Fall is Flying By!

That sound that you just heard? That was Autumn whizzing by! I feel like the weeks are just flying by and I'm not getting as far into my fitness plan as I'd hoped. Which is seriously bad considering my best friend talked me into a Half Marathon on December 1st. I really don't want to die because I'm not prepared enough. I did tell her she has to drag my body across the finish line so I can be posthumously awarded my medal. I've run other races - Swamp Romp in Kaneohe, the Cove to Clover and the St. Patrick's Day Dash. I'm pretty proud of those - especially Swamp Romp - it makes Warrior Dash look like a walk in the park. But, I've never done a Half Marathon and I fear I will die or be crippled from it.

Rededicating myself to Paleo can only help me in my preparation and I'm aiming to go at it hardcore.
I am allowing myself yogurt but I'm cutting out nearly all other dairy - I'm on the fence w/creamer. This means I'm taking the big plunge...NO CHEESE! GAH! I know, I know...it's madness but it's what I must do. And of course the other big caloric offender - wine/alcohol. I figure I'll indulge once a week on the weekend but sparingly. I don't want to derail my success.

I have Reese to keep me going on runs/walks and he's definitely a great cheerleader/motivator.

I need to find some more creative ways to have paleo lunches. Salad gets SO boring. I want to poke myself in the eye w/a carrot it's so boring. I recently discovered Quorn "burgers" but they're not easy on the digestive system so I'm not a big fan of them even though I think they taste amazing. I'll have to do some investigating into easy, nutritionally balanced, work friendly paleo lunches. I'll be sure to share it here.

My goal is to get up early - 4am- workout for an hour and then get ready for work so i can still catch the train. I can do my elliptical that early  and some floor work - if I'm really inspired maybe Total Gym or a Jillian DVD. When I come home at night I can decide to work out a second time or not. As it stands, I am so tired when I get home that I don't have much motivation to work out so perhaps the answer is to go back to working out super early, as much as THAT sucks.

That's about it for now.
Have a great paleo day!!

Meatza review

I meant to post this sooner, but I've been busy.

The meatza was good, however, it was WAY too much meat. The recipe called for 2lbs of meat that serves 4. It was SO much meat. I would recommend 1lb. With the toppings and the meat,  you will not be hungry. We were full after one piece. It's like eating a bun-less burger. I think I may try to make the pizza w/a different paleo crust since this was super heavy. I enjoyed the flavor but wow, was it too much for me to eat. Even my boyfriend found that it sat like a rock in his stomach.

I recently saw the Robb Wolf Paleo recipe book at Costco, so I'm going to get it and try some more ideas out.

I hope you're having a great paleo day!

As always, please feel free to follow my blog or post comments!

Ginger's Breakfast Smoothie

Today marks a new chapter in my life. I left my current employer for an amazing opportunity at a very big exciting company where my opportunities are far greater to do some really fun things. So, today is the start of the 3 day weekend before I begin my new job.

With this new chapter, I decided to implement a new routine - exercise, nutrition, etc. I am really excited about the future and I'm embracing it starting today!

Along w/my morning coffee - not Paleo, I know but I'm not giving up my coffee! - I decided to start having a smoothie since my typical yogurt breakfast often doesn't cut it. I always mean to try smoothies and I have purchased ingredients in the past w/the intention of making the most badass smoothie ever, only to end up throwing out most of it because it spoils before I can use it. Shameful, I know. Well, that ends today.

Here's my smoothie recipe:

1 cup Almond coconut milk - unsweetened
1/2 -3/4 cup frozen mixed berries
8oz Fage plain greek yogurt
1 tbsp honey

You can add a variety of cool ingredients to make this yummy for you - bananas, kale, pears, etc.

Blend and drink! Yum!

Time to go workout and run some errands. Have a great paleo day!

Miss Pizza? Try some Paleo Meatza!

