Happy Father's Day!

Father's Day is right around the corner, literally! If you're like me, you're completely shocked it's this weekend and haven't even begun thinking about what to get your father, grandpa, or husband! If you have a father you're shopping for, check out these high protein snacks! I know my husband appreciates when I pack him healthy snacks, especially around holidays when he's bombarded with sugar left and right.

By the way, did you know it is National Men's Health Month? I didn't! Luckily, Nuts.com let me in on that well kept secret :)  I have a lot of men in my life I am grateful for, and their health means a lot to me. Maybe because I work mostly with women, but I've noticed a lot of focus on women's health, and not so much on men's health. I'm glad there's an entire month dedicated to men's health. I know the men in my life can take their health for granted. My husband has horrible eating habits (sorry hun!) and I don't think he's had a single check up the entire time we've been married. I won't rat out all the other men in my life, but they're right there with him. You men can be so stubborn!

If you're a man, and can relate to my husband, I've got some tips for you to better your health. Your family loves you and wants to keep you around. Plus, I know from my own experience, as well as the account of many others, bettering your health can better a lot of other aspects of your life. Take care of yourself! Here are some tips from Nuts.com

I know my dad refuses to change habits because he doesn't want to "eat cardboard and run all the time." But you don't have to eat things you don't like and work out all the time to be healthy. Getting healthy can help you sleep better, help your life feel fuller, increase your stamina, improve your mood, and even better your sex life. I added that last one JUST for you guys.

Baby steps! Making small, sustainable changes add up and can change your life. Here are a few examples you can implement in your life, one small step at a time:

Switch out white rice for brown rice.
Cut out sugary cereal.
Park in the back of your work parking lot and take the stairs instead of the elevator.
Skip TV and opt for an evening walk after dinner.
 Drink more water throughout the day.
Trade out your beer, juice, soda, and any other beverage for water.
Eat healthy snacks throughout the day, click here for some of them.
Schedule and KEEP your checkups with your doctor and dentist. Eat every 2-3 hours.

I dare you to try any of these suggestions for a week and see how it goes! Happy Father's Day!

Chicken Burrito Bowls

Confession: I'm a little obsessed with all these smoothie bowls, burrito bowls, anything in bowls! It's so fun and I've enjoyed trying new combinations. Last night's dinner did not disappoint. You can eat it plain or just add cheese, or go all out and add all the fixings you can come up with. 

For the kids, we just added cheese and plain Greek yogurt (instead of sour cream). I topped my burrito bowl with lime, salsa, peppers, avocado, and plain Greek yogurt ( I skipped the cheese since I wanted avocado). We all went to bed with happy tummies. 

Then today, I made a salad out of the left overs. It was delicious that way too! 

Crock Pot Chicken Burrito Bowls

1-2 lb chicken breasts

1 16 oz can chicken stock

1 cup salsa 

1 tsp chili powder 

1 tsp garlic powder

1/2 cayenne pepper

(or Flavor God's Taco Tuesday Seasoning) 

pepper and sea salt to taste

1 16 oz can black beans, drained thoroughly

2 cups brown rice

3 cups water

Any toppings you may want to add 

In crockpot, pour chicken stock over chicken breasts. Cover with salsa and add seasonings. Cover and cook on low for 4-6 hours. Remove chicken, add rice, water, and beans. Increase heat to high, replace lid, and cook for 40-60 minutes. In the mean time, shred the chicken and place in microwave or oven to keep warm. Return chicken to crockpot and let it reheat for 20 minutes. 

Add a scoop to a bowl and top how you desire. Makes 6-8 servings. Counts as 1 yellow, 1/2 red, and whatever other containers for your toppings. 

Cheddar and Broccoli stuffed Chicken

If you're not excited about the dinner you're about to make, you're probably not going to enjoy it. The best part about meal prep is going through and finding dinners you can't wait to make. I love that I am not dieting, I'm enjoying food! AND I've already lost two pounds since Saturday. It's probably all water weight, but I'm heading in the right direction.

Luckily this dinner didn't just sound good, it tasted soooooooo good! It's opened up a whole bunch of ideas for other things I can stuff chicken with! Spinach and mozzarella. With some marina sauce. Or bacon and cheese stuffed chicken. Pretty much anything with cheese....I'll get working on that!

A few things I would have done differently would be remembering to take the chicken out of the freezer (or use fresh chicken) to defrost rather than having to defrost in the microwave. Instead of slicing it open, the recipe I followed said to use a mallet and pound the chicken until it's thin, stuff, and then fold in half. I was just lazy. My way wasn't bad, but It could have been thinner. I use the giant frozen chicken breasts from Costco.

I could think of several different sides with this, brown rice and asparagus, or a delicious summer salad with fruit, but this is what sounded good last night. Boiled potatoes with a little coconut oil and Trader Joe's 22 salute. Green beans with sauteed with fresh ground pepper and seasoned with lemon zest and a little lemon juice.

The kids ate so well! And of course Jake and I enjoyed it, because who doesn't like broccoli, cheese and chicken!? Plus, it was super easy to make.

If you try this, be sure to leave a comment with what you had for a side/s! I am always looking for more ideas.

Cheddar and Broccoli stuffed Chicken
1 lb chicken breast
1 cup chopped broccoli
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
olive oil
pepper and sea salt
paprika

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a pyrex pan with extra virgin olive oil.

Step 1-  Chop up broccoli into small pieces. Shred cheddar cheese. Set aside.

Step 2- Slice chicken in half parallel to your counter. OR pound until thin with a mallet.

