You may have heard of rainbow in a cup? If not it’s rainbow colored jello layered in a cup.

This salad is like rainbow in a cup only better. And healthier. And it’s so good you want to eat it in a bowl not a cup.

The only problem with this rainbow salad is that it’s missing blue (and indigo if we are going to get technical). I just couldn’t think of anything blue to put in it except blueberries and that wouldn’t be acceptable. Nothing against blueberries. I just don’t see them going well with cumin or mustard. So pretend the black beans are really blue beans and you can have a full on rainbow inspired salad.

It’s a perfect salad to bring along to that Memorial Weekend BBQ this weekend.

Rainbow in a Cup Bowl Salad

Salad Ingredients

• 2 Cups Tomatoes – Chopped
• 1 Orange Bell Pepper – Chopped
• 1 Yellow Bell Pepper – Chopped
• 1/4 Cup Purple Onion – Diced
• 1/4 Cup Cilantro – Chopped
• 2 Cups Black Beans – (I cook my own) Rinsed and Drained
• 1 Cup Jicama* – Chopped
• 2 Cloves of Garlic – Finely Chopped

Dressing

• 1/4 Cup Rice Vinegar
• 2 Tbs Olive Oil
• 1/2 Tsp Dry Mustard
• 1/4 Tsp Cumin
  1/2 Tsp Sea Salt (or to taste)

If you want to add some “gold” to the end top of this rainbow salad toss in some chopped avocado. Yum.

Hugs and High Fives,
Jenn

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Walking 10,000 steps a day is challenge.

Even with my new walking shoes.

I’m all over being barefoot. However, that’s not usually practical especially in the city. So I went on an search to find shoes that were as close to being barefoot as possible that didn’t look like frog feet and could be worn with dresses. Hello moccasins. Best. Walking. Shoes. Ever.

Anyway…

Week Three Results of my Movement Matters 10,000 Steps a Day Challenge 

• 5/15 – 9037
• 5/16 – 15,410
• 5/17 – 6707
• 5/18 – 13,151
• 5/19 – 10,656
• 5/20 – 15,995
• 5/21 – 7747
• Weekly average – 11,243 (A little higher than last week.)

Love walking around DC with this guy.

Unless, I’m sightseeing getting in 10,000 steps a day takes effort. On sightseeing days I walk 10,000+ steps without thinking about it.

But during an ordinary day I have to be intentional to get in 10,000 steps. This usually means a walk in the morning and evening if I have errands to run that day. If I don’t have errands it means adding in a walk in the afternoon.

It’s a little embarrassing how much I sit on a normal day. I sit to write. I sit to eat. I sit when we homeschool. I sit to drive. I sit on the couch with Brent in the evening. Often sometimes, I sit and do nothing. (And you thought my life was exciting.)

Before we moved into the RV, I moved more by doing stuff around the house like cleaning. However, the RV takes about 15 minutes to clean and it is 18 steps from the front to the back. Four steps from the couch to the kitchen. (Dangerous.) I could clean all day and walk 1000 steps. Maybe.

Anyway, we left Washington DC yesterday and we are slowing down for a few weeks before we head to Philadelphia and NYC. I only have a battlefield and one museum trip planned this week so I’ll have to be intentional each day if I’m going to walk 10,000 steps.

Also planning some workouts for the week after almost 2 weeks off.

• Monday – Walk
• Tuesday – Walk + Kettlebells
• Wednesday – Walk
• Thursday – Walk + Kettlebells
• Friday – Walk
• Saturday – Walk + Kettlebells
• Sunday – Walk

I hoping to get to workout with this lady, Lisa from Workout Mommy. She loves kettlebells too! We had dinner with Lisa and her adorable family last night. So much fun!

Hugs and High Fives,
Jenn

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This week has been a blur. We have been in Washington D.C and I’ve been trying to pack in as much as possible every day. The boys and I have been getting up every morning (except one) to go into the city around 9 am and returning home around 9 pm. While visiting D.C. has made it fairly easy to get in my steps, it hasn’t left me much time for blogging or editing videos.

Or workouts.

