Sweet Treat Solution: Vanilla Energy Bites

Part of being successful is knowing your weaknesses and being prepared for them. As I tell my challengers, "Fail to plan, plan to fail." This week I am planning ahead for my sweet tooth with these healthy Vanilla Energy Bites!

•1 scoop Vanilla Shakeology
•1 cup rolled oats
•1/2 cup peanut butter (or other nut butter, today I used Pb2)
•1/3 cup raw honey
•1 cup coconut flakes
•1/2 cup ground flaxseed
•1 tsp vanilla
**Add extra vanilla and some water as needed to make it stickier**

 
Mix all ingredients together in a bowl and use a small ice cream scoop or a spoon to portion. Roll them up and place onto a wax paper covered cookie sheet. Freeze and Enjoy! Store extra in the freezer or fridge no longer than 2 weeks.

For the Fix nutrition: 2 bites = 1 orange container. Now that's a great swap!

Id love to hear what you think! And please share this recipe with anyone who may want to try them out-- especially busy moms, because I know my kids LOVE THEM! For more info about Shakeology and its super dense nutrition, feel free to contact me anytime. As always, live healthy, live happy! Love, Amanda


Star Diamond Coach Amanda Noddings
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An Amazing Piyo Transformation Inside and Out!

Every once and a while, I get a message that rips at my heart strings and fires up my passion for helping others. When an old friend from high school reached out to me in August of 2014, I had one of those moments, and after lots of chatting about what program would suit her needs best, I recommended PiYO to her.

Her journey wasn't 100% smooth. It had many bumps, and she did a lot of work on herself personally aside from her physical body, and she learned to take better care of herself emotionally as well. Last February, she was going through a difficult time, and she text me. I dropped what I was doing and made a date to talk with her, to just be there, to listen. And she fought her way back on track.

Today I want to give the hugest shoutout to an old friend who's made an amazing change in her life, Gwen Hinderleider. She has persevered when things were difficult, and continued on through good days and bad. But ultimately, she decided she wanted to feel better on the inside and that change has been reflected on the outside, too.



I am honored to have been your coach through this journey, Gwen, and I thank you for letting me share this snippet of your journey. Because without darkness, there is no light, and I know although this hasn't been easy, it's been rewarding. You may be a light for someone else who struggles also. I am so so so very proud of you, gorgeous!

Are you ready to make a change? Reach out to me and let's chat about what program would be a good fit for YOU and your needs. Im here to help you any way I can, and help you get started on a path to meet YoUR goals. :) Email me at amandanoddings@me.com any time. As always, love healthy, live happy. Love, Amanda

Star Diamond Coach Amanda Noddings
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Perfect Pumpkin Protein Pancakes

It's fall, an pumpkin spice is every where! Pumpkin lattes, pumpkin doughnuts... But what about something you can make at home, that the whole family will enjoy? That fresh baked pumpkin smell fills the house when you grill up these homemade pumpkin pancakes. And the bonus? They'll get your day off to a healthy start packed with the protein and carbs you need to be at your best.  

Here's what you're looking at for ingredients:

Wet: 

 -3/4 c. Pumpkin Purée

 -6 Egg Whites 

 -1/8 c. Unsweetened Cashew Milk 

 -1 T. Pure Vanilla Extract

Dry ingredients: 

 -2/3 c. Oat Flour 

 -1 Scoop Vanilla Shakeology

 -1/2 tsp. Baking Powder

 - 1 tsp. Cinnamon

 -1/2 tsp. Nutmeg

This recipe calls for Oat Flour. I didn't have any on hand, but what I did have were these organic quick-cook steel cut oats I love by Bob's Red Mill. I took one cup of oats and pulsed it in my Vitamix until it had the powdery consistency of flour. Whalah! Oat flour. Why would I use this instead of regular flour? For starters, it's gluten free, if you're into that. But also, oats are a heart healthy whole grain, with fiber to move you along. ;)

The way to make these is so simple, my 5 year old daughter helped me throw them together. I preheated my stove to a little below medium (a 4 out of 10), and lightly sprayed my pan with nonstick olive oil. Grab your nearest spoon, fork, or child, and stir the dry ingredients together. Next, mix the wet. Then combine. That's it! I told you these were simple! 

Next, pour the batter! After about 2 minutes (the key is to wait until you see the edges begin to "lift" from the pan), you flip and wait 2 more minutes. Then repeat. 

We decided to have a little fun at Olivia's request, and drizzle some dark chocolate on top of our stack of pancakes. You could do the same, add some walnuts, or even a tablespoon of maple syrup to add a little sweetness. If you really love that pumpkin flavor, go ahead and add a teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice to the mix to kick the pumpkin up a notch. 

Will you try these out? Share with a friend! Don't forget to subscribe to never miss a recipe, or Pin it for later! Who doesn't need a great healthy whole grain breakfast for the whole family this fall?

🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃

Star Diamond Coach Amanda Noddings

Www.facebook.com/TeamDrivenFitness

Www.facebook.com/FitMomAmanda

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Star Diamond Coach Amanda Noddings
Www.facebook.com/TeamDrivenFitness
Www.facebook.com/FitMomAmanda

Frozen Coconut Peanut Butter Bark

So, first off I have to say this: no, you aren't allowed to eat the whole plate in one sitting. It will be tempting- trust me, I know! This recipe was actually inspired by my husband, Darrell. As a plumber, he's a natural problem solver. I was hell-bent on making my Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups, my usual go-to for a sweet craving, only to find that we were out of cupcake liners. Well, that wouldn't do at all!

So Darrell notices my frustration, and sees the gleam in my eye that I'm about to make a poor choice that I'll kick myself for later (we've been married over 5 years now-- he probably recognizes the pattern!), and he mentions that last time I made the peanut butter cups, the liquid spilled onto the paper plate and froze there. It popped off easily, causing him to remark that it looked like peanut brittle. Whalah! The idea for this recipe was born.

Here's what you'll need to make this recipe:
-Chocolate or Vegan Chocolate Shakeology
-PB2 or another powdered Peanut Butter
-Coconut Oil
-Toppings of your choice, or none at all! I used shredded coconut and almond slivers.


Also, you'll want two small microwave safe bowls. In the first one, you are going to melt 1/3 cup of coconut oil. When that's done, add 1 cup of PB2 and pour it into your plate. It should spread easily as it is fairly runny at this ratio.

In the second bowl, mix 1/3 cup Vegan (or regular) Chocolate Shakeology and one cup of water. Mix it thoroughly until it is also fairly runny, adding water if needed. You are going to pour this directly on top of the PB2 mixture. If you want, you can drizzle it around as I did (pictured below) to make it beautiful. After all, we eat with the eyes first!

The last step is simply to sprinkle any toppings you want on top. I chose to divide the plate in thirds, doing some with each topping and some plain. I let my daughter help with this step- she loves to sprinkle! And to be involved. :)


Now you simply place it in the freezer for about 20 minutes. If you want this for a late night munchies, throw it in before dinner and it'll be perfect! Lastly, all you have to do is break it up! I chose to break each section separate and put them in small ziplocks in the freezer.


Because the melting point of coconut oil is so close to room temperature, you're only going to want to take these out a piece or two at a time as pure ready to enjoy them. Here's how the plain ones looked:


For extra crunch and texture, I added almond slivers to the top of these ones:


And the piece de resistance, the shredded coconut. It tastes amazing with the coconut-oil-based peanut butter on the bottom. Delish!


If you know someone who would like this recipe, please share it! And if you're looking for more support on your fitness journey and think you'd like to learn more, please email me at amandanoddings@automaticceo.com and we'll chat!

As always, live healthy, live happy! Love, Amanda

Star Diamond Coach Amanda Noddings
Www.facebook.com/TeamDrivenFitness
Www.facebook.com/FitMomAmanda

Label Test Post

Hello :). This is a sample post to get all of my labels started

Chocolate Shakeology PB2 Cups: So Simple, They are Almost Criminal...Almost.

Ok. So you have that late night sweet craving. Again. Or maybe just chocolate. Must. Have. Chocolate. Well, we've all been there. But what do you do about it when you want to feed that little demon without destroying all your hard work? Here's what I do: I make Chocolate Shakeology PB2 cups.

They are so simple, it's almost criminal. 

First, you need some foil cupcake liners. I use my small size cutting board to lay them out on, because it fits neatly in my freezer. I originally got this recipe from Beachbody's website, and then modified it to suit my purposes, which was to make 6 cups. No, that doesn't mean make and eat all six! But it does mean that making 6 actually takes me less time, because the ingredient amounts better suited my purposes and were easier and quicker to measure, and because I might want one later this week, or my daughter might want one. Nothing makes me feel worse than when I'm too much of a Scrooge to share with my 4 year old! So, I make 6. 

You need only three ingredients (well, 4, if you count water):

-1/3 c. Coconut Oil 

-1 c. PB2 Powder

-1/2 c. Chocolate Shakeology

-1 c. Water

Here's where it gets complicated. Melt the coconut oil (I zap mine in the microwave for 15 seconds). Got it? Now pour it in a small bowl and mix it with the PB2. Done!

In a second small bowl, mix your Chocolate Shakeology and water. Done!

Last step: pour the PB2 mixture into your 6 cups, evenly.  Then top with your Chocolate Shakeology mixture. Freeze! Oh, I should add- eat from the freezer! The chocolate part melts quick, so they are meant to be eaten cold. :)  When they are done, I reward myself with one and throw the other 5 in the back of the freezer in a zip lock bag. Why? Because I want myself to have to WORK to get it, not simply grab it because it's easily accessible. After all, you want to savor them, not wolf them down in a day!