21 Day Fix Results-Round 1!

On September 1st I started my first round of 21 Day Fix. By now, y'all know I love my Beachbody programmes....I'm not a beachbody coach or anything so this is a totally 100% honest opinion.

As a note...please ignore my messy room. I take these photos first thing in the morning before I even leave the bedroom so they aren't typically the neatest background ;) hehe

This is September 1. I felt fine, and didn't mind where I was at...but, I didn't like how tight my jeans were in my thighs and how my stomach looked over my jeans, it was pooching. Also, I didn't like that my sugar intake had increased while I was struggling to make myself eat vegetables. So, I bought the 21 Day fix extreme for the following reasons:

1) I knew the workouts would be tougher than 21 Day Fix original

2) I liked the portion control and emphasis on getting in veggies

3) I just felt like it was a programme I could be super successful using

Before

After-September 21. I wound up losing inches all over and I could really see that my lower abs pulled up. I have also seen a huge increase in balance. I'm not tripping and falling as much as I had been before this program. Also, my triceps are incredibly tighter. I started noticing a bit of a bat wing but it is completely tight in that area again. My jeans are also quite loose in my thighs, I don't need new jeans yet, but they do finally fit comfortably in that area. Also, my husband has said my thighs are noticeably more shapely and my calves have grown a bit.

This round went so well, I did a refeed week last week, and have restarted the 21 Day Fix today for round two. It was really easy to stay on track last week and there were only 3 times I really went off the meal plan and treated myself and I noticed it was easy to control how much of that bad stuff I ate. Today I jumped right back in and my teenager joined me. She's really looking to increase her veggie intake and cut down on the amount of sweets she's been eating...which as her mother I am happy about that as I'm sure her dentist will be too! ha! So, stay tuned for the end of round two on October 18th. I will post an update but won't be taking a break, I am going to see how many back-to-back round I can fit in before my birthday in November!

Have you done the 21 day fix? How did it go for you?

What I Ate Wednesday...21 Day fix edition

I ordered the 21 Day Fix Extreme when I was on holiday in Florida this past summer. I played around with it for about 2 weeks after arriving back home in Amsterdam, ya know, getting a feel for the containers, but finally go serious about it two weeks ago. I am glad I did! I feel great and it really has helped, but I will go into more detail on that in my wrap up post next week. 

Peas and Crayons

For today, here is what one day of eating has looked like for me, while completing the 21 Day Fix. Yesterday was a particularly rainy day and I had errands to run....

Morning Coffee! I don't do my coffee 21 day fix approved. I can't. I love it with honey and coconut oil. It is still healthy because I use just a tablespoon of honey, which is local raw honey, I use it medicinally for my allergies. Regardless of what people say, it works, my husband and I did a little test of it in the early spring and I have to have the honey, I feel it is better than popping allergy meds all the time. I add in a tablespoon of coconut oil as this keeps my digestive track in check, and a little bit of unsweetened almond milk. It is delicious and is all around good for me and makes me happy.

Green eggs...this is one green container full of eggs plus a half green container of tomatoes and onion. I take one egg and 4 egg whites (which makes 2 red) and I blend them together with the spinach, then I add in the tomato and onion. I add a bit of a great clean chili sauce for a little spice. 

I was still a bit hungry after the eggs so I had a peanut butter banana multigrain wrap. Just 1 tsp of peanut butter and enough banana sliced to fit in a purple container. This was just about one small banana.

Post workout I had a protein bowl. This never looks appetizing so I will just post a picture of my protein powder ha!.

I love this because for a protein powder it is fairly clean and gives me that post workout boost. I use one scoop in 3/4 cup of unsweetened almond milk. I whisk it with a fork to blend and it is thick and creamy, like a pudding almost. It is amazing. 

A few hours later this guy was staring me in the face...

I got it the other day at Zaanse Schans, which I will tell you more about later this week. It was delicious, cost me a yellow, but so worth it!

After that I had to run some errands, one of which included the grocery store and I've been obsessed with cottage cheese lately so I had one little container...