I didn’t get in the three workouts I had planned last week. I’m a little disappointed in myself but all I can do is admit I didn’t make working out a priority last week. My priority has been seeing and learning as much as possible with the boys. I had planned to get up early and workout before we went into D.C. but it didn’t happen. When we got home after 12 hours in the city I was just too exhausted.

This week I’m going to shoot for one full body strength training workout.

One.

Impressive, right? Rather, than feeling disappointed when I don’t do what I say I’m going to do, I’m just deciding right now that one workout this week is enough. We are still in DC for a few more days and the workouts can wait. I workout consistently so two weeks of straying from my normal schedule isn’t going to hurt anything.

While I didn’t get in my strength training workouts this week I did ride my bike and walk.

Week Two 10,000 Steps a Day Results

• 5/8 – 14,518
• 5/9 – 14,035
• 5/10 – 3376
• 5/11 – 10,034
• 5/12 – 15,575
• 5/13 – 7904
• 5/14 – 10,444

On May 10, I only walked 3376 steps that day due to lack of discipline and planning on my part. I got up late and skipped my morning walk because the boys and I were meeting friends, another fulltime RVing family, we had met in Austin, TX. Traveling in an RV is such a trippy life. I love it!

On May 13, we were in the National Museum of Air and Space where it should have been easy to get 10,000 steps. However, I got an unexpected bad stomach ache and ended up sitting down for a large part of the afternoon. I was much more bummed to miss parts of the museum than I was not to get in my steps.

So I didn’t technically reach my goal of 10,000 steps every day but when I averaged out my steps I got 10,840 a day. It’s consistency that counts right!

I hope you are having a great week and do some kettlebell swings for me would you!

Hugs and High Fives,
Jenn

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I have trouble with “following through”. I can’t even count the number of things I’ve started to only give up on halfway through and it wears on my confidence. I’m determined to follow through my “Movement Matters” challenge this month and get in 10,000 steps a day.

Here are my the first week’s results.

• 5/1 – 10,706
• 5/2 – 10,504
• 5/3 – 9522
• 5/4 – 10,247
• 5/5 – 10,334
• 5/6 – 11,169
• 5/7 – 11,086

That’s an average of 10,509 steps a day. (Wow. I can use a calculator.)

It feels great to follow through even on challenge as small as walking 10,000 steps a day. It took me about 2 or three walks a day if we weren’t sightseeing. The best part by far was extra time I spent with my family. Every day I went on a walk with someone in my family. Sometimes it was just Brent and I out for an evening stroll. How I love holding his hand and walking under the full moon. Did you see that moon?!?!!? Other times it was just the boys and I.  I even made sure to use the walks to get some special one on one time with each boy.  Two nights was particularly sweet when Thing 2 wanted to walk with me. The sun had just set and a slight silver still hung in the air.  A group of tables sat near the end of the road and Thing 2 pulled me over to the tables by my hand. We sat down and he put his head in my lap. We chatted there in the darkness for about 20 minutes about life.

Yes, the benefits of walking are much much more than physical.

I got in two strength training workouts in addition to my walks.

This week’s plan is to continue walking 10,000 steps a day and three 20 minute full body kettlebell and/or suspension trainer workouts. I finally dug out my TRX because I was feeling like I wasn’t getting enough “pulling” work and I want to avoid imbalances.

Here is the plan.

• Monday – Walk (Done)
• Tuesday – Walk + Kettlebell or Suspension Trainer Workout (Done)
• Wednesday – Walk
• Thursday - Walk +Kettlebell or Suspension Trainer Workout
• Friday – Walk
• Saturday – Walk + Kettlebell or Suspension Trainer Workout

Well that’s it for today. I’m *hoping* to find time to edit another kettlebell workout this week to post to YouTube. We have been crazy busy. In the last three days I’ve been to George Washington’s Birthplace and two Civil War Battlefields. This week I’m in D.C. but I’m hoping I can get to it one evening.

Have a great day!

Hugs and High Fives,
Jenn

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Mo Talbot is a student, stay at home mom and a weight loss ambassador. Take one look at her before and after pictures on her Facebook page and you’ll see why. I “met” Mo when a friend of mine shared one of her motivational wall posts. I liked what I read and clicked through. I’m so happy I did. Mo is kind, bubbly, encouraging and committed to her goals.

