Meal Plan: Week of July 9th

We took the week off last week from meal planning and boy could you tell.  I feel like I was at the grocery store every other day.  When I wasn't at the grocery store I was at a pick up place.  It made me realize a few things; first off that meal planning is cheaper, secondly it is healthier and lastly with our office being leading to a busy lifestyle it definitely saves time.

Sunday-  Grilled Shrimp with Corn Avocado Salad

For the shrimp I don't really have a recipe just grilled any way you like it or substitute any other grilled protein

Monday - Summer Tomato Cucumber Quinoa

I am going to add some sort of bean to this recipe for protein

Tuesday- Sweet Potato Broccoli Chicken Bake

Wednesday- Sheet Pan Shrimp Fajitas

Thursday- Pesto Chicken and Veggies

Meet Our New Kitchen Obsession!

We have a new awesome member of our small appliance kitchen family and we wanted to introduce you to it.  It is called an Instant Pot and it is remarkably awesome.  Why is it awesome you ask? Well, because when you are constantly going, it makes it easy to cook delicious, healthy food in very little time.  We were able to make an amazing chicken burrito bowl a few nights ago in less than 20 minutes start to finish.  That was with delicious moist chicken, long grain rice and sautéed onions and garlic all in one pot.


So what exactly is an instant pot might be the question you are thinking in your head.  Instant Pot is a multi-cooker that does the job of a slow cooker, electric pressure cooker, rice cooker, steamer, yogurt maker, sauté/browning pan, and warming pot.  We are still experimenting with all the different functions this machine has to offer but lets just say so far everything we have used it for has impressed us.  Perfect fluffy quinoa with no effort, no problem.  One pot meals that save cooking time and decrease dishes in your sink, yeah, it does that.  Hard boiled eggs that peel easier than any other hard boiled egg I have ever seen, yep, covered.  We even baked little tiny personal mini cakes in it last night.  Next on the agenda homemade yogurt, which I can't wait for since they add so much sugar to the store bought varieties.

You might see more Instant Pot recipes in the future on our blog and social media posts.  There is no shortage of recipes out their as this appliance has a huge cult following.  This isn't your grandma's pressure cooker, you don't have to be scared of it.  It wont blow up in your kitchen, at least I should say ours hasn't yet, as long as you follow directions you should be ok.  Tune in later to see how the homemade yogurt experiment goes.

- Dr. Chris

Why I Workout.

I ran my first half marathon almost 2 years go. I’m not sure why I did it, other than a friend asked me if i wanted to. I said yes because I couldn’t think of a good enough reason to say no.

Little did I know when i said yes to that adventure, I was saying yes to a full-on lifestyle change. I’ve always considered myself an active person. I love the outdoors, hiking, going for walks, etc. but life didn’t always make an active life easy. Crazy full-time jobs. An energy-sucking pregnancy. Ambitious house renovations. I can admit that sometimes, even with the best intensions, the couch was more appealing at the end of a long day.

While life still doesn’t always make exercise a priority, I know its up to me to make sure it happens. Some of the reasons I workout are silly, some are more serious, but at the end of the day, I know there are a million good reasons I should be moving my body and I still can’t really think of a good enough reason to say no. This is why I workout:

1. “fomo” 

So I might be having a little bit of a “fear of missing out” moment when it comes to working out. I have some pretty amazing friends who go on some pretty amazing adventures. I want to be able to go and i want to be able to keep up. I want to be able to climb that 14er with everyone or make it to the hut without holding the group back. I feel like the luckiest person in the world to have friends who push me to be the healthiest person i can and experience things others can only imagine. 

I run most of my races with two of my best friends from college. the last race we did was through a canyon in moab. what do most people do on girls weekends? spas? wine tasting? not us. we run 13.1 miles through the desert. staying in touch with your college friends years later is a gift, but having those friends to make you better, to laugh with when it hurts, is a blessing. I workout to be able to do the same thing for them.

2. I am a work in progress

I used to be so mean to myself when it came to running. no time was good enough, every distance was too short. but then i realized something: there are enough people out there to be mean to you. It's up to you to be your own biggest cheerleader. If you celebrate every time you go for a run, no matter how far, or every time you make it to barre class, it’s WAY more enjoyable. I firmly believe in the idea that you are lapping everyone sitting on a couch somewhere, even if you just go around the block. Celebrate that! 

Working out is still hard. Runs are still absolutely exhausting. But if I look back to where I was two years ago when I said yes to that race, I have come so far. I am so much stronger. And I am, and always will be, a work in progress.

