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Author: Meredith Mitchell

Slow Cooker Gingerbread Latte

Slow Cooker Gingerbread Latte

http://healthyslowcooking.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/gingerbreadcoffee.jpg

http://healthyslowcooking.com/2013/09/13/alllyson-kramer-shares-my-vanilla-hazelnut-creamer-and-a-gingerbread-latte/

Slow Cooker Gingerbread Latte

*This recipe requires a small 1 – 1.5 quart slow cooker.* (You can double or triple the recipe and use a larger one if you like.)

Makes 2 servings (unless you drink a venti and then it’s just one serving)
soy-free, gluten-free

  • 1/4 cup (63ml) cold brewed coffee concentrate or 1 cup (250ml) regular brewed coffee
  • 1/4 cup (63ml) vegan creamer
  • 2 cup (500ml) nondairy milk
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
  • pinch ground clove
  • pinch ground allspice
  • pinch nutmeg
  • 1 teaspoon molasses (optional)
  • Sweetener to taste: brown sugar, stevia, agave nectar, or maple syrup, etc.
    (I used 1/2 packet Nu-Stevia)

Put everything but sweetener in the slow cooker. Add molasses. Whisk until ingredients are well combined. Taste and add your choice of sweetener until it’s the way you like your latte.

Cook for 3 hours on low or 1 1⁄2 to 2 hours on high. You are just heating it, so you could also do this on the stove top if you are in a hurry.

I like to put drinks on in a slow cooker before a dinner party and then it’s piping hot and ready to serve with dessert.

 

Skinny Crock Pot Hot Cocoa

Skinny Crock Pot Hot Cocoa

http://nutritionfor.us/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/light-crock-pot-hot-cocoa.jpg

http://nutritionfor.us/2012/12/skinny-crock-pot-hot-cocoa/

Serves about 8 – 10. Recipe slightly adapted from Budget Savvy Diva.
Prep time: >5 minutes
Cook time: 2 hours

Ingredients:

  • 8 ounces low-fat sweetened condensed milk (fat free works too)
  • 1 1/3 cup milk chocolate chips
  • 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1/2 cup light cream
  • 3 1/4 cups skim mik
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla or almond extract
  • Sugar (to add)
  • Marshmallows, whipped cream and chocolate chips for garnish

Directions: 

  1. Milk light cream, milk and sweetened condensed milk together in a bowl with a whisk. Pour into your crock pot. Add chocolate chips, cocoa powder and vanilla and mix well.
  2. Set crock pot to low and heat until chocolate is melted and mixture is warm, about 2 hours. Be sure to stir the cocoa every 30 minutes or so the chocolate doesn’t burn! Add sugar to taste if it’s not sweet enough!
  3. Serve warm with whipped cream, marshmallows and chocolate chips!

Nutritional information per cup:

Calories: 250 
Fat: 9 grams
Carbohydrates: 35 grams
Fiber: 4 grams
Protein: 7 grams
Weight Watchers Points: 6

Thanksgiving 2014

Thanksgiving 2014

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!  I hope you all are able to spend this wonderful holiday with family, friends and delicious food! Here are a few tips to help you enjoy Thanksgiving dinner with out over indulging :).

Pre-dinner:

v  Eat breakfast!!  Don’t skip meals to save up all of your calories for the big meal.  You will make better portion choices if you don’t come to the dinner table on an empty stomach

v  Start the day out with activity!  Even if it’s only for 20min, it will make a difference!!

  • take a class
  • Do the Turkey Trot!!
  • Or just go for a walk and take in some fresh air

v  Stay hydrated throughout the day, drink lots of water J

 

Dinner:

v  First, get a visual for what 1 serving of Thanksgiving Dinner actually looks like http://greatist.com/health/serving-size-thanksgiving-portion-guide

v  When serving yourself at dinner, take small amounts or single scoops. Remember you can always have seconds!

v  If you have an option, pick a smaller plate so that your plate will seem full.

v  Honor the food! Take the time to say thanks and appreciate the food and the nutrients it will provide you. Don’t forget to appreciate who made it too!

v  Talk to family and friends during dinner. This will give your body time to enjoy the flavor of the food – you might even stop eating when you’re full instead of over indulging.

v  Get away from the table when you’re done eating and entertain yourself with something other than food.

 

Looking for some healthy holiday recipes?!?  Here’s 30!  Click the link below to view an eCookBook that myfitnesspal put together with recipes from Cooking Light:

https://myfitnesspal.uberflip.com/i/421086

Here are a few examples of the recipes you’ll find:

  1. Sweet and Sour Meat Balls
  2. Butternut Squash, Caramelized Onion and Spinach Lasagna
  3. Wild Rice, Roasted Chestnuts and Cranberries
  4. Easy Eggnog
  5. Hot Chocolate Fudge Cakes

Yours in Health and Wellness,

Meredith

Healthy Latino Recipe Book

Healthy Latino Recipe Book

This recipe book is awesome!!  You can download the recipe book by clicking the link and print it out if you would like:

http://www.cachampionsforchange.cdph.ca.gov/en/docs/Healthy-Latino-Recipes.pdf

This is what you’ll find inside:

  • Correct portion sizes based on activity level for women and girls and separately for men and boys
  • Seasonal fruit and veggie guide
  • 8 Latino basics recipes
  • 5 breakfast recipes
  • 7 lunch recipes
  • 6 snack recipes
  • 6 dinner recipes
  • 6 celebration recipes

You’ll be able to find something the whole family will love!!  Enjoy 🙂

 

Yours in Health and Wellness,

Meredith

 

Weekly Sprints

Weekly Sprints

Good Morning Everyone!!

