Find Your Color

We have all heard "Go for the Burn!" from personal trainers and exercise videos but I think of exercise in a different way. When I am lifting weights or running and am ready to slow down I think of my muscles in colors. For me when I am still, calm and sitting down I am green. My muscles are relaxed and I am at ease with myself and the Earth. When I am playing with my kids, cleaning my house or walking around the block my muscles are blue, moving, engaged, but in a slow, easy fashion. When I am lifting weights I visualize or actually watch the muscle as it works. I see the outside of the muscle and visualize the actual muscle working and turning red. I go for RED. "Go for the Burn" is a helpful reminder for me but I take it one step further by trying to reach my burn color, red.

Much of life is attitude and the way we think about things. There are so many aspects in life that we cannot control. But 3 things that we can control each and every day are the way we think, how we move our bodies and what we put into our mouths as fuel. Waking up each day being thankful for what I have, the friends and family who love me and who I love helps me start the day on a positive note. So put on your smile, hug your loved ones, find your burn color and go for it!

Coconut Flour

I absolutely love baking! Muffins can be a healthy way to snack if made the right way. I have always been a big fan of whole wheat flour. But I prefer fewer carbohydrates in my snacks so I have been looking for a better way to make muffins and I found it! Coconut flour! It is gluten-free, high fiber, low carbohydrate, and high in protein. I found coconut flour easily at my local health food store (they know me in there now!). I love to make up my own recipes but I am new to coconut flour so I searched for some recipes and found a great one on the Quest Bar website. While we are talking about Quest Bars I will let you know that I think they are very good. VERY chewy but very good, high in protein, low in carbs, high in fiber. Check them out at the health food store too!

Click here for the coconut flour Pumpkin Muffin recipe!

Here is what the coconut flour container looks like and those are my pumpkin muffins on top. My kids loved them but they do love any of my pumpkin products and these muffins do have a strong pumpkin taste. YUMMY!

PUSH UPS BABY!

I woke up yesterday morning and did my usual 20 push ups right beside the bed. Then I went to definitions class at the YMCA. It was fabulous! I love how the instructors incorporate good, fun, fast music with a little cardio and a lot of muscle definition and weight lifting. Along with many other exercises in the hour long class we did 5 sets of 10 regular push ups alternated with 5 sets of 10 sit ups. Then we did 5 sets of 10 wide push ups with the same reps of leg lifts. Then last night before heading to bed I did 2 more sets of 20 push ups. So yesterday's push up total was 160! Those were not 160 push ups in a row but separated throughout the day. I believe that daily push ups help develop so many muscles in the arms, shoulders, back and core and I highly recommend getting on a daily push up regime if you are not already doing them. Start by doing as many as you can without stopping. Then take a 30 second rest and do as many as you can without stopping again. Work up to sets of 20 push ups and do them throughout the day. I think you will feel strong and powerful both mentally and physically. Push ups are a fabulous stress reliever! Don't get mad...get down and give me 20! And teach your kids how to do push ups! My kids think it is so funny to watch me do push ups...my 2 year old's favorite thing to do is climb on my back for a push up ride. Adding 34lbs to a push up REALLY challenges the body! 

Spice It Up!

Ahhhh, today is a beautiful Spring day in Massachusetts! When the weather is nice, the sun is out and more smiles are found it makes it even easier for me to eat healthfully. I thought I would share a product that I have grown to love this year. It is called Chef Macee Chipotle Concentrated. I bought it next to the salad items in my local Stop and Shop. I just used a few sprays on my boneless, skinless chicken breast and Portabella mushroom cap before grilling. It adds just the right amount of heat to chicken, mushrooms or any stir fry you make. I have also used it with tofu. I squeezed the tofu to dry it up a bit (extra firm tofu). Sprayed this on the tofu and sauteed it in a non-stick pan for a few minutes, then I added nutritional yeast (shocker!) and sauteed a bit longer, stirring constantly. Yummy! I love tofu too...more about tofu another time. Meanwhile, if you like a little Mexican seasoning try the Chef Macee concentrate. Let me know what you think!

