Welcome to the weekend, my friends! I’ve been traveling since last Wednesday (first to NM and then to AZ) and finally made it home last night. I am so very happy to be waking up in my own bed and enjoying a lazy day with my family today.

ON THE BLOGS this week:  Creamy and cheesy, with wonderful lingering heat, this green chile mac and cheese is a keeper, transforming the quintessential comfort food into a dish that is positively irresistible.

The ever-popular and timeless rainbow fruit salad combines a variety of bright and colorful fresh fruits with a tangy honey lime dressing to create a crave-worthy summer side dish.

Bold and spicy flavors meet the refreshing crunch of fresh cucumbers in this spicy Asian cucumber salad. This simple side dish is endlessly snackable.

Tender crisp cabbage, carrots, and peppers combine with savory ground beef and leave a subtle, lingering heat that will have you wanting more. It’s a fully loaded skillet of eggroll flavors we love.

Grandma’s German pancakes meet irresistibly caramelized apples in these German apple pancakes. You won’t believe how easy it is to make such a scrumptious breakfast treat.

Filled with plenty of fresh strawberries and blueberries, these fluffy hotcakes are heavenly. These berry pancakes will make everyone smile this weekend.

Get ready for a tasty combination of fresh fruit and cool mint in these blueberry mojitos. You’ll find yourself hooked from the first sip!

Creamy vanilla ice cream swirled with tart lemon curd is a treat worth making year-round. Brighten up your next dessert with this refreshing lemon curd ice cream!

What I’m CRAVING: This Chicken Parmesan Gnocchi caught my eye yesterday and it sounds so good! It needs to be on our meal plan soon.

What I’m READING: He Who Fights with Monsters 8: A LitRPG Adventure by Shirtaloon and Travis Deverell. I’m hooked on this series all over again with the 8th book. It’s been a fun read / listen while traveling. 

What I’m LISTENING to: Houndmouth. This group is new to me and I’ve been enjoying them. It’s Americana meets rock, blues, alternative, folk… I don’t even know exactly how to describe it, but it’s a whole feeling. If you lik

Spring Slim Down 2023 Winners!

350 pounds in JUST 6 WEEKS! Spring Slim Down 2023 is in the books and, phew, this one was insane! Our team was in constant awe of the progress, both physically and mentally we were seeing throughout the challenge. We wanted to bring back the intensity with this challenge- in our workouts, our nutrition, our prizes, and most importantly, our grand prize (a free trip to Miami, FL just to jog your memory *winky face)! We brought back Accountability Groups to connect members with each other & lean on each other for support during the 6 week challenge. We introduced 6 new videos in the MOVE app, all focused on specific areas of the body to really feel that burn. We also re-introduced weekly giveaways for our #teamlsf community who remain the most loyal and supportive fitness community to exist!

Now, if you couldn’t tell, we brought the HEAT to this challenge and so did our members! Based on JUST the members who submitted their story, we lost nearly 350 pounds in this 6 week challenge! I can only imagine how much bigger that number is from the other thousands of members who did the challenge! If you haven’t taken the chance to tell us your story yet, we’d love to hear from you! Feel free to submit your story here.

Follow Team LSF on IG to see more! Everyone finished this 6 week challenge stronger than ever and I am so proud!

Now it’s time to shout out our SSD23 winners! These women stayed dedicated and consistent with their 7 Day Slim Down Meal Plan, Hot Body Meal Plan, and MOVE app workouts!

These inspiring women, not only have incredible transformation photos but the most heart warming stories!

6 WEEK TRANSFORMATION | GRAND PRIZE WINNER

Ashley (@love.shine.wellness) – Marshall, Michigan Total pounds lost: 13

“This challenge taught me consistency over intensity.”

Creamy vanilla ice cream swirled with tart lemon curd is a treat worth making year-round. Brighten up your next dessert with this refreshing lemon curd ice cream!

