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Chicken Fried Brown Rice with Veggies!

The key to making fried rice like you get in the restaurant, is using cold rice! So first, you have to ‘accidentally’ make too much rice for dinner some night. THEN, a couple of nights later, you have to remember that you MEANT to do that, so that you could make some fried rice! I used brown rice that I cook in my Instant Pot, because that thing RULES! I could NEVER cook brown rice right until I got one of those babies! Now, that’s ALL I make! Go ME!  You can eat this as a main dish, OR as a side dish with some delish Asian-inspired entrée! Either way, it’s a crowd-pleaser. 🙂


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Chicken Fried Brown Rice with Veggies!

serves 4

Ingredients:

  • 1 T. coconut oil
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 2 large egg whites
  • 1 ½ cups cooked brown rice, cooled
  • 8 oz. cooked boneless, skinless chicken breast (chopped)
  • 8 oz. frozen peas (about 1 cup)
  • 2 carrots cut into small coins (about 1 cup)
  • *or just add 2 cups frozen mixed veggies (or any veggie combos you like)
  • 2 T. reduced sodium soy sauce, or Bragg’s liquid aminos
  • 1 green onion, sliced thin (for garnish – optional)

Preparation:
1. Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.
2. Add onion; cook, stirring frequently, for 4 to 5 minutes, or until onion begins to soften. Reduce heat to medium.
3. Add egg whites; cook, stirring frequently, for 2 to 3 minutes, or until eggs start to set.
4. Add rice, chicken, peas, and soy sauce; cook, stirring frequently, for 3 to 4 minutes or until heated through.
5. Divide evenly into four serving bowls; garnish evenly with green onion.

享受！(I think/HOPE that means, “Enjoy!”) 🙂

Portion containers: 1 red, 1 yellow, 1/2 green, 1/2 blue/orange

*252 calories and 23 grams of protein per serving

The 21 Day Fix meal plan makes it SO easy to plan, prepare and track daily nutrition. Women I work with lose up to 3-5 pounds per week! Combine the nutrition with daily 30 minute workouts and you’ll see results (or your money back!). GUARANTEED!

What is the 21 Day FIX?

Check out my friend Michelle’s results after 2 rounds of the 21 Day Fix. She joined a challenge group (see below) and the daily support and accountability helped her reach her goals!

Michelle_C_results

And the 80 Day Obsession program uses the same container system (cause it works!) combined with 30-40 minute strength training workouts for AMAZING results!

PS – BOTH of these programs and hundreds more are NOW AVAILABLE with the all new all new Annual ALL ACCESS Beachbody on Demand Membership (like workout Netflix)! Get 12 months ALL Access to every Beachbody Program ever made, including all new releases, for 12 months!

Do you already have BOD or a Beachbody program? If you need some extra support and accountability, be SURE to join my next support group and I’ll help you stick with it and reach your goals! I’ll share daily tips, recipes and motivation as well as be available to support and encourage you 24/7. 🙂

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This is Going to be BIG!

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So we have a little competition going on among Beachbody coaches right now! But get this, if we win…YOU win! The goal: change more people’s lives through health and fitness!

THE OPPORTUNITY: This will be an opportunity like NO other! I am co-hosting a group challenge! Get this: FIVE coaches, including myself and the amazingly awesome Jenelle Summers, will be coaching, motivating and helping each participant reach their individual goals! It will be a “Biggest Loser” style challenge (LOVE that show!), starting on Monday August 12 and running for 30 days! Stick with us for 30 days, and you’ll be well on your way to making some really positive changes in your life! And, if you join this challenge on my team, you’ll get me as your coach for these 30 days and beyond! This is going to be FUN!

THE CHALLENGE: This challenge will be open to anyone who is ready to invest in something that will kick-start some serious results! We’ll be working out, eating clean and keeping each other ON TRACK! Workouts can be done from home and we’ll give advice and tips about clean, healthy eating. We’ll be doing this together in a private Facebook group! *If you’re not ready to invest in anything, I would still love to hear how I can help you, or someone you know!

THE PRIZES!: What would a competition be without prizes!? There will be one overall winner selected for best results and participation! The winner will receive a $100 gift card AND a special autographed book (join the challenge and you’ll find out!).

THE FINE PRINT: This challenge is open to anyone EXCEPT current coaches or those working with other coaches! (Stay with your own coach please! They love and care about you!) 🙂

READY?! Click the “30 Day Challenge” tab at the top of this page for more information. Read some testimonials of previous challengers and contact me to sign up and let me know what your goals are and how I can help you reach them!