Not only does Mo spend time encouraging others with her if-I-can-do-it-you-can-too-atttitude on her very well liked Facebook page, I Got Tired of Being Fat and Got in Shape, she is also a busy mom with two kids ages 12 and 9. Mo also enjoys playing the guitar and dancing. She loves indoor rock climbing, bodybuilding, and weightlifting.

1. What was your lifestyle like before?

My life before I lost the weight was pretty sedentary, I went to school and I was busy but I was not physically active, I ate whatever I wanted and I was pretty unhappy with the way I felt inside and how I looked outside.

2. How did you lose weight? The basics of your plan.

I ate myself lean! I did a total change of my eating habits and exercises habits. I did it with real food, no shakes, pills, shots, or surgeries. I stopped eating refined sugar ( or any sugar for that matter honey, raw sugar, brown sugar etc) and refined flours, I limited my starches (potatoes and corn) and I ate a lean protein and a fruit or vegetable every 2 to 3 hours. I stopped eating fried foods, sweets, and mayonnaise! It is my weakness!!! 

3. How has your attitude toward food changed?

I used to eat to help me feel better, it was my comfort. I ate when I was happy, sad, depressed, bored, I ate to celebrate whatever came my way, I ate out of anger. My emotions were always represented in my foods. I don’t do that anymore. I eat for my body to look the way I want it to look, i do allow myself a treat once a week. But My attitude towards food is completely different . I am stronger than food!

4. Any current fitness goals?

I am currently training to do a bodybuilding competition in the bikini category. I want to prove to myself that I have the determination to get up on stage, even though I am completely scared of it.

5. What gave you the idea to start your inspirational Facebook page?

 I started a page because so many of my friends were asking me how I did it, so instead of writing everyone a personal email ( which I did for the longest time) I decided to write a note on my page where I could point people to it. I also would post quotes and stuff to keep ME motivated, and people started liking it and that is how I am here today.

6. What inspires/motivates you to eat healthy and workout?

Me! I keep myself motivated from within. Nobody else can do this for me. I have truly found that motivation comes from our deepest desires and when we really want something we will go after it no matter what or who gets in the way. I am my own motivator. That may sound selfish but honestly it all comes from within. I keep doing this day in an day out because I never want to feel the way I used to feel. It is so much more than just being thin, it is truly a mental thing my change has truly been more mental than physical. 

7. Any advice for people who are struggling to lose weight?

Look deep within at the reasons why you want to lose weight and make sure that it is because YOU want to, not because people around you want you to. Once you find the reasons why YOU want to lose weight then remember them DAILY and you will be your own motivator. Give yourself NO room for failure. NO EXCUSES.

8. And for fun, if you could have any superpower what would it be and why?

Oh my gosh.. hahhaha a superpower?? lets see… the power of persuasion. So people would do what I want them to do !!! HAHAHHAHA

Thank you Mo for sharing your journey with us. Your commitment to health is encouraging! Be sure to like Mo’s Facebook page for more inspiration!

Hugs and High Fives,
Jenn

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Check out our family’s adventures being inspired to follow you dreams at New School Nomads as we take a year long RV road trip through the United States!

May is the last full month of spring before summer “officially” kicks off with Memorial Day.

Longer days make summer the perfect time for evening strolls.

If you are like me (and most Americans) you could use a little more movement. This month in anticipation of my summer strolls (and if I’m honest, swimsuit season), I’m focusing on the most basic form of movement— walking. I’m taking on a personal 10,000 steps, the number most experts recommend, a day challenge.

Movement Matters May – A 10,000 steps a day challenge

A few years ago, I discovered just how love walking and its importance to my overall calorie burn. According to my Bodybugg, I burned way more calories on days I walked a lot than on the days I worked out but was otherwise sedentary. What I got what movement of all kinds, even the humble walk, matters. Walking has many benefits other than burning calories.

Health Benefits of Walking

• Our bodies are designed to walk
• Low impact – walking puts very little stress on the body
• Improves or maintains cardiovascular health
• Helps or maintains weight loss which results in a long list of health benefits.
• Reduces likelihood of some diseases such as diabetes
• Increases longevity
• Great stress reliever
• Improves mood
• Encourages mental clarity
• Can be meditative

And while this isn’t necessarily a “health” benefit, walking doesn’t require any fancy equipment. This month for my 10,000 steps challenge I’m going to be using a simple pedometer. I use the Omron HJ-203 Pedometer with Activity Tracker. It’s fairly inexpensive and seems to be accurate.

