Wow has it been a while since I last blogged!! Time so easily gets away from us!
I for one, have been struggling with keeping a regular exercise program this summer, and time is flying. This doesn't mean I haven't been active, we've been to the beach, music in the park, downtown, jump roping in the back yard, swimming, swimming and more swimming. No, what I'm talking about is the put on your work out clothes and "officially" work out. I can manage it for a couple of days then my schedule is interrupted by something more fun. :^)
I think so many of us only see exercise in its official forms. So if we're not at the gym, on our bikes, or running miles lonely with our ipods than we must not be exercising. There has got to be a balance! So today I decided to take the kids to the Rose Bowl. Anna rode her bike and Alyssa was on her scooter. What I got was a reasonable intervals run. Now you could not have set your intervals watch by me. No, what I had to do was run to keep up, than walk to give Alyssa a break (scooters are hard work!) Over the course of the loop around the Rose Bowl I managed to keep my heart rate at an average fat burning percentage and burned more than 360 calories! I also got many a chuckle as the girls weaved their way in and out of the other people pounding the pavement. I got to cheer Anna on as she climbed the one and only hill by herself for the first time. We even got to laugh over a poor little white poodle whose "creative" owner had dyed its ears purple and yellow! Only in LA people!
We had fun!! Instead of turning on the TV to distract your kids while you try to sweat to the oldies, why don't you include them the next time you want to get some exercise. I promise it will be an adventure! Blessings!!
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Friday, April 3, 2009
Yummy Yogurt and Oatmeal Parfait
I wanted to take a few minutes and share this wonderful breakfast recipe. If you find yourself having a mid-morning energy crash (You know the one I'm talking about. The one that happens after you somehow manage to get hubby off to work, the kids out the door to school, the first load of laundry in, and the kitchen cleaned yet some how along the way you haven't managed to follow your own advice of eating breakfast because it's the "most important meal of the day.") Well, this one is perfect for making the night before so there won't be any excuses for not having time to eat! I've included the nutritional breakdown and you can see this recipe is full of all the good stuff!
Yummy Yogurt and Oatmeal Parfait
6oz nonfat vanilla yogurt (130 calories)
1/4cp oatmeal (dry) (77 calories)
2tsp flaxseed/ground (26 calories)
1Tbs chopped walnuts (80 calories)
25-30 raisins (35 calories)
Ground Cinnamon to taste
Mix it all together and enjoy! I do it in the morning, but if you want the oatmeal to soften you can do it the night before.
Note: You can change this up and add any dried fruit or nuts that you have in the pantry. Just this morning I used some sauteed apples (leftover from pancake toppings). You could even toss some frozen berries into the blender with the yogurt and then mix with the oatmeal, nuts and flaxseed. (Caution: This particular option is so good it makes you feel like you're having dessert for breakfast!)
Nutritional breakdown: 348 calories, 8 grams of fat, 13 grams of protein and nearly 5 grams of fiber! Even though the fat is a little high it's all the good monounsaturated fats so they're good for you!
Yummy Yogurt and Oatmeal Parfait
6oz nonfat vanilla yogurt (130 calories)
1/4cp oatmeal (dry) (77 calories)
2tsp flaxseed/ground (26 calories)
1Tbs chopped walnuts (80 calories)
25-30 raisins (35 calories)
Ground Cinnamon to taste
Mix it all together and enjoy! I do it in the morning, but if you want the oatmeal to soften you can do it the night before.
Note: You can change this up and add any dried fruit or nuts that you have in the pantry. Just this morning I used some sauteed apples (leftover from pancake toppings). You could even toss some frozen berries into the blender with the yogurt and then mix with the oatmeal, nuts and flaxseed. (Caution: This particular option is so good it makes you feel like you're having dessert for breakfast!)
Nutritional breakdown: 348 calories, 8 grams of fat, 13 grams of protein and nearly 5 grams of fiber! Even though the fat is a little high it's all the good monounsaturated fats so they're good for you!
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Eating Healthy
As I write this I am recovering from a terrible cold. You know the kind that lingers for about two weeks and leaves you feeling like you have an elephant standing on your chest so that you have to sleep sitting up otherwise the coughing keeps you awake all night. Really not a lot of fun! Thankfully, my freezer and pantry/refrigerator were prepared for me to take some time off from the kitchen while I was trying to get better. The following is a list of the pantry/freezer items and how they were used to feed my family even when I didn't feel like getting off the couch.
