Archive for the ‘Recipe’ Category
A good smoothie can be a great meal replacement if it has the right ingredients. Most restaurants or fast food places have way too much sugar in their smoothies and not enough protein. Be cautious when ordering, just because it says health smoothie does not mean it’s good for you.
Here is an easy recipe for a delicious smoothie with a balanced mix of Protein,
Fat and Carbohydrate.
Ingredients
1 Scoop Vanilla Protein Powder (My favorite is Pro Complete 40)
1/2 Cup Plain Non-Fat yogurt (I use Dannon)
1/2 Cup Skim Milk
1/2 Cup Frozen Blueberries
1/2 Cup Frozen Raspberries
1/2 TBL. Almond Butter
Mix in a blender and enjoy!
Nutrition Facts
Calories: 319
Fat: 6.5g
Carbohydrate: 33.5g
Protein: 30g
Let’s compare my recipe with smoothies from two popular food chains.
McDonalds Small Wild Berry Smoothie
Calories: 210
Fat: .5g
Carbohydrate: 48g
Protein: 2g
- You will notice there are less calories in the McDonalds Smoothie than in my recipe. Those calories are mostly coming from sugar, however.
- It is very likely that you would be hungry again in an hour after consuming this beverage.
Starbucks Grande Strawberry Vivanno Smoothie (made with 2% milk)
Calories: 280
Fat: 2g
Carbohydrate: 54g
Protein: 15g
- Once again, the calories are lower than my recipe, but that doesn’t mean it’s a better meal choice.
- The protein content in this beverage is better than the McDonald’s smoothie, however the Carbohydrate content is way too high.
Take ten minutes out of your day to make your own smoothie, it will be more beneficial for your diet and your wallet!
Photo Credit: http://www.natures-health-foods.com
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Did you overindulge during the super bowl’s festivities? Well, depending on how much you consumed it can take at least a week to burn off the extra calories you racked up in one day.
Practice these tips this week to help shed those excess calories.
1. Move On
Don’t beat yourself up over the poor health choices you made. Recognize the way you feel and then move on. Don’t get stuck in a downward spiral of “well I blew yesterday, might as well keep going.” Don’t give yourself permission to stay on the junk food wagon and blow off your work-outs. The best thing you can do is forget about it and move forward.
2. Step Up Your Work-Outs
If there was ever a time to push yourself harder in the gym or add on an extra work-out, this is it.
- Add to your normal work-out duration. If you usually run, bike or swim add an extra mile or two to your session.
- Try a new Class. You will have an instructor to push you harder and you will burn more calories doing exercises that your body is not use to.
- If you normally work-out in the morning, add an extra walk after dinner each night this week.
3. Downsize Your Meals, Don’t Skip Them
Most people will think that they ate too much yesterday and they should skip today’s breakfast to help make up for it. This is a diet pitfall. Skipping breakfast is not going to help you shed those excess calories. Instead downsize your breakfast. Try This “downsized” breakfast:
- 2 poached or hard boiled eggs
- 1 cup of strawberries
The calories in this breakfast are under 200 and full of energy and nutrients. For Lunch and Dinner leave 1/4 of your meal on the plate. This will help to get your body back to its normal caloric deficit.
4. Plan Ahead
Remember how hard you worked this week to burn off these excess calories. Next time you attend a weekend party think about how much effort goes into working off those cookies. It’s perfectly fine to indulge in something sweet. Just don’t make a whole day out of it.
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Photo Credit: shadesofhope.com
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Breakfast can be a challenge for many people. Here are four easy recipes that are low in calories and high in nutrients.
1. Sweet and Salty
1/2 Cup 1%Fat Cottage Cheese
10 Almonds
1 Small Apple
Slice the apple into small pieces. Pour the cottage cheese on top. Garnish with Almonds
Nutrition Facts
Calories 238
Fat 8g
Carbohydrate 27g
Protein 17g
2. Banana Nut Bread
1/2 Thomas’ Light Whole Grain English Muffin
1 TBL Teddy’s Peanut Butter
1/4 Banana
Toast English Muffin. Spread peanut butter after toasted. Slice up banana and place on top of muffin.
Nutrition Facts
Calories 170
Fat 8.5g
Carbohydrate 22g
Protein 7g
3. Not Just For Kids
3/4 Cup Special K Protein Plus Cereal
1 TBL. Almond Butter
1/2 Cup Skim Milk
Mix cereal with milk and almond butter.
Nutrition Facts
Calories 241
Fat 12g
Carbohydrate 23g
Protein 16g
4. Beat It
1 Egg
2 Egg Whites
1 Slice Sargento Reduced Fat Swiss Cheese
1/2 Small Tomato
Beat egg together with two egg whites. Spray non stick pan with cooking spray and pour egg mix in. Slice tomato and add to pan. Place swiss cheese on top. Once bottom is cooked fold egg over in half, omelette style and flip.
Nutrition Facts
Calories 174
Fat 11g
Carbohydrate 4g
Protein 21g
Set your day up for success by making these meals part of your morning routine!
Photo Credit: http://hubpages.com
