Prepping for the Party

While we are all in the midst of last minute planning, obsessing, and sorting out everything for the big night out that somehow new years has become synonymous with, we can't forget that the next day often results in the aftermath: the inevitable hangover.

To learn how to start this New Year right while still having fun boozing and not being left feeling hung over the next day, then first we have to understand what a hangover is, and not the movie.  A hangover is the result of alcohol consumption in excess of what the body can properly metabolize.  It can result from a number of reasons including dehydration, the liver’s inability to rid itself of the poisons in alcohol, too much sugar when drinking, and if you don't have the enzyme to metabolize alcohol. 

Your hangover may resemble the feeling you imagine of what its like to be hit by a bus.  Maybe you have a headache that is pounding so hard you think your head might implode, or your stomach feels like it has been replaced by an active volcano, or any thought makes you so sad you can't understand or explain it.  All of these things clearly are not a desirable way to feel - and with that, let’s move on to my healthy suggestions of how to avoid these terrible symptoms or how to cure them if they do occur:

How to AVOID the hangover:

 - Drink water before, during, and after you are done drinking alcohol (keeps you properly hydrated)

 - Eat a hearty, well balanced meal prior to drinking, interestingly enough I just learned a meal that includes asparagus of all things (thanks E! Entertainment for that tidbit) is a great addition to your meal.  Other recommended dishes might include pizza, pasta, subs and other well balanced dishes of grains, vegetables, and protein.

 - Don’t mix too many different forms of alcohol, and when in doubt, choose clear alcohols over darker colored ones.

How to CURE the hangover:

 - Surprise, surprise --> drink more water

 - Drink a glass of juice, the fructose in fruit juices helps yours body rid itself of the excess alcohol toxins it's fighting.

 - As simple as it may sound, sleep and a showers can really help as well

 - Often drinking a bloody mary will help because the spicy combo of  new alcohol for your body to play with and vegetable juice with antioxidants and vitamins help replenish your system

 - Eat protein and vitamin rich foods - sorry everyone (including myself) that wants to reach for yummie greasy fries and food, but this can actually worsen your hangover, especially if you have the volcanic stomach kind.

I hope these simple suggestions help you all enjoy your best new year of partying yet! :)  CHEERS!!

It's Time

I finally am going to rededicate myself back to this blog.  The stress of a full time job, full time school, marathon training, and the holidays is now finally at a standstill.  

Over the December holiday's, unlike most of you who celebrate with your family, I usually take the time to be solo and do as little as possible.  This year was not any different, except my mom came to interrupt for a few days. 

One of my nothing activities includes reading the abundance of magazines I subscribe to that I don't have time the rest of the year to read.  As I was going through each health and fitness magazine, I couldn't help but recognize a trend for "how to indulge without the bulge this year". These are all articles where they tell you how to make things "lower-fat" (aka... tasteless in my opinion) or the ridiculously small morsel size you can eat of that stuffing or pie you really want this holiday season.  I mean really, how realistic is that? 

I can't tell you how much these articles frustrate me.  I have always lived my mantra of "balance" and in no way do these articles help you achieve that.  If anything they make you deprive yourself of the special holiday indulgence you really want and then the next day/days you over eat it or something else because your so upset when everyone else was eating it and telling you how amazing it was.

My thought, take one helping always of your favorite dish you look forward to every year around the holidays.  Do not fret over it and realize it’s the one thing of food that is special to you on that day and it's ok to eat it.  Tomorrow you won't have it again until the next year and poof - full proof holiday-ing in effect.

Now, I do recognize on these holiday meals you may eat more than your typical day, its ok and it is even ok when you feel disgusting the next day because in all reality you are not going to keep eating like this up for weeks.  I sure as heck know I do not hold back on my thanksgiving plate (point in case pictured below). Just keep in mind, one meal will not make you gain weight - its eating excess calories compared to the amount that you burn over a sustained period of time that will make you gain weight. 

So with that I say, “Cheers, Happy Holidays!” and here's to finding your own balance.

The Best me I can be...

