Corn Bean Salsa

This is one of my favorite dips to make.

What you need....
1 jalapeno
Cilantro
1 red onion
1 can of black beans, rinsed
4 ears of corn
1 can of diced tomatoes
Olive oil
Ground cayenne pepper

What you do....
Start by mixing the cayenne pepper with olive oil and brushing it on the ears of corn. Next put the corn on the grill making sure to turn it to get all the sides evenly. Once this is done cut the corn off of the ears and put in a good size bowl. Add the washed black beans and drained diced tomatoes. Finely chop the jalapeno and onion and cilantro and add them in as well. Mix everything together and WaLa your dip is done!

Slice up a cucumber to use as chips for a healthier choice.

For a quicker version use two cans of corn, drained, and toss with olive oil and cayenne pepper then spread out on a cookie baking sheet and heat in the oven for about ten minutes.

Tennis...Fun or Exercise?

Recently I have gotten into Tennis. It's a really fun sport, and even better it's great exercise!! I find sometimes if you distract yourself from the fact that you're working out with some friendly competition it helps to keep your intensity up and push through longer, at least it does for me!
So here's the breakdown on calories burned from just an hour of tennis, which goes by so quickly when your head is really in the game! I end up playing more like two hours on accident!

Doubles Tennis 130lbs=354 Calories 155lbs=422 Calories 190lbs=518 Calories
General Tennis 130lbs=413 Calories 155lbs=493 Calories 190lbs=604 Calories
Singles Tennis 130lbs=472 Calories 155lbs=563 Calories 190lbs=690 Calories

So not only do you get to get out and play a game, you are actually burning a lot of calories! Find a sport you like and start getting competitive!! It's fun AND healthy!!

For other sport calorie counts check here.

Asparagus!!

This plate may look somewhat familiar, since I did a post on the chicken you see as well as the sweet potatoes (these are white not orange, but same prep). Today however, I am going to focus on the asparagus on the plate.

Asparagus has many health benefits, it helps the kidneys and liver function better, it also is a great source of folate and a B vitamin that is good for your cardiovascular system. It is also especially important for pregnant women because it's known to help prevent certain birth defects, such as spina bifida.

That's the first good news, all the benefits it provides, the second good news, I have the perfect, EASY way to cook it so it comes out perfect, not too mushy, not too crunchy. First thing you do when you buy asparagus is to look for ones that aren't too thick, you want to look for thinner stalks. Once you bring them home you need to snap off the ends, if you just lightly bend them back and forth they will snap off where they should. Then find a flat bottom pan that fits the stalks and boil about an inch of water. Once the water is boiling throw the asparagus in. Now here's the important part, leave it in for exactly three minutes, no more no less.

My Dad gave me this recipe and it has never failed to come out perfectly. Things you can add are some garlic in the water, or after taking them out sprinkle with some pepper and garlic salt, or just eat them as is!

Sweet Potatoes!!!!!!!!!

Ok so one of my favorite things is to find a food I don't like and make it in a way that I do like it. Last night I had the pleasure of having a sweet potato dish made for me, and up until this point I had never enjoyed a sweet potato dish I've eaten. But this was delicious, so I must share it with you!

Here's the best part...it's SO simple!

Just cube up a sweet potato and toss it with some olive oil, salt, and rosemary. I'll leave it to you to judge the amounts, but make sure not to overdue any of them...a little goes a long way. Then stick it in a pan and put it in the oven at 450 degrees for 20-25 minutes...until the potatoes are soft. I know, super simple, but really really good.

AND it really makes a plate look colorful! Needless to say we didn't leave much...

Using Kale in a Recipe...

For a while now I've wanted to find a recipe to use Kale in. Kale is a leafy green vegtable, and it happens to have lots of health benefits. I'd tried it raw, thinking I could use it instead of lettuce in my salad, but it just didn't have the salad taste to it.

So imagine my excitement when I found a recipe using Kale in one of the food networks own Giada De Laurentiis...the hot Italian chef for those of you who don't watch.

It's called: Spicy Parmesan Green Beans and Kale.

