Fitness Tip: Gimme a Break
Ok, for all of those who remember Nell Carter, do not think that I am conjuring up her image while talking of fitness. I mean really. But if you want to burn more fat and calories when you walk, swim, or run? Then take a break. The rate at which your body burns fuel may be boosted even higher if you break up a long cardio session into two back-to-back 30-minute sessions with a 20-minute break in between. Here is why. It is pure science that in rest, blood levels of free fatty acids build up. That bump in fatty acids burns fat cause acid burns stuff. Circulating the level of fatty acids after they build up by hitting the aerobic a bit more cause the acids to spread and burn more fat. Yes, it sounds convoluted. But I can’t make this stuff up.
Food Tip: Eat more greens
I love the taste of greens. I love escarole, spinach and kale and if I get randy, some broccoli rabe. Yes I am daring. You should be too. Greens are a terrific way to get vegetables without little to any calories. Greens are also a good source of oil. Here is how. I cook my greens in a sauté pan with a tsp of olive oil. The greens absorb the oil and wilt a bit. Then I add some chicken or vegetable stock. The oil stays in the greens, and oil is needed in our diets for heart health. Finish the greens with a bit of garlic powder and a pinch of nutmeg. Nutmeg loves greens. They could get married but nutmeg refuse to commit.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Monday, October 12, 2009
10.12.09
Food and Fitness Tip: I should get a stipend from the American Dairy Council for this one. Drink more milk. Cow juice has several very important benefits. Consuming 1,800 milligrams of calcium a day could block the absorption of about 80 calories. So drinking milk can help you literally lose weight. Another thing, milk is good for bones, captain obvious. But here is the kicker- milk helps in recovery. If yo have ever done my boot camp, after the first day you will struggle sitting down on the toilet. In fact, I have had a number of girls tell me that their legs hurt them so badly they tried peeing standing up -unsuccessfully I might add. Therefore, I always day have a big glass of milk after you workout and you'll feel much better Here is why. Lactic acid is created hen you workout. That is the stuff that makes you not able to move. To get rid of an acid, one can need a base solution (CHEM 101). In this case, milk in the the form of lactose reacts with the acid to neutralize the acid, thus alleviating pain. So milk is nature's pain killer after a grueling day of squats, leapfrogs and lunges.
Recipe: Berry Smoothie
( I know, this isn't really cooking, but its the perfect post-workout shake. In fact always have a shake after a great day of training, especially within one hour after your workout. This will aid in muscle growth and recovery.)
Makes 1 Serving
1/2 cup Low Fat Cottage Cheese
1/2 cup skim milk
1/2 tsp honey
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup frozen unsweetened mixed berries or strawberries
(add protein powder to get more protein if need be)
Remember you should get 50% of your body weight in grams of protein a day if you are a girl, 75% of for boys.
Therefore, if you are a girl, and weigh 150lbs, you should eat 75grams of protein.
If you are a boy and weigh 200 lbs, you should get 150 grams of protein a day.
Put cottage cheese, skim milk, sugar, vanilla, and frozen berries in a blender.
Blend 1 minute or until smooth.
Serve immediately.
250 calories; 19 grams protein; 3 grams fiber
Recipe: Berry Smoothie
( I know, this isn't really cooking, but its the perfect post-workout shake. In fact always have a shake after a great day of training, especially within one hour after your workout. This will aid in muscle growth and recovery.)
Makes 1 Serving
1/2 cup Low Fat Cottage Cheese
1/2 cup skim milk
1/2 tsp honey
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup frozen unsweetened mixed berries or strawberries
(add protein powder to get more protein if need be)
Remember you should get 50% of your body weight in grams of protein a day if you are a girl, 75% of for boys.
Therefore, if you are a girl, and weigh 150lbs, you should eat 75grams of protein.
If you are a boy and weigh 200 lbs, you should get 150 grams of protein a day.
Put cottage cheese, skim milk, sugar, vanilla, and frozen berries in a blender.
Blend 1 minute or until smooth.
Serve immediately.
250 calories; 19 grams protein; 3 grams fiber
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Are you pooped?
