Slow-Cooker Chicken Cassoulet

My husband says that it tastes like Chicken Noodle Soup without the noodles.

Ingredients:

• 1x15 oz can navy beans, pinto beans or black-eyed peas, rinsed and well drained.
• 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts or turkey breast.
• Sea salt and fresh ground black pepper.
• 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 2/3 cups low-sodium chicken stock
• 1 medium onion.
• 4 celery stalks, trimmed and chopped.
• 4 garlic cloves passed through a garlic press
• 1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes, not packed in oil.
• 3 large carrots, peeled and cut into chunks.
• 1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped fine.
• 1 tsp thyme
• 2 tbsp fresh minced parsley

Preparation:

• Spread half of the beans in the bottom of your slow cooker pot.
• Season poultry with pepper and sea salt.  Heat olive oil over medium high heat in a skillet.  Brown the poultry on both sides in the skillet for about 5 minutes each side.  Place the browned chicken on top of the beans in a slow cooker.  Top with remaining beans and the chicken stock.  Use water if you don’t have chicken stock.
• Saute the onions, celery, garlic, sun dried tomatoes, carrots, and herbs using the same skillet.  Spread this mixture over the ingredients in the crock pot.  Cover and put on slow heat for several hours.

Tip:  Serve with Ezekiel bread and a clean spread.

Mini Pita Pizzas

I love pizza and so does the rest of my family.  This is a healthy and easy way to satisfy those cravings without all the grease and fat.
Every once in a while you have to indulge in the things you like but it is important to have them in moderation.  You can make substitutions that won’t wreck all the hard work that you put into your body. 

Ingredients:

• 100% Whole Wheat Mini Pitas
• Olive or Grape seed oil
• Shredded Part Skim Mozzarella Cheese
• Natural Pizza Sauce
• Add veggies that you love, I have used sauteed mushrooms, garlic, red onions, fresh tomatoes and basil.  You can also experiment with sliced chicken, ground turkey ect.

Arrange pitas on a cookie sheet and lightly brush with oil.  Top with pizza sauce, veggies and mozzarella.  Bake until cheese is melted.  Enjoy as an appetizer, snack or meal!

I made this recipe for a jewelry party I had as an appetizer but tomorrow night it will be dinner and a side salad!

100 Doctors

Check out what Doctors are saying about Shakeology!

Be at Your Best All Month Long

Is it that time of the month? Do you feel bloated and icky? Well, I found a few tips in Oxygen that I had to share about feeling your best at that time of the month. I found out that boosting your intake of foods rich in thiamin (vitamin B-1) and riboflavin (B2) can reduce the likelihood of developing PMS. In Tosca Reno’s Eat Clean Diet book she talks about women who crave chocolate during their menstrual cycle. This is the body telling you that it needs calcium and magnesium. If you must eat chocolate then eat dark chocolate that is 75% more in cocoa mass. This is the most nutritious kind of chocolate. Just remember that it is still chocolate so eat in moderation if you want to drop those pounds. Here are a list of foods that are high in Thiamin and Riboflavin to help curb those cravings.

Thiamin: Sunflower seeds, legumes, peas, nuts, asparagus.

Riboflavin: Milk, eggs, almonds, low-fat yogurt, and soybeans.

I eat a lot of these things already so we shall see if it keeps my moody self in check!!

Oh and for those pesky little cravings for chocolate and all that bad stuff here are a few tips.

When the urge to splurge gets you, grab a cup of green tea and leave the house. Green tea helps your body burn extra calories during the day. Keep your hands busy, go outside and take a walk, fold laundry or call a friend on the phone. Have a 1/2 cup of greek yogurt with berries if you feel the need for ice cream. Bake some cookies that are made with protein powder or clean ingredients and keep on hand for those attacks. Don’t let them become an everyday occurrence.

Protein Packed Ice Cream

5 egg whites

1 scoop whey protein powder, flavor of your choice

1-2 packets stevia

Peanut Butter Cups

1 scoop chocolate whey protein powder

1 tbsp all natural PB

1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder

1-2 packets stevia

4 oz water

For the ice cream, place egg whites in a mixing bowl. Use a handheld electric mixer to beat them into stiff peaks. Fold in the whey. Add sweetner to taste. Freeze for at least 1 hour (longer if you have time).

