Author: Jessica Marie

Professional copywriter, NASM certified personal trainer, mom of 2

March 21, 2013

Baby English Muffin Pizzas

As promised in a previous, I am sharing my recipe for my family’s mini English muffin pizzas. Since they’re made with a whole wheat “crust,” piled with veggies, and come with insta-portion control, they’re a great meal to add to your family’s lunch or dinner rotation.

Ingredients:

1 pkg whole wheat English muffins
1 small can marinara or pizza sauce
1 cup or so of part-skim cheese
Toppings of choice: sliced olives, spinach, chopped mushrooms, sausage, bacon bits, artichokes, etc.
1 garlic clove, chopped
basil to season

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350-degrees.

2. Spread the English muffin halves on a baking sheet.

3. Spread a spoonful of sauce over each muffin and sprinkle with the desired amount of cheese.

4. Sprinkle with toppings of choice. Try to pile ingredients in thin layers. Thick toppings will cause the mini pizzas to heat inconsistently and weigh them down.

5. Season with chopped garlic and a pinch of basil. The garlic really makes a difference for the mouth-watering factor. Take my word for it.

6. Heat the pizzas in the oven until the cheese melts and the bread starts gently browning, about 10 minutes. Serve with your choice of side.

We have these mini pizzas on our weekly family menu quite often. They’re so simple to make, pretty darn healthy, provide a great opportunity to sneak in extra veggies, and each family member gets to customize their pizza to their liking. They’re a much better alternative to greasy overloaded delivery pizza–and quicker too! Plus, it’s a fun little meal to put together as a family. My four-year-old loves helping me make these.

And just for kicks, I had to show you the litter that our knucklehead pit bull just had.

March 19, 2013

Weekly Workout Rundown

Monday:

20 min circuit-style workout with friend at lunch
45 min Zumba class after work

Tuesday:

40 min run before work
15 min walk to work

Wednesday:

35 min interval run before work
20 min circuit-style workout with friend at lunch

Thursday:

20 min Shiva Rae Daily Energy yoga after work

Friday:

45 min interval run before work

Saturday:

60 min long run in AM
35 min strength workout

Sunday:

Rest

This week I was able to squeeze in a short burst of yoga on one of my typically “rest” days. I like to think of this as “active rest.” As I stated last week, I have a standing goal to include more yoga into my weekly rotation. This week–mission accomplished!

I have also been regularly running on Saturday mornings lately. I’m trying to increase my pace and potentially shave time off of my 5k PR. Hubster and I have our annual 5k date coming up, so I want to see if I can push even harder this year. We’re even signing our Peanut up for the associated kids’ run. My own little posse of runners…I love it!

What does your typical week look like?

March 12, 2013

Weekly Workout Rundown

Monday

45 min interval run in AM
25 min circuit training with friend on lunch break

Tuesday

30 min run in AM
30 min slow/mod walk with mom at lunch

Wednesday

30 min run in AM
20 min circuit training with friend on lunch break

Thursday

Rest

Friday

40 min run in AM
20 min circuit training with friend on lunch break

Saturday

65 min run/5 miles

Sunday

Rest

This week was pretty top-notch as far as training goes. I did almost everything I wanted to, except injecting a little yoga or stretch workout in there somewhere. This week, I’m going to make sure I get it done. It always makes me feel so much better, even just 20 minutes of it.

I cannot post my meal plan this week as it is top secret. I made all my preparations on Sunday for the week. All my breakfasts and lunches through Friday await me in the fridge. This has made life in the mornings so much easier. I literally grab my food and go, which is even more convenient than fast food! Today I even had enough time to walk to work and run for 40 minutes. Now, if only I planned enough time to dry my hair…

My friend and I, whom I have been training with on lunch breaks, decided to try out this Total Body Transformation from Chris Powell. Instead of doing the program over the course of 12 months, we are narrowing it down to 12 weeks. I am also training from a top-secret workout. More deets to come, when I can:) I am beyond stoked! But the suspense is killing me, friends.

