Monica's Christmas Traditions

At first I thought this topic may be a little off-base for the purpose and goal of  thewellwithall. Then I realized that joyful traditions are healthy and that contributes perfectly to the season and what I want to share with you.

My family has 2 real traditions..that's it. One was instigated by my mom and one by my dad. I'm thankful for both and I anticipate the delivery of each, when the time is right.

Tradition #1: 10-year b-day cards

Every year, around our birthday, my dad writes each of his kids a letter...to be delivered 10 years later! It's amazing. Now that I am 30+, I remember 10 years ago, but when we were younger it was cool to read about what we were doing & thinking and how we were developing. It's amazing how the dreams of a 5-year old can be similar to a 15-year old and a 15-year old dreams & personality is similar to a 25-year old. So that's #1-- if you have kids, I encourage you to start this tradition--your kids will totally appreciate it!

Tradition #2 : Tis the Season!

My mother loves Christmas, and she passed it on to me. Growing up, we could not pass by a Christmas store without stopping. She loves it. My mother has a collection of angels that she puts out every year; as an adult it's been fun to add to this collection. She also loves nativities.

For us kids, my dad, and Grama, she gets us an ornament every year that relates to something we've either accomplished that year or something that is a goal. It is always positive. Every year I love opening up my Christmas box and decorating my tree with the positive memories of my past and the even more exciting visions of my future!

One of my favorite ornaments is a light green glass ball, with etched white Christmas trees on it. It represents one of my goals, to own a Christmas tree farm, where I can cultivate Christmas trees and then give them away, along with a Christmas dinner for families who can't afford to buy a real tree. I want to build a mini-barn on the property, where others can come to cut down their own Christmas tree and enjoy hot chocolate and healthy snacks ;-) while doing so.

Another is simply a gold ice skate. I have a dream to train for 6-months like an Olympic figure skater. I have no talent regarding coordination and I will first have to learn how to skate semi-properly. But...this is a dream I've had for a long time, to push myself to the limit in that capacity. Why? I have no idea--it's just there! My mom bought me a figure skate ornament as a reminder of that dream.

I share this to tell you: 

1) Please keep your dreams in front of you, and encourage those around you to pursue their dreams (and tell them they can do it!)

I believe that anyone who puts their mind to a goal or dream can accomplish it. I don't care where you came from or what you have or have not accomplished. You can.

2) My life is not a fairy tale. I'm sharing with you one aspect of my life. Please don't read and think that this is fake. It's not! It's also ok for you to do something like this for your kids, your siblings, your friends, or even your parents. If you don't have supportive people around you, keep it to yourself (especially the 10-year card thing--you can keep it to yourself til then!)

One day, if you are still following, you can read my story and know that it's not all snowflakes and ornaments! But I choose to focus on the future (and trust me, this is a daily, sometimes minute by minute decision). I choose to focus on positive memories. And joy. My family has experienced tragedy (a couple events at Christmas). But I won't let this get in the way of my joy. God wants us to experience joy. He doesn't want our lives to suck. He wants us to live in abundance and to teach others how to do the same.

Merry Christmas!
If you'd like, I'd love to hear your traditions too.

In health & prosperity,
Monica
thewellwithall

New Years Goals: Start Now!

Warning: This post contains tough love & some bold flavors

Goal setting is one of my favorite topics and I get a little passionate about it. I've made so many mistakes in striving for goals, but also had several successes. I learn from it all and love to inspire others to move toward their personal goals. Here's your pre-January "inspiration" on goal setting.

In my world, the term "New Years Resolution" is a four-letter word. It's become a joke in our society, and almost an expectation that if you set a resolution, you are going to fail. This is crazy. Why as Americans do we start the year, setting ourselves up to fail on NY resolutions? Truly, I don't know the answer to that, but I do know the solution.

It's all about the set-up, the action/play, and the follow through. In other words, It's planning, preparing yourself for success, going after your goal with the right action, and keeping up with it.

