Healthy Lasagna

I made this high protein lasagna and it tasted just like delicious, traditional, homemade lasagna should! Plus, it was easy!

Always comment with any questions, suggestions, or tell me how it is if you try it! 

What you Need:

•   1½ lbs of lean ground beef

•   6 oz. whole wheat lasanga noodles

•   2.5 cups Hunts traditional spaghetti sauce

•   2 cups fat free cottage cheese

•   9 oz. pkg. frozen spinach (cooked as directed and drain excess water)

•   8 egg whites

•   8 oz. mushrooms

•   1 cup fat free mozzarella cheese

      

 What to Do:

•   Cook ground beef until brown.

•   Boil noodles as directed by package.

•   Spray a 9”x13” pan with cooking spray and spread a few tablespoons of the spaghetti sauce on the bottom of the pan.

•   Mix the rest of the ingredients, except for the fat free mozzarella cheese.

•   Lay down ½ of the noodles and top with half of the cottage cheese mixture.

•   Layer with the rest of the noodles and top with the other half of the mixture.

•   Lastly, put the fat free cheese on top.

Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes.

***The cool thing about recipes is that you can always put your own spin on them.  For this I used ground turkey instead of beef, and I didn't use mushrooms.  If you want any of the nutritional information for this or for my version comment!

Protein Cheesecake

Since I have been gone, I figure that I owe you all a recipe! I made this for my birthday (about a month ago) and it was better than any cake I've ever had!!

I got the recipe from http://www.builtlean.com/2013/01/23/protein-cheesecake-recipe/ (thanks guys!)

What you need:

• 12oz Fat Free Philadelphia Cream Cheese
• 10oz Plain Greek Yogurt
• 2 Whole Eggs
• 1-2 Tbsp Stevia
• ¼ Cup Milk
• 1.5 Scoops Whey Protein
• 1tsp Vanilla Extract
• Dash Salt

What you do:

1. Preheat oven to 325°
2. Soften cream cheese in a large mixing bowl by pressing down with a spoon.
3. Add eggs and stevia and mix using an electric mixer.
4. Add the rest of the ingredients and continue mixing for 2-3min.
5. Pour in baking pan (6” pan works best) lined with parchment paper for best results.
6. Bake at 325° for 25min then turn down the oven to 200° and continue baking for an additional hour.
7. Let cool in fridge for 4-5 hours, add topping and destroy!

If you have any questions about the recipe, visit the link provided, or comment comment comment!!!

9 Months Later..

This title probably sounds like I had a baby, but no, I just forgot my sign on for this blog.

I wrote a blog update in April, but couldn't post it, so here it is:

I haven’t blogged in a long time.  Well, more than a long time.  Okay, I basically started a blog and quit right away.  But, I had a good reason.  Kentucky.  What that means, is that I made this blog to update people on all the adventures and fun times Kentucky and graduate school was going to bring, but that didn’t really happen.  I didn’t exactly want to sit down and write about how I was working two jobs, writing papers until I had arthritis, and reading thousands of pages of boring books, all while in the polar vortex, so I stopped writing.  I know, I was being a baby. I’m sorry that I abandoned my few blog readers because there were a lot of great things that happened in the last 5 months. First and foremost, I learned a lot about myself.  I learned who I was, what I stand for, and what makes me happy.  Most importantly, I gained confidence in who I am.  But besides that big philosophical answer, I also started training for a NPC Bikini competition and dropped 7% body fat (competition is this Saturday 4/19) I met some amazing people and made great friends, and I finished (almost) my first year of graduate school (about a week left).

So why am I talking about this journey in Kentucky like it’s over?  Well, because it is.  Around Christmas break I decided I wasn’t happy, and life is too short to sit around and be unhappy for 5 years.  I applied to a doctorate program in San Diego, got in, and am moving back there at the end of May.  Whew, a lot going on and a lot that happened.  I guess there actually was a lot to blog about.

The point of this blog is to announce (YAY!) I am finally moving back to San Diego and making it my home for a few years.  I am also continuing graduate school, just at a new school (same type of degree).  I plan to seek adventures that I didn’t quite get in Kentucky, especially now that I know myself a little bit better.  I really did enjoy it in Kentucky though.  I learned manners (how to use my ma’ms and sirs), how delicious dark beer actually is, and a whole new world of fitness competing.  I also learned how to meet new people, be on my own without a team supporting me, and to take risks and have fun.  I learned how to be true to myself.  Kentucky will always hold a very special place in my heart, as will everyone I met here, but I’m exciting for my next new adventure.  We’ll see how long I can stay in one place J

I will try to start writing more, as I have lots of fun recipes, stories, and adventures to share.  Thank you to everyone who takes the time to read this and support me J

K

__________________________________________________________________

So, three months after I wrote this, I finally figured out my password.  And.. I am back in San Diego!!

