Merry Christmas!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Have a lovely day with your family!

Workout Wednesday -- Thanksgiving Edition

I am the person that goes to the gym Thanksgiving morning. {I'd probably go Christmas morning if I wasn't so tired from wrapping gifts until late Christmas Eve}  But, if you can't get to the gym, or your gym isn't open but, you want to get in a workout I've put together a bunch of great home workout ideas.

From: The Lyons' Share

From:  FitYaf.com

From:Home Field Fitness

From: Balanced Health Lifestyle

From: Semi-Sweet Tooth

From: Kelly Runs For Food


And this one I'm going to try.  This is a great idea from Busy-Bod.com  A workout to do during the parade! 

Do you workout on holidays?  What do you do?  Let me know in the comments!!

Workout Wednesday

I got back into my normal gym routine this past week.  I had gotten into a rut and wasn't working out as hard as before.  When I get into a rut alot of times one of the workouts that helps pull me out of it is a kettlebell workout.  It makes me feel powerful and strong.  Here is one of my normal routines

3 sets of 15-20

2 Arm Swings
1 Arm Swings
Alternating Arm Swings

Figure 8
Goblet Squat
High Pull

Russian Twist
Clean
Renegade Row

Add in 15-30 minutes of stairs and you have a killer calorie burner.  

What do you do to pull yourself out of a rut?

Thanksgiving Recipes

Thanksgiving is coming soon!  Actually we only have 2 weeks until the big day!  This is normally about the time that people start thinking about their menus.  I'm not going to lie.  I'm not going extravagant this year.  I'm actually going a bit unusual.  

This year for dinner we are doing a vegetarian "beefless" stew, stuffing, gravy and a pumpkin pie.  I have never actually made a pumpkin pie.  Is that weird??!!?? I feel like it's weird.  Every year since 2010 we have had a pumpkin cheesecake.  Before then we would either go to my family's house for dinner or we'd buy the pie.  This year I decided to make a fat free crustless pumpkin pie.  It's not going to be completely crustless.  I'm making the crust on the side so that the kids can dunk it in the filling.  It also gives me a reason to teach Sunny how to make a pie crust.  

Here are all my recipes.  Beefless stew, stuffing and pie.  Enjoy!  

Beefless Stew

Serves: 6 to 8 (makes about 10 cups)

Ingredients

• 1½ large yellow or white onions, chopped into ¾-inch pieces
• 3 ribs celery, chopped into ¾-inch pieces
• 3 medium carrots, sliced lengthwise and cut into ¾-inch pieces
• 2 portabella mushrooms (about ½ pound), cut into ¾-inch pieces
• 1½ tablespoon finely chopped garlic (5 to 6 cloves)
• 5 cups water
• 2 pounds Sweet potatoes cut into ¾-inch pieces
• ¼ cup tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon dried Italian herb blend
• 1 tablespoon paprika
• 2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh rosemary
• 1½ cups green peas (if frozen, thaw first)
• ½ cup fresh parsley leaves, chopped
• Ground black pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Heat a large soup pot on high with 1 tablespoon of water. When the water begins to sputter, add the onion, celery, and carrot, and cook for 7 to 8 minutes, stirring frequently as the edges of the onion browns slightly, and adding a little water as needed to prevent sticking.
2. Stir in the mushrooms and garlic, and continue to cook while stirring for an additional 5 minutes, adding water as needed.
3. Add the 5 cups of water, potatoes, tomato paste, dried Italian herbs, and paprika. Bring to a boil, and then reduce heat to a low boil. Stir in the rosemary and cook covered for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the peas, and cook for 5 minutes more, or until the carrots and potatoes are tender.
4. Place 2 cups of the stew (broth and vegetables) into a blender, and blend under very smooth. Stir this back into the pot to thicken the stew, and stir in the parsley. Serve with a few twists of ground black pepper and, if you like, add a small sprig of rosemary as garnish.

