Some days I'm just too busy or lazy or simply just not hungry enough to make snacks and meals. My go to is a smoothie in the afternoon. I use to do smoothies for breakfast but I like more sustenance in the morning, but a smoothie in the afternoon when all I want is treats and sweets works for me.

Mostly because I've figured out how to make my smoothies taste like decadent treats. Right now I'm in love with my oatmeal cookie smoothie. And yes it tastes just like an oatmeal cookie - plus hits the spot to squash my cravings.

Recipe:

1 banana

400-500ml of almond milk

2-3 tbsp of almond butter

2 scoops of vanilla protein powder

2 tsp of cinnamon

1 tsp of nutmeg

Blend and serve

Protein Video Day 2

A note on protein powder: I've tried all brands. I've tried the hyped up celebrity brands, the grocery store specials and Arbonne. Arbonne wins every single time. It tastes delicious, is packed with nutrients, the low sugar option is amazing, and it blends so well you do NOT have any powdery taste. My kids will only use the Arbonne powder. 

Today's video is how I make stock and reinforcing these points. IF you don't make your own stock I highly recommend you try.

https://gettrifit.com/programs/vegg-4-31a53e?categoryId=87655

I love making a warm salad with grains and roast veg. I switch out the veg based on the season. This salad disappeared!! The kids had seconds and thirds.

• Cook 1 cup quina and 1/2 cup farro

• roast broccoli, leaks, muchrooms tossedwith salt, pepper and olive oil at 400f for 15 mins

• add 1 cup of frozen green peas and 4-5 handfuls of shredded kale to the roasting pan

• Toss with the roasted veg and pop back in the oven for 4-5 mins

• Take the veg and toss with the grains

• Squeeze 1/2 a lemon over. Toss again

• Serve

This makes a great side dish or meal on its own. You can also add pumpkin seeds and sunflower seeds

Today's video is about how to use frozen veggies like I did in the recipe: https://gettrifit.com/programs/vegg-3-5a2506?categoryId=87655

Green Algae ... you need to add it to your diet

Regular consumption of spirulina is also linked to healing the brain, oncreases brain function, processing speed and memory!!!

It's prescribed to battle the effects of alzheimers and dementia. It is a super food for your brain.

It's also a super food for your gut. Regular consumption of spirulina helps heals the gut and encourages the growth of good gut bacteria

It's nutrient dense. It is something EVERYONE should be taking everyday

My favourite greens product that is easy to blend and mix into smoothies and juices is : https://www.arbonne.com/ca/en/arb/AmyMossArchambault/cart?shareId=8831472586279

Check out my green smoothie in the ReSET workbook too!

Today's video is all about greens: https://gettrifit.com/programs/vegg-5-636a19?categoryId=87655

Did you know?

• 1/2 a cup of yellow bell pepper has a full daily serving of vitamin C

  
  

• 1 cup of raw kale has 396% of your daily serving of vitamin A while also being an excellent source of fibre and potassium

  
  

• Beets are high in fibre, vitamin C, potassium

  
  

• 1 cup of butternut squash has over 400% of your daily requirement of vitamin A over 500mg of potassium and is high in fibre

  
  

• Leeks are rich in B6 iron, magnesium and potassium

The more colourful your plate the more vitamins and minerals you gain, fortifying your immune system and overall health.

A favourite soup in our house that blends bright orange veggies is Roast butternut squash with sweet potato and apple

🥄Cube 1 butternut squash, 1 large sweet potato, 4 apples, thumb size of fresh ginger, 1 onion

🥄Toss with salt, pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg and olive oil

🥄Roast at 400F for 25 mins
Put in a soup pot with enough stock, water to cover the veggies

🥄Add a can of coconut cream

🥄Purée with an immersion blender and bring to a boil and then simmer

Love to hear from you if you make this soup.

Today's video is: https://gettrifit.com/programs/veggies-2-fdfb63?categoryId=87655

Veggies!!

We don't eat enough and they hold much of the vitamins and nutrients we need everyday. In this challenge I ask you to aim for 7-9 servings a day. A serving is 1 cup or 1 fist full of veggies.

I also ask you to make 1/2 your plate full of veggies. If you make 1/2 your plate full of veggies it will most likely have 3 servings. If you also aim to make your plate colourful you maximize the nutrition.

Dark green leafy veggies are key to rebalancing our gut bacteria and adding fibre to our diet. Something we are also short of ... fibre.

