Back to School Dinner Recipes 🙋🏼

Sweet Friend, 

We want to encourage you to finish August strong! Make the most of this last week in August and find time for movement each day! We will be excited to see your August ACTIVE Calendar on Friday to be entered to win a FREE month of sessions!

School is back in session and we realize your schedule is filling up! The secret weapons to success in reaching your whole body health goals is planning, prepping, and praying! Try to carve out time to plan ahead for your week so that you can meal plan and set aside time to schedule in your exercise and to have reflection time! We want to help you feel organized and start the school year on a positive, healthy note. In order to help you meal plan, we are sharing recipes for a delicious, healthy full meal for dinner that everyone will love! Add these new recipes to your meal plan this week! 

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Broiled Salmon with Marmalade-Dijon Glaze

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup orange marmalade
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
• 4 (6-ounce) salmon fillets
• Cooking spray

Directions:

Preheat broiler. Combine first 6 ingredients in a small bowl, stirring well. Place fish on a pan coated with cooking spray. Brush half of marmalade mixture over fish; broil 6 minutes. Brush fish with remaining marmalade mixture; broil for 2 minutes or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork or until desired degree of doneness. Enjoy! 

Superfood Brussels Sprout Slaw with Pecans and Apples

Serves 8 (3/4 cup each serving)

Ingredients:

• 1 pound Brussels sprouts
• 5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon lemon zest
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• ¼ cup Rice or Tarragon Vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1 diced Granny Smith apple
• 2 ounces shredded Parmesan cheese
• 1/3 cup toasted and chopped pecans
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt & pepper

Directions: 

Thinly chop 1 lb. Brussels sprouts using a food processor (or pulse the blender) until Brussels are chopped finely. They should be finely chopped like coleslaw. Transfer chopped Brussels sprouts to a large bowl. Add 5 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, 1 Tbsp. lemon zest, 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice, ¼ cup Vinegar, and 1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper; toss to coat. Add 1 diced apple, Parmesan cheese, 1/3 cup toasted and chopped pecans, salt and pepper; toss to coat. Let stand 5 minutes to allow the Brussels sprouts to wilt slightly. Enjoy! 

Roasted Apples and Sweet Potatoes

Serves: 5-7

Ingredients:

• 3 sweet potatoes, chopped or cubed
• 2 pink lady apples, seeded and cubed
• 2 TBSP melted coconut oil
• 1 tablespoons finely chopped fresh rosemary
• salt, to taste

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cube sweet potatoes and apples and place on a foil lined baking sheet. Pour coconut oil over the sweet potatoes and apples along with rosemary and salt. Toss with hands to fully coat. Place in oven and bake for 35-40 minutes or until sweet potatoes are soft and cooked through. 

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We have another amazing resource for you and your whole body nutrition and health! Perfect Portions is run by registered dietitian, Kaeti Shurling. Kaeti is dedicated to preparing healthy, well-balanced meals for your family in portions perfect for most. The portions are smaller than we are used to, but in most cases provide just what we need! NOTE: Our meals may not be large enough for growing children, athletes or those with rapid metabolisms. Keep in mind for your family, and remember to order extra portions for those who need it. Meals are served up Monday-Thursday of each week! For more information, you can find more information on Kaeti's website HERE! 

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We hope that you enjoy these new recipes! Send us a picture, if you cook these recipes! If you would like to meet with one of our nutrition consultants, Katie Woodall or Caroline Ward, or purchase a month's worth of healthy family meal plans, recipes, and shopping lists please email us to set up an appointment or purchase it on our app! 

Also, check out our new and updated website! You can find more recipes and workouts under the HEALTHY LIVING tab! If you have any questions, please email us at transfitathens@gmail.com. 

Blessings, 

Team TransFit

Living Transformed on Vacation- Tips from Lisa!

Happy Thursday, friends! 

