12 Days of Fitmas: Day 2

This 12 days of Cardio Christmas Workout is inspired from the song.  Start with 1, and then repeat 1 and 2, and then 1 - 3 and so on. 

Here's a workout just for fun, starting with number one. The format of this is compound, so you'll add an exercise each round. You may change the cardio exercise as you go, it doesn't matter - fast or slow. 

12 Days of Christmas Workout

1 Minute Cardio of Choice (jogging in place, skipping, jumping jacks, KB swings) 

2 Squat Jumps 

3 Push Ups 

4 Reverse Lunges 

5 Bridge Hip Lifts 

6 Sit ups 

7 Plie Squats

8 Mountain Climbers

9 Air Squats 

10 Triceps Dips 

11 Speed Skaters

12 Burpees

For day 3, we've got another delicious recipe. Can you say... Gingerbread Fudge? 

Your Healthy Holiday Survival Guide

Just one little cookie, and one glass of eggnog, and one serving of this, and one serving of that... it doesn't sound so bad, and it wouldn't be if it were only for a single day. However unfortunately, for most of us these temptations last all month long. 

But, with a little bit of willpower, and a well executed plan, you can stay on track and enjoy everything the holiday season has to offer. The best thing you can do is ask yourself "What is going to help me get where I want to be?"... is it the instant gratification of every cookie that you see, or the satisfaction of sticking to your goals and staying on track for success? 

We've put together a Healthy Holiday Survival guide for you, and over the next few weeks we will be delivering recipes, workouts, and fit-tips. Our elves here at Encompass have been working diligently to get this done to make your Christmas the healthiest one yet. 

Click here to download your very own copy of our Healthy Holiday Survival Guide (virtually delivered by Santa and his elves). 

Get My Free Holiday Survival Guide

Watch our Facebook Page and our blog over the next 12 days as we begin our 12 days of Christmas countdown - including holiday home workouts, healthy versions of your favourite treats, and plenty of Christmas cheer! 

Twelve Days of Fitmas - Day 1

There is nothing more cozy and comforting than a latte on a cold winters day... Unfortunately many of them have hundred of calories and are loaded with sugar. Not this version! 

Ingredients: 

1/4 cup Almond Nog (available at the co-op) 

1 cup Nut milk of choice (almond, coconut, or cashew) 

4-6 oz of strong coffee, or espresso. 

sprinkle of Nutmeg 

sprinkle of Cinnamon

Combine nut milk and almond nog and steam (if you don't own a milk steamer you can microwave and use a blender to froth, or stir continuously on the stove). Brew espresso and pour over steamed nog. Sprinkle with cinnamon and nutmeg. Optional - if your macronutrients allow, add a dollop of coconut whipped topping. 

Meal Prep 101 - Part II.

Now that you've mastered grocery shopping, it's time to master the kitchen. 

I'll be the first to admit that meal prepping can be frustrating. The first time I attempted "meal prepping" I spent an hour grocery shopping, and 6 hours in the kitchen cutting, chopping, cooking, weighing, and cleaning. I share this with you because I do not want this to be you. 

Like any habit, the more you meal prep, the faster you will become. Here are my quick and easy meal prep tips to help you spend less time in the kitchen, and more time doing what makes you happy. 

Pro Tip #1: Have a Plan 

Before you can meal prep effectively and efficiently, you must have a plan. What meals will you be needing this week? Do you need to prepare breakfast, lunch, supper, and snacks each day? Will you be eating on the road, at home with family, or out at an event? Once you know how many meals you will be preparing, have a general estimate of how much food you will need per meal in terms of quantity of macronutrients - proteins, carbohydrates, and healthy fats. 

Pro Tip #2: Start with the Protein 

Typically, protein and any starchy carbs will take the longest to cook. Start the oven, or barbecue and get your meat and starchy carbs ready to cook. Once you have done this, sanitize the kitchen, pop your protein in the oven, and begin the remainder of your meal prepping while your protein is cooking.

Simple Idea's: Cook chicken in oven, brown turkey meat or lean ground beef on the stove, hard boil eggs, barbecue steak or chicken breasts, saute strips of chicken or beef for stir fry. 

