UNSTOPPABLE MORNING ROUTINE

Hello dear friends!

If you find it hard to wake up in the morning, my dear sweet friend, you are in good company! But I'm here to tell you that it doesn't have to be this way! 
I have naturally been an early bird my whole life but...after having my twins back in 2012, I development a much deeper love and appreciation for sleep and sleeping in! 

But I realized as time went on that the time I spend sleeping in wasn't benefiting me in the ways I had hoped for and really wasn't benefiting me at ALL!! So time for a change! 

I will always preach about the book, Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod. It's an amazing and practical way of getting into the morning routine that is going to kick start your morning and ultimately your life. So if by chance you haven't read it, go right now and do so...immediatly! 

I'm just going to summarize the few baby steps to getting you out of the bed today. 
He calls it the 5 minute morning and here they go! 

5 MINUTE MORNING

Mintue One: Go to bed with positive affirmations. Think about the opportunities and hope that tomorrow holds. Leave the negativity behind. 

Minute Two: Set your alarm away from the bed. If you can reach it from the bed (and in my case one step away from the bed) move it further away; it's too close!! 

Minute Three: Brush your teeth! Hal says that at this time of the morning, it's best to do something mundane and habitual that requires very little thought process. 

Minute Four: Drink a glass of water. This helps you replace the water and slight dehydration we wake up with. 

Minute Five: He gives two options: Shower or Put on your workout clothes. I personally only allow myself the latter option so I have no need to make up excuses for not getting my workout in. Some workout in the evening so it makes sense for them to shower. 


This is just a short brief explanation of his method but it works for me!! I suggest you read his book and look into his own story. It's very inspiring!! 

I hope this helps! 

Drop a comment and share your morning motivations for getting out of bed! 

Clean Eating Egg Muffins

Clean Eating Egg Muffins ** Meal Prep

The morning gets pretty crazy around my house so I prepare a large batch of these at one time and they are ready for a quick and easy weekday morning. It's a super quick way to serve your family a healthy start to their busy day!  Just heat and serve!

Ingredients: 

olive oil cooking spray

eggs

salt and pepper

add-ins: sautéed bell peppers and onions, spinach, mushrooms, feta, tomato, turkey, cheese, etc                                                                                                                                      

               

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a small bowl, I mix up what is going into each individual cup.

For instance,  1 egg, sprinkle of cheese, sauteed bell peppers and onions, salt and pepper. Scramble it up and add it to the pan. I do this so I can create several different variations of the muffin to enjoy during the week to meet everyone's tastes. Everyone's happy! Once all muffin cups are filled, bake until set which is usually around 30 minutes. Take them out and let them cool. Once cool, refrigerate until ready to eat.

To serve, heat up in microwave for about 25-35 seconds. Enjoy!

Clean Eating Pita Pizza

Whole Wheat Pita Pizza  

My mouth is watering thinking about this tasty, clean-eating meal! I have used this recipe for lunch, a snack to split between my kids and me. Or at supper time...we can all make our own pizzas or make a few different ones and get a variety!

Thin pizza is my favorite and this is a perfect replica that will satisfy your pizza craving without sacrificing your goals!!

Ingredients:

whole wheat pita

olive oil

Italian seasoning

tomato sauce (This is the recipe I use!)

Toppings:  Pretty much throw whatever you are into up there!  

·         spinach (steamed or raw)

·         mushrooms (sauteed or raw)

·         onions (cooked or raw)

·         bell peppers

·         olives

·         cooked turkey sausage

·         mozzarella cheese

·         tomatoes

·         feta

Directions:

 Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place whole wheat pita on a baking sheet. Brush on olive oil and sprinkle Italian seasoning. Bake in oven to get toasty about 5 minutes. This makes your crust extra toasty. If you don't like crunchy toast, skip this step and move on to toppings. Spread tomato sauce on your crust. Add toppings!  Get creative!! My typical toppings are onions, mushrooms, olives, bell peppers, and mozzarella cheese.  Put your pizza in the oven and cook for about 8-10 minutes until done.

Enjoy a guilt free pizza!!

Clean Eating Bell Pepper Nachos

Clean Eating Bell Pepper Nachos

 This recipe is an awesome one for weekly meal prep lunches or a quick supper!

Clean Taco Meat (I use this recipe.)

3 bell peppers

black beans (rinsed and drained)

1 Tbsp greek yogurt  each serving

1 Tbsp cheese each serving

Use this recipe to prepare your meat. Cut your bell peppers into chip-sized chunks perfect for scooping.

On your plate, add your meat, top with black beans, cheese and greek yogurt. Use the chip-sized bell pepper to scoop!  

Enjoy!

Clean Eating Taco Meat

Clean Eating Taco Meat 

Taco meat is one of my favorite meal prep meats. It is super delicious and you can do so much with it!  

This recipe makes about 4 servings.

Ingredients:

olive oil spray

1 lb ground meat (I used turkey or chicken; whichever is available)

1/4 cup water

2 tsp cumin

2 tsp chili powder

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

In a large pan, cover with cooking spray. Add meat and cook on medium heat until done. Add the rest of the ingredients. Simmer on low until the water and spices absorb into the meat.

Enjoy in tacos, nachos, or salad!

Quick tip: Make a double batch for meal prep or freeze for another day you're short on time!

Clean Eating Tomato Sauce

Clean Eating Tomato Sauce

I discovered this recipe when I first learned about clean eating. The original recipe is from Eating Well where it was used in the Spaghetti Squash and Meatball recipe. I tried it and really liked it but it gave my husband heartburn so I modified it to better fit our family's tastes.  I hope you enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 tsp olive oil

1 Tbsp minced garlic

1 can 28 oz crushed tomatoes - no salt added

1 tsp Italian seasoning

1/4 tsp salt

1/8 cayenne pepper

Directions:

Heat a large pot over medium heat. Add olive oil. Allow to heat up.  Add minced garlic and cook it until fragrant; about a minute or so.  Stir in crushed tomatoes. Add Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, crushed red pepper, and sugar. Stir well. Simmer for 20 minutes.

Enjoy over spaghetti squash or as a topping on whole wheat pita pizza!

** You can make a double batch and freeze what's left over for another quick meal!

The Key to Win Your Morning Workout --Nail Your Evening Routine!!

 

Who wants to wake up and rock the morning?! Everyone right?! We busy moms know that our precious littles are the center of our attention when they're awake!! If we want to get in some sweat therapy, we've got to beat the kids out of the bed!!  I have one key to knocking it out of the park when you wake up in the morning...your evening routine!

But even though I am a morning person with fitness goals, I don't just spring out of bed when the alarm goes off. I have to prep myself and say to myself "Time to Go, Polly!! You've got business to do!" And it is so helpful to know that while I am laying in the bed, I already have all my stuff ready to go as soon as my feet hit the floor.

So let me share with you what I do for my evening routine to rock my morning workout...

1) Lay out your workout clothes. I put them beside the bed where I roll out so I step on them when I rise.

2) Put a glass of water beside your bed. When I wake up I am so thirsty so I am ready for that cool glass of water. Plus, it really brings my body back to life.

3) Have your workout stuff set up. So for my workouts I use a variety of materials: yoga mat, computer (to play my workout on), weights, bands, etc. It's already set up in its' location. Everything's ready, my workout is waiting for me!

ALL I HAVE TO DO IS PRESS PLAY!!!!

I hope you can benefit from this evening routine! If you have other suggestions, comment below!

I'd love to know how you rock your morning!