Get Fit and Well

Come up with a weekly plan that can help you achieve your New Year’s goals.    Start your plan on Monday and recommit each week.    If you fall off, try again next Monday.    Soon healthy habits will be part of your weekly routine!

Instead of feeling overwhelmed by your New Year’s resolutions, take 2011 one Monday at a time.    Write down all you hope to change and begin planning your new, healthier behaviors.    Then use each Monday to reinforce your goals!

Stress can make the holiday season anything but merry. Fight anxiety by managing your time!    This Monday, make a list of goals and plan ahead for stressful events.

Make the holiday season a joyous one!  If you plan to buy Christmas gifts, make a list and get your shopping done as soon as possible.  Remember to set a budget and stay within it … do not overspend.   If you plan to entertain or visit family and friends, plan that menu and get all your grocery shopping done ahead of time.

Put on some Christmas music or purchase your favorite Christmas CD and play it in your car or home — sing along and get in the spirit!  As for help if you need it.  Delegate tasks to family members and friends or be prepared to say “No” if you have too much already on your plate.

Don’t get stressed out by taking on more than you can reasonably handle.  Only do what you enjoy doing and remember the reason for the season!

Merry Christmas!

Cut your cooking time this week by preparing soups, stews or casseroles on Monday. They reheat well and can be enjoyed all week!

Here is a recipe you can try that takes about 30 minutes to prepare and renders 4 servings:

Chicken and Dumplings

Ingredients

* 1 1/2 pounds chicken breast tenders
* 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 turn of the pan
* 2 tablespoons butter
* 2 medium carrots, peeled and diced or thinly sliced
* 1 medium onion, chopped
* 3 ribs celery, diced
* 1 bay leaf, fresh or dried
* Salt and freshly ground black pepper
* McCormick Lemon Pepper
* 1 teaspoon poultry seasoning
* 2 tablespoons flour
* 1 quart chicken broth or stock, canned or paper container
* 1 can of biscuits (10 per can)
* 1 cup frozen green peas

Directions

Dice tenders into bite size pieces and set aside. Wash hands.

Place a large pot on stove over medium high heat. Add oil, butter, vegetables (do not add frozen peas) and bay leaf and cook 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Season mixture with salt, pepper, poultry seasoning, and Lemon Pepper Add flour to the pan and cook 2 minutes. Stir broth or stock to the pot and bring to a boil. Add chicken to the broth and stir.

Open can of biscuits and pinch off bite-size pieces and drop into the pot, spacing dumplings evenly. Cover pot tightly and reduce heat to medium low. Steam dumplings 10 to 15 minutes. Remove cover and stir chicken and dumplings to thicken sauce a bit.   Stir peas into the pan.  Remove chicken and dumplings from heat and serve in shallow bowls.
Enjoy this delicious comfort food!

Healthy Monday Tip

Stay percolated this Monday and throughout the week.    No need to resort to a double macchiato to keep your energy up!    Keep focused with three 10-minute spurts of exercise throughout the day.

Shorter workouts have tremendous potential for reshaping the body with minimum time commitment.  Make a conscious effort to incorporate short, 10-minute workouts throughout the day to help you get fit.    Squats, lunges, curls and stretches are several exercises you can do at work or at home.

To add more variety to these short workouts, there are several things you can do to spice it up or kick it up a notch.  For example, take the stairs for a more intense workout, have fun and get a workout with a hula hoop, work various muscle groups with a stability ball, hop on an exercise bike, or grab a jump rope.  Whatever you choose to do … JUST DO IT and enjoy your journey toward getting fit and well!

Enjoy Thanksgiving by planning ahead and using your time effectively. This Monday write a to-do list, set your priorities and be realistic about your goals.

Happy Thanksgiving!

The recommended daily caloric intake for adults is 2000 calories.    Do the Monday 2000 this week and track your eating habits with a food journal.    Evaluate your progress each week and set new goals.

We can do this!

This Monday make an effort to take the stairs instead of the elevator. Your stamina will increase and you’ll have more energy!

Incorporating stair-climbing into your exercise regimen is another way you can boost the benefits of your workout.  Take a nice, brisk walk and follow it up with brisk stair-climbing.  You can also walk or jog around a football field and use the bleachers or stadium steps  to work some additional muscle groups.  Stair-climbing is a great exercise to help you get fit and well.

Consumed too much Halloween candy?  Let’s go meatless today!

If you want to continue to get fit and well, cut back on calories today.  Reverse the damage you may have done if you’ve consumed too much Halloween candy by cutting back on the amount of meat you consume.  Dig into your recipe file and prepare quick meals with no meat.

To get you going, here are some quick meal ideas:

• Breakfast:  coffee, boiled egg and some fruit
• Lunch:  green salad with lots of veggies
• Dinner:  black bean soup

Use your imagination!  Check your cupboards for staples you have on hand and be creative.   Share your meatless meals with us.   You can post your creative recipes and meatless meals here in the comment area below.

In the meantime, enjoy your Monday and have a wonderful week!