Stop Giving Me Christmas Cookies, Please

Posted in Goals, Motivation by

It’s the most wonderful time of year. Really, it is. I love Christmas time. I love December. I love winter. I love it all.

Now, you can go all Scrooge and bah-humbug and “I hate snow” on me, or you can get over it and allow me to bask in my favorite time of year, please. Good? Thanks.

Here is one thing though that I do request. Please stop giving me Christmas cookies as gifts. I feel bad that I have to say this, but I’m going for it. I am a disciplined person, for the most part, and I really don’t eat a ton of sweets on a regular basis. This stays the same for me throughout December. Just because chocolate fudge abounds and cookies in the shapes of snowflakes are everywhere doesn’t mean that I eat them nor do I want to eat them, nor do they make great gifts for me, nor do I think that because it is December that this gives me a license to somehow change my diet. Wow, that’s a lot of nors.

It is really funny what happens when you lose weight and live a disciplined life of eating healthy. People come out of nowhere telling you that you should have everything in moderation (as they stuff their faces with their 12th cookie of the day). I grin and thank them for that piece of advice and then continue to live my life very happily eating in moderation lots of veggies, fruits, eggs, bacon, meat galore, potatoes and even once or twice a week some ice cream.

So, thanks for the cookies this time of year, but no thanks. Instead, I like Starbucks coffee, black and dark – that will do just fine.

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StephSig

The Underdog

Posted in Goals, Motivation by

Many, many weeks ago, I began a weight loss competition with a friend of mine. After a chaotic summer of off-again-on-again paleo yoyo, this competition was meant to inspire motivation and squeaky clean eating. However…

…I’ve found it hard to keep on track. It has proved more difficult than when I started my healthy lifestyle change wayyyy back in August of 2o14. Why? If you read Rah’s post last week, you joined the conversation on perceived failure. In my case, the feelings of failure kept heaping on as I would exercise and eat right at the start of each week and then slowly fade off until I hit the weekend. In my mind, this would equate complete failure. In working towards a long-term health goal, handling failure well is critical to success. eighty.pngIt took a friend to saying “stop it, get over it, and move on” for me to really snap out of it. An 80% is not failure. It seems simple but it worked just in time to finish out this competition. Did I mention that there is $$$ on the line? And I don’t want to pay up? I wanna go Kanye on the competition!!!

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The big weigh-in is December 13th, less than two weeks away. And I’m WAY behind my competition. Like, 10 pounds behind him. But I’m an optimist and there’s a reason people like to root for the underdog, right?!?!?! *Cue the drama* I’m doing this for all the women of the world!!! For all the underdogs!!! For the people who fall and get back up again!!! *I warned you about the drama* 13 days left. Stay tuned!!!

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BeccaSig

Hello, portobello.

Posted in Budget, Food, Meal Planning by

We all have that one recipe. The one that looks like we’ve put a lot of work in but really it was very easy. The impress-the-guests recipe. Here is another to add to your list. Say “hello” to portobello.

Step #1 Put on some Adele. It tastes better if you sing. Hello from the fungal siiiiiide, at least you can say that you triiiiiied, to pre pare this din ner, it’s really not hard, you didn’t know you, could make food so good. But you caaan.

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Step #2 Gather your ingredients

  • 4 large portobello mushrooms
  • Extra virgin olive oil (1-2 T)
  • 32oz can of diced tomatoes (or 6-ish fresh diced romas)
  • 3 large garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 large onion, diced
  • 1/2 lb ground pork
  • 1/2 lb ground beef
  • 2T Italian seasoning
  • Salt & pepper to taste
  • 8 fresh basil leaves for garnish
  • 1/2 cup parmesan cheese (for the non-paleo guests)

Step #3 Cook

  • Set the oven to 400 degrees
  • Mushrooms: cut the stems out and remove as much of the black, gunky, gills as you want by scraping your knife along them. Spray both sides of the mushrooms caps with olive oil. Place into a foil-lined pan, cap side up. Bake for 10 min. Flip and bake for another 10 min. (mushrooms will shrink a little) Remove from oven & set aside.
  • Filling: toss the onion and garlic into a pan with some olive oil and saute until the garlic is lightly golden. Add the meat and brown. Drain the meat and return to the pan, adding the Italian seasoning. Mix well. Add in the tomatoes and simmer until hot. Add salt & pepper to taste. * * Tip * * Double the filling recipe to prepare extra for freezing. Thaw and use to top a sweet potato for a quick meal or layer over cooked & shredded spaghetti squash for a healthy pasta alternative.

