OLE!

I can't believe Wednesday is here and basically gone. Some of you have asked what my regimen is for my eating/working out schedule for my competition for work, so I thought I'd let you in on what the past two and a half weeks have looked like for me.

Diet:
I have been VERY strict with my eating. I've been following these basic guidelines.
- Recording all of my food. Yes...Every. Single. Bite. 
- Macro-nutrient percentages: protein 30-35%, carbs 50-55%, and fat 20-25% (trying to stick as close to 35% protein and 50% carbs as possible.) I have been aiming for about 90 grams of protein per day.
- LOTS of vegetables and lean protein.
- Lower intake of fruit (1-2 servings) I'm trying to keep my overall sugar intake down, but I HAVE to put 1/2 a banana in my protein shake, or else I won't eat it.
- Total caloric intake 1,200-1,300 calories per day.
- No sugar or treats. (Exception of fat free frozen yogurt 1-2 times a week if I have the calories for it.)
- 4-5 small meals throughout the day, no mindless snacking. Every calorie is accounted for.

My typical day looks something like this:

Breakfast:
Oatmeal (Variety of toppings...peanut butter, almond butter, cinnamon, ff/sf chocolate pudding powder, banana, etc.)

Snack: (unless I work through until lunch time and then I skip this snack)
1 egg + 1 egg white
(or)
1 part skim mozzarella string cheese  

Lunch:
Chicken w/spinach and lots of veggies
(or)
Tuna wrap w/spinach and lots of veggies (La Tortilla Factory Wrap, of course)
(or)
Some other form of lean protein and lots of veggies
(or)
Strawberry Banana Protein Shake
(or)
Breakfast Burrito

Snack:
1 egg + 1 egg white (If i didn't already eat this earlier)
(or)
Apple and 1 Tbsp PB
(or)
Protein Bar (Zone perfect bar, Balance Gold Bar, Pure Protein bar...I try to NOT eat these because they do have a lot of sugar in them)
(or)
Yoplait Light Yogurt with 1/2 cup Special K Protein Plus Cereal

Dinner:
Same options as Lunch...yep I'm THAT exciting.

Snack: (If I am needing it and have the calories.)
- 25 calorie diet hot chocolate
- 3 cups air popped popcorn

My favorite salad of the week has been what I call a Fiesta Chicken Salad...OLE!

It is SO tasty! I grill a 3 oz chicken breast on the george foreman grill with some mexi-seasoning. I put it on top of 2 cups of spinach, 1 cup of steamed broccoli and carrots, and 1/4 cup diced green pepper. I top that with mango salsa, and if I'm feeling the need I'll dip my fork in a little bit of fat free ranch on the side. Stats: 250 calories, 25 grams of protein, and 6 grams of fiber.
P.s. You should really try this...it's gooooooood.

Exercise:
My workouts have been pretty intense these past couple weeks, but I've been feeling good, so I've been loving it. Because of my schedule It was pretty similar for both weeks.

Monday:
Morning - 60 mins elliptical intervals 
Evening - 4 miles running

Tuesday:
Morning - 60 mins stairs intervals
Evening - Boot Camp (resistance training here)

Wednesday:
Evening - 45 mins stairs & 45 mins of spin

Thursday:
Morning - 60 mins elliptical intervals
Evening - Boot Camp (resistance training here)

Friday:
Morning - 60 mins stairs/30 mins elliptical

Saturday:
Morning - 60 mins running/elliptical
Boot Camp (resistance training here)

*I also went to yoga a few times and walked on the treadmill while waiting for clients :)

Sunday REST!!! MUCH appreciated.

Since I started I am down 5.5 lbs on our work scale and 6 lbs on my home scale. I weighed myself the day before we started, so that is where the discrepancy is. I know some of that is getting rid of Christmas snacking, so I'll be interested to see how my body reacts from here on out!

Feel free to help me out with some new awesome lean protein high veggie meals!! What is your favorite low calorie snack/treat? I am loving air popped popcorn, diet hot chocolate, deli turkey, and fat free frozen yogurt. Do you eat several small meals throughout the day or fewer bigger meals? I am always hungry, which is why the small meals throughout the day works well for me.

P.s. For my adoring fans...we just watched the MTV show. Provo was CUT! They showed her working out at Elevate at the end, but that was it...I guess I'll just have to send in my application to The Real World, or apply to be on Jersey Shore or something now. Thanks for all of your darling comments, and for those of you who actually watched it. Man, you guys are the best! :)

The Three R's: Recycle, Reuse, and Review.

