Big Prep Day...and a Couple of Recipes

I spent the whole day in my kitchen yesterday! While I do food prep every week, I don’t normally dedicate an entire day to it!

Usually, on Farmers Market Day I wash, dry, and store all of my produce, and assemble salad greens for the week. I always make salad dressings for the week and cook things like chickpeas, lentils, quinoa, brown rice, etc. that are more time consuming while I wash and chop produce. That is easy, but yesterday was a Stock the Freezer Day. I love my vacuum sealer. I can use the bags for freezing soups, burgers and more, and also for storing flours and grains in my cupboard. I also have the handy vacuum canisters for things I open often, like beans, lentils, and oats. I keep my week’s worth of salad in a big vacuum-sealed canister in the refrigerator, where it stays fresh and crisp all week.

I had an abundance of zucchini and cauliflower in my frig, so I started there. I made an awesome Zucchini Dip which I will use as a raw veggie dip, and in my daughter’s lunchbox wraps. I used it as a condiment on her veggie burger yesterday, and it was a hit. The recipe is on my Facebook Fan Page here: http://on.fb.me/1AY3kBv

Next I made a curried cauliflower soup. I put half in a mason jar in the frig for the coming week, and the rest I froze for the future. I also made a double batch of lentil soup and did the same. 

I also made two kinds of veggie burgers. Crispy Chickenless Burgers are one of my kid’s favorites. They are made with tempeh and quinoa, so they pack a lot of protein (more than a hamburger!). I also made Black Bean Burgers, which are our standby burgers. Now we are all set for summer BBQ season! Here is a tutorial on how I make them: http://bit.ly/BlackBeanBurgersFFG

I made turkey and veggie meatloaf in muffin pans for the husband. They freeze well and he is able to feed himself by just heating up a couple of them with a potato. Yeah, he’s a basic unit. 

I used a fresh young coconut to make some coconut milk for my grain-free blueberry cereal, and I made some hemp milk for the week ahead. I whipped up some Ginger-Miso dressing for salads this week, too. 

I made a couple of salad dishes, Moroccan Carrot Salad from the Ultimate Reset and Blackberry Green Beans, and I cooked Roasted Brussels Sprouts and Grapes from the Team Beachbody Recipes section and Curry Spiced Spaghetti Squash for dinner. 

Tomorrow is Farmers Market Day and I’ll be washing fresh produce. Other than that, there will be little to do the rest of the week for lunches and dinners, which makes me happy since it’s a busy last week of school full of fun activities.  As a matter of fact, we are headed to the beach with the musical theater families now!

Just Rolling Along...

One of the best ways to relieve sore muscles is to gently stretch and ROLL. I use a combination of foam rolling and my Roll Recovery gadget for myofascial release. 

Dr. Mark Cheng recommends rolling BEFORE your workout, to “take off the parking brakes.” Try taking 5-10 minutes before your workout to loosen up and see if that doesn't help with your soreness today.

Don't have a foam roller? Do you have a pool noodle out in the garage? A scrap piece of PVC pipe? Try a rolling pin or a lacrosse ball or tennis ball. 

Here is a link for some tips on how to foam roll from Dr Cheng. 

Foam Rolling

Here is the Roll Recovery website: http://www.rollrecovery.com

If you are in a rehabilitation situation from an injury, surgery, or accident, Dr. Cheng's program, Tai Cheng, could be for you. Here is a video about it: Tai Cheng Video It is available here:  Tai Cheng

I have done the program...and even went back to it 3 days post-knee operation! It's great for gaining flexibility, strength and balance with absolutely no impact. This is not a weight loss or fitness program, per se, but excellent for gentle rehab and recovery.

New Performance Line Supplements Coming Soon

Beachbody, the company that brought you Shakeology™ and dozens of top workout programs, is launching a new supplement line this summer. The Performance Line system consists of five powder drinks that are formulated with key ingredients scientifically shown to be effective.

There are supplements for increasing energy and endurance, hydrating during exercise, muscle recovery and reducing soreness, an overnight recovery formula and a creatine formula for reducing muscle breakdown and improving high intensity performance.

It looks like two of the five formulations are not vegan, as they contain whey and casein (only an issue if you avoid dairy), but the other three are.

The new supplements were designed by Harvard-trained scientists and based on cutting-edge sports science, exercise physiology, and nutrition research. The Performance Line contains scientifically proven performance enhancing ingredients and plant-based nutrients to help maximize exercise performance and recovery safely, effectively, and naturally.

As you'd expect from Beachbody, there are no artificial colors, flavors, sweeteners, or preservatives.

To find out more, and to be notified as soon as Performance Line products are available for purchase, please enter your email below.

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Don't eat C.R.A.P.

It's Day 15 for me on my Ultimate Reset. The Detox Phase is over and the Restore Phase has begun! I'm feeling great, and have never felt deprived. As a matter of fact, I can't finish all the food sometimes because the portions are so generous. I love every recipe, and the structure of knowing exactly what and when to eat helps me get back on track. 