Lemon Curd Desserts

When I first had the idea for this ice cream, I tried making it with freshly churned lemon ice cream. While that was delicious, it was overwhelmingly lemony, without a strong flavor from the curd itself.

Well, I adore lemon curd desserts, so that wasn’t going to work for me. Next, I tried swirling it into a batch of cheesecake ice cream.

That was delicious as well, but it wasn’t quite what I wanted. The cheesecake flavor was dominant, and I really wanted the curd to be center stage in this ice cream.

I should’ve known that I’d wind my way back to classic vanilla ice cream for this recipe. The base is simple with just five ingredients: heavy cream, milk, sugar, salt, and vanilla.

Those pure ice cream flavors allow the subtle brightness of the lemon to shine exactly the way I imagined it could. For a real treat, warm the leftover curd and drizzle it over each cold, creamy scoop. You won’t regret it.

Microwave Lemon Curd

When I first saw a recipe for microwave lemon curd, I have to admit that I was skeptical. I love lemon curd, but I am such a slacker about making it. I never want to stand by the stove and Read more

Cacao-Nut Protein Balls

You are going to go NUTS over these protein balls! I have been loving these as a post workout snack or an after dinner treat! Once you try these you will be wanting more, trust me! My other favorite protein balls recipe is in the Guiltless Nutrition & Recipe eBook!

You won’t even be able to tell you are eating such a healthy snack because they are just THAT good! These little protein balls are packed with 4 scoops of my LSF Plant Protein and I know you are going to be just as obsessed with them as I am!

Cacao-Nut Protein Balls Ingredients

makes approx. 24 balls 

• 3 cups Medjool dates pitted

• 1 1/2 cups almonds

• 1/2 cup water

• 2 tbsp cacao powder

• 4 scoops LSF Plant Protein (Vanilla or Chocolate)

• 1/4 cup dark chocolate chips

• 1/2 cup coconut flakes unsweetened

Instructions

1. Add almonds to a food processor and process until it’s more of a flour texture. It can be coarse. 

2. Add dates and water, cacao and protein powder and process until well combined.

3. Add chocolate chips and hit pulse a few times to combine.

4. Use a spatula to remove mixture from the processor into a bowl. Then use your hands to roll even spoonfuls into small balls.

5. Pour coconut flakes onto a large plate or bowl and gently roll the balls to cover in the flakes.

6. Store in the fridge or freezer in an airtight container.

Craving More?

Find more delicious recipes like this + all of our favs here!

The post CACAO-NUT PROTEIN BALLS appeared first on Love Sweat Fitness.

Tips for setting up your Peloton bike (or any spin bike) with seat height, seat position, handlebar positions, and how to clip and unclip your pedals.

I’ve been participating in an exciting Instagram advice mission lately: helping reader friends set up their Peloton bikes. I’ve had the bike for two years but have taught cycling classes for 11 years now (WHAT), so quite a few people have reached out to me for help on how to set up their bikes. (One week, I helped four people set up their bikes via photos and video!) I feel like Peloton does a lot of things right, but when I first got the bike myself, I was so thankful that I was an advanced spinner because otherwise I would have felt lost with the initial process. I didn’t feel like the setup video was very thorough or helpful. They breezed through a lot of the details but thankfully, I was easily able to set it up myself.

I thought I’d make a video here for my friends who have recently purchased a Peloton or another spin bike or need to adjust their current settings.

The right settings can make such a huge difference in how your ride feels and can also help to protect against common issues like injury and pain in your knees, ankles, wrists, and low back. As always, be smart when you’re setting up any type of fitness equipment. Ask for someone to help you if you need it!

How to Set Up Your Peloton Bike (Or Any Spin Bike)

First, you’ll want to plug in the bike and get it connected to Wifi. From here, you’ll create a profile or log into an existing profile. This part is pretty easy! Next, you’ll need to personalize your bike settings by adjusting the seat height, position, and handlebars.

Watch the video for all of my tips on how to adjust the Peloton bike (or any spin bike) here: