Fitness & Wellness

Not happy with your body?

It’s hardly your fault.

Have you ever stopped to notice how many times you’re bombarded by food marketing each day?

Ads come at you from magazine pages, T.V. commercials, on websites and billboards, each boasting of cheap, convenient and tasty ways to cure your hunger.

The question “What’s for dinner?” has never been more complex than now.

Extensive menu options and large entrees have distorted your concept of a proper meal, and before you know it you’ve fallen into the trap of the chain restaurant, the drive thru, and the take-out line.

But wait – truly healthy eating is simple.

First of all, block out the blizzard of food marketing around you.

Remember that advertisers want your money, and they don’t stop to consider if the food they promote will expand your waist – that’s your job.

Thus it’s safe to say that, with few exceptions, any food that you see marketed should be avoided. When was the last time you saw an ad for grilled white fish and steamed broccoli?

So what does truly healthy eating look like?

A healthy meal contains lean protein, fresh vegetables and the occasional modest serving of whole grains.

Also, just as importantly, a healthy meal does NOT contain:
Refined sugar / corn syrup
Fried / fatty food
Full fat dairy food
Processed food with chemical additives

Healthy Breakfast

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. What you decide to eat when you first wake up will set the tone for the rest of your meals that day. So try these healthy options:
1. Scrambled egg whites, sliced tomato and steamed spinach.
2. Whole grain oatmeal, a scoop of protein powder and sliced fruit.
3. Homemade breakfast sandwich: Multi-grain English muffin with lean turkey slices and egg.

Healthy Lunch

It is important to plan your lunch ahead of time in order to avoid turning to a fast food joint or vending machine. Pack your lunch the night before and carry it with you. In addition, try these healthy options:
1. Dark baby greens topped with chopped chicken breast and diced tomatoes.
2. Albacore tuna (packed in water), mixed with finely chopped cucumber.
3. Lettuce Wrapped Sandwich: Lean turkey slices, lettuce, tomato and mustard.

Healthy Dinner

Dinner is the meal where most people splurge and eat far more calories than they should. Therefore, eating at home is the first step in reducing your dinnertime calories. In addition, try these healthy options:
1. Grilled white fish, sautéed spinach and whole wheat couscous
2. Baked chicken breast, steamed broccoli and brown rice

Try the recipe for Cajun Salmon with Roasted Cauliflower and Broccoli below.

While healthy eating is a huge factor in achieving your ideal weight, exercise is the other half of the equation. Your exercise routine should be challenging and should be done on a regular basis.

I know that you have more than enough in your life to think about without having to plan your own exercise routine. Leave that job to me—call or email today to get started on a personalized fitness program that will leave your body no choice but to shed those unwanted pounds.

Not Another Diet

When you eat a simple, healthy diet you’ll never again be tempted to try the latest fad diet to drop a few pounds. So choose to eat lean proteins, seasonal vegetables and whole grains and avoid sugar, fried food and processed carbohydrates on a daily basis and enjoy living life at your ideal weight.

Easy Bake Cajun Salmon with Roasted Cauliflower & Broccoli

This recipe for Cajun Salmon is a simple and flavorful way to eat a lean dinner. The Roasted Cauliflower and Broccoli are delicious enough to save the leftovers for a mid-afternoon snack! So start your healthy eating and cooking with these recipes.

Servings: 2

Here’s what you need…

Roasted Cauliflower & Broccoli:
1 head cauliflower, chopped into florets
1 head broccoli, chopped into florets
2 Tablespoons olive oil
½ teaspoon sea salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon garlic, minced
½ lemon, juiced
Cajun Salmon:
2 (4-oz) salmon fillets
2 Tablespoons Cajun seasoning blend
½ lemon, sliced

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. On a rimmed baking sheet combine the cauliflower and broccoli florets with the olive oil, salt, black pepper and garlic. Roast for 20 minutes, until lightly charred then toss with lemon juice.
2. Reduce the oven temperature to 400 degrees F. Rub the salmon fillets with the Cajun seasoning then place on a baking sheet and roast for 15 minutes, until flaky. Serve with lemon slices. Enjoy!

