My 'AH HA' Moment..

So I said I would elaborate on my ah-ha moment in a blog, so here I go!

I took Hotel Management in college, I love working with people, so I thought this would be good. From there I worked in lots of restaurants, and then went out to Banff Alberta one summer (2006) to work at the Fairmont Banff Springs. It was the time of my life, and I met the love of my life...who could have ever imagined???? So from there I moved out to Halifax N.S. in January 2007 to be with Justin, and here I am three years later. In the fall of 2008 I was offered a job as a manager at the first Moxie's opening in N.S., I thought this would be an awesome experience plus I'd be on salary which I thought would be awesome. Note the key word in this past sentence was THOUGHT. Anyways I worked my butt off for 8 months for Moxie's and quit after I realized I was putting in WAY more than what I was getting back in a job that was just that, a job, not a career. Also I was going into this building everyday to try and train and motivate this staff who could care less about their jobs. So I thought to myself...I love working out and I love working with people so why not put these two together. I took some time to think and returned to waitressing when I was fortunate enough to meet the lovely Annie!! She told me about a personal trainer course being offered in the fall of '09 so I took it with her. Now I have my exam in April and can't wait to get certified. Personal training is a short term goal, but a lifestyle coach is a long term goal. I am so excited to really be a part of transforming peoples lives in a way that they will be changed forever!!

Here's to the future...

Diet

Di·et [dahy-it]; noun the foods eaten, as by a particular person or group, example: The native diet consists of fish and fruit. verb to feed.  

People have taken it upon themselves to tranform the word 'diet' into something that means you are trying to loss weight, when really the word 'diet' simply means the foods you eat. So you may follow a plant based diet, a low fat diet or even a junk food diet. The end results will vary depending on the 'diet' that you choose to follow. What does your 'diet' consist of??

And on to fitness...is everyone getting some working out in? Even if it is just walking you dog, or a brisk walk around your block, get out there and get your blood pumping!! One cool but kind of gross thing I have noticed about getting more fit is my veins!! They are starting to POP out of my arms and hands!! On answers.com someone asked about veins popping out and this was their answer;

It's a sign that you've done a vigorous workout and are also a reasonably low body fat/ fairly muscular person. It's just the result of increased blood flow to a region, so it's not really a good or bad thing in and of itself.

So that's me I guess ;)

Have a SUPER day!
                        

What Meat?? You won't miss a thing!

So one thing you hear a lot of people saying in regards to a vegan diet is 'What will you eat?' and a lot of people feel they will miss the fullness they get from meat. So far I haven't missed a thing! The mushroom sandwich is awesome, the mushrooms are just as satisfying as any meat...use portabellos if you are really missing meat.

Here is a tasty recipe that I vaguely followed from "The Kind Diet" (http://www.thekinddiet.com/) and I changed it around to make it my own. You should do the same, change the veg or starch to ones you love!! This one is a Sweet Potato and Lentil Stew...yum! Here goes...heat a big pot on medium, add 1/4 cup of oil (olive or safflower) once pan is nice and hot, then add 1 medium chopped onion. Be sure to keep a close eye so the onions don't burn. Once they become translucent (2-4 min) add some tomatoes and chopped garlic cloves. I LOVE garlic so I would use 4-5, if you don't so much use 2-3. As for the tomatoes, since it is not tomato season, I bought Edens Choice canned plum tomatos...SO good! Canned tomatoes are plucked and canned when they are ripe, unlike whole tomatoes you would get from Mexico this time of year, which are plucked when they are green and sprayed with chemicals so that they will be ripe when you get them alllll the way in Canada! Try to get Organic canned tomatoes also, and use as many as you want 6-12. Save some of the tomato juice for later. Cook this mixture for 3-5 min, then add 5 cups of vegetable stock (preferably organic and low sodium) and one cup of tomato juice from the canned tomatoes. Peel 3 medium sweet potatoes and cut into cubes. Toss those into the pot and add 1 cup of lentils (green is what I used) Bring the mix to a boil (stirring to avoid any burning) and add in a sprinkle of the following, curry powder, cayenne pepper, salt, pepper, basil and oregano. Add more of one or the other to create a taste you love! I like curry so I add extra of that. Once mixture has boiled, turn down to a simmer and cook for approx. 30 min, or until potatoes and leaks are cooked. That's it!! You can eat on its own, or cook some Quinoa or brown rice and serve over that. Also I add in some flax seed, but no need if you don't have any :) This makes a lot so hello leftovers!! I love food that will feed me for a few days.

To finish it all of try this yummy dessert! Use one box of brown rice cereal crisps. In a pot put 1 1/2 cups of brown rice syrup, heat at medium until liquid. Then add in 3/4 cup of all natural peanut butter, stir until smooth (try using a fork to get chunks out). The pour the syrup mixture over the brown rice crisps in a large bowl. Stir so everything is evenly coated. Set aside and let cool. Then add 3/4 cup of carob chips (vegan friendly..not so great on there own but awesome in this recipe!) Then lightly grease (with oil) a long dish and press in mixture! This is a vegan/healthy version of rice crispy squares!! Really tasty!! ENJOY!!

