Shape Your Weigh

PEI Wine Festival

Last night Roy and I attended the PEI Wine festival. It was our first experience and a great night out! We arrived not knowing how it all worked but the staff were very friendly and explained how it all worked. We were given a wine glass each and told we had to hang onto it all night because you only get one. Little booklets were handed out along with a pencil listing all the wine vendors so you could check off the ones you tasted and make a selection. With over 250 vendors we had no clue where to begin so just walked around. We found Rosignols table and decided to start there since it's typically my go to wine if and when I decide to buy wine.

I tried the Apple wine which was quite nice and then their Maple wine which was really surprising. It's listed as a dessert wine and they aren't kidding. It was delicious :) If you don't like overly sweet wine then it's not for you though.

We went to a few more tables and I tried selections from various vendors. The Kim Crawford wine was nice and I got to try a sparkling wine which I liked. In all honesty though, I had no clue what I was doing and by the end of the night I didn't want to try any more wine. The flavours all kinda started blending together and I couldn't tell what I liked. If anything, we loved the food that was there more. Amazing little desserts, meatballs, chocolates. :)  Maybe we need a food fair instead of a wine fair? haha.  It wasn't a total bust for us though. We got to try some Rossignol wine that we liked and found that we like Jost wine as well. We'll never be the type to go out and buy a bottle a week, heck even in a month. We were just looking for something to do that could be a night out and perhaps gives us ideas on a nice bottle of wine to buy for special occassions.

The atmosphere was kinda fun - but crowded. There were photo booths with props that was fun to do. People ranged from very dressed up to casual jeans and t-shirts. I found I didn't like how crowded it was though when trying to get to a table to try a wine. The booklets they give you tell you the price, the name and whether it's Red/White etc. but no description of the drink. If I wanted to know more about the wine I had to get up front at the table and read the write up. With so many people gathering and lingering around the tables to get their wine glasses filled it made it nearly impossible. 

At the end of the night we stopped by a table that was serving cheese and crackers with jams from Riverview Market. The jams were Carrot Cake and Red Pepper Jelly. I of course had to try both and let me tell you, they were AMAZING! I asked if I could buy them but sadly they said no lol. It's a wine festival Kim, not a jam festival. But anyhow...I found some food I liked there. ;-)

Overall, it was a fun night out but I don't think I'd do it again. I think I would prefer a sit down dinner where meals are served and someone pairs wines that go best. The free for all just kinda ruined it for me I think.  Or perhaps I'm just not a wine lover? Who knows.

Yoga Anytime

I recently decided that I want to start adding Yoga into my weekly routine. Trying to find a class that fits my schedule with working full time and teaching POUND was a bit difficult though.  I decided to do a search on YouTube and found some nice 30 day challenge videos but wanted something that would start at absolute beginner. I came across a website called YogaAnytime that offers a free 30 day trial so I decided to give it a shot. 

There are different teachers you can choose from, along with style, length of class, level, props, anatomy focus, theory, etc.  I've only been a member for 4 days but I have to say I really like it so far.  I decided to start with a beginner video by Kira Sloane called "Moving With Our Breath" which I found extremely relaxing. Kira explains the moves in simple terms and her voice is extremely relaxing. Did you know that the Hokey Pokey can be considered yoga? Who knew. ;)  I enjoyed the video so much that I performed it again this morning after completing my workout.  That's telling right there.

YogaAnytime has an iPad/iPhone app that you can use to download the videos and watch from your device. I connected my laptop to the tv and watched the video that way.

Benefits:

1. Cost. First month is free and after that only $18 a month.
2. Flexibility (no pun intended) - I can start/pause the class whenever is convenient for me.
3. Variety - I can select from a number of teachers to find the one I like.
4. Feedback - I left a note for Kira Sloane to let her know how much I enjoyed her lesson and she wrote back. :)
5. I can do yoga from my own home

Drawbacks:

1.  No feedback on form. I'm responsible for paying attention to my form and risk the chance of personal injury if I get it wrong. A face to face class with an instructor eliminates this worry. As a personal trainer, I'm not too concerned about this but see where this could be a risk for others.
2. Accountability - no classmates or friends taking the class with me so I'm responsible to motivate myself to do yoga. Signing up for a paid class with a friends might make you feel more accountable with going to class.
3. Requires a stable Internet connection. I debated whether I should list this as a drawback but there were a couple of times the Internet hiccuped here at the house and it did interfere slightly with the flow of the class but not really a big issue for me.

I still fully intend to check out some local classes but for now I'll be doing Yoga at the Beck home gym. ;-)

Kirkland Protein Bars - An Alternative to Quest Bars?

