Stuffed Sausage Jalapeno Poppers

Ingredients:
Recipe makes 12 servings
1 ground beef or turkey
1/2 pound ground pork sausage
1/4 onion
1 tomato
6 mushrooms
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1 pound large fresh jalapeno peppers, halved lengthwise and seeded
1 (8 ounce) bottle Ranch dressing (optional)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
Place sausage in a skillet over medium heat, and cook until evenly brown. Drain grease.
In a bowl, mix the sausage, cream cheese, and Parmesan cheese. Spoon about 1 tablespoon sausage mixture into each jalapeno half. Arrange stuffed halves in baking dishes.
Bake 20 minutes in the preheated oven, until bubbly and lightly browned. Serve with Ranch dressing.

Tip: 

You can also wrap the jalapeno after it has been filled with bacon. It changes it up a bit for something different. 

You can also use turkey bacon or turkey sausage for lower fat and calories, along with Greek cream cheese for added protein. 

I add vegetables in mine: tomatoes, garlic, onion

TIPS for Eating Out

Its Friday and I'm sure your weekend is packed with picnics, graduation parties, birthday parties or dinner at a restaurant. As I'm writing this sentence my blood pressure is already starting to rise because I know that all of these things are filled with high fat, sugary, and hard to resist temptations. The last birthday party I went to the menu consisted of nachos, subs, candy, cake, ice cream, enchiladas, high calorie lemonade and I am sure many other things that I tried not to look at. So needless to say there was not much for me to choose from. I did my best to keep it clean. People kept giving me weird stares and offering me cake and cookies. I politely declined and drank my water and ate my fruit. When I got home I prepared myself a healthy snack.

To keep from having to stress every time you go out in public to a restaurant or an event here are some tips fromTosca Reno's Stripped book to keep your blood pressure in check!

Planning is best, when you are out you always need a game plan. You should avoid eating out as much as possible because once you enter a restaurant you surrender control over what is in your food.

1. Develop an "I don't have to eat it all!" Mindset. Make up your mind before you go that you don't have to get the most bang for your buck by cleaning your plate. KEEP YOUR GOAL IN MIND.

2. Satisfy hunger only-Don't Gorge. Eat for the purpose of satisfying your hunger, but no more.

3. Start small and green. Start your meal with a salad, without dressing. Use a spritz of lemon or some balsamic vinegar.

4. Broth is best. When there is no salad option have a broth based soup.

5. NO BREAD PLEASE! Remember this is not helping you achieve your 10 pound weight loss goal.

6. Clean Cooking techniques rock! Look for entree options featuring steamed or raw veggies and grilled, baked or roasted meats or fish. If they aren't listed, ask the server to prepare it that way. Oh and don't always trust the low fat or fat free symbols.

7. Portion control is in. Have a good look at your plate when it arrives. Ask for a doggie bag and split your meal in half.

8. Fletcherize. The practice of chewing each mouthful a min of 25 times. It gives your body a chance to recognize when you are becoming full. (This is very hard to do when you are with kids, because you never know when they have had enough and you will have to leave your meal behind to take the kids out).

9. Zero Tolerance. You want to avoid alcohol because sugar can derail you in the most powerful way. Have sparkling water with lemon or lime slices.

10. Stop before the end. Think of your plan to shed those pounds, if you can't resist something sweet ask for a dish of fresh fruit and leave it at that!

If you doubt your ability to resist restaurant offerings then pre-eat! Then when you go to a restaurant or social event you don't have to worry about what's on the menu and you can focus on socializing.

If you can't resist the dessert table then pack a few clean cookies in a Ziploc bag and pull them out with your coffee while everyone else is eating their sugar laden cookies and cake. If you have to go through a drive through, familiarize yourself with the menu. Never super size and make smart food choices by ordering grilled chicken and a side salad. Cut up the chicken and place on salad and go with olive and vinegar dressing or, low fat balsamic.

One of the most difficult things to manage while following a healthy lifestyle is your social life. So surround yourself with family and friends that support what you are doing and are not sabotaging your efforts. Instead of going out drinking or to a restaurant here are some alternatives.

