the nerds are getting schooled.

do you smell that?

***awkward silence***

anyway....what we're talking about is the scent of newly sharpened pencils & fresh paper. well, actually no one uses wooden pencils anymore, so it might just be our imaginations, but do you know what this means?! it's back-to-school-time, nerds! while the little kiddies are buying new plastic backpacks, picking out their favorite character's lunch boxes & convincing their parents that they just have to buy that 1-Direction glitter pencil case with matching eraser, TheFitnessNerds aren't just sitting back anymore. no no...it's quite the opposite! the nerds are getting schooled :)

it's finally official & while we can't quit our day job (just yet), we've decided to do what we can & take a course to help move our dreams along & in the meantime, it helps out all of our readers! (that's you!) we signed up for a human nutrition course & as we learn more about what we need to sustain a healthful living, we'll be helping you learn too! we know you all have busy lives & can't even imagine taking more time out of your schedules to learn the ins & outs of nutrition, so that's why we're here! we'll bring you some important (tofu) knuggets of knowledge (yes...knuggets) that will help you make more informed decisions about what fills your plates.

but don't worry! this class won't take away our special bonding time. in fact, we're so excited about this course that you can expect more frequent posts. i know...that makes you pretty darn excited ;)

thanks for joining us in our elation & we'll be posting soon! class started yesterday & we can't wait to share some of what we've learned so far! wish us luck :D

keep studying & we will too!
xx TFNHQ

game-time granola.

do you get nervous the day before you’re going to a sporting event because you’re already having nightmares of the calories that are seeping out of those cheese-covered nachos or the french fries topped with buffalo wings (yes. that is a real thing…)? but if that’s what you’re nervous about, fear no more! (unless you're worried about getting hit with a flying ball or puck. sorry. can't help you there...) we recently went to a baseball game (goooo pirates!) & made sure to stock up on healthy, yet filling, snacks to get us through! the big hit was our homemade granola, which can be adjusted so it’s just the way you like it! there’s minimal prep work & it makes enough to last the whole game, even with extra innings!! this recipe came courtesy of the daring gourmet! she gave us all the details & left out any vegetable oils & refined sugars ;) check it out below!

Healthy Homemade Granola
Makes 6 cups

Ingredients

•   4 cups raw oats (not quick or instant)

•   ¾ cup unsweetened dried flaked coconut

•   ⅓ cup chopped or sliced almonds

•   3 tablespoons sunflower seeds (unsalted)

•   1 tablespoon flax seeds

•   1 tablespoon sesame seeds

•   ⅓ cup raw honey

•   3 tablespoons extra virgin coconut oil

•   ½ teaspoon almond extract (optional)

•   1 cup assorted dried fruit, like apricots, raisins, cranberries, cherries, pineapple, dates, etc.

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

2. Place the oats in a large mixing bowl. Add the coconut flakes, nuts and seeds and stir to combine.

3. Place the honey and coconut oil in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Boil for one minute and remove from heat. Stir in almond extract if using.

4. Pour honey mixture over the oat mixture and stir until coated.

5. Spread the granola out on a large baking sheet. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until lightly toasted, stirring every few minutes to prevent burning.

6. Let the granola cool completely then add the dried fruits and stir to combine.

Store in an airtight container. Keeps for about a week. Serve with milk and fresh berries if desired.

well…that’s it! you can pick whichever dried fruits you want, but if you’re choosing store-bought, be sure to make choices with minimal added/refined sugar!

we hope you enjoy this recipe & we promise you’ll need to keep making more, since it’ll go faster than you can say “raise the jolly roger!!!”

stay tuned for the recipe for our tailgating chickpea salad we made for the pregame! it's a gorgeous dish & again, super easy to make!

keep studying :)
xx TFNHQ

motivate your mornings.

it’s 6:01 in the morning & you’re awoken from your dream-evoking slumber by a noise that you can’t quite place. it rattles your brain & shakes any remaining ocean views from your thoughts. your beach towel turns into a smooth pillow & the sun on your back is replaced by your hello kitty comforter. i mean, your more grownup-styled comforter… :-\ anywho… that sound persists & you still can’t figure out why no one else has stopped it until you roll over & realize it’s your very own alarm blaring in your ear. what day is it? & why did you ever, in your right mind, set that to go off? & so early? you reach over & without thinking, press the snooze button. this happens again & again & before you know it, you’re jumping out of bed & into your clothes in order to make it out the door on time! another day starts exactly the same as every other morning. your “intentions’ to wake up & workout are long forgotten & you’re neck-deep in work troubles at only 10am.

does this sound familiar? we swear this could’ve been our journal entry every morning for the past year! but you know what? one day we decided that this wasn’t good enough for us & wasn’t what we wanted out of life. if we started out the morning already running around & stressed, how would we possibly calm down throughout the rest of the day? but easier said than done, isn’t it? that’s why we were determined to make our mornings motivational!

-- but how can you do this? is this real, or are you just forcing us into another alliteration?

while we are fans of a properly placed alliteration, this is more than just that! if you make your mornings motivational, your day will become exponentially more productive & enjoyable. so what does this mean to us at TFNHQ? for me, i decided to switch my phone’s lock screen to a motivational picture that i'll see every time i go to press that snooze button. if i can read that quote & still go back to sleep, i'll know i'm not serious yet about changing my life. if you’re one of those who wouldn’t even see the screen because you press snooze with closed eyes, then choose a song as your alarm that gets your heart pumping & your mind thinking about all the possibilities you have ahead of you that can only occur if you get your behind out of that bed!! if that STILL doesn’t work for you, then take the most brutal approach & put that bloody phone on the opposite side of the room so you need to get out of bed in order to press snooze! & if you’re already out of bed, why not stay up?

the moral of this post is: get up & get going! from my personal experience, i know i'm 99.9% more likely to get something done (whether it’s a workout, packing, reading or responding to emails) if i set aside some time in the morning to get it done. if i just wake up & say “i'll fit it in later”, i get busy, tired & put it off to the next morning, where it’s likely to get pushed off again for another day! so why have that hanging over your head all day? i'd rather spend the rest of my day thinking back on how i kicked butt in my morning run or how the chapter of the book i read that morning can help me reach my dreams. i feel so much better after actually accomplishing something so early in the day & those post-workout endorphins don’t hurt either ;) so now we’re asking: how can YOU motivate YOUR mornings? will you dance your way to the kitchen to make your breakfast? write yourself a note on the mirror to get you ready to bring on the day? or will you one day be so committed that you wake up on your own to get those tasks done? whichever way you choose, keep it consistent & don’t let yourself get bored with it! mix up those mornings & you’ll be surprised at how much you get done throughout your day :)

keep studying, nerds! we’ve missed you!
xx TFNHQ