Peanut Butter Cookies (Dairy, Gluten and Refined Sugar Free)

I recently realized I didn't have a standard peanut butter cookie reipce.  I don't care for the texture or taste of the "flourless" recipes, so this is my gluten free version.  If you can handle gluten, I think a nice red fife flour would be a great substitute as well.
 

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cup gluten free pancake mix or other gluten free flour blend
• 1/2 teaspoon guar gum (omit if your flour blend has already)
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder (omit if using my pancake mix)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup softened coconut oil
• 1 cup natural peanut butter at room temperature (smooth or chunky)
• 3/4 cup palm, coconut or demerara sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• xylitol (1/2 tablespoon) and a bit of sea salt (1/4 teaspoons) for rolling if desired

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 F and  prepare cookie trays.
2. In a medium size bowl combine all dry ingredients and set aside.
3. In a mixing bowl cream peanut butter, coconut oil, maple syrup, palm sugar, egg and vanilla.
4. Slowly stir in dry ingredients.
5. Roll into tablespoon size amounts.  You can roll into a bit of xylitol and or sea salt if desired.   Flatten balls with fork into a criss cross pattern.
6. Bake for 8-10 minutes until golden brown on top.
7. Allow to cook for 3-5 minutes on tray and then allow to finish hardening on a wire wrack.

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Listen to Your Body When it Comes to Fitness and Illness

Have you ever had a severe sinus infection? I have experienced a couple and they can really put me down for a few days. I couldn't believe how horrible the symptoms were and I sympathize with anyone who has suffered through it. Bad sinus infections can take a while to recover from similar to any severe illness. For those of us who rarely get sick, this is quite a humbling experience.

Symptoms can include a severe headache and I would say more like entire face pain. Also, the inability to breathe and high fever are typical signs of a sinus infection. Sleeping can feel impossible and eating is often limited as our appetite decreases. Sinus mucus coming out yellow, green or even brown are obvious infection markers. Fitness is pretty much out the window when an illness of this magnitude comes calling. This is the time to focus our energy on getting better.

Illness can happen and does and it's okay to relax with your fitness program. In fact, your body will recover faster if you take time off to rest allowing your antibodies to build and work to your benefit.

There will be things we don't want or like to do but are necessary to recover from illness. I had to take antibiotics for my sinus infection for example if I was going to get better.

Put workouts on hold. Our body is working hard to recover and taxing it with a training session is really not the best idea. I'm not talking about the sniffles here, but a severe illness requiring a few days of bed rest. If you're too sick to get out of bed, you have no business in the gym.

Listen to your body. If you have a fever, vomiting, unable to breathe, and find it an extreme effort to get out of bed, then stay there. Also, listening to your body means knowing when to see the doctor. Not all illness will go away without some assistance. Trying to tough it out for too long can actually work against you.

It's better to heir on the side of caution and let a doctor diagnose an infection or virus. A virus typically runs its course without medication but an infection usually requires antibiotics. If you just don't feel right, are feverish, and not performing at what feels like you, then you may want to get it checked out.

It's okay to chill out and miss days at the gym. Diehard gym rats will struggle with this. Missing my regular fitness routine is difficult for me as well, but recovering from an illness the right way is part of being fit and healthy.

You're not going to lose your fitness just because you got sick and missed a few workouts. Not allowing time to recover from illness or even returning to workouts too soon can cause our body to relapse. Relapse of an illness can occur by ignoring your need to rest and get well. Relapse is said to be ten times worse than the original bug. It's better to be down for a few days than several weeks, right?

Drinking plenty of water, and replenishing electrolytes are essential when recovering from illness. Consuming chicken soup and broth are old remedies studies show nourish our body and replace sodium lost through fluids.

The bottom line is to think realistically when it comes to fitness and illness. Taking time to recover will actually better prepare your body to return to the gym faster. Illness is something out of our control but we do have control over how we treat our body when it happens.

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Be well and Stay Healthy

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I Respect Everyone Trying to Get Fit

We may all differ in our fitness levels but all share the same goals ... health improvement. Getting fit takes changing our life and daily habits to become healthier people. This choice is inspiring and motivating to me. I respect everyone trying to get fit. 

The decision to get in shape can feel overwhelming for some of us and even vulnerable. Being over fat can come with a negative stigma and society can make people feel bad about themselves. The same goes for muscular women and skinny men. Body shaming has no place in our fitness journey. Making the choice to become our best healthy self is a great decision regardless of the stares or opinions of others. 