What you need...
3 tbl olive oil
1 med onion, sliced
1/4 pound of cremini mushrooms, quartered
1 1/2 pounds green beans, trimmed and cut into one inch pieces
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 cup white wine
1/2 red pepper flakes
1 bunch of Kale, rinsed, stemmed, and chopped
2 tbl freshly squeezed lemon juice
3 tbl grated parmesan

What you do....
Warm the olive oil in a large, heavy saute pan over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook until translucent, about 4 minutes. Add the mushrooms, green beans, salt, and pepper and cook for 2 minutes. Add the wine and continue cooking until the green beans are almost tender, about 5 minutes. Add the red pepper flakes and the kale and continue cooking until the kale has wilted, about 4 to 5 minutes. Add the lemon juice and the Parmesan cheese. Toss to coat and serve immediately.

I made this as a side dish at Easter, and I was VERY impressed, it has great flavor and even a little kick!!!

Easter Mashed Potatoes....Or....

For my families Easter dinner we basically re-make the traditional Thanksgiving meal, since we love turkey and all the fixings so much. So last Thanksgiving I decided to try out this much talked about substitute for mashed potatoes....cause I mean I love mashed potatoes but they really aren't very healthy, esp in the quantity I like to eat them on big holidays =)

So I made mashed cauliflower. I know sounds like it couldn't possibly stand up next to the real thing, but surprisingly enough it does a pretty darn good job. Of course it's not the same thing, but it tastes good and its guilt free! Basically to make them you just boil up a whole bunch of cauliflower instead of potatoes, then just blend them with some I can't believe it's not butter, a little half and half and I use garlic salt and pepper. I'm just saying it's worth a try.

I have heard MANY different versions of this dish, this is how I made it, but I've heard of people adding cheese or scallions....all sorts of different things. Play around with it and find a way you like them, of course try not to add all the unhealthy calories back by adding bacon or something...even though we all know bacon makes EVERYTHING taste good. =)

Asian Chicken Wrap

Ok I am going to begin this post with a disclaimer. The first time my sister was making this wrap I thought she was crazy and it sounded nasty. But true to who I am I decided to try it before completely writing it off.

Here is what it is...Asian Chicken Wrap. Take a whole wheat tortilla and spread about a tablespoon of peanut butter on it. I prefer all natural peanut butter, crunchy. Then take some of those precooked chicken strips you can buy from the store and put a serving in it. (check the package for that info) Next add some fresh spinach leaves. Finally get the Asian Silk spritzer, the salad dressing that comes in a spray bottle, and spray two or three times. I know I know sounds like a weird combo of flavors, but I'm telling you it's super good!!!

Just give it a try, it's quick, it's healthy and really it's Yummy!

Plan it Out

Something that really helps a workout be really effective is to plan it out before you start. Figure out what part of the body you want to work, whether you want to focus on lower or upper body, strength or cardio....yadda yadda.

If you just go into the gym without a plan you are MUCH more likely to not push yourself past your "easy" point. I always sit down and write out a whole workout before I even think about going out and doing something. Then when I'm at the gym I have to push to do everything I wrote down, and its also much more methodical workout, keeps you from jumping to far off your goal.

For instance today I was thinking about heading to the gym, but it was so nice outside I decided to figure out a workout I could do at the park for my lower body. I knew I had to stray from some of my regular workouts because I didn't have weights to use.

Here's what I came up with....
1 min regular squats
1 min step ups right leg
1 min step ups left leg
1 min jump rope
1 min sumo squat
1 min regular squat
1 min jump rope
1 min push ups
3 min walking lunges
1 min jump rope
1 min butt raise
30 sec right leg raise
30 sec left leg raise
1 min jump rope
Then I did a full ab workout...about 7 mins total

But having it written down really helped me make sure I pushed through any tuff points. I ran to and from the park for a warm up and cool down and just carried a jump rope with me. You can always do jumping jacks instead.

The Pita Pit!!!

Ok so it is MUCH better and healthier to eat at home, but we all know that isn't always a possibility. At that point we need to make good choices of where to eat out.

I have fallen in love with Pita Pit. I first had it on my trip to Florida and thought it was only an east coast place....but when some friends of mine from Florida moved out here they looked it up and guess what...Pita Pit IS in San Diego!!!

