Build Stronger Knees

It may surprise you, but many athletes (especially runners) and dancers have bad knees. No, I'm not kidding. The reason for this is because the cartilage that cushions your joints wears down, which in the long run can result in pain, inflammation, and stiffness in the knee.

Once this cartilage is worn away it cannot grow back, and in turn you will need surgery for a knee replacement. 

Don't panic though, there are stretches and exercises that can help strengthen your knees.

http://www.runnersworld.com/health/build-better-knee#.UKgr_Fir4yk.pinterest

Stretches: IT Band

Lean into each stretch for 15 to 20 seconds, then switch sides.

Wall Banger: Stand with your right side about six to 12 inches from a wall. Squat and lean your upper body to the left until your right hip touches the wall. "It stretches the IT band and strengthens the glutes," says Nancy Cummings, Ed.D., assistant professor at Florida Southern College.

Side Stretch: Stand with your left foot crossed in front of your right, and lean your upper body to the left with your hands overhead. Lean as far as you can without bending your knees.

Backward T Stretch: Stand, feet together, facing a wall about six to 12 inches away. Hold your arms to your sides like you're forming a T. Without bending your knees, reach down and back as far as you can with your right hand.

Strength Moves: Hips, Glutes, and Quadriceps

Do independent of running so your muscles aren't fatigued during this program.

Leg Lift: Strong hip abductors help prevent strain of the IT band. "There's less torque on the band because you're decreasing the amount of hip abduction," says sports-medicine specialist Sharon Flynn, M.D. Lie on your side with your elbow on the floor. Lift your upper leg up about a foot and return to the starting position. Do 20 to 30 on each side.

Four-Way Kick: Attach your ankle to a cable machine (or use a resistance band). Face the machine. Kick your leg backward 20 times. Rotate 90 degrees and kick to the side. Repeat in all four directions (when you're facing away from the machine, kick forward). Start with two sets of 20 in each direction on each leg, and work up to three sets of 50 in each direction.

Lateral Step Up with Kick: Stand with your left side next to a step that's eight to 12 inches high. Step up with your left foot, driving the right foot in the air so it's even with your waist. Step back down and repeat. It strengthens the lateral muscle of the quad to help protect the knee, Cummings says. Do two sets of eight to 12 repetitions on each side.

Hip Lift: Balance on your right foot (use a wall for balance). With your left knee bent, drop the left hip and lift it up. "Let the hip drop, and try not to bend the left leg," says Stephen Pribut, D.P.M., a sports podiatrist in Washington, D.C. "You'll feel it in the glutes." Do 15 to 20 times on each side.

Step Down: Stand on a step on your right foot. Lower your left leg toward the floor, making sure the knee of your right leg is centered over your foot. "With the step down, you're putting more focus on the glutes," says Matt Schneider, athletic trainer and physician assistant at the Boulder (Colorado) Center for Sports Medicine. Do two sets of 10 on each.

**To read the full article, visit the following link on Runners World:

http://www.runnersworld.com/health/build-better-knee#.UKgr_Fir4yk.pinterest

Take Care,

Leanne.

Organize Your Bathroom Beautifully

One of the key ways to keep your home looking beautiful, and at its best is to keep it organized and clean. Nothing can make a beautiful home look worse than a messy countertop or a floor cluttered with clothes or miscellaneous items. 

Bathrooms are a prime example of this; a once beautiful and clean bathroom can appear a mess once the coutertop is strewn with makeup and other beauty products.

http://pacificartistry.wordpress.com/tag/makeup-organization/

Keep your bathroom organized and looking its finest with unconventional methods of organization (at least for the bathroom). Use items such as the mail organizer pictured above to sort and store items such as makeup, hair products and accessories, and small toiletries. 

You can find so many beautiful organizers in stores like Home Sense, Winners, and Marshalls that are more decorative than the usual metal or plastic office organizers. The possibilities are endless for organization. You just need to think outside of the box.

Take Care,

Leanne.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Balls

It's been a long week of working out and eating right, you're feeling great and then you see it. The box of chocolate bars at the reception desk (or by the water cooler) that someone's kid is selling for a class trip fundraiser, and just like that you want that chocolate (or something else that's not so great for you).

You don't want to ruin your progress that you've made, but you really want something sweet. What to do?!