3. it's ok to be selfish

Sometimes I feel selfish when it comes to making time to workout. I’ve always subscribed to the idea that saying yes to something means saying no to something else and I hate the feeling of putting my time ahead of anyone else’s. I’m extremely lucky to be married to someone who supports my work out time and he makes it possible. But If being selfish means making my health a priority, then I think more people should be selfish. 

One of the biggest lessons I learned having a child is that you have to take care of yourself to be able to take care of anyone else. It’s not a natural feeling, but if i want to keep up with Mason as he gets faster and faster and be able to hold him when he needs to snuggle, I have to work for that. If that means running and lifting weights to be there for my kiddo, i can’t think of a better reason. Also, every time he sees me lace up my running shoes he sees me choosing to be healthy. I can only hope he lives a healthy, active life, and I’m choosing to teach him by example. I always think of the phrase “little eyes are watching” and with this one, and I hope he is. 

I feel like the simple, “selfish”, act of choosing me, is me choosing everyone I care about.

4. my mental health depends on it

Mental health is something that a lot of people don’t feel comfortable talking about, yet most people have dealt with at some point or another. I’ve struggled with depression most of my life to varying degrees and now know that as much as working out is good for my body, it’s just as important to my mental health. Running is my time to clear my head, to get it all out and leave nothing behind. There’s something about the most exhausting part of your day being the most peaceful part. I get to know me again and I feel like clarity is restored. They say the person who starts the race is not the same person who finishes the race, and I find that true with every run, always for the better.

5. god gave me the ability.

If you’ve ever loved someone dealing with physical pain, who couldn’t run if their life depended on it, you know how hard it is to watch. God gave me a body that is able to push itself and do amazing things. I run because I can and I run for everyone who can’t. Health is a gift that i never want to take for granted. It’s a strange analogy, but I feel like every workout I do is an investment in my future. I want to always be active and enjoy life to the fullest and if that means saying yes to crazy races, then  I will every time.

- Kristen

We're Blogging!

Hi! So we've had this blog for a while now, but never really used it. So, with a new year, comes new goals and one of ours is to continue to find more ways to connect with our patients and the blog seemed like a perfect way to do just that.

While we are not perfect by any means, we try to live healthy lives. Often our patients ask us about food choices we make, how we choose to workout, questions about essential oils and more. Our blog is here to give you a peek into our lives and how we choose to do things. We'll be sharing example meal plans we make each week (because thats the only way to really stick to healthy eating, right?), great recipes we've tried, any interesting articles we've been finding, workout tips, a great oil blend we've been loving or even just something funny that happened around our house.

We'd love to talk to you about what works for you as well - we have a lot we can learn from each other and we hope this is a great place to do that!

For more information about Optimal Health Chiropractic visit our website at http://www.broomfieldchirocare.com/

Chiropractor Broomfield

If you are seeking a good chiropractor in Broomfield that you can take your child to then you have already found the right place. At Optimal Health Chiropractic we are dedicated to improving the health of your entire family. Some people might balk a little at taking a child to a chiropractor saying that it is unnecessary and kids “bounce back” from everything. For the most part, that is true, children’s bodies are designed to heal very rapidly. But on the other hand, childhood is a time when there are lots of bumps and falls and something can get knocked out of whack and stay that way, causing problems and pain in the long term as your child grows.

Plus, our chiropractor in Broomfield likes working with children as a way of providing education and helping to develop lifelong habits that will ultimately result in better health for your child. It’s easier to start habits like that when you’re a young rather than having to reteach yourself as an adult. Plus usually as an adult you come because there is already a problem and prevention is much more effective before there is a problem. Check out this chiropractor in Broomfield to get started today.

For more information about Optimal Health Chiropractic visit our website at http://www.broomfieldchirocare.com/

Chiropractor Who Takes Insurance Broomfield

These days with the rising costs of healthcare it is not just important to find a good chiropractor when you need that type of medical attention but rather a good chiropractor who takes insurance in Broomfield, Colorado. The professionals here at Optimal Health Chiropractic offer exemplary chiropractic care with a strong focus on educating our patients in how better to take care of themselves in the future while still being a good chiropractor who takes insurance in Broomfield.

Our approach is very holistic and as natural as possible. We believe that working with your body’s natural healing process leads to better results that will have a much longer lasting effect. Our concern is more about teaching our community how to live healthier, pain free lives than it is about making lots of money off of our neighbors and as such we gladly offer our services as a chiropractor who takes insurance in Broomfield making it easier for people to come and see us. We do our best to make sure that you can get the care that you need, even offering after hours appointments for those that are unable to come during our regular business hours.

For more information about Optimal Health Chiropractic visit our website at http://www.broomfieldchirocare.com/