A little update on what I posed there, I did my first competition, and I placed 2nd in Novice and 6th in Open.  I also finished my first semester of graduate school with a 4.0.  Now I am prepping for my second competition (it's in 3 weeks!) and having a very laid back summer.

Although I am very happy to be back in San Diego, it is still a transition.  There are times I don't do much, I find myself bored, and am trying to find my place being in the World's Finest City.  Now that I have written my password down, I promise to post more, as I always continually promise... so we'll see how this goes.  I start school and practicum in about month, so stay tuned for my new journey!

Until Next Time,

K

It's Posted!

Hey Everyone,
I have so much to catch you all up on! But currently I am running to class. I wanted to share some exciting news really quick. In July I submitted my transformation story to bodybuilding.com and someone told me today that it was posted! I will post more about it later, but here is the link and a little insight to my fitness journey

http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/body-transformstion-kaila-smith-burnt-fat-to-the-ground.html

I'll catch up soon, most likely after this hectic week of work and midterms!

Under Construction

Hey Guys!
I'm trying to makes pages for you guys to review specific things, for example recipes, but I'm not sure blogger does that so be patient with me while I'm trying to fix a few things here and there. Be sure to check in because a lot of things are coming up!

6 Weeks Down!

I guess at some point I have to stop giving you guys a week by week countdown, or else I will be counting down my life. It seems like I have been in Louisville forever, but then I realize I've only been here about two months and only in school for six weeks. I still have 11 weeks to finish one semester, but when I think of it like that, I want to go crazy. I have been super busy trying to balance work, school, working out and having fun, but like I always say, staying busy is the best option.

I don't have many fun stories or exciting news to report. I was swamped the past week and feel like I am just now catching my breath. Although I won't always have great things to post here, I want to try to keep it updated. Like I've said before I will post different things going on in my life, which mainly consists of things I've learned at school, recipes I'm starting to try, fitness related posts, or everyday life stressors or advice. With that said...

 I have random challenge for everyone who reads this. It is to try yoga at least once. Make your friends go with you. Just try it. Lately I have been going to yoga, but also researching it. Did you guys know the benefits it has in the psychological and medical world? It has become a type of alternative treatment for chronic illness and chronic pain, depression, anxiety and more! So for October, I challenge you to try it, just once!

I am doing an October challenge for myself as well. The main point of the challenge is to keep myself accountable in all aspects of life. I know that in a busy life it is hard to do everything we want and it is easy to make excuses, but for October I'm focuses on not letting myself have excuses for anything. I want to keep myself accountable for my workouts, my eating habits (stay healthy!), getting my homework done, staying intentional in building my relationships and staying positive! Basically don't give up who and what I want to be just because I am busy. Following that will be "No _______ November!" Although it's a month away start thinking about what you're going to give up for November. Last year I did No Candy November, what will you challenge yourself to give up?

I hope you all had a great week. I should be posting some more recipes soon. I want to start trying out some new recipes, so I will keep you updated on those. I made kale chips and carrot chips the other day! They were very yummy. (If you make them, less olive oil is more, trust me!)

Also, my tough mudder is around the corner and in November I am going to a KPA (psychology) conference and hopefully going to watch my first fitness competition and see if it is something I want to get started up in! So much to come and I hope to keep you all in the loop! I have midterms coming up, so keep me in your thoughts and send me some positive vibes!

Pumpkin Spice Protein Shake

Pumpkin Spice is everything. I am totally in the mood for celebrating the fall, so I tried a new fall recipe I found.This pumpkin spice shake was delicious and healthy! Here's the recipe, I found it on Pinterest!

1/2 banana, frozen (mine wasn't frozen)
1 pinch ginger (I didn't have this, so I left it out)
1/2 c pumpkin, canned or freshly cooked
3/4 c almond milk
1/2 scoop vanilla protein powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice (I didn't have this either, so I left it out)

Put all of this in a blender, blend until smooth, enjoy!!

As you can tell, I left a few things out, and it was still awesome! I added about 4 ice cubes.

Like I said, it's really easy and cheap, so give it a try! :)