{The stew recipe was taken from: Straight Up Food}

Stuffing

Approx. 18 slices of whole wheat or whole grain bread, cubed
1 cup of onions, diced
2 cups of celery, sliced small
1 T poultry seasoning
1 T ground sage
1/2 cup egg substitute or egg whites
1 cup veggie broth


Directions

1. Saute onions and celery until soft (if you're using regular non-vegetarian sausage you want to cook it too at this point)
2. Place all ingredients in a big bowl and mix together (use your hands, it works the best. Don't be afraid to get messy!)
3. Place in a baking pan and cover with tin foil. 
4. Put into a 325 degree oven for 30 minutes
5. Uncover and bake for another 15 minutes until golden brown.

Pumpkin Pie

Ingredients

Nonstick cooking spray
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 cup egg substitute (equal to 2 eggs)
1 can (15 oz.) 100% Pure Pumpkin
1 can (12 fl. oz.) Fat Free evaporated milk

Directions

1. Spray pan or dish with nonstick spray
2. Mix dry ingredients together in a small bowl.  
3. In a separate bowl whisk together eggs and pumpkin.  Add in dry ingredients.  
4. Gradually stir in fat free evaporated milk.
5. Pour into pan/dish and bake according to list below

Baking Times

9-inch-round glass pie dish: 325° F; bake for 55 to 60 minutes
10-inch-round glass pie dish: 325° F; bake for 45 to 50 minutes

8-inch-round cake pan: 350º F; bake for 45 to 50 minutes
9-inch-round cake pan: 350° F; bake for 35 to 40 minutes

8-inch-square baking pan: 350º F; bake for 45 to 50 minutes
8-inch-square glass baking dish: 325º F; 55 to 60 minutes

9-inch-square baking pan: 350º F; bake for 35 to 40 minutes

11 x 7-inch glass baking dish: 325º F; bake for 45 to 50 minutes

13 x 9-inch baking pan: 350° F; bake for 35 to 40 minutes
13 x 9-inch glass baking dish: 325° F; bake for 40 to 45 minutes


Cooking for a crowd?  You can make a bigger crustless pie in a 13 x 9 dish!

13 x 9 Pie
1 cup sugar
1 tbsp. ground cinnamon
2 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. ground cloves
1 tsp. salt
1 cup egg subsitute (equal to 4 eggs)
1 (29-oz.) can pumpkin
2 (12-oz.) cans fat free evaporated milk


Baking Times
13 x 9-inch baking pan: 350° F; bake for 40 to 50 minutes
13 x 9-inch glass baking dish: 325° F; bake for 60 to 65 minutes



Do you make "unusual" dishes for Thanksgiving?  What are they?  Tell me below!

Declutter

Do you hoard things?  I have a problem with hoarding magazines.  I couldn't bear to throw them away.  I had basically a whole bookcase dedicated to magazines.  It was ridiculous.  There was a few years worth of magazines sitting in the house.  

This is just the pile I was working on.  There was probably 5 times as many magazines in my house.

What do you do when you're house is over run with magazines that you can't bear to get rid of but you never read??  You make an article binder.  

I bought a binder, divider tabs, and a 3 hole punch.  The binder (that came with the dividers) was about $2.50 at Walmart and the 3 hole punch $2 or $3 at Staples.  I ripped out all the articles I wanted to keep and organized them by type.

I have a section for recipes, exercises/workouts, Motivation, articles, and miscellaneous.  This binder takes up next to no space at all and even if you need 2 or 3 binders, it will still help get rid of all the magazines.    

Do you hoard anything?  Tell me what it is!

Happy November!

Hi everyone!  I know I've been MIA recently.  October was super crazy and busy.  Here's an overview of what October looked like

This was my view when I was training clients.  Isn't it gorgeous??

My truck died on me alot.  I mean ALOT.  Ken and I were stuck on the side of the road more times than we could count.

My daughter decided she was going to start raising money for her dance team.  She got the idea to "Dance for Dollars" on the beach.  It didn't raise any money but, I give her an A for effort.  {If anyone would like to donate it's not too late!}

Whenever we go to Vitamin Shoppe the girls are allowed to pick out a snack.  Sunny chose Love Snacks Tropical blend.  I love that they pick healthy things.  This had mango, papaya, pineaple and coconut.

Sunny broke her wrist playing around with Mo.  So now we're back and forth to the doctor.  I found out that finding a orthopedist is really hard for a 6 year old.  

