What would happen if you said “no?”

Matthew 11:28-30  “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.  Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

Rest. That is an interesting concept in our world today. In fact, I would say for many it is a foreign concept. Between carpools, 9-5, homework, friends and family, church functions and the 101 additional obligations during the week, when do we find time to rest?

When we finally do stop around 8 or 9 at night, we never really shut down. After the gym or Bible study, my evenings usually consist of making dinner, cleaning up dinner, packing lunches and finishing laundry. All this while trying to grab a few hours to catch up with my husband after his long day. It would seem this cycle will never end!

Truth is, it won’t unless I make the change. About a month ago, I found myself over-committed to the point of exhaustion. Don’t get me wrong, I love my commitments, but it is just too much. One of my favorite authors, Lysa TerKuerst recently released a book titled “The Best Yes.” The book explains how every commitment we make and every slot filled on our calendar takes away from something else in our lives. Whether it is family time, personal time or more importantly God time, we are not giving those areas 100%. We can’t. Our innate desire to please people (or ourselves) entraps us in this web of excessive commitment.

What if we closely examined every area of our lives? Is every event on our calendar necessary? Do our kids have to play every sport every season? Do they have to go to every party to which they are invited? What about us? Do we have to volunteer at every church event? Is it really necessary to say YES to every invitation to dinner or a party? What would happen if we said NO?

I have been examining my schedule over the last month and decided that beginning in December and into 2015 I am done. I want to be able to say yes to dinner without having to look at my calendar. I want to have a weekend where there are no commitments and I can decide what I want to do on Saturday morning. I am going to learn to say NO.

How over-scheduled are you? Do you want to choose the BEST yes?
This tool will help you assess how many hours you have booked each week!

Let’s take some time to rest!

Cheers!

Resolutions & Goals

According to the University of Scranton Journal of Clinical Psychology, the top 5 resolutions for 2014 are:

1. Lose Weight
2. Get Organized
3. Spend Less, Save More
4. Enjoy Life to the Fullest
5. Staying Fit and Healthy

45% of Americans make New Year Resolutions and a mere 8% of those are successful in completing those resolutions!

Want to know how to be part of that 8%? Here are a couple of practical solutions to help you meet your goals/resolutions in 2014.

Be Specific
Try not to set blanket goals like, “I want to lose weight this year.” Instead, be specific and say “I want to lose 5 pounds by March 1.”

Be Realistic
Don’t set yourself up for failure! Set realistic goals for yourself. If you are starting a job in the mail room, don’t set a goal to be CEO of the company by 2015. (A mild exaggeration, but you get the point.)

Be Original
Make your goals specific to you! A friend or family member may have similar goals but signing up to lose 30 pounds with a friend when you clearly don’t have 30 pounds to lose will only hurt you in the end.

Write Goals Down
Physically writing your goals down and posting them where you can see them everyday will help you stay focused. Try keeping a journal about your progress as well! You will have something to look back on after you have met your goals.

Share Your Goals
Sharing your goals with a spouse, friend or family member will allow them to help you stay on track. It is easier to meet your goals when you have a great support system.

Resolutions come and go. Try incorporating lifestyle changes that will help you live a healthy and happy life and also benefit your loved ones. Focus on positive, permanent solutions that will improve your quality of life.

Thank you for reading and I look forward to helping all of you find joy in a healthy lifestyle in 2014!

Happy New Year!
Ivey Nutrition & Wellness, LLC

Making Rest a Priority

I posted this blog in April, but I thought it would be a nice reminder! I have taken this week off from the gym and social engagements and spent the time relaxing and rejuvenating. It is very important for your health to allow time for rest!

Making Rest a Priority.