Meanwhile, make the peanut butter cups by blending all the ingredients together in a blender. Divide peanut butter mixtrue into round muffin tins, filling about 3/4 full. Place muffin tin in freezer and let freeze for about an hour or until firm. When ready to eat, scoop ice cream into a bowl and top with 2 peanut butter cups!

This recipe sounds awesome, I can’t wait to try it! This might have to be my pms splurge! They say it tastes just like reeses peanut butter cups and its packed with muscle building protein.

My Keys to Success

“You still look pregnant”

I thought you would lose the weight faster”

These are all things that people actually said to me after I had my baby. Every time I encountered a person who had negative things to say I would go into a dark place. I even had a family member who would touch my belly and call me preggo even after the baby was born. Seriously, don’t people realize what a vulnerable state you are in after you give birth to a baby. I felt disgusting as it was, did you REALLY need to point out the obvious!

Instead of letting all of those negative comments get me down I decided to write them down and post them up on the wall next to my TV where I exercised. Every time I would hit the play button I would read through those comments and I would “Bring IT” even harder in my workouts. I even posted a picture of a celebrity that I wanted to look like on the wall so that I could be motivated to achieve my best body that I could have! I know that my final goal is to be able to wear a bikini again. There were days during the first 30 days of exercising that I cried and thought I was never going to get there. I thought I was going to look pregnant forever. Now, after all of the ups and downs and almost 120 days after I started working out I feel like a totally different person. I can see that my goal is getting closer and I’m reaching my mini goals along the way. I still have a ton of work to do, but I can see the transformation happening before my eyes.

There were a few things that were key to my success:

1. I took before pictures of myself and then took pictures every 30 days to track my progress. I couldn’t believe how much of a change I saw in my body. At 30 days there wasn’t too much of a difference but at 60 days I had a dramatic change. I wouldn’t of noticed the changes unless I took the pictures. I highly recommend taking pictures, even if you never show them to anyone!

2. I limited the amount of times per week that I weigh myself. Your weight fluctuates so much during the week according to water weight and the things you eat. You should try only to weigh yourself once per month. Now that is way to long for me, so I stick to once a week and first thing when I wake up in the morning.

3. Support. I didn’t have the support of everyone that I was close to but my husband was a biggie. I basically sat him down in tears and explained that I needed him to support me in this process. I needed him to watch Veronika on the weekends so I could workout and if she didn’t nap during the day I needed him to watch her in the evening so I could do my video. He never says a thing about me working out and I try to be mindful of his time too. I usually get up early on Saturday mornings and workout before she gets up so that we can get our day started. Most of the time I get my workouts in before he gets home from work. Therefore, there are things in our house that get left undone because of the workouts. My house isn’t always clean and there usually is laundry to be done but at least I feel good about myself and I’m happy when my husband gets home.

4. Diet. The Eat Clean Diet was my saving grace. I was busting my butt working out but I got to a point where I wasn’t losing any weight. I started reading Tosca Reno’s “Eat Clean Recharged” book. She said that your weight loss is 80% diet, 10% exercise and 10% genetics. It was like an ah ha moment for me. The light bulb went on! I fully committed to changing my diet and eating clean. At first my husband thought I was crazy and was little mad that our grocery bill was doubling. But the weight started to fall off and I felt amazing. I had a lot of energy to keep up with my daily activities. My husband even started to ask me to make his lunch and breakfast too. Right now I am working on getting the whole family clean. The diet is what took me to the next level of weight loss. I cut out all the processed foods and white sugars. I am on week 2 of the Stripped plan so I will keep you posted on the results.

5. Beachbody. The support of my coach through Beachbody has been key to my success. When I was down on myself she encouraged me to keep going. When I had a question about my workouts she found the answers. When my weight loss plateaued she gave me suggestions for how to jump start my metabolism. She was a great inspiration with her own transformation. It was nice to know that other mothers were going through the same thing that I was. She introduced me to the facebook support groups and I quickly became an active member. I was spending so much time talking about workouts and beachbody that I decided to become a coach. I had researched and spent so much time changing my life that I want to help others do the same. So I signed up to be an Independent Beachbody coach so that I could share my knowledge and transformation with others in hopes that I can change someone else’s life as well!

