Some Like It Hot! Jorge's Skinny Muffin Gets Some Flava'

OK, So by now I am sure you have figured out that I tend to obsess over certain things.  Food is one of them.  I am constantly trying to find new ways to make over great recipes.  I love chocolate and on the opposite end, I also love foods that are spicy & sassy!

One of my favorite things to eat is Jalapeno Cheese "Anything".  So why not?  With a few minor adjustments this simple skinny muffin can be any flavor you want.

FABULICIOUS!

Ooh La La, Spice Up My Life!

This muffin cooked up super light and fluffy!  It was also very, very moist!  I used almond meal instead of the flax meal and it had a very nice "corn meal" texture which was perfect for this savory muffin.  I substituted egg whites for the whole egg.

Jalapeno Cheddar Skinny Muffin:

INGREDIENTS:

• 3 Tbs. Egg Whites or 1 Whole Egg
• 1 tsp. Olive Oil
• 1 tsp. Baking Powder
• 2 Tbs Shredded Cheddar Cheese
• 1 Tbs Sliced Jalapenos, or more (the nacho slices in a can or jar)
• 1/4 cup of Almond meal (Flax meal can also be used)

DIRECTIONS:

• Add egg whites to mug
• Stir in baking powder with a fork making sure it is fully incorporated
• Add the olive oil
• Stir in 1/4 cup of Almond Meal
• Stir in the Cheddar Cheese
• Fold in the Sliced Jalapenos
• Sprinkle a bit of shredded cheddar on the top
• Microwave for 50 - 55 seconds

CARB & SUGAR INFO: 8g Carbs, 0g Sugar
Almond Meal - 6 carbs, 1 sugar per 1/4 cup serving
Cheddar Cheese -  0 carbs, 0 sugars
Jalapenos - 1 carb, 0.5 sugar
Egg Whites - 0 carbs, 0 sugars
Baking Powder - 1 carb, 0 sugars
Olive Oil - 0 carbs, 0 sugars

DIET is a 4 Letter Word! HELP is on the way!

D.I.E.T. - Good heavens it has the word "die" in it!  Not my idea of fun.  I always cringe inside when people ask me "How's your diet going?"

Let's learn to give this a new spin and call it a Healthy Eating Lifestyle Plan or H.E.L.P.
There...isn't that better?  Help...say it...Help.  We all love help, right?  A simple Healthy Eating Lifestyle Plan! 

Life is beautiful, and so are you.  Life should be enjoyed.  Food should be a beautiful experience not a punishment.  If you don't like green beans, don't eat them!  Simple!

DIET vs. HEALTHY EATING LIFESTYLE
It is so true that weight loss really begins with the "diet" (ugh, there I said it), but I am using this term as the basic definition of: Diet:The kinds of food that a person, animal, or community habitually eats.  I have never been a fan of the word "diet". When the experts make statements that your weight loss begins with your diet, they mean you have to cut out all of the garbage you are eating and clean things up, not starve yourself. I feel that most people set themselves up to fail when they go on a "diet"! You are already telling yourself that this will be a short term adventure. Make a lifelong commitment to be conscious of what you are eating!

CALORIES IN vs. CALORIES OUT
Yes you need to consume less calories than you burn, creating a deficit, but starving yourself is not the answer.  Depriving yourself of food will make you go out of control and binge with a vengeance on all of those things you love so much.   Not to mention what it will do to your metabolism.  Going into starvation mode will only cause your body to hold on to all of those goodies you put in it when you finally binge. Sound familiar?  And how many times have you gone on a binge and then felt physically and mentally beaten when it was over?

If you are eating a healthy, clean balanced "diet" you will most probably automatically be in a calorie deficit because good, clean foods are naturally lower in calories and fat than the processed junk we find ourselves addicted to.  And think about it, if you get up and move a little you will burn even more calories creating an even greater deficit.  But if you continue to get most of your calories from "White stuff" (processed wheat and grains, sugar, etc) you can exercise until you drop and you won't see the results you desire.

FOCUS ON YOUR FOOD/SNACKS
We are all so guilty of mindlessly eating at times. You know what I mean...grabbing for that bag of chips, box of crackers, package of cookies, granola, ice cream, etc and going to town. I do believe it is OK to have these things within reason but it is of utmost importance to serve yourself a true portion and not just "eyeball" it, right?