I've written reviews for other protein bars before and wanted to do a quick write up on the Kirkland brand.  My brother bought a box of these for me during a trip to Costco. You get 20 bars in a box and a single box is roughly $35. In my opinion, they taste a lot like the Quest chocolate chip cookie dough and brownie bars but at a fraction of the cost (less than $2/bar vs nearly $4 for Quest). The only drawback is that the Kirkland brand only comes with 2 flavors - chocolate chip and brownie but I don't mind that. :)

Out of the two bars, my preference is for the chocolate chip but I like the brownie one too. These are my go to bars for a morning or afternoon snack.

I recently discovered that you can order these bars online through Costco without a membership card. I placed my order on the weekend and had the bars by Wednesday. No off island trip or bridge toll required. :)

Nutritional Information - Chocolate Chip Cookie

Calories: 190
Fat: 7g
Saturated Fat: 2.5g
Carbs: 22g
Fiber: 15g
Sugar: 1g
Erythritol: 4g
Protein: 21g

Nutritional Information - Brownie

Calories: 190
Fat: 7g
Saturated Fat: 2.5g
Carbs: 23g
Fiber: 15g
Sugar: 1g
Erythritol: 4g
Protein: 21g

What's for Breakfast?

Some might say I'm a creature of habit. Others might say I'm dull because I eat the same things over and over again. Do you know the benefit of eating the same things on a regular basis? Let me list them for you:

• I know exactly how many calories are in the meal
• I know the macronutrient breakdown of the meal without logging it (protein, carbs, fat fibre)
• I know how the meal will affect my body - it's no mystery - I eat it every day
• I have a plan in place - there's no guessing or hitting a drive-thru - breakfast is set

This is not to say I don't mix it up but for the past 2 months my breakfast has pretty much been the same thing:

• 1 slice toasted Ezekiel bread
• 1 large egg poached (I have a microwave poacher which I add a little water to because it saves me time)
• 1 serving egg white (I add this with the large egg inside the poacher)
• 85 grams of blueberries
• 1 oz avocado

What do you like to eat for breakfast?  Is it always the same thing? Let me know :)

Kimmy

Charlottetown & Stratford Mom's Should Come to POUND!

As Mother's, how often do we tell ourselves the following?

• I don't have time to workout
• I don't have money to join the gym
• I don't want people staring at me
• I don't have the coordination
• etc.

If you're like me and a lot of other Mom's, we can come up with a million reasons why we can't do something. But what if we flip this around and look at it this way.

1. There are 24 hours in a day, which equals 168 hours in a week. Can you really not spare 1 hour for yourself to get your workout done?  Taking care of YOU has to be a priority so you can take care of OTHERS.
   
   
2. Money - I get it. There often seems like there's not enough to go around and when there is we carry guilt about spending it on ourselves. That's why I offer a drop in fee of only $7 per class. There's no further commitment beyond that. If you love the class and keep coming back (which I hope you will) then I offer a punch card where your 8th class is free.
   
   
3. When I started my fitness journey at nearly 300lbs I was convinced everyone in the gym would be staring at me and laughing. Trust me when I say NO ONE will be staring at you or making fun of you in my class. My classes are built on a family of fitness and we come together to support and build each other up. Besides, we're working so hard following the choreography and moving that no one has time to look at anyone else. ;-)
   
   
4. Coordination comes with practice. Just ask the POUND Master who trained me back in November. I felt like the most uncoordinated person in the room and probably was. POUND is for everyone and of course we all start at different levels. The point is to just start.  Coordination comes with practice. The key is to be consistent and keep coming back.

Have I convinced you yet why you should come check out my class? I surely hope so.  Hop on over to POUNDFIT PEI to save your spot!  

11 Days Without Diet Pepsi

1. It's not good for you.
2. Aspartame causes cancer.
3. You should give that up because...

I know all this.  It's been 11 days since I had a Diet Pepsi or any soda product and I'd love to say it's gotten easier and I don't miss it but that would be a big fat lie. Whenever I see someone walking away from the vending machine at work with an ice cold Diet Pepsi I swear I can taste it LOL. I drink coffee but don't particularly enjoy the taste. It's just to get the caffeine kick. I hate that this craving is so strong.  I gave up pop before and stayed away from it for 2 years. Why on earth did I ever go back tot his?  I'm trying to focus my mindset on how much better my health and body will be cutting this out. But yeah...day 11 and it still sucks. #thestruggleisreal #prayforme #dietpepsiaddict

 

That's all.

