January 2012 - Tiny n Fit

Awesome Weekend/Workout and Chia Seed Pudding Recipe!

January 31, 2012 · By tinynfit · Leave a Comment

Hello and happy Monday blog world!! Hope everyone had a great weekend! Mine was pretty awesome! Spent my Friday night in doing laundry (woo!), Saturday I blew a ton of money- new expensive Lucky Brand Jeans for myself and new earrings for my momma for Valentines day! Then had had a fun night out in DC for a friend’s birthday Saturday night, followed by a fantastic brunch with two very lovely ladies (heylovedesigns and citygirlblogs). These women are so amazing and inspirational, I am so lucky to have such great friends! After an epic nap afterwards (hey, I went to bed at 4:30am, I was starting to crash after my brunch-induced-food-coma!), I went to work- both prepping healthy lunches for work and on my workout! Here’s what I sweated out:

2.00 miles (intervals) on the treadmill- about 25 minutes with warm up and cool down
Bodyrock week 1, day two 30 day challenge (I use this as a second workout when I do Bodyrock to really sweat it out)
Gilad thighs/buns/biceps/triceps on DVR

All in all, about 45 minutes, which is really the most I want to spend on my workouts. I’m all about efficiency rather than hours at the gym or on the treadmill. Want shorter workouts with better payoff? Look into HIIT/tabata/plyometrics!! Don’t worry, I’ll do a super post on them soon because I love them so much

Now what you’re all waiting for- chia seed pudding!! I know youre thinking- what?? Chia pets growing in my tummy? No thanks!!

Retro Chia Pet

Well lets review the new super food!! Chia seeds are tiny nutritional-power-houses full of all kinds of nutritional benefits: fiber, protein, antioxidants, as well as aiding hydration because of its ability to swell and retain water:

Swollen Chia Seed

Just check out their amazing stats here!

After reviewing many recipes on chia seed pudding from my favorite fitness blogs, I decided to make my own recipe! It makes a great pre/post workout snack or even just a healthy treat by itself! Word to the wise- when making chia seed pudding, you have to soak the seeds to get the ‘swell’ effect…which results if what’s called chia gel:

Chia Seed Gel

Once mixed with all the other ingredients, its not too bad, but if you’re super sensitive to a bit slimy texture I suggest blending it before chowing down :

Without further adieu: Healthy Chocolate Peanut Butter Chia Seed Pudding Awesomeness!

Adapted from Oh She Glows:

Ingredients:

2 T chia seeds
1/2 C non-dairy milk (I used original, unsweetened almond milk)
1 t unsweetened cocoa powder
1 t PB2 (powdered peanut butter that has 85% less fat than regular PB!)
1/4 C water
1/2 T sweetener to taste (I used a couple drops of liquid stevia, but you could use sugar, agave, maple syrup, brown rice syrup, etc)

Directions: Mix chia, water, and milk together and stir for about 1 minute or two. Next add in the cocoa and PB2 and sweetener to taste. Stir for another minute and then pop it into the fridge for about 10-15 minutes. Remove from fridge and stir for another 20-30 seconds. To really get it thick, let it sit overnight (or if you can’t wait that long like me, let it sit while you sweat it out and shower). Now devour and enjoy your super amazing chia pudding! Angela said you can microwave it too, but I like my pudding cold. Yields about 3/4 cup.

Super Yum

Well that’s all for today loves! Hope you enjoy the chia seed pudding and hope you had a good Monday! Rock on lovers!

Filed Under: Uncategorized ·

Switchin it up

January 25, 2012 · By tinynfit · Leave a Comment

Hello lovers! Hope you had a great Wednesday!!

So this is take-two of this post. I drafted this kick ass post yesterday about starting a new workout regimine…and just as I saved the draft and clicked to preview, WordPress promptly deleted the post! Needless to say after about 45 minutes of writing, editing and posting photos on the post, after an already exhausting day of workouts and the 9-5, I didn’t attempt to re-write last night (plus I hated WordPress, so it was best to just go to bed!) I will attempt to be as witty as that one was!

Ever since about Junior year in college (oh my, that was over 7 years ago!!) I have been a stead-fast gym rat. What began with the treadmill in my basement transitioned to hitting the gym near my home after class, and then at my first post-college jobs’ in-house gym. Once I moved closer to DC for my current government job, I joined the conveniently-across-from-my-apartment gym and would go right after work and do an hour/hour and half cardio/weight routine just about every day. I loved the consistency, I loved the stress relief the constant sweat sessions brought, and I loved trying new things from all the blogs I read. While I did keep things fresh with intervals on different cardio machines and different weight machines/free weights, after 2 years of the same damp (albeit large and nice) gym, same smelly people and same machines, I was fed up. So I decided, after much thought, to cancel my gym membership.

GASP!