It happens to everyone. That moment when you realize that it’s time to do something about your weight.

It may happen when you’re looking in the mirror or standing on the scale.

Your first thought is to go on a ‘diet’ but as quickly as that enters your mind the ghosts of a hundred diets past return…along with all the frustration.

Then you wonder, why bother?

The weight will come back, as it always has. Then you’ll be back in front of the mirror as discouraged as ever.

The answer is not to go on another diet.

The answer is to change your lifestyle instead.

Making the Change. It’s time to lose your ‘all or nothing’ mentality. So embrace simple, small changes that will add up to big improvements in your lifestyle. These are your main venues for change:

What You Eat. Let’s face it, most of the foods you eat aren’t the healthiest. Some are downright terrible (the burger and fries you had last week). While others are simply excessive (the snacks you eat while watching TV).

The solution to cleaning up your daily diet is NOT to go back on a ‘diet’. In fact, I never want you to go on a ‘diet’ again. (Yes, you heard me right!) Instead I want you to make permanent healthy changes to your eating habits.

Here are some practical examples:
Choose salad over chips or fries
Don’t add butter to your food
Eat fresh produce with every meal
Purchase fat free dairy products
Limit desserts to one or two per week
Cut out mindless snacking
Drink water, not soda

I don’t expect you to eat a perfect diet every day of the week because that’d be ludicrous. You should, however, make MORE healthy choices every day than unhealthy ones.

How You Move. Exercise is a huge component to a healthy lifestyle, and quite frankly you’re not getting enough of it. How often does an entire week go by without you ever lacing up your tennis shoes? Hence, don’t disregard the importance and power of a good workout.

Moreover, your new healthy lifestyle means exercising on most days of the week. This may seem tough, but I have the perfect solution – my training programs were created for busy people just like you who only have so much time to dedicate to exercise.

I understand how hard it is to find the motivation to stay consistent and to push yourself. Make exercise a no-brainer—contact me to get started on a lifestyle enhancing program today.

Here are simple ways to move more:
Watch less TV
Stretch stiff muscles every day
Play at the park with the kids
Go for a jog
Do some pushups every morning
While none of the above are meant as substitutes for a solid exercise routine, they are great ways to become more active and to improve your lifestyle.

Your lifestyle is the balance of all the choices that you make regarding your body so swing the balance in your favor—make a majority of your choices health conscious.

So the next time you’re in front of the mirror you won’t worry about your weight.

You’ll relish it.

So are you ready to transform your lifestyle and body? Call or email me today to get started.

Degrees Of Change

True change happens in degrees, not in one fell swoop. This is a relief when you realize that you have miles to go on your goals. There is no need to attempt all of the change at once – simply nudge yourself in the right direction each and every day and maintain the small changes as you go.

Did you eat a big bowl of spaghetti noodles with your favorite sauce for dinner last night? Tonight eat a smaller bowl. Next week eat zucchini noodles and your favorite sauce. The following week eat zucchini noodles with the protein-filled sauce recipe below.

Small changes in the right direction, maintained over time, will make all of the difference as you strive toward the body and lifestyle that you desire.

Beef Ragu and Zucchini Noodles

Yes, it is possible to enjoy Spaghetti night while living a fit and lean lifestyle. This is accomplished with noodles made from fresh zucchini and a sauce that is simply made and packed with protein. Feel free to sub in ground beef for the minced beef if desired.

Servings: 6

Here’s what you need…
2 lbs minced, grass-fed beef
2 Tablespoons tomato paste
8 oz can of tomato sauce
1 Tablespoon chili sauce
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
½ teaspoon sea salt
4 zucchini
¼ cup fresh parsley

1. In a large skillet, brown the beef over medium-high heat. Drain the skillet and turn down to medium heat.
2. Add in the tomato paste, tomato sauce, chili, cherry tomatoes and sea salt. Mix to combine. Sauté until the cherry tomatoes are soft, about 5 minutes.
3. Peel the green skins from the zucchini, the run through a spiral slicer to create long, thin spaghetti noodles.
4. Plate a handful of zucchini noodles topped with the beef sauce and a sprinkle of parsley.

