Nutritional Therapy Practitioner

I had been wanting something more in life for a while.
Something just for me.
To fuel my passion and to expand my knowledge and interests.

I have been interested in nutrition and health for sometime now, getting more serious after the birth of Aiden. I saw so many wonderful changes in my life from eating clean and taking care of my physical and mental health. I began to listen to podcasts on health and reading every book I could get my hands on, so many of them were from graduates of the Nutritional Therapy Association. I went back and forth on the idea, so many voices in my head telling me I couldn't do it. I was nervous to tell Jayson about this little dream I had.

One day I told him about the idea to go back to school and to become a Nutritional Therapist. He was so encouraging and supportive, my biggest cheerleader.

The very next enrollment we wrote the check and signed me up.

It was a long and wonderful year.

I learned so much and my passion for nutrition has only increased dramatically. I can't wait to start helping mothers better care for their body and to nurture their home and family.

MMM healthy snack

I had so many people love the Banana Bites and request more healthy snack ideas. These are one of my all time favorite healthy snacks. I love them, Jayson loves them and Ty loves them.

Yummy Apple Snacks.

Buy any type of apple. I usually get Gala because they are yummy and much cheaper.

Cut them up. If you don't have one of these apple cutters just use a knife. It will taste the same:)

We love Nutella but you can also use peanut butter.

Spread it on.

Then sprinkle with granola. 

Easy check. Yummy check. Cheap check. 

Banana bites

 

How about a healthy snack today!?

  

I have seen these all over Pinterest and have had a lot of friends tell me to try them. I thought it would be fun and yummy but was too lazy to actually make them. Then I had a batch of bananas start to go bad. It was shocking because bananas usually don't make it through the week at our house. I have to buy two or three batches at a time. I tend to get one batch of yellow and two really green ones. However we have been gone a lot lately and just didn't get around to eating them this time. The thought of throwing away food makes me sad. It is so expensive to buy healthy food so there was no way I was going to let these babies go bad.

So they're not totally bad but one more day and in my opinion they would have been nasty. So I thought this was the perfect opportunity to make the banana bites I have heard so much about.

You can cut them up as thick or thin as you would like. Ty helped me cut them so mine are all sorts of sizes.

Seriously who doesn't love peanut butter??! I could eat it every day.

I really wasn't planning on having Ty help me. I actually told him to stop when he started. I was nervous about him using the knife but he totally rocked it. He is just way too big and I have to stop thinking of him as a baby. We used butter knifes and I was right by him the whole time. He absolutely loved them. It was hard to keep some to freeze when he ate them as he went. He loves bananas and peanut butter so it was a perfect snack for him.

You can also put as little or as much peanut butter as you like. If you are doing it for a super healthy snack I wouldn't put a ton on. We were having fun and Ty kept layering it on so our peanut butter is busting out the sides.

I debated on posting this picture of our freezer. It is pretty sad looking. I put them in on a plate so they would freeze individually. Then after one hour I took them out and transferred them from the plate to a zip-lock bag. Jayson came home for lunch and we ate them all!

Maybe they will last longer at your house.

MMM-gallon challenge

 o water....how I love you.   

 For one of my new year resolutions I decided to join the gallon challenge. 

This means I have to down a whole gallon in one day. 

I thought this was going to be SO HARD. 

but it is actually very easy.

 I have seen a lot of benefits so far.

 1. More energy

2. Drinking little to no diet coke ( if you know me you know this is a miracle)

3. snacking less often

4. making healthier meals

A few hard things.

1. I feel like I go potty every thirty minutes...

2. When traveling its not the easiest to pack around

3. Being consistent

I have good days and bad. Some days I drink it all and fill more up. Others I get to about the 6 o'clock line and realize its time for bed. I also don't do well when I am traveling or on vacation (yes I consider going to my parents for the weekend vacation). The days I do well and drink my whole gallon are always better days. I feel healthier happier and have way more energy! I love it so much I also got Jayson doing it now and he loves it!! 

