My Whole30 Challenge

The top reason I have stayed with the same employer for over 20 years (dating myself) is that it is so great to work for a company with tremendous opportunity that encourages you to grow as a person.  Several years ago they made it even more fun to do so with the 68 Day Challenge.  Check it out here on Facebook:  The 68 Day Challenge.

The challenge I am taking on this year - the Whole30 Program.  30 days of cleaner eating for better health.  No grains, beans, dairy, added sugar, and alcohol for 30 days.  What is  attractive about this program?

Blueberry Mojito Smoothie

“A garden to walk in and immensity to dream in--what more could he ask? A few flowers at his feet and above him the stars.” 
― Victor Hugo, Les Misérables

My garden is my pride and joy.  I love being able to relax in the back yard with a different scene almost daily depending on what is in bloom.  Tucked away in the blooms are edible delights that almost look too pretty to eat.  Chives in the spring and fall, strawberries in early summer, blackberries in late summer, and herbs almost year round.

Not big on rum, a server at my old favorite restaurant (so sad that it is gone) talked me into ordering a blueberry mojito.  I have to say, it was fun summer awesomeness in a glass.  It was this morning's inspiration for our morning smoothie.

Blueberry Mojito Smoothie

Printable Version

Perfect Food Combos

Peas and carrots
Chocolate and peanut butter
Oreos and milk
Eggs and bacon
Bacon and eggs
Burgers and beer
Pizza and  . . . pizza

Perfect food combos.  Now there is a new match made in heaven...
Taco Bell and breakfast. 
My favorite food and my favorite meal.

Skin In The Game

At a networking breakfast yesterday, someone mentioned leaving the skin on kiwi when you make

smoothies.  It just didn't sound right to me, but then someone added "my kid eats kiwi with the skin on like an apple".  OK, but kids eat worms too.  I still wasn't 100% sold, but I tried it this morning anyway - you couldn't tell they were in there.  Believe me, if anything was funky our 10 year old would have called us out.

Thanks for the great tip. 

I did some research this morning, there's actually a California Kiwifruit Organization.  I found out that by leaving the skin on the fiber value is tripled and more of the vitamin C is retained.  Hey, I just like that it's a shortcut in the morning.

According to Wikipedia to have "skin in the game" is to have incurred monetary risk by being
invested in achieving a goal.  In my smoothie recipe having skin in the game is to retain more of the vitamins and add fiber.

Hide the Spinach

Sometimes it's not the foods our kids (and husbands) won't eat, it's the way they are prepared.  For instance, most people steam brussel sprouts. Yuck!  You can't get most people to buy in to them this way.  Try roasting them with olive oil, red pepper flakes, salt, pepper, and orange peel. DELICIOUS!  The same goes for asparagus.  Steamed, not so liked.  Grilled or roasted it takes on an entirely different flavor, and texture, that will get more wins and empty plates.

I find that the best way to make sure that my family gets enough vegetables is to hide them in a fruity flavored smoothie.  Sometimes I sneak a few too many veggies in there and I am busted.  Sometimes I hit a home run like with this limey flavored smoothie.

"All life is an experiment. The more experiments you make the better."
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Hide the Spinach, An Antioxidant Smoothie

Wednesday Night is Family Dinner Party Night

Parents, you know how hard it is to get the entire family seated in the same room, at the same time, to enjoy a "real" meal together.  The 9 year old boy just wants to play xbox.  15 year old girls just want to text.  Frankly, you're too tired to get it all done, so you give up before you even begin.

Last week I invented  the family themed dinner party.  It was Mexican night.  We had fish tacos (we made a cheese quesadilla for the 9 year old), beans and rice, homemade guacamole, fancy frozen drinks and we found a Spanish mix on Pandora.  It worked.  30 minutes of togetherness.

The next week,

Mango Kiwi Smoothie

I made a beautiful fruit platter for breakfast this weekend.  Instead of trying to bag up the leftovers and hope that they still look attractive enough for the kids to eat them I threw them into the blender. 

