Healthy Costco Haul (February 26th)

Hey Rockers! One thing you'll discover about me is that I love to shop at Costco. Like seriously. I LOVE IT! I am able to get awesome healthy eats there for sometimes a fraction of the price of buying it elsewhere. Yesterday we did a mini stock up so I'd like to share with you a few of the goodies that I picked up.

I love a Costco cart full of healthy goodness! 

First off we were pretty much all out of rice. Blended rice mixes and white Basmati rice are some of our top choices for clean carbs. I picked up two different blends and a big bag of Basmati.

Next we grabbed some produce. I don't actually get too much produce at Costco because I like variety and usually end up wasting the Costco sizes of certain fruits and veggies but within reason I will grab a few. 

We have been out of coffee in our house for almost two weeks and my attempt at doing just tea in the morning kind of failed. I wanted to try this particular kind for awhile now. So far it's nice, really dark so I'm thinking one less scoop next time.

Yogurt and bacon are two staples in our house. Especially the bacon! I love bacon as much as I love Costco. We have been buying a lot of their low sodium kind lately as it has no sugar in it. This particular kind of yogurt is pretty good too, it's "mostly" organic an while it has some sugar in it I'm not going to freak out about it. Balance is key. 

A few things we picked up but not pictured: a box of those Annie's organic bunny crackers for the kiddos, raisins and craisins (for in oatmeal and rice pudding), chicken breasts and chicken wings, Mr. Rock and I each got a new pair of workout pants, Free Run eggs, big bag of the Basmati rice, milk, cream, and olive oil. That pretty much wraps it up.

And hey, here is a bonus of what I grabbed yesterday at the bulk store!!

It was just a quick pop into the bulk store. All I REALLY needed was the arrowroot flour (the white powder). I also grabbed some honey sweetened granola flakes to toss on yogurt, some sliced almonds, and some pecan pieces. As always though there were just a "few" impulse buys. I quite like my new reusable shopping bag, as IF I needed a new one of those ;)

One of my sweets girlfriends gave me a new cookbook at Christmas and a few recipes call for red curry paste so when I saw that I had to grab it. I have also been missing my FAV spatula for a few weeks now (I hate when a favourite kitchen tool goes missing) so I grabbed this super fun looking one. Maybe I'll have to rock out with it as a microphone in my kitchen mid baking session :)

Hope you enjoyed today's healthy haul instalment. I'll probably do this on a semi regular basis when I get some great stuff. Rock on! 

Herb and Garlic Roasted Pork Tenderloin

Pork tenderloin is a great inexpensive cut of meat and something I make quite often. While making it for supper tonight I figured I would share with you one of my favourite recipes for making it. It is easy, quick, and super tasty. Enjoy!

For this Pork Tenderloin Recipe you will need:

Pork Tenderloin (usually vacuum sealed in a 2 pack)

1 tsp onion powder

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp dried parsley

1 tsp dried basil

roughly 1/2 tsp seat salt

roughly 1/2 tsp pepper

1 tbsp olive oil

Put the tenderloins into your roasting pan and sprinkle all the spices and oil and such over it. Using your hands make sure everything is spread over well. 

Then place them into a hot pan (at medium heat) on your stove and sear all sides. 

Put the seasoned and seared tenderloins back into the roaster. Put the the lid on. Roast in the oven at 375' for 30-35 minutes. 

Let tenderloin sit for 5 minutes after taking it out of the oven. 

Don't they look beauty??

Slice it and serve it up with two veggies and a clean carb (tonight we had a mix of broccoli/cauliflower and peas with basmati rice). 

I hope you enjoy this recipe. Have a rockin' day!

How To Eat Healthier (and lose weight in the process)

There are many ways that you can go about eating healthier. The information is out there on many sites, including this one. The steps on how to eat healthier are really simple and very easy to apply to your life, however they are also very easy not to do.

I found in my weight loss journey though that when I applied these simple basics to my life I had great results and ended up losing a total of 101 lbs.

-First off, make sure you EAT BREAKFAST! Don't try to cut the calories of your day by skipping this very important meal.

