Start Your Day Right

Summer time is all about being active, spending time outdoors and fun in the sun!  It's important to start your day off right with something fresh and healthy, not something processed.  Here is a simple recipe you might enjoy, a little different than your usual oatmeal, and highly nutritious.

A powerful Breakfast Recipe to start your day!

Toasted Almond Quinoa

1 Cup Organic Qunioa

1 Cup Almond Milk

1 Cup Water

1/2 Cup of Fresh Blueberries

1/2 teaspoon Saigon Cinnamon

1/4 cup Toasted Almonds

2-4 teaspoons Honey

Mix Almond Milk, Water and Quinoa and bring to a boil.  Simmer and let sit for 12-15 minutes until the water and milk are absorbed.  Let sit for 5 minutes then add your fresh blueberries. I love my blueberry tree,  I just go outside to pick them!  Finally, sprinkle Cinnamon, add your toasted Almonds & Honey.

Bon Appétit!

Quinoa

If your not already enjoying this superfood, it's time to add it to your diet.  Organic Quinoa, pronounced keen-wah, was a staple of the ancient Incas, who called it "the mother grain."  It remains an important staple in South American cuisine, as it contains more protein than most other grains.  It's delicate flavor makes it a great alternative to rice or couscous as a side-dish, and can also be added to vegetables and meat as a main dish.  

 Quinoa cooks to a light, fluffy texture, with a bit of crunch from the grain's external germ.  So versatile, it can be used in soups, salads, breads, puddings or as a breakfast cereal.  I also add it to my chicken soup in place of pasta, and always keep a batch cooked in the fridge when my son is home from college.  A nice switch from brown rice.  

Quinoa is packed with essential amino acids, this whole grain seed is an excellent source of magnesium, phosphorus, iron, calcium and copper.  It's top component is lysine, important for body recovery and repair.

You can purchase Quinoa at Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, or your local market.

Training Surfside

Most people associate the beach with relaxation, enjoying the sun and just chilling out.  It can also be a great place for some heart pumping training.

Living in the New England area, when summer comes along I want to take advantage of the beautiful sunny weather and take my training outdoors.  Training at the beach can bring variety and fun to your usual workout routine.

In sunny Rhode Island working out at the beach is common practice.   If your a beginning exerciser walking on the soft sand is a great place to start, it's a great workout for your legs and calves.

Walking/Sprinting/Running on the sand is less impact on your joints, but try to be sure to look for the most flat surface possible.  You may want to spend a little more time stretching afterwards, the soft sand puts a bit more stress on the Achilles tendon (back of your lower leg).

Here is one of my Surfside Workouts:

I usually bring my little Gym Boss (perfect for intervals), a Towel and some Water.
High Intensity Intervals
one minute intervals with 10-15 or 30 seconds rest (depending on your fitness level)

Sand Circuit Workout

Lateral Step-Out Squat

Push-ups

Lunges

Sprints

Crunches

Planks

repeat 5 rounds or more.

 *Swimming in the ocean is also great!  Try to have a partner when swimming in the ocean, you never know when you are going to get a cramp or get caught in a riptide.  Or see a shark! LOL

Try to keep things new, fresh and challenging.  Put some fun back into your workout, and enjoy the day!

Sunday Afternoon Salad

I usually prepare my meals early in the morning especially when I am hosting fitness guests.   Planning ahead just makes it so much easier.  Today I steamed some fresh vegetables from the farmers market.   I added baby carrots, fresh string beans and some boiled red potatoes.

Eating vegetables often doesn't have to be boring.  I always try to be creative!  So today I threw this together.  You can add any vegetable you like, but I wanted to keep it simple today.  I seasoned with a little sea salt, ground black pepper, fresh garlic, fresh chopped parsley and drizzled it with extra virgin olive oil, served at room temperature.  Be sure not to overcook the vegetables, just until the colors pop, that usually means they are done.

You can enjoy as a vegetarian meal or pair with some fish, chicken or beef. The choice is yours.

Bon Appétit!

What Should I Eat?

What should I eat?  What do we really know about the links between our diet and our health?  You don't have to be a nutrition expert or scientist to care about what you feed yourself and your family.  As a Fitness Professional, wife and mother I care about what my family & clients are eating.  This book really sums it up, in sixy-four  sensible, simple and easy to follow outlined principles.

Food Rules:  An Eater's Manual by Michael Pollan, is a great handbook!  I loved this little book and recommend you to buy it for you and your family to read.  In the age of people following conflicting health advice, celebrity diets, government pyramids, low carb, low fat, etc.  This book is such a simple, uncomplicated understanding of what to eat.  I highly recommend it.

This book is broken down into sixty-four rules and each are accompanied by a paragraph or two of explanation, except for a few that are self-explanatory.  For example, rule number 11 ("Avoid foods you see advertised on television") and rule number 7 ("Avoid food products a third grader cannot pronounce") are both designed to keep more or less the same highly processed foodlike products out of your shopping cart.  Check it out, you can buy it at your local bookstore or at Amazon.