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Better Late than Never!

I did the meal plan! I swear! But I got caught up in all of the Father’s Day festivities yesterday, and just didn’t find a minute to post about it!

I had a couple of splurges over the weekend, just keepin’ it real! We went out for ice cream, and I used to always say, “No thank you”. But my kids began to hate that about me. They wanted to see me enjoying a dish of ice cream as much as they were. And so I decided, that since we go rather infrequently, it’s o.k. to have a scoop or two here and there. And for me I know that it’s not a slippery slope. I like ice cream, don’t get me wrong, but it’s not a ticket to nutrition disaster for me. Now french fries on the other hand…that’s going to be a problem. Therefore, I tend to avoid that temptation all-together!

Anyway…I digress. The point of my splurge admission, is that I’m looking forward to a week of planned meals and staying on track nutritionally. So far, I’m off to a great start! 🙂 And I’m going to need it, because I also just started the second phase of Insanity. Today was the first workout of that madness, and OMG! Have you ever had to crawl to your water bottle?!

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Click here to print and link to recipes.
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Analysis Paralysis

Back+To+Basics

When you make something more difficult than it has to be, it can become so overwhelming that it seems impossible to actually do. Take health/nutrition/the quest for the body you have always wanted. You could read a thousand different articles, theories, magazines, blogs, tips, suggestions, etc…You’ll read about counting your macros, eating certain foods, wearing special shoes, doing your workouts at specific times of day, walking vs. running vs. HIIT workouts vs. crossfit, cardio vs. strength-training, and on and on…But when you boil it all down, all that you really need to do is 2 things: eat well and exercise. That’s it.

I have had challenge participants in the past who have become overwhelmed during the process, because they start over-thinking it. How much protein should I eat? How many days should I lift weights vs. cardio? What shoes should I wear? What if I miss a day? What muscle groups should I focus on/how many days per week? How many reps should I do? I’m not saying that these aren’t important questions to ask. But they’ll spend all of this time scrolling through pages and pages of different tips and pictures and workouts and diet suggestions and recipes. Before you know it, they have spent SO much time thinking about working out, that they never had the time to actually do it! And even though they have read about clean eating, and healthy foods and pinned a bunch of recipes that they wanted to try, they have to grab something quick to eat because they ran out of time.

 
I think there are a couple of things going on here. I think there is an element of avoidance. Since they’re spending time reading about health and fitness, somehow it seems productive. But they’re not actually DOING anything productive. We live in a world where information is everywhere, at our fingertips, on t.v., your computers and tablets, anything you ever wanted to know about anything is right there. And you could never read it all! You’ll find 10 different theories about healthy eating in less than 10 minutes on the internet. You’ll find dozens of workout theories in the same amount of time. So what’s right? What do you do? Well, don’t spend so much time looking, scouring and pinning, that you become paralyzed by all of the information. All you need to know is 2 things. Eat well and move daily!

DIET-AND-EXERCISE
We all have a basic enough knowledge of food to know that some things are good for you, and some just aren’t. I mean the absolute BASICS!

  • Fruit and veggies = GOOD!
  • Chips = BAD!
  • Whole grains = GOOD!
  • Box of mac and cheese = BAD!

When all else fails, avoid the aisles (where all of the processed food lives) and shop the perimeter of the store. You’ll get most of your healthy food there.

 
And as far as exercise goes: lace up a pair of shoes and move: dance, run, jog, walk, jump rope, dvd workout (I can certainly recommend a few!), box, pick things up and put them down, air guitar! Whatever floats your boat, do for 30-60 minutes every day! Go ahead and get a little sweaty! It can’t hurt! 🙂

 
Once you have that totally mastered, and I mean MASTERED it – Like it’s an everyday daily non-negotiable habit, THEN you can pay a little more attention to details. Go ahead and read about protein and the many benefits of strength training, and calculating your macro-nutrients, and picking the perfect fitness shoe, etc…but wasting time on the minutia, especially at the beginning of your fitness journey, just takes your attention away from the basics. Find healthy foods you like to eat, and find a workout or 2 that you enjoy doing. Get yourself an accountability partner, fitness coach (ME!) or join an accountability group (check out the 30 Day Challenge tab at the top of this page), and get working on making a lifestyle change that involves just the 2 basics. It takes 21 days to form a habit (good or bad). Do these 2 basics for 21 days, and you’re set!

 
In short, don’t make it harder than it has to be. Put down the smart phone, step away from the lap-top, stop pinning and start DOING!

