What I'm Lovin'

I HATE these shoes! And I LOVE the fact that a court of law has dis-proved their claims!! As a personal trainer and a group exercise instructor I have seen several women wear these shoes in hopes of a change in their rear-ends! Not happening!!! Read on...

This article was taken out of the Pittsburgh Post yesterday in the business section:

Reebok will settle in case against EasyTone claims

Reebok International Ltd. will pay $25 million to customers to settle charges by the Federal Trade Commission that it made deceptive claims in ads that its toning shoes would measurably strengthen the legs and buttocks of those who wear them. Reebok, based in Canton, Mass., has centered much of its business on toning shoes, which include its EasyTone walking shoes with a rounded, slightly unstable sole. Under the settlement announced Wednesday, consumers can seek a refund for shoes or apparel at http://1.usa.gov/pj2owK

Take care of your body. It's the only place you have to live

Roasted Butternut Squash



  Oh my garden was so good to me this year! I have a ton of butternut squash! One of my favorite ways to cook butternut squash is to roast it. It's so simple.
Preheat your oven to 400
Peel butternut squash with a vegetable peeler
scoop out the seeds (don't throw them out!)
cube squash into small pieces
and bake for about 30-40 minutes!
I spray the bar pan with my misto olive oil spray.
That's it! Perfect side dish, or a great addition to a salad!



Now for the seeds...I roasted them in a separate bar pan lightly sprayed with my misto
sprinkled some sea salt over top of the seeds.
Roasted them a bit shorter than the squash,
 about 15 minutes or until lightly browned.
Great snack!
Next time I may sprinkle them with a truvia packet and nutmeg... :)

You're never beaten until you admit it.



Do you eat out of boxes?

I was talking with some of the football Mom's last night at practice, when one stood up and said "I've got to go to the grocery store.." Another Mom said, "Gosh, I can't remember the last time I got grocery's". "Really?!" I replied, "Where do  you get your fresh vegetables and fruit?" I was expecting her to say...Oh, I have a garden, or I shop at the farmers market, or I belong to a co-op. Nope! Non of that BS...She replies "We love Hamburger Helper and canned or frozen fruit and vegetables". "Are you serious? Nothing fresh?" "Nope, I just don't have time for it!" "Do you realize the amount of sodium and chemicals you are ingesting"?! She looked at me blankly..That's where I bit my toung...till it bled!

Don't get me started on sugar! This is a snip of an article I read over the weekend:
"At this point, sugary beverages are the number-one problem in the American diet. They're the number-one source of calories on average. Sugary beverages are also the number-one sales item in terms of dollars in grocery stores, and a lot are consumed at McDonald's and other fast food places.

They're like cigarette smoking. They're only bad and they have no redeeming virtue. And the adverse effect are weight gain, diabetes, heart disease, gout, cavities, and maybe some cancers as well."

This means DIET soda too!

Come on people!Eat REAL FOOD!!!!!!

“Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.”

Motivation

I would like to invite you to participate in Motivational Mondays. I know several women that have fantastic stories of weight loss, strength gains, and positive attitude changes! All because of a decision that they have made to clean up their diet, or start an exercise program!

I would like to feature a different story every Monday. If you would like to be featured on my blog, please email me at tfriedt@embarqmail.com  your story and a before and after picture, if you wish to be seen.

Come on celebrate your accomplishments! You ARE worth every piece of confetti!

“Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.”

What I'm Lovin'

You already know that I love my food log...Well, I also love my Fitday! I log all of my food into this free site http://www.fitday.com/ (they also have an app!). I know exactly what my calorie count is and how much protein, carbohydrates and fat I consumed for the day. Super simple to use!

 Come on try it out. If you don't know what you consume how can you make changes to your diet to lose or gain weight?

"Tough times never last, but tough people do."

Healthified Zucchini Bread

Healthified? You bet!! I found a recipe that was healthy...but I tweaked it a bit.

2 1/2  Cups Shredded zucchini (about 2 medium)
1 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/2 cup Almond milk (they used canola oil)
3/4 cup egg whites or egg beaters
2 teaspoons Vanilla
1 1/2 cups Stevia (they used ...gasp!...Sugar)
1 1/2 cups all purpose wheat flour
1 1/2 cups Almond flour (they used white flour)
3 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (optional, I did not use either)

1. Heat oven to 350. spray bottoms only of 2 8x4 inch loaf pans with cooking spray (you could also use muffin pans to control the serving sizes)
2. In a large bowl, mix zucchini, applesauce, almond milk, egg whites,vanilla and stevia until well blended. stir in all remaining ingredients except nuts until well blended. Stir in nuts. Spoon batter into pans.
3. Bake 50 to 60 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes. Loosen wides of loaves from pans; remove and place on cooling racks. Cool completely, about one hour.

