30 Days Of Healthy Recipes & Book Club

I might be late in figuring out what I wanted to do in my exclusive health and fitness support group but I finally figured it out! I personally am recycling recipes way too much in my house and need some new ones to try so...Each day in my exclusive group I'm posting a new healthy recipe. Yep, since weight loss comes mostly from what you are putting in your body, might as well make it tasty!

Just a little sneak peek, today's recipe is a healthier alternative option to Potato Soup. I love potato soup. Rich, creamy and way too starchy, but swap potatoes with Cauliflower and you have a veggie loaded non starchy and way less cream and dairy. You can view the whole recipe CAULIFLOWER SOUP RECIPE HERE.

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The Goddess Reveloution: Make Peace with food, love your life and reclaim your life

If you've ever struggled with diets, food, body image, or your weight, then The Goddess Revolution is your new handbook for life. Imagine how much you would fall in love with your life again if you weren’t so consumed by negative thoughts around food, your weight, and your body? Imagine if you could effortlessly find yourself at your perfect weight, in your perfect body, and feel happier and freer around food than ever before?

All women are born Goddesses – but we tell ourselves over and over again that for some reason, we don’t deserve to feel good. We berate ourselves in the mirror, refuse to accept compliments and use food as a punishment/reward system to mask how we are really feeling about our lives.

The Goddess Revolution is taking over as the new 'anti-diet'. This is not a fad diet or a set of rules to follow, but a revolutionary new way of thinking that will help women to end the war on their bodies, start embracing an incredibly rewarding relationship with food, and become happier and more fulfilled than they ever thought possible. Tackling very modern issues – including ‘fitspiration’ and the obsession with perfection caused by celebrity culture and magazine airbrushing – Mel speaks in a language that women can relate to. Written with passion from one Goddess to another, this book offers readers practical tips and powerful tools to give them back control of how they feel in their bodies and what they choose to put in them

If you would like to join my group, have unlimited access to over 600 workouts, exclusive healthy cooking show, and exclusive content plus get your daily shake filled with healthy superfoods to help fill in the gaps of your nutrition to get the vitamins and minerals you need, antioxidents, digestive enzymes, plus curve your cravings and feel amazing CLICK HERE TO ORDER your bundle that is still, unbelievably, 20% off and I will get in contact you to get you added to the group ASAP!

Want more daily motivation and inspiration? Click here get free advice, support and encouragement + a free copy of my Clean Eating guide to help you get started on your health and fitness journey! Don't forget to follow me on INSTAGRAM and FACEBOOK!

Stop Cropping Photos To Hide Yourself

For years I was cropping myself in my pictures. Only showing my "better" half. Anything above my waist I felt was good proportion and acceptable to be seen. But what do I have now? A bunch of cropped photos that don't show the whole picture of me. And I REGRET all the cropping I did to my photos. Basically every single picture between 2005-2008 are cropped short.

During the time of cropping I was in denial about our fertility problems. I assumed that if I just got pregnant that everything would work out just fine. I would lose the baby weight from breastfeeding and then I would be skinny. And that was what I wanted. To be skinny like all the other girls around me. I was jumping from diet program to diet program just to try and lose weight as fast as I could. And often times, I lost weight, only to gain it back, plus some. I had a secret stash of candy in my house. I cheated on the diets all the time. I had a serious addiction to eating doughnuts and over ate way too often. So my solution was to crop out the "fat part of me" and leave my smile.

Speaking of the smile. On the outside, yeah, I seemed happy, but on the inside I hated how I looked. I couldn't look at myself in the mirror without cringing. Far from what I wanted feel, sexy and attractive. I didn't even like to have my husband see me naked. Which didn't help with the trying to have a baby part of it.

Fast forward to now where I weight more than I did (don't even really know how much I weighed at the time because anytime I stepped on the scale I would hate myself and feel depressed for days. Which also meant more binge eating) Plus now, I have had 3 babies. But...what's different? I am actively working on my fitness and health. I eat better. I actually love how I look now because I see my strength. I feel strong. I feel powerful. I feel sexy and attractive. But am also being realistic with myself. I also know that there are areas that I want leaner. I want to be at a healthy body fat % not a weight or an idea of how "skinny" I have to be. And just because I have a ways to go in my weight loss journey I don't beat myself up over my weight or how I look anymore. I still enjoy desserts, or candy, but no where near the amount I used to eat. I have learned portion control. I have learned to eat in moderation. And I EAT TONS OF VEGGIES FOR FUN! I haven't magically lost the baby weight I gained while I was pregnant through breastfeeding any of my children. It is taking hard work, discipline and dedication to what I want to stay on track. All it took, was a mindset change. When I finally realized that I am beautiful both inside and out and the more I work on my inside to see the beauty I have the more I love myself on the outside. It's time to STOP THE CROP and love yourself as you are right now. Join me and post your favorite full length picture of you now over on Instagram and use the hashtags: #stopthecrop #CTDG

