Tuesday, March 25, 2014

Banana Makeovers

Looking for something healthy to do with those ugly, brown bananas sitting on the counter? Make a yummy, portable snack that offers some protein and fiber! These muffins are free of unhealthy fats, but full of deliciousness. This recipe is also versatile. Want to sweeten them up? Add some chocolate chips. Want a little extra healthy fat and texture? Toss in some walnuts. Craving a big juicy steak? I can't help you there...

1/4 C melted coconut oil
1/4 C plain non-fat Greek yogurt
1t baking soda
1/2 t sea salt
2 eggs
1/3 C apple sauce
1/8 t pure stevia powder, undilluted (or 1 C sugar if morally opposed to stevia)
4 t fiber supplement, unflavored with no sugar or additives
1 1/2 C whole wheat flour
4 bananas

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a muffin tin with paper liners and spray them with oil (I used coconut oil spray). 

In a large bowl, mix the oil, yogurt, baking soda, salt, eggs, apple sauce, fiber, and sweetener of your choice. Next, add 1/2 C of the flour and 1 banana. Mix again. Alternate flour and bananas, mixing each time until batter is creamy. Fill 12 muffin tins with the batter and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into one muffin comes out clean. 

Climb To The Top

Hills are one of my favorite indoor cycling profiles to create and ride. They test your muscular and cardiovascular stamina, as well as your mental endurance. Your legs and lungs begin to burn, and just when you think you can't pedal one more second, you reach the top and get to crest over into that well-deserved downhill. 

Here's one of my favorites, music and all. This can also be done on a treadmill with incline during your run/walk. During the climbs, crank up the incline and simulate an uphill brisk walk or run - pump those arms and keep them OFF the treadmill to get the maximum calorie burn!

Warm up - easy resistance, an opportunity to warm up your legs and raise your heart rate
Armin van Burren – This is What it Feels Like (3:24)
Capital Cities – Safe and Sound (3:13)

Hill 1 - An 8-minute climb that begins seated and finishes out of the saddle. Rotations per minute (RPM) anywhere from 65-75.
Robbie Williams – Rock DJ (4:16) Seated climb. RPM 70-75
Carolina Liar – Show Me What I’m Looking For (4:00) Standing climb. RPM 65 on verse, 75 on chorus. Increase resistance before each chorus.

Recovery 1 - Come off the hill with light resistance, simulate a downhill feeling. Fast paced riding with enough resistance to remain in control. RPM 90-110
Kelly Clarkson – My Life Would Suck Without You (3:31) 

Hill 2 - Another 8-minute climb that begins in the saddle, and finishes out. RPM varies from 65-70 with heavy resistance.
Alex Clare – Humming Bird (3:50) Seated climb. Start with heavy resistance. RPM 65-70
AWOLNATION – Sail (4:19) Standing climb on verse, seated on chorus. Increase resistance before each chorus. Heavy climbing in the saddle. Top of your hard zone! RPM 55-65

Recovery 2
David Guetta (ft. Kelly Rowland) – When Love Takes Over (3:31) Repeat last recovery.

Hill 3 - Last climb! Alternating in and out of the saddle.
Justin Timberlake - Mirrors (8:05) One long climb. 4x (60 seconds seated, 60 seconds standing). Start with heavy resistance and increase each transition to standing . RPM 55-65.

Recovery 3
Pitbull and Christina Aguilera (3:58) Pick up pace for downhill for 2 minutes and slowly add resistance to get back on the flat road. Ride the flat road for 2 minutes. RPM 95-105

Cool down and stretch
Iron and Wine – The Trapeze Swinger (9:31)

Friday, March 21, 2014

Tangy Cucumber Salad

Let me start by saying that I've never been a huge fan of cucumbers... until I perfected this recipe. The health benefits of this superfood cannot be ignored, which prompted me to keep experimenting until I found a way to eat them. This recipe for cucumber salad is easy, tangy, refreshing, and absolutely delicious! Not convinced to work them into your diet? Read below for some reasons why you should make these a part of your balanced diet...

1. A great pick-me-up when you're feeling sluggish. Cucumbers contain B vitamins which can give you energy. Instead of a sugary beverage or vending machine Frankenfood, pick up a slice!

2. Cucumbers are 95% water, keeping you hydrated and feeling full. They also contain most of the vitamins the body needs on a daily basis. Just make sure to keep the skin on for the vitamin C.

3. Cucumbers have enough sugar, B vitamins and electrolytes to replace important nutrients lost from too much partying. Yes, that's right - cucumbers can cure your lingering St. Patrick's Day hangover!

4. With high water content, cucumbers are great for losing weight and staying hydrated. The dietary fiber in cucumbers helps rid the body of toxins and aids in digestion.