Your doctor feels like a broken record.

That’s right—he’s sick and tired of telling you how important exercise is to your health because YOU DON’T LISTEN.

He’s sick of explaining how so many of your health problems will improve or even disappear as the result of a consistent exercise program.

Moreover, it’s tiring to tally your controllable risk factors that include physical inactivity and obesity.

So why does he continue to give you the same lecture?

Because he’s seen exercise change lives.

He’s even seen exercise save lives.

1. Feel Great: The first thing that patients tell their doctor after starting an exercise program is how much better they feel. People don’t realize how bad they feel since they are used to feeling bad. Then when they start exercising they feel so much better.

Your energy levels boost and you feel great.

2. Pain Be Gone: Next patients notice a reduction in aches and pains. Chronic muscle and joint pain that they’ve lived with for years begins to fade. In addition for some, it postpones joint replacement surgery. For others, it reduces arthritis pain.

Your muscles and joints feel better than ever.

3. Goodbye Coronary Heart Disease: While patients can’t feel this healing benefit of exercise, it is the one that saves lives. Indeed, exercise removes two of the major risk factors that lead to heart disease: 1) physical inactivity and 2) obesity. Exercise also increases your good cholesterol (HDL) and lowers your blood pressure.

Your risk of heart attack or stroke is reduced.

4. Goodbye Type 2 Diabetes: Patients with type 2 diabetes gain substantial benefits from exercise. Moreover, exercise improves the body’s use of insulin, and the related weight loss improves insulin sensitivity. Of course patients with type 2 diabetes need to get guidelines from their doctor before starting an exercise program.

Your blood sugar levels are better controlled.

5. Goodbye Sleep Apnea: Patients with sleep apnea are often caught in a destructive cycle. Their weight promotes occurrences of apnea then inadequate sleep promotes weight gain.

With all of these benefits it’s hard to see why anyone would avoid exercise. So what’s your excuse?
I know you’re tired…exercise gives you energy.
I know you’re in pain…exercise alleviates your muscle and joint pain.
I know you’d rather stay in bed…exercise makes your sleep more restful.
I know you’re pressed for time…exercise improves your efficiency and extends your life.
I know you don’t know where to start…that’s where I come in.

Reply to this email or call me and we’ll schedule a consultation where I can show you the fastest and safest way to reap all of the benefits of exercise.

Then the next time you see your doctor he won’t give you a lecture.

He’ll congratulate you.

Your Ideal You

Take a moment and imagine your ‘ideal you’.

What does the ‘ideal you’ look like? How does the ‘ideal you’ spend their time? Who would the ‘ideal you’ spend time with? What would the ‘ideal you’ accomplish?

The distance between you and your ‘ideal you’ is created by laziness.

When faced with decisions, big or small, do what your ‘ideal you’ would do, rather than taking the easy way out.

(I’m pretty sure that your ‘ideal you’ is a client of mine!)

Chorizo Egg Skillet

Here’s a flavorful and exciting way to start your day! Chorizo, eggs, tomatoes and arugula are the star ingredients in this protein-filled breakfast skillet. Feel free to enjoy it for dinner or lunch as well!

Servings: 4

Here’s what you need…
2 links chorizo, casing removed
½ yellow onion, chopped
15-oz can diced tomatoes
12 cherry tomatoes, halved
4 large eggs
1 cup arugula
sea salt
black pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.
2. Place the chorizo links in a medium, oven-proof, skillet over low heat. Cook until all sides of the chorizo become browned. Periodically deglaze the pan with water. Allow the chorizo to cool, remove it from the skillet, and then slice each link into 10 pieces.
3. Sauté the onion in the leftover chorizo fat until tender, about 5 minutes then add the can of tomatoes to the skillet. Arrange the halved cherry tomatoes and slices of chorizo around the edge of the skillet then use a spoon to create four 2-inch wells in the tomato and egg mixture. Crack each egg into a ramekin and gently pour one egg into each well.
4. Place the skillet in the oven for 10-15 minutes, until the eggs set. Then top with fresh arugula and season with sea salt and black pepper. Enjoy!