I know, years of gym-attendance and then nothing! I actually took a couple week break from working out entirely- I just needed a break. I felt great after my break- refreshed and ready to try something complete different- home workouts! I actually did a lot of research on how I could stay fit- in my apartment as well as with my complexes minimally-fitted gym. I purchased a bunch of Jillian Michaels’ DVDs- and loved them right off the bat! Unlike my roommate, I love the boot camp style workouts that push me to my limit. I love seeing just how far I can push my body- and am always surprised what it can do when I put my mind to it! I also started incorporating plyometrics and bodyweight-type exercises to ensure I wouldn’t plateau or get bored. But after doing those for a few months, I needed yet another change (though I still love plyo)…so back to the drawing board I went. I also decided since it’s a new year that I really wanted to push my body and get real results- maybe do some kind of challenge to get my body like this:

I sweat Britney

I contemplated buying Insanity, P90X, more workout DVDs… then I found this website.

Bodyrock combines my desire to stay at home and workout and my love for plyometrics with tabata-style workouts (I’ll do a post on these later, but in brief- it’s a timed interval workout doing plyometrics). I fell in love! The best part? It’s free!! They post videos of the workout, then demonstrate the moves and do modifications if you’re a beginner or don’t have the specific equipment. Plus, the instructors are super encouraging and inspiring, I just love it! I just finished day two and man was I a sweaty beast!! I actually did day two, plus the added ‘Sean’ workout (x2.5), PLUS day one to get really sweataaaay! I am stoked and will be doing this 30-day challenge (a couple weeks late- I just found out about it!) and hope to have some fabulous results!!

Rock on lovers!

Question: have you ever been sick of your workouts? (who hasn’t??) What did you do to break out of your rut? <— going to start incorporating questions in posts to generate class participation!!

Filed Under: fitness, plyo, tabata, workouts ·

Kitchen-Sink Chili recipe

January 21, 2012 · By tinynfit · Leave a Comment

What better way to begin my second post than with a recipe? I have been itching to cook something for work lunches and not go to my ~~lazy and easy~~ standard boring salads or yogurt parfaits. And if you frequent Pinterest at all like me then you also have been drooling over all the amazing looking winter meals like stews, soups, and my personal favorite- chili! There’s nothing that a good bowl of chili cant fix (well, except the stomach flu), and its so warming and comforting on a chilly winter day like we’ve been having here in DC the past week! And I haven’t mentioned the best part yet- how easy and adaptable it is to make for any diet! Meat-a-tarians and vegetarians alike can customize this recipe to their tastes just as I have for my (newly defined) flexatarian diet! I hope you enjoy whatever crazy chili concoction you come up with!

Everything-but-the-kitchen-sink Chili (really, I added all veggies I had on hand, Chili is so versatile, so you can add whatever you like!)

Makes: a lot of servings for work lunches!

1 can of diced tomatoes

2 cans of mixed organic chili beans

1/2-1 C of low-sodium vegetable stock

1 bag of carrots, peeled and chopped

1 head of cauliflower, chopped

1 container (roughly 2 cups) of ready-to-cook delicata squash (or any winter squash you like)

4-5 cloves of garlic, finely chopped or shaved (more or less to taste)

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp cayenne pepper (I like mine super spicy, like nose-running, eyes-tearing spicy, so adjust to your taste!)

few shakes of red chili pepper

S&P to taste

dash of powder stevia to taste

Directions:

Saute cauliflower, carrots, squash and garlic on medium-medium high heat until tender- about 10-15 minutes. Add a splash or two of vegetable stock if veggies appear too dry. Add remainder ingredients and spices and let simmer on low for about 20 minutes-ish. Add any veggie stock if it appears dry. Taste along the way to adjust spices as needed. Add any cheese, vegan/vegetarian cheese, or Nutritional Yeast as desired (I had none of the above so had alone, which is SUPER yummy!)

Everything in the pot ready to simmaaah

The final delicious and spicy product

Filed Under: healthy, Uncategorized ·

Hello world!

January 16, 2012 · By tinynfit · 1 Comment

Yes, it is me again. I will be making yet another attempt at a blog. Ive tried multiple times, ending up not knowing any specific direction for what or where I wanted my blog to go. I think with a firmer grasp on life I can say I still have no idea what I want in this blog…BUT I do know what I do want to include, which is what most people write about- their passions! The thing is…I don’t have a passion. I mean, I cant ever seem to figure out what my passion is- I don’t have a love of photography, I don’t have any crafty talent, and I don’t have pets or children to gush about. However, in my search of my passion I asked my family and friends and they all seem to come up with the same answer: fitness and healthy food! And I never really thought about it as I see it as a lifestyle. I don’t diet- I like salads, I like egg white omlettes, and I like eating oatmeal for breakfast everyday. Scratch that- I LOVE having oatmeal everyday! So with the air of a new year and a fresh start, I will attempt to do this blog and do it right! I had attempted before to make my blog a tutorial or how-to with tips and tricks…I’ll still include those, but I felt pressured before. This time around I want this blog to reflect me- a mid-20′s girl working for Big Brother (govie day-job), living life as much as I am able, staying fit and healthy-ish (hey, I love chocolate and lazy days as much as the next person!), and cramming every precious free moment with my friends and family…or sleeping in I hope you enjoy following my on my journey to stay healthy and enjoy life!