P90X

I am a P90X graduate. Having said that, it's not on my business card and I don't go around talking about it. For anyone that hasn't done it, it is very difficult unless you are pretty fit already. The program has you workout 6 or 7 days a week for 3 months. Each workout is about 60 minutes with some warmup and cool down in either side. The workouts themselves range from upper body, core, cardio, and a combination of everything.

After doing the program two years ago I took a pretty long break from seriously working out for about 18 months which took its toll on my fitness and my body. I have decided to try another round now that summer is approaching and my gym membership has expired (it's tough to justify $60 a month when I have everything I need at home for free).

I plan on posting about the various aspects of the program over be next few weeks such as: workouts, diet plan, burn out, P90X and Paleo coexisting, overall achievement of fitness goals.

Have you tried P90X before? What do you do to stay fit?

Chili Cook-Off Results

So I got up at 6 am today to make my chili, chopping and mixing to make the perfect combination of spices and flavor (honestly I just threw in the usual ingredients and then hung out with my amazing family).  

I did realize that I was short on a few spices this morning so the flavor was a little different then I was expecting (not enough cumin, and I substituted missing chili power with paprika). When I finally tasted the chili around 10:15 I was satisfied and ready for the scrutiny of the public. 

K, J and I drove to the Winter Carnival which was hosting the Chili Contest and dropped off the potential winner...

To go off on a tangent, I had no idea what the prize was for winning the contest but I was really hoping it was a medal or trophy of some kind. There were two other people at my office that entered the contest (out of 6 total) so winning was mostly about bragging rights...

Now what you have all been waiting for...Unfortunately I did not place in the top three (meaning I was in the bottom half) and a co-worker won (Congrats Nicole). There wasn't any feedback and I actually don't care that much because I love my chili and really don't care if others do or don't.

Have you tried the recipe?  Any thoughts on it?  What did you change?

Chili Cook-Off

Tomorrow I am entering my first chili cook off.  I have been making chili once a week for over a year now, mostly the same kind with a few tweaks to the recipe here and there. When I was first looking for a good primal based chili to make I was inundated by so many recipes my head was spinning. I finally settled on a basic chili (unfortunately I can't cite the source as it was a long time ago) and started making my own modifications. I am lucky enough to have a dad that is a great cook and some of his skills have made their way over to me. Not only have some of my dad's cooking skills been passed on to my but I also really enjoying the cooking process, it lets my mind wander. Chopping veggies and trimming meat gives me a chance to zone out (don't zone out too much or you might end up with shorter fingers) and is some of my best thinking time. I have made my chili so many times I know the recipe by heart and pretty much make it out of habit now. 

Below is my "go to" recipe, enjoy.


Here are the ingredients:

• 2 lbs meat (I usually use 85% Ground Beef but a mix of beef, veal, and bison is great)
• One red onion-diced
• Two bell peppers, diced.- red and yellow if available (for visual reasons, they taste the same). I usually avoid green bells because they are less sweet.
• A few carrots, peeled and diced.
• A few celery stalks, diced.
• A poblano pepper, diced.
• One jar of salsa, check the label and grab one that doesn't have added sugar.
• Two small cans of diced green chilies (the spicy kind).
• 14.5 once can of fire roasted diced tomatoes. Again, make sure no added sugar.
• 14.5 ounce can of beef broth.
• Two Jalapenos. Check heat beforehand and remove seeds and membranes if they are too hot. 
• 2 tbs grass fed butter.

Now for the spices:

• 2 tbsp of chili powder (I recently tried chipotle chili powder and loved it).
• 1 tsp granulated garlic.
• 1 tsp cumin.
• 1.5 tsp thyme.
• 1 tsp black pepper.
• 1 tsp salt.
• a pinch or two of cayenne powder.

• Quick Tip: Buying spices in bulk at a health food store saves tons of money. 

The recipe:

• Heat a large soup pot over medium-high heat and add two tablespoons of grass fed butter.  When the butter is melted add the veggies. 
• Let them cook down for 5-6 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add a little salt.
• Add the can of beef broth and let it reduce by half, about 5-7 more minutes.
• Add the meat and spices.  Combine and let cook for about 7 minutes.
• Add everything else.  The chili will be thick but don't worry, it will loosen up as time goes.
• Bring to a simmer and cook for about 2 hours.  I know it's a long time but it's worth it. Stir every 10 of 15 minutes.

