Sweet potato nachos and customized kicks
Hi friends! Thank you so much for the kind words about our move. While it’s a little overwhelming, as all moves can be, I’m excited for the new experience and opportunities ๐
Dinner last night had to be quick and easy, since I taught an evening drum/Zumba class with Sasha. I’d seen this on one of my friend’s Instagrams and thought it sounded like a fantastic combo: sweet potato nachos!
I sliced some sweet potatoes using the a veggie peeler (less chance of slicing my hand off than the mandolin), and then baked them until they were crispy chips (about 9 minutes at 350. I set the first batch for 15 minutes and charbroiled them, so I wouldn’t recommend that). While they were baking, I cooked some organic ground turkey on the stove with Trader Joe’s taco seasoning, then topped the sweet potato chips with turkey, refried beans, avocado, salsa and cheese for the Pilot and Liv. They also had corn chips with theirs but I was corn-chipped out from my U of A b-ball nachos the night before. We all LOVED them! Such a quick and delicious meal, and the perfect dinner after teaching a super sweaty class.
(Nacho most photogenic meal)
When I teach outside of work, the floors can be a little more slippery than the ones I’m used to, so I’ll often wear my Nanos. They’re my favorite circuit-training shoe, and I especially love the fact that they’re lightweight while still providing support. I’ll pop my inserts in the shoes, and will wear them an entire day at work. When Reebok sent me a gift card to design my own Nanos, I quickly got to work picking a pink and purple color combo. In hindsight, maybe the “Fitnessista” on the heel was a little much haha.
Before clicking the “order” button, I thought about the fact that I have three pairs of Nanos already, and remembered a good friend of mine, who just started working with a personal trainer, had mentioned she needed new kicks and was asking about the Nanos. So, I gave her my gift card so she could try out a pair.
Here’s the combo she selected:
Pretty, huh?! I was pretty excited to share the Nano love, and while the shoes haven’t arrived yet, I know she’ll adore them. The customization process was super easy -you can see each part of the shoe as you design it- and a fun option if you want to design a pair that no one else has!
This morning, I was planning on meeting up with her for early yoga, and for the first time in who knows how long, I slept through my alarm. I was really looking forward to it -especially since I found a new studio here that I’m crazy about and was excited to go with my friend- but guess I was exhausted since I haven’t been sleeping well lately :/ I was really looking forward to the “om” time, but I guess I’ll have to shake it out in Zumba later today.
Hope you have a happy almost-Halloween! See ya later on the Family page with a fun toddler Hallowen craft ๐
xoxo
Gina
What’s your favorite Halloween candy?? I go for the Reese’s and Almond Joys first.
Have you ever designed your own kicks before??
ok – you didn’t have any corn ships because you were all “corn chipped out” from the (most likely) 2 mini bites of tom’s nachos from the game. sounds like you’re restricting after a night of bad food.
what kind of example do you think you’re setting for your daughter? one of these days she’s going to be old enough to ask you why you’re eating a different meal than her and daddy. what are you going to tell her? that you were “all corn chipped out” or whatever other “unhealthy” food you may have eaten? what do you think this will teach her? it will teach her that there is “good food” and “bad food” and you have to be “good” after you’ve indulged in a treat. you’ve clearly restricted in the past (been reading for a while), and old habits die hard. you can write on here all day about how much you’ve eaten and how much (gluten!!) pasta you ate in italy, but the proof is in the pudding gina. you came home and recreated a pasta dish you had in italy by making it with what, rice pasta? how authentic. you restrict and there’s no way around it.
there’s healthy eating (which i believe is everything in moderation. everything as in REAL non processed FOOD) and there’s whatever you’re doing – resticting and substituting for the real thing.
ps – did you know turkey bacon is far more processed than real pig bacon? and it has more sodium? sure, pig bacon is fatty, but if you have it in moderation, you won’t GAIN ALL THE FATZZZ omg.
from men’s health – The truth: Stick with the pig. As far as calories go, the difference between โhealthyโ turkey bacon and โfattyโ pig is negligibleโand depending on the slice, turkey might sometimes tip the scales a touch more. Additionally, while turkey is indeed a leaner meat, turkey bacon isnโt made from 100 percent bird: One look at the ingredients list will show a long line of suspicious additives and extras that canโt possibly add anything of nutritional value. And finally, the sodium content of the turkey bacon is actually higher than what youโll find in the kind that oinksโso if youโre worried about your blood pressure, opting for the original version is usually the smarter move.
oh wait, you probably don’t like the taste of yucky bacon, my bad
Julie, it appears that you don’t really “read” this blog. First of all, what a rude post, especially about something that you’re guessing about. Were you sitting next to her at the basketball game? If not, then comments like you made are totally out of context and uncalled for.
Secondly, had you really read Gina’s blog, you would know that she’s somewhat gluten intolerant. And from your comments it appears that you’ve never been to Europe. The food in Europe is TOTALLY different than the food here in the US. I can eat tons of things there that I can’t eat here because of the way they’re made/ingredients. It’s possible that the pasta was different in Italy (didn’t read her vacation posts unfortunately) or she just sucked it up and enjoyed the food, which those of us with food intolerances tend to do occasionally.
And if ‘restricting’ yourself after indulging in a ‘treat’ is wrong, then I’m guessing a lot of us are guilty of that, me included. I enjoy my treats but know that I need to get back on track afterwards. We all make choices. If you don’t like the way Gina lives her life, then quit reading her blog! I know that when bloggers put their life out in cyberspace, they’re opening themselves up for criticism such as yours, but there are other ways to voice your opinions that don’t attack the person. Put yourself in Gina’s shoes, and think about how you would feel if someone attacked you like you attacked her. Maybe you’ll phrase things differently the next time.
i hope your day gets better. a great read: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lyndsi-frandsen/are-you-teaching-your-daughter-to-be-a-mean-girl_b_4136174.html
because i’m posting my opinions and observations that makes me a mean girl? and you’re assuming i have a daughter and am turning her into a mean girl, or that i someday will? where are you getting this from?
why can’t you defend yourself a little better, gina, rather than tell me you hope my day gets better…which is such a cop-out. honestly, you and your little followers are totally clueless.
i don’t need to defend myself to you. the people who know me in real life, and many of the people who have been reading this blog, understand me and where i’m coming from. most people don’t read this to nit-pick me or the decisions i make (or go on some crazy rage about why i didn’t want corn chips one night). nothing i say or do will make you change your mind -and it seems like you have some other things going on, for which i’m sorry and am sending wishes that things turn around for you- so i’m not wasting my time.
I would say something clever and sassy, but it seems Gina doesn’t need anyone to stand up for her. She’s right, it’s not worth her time. Have a nice day!
Gina you are hands down my biggest inspirations for a healthy viewpoint on a balanced and healthy approach to food after having a mother who is like the one this commenter described (which you are nothing like). Also your attitude towards this kind if negativity always blows me away., you’re awesome.
I have a huge bag of sweet potatoes I haven’t been very inspired to use, thanks for the awesome idea! The chips will also make fabulous treats for the dogs too ๐
thank you <3 and yes, the dogs went crazy for them ๐
Wow julie. Go troll somewhere else.
coming from a teenage girl’s view, i think Gina seems like a great mom. she encourages nutritious food and doesnt see anything with indulging when she wants. i hope you arent encouraging bad habits like this for your daughter.
thank you, priya <3
I rarely comment, or even read the comments, but wow Julie. Wow. You should be really proud. If you’re so into setting good examples for children, I hope yours (if/when you have them) don’t track your internet usage.
Gina, you go girl! ๐
That’s so nice of you! I love the pink…definitely what I would go for too ๐