Showing posts with label lowcarb. Show all posts
Showing posts with label lowcarb. Show all posts

Thursday, January 23, 2020

Recipe Find: Baked Salmon with Garlic Butter Sauce

Low carb days in the FASTer Way mean lots of protein and healthy fats. I like to plan salmon dishes on my low carb days to help hit my goals for the day. To be honest, I rarely make my salmon any other way since finding this super yummy recipe on Delish (dot) com.

The recipe calls for you to bake the salmon on a bed of lemon slices, but I skip this step most weeks because it's fine without it and I'm all about keeping things simple. I usually serve the salmon with steamed broccoli and mashed cauliflower to stay within my low carb day goals, but it would be delicious with rice or quinoa, too.





INGREDIENTS

2 lemons, thinly sliced
1 large salmon fillet (about 3 lb.)
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
6 tbsp. butter, melted
2 tbsp. honey
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. chopped thyme leaves
1 tsp. dried oregano
Chopped fresh parsley, for garnish

DIRECTIONS

  • Preheat oven to 350°. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with foil and grease with cooking spray. To the center of the foil, lay lemon slices in an even layer.
  • Season both sides of the salmon with salt and pepper and place on top of lemon slices.
  • In a small bowl, whisk together butter, honey, garlic, thyme, and oregano. Pour over salmon then fold up foil around the salmon. Bake until the salmon is cooked through, about 25 minutes. Switch the oven to broil, and broil for 2 minutes, or until the butter mixture has thickened.
  • Garnish with parsley before serving.

The other thing I love about this recipe is that everything is baked in foil, so clean up is a breeze! That leaves me more time for my FASTer Way low carb day workouts!!

Let me know if you give it a go!

You can learn more about the FASTer Way program and when my next amazing group starts -> here.



Saturday, November 3, 2018

Low Carb Meal Planning Made Easy

It’s an exciting day for me. I have clients finishing up their first round of FASTer Way to Fat Loss® and getting ready to send me their final results. I CANNOT wait to CELEBRATE their success!

I also have a new group starting TOMORROW who are ready to THRIVE through the holidays and CRUSH their health and wellness goals. 

I do still have a few spots remaining -> so if you are thinking about joining I would jump on that registration right away and get your spot!

Today I want to talk a little about carb cycling (one of the strategies that we use in the FASTer Way to Fat Loss®  program) and how to make meal planning easier if you are just getting started.




For those that are unfamiliar with carb cycling, it is simply an intentional variation of carbohydrate intake. Some days you’re eating fewer carbs and some days you’re eating more.

For anyone who is new to carb cycling, it can feel a little overwhelming when you start thinking about meal planning. But it doesn’t have to be.

Here are a couple of tips for making meal planning easier if you are carb cycling:

1.  Always plan your meal around lean protein and healthy veggies and fats. If you focus on these things, you won’t miss the carbs on low carb days and you can easily add them in on regular macro days when your carb intake is higher.

For dinner your main meal plan could be grilled chicken and veggies. This is
all you need on a low carb day. On a regular macro day (when your carb intake is higher)
you could add rice, a baked potato, quinoa.

For breakfast your main meal could be bacon and eggs. Then on regular macro day you can add in the carbs with hash browns, toast, pancakes.

For lunch your main could be turkey rollups and carrots. For higher carb days add the bread and some fruit.

2.  Take your favorite meals and do a low carb swap. This means that you are going to take away the high carb item and replace it with a low carb item.  

Instead of mashed potatoes, make mashed cauliflower – again you can do this yourself or find a pre-made option in the grocery.

Spaghetti – everyone loves spaghetti. Make it low carb by replacing the pasta with zucchini noodles!

Breakfast toast - replace it with a low carb plain rice cake and choose low carb toppings like peanut butter or avocado 

3. Make your family favorites but offer two simple options: high carb and low carb.

On taco night, serve tortillas and hard shells along with lettuce cups.

For sloppy joe sandwiches or burgers off the grill, serve buns and lettuce wraps.

I hope you found this information helpful. I would love for you to let me know or if you have a question leave it in the comments! You can also check out my Pinterest board for low carb recipes ---> here.