The chili is best served with sliced avocado and a little full fat sour cream (if you eat dairy). It keeps for about 4 days in the fridge and reheats really well. 

Let me know what you think.  I will update tomorrow afternoon when the results are in.  Wish me luck.

Lego WeDos

The afterschool program I run was lucky enough to receive a few sets of Lego WeDos (think robotics for elementary kids made of Lego blocks). Today was the first day we had the kids use them and the counselors couldn't believe how engaged the kids were for over two hours. I even had a few counselors come to me in amazement about how focused and on-task some of our "tougher" kids were.

The WeDos come in kits that kids can pair up on and build a variety of robots that move and can also be programmed using a computer. The WeDos teach kids how to use a variety of 21st century skills (teamwork, problem solving, trial and error) and engages them in STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) which are two things I think every child needs more exposure to. It was great to see the kids bounce ideas off of each other while exploring how to make their robots work. If you have kids or work with kids I highly recommend trying out the WeDos, they are great for both open ended projects and projects with a specific outcome.

Entreleadership Podcast

I just finished listening to my favorite podcast and wanted to share it with everyone. The Entreleadership Podcast hosted by Chris LoCurto is a bi-weekly leadership and entrepreneurial focused podcast, usually lasting around 45 minutes. Chris has on an amazing variety of guests from the business world. Each episode also includes a quick lesson from Dave Ramsey (google if the name is new to you). Today while walking my dog I listened to the best of 2012 (I fell a few episodes behind). It was a great recap of lessons, interviews, and practical tips from the past year. If you are a leader or want to be one I highly recommend this podcast. Best of all it's free! It's a good way to recharge and remind yourself what good leadership looks and sounds like.

What are your most helpful leadership resources? How do you continue to grow your leadership?

Sriracha

Let me start off by saying that if you are Orthodox-Paleo/Primal you should probably stop reading this post right now ( if you don't know what that is please continue).
 I love Sriracha hot sauce, not just like but love. If I had to guess I think I put it on 75% of my meals, it's just that delicious. It goes so well with just about any flavor profile and has the perfect combination of heat and sweet. Having said that I also dislike potato chips (for soooo many reasons I can't even begin to describe) especially mass produced, vegetable oil soaked, can barely tell it is made of potato type chips. Where am I going with this...those two worlds collided for me today while grocery shopping. Lays is having a contest to decide their next flavor of chip and Sriracha is one option along with Chicken and Waffles, and Cheesy Garlic Bread. I felt compelled to try the Sriracha flavor although I was pretty sure it would underwhelm. Well I was right. I won't get into the texture, shape, consistency of the chip itself but the Sriracha flavor was not as potent or vibrant as I was expecting. I go through about a bottle a week of Sriracha and usually put enough on my food to make it the dominating flavor (which might say something about my cooking). The Sriracha did not come through spicy or sweet and was barely recognizable as the signature sauce I enjoy so much. If, and this is a big if, you felt compelled to try the Sriracha chip go ahead and it and add an extra bottle of the actual hot sauce to your cart.

Have you tried Sriracha? Have you tried the Sriracha flavored Lays? What did you think? What out of the ordinary foods do you put Sriracha on?

Gotta Start Somewhere

Well here goes my start as a blogger.  Honestly I don’t know what I am going to blog about over the long haul but having an outlet for my miscellaneous thoughts is probably good for my sanity (as well as the sanity of my family).

A little background about me is probably in order so you aren't reading stuff from some random person; although there seems to be a lot of that going around these days.  I live with my wife, son, and two dogs in the amazing state of Vermont.  I have the privilege of working as an administrator of an afterschool program and enjoy every moment of it.  I am passionate about improving the lives of kids and developing leaders that can continue to make a positive impact on children’s lives.  I choose to eat a primal diet pretty strictly (much more to follow on this topic) and try to get to the gym more often than not.  I just started going to grad school after a few years off from higher ed.  and so far so good.

Well enough about me. I hope you continue to visit my blog and will try to provide information that is not only informative but also makes you think and push your boundaries.