We are SO glad we were back in the studio this week. Each of you brought so much energy and worked so hard. June is off to a great start! We hope that you are joining us for our Light a Fire in You- Squat Challenge! Remember that completing this challenge each day and turning in your calendar at the end of the month, enters you into the drawing for a MONTH OF FREE SESSIONS! Throughout June, we are excited to share our living transformed on vacation tips and ideas from some of our trainers! This week, we will hear from Lisa and what she has to say about how she lives transformed on vacation! 

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Summer is in full swing at our home and I’m enjoying every minute of it!  We have lots of travel plans and I’m excited to practice healthy living even when on the road.  Meal planning, nutrient rich snacks, and fun filled activities keep us feeling our best when away from home.  

Meal planning while on vacation can help save time resulting in yummy meals and snacks and less trips to the grocery. Packing healthy snacks to bring down to the water or in your backpack while touring the town keeps you feeling your best without any unwanted calories.  Many vacations offer the opportunity for biking, walking, swimming, and other outdoor activities.  Take advantage!!!  Your body will feel great and its an awesome way to spend time with your family.  Don’t forget to keep you water bottle close by!  

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Here is a great High Protein Trail Mix that you can pack for the road and bring down to the beach with you! 

High Protein Trail Mix

• 1 cup lightly salted almonds
• 1 cup lightly salted walnuts
• 1/2 cup sunflower seeds
• 1 cup dried cranberries or blueberries
• 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips (leave chocolate chips out if you will be outdoors) 
• 1 tsp. sea salt
• 1 tsp. cinnamon

**For nut allergies, replace the almonds and walnuts with pumpkin seeds & sunflower seeds!

You can always toast the nuts in the oven at 450 degrees for 3-5 minutes first to bring out a rich flavor then toss with favorite mix-ins.

Let the family measure and mix and have fun playing with your favorite combinations. Place 1/4 cup into snack bags and keep in your snack basket! 

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Thank you, Lisa for sharing with us and encouraging us that meal planning is possible and just as important on vacation! You can always refer to our TRANSFORM section of the website for great recipes and workouts, as well as our FREE app! Look out for our future posts from other trainers, as we share and encourage one another to continue to live transformed on vacation! 

We hope to see you in the studio this week! If you have any questions, please email us at transfitathens@gmail.com. 

Blessings, 

Team TransFit 

Jumpstart Your June- Client Spotlight on University Cancer & Blood Center

Hey, friends! Hope you are enjoying this week of sunshine and warm temps! It’s definitely feeling like summertime!

We had an amazing first week of June at the studio! We started off summer at TransFit with a bang!! New KickBox and Flexibility and Core sessions began, along with new Transformer and regular small group training sessions. We are also providing 1-1 sessions for those who would like personal training or specific goals.

The TransFit team wants to challenge each of you to try something new this summer! Sign up for a variety of classes and change up your normal routine. If you’re home with the kids this summer, we have Transformer and TransFlex classes on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday evenings at 7:00 p.m., as well as early morning times. Our goal is to help provide you more opportunities for time in the studio with us to help you reach your transformation goals! Log into our MindBody app and find a new class that fits your schedule! You’re guaranteed to work different muscle groups and meet new friends!

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Today, we want to feature a group of clients who tried something new. We’re very proud of their commitment to whole body transformation at home and in their workplace, and we want to share with you their transformation stories!

Located here in Athens, University Cancer and Blood Center (UCBC) recently participated in TransFit’s corporate wellness program. More than 30 of their employees signed up for a 12-week journey to better health and nutrition!

TransFit’s Nutrition Consultant Katie Woodall visited the UCBC weekly highlighting a different nutrition topic at each session. Starting with the foundation of good nutrition, she also provided a plan for adding exercise to their everyday routine. The group covered topics like cleaning out the pantry/fridge, eating healthy on-the-go and at restaurants, meal prepping, the shopping pathway at the grocery store and much more.

Participants received weekly meal plans that also included grocery shopping lists and recipes, as well as, an exercise plan for each week. This group was always up for the challenge! We challenged them throughout the program to food journaling, eating more fruits and vegetables, and drinking up to 100 ounces of water. Of course, prizes were involved for challenge winners and at the end of the program for individuals with the most progress!

