Healthy cooking ideas

So what you may or may not know about me is that I love to cook, but typcially I like recipes with lots of fat, butter, sugar, etc.  Recently, I've come to terms with my new healthy lifestyle and the fact that I need to start finding healthier ways to cook my favorite foods.


On Thursday RR had a bunch of teeth pulled which means he's due for a long few days of apple sauce, jello, and soup.  So on wednesday night I decide to make him a last meal that's a little more memorable than our standard baked chicken and broccoli.   So I perused a website my Sister in law recommended and decided the Cajun Chicken recipe would be an appropriately yummy "last meal".  I gotta say I didn't love all the chopping, but would DEFINITELY make this again.

Cajun Chicken

http://www.skinnytaste.com/2012/02/cajun-chicken-pasta-on-lighter-side.html

Cajun Chicken Pasta on the Lighter Side
Skinnytaste.com
Servings: 5 • Serving Size: 1 1/2 cups • Old Points: 6 pts • Points+: 8 pts
Calories: 323.8 • Fat: 6.2 g • Protein: 25.9 g • Carb: 44.1 g • Fiber: 6.3 g • Sugar:3.2 g
Sodium: 126.5 mg (without salt)  


Ingredients:

• 8 ounces uncooked linguine (I used Barilla Whole Wheat Penne)
• 1 pound chicken breast strips
• 1-2 tsp Cajun seasoning (or to taste) (I used creole seasoning, and added some crushed red pepper, perhaps a bit too much because it is SPICY!!)
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium red bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 1 medium yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 8 oz fresh mushrooms, sliced
• 1/2 red onion, sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 medium tomatoes, diced
• 1 cup fat free low sodium chicken broth
• 1/3 cup skim milk
• 1 tbsp flour
• 3 tbsp light cream cheese
• fresh cracked pepper
• 2 scallions, chopped
• salt to taste
• Smart Balance cooking spray 

Directions:

• Prep all your vegetables. In a small blender make a slurry by combining milk, flour and cream cheese. Set aside. 
• Season chicken generously with Cajun seasoning, garlic powder and salt.
• Prepare pasta in salted water according to package directions.
• Heat a large heavy nonstick skillet over medium-high heat; spray with cooking spray and add half of the chicken. Sauté 5 to 6 minutes or until done, set aside on a plate and repeat with the remaining chicken. Set aside.  
• Add olive oil to the skillet and reduce to medium; add bell peppers, onions, and garlic to skillet, sauté 3-4 minutes.
• Add mushrooms and tomatoes and sauté 3-4 more minutes or until vegetables are tender. Season with 1/4 tsp salt, garlic powder and fresh cracked pepper to taste.
• Reduce heat to medium-low; add chicken broth and pour in slurry stirring about 2 minutes.
• Return chicken to skillet; adjust salt and Cajun seasoning to taste, cook another minute or two until hot, then add linguine; toss well to coat. Top with chopped scallions and enjoy!

Makes 7 1/2 cups.

I'm also currently toying with an idea for a healthier eggs benedict after seeing a (full fat) Martha Stewart Recipe for  Steamed artichokes and smoked salmon.  I mean how pretty is that?!?!  I'm not big on smoked salmon, but I bet it'd be equally yummy with some lean ham and a lighter hollandaise sauce.  But I'll have to wait until RR can eat solid foods again. :-/

Happy Friday,

Candydiva04

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Whats your Somatype?

Until about a year ago, I had always thought the different body types were apple, hourglass and pear shapes.  Fortunately, I was enlightened by a gym friend and former body builder that there are different body types that deal more with our muscle mass and less with where we happen to carry our fat.

Ectomorph            Mesomorph             Endomorph

I think the above picture is a pretty fair representation of the three somatypes, but its not etched in stone. Its important to remember that everyone is different and there is middle ground. I'd say I'm more on the endomorph end of the spectrum (which explains why me and running don't mix very well), although I think I'd like to be somewhere between an endomorph and an mesomorph...  (stupid genetics! Well I do have a slightly boxy head... LOL)  If you're not really sure where you fall from looking at these pictures maybe this lovely explanation from brianmac.co.uk will help.

