurt jalapeno dip and avocado pieces on the side. I made my egg sandwich with spinach, tomato and avocado, spread with the jalapeno dip, too. In addition, we shared a peach. It was a delicious lunch and something we will be doing again (see, it’s great to break our of our routine sometimes!).

Keenan’s lunch! Sorry for the poor picture quality, I’m not sure what happened.

My lunch! Again, sorry for the poor picture quality!

For today’s workout, we are doing one of the benchmark WODs, Fran: 21-15-9 of thrusters (65 lb) and pullups. The last time I did it was at my CrossFit Level 1 Trainer Cert and I was able to shave off 2 minutes and PR (my personal best) at 8 minutes and 12 seconds. I’m hoping to shave off another 2 minutes and finish in 6 minutes today. We’ll see! I’m a little nervous, but I’m excited to do it again. I just hope my left shoulder holds up, because it is still pretty sore, especially from yesterday’s workout.

Yesterday, we did another benchmark WOD, Elizabeth: 21-15-9 of squat cleans (95 lb) and ring dips. Since I don’t have full ring dips yet and my shoulder was sore, I used the band for them (the lightest band). I was able to finish in 9 minutes and 17 seconds! I was pretty pumped! We are going to do these benchmark WODs again in 6 weeks, so it will be great to compare and see how and if we improved!

On the menu for dinner tonight is Chinese long beans sautéed with onions, Italian sausages, sun dried tomatoes, garlic and sprinkled with feta cheese. I thought I posted a recipe for this a while ago, but apparently I didn’t, so look for this to come tomorrow!

Before I forget, here is the recipe for my roasted brussel sprouts that we had for dinner last night:

Soooo good!

Roasted Brussel Sprouts with Pine Nuts and Parmesan Cheese: (serves 3-4)

-2 lbs brussel sprouts (washed and trimmed)

– 1 large yellow or red onion (large dice)

– 1/4 cup roasted pine nuts

– 2-3 Tbsp Parmesan cheese (grated)

– 2-3 Tbsp olive oil

– 1 Tbsp Italian seasoning

– 1 Tbsp Garlic no-salt seasoning

– 1 clove garlic (minced)

– pinch of salt and pepper

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Toss to make sure the brussel sprouts and onion are well coated with olive oil and spices.

3. Place brussel sprouts and onion on a large cookie sheet and bake for 30-40 minutes, until golden brown.

4. Sprinkle roasted pine nuts and Parmesan cheese on top of brussel sprouts when serving. Enjoy!

Ready to go in the oven!

Question: What do you do to maintain healthy routines? Does it work? Do you function better with routines or without them?

REMINDER: There is still time to enter the Drink Chia Giveaway!! To enter, click here!

Our bodies are like cars… August 17, 2012

Before I forget, here is a picture our dinner last night, Sauteed Kale with mushrooms, sun dried tomatoes, a red onion and feta cheese. It was delicious!

We had a busy morning today. After a quick “usual” breakfast, I took my latte to go and dropped off my car for its 40,000-mile service and then headed to my MOMs Club board meeting. After the meeting, Keenan got his second haircut! The guy who cut his hair the first time (my husband’s previous hair stylist) moved, so I found a new person that did a fabulous job! In addition, it only cost $7.0o! Keenan’s first haircut was $15.00, so today’s cut was a steal! If you live in the Natomas area and are looking for a great place to get your child’s hair cut, I highly recommend A-Z Cuts!

Showing off his new haircut!

After being in Alaska for two weeks and prior to that, San Diego, it is time for me to re-evaluate my eating habits and get back on track. I ate WAY too many sweets and bread (thanks to my Mother-in-Law for her wonderful baking!), so this week was all about “detoxing,” or rather eating proper portions again and lots of veggies and fruit! Since there are no grocery stores where my in-law’s have a lodge, everything has to be flown in, so you can’t go to the store every other day or every few days to get fresh produce. You either have to grow it or have it shipped and ration out the amount you eat. Needless to say, I missed having a lot of fruits and veggies on hand! Since we ate SO MANY carbs the past two weeks, our dinners this week consisted of protein and veggies. For breakfast and lunch, we have included carbs, i.e. Kashi Cereal and sandwich thins, but other than that, we haven’t eaten many of them. I stepped on the scale today and I put on a couple of pounds, so I definitely need to get back on track. My husband also put on a few pounds, so we are both watching our food consumption. Since we didn’t really workout while we were in Alaska, I think the lack of activity coupled with the additional sweets/carbs did us in. Oh, well, we were on vacation, so it was a good excuse to splurge, right??! Do you allow yourself to splurge when on vacation? What foods do you like to splurge on?

When talking to clients about their eating habits, I love to give them the analogy of a car. In order for our bodies to run properly and efficiently, they need the right fuel, as well as regular maintenance to withstand daily exercise (whether light, moderate or vigorous) on a daily basis and/or what life throws our way. If you have a sports car and it takes premium gasoline, you can’t put regular unleaded and expect it to run as well as it does with premium. Our bodies are the same way. If you are working out 7 days a week and doing very intense exercise, you need to eat enough protein to repair and build muscle, good carbs for re-filling your glycogen stores and staying hydrated to replace the amount of water you lose during your workouts. In addition, without proper maintenance, i.e. recovery, your body will run itself into the ground, being prone to injury and fatigue, thus decreasing performance (just as a car does when it doesn’t receive regular oil changes and maintenance checks). Some people think that we “live to eat,” but really, we “eat to live.” We need to take proper care of our bodies, whether for light to moderate exercise, vigorous workouts or playing with your kids.

Proper fuel requirements made me question if I am eating the right amounts (just right, too little or too much) of protein, carbs, veggies and fruit for the workouts that I am doing. I eat a good amount of protein with every meal and a little bit combined with a few carbs for my pre-workout snacks (which I need to start posting about and taking pictures), but is it enough? I do CrossFit 5 days a week, doing pretty vigorous activity, so I think I need to increase my protein intake. Prior to going to Alaska, I felt tired during my workouts (even though I was well hydrated, sleeping well and felt like I was eating enough), which could have been due to not eating enough protein. The American Dietetic Association recommends an endurance athlete consume between 1.2-1.7 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight. If you are doing heavy strength training, your protein needs are definitely in the high range and can go up to 1.8 grams per kilogram of body weight. With that said, I calculated the amount of protein I consume on a regular basis and I am short a few grams. So, my first focus is increasing my lean protein intake for all of my meals, without increasing my overall calorie intake. By doing so, I am going to decrease the amount of carbs I eat (still consuming them, though!) to make-up for the additional calories of protein. I know, it seems a little confusing, but it shouldn’t be too hard to do!

The main thing that I try to practice on a daily basis is being mindful, listening to my body. I eat when I’m hungry and hydrate when I am thirsty (though in Alaska, I definitely ate when I wasn’t hungry with all of the sweets laying around!). I listen to my body after a workout. If I’m feeling really fatigued, I think back to what I consumed during the day to see if I ate enough. The next day, I make sure to eat enough, especially protein and see if that makes a difference in how I feel after I work out. I find that if you listen to your body, you will learn a lot! Practicing mindful eating can help you reach your goals, whether they are losing weight, maintaining your weight or increasing your performance. How do you practice mindfulness?

Ok, enough of the boring nutrition stuff. Tonight is our “at home date night” after Keenan goes to bed, so I can’t wait! My husband is cooking an Asian dish with grilled chicken, zuchinni, carrots, onion over brown rice noodles served with a nice white wine; it should be good! We are planning to watch something on Netflix, but we’ll see if we can agree on something!

Well, it’s time to get ready for CrossFit. Have a great evening!