And of course Halloween.  Sunny was Pocahontas.  Mo was Lilo from Lilo and Stitch, and Kaylee was Dora the Explorer.  They had a great time and got a ton of candy.

Since I've told you want I've done, let's talk about what I'm going to do.  November I have promised myself that I'm going to get back into blogging.  I miss it and I've been gone too long.  Here's what's on my list of things to do this month.  

• Thanksgiving
• Dance classes
• New job

There's not much but, I plan on letting you know all about it.  I'm going to write atleast 3 posts a week.  

Joosh Reivew

I know I haven't posted much recently.  This summer was really full  The past few months, life has been really busy.  You name it, it's probably on our schedule.  Dance classes, appointments, clients, day trips and a bunch of other things.

Even with all that stuff going on Sunny and I read atleast 1 book a week together.  I know that's not alot but, we don't have much time to sit.  Over the summer I was given a copy of the book Joosh's Juice Bar:  The Blue Banana Berry Adventure. 

This book is so cute!  Here's the description:

"When Joosh’s Juice Bar runs out of strawberries, the youngsters are asked to go on a “strawberry run”. Mo and Coco, along with rainforest friends Randy (a mischievous monkey) and Kwamee (a wise green lizard), travel through the Tropland Rainforest and stumble upon a unique glowing berry in Don Ribbit’s forbidden Swampland. Mo and Randy pick the berries, eat them and bring them back to Joosh’s Juice Bar. What seemed like a great idea at first turns sour as Joosh and his wife Holly return home to the juice bar and find the boys making a new juice with the berries! To their surprise, Randy and Mo, along with the animals that also drank their new blue juice, are glowing blue from head to toe! The Joosh Man takes Coco and the boys to seek aid from Doctor Boo Boo (a toucan bird).Will they find a way to wash the blue glow away? Will they get back home safely before the impending rain storm? "  --Amazon

It's written in rhyme and the pictures are amazing.  Sunny reads it over and over.  It teaches kids the importance of healthy eating and picking the proper foods.  

This book is great for kids who love to eat healthy or, if you're trying to convince your kids to eat healthy.  I'm not going to lie, I read it by myself a few times.  So, seriously, hop on over to their website and order the book.  He has also written a new book.  

Joosh's Juice Bar: The Tropland Tee-Off.  This one is about a disc golf tournament.  

JooshsJuiceBar.com

Joosh's Juice Bar Facebook

Tell me below, do your kids have a favorite healthy eating book?  

Freekah Review

Over the years my girls have become more adventurous eaters.  Having a kid that is willing to try 95% of the foods you put in front of them is great all the time but, it's really good when you review as many foods as I do.  The girls will taste whatever I make.  And they have also become little foodies so they love giving me ideas for recipes to try using new ingredients.

Freekah Foods sent me their Rosemary Sage and Original flavors.  We tasted the Rosemary Sage by itself and it was excellent.  The girls really enjoyed it.  I had a hard time at first deciding what to do with the Original.  It's so versitile, there are so many options! 

What is Freekeh?

Freekeh is a process which means “to rub” in Arabic. Freekeh was created by accident nearly 2,000 years ago when a Middle Eastern village was attacked and their crop of young green wheat was set ablaze. Most folks would sulk over their misfortune, but the crafty villagers rubbed off the chaff, cooked it up and “Eureka!” Freekeh was created. We’re proud to offer you this tasty, nutritious ancient grain with a funny name. *NOT GLUTEN FREE*

Freekeh has up to three times the fiber and protein found inbrown rice, and fewer calories than quinoa and white rice. Freekeh is a great choice to use in recipes you already enjoy, from salads, to soups, to main dishes—the cook times are comparable to brown rice, so it’s easy to choose Freekeh!

I decided to make a Quesadilla Burrito Cheesy Freekah.  

Quesadilla Burrito Cheesy Freekah
Serves 4

1 packages Freekah
2.5 cups vegetable broth
1 onion, diced
8 oz mushrooms, sliced
1 can reduced sodium red beans
8 oz shredded cheese

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Cook freekah according to package directions using broth instead of water
3. While the freekah is cooking saute onions and mushrooms
4. Drain and rinse beans
5. Combine mushrooms, onions, beans, and freekah
6. Place half the freekah mix in an 8x8 or 9x9 square pan.  Top with half the shredded cheese, and repeat with remaing freekah and cheese.
7. Bake for 15-20 minutes until cheese is melted and brown.