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And Now the Meal Plan

This is a crowd-pleasing meal plan this week! My kids will enjoy dinner every night! I’m going to keep telling myself that until I believe it! LOL! No really…actually…these are a lot of our favorite recipes. Tonight, in celebration of Cinco de Mayo, we’ll have shredded chicken tacos, and the kids really like them! I’ll have to blog about my Spanish quinoa soon. I make this instead of Spanish rice, and nobody even complained about it! I’m going to have a little more time on my hands this week than I did last week, thank goodness! I’ll be able to spend a little more time in the kitchen. Hopefully not TOO much time though. 🙂

I’m starting Insanity this week, which I’ve built up in my head to be this super, crazy, impossible thing that is hard, intense and demoralizing. I am hoping that the more I convince myself of this, the more relieved I will be to learn that it is not the case. I will do the fit test tomorrow, so we’ll see how it goes. I’ll keep you posted!

Have a wonderful week!

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Click here to print and link to recipes.
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Chicken, Fruit and Veggie Stir Fry

It’s been awhile since I shared a recipe. You won’t believe how easy and delicious this is! This received rave reviews from the family! As always, I started with a recipe in my hand, but then quickly put it down and went my own way with it. 🙂

I think the key here is to let your chicken marinate for at least 30 minutes, but up to 8 hours. Then you’ll just need to chop up your veggies and pineapple and throw it all together.

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 T. sesame oil (or coconut oil)
  • 1/3 cup liquid aminos or low-sodium soy sauce
  • 1/3 cup chicken broth
  • 1/4 cup raw honey
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 tsp fresh ginger, grated (you could use dry if you don’t have fresh)
  • 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
  • 1 1/2 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 4 breasts), chopped into 1-inch pieces
  • 1 medium bell pepper (any color), cut into 1-inch chunks (about 1 cup)
  • 1 head broccoli, chopped into florets
  • 2-3 carrots peeled and sliced
  • 1 fresh pineapple, cut into 1-inch cubes
  • 1/4 c. water (or broth)
  • 1 T. corn starch
  • Serve over cooked brown rice, quinoa, or eat as is.
  • *optional extras: bamboo shoots, snow peas, water chesnuts, green onions (hubby doesn’t like them, but they would be good), almonds or peanuts

Notes: If you like your Chinese food a little ‘saucy’, double the sauce. And if you like it more spicy, add more crushed red peppers. Make it your own! 🙂

INSTRUCTIONS:

  1. In a small bowl, whisk together aminos/soy sauce, broth, honey, garlic, ginger and pepper flakes. Place chicken in a large shallow dish or Ziploc bag. Pour soy sauce mixture over chicken, tossing gently. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or up to 8 hours.
  2. Heat oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and marinade and sauté for 5-10 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. Remove chicken from pan and reserve. Add broccoli and cook for about 3-5 minutes. Then add the sliced carrots and bell peppers and cook for 5 minutes or until vegetables are slightly tender. Add pineapple and cook for 2 more minutes. Add reserved chicken back to the pan. Whisk together the water (or broth) and corn starch and stir into the pan to thicken the sauce. Serve over brown rice.

This recipe made about 6 servings and fits perfectly in to the container systems for programs like 21 Day Fix and 80 Day Obsession.

Containers for 1 serving over brown rice or quinoa:

1 red, 1 green, 1 purple, 1 yellow, 1 tsp. (I sometimes add a blue container of peanuts to my serving)

Have the programs and the containers but need some help planning, feeling motivated and accountable? Join my next support group for free!

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Current Groups

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Another Sunday, Another Meal Plan

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I have a little bit of ADD. Seriously…don’t we all? I sat down to do my meal plan, got about 20 minutes into it, and found myself making turkey meatloaf muffins and cleaning the kitchen. I like to start a project, and then start 3 more projects in the meantime. I’m not sure why that is, but it is. I will go to do a load of laundry. On the way to the laundry room, I’ll get sidetracked by a library book that should have been returned weeks ago! I’ll pick that up and go to put it in my bag, so that I won’t forget, and notice my checkbook. Oops, forgot to write that check for gymnastics class. Looking for a pen, I see the phone. First I’ll call my mom back and see what she wanted. While I’m talking, I’ll walk around and put the kids’ toys away that they left out all over the house. I’ll walk up to their bedrooms and notice my laptop that they swiped from me. I’ll carry that downstairs and remember I was looking for a pen. I’ll go get a pen and see the dogs bowl is empty…better feed him. Go get the dog food and see the laundry basket that I set in front of the washer 2 hours ago. And that’s how it goes most days. It’s a wonder I get anything done at all!