While walking boasts many benefits and is easy, I still often find myself putting it on the back burner in place of “more important” tasks at hand. You know things like Facebook.

Not this month.

10,000 steps a day.

Why walk? Why not do the 10,000 kettlebell swing challenge again?

While I enjoy more extreme challenges, I’m also trying to slow down, simplify, get honest with myself, and get back to the basics. Nothing is more basic than walking. Plus there are all those benefits I mentioned.

But…. but… but….

What if 10,000 steps is too much? Don’t fret! One study showed that “individuals achieving > or = 5000 steps had a substantially lower prevalence of adverse cardiometabolic health indicators than those obtaining fewer steps.” So if 10,000 steps seems like too many…start where you are. Try working up to 5000 first and then go from there. Eventually you will reach 10,00 steps.

Hugs and High Fives,
Jenn

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I haven’t been honest with myself.

The other day while on a walk with one of my sons, I saw a long stretch of green grass stretching through the empty campground.

Sprints?

But…

Well…

Okay.

Late that afternoon, before the mosquitoes came out, Brent and I walked over to the empty length of lawn. I carried my Gymboss set for 10 rounds of 30 seconds work/30 rest. Just 10 minutes. I hit start and took off.  I have loved sprinting since I saw the Black Stallion movie as a child. Yep, 30 years later I still occasionally have thoughts of being a horse galloping down the beach while I workout.

Brent left me in the dust by the 2nd round!

The first round felt amazing. I even tried to keep up with Brent. The second was a little harder. The third was uncomfortable. By the fourth I felt like a foundered pony trying to trot along.

I finished the 10 rounds and stood by the ocean feeling more winded and exhausted than I had felt in a long time.

What happened? Why was I gasping so uncomfortable?

As I looked out over the marsh to the ocean I reflected on my physical and emotional feelings, goals, and choices.

I haven’t been honest with myself. Said my lungs. Said my legs. Said my heart.

How to be Honest with Yourself

1. Realize being honest with yourself is an act of courage. All change starts with the ability to face ourselves and that can be the hardest step of all. You are a courageous warrior looking yourself in the mirror.

2. What are the consquences of not being honest with yourself? This is tough but necessary question. Look at the short term and long term consequences. How will you feel after one meal of junk food? How will you feel after 10 years of regular consumption of junk food?

3. Find your consistencies. It’s consistency that counts. Who cares about an occasional brownie sundae or late night at work. But are you consistently eating junk? Are you consistently skipping workouts? Are you consistently putting work before family? Journaling may help you recognize your positive and negative consistencies.

4. Recognize the benefits of being honest with yourself. What will I gain if I’m honest with myself? Will my relationships improve? Will I feel better? Have more energy? Create better memories for myself and my family?

5. Take time to reflect on your current choices. Bills, meetings, deadlines, soccer practices, parties, and other commitments can fill our lives to the point of exhaustion. Oftentimes all we can do is fall into bed with the current day nothing more than a blur in our minds. We must make time to reflect on our choices. Regularly turn off the TV or computer and make the time. Do life don’t let life do you. This starts by pausing long and often enough to see what is really going on.

6. Look at your life from an outsiders perspective. If your walls could talk what would they say? Mine would say that I often grab a spoon and the peanut butter jar as soon as my family walks out the door. (If no one sees it doesn’t count right?) That I often loose patience with my kids. That I spend too much time with my face peering down at my phone. Don’t forget the positives. My walls would also say I eat lots of healthful food. I’m very goofy playful. I spend a lot of time cuddling my family.

7. Write an eulogy.  Along the lines of  ”if your walls could talk”, writing an eulogy is an exercise I learned from Stephen Covey (Seven Habits of Highly Effective People) years ago and it has stuck with me since. Writing an eulogy is a little morbid but it can be, sometimes painfully, eyeopening and yet rewarding. If I were to die tomorrow how do I want people, especially my family, to remember me? Are my values lining up with my choices?