Procrastination

I drive a 2001 Honda Civic. I love my car! It was the first car I purchased on my own when I got my first “real” job out of college. Over time the car has had some issues (normal wear and tear). Recently, I had an issue where the brake lights were staying on all the time. I did a little research and found out that a very small plastic pin at the base of the brake pedal had cracked and fell out. It is a $3 part that I can easily install myself. When I realized the piece broke, it was in the evening and it was dark so I found a way to rig the pedal to keep the brake lights from staying on. This is all fine and good until you need to drive somewhere and the ill-fitting the piece falls out and the the brake lights are on constantly. This has been going on for several days because I don’t think about the missing piece until I need to go somewhere. I work from home, so some days I never leave the house. As I was leaving for Bible Study last night, I realized I had not fixed the problem so my husband and I spent 20 minutes creating a piece to fit in the hole where the pin would be.

You may be asking yourself why I did not just order the part I needed when it broke? Good question! It is not like I can’t afford $3, or the work to install it will take more than 5 minutes. So what is the hold up?

This is a bad habit that can present itself in all areas of our lives. Procrastination can potentially cost us money or time or potentially affect our health.

Make a decision to stop procrastinating today!

I am ordering that part as we speak 🙂

FIT His the PAN Friday – Healthy Brownies!

My favorite part of vegan baking is that you can safely lick the batter off the spatula 🙂 I cannot remember how I came across this recipe (probably cruising Pinterest), but it was originally posted on HealthyVeganRecipes.net. I am a huge fan of making recipes when I have all the ingredients in my kitchen. There is nothing worse than coming across a fantastic recipe and not having one or two of the ingredients!  This recipe is super-easy and if the batter is any indication of how the brownies will taste, they should be very good (I wrote this part while they were still in the oven). The final product is also very good! I recommend using a food processor to get the best consistency. I stuck to the original recipe with the exception of the peanut butter; I used almond butter instead.

 

Healthy Brownie Recipe

Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Time from start to eating: 45 minutes
Makes 16 brownies

Nutrition Info per Brownie:
178 calories/9g sugar/7g fat/6g protein/271mg sodium

Ingredients

• 1 14oz can kidney or black beans
• 1 banana
• 1/2 cup fresh medjool dates, pitted*
• 1/2 cup non-dairy milk
• 1/2 cup natural peanut butter (or any other nut/seed butter)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 3/4 cup cocoa and/or carob powder
• 1/2 cup raisins, dried cranberries or chocolate chips (or a mix of any or all)
• 1 cup sorghum flour (or any whole grain flour)

*Note: If you prefer, or if you’re not using a food processor, you can replace the dates with 1/2 cup unrefined sugar.

Healthy Brownie Recipe Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (or your BBQ on low, about 450 degrees F).
2. Put the beans, banana, dates, milk, nut/seed butter, vanilla and apple cider vinegar in a food processor and puree until smooth. If you don’t have a food processor, you can mash the beans and banana, and chop the dates up as finely as you can. The sweetness won’t be as even as if you puree, so you may want to add some unrefined sugar.
3. Add the baking powder, soda, cocoa/carob powder and flour and pulse until they’re incorporated. Don’t overmix here. Sprinkle the raisins, cranberries or chocolate chips into the mix and push them into the batter (don’t puree them).
4. Pour the batter into a greased or lined 8″ brownie dish and put in the oven for 30-40 minutes.
5. Once the brownies are cooked, pull them from the oven, let them cool completely and then cut into squares and serve. If you want to keep your brownies longer, they freeze very well.

Motivational Monday – Humbled by Injury

For most of my adult life, I have considered myself a runner. I started running back in 2005 when a friend asked me to join her in a local 5K race. Once I felt that rush of the finish line, I was hooked! I participated in several local races over the next year.  In November 2006, I fell at a wine festival (after too much wine of course) and suffered a Trimalleolar Fracture. Let this be a lesson to all of you about the dangers of over-imbibing.  After I had surgery to screw my ankle back together and spent two months on crutches, running had become a distant memory. I started training again in early 2008. After very slow start, I was able to add some distance back to my runs and in 2010 I completed my first (and last) full marathon!

