Vegetarian Week

I decided to dedicate a whole week of meals to the veggies. I am not a vegetarian nor will I be a vegetarian after this week is over. I just wanted to get some different meal ideas and see how it is to eat like a vegetarian for more then one meal. So far I have done four meals and I feel great. Lately after dinner I feel bloated and gross and it really gets me down inside. Now after my vegetarian meals I don't feel bloated and I feel great inside. I really like these recipes cause you can change up the vegetables if some don't sound good to you and make it your personal vegetarian meal. Here is my week of meals.

• Saturday-Greek Pita Sandwitch: cucumber, tomatoes, olives, avocado, hummus, and pita. With rice on the side.


• Sunday-Veggie Pizza


• Monday-Corn and black bean quinoa salad
  
  This one was not my favorite, but it does have potential to be good.


• Tuesday-Veggie lasagna
  
  I changed this one a little by adding mozzarella cheese and I used cottage cheese instead of ricotta cheese and put it in the oven for a little bit to melt the cheese.


• Wednesday-Southwest stuffed bell peppers
  
  This one I added mushrooms. We love mushrooms in our house so it gets added to everything.


• Thursday-Breakfast burritos with rice pilaf.


• Friday-Buttermilk pancakes with almond syrup.

Insane Workout

The last couple of weeks I have been working out to Insanity. Insanity is from the makers of P90X. I have never done P90X, but from what I hear Insanity is more cardio and that it is. I first heard about Insanity from my dad. After talking to him I really wanted to try it, but then when I heard that my dad and brother who are in really good shape have trouble doing it I got really nervous. I tried it with my dad and loved it. it is definitely hard, but it is so worth it. It's about 30 minutes long and after I get done I feel so good. It's not the easiest to get out and exercise in Utah when the weather is always horrible, but this is the best at home workout DVD I have ever done. Every time I turn it on I look at the girls behind him in their sports bras and know that one day I can look like that. The first week I started it I felt so good about myself. I even thought I had noticed a little difference. If you are like me and can't get outside as much because of kids, weather, or both then I would recommend these DVDs. If you are interested then here is a site to look into it http://beachbodycoach.com/Nitemaretrainer This workout makes me feel so good and even though I am not in good shape I still try and do it at my own pace and I feel incredible afterwards.

Circuit Training

In the last post I mentioned circuit training and said it would be discussed later so hopefully this gives you an understanding of it. Circuit training combines resistance training and high-intensity aerobics. When one circuit is complete, you begin the first exercise again for another circuit. The time between exercises is short, usually just the movement to get to the next exercise. Here are some advantages of circuit training. It provides a whole body workout and does not require expensive gym equipment. For anybody that doesn't go to a gym and wants new workout ideas for home here are a few that can be used in circuit training. Bodyweight circuit training workout

• Stand in a X position with legs spread out and arms up in the air and do squats. 15 reps
• Do push-ups. 15 reps
• Standing in the same spot do lunges with a pause at the bottom. 15 reps
• Do push-ups with the legs elevated so put your feet on a chair or couch. These will be more difficult then the first set of push-ups. 15 reps
• Do jumping jacks. 15 reps
• Do mountain climbers. Get in a plank position and bring one leg forward to the chest with the toe on the ground. 12-15 reps each side

Do this entire workout and then repeat it again and again. These are just some ideas to get you started. The great thing about circuit training is you can change it up to whatever works best for you. Get the heart pumping and burn some fat.

Resistance Training Will Blast the Fat Away

Summer is coming and now is the time to start shedding the pounds so we can look good in a bathing suit. Lifting weights will help tone muscles and make your curves look sexy. Lifting weights can be scary for females because we don't want bulky big muscles. Only about a fifth of females strength train about twice a week. Lifting weights will give you an edge over belly fat, stress, heart disease, and cancer. Here are a few reasons to lift weights.

• For every pound of muscle on your body you burn 100 calories a day.
• Between ages 30 to 50 you can lose 10% of your body's total muscle. Over time it is likely to be replaced by fat. One pound of fat takes up 18% more space then one pound of muscle.
• As we age bone density gets worse and worse so lifting weights can help increase the bone density.
• You will get into shape quicker. Circuit training with weights increases the heart rate 15 beats per minute higher then if you ran at 60-70% of your max heart rate. Circuit training will be discussed in a later post.
• Your heart will be healthier.

