B.Y.O.S ~ Bring Your Own Soup

If you have been reading this blog for any amount of time at all, you may have heard the word 'Colorado' thrown around a lot. Well the time has come, and a little earlier than expected!!

Our original plan was to move to Colorado May 3rd after Nathan's graduation. During spring break we went to visit and look for apartments.
 I also had an interview as a weight loss consultant. <---- How fun would that be???

To make a long story short, we got the apartment we wanted but would have to start paying rent in April. I also got the job I wanted but would have to start in April. Funny how things work out huh?

So next week we will be packing up and moving out!! I am so excited but also very sad to leave some great people behind.

A friend threw us a B.Y.O.S Party!! (Bring Your Own Soup)

There were lots of yummy soups, mine was homemade Zuppa Tuscana!!

Not to brag, but I actually preferred it to Olive Garden..... but that's just me! :)

And bonus points for soup with lots of leafy greens! That doesn't happen too often!

After posting the picture, I got some requests for the recipe. It was so easy it made me kick myself for not thinking of it before. It will be a regular winter meal in our home from now on!!

You will need:

1 lb Italian sausage
1 large onion, diced
4 cloves of garlic, minced
4 cups reduced sodium chicken broth
4-6 sm/md potatoes, cut into 1/4inch pieces
2 cups chopped kale
1 cup heavy cream

• Simply brown you sausage, leaving at least two tablespoons of grease.
•  Add onion and garlic, cook over medium heat until soft and fragrant.
• Add chicken broth, bring to a boil.
• Add potatoes, boil for 10-15 min, until tender.
• Reduce heat. Add kale and cream

The end!! Too easy right??
It was a hit with everyone and the party was a blast!!

 

And yes, one of the games made me tie a kitchen towel around my neck, wear someone else's sunglasses and a set of keys on my head. Don't ask!! :)


P.S. I also had some cream left over.... stay tuned for another recipe!!

The Interruption

I have to apologize for my huge lack of posting lately!! You can blame the interruption on this.....

Yep. That's right!

I am officially studying for my personal trainer certification through the National Academy of Sports Medicine!

Woo hooo!

I have been spending most of my spare time studying. Although I have six months to prepare for the test, my goal is to take it before I move, which looks like it will be in early May. So I am doing 6 months worth of work in 3! And loving it! :)

In other exciting news, The Color Run has one very anxious participant!!

Oh this is going to be great!

My friends and I formed a team so we could get the discounted rate. I highly recommend doing this! You only need three friends to sign up with you and you each get $10 knocked off the registration price!! You don't have to run together or anything, just sign up with the same team name. Oh and by the way we have the best team name ever - Bob Ross And The Happy Little Trees.

I know. Be jelous.

But I can't take credit for it. It was the brilliant idea of Chelsea. Check out her blog for some adventures of a truly creative lady!


My workouts have really gone up in intensity lately and I will be sure to post some soon. Since I take a couple days each week to run, I want to make sure I keep building my lean muscle on strength training days and have been totally killing it! I have gained a couple pounds, but I am not bothered by it. I can clearly see that I am gaining muscle as well as increasing my endurance. Health is not defined by the scale.


The lack of blogging in my life has totally wrecked my habit of taking pictures of everything I eat. But overall I am happy with myself. I have started using myfitnesspal.com to track my food intake and I really love it. I have never been much of a calorie counter, and I still am not. I firmly believe that being healthy is about so much more that calories in vs. calories out. But it has helped me be more aware of portions, and keep a better balance between protein, fiber, and sugar intake. If you are on MFP be sure to look me up and let's be friends!! (amandalhaws)

Here is a little snipit of my eats lately.

Lots of smoothies!! And lots of green things!!

Tuna wraps!! MFP has helped me realize I am not getting the proper amounts of protein for the amount of training I am doing, so tuna has been making several appearances on my plate lately. 

And when we do pizza, this is how we do it! Papa Murphy's Chicken Artichoke on a DeLight crust!! Garlic, artichoke, and bacon, oh my!! It packs a punch of protein and goes light on the carbs. Perfection. I started putting a handful of spinach on top and then warping it up and eating it like a taco!! Even Better!!

Your Turn!!

• What have you been eating lately?
• Have you ever done the color run??

Trick Yourself Into Eating Your Veggies!!

I love eating me some greens! Brussels sprouts, broccoli, spinach, romaine, and cucumbers often occupy a large majority of my fridge space. But some days, it's hard to get as many greens in my diet as I would like. I aim for 50% of my caloric intake to come from fruits and veggies (mostly veggies). That is very difficult when you think about how much salad it takes to equal a small piece of chicken. And if I indulge in some ice cream?? Now that requires a lot of broccoli to balance it out!! ;)

But there are some great ways to sneak green things into an otherwise non-green meal. Here are some of my tricks.

Smoothies

Fruit always over powers veggies. Always! So if I am making a fruit smoothie, I throw in a handful of spinach too. I can't taste it over the berry and citrus, but I just got a cup or more of greens!!

It doesn't look very appetizing. But I promise it taste nothing like what it looks like!!


