Category: Books
Leisure Arts Knitting Book Review
September 21, 2019
Recently I was contacted by Leisure Arts and asked to review some of their new knitting books. These books are new releases and available for purchase from Leisure Arts.
The first book is called Slow Fashion Made Fast by Alexandra Tavel. This book contains 12 different knitting projects all made with super bulky #6 weight yarn. There are a wide variety of projects in this book. All projects are rated easy so even beginner knitters should be able to complete these patterns. You will find a chunky basket, a cowl, scarves, a shrug, a poncho, a wall hanging, a blanket and a cute and easy to knit bag. I really liked the bag – called the Slouchy Tote – and have started knitting that pattern in the last week. I was happy to find some yarn in my stash that would work for this pattern – it is the Lion brand Wool Ease, Thick and Quick.
Below is a photo of the bag I have started. The whole thing is knit in the round so there is no seam. It is knit with big needles, size US 15, so it works up very quickly. If you click on the photo above, titled Slow Fashion Made Fast, it will take you to the Leisure Arts page and you can view a better photo of the finished bag.
The other book I was asked to review is called Casual Weekend Knits by Andi Javori. This book is filled with 25 various projects. There are various cowls, scarves, ponchos, hats and a couple of bags and some boot cuffs you can make from this book. If you click on the image below it will take you to a view of the book at Leisure Arts and more details of the projects that are in this book.
Most of the knitting projects in Casual Weekends Knits are knit with a #4 weight yarn. There are a few that call for bulky or super bulky but the majority of them are medium weight. There is a cute knit headband in the book seen in the below photo that I will probably start as my next project after finishing my slouchy bag.
I feel like both of these books are a great addition to any knitters library. They both offer a wide variety of projects that would be great to get started on for gifts for this holiday season.
Note: This post contains affiliate links. All reviews are my own opinion.
Stripe It Your Way Crochet Book Review
April 4, 2018
Recently I was given the opportunity from Leisure Arts to review a copy of the book Stripe It Your Way Crochet for Home & Fashion by Kristi Simpson. This book is a new publication from Leisure Arts.
Stripe It Your Way Crochet is for all levels of crocheters. All of the projects in the book are an easy level so a person who is just beginning to crochet should be able to complete these projects and an advanced crocheter will enjoy working on something simple and quick to complete.
The projects in this book are for fashion accessories and for home decor items. All of the projects use medium weight yarn and a size H, I, J or M hook. I love the look of the various stripe patterns the designer has used with each of the projects.
One of the projects that caught my attention was the Star Blanket. I have always wanted to crochet a motif style blanket and after seeing this pattern I decided I would make this one. So far it is coming along, I am using my own color scheme with Hobby Lobby, I Love This Yarn in 5 different colors. The blanket will look great in our living room when I finish it. The pattern seems to work up quickly and is easy to follow. You have to pay attention to the color changes though at the appropriate times as per the directions in the pattern.
Below is a photo of my version of the Star Blanket that I have completed so far. I am on the third color out of five for the blanket.
The Lacy Wrap is another project in the book I may start after finishing the Star Blanket. This wrap is crocheted with an openwork type of stitch and features a border of flower fringe on the ends. I think it will be a great spring or summer project.
If you like to crochet with medium weight yarn and enjoy striped patterns I think you will love this book. You can click Here or on any of the Stripe It Your Way Crochet photos above to take you to the Leisure Arts site where you can order your copy of this crochet book. *The links are affiliate links but all opinions in this blog post are my own.
-Kimberlee
New Cookbooks for the New Year
January 14, 2017
I want to share a couple of new cookbooks I recently received. They were both gifts from my oldest son this past Christmas. He usually asks me what books I would like, especially after last Mother’s Day when he bought me two juicing – smoothie books I already owned. I have learned it is best to give him a list of a few and just tell him to pick one or two. This past Christmas he bought me Meat Free Monday and Inspiralize Everything.
I really like both of the cookbooks a lot. I have already tried many of the recipes from the Meat Free Monday book. The idea of this book is to go meat free for one day each week, specifically Monday – even if you are not a vegetarian. This campaign was launched by Paul, Mary and Stella McCartney in 2009.
