Pumpkin Pie Bites

I'm always looking for ways to clean up my favorit treats and here is a great one! Pumpkin pie bites are delicious and easy to make, and this recipe keeps it clean though your could sub for more traditional ingredients.

Recipe:

1 Can Pumpkin

2 Ripe Bananas

1/2 C Coconut Sugar

1 Egg

1/4 C Coconut Flour

1/4 Seed or Nut Butter

2 Tsp Pumpkin Pie Spice

1/4 Tsp Salt

Mix all ingredients together in a food processor or by hand and pour into lined muffin tin. Bake at 350 for 20-30 mins until set.

Depending on how ripe your bananas are will depend on how much banana flavor you get versus pumpkin flavor, less ripe will be a less potent flavor.

These were an easy and delicious treat for Halloween, read more about my Halloween menu here.

A Day on the Whole30

The Whole30 has been wonderful for me, it has rid my body of its sugar addiction, helped me feel my best, and really helped me understand and establish a better relationship with food.

The first time I did a Whole30 round I had not yet found the 21 Day Fix program and the biggest comfort I found while on the Whole30 was over indulging in the approved foods like avocados and nut butters. (can you blame me though?) Due to my over eating of those items I really didn't see any weight loss which was quite discouraging considering I had gone a whole month without any breads, sugars, or cheese! This time I'm sticking with the portion containers of the 21 Day Fix and it has helped tremendously! This is my second go around with combining both programs and I'm loving what it's done for me.

Now for the point of this - what does a full day of food look like, hopefully this will inspire you all to try one of these or just give you hope that it really isn't all that hard to stay Whole30 compliant!

Morning Snack: Shakeology and a Peach (1 Red & 1 Purple)

I know that Shakeology is NOT Whole30 approved - no protein shakes or bars are - but it has become a staple in my diet and for its other health benefits I've decided to keep it as a part of my diet. If you're doing the Whole30 for the first time I would encourage you to stick to the program fully and then make adjustments if you do it again. This could easily be swapped for two hard boiled eggs giving you the same conversion. I eat this on my way to work right after my morning workout.

Breakfast: Adele's Chicken Apple Sausage with Egg Whites and Spinach (1 Red & 1/2 Green)

I whipped this up in the morning by scrambling 2 egg whites (1/3 Red) with spinach and then pan grilling the sausage - quick, easy and super flavorful!

Lunch: Taco Salad and Sweet Potato Toast with Sunflower Seed Butter (1 Green, 1 Red, 1/2 Blue, 1/2 Yellow, 2 Tsp)

Taco Salads are my favorite! They are super easy to prep then you just throw it all together when ready to eat. For the "toast" I sliced a sweet potato approximately 1/4" thick and baked on parchment paper for about 20 mins per side at 375. I make a large batch at the beginning of the week then just reheat in the toaster when I was the feeling of some toast in my life! Also delicious with mashed avocado for a breakfast addition!

Afternoon Snack: Honey Crisp Apple (1 Purple)

Dinner: Baked Chicken Breast with Avocado and Sauteed Veggies (1 Red, 1 Green, 1/2 Blue)

Another super easy meal that was so delicious! I bake and shred the chicken at the beginning of the week then just saute the veggies I have available and throw it together!

I hope this helps you see that Whole30 meals don't need to be complicated - they can be quick, easy and rather basic, but still be delicious. You don't realize how good food can taste when it's stripped down to what it is actually intended to taste like.

What are your go-to Whole30 meals? I would love to try them!

21 Day Fix: Round 1

I did the 21 Day Fix program for the first time this month, and I absolutely loved it! I have yet to meet anyone who has not had success in some form from this program!

I ordered a challenge pack that came with the 21 Day Fix workout program, portion containers, and a bag of Shakeology. I was introduced to this program buy a friend who is also a Beachbody coach, bought the challenge pack thru her and got involved in a challenge group; which I can honestly say made all the difference!

