Mom's Lemonade

When my mom was visiting last month, she brought so many lemons I didn't know what to do with them!

My oldest son is always asking for Lemonade and since I won't buy that Countrytime crap (even though it tastes amazing) I opted to make our own lemonade with fresh home grown lemons.

Since it is already well into the ninety degree range here, it is a perfectly refreshing drink to have in the afternoon, after working or playing outside. Poured over ice, it quenches thirst and gives you the satisfaction of a sweet dessert. 

It is SO simple and easy to make and can be modified if you like it a little more sour or sweet.  The first time I made it, I followed my mom's recipe and used sugar. Of course it tasted great but I wanted to change it up a bit and use Agave nectar to keep it on the healthier side. It really depends on your taste for sugary drinks.*  

You can also juice all of the lemons and portion them out into freezer bags so you always have the lemon juice ready to go for mixing! Just take the bag out, let it thaw and mix up a new batch of lemonade! So simple and takes less than five minutes to mix it up. 

There is really so much you can do with the lemonade; another thing I was going to do was pour the lemonade into popsicle molds so we have homemade lemonade pops! It's so simple and tastes great!

Ingredients:

1 C Fresh Lemon Juice, 5-6 lemons 

5-6 C Water

2/3 C Agave Nectar (or  1 C white granulated sugar~ which ever you prefer)

Directions:

For me, I cut all of the lemons in half, they fit in to my hand juicer easier that way. They can be juiced which ever way you want, and whatever works easiest for you. Mix lemon juice and water and stir in agave nectar. I started with a small amount of agave until it was sweet enough for my boys to drink. (You can always substitute part granulated sugar part agave as well). I like to slice another lemon to throw into the juice, it not only looks nice but still adds a little more lemon flavor to the drink. 

*The conversion for sugar to agave is 1 C sugar = 2/3 C Agave.

Mood Booster Workout

It is so easy to forget to take care of your body. Whether you are trying to lose weight, maintain weight or just stay active it's easy to fall off course and lose momentum.

Here is a quick workout that I like to do if my day is too busy to get to the gym or to a bootcamp class. It elevates my heart rate, helps burn a few calories and boosts my mood. Anytime I engage in any physical activity, I feel better. 

When you exercise, your body releases chemicals called endorphins and these endorphins trigger positive feelings in your body. Why wouldn't you want that? 

So, if you are feeling down, depressed, low energy, try this quick little workout to boost your mood!! It doesn't take very long, and it always works for me! 

Items Needed: 

Self!

Positive Attitude 

A little bit of space for burpees (yes, I said burpees)

Workout:

20 pushups (Try to do them from your toes, as many as you can, then go to your knees if you need to.

          Gradually you will be able to do more from your toes, I promise! It's all about progress!)

20 sit-ups (Actual sit-ups, not crunches!!)  

5 Burpees**

20 Squats

REPEAT! (You can repeat for as little as 15 minutes or as long as 40, however much time you have!)

**Burpees~ if you are not familiar with how to do a burpee, it's just a few simple steps! 

1) From standing position, drop down to a squat position and place hands on the ground in front of you

2) Kick your feet back, leaving you in a plank/pushup position 

3)*optional* pushup at this point

4) Return your feet to squat position 

5) Jump up from the squat position, hands reaching high, jump as high as you can

Motivation is what gets you started...

     Habit is what keeps you going. 

~Jim Ryun 

     

Protein & Oats Pancakes

I have a sweet tooth, I admit.

Especially when it comes to breakfast. French toast, pancakes, waffles, crepes... if it's sweet? I love it.

Over the last year as I've slowly been making changes to my diet, breakfast has been one of the harder ones. On a regular basis, I make plain old fashioned rolled oats with either blueberries, flax and honey or whatever other berry I have in my fridge. When I get tired of oats, I make eggs. When I get tired of eggs, I ask my children, "Hey!? Do you boys want pancakes??" And of course their answer is... "yes".

I've been seeing friends post photos of their "Protein Pancakes" and just haven't been brave enough to try them. It's hard enough for me to choke down my protein shake sometimes, let alone think of making a pancake out of it.