Wanna hear something better?  I'm giving away 1 package of freekah!  You can choose either original, rosemary sage, or tamari.  In order to be entered like Freekah Foods on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram then let me know you've done it and what flavor you would choose if you won.  I will choose the winner on September 18th!

Polar V800 Review

I'm completely obsessed with my Polar products.  Ever since I was given the FT4 for Christmas a few years ago {after begging and pleading for one}, I became hooked.  

Recently, I got the Polar V800.  I LOVE THIS WATCH! Seriously, I couldn't be more excited about it.  I wear it all the time.  

The V800 has a ton of awesome features.

MultiSport Profiles

There are a bunch of sports to choose from.  Right now my watch has 

• Circuit Training
• Strength Training
• Running
• Cycling
• Other Outdoor
• Other Indoor
• Triathalon
• Swimming
• Free Multisport
• Kayaking
• Walking
• Group Exercise

And I don't even have half of them loaded onto my watch!  This helps me keep track of what I'm doing.  Honestly I only use 5 of them 99% of the time.  But, it's nice to know that whatever I want to track, I can.

GPS

When you are using the running, cycling, walking and a few other sport profiles your watch will use the built in GPS to track how far you've gone.  I love it.  It's so much easier then mapping my route later.

Waterproof
Not only is it waterproof, the unit works underwater.  You can go swimming, snorkeling, or do anything else that involves your chest getting wet.  I like to use it when I'm swimming.

24/7 Tracking
The V800 tracks your steps, the hours you slept (and how many of them were restless), how many hours you were active, your calorie count for the day, among other things.  Plus, it yells at you when you have been inactive for too long!

Training Benefits
After each training session it will tell you what the benefits of it is.  

Training Load & Recovery
Along the with training benefits the V800 also tells you if you're undertraining, over training or if your training is balanced.  Depending on how hard you worked it will reccommend how long you should rest before exercising again.

Polar Flow
You can upload all your training data to either the Polar Flow app, or Polar Sync (internet based).  Before I had this I had to manually enter everything from my watch to the diet and exercise site I used at the time.  


Finally, MY FAVORITE FEATURE............






RECHARGEABLE BATTERY!!!!
Yes folks, unlike the FT4 (and many other before this), the watch is rechargeable.  But don't worry! The time between charges is pretty good.  14 hours in training time, 50 hours in low power GPS mode or 30 days in time mode with 24/7 activity monitoring.  I use it for a combination and my watch lasts about 10 days before needing to be recharged.  It's never died on me.
 
Do you use a heart rate moniter?  What's your favorite brand and why?

Earth Fare Gainesville

This time last year Sunny and I were given a private tour of the new Earth Fare in Jacksonville.  This year we've been asked to tell y'all about the new Earth Fare in Gainesville that just opened on August 12th.  

Earth Fare is a great grocery store.  Seriously, Sunny and I love it and she asks to go at least once a week.  

The new store is located at:
3045 SW 34th Street Suite 30
Gainesville, FL 32608

This is their 38th store in the US and their 3rd in Florida.  The other 2 are located in Jacksonville and Tallahassee.  The store also has 8 registers.  

The one this I love is what Earth Fare DOESN'T have.  None of the foods at Earth Fare ever have;

• Antibiotics or synthetic growth hormones
• Artificial fats or trans-fats
• High-fructose corn syrup
• Artificial sweeteners
• Artificial preservatives
• Bleached or bromated flour
• Artificial colors or flavors

Eat Local

Many of Earth Fare's products are Florida grown. Look for the red signs that have the local emblem on them.


Meat & Seafood

Earth Fare has a large selection of fresh meat and seafood.  They are all humanely raise, 100% vegetarian fed, sustainably managed and wild caught.

Cafe

They have a nice sized indoor cafe where you can sit down and eat your freshly prepared food or an outdoor cafe that seats 55 and offers free wifi.  