Meet a friend at the gym
Have a game night at home with healthy clean snacks
Batters up- organize a kickball or softball game in your neighborhood or with the kids.
Volunteer together at a local charity
Meet at the park for a walk or bike ride
Do a Zumba Class together

Go to a free "Fit Club Class" -coming soon: to sign up message me.

Eating clean and creating a healthy lifestyle doesn't have to mean that you are becoming a boring person. There is so much more to experience than food and drinks! Live outside the box and you will have people wondering what you are doing because your energy and personality are on fire!!!

Pasta Puttanesca

Just because you're eating healthy doesn't mean you have to forgo your favorites. This pasta dish made with tomatoes, olives, and capers will satisfy your cravings.

Total Time: 23 min.
Prep Time: 10 min.
Cooking Time: 13 min.
Yield: 4 servings, about 1½ cups each

Ingredients:
8 oz. dry whole wheat spaghetti
1 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
4 anchovy fillets, drained
1 (14.5-oz.) can diced tomatoes, no added salt
¼ cup pitted chopped Spanish (or Greek) olives
2 Tbsp. capers
1 tsp. dried oregano leaves
¼ tsp. crushed red pepper
1/3 cup chopped flat-leaf (Italian) parsley
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese

Preparation:
1. Cook pasta according to package directions; drain. Set aside. Keep warm.
2. Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat.
3. Add garlic, anchovies, and crushed pepper; cook, stirring frequently, for 3 minutes, or until anchovies melt into oil and completely dissolve and garlic is tender.
4. Add tomatoes, olives, capers, oregano, and parsley. Bring sauce to a boil. Reduce heat to low; gently boil for 5 to 8 minutes.
5. Add pasta to sauce. Toss gently to coat; cook, stirring frequently, for 2 minutes, or until heated through.

Nutritional Information (per serving):
Calories: 311
Fat: 9 g
Saturated Fat: 2 g
Cholesterol: 9 mg
Sodium: 618 mg
Carbohydrate: 50 g
Fiber: 2 g
Sugar: 3 g
Protein: 13 g

P90X/P90X2 Portions (per serving)
1 carb/grain
½ protein
½ fat

P90X3 Portions (per serving)
2½ carb/grain
½ protein
1 fat

Body Beast Portions (per serving)
2 starches
1 vegetable
1½ fat
1 protein

21 Day Fix Portions (per serving)
2 yellow containers
½ red container
1 teaspoon

My Idea Of Clean Eating

What is Clean Eating?

Part of the problem with getting to the bottom of what clean eating is, is that everyone seems to have a different definition of what actually constitutes ‘clean’. You’ve got your bodybuilder definition, your paleo definition, your vegan definition, your celebrity doctor definition and on and on and on. Not only that, but those definitions can vary wildly from individual to individual.

What follows is my definition of clean eating, I don’t claim that it’s the ‘right’ definition; these are simply the personal guidelines I use to stay healthy.

What Clean Eating is NOT!

So, with that in mind, let’s go over some things clean eating isn’t: it’s not a diet, it’s not calorie-restriction, it’s not about meal frequency, it’s not about depriving yourself of things you love and it isn’t about perfection.

People often equate clean eating with sacrifice, but it’s actually about finding healthy alternatives to unhealthy food. 

Sure it takes more work, but the results are certainly worth it. Also remember that as you clean up your eating habits, your tastes change and you get to the point where you actually crave healthy food. Sounds crazy, but it’s true.

MY CLEAN EATING GUIDELINES

So, I really believe in keeping it short and sweet! I do not think it takes a lot of "knowledge" to eat clean. My motto is: Anything God created to eat, I can eat! With the exception of the things that man has altered. For example: things may say "wheat," but it is soft and squishy....guess what, God did not make it, it has been altered by man! You need to look at the ingredients, if it says bleached or enriched...it is not made by God :) It has to say "whole wheat" etc. The less ingredients it has the better! Also, if you cannot read the ingredients, chances are God did not create it. 
So here it is in a nut shell: if it is man made...do not eat it! 

I used the 21 Day Fix to help me learn exactly how to do this! It really helped me to focus in on portion control and eating clean. I highly recommend this for beginners. Please contact me if you would like more information about this program.(21 Day Fix)

This is the bread I buy and you can buy it at sprouts. They have several different kinds and they even have tortillas but they have to be refrigerated because they have no preservatives in them. 

