Here we go again...

It is about 13 weeks until the OPA Provincials at the Toronto Super Show. I have stocked my fridge with produce and meat (I always have enough oats and quinoa to feed a small army). Going back to work has put a bit of a strain on my eating habits – namely 2 pm and Peanut M&Ms have put a strain on my eating – so I am actually pretty excited to get going on a stricter meal plan. Although, I have been packing healthy (clean) food everyday, my self-discipline as it pertains to those dag M&Ms has been lacking. To fix the M&M problem I am no longer bringing money, bank cards, or credit cards into the office tower. I will have to eat what I have planned or nothing at all. I assume at some point I will let myself have my cards back but while I am de-toxing from sugar-garbage I may need the extra barrier.

The moment of truth, what does my starting point look like? In terms of measurements (in inches) – waist: 27.5 – hips: 37 – thighs: 22. In terms of body fat, according to a combination of my magic scales and some calipers I am at around 17.5% and my weight… 148. This is the part where I would like to recommend everyone look into the concept of body fat because although I believe in weighing oneself I believe in using multiple calculations. For instance, if I were just to look at my weight I might feel ‘fat’ but when you look at my body fat it becomes pretty apparent that there is a lot of muscle in there. Check out this great article for a quick guide to body fat with pictures: http://www.leighpeele.com/body-fat-pictures-and-percentages.

And where am I going? Including water weight lost, hopefully down to about 130 pounds, 13% body fat, and measurements of waist: 25 - hips: 35 - thighs: 20.5. This would be approximately where I was in November for the last show so it seems like an appropriate ballpark goal. Again, I need to be clear that in now way, shape or form do I believe it is appropriate for me to live at a state of 13% body fat. I do not believe that would be healthy and at that weight I would be miserable with no energy.

So the really big question – why am I doing this? Good question. In part, it is because I have just always wanted to do compete. However, that is not really a reason. The real reason is that I find having a goal and a focus outside of work, and family provides me with balance and determination. Working on self-discipline in one area truly helps me with other areas – in the past few days I have already seen better results at work in my focus and in my patience with my children.  I go to bed more satisfied at night and that is a huge benefit for my life.

Well, wish me luck and I will be keeping you all updated with my stats as we move along… and maybe I will get brave enough to throw up a photo or two (but it is unlikely because I don’t even wear a bikini to the beach on vacation – yes there is a lot of irony there).

Calories – Why I find them useful once in a while

I generally don’t count calories, but once in a while I find them helpful as a marker.

Before going any further, I want us all on the same page so let’s start with a quick definition of a calorie. By definition a calorie is the energy it takes to raise the temperature of 1 gram of water 1 degree Celsius. In short, a calorie is energy. It is a way to measure the energy that fuels our bodies.  What a calorie will not tell you is whether or not that calorie came from a nutrient-dense food or if it came from some pretend food like deep fried butter balls. This is the basic reason why I would never encourage anyone to only look at calories.

But calories have a place as one indicator in our tool kit for fueling our bodies. In particular relation to weight loss or gain, it takes an excess of 3500 calories above your needs to gain one pound. Likewise you have to reduce your calorie intake by 3500 calories to lose one pound. But how many calories do you need to begin with?

Even if you stayed in bed all day you would burn a certain amount of calories. This is your Basic Metabolic Rate, or BMR. Once you know your BMR you can use the Harris Benedict Equation to find the approximate value of  how many calories you need based on your level of activity. To find your BMR with the Harris Benedict Equation, you could use this online calculator : http://www.muscleandstrength.com/tools/bmr-and-daily-calorie-calculator.html

Using that particular calculator my daily calorie requirements are around the 2300 calorie range. I find it helpful to check in once in a while to make sure I am eating that appropriate amount. I frequently use this website to look up caloric values: http://caloriecount.about.com/. When it comes to weight loss I have found that once I go below 1900 calories/day for a few days I will likely find myself on a binge. For whatever reason my body is not a happy camper below that point. Therefore when I need to lose a few pounds (i.e. if I have spent a few weeks overindulging over the holidays) I know I can easily do it by cutting about 400 calories per day. That means it takes me a little more than a week to lose a pound, which might not sound exciting, but it is the point at which my body is happy to work with me.  If I go below 1900 calories that is the hard way to lose weight. I am miserable and I will self-sabotage by eating 6 ice cream bars after the children are in bed or eating a half jar of peanut butter with a spoon. I would encourage you to find out what range you should be eating in and check in once in a while to see how you are doing. It is just one way to gauge things and I personally find it helpful.

One caveat, calories listed in food (anywhere) are not an exact science. They are an approximation, because food items can vary. That said, it is still helpful to figure out how much you are eating as compared to how much you should be eating. Finally, remember you should be getting these calories from lean protein, fresh or frozen veggies/fruit and whole grains not from processed or fast food sources.

Domesticity and Quinoa Muffins

I do not like to clean but I like to bake. In particular, I like to bake on the weekends when it provides me a domestic outlet that does not involve scrubbing a tub or mopping a floor. I can feel good about doing something for my children that falls under the category of 'happy childhood memories with a 1950s stay-at-home mom' without getting out a vacuum.

This weekend one of the baking adventures involved developing a Quinoa Muffin Recipe. I fell in love with these, so much so that I should probably not make them again. I think I ate 3 when they came out of the oven and another 5 the following day.

Now, if you haven't joined the quinoa band wagon, you should consider adding it to your diet. Quinoa offers a complete protein, meaning it contains all 9 essential nutrients. It is also a good source of magnesium, manganese, folate, and phosphorus.

On with the recipe...

Yield: 12 normal-sized muffins or 18 small muffins

Ingredients:
2 cups cooked quinoa
2 cups whole wheat flour
1/4 cup ground flax seed
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp sea salt

1/4 cup safflower oil
1/4 cup palm sugar (or other sugar)
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
3/4 cup milk (I used 1% but use what you prefer)
1 large egg
1 tbsp vanilla extract


Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 and prepare muffin tins. If using silicone you wont need to oil or use paper.
2. Mix wet ingredients in one bowl and dry ingredients in another.
3. Mix wet and dry ingredients together.
4. Pour into prepared muffin tins.
5. Bake for 20 - 25 minutes. For 18 small muffins, it takes 22 minutes in my oven.

People Who Build Your Character: What To Do About Them

I think most of us have at least one person in our lives that could be described as character building. I know I do, and if you don’t, well count yourself lucky.

That said, I find the most brilliant way to keep myself from wanting to throw things – I say wanting to throw things because although I would never actually throw something at anyone I also don’t even want to feel like throwing anything – is regular exercise.

There are a whole host of reasons why you should consider physical exercise, including positive changes in self-perception and well being, an improvement in your self-confidence, a positive change in your mood, less tension, less anxiety, and just a general state of mental well-being.  Although I am certainly no scientist, there is significant research out there that shows this to be true AND I have experienced it for myself.

But why? Well, evidently, when we exercise our brain releases endorphins into our blood stream. The endorphins act in the same way as morphine (in fact the word endorphin is derived from the words endogenous and morphine). I don’t know about you but I think a brilliant way to deal with my issues includes a perfectly safe and legal drug courtesy of my brain.

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.