Do you remember learning about recycling?I do. I was in 3rd grade and we sang a song called, "I love trash," for an assembly. We all had to wear homemade hats that were constructed out of garbage. I believe I wore an empty gallon ice cream bucket adorned with fringe made from newspaper. I have never hidden my love for ice cream.
What can I say? I was born classy.

Today has been CRAZY. I don't think I've stopped going since 5:20 AM when I woke up this morning, and I just got my 9:00 dinner in. I hate eating that late, but sometimes you just do what you can! I hope your hump day has been great! :)

Last night was our first night of BOOT CAMP, and it was so much fun! The group that came worked their TAILS off. I'm so proud of you guys! I can't wait to see the awesome results you are going to get! I've had some emails and comments asking if it's possible to attend single classes. It totally is, so email me at megolina21 at gmail.com if you want more info about it!  

The peeps over at Naturally Nutty sent me some of their delicious almond butter and peanut butter to review. Check out these flavors... 

Cinnamon Vanilla Almond Butter and Chocolate Butter Toffee Peanut Butter, are you kidding me. No, I most certainly am not. I almost felt guilty for eating them because I don't eat sugar, (aside from natural sugar and frozen yogurt,) but fear not...they use all natural organic ingredients and they are both vegan an gluten free.

I sampled the cinnamon vanilla almond butter with a crisp and delicious, and monstrous might I add, fuji apple. It tasted like the apple pie apples from rocky mt. chocolate factory or the cinnamon sugar almonds you get at Christmas time. Anyways...it was REALLY good. I would definitely recommend it. I think it would be absolutely delightful on some whole wheat toast. Try it.

 I hope this close up makes you drool.

 I also had a bunch of you ask me how the reheating of the crock pot steel cut oats went. I am happy to report they tasted AWESOME. All the more reason you should totally try them! I made a batch with four servings, and put three into individual containers in the fridge so I could have them for breakfast this week. It made things so easy. I just popped them into the microwave and pulled them out, gave them a good stir and added all the delicious toppings I could think of. My favorite batch consisted of the Naturally Nutty Chocolate Butter Toffee PB, a drizzle of honey, some cinnamon, and a chopped up banana.

  

Oh sweet goodness. It made the 4 degree morning drive to work today a little more enjoyable. I'm not lying it was 4 degrees. I have a blanket I keep in my car that gets wrapped around me INSTANTLY and the heat goes full blast. There were people running outside.

4 degrees + 5 AM + darkness + ice + running = no thank you crazy people GO BACK TO BED!

Also...because I told you I don't like to waste food. I thought I'd show you another great way to eat the Black Bean Quinoa Salad Recipe. I made this tasty concoction for lunch today with my leftovers.

 The quinoa salad is just as good cold as it is warm. My whole wrap ended up being 350 calories, 36 grams of protein, and 20 grams of fiber. You heard me right. Almost all the fiber you need for the DAY in one meal. Worth it.

I was asked to teach a Zumba/Hip Hop aerobics class for a church group tonight. I went straight from spinning, and so I was a sweaty disaster. (Whenever I call myself a disaster my friend calls me, "Katrina." Funny, no? Not funny...maybe inappropriate?)
Anyways...It was a good time! I have danced my whole life, but I've only done ONE Zumba class. Good think I know all about the fake til' you make it principle in life. :) I hope you had an awesome day. I'm SO glad so many of you have entered to win the Resolutions Remix. If you haven't, do it now, duh. xoxoxo


Do you Zumba? Are there any other group fitness classes you like? I know it's all the rage, but I prefer turbo kick, spinning, yoga, and step. I'm a certified group fitness instructor, but I don't teach any classes aside from my boot camp. Do you run at crazy hours or crazy temperatures? I'm a total running snob. I refuse to run outside if it's too cold or too hot. I pick the treadmill over crappy weather, always. I don't like to run in the dark alone either. I prefer not to get kidnapped. :)

Redemption, Reviews, and Recipes.

Happy Monday! I hope your week has kicked off fabulously, and that your weekend was glorious and relaxing. Mine definitely was well needed and well appreciated. Now, back to the grind! I am super excited because my boot camp starts tomorrow. If you are still interested of have questions shoot me an email! It is going to be a fantastic calorie burning sweat fest!!

The fabulous people over at Bob's Red Mill sent me some products to review, and I have been quite excited about trying them.  I received organic whole wheat flour, steel cut oats, quinoa, and whey protein. You may remember the steel cut oats and the whey protein from the breakfast fail. Yikes. Still kinda makes me gag again. Not Bob's fault...definitely my own.