There is a whole menu for each of the different seasons: Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter with 13 weeks of meat free recipes for each season. The recipes are fairly easy to follow and the book has a lot of really nice photos of the recipes. There is a recipe for breakfast, lunch, sides, snacks, dinner-main course, and a dessert for each week.
So far I have tried these recipes:
- Winter Fruit Salad
- Lentil, Chickpea, Cheddar and Onion Burgers
- Black Eyed Bean Casserole
- Apple Cake
- Roasted Vegetables and Miso Dressing with Sesame Seeds
- Bircher Muesli with Apple
I have only tried one recipe from the Inspiralize Everything book. I have intentions to try a lot more I just haven’t put them in to my weekly menu plans yet. Also, it seems like my husband likes everything I make with the spiralizer but getting my 3 teenage sons to try it is another thing. They are not big on trying “new” things. They like the spiral potatoes – fries that I have made a few times and baked in the oven.
The Inspiralize Everything book is nice to have if you own a spiralizer of some sort. It gives an A to Z list of different fruits and vegetables you can spiralize and at least 2 to 4 recipes for that particular fruit or vegetable. I purchased the Kitchen Aid Spiral attachment for my mixer a few months ago. You can look in my blog archive for a post I did about the Spiral attachment.
In my opinion both of these books are a great addition to my library of cookbooks. If you are looking for some good vegetarian recipes that are healthy and taste good I would definitely recommend getting the Meat Free Monday book.
Have a great day!
-Kimberlee
Book Review Power Hungry
February 4, 2016
The book Power Hungry by Camilla V. Saulsbury is a collection of recipes to make your own energy bars, granola bars and protein bars. This book is something I came across at Barnes and Noble back in the Spring of 2015. I have been using it on and off to make my own protein and granola bars instead of buying them.
So far I have tried about ten or more of the recipes. As you can see from the book photo above I have a bunch of them marked with post it flags – that is how I go through a recipe book – I flag all the ones that look or sound good so I know which ones I need to get ingredients for. The book is filled with lots of different recipes and all the recipes have variations to try using the same basic recipe but with a few ingredient changes – I really like that. The recipe chapters of the book are:
- Super Natural Knock-Offs
- Activity Bars
- Endurance Bars
- Protein Bars
- Raw and Almost Raw Bars
Some of the recipes are super simple and you just blend the ingredients together in your food processor and then put into a pan and refrigerate to set them, cut them and you are done. Some of the other require cooking, either some ingredients on the stove top or some actual baking time. For all the recipes in the book there are directions as to how to store them and for how long. There is a room temperature version, refrigerator version and freezer version.
The beginning of the book also lists pantry ingredients to have on hand. There are ingredients such as whole grains, natural sweeteners, chocolate and cocoa, canned ingredients, nuts, seeds and nut butters, oils, eggs, dairy and non dairy milks, all natural protein powders and extract flavorings. If you already eat a pretty healthy diet chances are you have a lot of the ingredients already. I found that there were several recipes I could make right away without having to go buy anything.
So far the recipes I have tried are:
- Fitness Fiber Bars – which are suppose to be similar to Fiber One Bars – I made the chewy chocolate chip version and liked them
- Canyon Crunch Bars – which are suppose to be similar to Nature Valley Crunchy Granola Bars – I tried the Cinnamon Pecan version and they were okay – these are kind of hard and crunchy, just like the bars you buy but mine were more crumbly – they didn’t really stay together as bars but they were still good to eat in chunks
- Lucy Bars – which are like Larabars – personally I have never bought one of them but I love this recipe and the many variations. I have made the PB & J Bars, Cashew Cookie Dough Bars and the Blueberry Cobbler Bars and that is only about a quarter of the different versions listed under this recipe
- Raisin Bran Bolt Bars – I made the double chocolate version of these and they are kind of like a brownie. My son and his friends came home for lunch from school the other day and they were even eating them – I didn’t tell them they were made with good for you all natural ingredients and high in fiber.
- Seeds of Power Bars – this one so far is the only one I didn’t really like all that much – it was kind of plain to me
- PB & J Protein Bars – these were easy to make and tasted good – they have protein powder in them so good before or after a workout
- 5 minute Protein Truffles – lots of variations with this recipe and I have tried a couple of them and liked them both
Double Chocolate Bran Bolt Bars and Cashew Cookie Dough Bars made by Kimberlees Korner
Above are a couple of the versions of the bars I have recently made. Mine probably don’t look as pretty as ones you buy in a package but they taste good and that is one of my main goals – to have a healthy homemade tasty power bar.
