Your body needs time to De-Stress, let it.

Recently, a girlfriend and I decided to make Friday mornings our time to de-stress.  Our time to recharge, bounce ideas off each other, soak up some vitamin D and let life, just be.  Here is a tale of today’s not so typical trip to the beach.  The moral of the story is, take it, as it is, but not too seriously, and find the joy in all situations!  If you have the time to read it, enjoy our adventure from today.

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Today, was a day that we really needed it, and we TOOK it.  Life didn’t give me a stress free morning, I took it.  Let me explain.  On the way to the beach, I carefully merged into the next lane, already occupied by a beautiful blonde lady with a very foul mouth.  I tried to apologize, but I don’t think she could hear me through the rolled up windows and over her 4-letter words. (Very much, my bad) No one injured, no cars damaged or touched, all is well, my heart raced for a couple of seconds, then I let it go.

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We continued to the beach, the clouds were dark, but nothing more than a sprinkle hit the windshield. We got out, had GOOD parking, and walked our 1/4 mile trek down the beach to our favorite spot.  Momma got things set up while CLB got a good start on her mud pie. It began to sprinkle…

CLB curled up between my feet and knees and hunkered down over my thigh, while I curled over her to protect her from the stinging rain, and attempted to keep her warm. All was well, she was protected from the rain and was warm, then 3 kayakers (obviously as crazy as we were) paddled by right next to the shore.  The big guy got caught on the sand bar in front of us & couldn’t get off, so I stood up and ventured out into the surf to assist him in getting off the sand bar.

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Now she was cold!  I dug out a towel, wrapped her in it &  put her tiny chair over her head to try to keep some of the pelting rain from hitting her.  She never made a sound, just snuggled up and said, “what an adventure mommy”.  The rain didn’t let up. The surf, already at high tide, was coming up farther and threatening to wash away the blue crab claw we had found on our way down the beach, so she jumped up to go save it… then I had to move everything farther up the beach to keep us out of the surf. LOL

For a fleeting moment I thought a tsunami might get us. I laughed at my silliness, settled down in my sandy chair while my 5 year old quickly returned to her position on my lap with her beach chair over her head.  (What a site we must have been.)

Fourty-five minutes have now passed.  We’ve watched lines of pelicans drafting each other on the wind currents, fish jump out of the water, the skyline from Ft. Myers Beach come and go and come again.  Ahh the beauty of nature.  It’s still raining, and LOOK!  My friend, her son, and her sister-in-law are walking toward us, down the beach, in the pelting rain!  LAUGHTER AND PURE HAPPINESS – we are not the only crazies out today.

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After an hour and a half of rain, the beautiful sunshine came out, warmed us up, and allowed us a bit of time to talk with each other and laugh about our WONDERFUL ADVENTURE ON THE BEACH!  Memories to laugh about.

The goal today was to think of nothing else, and just relax and enjoy our surroundings.  I definitely thought of nothing but our surroundings as my motherly instincts to keep my child warm set in. I enjoyed the joy and laughter of my die hard friend who walked all that way in the rain to join me.

We got our vitamin D for the day, we got our time on the beach today, and we got memories!  It definitely was NOT your typical day at the beach.

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LOVE WHAT YA GOT — WHEN YA GOT IT!!!

Thank you, Heather & family for braving the weather and enjoying the morning with us!

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How do You Judge Weight Loss Success?

Health is not all about this number

In racing and cars, we use the dynamo-meter to measure our success or failure – where our horsepower and torque are – how fast and strong our vehicle is.  It helps, when rebuilding an engine, to know where you are beginning  and what your goals are for that engine.  The same is true with our human engines.

With healthy weight loss, it is NOT always about the number on the scale!  It is, in fact, about many different numbers.

  • Inches measured around (waist, arms, hips, chest, thighs)
  • The way your clothes fit
  • Your energy levels
  • Other issues plaguing you (HDL, LDL, Blood Sugar, etc.)

When you decide you are ready to begin, here’s a good place to start.

Tess, the Healthy Grease Monkey is here to support you when you are ready to stage and begin your race to better health, and we will be here to continue to support you in not only attaining that new found health, but also in maintaining that new lifestyle, for the long haul.

Weight Loss Finish Line

I’m so happy to be back on the lead lap of life, won’t you join me?  Contact me for your consultation and to see if what we have is a match for what you are looking for.

Healthier Chicken Lasagna–Didn’t have Ground Beef

Healthier Chicken Lasagna

I’ve been cutting way back on our beef consumption. In doing so, I haven’t purchased ground beef in a lllllloooonnnnnggggg time.  Therefore, when I began making lasagna for dinner, I discovered I had no ground beef.

ENTER GRILL AND CHICKEN BOOBS!

2 chicken boobs, grilled and cubed small
1 zucchini shredded
1 jar of Ragu Spaghetti sauce (I use mushroom since it’s the only way I get mushrooms in my home)

Mix these 3 things together in a bowl.

In a separate bowl, mix:

1.5 cups of 6 cheese Italian mix
2 cups of small curd cottage cheese
1 egg
1 cup of parmesan cheese

Prepare 1/2 box of high fiber penne pasta (7 g of protein per serving)

Spray a lasagna dish with olive oil
Drop a cup of sauce mix into bottom of dish
Layer penne pasta on top of sauce mix
Smooth 1 cup of cheese mix over penne pasta
Sauce
Pasta
Cheese
Sauce
Cheese & sprinkle with parm.

Cook in 375 oven for 30 minutes – allow to cool for 5-10 minutes & serve!

Awesome, easy switches for improved health!

(Hubby didn’t even realize it wasn’t beef!)  So, in this meal, we have increased fiber and protein content by switching out brands of pasta, reduced fat and red meat by switching out beef for chicken, AND added veggies by adding a shredded zucchini!

Switching brands can save your life!

So can switching little things in our daily life!

Healthy Peanut Butter Cup Shake

This protein shake rocks my world!  I Love it! Tasty way to start my day, boost my blood sugar and keep it from dropping later in the morning. I consider this one of my Fun Foods. Its fast, easy and starts my day off right! Everything I need, nothing I don’t.

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You will need

8 ounces (1 cup) Lowfat milk/Soy Milk/Almond Milk (even water)
2 scoops of Chocolate Life Protein shake (with Leucine)
1 heaping teaspoon of natural, organic peanut butter
2 ice cubes

Blend in mixer, Pour in Cup, & ENJOY!

(Almost posted a photo of my Fast Food Mustache – then decided NOT)

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