Endomorph

A pear shaped body (check!) A rounded head Wide hips and shoulders (check!) Wider front to back rather than side to side. (ummm... yea i guess so..) A lot of fat on the body, upper arms and thighs (check, check and check!)

An endomorphic individual typically has short arms and legs (check!) and a large amount of mass on their frame. Their mass hampers their ability to compete in sports requiring high levels of agility (noooo!!!) or speed and perform sustained weight bearing aerobic activities such as running. Sports of pure strength, like power lifting, are perfect for an endomorph. They can gain weight easily and lose condition quickly if training stops.

Sports Benefits

• Size benefits sports where bulk is useful, provided it can be moved powerfully
• Tend to have large lung capacity which can make them suited to sports such as rowing (bleh!)
• They can increase muscle mass much more easily than ectomorphs

Mesomorph

A wedge shaped body (I think my wedge goes the other way) A cubical head (kinda) Wide broad shoulders (not really) Muscled arms and legs (i wish) Narrow hips (uh no) Narrow from front to back rather than side to side. (i wish) A minimum amount of fat (i wish)

A mesomorphic individual excels in strength, agility, and speed. (jealous!) Their medium structure and height, along with their tendency to gain muscle and strength easily makes them a strong candidate for a top athlete in any sport. They can sustain low body fat levels and find it easy to lose and gain weight.

Sports Benefits

• Respond well to cardiovascular and resistance training
• Can sustain low body fat levels
• All muscle groups can be used to derive positive training adoption
• Dependent on the sports' needs they can easily gain or lose weight

Ectomorph

A high forehead Receding chin Narrow shoulders and hips A narrow chest and abdomen Thin arms and legs Little muscle and fat

A predominantly ectomorphic individual is long, slender and thin, and therefore power and strength sports are perhaps not suitable as their slight build leaves them susceptible to injuries. While they can easily get lean and hard, their lack of musculature severely limits their chances in sports requiring mass. Ectomorphs dominate endurance sports and gymnastics. They can archive low levels of body fat which can be detrimental to health and for females in endurance sports it can result in a cessation of periods and iron deficiency.

Sports Benefits

• Light frame makes them suited for aerobic activity like gymnastics
• Smaller body surface area also enhances their suitability for endurance activity
• Their body is better at thermo regulation, important in endurance based sports

So whats your Somatype? And how accurately does it describe you?

Live and learn,

Candydiva04

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Upperbody Strength: My Circus Obession

Hola fit friends,

I think I've said it before but I am obsessed with all things Circus related. I had planned to re-enroll in circus aerials by now, however I'm waiting until April for my friend, Mary, to catch up to my level. So I'm in a little bit of circus withdrawal.  Fortunately, April is JUST around the corner and I'm gearing up to get in shape for Aerials.  Which means, that I need to stop slacking on upper body days.  Last time I talked about upper body strength, I focused primarily on biceps.  But obviously, you need more than strong arms to balance yourself on someone's forehead. You know... if you're into that sort of thing! ;)

Admittedly this is hand balancing and not aerials, but its still requires a level of strength, balance and grace that I don't have... YET!  Not to mention, I would love to one day take a photo like this.  Although, I know for a fact, that RR will not let me even attempt to balance myself on his forehead, ever.  Yes, I know this because I asked him, LOL.  Fortunately, balancing on one of his shoulders isn't currently out of the question! So in preparation, I'm working on my handstands.  A few months back RR found the picture on the left, and sent it to me as a challenge. His exact words may or may not have been betcha can't do this! After a quick test to see whether or not I could do it, I dragged RR into one of the empty rooms at the gym and made him snap the picture on the right.

I then posted this photo on my facebook page with the caption, "The Challenge and The Victory" (or something cheesy like that).  The very next day the Alvin Ailey facebook page posted the picture below, which I've decided to take as a personal challenge from Alvin Ailey to me. LOL.