-Take a good look at your cupboards. Be sure to read the labels, not just the nutritional info but the ingredients, the ingredients is where the real story is.

-Focus on single ingredient foods. By creating a diet full of single ingredient foods you are ensuring you aren't getting all those nasties that were on the labels of the things you cleared out of your cupboard.

-Eat. The. Rainbow. Consume lots of fresh fruit and veggies. When you eliminate the processed foods you will realize how good this stuff really tastes and how bad the processed really was.

-Fat does not make you fat. Further more the fats you consume are important. No vegetable oils or margarine. Pick oils such as olive oil, coconut oil, and butter, mmmmmm butter.

-Not all carbs are created equal. By ditching those processed foods you are already on your way to eating better cleaner carbs. Choose carbs such as sweet potato, oats, rice, parsnips. Limit grains, and if you must look for breads with sprouted grains.

-It is VERY important that when you try to eat healthier that you are minding your sleep and stress. Not only does stress play a role in fat storage but you are also more prone to poorer food choices and poor portion control. The less sleep you have the more your body craves other sources of energy during the day and also your judgement is lowered.

If you start applying even a few of these simple acts now and adding more in over the following weeks I am SURE that you will find yourself feeling better, sleeping better, having better energy, and even losing weight.

Keep on Rockin'

My Workout Video Collection (Plus an Important Note)

When someone asks me how I lost 101 lbs I always say something like "oh you know, I got exercise and ate healthy". I thought it would be fun to share though EXACTLY what I did in the exercise portion of that equation.

Yes folks. This is EXACTLY the collection of DVDs that I personally used to get myself from fat to fit. To get myself from 250 lbs to 149 lbs. 

So let me break it down a bit more:

1. 30 Day Shred 3X

2. Ripped in 30 4X

3. 30 Day Shred 1X 

4. Ripped in 30 2X 

5. Shred It With Weights 1X

6. Extreme Shed and Shred 1X

7. Shred It With Weights 2X

8. Three months of Jackie Warner Power Circuits with Shred It With Weights, Yoga Meltdown and Jennifer Nicole Lee's program off Bodybuilding.com (alternated them all)

9. 90 Days of Les Mills Pump

Following Les Mills Pump I did a month of random workouts from my collection just ensuring I did a workout each day. 

10. I started January 2014 with P90X3 and am currently almost 60 days through!! 

So there it is. From the day I started the 30 Day Shred and stuck with it, and gradually moved on to different programs, until now is 22 months. 

To add as well, once I am done P90X3 that doesn't mean my road ends. Once you start you can never quit or all that work is lost. I am always thinking 3-5 months in advance, what am I going to do. In my case after P90X3 I am going to do a few rounds of the 21 Day Fix, followed by some Brazil Butt Lift, and then possibly make my move into Body Beast. 

When I tell people that they need to add fitness into their lives the usual response turns to getting a gym membership (that collects dust) or going to a few yoga classes a week, or buying a treadmill (that ends up as a clothes hanger). I'm not knocking yoga or jogging on their own of course, they have their merits. But I do want to discuss two things: 

FREQUENCY AND CONSISTENCY

Physical fitness HAS to be a daily occurring activity. Two to three times a week is not enough. You have to do it frequently and consistently. Daily exercise keeps you progressing, dabbling just keeps you stuck where you are. Every time I redid a program I also increased my weights and pushed for greater range of motion. You will only progress as much as you allow yourself to. 

Frequency and consistency are reasons why I encourage at home DVD programs more than anything else. The majority of people need the trainer aspect, the music, the encouragement. I have done printed off workouts and put it to an iPod playlist but it is just not the same. 

Frequency and consistency are also much easier to attain from home. The more effort you have to put into your fitness the easier it is to shelve it. With at home DVDs all you have to do is press play. There is no driving to the gym, requiring kid care, cost of gym passes. It is a lot easier to say "I'm not going to workout today" when it is -30, you have to lug kids in the car, drive there, show up, then pack back up, drive home, etc. etc.

