Strong is the New Skinny…Or at least it should be!!

I am obsessed with this video and what the women have to say about muscles and how they thought at one time skinny was sexy. My crossfit Coach Tracy shared this in our FB group and what more powerful view of  being a woman can you have!!! What female hasn’t ever wanted to look like the Super Models in magazines, Victoria Secret Angel walking the runway, or just wanting to be something you simply are not ever going to look like! Admit it…we all have!! What I love about Crossfit is not only how awesome it makes me feel when I am done but the strength and muscles I am getting in return! It is a competition everyday with myself! Most women are afraid that they will get bulky muscles, look like a “man”, or are just simply afraid of starting Crossfit! For most of you who know me or don’t…I don’t look like a man!!! Be the judge!!!

I parallel Crossfit to almost anything you have tried in life. For example, if you are training for a marathon you are not just going to walk out your door and run 26.2 miles. You have to have a plan of attack or at least you should:) You start with low mileage and build up. Crossfit is the same. You are not going to walk into a box and start doing prescribed workouts. Your coach will build you up and one day you will reach your 26.2 miles or in my case a body weight pull up! I have a goal to do a body weight pull-up by November 2012. I most certainly didn’t walk into my first workout at Crossfit doing prescribed weight or movement for every workout, but what I do know is that I show up to every workout with a goal to get stronger! After all muscles burn more calories…so basically I can eat more! If your interested in trying out Crossfit, most boxes have free community workouts on a Saturday or some will let you try out Crossfit for a week at no cost! Warning you will have sore muscles, and think you may have injured something…just keep moving…and keep your goals in your mind!!!

Have a Happy Monday! Keep working towards your goals! If you don’t have any it’s time to sit down and make some!

Just wanted to a special shoutout to my Crossfit Coaches Tracy and Mike…thank you for making me feel at home and a great place to achieve my goals!!!

Jenn

 

LIVE IN THE NOW

I never look at my past as a negative…past has created who I am NOW!!!!

I saw this photo on a blog and it just came to me how I am not living in the now! One of the biggest challenges of my life lately has been forcing myself not to look forward but live in the NOW! I mean who wouldn’t be excited about moving to Austin, Texas! June just seems so far away!  Who doesn’t think about their future and where life is going to take you? I mean aren’t we supposed to set goals and have dreams. If it wasn’t for my husband and I envisioning an active life in Austin, I don’t believe we would be given this opportunity to move. However, in order to accomplish dreams there are obstacles some in our control and some out of our control. The fact that there are some factors out of my control is causing my stomach to turn into knots. The only good thing about having knots in your stomach is I don’t eat as much! However, I believe the knot in my stomach  in turn has put an un-godly size knot in my right shoulder blade that is making me think it would be better to have one arm and no neck today!

I try to breathe, pray, go for extra runs, talk to my parents, sister, girlfriends, and even husband to assure me everything is going to be okay. In the back of my mind I know it’s going to be but, the fact that I have no control over my future without voicing my outright opnion to whom it may concern is a first I believe ever in my life. I know in time and with prayer that everything will work out just the way it is planned. It may not be my time or my plan but I know what will be will be! I am going to focus on all the amazing things in my life. So I am going to do what I tell my family members to do…write down the things that I am grateful for right now!!! My list could go on forever but  Here are my top 10 in no particular order:

1. Amazing husband, step daughter, and step son!

2. My mom, dad, sister, brother-in-law, and cutest nephew ever!

3. Ability to do Crossfit @ G3 everyday with some of the most amazing people!

4. Time to write this blog!

5. Amazing friends in which there is never enough time in the world to hang out!

6. Opportunity to achieve my goals in a new career!

7. Wear lululemon all day!

8. My Health

9. My Faith

10. My ability to laugh!

I challenge you to breathe deeply and live in the Now!!!!