I hope that my story helps to inspire others and that I can be a light at the end of the tunnel for those that don’t know where to start. I love how I feel and the energy I have everyday. I wouldn’t think of my life any other way! All you need is a little determination and someone to tell you that you can’t do it for you to push that much harder to prove them wrong!

If you would like to have support in reaching your health and fitness goals please check out my site. www.teambeachbody.com/vvolkmuth. Join my team and I’d be glad to help you in your journey to living a healthy and fit lifestyle!!

If Beachbody has helped you to achieve your weight loss goals and you would like to become a coach please message me for more information!

Don’t let others negativity put you down!

Chicken Fajita Burrito

One of my personal favorites!

Ingredients

18 ounces chicken, cut into small chunks

1/4 packet fajita seasoning mix

1/2 red bell pepper

2 cloves garlic

Mushrooms

Several slices of white onion (you decide how much)

2 whole-wheat tortillas

Guacamole: 1 avocado, 1/2 medium tomato chopped, chopped red onion, a few shakes of sea salt.

Salsa

Preparation:

Sprinkle chicken with salt and some fajita mix and cook in skillet. In a separate skillet, saute garlic, bell peppers, onion and mushrooms (use a small amount of olive oil if necessary). Meanwhile, prepare guacamole (mix all ingredients above). When vegetables are fully cooked, mix a small amount of fajita mix with 1/4 cup water and pour over vegetables. Increase heat and boil off the water. Heat tortillas on a clean skillet over medium-high heat for 15 seconds per side. Add ingredients on top of the tortilla and attempt to form a burrito and enjoy!

Eat Clean Stripped

After not losing any weight for the last 2 weeks I decided to amp things up a bit. Right now I am running an Eat Clean, Stripped book club on Facebook. We are all reading Tosca’s book together and trying to change the way we look at food. I spent the weekend in Baltimore for a bridal shower and had some time to myself to reflect on the book. As I was re-reading Chapter 11 on the meal plan I realized I wasn’t following the Stripped plan as closely as possible. I decided to start tracking everything I ate to see if it fit into the categories outlined. I quickly found out that there is no cheese or dairy in the stripped meal plans. (This is only a temporary thing) Once you reach your goal weight then you can follow cooler plan 2 which allows you dairy and cheese during the day. If you have more than 10lbs to lose then you should also follow cooler plan 2. This meal plan is only for those trying to shed those last 10 lbs. This plan is restrictive but you don’t feel overly hungry because you’ll be eating a combination of foods that fill you up and give you energy to get through the day while blasting fat at the same time. Soooo, I decided to give it a try and really be dedicated to following the Stripped meal plan to see what results I could achieve. I think I might be a little CRAZY!

I decided to share this plan with you and I have outlined some of the key points below! I hope this helps you all in your weight loss journey.

The Stripped Plan is meant for four weeks’ worth of food. You alternate week 1 and week 2. This plan along with cardio and strength training exercises can help you lose those last 10 lbs.

For those of you who know nothing about the Eat Clean lifestyle, here are the basic principles of the diet.

Here are the Eat Clean Principles:

1. Eat more. Eat six small meals each day. Space out two-and-a half to three-hour intervals.

Protein and complex carb at each meal with a big glass of water!

2. Eat breakfast everyday, within an hour of rising.

3. Make your last meal 3 hours before bed.

This one is personally very hard for me, but so far this week I haven’t had my 3rd snack and I’m not starving!

4. Eat a combination of lean protein and complex carbohydrates at each meal.

5. Eat sufficient healthy fats every day.

This is where I was going over board before. I was eating to many nuts and nut butter!

6. Drink two to three liters of water each day.

Spice it up with some lemon, limes, cucumbers or strawberries so you don’t get bored.

7. Carry a cooler packed with Clean foods each day.

8. Depend on fresh fruit and vegetables for fiber, vitamins, nutrients and enzymes.

9. Adhere to proper portion sizes.

10. Eat only foods that have not been overly processed or doused in chemicals, saturated and trans fats and/or toxins.

If you don’t know what the ingredient is, don’t eat it!

Portion Sizes

Protein- a proper portion of meat or any other protein is measured by what can fit into the palm of one hand.

Starchy Complex Carbohydrates- A proper portion of starchy carbs is measured by what can fit into one cupped hand.

Carbs from Fruits and Vegetables- A proper portion of complex carbohydrates from fresh produce is measured by what can fit into two hands cupped together.