This week as you work through your tracker, dial in your veggies.

https://gettrifit.com/programs/veggie-1-0bde54?categoryId=87655

My husband wanted dessert! I said I gave up sugar and gluten for 30 days, let me see what I can find.

This didn’t disappoint!

Delicious!

I used almond flower instead of ground flax.

Added a little natural peanut butter and melted chocolate chips on top.

https://www.sugarfreemom.com/recipes/1-minute-sugar-free-chocolate-mug-cake-low-carb-dairy-gluten-free/

I'm going to dive into this topic and I know it'll hit a nerve with some but we need to start talking about it.

In the past 10 years I've watched and took part in society selling the idea that moms deserve a drink. A way to escape our stress and sense of being overwhelmed can be a glass wine at the end of the day. Then it turned into 2 glasses of wine, then three. Then it became a mimosa bar at a kids birthday party. Then the wine socks. The memes of drinking wine from the largest wine glass ever made. Then travellers at the park.

"The rate at which people are drinking has also spiked sharply during the pandemic, and heavy drinking among women specifically jumped 41 percent, according to a new RAND Corporation study" Link to article

Somehow alcohol became a normalized coping mechanism. At the same time binge drinking and alcoholism is spiking among women 20-45. I too felt I was starting to go from enjoying a drink with dinner to needing a drink with dinner.

Alcohol is a depressive but socially acceptable. The 2 create a dangerous coping mechanism when the world can be too much. But alcohol is also a hormone disrupter. It wreaks havoc with your cycle. From your weight, your body temperature, your mood swings, the length or irregularity of your cycle, water retention, joints swelling and more. Wine is the worst!

The first time I did this challenge I struggled with no alcohol but I also realized my fingers were no longer swollen. I started sleeping better too. I went the whole 30 days without alcohol and the minute the challenge finished I cracked open a bottle of wine. I felt like shit. So I switched to clear spirits but like everything in my life I put in lots of rules because I realized I don't have a problem but I was on my way to having a problem.

Today I drink socially and minimally. I'm not preaching you need to stop drinking. What I am asking is for you to visit your relationship with alcohol just like you are changing your relationship with food. What we drink and how much we drink is just as important as what and how much we eat.

I hope you accept the challenge of no alcohol for the next 28 days and reflect on what roll alcohol plays in your life. Does it serve or does it need to change? I realized after visiting this question several times now with each challenge, that it's an ever changing relationship but what can't change is your willingness to ask: "is this serving me or harming me?"

I am sharing some of my home made herbal teas and you can find more ideas in the workbook.

If you want to talk privately about this, please reach out. I am here to listen judgment free. Always.

https://gettrifit.com/programs/hydration-bb5dae?categoryId=87655

Dinner is when my family finally sits down. We live a crazy colour coded calendar where we feel like ships passing most of the time. Food is always handed out in tupperware containers as someone goes out the door but dinner is when we slow down. It means we eat late. We normally sit down to a meal between 8-9pm. I know it's late but sitting down together is more important to us.

Habits form faster when reinforced with positive emotion. Laughing with family, sharing stories is one way to do that.

This week I want to focus on the ratios on your plate. Making 1/2 your plate veggies. Bright colourful, rich veggies with 1/4 protein and the rest fats and grains. This is the biggest change for many people, it's also the key to feeling full.

No recipe suggestions today. Instead tell me in the comments if you sat down as a family and took a little extra time to talk and share stories.

https://gettrifit.com/programs/dinner-c25139?categoryId=87655

Lunchables ... the healthy version.

I love making these because they are easy to eat/snack throughout the late morning and early afternoon. If you are a grazer this is a great solution.  Most importantly dead easy to make in the morning.

The key is prioritizing protein and fats, then fill in with veggies and fruit. Try to use fermented veggies to help improve gut bacteria. As you reduce or eliminate processed sugar the bacteria in your gut that thrives off of sugar will drive your cravings. Focusing on fermented veggies and drinks (like kamboucha) can help reduce the cravings by replacing the bacteria with new bacteria that feeds off of fibre.

Remember 95% of our serotonin is generated in our gut. Heavy sugar diets inhibit the guts ability to generate serotonin.

For more tips on how to batch your lunch cooking, stack a salad and include grain salads go to today's video.

https://gettrifit.com/programs/lunch-4660cf?categoryId=87655