 

Does anybody want to see this come back as a link up?? 

steps backward

This linky has been rather sketchy lately. Im sorry for that. I can't seem to sit in front of the computer and write a motivational post. I feel like I am lying to your faces...errr computer screens. So to be honest....I'm not doing so great. I feel like I can't get motivated or find the desire to stop shoving food into my mouth. Is the excuse that I am nursing going to hold up much longer. Ember is 5 months old and I still have plenty of weight to lose. Which is fine...I don't expect it to fall off, especially when I can't stop snacking all day long. I can't be mad really..Not at anything but myself. But I am mad. I am mad at myself. Almost every day I sit and ponder...telling myself things like ...today is the day..your going to eat healthy all day long....your going to wake up at 5:30 and go to the gym...you will work hard because you want it...Then it happens I catch myself having my third snack of the day and its noon...ugh. Granted they are healthy snacks...one positive thing is I never buy junk food. If I want something unhealthy or am having a sweet tooth fix, I have to munch on chocolate chips that are intended for baking. But still I can only eat so many cups of yogurt or apples or pb&js or almonds or string cheese before my love handles start saying hello. Healthy foods in unhealthy portions is not healthy eating. I feel so bloated its sickening. I honestly can step on the scale and not cry. It's not really the number that's bothering me. Its my self image, the way I feel in my pants, the feeling I get after eating too much...Thats what is really getting me down. I end the day mad at myself. I feel like when I am unhappy about myself and the way I look and feel I start to let little things bother me that shouldn't, I am not as good of a wife and mother. I hate catching myself being snappy and knowing deep down inside that its me..all me. I am the reason I am acting the way I am. That I have the power to change it and yet I feel so helpless to knowing how to fix it.

 Is it possible to want something so bad and be the first person to sabotage it?
 I am my own worse enemy.

I guess I can say for the most part I am happy. I am not as bad off as I could be. and where I am is purely off no diet and occasional exercise. So I know if I put in the work and time that my goals could be reached.  Why then don't I try a little harder to do a little better??? 

 

MMM-link up

I have actually been doing really well this last two weeks. 

Exercising is becoming somewhat of a routine again.

Its freakin cold here so working out outside is almost impossible. 

I am so not the awesome runner who runs no matter what the weather is. 

...but my Jullian Michaels videos are getting a lot of use. 

 I am also working out with a friend who lives two doors down!! 

Makes it so much easier to work out when you have someone to motivate you.

On a plus side I am fitting back in my pre-pregnancy fat pants. 

about 10 more lbs. to shed and I should be back in my regular jeans. 

-HOPEFULLY SOON-

Ember is almost 3 months...I cant use the I just had a baby excuse much longer. 

I have also been drinking a lot of water and been cutting back on the diet coke!

My bloggy friend Whitney at

A Mommy's life with a touch of yellow

did a whole post on drinking enough water

HERE

go read it!! 

She made a huge list of the benifits of drinking water

1. Helps you lose weight

Drinking water reduces hunger, 

it’s an effective appetite suppressant so you’ll eat less

Plus, water has zero calorie

2. Natural Remedy for headaches

usually because your headaches 

are a sign of dehydration

3. Look younger with healthier skin

Water helps to replenish skin tissues, 

moisturizes skin and increases skin elasticity

4. Better Productivity

Your brain is mostly made up of water, 

so drinking water helps you think better, 

be more alert and more concentrated

5. Better Exercise

Drinking water regulates your body temperature

  which means you’ll feel more energetic when doing exercises

Water also helps to fuel your muscle

6. Helps is digestion 

7. Less Cramps and Sprains

Proper hydration helps keep your 

joints and muscles lubricated

8. Less Likely to get sick and feel healthy

Drinking plenty of water helps fight against flu
and other ailments like kidney stones and heart attack
drinking water can improve your immune system

9. Relieves Fatigue

10. Flushes out toxins from your body

11. Good mood
Your body feels very good and
that’s why you feel happy

12. Reduces the risk of cancer

13. Reduces your risk of heart attack


14. Burns more fat and build more muscle


15. Regulates Ph balance


16. Nutrient transport
 Water helps in sending the nutrients from on
place of our body to another
  making a constant flow which helps our
body to function properly
 

17. Pregnant Women
At the time of pregnancy
the body's need of enough water is very important
to keep the nutrients flowing and keeping the
infections away

Try and think about water through out the day.

