Whole Foodie Fitness

Not like the candy bar! I'm talking about the giant bag of almonds that I scored + my new job = Almond Joy.



There are a lot of people who own almond orchards where we live so we get a lot of free almonds at the end of summer. Its one of the only perks about living in the country.

As you can see the bag is HUGE so I immediatly went to work trying to make some almond creations.

Almond Butter



Almond Milk



Almond Butter Cookies (these are dangerous)



...and a bunch of other almondy goodness snacks, recipes to come!!




I've been seriously neglecting my blog mainly because I just got a job at a gym and have been spending most of my time trying to get new clients and doing program designs for the ones I already have. That and I had a pretty crazy birthday weekend. I'm going to try to post more though, at least every other day!

So far I LOVE my new job! All of my coworkers and members of the gym are really friendly, I get to make my own schedule, the managers don't put too much pressure on you unlike other gyms, and best of all I get to put Bella in the kid's center when Derek can't watch her! I have yet to do this since I usually schedule my appoitments around Derek's work schedule but its really nice to have the option.

I really love training people, its great to see the looks on someone's face at the end of a workout because you know they feel like they accomplished something and instantly feel good about themselves. I'm glad I found a career that allows me to make a diffence in people's lives. When I walk into the gym I'm not going there just to make money like other jobs I've had, I'm going there to make people feel good about themselves and make important changes for their health. I feel very lucky to have a job that I actually look forward to each morning because I know that is very rare.


By the way I'm now offering virtual training with really great rates just because I love putting together programs for people and helping out whoever I can. Click the link at the top of the page for more info, seriously the rates are super cheap! I'm also going to be offering nutrition consulting in the future so look out for that.

Upcoming Posts:

"Larabar" recipes (peanut butter cookie, cranberry almond, & chocolate chip brownie)
Bootcamp Workout
Almond Butter Cookie Recipe
Open Sky store

How is everyone's day going? I just got finished slicing some fruit from our massive garden and put it in a bowl for instant snackage later on

Watermelon, honeydew, and yellow watermelon, yum.

Earlier I put together one of my favorite recipes, whole wheat and flax tortillas.



Homemade whole grain tortillas are very simple to make and are a lot cheaper and healthier than the ones that you find in the store (refined flour and hydrogenated oils anyone?)

Here's the recipe I followed:

4 cups minus 3 tbsp whole wheat flour
3 tbsp ground flax (or just 3 more tbsp flour if you don't have them on hand)
2 tsp baking powder
sprinkle of sea salt
1 1/2 cups water
3 tbsp olive or canola oil

Mix dry ingrediants together then add wet ingrediants and mix with your hands.
LEt the dough rest for about 10 minutes (this really does make a difference I just don't know why, so don't skip it).

Roll the tortillas out to your desired size. I like to do big ones for wraps and a few smaller ones for Bella or a small snack for myself. She's a pro at this step.


Heat tortillas individually on a pan for about a minute on each side and they're done! Simple as that!

My other favorite thing about these yummy tortillas is that there is so many things you can do with them.

You can roll them up with some peanut butter and raisins and top with cinnamon.



Wrap up a salad.



Or grill them a little longer until they're crispy and sprinkle with cinnamon.



My favorite way is with halibut tacos but we don't have any halibut right now :(

Fruit, a few tortillas, and an unpictured sandwhich thin with peanut butter: it definatly was a carbalicous day just the way I like it.

Today was a very non productive day and it flew by fast. I spent most of the day looking around the internet for a new camera for my birthday and I think I decided on a Fujifilm Finepix s1800.



Its a pretty nice bridge style camera for the price. At Target its on sale for $200. I would really love to have a DSLR like the Canon Rebel but I don't know enough about photography to "need" it and I couldn't ask Derek to spend that much money on me.

We really need to go grocery shopping. Today's eats were pancakes (again), peaches, watermelon, a saldad, and some peanut butter concoctions. Nothing really noteworthy and I'm without a camera today anyways.

My muscles are feeling great today thanks to this:




The Women's Health "Hot Body Yoga" App! If you have an iphone or ipod touch you should try this out. I wouldn't say its one of my top picks for yoga routines but if you need a just yoga quickie or if your muscles are tight going through a few of the short routines is pretty fun. The lovely Tara Stiles talks you through the poses.

She's a pretty badass yogi incase you didn't know :)



Question: Sometimes I feel kinda lame because most of the yoga I do is from DVD or something from the app store, I don't go to classes. Some people think you don't get the full benefits of yoga this way. What do you think?

I'm tired. Bella woke up just before 5 am today & decided she was not
going back to sleep. I was trying to think of a breakfast full of
healthy carbs that would wake me up & Bella and I would both like. We
went with whole wheat pancakes with peanut butter & "jelly" pancakes.
I usually stick with different oatmeal variations but the early rise
made me feel like I deserved a treat.