I will meet you back here for my WWR next week! My Diet Bet comes to a close this weekend, so I’m pushing hard for good numbers, folks.

March 9, 2013

Paper Airplanes and Map Bunting Banner DIY

This travel-themed banner was created for a male in my department at work. I didn’t want to use any of my girly frilly banners for him, of course. I wanted to make something a little more fitting. So, I came up with the map bunting and paper airplane banner.

The paper airplanes were created from scrapbook paper that I already had on-hand. Here’s how I made them, but really you could fold them however you like:

Cut out a rectangular piece of paper. I think this was about 2×3.

Fold the paper in half with the pretty patterned side on the inside.

Fold one corner back, flush with the folded side.

Do the same with the other side:

Now, fold that same side of the paper down again on both sides:

Here’s your airplane. Make a bunch of them until you have enough to form a small air force.

Use your string of choice for the banner. Just glue the open center of the airplane around the string. Elmer’s works fine.

Here’s the finished paper airplane banner:

To make the map bunting, I just cut up an old road atlas. I used some of my son’s triangle blocks as a template for the triangles. I used a stencil and a black Sharpie to color in the letters. Then I stapled the triangles to some ribbon. That’s it!

You put them together, and you have a unisex “Happy Birthday” banner. Pretty cute, huh?

For even more DIY banner ideas, check out the other birthday banners in this series:

I’ll Bet You $20: The Research Behind Diet Bets

Image Source

I just put $20 down on a bet that I will lose 4% of my body weight (around 6lbs) in four week. I’m participating in this Diet Bet hosted by Erica House. Diet Bet claims a 90% success rate, which got me to thinking about why it works so well. Let’s explore the research and psychology behind diet bets briefly, shall we?

1. Monetary awards motivate dieters: As this article explores, financial incentives seem to be quite effective for weight loss goals. Competition that involves money seems to spur people to action–at least more action than they would perform if going it alone. It seems to work for participants on The Biggest Loser, doesn’t it? Of course, the fame and high dollar amount attached to those winnings differ significantly from throwing $20 in a pot with a few coworkers. But that doesn’t mean a few extra bucks in your pocket isn’t effective.

2. But only in the short term: The long-term effects of diet bets are a bit discouraging though. Since bets are typically temporary, the motivation to continue the weight loss plan is temporary too. Studies have shown that the effects may not hold up long term. Even though people are successful at losing weight with diet bets, many people gain the weight right back once the bet is finished. The immediacy of money earned creates a stronger reaction than the long-term effects of healthier living. Once you’re done with the bet, you must transition from external motivation back to intrinsic motivation unless you want to keep signing up for bet after bet. Or you need to find a way to change your “diet” mindset to a “lifestyle” mindset. Diet is temporary. Healthy living must become a complete lifestyle change.

I have an example of these concepts living right under the same roof with me. Hubster lost an impeccable amount of weight about a year ago with a Biggest Loser Challenge hosted by his employer. Hubster won not only the team component, but also the personal component, taking home well over $100. The weight stayed off for a few months until Hubster went back to his old ways of eating and not exercising. Now he’s back to where he started. The monetary incentive was definitely effective in the short term, but without carrying those new habits into the future, the weight loss won’t stick.

3. Use bets for habit formation: Speaking of habits–habits are generally said to be formed in 21 days (or 66 days by some). If you’re really committed to working out five days a week and planning out meals for each week, you could make your newfound habits stick. According to Psychology Today, you should also incorporate triggers (keeping running shoes by your bed) and rewards (money, new magazine, etc.) into your new routine to make it habit-forming. However, if you’re of the mindset that this “diet” is just temporary, you will likely have trouble once your bet is over. Diet bets are an amazing premise for healthy habit formation, but only if your intentions are set for the longer-term.