Learn more about carb cycling in my next round of FASTer Way to Fat Loss® and start your journey to a healthier you!



Monday, September 24, 2018

Tips for Successful Low Carb Days

Low carb diets are a strategic way to teach our bodies to burn stored fat. When consuming fewer grams of carbs throughout the day, our bodies deplete of glycogen and reach to stored fat for energy.

Most people starting a low carb diet for the first time will struggle in the beginning and sometimes feel withdrawal like symptoms (headache, puffiness), especially if they are coming from a high carb, high processed food diet. This is caused by the transition our bodies go through while going from a sugar burner to a fat burner and adjusting to a new eating cycle.


Here are some tips for a successful low carb day:

1. Plan your meals - If you have an idea of what you are going to eat throughout the day, go ahead and log it into My Fitness Pal and check your nutrient goals. This is a great way to make sure you don't exceed your carb intake goal and lets you see where you need to make adjustments.

2. Have low carb snacks ready - Snacks are often the culprit when exceeding low carb goals. Plan your low carb snacks and have them on hand so you don't have to think about it. Nuts, raw veggies, jerky, even a protein shake are great low carb snack ideas.

3. Drink plenty of water - Avoid carb loaded drinks and instead drink lots of water. Staying hydrated will prevent cravings and help flush the body as it processes all the protein and healthy fats you are consuming during your eating window.

4. Vary your foods - It's good to have go-to protein choices, but keep it interesting by mixing in different proteins. Instead of always going for the chicken recipes, try fish, sausage, pork. Also, try preparing foods in new ways, like mashed or riced cauliflower!

5. Consume healthy fats - Healthy fats like fish, nuts, avocado, oils, will help you feel full and will help you reach your calorie goal for the day. Healthy fats have more calories per gram than protein and carbs.


Consuming an intentional low carb diet will help turn our bodies into fat burning machines. In the FASTer Way to Fat Loss® program we cycle low carb days and regular carb days. Click here to learn more about my bootcamps and I will show you how to pair workouts with low carb days for optimal results!



Tuesday, August 1, 2017

Intense Circuits and Magazine Covers!

Since I didn't pass out while doing a portion of my workout outside yesterday, I thought I would do it again today. I knew it was going to be warm. The weather has been nothing less than intense here lately. However, I was hoping to find some amount of relief from a breeze because I was going to do my workout right outside our building at the windiest spot in Discovery Bay.

Except today there was no breeze. At all. mrC joined me and as soon as we stepped outside, it was like we walked into a sauna. We decided to tough it out. Behind our building is a play area with some benches. It's next to what can best be described as a side street although it's mainly used by golf carts.


The FWTFL workout was basically three parts:

Part 1 - HIIT circuit: four exercises (burpees, jump squats, push-ups and mountain climbers with a twist) broken up by 30 seconds runs repeated 3-5 times. We used the benches to do the exercises and then ran the 30 second runs on the street. It really worked out perfectly ---> minus that whole no breeze thing. We did three rounds and called it.



Part 2 - Ab circuit on steroids: 5 sets of weighted Russian twists, 5 sets of ab bicycles, and 4 sets of leg raises. We went inside for this part because I cannot lay down outside on the dirty ground. I was literally sweating from every body part including my knees! This part was tough and I wondered if I would make it through. I said something to mrC and he replied, "two more sets." And that kept me going.


Part 3 - The cool down: low intensity cardio. We went back outside for a walk. We ended up walking a mile loop. There still wasn't a breeze to speak of, but it felt good to be outside moving slowly. We practically had the streets to ourselves except for the occasional dog walker and one guy whizzing by us on his bike.



All of my workout gear was completely soaked in sweat when we stopped including my cute tropical shorts from GAP. I was less than thrilled that the windiest spot on DB wasn't windy at all. But, just like yesterday, it felt good to finish a tough workout. Tough by design and tough because of the heat.


In other news, the magazine article about the DB Ladies SUP group came out. It's a great article, but I didn't expect to see myself displayed on the cover! It's very weird to walk past this magazine stand at the entrance to our building and see myself.