I lost all my weight without stepping foot into a gym. You seriously do not need that equipment. You don't need the treadmill. You don't need the elliptical. You don't need the fancy weight machines. All you need at home at most is a yoga matt, a few dumbbells, and YOU. What would take you closer to 2 hours at the gym all time factors included you can literally do in 30 minutes at home, imagine what you can do now with that extra 1 1/2 hours. 

Keep frequency and consistency in mind at all times in relation to your health and fitness. What you do on a regular basis is what will determine your outcome. 

Stay frequent, stay consistent, and keep Rockin'! 

Spring In Your Step Challenge

With Spring being right around the corner I thought it would be a perfect time for a Spring themed Challenge Group! 

I get asked a lot what exactly is a challenge group, how do I join a challenge group, how do challenge groups work. In this video I break down those questions. 

-I use my personal experience of losing over 100 lbs to help my challengers lose weight, get more energy, and reclaim their lives.

-I only require that you purchase a Challenge Pack and use Shakeology daily

-Shakeology is an incredibly nutrient dense supplement that will help you from feeling tired, having cravings, and keep nutritional deficiencies away

-Challenge groups most importantly provide accountability and support when going through a weight loss journey (80% of people fail because they lack support)

-I run my challengers monthly so there is always one to join. You get me as your coach, my past experience, motivation, tips and tricks

Please check out the quick What Is A Challenge Group video on the sidebar for more information!

I look forward to seeing YOU as a Challenger to get healthier, get happier, and get Rockin' your life. 

This Week's Meal Plan (Feb 17th-23rd)

I strongly feel that in order to be successful, at anything, you need to have a plan. You need to have direction. You can't just wing things and expect success to just happen. This totally applies to weight loss, which is why I feel that meal planning is incredibly important. 

This is my meal plan for the week. Having three kids and homeschooling means that I need to have stuff planned out otherwise it is eat eat graze graze eat eat all. day. long. When the kids know (and I know) when and what we are having next it cuts back on the asking for snacks and the mindless wandering into the kitchen. 

I also always know what I need to pull out to defrost. I also know exactly what to buy at grocery shopping time which saves time AND money, something that we mums seem to always have too little of. 

Keep in mind this is how I choose to eat. I am big on balance and protein. I limit my processed carbs, and I cook pretty much 99% from scratch. I figured I would share my meal plan in case someone would like to try. I didn't put portion sizes as those differ for everyone, mostly be wise and listen to your body for signals that you are full. 

If you have any question or need help please let me know. In the coming weeks I plan to continue sharing my meal plans if there is a good response. I'm also going to figure out a better way to put them up as a picture. 

I'm looking forward to all these meals coming up, lots of rockin' eats coming our family's way! 

Chocolates for your Valentine

Happy St. Valentine's Day everyone. I hope you are enjoying a day filled with love. Love for your friends and family and love for yourself. And speaking of love, how about some love for chocolate. 

If it weren't for chocolate I really wouldn't be too interested in Valentines. See I'm a total chocoholic but as I have cleaned up my eating that means that I don't eat chocolate as often. When I do though I try to buy better quality chocolate. It also means that I often make my own.

Making your own chocolate can be really easy! So today for a Valentines treat I whipped up a tasty batch for the kids of these yummy peanut butter chocolates using ingredients that any clean eater should have always in stock in their kitchen.

Two Layer PB Chocolates

Layer One
1/2 cup coconut oil
1/4 cup cocoa
2 tbsp honey
1/2 tsp vanilla
Melt all ingredients together. Pour into a small rectangular foil lined pan. Put in the freezer to chill for about 10 minutes.

Layer Two 
1/2 cup natural peanut butter
1/4 cup coconut oil
2 tbsp honey
1/2 tsp vanilla
pinch of sea salt
Melt all ingredients together. Pour over the hardened first layer. Put back in the freezer for another 10 minutes or until fully set.

Break into small pieces and share with those you love or better yet into big pieces and keep to yourself ;)

Have a Rockin' Valentine!

Avoid These Five Fitness Mistakes

So you’ve made the decision that you are finally going to shed some weight and get fit. But before you start off be sure you know these common fitness mistakes so that you can avoid making them.