Making your own granola and protein bars is really pretty simple and if you have some great recipes, like the ones in this book, you will always have healthy snacks around. The main reason for making the bars versus buying them for me is that I like to know what is in my food and I want to have control over what I put in them. Also, the cost of making them yourself is a lot less than buying them.
Have you ever made your own protein or energy bars? If so, what recipe did you use? Let me know by leaving a reply.
Have a great day!
-Kimberlee
EOM Fitness for May 2015
May 30, 2015
May 2015 has come to an end and June will be here in a couple of days. I don’t know if it is because of all the end of school year stuff going on with my kids or what but this month flew by, in my opinion. My workout schedule for the past month was down to four days per week instead of five or six. I decided to dial it back a little and do like a Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday schedule this past month. 
This past month I also decided to change things up by using my Core workout book along with a new Yoga Journal Magazine I bought back in April. I did do a couple of my Cathe workouts from an older dvd set X-train. I love my Cathe workouts and usually include at least a couple each month.
I think I bought the Core workout book many years ago either at Half Price Books or Sams. I really like this book and how there are routines at the end to do like the one shown above, the Power Workout routine. The book uses an exercise ball, medicine ball, some weights and an exercise band for some of the exercises. I like that there is minimal equipment. It was nice to do these routines and put on some good music to workout to while doing them. As you can see by the top photo the cat likes the book and workouts in there as well. He was usually sitting by the band or on the book when I had it opened up.
The other book I used this month along with the Core book was the one above, Core Strength Training. I checked this one out from my local library. I like how this book is set up and explains the exercises and there are detailed color photos, too. I was trying to do at least four of the exercises on the days I was using my Core book. There are lots of great exercises to increase your mobility and strengthen your abs and back for everyday activities as well as sports like golf. I pointed this out to my husband since he golfs a lot and he frequently gets out my weights or bands to do a few exercises the day before he goes golfing.
This past month I have also been using a couple of other new books I recently bought at Barnes and Noble. The first book I bought a couple of months ago, it is called Raw Energy by Stephanie Tourles. I just stumbled across this book while actually trying to find another book and loved all the recipes in there. Everything is made with healthy and wholesome ingredients and most of them are pretty simple to make. The concept is that everything is made with raw natural ingredients and nothing is cooked at a high temperature so the food retains the natural occurring enzymes. There are a few recipes that use a food dehydrator but nothing is cooked over 175 degrees. This interested me since my husband bought a dehydrator about eight months ago to dehydrate the hot peppers we grow every year. I wanted to be able to use the dehydrator for more than that and apples which is about all we had tried.
This book contains recipes for cereals, dips, fruit and vegetable juices, nut milks, smoothies and a variety of snacks. I have already made several recipes from this book and they were all good. At the front of the book she explains the raw concept in detail and lists the equipment and ingredients you will need to make things in the book. The author, Stephanie Tourles, has also written a few aromatherapy and body care books and I own two of those as well. I knew when I saw this book it would be good and I have not been disappointed with it.
The other book I just bought a few weeks ago is called Power Hungry by Camilla V. Saulsbury. Again this was a book I just stumbled upon at Barnes and Noble while searching for another book that I never found. This book is all about making your own Cereal, Energy and Protein Bars with lots of variations within each recipe to create a different type of bar. So far I have tried a few and liked them. There are some recipes that require cooking some of the ingredients on the stove top or even baking some of them in the oven for a few minutes but there are also some raw recipes that do not require baking or cooking. I also like how she classifies some of them as knock off recipes for things like Fiber One bars, Kind Bars and Larabars. I know I have found, and even tried, some of these types of recipes from pinterest but they have not been as good as the ones in this book. This book is worth the money if you are interested in making your own good quality bars with natural ingredients. Also, there are tips in the book on storing the bars and how long they keep or can be frozen for, etc.
Well, so far it has been very rainy here so I have not been able to get out and ride my bike or swim like I normally do in May. Maybe June will bring some sunshine so I can start biking to the store again and start swimming some for some exercise. As far as my planned activities go I will probably stay with a 4 day a week schedule and plan to do weight training and yoga for this coming month. What are your workout plans for June?
