Health and Fitness Update

Quick update - we started a Health and Fitness Challenge at work that I'm really excited about.  It will have us earning points for things such as: working out, parking further, partaking in the bi-weekly lunch walks, and losing weight.  What's most exciting to me is that unlike other fitness challenges, this puts people into healthy habits and healthy lifestyles and its not just about being scale watchers.  For me - it's going to be awesome because I'll get that accountability I am looking for, especially since I am such a competitor - I refuse to let myself lose.

I've been at a plateau in my weight loss challenge, but as usual, I'm ok with that.  I'd rather be healthy and fit and maintain where I'm at, all the while getting stronger every day.  I'm breaking-up with my trainer temporarily.  It's going to be rough on him, but I think he'll be ok.  For the next several weeks, I think I'm going to just focus on my cardio and Tabata intervals to really lean out.  I'll minimize my training to only Saturday's to force me into the gym early - and eliminate my Wednesday's to be able to add another cardio day.  I always seem to be sore, so I feel like my training is almost counterproductive because I can't barrel through as easily as when I take a few days off.  My ultimate goal is to be able to engage in exercise almost daily, but when I train too hard - I just can't get in as much as I want.  Therefore - breakup time - sorry Trainer Mike.

My pants are fitting looser and I can tell that my body shape has changed as I work different muscles.  I'm looking forward to setting a clear goal and working through this work program - there's never a challenge I want to lose!

GOALS
-Lose .5-1 lb this week (I'm at my "muscle high" of 136, which i usually fluctuate between that and 134 depending on soreness)
-Focus on the running
-Go on a break from trainer  Mike

Quinoa Burgers and Cauliflower Pizza

I'm slacking a bit because I took off last Monday and made TWO meatless Monday meals and had the whole day to post, and just didn't make it to it. When I first went Gluten Free - I bought these "Qrunch" quinoa burgers and found them to be absolutely delicious! Ever since, I have been on the hunt for something similar and think I finally found it! While I didn't make the changes I listed, I will make them next time to deliver a flavor a little more to my liking.

         Rosie LOVES "Meatless Monday" but knows better than to beg...

For dinner I made cauliflower crusted pizza to aid in my gluten free lifestyle.  The crust was great and even Steve didn't seem to mind that it was a substitute for the real thing.  We did it "caprese" style with fresh tomatoes, and fresh mozzarella and then I sauted some spinach and onions to add some flavor.

Caprese Styled Cauliflower Pizza

Adapted from Skinny Mom

2 Cups uncooked, frozen cauliflower

1 Cup reduced fat mozzarella, shredded

1 egg, beat

1 tsp Oregano

1 tsp Basil

1 tsp Garlic Powder

1 tsp sea salt

1 c fresh spinach

1 small onion, sliced

Fresh Mozzarella - I used the pre-sliced fresh boccini and sliced them in half.

1/2 c fresh marinara

1-2 fresh tomatoes, sliced thin

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Microwave cauliflower for 8-10 minutes or until fully cooked.  Place in food processor and pulse until a rice-like consistency (I used my Ninja blender on "pulse" and that worked perfectly). Place cauliflower on paper towel and allow extra moisture to soak in.  In a medium bowl, mix together cauliflower, egg and cheese. Add oregano, basil, garlic and sea salt.  Mix well, ensuring the cheese has melted.  Cover a pizza sheet with parchment paper (it is important that you use parchment and nothing else "non-stick"). Spray generously with cooking spray. Spread cauliflower mixture into round shape starting from the outside and working your way inward being careful to spread it as thing as possible without breaking through.  If you start from the middle, it will tend to be thicker and will not crisp through as nicely! Cook for 20-22 minutes until "crust" is golden brown and bubbling. 

 Meanwhile, saute onions and spinach allowing spinach to wilt.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.

 Once crust is browned, remove from oven and add ingredients - sauce, then tomatoes, then spinach and onion mixture and top with desired amount of fresh mozzarella. Turn oven to broil, cook until cheese is melted and slightly bubbling.