Fitness and Food Tip: Fiber Up
Are you pooped all the time? One reason why people feel like crap is because, well, they have to crap more. Plain and simple, fiber makes you go more and it cleans your digestive track. Finer makes you fuller so that you don’t eat less healthy foods. Also, fiber can aid in weight loss because it detoxifies your body. Fiber’s added benefit is that because it aids in cleaning you out (literally), it aids in prevention of diseases such as heart disease and ulcers. So how much fiber should you have a day? Look at getting at least 15 to 20 grams of fiber a day. Use this guide, borrowed from the National Fiber Council to see if you are hitting the mark.
http://www.nationalfibercouncil.org/food_chart.shtml
Recipe of the Day: Italian Sausage Soup
Okay so here is a soup that is high in fiber and in flavor! It’s really easy to do as well
1 pound turkey sausage, Italian style
1 clove garlic, minced
28oz of chicken stock
1 (14.5 ounce) can Italian-style stewed tomatoes
2 cups carrots
1 fennel bulb ( diced) remove prawns
1 cup garden peas
1 (14.5 ounce) can great Northern beans, undrained
1 package frozen spinach
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
Take a Dutch oven and add oil to pan. Take sausage and cut on diagonal and brown for about three minutes. Add stock. Start to boil. Add all ingredients except for spinach. Take spinach and place in microwave for one minute in the container. Open spinach and cut into cubes, (about 6). Drop in pot, and get to boil. Reduce heat and cover. Simmer for an hour!
Are you pooped all the time? One reason why people feel like crap is because, well, they have to crap more. Plain and simple, fiber makes you go more and it cleans your digestive track. Finer makes you fuller so that you don’t eat less healthy foods. Also, fiber can aid in weight loss because it detoxifies your body. Fiber’s added benefit is that because it aids in cleaning you out (literally), it aids in prevention of diseases such as heart disease and ulcers. So how much fiber should you have a day? Look at getting at least 15 to 20 grams of fiber a day. Use this guide, borrowed from the National Fiber Council to see if you are hitting the mark.
http://www.nationalfibercouncil.org/food_chart.shtml
Recipe of the Day: Italian Sausage Soup
Okay so here is a soup that is high in fiber and in flavor! It’s really easy to do as well
1 pound turkey sausage, Italian style
1 clove garlic, minced
28oz of chicken stock
1 (14.5 ounce) can Italian-style stewed tomatoes
2 cups carrots
1 fennel bulb ( diced) remove prawns
1 cup garden peas
1 (14.5 ounce) can great Northern beans, undrained
1 package frozen spinach
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
Take a Dutch oven and add oil to pan. Take sausage and cut on diagonal and brown for about three minutes. Add stock. Start to boil. Add all ingredients except for spinach. Take spinach and place in microwave for one minute in the container. Open spinach and cut into cubes, (about 6). Drop in pot, and get to boil. Reduce heat and cover. Simmer for an hour!
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Blog entry 10.8.09
Fitness Tip: Join a team.
This time of the year, there are several fitness activities. Football is ever prevalent which could not make me happier. Softball and soccer leagues are actively seeking members. Heck, even bowling leagues are okay. What happens these days is we see the dark skies when we leave work and think we need to go home. The shorter days of this season tricks are bodies into thinking it is time to lay around. This is a tough time of the year. If you join a sport or a league, at least you leave the house! Besides, you may opt to find some people who are more fitness savvy and you can make a fitness buddy. But fitness is a very social activity if you want it to be. If you are co-dependent, play into that trait and use it to your advantage!
Food Tip: Demand what you want.
Here is the deal, when you go out to eat, you are buying a product. It is your right to alter that product if you deem it necessary to your health. Try to make sure that you ask for your food, grilled, baked poached or broiled. Avoid anything that comes from a pan, because it will be covered in salt and butter. I know that a lot of chef’s would hate to see this because they are worried about the integrity of the dish. As long as you do not send the food back or complain about it, they have nothing to argue with you. You are paying just as much as the next guy and you’ll live longer than they will. So don’t be afraid to demand what you need!
This time of the year, there are several fitness activities. Football is ever prevalent which could not make me happier. Softball and soccer leagues are actively seeking members. Heck, even bowling leagues are okay. What happens these days is we see the dark skies when we leave work and think we need to go home. The shorter days of this season tricks are bodies into thinking it is time to lay around. This is a tough time of the year. If you join a sport or a league, at least you leave the house! Besides, you may opt to find some people who are more fitness savvy and you can make a fitness buddy. But fitness is a very social activity if you want it to be. If you are co-dependent, play into that trait and use it to your advantage!
