Avoid the Leftovers!

Happy belated Thanksgiving, everyone!  I hope you all had wonderful days, full of thanks and laughter.  I'm sure many of you said, "I'm going to give myself some leeway on the big day, but then right back to healthy living on Friday."  Great intentions, but then there are those pesky leftovers staring at you for up to a week later.  Here's a good plan for not indulging too much after the feast is over.  First, allow yourself a serving of one side (but keep bringing on the white meat turkey!), even a dessert, the day after, but keep it to that one serving.  Then, throw away all leftovers by Sunday.  I know this seems wasteful, but we're more concerned with keeping ourselves healthy and fit than saving leftovers.  I hope you all got back to your regular exercise schedules on Friday, and are feeling rested and ready for Christmas--can you believe it's here?  Me neither.  Stay tuned for some more holiday survival tips, and some new Christmas-inspired protein shake recipes (gingerbread cookies, and eggnog anyone?).  Cheers to your health!

Prevent Holiday Overeating: Practice Overloading Your Plate

Will your Thanksgiving dinner plate look like this?  Chances are, yes.  Now the tough question: will you eat it all, or leave some behind (or go for seconds)?  Since childhood, you've been taught to clean your plate--a habit that can be particularly damaging during holiday feasts.  The problem arises because you take a standard portion of a dozen side dishes and desserts, as opposed to the usual 2 or 3 sides you take for regular dinners.

If taking large portions is a vice for you, you can practice this simple technique to put an end to the clean your plate guilt.  At home, overload your plate with more food than you know you will eat, and only eat half.  This exercise is harder than you may think, because you're pre-programmed to eat what's in front of you, but you have to practice not eating everything that's in front of you.  Try this tonight and tomorrow night, and your ability to not eat 2 helpings of that sweet potato casserole will be much easier.

Berry Fro Yo Popsicle Recipe

This is really a summer recipe, but just because it's fall doesn't mean we can't have our popsicles, damn it!  Anger aside, I have two recipes, one for kids (that has a little sugar) and one for us (that has extra protein).

For the kids, combine the following in a blender:

• 2 cups plain low fat yogurt, or Greek non-fat yogurt (my preference)
• 2 cups frozen berries
• 1/2 cup confectioners sugar

For a protein packed "adult" version, combine the following in a blender:

• 2 cups plain low fat yogurt, or Greek non-fat yogurt (my preference)
• 2 cups frozen berries (blueberries are very low on the glycemic index)
• 1 scoop vanilla whey or casein protein
• 1 egg white
• 2 packets splenda or a few drops of vanilla stevia (preferred)

Pour both into little cups, arrange on a dish or platter (I used a square baking pan) and cover with 2 layers of saran wrap.  Make little slits above each cup, and stick in a popsicle stick.  Stick in freezer, and go get a pedicure.  You deserve it.  When they are finished, just rip the cups off, and voila!  A yummy and healthy treat--as evidenced by the looks of sheer ecstasy on my boyfriend's kids' faces.

Holiday Survival Tips 1&2

So the holidays are officially here. I'm planning my Thanksgiving menu which includes both traditional comfort foods, and healthier dishes to reduce the probability of a carb frenzied blowout. Everyone's heard that you gain about 5 pounds over the holidays. I have good and bad news, now. Well, the good news it: this is an exaggeration that's been ingrained into common knowledge. The bad news is that most people gain about a pound, but don't take steps to lose it. Combine it with the average pound you gain a year due to slowing metabolism--if you don't do anything to guard against it!!! (more on that in another post)--and you can see how extra pounds can just sneak up on you. Here's my plan for keeping it tight (KIT!) over the holidays:

1) First thing cardio--doing at least 20 minutes of cardio on an empty stomach or about 10 grams of when protein burns pure fat. While you sleep, your muscles and brain use all of the stored glycogen, so your body has to turn to fat for energy. It's not easy at first, but once you get into the swing, it's like second nature.

2) Carb cycling--it would be sad to deprive yourself of holiday goodies, but you shouldn't use the holidays as an excuse to have a daily sugar orgy. So I limit my carbs to only veggies every day except Wednesday and Saturday, when I allow myself to seasonal treats. Then hit the weights HARD the next day in the gym--all of those carbs are energy and won't be converted to fat if you use them.

I've included a picture of 5 pounds of fat and 5 pounds of muscle. See how much bigger, lumpier and more disgusting the fat is? The muscle is smooth, striated, and tight--just like my ass...I wish. When you see how much 5 pounds of fat really is, it'll make you more likely to enjoy goodies in reason so you don't have to feel guilty later. Have a wonderful day!!!

Nutrigrain Bars B.S. Ad Campaign

I just had a friend in town who brought a box of Nutrigrain bars. I always thought these would be a good snack (I mean, they have "nutri" and "grain" in the title they must be healthy, right?), even though I've never bought them, and I had seen the commercials with the tag phrase: "one good decision leads to another," so I checked the ingredients. Welly, well, well--I was surprised to see the first five ingredients were high fructose corn syrup, corn syrup, strawberry puree concentrate, glycerin, and sugar. Translation: sugar, sugar, sugar, sugar and sugar. This reminded me that we can't rely on food companies to 1) be honest and 2) provide accurate information about the products they're hawking. They really are just trying to trick us into buying their products. Eating all this sugar disguised as a healthy snack is not a "good decision" as the good people at Nutrigrain would have us believe, and the studies show that high fructose corn syrup (the ingredient labeled first, meaning it's present in the largest quantity) causes cravings for more sugar, so it won't "lead to another" good decision--it will actually make it harder. The moral of my rant: be smart and read ingredients as well as nutrition info.