Pro Tip #3: Maximize Your Time 

After you get your protein cooking, you can maximize your time and your kitchen by also using your stove and other oven racks. Layer a tray with tinfoil and toss your vegetables in some olive oil and place them on another rack in the oven, or steam your vegetables on another burner on the stove. The more you get used to meal prepping, the more you will be able to multi-task and cut down on the time it will take. While everything is cooking you can wash and measure any fruit, nuts, or other sides that will round out your meals and snacks. 

Pro Tip #4: Assembly Line

Have your containers out and ready to go. As you chop, you can put all of your meals in the appropriate places. You may organize your containers by days of the week (Monday - Friday), or by meal (all breakfasts together, lunches together, etc). This way, you can see the week ahead of you right before your eyes. 

Pro Tip #5: KISS - Keep It Stupid Simple 

If you're in a hurry, or find meal prepping overwhelming, keep it as simple as possible. Buying a roasted chicken and peeling off the skin, or adding a can of tuna to a salad can be a quick and easy protein solution. Save time on chopping by purchasing pre-cut or frozen vegetables when you need. You can now buy individual portions of guacamole, hummus, and peanut butter making packing, and eating on the go convenient when short on time. 

Pro Tip #6: 

Have a cooler, lunch bag, or proper storage and travel system for your food. The last thing you want is your food spoiling, or leaking in your bag, car, or office. There are many different storage options. For relatively cheap you can purchase ice packs and lunch bags at Wal-mart. For more fashionable, or travel friendly bags, my personal favourite is 6-pack bags, which can be found online at https://www.sixpackbags.com/. 

Watch the video below for my favourite bags, and check out Facebook on Friday for a video of me in the kitchen sharing my meal prep routine.

Stay Tuned! Come back next week, as I will be sharing my easy "hacks" and quick and delicious time saving idea's (think taco salad, and extra ways to quickly and conveniently add nutrients into your food). 

Grocery Shopping 101

80% of health and weight loss comes from nutrition. But before you can start eating healthy, you have to learn how to shop healthy!

Here are our top tips for navigating the grocery store and setting your meal preparation, and your week of nutritional success. 

Tips For Being a Professional Shopper: 

1. Know Before You Go

What is it that you need? Break your list into macronutrient categories. For example, Protein, Carbohydrates, Healthy Fats, and Miscellaneous items (think herbs, spices, etc... not things down the junk aisle). Personally, I arrange my grocery list in order of the items and aisles at the grocery store (I am sure that I could shop blindfolded). 

2. Shop the Perimeter

Did you know that the whole food options surround the entire grocery store? Start here. Make one lap around the outside of the grocery store, picking up all of your essential items. Most, if not all of your items should come from this area, with the exception of any frozen vegetables and fruits. After you have shopped the perimeter, venture down any aisles that you know that you need items from. Stay away from aisles you don't need anything from. Purposeful shopping will help keep us on track nutritionally, and financially. 

3. Don't Shop Hungry

You've heard it before, and I'll tell you again. Do not shop on an empty stomach. Studies have shown that customers who shop on an empty stomach not only purchase more, but also purchase items that are not on their list, and items that are less nutritionally dense. Surprisingly, this is proven not only in the grocery store, but across the spectrum. One study concluded that even when shopping for office supplies, customers were likely to purchase more items, and spend more money when hungry. Eat your healthy snack, and then shop for best results. 

4. Read Labels

While you may feel silly picking up multiple items and comparing the food labels, it will make a significant difference in your waistline. Labels can be extremely misleading. As a general rule of thumb, choose items with the least amount of ingredients (5 or less), and with ingredients that you can pronounce. While many disclaimers can be misleading ("low fat", "sugar free", "low calorie") look at the macronutrient values, the sugar and sodium contents, and the serving size. Sobey's "blue label" items are often wise choices when compared to other brand label choices such as pasta sauces and canned items. 

5. Go Local

When possible, look for local, natural, and organic sources when available. The local farmer's market in the summer is a great place to get local produce and establish connections. Although not all farmers markets run year round, you can often contact them to purchase farm raised eggs or look for locally grown grain products at select stores in the community. Here, you can purchase many locally grown items at Nutter's. 

6. Clip Coupons

Extreme Coupon-ing isn't only for television. Look at flyers ahead of time and make your lists according to the flyers. There are often key items on sale, and you can even begin to catch on to the rotating sales. For example, chicken breasts cycle on sale every 3-4 weeks, so I will stock up, portion some out in freezer bags and be set until the next sale.

