Make The Most Of YOU

Happy Tuesday!

I’m so pleased to announce that I’m co-hosting (with two other fabulous ladies) a FREE 5 Day Meditation and Self-Love challenge. It’s going to be five days of mindful meditation, clean eating, mini workouts to get your body and spirit moving and accountability from others going through the same thing!

 

Meditation: There are many benefits of meditation including stress relief, clearer mind, higher functioning body and growing intuition. Taking some time in the morning to breathe and come into yourself fully after sleeping can be so beneficial to your most pro-active and productive self!

 

Clean Eating: Eating McDonald’s today won’t kill you (probably.) But eating like that for years on end is incredibly detrimental to your body. Similarly, if you eat cleanly for one day it won’t make your life immediately incredible, but over time, your body will function at the highest possible level, with the nutrients, love and attention you’re giving it! There will be a vegan (I’ll be providing this one!) and non-vegan meal plan in the group.

 

Mini workouts: Getting your body moving every day is a very large part of living an actively healthy life. The short workouts in this challenge will not take up much time, but they will get your heart pumping, your blood moving and your energy up!

 

Optimal health is made in your mind with how you accept and process events/things, in the kitchen with how you eat and in your body with active movement. Make the most of you and join us for 5 days of living your most optimal life in these three areas! Message me for more details on how to sign up!

Peace, love and love,

~kiki

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Rest Day Apple/Pear Crisp

Today is Thursday. It’s also the first rest day of Master’s Hammer and Chisel, the seriously awesome/fun/inspiring/challenging/rewarding newest Beachbody program that I’m doing right now!

Autumn Calabrese posted a video this morning telling everyone on this program to actually rest today, not to go for a run, or do some yoga, but to actually give our body the recuperation time it really needs as our muscle fibers are broken down and reestablished.

What does rest day mean to me? Well, kitchen creations, listening to a great book and practicing viola.

I grew up with apple trees in our backyard and there were always too many apples to just eat them all. They also were super organic and we never touched the trees (I think now my parents have started getting someone to prune them!) so the apples were often misshapen and therefore perfect to bake with!

My favorite recipe to make was Apple Crisp. I have since become vegan and therefore the recipe had to shift a bit. I think I’ve finally perfected the new version and that’s how I started this morning! I have also made it gluten-free!

Apple/Pear Crisp:

Fruit:

3 Apples, peeled, cored and cut up into little cubes

3 Pears, peeled, cored and cut up into little cubes

1 Tbs. ginger syrup

2 Tbs. apple cider

cinnamon, nutmeg, powdered ginger to taste (I use a lot!)

Combine all the ingredients together. There should be some extra liquid in the bottom of the bowl from the cider, this will help soften the fruit in the baking process, without them getting dried out.

Crisp: 

1/2 cup pecans

1 cup plus 1/2 cup oats (I use whole rolled for texture)

2 Tbs. coconut oil

1/3 cup pure maple syrup

1 Tbs. pure vanilla extract

Melt the coconut oil. Blend the pecans and 1/2 cup oats into flour (Of course, I used my Vitamix). Mix the flour, remaining cup of oats, oil, syrup and extract together. It should be “crumbly”, not too wet, not too dry! Adjust accordingly by adding more oats or oil, if you want it sweeter, add another bit of maple syrup!

In a round glass pie pan, layer half of the fruit, half of the crisp, then the other half of fruit, and the remaining crisp on the top!

Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes or until you the fruit is soft under a fork, the crisp is crispier and a bit browned on top and your kitchen smells like an apple cinnamon HEAVEN.

I truly didn’t get a picture of the crisp before it was almost all devoured (I swear, I had some help!)

I’d say, it’s turning out to be a pretty good rest day! 😉

Peace, love and cinnamon (forever),

~kiki

P.S. The book I’m listening to right now is The Slight Edge by Jeff Olson. Highly recommended read for all!!!