Qrunchy Quinoa Burgers

Adapted from: Chatelaine

Serving Size - 4

1/2 C uncooked quinoa (makes about 2 cups cooked)

1 tsp coconut oil

1 C coarsely grated zucchini

3/4 C coarsely grated carrots

1/2 C finely grated broccoli

1 small shallot, minced

1 garlic clove, minced

1 egg, beaten

3 tbsp corn starch or arrowroot powder

1/4 tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

Quickly brown quinoa in a fry pan until you can smell the aroma- this helps to really bring out the flavor of the quinoa. Remove and add to a fine strainer and rinse - quinoa has a bitter shell and rinsing helps eliminate that to again, bring out the flavor.  Cook according to package directions (most packages are for 1 cup of quinoa and 2 cups of water, since this is only  half a cup, use one cup of water OR cook 1 cup of quinoa and then measure out the 2 cooked cups - ya follow? In fry pan, heat the coconut oil.  Add in onions and allow to caramelize.  Add garlic and then vegetables in the following order: broccoli, carrots, zucchini - cook for several minutes or until all the vegetables are softened, add cooked quinoa and stir to combine.  Transfer to large bowl and add in the egg, corn starch (or arrowroot), salt and red pepper, stir until just combined.  Using 1/4 measuring cup, scoop in the mixture.  Heat oil, add mixture and form into patties.  Cook on each side allowing quinoa to brown (approximately 7 minutes/side).  These are best when served immediately as the quinoa has a great, crunchy texture.  However if you want to make them and reheat, I recommend reheating in the oven or in a pan - the microwave is fine but it just doesn't do the dish justice! Serve plain with a tahini sauce, or on a roll.  

Observations

A few observations before I start: 1.) I'm a jerk. I realize that I perhaps need to retract a statement I made in an earlier post. I do not think poorly or people who take selfie photos, nor do I look down on them or think they're idiots - to each his own, right? So it's not my thing - who cares? So with that, I sincerely apologize if I have offended anyone or hurt any feelings - I thought I was being funny and later reflected on my raw thoughts. 2.) i might have seen the epitome of "FML" today and I sadly found it humorous. As I walked Rosie, I witnessed a dad with his two kids and the nearly 3 year old sprinted across one street in anticipation of running across the next. As the little boy waited patiently at the corner for a car to pass (thank God), the dad nonchalantly dropped the handle of the wagon containing the under one year old and casually sauntered towards the child on the run, shoulders slumped, face expressionless. I couldn't help but, well, laugh but also wonder, "was this the act of a man thinking 'fml', or merely a calm, passive man?"  Don't know but funny anyways. 3.) I apparently still think gluten free and wheat free equals healthy. I need a reality check - and I need to hide those yummy brown rice chips. Back to basics. 

Last week I traveled and made it known that I would recalibrate after my trip. Initial update is that I'm back to where I started which doesn't surprise me. I'm starting to think that maybe, considering my muscle mass that I'm where I'm supposed to be but the competitive spark in me tells me to keep pushing forward and see if I can hit my goal. We're starting a competition at work next week and this might be just what I need - I don't want to show up and weigh in and have gained. I'm considering picking up spinning again - but I'm kind of a gym whore (my keys hold swipe in tags for pulsation yoga, title boxing and fitness 19 - isn't adding wheeling park district excessive?). Well see what happens. 

Staying strong and getting strong - it's all about how you're feeling!   

Chili Lime Cilantro Salmon with Garlic Roasted Quinoa

It's meatless Monday today and since I had a Sunday Funday yesterday, I did not make it to the store (or up past 9am for that matter), nor did I plan the countless details that go into a fully satisfying meatless meal. That being said, thank goodness I learned from my mom to always have enough on hand to whip up a meal for unexpected guests (or in this case me and my hubby). I picked up some wild Alaskan Sockeye salmon last week after reading about the benefits of the wild salmon versus anything farm raised and was proud to know I knew how to differentiate between good salmon. There's a great article by Eating Well magazine that highlights the differences one will find between Atlantic Salmon and the Alaskan Salmon. I've had my share of the pink variety of Atlantic salmon and have enjoyed it quite a bit, but if you can spring the extra few bucks and find a good sale - go with the Alaskan. Your tastebuds and you health will thank you!

I "won" some quinoa at white elephant last Christmas and I hate to admit that it took me until just now to actually make it. I'm so glad I finally did! Quinoa is a super food and can take on so many great forms - I can't wait to try it other ways. 

I'll keep it simple - dinner consisted of the chili lime cilantro salmon which I threw on the grill, some sautéed broccoli and the garlic roasted quinoa. Steve has always enjoyed my salmon teriyaki - so this was a bit of a risk in terms of serving salmon - no sugar and not loaded with the deliciousness of MSG and sodium found in soy sauce. He liked it! Stevie liked it! Granted he thought the quinoa tasted like Mexican rice - baby steps. Baby steps. Next time I'll make the quinoa with chicken broth instead of vegetable and I think he'll enjoy it more. By the end if dinner he did admit that while he liked the quinoa,  he couldn't eat a lot of it. Fine - can handle that! 