But one of the keys to their transformation was accountability, and UCBC understood that for their employees’ success with the program! Participants weighed in each week to help them stay on track with their progress and toward reaching their goals. At the beginning and end of the program, we took body measurements, including body fat percentage and body mass index (BMI).

We want to highlight a few of their successes…

Josh

Lost 22.8 pounds, 4.2% body fat & reduced his BMI 3.1 points!

Pam

Lost 18.2 pounds, 13.5 inches, 3.6% body fat & reduced her BMI 2.9 points!

Lyndie

Lost 9.2 pounds, 8.75 inches, 2.7% body fat!

Tessa

Lost 9.4 pounds, 15 inches, 3.6% body fat!

Tracy

Lost 17.6 pounds, 18.5 inches, & reduced her BMI 2.9 points!

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One of the clients, Pam, had incredible results that she wanted to share. 

"When our physicians presented the opportunity for our office staff to have nutritional counseling, I jumped at the chance to participate.  The idea of having someone provide a meal plan with recipes really appealed to me and I was tired of the excess weight that I had gained.

I am fortunate to have a husband that was willing to try the meal plan and have my food ready when I came home each day so that was helpful, but I did the prep work on Sunday and found that to be an exciting part of the week.  I found myself being more aware of the nutritional value of the items that I was purchasing and started buying a variety of vegetables and fruits.  I also found that I was sleeping better and had more energy since giving up processed items and diet drinks.  I enjoyed getting back to walking and having the energy to do my 3 miles several times a week.  My biggest accomplishment was finding that my lab work and blood pressure had returned to a normal result when I had my physical near the end of our 12 week plan.  This was so exciting to me since diabetes and heart disease are illnesses in my family history.  I felt like a winner!

I have continued to be aware of my dietary intake and still have a few pounds to lose before I look to maintaining my weight, but I feel that this goal is attainable.  I still enjoy my morning smoothies or yogurt parfait for breakfast and love my crockpot recipes for our supper.  I am so glad that I have all of my meal plans, recipes, and nutritional information that we received to use as my guide as I continue this pathway to healthy living.  I'm grateful to our physicians for getting this program in the work place and for my coworkers that provided encouraging words along the journey."

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Many others were committed to the 12-week program! They attended weekly nutrition sessions and weigh-ins, food journaled and exercised regularly. Individuals with success toward their transformation goals were consistent with good nutrition and exercise and had amazing results!

We are proud of each of them for trying something new, whether it was exercising or incorporating nutritious foods into their everyday lifestyle. UCBC and their program’s participants recognized the value of whole body health and made a commitment to honor their bodies with better nutrition. TransFit helped by giving them a plan, extra motivation and encouragement, and most importantly accountability!

Do you own a business and want to learn more about TransFit’s corporate wellness programs? Email transfitathens@gmail.com for more information. We would love to help your employees transform in reaching their whole body health goals!

The secret to reduce stress and stay organized for your healthy lifestyle!

Good Morning sweet friends! 

Many of you have met my dear friend and now TransFit Nutrition Consultant,  Katie Woodall. Today, I wanted to give her an opportunity to share with you her best nutrition advice and a fabulous secret! 

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Hey guys! I am Katie Woodall, a Certified Nutrition Consultant for TransFit! I have loved working out side-by-side with a lot of you at the TransFit studio. It’s my pleasure to share my love for nutrition with each of you today! 

Who wants to reduce stress and stay organized??? I know we all do- so here is the solution for you — meal planning! This was one of my 2015 New Year’s Resolutions. It not only saved me time after time from asking, “What’s for dinner,” but it kept me organized at home and at the grocery store. Instead of walking into the store with no plans and wandering up and down aisles, and back across the store because I forgot something, I went to the store with a plan! And a plan can help you spend less — as long as you stick to it!