I have been a bad FitGirlDC recently and not been as diligent with my posting even though there is still so much I want to say.  To let you all know, I work full time, go to grad school full time and have been training for the Marine Corps Marathon. All of these activities have left me with not enough time to dedicate to my blog. Like most of you all, hectic does not even begin to describe how I live my life…

However, my marathon will be done after this weekend and I have been thinking a lot about what this commitment has taught me. Through my training, I have had some time to really collect my thoughts and work on my mental health at the same time as my physical health. I mean what else is there to do when you are running hours on end?  Like any girl, I over analyze everything and at the end of the run usually find some clarity.

Simultaneously, in my classes we have been doing a lot of talking about mental health.  It is a really interesting topic to consider how your mental health affects your physical health.  Your state of mind can affect your appetite, immune system, and productivity.  Usually when your mind is happy, your body follows suit.

Finding mental health isn’t always easy, especially when as I previously mentioned we all live such hectic lifestyles.  “Balance” is the motto I preach as the way to manage your mental health, since I doubt any of us are going to have any less hectic lives in the near future. Balance is all about organizing all your activities and figuring out how to make them fit. Unfortunately, I can’t always do everything I want and something may need to wait on the bench until I have the time to enjoy them again.  In my case, sharing recipes/ fitness/ health on my blog for a little while had to sit it out.

Soon I can shift my balance from marathoning to blogging.  Finding balance can be hard.  It’s hard to realize we can’t always do everything when we want, no matter how much we want to throw tantrums about it.  But knowing that things always have a way of working themselves out and if there is something you really want you will find a way to balance it into your life and accomplish it.

I have come to the realizations that there is no use trying to be perfect, but just trying to be the best me I can be...

If you want to follow me run the marathon this weekend go to http://www.xacte.com/templates/mcm/supporter.html and type in my name J

GoodBye Summer, Hello Fitgirl Inspirations...

Now that Labor Day has come and gone, and the summer swimsuit season is technically over (if you live north of the Mason- Dixon Line), begs the question: what will keep you motivated to stay in shape through to Memorial Day next year?

Below are my top suggestions for staying motivated to keep in shape:

-      -  Find your favorite picture of yourself, where you feel your most beautiful and sassy, put it somewhere like your fridge or bathroom that you will look at regularly for a constant reminder of that feeling.  Visual stimulants are a great way to trigger your memory of feeling good and when you feel good about yourself and your body you are less likely to overindulge in an unhealthy manner:

-     -  Create a fitness goal: sign up for a springtime race, have a weight lifting goal by February / another arbitrary date, or sign up for a new sports team, whatever suits your fancy.  Your goal should be a personal accomplishment that you strive towards. The best way to stay on track for your goal and keep yourself accountable is also to track your progress.

-          - When you get bored create your own quick circuit workout plan you can do while watching TV.  It can be something you do just one time or repeat 3 – 5 doesn’t matter as long as if gets you moving and up off the couch. The quick adrenaline burst can help keep you going and not deviating from your work out plans, especially on the days you wanna start to slump. 

-     - Find a partner in crime.  You can rely on the other person for motivation as well as to chat about food, working out and other ideas you might want to bounce off each other.  You can encourage and push each other and bitch about something the other person can relate to.

-    -   Create a schedule. Work into your schedule when you want to eat what, when you are going to work out, and your social life to help maintain balance.  It’s great to make the schedule, but following it is even more important and will help you build a foundation.  Another benefit is that it can help keep unhealthy habits from sneaking up on you. 

And most importantly find and follow your own inspiration…. 

Pinterest Inspired, FitGirl Approved

A rainy Sunday combined with my newfound obsession of Pinterest pins of health, fitness, food, fashion, etc. inspirations led me to put my fascination into action.  Although I have had a pinterest account for a while, only recently have I been using it for some real inspiration.  I guess I got bored with the mundane food regiment I have become accustomed to and since I had the time today, I pinned a few others to try this week as well.

I selected a rather easy inspiration for my first attempt; roasted parmesan zucchini.  These are delicious and nutritious.  They are super easy (as promised by the creator) and would make a great side to any protein dish.  I made some slight improvisations in the recipe- per my taste, but that’s the fun of cooking – putting your own flair on the foods that inspire you. 

This recipe (my improvised one below) gets the fitgirl stamp of approval and will be made again – thank you Pinterest and rainy Sunday!