Freezer Items:
1 Whole Roasting Chicken (bought on sale a while back)
4 cps Homemade Chicken Broth
2 cps Frozen Corn
Refrigerator Items:
4 Celery stalks
6 Carrots
Pantry Items:
3 cans Cannelini Beans (aka White Kidney Beans)
1 can Chopped Tomatoes
1 sm can Chipotles in Adobo
1 tbs Organo, dried
2 lge sprigs fresh Rosemary (from the garden)
2 sm Onions
4 cloves Garlic
Ok, now I know that sounds like a lot of things, but you will be able to make two wonderful and completely different meals with these ingredients that will feed a family of four easily. The first night you will eat Slow-cooked Chicken with Vegetables and Rosemary and the second night you will eat Chipotle Chicken and Corn Soup
Slow-cooked Chicken with Vegetables and Rosemary
1 Whole Roasting Chicken
4 cps Homemade Chicken Broth (store bought is OK too!)
4 Celery stalks
6 Carrots
2 lge sprigs fresh Rosemary (1 tsp dried)
2 sm Onions
4 cloves Garlic
Rinse the chicken under cold water and remove any extra items from inside the cavity; place in crock pot. Cut celery and carrots into 2-inch segments; slice onions into large segments; chop garlic cloves; place in crock pot. Season with salt and pepper to taste; pour in chicken broth; toss in fresh rosemary. Set crock pot to cook for 8 hours.
Serve with Rice or warm French Bread.
Note: Don't throw away the bones and left over broth! You will need those for the second recipe! Store the bones and broth in a container in the fridge until the day you want to eat the next recipe.
Chipotle Chicken and Corn Soup
Step 1:
Place chicken bones and any broth in a stock pot. Add 6-8 cups of water then allow to simmer for 1 to 2 hours. (This may seem like a lot of work, but it's really not, because you don't have to watch over this at all. The best part is that you end up with the best tasting chicken broth you will ever taste!)
Step 2:
After the broth has simmered for a couple of hours you will want to strain it. I use a metal strainer and then go back with a glass fat separator to remove any excess fat and impurities off the broth. (Fat separators are extremely handy to have around the holidays for making gravies!)
Step 3:
Place the broth back on the stove and add...
2 cps leftover Chicken pulled into bite sized pieces
2 cps Frozen Corn
3-15oz cans Cannelini Beans, drained and rinsed
1-15oz can Chopped Tomatoes
1 sm can Chipotles in Adobo (Use as much or as little as you would like, but beware these are extremely hot! I only use a couple of spoonfuls of the adobo/sauce.)
1 tbs Organo, dried
Allow to simmer for 15-30 minutes to allow flavors to meld. Serve with crumbled tortilla chips, shredded cheese and slices of avocado.
There you go, two extremely healthy and flavorful meals for days when you don't feel like being in the kitchen!
Freezer Items:
1 Whole Roasting Chicken (bought on sale a while back)
4 cps Homemade Chicken Broth
2 cps Frozen Corn
Refrigerator Items:
4 Celery stalks
6 Carrots
Pantry Items:
3 cans Cannelini Beans (aka White Kidney Beans)
1 can Chopped Tomatoes
1 sm can Chipotles in Adobo
1 tbs Organo, dried
2 lge sprigs fresh Rosemary (from the garden)
2 sm Onions
4 cloves Garlic
Ok, now I know that sounds like a lot of things, but you will be able to make two wonderful and completely different meals with these ingredients that will feed a family of four easily. The first night you will eat Slow-cooked Chicken with Vegetables and Rosemary and the second night you will eat Chipotle Chicken and Corn Soup
Slow-cooked Chicken with Vegetables and Rosemary
1 Whole Roasting Chicken
4 cps Homemade Chicken Broth (store bought is OK too!)
4 Celery stalks
6 Carrots
2 lge sprigs fresh Rosemary (1 tsp dried)
2 sm Onions
4 cloves Garlic
Rinse the chicken under cold water and remove any extra items from inside the cavity; place in crock pot. Cut celery and carrots into 2-inch segments; slice onions into large segments; chop garlic cloves; place in crock pot. Season with salt and pepper to taste; pour in chicken broth; toss in fresh rosemary. Set crock pot to cook for 8 hours.
Serve with Rice or warm French Bread.
Note: Don't throw away the bones and left over broth! You will need those for the second recipe! Store the bones and broth in a container in the fridge until the day you want to eat the next recipe.
Chipotle Chicken and Corn Soup
Step 1:
Place chicken bones and any broth in a stock pot. Add 6-8 cups of water then allow to simmer for 1 to 2 hours. (This may seem like a lot of work, but it's really not, because you don't have to watch over this at all. The best part is that you end up with the best tasting chicken broth you will ever taste!)
