What is it?

For a long time I have put off doing what I know I love and crazy enough NEED to do...dance. It fuels and feeds me. It pours out of me and yet pours into me. I connect and it focuses me. It some how takes my eyes off me?! How can that be? But if I think about how I was created, who I was created by it makes perfect sense.

For a long time (especially this past year) I felt guilty about this desire, longing and need to dance. I didn't fully believe that God had put the desire there and that it was just me being...selfish? (Wow sometimes when you write your thoughts out they look kind of dumb). After 4 weeks of attending a contemporary dance class I feel full, overflowing, and energized, yet grounded. Yes.



I write this to issue a challenge....GO. Do it. What burns in your heart, mind and soul? You know what it is. Here, read the above statements and instead of "dance", replace it with what is burning in your heart right now.

Please don't let fear of...whatever....stop you. A good friend of mine quoted a speaker who said "so your scared?....well do it scared!!!"

Attending the dance class with other dancers who have technique coming out of...everywhere and being the one who needs help and patience is not easy. I fail constantly in the class. But I am failing at attempting something that gives so much back. So go fail, fall, stumble and get your hands dirty, take your pride and hang it up for a while (you don't really need it anyway).

Let's Dance!
Grace and peace,
Annette

Some Christmas perspective

'Tis the season to be( )...you can fill in the rest. I know for me it's the season when all I want to do is mow down on holiday goodies and push my workouts to the side. It would be nice if those behaviors lead to love joy and peace inside but I have to be honest...there has been some self loathing going on. Just recently I was reminded of some things I wrote on perspective. Heck this whole Christmas thing is not about us anyway...


This is a shout out to all the women out there who are feeling less than beautiful. This is a an invitation to all ladies who do not see themselves as they should.

We have so much pressure and stress on us, how do we get by? Everything around us screams, "You are not pretty, thin, fit, healthy, or beautiful enough...be like us...we are real".

I have news for those around us who scream such things... "You are not real, we are."

Woman rise up, woman wake up, shake yourselves off and be. Be you. Simple? Yet it's really not.

Who is that voice telling you "no, don't eat that, don't touch that, don't wear that, don't be that"....I hate that voice. And yet i listen. It makes me feel confused. When i listen to that voice I forget who I am. I forget what I look like, i lose my perspective. Ahh, perspective, a very important word for us women. We need it like we need water. I argue most of us don't have it. Why? Because most of us want to be somebody else but who we are. "Prove it" you say? O.k most of us want to be 10lbs lighter, our skin colour is too dark or too light, our hair is too curly or too straight. We are too fat, we need to stay skinny.....thin...whatever...whatever they look like in the magazines...we need to look like that...they are real.

But are they?

Why are we hurting ourselves over these things?

There is a devil and he is trying to take your joy by 1st taking your perspective. He knows if he can get your perspective and if he can only distort how you see yourself then he has you.

He does that because a women is a powerful weapon in that hand of God. If only we knew how powerful. When we focus on food, our bodies, and image we loose sight of what God has created us to do. We become side tracked with calories and things that don't really matter (and yet they can consume us and our lives).

You are not alone. You need to know that.

The CN tower looks HUGE if you stand at the bottom and look up. However, if you hop on a plane and look straight down, how big does that tower look now? It is nothing but a dot. It is all about perspective.

The reality is that you are seated in heavenly places with Jesus Christ. You are not alone, nor do you have to go through this alone.

The function of the body of Christ is to function as the body of Christ.
If you need to talk, I am here.
-Annette

Black Beans to the Rescue! Recipie included

Beans beans the magical fruit!

A couple of days ago, I was needing something to "dip". I get into "dipping" moods. So I threw some things into my blender and came out with this delicious black bean recipe. Make sure your dipping WHOLE GRAIN whatevers (crackers, pita, bread etc). Whole grain is key for helping your system to effectively metabolize what's going in (as in SPEEDS IT UP yeahee as supposed to turning it into fat bla!). Dipping veggies is the best idea and what a great way to get your veggies in!


In short black beans are
-high in fiber
-high in protein
-high in iron (ladies we really need this!)
-low on the glycemic index (slow absorption into blood stream)
-loaded with antioxidants
-cheap ($.89/can)



I simply tossed the following into my mini blender...

1/2can of RINSED black beans: Rinsing the beans gets rid of 40% of the sodium listed

3 cloves of garlic: It was potent...you may want to take it down a bit, the garlic was talking to me all day :)

1 tablespoon of Extra Virgin Olive oil: Healthy fat people! Get it in. Your body needs it.
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Dash of lemon peel and squeeze of real lemon: grate a touch of a washed lemon into the mix (the peel contains limonene which helps stimulate our antioxidant detoxification enzyme system which helps stop cancer before it can begin)

1/4 cup soft Tofu OR tablespoon plain yogurt: Depending on whether you are trying to avoid dairy or not. I did it with tofu, it made it really nice and creamy!

Salt and pepper to taste.