I have to be honest and tell you that I have eaten at this place three times in the last 5 days. Yes that is more than I should admit to, but today I grabbed their nutritional info and calculated out the calories for the pita I was eating, and it came out to 390...Not bad at all!! I was so happy because it really is delicious that I thought I would share with you. So go ahead and check out a Pita Pit near you and just make sure to look at the nutritional info because some things can add up, especially their sauces.

I had a Philly steak on a wheat pita with lettuce, onions, bell peppers, mushrooms, banana peppers, jalapenos, tzatziki sauce and hot sauce. And it was GOOD!

Use What's Left

Let's talk leftovers...

One thing I tend to make a lot of at dinner time is brown rice. It just adds to most of my meals well. But since I live alone and don't have people over for dinner too often my rice cooker always makes too much.


Thankfully I have found a way to use it in my breakfasts the next morning. I just grab whatever vegtables I have in my fridge, which is ALWAYS an onion (since they take a while to go bad) and sometimes some mushrooms, bell peppers, spinach...but you get the idea, whatever is around. I cut everything up and toss them in a pan to cook them a little, then I add my leftover brown rice from the fridge. Let everything get all heated up then I add my egg whites. Yes it is technically some sort of fried rice, but it is really good, and super nutritious.



I top off my meal with some hot sauce, I LOVE sriracha. But any kind works, or none. You could add soy sauce as well but I try to avoid adding too much sodium to my meals. The calorie count when I do it is only around 200 and it is really filling!

h2o

This shouldn't be news to you, but Drink your Water! I don't mean have one or two glasses, I mean drink nothing but water ALL day. No more soda or juice, there really isn't much good for you there. I suggest buying some sort of re-usable water bottle, I like the SIGG bottles. Just keep it filled and on you ALL day long.

First of all drinking water all day will help you from over eating. Also keeping your body hydrated is VERY important. If you are thirsty you waited too long to drink something.

Water is crucial for life for a variety of reasons...
1. In blood it helps transport glucose, oxygen, and fats to working muscles
2. It eliminates waste products
3. It absorbs heat from working muscles
4. It regulates body temp
5. It lubricates joints and cushions organs and tissues

If you absolutely NEED some sort of flavor to your water then go buy some crystal light packets to add to your bottle. They have tons of different flavors and they are only 10 calories a packet. It's always better to have straight water, but these aren't bad if it helps you to get your water intake up.

Healthy Chowder =)

Ok I made this soup a little while ago, and it was freaking amazing! It's a chowder, and as we know chowders are not very healthy!!! But this one is good for you!!

It's from Hungry Girl and it's called Rockin' Roasted Shrimp & Asparagus Corn Chowder.

Here's what you need...
4 cups fat-free broth
12 ounces raw peeled and deveined shrimp
20 large asparagus spears
2 medium red bell peppers, seeded and chopped
1 medium russet potato, cut into 1/2 cubes
1 cup canned sweet corn kernels
1 cup evaporated fat-free milk
3/4 cup chopped scallions
1 tsp minced garlic
1/2 tsp thyme
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
salt and pepper

Here's what you do....

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Take asparagus spears in both hands and snap in half. Discard the tough ends. Place asparagus spears and raw shrimp on a baking pan sprayed with nonstick spray. Spritz shrimp and asparagus with a light mist of nonstick spray and place pan in the oven for about 6 minutes until shrimp are opaque and cooked through.

Remove shrimp from the pan and set aside. Flip asparagus over and cook for an additional 6 minutes. Remove asparagus from the oven and cut asparagus and shrimp into bite-sized pieces. In a large pot sprayed with nonstick spray, cook bell peppers, scallions, corn and garlic over medium heat for five minutes.

Add broth and potato and bring to a simmer. Cook for about 15 minutes or until potatoes begin to soften. Add milk, shrimp, asparagus, thyme and cayenne pepper. Stir and continue to cook for 5 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Makes 6 servings. Per serving (1 1/2 cups): 182 calories, 1.5g fat, 520mg sodium, 25g carbs, 3.5g fiber, 10g sugars, 18g protein

I think it tastes best with a good healthy kick, so I added plenty more cayenne pepper, but play with what you like. But it has LOTS of good flavor!!

