PiYo Review and Follow Up

I started PiYo this week!

I am going to be VERY truthful in saying that I thought this workout was going to be a bore. I am so NOT a Yogi in any shape or form. 

I went to Yoga ONE TIME, and the entire time I was thinking how I wished I was doing Insanity or T25. When she told us to turn our minds off, I thought about how I have too many things to be doing to sit in a pose for 5 minutes.

That being said, I heard PiYo and thought while this will be great for those who love Yoga, I will definitely not be one of those people.

WOW. I am SO stunned at how AMAZING this workout actually is. 

Do you sit in poses for long periods of time? NO.

Are they fast paced? YES.

Are they suitable even for a beginner such as myself? YES.

Will they provide STRENGTH training for those who are athletic? YES.

I feel like I've been working parts of my body I didn't know existed. I feel SORE! The BEST pain, right?

Not only that, but I actually look forward to my workouts each morning, my ME TIME. Any moms out there TREASURE this time?!

I don't have VISIBLE results YET, it's only been a week. BUT, I can tell you I feel WAY more flexible, and strong like I haven't felt before.

I am doing T25 Speed 3.0 (my nemesis) tonight, so see if there is any difference in how difficult it is for me.

All in all I feel AMAZING after this week. My nutrition could have been better. As you saw from last week, there was NO meal plan posted. 

Because I didn't even make one. You know what means… EPIC FAILURE!

I am back on track with eating right now, as I'm doing the 3 Day Refresh to kickstart this and get my eating back to an level playing field. (Review to Follow!)

Here is my plan for next week!

Have a great day! Can't WAIT to review The 3 Day Refresh on Tuesday!

xXx

If you want to do PiYo WITH me in my next group, July 28th, email me ASAP so you can get yours to you in time!

mskfitness@yahoo.ca

Weekly Follow up & Meal Plan

It has been SUCH a busy month (I'm sorry for the lack of posting!).

With Summit, new trainings, enjoying the heat, it's been a lot of fun, but I need to get back on track!

I'm going to start off with my victory of the week! (LOL At least there is ONE!) This week I stuck to my workouts, doing a hybrid of Turbofire & T25! I swear, I can't function without a proper workout each day. Turbofire can be really long, so on days I just couldn't fit it in, I did T25 for a shorter one. Variety of different workouts can definitely come in handy. ;)

For nutrition, well, let's just say I was not prepared, at all. Preparation is KEY if you want to be successful, and I ate whatever was around and convenient through the busy-ness of the week. 

This has led me to CRAZY cravings, my blood sugar is all over the place, and my waistline, well, let's just say I refuse to step on a scale!

The good thing is, last week is water under the bridge. It's OVER, done with, and there is nothing I can do but look to today to do my absolute BEST. I feel completely motivated to get back up and do even BETTER than I ever have. NEVER let "failure" define you, it actually makes you BETTER. Through my failures, I have learned SO much, and this is no different. It has validated that I do need to plan, and I need to seriously gain control of my cravings.

But, how?

I have created a meal plan below, and am planning on eaten every 3 hours. When I eat every 3 hours, I feel in control of my cravings. Yes, of course, I still want pizza if it's in front of me, but I don't need it. See the difference? 

Now, WHAT do eat every 3 hours? It's not about your calorie intake over the entire day, but at each MEAL. I am shooting for 250-300 calories at each meal, and a balance of protein, fats, and carbs. My goal is for my body to be a fat burning machine! For my body to be able to continue building muscle, instead of depleting it from not eating for hours and hours at a time. The more you feed and work your muscle, the higher your metabolism, if and only if, you're feeding your muscles on a proper interval, with sufficient nutrition. By eating like this, and fuelling your body, you won't FEEL the need to give in to cravings, but you'll be able to control them. 

You will be in control.

THAT is what I've always struggled with. Below I am sharing my meal plan. Feel free to work off of it, or if you need help, email me at mskfitness@yahoo.ca and we'll get you going on YOUR goals!

This week I am also starting PiYo, so I want to make sure I MAXIMIZE my results. Eating fuels the fire, your exercise will burn off the fat and build muscle! PiYo is incorporating strength, flexibility AND cardio, I will be sharing this week how I am liking it! 

Stay tuned for the review!

Meal Prep Recipes!