Mmmmm....

After that I was feeling tired and lazy thanks to the rain so I curled up on the couch with a small tea and Suits. I am so in love with this show...anyone else?!

No sugar, no cream, just tea. Yum, yum.

For dinner, because it was raining we went with a 21 day fix approved stew...

This is the beef and butternut stew, but I substitute with pumpkin since that is what I can find here. I added in a little Parmesan to make 1 green, 1 red, one blue. 

And...because I still needed a purple and a green I made this cute little protein mug cake...

It consists of some homemade pumpkin puree, a little spinach (I combined the puree and the spinach to make one green), the other half of the banana from earlier in the day, and an egg white and a 1/4 scoop of protein powder as a "flour". It was super yummy and creamy on the bottom.

So, what yummies have you been munching on?

Linking up with Jenn over at Peas and Crayons and Clean Eats Fast Feets.

Menu Plan Monday 21 Day Fix Extreme +Weekly Recap

Happy Sunday y'all!

So, this last week I've really worked hard at getting a few posts together, here's a look at last week:

Last week's Menu Plan Monday, I was starting week two of 21 Day Fix Extreme.
My second post of the week was a recap of my summer holiday in St. Augustine.
Sixteen things I've learned in 16 years of marriage...this post has been incredibly popular.

Coming up this week:
A list of things I do when hubby is gone
What I Ate Wednesday, a recap from my holiday (can you tell I'm not ready to let go of summer! ha!)
How we keep busy on long plane rides
A recap of our overnight layover at London Heathrow Airport
Plus a day trip recap to Zaanse Schans, just outside of Amsterdam

This should be a busy week and I am so excited to share these with y'all!

So...first up..workout schedule.
This is my last week of 21 Day Fix Extreme. So far from week 1 to week 2 I lost 2 cm all over. I don't weight myself on a scale so I have no idea how that's going nor do I care but I can see all sorts of all over definition so far, raised booty, and thinner thighs.

Monday: Plyo Fix Extreme +10 min hard core
Tuesday: Upper Fix Extreme
Wednesday: Pilates Fix Extreme+10 min hard core
Thursday: Lower Fix Extreme
Friday: Cardio Fix Extreme+10 min hard core
Saturday: Dirty 30 Extreme
Sunday: Yoga Fix Extreme+10 min hard core

I will add for most of these workouts you need weights, I don't have those so where I can I use my bands, where I can't use bands I just do my best to kick ass and use my own body weight to give me a good workout.

Goals

• Complete Workouts
• Stick to competition prep eating plan all week
• Finish Cologne Itinerary
• Start Milan Itinerary and make reservations for hubby's birthday

Weekly Menu

Breakfast

Monday: Egg whites, spinach, peppers (red, green)
Tuesday: Oatmeal with pumpkin puree and pie spice, egg whites (yellow, green, red)
Wednesday: Egg whites, spinach, peppers (red, green)
Thursday: Oatmeal with pumpkin puree and pie spice, egg whites  (yellow, green, red)
Friday: Egg whites, spinach, peppers (red, green)
Saturday: Oatmeal with pumpkin puree and pie spice, egg whites  (yellow, green, red)
Sunday: Egg whites, spinach, peppers (red, green)

Mid Morning Snack
Will be a protein shake with water everyday. That won't change; boring but necessary post workout.

Lunch:
To make it easy on myself I will just make two things to choose from for the whole week. The kiddo will take dinner leftovers in her thermos or a yumbox full of goodies...stay tuned to my Instagram for photos of that.
Monday: Ground chicken with peppers and broccoli (red, green)
Tuesday: Chicken breast and green beans (red, green)
Wednesday: Ground chicken with peppers and broccoli (red, green)
Thursday: Chicken breast and green beans (red, green)
Friday: Ground chicken with peppers and broccoli (red, green)
Saturday: Chicken breast and green beans (red, green)
Sunday: Ground chicken with peppers and broccoli (red, green)

Snacks
Afternoon snacks will consist of fruit pumpkin seeds since I will be making quite a bit of pumpkin puree I want to use those up. I will also use this time to make up for any containers I may be missing, while avoiding any foods that bloat me like my afternoon coffee. ha!