Healthy Fats- A portion of healthy fats is one scant handful of nuts, or one to two tablespoons of healthy oil or nut butter.

Portion Size Guidelines:

For lean protein: you are allowed one palm sized portion at each meal.

Egg whites, lean turkey and chicken breast, lean pork, beans and legumes (in moderation), lean fish (tuna, salmon, trout, cod, halibut), shrimp, clams, mussels, bison and other game meats, hummus, quinoa, spirulina, sea vegetables, protein powder, tofu and tempeth.

Starchy Complex Carbohydrates: one or two cupped handfuls per day, divided between one or two meals.

Sweet potatoes, potatoes, radishes, beans and legumes, oats, brown rice, bananas, carrots, parsnips, bulgar wheat, teff and farro.

Complex Carbohydrates from Fruits and Vegetables: Two cupped handfuls at eat meal.

Apples, plums, berries, pears, tomatoes, cucumber, broccoli, asparagus, beets, leeks, spinach and other leafy greens (the darker the better), brussels sprouts, green beans, onions, sprouts, celery, watermelon, cherries, zucchini, fennel, oranges, limes, lemons and garlic.

Healthy Fats: One to two servings per day, divided between one or two meals.

flaxseed, nuts (almonds, walnuts and pumpkin seeds), natural nut butters, hummus, avocados, oils (sesame, coconut, olive, hazelnut, walnut and fish).

Other Allowable Foods: Coffee (black), caffeine free herbal teas, tamari, unsweetened soy, rice or almond milk, mustard, salsa, herbs and spices.

Sample Day Meal Plan

I ate this meal plan on Monday and Tuesday this week! So far so good and I’m down 2 lbs!

Breakfast: Take me on vacation oatmeal with black coffee and warm water with 1/2 squeezed lemon.

Mid morning snack: Apple with 1 Tbsp almond butter and water.

Lunch: Shakeology chocolate shake with 1 scoop chocolate shakeology powder, 1 cup water, ice, 1 tbsp PB2, and banana. Blended in a blender with a tall glass of water.

Snack: Vanilla protein powder 1 cup water, frozen strawberries and ice.

Dinner: Fajitas and glass of water.

No Evening Snack!

In the evening I did have a need for something so I drank a glass of ginger peach green tea. I went outside and played with my kids and forgot all about being hungry. I still had lots of energy to do my daily activities. I did MMA SHRED on Monday and didn’t feel tired at all. 

Here is the meal plan that Tosca outlines in the book. Your rotate week 1 and week 2 for the four weeks.

FAQ’s

Do I have to work out?

YES! Workouts are a must. The best way to accelerate your weight loss is to include regular workouts as part of your routine. It is important to alternate between strength training and cardio. You will build lean muscle and increase your metabolic rate and your fat-burning speed.

What should I avoid?

All over-processed, chemically charged, toxin laden foods. Sugar in all its disguises and white refined flour products are at the top of the list of no-no foods! Also, alcohol is just another form of sugar so its critical to avoid alcohol during your four-week plan. If you don’t recognize the ingredients, don’t eat it!

What should I eat a lot of?

Egg whites, lean turkey and chicken breast, nuts, berries, beans and legumes, spinach and other leafy greens, green vegetables, asparagus and broccoli, bison, pumpkin and sweet potatoes, oats, quinoa and apples.

How can I speed up my weight loss?

Weight training the largest muscle groups. It will over stimulate your metabolism, pushing it into over drive. This will accelerate your regular rate of fat burning way beyond its normal capacity. Target your glutes and quads frequently.

I will keep you posted on how the weight loss goes! If you would like to be a part of the Eat Clean Book Club please message me for more information! I’d love to help you reach your health and fitness goals too!

Eat Clean Party

Last week I had a jewelry party for the girls in my neighborhood as a way for everyone to get out and have some adult time. Since we all spend so much time with out kids, we need a break to have adult conversation every once in awhile! I had a REALLY hard time deciding on what the menu was going to be. I wanted to keep it clean and healthy but I knew that some people would be turned off by new lifestyle. I went back and forth for about a week. I found a bunch of healthy recipes from a friend's blog and decided that I wasn’t going to let other people’s negativity about my lifestyle sway my decision to offer healthy alternatives to the foods we all love. I decided to make pita pizza, chocolate PB protein balls, edamame hummus and a fruit tray. I did have a few non clean options such as a small tray of cookies, spinach artichoke dip and sangria. I served water with fresh lemons and iced tea as well.