For the month of December we are going to do 3 weekly challenges called the “Weekly Sprint”.  Each challenge will start on Monday and end on Sunday evening.  There will be one winner at the end of each week who will receive a $25 Amazon gift card.  Here are the challenges:

Weekly Sprint #1 – Cardio Challenge – Starts TODAY!!  12/01/2014 – 12/07/2014

Your cardio will be measured by minutes.  The participant who has the most cardio minutes for the week, WINS!

  1. Choose your cardio: walking, jogging, running, cycling, swimming, ARC trainer, elliptical, boxing, zumba or cardio DVD…you choose, it just needs to be something you make time for each day.  A circuit training class will count for 20min of cardio and a HIIT class will count for 15min of cardio.
  2. Email me TODAY to enter the Cardio Challenge 🙂
  3. Keep track of your cardio minutes for the week and email me your results on Monday, December 8th in the morning.  The winner will be announced before the end of the work day.

Weekly Sprint #2 – Plank Challenge – 12/08/2014 – 12/14/2014

Your planks will be measured by total planking minutes for the week.  For example, if you plank for 1min, 4x throughout the day, that will count as 4min towards your total planking minutes for the week.  The participant with the most amount of planking minutes at the end of the week, WINS!!

  1. Your planks should be performed on your toes and either you elbows or hands for a straight arm plank.  If you are new to planking, you may start out on your knees for a modified plank until you become strong enough to plank on your toes.
  2. Email me on Monday December, 8th to enter the Plank Challenge.
  3. Keep track of your planking minutes for the week and email me your results on Monday, December 15th in the morning.  The winner will be announced before the end of the work day.

Weekly Sprint #3 – Push-up Challenge – 12/15/2014 – 12/21/2014

Your push-ups will be measured by total reps for the week.  For example, if you do 10 push-ups, 5x throughout the day, that will count as 50 push-ups towards your total push-up count for the week.  The participant with the most amount of push-ups at the end of the week, WINS!!!

  1. Your push-ups should be performed on your toes and hands.  If you are new to push-ups, you may start out on your knees for a modified push-up until you become strong enough to complete your push-ups on your toes.
  2. Email me on Monday December, 15th to enter the Push-up Challenge.
  3. Keep track of your push-up reps for the week and email me your results on Monday, December 22nd in the morning.  The winner will be announced before the end of the work day.

For examples of push-ups and planks, please view the video below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mVETJmRiR34

Please email me with any questions :).  Have a great Monday!!!

 

Yours in Health and Wellness,

Meredith

The Difference 20 Minutes Can Make

The Difference 20 Minutes Can Make

I’m about to tell you how beneficial daily exercise/activity is for you (this isn’t the first and won’t be the last time either) but many of you are still struggling to fit it into your schedule.  I think much of the struggle has to do with 45-60min…if you don’t have 45-60min to carve out for activity, you’re NOT going to make the time at all.  So, let’s erase 45-60min and replace it with 20min.  If you have the desire to be active and you want to feel and look better, you CAN carve out 20min a day – NO EXCUSES, EVERYONE CAN!!!!

Twenty reasons why you should add 20 minutes of activity to your daily routine!!

http://montereybayholistic.files.wordpress.com/2012/12/20exercisebenefits.jpg

One more – psychologically you feel GREAT!  You feel accomplished! You followed through with your plan and proved to yourself that you CAN add activity to your daily routine.  This is a very big deal!!!

How to spend your 20 minutes:

Workout Option One:

20 minute cardio

  • Treadmill
  • Arc trainer
  • Bike

Workout Option Two:

6:00 – Walk, jog or run (you should be winded)

0:40 – Push-ups

0:20 – Recover

0:40 – Plank

0:20 – Recover

0:40 – Hold a lunge position, left leg forward (isolated lunge)

0:20 – Recover

0:40 – Push-ups

0:20 – Recover

0:40 – Plank

0:20 – Recover

0:40 – Hold a lunge position, right leg forward (isolated lunge)

0:20 – Recover

0:40 – Push-ups

0:20 – Recover

0:40 – Plank

0:20 – Recover

0:40 – Jump lunges (or alternate your lunges in place)

0:20 – Recover

0:40 – Push-ups

0:20 – Recover

0:40 – Plank

0:20 – Recover

0:40 – Jump lunges (or alternate your lunges in place)

0:20 – Recover

0:40 – Push-ups

0:20 – Recover

1:00 – Plank

 

Workout Option Three:

3:00 –  Jump Rope or run in place

0:40 – Burpees

0:20 – Recover

0:40 – Side Squats

0:20 – Recover

0:30 – Bicycle Crunches

0:30 – Plank

0:40 – Body weight squats

0:20 – Recover

0:40 – Push-ups with knee dives (bring right knee to right elbow after push-up – alternate knees)

0:20 – Recover

1:00 – Plank, alternating between elbow and straight arm

1:00 – Recover

-Twice Through –

 

Workout Option Four:

Choose your cardio, ARC trainer, treadmill, elliptical, bike, running in place, jump rope, jump lunges, jumping jacks…your choice.

2:00 – Cardio

0:50 – Plank

0:10 – Recover

1:00 – Cardio

0:30 – Push-ups

0:30 – Supermans (2-3 sec holds)

1:00 – Cardio

0:50 – Toe touch crunches (on your back, extend your feet up towards the ceiling and crunch up trying to bring your finger tips to your shoe laces or toes)

0:10 – Recover

1:00 – Cardio

0:30 – Push-ups

1:30 – Recover

-Twice Through –

 

Email me with any questions 🙂

Yours In Health and Wellness,

Meredith