We are almost to the New Year and that is the perfect time to really set new goals and make a commitment to sticking with them and what better way to help you do that....then to sign up for a class.  Next round of Bootcamp begins the week of January 7th.  The 5:15am class is full but there is space in the Tue/THur 6am class.  Runs for 8 weeks.  Would love to have you come start your day off with us!

You are not going to want to miss my "Surviving the Holidays the healthy way" class Tuesday, November 20th 6:30-7:30pm. With Thanksgiving next week and Christmas just around the corner you will find this helpful! Not only will you learn the healthy eating choices to make at all the parties you will be going to but also helpful ways to beat the stress that is coming your way and more. Sign up today space is limited!  Only $10

I know this time of year can get super busy and stressful but that is all the more reason to sign up and commit to a class such as this!  It is too easy to put your needs (like exercising and keeping health) off to the side when you get busy with the holiday hustle and bustle.  So put your health needs first.  Commit!  Sign up for this upcoming shorter round of bootcamp to get you through the holiday season.  Just 4 weeks this time and then we will go back to 8 weeks for the following round.

Here are the details:

M/W/F 5:15 am begins FRIDAY Nov 30th.
There will be no class on the following days:  Fri 21st, Mon 24th and Wed 26th which puts the last class on Fri January 4th.
That is 4 weeks.  cost is $78
This group is full
or
Tue/Thur 6am begins  Tue Dec 4th.
No class on Christmas Day and New Years Day.
Last class on Jan 3rd.
That is 4 weeks.  $65

Contact me to reserve your spot

Time to highlight some hard work again.  I asked one of my clients, Diana Bedlington, a few question.  Diana lives a very busy life and it is very stressful and she came to me searching for help getting fit, controlling her stress and blood pressure and learning healthier eating habits.

Here is a question and answer session we had.  Her answers are in white.

WHAT MADE YOU FEEL LIKE YOU COULD USE MY HELP:
"I was gaining weight and had high blood pressure."

WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR BIGGEST STRUGGLE IN THE PAST WITH STICKING WITH AN EXERCISES PROGRAM:
"Time and commitment."

WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR BIGGEST OBSTACLE IN THE PAST WITH EATING HEALTHY:
"Time and the fact I hate to cook!"

HOW DO YOU FEEL I HAVE HELPED YOU IMPROVE BOTH OF THESE ASPECTS:
"With food, all the little tips have helped.  For my blood pressure....you have healed me :)"  (you did the hard work Diana and followed through with everything we talked about so good for you!!)

WHAT ARE THE BIGGEST AREAS YOU HAVE NOTICED CHANGED IN WITH YOUR BODY/HEALTH:
"My blood pressure has dropped almost 50 points on the top (systolic) and 20 on the bottom number (diastolic).  The mental health and stress relief has been great too.  I can handle life without my BP going through the roof most of the time now :)"

BEFORE YOU STARTED WORKING OUT REGULARLY HOW DID YOU FEEL:
"Bad about myself and frustrated."

I KNOW YOU DID THE ADVOCARE 24 DAY CHALLENGE.  WHAT IS THE BIGGEST BENEFIT YOU FOUND FROM TAKING PART IN THAT:
"I felt better.  Even though the weight loss wasn't huge the energy level was much better and I just felt physically stronger."

WHAT HAS BEEN THE MOST REWARDING PART YOU HAVE FELT FROM MAKING THESE POSITIVE CHANGES IN YOUR LIFESTYLE:
"My blood pressure.  I am able to be the person I want to be (most of the time) when it comes to stress and anger.  My family is starting to eat different too."

I KNOW YOU ARE AN EXTREMELY BUSY LADY.  WHAT HAS BEEN THE BIGGEST THING IN HELPING YOU FIND BALANCE:
"Knowing that I am accountable to Amy and not letting her down.  She has found the perfect balance in accountability and being able to push a person to their max.  I also don't want to have a stroke or heart attack.  I have several things I want to experience in my lifetime and I want to live a full, well balanced life."

Diana, you are a harworking, hilarious woman and I love working with you.  I am so proud of you for all of your determination and hard work.   You are tough and always good for a laugh which makes our sessions fun.  Keep up the hard work, you know it is all worth it!

I am sure you know you do not need to belong to a gym to get fit...but do you know the exercises you can do anywhere and anytime with absolutely no equipment at all to help you on your path to better fitness?  Well, I can help!  Come to my class on Saturday, October 27th, 8:30-9:30am for only $10 and learn an abundance of exercises you can do with nothing but your own body weight!  We could all benefit from learning those!  You will learn the correct form and you will leave with handouts explaining everything you learned so you will feel comfortable on your own.  Contact me to reserve your spot!

Last weekend a group of some of my friends from class and some of their family members participated in the Muds To Suds in Ferndale.  What a blast.  Here are a few pictures from the event.

