Happy Sunday

It is Sunday afternoon and you really want a little bit of a special snack to lounge with while the kids nap… ok so now you know what I want on a Sunday afternoon. I have, however, solved my problem, without killing my nutrition plan. Welcome a yummy mocha latte and no-bake protein bars.

Let’s start with the protein bars because you have to stick them in the freezer for a half-hour to get them to really set.

No Bake Protein Bars 

Ingredients:

•  1 ¾ cups rolled oats (seriously people just stop buying the quick oats)
•  ½ heaping cup natural nut butter of choice (I used peanut butter but I am thinking cashew butter would be AMAZING)
•  4 scoops natural whey protein powder (I usually avoid the flavored stuff – too much garbage rolled in there)
• 1 tbsp of flax seed (because flax can really go in anything)
• ½ cup water
• 2 tbsp of agave nectar or raw hunny (we were reading Winnie the Pooh last night so that was an intentional typo)

Instructions

1. Put everything in a bowl, wash your hands, and mix it up with your clean hands.
2. Line a loaf pan with parchment paper, press the dough into the pan.
3. Pop the pan in the freezer for a half hour, remove and cut into 6 squares.

Ok, so now that we have our protein bars done, let’s move on to the latte. If you don’t know me well, you may not understand how strongly I feel about good coffee. It is kind of a love affair that coffee and I have going on and because it is such a strong relationship I try to limit my exposure to two cups a day. However, today is Sunday and we are going to town with a third afternoon cup so let’s make this mocha latte. 

Mocha Latte

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp ground coffee
• 1 tbsp cocoa
• ½ tsp vanilla
• ½ cup milk of choice

Instructions:

1. Put the first two ingredients in your French Press (if you don’t have a French press you could use a Melita).
2. Fill the French Press half way up with hot water, then add the vanilla.
3. While waiting for the coffee to brew, heat your milk. I chose the easy method of the microwave with a follow-up of my hand foamer. However, you could also heat your milk on the stove and whisk like crazy.
4. Add the milk to the coffee (in a cup, not the French Press – I do not drink straight from my French Press even with my extreme love of coffee). 

Now settle yourself down, enjoy, and if you children are awake by now put on a DVD – something educational so you can feel good about taking a break. Voila, Happy Sunday!!! 

Baby Boy Banana Muffins

These muffins are named after my son's extreme love for them. They are really quite healthy Enjoy.

Ingredients:
4 mashed ripe bananas
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/8 cup wheat bran or wheat germ
1/8 cup hulled flax seed (you can just leave this out if you don't have any and use wheat germ/bran instead)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp sea salt
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp vanilla
1 egg
1/4 cup agave nectar or raw honey
1/4 safflower oil
1/2 cup pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling!)
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce

Instructions:
1. Pre-heat oven to 350. Prepare 12 muffin tins either with cooking spray or line with paper.
2. Combine all dry ingredients in one bowl.
3. Combine all wet ingredients in another bowl.
4. Mix all ingredients together.
5. Pour into muffin tins and bake for about 30 minutes (mine work out perfect in 28 minutes).

Beautiful, Not Broken

Everyday on my way to work I walk by a large photo of Marilyn Monroe hanging in the window of a hair salon. The other day, as I noticed how beautiful this Hollywood icon appeared in her photo, I couldn’t help but remember that she was evidently far from happy. Of course, I am no expert on the life of Marilyn Monroe, but that doesn’t really matter. My point is that, although this woman was a superstar and has remained an icon in the psyche of popular culture she appears to have been a terribly unhappy person who had a number of broken marriages, no children and a dependency on prescription drugs. I think her life provides a clear illustration: your character and your relationships are what really matter. No matter how beautiful you are it isn’t your appearance that will make you happy.

I know we all hear it, but you really wont find your life’s satisfaction in perfecting your body. As you work to improve anything in life, you need to do it from a place where you know you are just as valuable today as you will be when you have lost 10 pounds or gained some muscle or run a marathon. Losing weight or accomplishing a goal is important but it cannot be the source of your happiness. So as you move into the new year and you potentially think about setting some goals for yourself, be reminded that you want to be beautiful not broken – set your sights on creating a character that is as beautiful as you are on the outside. Use your nutrition and exercise goals to support healthy relationships and a lifestyle that inspires other to create a better life for themselves.  

Oatmeal to Go Breakfast Cookies

These are my favourite thing in the world to make. I love this recipe so much that I have had to limit my making them, or as in the case of this weekend, plan on giving most of them away. I am bringing these to work on Monday (yep, back to work after a whole year off on maternity leave). I tend to eat them for two or three meals a day when I have them on hand, which isn't the most balanced approach to life so I will pawn off the delicious healthy 'cookies' on others. These cookies freeze really well so whip up a batch, throw 'em in the freezer, and you will be ready to grab one when you need a healthier snack on the go instead of some sugar and saturated fat filled store bought bar (yuck).