The Set-up: Ask yourself these questions:

1. What do you want?
Be specific.  If you truly don't know, sit down in a quiet room with a piece of paper (yes, real paper!), and write down everything you can think of that you want, even if you start small. Write down material things, intangible things, goals, dreams, let yourself go with it. Then look at the list and picture 1-3 things that you want too accomplish or get in 2014, and put aside the rest of the list (just for now)

2. Why do you want what you want?
This is the most important step, because it determines whether or not you will get what you want. If you don't know why you want something, and you don't keep that in front of you, you will not hit your goals, because you will not stay consistent. It's so key.

If you don't have a true why toward a goal that you have set, then seek out finding a why or change your goal to something that does have a why behind it. This is vital.

3. Put your goals in front of you. 

On a white board, on index cards, as your phone/tablet background, on your bathroom mirror, at your desk, on your fridge. Do any and all of these. Trust me, do not skip this step. Put up both the what and the why. Use words & pictures. Both!

Do not put your goals in a drawer and open it next year. This is the silliest thing you can do (and we've all done it!), because you won't remember in a week what your goals were and then you will definitely not accomplish them at the end of next year ;-)

Then, if you want extra credit, read Imagine Big by Terri Savelle Foy. This is the best book I have ever read on dreaming big, accomplishing goals, and doing it with expectation and joy. This book changed my personal training business positively in 2013 and I plan to apply it even more boldly in 2014.

The Action: 

With each of your goals, what do you need to do daily, weekly, monthly to move toward accomplishing your goal. If you don't know or you've never accomplished the goal, you are aiming for, don't do this part alone. Find someone who has hit that goal and ask them to help you figure out what to do. Most of the time, we know what we need to do to move forward with our lives, or what habits we need to change. Having a mentor (who is further along than you in a particular area), to keep you accountable and to check up with on your actions & progress is vital. Be sure to share your goals with someone who has what you want, not someone is struggling with what you are struggling with, unless they are on a positive path to change it too and have already had success moving forward. About 30 days ago, I met with one of my mentors to talk about a financial goal. I have an appointment on Jan. 30 to talk with him again and report my progress...I do not want to have not made progress, so it motivates me, as I make decisions daily.

Create a system for yourself to remind you of your daily/weekly/monthly actions. I have a big white board that lists mine, so I see it all the time when I am home. Everyone has a different way of keeping organized, figure out what works for you.

The Follow Through:

Consistency is key, in anything. Don't expect to take one right action and all of a sudden arrive at your goal. That's silly. You may or may not see immediate results when you start pushing toward a goal. If your goal is to lose 50 pounds in 2014, you have 12 months to hit this goal or 365 days. Don't quit after day 3, when you don't see results. Keep those goals in front of you-- If you start to breeze by and not read your goals, change the picture, not the goals. Don't put them away. If I start to do that, I erase my dry erase board and re-write the goals in different colors or larger print, or I find new picture to add, whatever it takes.

Expect to make mistakes. Gosh, I dislike this one, but it's true. You are not going to be perfect all year, so don't focus on that. Focus on what you do right, not what you didn't do. I bet you do more good toward your goals (if you follow the above initiatives),  rather than bad. We naturally tend to remember the bad, so  you must focus on changing that thought process and work on remembering the good. Who cares what you did yesterday. You have today, you have right now, you have this moment to do something positive for your future. Go for it!

Focus on your strengths and you'll get stronger, focus on your weaknesses and you'll stay weak.

Evaluate yourself throughout the year--not with a critical, negative eye, but with a progression eye. If you get discouraged, look back and see what you've done to positively change yourself and move forward with your goals. You'll get excited about how far you've come and motivated to do more moving forward.

Start now. Like right now. It doesn't have to be Jan 1 to start working toward a goal. Do it now and you'll be thankful you did! I love the quote, "do something today that your future self will thank you for." Not sure who said this, but I see it on Pinterest & FB posts all the time :)

Figure out what you want & why, write it down, figure out what you need to do to get there, and get after it consistently.

Extra Credit: if you really want to change what you are doing and where you are, you have to change the way you think. You change the way you think by changing who you hang out with, what you read, and what you listen too. This trifecta will yield you amazing results, if you keep up with it. If you don't know what to read or listen too, ask me and I'll help you get started!

In health & prosperity,

Monica
thewellwithall

Positive Girlfriends

This post is mostly for girls--but it's a good read for guys too, to understand and gain perspective on the opposite sex.

