Chicken Curry

1 tbsp coconut oil

2 medium onions, diced

2 tomatoes, diced

5 cloves garlic, diced

1” ginger, peeled and diced

pinch of sea salt

2 red or green chillies, diced

2-3 tbsp fresh coriander, chopped

1/2 tsp turmeric

1 tsp garam masala (blend of indian spices)

4 chicken breast fillets, cut into small pieces

1/2-1 cup boiled water

Heat oil in a skillet set on medium heat. Saute onions, tomatoes, garlic, ginger and salt for 5 minutes. Stir in chilies. Stir in coriander, turmeric and garam massala. Let cook for about 5 minutes. Add chicken and a little bit of hot water for it to cook through. Add more hot water to thicken sauce, keeping in mind that when the curry has cooled down, sauce will thicken even more. Let simmer for 20-25 minutes. Serve

Chocolate Protein Shake

Sometimes it's hard to think of different ingredients to blend into a meal replacement shake. I came up with this combination recently and now can’t go a day without it.

Chocolate Protein Powder (I use Advocare Meal Replacement Shake)

1/4 Almond Milk

1c Cold Water

2 tbsp Almond Butter

1/4c Walnuts

1/2 Banana

Place above ingredients in blender and mix well!

Eating More Often

Studies have shown that people who snack regularly eat less at meal time. Eating more often can help you lose weight. When you eat large meals with many hours in between, you train your metabolism to slow down. Having a small meal or snack every 3 - 4 hours keeps your metabolism cranking, so you burn more calories over the course of a day.

5 tips for Dining Out

Be aware of all courses when dining out and trying to stay on a clean diet:

1. Choose appetizers that contain healthy vegetables, fish or fruit.

2. If you are wanting a salad, order fruit salad, tossed greens or spinach salad without added cheese and creamy dressings.

3. If you can't live without the bread ask for whole-grain bread. Then stick to one piece without adding butter.

4. If you want desert, choose fresh fruit, sorbet, sherbet, fruit ice or plain cakes with fruit puree.

5. Lastly if your done eating and you still have food on your plate throw your napkin on top along with your utensils. This will prevent you from picking at it for ten minutes until the waitress cleans the table. Or ask for a box right away!

Broiled Garlic and Tomato Salmon

4 6-ounce pieces skinless salmon fillet.

4 medium tomatoes, cut in half.

1/2 teaspoon paprika, preferably hot.

2 tablespoons olive oil.

kosher salt and pepper.

8 sprigs fresh thyme.

4 cloves garlic, sliced.

Heat broiler, place the salmon and tomatoes, cut side up, in a broiler proof roasting pan or on a rimmed baking sheet. Sprinkle the salmon with paprika.

Drizzle the salmon and tomatoes with the oil and season with 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Scatter the thyme and garlic over the top.

Broil until the salmon is opaque throughout and the tomatoes are tender. 8-10 minutes.

(Anytime I use the broiler I keep an eye on the food I’m cooking in case it starts to cook too fast or burn. I also put the fish on the middle rack!) Enjoy! Let me know what you think.

Drink Plenty of Water!

Drinking water and plenty of it we all know is so important. Every system in your body depends on water. Water flushes toxins out of vital organs, prevents dehydration and carries nutrients to your cells. Every day you lose water through your breath, perspiration, urine and bowel movements.

So how much water does the average, healthy adult need? In general doctors recommend eight 8-ounce glasses of water a day. Which is 64-ounces or a half gallon of water. This also can go up for individuals who are very active or drink a lot of caffeine.

Sometimes it’s hard to gauge how much water we drink throughout the day. In the past I used to take a gallon container and use that to fill my water bottle up throughout the day. This is easier of course if your at home. Or figure out how much your water bottle holds and be sure to drink a certain amount of them during the day.

Adding some protein to your Oatmeal

Here is a great way to add some healthy fats and protein to your oatmeal..