"Life's too short to hang out with people who aren't resourceful." ~Jeff Bezos

 

 

This recipe is great for breakfast, an afternoon pick me up, or post workout nourishment.

Mujadara, Rice and Lentils Recipe

Middle Eastern food is one of my favorite food groups.  I can eat it every day.  Although I enjoy cooking, I find that many of the recipes either require too many ingredients that I do not have or require way too much labor (chopping parsley for days).  Mujadara, however, is one of my favorites to make at home.  The ingredients and the instructions are basic and you can cook it once and eat many times.

Mujadara is a low calorie, low cost meal packed with health benefits.  This recipe is super easy to make (except that I have a tendency to burn instead of caramelize the onions). I love to make it as a side dish for dinner and then enjoy the left-overs as a main course for lunch.  Dr. Oz lists lentils as one of the best anti-aging super foods and here's more on the 7 Health Benefits of Lentils.

 

Printable Version
3 onions
1 bag lentils
1 c long grain brown rice
6 cups low sodium veggie or chicken stock
1/2 Tbs. cumin
salt
pepper
olive oil

cut 1 onion into 1/2 inch pieces
heat olive oil in frying pan
caramelize onion (cook until dark brown, but careful not to burn)
remove from pan and set aside

Dice remaining 2 onions
Cook diced onion in olive oil in a saucepan on medium heat until soft, 2-3 minutes

Tuscan Lemon Chicken

You won't believe this is only 300 Calories 

"Sitting down for dinner not only helps you learn, but also teaches you how to listen - which I feel is the most important skill to have. I remember as a kid going around the table listening to everyone's day. It was hard to have the manners not to interrupt back then."

Michael Symon

Craving a home cooked meal, but too pooped to slave in the kitchen I created this super easy, amazingly delicious dish.  Whip up a couple of quick sides and people will think you were cooking all day.

Tuscan Lemon Chicken

Printable version

8 chicken thighs, bone in and skin removed
1 box low sodium chicken broth (4 cups)
1 lemon, sliced
1 33 oz. jar whole artichoke hearts in water, water drained
1/4 c. chopped italian parsley
 2 Tbs. olive oil
salt
pepper
garlic powder

Purple Power - Antioxidant Smoothie

Smoothies are an excellent way for hiding veggies from 9 year old boys who won't eat them any
other way.  The trick is keeping your smoothie recipe from turning sludgie yucky brown and looking like swamp water.  Here's a recipe that stays purple (ish) keeping the mass amounts of spinach in it your secret.

The 4 Hour Body

My friend's enthusiasm over this book, The 4 Hour Body, interested me enough to download it the same day.  He was geeked, and rightfully so.  He attributed techniques in the book to losing double digit pounds in 14 days.  For a tall and naturally thin person this is quite a feat.  As a health conscious person, always looking for ways to improve, I was intrigued.

I downloaded the book on Audible and listened to it in it's entirety in less than a day.  I was not hooked by all of the great tips that I couldn't wait to put into practice.  I was hooked by the bizarreness of it.  Much like you can't take your eyes off of a creepy movie, I listened to nearly 4 hours of weirdness.

Practices I will put into place from 4HB:

Brown Pow, Antioxidant Smoothie

I am blessed to have an artist for a husband whose creativity carries over into the kitchen.  He whipped up this amazing smoothie for us this morning.  The color was not very attractive, but if you close your eyes it's extremely yummy.  Our 9 year old won't eat most vegetables without a fight.  This recipe is great for kids, like him, who won't eat their veggies.  Even the pickiest eaters won't detect that the spinach is in there.

 Printable Version

Surf and Turf, A Delicious and Nutritious Smoothie Recipe

Our kids in the ocean with a shark, Jamaica

Spring break to Jamaica was one of my family's favorite vacations.  The weather - perfect; the pool -
perfect; the beach - rocky, but perfect; the food - amazing; swimming with the dolphins - unforgettable!  Our all inclusive resort had fresh fruit at every meal.  Dinner had a fruit carving station.