4. Peer encouragement can have a profound effect upon your results. When you’re committing to something like a diet bet or a lifestyle change, consider making it public. Tell your Facebook friends, shout it out on Twitter, let your friends know at brunch and get your family in on it. Heck, why don’t you just blog about it? The more people you tell, the more deeply entrenched you become in the healthy cycle. Peers are great for keeping you accountable. Participate in the friendly chatter on the betting sites. Find a few pals on your diet bet site and keep in touch after the bet is over. Research shows that the more you log on, the more successful you’ll be at hitting your weight loss goals.

5. Positive vs negative reinforcement: Positive reinforcement seems to be the winner for creating long-term changes in behavior, although negative reinforcement is effective in the short-term. Diet Bet offers positive reinforcement for weight lost–a bigger dip in the money pool. However, on the betting site stikK.com, if you lose the bet, your money is given to an anti-charity (a democrat donating to the republican party, etc). Whichever form of reinforcement you choose, be sure it is something that really pushes you to make changes. If you’re passionate enough about the outcome, you have more chances of succeeding.

6. Diet bets really keep you honest. On Diet Bet, for example, your entry must be officially verified by a live person. You take a picture of yourself in “airport” apparel (no shoes, belts, etc) and a picture of your scale reading with a password. You can’t cheat yourself out of the results. And I think that is one of the reasons why participants’ success rates are so high.

Ready to make a bet on your weight? Here are some betting websites to check out and get started:

Weekly Workout Rundown

Monday:

35 min AM run
30 min Jillian’s Shred It with Weights in PM

Tuesday:

30 slow/mod walk at lunch with mom

Wednesday:

45 min run in AM
40 min Tone It Up DVD (arms, abs, long and lean) in PM

Thursday:

Rest
30 min slow/mod walk at lunch with mom

Friday:

20 min circuit training at lunch

Saturday:

60 min run/walk in AM

Sunday:

Rest

Last week was a little bit off-kilter. I was not feeling well toward the end of the week and on Tuesday I turned my alarm off instead of hitting snooze. The universe was telling me to take a break. That’s my story anyway. This week, I’m ready to push it again though. I’ve got money placed on my success, and that’s a fact!

I also have some super exciting news that I don’t think I can make public yet. It will require me to workout and eat even more keenly than I am now for about 5 weeks, but I am stoked about it. I will let you know when I know more.

I won’t have a food breakdown this week as Hubster failed to grocery shop. I’m left with frozen leftovers and good ole PB&J until further notice. Still trying to keep it clean though. I had some clementines and baby carrots to work with, so I should be good.

How was your weekend? What do you usually do when you’ve missed a few days at the gym?

March 2, 2013

What to Pack in Your Gym Bag

Whether it’s your first time at the gym or you’re just curious what other gymgoers are carrying around in their bags, I present to you the contents of my gym bag. Each item is pertinent to my workout habit. For practical reasons, I do not keep anything in my bag that I don’t use regularly.

Like my cute Oakley bag? Me too! The mesh on the side pockets airs out my towel and shoes and the front pocket stores my workout logs. I sound like I’m advertising the thing, don’t I? Turns out, describing products like this is my job.

I bought a cheap-o towel at the store because I didn’t want to haul around one of my plush ones from home. It’s much more portable and I don’t have to worry about how I treat it or anything.

Also, I carry Avon body wash in case the gym soap dispenser is out, Jergen’s lotion to soothe stripped skin (two showers a day will do that to you), Garnier hairspray and face towelettes, and travel-sized Dove deodorant. A friend and I have been hitting up the gym on our lunch breaks, so we don’t have time for or really need full-body showers, just “rinses” as we like to call them and a change of socks and underthings. I sometimes carry Suave dry shampoo too, but rarely end up needing it.

Isn’t this mini clipboard just the cutest? I think I got it in the dollar section at Target. I like to keep my workout index cards on it. I wrote out many of the workouts from Supreme 90 Day so I can do them at the gym instead of being confined to only the TV.