Not only am I more confident in my own skin, but you can see my body posture in my old pictures. I was hiding, myself or at least hide part of my body behind someone else. No more. Be beautiful and STAND OUT! #Stopthecrop!

Want more daily motivation and inspiration? Click here get free advice, support and encouragement + a free copy of my Clean Eating guide to help you get started on your health and fitness journey! Don't forget to follow me on INSTAGRAM and FACEBOOK!

Quick, Early Morning 30 Day Workout Challenge

Short on time in the morning to fit in your workout? Check out this progressive 30 day challenge to help you sneak in a workout first thing in the morning! Want support from other challengers? Join us in my FREE ONLINE HEALTH AND FITNESS COMMUNITY for support from other challengers. 30 Day Challenge in the group begins Sept. 1! All you have to do is request to join! See you in there!

Want to take your results to the next level with making a total lifestyle change? Combine this 30 day challenge with 30 Days To A Healthy Lifestyle Change: Self Guided Study to start making daily changes over 4 weeks and turn those learned practices into a habit by the end of the month! 

Want more daily motivation and inspiration? Click here get free advice, support and encouragement + a free copy of my Clean Eating guide to help you get started on your health and fitness journey! Don't forget to follow me on INSTAGRAM and FACEBOOK!

OrangeTheory Workout Experience

You guys know I LOVE my home workouts. They are the easiest for me with 3 kids, and I am a home body. But...I am not against trying something new and challenging myself. And when I heard that there was a new fitness studio opening up in my town, and one that I have wanted to try, AND your first workout is FREE...I WAS UP FOR THE CHALLENGE, and letting the hubs watch the kids so I can get my sweat on! Plus I met the head trainer outside of Trader Joe's and we chatted and of course she invited me to join her in a workout. Thankfully she was the coach leading the class! 

First a little background. Orangetheory is an interval based, sixty minute workout led by a coach who trains you and gives you tips throughout the class. On average people burn over 500 calories per class/hour.

HEART RATE BASED INTERVAL TRAINING

"Backed by the science of Excess Post-Exercise Oxygen Consumption (or EPOC), Orangetheory’s heart rate monitored training is designed to maintain a target zone that stimulates metabolism and increases energy. We call it the afterburn. Our members burn an estimated 500 to 1,000 calories in 60 minutes.  And keep burning calories for up to 36 hours." source

I was asked to arrive 30 minutes early to fill out some paperwork and get my heart rate wrist band to borrow for the free class. Then I was shown around the studio. There are 2 sections to the room, the "treads" as they call the treadmill section and the rowers/weights area. They set me up on the rowing machine first and asked that I start there. Sure...why not, I haven't been on one forever! So I was on the rowing and weights portion for the first 25 minutes then treads on the last 25 or so minutes. They went over the TV and how the points are displayed there. And I didn't really understand how it worked to be honest. I thought my goal was to stay in the orange...but later found out you aren't supposed to be in the orange for more than 20 minutes total (but, I work during my workouts, and I even held back a little from what I do at home...More on that later.) 

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Let me just say that the rowing machines were actually the coolest thing I have ever seen! I have used a machine before, but this actually had water in it and a propeller. So I was literally rowing water. It was so fluid and really easy to use. We had 2 phases in our rowing/weights section. The first was a pyramid set up where we started with 500 meters rowing then over to do 3 weighted exercises starting with lighter weights and more reps, then the next rowing we did 400 meters, at a slightly faster tempo then bumped up our weights and did less reps, and worked our way down on the meters but faster speed and up to heavier weights less reps. I hit the red a couple of times. Then the second phase was steady 300 meter rowing and doing 4 more weighted exercises like the TRX Bicep curl. There was a TV there with instructions on what exercises to do, how many and directions. It was nice to refer to and we had the coach there to help too!