To my surprise, everyone raved about how great the food looked and tasted. One person actually said that I can come and cook at their house anytime! The pita pizza’s were full of flavor with fresh basil, tomatoes, garlic, green peppers and onions. The edamame hummus looked beautiful and tasted great!The protein balls were make with my Shakeology powder, PB2, oatmeal, honey and all natural PB. They were yummy and very rich!

I was so excited to share that healthy eating doesn’t have to be boring and bland. You can still enjoy food and lose weight! Also, going to parties doesn’t have to be a reason to sabotage your diet, you can have a great time and feel great too. I used to leave birthday parties feeling bloated and weighed down from all the sugar and grease, now I feel energized and ready to continue on with my day!

I’m so glad that I stepped out of my comfort zone and stuck to my plan of eating clean. If you want to make a change but don’t know where to start message me and I’ll help get you on the right track to eating healthy and living a fit lifestyle! No matter how much weight you have to lose you can do it and you will love how great you feel! You just have to start SMALL.

If you need help planning an eat clean party, let me know and I’d love to help!!

Mocha Yogurt Parfait

Best morning booster (Fitness magazine)

Mix 1/2 tsp instant coffee with 6 oz low-fat vanilla yogurt (Greek yogurt) until coffee is dissolved. Spoon half the mixture into a bowl and add 1/3 cup sliced strawberries. Top with remaining yogurt, and garnish with 1 tablespoon low-fat granola.

Granola provides a healthy dose of glucose to help jump start your morning. Calcium rich foods increase fat loss.

Blueberry-Pineapple Protein Shake

Best post-workout refuel (Fitness magazine)

Combine 1 cup low-fat milk, 1/4 cup frozen blueberries and 1/4 cup frozen pineapple in a blender. (I used fresh fruit w/ice). Puree until smooth.

The protein and carbs in milk help repair and replenish cells’ energy stores after a workout. Eat dairy within 45 minutes of exercising, when the recovery process is at its peak. Pineapple contains bromelain, a natural anti-inflammatory compound, which may reduce post-workout pain.

Clean Stuffed Peppers

Ingredients:

Water

Sea Salt

4 large red bell peppers (you can use any color)- make sure the peppers can sit upright nicely. remove top, ribs and seeds.

2 cups cooked brown rice

1 tsp extra virgin olive oil

1 yellow onion, peeled and chopped

1 large carrot, peeled and grated

1 cup butternut squash, peeled and diced

3 cloves garlic, passed through a garlic press

2 cups fresh roma tomatoes, diced and set over a fine mesh sieve to drain

1 15 oz can black beans, rinsed and drained

1 cup fresh corn kernels

1/2 cup fresh chopped cilantro

juice of one fresh lime

fresh ground pepper

cooking spray

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place cooked brown rice in a bowl and let cool. set aside.

Make sure there is a rack in the middle of the oven. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Place the peppers in the boiling water and cook briefly. the peppers need to be just a little soft. Remove the peppers from the water and put them on a plate line with paper towels, upside down so the water can drain out.

In a large skillet, heat olive oil and saute onion, carrot and butternut squash. Cook for 10 minutes, covered. Add garlic and cook a few minutes more. Now add tomatoes, beans and corn. Cook for 5 minutes. Remove from heat.

Add vegetable mixture to cooled, cooked brown rice. Season with cilantro, lime juice, sea salt and black pepper. Mix with clean, bare hands until all ingredients are evenly distributed. Set aside.

Prepare a small baking pan with a light coating of cooking spray. Place each of the peppers right side up in the pan. Stuff each pepper with brown rice filling. Don’t pack the rice mixture too tightly. Bake for 20 minutes and serve immediately.

You can add lean ground chicken or turkey to the cooked rice mixture to make it a complete clean eating meal. Simply brown one pound of ground chicken or turkey and add to stuffing mixture and stuff as usual.

I also added a can of tomato sauce on top to give it some sauce. I used an all natural organic sauce with no added sugar! Delicious!

Stuffed Zucchini

Just found this recipe from the Clean Eating Magazine. Right now zucchini is in season and this is a great way to use up your over abundance of zucchini. You can also add some chicken for some added protein.