Step 2:
After the broth has simmered for a couple of hours you will want to strain it. I use a metal strainer and then go back with a glass fat separator to remove any excess fat and impurities off the broth. (Fat separators are extremely handy to have around the holidays for making gravies!)
Step 3:
Place the broth back on the stove and add...
2 cps leftover Chicken pulled into bite sized pieces
2 cps Frozen Corn
3-15oz cans Cannelini Beans, drained and rinsed
1-15oz can Chopped Tomatoes
1 sm can Chipotles in Adobo (Use as much or as little as you would like, but beware these are extremely hot! I only use a couple of spoonfuls of the adobo/sauce.)
1 tbs Organo, dried
Allow to simmer for 15-30 minutes to allow flavors to meld. Serve with crumbled tortilla chips, shredded cheese and slices of avocado.
There you go, two extremely healthy and flavorful meals for days when you don't feel like being in the kitchen!
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Endurance Training...Sports Car or Semi?
For all of you avid cyclists out there you know exactly what I mean when I compare a road bike to a sports car. I ride a Bianchi Talladega road bike, that my oh so wonderful hubby, Jordan, bought for me after our second daughter was born. It's a smooth, yet stiff, very responsive ride. There is only one problem... I absolutely refuse to attach my daughters tag-a-bike to it! It's not meant for that kind of work! It would be like attaching my dad's 5th-wheel to a Porsche. You just don't do it! But here's the issue, I want to ride with my daughter. It's an absolute blast hanging out with her on the bike! And as much as I love cycling, I don't want to give up the better part of a Saturday to go for the endurance ride I know I should be taking to stay in top shape. What's a girl to do? I would like to propose you can achieve a great endurance ride by taking a shorter than usual training ride on a semi! A semi? you say... Yes, a semi!
The recipe:
1 Very heavy "townie" bike
1 Tag-a-bike
1 47 pound 5 year old
1 6 pound family dog in the front basket
1 Beautiful, hilly, 15 mile ride
Would you believe this past Saturday my husband and I had an awesome "endurance" training ride while hanging out with our two daughters (ages 5 and 8)? That's right. We pulled our two bruiser bikes down from the racks and attached the girl's tag-a-bikes to them and road the 15 mile Time Trial route of the 2009 Amgen Tour of California. I went so far as to put our family dog, Charlie Brown, in the front basket! We were a sight to see! I was no longer riding my "sports car" of a bike but I was now riding a semi!! But that's what made an hour and 45 minute, 15 mile ride into an awesome endurance ride. This is why I will do it again...
1) Increased Mental Agility as you plan for and anticipate, "unscheduled lane changes" that your little person will inevitably create every single time she turns her head!!
2) Improved Bike Handling Skills Let's face it, this semi does not respond the way your sports car does! When those unscheduled lane changes occur you can't move agilely back into place. You cannot over correct or you fly one way as the dog and your 5 year old fly the other. And I can guarantee they won't want to get back on!
3) Forced In The Saddle Climbs If your semi includes a Townie as mine does, you may have front suspension. This means that you cannot create any power on a climb. The minute you start climbing out of the saddle and pulling on the bars to get extra power you create vertical force. In other words you bounce. Your 5 year old will not enjoy this ride and neither will the dog! You are forced to sit in the saddle and grind your way to the top of the climb. Ouch!
4) 15 Miles Turns Into a One Hour and 45 Minute Ride The pros did the time trial route in just over 31 minutes. Our family ride took three times that long! And I wouldn't have it any other way... well, maybe that's not exactly true. I am looking forward to the day when both girls can be on their own road bikes and we can do the family ride that way, but until then, this was awesome!
This ride, was the perfect balance! Jordan and I got a great endurance ride in, we continued to instill in our girls the importance of staying fit, and we spent time together. So the next time your workout schedule is driving you away from your family, stop and ask the Lord for some guidance. I pray He shows you some innovative ways to incorporate family time with staying healthy. I would love to hear of your ideas!! Blessings, Kristina
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
First steps to weight loss, the balanced way.
Everyone knows that diets are a dime a dozen. You can't step foot in any store, watch any TV, or talk to anyone and not see or hear something about dieting. It's January 2009 and I bet you know at least one other person who has started a diet. Is it you? Did you make the New Years resolution to loose weight this year? I promise you can loose weight, but you won't do it with a diet. Let me let you in on a secret... dieting doesn't work!
In my experience as a Personal Chef, people will try the craziest diets!! I think I've seen most of them and honestly have tried some myself. All diets have one thing in common. They start with a list of things you are no longer allowed to eat. In one diet I picked up recently the author actually said you were not allowed to eat zucchini! That's crazy! When the first thing you do is start depriving yourself you will fall into the diet trap. "All diets will make you hungry, which in turn makes you tired, which in turn makes you cranky!" That doesn't sound like a good time to me! That's not balance. Period.