Food Tip: Demand what you want.
Here is the deal, when you go out to eat, you are buying a product. It is your right to alter that product if you deem it necessary to your health. Try to make sure that you ask for your food, grilled, baked poached or broiled. Avoid anything that comes from a pan, because it will be covered in salt and butter. I know that a lot of chef’s would hate to see this because they are worried about the integrity of the dish. As long as you do not send the food back or complain about it, they have nothing to argue with you. You are paying just as much as the next guy and you’ll live longer than they will. So don’t be afraid to demand what you need!
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Blog Entry 10.6.09
Fitness Tip: Stretching
Guilty! I don’t stretch enough. I am terrible at making the time. Plus, I am not very flexible and we all gravitate toward things we are good at. I am good at lifting weights. But I do warm up for about five minutes before I work out. You should too. Even if you don’t know how to stretch, walking quickly will loosen your muscles so that you are injury proof. You don’t need to stretch during workouts, unless you feel like it. But the key is stretching after a workout. So here is an idea- when you are watching TV later, grab a couple of pillows and sit on floor. If you are sitting on floor you will want to stretch, mainly because it’s uncomfortable. I am not saying torture yourself like Dick Cheney would say. I am saying that if you sit on the floor for a few minutes you will think about stretching more than you would if you were comfy and curled up on your sofa. So make it a point to sit on floor and work out those muscles you worked out today. And if you didn’t work out, stretch anyway for tomorrow.
Food Tip: In my endless search to find low-card recipes, it occurred to me that my mother knew something. Okay, we never ate low-carb when I grew up. In fact, we made bread with our pasta dishes for dipping. But there is one recipe that is low-carb that Mom used to make. I never thought I’d but a dish from my youth on this blog. But I am sure glad that I can. And besides, this recipe is pretty easy and will suffice your need for starch.
Cabbage Rolls,
· 1 large head of cabbage
· 1 pound lean ground beef
· 1/2 cup instant brown rice or cooked rice
· 1 egg
· 1/2 cup finely chopped onion (fine is the key word)
· 1 teaspoon cinnamon,
· 1 can tomato soup
· 1 can tomatoes, diced (14oz)
Preparation:
Tear the leaves off the cabbage and cook in boiling water or steam until wilted enough to be flexible. Cool so that you can use. Mix ground beef, rice, egg, onion, and salt, pepper, and cinnamon together. Make little balls of the mixture and roll into cabbage leaf. Secure rolls with toothpicks cause they will open. Combine the soup and tomatoes in a Dutch oven or crock pot. Add cabbage and simmer for 2 hours if using Dutch oven or 4 hours if using crock pot on low.
Guilty! I don’t stretch enough. I am terrible at making the time. Plus, I am not very flexible and we all gravitate toward things we are good at. I am good at lifting weights. But I do warm up for about five minutes before I work out. You should too. Even if you don’t know how to stretch, walking quickly will loosen your muscles so that you are injury proof. You don’t need to stretch during workouts, unless you feel like it. But the key is stretching after a workout. So here is an idea- when you are watching TV later, grab a couple of pillows and sit on floor. If you are sitting on floor you will want to stretch, mainly because it’s uncomfortable. I am not saying torture yourself like Dick Cheney would say. I am saying that if you sit on the floor for a few minutes you will think about stretching more than you would if you were comfy and curled up on your sofa. So make it a point to sit on floor and work out those muscles you worked out today. And if you didn’t work out, stretch anyway for tomorrow.
Food Tip: In my endless search to find low-card recipes, it occurred to me that my mother knew something. Okay, we never ate low-carb when I grew up. In fact, we made bread with our pasta dishes for dipping. But there is one recipe that is low-carb that Mom used to make. I never thought I’d but a dish from my youth on this blog. But I am sure glad that I can. And besides, this recipe is pretty easy and will suffice your need for starch.
Cabbage Rolls,
· 1 large head of cabbage
· 1 pound lean ground beef
· 1/2 cup instant brown rice or cooked rice
· 1 egg
· 1/2 cup finely chopped onion (fine is the key word)
· 1 teaspoon cinnamon,
· 1 can tomato soup
· 1 can tomatoes, diced (14oz)
Preparation:
Tear the leaves off the cabbage and cook in boiling water or steam until wilted enough to be flexible. Cool so that you can use. Mix ground beef, rice, egg, onion, and salt, pepper, and cinnamon together. Make little balls of the mixture and roll into cabbage leaf. Secure rolls with toothpicks cause they will open. Combine the soup and tomatoes in a Dutch oven or crock pot. Add cabbage and simmer for 2 hours if using Dutch oven or 4 hours if using crock pot on low.
