It’s well documented that I am in love with making my own salad dressing! It’s SO easy, clean, and delicious! It really just takes a few ingredients, as opposed to the bottled dressings that list a PARAGRAPH of ingredients that almost entirely unrecognizable! This is my latest, greatest, bestest, most favoritest homemade salad dressing! This is yet another recipe from the popular 21 Day FIX program. I just modified a few of the ingredients to my taste. 🙂
Dijon Vinaigrette
(Makes 8 servings)
3 T. red wine vinegar
2 T. fresh lemon juice
3 T. Dijon mustard
1 T. honey
2 cloves garlic chopped
ÂĽ t. Sea salt (I like to substitute 1/2 t. Mrs. Dash or Spike no-salt seasonings)
ÂĽ t. ground black pepper
6 T. extra-virgin olive oil
Directions:
Combine vinegar, lemon juice, mustard, honey, garlic, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl; whisk to blend.
Slowly add oil while whisking; mix well
Tip: Store leftover dressing in a covered container (I like to use Ball jars) in the fridge. I often double this recipe, because my husband likes to take some of it to work. If dressing thickens when cold, hold at room temp. for 30 minutes and stir before serving.
Since it’s looking more and more like I’ll be training for and running the Chicago Marathon this fall, this program will be JUST the thing to go along with all of that pavement pounding! I’m not getting any younger, and I am the LEAST flexible person I know! Seriously…it’s ridiculous! I stink at yoga – though I keep trying! Pilates isn’t my strong suit either! I want so badly to be more flexible, but I just haven’t figured out how….yet! I can’t WAIT for this program to be released in June.
Last week, I had the privilege of listening to Chalene talk all about her new program, so I made this video to share that call with you. Listen to her describe her motivation for developing this program and how it’s totally changed the way she trains, and the way she looks!
And click this link to make sure you get UPDATES and FIRST access to PiYO as soon as it’s available!
Today I am LOVING our CSA farm! Do you know what CSA is? I’ve talked about it on my little blog here before, but it stands for Community Supported Agriculture, and I am a BIG fan!
As a CSA member, you pay for a share of the farm’s harvest. So for us, that means that every week, we go to the farm and pick up our weekly share. Depending on the season, we get anywhere from 5-10 different veggies. I have been introduced to some new and exciting produce that I had never tried before. It’s kind of fun actually to cook based on what I get in my share each week. It forces me to look up new recipes and try new things! We are now hooked on kale and kohlrabi as a result of our farm share.
Of course, I’m totally spoiled too…I can hardly stand to eat a store tomato anymore! The colors and varieties of veggies are astounding! I never knew there were purple peppers and beans! Or purple and yellow carrots! Tomatoes come in so many shapes, sizes and colors, but sadly…we usually only ever see 2-3 varieties in our grocery stores. In the grocery store, we get red and round tomatoes, because they pack, stack and keep longer than the farm fresh varieties. The produce we get from grocery stores are genetically modified to look the same, keep longer for shipping and be uniformly sized and shaped so that they can be boxed and displayed efficiently. And guess what they DON’T have…TASTE!
This is going to be my third year as a ‘helping share’ member. That means that I actually work a little for the farm and in exchange, I get a discount on my share! Cool right! My “job” is to work at the local farmers’ market on the weekends and sell our beautiful produce. I like talking to the customers and ask them what they’re making to eat with the goodies they buy! I’ve gotten some pretty good ideas!
And I’ve LEARNED so much! Joannee and Shannon are a wealth of information! Our kids have gotten involved, too. We’ve taken them out to the farm to help out quite a bit. They like to hang out with the chickens and squish tomato worms – the nastiest, fattest, green caterpillar – things you’ve ever seen! And we’ve discovered that when you step on them, they pop like a tomato juice-filled water balloon! YUCK!
Anyway…I’m excited because summer is just around the corner. I just got my first of 5 spring shares that will have a lot of nice green leafy veggies that they grow in hoop houses in the dead of winter in Michigan! I’m in awe of everything they do, and I’m so proud to be a part of it! I love knowing that our food is fresh, clean, local, organic, and non-gmo. . I highly suggest supporting your local farms! If you can find a CSA – GREAT! If not, make sure you check out your local farmers markets, but ask a lot of questions! Not all booths at a farmers markets, are actual farmers…or selling food from actual farms! Get involved, and be informed!