Chili Cilantro Lime Salmon

Ingredients 

1 lb salmon, thawed

Zest and juice of one lime

1 tsp honey

1tsp Siracha sauce

1 tsp garlic

1/2 c chopped cilantro

1/4 c olive oil

Combine lime zest, juice, honey, Siracha, garlic, cilantro and olive oil in gallon sized zip lock or marinating dish. Add salmon and allow to marinate 30 minutes - one hour. Heat grill to 300 degrees. Remove salmon from marinade and add each piece to foil. Drizzle extra marinade and close foil up creating a pouch. Grill skin down until salmon is cooked most of the way through. Flip over and remove skin, allowing salmon to finish cooking on other side. Baste with marinade remaining in foil pouch. 

Garlic Roasted Quinoa

Ingredients

1 cup dry quinoa

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 clove of garlic, minced

1/8 c onion, chopped

2 c vegetable or chicken broth

Salt and pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in medium saucepan. Cook quinoa until slightly browned and aromatic* (about 3-5 minutes). Remove to fine strainer and rinse**. Leave quinoa in strainer while sautéing garlic and onion (add more olive oil if needed to ensure garlic and onion do not burn). Allow onions to cook until slightly translucent. Add quinoa and broth, cook on medium heat until rapid boil occurs. Lower heat and add lid allowing quinoa to simmer. Allow to simmer approximately 15 minutes or until all liquids have evaporated and quinoa has a slight "curly que" appearance. Remove from heat and allow to cool with lid on for several minutes. Fluff with a fork and add salt and pepper to taste. 

*Browning quinoa really helps bring out the flavor. It does not have to be browned before cooking but definitely is worth the few extra minutes if you have it!

**Quinoa has an outer shell that without being rinsed causes a bit of a bitter taste. Always rinse your quinoa somewhere in the cooking process! 

Week 4

I'll keep this short and sweet.  The gluten free/wheat free and limited dairy thing is really making a difference in how I feel.  I've had less discomfort, less headaches and definitely can tell when I've had too much of any of those three things.  One thing i did find is that I am eating more "junk food" now that I would on any given day, primarily because its "gluten free" and I know that the ingredients are mostly whole and somehow make that mean it's ok to eat it all.  I'm up again, but this is a PERFECT example of how we can't let the scale dictate our lives. I got on the scale at the gym, which I swear up and down is broken half the time.  I usually turn the scale off, turn it back on and then zero it out, that's my ritual.  Did that whole shebang and guess what? 148.8 - what?!? Its been years since I've gotten up that high and when I was, I was lifting pretty heavy.  So I step off, zero out, step back on...same thing.  I decided to go with the whole "third time's a charm" mentality and turned it off, turned it on and zeroed out - and sure enough, I was mostly at my normal weight.  You can't always trust the scale, you have to trust how you feel! 

I'm up several lbs but as mentioned before, I know that I tend to hold a LOT of water when I've had too much sodium.  This week I had bacon and was so swollen and with all of my gluten free snack...I'm going to go ahead and guess I had quite a bit of sodium in those too.  I even noticed that while I usually sweat like a disgusting man...that I wasn't sweating a ton when I worked out which lead me even more to believe that I was holding a lot of water due to slight dehydration.  Did you know one can hold up to 5lbs of water in a given day? 

So here's the deal, I didn't set a goal for this week because I will be going on a trip but I do feel great.  I wore a pair of colored jeans of mine that I haven't worn in a while and they were always just a tad snug even when I was at my lowest weight.  They were loose on my waist! Just goes to show, fit and feel over see (number).  

Goal: 134
*Watch the gluten free snacks and rice, sure, its "good" for me compared to other stuff, but I didn't eat it in excess when I wasn't gluten free, why start bother now? 

#thisiswhat136lookslike

#lovestrongisthenewskinny

Week Three - Wheat Free!

I did it! I got to my re-adjusted goal weight and I feel GREAT.  I cut out wheat and gluten as I have suspected for quite some time that I have an intolerance and finally decided that if I was really going to go full steam ahead in getting to a better stage of me...that I would have to investigate and changes the things that have held me up.  

