New Recipe: Quinoa Enchilada Stovetop Dinner

Its so great to find a recipe that's full of real food ingredients, tastes good, is healthy, and that you can whip up on a weekday evening in about 45 minutes or less!

One of the staples of the dishes we eat in our house is quinoa. We are vegetarians, so getting a good complete source of protein in addition to the other key macros we need everyday is very important. And while we do occasionally eat the meat substitutes, generally we try to stay away from them due to their high sodium content and processed ingredients. So quinoa is an excellent meat alternative as it is the only plant based food that has all 9 essential amino acids!

I recently came across a blog that was full of amazing recipes to try and I decided to give this one a whirl tonight! It was a hit with both myself and my husband! 

Score!

Here's the recipe:

INGREDIENTS:

2 tablespoons oil (I used extra virgin olive oil)

1 small onion, diced

2 bell peppers, cored and diced

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 (15 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed

3/4 cup uncooked quinoa, rinsed

15 ounces tomato sauce (no salt added)

1 and 1/3 cup water

DIRECTIONS:

In a large skillet warm 2 tablespoons oil over medium heat. 

Add the onion and cook for 2-3 minutes, until translucent. 

Add the bell pepper, garlic, 1 teaspoon chili powder, 

1 teaspoon cumin, and 1 teaspoon oregano then stir 

everything together and cook for about 5 more minutes.

Next add the drained and rinsed beans, rinsed quinoa, 

tomato sauce, and 1 and 1/3 cup water. Stir together

then turn the heat to medium high and bring to a low boil. 

Cover with a lid and allow to cook for about 30 minutes, stirring

intermittently. When its finished the quinoa will be soft and most 

of the liquid will have absorbed.

Let me know what you think! Leave a comment below!

Credit to: makingthymeforhealth.com

Book Review: Grace Not Perfection by Emily Ley

Over the last two years, one of my favorite things to do has become to read books that inspire me, motivate me, educate me, and push me to be better in my life and my business. This is otherwise known as Personal Development.

For the longest time I assumed that personal development was for people with "problems". For people who needed to be fixed. You know what I found out? That's TRUE! But guess what? That's ok! We all need help and we all have areas of our lives that need fixing! Attempting to work on YOU to make yourself better....what the heck is wrong with that?

If someone gives you a hard time for that, you should encourage them to read some personal development. Tee hee! 

For my business I read a lot of books on leadership, organization, self-belief, self-doubt, and how to be an effective communicator. But I can't neglect my personal or spiritual life in the process. These areas are actually even MORE important than the area of my business because they are the areas that develop my character to help me run my business more efficiently! 

A few weeks back I was at Barnes & Noble with a friend and something drew me to this book, Grace not Perfection. Maybe it was the pineapple on the cover or maybe it was the color pink.... Whatever it was, I was drawn to it. I read the subtitle, Embracing Simplicity, Celebrating Joy", and something told me that this was the book I needed right now.

From day ONE I have been nothing short of absolutely blessed by this book. Emily Ley is a beautiful writer who does a fantastic job of bringing you into her world so that you understand her heart and her personality and her REASON for writing this book. It took me on a journey through remembering the grace that God gives me in my life and made me realize that I need to give myself more grace than I have been giving.

What this book also did was help me to realign certain areas of my life in my mind. Though I'm not a mom, I am a full time wife, an full time worker, a network marketer, a group fitness instructor, and mentor, and a health and fitness coach....that translates into a LOT of stuff going on all the time! It's easy in this life to get priorities misaligned, isn't it? Especially as women. We have a tendancy to do this with straight-up emotion instead of logic and that can put us in a bit of a pickle when it comes to priorotizing things! 

I am thankful that Emily took the calling to write this book seriously because it has truly blessed my life! I looked forward each morning to opening it up and seeing what God has ready to communicate to me through the words of Emily! 

Emily

Who should read this:

Any woman who is juggling multiple things in life. Any woman who feels like her world can come crashing down at any moment. Any woman who just needs to be encouraged by another woman who has a million things to do. A woman who needs to be inspired through creativity and humor. 

In other words: ANY WOMAN!! 

Pick up this book NOW! 

I am now looking forward to getting my hands on a Simplified Planner! ← Click on the link to order your Simplified Planner.

I hope you find yourself as blessed by this book as I was! 