Dinner

Monday: Salad with cottage cheese and whipped butternut squash on the side
Tuesday: Beef and butternut stew with a side salad
Wednesday: Cauliflower fried rice with chicken and sweet potato
Thursday: Beef and butternut stew with a side salad
Friday:Cauliflower fried rice with chicken and sweet potato
Saturday: Eat out at the food festival
Sunday: Leftovers

This week's meals are a bit boring but the hubby is out of town and I plan on really focusing on diet and eating right so I plan on cooking in bulk and eating from that. Right now shredding is what means the most to me, so keeping it simple!

Tell me, what are you up to this week? What are you eating?

Have a great week!

Linking up with I'm an Organizing Junkie, Mommy Run Fast, Jill Conyers, and Moms Small Victories Sunday.

Menu Plan Monday-21 Day Fix Extreme

Happy Monday y'all!

I am finally back with a renewed spirit for blogging. Later today tune in as I have more details about our summer vacation, which is the reason I took quite a blogging break! I am working on a few posts about our travels around The Netherlands since we got back and the trips we have planned!

But, for now let's talk weekly menu.

For about two weeks after I got back I played around with the 21 Day Fix Extreme workout programme I bought when I was back in the U.S. For about two years now I have really struggled with diet and balancing what I am eating to fuel my body correctly for how hard I work it between extreme workouts like P90X, P90X3, Insanity, and T25. I was feeling the effects of not eating properly and had a feeling 21 Day Fix could help.

I decided to go with the extreme version because the workouts indicated they were a bit more difficult and since I've never wavered in that area I figured I would be fine...and I have been.

Last week was my first full week of 100% following the nutrition along with the workouts. I feel amazing and am really seeing a difference. So, this is week two for me and I am stoked...here is what we will be eating.

Breakfasts
Monday: Egg whites with spinach and sauteed pumpkin with onions and peppers (1 Red, 2 Green)
Tuesday: Pumpkin spice oatmeal with 1/2 scoop protein powder (1/2 Red, 1 Yellow, 1 Green)
Wednesday: Egg whites with spinach and sauteed pumpkin with onions and peppers (1 Red, 2 Green)
Thursday: Pumpkin spice oatmeal with 1/2 scoop protein powder (1/2 Red, 1 Yellow, 1 Green)
Friday: Egg whites with spinach and sauteed pumpkin with onions and peppers (1 Red, 2 Green)
Saturday: Pumpkin spice oatmeal with 1/2 scoop protein powder (1/2 Red, 1 Yellow, 1 Green)
Sunday: Egg whites with spinach and sauteed pumpkin with onions and peppers (1 Red, 2 Green)

Lunch
Watch my Instagram this week to see what I pack in my teenager's yumbox!
Monday: Protein oatmeal with banana (1 red, 1 yellow, 1 purple)
Tuesday: Chicken salad with cottage cheese and pumpkin seeds (1 green, 2 red, 1 orange)
Wednesday: Protein oatmeal with banana (1 red, 1 yellow, 1 purple)
Thursday: Chicken salad with cottage cheese and pumpkin seeds (1 green, 2 red, 1 orange)
Friday: Protein oatmeal with banana (1 red, 1 yellow, 1 purple)
Saturday: You aren't supposed to cheat but we are doing something touristy so I'll have a Pannenkoken and a locally distilled adult beverage (one nice cheat meal keeps me sane)
Sunday:  I will scrounge around and use up leftovers

Snacks
This is where I fill in what containers I need. They usually consist of yogurt or cottage cheese and berries (1 red, 1 purple), a protein shake (1 red), hard boiled eggs and peppers (one red, one green), or a combo there of.