8. Find people who love you enough to help you be honest with yourself. A true friend loves you enough to kindly tell you that those jeans aren’t the most flattering. If you are unsure if you are being honest with yourself get together with a friend and have a heart to heart talk.

9. Forgive yourself. Being honest with yourself can be hard because everyone comes up short. No one is perfect. This cliche can be said again and again. We live in a culture whose marketplace thrives on our perceived imperfections. You know what it’s okay to be imperfect. Imperfection gives us room to grow. It allows us to relate. It makes us unique. It brings us together. Personally speaking, imperfection also allows me to see God in my life which makes forgiving myself easier. It’s hard to love others when we don’t love ourselves. So be honest with yourself but be kind to yourself. Forgive yourself and realize we are all stumbling along together doing the best we can.

Learning to be honest with yourself is crucial to health in all its forms: social, mental, spiritual, and physical. (Did I get all of them?) It’s an act of courage whose reward goes far beyond the scale, a nice pair of jeans and a sprint workout.

Hugs and High Fives,
Jenn

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I’m writing my next thirteen kettlebell workouts with beginners in mind. You’ll see lots of presses, squats, cleans, rows, and, of course, swings.

Why the next thirteen? Because I’m a nerd. Because I’m easily entertained. Because we are going to be traveling through the original 13 colonies and just like the colonist had to start somewhere so does the beginner girevik. Combining history, travel, and kettlebells. I bet you won’t find another fitness blog that does that.

Of course, if you are more advanced you can always swap out more difficult progressions, pick up a heavier kettlebell, or do more rounds. Or if you are brand new to exercise you can skip kettlebells all together and find a trainer who can teach you the basic some basic movement patterns. If that isn’t an option you could stick with bodyweight/mobility exercises to build up some core strength. Then come back later. Or if you insist, use a light kettlebell and do less rounds.

We filmed this workout in a little tiny town in Georgia called Glenwood. By chance, we came across this quiet campground and it was so peaceful we decided to stay awhile.

The sunset the night before we filmed the workout was beautiful. A nasty storm followed. Fun times in the RV.

Anyway onto the workout.

Kettlebell Workout for Beginners – Georgia

1. Squats – 5-8
2. Single Kettlebell Bear Crawl* - Find a length you feel comfortable walking. I crawled about 100 feet
3. Presses – 5-8 Each Arm
4. Overhead Walk Right** – Find a length you feel comfortable walking. I walked about 150 feet.
5. Swings – 20
6. Overhead Walk Left – Again find a length you feel comfortable.
7. Rows – 5-10 Each Arm

Repeat 3-7 times.

This kettlebell workout travels back and forth. Start at point A with squats. Bear crawl to point B. Then do presses followed by an overhead walk back to point A for swings and so on. 

If you don’t have a long length to walk you could always set a timer for about 30 seconds and walk around your house or back in forth in your backyard.

*If you are unable to hold a plank for 30 seconds skip the bear crawl and work on a basic plank.

**Keep our core tight (abs braced) and shoulder blade down as if you are tucking it into your back pocket.

All right that’s it! Have a great weekend!!!

Hugs and High Fives,
Jenn

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A few weeks ago, while scrolling through Facebook status updates I noticed a self-portrait, or a “body shot”, of girl who was a friend of a friend (she had tagged my friend) taken from the hips to the shoulders revealing a very smooth flat tummy. I’ll be honest the flat tummy caught my eye long enough for me to read the caption that said something about wanting to lose weight and fight fat.

My first thought was “what fat?”. (I should also say that she didn’t look to be at an unhealthy low weight either.) Then I remembered that I have been there and can understand wanting to lose a few vanity pounds that only you notice. Nothing wrong with that.

Then, I thought a little more about the body shot and wondered how it might make other people on FB feel.

Were people motivated? Good for them.

Were people annoyed? Get over it.

But what if they were hurt? Did she have truly overweight friends who felt bad about themselves after looking at her photos what our culture might call a “perfect tummy” and declaring to her FB world that it’s time to get rid of the “fat”. Should we even care about other’s people’s feelings or should we take a “hide me then” attitude?

Would her flat tummy picture had been different if there would have been a “before” picture along side it? It wasn’t a “look at my progress!” picture. I was an essentially “before” pictures as she was claiming it was time to get rid of the very very little fat she still had clinging to her waist.

