Samantha K Schmidt

Eating healthy is hard to do when you are constantly on the go. One of the easiest ways to stay healthy is to cook at home, but whether you are a working girl or a busy stay at home mom it's hard to find time to cook nutritious meals. That's why meal planning can be such a life saver. Here are a few ways to minimize your meal stress and stay healthy all week long.

When you think of bodybuilding you might think of Arnold Schwarzenegger. When you think of women bodybuilding you probably think of something like this: This look isn't for everyone and the stereotype tends to keep most women away from this level of fitness, but bodybuilding isn't all about ultra tans and outrageously large physiques. It's about creating a lean, strong body. So if you are reading to get stronger, here are a few tips. Find a Plan I suggest a plan made specifically for women. Male training programs don't take into account the natural limitations of the female body. That's why I like this plan by Jamie Eason. It's a plan for women designed by one. Customize Your Plan Don't be afraid to adjust the routine and exercises. I couldn't do more than 10 push-ups when I first started working out so I switched the push ups for a bench press until I gained some strength. Sometimes I'd even combine all my arm workouts into one day ...

Every now and then I get a serious carnivore craving. Today I was craving buffalo chicken, so I thought I'd try my hand at a vegetarian version. Ingredients: 1/4 cup of Barbecue Sauce 1/2 tablespoon of Hot Sauce 1 tablespoon grape jelly (optional) Chicken Substitute (I used Veggie Patch Nuggets) Directions: ~ Cook chicken substitute according to package directions ~ Meanwhile mix your sauces together in a shallow bowl ~ Toss the "chicken" in the sauce ~ Enjoy! This recipe is great because you can mix it up for different flavor. I prefer my buffalo sauce a little sweeter so I added jelly, you can leave it out for more spice. You can also water down the sauce to make a thinner coat. The choice is up to you.

Today I signed up for the Princess Half Marathon! This will actually be my second half marathon, but last year I ran this baby for the first time and man was that an achievement. A half marathon is a huge commitment, so before you register here are some things to consider: What's your pace? You should be running at least a 15 minute mile in order to finish. I seriously suggest having a 5k under your belt before committing to a half marathon. It will give you some race experience and give you an estimate of your finish time. Do you have the time? Training for a race is a serious time commitment. My training program is 19 weeks long, but if this is your first half you may want to train a bit longer. That means 3 times a week for 6 or more months. Find a running buddy to keep you motivated and plan runs even when you're on vacation. Do you have the money? Maybe you aren't running a Disney race (which is pricey but totally worth it), but the cost of any race can still b...

It seems like everyone get's fitness crazy over the summer months, obsessed with getting the perfect bikini bod. Well if you are a fitness junkie and you're not using MyFitnessPal... what are you using? MyFitnessPal boasts 50 million users that have lost weight using their app, but it's not a weight loss plan. It's an all in one accountability app and it all starts with your personal profile. It starts with a few easy questions which the app uses to set your daily nutritional goals including calories, protein, and carbohydrates. You can also customize these goals. For example if you are diabetic you can adjust the amount of sugar you are allowed to intake each day. The next step is to log your daily input and output. MyFitnessPal's inventory contains foods from every brand and nearly every restaurant, and if you can't find it you can always add it yourself. You can also save your favorite meals to add them easily later. You can also log all of your da...

I hope you all had a fabulous 4th of July weekend. If you read Friday's post you know my weekend consisted of the 48 hour cleanse . I will say that overall the cleanse was successful, but dreadful. Friday we went to Fresh Market and prepared all of the weekend meals. Here is a breakdown of what we ate. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are the same for the 2 days. Breakfast: Quinoa with Prunes *this wasn't as dreadful as it could've been, but by day two I was not having those prunes. Lunch: Blueberry Smoothie *probably the most delicious of the cleanse meals Dinner: Vegetable Broth *plain tasting, but not terrible (except for the cabbage smell seeping through your pores afterward) Snack: Kale Smoothie, Pineapple/Pomegranate Drink, and Vegetables *our ninja didn't cut it for blending the kale it was grainy and gross, pineapple drink was okay, and I couldn't eat enough carrots to get full The cleanse does it's job. It cleanses your liver, kidney, and...

Today is Fourth of July and if you are like the majority of the American population you are going to eat (and drink) way too much. Saturday morning you'll probably be having some serious regrets. Well don't fret. I found a 48 hour cleanse that will put you back on track. I went on a mini-vaca this week and after only two days I had gained 4 pounds! (I blame it on the sangria.) Needless to say I was feeling pretty awful and wanted to find a way to clean out all the awful things I had ingested. So I found a cleanse that I knew I could stick to and if you are doubting the efficiency it's Dr. Oz approved. The 48 Hour Cleanse Here you will find a shopping list as well as recipes for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks. I already prepped my meals and snapped a few pictures of the final products. Breakfast Lunch Dinner Don't forget to come back Monday for an update.

My favorite veggie burger of all time is the Vegefi from Burgerfi. If you haven't tried it, do yourself a favor and devour one. It has a very similar texture to meat and toppings make you nostalgic for backyard barbecues. Even my non-vegetarian friends love this burger and often prefer it to the real thing. I've been trying to find a copycat recipe for the Vegefi for a long time. After much searching I came across one, but the recipe was ridiculous. I'm really not much of a cook (you can tell from my directions below), so I managed to minimize the list of ingredients without minimizing the taste. Here are my Simple Homemade Veggie Burgers Ingredients: 1 box of Nature's Earthly Choice - Garden Vegetable Quinoa (This brand is my favorite, because all the vegetables are included) 2 eggs 1 cup of breadcrumbs 1/4 cup of shredded gouda Canola Oil Directions: ~ Cook the quinoa according to the directions on the box ~ In a medium sized bowl beat eggs ~ Add the quin...