We made the crazy decision to go out in the afternoon heat to pick up mrC's dry cleaning. A short walk to the plaza had us dripping in sweat and seeking refuge in the grocery. Ironically if you stay inside too long, you'll freeze by air conditioning. We had some time to kill before an unexpected appointment for a quick checkup with the doctor and there was finally a breeze blowing, so we relaxed at the plaza tables.


Low carb day 2 - the meals

Broke fast around 11:00 - I was hungrier today than yesterday.


Lunch - I have to admit, it was hard to resist adding Swiss cheese to my roll-ups.


Dinner - a little leftovers from last night plus a big salad




Do you ever use outdoor public areas for your workouts (besides running)?
What words motivate you to keep going during a tough workout?
Ever been on or in a magazine?


Today I'm linking up with PattyErika, and Marcia for Tuesdays on the Run! 




Monday, July 31, 2017

There's Just Something About Mondays



Sprint ladder and Tabata. I have to admit I was looking forward to my FASTer Way to Fat Loss® workout when I read the schedule for today. The last two weeks I had to miss my low carb speed burst workouts for one reason or another. There's just something about starting the week with a good, tough workout.

After Skyping with my dad and stepmom, I headed to the fitness center. mrC had some errands, but he walked me there. I jumped on a treadmill for the first part of the workout: sprint ladder


I was going to do this outside on the promenade, but thought it would be too hot. It wasn't so bad on the treadmill. It probably would have been harder outside, but it felt good to sprint. After the last sprint, I continued an easy run for about 10 minutes more. I was surprised at the end to only see a total of 1.56 miles, but I did walk the rest between sprints. It gives me a goal for next time to try to run the rest breaks. 


I looked around the fitness center for a place to do my Tabata workout and came up empty. It's really my only complaint about the place. I wish they had a separate room for floor exercises or yoga. I headed outside thinking I would try to find a space or go back to our tiny Hong Kong apartment and do it. I texted mrC to let him know that I was attempting to do this part outside and if it was too hot, I would go home. I found a great little area just around the corner from the fitness club front door that looked promising.


Ironically, I ended up doing the whole Tabata workout outside. The bench was a perfect spot. I could put my bag and water there while the Interval app on my phone guided me through the exercises.


At the end I was so sweaty that my hair looked like I had just stepped out of the shower and I had my typical very red face. I wish I had braved the warm weather and done my sprints outside, but now I know that I can. Other than that, I was feeling pretty awesome about today's workout.


I was going to walk back to the apartment (which means up a very big hill), but the bus came just as I was walking by the bus stop. I figured it was meant to be and took the bus. After a shower, I spent the rest of the morning working on my Hong Kong Host duties and then watched Big Brother.

PS - I re-read my workout schedule and the sprint ladder had been removed from today's workout! 

Low carb day - the meals

Broke fast about 12:30


Dinner -


Snack -



Do you look forward to your Monday workout?
Where would you workout: small indoor space or warm outdoor space?


Wednesday, July 5, 2017

Low Carb-ing at the Cape

The final week of the Faster Way To Fat Loss carb cycling program kicked off just as we were also starting our family vacation at Cape Cod. Fortunately I have a very active family who likes to workout.

Week 6 Low Carb Days - the workouts


Speed Bursts - Our Cape house is about half a mile walk to the beach, so the parking lot looked like the perfect spot to do our interval sprints. The workout for both days was sprint at 100% effort for 20 seconds, recover for 40 seconds, repeat 20 times. On day 1, one of my step daughters and mrC joined me. We did half of the sprints before the lot opened to the public (we had the wrong time), so we finished them in front of  the house. On day 2, mrC and I went earlier and did all 20 sprints at the beach ---> and I missed the box jumps part of the workout again. 

HIIT - Back at the house, we did the second part of the low carb day workouts. Day 1 was a leg workout: squats, lunges, step-ups and scissor jumps (I did jumps squats instead). Day 2 was an ab circuit: Russian twists, bicycles, leg lifts.