Ingredients:
Zucchini
cooking oil spray
salt/ pepper
garlic powder
basil/ oregano
whole foods 3 cheese grated blend

Directions:
put oven to 400 degrees – cooking time approx. 15 min or until cheese crisps
spray pan with cooking oil spray
Slice zucchini and place into large ziploc bag with more spray oil and all the spices & shake, shake, shake
place zucchini on baking sheet and sprinkle top with some of the grated cheese and voila

Bon Appetite!!

Original pin/ recipe: http://www.budgetsavvydiva.com/2012/03/parmesan-roasted-zucchini-recipe/

Running in the Rain

Don’t let a soggy or stormy forecast deter you from your plans….begrudgingly, I left my house at 5:45 this morning, and before I knew it, my 14 mile training run was complete.   By the end of my tumultuous trek, accompanied by my faithful running buddy, we both proclaimed how impressed we were with the sheer amazingness of “mind over matter”.  

As cheesy as this may sound, it is important to remember, you really can do the things that are important to you that you set your mind to.  For instance, as a part of my training for my marathon, I must complete a long run each week; however the group I train with does their long runs on Saturday mornings.  What is a girl to do when she hates running long distance on her own, but will be away all weekend? The answer, find another friend for support. I used another friend that is also in training for a marathon to run with me Friday before work.  Although the skies were ominous at my 5:30AM wake-up call, I honored my commitment and met my friend at Grant Statue to begin our course. 

We waited out one down pour and then set out in good spirits through some drizzle, hoping that was the last of the strong stuff. Twelve miles down, a little drizzle, and multiple laughs later (the one thing I can multi-task is talking and running at the same time, go figure) we both looked at each other like, really, now?  Two miles to go and the skies just opened on us. When I wanted to duck under a hut for shelter and quit, my buddy was able to keep me motivated and reminded me, by of course quoting Drake for maybe the one-hundred-millionth time, that “YOLO – you only live once” and we laughed and trudged our way through what seemed like endless pools of puddles and rain stronger than any shower ever should be, finishing feeling very fulfilled. 

Moral of this story: You can do what you set your mind to do, even if it rains.  Find your own way to get the things you want in your life accomplished and sometimes when you have to work harder for it, it somehow seems more rewarding.

Below – what awesomeness and running in the rain looks like in the aftermath (my shirt dry is a light green color) although, the picture does not do justice to just how soaked we really were:

And the yummy breakfast I rewarded myself with after (Pre-photo I was too hungry and already ate the other ½ of my bagel, but it’s an asparagus, ham & cheese omelet)

Rock a Six-Pack

Your abdominals are the core of your body.  As a function, they support and stabilize your spine, but in reality we all obsess over how they look.  There are a few keys to sporting the perfect six pack abs: Eating right so that you don’t have any extra fat hiding your muscle below, perform exercises that strengthen your muscles, and mix- up your routine between cardio and weight training.  Below is a great abs workout that I have refined over the years – this one does not involve any equipment just your body.

At the risk of appearing a bit narcissistic (posting a picture of my abs) I am doing so to validate that this abdominals work out actually works.

I complete this routine about 3-4 times a week following some sort of cardio.  As a bonus, while performing your cardio, think about a string going from the bottom of your center that is pulling you upright through the center of your head.  This will keep your core engaged and elongate your abs.  I wish I had the sound effect of what my old ballet teacher used to make for that explanation of lifting from your core – she had the best “slurp” zipped-up sound for it.

move #1: The crunch

The slow: Lie on your back, knees up, hands behind your heads and keep your elbows out. Concentrate on sucking in your stomach to the floor.  As you lift your head up, you should be breathing out and when you lower down even slower, break in thinking about sucking in your abs to the floor still the whole time. Do 20 like this.
The fast: same motion as above, just faster and complete 100

move #2: The Butterfly crunch

Open your legs into a butterfly position, lying on your back again, and hands behind your head.  Slowly complete a crunch as described above and remembering not to relax between reps.  Again, you should aim to do about 20 like this.

move #3: Revers Tabletop Crunch

I do these slowly as well.  It is the same motion as the crunches above – making sure you keep thinking about your belly button being pulled like a magnet to the floor. You should start to feel your abs burning at this point. Another 20 reps here.

move #4: Plank + leg extensions

Basic plank is a great way to break up your crunches and add the extra scorch to your routine.  It is a great exercise for your core and stabilizers and will be very effective in helping to define your 6-pack. Start on your stomach, resting on your forearms and palms flat on the floor.  Push off onto your tip toes and elbows (as shown above). Remember it is imperative in this position to maintain the integrity of your back by tilting your pelvis and contracting your abdominals to prevent your bum from sticking up in the air or sagging in the middle.