It’s okay, we all make mistakes. That is why I am here. I am going to tell you what the top five common fitness mistakes are and how YOU can avoid them.

5. Lack of a Plan. For me this is very important. You wouldn’t go on a cross country drive without your GPS would you? So why is it people expect to go on a fitness and health journey without knowing some specifics. Look up fitness plans online, take them with you, refer to it constantly. Keep yourself on track.  This is where workout videos are actually a great option for a newbie. They tell you EXACTLY what to do.

4. Too Much Too Fast. Many people when they start are excited, which is great. BUT that excitement can lead to overload. Don’t try heading out to jog 5 miles the first time. Don’t sign up for a class every day. Don’t just hop into hot yoga. Don’t load up with big weights thinking that you are tough enough. It isn’t just about strengths, it is about smarts. Easing yourself in is incredibly important to avoid burnout, both mentally and physically. Start with three days at a time, even as little as 25 minutes. Then as you progress do more and more each week. 

3. Poor Form. A huge reason why many people fall off the wagon is that they hurt themselves. Often this is due to poor form which can leads to strains, sprains, and even worse, breaks. There are guides on workout videos for a reason, to help you correct your form to avoid injury. If you are hitting the gym, get some help from the staff on your form. There are also plenty of youtube tutorials out there just waiting to show you the way. Avoiding injury is critical and that starts with proper form.

2. Only Cardio. Women seem to be particularly bad for making this mistake. They go and spend an hour on the treadmill or other cardio machine, or they just set out to jog. I’m sorry but that is not going to help you reach your goals. You may lose weight, and yes you are burning calories, but you will remain soft. You won’t get any tone. This also means you aren’t going to see the results you want and may end up leading you to quit your efforts. Add regular strength training and in no time you will see your goals within sight.

1. Improper Nutrition. When I ask many of my challengers about their biggest struggle they tell me it is exercise. Nine times out of ten though that is what should be the least of their worries. You can not out exercise a bad diet, and you'd be surprised how easily you can out eat your workout. If you are serious about getting fit you have to be serious about your diet. Up to 80% of your weight loss and results depends on nutrition. Start eating clean, avoid the inside aisles at the grocery store, fill up on whole foods, drink lots of water.

If you are guilty of making any of these common fitness mistakes don’t worry. Now you know better. Find a plan that will work for you and commit. Take things easy, gradually increasing intensity and frequency. Do research on how to do things right. Balance out your efforts between cardio AND resistance training. And most importantly FUEL YOUR BODY RIGHT!

Now get out there and get Rockin'

Healthy Eating Essentials

When trying to lose weight you have to be sure that you are buying the RIGHT foods. And NO that does NOT mean 100 calorie packs, diet pop, 0 fat yogurt, and cartons of egg whites. 

You need to load your grocery cart with a rainbow of fresh produce, choose quality protein, whole eggs and full fat dairy. You need to choose WHOLE FOODS in their NATURAL FORMS.

If you are struggling trying to figure out just what you should be buying please check out this list I have of what my regular essentials are for eating healthy. When you buy the right foods it makes it easy to stay on track with your eating because the fake foods and snack foods just aren't there to tempt and taunt you.

This is pretty much my basic list. Depending on what is on sale and my meal plan I may swap things in or out. In the summer we have more berries. But in general all these things can make a very wide variety of meals to keep everyone happy and healthy.

Weekly
-greens mix or spinach
-broccoli
-carrots
-avocado
-sweet potato
-turnip
-butternut squash
-red and green peppers
-garlic
-onion
-mushrooms
-green onion
-green apples
-pineapple
-bananas
-lemons
-frozen fruit (for smoothies)

-passata (strained tomatoes)
-happy planet juice (best juice ever!)
-mineral water (I like to mix it with the juice for a treat and to help in juice moderation)

-eggs
-Balkan or Greek yogurt (plain)
-3% milk
-cream
-coconut milk
-almond milk (regular and chocolate)

-ground pork
-chicken legs
-chicken breast
-pork chops or pork loin
-bacon
-lean ground beef
-bison sausages

-sprouted grain bread (silver hills bakery)
-square organic wraps
-flat buns

Monthly
-honey
-coconut oil
-olive oil
-maple syrup
-coconut sugar
-oats
-alternative flours (arrowroot, almond, coconut)
-bag of rice (basmati)
-frozen peas
-frozen corn
-dates
-shredded coconut
-raisins
-nuts


What you will rarely see in my grocery cart are processed foods. I rarely purchase packaged soups, boxed and frozen foods. If it is a convenience food it is usually laden with preservatives, additives, and a whole bunch of other things that just aren't good for you.