This week the food will all veggies and fruits--no legumes or grains--so that the gut can rest, heal and repopulate with the help of the probiotic supplement. So far I'm down 2 inches off my waist, and even more from my lower abdomen, midriff and back. 

Those pesky pounds I put on are finally leaving! 

I'm thankful for this annual fresh start. Now I need to start thinking about what fitness program I'm going to start when I'm finished next week! Perhaps I'll bust open that Les Mills Pump that's still in the box since Christmastime!

Focusing so much on my Nutritional Therapy course and what I put into my own body these last two weeks inspired me to share a little nutrition advice:

One sure way to improve your health is to eliminate C.R.A.P. foods. Get these out of your house, and out of your mouth, and you WILL have more success with your scale and tape measure, as well as your blood tests and energy.

C.R.A.P. foods not only are packed with empty calories, but also contain ingredients that rob your body of essential nutrients, which make you feel sluggish and tired.They can also trigger overeating, which means you put on extra pounds fast.

For good health, limit, or ideally, eliminate, the following foods:

C. Carbonated drinks -- one of the leading causes of today's Obesity Epidemic

R. Refined sugar -- including white sugar, white flour, and high fructose corn syrup

A. Artificial colors and flavors and Alcohol -- Addives are anti-nutrients, which rob the body of nutrients instead of  providing nutrition

P. Processed products -- can contain all of the above as well as trans-fats. (eat WHOLE food!)

All of Beachbody's fitness programs come with healthy meal plans. Shakeology™ contains no C.R.A.P. ingredients and provides a plethora of superfood nutrition. If you are struggling to change your eating habits, Shakeology™ can help you reduce cravings, get regular, and increase energy. You can learn more about it here: http://bit.ly/ShakeologyCRF

In addition, the 3-Day Refresh (http://bit.ly/3-Day-CP) can help you get back on track without feeling deprived. 

If you are seriously committed, the Ultimate Reset (http://bit.ly/CRFReset) is a 21 Day Cleanse that will help you reset your metabolism, bust sugar and caffeine addictions, detox, and change the way you look at eating. 

As always, message me with your questions and concerns. I love to share my experience and knowledge to help End the Trend of Obesity! Email me at crideoutfit@gmail.com

I'm on Day 8 of the 21 Day Day Ultimate Reset. I decided to do this program again because I had a few stubborn pounds creep on in the last 6 months, and I know I had a few too many "cheat days." I also had a couple of super-stressed out months and I knew my mind and body were due for a little gentle cleanse.

I love this program!! I did it last spring and WAOW what a difference it made to my health! My total cholesterol dropped 33 points, LDL (the BAD cholesterol) dropped 28 points, and triglycerides went down 26 points. My HDL (good cholesterol) held steady. IN JUST 21 DAYS.

I also lost 10 pounds and 7 inches. You can read about my last reset results in my blog archives here: 2014 Reset Week 3 and here: 2014 Reset Lab Results

So far, after my first week, I'm down 2 pounds. I feel great. The meal plan for the first 2 weeks isn't much different than how I've normally been eating for the past year, but it is very structured and there are additional supplements. Also, the portions are HUGE (and tasty!)  I have not felt deprived once. As a matter of fact, I couldn’t finish all my dinner tonight!

Just a few of the delicious dishes that are part of the Ultimate Reset

Another aspect of the program is resting your body from strenuous exercise. It's a total reset of mind, body and spirit. In the past week I had an easy, short bike ride, a walk, and some yoga. No cardio or strength training, but I did do a few ab exercises.

If you would like to learn more about this amazing, gentle way to reset your metabolism and clean up your eating, message me! Oh, by the way, Beachbody has extended it's special pricing through May!

Planning Ahead for Success

Planning ahead and prepping are important habits for your success in maintaining good health. When you are prepared, healthy meals and snacks can be made quickly. Here are a few tips for easy meal prepping:

* Plan for the week ahead on the weekend, and shop from a list

* Wash produce in a 1:10 vinegar solution and dry thoroughly before storing. 

* Cook grains (brown rice, quinoa, etc), beans and lentils and store in the frig for your weekly recipes and sides. I use a pressure cooker to save even more time.

* Cook chicken breasts by grilling or baking and use for salads or main dishes throughout the week.

* While grains and/or meats are cooking, assemble salad ingredients (minus dressing) in serving sized baggies or containers if you pack lunches. You can also chop veggies for recipes to save time on busy weeknights.

* Make a batch of salad dressing to last the week. It takes 5 minutes, you'll save money and you won't be ingesting weird ingredients from bottled dressing. Here's an easy one: 3 Tbl Balsamic Vinegar, 2 Tbl fresh lemon juice, ½ tsp. Raw honey, 1 tsp Dijon mustard, 3 Tbl extra virgin olive oil---whisk or whir in a blender and voila!