The program is broken down in the books so it is easy to follow and abide by, but the best assets I found on this program are:

1. 21 Day Fitness Tracker App
2. Joining a Challenge Group on Facebook

The App

This made sticking to the program so much easier! Not only does it allow you to keep notes from each day, it give you place to keep track of your weight if you're weighing yourself daily, advises what workout is coming today and lets you keep track of your container usage throughout the day.

Challenge Groups

My best advice to get the most out of this program is to get a coach and join a challenge group. The support and encouragement from the women in my group gave me so much more than the weight loss I experienced!
Interested in joining a challenge group? Click here and contact me for more information!


The first week of the program I saw the most weight loss (5 lbs) the rest of the program I maintained and lost a couple more the last week. The first week was good, I was motivated and ready to make a change! I can honestly say that it was a toss up to say what was hardest for me between the daily work outs and sticking to the eating plan. I never worked out regularly enough and I discovered that after this program (honestly, after the first day), but I stuck it out and I'm so proud of myself for doing so!

The second week was the hardest for me, I was going through major withdraws from sugars, and my body was sore everyday. It was this week that I began feeling discouraged due to not seeing the scale go down at all (literally at all) and I likely would have caved this week if it had not been for the challenge group I was in. These ladies shared similar struggles, and we encouraged each other and kept each other accountable. That made all the difference!

In the third week I felt my body changing, my clothes are fitting looser, I can see muscle definition, my stomach is flatter and the scale is finally creeping down again (slowly, but I was still thrilled) and it was the home stretch! This was a hard week to get through, I had lots of temptations this week, but the changes I was seeing kept me on track and I made it all 21 days!

These 21 Days gave me 6.5 lbs of weight loss, and lifestyle I can maintain. I am beginning a second round of this program next week and I cannot wait to see what additional progress I can make!

Have you tried the 21 Day Fix program? What did you think of it??

Interested in learning more about the program? Checkout my Beachbody website and contact me for more information!

www.BeachbodyCoach.com/KristenSperry

Shredded Beef Tacos

I love Mexican food, all kinds really, tacos, burritos, enchiladas, nachos - I don't discriminate! So while on the 21 Day Fix program I needed to create an approved recipe to add to my meal plan.
This is the recipe I came up with for the beef, it can me used in tacos like I did here, or any other sort of Mexican dish! Feel free to modify to suit your taste, I don't do spicy so this is a mild version.

Ingredients:

2 lb Beef Chuck Roast
1 Can Beef Broth
2 Packets Taco Seasoning (or home made)
1 Tsp Olive Oil
1/4 Chopped Sweet Onion
1 Can Diced Tomatoes & Green Chilies (or hot chilies to your taste)

For me the easiest thing to do is use my Crock Pot and put everything in before I leave for work and come home to a perfectly cooked meal! (who doesn't love that?)

First add the teaspoon of Olive Oil to the bottom of the crock pot, then add a handful of finely chopped onion. Then to the beef! I trimmed the large chunks of fat off and separated the large two pound roast into 4 more manageable chunks. Then rub one packet of taco seasoning on all side of each chunk to fully coat and place all the meat in the crock pot. Cover beef with the can of beef broth and let it go to work! I left mine on low for 10 hours while I was at work.

After the 10 hours remove the beef from Crock Pot and shred with a fork removing any fat chunks that remain. Drain all but approx 3/4 cup of liquid and return the shredded beef to the Crock Pot. Top with the can of diced tomatoes and green chilies along with 1/2 of to the full second taco seasoning packet. Mix thoroughly and continue cooking on low for 30 minutes, and voila!

I then measured out my toppings and assembled my tacos with corn tortillas and topped with lettuce, cheese, and guacamole with a side of fat free re-fried beans.

For the 21 Day Fix I made two tacos, and a yellow container of beans this meal equals:

2 Yellow, 1 Red, 1 Green, and 1 Blue Containers.

I used the left over shredded beef for nachos and taco bowls during the rest of the week, how did you use your left overs?

Want to know more about the 21 Day Fix? Follow the link on my home page to my Beachbody website!