Have a good weekend!
-Kimberlee
Baking Homemade Bread
May 21, 2015
This past month I have been baking a lot of homemade bread. While I have always made homemade breads I mainly used my bread machine with the dough cycle and then baked them in the oven. After checking out a new book from the library, called Make Ahead Bread by Donna Currie I have decided I like using my Kitchen Aid Mixer (which is 21 years old by the way and a wedding gift from my aunt) to create some really great homemade bread that my whole family seems to love.
The first recipe I tried from the Make Ahead Bread book was this Oatmeal Honey Date Loaf. This bread is so good toasted in the morning for breakfast, especially with a homemade walnut butter or almond butter. I also used some of the leftover slices that were getting a few days old to make french toast that was another great breakfast.
The concept of this book, Make Ahead Bread, is really simple and makes baking homemade bread manageable for anyone, even those who have a busy schedule. Basically you make up the bread in your mixer with a dough hook the day or evening before, let it rise once for about an hour, then shape it into your loaf or place in a bread pan. After those steps you then refrigerate the bread where it continues to slowly rise some more, take it out the next morning or approximately 24 hours later and then bake according to the directions.
There are lots of great recipes in this bread book that go beyond a normal loaf of bread. The book has recipes for buns and rolls as well as flatbreads, pizza crust and pastries. There are also some recipes for what to use the leftover bread for and some spreads and nut butters, too. So far I have made the loaf above as well as Sourdough Rye Bread, White Wheat Loaf and the Hamburger Buns recipes. All of them have turned out great. I like the book so much and the recipes that I have tried that I decided to buy it so I now have my own copy.
I have also discovered that using good quality flours and other ingredients is crucial to having the bread turn out well. A few weeks ago I decided to break down and pay the extra couple of dollars for the Bob’s Red Mill Artisan Bread Flour instead of the other bread flour I was buying at the grocery store. I love this bread flour! If you go to the Bob’s Red Mill site you can get a coupon for a dollar off.
There was a recipe on the label of it that I also tried and have made twice now called the Amish Country Loaf. This bread is a basic white bread recipe and it makes two loaves but I decided to make some of the dough into sandwich buns that turned out good.
Above is the recipe from the package of the Artisan Bread. It is a very simple recipe with just a few ingredients and it tastes wonderful.
The above photo is of my Kitchen Aid mixer. This mixer was one of the best wedding gifts and I am so thankful to my aunt who bought it for us 21 years ago. It is still a workhorse (with a few scratches) and it is trying some new things now that we have bought the meat grinder attachment and the ice cream attachment – both work well. I have not bought ice cream in a few months now and it is very easy to make your own with the kitchen aid attachment – the key to it is to make sure you keep the mixer bowl for the ice cream in the freezer all the time and to make sure you add cold ingredients to it when making the ice cream. I find that it is still soft, kind of like soft serve ice cream, after 20 minutes of churning but once you freeze it for couple of hours it firms up.
I have recently checked out another bread baking book out from the library called The Big Book of Bread from Betty Crocker. I tried the french bread recipe from there today and we will be having it with dinner tonight. This book has a lot of various yeast bread recipes as well as quick breads, coffee cakes and muffins and gluten free recipes, too. I foresee another book purchase in my future since I really like a lot of the interesting recipes in this book. There are also recipes for using your bread machine.
I am so glad I have gotten more use out of my Kitchen Aid dough hook. I use the mixer all the time with the regular mixer attachment or the whisk attachment but have not used the dough hook much at all in the past 20 years. The dough hook is now making up for lost time in the past few weeks.
Do you have a Kitchen Aid Mixer and if so what are your favorite things to make with it? Also, if you have a good bread recipe let me know about it in the comments.
Have a great day!
-Kimberlee
Essential Oil Books Part 2
March 7, 2015
Essential oil books are great to refer to once you start using essential oils. I mentioned this in part 1 of my post on essential oil books and today in part 2 of the series I am going to share a couple of other books I use regularly when working with essential oils.
In addition to the books I wrote about in part 1, I have also been reading and referring to The Complete Book of Essential Oils and Aromatherapy by Valerie Ann Worwood and Aromatherapy Through the Seasons by Judith Fitzsimmons and Paula M. Bousquet. I bought both of these books over 10 years ago when I began learning about essential oils.
