Fitness Mama 2013 Year in Review

2013 has been an amazing year for Team Fitness Mama and we are excited to see what 2014 will bring! We would like thank all of you mamas for all of the support, love and most of all, the inspiration you give us to make #fitnessmama possible. We have witnessed you mamas accomplish so many things this year fitness wise. Let's take it to the next level for 2014!! Who's in?!!

We encourage you to participate in the Fitness Mama #fitfam community.  Follow us on Instagram and/or Facebook and let us know where you're at in your journey!  Tag your pictures #fitnessmama @fitnessmama_ so we can find you!  We look forward to seeing you all accomplish great things in 2014!

A huge thank you goes out to all of our 2013 Fit Mamas of the Week and all that you did to support us this year!  Earlier in the year, we worked with our friend Kelsey Millan who helped us create a beautiful logo that we are SO in love with.  Thank you Kelsey!  Contact Kelsey if you need graphic design work for you projects.  She is THE best.  You can find her contact info here: http://kelseyjane.carbonmade.com/about

Happy New Year from everyone at Team Fitness Mama!

#MotivationMonday

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So Scrumptious Saturday: Roasted Orange Cauliflower

Cauliflowers are available year round in CA but are best in the fall/winter months. I don't usually find orange cauliflower, winter month or not, so when I saw it this week, I picked one up. My youngest son calls this an alien cauliflower. That picky eater is more likely to eat things when he is truly intrigued like this. So at our house, the special color helps. 

Orange cauliflowers are a true variety and are a non-GMO product. They are rich in beta-carotene. The feel and consistency is the same and in my opinion, it tastes the same as well. For an easy side dish, try roasting the cauliflower. Chop the cauliflower into bite sized pieces. Toss the cauliflower, EVOO, minced garlic and some pepper in a big ziplock bag. Pour all the contents out on a baking sheet and roast it in the oven for about 15 mins. I like to char it a little because it brings out a nutty flavor. Sometimes I will sprinkle some low fat shredded monterey jack or parmesan cheese on it for the kids, right before it is fully cooked.

Have you ever tried orange cauliflowers? What about purple? How do you guys prepare it? 

Transformation Tuesday

My transformation is not just physical, it has been mental and spiritual as well. I made a lot of excuses why I was overweight. And the more I said it to myself and explained it to others, the more I believed it was true and valid. 

My journey has taught me that the very first step to any transformation is to walk in your faults, to own up to your own imperfections. Once you do that, find out what you love about yourself and what you could change to become a better version of You. Next, set goals. Short and long-term goals. Setting short-term goals are stepping stones to help you achieve your ultimate or long-term goal. What is your inspiration? What will motivate you to reach this goal? This is where you really have to dig deep and and find out WHY you want to take these steps to change. Surround yourself with positive people! These will be your cheerleaders along your journey. It will not be an easy road. You will want to quit and believe me, you will need your group of supporters to uplift and encourage you to stay focused and keep going... This journey will change you whether you like it or not. Embrace your imperfections, your pain, your weaknesses. Grow from them if will. But remember that you are the author of your story... Write it and live it! Be fearless mamas and you can achieve what you once thought was impossible.

#MotivationMonday

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Get It Girl Wednesday: Fitness Mama Christmas FitMix + Holiday Eating Tips

Did you guys know that Christmas Day is Christelyn's birthday??!!

It's a big deal around here.  Santa visits.  And then we have birthday CAKE!

But only a small slice.  ;)

We know it's the holidays and you may have MULTIPLE holiday parties to attend, making it challenging to stick to your healthy eating plans.  Below, we put together a list of things you can do to try to keep focused on your goals. Taking a proactive approach and having a plan will definitely help you stay on track!

-Don't starve yourself.  A lot of people skip breakfast/lunch so that they can have extra calories at dinner.  We don't recommend this because you just end up eating the equivalent of breakfast, lunch AND dinner (x2?) because you are SO hungry.  You also end up spiking your blood sugar way high when you eat a big meal like this.  Ever feel sleepy after a big meal?  A lot of people jokingly call this 'food coma' but it is no laughing matter.  Your blood sugars are spiked, pulling all of your body's resources to digest the food and to get rid of all this sugar.  This is why you feel sleepy; you don't have energy to do anything but digest food.  This is a very simplistic explanation but continuous patterns of this lead to diabetes.

-Avoid mindless munching.  Absentminded snacking on top of a big dinner leads to overeating.  Hang out away from the chips and dip.  Or make your own healthy dip of homemade hummus.  Which leads us to the next tip....