Like most people, our New Year’s Resolutions include losing weight and toning up. Well, meal planning helps with your fitness goals, too! Muscles start in the kitchen, right?! I often tell people that you can work out 6 or even 7 days a week, but until you make healthier choices in the kitchen, nothing will change! You can start by organizing your family’s weekly meals.

3 Simple Steps to Getting Your Meals Organized

1. Set aside a day and time to plan! Put it on your calendar if you have to! Saturdays and Sundays typically work best, even if it’s just 30 minutes or one hour set aside.

When you find your block of time that works best, sit down with your healthy recipes and start planning for the week ahead. Include meals for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. Yes, plan your snacks! Even if it’s a protein bar, write it down! One of TransFit’s blank meal plans can prove to be very useful.

2. Stay cost conscious! If you want to save a little extra money that week, take a look at the sale papers and plan your meals accordingly. What meats are on sale? Consider which fruits and veggies are in season.

3. Create your game plan! Once your week’s planned out, you can easily make your grocery shopping list. If you’re like me, I usually incorporate 2-3 shopping trips a week for fresh produce and meat to last through the weekend. After your calendar is full, go back and organize a grocery shopping list. Try to separate your list into different sections, like produce, dairy, dry or canned goods, etc. to make shopping even easier! And also when you’re at the store, it can help hold you accountable to your list and avoiding those extra items or treats around the store!

Let us help! Are you adding “Meal Planning” to your calendar right now or wondering still how to find the time for it? I’d love to help you! Part of TransFit’s nutrition services is meal planning. So if you’d like to save time, I can take the stress of meal planning away from you! I can create fresh meal plans for you and your family, including the recipes, and add one of our newest features — grocery shopping lists! 

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To make changing yours or your family's nutrition habits a breeze, let TransFit help you through the Healthy Family Meal Plan which can be found here http://www.transfitathens.com/new-products/healthy-family-meal-plan

or a Personalized Nutrition Plan found here

http://www.transfitathens.com/new-products/one-on-one-nutrition-consultation

These options and many more can be found in the TransFit shop! 

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To give you an idea of what a typical, healthy family meal plan from TransFit looks like, I’ve included one here. That’s five meals a day for seven days! Also, we’re sharing a few recipes from this plan, too.

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Strawberry Spinach Salad with Balsamic Fig Dressing

Ingredients: (serves 2)

Dressing -

• 1⁄4 cup balsamic vinegar

• 1 tablespoon fig preserves

• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

• salt to taste

• 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

Salad -

• 1 (10 oz) package of baby spinach leaves

• 1⁄2 Cup Craisins

• 1 cup Strawberries hulled & sliced thin

• 1⁄2 cup cooked, shelled edamame

• 4 oz crumbled Goat Cheese

• 1/2 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped

Preparation:
Mix vinegar, pepper, mustard, salt, and olive oil in a small bowl with whisk. In a large salad bowl, toss the remaining ingredients together. Drizzle the dressing over the salad and serve. Top with grilled chicken or salmon! Goes perfectly with homemade pita chips Enjoy! 

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Healthy Chicken Nuggets  

• 6 oz. boneless, skinless chicken breast (cut into 1⁄2 inch pieces) 2 pinches salt

• 2 pinch pepper

• 1 pinch garlic powder

• 2 tbsp light extra virgin olive oil

• 1 cup whole wheat breadcrumbs (or almond meal for lower carb option) 

• Olive oil cooking spray

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Toss chicken in olive oil and then season chicken with salt, pepper, and garlic. Dip the chicken in bread crumbs until coated completely. Roll until nicely coated. Lightly coat a cookie sheet with spray and place the nuggets onto the tray and then into the oven. Bake until golden brown and cooked through (about 10-15 minutes).   

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For more on how we can help you organize your family meal plans, please email Katie at katie@transfitathens.com. Or if you’d like to learn more about our nutrition consulting services, log on to http://www.transfitathens.com/nutrition/.

Have an amazing weekend! 

Team TransFit