If you truly want to loose weight the first thing you have to do is begin to appreciate who you are. Did you know the Bible says you are made in God's image? That sounds good to me. So take a deep breath and meditate on you being made in God's image. The next thing I want you to do is consider this... Acts 17:11 "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Wow! God has made plans for you to prosper! He wants to give you hope! If you want to loose weight, you can do it! But it's going to require you asking for the Lord's help and grace as you begin a journey of finding balance.
In this weight loss section of the Living In Balance Blog I'm going to present you with what I believe are some of the most important things you can do to succeed at losing weight. We are going to focus on making healthy life changes that over time will add up to a healthier you. We are going to focus on one thing at a time.
This first step will not give you an immediate decrease in pounds, but is something that will over time dramatically help your body. It is really simple. Add two glasses of water each day. You will drink one 16 ounce glass as soon as your feet hit the floor in the morning. Then add a second 16 ounce glass right before you turn in. Your body needs this water because it becomes dehydrated overnight. When your body is dehydrated it actually retains water leaving you bloated and not feeling good.
Simple. You can do it.
In my experience as a Personal Chef, people will try the craziest diets!! I think I've seen most of them and honestly have tried some myself. All diets have one thing in common. They start with a list of things you are no longer allowed to eat. In one diet I picked up recently the author actually said you were not allowed to eat zucchini! That's crazy! When the first thing you do is start depriving yourself you will fall into the diet trap. "All diets will make you hungry, which in turn makes you tired, which in turn makes you cranky!" That doesn't sound like a good time to me! That's not balance. Period.
If you truly want to loose weight the first thing you have to do is begin to appreciate who you are. Did you know the Bible says you are made in God's image? That sounds good to me. So take a deep breath and meditate on you being made in God's image. The next thing I want you to do is consider this... Acts 17:11 "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Wow! God has made plans for you to prosper! He wants to give you hope! If you want to loose weight, you can do it! But it's going to require you asking for the Lord's help and grace as you begin a journey of finding balance.
In this weight loss section of the Living In Balance Blog I'm going to present you with what I believe are some of the most important things you can do to succeed at losing weight. We are going to focus on making healthy life changes that over time will add up to a healthier you. We are going to focus on one thing at a time.
This first step will not give you an immediate decrease in pounds, but is something that will over time dramatically help your body. It is really simple. Add two glasses of water each day. You will drink one 16 ounce glass as soon as your feet hit the floor in the morning. Then add a second 16 ounce glass right before you turn in. Your body needs this water because it becomes dehydrated overnight. When your body is dehydrated it actually retains water leaving you bloated and not feeling good.
Simple. You can do it.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Welcome to Living In Balance
I guess you would say I like to encourage people. It's one of the things I do best. I once heard people can actually have a ministry of encouragement and even though I'm not in the "ministry," encouraging the people around me has always been important. I hope this blog will be an encouragement to you.
Here I will write a lot about exercise, because after all that's my official business. I am the owner of iFit Gourmet where I collaborate with indie Christian musicians using their music as a backdrop for indoor cycling workouts. "iFit Gourmet's mission is to enrich people's lives through convenient exercise, healthy living, and powerful, inspirational music." It's a great joy for me to work on a project incorporating so many of my own personal interests; cycling, music, and food! It doesn't get any better!
I also plan on writing about some other topics of interest... "A Common Sense Plan to Weight Loss;" how to incorporate exercise into the busiest of schedules; indoor cycling tips and fun facts; how to really spend time together with your family; and a lot about food and healthy gourmet recipes.
I hope you come back often, or better yet become a follower of this blog. I pray it will be a blessing to you!
Mathew 6:33
"But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well."
Here I will write a lot about exercise, because after all that's my official business. I am the owner of iFit Gourmet where I collaborate with indie Christian musicians using their music as a backdrop for indoor cycling workouts. "iFit Gourmet's mission is to enrich people's lives through convenient exercise, healthy living, and powerful, inspirational music." It's a great joy for me to work on a project incorporating so many of my own personal interests; cycling, music, and food! It doesn't get any better!
I also plan on writing about some other topics of interest... "A Common Sense Plan to Weight Loss;" how to incorporate exercise into the busiest of schedules; indoor cycling tips and fun facts; how to really spend time together with your family; and a lot about food and healthy gourmet recipes.
I hope you come back often, or better yet become a follower of this blog. I pray it will be a blessing to you!
Mathew 6:33
"But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well."
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