Asian Chicken Salad

Here's another easy recipe....

3 chicken breasts
1 small head of bok choy (or 1/2 of a large), thinly sliced
1/4 cup finely chopped cilantro
3-4 scallions, sliced on the diagonal
3 carrots, grated
4 TBL low sodium soy sauce
4 TBL seasoned rice vinegar
2 TBL sesame seed oil
4 TBL slivered almonds

Poach the chicken breasts in enough water to cover. Poach at least 10 minutes until cooked through. Cool and shred. Toss bok choy, cilantro, carrots, and scallions. Add chicken. Make dressing using a 2:1 ratio of the soy sauce/rice vinegar to the sesame seed oil. Lightly dress the portion of salad you will eat. Top with some almonds that have been lightly toasted in a dry frying pan.

According to nutritiondata.com the recipe analysis is as follows for 4 servings: 275 Calories/serving, 22% carbohydrates, 33% fat, 45% protein

Food Synergy

We all know which foods are good for us but some foods are even better when eaten in combination. For example, more of the iron in spinach is absorbed when ingested with a vitamin C-rich food such as citrus. Here are some combos that work synergistically:

Spinach + citrus fruit (increases iron absorption)
Tomatoes + broccoli (greater cancer-fighting qualities when eaten together)
Vinegar + sushi rice (decreases glycemic index by as much as 35%)
Tomatoes + healthy fat (the body absorbs more of the carotenoids in the tomatoes)
Vegetables + any healthy fat (increases absorption of the phytochemicals)
Herbs and spices + meat (reduces the levels of harmful cancer-causing compounds produced by grilling by 88% - so include herbs and spices in the marinade!)


Here's an easy spinach salad that we could call the "Synergy Spinach Salad"

Spinach leaves
Red onion, thinly sliced
Grapefruit or Strawberries or Mandarin Oranges
Feta Cheese, lightly sprinkled
Dress with orange juice (yes, just orange juice from the juice pitcher or freshly squeezed)
a few grindings of black pepper

Even my daughter eats this salad though she leaves the onion behind.

Recipes

We thought that this would be useful venue to share recipes, especially QUICK and ECONOMICAL meals. So if you're so inclined, share your own or search on the web, then post it here. We can also review our recipes. My husband would like to share that he doesn't like kale, no shape, way or form! So he gives all my kale recipes 2 thumbs down :)

Cleaning the fridge

In the back of our fridge, is an unopened box of petit fours. You know those little squares of cake that are dipped in chocolate, decorated, placed in a pretty liner and packaged in a gold box. We receive this gift every Christmas. The box is unopened because in past years we have tried them. The cake is a little dry, they taste a little sweet but not that good. I sent the box with my husband on a mountain bike race but it came back unopened and I put it back in the fridge. I have know vowed to throw the box in the trash but it's made me wonder why I kept it in the first place. I've got to a point in my life where I cannot afford wasted calories. In the past, when I trained 2-4 hours a day I could pretty much eat anything and, so not to waste food, I would have eaten the petit fours. Now when I eat a treat, it's got to taste great! My husband has known this all along. If it doesn't taste good he won't eat it - perhaps that's why most men don't struggle as much with extra pounds. They are much more discerning in what they eat. So let's all vow to become food snobs and eat only the best tasting food. I'm signing off now to get up and throw that gold box of petit fours into the trash!

Checking on everyone

Hi Everyone,
Just wanted to wish everyone a happy and healthy day.
Laurie and I are still meeting at 5:30 on Mon-Wed-Fri to do
our weight training. Hope all of you are doing well.
See you soon.
Sarah

UGH - Stressful Month

Mom and I have not been working out at all. She has annual audit this month (tomorrow) and I am in the busiest time of my year as far as reporting goes, so it's been work/home/work/home for several weeks. I've noticed that my stress level has shot through the roof since I haven't been to the gym. I am very irritable and depressed. Once these weeks of hell are over, we'll be getting back to the routine. I know I should fit it in but I just can't - by the time my day is over, all I can manage to do is fit in four hours of sleep before it starts all over again. Anyway, that's where we're at.

Vitamin D Deficiency

The effects of Vitamin D deficiency and the number of individuals suffering from it, is in the news. One of the potential symptoms is weight gain. Read about it on the following site:
http://www.oprah.com/article/oprahandfriends/bgreene/bgreene_20080329/1

Lifelong Changes

I'm often asked if diets such as the latest low-carb diet or a low-fat diet or a diet-of-the-moment works, my answer is that "yes, you will most likely lose weight on that diet". However, the reason that the diet industry is staying in business, is that most do not produce lifelong changes in eating behavior. Moreover, most only "recommend" exercise. So since I have all of you for the long haul, I'd like everyone to start sharing what they believe to be lifelong changes that they have made since starting the program. I really want you to give this some thought and think about what you are going to do for LIFE in terms of conscious eating and exercise.

Asian Salmon

Here's a delicious and easy recipe.

Combine in a small bowl: 2 T soy sauce, 2 T dijon mustard, 2 T honey and freshly grated ginger. Smear on top a salmon filet and broil until flaky - about 5 minutes.

I served it with fresh spinach that I lightly sauteed with olive oil and minced garlic. Season withh salt and pepper.

Data

I'm going to try to post current graph on everyone. It will include lbs lost and % body weight lost, along with the person's name. If anyone does not want the information on the blog, please let me know (you can email me). Of course, I will not use anyone's weight.

Welcome!

Hi, everyone. This blog is a place where you can post questions, concerns, encouragement, tips, etc for the entire group to read. A blog is basically like a virtual meeting 24/7. When someone posts something, you'll get an email telling you that there is new information on our blog. I think this will help us inbetween our monthly meetings. Please use this space liberally.

Ann - you can post meeting dates/changes, recipes, workout routines, and so on.

If you have any questions or problems, please contact me here. If you need help using this, give me a call at 565-6999 and I'll walk you through it :)

Happy and Healthy in 2009!

Rocky