 

I think we all had a great time and hope to do it again next year with maybe even some more people on our team.  Thanks to: Jessica Jager, Missy VanderYacht, Corey King and her family, Amy Ritter and her family, my hubby Jeromy, Alison Nolte, Angela Allen and her hubby, and Mandi Hamilton.  What a good bonding adventure!!   By the way it is almost 1 week later and I am finally almost pink free in my hair...just a touch left.  Thanks Missy :)

I am taking sign ups for the next round of classes.
M/W/F 5:15am - full
Tue/Thur 6am
Wed/Fri 9:30am
All classes begin the first week of October and run for 8 weeks.  At the start you will receive a booklet with helpful nutrition/wellness info and every week I will give you a healthy recipe. The 2 rounds that still have space are $130
Let me know if you would like to reserve a spot.

As this round is finishing up it is time to open up sign ups for my next round of classes.  Here is what I have available:
M/W/F 5:15am (outdoor).  choose 2x a week for $130 or 3x a week for $155
or
Tue/Thur 6am (primarily indoor) $130
As always healthy recipes will be handed out each week and at the start you will receive a folder of helpful nutrition/wellness information to help guide you in your healthy lifestyle.
Classes will begin the week of July 23rd and go 8 weeks.  There will be no class on Friday August 3rd and that class will be made up at the end. 
Space is limited in both rounds so confirm your spot by contacting me today.

Don't you just love summer time!  Besides being able to enjoy fresh air and sunshine (well hopefully most of the time), camping trips, running through sprinklers. having campfires and more we also get to indulge in many fruits and veggies in season and being able to buy them fresh and local.   The quality and variety of the local products  really exceeds what you find in a conventional grocery store.  When we do shop at buy fresh food locally we are putting money directly back into the local economy and the produce is fresher.   Eat what is in season right now.  It is not only cheaper but tastes amazing.  Of course what is in season depends on where you live but generally speaking here is a list of what is in season in June and July (and I am sure I am missing some): 

Fruit

• strawberries
• cantaloupe
• watermelon
• raspberries
• cherries
• blueberries
• peaches
• kiwi
• apricots
• plums
• of course bananas seem to pretty much always be in season

Vegetables

• corn
• lettuce
• cucumbers
• tomatoes
• green beans
• summer squash

Wow, I am making myself hungry.  Doesn't this list just make your mouth water :)  it is a great idea for you to can some of your favorite fruits or vegetables during the months that they're cheap.  So stock up while you can.  Summer is a great time to make jam too.  My family loves strawberry and raspberry jam and it is healthier to make it yourself plus you get the added bonus of knowing there aren't any bugs in your jam when you make it yourself :)  We all know there are some smashed up bugs in those jars in the grocery store.  Yuck!  I worked in the berry fields enough in my youth to know what goes in there.  Of course I am not saying that little ol' me let a bug or 2 go by me on the berry belt just because it was too big and nasty to touch, I would never do that :)  Ahhh, fond memories.  I also buy extra berries to freeze and have year round for my smoothies.  I can't believe how many berries I go through.  I have a smoothie every single day and they just need berries to taste good.

Ok, time for me to get a snack.  

 

A new find – Pure organic bars.  They were created when looking for healthy vegetarian snacks.  Their requirements when trying to create these yummy bars were: They would only use real ingredients, organic fruits (certified organic, which means 95% of their ingredients are organic) and healthy nuts untouched by harmful herbicides and pesticides. No refined sugars, no chemicals, no genetically-modified stuff. They wanted ingredients rich in antioxidants, vitamins, and omega-3 fats. Most importantly, it had to taste amazing…and they are gluten free…yippee!   Sounds pretty great right!  Sign me up to try them.

The bars have between 3-5 grams of fiber and 5-7 grams of protein.  You won’t find refined sugar in these bars.   Awesome news!   Hate it when they hide that stuff where it isn’t needed.   They use agave nectar as their sweetener.   Keep in mind though that these bars range around 200 calories each, so I wouldn’t recommend more than one in a day or even necessarily every day but they make a good snack.  There are good to have in your car or purse for when you get stuck between meals and need something to grab quickly or hey, throw them in your kid’s lunch.  I just really like when I find something and read the ingredient list and can actually read and know what every ingredient is that is listed.

They sent me so many flavors to try and I was looking forward to sampling each of them.  Here they are in order of my favorite to least favorite.   I enjoyed the texture of each bar.  Nice and crunchy, not gummy or grainy which some bars I have found seem to be like.  Apple cinnamon (wow, holy taste bud alert – in love), wild blueberry, banana coconut (love me some coconut), cranberry orange, chocolate brownie, dark chocolate berry, chocolate almond, peanut raisin crunch, cherry cashew bar, super fruit nutty crunch (this is the only one I did not like the flavor of).  Wow don’t those flavors sound inviting?  You want to try them?  If you are local you can find them REI, otherwise check them out online.

Congrat's to Andrea Matthews - your name was chosen as the winner of the fun necklace from Fashletics!  

Alright, I have one more giveaway planned and it is just in time for Mother's Day.  You will love this, I sure do.  Not too long ago I ran across Fashletics  and they have such cute stuff.  As mentioned on their site Fashletics is a collection of handmade jewelry inspired by a passion for fitness, competition, and a strong desire to empower others who have made a commitment to a fit and healthy lifestyle. Each piece of jewelry serves a badge of honor and an expression of strength.  They have jewelry and clothing that is not only very cute but also inspirational and we all could use a little inspiration when it comes to working out right!! 