 

And so this weekend it was time for a redemption. Steel cut outs round #2, but this time with a recipe, and a little more knowledge on the situation. I got out my bag of steel cut oats and set it on the counter and turned around to grab some other goods out of the pantry when i heard what sounded like an avalanche of sand...SERIOUSLY??? This is what I turned around to find...somebody in this world wants me to HATE steel cut oats.

 Yep, the WHOLE bag poured on the floor. :(
- I HATE wasting food.
- I am also a weird cooking germ-a-phobe
These two qualities don't make for the best combination. I scraped the top oats off the pile. The ones not touching the floor, and salvaged what I could, then threw the rest away. I felt like Rachel. (I LOVE Friends, btw)

Luckily I saved enough to try out my recipe. I put this combo into the crock pot before I went to bed on Saturday night, and set them on low, so they could cook all night.

And when I woke up on Sunday...VOILA! The different recipes I looked at suggested you add butter, dried fruit, chopped apples, brown sugar, etc. I learned my lesson about too much experimenting last time, so I decided just to try the oats this time. They turned out GREAT! Very creamy, and delicious.

The amount I cooked made 4 servings, so I divided the others up for breakfast this week. I'll let you know how they reheat. Don't judge the ghetto tupperware.

I added some peanut butter, chopped up bananas, and cinnamon. It was very tasty. I think this may be a great way to save some time in the morning if needed. I am excited to see how the re-heating of the oats goes, and I will definitely let you know.

I also wanted to try a recipe that I've had for a while using quinoa. I've never made it before, so I had no idea what to expect! I know with some quinoa you buy you have to wash it first, and do some preparation beforehand, but with the Bob's Red Mill kind I received it was ready to use. The easier the better, right? Here is the recipe I followed. I had everything on hand which was great.

Black Bean Quinoa Salad

Ingredients: 

1 tsp olive oil

3 tsp minced garlic

1 tbsp onion powder

3/4 cup uncooked quinoa

1 1/2 cups chicken broth

1 tsp ground cumin

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

1 cup corn (I used canned, but you could use frozen as well)

1 can of black beans, rinsed and drained 

salt and pepper to taste

*(The original recipe also called for cilantro, but I didn't have any. I think it would add some color and make the salad look really pretty!)

Directions: Spray a saucepan well with a non stick spray and combine onion powder with olive oil and minced garlic. Heat through. Add Quinoa, chicken broth, cumin, and cayenne pepper. Bring to a boil and cover. Reduce heat to a simmer and let cook for twenty minutes. After 20 minutes add black beans, corn, salt, and pepper. Cover and let simmer for five more minutes. This salad can be served hot or cold.

The verdict. LOVED the quinoa. I loved the nutty flavor and the texture. The recipe was really really good too. So flavorful. It made a ton, and I'll be eating the leftovers this week for sure. Quinoa is awesome because it is a complete protein. It is gluten free, a great source of fiber, phosphorus, magnesium, and iron.

This recipe makes 7 servings (each 1/2 cup) and the stats are...

Awesome protein and fiber content! You really should all try this. It was SO good...almost like a play on spanish beans and rice. I am going to use the Whole wheat flour Bob's Red Mill sent me to make some of my favorite zucchini cookies, and I want to try the whey in one of my shakes. So far we're 2 for 2!



Do you like Quinoa? I can't believe this is the first time I've had it. It's DELISH! Do you believe in the 5-second rule? Or are you a food germ-a-phobe like I am? What food do you love so much that you would eat it off the floor? I think I might salvage a chocolate covered cinnamon bear...man those things are good.

Boot Camp is ON!!

OK, party people. I know I mentioned that I was going to do a boot camp class at Elevate a few months ago, and I even had some of you come attend our free class, which was super fun. Now we are doing the class FOR REAL. I'm way excited!!

Here are the details...

Elevate is located at 147 W 400 N in Orem, UT
The class will be starting next Tuesday, January 11th  
3 one hour sessions per week (Tuesday @ 7PM, Thursday @7PM, and Saturday @8AM)
Weekly weigh-ins (This includes body fat and body inch measurements)
Nutrition planning & web-based tracking system to keep you accountable everyday
Daily motivational blogs
Healthy Field Trips
$150 per month, only $12.50 per session ($25 value)

It's a smokin' deal and will be a GREAT way to kick start your 2011 fitness. The goal of the class is to help you lose weight, burn fat, and get toned. It doesn't matter your fitness level! There are already a few people who have spots held for them, and we are limiting the amount that can join because of equipment usage and individual attention. We will have an option if you want to just come do a class every now and then, so ask me about that if you're want to know more there. If you have any questions or you would like me to hold a spot for you, email me at megolina21@gmail.com

It's going to be super fun!! :)