CRAVINGS
I am not craving anything at this moment, but I do miss eating certain things. Jorge's plan is great at balancing your hormones and getting your insulin levels under control. I will be posting about cravings later and why they happen. It really is so simple once you understand it.

TRY A "CHEAT MEAL"
If you are finding it hard to stick to a rigid healthy eating plan and you are really missing eating certain foods then try giving yourself a cheat meal once every 5 - 7 days.

This means you can go have that nice dinner with your friends, or attend that luncheon or brunch. Don't go crazy, but eat those things you are missing. You don't want to undo all of your hard work by ingesting 7000 calories, right? But having a small piece of that cake you have been craving or a small serving of those Ravioli's from your favorite Italian restaurant won't kill you. But Jorge's original Belly Fat Program really let's you eat pretty much anything. Don't forget that if you take this route then you must also follow your healthy eating plan perfectly for the other 5 - 6 days! No excuses, lol.

GET UP & MOVE
You don't have to go overboard if you are not used to working out, but just get up and move. Take the stairs at your work, you can burn 100 calories by doing that. Park a few extra spaces away, let someone else have that really close spot at the mall. Walk! Break up your workouts into 3, 10 minutes sessions a day instead of 1 long session. Get a walking buddy and walk during your lunch break or go for a brisk walk first thing in the morning.

NEVER GIVE UP!
We all fall from time to time.  Let's really try to find out what is going on that is causing that constant falling back into our bad habits.  You can do this and learn to love it and love yourself.  So many good things to eat.  You just have to find ways to be creative with your meals.

Stick with me and have some great food and fun while we Live, Laugh & Love Life! Cheers!

Week 3, Day 1 Jorge Cruise's The Belly Fat Cure - Fast Track

Relaxation - So Nice!

Today was my off day for exercise!  It was so nice to relax and get some things done that I was falling behind on.  I have been doing well on Jorge Cruise's Belly Fat Cure Program. 

I will continue to follow the Fast Track program but I do plan to add back some of the grains like brown rice, quinoa and oatmeal perhaps 3 times a week in controlled portions to see how things go.

I will also continue to keep my sugar intake at 15g a day or less which is quite a challenge considering that almost everything we eat has some sugar in it.  I will allow myself to have a bit of fruit a couple of days a week to treat myself and my body.

I feel I am getting good results, but I want to be able to live as normal a life as possible and that means not restricting healthy foods forever.

It was my plan to try and balance my hormones and get my sugar under control.  I think it has worked!

Looking forward to a good day at school tomorrow!  We have a NASM Quiz on Program Design for workouts! 

Week 2, Day 7 - Jorge Cruise's "The Belly Fat Cure - Fast Track"

Yippee!  It has been 2 weeks since I started Jorge Cruise's "The Belly Fat Cure - Fast Track"

I ran again today and finished up week 2 of the Couch to 5k program I am doing.  I am feeling very exhausted.  I had to take a little rest today, but I am feeling much better now.

I tend not to sleep in a lot but I did get 7.5 hours of sleep.  Nice!

I made a very nice Belly Good Pizza last night.  Ever since I stumbles upon Jorge Cruise's Belly fat Cure, I have been obsessed with finding different ways to eat gluten free / grain free foods.  Finding Jorge's Skinny Muffin was like opening a whole new door to eating healthy for me.

I played around with Almond & Flax meal and this is what I came up with:

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 Cup Almond Meal
• 1 cup Flax Meal
• 1 Large egg
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 Tbs Olive Oil
• Water - small amount as needed.  (Dough should be firm and a bit crumbly).
• 1/4 cup Low Sugar Tomato sauce (your favorite brand)
• Granulated Garlic
• Grated Parmesan
• Shredded Cheese (your choice of favorites, mix it up)
• Sliced vegetables: Bell Peppers, Onion, Mushrooms, Jalapenos, Olives, Meats, etc

Belly Good Pizza







 DIRECTIONS:

• Press this dough into a lightly oiled cookie sheet
• Bake at 350 degrees for 10 - 15 minutes until slightly golden
• Add your low sugar sauce as needed
• Sprinkle a bit of Granulated Garlic on top of sauce
• Sprinkle a bit of Grated Parmesan
• Add Toppings - Bell Peppers, Mushrooms, Onions, Jalapenos, Onion, Meats (if desired)
• Add Shredded Cheese of your choice
• Bake again at 350 degrees until cheese is golden and bubbly!

