PV Body's snacks that won't pack on the pounds!

Hey,

I highly suggest you guys check out this list of healthy snacks on the go! All of these healthy treats can be picked up at your local Trader Joe's and I can personally vouch for all for all of them!

The Pure bars:

These are a personal favorite of one of my really good teaching buddies! He likes them because they are a little moister than most of the other protein bars and they are chalk full of healthy ingredients that can easily tide you over to your next meal! I suggest trying the blueberry one :]

The Spinach and Kale Yogurt Dip:

One of my favorite girls swears by this dip! When we lived together she would easily go through one of these a week ( small not-so-guilty pleasure). At first I was a little hesitant to try it, because it doesn't look super appealing, but I am SO glad I did! I love it! I usually eat it with some of the Tj's lentil chips. It satisfies my chip/crunchy foods craving while giving me an additional serving of veggies. What more could I ask for!?

As for the other two:

Trail mix: The small bags are perfect for ensuring that you eat this nutrient packed snack in moderation. Although I love trail mix, a very small amount (1/4 Cup) can run you about 200 calories! That being said, I could easily just open up a bag, go to town, and be extremely sad 1,000 calories later. These small packs are very helpful for those of us that live on the go, and those of us that need a little help with the "everything in moderation" rule :]

Side note:

PV Body is an amazing company! You pay $49.95 and they send you a workout top and bottom with a retail value of $100+! I absolutely love getting their grab bags and wear almost all of the clothes that I get from them. If you are unhappy with the outfit you receive, or it doesn't fit, they will pay for your return shipping and either refund you your money, or send you a new outfit to try! LOVE THEM. I would suggest them for the serious athlete that needs to add a little excitement to their workout routine!

Student Teaching

My thoughts for the day:

1. Life is so much easier as a teacher when you require the students to be independent thinkers! 
- I have this awful habit of wanting to do all of the work for my students. For example, if they are off task, I am right there telling them what they should be doing. In reality, I should have been asking them "What are you doing? Ok, what should you be doing?" This approach feels so much less stressful and really allows me to focus on the class as a whole, as apposed to getting focus on the needs of my disruptive students.

2. Pausing makes all of the difference.
 - I am super lucky to have a loving, supportive CT (cooperating teacher) that is very patient with me, even when I do silly things or get frustrated when a lesson goes poorly. Her goal for me this year is to learn how to make teaching feel less like a job, and more like a fun, interesting adventure with my students. Since I tend to turn into police woman Jennie when I feel overwhelmed (especially with side conversations), she has asked me to try and pause every time I start feeling like this. Started trying this today and boy does it beat getting upset, or sending kids out. It feels so good to take a deep breath and realize that my calm will help the students to feel calm. Thank you Milli, I needed that :]

3. Eating healthy, clean meals helps me stay focused and maintain a high energy level
- When I eat super sugar or fatty foods I always end up feeling sluggish and tired. Today I started off my day with a smoothie:

                        - 1 Frozen banana (in chunks)
                        - 1/2 cup berries (any kind)
                        - 2 hand fulls of Kale
                        - 1/2 cup Fage 0% greek yogurt
                        - 1/4 - 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
                        - 1 Tbsp flax seed (ground)

* Super good, pretty green, very healthy :]

Exercise/Weight Loss Lesson #1 - Listen to your body!

So, as some of you may know, I struggled with my weight as a child/teen and then decided I wanted to do something about it. For me this meant a permanent life change. But to be completely honest, I can summarize all of my changes into one category: LISTEN TO YOUR BODY

Sometimes this is easier said than done, but I promise you, doing so can make a world of difference to your health and your overall happiness.

Before I chose to make health a life goal, I was a yo-yo dieter. You name it, I tried it. But they all yielded the same results, lose about 10 pounds, gain back about 15. When you yo-yo diet (like I did) you end up confusing your body, and damaging your metabolism. Thankfully I didn't hurt mine to the point of no return, but it is a slow battle for me to regain my ability to eat a normal amount on a daily basis.

This week I am focusing on listen to my body. After 3 days of listening, this is what I am hearing:

- You are doing too much (graduate student, full time teacher, working out hard 6 days a week) and we need a break
- The foods you are eating (sugar overload) are causing us to feel tired, burnt out, and lazy

What I plan to do about it:

- This week I will focus on reducing my sugar intake, and increasing my protein and veggie intake.
- Staying hydrated
- Taking Sunday's and Friday's off from working out. I will allow myself to do something mild (like go for a walk along the beach, or walk the stairs near my house) but nothing big.

Here are some protein packed recipes I will be trying this week!

Tonight:

Quinoa, Edamame, Avacado and Egg salad!

This recipe looks AMAZING!! I found it here. I will let you know how it is in the coming week :]

Tomorrow: (as a side dish)

Sesame "Noodles"

Although I do not endorse, nor partake in the Paleo Diet, this is a Paleo friendly recipe that looks amazing and therefore I will try :]

I found the recipe here.

* Note: this woman (website writer) also has a cookbook that looks AMAZING and I highly encourage you to try here recipes and see if it is something that you would like. Her recipes seem very creative, healthy, and easy and I am all about that :]

Staying Hydrated

Silly I know, but it always helps me stay hydrated if I have a cute water bottle that I am happy to carry around! This specific one is from Lululemon and I love it :] 

I'll share some more water tricks next time :]

That is all for today! I will give you some more recipes soon :]

About Me

Hi!

My name is Jennie and I am on a mission to be healthy, happy, and carefree! (we'll see how far I get on that last one :)  ) I am a first year teacher who is trying to balance lesson planning, eating on the go, and working out. This blog will mainly focus on those three subjects but if you have any questions, please let me know :]

Hopefully we can get Fit, Fast, and Fabulous together!