So, today, I finally did... grabbed some eggs, old fashioned rolled oats, protein powder and almond milk. I adapted this recipe from a friends recipe that used 4 eggs and oats, changing the measurements slightly.

(I didn't realize I'd need the almond milk until I had blended the first three ingredients together)

I thought about mixing in a bowl, but I didn't really want "chunky" pancakes, so I threw all of the ingredients in my Ninja single serve blender cup.

I blended everything and then added almond milk since the consistency was a little thick and poured on to my pan. 

I was very impressed with how similar this recipe was to actual pancakes! It bubbled just the same and was easily flipped to cook both sides. 

And just like that, I had pancakes! They were a little dense, so maybe next time I will add a little more almond milk? I was still able to eat them both and satisfy my sweet tooth. I topped them with Earth Balance Coconut Spread and All Natural Maple Syrup. 

Delicious!!

Protein & Oats Pancakes

1 Egg

2 Egg Whites

1/4 C Old Fashioned Rolled Oats

1/4 C Almond Milk

1 Scoop of Life's Basics Plant Protein Powder, Vanilla 

Cinnamon (lightly sprinkled on top while cooking) 

Blend all ingredients, pour onto pan and cook until lightly brown. 

Training for Life

102 was the high today and I'm thinking it feels a little too early to be that hot. I can't believe summer is already approaching and we haven't replaced our air conditioners yet. (They are awfully old and one is leaking so it actually doesn't work...)

Today, I chose to workout at 6am instead of 9:30am and I was happy I did. The sun was already out and shining bright but there was still a nice cool breeze to keep me cool while I ran.

We did three separate circuits today, rotating through each of them twice, with a running lap in between. After taking a few days off towards the end of last week, today's workout was just what I needed. It was hard enough to make me sweat but not so hard that I couldn't get all of my reps in. I worked out with a new girl today and the highlight of my workout was when she said, "Wow! You are in really good shape, what are you training for?" My reply? "Life."

I have been waiting a long time for someone to ask me that so I could respond with "Life."

Who is it that has led so many people to believe that working out, eating healthy and staying fit has to be because you are "training for something"? I feel that if everyone would eat healthier, exercise and educate themselves on proper nutrition we might all be happier! I know for me, when I eat really well and workout, I am flying high. It's my drug and I'm addicted. When I don't get it, watch out.

Lately I've been asking myself what are my goals. At one point I thought that I might want to be brave enough to train and enter a fitness competition. Not necessarily fitness, but maybe bikini. I'm not sure how much support I'd have and I really don't know that I can (or have) get together enough money to pay for all that is involved in doing a show.

I had the goal of running a half-marathon, well, I've done two now.

I had the goal of participating and finishing Tough Mudder, well, I did that and have plans to sign up again next year.

So, what exactly am I "training for" now? Life. I want to feel good and look good. Inside and Out. I want people to ask me, not "what am I training for" but "what are you doing? How are you so happy and healthy?"

I'm working on a list. Maybe a couple lists. The foods I am cutting out, the new workout routines I'll be doing, some certifications I'd like to get and goals I have for my family in general. I'd love to share them with you all when I get them finished! I am excited for new things, the new doors that have been opened to me and I can't wait to look back on this post knowing that I set goals and achieved them.

The highlight of my night? My push-up and plank challenge that I did with my husband. It was fun and now I'm determined to keep up with him. He beat me by one push-up (20-21) and I beat him with a 3:10 plank. (his was 2:45). Who knows, maybe we can start incorporating this little challenge before bed every-night?

Post Yoga Quinoa Salad

Friday is yoga day. I love yoga day because I get to stretch and hydrate my muscles. They are fatigued from cardio and circuit training all week. Usually, after a workout I come home and have a protein shake to curb my dinosaur like hunger that hits. On Yoga days, I like to cook more of my "normal" lunch foods. It's always a good day to make a quinoa (pronounced KEEN - WA) salad so that I have leftovers ready to be eating throughout the weekend. I made 1 C of quinoa as my base. It's so easy to make and a heck of a lot quicker than making brown rice or something like nasty Kraft Macaroni and Cheese!