Kimmy

POUNDFIT Stratford Classes!

What an amazing journey this has been since becoming a POUND Pro in November of 2016. I've gone from second guessing my abilities as a trainer to leading group fitness classes to complete strangers in both Montague, Charlottetown and Stratford. The girl who feltsaid she "can't" has started believing she "can" and by golly she's doing it! I'm pretty proud of me right now. :-)

I don't tell myself I can't anymore - I tell myself I CAN and I WILL and then I DO IT.

Do I stumble along the way? Of course! But I keep getting back up and learning from each experience.

On May 5th I taught a POUND class to 60 children from 4H.  Was I nervous? You bet! Was I excited? COMPLETELY! Seeing the kids have so much fun doing a class I love made me so happy. Who wouldn't want to do more of what they love?

Do you want to try out my POUND class? I'm holding classes Wednesday evenings in Stratford at the Our Lady of the Assumption church from 6:30pm - 7:30pm as well as Saturday afternoons from 1:00pm-2:00pm. Join the Facebook page, give us a like and hopefully I'll see you in class. :-)

#makenoise #fitnessrebels #poundfit

POUNDFIT Coming to Charlottetown - Feedback Needed!

Charlottetown folks have been waiting and we are happy to report that a location has been found! In order to determine class times we need YOUR valuable feedback.  Please take a moment to complete our online survey with your preference for class dates and times and we will report back soon! We look forward to rocking out with you! #fitnessrebels #poundpro #poundfit

Charlottetown Classes Survey

 

What is POUND?

Check out the POUND Beat Ballad promo video below :-)

 

 

T-FAL Actifry Review

Last Christmas I acquired an amazing deal from a friend who wanted to sell their Actifry. Roy and I have been wanting one for a while but the price range always stopped us from making the purchase. My friend who owned one decided she no longer liked it and was selling it for $50 so I bought it quick. I can honestly say it's one of the best purchases we ever made.  No joke, if it broke tomorrow I'd have to go out and buy another one. It's become a staple among our appliances, where even the kids love to use it.  What do we cook in it? Well I'm so glad you asked. ;)

I love to cook homemade "healthy" fries which in the past, I'd cut up, rinse, cook in the microwave for a few minutes, then toss in the oven. No more of that! Now with the Actifry I just cut up my potatoes, throw them in the Actifry with or without a little bit of oil (they crisp up nicer if you add oil), turn on the Actifry and wait. No messing around with waiting for the oven to pre-heat etc. In the same amount of time, roughly 20 minutes, I get yummy homemade fries. :) I've cooked regular fries, sweet potato fries and the kids have even thrown in bagged fries from the freezer. They love using it after school because it's so simple to use. Just throw the food in and turn it on. lol.  My son Alex has taken to cooking BACON in it during the morning for breakfast. :)

The model we have is T-Fal and it's one of the originals so it doesn't have all the bells and whistles with a timer and such but it works great. Like I said, if it broke tomorrow I'd have to purchase another one. As it stands, I wish we had 2 or a bigger one just so we could cook more in it. It's sometimes a pain waiting to use it if the kids already have something in there. Alex also likes to cook chicken nuggets when he gets home from school because it's so easy.  I've cooked a chicken stir fry in it once and it turned out great. :) The only thing is you sometimes have to open the lid to stir things around if they get stuck around the paddle.

PROS

1. Simple to use even for young pre-teens
2. You can cook healthy foods (uses almost no oil)
3. Convenient
4. Clean up is easy - most parts are dishwasher safe.

CONS

1. Price
2. Takes up counter space
3. Our model is smaller so you can only cook so much in it at one time.

Does anyone else have an Actifry? What recipes would you like to share? 

Black Bean Protein Brownies

Ingredients

• 1 large can of Black Beans (540ml) (drained and rinsed)
• 2 cups Egg Whites
• 226 grams Plain Fat Free Greek Yogurt
• 2 packages Gelatin
• 1 and 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
• 2 packages Sugar free, Fat Free Chocolate Fudge pudding mix (dry)
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 140 grams protein powder (vanilla or chocolate)
• 112 grams dark chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Lightly spray 9x13 pan with non-stick spray.
3. Combine dry ingredients in large bowl and set aside.
4. Combine wet ingredients in food processor and process until well combined and smooth.
5. Mix in dry ingredients and fold in chocolate chips.
6. Pour into pan.
7. Bake for 30 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
8. Makes 10 servings.

Nutritional Information (Per Serving)

Calories:
Fat: 7 grams
Carbs: 23 grams
Protein: 21 grams
Fibre: 15 grams