Mmm Good!  Makes 4 servings,

MEALS:
Meal #1: Jorge Cruise's Skinny Muffin with Blueberries, coffee with sugar free creamer
Snack: No Snack
Meal #2: 2 servings of Belly Good Veggie Pizza
Snack: 4 ozs grilled Top Sirloin Steak
Meal #3:

WATER: 9 glasses

Week 2, Day 6 - Jorge Cruise's "The Belly Fat Cure - Fast Track"

Today was another great day. I gave my body a rest because it was a bit achy from all of the running yesterday. I felt weird not working out, but I am trying to listen to my body more. I will be running again tomorrow morning as I finish up week 2 of the Couch to 5k program I am doing.

I got a bit more sleep as well, it was nice.

I seem to be losing fat in odd places. I can see that my arms are smaller and my back is smaller, etc. I have not been weight training , yet I can see more definition on my shoulders, etc.


MEALS:
Meal #1: Jorge Cruise's Skinny Muffin with Blueberries, coffee with sugar free creamer
Snack: No Snack
Meal #2: 2 servings of Shrimp Campechana (shrimp, abalone, tomato, cilantro, avocado, hot sauce, lime juice)
Snack: 1 small pkg. of Trader Joe's "Just a handful of cashews", 1 Tbs of shredded cheese
Meal #3: 2 servings of my Belly Good Almond Meal Crust Pizza (almond flour, egg, olive oil, 2 Tbs low sugar sauce, bell peppers, mushrooms, tiny bit of onion, cheese.)., 1 square of Ghiradelli 86% Cacao (1/4 of a serving)

WATER: 9 glasses

Week 2, Day 3 of Jorge Cruise's "The Belly Fat Cure - Fast Track"

So far...So good!

I am now halfway through my second week of Jorge Cruise's "The Belly Fat Cure - Fast Track" eating plan.  It seems easier now that my body is used to not having those bad carbs and sugar.  I haven't lost any extra weight yet this week but my clothes feel looser and I feel good.  I am hoping by the end of the week I will have a small loss.

I was happy that I made it through the Fish Fry on Friday night and my book club on Saturday night without cheating, or messing up.  I just made good choices and passed on the hors d'oeuvres, bread basket & dessert and ate a small bowl of beef stew and a nice fennel salad.  I didn't even have any wine even though I could have had 1 or 2 glasses.  I really want to have a good, clean 2 weeks on this fast track program.

I do need to get more sleep but that has alwas been something I have a hard time managing.  I woke up early and got a nice workout in:

Awoke:  4:45 am
Warm-up & Workout: 5:00 am

TURBO FIRE - 45 minute workout!

I had a quiz at my Personal Fitness Training School, Chapter 13, NASM - Strength Endurance Chart - Acute Variables.  Woo Hoo, I Aced it!

We seem to be ahead in class so our teacher had us work out before lunch for about 30 minutes.  It was an exhausting circuit.  We learned how to progress exercises to make them more challenging for our clients. When we were finished he gave us a 30 minute break and we all ended up laying on mats on the floor to cool down and rest.  We looked dead, lol.

WARM - UP:  5 - 8 minutes Stretching
WORKOUT:  2 Circuits of the following - 1 minute each, as fast as possible - 10 seconds "rest"

3 minutes rest - Repeat 2 circuits again.

• DB Push Up with Renegade Row to Mountain Jumper
• MB Lunge with Rotation to Overhead Reach
• Squat with Horizonatal Row and Alternating Side Leg Lift
• Crunch on Bench to Jumping Pull Up
• Plank Diagonal Mountain Jumpers

We came back from lunch to our usual Lab work:

Warm - Up: 30 minutes Foam Rolling (Self Myofascial)
                     5 Minutes Dyamic Stretching

WORKOUT:  Too many circuits to list of Balance and core exercises some alone, some with partners. 
The workout lasted about 50 minutes of Balance, short break and about 20 minutes of core work.