Dinner
Monday: Balsamic Steak Salad (hubby will have this minus the salad and with a bake potato) (1 green, 1 red, 1 tsp)
Tuesday: Tacos! (I just make regular tacos for the family and I portion out using containers so it is 2 green, 1 red, and 1 blue)
Wednesday: Omelettes or leftovers
Thursday: Beef and Pumpkin stew (1 green, 1 red) and hubby will have a grilled cheese and chicken soup
Friday: Cheese burgers in a lettuce wrap with sweet potato/reg potato wedges and broccoli
Saturday: Chicken breasts with mashed potatoes and gravy/sweet potato and green beans (1 red, 1 yellow {sweet potato}, 1 green)
Sunday: Eat at the Pure Market (YUM!) When I eat at this place, it is a paradise for a healthy foodie. I will see what they have but will focus on veggies and lean meat.

Since I'm doing the 21 day fix, it is a 7 day a week workout program with 30 minute workouts here are my workouts for this week:

Monday: Plyo fix extreme and stretching
Tuesday: Upper Fix extreme and 10 min hardcore
Wednesday: Pilates fix extreme and foam rolling
Thursday: Lower Fix Extreme and 10 min hardcore
Friday: Cardio Fix Extreme and stretching
Saturday: Dirty 30 Extreme and 10 min hardcore
Sunday: Yoga Fix Extreme and foam rolling

On my agenda this week:

• Rijksmuseum (done)
• Get the kiddo's phone fixed (done)
• Zaanse Schans
• Get Cologne Itinerary settled
• Start on artwork for the walls (yes, sadly after a year we still have nothing on the walls, need to fix that)
• Complete all 7 21 Day fix extreme workouts, 1 week down, 2 to go.
• Do some home repairs like fix light bulbs that are out but aren't easy to repair, plus get one light switch fixed that is "stuck".

What do you have going on this week? Anything fun?

Linking up with I'm an Organizing Junkie, Mommy Runs Fast, and Jill Conyers.

Weekly Menu, #21 +T25/P90X3 Schedule Week 3

Before I get on to business I feel like this weekend's epic-ness deserves a little recap..

Friday I wasn't at home all day. I started it off with a 5 a.m. bike ride picnic with the teenager. It was the best. Next time we do this we are going to bike all the way downtown to see it over the Ij. The teenager thinks I'm a little insane but deep down I know she loves it. 

Then, I rode a total of 36km +/- with my friend to Muiderslot Castle. 

After that the teenager and I headed to the beach. Still pretty epic, but as soon as we got there the skies opened up on us. We still enjoyed the opportunity to sit in the ocean-front restaurant and enjoyed watching the storm. 

We did manage to put our feet in the ocean before we left though!

Saturday we went to a polish-style housewarming. I brought my typical Dutch treat housewarming gift/what I lay out for guests when they come to our house the first time and are new to The Netherlands. It consists of Vla, these s'more's -ish waffles, and stroopwafels, usually I put some haggelslag in there as well, but I forgot sadly.

Sunday was Amstelanndag which was a festival highlighting all the fun stuff to do near my house. This is the same area as I take you through in my post from last week, a Spring Bike Ride through the Dutch Countryside.

It was a packed weekend, I am hoping to make this next week a little more low key, but since quite a bit of sun is predicted I doubt that will happen! haha

One more thing before moving on..if you haven't linked up your travel posts with our #Reasons2travel link-up please to so here!

Last week was very successful. I joined a group of ladies who are determined to work out everyday this month, even if it is just an easy walk or stretching. Just doing something everyday to keep in the fitness groove and remind us why we aren't hogging down on hot dogs and m and m's! haha So, even though my workout schedule wasn't exactly like I had planned here is what I did do...

Sunday: Rest/Stretch-Yoga
Monday: T25 Alpha Cardio/P90X3 The Warrior-Piyo Sweat (late, late, late at night) plus 10km biking running errands
Tuesday: T25 Lower Focus/P90X 3 MMX
Wednesday: T25 Ab Intervals/P90X3 Agility X + 50km biking and sight seeing-I was exhausted
Thursday: T25 Speed 1.0/P90X3 Pilates-Workout with the teenager-HIIT Run and a half hour stair workout
Friday: T25 Total Body Circuit/P90X3 Dynamix-36+km bike ride sightseeing...I decided to sleep when I got home to recover after being in the hot, hot, hot sun all day.
Saturday: Blogilates 100 Burpee Burnout/T25 Cardio-Yoga. I was really sore and my hips were all out of whack.