TriAthlon

Ok here it is, I'm officially doing the Mission Bay Triathlon which is Oct. 3 2010. That gives me six months to get prepared!!

First question is....Is anyone willing to do it with me?? Come on we'll make it AmaZing!

It's a 500 meter swim, 15K bike, and 5K run...so don't worry we aren't doing an iron-man triathlon, I'm not THAT crazy!

If you don't want to do the actual triathlon, I could use a swim partner to actually swim in the ocean, and since I'm afraid of deep water, it's been a challenge to go by myself.

So here's how this blog can relate to you and not just be about me declaring my future goals, it is a great idea to have something to work towards. It gives your workouts purpose and when you reach your goal, it gives you a great sense of accomplishment which helps boost your self esteem and make you a happier person in general! So find something that suits you and sign up for it!

MushRooms

Ok so there are a few different types of mushrooms out there, most of us are probably most familiar with button mushrooms, the plain white ones we see most often in the store. But this mushroom is NOT our only choice!

Button mushrooms are great, but they are very mild in flavor and normally take on the flavor of the dish they are a part of. But there are also the brown italian mushrooms, that actually keep a longer shelf life in your fridge!

Then of course we have shiitake mushrooms, which have a more woodsy flavor and used in a lot of asian dishes. It's great in stir fry's, I use them when I make my chicken lettuce wraps.

You also see the oyster mushroom used in a lot of Asian meals, I actually used them instead when they were out of shiitake mushrooms.

Then of course we have the large portobello mushroom. This mushroom is great thrown on the grill and used as a substitute as meat in a sandwich. But if you aren't a vegetarian and want your meat it's still a great addition to any burger or sandwich!

So now we've covered a few varieties, let's talk about what they do for you. First of all they are LOW in calories, between 15-25 for a serving (about 5) depending on the mushroom, and shiitake is a little more, around 45 for a serving (about 5). But mushrooms also contain more protein then most vegetables. They are a good source of phosphorus and potassium. And recent studies show that they are in fact a source of vitamin B12!

Little tip... washing mushrooms ruins their delicate flesh so it's better to take a damp paper towel and just wipe off any dirt. NOW GO EXPERIMENT!

Nutrition Label, What's That?

It is important to be able to know how to read a nutrition label. Most of us just check the calorie content and we're done. But there should be a little more reading happening...

When checking the calorie content, make sure you take into account the serving size. This one only has two servings but sometimes it can be a lot higher, and your calories will add up quickly.

Next we look at the fat, of course the lower the better, and staying away from trans fats is a good idea. Should be at a maximum of 65 grams per day.

Cholesterol is another lower is better and should not exceed 300 mg per day.

Sodium is not something you want too much of, the max is 2400 mg per day.

Carbohydrates, unless you are diabetic, this is not as important to look at
Dietary Fiber, more is better, should try for at least 25 grams per day.
Sugars, less is better.

Protein is generally desirable, most people need only about 54 grams per day.

So next time you look at a label take everything into consideration when deciding whether or not its healthy =)

Kick the Stress

Stress is the great enemy of weight loss. We can be doing everything right, we can be eating healthy, 5 meals a day, and exercising, but still if we are stressed we won't lose weight.

Chronic stress can damage the immune and other systems. It's linked to the development of insulin resistance as well as hypertension, coronary heart disease, osteoporosis, and other disorders. Basically this stuff is bad for you!

So taking some time for yourself, to work through whatever happens to be causing your stress will not only help you feel better emotionally, but it will make you better physically as well.


Meditation is a great tool to use if you can, yoga works with a lot of breathing exercises that help relieve stress, I use journaling, writing things out can really help you process whats actually going on in your head. Even something as simple as looking at photos of loved ones has been shown to reduce stress levels.

My Journey Through Cooking a Chicken...

Ok so last night I decided to cook a whole chicken with some roasted veggies. So here it is...
I started with a whole chicken I bought from the store.







Then I made up a mixture of rosemary, sage, thyme, garlic and olive oil. I rubbed the bird with salt and pepper first.