Of course there are a few things that I do buy that aren't 100% clean and don't 100% fall into the whole and unprocessed guidelines but 80% of the time what I eat is whole and pure. Get into the kitchen and get making your food from scratch. I can't stress enough the importance of that.

Hope you can use a bit of this list to get on your way to eating healthier, losing weight, living better and Rocking Your Life :)

Creating A Weight Loss Plan

I have learned that when you are embarking on your weight loss journey you have to ask yourself the right questions. You have to make a plan, consider it your road map to weight loss success. 

Please check out this short video where I briefly explain these five points that you need to consider.

Just like writing a good story or solving a mystery (like the mystery of losing weight) you need to ask:

How

What

When

Why 

Who

Don't forget to write the answers to these questions down so that you always have them available to keep you on track and moving forward to reaching your goals.

Keep checking back often for more videos and don't forget to like Rock Your Life Movement on Facebook so you can Rock Your Life too!

My Les Mills Pump Shirt Came Today

Did you know that when you do a Beachbody program and submit your before and after pix and your transformation story you get a FREE shirt? True Story!

I actually finished Les Mills Pump back back in the fall but completely forgot the part about submitting my pix and story until just a few weeks ago. I was really surprised to see it in the mail today, it shipped REALLY fast, I totally thought it would take longer.

I ordered the exact right size (M) and the cotton is super soft. I love it. I especially love the tag line on the back :

LEAN, STRONG & UNSTOPPABLE

That is how I feel as a result of my weight loss journey and my entrance into Beachbody coaching. I feel amazing. I feel strong. I feel UNSTOPPABLE. This experience has given me a new lease on life. It has given me...

Purpose

I feel renewed. I feel strong and healthy inside and out. I have a purpose. As a stay at home mum things can sometimes feel a little, well, isolating, and it is really easy to lose yourself in the process of always focusing on your kids. And frankly being a one income family can be kind of hard too. Beachbody coaching has given me an incredible opportunity to feel better about myself, help others, build a successful business, and add more to the family wallet. 

I'm just so thankful that my coach was very encouraging and she was patiently persistent while I hemmed and hawed over making the choice to become a coach. Without her I wouldn't wearing this awesome shirt, I wouldn't have made further headway towards my goals, I wouldn't be adding income to our family. 

Anyone who feels stuck where they are, tired of the same routine, tired of being sick and tired DOES have the power to change all that. YOU have the power to Rock Your Life. Maybe Beachbody is the opportunity you need to start. 

Whether you want to be a challenger or a coach I can help you reach your goals too. I want to help you Rock Your Life, become part of the Movement of others getting healthier, happier, and living better. 

Homemade Meatballs

Do you love meatballs? I absolutely do. I love anything that has to do with protein and since meshing my clean eating and paleo philosophies together I can eat them totally guilt free. 

If you'd like to have some guilt free meatballs feel free to use the recipe that I came up with this evening for supper. You could do them with a tomato sauce and spaghetti squash for a healthy and wholesome spaghetti or you could go even simpler like I did tonight and had them with basmati rice, organic corn, carrots sticks on the side. 

Easy Homemade Meatballs

Mix all the following ingredients in a bowl and mash together well

-1 lb ground beef (organic or grass fed if you can)

-1/2 tsp sea salt

-1/2 tsp dried parsley

-1/4 tsp ground pepper

-1/2 tbsp almond flour

-1 egg

-1 tbsp finely diced red pepper

-1 tbsp finely diced onion

-1 garlic clove very finely minced

You can either fry them in a pan or bake in the oven at 350. In both cases within 30 minutes you can be eating a great supper.