Peyton Kathleen

Random thoughts of the week The end of the school year is swiftly approaching! I can't believe it ends in 5 weeks! I am in love with Origins skincare products. A good friend once told me "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure!". So eye wrinkle cream and skin rejuvenation, I'll take it! A healthy and nutrient rich diet plays a big role in clear skin, but I love the finish and glow from these products.  I am heading home to Keller this weekend! Lately I have been developing an anxiety about driving and road trips. I don't know what has been causing this, but prayers for safe travel are always appreciated! My dad, older brother William and I are planning a hiking trip in late July! We are going to hike Mount Elbert in Colorado. I have only been hiking once before, so I am ready for another go at it. Highest summit in the Rocky Mountains! I'm obsessed with Yolanda Foster, she   posted this on Instagram and I carried the messag...

In less than three weeks, my parents will graduate their third child from Texas A&M! Our parents have been extremely generous paying for all of our higher education, and to top it off, offering a graduation gift at the end of it. My older brother, being the practical man that he is, opted to get Lasik eye surgery. Me, being the whimsical woman that I am, wanted a trip to Paris! I am a firm believer that a joy is only fully appreciated if it is shared with another. I decided to hold off on cashing in my grad present until my sister Allison graduated so we could go together. Two and a half years later, here we are!  The four men of the family took a trip to Ireland last summer, so we decided that Paris would be a girls trip. We booked our tickets, and started looking at renting apartments in Paris on different travel websites. Paris bound babes! 6/6/15 I was chatting about our trip one day at school, asking for advice and a fellow teacher gave us an incredible rec...

This month I made commitments to myself to 1. Not drink any alcohol and 2. Continue with my workouts and meal plan. I knew with preparation and discipline, I could easily maintain my goals, even when out of town. This weekend my boyfriend was a groomsman in one of the most beautiful weddings I have ever attended! When packing for the trip, I made sure that the hotel we were staying at had a fridge and microwave in the room. I made a list of how many meals I would be out of town for and started preparing.  I hard boiled eggs, bagged almonds, and grabbed some lunches and dinners from Snap Kitchen. I put everything in a cooler and was ready to go! Friday I did my early a.m. workout, had a protein shake then an hour later had 2 hard boiled eggs and 2 pieces of bacon. Around 12:00 I had salmon, zucchini and cauliflower. Then we hit the road for Tyler! That night at the rehearsal dinner, I figured there would be healthy options and I was in luck! I filled my plate wi...

This week has zipped by! I took off work tomorrow for a friends wedding this weekend in Tyler, TX. I am excited to post how I prepare for a healthy weekend when traveling! Most likely to be up on Sunday when we get back. Some random thoughts I have been having recently are, "Why would anyone stop by my blog to get advice or encouragement? There are thousands of fitness blogs out there, why should women spend their time looking at mine?" As I worked out this morning, I thought of a few reasons I hope my journey and encouragement resonate with other women.. First of all, I am not in the "fitness industry". Many of the women we pin or follow are fitness models, promotional girls for different supplements/protein powders, or personal trainers. I, however, am just a 6th grade teacher. I work from 7 to 4 (sometimes later) and am on my feet 90% of that time. I sit in faculty meetings, planning periods, and grade papers. Fitness and health have to come before or aft...

This weekend I started reading "It Starts With Food: Discover the Whole30" by Dallas and Melissa Hartwig. I've been plowing through it, learning a ton, and it hit me: most people probably haven't READ a paleo book. If I was to guess, I would say most people have skimmed a few articles, pinned a few recipes, or have seen some food pictures with "hashtag paleo" on Instagram. If my blog or any posts have interested you in the paleo lifestyle, grab a book on it! And then read it! Cover to cover! Highlighting valuable info, taking notes in the margins, tabbing pages. Then when you are done, keep it on a book stand in your kitchen for a quick resource guide.  I know so many people who think "Oh Paleo, okay so just meat, vegetables and fruit. Cool, I can do that." Stop right there! Fad diets come and go, and so does weight and overall health. Doing something without educating yourself is a guaranteed way to fail/quit/or jump on the bandwagon of any ne...

Ingredients: l lb grass-fed ground beef 2 cups spinach, chopped 2 carrots, diced 1 parsnip, diced 1 zucchini, diced 2 bell peppers, diced 1 can organic diced tomatoes 1 spaghetti squash, cooked and shredded with a fork 1/2 tsp onion powder 1/2 tsp chili powder 1/2 tsp cumin 1 tsp garlic, minced Salt and pepper to taste Directions: 1.Preheat oven to 375 degrees. 2. Prepare spaghetti squash by poking holes all around it with a fork or knife. Place in microwave for 5 minutes. Cut in half then shred squash with a fork. Set aside. 3. Dice spinach, carrots, parsnip, zucchini, and bell peppers. Add 1 tablespoon bacon grease to a pan over medium/high heat. Add vegetables and saute with some garlic. Add can of drained diced tomatoes. Sautee until vegetables can easily be poked through with a fork. 4. Put vegetables aside; begin to brown ground beef. Add onion powder, chili powder and cumin.  5. Pour vegetables back on top of beef and...

Bring it with me everywhere! I am on my fifth week of keeping a food log and I love it. I have learned a few things along the way that have helped me be successful and consistent. There are so many ways to track food intake, from apps to old fashion pen on paper, so modify these suggestions in anyway that makes this doable for you! 1. Write down what you eat as soon as you are finished. A few times I would forget to write down my dinners and the next morning I would think "Okay what did I have? Was that last night or the night before.." It is so much easier to get it down on paper as soon as it has been consumed!  2. Track your water. I have a water bottle that tells me how many ounces I have drank. I tally mark every full bottle I drink. My goal is always at least a gallon a day.  3. BE HONEST! Even if you don't keep an honest food log, your body will! Just do it, even if it sucks to admit that you overindulged. That crummy feeling will help you rethink chea...

My last day of the 21 Day Sugar Detox is Sunday, but I will be out of town and have today off so...perfect time to update! This week I have seen the biggest drop on the scale. From Day 1 to Day 19 I have lost between 5 and 6 pounds.  Taking a body selfie is not easy!  Day 11 vs Day 19 I don't see a huge difference but I keep reminding myself that weight loss and toning happens all over! I think my face and thighs have trimmed down and maybe a little around my waist line. This morning at my workout my trainer goes, "Good god you look different!". So maybe it is just because I look at myself everyday that I don't notice changes as much!  My most frequently asked questions so far: Do you really not crave sugar anymore? Hahahaha. No. I think about it all the time. Exhibit A: BUT I can live without it! If I wait long enough and drink enough water the craving passes and I move on.  What do you do when you go out to dinner? That has only h...

Saying "no" when someone offers you food can be down right awkward. I have had people look completely insulted as I say "no thank you" to the homemade pie they brought to our meeting. Food is a way to bond with people and someone put time and effort into making it, so it feels like an insult whenever it is turned down. However, my first few months of being a new teacher, I gained a significant amount of weight. And I put it on quickly! Around this time two years ago, I went on a river trip with some friends from college. One of the rather drunk ex-fraternity guys looked at me and said, "Someone needs to stay out of the teachers lounge!". It honestly was the most horrifying moment of my adult life; it was painful and wrong of him to say. But...it was true. I never turned down food at school, at happy hours, at home. Anywhere.  I called my mom and I remember telling her I had gained eight pounds and needed to start losing it. I remember saying "It...