Happy Holidays!

Oh my goodness. Merry Christmas! I hope the holidays have been fabulous for you. :)

I'm working to improve Muncher Cruncher, hence the lack of posting. No worries. I'll be back soon! xoxoxo

Muncher Cruncher Healthy Travel Tips

I am ALWAYS so excited to leave on trips. Traveling is so fun. However, I always get a little stressed too...probably because I hate packing. I leave tomorrow for my Arizona/Austin Christmas, and I can hardly wait! It was 10 degrees when I got in my car this morning...get me out of here. If you were wondering how the packing is coming, it is looking a little something like this...

and that is only just the beginning. According to my dad I have inherited my inability to pack lightly from my mother. What can I say? She is a good woman, and she always looks fantastic! :)

When it comes to traveling people will quite often use it as an excuse to throw in the healthy towel, if you know what I mean. Here are a few tips that will help you to avoid doing just that.

Muncher Cruncher Healthy Travel Tips:
- Bring your own snacks! Sometimes traveling puts us in situations where we are foodless for quite a while. These are the times we usually get so hungry that that the..."I don't even care give me that entire Cinnabon NOW," monster kicks in. Instead of letting your body get there bring your own snacks. Some of my favorites are almonds, turkey jerky, Larabars, protein bars, string cheese, apples, bananas, clementines, oranges, healthy cookies, etc.
- Bring a water bottle. When we aren't at home or in our normal element, we tend to drink much less water than normal. Bring a water bottle with you so you can fill up wherever you are and keep yourself healthy and hydrated.
- Eat before you go. If you know food may be an issue on your travel day, don't wait to see what the airport or convenience store may have that fits into your healthy eating plan, eat something beforehand that will fill you up and keep you from becoming ravenous.
- Bring your workout clothes! Even if you are going to an unknown destination in which you may not have a lot of options as far as working out is concerned, there is always something you can do. Bring your own workout DVD's, bands, or a jump rope if you are worried your options may be limited. If you are staying with family, go for a walk! If you are staying at a hotel, find out before hand what their amenities are. You can always use their gym, or swim some laps in the pool.

These are just a few simple things that you can do that can certainly make a big difference in how well you do on your vacation. I've said it about one million times, the key to success is preparation and planning. If you don't set yourself up for success, finding it may be a wee bit difficult.

Happy and SAFE travels to all those who are venturing to their Christmas destinations this week!!

Get Your Family Moving!

On Saturday, my family decided to take a hike to the Wind Caves. My family definitely loves to eat, go to movies, sit and play games, and relax...BUT we always try to do some things that are active as well. Sometimes we run together, like we did for our Turkey Trot...and sometimes we shop together. (I totally count that as physical activity.) But on Friday, we hiked together. 

I think this is SO important for parents! Helping your kids to get physical activity is crucial. It is really easy to let them sit and watch TV or play on the computer all day, but that isn't doing much for their health.

We had a great time hiking, talking, and laughing...and of course taking all sorts of photos. Aren't those cacti unreal? I think they are such weird plants. Don't mind that I am the shrimp of the family. 

Plus, when you get to spend time outside, you will probably find some amazing sights to behold. It is a gorgeous world out there.

 The view from the top was awesome!

The scenery is so different from the pretty Utah landscape I am used to, but this is a definite desert kind of beautiful.

It was such a fun thing to do with the whole family! It definitely felt good to get moving after all sorts of Thanksgiving eating had gone down! Do you have fun ways to get your family moving?

The 1-10-20-30 Workout

I'm home! Arizona home that is. I planned on sleeping in...which for me means not setting my alarm and getting up whenever I happen to wake up. Today that was 7:00 AM, and instead of lying in bed I decided to get up and go for a run. The weather here is SO nice! I was loving my life. Just running along, listening to T-Swift as the sun came up...delightful.

I got back from my run and I wanted to do some core/strength exercises to finish, but I didn't want to be too loud so I went through this simple series of exercises a few times. This is an AWESOME workout that you can literally do anywhere. On vacation, in your bedroom, at the gym, at the park...you name it...chances are you can do it there too.

Start with a one minute plank. You can make this harder by taking it to one foot, widening your leg stance, or adding in hip dips, etc.
Next, go to your walking push ups. Start standing, keep your legs straight and bend at the hips, putting your hands down on the floor. Walk yourself out to a push up position. Do a push up, walk back, and stand up. That counts as one.
Next, do 20 air squats in place. Go as deep as you possibly can, and stand and tuck those glutes. The bigger the motion the more you will be working it!
Lastly, do 30 full sit ups. Start lying all the way down on the ground, arms over your head, knees bent. Bring your arms over your head and sit up, until you can touch your shoe laces. That counts as one.