This is where you can mix it up and have a little fun.  Either do a basic plank and hold for anywhere from 45 – 90 seconds or what I like to do is a plank for 30 seconds and then raise one leg as shown above for 30 seconds and alternate to lift the other and then come down for rest.

move #5: Tabletop Alternate Leg drop

Start in a tabletop on your back and lift your shoulders/ head up to hold the crunch position. Slowly, drop one leg to the ground barely letting your toes touch and bring it back up, alternate and drop your other leg.  This is a slow motion – not quick – you will feel the burn… about 20 alternations. Concentrate on keeping your core engaged and the stable leg in the same position during this exercise.

Turn over – stretch out your abs and repeat if you can…. Good luck! :)

Marathon Banana Bread + then some

While training for my first marathon in 2008, I learned that my diet played a big role in my training.  I learned about balancing electrolytes, and for me that meant taking in enough potassium to maintain my sodium levels. It was interesting to look at my skin on some of the hot days after a training run and see salt sporadically laced across my skin.  To avoid getting sick and loosing too much salt, I started to run with electrolyte tab enhanced water - not Gatorade because it often upset my stomach.

Similarly, I took to the internet to find some yummy recipes that might offer some potassium benefits as well as keep me entertained on the nights I stay in before a long run the next day. I stumbled across this banana bread recipe compliments of Flour’s Bakery in Boston which was featured in Runner’s World magazine. This bread is not only amazing for marathon runners, but possibly the most delicious and buttery banana bread I have ever tasted.  I have to restrain myself from calling it moist since I despise that word, but the bread really is that, too.

I baked the bread this weekend for my girlfriends and me to indulge in after our 12 mile run Saturday morning followed by hours of imbibing wine at the Virginia vineyards tours we planned.  For an extra little zah, zah, zous… I candied my own walnuts to be incorporated into the bread.   It was a great pairing to our tastings and we even got one of the Vineyard owners to try it and ask for seconds- I felt like a proud mother. 

This is the link to the runners world article on the bread:

http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-242-303-504-11861-0,00.html

and this is the link to the 5-star rated Food Network post of it (so if you don’t trust my judgment maybe you will trust that of the ever elusive food network’s):

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giadas-weekend-getaways/flours-famous-banana-bread-recipe/index.html

RECIPE:
1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup sugar, plus 2 tablespoons sugar

2 eggs

1/2 cup vegetable oil

3 1/2 bananas, very ripe, mashed

2 tablespoons low-fat sour cream

1 teaspoon vanilla

2/3 cup walnuts, toasted and chopped

Preheat oven to 350°F. Sift together first four ingredients. Beat sugar and eggs with a whisk until light and fluffy. Drizzle in oil. Add bananas, sour cream, and vanilla. Fold in flour mixture and nuts. Pour batter into a buttered 9" x 4" loaf pan and bake for 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Makes 12 servings. Lower-fat version: Reduce oil to 1/4 cup, add 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce (260 calories, 9 grams of fat).

Calories: 310

Fat: 15 g

Carbs: 41 g

Protein: 4 g

A few notes about this bread:

-          Caution: you can never have just a small bite – it’s so yummy you will be going back for seconds

-          Use over ripe bananas – they are easier to mash and add better banana flavor

-          Check the center to ensure the bread has baked through – all ovens are different

-          Adding chocolate chips is NEVER a bad idea

Listen to Your Body: Friday FitFunFact #4

Your body is one smart machine, just ask it. When you tune into your body, it'll tell you important things like when you're tired, energetic, hungry, stressed or sick.  Your body also has ways of indicating when you're sore, injured, or exhausted. Pretty impressive, huh? If you can learn to trust these signals and honor what your body needs on most occasions, you are on your way to healthy balanced living. 