After that mixture was mixed I rubbed the bird all over the outside and inside the cavity. Also inside the cavity I squeezed slices of lemon and left the slices and also added the stems of the rosemary and thyme I used.I put the bird in the oven set at 475 degrees covered with tin foil for the first 45 minutes then uncovered for the second, an hour and a half total oven time. Next I cut up some zucchini,
red potatoes, onions and carrots and mixed them with a little olive oil, salt and pepper, and spread them out on a cookie sheet.






I put the veggies in the oven when I took the foil off of the bird so they were in the oven for about 45 minutes. At the hour and a half mark I pulled both things out of the oven and this is what it looked like..
Needless to say it worked out and tasted wonderful! And after I carved off most of the meat last night I threw the whole thing in a pot, added some chicken stock and water and left it on low heat all night. This morning I took the bones out and added all sorts of veggies to make some yummy homemade chicken soup. I'll let you know how it goes.

Don't Neglect Your Breakfast =)

So breakfast, it's a BIG deal. I can't tell you how many people around noon or one I hear saying, man I'm so hungry I haven't eaten anything yet today. This is the WORST thing to do if you are trying to lose weight or just be healthy! Your body just spent how many hours you were sleeping, let's average about six hours for that, so six hours your body just spent fasting. Then you want to wake up and spend the next six fasting as well? At the same time probably pouring coffee down your throat to give yourself some sort of energy for work. While if you had just managed to eat some sort of breakfast you would have been giving yourself natural energy.

We should be eating within thirty minutes of waking up. Now this doesn't have to be some huge breakfast with eggs and bacon and toast. It can be anything from some toast with peanut butter to some yogurt with granola. Something I do when I'm having a quick morning is I always keep some Balance bars around, and I just grab one and I'm set. When I have a little more time I'll go ahead and make some sort of egg white scramble or breakfast sandwich. But whatever you do EAT SOMETHING!

The thing that happens when we continuously starve ourselves for big chunks of the day, is our body starts hoarding everything we do eat because it doesn't know when it will get anything again. So instead of burning it right away it'll save it up, and so we won't lose any weight. However if we are eating consistently throughout the day our body will also recognize this and since it knows in a few hours its going to get more food it'll quickly burn whatever we put in our mouth because it's not worried about where it'll get it's next energy fix.

Keeping your Salad Healthy

So we all seem to think if we order a salad we are being healthy, and while all those vegetables are great for you, what kills it is the dressing! From ceaser to ranch to blue cheese, we drench our vegetables in calories!

Here are a few suggestions to help avoid too many extra calories. One strategy is to order dressing on the side, always do this so that you can monitor how much dressing is being used. Then you can either dip each bite lightly into the dressing or just dip your fork into the dressing before each bite.

The other great way to limit the amount of dressing is to either buy the dressings that are already made up in a mister, or buy your own (Misto) and mix your own dressing! Just balsamic and olive oil make a simple delicious dressing. But play around with different vinegars! Red wine vinegar is another great one, there really are a lot out there and each offer its own unique taste. Staying away from creamy dressings as much as possible is a good idea!

Join a Class!

Yesterday I was up in LA at my sisters, I introduced you to her in one of my first posts, she's the amazing personal trainer! She works at a gym up there, and among other things she teaches a pretty awesome class Wednesday morning. It focuses on the lower body.

Mind you I do PLENTY of lower body stuff on my own, I do lots of lunges both walking and standing, I do squats for minutes at a time, weighted even, and I do all sorts of abs, even going non-stop for 7 minutes when I'm doing my circuit. That all said, this class kicked my butt! There is something to say about class workouts, they always seem to be able to push you harder then you can ever push yourself!

She took it to the point that normally I would probably stop, then kept going to the point where I was ok I'm really being pushed, then kept going till I just really was DONE, and man we don't even realize how much more we have in ourselves sometimes. It was never too much, just so much more than I can get ME to do on my own. And my competitive nature doesn't let me quit in front of groups of people, so they ALL help me push.