We don't need to be told we're too fat, too skinny, too muscular or not muscular enough. We all know the condition of our health and body without negative lip service. What we all need is positive support and motivation on our journey to achieve fitness goals.

Part of achieving fitness goals is accepting where we are right now and taking responsibility for our part in being unhealthy. This has nothing to do with body shaming or judgments and everything to do with self-love. We have to own our actions to change our actions.   

All people deserve to be treated with respect while working to improve their fitness. We definitely shouldn't be throwing stones when most of us live in glass houses. There are many people running around unhealthy not wearing it on the outside of their bodies. Imagine if everything about everyone was exposed automatically for all to see. There would be a serious decline in judgment and body shaming. 

We all need to feel safe to share our reasons why we allow ourselves to be unhealthy. This is critical to successful self-improvement. All of us want to be healthy and supported through the process. 

It will be our responsibility to create that healthy life regardless of our size, shape and even the lack of respect from others. The healthy choices we make today will form our healthy tomorrows. 

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Be well and Stay Healthy

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I Allow For Moderation to Maintain a Healthy Lifestyle

Living a healthy lifestyle is not about restriction but allowing for moderation. It's not realistic to eliminate a favorite food forever from our diet. I consider my occasional splurges as treats and not even cheats. Because eating them in moderation is an enjoyable experience. It's called living a balanced healthy life.

I don't believe having a fresh baked brownie now and then is cheating on my fitness program. I follow a 90/10 rule consuming a wide variety of good carbs, lean proteins, and healthy fats 90% of the time. I allow for 10% indulgence like a glass of wine or dark chocolate. These small treats won't derail my efforts as many of us are taught to believe. It's what we do consistently that defines what our body looks like.

I will even apply the 80/20 rule eating healthy foods 80% of the time and allowing 20% for indulgence. This comes in handy when on vacation or during the holidays. I will not turn down a piece of my Mom's home-baked pie or biscuits with butter and honey ... are you kidding me?

I do feel indulgences need to be quality. I don't waste time on packaged process junk foods but will splurge on home baked goods made with real ingredients. I also enjoy a good burger, gourmet pizza, and frozen yogurt with toppings. When I treat myself, I still want to be in control of the quality of the food. I also don't believe in having a free ticket to binge on thousands of calories on splurge day. That is defeating the purpose of a splurge meal or day. If I want a burger and fries, I enjoy the meal and move on.

I don't plan a treat day either but listen to my cravings. I work hard, eat clean 80 to 90 percent of the time and know eating a slice of apple pie Ala mode is not going to break my fitness bank. I will savor every bite of my indulgence and eat slowly. I eat slowly anyway, but really take even more time when eating a treat.

Having treat meals are always a personal choice. Sometimes there are physiological and psychological issues to consider. Those suffering from emotional eating disorders may not be good candidates for treat meals and should be under the guidance of a physician. Also, newbie fitness adapters may not be able to manage treat meals just yet and succumb to past triggers and old behaviors. Medical issues like diabetes require food monitoring and certain treats may not be in their best interest.

I utilize treat meals for balance in my healthy lifestyle. Thinking we can sustain on boiled fish and broccoli is not realistic. I enjoy some sort of sweet treat or fun meal a couple of times weekly and still maintain a healthy body. It really comes down to how we apply treat meals. It's not a reward for being deprived all week or for completing a hard workout.

There is a place for eating healthy and allowing for treats in a healthy life. Living a healthy lifestyle shouldn't feel like a burden or deprivation. If that's the case, a review of your current nutrition plan is advisable. An unsustainable nutrition plan will cause many of us to return to unhealthy eating habits. Life is too short not to eat healthy and it's also too short not to enjoy some splurges along the way.

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Be well and Stay Healthy

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How Fitness Can Be Lost With Two Little Words

How many times do we justify unhealthy choices using the 'it's only' intro? Whether it’s only five pounds more, a small bag of chips, or one missed workout, it's easy to keep going once we start. 

These two little words can be the start of losing our fitness. The occasional treat turns into daily choices leading us in the opposite direction of our fitness goals. The five pound gain turns into ten, two cookies are suddenly five, and several workouts somehow get missed. Two innocent words have suddenly derailed all our hard work. 

The 'it’s only' dilemma can happen at any time but appears to creep back into the picture once fitness results are achieved. What we thought wouldn't make a difference in our fitness has taken us back to an unhealthy lifestyle and body.