The following is a link PLEASE READ!!! as to why beans are so dang good for you. Believe me after you read it you'll want to make them a staple. And people they're CHEAP! :) Which I appreciate.

http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=2#healthbenefits

Remedie for cold days and dark mornings::Salsa

Getting into my car at 5:30am when it's dark and cold is just...not fun. I can feel the winter months creeping up on me. Longing for the warmpth that summer offeres I pop in a Salsa CD. Magically I am teleported to a warm destination, my hips start to to move and suddenly the heat from the music invades my whole body. Folks Annette has left the building (do not fret I still have two hands on the wheel and eyes fixed on the road:)

Arriving at my destination I am thankful for the 20min fiesta! I feel awake, pumped and happy to be alive (all at 6:00am in the morning, with out caffeine I might add).

This morning I salute the countries and cultures that have brought us Northerners the gift of warmth and love that Salsa offers . I encourage those of you who are mourning the change of seasons to take a dose of this live giving stuff. Go take a class, hit up a club or simply enjoy on your Ipod. This time of year (well anytime of year actually) it's guaranteed to put a warm smile on your face.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mv1ZsSrE03o

Muchos besos,
Annette

The Fight

This morning for the first day in a while I awoke and felt depressed. Don't get me wrong I have fought this battle many times before, but for some reason I thought I was out of the woods. I didn't want to get out of bed, I didn't want to read and do my daily devotions, I didn't want to eat healthy or exercise. Can anyone feel me on this one? It seemed like there was something at war with me, something that didn't want me to do anything that might make my situation better.

O.K so million dollar question....What did I do?

Eventually I got up, did some reading had a some what healthy breakfast
-Yogert, honey, oats
-Bran, rice milk, w too much brown sugar
-tea

Then I did it...what I really REALLY didn't want to do.

I ran. Some hills, some sprints, walked when I needed to and talked to and cheered on others who were also out and about on this blistery day.

Ask me if I feel better now?
Yes, yes I do. Not perfect, there is still "stuff" going on. But the positive thing is that I am not a lump on my bed feeling sorry for myself.

Why am I sharing all this with you?

In hopes that when you wakeup and are hit with one of these days, that you will take action, happen to life and get out there. It's a fight and sometimes you have to grit your teeth bear down and JUST DO IT. FIGHT.

Here's to a great day.
Peace and love.

Check out this awesome dish that will keep you going!

Today as I was rushing out of the house to train a client I needed something fast to gulp down after my workout. Take a look at this simple yet high in iron and protein salad. It litteraly took me 5 min or less to make. Pair it with a cup of green tea (jasmine is my fav) and boy were talking energy for the day!!!

pre washed spinach
Half a can of lentals (drained and rinsed)
small handful of almonds
whole grain bread toasted and drizzled with olive oil (cut and used as crutons)
little dalop of mayo (half a teaspoon?) (o.k so you can pass on the mayo if you are looking to cut the fat out)
Drizzle olive oil over all
Squeeze fresh lemon over all
shake of basil over all....

Stir it all together and mmmmm.... satisfying, fresh, high in iron, protein and not to mention delish!

"Girl"..."Where the heck is your protein?"

Sitting down to dig into my huge delicious salad personal trainer and Pro Canadian sprinter Karin, comes up to me and says "Is that ALL your eating?". Confused I reply "yeah?" (hello Karin, this is a salad it's like the healthiest thing I can put in my body...isn't it?). Shaking her head in disgust she begins to reveal one of the secrets that has since changed my life (and metabolism) forever. "Girl" she says "Where the heck is your protein?"

This is a question I am now going to ask you. "Where the heck is your protein?"

Why does it even matter you might ask?

let's let Dr Joey Shulman author of The Last 15, answer that for us (she's the pro:)...

Protein is essential for overall health-for muscle repair, hormonal balance, immune system function and for weight loss. Protein also triggers the secretion of a hormone called glucagon (good guy) which opposes insulin's (bad guy) action and breaks down fat. In other words, the hormones glucagon and insulin are enemies and cannot stand being in the same room with each other! When one is present or us, the other chooses to be down and leaves the room.

Also...

In addition to protein's hormonal advantage of secreting glucagon and breaking down fat, it is also important to mention the thermic effect of food (TEF). The thermic effect of food refers to the calories you use up daily in digesting the food you eat (yes our digestive system is actually one of the larger calorie burners in our body). This is approximately 10% of all the calories you consume. When it comes to protein, around 25% to 30% of the calories derived from protein are used up in its metabolism. This is significantly higher when compared to 6% to 8% of every 100 calories of carbohydrates and just 2% to 3% of fat. In other words protein is harder to metabolize and therefore burns more calories. Research also shows that protein satieties you longer, creating a fuller feeling and causing you to eat less.

Remember when eating ask yourself "What is my protein source?"

Men you need 5 to 7 ounces of protein/meal
Ladies 4 to 6

*cut of your fingers and the palm of your hand or a deck of cards is 3 ounces.