Egg Recipes

At the request of my friend, KATE, here are a few of our favorite egg recipes! Just because they are on my fitness blog DOESN'T make them the healthiest of choices but they sure are yummy!

EGGS BENEDICT {my personal FAVORITE breakfast of ALL TIME}
8 eggs
4 english muffins
8 slices canadian bacon
hollandiase sauce {can use packet or if you want our homemade version comment with your email}
8 swiss or provolone cheese slices
*asparagus {a must in my opinion but can be considered optional}

Fry or poach eggs. Toast English muffins. On each slice of muffin top with a slice of cheese, c. bacon, egg, a few stalks of asparagus & drizzle with hollandaise sauce. YUMMY!!!

HUEVOS RANCHEROS {I think the real thing has the egg & salsa cooked together}
8 eggs
refried beans
8 corn tortillas
salsa
sour cream
cholula

Fry eggs {we fry ours without butter or anything on a griddle}. Fry corn tortillas. Warm beans in saucepan. Top each corn tortilla with beans, an egg, cheese & top with any combination of salsa, sour cream and hot sauce.

We also LOVE: quiche, frittatas, & egg salad sandwiches, *If you want any of these recipes comment and I'll be sure to post them!

Check out the INCREDIBLE EGG website to see some AWESOME facts about eggs, their nutritional content and weight management/muscle growth!!

Yummy Smoothie

So I occasionally throw a SMOOTHIE together. Sometimes it's after a workout, with protein. Sometimes it's a snack or part of breakfast. A couple days ago it was because my caloric intake for the day was WAY low {I ate A LOT, rest assured, but it was very low calorie foods apparently}. So my favorite smoothie consists of {no exact measurements here}:

In my MAGIC BULLET I mix: frozen strawberries, 1/2 a banana, cottage cheese, & milk.

Like I said before though, sometimes I add protein {which cottage cheese has A LOT of protein}. Sometimes I'll use different fruits but strawberry banana seems to be my favorite. Sometimes I'll substitute the cottage cheese with vanilla yogurt. Either way is SCRUMPTIOUS!! I NEVER sweeten my smoothies {with sugar, splenda or whatever}; I really like them without it. YUM!!!

Easter Woahs

Did you know that Easter is the SECOND candy giving holiday? So we all probably have a TON of candy around the house right about now. I've been watching my nutrition intake on SparkPeople; something I've NEVER done. I was surprised by how many calories are in even a small candy bar. YIKES!! Prior to my lifestyle change I would down holiday candy and goodies without even thinking twice. NOT ANY MORE! I have really watched myself but I've also found that I'm not craving the goodies like I used to. Though if I'm honest I have 3 Huckleberry Cordials sitting on my night stand that are SCREAMING my name!!! {These things are TO DIE FOR}! Go easy on the candy & goodies though and I think you'll find that you don't really WANT them anymore; I DID!

We love eggs at our house. We eat A LOT of them. {I even discount piano lessons for a couple families who bring me eggs each week}. Did you know that the quality of protein found in eggs is second ONLY to mother's breast milk? How AWESOME is that?! Eggs are great for you and are a quick and easy breakfast option {we don't even purchase cold cereal}!! So if you have a PLETHORA of boiled eggs around the house, whip up some potato salad, egg salad sandwiches, deviled eggs... The possibilites are fairly endless!!!

Ticked Off!!

I have had a great workout week. I've made sure to do everything on my schedule, I've watched what I eat {about 1200-1500 calories a day} and what thanks do I get? 2.5 POUNDS in THREE DAYS, that's what!! GRR!!

Okay, I'm COOL again. I am frustrated but that's how it goes sometimes right? And it really isn't about that stupid #. I feel REALLY GOOD {partly due to the fact that I'm almost not sick anymore} and that matters a lot more than what a scale tells me.

SparkPeople

I REALLY wanted to give this website a try before I felt like it was post worthy {good or bad}. So I first heard about SparkPeople awhile ago but didn't really give it a shot until recently. And technically I shouldn't use Spark People because I am still nursing. It sent me to a different website BabyFit; which I didn't love. So, like most things concerning fitness & diet while nursing, I am doing what is best for me under the circumstances. So PLEASE keep in mind that I am not taking full advantage of EVERYTHING on there yet; but I will.

SparkPeople is a site for all your health & fitness needs. You track your strength training & cardio, your daily nutrition intake; both of which can be completely customized to track specific things that you NEED to focus on. It is about making LIFESTYLE changes; which is what I am ALL about!

I have read through their SparkDiet Overview and I am completely satisfied with the way they have it set up. I HATE DIETS!! {If I'm completely honest, I've never been on one... and NEVER will}. Diets DON'T WORK! But monitoring what goes in my body is just another thing I need to do to TAKE CARE of myself. But because I hate the four-letter D word so bad I am going to use NUTRITION instead. Cool?!