Vampire Venom, An Antioxidant Rich Smoothie

This morning we decided to create a new concoction in our Vitamix mixer.  I had the last bit of a pineapple to use, but I wanted to try something different than Kermit Juice.  I asked my 9 year old what color should it end up.  Begin with the end in mind, right?  He shouted out "red". OK, red it is.

Kermit Juice

This is a recipe for a smoothie so we use our Vitamix blender to make it.  I wanted to call it "Kermit in a Blender", but my family talked me out of it.  Just wait, when I come up with a recipe that comes out of the blender green and red it already has a name.

Harry Potter Booger Juice

Mornings at our house are super busy and difficult to manage.  Who am I kidding?  Mornings, afternoons and evenings are tough.  This one will eat this.  This one won't eat that.  Did our daughter eat breakfast before she left?  You can't wear shorts it's 30 below zero!!!  You can't eat cake for breakfast!  Yes, you can eat cake for breakfast - but not JUST cake.

The Business of Running Marathons

I had a 19 mile training run yesterday which gave me a lot of time to think.  What I found was a great connection between activities that make me more successful at sports also make me better at work as well.

After every downhill will be an uphill.

Your current situation may seem  tough.  Even downright impossible.  You may feel like quitting altogether.  Hang in there.  Remember why you started in the first place.  Put your focus on your "why".  What motivated you and excited you in the beginning?  This will keep you going when it gets tough and help you dig deeper to get through the rough spots.  It will get better or you may find that you don't have a "why" and this is wrong for you altogether.  The uphill in that situation is that you will know it is time to move on to the next thing.

A Life Lesson From Running

Nutrition is just as an important part of your planning as anything else.  You don't have to count calories or carbs, just be mindful that what you put into your body you will get back out of your body in performance. 

Remember that old physics lesson?

Tricks to Help You Stick to It

  How are you doing on your New Year's resolution?  I don't mean planning on next year's already.  How are you doing with this year's?  Yes, I know. I am the only one still talking about it in May. How unfashionable!

It's not hopeless. You can get back on track with your fitness and nutrition goals with a little help, and a few tricks. Here are some tactics to keep you on track when that devil on your shoulder is trying to tempt you.

No Child Left Inside

Ok, so this spring has totally sucked so far.  You may be asking, "what spring"?  Today is April 14th.
 Yesterday, in mid-Michigan it snowed on and off all afternoon and two days ago northern mid-Michigan had a snow day closing schools because of icy conditions.  Many of my friends have posted snow covered cars,  snow covered lawns, and photos of the weather report showing all kinds of wintry weather in April.                   

 

It is certainly tough to get outdoors ourselves let alone get the kids out of the house, but we have to stay strong, be committed, and get them outside.

 

I am currently taking an online course on gamification.  It is fascinating!  You should check out the free courses available on www.coursera.org  .  That's where I found this one.  The first lesson spoke of games and gamers and provided highlights and statistics.  Just one game system listed (my son's favorite) gets over 100,000,000 minutes of active play every month.  Now, I don't believe that games are bad, stir up bad behavior and violence and stuff like that, but I do believe that they can lead to our children packing on a few pounds.

 

That's the main reason I made a commitment to get my family out and about at least once per month to run a 5k together.  Today is month 2 Thompson family 5k's and we will be heading shortly to East Lansing to run in the Race for the Place.  For the record, we didn't drag the kids out in January and February when race day temps were around 3 degrees with windchill well below zero.  I know that it doesn't sound like much, but it's a good start.  My hope is that it will create healthy habits and memories that last a lifetime.

 

Running may not be your thing, but there are still plenty of things you can do to get those kids outside and ensure that No Child Is Left Inside (even in the cold brrrrr).