Ground Chicken & Brown Rice Taco Casserole

Ok soooooo I LOVE Mexican food, like I REALLY LOVE it!! I could eat Mexican food all day, everyday and never get sick of it! So of course I needed to find a recipe that would feed my Mexican food cravings and not KILL my meal plan. I started experimenting in the kitchen this weekend and I found myself a WINNER! A mixture of ground chicken, peppers, brown rice and a little bit of cheesy goodness! Seriously you guys it's pure HEAVEN in the kitchen! And the best part about it is.....it fits into my Hammer & Chisel meal plan! WIN/WIN! Sooooo now that I have your mouth watering, here is the recipe ----->>>>>

*21 Day Fix & (now) Hammer & Chisel Approved: Taco Casserole*

Ingredients: 

3 - 1 lb. pkgs of ground chicken

2 - green bell peppers 

1 - orange pepper/ 1- red pepper/ 1- yellow pepper 

2 - cups Jasmine brown rice (cooked)

1/2 - can of organic black beans 

1 - can of LaCostena Mexican Salsa 

1 - cup of Organic Shredded Mozzarella cheese (I use Organic Valley Farms brand)

about 12 Multi Grain Tortilla chips

Directions: 

Cook ground chicken in skillet until done. Dice/Cut up pepped and sauté with black beans in EVO until tender. Cook rice according to pkg. Once the chicken and the peppers are done, mix with all other ingredients in a large bowl. Layer the meat/pepper mixture in a 9x11 greased baking dish, then crunch 2-3 of the multi grain chips over top of that layer (continue to do so until you are at the top of the pan). Sprinkle mozzarella cheese & left over chips on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 min. and ENJOY! 

21 Day Fix/Hammer & Chisel Counts in ENTIRE RECIPE: 9 Reds/6 Yellows/3 Blues/3 Greens......1 GREEN container is 1 serving, equivalent to 1.5 Red/1 Yellow/1/2 Blue/1/2 Green. Makes 6-8 servings. 

This recipe will be a STAPLE in our house each week for sure!! It's GREAT for leftovers and will freeze well too!! 

-xoxoxoxo

Jenn

Quick Total Body Workout

Are you short on time? Too busy to get a 'full' workout in?? Wellll you NEED to check this little total body workout out A..S..A..P..!! It's anything but boring and may take you at the most 15 minutes AND you are working your ENTIRE body!! Who doesn't like that??? 

Time flies when you're having fun!!! 

Do it 3 times through and you WILL be feeling that burn AND blasting TONS of calories with this little total body workout! 

NOW.....READY.....SET.....GO!!!! 

If you liked this and would like to see MORE posts like this, share it with your friends or comment below! 


-xoxoxoxoxo
Jenn 

The more I workout and the longer I am married, I am learning that they are very similar ((stay with me here)). 

Everyday, it takes work, sacrifice, consistency, love, passion and most importantly R-E-S-P-E-C-T! 
We all get married for it to last a lifetime and we should feel that same way about our health and taking care of ourselves. 

I may not be at my fitness goals or look like a fitness model and I am FAR from perfect, but what I do know is this, that I work, sacrifice, am consistent, love and respect this lifestyle just like I do my marriage because it is WORTH IT and I AM WORTH IT!!

'Be in LOVE with your life, every minute of it!'

-xoxoxoxo
Jenn 

Summer Bodies Are Made In The Winter

I’m sure we’ve all heard that saying that there is a 1st for everything, right?! 

Welllllll let me tell you I’ve had lots of 1st’s in my life, BUT this right here is a 1st that I am SO proud of! 

You see, I have been a yo-yo dieter, basically my entire life and up until 2 years ago, I was pretty much addicted to diet pills! ‪#‎yesijustsaidthatoutloud‬

BUT for the 1st time in my life, I have found something that I LOVE and that has helped me MAINTAIN this healthy lifestyle! ‪#‎nomoredietshere‬ (all it took was 30 min a day with some simple nutrition!). RIGHT NOW, today, I feel better than I EVER have & I will never go back to that girl I once was. I love myself & the skin I am in again and I want everyone to be able to feel this way! 

One thing I have always, always, always.......wait, did I say ALWAYS……disliked, was trying bathing suits on! Well this week I decided to take a little chance on myself and take a sneak peek into what all my hard work has been doing for me, so I tried on one of my favorite bathing suits AND I couldn’t help but get SUPER excited for our upcoming cruise/trip to Jamaica!! For once, I am liking what I’m seeing and most importantly LOVE the way I feel!

Why tell you all this??? Well because I know how hard it is to make the choice to change, I know what it’s like to cry when you look in the mirror or try a pair of pants on that don’t fit anymore, I know what it’s like to feel like you’ve lost control of your own life, I know how it feels to feel tired all the time & I know what it’s like to be afraid to start something new, alone….BUT that’s what I want to do, I want to help you get rid of all those worries and help you feel the way I do now….I said screw it & made a decision to change, I no longer cry when I look at myself in the mirror —— I smile and I am proud of myself for how far I've come, I am the happiest & healthiest that I have EVER been and I am in total control of my life and my happiness, I am now full of life & energy and I am now NOT afraid to take a little leap of faith because I know that I have the biggest support system in my team & my accountability group ladies! You can do this, and I want to help YOU!! Don’t let the cold weather be your excuse to not get up and workout & make some healthy changes, make it your REASON!! ‪#‎summerbodiesaremadeinthewinter‬

I am looking for 5 ladies who are SERIOUS about making a change in 2016 and making it the BEST year to date!! I want to help you get healthy, inside & out! I will be there with you EVERY step of the way to help you love what you see in the mirror everyday & forget about that # on the scale! It’s all about balance! If this is something you, or someone you may know, would be interested in, fill out this application ( http://bit.ly/JoinJennsChallenge ) and let's get you started TODAY! I can promise you, you will not regret your decision!!

