They have pilates, yoga, cardio, kick boxing, toning, stretching, hip hop cardio, dance fitness and more! Just search GAIAM on Hulu Plus and you will see them all pop up.
They are pretty short and easy to do. Today, I did 2 cardio workouts (11 minutes each) and let me tell you, it wore me out! After I was done, I was all warmed up and ran on my treadmill for 20 minutes at a swift (for me) 9.30 minute/mile. This is great news for those of you that might not have any work out DVD's and want to try some out first. It was a good short workout and I am definitely going to check out some of the other videos.
My dear friend Sara invited me to try out a boot camp class with her next week. It sounds like a killer! It is only $15 to drop in on a class so I think I'm gonna go for it. The only problem is, there is no day care so I will have to leave the kiddos with my husband while I go. But it sounds like great fat burning and strength training. I am always up to try something new....case in point:
My sis got me 6 fitness classes at a local studio, Vixen, for Christmas. They have tons of really cool classes, such as pole dancing, kickboxing, flashdance, cardio striptease, zumba, hip hop, yoga, etc. Needless to say, I am stoked about trying this out too! Love me some variety. And I've heard it's an awesome, kick-butt workout.
That's my 2 cents today on fitness, now what's cooking? Well, yesterday I made some more of my famous peanut butter balls
(adapted from mommie cooks)
1/2 cup walnuts
1/2 cup chopped pitted dates
1/2 cup pecans
1/2 cup pure maple syrup
1/4-1/2 cup Peanut butter or Almond Butter(depends on how much PB flavor you want, add more to taste)
1/2 cup finely shredded coconut(plus more for rolling)
3/4 cup oats
2-3 TB dark chocolate chips
1 tsp. Vanilla
Directions:
1. Gather your ingredients,
2. Using a food processor or high speed blender, add walnut and process until chunky crumbs.
3. Then add dates, and process until chunky crumbs again.
4. Next add almonds and carob chips, and process again. You don’t want it to be fine crumbs, you want it a little chunky. Not HUGE chunks though.
5. Then add maple syrup, PB or AB, and vanilla, and process until combined.
6. Next add coconut and oats, and process until chunky and combined.
7. Roll into balls. Mixture will be sticky.
8. You can roll them out plain,
Or you can be cool and roll them in coconut…
9. Then store in the fridge or freezer when done.
And last night, I realized I was all out of the granola bars I usually make for my 8 y.o.'s snack for school so I found a recipe for a protein bar I wanted to try out. And I figured they could double as a nice post-workout snack! Here is the recipe:
Clean Eating Cinnamon Chocolate Chip Protein Bars (adapted from gracious pantry)
2 cups oats – roasted in the oven without oil for 10-15 minutes
1 cup peanut butter (no sugar added)
1/2 cup agave (you can also use honey)
1/2 cup apple sauce (unsweetened)
2 tbsp. grain sweetened chocolate chips
1 cup whey protein powder (unflavored or vanilla)
1 tbsp. cinnamon
2 tbsp. flax seeds
Directions
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.
Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl.
Note: BE SURE your oats have cooled down completely from being roasted or they will totally melt your chocolate chips.
Spread out the batter on a cookie sheet or other baking dish (I used a half sheet here).
Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes, or until the bars are a nice golden brown color.
Cut and allow to cool. Store in a Ziploc bag or Tupperware container.
And for dinner, I made Meatball Soup, which turned out very good. All the kids loved it. The only downside was cleanup was a little excessive. I had to use 3 pans plus 2 mixing bowls, etc. So, that was a little time consuming....I wouldn't call this a "quick and easy" recipe. I am glad I decided to start this meal when I had a few minutes before I had to pick up my 4 y.o. from pre-k. Otherwise, I would have been overwhelmed in the kitchen after school. But because I prepared it mostly before school was out, I was able to play outside with the kids for about an hour and a half before dinner!! Oh yes and this had some veggie purees so the kiddos got their veggies and didn't whine about it. Here is the recipe & pics:
Meatball Soup (adapted from Deceptively Delicious)
- 6 oz brown rice spiral pasta (or any whole wheat pasta shapes, such as bowties)
- nonstick cooking spray
- 1 TBSP olive oil
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 (28 oz) can whole-peeled tomatoes with juice (no salt added)
- 1/4 c carrot puree
- 3 c reduced sodium, no MSG chicken broth
- 3 slices whole wheat bread, cubed
- 1 large egg, lightly beaten
- 1/4 c sweet potato puree
- 1/4 c light organic soy milk
- 2 TBSP organic grated parmesan
- 1/4 tsp pepper
- 1/4 tsp paprika
- 1/2 lb lean organic grass-fed ground beef
2. Cook pasta according to package directions, drain, and set aside.
3. Coat a large pot with cooking spray & set it over medium high heat. When pot is hot, add the oil and then the onion and garlic. Cook, stirring often, until onion is softened but not browned, 3-4 min.
4. Puree the tomatoes and their juice with the carrot puree in a food processor or blender, then add to the pot. Add the broth, reduce heat to low, and simmer, covered, for 10-15 min.
5. Coat large skillet with nonstick spray and place over medium high heat. Add meatballs and lightly brown, approximately 4-5 minutes.
6. Add meatballs to the pot. Simmer, covered, until the meatballs are no longer pink in the center, 12-15 minutes.
7. Stir in the pasta & serve warm.
Oh and since I had the beef out of the freezer, I decided to double the meatball recipe and cook the other half of the meatballs in the oven at 400 degrees for 25 minutes. I stuck them in the freezer for a quick meal later!
Well, that's it for now. Thanks for reading!!!
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