CHEEEEESSSEEEEEE

I'm so sorry I have not blogged in a REALLY long time. I want to post this quick and VERY easy recipe that feed you all week. It's delicious and can be as simple or complex as possible. I promise to blog about my progress this week. Things are crazy with school, grad school, my friend's wedding, moving, and life in general!
Here is a great recipe for Cheesy Enchiladas at only 425 cals a serving!

Cheesy Enchiladas

The Yellow Ones Don't Stop.

That's right. The yellow ones don't stop. Neither do the red, black, tan, white, and all the colors of the rainbow don't stop. I'm talking about cars AND bikes. Really black Mercedes? Did you really need to do that rolling stop then stop again then get pissed because I am crossing. Oh and you douche bag on the bike, you're not hip and you're not cool with little shorts and unwillingness to stop or obey the rules of the road but you want to share it. Enough people. If you are on a moving object, I'm most likely going to get my ass handed to me so please watch out for walkers/runners.

Any who, I am on the 4th stage of Run Your Butt Off. I am now running 4 minutes and walking 2 minutes with a 5 minute warm up. I run a total of 20 minutes now. I love this program because it's simple and doable. They say your run should not be that much faster than your walk. If you walk at a 3.5 mph pace, you should run at 4.5-5 mph so that you don't over do yourself. It's not necessary to sprint because then you're not building your stamina. Take your time and remember to follow your program. If you're doing Couch to 5k (which is brilliant), walk when it says walk, run when it says run. Do not run more or even walk more. If you follow these programs, it will happen. So often we blame the diet or the exercise for our failure. Well SURPRISE, if you dont' do the work or if you don't eat the food YOU WON'T LOSE WEIGHT. If you don't do the running the schedule, you will not be a runner. It is as simple as that. You do NOT have to run, just walk or bike or swim. Do anything to keep your body moving. I look around my school and see KIDS that are struggling to make it up the stairs. Do not yourself or your loved ones be that person. Take care of your body and it will take care of you.

Sheperd's Pie during the summer...oh heck yes.

Kevin asked me to make him a Shepherd's Pie. Didn't really expect it especially during summer. Of course, I went on the hunt for a recipe that still has the flavor but not as much fat. I decided to go with a REALLY LEAN ground sirloin and we splurged on the mashed potatoes. I went for a sirloin that was 4% and locally produced in PA. It was all natural and VERY tender. The cheese I bought was from Trader Joe's and had NO hormones. I added some steak sauce and a little bit of sweet bbq sauce for flavor.

Ingredients

2 cups prepared mashed potatoes (such as Simply Potatoes)
3/4 pound ground sirloin
1/3 cup water
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (2 ounces) preshredded reduced-fat extrasharp cheddar cheese

About 356 cals a serving as long as you keep it lean. Remember DON'T SKIP TASTE. Otherwise, you won't want to eat it.

Happy School Year!

Well it's every teacher's worst nightmare...starting the school after making positive eating changes. A couple of enemies in the school: the teacher's lounge, the front office, and Fat Fridays. I believe goal setting is the only way you can see what's in front of you so here are my goals for the school year (health wise and fashion...yes fashion):

1. I will only bring snacks to school that are protein packed and/or easily proportioned. This includes: raw almonds, raw peanuts, trail mix, fat free popcorn, veggies, and hummus. If anyone wants to by me a frig for my room, I will give your kid an A. Yep I'm not above it.

2. Even when I am tired and drained from both work and grad school, I WILL GO FOR A WORKOUT. If you follow me on Twitter or Facebook and I post something that is along the lines of "I'm so tired" or "I'm so stressed" or "Reward day" PLEASE COMMENT AND TELL ME I'M STILL FAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It's not mean, it's reality.

3. Budget, budget, budget my groceries every week. You can eat skinny but still be on a budget if you keep simple things in mind. Foods that can last or recipes that can be eaten all week are you best friends. If you plan ahead and budget for it, it's not hard to eat healthy on a budget.

4. I need to dress for my body. Even though I'm trying to lose and have lost a little over 6 pounds, that does not mean I can fit into a smaller size. I'm still around the same size. I've trimmed down in terms of inches but I'm still on my journey. DO NOT FOOL YOURSELF INTO THINKING YOU CAN WEAR SMALLER CLOTHES BECAUSE YOU ARE LOSING WEIGHT. Wait and be surprised by your smaller size. There is literally no better feeling than putting on a size smaller but if you wear clothes that are too small or cover up your body, you will lose sight of your body image. You will slip right back into FAT GIRL SYNDROME and start buying clothes that are too small. Stacey and Clinton on "What Not to Wear" always say, "DRESS YOUR BODY NOT YOUR FUTURE BODY". This is so true. Dress your body now, and you will want to take care of it.

Go enjoy the end of summer and welcome back to all my teacher friends!!