All of the ingredients that I put into my Post-Yoga Quinoa were items that I already had on stock and I  had just picked some fresh kale from my garden this morning, perfect! Other items were a tomato, an avocado, 1/4 of a red onion, fresh lemon juice, salt, pepper and some cilantro to give it a little more flavor. 

I chopped everything up while my quinoa was cooking. Once it was nice and fluffy to my expectations I mixed everything together, seasoned with a small amount of salt & pepper, juice from one lemon and topped with freshly chopped cilantro. 

YUM!!

It was the perfect lunch to follow an amazing yoga flow class! I feel amazing and am ready for the weekend!

1 C Quinoa (cooked w/ 1 1/2 C Water)

1 Tomato

1 Avocado

1/4 of Red Onion

1 Lemon

Handful of Kale

Handful of Cilantro

Salt & Pepper to taste

**I'll post how I cook my quinoa in a different post!**

     

Two months later...

Today is exactly two months from when I wrote my last post about PPD. I was feeling very down and thankfully because I recognize it, I can help myself to get better.

February came and went with a blurrrr... dinner with friends for my birthday, a visit from my favorite cousin and more smiles from my two growing boys.

February also brought Tough Mudder. What an experience!! It was both mentally and physically challenging. With the help of my friends and loving husband I even faced my biggest fear. There were tears involved but sometimes that's what helps me conquer something.

















If I said I wasn't tired after all of the obstacles and the 12 mile run I'd be lying. My body hurt, everywhere but my spirits were flying high. Knowing that I set out to face the obstacles and the challenge and accomplished it was SO rewarding.

And.. if I wasn't crazy enough to do that, one of my really great friends and I had signed up to do another Half-marathon together, THE FOLLOWING WEEKEND. Crazy.

We did it and we did it with smiles.



Even though it was the dear husband's birthday he brought the boys out so that they could meet us at the finish line. THAT was my smile for the day!



I took about a week off after both of those events and then started right into my bootcamp 4-5 days a week. I can't stress enough how much exercise helps me. It truly is my drug and I choose to keep it my drug. I don't want to be on Zoloft or Prozac or whatever else there is out there, I want to stay healthy, active and enjoy my life medicine free.

Since I've gone back to bootcamp, I've started doing Boxing/Kickboxing as well which is AMAZINGLY therapeutic. I go at least once a week and for the last three weeks in a row I've gone twice. Making kickboxing my 2nd workout of the day on Wednesdays. I am learning so much more about my body, my core and my inner strength. I can't wait to see what magic it has done for me after a couple of months!!

The Magic 3's. Two of them to be exact.

I am older, wiser, more stubborn and feeling more confident than ever.

I had another birthday this weekend, yesterday. I am another year older and am excited about this. Not excited about the wrinkles that have shown up around my eyes but I am excited that the older I get, the more relaxed I get.

This last year was particularly hard for me, emotionally. I feel that it had a lot to do with something I haven't talked a lot about with many people for fear of judgement.

After giving birth to Travis in May 2011, life was not easy but it also wasn't as hard as other peoples lives. I am thankful for what I have been blessed with inside and out but I was left with deep depression. One that I never thought possible of feeling.

I sought out help in November 2011, at which point both my doctor and the therapist she referred me to said I was "fine and just needed to get out more".

Ok.

Well, at the time I was running 5-6 times a week and granted I wasn't sleeping or going out with friends (which I didn't really have at the time) I felt I was "getting out".

A few more months went by and I was still feeling these sad moments, happy moments and I had a lot of anger built up inside. Towards what? Who knows..

I sought help again.

This time I met with a therapist once a week for about 6 weeks. She was great and helped to instill confidence in me again. I started "getting out" and actually made some really great friends during this time. I stopped seeing her and it's been almost a year since.

Life is such a learning process. We are constantly learning about ourselves, our family, our friends and where the flavor of vanilla comes from (yeah, I won't go there). I know, looking at the past year and a half that I have battled PPD. So many suffer from it, and so many don't get help. I don't believe you always have to turn to medicine for help but sometimes it is necessary.

Today is a new day and I am greeting it with open arms and new habits. I am going to continue eating healthy and exercising and focusing on me and my family while still moving forward in my journey away from postpartum depression.