Recipe: Oven Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Many of the Fitness Friends are battling with caving to sweets.  My temptress is salt.  I have manged to cut out fried foods completely and I generally do not cook with any oil...if I can help it.

I was looking for a healthy way to prepare sweet potatoes (an alternative to fries).  Found this great recipe over at:  www.health.com

At 189 calories per serving (1 cup), they were delicious.

I used garlic powder, thyme, and basil instead of rosemary.  Everything same.

Ingredients

• 3 small sweet potatoes (about 2 pounds)
• 1 1/2 tablespoons garlic-flavored olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
• 2 teaspoons minced fresh rosemary
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Preparation

Preheat oven to 450°.

Peel sweet potatoes; cut each potato lengthwise into 8 wedges. In a large bowl, combine sweet potatoes and remaining ingredients; toss well to coat.

Photo: my own

Arrange potatoes in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake potatoes at 450° for 30 minutes or until soft and lightly browned, turning wedges after the first 15 minutes. Serve immediately.

Photo: www.health.com

20 Minute Living room workout

Can't find the time to go to the gym?  Fitness Friend Renee shared this home-friendly workout.!  Enjoy

10 day mini challenge

Our fitness friends are on varying degrees of "working out".  Some run daily, participate in aerobic classes, utilize gaming systems, walk during lunch breaks, participate in office aerobics, and some...haven't quite mustered up the ability to start.

This week FF Cnadance introduced a mini challenge to get everyone into gear.  Some are only doing this challenge and some are adding it to their daily regimen.

For all those who are interested in the challenge, please do so...this is just a "mini-challenge" just to jump start some of us!!! Here's the challenge for the next 10 days: 1. Do 10 sit ups a day ... Guidelines: Have your knees bent and the balls of your feet and heels placed flat on the ground. Place your hands on opposing shoulders, so that your arms are crossed over your chest, or behind your head. Keeping your heels on the ground and your toes flat to the ground, slowly and gently lift your head first, followed by your shoulder blades. Hold the position for a second. 2. Do 10 push ups a day   Guidelines: Place your toes and hands on the floor, making sure your back and arms are straight. Keep your hands slightly more than shoulder-width apart and tighten your abdominal muscles. Inhale as you lower yourself to the floor, stopping as your elbows reach a 90-degree bend. Keep your body from touching the floor. Exhale and push yourself away from the floor. Don't lock your elbows, and don't bend your back. A modified pushup: Place your hands and knees on the floor. Keeping your gluts and abs tight, your back should be in one diagonal line with your head and neck, and your feet should be lifted from the floor. 3. Do cardio exercise 10 minutes a day   Guidelines: It can be on the elliptical, walking outside, running up and down stairs or parking the very farthest possible from the mall.... I hope to see you there...at the finish line!!!

 

Fitness Friend of the Week: Brandi

Meet Brandi!

If ever there were a picture that captured her personality...THIS is it!

This Fitness Friend is a 34 year old mother of 2, with her youngest being 5 years old.  She has displayed the heart of a lion over the past 3-4 weeks.  I sat down with Brandi recently and here is what she had to say:

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  On balancing homelife with her new lifestyle

  The most difficult part for me is trying to find the time to exercise. I do not have time to go to the gym after work and give my children the attention that they deserve so this requires me to get creative with my workouts.

  
  

  On her eating habits

  I always eat breakfast. That is a meal that I do not skip because if I do, I will be tempted to snack all morning and I will be more likely to overeat by the time I get to lunch. Breakfast is usually 1) flourless pancakes with fresh fruit and yogurt, turkey bacon, egg and cheese on a sandwich thin or oatmeal sweetend with splenda and raisins. Lunch is usually leftovers for dinner or a sandwich on a sandwich thin with fruit and raw veggies. Dinner is chicken, fish or beans and veggies. Since I am short on time I break down my workouts. I do my cardio during my lunch everyday. At night after I try to do bodyweight exercises but I have been lazy about it lately.

  
  

  On challenges

  The toughest part about my lifestyle change limiting my carbs. Oh how I love bread, pasta, rice, cake, doughnuts, muffins, cupcakes...I could go on and on. I realize that I have no self control when it comes to these types of foods so I have cut most of them out.

  
  

  The easiest part about this change has been utilizing the support system that you have created on Fitness Friends. I feel like I have people that are in the struggle with me and we embrace each others highs and lows in this judgement free zone. I had thought about getting in shape finally this year since Jan. 1 but that is all it was - a thought. This group and the camaraderie that has been built here is so motivating to me because I know that we will all fall, maybe more than once, but I KNOW that none of us will fail because we won't allow it.
  

  

  
  
  

  Her advice to anyone struggling to get started

  My advice is to sit down and create a detailed plan for your meals and your workouts. If you don't the process can be very overwhelming. It's okay to have to cook separate meals for you and your children, I do it all the time. Try to incorporate your children into your workouts. The Wii is a great tool to get sweat equity when the kids think you all are just having fun.

  
  

  How she plans to celebrate reaching her goals

  When I finally hit my goal I am going shopping! I was trying to formulate what reaching this goal will mean in a deeper cosmic thought provoking way..but hell I am a girl and I just wanna shop in the tiny sizes!
  
