Burn Brighter Coaching

Fitness and Nutrition Coaching for women over 35

Burn Brighter Blog

Awesome Foods

Posted on   |  Awesome Foods

Golden Milk. My #1 Fix to crush nightime snack cravings, burn more fat, sleep great + workout better!

Golden Milk – This stuff is freakin’ magic

Seriously.  It helps you sleep better, burn more fat, decrease recovery time between workouts/ working your body hard, decrease inflammation, increase immune system and has anti cancer and mental health benefits

I started drinking this when I had some giant family drama going on- couldn’t sleep and was totally holding onto body fat.

Now that’s gone – the drama and the fat , thank heavens!!

I still tap into this a few times a week.  Helps me sleep better + speeds up recovery btwn hard strength workouts/ stresses on the body..  Oh and it keeps colds at bay, boosts our immune system and crushes nighttime snack cravings!

GOLDEN MILK

A soothing drink made with high quality fats and spices (coconut milk, coconut oil, turmeric, black pepper, cinnamon and ginger) It’s an ancient Indian Ayurvedic remedy.

Us Western World folk only began learning of this a few years ago. Lucky for you and I there’s an awesome company that’s perfected the recipe and makes it super easy for us to access the drink whenever we like 🙂

USE Gaia Goldenmilk mix.  Just add your milk of choice, heat, mix and enjoy!  CLICK HERE for info

What I love most is that Gaia has dates, black pepper and ashwaganda in it!

1.The date powder – keeps the drink slightly sweet (not very) – but definitely makes it more tasty WITHOUT raising glucose much.. very minimal amount. Great sweetener source! ,

2. ASHWAGANDA!  Love this herb – It’s one of the most prevalent Ayurvedic sources and in India means “smelly horse” – On it’s own – it has a fould smell – but not in the mix – It’s powers are to 1. Increase Strength ( hence the “horse”) 2. Decreases Inflammation 3. Decreases mental anxiety and stress 4. Helps you sleep!  It’s your chill pill

3. Black Pepper – Necessary to release the curcumin in Turmeric – this is turmeric’s most potent health property. Curcumin is an anti cancer property, as well as aids digestion and reduces inflammation and stress in the body.

You can also make this on your own — BUT I say just buy GAIA’s set up… it’s hard to find ground ashwaganda and cost

 

You can find this at PCC, Whole Foods, most Co Ops AND on AMAZON – CLICK here

I enjoy golden milk 3 nights a week – when I need more recovery, sleep and gotta perform big the next day!

If you’re a DIY kinda human -scroll down to make it yo’self!

homemade recipe

Turmeric Paste
turmeric powder 1/4 cup
water – 1/2 – 3/4 cup
stir over low heat 7-10 mins

stir to make paste –

(I keep this in a small tupperware container in my fridge) – you only need 1 tbsp per cup.

GOLDEN MILK
1 cup coconut milk (full fat)

1 cup almond milk ( or hemp or rice)
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp coconut oil
1 tsp – 1 tbsp  turmeric paste (above) 
1 tsp chopped ginger
4 black peppercorns ** a must to release nutrients from turmeric
2 tsp raw honey

stir over low heat stir occasionally
strain – to release ginger and back peppercorns

Sip and Enjoy

Save

Save

Save

Save

Posted on   |  Awesome Foods

What Dr. Brenda Eats

The Recipes that keep this lady on top of her game!

I get to work with some really amazing people. Most of my clients are super busy and travel a lot, so we do e-coaching. One of my virtual coaching clients is Dr. Brenda Salter McNeil.  She and I skype every 2 weeks to create a super specific plan for her to work on. She gets recipes, how to order out, workout plans and some mindset tips to keep her inspired- so she can keep doing it all!

Brenda knows she can plan the work. But real change only happens when she works the plan.

Once she made these recipes, she got all sorts of people wanting to know what she was eating and where she got it!

So I thought I’d share the recipes I gave her. Hopefully they will get you turning heads too:)

But first- here’s a little more about why you should know about this lady:)

Dr. Brenda is literally changing the world daily. She has a strong purpose and mission that she lives daily

” To inspire and equip young Christian leaders to practice reconciliation around the world and to build communities that partner with God to bring relational healing and social wholeness”  -Dr. Brenda  CLICK HERE for her site

She is literally “Igniting a Reconciliation Movement” She does this as a

  • Pastor
  • Professor
  • Speaker
  • Author (working on 3rd book!)
  • Mother and Wife
  • Fierce Woman

 

How cool is that!!

Now, I know that for her to stay awesome and serve the world with her greatness,

I gotta give her great stuff to stay strong with, she has GOT to feed herself the best stuff!

So here’s what I gave her to enjoy last week. Keep in mind this lady is super busy ..all these recipes are quick to set up.

To get more recipes like this check out my You Tube Channel:

Breanne Curran I’ve got some great cooking vids there – “Cooking with Currans” 

Read More

Posted on   |  Awesome Foods

How to Punch Back when the Sh** hits the Fan.

 What you do when S*** hits the fan, and you’re end up eating crappy and feeling gross while you deal with it. 

