Health

Heath, Tuna Spinach Salad.

I saw this recipe on the back of a tuna packet and said, "Why not?"  The only thing I switched out was mandarin oranges for grapes. Tuna and oranges just didn't mix in my mind.  However, I have seen grapes and cranberries for tuna salad.  It tasted great, but I would eat it right away.

Here is a pic of my salad:

Ingredients:
1/2 bag spinach
1/4 cup grapes cut in half
2 TBSP chopped red onion
2 TBSP shredded parm cheese 
1 packet of light tuna
3 TBSP of an oil based dressing.

Heath, Turkey Bacon Asparagus

Bacon wrapped asparagus!  This is a easy, healthy, yummy dinner.  The Turkey bacon flavor really mixes well with the asparagus. One of my new favorites! 

First, cut the end off your asparagus, and then boil your it for about ten minutes. Strain.  Put the pan back on the burner and spray some Pam on it. 

Next, sprinkle garlic and salt on the asparagus. Lay the asparagus on the turkey bacon then roll it up.  Do not over lap.  Let it go up the asparagus as your roll. 

Lastly, let it fry 3-5 minutes on each side on a medium heat. 

End result:

Health, Chinese food

I love Chinese food.  I don't believe in giving up things you love.  I just think we should eat healthier versions of them.  Here are some tips on eating healthy Chinese food! I mix and match these a lot. 

This is my brown rice bowl.  All under 300 calories!  I had imitation crab meat, broccoli, pepper, salt, soy sauce, spray butter, garlic, and a cup of brown rice in mine.  YUM!

Sushi from Wegmans can be really low in calories. This brown rice veggie one is only 170 calories!  It is easy to stay under 200 calories with fish meat (shrimp or crab).  

Roasted garlic rice noodle soup bowl from Thai Kitchen is the bomb!  It comes with three packets; oil, seasonings, and dried veggies.  This is 250 calories altogether, but I take out the oil packet.  It still tastes great without it. 

Look for egg-rolls in your freezer isle.  This one only is 120 calories.  The whole meal was 320, but I also had a salad with it. ;)   

Veggie stir fries are great.  This one is only 152 calories a serving.  You can also find some in your freezer isle.  Here is the recipe link: http://www.mccormick.com/Recipes/Main-Dish/Chicken-and-Vegetable-Stir-Fry.aspx

Health, challenged completed

I finished my challenge!  Whenever I finished a workout I would rip off a tab.  I had 10 workouts and two weeks to do it.  They had to be at least 20 minutes, but most of the time I would go over.  If I wanted to do more than one workout in a day I would allow myself. However, I could not do more than two in one day.  There were times I would work out for over an hour because I wanted to.

I am going to do this challenge again but each tab would represent 20 minutes and NOT a specific workout.  I want to change up my goals. In order to rip off two tabs I have to reach 40 minutes.  If I only do a half hour I can only rip off one.  

Going for a walk and ripping off a tab! 

Close up of the challenge paper :) 

My hubby and I after a bike ride. 

Heath, Fast food

Sometimes it is just impossible to make dinner.  You are in a rush and over stressed. The family is hungry and you don't have time to stop home.  Here is a simple list of foods I love from fast food restaurants. I probably eat fast food once a month...This is including Subway or Panera. 

My number one all time favorite "fast food" restaurant is Subway.  99% of the time I will order a veggie sub on wheat bread.  The sweet onion dressing is my favorite.  I promise if you are a veggie lover you will NOT miss the meat.  It is loaded with flavor and doesn't need cheese. It only has 460 calories so I will eat the whole foot long.  Here is a pic of my sub from last Saturday. 

McDonalds has delicious salads.  I would be super careful of the dressings.  The two dressings I would recommend are the Light Balsamic Vinaigrette (40 calories) or the Low Fat Italian Dressing (60 calories). Both dressings are from Newman.  Another tip is NOT to get crispy chicken.  This will add almost 200 calories compared to grilled chicken. OUCH!  My favorite salad is the Southwest Salad with grilled chicken (290 calories.)  The Caesar Salad with grilled chicken only has 190 calories.  Lastly, the Bacon Ranch Salad with grilled chicken has 230 calories.  Remember to add your calories for the dressings! 

(Above: Southwest Salad.)

Some Panera Breads offer a drive through now. Even though their service is fast inside this is a great convenience. The Panera Bread You Pick Two option is great! My two options are usually the Low fat Chicken Soup (80 calories) and Smoked Turkey Breast on Country (210 calories).  I ask for no Mayo and just mustard to bring the calorie count down to around 150.  I also get wheat bread for a side (180 calories) or an apple (80 calories). 

Another favorite at McDonalds is their vanilla ice cream cone.  This is a great treat for 150 calories! 

Health, Four awesome salads

I have salad 2-3 times a week for dinner.  It depends on how many times I have them for lunch that week.  Salads are not a burden for me to eat.  I have loved them since I was a kid.  They are really one of my favorite meals.  However, I think you need to change them up once in awhile. Here are four salads I had recently. BTW, ALL of them are under 300 calories.  Most are around 250! 

Sweet Summer Strawberry Salad: 1/2 boiled egg, feta cheese, dehydrated strawberries, broccoli, and red onions.  I would use a light sweet dressing for this salad. I used Margetti Light Raspberry Cabernet dressing. 

Apple Chicken Salad:  3oz chicken breast, 1/2 dehydrated apple, broccoli, red onion, carrots, and cheddar cheese. I would use a sweet light dressing for this salad or a balsamic dressing. 

Classic Julian Salad: Deli turkey breast, croutons, carrots, broccoli, red onions, and 1/2 boiled egg. I would recommend a light ranch dressing for this.  My personal favorite is Kraft Light Three Cheese Ranch.  Everyone that tries it says they like it.  It doesn't taste light. It is my all time favorite dressing with only 70 calories a serving. I sometimes don't need to add cheese to my salad because the cheese taste in this dressing POPS!