Remember your body needs it!! 

Go ahead and link up anything 

fitness and health related.

Follow your Hosts

Him&Her

and Amanda from

For love of a cupcake 

and GET FIT

MMM, link up and a WINNER

“That which we persist in doing becomes easier for us to do; not that the nature of the thing itself is changed, but that our power to do is increased”

 Ralph Waldo Emerson

 

Jayson gave me this quote to use today. As soon as he said it I knew I had to share it. Its perfect for how I have been feeling lately. 

 

I'm finally getting back into my grove. Exercising is becoming a priority again. Everything from getting up early to pushing myself harder is finally coming together. It hasn't changed, I have. My power has increased.

 

I love this chick. Seriously doesn't she look like she means business. 

 

 

 

“That which we persist in doing becomes easier for us to do; not that the nature of the thing itself is changed, but that our power to do is increased”

 Ralph Waldo Emerson

 

I repeated the quote because I want it to stick in your brain. 

If you want something to be easy you have to work for it. 

work for what you want.

no excuses.  

 

also

 

THE WINNER FOR THE UNDERCOVER MAMA IS

  

Entry #382Natalie J.

 

E-mail me girly

and ill send them your info

THANKS  

 

 

 

Go ahead and link up anything 

fitness and health related.

Follow your Hosts

Him&Her

and Amanda from

For love of a cupcake 

and GET FIT

 

 

 

 

MMM-link up

This week has been awesome for me. I have worked out EVERY DAY!

walking
jogging
yoga video
cardio
weight lifting

This week has been full of all of it! It feels so good.

I also have been eating healthy. Lots and lots of fruits and vegetables.
Also 12 glasses of water a day!

I need a lot because I'm nursing too. Every time I feed Ember I feel like I am dehydrated so I drink more and more water.

Have a strong day.

Start with one thing.

For me its waking up and getting a quick stretch in before I do anything else.
One healthy decision will lead to another.

Then I exercise.
Then I eat a healthy breakfast.
From there its one healthy choice after another.

Have you noticed if you make a mistake its easier to give up on that day and say you will start again tomorrow. At least I have done that before. Ill slip up and have some food that is not good for me. Then I don't have the motivation to exercise or eat healthy the rest of the day.

So for me, I need to have a strong day.
but if I don't.
If I do mess up, I need to remember

Have a good strong day
you deserve it.


Here is my new weekend work out routine.

  source

The weekends are usually when I mess up a little. 

I found this on routine on pinterest. 

pinned it to my Motivation Pin Board

Printed it off and stuck it on my wall....

What type of work out plan are you doing?

Go ahead and link up anything 

fitness and health related.

Follow your Hosts

Him&Her

and Amanda from

For love of a cupcake 

and GET FIT

mmm..LINK UP and a winner

Last week I shared with you how I was losing motivation and needed some words of encouragement.
Last weeks MMM.
Thank you so much for all your comments and e-mails. They truly helped so much. 


o and the WINNER of the free digital card is Alyssa
 from Brett, Alyssa and  Everton.
Congrats girl. 

I saw this quote on pinterest. You can check out my health pin board. As soon as I saw it I thought it was written just for me.

So often I say "I wish"

How many of us are guilty of this? 

I hope I'm not the only one.

does this sound familiar?

"I wish I could lose the extra 5 lbs"

"I wish I could do it while still eating ice cream"

"I wish I had her metabolism"

"I wish I was as skinny as I was in high school"

"I wish I could still bench 125" 

"I wish I could walk up the stairs with out getting winded"

these are some of my I wishes.

I'm going to start some I wills 

 I will love myself.