But I DID get my meal plan done for the week! So at least there’s that!

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Click here to print and link to recipes.
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Tzatziki Burps!

gyro_assembledI have had these recipes around for quite a while, and I have enjoyed them on several occasions. However, this week, I made them with ‘clean-eaters’ eyes. What I saw delighted me! These are a delicious and healthy alternative to the traditional gyro. The chicken is worth making again and again, even if just for salads, or even on its own. It is THAT good! But put in a pita, with some tomato, red onion and a healthy dollop of tzatziki sauce, and you have got yourself a CLEAN and tasty Gyro!

I lived in the Chicago area for almost 20 years and knew exactly where to go for a tasty gyro. Even before my ‘clean-eating’ days…I was always kind of health-nut. But, occasionally (like once or twice/year maybe) I would treat myself to an authentic Greek gyro! Add fries, and you’re probably looking at about 1000 calories! Yikes! But, they’re so tasty! And if you have never had a gyro, then you have never experienced how a gyro can sort of ‘stick with you’ for a while. You’re guaranteed to offend someone (even yourself!) with gastric expulsions of air for the rest of the day after you have eaten one. It’s sort of the true test of a good gyro! So using that criteria…these are almost as good! 😉

Chicken for Gyros

2 cloves minced garlic

1 lemon – juiced (2-3 T)

2 t. red wine vinegar

2 T. extra virgin olive oil

2 heaping Tablespoons plain Greek yogurt

1 T. dried oregano

Salt and Pepper

1 ½ pounds (about 3 large) boneless, skinless chicken breast

*Combine all of the ingredients (except chicken) and whisk completely. Rinse chicken and pat dry. Place into a large Ziploc bag. Pour marinade over the chicken and refrigerate for 1 hr-1 day (the longer the better!)

Meanwhile…make the sauce!

Tzatziki Sauce

1 C. plain, Greek, non-fat yogurt (I LOVE Fage!)

1 cucumber, peeled and seeded

1 clove minced garlic

1 t. white wine vinegar

Salt and pepper

Squeeze of fresh lemon juice

Directions: Shred the cucumber or chop in food processor. Wrap in a paper towel and squeeze to remove as much water as possible. Mix together the yogurt, shredded cucumber, garlic, white wine vinegar, salt and pepper to taste, and lemon juice. *Refrigerate 30 minutes-1 day before serving to allow flavors to blend.

To cook the chicken – You could cook it in the skillet, BUT my favorite way to prepare it is under the broiler. I think it makes it perfectly juicy and delicious! You will have to know your own broiler though for this! It also will depend on the size/thickness of your breasts (well…not YOUR breasts, but you knew what I meant!) You could even butterfly the breasts first, to make sure that it cooks all of the way through. I have a gas broiler. I set mine 2 shelves from the flame and let it cook for about 7-8 minutes on each side, watching VERY closely to make sure they weren’t burning! When they looked done on the outside, I moved them down 2 racks and let them cook another 7-8 minutes. They were done perfectly! Then, definitely move them to a plate and let them sit for about 5 minutes before slicing to seal the juices inside.

Finally, you’re ready to slice and serve! Cut the chicken into strips, heat up some whole wheat pitas. Slice some red onion and tomato. Assemble each gyro with chicken slices, tomato, onion and a big plop of tzatziki sauce. gyro_unassembled

Made this way: ½ whole wheat pita (80 calories) + 1 serving meat (90 calories) and 1 serving sauce (10 calories), you’ve got yourself a 180 calorie gyro!

Ok…now if you want to treat yourself a little read on. I grew up in Michigan and LOVED to eat at Olga’s in the mall. It’s like an Americanized gyro restaurant, but the bread is to die for! So I have this recipe for Olga bread that is an exact replica! The kids LOVE these and they are kind of fun to make. They’re going to cost you a few more calories, but if you’ve been working out and staying healthy, then you’re allowed the occasional splurge! These go quite nicely with the chicken! *I’d like to try these with all or partial whole wheat to clean them up a little.

‘Olga’ Bread

1 C. milk

¼ C. honey

¼ c. butter

1 t. salt

1 pkg. active dry yeast

¼ c. warm water

1 t. sugar

4 C. all-purpose flour, divided

1 egg

Directions– Scald milk (this means to heat until the milk just starts to bubble at the sides and then remove from heat!). Add honey, butter and salt to milk. Stir until butter is melted. Set aside to cool until lukewarm. Combine yeast, warm water and sugar. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Set aside.