One thing my boyfriend and I love is pizza. Nearly everyone loves pizza and paleo people often lament the lack of some of our old favorites like pizza and spaghetti. I've tried some gluten free dough, a few paleo pizza recipes that tasted like yuck. Well, I have finally found the recipe I think will be a winner. It's over on http://paleofriggendelish.wordpress.com/2012/05/27/meatza/

I'll be trying this over the weekend. It looks delish on their site and the ingredients are all easy and tasty.

Servings: 4

Prep Time: 10mins

Cook Time: 35 mins

• 2 pounds ground beef
• 2 eggs
• 2 Tbsp dried oregano
• 2 Tbsp dried basil
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 2 cups chopped fresh veggies of choice
• 1/4cup tomato sauce

1. Preheat oven to 350. Combine ground beef, egg, and seasonings in a bowl. Mix with until thoroughly combined. Spread mixture out thinly but evenly in a 13×9 baking dish or round pizza pan. Put in oven and cook for about 25 minutes.

2. Take the beef crust out of the oven. Grease should have cooked out of the beef, and it will have shrunk  on all sides. Pour the grease out into a saute pan and put the crust back in your pan.

3.  Use the beef grease to saute your fresh veggies for about 10 minutes until soft. Spread your tomato sauce onto your beef crust.

4.  Add your sauteed veggies, cheese if you wish ( we used goat cheese, it added amazing flavor)

5. Place Meatza back in the oven under the broiler for 5-10 minutes until all your veggies have browned.

6. Let cool for about 5 minutes slice it up and eat it! Im warning you, its friggen delish! Your gonna want more!

I hope this satisfies your craving for Pizza and adds Meatza to your Paleo recipe book!

Favorite post workout / evening meal

I have recently created a great evening meal that is light, refreshing and perfect for warm summer evenings.

7  Spears asparagus - lightly seared or broiled - your choice - sometimes I use cucumbers instead depending on how the asparagus looks at the store or if it's unavailable
a handful of organic baby tomatoes - sliced in half
1 hard boiled egg - sliced
prepared artichokes - I use Cara Mia's California style for this
1.5 oz smoked salmon - wild sockeye

I drizzle organic spanish style olive oil over everything and then season w/pepper and sea salt.

It's super easy and light and I get the right kind of protein/veggie combination.
The caloric total is around 300 calories.

I hope you enjoy it too!

Have a great paleo day!

What a wild year

It has been an interesting year.  While I wouldn't want to repeat it, I've learned a lot about myself and feel better today than I did a year ago. I'm calmer, happier and healthier. I'm not fully recovered from the abusive relationship I was in but I'm working on it. It was a wild ride but I hung on and I'm still standing. I am looking forward to what the  next year will bring.

One thing I'm not happy about is that during this upheaval I went on and off the Paleo plan a couple of times. I always feel worse off than on but I slid into doing what was easy rather than what was healthier. Not that I ate junk food, it was just eating grains again that really was my downfall. I know it's not about how many times you fall, it's about how many times you get back up. So, I'm back up and eating paleo again. I know it requires planning and being prepared every day and not giving into temptation and falling into easy, old patterns. Just looking in the mirror and on the scale is enough of a reality check. On Paleo I see my weight go down, my skin clear and my sleep improve. Off Paleo I feel tired and my weight starts to creep.

So here's to picking myself back up and recommitting myself to a healthier, happier, fitter (skinnier) Paleo life!

I am also going to try to be better about posting. I've failed to make time to post and to share recipes, tips, etc. I will hopefully be adding posts w/more frequency :)

Thanks for reading and have a great Primal day!

Rawr!

Paleo Parade!

I am excited to say that my darling Angel, my boss and a coworker are all on the Paleo bandwagon! Woohoo! How exciting!

I am so happy that people are getting on board w/the Paleo lifestyle and seeking a better way to live and feel. It's fun to be excited about the program and to see others discovering it. It can seem boring at first but it really is a great program.

I've been working out every day and eating healthy. I'm a little tired but that's most likely from long days and staying up a bit too late. I love feeling reinvigorated and inspired.

