Hey Loves!


 I have a vacation coming up that I'm really looking forward to. One week all inclusive on the beautiful sunny beaches of Cayo Santa Maria, Cuba.

I decided to pop into Old Navy the other day to get some shorts and sun dresses for my trip. I was very pleased to find out I can now squeeze into a size 12! Its a Tight squeeze but I'm Still happy! WOO HOO. Non scale victory! :)

The not so exciting part was my legs. Since my weight loss journey there is definitely some extra jiggle and cellulite. I've always had BIG legs but they felt more compact. It was a bitter sweet moment for me. I'm proud at how far I've come, but it also makes me realize that a still have a LONG way to go. And that's okay with me.

I had gone to visit my sister in law that night and we got to talking about legs, squats and big butts. She had told me that she had been doing the squat challenge with her best friend via Face time. They Face Time every day and squat it out. I thought that was a such a great and fun idea.

Also, I was talking to my boyfriend about it this weekend and he agreed it's a beneficial and fun challenge try. He's really great about helping me out on my journey. Very Supportive and motivational. Any questions that I have in regards to working out or diet related he does his best to answer me. And if he doesn't know the answer he will Google his little heart out and answer to the best of his knowledge.







I have exactly 29 days until my trip. The challenge is on! BAM. I will be doing the 30 Squat and Lunge Challenge! I will be doing this challenge along with my cardio and weight training routine.


What better way is there to get some extra motivation then to look at your jiggly pale legs and realise they will be exposed for all of Cuba to see. I'm definitely being dramatic, but it works.


I hope this motivates some of you to do the challenge with me. I'm excited to see what changes can happen in in 30 days. I will be posting a before and after photo at the end of my challenge.

If you're feeling inspired check out this fun website I came across. 30 Day Fitness Challenge. I will definitely be doing some more challenges in the future.


xo

J.R

I was fortunate enough to receive and insane amount of P&G coupon inserts this past week. One of the coupons I have had my eye on is the " Get $1.50 off for every secret deodorant product purchased".

Hi Loves!


Okay so I know most of you are wondering why is this Portuguese chick trying to mess with Caribbean recipes. Well my boyfriend is half Trini and I love to cook for him, but lord knows I ain't got nothing on his mamas cooking. From time to time I try to make some of his favourite dishes but try to put a healthy mix on it.


Trouble is I don't really know what anything is suppose to taste like. Unfortunately I always have to wait till I'm done, pray for the best and then wait to get his feed back on. Generally my experiments taste really good. But when I cook Caribbean dishes I never know what flavours to look for or what it is suppose to taste like.


For our 2 year anniversary I decided to cook a Caribbean style home cooked meal. I made some of his favourites, jerk chicken, rices and peas and for dessert I made coconut sweet bread.

I didn't feel guilty or horrible about the main meal. The jerk chicken isn't a killer on calories and as for the rice it was a pretty clean recipes. What really hit me was when I was making the sweet bread. Boy oh boy, the amount of butter, sugar and fatty yummy goodness involved made me realize that Rick is going to love/hate me for this one.


All of a sudden it was like a light bulb had gone off. "DUH, HEALTHY RENDITION THIS BAD BOY". So I did :)


I will post the link to the original recipe below if anyone would like to try it. It's DELICIOUS. I just wanted something similar I wouldn't feel to bad about having. Because even when I am having a treat I will try and make sure its still sum what healthy, or clean.

Healthy Rendition : Caribbean Coconut Sweet Bread

Ingredients

1/3 Cup Brown Sugar
3 Tsp Baking Powder
1/2 Cup Coconut milk
1/2 Water/ Coconut Water
1 tsp Vanilla extract
1 Egg
3 Cups Oatmeal Flour
1/3 Cup butter
1 Coconut , Grated
1 Tsp Angostura Bitters
10 Chopped Prunes
1/3 Cup Chia Seeds
1/3 Cup Cranberries
2/3 Cup Crushed Pecans
2/3 Cup Crushed Walnuts


Step 1) Mix the coconut, egg, butter, brown sugar, 1/4 of water, vanilla extract and bitters together in a bowl.

Step 2) In a separate bowl mix together all dry ingredients ( flour, chia seeds and baking powder)

Step 3) Mix the dry and wet ingredients together. Add coconut milk and remaining water.

Step 4) Mix  in dry fruits and nuts.

Make sure you don't over work the dough. You just want everything to mix in together.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 45-60 minutes. I generally check it at 45 minutes and use my judgement based on how it looks. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.

This goes really well with a hot cup of coffee or tea!

Below is the link to the original recipe. Its DELICIOUS!

Hey Loves!

Hey Loves!

One thing for sure about trying to eat healthier is incorporating more salads into your meals. But I have to admit that all the obviously yummy salads are swimming in dressing and hidden calories. Now I did not just work up a mean sweat on the treadmill to be defeated by a high caloric salad. Aint NOOOO body got time for that.

One of my favorite salads to make is my kale and spinach salad. This salad is jam packed with so much goodness! I really enjoy the taste of kale and spinach mixed together. I get easily bored of lettuce so its fun to experiment with different kind of leafy greens. :)




Here is what you will need.

1 cup of Kale
1 cup of spinach
1/2 Avocado
1/2 Tomatoes
A hand full of dill or mint *optional
1/2-1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
1/2 Freshly Squeezed lemon
Salt and Pepper to Taste

 The recipe is roughly 287 calories.






 If you plan on sharing with someone you can use 1 whole avocado and 1 whole tomato.

Enjoy Loves!

xo

J.R

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