Sarah was kind enough to send me 2 items.  One to review myself and one to offer in a giveaway.  First I am showing you what is up for grabs in the giveaway

This inspire necklace.  How cute right!  What inspires you to work out?  I often think of my 4 year old son Baker who has Menkes Disease and among so many other things is unable to walk, or even sit or stand and I think of what he would give to be able to run and play.  I have the ability; so I need to do it for him.

They sent me this awesome tank top and I love it. They have it in a few different colors and also have it in short sleeve for those times you don't want to fully show your guns :)

I tried not to do too close up of a picture so you would not be too scared off from my guns and get unrealistic expectations for yourself.....hehe  Live Love Lift is what the shirt says.   Honestly I felt a little silly just standing there for a pic so went for this action shot :)

You need to check out their site.  They have so many items I would love to have on my bday and Mother's Day list which are both coming up very soon I might add :)
Speaking of Mother's Day this giveaway will end just in time if you want to give the necklace as a gift to your Mother who inspires you or even if you want to give it as a present to yourself.

Here are the details to enter:
- Like me on FB and tell me you did
- Like Fashletics on FB and tell me you did
- Tell me what your favorite gear to workout in is

For an extra entry (one extra entry per item done):
- Follow my blog and tell me you did
- Share this giveaway on your blog or FB page and tell me you did

I will be randomly selecting a winner this Saturday May 12th.

Thanks everyone for entering the giveaway for the Handful Bra.  And the randomly selected winner is......Dawn Smith-Shaffer!  Congrat's Dawn.  Please email me your mailing address and size request.
Everyone stay tuned I have one more fun giveaway lined up for next week.

I have a love hate relationship with sports bra’s.  I feel like I pretty much live in them and sometimes they can be super comfi and sometimes after a workout you have that horrible chaffing under the armpit/underarm area and it can be so uncomfortable. 

 Jody over at Handful sent me over a sports bra to review and I gotta say – I loved it.  So comfi and actually super cute.  If I had the bod to show it off I would but instead of putting you through the pain of looking at me in a sports bra I will include this picture from their website instead.  In my mind I am just going to pretend that is what I look like in mine J 

I really like the back too.

Again, with a move I do every day at home but this lovely lady just looks so much more graceful then I, so instead of the self portrait I took of me doing this move I will use the pic from their website again.

The bra comes with removable pads so you can have a little help under your tank or just work with what ya got J  unlike some sports bra’s they are designed to "flatter not flatten" and who doesn't like that! 

If you are larger chested this bra is recommended for lower impact activities such as yoga or weight lifting or even ever day activities.  If you are smaller chested you can use it for higher impact activities like running.

The bra's come in 5 colors, I chose the pink and it is very cute.  Check out this video they put together:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lAi5m1csr5I

Jody is nice enough to give one of my lucky readers a Handful bra too.  All you have to do to enter is:

-        Like my FB page and tell me you did

-        Check out their website and tell which color you would like to try

-        Like Handfuls FB page and tell me you did

For an extra entry:

-        share this giveaway on your blog and/or FB page and tell me you did

Good luck everyone, I will announce the winner on Saturday May 5th!

As this current round of classes is wrapping up it is time to take sign ups for the next round.  This is what I have coming up.

2 round starting the week of May 21st:
Monday/Wed/Fri 5:15am Outdoors - sign up for 2x a week for $130 or 3x a week for $155
Tue/Thur 6am Indoors - 2 spots currently open $130
Both rounds last 8 weeks.  Folder with nutrition/wellness info given at the start and weekly healthy recipes given throughout the class.
No class on Memorial Day.  Class will be made up on the end. 
**Also if enough interest I may run another round of the Tue/Fri 9:30am round so let me know if you have any interest in that and I will keep you posted.
If you want to confirm a spot in one of the early morning groups or have a question please contact me soon.  ademeyer@comcast.net

I have to share some amazingly delicious clean eating treats with you.  The company that makes them is Hail Merry.

Hail Merry products are all raw, vegan and gluten free.  They use cold pressed coconut oil.  I am a big fan of coconut oil.  The benefits of coconut oil have been highly publicized lately; to name a few they can increase metabolism, help reduce bad cholesterol and it tastes great too.

They use organic maple syrup and raw blue agave to sweeten their foods…no sugar in their products!

Macaroons blonde – holy flippin camoli!  This is the kind of treat I like to sit down for, close my eyes and focus on each bite slowly but surely.  No joke.  That is what I do with special treats.  My hubby pokes fun but that is ok.  I have no shame in my game.  Need I say again – holy freakin cow these are muy delicioso!!  I am salivating just reminiscing in their glory.  Wowsers!  They are a healthy fat but that doesn’t you can down them mindlessly non stop (hence the sitting with eyes clothes savoring every bit) b/c they do have 11 g of fat per 2 macaroons but wow what a sweet treat.

 Macaroons choco – really, are there many more words I can say to convey how much I love these balls of goodness.  Although I did like the blonde ones more, me oh my, I am sooo in love with these too.   Remember both kinds of macaroons should be thought of as treats.  Clean treats; but I still suggest eating them in moderation.

