Put spinach in your smoothies!

Seriously, I can't even taste a difference with 2 big handfuls of spinach in there!

The key is to blend it for at least a full minute so you don't have any spinach chunks in there.

Now, when I was pregnant, I could not gag it down if you paid me...maybe I just couldn't get over the color or I didn't blend it enough, but everything's different when you're pregnant!

But now, I'm back to embracing the green smoothie. My favorite right now is peanut butter, banana, milk, ice, vanilla, and spinach. Mmmmm....

Meal planning for 2 weeks

I hate grocery shopping. I also hate spending money on groceries. I've been trying to save money on groceries and I was reading that the fewer times you go to the store, the less money you spend. So I decided to cut my shopping trips in half. I only go grocery shopping every other week.

Here's a few things I've learned in the process...

1. You HAVE to have a meal plan for 2 weeks. Otherwise you will not get enough stuff to last that long. I made this simple sheet that helps me. I plan each dinner, but only plan general lunches and snacks that can be had on any given day. I always make sure to have cereal, eggs, oatmeal, yogurt, fruit, and bread on hand for breakfast stuff.

2. I have to go by myself. It takes about an hour and I cannot do it with children in tow.

3. I use Bountiful Baskets to get most of my produce. It lasts 2 weeks.

4. I have almost always been able to get milk that doesn't have an expiration date before the 2 weeks is up. If I can't, I will go back to the store to get milk only.

5. I try to stock up on things when they're on sale, especially meat, so that I'll have it on hand when I need it.

6. Eat the stuff that will go bad sooner first. Apples and oranges and stuff will last...eat the ripe peaches and stuff like that the first week.

7. Someone recommended Zaycon foods for bulk meat buying. I haven't tried it yet, but I plan to for chicken at least.

8. I've been trying to price match at Walmart too so I can get everything in one stop.

I have liked only having to go shopping every other week! I'm still trying to cut down on my spending, so I would love to hear anyone else's tips on cutting down on grocery shopping and saving money!

Health, Fitness and Happiness Blogs

Need some inspiration? Check out the Top 50 Health, Fitness, and Happiness Blogs. My old spin teacher Janae (I love her blog, BTW) is on the list, and some of the rest of these blogs look pretty cool too! I'm definitely going to check a few of these out for some new ideas.

30-Day measurements

So, in the past 30 days since starting Chalean Extreme, I have lost a total of 4 lbs and 6.25 inches. (Although I think one of the measurements was not done right because I have not lost 2 inches in my left thigh! Even though that would be fantastic if it were true.)

Anyway, here are my 30-Day stats:

Weight: 166 (-4)
Waist: 31" (-.5)
Hips: 40.75" (-.25)
Abductors: 42" (-0)
Chest: 33.75" (-.75)
Bust: 40" (-1)
Right Arm: 12.5" (-0)
Left Arm: 12.5" (-.5)
Right Thigh: 23" (-1.25)
Left Thigh: 22.5" (-2)

I was hoping for a bit better, but losses are losses, right? And, in the past 30 days I have done ALL my workouts, planned my meals on most days, cut my eating out almost in half, and gotten up early to exercise almost every weekday.

Things I could work on: ramping up my cardio, portion control, better snacks.

Let's hope for some more progress next month!

Dealing with stress

I've been having a rough past few days. I need to remember this...

I've been dealing with some things and I'm still struggling to find ways besides eating to deal with my stress, frustration, disappointments, etc. I was about to lose it with my kids today and I ate a bunch of Emmy's Halloween candy. But I resolve to stick to my healthy dinner plan for tonight, and I still did my workout. And I will try to find other ways to deal with stuff.


How do you deal with stress and other crap?

Chalean Extreme

I have a dozen posts in my head that I want to write about, but haven't gotten around to it yet. Ugh! Someday I'll catch up! Or not! Haha!

But I do want to talk about the strength-training program I'm doing. It's called Chalean Extreme. It's a Beachbody program, which means it's from the same company that puts out P90X and Insanity. Those are the ones everybody's heard about, but there are a ton more! Erika (remember, the fitness coach I told you about?) is a Beachbody coach and can help you pick a program that is right for you.

Anyway, she recommended this one for me, and I'm almost 4 weeks in and I am really liking it. I tried P90X before and I didn't love it. I like some of the workouts, but overall I wasn't a big fan of it. But this is different. The workouts are pretty short and go by quickly.

Each week, you are supposed to do the following:

-3 weight-lifting workouts
-2 cardio workouts (I don't really like the cardio videos so I replace these with my own cardio...running, biking, gym class, whatever).
-1 ab workout
-1 yoga workout (I don't do this video either because I go to a weekly yoga class at church)

Every 30 days, you get a new phase of weight-lifting workouts. I'm nearing the end of Phase 1, so I'll be moving to Phase 2 next week. I haven't taken any official measurements yet (I will on Day 30) but I can fit into all my pre-children pants now!

The idea behind this program is to develop more muscle, and when you have more muscle, it burns more fat and you get leaner. I'm not even 1/3 of the way through it, but I'm noticing some changes (like my pants fitting).

Normally, I am not a big fan of doing workout videos, but I am actually really enjoying these for the most part (except I'm really bored of the warmup...it's the same in all the videos.) You only do the same video once a week for a month and then you get a new set, so it hasn't gotten boring yet.

Here's my normal schedule as of the past 4 weeks:

Monday: Weight-lifting video 1
Tuesday: Cardio (usually a run or kick-boxing class at the gym)
Wednesday: Weight-lifting video 2 + abs
Thursday: Cardio (usually a run or eliptical) + Yoga class at church
Friday: Weight-lifting video 3
Saturday: Make up day (for anything I missed M-F) and sometimes a Zumba class or spin class
Sunday: Rest

I'll be posting progress pics next week!