Several years have passed and I still love working out. Running is not as big a part of my life, but I continue to participate in a couple of races each year (this picture is from 2012 Disney Half-Marathon). My heart belongs to Orange Theory Fitness which has challenged me both physically and mentally over the last year. I went from a size 8 pant to a size 4 in six months. I started really pushing myself with speed work on the treadmill and finished my last 5K with a new PR! I was feeling pretty good about myself when my knee started acting up. It turns out speed is not my friend. Thankfully the injury is nothing major, but I still had to take it easy for a couple of weeks. We recently had a contest at our gym which encompassed several activities surrounding speed and strength and I had to look on as other members passed me by knowing I was capable but my knee was not. Humbled again…. 

Let me get to the motivational part of this post. No matter how careful you are, injuries can still happen. The lesson is in how you recover and get back into the game. I could have given up after my surgery and stopped running altogether or I could have used my knee injury as an excuse to stay away from the gym. I chose to overcome those injuries and get stronger!

This lesson could apply to many areas of our lives where we hit speed bumps that feel like mountains. Don’t give up! There will always be a decline after an incline and eventually you will have some time to coast.

Motivational Monday – Investing in Yourself

 

Don’t use cost as an excuse to eat poorly. We spend money on clothes, make-up and personal hygiene products for the outsides of our bodies, but complain when we have to pay a little more for organic produce or grass-fed beef. Why not splurge on the things that are going inside your body? After all, it is the only body you have.

Most long-term health issues can be prevented by making healthier choices at the grocery store and when dining out.  Start today by investing in your long-term health! You are worth it!

Here are some startling statistics provided by the CDC (Center for Disease Control) regarding the cost  of obesity in America.

 

Motivational Monday – Keep Going!

The Health Food Store Blur

 

I love grocery shopping! I would rather stroll up and down every isle of a grocery store than shop for clothes. The first time I visited Whole Foods I was engulfed in an array of products I had never heard of in my many years of shopping and cooking. Over the years I have grown familiar with the selection and have tried many of the healthier alternatives available. For someone who does not like grocery shopping or who is on a time crunch, getting in and out can be daunting. The same can be said for someone who is new to the world of health foods!

Typically, my clients have never set foot in a Whole Foods, Earth Fare or Nutrition S’mart (Florida only). Part of my program as a nutrition consultant is to take my clients shopping and introduce them to some of the products. I try to show them, it is not any scarier than their conventional grocery store. In fact, it is much more exciting!

Most health food stores have employees who are available to answer questions about their products.
I have found that every employee at our local Whole Foods store is vastly knowledgeable about the products in their department and they are more than willing to share their knowledge. They also have a calendar of activities to introduce you to the store from tours to how to shop on a budget.

Another great way to get to know new products is to replace your routine grocery items with items from the health food store a little at a time. This allows you a chance to try new items and decide if you like them. Start with staples such as pasta sauce, canned veggies or cereals. The larger chain stores have their own store brands that are significantly less expensive than some of their competitors. We have switched to the 365 brand at Whole Foods for many of our staples and have been very happy with the results.

Many people are concerned about the cost of shopping at organic or health food stores. If you are like me, you are familiar with the products your family eats and you tend to purchase the same things over and over. Like traditional grocery stores, the health food stores also have sales and specials. You can follow the sales on the company website as well as print coupons. The flyer in the store has coupons as well! Once you find brands you enjoy, you can check their websites for printable coupons. It is important to factor in the difference in cost to the long-term health of your family. I do not mind spending a little more on a product we use all the time if I know there are no added chemicals or preservatives.

Upgrading to a healthier, more organic lifestyle does not have to be overwhelming! Take your time getting to know the products and don’t be afraid to ask for help. There are plenty of resources in the stores and online!

Happy Shopping  🙂

 

Motivational Mondays – Don’t Give Up!

Our greatest weakness lies in giving up.
The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.

Thomas A. Edison