Anything is Possible! By: Kristin

I heard the coolest story that I wanted to share.  I have a friend named Sunny Lawrence.  Her husband is a sponsored triathlete.  She also is a triathlete.  It’s hard for her to watch her husband constantly getting free, new equipment and gear.  She rides an old road bike while he is on a brand new triathlon bike.  Sunny wanted a new bike but without a sponsor didn’t have the thousands of dollars to pay for one. Money was tight so she tried to think of ways to raise some extra cash to buy her bike.  She has 5 young children so she needed to think of something she could do at home without having to pay for a babysitter.  Then she thought of pies!  She loves to make pies almost as much as she loves to bike.  She started asking around and had already sold orders for 41 pies her first day!  At first Sunny thought she would need to sell 100 pies but then she thought, “No I’m going to set my goal higher!”  She set a goal of selling 200 pies.  Each pie sold for $15.00.  She had her sister help her with a flyer. Her husband texted all of his friends and with the help of facebook she had sold 120 pies within 4 days!  Her 8 year old daughter delivered flyers in their neighborhood and Sunny paid her $2.00 for every order that came from the flyers.  Her daughter raised enough money to buy her own bike!  Last week was her third week and I’m pleased to let you know I ordered the 200^th pie from her!  Within a three week period she had achieved her goal!  I love this story because it illustrates that anything is possible!  Sometimes we just need to be creative and think outside the box.  If you dream it, you can achieve it.  As Henry Ford said, “Whether you think you can or you can’t either way you are right.”  Instead of sitting around feeling sorry for herself, Sonny acted and kept at it until she had achieved her goal.  The other lesson learned is that people who care about and love us want us to succeed and if they know how they can help they are usually more than willing to do whatever they can. She was amazed at how everyone she asked wanted to help her succeed.  They wanted to support her and all she had to do was ask.   This season, Sunny will be sporting her brand new tri bike, appropriately named, “The Pie Bike”.

Gluten-free Pancakes

                                                                     By:  Maria

If, on your way towards eating better, you decide to try some of the gluten-free products, beware that although it is gluten-free (good thing!), products that come packaged are typically loaded with other unnecessary ingredients like lots of sugar, additives and preservatives (bad thing!).  Before you purchase a gluten-free product, read labels. If the label contains words that are hard to pronounce, ditch the product.  Often times, you can make things at home that are MUCH healthier for you!

The following recipe is not only delicious, but you provide your body with some important nutrients without the added sugars, unhealthy fats, additives and preservatives.

2 whole eggs

1/2 cup almond meal

1/2 cup coconut milk

1 apple, cored and diced

2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 pint fresh blueberries

coconut oil for cooking

Combine all ingredients, except blueberries, into a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Pour into a bowl and add blueberries. Heat a large pan on medium heat; add coconut oil and cook small pancakes 2-3 minutes on each side (these can be hard to flip, so when they are ready, jab the spatula underneath fast).  I serve these with a side of eggs and we have a balanced breakfast!

Banana Yogurt Delight- Enjoy!

Banana Yogurt Delight

Ingredients:

½ cup nonfat yogurt

1 banana or 1 cup of your favorite fruit

¼ cup cottage cheese

1 Tbsp. slivered almonds

Directions:

Peel and split 1 banana. Place banana halves in serving bowl. 

Top with cottage cheese, yogurt, and almonds. 

Prosciutto-wrapped Chicken

By:  Maria

 

Prosciutto - if you haven't tried this delectable Italian ham, you are missing out! I will often replace bacon with Prosciutto in many recipes that I make because the flavor is far superior (my opinion) without the overabundance of fat and grease that comes with bacon. Several grocery outlets will sell this product, but I would highly recommend getting Prosciutto from a reputable Italian market - their products will be fresh and authentic. I could do an entire blog post on Prosciutto, since there are many varieties of ham. Some are sweeter and less salty (if that's your preference). If you head down to Salt Lake and visit Caputo's (a favorite place of ours!), ask them about this ham and you will get more information than you will ever need - they will even give you samples to taste, so you can appreciate the palatable flavors each ham carries.

1 tsp. sea salt (because prosciutto has a salty flavor, I omit...you choose)
1 tsp. freshly cracked black pepper
2 tbsp. rosemary leaves, chopped
4 boneless, skinless free range chicken breasts
4 slices prosciutto

 

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Mix together the salt, pepper and rosemary in a small bowl. Sprinkle/pat over each chicken breast and then wrap with one slice of prosciutto.

Place in preheated oven and bake for 25 minutes. Serve immediately alongside your favorite vegetable dish (roasted asparagus...mmmmm).

Kiwi Baby!!

INGREDIENTS

1 scoop of your favorite protein mix

1 cup fat-free milk or soy milk
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup nonfat vanilla yogurt
1 tablespoon peanut butter
1/2 banana, cut into small pieces
1 small kiwi, cut into small pieces

Saturated Fats Part II

By:  Maria

Part I provided some insight on saturated fats and how all saturated fats are not created equal.  In this post, I wanted to share some information on a saturated fat that has superior health benefits.

