Monday Post - Whoops this is late :-0

Hey Guys!!

I hope you all had a wonderful Memorial Day weekend! I'm sure you celebrated with delicious BBQ's and fabulous desserts, so lets get back at it.

One thing to remember is that one day is not going to throw you off. If you have a bad day, recognize it and move on. One of my big things is that if I had a bad day I try to drink a lot of water. I force myself to start the "detox" process. I want all that junk out! So here is the scoop for the rest of the week.

Exercise:
Monday - off (duh!)
Tuesday - HIIT and Abs (see #workout below)
Wednesday - Squats (HIIT if possible)
Thursday - Upper Body (back/chest focus) and HIIT
Friday - Active Rest (see below for details)
Saturday - Lower Body (hamstring focus)
Sunday - Upper Body (shoulder focus) HIIT

HIIT and ABS

• Warm up on machine (bike, elliptical, treadmill) 3 minutes
• Increase resistance (speed) and sprint for 30 seconds
• Decrease resistance (speed) and recover for 1:30
• Repeat x10
• Cool down on machine for 5 minutes
• ABS: Leg Raises (15), Heel Touches (20 each side), Bicycle Crunches (30), Plank (1 min)
• Repeat circuit x4

ACTIVE REST
-There are two types of rest days, active and inactive. Inactive days are ones when you do little to no exercise (little = taking dog for walk). Active rest is when you are helping your body recover from workouts the previous days. I like to do foam rolling and stretching on those days. So on Friday I may ride my bike for 10-15 minutes, then do some light stretching and foam rolling. Both foam rolling and stretching release lactic acid which can build up and cause muscle pain. Decreasing lactic acid cannot only help decrease muscle pain but also helps the muscle recover and get stronger.

So I hope this is all helpful. Remember to continue to eat a healthy balance diet! Fruits and veggies are your friend!! Pick one eating habit you want to decrease this week and have that be your goal. Mine is to decrease junk food snacks and drink more water!

Have a great week guys :-)

Monthly Food Calendar! :-)

Look at me....2 post in two days!!! :-P

So today I wanted to share the family calendar for this month. I am working on my calendar for next month and I will make sure to share with you before June!

I really love the idea of a food calendar because it helps you stay focused, you plan ahead, and you get to try new exciting foods. I have time to research new foods and ways of tailoring them to my lifestyle needs. So without further ado, here is the menu!

 So here are some of my pictures from my tasty meals :-)

1. Red Beans and Rice
-I live in New Orleans and Red Beans are a staple. I decided to look at ways of making this typically heavy dish healthier. I used a pack of dry red beans, turkey sausage, birds eye seasoning mix (or onion, green pepper, celery), bay leaves, pinch of thyme. I put it all in a crockpot and went to work. Mixed it with some medley minute rice. Delish!







  
2. Chicken, Mushroom, and Spinach Alfredo
-I love pasta but have struggled to find a recipe that is healthy and doesn't upset my stomach. This recipe was so fast and simple. I created it with a co-worker, so this is a Cassie Original!
Recipe:
-Chicken (diced)
-Frozen Spinach
-1/2 pack of mushrooms (really however much you want)
-1/2 reduced fat cream cheese
-1/2-1 cup of chicken broth
-Italian cheese (shredded)
-garlic, onion
1. In a skillet cook diced chicken
2. In a dutch oven, saute garlic, onion, and Italian seasoning
3. In dutch oven add in 1/2 cream cheese and 1/2 cup chicken broth. Mix under you create a cream. You can add more broth as you go so that you have a creamy sauce and not a paste.
4. Add spinach (I used 1/2 pack) and mushrooms to sauce, stir. Add broth as needed.
5. In another pot boil water, cook noodles.
6. Mix chicken in with sauce.
7. Serve over noodles.
Enjoy!!

On the menu I have dessert nights. I absolutely love Skinny Cow desserts. I have a couple different types, they are all between 100-150 calories. It is the perfect little indulgence after dinner.

Hope you all enjoy the menu and you all will be in for a treat June's calendar!