Tis the season

For heirloom tomatoes, fah la la la la la la...you get it. Any who, heirloom tomatoes are in season and in honor of meatless Monday, I made a VERY simple but very satisfying meal. One cup of heirloom tomatoes is only 35 calories. They are small, meaty and beautiful. This meal can be made in about 10 minutes and since I am making it for myself, the portions are smaller.

Ingredients
1 cup of heirloom tomatoes (check out Trader Joe's)
1 tsp of minced garlic
.5 tbsp of EVO
Season with basil, salt and pepper
Optional: grated parmigiano reggiano
1 cup of organic whole wheat pasta (in my case 2 cups)

Directions
In a large pot, bring water to a boil and place pasta in pot and stir constantly.
In a small sauce pan and LOW heat put the first four ingredients together. There should be TONS of juice from the tomatoes that it will look like a thin sauce. Cook until the tomatoes are soft but juicy.  Once everything is cooked through then add them all together. Once again, CHEESE IS OPTIONAL! (But completely delicious)

In my case this was 523 calories but if you do just one cup it will only cost you about 322 calories! Eat them up will you can!

What I Learned at Cheer Camp.

1. There is a reason why Freshmen in college gain weight. The food is plentiful and alcohol is over the top. While I was at cheer camp (yes you may judge), we ate like we would have if we were in a dorm. Remember back in the day when you were a little bright eyed Freshmen ready to take the world on. Remember that dorm food that you swear was disgusting. You probably blocked it out, but you DESTROYED plate after plate of that disgusting, processed, easily accessible food. Do NOT deny it. At every meal, there was something AWFUL waiting for me to consume but I said NO. NON. I stayed away from fried food and chose to eat salads and my delicious Clif Bars. Even when we went to McDonald's, I got a grilled chicken sandwich with a bottle of water...wah wah waaaaah. But I saved myself 680 calories. The point is, you have choices. SO MAKE THE RIGHT FREAKING ONES. You know what's right and wrong. If you are in a situation, like a limited menu, then make decisions that will save you calories and a ton of regret.

2. You need to be creative with your work outs. I thought, "We will be at a camp in the woods. OF COURSE there will be a trail I can run on." Well the camp is called Trail's End. Yeah...about that. I only had one GIANT hill and that's about it. I was bitching and moaning all week. "I can't work out" or "What am I supposed to do?" It wasn't until the last night I saw the light...literally. At night the tennis courts are lit up and all the camp workers use that as the track. Gosh damnit. I spent 3 days trying to figure out how to get some kind of a work out and there it was the entire time. FAIL. Lesson learned here: BE CREATIVE.

3. Your youth is the time to lose weight. Not when you wake at 45 and decide it's time to be fit. It's MUCH harder to become healthy later in life than when you are younger. Why? Your metabolism slows down but it is NOT impossible to lose weight later on. As I looked around the camp, I saw girls that were over weight and struggling to feel comfortable in booty shorts and tank tops. I had flashbacks to my days on the drill team and SQUEEEZZZZINNNGGG into those uniforms and always feeling uncomfortable in my shorts. I'm about to be brutally honest right now. Avert you eyes if you are sensitive to the truth or don't want to me to heartless. If you know a teen that is over weight, you need to intervene. It's hard enough being a teenager, but being an overweight teen is completely awful. I wish, no...I'm not going to regret my youth but I am going to say a conversation about weight and health can go a long way. They are going to hate you and tell you that you're a horrible person but you're doing the right thing.

To recap: You must make the right decisions with your food, be innovative with your work outs and catch your (or your teen's/friend/sister/boo's) bad habits sooner rather than later

My personal favorite. Salmon.

I love salmon. As a product of the great Northwest, I believe it's ingrained in our minds that salmon must be perfect. You eat certain kinds of salmons and that's it. So whenever I see salmon on the menu, I must ask, "Where is your salmon from?" and if the answer is Atlantic...I cringe. Copper River Salmon (King, Sockeye and Coho) is the best salmon in the world. It was like a treat to have it in my house. My mom cooks the best salmon in the world. She knows the exact time and look of the salmon when it's perfect to eat. She would cooks it with dill and lemon juice. Simple and straight forward.
Last night we had Atlantic salmon. A cardinal sin. It was painful to admit I ate but I will say...it was delicious. Still had that wild salmon taste but juicy!

Ingredients
8 oz salmon fillet
Lemon Juice
Salt and pepper
3 tbsp of fat free balsamic vinaigrette 

Directions
Preheat oven to 350
Sprinkle lemon juice all over the fillet along with salt and pepper. Wrap salmon in aluminum foil so that it is covered completely. Place in a baking pan and cook as is for 20 minutes.
Remove and uncover salmon. Pour your balsamic vinaigrette over the salmon and spread evenly. Cover salmon again and place back in the oven for 10-15 minutes more.

4 oz serving- 200 calories
It's a great alternative to ground beef or turkey. One serving of this and you have your entire daily requirement of Vitamin D! Plus it's rich in Omega-3 fats that are the "good fats".

To find out more about Copper River Salmon, here is the link: Copper River Salmon