The recipe is modified from one in Tosca Reno's 'Eat Clean Diet Recharged' book (if you haven't figured it out yet, I love Tosca!).


EC Oatmeal Breakfast Cookies

1 1/3 Cup Safflower Oil or Light Olive Oil (or any 'healthier' oil, buy organic cold pressed if you can)
1 1/3 Cup Unsweetened Applesauce
1.5 cups Sucanat, Palm Sugar or other healthy sugar
4 eggs
1 tbsp vanilla
1 ½ tsp salt
8 cups rolled oats
2 cups whole wheat or 12-grain flour
1 cup wheat germ or flax or a combination of both (if you don't have wheat germ or flax just use flour)
1 cup plain whey protein powder (if you don't have protein powder just use flour)
8 oz raisins (optional)
8 oz chopped walnuts (optional)

* If you really want to get crazy, add 8 oz of smashed up 80% cocoa dark chocolate - this will be the addition for my coworkers*

Preheat oven to 350. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Cream the oil, applesauce and sugar together in large bowl until smooth. Beat in eggs, vanilla and sea salt. Use a large wooden spoon or clean hands to work in flour and oats. Add raisins and walnuts (or chocolate) if desired and mix until evenly distributed. Shape the dough into large 3-inch balls and press into 5 or 6 inch flat cookies on baking sheets. Bake for 15 minutes or until as brown as you desire. Cool on wire racks.
Makes 24 very large cookies.

Five Things

Today I thought I would share a random assortment of information and tips with you, just things I think everyone should know:

1. Crunches - You would have to do about 250,000 crunches to lose 1 pound of fat. You will never have ab definition by relying on crunches. The key to abs surrounds is your diet. You need to eat clean – for more info on this check out Tosca Reno’s books if you haven’t already.
2. Fitness Models - Also related to those coveted abs (particularly for women) 99.9% of fitness models on magazine covers diets down before a shoot.That fabulous body does not look like that 365 days a year. Although, I am no fitness model, I will use myself as an example here. I intentionally gained about 8 pounds after my fitness show earlier this month. Why? It wouldn’t be healthy for me to maintain a body fat percentage that low AND I was water depleted the day of the competition. I was down about 3-4 pounds of water weight! I am learning to be happy without the level of muscle definition I had a few weeks ago and recognize that magazines are not a reflection of reality (which I can forget sometimes).
3. Lifting weights – if you are female, under no circumstances will you look like a body builder if you lift weights. You do not have the testosterone required to build bulky muscle. Muscle on women only makes them ‘tighter’ and ‘leaner’. Also, as a bonus, resting muscle burns more calories than resting fat which means you get to eat more. I don’t know about you but I would like to be able to eat extra food every day. I like food. I eat six meals a day and I love it!
4. The scale – The scale can be evil. Do not rely on your weight to tell you what you look like. Have you ever walked up to someone on the street and said “Excuse me, what do you weigh?”. A number means very little, especially if you have a significant amount of muscle. For instance I know a woman who is almost 4 inches shorter than I am and weighs the same as I do (140 pounds – yep I just revealed my weight – shock and big gasp haha). Guess who looks “better”? She does - She has a lot of lean muscle and a lower body fat percentage. Instead of relying on the scale, take before and after pictures, measurements, body fat percentage, the fit of your clothes, and most importantly how you feel as an indication of your progress.
5. Planning and Preparation - These are the keys to almost all success in life, and particularly in terms of health and fitness. If you want to succeed you need to plan your meals and your workouts. Prepare healthy food on the weekends so you have something nutritious to grab when things are going crazy. I like to throw a bunch of chicken breasts on the foreman grill so I can chop and add them to any meal. Get your workout clothes out the night before so all you can do when you roll out of bed is put them on. My running shoes are literally beside my bed when I go to sleep at night. My morning routine looks like this: Get up; make coffee and grab a quinoa pancake from the freezer; drink coffee and eat pancake; work out. Make exercising a non-negotiable habit and healthy food all that is easy to grab in your house.

Ok, I think that sums up my little rant of the day. Big hugs and support to everyone keeping it healthy through the holiday season.

No More Excuses

Ok, so we all like to pretend that we are some special case, like we have a really legit reason for not getting in shape, eating healthy or losing some weight. Here is the thing, if you even know me, you should realize by now that you have absolutely no excuse – zero - none. You can take whatever situation you are in and work with it to create the body and the life you have always wanted.

However, if you haven’t clued in and still want to make the excuses I am going to bust through those right now.

1.     “I don’t have time”

Umm, yes you do. You only need about 20 minutes per day to get in a workout.  I get up at 5 am every day of the week to make sure I get in at least 45 minutes of exercise on 6 of those days.

2.     “My partner/spouse/family isn’t supportive so I can’t fit exercise in or eat clean”

So what? I don’t even have a partner and I make time. I have no one to watch the kids while I take time out for me. Again, I get up at 5 am to fit in a solid workout before my children wake up. AND you can make your own food if your partner still wants to eat garbage. Live by example and forge a path instead of following their bad example.