The great thing about this workout is you can repeat this simple process as many times as you need to. You could even add in some cardio bursts after the sit ups to elevate that heart rate. Awesome right? Try it out!

Jet Setting Tips to Keep You On Track

Traveling is one of the fun things we get to do in life. Vacations are wonderful, and they are definitely a great time to allow yourself to be a little bit lax with your diet and exercise if you are really needing a break from the regimen. BUT...they surely don't have to be. We could think of a million reasons why we are going to "put our diet on hold" for some period of time for another. I hate to break it to ya...that just gets you nowhere. Instead, why not do your best to stick to some principles that will keep you from feeling like you need to be wheeled into your room on a luggage dolly at the end of the day. Here are some of the things I do to stay on track when I'm away from home.

- Pack snacks. I always plan ahead when I leave for trips because you never know what is going to be available to you. It is better to be prepared! My standards are almonds, Larabars, turkey jerky, apples, and other nuts. Breakfast is usually the hardest meal when you are traveling, so I plan on eating the things that I bring instead of going for a stack of pancakes or something else that is likely to start my day on an insulin rush.

- WALK. You may not have the opportunity to exercise wherever it is that you are going. If you can. AWESOME. In fact, it is very possible to do squats, planks, push ups, lunges, sit ups, heck...even burpees in your hotel room. But, if nothing else choose to walk. When you are doing your sight seeing, strap on a good pair of walking shoes (yep, be that tourist) and get your walk on. You will burn a ton of calories as you get to enjoy your sights, and it will help to make up for your lack of exercising.

- Remember your moderation. It is pretty easy to make every meal like Thanksgiving when you are eating out on vacation. There are oftentimes restaurants that you are dying to try along the way, and a lot of crazy delicious food can sometimes me a lot of crazy outrageous calories. Instead of gorging all the time choose to share meals with the people you are with. This way you get to try a little bit of everything without going calorie crazy. You can also remember that you don't HAVE to fall into peer pressure while eating out. While I was in NY, the people I was with had a long list of eateries that they wanted to stop at...The Donut Plant, The Shake Shack, Max Brenner, and on and on...and guess what, I never ate at any of them...GASP. I know, crazy right? I was pretty sure if I would have, the chances of me feeling sick the whole day were fairly high, so I opted out. I actually managed to stay very close to my Paleo eating while I was gone. If I couldn't find something on the menu that suited the way I wanted to eat, I didn't just give in. The good news is that at almost every place you go to eat you can usually modify your meal to make it healthy and worthy of your hard working body. With that being said...it is totally fine to have some meals where you let loose and enjoy. Life is to be enjoyed! Just try to avoid being gluttonous.

- Drink a lot of water. I always notice that my water consumption drops a TON when I am traveling because it isn't as easy to grab a drink when you are nowhere near a drinking fountain or sink. Bring a water bottle with you and fill it up whenever you can. When you do stop to eat, be sure to drink a full glass of water first before you eat.

- Try for healthy eateries. Some of the best places I've eaten are fun health food spots. Try to find some fun local healthy options!

- Don't kick yourself. If you do feel like you go overboard, don't let it ruin your trip. Simple pick yourself up, start over, and move forward with the desire to do better. What's done is done, but there is always a new day with new decisions!

I like Apples. Especially the Big Apple.

Thank you for all of the sweet birthday wishes! It was a GREAT day! I thought I'd share some of my favorite pics from my trip to New York. It was such a blast!

 The New York City Library.

 Central Park.

I want to live here and run in the park every morning. So pretty!

 Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. (So funny!)

 Bethesda Fountain.

 Radio City Music Hall. 

Yep, growing up as a dancer I aspired to be a Rockette. Maybe one day?

 Max Brenner.

 The Brooklyn Bridge.

 

Laduree. 

New York was a whirlwind of amazingness. I am fairly certain we walked at least 15 miles every day. It was definitely a great way to get a good workout in without even trying. Although, I'm grateful for appropriate footwear. Turns out boots are not the best walking shoes...who knew? ;)

Feeding An Army & Crock Pot Chicken Chalupas

I mentioned yesterday how much I loved my trip to Lake Powell. I also mentioned that we had 40 people that I planned food for. Many people think that feeding a large group means immediately resulting to frozen pasta dishes and pizza, with lots of potato chips and packaged cookies. I get that those are easy options, and sometimes in big groups the easy option wins out. However, maybe the following tips can help you think in quantity AND quality.

1. Include a fruit tray or a veggie platter at EVERY meal. Even if your "veggie platter" is nothing more than a big bag of baby carrots and some hummus. If you don't want to cut up your veggies yourself, purchasing a tray at Costco or your local grocery store is really easy to do. We had a fruit tray or a veggies out for every single meal in Powell and they ALWAYS were scarfed up!