Ingredients:

3 tsp olive oil, divided

1 clove garlic diced

1 small yellow onion, diced

8 oz mushrooms, diced

1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

3 tbsp whole-wheat bread crumbs

2 tbsp Parmesan cheese

2 zucchini halved, seeds and pulp removed.

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare stuffing: In a large saute pan on medium-high heat, heat 1 tsp oil. Add garlic, onion and mushrooms. Saute until mushrooms soften, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and add remaining 2 tsp oil, vinegar, bread crumbs and Parmesan. Mix thoroughly.

Spoon an equal amount of stuffing into each zucchini half. Bake on a foil-lined cookie sheet for 10 minutes.

Nutrients per 1/2 stuffed zucchini:

Calories: 110, total fat 5g, Sat. Fat 1g, Mono saturated Fat 3g, Polyunsaturated Fat 1g, Carbs 12g, Fiber 2g, Sugars 5g, Protein 5g, Sodium 135 mg, Cholesterol 2mg.

How bad do you want it?

Nobody can want it for you, you have to want it for yourself!

Is there something in your life that you would really like to achieve? You have to want it for yourself. No one can do it for you. You can have the best personal trainer, gym, nutritionist, but it basically comes down to one thing…YOU!

You have to have the desire to change and better yourself. Figure out what drives you, what motivates you. Use that fuel as motivation to work hard and accomplish your goals. Everyone has a best body and can achieve it. However, not everyone has the will power to do it. Don’t be part of the ladder.

First, start by writing it down. If you write down your goals you are 50% more likely to accomplish them. Next, create a game plan. Write down in small steps how you are going to accomplish this goal. Make sure you cut yourself some slack. Any new goal is going to take time. There will be ups and downs just like a roller coaster, but keep your eye on the prize. Once you reach one of your small goals, celebrate! Allow yourself to feel good about the small steps that you have accomplished. Never reward yourself with food. Go out and purchase a new exercise DVD that you have been wanting or a new outfit to exercise in. Whatever makes you feel good about yourself without sabotaging your end result. Its very important to surround yourself with positive people. There is nothing worse than trying to change your lifestyle and having people around you bashing what you are doing. Be polite, but keep your distance between the negative people. Find other people out there who support what you are doing and spend time with them.

Research your goal and how to get there. Spend time on the internet with groups that have common interests. If you have people going through the same things that you are, it makes it easier to handle. SHARE on the support groups as well. Don’t sit there with questions that you want answers too, someone out there can help! Don’t be afraid! No one is going to think it’s a stupid question.

Lastly, share your victories with others. There is nothing like getting kuddos from your friends for reaching a goal! We are all pulling for you and can’t wait to see what you have accomplished! You can do anything if you want it bad enough, so make the decision to commit, write it down and get busy!

HOW BAD DO YOU WANT IT?

If you need help achieving your health and fitness goals message me and together we can put a plan in place to meet your needs and take you to the top.

Tips for Eating Out On the Weekend

Its Friday and I’m sure your weekend is packed with family gatherings, birthday parties or dinner at a restaurant. As I’m writing this sentence my blood pressure is already starting to rise because I know that all of these things are filled with high fat, sugary, and hard to resist temptations.

Planning is best, when you are out you always need a game plan. You should avoid eating out as much as possible because once you enter a restaurant you surrender control over what is in your food.

1. Develop an “I don’t have to eat it all!” Mindset. Make up your mind before you go that you don’t have to get the most bang for your buck by cleaning your plate. KEEP YOUR GOAL IN MIND.

2. Satisfy hunger only-Don’t Gorge. Eat for the purpose of satisfying your hunger, but no more.

3. Start small and green. Start your meal with a salad, without dressing. Use a spritz of lemon or some balsamic vinegar.

4. Broth is best. When there is no salad option have a broth based soup.

5. NO BREAD PLEASE! Remember this is not helping you achieve your 10 pound weight loss goal.

6. Clean Cooking techniques rock! Look for entree options featuring steamed or raw veggies and grilled, baked or roasted meats or fish. If they aren’t listed, ask the server to prepare it that way. Oh and don’t always trust the low fat or fat free symbols.

7. Portion control is in. Have a good look at your plate when it arrives. Ask for a doggie bag and split your meal in half.