New Year, New You

Even though I am a firm believer that a new year begins every day and striving  towards our full potential at all times is a non-negotiable, I like the tradition of setting some new intentions, goals and resolutions, if you will, at the top of our calendar year!

We’ve entered into 2016. This is going to be an awesome year. How do I know that? Because I’m going to make sure that I make it one, for myself and the people around me. You can too! Let’s do it together. No better day or time to start than right now.

Here’s how my 2016 started off…

First things first; cuddles in bed with my fiancé.

1. We read a thought for the day followed by a ten minute meditation.
2. Autumn Calabrese kicked my holiday treat-filled booty into sweaty gear with 21 Day Fix Extreme (Lower Body Fix).
3. I took an honest January 1, 2016 “before” picture, because I’m starting a new program on Monday (more on that later!) and want my after shot to look 20 times as awesome, and
4. blended up my favorite Shakeology recipe, Thin Mint!

The rest of today is going to be spent practicing viola, prepping my next challenge group, cooking and cleaning! Happy January 1!

On Monday, January 4, I’ll be starting the newest Beachbody program, The Master’s Hammer and Chisel, with Autumn Calabrese and Sagi Kalev. Thousands of people are starting this program on that day, so it’s going to be a really epic 60 days! And lucky for you, MHC is still on special through the month of January! Don’t YOU want to be a masterpiece? Check out these results from the first test group… Message me now to learn how you can be part of the Challenge!

The program I’m doing right now is the 21 Day Fix Extreme! In just a half an hour, for 21 days, you can really sculpt and transform your body. My shoulders have become stronger, my stomach has leaned out and my legs are more defined! Over the holidays I definitely didn’t do my workouts as scheduled and ate too many crepes but I still see the results from this program. Autumn’s portion controlled containers are a SUPER easy way to make sure you’re getting the perfect amount of food, and not over or under eating! Both 21 Day Fix and 21 Day Fix Extreme are on special now in January! There’s a 21 Day Fix group starting on January 4 as well, so please message me if you want to learn more about that!

And lastly, but certainly not least-ly, I’m co-running a challenge group with my coach, Katherine (Team G.R.I.T.’s fearless leader!) for those of you who have resolutions and want support and accountability with your workouts and nutrition but don’t want to do MHC or 21 Day Fix! There are so many other awesome programs! Are you into dance, cardio, kickboxing, yoga, pilates, weight-lifting or body-conditioning?! Message me with your interests, goals, time constraints, sensitivities and anything else that might be helpful, and we’ll find the program that best suits your needs! This group also starts on Monday, January 4!

There are certain steps, choices and efforts we must make to achieve our goals and resolutions. Here are my top 4.

1. Quality time spent with people you love and who are inspiring to you.
2. Focused and daily dedication to your craft/goal/resolution
3. Accountability with a group and/or a specific person.
4. Dialed in nutrition. (How can you expect to reach any kind of goal if you’re not treating yourself to filling, wholesome and supportive food?!)

I can help you with all of these, so tell me, are you ready to make 2016 the best year yet!? I look forward to hearing from you!

Peace, love and goals,

~kiki

My first cleanse; 3 Day Refresh

Hello, from the other side.

Thanks for that line, Adele, but seriously it’s true. I made it through! And in a good mood! I won’t lie, it wasn’t easy. I was hungry. I was tired. My energy levels were pretty low. But now that I’ve made it through, I’m super excited and I feel really good.

I’ve never done a cleanse before. Which some people find surprising because I really do care so much about what I put into my body. But, to be honest, I just love food so much that I was scared to do a cleanse. But then I read about the 3 Day Refresh and it made more sense than any other master cleanse or juice cleanse that I had seen. The 3 Day Refresh uses incredibly clean and fresh plant-based food, prepared very simply, in conjunction with nutritional shakes and a fiber sweep to gently get your body back in alignment. You’re not starving yourself. You’re just giving your body a break from having to digest complex carbs, fat, sugars and caffeine. I was curious.  And it’s only 3 days! Watch the promo video here.