Whole Wheat Peanut Butter & "Jelly" Pancakes For Two



1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp Whole wheat flour (you canexpirement with other
types of whole grain flour)
1/2 cup milk or milk sub
2 eggs
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
Cinnamon & stevia to taste

Mix all ingrediants. Heat on a medium heat pan and flip when bubbles
beging to appear.

Jelly Topping
1/2 berries (I used blueberries)
2 packets of stevia
2 tbsp water
Mix ingredients together and heat in a sauce pan until warm. Spread
peanut butter over pancakes and drizzle with sauce.

This is one of my favorite breakfast treats. I usually save them for
when I need extra energy for a lot of cardio in the morning or days
like today when my coffee just isn't cutting it.

Plans for today so far:

Cardio + Weights
Clean house
Yoga
Maybe go shopping
Budget planning
Look around the internet for a new camera, Bella broke mine and I'm tired of cheap little $99 cameras so I'm hoping to get one for my birthday which is coming up.

This is actually two circuits, there is a seperate sequence just for your core. Complete the first sequence 3 times and then the second circuit three times as well for a great full body workout.
CIRCUIT #1


Do 12-15 reps of each exercise back to back at the end of the circuit rest for 2-3 minutes and then repeat the circuit two more times. (Do the plank once each circuit for 30 seconds)

Forearm Plank (30 seconds)





Stability Ball Rollout hold each rep at the plank postion for 2-3 seconds. For an extra challange perform this on your feet instead of knees.





Reverse Crunch





Bicycle Crunch




CIRCUIT #2

Do 12-15 reps of each exercise back to back, rest for 2-3 minutes and repeat two more times.

Weighted Squat (ommit weights if needed)




Stability Ball Chest Press





Stiff Leg Deadlift





Bent Over Row




Reverse Lung




Tricep Dip




Mountain Climbers, perform for 30 seconds at a fast yet controlled pace.

I'm try to eat as healthy as possible most of the time but my major weakness is cookies. I just can't help it and since we all need a treat everyonce in awhile I just had to try this recipe from How Sweet Eats. They have whole wheat flour instead of bleached and natural peanut butter is actuall very good for you. Next time I make them I'm going to try using stevia instead of sugar. These are of course something you don't want to eat everyday or have five of in one sitting but if you get a cookie craving they are a good way to fill the void.

Since I don't want to take credit for a recipe that isn't mine you can go ahead and find it here
Sweet dreams everyone! I'm off to do a late night workout, its way too hot here to get my cardio in during the day :(

This morning I shared my breakfast with Bella (my toddler) which made
things a lot easier since I'm a zombie in the morning and sometimes
don't feel like making two seperate meals. We shared a bannana, a
slice of whole grain bread with peanut butter, and a bowl of plain
yogurt with a little bit of Kashi cereal sprinkled on top.

Today's workout:
Core Circuit:
Ball tuck
Push ups w/feet on stability ball
Stability ball plank

Legs & Back Circuit:
Deadlift to upright row
DB Pullover on a stability ball
Split squats
Dumbell row (prone on a stability ball)
Glute bridge with feet on ball

Maybe some cardio? Depends on the heat!

High intensinty interval training or "HIIT" is by far my favorite form of cardio. You can burn a ton of calories in short amount of time and it doesn't get boring like tradition endurance based cardio. Many people have never heard of HIIT even though it has been aroung a long time and is one of the most effective methods for fat loss. The best part is you can get in a great workout in as little as 15 minutes! It is also ideal for those looking to build muscle since during an endurance workout our bodies sometimes use muscle for it's fuel.
To get started it is usually best to begin with the 60-30 program. This means you will be doing intervals of low to moderate intensity for 60 seconds (also known as the recovery period) and go all out for 30 seconds and keep repeating in this pattern for the duration of the workout. If you're a total begginer it is best to walk/job intervals (walk 60 seconds, jog 30 seconds). As your fitness levels improve you can progress to a jog/sprint interval routine and change the interval times. Jogging isn't the only option either, interval training can be performed on a bike, eliptical, with a jump rope, and even with weights.
Being that the workout is a higher intensity than others be sure to take a few precautions. Always be sure that your heart rate comes back down during the recovery period, if you don't feel like you can safely complete the higher intensity interval then don't. This form of exercise also may not be the best option for those with serious medical conditions expecially heart disease. As always be sure to warm up for 5-10 minutes and cool down and stretch and the end of your workout. Remember to fuel your body with a pre-workout snack to keep up energy levels and prevent your body from feeding off its muscle for energy.