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Sausage fest
As always, try to find the food you like to indulge in and eat it in a healthier way. Then, you won’t crave ‘the indulgences and you won’t thin, “ I can’t diet because I don’t want to give up that forever”
Who does not love sausage? Here is healthy way of eating it
Sausage and Kale over Polenta Cake
2 lbs turkey sausage
1 tblsp olive oil
2 large heads of kale
1 can tomato paste
1 large can of diced tomatoes (28oz)
1cup raisins
1 cup chicken stock
1 red pepper sliced
1 tsp chili flakes
1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
In a large Dutch oven brown sausage for about 5 minutes a side. Add red pepper and reduce to low heat. Add chicken stock. Cook for the minutes. Remove sausage and peppers and leave liquid in pot. Add nutmeg, kale and cook til about wilted. Add remaining ingredients. Cook at low heat for twenty minutes. Add sausage and red peppers and cover. Heat for 5 minutes. Heat polenta according to box instructions in separate pot. Serve sausage and kale over polenta!
Who does not love sausage? Here is healthy way of eating it
Sausage and Kale over Polenta Cake
2 lbs turkey sausage
1 tblsp olive oil
2 large heads of kale
1 can tomato paste
1 large can of diced tomatoes (28oz)
1cup raisins
1 cup chicken stock
1 red pepper sliced
1 tsp chili flakes
1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
In a large Dutch oven brown sausage for about 5 minutes a side. Add red pepper and reduce to low heat. Add chicken stock. Cook for the minutes. Remove sausage and peppers and leave liquid in pot. Add nutmeg, kale and cook til about wilted. Add remaining ingredients. Cook at low heat for twenty minutes. Add sausage and red peppers and cover. Heat for 5 minutes. Heat polenta according to box instructions in separate pot. Serve sausage and kale over polenta!
Saturday, October 3, 2009
Something to eat all week
Food and Fitness Tip: Freeze and Eat
You make bad food choices because you do not have your meals made. I understand not wanting to cook when you get home. I barely want to talk to my other half because I am beat. So find something to cook that you can make on a Sunday, portion it up, freeze some, and have for rest of the week. If you have it in the house, you won’t put in the frozen pizza. Freeze some of the portions so they are in the house, but out of sight so you avoid over eating. So pick a good recipe that you can do this with…like the one below!
Beef Stew Makes 8 servings
1 tablespoon olive oil3 pounds beef stew meat, well trimmed1 large onion, chopped4 large garlic cloves, chopped2/3 cup dry red wine3 cups canned unsalted beef broth1 can tomatoes2 tsps thyme2 tsps rosemary2 cups carrots, chopped, peeeled2 medium potatoes chopped2 cups of peas or corn or half and half
Heat 2 teaspoons oil in large pot, and brown beef. Add onion and garlic and sauté until onion is tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in wine. Simmer until liquid is reduced to half. Add rest of ingredients. Simmer for 2 hours.
You make bad food choices because you do not have your meals made. I understand not wanting to cook when you get home. I barely want to talk to my other half because I am beat. So find something to cook that you can make on a Sunday, portion it up, freeze some, and have for rest of the week. If you have it in the house, you won’t put in the frozen pizza. Freeze some of the portions so they are in the house, but out of sight so you avoid over eating. So pick a good recipe that you can do this with…like the one below!
Beef Stew Makes 8 servings
1 tablespoon olive oil3 pounds beef stew meat, well trimmed1 large onion, chopped4 large garlic cloves, chopped2/3 cup dry red wine3 cups canned unsalted beef broth1 can tomatoes2 tsps thyme2 tsps rosemary2 cups carrots, chopped, peeeled2 medium potatoes chopped2 cups of peas or corn or half and half
Heat 2 teaspoons oil in large pot, and brown beef. Add onion and garlic and sauté until onion is tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in wine. Simmer until liquid is reduced to half. Add rest of ingredients. Simmer for 2 hours.
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