Honing in on these clues is the best way to stay injury free and some might even say in the best shape for your body. The negative signals can indicate your body may need a day off or time to recover. Don’t worry about being lazy if you take a day or two or three off – your body probably needed it  as well as time to re-charge like a battery so that you can keep moving forward. The opposite is also true; for me, when I have energy to burn it manifests itself in my inability to sit still - which often happens if I'm stressed or slacking on my work outs. On those days, I want and NEED a good, tough workout to combat stress and use my pent up energy.  Expelling that energy makes me ready for the next day and more in tune with what my body needs.

The same thing holds true with eating.  Your body – well most likely your energy level will let you know when it needs fuel (food).  According to balancedweightmanagement.com, “Hunger is your body's natural signal to help you balance your body's energy needs with how much food you eat. When this mechanism is in balance, your body will naturally stay at a constant weight.” Not only will your body benefit and stay fit from eating what you need when you’re hungry – it can also keep you from being cranky and irritable and help maintain your energy levels to push you during your work outs. 

Well – that’s it for this addition of Friday’s fitfunfact…. Have a great weekend and stay tuned for next week’s big recipe release!!!

Best Food for Runners - part deux

So, in response to my previous post about the best foods for runners and the questions I posed - I scoured the internet as well as my nutrition class’s notes and text books. Basically, what I realized was, YES, wow - these articles are telling you about some great basic foods to eat based on the nutrition they supply for a runner, but they lack the in depth details about how you should consume these foods for best results. I cannot entirely answer these questions as a blog isn’t the most complete forum, and especially because everyone is different, but know the answers below are sufficient for the general population:

When you should eat, What: Depends on the type of run/ work out you are doing...
.
Short Runs and Sprint Workouts (up to 4 miles) - You do not need to eat right before or during this type of workout.  I would suggest carbs before the workout, unless it’s the first thing you do in the morning and then eat more protein based foods after to help repair your muscles after the workout. Be mindful you are not going for a long time and as a result, using quick twitch muscles and ATP energy.  The best way to recover is with protein - like the previously suggested post some of the best sources of protein are eggs, tuna, and quinoa.  To reiterate, one of the amazing benefits of quinoa is that it is one of the few complete proteins and thus contains all the amino acids needed to fully absorb and metabolize protein in your body.

Avg. Pace + Medium Distance (4-10 miles) – Relatively the same as above, however you might not need as much protein immediately after.  You may want to eat something with fat an hour or so before the run to keep you full through the run.  Post run try to immediately have something carbohydrate based to replenish the energy (glucose) used.  Your body at this time will more readily accept and metabolize it.  Again protein after the work out helps repair your muscles.  

Long Distance (10 miles+) - You do not need to carbo-overload pre-run as you may have heard; however, while you are running you will want to replenish carbohydrates in your body.  Your body uses glucose stored for energy and that gets depleted approx 10 miles into the run.  At that point you can start burning energy from fat and protein, but you don't want to do that for too long because you can be at risk of depleting more nutrients from your muscles and cause more harm than good.  Some of the best ways to replenish these carbs is through “gu” and other products created for on the go running. The reason these are good is they also balance the electrolytes you need to help keep hydrated and they are relatively easy to consume in motion compared to say a PB&J sandwich.  But, after the run that’s another story, a PB&J or tuna sandwich could be the perfect remedy.

How much you should eat: Similar to above depending on your workout.  Figure out what your goals are and what you need to eat to meet your RDA (recommended dietary allowance).  These are all the nutrients you should consume in one day to maintain your health as determined by the government for most Americans - so it has to be right - catch the sarcasm???  But in all seriousness, it is the best avgerage for you to determine how much you should eat in a day of each nutrient. Macro Nutrients are Carbohydrates, Fats, & Protein à the things you need in large quantities.  Below is the suggested break-out of the percentage of your diet that should be fulfilled daily – this is easier to follow than calorie count, because that varies so much by the person:

Macronutrient	% of daily intake
Carbohydrate	40-60%
Proteins	20-30%
Fats	20-30%

Another helpful portion chart by webMD (http://www.webmd.com/diet/printable/wallet-portion-control-size-guide) to understand what a portion looks like and some other helpful links to understand what you are eating:

Food Prep: Eat the food however you like it.  Remember that cooking veggies and greens will deplete some nutrients, but if that is the only way you can get yourself to eat them, then better to eat it the way you like than not at all.