Here’s how it went:

Day 1. The first part of the day was totally fine, up until my afternoon snack, when I got very tired. I played at a Persian Wedding that night and it was a challenge to stay awake, perform and dance until 1am, but let’s be honest, that’s challenging for me anyway as I like to go to bed early! Another big challenge was the fruit/dessert table at these Persian parties. These tables are piled high with fruits, vegetables, cookies, pies etc and are open most of the night. I am infamous for serving myself multiple plates of fruits and veggies. It was challenging but I stuck to my (actually really delicious) spinach salad and Vanilla Fresh shake (flavored with cinnamon and nutmeg so it became more of a “chai shake”).

Day 2. This was the hardest day for me. I was tired from the night before. I had very little energy throughout the day although I wasn’t necessarily super hungry. To distract myself, I went to see Mockingjay Part 2, wearing my Top Gun onesie. 

Day 3: This was the easiest day for me. I think I knew it was the last day and I just needed to power through. I had more energy throughout the day, my meals were well-spaced out and I was just generally more chipper! I absolutely loved the spinach salad, although I did sub jicama for the red pepper (I really don’t like red pepper). And because it’s so cold in Los Angeles right now, we made veggie broth for dinner as well, flavored with basil, chili powder, oregano and pepper.

Conclusion: I woke up excited to eat my oatmeal again, but also incredibly grateful for this cleanse. I feel lighter, clearer, less bloated and bouncier now that I’ve worked with super clean food to clean out my system from the inside out. I loved this program, will definitely do it again and will absolutely take some of the practices into my daily eating plan as well, like cutting out fruit in the later part of the day and keeping the carbs/fats in the middle of the day.

Here are my Day 1 and Day 3 pictures. Notice a difference?!

I am starting the 21 Day Fix Extreme workouts and eating plan today and I’m super excited to work with these results and keep seeing new ones as I go through the program!

Message me if you want to hear more about the 3 Day Refresh (it would be a GREAT thing to do after the Holidays!) and/or if you want to hop into a group with me and do the 21 Day Fix!

Peace, Love and Cleanses,

~kiki

 

Workout Wednesday: December Abs Challenge!

It’s the day before Thanksgiving. It’s five days before the start of December. We’re nearing the end of 2015. That’s pretty crazy/awesome/scary/humbling.

Lots of things have happened this year. Some good, some great, some sad and some truly terrible and heartbreaking. We have all gone through our share of emotions and experiences. In times of good and in times of sadness, it’s best to hold those close to you even closer and practice unconditional support, love and compassion.

I have been hosting a 30 day squat challenge and I feel like I have 80 new friends! I have even met a few of them, but some of the people participating aren’t even in this country!

I was asked to host another group for December, so as the holidays roll in and we get closer to the new year, we’ll be focusing on our abs with a 30 Day Ab Challenge!

I would love to have another big group of people in this challenge too as it’s so great to have the accountability for yourself and a place to check in to, where other people are going through the same thing as you! In this case, it will be getting a stronger core, and therefore being able to support your whole body better, as core strength is key in strengthening all other parts of the body! Plus, who doesn’t love a sexy stomach??

Here is the schedule we’ll be following, although I’m known for throwing in some alternative moves as well 😉

Who’s in!? Comment here or message me with “YES I’M IN” or any other questions you may have!

Peace, Love and Abs!

~kiki

21 Days of FITmas

Good Monday, good people!

I come to you with a challenge. This is a hard time of year. Even if you’re the most happy and bubbly person and you’re spending the holidays with the most loving individuals in your life, this season can be a stressful time.

We tend to eat a lot during the holidays. That’s cool, and all, but come January, I would guess that a lot of the resolutions have the words “tone” “workout” “lose weight” “gym” and “membership” in them. Of course working out and moving your body is a very important part of being fit, but another HUGE part of being the happiest and healthiest version of you happens in the kitchen. It doesn’t matter if you have an awesome six-pack, if it’s covered with a layer of fat from the processed foods you eat! Most of the time you can oversee what you eat and if you like, create your own meals on a daily basis. While you CAN do this during the holidays, it’s much harder! I know, from personal experience.