I've been on a pomegranate kick....they're so quick and easy to peel and store. And it's a super fruit! Right now they're 2 for $6 at Fred's and I feel pretty super when I eat them :)
The monkeys love to pick them apart so it's even more fun.

Reese is about to get a real treat in the coming weeks as we start back into our running together. I can't wait. The weather is a bit dicey at the moment so I'm waiting for it to clear up a bit. I got some great running pants. I wore them sledding and they were great. I can't wait to do that again too, what a fun time!

Having other people around you while you're doing any kind of fitness/diet/etc is always helpful and the success rate is higher too. I hope my friends are as excited as me. :)

Have a great paleo day people!

Paleo Tip of the Week

This is from Rob Wolf's newsletter and I had to share because the content is great to keep us all on track and living the Paleo lifestyle.  This really inspired me today and I am even more focused on "making it stick"!

Paleo RD Tip of the Week

By Amy Kubal, MS, RD

Paleo Paste – Making the Habit Stick

It’s mid-January and right now you’re probably still all fired up - in the midst of a 30 daytransformation or paleo challenge and still loving your new found paleo life and enthusiasm. Seriously, there is no way that you’ll ever go back to your old pizza eating, beer drinking, paleo treat eating ways. Nope.  You’ve reformed and this clean eating gig is where it’s at. You and kale are like dog hair on a black sweater – inseparable. This paleo thing is going to stick like glue (and not that cheap glue stick stuff – we’re talkingsuper glue here).

Sure, all’s well now; but what’s going to happen when the calendar page flips, the transformation period or challenge is over and any and all enthusiasm has disappeared faster than a trailer park in a tornado. Slowly you start reverting to your old tricks – maybe it starts with a nightly beer (or three), a daily latte, a few gluten free cookies, etc. – but before you know it breakfast is an Egg McMuffin, lunch is a sub sandwich and bag of chips (you tell yourself it’s healthy because you opted for the wheat bun…) and dinner turns into steak, French fries and a bowl of ice cream for dessert. Suddenly the ‘Paleo Paste’ has lost all power and you find yourself coming ‘unglued’ (don’t try to deny it - you know EXACTLY what I’m talking about...).

The ultimate goal is to make this paleo thing a ‘lifestyle’ instead of something that you do for 30 days at a time or only during a challenge. But how the heck does that work? Seriously, life without ice cream and pizza – are you kidding? Here are some tips on making your new found (or renewed) healthy habits stick like glue.

• Make it fun – it’s not all chicken and broccoli. Try new foods, recipes and paleo friendly restaurants. Keep things fresh and keep your taste buds happy too.
• Have a plan and make time to prepare – set yourself up for success. Sit down and map out your plan for the week, stock your fridge and be ready!
• Don’t do it alone and get a coach if you need one – this is especially important for the first couple of months until this gig becomes standard protocol. A partner, team or coach can help trouble shoot and provide ideas to help you make your paleo habits permanent.
• Focus on the feeling – paleo eating, smart training, adequate sleep – when all the pieces are in place you feel good. Maybe you’re hitting PR’s at the gym, you’ve got more energy, or your clothes fit better; regardless of what it is, make the feeling last!
• Live a little - Allow for some ‘treats’ and remember that this paleo thing isn’t a religion regardless of what some may have you believe. You don’t necessarily need to be 100% on, 100% of the time.  There is no, one perfect version of paleo; find what works for you and run with it.
• Reapply ‘Paleo Paste’ as needed – this is the most important part!  If you find yourself getting a little loose around the edges, glue them back down before you completely come apart. Life is a marathon – not a sprint; so you took a water break (or made a beer run), it’s okay – there’s plenty of paste left in the bottle. Use it!

Break out the glue gun - this is a ‘Stick Up’!

Amy Kubal is a Registered "Paleo" Dietitian and the ring leader of Robb's RD consulting team. She works with a wide range of clients from competitive athletes to those dealing with complex health problems. Check out her bio and consulting options, and her blog Fuel As Rx to get your Paleo nutrition fix.