Add 1 ½ cups of the flour to lukewarm milk mixture and beat well. Mix in egg and yeast mixture. Add remaining flour, a little at a time, until sticky dough is formed. Turn out on a floured surface. Knead about 2 minutes. Dough will be sticky, but don’t add more flour. Place dough in oiled bowl, turning once to oil whole surface of dough. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand in warm place until doubled in bulk. Punch down dough. Divide into 16 equal pieces. Roll each piece to a thin rough circle about 1/8 inch thick and 8-10 inches in diameter.

Heat a large dry skillet over medium-high heat. Do not use any oil. Cook for 15-20 seconds, flip and bake about 10-15 more seconds on the other side, until brown spots appear. Do not over-cook. Transfer to plate turning often as you add to the pile. Eat right away, or store in a plastic bag once cooled and refrigerate or freeze for later.

Makes 16- 1 Olga bread is 152 calories, so if you use this in place of the whole wheat pita, then you’re at 252 calories per gyro.

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 Add these to your meal plan! Tzatziki burps for everyone!

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My View from the Front Row

lift_spiritsSo, I posted this picture on Facebook the other day, because I liked the message quite a bit. The day before that I posted some pretty amazing results from a couple of my favorite challenge group members, who also happen to be my aunt and my cousin. I have a challenge group going with some of my cousins and my aunt and they have all been so gracious, kind and thankful ever since I invited them to get started. BUT, I insist that THEY are the ones who deserve all of the credit, and that I’m just fortunate enough to get a front row seat. This is truly how I feel about it.

You can’t get the results these ladies are getting without a strong desire to change. It comes from inside of you. You can be inspired by others, and motivated by things you see and hear, but until you flip that switch that’s someplace inside of you, at the right moment in time, nothing can happen. I just have to hope, that what I say and do connects with someone at just the right time, because that’s when the magic happens. Once you flip your switch, you’ll just start to get it. You’ll want it. You won’t stop until  you reach your goals. And then you WON’T stop, because it’s not something that has a beginning, middle or end. It’s a process. It’s a journey.  And if I’m lucky, I get to be there to see it…from the front row!

Losing weight and getting fit and healthy is so much more of a mental battle than a physical one. It’s a mindset. It’s taking the little steps everyday, knowing that this isn’t a quick fix, it’s a lifestyle change. If you don’t want the life-change, than it will never work. Let me say that again: If you’re not willing to change your life, IT. WILL. NEVER. WORK. You really can’t ‘dabble’ in health and fitness. There’s no sense in it. Why would you kill yourself in the gym for an hour, and then stop and get a cheeseburger on the way home? You have to flip your switch to ON. You have to commit to change. And here’s the good news: it’s totally, entirely, incredibly, unbelievably do-able! You can ask anyone of the challengers from my groups who have ‘gotten it’. They switched ON and it all makes sense now!

Here is the secret: Eat clean and exercise. That is it. There is no fad diet that will do what those two things will do for you. Will you have to change your habits? Yes. Will it be hard at first? You bet. Can you do it? I’ve seen people busier, older, more tired, with more physical restrictions, crazier work schedules and more excuses than you, and they’re doing it. How? Their switch is ON! That is all it takes. Because it changed their priorities, the way they use their time and their mindset. I have had a front row seat to see the journey they’ve been on ever since, and they are my motivation!

And here is the nicest thing anyone has said to me in a long time. When I insisted that THEY take all the credit for the hard work they had done, my cousin said this (I’ve copied it and saved it because it really meant the absolute world to me): “you definitely deserve some credit! Without you, I wouldn’t be where I am. I wouldn’t have started… We each have to individually and physically take responsibility for what we put into our bodies for fuel and for what exercise we do with our bodies, but because your heart is so strong (you lift our spirits so much!), you are giving others the strength and confidence to do this, when maybe they couldn’t/don’t do it on their own! Like I said… thanks is not enough. You have a gift and it is such an awesome thing to share with others! You are the greatest coach ever! And I am so glad you like the front row seats!!! THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU! ”

<Gulp>

I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again. I love this job! I am so lucky! And I can’t wait to help someone else flip their switch and see the results and the success that comes from the hard work, the time and the commitment to their own health and fitness. Is it going to be you? Spring is such a great time to get started, and if you’re ready…I am too! Get yourself signed up for my next 30 Day challenge. It will start April 1. Get the results you’ve been wanting for yourself. You can do it, you just have to want it! Go to the 30 DAY CHALLENGE link at the top of this page to sign up, or get more information. I hope I get to watch you from the front row, too!