These two words are not as innocent as one might believe. Saying 'it's only' is only for those with a strong mental game who really mean it for one time.

Let’s look at the time it takes to break the cycle of sugar craving. This is approximately two weeks or twenty-one days. If a person is two days shy of that goal and decides to break the rules for its only one time, it could snowball into continued unhealthy eating. All that hard work down the drain. This is hypothetical but happens more often than not.

I am all about moderation but starting a healthy lifestyle requires structure and discipline. Success happens when we don't cave to thinking 'it's only' is acceptable. Why risk losing the accomplishments of several days/months of hard effort?

There's no denying two innocent words can take a person from success to digress in short order. Within a few weeks, we may stand in bewilderment wondering what happened. It happened because 'it’s only' became the tool used more consistently than healthy choices. 

Pay attention to that inner voice tempting you towards unhealthy food choices and skipped workouts. Be aware of friends and family who may sabotage your efforts with it's only for this one time. Besides, you deserve it, right? Wrong. What you deserve is making the best healthy choices for yourself.

Becoming aware of the two words (it's only) and how we use them to justify unhealthy choices is important to our fitness success. When we're able to identify the behavior, we can avoid setbacks in our fitness life. 

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Be well and Stay Healthy!

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Fight Frustration With Motivation and Keep Going

We have all experienced frustration and it's actually normal during our fitness journey. Nothing goes perfectly and results can take longer than we thought. When results are slower than expected, frustration can feel overwhelming. Staying motivated can be difficult during this time. Our feelings can move past frustration straight into pissed off and angry. 

Frustration causes many of us to consider giving up. We doubt our efforts and think nothing will work. We may even return to old unhealthy habits. Before the negative mental game stops you completely, consider fighting frustration with motivation.

The truth is we're all working toward the same fitness goal but at differing rates of progress. Health is a process of small steps taken over time that provide big results. Just know each positive step to improve our health is working. Our bodies know something good is happening, even when we're unable to see it. It's during times of the unseen we must have faith in the process. Be motivated by the good being done to become a healthy person. 

Throwing in the towel and going back to old habits will create nothing but further unhappiness and frustration. It will rob us of all the effort accomplished so far. This is not the time to quit, but to stand strong and kick frustration to the curb with motivation.  

Fighting frustration with motivation will require an inner strength we all possess. It will be a choice to love ourselves at this moment no matter what the scale says. It requires daily acknowledgment of our efforts like eating healthy, completing a workout, a daily goal, or whatever has been the most difficult struggle finally accomplished that day. 

Having a positive attitude will fight off frustration one motivation at a time. Patience and a consistent habit of healthy eating and exercise will produce results. Begin to focus not so much on the goal, but what can be achieved today. This will minimize frustration and promote feeling motivated. 

The stress of trying so hard will be replaced by an inner peace of doing our best each day. When we relax about getting fit, health falls into place. Adopting that healthy lifestyle will eventually feel as natural as breathing. 

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Be well and Stay Healthy

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Cream of Millet Porridge (Dairy, Gluten and Refined Sugar Free)

I like a lot of variety in my menu.  Breakfast is another meal where I don't enjoy eating the same thing in a row.  One recipe that is continually in our weekly line up is cream of millet.  Millet is a small gluten free grain that is an excellent source of magnesium.  Magnesium is important in lowering blood pressure, fighting off migraines and asthma.  Millet is also one of the few more alkaline grains, making it easier to digest.  

Although it can be made with the whole grains as in this recipe, I do prefer grinding the millet in the blender to make it into a powder.  The millet powder cooks much quicker and produces a creamier finish.

Ingredients

• 1 cup ground millet
• 4 cups liquid (water and/or non dairy milk)*
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 2 tablespoons ground flax seeds
• 1/2 cup chopped dates
• 1/4 cup ground pumpkin seeds or shredded coconut (optional)
• 1 teaspoon gluten free vanilla
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil, grass fed butter or ghee
• maple syrup for serving if desired

*I use 1/2 cup coconut cream and the rest water

Directions

1. Add millet, water/milk, salt, flax, dates, pumpkin seeds/coconut into a pot and stir.
2. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to a medium.
3. Cook while stirring frequently for about 10 minutes or until millet is fully cooked.
4. Remove from heat, add vanilla and coconut oil.
5. Stir and let sit with the lid on for 5 minutes.
6. Puree if you want the dates completely pureed.
7. Serve with maple syrup if desired.

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