Here is my lunch salad made with mixed greens, avocado, grilled chicken and portabella, nutritional yeast and fresh salsa:

Never Stop Moving

The consistently thinnest woman (same thin weight she has been since high school and she is over 50!) I have ever known is always moving. In the decades that I have known her I have noticed that she never stops moving and rarely sit down. This is something that has happened naturally to me as a full time Mom (notice I did not say "Stay Home Mom"....we DO NOT stay home! Whoever gave us that name should be kicked!). Another thing I noticed about this thin woman is that when she is sitting she is STILL moving! Fidgeting burns calories too! In Arnold Schwarzenegger's "Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding" he tells his bodybuilding readers NOT to fidget while sitting so as to not lose calories but to save those calories and fuel for weight lifting. Reading that information immediately made me become a toe tapping, leg kicking, fidgeting sitter. So stand when you can, fidget if you sit and lay down only at night when your head hits the pillow to burn calories even when you are not working out. 

Fasting

About a year ago I was at the gym and on the elliptical TV saw a young doctor talking about his new book called "The Flex Diet". I enjoy reading about food, fitness, exercise and the like so I kept watching the interview. I was impressed by the information I heard from the interview and immediately went on Amazon to buy the book. "The Flex Diet" by Dr. James Beckerman gives many good weight loss and overall health tips. Much of what I read in the book was not brand new to me but I appreciated the reminder and I liked the layout of his book, the easy food suggestions and quick recipes. One part in particular caught my attention because it was something I had never done before. Fasting was something I never thought I could do or would do. Why would anyone want to go an entire day without food? Dr. Beckerman writes that there is evidence that fasting can be a safe way to lose 1-2% of total body weight, slow the aging process, enhance sense of well-being and can be beneficial on the brain and heart. 

So I tried fasting after finishing the book for the first time. The biggest challenge I faced was that I am around food constantly. I have 3 kids who eat A LOT! And I absolutely love to make them healthy foods and when I make them healthy foods I want to eat those foods too. But what I found after my first fast was power. I felt in control of myself and my needs. For the first time in my life I looked at food in an entirely different light. As I stated in an earlier post....food is fuel.  Fasting for me is a reminder of that. I fast 1 day every 3 weeks. During my fast I drink a lot of ice water and I do not have any caffeine at all. No food, a lot of water and no caffeine help to make me tired at a decent hour so I typically also get extra rest on my fasting days. When I wake up the next morning I still do not have an incredible urge to eat. In fact I feel myself getting more full from less food. Its like my body's way of thanking me for remembering why we eat. 

I recommend "The Flex Diet" book to anyone who will listen to me. There are literally 200 healthful suggestions in it. Here is the link to buy your copy on Amazon:

The Flex Diet book by Dr. James Beckerman

Tomorrow's blog will be about exercise. But I feel like it wasn't until I had a better grasp on food and my eating style that I saw a major difference in my body and muscle tone. I will be fasting tomorrow. Not to punish myself for eating and drinking too much over the weekend but to remind myself that food is fuel. Don't worry, I have never fasted more than 1 day out of 21 days. Dr. Beckerman is a cardiologist so I feel confident in his advice. Another bonus of fasting 1 day every 3 weeks.....its FREE and you are saving money that day! Just put your savings to good use, new running shoes or a new workout shirt!


(And a DUH disclaimer... I know my readers are very smart but I want to sleep soundly tonight so I must add.....of course do not fast if you are taking any medications, pregnant or breast feeding. I do not even take my vitamins on fasting days because taking vitamins on an empty stomach always makes me feel sick.)  