Next I was on to the treads. I haven't been on a treadmill since my miscarriage 2 years ago, so mentally, it was challenging but again, to move on you have to move on. I was told that there are 3 terms to learn. base pace, push pace and all out. The instructor calls out intervals such as "push pace for 90 seconds" and then "drop to base pace for 30 seconds". It is important to know what these mean for you. For me, it was a walk, faster walk and slow jog. And since I was walking I followed the cues for increasing my incline when it was called for. And we had hill training day, so there were a lot of 10 level inclines for me! And just doing these kept me in the orange and red zone for the remainder of the workout.

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The key to this workout is that everyone goes at their own pace with their own weights, so people of all fitness levels can be doing the same workout, which is pretty great. And by monitoring your heart rate you can see how much you are really pushing yourself or not pushing yourself. At the end of the workout, we had a quick little stretching session. And I met with the coach at the end and we went over my results. She said that my results were typical. But I also didn't understand that I wasn't supposed to be in the orange as much as I was. I was actually keeping myself in it and pushing harder. But, I don't know if I would have been satisfied with my workout if I had only been in the orange heart rate 20 minutes total. When I workout, I make it count. I work for it. So...something to talk to them about if I go back.

Few things to know about OTF:

• There is no childcare at OTF, which would be an awesome addition! But the studios tend to be smaller, and don't have room for it. 
• I would not recommend doing OTF 5 days a week, but that is solely my opinion. 2-3 times a week would be recommended, and probably not back to back. You want to work. And if you are going every single day, your body is just going to be over tired.
• Be sure to bring a water bottle and towel. You will sweat a ton! My studio had a place to refill your water bottle which was helpful as well.
• My studio had lockers where you could put your keys, jacket, phone, etc. while you workout. There  also was a shower and bathrooms.
• If you want to start on the treadmill, get there early. At my studio everyone crowded around the door to get to the treadmills first, and I think next time it would be easier to start with the treadmill and end with weights. 
• Classes can fill up fast depending on location. There is an app you can download to sign up for classes, and if one is full you will be put on a waitlist. 
• You can go to an OTF anywhere in the country once you sign up! This is great for those that travel a lot, or if you have a studio near your office and also one by your house. 
• I also love that there is no time commitment when you sign up, it just goes month to month. If you ever want to quit for awhile then pick it back up later, you can. They have a few payment option plans available, like 4 week, 8 week or unlimited. Or you can pay per class. 
• These workouts are great for intervals, endurance, and to work up a great sweat!

All in all, it was a great workout. I WORKED, and had a pretty good sweat by the end of it. Would I do it again? Sure! I think to track my progress and strength it is a great idea. But, the lack of child care is hard for me. But it is something that I do plan on trying every now and then for a change of pace and fun! Plus I love getting to know other fitness professionals in my area! 

Want more daily motivation and inspiration? Click here get free advice, support and encouragement + a free copy of my Clean Eating guide to help you get started on your health and fitness journey! Don't forget to follow me on INSTAGRAM and FACEBOOK!

Emergency Appendectomy and How To Know When To Get Help

DISCLAIMER: I am not a medical professional, information is based on my own personal experience. Consult your doctor if you have any questions about your emergencies.

#1 advice I will give you right now is LISTEN TO YOUR BODY! We caught this early because I listened!

This week has been INSANE you guys! About 4 days ago I noticed things just weren't feeling right. I was eating healthier and sticking with my meal plans not having sweets or indulging on other things, but I was getting more and more bloated. And by Saturday night my appetite just disappeared. I trudged through Monday, with lessons but I wasn't feeling well again. I also started my new timed eating schedule to make sure I was eating enough, again I hadn't really been eating well. So I was forcing myself to eat even though I didn't feel like it. I woke up Monday night at about 2am to use the bathroom and I had a searing pain in my right abdomen. After the bathroom, I started to shake uncontrollably. Just like I did right after I had a baby and adrenaline was coursing through my system. My head was screaming, "SOMETHING ISN'T RIGHT!"

We called our nurse on call line from our insurance and they urged me to get to the ER. Since there was a possibility of being pregnant, and the area was right for a ovarian cyst, appendicitis or ectopic pregnancy. It was about 3:30am at this point and I drove myself, in my husbands stick shift (not fun to drive when you have searing pain anytime you move by the way!) and after getting admitted and waiting 2 hours for a CT scan, it was determine that I had early appendicitis. I then ask, "if this is what early feels like...WHAT THE HECK DOES LATER APPENDICITIS FEEL LIKE!" At this point I had denied all pain meds, because I didn't want the drugs to affect what we were trying to figure out what was wrong with me. At that point I was being referred to a surgeon at the main hospital for a consult (not confirmed on surgery, but more than likely) Matt had to hurry and drop the kids off at a friends house and bring me Elyse so I could feed her before I have surgery because we didn't know the next time I would be able to feed her.