You can follow their laid out NUTRITION &/or EXERCISE plans OR you can customize your own. You set small goals that you can accomplish and then you set higher goals! It's all about making HABITS and CHANGING your LIFESTYLE!

It's a BEAUTIFUL thing to take care of yourself and be able to ENJOY life at its fullest!

Lots of Randomness

I have DETERMINED to have a good workout week and thus far I'm doin GOOD! Monday I did the P90X Chest & Back workout and my family went swimming so I was sure to do a few laps {I ♥ laps}. Tuesday I did my Turbo Jam {rather than the P90X Plyometrics}, 15 minutes abs {done every Tues & Thurs when we do our Turbo Jam workout} and the P90X Ab Ripper. Today I will be doing the P90X Shoulders & Arms. A few thoughts I've had lately:

* Park your car farther from the store or work and WALK

* Do some crunches, leg lifts, plank, wall sit {or SOMETHING else} while watching TV.

* Don't drink so much stinkin SODA! And while I'm at it; lay off the ALCOHOL! {those two deserve a post}

* With Spring comin soon {not for me, we're still getting SNOW} work in your yard, push mow your lawn, plant a vegetable garden...

* Get a friend to workout with; help each other stick to your GOALS

* Set realistic goals. Set SMALL goals and LONG TERM goals. Celebrate when you achieve them!

* PLAY! Get on a TEAM {basketball, volleyball, softball, soccer... ANYTHING} or just play with your KIDS!

* Get a group of friends together and TAKE A HIKE! Find new trails in your area. EXPLORE & ENJOY the great outdoors!

* Try something NEW this summer: rock climbing, waterskiing, kayaking, dance...

The point is to live a healthier more active lifestyle! And have fun too! What works for you? Let me know & maybe it will help the rest of us!!

Bring It... Yet Again!

I was driving home last night from my Granny & Gramps' house {Granny had a pacemaker put in her heart last week, so I was checking on her}. A funny thing happened in the car. I was on the dry farms when I turned on the radio {to COUNTRY of course}. Ya know how the song title and artist will scroll across the "screen"?! Well mine just said "BRING IT". It didn't change {though the song did probably 4 times}! So I had my 7 year old watch it so that I could focus on driving {we had already nearly hit 2 deer... tis the season}. It didn't change at all for over 10 MINTUES!!! Guess I'm supposed to BRING IT this week eh?!

The GYM

Last night I was invited to the gym with my friend, WAHOO! She has a membership and they are able to bring a guest with them on occasion. LUCKY ME!! We ran on the treadmill {my favorite}, lifted a few weights and had a go with the elliptical. I must admit that I am TEMPTED to get a membership myself {I can't but it's tempting none the less}!

Here's what I LOVED about it:

* NICE EQUIPMENT!! Those machines can do just about anything and probably do the dishes too. The treadmill had a button for a 5K; how sweet! NICE STUFF!!
* MOTIVATION!! Having a friend to go workout with helps me actually go workout. Said friend has been going every night for about an hour. Plus if I was paying for a membership I'd want to make sure I used it so I wasn't flushing my cash down the tube!

Here's what I DIDN'T love:

* $. I would LOVE to be able to afford a membership but it's not something I can justify right now.
*Goin at it ALONE. I stand in front of all those free weights and weight machines and I think to myself, "Hmm. Self? What should I do? I have NO IDEA!!!" I need someone there to show me what muscle groups to work that day, how to work them, what order to work them in AND make sure that my form is correct so I DON'T INJURE myself!!! {Side note: that is one thing that I DO LOVE about P90X; he makes sure you're doing it correctly}

I had a great time. And I hope that I get invited along again sometime in the future!

And I'm Back In The Game

Not entirely; I'm still coughing something fierce. But I forced my sorry sore b-hind out of bed this morning and went to my turbo-jam-kick-my-trash group despite all the protestations of my brain & body!! I will admit that I wasn't 100%; but I was there!!! Hopefully I'm on the upswing and can once again BRING IT!!!

*Any requests/questions for my next post?

I've Fallen OFF the Bandwagon!

So I've mentioned that I'm SICK. I have been sick for a week & a half; and it's starting to make the rounds with the rest of the family!!! I haven't worked out in a week; I even missed my turbo jam class which I haven't skipped EVER!! My Mother-in-Law brought a HUGE bag of Pepperidge Farm Milano cookies over and I've eaten far more than my share. A friend heard I was sick so she made cinnamon rolls for my family... I ate 4 of the 5 on the plate!!! {homemade treats are a MAJOR weakness for me}. So needless to say, I've probably put on 500 pounds, I am feeling like crud and lacking motivation!!