Green Tea Ice Cream Protein Shake Recipe

Happy Friday the 13th. So I was dreaming today about the last time my boyfriend and I went to South Beach, Miami, and thought of the green tea ice cream we tried at Nobu, one of the worlds best sushi restaurants (ah, memories). This was my inspiration for today's recipe: green tea ice cream protein shake. In a blender combine:

• 1/4 cup low fat cottage cheese
• 1 scoop vanilla protein (I use ISS whey matrix)
• 1 cup brewed and chilled green tea (I used 2 bags for lots of flavor)
• a few drops of Sweet Leaf vanilla flavored stevia (Splenda works, too)
• a hand full of ice cubes (use frozen milk cubes for a creamier taste)

Not only is this delicious, but the green tea is crazy good for you. A study reported in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that green tea-extract increases metabolism by 4% over a 24 hour period. Three to five cups a day can help you burn an extra 70 calories a day, which adds up to 7 pounds a year, 35 pounds for 5 years and 70 pounds for 10 years (Hello!). Green tea has also been shown to inhibit fat absorption (the movement of glucose into fat cells) regulate glucose levels by slowing the rise in blood sugar after eating a meal, prevent insulin spikes which prevents fat storage, and reduce appetite. And it tastes so good it makes you want to slap your mama!

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Are You Interested or Committed to Losing Weight?

Before you decide to embark on yet another weight loss journey, take time to decide whether you're committed to losing weight, or whether you're merely interested in losing weight. Here's the difference: when you're interested in something, you'll pursue it as long as it's easy. When you're committed to an action, you continue on that path even when times get rough, or it's not easy. To illustrate, say, for instance, you're interested in finding a pair of black platform strappy heels. So you go to a couple of department stores, and check out a handful of shoe stores here and there, and you find nothing. You might keep your eye out for a pair after that, but it's certainly not a priority and you figure, "well, the black heels I have already will do." Now let's look at how this pertains to weight loss: when you're interested in losing weight, you prepare healthy meals at home and make sure to hit the gym. But then someone brings donuts into the office, or you go to a party with an array of foods that won't help your weight loss goal. Suddenly following your healthy lifestyle isn't so easy so you veer off. Or maybe you have a busy week and you figure, "it's too much effort to get to the gym. I'd rather sleep in/read a book/watch T.V./etc."

My main point is that sticking to a healthy lifestyle isn't always the easiest road, especially at first. You're going to be faced with choices that may veer you off course, although they may offer instant, and very temporary, gratification. You may feel cranky now about passing up the office pastry or getting out of bed for your A.M. workout, but you'll be happy you did it in the long run.

Commit to a healthy way of living, and as the rewards show in the way you look and feel, it will get much easier in the long run!

Love or Hate: What's Your Motivation?

"I hate my thighs." "I'm fat." "I'm disgusting." Does this sound like you? Or are you more like this: "I love myself." "I respect and love my body." "I feel good when I take care of myself." Self-hate can be a powerful motivator to getting in the gym and eating healthy for the time being, but it isn't powerful enough to sustain healthy habits. Sure, putting yourself down will get you there, but it doesn't help you feel positive about what you're doing and eventually you just want to feel good. That's when the old self-destructive habits come in and take over again. To truly develop a life plan for health and a slim waistline, you have to love and respect yourself now even if you're in a body you don't care for. When you love and respect yourself you want to take care of yourself by eating healthy and exercising regularly.

Think about it this way: if your child fell behind in school, you wouldn't tell her she's an idiot, worthless and a failure because of lack luster grades, would you? Of course not. You would tell her she's bright and wonderful and special and totally capable of earning A's. Taking the first approach would clearly hinder any chance of her pulling her grades up and chip away at her self esteem.

You must treat yourself like that special child who deserves nurturing--you may be an adult, but each day you are growing into a better person who needs love and care to flourish. Love yourself today, and everyday!

Pumpkin Pie Protein Shake Recipe

Good morning! Today seems like the first day of fall here in Scottsdale, where I woke up to temperatures in the 40's for the first time! Feeling especially festive--and especially jealous of all of the Starbuck's people who drink sugar loaded pumpkin spice lattes--I decided to make a healthy version for my pre-workout protein dose. Enjoy!

1/4 c. low fat cottage cheese

1/4 c. milk (soy, almond, skim) or water

1/4 c. pumpkin (be sure to buy the 100% real pumpkin, not pumpkin pie filling which is loaded with sugar)

1 scoop vanilla whey protein powder

5-6 ice cubes

sprinkle of cinnamon

sprinkle of nutmeg

1-2 packets of splenda or stevia (to taste)

Put it all in a blender and voila! My boyfriend can't believe how good this tastes--just like pumpkin pie! The cottage cheese is a slow burning protein that will keep your body going for hours, and the whey is fast absorbing, so this shake offers the best of both worlds. I can't wait for Christmas to experiment with egg nog protein recipes! Enjoy!

Ignorance is bliss...

...but knowledge will lead to a smaller dress size! Do you really know what you're eating? I always encourage people to keep a food journal if they can't seem to lose weight because it's frighteningly eye opening. With laptops and smart phones, it's super easy to look up the calorie content of virtually any food, including entire meals at restaurants. My favorite is www.calorieking.com because you can specify the exact portion size of your food. Www.caloriesperhour.com is a close second, with an easy organization of food groups. You may think it's a hassle to record everything you consume, but isn't it a bigger hassle to buy bigger clothes and not know why?