1/2 cup of rolled oats

1/2 cup of milk (I used water instead)

4 egg whites, beaten

1/8 tsp cinnamon

1/4 cup raisins or cranberries

slivered almonds and chopped walnuts

Heat oatmeal and milk or water in small saucepan on medium heat about 5 min stirring constantly. Gradually add beaten egg whites whisking them into the oatmeal mixture. Whisk until the eggs are cooked about 3 minutes. You shouldn't see any runny egg whites once the mixture has thickened. Add in the raisin and nuts cook for 1 minute. Sprinkle with cinnamon!

Healthy Snacks I turn to throughout the day

I am always asked the question, “What kind of snacks do you eat?” Well to be honest it’s pretty boring and simple. But here are a few I turn to regularly..

1. Mixture of unsalted nuts (almonds, cashews, walnuts and sunflower seeds) with some raisins.

2. Cucumber slices, carrots or bell peppers dipped in humus

3. Banana slices with almond butter or sunflower seed butter

4. Celery slices with almond butter

5. Hard boiled eggs

6. Apples always fill me up

7. Couple handfuls of raw veggies

I do follow a healthy diet for the most part but I also like to live some too! So it wouldn’t be fair for you to believe I’m 100% on all day. Ha ha.. My cheats are good yummy cheeses and anything with dark chocolate. You have to allow yourself some variety and some weak moments otherwise you’ll find yourself in the kitchen at 1:00 am or completely blowing it..

One of my favorite movements to target my Glutes!

Deadlifts! Target muscles erector spinae, “gluteus maximus”, hamstrings and quadriceps. If you want to lift up your backside this is the move to incorporate into your workout! The Deadlift will also teach you to pick up an object with a straight back, this will prevent injuries like hernias which usually result from repeatedly lifting with a round lower back. If you want to get stronger, driving your deadlift up can help nudge your other lifts upward also, especially the Olympic Lifts.

The key is to make sure your power is coming from your glutes. Otherwise your not targeting your backside but rather your front. Driving from your heels or back portion of your foot will activate your posterior chain. One way to check to see if your weight is distributed correctly is to float your toes up and check your on your heels.

1. Stand with the bar above the center of your feet. Natural stance with feet under hips
2. Symmetrical grip whether parallel hook or alternate
3. Make sure hand placement gives your legs room while pulling from the ground
4. Shoulders slightly forward of bar
5. Chest up back flat and abs tight
6. Arms should be locked and not pulling
7. Lats and Triceps contracted
8. Weight in your heels
9. Bar stays close to your body, roll it over you knees and thighs.
10. Torso’s angle of inclination remains constant while bar is below the knee
11. Shoulders and hips rise at the same rate when bar is below knee
12. Once bar reaches knee stand up and fully extend hips

Amazing Protein Shake!

Here is an awesome protein blend that I made yesterday morning! I drink an advocare shake everyday whether its to replace breakfast or dinner if I’m teaching a late class. But if I have time it’s nice to add variety to my drinks. This shake includes Prunes (which contain high amounts of fiber), Protein powder, Apple and skin (good source of fiber beneficial for the colon), Ginger (contains anti inflammatory properties, helps ease muscle pain), Peanut Butter or Almond Butter (Healthy Fat).

1 small apple (chopped, cored and skin left on)

1/4 c dried pitted prunes (optional)

1 tbsp natural peanut butter or almond butter

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp minced ginger root

1/2 tsp ground cardamom

1 scoop vanilla protein powder

3/4 cup cold water

Make sure to blend really well and add more water if you don’t like it too thick. I didn’t have prunes so I just threw in a few raisins. I also used crunchy unsalted almond butter which was really good. Be careful not to add too much ginger sometimes that flavor can be over powering! Hope you all get a chance to try this, I really liked it!