MEALS:
Meal #1:  Jorge Cruise's Skinny Muffin with Blueberries, coffee with sugar free creamer
Snack:  1 scoop of MetRx Protein powder with water
Meal #2: 3.5 ozs or beef , top sirloin, 1 cup of brussels sprouts
Snack:  1 small pkg. of Trager Joe's "Just a handful of cashews", 1 Tbs of shredded cheese
Meal #3: 1 small bowl of homemade chicken soup (chicken breast, stock, carrots, celery, onion

WATER:  9 glasses

Low Carb - Low Sugar - Pepper & Asparagus Beef

Pepper & Asparagus Beef

I am trying out new ways to stay low carb, low sugar.  Jorge Cruise mentions that bell peppers and Asparagus are super carb foods so I used those and some very lean beef sirloin to create a tasty and healthy dish.

Pepper & Asparagus Beef
(makes 3 - 4 generous servings)

Ingredients:
1 Bell Pepper (or more)
1 Bunch of Asparagus
2 cloves of garlic
Olive Oil (a few Tbs as needed)
6 - 8 ozs of lean, beef sirloin
Salt & pepper to taste
Sriracha hot sauce (optional)

Preparation:

• Slice bell peppers
• Cut asparagus into 1 1/2" pieces
• Slice beef into thin strips
• sprinkle with slat and pepper and set aside

Directions:

• Heat Olive Oil in pan
• Saute bell peppers and Asparagus in oil until they start to soften
• Season with salt and pepper
• Mince or use garlic press and add garlic to the peppers and asparagus
• Add sliced beef to pan and continue to saute until the meat just turns brown outside.  (I like my beef tender and a bit pink inside, if you like it more done, cook a bit longer).  Do not overcook or beef will get tough.
• Stir in a dash of Sriracha hot sauce or your favorite if desired.

So Good!

Week 1, Day 3 - Jorge Cruise's Belly Fat Cure - Fast track

Ahhh, another day gone and I am doing well.  I actually find that if I keep busy I am not really hungry.  I know we are not supposed to count calories but I was shocked to find out that today I only had about 849 calories.  Here is my meal plan:

MEALS:
Meal #1: 9:00 am - 2 slices uncured bacon, 1 eggs, coffee with half & half , vanilla & stevia. (Probiotic taken 30 minnutes after this meal)
Snack: No snack
Meal #2:  2:30 pm - 4 oz of chicken, 2 cup of arugula, shredded parmesan cheese, olive oil , lemon & garlic dressing.  A few roasted peppers, 1/4 avocado (Probiotic taken 30 minutes after this meal)
Snack:  No snack
Meal #3: 4 oz grilled chicken breast, 2 cups cauliflower, hot sauce., 2 pats of butter. 2 tbs shredded parmesan cheese. (Probiotic taken 30 minutes after this meal)
Sugar: 5.7 gms
Carbs: 18g
Water: 9 glasses

Awesome workout this morning.  I did a new Interval Workout:

Warm Up for 5 minutes
First Intervals:  5 minutes
30 seconds on, 30 seconds rest.
Walk for 5 minutes
8 - 10 Intervals
45 seconds on, 2 minutes walking
Cool Down: 5 Minutes.

Week 1, day 2 - Jorge Cruise Fast Track

Hi,

So, I survived my first day, yesterday.  I kept myself super busy and was surprised that I was able to stay on track and not feel tired.  My mind did not have a lot of time to wander into the carb zone, lol.  I even bypassed my treat at night.  I estimated via Sparkpeople.com that I ate just over 1200 calories but the amazing thing was that in all of those calories only 7 grams were sugar and about 28 grams were carbs.  Amazing.  I will admit my fat grams were up higher that I am supposed to ingest but it was healthy fats except for the bit of butter I had with my dinner, but I will keep an eye on my fat intake and be more selective when it comes to eating it.

I do miss my morning Ezekiel Sprouted grain bread and my daily Banana (dear, sweet banana, you are dearly missed, sigh).

I know this is not forever but I am going to do this for at least 2 weeks and see how it goes.  I ordered Jorge Cruise's older book combo "The Belly Fat Cure & Carb & Sugar Counter"

I was interested in the first book as well because it will offer the option of having and counting carb servings and also has a lot of great recipes.  I am a carb & sugar lover so cutting both of those things out of my life would not be a lifelong option for me so learning how to manage these things would be great!