  Congrats to Brandi...and keep up the good work!

Fitness Friend of the week: Carlos

Meet Carlos J.

Carlos is one of our seasoned members.  His journey began back in 2011 with suggestion from his wife.  I sat down with Carlos and he shared these highlights about his journey.

Carlos says a comment from his wife led him to take a look at himself and his habits:

"I was like dang how did i let myself get so big? So when i saw my picture with Kurt Angle (wrestler) I said enough is enough. 

I started walking every day because I was too heavy to run...when I tried to jog my back and knees were really hurting. I knew I had to change my diet to lose weight so that I could exercise.  Mid 2012 I started experimenting with juicing after watching Fat Sick and Nearly Dead (Documentary/). By this point, I had lost about 20 pounds.

After seeing some results it motivated me to try to get back down to my weight when I was in the army which was 230 pounds.  I am currently 25 pounds away from that weight.  This year my attack plan is to run at least 3 times a week from anywhere to 2 miles to 6 with a goal of running at least 9 total miles for the week. Seeing the changes in my body and weight is what pushes me. 

I have a run playlist I use that is full of Gospel, Rap and Black Eye Peas...my "get amped" song is Lift His Name Up by Cross Movement (Video). 

The easiest part of juicing is breakfast.  That drink pumps me up for the day...I usually struggle during dinner but then my workout has increased so I just drink more water...in closing my wife is very happy with my body transformation."

Carlos started walking in late November 2012 to prepare for a company wide 5k.  His goal was to be able to jog and complete the challenge.  He is currently RUNNING 3 times per week (despite weather conditions) and is accompanying a FF newcomer in a 30 day juice fast for moral support.

Carlos offers this advice to people that have made the decision to start an exercise plan.  "Start walking first. You can really hurt yourself if you try to run and you haven't been doing it.  After a couple weeks of walking work your way up to a mild jogging pace and so forth"

Q & A: When did you decide that you were overweight?

One member asks the question:

 "What made you look at yourself and say ok that's it I'm over weight and out of shape. And did anybody else cry"

Here are some of our VERY real answers:

May sound crazy but I didn't recognize myself in some pictures from Christmas. Sad I know...

I saw a pic that my cousin took on Christmas and saw myself i'm the background.. she posted the pic on fb and tried to tag me.. lol that wasnt gonna happen.

For me after my mama died I said it was time to NOW take care of ME! Sure I wasn't just big because of eating. The steroids and medications played a part but I WANTED TO LIVE AND NOT JUST EXIST. They said if I tried to do certain things [gastric bypass surgery] it would kill me because of my health but hey I was dying anyway so I took my life back with the help of GOD and great docs that supported me and AWESOME FRIENDS and family but MOSTLY I motivated me. After seeing a picture where I looked like the GOOD YEAR BLIMP!

 I hate the way my clothes look on me .. And yes tears have been shed !!!

Pictures. Definitely. But after losing so much weight after having a baby???? I threw all my fat clothes away. I KNOW my weight comes from drinking bc when I was pregnant and nursing I was sooooo small. I literally have NOTHING to wear to work everyday. One of my bosses always makes cracks on my weight. Ppl perceive me as this emotionless being but he has really hurt my feelings several times. Y'all know I love taking pics. I haven't taken any pics of myself recently until my bday. And I hated the way I looked. 

I knew the day that I tried on every pair of jeans in my house and none of them fit and all I could do was sit on the floor and cry

I will not take a body pic and I'm glad that I don't club anymore the last time I went out someonr touched my belly and said omg you are having a baby . I lol and said no I'm just fat but when I got home smh I broke all the way down and will not go to a party again

Which time? Lol 
This time, I knew I was too big bc my big clothes started getting tight. That's when I was like nah buddy lol. I made a commitment a while back to never let plus size be mandatory for me so unless I'm going to make my own clothes, I had to shrink lol.  I have shed a tear as well. I think being in a relationship makes it worse bc u want to look ur best for them and u know that isn't ur best. 

A few years back, when I was starting my new relationship, he asked for a pic of me. I couldn't find a current one of me that I was happy with. I started taking pics of myself, searching for a complimentary pose and hated everything I saw. I also looked in my closet and realized I had gotten rid of everything that was, in my mind, an okay size. My closet belonged to a big, frumpy girl and I knew it was time to change.

My high school reunion picture did it for me, I was wearing a tire around my waist. Felt like I could rest my elbows there and maybe a drink.

Step 1 - acknowledge that there is a problem.  Step 2 - determine that you ARE going to do something about it!  

You are not alone!

Making Changes (Photos)

Our members are committed to changing their eating habits.  Here are a few still photos from our gallery.

One member has resolved to meal plan in advance.  She has precooked and packaged her breakfast, lunch, and dinner for the upcoming week.  In doing so, she hopes to control her portion sizes.  She will also save money!

Way to go!

Another member has vowed to change the things that she brings into the house.  This is her first round of health conscious grocery shopping.

Yummmy!

 This delicious concoction is a flour-less pancake.  Wrapped and served with fresh fruit.  Stay tuned for recipes from our members.  Including the one below!
Happy Eating!