All posts by R.C. Liley

I'm an ex-mutual fund accountant who left the cubicle world to be a stay-at-home dad to my beautiful little girl, Avery, who entered our life on 11/15/13 and handsome little boy, Wes, who joined our family on 11/19/17. Also happily married to my wife, Kelley, as of 8/17/07. Sorry ladies... :) Fitness and nutrition is of the utmost importance in our family and we strive to reflect this in our daily life. I always prepare our meals at home and only go out if it's a special occasion, and even then I tend to not get much. Food should be fun and a joy to eat, not something quickly consumed from a fast food chain or scarf down before the next meeting. I have come from strictly logging high miles to train for the next marathon to keeping exercise varied and focusing more on strength. I still enjoy going for a run when I can, but nothing crazy, and I prefer hill sprints while pushing my daughter, Avery in the stroller. She loves it and I get a great workout! I want to show the world how to appreciate their body and feed it real, wholesome food while moving more throughout the day. In doing so, everyone would be healthier, happier, and we'd all live in a better place as a result. I blog mainly about my life as a stay-at-home dad and frequently include reviews, participate in campaigns, and share my thoughts on fitness and nutrition. If you ever have any questions or thoughts to share, please reach out as I'm always open to listening or helping others however possible. That is, when I have free time since Avery is and my wife are the number one priorities!

Parenting

The Body and Mind Synergy Home Workout Program

03/05/2016 R.C. Liley 1 Comment

Of course, why wouldn’t you want a workout program you can do at home? Most of us are too busy to drive a gym, and we not everyone can afford or fit a lot of equipment in their home.

While I do have the luxury of quality weights in our garage, I can’t always drag my poor daughter out there with me. Luckily I just signed up for a home-based workout program that requires no equipment but will still challenge anyone from beginner to advanced.

The program is called Body and Mind Synergy, and it has everything you need to get started. Whether you’re looking to lose weight, get stronger, or simply maintain your current fitness level, Body and Mind Synergy will help you with your goals. Here’s a quick overview about the program..

A Unique Approach To Health And Fitness – How To Stay Fit With Kids, Long Hours & Travel.

The most comprehensive mental and physical coaching program, online.
Test the system first with a no-risk 7-Day Free trial.

SAVE TIME: Short workouts, with no equipment, done anywhere.
FOOD MADE EASY: Fast, tasty, healthy meal preparation for non-chefs made in minutes, not hours.
$397 FREE BONUS: “Between The Ears” is the do-it-yourself mental coaching program that shows you how to do it when you just don’t feel like it. Make healthy living an automatic choice.
STEP-BY-STEP SYSTEM: Video instructions, workout calendars, done-for-you meal plans.
WORKOUT LIBRARY: Huge library of exercises and workouts that you can do anywhere, and anytime. From beginner to advanced.
UNIQUE APPROACH: Work with your mind and your body to whip yourself into shape to create a lasting change.
7 Day Free Trial: This offer is for a limited period and only offered by recommendation. Take your free trial today.

Since I’m just starting myself, I can’t give you my personal experience yet, but I’m hoping you’ll join me so we can track our progress together. I’ll post updates about likes and dislikes from the program, and I’d love to see your feedback/questions in the comments section.

Antony is the man behind the program and will guide us through the workouts and answer any questions we have along our journey.

I’m not a fitness newbie and never thought I’d want to join some program, but when the Body and Mind website specifically listed these details as the most important thing, I was on board.

This is the most important page on the site. It is a reference for everything else.

Question: What are the 3 biggest obstacles to getting fit and staying healthy?

Answer: 1. Lack of time. 2. Lack of motivation. 3. Lack of structure.

This program has 3 phases to tackle these obstacles.

Between The Ears will show you how to create rock-solid mental strength to demolish motivational issues.

Food Matters makes structuring your meals, simple, easy, quick and tasty.

Getting Sweaty structures short, intensive powerful workouts that can be done anywhere, with no equipment.

Complete all 3 phases to succeed. Download the materials, track your progress, and tick boxes.

Transform your body and make it a lasting change. Enjoy the journey.

Ever find yourself making one or all of the 3 excuses? I have, but it ~~doesn’t have to~~ should never be that way. If you’re interested, and I hope you are, check out the site and sign up for the 7 day free trial with no strings attached.

To see if you’ll like the workouts, Antony has several to sample workouts to try out right now. Head on over and see how well you can do as a Newbie, Intermediate, or Advanced trainee. All workouts last just 30 minutes, require no equipment, and can be done in any small space. Perfect for those who spend a lot of time in hotels or when the kids take over the house leaving you stuck with choosing to hide in the confines of your bathroom or behind the couch.

If you’re confused about a certain exercise, no problem, Antony has detailed video demos of each movement to make sure you will go into each workout with confidence. You’ll also have several resources you can download to track your food, workouts, and progress. This truly looks like a complete system that’s easy to follow and stick with, which means your results will be easier to maintain as you shift to a healthier mindset and overall lifestyle.

That’s it for now, hope you find this program useful. I feel it will benefit all of the busy parents out there and maybe you’ll kids will even see you and want to join in. Maybe? 😉

Keep an eye out for a future post on my progress along with pros and cons I’ve noticed after starting.