-Bring your own food!  Potluck or not, create a plate of something healthy.  You can easily make a low calorie, low sodium spinach dip and bring cucumbers and carrots to dip.  Or what about a colorful salsa fresca with pita chips?!

-Stick to protein and veggies.  This is one of the commandments I live by for everyday, not just holidays.  I find that if I avoid all of the white rice, pastas and bread, I don't feel as weighed down and I can easily recover and get back on track the next day.

-Don't snowball into bad eating habits until 2014.  So you blew it had a slice of cake (or two?) on ONE day. Don't overreact and give up because you slipped.  One splurge won't undo a whole week of healthy eating....unless you give in and let it.


Bottom line is, if you do end up overeating, don't be too hard on yourself.  Just get back on track the next day.  And maybe add an extra workout to burn off those extra calories!  And I have just the thing to help you with that!

It has been awhile since our last one but we are releasing another workout mix for you mamas!  In order to celebrate Christelyn's birthday and Christmas, we put together this mix for you to get your workout or run on.  It's a mix of Christmas songs and recent top 40 hits to get you into #beastmode to work off those extra holiday calories!

Content warning: Some songs may contain explicit language.

Fitness Mama Christmas FitMix

Click on the link above to download your free workout mix!

Connect with us on Facebook and Instagram (links are up above near the blog banner!).  Tag us with your workout pictures whenever you use our mix!  #fitnessmama  Have a great workout!

Transformation Tuesday

As a wife and mother of two little girls, I was always busy taking care of everyone else but myself. Not realizing then, that in order to take care of my family and those who I care about, I actually needed to take care of myself FIRST. I use to think it was selfish to take time away from my husband and my girls to focus on ME. But the truth of the matter is, in order to give YOUR ABSOLUTE BEST, you have to work on being the best YOU can be. 

I remember countless times I would take Miyah (my oldest daughter) to the park and I would just sit on the bench watching her play. I thought, "I'd love to run and play with her, but I can't". I felt that if I tried, I wouldn't be able to keep up with her. And when I did try, I would get exhausted. How can I give my best to Miyah if I'm not at my best physically? What kind of example am I to my daughter? These were hard questions to ask myself that I could no longer avoid. You see, on the surface it's easy to hide behind the hair, the makeup, and the clothes. But once you take all that away, can you honestly say you are happy with yourself? I wasn't happy with the person I had become or let myself be (in the past). Anger, hurt, pain- it's all a part of life. We can't change those feelings,it's inevitable. But, we all have the power to change our attitude and the way we want to live out our life. It's in us, YOU just need to dig deep and find it. I'm here to tell you, IT IS POSSIBLE. IT IS WORTH IT. I'm able to run, play, hop, skip, and jump with both my girls! It's a great feeling!! So mamas, do it for those you care about. But most importantly, do it for YOU. Make yourself a priority. Take action to live longer, be stronger, & then persevere! 

#MotivationMonday

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So Scrumptious Saturday: Veggie Stir Fry with Sweet Potato Noodles

Sometimes by the end of the week I have just random vegetables that I didn't get to use because I've overbought or menu plans had changed.   I hate wasting and a good solution to be sure to use ALL the vegetables before they go bad is to make a stir fry.  

My random veggies this week: 2 handfuls of mushrooms, 2 zucchinis, a half a bag of broccoli/snow peas meant for a stir fry, half an onion, mini carrots meant for the kids' lunches.  I chopped all of these up and threw them in a pot with a bit of sesame oil, garlic + pepper and cooked it with a light stir fry sauce (this changes with what I may have on hand but this time I used some low sodium soy sauce, honey, rice wine, and pureed ginger).  SO EASY.  Then I can pair this stir fry with any protein.  

Have you guys ever had Sweet Potato Noodles?  It's a glass noodle not to be confused with bean thread noodles or glass noodles.  I used sweet potato noodles with this stir fry because the kids love it.  But I also like it because it is gluten free and paleo friendly.  I noticed that this noodle is easier to digest vs. pasta or even rice. It has a different texture than pasta or typical chow mein noodles but it is perfect for most stir frys.  The package I used is pictured below and you can find it at most Asian food markets.

#MotivationMonday

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So Scrumptious Saturday: Year Round Farmer's Markets

One question that people ask us frequently is HOW do you start eating healthy? We hope to help you mamas answer that question with these So Scrumptious Saturday posts.