Low Intensity Cool Down - bike rides ---> it's nice to take the bikes for a spin and not have to worry about giant hills.


Week 6 Low Days - the meals


Monday - broke fast around 12: scrambled eggs with ham, one PB&J rice cake, turkey and Swiss rollups with a salad for lunch and chicken and green beans for dinner.

Tuesday - broke fast around 11:30: scrambled eggs with ham and two PB&J rices cakes (I was low on calories the day before) and then it was 4th of July celebration time. Chips and salsa followed by a cookout with cheeseburgers, baked, beans, and corn on the cob.


After dinner we walked to the beach to continue the celebration with a fun little Sparkler Party. 



Did you workout and celebrate?



Tuesday, June 27, 2017

Speed Burst Days

Low carb day in the FASTer Way to Fat Loss® means speed bursts and speed bursts are my favorite workout right now. Probably because I'm a cardio girl. I tend to gravitate more toward the workouts that are sweaty and get the heart rate going.

Week 5 Low Carb Day 1 - the workout


Speed Burst - I chose to take a Bodystep class again because I can get high intensity, intervals, and all the leg exercises like squats, lunges, step ups, and all kinds of jumps. Since there are typically 12 tracks in a class, the warm-up and cool-down are included. This class kicked my butt. Literally. I could feel myself struggling through some of the peak tracks, but later in the day I completely fell off the struggle bus and landed in bed. I think I was just dehydrated, but I felt like garbage.

Low Carb Day 1 - the meals

broke fast around noon - 3 scrambled eggs with ham, 2 PB&J rice cakes


lunch - leftover Italian chicken breast and greens beans

dinner - leftover Italian chicken breast and greens beans

snacks - handful of peanuts and half a protein bar

Low carb day 2 - the workout


Warm up - I walked about 10 minutes to the beach

Speed Burst - I chose sprint intervals for a private little Track Party-like workout. The workout was sprint at 100% effort for 20 seconds (about 100 meters) and recover for 40 (I walk around for this) seconds. Repeat 18 times. I was worried that it was going to rain, but it only sprinkled a little in the beginning. I can tell that my endurance has improved from the first set of sprints, because I didn't start to feel the leg wobble until the last 4 or 5 sprints.

AB circuit - I totally meant to do this when I got back to the apartment, but I completely forgot until now as I write this post. I was supposed to do: russian twists, bicycles, crunches and leg lifts. To my credit, I did most of these or similar in Bodystep. So I can say that I did them early, haha!

LISS - Walked home up the hill ---> kept my heart rate in the fat burning zone.

Low carb day 2 - the meals

broke fast at 11:00 - 3 scrambled eggs with ham, 2 PB&J rice cakes

lunch - wasn't hungry today and I had a little getting ready for vacation fun at the nail salon 👇🏻

PS - wearing my Oofos to the salon = happy legs

dinner - leftover Italian chicken breast, green beans and salad

snack - mini chocolate bar, celery and hummus


Have you ever experienced post-workout dehydration symptoms?


Tuesday, June 20, 2017

Treadmill Tuesday - Sprint Workout

Running sprints on the treadmill is not my first choice, but sometimes ya gotta do, what ya gotta do. So I laced up my Wave Sky and headed to the fitness center determined not to let the continued rainy weather stop my planned workout.


Week 4 low carb day 2 - the FWTFL workout 


Warm up - It was raining and we wanted to get to the fitness center before the morning rush, so we took the bus. Instead, I walked on the treadmill for 5 minutes.

Speed bursts - Today I chose to do the interval sprints even though I was going to have to do them on the treadmill (my fear of slipping and hurting my knee still keeps me from running outside in the rain). The workout was 20 seconds run, 40 seconds recover. Repeat 16 times. 

This was my first attempt at sprints on the treadmill since my partial meniscectomy, so I had to play around with the speed a little. I knew my recovery could be around 8km/hr because that is my current easy run speed and I was hoping to run instead of walk through the recovery. I bumped my speed up to 10 - 10.3 range on the sprints and it felt good. I might have been able to go faster, but I like to test how my knee will respond to new things slowly. I completed all 16 sprints this way and am thrilled that my knee handled the treadmill sprints. 