That’s why I’m going to commit to a super healthy and specific fitness and eating routine between Thanksgiving and Christmas so that I set myself up for success into the New Year! I want to continue healthy habits into 2016, not feel bad about my behavior in 2015 and feel like I have to start over!

What if I told you that you didn’t have to go to the gym ever, that you could get more sweaty and tired (and happy!) in under an hour in your living room than all that time you’d spend in the car, at the gym and back in the car again!? I want you to start your journey with me this month!

Firstly, Monday, November 30-Wednesday, December 2 (right after Thanksgiving), I’m going to be doing the 3 Day Refresh. This is a completely plant-based detox for your insides and your outsides! Refresh yourself!! I’d love for you to join in, so please message me if you want to hear more about the 3 Day Refresh! You can also watch the promo video here.

The next step is 21 Day Fix. We have a Challenge Group starting on December 3 called 21 Days to FITmas, and while you don’t have to do the 21 Day Fix, I will be doing that program and I’d love for you to jump into it with me! I’m doing the Extreme version, but the normal 21 Day Fix will definitely extremely kick your butt into shape as well! 😉 The challenge group will end right before Christmas! (But we’ll be starting another one in January, soon after!)

Perhaps the most amazing part of the 21 Day Fix is the container system. This revolutionary “portion control” system makes it so that you don’t have to count calories ever, just count colors based on how many of each container you’re permitted daily. The containers, recipes, nutritional guide and support from your coach (ME!) makes it so simple to eat cleanly and ring in the New Year feeling calm, energized, sexy and fit!

If nothing yet has caught your eye, HERE’S THE BEST PART! 21 Day Fix (and the Kickstart packages, which include the 3 Day Refresh) are on an amazing special until the end of November! That means there’s one week left.

I’m offering 21 Day Fix FREE to the next three people who commit to starting their health, fitness and wellness journey with me this December! This journey includes accountability groups, coach support whenever you need it, an online community of people on similar paths, meal plans, mini challenges with prizes and a daily superfood health shake that provides vital vitamins, minerals, adaptogens, pre and probiotics, vegetables and fruit that our bodies crave daily.

Please message me if you want to be one of the lucky three challengers and do the 21 Day Fix with me!

Peace, Love and Colories!

~kiki

 

Motivation Monday: Exclusively Yours!

Hello Monday!

Last night I did the “Kill Cupcake” workout from Autumn Calabrese that is available only on Beachbody On Demand (BOD). Along with streaming hundreds of workouts from some of the most well-known Beachbody programs valued at over $3,000, there are also BOD Exclusives where trainers Autumn, Tony Horton and Sagi Kalev each have their own workouts available only on BOD! These exclusives are targeted, to the point and tough! They are more one-on-one and it really feels like the trainer is in your living room jumping, lunging, squatting and curling with you! It’s the coolest thing.

BESIDES having the hundreds of workouts and the BOD Exlusives, BOD also offers sneak peeks into the upcoming programs that haven’t been released yet, and sneak peek workouts of programs that aren’t yet in your library! Right now, the most exciting sneak peek to me is The Master’s Hammer and Chisel! I’ve done the Chisel sneak peek a few times with Autumn, but I have yet to attack the Hammer with Sagi. I think I’ll try it today! Watch the promo video of the program here. I want to be a masterpiece! Don’t you!?

Want to try your luck at Kill Cupcake, Full body yoga ball workouts, Daily Yoga Routine, Burpee Burner or Autumn’s Active Maternity program for when you’re expecting or have just given birth? These and so many more are all available on Beachbody On Demand. Message me for more information on how to begin your FREE trial today!

Peace, Love and Cupcakes,

~kiki