I got this cutie purple water bottle from work. It has a buckled lid to keep me from splashing myself and little notches on it to track water intake. If I take ANYthing to the gym, it is this precious reservoir.

If you’re wondering what to pack for your first foray into the gym world, I would recommend most of the items above, depending on whether or not you’ll be “rinsing” at the gym. Other than what’s pictured, and your workout clothes (of course!), I would also recommend a good lock for the locker room, a magazine for the treadmill (if you can read and run), and a good playlist and headphones. A hand towel for dripping sweat is also pretty handy. I like to bring these pretty mantra towels when I remember them.

What are your main gym essentials? Any other gym packing tips?

February 28, 2013

Women’s Health 15-Minute Workouts Review

I first saw this book at a book fair we had at work and it, of course, caught my eye. A comprehensive collection of 15 minute workouts? Of course that would catch my attention. I passed it by though in honor of my family’s budget (I’m such a martyr, I know). Then, I put the book on my Amazon wishlist, where it’s been for quite some time. Then, the book fair came back to my work months later. I didn’t think they’d actually have the same book again as their selection is ever-changing, but they did! I finally bought it. When something has been on your wishlist for that long, you know it’s time.

So far, I’m loving the book. Instead of all those scraps of magazines lying all around my house, I now have a perfectly bound book of them all in one place. Ahhhh. This must be Women’s Health’s way of creating feng shui throughout the homes of magazine workout page hoarders. Tell me I’m not the only one, please!
Here are the coolest things about owning this book:

1. The variety of workouts: this book has workouts of all varieties–everything from weight lifting to martial arts to yoga and pilates. All in one place. My workouts always depend on the mood I’m in, how sore or stressed out I am, and where I am. There is a workout in this book for every mood and every level of fitness equipment access you have.

2. Doable time limit: everyone has a spare 15 minutes, right? We twiddle away time on all sorts of so-called extracurricular activities (Pinterest browsing, anyone?) We can certainly find 15 minute increments throughout our week to fit in these exercises. See my post on finding time to work out if you’re not convinced.

3. You can easily combine workouts: 15 minutes might not cut it for some more serious exercises. Well, all you need to do is combine two or more routines or perform the circuits a few extra times. Simple as that!

4. Trip-friendly: I plan on packing this book the next time I head out of town. Many of the workouts require little to no equipment. Instead of trying to dig through my stack of magazine workouts to find do-anywhere moves, I can just pack this one book. Simple!

5. Pretty pictures and quality cues: the quality photography and physical cues lead you through the workouts without too many questions. I have not come across an exercise yet that made my eyebrows furrow and wonder “what are they talking about?” Each move is pretty crisp, clear and comprehensively described.

6. Price: the price was super friendly at the book sale–about 1/2 off the publisher’s price. Even Amazon has the book for a cool $9.00 used. That’s about the cost of 1.5 magazines off the magazine stand.

I tried the stress-busting routine earlier last week and enjoyed the heart-pumping workout it gave me. A boosted metabolism and sculpted limbs? Um, yes please.

Guess who I spied on the pages of the book? Tone It Up’s very own Katrina Hodgson. I thought those moves looked familiar! They’re pretty true to the Tone It Up style. Can’t complain about that.

Are you convinced to buy it yet? 🙂 Or, do you know of any Android apps that offer this same type of thing? Because that would probably make me pass out in amazement.

*Note: I was not compensated or solicited in any way to endorse this book. This is simply me giving my personal review.

February 27, 2013

More Mantra Madness

Oh, the power of a mantra! No new DIY mantra ideas have popped into my head lately, but that doesn’t mean they haven’t been on my mind–or placed in front of me out of nowhere! Take, for example, my current computer wallpaper. There I was, minding my own business, when a tweet came up on my feed about a free “‘make it happen” wallpaper design. Of course, I immediately clicked.