Vanilla maple almonds – oh my stinkin goodness.  Are these people trying to kill me with how good their treats are!!  I my goodness be.  I can’t handle this.  I want to sit down with the whole bag and devour them in one shot.

We also tried the pecans; both the orange rosemary and chimayo chile. I am not a fan of pecans but my hubby is and he loved both of these.  I did try them both and although I am still not a fan, they were better then plain ol’ pecans.  The chimayo chile had a kick, tasted peppery.  The orange rosemary was fresh tasting.  If you like pecans I bet you will love these.

 The salt and pepper sunflower seeds are a great option to add to salads for some extra crunch.

The orange cranberry grawnola was very tasty.  It is said to be enjoyed by the handful and is low in sugar and carbs.

So if you haven’t figured it out by now, I am a fan of Hail Merry.  You can read more about their products at www.hailmerry.com

I have had requests for a mid morning class but I have never been able to make it work until now.  I finally have some spots to try it out.
So starting next week April 24th.  I will be running a Tue/Fr 9:30-10:30am bootcamp class.  I still have space available so let me know if you want to sign up.
This round goes 4 weeks and is $70.  You will receive your own folder with nutrition/wellness info I have put together as well as each week a healthy recipe to try out.
Check out my bootcamp tab on the right for more info on classes otherwise email me with any questions.

Congrat's Katherine, you are the winner of the Larabar giveaway :)  I will email you.

I want to start highlighting people think I work with and have seen come so far.  I want to applaud dedication and perseverance and give you more proof that hard work will be rewarded!  The first person I want to highlight is Beth Levien.

Me - Before you started a regular exercise program how did you feel?
Beth - I felt like I wanted to lose weight and get in shape but wasn't motivated.

Me - When you signed up for my classes I know you were nervous and
weren't sure what you would be able to do but you have been so dedicated and worked so hard and have come so far, what are you most proud of?
Beth - I am happy with so many little things! I seriously thought I would never be able to do some of things in class that I CAN do now! I used to have a terrible time if I squatted down to get back up, now I can just pop up even holding a grand baby in my arms. My hubby comments on that all the time:) I notice it when I walk up my steps, getting out of bed, I am much more limber than I have been for years! A big thing for me is my back, I have always had a lot of lower back pain but this has really changed, I am sure it is from all the core strengthening exercises we have done!

Me - Tell me what the most rewarding part of taking part in regular exercise is for you?
Beth -  Most rewarding is the praise and encouragement I have gotten 1st of all from my hubby and my sweet daughter in law! I love the way I am feeling and looking and am proud of the things I am now able to do! I can remember the 1st week or two of Boot Camp literally laying on the floor and saying to myself "There is no way I can do that!" and now I can.

Me - Tell me what the most effective thing you do to combat stress is?
Beth - Oh boy that's a hard one! I am kind of a stress eater so it really helps me to keep a bottle of water and something healthy around (almonds) for when the stress hits!

Me - Any special accomplishment you want to share?
Beth - I have a dress from my son's wedding, 8 years ago, even though I probably weigh 10 to 15 pounds more....it fits! My body is definitely toned! I have learned that there is more to it than what the scale says! Oh and did I mention that I can walk across the gym in a plank! Never thought that would happen.

Me - What is your favorite healthy snack/meal?
Beth - Favorite snack is almonds sometimes accompanied by a hard boiled egg. Sometimes I will throw in just a few wasabi and soy almonds as an extra treat!


Me - I know you inspired your hubby to eat healthy and get active as well. It is so nice when your spouse is on board. Do you feel like you have motivated anyone else around you?
Beth - It was great to have my hubby join me when I did the Advocare 24 day challenge and he also started doing some workouts also. So far all of my friends say they would die if they went to Boot Camp, obviously that hasn't happened to me, someday I will convince some of them to join me.

Me- What do you use as your motivation to get up early and come to classes?
Beth - Going to Boot camp with my daughter in law got me going in the first place but now it is something I really feel good about doing. Every morning about 5:30 am I get a Wakie wakie text from her!

Me - Anything else you want to share?
Beth - I really appreciate how every workout is different....you never know what Amy has dreamt up the night before:)! Every time there is a new option to challenge me if I have mastered and easier option!


On March 22 my sweetheart was diagnosed with very aggressive prostate cancer...talk about stress! One week later on March 29 we had surgery and the DR is fairly confident he was able to get all of the cancer. It was a crazy week, I still don't think it has sunk in for either of us. As I mentioned before he had joined me in eating healthier and also working out. It was amazing to see the strength he had in the hospital to move around and he loved it when the nurses commented that he had no fat when they needed to give him shots in his stomach! As for me, I mentioned I have had lots of lower back problems but I spent lots of time leaning over his bed and not a twinge of pain. We definitely see that our lifestyle change prior to this is really making a big difference in his recovery and he can't wait to start working out again....him and I are gonna talk about food though because he really seems to think he should be able to eat ice cream and have milk shakes!:)

Beth is so dedicated and works so hard and I am so proud of her and she is a joy to work with!