While we're talking about prepared food, you HAVE to try it.  I know they always say "don't grocery shop hungry" but, I always goto Earth Fare hungry.  They have an amazing hot bar, sandwiches, sushi, pizza, smoothies and a salad bar. They also have an olive bar. 

Produce

They have a wide variety of produce.  If you look closely at the picture you can see the local emblem on the tags.  {And just to clarify, "local" is within 100 miles of Gainesville}

Extras
They also have a huge bulk section, a health and wellness department that sells gluten free and vegan makeup (among other things), {what seems like} miles of frozen food cases, scoop your own ravioli, and wine and beer.

The ribbon cutting for the store was August 12th.  Earth Fare presented a check for $1,000 to the University of Florida's Field and Fork Campus Food Program.  This initiative was designed by University of Florida campus partners to feed the estimated 10 percent of UF students who face food insecurity.  

After talking about all the special things that Earth Fare has I want to let you know what I have.  I have a $25 gift card for 1 lucky winner!  Enter the raffle to win.  The winner will be announced (and notified) on September 6,2015.

There are 2 things you must do to enter.  Like my Facebook page {CLICK HERE} and leave a comment down below.  


Don't have an Earth Fare near you?  Do you know someone who does?  {Click HERE for a list of Earth Fare locations}  Christmas is only 124 days away.  An Earth Fare gift card would make a lovely Christmas present!

Hi, July!

Can you believe 2015 is more than half over??!!??  

The summer is in full swing and July is always a busy month for us.

• Vacation
• My anniversary
• My birthday
• Sunny and Mo start competition team practice at the dance studio

And like always we will be at the beach or the pool for atleast a few hours most days of the week.  

I have a bunch of recipes and posts planned for y'all this month.  Here's a sneak peek at some of the topics coming up:

• Workout splits
• Reviews
• Recipes

Keep checking back or keep updated by liking or following on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.  

In other random news, Sunny will be guest starring on my Periscope account. 

Here are all my social media links.  Like and Follow!

Instagram --K8eRaymond

Facebook -- Fit Beach Babe

Twitter -- @FatFreeQueen

Periscope -- @FitBeachBabe

What fun stuff do you have planned?  Let me know below!

Quick Meal Conundrum

The girls' last day of school was June 4th.  They have been on summer break for 2 weeks.  I use the term break loosely.

My summers aren't what some people would consider busy.  The girls dance 2 days a week (but that will probably change soon due to competition team practices starting next month), and I have my clients.  Even when we don't have to be anywhere, I normally prefer not to be in the house.  The girls and I spend atleast 2 hours a day at the pool and/or beach.  The only days that we don't go are the on the days they dance.

I prefer to make quick meals in the summer, all the time.  Between clients, my own gym time, and errands, I never get home much before the girls during the school year.  When I can, I like for them to eat before going to their activities so we don't have to rush to eat before bed.  And in the summer after I get home from dealing with clients we always head to the beach or the pool.  I never want to come home and stand in the kitchen for very long.   And honestly I think my kids prefer the quick meals.  

No matter what your reason, I think it's always a good idea to have 5-10 good dinners that only take 10-20 minutes in your arsenal of recipes.  

My old stand-bys are sandwiches, soup, cereal, and eggs.  But, you can only have those so many times before you get bored of them.  I've put together a group of websites that have a TON of meatless, vegetarian quick dinners.



Links
Martha Stewart -- Almost 100 meatless quick meals. Pastas, soups, sandwiches, and a ton of other recipes

Cooking Light -- These all look delish!  Mexican, Asian, and many countries in between.  I'm definatley trying the vegetable maki.

Buzzfeed -- Vegan recipes in under 30 minutes.  The cheese steak is my favorite.

Greatist -- Breakfast, lunch and dinner recipes in under 12 minutes.

Martha Stewart -- Vegetarian and vegan recipes that are quick

Amuse Your Bouche -- 50 recipes in under 20 minutes.  A great mix of vegetarian and vegan recipes.  The bell pepper pizza is going on my list of recipes to try.

Do you have any tried and true quick meals? Do you and/or your kids prefer quick meals or ones that take a bit longer?

Pre-, Intra-, Post

Have you ever thought about how minor things can affect your workout?  Honestly, there's a million things that can affect it and how your body reacts to your workout.  Things that you do before, during, and after you exercise can make or break your progress.  

