When it comes to getting or staying healthy (especially in this season), the key to your success is going to be SIMPLICITY!
No, I’m not saying your food has to be bland, or your workouts have to be boring in order for you to be successful….that is NOT the case…..but what I AM saying is that your chances of success go up dramatically if your approach to your meal prep and workouts is uncomplicated. The definition of the word simple is “easily done or understood and uncomplicated in nature, form or design”.
Well, my friends, I am going to be sharing both a RECIPE as well as a WORKOUT today that will qualify as SIMPLE!
When things are simple, we are much more likely to follow through and repeat the process. Repetition, as you may or may not know, is the mother of all success!
Let’s start with the recipe! I am a HUGE fan of one-pan and one-pot meals, and during this week’s Meal Prep Monday in the AKOS Nutrition Community Group on Facebook I made a super-simple and DELICIOUS one-pan turkey and butternut squash meal.
Check it out here:
One-Pan Turkey and Butternut Squash
Serves 6
Ingredients
1 Tbsp. Avocado or Olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb. ground turkey (or grass-fed ground beef)
2 lbs. butternut squash, cubed
2 tsp ground cumin, divided
1 tsp smoked paprika, divided
1 tsp salt, divided (I like Redmond Real Salt)
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (optional)
1/2 cup water
2-3 big handfuls of baby spinach
1/4 cup goat cheese crumbles (optional, eliminate this is you would like the recipe to be dairy-free)
Directions
1. Spray a large skillet with cooking spray (I like Chosen Foods Avocado Oil Spray) and saute onion and garlic until slightly browned.
2. Push the onion and garlic to the outside edges of the pan, add your oil to the center and place your ground turkey in the pan to begin browning.
3. Add in 1 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp smoked paprika and 1/2 tsp salt.
4. Once the turkey is cooked thoroughly, add in the butternut squash along with an additional 1 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp smoked paprike, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper. Add in 1/2 cup water and stir thoroughly.
5. Cook covered, on medium heat for approximately 8-10 minutes, or until fork tender.
6. Uncover and add the baby spinach, stir until wilted and top with the crumbled goat cheese (optional)
7. Enjoy!
Now, let’s talk about the workouts……….
If you have heard me talk about what we can do to protect our immune system, you know that one VERY POWERFUL thing we can do is get active for 20-30 minutes per day.
Here are a few of the theories behind why this may be true:
1️⃣ Physical activity may help flush the bad guys from your lungs and airways.
2️⃣ Exercise causes positive changes in our antibodies and white blood cells, our bodies natural way of fighting off illness.
3️⃣ The rise in body temperature may help our body more efficiently fight off infection. (Similar to what happens when we have a fever)
4️⃣ Exercise slows the release of stress hormones, and we know that stress increases our chance of illness. So, by reducing stress, we reduce our chances of getting sick.
If you are looking for a great class to work your whole body (and required ZERO equipment!), LOOK NO FURTHER!
Today’s Get Strong class is an amazing workout to target all of the major muscle groups of your body as well as majorly strengthen your core. Coach Kirk taught LIVE at 6am this morning, and you will have a SECOND opportunity to catch this workout LIVE at 2pm with Coach Andrew.
To watch the 6am recording with Coach Kirk:
To continue getting the links to the replays on these amazing workouts, be sure to visit www.functionaleffect.com and enter your email information at the top of the page!
PS – See you tomorrow morning for our “Get Flexible” class with ME, at 6am and 2pm. If you plan on joining us for tomorrow’s live 6am workout, please be sure to use this link:
https://zoom.us/j/9202940253?pwd=TzE2QUpvZUxwU3lhc3JCT3JIY3gzUT09