Don't forget to sign up for the Larabar giveaway going on right now:  http://www.designedtobefit.blogspot.com/2012/04/larabar-review-and-giveaway.html

I love to eat food as close to its natural state as possible – such as fruit, veggies and lean proteins.  For prepackaged foods I look for things with very few ingredients and that is something I love about Larabars.  You will find that the bars have about 5 ingredients with some being as low as 2 ingredients. They are just plain old simple whole foods!  They are gluten, dairy and soy free.  All musts in my diet.  They are also vegan and kosher.  I love that they have no added sugar.  I hate it when sugar is hidden in foods where it doesn’t need to be and these tasty bars definitely do not need any of the “white devil” added to them.

The fat and protein in Lara bars comes from the nuts, and those are heart healthy fats.  The carbs primarily come from fruits, which we all know are good for us.

They come in 20 flavors.  They have a couple new flavors that include chocolate chips.  This is a 4-ingredient chocolate chip that has no milk in it but it is made on a line that also makes chocolate chips with milk so they are not claiming those flavors to be 100% dairy-free, soy-free, or vegan.

I have not tried all 20 flavors but I want to tell you about the ones that I have.  Here they are in order of my preference.

Apple pie – loved it, of course not quite as good as fresh baked apple pie ala mode but it was very, very tasty.  I really enjoyed it.  This is one I find myself always choosing at the store.

Lemon – I love lemon flavored things so I figured I would love this and I did, it was awesome.  Not too tart, which I appreciate.

Carrot Cake – sure one of the best parts of carrot cake is the cream cheese frosting but we can’t expect that on a bar when trying to keep things clean and healthy.  Even without the frosting it was very good.

Chocolate coconut chew – good, although primarily tasted the chocolate (not milk chocolate but cocoa powder) and not the coconut and I would have loved to taste more coconut.

Banana bread – good, pretty much tasted like I was biting into banana bread. I know, I know, you are shocked to hear this.  I suspect you thought I would say it tasted like a chocolate chip cookie or something right…..haha only in our dreams would everything we eat taste like a chocolate chip cookie. 

Blueberry muffin – so far I have liked them all and this one didn’t let me down either

Tropical fruit tart – very good as well.  Was hoping to taste a little more coconut because I love coconut but was still very good.

Cherry pie good, although a little tart.

The drawback is they can be pricey….I try to get them when on sale at Safeway for .99

Sometimes you just need a healthy convenient food to take with you in the car, purse, diaper bag, etc.  I think this is a perfect option for those times.   These are not bars I would consider protein bars, since the protein content is not that high but they are a clean, whole food bar.  Simple and tasty!  I suggest stocking up on a few for your purse!

The good folks at Larabar are offering one of my readers a 6 pack of the bars!  To enter do these easy steps:

-        Like me on FB and tell me you did

-        Like Larabar on FB and tell me you did

Earn an extra entry for each of the below you do:

-        follow my blog and tell me you did

-        Share this giveaway on your blog or FB page and tell me you did

Good luck, I will choose a winner on Monday April 16^th.

Congrat's to Sara Brink - the winner of the Boundless Nutrition Giveaway

Remember that your success in trying to achieve better fitness and health is not just measured on the scale or by how your clothes fit.  Yes, progress in those areas are wonderful BUT also pay attention to how you feel, how you sleep, your energy levels and your motivation to name just a few.  When you become physically active and/or start to eat better you are going to feel better.  You are going to be happier, have a better mind set and mood and feel better about yourself and how you handle your daily tasks.  You are also going to sleep better which will give you more energy (eating cleaner and being active also help with this).  Also, when you notice your workouts getting easier or you notice you are feeling great or even feeling better about your appearance you will feel motivated to keep working hard because you are seeing the benefits.  

So many people get hung up on seeing a certain number on the scale but just remember all the other areas in your life (as mentioned above) that you are probably seeing improvement in!!  Focus on the positive and everything else will fall into place.

Keep working hard

Amy from Boundless Nutrition recently sent me some samples to review.

First thing I notice of course are the cookies.  If you know me you may know that unfortunately cookies (and candy corn) are my biggest weaknesses in the world.  That is why I try to rarely have them around.  Could it be the God is answering my prayers for a healthy, tasty, gluten free cookie?  I couldn’t wait to find out.

The Perfect FIT Protein Cookies are gluten-free, low sodium, high in antioxidants, and don’t contain soy, wheat, or egg. They come in three flavors: Peanut Butter, Chocolate Chip, & White Chocolate Macadamia.  They all have:

§           10 grams of protein (how awesome to have a cookie with protein in it)

§           150 calories

§           the equivalent of 3 cups of Green Tea (so in other words loaded with antioxidants)

§           gluten-free, no soy, wheat or eggs

§           7-9 grams of sugar per cookie

I have never had a cookie with high stats like that for protein so I was excited about that.  Also green tea, I have always read the benefits of it but wasn’t able to drink enough per day to actually benefit from it and these give you a great amount of it. 

