Goal for 2013

Just like everyone else, as the year starts to come to a close we all start thinking about goals we want to set for next year. Many of us set a fitness goal for ourselves or sticking to eating healthy. I believe that it is important to start that goal as soon as possible instead of waiting until midnight on the 31st of December. Especially if your goal is fitness or food related. For me I have several goals. One is to continue to have a healthy pregnancy and to be able to continue to exercise throughout the pregnancy so it won’t be so hard to get back into after the birth. The other goal is to run in the Honolulu Marathon next year. Funny story with this one as I am currently signed up to run it this year but I am pretty sure I may not be comfortable running 26.2 miles and being 6 months pregnant. I know there are ladies out there who do it and it’s awesome for all your hard-core runners, just not me. I originally signed up for the marathon in January of this year- they had an offer of $26.20 to register for the race- I was signed up before I finished reading the post! I know I will be able to sign up again next year and the baby is due in March, so my plan is to start in May with my running/exercise routine to get in shape and run that marathon.  However the planning needs to start now. I need to keep myself healthy by continuing to eat clean and exercise during the pregnancy. This will keep my body strong and healthy for the birth. I also need to think about putting together my exercise plan after the birth because I know that I am not going to be waking up several weeks after giving birth and going for a 6 mile run. So starting now I will be working on a plan to ease back into my exercise routine and plan out a running schedule to get me on track for next years marathon.  

Delicious Fall Recipe

I love the fall season. It is my favorite time of year, the leaves are turning colors, the air is crisp, and I love to curl up with a good book and cup of tea. So earlier this month I was looking for a great recipe to make for a get together. Since I like to cook healthy I was looking for something with few ingredients and one the ingredients had to be pumpkin. I happened to stumble across a pumpkin-spice muffin on Nature Box, which is a great place to search for delicious healthy food ideas. So I took their recipe and modified it a bit. The ingredient list is very small:

• 1 banana, mashed
• 1. 5 15oz cans pumpkin 
• 1/4 cup maple syrup or honey
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 cup organic whole wheat flour
• 1/2 tsp baking soda 
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1.5 tsp cinnamon
• 1.5 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 1 cup chopped pecans- caramelized with Earth Balance vegan butter and maple syrup

So I tried the original recipe out earlier in the week and tested it out on my co-workers. (The original recipe called for chocolate chips, I didn’t add them to the mix just placed a few on top of the muffins)  My co-workers loved the muffins, I did too but thought they could be more pumpkin-y. So when I made them for the get together with my friends I used 1.5 cans of the 15oz pumpkin and did 1.5 tsp of cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice. Below are directions for cooking the pumpkin spice muffins as well as caramelizing the chopped pecans.  

Directions:

• Heat oven to 375 degrees. Mash banana in medium bowl, then stir in pumpkin, maple syrup, and vanilla to combine.
• In a large bowl, mix dry ingredients, then add to the wet ingredients and mix well. I used my hand mixer to mix the wet ingredients into the dry.
• Stir in caramelized pecans, if using. 
• I sprayed the silicon muffin pan with some olive oil before adding the batter. I filled the muffin pan almost to the top and bake for about 20-22 minutes until centers are firm.

To caramelize the pecans I put 1 T of Earth Balance Vegan Buttery sticks into a small sauce pan with 2 T of maple syrup and a drizzle of of agave nectar. Heat these items on medium heat until the ingredients come together and bubble.  Add 1C chopped pecans to the pan and stir to coat the pecans. Continue to stir the pecans until they toast up nicely-be careful this can happen fast. The pecans will smell toasty when they are done. Remove from heat and put the caramelized nuts on parchment paper or wax paper to cool.  

They were a big hit this morning. Even though we are in Hawaii there are a few of us who miss the changing seasons and to enjoy delicious pumpkin muffins without being bundled up is pretty nice. Happy Fall!

PS. I usually take the left over pumpkin add cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice and a bit of agave nectar, stir it up and microwave it for about a minute or so until warm. It's like eating pumpkin pie without the crust!  Yum!

What inspires me and why

So many in my world and my daily life inspire me. One thing that inspired me on this path of healthy eating and exercise was seeing how it made people feel. It wasn’t about losing weight or fitting into an unrealistic mold. I just saw the benefits of feeling healthy, strong and centered.  And I love good food! So I thought why not combine the two: delicious comfort food and healthy eating. I strive to take those delicious foods and make them into a healthy dish I could enjoy without wondering if I would have to run an extra five miles. This food quest led me to start reading the ingredients, researching healthy substitutes, and dabbling with vegan and vegetarian dishes. I found that there are a lot of delicious foods out there that taste wonderful and you don’t feel guilty after you eat them! As for the exercise I’ve always known it was good for me yet I wasn’t able to bring myself to exercise on a regular basis. However being in the Army we run a lot yet running and I have had a love-hate relationship since the beginning. So I started to search out exercise that inspired me and kept me on my toes. In addition to that I also began to run more on my own trying to find that runner’s high. I believe the change in my exercise routine came when I decided to run in the Big Sur Marathon in 2008. After I finished those long 26.2 miles I felt really good and loved that I accomplished an exercise goal I had set for myself.  After that I had the exercise bug and really enjoyed taking the time for myself and exercising.  Once I moved to Hawaii I started to think about what I could do after I retired from the Army and after talking with my personal trainer, what better job than to work in the exercise industry.  It combines many of my passions in my life- exercise, cooking, and helping people.