This weekend, I've been inspired by four of my girlfriends, all for different reasons and all because of different opportunities. And now I am inspired to share with you why girlfriends, for us chicas, are so important.

Five years ago, I would never have written this. Maybe not even three years ago, and most definitely not ten years ago.

Girls--we need girlfriends.

We need ladies who will uplift us, understand us, spread joy with us, experience pain with us, and who are real with us.

As ladies, we are emotional creatures. I think by nature we crave and desire closeness with other women, but we deny it, because we've had bad experiences (at least this is true for me).

I do want to talk about why us girls need other girls in our lives who are positive, uplifting influences. We need friends who will listen to us when we meet the guy of our dreams, or when he breaks our hearts, or when we succeed, when we fail, when we put our foot in our mouths, or when we get a promotion, a raise, lose those last 5 pounds, whatever!

Whatever time frame ago, I would have told you that:
"I get along better with guys"
"Men are less dramatic"
"Guys say what they mean and there's no backstabbing"
Etc, etc, ladies do you relate? Have you ever questioned why you need to have girlfriends?

I'm was once with you. But...we do. We need good girls in our lives. Not the backstabbing ones (and yes, they are out there), not the ones who create drama every single day (and there are those). But we need girls in our lives that will accept us, ask us good questions, listen to our answers, correct us when needed, and praise us even more when we do something right.

 Ladies, we are meant to live abundant lives. We are meant to have significance. We are meant to do great things.

Yes, you.

Sometimes we need mentorship/coaching/a helpful eye to help us move forward. Sometimes we need to be the one who lends those gifts to another. We need each other.

I just got off the phone with my best friend from college. I live in MD, she lives in PA. We see each other about once a year (and it takes effort). We have what we jokingly call a voicemail relationship. We leave each other voicemails at least every other week and it's rare that we actually catch each other on the phone. Today we did! She said she was going to call at random times, until we got on the phone. It worked! We talked for 18-minutes, catching up on life. Nothing dramatic, nothing outlandish, just life. I was uplifted just by talking with my friend who knows more about me than most, and still loves me (and vice versa).

Yesterday, I met two wonderful friends for lunch. We sat, talked, and ate for over two-and-a-half hours....it was wonderful. We talked about every part of life you could think of: dreams, goals, family, kids, the future, the present. They both asked me questions, and didn't judge the answers (and vice versa). We talked, and we accepted each other. I was struck at the end of our time together how precious this is. We all three comes from different backgrounds and have different life experiences, but we loved on each other and want the best for each other.  All of us need friends like this.

On Friday and Saturday, I got to spend time with my mentor and one of my best friends. On Friday night, we were waiting on some other people to show up at the house for a movie and so we decided to dye our hair (put 2 spontaneous chicks together and that's what happens!)

We had fun just living free and both dying our hair "raspberry creme." Our results turned out totally different (she's blond and I'm dark brunette). Let's just say one of us is burgundy and the other is bright bright red :-) We had so much fun just playing and watching each others hair get redder and redder as the night went on (and into the next day!) We laughed a lot.

The next day we had the privledge to get behind some closed doors to hear teaching from a life coach and entrepreneurial powerhouse, who has positively impacted us both, related to the business & life we both pursue (we are in the business of making people's lives better through opportunity).

My girlfriend has been married over 20 years and has 4 amazing kids. I'm single with no kids. Yet, we are kindred spirits. We have different circumstances, but our hearts and passions for people and the impact we can make are similar.

We both were impacted and experienced a level of peace that was specific to our circumstances and goals. My brothers were there too, and they were peacefully & positively impacted.

But, I was able to have an understanding with my coach and closest friend, because we understand each others heartbeat. Because we were there together, experiencing the same thing (with a different perspective) our relationship grows. Everytime. Sometimes you don't have to even speak about it. You can look at your closest friends and see their heart. It's beautiful; and women, trust me, we all need to experience it.

Friday we played and had fun. Saturday we seeked out information; found it and,  we experienced it together. Ladies, there's no greater journey than to lock arms with other women who believe in what you do, who seek the peace, understanding and knowledge that you do, and who want to move forward with you, through life--whether in joy or in pain.

