Healthy Hummus...No Oil Here baby! With cucumber slices for dipping!

I am sure you know that garbanzo beans are healthy...RIGHT? But do you know why? Did you know garbanzo beans are a great source of protein, fiber and healthy fats, they increase energy, help stabilize blood sugar, lowers LDL cholesterol and risk of heart attack and because of their high fiber and low GI they are excellent for weight loss!! Plus the reduce the risk of colon cancer! Yippey!! Here is on of our families favorite ways to eat garbanzo beans..

NO OIL HUMMUS W CUCUMBER DIPPING SLICES

1 can of garbanzo beans drained
1 TBS minced garlic
2 TBS lemon juice
chicken broth as needed
sliced cucumber (as many as you like) :) 

Blend garbanzo beans, garlic and lemon juice in a blender adding chicken broth slowly as needed until the hummus reaches your desired consistency. Dip sliced cucumbers as if they were a chip or cracker. 

ENJOY!!

I am hopping on the bandwagon

This blurry picture was taken by my son. I am sad to say that it is one of the ONLY pictures taken of me in the last few months. Literally. I like to be behind the camera not in front of it.  

Emily's post yesterday about DietBet made me think. It reminded me of the one pull up goal I made and then promptly threw aside. Well in all fairness I did do the upper arm workout once. ONCE! Ugh. I am here to recommit to my cause! No more waiting around for it to be cooler, hotter, morning, night, after dinner, before breakfast etc... I have an excuse for any time of day. The only time I have is now. I intend to use it more wisely.

As a family we have decided that it is time to stop eating sugar and fast food. Solidarity! We decided to do that mostly because my husband and son have sensitive stomachs that can't handle it. Really though we all need to lay off the sugar and fast food. Their poor stomachs are a great reason for us to make better health choices. None of us really feel well and that is largely due to what we put in our bodies. I am excited for the challenge of not having sugar. I am also scared shitless! The inevitable weight loss will be an excellent side effect but really I just don't want to feel like crap anymore. I feel like I need to say that we will not be giving up sugar entirely. Our plan is to cut it way back so when we have a special dessert it is a treat instead of an everyday occurrence.

Plus also as well! The time has come to recommit to my one pull up challenge. At the very least I need to be doing some kind of workout. So yoga with an emphasis on planks, lots of push ups, dumb bell rows, bananas and reverse bananas and inverted rows. I want to feel strong. Of course some cardio thrown in there too. Probably walking and jumping rope.

It feels empowering to take back your life. I have a long row to hoe. There are going to be times that I want to quit but I am hoping I can keep the enthusiasm up! Or at least fake it until I make it.

What do you do for workouts? Do you have any good recipes? Help a sister out!

-AnneMarie

 

Is this it?? YES!! I can do hard things and I am going to prove it! Weight loss journey happening here!!

So...I need to lose weight. Boo. Actually I am officially down 23 lbs but by basic accident. I have been trying LOTS of different programs, I mean LOTS and I think I have finally (I sure hope so this time)found what is working for me. I am drinking lots of water, avoiding carbs, attempting to keep them under 50-100 max a day, increasing fruits and veggies, limiting sugar (back to the carbs thing) and exercise.4 days a week. I have promised myself that I will stop eating when I am full, at the first inkling even. You'd think that would be an obvious thing but it hasn't always been that way for me. I also promised myself if there is anything I really want to have I will just have it. No denial. Starting with 3 bites. I am finding that usually after 3 bites of that naughty food thing, it sometimes wasn't all my mind had it cracked up to be so I can leave it and if it is I eat it. Hopefully avoiding the spiral into binge land when I can't stand it anymore and eat far beyond what I should to satisfy the craving.

ALSO...

I found a rad new game weight loss website!! You can click here to go check it out. Its called diet bet and the concept is that everyone playing puts in $30 and all who lose 4% in 28 days gets to split the pot!! HOW FUN?! They also have 6 month games if you are interested. Go check it out!! You can even start your own game if you want with your friends and family!! 

PS I am not being compensated by diet bet..I just think its cool and want to share.  They have a game that just started today so go and have some fun!! Lets do this together!! 

LOVES!!

Em

Ensign Peak

We made a goal as a family to hike once a week all summer long. Our hope is to try and enjoy the lovely mountains and trails around our state. What a waste if we don't! I am going to be sharing some of our favorite hikes here.

 The first hike we took this year was Ensign Peak. This hike is basically our first one every year. And it is rad! The Ensign Peak trail is pretty short and pretty steep in some places. There are a lot of loose rocks and pebbles on the trail so you can slip on the way down. So be careful! The kids do really well on this hike. Lola stands up the trail and yells at me to keep going and that I don't get any more breaks. So fun... 

Just check out these views! You can see for miles in basically all directions. So awesome. The kids swore they could see to Africa. We tried to explain why you couldn't see Africa. Five frustrating minutes later they still didn't get it. Remind me next time that it isn't worth the effort! ;)

It is also really great at night. Last year we went up at dusk. We watched the sunset and then used head lamps to hike back down. That was crazy fun. The kids loved the headlamps and the view was one for the books.

I will be the first too admit that I am not in good shape. Like at all. Hence the one pull-up challenge. But I really enjoy hiking and this one is a pretty great hike. I do have to rest my calves a few times on the way up. If I head down too quickly then my knees are aching by the time we get down. But it was well worth it. 

If you are local you need to check out this trail for a quick fun hike. And if you are visiting then it is a must see! 

One Pull Up

via

I have decided that by end of this summer I want to be able to complete one pull up. Lofty goal, eh? IN all actuality it is a lofty goal for me. I have never been one to do a serious workout routine or really have a major fitness goal. I'm always saying I want to lose weight and be healthier but I have been wondering lately if that is not specific enough. There needs to be one particular thing I am shooting for. Really specific. So here we are. Doing one pull up encompasses two different things in my mind.

1. I need to lose weight. The less you weigh the easier the pull up

2. I need to workout my back, arms or chest everyday to accomplish this goal

I found two articles that I like about doing pull ups. This one here explains the difference between pull-ups and chin ups and gives exercises to help accomplish. This one here give advice and awesome exercises with video for getting it done as well. Also I have chosen to work on weight loss but you don't have to to do a pull up! If you are strong enough then you don't need to lose weight. That is my personal choice. 

This whole goal comes down to one thing for me: I want to be healthier so that I can live the life I want. I want to be able to keep up with my kids. They need a mom that will be around for a long time. At the rate I am going now that won't happen. I want to be strong and healthy and right now I am not. SO here I go! Wish me luck!

I am thinking of doing an instagram hashtag. Would anyone be interested in following along? Or interested in joining me? You can follow us at ramonaavenue on twitter and insta. Keep in mind that I am no expert and I will probably make plenty of mistakes.

I am off to do as many push ups as I possibly can!