*Most importantly – do not forget to drink water and keep well hydrated throughout the day!

** I will post some follow up blogs in the best food for runners series that have my diet per day based on each run categorized above to give you a good idea of a basic day as well and not overwhelm this post with more writing than is already here…

DeLish Healthy Pasta

I had a craving for pasta tonight - something that happens from time to time,  and decided I would go the healthy route (not typical for my Sunday night cheat meal - since every fit guy or gal needs a lil food cheat to keep sane).  However, it was still super delicious!!

I trekked the couple of blocks from my apartment to Whole Foods and picked up the requisite ingredients for my meal. I gathered grape tomatoes, broccoli, baby spinach, and onion, a box of Di Boles Angel Hair pasta + flax, and the Whole Foods 3 cheese blend. I even somehow magically managed to escape the Sunday family throngs that seem to plague super markets on the weekend, which was a super unexpected treat.

I got home, and the rumble in my tummy told me it was time to start cooking. I prepped the veggies and put water on to boil for the pasta.  Cooking included the basics - pasta in water with a tiny bit of olive oil and salt and then the veggies were cooked in a wok pan with some olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic, basil, oregano & crushed red pepper flakes.  When each was almost done I added the pasta into the wok pan with the cheese and continued to cook for a minute or two longer and Boom - dinner is served.

Why this is healthy: the pasta has flax and omega-3 as well as a good amount of protein - so it’s a fantastic well rounded dish with all the veggies in it as well. I recommend for more protein one of 2 options - ground turkey or shrimp.  Another great thing about this meal is the fact that it’s all natural real food nutrients that are easily absorbed by your body rather that health from a supplemental form. 

This meal is a great Sunday night treat and is also easy to make on weeknights after a long day of work. It is also a great meal the first night you eat it - or for leftovers the next day. My fit followers – try this recipe for yourselves and thank me later with how much you like it… :)

Best Foods for Runners - and why

I came across this post today from Self Magazine on Facebook for "The 6 Best Foods for Runners".  Obviously, considering myself an amateur runner and into nutrition for running, I was inspired to check it out. Here is the link: http://www.self.com/fooddiet/2010/06/six-best-foods-for-runners-slideshow?mobify=0&mobify=0#slide=1

According to the article, allegedly the following 6 food items are the best for runners and a basic reason reason why:
1. Almonds - supply a great amount of Vitamin E... they offer a few uses as in sprinkled in oatmeal or tablespoon of almond butter, but warn not to eat too much because they are high calorie.
2.  Eggs - for protein and energy to help repair post run. Suggests keeping hard boiled eggs in the fridge among other ways to eat them.
3. Leafy Greens - proposed for their Vitamin K and calcium content to support your bones.  Specifically, spinach, collard greens, kale, and bok choy.
4. Oranges - for their (big surprise) Vitamin C - helps absorb calcium and possibly help increase fat burn.
5. Quinoa - as a complete protein it boasts 8 amino-acids and a great alternative to whole grains.
6. Sweet Potato - Great complex carb for long-term energy as well as protein, fiber, potassium and vitamins C & A.

My observations from reading this article left me with a few questions based on some of the information I have learned in my nutrition classes and just my own basic curiosity:
 - How do I know when I should eat the suggested food: right before my run/ right after my run or a few hours from my run?
 - How much of each of these foods should I eat?
 - Do I eat a combination of all of these in one day?
 - How should the food be prepared/ does it matter?

These questions led me to go look and see if anyone else might know the answer. My quest returned a lot of information and made me realize this is a very pop-runner type article that many of the trendy female health and fitness magazines like to write about every few months.  Below are some other links with similar information... but my interest has been spiked and I am now determined to investigate further and find the answers to my questions.... TBC my faithful fit followers......

http://www.hungryrunnergirl.com/2011/08/15-best-foods-for-runners.html (possibly my favorite post found - maybe because she is a girl after my own heart that eats OREOS!!!!)
http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-242-301--10200-1-1X2X3X4X6X7-7,00.html
http://www.health.com/health/article/0,,20411333,00.html
http://www.fitnessmagazine.com/recipes/healthy-eating/nutrition/best-foods-for-runners/

Cooldown De-Lite

Oh my goodness - after these past few oppressive days in the district between the storms, heat, and stiff air I think we all deserve a treat.  Many people's go to as a summer time treat is ice cream, or the new fad on every block, fro-yo. However, for some, like my roommate, who recently found out that she can no longer eat dairy this was a totally downer so we googled how do I get my ice cream fix on dairy and soy free?