The treadmill has the option to create your own interval workout, but the minimum time is 1 minute. I thought it was going to be hard to manually change the speed, but since I use my interval app I get a 5 second voice countdown alert and that made it much easier. **People have asked which app I use. It's this one on iTunes. I'm happy to share because it took me awhile to find one that was easy to set up and let me run without looking at a timer. I use bluetooth to connect to my Jabra wireless earbuds (which are $30 off on Amazon), but the app also connects to my Apple Watch which alerts me by vibrating**

Ab circuit - A round of ab bicycles, crunches and leg lifts with some planking tossed in at the end.


Cool down - It wasn't raining, so we were able to enjoy the walk back to the apartment.

mrC has been doing the FASTer Way to Fat Loss® Men's Program. Our workouts are not the same, but similar enough that we can go to the fitness center together. It definitely makes carb cycling easier to have him doing it with me and I love that he has gender specific workouts. During past rounds of carb cycling, he just modified the workouts with more weight. He had major success results, but I think this time it will be even better.

Low carb day 2 - the meals

Broke fast at 11:30 - 3 scrambled eggs with ham and one PB&J rice cake

Lunch - 3 turkey roll ups, green beans and some peanuts

Dinner - leftover cheesy chicken and veggie rice

Snack - protein bar



 Do you run sprints on the treadmill?



Monday, June 19, 2017

Burning Calories and Rice-ing Veggies

We're still having ugly rainy weather and one thing currently able to distract me from it is my workouts. One of my favorite fitness classes is back on the schedule and it was a perfect fit for low carb day again.

Week 4 Low carb day - the workout


When I read today's FWTFL workout, I knew that Bodystep would be a great fit again. Today's FWTFL workout called for speed bursts (choose one: 4 cone drill (sprints and shuffles, running stadium steps, or intervals) followed by a HIIT leg circuit (squats, lunges, step ups, scissor jumps).

We did all that and more (abs at the end) in Bodystep today.

If you've never taken a Bodystep class (you totally should, asap), I found the graphic below that breaks it down. The entire class is a HIIT workout and it's 100% addictive.


After class, a local spa had set up a space in the adjoining workout room and was giving free mini massages. It was worth stopping by for a quickie because they also handed out 50% off cards. I can't wait to book an appointment!

Low carb day - the meals

Broke fast about 12:30 - 3 scrambled eggs with ham, 3 sausage links, a dab of maple syrup, one PB&J rice cake ---> that was a lot of food!

Lunch - NA

Snack - popcorn

Dinner - Cheesy chicken and veggie rice


This was a brand new recipe for us that I found on Skinnytaste.com. I love how you can search for recipes based on ingredients, course, season, special diet. This was listed under low carb and it looked so good that I just had to try it.

I don't have access to pre-made "riced" veggies, so I had to look up how to do it. Turns out that it's pretty easy. I bought fresh broccoli and cauliflower and chopped it all into smaller pieces. I used my blender and some water to turn the veggies into rice. I did it like it's shown in this video (I have a Philips blender ((similar to this one on Amazon)) and the 6-8 pulses method worked fine).


After straining the veggies and patting them dry with a paper towel, they look like this. Doesn't this look like a plate of rice?


It's been a while since I shared my macros here. I'm still tracking them on MFP and posting to my FWTFL group. Some days are better than others, but I always hit my low carb day goal of 50 net grams or less.





What's your workout plan for today?
Have you ever made your own veggie rice?


(If you are interested in joining the FASTer Way To Fat Loss program with me, learn more about the program here.)



Friday, June 16, 2017

You Can Do Speed Bursts at Bodystep

Today I made up the low carb day I missed on Tuesday. I've said this before, but I really love how easy it is to make carb cycling work for you. If you need to, you can switch up days because of work, appointments, parties, or whatever. It's no problem.

(If you are interested in joining the FASTer Way To Fat Loss program, here's a link to join and start carb cycling with me! Click here).