Nutrition facts per 24 slices (12 slices per loaf. My way)
1 slice:
Calories: 66
Carbohydrates: 18
Fat: 5
Protein: 3

Their way:
Calories: 180
Carbohydrates: 26
Fat: 6
Protein: 3

My entire family loved it! Did I tell them it was "healthified"? Heck NO!

Your goals, minus your doubts, equal your reality.

The Elliptical

The elliptical trainer is one of the most popular cardio machines at the gym because it requires a negligible learning curve to use this equipment, and is low impact and easy on the joints.

It targets the quads, glutes and hamstrings and can pack a 10 calorie per minute punch when done at a moderate intensity.

A wonderful machine for people recovering from plantar fasiitis, as it is a non impact cardio machine.

Workout example:

Time                     Resistance                Crossramp                        Goal SPM

0-4                         6                                10                                   170+

4-8                        7                                  10                                  170+

8-12                      8                                   10                                 170+

12-13                    12                                10                                   170+

13-14                    2                                  10                                   120+

14-15                    13                                11                                   160+

15-16                    2                                  11                                   120+

16-17                    14                                12                                   150+

17-18                   2                                   12                                   120+

18-19                   15                                 13                                   140+

19-20                   2                                   13                                   120+

20-21                   16                                 14                                   130+

Repeat minutes 12-21 one more time until you reach 30 minutes. Cool down for 5-10 minutes.

Give it a try the next time you get on your favorite elliptical!

The mind is the limit. As long as the mind can envision the fact that you can do something, you can do it, as long as you really believe 100 percent! Arnold Schwarzenegger

Motivation

Meet Samson! He is the new addition to our family! I know...how cute! But where is the motivation?!

It's not the size of the dog in the fight, but the size of the fight in the dog!

What are you fighting for??

Think about that one for a bit :)

What I'm Lovin!

I know that this is not technically a "Health and Fitness" subject...How ever I think "mental health" is just as important as overall health! I firmly believe that if you love something you must share it with your friends....I'm lovin The Salon by Marian Davis!

For years I colored my own hair...years! Occasionally I would get it trimmed, I have long hair...no style. It worked...so I thought! I started getting darker and darker. I thought I looked exotic! Not so much...Apparently death warmed over was more like it! Someone actually asked me if I was going "Goth"! At 42?! I don't think so!! So I went to a,salon (not The Salon,)  to get my hair lightened ...long story short...I had brown yellow/orange hair, I looked like a calico cat! I freaked!

A friend of mine, who has the most beautiful hair, suggested Marian. I went and fell in love with her and her salon! Not only is she honest with you and your locks, and she makes you feel like a Rock Star when you're done! The time that you get to spend at The Salon is awesome, from the cool boutique in the front room, to the incredible head massage during the shampoo! Marian makes you feel like you are a queen! If only for an hour or 2!

Maggie, Lauren, Nikki, and Gretchen...(I'm forgetting one! I'm sorry!) are all wonderful as well! If you have not been happy with your hair color or cut and are close to Harmony Pa. (even if you're not, it's worth the drive!) I highly recommend them! Oh! And they also give fantastic pedicures (thank you Maggie!)  manicures, and waxing!

Go pamper yourself ! You're worth it!!

There is nothing permanent except change

More Spaghetti Squash recipes!

I have a plether of spaghetti squash  from this seasons crop!

Here is another wonderful dish...I went vegetarian...no, just kidding! The recipe is though!

2 cups spaghetti squash

3 oz portabella mushroom diced

tomato

2 cups organic baby spinach

1 oz onion chopped

1oz yellow pepper chopped

garlic clove minced

1 tbls reduced fat blue cheese

2 tbls lite rice vinegar

Steam spaghetti squash in microwave (1 minute per pound). Saute onion, pepper and garlic, add portabella mushroom, spinach, tomato and rice vinegar. Cover and let the spinach and mushroom cook down.

Place 2 cups of spaghetti squash on a plate and add the spinach mushroom mixture over squash. Sprinkle reduced fat blue cheese over top and dig in!

Nutritional info:

Calories: 175

Fat: 3.51

Carbs: 32.8

Protein: 9.2

The chains of habit are generally too small to be felt until they are too strong to be broken.

Broccoli...Yummmm

I love Broccoli! It was one vegetable in my garden that I did NOT give away...Mine, mine, all mine! You should love broccoli too, and I'll tell you why.

Broccoli is full of nutrients and phytochemicals thought to reduce cancer risk. Broccoli helps maintain bone structure, boosts the immune system and supports the digestive system.

Broccoli is an excellent vegetable to eat if you are fighting a cold or flu bug due to its high vitamin C content. A bowl of steamed or cup of juiced broccoli may be more potent than orange juice.

Broccoli is rich in folate and carotenoids, including betacarotene and luten (great for the eyes). It is also rich in vitamin K and has adequate amounts of zinc, manganese, vitamins B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, sulforaphane and indole-carbinol.

Instead of giving myself reasons why I can't, I give myself reasons why I can.