Over the summer, Farmer's Markets are probably plentiful. But we are fortunate enough to live near a farmer's market that is year round! If you have one open near where you live, definitely take a advantage and visit. We try to visit every week for our produce. Here is why Farmer's Markets can be beneficial for healthy eating:

-there is a 'rainbow' of fresh fruit and vegetables available that may not be available at your local grocery store! Having a spectrum of colors on your plate of fruits and vegetables ensures that your plate is packed with antioxidants and phytonutrients! Great place to stock up for your meal planning.
-at our local farmer's market, the people who sell at the stands are SO helpful. Talk to them about recipes you can make with the produce they sell especially if you're not familiar with the it. They will also give you tips on how to store their produce so it lasts longer! Just ask! 

-speaking of the unfamiliar, farmer's markets are an excellent way to try new produce you've never seen before. There are always samples and the stands are always more than willing to let you taste it before you buy. I have my kids walk around and sample the fruit and then they tell me which ones have the sweetest or best flavor before we decide to buy.

-farmer's markets are super family friendly. They are a great way to get the kids involved in trying new foods they have never tried or have never even seen before. Get them involved in picking out the produce. They'll learn at a young age how to pick good fruit and vegetables, prepping them for a lifetime of healthy eating.

-our farmer's market sells a multitude of items....not just fresh produce! As seen in the picture we have fresh seafood! Also a wide variety of hummus with different flavor combos I've never seen elsewhere; I love how on the ingredients list on the hummus, there are no added preservatives/chemicals like the ones at the grocery store. Another favorite stand of ours is one where they sell CA grown almonds in different flavors like chili lemon (our favorite).

Get It Girl Wednesday: Workout Do's and Don'ts

Daily workouts are important if you want to see results quicker.  I know you've heard that saying 'abs are made in the kitchen'.  And yes, nutrition plays a HUGE role in losing weight and/or getting and staying fit.  I am a huge believer in good eating habits because eating clean to see results was a lesson I recently learned over the summer that finally got me over a plateau I was on for like three years.  lol.  (Thanks Christelyn!)

But working out and eating well should be paired together to reach your optimum fitness level and it will definitely get you to your fitness goals quicker vs. just doing either one alone.  Here are a few workout do's and don'ts that Christelyn and I have compiled based on our experiences.

-Do Prepare.  Get your necessities ready...water, towel, headphones, etc.  And don't forget to set up that playlist before hand.  Stopping your workout to mess with your gadgets to find a song impedes your goal to get to a certain heart rate.  

-Don't Exercise on an Empty Stomach.  Plan ahead and eat your big meals 1-2 hours ahead.  If you're past that, have a light snack 45 mins. before your workout.  This will ensure that you are fueled for a good workout.  Working out with no fuel will risk that you will be cannibalizing your muscle tissue which you DO NOT want.  If you don't have available sugar stored, your body will then try to convert your muscle tissue into energy.  Remember, eat better.  Don't eat less.  

-Do Stretch and Warm up.  Do you ever wonder why when you start a run and you're already tired in that first half mile?  Then you feel disappointed that you couldn't run further?  Ask yourself if you remembered to stretch and warm up!  It takes a while for your body to warm up those muscles so that you perform at your best.

-Do Challenge Yourself.  Workout at a level that challenges you but at the same time try not to workout too intensely.  Some people skip a lot of days and then workout SUPER intensely to make up for it.  We highly discourage this to avoid injuries.  But we do encourage getting off that elliptical to try something new.  It can get uncomfortable doing new things or exercises you aren't used to but you may see results quicker.  

-Don't Waste Your Time on Isolation Exercises.  This goes along with the previous tip.  Do exercises that target MULTIPLE muscle groups.  As busy moms, I know our time is very limited so we encourage you to use your time WISELY.  For example, at my gym, I do a class called CardioMix where we're constantly moving to fun, upbeat music to get the heart rate up but at the same time, we have free weights in our hands to work out our arms and also a step board to work out our legs.  If you don't have access to classes like these, you can create a circuit workout at home that combines cardio with strength training.  For example: jump rope 60 seconds, set of push ups, set of lunges, squats with arm raises, set of burpees and then start the whole circuit over again until you've worked out for 30-40 mins.  Follow us on Facebook and/or Instagram for workout printables you can do at home!

Do Get Adequate Rest.  Make sure you get enough rest.  Take at least one day off a week from training.  One of my favorite workout gurus is Jillian Michaels and she always says that exercise is the architect and RECOVERY is the builder.  Trust in the process because after a week of working out, your body is still doing work even if you aren't at the gym and you're resting.  

#MotivationMonday

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