Pumpkin Pancakes!!

Good morning Everyone! Hope your having a nice and relaxed Sunday!!
                                          I celebrated the end of the week & rest day with

*PROTEIN PUMPKIN PANCAKES*

Ingredients you need.. 

1.5 scoops of vanilla protein (I would of used Elite but I was out of nilla)

2 egg whites

1/4 C. almond milk

2 TBSP of oat flour (or any kind of whole grain flour)

1/2 tsp of baking powder

1/2 TBS  1 TBSP of Cinnamon

1/2 tsp of nutmeg

1 tsp of vanilla

1/2 cup of pumpkin

1 TBSP of agave nectar

ps.. I made this up..as I went.. But I scribbled down my ingredients feel free to add or alter as your little heart desires :)

I mixed all dry ingredients in one bowl.. & all wet in another.. Then combined them

Heat skillet on the stove about at a medium heat.. or less depending on your stove

Collect your toppings!

I went with

& 1/2 of a bananer..with about a tbsp of almond butter.

SOOO delish.. The cook kind of darker.. but they taste like pie :) 

I ate like 2   4 !!

Enjoy!!!

Yesterday.. I have to mention my fabulous lunch..

Simple Turkey & spinach wrap.

Using..

awesome wraps! only 60 calories

only half of it made it to the wrap..the other half I gobbled while making the wrap..

So I made another.. haha!

Turkey

tomato 

fat free mozzarella 

spinach

mustard

hummus

It was the perfect lunch for the busy day..

Off I went to a shower for this beautiful lady.

This is my little sister!! She is getting hitched next month!!

She got so much wonderful kitchen gadgets.. I was a little jealous of the pyrex glass bowls that came with glass lids and Plastic lids for easy travel ;)

We enjoyed an array of GOURMET desserts!

I spy the bride and the lovely chef.. both gorgeous yeah?

 Lemon cupcakes.. they were filled with a lemon center... oh my foodgasm..

Chocolate mousse

(fuzzy) Creme Brulee.. 

Other treats included

Mexican wedding cookies 

chocolate cupcakes 

cashews

and 

homemade butter mints!!

It was definitely worth the splurge ;)

after all.. you do deserve it every now and then.

I did however share half of the brulee with my sister and had a handful of cashews!
& had a side of T's Squishy feet..

It was a perfect shower!! Her fiance's family sure does know how to throw a party :)

Q&A
 {source}

I got a few emails asking why I don't really focus on the scale...
So YOU kick your butt at the gym.. you are eating right.. WHY? is that number on the scale NOT going DOWN???

Your weight goes up and it goes down.. or maybe it just stay the same? Either way you are frustrated by the what your crummy scale tells you.. Well, just quit it already.

I know.. "What the heck..?" This is something that I firmly believe and follow. Don't feel bad.. We have ALL done it before.. I used to weigh myself daily.. until I learned the facts.

You probably hear so many different things.. So how do you actually get started?

Well, the first thing I want you to do is to get on the scale.. yes.. I just told you not to... and now I'm saying yes.. But just this one last time.. cool? Your just getting started...This first step is for reference only.. and it is definitely is something to pay attention to..at first. 

I'm not saying get rid of your scale.. but if it becomes addicting and that number results in how you feel or depends if you going to have a happy day or not. 

Its just a number.. a number that can turn to control your life if you focus to much on it.

Now if your healthy and happy.. and you do weigh yourself everyday.. go for it. I just don't see the purpose.. 

The number to be more concerned about is your percentage of body fat.

{FAT VS MUSCLE }

So lets change our mind cool.?

Every day I hear people I know complain about their weight and are frustrated that they cannot lose weight. They are working out hard, eating right and still just don't see any change.. (from the scale that is) Little do you know.. It is paying off..  When you factor in things like water retention, glycogen storage and changes in lean body mass, fluctuations in your body weight is normal. You cannot battle everyday with the scale.. I will repeat.. Fluctuations of your body weight is acceptable!! 

*  Muscle weighs more than fat!! So when your body weight goes down.. the scale has no way of telling you what you’ve lost (or gained). Muscle is a metabolically active tissue. The more muscle you have the more calories your body burns during activity and rest

• Water makes up about 60% of total body mass.  Two factors influencing water retention are water consumption and salt intake. Strange as it sounds, the less water you drink, the more of it your body retains. If you are even slightly dehydrated your body will hang onto it’s water supplies with a vengeance, possibly causing the number on the scale to inch upward. That is why one of my Top ten weight loss tips is to DRINK WATER!!!! 
• LOVE SALT?? Well.. hello.. this plays a HUGE role in water retention!!! That hamburger you just ate may of contained over 2,000 mg of sodium!  We should aim to only eat between 1,000 and 3,000 mg of sodium a day, so it’s easy to go overboard, nowadays with all the processed food, fast food and chips and treats we have available..   I advise you to just go with the "clean" foods.. fruits, veggies, lean meat, beans and grains.
• Your a Woman.. we have are lovely monthly visit from Aunt Flo, this plays into that scale jumping up a few pounds before you menastrate.  
•  Glycogen. It is a fuel tank full of stored carbohydrate. Glycogen is stored in the liver and some is stored in your muscles. This energy reserve weighs more than a pound and it’s packaged with 3-4 pounds of water when it’s stored. Your glycogen supply will shrink during the day if you fail to take in enough carbohydrates. As the glycogen supply shrinks you will experience a small imperceptible increase in appetite and your body will restore this fuel reserve along with it’s associated water. It’s normal to experience glycogen and water weight shifts of up to 2 pounds per day even with no changes in your calorie intake or activity level. 
• Do you weigh yourself in the morning or night? So when the scale goes up 3 or 4 pounds overnight, rest easy, it’s likely to be water, glycogen, and the weight of your dinner.  To lose one pound of fat you need to burn 3,500 calories more than you take in. Realistically it’s only possible to lose 1-2 pounds of fat per week. So you hear the stories of the people who do crazy cleanses & diets.. and lose 10 pds in a week.. ? Even if your on a low carb diet or eating very little (HCG) What you’re really losing is water, glycogen, and muscle? You feel weaker.. and lets face it your starvin marvin..no bueno folks.. you will gain it back and more guaranteed.
• Muscle weighs more than fat!! So when your body weight goes down.. the scale has no way of telling you what you’ve lost (or gained). Muscle is a metabolically active tissue. The more muscle you have the more calories your body burns during activity and rest. 

Ask yourself:

Do you see changes in the mirror?

Do your clothes fit looser? and more comfortable?Do you drink enough water?

Do you practice portion control? Eat a clean diet and avoid excess sodium?

Can you lift more then you could when your first started training? 

Do you able to push yourself to run a little bit longer then you used to?

Measure yourself and aim to lose inches around your waist thighs, arms etc. Is that number decreasing?Do you have more definition?

Do these few things and then you will know for sure that your hard work is paying off :)