Bottom line--girls--seek out other women who have similar goals to you--or who love you no matter how many successes you have or mistakes you make.  Find the real ones. Find other women who have a passion for making others lives better.

Girls, truly, we need each other.

In health & prosperity,
Monica

When You're Super Over Hungry!

Have you ever overbooked yourself, not packed any or enough food, lacking time to stop in a grocery store and pick up a healthy snack or lunch?  You find yourself running all over town from appointment to appointment, using your mental & physical energy, and while you feel exhilirated with your work, you just aren't fueling yourself enough.  I know this isn't just me! 

How to not do this!

So I could tell you, pack more snacks, cook in advance, buy foods that travel easily, etc etc. And that would be good, useful information. But what happens on days, where that just doesn't happen? I've gotten pretty good about packing food for my full day, but there are some days that I either would rather sleep an extra 20-min or just downright don't feel like packing food.

Here is a solution for those days! And a solution for when you get yourself into over hungry mode.

Here is a game plan for you to follow for when you are super over hungry and how to not overeat and/or regret your decisions! This is specifically directed toward the end of day timeframe!

1. Go straight home. Don't go to the grocery store. Don't go get take out. Don't order pizza from your phone. Go home ;-)

2. Drink a big glass of water or unsweetened green tea. For a brief moment, you will trick your body to think it's gotten something into it. This will help you execute step #4!

3. Preheat the oven to 400. This is a Monica optional step, but involves preparedness. That way, while you are doing step #3, your oven is prepped in case you need it!  My favorite quick meal is to bake up some salmon and eat over a big bed of spinach & garlic.

3. Stop---think---Plan. When you are super hungry, every kind of food looks good, and if you don't take time to evaluate, you can end up eating way more than you want too and make really bad choices. Your goals that you have been working so hard for all week can suddenly be thrown out the window as you give in to whatever the largest portion of food you can find.

Instead, go for a 2 part meal: 

1. Plant Strong "Appetizer": grab carrots, peppers, cherry tomatoes, celery, an apple, grapefruit, or peach. Any fruit and veggie will do. Eat it, this will hold you over. Then proceed to step #2.

2. Entree: think lean & green. Pick a protein and a veggie that is either already prepared, or that you know you can prep pretty quickly. Stick to the protein and veggie.

While this is cooking, drink another glass of water and find a task to do around the house (do dishes, put in laundry, vacuum the floors...something that keeps your hands occupied.

4. Eat and feel awesome! Following these steps should help you get full, and avoid overeating/ruining your day/goals.

How do I know this? 

I experience this at least weekly. An active day without enough food packed or just a long stretch or meeting where I forgot about packing a snack. These steps will help you conquer the urge to hit up your favorite takeout place and order too much food (with the rationale that you'll save some for lunch for the next 2 days--don't listen to yourself!)

If you think I'm nuts after reading this--I'm envious of you, because you haven't experienced the above... bravo! (and tell me your secret!)

For the rest of us, print this out and keep it with you for when you have that overwhelming, "oh my goodness--it's been 10 hours since I ate feeling!"

How to Use a Positive Mental Attitude to Overcome Medical Challenges (Guest Blogger!)

Anyone who saw the Robin Williams movie, "Patch Adams" knows that laughter really is a form of holistic medicine. In fact, this concept has been taken so far that in Israel there are now formal college programs for those who would work as "Medical Clowns". This tells us that a positive mental attitude is a strong tool towards healing. If you are facing any sort of medical (or emotional) challenges, it is a good idea to identify any tools or resources available to help you. For example, if you are going to find yourself confined to a hospital bed for any length of time, you may want to turn to technology to brighten a gloomy mood. There are now all kinds of apps that can be put to use and they can even allow you to interact with others who may be facing similar health issues or times of emotional turmoil.

The Power of Positivity

Before you let anyone "poo-poo" the idea that being positive is useful during medical problems, consider a study done by the Harvard School of Public Health beginning in 2001. In the study it was discovered that the patients with the most optimistic views about life were also those who decreased their risks of heart disease. Other studies also concluded that a positive attitude reduced the chances for heart disease in postmenopausal women as well. The evidence around the positive mental attitude just keeps piling up, and proves that the "Pollyannas" among us really do live longer lives and tend to develop much healthier relationships. In fact, it is viewed as enabling the individual to "be there" for people in their lives in a way that the true pessimists cannot.