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  • Assemble: top the mushrooms with filling (it’s ok if it falls a bit out). Add basil chiffonade (fancy French term for stack the leaves, roll the leaves, slice the leaves, fluff the leaves) to the tops of the filling (about two leaves per mushroom). Sprinkle cheese over or under the basil for cheese-eating guests. Return to the oven and bake for about 10-15 min.

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Step #4 Enjoy!

  • Serve with any side of your choice. I added sauteed zucchini and roasted butternut squash for a Fall flare! I’m going to try asparagus and summer squash next time. Ahhh the possibilities!

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BeccaSig

Homemade Larabar

Posted in Budget, Food by

Quick. Simple. Yummy. Healthy.

Those are the words that most often describe my food, in that order.

That’s why I loooooove this homemade Larabar recipe. It’s quick and simple, super yummy, healthy…oh and versatile. I keep a batch of these in a Tupperware in the fridge for quick grabbing so I make wise choices when I’m hungry and have little time. Enjoy!

Homemade Larabar

2 cups deglet noor dates
1 cup toasted nuts (slivered almonds,  pecans or walnuts)
1/2 cup dried unsweetened cherries, or mamgos, or dried apples, or apricots…you get the point

Add it all to the food processor and pulse until it’s ground up into equal size pieces. Empty it onto a parchment lined tray and spread it out in a wide circle about 1/3 inch thick. I fold up the edges to make it a perfect square. Cut into bar shape of your choice. Wrap individually in wax paper and store in a cool, dry container.

Enjoy!

When You Fall

Posted in Goals, Motivation by

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This is a pretty good visual of what my week was like. Overall. Not just eating, but definitely eating.

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And then this kid runs up on my lap and most of it seems to melt away.

How do you respond to failure? When you set a goal and don’t reach it…or fall flat on your face halfway through, what comes next?

For me, and boy do I think some of you can relate, I give up. I believe the lie that I failed because:

It was too hard…
I’m too undisciplined…
I don’t know how…
I don’t want it bad enough…
[Insert your lie here]…

Is it hard? Sure.
Do I struggle with discipline? Heck yeah.
Do I not know how? Sometimes.
Do I not want it bad enough? To be honest, some days I dont.

But do all of those things – true or false – equal failure? No way.

I consider myself to be a fairly deeply spiritual person. I have a relationship with Christ and He is changing me daily. From the inside out. And that means that I’m a work in progress. I make mistakes, but I also experience huge victories.

So what if I had McDonald’s this week, enjoyed too many desserts and didn’t exercise. Does that equal failure to the point of giving up? This week, I’ll strive to be better. Because this isn’t a sprint, it’s a marathon. And though I’m hopeful for results, that isn’t the end goal. The end goal is caring for my family well, teaching then to make wise choices so they can live long, healthy lives by God’s grace.

So ask yourself: What lies am I believing about my supposed failure? What truths can I speak into my own heart this week to overcome those feelings of giving up? I think by now, you know that applies to so much more than just healthy eating. And that’s kind of the point, right?

Stay tuned for a couple of super simple, healthy and fast recipes for wise decision making this week.

Peace out Fit Followers,

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Goals – A New Way to Think About Them

Posted in Goals, Motivation by

It’s been three weeks since I put my goals out there for the rest of this year (work out consistently 4 times a week and lose 8 lbs over the next three months). Well, reality check. I have lost 0 lbs and have averaged getting to the gym twice a week over the past three weeks. Why’s that? Because I focused too much on the long-term (what I need to accomplish in the next three months) verses getting focused on the short-term (what I need to accomplish today).

Do you ever find yourself doing the same? You have these huge, awesome goals – I want to get back down to a size this or weigh that or lift this amount of weight, and the numbers are huge or really small (depending on which way you are looking at it), and probably very achievable, but we never get there because we focus too much on them.

So, I’m kicking off this whole thing again. That’s right, it’s a Friday and I’m starting fresh. There’s no waiting until Monday, it doesn’t matter that it’s the weekend – this starts now. I do have those long term goals, but in order to get there, I need to focus on today. Just get me through today, get to the gym and eat well. Then tomorrow, do the same thing again.

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Focus on each day before you, making the right decisions that day, and those long-term numbers will come. I’m in for this, so let’s hope the next reality check in a few weeks is a delightful one. Hope you join me!

StephSig

Mediterranean Fishies for Dinner

Posted in Food by

Ready for a seriously yummy, healthy, easy dinner? Pop on some “Under the Sea” from the Little Mermaid and let’s get our mediterranean fish cooking on!