Juice

If you have been around here for long, you know that I am a big advocate for juicing! In the real world, it's hard to get the nutrients you need everyday. But juicing fresh fruits and veggies allows me to intake a large amount in a very short amount of time. Plus it only takes 15 minutes for the nutrients to enter into your system! Talk about fast food!!

As is the case with the smoothies, Just one apple and a splash of lemon juice overpowers the flavor of the vegetables. You won't think you are drinking something that is bright green!!


Stuffing

No not like the kind that we serve on Thanksgiving.

Stuff your meats with veggies! Lots of them!! I have put small pieces of cucumber and celery in meatloaf without anyone noticing! And of course onions make a great addition to many dishes. I also like to stuff chicken with spinach! Or throw some in an omelet! Whatever you are making, cooking it with the veggies can give them a great and unique flavor they may not have had otherwise.

Replace Pasta

I am pretty sure this is my favorite trick of all. I love Italian dishes!! But the creamy sauces, cheeses and the carb loaded pasta does not help me achieve my fitness goals. So I have been experimenting with replacing pasta with different types of veggies.

Examples:

Potatoes

I made this very similar to how I would make a chicken and spaghetti bake. But instead of pasta, used potatoes!

Peppers

And onions! I admit, I was raised on hamburger helper. But no more! Now when I make a skillet dinner, I saute sliced veggies in place of pasta. Then I can try out all kinds of meats and seasonings to make different dishes!

Spaghetti Squash

This is a good standby. If you can't think of anything else to replace your pasta with, spaghetti squash will get the job done!
I have of course used it for spaghetti, but I like it best as a substitute for noodles in our Terriyaki Chicken Stir Fry!! Oh Yum!


There are tons of other ways to get your greens in. A salad is always a great way to start your dinner or lunch! And broccoli adds a great texture and flavor to some scrambled eggs!! You can make small changed to the things you already eat and make a big difference to your health!!

How do you get your greens in everyday??

Beating The Sun Down Workout

Yesterday was an unseasonably warm January day! I couldn't pass up the chance to work out in the upper 60* weather! Unfortunately, by the time I got home and got changed, I had about 30 minutes until the sun would go down. The race was on!!

So with nothing more than a quarter mile loop, two 10lb weights, and a really old (highly unstable) bench, I and two friends completed the following workout.

We decided to do AMRAP (as many rounds as possible) in 30 minutes (before the sun went down!). We made it through 4X before the timer brought attention to the increasing darkness. So we headed to the gym for a quick round of 9 Minute Arm Meltdown. 

Let me tell ya, after all of that, we deserved to kick back with our feet up and watch other people sweat on the Biggest Loser for two hours!! Which is exactly what we did! (Didn't Lisa look GREAT!?!?)

Workout Mantras

I like to chat during workouts. It takes my mind off of things and makes it go by faster. Last night we started talking about workout mantras. You may have already heard me talk about mine;

• Because I can. 
• Relentless.
• No excuses.
• You don't quit when you are tired, you quit when you are done.

I use these all the time to help motivate myself! Sometimes just to get off the couch and do something! Anything! Other times to help me make it through to the end, or to up my intensity.

They had some great ones too! Hannah is studying to be a marriage and family therapist, so she cornered the market on the psychological side of working out.

No should's.

Can I say how much I love that?!? My first though was hearing people (and myself) say things like, "I know I should go workout but....." or "I know I shouldn't be eating this but......"  

But then she took it to another level. When you tell other people what they 'should' do, how often are you being critical, manipulative, judgmental, or just plain hurtful? These things don't build people up and I know for me personally, it usually just ticks me off......

Obviously there is a difference in offering solicited advice or stepping in with a 'you need to.....' when the situation calls for it. But more often than not, when the words 'you should...' are about to come flying out of our mouths, maybe we should stop and consider if what we are about to say is encouraging and uplifting. If not, don't say it.

Chelsea's mantra was super fun! Her family has made a goal to be healthy and fit in 2013! (Yay for family fitness!!) So for Christmas, all the gifts were health related, including some great lotions and washes!! So they all started claiming that this year would be....

 Soft and Skinny 2013!

Love it! And I yelled it at her a couple times during the tough parts of the workout. It was a very fun thing to yell!!

What is your favorite workout mantra?

Has it been warm enough for you to workout outside yet this year?

Goodbye Truck

Today we sold Nathan's Durango!!

Fair thee well old friend!!

Normally I would not be so excited about this. I tend to develop emotional attachments to inanimate objects and struggle to part with them. But this time is different!!

Although this has been a great truck and having two cars is always more convenient, I am still uber excited cuz I know this is one of the steps!!

We decided we would sell the truck before going to Colorado and get a new vehicle for him there. It's over 1,000 miles to get there and we estimated that it would cost about $200 just to drive it there..... That's about 10% of what the whole thing is worth!!

So the anticipation is building as we make more and more decisions based around Colorado. I can't wait!! :)

We sent it off in style with a fancy breakfast!!

 

I had an open face egg, cheese, and bacon sandwich and a banana.

And the best part..... fresh orange juice!!

 

 

Hello Vitamin C!! And thank you for keeping that nasty flu away!! :)

Yesterday's Workout

• 30 min 1.8 miles on the elliptical (I still think the distance is off on the elliptical at my gym)
• 2 round of Guns and Buns