This all said I suggest looking around in whatever community that you are a part of and finding some classes that speak to you. Be that jazzersize, kick boxing, karate, dance, pole dancing (this really is a workout class offered some places), some sort of boot camp, whatever YOU like and start letting someone push you to the point you should be at, and have FUN doing it!


Last little note, if you are in the SD area, my sister and I talked about her coming down Saturdays this summer to do a Boot Camp for us, she really is a GREAT inspirational teacher, so let me know if you have any interest! I'll bring it up again a few times closer to the time!

How to Assess a "Fad" Diet...

Here are some key things to look for in order to avoid bad unhealthy diets....

1. If they draw simple conclusions from complex medical research. Without seeing the entire study or understanding how to read the research, it's impossible to understand the conclusions. It's easy for people to take indivdual components of a study to make it applicable to what they want to promote.

2. If they promise weight loss without exercise. It is possible to lose weight without exercise, but there will be a large loss of muscle, and the research has shown that it is very difficult to maintain the weight loss without exercise.

3. Claim to produce quick weight loss. 1 to 2 pounds a week is what is healthy and recommended.

4. Require the purchase of pills, potions, or other dietary supplements.

5. Eliminate an entire macronutrient (macronutrients are carbohydrates, proteins, fats and water) or drastically limit any food group. (like low carb diets) A balanced diet is the best and safest way to successfully lose weight and ultimately keep it off.

6. Offer testimonials from "health professionals"

Omega-3, Gotta Have It

Salmon is rich in protein, B vitamins, potassium, but most importantly it has an ample supply of omega-3 fatty acids. Why is that important you ask?

Well once upon a time our diets were much more rich in this fatty acid, because we were able to get it from most animals, because most animals were all free-range, but in today's society their diets are rich in omega-6 fatty acid and so they become a source of omega-6 more than omega-3.

Omega-3 fatty acids do a lot for our health, for one thing they help build efficient cell membranes, and a cell membrane that is deficient in omega-3's will function poorly and be at risk for things like strokes, heart attacks, cardiac arrhythmia's, some forms of cancer, insulin resistance, asthma, hypertension, hyperactivity disorder, and depression. The long and the short of it is that its important and we aren't getting it as much as we once did. And salmon is still a great source! (I also take supplements of fish oil pills which contain it)

So here's a recipe for you to try.... simply called Salmon in Asian Broth...

What you need... 3 tbl and 1 tsp reduced sodium soy sauce, 3 tbl dry sherry, 3 tbl water, 1 tbl finely julienned fresh ginger, 2 tsp granulated sugar, 1 tsp Asian sesame oil, 1 bag of baby spinach, 2 salmon fillets, 1 scallion, 1 tsp sesame seeds, toasted.

What you do... In a saucepan, combine soy sauce, sherry, water, ginger, and sugar and bring to a boil. Cover and keep warm over very low heat. Lightly coat a steamer basket with nonstick cooking spray. Set the basket in a large stockpot with water filled to just below the basket. Add Salmon. Place over medium-high heat, cover, and cook for 6-8 min, or until cooked through. While salmon is cooking, in a skillet over medium-high heat, add sesame oil. Saute the spinach until bright green and wilted. Divide spinach in two large soup bowls. If necessary, remove skin. Place fish on top of spinach. Pour soy broth over fish and sprinkle with scallions, sesame seeds, and additional ginger if desired.

295 calories per serving

No Need to Clean the Plate

Ok so portion size in America is out of hand, right? Think about the heaping plates of food we get when we go out for food. A great example of this is the Hash House in San Diego, don't get me wrong its tasty, but there plates are made for Giant's to eat off, and I don't know about you but I haven't seen any giant's roaming the streets lately.
So since restaurants aren't going to do it for us, we need to learn to LEAVE FOOD ON THE PLATE. There is no rule that just because it's in front of us that we must eat it. Eat half of your meal and then save the rest for a snack in a few hours, since we should be eating every three hours anyways. And then hopefully we can start learning what a normal portion size should look like and start preparing our own meals correctly instead of fashioning them after the bad example set by restaurants.

Spinach Dip, Can I Really Eat That?