Positive Mental Attitude Defined

Because so many people argue that a positive person has to be a bit delusional, let's see just what the experts consider a positive mental attitude.

• Glass half full - Yes, these are the folks who would answer that timeless question of "is the glass half empty or half full" with the positive perspective.  They do not note the absence but instead put an emphasis on the presence. In other words, someone with a positive mental attitude is one who can appreciate what they have and set aside worries and thoughts about what they do not have or cannot have.

• Faith - This is not the religious sort of faith (though there are many who truly believe that this too helps to overcome medical and emotional challenges), but is instead the faith in oneself to conquer challenges, no matter what might come along.

• Opportunists - That's right; the person with the truly positive mental attitude is also the person who sees each day as an opportunity rather than a challenge.

For example, someone who has suffered a stroke and is told that they must relearn balance can either view this as an excuse to stay "safely" seated in order to avoid any falls, or they can look at is as an opportunity to retake their lives.

All of the studies have proven, time and again, that a positive perspective is the one that can help a person with a medical challenge to recover faster and more completely. Interestingly enough, the studies also reveal that the optimist handles the inevitable too. In all of the studies done, the "end of life" issues were viewed with acceptance and comfort by those who had displayed positive attitudes all along. This means that no matter what life presents, the person with the positive mental attitude is going to be able to face it calmly and with a good outlook.

Valerie Johnston is a health and fitness writer located in East Texas. With ambitions of one day running a marathon, writing for Healthline.com ensures she keeps up-to-date on all of the latest health and fitness news.

13 Ways to Increase Your Protein Intake in a Jiff

Let's face it. We're all busy. And we're all bombarded with the temptation of the drive thru, of ordering take out, or picking up a frozen pizza. I'm with you. The key is preparedness. For me, I notice that my natural tendency is to not eat enough protein when I am cooking for myself. To counter this, I've started buying food and nutrition products that make sure I stay on top of my protein game.

Here are 13 ways to increase your protein in 5-minutes or less (not counting going to the grocery store!): 

The Veggie Way
1. Beans. On average 1/2 cup of beans has 6g of protein and 120 calories. Add beans to a salad with fresh veggies & other protein or to a quinoa (high protein) or rice dish to boost up the protein. If you are watching calories, trade out a higher calorie sauce or dressing for the beans. A fresh salad spritzed with lemon juice & olive oil is way more refreshing than a the same salad doused in bottled salad dressing.

2. Quinoa. Gluten free, and technically a seed instead of a grain, quinoa is a great option to use as a base for veggies, beans or meat. It has 12g of protein in 1/2 cup dried and 320 calories.

Fiber note: 1/4 cup of beans (on average) and 1/2 cup quinoa have 6g fiber each. Fiber helps you digest your food and in combination with protein keeps you full longer. 

3. Feta Cheese. Two ounces of feta cheese has 8g protein and adds a ton of flavor to any dish. In my opinion, feta cheese eliminates the need for beaucoup sauces and dressings on any dish you make.

My go-2: 1/4 cup quinoa, 1/4 cup chick peas, 2oz feta cheese, 1/2 cup chopped tomatoes, and 2 cups sauteed spinach with garlic powder, pepper, 1tsp olive oil and 1T lemon juice. It has 18g protein and around 400 calories, which makes it perfect for lunch. Make a big batch at the beginning of the week and portion it out into food storage containers.

4. Eggs. A large whole egg has 6g protein and 72 calories (pretty good way to get protein in with low calories). A large egg white has around 16 calories and just over 3.5g protein.

Check out my Egg Quiche in Muffin Tins . Each egg muffin has 10g protein and 148 calories. 

5. Tofu. My favorite preparation is extra firm tofu sauteed. My mom makes the absolute best sauteed tofu, I've yet to duplicate it. You can saute it your favorite marinade, or simply with salt, pepper, olive oil and other spices. Be sure to mix it around, because tofu is like a sponge and you don't want all the olive oil going into 1 piece of tofu. One cup of tofu has 21g of protein!