Mediterranean Fishies

Ingredients for Fish:

  • Some sort of white fish, I used flounder and had four fillets
  • 1-2 T ghee, butter or whatever fat you cook in
  • 1 shallot, finely diced
  • Juice from 1/2 a lemon
  • Salt & pepper

Ingredients for Olive Yumminess Topping:

  • 1/2 cup rough chopped pitted Kalamata olives
  • 1/2 cup chopped Bella mushrooms
  • 1/2 cup diced red onion
  • 2 garlic cloves, diced
  • 1/2 cup chopped tomatoes (whatever you got on hand)
  • 1 T olive oil
  • Salt & pepper

Get two skillets out and set up the smaller of the two over medium heat with the olive oil. Add in all of your ingredients for the olive yumminess topping. Stir all together and let that cook down for about 5-7 minutes, keeping the heat at an appropriate level in order not to burn (so, lower it if it is cooking too hot too fast).

Put your other skillet on medium heat and add in your fat and shallots. Cook down for about 2 minutes, making sure not to burn your shallots. Once the shallots are clear, season both sides of your fish with salt and pepper and add to your pan. Our flounder were THIN, so it only took about 2 minutes on each side to cook.

Get out a plate, put your fish down and then top it off with olive yumminess! Enjoy the deliciousness!

Mediterranean Fish

StephSig

It’s All About Me

Posted in Goals, Motivation by

I live in a world where I am constantly told what I need to do for others. This is my job, my faith, my family and relationships, my life. This isn’t a bad thing – seriously. I very much love living by the “love your neighbor as yourself” law that was given to me by JC.

However, when it comes to fitness and eating well, I think we forget that part about “loving ourselves.” I do an excellent job (I think) at taking care of and caring for others. I think a lot of us would say that about ourselves. How often do you hear yourself say, “Oh I can’t do that, I’ve got to go help out…” So, I can’t take the time to cook a good, healthy meal for myself because I’ve got to help my kids with their homework, help my church with their food drive, help my boss get their stuff together for a big meeting – so instead, I’ll just go grab McDonald’s or Taco Bell on the way home.

The same goes for working out. Who makes time to actually go to the gym and get a good workout in when we are doing so much for everyone else? It’s hilarious how our giving and loving of others becomes our excuse to fuel our own laziness. Boom. I said it. It’s time to simply stop and start to love ourselves and let the laziness go.

I’m living by this challenge now because I have become one of the worst offenders of this rule. I run a non-profit that helps women who were sex trafficked. So, not only do I run this thing, meaning all of my staff and volunteers and donors want time, communication, ideas, everything; but then there is the added piece that these are women who were sex trafficked, so the whole heart breaking for them is pretty huge.

So, it’s time to take some time for me. It’s time to put the work, the spouse (although he can come with me and often does), the friends, the everything around me aside and simply take some time to keep myself healthy, fit and feeling awesome. Why? Because if I don’t love myself in this way, I won’t be around for very much longer to love others. Anyone with me?

StephSig

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Way-Too-Easy Garlic Hummus

Posted in Food by

Believe me, hummus is easy to make! I’m not kidding. I always assumed people were lying when they said that. For example, my amazing coworker who makes the rest of the office drool with her homemade, completely amazing Iraqi hummus. I didn’t believe her (sorry Heba). But, after paying $5 for organic hummus, I decided it was time to try.

Ingredients:

  • 1 large head of garlic (I used one huge elephant clove. I really love garlic)
  • 2 1/2 T olive oil, divided
  • 1 (15 oz) can chick peas, drained (I used Meijer brand organics bc it didn’t have preservatives)
  • 3T lemon juice (or 1 squeezed lemon)
  • 3T tahini
  • 1/2 tsp salt, or to taste
  • 1/4 tsp ground cumin
  • Pepper to taste
  • 2 – 3 Tbsp water

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Ok, set the oven to 400 and cut off the top of the garlic so that the cloves are exposed. Drizzle with 1.5 tsp olive oil, or whatever amount you need to roast it. Wrap up in foil & roast for around 30 minutes or until the garlic is golden.

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While the garlic is roasting, grab your food processor and throw in the drained chickpeas, lemon juice, tahini, salt, and cumin. Grind it up until it is kinda creamy.

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Then add in the remaining 2T olive oil, roasted garlic, and water. Pulse until the mixture is good and creamy. Toss in some pepper until it tastes how you like it and BOOM! Homemade garlic hummus! I served it with fresh peppers, cucumbers, carrots, and celery.

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BeccaSig

Disclaimer: chick peas are not considered Paleo.