What to do:

Eat more- eat six small meals each day.
Eat breakfast every day, within an hour of rising.
Eat a combination of lean protein and complex carbs at each meal
Eat sufficient (two to three servings) healthy fats every day.
Carry a cooler packed with clean foods each day.
Depend on fresh fruits and vegetables for fiber, vitamins, nutrients and enzymes.
Adhere to proper portion sizes.

Avoid these most of the time…

Like we said earlier, clean eating isn’t about perfection – any way of eating which requires perfection is going to be hard to sustain in the long run; eating is also a social affair, so it’s nice to be able to join in with friends and family. That said, to eat clean, you want to avoid the following most (90%) of the time:

Avoid processed food.

Convenient, but you pay for that convenience because processed foods are usually high in chemical additives, trans fats, salts and refined sugars.

Avoid most refined foods.

This means refined flour, sugars (high-fructose, white, brown, and the rest), trans-fats etc. If you’re interested in cutting down body fat, of special importance is to cut out refined sugars, which due to their affect on insulin levels and hormone sensitive lipase, aids in fat loss.

Avoid artificial ingredients and preservatives.

As the saying goes: if you can’t pronounce it, don’t eat it. If it’s made in a lab, don’t eat it. This includes artificial sweeteners!

Avoid alcohol.

The long and short of it is: alcohol is a toxin. It’s also an excellent social lubricant, so if you’re going to drink, make sure you keep it low to moderate.

Avoid soda, high calorie creamers, energy drinks and fruit juice.

Don’t drink your calories: soda is loaded with sugar, diet soda is loaded with artificial sweeteners and fruit juice is also often loaded with refined sugar and of course, natural sugars.

If you just stick to the above guidelines most of the time, you’ll be well on your way to a clean eating lifestyle. As said before, it’s not about perfection, but the more you can cut out the above factors, the healthier you’ll be.

Do this most of the time…

Account for individuality.
First and foremost, whatever eating habits you choose to make, you need to make it about you. In other words, you need to tailor your diet to:
1) your own food sensitivities and intolerance's (if any)
2) your personal preferences.

For example: if you are gluten and lactose intolerant, then clean eating, for you would mean, that you would have to avoid wheat and dairy products.

Eat according to your goals.

Eating to lose weight, maintain your weight, or gain weight (in the form of lean muscle, hopefully!) have different calorie requirements.

Eat plenty vegetables.

Veggies, veggies, veggies! Get as many veggies as you can.  The idea is to make sure you have a variety of veggies on your plate (as many colors of the rainbow as you can get) and to vary the veggies you eat as often as possible.

Eat fruits in moderation.
Fruits are a sweet treat and a nutritious alternative to candies and other refined sugars, but it is possible to eat too many. Fruit can make you gain weight! Also, modern day fruits are generally much larger and higher in sugar than they would have been naturally (hybridization).

Eat high-quality meats.

If you’re a vegetarian or vegan you have plant-based alternatives. For the meat eaters, aim to get lean meat and limit your red meat to 2 times a week.

Eat healthy fats.

Healthy fats don’t make you fat, they’re good for you! Yes, even some healthy (i.e. from a high-quality source) saturated fats. You can get healthy fats from, for example, fish (e.g. anchovies and sardines), nuts and seeds (e.g. walnuts, almonds, chia seeds), avocados, eggs, oils (olive oil, coconut oil).

Use high-quality supplement(s).

I highly recommend Shakeology! It has done wanders for me and I use this rather than the daily vitamins.

Drink mostly water and enough of it.
Your daily water consumption should be half of your body weight in ounces. 

For instance: If you weight 100lbs, then you should be dring 50oz. 

Now, if you weigh more than 260lbs, then your goal (in my opinion) should be a gallon (128oz) a day, instead of half your weight.

Pure, unadulterated water is the best way to stay hydrated, chuck the soda, chuck the fruit juice and stick to water most of the time, herbal teas and moderate use of coffee (remembering that caffeine has a 6 hour half-life in the body, so it’s best to drink it earlier in the morning). 

(Credit: FitbodyHQ)