I've learned a bit about myself this past week. I am going to keep up the double workouts as I've been completing a lot, but I do need to focus and start getting up earlier to get my workouts completed before I start going for the day. I hate working out late in the evening, so getting up with the sun will be helpful for me I think. 

This week's workouts:

Sunday: P90X Stretch

Monday: Dynamic core/MMX

Tuesday: Speed 2.0/Accelerator

Wednesday: Core Cardio/Decelerator

Thursday: Pilates X/Cardio

Friday: Total Body Circuit/Agility X

Saturday: X3 Yoga-then we are sight seeing so keeping it short :)

Goals

Last week: 

• Get gifts mailed out (one is really belated, so I really have to get to the post office)-Done!
• Stick to workouts and menu-Done!
• Get the courage to list a few items I've made in my Etsy store-Still not done :(
• Visit two more museums on my list-Done! I managed the Hermitage and Amsterdam Museum
• Take two bike rides-Done! One to Amsterdam Noord, the other to Muiderslot.

This week:

• Visit two more museums on my list
• Sight seeing trip to Enkhuizen
• Stick to menu and workouts
• Increase unique page views by 100 this week
• Actually list the items in my Etsy shop
• Find at least 3 link parties to link up to each day
• Post more content on my Facebook page, increase interaction

Breakfast:

• Sunday: Granola with banana slices
• Strawberries and cream oatmeal x2
• Acai Bowl x2
• Friday: Egg scramble with toast
• Saturday: French toast with berries

 Lunch:

• Sunday: Omelettes, toast (homemade bread), nectarine slices
• Monday: Half a baked potato topped with mixed veggies
• Tuesday: Sandwiches
• Wednesday: Leftovers
• Thursday: Sandwiches
• Friday: Leftovers
• Saturday: Picnic of hard boiled eggs, bread and butter, fruit, cheese

Dinner:

• Sunday: Tacos/taco salad
• Monday: BBQ chicken breasts with sugar snap peas and brown rice
• Tuesday: Lentils topped with BBQ chicken (leftover), and mixed veggies
• Wednesday: Hubby's last night here so we will eat out
• Thursday: Coconut crusted fish with mango rice
• Friday: Veggie pad thai with any leftovers
• Saturday: Eat out...will be doing a lot of sight seeing so hope to find some where scenic and unique to eat dinner.

That is it for me this week! Tell me, what makes for the perfect weekend for you?

P.S. Linking up with Mommy Run Fast, Jill Conyers, and I'm an Organizing Junkie and Single Mother Ahoy.

What I Ate Last Wednesday

This week I am back to my usual What I Ate Wednesday posts. The last two weeks were specials from my trips to Berlin and London. 

I'm linking up with Jenn over at Peas and Crayons for the What I Ate Wednesday Party, come check it out!

This week, the photos I took were from my sight seeing day with my good friend, Jackie. She came over to my side of Amsterdam and we took a very long bike ride, which I will tell you more about tomorrow, but the food of course was delicious as always. See it now...

As always, starting off with my favorite bullet proof-esque coffee. 

Here is my favorite recipe:

1 lungo nespresso capsule

1 espresso nespresso capsule

1 tablespoon of coconut oil

1 tablespoon grass fed unsalted butter

1.5 tablespoons local honey

75 ml steamed milk (this recipe is now steamed, local raw milk)

Mix together with a spoon or an immersion blender if you are super picky...it usually blends really well for me, so I don't typically have to use the immersion.

This is so high in calories and good fat from the oil, butter, and milk that it serves as my breakfast along side a banana with peanut butter, which will not be having it's modeling debut today ;) But, it is good and gives me the energy I need to get a workout completed most mornings!