There are so many different exercises to do with weights, but even if it's just the basic bicep curl that is a start to burning more calories and getting the heart healthy so you can be fit.

Shakeology

Looking for a yummy shake that is a great nutritional supplement, help you loose weight, lower cholersterol, and make you feel energized. My dad is a team beachbody coach and has started drinking these shakes. The developers of P90X have developed this shake. Check it out and read about how it helps with making the body healthy.

Look Better Naked

All my life I have wanted a six pack, but have never achieved one. After having two kids achieving that goal gets harder and harder. Everyday I try to fit in some sit-ups before kids start bouncing on my stomach. I decided that I needed to work all four layers of the core which are the rectus abdominis, external and internal obliques, and the transverse abdominis. Not only do these exercises work the core, but they also help the hip flexors, spine extensors, hip adductors, hip abductors, and multifidius. If we are always sitting at a desk or driving a car then the spine is always flexed. Why would we worsen it with spine-flexing exercises? These exercises can help the posture and work the stomach and back in a whole new way. A couple of the exercises involve a stability ball or a bench, but if you don't have those then the couch or a chair works just fine. If you are a beginner to the plank exercises then I would start with using a chair instead of a stability ball. Try these out instead of doing the same old exercises and see how your body feels.

Cookies Without Feeling the Guilt

Chocolate Zucchini Cookies

Ingredients

• 3 cups whole wheat flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/4 cup cocoa
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 cup grated zucchini
• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees

Mix together flour, baking soda, cocoa, and salt

In a seperate bowl beat together sugar, oil, and extract

Fold in zucchini

Combine all ingrediants and mix until smooth

Spoon little balls onto a cookie sheet and slightly flatten them

Bake 12-15 minutes

These cookies are so good. You can eat them without feeling guilty.

Interval Running

I hated running and am not the best at it, but one summer my dad introduced me to interval running. It has been the best thing I have ever done. It burns the fat and keeps you going. One of the things I hated about running was how boring it was, but with interval running you have to keep your attention on the time and the next thing you know your run is over and you feel great. There are many different ways to do this, but here is the way I like. Start with a jog for 3 minutes, then sprint for 30 seconds, and jog again for 3 minutes. Keep doing this for 20 minutes. Here is the time sequence.

Jog till 3 minutes

Sprint till 3:30

Jog till 6:30

Sprint till 7:00

Jog till 10:00

Sprint till 10:30

Jog till 13:30

Sprint till 14:00

Jog till 17:00

Sprint till 17:30

Jog till 20:30

This workout keeps your brain going and makes the time go by really quickly. At first it is not going to be easy, but you need to find the jog and sprint speed that works best for you. I just barely started doing it again and my jog and sprint speeds are way lower then what I was doing before, but it still works and makes the body feel so good. My dad had me do this all summer before I ran the half marathon. It is what got me in shape to be able to run 13.1 miles. So if you hate running then try this. It's not easy, you need to know your limits, and you might not make it the whole 20 minutes, but if you keep going then one day the 20 minutes will seem like nothing and running will be a whole new experience.

Getting in Shape

Before I had children I loved working out. I still do love it, but find it harder to fit into my schedule. I grew up with a family that has that same passion. My dad always went to the gym and teaches classes, my brothers had weight machines in their bedrooms, and my mom goes to the gym, but has just always looked good. It's not easy to just get up in the morning and workout. My family has helped me a lot by being my inspiration. I don't workout cause I worry what other people think of me. I do it cause I know how good it is for my body. Before I got pregnant with Cody I ran a half marathon with my dad. It was one of the best achievements I have ever accomplished. I had a desire to do it again after Cody was born, but about 7 months later I got pregnant again. Now after being pregnant for 2 years in a row I want to get back to the workouts I use to do and learn some new ones. I want mom's and anyone else to know that it is possible to get back into shape and live a healthy lifestyle.