Introducing: THE SHIFT SHOP. The newest THREE WEEK Beachbody workout (Coming July 2017)

Just when I thought Beachbody had outdone themselves with workout programs, in comes THE SHIFT SHOP!

I was excited to see that we'd added a new Supertrainer by the name of Chris Downing!

See who he is in this video...look at that smile!

Chris packs a serious fitness credential punch and I'm super stoked to have him part of the Beachbody family! It shouldn't come as any surprise that we found another incredible trainer out there to bring into the impressive list that we already have. What trainer WOULDN'T want to work with Team Beachbody. I mean, c'mon! 

So what exactly IS The Shift Shop?

Let's just say that if you're looking for a challenging, effective, exciting workout that you can do in less than an hour from the comfort of your home and complete the whole thing in LESS THAN THREE WEEKS....this is the program you're going to want to get your hands on! 

Check out this video to see what it's all about: 

The thing that caught my attention is the progressive intensity through the three weeks. The thing that gets a lot of us stuck and plateauing in our weight loss journey is that we don't trick our body and give it something new to challenge it. We are creatures of habit and tend to stick with what's comfortable. This program will automatically get you out of that habit my progressively adding 10 minutes to your workout time each week! 

This program is set to launch in July and I have no doubt it will become another hit in the Beachbody library and a favorite among Beachbody customers! 

   Who is this new program FOR? It's great for ALL fitness levels. If you have a lot of weight to lose, Shift Shop  will be your on-ramp to fitness. If you've spent some time away from your regular routine, Chris will lead you        through a fitness tune-up. It's perfect for literally anyone.

 
   Workout Length:
25-45 minutes per day, 6 days a week for 3 weeks.

   Is there a Modifier?
Yes

   What's Included in the Shift Shop?
You will get 8 workouts that start slow, then accelerate. You'll also receive a Jump Start Guide that helps you start achieving your goals on Day 1, Agility Markers that can help you improve your coordination and agility, a 3-week calendar, and the Simple Shift Nutrition Guide - all specifically engineered to help you achieve maximum results.

   How much is it? 
Just $59.85 if you wish to purchase the DVD set, but if you have Beachbody on Demand All-Access subscription, you will automatically get it for free! (See below for additional details)

   When will Shift Shop be available?
July 2017. Info will be posted here when available!

***Did you know that any of our All-Access On Demand subscribers will automatically get access to this program when it releases in July without having to pay anything extra or order any new DVDs! That's pretty awesome! One of the great things about the new All-Access is that it keeps subscribers up to date on the latest and greatest from Beachbody so that they can always jump right into the new thing! ( CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT THE ALL ACCESS SUBSCRIPTION)

TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THIS ANNUAL ALL-ACCESS SUBSCRIPTION AND JOIN ME IN MY FACEBOOK ACCOUNTABILITY FIT FAM, MESSAGE ME HERE

What do you think? Are you as excited about the Shift Shop as I am!! I can't wait to do it! I know what program I'll be kicking off in mid-July! 

Just when you thought my Superfoods shake couldn't get any better.... Introducing Matcha and Chaga Mushroom!

The earth is an amazing place!

Stunning landscapes. Beautiful oceans. Amazing animal diversity!

The earth is also an incredible food source and humans have been using natural ingredients from the earth to heal and nourish for thousands of years. In fact, that is the whole idea! This trend of man-made synthetic food has only been around for a few short decades. And interestingly enough, there are only a few people groups on earth who live on a mostly man-made diet. Most countries around the world are still growing and harvesting different plants, herbs, fruits, and grains to keep themselves healthy and fit! There are people groups on this earth who rely 100% on things from the earth to treat sickness, heal injury, and prevent diseases! They probably don’t even know that they’re doing it to be honest; it’s just the way that they’ve always done things.

We’re missing out on a lot of things in our Western word, sadly to say.

That’s why when I discovered Shakeology I was intrigued by the science that went into making this product. How the creator would literally trek across the globe finding groups of people who approach things 100% holistically and thrive doing it! 

See more about Superfood Hunter, Darin Olein, here

The trend of holistic medicine is definitely catching momentum in the Western world; but we’re still apprehensive about it because we’ve been so conditioned to think that everything has to be treated synthetically. But I challenge that thought process. I argue that a TON of the everyday ailments, chronic diseases, and auto-immune issues that we suffer from could benefit tremendously from a more holistic healing approach. Though I’m not negating that there is a time, place, and purpose for synthetic medicine as needed, what I am arguing is that we rely too much on IT and not enough on NATURAL OPTIONS.