7. Get Creative

 I try to look at the flyer each week, and choose one item that is on sale, or one new item I don't regularly purchase, and try to come up with a healthy and creative way to cook it. Sometimes I use my own cravings and creativity, and sometimes I will use pinterest for inspiration. For example, cauliflower was on sale, so I bought a head and made cauliflower buffalo bites by broiling cauliflower in the oven and then tossing it in a mixture of greek yogurt, ranch spices and franks red hot. I also bought a rutabaga and made rosemary parmesan "fries" by slicing up the rutabaga, tossing it in parmesan olive oil, fresh rosemary, and sprinking with fresh parmesan and then roasting it in the oven until the fries were crisp. Incorporating new foods is fun, and is key in keeping variety in the diet - both for sanity and nutrient wise. Eating the same foods day in and day out can actually lead to nutritional deficiencies. 

Smart shopping is essential to keeping nutritious foods stocked and readily available.

The Most Important Workout You Can Do This Week

Little did you know, the most important workout you can do this week can be done at home. 

If you're serious about getting results, there is one workout that will help you more than anything else. It doesn't involve burpees, running, or even heavy lifting. The most important workout that you can ever do is not even performed in the gym, it takes place in the grocery store, and the kitchen. 

Time and time again, I hear people say, "I don't have time to eat healthy", "I don't have time to meal prep", and to those new to fitness and nutrition, "well, I'm exercising, so I don't need to eat healthy". Yet, I often see these very same individuals at the studio multiple times a week.

I understand what it is like to be busy, to be run off your feet, living off of coffee and pre-workouts just to survive the work-week and still make time to exercise. But if you've ever been there, or this is you. I want you to do something, I want you to skip your next workout. 

You heard me. I want you to skip your next workout. 

If you do not have your nutrition planned for the week, meals prepared and ready to go, or time carved out this week to prepare and eat nutritious meals, then you need to skip your next workout and prioritize your nutrition instead. 

While this may seem like a foreign concept, when you do the math, it makes complete sense. Sure, you can burn anywhere from 300 calories and up per fitness class. But there are also 3500 calories in one pound of fat. And if you're not prepared and making poor food choices during the week, you will most likely be taking in additional calories above and beyond the amount that you will burn during a single workout.

Therefore, the best way you can invest in your health, and your overall achievement of your goals is to skip one workout, and invest your time in setting yourself up for a weeks worth of nutritional success. Now, if you have the time in your schedule, your week is planned and your meals are prepared, I fully expect to see you at all of your regularly scheduled fitness classes, and achieving your fitness and nutritional goals. 

Even if it's taking an hour, running to the grocery store and picking up a deli roasted chicken, and some pre-cut vegetables and portioning them into a few meals, every little effort to setting yourself up for success counts.

Find meal prepping stressful, boring, or extremely time consuming? Join us next week for our blog on the best and easiest meal preparation plans, tips, and ideas. 

TDC Winner: Lance Merrien

We just wrapped up our third TakeDown Challenge, and the results are staggering. Altogether, the participants lost a total of 512 pounds (...and counting!). The challenge is a nutrition initiative, but includes a fitness component as well to focus on healthy habits and implementing a healthier lifestyle for long term health and weight loss. This go-around, we had our first male winner, losing 23 pounds of fat, 8.8% of his body fat percentage, and gaining 3 pounds of lean muscle mass was Lance Merrien. 

Word of Wisdom from the 2016 Fall TDC Winner: 

"I signed up for the TakeDown Challenge because I was tired of my clothes not fitting and feeling so lethargic all of the time. I really just needed a boost to get me going. Thanks to the amazing group of people at Encompass Fitness Studio and the support of all of the participants, everything became an entire lifestyle transformation.

The meals and recipes were delicious, and I never felt deprived. I loved that the program didn't restrict anything. Now, I have tons of energy, and I am considering doing a Spartan race next spring."

Lance's #1 Fitness Tip:

Stick with it. I got discouraged that I had no results after week one. It's definitely a commitment, but habits can be made in 4-5 weeks so what seems so hard at first isn't even a second thought by the end. The best part was really the change in me, both physically and emotionally. Once my energy started to come back during the program I started enjoying the classes more, pushing myself harder, and loving it all. Yay Burpees!!  (editor's note: Lance really did write that. No editing here.) 