So last week as I sat down in front of my laptop for a health coaching call (skype) .

I took a deep breath once her camera turned on.

She was a hot mess.  Literally.

Bloated face, puffy eyes, messy hair and sporting some super unflattering giant sweater. Some s***  had obviously hit the fan for her.

She confessed she’d fallen off the wagon. For the last week she hadn’t gotten in any workouts and had been eating whatever she could  reach for.

Her basement flooded, she was under the gun at work and then her  8 year old son broke his arm at school last week.

She did what any good human would do.. begged for mercy from her boss for an extension, called a plumber and rushed to the school.

But this didn’t just affect one day– it knocked her back for a good week with doctors visits, repair visits and calls for the house and then of course she fell behind at work and just couldn’t seem to focus to get her project done well.

We’ve all been there!  Crappy thing is, sometimes this can happen A LOT- like at least a couple times a month for many people.

This had in fact been the case for Jessie at least once a month.  She had amazing intentions, , but could never stay on track due to the S*** that keeps hitting her fan of life!

Sometimes this just happens.. no matter how much you meditate, go to yoga, get in the workouts and make time for others.

Rather than giving her a pass for falling off the wagon, I told her we would come up with a rock solid plan so the next time her house fell apart, someone had to go to the hospital and she had to put in long hours at work.. she could not feel like a sad lard ass from all the stress, shoddy sleep and ordering pizza (just to get something on the table for dinner)

Here’s our awesome “This day sucks! Keep me from feeling like a lard ass on top of it all”  Plan

 

Read More

Posted on   |  Awesome Foods

Pizza Night!

Yes! you can enjoy pizza AND stay lean and healthy.

I’ve got your back, with great go-to’s. No matter if you’re in the mood to settle into your couch with some Netflix, throw a party OR head out on the town, you’ll know exactly how to enjoy the dinner pie with these set ups

Read More

Posted on   |  Awesome Foods

How to eat a sandwich and NOT get fat.

I love making it easy to be healthy and actually enjoy food.

So here’s the thing.  Tons of people love sandwiches.

But Sandwiches are really just a bunch of awesome stuff smashed together, with some filler on the top and bottom.

 

The good stuff is in the middle!  It’s the bread that’s a waste or your time and energy. It literally makes you more tired and you have to chew longer.. so my statement is totally true.

 

Now if you love sandwiches and I’m bumming you out, don’t worry!  All ya gotta do is take everything you love between those two slices and put it in a bowl with some greens.

Uh, yeah .. I just tricked you into eating a salad:)

But this is one way to keep your healthy meals exciting!!

 

Step 1.  Think of your favorite Sandwich

Ex: – Reuben Sandwich = Corned beef, saurkraut, cheese (use GOAT or SHEEP)

Step 2.  Take out the bread and put everything else in a bowl (leave out the mayo/dressing)

Step 3.  Add a few handfuls of dark leafy veg + 1 more bright colored veg

Ex: Spinach, Chard + Red Bell Pepper

Step 4. Add one of my 4 TOP Dressing PICKS

(see a GREAT healthy thousand island below!)

Since a sandwich salad sucks without some sort of moisture element – mayo, mustard etc..  here some amazing dressings I love, guaranteed to make any salad exciting and keep you lean!

I’ve got two easy homemade and two store bought for you.

Read More

Posted on   |  Awesome Foods

Easy Recipes your family will love.. and keep your pantsize down!

Galen and I are back at it!  Check out this month’s Cooking with Curran’s video

https://youtu.be/EnksxJQZJIk

 

We’ve got simple set ups that gets you to drop inches, while your family asks for more!  Can you imagine?  We can:) Check out this awesome set up, from our house to yours with love

Recipes Below Read More

Posted on   |  Awesome Foods

This Cheese won’t make your butt fat

Cheese can be a powerful thing

Many people have a hard time cutting down on cheese.  And I gotta say, I totally get it!
For many cheese is a comfort food.  I myself have fond memories of eating ooey goey grilled cheese sandwiches on rainy day afternoons as a kid.  Mine were always accompanied with a bowl of Campbell’s tomato soup of course.
Even writing that made me hungry!
That’s the power of cheese.  The other power of cheese is to make you fat.
Sorry to be a buzz kill, but it’s totally true.  That is if you eat the wrong types of cheese.

There is cheese that satisfies without putting the brakes on your metabolism and forcing you to buy bigger pants.

I thought you might like knowing this better option, so you can once and for all enjoy cheese without undoing your workout.
Read Below for my go to lean body cheese.  Learn why it’s great and my fav cheesy recipe!
Read More

Posted on   |  Awesome Foods

How to take the edge off without putting some belly on

So my good friend is visiting from San Francisco this week AND I’ve got a couple big family get togethers coming up.

While this is all fantastic stuff.. I also want to stay looking and feeling fantastic.