I will love others.

I will be happy.

These I wills I believe can change a persons life.

I believe that being happy is the first step to being healthy. 

These things may not directly make us fit...

but by being happy we can have more desire to be healthy. 

When I'm happy I have more desire to wake up in the morning and go jogging.

I come home in a happy mood so I eat a healthy breakfast.

That makes me feel healthy and happy...

So I play more with my kids.

That makes me remember how blessed I am.

and it makes me happy.

and happy people don't shoot their husbands, they just don't

(I couldn't help myself)

anyways.....

I have lots of I wills.

I will  jog in the mornings

I will eat healthy

I will drink more water

 I will exercise at home

All great goals. 

but right now, I'm going to focus my first I will on 

being happy.

No matter how thin or fit you get

 if your not happy with yourself now and love yourself now.

You wont be any happier then.

be happy

and love yourself now.

* Link up any fitness or health related posts. 

Link up 

but be sure to follow along here

and with my co-host Amanda

from For Love of a Cupcake

and grab a MMM button if you like

<a href="http://jaysonandashley.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" src="http://i523.photobucket.com/albums/w351/laurenjh04/mmmbutton.png" /></a><br/>

MMM..a link up...I need help

It's Sunday night and I'm thinking about what to write....

What can I say to motivate you today when I'm lacking in motivation myself.

I have been putting this post off all week.

I keep asking Jayson..."What should my topic be on"

 Everything we discuss I don't feel passionate about. 

I feel like anything I write would be a lie. 

Usually my posts are on what I accomplished through out the week.

What I'm feeling good about. 

This week I feel like I ate decent. 

I drank a fare amount of water.

I went on a few walks with the kids...

But I just feel like I could have done better in every area.

I have a desire to be motivated.

I want to get out and get healthy.

I even got the OK from my doctor to start exercising again since Ember has been born. 

I have been looking forward to this for a long time. 

A part of me is SOOO happy.

I love to exercise. I love to run. lift weights. do korny work out videos. 

I love it all.

So why am I struggling to actually do it???

Why can you want to do something so bad and not do it.

I felt bad at the beginning of this post...

I felt like I am the HOST, I should always be positive and motivate you...

But then I just wouldn't be human.

I couldn't force myself to write a lie. 

So there it is. I'm struggling at the moment. 

I need your encouraging words this week...

Here is a small quote I wrote on the 

about mmm page

It's so much easier to be healthy and work out when you have friends and motivators along side you. 

Whatever your goals may be....we can be here to help each other.

So there it is...

anyone go through this at times??

Did you have a hard time getting back into working out after having a baby?

Please share so I know I'm not the only one.

* Link up any fitness or health related posts. 

Link up 

but be sure to follow along here

and with my co-host Amanda

from For Love of a Cupcake

and grab a MMM button if you like

<a href="http://jaysonandashley.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" src="http://i523.photobucket.com/albums/w351/laurenjh04/mmmbutton.png" /></a><br/> <br> Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Motivate Me Monday. Link Up

Do you ever make a goal to hit a certain weight by a certain day, particularly an event?

I catch myself doing this a lot. I say "Ashley you need to lose 5lbs by -this wedding, homecoming, reunion-".

Whatever the case may be.

This is rough.

I know the idea behind it is good. (a goal). Its always nice to set and achieve goals

small or large.

The feeling of accomplishment is indescribable. Like walking around all day with a fatty smile on your face because you know you did what you sat out to do and feeling great about it.

However what happens when we don't reach our goals? 

Are you the type of person who can pick themselves up and say "OK lets try again" and have even greater motivation to prove to yourself you can. The type of person who doesn't let anything get them down?
Or are you the type that sits in self loath for a week before getting the determination to try again. The person who loses all motivation the moment they realize giving it their all just wasn't quite good enough?

Sadly enough I feel like I am in the second category. I had set a goal to lose a certain amount of weight before I go into my 6week check up for my postpartum. Well Ember is four weeks old today -will post her 1month birthday post today as well- and I am nowhere near my goal. I know I still have 2 weeks to try. But realistically I don't think I will reach my goal and achieve it in a healthy manner. 