Bodyweight Exercise Cardio

Try turning body weight exercises into a cardio circuit. To set up your circuit, select a calisthenic exercise (jumping jacks, mountain climbers, burpees) an upper body exercise (pushups, pull-ups, and chin-ups) a lower body exercise (squats, lunges) and an abdominal exercise (mountain climbers, lunges, stability ball jackknifes).

Use a repetition range of 10-15 reps per exercise and do the circuit continuously until you complete the time you are going for. The continuous motion keeps your heart rate up and helps build muscular endurance.

Beginners should start out with 10 minutes of body weight cardio intervals, 15 minutes for intermediates and 20 minutes for advanced. These are a great replacement for long boring cardio sessions on the treadmill.

There is nothing permanent except change.~

Goals

I am a goal oriented kind of girl. When I was 208 pounds, my goal was to exercise everyday during my boys nap time. My goal was to get out of my husbands jeans and into mine. It took almost a full year, but I lost 60 pounds.

One winter after I packed away many holiday treats, I needed a new goal. I decided to train for a sprint triathlon. That summer I participated in 3 sprints, one June July and August and I lost the 10 pounds I had gained over the winter!

Create an attainable, realistic goal. Now take that goal and break it down into short weekly goals. For me to look at the 60 pounds that I wanted to lose, was daunting! So I broke it down to small attainable goals, like exercising during nap time, 2 pounds weight loss per week. If I lost 1 pound one week, I felt like "Half way to 2 pounds, not bad". If I looked at that same pound and my ultimate goal, I would have been like "Big freakin deal...I've got 59 more to go, I suck!" Accentuate the positive! It works!

So think about where you want to be, make a goal, break it down and achieve it! You can do anything you set your mind to!

 You don't drown by falling in the water. You drown by staying there.~Unknown Author

What I'm Lovin'

What I am lovin' over here is a challenge that I accepted from my fine friends at R.A.W. Training facility! No sugar and no grains for 10 days! Are you thinking...ARE YOU NUTS?? Nope! Click on the two links I've listed below and you too will drop sugar and grain too.


http://nourishedkitchen.com/against-the-grain-10-reasons-to-give-up-grains/

http://rheumatic.org/sugar.htm

"You can't be a winner and be afraid to lose."
~Charles Lynch

Yum...Spaghetti Squash!

My Spaghetti squash is ripe! This is what I made last week for several meals. Let me tell  you...its VERY filling! I could only eat 1/2 of this plate!

• 3 cups steamed spaghetti squash (poke holes with a knife in your squash and microwave 1 minute for every pound)
• 1 oz diced onion
• 1 oz diced green pepper
• 3oz portobella mushroom chopped
• 4 oz ground turkey breast
• small tomato
• basil chopped
• sea salt and pepper to taste

Saute turkey breast, when almost done add in onion and pepper. Saute for 3 minutes. Add in portobella, tomato, basil and sea salt and pepper. Let it cook down a bit 3-5 minutes...pour over the spaghetti squash. Loved it Loved it Loved it!!
Nutritional break down for the entire recipe:
Calories: 334
Fat: 11.2
Carbohydrates: 40.5
Protein: 29.2

Perseverance is the hard work you do after you get tired of doing the hard work you already did.
Newt Gingrich

Six Rules for Fat Loss Nutrition

Weight loss, Fat loss, Get fit, Be healthier, Drop a dress size.... What ever your goal is, it all comes back to your nutrition.

Six Rules for Fat Loss:

1. Eat 5-6 small meals every 2-3 hours throughout the day, rather than three large meals. By eating 5 to 6 times a day it elevates your metabolism and keeps you from ever being hungry and gorging yourself at each meal because you are starving.
2. Eat lean, clean protein at every meal (chicken breasts, egg whites, lean ground turkey, fish, whey protein powder, game meats like bison/elk). Eating protein at every meal keeps you full longer and raises your metabolism. It takes your body longer to break down protein than a starchy carb. (think pizza, crackers, bread, pasta, rice...)
3. Add a fruit or vegetable to the meal. (Non-starchy vegetables like green leafies, berries etc..)
4. Starchy carbohydrates should be the meal's last priority, and choose ones that have the lowest metabolic impact like oat bran, sweet potatoes, brown rice and beans.
5. Sweets and refined grains (like white bread and pasta) have no place in a fat loss nutrition plan. If you must indulge, keep it to three bites.
6. Include healthy fats like those from nuts (watch portion sizes), olive oil and fatty fish like salmon. To harness the fat burning power of omega-3 fats, consider a PCB-free fish oil supplement.

Great ideas to impliment into your life right now!

You cannot out-exercise a bad diet. ~ Tammy Friedt

Low Back Pain

The strength of your abdominal muscles has a direct effect on lower back pain. Having a strong abdominal section is the key to supporting the lumbar and pelvic areas. Ab workouts aren't just for show; they are for fitness and good health.

So don't skip or skimp on your ab exercises!

The road to success is dotted with many tempting parking spaces. ~ Author Unknown