Which means I should take it easy on the alcohol…

Now, this can be hard when you want to meet up at some comfy spot and catch up with your long lost bud, or you seriously need a little something to take the edge off around your relatives.  That’s exactly why I have a great 3 step plan to enjoy these social times, without the set backs

 

  1.  Eat before you meet up.

    Even if you are meeting for dinner, if you are at all hungry, enjoy a snack or smoothie before you leave for your rendezous.  I love a green smoothie or a small nut mix. –  My “Pre-Funk” Recipes are below:)

This way you will drink slower AND you will absorb you amazing nutrients from your foods better.

SO GET THIS:  Even if you pick the most stunningly healthy dish off the menu, once that alcohol passes your lips.. you will absorb very little of those amazing nutrients.  The body has 100% attention on any alcohol in your body and dramatically slows digestion and absorption of any foods that come into your belly.

So fix it!  Eat  30 mins-1 hour before you drink (use recipes below) then enjoy drinks without food.  OR have the drink on it’s own, wait bout 30 mins, then eat.

        2.  Have 2 big glasses of water for every drink you have.

Make those glasses at least 10 oz each.  This will slow you down and fill you up, so you will drink slower and less alcohol

        3.  Take a walk or dance after that drink!

When you get your body moving, you speed up your metabolism and get that alcohol moving through your body so you don’t feel it, or see it so much the next day

I hope this helps you enjoy your get- togethers more and still love what you see!

READ below for Great EATS BEFORE DRINKS Recipes

Read More

Posted on   |  Awesome Foods

Delicious AND Healthy Thanksgiving Set Up

 

It’s a Thanksgiving Cooking with Curran’s!

Check out Video

Galen and I have you set up with great foods for the Feast as well as leftovers and breakfast.

All aimed to keep your family happy AND get you the body you want.  Check out the recipes below

  1. Yam and Kale Salad. 

Serves 12

  • 2 large yams peeled and thinly sliced
  • 1 large red onion thinly sliced
  • 3 large heads kale – de-stemmed and torn small
  • 3 large heads garlic
  • 1 cup EVOO divided

 

Step 1.Take torn kale  and place in a large bowl.  pour in 1/4 cup Evoo and himalayan salt. massage the kale and leave in bowl.

  • Step 2. Peel and slice Yams.  Peel garlic cloves. Toss sliced yams with 4 tbsp olive oil, black pepper and 1/4 tsp pink himalayan salt.
  • Take peeled garlic clove- wrap loosely in foil.
  • Put yams and garlic cloves on the baking sheet. – place garlic in the center.
  • Cook at 450 degree F for 40-50 mins
  • Use garlic in the dressing below

Step 3.  While garlic and yams are baking. Place thinly sliced red onion in a pan with 3 tbsp olive oil.  Cook on low for 30 mins. stirring every 4-5 mins

STEP 4.

Take massaged kale. spread on baking sheets.  Place in 450 oven for 3-5 mins.

Combine all with Dressing below.  Enjoy hot or cold!

Dressing

  • 1/2 cup EVOO
  • 3 baked garlic cloves, from above
  • 2 tsp rosemary
  • 3 tsp red wine vinegar
  • 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
  • Blend well in blender or food processor

Sweet Potato Fries

  • Peel and cut 2 large sweet potatoes to desired (thin and long)  thickness
  • toss in a bowl with cinnamon and  3 tbsp olive oil
  • bake at 450 for 30 mins.
  • drizzle 2 tbsp molasses over top and bake for 10 more mins

Enjoy!

Leftover Turkey Sandwich/ Salad

  • Shredded/ Torn cooked turkey – 5 cups
  • 1 cup cranberry sauce

( 1.5 cup fresh cranberries, 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar, 1/3 cup water, 1/4 cup honey, 1 tsp chopped fresh rosemary, 2 tsp grated fresh ginger)

Bring to boil in pot, reduce to simmer for 10 mins

  • 1 cup Asiago cheese OR goat cheese crumbles
  • 2 cups arulgula
  • Pretzel Rolls  OR spinach wrap — OR on more arugula

Enjoy as sandwich or salad!

 

Pumpkin Protein Pancakes

These hotcakes are made with nutrient dense whole grain buckwheat and mixed with sweet dates and pumpkin, they make the perfect base to a multitude of toppings. Add in Vega Performance Protein Powder for a high protein boost and get ready to face the day.

I love these with a smear of almond butter and goat yogurt .  But on the go – they’re great fresh out of the toaster plain as well!  Well work the cook time 🙂

Ingredients

  • 6 servings Protein Powder (Egg white, pea protein)
  • 2 & 1/3  cup wholegrain buckwheat flour
  • 3 cups non-dairy milk
  • 1 cup pumpkin puree
  • 6 Tbsp ground flax seeds
  • 16 dates, pitted
  • 3 tbsp baking powder
  • 5 tsp baking soda
  • 4 tsp cinnamon powder
  • 1 cup melted coconut oil

Preparation

In a food processor, add all ingredients and blend together until fully combined.

On medium-high heat, in a pan, melt coconut oil and pour pancake batter to desired pancake size. Cook for 2-4 minutes per side or until bubbles begin to appear. Flip and allow to cook until outside is browned.