Last week, for FIVE days, a group of ladies – mostly busy moms – made time for themselves! Imagine THAT! We focused on preparing healthy foods, and fitting in 30 minute workouts. We had a 5-day meal plan and a private group for support and accountability. We measured before we started and then hid the scale for 5 days! Five days later, we brought the scales back out and the results were AMAZING!
In just FIVE days, with 12 ladies reporting, they lost a combined total of 37.5 pounds! That’s an average of over 3 pounds each…in just five days! And truth be told…many of them admit to not getting in every 30 minute workout, but by just cleaning up their diet for 5 days, they lost the weight anyway!
Read their testimonials!
Kristin: “I lost 2 pounds and stayed on track. Thank you Angie!!! Your kindness shows through in helping others.”
Chris: “I lost 2.4 lbs., no inches. I love having the accountability because it keeps me on track! Thank you!”
Hope: “Happy … dropped 3 lbs! A start to those unwanted extra 7 I packed on during the fall/winter. Heading in the right direction. I’m feeling real good about what could be an awesome outcome with an exercise routine. Thanks for invite!”
Audra: “I too lost 3 pounds. Believe it or not. I didn’t exercise much. I did love the meal plan. I am excited to keep on going. Thanks Angie. I can’t wait to give the next one more commitment. I’m sure the results will be amazing.”
April: “I lost 2 pounds. I haven’t measured but I notice my stomach is a bit tighter and I cranked up my back workouts this week and loving the progress. Thanks so much for the motivation all week!!”
Sharon: “Down a pound and down 1.5 inches. Thank you Angie for coordinating this challenge for us! I loved having the accountability and the easy to follow meal plan. It definitely got me back on track with clean-eating and showed/reminded me that it’s not as hard to do it as sometimes I think AND I feel better and sleep better when I eat good, clean food! Thanks Angie ! You’re the best!”
Molly: “I lost 4 pounds! I didn’t see much change in my measurements. I’m going to keep using the meal plan but mix it up a little! My typical work day always included a stomach ache after lunch – no matter what I was eating – the healthy choice meal or a salad? I did not have one stomach ache this week!! I didn’t think I would be able to cut out the diet pop – it was hard but not as hard as I thought it would be! It was a very good week – I had to adjust some meals for my kids but hopefully they will work into more of the food as we keep going! Thanks for a great week with nice results!”
Debbie: “I lost 1.3 pounds. I just got P90X3 so anxious to start that. I never have an issue working out. I love to work out. I just can’t get the last bit of my diet dialed in. I have a mental hang up somewhere. Thanks for the great week.”
Stefanie: “I actually lost 1lb. I did eat clean But didn’t follow the meal plan 100%. I exercised only 2 this week. It really wasn’t about losing anything for me, but feeling energized and the good feeling you get when you eat clean!! Ty Angie Beech Hunt!!”
Kelley: “Loved this 5 day challenge! Before I got the stomach flu, I’d say I was at an 8 for the challenge. I love the hide the scale idea…I have to do that more often!!!! I lost 10.8, which some of that was due to being sick, but definitely not all! Thanks, Angie”
Michelle: “Really enjoyed this challenge, thank you Angie. I just got back from vacation so this was great for me to get right back on track! I have had so much energy this week and felt great! I lost 3 lbs and am very happy with that! I would give myself a 7 for excercise this week and a 9 for nutrition! I will be making my own meal plan today for next week. Thanks again!”
Nancy: “I was so excited to weigh and measure this morning! I lost 4 lbs and 5 inches! Even though I couldn’t workout much this week, I think being sick helped me not eat much. Angie, thank you SO much for doing the meal plan. I always thought eating clean would be harder…and it did take some extra planning, but I really liked all of the food! This is definitely something I am going to continue (with exercise).”
Now imagine what those results could have been with everyone focusing on BOTH exercise AND nutrition!
