Winter Workouts - Keep Active, Keep Motivated

Hi! Are you as happy to see Friday as I am ?!

This first full week back to work has been L-O-N-G!!!!

Luckily, it looks like we're going to have a pretty lowkey weekend. We have tickets to go cheer on the London Knights (GO KNIGHTS GO!) and I'm planning to go to yoga tomorrow morning, but other than that I'm on no kind of schedule until Monday. {Bliss!!}

I am definitely one of those people who tends to go into 'hibernation-mode' in the winter. It's dark when I get up in the morning and it's starting to get dark by the time I get home from work and I find that my energy is totally zapped by the time dinner is done and cleaned up. This can make it very difficult to find the motivation to get anything accomplished in the evenings, especially a good workout. If I go to the gym right after work, I'm good, but if I go home first, I'm totally setting myself up for failure because once I get home, I do not want to leave the house again.

It's not exactly the winter blues, I just hate going back out into the cold after I've come in and decompressed for the day. Instead of beating myself up about missing the gym, I've been pinning different circuit workouts and treadmill or elliptical workouts like crazy on my Workouts/Run board. I've also decided to take a crack at making up some of my own circuit workouts to do at home. As soon as I get home from work, I tie up the sneakers and get to business. By 6:30 p.m., my workout is done, dinner's started and I still have time to obsessively watch Season 1 of Homeland snuggle with Derek and the pups before bed.

I do love the gym and prefer to do most of my workouts there, but on the evenings when I just can't get myself back out the door, these circuits have been doing the trick.

Here is one that I did this week that I really enjoyed. My biceps and triceps were aching from a workout that I did earlier in the week, so I decided to focus on my core and lower body. It took just under 30 minutes and I definitely felt the*burn* (V-Sits kill me). I used 5lb weights when I did the lunges and squats to make it a little more challenging, but you don't need weights to get results.

(Click on workout to get a larger image)

*Before you go trying out a workout that I've put together, I want to note that I am not a certified personal trainer or trained expert in fitness. This is simply a workout that I put together for myself that I enjoyed and thought you might enjoy as well. Please make sure that you check with your family doctor before you start a new exercise or nutrition program, and most importantly, listen to your body.*

Do you have any tips on how to stay motivated through the cold winter months?

Enjoy the day and have a fabulous weekend!

I will see you on Sunday with some pictures from the week.

Andrea

xoxo

Food for Thought:

Source: Pinterest via Kimberly Krauss

Taking the Workouts Indoors

Hi! The weather around these parts has done a quick 360 and it has been cold, gray and wet. I'm a big wimp and don't go out when it's crappy weather, so that means my workouts have been moved inside. I get really bored with the same workouts day after day, so I know that I need to keep things interesting and I need to have a PLAN once I'm 100% moved indoors. Creativity is key to keep this gal motivated and in the gym during the winter months!! 

Source: Pinterest via Michael O'Hanlon

Here's some of the workouts I've been enjoying lately:

• I am in love with yoga right now. On Saturdays, I often go to a kundalini yoga class, which I love! The Fitnessista is hosting a Namaste November challenge right now too, which challenges the participants to spend at least 10 minutes per day doing yoga. I'ved joined the challenge and I've done it almost every day. It's quite amazing what a difference 10 minutes of mediation and stretching can make in your day. When I spend a few minutes in the morning in peace and quiet where I can stretch and just focus on the day, I feel so centred and on track. I am loving this new ritual of mine!!
• When I need a routine to do at home, I've been relying on the Internet. My favourite yoga sites are YogaDownload.com and MyYogaOnline.com - there are some free classes or your can pay a fee for some more intense classes.
• I don't know about you, but I can't just hop on a treadmill/spin bike/elliptical machine and go full tilt for 30 - 60 minutes. Can you say boring?! I'm constantly on the lookout for some fun workouts  that keep it interesting. I often check out Julie's workout page and Courtney's workout page when I'm looking for a new cardio workout. If you are looking for some fun workout ideas, check out my Workouts/Runs Pinterest page because I'm always updating it with new workouts that I find.  
• If I find a cardio routine to do on the treadmill or elliptical machine, then I like to pair it with a weights workout. You might recall that I tried out some of Jamie Easson's LiveFit workouts back in early July and I still like to reference them when I'm looking for a weights workout.
• Group classes at the gym are another one of my fave ways to be active in the winter. My favourite classes are Zumba, Spin and Circuit training.
• DVD Workouts - I don't own too many yet, but I do love Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred and I'd love to get a couple of the dance cardio DVDs that Gina recommends here.