Step 3- Stuff with broccoli and cheese. Drizzle with olive oil, season with sea salt, pepper, and paprika.

Step 4- Fold over or replace flap, drizzle a little more olive oil and sprinkle a little more pepper and sea salt on top. Secure toothpicks to keep chicken in place. Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes,  or until chicken is thoroughly cooked. Remove foil, add a little more cheese, and bake an additional 5 minutes.

Enjoy!

This made 4 servings and counts as a red, blue, and 1/2 green.

Meal Prep Saturday

You've probably heard of meal prep. It's where you meal plan your week by writing a schedule for all your meals, and then prep what foods can be made ahead of time. Since I am a stay at home mom, I don't do as much meal prep as other people do. Sometimes, not always, I enjoy making dinner. I also feel too overwhelmed if I have too much to do at one specific time. My meal prep makes things easier for me throughout the week, and ultimately saves me some time.

I've decided to start sharing my meal plan with whoever wants it, so that I can A) be more accountable. If it's out in the open, I can't be lazy. I've got to get it made. I've got to follow through. B) help anyone who's starting out and might feel a little lost with what to do on this program or eating healthier in general. and C) hopefully show that this is doable and you can still enjoy food while eating healthy.

When I don't meal prep, I usually waste a lot of time trying to figure out what in the world I'm going to make and eat. We end up eating out more than we should. I don't always eat as good as I should. I am not as excited about food, at least not healthy food. We also have wasted food when I haven't meal planned and prepped.

When I do meal prep, I'm able to save time, money, and the resources. Planning out the meals and looking on Pinterest for recipes gets me excited to cook. I look forward to the week ahead instead of dreading all the hard work I'm about to do. Things run smoother, and I am happier.

With all that said, here is my meal plan for this coming week. (I am going off the 21 Day Fix Meal Plan. I am in the lowest bracket. Any extra food that was prepped is for my husband who is on the highest plan).

I know it looks like I only have veggies once-twice a day, I usually have 2 servings at dinner. Some days may vary, and I might add some veggies in with my lunch and wrap the tuna salad in lettuce, or add a veggie for a snack. I also don't usually eat the same thing every day, but I'm getting strict, and boring helps me stay on track! 

Prepping

As I've mentioned above, I don't meal prep EVERYTHING. This week, I washed, dried, portioned out, and bagged raspberries.

These are the amazing portion control containers that come with most of the Beachbody workout and meal plan programs.

I have found that snack sized baggies are super useful! 

Washed and cut romaine and peppers and stored them in mason jars (I have found that the mason jars keep produce fresh much longer than everything else. I am in need of more jars, otherwise I would store everything else this way as well. Except the portions that are grab and go.)

I firmly believe that we enjoy food a lot more if it looks pretty :)

And finally, hard boiled eggs. I get as many eggs into a large pot as I can, fill the pan with water until the eggs are covered, and then place on the stove. Once the water is boiling, lower the heat from High until medium low heat, and cover. I let them boil for 10 minutes, remove from heat, drain, and let cool. I personally like to peel off the shells and store in a gallon sized zip lock bag.

I usually prep at least a few more things each week, but this week I decided to do things fairly simple. I also need to make my overnight oats, but all of my mason jars, aside from these three used already, do not have lids. Walmart run! 

As I make my meals, I'll add in the recipes!
Cheddar and Broccoli Stuffed Chicken
Crockpot Chicken Burrito Bowls

#DepressionSUCKS

I've hit another low recently. A little while ago, I took my pill late, like maybe by an hour?, and that caused me to slip on some of the progress I had made. But it gave me a chance to learn a few things.

Depression is something I've been born with. I used to feel so scared with what could go on in my mind and my behavior. I HATED feeling different than my peers. I hated being sad. I hated feeling lonely. But now, I accept it as a gift. Because I struggle, I can understand others who struggle with depression and mental illness. Those who haven't struggled don't always understand how we can be feeling.

First, when we have depression, we have to ACCEPT it. I have tried to get by on my own. But I need medication.

Second, we need to find a combination that works for us. We can't just rely on medication, and expect it to make our lives perfect. Sadly, it doesn't work that way. We still need to put in some work. For me personally, I need to exercise every day (I choose to skip Sunday for religious reasons), eat healthy and avoid gluten, and spend a lot of time going outside and leaving the house. I need a schedule, which I absolutely hate. Whatever your combination, learn it, and stick to it.

Be honest. If you are struggling, tell someone. Don't keep it inside. I wish to add even when you aren't struggling be honest and share that you do struggle, but sadly we feel the need to keep it inside so others don't know. If we were more honest, and it became less of a taboo subject, maybe a difference could be made.

There are a lot of stigmas surrounding mental illness. There shouldn't be. If someone is sick, they get help. If you had a heart disease, you would take your pills. See the doctor. No one would judge you for that. Our brains are the most important organs. We need to care for them.

There are days I wake up and don't want to do anything but stay in bed and watch Greys Anatomy and eat junk food. There are days that the sound of my beautiful children's voices irritate me, and my husbands face make me ANGRY. There are days I cry and cry for no reason. There are times my house gets unbelievably messy and I get so overwhelmed. There are days I hate everyone and would like to be alone.

Depression sucks. Depression is scary. Depression is real.

But it can also be managed, and then we can find joy again in our lives. I have been blessed with some really great moments and times in my life where I haven't felt much depression. That is what I work towards. To be able to feel those happy times. Sometimes, the work doesn't feel worth it and I'd like to just hole up on my couch with my Grey's Anatomy and comfy clothes. But the good times are always worth it. We just have to get there.