UPDATE: I fasted beginning 6pm Monday night until right now, 8am Wednesday morning. I slept very well last night and did not have a strong desire to eat this morning. But I am going to Definitions class at the YMCA so I know I need a good, protein rich breakfast to get the most out of my workout. I thought ahead and made a high protein "Apple Breakfast Bake" last night. I have been researching high protein, low carbohydrate baked goods and came across this recipe from Quest Bar:


AMAZING Apple Breakfast Bake!


I RARELY follow a recipe to the T but I did with this one. And it paid off! I love it! So very rich with a strong cinnamon taste, a tiny bit of walnut crunch and sweet apple goodness all in one. The recipe says it serves 1 person but I cut a little less than half to start with and it filled me up very quickly. And like I said I made it last night, and heated it up for 30 seconds in the microwave this morning. YUMMY! Now I will have my raspberry riot tea (from Teavana) and a huge glass of ice water and be ready for the rest of my morning. Here is what my apple breakfast bake looked like this morning....and remember this is only half of the recipe so it is a little less than 150 calories!

Why "Bikini Baking"?

Bikini Baking is a concept and an idea. This has been a (thankfully) warmer than normal winter and springtime in New England. I have had the opportunity to get into my bikini a few times. While I was in my bikini I realized I did not want or crave unhealthy food choices. Now when I am hungry and want to eat my favorite high calorie foods with little nutritional value I picture myself in my bikini, wear workout clothes or wear my bikini and I am forced to think about food in a new light. Food is fuel for our bodies. It is only because we live in American and food is readily available (knock on wood) that we are able to eat often and pretty much any quantity we want. 

My children come home from school VERY hungry and I like to feed them very nutritious foods at this time since I know they will eat pretty much anything in sight or in reach between the hours of 2 and 3pm.  That being said I just created some healthy, high fiber, low fat, high protein mini muffins from ingredients I have at my home. I am a HUGE fan of Bob's  Red Mill products. They can be found at Stop and Shop (or any grocery in the healthy section), target, health food store. Christmas Tree Shops has a wonderful supply of Bob's Red Mill products and they are about half the cost of other stores!

Here are the ingredients I quickly pulled out of my cabinets:

 From left to right back row the ingredients are: Bob's Red Mill Ground flaxseeds, Bob's Red Mill baking powder, Skim milk, Wheat Chex, egg substitutes (like egg beaters), Quaker quick oats, Bob's Red Mill whole wheat pastry flour. Front row products are: Watkins Vanilla Double Strength, Watkins Purest Ground Cinnamon (Watkins products are wonderful! Sue Rhealt sells them if you live in Quincy!), Sweet Leaf (brand) liquid stevia cinnamon (found in health food store), and Greek Gods Non fat plain Greek yogurt (UGH, I am NOT a fan of this brand of Greek yogurt! That is why I would only bake with it and not eat it from the container. I like Chobani or Stop and Shop brand plain Greek yogurt only).

 The mini muffins needed a teeny tiny bit of kick so I added just 1/4 C of cinnamon chips and 1/4 C mini chocolate chips. Mixed ingredients and baked in my Pampered Chef non-stick mini muffin tin for 9 min at 350*.

My 5 year old LOVED them! He ate 3 mini muffins!

Do you want the recipe??????

My Power Breakfast!

This is one of my favorite ways to start the day! 1/2 Cup of egg substitute (like Egg Beaters), 1 Tablespoon of nutritional yeast and 1 Tablespoon salsa. I add nutritional yeast to eggs, popcorn and every salad I eat at home.  Nutritional yeast adds very few calories (about 27 calories per heaping tablespoon), but is high in protein, fiber, amino acids and B complex vitamins. Use it in place of  Parmesan cheese...it adds a slightly nutty, cheese flavor. I also mix nutritional yeast with salsa and dip celery in it as my afternoon snack. Let me know what you think! It can be purchased at any health food store (including Whole Foods).

Hello and welcome to Bikini Baking! I am an avid baker and the mother of 3 very active children ages 7, 5 and 2. I often get asked how I manage to bake so many goodies, raise 3 children and stay healthy so I decided to share some of my secrets in this blog.