The Complete Book of Essential Oils and Aromatherapy is one of the reference books that is very nice to own if you are focused on learning more about essential oils and how to use them. This book is full of great information on using essential oils for your body, your home, your pets and cooking with essential oils. To cook with essential oils you need to use therapeutic grade, high quality, oils safe for ingestion such as Young Living oils which are the kind that I use.
Recently I have used the Complete Book of Essential Oils to make up some blends for stress. There are two pages in this book devoted to various blends and what type of stress they are best used for and for the level of stress. One of the blends is for general stress that I have use in my diffuser as well as topically mixed with a carrier oil.
General Stress Blend:
- Grapefruit – 15 drops
- Rosemary – 11 drops
- Palmarosa – 5 drops
To use the above blend mix in a small recycled 5ml glass bottle or buy a glass bottle with a dropper. Use 7 or 8 drops in a diffuser with water or add a few drops to a teaspoon of almond or jojoba oil for topical use.
Another stress blend from the book I have tried and like to use on my neck and feet at bedtime is one for Low Immunity. I figure it will help me sleep better, strengthen my immune system and lower my stress level while I sleep due to the properties of some of the oils in this blend.
Low Immunity Stress Blend:
- Vetiver – 10 drops
- Lavender – 10 drops
- Geranium – 10 drops
Combine all the drops in a 15ml empty bottle and top it off with almond oil or your favorite carrier oil. I did not put the reducer back on the bottle – to use just shake it gently and pour a small amount in the palm of your hand and rub it on your neck, thyroid area and then the bottoms of your feet at bedtime.
The other book I have been using lately is the Aromatherapy Through the Seasons as I mentioned above. I love how this book is written. Each chapter is a month from January to December and there is an oil recommended for that month. For example, March is cedarwood and there are lots of great recipes using cedarwood oil – along with other basic oils like lemon, lavender, rosemary and melaleuca a. (tea tree). The beginning of each chapter-month explains the oil and its uses. For cedarwood there are recipes for hair care and skin care. I also like how many of the pages have inspiring quotes. There are lots of recipes in this book for body care and for your health – like a cold blend, a flu blend and allergy blend.
In my opinion if you are looking to expand your knowledge and have some guidance with your essential oils both of these books would be great to add to your library. Next month I will be reviewing some essential oil books on body and skin care for part 3 of this series.
Have a good weekend!
– Kimberlee
Essential Oil Books Part 1
January 24, 2015
Essential oil books are great to refer to when you get into using essential oils. There are several essential oil books that I refer to and use on a regular basis. I find myself referring to these books and continuing to learn more about different oils all of the time.
One of the books I received from my friend Julie when I signed up for Young Living. It is the Essential Oils pocket reference. This little book has a wealth of information – I don’t think a day goes by without me looking at it. To give you a breakdown of what is in it:
- Chapter 1 – Yesterdays Wisdom, Tomorrows Destiny – This gives you the history of essential oil extraction and includes biblical references to certain oils
- Chapter 2 – How Essential Oils Work – info on the chemistry, standards and testing and the influence of aromas
- Chapter 3 – How to Safely Use Essential OIls – This is about guidelines for use, a chart of cerified GRAS – generally regarded as safe – or as a food additive, by the FDA. Also in this chapter are things to know before you start; info on topical application, diffusing and other uses
- Chapter 4 – Single Oils – This is alphabetized and lists all the single oils from Young Living. For each one you get: Botanical Family, Extraction Method, Key constituents, Historical Data, Medical Properties, Uses, Application, Cautions (if any), Found In (lists other Young Living blends or products can be found in)
- Chapter 5 – Essential Oil Blends – This describes how Young Living blends are formulated then lists each blend alphabetically and the same info I just listed above for the singles such as use and applications, etc.
- Chapter 6 – Techniques for Essential Oil Application – This explains the different techniques in detail and gives you vita flex foot and hand charts as well as a nervous system connection point chart of the spine. If you are into massage therapy it gives you the overview for the application of the raindrop technique
- Chapter 7 – Personal Usage – This is a great reference chapter on giving you info on taking charge of your health, developing your program and a complete reference guide for many common health issues like: arthritis, colds, flu, headaches, insomnia, pain, skin care and problems, sore throats, and stress – just to name a few common ailments. I love this chapter and refer to it all the time just to learn more about certain health aspects.