2. Use a crock pot. It is easier to cook for a crowd when you don't have to be a slave to the kitchen all day. One of the recipes that I make every year in the crock pot are chicken chalupas. This recipe makes a lot, but I doubled it. People then have the option to put this chicken over chips, in a tortilla, over salad, or on its own. It is SO tasty!

Crock Pot Chicken Chalupas

4 lbs. cooked cut up chicken

2 large onions diced

3-4 cloves of garlic

3 - 28-ounce cans crushed tomatoes

2 – 7 ounce cans diced green chilies

3 - 151/2 ounce cans pinto beans

2 cans black beans

1 1/2 Tablespoons oregano flakes

1 tablespoon cumin

Cook chicken in crock pot, add remaining ingredients (mix tomatoes, garlic and onions in food processer )

Mix together and cook in oven at 325 degrees in a large roster for 2-3 hours, or crock pot for 3-4 hours. Squeeze lime juice in before serving

I also served this with diced tomatoes, avocado, shredded lettuce, shredded cheese, salsa, sour cream, black bean salsa, and any other toppings you may want.  This stuff is SO GOOD, and it keeps really well too. 

3. Give "create your own" options. One of the hardest parts of feeding a large group is attempting to please everyone's tastes. For lunches I always have several different kinds of lunch meats, cheeses, wraps, bread, toppings, and even lettuce for lettuce wraps. It is amazing to me that people really do usually go for the healthier options. Even with the chalupas, people have the option to make salads if they wish to avoid all of the extra chips and tortillas. 

For one of the dinners I had everyone assemble their own pita pizzas. These are so easy, healthy, and portioned perfectly. These are great for kids as well because they love to get involved on making them! When kids are involved in the cooking and creating process they are far more likely to eat their food! 

4. Have a good mix of healthy and not so healthy snacks and treats. You may want to eat perfectly healthy, but that doesn't always mean everyone else does as well. Moderation is a good thing, and having a good mix of healthy treats with some others sweets is OK. Once again, if you provide the healthy options, you may be surprised at how people devour them. Along with whatever treats you may have, include nuts, pieces of fruit, fruit leathers, jerky, etc. Not all snacks on vacation need to be covered in sugar and processed to the nines.

Feeding a group can be healthy, and may just require a little creativity. Include as many fruits and vegetables as you can! Keep it simple, keep it healthy, and you will have a happy crowd!

Lake Powell Recap

Lake Powell is one of those places that I think everyone should get to visit at least once in their life...or preferably at least once every summer. It is absolute paradise. I am fairly certain that if I was accidentally left there I wouldn't even mind. A few weeks ago I planned a trip for 40 people for a little weekend getaway in paradise. It was so much fun. I planning the trip I was also in charge of planning the food, which mean I was able to secretly healthify everything. Muah-hahahaha...I'll be posting my menu for the week tomorrow! 

Not too bad, right?

The Get Back At It Workout and a DANG Good Salad

If there is one reason I love coming home from vacations...and there is probably only one...it is because I really like to get back into my workout/eating routine. I have been out of my normal routine, and that was made clear to me when I became very sore after my Monday circuit workout. It was the perfect little boost towards getting me back into the swing of things, and so I thought I'd share.

One mile run to warm up OR 10 minute elliptical intervals

3 sets of the following alternating between exercises
15 squat, curl, presses with 20 lb db's
15 burpees with a push up
20 walking lunges with 20 lb dumbbells
2 minute plank hold (1st plank no weight, 2nd plank 10 lb plate on your back, 3rd plank 25 lb plate on your back)

and then...

3 sets of the following alternating between exercises
15 bent over rows with 20 lb dbs
15 squats with 35 lb dbs
2 minute plank hold (1st plank no weight, 2nd plank 10 lb plate on your back, 3rd plank 25 lb plate on your back)

finish with
1 mile run OR 10 minute elliptical intervals


DONE. I think it was the walking lunges that got me. I guess walking around New York City in boots uses different muscles.

So, while I was in the Big Apple I ate at a place called Chop't that I guess is a chain restaurant? Have you eaten there? I'm probably just out of the loop on this one, but I am a HUGE fan.
Basically you go through and pick your lettuce, your protein, your veggies/toppings, and then they chop it all up into one HUGE salad.

I had baby spinach and mixed greens, lemon pepper chicken, beets, tomatoes, broccoli, and sunflower seeds. Maybe it sounds strange to you...but it thought it was bomb. I ate every last bite. And I'd do it again. I love when I find new healthy options of places to eat that are good. Now, if they could just bring one of these to Utah...

Weekend Catch Up...

There is nothing like a little weekend getaway. Even if it's just to Richfield, Utah...

My friends are fun. That's all.

I Forgot to Tell You...

So, there are a few things I forgot to mention from my AZ trip. 