It’s hardly your fault.

Maybe you have stopped to notice how many times you’re bombarded by food marketing each day?

Ads come at you from magazine pages, T.V. commercials, on websites and billboards, each boasting of cheap, convenient and tasty approaches to cure your hunger.

The question “What’s for lunch?” never been more complex than now.

Extensive menu options and large entrees have distorted your idea of a suitable meal, and before you understand it you’ve fallen into the trap of the chain restaurant, the drive thru, and the take-out line.

But wait – truly healthy eating is simple.

First, stop the blizzard of food marketing around you.

Understand that advertisers want your money, and they do not stop to take into account if the meals they promote will expand your waist – that’s your job.

So it’s safe to say that, with few exceptions, any food that you see marketed should be avoided. When was the final time you saw an offer for grilled white fish and steamed broccoli?

So what exactly does truly healthy eating look like?

A healthy meal contains lean protein, fresh vegetables and the occasional modest serving of whole grains.

Just like importantly, a healthier meal does NOT contain:

Refined sugar / corn syrup

Fried / fatty food

Full fat dairy food

Processed food with chemical additives

Healthy Breakfast

Breakfast is the most crucial meal of the day. What you decide to eat when you wake up will set the tone for the remainder of your meals that day. Try these healthy options:

1. Scrambled egg whites, sliced tomato and steamed spinach.

2. Whole grain oatmeal, an information of protein powder and sliced fruit.

3. Homemade breakfast sandwich: Multi-grain English muffin with lean turkey slices and egg.

Healthy Lunch

It is essential to plan your lunch in advance in order to avoid looking at a junk food joint or vending machine. Pack your lunch the night before and make it with you. Try these healthy options:

1. Dark baby greens topped with chopped chicken breast and diced tomatoes.

2. Albacore tuna (packed in water) and blended with finely chopped cucumber.

3. Lettuce Wrapped Sandwich: Lean turkey slices, lettuce, tomato and mustard.

Healthy Dinner

Dinner may be the meal where most people splurge and eat far more calories than they should. Eating at home may be the first step in reducing your dinnertime calories. Try these healthy options:

1. Grilled white fish, sautéed spinach and whole wheat grains couscous

2. Baked chicken breast, steamed broccoli and brown rice

While healthy eating is really a huge factor in achieving your ideal weight, exercise is another half of the equation. Thus, your exercise routine should be challenging and should be achieved on a typical basis.

I realize that you have more than enough in your life to consider and never having to plan your own personal exercise routine. Leave that job to me-call or email today to begin with on a personalized fitness program that will leave the human body no choice but to shed those unwanted pounds.

Not Another Diet

Once you eat a simple, healthy diet you’ll never again be tempted to try the newest fad diet to drop several pounds. Choose to eat lean proteins, seasonal vegetables and whole grains and avoid sugar, fried food and processed carbohydrates on a daily basis and enjoy living life at your ideal weight.

Find this interesting, your Houston Personal Trainer has more information that will surely get you back on track.

Physical fitness. It’s a goal, a lifestyle, a surefire way to set yourself apart from the legions of people who are too lazy or scared to make the changes necessary to gain physical fitness. If you happen to be one of the people who have yet to truly commit to physical fitness, understanding the perks of physical fitness may help you dig in and go for physical fitness, starting today.

What can you expect from your life as a fit person? Here are nine things you’ll go through when you turn the corner on physical fitness.

Thing 1: You’ll Want More

Exercise newbies have a hard time believing it, but there will come a time when you crave exercise. It may not be during those first few days or weeks, but once your body becomes fit and begins to perform the way it should perform, you’ll hunger to hit the gym every day, and you’ll give it your all once you’re there. Miss a day in the gym? You’ll feel guilty and lazy enough to never miss again!