Another book I refer to a lot lately is Aromatherapy 101 by Karen Downes. I have owned this book for over 10 years. I bought it back in early 2000 when I first got into using essential oils. I like this book because it explains what aromatherapy is, what essential oils are and gives you info on how to properly use them. The book also lists the oils alphabetically. She gives you a great description of each oil, the issues it addresses, what it helps promote and any safety information.
Lately I have been reading this book a lot again and referring to it along with the pocket reference. I also like how in the Aromatherapy 101 book she recommends oils that blend well together. Even though this book is older, published in 2000, I still see it around on the internet and I think it contains some really good and helpful information for anyone learning to get more from their essential oils.
If you are interested in learning more about Young Living essential oils you can email me kkg@kimberleeskorner.com Also, if you are interested in signing up for Young Living you can click on the highlighted Young Living to take you to the sign up page. You can sign up for a retail account but if you sign up for a wholesale account, or distributor, you will save 24% on all your orders. There are not a whole lot of rules and requirements to be a wholesaler – you have to order a starter kit is the main one. After that you can order as much as you want or never again.
If you decide you love Young Living like me then you can sign up for Essential Rewards that is a monthly auto ship where you decide what you want in your order each month and it has to be a minimum amount of $50.00. Also, if you decide to sign up I will send you a copy of the Essential OIls Pocket Reference – that is the first book I mentioned above in the post.
One of the books I will be reviewing in Part 2 of this series will be Aromatherapy Through the Seasons. This is another book I have had since the early 2000’s. So follow my blog or check back for part 2 on essential oil books coming in February. I will also be sharing some recipes for foods and skincare using essential oils in the future.
I hope everyone had a great week!
-Kimberlee
Essential Oils from Young Living
January 9, 2015
Essential oils seem to be everywhere lately. I first learned about essential oils over ten years ago. I was learning how to make my own cleaning products and found that essential oils are used in many of the cleaning recipes in some books I purchased back in early 2000. I still have and use the books and they are still available today.
Books for natural cleaning recipes
Recently I have learned about Young Living essential oils. I kept finding information about them on pinterest and I also read about them in my fitness group on facebook from someone who was using Thieves oil for illness with her kids. Then, I remembered that a friend of mine was selling them so I contacted her to learn more and how to get them.
After talking to my friend I learned that Young Living is a company that only sells the oils to “members”. You can buy at a “retail” level but you pay more money. To get a better price you have to join and be considered a “distributor” to get the wholesale price. Also, when you join at the distributor level you are required to buy a kit for your first purchase.
Well, after learning those facts I was kind of apprehensive about “joining” their company and being part of something I may or may not like. I talked to my friend some more and she assured me I would love the oils, since I already knew so much about essential oils, and that the Young Living oils were very high quality. She also told me there was not a catch to joining that if I bought a kit and decided I didn’t want anything else ever again I would not be obligated to order monthly or ever again for that matter. The only way you are obligated to maintain a monthly order is if you join their ER – Essential Rewards – program that is optional on your part.
So, I did more research on Young Living – found even more great info on pinterest and decided back in November to join and ordered the Everyday Oils kit that also comes with a diffuser and a few samples. The oils that come in that kit are the 5ml bottles and I have already used most of them up in the past six weeks.
Everyday Oils kit
I am in love with these oils and use at least two or more daily for the past six weeks. I like the fact that so many of their oils are therapeutic grade and can be ingested. The essential oils I have used in the past could only be used topically or in my cleaning recipes. I also notice the Young Living oils smell much stronger and have a lot more staying power – the scent does not fade off quickly. The Young Living oils have also helped me and my family with some recent health issues. I think that when used properly essential oils can offer some alternative therapy for many common ailments.
In addition to making my own cleaning products, which I have done for years – I am now making my own face and body care with these oils. Some of the things I have made are recipes I have found and tried from pinterest and others are a combination I have created using books I have and my own personal preferences. I am trying to be more chemical free and use less toxic ingredients on my skin. I am now making and using my own face wash, face toner, moisturizer, body butter and deodorant. I will be sharing my recipes and more info on these in future posts on my blog.
