Cardio vs. resistance training

Welcome to our new series: Cardio vs. Resistance training! We have successfully covered eating a healthy diet in the previous series…right down to the recipes we can make. Let’s dive into the benefits of cardio and resistance training…

Both are important for each of us! Fitness can be largely influenced by time (or lack of) and convenience. One of the most common thoughts for those with time constraints is usually: I have 30 minutes to work out today. Let me knock out some cardio. This isn’t a BAD thing, but we can actually get more benefits by doing resistance training if it is done correctly. The purpose of cardio is to sustain an elevated heart rate. We can also elevate our heart rate by performing resistance training, doing calisthenics in between each exercise. Calisthenics are: jumping jacks, running or walking quickly in place, etc. Doing this as opposed to doing an exercise and resting will incorporate out “cardio” into our weight/resistance training routine.

It is important to incorporate cardio and strength/resistance training into our daily workout routines.

Cardio

• Elevates heart rate
• Increases the flow of oxygen, therefore increasing our energy levels
• Burns calories at the time of the workout

Resistance Training

• Elevates heart rate
• Improves joint stability, strength and bone density
• Burns calories throughout the day 

Clean eating dessert recipes

Most of us crave sweets ever now and again. right? Maybe more "now" than "again"? Here are some sweet and healthy treats for those of us with a sweet tooth:

Black Forest Banana Split

• 2 cups nonfat ricotta cheese
• 2 bananas, split lengthwise
• 16 walnut halves
• 1 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 teaspoons cherry concentrate (available at health-food stores)

Spoon ricotta into a dessert dish and place a banana half on each side of the cheese. Put the walnut halves on top and dust with the cocoa powder. Drizzle the cherry concentrate on top.

Makes: 2 servings

Black forest banana split

Chocolate Dipped Banana Pops

• 2 ounces roughly chopped unsweetened baking chocolate
• 3 ounces roughly chopped milk chocolate
• 2 ripe bananas
• 1/3 cup coarsely chopped salted peanuts (or toasted coconut or cacao nibs if desired)

Melt chocolate in a heat-proof bowl set over a pan of simmering water, stirring occasionally, until smooth. Meanwhile, line a baking sheet with parchment or wax paper. Slice bananas into thirds crosswise; insert a wooden freezer-pop stick or skewer in one end of each. Dip pieces in melted chocolate, spooning on additional chocolate to cover. Place on prepared baking sheet and sprinkle with chopped salted peanuts. Freeze until chocolate is firm, about 20 minutes, or up to 2 hours. (If frozen for more than 2 hours, let soften for 20 minutes before serving.)

Servings Per Recipe: 6

PER SERVING: 206 cal., 13 g total fat (6 g sat. fat), 69 mg sodium, 22 g carb. (4 g fiber), 5 g pro.

Chocolate dipped banana pops

Baked Apples

Makes 1

• 1 Fuji apple
• Raisins, as desired
• Cinnamon, as desired
• Honey, as desired

Core a Fuji apple, stuff with raisins, cinnamon, and honey, as desired. Bake for about 20 minutes.

Baked apples

RECIPES for clean eating!

Picture taken from forkandbeans.com 

Here is a list of some recipe ideas to help you on your clean eating lifestyle:

Breakfast:

Remember eggs in a hole? Fried egg in toast? Check out this revised version: Reinvented egg in a hole recipe

Oatmeal! Do you love oatmeal? I hope so because it is good for you! 5 minute power oatmeal recipe

Lunch:

These shrimp and avocado summer rolls look amazing! Shrimp and avocado summer roll recipe

Salmon is good for us! Check out this tasty recipe for salmon cakes...and yes, it is good for you: Oven fried salmon cake recipe

Dinner:

Crispy chicken? Yes please... Crispiest spring chicken recipe

Risotto anyone? How about: White bean cauliflower risotto 

Planning your meals…is it worth the extra effort?

If you want to continue to eat healthy and stay away from processed, boxed and packaged foods, I would say YES!

A simple way to meal plan is to find recipes you want to try via the Internet or cookbooks and put all the ingredients needed onto your grocery list…to make sure you have everything you need for the week. This may take you about 15 to 30 minutes.

You can do all the prep work for the meals over the weekend to make weekdays easier!

Your body will thank you!

Portion size…What is that?

Figuring out what the correct portion size for each serving is pretty simple…although many make it difficult. The proper portion size must be no larger than the palm of our hand! Yes! It is that simple.

What does this mean if I am eating out?
The average restaurant serves portions that are several times larger than what we are supposed to be eating. However, there is an easy fix for this too! Separate the food you are served into the correct portion size and take the rest home to have for another meal…or two!

Another portion control tip:
Use a smaller plate. When our plate appears full it gives us the illusion that we are eating more food! You can even do this when you go out to eat...just ask for a salad plate along with your meal and separate your food onto it!

How do I eat more vegetables?

Sneak vegetables into your every day foods! Vegetables contain fiber and vitamins our bodies need to live. By all means, eat them raw as a snack, in salads and in smoothies. But we can cook with them too! Check out the article below entitled:How to get your children to eat more vegetables for ideas on sneaking them into the foods you prepare! 

In addition, take a peek at this meatball vegetable soup recipe. It is super easy and cooks in the crockpot!

Meatball and Vegetable Soup Recipe

Add olive oil to a pan.
Add 3 pealed and thickly sliced garlic cloves (which I later removed before adding the meatballs to the oil and placed them directly into my soup pot)

Turkey meatballs

• 1 pound of organic ground turkey, defrosted
• and
• Salt, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder

Combine ingredients together and form into small, 2-bite sized meatballs.
Place them in the pan with olive oil on medium heat.
Cook until browned and cooked through...about 3 minutes per side (depending how big the meatballs are).

Soup

• 1 large can (24 ounces) of stewed tomatoes (and crushed them up with my hands)
• 4 cups of organic vegetable stock
• 2 zucchini, peeled and cut into bite sized pieces
• 1/2 large onion, cut into pieces
• 1 cup mini carrots, cut into pieces
• 1 cup frozen mixed vegetables
• Garlic from pan
• Salt, pepper and onion powder, to taste
• Parmesan cheese, optional to sprinkle over top

Add all ingredients into a large pot.
When the meatballs are done cooking, add them into the pot.
Allow soup to cook over medium heat for 1 hour or until vegetables are soft.
This recipe serves 4 people.
If you are going to opt for the crockpot version, simply add everything into the crockpot and set on low. Allow it to cook for 4 to 5 hours.

Need to get more veggies into your children? Check out this article: How to get children to eat more vegetables

Eat your snacks!

By preparing snacks for your day before leaving the house, you will be less likely to snack on foods that do not fall within the clean eating guidelines.
Preparation is key to a clean eating lifestyle.

Here are is a list of healthy snacks to get you through the day:

• Organic mini carrots and hummus
• Organic applesauce cups, with or without cinnamon
• Nuts, mixed or your favorite variety
• Organic string cheese
• Organic fruit, ex: apples, bananas, grapes, oranges
• Hard boiled eggs (organic)
• Pumpkin seeds
• Homemade trail mix: nuts, seeds and dried fruits
• Homemade granola with nuts
• Greek yogurt with fresh fruit and granola