Egg Muffins

Olive Oil spray

4 scallions, minced

2 carrots, minced

1/2 red bell pepper, minced

1/2 zucchini, minced

14 egg whites

4 whole eggs

1/2 tsp basil

1/4 tsp oregano

salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375. Coat 12 muffin tins with a little oil to prevent sticking. Combine vegetables in a big bowl. Fill each muffin tin 2/3 full with vegetables. Whisk eggs and seasoning in a mixing bowl. Use 1/3 cup measuring cup for the egg mixture and pour slowly into each muffin tin. Egg mixture should fill tin the rest of the way. Bake for 30 min or until muffins have risen and are slightly browned. Muffins will keep up to one week in the refrigerator, or you can freeze them.

Super easy and very good. Good for breakfast or a quick snack!

Paleo Breakfast Cereal

I love eating this for breakfast and my kids enjoy it too! I take my favorite unsalted nuts and chop them up, (walnuts, cashews, almonds and sunflower seeds). The portion of nuts ends up being about 1/2 to 3/4 cup. Then I add a handful of mixed berries usually blueberries. Add some almond or coconut milk and dig in! I eat this 1 to 2 times a week, it’s pretty satisfying and fills me up for a good part of my morning.

Having a hard time eliminating pasta?

Here is a nice alternative for those of you who love pasta. Season some chicken breast with salt and pepper then bake 350 till done (about 7 min per chicken breast). While chicken is baking saute some yummy veggies: zucchini, onions, broccoli and mushrooms with olive oil. Add in low sugar pasta sauce, crushed red pepper and crushed garlic then simmer for about 15 min. Once sauce is done spoon over chicken and enjoy!

Benefits of an intense workout

Yesterday I talked about bumping up your workout program and finding a way to get past your plateau. Well I wanted to talk today a little bit about the benefit of an intense exercise program. Our bodies are highly adaptive to the demands placed on it. One way to combat this is by maximizing the caloric expenditure of a training program. This is made easier by maximizing the O2 consumption needed for your workout. The recovery oxygen consumption needed is known as EPOC, excess postexercise oxygen consumption. The benefit of EPOC is it’s a state after exercise where the body’s metabolism is elevated. This means that the body is burning more calories after the exercise than before the exercise was started. After exercise the body must use increased amounts of oxygen to replenish energy supplies and return body to a state of rest. Long story short, the higher the intensity of the training session, the more calories you will continue to burn post exercise!

Reaching a Plateau..

We have all been at the point where we feel we've reached a plateau. A good sign is if you've been training and eating in a manner that was working but doesn't seem to be working anymore. A lot of times our lack of result is from our lack of commitment level. Or thinking we are eating really good but tend to forget the numerous times we cheat throughout the day. Speaking from personal experience you can workout 7 days a week but if you have a poor diet you will show little results. So it's a combination of both.

Bump up your routine push yourself during a workout! Take fewer rests keep your workout going. If your working out at a gym and your lifting weights do supersets. A superset is performing two exercises in rapid succession with minimal rest. Formulate a circuit type training program for yourself where you perform a series of exercises, one after the other with minimal rest. As you begin to build more muscle, your body will become more metabolically active. Having more muscle simply means you'll also be burning more calories even when your less active or sleeping.

Wrap it up!

1 bunch of romaine lettuce

1/2 tbsp olive oil

1/2 cup low-fat cottage cheese

1/2 cup salsa

3 oz cooked chicken shredded

pinch of sea salt and pepper to taste

Cut off tops of romaine lettuce and sprinkle with olive oil. Top each leaf of lettuce with a spoonful of cottage cheese, salsa and a few shreds of chicken. Season with salt and pepper to taste. This light meal is a good alternative to using tortilla’s or bread. Be creative!

For those who count calories!

So I came across this awesome app on my phone! It’s called “Meal Snap.” You take a picture of the food you eat whether its a snack or meal and the app estimates the calories for you. It gives you the option to label the meal either breakfast, morning snack, lunch and so on. Even if your not a calorie counter (which I am not) it stores the photos for you under each day so you can go back and view all that you ate for that day. I think you'll be surprised at how much we actually put into our bodies throughout the day... All those snacks add up!