Throw together the recipe below in about 5 minutes for a healthy dose of this miracle vegetable! And, weighing in at about 100 calories per 1 cup serving, you can go back for seconds.

Tangy Cucumber Salad
2 medium cucumbers, thinly sliced (try to get organic - cucumbers are heavily treated with pesticides)
1/2 large red onion, thinly sliced
1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, cut in half
3 T yogurt (I've used low fat and full fat varieties)
1 T vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:  In a large bowl, whisk together yogurt, vinegar, salt, and pepper. Slice cucumbers and onion very thin; I used a mandolin slicer. Cut tomatoes in half. Add cucumbers, onion, and tomatoes to the yogurt sauce and mix until the sauce is evenly distributed. Serve immediately.

Sunday, March 16, 2014

Where have you been?

Boy, is that a loaded question. The short answer is "To hell and back." The long answer is....

About a year ago, my husband and I embarked on a very long, very emotional, and ultimately devastating journey of in-vitro fertilization (IVF). I became pregnant last July after the successful transfer of the only embryo that was created in the process. After a few weeks of ignorant bliss, I got knocked down with hyperemesis gravidarum, which I think translates in English to "really crappy luck." I couldn't even keep ice chips down, and ended up hospitalized a few times. I was sure that I would lose the baby because he wasn't getting what he needed. But, strong like his parents, he pulled through it. Things progressed normally, my belly swelled and I felt him moving; I was certain he was doing some kickboxing in there.

On Thanksgiving morning, excited to spend the day with family and reveal our little guy's gender with cupcakes filled with blue frosting, I woke up very sick. We went to the hospital where we learned that our son's heart had stopped beating. Stunned and devastated doesn't even begin to describe the feelings we had, and still do today. I was admitted to labor and delivery and began the long induction process that would ultimately end in the still birth of a beautiful baby boy. We held him, kissed him, and told him how much we wanted him. Our parents had the privilege of doing the same. And finally, we all said goodbye. He was buried with my husband's grandmother, fondly known as "Grandma Bach." She herself could never have children of her own and made her family through adoption. She was an amazing woman, and I know she will care for him, wherever they are.

You might be asking yourself, "Why is she telling us all of this? I just want to find a good recipe for kale and a new exercise to strengthen my core..." And the truth has two answers. First, because I'm tired of feeling ashamed. Infertility is not something that you choose; it chooses you. It chews you up, and then it spits you out. Second, because being labeled "infertile" can make you feel totally and completely isolated. The fact that so many people are afraid to talk about it contributes to this isolation and shame. To lose a baby is heartbreaking on its own; to know that you can't just "try again" is another level of despair. There is no shame in having to resort to IVF, or any other method of starting a family. The people who should be ashamed and embarrassed are the ones who have children they never even wanted, and then don't take care of them. The other people who should reframe their thoughts are the ones who look at couples without kids and think, "They must be really selfish or not like children." If you know us personally, you'll never know anyone who wants them more.

Don't worry, I'm not going to start using this blog as a platform for infertility; this is the only post you'll ever read about it from me. But, I'm in a place where I'm ready to start writing again, and I have a strong desire to shed some light on a very dark subject. Maybe you think I should get a gold medal in the Oversharing Olympics, and I respect your opinion. But, if this post can help make even one person feel less alone, then my journey has had even more purpose.

Through this experience, writing about healthy eating and exercise felt like a lie. I couldn't stand the foods I was used to eating, and even though I exercised daily, I was so limited I could barely work up a sweat. I had to eat packaged garbage because the smell of any food cooking was enough to send me into dry heaves. I gained 20 pounds (15 pounds of water and 5 pounds of cheese) and couldn't even wear my wedding rings anymore. I wasn't telling many people because I was in the land of "this is too good to be true." So, I just looked like I'd let myself go. That was a part of pregnancy I wasn't prepared for. I was fit and strong from the gates, and I was going to be that pregnant lady others hated - cute bump in my spandex at the gym hearing things like, "You just look like there's a basketball under your shirt!" I was prepared to give birth at the gym, joking that there's even an OB who takes my Spin class. A lot of those feelings changed when my body started hoarding water and the only food I could tolerate was cheese.

In my recovery, I have turned to exercise for the kind of therapy no amount of money can buy. I have cried through runs and left blood and tears on punching bags. Every time has proven to show me that I am strong and my body is capable of doing anything. I think I feel a post coming on about the mental and emotional impact exercise can have on the body...

I don't know where this journey will take me, but I know that taking care of myself is what is getting me through it. Something I like to say to motivate people to work out feels really applicable to the rest of my life right now: don't stop when you're tired, stop when you're done. And I'm not done yet.

In Good Health,
Gym Junkie Katie