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4 Week Focus for Creating Your Healthiest Life: Planning & Moving!

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PLANNING

“A fail to plan is a plan to fail”

Such an old, but true statement and it’s a well-known one for a reason! If we are trying to create change in our lives, it’s not going to just fall into our laps! It takes intention. It takes making the decision that we are committing to change and we are going to do what it takes to get there. But how do we know where we’re going and how we’re going to get there if we don’t create a plan? If we just go through our days blindly with no structure, we are bound to accomplish half of what we are capable of! Have you ever started your day off with a to-do list? When you followed that list and checked each task off, how did that feel? I bet you felt accomplished and satisfied that you got done what you set out to do. Having that list in front of you sets a clear picture for your day and what it will take to achieve those tasks. What about the days you had a million things to do, yet you got maybe 1 or 2 of 10+ done…. usually those days don’t include a list or a clear plan and leave you feelling frazzled and unaccomplished! 

So why would your nutrition be any different? Setting a goal to lose the weight, change your body composition, improve performance, eat cleaner, or whatever the goal may be isn’t a small task. We won’t sugar coat things! It takes hard work, consistency, dedication and all of that requires a PLAN!  We know your goals are important to you and we know they are absolutely achievable if you put in the work, but we also know it can feel overwhelming knowing where to start. What does a plan even look like? Well, we are here to help!

  • Overview your coming week: Before your week starts, sit down and map out what your week is going to look like. Do you have certain days that will be longer than others? Are there days you will be eating out? Any special occasions? Pin point any events that you may need to special plan for and then make sure you are game planning for those first! 

  • Plan your grocery trips. We recommend 2X a week. One is the main trip of the week, getting everything you need, the second one is usually for fruits and veggies that will only last part of the week! If you have your grocery trips planned out and your lists made, this will prevent wasting time with unnecessary stops at the store (not to mention usually more unnecessary money spent!) and equip you with everything you need to stay on track during the week. We also love weekly produce delivery like Helsing Junction Farms! (use code flexfuel for your first delivery FREE!)

  • Plan your bulk food items. Depending on your schedule and your preference, some of you may need to food prep all of your meals, while some of you may only need to prep certain items or a few meals. If you know you have busy nights and dinner is your hardest meal, plan out bulk cassaroles, crockpot meals, meats, etc. that will be easy to grab when you get home! Or if you just need to prep bulk items like chicken, rice or potatoes to pair with different meals, plan those so they are easy to grab during the week and save big on prep time! 

  • Plan your ‘perfect day’. This is something we tell all of our clients starting out and it’s a no-fail! This is a day of food that is perfectly structured around your goals, this will look differently for everyone, but having this in your back pocket at all times is key in emergencies or if you just don’t have the time or energy to think up anything else! Knowing what go-to meals always work into your plan will be a life saver and although it may not always be exciting, it’s effective!

  • Set aside the time to plan your week and days. As mentioned above, you will need a time to plan out your grocery trip and your structure for the week. In addition, we have seen GREAT success with setting aside 10-30 minutes (the longer you do this the quicker it will be!) to plan out your day, the day BEFORE . So, once a week you are planning your week’s overview and then every day you are planning in detail your next day! If this just becomes a regular habit, it will be easy, take the guesswork and stress out of your day to day! 

MOVE

So simple, yet we tend to make it so complicated! Our bodies were not meant to sit all day at a desk, in a car or be inactive!! We can make excuses until the cows come home but our bodies were meant to MOVE! The second part of this week’s challenge is making sure you move some how, some way, every day. Again, this will look different for every person and we encourage you to do whatever feels best to you! You are all most likely in one these categories, you either are:

1) Inactive or have very low activity: If you are in this category, all you have to do is START! An amazing tool we love to use regardless of your fitness level is a Fitbit, Apple watch, Garmin, or something similar that counts your steps. Setting a goal of 10,000 steps daily will ensure that you are moving a significant amount! If you start out and find you are only averaging 2,000, challenge yourself to get 3K, then 5k and try to up it a little each week! Reach out to a friend (or in our private Facebook group!) for accountability to move some how each day! 

2) Are active daily: If you are active daily- great! That’s an awesome start and you may have a great routine down! We want to challenge all of you in this category to keep it spicy, keep it fun and just like the group above, it doesn’t hurt to make sure you are getting a minimum of 10k steps in! It’s amazing how even when we workout daily, we may be falling short in our daily NEAT (activity outside of our workouts to keep us moving throughout the day!)

3) Are SUPER active… maybe a little TOO active?: This might sound a little opposite of what this week’s challenge is all about, but yes, being TOO active can actually slow progress or even take us backwards! Are you burning the candle at both ends? Are you doing super long or multiple sessions in the gym? Working all day on your feet? Chasing around little ones? Getting minimal sleep and having long days? Doing too much will NOT create your healthiest life! If you are in this category we want to encourage you to add in a rest day, bring down workout volume, intensity or add in some more restful acitivity like yoga or relaxing walks! 

If you feel lost on where to find a workout regimine, we highly recommend checking out our good friend, Cody ‘Boom Boom’ McBroom’s Ebook HERE for a easy to follow workout routine! If you missed our interview with him, check that out HERE!

