Fit Friday

Today's Fit Friday will focus on some Ab and Leg work while incorporation a little Pilates!

Here is the Pilates Alphabet:

Lie on the ground, raise your legs and write the alphabet in the air with your feet.

Topic Thursday

Today's Topic is all about the 'Funny'...Find out why it'you need some humor in your life!!

Wellness Wednesday

Today's Wellness Wednesday is about 'Clean' Cleaning. 

Many cleaning products have chemicals in them that can be dangerous to our health.  You definitely don't want them in close proximity to children.  So today I've provided a floor cleaner recipe and some tips for other natural cleaning methods you can utilize around your home.




Heavy duty floor cleaner recipe:
¼ cup white vinegar
1 tablespoon liquid dish soap
¼ cup baking soda
2 gallons tap water, very warm

Below are some Homemade Cleaning Solutions.  Many of these items you probably have lying at home.  You can use these cleaners without any guilt of any harmful chemicals.

Ingredients

Baking Soda. Works great to remove odors, but also as a cleaner.

• Combine 3 parts baking soda to 1 part water to clean counter tops, or even silver.
• I also like to sprinkle some into a smelly load of laundry to help freshen it up.

Ammonia. Never mix with bleach!

• Soak your oven racks in a solution of water and about ½ cup ammonia to remove any cooked on food. Works with the racks in a barbecue as well.
• Combine 1 cup Ammonia and 3 cups water and add to a spray bottle. Use solution to clean windows.
• Apply a drop or two to an insect bite to make it stop itching.

Vinegar. There are TONS of uses for vinegar, here are just few.

• Spray on sticker residue and let sit for 10 minutes, then wipe way.
• Use a solution of equal parts water and vinegar to clean any glass surface. You can do the same for counters, stoves, and other appliance fronts.
• Prevent mildew on shower walls by spraying vinegar directly on them.
• Soak shower heads or faucets in vinegar to remove corrosion or any build up.

Borax. Can be found in most grocery stores in the Laundry Aisle.

• Remove the smell of urine on a mattress. Sprinkle Borax on the mattress and rub in, then vacuum up the remaining powder.
• Toilet Cleaner. Add about ½ cup to your toilet bowl and let sit for 30 minutes to an hour. Scrub as usual and your toilet bowl will be fresh and stain free.
• Laundry Soap booster.

Hydrogen Peroxide. Not just for boo-boos.

• Use to disinfect just about anything: counter tops, sinks, cutting boards, toothbrushes, etc.
• Gargle in your mouth like you would mouthwash to kill germs and help whiten teeth.
• Use just as you would bleach to remove stains from clothing.
• Create a paste out of peroxide and cream of tarter to clean hard to remove cooked on food from pots and pans. Let sit, and it will wipe away.

Salt

• I learned an easy trick back when I used to work in fast food. Add about 2 cups of ice and a “good shaking” of salt to a coffee pot. Shake the coffee pot around. The salt will clean the inside of the coffee pot—even if you’ve let coffee burn onto the bottom.

Tasty Tuesday

Today's Tasty Tuesday will focus on FISH...many of us don't get enough in our diets but here's a couple of yummy recipes that are a cinch to do!



 Sweet and Spicy Grilled Salmon

Combine in a small bowl:

1 1/2 teaspoons brown sugar

1 teaspoon chili powder

a pinch each of kosher salt and black pepper

Rub over a 4-ounce salmon fillet.

Grill for 6 to 8 minutes, flipping halfway through.

The sugar in this rub caramelizes during cooking, giving the fish a rich flavor

Spicy Lime Tilapia

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 tsp red-pepper flakes
• 2 cups lightly packed baby spinach
• 12 asparagus tips
• 2 tilapia fillets (3 to 4 oz each)
• 2 scallions, sliced
• 2 lime quarters
• Salt and pepper

Directions:

To make chili oil, combine the olive oil and the red-pepper flakes in a small bowl and microwave it on high for 30 seconds. Set it aside. For each serving, lay an 18-inch length of aluminum foil flat on a work surface and arrange half the spinach and six asparagus tips in the center. Place a fillet on top, and top the fillet with half the scallion pieces, half the chili oil, and the juice from a lime quarter. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper. Fold the foil up and over the food, crimping the edges closed and creasing the sides to form a tent. Bake in a 450°F oven for 10 to 12 minutes. Makes 2 servings

Mango Red Pepper Salsa--a great side with fish!


Ingredients
2 ripe mangoes, peeled, pitted, and diced
1 red pepper, diced
Half a red onion, chopped
3 tablespoons fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Dash of cayenne pepper
Salt and pepper to taste
Directions

1. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl.
2. Cover and allow to sit in the fridge for at least one hour.
3. Serve with multigrain or whole wheat tortilla chips or serve over chicken or fish

Motivation Monday

Today's Motivation Monday is all about:  Today...what are you doing Today to make your life better?  Are you the person who always says 'I'll start tomorrow' or 'I'll start Monday'...well why not have today be 'THE' day you take charge of your health?  No better time than the present.  Tomorrow you'll wish you had started Today!!

Fitness Friday

Let's Talk Cardio...here's a list of some popular cardio modes of exercise.  Look to see how many calories it burns for 60 minutes!  Is your favorite on the list?

Topic Thursday

Before you go pulling that sticker off your fruits/veggies, read below to see what those stickers mean.



Although they seem like a nuisance, the stickers or labels attached to fruit and some vegetables have more of a function than helping scan the price at the checkout stand. The PLU code, or price lookup number printed on the sticker, also tells you how the fruit was grown. By reading the PLU code, you can tell if the fruit was genetically modified, organically grown or produced with chemical fertilizers, fungicides, or herbicides.
Here are the basics of what you should know:

1. If there are only four numbers in the PLU, this means that the produce was grown conventionally or “traditionally” with the use of pesticides. The last four letters of the PLU code are simply what kind of vegetable or fruit. An example is that all bananas are labeled with the code of 4011.
2. If there are five numbers in the PLU code, and the number starts with “8″, this tells you that the item is a genetically modified fruit or vegetable. Genetically modified fruits and vegetables trump being organic. So, it is possible to eat organic produce that are grown from genetically modified seeds. A genetically engineered (GE or GMO) banana would be: 84011
3. If there are five numbers in the PLU code, and the number starts with “9″, this tells you that the produce was grown organically and is not genetically modified. An organic banana would be: 94011