Make these: No- Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Balls.

http://www.muscleandfitnesshers.com/recipes/no-bake-chocolate-peanut-butter-protein-balls

These are like a healthy version of a Reese's peanut butter egg. With only 52 calories per protein ball, you can indulge and rid yourself of that chocolate craving, and not feel guilty afterwards because you will not have ruined all of your hard work.

Recipe:

Ingredients:

2 cups natural peanut butter, crunchy

1/2 cup agave nectar

2 scoops vanilla protein powder

Sea salt, to taste

Water, as needed.

2 cups sugar free dark chocolate

1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Mix peanut butter, agave nectar, protein powder, sea salt and water in a large bowl.

2. Roll mixture into balls (approx.1 tablespoon per ball) and place in a dish, then refrigerate for 30-45 minutes.

3. In a small pot, melt the chocolate over medium-low heat, stirring often, until smooth. Stir in 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.

4. Line a baking sheet with wax paper. Remove balls from refrigerator.

5. Dip into melted chocolate and arrange on baking sheet.

6. Let set for 30-45 minutes, then place in the refrigerator for another 30-45 minutes before serving.

*Makes approximately 60 protein balls*

Go ahead and treat yourself, and enjoy. Moderation is key.

Take Care,

Leanne.

Quick Full Body Fix

Do you ever get a voice in the back of your head when you know that you've been sitting on the couch watching TV for too long, that says "hey, I think it's time we get up and exercise now"?

No you're not crazy, and you're not alone on that one; I get that too when I've gone through a a case of the couch potatoes. So here's an effective and quick, yet challenging, full body workout to get you out of that inactive slump and back into action.

http://backonpointe.tumblr.com/tagged/workout-challenge

This is such a great and effective workout. If you stick to it and eat right, you will see results.

Take Care,

Leanne.

Natural Wood Baths

Just when you think you've seen it all, you see something amazing like this:

https://fbcdn-sphotos-d-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/482829_321428421316982_1194801936_n.jpg

A wooden bathtub. So beautiful and unique.

I saw this while looking through Pinterest and it made me stop and stare. Look at the beauty in the stain of the wood, and all of the movement in the grain. This is not just a bathtub, it is a piece of art.

I don't know about you, but I would love to have this in my home. What do you think?

Take Care,

Leanne.

Healthy Stuffed Peppers

This weekend I tried stuffed peppers for the first time and all I have to say is I can't believe what I was missing out on!

I used a Weight Watcher's Recipe from my new cookbook "Weight Watchers New Complete Cookbook".

http://crockpot-weight-watchers-recipes.blogspot.ca/2011/01/weight-watchers-mexican-stuffed-peppers.html?m=1

Recipe:

Ingredients:

1/2 lb lean ground beef (7% fat or less)

1 cup cooked brown rice

1 onion, finely chopped

1/4 cup frozen green peas, thawed

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

2 tbsp tomato paste

3 garlic cloves, minced

1tsp minced fresh thyme

1 tsp minced fresh basil

4 green, red, orange or yellow peppers, tops cut and seeded

1/2 cup tomato sauce

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350

2. Mix together everything but the last 2 ingredients (peppers and tomato sauce) in a large bowl. Spoon evenly into the hollowed out peppers.

3. Stand peppers in a shallow baking dish or casserole dish. Pour tomato sauce over peppers. Add water to the baking pan; enough to come partway up the sides of the peppers.

4. Cover baking dish with aluminum foil and bake, basting peppers occasionally with the pan liquid, for 30 minutes.

5. Uncover and bake for 20 minutes, or until the rice is tender and the filling is cooked through.

6. Let stand 5 minutes. Serve & Enjoy.

This recipe is so good. I encourage you to give it a try.

Take Care,

Leanne.

Hip Opening Stretches

It's surprising how many people have tight hips (myself included). One of the best ways to reduce the tightness of the hips, and to increase the flexibility of the hip joints is to do stretches. 

The following stretches are meant to open up your hips, and increase strength and flexibility:

http://backonpointe.tumblr.com/post/45305031034/healthylittlenerd-fitnessloveaffair-here-are

If you've ever done yoga, you may recognize some of these stretches. I've tried 8 out of 10 of these and they feel unbelievable.

If you have tight hips, or are just looking for a good stretch (runners, these are great stretches for you) I highly recommend that you try these.

Take Care,

Leanne.

Fall Outdoor Decor

Fall is around the corner, and with that pumpkins will soon start to fill grocery stores and farmers markets near you.