About at the point I took the picture below, is when I talked to my best friend who is a surgery nurse. And she gave me the play by play of the whole surgery and what they would do. I love information, but at that point, it might have been a little too much to hear, but I survived!

I was then transported to the hospital via ambulance, second time I have been in one. And once there, they put us in my post op recovery room, so we knew I would be having surgery very soon, even before I met with him, they had already decided I would be having surgery. Then we just waited for surgery which came a lot earlier than I expected. Matt had run up to the cafeteria to get some breakfast for him and Elyse and had to rush back down to say good bye to me. Once in the surgery room, they asked if I had any special request for music to be played and without even thinking about it I requested for some Chopin Preludes, because they were not as sad as the nocturnes. I had finally been given my first bit of pain medication at that point and was very happy! Yep, I had denied all pain meds up until surgery. I'm crazy! Yes, the picture below, no meds. As long as I didn't move I was okay.

Surgery went well, and since I am a redhead, I have to get sedated pretty well. And boy they gave me the good stuff. It took me a good 4-5 hours to finally wake up and be coherent. And I was totally texting and calling people while I was higher than a kite! I am sure that some of the things I said will come back to haunt me at some point! Because I don't really remember what I talked about.

I got to spend a good 24 hours in the hospital to recover. I was given the same pain reliever I had during surgery to help me sleep that night. It was heaven and amazing! But being attached to an IV for over 12 hours, I had to get up to go to the bathroom about every 2 hours. They did have me walking about 6 hours after my surgery to help get some of the gas out of my system that they had to put in to do the surgery.

The next morning I was disconnected from my IV, FREEDOM! And told that I was going to be discharged after breakfast. Literally 24 hours in the hospital and about 32 hours from start to finish, I was being sent home.

While in the hospital I requested for a breast pump to help me keep my supply up. It took them 5 hours to finally get one to me, but it didn't work for me. I don't normally pump. Never had to. Thankfully we had 2 bags of frozen milk at home for Elyse but I wanted to make sure that we still had a supply when we got home. At about 8:30 the morning I was released, Elyse arrived for the first feeding since surgery. 24 hours at that point of no feeding. But she took to my breast without any problem, and thankfully I had just gotten my order of Sweetie Pie Organics Lactation Smoothies, to help me with my supply. So big goal, was right when I got home, drink one of them and let them do their magic.

And since, I have been resting up, per my docs orders. Mostly in just a sports bra and shorts because my incision has been hurting and I don't want anything touching them. I'm not going to lie though, it is so hard to see this picture below. I have worked so hard to slim down this summer, and after the surgery, I am bloated back up. But it is because of the surgery. My core is mad at all the digging, poking, blowing up and yanking around they did in there. And it is going to take a little time to get back down. I made some good progress this summer. I am hoping that this helps to fix some of my hormone imbalances, and bloating. But only time will tell. For now I have 2 weeks of no exercise. I have to let my body heal on the inside, since things were taken out and moved around. But I am already doing research on at home recovery workouts to do, and bed rest exercises. So be on the look out for those.

24 hours post surgery, and I am thinking I don't look too bad, even sitting down and I can't engage my core at all.  I will have some fun little scars. But my biggest question is when is this blue iodine going to get off my skin!!! I will keep you all posted on my recovery! 

How to know when to get help: 

We have all heard it, severe lower abdominal pain on the right side with fever, GET HELP! But with women, there can be so many things that are the culprit. Appendix, ovarian cyst, or ectopic pregnancy. These are the things I thought of first, and what was confirmed when we called our nurse on call number. Sharp pain in your body at any time is usually not a good sign. If you have sever abdominal pain on one side, fever, or just feel off. THEN GET HELP! Call your doc, go to urgent care, or the ER. Get seen, because waiting can be the worst thing you can do! It is better to be safe, than sorry.

Want more daily motivation and inspiration? Click here get free advice, support and encouragement + a free copy of my Clean Eating guide to help you get started on your health and fitness journey! Don't forget to follow me on INSTAGRAM and FACEBOOK!