Everytime I think about skipping a workout, I think about this:

Source: Pinterest via FitFluential LLC

How do you keep yourself motivated at the gym?

Do you have a fave workout DVD or site? I'd love to hear from ya!!

Have a GREAT Friday!

Andrea
xoxo

Warm You to the Soul Winter Vegetable Casserole

I don't know about you, but I am starting to tire of this cold wintery weather. The only thing that I miss once spring arrives is the warm comforting food that I make in the winter to warm us from the inside out. I just love root vegetables and chilis and stews and all the hot steamy bowls of heart-warming meals we have from December through to March!!

My grandma made a delicious vegetable casserole last week and I decided that I was going to put my spin on it and see what I came up with.

Warm You to the Soul Winter Vegetable Casserole
~ inspired by Grandma L.

2 large red skin potatoes, sliced
1 med butternut squash, peeled and sliced
2 leeks, white parts only, sliced
1 c. celery root, peeled and sliced
2 c. vegetable broth
3/4 c. unsweetened original almond milk (regular milk would work)
1/3 c. all purpose flour
1 tbsp dried rosemary
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp sea salt
Topping:
1/4 c bread crumbs
2/3 c. walnuts
3 tbsp of Earth Balance, melted (butter would work as well)

Preheat oven to 425. Grease a large casserole dish.

Mix potatoes, squash, leeks and celery root in a large bowl.

Doesn't that mix look divine???  

Next, in a large pot heat the vegetable broth, milk, half of the melted Earth Balance, rosemary, nutmeg, pepper and salt.

Whisk it all together to ensure it is well mixed.

Bring mixture to a boil and reduce heat to medium. Cook until sauce has thickened - make sure you stir constantly because it will stick to the bottom.

This sauce thickens very quickly and it gets really thick, so if it gets too thick for your taste, just add a bit more almond milk.

This is the kind of creamy sauce that I like...yum yum!! It looks good enough to eat with a spoon!

Once the sauce has thickened, add it to your vegetables and mix well.

Pour the mixture into your casserole dish and bake for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, make your topping.

Add walnuts, breadcrumbs and remaining butter. Mix well.

After the casserole has been in the oven for 30 minutes, remove and sprinkle on the topping.

Reduce heat in oven to 350 and bake an additional 40 - 45 minutes. Insert a knife into the middle of the casserole to ensure all of the veggies are soft. If not, you might need a few more baking minutes.

Once done, remove and let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Doesn't this look fantastic??

This casserole is so delicious.I loved the taste and aroma of the rosemary and the crunchy walnuts just put it over the top. If you aren't a nut fan, you could probably doing a breadcrumb crust that would be just as fabulous! The smell in the kitchen was so mouthwatering, I could hardly wait the 5 minutes before digging in!

I was a little concerned about whether or not Derek would like this dish because he tells me that he likes his food "plain" and that I don't have to make things "fancy" for him (this is the guy that would eat a steak and microwaved 'baked' potato for every meal, so you can appreciate what I put up with ;-) Anyways, he absolutely loved it, so it is yet another keeper in my recipe vault. 

Between you & I, it wouldn't have been a heart breaker if he didn't like it ~ I would have been quite happy to eat the whole thing myself <sigh> ...I have issues :-)



Hope you had a happy & productive hump day...now we can all look forward to the weekend!

Andrea