-xoxoxoxoxo

Jenn

Week 1 of Hammer & Chisel

                     

Ok you guys.....HERE.WE.GO!!!

It's official, after a long wait (they announced it in July but we had to wait until December to get our hands on it!!), we finally started the new Master's Hammer and Chisel workout program!! BEST part about doing this program?? The hubs is on board with me!! We haven't done a full program together since, T25, so it's been awhile! 

Lucky enough for us, we have FULL access to our workouts, meal plan, calendar and MUCH more through Beachbody OnDemand (aka Netflix for workouts) so we didn't have to wait for our package to come in the mail, we just logged in and BOOM workouts and resources at our antsy fingers tips! 

Hammer & Chisel is definitely giving us a run for our money....our bodies are sore and tired, in a good way! I am feeling accomplished!! The workouts are HARD, for sure, but if you are like me and up for a challenge, H&C does NOT disappoint! The workout schedule offers 3 workout days - REST - then 3 more workout days, and this is a total body workout PLUS weight lifting program, so you can imagine that our bodies are feeling it! 

This week I can say without doubt that I am 100% thankful for the Beachbody Performance Line supplements. 

Energize is going down the hatch!! Got to stay charged
for my workout!!

I have been using the Performance Lines pre-workout, Energize, ever since it came out and I have to admit that I am addicted!! It gives me just the energy boost I need to power through my workouts without the jittery feeling I've gotten from other pre workouts. Energize has given me ALL that I need until now.....with these workouts I needed to keep my pre-workout in my routine BUT my body also needed something for after these intense workouts, something to help my muscles recover from exercise induced soreness.  >>>>> ENTER the Performance Line RECOVERY shake <<<<< I fully expected these workouts to be hard and push me and my body to it's limits, but that doesn't mean that I need to crawl around or look like I can barely walk, hahaha! THAT is what I love about this Performance line, I have those after workout jello legs, chug some Recovery and wake up the next morning feeling like a million bucks!
Let's Talk FOOD!

Buffalo Chicken Casserole with Broccoli (his & hers)

I ALWAYS hear from people that they are afraid to follow a 'meal plan' or the 'container system' because they are afraid they will be hungry......well let me tell you this, I'm actually full and some days I struggle to eat/fit in all my containers!! So NO you won't be hungry/starving on this plan, I can promise you that. What I will say though is you must PLAN. I have learned that planning is KEY on this journey and it's proving that even MORE to me during this program! 

While I didn't write out our meal plan in week #1, we stuck to it to a T! During week 1, I wanted to play around with some recipes (which you will find under the 'recipes' section on this page) to see what we liked and didn't like, and THIS week (actually today) I will write out our meal plan and share it here. 

The meal plan for H&C is very similar to the 21 Day Fix so it wasn't super hard for us to follow, since we've been doing that for awhile now. So, the way it works: You do a calculation based on your weight, activity level and your goals......and you get a  your “plan” to follow during the program. Your plan will tell you how many portions of each food/container you get and then you gotta get to work and PLAN IT OUT! 

Remember....."Failing to Plan is Planning to Fail!"

The hubs and I are eating ALL the same food but definitely different portion sizes, as you can see here....

His & hers UnStuffed Peppers

Here is an example for you on him vs. me in the calorie/container brackets......I fell in the 1200-1500 range which gives me: 4 REDS (proteins), 2 YELLOWS (good carbs), 2 PURPLES (fruits), 3 GREENS (veggies), 1 ORANGE (nuts & seeds) and 1 BLUE (healthy fats/cheeses). AND the hubs falls in the 3000-3299 range giving him: 8 REDS, 8 YELLOWS, 5 PURPLES, 9 GREENS, 1 ORANGE and 1 BLUE. Sooooo as you can see, it's the same food but VERY different portion sizes! 

One thing my husband keeps saying to me 'are you sure I'm allowed to eat all this food?' and I just keep telling him to TRUST the process!! These programs are created and designed the way they are because they WORK! I have been there and saw it with my own eyes, so even though somedays it's a challenge we WILL follow the plan because I know results will follow! 

All in all, we are only 1 week in and LOVING everything about this program so far! I can't wait to see what the next 50 days bring.....1 thing that it is already doing....bringing us closer as a family & that to me means more than anything!  

  Wanna join us??? My current New Year, New YOU accountability group still has spots open and 1 could be YOURS, just take a minute to fill out this form to be considered.
I will guide you and be there doing it with you every step of the way!! TOGETHER, we are better, and TOGETHER we CAN DO THIS!!!
         

......until next week!! 


-xoxoxoxoxo
Jenn