3.     “I don’t have the money for a gym membership”

I am a sole-support parent without the babysitting or the extra cash at present for a gym membership. I got that body you see on Facebook solely training at home with almost no equipment.

4.     “I don’t know what I am doing”

Exercise: Number 1, you have GOOGLE! Seriously! You also have YOUTUBE! However, if that doesn’t work for you buy yourself a $10 Jillian Micheals DVD or a subscription to Oxygen Magazine. Both are inexpensive ways to figure it out.

Eating Habits: Buy ‘The Eat Clean Diet” by Tosca Reno. This book, or any book in her series, is literally all you need to change your eating habits and it is only $15.85! If you don’t have $15 as for it for Christmas. Here is a link on Amazon to buy it http://www.amazon.ca/Eat-Clean-Diet-Recharged-Tosca-Reno/dp/1552100677/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1321109880&sr=8-1

5.     “I can’t afford healthy food”

Actually, you can. Here are some tips: Stay out of the centre aisles of the grocery store; Eggs are cheap and a great source of protein; Organic Tofu is another inexpensive protein option; Watch for sales on things like chicken breast; Buy frozen fruit and veggies to supplement the fresh fruits and veggies; and STOP buying coffee and meals out - make your own. Again, I am a sole-support parent here without a ton of cash and I make it happen.

6.     “I have health problems”

You can work around literally any health or physical problem. Talk to your doctor or physiotherapist to help you come up with a plan.

7.     “I don’t want to look stupid”

No one is going to laugh at you. All those really ripped people out there will be silently cheering you on for changing your life – that is why they may look at you, not because they are laughing at you.

8.     “I don’t like to work out”

Then you haven’t looked hard enough for something you like to do. Also, just change your attitude! Decide you are going to enjoy your workouts instead of griping about them. Furthermore, you are an adult and we have to do things we don’t like sometimes.

9.     “It hurts to work out”

DOMS – Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness is normal. This is just because you are not accustomed to the exercise.  This will decrease over time and when I am sore, I just like to think of it as my workout having been effective.

10. “It’s my genetics – I am destined to be fat/skinny because my whole family is fat/skinny”

This is a giant lie! In the words of Tosca Reno (and a lot of other experts) your genes make up only about 10% of what your physical body looks like. It is your eating and exercise habits that shape your body for the most part. I never want to hear this out of anyone’s mouth again.

11. “I have no energy to exercise”

This is a chicken vs. egg argument. You have no energy because you don’t exercise and you don’t exercise because you have no energy. Change your habits today. Get enough rest, cut out the refined and processed foods and decide you are going to start an exercise regime. You will have more energy than you ever dreamed possible.

Post Competition

In case you missed the BIG news, I placed 2^nd in the Bikini Tall category at the OPA Ottawa Championships. I am still a little in shock but sooo pleased with the results. This also means that I qualify for provincials in the spring and I am beyond excited about that.

Now, it is 4 days after my first competition and I feel HUGE.  As many of you are aware, fitness competitors and fitness models lean out significantly to get that great muscle definition in the couple of weeks prior to a show or a photo shoot.  However, I have found regaining those last few pounds – a totally healthy and normal thing – to be really hard psychologically. I know in my head that maintaining such a low body fat percentage is not healthy or reasonable but that doesn’t mean I don’t wish I could have six-pack abs every day of the year!!!

My other struggle has been food and by food I mean eating too much of it and not the right balance. After being on such a regimented diet leading up to the show, the idea of being able to eat whatever I want has been a little overwhelming! Tonight for instance, I ate about half a pint of ice cream… and I feel really sick. Sigh!!! However, to combat this cycle, I have created a detailed meal plan for myself for tomorrow. It is posted on my fridge and I can check the meals and snacks off as I go. I like to check things – it fills my heart with joy.

On a more positive note, my workouts this week have been amazing!!! Having more carbs in my diet has made such a difference in both my strength training and cardiovascular workouts. I feel like superwoman -- I am killing the intervals on the treadmill and pushups are my friend again. May God bless rolled oats and Ezekiel wraps for making my life such a happy place once more.

Just for your entertainment, here is the aforementioned meal plan for tomorrow:

Breakfast: ¼ cup quinoa, ¼ cup steel cut oats, 2 egg whites, ½ cup cranberries plus black coffee

Snack: 1 cup Greek Yogurt, 1 cup mixed berries, 1 T flax, 1 T hulled hemp hearts plus black coffee

Lunch: mango-chicken Ezekiel wrap, asparagus

Snack: 2 hard-boiled eggs, ½ cucumber sliced

Dinner: whole wheat chicken, spinach no-cheese Pizza (home-made), mixed salad greens with Balsamic Vinegar

Snack (If Hungry): 1 scoop protein, 1 cup pumpkin puree (not pie filling), and cinnamon to taste

3 L of water throughout the day plus extra during cardio training