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Greetings!
Happy Birthday, MOM!!! You are the most amazing woman that I know. On your birthday, I would like to thank you for everything that you have done for me over the years. You have shown me what hard work is. You have passed on your internal motivation to push yourself and complete any task at hand with 110% effort. I appreciate that more than you know. My life would be completely different if I had not watched you work as hard as you did your whole life. Thank you for making me the woman that I am today. Who do you have to be thankful for in your life? Who taught you to go after anything and everything that you want with 110% effort? Who made you into the amazing, strong woman that you are today? Let's take a minute and think about the influences in our lives. I like to say a silent thank you to my mom each morning for everything that she has done in my life. Being grateful for what you have in your life is very important. Think about the blessings that you have. What would you do without your wonderful families? Say thank you to your husband or significant other for the small things. It will make you (and him :) feel better. Say thank you to your children for making your life what it is today. Tell them how much joy they bring to your life. Thank your parents, your brothers and sisters. To your friends, without them, your journey would not be the same. Having gratitude is one of the best ways to make you feel better. It is so easy to get caught up in the small things of life, and forget how great we all have it. Being thankful increases happiness and reduces stress. One way to increase gratitude is to write a thank you note to someone. Another is to start a gratitude journal. Make it a habit to write three things that you are grateful for in the journal each night before you go to sleep. You can also vocalize your gratitude. Every day, on my way to the gym, I look up at the moon and say thank you. I am so grateful after years of having jobs that did not fulfill me, I now have my dream job. I cannot think of anything else that I would rather do, than go to boot camp at 5 every day. I am so thankful that I have all of you in class, so that my dream job can be a reality. Thank you for all of your effort in class. I appreciate you all more than you know. Have a great evening. Love, Emily |
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Saturday Workout
We will have our usual Saturday workout Saturday, August 28. We will meet at 8 AM at the track at IWU. We had a couple new faces at the workout this weekend. Whitney and Shannon both joined us for the first time. Thank you so much ladies for pushing yourselves. I am amazed at the increases in endurance that I am seeing from week to week! Keep up the hard work! |
Coconut Oil Pesto
I LOVE pesto, especially homemade pesto. I used to grow basil in my back yard, and the plants ended up looking like bushes they were so big. I had to invent things to use the pesto on. Chicken, zucchini, eggplant, pork, mushrooms...the possibilities are endless. I also made small jars and gave it as gifts to my friends...this pesto is made with cilantro and coconut oil. It sounds really good. If you missed the nutrition class on Thursday, you missed out on all of the benefits of coconut oils. I will put a brief synopsis below.
Ingredients
1 cup fresh organic cilantro leaves- packed well into measuring cup
1 large clove garlic
6 tablespoons melted coconut oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 cup raw almonds or walnuts (or other nut of your choice - I used to make my pesto with hazelnuts and it was DELICIOUS! Macadamia nuts would probably be really good in here to continue with the tropical theme)
salt & pepper, optional
Place cilantro and garlic in food processor and process until well chopped. Add coconut oil and process a few seconds until mixture is well blended and fairly smooth. Add nuts and lemon juice and process until fairly smooth and well blended. Also, if it is too thick for your liking - add small amounts of water until you are happy with it.
You may add salt and pepper to taste if you wish. You may double this recipe and divide into two containers - it freezes well.
In case you are wondering about my pesto...Basic Basil Pesto
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1 garlic clove, peeled
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts (or any other kind of nuts - walnuts, almonds, hazelnuts)
3 cups packed fresh basil leaves (2 1/4 ounces)
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan
Directions On a cutting board, sprinkle 1/4 teaspoon salt over garlic and roughly chop. Using a flat side of the knife blade, crush mixture into a thick paste. Add to a food processor with pine nuts, basil, and 1 tablespoon oil. Pulse until ingredients are finely chopped. With machine running, add remaining oil in a slow, steady stream. Add Parmesan and pulse to combine. Season with salt and pepper. I only add the olive oil until it is the consistency that I want or I add a bit of water instead of 1/2 cup of oil. I prefer to add some oil as I am using it, so I make the pesto itself really thick. |
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Nutrition Class
If you missed the nutrition class this week, we talked about grains and fats. Grains have been introduced to our diets relatively recently and our bodies are not quite used to processing them yet. Grains don't give us any nutrients that we cannot get from another source (and usually with far less calories). Grains (and sugar and packaged/processed foods) also cause inflammation in the body. Inflammation leads to heart disease, Alzheimer's Disease, diabetes, weight gain, acne, among other things. Keeping inflammation in the body to a minimum will enhance health, fitness, and overall life.
Fats are very important. Eat them with every meal. No more "low fat"!! Eating a low fat diet is linked to depression, fatigue, hair loss, dull skin and achy joints. Fats are very good for you. Eat fats like coconut oil, avocado, nuts, olive oil, and fish oil. Stay away from highly processed fats like vegetable oil, safflower oil, canola oil - all of these are man made and will increase the amount of inflammation in your body as well. Never eat partially hydrogenated or fully hydrogenated oils because they are like the devil! :)
Please ask if you have any questions and I can give you more information. |
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Quote of the Week
"There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle." - Albert Einstein
Remember: You are nature's greatest miracle. |
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I am working on updating the websites both for MyLeanBody Boot Camp and for my personal training. I would love to have some new testimonials for them, so if any of you have anything to say, please send it my way. I may use some of the email that I have gotten over the past few months. Please let me know if you don't feel comfortable being quoted on the website.
I also may try to get some video testimonials up on the website as well, so if you are interested or willing to be on camera for me, please let me know!
I know that some of you have asked about the no regrets shirts. Krissy has updated them and is placing another order. The shirts will be between $20 and $25 depending on how many we order. Here is a picture of what the new shirts will look like.
We will be placing the order September 1, 2010. Please contact either one of us for more information or if you have questions.
Thanks and have a great evening! Love, Emily |
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