Ok so I don't know about you, but I LOVE spinach dip! I love ordering it as an appetizer at restaurants and making it for parties. But it's such a guilty pleasure! Not anymore my friends! Here's a recipe for spinach dip that cuts a lot of calories!


Ingredients:
4 oz. Lifetime Fat Free Monterey Jack Cheese (or another fat-free white hard cheese, like Muenster or Mozzarella)
4 tbsp. fat-free sour cream
10 tsp. Kraft Reduced Fat Parmesan Cheese
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tbsp. shallots, chopped finely
6 tbsp. fat-free mayo
1 oz. light soy milk
1 – 10 oz. pkg. chopped spinach, thawed and drained
4 oz. water chestnuts, chopped

Directions:
In a medium-sized saucepan, melt your Monterey Jack over a low flame. In a separate pan, saute garlic and shallots with some nonstick cooking spray. Add soy milk to melted cheese, stirring continuously. Next, add mayo, sour cream and Parmesan into your cheese mixture, still stirring over low heat. Add your sauteed garlic and shallots, as well as water chestnuts. Add your well-drained, chopped spinach and mix thoroughly. Spoon your dip into a medium-sized casserole dish and bake in a preheated 325-degree oven for 20-25 minutes. Voila! Your spinach-y masterpiece is complete. You may add salt and/or pepper if desired. Serves 6-8.


Serving is about 3 heaping tablespoons: 72 Calories, 1 gram of fat, 310mg sodium, 9g carb, 1g
fiber, 4g sugar, 7g protein.

I got this recipe from Hungry Girl, they have some great stuff if you want to check it out!

Jillian Micheals....Hero or Villain?

Ok one of my favorite people is Jillian Michaels. Yep the "mean" trainer from Biggest Loser. But really she's not mean at all, she cares deeply about people getting healthy! She just knows how much it REALLY matters!

Watching the biggest loser is a great idea, they have soooo many GREAT tips. What they are doing is REAL. And if these people, weighing over 300 lbs can get in the gym and work there asses off, and eat right, why can't WE? It's a great motivator for me, that's for sure.

But more than that, I have a lot of Jillian's books. I have "Making the Cut", which is her 30 day diet and fitness plan to help us drop those last 10-20 lbs. Even if you don't do her diet the way she lays it out, she has a lot of Great info and some great, TUFF workouts to try! I also have her latest, "Mastering your Metabolism" which I really really like. It has really great truths in it, and is really worth reading. And Jillian really allows you to get to know her, and she doesn't hold back, she is an in your face tell it how it is person, and really I respect he hell out of her!I also have almost every Biggest Loser book, including there calorie counter....Some really really good stuff. I'm just saying check this stuff out, it's worth it! I would love to be able to care enough about the people I work with to be hated sometimes....cause sometimes we have to say/hear uncomfortable things in order to ultimately save our lives.

Nice Butt!

Ok we all want the great ASS! As my sister says that WaBow...you know that curvy perky ass....well here are a few things to get it there...

Number One... LUNGES!!! You can do them standing or walking, but trust me doing 5 mins of walking lunges, and you ARE gonna feel it!

Squats are also great, add some weight once you get the form down, remember don't let your knees pass your toes or you will hurt your knee! Using an exercise ball against a wall is a great way to perfect your form!

Also standing facing a wall with your hands against the wall and simply raising your leg, one at a time backwards, slowly focusing on using your muscles and not momentum to raise the leg.

Lastly if you get down on all fours and raise one leg, bent at the knee and raise the foot toward the ceiling, do about thirty seconds straight each leg and you WILL feel it!!!!

Now go get the Wa BAM!

Shout out to the busy worker...

I know a lot of people who are busy at the office all day, and find it tough to fit in a healthy lifestyle, so here are a few small things that can help =)

Wear a watch and set it for every two hours, and take a ten minute WALKING break. (This is also a good time to have a snack, as you really should try to be eating every two and a half, three hours)

Really focus on using your leg muscles to sit and stand, don't just plop down.

Stand and pace during phone calls

Stand up every time you send an email

Take the stairs

Use hand gestures

Tighten your core muscles while sitting down. (Using an exercise ball as your seat will force you to do this, but it is possible if you just focus on it on a regular chair)