Have a Happy, Healthy Halloween! 🎃👻

Can you believe it's the last week of October? It seems like just yesterday we were headed into this month- focusing on being optimistic and striving to reach goals we never thought possible. What have you been focused on this month? What goals have you accomplished? Remember to work on small goals daily- striving for progress not perfection! We hope that you have been filling out your October calendar and are ready to submit it for a chance to win a month of FREE sessions!!!

Get ready because it's almost Halloween! The fun holiday allows our kiddos to run around in their precious costumes, buzz with the excitement of all the creative outfits & play makeup  and eat a little too much candy they will be getting later in the evening. With all that sugar coming in the door, it can be easy to allow ourselves to slip and fall into consuming much more than we intended! Today, you can  shift your mindset to the positive: Halloween does not have to be so bad after all! 

Here are a few healthy Halloween recipes you can try this week! Enjoy fellowship with friends and family and focus on our motto "all things in moderation".  Being mindful and having self- control some days is not easy but the life- long rewards of making good choices and not overindulging will be worth it in the end!  You can do this- believe in yourself that YOU CAN make good choices and enjoy a happy and healthier halloween.

---

Pumpkin Turkey Chili

Ingredients 

• 2 lb. 99% lean ground turkey breast
• 3 15 oz. cans of great northern beans, or kidney beans (mixed is great)
• 1 15 oz. can of pumpkin puree
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• ½ Tbsp Chili powder (or more to taste)
• 1 Tbsp Cumin
• 1 tsp Oregano
• 2 tsp black pepper
• 2-3 cups of low sodium chicken broth
• 1 tsp. olive oil
• Salt to taste

Directions

1. Spray a large frying pan with oil, and over medium, cook the turkey, onion, and garlic  for about 4-5  minutes or until mostly white.
2. Pour the beans, pumpkin, peppers, spices and broth into a large pot or crock pot.
3. Mix in the pot and let simmer or if in crockpot set on LOW for 8 hours or HIGH for 4 hours.
4. Garnish with avocado, greek yogurt, cilantro, and salsa! Enjoy!

---

Candy Corn Dessert Fruit Cups

Add in colorful fruit with a TruWhip topping for a fun, lighter dessert! And top with the real thing, of course!

Layer cut pineapple, cut oranges, top with TruWhip! 

---

Have a healthy and happy Halloween with your little ones! Enjoy this sweet time and take in every moment!  We had so much fun making all of these treats and getting into some other Halloween fun as well! 

We can't wait to see all of your sweet pictures of costumes and creative healthy treats! Please send them to us at transfitathens@gmail.com or tag us on Instagram @transfitathens! Let's finish this October stronger than we started! We believe in YOU! Email us or bring in your completed calendar for our October challenge! Come join us for a session this week and dress up on Monday or Tuesday in your Halloween costume! If you can't make it to the studio, check out our FREE at home workouts on our website HERE and on our FREE app HERE!

Join us on Friday at 12:30 for our Lunch and Learn with our new Registered Dietitian, Kaeti Shurling. We will be focusing on how to give your best with nutrition and to finish 2017 STRONG! Sign up on our FREE app HERE! 

Blessings, 

Team TransFit

Healthy Halloween Tricks & Treats!

It's almost that time of the year again- Halloween! The fun holiday allows our kiddos to run around in their precious costumes, buzz with the excitement of all the creative outfits & play makeup  and eat a little too much candy they will be getting later in the evening. With all that sugar coming in the door, it can be easy to allow ourselves to slip and fall into consuming much more than we intended! But, let's shift our mindsets to the positive: Halloween does not have to be so bad after all! 

Allow the kids to have a few pieces of their FAVORITE candy in the pile. This could be a good activity to do with them- have them lay out all of their candy and organize it into their favorites, counting, sorting,  and even make a game of letting them trade each other for their favorites. Then, allow them to pick a few of favorites to eat then. Donate your candy to the local food bank, or bring to TransFit and we will share with our friends at the Mercy Health Center. Reminding our families and ourselves that we should do all things in moderation. Moderation and portion control is an important lesson to learn as a child and even as an adult. All things should be done in moderation. 

Here are some fun Halloween Healthy recipes to try this week and weekend with your family! 

---

Lyla enjoyed making the jack-o-lantern face while I blended the smoothie! Crafts and healthy afternoon snack! Check!

Jack-O-Lantern Smoothie

Ingredients:

• 1 cup almond milk
• 1 cup frozen peaches
• 1/2 cup pumpkin purée
• Handful of carrots
• 1 serving vanilla protein power or Greek yogurt
• 1/2 frozen banana 
• 1tbs flax seed
• Crushed ice
• Honey to taste 

---

Pumpkin Protein Muffins

Ingredients (makes about a dozen) 

• 1 cup whole white wheat flour
• ½ cup  or 2 scoops of protein powder (unflavored or vanilla) 
• 1 cup pumpkin puree
•  ⅓ cup vegetable oil or coconut oil
• 2 whole eggs or 4 egg whites
•  1 teaspoon pumpkin-pie spice (ginger, nutmeg and cinnamon mixed together) 
• 1 cup brown sugar 
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
•  1 teaspoon baking powder
•  ½ teaspoon salt
•  1 teaspoon cinnamon
•  2 tablespoons rolled oats

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350°F , and place a rack in the center. Put liners in muffin cups. Combine flour, protein powder, baking soda and baking powder in a bowl. In another bowl whisk together pumpkin puree, oil, eggs, pumpkin pie spice, sugar, and salt until smooth, then whisk in flour mixture until just combined. Stir together cinnamon and rolled oats in a small cup. Divide batter among muffin cups (each should be about three-fourths full).

Then sprinkle tops with cinnamon-oats mixture.

Bake until puffed and golden brown and wooden pick or skewer inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes.

Cool in pan on a rack five minutes, then transfer muffins from pan to rack and cool to warm or room temperature.

---

Monster Mouths

Ingredients:

• Apples
• Lemon Juice
• Peanut butter
• Almonds, peeled

Directions:

1. Slice the apples into pieces that look like lips (just a standard slice will work).
2. Place the sliced apples in a bowl or lemon water for about 10-15 minutes so they don't brown.
3. Heavily spread peanut butter on the tops of each apple slice.
4. Stick the "teeth" into the peanut butter of one apple slice.
5. Place an apple slice without teeth on top

---

Frightening Fruits

Ingredients:

• Bananas
• Chocolate chips
• Clementines
• Celery

Directions:

For the ghosts, take each banana and slice in half. Add a chocolate chip for the mouth. If you have mini chocolate chips use these for the eyes, and if not slice a regular sized chocolate chip in half. For the pumpkins, peel each clementine, making sure to keep the segments together. Cut small pieces of celery and use these as stems.

---

As Halloween approaches and October comes to a quick end, let's keep in mind our October goals. We hope that you have joined us for the October challenge. Bring in your calendars next week or send us a picture if you have completed the daily challenge. We will enter each of your names in a drawing and announce the winner next week! Thank you for all of your hard work and dedication this month! We are so proud of each of you! Hope to see you in the studio soon! 

Blessings, 

Team TransFit