Clean Eating Meatball Sub Recipe

It’s so easy come Friday to go out to eat because you’re tired from the week.  Last night I got this recipe from the website www.cleaneatingmag.com Simple and delicous! Maybe you can try this recipe this weekend. Leave a comment and let us know how you liked it.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb ground turkey
• 1/4 cup rolled oats
• 1 large egg white
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1 tsp dried oregano, divided
• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped, divided
• Olive oil cooking spray
• 1/2 medium zucchini, cut into 1/2-inch-wide strips (4 oz)
• 1/2 medium red bell pepper, cut into 1/2-inch-wide strips (4 oz)
• 1/2 medium yellow onion, cut into 1/4-inch-wide strips (3 oz)
• 1 tsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 cup fresh tomatoes, seeded, chopped and squeezed to release juices, seeds and juices discarded
• 1 tsp dried basil
• 14 oz whole-wheat baguette

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. In a large bowl, combine beef, oats, egg white, tomato paste, thyme, 1/2 tsp oregano, black pepper and 1 clove garlic. Line a sheet pan with nonstick foil and spray lightly with cooking spray. Form beef mixture into 1-inch balls, making about 50. Place balls on pan, not allowing them to touch. On another sheet pan, toss zucchini, bell pepper and onion with oil. Put both pans in oven and set timer for 5 minutes

2. In a small bowl, stir together tomatoes, basil, remaining 1/2 tsp oregano and remaining 1 clove garlic. When timer goes off, remove meatballs from oven and pour tomato mixture over them. Use a metal spatula to turn meatballs to coat with tomato mixture. Place back in oven for another 10 minutes, again setting timer. When timer goes off again, remove meatballs and set aside. Stir vegetables, return to oven and roast for another 10 minutes.

3. Slice baguette into 4 sections, then slice each section in half horizontally so it opens like a book. Spread open each section and tear out a bit of bread from the middle to make room for the meatballs. Toast bread in toaster or under a hot broiler for 1 minute to crisp.

4. To assemble sandwiches, open up each piece of toasted bread, pile on a quarter of meatball mixture and top with a quarter of roasted vegetables. Close sandwich and serve with a fork for any stray meatballs and sauce.

ENJOY THE SUNSHINE THIS WEEKEND!!!

Exercise and Injury

I am notorious for being a huge putz! I trip over curbs, stones, even my own feet! Sometimes I even fall for no reason other than my own clumsiness! In fact, my high school dance team did a tribute dance my senior year  as a m”last dance tribute” where they all randomly fell during the routine since I was always falling during practice.

This weekend I had another mishap after our move in. I was biking down to the end of our driveway to meet a friend that had gotten lost trying to find our new place. I thought it would be a good opportunity to bring our dog, Bailey, with me for a short jog. As we were heading back up the driveway I was holding Bailey’s leash in my right hand and motioning to my friend where to park at the same time. Yet, I needed to brake before I hit our house. And being that my left hand was the only free hand I squeezed my front brake too hard and over the handle bars I went.

Luckily, I’m okay and only have some sore bruises and skinned palms and knees!  This mishap brings me to the topic of exercising while injured.

Injury can happen to anyone…a pulled muscle, a strained back, a rolled ankle, a shoulder issue, and usually the injuries happen when you least expect it.

Pain vs. Soreness: Even if you are in great shape you can become prone to injury from over use of a muscle.  To prevent over use it’s important to make sure you warm the muscle up before beginning your exercise routine. This is why we always warm up before bootcamp with similar things we are doing during the workout.

If you do feel pain, stop for a day and give your body some rest.  If you are just sore, the pain of muscle soreness will go away after about 10-15 minutes of doing an activity. This is not the case when you are dealing with pain.  Until you are recovered avoid doing the activity that caused the injury as well as other activities that primarily use the injured area.

If your injury doesn’t feel better within a few days to a week, seek medical attention.

Move it or Lose It.

If you are injured don’t  use it as an excuse to do  nothing and stay in bed. This is a perfect opportunity to try out a new activity that doesn’t stress the set of injured muscles.  The human body has over 536 muscles,  there’s got to be one in there you can use! For example if your lower body is injured do upper body exercises like push ups, chest press, bicep curls, rows, etc.

The Return

Whether your injury has you slowed down for a few days or a few weeks return back to exercise slow and at a lower intensity.  You lose muscle much quicker than you gain it and you don’t want to cause another injury.  Before returning to your exercise program 100% you should be able to go through motions pain-free. When it doubt talk to your doctor and your trainers. We care about your progress, but are also concerned with your safety!

Be well.

BOOTCAMP WILL BE CANCELLED FOR SATURDAY, JULY 23RD

Bootcamp this Saturday will be cancelled as we will be participating in the Fondy Fair 5k! Come join the fun and enjoy and yummy muffin too! 🙂

Easy Weekend Muffins!