Thing 2: Bedtime Will Be Better

This one doesn’t involve your sex life (though becoming fit will improve that as well). Rather, it’s about your sudden ability to hit the hay, fall asleep quickly, and stay asleep all night long. Just because you’re fit!

Thing 3: Confidence Becomes You

When you’re not fit, it’s impossible to feel your best. Not becoming physically fit leaves you feeling…well, frumpy. Become fit and watch your self-image skyrocket. Along with it, your confidence. Your confidence won’t necessarily push you into cockiness, but it will make you more enjoyable to be around, as it’s awkward to be around people who are down on themselves.

Thing 4: You Eat Well

Just as becoming fit makes you want to get in the gym every day, it also inspires you to want to eat well. After all, you spent all that time eating the right things to get fit. The last thing you want to do is throw it all in the trash just for the passing and momentary pleasures of two slices of pecan pie.

Thing 5: Showers Feel Better

Contrary to popular belief, sitting at a desk all day every day doesn’t get you dirty enough to take a shower. On the contrary, when you’re living the fit lifestyle, you’re in the gym regularly, allowing sweat to cover every pore of your body. After a hard day at the gym, your shower feels magical, because you actually deserve it!

Thing 6: Heavy Isn’t Heavy

Spend enough time not being fit and you may be surprised that fit folks can deal with things in life that require strength. Whether it involves carrying a baby through the grocery store, picking up a few bags of groceries, moving a pile of bricks from your truck bed to your garden, or just getting up the stairs, fitness enables you to do it with ease.

Thing 7: Your Body Functions Improve

Become fit and your heart will work more efficiently. You know that. But getting fit will get your other body systems in line also. Whether you’ve been struggling to think clearly on your feet, you’ve been plagued with constipation, or you’re always out of breath, getting fit can remedy all these issues and more.

Thing 8: You’ll Go Shopping

You probably know people who have to upgrade their closets every few years to accommodate their ever-growing bellies. Not you. When you go fit for life, you’ll have to go shopping, but only because your waist has slimmed up and your muscles have tightened up and are now situated where they belong.

Thing 9: You Won’t Fear Sore

At one point in time, being sore always meant something was wrong. When you become fit, being sore is something that you welcome. After all, you know the soreness means you’re working your body in new ways that will only improve your physical fitness. If it’s a bad sore, you’ll know that also because, well, fit people know their bodies.

Now is the perfect time to start on an exercise program that will get you into the best shape of your life. What are you waiting for? Becoming fit feels too good for you to miss out on. Call or email me today!

Got Stress? Get Moving!

Stressed out? Exercise is a simple solution to get you feeling good fast.

This is because every time you exercise your body increases its production of endorphins, which are responsible for that feel-good euphoria you get after a great workout or while chomping down on a piece of chocolate.

However, before you turn to chocolate and skip the gym, remember the end result of each and choose which one will help you reduce stress in the long run. (Hint: It’s not the chocolate!)

Best Chicken Salad Recipe
Most chicken salad recipes contain loads of mayonnaise or dairy products, but not this one. A simple can of coconut milk makes this salad deliciously creamy while roasted chiles, fresh cilantro, sweet fruit and crunchy pecans really bring the flavor. Serve on large butter lettuce leaves.

Servings: 8

Here’s what you need…

For the Creamy Coconut Dressing:
1 (14oz) can coconut milk, full fat
¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
1 Tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 Tablespoon coconut oil, melted
⅛ teaspoon garlic powder
lemon zest (all you can get from one small lemon)
1 teaspoon lemon juice
dash salt
dash pepper

For the Salad:
1 cup celery, finely chopped
1 cup red grapes, halved
½ cup pecans, chopped
1 apple, finely chopped
4oz can mild chopped green chiles
1 lb roasted chicken, chopped

1. For the Creamy Coconut Dressing: Combine all of the ingredients in a medium bowl. Whisk well and then set in the fridge to chill while you prepare the salad.
2. For the Salad: Combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl. Add the creamy coconut dressing and mix well. Season with salt and pepper. Serve with large lettuce leaves and Dijon mustard.