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Have you thought about becoming vegetarian?

12/4/2019

So...

My husband watched The Game Changers on Netflix a few weeks ago and ever since then he has pretty much eaten a plant based diet, save for Thanksgiving dinner; which I must say has been interesting.

I am all for Plant based diets and I definitely am one to promote eating more veggies and fruits each and every day; but have found making meals completely vegetarian rather difficult and time consuming. The chopping and prepping has doubled, trying to figure out what dishes will taste good together, and then making sure the foods we are eating will satisfy us. So the meals have been a salad, some sort of flavorful vegetable main dish, a healthy starch which usually is some sort of wild rice or roasted potato/sweet potato but am noticing I'm really missing the animal meat on my plate.

So I have decided for my children and I, we will practice more of a flexitarian diet, which is eating mostly plant based and use meat as a garnish or have a few meatless meals and enjoy the meat from time to time-this makes more sense to us as a family. This ensures that we are getting our Iron as needed, since its imperative for us who workout and are growing. (Iron helps our muscles to take in oxygen from the bloodstream).

This is much more manageable and I have to say it has been fun to try a lot of new recipes this past month and these are some of my favorite places to go for delicious vegetarian options.

The Forest Feast-I have two of her cookbooks already and have asked for the other two for Christmas. They are absolutely beautiful and are worth looking at for just the pictures.

Pick up Limes- I have tried a few of her bowls and they are delicious; her YouTube videos are beautiful and I truly have gotten lost just watching her create these exquisite dishes.

Chloe Coscarelli-oh my goodness, she is the cutest thing and she has beautiful cookbooks as well that I love. My son loved her vegan meatballs, and said he might just become vegan after eating these

I would love to hear if you have ever tried going vegetarian and your thoughts on it; or did you determine a more flexitarian diet was the way to go? Any recommendations for vegetarian/vegan cookbooks or blogs would be greatly appreciated as well since I love to find different ideas for inspiration.

In health and wellness-Courtney

smoothie bowls

11/24/2019

Smoothie bowls are yummy!

There are a few reasons I recommend you make your own smoothie bowl.
1. It's really easy to make your own, rather than heading to that new bowl shop, and therefore can ensure their is no added sugar/ingredients you don't want.

2. If you have a little extra time, make a smoothie bowl rather than a smoothie. You may not eat as much when you eat with a spoon as it slows down the eating process and you may not consume as much since you aren't drinking it quickly.

3. If you deal with morning headaches you might be missing a key component to your morning routine. The act of chewing. For some if you deal with those minor headaches in the morning, you might be clenching your jaw at night and you need to release that tension. One of the easiest ways to release tension in the jaw muscles is by actively working them by chewing. Add crunchy things to help your jaw release tension in the morning, like granola and nuts.

Oh and they are really pretty
😊.
Blueberry Smoothie bowl Recipe:
1/2 cup almond milk
1/3 cup plain yogurt
2/3 cup frozen blueberries
1 tsp sweetener of choice (honey, maple syrup, agave) I used my plant based protein
1/2 tsp cinnamon
Blend then add some granola, coconut, nuts, seeds (chia, hemp, flax), and fruit of your choice.

busy Mom's Kitchen

11/18/2019

This is my business bestie! We met back in 2007 when we both owned Stroller Fitness businesses and have become really close over the years as we have been building our own businesses. We have always supported one another (in EVERYTHING!) and we were always going back and forth about the next best podcast to listen to.

I am so excited for her as she just started her own podcast where she is going to be sharing ways to make life easier in and out of the kitchen as a busy mom. I would love for you to subscribe to her channel to support her.

Also if you are interested in hearing about ways to keep active during the Holidays, you might hear a familiar voice :)

So definitely go check it out and let me know what you think!

meal planning

10/28/2019

One of the hardest things to do as moms is to plan healthy meals for our families each and every week. Not only do we have to plan it, go to the grocery store to purchase the ingredients, but we also have to make it healthy and something our kids will enjoy as well.

I understand how tough it is, as this is something I myself struggle with at times. My kids are older now, so there isn't quite the argument that I used to get but it can still be trying at times.

Which is why I want to help you! I have a weekly meal plan that goes out to all of my clients and am excited to be trying something new. This month, I am ordering my produce from Produce Buddies and will be creating meal plans that match one of their boxes.

If you are interested in trying a week out, let me know and I will email the plan to you along with the recommended box to purchase along with any additional items you may need. If everyone enjoys this, we will continue to incorporate both the box and the meal plan together.

backpacks and kids

10/7/2019

Do you know what is wrong with this picture?

One of these backpacks are on correctly, and one is not.

The one that is not could be causing back pain for your child, so make sure that your child's backpack is fitted properly.

The arm straps should be pulled so that the full backpack fits securely on the back, it should not be sagging down past the butt. Once it is fitted correctly, it should ease their back pain. If they continue to complain, then it might be time to get out of the seated position and get them moving as they need to work on strengthening their core.

With kids, exercise should be fun and be a part of their play time; not "working out". So make it a game!

Go to the park and have them climb things, swing, and practice using the monkey bars. This will help them to strengthen their muscles in a more natural way.

Some other exercises they can do for fun are:

Bear crawls
Frog jumps
Racing others
Hopping on one leg
Jump rope

Children love to emulate and spend time with YOU! So don't just send them outside to play on their own, get outside and play with them. You will not only build better relationships with your kids, but you will also be showing them that exercise is fun; and while you are at it, it will be providing you with a great workout as well!

are you eating enough greens?

9/19/2019

I know you have probably always heard that you need to be eating 5-7 fruits and vegetables every day but this is no longer the recommendation. It has since moved up to 7-13 fruits and veggies each and every day due to less nutrients in the soil therefore less vitamins and nutrients in our food.

It also needs to be mostly greens, vegetables, and then 1-2 fruits depending on the season. Are you getting that in every day?

I understand it can be tough! That was why I decided to give you some ideas to help you get more greens into your diet.

Add them to your breakfasts; if making eggs, you can cut up some zucchini, onions, peppers and spinach and make a yummy veggie scramble
We all know to add spinach and kale to our smoothies, but have you ever tried cauliflower or zucchini? It doesn't change the flavor of the smoothie, but it does add nutrients
Keep homemade chimichurri on hand to use as a dip, smother your eggs in, add to a sandwich, use as a dressing, or put on top of anything-it truly is the best stuff ever!
Add more herbs to your salad for extra greens; so many times we just think of the lettuce but adding fresh herbs to your salad can change the flavor profile so much
Grow your own herbs so that you have them on hand for all of your meals; we use our Tower Garden to grow our salad greens, herbs, and microgreens
Hide them in muffins and breads. Yes, I know, remember the sneaky cookbook from Jessica Seinfeld? It doesn't have to be to hide them but just so you get more in every day
Add them to spaghetti and taco meat. You can hide pretty much anything if you cut it small enough

How do you practice getting more greens into your daily diet? I'd love to hear what you are doing below!

homemade granola

9/9/2019

As a busy mom I can understand that it can be easier to just run to the store and grab the granola in the aisle, but do you pay attention to all the additives that are added to ensure the flavor lasts?

Did you know that it almost takes the same amount of time to just make it at home?

I made a cranberry almond granola with the ingredients I had on hand in my pantry. Look through your pantry and see what you have that you can pull together as well.

The recipe is below.

Hip mobility

8/13/2019

Week 1 exercises for hip mobility

Week 2 exercises for hip mobility

Week 3 exercises for hip mobility

Foam roll for knee pain

8/7/2019

5 min quick workout

7/22/2019