8. Fletcherize. The practice of chewing each mouthful a min of 25 times. It gives your body a chance to recognize when you are becoming full. (This is very hard to do when you are with kids, because you never know when they have had enough and you will have to leave your meal behind to take the kids out).

9. Zero Tolerance. You want to avoid alcohol because sugar can derail you in the most powerful way. Have sparkling water with lemon or lime slices.

10. Stop before the end. Think of your plan to shed those pounds, if you can’t resist something sweet ask for a dish of fresh fruit and leave it at that!

If you doubt your ability to resist restaurant offerings then pre-eat! Then when you go to a restaurant or social event you don’t have to worry about what’s on the menu and you can focus on socializing.

If you can’t resist the dessert table then pack a few clean cookies in a Ziploc bag and pullthem out with your coffee while everyone else is eating their sugar laden cookies and cake. If you have to go through a drive through, familiarize yourself with the menu. Never super size and make smart food choices by ordering grilled chicken and a side salad. Cut up the chicken and place on salad and go with olive and vinegar dressing or, low fat balsamic.

One of the most difficult things to manage while following a healthy lifestyle is your social life. So surround yourself with family and friends that support what you are doing and are not sabotaging your efforts. Instead of going out drinking or to a restaurant here are some alternatives.

Meet a friend at the gym

Have a game night at home with healthy clean snacks

Batters up- organize a kickball or softball game in your neighborhood or with the kids.

Volunteer together at a local charity

Meet at the park for a walk or bike ride

Take a Zumba class with friends- I am doing this at my local gym every Wednesday, Friday and Sunday night! AWESOME!

Eating clean and creating a healthy lifestyle doesn’t have to mean that you are becoming a boring person. There is so much more to experience than food and drinks! Live outside the box and you will have people wondering what you are doing because your energy and personality are on fire!!!

Grilled Chicken Wrap

Here is one of my staple lunch ideas. So easy to do!

Ingredients

Whole wheat tortilla

low fat hummus 

grilled chicken slices

lettuce

tomato

feta cheese

Preparation:

Spread hummus on a whole grain tortilla. Next, slice grilled chicken thin and place on the wrap. Top with lettuce, tomato, feta cheese and any other veggies that you like. If I have extra roasted red peppers and onions I will put them on top as well. I just wrap it up and put it in my cooler for lunch with a piece of fruit and water! Delicious!

Challenge Deets and Registration

The Fit Bombshells Challenge begins ONCE PER MONTH, on the first MONDAY of each month, and is a total of 30 days long!

It’s not just a body transformation though… it is going to set you up for long-term success in ALL areas of your life. I will warn you… It is going to stretch you to become more of who you are meant to be… You will need to be willing to open up and come to grasps with what has been holding you back in the past in order to let go and grow beyond it in the future!

I must be your assigned coach, so if you DO NOT yet have an account, click this link and create a FREE ONE!!!!

If you DO have an assigned coach, you have TWO options! 

#1 - Reach out to your current coach and see if they run their own challenges (MANY do!)

or 

#2 - If you are not working with your assigned coach and would like to switch, you can do so by writing coachrelations@beachbody.com and requesting to have your coach changed to Viktoriya Volkmuth #1279856. (Doing so takes approx. 48-72 hours)

*I do not charge anything extra for you to be a part of my challenges… All I require is the following:

1. You must choose a Beachbody at-home fitness program. If you do not already own one that you would like to do… then I can work with you to pick the perfect one for your life-style and goals. (If you need to purchase a program, make sure you ask me how you can save between 25-30% OFF by ordering your Shakeology and program together!)

2. You must be willing to replace one meal a day with Shakeology for the 30 days and follow my nutrition guide. This is going to ensure you get the results you desire within the 30 day period of the challenge. DIET makes up 70% of your results… Therefore there will be a major emphasis on teaching you how to eat to FUEL your body during the challenge!

3. You must be open-minded and willing to share & participate in the group. We have daily assignments/check ins that are designed to help you overcome obstacles and grow as a person so that this is a lifestyle change, not a quick fix.

I have seen SO MANY women bounce from diet to the next with little results... THIS IS NOT A DIET, THIS is a LIFESTYLE. If you are ready to rip of the bandaid and do what it takes to live your best life... THIS is the challenge for YOU!