Brandon and I are super excited for this weekend because we are running the Fondy Fair 5k with some of our bootcampers plus we are moving! (Hopefully the humidty takes a hike before then!) To help get us fueled for the day I’m planning on making these easy and yummy blueberry muffins! Just another incentive for anyone else who wants to run the 5k with us…you’ll get a treat! 🙂

You can make them too! The only real prep work that needs to be done is chopping up some walnuts and mixing it together.  And since I usually don’t keep buttermilk on hand, here’s how you can whip up some of your own. Pour 1 tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice in the bottom of a measuring cup. Then pour 1 cup of milk. Let the mixture stand for about 5 minutes and waalaa…almost instant buttermilk.

You can use some fresh blueberries or raspberries for a tart kick. Or you can be adventerous and try rhubarb and strawberries.  And who doesn’t love the crumbly top of a muffin? That’s the best part!  Now you don’t have to feel guilty because that crispy top is made up of healthy walnuts. This recipe will make about 15-20 muffins depending on the size you make them.

Crumbly Topping:

• 1/4 Cup whole wheat flour
• 2 Tablespoons of butter
• 2 Tablespoons of sugar
• 2 Tablespoons finely chopped walnuts
• 1 Teaspoon finely grated lemon peel

Muffins:

• 2 Cups Whole Wheat Flour
• 2/3 Cup Sugar (or Stevia)
• 2 Teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 Teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 Large eggs
• 1/2 stick of butter
• 1/2 cup applesauce (to make up for the other 1/2 stick of butter)
• 1 cup buttermilk (or milk and vinegar mixture)
• 3/4 Cup blueberries
• 3/4 cup raspberries

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line muffin tin with paper liners.

To make the topping, in a medium bowl, mix together the toopping ingredients until crumbly. Set aside.

In a bowl mix flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.

In a large bowl, mix eggs with melted butter. Add buttermilk and lemon zest and whisk together. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir. Fold in blueberries and raspberries. Pour into muffin tin. Crumble the topping over the muffins and bake until golden brown. Bake about 20 min. Insert a toothpick into the center, when the toothpick comes out clean, let muffins stand about 10 minutes and ENJOY!

Leave a comment and let us know what you thought of the recipe.

Motivation Monday! How do YOU stay motivated?

It’s Monday and that means it’s time to get motivated for another awesome week!

Do you ever feel like you just lose your ambition on Monday? Maybe you took the weekend off of your exercise routine and now you’re struggling to get going again? Or maybe you over indulged and Monday has you feeling bloated and little “blah.”

Try these 10 tips to get and keep you motivated.

1) Tell People.  We can break a commitment to ourselves, but once you tell someone else you are more likely to follow through.

2) Enlist Scruffy. Having a dog forces you to exercise because they need to be walked…usually several times a day…and if not you’ll be dealing with a rambunctious dog or urine soaked carpets.  😦

3) Rock On!  Make an upbeat playlist of songs to keep you going. Studies show you exercise to the tempo of the music you are listening to. 

4) Hang Out Your Sexy Outfit. You know that dress or those pants that make you feel like dynamite whenever you wear them. Get ’em out and hang them where you will see them. Looking at your sexy black dress with a bowl of ice cream in hand is less likely to happen as you stare at the visual reminder of the goal you are working towards.

5) Lift The Weight You’ve Lost. Have you lost 5 pounds, 10 pounds, 20 pounds? Pick up a hand weight and do some bicep curls or triceps extensions.  That weight used to be your hips, thighs, and jiggly arms. Can you believe you used to carry around that weight every day!?!?

6) Put Some Money On It.  When I scheduled my dentist appointment a few months ago they made sure I was aware that I would be charged for my appointment whether I showed up or decided last-minute I couldn’t make it. Because I am totally frugal, I made sure no matter what I was at my appointment on time because I didn’t want to pay for a service I didn’t use.  Consider signing up for bootcamp or personal training…you wouldn’t waste money by not showing up, would you?

7) Become a Regular. One of the things I love about bootcamp is that when someone else is missing, everyone notices. By becoming a regular at a fitness class or bootcamp you automatically enlisted yourself into an entourage of people who know when you’re playing hookey and skipping your workouts.

8 ) Get in Front of the Mirror: When you feel fat you are likely to avoid mirrors and hide behind baggy clothes. DON’T! Face your reflection, even take a picture of yourself.   Instead of saying “My butt looks huge.” Say, “My waist sure accentuates my curves.”

9) Track Yourself.  Consistency is the key. Try charting your progress by writing down which days you completed your workout and how many inches you’ve lost. I have one woman who keeps a glass jar of rocks on her counter. For every pound she loses she adds another rock to the jar. Each day it’s a visual reminder of her progress.

10) Earn Free Stuff. Many insurance companies offer incentives for staying healthy because it saves them money when you don’t have diseases like diabetes and high blood pressure. Some insurance companies will even reimburse you for a fitness membership, attending a wellness conference, etc. Check with your insurance company to see if you are eligible.

Comment below and let us know how you stay motivated!