I often like to post what I make for my meal prep to share what I make, but also to hold me accountable to actually doing it. (Let's be honest, sometimes we just don't WANT to, but it's so worth it once it's done!)

When I posted this picture, I had a lot of people asking for recipes, so I wanted to share the recipes for these four! These are SO easy to make. I know it may seem daunting to make all four of these in one evening, but it's not, at all. As one is cooking, so are the others, so you actually have time to just sit and relax while they cook (and make your house smell amazing!).

Here are the recipes below!

Quinoa Stir Fry 

Ingredients:

2 cups of Quinoa (rinsed in a sieve)

4 cups of water or low sodium chicken broth

Coconut Oil

Onions

Mushrooms

Spinach

Broccoli

(ANY vegetable, I use this recipe to empty my fridge of any and all vegetables before they go bad; I refuse to throw out food!)

4 cloves of garlic (minced)

Soy Sauce

Chicken (I add the chicken I cook during my meal prep once it's all done)

Feta cheese **optional

Green Onions **optional

1. Cook Quinoa as per package directions with 2 cups of quinoa to 4 cups of water/chicken broth. I add in 1 tbs of soy sauce and garlic/pepper.

2. Star the frying pan, and melt 1 tbs of coconut oil. Add in minced garlic and let cook for about 1 minute (be careful not to burn).

3. Add in all the vegetables, stir so they're all coated, and let cook.

4. Once the quinoa is done, mix it into the vegetables. If you have chicken on hand thats cooked already, put it in before you put the quinoa in. If not, you can easily add chicken later!

5. Garnish with feta cheese & green onions!

Shredded Chicken

**I make this several times a week!**

Ingredients

6 Chicken Breasts

3 TBS of Coconut Oil

1 Tbs of Chili Powder

1 tbs of Garlic Powder

1/2 Tbs of Pepper

1. Start the oven at 350.

2. Place your chicken in the casserole dish (use one with a lid, not necessary but tastes so much better!)

3. Put 1/2 tbs of coconut oil onto each chicken breast. You don't have to spread it, just dollop it on top of each.

4. Sprinkle the seasonings onto the chicken. (add which ones you'd like too!)

5. Put into the oven for 30 minutes. I check it at 25 minutes just in case, I don't want it to be dry. 

6. Let it cool for 5 minutes and cut it up into slices so you can easily put into a wrap or salad.

VOILA!

Sweet & Sour Chicken

Family Favorite! Put on top of Quinoa, Rice, in a bun, etc. 

Ingredients

1 Pack of Chicken Thighs

1/4 cup of Soy Sauce

1/4 cup of Ketchup

1/2 cup of honey (I use just a little bit less than 1/2 a cup)

1 Red Onion, minced

Crockpot

1. In a big bowl, combine all ingredients except the chicken and whisk.

2. Place your chicken thighs on the bottom of the crockpot.

3. Pour over the mixture.

4. Let sit on high for 2 hours.

Serve over rice or quinoa, and garnish with Sri Racha and Green onions!

Homemade Marinara

Make lots so you can freeze; you'll never have to buy sauce from the store again!

Ingredients

1 small carton of mushrooms (about 15), chopped

1 Red Onion

4-6 Cloves of Garlic, minced

1 Tbs Butter

1 tbs Olive Oil

1 tsp of Pepper

1 Can of Tomato Paste

2 Cans of Diced Tomatoes

1 can of Tomato Sauce (plain, just tomatoes)

1 tbs of Italian Seasoning

1. In a frying pan, put your butter, olive oil, and garlic on medium. Let sit for 1-2 minutes, but do not let burn.

2. Add in chopped onion and mushroom and stir. Sprinkle on pepper.

3. Let sit for about 5 minutes until onions are about clear.

4. While it's cooking, open all cans of tomatoes and pour into a big sauce pan. 

5. Now that onions and mushrooms are done, (how amazing does it smell by the way?!) place mixture into your magic bullet cup or blender and blend.

6. Pour into sauce, sprinkle italian seasoning, and stir.

7. Let simmer for 2-3 hours.

Perfect as a pizza sauce, with meatballs on pasta, or anything you'd use sauce for!

ENJOY! These are my favourite recipes and ones I consistently make. Each week I try to make something new so I can add a new favourite to the list.

TIP: Keep track of all the recipes you've tried, you are bound to forget which ones you liked and disliked. This will make meal prep easier for you!