If you are interested in joining Young Living you can click on the highlighted text to take you to the sign up page on the Young Living site. You can also message me via email at kkg@kimberleeskorner.com for more info if you have any questions.
Have a great day!
– Kimberlee
Working Out Week 42 of 2014
October 18, 2014
Well, another week has flown by. I can’t believe we are more than halfway through the month of October. This week my workouts were:
- Monday – Cathe Friedrich – Rockout Knockout – 38 min.
- Tuesday – off
- Wednesday – Cathe – Greatest Hits Step bonus circuit workout – 45 min.
- Thursday – Cathe – Lean Legs & Abs – 37 min.
- Friday – Cathe – Great Glutes – premix 4 – 46 min.
- Saturday – Shiva Rea Yoga – AM Energy Vira Flow + Shavasana – 26 min.
All of the workouts this past week were with my Cathe Friedrich dvd’s that were part of a series I bought last fall. The exception was my Saturday workout which was a yoga workout using one of my Shiva Rea dvd’s. I love doing yoga on Saturday mornings.
The Greatest Hits Step workout is a combination of several different Cathe step workouts and compiled together on the one dvd. The premix I did on Wednesday also used some weights mixed in with step cardio – the cat joined me for most of the workout. He was either on or next to the step.
Lean Legs and Abs dvd is one of my favorites. Even though most of the emphasis is working out the legs and core you still work the upper body a little with having to use the 8 pound dumbbells and doing a lot of compound moves.
The day after Lean Legs and Abs I did the Great Glutes workout. This really works your back side and the hamstrings. I was definitely feeling it by the end of Friday and into Saturday morning (and into the day Saturday). The workout uses minimal equipment and is a combination of light cardio and toning moves that use the 8 pound dumbbells. The cat of course was around to supervise my form. I think he is scared of the new rug I bought for the room though as he won’t walk on it.
I bought this new Juicing book a couple of weeks ago at Barnes and Noble in the sale section. I think it was $10.00. There are lots of great recipes in this book and I have made at least a dozen of them in the past week. I like how the book is set up – it is alphabetized by the name of the fruit or vegetable and gives at least two recipes per one fruit or vegetable. There are also color photos – not of every recipe but at least one or two per page. I have been trying to make up about three or four recipes every other day and store them in mason jars in the refrigerator so I only have to get the juicer out once a day or once every other day. This is a real time saver. It is also helpful to label the juices and put the name and page number of the recipe so you can remember what it was and note if you like it or not.
The above recipe was from the book and called Peach Spice Pie. It was just a peach and 3 carrots juiced and then you sprinkle a little cinnamon on the top. I LOVE this recipe. It is very good! I always feel so healthy and energized after drinking a juice each morning, too.
The other recipe I just made this morning from the Juicing book was called Orange Beet. It is made with the ingredients of the title – 2 oranges and 1 beet. In the one I made my beets were sort of small so I used 2 oranges, 2 small red beets and 1 small golden beet. I love how you can add or take away something from the recipes to create something a little different. This juice here had an earthy flavor to it because of the beets in it. I also felt so great after drinking this juice. Fresh juices are really the way to better health, I think.
I also finally tried a juice with some red cabbage in it. The verdict is still out on that one. It is okay but not one of my favorites. I think I will have to try it again in a different combination of ingredients to determine if I like the red cabbage. The juice was a really pretty color though.
I have fallen of the green smoothie challenge I was doing. I think I had a few at the beginning of the week but I am really into juicing lately and not so much the smoothies. I did try to drink at least one “green” juice a day for an afternoon snack to make up for not having the green smoothie – so I am thinking I didn’t completely drop out of the challenge. I am just having a green juice instead of a smoothie.
Fit Tip of the Week – Eat Well for Better Health
– try out some new healthy recipes
– go to the library for some healthy cookbooks or magazines – or look up some recipes on pinterest
– make it a goal to eat only whole grains, fruits, vegetables, lean protein and limit sugar, caffeine and avoid alcohol for at least 5 days and notice how much better you feel
– try out juicing to see all the health benefits
– try out green smoothies to increase your daily intake of greens and fruits
I hope everyone is enjoying the nice fall weather in their area. It is finally cooling down here and the past few days have been beautiful.
Have a great weekend!
-Kimberlee