Mmmm Breakfast!

A quote from Micheal Pollens book 'Food Rules' Food Rules: An Eater's Manual is "Breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, and dinner like a pauper". We should be making breakfast our biggest and best meal of the day to fuel us for all of our endeavours! So...here is one great and FAST breakfast that I love!

I like Bob's Red Mill brand. It is a Whole Grain, 8 grain Hot cereal. You just boil 3/4 cup of water, then add 1/4 cup of dry cereal, reduce heat and stir until all of the water is gone (About 6-8 min). Then I add some organic raisins...no sugar added!! and chop up 4 apricots. The raisins and apricots add a natural sweetness, no need to add any sugar/honey or anything else like that. Then I added some chopped up walnuts, some flax seed and 1/4 cup of light Almond milk (or soy/rice milk...whatever you have!) Now this is just what I used today, but feel free to use any other fruit and or nuts! Just be careful of dried fruit, a lot have sugar added, just read the ingredient list before buying. Check the bulk barn for some cheaper ones!! Mmmm a great way to start a wonderful day!

Also....Stay nice and hydrated!! Try the big THREE rule...3 meals, 3 snacks, and 3 litres of water...I know 3 litres sounds like a lot, but get active and you'll have a hard time stopping at 3!!!

Like the cute bowl?? It is from the dollar store (thanks Pam for introducing my to my new love!)!! I think it is so nice to really treat your meal times as something special, so bring out some nice plates/bowels...make sure they aren't too big though, portion control!

Love in Fitness

Just a little one...

So one of the things I would miss most about being a vegan would be chocolate milk!! I LOVE it!! But I was out with a friend the other day and she told me about Chocolate Almond Milk...AMAZING! Almost better than regular Dairy chocolate milk. The brand I bought was "Almond Breeze". They also make a nice regular Almond milk...give it a go!!

OH MY MUSHROOM!! Vegan Sandwich

Mmmm I LOVE a good sandwich...but without meat how can it be good? Without cheese it is pointless!!!! Not so! Here is the most Delicious sandwich I think I have ever made and it is so fantastic.

Ingredients:

- One whole grain ciabatta bun...or any other whole grain (as vegan friendly as possible) bun

- Some form of bean spread (you can even just puree up a can of black beans, make sure to rinse them first, then add some chili powder to spice things up, a little lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste.) Make sure to read label if buying from a store..NO sugar! Or anything ending in 'OSE' (glucose, fructose...that's sugar)

- As much spinach as you like

- As many mushrooms...I like crimini or portabello http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=97

- One third of an avocado

To Do:

- Toast bun...or leave soft, whatever you like!

- Spread on the bean spread...less is more :)

- Top with yummy spinach (or any leafy green...try to stay away from iceberg, pointless)

- Cut the mushrooms and saute them in a small amount of Vegetable oil on med/high until cooked, salt and pepper to taste.

***DID YOU KNOW??? Olive oil is best RAW! When it smokes, and it does have a high smoking point, it turns into trans fat http://www.oprah.com/health/Nutrition-Facts-About-Olive-Oil-Health-Advice-from-Dr-Katz

- Then scoop out one third of an avocado and top with the top half of the bun!

Yum Yum!! You can make this your own..if you don't like mushrooms (you are crazy) you can saute up some onions or peppers. You can also make it an open-faced sandwich and save the other half of the bun for lunch the next day. Have fun...experiment!

What's It All About??

My blog is to show people that you can do anything. I am not a veteran in the fitness world...just a beginer. So exploring is my thing! I am reading all kinds of interesting books on different lifestyles. Right now I am reading 'The Kind Diet' by Alicia Silverstone. It is amazing! She is a vegan...so I am trying to incorporate some vegan eating into my day to day. So far not too bad, a little difficult. However if I can do it so can you.

I will be posting recipes I try and ones I create. Also posting some new workout ideas and things I am trying and really like. It is just an honest following of me exploring what is out there in the world of fitness and healthy eating. I am currently in the midst of getting certified as a personal trainer, and soon after that I will take a nutrition course. Please feel free to ask any questions...and if you want to know about any of the services I offer (personal training, lifestyle coaching) you can drop me a post or an e-mail!

In Love and Fitness...

Jessica

Love. Live. Fitness

Hello all of my avid followers!! Well as of right now there are none, but hopefully that will all change soon!

So let me tell you a little about Love. Live. Fitness. This is my small business at the moment...but I know it will EXPLODE!! What it means is simple...you must Love yourself first before you can truly Live your life to its fullest. We are achieving this unconditional love for ourselves through fitness and healthy eating.

So many people believe that to achieve true happiness from within, getting a great body and feeling fantastic is too hard and unattainable. It is if you think that way, that is for sure! That is why we need to really take a look at ourselves and realize that we deserve to enjoy life to its fullest everyday. That is why we must Love ourselves. Enough with the excuses...like my mother says, they are like noses, everyone has one. Lets come together and change our lives, and in turn change our world! You in????