But, this particular morning I did not workout as my friend met me at my house at 10, we had some lavender mint water I'd made. Super simple and delicious:

1-2 sprigs of dried lavender, with the buds, a sprig of mint, let sit in 1 liter of water over night and then drink up!

Now, when we left for our bike ride, we were out for a basic stroll, but I knew we were going to wind up at the local Melktap as she grew up on a dairy farm that her family still owns, so I wanted her to see this. There are several around the Netherlands, this one is just 3 quick miles from my house. It is raw milk that you vend yourself...come back tomorrow for more info on it. The milk is amazing and we each had a cup before we left!

Yum, yum...fresh from the cow milk!

After this we made our way back over in to the city, but we weren't done with nature yet so decided on lunch in Amstel Park. This park is wonderful because you are completely surrounded by nature, but can be back in the city within a 10 minute bike ride. There are two full service restaurants in the park. The one we went to, De Hop 2.0, is the more laid back of the two and has much better food.

Exhibit 1: Pancake. It is filled with cheese and ham and is as big as that plate. It was amazing. I could only eat about a quarter of it though....and they were worried I really didn't like it...I'm all over here do you people see how big this thing is?! 

Exhibit 2: Wine, pretty large pour as well, gotta love Europe!

After eating I headed home to meet my teenager. We weren't very hungry so we went for a walk and stopped by the grocery store, by the time we got home we were starving! She wanted to cook so I threw the menu out the window and let her have at it..how cute is she?!

Cooking up a storm in the  kitchen!

She wound up making a delicious, healthy, protein packed dinner of red lentils, she topped it with chicken, scrambled egg, tomatoes, and sweet chili sauce.

This week wasn't filled with tons of food, but what I did eat was extremely filling. Tune in tomorrow for more on the bike ride we did!

Winter Mint Tea

When we moved to Amsterdam I was really into trying anything new...especially new foods. I had no idea that one of my favorite things would wind up being a tea!

One day when I was out with a friend she asked if I had ever tried the fresh mint tea here in The Netherlands...to which I promptly scoffed and replied, uh, no, coffee for me all the way. Then her tea came. And it smelled amazing.

Next time I was out I tried some and it really is delicious! It is low in calories, yet flavorful! I love being able to have something with taste with out all the guilt. I can no longer drink anything carbonated, it makes my stomach feel awful. ...and honestly I would rather eat my daily calories than drink them! haha But, I do sometimes get board of just plain water. You guys have seen my flavored water mixes I've created in the past!

For the basic mint tea there really isn't a secret to it...you buy fresh mint leaves, pour some boiling water over them and voila...Mint Tea! In the grocery store here I pay about €0,99 for a small pack of fresh mint leaves which is more than enough for me, if I want the larger pack, if they are in stock I will pay anywhere from €1,00 to €1, 50. A small pack I can get 2-3 glasses out of the large pack, well, it is large that can be a lot of tea! ha! However, at a cafe you will easily pay a solid €3,00 for this...sometimes less, but every once in a while a little more. So, making it at home is obviously the better option!

Below I am going to introduce you a variation on the basic mint tea!

Winter Mint Tea

Serves 1

• Fresh mint leaves
• Quarter of a lemon
• 1 Tea bag with the flavors cinnamon, nutmeg, and orange (I used Pickwick Winter Glow)

1. Place the washed mint leaves in your cup. 
2. Lightly squeeze lemon over the mint leaves. 
3. Pour boiling water over the leaves and lemon then put the tea bag into the water. 
4. Let steep for 3-4 minutes. 
5. Remove the tea bag and lemon slice. 
6. You can remove the mint too but I love to leave it in there, gives it more of  minty smell as I sip and clears my nose ;)
7. Enjoy!

In the event you need to be further convinced to give this a try here are a few reasons.