This beautiful wallpaper is the design of the talented designer, Breanna Rose. Add this wallpaper to your computer background to remind you every day about your goals and that you have the power to make them reality. Go ahead and search your own personal mantra on Pinterest, and you might come across some beautiful prints or backgrounds like this.

Source: blog.imbreannarose.com via Mackenzie on Pinterest

Handstamped Jewelry: Stamping a mantra into a bracelet is another fantastic way to keep your mantra within sight at all times. This particular mantra is something I say to my son every night: “Dream Big.” I want him to grow up knowing that he is only restricted by the bounds of his imagination and determination. I never want him to feel that his dreams are only pipe dreams. He can Make Them Happen. Those sweet little nothings we whisper in their ears can mean so much, can’t they?

By the way, you can buy a basic little handstamping kit at the hardware store for less than $10. Harbor Freight carries them for around $7. Handstamping is such an easy little art, once you learn how to do it. All you need to do is hammer the letters into an aluminum disc like this, color in the letters with permanent marker, and sand over the top to give it shine and remove the surface ink. I went to a craft night at a little local handmade shop and learned just how to do it.

If you haven’t checked out my other mantra projects, check them out here:

Running Mantras

Walking Mantra Meditation

DIY Mantra Workout Towels

DIY Bleach Painted Workout Tank Top

My Favorite Mantra is Everywhere

February 25, 2013

Weekly Food Rundown

I am one of those people that can eat the same thing every day for five days. It makes prepping on Sunday for the week a whole lot easier. I try to plan what I’m going to have for the following week by Friday. That way, I can put together the grocery list for Hubster by Saturday (he does the grocery shopping. Whew!) and prepare everything on Sunday.

Here’s what’s in my lunch bag this week–all healthy and as “clean” as possible. I am participating in a health bet (more on that to come), so I have been making very health-conscious decisions about my weekly fare. Even more so than normal! Here’s what’s in my lunch bag for the week and the approximate calorie counts for how I prepared them:

Breakfast:

The Breakfast Cookie with coconut flakes and raisins from the Fitnessista
368 calories

Snack #1:

Cottage cheese with pineapple bits (1/2c and 1/4c respectively)
119 calories

Lunch:

Lentil meatloaf from SparkRecipes (with a few tweaks) + 1 banana
259 calories

Snack #2:

Chickpea broccoli salad with raisins from Eating Well
180 calories

It took me all of about 1 hour to prepare a week’s worth of food on Sunday night. That is a very short amount of time compared to the time it would take to prepare all these meals–or different meals–separately throughout the week. While working in the kitchen, I am always preparing multiple things at once. For example, while the lentils are simmering, I’m mixing up breakfast cookie batter ingredients. I also have a tendency to choose very easy recipes so I’m in and out of the kitchen as fast as possible. I’m a low-maintenance cooker–I like my food healthy, fast, easy and tasty. You know, no pressure.

The breakfast cookie is awesome because it tastes like an indulgence. And, because you prepare it the night before, you have zero to prep the next morning. This is good for me, because I’m always running perpetually late on weekday mornings. The breakfast cookie is actually my recipe for being on time. No joke!

I’m on a chickpea kick, so I googled “easy chickpea recipes” and came up with this whole chickpea slideshow on Eating Well. I chose a simple super nutrient-dense salad that tastes amazing. I would probably add chickpeas to anything. Well…except breakfast.

I also have a goal to incorporate more lentils into my diet since they’re amazing. I never had any growing up and only recently discovered their magic. I’ve been researching lentil recipes for awhile now in an attempt to add more lentils to my recipe library.

Dinner will depend upon my family. I have some healthy butternut squash mac ‘n cheese up my sleeve as well as mini whole wheat English muffin pizzas (DIY to come). By the way, no I am not a vegetarian, but I do try to eat as little red meat as possible and am willing trade meat for healthier vegetarian options sometimes.

Perhaps one day, I can build up a nice array of these meal plans to help you, my readers, create your own healthy weekly menus. Would you be interested?

How do you prepare for the week?