I'm clearly not ready yet, but I'm working on it.  If I can do this, I can probably strike this same pose on RR's shoulder, provided he stays VERY still.  So in preparation, I'm working on my splits and flexibility, but more importantly working on my core, shoulders, lats and back muscles in addition to the standard bicep and tricep work. But first things first, I can't hold a handstand (without a wall for support) for more than 3-4 seconds.  I need more control! To help me get ready to accept my Alvin Ailey Challenge, I'm currently working on these.

Yep, I can do these! :)

 I did about 3 of these yesterday.  One to make sure I could do it without falling on my face, the one RR recorded for me (above), and then one at the end of ballet class, because my ballet, circus and boot camp buddy, Mary, simply couldn't envision my verbal explanation.  I'm rather proud of myself for being able to do 3 of them, after a full shoulder and laterals workout last night.  I think I'm going to try my hardest to do 10 of these a day.  I think it'll also help with my pull up goal. I want to be able to do 5 pull ups in a row by the end of April, I can currently do 3.5.  (feel free to hold me accountable fit friends!)

 I stumbled across this video, its occasionally a little awkward, but overall I think its got a lot of good pointers for learning how to do a handstand.




Also as a bonus, and to further emphasize my love of all things circus, here's the video I forgot to post about my flying trapeze experience!  I think this was my 1st run, I don't know if my SIL or Brother have video of my 2nd run which I think/hope was a little better. (hint, hint Ms. Jackson! You should share all of your videos and photos from this trip!)  I don't really like the way I flop around when I bring my legs back down.  Dah well. Enjoy!

Keeping life challenging,
Candydiva04

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My Crossfit Experience

The crossfit gym, or the sanctuary as they call it

Thanks to groupon, I have 10 crossfit classes at the "local" crossfit gym. I use the word local, very loosely because its about 30 min from my house, assuming there's no traffic on 95.  But I live in Delaware, so that's actually relatively close. (sigh!)  Anywho, I did my first class on Saturday morning, it was a Crossfit bootcamp they call RivFit.

My initial impression is that I love it, and will probably be sad when my 10 classes are up!!  As a gym rat, one of my weaknesses is my lack of stamina.  I do maybe 20 min of cardio every time I'm in the gym and generally take longer breaks than I need to between reps. So the cool part about Crossfit  was I got all the strength training, my workouts usually include, with a VERY healthy dose of cardio from the fact that we never stopped moving. Okay there was a 3 min break between the AMRAP's (can some crossfitter explain what that stands for, I forgot to ask).

So I got the class, (late.. shh! I got lost!) And joined the group on the green astro-turf you see in the background of the photo above.  We started off with a warm-up which consisted of a 400m run. Then some squats, burpees (the first of MANY), lunges, scorpions, and some other things I've forgotten.  We then partnered off and did a 15 min AMRAP of more burpees, and some exercises with a medicine balls. We had a 3 minute break (which I spent cursing myself for forgetting my water and stretching out my sore shoulders) before launching into a 10 min AMRAP with 25lb plates and more burpees.  At the end of this workout my shoulders and lats were BURNING!  I was positive I was going to want to cut my arms off by now, especially since I didn't have time to stretch!!  Crossfit ended at 11:15, and I was supposed to be showered, dressed and in DC for a baby shower by 1:00pm... Did I mention the Cross-fit gym is 30 min from my house? Okay, needless to say I was late, but I had a really cool gift (or so I like to think!).  I found this website earlier in the week and gifted the happy couple one of my own.

I had a busy weekend filled with lots of St. Patty's fun and foolishness courtesy of a friend's 30th birthday party. But good lord and am paying for it!!! 36 hours later and I'm still not 100%.  My quest for health and fitness means I don't drink like I used to, so my tolerance has gone WAAAAY down.... The sacrifices you make for your health, eh?  Ah well, work hard, play hard!! Right?

So, all in all, I really like crossfit, and might even join when my Groupon deal is over. I am a little sad, that I'm not sore, but that means 2 things.
1. that I'm more fit than I thought,
and
2. I have to push myself even harder this Sunday!

 So have you tried Cross-fit?  If so, how did you like it?

Signing up for more Cross-fit classes,
Candydiva04

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