Gluten free these days seems so easy compared to what I'm sure it was for folks with intolerances decades ago.  Anything one could want to eat has a gluten free option, which is awesome! It definitely does get expensive, and I am already missing pizza and the occasional sandwich, but I am feeling less bloated and uncomfortable and have had less headaches so far.  My energy level is down a bit but that might be as a result of my change in eating habits, my lack of vitamins (I know, I'm going to the store this weekend, shame on me) and my increased workout load.  I had some chips the other day when I went out that were actually flour tortilla chips instead of corn and I nearly IMMEDIATELY noticed my body reacting.  Its so crazy how quickly one's body can respond when given something it would rather not have.  

I managed to lose almost 2 lbs in one week which is way more than I expected.  Since I had gained weight in my first few weeks, I readjusted my goals not only to show less of a loss every week (lets be serious, I'm at a very healthy range, I just want to be better and at my size, these things take time!) and I also adjusted them to the weight I had gained.  

Oddly, I've been watching my dairy intake as well and have noticed how I feel now when I do have dairy in large quantities.  Looking at some lactose intolerance as well.  Its interesting because there have been so many studies that talk about all the processed garbage we put in our bodies and how humans are the only animals that drink another animals milk - and I'm seeing how that affects one's digestion. I had a revelation - I feed my dog grain free, limited ingredient food that I get from a specialty store - why in the world do I allow my husband and I to put so many unnecessary things in our body day in and day out...if we want to extend our dog's life by doing it?

The new "Strong is the New Skinny" campaign is really hitting me hard these days.  I want to be fit and lean, but I definitely want to be strong and toned and not look like I need a cheeseburger (being wheat and gluten free, I'm actually DYING for one right now, but i want one done right, not with just a lettuce bun). My goal this week is, as usual, to continue to get stronger and leaner, but also to lose another 1/2 lb (seems silly right? Ultimately I'm working towards an over all goal little by little and setting realistic expectations). 

GOAL: 134.5
ACTUAL: 134.6 
-1.6 lbs from previous week
Continue on the path to cleansing, gluten, wheat and dairy (mostly) free! 

Favorite substitutes: Dark Chocolate Almond Milk, Chia seeds, Rice Chips (such a charming swap for tortilla chips and crackers!), Sesmark Sesame Rice Thins 

Simple Sundays - Crockpot Orange Chicken

I like to do these simple Sunday's, especially now that our shows are going to start back up - #breakingbad #teamjesse #walterwhiteisabadass. Anyways, the whole concept behind this, as I've said before is to be able to fully relax on Sunday's and enjoy the day without having to stop whatever it is that one is doing to go and cook a meal, or even worse, pick up something horribly unhealthy.  I made this crock pot orange chicken a while back and I have to say, its one of the best recipes I've found for the crock pot and couldn't be easier! Since I am eating wheat/gluten free, I did have to change up the recipe and use almond flour instead of regular.  I have left the recipe with the original as is in terms of the flour - i used coconut flour and just found it to not fry out quite as nicely as when I made this with regular flour.  I also found it to leave the texture a bit, grainy or powdery? Either way, if you are looking for a wheat free/gluten free option for frying instead of the flour, I did a bit of research and it sounds like corn starch is a great alternative (which I would tend to agree), as is rice flour (expensive) or almond flour.  The nice part about the almond flour is its great for baking as well, whereas the rice flour is less than perfect.  I would recommend doing the almond flour or the corn starch over the rice flour and DEFINITELY over the coconut flour.  

Crockpot Orange Chicken 

Adapted from: The Pursuit of Happiness

Ingredients

3-4 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts, chopped into small pieces 

1/3 cup flour, almond flour, or corn starch

olive oil

3 T Ketchup

6 Oz Frozen Orange Juice, thawed

4 T Brown Sugar

1 t Balsamic Vinegar

1 t Chili Powder

1 T Orange Zest

1 1/2 C Chopped, Frozen Broccoli

Combine ketchup, orange juice, brown sugar, balsamic vinegar, orange zest and chili powder in small bowl.  Set aside. Dredge chicken pieces in flour.  Heat oil in medium fry pan.  Quickly brown chicken on each side, about 2 minutes per side.  The chicken does not need to be cooked all the way through as it will be slow cooking in the crockpot. Add chicken to crock pot, pour sauce over and add frozen broccoli.  Cook on low for 6-7 hours or on high for 2-3.  

I also made some of my infamous fried rice which can be found HERE.Today I used brown rice though and had to omit the soy sauce at least in my portion. It was still delicious and although Steve and I had agreed before I made it that brown rice just wouldn't do fried rice justice, it was still pretty tasty!