Week 3 Low Carb Day - the workout


The FWTFL workout for the day was a choice of Speed bursts followed by an ab circuit. My favorite Bodystep instructor is back from Australia after an extended (almost 2 months) leave, so I had to go back to class.

There are 12 workout tracks in a typical class which means there is a lot, I mean a lot, going on. The whole class is high intensity intervals: cardio followed by strength and ends with a powerful core workout. Here are some of the things I remember doing today, but not necessarily in the right order (after the warm up).

Warm up - step moves mostly on the floor
Warm up part 2 - step moves on the step
Cardio peak - basic stepping with glute leg lifts, burpees, lunges, knee repeaters
Mixed strength - lunges, squats, glute leg lifts with weight plate
Speed track - skaters, speed step, plyo jumps and burpees ---> I thought I would be sick!
Another Cardio peak - I honestly can't remember what we did ;)
Core - oblique focus: side crunch with weight, bent leg side drops, and plank twist with weight
Stretch

After a couple of weeks of missing cardio classes and a couple of months since my last time at Bodystep, this was a tough class. Good, but tough. It felt awesome to see how many calories I torched.


mrC did his low carb day workout outside at the fitness center and then met me in the North Plaza after my class. We probably could have walked home, but the sky looked too unpredictable. We took the bus instead.

OOTD: tank, capris (similar), shoes, bag

Low carb day - the meals

Broke fast at 12:00 - 2.5 scrambled eggs with ham, 3 sausage links, one PB&J rice cake

Lunch - 4 turkey rollups, peanuts and a chocolate protein shake ---> last one, ran out of this protein that I can get on Amazon.


Dinner - leftover chicken and green beans


Has your workout ever caused you to throw up?
I need to buy protein. What's your favorite brand for chocolate shakes?


Today I'm linking up with Nicole for the Fit & Fashionable Friday link-up





Monday, June 12, 2017

Intervals and Body Weight Workouts I Like

Today marks the start of week 3 of carb cycling and I'm feeling great. My biggest NSV (non-scale victory) so far has been adding in runs and upping my weight.

We had one more pleasant morning for an outdoor FASTer Way to Fat Loss® workout before Typhoon Merbok started moving into the Hong Kong region. Today was intervals day.

Week 3 Low Carb Day - the workout


Warm up - we walked to the promenade ---> a perfect spot for an outdoor workout

Speed Bursts - One thing I like about this program is the workout options. Today there were three choices for speed bursts. I've done 7 Up 7 Down. They were tough. Stadium Steps sounded like an awesome challenge, but I'm not sure where I could do them (must look into that). Today, since the first time went so well, it was sprint intervals again. Sprint 100% effort for 20 seconds, rest for 40 seconds. Repeat 14 times (2 more than last time). In the sun and the heat, these are sweat makers. Even with the two extra today, they went pretty fast. Using an interval app that links to my Apple sport watch makes it super easy to do them. So do my new Wave Sky. Seriously loving these shoes so far.


HIIT circuit - this body weight leg workout was tough after sprints but easy to do outside. Air squats, lunges, step ups and squat jumps. Rest and repeat. I only did one round instead of two because I was so hot and I had to pee.

I love body weight workouts. They are so versatile and there are so many online videos to help make it easier to do them when you can't get to the gym, or a fitness class, or when you are traveling. Here are some of my favorite workouts:

from Fitness Blender




from PopSugar Fitness



from Amanda Miller



Cool down - nice slow walk up the hill to the coolest spot in Discovery Bay.

Working out is definitely a team effort in this family. For both of us, having a workout partner is motivating and certainly more fun!


Low carb day - the meals

Broke fast about 11:00 - 3 scrambled eggs with ham and 3 sausage links with a tsp of maple syrup

Lunch - Almond chocolate protein shake (I use Designer Whey - available on Amazon), 1 can of tuna with tbsp of mayo, and PB&J rice cake


Dinner - beef burger (no bun) and green beans

Snack - peanuts

Then we sat back and waited for the typhoon. When we lived in China, getting information about the weather conditions seemed harder. We received alerts on our phone all day and from the management of our apartment building.


Do you like to run stairs?



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