Although most people love to carve pumpkins and place them on their porches, painting pumpkins is becoming more popular. Not only can you do so much, but the pumpkins will last even longer than they do when they`re hollowed out.

http://indulgy.com/search/Fall--decor/page/6

You can take inspiration from anywhere. I love the pumpkins above that resemble candy corn. Aren`t they so cute?!

What will you use for inspiration?

Take Care,

Leanne.

Pumpkin Pie Protein Shake

Fall is around the corner, and with that comes pumpkin flavoured foods and drinks!

Here's a delicious recipe for a pumpkin pie flavoured protein shake that I found on Pinterest from Fit Sugar:

http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/ae/0a/8a/ae0a8abee1026d217e084d9988a51af7.jpg

This is the perfect fall protein shake! I hope you enjoy this as much as I will. 

Take Care,

Leanne.

Turn That Frown Upside Down {Positive Body Image}

With the world that we live in that focuses on the bodies of overly skinny super models, and celebrities that eat next to nothing (or have eating disorders), we all need a healthy dose of a positive body image.

Here are 10 things that we should all keep in mind when we start comparing ourselves to others, and are getting negative about the way we look and feel about ourselves:

http://backonpointe.tumblr.com/post/28133807476

If we all just focus on a few, if not all of these points when we're feeling down about ourselves, we will be well on our way to a healthier and more positive body image, rather than the distorted one that the media drills into our minds.

Take Care,

Leanne.

Benjamin Moore Colours

I've been itching to paint my apartment for a while, but just hadn't found the colours to commit to...until now.

Introducing to you a wonderful cool neutral colour pallet from Benjamin Moore, Sherwin Williams, Pantone, and Behr paints:

http://www.houzz.com/ideabooks

In order from left to right:

1) Sea Haze (Benjamin Moore)

2) Mink (Sherwin Williams)

3) African Violet (Pantone)

4) Twilight (Behr)

This is such a beautiful colour combination. Whether you use all 4 of these colours in one room, or use them to transition from room to room, these colours transition flawlessly.

I cannot wait to paint! If you've painted your home in any of these colours please feel free to let me know how it turned out.

Take Care,

Leanne.

Buffalo Chicken Quinoa

I'm currently getting serious about making healthy changes in my life, and with that comes making healthier food choices like choosing whole grains, lean meats, and increasing my intake of fresh fruit and veggies.

With that being said, I found an awesome recipe for Buffalo Chicken Quinoa. 

http://topinspired.com/top-10-healthy-quinoa-recipes/

Recipe:

Buffalo Chicken Quinoa Salad with Broccoli

      Ingredients:

Salad
• 1 cup quinoa
• 2 cups water
• 3/4 pound boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into bite size pieces
• 1 cup broccoli florets
• 3/4 cup shredded carrots
• 3/4 cup shredded cabbage
• 1/2 cup blue cheese crumbles, plus more for garnish
• 4 green onions chopped, save half for garnish
Dressing
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1/2 cup hot sauce (I recommend Franks)
• 1 teaspoon seasoned salt

Instructions:

1. In a fine-mesh strainer, rinse quinoa well and drain. In a medium pot, combine quinoa and water. Bring to a boil, then cover and turn heat to low. Cook until all the water is absorbed, about 20 minutes. Remove from the heat, fluff the quinoa with a fork.
2. While the quinoa is cooking make the buffalo sauce dressing and cook the chicken and broccoli. In a measuring cup or small bowl combine the olive oil, hot sauce, and seasoned salt. Whisk to combine. Set aside.
3. Heat a medium size skillet over medium high heat Add a tablespoon of olive oil and saute the broccoli for about 5 minutes. You want it to just start to soften, but still be crisp. Remove from the pan and set aside. Add the chicken to the same pan and cook the chicken for about 5 minutes or until cooked through. Add 1/4 cup or so of the buffalo sauce and cook until the chicken absorbs the sauce.
4. When the quinoa is ready add the chicken, broccoli, carrots, shredded cabbage and as much of the dressing as desired (I ended up using all of the dressing, but we like things extra saucy) toss well. Add the blue cheese and half of the green onions. Toss again and serve warm with extra blue cheese crumbles and green onions.

Enjoy!

I know what I'll be making as soon as I buy quinoa at the grocery store this week. I encourage that you give it a try as well.

Take Care,

Leanne.