It's been a crazy few weeks with birthday celebrations, for the young and older, and as much as I adore birthdays, I am birthay'd out! No more stuffing balloons in my little car, baking cakes, or fishing for a candle in my kitchen drawers. I need a mini break. But don't worry friends, if I love you so much, you will still get a birthday cake :)
A little update on the clean eating/healthy lifestyle, judging from my first progress picture to the one I took 4 weeks later, there is a MAJOR difference in my pooch. So yay for that!! My shirts fit a lot better with almost nothing sticking out, so that was a major win. My face looks a little thinner and I feel great!
Although I did not work out at all this past week, I did fine with food, a little more cheating on the weekend, but stayed pretty much in line during the week. It's hard to work out when all you're craving is chocolate and salt and having so many emotions... #girlprobs. It's back to work this week though with some high intensity interval workouts (HIIT), which will do a number on your legs. I couldn't walk normally for 2 days. It was one of those "it hurts so good" feelings, so at least I know I did the exercises correctly and really pushed myself. These are great workouts that can easily fit into a busy schedule and can definitely be done at home. Just Google HIIT workouts, and you'll come across a bunch of different workouts. So much more efficient than just being on the elliptical for an hour watching Netflix.
The weather is getting cooler day by day, which is great. I love fall and spring, those in between seasons have the best weather. It's perfect for comfort food and nights by the fire pit, which by the way, I re-painted and am super excited about it. Those things rust quickly, but with a little work, I have revived the pit. You know what else is great when the weather gets cooler? Cuddling. And lots of it! I view comfort food as cuddling for the stomach.
The following recipe is just something I threw together in my cast iron pot while the hubs was away on a work trip. It's a clean, healthy meal that makes enough to last the whole week for lunches and leftovers and best of all, it's comfort food! I also made some sweet potato hashbrowns which were super easy to whip up to eat along with chili.
Spicy Turkey Chili:
2 tbs. olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped1 jalapeno, diced (I kept the seeds for spiciness)
1 bell pepper, seeded, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound ground turkey
2 tbs. cocoa powder
chili powder
cayenne powder
red chili flakes
ground cumin
sea salt
black pepper
2 cans fire roasted diced tomatoes
1 can red kidney beans (or any beans), drained
hot sauce
Heat olive oil in a a large pot or cast iron pot on medium. Add onion, jalapenos, bell peppers, and garlic and cook until the vegetables have softened and the garlic is fragrant.
Add turkey and cook until no longer pink. Add all of the spices to your liking and cook for a few minutes with the meat and veggies.
Add the canned tomatoes, beans, beer, and as much hot sauce as you like. Bring everything to a boil and reduce heat to low. Simmer, partially covered, for 45 min-1 hour. Add more spices after tasting.
Top with shredded cheddar, sour cream, avocado, whatever your heart desires! I did mine simply with shredded cheddar and a dollop low fat sour cream, and some more hot sauce :)
Jalapeno & Cheddar Sweet Potato Hashbrowns:
2 large sweet potatoes, peeled, shredded
1 jalapeno, seeded, diced
1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
chili powder
garlic powder
salt
pepper
2 tbs. wheat flour
Combine shredded sweet potatoes, jalapenos, cheese, spices, and flour, until well incorporated. Spray a medium pan with cooking spray. Form the sweet potato mixture into small patties and fry 3 minutes on each side until golden brown. Serve on top of chili.
Enjoy this dish and enjoy the weather!
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