Ok, so before you bite into them you cannot go in with the mindset of them tasting like your moms monster cookies or your favorite frosted sugar cookies.  If you go in thinking they will taste like that of course you will be disappointed.  These are not piled high with sugar and fat as you can see from the info above so for a healthier cookie the taste is good.  I am not supposed to have peanuts so I only had a taste of that one and of course I thought that one tasted the best.  Chocolate chip was my next favorite followed by white chocolate macadamia.  I could taste a hint of a different flavor behind all of them; I think it was the green tea.  I think these are worth trying out if you are looking for a healthier option to your traditional cookie.

Next was the Oatmega Wellness bars: They come in 4 flavors (listed in order of my preference) Dark Chocolate Mint, Dark Chocolate Peanut, Mocha (and I am not even a mocha person and still loved it) and Blueberry Pomegranate Crunch. Each bar contains:

§           10-14 grams of protein

§           120-190 calories

§           8 grams of sugar or less per bar

§           300 mg DHA and EPA Omega 3′s (equivalent to a 1000mg fish oil supplement)

§           Green Tea Antioxidants

These bars were all super duper tasty.  I shared them all with my kids and they loved them as well.  Don’t let the Omega 3’s scare you off.  They do not taste like fish oil (thank goodness) I have accidentally bitten into a fish oil pill before and wow, YUCK!!!  Word to the wise, do not put your fish oil pills in your pocket along with some almonds because you may wind up reaching in your pocket and throwing it in your mouth and biting in to what you think is an almond only to have fish oil errupt in your mouth – I can pretty much guarantee you that you will immediately either dry heave or projectile vomit. Just take my word on that....Not tasty! 

Their products are sweetened with organic brown rice syrup and the protein source is a whey/casein blend. 

Good news, you have a chance to try them out as well.  The good people at Boundless Nutrition will provide one of my lucky readers with a box of 12 bars or cookies.  All you have to do to enter for your chance to win is:

-        Like Boundless Nutrition on FB and tell me you did

-        Like me on FB and tell me you did or already do 

For an extra entry tell me what your favorite protein bar thus far is.   

I will randomly select a winner on Saturday morning April 7th.  Good luck

As per all of my reviews, Boundless Nutrition provided me with the sampler pack for this giveaway. I was not compensated for this review in any way, and all opinions expressed are my own.

Alright ladies - I picked the 3 lucky winners and they are:

- Corey King
- Yo Momma Runs
- JM

If you 3 could please email me your mailing address (ademeyer@comcast.net) and check out the Etsy store and tell me your top 2 choices for bands and Kara will send you over one based on the material she has.  Congrat's

Ok ladies, I had given into the fact that I just can't be one of those girls that rock a cute headband during their workouts (or really anytime for that matter) because this strange shaped melon that rests on top of my neck is large and funny shaped so it just wasn't meant to  be.  Well, I had been reading a lot about Chickbands and how much people liked them and I talked to Kara, the momma behind Chickbands and she sent me over one to review.  I have to admit, I thought it would just pop right off my head like every other headband I have ever tried out, so I was nervous to even try in front of my class and guess what.....that sucker stayed put.  Through tons of burpees and moving all around that sparkly strand of goodness was glued to this strange shaped melon.  Could it be that my head is not so odd after all and maybe I have just been using the wrong head bands.  Oh me, oh my :)

This is the sparkly one I tried out and I thought it was very cute

Kara is being so kind and offering up a giveaway a band to 3 of my lucky readers.  All you have to do to enter is:
- Like Designed To Be Fit on FB if you haven't already and tell me you did or that you already do AND
- Like Chickbands on FB and tell me you did
For an extra entry (one extra entry for each that you do):
- Check out Chickbands on Etsy and tell me which one you would be excited to try
- Share this post on your blog and/or FB page and tell me you did
- Follow my blog and tell me you did or do already
Winners will be chosen next week Tuesday April 3rd.

Congrat's to Brandy Roy, you are the winner of a case of Skinny Water!  Please email me at ademeyer@comcast.net  with your mailing address.

Everyone has their own set of obstacles that make life a little more challenging.  I always ask my clients about their health history so I am going to talk about my own health history and the personal obstacles I have and what I do to try to work through them.

My hope in all of this is that I would like you to do the same; get a piece of paper and write out whatever health issues you have (see examples below) or other obstacles you have and what your plan is to surpass them.

For me:
1) I have PCOS (polycystic ovarian syndrome) - which among other things personally causes issues with:
    -  Fertility problems (but I have 4 wonderful boys thanks to God and fertility treatments)
   -  harder to lose weight and those with PCOS (myself included) hold on to weight in mid section - I was told by a specialist that I (and others with PCOS) have to work out twice as hard/long - awesome news right.
  -  Acne - another awesome side effect
  -  risk of diabetes
I was diagnosed with PCOS when we were having trouble getting pregnant.  If you suffer from this and are trying to get pregnant, I know this can be a very emotional and stressful time but do not give up hope!  There is a chance!  We were worried we would never have kids but we are so blessed to have 4 beautiful, sweet boys.
If you have PCOS and want to talk about it you can contact me.

2) Hypothyroidism, the biggest symptoms i feel with this is that it slows down metabolism and makes me tired.  What can I do about it?  Take my prescription and try to get rest, eat healthy and stay consistent with my workouts.