Zen Out, Jenn

Paleo Pumpkin Donuts with Caramel Icing

I have had some time on my hands today and my husband was out of the house. That means I get to experiment in the kitchen! Today’s Specialty is Paleo Pumpkin Donuts. I used 2 blogs today to come up with this recipe. One my favorite blogs to read is PaleOMG and this morning she had Paleo Pancakes but what I loved from her recipe was the caramel sauce. Who doesn’t love caramel! However, I wasn’t in the mood for pancakes but I was in the mood for donuts. I found another great blog  Multiply Delicious with a great donut recipe and tons of paleo recipes.Who doesn’t love donuts? I take AJ every friday to the donut shop and watch him eat donuts. Well guess what now he can watch me eat mine, and I am pretty sure that’s all he will be doing!

This is my first time using my donut pan and cooking with dates! This is what I mean by experimenting. The only time I have ever had dates was with my husband at a tapas restaurant and of course they were wrapped in bacon! To die for and I believe they will be on the menu tonight! Recipe is below good luck and have fun!

Recipe Makes 6 Donuts:

Before I started putting together my donut mixture I started with the icing first. It’s kind of the opposite but you have to let the dates soak.

Caramel Icing Recipe

• 12 dates, soaked in water for 30 minutes, pits removed
• 5 tablespoons canned coconut milk
• 3 tablespoons water
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• pinch of salt

1. Put the dates in a bowl off to the side to soak
2. Put the rest of the ingredients in another bowl off to the side
3. Then Continue to the rest of the donut baking!
4. After your donuts are in the oven come back to step 5.
5. Put dates in Food Processor on low, you will have to occasionally wipe the sides repeatedly to get correct mixture
6. Process dates until smooth texture
7. Then add wet ingredients and make smooth
8. Add to donuts while warm to absorb the sweetness
9. Indulge!!!

Paleo Pumpkin Spiced Donuts

4 to 5 large medjool dates (organic if you can find them), pits removed

1/2 cup pumpkin puree

6 eggs (organic pastured if you have)

4 Tablespoons canned coconut milk

1/3 cup coconut oil, melted – plus more for donut pan

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 Tablespoon pumpkin pie spice

1/2 cup coconut flour

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 cup coconut butter, melted (optional)

Unsweetened Shredded Coconut and Nuts of choice for topping (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350 and grease a donut pan with melted coconut oil.  Be sure to grease really well to avoid the donuts from sticking to the pan.
2. In a microwave safe bowl place dates plus 1 tablespoon water.  Heat in microwave on high for about 30 seconds to soften the dates.  Using a fork mash the dates.
3. In the bowl of a food processor combine date mixture, pumpkin puree, eggs, coconut milk, coconut oil, and vanilla extract and process until smooth and dates are completely broken up.
4. In a small bowl whisk together the pumpkin pie spice, coconut flour, sea salt, and baking soda.  Add dry ingredients to the bowl of food processor and process again until fully incorporated.
5. Remove bowl from food processor and gently scoop batter into donut pans using a spoon.  You can fill to the rim of donut pan holes.
6. Bake for about 25 to 30 minutes or until toothpick inserted in donuts comes out clean. Mine took 20 minutes. Remove from pan, about 5 to 10 minutes.  Carefully remove donuts from pan.
7. Ice them with Caramel Icing
8. Next time I believe I will add nuts to my donuts for more of a texture!

I LOVE BACON

Not going to go on to a long rant about how much I love bacon and all the wonderful things you can add bacon to, or just eat it all by itself!  I just felt I needed to share that last night I had it as an appetizer, then this morning for breakfast, and then just now with my amazing lettuce wraps!!! The lettuce wraps I had for lunch today were amazing!! They consisted of romaine lettuce, with guacamole layered on the leaf, then bacon crumbles, and then some hamburger meat cooked in bacon fat! Does that not sound amazing! Well it was and my stomach is a happy camper after an awesome WOD today at Crossfit!!! My husband is out of the house now so I am going to try to bake some paleo pumpkin donuts without his crazy looks!!! Yummy!!!!

Yumminess in a wrap! Lettuce, Bacon, Guacamole, Beef, Cilantro.

Blonde Moment…not once but twice….