Health Benefits of Mint:

• Helps digestion/relieve inflammation
• Helps with Nausea and Headaches
• Can help clear congestion
• It is a natural stimulant and can help recharge the brain
• Freshens breath

Health Benefits of Lemon:

• Helps with digestion
• Can help cleanse the body
• Boots the immune system since it is high in Vitamin C
• Freshens Breath
• Natural stimulant, can help recharge the brain
• Promotes healing

Lemon and mint share a lot of the same natural healing properties. These two are a power house when combined. If you try it, make sure to let me know! 

What is your favorite warm beverage during the winter months?

Apple Cinnamon Peanut Butter Wrap!

I love anything with peanut butter and anything in a wrap...so does my kid. This is a great lunchbox main course because even if your kid is in a peanut free school you can easily make this with an allergy friendly alternative spread.

I usually do not make this in advance as my child apparently has a very sensitive palate and she does not like the lemon juice I put on the apples to keep them from browning coupled with the PB so I just make it the day of and the apples stay fine until lunch.

What ya need:
1 tortilla
1/2 an apple
chia seeds
sprinkle of raisins/craisins
cinnamon and/or nutmeg

How ya do it:
Spread a tablespoon or so of peanut butter on the tortilla so it is sufficiently covered.

Dice up half an apple so it is fairly small, place in the middle of the tortilla.

Sprinkle with a few raisins or craisins or a little of both.

Sprinkle lightly with chia seeds for some added protein, then add a little cinnamon and nutmeg for some spice!

I put this in her lunch box with some berries and tomatoes and cucumber slices.

What is your favorite lunch item to take to work or school? How about for the kiddos?

Linking up to One Project at a time!

Menu Plan Monday 2015 #3

Happy Sunday y'all! I was slacking last week...we had company in town, I got to catch up with friends. It was a great week but left little time for me to do my usual weekly stuff!

I will say we are starting the 2nd full week of the year and I do NOT feel like I have done much toward reaching the goals I set forth for myself this year and it is making me totally anxious! So, this week, I change that.

Last Week Workout Review
Monday: Speed and agility
Tuesday: Back to core
Wednesday: Off
Thursday: Vertical Plyo
Friday: Off (I did do a lot of dancing and walking though)
Saturday: Off
Sunday: Game day and relief

This last week was just a bit off. I felt off. Today though I am back at it, pulled a double with Asylum game day and the stretching dvd relief. I even ran two miles...I did a warm up of one mile, then before relief I went out and did a second mile.

This week's planned workouts:
Monday: Back to core plus 2 mile run
Tuesday: Strength and 2 mile run
Wednesday: Relief plus 2 mile run
Thursday: Speed and agility
Friday: Vertical Plyo
Saturday: Strength and 2 mile run
Sunday: 2 mile run and relief

This week I have lots to accomplish.

• 2 projects I want to complete for the blog 
• 2 projects to complete to get me a step closer to a businessish goal
• I will pick back up on studying my Dutch, at least an hour a day
• I will start reading The Poet's Wife

Breakfast

Acai Bowl x2 (recipe to come)

Sweet potato pancakes and mushroom sausage x2

Oatmeal

Leftovers or omelettes

Oatmeal

• For prep I have the acai juice frozen already so it just has to be taken out in the morning. Sunday I will make granola, pancakes, the mushroom sausage, and a big pot of oatmeal. I will divide it all up into smaller containers so it is all ready to go.

Lunch

Apple/pb wrap (recipe to come)x2

Veggie Stir Fryx2

Leftovers

Soup and sandwiches

Snacks of smoked meat, bread, cheese

Salad

• I will prep one big salad ahead for the week, plus one flavored salad I've been interested in trying. The veggie stir fry will be put together after Sunday dinner from leftovers this past weekend. The apple/pb wrap will be made fresh those mornings so the apple doesn't brown too much.

Dinner

Monday: Broccoli fritters, burger sliders, rice, healthy fried apples

Tuesday: Maple baked lentils and sweet potatoes with toast, baked potato and chicken for hubby

Wednesday: Triple lentil soup with quinoa bites

Thursday: BBQ chicken/bbq mushroom cauliflower mix with rice

Friday: Chicken fingers/veggie fingers with fries

Saturday: Tacos and salad

Sunday: Chicken wings/cauliflower "wings" and pizza

• The kiddo and I are going mostly meatless. Hubby is not, so there will always be a protein cooked at each meal. All my dinners I make fresh the day of as I feel that dinner is a special meal time and want everything to be as fresh and as warm as possible.