3) Long list of food allergies with the biggest problem stemming with gluten.  My food allergy list includes: wheat, barley, oats, soy, peanuts, tomatoes and garlic and I am also sensitive to dairy.  Food allergies really make you pay attention to food labels.  it is not as easy as you think to follow.  There are many gluten free things these days but that does not mean they are free of wheat, oats or soy, etc.  Those with food allergies really need to do their homework and carefully examine every label.  Do you have food allergies?  I would love to hear from you.

4) Sjogrens Syndrome:  the biggest symptoms of this that affect me are:
   -  extremely dry mouth and eyes 
   -  difficulty concentrating
   -  fatigue
    -  Arthritis
  -  cavities because of dry mouth
  - risk of blindness with anyone that has Sjogrens.  That is scary.  For some reason I am really bad at remembering to take my meds.  My son has to have certain meds every day like clockwork and I have no problem remembering but for myself for some reason I struggle. At my last Dr's appt she said "do you want to go blind and never see your beautiful children"  kinda scared me into remembering!
So what can I do about Sjogrens?   Well not much except take my meds!  They don't do much for symptoms but can help reduce the risk of going blind as I mentioned.   I drink a TON of water.  I always have a very dry mouth and am extremely thirsty.  I actually drink so much that I am suppose to up my sodium level.   Fatigue can affect you all throughout the day; i know it affects me all day long.   Those who have this need to try to get as much rest as possible.  Although nothing ever feels like enough with this.  Do you suffer from Sjogrens?  I would love to hear from you.

5) Foot injury - Monday will mark 4 weeks in this walking cast/boot on.  Man am I sick of this thing.  Anyone with an injury knows that it affects your ability to exercise  but in most cases, guess what...you can still exercise.  For me with this I can still ride the spin bike and I can still lift weights.  I also still do my bootcamp classes but have to adjust what I do.  I do a lot of jumping on one leg, but if you have a similar injury, be careful, you don't want to hurt your other leg by overcompensating too much and getting an overuse injury on your good leg.  That would set you back even more.  Believe me, I understand it is hard to be patient.  I have a very hard time with this too and yes you will not be able to do everything you are use to.  I miss running and I miss jumping with both legs :) and can't wait to get back to it, but you need to find ways to keep moving.   I can still pretty much do my full weights routine minus lunges and heel raises.  Keeping up with the weights is important, make sure to work your injury free muscles.  If you have a wrist or hand injury for example you will want to avoid weight baring exercises such as push ups or planks but you can do ab work lying on your back or do a plank on your elbows instead of your hands.  So you may need to search for alternate exercises if you can't safely do the ones you are use to but in most cases you can find something.   You will heal eventually so hang in there.     Even with this injury though and my decreased ability to get my sweat on I feel my stress level up.  Please Lord if not for myself, then for the sake of my children, let me get out of this stinkin boot so my kids can have a happy mommy :)

6)  4 young children  - can I hear you ladies - being a mommy can be exhausting and stressful! I love my sweet kiddos more then anything but those little rascals can take it out of me. I know many mommies feel the same way. Pulled in so many directions and finding it hard to make time for ourselves. Whether you are busy just being a mommy or if you need to fit a job in too it can be hard to fit in "me time". Well, we need to find a way. It will help us be good mommies. For me, I get up early 6 mornings a week and workout before my kids get up. I know if I do not do it then, the odds are that I will not fit it in. If you say "I am not a morning person" then try to fit it in when your kids go to bed at night or if they take a nap fit something in then. or if all else fails pack your kids up in a stroller or put them on their bikes and go for a walk or bike ride. The fresh air will do you some good. Not only will you burn calories but you will increase your energy level and decrease your stress level and we can all use help with both of those. I know many of us mommies struggle with guilt when finding "me time", that is another reason I do my workouts early in the morning; because it doesn't affect my children, other then giving them a happier mommy and that is a good thing :)

7) Child with very serious health issue.  My 4 year old has a very serious illness called Menkes Disease.   Unfortunately there is nothing we can do heal him (except pray for a miracle which we do every day), there is no cure but we can take care of him to the best of our abilities and guess what!  he is the sweetest, happiest angel in the world and we are blessed beyond our wildest dreams to have him!!  Of course, those of us who have a child or loved one with a very serious illness know that it can take its toll on us.  This can put a lot of extra stress on our bodies which can lead to many things including weight gain, headaches and lack of sleep.  So when we struggle with this we have to find an outlet whether it be exercise, massage, meeting with a friend for coffee, you need to find things that help you unwind.  If we do not then stress can really eat at us and damage our bodies.  For the sake of our loved ones that are struggling with the illness we need to keep ourselves healthy so we can take care of them!  I have Proverbs 3:5 tattooed on my wrist - Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.  We may not understand why hard things happen in our lives but all we can do is trust in our heavenly father to take care of them.

