My belated birthday and staying committed!

Last year for my birthday my family surprised me with "Maggie's Swirly Tart"and how could I not ask for it again! It's beautiful, delicious and for a cake it's pretty darn healthy to eat :)

I think last year's edition was a bit fancier in design, but in terms of flavor both were amazing. After serving it out, I had to take a pic. It turned out to be a really messy shot though, so you get the pretty before pic. All I can say is yum and thank you everyone who celebrated with me!

I turned 29 this year! I can't believe it, I only have one year left till I hit 30! Some of you may know that I want to reach my goal weight by the time I hit 30, which I believe is possible. In total I have lost 48lbs since December and I want to lose another 30lbs by my 30th.

Yesterday I started a new/old fitness challenge, Jillian's 30 day shred. I really love this workout program, it's tough, challenging and short! I have no excuses to not fit it into my day :) I seem to have commitment issues when it comes to workout programs. I have yet to complete a 60 day or 90 day program, but give me a 30 day and I can bust it out. I think this has something to do with being able to envision the finish line easily, knowing that it will end and I will be able to start something fun and new.

It does pay to learn what workouts keep you motivated during your weight loss journey, that way you can focus on staying committed. For example, a lot of people I know have to join a gym and allot a certain time of the day to working out. There are many examples of this, just find what works well for you :)

+Short workout programs (3 weeks-30 days): A lot of programs are set up this way, look up a favorite trainer or favorite exercise and you should find something.

+Long workout programs (60 day to 90 days): I don't know a lot of programs that are this long other than P90X, Insanity and Turbo Jam or Turbo Fire.

+Game console workout programs: There are tons of workout programs and activities on different game consoles. Most are really well done and get you sweating. Plus I always feel like I'm playing a game more than working out. I always do some online research about the workout/game before purchasing.

+Free Internet workouts: YouTube has a ton of exercise videos posted, bodyrock.tv is another great site that posts workout routines for free.

+Gym routines: Join a gym and get into a routine where you stay committed to it for an hour a day. Before work, after work, before the kids go to school, after your partner gets home from work?

+Local community activities: More than likely your community will have some sort of active program happening. A hiking group, running group, fitness challenge, boxing group. Often you can find these advertised at local gyms, community centers, community track. Just watch prices they can range from free to a few dollars to the hundreds.

+Find a workout buddy: Sometimes it really pays off to recruit a friend into working out with you. That way you can challenge, teach and support each other during workouts. It can have drawbacks though, you should really find someone who is just as committed as you.

+Buy your own equipment: This doesn't have to be expensive either. A few weights, a yoga mat, some boxing gloves, the list goes on...

+Get outside: This can be weather permitting but, start running, biking, hiking, walking the track...the list goes on :)

Those are just a few of the ideas I have been using to keep my workouts interesting and fun. One month I'll commit to a short workout program and if weather permits I'll also run. Another month I'll join a local ladies swim class and walk the track. I hope these examples will help you because they sure have helped me stay motivated :)

On to my funny Popeye find...

We are harvesting a lot of spinach from our garden, which I love! Every morning I'm out their picking my daily smoothie, juice and/or salad base. Anyways, I saw this shirt the other day with a picture of Popeye flexing his muscles that said "I eat spinach, not drugs!" If it had been a girl's tee I would have bought it on the spot and worn it while working out! Too funny!

It started with a lemon...

What do you do with a big bag o'lemons? (That just so happen to be 50% off..costing me a dollar!) There are just way to many options out there, but I decided to go with something I've never tried making before.....Lemon-Lime pie tarts!

This recipe is great in so many ways. First off, it's INEXPENSIVE! I find that a lot of raw desserts are too expensive on my budget. Secondly, it was easy to create! This only took me about 15 minutes to make and it would have been faster if I didn't soak the raisins. Thirdly, it's a great summer dessert. It's super refreshing on a hot summer day and not one of those super sweet desserts. Last but not least, I think this pie filling can be used in different dishes. Try it as you would yogurt or pudding, sprinkle with some granola, berries, or nuts.