God put things on this earth for our good! And we should be using them.

This is one of the main reasons that I love Shakeology so much! There are ZERO synthetic ingredients in this stuff. All of the natural ingredients from the earth itself, allowing for optimal nutrition for the body. It’s no wonder why hundreds of people have found relief from RA, IBS, Diabetes, inflammation, high blood presume, high cholesterol, etc. (This is not a medical statement, simply a summary of  testimonies from several individuals along with the results of clinical studies. Please consult your doctor directly for a full recommendation of Shakeology if you are concerned about certain health issues.) Shakeology is designed to repair your body from the inside out by filling it with pro and pre biotics, adaptogens, phytonutrients, protein, carbs, vitamins and minerals, from some of the most amazing superfoods on the planet. Not only does this put unbelievable nutrition into a bag for you, but the process by which Beachbody sources these ingredients is also helping to sustain communities through farming efforts! That’s something that I’m very proud of!

LEARN MORE ABOUT SHAKEOLOGY HERE

A huge announcement that came to the coach network this weekend during our quarterly even was that we will be adding two new ingredients to the lineup of superfoods: MATCHA POWDER and CHAGA MUSHROOM! But what are these new ingredients and why should you even care? Well, let's take a peek at them! 

MATCHA POWDER 

This crazy superfood jumped on the healthy popularity train a few years back. One of the biggest health benefits is that it delivers a mega dose of antioxidants. In fact, according to the latest superfood research, it has exponentially more antioxidants than any other superfood.  

What are antioxidants and why are they important? Antioxidants are naturally occurring chemical compounds that prevent aging and chronic diseases. Some sources you may be familiar with are blueberries and pomegranates. To put it in perspective, matcha has 20 times more antioxidant content than either blueberries or pomegranates.  

Matcha also contains an ingredient not found in other food sources: catechins. Catechins are potent antioxidants that provide cancer-fighting properties and counteract the effets of free radicals that we get everyday from things like pollution, UV rays, and chemicals. In other words, stuff that we're exposed to everyday in everyday life that we can't control. 

From a weight loss perspective, matcha helps to boost metabolism and burns fat. And while it does this it surprinsigly doesn’t raise the blood pressure or heart rate, leaving it a great alternative to questionable products for weight loss that come with a list of potential, scary side effects. Matcha came to Japan over a thousand years ago as an aid to meditation practice to remain calm. It might be new to us here in the Western world; but we should be happy that now we have access to it in Shakeology!

CHAGA MUSHROOM

Chaga has been consumed for centuries in the East, typically as a tea. This is a non-toxic fungus that will typically grow on the side of birch trees in the Northern Hemisphere. There are quite a few health-beneficial properties to the chaga mushroom. 

Beta-D-Glucans help to balance the response of the body’s immune system. This means that is boosts the immune system when necessary, but slows it down when it’s overactive. 

Though research is still ongoing, chaga has proven effective in supporting standard cancer approaches, such as chemotherapy since it has been shown to active the immune cells responsible for combating cancer initiation. 

Chaga also supports the integrity of blood vessels and provides soothing properties in times of irritation. This can prove helpful for individuals suffering from pain, neuropathy, and even diabetes. 

Studies have shown that the betulinic acid found in chaga is able to break down LDL cholesterol (the bad kind) in the bloodstream!

Similar to matcha that we looked at before, chaga also shows helpful in the area of antioxidants!

As you can see, adding these two ingredients to an already amazing blend of superfoods will only serve to set Shakeology apart from the competition even further. I can’t rave enough about this daily part of my diet, and I hope that you will give it a try!

****PLEASE NOTE THAT THESE TWO NEW INGREDIENTS ARE ALREADY ADDED TO OUR NEWEST FLAVORS: VEGAN CAFE LATTE AND VEGAN VANILLA (AVAILABLE NOW) AND WILL BE PHASED INTO THE REMAINING 7 FLAVORS OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL MONTHS****

To order a sampler pack of Shakeology from me, click HERE

To find out more information about joining my monthly accountability group using Shakeology and a fitness program together, message me HERE!