* When you make soups or crock pot meals, make enough to freeze half for another week when you may be too busy to cook or forgot to plan something.

* Buy seasonal fruit on sale, chop and freeze some for smoothies and Shakeology add-ins. I have frozen all kinds of berries, watermelon, pineapple and peaches. It's best to freeze on a sheet in a single layer, then transfer to a bag so the pieces don't stick to each other. 

* Along the same lines, when your bananas get too soft, just peel them and freeze them for your shakes. I even freeze my banana peels and when I get a bagful I blend them with water in and feed them to my roses. Recycling to the max!

My friend has a prolific lemon tree. Every few weeks she lets me pick a large sackful of lemons and I keep some in my fruit bowl and squeeze the rest with my Kitchenaid stand mixer juicing attachment. I fill several ice cube trays and store the cubes in a freezer bag. It only takes about 15 minutes. When I'm out of fresh lemons for my dressings, hummus, or lemon water, I just head to the freezer. One cube is about 2 Tbls of lemon juice. I use A LOT of lemons so this saves me money, too! 

I've also been known to freeze leftover coffee for iced coffee or an occasional mocha Shakeology. You can roughly chop spinach or kale in a blender with some water and freeze in ice cube trays for a green boost to your shakes and smoothies, too!

Invest in some good glass food storage containers and stock up your frig every weekend for almost grab-and-go simplicity. I use a lot of canning jars to store my nuts and seeds, nut butters, dressings, hummus, and leftovers. You can even get reusable plastic caps and dissolvable labels for them (check amazon.com). I also try to repurpose empty vinegar and oil bottles. 

If you have more meal prep tips, feel free to share them on my Facebook Page at http://bit.ly/FFGLikePage

Summer is on the horizon! Are you ready for skimpier clothes and swimsuits? I've got a free 21 Day Fix coaching group starting on May 1st on Facebook. If you have the program and want in, just drop me a line saying you want to be added to the group. 

If you don't have the program, why not check it out here: http://bit.ly/Fix21Video

As always, I'm available to answer your questions about nutrition and all of the Beachbody fitness programs and Shakeology. Just drop me a line crideoutfit@gmail.com

The Skin You're In

You're making great improvements. You're exercising daily and paying attention to what goes in your body. Have you thought about what goes ON your body, too?

Chemical ingredients in cosmetics and toiletries may be harmful to your body. Ingredients like parabens, sulfates, formaldehyde, SD alcohol, petroleum-derived ingredients, artificial colors and fragrances can all be found in many everyday products that we put on our skin. Many of these chemicals can be absorbed through the skin into the bloodstream. As a matter of fact, about 60% of anything you put on your skin gets absorbed!

The skin is the largest organ of the human body. It has many functions:

It is the first line of defense against pathogens.

It facilitates sensation of temperature, pressure and touch via nerve endings

It provides thermoregulation utilizing sweat glands, blood vessel dilation and tiny erector pili muscles (goosebumps).

It acts as a storage center for lipids and water.

It provides a barrier to reduce fluid loss.

It absorbs oxygen and aids in the synthesis of Vitamin D from sunlight.

One of the first products I ditched when decided to ditch the chemicals was anti-perspirant. First of all, sweating is how the body thermoregulates when it gets too warm. Sweating also helps to eliminate toxins through the skin. Sweating is not something we should inhibit, especially when we are exercising. Odor is not caused by the sweat, per se. It is caused by the byproducts of bacteria which multiply in a warm and dark environment (a sweaty armpit) and to some extent, by certain foods or pharmaceuticals that were ingested. So, we can still let the body do it's detoxing and cooling things but manage the odor that might be less than pleasing. Here's a recipe for a simple and inexpensive alternative to deodorant that is free of chemicals that many people wish to avoid:

Mix together ¼ cup each melted coconut oil, baking soda and corn starch or arrowroot powder and 10 drops of essential oil of your choice. (a blend of tea tree and lavender works well). Pour into a glass jar and cover. It will solidify when it cools. Apply to your armpits with your fingers. The baking soda absorbs odor, the starch absorbs wetness and coconut oil is an anti-oxidant, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal and moisturizer. (Some people find the baking soda is a bit abrasive or irritating, so you can leave it out if you experience redness.)

Since coconut oil melts at 76 degrees, you may want a firmer deodorant that you can pour into a push -up tube (just clean out your old deodorant tube and reuse it!) Since I live in a warm climate, this is what I use:

• 3 Tbls coconut oil
• 2 Tbls beeswax
• 2 Tbls baking soda
• 2 Tbls arrowroot
• 1/8 tsp tea tree essential oil
• 1/8 tsp lavender

Just melt the oil and beeswax in a double boiler over low heat. Whisk in the powders, remove from heat, then add the oils. Pour into your empty deodorant container and let cool completely before capping.

Let me know if you make one of these deodorant recipes. I swear they work, and you won't have to worry about clogging up any sweat glands or absorbing any toxins.