I should also mention to the mom's reading this entry that my lil one, LOVED these. I was surprised because I thought he might not like the tartness from the lemon and lime, but he smiled and said yummy! The crust does balance the tartness of the filling, plus the addition of sweetener to the filling helps :)

I found this recipe on vegweb.com (I love this site)..here is the link to the original recipe Lemon-Lime Pie. I made a few additions to the recipe, and of course made mine into tarts :) How fun!

Lemon-Lime Pie Tarts (my altered version)

(The Crust)

1 cup sunflower seeds

1/3 cup raisins (soak these for 10minutes prior)

1 tsp Agave
Process the sunflower seeds, raisins and the agave in a food processor. I didn't need to add any water to bind it, I just gave it a few minutes of processing till it was sticky. I pressed about a tbsp of crust mixture into each tart shell.

(The Filling)

3 frozen bananas

1/2 an avocado

2 tbsp coconut oil (liquid form)

1 tsp of Agave

Juice of 1.5 lemon

Juice of 1 lime

Place all the filling ingredients into blender and blend until smooth. Pour a little bit into each tart shell and place in fridge or freezer. Top with some lemon zest or a banana slice.

This makes about 9 tarts, although I did have some filling left over so I could have easily made 10. There wasn't enough crust filling to make a 10th though :( Next time I'm going to add just a little extra of each ingredient to the crust filling.

Now to share these with some friends and family to get some reviews. The reason behind making them into tarts was so I could transport them easily :)

Enjoy!

~Maggie

Happy Birthday To Me!

It's my 28th birthday today and so far it's been pretty great. This morning I was spoiled with presents that totally relate to my love for hiking :) The three things I received were items I'd been looking at for awhile, but never mentioned to my guy. How he knew..I'll never know..i guess he knows me well! I got a camel back, which is a back pack with a bladder you can fill with whatever beverage you would like as you jog or hike. A small 1st aid kit that I thought was a case for my camera that is how small it is. I really wanted one of these since we are hiking with our little guy a lot and you just never know what can happen. I also was given a polar heart rate monitor watch, which is great to keep in me in my target heart rate zone :) All awesome gifts :)

I then went to the spa and used my gift certificate given to me at Christmas for a manicure and pedicure, which was really nice. The best gift though was when I came home and my little guy showed me what he and his daddy had made me...

Maggie's Swirly Tart

You might recognize the ingredients for the crust, which is similar to Ani Phylo's recipe for Lemon Coconut Bars.

(Crust)

1/2 cup of almonds, chopped

3/4 cup of dates
1 vanilla bean

1 tsp sea salt

Zest of 1/2 lemon

Juice of 1/2 lemon (roughly 1 tablespoon of juice)

1/2 cup of dried shredded coconut

In your food processor, chop the almonds and coconut into small pieces. Then put the remaining ingredients in the food processor and blend until it starts creating a dough ball. Press in the base of your pie plate or pan.

(1st & 2nd layer)

3 Kiwis

1-2 Mangoes

The 1st layer is kiwis which you may want to blot the base of them on a cloth before placing them on the crust. This way it helps prevent the crust from going soggy. We didn't have a problem with the crust getting to soft or wet. The 2nd layer is mangoes, be creative and decorate.

(3rd layer)

3 fresh peaches or 1 can of peaches, rinsed (if out of season)

1/4 cup of dates

Blend the peaches and dates in a blender till smooth. Pour the puree over top of the mango layer.

(Fruit Toppings)

6-10 strawberries

2-3 mandarins

Decorate the top layer of your tart any way you like. Get creative and have some fun with it.

Well I'm off to enjoy the rest of my day! Hope you try out my Swirly Tart because it's so delicious! The fresh fruit with the sweet crust and puree is a great spring/summer dessert.

Enjoy!

~Maggie