Lance Merrien, collecting his winning prize from Encompass CEO Brady Johnson.  Lance won a month of Small Group Personal Training, and a care package from Rodan and Fields, and has graciously decided to donate both prizes to a greater cause. Read below to see how you can contribute, or be the 'winner' of his prize. 

Health for Haiti

"The Challenge alone already has me well on my way to achieving my goals, so I wanted to do something that would give back, and help another person to achieve their goals as well. I have decided to auction off my winnings and donate the proceeds to the victims of the Haiti Hurricane. My church is really involved with the aftermath of Hurricane Matthew, and I saw this as another opportunity to help." - Lance Merrien, Fall 2016 TDC Winner

To learn more about how you can bid on Lance's prizes, valued at over $500.00, contact Lance at haitiauction@outlook.com. 

Homemade Aussie Bites

If you've tasted the Aussie Bites from Costco, you'll know that they are delectable treats packed with healthy nutrients like chia, flaxseed, and quinoa combined with the natural sweet taste of apricots. Save yourself the travel (and the long lines) with this quick, easy, and nutritious homemade version. 

Homemade Aussie Bites

Ingredients:

1¾ cup rolled oats

3 packets truvia or stevia 

¼ cup dried apricots

¼ cup raisins

¼ cup ground flaxseed

¼ cup unsalted sunflower seeds

¼ cup unsweetened shredded coconut

¼ cup cooked quinoa

2 tablespoons chia seeds

¼ tsp baking soda

¼ cup honey

¼ cup unsalted butter, melted

¼ cup coconut oil (measured melted) 

½ tsp vanilla extract

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 24 count mini-muffin pan.

1. Pour 1 cup of rolled oats into a food processor. Process for about 1 minute until oats are pulverized.
2. Add in the remaining ¾ cup rolled oats, sugar substitute, dried apricots, raisins, flax seed, sunflower seeds, coconut, quinoa, chia seeds, and baking soda. Pulse until apricots and raisins are in small bits.
3. Pour in honey, melted butter, melted coconut oil, and vanilla extract. Pulse just until combined.
4. Divide batter among the prepared muffin tin.
5. Bake in the preheated oven for 10 to 12 minutes until golden brown.
6. Remove pan from oven and let cool in pan on a wire cooling rack for 10 minutes. Remove muffins from tin and let cool completely on the wire rack.
7. Once completely cooled, store in an airtight container for 4 to 5 days.

November Member of the Month: Patti Mowchenko

We are so excited to recognize Patti Mowchenko as the November Member of the Month.

Over the past six months Patti has gotten herself out of a four year slump. She was slowly adding more pounds to the scale, despite her attempts to starve herself. She wasn't comfortable in her skin. Now looking back, Patti says that what she thought was a weight issue... she now knows was a fitness issue. When Patti started at Encompass Fitness 6 months ago, her goal was to loose 10 pounds. 

 Patti originally joined Encompass Fitness in May by participating in the May TakeDown Challenge. Since then, Patti has lost 10 pounds, and participated in two 5km running events, despite never considering herself a runner. Patti has successfully discovered her potential, and has never felt better.

We asked Patti to share with us some highlights from her transformation over the past six months and how she achieved her goals. 

"I believe the TDC helped me reach my weight goals. Joining Encompass and participating in weekly classes helped me feel better about myself. My confidence is at an all time high and I am proud that I have scheduled time for me in my busy life."

Patti says that her favourite thing about Encompass is the family feeling. "I love the atmosphere and accountability. I never miss a class as I truly feel that if I do I would be missed. I feel so much acceptance and encouragement with my Encompass family." 

Although Patti's original goal was scale focused, she I just completed her first 5k (running, not walking), and her goal for next year is to finish her first 10k. "I never considered myself a runner and thought I wasn't capable of running any sort of distance. Now I know I can do it!"

Patti has been an asset to the group classes, and so positive and encouraging in the TakeDown Challenge. We can't wait to see what the next year brings, and to see her cross that 10k finish line.

Congratulations, Patti! 

““I have loved my experience and can’t imagine my life with out encompass fitness being a part of it””

— Patti M.