My thoughts were complex and confused.

Why did she post it?

Did she want attention?

Did she really think she was fat?

Was she another woman comparing herself to the unrealistic pictures in the media? Did her perfect tummy not look so perfect because it was taken in bathroom lighting instead of studio lighting?

Body image is so complicated.

Couple it with social media and it’s a recipe for angst rivaling that of politics.

I’ll admit it, I treat my Facebook profile differently than I treat my blog or other social media platforms.

For one, like most people I have a wide range of friends I personally know on Facebook that I don’t have on other social media platforms. I have church friends, friends from my acting class days, high school friends, taekwondo friends, college friends, ect. While I never “add” kids, sometimes a friend’s child will ask to be my friend and I accept. Because of the wide variety of “friends”, I feel a certain sense of responsibility to only post “family friendly” updates. I also make an effort to keep things positive. (If there is one thing I despise on FB, it’s passive agressive updates. Updates that you know are talking unfavorably about someone but you aren’t sure who. I’m surprised by how many adults I see doing this. GROW. UP.) While I can’t control how other people feel, I do try to be conscious of how my posts and pictures may affect my friend’s positively or negatively.

On the other hand, I assume people coming to my health blog are looking to read about food, fitness, and body image. If not they can easily click away. In the past, I have posted “progress pictures” or “body shots” on my blog without giving it much thought. On my personal Facebook page, I haven’t posted a “body shot”, a picture that was taken with the sole purpose of sharing my body composition with anyone who hasn’t hidden me. Seeing that over half of our population is obese, it’s likely that while my current body composition won’t land me on the cover of Oxygen magazine my current composition might be someone else’s, a friend’s, goal composition. Or it might very well be a body composition that a friend on FB can only emotionally “dream of” at the moment. If I show dissatisfaction with my body at a healthy body weight on FB what am I saying about my friends who are at an unhealthy body weight? And what is “healthy” and “unhealthy” anyway?

It’s all so complicated.

This post feels like a muddled mess. Welcome to my brain.

How do you feel about “body shots” on Facebook? On blogs? Is there a difference? How much sensitivity should we show others on social media? Should it change from outlet to outlet? Don’t you love the “hide” feature! 

Hugs and High Fives,
Jenn

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Check out our family’s adventures being inspired to follow you dreams at New School Nomads as we take a year long RV road trip through the United States!

Some places are just magical.

Even when you are doing a kettlebell workout.

We filmed this one at Bahai Honda State Park in the Florida Keys and so far it has been one my favorite places to workout.

My kettlebell agrees.

One evening Brent and I had the idea to exercise during sunset. It was a brilliant idea except for we decided to carry the kettlebells from our campsite to the beach. A quarter mile isn’t far until you are carrying two 12K (26lb) kettlebells in a backpack. Ouch! By the time we got to the beach I was already exhausted.

But it was worth it. If only for the photos.

Florida – Kettlebell Pyramid Circuit Workout

-Part A-
Kettlebell Clean and Press – 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7
Kettlebell Squat- 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7
Kettlebell Row – 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 (1 rep is both arms)
Single Leg Deadlift Right – 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7
Single Leg Deadlift Left- 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7
Down Ups- 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 (1 rep is both legs)

Part A is an ascending ladder which means that the first round (or set) you do 1 of each exercise. The second round you do 2, the third set 3 and so on. Using double kettlebells makes this workout quite challenging. I’d recommend beginners only go up to 5 or even just 3 (it is that tough…for me anyway…maybe you are more She-Ra) and use a single bell.

-Part B-
Kettlebell Swings – 30/30 for 7 minutes.

Set your timer to 30 seconds of work to 30 seconds of rest for 7 rounds (minutes).

Bahai Honda has been one of our favorite places we’ve gone so far. I could have stayed for months. We had so much fun visiting Key West, seeing Key deer, playing at the beach, and snorkeling. Well my family had fun snorkeling, I got really seasick. You can see more pictures of our adventure in the Florida Keys on my travel blog. It’s worth it to click through just to see how close we got to the sweet little Key deer!

Hugs and High Fives,
Jenn

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Check out our family’s adventures being inspired to follow you dreams at New School Nomads as we take a year long RV road trip through the United States!