I was going through our utensil drawers in our kitchen looking for a Julianne tool. Not to my surprise we don’t have one. As I was getting ready to go to Target to search for one I remembered…I had an Oneida Slicer. I maybe have used it once or twice in my life and thought surely maybe this thing will work. So I pulled it out and inspected it. I remember how to slice things but I had all these extra blades in the box I wasn’t sure what they were for or how to use them. Well I didn’t know how to use the tools, so I dialed up my best friend google and typed in “oneida slicer.” First thing it pulls up was the Oneida Mandolin. I guess that’s what I have. I clicked on the link and looked for link instructions. Ding Ding Ding!! We have a winner! This is also why I never keep instruction booklets. Google is my best friend. Here is the link for the instructions in case any of you have this tool out there but didn’t know how many cool things it does! So I started Julianne slicing my squash and zucchini to put into storage for later use….and wait my blonde moment continues. Then I get out my knife and start slicing the zucchini and squash! Where in the heck is my brain! Duh I have a slicer in front of me…so on the 4th and final zucchini I had perfectly sliced zucchini ready for sautéing for breakfast!! I did finally get to eat after all that work!!! Have a great Friday!

Squash, Zucchini, and leftover pico my husband made, sauteed in a pan!

Coconut Flour Tortilla Tacos

Coconut Flour Tortillas Tacos

The look on my husbands face is priceless when I am in the kitchen cooking. Not because I don’t cook but because he never knows what I am putting together. Today was another experiment, this time with coconut flour. I am determined to find something Paleo that my husband will eat! He liked my Almond Flour Blueberry Muffins but, thought the Sweet Potato Brownies should have gone in the trash!

After my Crossfit workout this morning I was hungry for something with some flour substance. Basically I wanted breakfast tacos! However, I try to eat paleo 6 days a week and I wasn’t going to use the corn tortillas we keep in stock at our house. Therefore I went blog searching  for “Coconut Flour Tortillas.” Many of the blogs had the same recipe so I followed this one Coconut Flour Tortillas . What do Coconut Flour Tortillas taste like? Eggy??? Is that a word??? Flour texture in the mouth. This is a recipe I would make on a Sunday to prepare for the week not something I would try to do if I didn’t have time!

The tortillas went great with my guacamole, shredded pork, jalepeno, and onion tacos. The recipe would be great for pancakes as well topped with Agave Syrup or Honey. I would just add more batter to the pan and maybe a little more coconut flour. My husband tasted them and said they would go great with strawberries and ricotta cheese.

Looking forward to experimenting more in my kitchen later this week…maybe some Paleo Doughnuts! Have a great Tuesday!

Choose a positive thought….

What’s your favorite quote? 

The conscious brain can only hold one thought at a time. I love the lululemon manifesto ! I feel like it speaks to me daily. Probably because I put it on my journal that I take with me everywhere! This morning I chose a positive thought during my crossfit workout. It is easy to feel defeated during a W.O.D  when you see someone else either going faster, lifting more weight, or flying through a workout. However, most times in my life I always try to choose a positive thought. For example, today I saw Suzanne doing the prescribed 155 weight and I was only doing 135 lbs on deadlifts. I could have easily made excuses as to why I couldn’t do the weight or goodness I will never get to her level, but instead I just pushed through the workout with the thought of one day very soon I will get to 155lb. Many times in life we compare ourselves to others and want what others have. Instead, we need to focus on all the amazing things in our lives. Choose to think of yourself in a positive light. Focus on what you  do have and soon enough all the things you desire will happen with work, time, and discipline!

Hello world!

Goals Do Come True!!!

My Name is Jenn Wilson! This is my first blog post ever! Do One Thing A Day That Scares You! Well here you go! I did it! I am blogging because I have a passion for fitness, nutrition, and I want to share. I have friends and family ask me about my daily diet, workouts, and what in the world do I do in my day! What better way to share than with the world! I will be blogging about my love of sweating daily, love of nutrition, love of my family, setting goals, and crazy things that happen in between! Hope you will follow and enjoy!