I was asked a few questions about certain things and I decided to answer them here for y'all.  

1. What foods do you eat pre-workout?

I prefer to workout in the mornings so, I usually eat a nice, hearty breakfast. Oatmeal, a banana, and some sort of protein. Normally, my protein is a shake or eggs. As I've talked about before, I have a serious obsession with pancakes. It's potentially an unhealthy obsession with pancakes. I found out a healthy, vegan way to eat my pancakes and not ruin my carbs.

Ingredients
.5 cup dry oatmeal
1 T chia seeds
.5-.66 cup water or non-dairy milk
1 mashed banana 
cinnamon

Directions

1. Mix all ingredients together and let sit overnight (if you're in a rush you can let it sit for for 45 minutes)
2. Cook like you would a normal pancake

If I'm forced to push back my sweat session due to whatever reason, I try not to eat too close to going. Working out on a full stomach can be a not-so-nice feeling and can lead to a messy situation {if you catch my drift} But, I normally will do a kale protein shake for this meal. I prefer to use frozen berries in my smoothie so I don't have to use ice. It also gives it the same texture as a Wendy's Frosty.

Ingredients

60 grams raw kale

140 g frozen strawberries

1.5 c almond milk

1 scoop protein powder

1 T chia seeds

Directions

1. Blend until smooth

There are also some supplements that people take before their workout to help them. If you need something to give you a little boost then you should do a pre-workout. A pre-workout is an energy booster that you take 30-45 minutes before a workout. I've been hearing about a new one that I'm going to try. It's from the company ETB {Eat the Bear}. ETB's Uncaged 2.5 and 5.0 are healthy alternatives to the other brands. Click HERE to see their whole line of pre-workout products. You can also check out ETB's website for all their other products like protein, and multivitamins

The one thing I never forget to drink are my BCAA's. They help muscle soreness and help you grow, repair, and maintain lean muscle.

2. What do you listen to during your workouts?

I have a hard time at the gym without my music. Everything distracts me. With my headphones in and music playing I can tune out the world and concentrate on me, on bettering myself, reaching my goals, getting my hour of alone time where nothing else matters. {I know all you other stay at home moms can relate to that one}

I think that IheartRadio and Pandora are 2 of the greatest things since Napster. {I know, I just dated myself.} Free music is great. I have all of my favorite artists' songs without paying for them! My 2 favorite types of music fall on complete opposite ends of the spectrum. I'm a country and hard rock girl. On my list of stations are:

• Caffeinated Country
• Disturbed
• Avenged Sevenfold
• Breaking Benjamin
• Korn
• Five Finger Death Punch

I love these stations because 97% of the songs that are played are fast. They keep my workout tempo going. And when the sad songs come on? Those totally get skipped! I've had one to many times where I've almost cried during my workout.

3. How do you switch up certain routines daily/weekly to stay motivated?

Okay, this isn't COMPLETELY true with me. I kinda have a routine. Ever since I stopped working with my trainer for the bikini competition I haven't followed a certain schedule for a long time.

Here what I DO:

*Workout 5-6 days a week. My split is normally
-Back
-Chest
-Glutes and Legs
- Shoulders/Abs
-Arms/Abs
-Cardio

*Make sure to hit each muscle group from atleast 2 different angles.
-Incline bench press and flat flyes
-Leg Press and squats

*Make sure my workouts are fun
-When you think your workouts are boring, normally you'll quit.

*Do atleast 1 unilateral exercise per muscle group
-unilateral exercises are exercises that train one side of the body at a time.  
-Single leg deadlifts
-One arm cable curls
-DB bicep curls

Normally I put together my workout either the nite before or morning of. 90% of the time I have a long-term goal in mind so, my workouts reflect my goal. Right now I'm training for something so, my workouts are tailored to meet my training needs. I will reveal what I'm training for in a post later this week.

4. What do you eat or do after your workout to make sure you got the most out of your workout?

I do 2 things. I drink LOTS of water, and eat something within an hour of working out. Normally I have a protein shake. Protein helps rebuild muscles. It's very important after a serious workout.


Okay, I've told you what I do before, during, and after my workouts. What do YOU do? Let me know in the comments!