We found the answer - coconut milk ice cream.  There is no soy or dairy in it so if you have any of those allergies or sensitivities- you cant eat this stuff and still get your ice cream fix! Be prepared however, that you must like the under taste (and yes I think I just made that expression up - but it works and you will know exactly what I mean by it when you try your first bite) of coconut because you can't escape it even in the chocolate version as seen below, but I promise it's still pretty yummy:

Oh and I forgot to mention the best part - how this is a complete non-guilty pleasure.  One serving boasts only 100 calories and there are 4 servings in the carton.  Not only is this great treat lo-cal, it also provides some other perks - like iron, so if you are vegan this could be a great treat for you as well as a source of iron. 


Hope you all are safe and cool after this past weekend.  Don't forget to keep hydrated and drink your water as well <-- says the fitfunfact mom.

chicken scramble

Do you only like one type of chicken?  Great news if you only like one kind, but love the flavors of a roast chicken, through some fun experimenting, I came up with a really yummy and adjustable recipe for that roast chicken taste, in WAYYYYYY less time and just including the part of the chicken you like!!  This is good for one person and lef overs the next day or for groups of people....

I call it CHICKEN SCRAMBLE:

Ingredients:
- Carrots (your choice how many you like - I like them a lot so I use more) pealed and chopped
- Celery (your choice how many you like - I don't use as many as the carrots) chopped
- 1/2 onion - chopped
- fresh herbs are best, but dry will do including: rosemary, thyme, chives, parsley --> remember to use more herbs if they are not fresh
- salt and pepper to taste
- garlic or garlic powder
- chicken stock
- a little EVOO and/or butter
- chicken (I used diced uncooked white meat)
- brown rice (I used the frozen packages from trader joes - precooked and makes it really easy!)

Directions:
-in a large pan stir fry the carrots, celery, onions in some butter/ EVOO with the herbs ans salt/ pepper/ garlic.
- after the start to crown a little slowly add chicken stock and cook down, do this 3 - 5 times until the veggies are soft
- in another pan stir fry the chicken in some EVOO/ butter with a little salt and pepper until the chicken starts to brown --> doesn't matter if fully cooked because you will be adding this into the veggie combination with more chicken stock to continue to cook
- add the chicken into the larger pan with some more chicken stock and then after a minute or two add the rice (already defrosted)
- cook together another 5 min or so or until the chicken is fully cooked through.

From prep to plate this should only take you about 30-40 min and for a yummy roast chicken tasting dish that's not bad - ENJOY!!! :)

Hillytini

The summer season has officially started in DC.  What does that really mean? In a lot of instances it means outdoor parties and BBQ's galore, followed by worrying how you’re going to look in that bikini tomorrow.

Well, fear not my faithful followers, there is a great way to still enjoy some good old fashioned drinking fun and not worry about the calories consumed.  I call them Hillytinis.   

Hillytinis can come in a variety of ways depending on your mood, below are a few of my favorite recipes for them:

Hillytini lemonade:

Vodka            

Crystal Light lemonade – or pink lemonade

Seltzer water

Mix and enjoy J

Hillytini manmosa:

Vodka

OJ – preferable fresh squeezed oranges if you can get them & juice them yourself (way less sugar/ empty cals)

Champagne

Seltzer to top it off

Mix and enjoy J

Hillytini berry dlite:

Rum

Berries – frozen work best for this, but any berries will do

Light apple juice or crystal light raspberry ice

Put in a blender and whip up and enjoy J

One other benefit of these drinks is many are mixed with water based mixers and will help keep you hydrated as you drink alcohol and minimize next day hang overs.  Let me know if you have any thoughts or other yummie summer drinks to try.