Books, Earn Income

6 Bedtime Books Your Kid Will Love

03/03/2016 R.C. Liley 6 Comments

As a bonus, parents will love these bedtime books too. When it comes to books, it’s absolutely paramount for the parent to enjoy the book as well. Otherwise, we might not put enough into the story and therefore shortchange those eager little ears.

How we tell a story can be the difference from hearing a story, to hearing A STORY!!! Putting emphasis into the words of each character, changing the tone of your voice depending on the situation, and getting your kids involved by saying certain lines or finding something on each page.

You get the point, find something you like to read, and everyone will enjoy the book so much better. That is, until you’ve read it for the 87th time, and you will read it 87+ times! Here are 6 bedtime books I think you’ll enjoy reading just as much as they’ll enjoy hearing over and over again.

1. Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed

Most of us should remember this story from our own childhood, so why not share it with the next generation? Avery loves the crazy monkeys, and it makes for a good way to explain why she shouldn’t jump on the…..well, she jumps on everything.

2. Pajama Time!

We love all of Sandra Boynton’s books, so it’s only right to include this one. Our whole family cites the words from this book throughout the day, it’s definitely fun and catchy. Another favorite is The Going To Bed Book, our favorite page is when the exercise on top of the boat deck.

3. The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry, and the Big Hungry Bear

I grew up with my mom (g-ma) reading this to me all the time. Then, as I grew older, I read it all the time. Such a fun story and kids will love seeing the ways the little mouse tries to keep his cherished strawberry away from that hungry bear.

4. Bear Snores On

Nana gave this to Avery before she was one and we’ve grown to love this book so much. I even made a YouTube video of my wife and I reading it to Avery. Yes, I act it out.

5. 10 Minutes till Bedtime

We’ve owned this book for a while, but only recently has our toddler shown interest. Now that she’s counting and “reading” herself, we sit and try to find the hamsters (there’s 10 with numbers on each page) together. It’s a longer book and is fun to read during the day too.

6. Llama Llama Red Pajama

This is a fun rhyming book and it’s the most recent in our collection thanks to G-Ma. Ours came with a cute baby llama plush that Avery has added to her 6 other animals that go to bed with her. She loves the story, and there’s a great message about being patient in there. Maybe she’ll catch on soon…..

Going Mom and I switch off on who reads and who holds our precious Toddler for bedtime, and I’m sure these 6 bedtime books have been read well over 87 times. And it’s not all at night or nap time, no, a really good bedtime book is good any time of day!

Hope one or all of these books find their way into your home for you and your little ones to enjoy as much as our family.

This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase by clicking through one of my links, I earn a whopping few cents each time. It won’t change a thing for you, but I’d appreciate buying a cup of coffee without asking my wife at least one time. 🙂

Food, Going Healthy

Quinoa Salad Recipe: Curry in a Hurry

02/29/2016 R.C. Liley Leave a comment

Quinoa is pretty awesome stuff. Being a staple seed in our home, I’m always looking for new and tasty ways to prepare the tiny spheres of complete protein. Since I just bought some curry powder, I figured I’d put our staple seed (quinoa is technically a seed, not a grain) to the test.

The result was healthy mix of colorful protein and veggies that’s delicious hot or cold. Fluffy quinoa, a little bite from the curry, a big bite from the cayenne, and so many flavors all work magic in this simple dish.

Quinoa Curry Salad Recipe

Our daughter loves quinoa, and since I usually cook it when G-Ma comes over, we’ve coined the term “Quinoa for G-Ma” which she repeats all day long.

Make this Curried Quinoa Salad and double the ingredients to have throughout the week for work or as a quick fridge to plate dinner.

Ingredients (serves 4):

•1 cup dry quinoa; rinsed
•3 – 4 cloves garlic, minced
•1 onion; chopped
•12oz package of frozen green beans
•10 – 12oz package of frozen chopped broccoli
1 (15 oz) can of beans; I used black-eyed peas, but you really can’t go wrong with any bean
•1 cup chicken stock
•2 tablespoons spicy brown mustard
•1 tablespoon each of curry powder, cumin, basil, cilantro
•1/2 teaspoon cayenne
•sea salt and pepper to taste

To prepare:
1. Heat non-stick sauce pan.
2. Add garlic and onion. Cook for three minutes or until soft. Add spices and let toast for 20 seconds.
3. Add vegetables, quinoa, stock and salt and pepper (if desired).
4. Cook for 20 minutes or until quinoa is fully cooked (it will be translucent).
5. Transfer to large bowl or portion out into storage containers for each person. Place in fridge to chill.
3. Whenever you’re ready, take out of fridge and enjoy; no heat required!

Quinoa Curry Salad Recipe_2

Feel free to adapt the recipe to whatever veggies, herbs, and spices you have on hand. Just a bag of frozen spinach is easy and adds tons of nutrition to make a healthy meal even healthier……and tasty too!

Quinoa Curry Salad Recipe_3
Going Mom isn’t a fan, so I added sliced beets to my dish afterward. They add beautiful color, nutrition, and taste (to me)!
I love the versatility of quinoa and have cooked it as a savory dish many times as well as in coconut milk with a little vanilla stevia and of course NuttZo for a wonderfully energizing breakfast.