8) Anxiety issues.  Many of us struggle with anxiety and I am no exception.  I am the biggest worry wart in the world and I wish I could fix that but I just have not found a way.  Every day I feel worry about my children but all I can do is put it in God's hands and pray about it.   Right now I have HUGE anxiety issues with my ENORMOUS fear of flying as I have  a flight coming up very soon and cannot help but fear that I will die on the airplane.  Yes, I know, I know, more people die in car crashes, blah blah blah, I don't care, it doesn't help.  Give me my meds, knock me out, wake me when we get there.  Oh I am going to puke just thinking about it.  What a wimp am I, goodness!!!  Oh and please don't tell me it is a sin to worry about these things because I know this and then I feel guilty about not fully putting my trust in God to get their safely and you know Christians die all the time....ok STOP :)

We all have our list of challenges or excuses that get in the way of a healthy lifestyle.  Well, my challenge to you is to figure out what you are going to do about it.  We are not going to get anywhere if we just look our issues as "problems" and let them stop us from accomplishing what we want out of our lives.  No ones life is perfect, you are not alone.  I bet you can make a long list too.  Well, make the list too and write what you can do to overcome  or at least manage the problem.  My list are all things I will have as challenges forever.  I can't just get depressed and think I am going to let myself get fat because I have a couple health issues that really make that happen easily, instead I am going to work out twice as hard as a "healthy" person needs to.  I am going to fight fatigue every single day but I am going to try to get proper rest every night to at least set myself up as best I can.  I am going to be very careful of what I eat and try to avoid my allergy list.  I am going to enjoy my children and hopefully take stress relieving breaks when possible :)

Take a deep breath, find things you enjoy, get some fresh air, say a prayer and thank God that he has blessed us with LIFE.  Every day is a gift.  We need to live it to the fullest and give all the glory to God. 

I love to hear from you so feel free to comment.

Anisha, over at Skinny Water, recently sent me over a variety of Skinny Waters to try out and review. 

I hear Fergie is a fan and for some reason she refuses to share Josh Duhamel with me so perhaps I can bask in her glory and share a beverage choice with her :)

Skinny Water contains a variety of different nutrients and contains zero calories, zero sugar, zero carb’s, no preservatives and no sodium.  Sounds pretty good right!  Those stats had me intrigued and anxious to try them out and learn more.

Some thing I love about Skinny Water is that they contain vitamins, electrolytes and antioxidants.

The flavors in my order of preference are: 
-Acai grape blueberry - Energy – loved it, great flavor. 

-Goji black cherry – Shape - very good, tastes like fruit punch to me.
-Pink berry citrus – Power – it tasted so yummy and I am not a citrus fan, so was not expecting to like it much.  After I drank it I went out and bench pressed my Suburban….haha kidding of course J
-Raspberry pomegranate - Crave control – tasted divine.  I love raspberry.  I was dreaming of a sweet treat at the time of consumption and this did hold me over.
-Blue raspberry – Fit - good, but really not as much flavor as I was hoping.
-Orange cranberry – wake-up - this was my least favorite flavor.  This was the only flavor I noticed a bit of a different after taste.  With that said, my kids still enjoyed it.  This one did seem to put a little pep in my step.

Due to Kiwi Lime and Passion Fruit being in the process of reformulatation I was unable to try them out although I would be very anxious to because both of those flavors sound fantabulous!  They will be back on the shelves soon, so keep your eyes peeled for them.

My kids shared these all with me and they also liked every flavor (their ages range from 3-6).

You can read more about each flavor here. 

Of course you can’t look to these alone to “get skinny” but I would look for these to give you a good flavor option with some good nutrients behind it to boot.  It can really hit the spot when you are craving something sweet, which I find myself doing all too often.   Also, since all flavors contain electrolytes they are great after a workout since you will be sweating them out during your exercise session. 

Just like anytime you are trying to get healthier or lose weight you need to combine proper diet with exercise.  No matter how much we want it to exist there is not a magic pill for anything but I do not think there is a person out there that thinks if they drink this beverage and change nothing else they will lose weight and that is not what they are promising you but I still wanted to make that clear.  With that said, whether you are trying to lose weight or just looking for a good flavorful drink I think this is a good option.  Definitely a better option then sugar and calorie-laden beverages such as juice (which usually has a ton of sugar in it) and pop (which come on, we all know isn’t good for us).  I drink a TON of good ol’ fashion plane water and pretty much nothing else but once in awhile I do want to turn to something that has a little flavor in it and for those times I would be happy to turn to Skinny Water.

Want to get some hands on your own?  Find out here where to purchase here and check out their FB page for more info.  

Cheers Fergie, tell Josh I say hello and give him a big squeeze for me J  I will let you choose where to squeeze him.  For your viewing pleasure you may want to click on his name...let's take a moment of silence for one of my old favorites Las Vegas.  At least I have all of the Transformers movies on DVD "for my kids".

**Good news, here is your chance try out Skinny Water too.  They are gracious enough to do a giveaway for one of my lucky readers.  Entering is easy just: 

1)     like Designed To Be Fit on FB and tell me you did

2)     like Skinny Water on FB and tell me you did

You can get an extra entry for each of these steps:

3)    Follow my blog and tell me you did

     4)     Share a link to this giveaway on your FB page or blog and tell me you did

 Good luck everyone, a winner will be chosen on Monday the 26^th about 11:00am (pacific time zone).