And then imagine what we could accomplish in 21 Days of clean eating and daily 30 minute workouts! Well, some of these ladies are going to find out! And you can, too! 🙂
Starting April 7, I’m starting a 21 Day Challenge. We’ll be using the EXTREMELY popular program – The 21 Day FIX. My first group with this program lost an average of 4 pounds/week each! One of the ladies lost 18 pounds in just 21 days – almost a pound a day!!! This program combines nutrition AND fitness. You’ll get an easy to follow nutrition guide that utilizes neat, color-coded containers that you fill with the foods you need to eat each day. You’ll be eating lean proteins, whole grains, fruits, veggies and good fats, in PROPER portion sizes! You won’t need to count calories or points or anything like that. If it fits in the container, you can eat it! And you’ll find that a little goes a long way! The most common comment from my first group was how satisfied everyone was eating this way every day! They were shocked, because they weren’t hungry! And the workouts? Every day you’ll do a different 30 minute workout. They are so effective and easily modified for anyone at ANY level of fitness!
I’m excited to start another group with this program, because it is SO effective! Deadline to join is March 31 and spots will be limited. So if you’re ready to commit for 21 days and see what you can achieve, provide your information below so that I can get you signed up and ready to go!
*Sorry, no coaches or anyone already working with a coach.Â
#1 Question I get asked as a Beachbody Coach:Â “When is Chalene Johnson going to come out with a NEW program, and what will it be!? I LOVE Turbo Fire and Chalean Extreme SO much…I just can’t take it anymore!”
I’m happy to provide BOTH answers for you!
FINALLY!
Chalene Johnson’s NEW Workout!
Coming June 2014!
Improve Your Overall Strength and Flexibility
Get an ultra lean and intensely defined physique without bulking up or straining your joints.
Introducing PiYo, a high-intensity, low-impact workout for a new kind of STRONG.Â
Chalene Johnson took the very best Pilates and yoga-inspired moves and cranked up the speed to give you full throttle cardio, strength, and flexibility training—all at once. PiYo packs it ALL into each workout so you can build lean muscle mass—as you’re burning crazy calories.
Want to sculpt every single inch of your body? Watch this video about the new PiYo workout.
Now you can carve every inch of your body.
How? You’ll use your body weight to perform a series of continuous, targeted moves, to burn fat as you redefine every single muscle. No weights. No jumps. Just hardcore results.
The result? Problem areas become no problem. You’ll get sleek, long arms, sexy, flat abs, a tight, lifted butt, and the confidence that comes from knowing you’re at your best!
This is your chance to define exactly how you want to look—and how you want to feel. You’re in control.
You have the power to define yourself. Now use it.
Be First To Get Chalene Johnson’s PiYo!
Want to be the first to get Chalene Johson’s PiYo Workout? Want to get the workout schedules for PiYo, meal plans, and everything else before everyone else? Simply fill in the form below!
I didn’t know what else to call these. I could have gone with: “Super-food, Chocolaty Nut Balls”, or “Balls of Chocolate Goodness” (nah!), or maybe “Super-food Nutrition & Protein in One Delicious Little Bite of Nutty Chocolate”? Whatever you like to call them, they’re a hit at my house!
*TIP: Hide them if you want to keep them around for more than a day!
Place dry ingredients into a blender or food processor and blend or pulse just until a course meal is formed.
Transfer to a bowl. Add wet ingredients and stir.
Wet hands and roll into rounded teaspoon-sized balls. You should get around 16 with this recipe.
Put into the freezer to firm-up (about 10 minutes). Transfer to a Ziploc bag or air-tight container. I keep mine in the freezer and pop one out when I need a little something sweet.
A FREE 5 – day meal plan with recipes AND a shopping list!
Daily Support
Daily Motivation
Daily Tips
Daily Accountability
We’ll have a private group on Facebook for daily communications and accountability. You will be amazed what you can accomplish in 5 days! We’ll all commit to exercising a minimum of 30 minutes each day. Combine that with the daily meal plan, support, accountability and your TOTAL dedication and you might just knock your own socks off! The last time I did this plan…I lost 4 pounds, in just 5 days! It’s not uncommon to lose 5-7 pounds! You won’t be starving either. I am not a fan of starving myself! EVER!
*This group is for NON-coaches only, and for those who are not currently working with a coach.
Interested?
Fill in the information below to get ready to SHAPE-UP! 🙂
If you order in February, you’ll receive your program in March and be ready to CRUSH it in just 21 Days! My current test group participants are LOVING this program and dropping and average of 4 pounds/week! That means 10-15 pounds in just 21 days! And the best part is, nobody is starving, or struggling to figure out what to eat, because it’s all laid out. You just fill up the containers, and eat! And the workouts are perfect for anyone, at any fitness level! You’ll do a little of everything, in just 30 minutes/day! This is truly the COMPLETE package! And for 3 more days, you’ll save $70!