Crazy Crab Salad: I might be crazy for putting crab in my salad, but it sure tastes amazing.  Imitation crab meat, croutons, 1 tablespoon of Parmesan, red onion (of course), cucumber, and a 1/2 boiled egg. I would use light ranch for this one as well. :) 

Health, fun exercising tip

Here is a great motivator for exercising.  Cut ten tabs at the bottom of a landscape page one inch in width. Write down different types of exercising that you enjoy or are able to do.  I wrote down jogging and bike riding as a challenge.  Weights is for the rainy days.  Walking is for the days I need to burn extra calories but need a break.  There are only ten tabs, but 14 days in two weeks.  This means I have four days off.  This is going to be a fun goal to reach.  I wrote on the paper at least 20 minutes a day and a verse for motivation.  I drew a picture of a guy on a bike for a visual. 

 When I do the exercise I will pull the corresponding tab!    

This is the original so I could make more copies.  I kept it blank in case I wanted to change my goal.  You could always do this in three weeks instead of two. I wanted to give myself a challenge since I already work out three times a week.  You could also write down the reward you get for completing it. 

Health, dehydrating apples

Different people dehydrate for different reasons.  Mine is for snacking and toppings.  Instead of snacking on a bag of chips why not snack on crunchy apple chips? Fewer calories and it is good for you. I really like the taste and so does my hubby! 

First I start out with my GSD Mandolin Slicer.  This thing is a life saver. (I will do a blog on it soon)

After I run it through my slicer I simply cut down the center.  Most people take off the skin because it will cause the apple to go bad faster, but I don't plan on keeping this around very long. ;)

 Next, I lay them down on my dehydrator, plug it in, put the cap on, and let it dehydrate over night. 

This is what it looks like in the morning.  Ready to go!

I usually put them right into the baggies.  This will keep them portion controlled.

They go great on salads instead of croutons!  Adds a lot of flavor.

Health, 120 calorie pancakes!

These are amazing!  They taste like french toast and pancakes mixed together.  Super easy to make and not many ingredients.  It looks like a small serving, but this is my giant dinner plate.  Pretty sweet deal here. 

Ingredients:
2 ounces of room temp fat free cream cheese (60 cal), 1/2 cup of egg substitute (60 cal), 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, 1 packet of Splenda.

NOTE:  Do not add fruit to the mixture.  I did and they did not turn out the first time.  Add the fruit on top for extra flavor.

Directions:
First, preheat skillet on a med-low heat (spray with nonstick in between every pancake). Second, add all the ingredients to the blender and mix until smooth. Third, wait two minutes until mixture settles. Fourth, add 1/4 of the mixture to skillet and wait two minutes to flip or until edges are cooked. Lastly, cook the backside for one minute or until brown.  Continue to do these steps with the rest of the mixture.

The pancakes themselves have 120 calories.  1/4 of a cup of no sugar maple syrup has 35 calories.  I love this recipe because you can add some chocolate chips on top and not feel bad about it....just not the whole bag. ;)

Health, Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner

Here is a typical breakfast for me:  fruit or flax seed oatmeal (usually dark chocolate flavored).  It really depends on what I am eating for lunch.  If I have something higher in carbs and/or calories for lunch I will eat fruit.  If I am having something light I will eat oatmeal.  

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Lunch is always different:  Salads, soups, broccoli salad, sandwich, 100 calorie pack popcorn, dehydrated apple chips, creamed spinach, Fruit, and broccoli and cheese.  I mix and match a lot.  

 Broccoli salad recipe: One medium broccoli head cut, 1 tbsp of crumbled feta cheese, 2 1/2 tbsp of Marzetti lite caesar dressing (oil based), 1/4 cup red onion chopped, 1 packet of Stevia. Mix and enjoy.

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This is my anniversary dinner (I don't have this stuff every day).  I didn't want to go out to eat this year so we just stopped at Wegmans and splurged.  8 brown rice sushi rolls, one mini egg roll, 3 crab rolls, avocado hummus, and wheat rice cakes broken in pieces (for dipping). Again this is not my typical dinner :).  

Under 400 Calories. :)  

Health, a choice.

I made a decision when I was young to be healthy.  Now my teen years I was NOT doing the whole eating healthy thing right when I thought I was.  Society and culture told me to eat a certain way to lose weight so I did.  Eating five pieces of bologna for breakfast because it has no carbs in it is not the smartest decision I have ever made. They key to a healthy life is simply substitution and moderation. I enjoy so many different recipes that taste like the real thing (or close) only a lot healthier. I eat fruits and veggies more than anyone I know, but you have to have carbs sometimes......Here are some of my favs! 

NO OIL!  Here is a link that saved my life: www.thekitchn.com .  Now the only thing I do different is put them in the oven for 8 minutes.  Than I flip them in the microwave every minute until they are brown.  However, every oven and microwave are not made equal.  Just the microwave might work for you.... There are 310 calories in 2 ounces of Potato Chips.  In my potato chips (4 oz potato) there are 88 calories. As you can tell my hubby loves dip (good thing is it low calorie.)

FRENCH TOAST- 130 calories

Dash of cinnamon and sweetener - 0cals
2 tbsp of sugar free maple syrup -20 cal
2 slices of light bread -80 cal
1/2 cup of egg substitute- 60cal

PIZZA 235 calories...

1 and half English muffin -125 calories
1/4 cup of pizza sauce - 40 calories
1/4 cup fat free cheese- 45 calories
6 Turkey pepperoni- 15

Add whatever toppings you want..I added garlic, pepper, and onions. SOOOOO GOOD!