Back in the 1930's, Dr. Weston Price discovered Pacific Islanders who consumed primarily coconut for their energy source, yet were visibly trim and incredibly healthy.  Coconut is high in dietary fat, but the community was virtually devoid of any heart disease!

The same discoveries were made in the early 1980's, among Polynesian communities, when researchers conducted a study on cardiovascular health and found the same results.  Their main consumption for fat came from coconut and yet their cardiovascular health was supreme.

If saturated fat contributes to heart disease, how can one explain the above?

Although early studies implied (never "claimed") that coconut oil could possibly raise cholesterol levels, further studies have shown that not only does it have no impact on raising cholesterol, but in some cases has actually reduced cholesterol levels!

Do even the smallest research on the benefits of coconut oi and you will find:

improves heart health

increases metabolism

improves thyroid function

immune system support

promotes weight loss and leaning out

When using any vegetable oil (canola, safflower, corn, sunflower) to cook, you are essentially oxidizing these oils (production of toxic chemicals).  When using these oils to fry, you are destroying any antioxidants that might have been in the oil which can wreak havoc in your body (often times worse than trans-fats!).

There is only one oil that is stable enough to withstand the higher heat of cooking - coconut oil!

Next time you are grocery shopping, add heart-healthy coconut oil to your list of "must-haves" and start using it for your cooking.

Saturated Fats Part I

                                                                          By:  Maria

For over half a century, the majority of health care officials have been telling us that saturated fats are unhealthy and can lead to a plethora of problems like high cholesterol, obesity and heart disease.  What's interesting to note, however, is that for the past half century, our cholesterol, obesity and heart disease rates have reached epidemic levels.  Take a look down any grocery isle and you will find a multitude of products that are low-fat and fat-free.  Now take a look at the grocery carts of your fellow shoppers and see how many of them have low-fat or fat-free products - many, if not most, are purchasing these products.  So if we are purchasing and eating low-fat and fat-free products, why are we getting fatter as a nation??

The fact is, not all saturated fats are the same.

Some saturated fats are naturally occurring and others are artificially manipulated through a process called hydrogenation.

These man-made hydrogenated saturated fats are better known as trans-fats and they should be avoided at all costs!  Our bodies do NOT need them and when we ingest them, our bodies react in ways that affect our state of health (remember these: cholesterol, obesity, heart disease??). 

Read labels!!  If you see the words hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated, put that item back on the shelf immediately. 

Next post:

Which healthy fats (yes...there certainly are such things) should be a part of your daily nutritional intake.

Nutrient-Filled Salad

                                                                  By: Maria




picture and recipe compliments of Marks Daily Apple


This is one of my favorite salads that I will eat for breakfast, lunch or dinner with some basic staples that everyone should always have in their kitchen.  I will frequently make extras for leftovers, espcially for quick and easy breakfasts on the go.  It contains the two most important nutrients that will not only fuel our muscles (protein!), but will give us a legitimate and solid source of energy we need to help us during those tough workouts (healthy fats!).
You can eat this as-is, or top with chopped macadamia nuts or roasted pine nuts for some texture, or dump on a lettuce leaf for a quick and delicious wrap.


1 ripe avocado, chopped into chunks
2 boiled eggs, chopped into chunks
1 medium-sized tomato, chopped into chunks
Juice from one lemon wedge
2-4 cooked pieces of bacon, crumbled (optional)
Salt and pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients together, stirring not too much, but just enough to make some of the avocado and egg into mush.

That's it!

Enjoy!

The Present is a Gift

By: Kristin

                                  The Present is a Gift

I’ve always known that there is a strong mind-body connection, but today I was amazed as I witnessed it firsthand.  This morning I was riding a compu-trainer (an indoor trainer for bikes that is hooked up to a computer).  It tracks heart rate, mph, and power output.  I was amazed that when I decided to concentrate on smooth strokes and chose to really push hard, it was reflected in my heart rate, watts, and mph.  The second I let my mind wander to something else, my performance dropped.  I tested this several times and was stunned at how fast the response was.  I know that we are supposed to focus on what we are doing in the present moment, but I couldn’t believe how quickly the body – mind connection was broken when my focus swayed. 

I have learned that when people exercise and think about the muscle they are working (instead of what you are going to have for dinner or what you are going to wear tomorrow) people receive greater benefit.  This is not limited to only exercise but with everything in life.  We are always multi-tasking and trying to make the most out of our time, but I wonder how much is lost in doing this.  If we are trying to do 5 things at once, nothing will be 100%.  How often do you drive somewhere and arrive at your destination without remembering anything about the drive because you were so busy going over your to do list in your mind.  How many times are we talking to someone and they are checking texts or emails or listening to music at the same time? 

When we do this what message are we sending to the people in our life?  This week I am going to deliberately focus on one task at a time.  I will make ever effort to be present in whatever I am doing. Whether it be listening to my 8 year old, making dinner, or driving down the street.  I want to challenge you to do the same.  See what a difference it makes in your relationships, your workouts, your job, and your life.  All we have is the present moment, let’s live in it.