I didn't work out today and I feel badly about it, but I usually work out at school on Mondays & Wednesdays, but I woke up with an eye infection this morning and didn't want to infect my class so I stayed home.  I will get back on track with the workouts and try to work smarter, not harder.

MEALS:
Meal #1: 9:30 am - 2 slices uncured bacon, 1 eggs, coffee with half & half , vanilla & stevia. (Probiotic taken 30 minnutes after this meal)
Snack:    No snack
Meal #2:  1:00 pm - 3 oz of chicken, 1 cup of asparagus, shredded parmesan cheese, 1 pats of butter (Probiotic taken 30 minutes after this meal)
Snack:  1/2 oz cream cheese, 2 slices of reduced sodium, no nitrate turkey breast, 20 almonds
Meal #3: 12 large shrimp, 1 1/2 cup of brussels sprouts, hot sauce. (Probiotic taken 30 minutes after this meal)
Sugar: 8.1 gms
Carbs: 30.9
Water: 8 glasses

Week 1, Day 1 - So Far So Good!

Well, I am winding up my first day of Jorge Cruise's "The Belly Fat Cure - Fast Track"

I drank my coffee with half & half, a dash of vanilla extract & 1 bit of Stevia.  I must say it was quite good and made it easier to give up my sugar free, vanilla sweetener that I have been hooked on.

It has also been interesting not eating any grains.  I am a girl who loves her grains, especially my Ezekiel sprouted grain bread.  Hopefully i will be okay these next 2 weeks of the fast track program.  I am entering into night time which is when I usually have strong cravings for sweets and choxolate, but thankfully Jorge has made arrangements for that and allows me to have some dark chocolate.  I can even have red wine or a hot beverage if I like.  But I am really going to try and not indulge unless I really have to.

MEALS:
Meal #1:   9:30 am - 2 slices uncured bacon, 2 eggs, 1 slice of cheddar, coffee with half & half , vanilla & stevia.  (Probiotic taken 30 minnutes after this meal)
Snack:    11:30 am - 20 raw almonds
Meal #2:  2:30 pm - 3 oz of chicken, 1 1/2 cups of broccoli cooked in olive oil with fresh garlic.
Snack:  4:00 pm - 12 raw almonds, 1 Tsp Almond butter, 2 Tbs of shredded parmesan cheese. (Probiotic taken 30 minutes after this meal)
Meal #3: 9:00 pm - 4 oz chicken breast, asparagus, shredded parmesan cheese, 2 pats of butter (Probiotic taken 30 minutes after this meal)
Sugar: 7.0 gms
Carbs: 33.1
Water: 9 glasses

Trying Something New!

Well, I have been working out hard and trying to continue on with eating cleanly but I still feel like my metabolism is messed up.  I find myself sometimes not eating as many calories as I should and then not losing weight or inches.  This is very frustrating but I also know that in the long run this can also be detrimental to my fitness goals.

We constantly hear that "calories in calories out" is the key to weight/fat loss and that exercise can accelerate this process.  I do believe this is true but I am finding that in most weight loss programs they don't take into consideration our consumption of processed foods or hidden sugars. 

I am in menopause (yes at my age) and it has been a rough and bumpy road as I try to get my hormones under control.  I have had to ask myself, "what were you doing before that got you better results that you aren't doing now?".  Well the answer surprised me.  I have fallen into the trap that I can eat what I want as long as I don't go over my calculated caloric deficit and I work out hard.  Neither Weight Watchers or Sparkpeople.com really keeps track of what exactly one is eating, especially when it comes to sugar.

I have been working out so hard 6 days a week that I have been feeling tired and achy in my joints not my muscles.  I feel burned out not invigorated.  So what to do?

I did some research on the web & I happened to catch an episode of Dr. Oz where Jorge Cruise was a guest.  I found his new book "The Belly Fat Cure  - Fast Track".

It sounded like he was talking about ME!!!!!  He had the same beliefs I do and seemed to be on to something.  I also happened to visit my friend Doris' blog and by golly Doris was following Jorge herself and getting results!

I have enjoyed reading his book, I really do agree with all that he says and am going to put it to the test. 
I am starting his 2 week fast track eating plan today, so please check back to see how things are going!