1) Eat at Sauce. 
I think this makes like the 20,000th eating recommendation I have for Arizona. How about if you are ever planning on going there, consult with me first, K? Anyways, back to Sauce. Ever heard of it? My sister LOVES it, and for whatever reason in all of my Arizona visits I have never been there. Well, we took care of that. OHHHH. It's so good. We may or may not have eaten there for lunch two days in a row....annnnd I may or may not have eaten the same thing both times.

The Turkey Avocado Feta salad is BOMB. Just looking at this photo makes me hungry.

2) Driving in the car is not that fun.
Although Papa Les is a good time, Spending about 22 hours in a car within a period of three days is not what I'd consider the best form of exercises. You should avoid doing that.

The view may be pretty...but...still.

3) iPhones are essential for road trips. 
Well, they are essential for life too, but for road trips especially. Words With Friends, Scramble With Friends, Instagram, Twitter, surfing the web, texting, and my music library saved me. Thank you to all of you who participated in making life better for me :)

4) The olympics are still awesome
We spent a lot of evenings watching the olympics and I have decided that I'll take the body of a sprinter, thank you. WOW. They are unreal. I love when they show snippets of their training procedures and what their regimens are. They really really do work SO hard. I am sad that the games are drawing to a close because I have loved watching them so much!

5) My family is the best.
I love them so much, and it has been so fun to spend so much time with them!

Ok...so maybe I've mentioned that like 5,000 times...but it's still true!

A Simple Jump Rope Dumbbell Circuit

Sometimes being home in AZ really is just the best. I woke up this morning and laid in bed, which is SUCH a luxury to me. Usually the moment my alarm goes off I have to sprint out of bed to get to work in the wee hours of the morning. Not today. I stayed there for a bit...read for a bit...played on my phone...and then decided to get up and get my work out on.

This morning's workout was simple. All I needed were these two things.

The workout went a little something like this...

I used 15 lb dumbbells, but you can increase or decrease weight to make it more difficult. The key is to go from one exercise to the next without resting too much in between. This is an awesome full body workout that requires very little equipment, which makes it so you can do it anywhere!

Today's post-workout activities consisted of shopping, shopping, and more shopping. We did a number on the Fashion Square mall. 

Maybe I should say that mall did a number on us...It is so massive, and we were so tired after. So tired that we decided that we needed to do some post-shopping refueling. Naturally, we decided to stop by Yogurtland.

 So tasty. I think it tasted especially good because it is 111 degrees here. Let's be honest, it always tastes good!

My Last Day in the Grand Canyon State

That title makes it sound like my time here in AZ has been full of outdoorsy adventure like rock climbing, and hiking. That is complete false advertising. If there was a pie chart of what our time here has been like it would consist mainly of playing in the pool, shopping, going to matinees to get out of the heat, eating, and some working out as well. We climbed the stairs at the movie theater if you want to count some climbing, and my nephew braved a snow cone called Mt. Everest. Does that count?

 Last night my sister found a workout on pinterest that looked fun and she sent it to me. My mom and I decided to try it out this morning and I liked it a lot. The workout was from the blog Peanut Butter Fingers. It was quick and painful. Just the way I like it. It looked like this.

My mom braved the workout with me, and I really liked it! It is nice to mix things up and do something that someone else thought of every now and again :) Did you know that counting to 50 can seem pretty high when you are doing things like jump squats and chest presses? Well it can.

This gave me some inspiration for a July workout challenge that I think will be fun! Today, being July 1st Marks the first day of the challenge.

DAY #1 Hold a 1 minute plank. Add this challenge to your workout routine and we'll build on every day!

Next time you hear from me I'll be in the Beehive State! Farewell AZ! Have you found any of your workouts off of Pinterest? If so, link them here I'd love to see them!

Having Fun Is a Workout

How has this weekend flown by so fast? I wish I could slow time down because a few more days and I'll be back to normal life. I have had SO much fun with my family this week, but man...having fun is a workout.

I was able to hang out with with one of my bestest friends in the whole world. I miss you all the time Benits!! 

 I've spent a lot of quality time with the fam.

 I sure do love this lil' guy.

 We have tried to beat the heat by relocating to the local shopping centers. I don't mind getting my walk on in mall form.

 I do wish Texas would give me this cute thing back as well.

 We somehow ended up at the biggest candy store I have ever been to in my life. Talk about temptation.

 Like I said, lots of shopping.

 Oh, and we have managed to fit in quite a bit of pool time.

Now do you see why I don't want this week to end? As you can see, we have been BUSY. Vacation is soooo rough ;) I hope you've had a great week too!

Some of you asked where my jeans were from in THIS post? I got them at J Crew a few weeks ago, and I kinda love them.  My niece actually bought the same ones today.