I promised myself I would not be this girl.

The girl who feels sorry for herself. 

The girl whose husband tells her she is beautiful everyday and doesn't believe it. 

I know Jayson thinks I'm beautiful. He shows me everyday how much he loves and is attracted to me. but when spirits are down and you don't have a lot of self confidence, anything anyone else says about you thats positive sounds more like a lie.  

This week I'm going to be the first girl. 
I have to be the first girl.
I need to be. 

If not for me, then for Jayson.

The girl who doesn't let anything get her down. 

I'm going to continue to try my hardest and it will be good enough. 

I will listen to my sweet hubby every time he tells me how beautiful I am or how great I look in my jeans.

I may not have or will not hit my particular goal. 

but I'm not going to stop trying for it. 

Not going to lose my motivation. 

It will happen. 

I am strong enough to make it. 

 

* Link up any fitness or health related posts.  

Link up 

but be sure to follow along here

and with my co-host Amanda

from For Love of a Cupcake

and grab a MMM button if you like

Motivate Me Monday -a link up-

My baby girl is here.... Healthy as can be. 

-along with my wedding day and Ty's birth, this picture captures one

of the happiest moments of my lie- 

I'm overwhelmed with joy, now ready to get back in shape.

So obviously for me MMM took a break during my pregnancy. I hope yall still followed along with my co-host Amanda from For Love of a cupcake. 

 For my new readers who may not know what MMM is go HERE.

 and to catch up on the old MMM's go HERE

  
I had a rough start in the pregnancy. A few bleeding scares while working out put a stop to all things fitness. I still walked and ate healthy, but real physical work outs were not even near the top of my list of things to worry about. Instead I was focusing on my sweet baby girl and just staying healthy for her. Plus my doctor told me to take it easy. 

However it has been three weeks now since my little miss made her way into the world, and I am ready to start (slowly) into getting fit again.

It's recommended (at least by my doctor) to wait six weeks before working out. So lets take it slow. 

Lets talk numbers shall we....at my 39week check up I weighed in at 168. I didn't even step on a scale tell two weeks after and weighed 137. I started my pregnancy at 119. So if I wish to get back to my pre-preggers weight I have about 18lbs to shed.

Before I found out I was pregnant I was in what I consider the best shape of my life. I was going to the gym 5 times a week...and working out at home as well. Eating a protein shake for breakfast, and small meals through the day. 
-yes, I think I had crossed into being obsessed with my body image.  
..I felt great. toned. energetic. happy.
but like I said I was obsessed. Food almost scared me. 

-I don't expect to get to my pre-weight any time soon. I want to do this a little more realistically. Especially with the fact that I have two children now and a husband to take care of. Plus I'm breast feeding and plan to for at least 9months.

SO what is my plan.

For this week. I plan to eat healthy. No more "I'm eating for two" excuse 
--that really is a false statement anyway--

focus on
*healthy breakfast 
*snack
*healthy lunch (including fruit and veggies)
*snack
*small dinner (including two veggies)

as for exercising

Starting off super slow tell my six week check up "OK" from the doctor, and tell hopefully I can stop bleeding. 

*walking
--GET A DOUBLE STROLLER--
on a side note, my friend is selling me hers, great condition for only 40bucks!!! SAWEEET...I can't wait to pick it up and get some walks in with the kiddos before the winter weather hits.


I am so excited to be back on MMM. I truly love leaning on each other for Motivation and support. Every girl is different and her body will be as well..here there is no judging. no comparing. and no jealousy..just friends looking to be healthy and helping each other get there one step at a time. 



--This week I would love for you to share ANYTHING health related-- If you need an idea maybe share your short and long term goals. 

Link up 

but be sure to follow along here 

and with my co-host Amanda

from For Love of a Cupcake

and grab a MMM button if you like 

ALSO linking up HERE