The other day I was talking to a friend about feeling down about taking care of the house. A few years ago, right after we moved to Canada I was feeling off when it came to taking care of the house. Just lazy and not really wanting to do much, basically I felt overwhelmed by all the things to do. Well, one day when I was browsing the library, I found and checked out the book: Hip Home Ec: Get Crafty. This really viewed the way I took care of my home and my family and really was an inspiration to me. If you aren't feeling totally into organizing and doing all those home improvement things check out this book, I bet it will really change your attitude!

Well, that is what I have going on this week. What about you?

Linking up over at Mommy Run Fast, Jill Conyers, and I'm an Organizing Junkie.

What I Ate Wednesday +week in review of workouts

Finally feeling like I am back on track with my fitness 100%. For me fitness encompasses good nutrition and exercise. I sucked at the nutrition part these last couple years. My sweet tooth gets the better of me and I often give in and that really prohibits my results. But, these last few weeks I have really listened to my body and am doing so much better. Plus, I am feeling more energetic over all and am feeling more confident in my own skin and that is always what matters most!

So, my workouts this last week have looked like this:

I restarted Insanity so that is the schedule I am following. I didn't do the fit test so I had an extra rest day, plus I slightly injured my knee so I took another rest day...but it is feeling drained and 100% better so this week it's on!

Last Wednesday: Cardio recovery and a bike ride
Thursday: Short bike ride, and rest. My knee was killing me.
Friday: Pure Cardio, plus a walk, and a bike ride
Saturday: Resting the knee, took a nice walk all around downtown enjoying the sun and shopping ;)
Sunday: Rest...stretching and foam rolling
Monday: Cardio power and resistance, walk through the park
Tuesday: Pure Cardio
Wednesday: Plyometric cardio circuit, 1 mile run

I've really enjoyed my workouts, but I forget how much protein I need to get me through! So I've really picked up my game and have been making sure to have lots of my good fats, tons of veggies, and lots of lean protein like chicken and tuna.

So, here are the meals I ate Monday....

Morning coffee but of course! Since it was a cloudy Monday I decided I needed some extra sparkle in my life so I whipped out my Union Jack Mug ;) I also had a banana and water as my morning "snack"

My post workout breakfast. Scrambled eggs with avocado, tomato, leeks, and onion and a steam sweet potato with peanut butter...I actually wasn't hungry for hours after this.

3:30 snack, not pictured was a healthy no bake cookie...these are so great make with natural pb, local honey, coconut oil, gf oats, and raw cacao powder and a cup of vanilla tea

Dinner was so great. The kiddo and I inhaled it. We still have just a little leftover...not much though.

Green beans, one small potato, one medium sweet potato, eggplant, onion, garlic, and yellow pepper. I simmered it in some tomato puree. I used up all the veggies I had hanging around in the fridge and freezer. It was ridiculously delicious. 

Now, to put in a random meal from Tuesday: DESSERT!

These are olliebollen...well, the one on the left is; the one on the right started with a K, I can't remember the name but it is the olliebollen but stuffed with cream! They are so amazing and apparently only come out here in the Netherlands at Christmas time (although I hear there is a cart of them at Wailabi World year round)...but, we got these treats because here in the Netherlands Tuesday was Sint Maarten....this is a holiday similar to Halloween, but the children make lanterns and sing songs as they go door to door. We went to the Vondelpark to watch the parade they do where the local children can join in with their lanterns. It was quite adorable. So, since the kiddo didn't get to do any trick or treating on our way home we stopped by a cart and picked these up. We cut them into thirds so we all got a little taste. Trust me...it was more than enough, but they are really good! They are almost like a fried pancake. A favorite treat for sure!

That's it for What I Ate Wednesday...what have you eaten lately?