6. Nuts. Here's the breakdown for various nuts in 2T servings. Nuts don't bring a huge amount of protein to the table, but adding them in with other protein tricks, adds up.

Almonds= 2.5g protein
Cashews = 2.6g protein
Pistachios = 3.3g protein
Walnuts = 3.8g protein
Peanuts = 4.7g protein

7. Greek Yogurt. Yum! Eat it by itself or use it as the base for a sauce or dressing. I'm biased, but I think Chobani makes the best product. A small Chobani non-fat Greek yogurt has around 18g of protein. Savor that.

Check out my personal favorite Greek yogurt recipes: No Cook "Creamed" Kale at 17g protein and Spaghetti Squash & Veggies w/ Homemade Greek Yogurt Ranch at 15g protein per serving.


Animal Protein

1. Trader Joe's Grilled Chicken Strips. So good. You get 4 servings of chicken breast for $5.50 and you get 26g protein per serving. The chicken tastes fresh, it's cooked perfectly and the best part is, you don't have to do anything to prep it!

2. Canned Tuna in Water. A classic go-to. You can travel with it, or keep it on hand to throw on top of a salad. A 5oz can has 10g protein and 45 calories.

3. Grass Fed Ground Beef. Why grass fed? Many reasons, but for one, grass fed beef has about 50% more Omega-3 fatty acids than corn fed beef. The American diet is desperate for more omega-3's, as it has a benefit for heart health, brain health, even metabolism. 

4. Salmon. Easy, quick, satisfying. My favorite quick meal is 4-5oz of salmon along with a cup of sauteed broccoli. Saute or bake your salmon with lemon or vinegar, a touch of cooking spray, salt and pepper. Four ounces of salmon has 25g protein.

5. Pre-cooked Bacon. Oscar Mayer Fully Cooked Bacon, Original has 7g protein for 3 slices and only 80 calories. 'Nuff said.

Recipe Idea: Try baking 4 oz of salmon with 3 pre-cooked bacon strips at 375 degrees for 25-30 minutes. Yum. 32g protein.

6. Shrimp. Buy frozen or fresh and throw it in with any dish you've got on deck. Shrimp adds elegance and allure to any dish (even though it's super easy). It also adds 20g protein for 4 large shrimp.

Do You Focus on Fit or Fat?

What dominates your mind determines your actions and your results. If you believe you will succeed, that you have a much higher percentage likeliness to actually get there.

If I have ever trained you, you probably know that I have 2 rules (I keep trying to come up with more--but I am anti-rule myself, so it's hard!). Here's #1:

1. Never ever talk negative about yourself while you are doing something good for your body. 

If you're working out with me, I don't allow statements like, "ugh, I'm out of shape" or "I'm so weak" when you are working out.

The reason I don't allow it, it because in that moment you are choosing to take care of your health and moving forward in pursuing something that can bring those desired results, if you stay consistent. Instead, change it over to "I can be stronger," "I am strong," "I did those pushups like a champ"

Sounds cheesy, but it's real. What you say is what you get (and what you expect).

Here's our topic today..FOCUS.

I am tired of hearing other people (and myself) say or think "I need to lose 5-10 pounds." Yes, there are medical/health circumstances, where specific weight loss is really important and can literally have effects on longevity, quality of life, reduced disease risk, happieness, etc, etc. But, right now I'm talking to you who live a generally healthy lifestyle.

Do you really care about those 5-10 pounds, or would you rather be healthy and fit, and maybe just lose inches, lower your blood pressure, reduce your cholesterol, or just plain feel better. Who ever told us that this wasn't enough?

I remember, when I first started really working out, I gained about 10 pound in 6 months and dropped 2-3 pants sizes. Basically I reduced my body fat and increased my lean muscle mass which helped me get more fit, healthier, and look better--yet I was "heavier."

Today (if you fit into the category of "I want to lose 5-10 pounds") I ask you to focus on what you can do to be more fit. Not what you can do to lose weight or fit into whatever sized jeans. What can you do consistently to feel awesome, get stronger, be more lean, be happier (more joyful), and be excited for your next workout, instead of dreading it.

In health and prosperity,

Monica