We are confident if you implement these two tactics, you are SURE to succeed and instantly be catapulted forward into a healthier life! Need help game planning for these or figuring out where and how these fit into your life? We are more than happy to help! Please reach out to us via email or in our private Facebook group (let us know if you aren’t in and want to be!) and we will create a plan together! 

Now make a plan, move your body and kick some butt!!

Love, 

Katy

 

Gluten Free Breakfast burrito’s

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I make a bunch of these ahead of time, stick them in the freezer and have them on hand for those mornings when I have minimal time or just dont feel like cooking. I usually make the eggless ham and potato ones along with some scrambled egg wraps but decided I wanted to change things up a bit this week. I found the recipe on pinterest from Cotter Crunch for the first two wraps that will definitely satisfy your sweet tooth, they may be more of a dessert option wink. The 3rd wrap is more of a savory wrap for those of you who are burned out on eggs for breakfast. I also mention a 4th wrap that DOES include eggs!! But you’ll have to watch the youtube video for that, I’ll link it HERE

Yogurt and granola parfait wrap:

1 Mission brand gluten free tortilla 

50 grams of 0% fat greek yogurt. ( You can use whatever fat percentage you like) 

15 grams of gluten free granola( I used Udi’s) 

30 grams of organic blueberries 

42C/6.6F/8.7P

 

Coconut Rice Wrap:

1 Mission brand gluten free tortilla 

50 grams of coconut rice( see below for instructions on how to make!)

16 grams(1 TBL) organic peanut butter

20 grams of strawberry jam ( you can swap out fresh berries for this, I did on half of these wraps) 

58C/16F/7.1P

 

Ham and sweet potato wrap: 

1 Mission brand gluten free tortilla 

3 oz deli ham 

14 grams of reduced fat shredded cheddar cheese 

40 grams of cooked sweet potato 

A handful of spinach 

35C/ 10F/ 22P

 

You can change these wraps up really easily by swapping out protein options: ham, turkey, bacon, ground sausage or chicken all make great for the savory ones. On the sweet wraps, you can swap out fruit options, granola, yogurt flavors etc. If prepping these to freeze, wrap them in tinfoil and them place them in a large freezer ziplock bag. I label each of my bags so I know what burritos are in what bag. When ready to eat, place in toaster oven or large oven at 350F until thawed and warmed. Check at 10 and 15 minutes so the yogurt doesn’t melt. 

 

**For the coconut rice, I made a large batch of rice to use for these wraps and for other meals throughout my week. In the video I stated that I used full fat coconut milk but that was until I realized I actually used the light coconut milk. I just followed the directions on the box and swapped out half of the water required for coconut milk, next time I will use all coconut milk to give it a stronger coconut flavor. For a big batch, I brought 1 cup water and 1 cup of coconut milk to a boil, added 2 cups of uncooked rice, covered and let sit. After 5 minutes, I fluffed the rice with a fork and added ground cinnamon. 

 

Enjoy!

Mallory

 

 

 

 

Chicken Bacon Ranch Casserole!

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Juli from PaleOMG always has delcious recipes. If you havent noticed, Katy and I get a lot of our stuff from her website including this one. Since she is paleo, her recipes are pretty high fat but with a couple modifications, you can bring down the fat content and it’s still just as good. In the receipe I’m about to share with you, I used a little less bacon than her recipe called for and instead of 3 whole eggs, I subbed egg whites. Here’s what you’ll need,

    • 1 medium spaghetti squash( I used 700 grams)
    • 4 slices of bacon, cubed( I used Applegate Farms)
    • 2.5 oz  red bell pepper, diced
    • 2.5 oz yellow bell pepper, diced
    • 3 oz yellow onion, minced
    • 2 garlic cloves, minced
    • 1 pound ground chicken
    • 1/2 teaspoon salt
    • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
    • 1 cup Bolthouse Farms ranch
    • 92 grams of egg whites

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Cut the spaghetti squash in half lengthwise. Place the squash cut side down on a baking sheet and bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until the skin gives when you press your finger to it. Remove the squash from the oven and reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8×8 glass baking dish.

    1. While the spaghetti squash cooks, place a large saute pan over medium heat, add bacon, and cook until crispy, about 10 minutes. Remove and set aside. You’ll want to leave behind about 2 tablespoons worth of bacon fat to feel free to remove any excess once bacon has cooked. Add peppers, onion and garlic cloves and cook for about 10 minutes, until onion is translucent.
    1. To the pan with the peppers and onion, add the ground chicken along with the garlic powder, salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper. Use a spoon to break apart the chicken and cook until no pink remains, about 10 minutes.
    1. Use a fork to scrape out the spaghetti squash strings and place in the pan with the chicken mixture and ranch and mix well.  Add to greased 13 x 9 baking dish, pour eggs whites ovder top, then sprinkle the crispy bacon on top.
    1. Place in the oven to bake for 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes or until the center is cooked through and edges have begun to brown.

I broke it down to macros per OZ so depending on how hungry I am, I can weigh out more or less. Last night for dinner I ate 7, 1 oz servings and the total macros for that were

12.7 carbs

10.2 fat

21.5 protein

This is one of my new favorites! Tons of flavor, easy to make and now I have lunch for the rest of the week :) Enjoy!

With love,

Mallory

Heres that link I talked about earlier in the post! It makes breaking down the macros for each serving easy peezy!

http://www.malzisfit.com/how-to-measure-a-serving-of-a-recipe-in-myfitnesspal-for-iifym/