To see a preview video, click HERE. To order, click the button at the bottom of this page.
There was such a HUGE demand for the 21 Day FIX, that the program was initially selling out, and Beachbody wanted to make sure that there were enough sales to go around! I have done Combat, and I can tell you it’s a TON of fun! If you like total body conditioning with a focus on martial arts, using awesome music and FUN trainers…this one is PERFECT! You’ll save $70 on the challenge pack through March.
To see a preview video, click HERE. To order, click the button at the bottom of this page.
What is a challenge group? It’s a private group on Facebook for anyone who wants a little extra accountability and support. We workout and eat healthy foods. I share daily tips, recipes and motivation to keep you going until you reach your goals! And…it’s FUN! Deadline to join is March 3. Spaces are limited. Click HERE to get your name on my list! HURRY! Summer is less than 4 months away!
I wanted to congratulate the 2 winners of the Shakeology samples and shaker cups!
Michelle Granzow and Heather Beech – ENJOY!
If you’re interested in trying a sample of Shakeology yourself, or just want more information about it, please send me an email, or go HERE to read more!
I’m sure you’ve either heard someone say this, or maybe you’ve even said it yourself: “Life is too short, you might as well enjoy it!”
There is nothing wrong with that statement, right? Well…when you use it to justify why you eat unhealthy foods, and don’t exercise, than yes…there is something VERY wrong with that statement!
So let me get this straight… the way to enjoy life is eating fried, processed, high-fat, low-nutrition, artery-clogging foods and being sedentary? I guess I must have missed the boat on this one!
We all know what happens to people who spend their lives like this right? Poor nutrition and lack of exercise puts you at risk for just about every illness, ailment and disease there is! Let’s name a few, shall we?
Heart Disease
Cancer
Stroke
Hypertension
Diabetes (which can lead to blindness and amputation)
Obesity (costs 123 BILLION dollars/year in health care)
Osteoporosis
Prematurity (70% of cases are caused by poor nutrition, physical inactivity & tobacco use)
So how does one enjoy one’s life when they have to deal with any ONE of these conditions or even SEVERAL?
And, is it fun to: take a bunch of medications? see your doctor all of the time? give yourself shots? struggle to get around? have difficulty completing necessary daily activities? be tired all of the time? have trouble sleeping? deal with aches and pain? watch your kids head down the same path? Did you know that 25% of kids ages 5-10 have high cholesterol, high blood pressure and other early warning signs for heart disease? One in five young people are obese and one in three are overweight.
I’m sorry…that just doesn’t sound like enjoying life to me! That sounds like a lot of heartache and suffering! All so what?! We can eat whatever junk we want to, and sit on the couch, watching other people DO what we CAN’T!? Is the price we’re going to pay really worth it?
Why not try to REALLY enjoy life! You may have to work for it a little, and it might be a struggle – especially at the beginning, but the REWARDS are long-lasting and life-altering! It’s at least worth a try, don’t you think?
Most of those diseases are reversible, if you start changing some of your daily habits NOW! The sooner the better! The formula is so simple: eat healthy foods, and move! That’s it! Start small, don’t expect to undo a life’s worth of bad habits overnight. You can begin by simply changing one small habit at a time. Set small goals first, achieve them, and set some new small goals. Replace processed foods with whole, natural foods. Instead of watching that t.v. show, take a walk.
There are thousands books, articles and movies about how to get started. Ultimately, you just have to find what works for you, but the key is to just start. Little changes, compounded daily, will equal AMAZING results! And I promise you, life will be SO much more ENJOYABLE when you can truly experience it, and not just watch it go by.
I would love to hear your thoughts about this topic. I don’t mean to belittle the real struggles that people have when it comes to health and fitness. I’m simply questioning the rationale, used by some, that this is how to enjoy life.
May I suggest an alternative? Check out my monthly health & fitness accountability groups. Anyone, at any fitness level, is welcome. We’ll workout, eat healthy foods and keep each other accountable every day. You’ll get the support and motivation you need to stick with it and get results! If you don’t have a fitness program you enjoy, I can help you pick one that is perfect for you! Just fill out this application, and I’ll help you get started.
