March 11th...Gett'n your Greens on!

OK our goal this week is too get our "greens on", that means eating the dark green leafy vegetable that you might not normally try.  Why would you want to do this...because those dark green leafy things that look like bushes, are PACKED FULL of nutrients!  These wondrous leaves are among the best sources of vitamins C and K, potassium and fibre, as well, some contain folate, a B vitamin that keeps our DNA healthy.  Greens are associated with protection from lung, stomach and ovarian cancers.  Did you know that 1/2 cup of cooked spinach or kale can lower your risks of cataracts and macular degeneration, an eye disease that is the leading cause of blindness in older adults.  So Popeye was right, eat your spinach and greens!

So where does one begin...well start with your computer, Google "green leafy vegetables", write a couple down, then look up a recipe for them.  Off to your local grocery store and choose your green.  If you are less adventurous then chop them up really small and hide them is a sauce, get creative! 

Here's what I came up with, I was suppose to use Collard greens, couldn't find them at the store I was at and didn't have time to go anywhere else.  So I grabbed Swiss Chard cause it looked the same!  We'll see if it tastes the same cause as I write this, it's cooking!

This is a side dish of sauteed greens, but what I love about it, is that it's cooked in chicken stock so I can add the left-overs to tomorrow's dinner, Curry Chicken...Here's what ya gotta do, cook up bacon (I used Turkey to save some calories) then remove from pan, and chop up.  In that SAME pan toss in onions, garlic and bacon... saute about 5 mins. til onions are clear...

 Wash and clean your greens then remove stems and chop up...

Add greens to onion mixture with a sprinkle of Sea salt and pepper.  Saute about 5 mins. then add your chicken broth.  Cover and simmer for about 45 mins.

OK because these are new to me as well, my kitchen smells like pea soup and bacon...I just plated my greens and tried a mouthful...YUM!!! These are surprising so good, wow have I been missing out all these years.  Super light tasting and full of flavor...the turkey bacon is de-lish!...I'm thinking regular bacon might be a bit to salty...I'm going to go finish my greens, let me know what you came up with!

Ingredients:

3 pieces of bacon

1 small onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1 bunch of Swiss Chard or Collards

3 cups chicken broth, low sodium

pinch of salt and pepper

And if you like your food hot and spicy you can add a pinch of red pepper flakes!  

March 10th...Monthly Monday WOD...Loaded Gun!

 What is our monthly Monday WOD...well WOD stands for "workout of the day".  Once a month we do a REALLY big, fun, crazy work out.  I usually have  some idea of exercises I will include on that day, a particular movement the class has been working on for the last month.  On Saturday night I looked down at my notes feeling uninspired, this was supposed to a big deal, something my clients looked forward too each month...I did not want to let them down...

 I woke up Sunday morning and looked out my window, my front yard was a blank canvas just sitting there begging to be more!  Then it hit me, Tough Mudder is just around the corner so let's give them a taste of what they're in for!

I put pen to paper, downed another cup of coffee and there you have it, Monday's WOD, "The Loaded Gun"...I called it that because our main focus skill was the "pistol kick".

 Once the kids were up, I bribed Max with junk food and off we went!  We headed down to the beach to fill sand bags for 2 of the circuits, 40 bags filled in total!

Each bag contained about 10lbs. of sand...

First obstacle was "Going shopping"....

They had to run up the hill or down the sidewalk with 2 grocery bags...

 

I thought I'd post some motivational signs for them along the way!

OK...not only did Leah carry the bags full of sand BUT she was pushing Dempsey in the stroller too! I LOVE IT!

OK, OK, so maybe I got a little carried away with the "motivational" signs...I thought it was funny!

I thought I'd share to true angle and steepness of this hill they had to run...oh did I mention that there was 3 TUCK JUMPS at the end of EVERY run...that was their rest time!

 

Some enjoyed this more than others...common Fi, turn that frown upside down!

The next obstacle was the tire drag...except I had to make it...more shopping!

 Good thing I own a drill, rope and water noodles...

 Pretty self explanatory...

 The tire weighs about 15-20lbs...but at least I gave them the water noodle foam so the rope wouldn't hurt when you pulled it...don't say I never spoil you all!

 2 laps people!

Did I mention each obstacle was 4 minutes long....

While their partners drag the tires up and down the driveway for 2 laps the others had to do Mountain Climbers...I had to give you something...didn't want you to be board just standing there!

 Here was the dreaded Pistol Kick...this destroyed some people...the next day you all had some "kind" words for me!

 Each kick was followed by a push up and then just kept going!

 OK I threw this in as a "breather" station and for laughs!

 Games faces on!

 They had to scoop water from one end...in these tiny containers!

 and carry it to the other end of the yard...the goal was to fill your bucket!

 OK this is where EVERYONE had to dig deep...we finished the WOD with G.I.Janes, which is a pull-up then down to a push-up...chest to floor baby!

 Janine with chin over bar and Crystal with chest to floor push-ups!

 Erin pulling with all her mite!

 Jill just hanging around at the top!

Alison says the view is clear from up here!

 Tara is like you F*@%$^#-ing Push-up...BRING IT ON!

 Diana I think, had some "choice" words for the pull-up bar too!

 At this point I thought Leah might have strapped the stroller on her back and did a pull-up...I think that might have been showing off just a weee bit, YOU Rocked it girl!

 Then Tony, Dale and Christina, what a team, so awesome to see them cheer each other on!

It was sooo awesome to see everyone give it their all and do the best they could do, that's what it's all about!

So proud to say there is "NO QUIT" in my gym!

March 7th...Tomato, white bean and Kale soup, you can "forget about!"

Slow-cooker soup, doesn't get any easier than this...a soup you just throw in the pot and forget about it, what could better!  One of our very own Boot Campers, Diana brought over a bowl for me to try.  After our am class was over, I hurried upstairs and inhaled it!  So light and refreshing AND bursting with flavor!  I got up early this morning and made it, and I have to say my house smells sooo good from this pot of soup.  I was excited to make this soup because it's super healthy and packed with Kale.  I knew once the Kale softened up, the kids wouldn't even notice it!  

 It took me 10 mins. to prep the ingredients and then I threw it all in the slow-cooker...

 As you can see it is filled to the top!  I put the heat on low and after 4 hours checked to see if the carrots had softened up yet, nope!  So I turned it up to high for another 2 hours.  I might have had it so full, that the lid wasn't 100% sealed on the pot, so a bit of the heat might have escaped...

This is one hearty, and super healthy bowl of soup!  I also pre-cooked some chicken breasts, chopped them up and added them at the end just to increase the protein.  Each serving of 1 cup is equal to 135 cal. 6 g. protein. 6 g fiber. 2.5 g fat. 24 g carbs.

Here's what you'll need:

1 1/2 cups chopped sweet onion

1 cup each diced carrots and celery

2 tsp minced garlic

2 tsp dried Italian seasoning

1/2 tsp dried fennel seeds

4 cups reduced sodium vegetable broth

1 can / 28 oz no-sodium diced tomatoes

1/4 cup tomato paste

1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

1 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp Sea salt and pepper

1 Bay leaf

1 can white beans, drained and rinsed

3 cups chopped Kale leaves

8 whole Basil leaves, chopped

Note to self...if you like a thicker based soup, put in a hand-blender for a few seconds until desired consistency, enjoy!